Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons^™

Film: The Trial Of Socrates Study Guide, 2012, Steven A. Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Marcello Pera: Why We Should Call Ourselves Christians Study Guide, 2012, Steven A. Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Marcello Pera’s Why We Should Call Ourselves Christians provides a framework for understanding the moral crisis of our age represented by liberalism’s diversion from its foundations in a Christian culture and its conversion into a corrupter of that culture through what he calls “the secular equation.”

Ford Foundation, José Villalobos

Departmental Papers (PS)

No abstract provided.

Considered A Foreign Policy Neophyte, Barack Obama Emerges As One Of The Nation’S Most Competent Commanders In Chief, Howard Manly

Trotter Review

During the 2008 presidential campaign, the main criticism against Barack Obama was that he was too green to lead America’s foreign policy and military.

It was a charge that Republican conservatives made against Democratic candidates with predictable frequency and had become a proven winning strategy after Ronald Reagan steamrolled perceived military bumbler Jimmy Carter in 1980. Conventional wisdom suggested that strategy would work even better against Obama.

In a move that foreshadowed his military decision-making, Obama authorized within the first four months of his administration the military rescue of Richard Phillips, the American sea captain taken hostage by pirates in …

Measuring Human Rights: A Review Essay, David L. Richards

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Measuring Human Rights. By Todd Landman & Edzia Carvalho. New York, NY: Routledge, 2010. 163pp.

Brazil’S Upcoming “Mega-Events” Human Rights Legacy, Thomas Pegram

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Preparations for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games are well underway in Brazil, with local government officials in Rio de Janeiro trumpeting the “major success” of initiatives intended to address notoriously high levels of violent crime.

In an attempt to head off widespread concerns, which preceded South Africa’s hosting of the 2010 World Cup, the apparent success of initiatives such as the Police Pacification Units (PPUs) cracking down on insecurity in Rio’s shantytowns (many, such as Rocinha, close to popular tourist areas and venues for Olympic events) has been loudly hailed by local politicians and duly reported by …

From “Iron Fist” Policies To Comprehensive Social Intervention, Claudia Heiss

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The latest effort by Brazilian authorities to control crime in Rio's favelas confronts us with several complex questions regarding democracy, the rule of law, and civil-military relations, not only in this case, but throughout Latin America. What conclusions can we derive from the military and police interventions in Rio about the state of affairs of these third-wave democracies?

Hiv/Aids In The Muslim-Majority Countries: Formula For Low Prevalence, Kaoru Yamaguchi

Political Science Theses and Capstones

The Muslim-majority countries long had been considered to be free of HIV/AIDS epidemic because of their strict religious and moral codes. However, the HIV prevalence rates are increasing in some Islamic states, and even more or so rapidly in a several cases that it is no longer valid to assume the Islamic religion protects its followers from the risks of contracting HIV. Contrary to the popular belief concerning the prevention of the HIV/AIDs epidemic, data collected from well-recognized international organizations such as the WHO and Freedom House indicate that democratization, strong government leadership, and wider and equal human rights for …

Play Fair With Recidivists, Richard Dagger

Political Science Faculty Publications

Retributivists thus face a difficult challenge. Either we must go against the social grain, and perhaps our own intuitions, by insisting that a criminal offense carry the same penalty or punishment no matter how many previous convictions an offender has accrued; or we must find a way to justify the recidivist premium. I shall take the second route here by arguing that recidivism itself is a kind of criminal offense. In developing this argument, I shall rely on Youngjae Lee's insightful analysis of "recidivism as omission." I shall complement his analysis, however, by grounding it in a conception of criminal …

Review Of Daniel Mockli's "Strategic Trends 2012: Key Developments In Global Affairs, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

This review essay describes and analyzes the content of this annual compilation of international affairs essays published by the Zurich-based Center for Strategic Studies.

Did Secularism Fail? The Rise Of Religion In Turkish Politics, Zeynep Taydas, Yasemin Akbaba, Minion K.C. Morrison

Political Science Faculty Publications

Religious movements have long been challenging the modernist and secularist ideas around the world. Within the last decade or so, pro-religious parties made significant electoral advances in various countries, including India, Sudan, Algeria, and the Palestinian territories. In this article, we focus on the rise of the pro-religious Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi- AKP) to power in the 2002 elections in Turkey. Using the Turkish experience with political Islam, we evaluate the explanatory value of Mark Juergensmeyer's rise of religious nationalism theory, with a special emphasis on the "failed secularism" argument. Our analysis indicates that the …

Ethics In Action : A Study Of Ethical Decision Making In Counterinsurgencies, Marcus Schulzke

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The goal of this dissertation is to analyze the kinds of ethical challenges soldiers encounter during counterinsurgency operations, what decision making processes or values they use to resolve these challenges, and how military institutions and culture influence soldiers' ethical reasoning. The first part of the dissertation is an assessment of various theories of applied ethics and how these can be used by soldiers during counterinsurgency operations. The second part discusses the institutions and cultures of the American Army, British Army, and Israeli Ground Forces. In the third part, I take up the problem of how soldiers from each of these …

Acts Of Defiance : Local Policy Innovation And Diffusion In Same-Sex Marriage, Karyn Teressa Andrade

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Like many other controversial social issues, same-sex marriage has followed the ebb and flow of the political stream for almost 30 years in the United States. What pulled this policy issue out of the policy stream and placed it front and center in the public's mind were the actions of a handful of local officials who, in the winter of 2004, acted against the status quo and instituted public policies in favor of same-sex marriage. This research provides a case study analysis of the six localities whose officials acted in defiance of law and social custom, and began issuing marriage …

The Emergence Of A Standards Market: Multiplicity Of Sustainability Standards In The Global Coffee Industry, Juliane Reinecke, Stephan Manning, Oliver Von Hagen

Management and Marketing Faculty Publication Series

The growing number of voluntary standards for governing transnational arenas is presenting standards organizations with a problem. While claiming that they are pursuing shared, overarching objectives, at the same time, they are promoting their own respective standards that are increasingly similar. By developing the notion of ‘standards markets,’ this paper examines this tension and studies how different social movement and industry-driven standards organizations compete as well as collaborate over governance in transnational arenas. Based on an in-depth case study of sustainability standards in the global coffee industry, we find that the ongoing co-existence of multiple standards is being promoted by …

Who Shapes The Classroom? A Case Study Of Congress, The President, And Their Motivations For Involvement In Federal Educational Policy, Kyle Swalls

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper examines three major influences on legislative and presidential decision-making. These three influences are 1) an officeholder's personal views, generated by socialization and experiences prior to holding office, 2) the political institutions, which speak to the complexities and many actors involved who shape the prioritization of issues, and 3) an office-holder's responsibility to a constituency which is motivated by reelection hopes. To create this model, a case study of four members of the U.S. House of Representatives and President Barack Obama was conducted regarding their involvement with federal educational policy. This framework can be further developed for the purpose …

Strategic Defense And Attack For Series And Parallel Reliability Systems: Comment, Dan Kovenock, Brian Roberson

Economics Faculty Articles and Research

The contest-theoretic literature on the attack and defense of networks of targets focuses primarily on pure-strategy Nash equilibria. Hausken's 2008 European Journal of Operational Research article typifies this approach, and many of the models in this literature either build upon this model or utilize similar techniques. We show that Hausken's characterization of Nash equilibrium is invalid for much of the parameter space examined and provides necessary conditions for his solution to hold. The complete characterization of mixed-strategy equilibria remains an open problem, although there exist solutions in the literature for special prominent cases.

The Practice Of Government Public Relations, Mordecai Lee, Grant W. Neeley, Kendra Stewart

Political Science Faculty Publications

With the recent change of administration in the U.S. executive branch, we have seen increased attention to issues of public information, transparency in government, and government and press relations in the United States and abroad. In addition, rapidly evolving technology and its influence on public communication have left many in government struggling to remain current in this area. Citizens and constituents learn to use interactive tools when searching for information, utilize technology for communications, and now expect government information and services to exist in the same information space as private entities.

This book is an effort of leading experts in …

The Lilliputians Of Environmental Regulation: The Perspective Of State Regulators, Michelle C. Pautz, Sara R. Rinfret

Political Science Faculty Publications

When we think about environmental policy and regulation in the U.S., our attention invariably falls on the federal level and, more specifically, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Although such a focus is understandable, it neglects the actors most responsible for the implementation and maintenance of the nation's environmental laws — the states. Recognition of the importance of the states still ignores an even smaller subsection of actors, inspectors. These front-line actors in state environmental agencies are the individuals responsible for writing environmental rules and ensuring compliance with those rules. They play an important role in the environmental regulatory state.

With …

One Tough Nut: The Development Of Legislative Structure And Procedure In The Constitution Of The Buckeye State, Nancy Martorano Miller, Ronald D. Hedlund

Political Science Faculty Publications

American state legislatures have evolved dramatically throughout their history. In particular, the structures, rules and procedures governing the operations legislatures have changed significantly over the course of the 20th and 21st Centuries. The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical framework for studying the development and evolution of American state legislatures. We then apply that framework to the case of constitutional provisions impacting the legislative branch in Ohio and conclude that the initial decision to invest significant authority in the legislative branch significantly impacted the evolution of legislative evolution and development in the state.

Can Representativeness Decrease Youth Violence In Juvenile Detention Facilities?, Ginger Silvera

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Using the theory on Representative Bureaucracy, this study considers the minority representative role, which suggests that administrators who are minorities are more inclined to represent minority interests. This study examined whether officers perceive themselves as advocates based on shared demographics and whether they develop attitudes toward reducing youth violence. Considerably more researchers conduct studies in adult prisons than juvenile correctional facilities, which focus on rehabilitation for youth. Therefore, this study further examines youth correctional staff attitudes toward inmates. The way correctional officers' treat minors may impact the amount of violence in juvenile detention facilities.

The purposes of the study are …

Congressional Voting On The Federal Debt Ceiling: An Analysis Of Voting Behavior In The House Of Representatives, Juanita Espinoza

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This paper is an analysis on House Representative voting patterns in regards to increasing the federal debt ceiling. This study relied on data obtained from Howard Rosenthal and Keith Poole on roll call data from 1993 until 2011, with specific attention to House of Representative votes.

This paper focuses on the federal debt ceiling and the recent increases to continue financing government operations. The federal debt has been increasing at unprecedented levels due to the lack of economic growth and financial crisis that have impacted the United States. The impact of increasing the federal debt limit is examined as well …

Talking The Talk And Walking The Walk: Do A Federal Agency's Women-Centered Services Match A Women-Centered Organizational Culture?, Sally Anne Mcshane

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Federal government agencies that provide services for women would presumably have an internal women-friendly organizational culture. In this study, organizational culture is measured by financial benefits - annual salary and federal General Schedule grade - provided to women. Regression analyses were used to examine whether gender, grade, and type of agency have an effect on salary and grade. Also bonuses to women are examined, as well as whether men or women are the heads of individual agencies or umbrella departments. Women were awarded fewer bonuses and lesser amounts as compared to men. Also women often are leaders of individual women-centered …

Nations And Organizations: Explaining The Mérida Initiative Through The Essence Of Decision, Richard Sebastian Flores

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis seeks to explain state behavior and underpinning influences paramount to the political development of the Mérida Initiative. To accomplish this task, it crafts distinct, yet complimentary narratives that illustrate how and why the formulation of this policy unfolded. Utilizing historical, archival and empirical evidence, this thesis maps out the manners in which the national governments, organizational hierarchies, and bureaucratic entities involved with Mérida's origins reacted to the changing landscape throughout the policy's development.

The Mérida Initiative is critical to understanding how nations are approaching the problem of illicit crime organizations and institutional instability in the U.S.-Mexico region. Encompassing …

Bankruptcy And Politics: A Framework For Bankruptcy Policymaking In The United States Congress And Courts, Kevin Mandell Ball

Wayne State University Dissertations

The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 was enacted amid much controversy and was considered by many observers to mark a major change in the direction of U.S. bankruptcy policy. The dissertation uses the law's passage as a vehicle to develop an explicit model of the integrated role of Congress, issue networks, and the courts in making policy. Following Baumgartner and Jones (1993), Sabatier (1988), and others, the dissertation tracks bankruptcy policymaking and implementation over a seventy-five year period to demonstrate that policy is made in three distinct venues: Congress; a policy community made up of lawyers, …

Epistemic Communities And Regional Governance: Policy Development In Municipal Finance Reform, Shanthi Karuppusamy

Wayne State University Dissertations

In recent times, the US has undergone significant changes in how regional governance is conceptualized and the focus has shifted from government to governance and from governmental consolidation to problem solving (Barnes and Foster, 2011). Policy makers' quest for interjurisdictional responses to the financial crisis and the recession has rekindled interest in the topic of regional governance. However, the economic, social and technical changes of the recent decades, which have now assimilated in US urban regions, fundamentally challenge existing dominant ways of thinking about regional governance and call for more useful analytic frameworks (Bollens, 1997; Barnes and Foster, 2011). This …

René Girard: The Goodness Of Mimetic Desire Study Guide, 2012, Steven A. Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Michael Oakeshott: Lectures In The History Of Political Thought Study Guide, 2012, Steven A. Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Ernest Barker: Social Contract Introduction, Section Iii, On Rousseau Study Guide, 2012, Steven Alan Samson

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

E Pluribus Urbes: Interest Group Organization’S Effect On The Fragmentation And Governance Of American Urban Areas, Matthew L. Howell

Theses and Dissertations--Public Policy and Administration

American cities have proliferated in the post-War era. More than 2,000 new cities were founded between 1950 and 2000. While the history of the local government boom has been documented, research into urban fragmentation has explored why there is no consolidation of metropolitan areas rather than exploring why Americans chose fragmentation initially.

This dissertation proposes that individuals create new jurisdictions because individuals prefer to have governments which give them the services individuals desire, even if they could have similar (but not perfect) services cheaper in a larger jurisdiction. Individuals, however, must balance the benefit they get from better fitting cities …

Voter Ideology, Tax Exporting, And State And Local Tax Structure, John M. Foster

Theses and Dissertations--Public Policy and Administration

State and local governments play an important role in financing and delivering public services in the United States. In 2008, state and local governments collected 57 percent of total federal, state, and local revenue (Urban Institute and Brookings Institution, Tax Policy Center, 2009). The decentralization of fiscal responsibility has enabled a high degree of variation in state and local tax structures to emerge. This dissertation presents two empirical studies that extend the positive literature on state and local tax policy.

The extant literature contains evidence of a direct relationship between voter ideology and state and local tax progressivity. However, the …