Public Administration Commons^™

Governing Algorithmic Attention: Attention Safeguard Models And The Cognitive Attentional Standard As System Level Interventions In Human Computer Interaction, Behavioral Economics, And Artificial Intelligence, Delante Clark

Graduate Scholarship and Creative Works

Algorithmic recommendation systems and interface designs shape attention by combining visually salient cues with uncertain reward timing and low friction interaction. These conditions can sustain anticipatory checking, extend time on task, and reduce natural disengagement points through patterns such as infinite scrolling and autoplay. This paper synthesizes research across neuroscience, human computer interaction, behavioral economics, and artificial intelligence to argue that attention capture is a predictable outcome of incentive driven design rather than an individual failure of self regulation. It advances the Attention Safeguard Models and the Cognitive Attentional Standard as system level interventions that regulate exposure conditions, pacing, and …

Participatory Barriers And Single-Member Districts In Planning For Latino Demographics: A Spatial Analysis Of Osceola County, Florida, Amy Garcia Paniagua

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This mixed-methods case study on Osceola County, Florida examines how participatory barriers shape planning outcomes for Latino communities within single member district systems. Demographic transformation has shaped Osceola into one of three Hispanic/Latino majority counties. For Latinos, unique barriers to civic access exist, with the potential for exclusion in planning processes. The research bridges participatory planning theory with theories supporting single-member district electoral representation by evaluating whether district-level governance mitigates inequities where civic engagement is constrained. Methods integrate GIS-based spatial analysis with an institutional review of district-level actions to assess relationships between Hispanic civic accessibility and planning equity. Two composite …

Florida Local Public Administrator Perspectives On Decentralized Wastewater Treatment, Jude Hagan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Decentralized wastewater treatment (DWT) systems, such as onsite greywater recycling and septic systems, have been demonstrated to be a potentially more sustainable, cost-effective, and disaster-resilient alternative to traditional centralized systems by treating wastewater at or near the source. However, many barriers exist that have prevented the widespread implementation of DWT, such as public opposition, lack of resources, government regulations, public health concerns, and capital costs. In this study, local emergency managers, urban planners, and utility/wastewater managers in Florida were surveyed to determine their perceptions and levels of knowledge on DWT. The results of this study were inconclusive due to a …

Centralism: Ecuador's Major Constraint Towards Decentralization, Daniel A. Moreira Castañeda

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Centralized governance has predominantly characterized Latin America, with few countries adopting decentralized systems or federalism. This study explores why decentralization and federalism remain uncommon in the region, focusing on Ecuador’s persistent centralist traditions. Despite federalism being proposed as an alternative governance model, its adoption has been limited due to structural constraints and historical legacies. Ecuador’s centralized authority, rooted in its independence, has shaped institutional arrangements and political dynamics over time. Through a comparative analysis of the decentralization process and governance quality in Ecuador, Colombia, and Argentina, the research argues that Ecuador’s ongoing centralist practices stem from historical path dependency. This …

Exploring Barriers And Facilitators Of Mental Health Treatment For Law Enforcement Officers: The Impact Of Police Occupational Culture, April Reed

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Prior research has explored the impact of police culture on mental health stigma among law enforcement, however, a deeper understanding about how different aspects of police culture may inhibit or facilitate mental health treatment utilization is needed to inform policy and practice. This dissertation explores the relationship between police culture and mental health using a qualitative research design. Twenty-five (n=25) law enforcement officers from a county sheriff’s office in Central Florida were interviewed and participant observations were conducted during a three-month period. The present study sought to address the following research questions: What are the experiences of the job and …

How Did Covid-19 Affect Volunteer And Donor Management For Human Services Agencies? What Are The Lessons For Future Response?, Nina Yon

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for human services agencies, disrupting the interdependent systems of volunteer engagement and donor support essential to nonprofit sustainability. This study integrates insights from literature, theory, and empirical analysis to examine how nonprofit organizations adapted their volunteer and donor management strategies during this prolonged crisis. Drawing on Contingency Theory and Resource Dependence Theory (RDT), the research explores how organizational structures and strategies evolved in response to shifting environmental conditions, health mandates, and resource constraints. Using a multiple-case qualitative design, data was collected from semi-structured interviews with 20 leaders representing five Central Florida human services agencies, …

Understanding Health-Seeking Decision-Making Process And Behavior Among Haitian Immigrants: A Grounded Theory Approach, Shelleta Ladonice

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation 2023-2024

Black people in the U.S. die at younger ages, have significantly higher rates of death from treatable medical conditions, are more likely to have late-stage breast and colon cancer diagnoses and more likely to die from these cancers, and are at higher risk for chronic illnesses compared to other racial and ethnic groups. Accessing healthcare is crucial to health and well-being; however, U.S. immigrants' use of healthcare services is far less than native-born Americans. Haitian immigrants experience health disparities at the highest rate compared to other Black immigrants in the U.S. Given their unique history, culture, and immigration experience, it …

Network Structure And Network Effectiveness In Thailand's Provincial Covid-19 Response Networks, Ruechagorn Trairatananusorn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Health and well-being are key focuses for international organizations and governments around the world as one of the United Nations' (UN) Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs). The emergence of COVID-19 pandemic since late 2019 has led to not only substantial life losses, but also negative social and economic impacts that are relatively comparable to the "Spanish Flu" pandemic. The insights from public administration literature suggested that emergency and crisis management require collaborative efforts from various stakeholders across sectors and levels. However, the existing literature that studied the COVID-19 pandemic response under network perspective is still scarce in developing countries, especially in …

Social Equity Through Vaccinations During Covid-19: A Study Of Equitable Utilization Of Resources During Emergencies And Crises, Rebecca Entress

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Governments provide resources that enable people and neighborhoods to return to normalcy after emergencies, which enhances community resilience. Past research found that such resources are not always equitably utilized by communities, where oftentimes communities with high social vulnerability receive fewer resources. COVID-19 was one of the largest and most widespread public health emergencies. In response to the emergency, the United States (U.S.) government sponsored the creation and administration of COVID-19 vaccines. COVID-19 vaccines reduce the probability of severe illness and death, making them an important resource for community resilience. This study uses an explanatory sequential mixed methods research design to …

Public Transportation In Central Florida: Setting The Tone For Public Rail Use, Zoe Johnson

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this research is to analyze the use of the public train usage in Central Florida to determine the feasibility of high-speed rail usage in the future. This study will be split into parts and expanded upon. The first part will observe rider perspective, values, and issues regarding rail transportation as is available in Central Florida. In further installations, which will be conducted separately from this thesis, there will be an analysis of the providers of rail transportation. It is hypothesized that there will be a moderate demand for rail transportation used by the public.

Original: The main …

Citizen Trust And Governments' Response To Disasters, Berenice Belizaire

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this descriptive study is to determine if there is a difference in citizen trust in Orange County government regarding the handling of disaster. Various dimensions like competence, benevolence, and integrity can determine a citizen's trust within its government. Disasters, such as man-made and natural, are described as a disruption to society through widespread damage to people and material. Counties experience man-made and natural disasters. Depending on its response to the incidents, counties can determine if the citizens view the county as a trustworthy and responsible government body. This study explored if there were differences in citizen trust …

Impacts Of Covid-19 On Health Promotion Within Higher Education: Exploring Organizational Resilience, Maureen Hawkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The close proximity of students learning, living, socializing and working on university and college campuses presents a unique setting to understand organization responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. This concurrent, mixed methods qualitative study explored how one institution of higher education demonstrated resilience and how its health promotion activities pivoted and adjusted to reduce virus transmission and maintain safety while continuing to promote learning and education. Based on the organizational resilience conceptualization developed by Duchek (2020), data collection methods combined individual interviews with university leaders, self-interview and reflection, and a review of organization documents a connection between health promotion, organization resilience, …

Defunding Law Enforcement: Fire Departments' Perspective On Implementing The National Fire Protection Association 3000 Standard When Preparing For An Active Shooter Mass Casualty Incident, Anthony Rios

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This study applied the policy window theory through punctuated equilibrium and resource dependency theories to analyze the perception of nationwide fire service leaders and the impact that defunding law enforcement can have on the fire service in managing an active shooter mass casualty incident (ASMCI). As police reform remains the center of discussion throughout the nation, many community leaders have explored ways to re-appropriate police funding. This comes at a time when the paradigm of law enforcement and Fire/Emergency Medical Services (EMS) interdependency has become the standard response to ASMCIs as defined by the National Fire Protection Association 3000 Standard …

Exploring The Predictors Of And The Relationship Between Evidence Cultures And Flood Risk Management Performance, Jenna Tyler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Over the past two decades, public organizations have been encouraged and, at times, required to incorporate evidence in their decision-making processes. Evidence broadly refers to data and or knowledge that is gathered, analyzed, and used to generate a conclusion. Despite arguments and the intrinsic assumption that using evidence to inform decisions will improve organizational performance, there is limited empirical research to support this assertion. The proposed study addresses this gap in research and others in the context of local flood risk management. Specifically, using primary data gathered from local floodplain managers and secondary data from the US Census and the …

The Relationship Between Campus Involvement And Civic Engagement, Sheina L. Koolik

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate if campus involvement, either in high school or college, has a relationship with civic engagement after college. Current UCF students, who have at least finished their first year, will be surveyed about their high school involvement to determine if it is related to their college engagement; and, recent UCF Alumni, graduated between 2014-2018, will be surveyed to determine if there is a relationship between campus engagement and civic life after graduation. As well, the data will review other key aspects like campus location, race, gender, international status, motivations, religious affiliations, etc. The …

An Exploratory Study Of The Use Of Social Infrastructure Public-Private Partnerships (P3s) For Public University Facilities, Ashley Connors

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Public universities in the United States have experienced continual state budget reductions since 2008. These cuts have forced public universities to defer maintenance on existing facilities and delay new facility construction. Consequently, public university administrators have sought alternative financing approaches to meet their facility needs. Several public universities have turned to social infrastructure public-private partnerships (P3s). Using a multiple case study approach, this exploratory, descriptive research study examines the use of social infrastructure P3 projects by public universities to determine: (1) what public university facility needs are being addressed, (2) what types of P3s are being utilized, and (3) what …

Collegiate Leadership And Involvement At Ucf: A Study On Leadership Limitations, Benefits, And Creating Balance, Alyssa J. Marchione

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between student leadership at the University of Central Florida, and the benefits and drawbacks that may result from this involvement. Student leadership is defined as the number of clubs and organizations a student is involved in and how many roles or titles a student has in those organizations. Student leadership benefits is defined as students feeling a higher sense of self efficacy, a greater chance of post-graduation success, and feeling as if they earned more opportunities due to their student leadership. Drawbacks of student leadership include feeling overworked, stressed, burnt …

Social Justice, Inclusive Education, And Teacher Agency, Jennifer Sanguiliano Lonski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Public school education in the United States has a long history of supporting societal norms within the curriculum and classroom. Through the use of social justice and inclusive education (SJIE), teachers have the unique ability to disrupt the social reproduction of inequity within their content and curriculum. In order to do this, teachers must first understand social justice and inclusive education (knowledge) and feel comfortable and confident implementing it within their classroom (agency). This study focuses on 13 public school teachers who attended a weeklong professional development program which focused on social justice, privilege, trauma-informed education, mindfulness, and inclusive education …

Strategic Planning At The Local Level Of Government: Evidence From Florida, Faisal Mohamidi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This study's main question is as follows: What are the effects of internal and external environmental factors on public value expressions found within Florida county and municipal governments' strategic plans? This study uses Moore's (1995) Public Value Theory and its main propositions, as Dong (2015) described. This study also adheres to the tradition established by DiMaggio and Powell (1983) by focusing on homogeneity, not variation, between strategic plans under study. Data for this dissertation were obtained from 77 official strategic plans of Floridian counties and municipalities. Furthermore, the dissertation proceeded in two distinctive phases. The first phase relied on content …

2020 Icrcc Proceedings Table Of Contents, Conference Organizers

International Crisis and Risk Communication Conference

These proceedings are a representative sample of the presentations given by professional practitioners and academic scholars at the 2020 International Crisis and Risk Communication Conference (ICRCC) held March 9-11, 2020. The ICRCC is an annual event that takes place the second week in March in beautiful sunny Orlando, Florida. The conference hosts are faculty and staff from the Nicholson School of Communication and Media. The goal of the ICRCC is to bring together prominent professional practitioners and academic scholars that work directly with crisis and risk communication on a daily basis. We define crisis and risk broadly to include, for …

Turning Mismanaged Crisis Into Opportunity: Developing A Municipal Emergency Communication Plan For Puerto Rico, Mariely Valentin-Llopis

International Crisis and Risk Communication Conference

Three years after Hurricane Maria, rural municipalities of Puerto Rico find themselves as vulnerable as before the category 4 storm dwindled the Island’s resources. The town of Aguas Buenas is among the rural municipalities struggling to prepare for the next natural disaster. This pilot study provides a plan for activating the community with the purpose of forming the first community emergency management team (CEMT) in coordination with local officials. Through in-depth interviews with the people living in Aguas Buenas, the study presents a situation analysis followed by recommendations on how to train the community leaders and turn the crisis into …

Postcolonial Public Administration: A Critical Discourse Analysis, Esteban Santis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Four years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, a group of Public Administration scholars met in New York's Adirondack Mountains to discuss the future of the field. At this gathering, the Minnowbrook I Conference, scholars acknowledged the need for social equity. Today, more than fifty years later, there is still a need for social equity. There is still a need to understand the history and role of oppression within Public Administration. Apropos, in this dissertation, I interrogate oppression, by way of postcolonialism and critical discourse analysis, to learn about the field's darkness and splendor. This project …

Government Responsiveness In Matters Of Racial Sensitivity, Vickie Carnegie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study assesses factors influencing the responsiveness of government officials in Alabama, Mississippi, and South Carolina regarding the public display of the Confederate Flag on state grounds in the aftermath of the Charleston, South Carolina shooting. The purpose of this dissertation research is to understand the factors influencing how government officials make decisions during racially/culturally sensitive events. Two research questions frame this study: 1) What factors are relevant to understanding state government officials' decision- making regarding the display of the Confederate Flag on public grounds? 2) Under what conditions of public decision making regarding the Confederate flag is executive authority, …

Reconceptualizing Responsiveness For Network Governance: Insights From Cross-Sector Efforts To Assist The Displaced Population From Puerto Rico In Central Florida, Safiya Prysmakova

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study further expands current knowledge on responsiveness in the public administration field and examines factors that contribute to more responsive public service delivery networks. This research reconceptualized the concept of responsiveness under the lens of New Public Governance as a legitimate democratic public value and answered the following research questions: What constructs constitute to the concept of public service responsiveness? How can public service responsiveness be measured at the network level? Does the complexity of public service provision affect perceived public service network responsiveness? How do collaborative processes across network partners, community support, and resource munificence affect the responsiveness …

Overview Of Fake News: For Non-Profit Organizations, Rebecca J. Stortstrom, Linda Lagrace, Nathaniel King Iii

Media Literacy: How the Era of Fake News Affects Public Service

In the U.S., the media plays a pivotal role in the spreading of information. However, the nonprofit sector appears to have a complicated relationship with the media. The media is a strong source of marketing and spreading the message, mission, and vision of the nonprofit, and is a way to keep connected with stakeholders. However, the nonprofit sector use of the media seems more susceptible to the effects of “fake news”. In this section, the history of nonprofit organizations along with its relationship with the media and fake news will be discussed. In addition, strategies to combat the problem or …

The Use Of Crisis Communication Strategies To Build Community Resilience: Evidence From Emergency Managers, Brittany Haupt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As public administration evolved to encompass a strong focus on supporting safe growth and development for communities, the role and responsibilities of government became increasingly complex with aspects of emergency management becoming quintessential. The ability to assess resilience plays a strong role in understanding the capability of a community to face a range of threats. Additionally, issues with communication uncovered the need to understand how administrators collect, disseminate, and adapt critical information through understanding crisis type and local community needs. This dissertation discusses the connection between public administration and emergency management, the evolution of crisis communication and strategies, resilience and …

A Case Study Of Veteran And Civilian Student Academic Performance At The University Of Central Florida, Floyd C. Diehl Jr

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study seeks to provide a brief overview of academic standards and performance of veterans of the United States military and civilians who attend the University of Central Florida. Whether a student is a veteran or a civilian, he or she must learn how to adapt to the requirements of an academic community in order to be successful in that environment. It may be difficult for some. In able for society to discern the importance of the academic performance of both veterans and civilians alike, research is vital. There are various assumptions about veterans. For example, it can be assumed …

Social Media Usage By Municipal Elected Officials For Open Government Community Engagement, Sarah Stoeckel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As public administration has evolved with the technological advances in today's society, it can be challenging to ensure the demands of the public are being met in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, and engagement. Nonetheless, a focus on community remains at the forefront of public administration. When looking at technology and the community, the tool known as social media emerges. Social media has allowed people to interact in new ways and therefore, has allowed the government to interact with citizens in ways they have not been able to in the past. In addition to attempting to modernize public administration, there has …

Social Media And Stakeholders' Relationship In Nonprofit Organizations, Wanzhu Shi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social media tools, as the advanced technology, have penetrated into nonprofit management field prevalently. Nonprofit organizations adopt social media tools, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest for attracting potential supporters, raising advocacy, and running fundraising campaigns. Social media tools break the limitation of time and space through the Internet. They change the way of how people communicate and interact with each other. The philanthropy industry hopes that social media tools could bring them the new opportunities to engage with their stakeholders, such as donors, volunteers, and customers. However, since this technology is still developing, the studies of using social …

The Subject Librarian Newsletter, Public Administration, Fall 2016, Corinne Bishop

Libraries' Newsletters

No abstract provided.