Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The War Against Joblessness: U.S. Intervention In State Labor Markets In Response To Economic Recessions, Latasha Y. Chaffin

Dissertations

In comparative political economy, nations whose governing institutions direct economic behavior towards the market are classified as liberal market economies, whereas those nations that direct economic behavior toward coordinated efforts between stakeholders, often amongst business, labor and the government, are categorized as coordinated market economies (Amberg 2008; Hall and Soskice 2001). In spite of the United States’ classification as a liberal market economy, during the recent global recession from 2007 to 2009, and in other critical times of economic decline such as the 1990–91 and 2001 recessions, the national government and state governments have mobilized their resources in order to …

Judicial Behavior And Litigant Success In Environmental Cases At The United States Court Of Appeals, Elizabeth Wheat

Dissertations

This dissertation tests the legal model of judicial behavior and uses party capability, or litigant resource, theory to explain litigant success in the Court of Appeals for environmental cases and help understand the role litigant type and resources play. Environmental law has received little attention in judicial politics, and I examine which judicial behavior model explains case outcomes. The legal model argues case characteristics best explain judicial outcomes, whereas litigant resource theory posits judicial a litigant’s resources, or lack thereof, explain outcomes.

Galanter’s (1974) party capability theory focuses on advantages repeat players, the “haves,” possess and how these advantages enable …

Reading The Tea Leaves: An Exploration Of The Origins, Composition, And Influence Of The Tea Party, Bryce Don Summary

Dissertations

The Tea Party has become a powerful force in American politics. Emerging in early 2009, the Tea Party has elicited mass support among the public with important implications for public policy and electoral politics. However, there remains significant debate over the political characteristics and motivations of Tea Party supporters. The emergence of the Tea Party has also led to speculation that supporters will form a third party. Using survey data collected in 2010 and 2011, this dissertation examines the relationship between Tea Party and third party supporters. Evidence is found that although Tea Party and third party supporters disapprove of …

Tax Increment Financing In Missouri: Political Development Of The Statute Contextualized With Use And Patterns Of Adoption, Cassandra Butler

Dissertations

Economic development is in the interests of all governments as a component of society that impacts its citizenry’s well-being, yet in a democratic, capitalistic society, many aspects of the economy rely on the activities of private enterprise. Governments are often motivated to develop policies that allow them to “partner” with private enterprise in order to persuade their behavior on behalf of its citizenry. Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is one of the tools that states have enacted to assist local governments partner with private investors. The statute that enabled TIF use in the state of Missouri is now 30 years old. …

Who's Attending The Party? Elections, Parties, And Democratization In Postcommunist States, Jonathan Windle Riggs

Dissertations

The record of democratization in the postcommunist states indicates that there is a relationship between the type of electoral system they adopted and the success of their democratic development--countries which instituted proportional representation (PR) elections have achieved greater success than have those countries which instituted single member district (SMD) elections. The record also shows a second relationship existing between type of election method used and the development of political parties as important political actors--PR methods promote party politics whereas SMD methods do not. A third phenomenon--significant numbers of ambitious office seekers who have no party affiliation competing in SMD elections--strongly …

Creating Political Leaders: Lawyer Stories About Transitioning Into Political Office In Canada, Ralph A. Chatoor

Dissertations

Problem. Sustaining healthy democracies requires citizens to successfully transition from civilian life into political leadership positions. Despite the need for this transition to take place, little is known about the transition. Globally, lawyers are the most represented professional group inpolitics, therefore, a study of their transition acts as a good starting point in understanding the process. This study used the Nicholson Transition Cycle (NTC) to explore the transition of 65 lawyers into Canadian politics.

Method. An exploratory multiple case study approach was used to gather data from face-to-face interviews, phone interviews, public archives, email, and websites. Interviews were transcribed, coded, …