Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Heidelberg, 1969. / Includes bibliographical references (p. xv-xxxv).

Univ., Diss.--St. Gallen, 2002.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Santa Barbara, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1913. / Vita.

The thesis explores the relationship between an incumbent governor's popularity and state legislative election outcomes in the contemporary era. The study employs data collected from 49 states over a 16-year period (1988 - 2003). Existing archival election and economic data were compiled, compared and analyzed using regression analysis to provide additional insights into the state legislative elections literature. The paper offers a better understanding of the relative effects that certain variables may have on state legislative election outcomes. The study provides evidence that voters are apt to "split their ticket" between state and national elections: that state elections are not mirrors of national elections. This could be a consequence of the trend towards devolution and state government's increasing jurisdiction over a broadening array of public policy. The findings suggest that the coattails of presidential and senatorial candidates are not extending to state legislative candidates in any consistent, significant way. However, the positive relationship between a governor's popularity and legislative seats gained by his/her party in the legislature is the one pervasive theme that emerged consistently throughout this project. The result was evident even when variables representing national level candidates, elections and/or officeholders are included. The predicted/expected value for the dependent variable increases during ?on? gubernatorial election years, when an incumbent governor is seeking reelection. The consistent statistical significance associated with both variables representing the governor's popularity indicates that partisan "cues" may be pertinent factors that help determine voting behavior in state legislative elections. / Master of Arts

Thesis (doctoral)--Göttingen Universitat, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Esta dissertação tem como motivação a pergunta: Como é o Poder Legislativo Municipal no Brasil? É comumente assumido que Câmaras municipais são menos importantes que o Poder Executivo para elaboração e produção de políticas nos municípios brasileiros. Argumento que este é um entendimento equivocado baseado em estudos conduzidos com poucas informações em que não existem evidências empíricas suficientes para sustentar isto. A fim de apresentar um novo e mais completo entendimento sobre as Câmaras Legislativas Municipais, analiso três tópicos. Primeiro, se as Câmaras são profissionalizadas e bem estruturadas. Segundo, o perfil sócio educacional e ocupacional dos candidatos e vereadores comparados com o da população municipal. Terceiro, o conteúdo dos projetos de lei apresentados pelos vereadores. Utilizo dados do Censo do Legislativo, do Tribunal Superior Eleitoral e de um banco de dados original, conduzo uma série de testes que incluem da estatística descritiva a modelos de regressão. A análise mostra que (1) as Câmaras Municipais são pouco profissionalizadas e parcamente estruturadas; (2) candidatos e vereadores possuem escolaridade mais alta e são provenientes de ocupações mais prestigiosas do que a média da população. Todavia, as Câmaras são as instituições representativas mais acessíveis a indivíduos das camadas mais baixas da população; (3) vereadores podem propor leis em importantes áreas e que se algumas destas áreas são muito regulamentadas (como a saúde e educação), outras não são (por exemplo, habitação e regulamentação do solo). Portanto, não é correto dizer que não existem políticas importantes no Poder Legislativo Municipal. / This dissertation has as its motivation the question: How is the Municipal Legislative Branch in Brazil? It is commonly assumed that Municipal Chambers are less important than Executive Branch to elaborate and produce policies in Brazilian municipalities. I argue this is an equivocal understanding based on studies conducted with few information and that there are not sufficient empirical evidences to sustain it. In order to present a new and more complete knowledge about Municipal Legislative Chambers, I analyze three issues. First, if the Chambers are professionalized and well structured. Second, the socio-educational and socio-occupational profiles of candidates and council members compared with the municipal population. Third, the content of the bills presented by council members. Using data from Legislative Census, Superior Electoral Court and an original dataset, I conduct a series of tests including descriptive statistics and regression models. The analysis shows that (1) Legislative Chambers are little professionalized and poorly structured; (2) candidates and council members are better educated and from more prestigious occupations than the population mean. However, they are the most accessible representative institution in Brazil for individuals from lower layers of the population; (3) council members can propose bills in important areas and if some are very regulated (such as health and education), others are not (for instance, housing and soil regulation). Therefore, it is not correct to say that there are not key policies in Municipal Legislative Branch.

Esta dissertação tem como motivação a pergunta: Como é o Poder Legislativo Municipal no Brasil? É comumente assumido que Câmaras municipais são menos importantes que o Poder Executivo para elaboração e produção de políticas nos municípios brasileiros. Argumento que este é um entendimento equivocado baseado em estudos conduzidos com poucas informações em que não existem evidências empíricas suficientes para sustentar isto. A fim de apresentar um novo e mais completo entendimento sobre as Câmaras Legislativas Municipais, analiso três tópicos. Primeiro, se as Câmaras são profissionalizadas e bem estruturadas. Segundo, o perfil sócio educacional e ocupacional dos candidatos e vereadores comparados com o da população municipal. Terceiro, o conteúdo dos projetos de lei apresentados pelos vereadores. Utilizo dados do Censo do Legislativo, do Tribunal Superior Eleitoral e de um banco de dados original, conduzo uma série de testes que incluem da estatística descritiva a modelos de regressão. A análise mostra que (1) as Câmaras Municipais são pouco profissionalizadas e parcamente estruturadas; (2) candidatos e vereadores possuem escolaridade mais alta e são provenientes de ocupações mais prestigiosas do que a média da população. Todavia, as Câmaras são as instituições representativas mais acessíveis a indivíduos das camadas mais baixas da população; (3) vereadores podem propor leis em importantes áreas e que se algumas destas áreas são muito regulamentadas (como a saúde e educação), outras não são (por exemplo, habitação e regulamentação do solo). Portanto, não é correto dizer que não existem políticas importantes no Poder Legislativo Municipal. / This dissertation has as its motivation the question: How is the Municipal Legislative Branch in Brazil? It is commonly assumed that Municipal Chambers are less important than Executive Branch to elaborate and produce policies in Brazilian municipalities. I argue this is an equivocal understanding based on studies conducted with few information and that there are not sufficient empirical evidences to sustain it. In order to present a new and more complete knowledge about Municipal Legislative Chambers, I analyze three issues. First, if the Chambers are professionalized and well structured. Second, the socio-educational and socio-occupational profiles of candidates and council members compared with the municipal population. Third, the content of the bills presented by council members. Using data from Legislative Census, Superior Electoral Court and an original dataset, I conduct a series of tests including descriptive statistics and regression models. The analysis shows that (1) Legislative Chambers are little professionalized and poorly structured; (2) candidates and council members are better educated and from more prestigious occupations than the population mean. However, they are the most accessible representative institution in Brazil for individuals from lower layers of the population; (3) council members can propose bills in important areas and if some are very regulated (such as health and education), others are not (for instance, housing and soil regulation). Therefore, it is not correct to say that there are not key policies in Municipal Legislative Branch.

This research was focused on analyzing and interpreting the U.S. Supreme Court’s holdings in several cases that directly affect the juvenile justice system and the sentencing process of youth offenders. Drawing primarily from Miller v. Alabama (2012) and the Supreme Court’s ‘Miller doctrine’, this thesis goes against the viewpoints of many policymakers, arguing that life without parole and mandatory adult sentence minimums for youth offenders are ‘cruel and unusual’ punishments that are unconstitutional as sentencing options for a juvenile offender. In order to arrive at the conclusion that the aforementioned punishments violate a youth’s 8th Amendment right to a proportional sentence, this thesis drew from previously unavailable research in modern neuroscience that substantiates the Supreme Court’s claim that “Children are different” on a developmental basis and thus, can never possess the same degree of culpability for a crime as an adult offender. If one accepts the conclusions made in this thesis, it is a matter only of when, not if, the sentencing process for youth offenders experiences a paradigm shift on a legislative level, and becomes a much more efficient and successful process where rehabilitation becomes the foremost goal. If science and developmental psychology support the Supreme Court’s assertion that nearly all juvenile crime-activity is the result of “transient immaturity,” then why are 16 year olds being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole? This thesis explores the possible answers to this question, and anticipates the possible impediments to national changes in juvenile sentencing procedures.

Research on the oversight role of the National Department of Human Settlements on its public entities: The case of National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC). This study looked at the National Department of Human Settlement’s oversight role over its entities. It took place in the context of broad departmental public entity oversight management. However, the researcher’s focus was on the systems and mechanisms used by the department in its oversight function with a specific focus on the National Home Builders Registration Council as one of its entities and determined if there were any impede oversight challenges. The research explored through documentary analysis and investigative interviews with departmental officials who are charged with the responsibility of overseeing the governance of all entities reporting to the NDoH. Key accountability documentation, and commentary documents from oversight organs of state such the Auditor General and Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements were also reviewed and analysed. 5 The research discovered that the department’s oversight over the NHBRC, is mainly focusing on compliance enforcement. The mechanisms and systems used are somewhat biased towards compliance monitoring. As a result of the skewed focus, there is an imbalance between legislative enforcement and service delivery on the part of NHBRC. Although the research could not make inferences to other public entities, the study helped in developing an understanding of challenges associated with oversight (generally) and the strength and weaknesses of the department’s oversight systems and mechanisms (in particular). The research unveiled a need for an improvement in regard to the oversight systems and approach, and concludes by recommending that it would be necessary that government should introduce a holistic oversight framework that would guide and promote efficiency and effectiveness in all “public entities oversight initiatives”.