Citizen satisfaction of municipalities’ services and their size in terms of inhabitants number

Abstract

The study regards municipal services and whether the size of municipalities, in terms of population, affects citizens’ satisfaction. In general, it is believed that economies of scale exist in the operation of municipalities, and therefore, more populous municipalities should be able to provide better services than smaller ones. Moreover, the findings show that this varies depending on the type of service in question. It is also interesting to note that the relationship between size and quality is generally non-linear. The study was based on a large dataset from the Regional Residents Survey, which included nearly 29,000 participants from 2016, 2017, 2020, and 2023. In the survey, participants were asked about their satisfaction with various municipal services such as primary schools, preschools, and 18 other areas for which municipalities are partly or wholly responsible. The quality of services is therefore based on residents’ assessments. The study also examined whether factors other than municipal size influenced service quality. These included, for example, the geographic expanse of the municipality (measured in square kilometres), rapid population growth, and the number of service centres, among others. In addition, the study provided an opportunity to assess how residents rated the quality of services during the COVID crisis compared to the years before and after. The study primarily compares residents’ attitudes across the country toward the services provided by their municipalities, highlighting differences by municipal size and other characteristics. Its content could therefore serve as a contribution to the ongoing discussion on municipal mergers.