Commercial contracts and human connectedness

She is author of The Madam as Entrepreneurand has published articles in the fields of the sociology of deviance and the sociology of law. Her recent research and publications have been on the legal impact of federal legislation in the education of handicapped children.     

Commercialisation of state government legal services

Most people who have worked in the public sector for over a decade have experienced dramatic change in the way they do business. For some, the change has been rapid. Others have been able to hold onto traditional methods. One area of business steeped in tradition is the area of legal services. In the Queensland public sector, current changes in the way in which legal services are provided reflect many of the changes that have already occurred in other business units. We should learn from the experiences of others, tap into the needs of those utilising legal services and reflect upon the importance of those traditional values. This article argues that the time for a comprehensive and transparent review of legal services in the Queensland public sector is now.     

The provision of public services by government funded decentralized agencies

Public services are often provided by lower level agencies that are funded by higher level government. Since markets for such services do not exist, normal pressures to minimize costs do not operate; indeed, usually these costs are unobservable. We study a principal-agent model which emphasizes the distinction between the financing and provision of public services. Two broad situations are analyzed: (i) the agencies are induced to reveal true costs; and (ii) in addition, to minimize costs, agencies must be induced to exert effort. The characteristics of the optimal funding contract and the marginal cost of public funds are derived in each case.     

政府在城市拆迁中的角色定位

城市拆迁已成为政府在城市建设过程中无法回避、必须正视的一个现实问题。本文从公共行政学的视角对城市拆迁中存在的一些问题进行分析 ,发现妥善解决拆迁问题的一个重要前提就是政府在拆迁中的角色必须正确定位 ,对此 ,作者提出政府在拆迁中的 5个具体角色定位的观点 ,并就角色存在的 2个雷区加以阐述。     

政府购买社会组织服务的问题与对策研究

新时代,地方政府公共服务供给职能急需让渡并进一步完善、优化,应当转变政府观念,打造服务型政府,建立长效的服务供给机制;引入多元监管主体,加强第三方监督和社会监督;鼓励社会组织参与社会服务,提高服务专业化水平;建立有效的监督和评价机制。     

The role of government in maintaining rural water supplies: caveats from Malawi's gravity schemes

Malawi earned a great deal of praise for its programme to build gravity‐fed piped water schemes in rural areas, because the government limited its own role by turning over many responsibilities to the community. Unfortunately, the government has not been able to provide the supporting services and recurrent financing necessary under even this limited role. As a result, the schemes are functioning at about 50% of capacity. These problems did not arise because programme designers and implementers neglected to plan for operation and maintenance. Rather, they thought that a very good system was in place. However, both observers and those directly concerned failed to identify or act on flaws in the planned system for a number of reasons, such as the blinding success of the construction programme, and a willingness to accept rather than evaluate underlying critical assumptions. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How pre‐ and postrecruitment factors shape role perceptions of European Commission officials

Individuals' role perceptions are central guides to their behavior and choices as members of an organization. Understanding organizational dynamics thus requires knowledge about the determinants of such role perceptions, as well as whether—and when—organizations can influence them. This article brings forward a theoretical framework allowing for both prerecruitment (extraorganizational) and post‐recruitment (intraorganizational) determinants of individuals' role perceptions, and examines its empirical implications using a large‐N data set of temporary officials in the European Commission. We find that intergovernmental and epistemic role perceptions are strongly linked to pre‐recruitment factors (such as educational and professional background), whereas postrecruitment factors (such as length of affiliation and embeddedness within the Commission) are the main driving force behind supranational and departmental role perceptions. This heterogeneity in the importance of pre‐ and postrecruitment factors for distinct role perceptions has important consequences for conceptualizing organizational change.     

The productivity of elected and appointed officials: the case of school superintendents

For over 40 years researchers have attempted to test the relative efficiency of governments run by elected versus appointed officials with conflicting results. The focus of prior research has been the expenditure levels of municipal and county governments. In this paper, we consider the achievement of students in public schools. Using data from Florida??s 67 school districts, we compare academic outcomes of students in districts run by elected and appointed superintendents. To overcome selection bias, we utilize both instrumental variable methods and panel data techniques. We find no consistent differences in the performance of elected and appointed superintendents.     

Urban local government finance in Nigeria: The case of Onitsha local government

Onitsha, located along the route that connects south-western and south-eastern Nigeria, has a very financially dynamic local government. Over one-quarter of the total revenues of this local government come from its market and motor parks. This is an unusual source for a local government that has perhaps the largest per capita revenue in Nigeria—almost N40, compared with the national average of N4.9. The procedure for collecting this revenue is regarded as highly successful since there is greater reliance on the citizens than tax officials. The volume of revenues collected has allowed the council maintain a large surplus revenue over a long period of time, which enables it to carry out important programmes of primary and adult education. It is also beginning to develop its property revenue collection system in collaboration with the Anambra State government.     

Criteria for compensating for the impacts of large projects: The impact of british columbia's revelstoke dam on local government services

This article presents the criteria used to screen compensation claims generated by the construction of a large hydroelectric dam on the Columbia River. It examines the issues that emerged as a result of the flawed negotiation procedure that had secured only vague commitments by the project developer. The case study illustrates the practical concerns that arise when applying microeconomic concepts to help resolve contentious issues. The article concludes with a discussion of how the context of the impact assessment and negotiation procedures can affect its outcome.     

党建、执政与国家治理——国家理论视域中的"三个代表"思想

当代中国民主政治建设中,党的建设以执政为价值导向,政党执政以人民为价值导向,国家治理则以社会为价值导向。“三个代表”的重要思想揭示了当代中国政治生活中,党的建设、政党执政与国家治理在国家理论上的价值一致性,阐明了当代中国国家治理的本质及其新的价值根基,厘清了当代中国国家治理的实践原则,也规定了当代中国国家治理之历史发展的价值趋向。     

Good government and sustainable anti-corruption strategies: A role for independent anti-corruption agencies?

Aid donors are increasingly seeking to link assistance to sustainable reform, including the provision of a responsible and responsive political and legal framework, the improvement of recipient countries' social, health and educational prospects, and the promotion of economic development and liberalization. Much attention is given to the first of these because of the size and cost to the state and the perceived constraints it exercises on the longer-term changes to the economy and society; in general terms, good government is an essential precondition for good governance and economic development. Increasingly donors have focused on corruption, both as a core obstacle to the encouragement of good government, and on the steps taken to dealing with it as evidence of commitment and the will of recipient countries to their introduction. While the types of activity associated with corruption are readily identifiable, as are the means to attempt to deal with it, it is usually much more difficult to determine effective implementation, particularly with limited resources at a time when longer-term political and economic reforms are also being promoted. It is therefore especially important that, in relation to corruption and good government, a practicable, effective and sustainable means is available to deal with corruption from preventative, investigative and reform perspectives.     

依法治国的历史进程及其未来发展前瞻

依法治国或者法治是一个历史的概念 ,在不同的时代有着不同的实质、内涵和发展特点。法治在近代中国的发展可以说是道路坎坷 ,行程艰难 ,有些许成功和诸多失败 ,其经验教训发人深思。新中国法治发展走了一条曲折的道路 ,沉痛的教训有之 ,成功的经验更多。瞻望未来中国法治发展 ,前景广阔 ,形势复杂 ,工程艰巨 ,需要我们从多方面寻找对策 ,做出努力 ,以尽快把我国建设成为社会主义法治国家。