Naomi Aoki’s recent works incorporate psychological theories to investigate the nexus between public administration and society.
The application of psychological theories is not entirely new to the field of public administration. However, Aoki apply theories atypical of the field. For example, her recent study published in the International Journal of Public Administration builds on studies on criminal psychology and deviant behavior to empirically examine whether penalties affect the Japanese public’s willingness to comply with the stay-home order amidst the pandemic. This fusion is also seen in her work published in Government Information Quarterly and Computers in Human Behavior, which, inspired by psycho-ergonomics studies, examines the impact of the use of artificial intelligence on public trust in public services. Still other work, published in Risk Analysis and the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, applies insights from psychological studies of prosocial behavior to examine the public’s willingness to offer help to disaster-impacted local governments. Beneath this variety of research topics is Aoki’s consistent attention to the interaction between public administration and society, to which she applies a psychological lens in order to understand public behavior.
Besides the aforesaid approach, which is integral to her recent research, she has also authored and co-authored papers on topics related to public administration and management, such as civil service reforms, performance management, and public participation. Her publications since 2015 have appeared in the following journals:
・ The American Review of Public Administration
・ The Asian Journal of Political Science
・ Cities
・ Computers in Human Behavior
・ Government Information Quarterly
・ Habitat International
・ The International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction
・ The International Journal of Public Administration
・ The International Journal of Public Sector Management
・ The International Review of Administrative Sciences
・ Local Government Studies
・ Public Administration and Development
・ Public Management Review
・ Risk Analysis