Christopher A. Simon

The Other Side of Academic Dishonesty: The relationship between faculty scepticism, gender and strategies for managing student academic dishonesty cases

Student academic ethics is a serious concern for colleges and universities. The literature dealing with student academic ethics, however, focuses little attention on the possible connection between organizational characteristics and the efforts made by faculty to deter student academic ethics violations. In this case study analysis of faculty at a medium-sized university in the western USA, we found that the level of faculty institutional confidence is related to the use of formal deterrence strategies. Additionally, we found that female faculty members are less confident in the administration, but are only marginally less likely to use formal administrative approaches to manage academic ethics.

The Impact of Americorps Service on Volunteer Participants Results from a 2-Year Study in Four Western States

Earlier evaluations of Ameri Corps have approached the study of program effects in two general ways. Cost-benefit studies indicate that in select projects the program produces a substantial net benefit. Qualitative studies conclude that the program has a substantial impact on the strength of communities, provides an influx of social capital, and solves unmet human needs. The authors’ analysis focuses on the impact of Ameri Corps on the volunteer members. In a 2-year preservice-postservice analysis they found that the members become more active in community groups. Ameri Corps participation may strengthen social capital—participation parallels a significant value shift among participants.

Testing for Bias in the Impact of AmeriCorps Service on Volunteer Participants: Evidence of Success in Achieving a Neutrality Program Objective

During its nine years of existence, AmeriCorps has had a tremendous impact on its volunteers and the communities it serves. Despite concerns expressed by the Republican congressional leadership, the Corporation for National and Community Service—the federally funded administrative organization that directs AmeriCorps programs at the national level—has made clear its intention to operate in a nonpartisan, politically neutral manner. A study of AmeriCorps programs in four western states finds the corporation is accomplishing its “neutrality” objective and is rebuilding a sense of civic–mindedness in a manner that lacks gender or racial bias—a critical element in reestablishing a strong choral society—all the while properly respecting diversity.

Local government perspectives of federal land management in Nevada

Abstract The impact of federal land ownership and management is a particularly contentious issue in the Western United States. Perhaps most significantly impacted is the State of Nevada, which is 87 percent federally owned. Over the last two decades, there has been some movement towards state-centered federalism. Former President Clinton was an advocate of “reinventing government”, which in part entailed a larger role for state and local governments in the policy-making and implementation process. Presidential Executive Order 12132, issued by Clinton in 1999, required federal agencies to develop “federalism summary impact statements” when creating new policies or altering existing rules. Our analysis is a bottom-up look at the impacts of federalism in Nevada counties. County officials report that they are not adequately consulted by federal land managers and that a lack of consultation impacts on the local planning process and represents a cost to local businesses and individual taxpayers. An analysis of Payments in Lieu of Taxes indicates that with limited—yet notable—exceptions, the federal government pays a larger sum to counties than would be collected if the federal lands were privatized.

Public School Administration Employing Thompson’s Structural Contingency Theory to Explain Public School Administrative Expenditures in Washington State

The purpose of this article is to explore the open systems characteristics of public schools by applying James D. Thompson’s contingency theory to the study of school district central administration expenditures in Washington State. In this analysis, contingency theory appears to offer a fairly good explanation for central administrative expenditures. The model indicates that administrative expenditures are a function of the organizational environment and the stability of resource providers. Stable organizational environments and consistent resource providers are associated with smaller school administration, due to the more limited need for substantial organizational buffering.

MPA Program Partnerships with Nonprofit Organizations: Benefits to MPA Programs, MPA Students and Graduates, Nonprofit Organizations, and Communities

Service to community is a long-standing tradition in American democracy and society. Nonprofit public service organizations are key actors in the provision of public goods and services, as well as partners in the process of governance. MPA program curricula often incorporate coursework and service-learning opportunities to help students better understand the link between nonprofits and public sector organizations and functions. A case analysis of the University of Utah MPA program illustrates the benefits of tying MPA course curricula to community partnerships. Common barriers to creating and maintaining productive long-term community partnerships are identified. Lessons learned include maintaining consistent and well-funded outreach efforts, anticipating and managing faculty disinterest and resistance, employing multiple models of service learning, and linking nonprofit education to studies of democratic go vernance.

Citizen Support for Military Expenditures: A Longitudinal Analysis of U.S. Public Opinion, 1999—2002

Previous research on public opinion regarding military expenditures in the United States was conducted predominantly in the cold war context. This analysis of public opinion in thirty major U.S. cities over the period 1999 through 2002 revisits this earlier literature in light of changing sociopolitical conditions during a period bracketing the onset of the war on terrorism. The study offers support for much of the earlier research with respect to sources of support for robust military expenditures, in the process illustrating the value of archival data in replicating key research findings in extant literature conducted in a cold war context. The results of the multivariate analysis offer important insights into the sources of public support for military expenditure in the post-9/11 setting.

Stoicism: Relevant Applications for Contemporary Public Administration

Stoic philosophy, particularly in its later versions, offers numerous useful insights for public administrators. The Stoics addressed a variety of issues, from rationality and natural law to ethics and stress management. The Stoics also combined an interest in philosophical questions with a strong emphasis on practical problem solving. Their ideas should be of interest to both scholars and practitioners.Stoic philosophy, particularly in its later versions, offers numerous useful insights for public administrators. The Stoics addressed a variety of issues, from rationality and natural law to ethics and stress management. The Stoics also combined an interest in philosophical questions with a strong emphasis on practical problem solving. Their ideas should be of interest to both scholars and practitioners.

The Influence of Job Attributes and Culture on Job Productivity: Comparing the Views of Public Servants in Asia Pacific and the United States

This comparative study of over 3,600 public servants across China, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, India, and the United States examines the influence of material and nonmaterial job attributes and cultural factors on employees’ perceptions of job productivity. Compared to the U.S. respondents, the respondents from Asia Pacific reported higher levels on one dimension of job productivity (perceived job efficiency) but lower levels on another dimension (perceived job effectiveness). Like their American counterparts, the perceived job productivity of Asia Pacific respondents was affected more by their satisfaction with nonmaterial job attributes than their satisfaction with material job attributes. Three distinctive national cultural factors were found to affect perceived job productivity: social ties, personal responsibility, and group focus.

Citizen Support for Military Expenditure Post–9/11: Exploring the Role of Race, Ethnicity, and Place of Birth

Citizens adjust their perceptions of military expenditure based largely on their worldview, as defined by their race, ethnicity, ideology, gender, socioeconomic status (SES), and education. Worldview might also reasonably be impacted by nativity. We explore the relationship between nativity and public opinion about military expenditure. Native-born survey respondents are less likely to believe that military expenditures are excessive than those born abroad. Race, ethnicity, ideology, nativity, and confidence in the military are the most significant variables used in explaining attitudes about military expenditure. Interaction analysis carried out for this article and reported here demonstrates that Hispanic and Asian ethnicity impacts on public perception of military expenditure are significantly greater when factoring in the nativity of survey respondents. With a growing portion of non-native-born citizens joining the electorate, public opinion analyses regarding military expenditure should take into account nativity as well as SES, gender, race, ideology, education, and ethnicity when seeking to explain public opinion dynamics.