bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Testing Alternative Theories of Agenda Setting: Forest Policy Change in British Columbia, Canada
Authors: Kamieniecki Sheldon
Published: July 2005

In an effort to add to our understanding of why government chooses to take actions in certain situations and not others, this article applies competing theories of agenda building to a specific environmental issue, forest policymaking in British Columbia (BC), Canada. Clearly, how well BC and the rest of Canadian provinces manage their forests and other natural resources will contribute to the ability of Canada as a whole to become a sustainable society. In the 1990s the BC government enacted the Forest Practices Code, a comprehensive approach to managing the province's forests. This study relies on several different theoretical approaches to explain how such an ambitious program was developed and implemented. How difficult and complex environmental issues manage to reach the political agenda is crucial to our understanding of policy change and is addressed in this study.
Policies of Extinction: The Life and Death of Canada's Endangered Species Legislation
Authors: Rogers Raymond A. , Wilkinson Christopher J. A.
Published: July 2005

This article examines the attempt by the Canadian Federal Government to pass endangered species legislation (1995). It focuses on the constraints which confront the creation of environmental policy in Canada and identifies jurisdictional overlap and stakeholder conflict as the prime source of difficulties which confronted the Federal Government as it moved through the policy process for creating endangered species legislation. The wide‐ranging consultation process leading up to the creation of the legislation provided ample opportunity for powerful interests to undermine the protection of endangered species. The article concludes with a discussion of endangered species legislation as an example of the failure of the “crisis management” approach to conservation and sustainability.
Advocacy Coalitions Along the Domestic‐Foreign Frontier: Globalization and Canadian Climate Change Policy
Authors: Litfin Karen T.
Published: July 2005

With its emphasis on shared beliefs and the advocacy use of knowledge within policy subsystems, the advocacy coalition framework (ACF) is ideally suited to the study of environmental policy. Yet the ACF has generally been applied in a domestic context. This article argues that the twin phenomena of economic globalization and the internationalization of environmental affairs are blurring the distinction between some policy subsystems and the international arena. Thus, advocacy coalitions should be understood as operating increasingly along “the domestic‐foreign frontier.” In the case of Canada's efforts to develop a coherent climate change policy, the boundaries between political levels have been blurred as local and provincial actors come to understand themselves as players in a global game. This dynamic is exacerbated by Canada's unique constitutional division of authority, which delegates significant autonomy to the provinces on natural resource and energy issues.
Discourse and Argument in Bureau of Land Management Wilderness Environmental Impact Statements
Authors: Ginger Clare
Published: July 2005

This study examines argument as a link between technical information and policy recommendations in wilderness environmental impact statements (EISs) produced by the Bureau of Land Management. As the EISs went from draft to final form, their structure and content changed. The changes reflect a shift to incorporate wilderness protection into the policy agenda for public lands. The analysis suggests that EISs can be understood as a form of argumentative discourse in which agency personnel frame issues and make normative arguments through technical analyses.
Conveying Mission Through Outcome Measurement: Services to the Homeless in New York City
Authors: Campbell Gordon J. , McCarthy Elizabeth
Published: July 2005

This paper outlines the policy decision to implement a performance incentive program in a large social services agency. Specifically, it describes the evolution of services to homeless people in New York City, including the creation of the New York City Department of Homeless Services, the privatization of a majority of the shelter system, and the redefinition of the role of government in the provision of homeless services. It explains how performance measurement is an integral part of this evolution, and the numerous challenges that this initiative has presented to management of the Department.
Methodologies for Examining Homelessness and Their Application to a Mandated Statewide Study
Authors: Bail Paula W. , Shelley Mack C. , Fitzgerald Scott T.
Published: July 2005

Using findings from a federally mandated statewide study of homelessness in the state of Iowa, this paper presents methodologies developed to address various aspects of homeless research, including enumeration of the population, screening for reporting duplications, estimating the annual number of incidents of homelessness, and exploring county‐level estimates of homelessness. After implementing an algorithm to eliminate duplicate reporting, and using the baseline unduplicated reported number of homeless persons, a statewide estimate of the number of homeless individuals was derived. Following further adjustments for differences in agency reporting practices and after extrapolating for nonreported time periods, we estimated the number of Unique incidents of homelessness experienced in the state during the year of the study (1997). The policy implications of these findings are discussed.
Member Commitment and Participation in Local Emergency Planning Committees
Authors: Whitney David J. , Lindell Michael K.
Published: July 2005

Research on Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) has suggested that members’ perceptions of group processes and participation activities mediate the relationship between organizational context and LEPC effectiveness. Data from 57 LEPCs support the importance of organizational commitment in predicting member participation and the predictive power of some of organizational commitment's previously identified antecedents. However, the data failed to support two hypotheses about the effects of organizational context on group process and of member participation on LEPC effectiveness. These findings suggest ways to increase the effectiveness of voluntary, quasi‐public organizations such as LEPCs, citizen advisory panels, and planning boards.
The Politics of Air Bag Safety: A Competition Among Problem Definitions
Authors: Houston David J. , Richardson Lilliard E.
Published: July 2005

In light of 121 deaths attributed to air bag deployments, mainly to children and adults of small stature, recent policy debate has focused on modifying current Federal automotive air bag regulations. A problem definition perspective is employed to understand the nature of this debate. Utilizing a content analysis of the official record of one U.S. House and two U. S. Senate hearings, it is argued that four problem definitions characterize the debate over air bag safety: behavioral, regulatory, technological, and corporate greed. Furthermore, it is argued that a problem definition perspective offers a better explanation of recent changes to Federal air bag regulations than do pluralist, elitist, and principal‐agent models.
Limiting Risks: Environmental Ethics as a Policy Primer
Authors: Thiele Leslie Paul
Published: July 2005

This article constructs a conceptual and normative framework for policy‐oriented discussions of environmental uncertainty and risk. Human‐caused environmental risks are unavoidable in a technologically and economically advanced society. Contemporary environmentalists deploy ecological and ethical axioms to structure the debate over environmental uncertainty and risk management. They adopt the “imperative of sustainability” and the “precautionary principle” as the foci of an ethical and ecological effort to evaluate and limit environmental risk. The policy implications of these axioms for those engaged in environmental risk and cost/benefit analysis are explored.
Scientific Uncertainty and Learning in European Union Environmental Policymaking
Authors: Brown M. Leann
Published: July 2005

Scientific uncertainty characterizes policy/making in many environmental issue areas. Policymakers must rely on scientists to bring environmental problems to their attention, design and prescribe policy solutions, and to define and evaluate policy effectiveness. An important theoretical question is: What role does organizational learning play in amelioration of scientific uncertainty and shaping environmental policy. This study examines the political processes and policy outcomes associated with European Union policymaking to revise water quality directives and deal with climate change to ascertain and describe the role played by organizational learning. The evidence suggests that organizational learning is occurring as an integral part of the political dynamics of policymaking in these two issue areas.
Uncertainty as Environmental Education
Authors: Rosenbaum Walter A. , Bressers HansTh.A.
Published: July 2005

Here we focus particularly upon some implications of the symposium articles for future research agendas and priorities in environmental policy. First, however, we return to the central question posed by this symposium: “How can environmental policies achieve a combination of democracy with legitimacy and adequacy with effectiveness under conditions of great uncertainty?” In different ways, all articles addressed this problem in reconciling democracy with competent environmental management under conditions of uncertainty. Together, they provide the rudiments of an answer.
The Role of Public Input in State Welfare Policymaking
Authors: Shaw Greg M.
Published: July 2005

This article reports findings from a survey of 257 state officials involved in public assistance policymaking in the American states during the early to mid‐1990s. Respondents were asked to comment on the impetus for welfare reform, on methods employed to gauge public preferences, and on sources of policy ideas. These officials, including state legislators, social service agency directors, and senior advisors to governors, revealed a variety of forums for gathering public input. Although few respondents affiliated with elective office reported significant direct electoral challenges on welfare issues, they often cited constituent contacts regarding welfare reform.
Policy Diffusion and Strategies for Promoting Policy Change: Evidence From California Local Gun Control Ordinances
Authors: Godwin Marcia L. , Schroedel Jean Reith
Published: July 2005

Recent research efforts on policy innovation and diffusion largely have focused upon policymaking at the state government level. In this article we seek to develop an understanding of the ways momentum for policy change can be generated among receptive local governments. We use gun control policymaking within California to illustrate how local government characteristics, the presence of regional associations, and the establishment of interest groups may lead to policy development and diffusion. We also identify linkages between interest groups, focusing events, and the successful use of a new image of gun violence as a public health problem, yielding insights into strategies that may be used successfully to promote policy change.
Religious Identity and the Future of Northern Ireland
Authors: McAllister Ronald J.
Published: July 2005

Religion matters in Northern Ireland because it shapes social and personal identity and influences the very different worldviews of people within the two cultures of the province (Protestant and Catholic). Because religion matters so profoundly, no long‐term solution to the political problems of the province will be possible without acknowledging its impact on values and thinking. The significance of the expressions “the Catholic community” and “the Protestant people” is explored as is the impact of religious ideas on current policy issues. A comparison of Northern Ireland and the United States is offered as a way of suggesting the effect social and economic mobility will have on attempts to resolve the province's political troubles.
Policy Decisionmaking Models in Practice: A Case Study of the Western Australian “Sentencing Acts”
Authors: O'Sullivan Deborah , Down Barry
Published: July 2005

While there is an extensive body of literature on a range of policy decisionmaking models, there is a lack of supporting case studies about the lived experiences of policymakers and the usefulness of various decisionmaking models in practice. This article examines two traditional models of decisionmaking, namely crisis theory and the rational comprehensive model, to assess their strengths and limitations in explaining the introduction of the controversial Western Australian Crime (Serious and Repeat Offenders) Sentencing Act 1992 and the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1992 (the “Sentencing Acts”). We argue that the “Sentencing Acts” cannot easily be reduced to, or explained through, a single policy analysis model, as significant aspects of policy remain hidden. Finally, we contend that to understand the emergence of the Sentencing Acts requires an approach that can account for the interconnection between structural, agenda‐setting, and decisionmaking levels of analysis.
Elite and Participatory Policymaking: Finding Balance in a Case of National Forest Planning
Authors: Steelman Toddi A.
Published: July 2005

In recent years many theorists and practitioners have called for more public involvement in policymaking and for greater citizen input in decisions. The move toward participatory and community‐based approaches in policymaking can be seen as a backlash against more elitist technocratic, top‐down models of decisionmaking. Using a case study of a successful National Forest planning exercise, this research investigated whether a participatory or elite model characterized the decisionmaking process. The findings indicated that neither an elite nor participatory model of decisionmaking dominated in the planning process; rather, both forms of aecisionmaking contributed to important elements in formulating this successful National Forest plan.
Rural Opportunities: Minimalist Policy and Community‐Based Experimentation
Authors: Swanson Louis E.
Published: July 2005

Rural America's experiences with federal policies provide lessons on both the benefits and liabilities of minimalist policy attention and community‐based policy experimentation. Prior to the New Deal federal rural policies promoted incentives to settle vast territories, subsidize private development of internal market structures, and invest in the benefits of higher education. The New Deal redirected rural policies to more narrow foci on the farm economic and environmental crises. These new, more centralized policies were built upon the rapid expansion of the Department of Agriculture into the first modern federal bureaucracy, politically legitimized on the basis of community‐based policy experimentation. The seemingly unintended consequence of these emergency efforts to rescue farming was the marginalization of most non‐farm policy concerns. The resulting minimalist federal approach to rural America was due to the absence of a unified national constituency for rural concerns. Understanding rural America's inadvertent experimentation in minimalist policy attention and in community‐based policy structures can inform current policy initiatives to decentralize federal authority.
Rural Failure: The Linkage Between Policy and Lobbies
Authors: Browne William P.
Published: July 2005

The failure of a national rural policy is a complex phenomenon. Suffice to say that such policy never emerged, despite frequent appearances on the presidential agenda. This analysis looks beyond institutional inertia and examines the reasons why no sustained rural lobby was ever created independent of farm interests. The circular explanation finds (hat lobbies fail to develop in the absence of a supportive base on which to place their demands for change.
Rural Elected Officials, Environmental Policy, and Economic Composition
Authors: McBeth Mark K. , Bennett Keith
Published: July 2005

This research uses an alternative economic composition methodology that classifies 52 Idaho rural communities. This methodology classifies communities as dependent, diversified, or post‐industrial. A survey was mailed to elected officials (mayors and city council) from the sample of 52 rural communities to examine whether there is a relationship between environmental policy support and economic type. One hundred and thirty‐three respondents (48%) returned the surveys. The findings reveal that the economic composition of the community was related to views of environmental policy on 7 of 16 measures while controlling for gender, political ideology, and age.
The Tension Between Policy Science and Politics: Addressing Cancer Incidence and Environmental Contamination in Michigan
Authors: Edwards‐Ham Pamela J.
Published: July 2005

The Internet and related innovations in information and communications technologies now enable individuals and groups from across a state to easily access and analyze data on public health and environmental contamination. In Michigan, will this improve the policy attention given to rural, as well as urban and suburban, areas of the state? Will better‐informed citizen voices result in policy decisions that take longer‐term considerations into account and are more representative of the interests of all areas of the state? This article suggests not. The recent adoption of lifetime legislative term limits in Michigan and the complexity of and public misunderstandings about the research process and data analysis likely will make legislative work on environmental policy more difficult and contentious.
Health Care in Rural Texas
Authors: DeSoto William , Tajalli Hassan , Hofer Kay
Published: July 2005

The purpose of this article is to assess the quality of health and health care services available to rural Texans. Specifically, we seek to answer two related questions. First, do people living in rural areas of Texas generally suffer from poorer health than people living in urban Texas? One undoubtedly would think so, given frequent references to the low quality of personal services in general for rural America. Moreover, the persistence of the congressional Rural Health Care Caucus over the past two decades points to a rural health care crisis. Second, to what extent are these differences in health conditions explained by differences in access to health care enjoyed by people living in the two different regions? Access certainly appears to be the problem alluded to above. Rural people apparently lack physician care. In addition to providing answers to these questions, we also examine the difference in the health conditions and access to care enjoyed by minority and non‐minority rural Texans. Is this a part of the rural health care problem given the high incidence of non‐whites in rural Texas? If so this may be minority rather than rural neglect. We briefly conclude the article with some recommendations for improving the problems we identify.
Politics and Economic Development: Why Governments Adopt Different Strategies to Induce Economic Growth
Authors: Sail Martin
Published: July 2005

This article assesses the forces that drive governments to engage in economic development activity and attempts to explain why communities adopt different strategies to bring about the common goal of economic well‐being. I address this issue at the state policy level by assessing the relationship between economic development strategy and theories of policy adoption in a pooled times series analysis using indicators of interstate competition, fiscal stress, and state ideology collected between 1983 and 1994. I find that economic development strategy choices are largely a function of interjurisdictional competition. The implications of my findings are discussed.
Measuring Efficiency in Local Government: An Analysis of New South Wales Municipalities' Domestic Waste Management Function
Authors: Worthington Andrew C. , Dollery Brian E.
Published: July 2005

Data envelopment analysis is used to measure the technical and scale efficiency of the domestic waste management function in 103 New South Wales local governments. After allowance is made for nondiscretionary environmental factors that may affect the provision of these local public services, such as congestion and the inability to operate machinery in densely populated urban areas, comparison of efficiency across geographic/demographic criteria is made. The results suggest that, on average, waste management inputs could be reduced to just over 65% of the current level based upon observable best‐practice, while productivity losses due to scale effects account for slightly over 15% of total inputs. The results also indicate that inefficiency in urban developed councils is largely the result of congestion and other collection difficulties encountered in densely populated areas, while inefficiency in regional and rural councils stems from an inability to attain an optimal scale of operations.
Organizational Impediments to Effective Policy on Gulf War Illness
Authors: Caress Stanley M.
Published: July 2005

The mysterious medical conditions experienced by the veterans of the Persian Gulf conflict created a major public policy problem for the federal government. The actions of both the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense were both characterized by numerous organizational dysfunctions that frequently plague complex bureaucracies. The inability of these departments to respond adequately to the veterans needs created a contentious political environment in which the federal government was accused of intentional neglect. The problems, however, were primarily the result of communication breakdowns and institutional inertia.
“Small Is Indeed Beautiful but…”: The Context of Microcredit Strategies in Nepal
Authors: Bhatta Gambhir
Published: July 2005

With the recent introduction of the Grameen Bank methodology in microcredit programs, it is hoped that rural development will finally impact poverty alleviation in Nepal. However, extreme poverty and hostile topography, and hence lack of markets, make it very difficult for any microcredit program to have much impact. It is argued here that the government should continue to place heavy emphasis on two key issues in any future program: expansion into the hills and mountain regions and specifically targeting poor women. Without these two elements, no microcredit program is going to have much impact on poverty reduction.
A Grassroots Developmental Strategy for Africa: Towns as Agents of Growth Through Financial Credit
Authors: Bamfo Napoleon
Published: July 2005

Since independence, governmental leaders in Africa have not pursued the policy option of making towns, represented as incorporated units, borrowers of commercial credit. To improve the quality of life among rural populations, governments in Africa should pursue the development strategy of making financial credit available to the towns located in those communities, because there is a high distribution of managerial expertise and material resources among the population. This article considers how African governments may adopt a development strategy that will encourage towns to borrow financial credit to engage in various economic and social activities, just like private companies. If these activities become viable, they may be a useful start in reversing the deterioration in economic and social well‐being that several rural communities in Africa have suffered.
Delivering Microfinance in Developing Countries: Controversies and Policy Perspectives
Authors: Bhatt Nitin , Tang Shui‐Yan
Published: July 2005

The article reviews three major controversies in the microfinance field: vehicles, technologies, and performance assessments for financial service delivery. Then it proposes that these controversies be resolved by a perspective emphasizing institutional plurality and external and internal efficiencies for individual programs. Questions for further research are discussed in the conclusion.
Putting Severity of Punishment Back in the Deterrence Package
Authors: Mendes Silvia M. , McDonald Michael D.
Published: July 2005

Studies of criminal deterrence usually show an effect of certainty of punishment but often fail to find an effect of the severity. This is a serious threat to the theoretical underpinnings of deterrence theory. Through both a survey of 39 analyses in 33 published studies and our own reanalysis of an often‐used data set, we show the problem rests not with the theory but with the analysis of the theory. Finding no severity effect can be traced to “unbundling the theoretical package” when moving from the theory to the statistical models used to represent the theory.
Divided Government and the Rise of Social Regulation
Authors: Rose Melody
Published: July 2005

Political scientists have debated the causes of divided government since the Reagan administration. In addition, a handful of scholars have also pondered the possible consequences of divided party rule for politics and policy. Still, one serious oversight in the divided‘government literature is the potential consequences of divided party rule for the types of policy pursued during divided and unified party regimes. Divided government may create incentives for conflicting institutions to use social regulation debates, often considered the most divisive public policy debates, as “wedges” in order to damage the opposing party in future elections. Each party also has an incentive to embrace social regulation in order to reaffirm its allegiance to its core constituency. This article tests the hypothesis that divided government produces more important social regulation votes than unified government. I define the population of important votes as all Key Votes in the House of Representatives from 1953 to 1998. The data analysis reveals that important social regulation votes are in fact more prominent during eras of divided government than during unified party control. This finding has potential implications for the tenor of our national politics as well as the public trust.
Challenges and Dilemmas in Implementing the Americans With Disabilities Act: Lessons From the First Decade
Authors: Percy Stephen L.
Published: July 2005

The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 represents a strong national commitment to protecting the full rights and opportunities of persons with disabilities. This article traces evidence of the impact of the ADA's implementation and compliance during its first decade.
The Americans With Disabilities Act and Reasonable Accommodation: The View From Persons With HIV/AIDS
Authors: Slack James D.
Published: July 2005

This study examines the application of reasonable accommodation to situations involving employees with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. Two questions are posed. What types of accommodations are needed? How readily available is the reasonable accommodation component of the Americans With Disabilities Act? These questions are addressed through qualitative analysis. Three lessons are drawn from the findings.
The Americans With Disabilities Act: Does It Secure the Fundamental Right to Vote?
Authors: Schriner Kay , Batavia Andrew I.
Published: July 2005

People with disabilities encounter substantial barriers to voting. Narrow interpretations by regulatory agencies and the courts indicate that the Americans With Disabilities Act will not be able to remove these barriers. Additional policies will be necessary to overcome the structural impediments to exercising the fundamental right to vote.
Transit Access for Americans: A Proposal for the Next Stage of Implementing the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990
Authors: Winter Michael A. , Williams Fred Laurence
Published: July 2005

Formany Americans with disabilities, transit is the only path to real opportunities. An open society for them depends upon increased transit services for all Americans. Many transit professionals, however, daunted by transit needs and worn down by their critics, wallow in cost issues, ignoring transit's real value to their communities. The key to improvement is to measure transit benefits that are intuitively obvious to most taxpayers. Empirically, accessible transit proves to be the most valuable transit to passengers and to other taxpayers as well.
Political Resources for Policy Terminators
Authors: Frantz Janet E.
Published: July 2005

Scholars of policy termination have long understood that there are tremendous difficulties associated with closing down public programs and facilities. This examination of one closure begins with that understanding and then, using Deborah Stone's conceptualization of politics in the policy arena, moves to categorize and analyze those difficulties.

The case involves the U.S. government's policy of providing lifelong, residential care to victims of Hansen's Disease (leprosy). The investigation documents the government's decision in the 1950s to end the policy and follows the ensuing battle. The government terminators, despite the rationality of their position, were held at bay for nearly fifty years by politically savvy opponents including patients, staff, and the community that housed the leprosarium. Only when government officials reached into their own bag of political resources and skillfully employed those resources, was it possible to end the policy.
Abolition of Leprosy Isolation Policy in Japan
Authors: Sato Hajime
Published: July 2005

The termination of a policy is often considered an important step for correcting existing policies and allocating resources efficiently. Scientific advances, for example, may make the existing policy obsolete and unjustifiable. Delay in terminating a flawed policy may result in increasing its harm. In many cases, however, it is suggested that inertia and other obstacles must be overcome before a termination can be accomplished. Health policy is no exception to these findings.

The isolation of leprosy patients, a practice introduced early in this century, was maintained in Japan even after it proved scientifically unnecessary. It was only after a few decades of inertia and political struggles that the policy was abolished. As can be seen in previous studies in the other domains, a set of obstacles, such as intellectual reluctance, opposition of vested interests, and bias in expert opinions, existed, and hampered the timely termination of the isolation policy. Over a long time, policy adaptation was gradually made in practice through the loose administration of policy. It was only by the leadership of a skillful terminator that the issue was finally brought to the forefront, consensus achieved among key actors, and the policy abolished.
Immigrant Needs and Local Government Services
Authors: Norris‐Tirrell Dorothy
Published: July 2005

Upon their arrival in the United States, immigrants, whether documented or undocumented, impact the provision of local government services. Survey data collected from four immigrant groups (Nicaraguans, Haitians, Central Americans, and Mexicans) in Miami, Florida, and Las Vegas, Nevada examine the question of whether country of origin is a predictor of local government service utilization by immigrants. The findings suggest that immigrants, regardless of country of origin, share similar characteristics and attitudes regarding life in the United States. The major differences among the immigrant groups studied appear to be in their plans for the future. The Mexican respondents were likely to be described as sojourners, with plans to return to their home country, while the other groups intended to settle permanently in the United States. At the local level, these findings suggest that policymakers must be sensitive to motivations of the immigrants who locate in their areas, understanding the implications for service delivery in multilanguage, multiculture communities.
The Dynamics of Immigration and Local Governance in Santa Ana
Authors: Harwood Stacy , Myers Dowell
Published: July 2005

This article examines the City of Santa Ana's responses to a changing urban landscape. We explore how the rapid growth of the Immigrant neighborhoods called into question traditional ways of municipal governance and city planning. We pay special attention to how the local government used land‐use policy to protnote urban revitalization and bring substandard housing up to code. Initially the urban policy choices fueled neighborhood‐based protest and exacerbated racial and dass tensions throughout the city; however, more recently the neighborhood activism has created a space for government reform.
Forging Creative Partnerships
Authors: Lynn Dahlia Bradshaw
Published: July 2005

While much public attention focuses on the impact of immigration policy at the national level or in major metropolitan areas, the realities of political policy regarding refugees and immigrant populations are also felt in smaller, more rural communities as well. Local decisionmakers increasingly face new community needs at a time when mandated programs are being shifted as federal responsibility changes. This article recounts the work of a unique, ongoing collaborative effort that began in 1996 establishing a partnership between health care and public safety services in support of low‐income and immigrant populations in the city of Portland, Maine. The project seeks to address two of the most pressing problems associated with immigrant populations: preventive medical care and the reduction of neighborhood violence. The project is predicated on the belief that community building works best when all residents are stakeholders in a vision that includes strong schools, safe neighborhoods, and healthy families. The elements of the Portland experience in service provision are recounted for other state and local policymakers in forging new and collaborative working relationships among service providers and government agencies
There Goes the Neighborhood
Authors: Atlas Mark
Published: July 2005

Many research studies have examined if hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facilities (TSDFs) tend to be located where people are disproportionately minority, low‐income, and politically inactive. This article focuses on whether variables representing potential neighborhood activism were related to where new TSDFs located during the 1990s. My analyses demonstrated that there is no consistent, substantial evidence that the demographic characteristics of neighborhoods around new TSDFs affected their location decisions. The overall composition of these neighborhoods indicates that there are disproportionately high concentrations of minority and low‐income people around these TSDFs and disproportionately fewer people who were more likely to be politically active and concerned about new TSDFs. The shew towards more minorities was overwhelmingly due, however, to a relatively small number of TSDFs in heavily populated neighborhoods with high minority proportions.
Citizen Participation and Government Choice in Local Environmental Controversies
Authors: Layzer Judith A.
Published: July 2005

This article uses a single, critical case to assess the plausibility of hypotheses that emerge from the literature on civic environmentalism. In particular, scholars have argued that local, collaborative environmental decision making is likely to yield solutions that are both more durable and environmentally superior to those generated by more conventional policymahing processes. The analysis suggests, however, that such outcomes are unlikely in the absence of stringent regulatory requirements established at the federal or state level. This is because local officials face fiscal constraints that exacerbate the already substantial disparity in political resources between citizens and development interests.
Dimensions of State Environmental Policies
Authors: Potoski Matthew , Woods Neal D.
Published: July 2005

States have developed an array of environmental programs in response to a variety of political and environmental factors. This article examines three state clean air programs—setting ambient standards, ambient monitoring, and enforcement—and shows how each program has a distinct set of empirical determinants, reflecting the programs' diverse purposes. States' ambient standards policies allocate resources among competing claimants, and consequently they reflect the balance of environmental politics in each state. Ambient monitoring programs reflect the degree to which states need and can process information about air pollution problems. The level of states' enforcement programs reflects the scope of the environmental problem in each state.
Rethinking European Integration in the Competition Domain
Authors: Zahariadis Nikolaos
Published: July 2005

This symposium explores the causes and consequences of European competition policy. I make two points in this essay, which the authors of the symposium reinforce. First, European integration is best examined from a public policy perspective, which focuses on the course of action that European public authorities decide (or not) to take. Second, the workings of competition policy in Europe cannot be understood without examining policies both at the European Union level and at national levels. The main benefit of the approach is to encourage cross‐fertilization across several fields. Concepts and tools from policy studies and comparative politics are used to inform phenomena that have been investigated until recently mainly by international relations scholars.
The Political Economy of State Subsidies in Europe
Authors: Zahariadis Nikolaos
Published: July 2005

In this article, I examine the reasons behind public aid to industry in 12 European countries during the period 199–93. 1 build a model based on societal demands for producer subsidies and the wiliingness and constraints of national governments to provide them. The main contribution of this study is the attention to the institutional context within which demand for and supply of public policy takes place. Institutions not only help shape actor preferences to extract “rents” but also fundamentally condition the level and distribution of subsidies.
The Effects of Case‐Mix Reimbursement on Ohio Medicaid Nursing Home Costs
Authors: Ubokudom Sunday E. , Woods James A. , Schalk Lorinda S.
Published: July 2005

This article examines empirically the effects of the Ohio case‐mix reimbursement system on nursing home costs. The results show that case‐mix is the single most important factor affecting both direct‐care (nursing staff) and total per diem costs. Although other factors, such as bedsize, occupancy rate, ownership status, county per capita income, and the demand for nursing home care, also affeet costs; they have far smaller effects on costs than case‐mix. Further, the results show that the cost differentials between for‐profit and nonprofit facilities are largely explained by differences in cost response to case‐mix and, to a lesser extent, by differences in cost response to bedsize, Medicaid utilization, county per capita income, demand for nursing home beds, and occupancy rate. The for‐profit facilities in this study cost significantly less than their nonprofit counterparts.
Typologies, Taxonomies, and the Benefits of Policy Classification
Authors: Smith Kevin B.
Published: July 2005

Although one of the most durable analytic frameworks in political science, policy typologies suffer from some well‐known flaws. Key among these is the problem of classification: thus far, it has proved impossible to consistently and objectively assign specific policies into conceptually distinct categories. The ambitious original promise of policy typologies, that is, to provide a precursor to a general theory of politics has gone unfulfilled in no small part because of the inability to overcome the classification obstacle. This article reexamines the idea of policy classification by assessing the potential contributions of policy taxonomies. Although a taxonomic approach to policy classification raises problems of its own, it may offer advantages above and beyond traditional typologies.
Public Consultation for Sustainable Development Policy Initiatives
Authors: Sinclair A. John
Published: July 2005

Involving the public in government decision making regarding sustainable development is a complex and difficult problem. This article suggests that weak public consultation, occurring at the operational planning level, is in part responsible for the lack of policy innovation in this realm. A case study technique considers approaches to public consultation in the development of sustainable development policy in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Using document reviews and qualitative interviews, two specific periods of policy development are traced with the outcomes of each being measured against creative consultative approaches established in the literature. It is revealed that using more complex consultative approaches at the normative policy planning level results in a number of positive implications, including mutual education and learning, participant satisfaction, policy innovation that has broad‐based support, and results that have lasting implications on consultative proceshes.
International Environmental Treaty Engagement in 19 Democracies
Authors: Recchia Steven P.
Published: July 2005

This study examines the regular pattern of involvement of 19 democratic states in relation to 15 international environmental treaties over the past 20 years. An attempt is made to understand what accounts for the international environmental engagement of democratic states through an empirical evaluation of four theories, specifically structural conditions, political institutions, idea‐based, and international connectivity theory. Rather than case study analysis or an evaluation of a single country or theory, the value of the study is its comparative statistical evaluation of multiple indicators of four rival theories across 19 countries. Empirical findings reveal that the strongest causal forces underlying collaborative democratic state behavior are the citizenry's postmaterial orientations and executive‐centered political institutions. International environmental commitments among democracies are constructed by the cultural composition of the polity and institutional rules that centralize ratification procedures, rather than by structural conditions and international forces. The study thus corroborates the idea‐based theory's emphasis on the underlying values of the citizenry and the institutional theory's emphasis on domestic policy processes.
Psychometric properties of the Revised Dental Beliefs Survey
Authors: Coolidge Trilby , Heima Masahiro , Coldwell Susan E. , Weinstein Philip , Milgrom Peter
Published: July 2005

Abstract – Objectives:  The objectives of this pair of studies were to examine the internal reliability, test–retest reliability, and construct validity of the Revised Dental Beliefs Survey.

Methods:  A total of 108 college students completed two questionnaires containing the Revised Dental Beliefs Survey, as well as the Revised Iowa Dental Control Index, and Desirability of Control scales. As part of another experiment, 141 study participants with dental injection phobia completed the Revised Dental Beliefs Survey and the Dental Anxiety Scale.

Results:  Both the internal and test–retest reliabilities of the Revised Dental Beliefs Survey were high. The measure demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validities.

Conclusion:  The Revised Dental Beliefs Survey is well‐suited for use with clinical and nonclinical populations, in which a stable and valid measure of perceptions of the dental situation is desired.
Psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the Oral Health Impact Profile–short form
Authors: de Oliveira Branca Heloisa , Nadanovsky Paulo
Published: July 2005

Objective:  The aim of the study is to evaluate the measurement properties of the Brazilian version of the short form of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP14).

Methods:  Data were obtained from a cross‐sectional study designed to assess the impact of toothache on quality of life during pregnancy. The sample consisted of 504 postpartum women (mean age 24 years; SD 6.2), most of whom had unsolved dental problems and belonged to low‐income families. The questionnaire was administered in the form of interviews by two trained interviewers who also performed clinical examinations. Reliability was assessed in terms of internal consistency and stability. Construct validity was evaluated based on comparison of the total scores among groups according to: self‐perceived and normative oral health care needs, self‐perceived general and oral health status, presence of carious lesions and tooth loss. It was also hypothesized that the scores of OHIP14 and Oral Impacts on Daily Performances (OIDP) would correlate with each other.

Results:  Both test–retest stability and internal consistency, as measured by the intra‐class correlation coefficient (0.87) and by Cronbach's alpha (0.91), proved to be adequate. Construct validity was confirmed as the correlation between OHIP14 scores with self‐perceived general and oral health were in the expected direction, and the differences in scores of the groups formed according to the selected attributes were significant at values of P ≤ 0.05 (Mann–Whitney test). Moreover, the correlation coefficient between OIDP and OHIP14 was 0.76 (rs).

Conclusion:  The Brazilian version of OHIP14 has good psychometric properties, which are similar to those of the original instrument.
An assessment of teenagers’ perceptions of dental fluorosis using digital simulation and web‐based testing
Authors: Edwards Maura , Macpherson Lorna M. D. , Simmons David R. , Harper Gilmour W. , Stephen Kenneth W.
Published: July 2005

Objectives:  To develop a new model to establish teenagers’ perceptions of the aesthetic impact of fluorosis, in the context of overall facial appearance. This web‐based model was used to compare different degrees of fluorosis at any one distance, while also comparing the same level of fluorosis at different ‘distances’.

Methods:  A 14‐year‐old subject was used as the model face. Different degrees of fluorosis were ‘built‐up’ on this subject's teeth using digital simulation. A web‐based questionnaire showed 30 photographs, displaying four levels of fluorosis, in addition to fluorosis‐free, at five different ‘distances’. The closest images were shown with and without retractors, while the more distant pictures showed more of the subject's face. Teenage pupils (n = 217) were then asked to grade the acceptability of the appearances and indicate if they would wish treatment for each such appearance.

Results:  At any one distance, acceptability fell as fluorosis level increased. When the same degree of fluorosis was compared at different distances, acceptability improved as the teeth were viewed from further away. Pictures taken without retractors had higher acceptability than those taken with retractors in place.

Conclusions:  Teenagers can discriminate between various degrees of fluorosis. However, more distant viewing of fluorosed teeth, within the overall context of the face, improves acceptability of the appearance.