Public Administration Commons^™

Managed Computer System Conceptualization: Knowing When To Say No, Menachmen Monnickendam

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Computer systems in human services are often abandoned after significant investments have already been made. A case study of preventing the utilization of a wrong computer system for a child development center illustrates how managed system conceptualization minimized damage. Critical consciousness and adherence to specific computer implementation technology created an environment which supported recurrent system efficacy evaluation. When the system, as initially conceptualized, could not meet practitioners' needs, early project abandonment was achieved. Some considerations for successful system development in human service are presented.

The Strategy And Financing Of Economic Recovery In Africa., Ubadigbo Okonkwo

Bullion

The paper examines the impact of Structural Adjustment Programmes (SAP) on investment and growth in Africa and suggests the need for a new development paradigm. Working in partnership with the private sector, African Governments must establish a sound institutional and incentive framework for rapid growth. An alternative development strategy should be market-friendly and people-centred and must give priority to the accelerated expansion of exports and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). In view of the bleak prospects for external financing, Africa must rely on domestic financial institutions and capital markets to mobilise the required financial resources for economic recovery.

Purchase Of Service Contracting Versus Government Service Delivery: The Views Of State Human Service Administrators, Peter M. Kettner, Lawrence L. Martin

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Purchase of service contracting (POSC) as a mode of human service delivery is based largely on untested normative grounds. This article presents the results of a national study comparing the views of state human service administrators on the relative merits of POSC versus government service delivery in four issue areas: (1) service costs, (2) service quality, (3) bureaucracy and red tape, and (4) effect on government employees. The study results provide some support for POSC in three of the four issues areas. The study finds that geography plays no role in the views of state human service administrators, but that …

Worker Takeover In Industry: The Kamani Tubes Experiment By B Srinivas. Sage Publications, 1993., Nina Jacob

IIMB Management Review

This book is a case study about a recent path breaking attempt by workers, to own and manage the sick company for which they were working. The imperative for such an attempt is, quite simply, survival.

The Management And Regulation Of The Beneficial Use Of Sewage Sludge As An Agricultural Soil Amendment In Riverside County, William Ernst Prinz

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Auditing Troubled Employees In The Public Sector, Lila Mehdiyar

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Intermunicipal Servicing Agreements: Four Case Studies In Huron County, Jennifer Hosack

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines how local servicing problems – with a specific focus on sewage and water services – can be dealt with effectively based on four case studies of municipalities in Huron County. An analysis of municipal and provincial documents and interviews with key stakeholders were conducted. The findings reveal that local servicing problems can be successfully addressed with servicing agreements, which involve adjacent municipalities working cooperatively with one another in order to obtain the level of servicing that they each desire.

The Economic Impact Of A Short Term Event On Tourism: 1994 National Slo-Pitch Tournament, John Macdonald

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines whether short-term special events provide a positive net economic benefit to the host community with a specific focus on the 1994 Canadian National Slo-Pitch Championships held in Niagara Falls. A participant survey designed to identify demographic information and direct spending patterns was conducted, in addition to a survey of the hotels that accommodated the participants. The findings reveal that significant economic benefits can be gained by hosting short-term special events and the extent of the economic benefits is increased considerably when the event requires participants to stay in the host community overnight.

Evaluation Of Leadership In Ontario Public Libraries, Reed Osborne

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines whether the leadership performance appraisal ratings of public library chief executive officers (CEOs) are influenced by the gender of the CEO. Surveys with 272 board members and management or professional staff at public libraries in Ontario were conducted to determine their evaluations of the CEO for 14 leadership qualities. The findings reveal that female CEOs carry an additional burden in the form of ongoing gender role tensions that male CEOs do not have to endure.

The Incidence And Impact Of Strategic Human Resource Management In Canadian Municipalities, Cheryl Smith

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines the incidence and effectiveness of strategic human resource management (SHRM) in Canada based on a survey of 68 municipalities in eight provinces with populations exceeding 38,500. The findings reveal that SHRM is being practiced in a small majority of Canadian municipalities and the majority of the respondent municipalities with SHRM have fully integrated their human resources function within the strategic planning process, which suggests that there is significant potential for the improvement of organizational effectiveness.

From Realist To Constructivist Theory In Public Administration: Development Of A Quality Perspective, Ernest Edward Sides Iii

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management

The purpose of this study is to formulate a behavioral theory of public organization development and administration that replaces positivism with constructivism as its underlying paradigm. This study contends that the level of maturity with respect to quality is a function of the degree to which an organization's latent thinking and conceptualization has advanced toward constructivism. The underlying thesis is that public administration and organization behavior stems from multiple realities not possible under positivism. Efficiency is not an appropriate criterion for analysis under the tenants of constructivism and should be replaced with quality as a criterion.

The use of quality …

The Portland Public School Police: Formative Years - 1937 To 1953, Natalie Anne Woods

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis traces the historical evolution of one of the early responses to youth crime and violence -- public school police. In addition, this thesis addresses the lack of information about the creation and implementation of a public school police force, specifically the Portland Public School Police and School District No. 1, during its formative years, 1937 to 1953. Finally, the thesis intends to address two principal questions: A) Why did the Portland Board of Education find it necessary to create their own police agency? While one opinion suggests that there was a real need for school police due to …

Regionalizing Government In Maine: Opportunities For The Future, David Alexander, Alan Baldwin, John Carroll, Elizabeth Chapman, Dorraine Diebold, Lisa Harvey Mcpherson, Daniel Stevenson, Earlene Wilson

Muskie School Capstones and Dissertations

In keeping with his promise to make government work better for the people of Maine, Governor Angus King commissioned the Task Force on Regional Options for Better Government. The Governor charged the task force with recommending some alternative regional arrangements for the delivery of government services currently provided by state or local government. The task force evaluated three services in which regionalism offered some advantages: economic development; demand response transportation; and municipal management information systems.

Competitive Long-Distance Running And Its Effect On The Self-Concept Of Emotionally Disturbed Adolescents: An Evaluative Study, Elizabeth R. Rogers

Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the effectiveness of the "Runaway" program, a competitive long-distance running program, in meeting the program goals for the treatment of emotionally disturbed adolescents. The study reviews Piers-Harris Self Concept Scale (SCS) scores of clients in a long-term in-patient treatment facility. A Post-test only research design was used to compare the scores of those who participated in the program to the scores of those who did not. A statistically significant difference in the self-concept of runners and non-runners tested was obtained . The program met the goal of improving the patients' self-concept.

Updating The Colorado River Compact, Jeffrey A. Freer

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Water is essential to life in the arid environment of the western United States. For centuries, humans have used the Colorado River to fulfill their needs and until the past 100 years, the use of the river was sustainable. Over the last 100 years, the Colorado River has been dammed and diverted to "reclaim" the arid west for man's use. In 1946, a Department of the Interior report stated that "Tomorrow the Colorado will be utilized to the very last drop. Its water will convert thousands of additional acres of sagebrush desert to flourishing farms and beautiful homes for servicemen, …

Philanthropic Partnerships: The Theory Of The Commons, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

In Anglo-American traditions, the concept of a commons has historically been most frequently attached to shared land in joint use by a village or community. The common theory of voluntary action presents organized collective action as consisting of shared purposes, shared resources and voluntary participation resulting in an evolving sense of mutuality, and moral order, consisting of shared norms of fairness and participation.

Hypertext And The Docuverse: A Research Memo, Roger A. Lohmann

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

The term docuverse was first developed by Apple Computer guru Allen Kay in the late 1960’s. The underlying idea can be traced back decades earlier, to the visionary Vannevar Bush and the Memex (Bush, 1945). According to Kay, a docuverse is a set of related documents together with the linkages between them. In this paper, a docuverse is conceived as a collection of related scholarly documents together with the links, ties and bonds that can bring them together into an integrated logical and conceptual whole. Kay who also coined the term hypertext, which refers to an electronic document with existing …

Implementing Total Quality Management In The Public Sector, Cynthia J. Lewis

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

A Process Model For Comprehensive Courthouse Security Planning At Thurston County, Michael S. De Vries, Christina L. Bruski

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Characteristics, Perceived Skills And Leadership Styles Of Female Executives In The Senior Executive Service, Ahmad Mashayekh

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management

Recent studies have expressed considerable interest in the representation of women in the upper-level management in the federal government. Yet, very little is known about the characteristics and attributes of women in the executive level of the federal services. Most of the studies are undertaken to examine how women are different from the established male standards, or have used different models or variables to explain the slow career advancement of the women.

Using a 1991 survey of 278 female executives in the Senior Executive Service (SES) this study examines the characteristics, personal attributes, barriers, experiences, and leadership styles of women …

Predicting Strategic Orientations Of Public Research Universities In Economic Development: A Test Of The Resource Dependence Model, Steven Rae Hoagland

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management

This study is an original application of resource dependence theory to research administration at public universities. It examines the extent to which and under what conditions economic development orientations can be predicted by resource dependence theory. Data analyses concentrate on the combined effects of administrative structure and variations in federal financial support on the economic development orientations of public doctorate-granting universities nationwide.

Data were collected from three sources: (a) published data on the research dollar volume of public universities; (b) higher education personnel directories containing information about research offices; and (c) a mailed survey instrument containing four orientations in economic …

Effect Of Leadership Style On Work Climate And Program Completion In Domiciliary Addiction Programs, Patricia L. Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Addiction leads to homelessness, AIDS, other health problems, crimes, financial burdens, family conflict and many social and psychological problems. Relapse rates remain very high in addiction programs and employees are frustrated by the poor response of clients to treatment and to the bureaucratic style of management often found in hospitals and clinics. Relapse rates are due to stress factors, respondent conditioning processes, and lack of focus on techniques of relapse prevention. One approach to overcoming the morale problem could be a more participatory style of management to improve the work climate. This study was completed in response to the lack …

An Evaluation Of The Jobsontario Training Program, Michael Schuster

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper examines the effectiveness of the Ontario government’s jobsOntario Training (JOT) program to determine whether it is successful in helping social assistance welfare recipients obtain jobs. A review of provincial documents as well as surveys and interviews with officials responsible for the development and implementation of the program were conducted. The findings reveal that pre-employment training is effective in helping social assistance welfare recipients become employed and the use of local brokers to deliver JOT contributes to the success of the program.

Hindsight, Organizational Routines And Media Risk Coverage, Robert A. Stallings

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

Professor Stallings describes how journalists explain catastrophes by coupling them with flaws in human organizations.

Ua3/8/1 Looking Toward The Future: Land Use Plan & Development Strategy, University Of Kentucky. Landscape Architecture, Operation Pride

WKU Administration Documents

Land use plan and development strategy prepared by University of Kentucky students in the 5th Year Design Studio for Bowling Green Operation PRIDE.

The Application Of Formal Principles Of Public Administration As Perceived By City Managers, Shelton P. Rhodes

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Management

The present study seeks to determine the extent to which formalist ideas in public administration are evident in the practice of managerial performance as perceived by city managers and assistant city managers in the three states of Arizona, Colorado, and Virginia. While numerous studies demonstrate how administrative practices vary in different socio-political environments, the International City Management Association contends that certain basic features of public management nevertheless should be widely applied in different settings.

The questions that are being posed in this study are: What are the perceived norms or standards that structure managerial performance of city managers and do …

Intergovernmental Fiscal Policy In California: The 1993 Property Tax Shift, Lynndee Ann Kemmet

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Strengthening The Power Of The Mayor's Office: An Examination Of The City Of Riverside, Michael William Radford

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Assessment Administration For County Service Areas, Shawn Dwayne Nelson

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Alternative Dispute Resolution And Public Policy Conflict: Preemptive Dispute Resolution Negotiated Rulemaking, Allen G. Norman

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.