Against the backdrop of constrained resources and increasing demands, governments across the world have adopted performance budgeting systems. However, it is also true that most countries implementing performance budgeting systems don't link performance with budgets directly but just provide performance information in the budgeting process for management purposes. The reasons for not actively using performance information in budgeting may be two fold. First, theoretically, budget cuts for poor performing programs may worsen the performance. Second, practically, other factors such as the practice of incrementalism or political considerations may hamper the link of performance to the budget. This dissertation aims to see if performance information can be used in budgeting more aggressively by examining if the above probable obstacles are real. With this in mind, the research questions are developed as follows: Does budget affect performance?; Does performance affect budget? The data is collected from the Korean national government performance evaluation results. Korea is apt for this study because the country tries to link performance to budget directly. Previous studies on the budget effect on performance are scarce and, if any, they used pooled OLS method, which uses both variations of variables within and between programs. This study uses fixed effects method, which uses only variation within program, so that different characteristics of programs are better controlled for. The data from 2008 to 2014, with 1,095 observations shows there is no budget effect on performance. There is no performance effect on budget, either. These results contradict the results of the previous studies. The contradicting results may be due to the difference of the estimation methods : pooled OLS(overall variation) versus fixed effects(within variation). The study results indicate both possibility in theory and difficulty in practice regarding the more aggressive use of performance information in budgeting. The possibility is supported by the finding that budget cuts for poor performance do not worsen program performance. The difficulty is supported by the finding that performance does not influence budget, but political influence and incrementalism have an impact. For performance budgeting system to be an actual budgeting tool beyond merely a performance management tool, measures to enforce the link of performance to budget, in the face of political considerations, should be devised. / A Dissertation submitted to the Reubin O'D. Askew School of Public Administration and Policy in partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester 2017. / March 27, 2017. / Includes bibliographical references. / Frances S. Berry, Professor Directing Dissertation; Betsy J. Becker, University Representative; Ralph S. Brower, Committee Member; David G. Berlan, Committee Member.

It is the intention of this thesis to review the role of municipal government in Cape Town as a local planner - and as such as an agency entrusted with the welfare of its inhabitants - in terms of the general governing processes existent in South Africa. That is to say, in terms of the position it occupies in the infrastructure of government in the country, and its relationship and interactions with other levels of the governing pyramid. As a corollary of this, an attempt will be made to ascertain and measure the effectiveness of local government (in terms of its stated objectives), and relate such inadequacies as are found to be existent, to insufficiencies in the powers assigned to local bodies. The study itself is in five parts: - Part 1: A review of the early history of local government in England (the forerunner of the present South African system), and the development of general objectives. The identification of key objectives in local governments throughout the world today. A review of the early history of local government in South Africa traced through until the present, outlining its position and function in the governing process. Part 2: An analysis of local government in South Africa is represented in terms of the three basic objective identified in part 1. These are: 1) Local representation and participation. 2) Decentralised and effective administration, and as an outcome of these first two objectives, 3) provision for the welfare of the local population. Part 3: A brief review of social indicators was undertaken to attempt to quantify the effects of good or bad administration. Crime was chosen as an indicator of social malaise, and statistics cited to illustrate a deteriorating situation. Part 4: Case studies of three residential areas in Cape Town were undertaken to determine possible antecedents of crime. An attempt is made to relate the perpetuation of these antecedents to inadequate control at the local level brought about by a lack of power. Part 5: The final section establishes the importance of local government and concludes that a lack of administrative control at this level has inevitable consequences for social welfare standards. The section includes the proposal of various solutions for the restructuring of local authorities for the better administration of the metropolis. At the outset it must be emphasised that the investigation was undertaken without particular bias towards any specific form of local government. Nor was it felt that a high degree of local autonomy was a necessary prerequisite for successful government. What was intended however, was to establish the effectiveness of the system in the context of government in South Africa.

The purpose of this thesis is to study the role the Town Clerk plays in South African municipal government and to suggest what that role could be. The thesis is not concerned with politics as such but with public administration, although because of the structure of local government, the Town Clerk is involved with politics in the sense that the lay-administrators he works with are politicians. It is stressed that politics does not mean party politics. Furthermore, while the Town Clerk forms the central theme of the thesis, his role cannot be discussed in isolation from the local government system within which he operates.

This is a study about how participants in a public network understand and construct meanings for their relationships, where this construction of meanings comes from, and the effect they produce in the network operation. Three propositions guide this study. First, the way people interpret their relationships will have consequences on the network’s emergence, change, and outcome. Second, given actors’ diversity and novelty of public networks as a form of organizational interaction, multiple interpretations of relationships are possible. This potential diversity of meanings challenges the stability of network operations. Third, everyday reasoning relies heavily upon culturally available sets of meanings. Thus, a cultural explanation of public networks is not a residual account but a central component. The study applies a qualitative case study approach and relies on ethnographic methods of data collection to uncover the meanings of relationships in the context of an inter-local partnership in Chile. A grounded analysis of empirical material and a complementary social network analysis of network data yielded to propositions about the relations between contextual conditions, network meanings, and consequences of network meaning construction. The study finds no singular but multiple meanings attached to the relationships forming the partnership; together they can describe what members understand as the whole network. The study shows that the meanings of the partnership are grounded on a context constructed by actors based on shared schemata. These schemata shape members’ interpretation of the context and allow them to perceive certain events as opportunities for collective actions from where new meanings of ties emerge. Besides, shared schemata give shape to the operation of the partnership by limiting the range of alternatives and by predisposing members to interact in certain ways. These ways of operation demonstrate functional and non-functional effects. This study conclusion suggests some conceptual and theoretical “turns” that can be incorporated to the study of cultural phenomenon in public networks and three research extensions. / A Dissertation submitted to the Askew School of Public Administration and Policy in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / 2016 / May 20, 2016. / Chilean Municipalities, Cultural phenomenon, Network Management, Public networks, Qualitative approach / Includes bibliographical references. / Ralph S. Brower, Professor Directing Dissertation; Petra L. Doan, University Representative; Frances S. Berry, Committee Member; Lance M. DeHaven-Smith, Committee Member; William Hale Butler, Committee Member.

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No description available.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to understand turnover intentions of 911 workers and to identify job factors that are related to turnover. Serving as the link between the public and police, fire and ambulance services, 911 operators work behind the scenes; under stressful conditions and often times without recognition or appreciation. Across the nation, there is a high rate of turnover.by 911 operators and a difficulty in recruiting competent personnel to replace them. A cross-sectional survey research study was conducted using 911 operators from police departments throughout Central Florida. A questionnaire was developed using a combination of established questions, focusing on specific issues of turnover intentions, job satisfaction, job performance, management strategies, job challenges, and role clarity. In addition, questions relating specifically to 911 operators were incorporated into the questionnaire. Twenty-five agencies from the seven Central Florida counties participated in the study, including six sheriffs offices, 18 police departments, and one private public safety agency. Out of 659 questionnaires sent out, 370 were returned for a response rate of 56 percent. As part of the research, both management and line operators were surveyed to determine if variations in perceptions existed. Although 911 operators felt turnover was an important issue in their agencies, data indicated turnover intentions were low. Areas of dissatisfaction included pay rates, low staffing levels, job training issues, and lack of positive recognition from both management and officers. Descriptive statistics were reported according to the data received. Results indicated that most employees did not think about quitting or leaving for another agency, but strongly felt that turnover was a major issue in their agencies. Overall job satisfaction was very high, although with pay and advancement opportunities satisfaction was very low. Respondents also felt that they did not receive enough recognition and appreciation by management, yet were willing to put in extra effort for the success of their agencies. In looking at the results of job stress questions, participants indicated that they didn't feel burned out from work but did believe that too many others burned out from demands of the job. Results also indicated a strong conflict between work and family life issues. Cross-tabulations were reported based upon independent variables of agency type, position, tenure and marital status. Results from these analyses reaffirmed many of the same finding as determined in the descriptive statistics. Management showed slightly higher levels of job satisfaction than line employees in all areas. There was also higher satisfaction with pay for those employees with less than two years of service than for those with more than two years. The majority of respondents intended to remain with their agency for the next five years and did not intend to quit, showing a strong dedication to their individual agencies. Finally, correlations were also conducted to show positive or negative relationships between the major issues. A negative relationship was found between turnover intentions and job satisfaction as well as job satisfaction and job challenges. There was also a positive correlation between job challenges and turnover intentions. There was a negative relationship between job satisfaction and job security, indicating the high level of perceived job insecurity correlates to the low level of job satisfaction. The same reason also explains the relationship found between job challenges and job security results. The results indicated that 911 professionals, regardless of position, show a high satisfaction for their jobs despite problems that may exist. It is necessary for both managers and supervisors to show appreciation towards their employees, highlighting positive actions rather than just negative actions. In addition, agencies have made a concerted effort to increase starting pay for new-hires, yet have not adjusted veteran employee pay rates accordingly. Management should attempt to correct this problem in order to reduce turnover. Other areas of focus by management should be training programs, hiring practices, and advancement opportunities for qualified employees. Ideas of further research were suggested to include a longitudinal study of 911 centers. By determining if there is a decrease in turnover and turnover intentions by employees, management can deduce if their practices are effective or if other methods and ideas need to be formulated. A study of various geographical locations would help to determine if any problems are specific to this particular area or if they are universal. This is an untapped area of research that requires much attention in order to maintain the health and welfare of every community.

Public school education in the United States has a long history of supporting societal norms within the curriculum and classroom. Through the use of social justice and inclusive education (SJIE), teachers have the unique ability to disrupt the social reproduction of inequity within their content and curriculum. In order to do this, teachers must first understand social justice and inclusive education (knowledge) and feel comfortable and confident implementing it within their classroom (agency). This study focuses on 13 public school teachers who attended a weeklong professional development program which focused on social justice, privilege, trauma-informed education, mindfulness, and inclusive education in order to answer the following research questions: (1) How did teachers' knowledge and skillset related to social justice and inclusive education change after attending a summer professional development program? And, how was this change, if any, sustained over a school year? (2) What is the relationship between self-reported learned knowledge and skillset with implementation of an inclusive curriculum and teacher agency? Teachers completed a pre-test, post-test, and one-year follow-up test assessing their knowledge and feelings of implementation of SJIE. While there was a decrease between the post-test and the one-year follow-up test, the teachers demonstrated growth on nine of the ten pre-test measures assessed on the follow-up test. The knowledge from the training was sustainable over the course of a school year. Additionally, teachers participated in interviews where they were asked about changes to their personal lives and professional practice. Interviews were coded for evidence of themes and practices (artifacts). Teachers were divided into four groups based on their scores on the follow-up test and related artifacts and analyzed for evidence of teacher agency. This study found a relationship between implementation and teacher agency, implying that teacher agency related to SJIE can be enhanced through professional development programs.

Globalization, urbanization, and industrialization are continuously altering the increasingly complex relationship between humans and food. At any given time, food can raise issues regarding diet and health, risk and safety, ethics and morality, or governance and power. Universally, what we eat and how we eat it is a fundamental expression of cultural values and social relationships. Yet, the prestige given to science and risk analysis in policy justification has led to modern food policies that fail to fully grasp the multiple dimensions of food and the multiple scales of policy (i.e., local to global). This study specifically examines characteristics of the network that shapes risk assessment data collection methodologies. As minor as these methodologies may seem in the global scheme, the evidence they collect ultimately guides the policy discourse. Approaching this analysis from an interpretive perspective, various social science methods are used to illustrate the linkages, interactions and power relations between national and international actors involved in a specific methodology – the total diet study (TDS). This research is designed to understand the influence of the TDS international collective knowledge network on how cultural and ethnic diversity in food preparation and consumption is recognized, understood and integrated into food safety research methodologies, national and global food policy, and food safety guidelines or standards. By investigating the influence of policy institutions, management structures, and ideological frameworks on the design and implementation of TDS programs, this thesis reveals the constrained scope of expertise codifying the disregard for socio-cultural diversities of food preparation and consumption. The findings demonstrate the strong emphasis on positivist philosophies and scientific methodologies; however, vast knowledge of the socio-cultural determinants of health and food habits support the need to complement objective data with social and cultural data to fill in the gaps. A review of innovative TDS practices and the emergence of rigorous qualitative software tools demonstrate that the demand for empirical data does not have to come at the expense of the health and livelihood of ethnic subgroups. Further research on the costs associated with these alternative projects is necessary to determine their mainstream feasibility.