Professional Identification and City Managers: An Analysis of a National Survey

Abstract

This article examines the determinants of professional identification of city managers in U.S. local governments. This study explores Marvick's and Gouldner's theories on professional identification and applies these theories to whether city managers in local governments view themself as a professional, institutionalist, or hybrid. An analysis of a national survey of city managers in U.S. local governments is used to examine differences. Through descriptive statistics, this article first found out that the hybrid theory is more closely aligned with city managers’ professional identification. Second, through factor analysis the empirical results further supported the hybrid model. Finally, the logistic regression model showed that professional development activities of the city manager, not professional identification, predicted having a graduate degree in public administration/affairs. The findings from this study showed that more empirical research should be conducted examining professional identification of public managers.