The Public–Private Distinction: Insights for Public Administration from the State Action Doctrine

Public administration scholars continue to grapple with how and why public organizations differ from private organizations. The judiciary deals with similar questions in ruling on constitutional claims that apply exclusively to state actors. The authors consider similarities and differences between scholarly and judicial approaches, adding to the body of research attempting to capture the complexities of the public–private distinction. The application in this article includes the coding of seminal court decisions and qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to find combinations of causal conditions that lead to state action rulings. The specifics revealed through QCA provide valuable lessons for extending public norms and preserving constitutional protections when outsourcing public services.     

Corporate Volunteerism,the Experience of Self-Integrity,and Organizational Commitment: Evidence from the Field

We examined the relationship between the motives underlying employees’ participation in corporate-sponsored volunteerism and their organizational commitment. In both a pilot study and in the main study, employees’ motivation to volunteer based on the desire to express personally meaningful values (also known as the values function of volunteerism) was positively related to their organizational commitment. Additional findings from the main study helped to explain why this was so: being motivated by the values function of volunteerism was positively related to how much participants experienced self-integrity in the workplace, which in turn was positively related to their organizational commitment. That is, experiencing self-integrity in the workplace mediated the relationship between how much employees were motivated by the values function and their organizational commitment. The results of subsidiary analyses provided further evidence that corporate volunteerism was positively related to organizational commitment, and that the experience of self-integrity mediated this relationship. Implications for both the corporate volunteerism and functions of volunteerism literatures are discussed, as are practical implications and suggestions for future research.     

Responding to Child Sex Trafficking: Transnational Advocacy Networks in the Greater Mekong Subregion

The rapidly expanding market in enslaved children bought and sold for sex is one of the most inhumane transnational crimes that appears to have been facilitated by globalization and its many effects, such as a growing disparity in wealth between north and south. Child sex trafficking has become one of the most highly publicized social issues of this time, and, because of its global nature, transnational advocacy networks are well placed and central to leading campaigns against it. Transnational advocacy network anti-trafficking efforts have led to significant progress in the Mekong Subregion by bringing the child trafficking issue onto the global social policy agenda, resulting in new child protection legislation and improved interagency collaboration in the region.     

The Analysis of Extracurricular Activities and Their Relationship to Youth Violence

The purpose of this study was to examine how extracurricular activities relate to rural youth violence. Gender differences were examined across all of the study variables. Self-report data were collected from 235 teenagers from a rural, ethnically diverse, Virginia community. Correlations revealed a significant inverse relationship between church activity and weapon carrying. Time in non-school clubs (B = .444, p = .000) was the best predictor of fighting frequency for boys. Time in non-school clubs (B = .315, p = .001) and time in religious activities (B = −.291, p = .003) were the best predictors of weapon carrying for boys. Time in extracurricular activities (B = −.267, p = .016), time volunteering (B = .262, p = .007), exercise frequency (B = −.221, p = .046), and number of sports team memberships (B = .240, p = .021) were significant predictors of fighting frequency for girls. None of the activity participation variables were predictive of female weapon carrying. Findings suggest that different types of extracurricular activities are predictive of violent activity. Deanna C. Linville is an Assistant Professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at University of Oregon. Received Ph.D. from Virginia Tech in Marriage and Family Therapy. Major research interests are international adoption, collaborative healthcare, and youth resilience. Dr. Angela J. Huebner is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Development at Virginia Tech in Falls Church, Virginia. Her research interests include examining adolescent risk and protective factors in context as well as studying the effects of U.S. military deployments on adolescents in military families.     

Measuring Peer Pressure,Popularity, and Conformity in Adolescent Boys and Girls: Predicting School Performance,Sexual Attitudes,and Substance Abuse

Existing measures of peer pressure and conformity may not be suitable for screening large numbers of adolescents efficiently, and few studies have differentiated peer pressure from theoretically related constructs, such as conformity or wanting to be popular. We developed and validated short measures of peer pressure, peer conformity, and popularity in a sample (n = 148) of adolescent boys and girls in grades 11 to 13. Results showed that all measures constructed for the study were internally consistent. Although all measures of peer pressure, conformity, and popularity were intercorrelated, peer pressure and peer conformity were stronger predictors of risk behaviors than measures assessing popularity, general conformity, or dysphoria. Despite a simplified scoring format, peer conformity vignettes were equal to if not better than the peer pressure measures in predicting risk behavior. Findings suggest that peer pressure and peer conformity are potentially greater risk factors than a need to be popular, and that both peer pressure and peer conformity can be measured with short scales suitable for large-scale testing.     

Should Government Go It Alone or With a Partner? A Comparison of Outcomes from a Work Release Program Using Different Policy Tools

This article compares labor market outcomes from two different approaches to a work release program in Illinois: direct provision by a government and a purchase‐of‐service (POS) contract between government and a public charity. Significantly better employment and earnings outcomes were associated with the POS contract. To better understand the reasons for the success of the POS contract, the authors further examined the specific terms of the contract, organizational expertise, and the political context of POS contracts. The results are organized according to the main theoretical assertions. Findings add to the weight of evidence that contractors, like public charities, can be valuable government partners for addressing challenging social policies and programs.     

Innovation and Implementation in the Public Sector: An Examination of Public Entrepreneurship

This article develops an empirical measure of public entrepreneurship and uses it to discover the correlates that distinguish between those participants in a policy domain who are seen as more or less important in the entrepreneurial process. Looking at two rural regions dealing with telemedicine technologies, the authors examine the role of personal attributes and situational attributes in predicting who will emerge as the most mentioned public entrepreneurs on these issues in their community. Status in the local community, membership in the health professions, and strong local focus and ties are the most instrumental variables in distinguishing between those in a policy domain who are more likely to be identified as entrepreneurial. The authors provide an empirical test that can, for the first time, identify in a comparative context the traits that distinguish more entrepreneurial individuals from less entrepreneurial ones (or nonentrepreneurial ones) participating in the same policy domain.     

Human Trafficking and Slavery in Australia: Pathways,Tactics, and Subtle Elements of Enslavement

Human trafficking and slavery are heinous crimes that occur in all regions of the world. Victims are frequently trafficked or enslaved using tactics involving force, threats, or coercion. Perceptions of human trafficking and slavery often involve images of slaves, bound and shackled, kidnapped, and raped. Anecdotal evidence from Australia suggests that victims of human trafficking and slavery in Australia do not fit this stereotypical image. This article sets out to explore the more subtle elements of human trafficking and slavery in Australia through a review of human trafficking and slavery court case reports. The article presents summaries of case reports for the period 2004–2014 and identifies tactics of enslavement and pathways into slavery. The article also considers the implications—for identifying victims and combating human trafficking—of the more subtle methods of enslavement that occur in Australia.     

Race,Gender, and Government Contracting: Different Explanations or New Prospects for Theory?

The U.S. Congress created the Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) and Women‐Owned Small Business (WOSB) programs to promote fairness in government contracting. In this article, the authors examine whether increases in racial and gender representation in federal agencies correlate with the proportion of contract dollars awarded to women‐ and minority‐owned firms. Using the theory of representative bureaucracy as a starting point, they find evidence that increases in passive minority representation result in a larger proportion of contract dollars awarded to minority‐owned firms, which comports with previous empirical research. There is no evidence, however, that female representation leads directly or indirectly to substantive benefits for women‐owned small businesses. Given that the findings for women do not support representative bureaucracy, the authors provide potential alternative explanations. Specifically, they consider gender bias, social identity, and the “queen bee” phenomenon as possible explanations for why women are less inclined to advocate for other women.