Through the prism of cognition: exploration of local political leaders' behaviour during incented voluntary municipal amalgamation

For decades, amalgamation has remained at the top of the international reform agenda. Seeking to enhance local governments' economic efficiency and democracy, municipal mergers were encouraged in numerous countries. However, the results of such reforms remain controversial. The paper aims to extend the understanding of reasons for municipalities' diverging responses to financial incentives under amalgamation. In this way, the study adds to local public administration literature, by showing the influence of psychological factors and individuals' cognition on the result of mergers in the context of two Ukrainian local governments.