Management control and autonomous motivation in the public sector: Evidence from the Dutch National Police

In public sector settings characterized by ambiguous goals and limited measurability of outputs, effective management control remains challenging. This study examines how results, action, personnel, and cultural controls are associated with autonomous motivation among employees of the Dutch National Police. Using survey data from 400 police employees, we test associations between control types and autonomous motivation and assess the moderating role of contractibility. We find that personnel controls are positively associated with autonomous motivation across contexts. Results controls are positively associated with autonomous motivation only under high contractibility, while action controls show no significant association. Cultural controls display a weaker and context-dependent association. The findings highlight the importance of aligning control choices with task characteristics in public sector organizations.