Suchergebnisse

In a legislative setting, open access to the floor of a legislature & full debate are hallmarks of republican liberty. Yet the early US House of Representatives closed access to the floor & restricted debate. A rational choice explanation of control based on the degree of party conflict is tested using a database of all rule change proposals regarding floor access & debate in the first through the twenty-eighth congresses. I find that easements are not connected to partisan conflict or the lack of the same, but restrictions are. The majority party initiated restrictions to strengthen its powers on the floor to compensate for its weakness. The minority party took advantage of divided majority-party coalitions to limit the severity of majority control. 2 Tables, 41 References. Adapted from the source document.

This paper examines a historical case of institutional change, the development of the Bill of Rights, and claims that change may occur as a form of strategic political concession. Understanding why institutional change occurs has generally led to explanations that focus on the desirable properties of any rule change. The presumption is that those with power change rules only to advantage themselves. In this analysis, an alternative reason for institutional change is developed from the genesis of the Bill of Rights. The offer of institutional change is formally conceptualized as the strategic choice of political parties to enact changes to forestall a hostile and potentially growing minority. The historical and statistical analysis of the development of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution demonstrates that the change was made primarily for its political purpose of reducing political opposition and less for its effect on future policy outcomes. This finding challenges current work on endogenous rule change that assumes rule changes occur solely for the purpose of enacting sincerely preferred policy outcomes.

The first of two articles sheds light on the importance that mentoring plays in graduate student retention & success rates in the context of discussing how demographic patterns determine differential success rates. A review of prior studies reveals four kinds of capital necessary for successful graduate student matriculation & professional socialization: economic, social, symbolic, & cultural capital. Data from a 1997 questionnaire indicate that women were more likely than men to seriously consider leaving graduate school, & good mentoring seems to be the best defense against attrition. Despite the positive impact of good mentoring, the single most important factor contributing to leaving school is knowledge of a department member's misconduct; 50% of women vs 36% of men cited having knowledge of such behavior. Men registered higher levels of satisfaction with the degree of consultation & encouragement than women. Having come to graduate school directly from a baccalaureate program, offers of departmental orientation programs, & graduate student's number of children are factors significantly related to serious consideration of leaving school. The best predictor of dissatisfaction with the graduate student experience is level of faculty encouragement, mentoring, & consultation. Satisfaction is also predicted by beliefs that harassment incidents would be handled properly, provision of an orientation, unpleasant experiences in methods or statistics courses, decisions to attend based on department reputation, & gender. 4 Tables. J. Zendejas

In light of many women not completing their political science graduate programs, this study surveyed all currently active graduate students in PhD-granting institutions in the Midwest. In addition, a random sample of students was asked to complete a mailed questionnaire. Participants were asked if they had ever seriously considering leaving graduate school before completion of their degrees & what the major reason for their leaving would have been. The prevalent reason for leaving among men would be the lack of employment opportunities, while women cited an unsupportive work environment as the major factor. Good mentoring by faculty members could improve satisfaction among graduate students & strengthen student retention. Other suggestions for improving the experiences of graduate students are given. 2 Tables. L. A. Hoffman