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Title: Interlocal Collaboration on Energy Efficiency, Sustainability and Climate Change Issues.
Creator: Chen, Ssu-Hsien, Feiock, Richard C., Yang, Kaifeng, Cartes, David, Zhao, Tingting, Berry, Frances Stokes, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Interlocal energy collaboration builds upon network structures among local policy actors dealing with energy, climate change and sustainability issues. Collaboration efforts overcome institutional collective action (ICA) dilemmas, and cope with the problems spanning jurisdictional boundaries, externalities, and free-rider problems. Interlocal energy collaboration emerges as the agreements in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction, pollution control, land use, purchasing, retrofits,...
Show moreInterlocal energy collaboration builds upon network structures among local policy actors dealing with energy, climate change and sustainability issues. Collaboration efforts overcome institutional collective action (ICA) dilemmas, and cope with the problems spanning jurisdictional boundaries, externalities, and free-rider problems. Interlocal energy collaboration emerges as the agreements in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction, pollution control, land use, purchasing, retrofits, transportation, and so forth. Cities work collaboratively through contractual mechanisms (i.e. formal/informal agreements) and collective mechanisms (i.e. regional partnerships or membership organizations) on a variety of energy issues. What factors facilitate interlocal energy collaboration? To what extent is collaboration through interlocal contractual mechanisms different from collective mechanisms? This dissertation tries to answer these questions by examining: city goal priority on energy related issues as well as other ICA explanatory factors. Research data are drawn mainly from the 2010 national survey "Implementation of energy efficiency and sustainability program" supported by National Science Foundation and the IBM Endowment for the Business of Government. The research results show that city emphasis on common pool resource, scale economies and externality issues significantly affect individual selection of tools for energy collaboration. When expected transaction costs are extremely high or low, the contractual mechanism of informal agreement is more likely to be selected to preserve most local autonomy and flexibility; otherwise, written and formal tools for collaboration are preferred to impose constraints on individual behavior and reduce the risks of defection.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3831
Format: Thesis

Title: Environmental Local Public Goods: Open Space Preservation and Multi-Level Analysis.
Creator: Lee, Se Jin, Feiock, Richard C., Herrington, Carolyn, deHaven-Smith, Lance, Lee, Keon-Hyung, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Open space preservation is a critical issue responding to undesirable sprawl. Over the past decades, responding to such trends of expansion and sprawl, open space protection has become more intense. Thus, local, regional, state governments have become increasingly concerned with growth and land preservation. More explicitly, state growth management has implemented in a broad set of social goals and policy tools in the era of smart growth (Bosselman and Callies, 1971; Gillham, 2002). State...
Show moreOpen space preservation is a critical issue responding to undesirable sprawl. Over the past decades, responding to such trends of expansion and sprawl, open space protection has become more intense. Thus, local, regional, state governments have become increasingly concerned with growth and land preservation. More explicitly, state growth management has implemented in a broad set of social goals and policy tools in the era of smart growth (Bosselman and Callies, 1971; Gillham, 2002). State smart growth has concentrated on a mix of higher density residential development in order to protect open space and natural resources (Ingram et al, 2009). At local level, growth management has been implemented through the planning and regulatory tools of comprehensive plans, zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, and capital improvement programs (Porter, 1997). Despite open space preservation is a political process, extant studies on the decision of land preservation fail to consider within political process. The purpose of this dissertation investigates what factors account for local open space preservation applying political market framework. First analysis aims to examine the impact of state growth management on local open space preservation as well as the impact of the contextual factors of county governments More specifically, with advanced methodology, Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM), it examines whether strong involvement of state level government influence open space protection made by local level governments. Second analysis examines how local political institutions' supplies and environmental interests' demands account for local open space protection with panel data of Florida Communities Trust (FCT) applications, Florida's state-wide land acquisition program, from 2001 to 2008. The empirical results show that, first, strong involvement of state government on local open space preservation leads to better outcomes. It theoretically and empirically means that contextual and political circumstances of state level government perform an additional explanation on the variation among county level. Second, local political institutions play a significant role in open space preservation. In addition to formal institution, networks as an informal institution are key driver of open space preservation. This result implies that governmental partners such as federal and states agencies and horizontal partners such as land trusts, environmental organization and non-profit organization are important in that local government can make wider array of financing mechanisms and get much of information from networks with governmental and horizontal partners. Third, environmental preservation constituencies measured by land trusts in the first analysis and environmental specialty license tag revenue in the second analysis have positive influence on open space preservation. Unlike land use regulation, development or growth machine interests have no influence on open space preservation. In sum, this dissertation confirms that strong involvement of state government influences the effort of local government on open space preservation. Open space preservation is the outcome of political institutions and environmental demands. This dissertation also suggests future study. First, future study will explore the link between open space preservation and various regulatory tools or strategies such as zoning ordinance, conservation easement, impact fees, and so on, to growth control. Another future study will be a national-wide study how state level government influences the outcome of local government with Intercept-As-Outcome Modeling. This study must provide in-depth and better understanding of dynamics of configuration of policy outcome. Networks are critical element of open space preservation and more broadly smart growth and sustainable development. Thus, Network analysis will examine relationships between public, private, and nonprofit actors, such as the Trust for Public Lands to investigate the role of both formal and informal institutions in configuring open space preservation and land acquisition decisions.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3148
Format: Thesis

Title: The Influence of Actor Attributes and Social Relations on Game Transition: Formal Model and Empirical Analysis of Collective Action and Collaborative Economic Development Policy.
Creator: Lee, In Won, Feiock, Richard C., Scholz, John T., Yang, Keifeng, Lee, Keon-Hyung, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Economic development policy in jurisdictionally fragmented metropolitan areas is often characterized as a competitive environment in which local governments compete for jobs and growth. However, the positive and negative intergovernmental externalities from growth create demands for more integrated development approaches that can address economies of scale, urban sprawl, income inequality, environmental impacts, and other regional issues. This dissertation examines the formation of regional...
Show moreEconomic development policy in jurisdictionally fragmented metropolitan areas is often characterized as a competitive environment in which local governments compete for jobs and growth. However, the positive and negative intergovernmental externalities from growth create demands for more integrated development approaches that can address economies of scale, urban sprawl, income inequality, environmental impacts, and other regional issues. This dissertation examines the formation of regional economic development partnerships among local government to explain patterns of local government cooperation in pursuing economic development. The traditional game theoretic approach, based on assumptions that actors are motivated by rational calculation of benefits and costs, provides useful insights for understanding the essence of the collective action problem, but it provides only a limited and incomplete explanation for the emergence and sustainability of regional development collaboration. This dissertation investigates how the social context in which a game is embedded can determine which game the actors are supposed to play and, therefore, shapes the action of players. In other words, social structures should be considered to be both the medium and the outcome of the players' activities. A formal model of regional partnership formation is developed, taking into account actors' attributes and social relations. Propositions regarding how contextual and relational factors affect regional partnership formation are derived from this model and empirically tested.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3169
Format: Thesis

Title: Collaboration Among Governmental Organizations: Economic Development Policy Networks Among Local Governments.
Creator: Lee, Youngmi, Feiock, Richard C., Scholz, John T., Berry, Frances S., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Fragmented jurisdictions in a metropolitan area have pursued individual economic benefits through competition with others. Intense development competition has produced negative economic externalities. Therefore, local governments have strategically considered collaborating with other jurisdictions in order to maximize benefits and minimize costs through collective actions. However, collaboration among individual communities potentially involves collective action dilemmas endemic to the...
Show moreFragmented jurisdictions in a metropolitan area have pursued individual economic benefits through competition with others. Intense development competition has produced negative economic externalities. Therefore, local governments have strategically considered collaborating with other jurisdictions in order to maximize benefits and minimize costs through collective actions. However, collaboration among individual communities potentially involves collective action dilemmas endemic to the fragmented metropolitan area. Therefore, jurisdictions strategically create and develop informal collaborative networks with others, depending on the conditions where local jurisdictions are involved. While previous studies have focused on the influence of collaborative mechanisms on economic outcomes and emphasized the importance of the roles of networks (Lee, 2009, Feiock, Steinacker, and Park 2009, Olberding 2002), this study focuses on how the networks emerge and evolve at the micro-level, especially in the economic development policy arena. This dissertation began with the research questions: how do local jurisdictions cope strategically with collective action, how do they efficiently and effectively resolve problems through informal policy networks, what motivations lead local jurisdictions to enter collaborative networks, and what effects influence the selection process of collaborative partners for local economic development. In order to answer the aforementioned questions, this study applied the institutional collective action framework (Feiock and Scholz 2010) and the cross-sectional and the longitudinal network analysis proposed by Snijder and his colleagues with the SIENA program. The micro-level analysis reveals that in the economic development policy arena, local jurisdictions prefer close-clustered relations with others, rather than loosely connected relations to central coordinators. The analysis also showed that a small number of county governments primarily play crucial coordinating roles in economic development policy networks of a metropolitan area. On the other hand, the results of the effects of homophily and resources on the selection process of collaborative partners for local development confirm that jurisdictions with insufficient resources more actively search for collaborative partners to supply resources, and that they tend to collaborate with others that share the similar political institutions and socio-economic conditions. The results help us understand the partner selection process in interjurisdictional collaboration in a metropolitan area that standard transaction costs economics cannot account for. By examining informal economic development policy networks in the decentralized metropolitan area, this dissertation provides new insights into understanding how fragmented jurisdictions within a metropolitan area self-organize to resolve problems and conflicts that result from competition between jurisdictions, and what motivations lead collaborative governance among local jurisdictions involved in economic development issues.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3152
Format: Thesis

Title: A Three Order Network Governance Framework and Public Network Development: Evidence from Community-Based Care (CBC) Networks in Florida.
Creator: Kim, Bok-Tae, Berry, Frances S., Ahn, T. K., Feiock, Richard, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Community-based care networks have become more prevalent in health and human services over the past twenty years (Rice 2001; Romzek and Johnston 2002; Smith and Smyth 1996; Provan and Milward 1995, 2001; Lynn 1996), spurred on by the twin trends to privatize substantial service delivery and decentralize social services to local communities. Research has flourished to study how these networks operate and what types of performance outcomes result from their operation. Within the field of public...
Show moreCommunity-based care networks have become more prevalent in health and human services over the past twenty years (Rice 2001; Romzek and Johnston 2002; Smith and Smyth 1996; Provan and Milward 1995, 2001; Lynn 1996), spurred on by the twin trends to privatize substantial service delivery and decentralize social services to local communities. Research has flourished to study how these networks operate and what types of performance outcomes result from their operation. Within the field of public management, network research has evolved from a study of policy implementation to discussing types of networks, management skills, and even the impact of networking on broader agency goals. While researchers who study interorganizational relationships provided new insights into the design of public networks (e.g., Goldsmith and Eggers 2004; Keast et al. 2004; Klijn and Koppenjan 2006) or suggested approaches to managing the coordination process in network-settings (e.g., Whetten 1981; Kickert et al. 1997; Lynn, Carolyn, and Hill 2001; Agranoff and McGuire 2003), their analysis has generally failed to capture empirically the dynamic processes of network development although there are exceptions (e.g., Ring and Van de Ven 1992; Romzek and Johnston, 2002; Agranoff and McGuire, 2003; and Mandell and Keast, 2008). Through extensive fieldwork and using a variety of theoretical literatures, this study develops a framework of three stages of network development, using the example of community-based care (CBC) networks in Florida that deliver children's welfare and protective services. In Florida, the state Department of Children and Families has awarded contracts to formally designated lead agencies (including nonprofit, private and public sector agencies) in twenty two districts to coordinate and manage the delivery of services through service providers that contract with the lead agency. This CBC network has existed since 1997 and thus a comparative case study assessment of that development process is timely and able to capture the dynamic development of the CBC networks. This dissertation builds a comprehensive framework for community-based network governance. I posit that there are three orders of the network development process: Order One is network configuration; Order Two is network coordination, and Order Three is network self-regulation. In the first sage—network configuration—the network managers focus on assessing the internal and external conditions of the potential network, and then selecting the best fitting network governance structure to fit those conditions. Important conditions related to the external community include market competition and community resources, while the internal conditions include prior cooperation experience, resource dependence, and homophily. Theoretical insights from population ecology and transaction cost economics are used in this framework. In the second stage—network coordination—managers draw upon incentives and sanctions from theories of performance management, psychology, principal agency theory, social coordination, and stewardship theory to build strong coordination and performance mechanism so the network achieves is goals. The third stage is called network self-regulation, and draws on social capital and public management theories for how lead agency managers involve middle managers, attend to network stability issues and bring all the service provider partners into a close working relationship to continue improving operations and strategic goal achievement. The study answers three major questions that relate to the three order network governance framework: 1. How does one understand and describe the three stages of network development, the network configuration order, the network coordination order, and the network self-regulation order as they are linked together in a CBC network system? 2. What are the critical internal and external conditions of the CBC networks affecting network development direction as well as network configuration? What type of network configuration and what modes of network coordination are important for explaining how and why CBC network systems developed and are maintained over time? What relationships exist among these factors that impact the CBC network development over time? 3. What network developmental strategies and managerial approaches are used to drive the network development process from one stage to another? The dissertation finds empirical support for the three network development stages, and includes the development of twelve propositions that should be further tested through larger samples of networks and with different types of networks. The case studies allow us to detail a variety of coordination activities that are crucial for the successful achievement of the second order network coordination stage and the subsequent development of the third order network self-regulation stage. Finally, the dissertation develops two typical process frameworks called the linear development process, and the recursive development process, that describe the issues and tribulations that networks face depending on whether they begin with weak and/or strong internal and external conditions as they develop towards having both internal and external conditions strong which should result in the best functioning and performing community-based care networks.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3068
Format: Thesis

Title: Capacity Development and Leadership Challenges in the NGO Sector of Pakistan.
Creator: Afaq, Amer, Brower, Ralph S., McDowell, Stephen, deHaven-Smith, Lance, Klay, William Earle, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have gained prominence and attention at the local, national and international scene during the last two decades. NGOs are considered as important actors on the landscape of development. The NGO sector in Pakistan is gradually expanding, yet it is less mature as compared to other countries in South Asia. Most of the research available on NGOs studied the importance and role of NGOs, the impact of NGOs on social services and government - NGO relationships....
Show moreNon-governmental organizations (NGOs) have gained prominence and attention at the local, national and international scene during the last two decades. NGOs are considered as important actors on the landscape of development. The NGO sector in Pakistan is gradually expanding, yet it is less mature as compared to other countries in South Asia. Most of the research available on NGOs studied the importance and role of NGOs, the impact of NGOs on social services and government - NGO relationships. Nevertheless, capacity development, institutional strengthening and leadership development in NGOs have been largely ignored or given less attention. One goal of this study is to fill this gap and study the capacity development and leadership challenges in the NGO sector of Pakistan. Capacity development is one of the central ideas within contemporary international development. This emerges from the belief and experience that addressing social, economic and environmental issues requires greater competencies everywhere in society. This dissertation has three principal purposes: (a) to understand the dynamics and factors shaping the capacity development of NGOs in Pakistan; (b) to elaborate the pressures and challenges faced by NGOs for capacity and leadership development and (c) to generate theoretical propositions for successful capacity building interventions. In the process of achieving these goals a more general understanding of the interactions among the various stake holders in the NGO arena and the internal and external environment of NGOs were studied. This study observes that capacity development is an ongoing and long term activity that involves a wide range of actors whose participation and contributions are important. It is not a onetime activity by an outside agent. Similarly, successful capacity development interventions need to have ownership from those for whom they are designed. It is a multifaceted concept and there is no single accurate way to define and implement it. It is conceptualized and implemented by stakeholders according to their contextual situations and preferences. NGOs are successful in attaining a unique position in the development sector of Pakistan. However, this new and increasing role of NGOs has implications for organizational capacity development and skills of the NGO staff. This study supports the idea that too much emphasis on the top leadership ignores the role and importance of rank and file managers where much of the organizational knowledge exists. Also, the over emphasis on top leadership hinders the capacity development of middle level managers. The government lacks a well-established policy framework with regard to the roles and responsibilities of the NGOs in service delivery and development sector. The findings here suggest that government needs to play a more proactive role by undertaking proper institutional arrangements for NGOs where they can perform and deliver and at the same time they can be held accountable. For survival and sustainability of NGOs it is important to explore alternate sources of funding especially from private philanthropy. People in Pakistan donate large amounts of charity to religious organizations but they do not consider funding NGOs with their charities. Scholars and researchers may explore this issue further. People can be encouraged to consider donating for addressing issues like development and improvements in social services through NGOs. This study proposes that for successful and sustainable capacity development of local NGOs donors have to focus more on local NGOs and establish close ties with them in addition to the larger national level support organizations. Trust is an overarching factor that plays an important role in shaping the partnership between government and NGOs on one hand, and promoting collaboration between donors and the government on the other hand. In order to improve trust relations a genuine understanding of mutual expectations and agreements on different roles and responsibilities is expected of each stakeholder. The findings of this study demonstrate that the capacity development efforts of the three stakeholders are not properly triangulated and there exists a trust deficit among the NGOs, the government and the donors and which needs attention.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-8518
Format: Thesis

Title: The Political Economy of Energy Based Green Economic Development: Policy Tools and Their Use for Local Energy Based Green Economic Development.
Creator: Ha, Hyunsang, Feiock, Richard C., Chapin, Timothy C., Berry, Frances S., Lee, Keon-Hyung, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Local economic development is in transition to "green economic development." Local governments in the U.S. and other countries have adopted a variety of policy tools to promote green economic development and are appying them to to their local economies. The success of these efforts may depend on whether local officials have a systematic understanding of green development and how it is different from more conventional economic development approaches. One purpose of this study is to enhance our...
Show moreLocal economic development is in transition to "green economic development." Local governments in the U.S. and other countries have adopted a variety of policy tools to promote green economic development and are appying them to to their local economies. The success of these efforts may depend on whether local officials have a systematic understanding of green development and how it is different from more conventional economic development approaches. One purpose of this study is to enhance our understanding of green development policy by advancing a theoretical framework and identifying empirical evidence to account for local green econmic development activities and policies. The most basic but essential task is to understand when and how policy tools are used. The factors influencing conventional economic development activities and green economic development activities are drawn from three explanatory approaches in the literature on urban policy and econmic development: the economic pressure model, the political/institutional choice model, and development/environmental coalition model. These explanatory models are adapted and extended to account for energy based green economic development policy including the promotion of energy efficient technology, promotion of renewable energy development, and regulatory relief targeted to energy efficincy and renewables. This investigation produces several potentially important findings. First, local decision makers' perceptions and motivations regarding the importance of green businesses and industries significantly influence the use of each of the four policy tools. Additionally, neighborhood and environmental protection organizations, which have not had much impact on conventional development, have a significant influence on green development policy. Also, a community's standard of living and collaborative activities for green development are linked to regulatory relief for energy efficient technology development by local governments. Some of the same factors that determine conventional economic development activities such as administrative capacity, economic stress, development competition, voters' preference, and support of private organizations also influence the use of green economic development policy tools. An unanticipated finding is that Florida citizens registered as members of the Democratic or Green Party in Florida are less likely to support incentives and regulatory relief for renewable energy development. This curious result may reflect factors unique to Florida or cleavages in environmental voting blocks over renewable energy. Certain renewable energy sources are controversial and are purported to generate energy sprawl and negative environmental externalities. In Florida, renewable energy policy may be associated with Republicans because incentives and regulatory relief have usually been favored tools of the Christ administration. Since 2006, the Republican Party in power has emphasized climate changes and promoted renewable energy development. This study concludes that the development incentives for local green economic development are the product of political bargainig and collective action among stakeholders, rather than a product of economic pressures or conditions. This is in stark contrast with regulatory relief for green economic development. While regulatory relief for the use of energy efficient technology is significantly influenced by economic pressure and conditions, regulatory relief for renewable energy development is substantially influenced by political choice and stakeholders' activities. Comparison of development incentives and regulatory relief also provides new insights. Incentives for energy efficient technology are influenced by political/institutional factors and stakeholders' power and roles. In contrast regulatory relief to promote energy efficient technology development is shaped more by community economic pressures and conditions. However, both incentives and regulatory relief for renewable energy development are influenced by political bargaining and the power of environmental advocacy coalitions. The conclusion urges local governments or decision makers to pay attention to the distinctions highlighted in this analysis in the design, adoption and implementation of policy tools for green economic development.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4347
Format: Thesis

Title: Emotional Labor in Public Service Roles: A Model of Dramaturgical and Dispositional Approaches.
Creator: Hsieh, Chih-Wei, Guy, Mary E., Brower, Ralph S., Ueno, Koji, Bowman, James S., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Recent studies on emotional labor address how worker emotional behavior is influenced by and influences organizational routines. To build upon existing theories, this dissertation investigates the determinants and consequences of emotional labor from a perspective on the interaction of self and organization. More specifically, the dissertation offers a model of emotional labor that combines dramaturgical and dispositional approaches. In this model, display rules (the standards for appropriate...
Show moreRecent studies on emotional labor address how worker emotional behavior is influenced by and influences organizational routines. To build upon existing theories, this dissertation investigates the determinants and consequences of emotional labor from a perspective on the interaction of self and organization. More specifically, the dissertation offers a model of emotional labor that combines dramaturgical and dispositional approaches. In this model, display rules (the standards for appropriate expression of emotions on the job) and individual/organizational well-being (i.e., emotional exhaustion and service performance) act as the antecedents and consequences of emotional labor respectively. In addition, it posits that there can be mutual influences between organizational settings and personal traits on emotional behavior. Thus, individual differences—including public service motivation and emotional intelligence—are hypothesized to moderate the relationships among the antecedents, dimensions, and consequences of emotional labor. The data for hypothesis testing were collected by means of self-report survey, developed on the basis of a theoretical analysis of relevant literature. Questionnaires were administered to the Certified Public Manager (CPM) program students who are currently working full-time in service occupations in Florida. Structural equation modeling (SEM) and moderated multiple regression (MMR) analysis were employed to test the proposed model. Analytical results provided support for hypotheses set forth regarding the determinants and consequences of emotional labor, while the majority of the moderating hypotheses failed to be supported. The findings include: positive display rules (what to express on the job) contribute to more attempts to modify inner feelings to match the required emotional displays. In contrast, negative display rules (what not to express) result in the adjustment of observable emotional expressions to pretend feeling a desired emotion. Also, the increased emotional inauthenticity opens a window for a greater risk of job stress. In addition, more emotive efforts made by employees to approximate the desired emotion lead to better service performance. However, emotional inauthenticity often results in poor service performance. Finally, workers with higher levels of compassion will exert more efforts to comply with organizational rules and norms and report less emotive dissonance when dealing with clients/customers. Besides, commitment to public interest, compassion, and effective emotional regulation contribute to better service performance. The work advances the understanding of the subtleties of emotional labor in public service roles. Information provided not only reconciles the disputes between the dramaturgical and dispositional approaches of emotional labor, but also allows practitioners to better target their emotion management strategies and limit the potentially harmful consequences to worker health and performance. Findings demonstrate that the attention paid to the tasks performed by employees who work "with heart" to deliver services is of vital importance to enhance public service.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3698
Format: Thesis

Title: Examining Organization Learning in Public Sector Organizations: From the Perspective of Floirida Municipal Governments.
Creator: Jang, Hoseok, Berry, Frances Stokes, Ueno, Koji, deHaven-Smith, Lance, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Public sector organizations currently operate in an environment of change and choice (Berry, 2007). In particular, the complex governance and unpredictable nature of the contemporary public sector environment have challenged governments' attempts to improve their performance and accountability. Organizational learning is the key to performance improvement in changing and uncertain environments (Argyris and Schon, 1996; Schein, 1993) because it is based on new knowledge development or...
Show morePublic sector organizations currently operate in an environment of change and choice (Berry, 2007). In particular, the complex governance and unpredictable nature of the contemporary public sector environment have challenged governments' attempts to improve their performance and accountability. Organizational learning is the key to performance improvement in changing and uncertain environments (Argyris and Schon, 1996; Schein, 1993) because it is based on new knowledge development or performance information use, which in turn enables managers to make better decisions to improve performance. In this respect, organizational learning is an important component of the current performance management reforms or managing for results, which focus on collecting, distributing, and using performance information to improve government organizations' performance. Although organizational learning is a critical domain in performance management, empirical understanding of organizational learning in the public sector settings is limited. Thus, this study attempts to advance both theoretical and empirical research on organizational learning in the public sector, using data from the Organizational Learning and Performance Management Survey 2010: Florida Municipal Governments. The overall research question of this dissertation is: what factors influence organizational learning in Florida municipal governments? In particular, this study attempts to assess if there are differences in the antecedents of single-loop and double-loop learning. In this study, therefore, we use two dependent variables which consist of indicators for single-loop and double-loop learning respectively, in our models to examine a facilitative environment or condition for organizational learning. To answer this research question, based on past research, this study develops a theory composed of six factors to assess what seems to impact single and double-loop learning based on: 1) structural factors, 2) cultural factors, 3) learning forums, 4) performance management systems, 5) network characteristics, and 6) external stakeholder's participation. We found strong support for our organizational learning models, and variables representing each of the six theoretical factors were significant. Research results indicated that there are some different patterns of effects and different impacts for single-loop and double-loop learning. The goal and mission orientation, strategic planning, external networks, and political officials' participation are facilitative factors to double-loop learning but do not have a significant relationship to single-loop learning, while the utilization of IT is important to single-loop learning but not to double-loop learning. Moreover, the impacts of decentralization, risk-taking culture, and learning forums are stronger in double-loop learning than in single-loop learning, while the impact of internal network is greater on single-loop learning than on double-loop learning. Low formalization, resources, and benchmarking, however, were unexpectedly found to have negative relationships with at least one type of organizational learning. Moreover, we found the mediating effect of single-loop learning on double-loop learning. Overall, the findings provide insight into antecedents of and strategies for fostering single-loop and double-loop learning, and ultimately performance improvement of local governments.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3553
Format: Thesis

Title: Policy Tool Bundling: Predicting the Selection of Policy Instruments Using Bayesian Multivariate Probit Analysis.
Creator: Kassekert, Anthony J., Feiock, Richard, Zuehlke, Tom, Yang, Kaifeng, Berry, Frances Stokes, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The choice of economic development incentives involves a complex system of political and economic considerations. Policy tools theory has largely focused on the individual characteristics of each particular tool and has not considered interactions among instruments or explained why multiple tools are used simultaneously in practice. Extant research has overlooked interdependence among policies and the fact that policies may serve as substitutes or compliments to each other. Building on...
Show moreThe choice of economic development incentives involves a complex system of political and economic considerations. Policy tools theory has largely focused on the individual characteristics of each particular tool and has not considered interactions among instruments or explained why multiple tools are used simultaneously in practice. Extant research has overlooked interdependence among policies and the fact that policies may serve as substitutes or compliments to each other. Building on theories of policy tools and policy diffusion, a theory of policy bundling is developed in this dissertation to explain why multiple tools are used in conjunction with one another to solve public problems. A diverse set of motivations and strategies are formed to explicate why bundling occur. The theory of policy tool bundling is empirically tested using panel data from the state of Georgia. The presence of policy tool bundling is assessed by modeling four economic incentives simultaneously with a multivariate probit model estimated using Bayesian methods. The results demonstrate that bundling is occurring between free or reduced cost land and expedited permitting and also between free or reduced cost land and industrial development bonds. No evidence of bundling was found between other incentives indicating that while policy bundling does occur in economic development, many of the observed relationships between policies are not strategic.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3323
Format: Thesis

Title: Institutional Choice in Local Economic Development Organizations.
Creator: Park, Jongsun, Feiock, Richard C., Barrilleaux, Charles, deHaven-Smith, Lance, Lee, Keon-Hyung, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Economic development is always a central concern for local governments, and has become increasingly important as the federal role in this area has been reduced in the last two decades. More recently, county governments have extended their activities in order to be closer to the people having greater needs and preferences resulting from economic decline and suburbanization. Economic development has become a major priority among counties. This dissertation takes an encompassing approach to...
Show moreEconomic development is always a central concern for local governments, and has become increasingly important as the federal role in this area has been reduced in the last two decades. More recently, county governments have extended their activities in order to be closer to the people having greater needs and preferences resulting from economic decline and suburbanization. Economic development has become a major priority among counties. This dissertation takes an encompassing approach to institutions that focus primarily on institutions as organization-level governing structures, but also views organizations and their choices of institutional structures as shaped by the larger institutional environments in which they are embedded. Local organizations have obvious importance for development priorities, policies, and success, but we know very little about the organizations and institutions for promoting local growth, or how and why they have chosen and changed over the past two decades. Especially, there is greater importance of local organizations in counties, because they have larger resource bases than municipalities, and stronger local identification which can facilitate economic development programs and policies. This study asks these three questions focusing on organizational choices for economic development in U.S. counties. How do communities organize themselves to promote economic development? Have county governments changed their organizational arrangements for promoting economic development? What accounts for organizational choice in three dimension of county economic development organizations: 1) internal organizations in departmental function; 2) locus of active organizations; 3) regional partnership organizations? With 500 respondents of the survey for statistical analyses, in internal organizations of county governments, the dominant choice was to place the department under the control of the county commission, administrator or manager, while the second was a separate department type in 2009. Also, the results indicate that counties with economic decline rely on separate type to robust economies, and specific interests and inter-local networks influence change of organizational arrangements positively in the structure of county governments. In the locus of development authority, public organization was the most dominant organizational arrangement for economic development in counties. Public-private organization was the second in 2009. In addition, the results of statistical analyses show that counties with economic decline and a reformed form of government rely more on public-private organizations to promote economic condition, while stronger environmental interest choose public organizations as the active actor for county economic development. Specific interests (pro-development interest and pro-environment interest) have affected change of development groups for the last 10 years. In 2009, about 80% of county governments joined in regional partnership organizations. The analysis indicates that stronger environmental interest, a reformed form of government, and a closer inter-local network are positively related with participating in the regional partnership organizations. Also, specific interests (pro-development interest and pro-environment interest) and a reformed form of government have made the county governments affiliate with the regional organizations between 1999 and 2009. Finally, this dissertation confirms that counties have chosen and changed their organizations for economic development reflecting public demands, specific interests, and inter-local relationships.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2246
Format: Thesis

Title: Local Land Use Choices: An Empirical Investigation of Development Impact Fees in Florida.
Creator: Jeong, Moon-Gi, Feiock, Richard C., Ihlanfeldt, Keith, Berry, Frances S., Bradley, Robert B., Klay, Earle, Wolfson, Gabriela S., School of Public Administration and Policy,...
Show moreJeong, Moon-Gi, Feiock, Richard C., Ihlanfeldt, Keith, Berry, Frances S., Bradley, Robert B., Klay, Earle, Wolfson, Gabriela S., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
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Abstract/Description: What factors account for local institutional choices such as adoption of impact fees? Is there a pattern to impact fee adoptions? These questions are of critical importance because in the United States, local governments are primarily responsible for defining property rights concerning how people use land and providing basic public services to citizens. The theoretical framework to investigate impact fee adoption combines political market approaches based in interest group theories of...
Show moreWhat factors account for local institutional choices such as adoption of impact fees? Is there a pattern to impact fee adoptions? These questions are of critical importance because in the United States, local governments are primarily responsible for defining property rights concerning how people use land and providing basic public services to citizens. The theoretical framework to investigate impact fee adoption combines political market approaches based in interest group theories of property rights and diffusion theories of innovation. This framework identifies the local demanders and suppliers, intergovernmental institutions, administrative capacity, diffusion, and financial conditions. Empirical analysis focuses on adoption of impact fees—transportation, parks, fire/EMS, police/corrections, school, and library—in 66 Florida counties from 1977 to 2001, using event history analysis. The first impact fee in Florida was parks impact fees adopted by Broward County in 1977. The first ten adoptions occurred in counties located in the southern and central regions of Florida except for Holmes County, and the adoptions spread to the northern counties in the mid- and late 1980s. Counties have frequently changed impact fee schedules. Parks impact fees have been changed more often—about 4 times on average—than any other type of fees. The empirical results regarding determinants of impact fee adoptions provide several key lessons. First, the results suggest that interest groups such as high-income citizens and the development community have a significant influence on impact fee adoptions. Second, motivations of local government decision makers promote controversial impact fee adoptions such as school impact fees. Third, Florida counties experienced significant increase in the impact fee adoptions after the Growth Management Act of 1985 and case laws in 1983. Fourth, counties are more likely to adopt impact fees if more neighboring counties have adopted impact fees. Fifth, administrative capacity as a critical resource influences impact fee adoptions. Counties having employees with professional and skilled expertise are more likely to adopt impact fees. Sixth, previous studies on determinants of impact fee adoptions attributed the adoption of impact fees to local growth, especially population growth. The empirical findings provide consistent and strong effects of local growth on impact fee adoptions.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3528
Format: Thesis

Title: Contracting Out Local Government Services to Nonprofit Organizations.
Creator: Jang, Hee Soun, Feiock, Richard C., Weissert, Carol S., Berry, Frances S., Brower, Ralph S., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation empirically tests theoretical arguments that contracting out municipal services results in lower service expenditures. Two research questions are investigated; what accounts for local government service provision and production decisions? And, to what extent do contracting out and the choice of sectors from which contractors are drawn influence levels of service expenditures by local governments? These questions are investigated by applying a transaction cost framework to...
Show moreThis dissertation empirically tests theoretical arguments that contracting out municipal services results in lower service expenditures. Two research questions are investigated; what accounts for local government service provision and production decisions? And, to what extent do contracting out and the choice of sectors from which contractors are drawn influence levels of service expenditures by local governments? These questions are investigated by applying a transaction cost framework to develop testable hypotheses and explain fiscal impact of municipality's service production arrangements. The empirical analysis focuses on the decision to contract out services and the resulting cost savings (if any) that result from contracting out. Six service areas for which expected transaction costs are significant were selected for analysis. These services also vary in terms of their service characteristics based on the tangibleness of service outputs and the complexity of service products. The services examined are: 1) electric utilities, 2) fire protection, 3) police, 4) parks, 5) libraries, and 6) public health services. The empirical results indicate that service specific characteristics are key determinants of contracting out decisions, the choice of sectors, and the cost savings realized from service production choices. Nonprofit production is concentrated in the softer social and human service areas. While some of the conventional thoughts on the inefficiency of government monopoly are consistently supported across all selected six services, the cost savings from private contracting to for-profit firms are only realized for electricity and fire protection service. Nonprofit organizations are an attractive option when municipalities face transaction cost incurred from difficulty in measurability of service outputs and high costs to monitor multiple dimensions of service quality. It has been found that independent nonprofit service market for lowering bidding price is important for local contracting out. This dissertation suggests that local governments may be able to partially overcome tradeoffs between cost and quality of publicly provided services by contracting out the delivery to nonprofit organizations.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3561
Format: Thesis

Title: A Grounded Analysis of the Sensemaking Process of Korean Street-Level Fire Service Officials.
Creator: Jeong, Hong-Sang, Brower, Ralph S., Losh, Susan C., Guy, Mary E., McCreary, Samuel M., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This is a study to critically explain how Korean street-level fire service officials make sense of problematic working situations in which they find themselves. The study wanted to three interrelated questions. First, how do Korean street-level fire service officials, through the process of conscious meaning construction, enact their problematic situations and adjust their meanings to the enacted situations? Second, how do the officials consciously draw upon existing institutional practices...
Show moreThis is a study to critically explain how Korean street-level fire service officials make sense of problematic working situations in which they find themselves. The study wanted to three interrelated questions. First, how do Korean street-level fire service officials, through the process of conscious meaning construction, enact their problematic situations and adjust their meanings to the enacted situations? Second, how do the officials consciously draw upon existing institutional practices in the constructions of meaning and develop these institutional practices through such meaning constructions? Third, how do they, through social interactions with others, accomplish the meanings of problematic situations? My answers to these questions were drawn from a grounded analysis of forty five sensemaking episodes that I collected from individual interviews. To clarify the ways in which my research participants had handled their unstructured working situations, the analysis included a multi stage iterative process. First, I examined their personal stories of the situations. Second, I developed codes inductively from their stories. Third, I generated theoretical assertions of the process in which they had constructed particular meanings of the problematic situations before them. As patterns and anomalies emerged, I used data to validate them in an iterative way, going back and forth between theory and data. Finally, the analysis concluded with a grounded model of the meaning construction (sensemaking) process. On the basis of such a data analysis, the study shows Korean street-level fire service officials' sensemaking process as one in which they consciously update the initial working relationship that they have to the physical things in their world of work, or actively construct a new dimensional working relationship with the physical things in-relation-to the social encounterers in the field of their work.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3527
Format: Thesis

Title: Constitutional Change in Local Governance: An Exploration of Institutional Entrepreneurs, Procedural Safeguards, and Selective Incentives.
Creator: Johnson, Linda S., Feiock, Richard C., Barrilleaux, Charles, Brower, Ralph, Berry, Fran, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation extends research in local governance constitutional change in a new direction and integrates several models of institutions to explain patterns of municipal charter change. This approach presents a new understanding of institutions, actors, and change in the municipal charter. One of the most important implications of this study is that multiple perspectives on the dynamics of local governance can be incorporated into a testable theory. This interconnection provides a...
Show moreThis dissertation extends research in local governance constitutional change in a new direction and integrates several models of institutions to explain patterns of municipal charter change. This approach presents a new understanding of institutions, actors, and change in the municipal charter. One of the most important implications of this study is that multiple perspectives on the dynamics of local governance can be incorporated into a testable theory. This interconnection provides a comprehensive and dynamic perspective of the competition for governance rules. This study differs from other studies of local constitutional change in five ways. First, the study concentrates on change in the most embedded level of the local institution, the local constitution. Second, it builds on Maser's (1998) transaction resource theory of local constitutional change by incorporating selective incentives for maintenance or change and including rejected proposed rules. Third, the study views all forms of charter change as constitutional change which allows the theory to include both charter revision and the more radical city-county consolidation as a continuum of local constitutional change. Fourth, the study integrates entrepreneurs and demanders of the status quo into the theory of competition for governance rules and procedural safeguards, extending Ostrom's Institutional Analysis Framework (1990). Finally, it moves entrepreneur studies to the constitutional level and argued that actors try to induce change in order to lock their preferences into the system. Two methods are used to provide empirical evidence of maintenance or change in the system. The first method, case studies allow in-depth explorations of complex entities for evidence of dynamics, but can be difficult in comparing multiple complex systems. The second method, Qualitative Comparative Analysis, a Boolean method, integrates complex multiple characteristics of system complexity with in-depth characteristics of diverse entities to explore the phenomenon. The central findings of the study focus on the choice of rules and the actors. In proposed consolidation charters, the electoral system rules that provide a safeguard for representation will be supported by minorities. Property owners, farmers, and business groups support rules that reduce the costs of government and protect their access to the governance structure.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3557
Format: Thesis

Title: Generation and the Psychological Contract: How Civil Service Reform Is Perceived by Public Sector Workers.
Creator: Hicks, Melanie, Guy, Mary Ellen, Perrewe, Pam, Bowman, James, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Civil Service reform has swept through all levels of government during the last decade. These reforms call for greater managerial flexibility at the expense of civil servant employment security and tenure. This work examines the effects of these reforms on the psychological contract of various generations working in Florida's state government. The psychological contract can be defined as an exchange agreement of promises and contributions between two parties, the employee and employer, and...
Show moreCivil Service reform has swept through all levels of government during the last decade. These reforms call for greater managerial flexibility at the expense of civil servant employment security and tenure. This work examines the effects of these reforms on the psychological contract of various generations working in Florida's state government. The psychological contract can be defined as an exchange agreement of promises and contributions between two parties, the employee and employer, and includes an individual's beliefs regarding mutual obligations (Rousseau, 1990, 1995). Psychological contract theory is believed by many to be the most accurate explanation of the varied, albeit primarily negative, reactions of employees to job insecurity (King, 2000). The psychological contract becomes an important and appropriate framework to study employee perceptions of civil service reforms. In this research, three distinct literatures were reviewed to build a theory of worker perceptions based on generational cohort. First, a brief account of the civil service reform efforts taking place. From there, the work outlined streams of research associated with the psychological contract and generational differences. From there, gaps in the literature were identified and hypotheses proposed. The hypotheses fell into four groups: psychological contract obligations, job security, self-reliance, and loyalty/commitment levels. Age (birth year) was converted to generational cohort variables which were used in the exploration of generational differences. Analysis of Variance was used to identify the differences in means. The predicted theory of this research was that various generations hold differences in psychological contract perceptions, self-reliance factors, and various career and organizational commitment measures. This theory was only partially supported by the findings. The findings were significant in the area of continuance commitment. There was also significance found between the hypotheses and various control variables. Possible reasons for this are discussed. Employment conditions are changing rapidly in today's public and private work environments. Researchers have attempted to capture the effects of those changes on perceptions, including their effects on the psychological contract. This research contributes to a better understanding of civil service reform, psychological contract, and generational differences. Moreover, it highlights the need for additional research that will illuminate a more accurate conceptualization of the relationship between generation and worker perceptions.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4061
Format: Thesis

Title: Professionalism of Florida Senior Management Service and Selected Exempt Service Administrators: Managerial, Political, and Ethical Roles.
Creator: Heil, David Carlton, Berry, Frances S., Barrilleaux, Charles J., Klay, William Earle, Bowman, James S., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The policy of the State of Florida recognizes high-level public administration as a profession and expects administrators to be competent and to practice managerial, political, and ethical roles. Conceptual frameworks of high-level administrators' credentials (knowledge and skills) and behaviors (managerial, political, and ethical roles) in public administration literature are reviewed. Operational definitions are developed for the concepts of professional credentials, managerial roles,...
Show moreThe policy of the State of Florida recognizes high-level public administration as a profession and expects administrators to be competent and to practice managerial, political, and ethical roles. Conceptual frameworks of high-level administrators' credentials (knowledge and skills) and behaviors (managerial, political, and ethical roles) in public administration literature are reviewed. Operational definitions are developed for the concepts of professional credentials, managerial roles, political roles, and ethical roles. A model is presented which views a professional public administrator from two different perspectives: (1) knowledge and skills and (2) practices and views of managerial, political, and ethical roles. Hypotheses are developed for specific research questions. Survey instruments were developed and sent via the World Wide Web to State of Florida high-level agency administrators. The response rate was 32.9 percent. Overall, the sample was representative of the population, except that female respondents were under represented. Results indicate that Florida high-level administrators surveyed exhibit high professional credentials based on experience, education, training, political acuity, and public service attitudes. Results indicate that these administrators exhibit and place high importance on many of the expected behaviors or roles. Results fail to show the anticipated positive association between measures of professional credentials and professional behaviors. Results indicate little professional credentials and professional behavior differences in those administrators entering these high-level positions voluntarily (hired into the position) compared to those entering involuntarily (position was converted from the career service system). Overall, Florida high-level administrators exhibit the high level of professional competence and professional behaviors described in the public administration literature and prescribed in Florida public policies. Strengths and weaknesses of these administrators are discussed. Theoretical, policy, and practical implications of the findings are discussed as well as are the limitations and directions for future research.
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Date Issued: 2003
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4151
Format: Thesis

Title: Politics, Institutions, and the Implementation of Growth Management Policy in Florida Cities.
Creator: Kang, In-Sung, Feiock, Richard C., Lloyd, Donald A., Berry, Frances, deHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study originated from the following two questions: to what extent do city governments engage in policy actions to restrict development and manage growth; and how do local political institutions shape the restrictiveness of local growth management? To answer the questions, first of all, this dissertation identifies variations in the exercise of growth management powers across cities based on financial data gathered from fiscal reports filed with the Florida Comptroller, and policy...
Show moreThis study originated from the following two questions: to what extent do city governments engage in policy actions to restrict development and manage growth; and how do local political institutions shape the restrictiveness of local growth management? To answer the questions, first of all, this dissertation identifies variations in the exercise of growth management powers across cities based on financial data gathered from fiscal reports filed with the Florida Comptroller, and policy implementation/adoption data gathered in a mail survey conducted by the author in collaboration with Richard Feiock and Antonio Tavares. Information on city level political institutions and governing structures is gathered from the International City Management Association's (ICMA) 2001 Form of Government Survey. Based on information about growth management expenditure and policy adoption/implementation, this study examines a broad set of government institutions extended to include the size and organization of city councils and standing committees. This research focused on the implementation and exercise of discretionary powers as well as policy adoption in relation to growth management based on a political market approach. In the political market approach, focusing on the demander and supplier help us understand internal forces of growth management policy. Finally, acknowledging that the underlying theory of institutions in this work is applicable to cities, this study attempts to identify cities' spatial impact on expenditures for growth management. Referring to policy diffusion theory, we review the impact of neighboring cites' on comprehensive planning expenditure as identifying the internal and external forces by using of political market and spatial effect model. In this research, the followings are the core parts we focus on implementation of growth management policy: local comprehensive planning expenditures, zoning request approval, and policy enforcement of the innovative policies. We considered the role of local institutions as supplier, political economy demands, and municipal context. For the hypotheses tests, we employ three different kinds of statistical analysis: spatial regression, ordered probit, and probit analysis.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3353
Format: Thesis

Title: Emotional Labor in Public Service Work.
Creator: Jin, Myung, Guy, Mary E., Brower, Ralph S., Perrewé, Pamela, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: A number of scholars are increasingly turning their attention to the effects of emotional labor on organizational performance (Hochschild, 1983). The literature's focus on private industry reports a negative influence on its consequences for individual performance. Recent research in other fields, such as psychology, business, and public administration, however, has shown mixed results, with some reporting a positive impact on both individual and organizational performance. Previous research...
Show moreA number of scholars are increasingly turning their attention to the effects of emotional labor on organizational performance (Hochschild, 1983). The literature's focus on private industry reports a negative influence on its consequences for individual performance. Recent research in other fields, such as psychology, business, and public administration, however, has shown mixed results, with some reporting a positive impact on both individual and organizational performance. Previous research was limited to examining for-profit service industries where concern for customer satisfaction is a priority. In contrast, public service by its own nature is "regulatory" and workers' incentives are less likely to include pecuniary benefits either for themselves or their organizations. By integrating awareness of emotion work in theory building, this study seeks to present the unique influence of emotional labor in work that ranges from regulating business transactions to controlling personal behavior for both workers and citizens. Additionally, by integrating previous research, the dissertation presents a comprehensive model of the antecedents and consequences of performing emotional labor. This study examines how workers' recognition of the need for emotional labor affects the degree to which they perform it and how it affects their pride in work and burnout. Hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling will be used to test hypotheses.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3507
Format: Thesis

Title: Assimilation or Transformation?: An Analysis of Change in Ten Secondary Science Teachers Following an Inquiry-Based Research Experience for Teachers.
Creator: Blanchard, Carrie, Davis, Nancy T., Stallins, J. Anthony, Gilmer, Penny J., Southerland, Sherry A., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation examines the role of agency in county level decision making regarding Wal-Mart development within Florida counties. Framed by the theories of principal-agent, local government decision making and open systems this research examines key factors that influence a decision to allow or disallow a Wal-Mart. The method Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is employed to both theory test and theory build around the factors of agency, with the findings demonstrating that county...
Show moreThis dissertation examines the role of agency in county level decision making regarding Wal-Mart development within Florida counties. Framed by the theories of principal-agent, local government decision making and open systems this research examines key factors that influence a decision to allow or disallow a Wal-Mart. The method Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is employed to both theory test and theory build around the factors of agency, with the findings demonstrating that county poverty rates and staff recommendation are significant factors in a decision to allow a Wal-Mart.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3660
Format: Thesis

Title: Local Government Management Innovation Nested in State Government Levels: Local Service Delivery Contracting and Performance Measurement.
Creator: Hsieh, Jun Yi, Berry, Frances S., Reynolds, John, Feiock, Richard, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The interaction of policy and management presents a close relationship in administrative practices. This dissertation estimates the impacts on use of local performance measures related to local service contracting. The previous research only tested individual state level or local level, rather than estimated how state factors influence local practices. For example, the hierarchical rules, mandates, and laws made by state levels might affect the adoption rates of local management innovation....
Show moreThe interaction of policy and management presents a close relationship in administrative practices. This dissertation estimates the impacts on use of local performance measures related to local service contracting. The previous research only tested individual state level or local level, rather than estimated how state factors influence local practices. For example, the hierarchical rules, mandates, and laws made by state levels might affect the adoption rates of local management innovation. As well, the previous efforts only used cross-sectional data to understand the adoption of local management innovation, which may overlook the changes over time that take place in local management performance measurement innovation. In this dissertation, the propensity to "implement" the adoption of a new management instrument has been studied under the rubric of management innovation, specifically as adopting a variety of performance measurement in local service delivery contracting. To analyze the "diffusion" characteristic of space and time, the model strategies employed in this dissertation include the local level and state level with a time growth curve estimated by Hierarchical Linear Model (HLM) and Hierarchical Generalized Linear Model (HGLM). To enhance understanding of the adoption and the process of management innovation, the study employs panel data drawn from the survey of 1992, 1997, and 2002 International City and County Management Association (ICMA) city administrators' responses to local service delivery programs on municipal and county governments nested in state levels to test the adoption of local performance measures related to service contracting. This dissertation intends to estimate the relationship about how contract management capacity and state factors influence the rate of use of performance measurement, and to compare two group differences of private contracting, and nonprofit contracting employed by local governments nested in state levels. Beyond our expectations, the diffusion of local performance measurement nested in state level did not significantly change over time, but the findings with the growth curve models showed that the adoption of performance measurement indeed had grown over our observed time. In general, the local contract management capacity (e.g., feasibility assessment, evaluation, and implementation) significantly matters to the adoption of three types of performance measurements (e.g., citizen satisfaction, cost, contract compliance). In individual, the contract management capacity and state factors (e.g., state divided government, state reinventions) significantly impacts the use of performance measurement for private contracting. However, the state factors weakly influence the adoption of performance measurements when local governments employed nonprofit contracting. Several factors--structural and institutional heterogeneity-- can explain these differences in use of performance measures related to private contracting, and nonprofit contracting. The empirical findings also show that state factors have a large impact on the adoption of performance measurement related to service delivery contracting. The findings suggest that local practices are indeed embedded in multilevel diffusion that may be unobserved by the previous studies in public administration research.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3699
Format: Thesis

Title: Education Policy Adoption at the Local Governance Level: An Empirical Analysis of Factors Influencing the Adoption of Reading First in Florida School Districts.
Creator: Lassila, Christy Lyn Hovanetz, Berry, Frances Stokes, Milton, Sande, Feiock, Richard, DeHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This research examines Florida school districts' adoption of Reading First legislation passed into law as part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. This research attempts to answer the fundamental question pertinent to the policy adoption process: Why do some school districts readily adopt the Reading First innovation while others do not adopt it? This research will test key factors based on the following explanations: 1) Political Institutions, 2) Need and District...
Show moreThis research examines Florida school districts' adoption of Reading First legislation passed into law as part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. This research attempts to answer the fundamental question pertinent to the policy adoption process: Why do some school districts readily adopt the Reading First innovation while others do not adopt it? This research will test key factors based on the following explanations: 1) Political Institutions, 2) Need and District Characteristics, 3) Education Ideology, 4) Policy Entrepreneurs and Networks, and 5) Diffusion. A multivariate model representing the five competing explanations was created to determine what drives local governments (school districts) to adopt Reading First policy using Event History Analysis. The results show two significant variables, reading scores (need) and diffusion. School districts with fewer proficient readers are more likely to be early adopters of Reading First. The diffusion variable was also significant but unexpectedly had a negative relationship finding that districts with fewer contiguous districts that have adopted Reading First are more likely to be early adopters. While unexpected, it may be the result of the short timeline of the adoption process and the pressure by the media, political actors, and district personnel to be an early adopter.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3733
Format: Thesis

Title: Examining the Determinants of Charter School Expansion and the Relationship of Charter Schools and District Performance Using Event History Analysis and Cross Sectional Modeling.
Creator: Lassila, Nathan E. (Nathan Eric), Berry, Frances Stokes, Iatarola, Patrice, Feiock, Richard, DeHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State...
Show moreLassila, Nathan E. (Nathan Eric), Berry, Frances Stokes, Iatarola, Patrice, Feiock, Richard, DeHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
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Abstract/Description: Charter schools represent one of many choice options available to Florida school districts. While public choice theory may provide insight as to why choice should impact student performance, using two research stages, this paper examines empirically factors leading to charter school adoption and the relationship of increasing charter schools on district academic performance. Results of this research indicate that, increasing middle school class size and emulation of neighboring adopters are...
Show moreCharter schools represent one of many choice options available to Florida school districts. While public choice theory may provide insight as to why choice should impact student performance, using two research stages, this paper examines empirically factors leading to charter school adoption and the relationship of increasing charter schools on district academic performance. Results of this research indicate that, increasing middle school class size and emulation of neighboring adopters are statistically significant factors in a districts' charter school policy adoption. True emulation as specified by diffusion literature may be suspect due to the advent of choice alternatives in Florida prior to the law that allowed districts to formally adopt charters as a choice policy. Thus, the choice may not have diffused from early adopters to laggards, but rather via a burst of adopters who had been waiting for an opportunity. Further, cross sectional modeling provides slight or weak evidence that increases in charter schools is positively associated with academic performance in districts.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3267
Format: Thesis

Title: Anticipatory Socialization and University Retention: An Analysis of the Effect of Enrollment at a Faith-Based Secondary School on the Progression of Students Through a Faith-Based University.
Creator: Latham, Sarah C., deHaven-Smith, Lance, Herrington, Carolyn, Berry, Frances, Feiock, Richard, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The retention and graduation of students is at the core of postsecondary education. This topic becomes increasingly relevant as tight budgets force state legislatures to seek increased accountability, and soaring tuition costs force students and parents to demand results for their investment. Numerous studies have been done exploring progression and the factors affecting it. However, few have framed the pursuit of a baccalaureate degree using the concept of anticipatory socialization. This...
Show moreThe retention and graduation of students is at the core of postsecondary education. This topic becomes increasingly relevant as tight budgets force state legislatures to seek increased accountability, and soaring tuition costs force students and parents to demand results for their investment. Numerous studies have been done exploring progression and the factors affecting it. However, few have framed the pursuit of a baccalaureate degree using the concept of anticipatory socialization. This study seeks to fill that void and link three fields of study: Organizational Theory, Anticipatory Socialization Theory, and Student Progression Research. A longitudinal cohort analysis was performed to assess the role of anticipatory socialization in increasing the likelihood of attainment of a baccalaureate degree. The anticipatory socialization mode of focus was attendance at a secondary faith-based institution as a socialization mechanism preparing students for attendance at a faith-based university. The hypothesis underlying the analysis suggested that students who are already socialized within a faith-based learning institution would exhibit higher graduation rates from a faith-based university, than students who graduated from non faith-based secondary institutions. Furthermore, using Tinto's Stages of college student progression, it was argued that attrition rates would be higher for non-faith-based high school graduates during the freshmen year, when integration occurs. Finally, the subsequent enrollment of drop-out was examined in order to determine the types of institutions they subsequently transferred to. Logistic regression models confirmed the effect of faith-based secondary school enrollment and found that the stage of exit was different based on high school type. The significant factors affecting subsequent enrollment still require further research.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3263
Format: Thesis

Title: Coproduction as a Service Delivery Mechanism: The Role of Information, Government, and Individuals in Producing Environmental Public Goods.
Creator: Curley, Cali, Feiock, Richard, Coutts, Christopher, Berry, Frances, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation proposes a new theoretical approach to the study of coproduction; it does so by providing a refined definition of the phenomenon, and responds to two of the largest criticisms of the literature, and incorporating the impact of information on the rate of participation in programs considered coproduction. Included in this new theory is a detailed account of the role of the individual, the role of government and the interactions between the two in jointly producing a public...
Show moreThis dissertation proposes a new theoretical approach to the study of coproduction; it does so by providing a refined definition of the phenomenon, and responds to two of the largest criticisms of the literature, and incorporating the impact of information on the rate of participation in programs considered coproduction. Included in this new theory is a detailed account of the role of the individual, the role of government and the interactions between the two in jointly producing a public good. This new conceptualization identifies three forms of coproduction: enabled, voluntary, and incentivized. Energy policy is used as an arena in which to test two of these forms of coproduction in an empirical analysis. This research suggests that information and the source of that information along with the monetary costs of participation are the largest barriers to participation in programs that result in coproduction and that the magnitude of these impacts changes according to the form of coproduction. The role of traditional media, newspaper articles, in providing information is examined through content analysis. I detail the impact that clusters of information from newspaper articles may have on policy participation. In addition, I examine participation in three programs offered by the City of Tallahassee. The programs that are examined in depth are a free energy audit program which provides information to customers about how to reduce energy consumption, the rebate program that offers one-time monetary payments that reduce the overall costs of updating appliances, and the low-interest loan program that incentivizes participation through a reduced interest rate guaranteed for the length of the loan up to five years. These three programs fall into two of the three categories of coproduction and are examined for their ability to produce the public good and the determinants of participation. These determinants help to examine differences between the groups of participants, the differences in motivations, the reliance on incentives, and the role of information in participation.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-8968
Format: Thesis

Title: Three Actors and Three Perspectives in Property Tax Competition of Seoul Metropolitan Area: Economic Motives and Political Actions.
Creator: Kim, Dae Jin, Berry, Frances S., Weissert, Carol S., Feiock, Richard C., deHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: A policy phenomenon sometimes has multi-facets like a polyhedron because many stakeholders with different preferences or goals are involved in the policy process. The case of tax competition in the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) is also a multi-faceted policy phenomenon. Recently the Korean central government introduced a package of tax hikes on real estate in order to achieve tax levy equity. This remarkable tax innovation, however, resulted in conflicts between three actors (the central...
Show moreA policy phenomenon sometimes has multi-facets like a polyhedron because many stakeholders with different preferences or goals are involved in the policy process. The case of tax competition in the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) is also a multi-faceted policy phenomenon. Recently the Korean central government introduced a package of tax hikes on real estate in order to achieve tax levy equity. This remarkable tax innovation, however, resulted in conflicts between three actors (the central government, residents and local governments), which were followed by an area-wide tax competition among local governments of the SMA. Under severe tax competition over the SMA, the direct impact of the tax hike policy on the property tax burden the rich group had to bear shrank to the half level the central government originally expected. Rather the tax hike policy under tax competition also resulted in unexpected inequity problems in the property tax burden occurred within jurisdictions and between jurisdictions. To analyze some interesting issues related to the three actors' behavior and interactions, this research employs three different models incorporating three different perspectives of the three actors: Median Voting, Delegation and Implementation, and Strategic Tiebout Tax Competition Models. Based on the Median Voting model, this research first examines the process of how the residents influence the local governments in the chapter 2. Supposing that preferred tax rates by median-wealth residents with small/middle sized house or condominium are lower than the recommended tax rate, the pre-electoral competition model implies that the tax competition of SMA will result in the property tax cuts. Since the house or condominium is the most valuable asset to the median-wealth residents in some local jurisdictions, the median-wealth residents strongly request for the residential property tax cut, responding the tax rate cuts in the local rich jurisdictions. Second, the Delegation and Implementation model analysis will examine: (1) why the local governments cut the property tax against the tax hike policy of the central government in spite of the expected sanctions. A trade-off condition between the tax revenue and pre-electoral benefit implies that the local governments will have the quadratic utility or preference function. Also the median-wealth residents also face the trade-off between the public goods and the tax burden, and the central government is supposed to look for the optimal property tax rate which will satisfy their goal for the fair redistribution of the wealth; (2) Under equilibrium, the central government utilizes its fiscal discretion to prevent local governments' deviation in a strategic situation; and (3) what factors influence the use of fiscal discretion by local governments. Third, this research examines the strategic tax competition of SMA. Based on some propositions from two analyses of the median voting and implementation models, the analysis of the tax competition model will examine what determines the degree of tax cut and what influences the decision making on whether to cut the property tax or not. Using a spatial econometric model, this research provides empirical evidence to support the causalities postulated in the multiple theoretical models of this dissertation. This research will first contribute to the formal model study area by enriching the empirical research literature of formal modeling. Finally, the research is expected to show that the models developed by the American or Western European scholars are applicable to the analysis of the Asian cases under some conditions.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3065
Format: Thesis

Title: Locus of an Emergent Field: Framing Emergency Management Knowledge, Values, and Priorities within Current Academic Curricula.
Creator: Dilling, Janet, Klay, William Earle, Cohen-Vogel, Lora, Brower, Ralph, Berry, Frances, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The field of Emergency Management is in a period of dramatic knowledge expansion. Practitioners from diverse public and private organizations and all levels of government are enjoying increased visibility and resources in combating a string of media enriched disaster events. A growing number of scholars and practitioners from multiple originating disciplines are bringing together an ever-increasing body of written work to support the recognition of Emergency Management as a profession and as...
Show moreThe field of Emergency Management is in a period of dramatic knowledge expansion. Practitioners from diverse public and private organizations and all levels of government are enjoying increased visibility and resources in combating a string of media enriched disaster events. A growing number of scholars and practitioners from multiple originating disciplines are bringing together an ever-increasing body of written work to support the recognition of Emergency Management as a profession and as a field for academic inquiry. This development in the United States has been propelled by the expansion of emergency management issues across disciplines, the establishment of a large number of academic programs across the country, and increasing visibility of disaster and its consequences, including the most recent emphasis on terrorism and homeland security. This study seeks to determine the degree of alignment between the perceptions of academics and practitioners in the field. To that end, this study addresses two research questions: 1) based on existing academic curricula, what are some of the core knowledge components of Emergency Management and what is the relative emphasis placed on each of the identified components; and 2) how and to what extent does the curricula content create intersection between originating disciplines and institutions of emergency management practice, or more plainly stated, between academics and practitioners.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0331
Format: Thesis

Title: Public Administration and Political Science: An Historical Analysis of the Relation Between the Two Academic Disciplines.
Creator: Khodr, Hiba, Guy, Mary E., Reynolds, John, Berry, Frances S., Brower, Ralph, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: From the dawn of civilization, political science and public administration have developed a close relationship. The development of a more stable society could not take place without the improvement and coordination of political and administrative techniques that foster social cohesion. Public administration and political science not only study and develop such techniques, but also work toward accomplishing such cohesion. For all its intellectual history, the field of public administration has...
Show moreFrom the dawn of civilization, political science and public administration have developed a close relationship. The development of a more stable society could not take place without the improvement and coordination of political and administrative techniques that foster social cohesion. Public administration and political science not only study and develop such techniques, but also work toward accomplishing such cohesion. For all its intellectual history, the field of public administration has been acknowledged to have a niche in the political science discipline. Yet this position has not always been a comfortable one. Through their quest for authority, autonomy, professionalism, and scientism, public administration and political science emerged as two disciplines that were proven capable of institutionalizing their distinct formal knowledge. The transformation of this body of knowledge, from generalized to more specialized, contributed at times to the alliance between the two disciplines and at other times to a growing tension between them and even separation. Despite a rocky journey, the two fields appeared to have a natural alliance that had endured harsh times and weak ties and was now making its way toward a rapprochement. This dissertation examines American Public Administration's relationship to political science. It analyzes major theoretical trends in both fields' history that have had a profound impact on the historical development of such relation. These include: politics-administration dichotomy, bureaucracy and democracy, theory and practice, and behavioralism. The method of research of this study is mainly historical. However, a content analysis is conducted. The data collected include primary sources, such as scholarly publications in both fields, and other related material such as the disciplines' academic organization and professional associations. When was the origin; what is the nature; and how is the present condition, of the two disciplines' relationship? These are some of the questions this work attempts to answer.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3144
Format: Thesis

Title: Rater Motivation in Performance Appraisal of Public Organizations: Effects of Motivating Factors on Appraisal Accuracy.
Creator: Park, Seejeen, Berry, Frances S., Ferris, Gerald R., Bowman, James S., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: While there is a robust business management research field on rater motivation related to personnel appraisals, almost no research in the public sector exists on this topic. This paper makes the case for a theory based, on the public sector, and offers a preliminary model of rater motivation focused on the performance appraisal context. Expansion and empirical testing of comprehensive models of rater motivation is also offered and comparative perspective is sought by accounting for...
Show moreWhile there is a robust business management research field on rater motivation related to personnel appraisals, almost no research in the public sector exists on this topic. This paper makes the case for a theory based, on the public sector, and offers a preliminary model of rater motivation focused on the performance appraisal context. Expansion and empirical testing of comprehensive models of rater motivation is also offered and comparative perspective is sought by accounting for organization culture differences between the U.S. and Korea public organizations. The rater motivation theory, in this study, is built using three primary factors related to how accurately a supervisor is willing to conduct a performance appraisal: 1) incentive structure (incentives and disincentives), 2) felt accountability, and, 3) public service motivation. The main interest is how the three primary factors affect the outcome of perceived performance rating accuracy of the raters. In addition, this study also examines the variations in perceived rating accuracy depending on the existence of a reward system for accurate appraisers and a forced distribution rating system. The logics of Vroom's expectancy theory and Skinner's reinforcement theory are used in explaining the relationship between variables. The findings suggest that all three determinants of rater motivation positively affected perceived performance rating accuracy of the raters. Also, it was revealed that the presence of a forced distribution system negatively influenced the rating accuracy. The availability of reward systems for accurate appraisers also had a positive influence on perceived rating accuracy but was only partially supported. Contradictory to this study's expectation, raters in U.S. generally perceived lower rating accuracy than Korean raters. Overall, the findings contribute to developing a preliminary comprehensive model of rater motivation designed for the public sector, and they have implications for both the public administration literature and practice.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-7961
Format: Thesis

Title: The Concept and Causes of Human Prosperity.
Creator: Maridal, Jan H., Feiock, Richard C., Benson, Bruce, Smith, Lance de‐Haven, Gwartney, James, Eger, Robert, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation represents a comprehensive study of human prosperity. It consists of two main components separated into two essays. The first essay provides a theoretical definition and a measurement of prosperity. The second essay contributes a review of the institutional and cultural factors identified in the first essay, and examines their influence on the economic subset of prosperity. The definitions of the concept in Essay One, and the theoretical propositions of the determinants of...
Show moreThis dissertation represents a comprehensive study of human prosperity. It consists of two main components separated into two essays. The first essay provides a theoretical definition and a measurement of prosperity. The second essay contributes a review of the institutional and cultural factors identified in the first essay, and examines their influence on the economic subset of prosperity. The definitions of the concept in Essay One, and the theoretical propositions of the determinants of prosperity in Essay Two, are found to be supported through a cross-country empirical analysis. By defining human prosperity as life-satisfaction, Essay One identifies the correlates of prosperity through an analysis of cross-country measures of subjective well-being using raw data from the World Values Survey (1981–2005). The study finds robust evidence that income, freedom, health, religious beliefs, stability, security, and family life are among the factors contributing to human prosperity. The methods consist of a factor analysis of the survey questions combined with an OLS regression. A sensitivity analysis, using three large and distinct samples of the population, validates the findings and enhances the power of the model. The final section in Essay One evaluates existing measures of prosperity and develops a new index based on the findings. The descriptive statistics and the regression outcomes, as well as the index of prosperity in the first essay, demonstrate evidence that cultural factors play a relatively modest role in defining the causes of prosperity, but a more robust role in generating prosperity. The first essay, therefore, provides the background for analyzing the causes of prosperity. Because of the immensity of such a project, Essay Two concentrates on the economic aspect of prosperity. The first section in Essay Two evaluates the frameworks used in the academic literature. Reviews of the literature lead to the establishment of a social theory that suggests how the cultural factors identified in the first essay may be incorporated into a framework that analyzes economic prosperity. The final section in Essay Two reviews and proposes a model of economic prosperity that includes cultural mechanisms and tests this theoretical model. The empirical results provide strong support for the importance of cultural factors to economic prosperity. A short summary chapter concludes the dissertation.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2740
Format: Thesis

Title: Strategic Planning Uitlization in Local Governments: Florida City Governments and Agencies.
Creator: Kwon, Myungjung (MJ), Berry, Frances S., Reynolds, John, Feiock, Richard R., Brower, Ralph, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: What factors account for management innovations such as utilization of strategic planning in local governments? Do management innovations depend on the same explanatory factors as policy innovations? What additional factors are relevant in developing a theory of management innovation as opposed to policy innovation? Political and socioeconomic factors have been linked to innovations in government, but most evidence is based on the study of policy innovation rather than management innovation....
Show moreWhat factors account for management innovations such as utilization of strategic planning in local governments? Do management innovations depend on the same explanatory factors as policy innovations? What additional factors are relevant in developing a theory of management innovation as opposed to policy innovation? Political and socioeconomic factors have been linked to innovations in government, but most evidence is based on the study of policy innovation rather than management innovation. Policy innovations studies can provide insights into what factors may influence management innovations in municipal governments and agencies. However, we argue that the study of public management innovations should also consider factors related to institutions, bureaucracy, regional competition, and professional networks as well as political and socioeconomic characteristics. Some Florida city governments and departments have no strategic planning and performance measurement despite their complex and competitive environment. This dissertation investigates utilization of strategic planning and priority strategies in Florida city governments as a municipal management innovation with predictive as well as descriptive models. The descriptive and predictive models of municipal management innovation are explained and tested with data from Florida Public Management surveys conducted in 2005 using multivariate regression and logistic regression analyses. The empirical findings of descriptive models find that half of Florida city governments and departments have used strategic planning and performance measurement and many of them have used priority strategies for policy and program decision, budget decision, e-government, and contracting-out. They also find many Florida city governments and agencies using both strategic planning and performance measurement have not linked with performance measurement to evaluate strategic plans. The empirical findings of predictive models suggest management innovations are influenced by different factors than policy innovations. Institutions, business orientation, red tape, risk-taking leadership, regional density of local government providers, and professional management networks are important factors in explaining management innovations, such as utilization of strategic planning and priority strategies, and deserve greater attention in the literature. The empirical findings provide effective use of strategic management and determinants of management innovations in local governments.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3031
Format: Thesis

Title: Regional Organizations and Interlocal Cooperation Among Florida Cities.
Creator: Kwon, Sung-Wook, Feiock, Richard C., Scholz, John T., Berry, Frances S., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Just as collective action problems are an unavoidable feature of individual decision-making in social settings, regional problems, such as common pool resources and scale and externality problems in service provision, are unavoidable for local governments in metropolitan areas characterized by fragmented jurisdictional authority. Despite tremendous interest in regionalism and regional governance and a growing number of studies of various approaches to regionalism, the role of regional...
Show moreJust as collective action problems are an unavoidable feature of individual decision-making in social settings, regional problems, such as common pool resources and scale and externality problems in service provision, are unavoidable for local governments in metropolitan areas characterized by fragmented jurisdictional authority. Despite tremendous interest in regionalism and regional governance and a growing number of studies of various approaches to regionalism, the role of regional organizations in regional governance has not been sufficiently examined. The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate how and to what extent regional organizations influence self-organizing efforts by local governments to address regional problems involving intergovernmental fiscal cooperation and land development coordination by focusing on the role of Florida's Regional Planning Councils (RPCs). The institutional collective action (ICA) framework is applied to help understand cooperative efforts among local governments and provide explanations not only for general factors shaping interlocal cooperation such as community characteristics and the arrangement of political institutions, but also for how regional organizations may influence cooperation among local governments. The empirical results explore whether regional organizations influence self-organizing interlocal cooperation efforts in two ways. First, no support is found for a positive or complimentary influence on self-organized solutions to regional issues arising from regional organizations' network broker role. Second, where regional organizations possess greater resources, the likelihood that a municipality cooperates with neighboring communities on fiscal exchanges or land development issues decreases. Thus, the proactive roles of regional organizations appear to crowd out or substitute for self-organizing cooperation efforts that otherwise may occur. Third, evidence is also found that regional organizations' revenue from federal and state governments may compliment intelocal cooperation. In the process of distributing federal and state grants with specific designated purposes, regional organizations tend to favor cooperative efforts by providing opportunities for local authorities to develop mutual trust in the policy areas where the grants are spent. Interlocal cooperation is also influenced by community characteristics that create demands for, or barriers to, cooperation. Municipal governments experiencing fiscal stress are more active in interlocal revenue transfers. Racial homogeneity is also a factor. Highly homogeneous municipalities, less restricted by divergent citizen preferences, are more likely to engage in interlocal fiscal cooperation. Finally, political institutions are important to explain self-organizing efforts to solve regional problems. Municipal governments with the council-manager form tend more to receive interlocal revenue transfers and to cooperate with other local governments on land development issues. These results suggest that the selective career incentives of city managers can be a source of interlocal cooperation efforts. In addition, cities with more neighboring communities are less likely to rely on interlocal coordination for land development issues. This research has both practical and theoretical implications. State policy makers need to balance calls for regional efforts with an acknowledgement that centralized regionalism may sometimes undermine self-organizing solutions. In designing regional organizations and programs, they need to identify and minimize tradeoffs between horizontal and vertical regional solutions. This study suggests that scholars of regionalism and intergovernmental relations need to examine configurations of regional coordination mechanisms by addressing the influence of institutional arrangements in a more comprehensive way rather than simply focusing on either vertical or horizontal regional governance mechanisms in isolation. This study also provides agendas for future research. First, the analysis can be extended to the national level to reflect variation among regional organizations in different states. Second, a typology of the relationships between regional organizations and self-organizing interlocal cooperation can be advanced to investigate the various types of regional organizations. Third, different interlocal cooperation network structures among different regional organizations can be analyzed by using social network analysis programs. Finally, the influence of regional organizations can be examined in specific policy areas to account for service specific characteristics.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3032
Format: Thesis

Title: Competing Models of Effectiveness in Research Centers and Institutes in the Florida State University System: A Data Envelopment Analysis.
Creator: Lee, Deokro, Brower, Ralph S., Shim, Wonsik “Jeff”, Bradley, Robert B., Klay, William E., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This is a study about organizational effectiveness in research centers and institutes (CIs) within public higher education institutions. In particular, this study focuses on how to measure their effectiveness by integrating competing conceptions of effectiveness. This study uses a linear programming method called Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to examine the relative performance or organizational effectiveness of CIs based on the Competing Values Framework (CVF) as a theoretical foundation....
Show moreThis is a study about organizational effectiveness in research centers and institutes (CIs) within public higher education institutions. In particular, this study focuses on how to measure their effectiveness by integrating competing conceptions of effectiveness. This study uses a linear programming method called Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to examine the relative performance or organizational effectiveness of CIs based on the Competing Values Framework (CVF) as a theoretical foundation. The CVF encompasses four representative organizational effectiveness models: rational goal model, open system model, human relations model, and internal process model. Thus, in one framework, it provides the researcher with a systematically integrated way to evaluate organizational effectiveness, and affords much latitude in dealing with various different organizational contexts. Because of its utility in drawing together a variety of theoretical approaches to organizational effectiveness, the framework provides stakeholders with a balanced perspective between different organizational values. By employing DEA methodology, this study identified the "best practice" exhibited by organizations on the efficient frontier and makes recommendations regarding how sub-"best practice" CIs could become more efficient and perform according to "best practice" standards in each model of the CVF. The DEA methodology is innovative and unique in that it determines "best practice" CIs rather than the traditional comparison to "average" performance that characterizes the analytic approach most researchers currently use. This dissertation confirmed that it is better for evaluators to consider four different values, rational goal, relations with environment, human relations within the organizations, and internal work process, for a balanced judgment of effectiveness of subject organizations. In addition, a new approach combining CVF and DEA is a useful measurement tool for organizational effectiveness and a potential management tool to stimulate organizational performance. As important members of universities, CIs provide students with ample opportunities to engage their research interests. Through research activities, public service, and teaching and training by CIs, students can be trained and constituencies can be provided new knowledge-based technology and practical services. This role of the CIs is important for the future of society, and this research contributes to their effort by measuring their performance or effectiveness with a novel approach, DEA, based on the integrated theoretical foundation of organizational effectiveness, CVF. This study finds several useful results. First, the study suggests that if one wants to evaluate organizational effectiveness, using several different models is a better approach than using the traditional goal model alone to avoid misdiagnosis of the effectiveness of the organizations. Second, managers should avoid definitive effectiveness comparisons between CIs supported by different disciplines; comparisons between CIs within the same discipline are shown to be more appropriate. Third, a new approach which integrates DEA and CVF has a potential to evaluate organizational effectiveness and to be used as an organizational management tool, but other qualitative methods should be used to get additional important information about the subject organizations. University administrators and research fund providers such as federal, state, and local governments who are interested in the understanding and knowledge of student success in postsecondary education could use the results of this study to serve a variety of private and public interests
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-3203
Format: Thesis

Title: An Analysis of Local Government Performance Measurement Reports.
Creator: McCall, Sam M. (Sam Michael), Klay, William Earle, Icerman, Rhoda C., Berry, Frances Stokes, Eger, Robert J., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This research has shown that the theory underlying the responsibility for government to report on its performance with both financial and nonfinancial information goes back over 100 years. Public reporting to citizens on government's performance is supported by efficient citizenship, bureaucratic politics, and democracy theory in public administration. Prior to the establishment of the GASB in 1984, the Financial Accounting Standards Board and leading governmental accounting organizations...
Show moreThis research has shown that the theory underlying the responsibility for government to report on its performance with both financial and nonfinancial information goes back over 100 years. Public reporting to citizens on government's performance is supported by efficient citizenship, bureaucratic politics, and democracy theory in public administration. Prior to the establishment of the GASB in 1984, the Financial Accounting Standards Board and leading governmental accounting organizations recognized that measures other than shareholder wealth were needed for government. The measures could be financial and nonfinancial and should focus on resources provided and services rendered. To manage the ambiguities inherent in performance reporting (also referred to as Service Efforts and Accomplishment reporting), the GASB has nurtured SEA reporting by calling for experimentation and conducting issuing research on the topic for almost 25 years. In 2003, the GASB identified sixteen suggested criteria for external SEA reporting. There have been significant objections to GASB's involvement in SEA notwithstanding authority granted to the Board by the Financial Accounting Foundation. In 2008, the GASB issued new and revised Concept Statements describing the GASB's role in SEA and providing guidance for governments that voluntarily choose to externally report SEA to citizens and others. The research has shown GASB's sixteen suggested criteria for SEA reporting are attainable as demonstrated by several local governments participating in the Association of Government Accountants SEA certificate program. At the same time, SEA reporting has not received widespread acceptance and adoption by local governments. Additional research is need to identify whether the lack of widespread reporting is related to resource availability, the lack of a model reporting format, reluctance to externally report the government's performance by management and/or elected officials, or a lack of demand on the part of citizens. It could be that citizens are not aware such information exists or governments may not be aware the information could be provided with some additional guidance and effort. New and revised Concepts Statement 5 and 2 have addressed many of the objections to GASB's involvement in SEA. In addition, this research has shown that several local government SEA reports have responded and/or overcome objections put forward by leading public organizations. However, there continues to be a need for verification of reported data. Lastly, both the GASB and the Government Finance Officers Association have defined the term "accountability" differently. The GASB definition more clearly identifies with issuing SEA reports for citizen consumption. Ways need to be identified to allow "an ordinary citizen" to be able to access and easily understand their government's performance. This research has significant implications for public administration, governmental accounting, budgeting, policymaking, accountability, and citizenship.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2620
Format: Thesis

Title: The Relationship Between the Implementation Practices of School Principals and Student Achievement in Reading.
Creator: Nettles, Stephen M., Beckham, Joseph, Al Otaiba, Stephanie Dent, Herrington, Carolyn, Biance, Michael, Hassler, Laura, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies,...
Show moreNettles, Stephen M., Beckham, Joseph, Al Otaiba, Stephanie Dent, Herrington, Carolyn, Biance, Michael, Hassler, Laura, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Florida State University
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Abstract/Description: This exploratory study investigated the effects of principal implementation behaviors, specifically those influencing early reading programs, on student growth in oral reading fluency (ORF) of first grade students in Florida's Reading First schools. This study examined the relationship between the principal's role in the implementation of effective reading programs and student achievement in reading. Data consisted of (a) responses to the Principal Implementation Questionnaire (PIQ), and (b)...
Show moreThis exploratory study investigated the effects of principal implementation behaviors, specifically those influencing early reading programs, on student growth in oral reading fluency (ORF) of first grade students in Florida's Reading First schools. This study examined the relationship between the principal's role in the implementation of effective reading programs and student achievement in reading. Data consisted of (a) responses to the Principal Implementation Questionnaire (PIQ), and (b) student reading achievement records as measured by DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) scores. A three-level growth curve model was used to determine the amount of student-level variance that can be explained by the five dimensions measured by the PIQ. Positive, statistically significant relationships were found between selected principal implementation practices (as measured by the PIQ) and student growth in oral reading fluency. This study concluded that certain principal behaviors associated with implementing effective reading programs display a direct, linear relationship to student achievement. Further, while these relationships account for a small proportion of the total student achievement variability in reading, they are of sufficient magnitude to be of interest and additional investigation. Findings should be used to develop professional development opportunities tailored to teach effective implementation of reading interventions for struggling readers across all subgroups to principals. Future research also has the potential to discriminate between students with differing classifications of disabilities in relation to principal effects on reading.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2647
Format: Thesis

Title: The Unexamined Element of Election Administration: Why Citizens Choose to Serve as Poll Workers on Election Day.
Creator: McAuliffe, Elizabeth W. (Elizabeth Winslow), Guy, Mary E., deHaven-Smith, Lance, Milton, Sande, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: With the approach of the 2008 presidential election, there is both hopeful anticipation and trepidation over how electoral processes will fare on Election Day. Yet the conversation, to this point, has been limited. Most discussion focuses on election technology, which is ever-changing. When attention turns to poll workers, it most often relates to that technology: Will a continually-graying semi-volunteer contingent of poll workers be able to successfully administer use of touch-screen...
Show moreWith the approach of the 2008 presidential election, there is both hopeful anticipation and trepidation over how electoral processes will fare on Election Day. Yet the conversation, to this point, has been limited. Most discussion focuses on election technology, which is ever-changing. When attention turns to poll workers, it most often relates to that technology: Will a continually-graying semi-volunteer contingent of poll workers be able to successfully administer use of touch-screen machines, Scantron ballots, or other machinery? That question is not addressed in this research. Instead, poll workers are given voice as singular entities. They are given the credit they deserve as a primary component of democracy in the U.S. Over 800,000 poll workers staffed more than 100,000 polling places during the 2004 presidential election (EAC, 2005). Even higher staffing levels and turnout are expected for 2008. Poll workers work as many as 14 consecutive hours for pay approximating minimum wage. What motivates them to do so is the subject of this research. There is very little existing research on poll workers, and none on their motivation. It is becoming more and more difficult for elections offices to staff polling precincts, given the graying of the polls and the increasingly sophisticated technology used there. This research is important because it can contribute both theoretically and practically to recruitment and staffing strategies. Several bodies of literature are drawn from for this research: social capital and democratic theory, public service and volunteer motivation, coproduction, and principal-agent theory. Prior to this research, of these theoretical frameworks, only principal-agent addressed poll workers specifically (and then, in only one study; Alvarez & Hall, 2006). These theories were synthesized to generate 18 hypotheses and to create a 35-question survey instrument that was distributed and collected on-site at poll worker training sessions in Leon County, Florida. A total of 845 completed surveys were returned. Analytic techniques included factor analysis, ordinary least squares (OLS), and bivariate correlation. Findings reveal the connections between public service motivation (PSM) and various characteristics of the polls, between PSM and principal-agent theory, and between PSM and demographic and attitudinal variables of poll workers. The result is a unique contribution to both theory and practice, with acknowledgement of poll workers as a singular hybrid of volunteer and public servant.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2623
Format: Thesis

Title: The Diffusion and Reinvention of a Spatially Targeted Economic Development Program in Florida: Contextual Influences on the Adoption of Enterprise Zones, Policy Tools, and State Authorized Local Incentives by Urban Governments.
Creator: Mauldin, Marcus D., deHaven-Smith, Lance, Iatarola, Patrice, Berry, Frances S., Feiock, Richard C., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This dissertation describes the nature of and causes of urban economic decline and highlights government policy strategies to address this problem. It reviews the policy adoption, policy tools, and policy reinvention literature. It develops a theoretical framework that incorporates tenets of each body of literature. This research integrates the policy innovation diffusion framework with the policy tools framework in order to test explanatory factors of why urban local governments in Florida...
Show moreThis dissertation describes the nature of and causes of urban economic decline and highlights government policy strategies to address this problem. It reviews the policy adoption, policy tools, and policy reinvention literature. It develops a theoretical framework that incorporates tenets of each body of literature. This research integrates the policy innovation diffusion framework with the policy tools framework in order to test explanatory factors of why urban local governments in Florida adopt enterprise zone programs. In addition, the integrated framework allows for the assessment of the explanatory factors of policy tool adoption as well as changes in program incentives across adopting governments through a period of diffusion. With this, the framework provides a means to answer the following research questions: 1) What factors influence a government's adoption of an enterprise zone program; 2) What factors influence the adoption of specific types of policy tools as part of an enterprise zone program; and 3) What factors influence enterprise zone program reinvention? This research addresses these questions using four explanatory factors including: 1) Economic Need; 2) Institutional Arrangements; 3) Political Demand; and 4) Regional Diffusion. Further, it describes methodological approaches to test explanations for why and under what conditions an enterprise zone program and its various policy tools may be adopted and reinvented by Florida's local governments. This dissertation provides empirical support for some theoretical explanations of program adoption, policy tool adoption, and program reinvention. In particular, measures of fiscal stress, conservatism, and governmental locus of development decision making were found to positively influence enterprise zone program adoption. Relative to policy tool adoption, higher percentages of black residents were associated with grant and tax expenditure adoption. In addition, the adoption of grants was positively associated with their adoption by other regional governments. Research findings also suggest that fiscally stressed unreformed governments, fiscally stressed governments that make their own development decisions, and those governments with higher levels of median family income are associated with the provision of fewer local enterprise zone incentives. Local governments that adopt enterprise zone programs late in the diffusion process are associated with the provision of more incentives.
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Date Issued: 2005
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2656
Format: Thesis

Title: Exploring Instrumental and Expressive Dimensions: Adapted Origin of Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations.
Creator: Lu, Wenjue, Brower, Ralph S., Doan, Petra, deHaven-Smith, Lance, Guy, Mary E., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: In a recent conception, Frumkin (2002) identified expressive and instrumental activities as distinct functions of nonprofit/voluntary organizations, employing them as one component of a two-dimensional classificatory scheme to frame the conceptual universe of nonprofit/voluntary sector activities. The first dimension in this model is "supply" versus "demand." The second dimension in this model is "expressive" versus "instrumental." (Frumkin, 2002, p. 22). At one end of this dimension is the...
Show moreIn a recent conception, Frumkin (2002) identified expressive and instrumental activities as distinct functions of nonprofit/voluntary organizations, employing them as one component of a two-dimensional classificatory scheme to frame the conceptual universe of nonprofit/voluntary sector activities. The first dimension in this model is "supply" versus "demand." The second dimension in this model is "expressive" versus "instrumental." (Frumkin, 2002, p. 22). At one end of this dimension is the notion that nonprofit/voluntary organizations serve an instrumental purpose in meeting needs that the community values. At the other end of this dimension is a justification for these organizations in that they provide an expressive outlet for participants' commitment to particular values and beliefs. Our study extends and elucidates the expressive-instrumental dimension. This study explores three research questions. (1) What are the expressive and instrumental dimensions in nonprofit and voluntary organizations, and what forms do these activities take in nonprofit and voluntary organizations? (2) What is the relationship between the expressive and instrumental dimensions? (3) How do nonprofit and voluntary organizations manage the expressive and instrumental dimensions in order to survive and grow? How are these two dimensions managed in successful practices? Qualitative grounded analysis is adopted. Data are collected through long interviews. The data reveal tension between the expressive energy and various instrumental features across levels of analysis among different actors. First is a tension between individuals' expression and individual self-interested needs. Individual expression is demonstrated by volunteering, lower financial compensation, and contribution to the community, which is in contrast with individuals' actions to satisfy self-interests that are rational, purposive, transactional and instrumental. A second tension is demonstrated between organizations' expressive institutional features, defined as localism, autonomy, and a growth dynamic, and the instrumental institutional features of the government funders, including public accountability and procedures. A third tension is between the inner need to thrive driven by organizational expression and external private resource suppliers' instrumental, self-interested, rational, and limited support. Fourth, we describe tension at an inter-organizational level and a macro environmental level. Organizations compete with each other for limited resources in order to avoid elimination. Organizations also cooperate to maximize capacity and consolidate resources and achieve shared expressive ends â serving the community and values and beliefs. Finally, the study illustrates exogenous forces from macro environmental factors including popular culture, government policy orientation, and changing demographics, which also impose instrumental force on organizations. These four tensions share a common theme -- that is, how organizations' expressive nature accommodates the instrumental features from various sources: individuals, government, private resources, the "market," and macro external factors. Upon this common theme, we induce the theory of adapted origin of nonprofit and voluntary organizations, which states that the life of nonprofit and voluntary organizations are determined by the level of adaptation of the expressive dimension to the instrumental dimension. The theory suggests that, in contrast to Mark Granovetter's notion of embeddedness, refering to economic actions as embedded in social relationships (1985), we discover "adaptiveness," which describes how expressive actions are adapted to instrumental relationships. Also associated with social origins theory, the adapted origin theory takes a micro organizational analysis approach, while the social origins theory takes a national level approach.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1021
Format: Thesis

Title: Exploring the Effects of Social Capital on Police Performance in U.S. Cities.
Creator: Choi, Cheon Geun, Berry, Frances Stokes, Barrilleaux, Charles J., Eger, Robert J., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study explores the relationship between social capital and police performance. Since substantial academic interest in social capital emerged, many studies demonstrate that social capital has a significant influence on social and political outcomes. Despite the renewed interest in examining the role of social capital in the field of public safety, critics have pointed to several limitations: (1) the ways in which social capital variables are defined and measured; (2) the ways in which...
Show moreThis study explores the relationship between social capital and police performance. Since substantial academic interest in social capital emerged, many studies demonstrate that social capital has a significant influence on social and political outcomes. Despite the renewed interest in examining the role of social capital in the field of public safety, critics have pointed to several limitations: (1) the ways in which social capital variables are defined and measured; (2) the ways in which police performance variables are defined and measured; (3) the lack of specific theoretical propositions linking these two constructs; and (4) the lack of empirical work at the city level. This dissertation addresses these limitations by modeling causal mechanisms linking eleven dimensions of social capital and four types of police performance using two competing explanations: citizen demand and citizen supply. According to citizen demand explanations, communities with high social capital are more likely to demand that their police departments do the job more efficiently and more effectively. Citizen supply explanations, however, suggest that social capital may facilitate informal social control mechanisms to reduce crime and delinquency. The divergence lies in the way the two explanations see citizens' roles in police duties, as demanders or co-producers of public goods and services. Based on these two streams of explanations, this study proposes eight testable hypotheses regarding the relationships between social capital and police performance and employs ordinary regression analysis (OLS). In addition, in order to take into account potential endogeneity problems between social capital and outcome-related police performance, this study also proposes four non-recursive models and employs a two-stage least squares (2SLS) regression analysis. To measure each of the constructs of social capital and police performance, this study uses the data of the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey by Harvard University, the Uniform Crime Reports of the FBI, and the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, yielding a cross-sectional data set with 44 U.S. cities in the year 2000. This study presents theoretically and practically significant implications regarding the causal relationships between social capital and police performance. First, the findings support the multi-dimensionality of social capital and show that the results of the analyses are mixed with regard to each of the four types of police performance. These findings are contrary to the traditional wisdom that social capital is equally positively related to any type of government performance in general and police performance in specific. Second, the results of the analyses with the disaggregated four types of police performance variables show that social capital is a useful concept for explaining the different levels of outcome for police performance across local police departments, yet less useful a concept for explaining the efficiency within government bureaucracy. Third, with regard to causal mechanisms, there are no overarching theories which account for every performance practice in police administration. For outcome-related police performance, social capital may work; for output-related police performance, it may not. Lastly, the non-recursive analyses further underscore the complexities of the interrelationships between the dimensions of social capital and police performance. The results of the study also have some important implications. First, the findings, in general, suggest that police administrators should think more about their relationship with citizens and consider citizens as consumers as well as co-producers of public safety. Second, this study also reinforces the basic tenet of community policing strategies, suggesting collaborative partnership between police and citizens. Third, this study provides an opportunity to rethink the criteria for the success of police service effectiveness or performance, and suggests that there is no one explanation for the effect of social capital on police performance.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1024
Format: Thesis

Title: The Diffusion and Effectiveness of Self-Managed Work Teams (SMWTS) in Municipal Management: A Combined Model of Institutional and Behavioral Approaches.
Creator: Yang, Seung-Bum, Guy, Mary E., Mayo, John K., Brower, Ralph S., Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This research draws from new institutionalism and organizational behavior to address questions regarding how self-managed work teams (SMWTs) are diffused among jurisdictions and how effective they are when adopted. This work first reviews a diverse set of public management literature that comprises the state of knowledge about the diffusion and effectiveness of self-managed work teams. On this foundation, a conceptual model of the combination of self-managed work team diffusion and...
Show moreThis research draws from new institutionalism and organizational behavior to address questions regarding how self-managed work teams (SMWTs) are diffused among jurisdictions and how effective they are when adopted. This work first reviews a diverse set of public management literature that comprises the state of knowledge about the diffusion and effectiveness of self-managed work teams. On this foundation, a conceptual model of the combination of self-managed work team diffusion and effectiveness is developed that includes the diffusion model of self-managed work teams and the effectiveness model of self-managed work teams. National survey data from a sample of 204 municipal governments are analyzed from the institutionalism perspective. The question, "why do organizations use self-managed work teams?" is explored using the logit regression method. Another set of national survey data from a sample of 176 participants in self-managed work teams is analyzed from the organizational behavior perspective. This analysis explores how workers perceive the effectiveness of self-managed work teams by using the structural equation modeling method. The key findings of this dissertation include the following: professional networks and city employees' shared belief in service quality increases the likelihood of using self-managed work teams. Also, the empirical findings reveal that the level of teamwork has a positive direct effect on all three dimensions of effectiveness (i.e., job satisfaction, resource attainment, and team performance). The level of self-management, however, is positively directly related only to resource attainment. This work contributes to public sector scholarship and practice. In the realm of new institutionalism, the key gap this effort helps to fill is the empirical specification of the diffusion of organizational practice. From the perspective of organizational behavior, the contribution of this work is the development of a key aspect of a more realistic model of the effectiveness of self-managed work teams. Further, the findings of this project imply that sophisticated, professional management can improve the effectiveness of organizational practice. The teamwork factor, better described as 'esprit d'corps', is a more powerful tool to increase organizational effectiveness than the self-management factor.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1102
Format: Thesis

Title: Assessing Innovation in American Counties: Examining the Prevalence of Green Procurement.
Creator: Smith, Christy Defriest, Klay, W. Earle, Giunipero, Larry, Berry, Frances, Brower, Ralph, Yang, Kaifeng, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Procurement is a vital activity of all levels of government. Technological innovations in public procurement such as purchasing cards (P-cards) and e-technology have made public procurement more efficient and have been oft-studied. However, social innovations, like environmentally preferable procurement (EPP), have not been widely examined for either their antecedents or outcomes. The purpose of this study is to assess how prevalent green procurement practices are in American counties and to...
Show moreProcurement is a vital activity of all levels of government. Technological innovations in public procurement such as purchasing cards (P-cards) and e-technology have made public procurement more efficient and have been oft-studied. However, social innovations, like environmentally preferable procurement (EPP), have not been widely examined for either their antecedents or outcomes. The purpose of this study is to assess how prevalent green procurement practices are in American counties and to try to identify some of the antecedents associated with environmentally preferable purchasing. One hundred and seventy four American counties were randomly selected based upon population and their websites were reviewed according to an index that recorded evidence of green purchasing practices, including having a written green purchasing policy, using eco-labels and/or green specifications in their bids, and whether or not they communicate a preference for green products to their vendors. This information was regressed against factors such as population, wealth, environmental interest group presence, membership in professional organizations, and whether or not the county has a sustainability office. The findings indicate that population, wealth, interest group presence, and having a sustainability office are all significantly and positively associated with green purchasing practices. The study also revealed that, while antecedents could be identified, the average county in this study had less than one item on the index. The implication is that there are still barriers to green purchasing practices that may only be fully understood through qualitative methods.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-8889
Format: Thesis

Title: Magnet School Choice and Its Impacts on Student Achievement and Racial and Socio-Economic Segregation in Florida.
Creator: Ryoo, Nayong, Berry, Frances Stokes, Ueno, Koji, Feiock, Richard C., Lee, Keon-Hyung, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: The rapid growth of magnet schools in the 1980s introduced the first widely adopted form of public school choice in the United States. Magnet-based choice was supported as a way to expand school choice options for parents, to bring innovation through specialty schools and programs, and to promote racial integration voluntarily. Prior to studying the impact of magnet school choice, I examined the role of racial and economic segregation issues in Florida public school systems to understand the...
Show moreThe rapid growth of magnet schools in the 1980s introduced the first widely adopted form of public school choice in the United States. Magnet-based choice was supported as a way to expand school choice options for parents, to bring innovation through specialty schools and programs, and to promote racial integration voluntarily. Prior to studying the impact of magnet school choice, I examined the role of racial and economic segregation issues in Florida public school systems to understand the background of magnet school policy adoption, to recognize how the impact of magnet school policy has changed, and to discern what role magnet school policy has played in the public school system. Thus, this dissertation examines the impact of magnet schools on the K-12 public school system in Florida as well as the impact that magnet schools have on two important goals in public education reform--higher student academic performance and racial desegregation--using the lens of school choice theory on a market competition approach to public policy. In order to investigate policy impacts more precisely, this study measures school choice policy impact in three ways 1) by policy adoption, 2) by degree of school choice availability, and 3) by degree of policy involvement. Specifically, to assess racial desegregation, this study uses several measurements such as the dissimilarity index (DI), standard deviation and the interracial exposure index (EI) to examine magnet school impact on racial desegregation at the level of both school and school district. To study student academic performance, this study uses Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) scores to examine magnet school impact on student achievement. In addition to studying magnet schools by themselves, this study also examines the combined impact of charter and magnet school policy adoption on these two outcomes in Florida public school districts. I use four data sets for this study. The Common Core Data (CCD) is from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The lsat three datasets-- the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) data; the Florida School/District Indicators Report Data (FSID/FDID); and the Master School Identification (MSID) Data--are all from the Florida Department of Education (FLDoE). The study covers the years 2005-2011, and examines elementary, middle and high school levels. First of all, this study shows demographic trends in magnet, charter and TPSs, by school levels. In Florida, the numbers of students enrolled in magnet schools are increasing steadily, but student enrollment in TPSs is decreasing at all school levels. Generally White students decreased in all districts at all school levels, but Hispanic students increased in all districts at all school levels. The percentage of White students shows the highest percentages in districts without any school choice policies, while the percentages of Black and Hispanic students show the highest percentages in districts with both school choice policies. Student test scores in reading are the highest in districts with magnet school choice policy at all school levels, and student test scores in reading are the lowest in districts without school choice policy at all school levels. Student test scores in mathematics show the same results as the reading test results. However, after controlling for student characteristics, school and teacher characteristics, and district characteristics, the adoption of school choice policy has a negative influence on student performance at all school levels and in both of the subject fields of reading and mathematics, except for the reading score at the elementary level. This study shows the impacts from both magnet and charter school choice policies by utilizing a greater number of measures than prior research. Overall, school choice policy does not have a positive impact on either student performance or racial segregation. Rather, school choice policy has a negative impact on student performance, and charter school policy exacerbates racial segregation in school districts. This study also found that charter school policy exacerbates racial segregation in school districts, and magnet school policy has a significant positive impact on school segregation after controlling for district income inequality, economic status, demographic characteristics and district size. When considering that the use of magnet school policy has the purpose of racial desegregation, however, the impacts from magnet school policy are slight and marginal in Florida school districts.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-8881
Format: Thesis

Title: Muslim Women's Experience in Urban Public Spaces in a Multicultural American Context.
Creator: Mohamadi, Asal, Miles, Rebecca, Garretson, Peter, Doan, Petra, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: This study seeks to understand the everyday experiences of Muslim women in public spaces of a multicultural environment. Moreover, it explores how planning should address the experiences of this particular group. The urban context of interest for this study is New York City because it hosts a multitude of immigrants from an array of cultures and ethnicities thus providing an ideal template of a multicultural city. Phenomenology is obviously well suited to a study of the phenomenon of public...
Show moreThis study seeks to understand the everyday experiences of Muslim women in public spaces of a multicultural environment. Moreover, it explores how planning should address the experiences of this particular group. The urban context of interest for this study is New York City because it hosts a multitude of immigrants from an array of cultures and ethnicities thus providing an ideal template of a multicultural city. Phenomenology is obviously well suited to a study of the phenomenon of public space for Muslim women in a particular context, and is the research approach adopted here. Based on data collected through semi-structured interviews and cognitive mapping, this study identifies six core themes, all of which address the importance of religion and culture in the way individuals experience the built environment. First, for the participants of this study the neighborhood environment is experienced as a space with its own religious identity. Mosques and Islamic centers are influential in forming this experience. Second, the built environment is also experienced as a cultural space. Arab stores, Arabic signage, and Arabic language are identified as important factors in shaping their cultural experiences. Third, most of the participants experience both Bay Ridge (the study area) and Brooklyn as physically diverse areas. The mixed-use design gives Muslim women an opportunity to move around more conveniently, without being dependent on their male family members. It also facilitates the process of integration for new immigrant women into the host country. Fourth, the participants experience being different from non-Muslims and they describe how the attitude of other people contributes to their feelings and experiences. Fifth, being exposed to people from different cultures, being in a place with racial and ethnic diversity is associated with pleasant experiences for the participants. And sixth, the last theme suggests that women of this study may experience the pressure of representing Islam positively to non-Muslims in public spaces, while at the same time they feel the pressure of upholding reputation and family honor within the community of Arabs. The findings of this study with its multicultural context suggest that the social construct of space is fluid. Gender, the control of space by the state, and the ethnic/racial/religious composition of space all contribute to how public spaces are experienced by users. The predominant presence of men, police, and social homogeneity (Muslim-only environment, White-only neighborhood, etc) makes the participants of this study experience a more private space . A lesser prevalence of men, less control of space by police, and more exposure to people from different ethnic and religious groups make spaces feel more public to the Muslim women of this study. The study's findings also suggest which places help women create meaning out of their neighborhood lives; mosques, parks and ocean views, ethnic avenues (with an emphasis on Arabic language), shopping centers (the street as a shopping district), and home appeared on almost all women's maps. There were also meaningful places to which women are not welcomed. These places were under the control of Arab men of the neighborhood, through the mechanism of their gaze. As others have advocated, the findings of this study suggest that planners should design spaces in such a way that people of different ethnicities, with different sets of values, have the opportunity to encounter each other. This would promote recognition of individuals who may feel marginalized. For Muslim women in particular, it would require ensuring that services are provided in a manner that allows Muslim women to benefit, i.e. that fits their beliefs. For example, a more visible design of parks and enough lighting as well as an appropriate location (for instance close to mosques or other cultural-religious spaces) would make services more accessible to this group of individuals. This type of planning might also suggest advocating ethno-religious festivals, which can further the recognition of the ethnic or religious values of Arab Muslims and educate non-Arabs and non-Muslims about them. The involvement of ethnic organizations in community planning boards (or at least advocating for them) may be a key factor in integrating minorities into the planning processes.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4635
Format: Thesis

Title: Effects of Rapid Urbanization on Livelihoods in the Peri-Urban Areas of Accra, Ghana.
Creator: Oduro, Charles Yaw, Doan, Petra, Cobbe, James, Chapin, Timothy, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Rapid urbanization in the Third World is one of the major developmental issues that have attracted the attention of policy makers at international, national and sub-national levels. However, emphasis on the distinction between rural and urban areas often causes policy makers and planners to lose sight of important rural-urban linkages that need to be considered in the research and policy-making/planning arenas. Rural-urban linkages are probably most evident in peri-urban areas where the...
Show moreRapid urbanization in the Third World is one of the major developmental issues that have attracted the attention of policy makers at international, national and sub-national levels. However, emphasis on the distinction between rural and urban areas often causes policy makers and planners to lose sight of important rural-urban linkages that need to be considered in the research and policy-making/planning arenas. Rural-urban linkages are probably most evident in peri-urban areas where the growth of cities leads to the transformation of smaller communities. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of rapid urbanization on livelihoods in the peri-urban areas of Accra, Ghana, using the case study approach. The study focused on four of the peri-urban communities that surround the city of Accra, namely Kwashiekuma, Medie, Bortianor and Ofankor. It involved a qualitative analysis of the effects of the city's growth on the livelihood assets of residents in these communities; how the residents construct livelihood strategies in response to changes in livelihood assets; and how these changes are reflected in their livelihood outcomes (quality of life). The study has revealed several changes in livelihood assets resulting from urban expansion. These include: an increase in the range of uses and value of land and other forms of natural capital; extension of urban infrastructure (e.g. roads, electricity, private schools and health facilities) to peri-urban areas; an increase in the size and variation in the quality of the housing stock; and increased acquisition of formal education and non-agricultural vocational skills. In addition, the communal spirit that characterizes indigenous, rural communities and enable residents to extend mutual support to one another in times of need has declined in peri-urban communities, although some residents, particularly recent migrants, are able to maintain social capital that goes beyond their immediate place of residence. Residents and non-residents of peri-urban communities respond to these new opportunities by devising new livelihood strategies. Examples include the leasing of land to developers and other investors, extraction of natural resources such as stones and sand, agricultural intensification, waged employment, trading, diversification of employment and income sources, among others. However, the study also shows that there are differential effects of urbanization on the livelihoods and living conditions of peri-urban residents. While some residents have the ability to improve upon their living conditions by taking advantage of the opportunities created by urbanization, many others are worse off because they lack the capacity to utilize these opportunities. This negative effect is particularly serious among subsistence farmers, who are mainly indigenous and long-term settlers who lose their livelihoods as arable lands get converted to residential and other uses. The findings of the study point to a number of critical issues that need the urgent attention of policy makers and planners in order to ensure sustainable urban development. One of them is the need for the District Assemblies (local governments) to manage physical growth in a manner that protects the natural environment using a joint, multi-level participatory planning approach. The Assemblies should also incorporate peri-urban livelihood issues into urban policy making and planning so as to minimize the negative effects of urban growth on a section of the population, especially subsistence farmers. Measures should include the protection of fertile farmlands, helping farmers to adopt appropriate and environmentally friendly farming methods, and empowering the youth to find alternative sources of livelihood. Other pertinent issues needing attention include the need to improve upon land administration and strengthen the planning and regulatory capacity of District Assemblies.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-4634
Format: Thesis

Title: Athletic Training Education in American Colleges and Universities: A Study of Professional Standards and Accountability.
Creator: Nichter, Joshua M. (Joshua Martin), Schwartz, Robert A., Rice, Diana, Beckham, Joseph, Dalton, Jon, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Florida State...
Show moreNichter, Joshua M. (Joshua Martin), Schwartz, Robert A., Rice, Diana, Beckham, Joseph, Dalton, Jon, Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Florida State University
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Abstract/Description: This study identified characteristics and benchmarks of Athletic Training Education Programs (ATEPs) considered exemplary by a national sample of ATEP program directors. These exemplary characteristics and benchmarks can be used as models by program directors and administrators for program evaluation. The study also identified 10 ATEPs perceived as exemplary by a sample of program directors. The characteristics of those programs were compared to the characteristics identified as essential by...
Show moreThis study identified characteristics and benchmarks of Athletic Training Education Programs (ATEPs) considered exemplary by a national sample of ATEP program directors. These exemplary characteristics and benchmarks can be used as models by program directors and administrators for program evaluation. The study also identified 10 ATEPs perceived as exemplary by a sample of program directors. The characteristics of those programs were compared to the characteristics identified as essential by the survey respondents. The identification of the characteristics found in an exemplary program is a critical step in the advancement of athletic training education. ATEPs are not currently ranked, and only subjective perceptions of professionals within the field have been available to identify distinctive ATEPs. The research study is descriptive by design, and examines specific characteristics of accredited entry-level ATEPs important for exemplary status. After the benchmark characteristics were identified, a comparison of the perceptions of the respondent's perceived characteristics versus the characteristics identified by the program directors of the 10 exemplary programs was evaluated. Finally, after the comparison, a model program was developed. The model program details the specific qualifications required for exemplary status. The perceptions of criteria essential for an ATEP to be classified as exemplary yielded 15 items. A majority of those 15 items were in the category of program resources (n=8), followed by evaluation (n=4), curriculum (n=2), and sponsorship (n=1). Thirty one criteria were identified as consistent (at least 7 of top 10 ATEPs met the criteria) among the top 10 ATEPs. Of the 15 items perceived to be essential for ATEP exemplary status, 14 correlated positively and were seen in a majority of the top 10 ATEPs. This indicates an agreement in perception versus reality in terms of what participants believe to be essential criteria/characteristics of an exemplary ATEP versus the actual criteria/characteristics of 10 exemplary ATEPs. Participants were asked two open-ended questions regarding other important criteria essential for ATEP exemplary status, and the important issues currently facing their ATEPs. Curriculum responses were most frequent as cited by participants among other criteria/characteristics essential for ATEP exemplary status. Didactic courses (n=18) and clinical experiences (n=18) were cited as the most frequent subcategories in curriculum. Resource responses were the most frequent category cited by participants among important issues currently facing their ATEPs. Program director responsibilities (n=21), ACI responsibilities/qualifications (n=18), and faculty to student ration in the ATEP (n=15) were the three most frequently cited subcategories in resources. Of the perceived resource, student, program evaluation, and curriculum characteristics that were deemed essential for exemplary entry-level athletic training education programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, 24 criteria/characteristics correlated positively with the actual characteristics of 10 identified exemplary ATEPs. As a whole, the perceptions of the participants in this study of what constitutes an exemplary ATEP agreed with the actual characteristics of the 10 identified exemplary ATEPs. Meaning that perception of exemplary status meets the reality of the characteristics of exemplary programs in athletic training. A model for an exemplary entry-level athletic training education program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education has been identified.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-2609
Format: Thesis

Title: Social Equity and the One Florida Initiative: Minority Student Admission, Retention, and Graduation in the University System.
Creator: Duffourc, Danielle, Guy, Mary E., DeHaven-Smith, Lance, Lick, Dale, Bowman, James, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Executive Order 99-281 (1999), commonly known as the "One Florida Initiative," abolished affirmative action policies in university admissions, state employment, and state contracting. This dissertation studies the impact that the implementation of this initiative has had on the admission, retention and graduation rates of minority students in Florida's university system. Quantitatively based trend analyses are used to examine changes in the university system during the ten years surrounding...
Show moreExecutive Order 99-281 (1999), commonly known as the "One Florida Initiative," abolished affirmative action policies in university admissions, state employment, and state contracting. This dissertation studies the impact that the implementation of this initiative has had on the admission, retention and graduation rates of minority students in Florida's university system. Quantitatively based trend analyses are used to examine changes in the university system during the ten years surrounding implementation. These analyses are supplemented by an examination of the programs put into place at each individual university in the absence of affirmative action and qualitatively-based interviews with four subject matter experts. Finally, a discussion of how these findings inform equity policies on a theoretical and on an empirical level is provided.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0653
Format: Thesis

Title: Public Economics, Institutions, and Financial Management of Debt Financing in Local Governments.
Creator: Bae, Sang-Seok, Feiock, Richard C., Zuehlke, Thomas W., Bradley, Robert, Klay, Earle, Berry, Frances S., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: With the data from Florida cities' comprehensive annual financial reports, first, we identified and categorized debt into three groups: (1) general obligation (GO) bonds, (2) notes, loan, leases, certificates of participation (NLL), and (3) governmental revenue (GR) bonds. This dissertation investigates Florida cities' debt issuance incorporating three perspectives: institutions, financial management, and public economics. First, we introduce the relationship between the GO bond limit and...
Show moreWith the data from Florida cities' comprehensive annual financial reports, first, we identified and categorized debt into three groups: (1) general obligation (GO) bonds, (2) notes, loan, leases, certificates of participation (NLL), and (3) governmental revenue (GR) bonds. This dissertation investigates Florida cities' debt issuance incorporating three perspectives: institutions, financial management, and public economics. First, we introduce the relationship between the GO bond limit and local debt financing, and develop hypotheses for the empirical tests. Second, we examine how governance structure shapes a city's debt issuance. However, we did not find any effects of GO bond limit and governance structure on local debt issuance amounts. We also began this study attempting to explain the local government's debt financing from the financial management perspective. If cities have higher financial management capacity, it was argued, they are likely to issue larger debt amounts than cities with lower financial management capacity. Overall, test results present that financial management capacity has no effect on the debt issuance amount. From the public economics perspective, first, this study examines the effect of interjurisdictional competition on cities' debt issuance based on Jensen and Toma's model. Test results reveal that interjurisdictional tax competition does not influence a city's debt issuance. Jensen and Toma's model is extended to explain the relationship between intergovernmental or overlapping government tax competition and debt financing. We contend that Jensen and Toma's model is suitable to explain the relationship between overlapping government tax competition and their debt issuances. Empirical tests show that, in Florida, there is no serious problem of intergovernmental tax competition which induces overlapping governments' debt issuances. This study also applies the flypaper effect to local government's debt financing. A weak flypaper effect is found in local governments' issuances of GO bonds and NLL while there is scant wideness for fiscal illusion in GR bond issuance. We also find that local sharing is related to the flypaper effect in debt issuance but state sharing is not.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-0894
Format: Thesis

Title: State and Local Institutions and Environmental Policy: A Transaction Costs Analysis.
Creator: Tavares, Antonio Fernando Freitas, Feiock, Richard, Barrileaux, Charles, Chackerian, Richard, deHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State...
Show moreTavares, Antonio Fernando Freitas, Feiock, Richard, Barrileaux, Charles, Chackerian, Richard, deHaven-Smith, Lance, School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
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Abstract/Description: This project focuses on the intergovernmental relationship between states and their local communities in environmental policy in the United States. The dissertation examines both state and local policy tool choices using a single theoretical framework recently developed by Avinash Dixit – a neoinstitutional transaction cost politics framework. Transaction cost politics (TCP) is a positive analytic approach to the study of public policy that combines elements of organizational economics and...
Show moreThis project focuses on the intergovernmental relationship between states and their local communities in environmental policy in the United States. The dissertation examines both state and local policy tool choices using a single theoretical framework recently developed by Avinash Dixit – a neoinstitutional transaction cost politics framework. Transaction cost politics (TCP) is a positive analytic approach to the study of public policy that combines elements of organizational economics and public choice. The theoretical framework argues that state-local relations can be thought as contracts between a principal (the state legislature) and a series of agents (local governments). This agency relationship is characterized by information asymmetry and different preferences between the principal and the agents. As a result, I argue that each state legislature will tailor the legislation to the specific characteristics of the state, including local institutions and sociodemographic characteristics. The match between the features of the approved legislation and state characteristics assures the minimization of economic and political transaction costs by state legislators. In other words, the legislation approved depends on a series of economic and political efficiency variables which, ultimately, determine the content and features of the law. With this in mind, the dissertation addresses two subjects within the environmental policy area: solid waste management and growth management. The first question I attempt to answer is: "To what extent do transaction costs of intergovernmental relations determine the degree to which states attempt to constrain and direct the behavior of local governments in environmental policy making?" The results of the empirical analysis indicate that state legislators share the risks of policy choices and decisions with local level officials and consider past and present local government practices when adopting specific legislation. In addition, the degree of professionalism of state legislatures seems to be an important factor in the approval of state environmental policy. Finally, the political transaction costs arguments are confirmed by the results regarding the influence of local institutions in state level policy making. The empirical findings indicate that, when one considers the effect of local institutions in the aggregate, the impact on state environmental policy is important, affecting the expectations and monitoring costs of state legislators. The second major question this project attempts to answer is: "To what extent do transaction costs of local politics affect environmental policy instrument choices made by local governments?" I employ the concept of policy instrument/policy tool to convey the idea that local government officials have goals that are pursued by using certain means ("tools"). The policy instruments enacted by local governments are specific of each policy area. Accordingly, the dissertation discusses the use of a group of solid waste management instruments (recycling, incineration, landfilling, and source reduction) and a group of growth ontrol/management tools (population/building caps, large lot zoning, urban service boundaries, impact fees, transfer of development rights, and incentive zoning). The preferences of local officials for one or several instruments depends on a series of factors. First, the choice can be motivated by economic efficiency reasons. In this case, the adoption of specific policy instruments helps local governments to deal with local market failures. Second, local officials choose the instrument or combination of instruments that allows them to minimize political transaction costs. In other words, local officials aiming at reelection choose the tool(s) that closely mirror the sociodemographic composition of each community. Finally, policy instrument choice is influenced or constrained by local institutions (form of government, system of election, and home rule status) and state level constrains (state grants to local governments). The empirical findings reveal that none of these factors can be ignored in explaining local environmental policy options. In both local level analyses, it is possible to verify a pattern in terms of community characteristics which favors both recycling and growth management programs. In general, wealthier, more educated and racially homogeneous communities are more likely to engage in environmental policy programs, perhaps because the concern of local officials is to maintain a high quality of living for their constituents and this can be best accomplished using specific policy tools. For the first time, this project applies the policy instruments approach to local policy choices. From this perspective, I was able to show the vast number of tools at the disposal of local officials to address each jurisdiction's specific problems while reaching their political goals in the process. There is also potential for future work to extend this research to a larger set of policy instruments that communities employ in their efforts to control or manage development and to examine the influence of various interest groups and organizations in the community.
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Date Issued: 2003
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1667
Format: Thesis

Title: Conditions That Facilitate the Implementation of Distance Learning Components into Traditional Master's Degree Curricula in Nursing.
Creator: Tarrant, Sandra W., Lick, Dale. W., Rowe, Anne E., Thomas, Hollie B., Bower, Beverly L., Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: Distance learning components are being added to many undergraduate and graduate curricula in various academic fields. Nurse-midwifery has been a pioneering field in distance learning and the experiences of faculty and administrators with adding DL components to master's degree curricula provide insight for other administrators and faculty pursuing DL components for traditional master's degree programs. Through this study the researcher examined the conditions that facilitate the...
Show moreDistance learning components are being added to many undergraduate and graduate curricula in various academic fields. Nurse-midwifery has been a pioneering field in distance learning and the experiences of faculty and administrators with adding DL components to master's degree curricula provide insight for other administrators and faculty pursuing DL components for traditional master's degree programs. Through this study the researcher examined the conditions that facilitate the implementation of DL components into three master's degree programs in nursing. Faculty and administrator interviews were conducted and documents were analyzed through using NVivo 2.0 as a tool. Donald Ely's theoretical framework was employed, and findings indicate that the two most important conditions for implementing curricular change are Resources and Funding and Knowledge and Skills. The least important of the conditions was Incentives and Rewards for Participants. The study results show that there are similarities with the public universities which are divergent from the private university, which the researcher asserts relates to the differences in institutional missions. More research should be done with larger samples to determine the generalizability of these results across all specialty areas of nursing education as well as other academic fields.
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Date Issued: 2004
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1690
Format: Thesis

Title: Organizational Ownership and Service Quality: An Empirical Study on the Effect of for-Profit, Nonprofit, and Government Organizations on Nursing Home Quality.
Creator: Roh, Jongho, Berry, Frances S., Weissert, William G., Guy, Mary E., McCreary, Samuel M., School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Abstract/Description: A nursing home includes a mixture of for-profit, nonprofit, and government-owned organizations as service providers. These organizations compete with each other to provide a better service quality. Thus, the nursing home service provides a good domain in which to compare the relative quality of services provided by these three different organizational ownerships. The existing empirical literature on the effect of ownership type on nursing home quality has suffered from lack of a theoretical...
Show moreA nursing home includes a mixture of for-profit, nonprofit, and government-owned organizations as service providers. These organizations compete with each other to provide a better service quality. Thus, the nursing home service provides a good domain in which to compare the relative quality of services provided by these three different organizational ownerships. The existing empirical literature on the effect of ownership type on nursing home quality has suffered from lack of a theoretical framework and a systematic comparison of their relationship. This study addresses these gaps in the literature by providing a structure, process, and environment (SPE) framework and by comparing the relative influences of different organizational ownerships on nursing home quality. The data for this study was obtained from the Online Survey Certification Reporting (OSCAR) system database, the Minimum Data Set (MDS) repository, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Thirteen thousand six hundred eleven nursing homes were finally used for analysis after the data was cleaned. Based on theoretical knowledge of organizational ownership and literature reviews on the relationships between ownership type and nursing home quality, I developed 16 hypotheses and tested them with multiple regression models and linear structural equation models. The key findings of this study are that the SPE framework provides a useful tool for explaining nursing home quality, and nonprofit nursing homes have a higher quality than for-profit nursing homes in a regression analysis measured by a dummy variable. In particular, nonprofit nursing homes have a stronger influence on environmental factors than for-profit nursing homes. But, the nonprofit nursing homes do not have superiority to the for-profit nursing homes in process factors measured by nursing care deficiencies and physical restraints. Considering that these process factors lead to improve service quality through adequate nursing care, effective strategies of nonprofit nursing homes for improving the process factors are required. This study also examines the influence of nonprofit nursing homes on for-profit and overall nursing home quality by investigating an increase in nonprofit market share. As a result, the study finds that the increase in the nonprofit market share has a positive effect on both for-profit and overall nursing home quality. This result implies that a competitive spillover effect from the nonprofits leads to higher quality by encouraging the service improvement of for-profit nursing homes. As another significant finding, this study concludes that there are positive and negative effects of intersectoral competition among different organizational ownerships. While such competition has a beneficial effect on service quality by facilitating a profit motive in for-profit nursing homes, excessive competition may weaken nonprofits' ability to serve a socially-beneficial role in nursing home services. As a result, market competition does not always have a positive effect on service quality. Its effect is varied by different organizational ownerships and different service types provided. This study has some limitations. First, the study measures nursing home quality with three quality measures: pressure sores, bladder or bowel incontinence, and urinary tract infections. But, it does not seem that they provide a comprehensive set of quality measures. Considering that the effect of organizational ownership on service quality produces different results with different quality measures, the selection of such comprehensive quality measures by some clear criteria would be necessary to understand fully the relationship between organizational ownership and nursing home quality. Second, this study examines the relationship between organizational ownership and quality with a nursing home service. While major findings of the study have important implications, it does not seem appropriate to apply these findings to all health care services. The nursing home industry may be less relevant for understanding broader trends in the health-care sector. Thus, future research needs to explore how the effect of organizational ownership is varied by different service areas such as economic services, social services, and health care services.
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Date Issued: 2006
Identifier: FSU_migr_etd-1846
Format: Thesis

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