Suchergebnisse

The article presents a process by which qualitative case study implementation research may be cumulated. Using the concept of the hermeneutic spiral, an iterative process is employed in order to increase understanding of welfare implementation since the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. This process involves a review of recent welfare reform literature, the use of the knowing organization model (KOM) as a research frame for understanding the existing literature and the application of the KOM to primary data collected from county welfare offices in Pennsylvania. Adapted from the source document.

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine how organizational characteristics at higher education institutions (HEI) influence their sustainability performance as measured by the advancement of sustainability in higher education's sustainability tracking, assessment and rating system (STARS).


Design/methodology/approach
This analysis identified 11 independent variables to measure the impact of four general organizational characteristics – structure, commitment, culture and planning – on sustainability performance. Through an examination of relevant literature, especially that specific to HEI, 13 hypotheses were formulated to test the impact of these organizational characteristics on sustainability performance and to explore the relationships between these characteristics. Using self-reported STARS data from US HEI, a variety of statistical methods, including ordinary least squares regression, ANOVA, Chi-square test and bi-variate correlation, were used.


Findings
The analysis suggests that HEI with both a sustainability office and a sustainability committee, more staff in a sustainability office, a more comprehensive sustainability plan and earlier and more frequent STARS submissions had higher STARS scores. Furthermore, doctoral-granting HEI had higher STARS scores and were more likely to have the organizational characteristics of higher-performing HEI.


Originality/value
Although other studies have used STARS data to examine organizational characteristics, this study includes more organizational characteristics, and it explores both their relationship to sustainability performance and their relationship with each other.

Social equity is an important normative construct in public administration. However, its operationalization is vague and it is empirically underutilized. This article combines political economy, social equity, and environmental justice literatures to explore the contentious issue of hydraulic fracturing for natural gas (commonly called "fracking"). Through interviews with local officials, we show that local officials are aware of equity issues, many take action to reduce inequities related to gas drilling, and equity is often at odds with private property rights. Finally, equity issues are more likely to be associated with inequitable distribution of costs and benefits than traditional distributional social equity.

Public administration scholars often associate increased public participation in policy implementation with the advancement of democratic values. Likewise, scholars engaged in the various forms of action research (AR) promote their efforts as a means to democratizing the research process or contributing to improved social outcomes. Despite these common interests in participation and democracy, there have been few attempts to apply AR methods to policy implementation problems. Drawing on Matland's conflict-ambiguity matrix, we develop a framework for matching particular AR methods to specific policy implementation contexts. Adapted from the source document.

Sustainable communities on Rapa Nui (Easter Island, Chile) — whether in the past or present— require good governance of shared and common pool resources. Whether managing communal land needed for cultivation, ground water, stones for tools, fishing grounds, cultural heritage, or tourism, governance structures must balance individual interests with the common needs of the community. Much of the recent history of the island has been dominated by government structures that were imposed by Chilean authorities. Recently, however, much of the island's cultural heritage has been turned over to local native governance. This shift has challenges due to the complex contemporary landscape but is a significant step forward toward addressing accountability, inclusivity, and local needs. Looking at the pre-European contact governance of the island, we argue that many of the same challenges and solutions were adopted with some important distinctions.