Public Policy Commons^™

Transferring Implementation Facilitation Knowledge And Skills To Improve Healthcare Delivery Systems, Mona Jane Ritchie

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Evidence-based practices and programs can improve healthcare quality but many organizations lack the ability to implement and sustain them. Skilled implementation facilitators applying a range of interventions can enable healthcare systems to address these challenges. However, we have limited knowledge about skills facilitators need and no studies examine how experts can transfer skills to others to build capacity for implementation efforts. The purpose of this study is to address these gaps.

For this qualitative descriptive study, I conducted content analysis of data previously collected from an expert and two novice facilitators to whom she was transferring skills for supporting implementation …

Implementation Of The Public Distribution System: An Empirical Analysis Of The Right To Food In An Urban Slum, Dipika Jain, Brian Tronic

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Malnutrition is one of the biggest problems facing India today. Thus, the functioning of the Public Distribution System (PDS) - which provides subsidized food to hundreds of millions of people is critically important. However, while numerous studies have evaluated the performance of the PDS in rural areas, there is a notable lack of research in urban slums, a rapidly growing population. Through interviews with PDS beneficiaries and other stakeholders, the present study examines the PDS in one slum in Delhi and finds numerous problems, including low quality grain, corruption, and the lack of an effective complaint mechanism. Although several states …

Cultural Values And Risk And Benefit Perceptions: An Examination Of The Mediating Roles Of Trust And Knowledge Hubris, Clayton Creed Tumlison

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the process by which cultural value predispositions influence perceptions of risks and benefits of energy policies, specifically focusing on High Voltage Power Line (HVPL) installations and Hydraulic Fracturing (fracking). For HVPL installations I examine the role of (dis)trust in three groups associated with the HVPL debate – the government, environmental groups, and the energy industry – in determining risk and benefit perceptions of HVPL installation. Findings indicate that cultural value predispositions guide policy elites’ perceptions of trustworthiness. Further, this trust, in turn, guides perceptions of risks and benefits of HVPL installations, partially mediating the effects of cultural …

Barriers To Relative Caregivers' Participation In The Subsidized Guardianship Program In Arkansas, Amanda Breanne Krotke-Crandall

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Only 12 children of the 45,000 of children being raised by guardians in Arkansas have become participants in the Arkansas Subsidized Guardianship Program. The program, enacted by the Arkansas Legislature in 2011, could potentially help low-income grandparents meet the financial burdens of raising a child, thus creating another avenue of permanency for children within the Arkansas Department of Family Services (DCFS). This research sought to identify what barriers may exist to dissuade participation in the subsidized guardianship program in Arkansas using the theoretical base of Intersectionality. To answer this question the investigator conducted in person interviews with DCFS administrators, and …

How Has The Louisiana Scholarship Program Affected Students? A Comprehensive Summary Of Effects After Two Years, Jonathan N. Mills, Anna J. Egalite, Patrick J. Wolf

School Choice Demonstration Project

Louisiana, a state whose educational performance has lagged behind national averages for decades, began its experiment with publicly financed scholarships for students to attend private schools in 2008. The pilot version of the Louisiana Scholarship Program (LSP) was expanded statewide with the passage of Act 2 of the 2012 Louisiana state legislative session. Nearly 10,000 students applied to the expanded program in 2012-13, with roughly 5,000 applicants receiving scholarships. The program has continued its rapid expansion every year since then, with nearly 7,500 scholarships awarded in the 2014-15 school year.

The Effects Of The Louisiana Scholarship Program On Student Achievement After Two Years, Jonathan N. Mills, Patrick J. Wolf

School Choice Demonstration Project

The Louisiana Scholarship Program (LSP) is a statewide initiative offering publicly-funded vouchers to enroll in local private schools to students in low-performing schools with family income no greater than 250 percent of the poverty line. Initially established in 2008 as a pilot program in New Orleans, the LSP was expanded statewide in 2012. This paper examines the experimental effects of using an LSP scholarship to enroll in a private school on student achievement in the first two years following the program’s expansion. Our results indicate that the use of an LSP scholarship has negatively impacted both ELA and math achievement, …

The Impact Of The Louisiana Scholarship Program On Racial Segregation In Louisiana Schools, Anna J. Egalite, Jonathan N. Mills, Patrick J. Wolf

School Choice Demonstration Project

The question of how school choice programs affect the racial stratification of schools is highly salient in the field of education policy. We use a student-level panel data set to analyze the impacts of the Louisiana Scholarship Program (LSP) on racial segregation in public and private schools. This targeted school voucher program provides funding for low-income, mostly minority students in the lowest-graded public schools to enroll in participating private schools. Our analysis indicates that the vast majority (82%) of LSP transfers have reduced racial segregation in the voucher students’ former public schools. LSP transfers have marginally increased segregation in the …

The Competitive Effects Of The Louisiana Scholarship Program On Public School Performance, Anna J. Egalite

School Choice Demonstration Project

Given the significant growth rate and geographic expansion of private school choice programs over the past two decades, it is important to examine how traditional public schools respond to the sudden injection of competition for students and resources. This article uses 1) a school fixed effects approach, and 2) a regression discontinuity framework to examine the achievement impacts of the Louisiana Scholarship Program (LSP). This targeted school voucher program has provided public funds for low-income students in low-performing public schools to enroll in participating private schools since the 2012-13 school year. The main findings of the competitive effects analysis reveal …

Factors Affecting The Sustainability Of Public-Private Collaborations At The Municipal Level: The Case Of Motorcycle Rallies, Anne Burgin Diallo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Urban public-private collaborations promoting large-scale tourist events are increasingly common. The incentive to collaborate, for urban policy-makers, is the perception of the opportunity for economic development, and yet little is known about factors contributing to the sustainability of such urban cross-sector collaborations. The dissertation accomplishes three objectives. First, it combines resource dependence theory (RDT) and goal congruence theory (GCT) to extend our understanding of how collaborating organizations align their respective organizational goals and manage their interdependencies in complex, urban, inter-sectoral, environments. This is accomplished through use of complementary factors from each theory. Second, using qualitative methods, the research applies RDT …

A Community-Based Participatory Approach To Understanding Health Beliefs, Policies, Barriers, And Solutions Related To The Health Disparities Of Marshallese Cofa Migrants In Arkansas., Pearl Anna Mcelfish

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Public policies have different effects on different populations groups and can perpetuate health disparities among some populations. My research utilizes community-based participatory approach to research in the examination of one unique population: the Marshallese. This dissertation research presents three papers that are part of a cohesive research agenda predicated on community-based participatory research (CBPR) to facilitate policy-oriented learning. My research can be used to inform health policy, health care services, and health education. Chapter Two presents the article titled: Health Beliefs of US Marshallese Regarding Type 2 Diabetes.

This article explores the research question: what health beliefs related to diabetes …

An Assessment Of Primary Care Physician Opinions About Supporting The Independent Autonomous Practice By Advanced Practice Nurses, James Michael Flanigan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) changed the national discussion about who is the decision-maker in healthcare delivery – physicians or others that pay the bill. The federal government is the largest payer of healthcare services while states are responsible for implementing the ACA’s features. Through the ACA, the federal government endorsed non-physician primary care by advanced practice registered nurses (APRN). The research question of this study is: Why do some primary care physicians support independent autonomous practice for advanced practice registered nurses while others do not? The research question should be important to policy-makers because physicians are the predominate purchasers …

Understanding The Experiences Of African-American Relatives Who Serve As Care Providers To Custodial Children In Arkansas: An Intersectional Case Study, Carmen Johnson-Hardin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An increase in the provision of long-term care by relative caregivers to custodial children has brought attention to the physical, emotional, and Social challenges of this complex caregiving experience. Prior studies have examined separate structural identities that focus on comparing the quality of life, educational status, Social status, and income of grandparent custodial caregivers. To extend this research, it is important to explore the gaps in service provisions to relative caregivers; comparative viewpoints of relative caregivers and service providers regarding policies and practices; and heterogeneity among Black relative caregivers utilizing an intersectional framework. Face-to-face or telephone interviews were conducted with …

Socially Constructing Drug Addicts From The Poor: A Critical Discourse Analysis, Kalynn Susan Amundson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Welfare drug testing was authorized by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996, and has subsequently garnered extensive legislative interest in numerous states. This policy raises several questions, which are the subjects of the two journal articles and one manuscript included in this dissertation.

The first article addresses the question of a possible confluence of War on Drugs and Welfare Reform policies as evidenced through welfare drug testing policy, and indicated by continuity in policymakers’ rhetoric. This study examines federal-level policymakers’ debate discourse in these two policy streams. The analysis finds themes of the Social pathology, …

Buckets Of Water Into The Ocean: Non-Public Revenue In Public Charter And Traditional Public Schools, Meagan Batdorf, Albert Cheng, Larry D. Maloney, Jay F. May, Patrick J. Wolf

School Choice Demonstration Project

The funding of K-12 education remains a contentious public policy issue. Questions of funding adequacy and equity across school sectors, school districts and individual schools are prominent in discussions of how to improve educational outcomes, especially for students from disadvantaged backgrounds (Downes & Stiefel 2008; Ladd 2008). Although scholars are divided regarding the extent to which money affects student outcomes in K-12 education (Jackson, Johnson, & Persico 2015; Hanushek, 1997; Burtless 1996), there is basic agreement that more education revenue is better so long as the increased resources are directed towards productive educational activities and programs (Murnane & Levy 1996). …

Human Intelligence In Federal Terrorism Cases, Noah James Schneider

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Though it has often been quipped that the September 11th attacks changed "everything", domestic policy alterations were among the most significant changes after 9/11. Specifically, the 2002 Ashcroft Attorney General Guidelines and the 2008 Mukasey Attorney General Guidelines were two of the most impactful policy changes following 9/11. These Attorney General Guidelines changed the way the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated terrorism in the United States in addition to making counterterrorism the FBI's top priority. One of the ways the FBI prevents terrorism is through the use of undercover agents and confidential informants. How the 2002 and 2008 Attorney …

The Power Behind The Controversy: Understanding Local Policy Elites' Perceptions On The Benefits And Risks Associated With High Voltage Power Line Installation In The State Of Arkansas, Rachael Marie Moyer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Following a proposal for the installation of high voltage power lines in northwest Arkansas, a controversial policy debate emerged. Proponents of the transmission line argue that such an installation is inevitable and necessary to efficiently and reliably support the identified electric load in the region. Opponents claim that the lines will degrade the natural environment and hamper the tourism-based local economy in affected regions, notably in Ozark Mountain areas. This study seeks to understand how local policy elites perceive the benefits and risks associated with proposed transmission lines, which is a critical step in comprehending the formation and changes of …

Reporting Practices, Knowledge And Opinion Of Policy Regarding Drivers With Dementia Among Arkansas Neurologists And Geriatricians, Erika Martin Gergerich

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: States have various policies regarding a physician's ability or responsibility to report at-risk drivers with dementia to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). Some states have mandatory reporting policies, others have optional reporting policies and some have no policy regarding this issue. Arkansas has no reporting policy regarding drivers with dementia to the DMV. Therefore, physicians in Arkansas face the risk of liability if they report a patient against their will to the DMV in good faith. Neurologists and geriatricians are often in a position to diagnose and treat individuals with dementia. Research Questions: The following three research questions …

Police/Citizen Encounters: An Examination Of Less Lethal Weapons, Their Effectiveness, And Officer Decision Making, Michael Moyer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Law enforcement officers expect to be issued the most effective less lethal weapons to stop the escalation of force. At the same time, citizens expect law enforcement officers to utilize their training and skills to resolve situations with the least amount of force possible. This research project attempts to answer the following research questions: (1) What weapon, short of lethal force, is most effective in stopping the escalation of force? (2) What factors do officers take into account in choosing a particular weapon and why? The study results may assist local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies and policymakers in …

Tribal Food Sovereignty In The American Southwest, Julia Guarino

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Food is an issue that implicates tribal sovereignty for historical, cultural, and public health reasons. This article undertakes a policy analysis of the importance of food to tribal sovereignty, and suggests that tribes, many of which have begun to do so already, make robust use of the concept of "food sovereignty" as part of their overarching project of protecting and promoting tribal sovereignty in general. This article sets the stage for understanding the importance of food sovereignty to tribes by exploring the history of food and culture in the American Southwest, where the public health consequences of changes in diet …

Educational Effects Of State Actions Banning Access To In-State Resident Tuition Rates For Unauthorized Immigrant Students, Luis Alexander Villarraga Orjuela

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research studies the effects of state laws banning access to in-state resident tuition (ISRT) rates and other educational benefits for unauthorized immigrant students (UIS) in five states: Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, and Ohio. It measures the overall effect of policies denying ISRT that were implemented between 2005-2012 in the United States.

Three potential effects are evaluated. First, the study estimates the policy effects on the college enrollment of UIS. Because the policy does not deny access to higher education institutions, the possibility exists for this population to attend public or private colleges. However, facing higher costs (i.e., out-of-state tuition) …

State Funding Decision-Making For Higher Education Institutions During Capital Campaigns, Everrett Alexander Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Public higher education has experienced a decline in state funding in real dollars. This has created financial challenges for many students and their families, as well as institutions.

Tax revenue has decreased as a result of the economic recession, causing state leaders to reprioritize their fiscal responsibilities. Higher education has been viewed as a discretionary expense in competition with other state programs, so funding can, and often, does vary. Colleges and universities use alternative financial resources, most notably private fundraising, to meet their goals. The study was conducted to identify college leaders' perceptions of state funding during their institution's mega-capital …

The Role Of Higher Education In Rural Community Development, Anita Faye Thompson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Higher education institutions commonly play a role in community development. Rural communities may be even more dependent on the university's investment. As higher education has looked to meet demands of stakeholders calling for greater accountability, it has become necessary for universities to be able to justify the effectiveness of these efforts. The purpose of this study was to determine the elements necessary for successful rural community development in Western Oklahoma. Utilizing the Delphi research method, 20 community development experts in rural Western Oklahoma participated in the three-round survey process. In the initial survey, participants collectively submitted a list of 41 …

Examining The Role Of Street-Level Bureaucrats In The Implementation Of An Affordable Rental Housing Policy For Extremely Low Income Households In The District Of Columbia, Rod Williams

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The individuals who staff the nation's 4,600 Community Development Corporations (CDCs) represent the front line in production of affordable housing for America's poor. CDC staff members work within chronic funding uncertainties, applying complex and often ambiguous policies, under pressure to address shortfalls in affordable units. As such, they represent a prime example of Lipsky's (1980) street level bureaucrats (SLBs): agency workers with no formal policy role, who nevertheless shape policy by exercising discretion in the course of implementing ambiguous directives under stressful and alienating conditions.

The purpose of this study is to uncover how CDC SLBs experience their work and …

Estimating The Efficiency Of Four-Year Public Master's Universities In Arkansas Using Data Envelopment Analysis, Blake R. Decker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For the fourth time in the past 20 years, the state of Arkansas has implemented a performance-funding program. Although directly referenced in the title of Act 1203 of 2011, the implemented performance-funding program does not include a measure of how efficiently institutions are converting their inputs into outputs. The purpose of this study was two-fold: (1) to examine, through the conceptual framework of agency theory, why the state of Arkansas adopted performance funding policy after experiencing three adopt-implement-abandon cycles in the past 20 years, and (2) to estimate the efficiency of four-year public Master's universities in Arkansas in achieving one …

Essays On Smallholder Farmers In Jamaica: Context-Specific Evidence For Food Security Policymaking, Deborah Evadne Brown

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is comprised of three essays that examined the experiences and welfare of traditional food crop farmers in Western Jamaica. It systematically analyses the interplay between smallholder farmers and often overlooked variables in society. The study used qualitative interviewing, field observations and discourse analysis techniques to generate context-specific evidence for food security policymaking.

The first essay examined smallholder farmers' motives for farming. This formed the basis for a farmer typology that provides a portrait of the participants, and was used to inform findings in subsequent essays in this dissertation. The theory of planned behavior provided the conceptual grounding and …

Assessing Food Policy Options In Asia To Reduce Price Volatility Of Rice Market, Ranjitsinh Mane

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Rice is a staple food in Asia and its prices at national and international levels are largely influenced by different policy actions of trading countries. The consequence of the 2008 food crisis was food riots and rationing of rice in many nations. The ASEAN Plus Three (APT) countries have adopted an institutional framework called ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserves (APTERR) to address food security concerns of ASEAN countries that may arise due to climate change, supply chain disruptions or price speculation in the regional rice market. The RICEFLOW model is used to study the effectiveness of the strategic grain …

Evaluating The Effects Of The Arkansas Scholarship Lottery On College Participation, Noah Aaron Pittman

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, lottery scholarship programs have become a popular policy program for states that wish to help students afford higher education without having to raise new taxes. Through a statewide lottery, profits from the program are passed onto college students in the form of merit-based scholarships. Even with strong opposition from opponents who questioned how much a lottery would benefit the entire population of the state, the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery was created via voter referendum in 2008.

A key goal of the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery was to increase college participation, especially among underrepresented students. The study therefore sought to …

The Productivity Of Public Charter Schools, Patrick J. Wolf, Albert Cheng, Meagan Batdorf, Larry D. Maloney, Jay F. May, Sheree T. Speakman

School Choice Demonstration Project

This is the first national study of the productivity of public charter schools relative to district schools. This report is a follow up to the charter school revenue study, Charter School Funding: Inequity Expands, released in April 2014 by the School Choice Demonstration Project at the University of Arkansas. That study was authored by the same research team that crafted this report. In the revenue study, per pupil revenues for public charter schools and traditional public schools (TPS) were compared. The research team found that during the 2010-11 school year (FY11), charter-school students across 30 states and the District of …

Empowering Positive Youth Development In Saudi Arabia: Youth Civic Engagement, Agenda Setting And Policy Formulation, Abdullah M. Alshanbri

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate what issues youth are facing in the city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and to examine how these issues can be brought to the forefront for decision-makers' agendas. Additionally, the study determines whether the concept of youth civic engagement "youth councils" could help to address youth issues and identify the constraints to implementing such a policy proposal. This study utilizes Kingdon's Agenda Setting Theory as a theoretical framework. Additionally, this study used a qualitative methods approach. High school students and public officials from the government were participants in the study. The literature review …

Power To The People? An Evaluation Of State-Level Environmental Justice Policies, Angela Michelle Hines

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Communities of color in America lacking economical, educational, and political power have been largely invisible in the process of making major policy decisions. This is lack of access to decision-making venues has been viewed by many as the reason behind marginalized populations bearing the brunt of many societal burdens. The Environmental Justice Movement legitimized the claims of inadequate access to the decision-making process concerning environmental conditions in which African-Americans lived and worked. Through the use of disruptive actions reminiscent of those used throughout the Civil Rights Movement, the plight of communities plagued by the daily presence of hazardous waste gained …