American Public Policy: An Introduction
Clarke E. Cochran is Professor of Political Science and Adjunct Professor, Department of Health Organization Management at Texas Tech University. He specializes in religion and politics, political philosophy, and health care policy. Dr. Cochran received his Ph.D. from Duke University in 1971 and has taught at Texas Tech since 1970. He is the author of four books and numerous journal articles. He has served as Chair of the Religion and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association and Chair of Christians in Political Science. He has won the President's Award for Excellence in Teaching. Dr. Cochran held the position of Research Fellow in the Erasmus Institute at the University of Notre Dame (1998-1999) and the Shannon Chair in Catholic Studies at Nazareth College (Spring 2001). His current research interests include religious institutions and health care policy, Catholic social theory and health care reform, church and state controversies, and liberalism and religious participation in politics.Dr. Mayer is Professor of Political Science at Texas Tech University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas. His current research interests include party system change, especially in the weakening of mainstream parties of the moderate left and right, and the emergence of populist parties of identity. These include nationalist parties of the extreme right as well as parties of sub-cultural defense and other parties of identity that do not classify on the left to right axis. Dr. Mayer has published several works on the state of the discipline and a methodological critique of the comparative politics field. He is in the planning stages of a sequel to his previous book in this area, Comparative Political Inquiry: A Methodological Survey.In addition to AMERICAN PUBLIC POLICY, he is the author or co-author of four other books: COMPARATIVE POLITICAL INQUIRY, POLITICS IN INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES, REDEFINING COMPARATIVE POLITICS, AND COMPARATIVE POLITICS: NATIONS AND THEORIES IN A CHANGING WORLD, 2nd EDITION. He is also the author of numerous articles.T.R. Carr is currently Professor and Department Chair of Public Administration and Policy Analysis at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. He teaches primarily in the areas of quantitative methods and policy analysis. In addition to AMERICAN PUBLIC POLICY, he has published chapters and articles focusing on public management issues. He is active in academic and professional associations and has served in numerous offices in state and local chapters of the American Society for Public Administration. He also serves as Mayor of Hazelwood, MO and is engaged in activities sponsored by the National League of Cities and state and local municipal leagues.N. Joseph Cayer is professor of public affairs at Arizona State University. He received the Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a B.A. and MPA from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He also has taught at Lamar University, the University of Maine, Orono, and Texas Tech University. He is the author or coauthor of seven books and numerous chapters and articles on public management and policy, with an emphasis on issues of human resources management in the public sector. Books he has authored or co-authored include PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: SOCIAL CHANGE AND ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT; AMERICAN PUBLIC POLICY: AN INTRODUCTION; MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES; HANDBOOK OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PUBLIC SECTOR; and SUPERVISION FOR SUCCESS IN GOVERNMENT.