STORIES CITIZENS TELL AND HOW ADMINISTRATORS USE TYPES OF KNOWLEDGE

Telephone interviews with 1, 000 citizens and follow-up personal inter views with 42 citizens make up the stories citizens tell in two Texas cities. These stories were reviewed by four managers in the cities. In terviews with these managers reveal seven types of knowledge: crowd, g arbage, pothole, siren, resurfacing, medal, and general knowledge. The managers reacted to the stories with anger frustration, surprise shoc k and defensiveness, but they also reacted with humor, relief: empathy , and with a recognition that in same instances, change was necessary. The managers used the stories to improve communications with citizens , alter spending priorities, reverse policy decisions, and improve the ir interpersonal skills. The stories also contained threatening inform ation, and the managers engaged in efforts to protect city officials f rom undue criticism.