<p> Many researchers and political experts have commented on the disenfranchisement of the citizenry caused by irresponsible use of power by the government that potentially violates the 4^th Amendment rights of millions of people through secret mass surveillance programs. Disclosures of this abuse of power are presumably protected by the 1^st Amendment, though when constitutional protections are not followed by the government, the result can be prosecution and imprisonment of whistleblowers. Using a critical autoethnographic approach, the purpose of this study was to examine the devolution of democratic governance and constitutional rights in the United States since 9/11. Using the phenomena of my signature indictment (the first whistleblower since Daniel Ellsberg was charged under the Espionage Act) and prosecution by the U.S. government, data were collected through interviews with experts associated with this unique circumstance. These data, including my own recollections of the event, were inductively coded and subjected to a thematic analysis procedure. The findings revealed that the use of national security as the primary grounds to suppress democracy and the voices of whistleblowers speaking truth to, and about, power increased authoritarian tendencies in government. These tendencies gave rise to extra-legal autocratic behavior and sovereign state control over the institutions of democratic governance. Positive social change can only take place in a society that has robust governance and social structures that strengthen democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, and do not inhibit or suppress them.</p>

<p> Forestlands have been identified as a valuable resource to mitigate climate change due to the biome&rsquo;s capacity to both sequester greenhouse gases and substitute for fossil fuels. Woody biomass has been proposed as a substitutable input for coal-generated electricity as economies attempt to transition to renewable power while addressing economic development goals. However, increasing the intensity of forest management for energy production has the potential to result in significant ecological, economic and social consequences at local, regional and global scales. In this context, my dissertation explores the capacity of existing policy frameworks to stimulate and support sustainable power production from forest biomaterials. In Chapter Two, I explore the interactions between shifting goals, actors and institutions in influencing incentives that shape today&rsquo;s policy mix for woody biopower production in Wisconsin. The study&rsquo;s results reveal that the state&rsquo;s shifting focus away from using renewable energy as a means to pursue climate change mitigation and energy security goals combined with an absence of supportive coalitions has resulted in the dismantling of support for the woody biopower policy framework. In Chapter Three, I use data from a household survey of Tomahawk, Wisconsin residents to evaluate support for woody biomass production for power generation. Results show that respondents in biomass producing communities are more supportive of biomass sources such as forestry residues and forestry thinnings than dedicated harvesting operations. In addition, the results indicate that using an ecosystem services approach can help explain differences in support between these respondents and provide insights into socially acceptable forms of biomass harvesting operations. Chapter Four evaluates the use of sustainable forest management certification programs as a policy instrument to source sustainable woody biomass. The study evaluated the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) certification programs using bioenergy sustainability criteria found in the academic literature. The analysis shows a deficiency in these programs to address key criteria pertaining to climate change mitigation and would be improved by coupling sustainable forest management programs with bioenergy sustainability schemes such as designed by the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials.</p><p>

<p> Existing research indicates that employee engagement is tied to positive organizational outcomes, like higher productivity and lower workforce attrition. Research also indicates the supervisors&rsquo; performance is a key element in improving the employees&rsquo; levels of engagement. Within the Federal government, there is a wide range of measured employee engagement. Given the importance of employee engagement, the key role of the supervisor, and the range of federal employee engagement, this mixed methods research was designed to identify promising practices from three agencies noted for their work in employee engagement between 2013&ndash;2016. There were three research questions. 1. Which large federal agencies&rsquo; survey responses in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) showed marked improvement in employee engagement and the performance of their first-level supervisors as measured between 2013 and 2016? 2. For those large federal agencies that were able to improve their employee engagement over the period 2013 to 2016, along with a large agency with consistently high engagement, what changes have they made in the areas of selection, development, guidance and support, and accountability for first-level supervisors? 3. Is there a correlation between the supervisors&rsquo; view of their agencies in those four areas, as reflected in the Merit System Protection Board&rsquo;s (MSPB) Merit Principles Survey Path L data, and the agencies&rsquo; employee engagement as evidenced by the established FEVS indices? </p><p> Through analysis of FEVS data, the Department of Labor, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, were identified as large agencies with unusually positive results in employee engagement. Qualitative interviews, and the examination of statements by senior agency representatives, provided data regarding agency initiatives related to the improvements in the Office of Personnel Management&rsquo;s Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) engagement indices. Additionally, the quantitative portion of this research identified specific areas of correlation between the views of supervisors at 20 large agencies using the Merit System Protection Board&rsquo;s 2016 Merit Principles Survey (MPS) Path L data, and employee engagement indices based on FEVS results from that same year. </p><p> Analysis of the quantitative data revealed numerous instances of statistically significant correlation between supervisors&rsquo; views expressed in the MPS data and the FEVS engagement indices. Composite variables were designed using the findings from the qualitative research and the identified correlations related to major initiatives. Linear regression of a model using three of these composite variables based on supervisors&rsquo; MPS responses, explained nearly 80 percent of the variation in FEVS employee engagement scores among the 20 large agencies in both the FEVS and MPS databases. Using both the rich understanding from the qualitative research, and the identified relationships from the quantitative results, recommendations for a process to address employee engagement in general, and numerous specific initiatives, focused on supervisors, are provided for consideration and further research.</p><p>

Thesis (M. Admin.(Public management))-University of Pretoria, 2005. / Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references. Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

<p> This quantitative research was conducted to identify and examine what variables contributed to Kentucky Medicaid Region Three physicians&rsquo; experience of policy alienation (PA) and subsequently influenced their willingness to implement Kentucky&rsquo;s 2013 Medicaid policy strategies (WI). This research was a modification and expansion of the original study of policy alienation (PA) conducted by Tummers (2012a) testing the concept on another segment of healthcare professionals (Medicaid participating physicians) in Kentucky. Giddens&rsquo; structuration theory (1984) provided the theoretical foundation for this study. Findings indicated top down and bottom up (&ldquo;street-level&rdquo;) structural and material constraints influenced physician willingness to implement. Results supported all hypotheses and were consistent with the previous findings of Tummers (2012a). Finding in regards to physicians, what needs to be considered in the strategic management of Medicaid policy change are: 1. The influence of personalities, 2. The often unique aspects of Medicaid policies, 3. The often changing healthcare environment in which the policy is developed and implemented, and 4. Those unforeseen events that occur often disrupting even the best thought out strategies. Policy developers need to tailor and adjust strategies for policy implementation at each level of the hierarchy, acknowledging and recognizing a combination of factors influence successful policy strategy implementation and realizing strategies with the goal of instituting behavioral change at the &ldquo;street-level&rdquo; may not be effective in all regions. </p>

<p> Beginning with the notion that the dominant economic ideology in society is in a position to direct and serve the public interest, it is reasonable to ask if the public interest is well served by that ideology. That is the objective of this dissertation. In contemporary America, the dominant economic ideology is neo-liberalism, an evolutionary form of capitalism with its foundation in market fundamentalism, and characterized by an acute focus on profit and material acquisition and minimal involvement of government in the economy. The prefix <i>neo</i> derives from the ostensible return of liberalism to those free market values after a detour in the mid-20th century when it appeared that state intervention in the economy would result in redistributionist social welfare policies. </p><p> This dissertation examines the research questions: Does neo-liberalism serve the public interest? If not, what alternatives to neo-liberalism exist that better serve the common good? Answering these questions requires the subject to be parsed into a number of additional questions, each of which is explored in an independent essay. The essays discuss the nature of the public interest and role of self-interest in forming neo-liberal values. In addition, the essays examine the institutional responses to neo-liberalism through business as manifested by the corporate social responsibility movement and through government as manifested by welfare capitalism and, in particular, social democracy. </p><p> The conclusion drawn is that neo-liberalism is not conducive to the public interest and that social democracy offers a structure for a more economically efficient and morally just society. Policy prescriptions and arguments favoring social democracy are offered.</p>

<p> Since it was first identified in the early 1980's, HIV/AIDS has become one of the world's most devastating epidemics, disproportionately affecting people in developing countries, particularly in Africa. A number of domestic and international efforts emerged to address the epidemic, including the creation of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2003, which brought a huge surge in U.S. funding for global HIV/AIDS programs. Given the historical, political and public opposition to increasing funding for foreign assistance programs, this sudden spike in U.S. spending on global HIV/AIDS raises questions over how the policy process resulted in broad bipartisan political support for the creation of PEPFAR. While some previous literature focuses on various components of the politics surrounding the creation of PEPFAR, there has been little academic research which attempts to provide a complete picture of the policy making process that led to PEPFAR. In particular, previous research has not adequately addressed certain aspects of the policy making process, or provided a comprehensive explanation of the interests and events that shaped the policy process. In addition, previous research has not utilized existing theories of policy making or agenda setting. </p><p> This dissertation used punctuated equilibrium theory and the advocacy coalition framework as complementary lenses to explore the political processes and identify the key factors that generated and reinforced the emergence of PEPFAR. This research utilized a detailed case history, which drew on a range of primary and secondary sources, and was supplemented by analysis of quantitative data. The overarching research question, which guided this dissertation, was: how did the politics of global HIV/AIDS and the process of policy formation result in the creation of PEPFAR? Additionally, this dissertation examined the interests and events that shaped the policy process leading up to PEPFAR; issue framing as well as public and congressional attention to the global HIV/AIDS epidemic leading up to PEPFAR; and the political agreements that were negotiated to satisfy the competing interests of various stakeholders. </p><p> My findings highlight a number of key elements of the policy process which enabled PEPFAR, including the importance of: both congressional and presidential leadership on global HIV/AIDS leading up to PEPFAR; the formation of broad coalitions resulting from activism among a range of interest groups; successful use of humanitarian rationales by Congress and the President to justify the program; and the evolution in the framing of global HIV/AIDS away from prevention and sexual behavior toward treatment and innocent victims. This dissertation builds on previous literature on the influences on decision-making around U.S. foreign assistance programs and contributes to research on policy change. By better understanding the process that led to a major change in one particular area of foreign assistance, academics, policymakers, and advocates can gain greater insight into how such factors can be employed to build potential political support for future large-scale humanitarian endeavors.</p>

Thesis (M.P.A)--Kutztown University. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2946. Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [117]-[119]).

<p> This dissertation suggests that network governance theory may have reached an impasse, and in order to pursue its advance, new methods need to be used. It tests the viability of actor-network theory on providing new insights on network governance, which could contribute to the strengthening of network governance theory. The author suggests that actor-network theory may offer both an epistemology and ontology that intents to not impose current definitions and divisions of traditional social science. By doing so, actor-network theory focuses on the performance of associations rather than on the traditional categories of structures, institutions, individuals or groups &mdash; characteristic of most network governance studies.</p><p> This study tests the viability of actor-network theory in a complex international environmental policy network in the Andean Amazon. It employs Latour&rsquo;s three-movement method of deployment of controversies, rendering associations traceable again, and reassembling governance. The methodological strategy provides a clean slate to search for a new perspective of network governance, which is based on participants&rsquo; perspectives. It is found that associations are established among programs, projects, public policies, among others; and that this associations seem to remain even if organizations, programs, and projects leave the network. Actor-networks&rsquo; roles in network governance appear to be not static, and their degree of affiliation ranges from formal to informal associations.</p><p> Applying actor-network theory in the study of network governance suggests that action is dislocated, and that groups are in continuous formation. Groups&rsquo; boundaries are define and redefine based on participants&rsquo; perspectives and associations. Finally, a discussion in regards to the implications of this research for both network governance and actor-network theory is offered. </p>

<p> Savvy and opportunistic fraudsters increasingly target smaller governmental organizations. Insufficient transparency and disjointed accountability over controls nurture the hidden nature of occupational fraud and allow wrongdoing to escalate during decades of routine operations. Criminal sentencings confirm local government and education officials misusing their positions and placing their own interests above those of their communities. Both primary case studies&mdash;a municipal crime in the City of Dixon, Illinois and corruption inside Roslyn, New York&rsquo;s Union Free School District&mdash;illustrate how embezzling more than $65 million remained undetected over thirty years until tip disclosure. The extension of unmerited trust created insufficient segregation of duties among employees and low monitoring left public resources vulnerable to fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption. The project holds ternary importance for risk management since one-third of small entities experience fraud, traditional external auditing identifies fraud in less than five percent of instances, and receiving anonymous tips through reporting hotlines improves detection by up to 20% and reduces losses (ACFE, 2016). The project examined stakeholder speak-up strategies including whistleblower protections and tips hotline (WP&amp;TH) initiatives to understand how organizational context, willful blindness, information access, and citizen engagement affect local government&rsquo;s focus on fraud detection and remediation. Case studies show WP&amp;TH initiatives to be financially and operationally superior in identifying risk and promoting transparency in small local governments. Third-party, 24/7 call centers and anonymous, two-way dialog web/text are underutilized tools for recognizing fraud precursors and stopping them before they aggregate, escalate, or become institutional norm.</p><p>