Digital Commons Network^™

Enacting Technology In Networked Governance: Developmental Processes Of Cross-Agency Arrangements, Jane E. Fountain

National Center for Digital Government

This paper discusses the technology enactment framework, an analytical framework to guide exploration and examination of information-based change in governments.1 The original technology enactment framework is extended in this paper to delineate the distinctive roles played by key actors in technology enactment. I then examine institutional change in government by drawing from current initiatives in the U.S. federal government to build cross-agency relationships and systems. The U.S. government is one of the first central states to undertake not only back office integration within the government but also integration of systems and processes across agencies. For this reason its experience during …

Icts And Political Accountability: An Assessment Of The Impact Of Digitization In Government On Political Accountability In Connecticut, Massachusetts And New York State, Albert Meijer

National Center for Digital Government

This report presents a first analysis of the results of empirical research into the impact of digitization on political accountability in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York State. The report focuses on presenting the empirical findings and these data still require further analysis.

Shifting Currents In Media Awareness, Chris Boulton, Erica Scharrer

Communication Graduate Student Publication Series

This longitudinal qualitative research study examines how a group of parents and teachers sought to raise awareness in their community about harmful media effects. Initially condemning the influx of new digital media technologies such as violent video games, the group eventually shifted tactics in an effort to go beyond ‘preaching to the choir’ and bring other parents into the fold. Their experience suggests that we might reconsider media literacy as a form of social work.

Umass Amherst Friends Of The Library Newsletter - Spring/Summer 2006 (No. 31), Jay Schafer

Library News for the Friends of the UMass Amherst Libraries

Message from Jay:

When I saw the cover of this newsletter in draft, my initial reaction was that champagne is not an image traditionally associated with research libraries. Where are the books? Where are the computers? Where are the smiling faces of our generous Friends? Then I rattled my chains of “Librarian Past” and realized that as “Librarian Future” champagne is the perfect symbol to celebrate the recent successes of the UMass Amherst Libraries. And success is the word that captures the events of the past several months. In a very short time, the Learning Commons has transformed the image, …

The Office/Industrial Land Dilemma: A Study Of The Blackstone River Corridor In Massachusetts, John Mullin, Zenia Kotval

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Faculty Publication Series

Local planners have often neglected their industrial resources and are therefore jeopardizing their economic base. There is clearly a mismatch between land zoned for industry and that which is suitable for development. Older areas are constrained by issues of compatibility, access, and environmental and flood plain issues. Greenfield sites are constrained by physical site characteristics, such as wetlands and slope, transportation networks, development pressures from other land uses and public perceptions and concerns surrounding industrial uses. Through this case study, this article analyzes the key factors that are influencing industrial land use decisions and provides recommendations that may be of …

Learning From Worcester Union Station: An Istea Success Story, Michael Di Pasquale

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects

The passage of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991 represented a major shift in federal transportation policy. ISTEA recognizes the interrelated nature of the country's transportation network, and the benefits of coordinating multiple transportation modes. More importantly, for the first time states could spend their share of federal transportation money (raised from gasoline taxes) on public transportation projects.

The ISTEA legislation gave priority to transportation projects that could spur economic development. In Massachusetts and across the country intermodal transportation centers were planned to facilitate efficient transit connections and to help revitalize cities and towns. Intermodal transportation centers …

Conference Keynoter Defends Practices Buried In New England’S Agricultural History, Plans For Future, Madeleine K. Charney

University Libraries Publication Series

Brian Donahue, environmental historian, debunks the myths of early New England farming practices.

Valley Free Radio Program Takes Things ‘Farm To Fork’, Madeleine K. Charney

University Libraries Publication Series

Written by Amanda Cather, this article describes the radio show "Farm to Fork: The Pioneer Valley's Local Food and Agriculture" which airs every other Tuesday from 6:30-7:30pm EST on WXOJ-LP, 103.3fm, Valley Free Radio. Hosted by: Madeleine Charney, Kelly Coleman, Leslie Cox and Don Persons. Listen via live audiostream: www.valleyfreeradio.org

Proposal To The Ethics Education In Science And Engineering Program, National Science Foundation: Role-Play Scenarios For Teaching Responsible Conduct Of Research, Michael C. Loui, C. K. Gunsalus

Ethics in Science and Engineering National Clearinghouse

We propose to develop and assess role-play scenarios to teach central topics in the responsible conduct of research (RCR) to graduate students in science and engineering. Together the scenarios will cover plagiarism, authorship, conflict of interest, interpersonal conflicts in mentoring, and concerns about compliance with research regulations on human participants in research, animal subjects, or hazardous substances. Two scenarios will present potential whistleblowing situations.

Intellectual merit: Few previous studies have carefully assessed the effectiveness of role-play in teaching ethics. We will conduct a rigorous, systematic assessment of role-play, using multiple methods, with a diverse group of graduate students. We will …

University Libraries Annual Report 2006, Jay Schafer

University Libraries Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Research And Publication In The Digital Age, Gerald Jay Schafer

University Libraries Publication Series

No abstract provided.

The Humane Metropolis: People And Nature In The 21st-Century City [Full Book], Rutherford H. Platt

The Humane Metropolis: People and Nature in the 21st-Century City

No abstract provided.

Wild Capitalism: Environmental Activism And Postsocialist Political Ecology In Hungary, Krista Harper

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

"Wild Capitalism" examines environmental issues in the "New Europe" of the twenty-first century. Specifically, it looks at how the meanings of "civil society" and "environment" have changed as environmentalists encounter the political and ecological realities of life after state socialism. Although environmentalism is a global social movement, environmental politics is a grassroots process in which activists creatively translate environmental issues into cultural idioms and political processes.

Great Expectations? The Changing Role Of “Europe” In Romani Activism In Hungary, Krista Harper, Peter Vermeersch

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

Contemporary political action for ethnic and national minorities in Europe appears to be increasingly directed towards supra- and transnational structures. This development seems indicative of the growth of a European space for minority activism – a public space that is less state-centered, that allows claims to be framed in terms of European standards and therefore facilitates the emergence of an active European citizenship. In theory, this “Europeanization” of minority politics may offer minority activists additional avenues for raising demands about cultural recognition and economic equalization. This article seeks to identify the possible implications of the Europeanization of minority politics by …

Democracy And The Environment On The Internet: Electronic Citizen Participation In Regulatory Rulemaking, Stephen Zavestoski, Stuart W. Shulman, David Schlosberg

eRulemaking Research Group

We hypothesize that recent uses of the Internet as a public-participation mechanism in the United States fail to overcome the adversarial culture that characterizes the American regulatory process. Although the Internet has the potential to facilitate deliberative processes that could result in more widespread public involvement, greater transparency in government processes, and a more satisfied citizenry, we argue that efforts to implement Internet-based public participation have overlaid existing problematic government processes without fully harnessing the transformative power of information technologies. Public comments submitted in two United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule-making processes—the National Organic Program’s organic standard and the …

Whither Deliberation? Mass E-Mail Campaigns And U.S. Regulatory Rulemaking, Stuart W. Shulman

eRulemaking Research Group

Mass e-mail campaigns are the organizational tool of choice for environmental activists seeking to inform and mobilize their constituencies. Some democratic theorists and reformers pin their hopes for more responsive and informed government policy on Internet-enhanced dialogue and debate. Electronic advocacy campaigns and action alerts are changing the nature and scope of public deliberation in contentious federal rulemaking. This paper examines the new digital landscape of electronic rulemaking through a case study of the recent mercury rulemaking at the US Environmental Protection Agency. Results are presented from an effort to code a sample of 1,000 e-mails selected at random from …

Globalizing 'Postsocialism:' Mobile Mothers And Neoliberalism On The Margins Of Europe, Leyla Keough

Selected Publications of EFS Faculty, Students, and Alumni

No abstract provided.

Challenges To Organizational Change: Multi-Level Integrated Information Structures (Miis), Jane E. Fountain

National Center for Digital Government

From introduction: Governments are extraordinary information creators, users, and disseminators. I-government focuses attention on the flow and structuring of information within government (Mayer-Schoenberger and Lazer, this volume). Government actors engage in knowledge work, specifically, in the creation, sharing, and communication of information. They design and redesign processes by which information flows according to legislative mandate, organizational practice and public need. Recently, they have sought to rethink information flows in order to leverage benefits from information and communication technologies. When public sector actors seek to change these information flows at any appreciable level of complexity, they inevitably engage in complex organizational …

External Contradictions Of The Chinese Development Model: Export-Led Growth And The Dangers Of Global Economic Contraction, Thomas I. Palley

PERI Working Papers

China’s development model faces an external constraint that could cause an economic hard landing. China has become a global manufacturing powerhouse, and its size now renders its export-led growth strategy unsustainable. China relies on the U.S. market, but the scale of its exports is contributing to the massive U.S. trade deficit, creating financial fragility and undermining the U.S. manufacturing sector. These developments could stall the U.S. economy’s expansion, in turn triggering a global recession that will embrace China. This is the external constraint. These considerations suggest China should transition from export-led growth to domestic demand-led growth. This requires growing the …

Monetary Policy And Financial Sector Reform For Employment Creation And Poverty Reduction In Ghana, Gerald Epstein, James Heintz

PERI Working Papers

This report summarizes the findings of a UNDP-sponsored study on the structure of the financial sector, central bank policy, and employment outcomes in Ghana. The financial sector is the primary conduit through which monetary policy affects real economic outcomes, and monetary policy determines the resources available to financial institutions. Therefore, monetary policy must be coordinated with financial sector reforms in order to improve employment opportunities, reduce poverty and support human development. The report develops a critique of financial programming and inflation targeting, presents a series of empirical estimates on the impact of monetary policy variables in Ghana, and describes the …

Why Racial Stereotyping Doesn’T Just Go Away: The Question Of Honesty And Work Ethic, Elaine Mccrate

PERI Working Papers

One of the most persistent stereotypes about blacks concerns honesty and work ethic. These characteristics are also central to employers' evaluation of prospective and current workers; employers say that these traits matter more than skills. However, honesty and work ethic are difficult to observe and assess, placing them squarely in the terrain of statistical discrimination theory. One common criticism of this theory is that employers should be able to collect enough information on prospective workers to render race irrelevant, and that highquality workers have incentives to signal their productivity to employers regardless of race. As a result, inefficient stereotypes should …

Social Models, Growth And The International Monetary System: Implications For Europe And The United States, Lilia Costabile, Roberto Scazzieri

PERI Working Papers

This paper explores the relationship between economic growth and the welfare state. We argue that: (i) the institutional constraints set by the international monetary system may be at least as effective determinants of growth differentials between countries as the different dimensions of their welfare states. We show how this international system may impose an asymmetric discipline/flexibility mix on the macreoconomic policies of different countries, thereby influencing their growth performance.; (ii) the European currency reshapes some of the pre-existing constraints and also open up new opportunities; (iii) in the new international setting, Europe is facing a choice between alternative models. In …

This Paper Explores The Relationship Between Economic Growth And The Welfare State. We Argue That: Postcommunist Mortality Crisis, Lawrence King, David Stuckler, Patrick Hamm

PERI Working Papers

During the transition to capitalism, the postcommunist countries have experienced unprecedented mortality crises, although there has been considerable variation within — and between — countries and regions. Much of this variation remains unexplained, although alcohol and psychological stress have been found to be major causes of declining life expectancy. We move beyond this finding by showing that the implementation of neoliberal-inspired rapid large-scale privatization programs (mass privatization) was a major determinant of the decline in life expectancy. We find that mass privatization also increased alcohol-related deaths, heart disease, and suicide rates, strong evidence that mass privatization created psychosocial stress that …

Accounting For Inequality: A Proposed Revision Of The Human Development Index, Elizabeth Stanton

PERI Working Papers

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a country-level measure of social welfare based on national values for average life expectancy, rates of adult literacy and school enrollment, and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. Since HDI is based entirely on national averages it can provide only limited information about distribution within countries. The distribution of access to key resources is an important determinant of the effect of health, education and income on both individual well-being and on the aggregate well-being of a population as a whole. This paper makes a case for the importance of inequality to measuring social welfare; …

Corruption And Pro-Poor Growth Outcomes: Evidence And Lessons For African Countries, Léonce Ndikumana

PERI Working Papers

There is growing consensus on the view that corruption hurts economic performance by reducing private investment, by adversely affecting the quantity and quality of public infrastructure, by reducing tax revenue, and by reducing human capital accumulation. In addition to inefficiency effects – causing lower growth for a given endowment in factors and technology –, corruption also has adverse distributional effects as it hurts the poor disproportionately. For a given level of government budget and national income, high corruption countries achieve lower literacy rates, have higher mortality rates, and overall worse human development outcomes. Corruption deepens poverty by reducing pro-poor pubic …

Price-Based Vs. Quantity-Based Environmental Regulation Under Knightian Uncertainty: An Info-Gap Robust Satisficing Perspective, John K. Stranlund, Yakov Ben-Haim

PERI Working Papers

Conventional wisdom among environmental economists is that the relative slopes of the marginal social benefit and marginal social cost functions determine whether a price-based or quantity-based environmental regulation leads to higher expected social welfare. We revisit the choice between price-based vs. quantity-based environmental regulation under Knightian uncertainty; that is, when uncertainty cannot be modeled with known probability distributions. Under these circumstances, the policy objective cannot be to maximize the expected net benefits of emissions control. Instead, we evaluate an emissions tax and an aggregate abatement standard in terms of maximizing the range of uncertainty under which the welfare loss from …

Risk Aversion And Compliance In Markets For Pollution Control, John K. Stranlund

PERI Working Papers

This paper examines the effects of risk aversion on compliance choices in markets for pollution control. A firm’s decision to be compliant or not is independent of its manager’s risk preference. However, noncompliant firms with risk averse managers will have lower violations than otherwise identical firms with risk neutral managers. The violations of noncompliant firms with risk averse managers are independent of differences in their benefits from emissions and their initial allocations of permits if and only if their managers’ utility functions exhibit constant absolute risk aversion. However, firm-level characteristics do impact violation choices when managers have coefficients of absolute …

Umass Amherst Friends Of The Library Newsletter - Fall/Winter 2006 (No. 32), Jay Schafer

Library News for the Friends of the UMass Amherst Libraries

Message from Jay:

Honoring the generosity of library donors has traditionally been a function of the Friends of the UMass Amherst Libraries newsletter. Last year this listing of some 5,000 donors required twenty pages with five columns of small print. This year we have even more names – 6,344 to be exact (and we are always in danger of omitting at least one person’s name in a list this long). To list or not to list, that is the question. Most donors enjoy seeing their names in print and we love to provide a documented list of our Friends, both …

Shifting Currents In Media Awareness, Chris Boulton, Erica Scharrer

Graduate Students Author Gallery

This longitudinal qualitative research study examines how a group of parents and teachers sought to raise awareness in their community about harmful media effects. Initially condemning the influx of new digital media technologies such as violent video games, the group eventually shifted tactics in an effort to go beyond ‘preaching to the choir’ and bring other parents into the fold. Their experience suggests that we might reconsider media literacy as a form of social work.

Dangerous Demographies: The Scientific Manufacture Of Fear, Elizabeth L. Krause

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

No abstract provided.