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Public Officials (public + official)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	75%
Humanities and Social Sciences	12%

Selected Abstracts

Consumer sensitivity to changes in tax policy on consumption of alcohol

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 3 2006
David E. Smith
Abstract Marketers and economists have followed the consumption patterns of alcoholic beverages for many years. Public officials have studied the negative effects of consuming alcohol and have advocated a variety of measures to curtail consumption. Previous studies have also measured the price elasticity. This comparative study is based on a 40-year analysis, and compares the consumption patterns for beer, spirits and wine in three Nordic countries. Although the cultural context of Denmark, Norway and Sweden are similar, nevertheless significant differences in the patterns of consumption and prices for alcoholic beverages have been evidenced overtime. A comparison of the per capita drinking patterns and the taxation effectiveness are presented. Even though the elasticities varied, the data indicate relative sensitivity to price changes and a decline in spirits consumption as well as switching effects to lower alcohol-content beverages. [source]

Pessimism, Computer Failure, and Information Systems Development in the Public Sector

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 5 2007
Shaun Goldfinch
The majority of information systems developments are unsuccessful. The larger the development, the more likely it will be unsuccessful. Despite the persistence of this problem for decades and the expenditure of vast sums of money, computer failure has received surprisingly little attention in the public administration literature. This article outlines the problems of enthusiasm and the problems of control, as well as the overwhelming complexity, that make the failure of large developments almost inevitable. Rather than the positive view found in much of the public administration literature, the author suggests a pessimism when it comes to information systems development. Aims for information technology should be modest ones, and in many cases, the risks, uncertainties, and probability of failure mean that new investments in technology are not justified. The author argues for a public official as a recalcitrant, suspicious, and skeptical adopter of IT. [source]

Application of labour and employment law beyond the contract of employment

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR REVIEW, Issue 1-2 2007
Mark FREEDLAND
The personal scope of employment law is the subject of much ongoing debate. Arguing that an exclusively contractual analysis of this domain is unsatisfactory, the author constructs a European-based empirical typology distinguishing the personal work relations of "standard employees", public officials, "liberal professions", individual entrepreneurial workers, marginal workers, and labour market entrants. These categories and their inter-relationships are then analysed dynamically in terms of "personal work nexuses" - a concept encompassing complex legal ramifications beyond the contractual framework. The conclusions highlight the value of this analytical approach to recent efforts by the ILO and the European Commission to "modernize" labour law. [source]

Responsibilities of Criminal Justice Officials

JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHILOSOPHY, Issue 2 2010
KIMBERLEY BROWNLEE
abstract In recent years, political philosophers have hotly debated whether ordinary citizens have a general pro tanto moral obligation to follow the law. Contemporary philosophers have had less to say about the same question when applied to public officials. In this paper, I consider the latter question in the morally complex context of criminal justice. I argue that criminal justice officials have no general pro tanto moral obligation to adhere to the legal dictates and lawful rules of their offices. My claim diverges not only from the commonsense view about such officials, but also from the positions standardly taken in legal theory and political science debates, which presume there is some general obligation that must arise from legal norms and be reconciled with political realities. I defend my claim by highlighting the conceptual gap between the rigid, generalised, codified rules that define a criminal justice office and the special moral responsibilities of the various moral roles that may underpin that office (such as guard, guardian, healer, educator, mediator, counsellor, advocate, and carer). After addressing four objections to my view, I consider specific contexts in which criminal justice officials are obligated not to adhere to the demands of their offices. Amongst other things, the arguments advanced in this paper raise questions about both the distribution of formal discretion in the criminal justice system and the normative validity of some of the offices that presently exist in criminal justice systems. [source]

ROYALTY INCENTIVES AND GULF OF MEXICO OIL PRODUCTION

NATURAL RESOURCE MODELING, Issue 3 2007
MITCH KUNCE
ABSTRACT. This paper employs field-specific estimates of Pindyck's (1978) widely cited model of natural resource supply to simulate effects of changes in federal royalty rates on the timing of exploration and output by firms in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico oil industry. Results suggest that deepwater Gulf oil production is highly inelastic with respect to changes in royalty rates. Royalty rate decreases are shown to increase early period exploration effort, result in little change in reserve additions and future production. Policy implications of this study suggest that public officials should be wary of arguments that large increases in deepwater Gulf oil field activity can be obtained from reductions in federal royalty rates-particularly reductions in the early years of oil field development. [source]

Compound Democracy and the Control of Corruption: A Cross-Country Investigation

POLICY STUDIES JOURNAL, Issue 4 2004
Alok K. Bohara
In this article we evaluate the influence of democracy on perceived levels of corruption. We argue that the control of corruption depends on the compensation and accountability of public officials, and on an open and competitive economy. We analyze the influence of democracy, controlling for the influence of other political and economic factors including federalism, economic development, and economic competition. The findings for the importance of economic factors are consistent. The finding in earlier research that federalism increases corruption is not robust. The findings for democracy are influenced importantly by the way that democracy is measured, but we do find that citizens' repetitive participation in competitive elections increases the control of corruption. In doing so, we move beyond the composite indices of democracy in constructing an alternative compound measure of democracy, which we argue is likely to be useful in other research contexts [source]

Unequal Pay: The Role of Gender

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 6 2006
Mohamad G. Alkadry
Pay disparities between men and women persist in the U.S. workforce despite comparable pay legislation, advocacy, and social change. This article discusses theories of gender pay disparities, such as the glass ceiling, position segregation, agency segregation, and human capital. Using an online national survey, 1,600 responses were collected for four groups of public procurement professionals. The gender wage gap ranged from $5,035 to $9,577. Multiple regression of the data show that gender continues to play a major role in predicting the salaries of public officials in similar positions. Gender and human capital variables predicted between 36.5 percent and 53.9 percent of the variance in pay. [source]

Public Administrators' Trust in Citizens: A Missing Link in Citizen Involvement Efforts

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 3 2005
Kaifeng Yang
An important but unattended consideration in citizen participation efforts is whether public officials trust citizens and, if not, whether they can formulate and implement policies that really engage, empower, and emancipate citizens. This study attempts to answer four questions: Is public officials' trust in citizens relevant and important? Is it a valid construct that can be differentiated from other constructs? What factors influence its level? And how does trust influence citizen involvement efforts? Based on a survey of 320 public administrators, the study finds that public administrators' trust in citizens is a relevant and valid construct and a predictor of proactive citizen involvement efforts. Public administrators generally have a neutral (neither trustful nor distrustful) view of citizens. Finally, factors affecting the level of trust are identified at the individual, organizational, and societal levels. [source]

The Odyssey of Senior Public Service: What Memoirs Can Teach Us

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 1 2003
J. Patrick Dobel
This article examines the political, psychological, and moral challenges of senior public service in the executive office. The study uses memoirs published by members of the Clinton administration. The memoirs discuss the consistent background conditions of senior public service as the personality of the chief executive, the vagaries of election cycles, the tension between staff and agency executives, and the role of the media. Senior executives adopt a number of stances to address the tension between the realities of public service and the ideals they bring. The memoirs suggest several stances, such as politics as original sin, seduction, hard work and compromise, and game. The memoirs demonstrate the high cumulative cost that public service exacts on the health and personal lives of senior officials. Finally, the study reveals a number of consistent themes about how senior appointed public officials can navigate the dilemmas and challenges of senior public service at all levels of government. [source]

Keeping Public Officials Accountable through Dialogue: Resolving the Accountability Paradox

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 6 2002
Nancy C. Roberts
How can public officials be held accountable, and yet avoid the paradoxes and pathologies of the current mechanisms of accountability? The answer, claims Harmon (1995), is dialogue. But what exactly is dialogue, and how is it created? More importantly, how can dialogue ensure accountability? To address these questions, I begin with a brief description of dialogue and its basic features, distinguishing it from other forms of communication. An example illustrates how dialogue occurs in actual practice. Not only does dialogue demonstrate the intelligent management of contradictory motives and forces, it also supports Harmon's claim that it can resolve the accountability paradox and avoid the atrophy of personal responsibility and political authority. I suggest that dialogue's advantage outweighs its cost as a mechanism of accountability under a particular set of conditions: when public officials confront "wicked problems" that defy definition and solution, and when traditional problem,solving methods have failed, thus preventing any one group from imposing its definition of the problem or its solutions on others. [source]

Moral Reasoning in the Context of Reform: A Study of Russian Officials

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REVIEW, Issue 3 2002
Debra W. Stewart
This article reports on an exploratory study of ethical reasoning among public administrators in Russia. Survey interviews and focus group follow-ups with civil servants participating in graduate training programs at the Russian Academy of Public Service provide information about their preferred mode of ethical reasoning; the demographic, attitudinal, organizational, and professional factors associated with that reasoning; and the behavioral choices implied. Using a sample of 113 public officials who represent a broad spectrum of regions in Russia, this study assesses moral reasoning, examines variables associated with alternative models, and compares these responses with findings from studies conducted in Poland and the United States. Based on this exploratory study, we suggest implications for theory, research, and practice. [source]

Employers' Benefits from Workers' Health Insurance

THE MILBANK QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2003
Ellen O'Brien
Most nonelderly americans receive their health insurance coverage through their workplace. Almost all large firms offer a health insurance plan, and even though they face greater barriers to providing coverage, so do the majority of very small firms. These employment-based plans cover two-thirds of nonelderly Americans and pay most of working families' expenses for health care and about one-quarter of national health spending. Despite employers' role in the health insurance market, however, very little attention has been paid to employers' motivations for providing health insurance to workers. Why do employers offer health insurance to workers? Is it because workers want it? Because their unions demand it? Or do employers offer health benefits to workers because their productivity and profitability depend on it? The standard economic theory of the availability of employer-provided health insurance focuses on worker demand (Cutler 1997; Pauly 1997; Summers 1989). Even though many employers believe that health insurance and health affect employees' productivity and firms' performance, health economists typically overlook and rarely measure firms' returns on health-related investments. Some research, however, suggests that firms may benefit economically by providing health insurance coverage for workers and their families. For example, health coverage may help employers recruit and retain high-quality workers. Health may contribute to productivity by reducing the costs of absenteeism and turnover and by increasing workers' productivity. This article reviews the evidence and proposes an agenda for future research. A better understanding of the benefits to employers of offering health coverage to workers may help clarify employers' behavior and help private employers and public officials make appropriate investments in health. [source]

Outcome, Process and the Rule of Law

AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, Issue 3 2006
Murray Gleeson AC
In this address, marking the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Chief Justice Gleeson of the High Court speaks about several matters bearing upon decision-making in administration and the role of administrative review. These include the impact of policy in individual decisions, and the relationship of merits review tribunals to courts. He notes that ,one of the characteristic features of the context in which modern administrative law functions is a change in emphasis from the duties of public officials to the rights of citizens. [source]

Active conscience or administrative vanguard?: The Commissioner of Official Languages as an agent of change

CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION/ADMINISTRATION PUBLIQUE DU CANADA, Issue 2 2006
C. Michael MacMillan
Its ombudsman component is enhanced by extensive powers of independent action, which make it an important instrument for holding governmental institutions accountable. Developments in federal language policy since 1980 have given far greater importance to its policy advocacy role, which has been vigorously exercised in legal interventions. Its role as linguistic auditor general is perhaps overstated and may more accurately be described as an enhancement of the ombudsman role. Its significant policy advocacy role poses issues regarding the significance of federalism in regard to language matters. Increasingly the commission conducts its activities at the intersection point of constitutional jurisdictions and must navigate around them. In addressing this ongoing challenge, the Commissioner of Official Languages operates in the vanguard of public officials on the national unity front. Sommaire: Le poste de Commissaire aux langues officielles en tant que haut fonctionnaire du Parlement est une institution unique qui intègre de multiples rôles. Son rôle de médiateur comporte de vastes pouvoirs d'action indépendante, qui en font un instrument important en ce qui concerne l'imputabilité des institutions gouverne-mentales. Les nouveautés dans la politique linguistique fédérate depuis 1980 ont accordé une importance beaucoup plus grande à son rôle de défenseur de politiques vigoureusement exercé dans certaines interventions judiciaires. Son rôle de Vérificateur général linguistique est peut-être exagéré et pourrait être plus correctement décrit comme un rôle amélioré de protecteur du citoyen. Son rôle considerable de défenseur de politiques pose des problèmes concernant l'importance du fédéralisme face aux questions linguistiques. La Commission exerce de plus en plus ses activités au point d'intersection de juridictions constitutionnelles et doit en tenir compte. Face à ces défis permanents, le Commissaire aux langues officielles agit à l'avant-garde des agents publics sur le front de l'unité nationale. [source]

Calling all citizens: The challenges of public consultation

CANADIAN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION/ADMINISTRATION PUBLIQUE DU CANADA, Issue 1 2004
Keith Culver
This article provides a case study of one such consultation. In the fall of 2002, the City of Saint John, faced with a sizeable budget deficit, sought public input on important fiscal decisions that had to be made before year's end. Citizens could provide their views in a traditional way - by mailing in a questionnaire to city hall - or they could submit their views electronically via the City of Saint John web site. Drawing on a wide variety of data sources, including interviews with city officials and a follow-up survey of consultation participants, the authors assess the success of this particular exercise in achieving several interrelated objectives: facilitating citizen participation in public affairs, enhancing citizens' sense of their political efficacy, providing public officials with insight into public opinion, and shaping public policy. Taking into account both consultation outcomes and the expectations of citizens and officials, the authors identity key shortfalls of the Saint John consultation, as well as avenues for constructive change in future exercises. Sommaire: L'une des maniéres dont les gouvernements ont réagi au méontentement démocratique exacerbé. qui s'est manifesté ces derniéres années a été d'accroitre la participation des citoyens au processus d'éaboration de politiques en organisant des consultations publiques à grande échelle. Le présent article ést une étude de cas portant sur une de ces consultations. À L'automne de 2002, la ville de Saint-John, faisant face à un gros déficit budgétairc, a cherchéà obtenir L'avis du public sur d'impor-tantes décisions financiéres qui devaient être prises avant la fin de L'annee. Les cito-yens avaient la possibilité de faire connaître leur opinion d'une façon traditionnelle en renvoyant un questionnaire par la poste à L'Hôtel de Ville, ou bien ils pouvaient soumettre leurs commentaires par voie électronique par L'intermédiaire du site Web de la Ville de Saint-John. À partir d'une grande variété de sources de données, y compris des entrcvues avec des responsables municipaux et un sondage de suivi auprés dcs participants a la consultation, f'étude de cas évalue le succés de cet exer-cice particulier à atteindre plusieurs objectifs interdépendants:faciliter la participation des citoyens aux affaires publiques, améliorer le sentiment d'efficacité politiquc chez les citoyens, permettre aux fonctionnaires de se faire une meilleure idée de L'opinion publiquc et façonner la politique publique. En tenant compte à la fois des résultats des consultations et des attentes des citoyens et des fonctionnaircs, nous identifions les principales lacunes de la consultation de Saint-John ainsi que les moyens d'apporter des changements constructifs aux exercices futurs. [source]