The intention of this study is to search for an answer to the question: what theory is most appropriate for explaining Korean social welfare policy for the period from 1962 to 1991? / Many competing theories in social welfare policy have been studied including two different perspectives, determinants theories and incrementalism theory. / The analyses focused on both total social welfare expenditures and types of welfare policies. The dependent variable, total social welfare expenditures divided by budget, was measured both as two stage least square and a percentage change. Expenditures were also classified into three budget categories; those being social insurance, medical care and insurance, and social welfare service. Previous expenditures, an indicator of the incremental character of decision-making, was, as expected, a positive, statistically significant predictor of current expenditures. When social expenditures were expressed as a percentage of change, determinant variables were not significantly related to total social welfare expenditures divided by total governmental spending. The centralization variable was statistically significant with medical care and insurance. / In conclusion, the incrementalism proved to be the most influential theory for explaining Korean social welfare policies. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 55-09, Section: A, page: 2982. / Major Professor: Charles F. Cnudde. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1994.

This study examines the relationships between levels of television exposure and AIDS-related fears within the context of cultivation theory and methodology. / What has been called the second AIDS epidemic (Ostrow, 1988)--the fears associated with contracting HIV and the consequences of AIDS--has been shown to elicit personal and societal negative effects, including unsafe sexual behaviors, psychopathological disorders, discriminatory attitudes and behaviors, and a decrease in the nation's blood reserves. / Heavier television viewers were predicted in the present study to be more likely to express heightened, unhealthy levels of AIDS-related fears as a result of their increased exposure to the sexual- and AIDS-related messages the medium provides. / Three factorially-derived AIDS-related fear dimensions are found to marginally correlate with levels of television exposure: (a) fear of AIDS contraction through medical tests or procedures, (b) fear of the AIDS virus and other associated viruses through sexual contact, and (c) fear of AIDS contraction through sexual contact with members of risk groups. / The data collected using the Arrindell et al. (1989) fear-of-AIDS questionnaire also suggest that college-aged students' overall levels of AIDS-related fears have not changed in the six years since the scale was administered. Within the context of AIDS fears, having contact with other people's blood and sexual contact with different partners are anxieties which appear to have increased, whereas the fears associated with casual contact with homosexual, bisexuals, or an AIDS victim seem to have decreased. / A new model for predicting cultivation, dependent upon whether individuals are asked to make evaluations of personal- or societal-level phenomena, is also offered in this study. Within this model, the variable "Perceived Ability to Control Personal Victimization" (CONTROL) was introduced for personal-level perceptual measures. CONTROL had a contingent effect on the "AIDS contraction through medical tests or procedures" factorially-derived fear dimension, but was not found to be an intervening variable within the cultivation process of resonance. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-07, Section: A, page: 2372. / Major Professor: Gary R. Heald. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1993.

This study explores what is regarded as a workforce crisis in this country through an in-depth analysis of policy responses to job training strategies directed at the poor. Using a value critical approach which focuses on underlying ideological premises, the traditional economic and socio-political theories that define unemployment and persistent poverty are reviewed. Then, the strength of this interpretation is compared with alternative explanations, including dual and segmented labor market theories, to reframe the problems and reexamine the causes. / By tracing the history of welfare policy development and looking closely at the conventional beliefs shaping job training legislation, this research reveals how the legislative intent has evolved up until now without substantial change even though this country has experienced dramatic, structural changes in its economy and workplaces. Policymakers accept supply-side interpretations within human capital theory as an explanation for the economic crisis and blame the rise in poverty and joblessness on a skills shortage. However, a critical analysis of today's postindustrial labor markets disputes this claim and focuses attention on the underutilization of labor, and the nature of new jobs. / The enactment of the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) under the Reagan administration epitomizes a reversal in policy toward a philosophy of the New Right. Changes in JTPA's design offers insight into ulterior political motivations that have impeded training the poor and jobless for meaningful work. Authority for program plans resides with business-dominated councils, training allowances are restricted, and a system of performance-management imposes national standards for job placements without accommodating other factors to ensure quality in training, equity of services, or the targeting of persons most in need. Evidence from federal investigations, a national JTPA impact study, and interviews with Florida staff, employers and trainees confirm that rather than preparing the poor for self-sufficiency, JTPA has further marginalized the workforce by subsidizing low-wage employers. In conclusion, the integration of labor market policy into a new and broader welfare paradigm is explored. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-12, Section: A, page: 4404. / Major Professor: Steven J. Klees. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1993.

Since the time of Aristotle, scholars of politics have contemplated the betterment of the welfare of human kind. Building on the traditional and often conflicting views of human welfare attainment, this dissertation seeks to expand understanding of how the human condition is determined and might be improved. Specifically, it examines how overlapping political, economic, social, and international factors affect the economic status of the population, the success of state policies, and society-based groups that attempt to alter the relative position of one or more groups. / In order to test the theoretical model, a pooled, cross-sectional time series design is utilized. Seven equations are generated to account for welfare, growth, the level of development, state penetration, state extraction, state economic policy, and inequality. Two Stage Least Squares(2SLS) serves as the method of analysis for the nonrecursive, simultaneous equation model. / The 27 provinces of Indonesia from 1975 to 1990 serve as the cases for examination. The high growth rate due to the oil boom, the rigor of state adjustment programs, and the regional inequalities serve as important circumstances to test the model. Moreover, the diversity of Indonesia permits the inclusion of variety of differing regions into the analysis, while remaining within the context of a single country. / Theoretically, the model attempts to produce a synthesis of the more diverse opinions from the welfare literature. Empirically, the analysis finds that some of the major assumptions of the basic needs school are supported, specifically those pertaining to the negative effect of growth on welfare and the positive effect of welfare on growth. The positive relationship between inequality and welfare highlights the inequalitarian effect attempts at welfare enhancement in developing countries. Furthermore, the high degree of variation in welfare over time within the provinces dispels some of the additive assumptions related to welfare attainment. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-03, Section: A, page: 1304. / Major Professor: Patrick James. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

This dissertation represents an instance of evaluation research and an embedded case study of a Catholic nonformal education and social action program in Vicosa, a city in the interior of Brazil. Named Associacao Assistencial e Promocional da Pastoral da Oracao de Vicosa (APOV), the program is devoted to the spiritual and temporal welfare of the poor inhabitants of the neighborhood of Nova Vicosa, 500 of whom currently participate in its activities. Founded in 1980 as a prayer group, APOV gradually evolved increasingly complex education and community development functions and has developed into a full-blown nonformal education strategy. / Data concerning the historical evolution of the program and concerning its current context, resources, processes, results and impact of the program are assembled in the dissertation through a combination of participant observation, document review and field surveys carried out by the researcher over a three-year period. This multiple evidence of APOV's operation is first analyzed from an evaluative or "internal" point of view to see how closely implementation and achievements fit with intentions, what factors explain discrepancies observed, and what lessons the program has learned in the process of its own growth and development. Next the results of the research are contrasted with insights and assertions about nonformal education in Latin American development and the dynamics of Catholic social action drawn from the abundant literature on these topics. / Though APOV follows no detailed and predetermined model, the program generally achieves its intended goals in the areas of individual religious and psychological development. In addition, an impressive quantity of social services is provided to its impoverished clientele, and--given the volunteer labor involved--this is done in a very cost-effective fashion. The program has to date been less successful at addressing the root causes of poverty, durably eliminating it in Nova Vicosa, or promoting full ownership or "empowerment" among its clientele. Recommendations are made in conclusion regarding possible improvements in the program's strategy and further research topics. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-12, Section: A, page: 4636. / Major Professor: Peter A. Easton. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.

My dissertation deploys a recent case-study--the legislative struggle to enact the 1989 Fair Labor Standards Act Amendments--to elucidate the explanatory power of class-centered theories of the U.S. state. My variant of class-centered theory emphasizes the intrinsic relations between the commodity-form, capitalist wage-relation, and political class struggles. / In Part I (chapters one through three), I establish a theoretical and historical foundation for interpreting minimum wage politics. Chapter one illustrates the origins and consequences of Theda Skocpol's ahistorical, functionalist-grounded state-centered theory. I develop an outline for an alternative class-centered approach; one that interrogates the relations of commodity-form, capitalist wage-relation, and political class struggle. In chapter two I unfold a concise summary of Marx's critique of capitalism; emphasizing his analysis of the commodity-form of labor and wage-relation as foundational to the capitalist system. In chapter three, I investigate the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act as a product of uneven and contradictory capitalist development. In the context of discussing general changes in its scope and magnitude 1939-1988, two basic tendencies are evident: (1) industry-specific application of its provisions and (2) the historic, post-1960s/1970s retreat from its previous inflation-adjusted value and scope. / In Part II, I provide an in-depth, historical case study of political class struggles to enact the Fair Labor Standards Amendments of 1989. I demonstrate how organized labor and organized capital, through official representative agencies and class organs, substantially impacted on the form and content of minimum wage politics. The data strongly support class-centered theory, especially variants that assert the relevance of class-fractions for shaping capitalist state activity. Workers and capitalists from industries with relatively low average wage rates unquestionably dominated the political class struggle to enact a minimum wage bill. I conclude (chapter six) by summarily evaluating the strengths of class-centered theory and the political implications drawn from the political class struggles of 1989. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-12, Section: A, page: 4291. / Major Professor: Larry W. Isaac. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

During the decade of the 1980s, the health sector of the United States underwent major political reordering. This political transformation followed on the heels of economic changes both within the health sector itself and the United States economy as a whole. The research investigates changes in the pattern of structural arrangements within the individual states during the period 1981 through 1987, within the context of national economic and political events. The central thesis is that alterations in the structural arrangements governing health care, as well as other societal sectors, emerge as a consequence of divergence of material interests within and among key elites having an economic interest in the operation of the sector. This divergence is seen to produce a fragmenting of prior political relations, the formation of new political alliances, and an opening of the public policy agenda to proposals for structural changes. The resulting policy outputs are expected to legitimate structural arrangements which more fully accommodate the interests of cohesive elites at the expense of those elites whose material interests are internally divided. / Through a combination of quantitative cross sectional analysis of all fifty states and case studies of selected states, the research demonstrates the extent to which varying conditions of political fragmentation or cohesion exhibited among health and non-health elites has led to the adoption of policies conducive to the transformation of market relations. The particular focus is upon policies affecting market relations between providers and purchasers of acute care hospital services. The three policies examined are: certificate of need regulation, hospital rate setting regulation, and mandatory hospital financial disclosure. / The results support the study's theoretic model. Where the interests of health elites appear to remain cohesive there is a strong bias toward the retention of market relations based primarily upon regulation. Conversely, where health elite interests appear to have fragmented there is a strong thrust toward market relations based primarily upon competition. Political cohesion among non health elites pushes market relations toward control over the flow of resources into the health sector either via price regulation or price negotiation depending respectively, upon whether health elite interests are cohesive or fragmented. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-12, Section: A, page: 4297. / Major Professor: Allen W. Imershein. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

Persisting lay midwifery in the twentieth century American South is generally attributed to insufficient medical alternatives or to lingering folk practices. This study examines state-sanctioned lay midwifery in the South, using Florida as a case study. The study finds that persisting "official" Southern lay midwifery is best understood as state policy and practice molded by a unique way of life and the complex relations of race and class in which it was grounded. Initial state recognition of the black "granny" owed much to a pragmatic national biopolitical project to improve the conditions of rural mothers and infants through state management of birth attendance. Between the wars the state made "official" lay practice a part of a public health program to normalize the state's agricultural working classes. Incorporation of the lay practice into public health does not, however, account for continuation of the state-sanctioned practice into the 1970s, after the association between midwife attendance and relevant economic and social variables disappeared. The study finds that "official" lay midwifery continued after the 1920s because the policy and practice "fit" into a way of life and a welfare system that dovetailed with the South's culture of paternalism. The racial state sustained lay midwifery by adopting unique licensure and supervisory techniques. Public health officials maintained the shrinking practice by relicensing some who no longer met official standards and by training a declining number of younger black women to serve in areas where lay attendance was "needed." "Official" lay midwifery in the South persisted for almost half a century because it was state policy and practice articulating with historically specific and slowly changing relations of class and race. Relations of race, class, and state policy were woven into the cultural fabric of the / region. Each was supported by the culture of paternalism; all were institutionalized within community roles and practices. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-09, Section: A, page: 3243. / Major Professor: Bruce Bellingham. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

The objective of the present study is which determinants under what conditions have important impacts on pension growth, modeling the social, economic, and political forces that explain variations in nations' development of public pension growth. / This study attempts to answer two central research questions. The first research question is why previous studies produce inconsistent results on welfare policy determinants concerning impacts of political actors. Reviewing literature on welfare policies, American state public policy, and comparative political economy, the present study shows that the inconsistent findings are due to the use of mis-specified models. The present study investigates the research question with interactive models. The second research question is whether or not industrial democracies keep a similar pattern of pension growth, regardless of different pension schemes and indexing mechanisms. / The analytic tool for the first research question is conducted within the framework of pooled cross-sectional and time series data analysis design. The pooled data set includes 24 annual time periods, 1961 to 1984, with 16 advanced industrial democracies. The sample size is 384. To examine hypotheses, multiplicative and static models are used in both nominal and real terms. The second research question is examined by crosstabulation, categorizing each nation's trend of pension growth by various pension schemes and indexing mechanisms. / The present study finds that a dominant leftist government is a necessary, but not a sufficient condition for pension growth. Leftist dominant governments with medium or weak labor unions and weak oppositional parties lead to greater pension growth than do other types of governments. In addition, in contrast to previous studies on welfare policies, this study finds that the strength of labor unions and the degree of state centralization are negatively associated with pension growth. Except for the relative size of the aged population and real economic growth, results of socio-economic perspectives are not always consistent in all models. Furthermore, the present study finds that different pension schemes and indexing mechanisms result in various patterns of pension growth. / The present study shows that results of previous studies are incorrect due to the problem of model mis-specification. Although both multiplicative nominal and red growth models in this study are applied to only one specific welfare program, pension policy, these models are worthy of being applied to a wide variety of welfare policies. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-11, Section: A, page: 4551. / Major Professor: Charles J. Barrilleaux. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.

Thesis advisor: Timothy Duket / The United States of America's official seal is inscribed with the quote “E Pluribus Unum.” Translated from the Latin, this phrase means “From Many, One.” Modern America is in fact one nation, built from many; many cultures, religions, and citizens from many different origins comprise the American polity. America is a nation of immigrants. The first immigrants to this country were fleeing religious persecution. Others have come escaping a life of poverty or political repression. Whatever the reason, immigrants come to America in hope of a better life. Despite America's strong immigrant tradition, the issue of membership in the American polity has been a contentious issue throughout our history. Chinese Exclusion, and the National Origins Quota System are merely two policies implemented with the express purpose of keeping foreigners out of America. Over time, anti-immigrant sentiment in America has been fueled by nativism and the desire to allow economic prosperity to benefit American citizens. While nativism has played an important role in determining American immigration policy, many modern-day arguments for a restrictive immigration policy are based on economic considerations. It is often claimed that immigrants take jobs away from citizens. Economic research has shown that modern-day immigrants tend to be lower skilled and have a lower economic performance than natives. As a result, the presence of a large number of immigrants does create greater job competition and lower wages for citizens in low-paying jobs. The desire to keep jobs available for American citizens has been a primary cause of existing restrictions on immigration. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2003. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology. / Discipline: College Honors Program.