Citizen Satisfaction with the U.S. Federal Government: A Review of 2011 Results from ACSI

1. Citizen Satisfaction with the U.S. Federal Government: A Review of 2011 Results from ACSI Forrest V. Morgeson III, Ph.D. American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) Washington, D.C., January 19, 2012

2. Snapshot of ACSI • Established in 1994, ACSI is the only standardized measure of customer satisfaction in the U.S. economy, covering more than 225 companies in 45 industries and 10 economic sectors; companies measured account for roughly one-third of the total U.S. GDP • A quarterly measure of the national economy’s health; complementary to measures such as inflation and unemployment • 100+ departments, agencies, programs and websites of the U.S. Federal Government measured on an annual basis • Results from all surveys are published quarterly in various media and on the ACSI website, www.theacsi.org

3. ACSI and Citizen Satisfaction • ACSI measured portions of the Federal government as early as 1994 • Internal Revenue Service measured as part of the private sector study back to 1994 • Measurement of core Local Government services (police, waste disposal) also began in 1994 • In 1999, ACSI was chosen as the “gold standard” measure of citizen satisfaction by the U.S. Federal government • ACSI measured 30 “high impact” government agencies, reflecting the vast majority of citizen interactions with government, in 1999 and 2000 • Although now relying on optional agency buy-in, participation in the ACSI study has grown significantly

4. Why Measure Satisfaction with Government? Raise trust in government agencies and the government overall Identify areas for improving quality of service provided to customers Enhance government transparency and accountability Set “baseline” for customer satisfaction, measure progress, and benchmark performance Develop new citizen-government “feedback loop” ACSI Monitor and motivate public employees More efficient budgetary and resource allocation Provide critical information for annual performance reporting

5. ACSI Methodology

6. ACSI Methodology • In the ACSI Model, Customer Satisfaction (ACSI) is embedded in a system of “cause-and-effect” relationships • The variables in the ACSI Model are measured using multiple indicators, increasing their precision and reliability • The central objective of the model is to explain what influences ACSI, and what is influenced by it

7. ACSI Methodology ● A component score is a weighted average of a set of attributes, or survey questions, comprising a component or activity. Responses to survey questions are given on a 1-10 scale, which are then converted to a 0-100 scale for score reporting. ● An impact, on the other hand, predicts the increase in satisfaction that would result from a 5-point increase in a component score. ● Areas for improvement are those components or activities with a relatively low score and a relatively high impact on satisfaction. EXAMPLE Activity 1 76 In the simplified example shown here, Activity 2 would be a key action area due to its relatively low score and high impact. .8 ACSI 65 1.5 Activity 2 65 Impact Score

8. 2011 ACSI Overall Results U.S. Federal Government

9. Aggregate Federal Satisfaction, 1999-2011* *A methodology change in 2007 limits comparability to prior years. Year-to-year trending is recommended.

10. Satisfaction Gain 2010 to 2011 ● Year-on-year, the Federal Government ACSI score increased significantly, up 1.5 points from 2010, a gain of 2.3% ● This gain erases almost half of the large 3.3-point decline between 2009 and 2010

11. 2011 Federal Government ACSI Model 71 Process 71 • Ease • Timeliness 71 2.1 72 Information 72 0.6 • Clarity • Accessibility 10% 74 72 Perceived Quality Customer Complaints 1.8 79 4.0 Customer Service 78 • Courtesy • Professional 67 -1.7 Customer Satisfaction (ACSI) 80 3.1 0.1 0.4 74 • Ease • Usefulness Website 69 4.8 70 69 77 0.7 Customer Expectations Agency Trust 68 • Confidence • Recommend 69 N = 1381; 90% Confidence Interval = 1.2

12. Citizen Satisfaction by Federal Department

13. Public and Private Sector Comparisons

14. Complaint Behavior and Citizen Satisfaction

15. Few Citizens Complain, but…

16. Complaints are Handled Poorly, and… Complaint Handling Score (0-100)

17. Complaint Handling Impacts Satisfaction

18. Contact Channel, Satisfaction and Agency Trust

19. Satisfaction by Most FrequentContact Channel

20. Agency Trust by Most-Popular Contact Channels (Offline vs. Online)

21. Demographics and Citizen Satisfaction

22. Citizen Satisfaction and Gender

23. Satisfaction with Federal Agencies among Citizens in the 10 Most Populous States

24. Satisfaction, Trust and Ideology Agency Trust Satisfaction

25. Agency Trust and Diffuse Trust with the Federal Government

26. Agency and Diffuse Trust ● ACSI measures both agency trust (confidence in the agency experienced), and generalized trust (trust in the Federal government as a whole) ● Similar to the results found in other studies, trust in Washington D.C. scores far lower than trust in individual agencies experienced • ● This year, trust in Washington D.C. has dropped significantly, while trust in the performance of particular agencies has increased slightly

27. Agency and General Trust

28. Agency and Diffuse Trust 69 Agency Trust 1.2 36 Overall Trust in Federal Government 4.8 67 Customer Satisfaction (ACSI) 0.6 ● These results show that while satisfaction with an agency experience drives overall trust in the government directly, it also has a strong effect through agency trust -In other words, agencies that offer a more satisfying experience will build trust in their agency, but also help build (or rebuild) general trust in the entire Federal government among American citizens

29. ACSI • For more information, visit the ACSI website at: www.theacsi.org