Discourse creates the world of policy. Discourse plays a key role within policy formation; political discourse is made visible within particular discursive (spoken and written) practices. Hence, mental health policy is the endpoint of a discursive process and that it is, in itself, an institutional process. The shared understanding necessary to formulate policy is crucial to persons who are responsible for policy decisions and recommendations. Since the public perception is that public policy problems are too complicated for ordinary people to deal with, the policy problem is reframed into manageable "bits." It is how these "bits" are framed, named, and made sense of that concern me most in the policymaking process. The purpose of this dissertation is to make visible the often invisible processes that occur in the creation of that final report. To do so, I use a discursive approach and a selection of discourse tokens, both talk and text, to examine the workings of the Florida Commission on Mental Health and Substance Abuse.

This thesis scrutinises how regular mathematics teachers are expected to deal with empowerment in mathematics classroom practice. Inspired by a socio-political perspective, the aim of the study is to problematise how to empower mathematics students in inclusive classroom practice, as implicitly understood in a nationwide professional development programme, i.e., the Boost for Mathematics, in Sweden. The aim is addressed by the following research question: What types of empowering ideas are conveyed in the Boost for Mathematics? The data of the study were collected from supporting materials for teachers, published within the Boost for Mathematics. Data processing consists of two steps. Step 1 is a thematic analysis of how to promote student empowerment as discerned in the data of the study. In a nutshell, Step 1 clarifies that the data give prominence to ways of empowering students from a cognitive point-of-view while social difference is disregarded. Step 2 undertakes a critical approach and discusses an alternative way of treating empowerment; this alternative way is restricted to the design of participatory activities in inclusive classroom practice.

A basic tenet and challenge of copyright law is the need to balance the interests of a range of stakeholders, from authors and performers to publishers, producers, broadcasters, intermediaries, service providers and the general public. To ensure that this balancing act takes place, policymakers involve organisations representing these stakeholders in the development of policy and the drafting of legislation in several ways, including through meetings, public consultations, and stakeholder dialogues. However, the process by which stakeholders steer the course and substance of copyright law and policy, their behaviour, as well as the varying extent to which they impact and characterise the copyright policy framework, have rarely been the specific focus of empirical research in IP. The present thesis examines creators’ organisations (COs) as participants and shapers of copyright policy. Through a socio-legal study into the workings of The Society of Authors, the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society, the Musicians’ Union, and the Performing Right Society on several contemporary policy issues, the thesis observes how two types of organisations: trade unions and collective management organisations, across the music and publishing industries, engage in policy work. Through in-depth analysis of primary data obtained from interviews with CO representatives as well as documentary data (public consultation responses, policy briefings, press releases, reports, academic studies, and more), the thesis captures and discusses differences in the behaviour of these actors and argues that these differences are not fully understood by policymakers. It illustrates how factors such as an organisation’s mandate, resources, membership composition, political power, and self-concept, influence an organisation’s policy proactivity. Some actors may be more concerned with influencing the copyright policy agenda itself, while others primarily seek to shape its outcomes. The thesis also identifies power dynamics and imbalances between the COs and argues that some actors are in a better position to effectively participate in policy compared to others. Furthermore, it discusses the effects of the plurality of actors with varying interests and priorities, as well as the competition of policy issues that this provokes. In this context, the thesis illustrates the complex structure of the copyright policy environment and, in particular, the role of umbrella organisations and ad-hoc coalitions in the furtherance of a particular policy issue or position. It concludes that as a result of complex stakeholder dynamics, power imbalances, and policymakers’ insufficient understanding of these phenomena, certain creators’ issues will not surface onto copyright policy agendas and will thus remain unaddressed by copyright law. The thesis further concludes that complex stakeholder dynamics challenge the objective of developing evidence-based policy and render the copyright policy process unclear and its outcomes unpredictable. Given the disparity of views and positions on many copyright law issues, policymakers often attempt to shape law and policy outcomes as a compromise between different stakeholder interests. However, this does not always produce sound or appropriate results for copyright law.

The overreaching purpose of this study is to examine in what ways lobbying contributes to democratic policymaking in the European Union. Having limited amount of time, a case study has been conducted with the main purpose to examine what impacts lobbying have on the proposed EU-legislation to lower CO2 emissions from newly produced cars, in terms of democratic policymaking. The lobby groups in this case being ACEA and T&E. In order to fulfill the purpose a comprehensive research question is formulated: What impacts do ACEA and T&E have on the proposed EU-legislation to lower the CO2 emissions from newly produced cars, in terms of democratic policymaking? The theory and definitions of democratic policymaking were drawn from Rinus van Schendelen´s book “Machiavelli in Brussels; The Art of Lobbying the EU”. Definitions of different components essential to democratic policymaking were given here and used together with the material on ACEA and T&E to answer the research question. The material was based on documents, press-statements, speeches and publications from the European Union, ACEA and T&E to find out how ACEA and T&E lobbied the proposed legislation. The study has shown mostly positive impacts from ACEA and T&E on the proposed EU-legislation to lower the CO2 emissions from newly produced cars, in terms of democratic policymaking. For the overreaching purpose the conclusion is that lobbying therefore contributes mostly in a positive way to democratic policymaking in the European Union. This study can in the future be used in further studies to see what impacts lobby groups have on democratic policymaking in the European Union and also in studies concerning how lobby groups carry out their lobbying.

The record failure of development aid, massive corruption, escalating poverty rates, resource-related conflicts, systematic exclusion, and general disenfranchisement across the East African Community (EAC) puzzle many development experts, as they do concerned citizens. Instead of espousing inclusive citizen participation, cyclic rounds of national leaders have governed EAC countries using retrograde ideologies, depictive of restrictive leadership interests. Underlying these interests is usually a deep-seated desire for self-entrenchment that crafty leaders impose on hapless masses. In the process, the leaders methodically personify state institutions and systems, rendering them acquiescent to their desires. Over time, destitute citizens also submit to the status quo, yielding a cadre of “acquiesced citizens”. With respect to the above, the three objectives of this study were to analyse how personified leadership styles influence governance and development policies in East Africa; to assess the degree of citizen involvement in public governance, and how this influences development in East Africa; and to develop criteria for citizen-driven development policies that transcend personified governance in East Africa. The findings of this thesis will enable citizens, academia, development practitioners and other stakeholders to unconditionally determine or guide national governance and development agenda. Most importantly, this study has unravelled a new approach for analysing national leadership, in a manner that can potentially enable a country to identify leaders who can champion effective principles of good governance and simultaneously achieve sustainable development. / Development Studies / D. Phil. (Development Studies)

The explorative case study aims to understand how the reform of business support and development undergoing in Stockholm municipality addresses existing institutions, and to what extent does the institutional context have the potential to adopt and sustain the change. Two case studies, Högdalen industrial area and Årsta wholesale center, illustrate how local economic development is organized in practice. A new policy document, Näringslivspolicy, is analyzed, along with interviews with key public and private agents. Two institutional theoretical frameworks are used: a dynamic perspective on the interaction between regulations and institutions and the concept of institutional thickness. Findings indicate that the examined reform is an example of institutional policymaking as it addresses institutional foundations underlying behavioral practices. Furthermore, empirical evidence shows that the City of Stockholm intends to adopt a place- and problem-based approach to local economic development, but its organizational forms are not specified at this stage. Findings illustrate (not exhaustively) factors of efficient external collaboration that reflect those in recent literature and can be used in future policy revisions. The success of the initiated reform might provide the fundament for improvements in future local economic development initiatives.

Uncertainty of outcome is widely recognised as a concern facing decision-makers and their advisors. In a number of spheres of policy, it appears uncertainty has intensified in the face of globalisation, economic instability, climate change, technological innovation and changing consumer preferences. How can planners and policymakers plan for an uncertain future? There is growing interest in, and use of, techniques that can help decision-making processes where deep uncertainty is involved. This paper is based upon one of the most recent international examples of a foresight exercise employed to examine uncertainty – specifically that which concerns uncertainty over the nature and extent of future demand for car travel. The principal focus of the paper is on the insights and guidance this examination of uncertainty brings forth for transport planning and policymaking. To accommodate deep uncertainty requires a flexible and open approach in terms of how policy and investment possibilities are formulated and judged. The paper argues for a focus upon the Triple Access System of spatial proximity, physical mobility and digital connectivity as a framework for policy and investment decisions that can harness flexibility and resilience. Uncertainty becomes an opportunity for decision-makers with the realisation that they are shaping the future rather than (only) responding to a predicted future. The paper outlines two forms of policymaking pathway: regime-compliant (in which adherence to trends and the nature of the world we have known pushes policy) and regime-testing (in which the nature of the world as we have known it is brought into question and vision pulls policy decisions). Stronger orientation towards regime-testing to assist in managing an uncertain future is advocated.

Despite recent public policy initiatives limiting or banning forms of distracted driving resultant from cellular phone use, crashes remain on the rise. Individuals from the millennial generation, ages 16 to 35, appear to be most susceptible to distracted driving. Understanding the behaviors, attitudes, and habits of millennials is critical to developing effective policy for behavior change. A dual task ethnographic study framed by Skinner's theory of behavior modification and Maslow's hierarchy of needs motivational model, was used to investigate to what extent millennials feel public policy has influenced their driving, and if additional policy initiatives are required to deter distracted driving behavior. Two phases of inquiry, first, naturalistic observation, and then focus group were conducted at a commuter university. Distracted driving behaviors including hand held cellular phone use, eating, drinking, and passenger interaction of 100 drivers entering or exiting campus were observed, tracked, and analyzed using a researcher-developed tracking form. Eighty-four percent exhibited at least one distracted driving behavior. After which, 12 enrolled and licensed students, aged 18-35, were recruited via social media for two focus group discussions. Focus group data were inductively coded and analyzed using semantical attribution analysis. The students revealed that millennial drivers felt distracted driving policy did not address behaviors they see as worthy of intervention, they did not perceive that cellular phone use while driving posed a significant threat, and they felt current law was difficult to enforce with penalties they regarded as non-prohibitive. Social change implications include improved distracted driving public policy, which may result in driving behavior changes and a potential reduction of death, injury, and property loss.

No description available.

<p>This dissertation offers a critical analysis of State Anti-Racism in Ontario, Canada, from 1990 - 1995. Particular attention is paid to the politics surrounding the emergence and operation of a dedicated provincial agency - the Ontario Anti-Racism Secretariat (OARS). The study highlights the central role of social problems work and claims making in the determination of anti-racism policy.</p> <p>The nature of state anti-racisms in distinct areas of programming is accounted for in terms of the claims making activities of the parties involved in the policymaking process. I argue that stakeholders' influence on the nature of anti-racism initiatives varied depending on the particular realm of policy or programming under examination. State agents determined the nature of anti-racism in some areas, while community stakeholders held sway in other areas.</p> <p>The research draws on a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of the state and racial inequality from sociology, political science, and policy studies. Qualitative methods including open-ended interviews and content analysis of archival materials are used to account for different dimensions of state anti-racisms.</p> <p>Empirical evidence for this study comes from accounts provided by key players involved with anti-racism in Ontario including representatives from community groups, the Ontario Public Sector (OPS), academia, media, and the Ontario New Democratic Party (ONDP). Materials housed at the Canadian Jewish Archives and the Provincial Archives of Ontario were also used.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)