Beyond government? The appeal of public‐private partnerships

Abstract: For the most part, the considerable literature devoted to new public management and its subset, alternative service delivery, is enthusiastic about this dramatic shift in the role of government. The metaphor of governments steering and the private sector rowing is an appealing one that has captured the imagination of many public officials and private‐sector actors. Literature addressing this phenomenon tends to focus on defining the characteristics of various forms of government/private‐sector partnerships rather than on assessing the implications and results of actual examples. This paper attempts to complement the existing literature by examining six cases of public‐private partnerships, of both high and low profile ‐ the Confederation Bridge; the Charleswood Bridge; canarie ; rcmp /Disney; Highway 407; and Chrysler/University of Windsor. The higher profile (and more costly) ventures have placed heavy emphasis on confidentiality, which raises concerns about traditional public‐sector values such as accountability, democracy and neutrality. The conclusions of the article are mixed, but at the very least, they suggest the need for caution, vigilance and scepticism. Sommaire: Pour la plupart, c'est avec beaucoup d'enthousiasme que les nombreaux auteurs d'ouvrages sur la Nouvelle gestion publique et sur son sous‐élément, la Prestation de services de rechange, envisagent cette modification fondamentale du rôle des gouvernements. Le gouvernement au gouvernail et le secteur privé aux avirons, voilà une métaphore qui a fait de nombreux adeptes parmi les hauts fonctionnaires comme chez les intervenants du secteur privé. Plutôt que d'évaluer les répercussions et les résultats d'exemples réels, les ouvrages sur ce sujet ont tendance à focaliser sur la définition des caractéristiques de divers types de partenariats entre le gouvernement et le secteur privé. Dans cet article, nous visons à complémenter ces ouvrages en analysant six partenariats public‐privé entrepris par divers paliers de gouvernement au cours des années 1990. La gamme des cas choisis est assez hétéroclite, certains étant très connus, d'autres moins: les ponts Confédération et Charleswood, CANARIE, GRC/Disney, l'Autoroute 407 et Chrysler/Université de Windsor. Les projets plus connus (et plus coûteux) ont fortement souligné leur caractère confidentiel, ce qui a mis en cause les valeurs traditionnelles du secteur public, telles l'imputabilité, la démocratic et la neutralité. Selon les conclusions de l'article, qui sont variées, il conviendrait pour le moins de procéder avec prudence, vigilance et scepticisme.     

Pursuing performance and maintaining compliance: Balancing performance improvement and accountability in Ontario's public health system

This article examines the compatibility between performance improvement and compliance‐based accountability in the implementation of a new system of public health performance management in Ontario. Findings from this mixed‐method study show that only minor elements of performance improvement get incorporated into pre‐existing compliance‐based accountability structures, that reinforcement of accountability structures works to the detriment of performance improvement intentions, and that limiting managerial influence in developing performance measures and targets diminish the utility of information for improvement. The study concludes that achieving a better balance requires an alternative to top‐down decision making that goes beyond consultation to include partnership.     

Smoking in the workplace: a management perspective

Caution is warranted when undertaking smoking measures that go beyond those required by state or local laws and do not accommodate the interests of all employees. Twenty states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws regulating smoking in the private workplace. In contrast, twenty-two states recently have enacted laws that protect persons who smoke outside the workplace from being subjected to adverse employment actions. Although these laws vary widely in their language and specifics, most pose practical and compliance problems for employers. The following article updates the author's more comprehensive examination in 1988 of judicial, legislative, and employer responses to the workplace smoking issue published in 14 Employee Relations Law Journal 359 (1988).     

The Attitudes Towards Dating Violence Scales: Development and Initial Validation

This study describes the development and validation of three Attitudes Towards Male Dating Violence (AMDV) Scales and three Attitudes Towards Female Dating Violence (AFDV) Scales. These scales measure attitudes toward use of psychological, physical, and sexual dating violence, respectively, by boys and by girls. Eight hundred twenty-three students from grades 7, 9, and 11 participated in the validation study. All six scales have good internal consistencies. As predicted, students were more accepting of girls' use of violence than of boys' use of violence, and boys were more accepting of violence than were girls. The six scales were positively correlated with traditional attitudes toward gender roles and with each other, providing evidence for their construct validity. Higher scores on the AMDV Scales were related to boys' past use of violence in dating relationships and to their having aggressive friends, supporting their criterion-related validity. Higher scores on the AFDV Scales were associated with girls' past use of dating violence but not with their having aggressive friends, providing partial support for their criterion-related validity. Singly or in combination, the Attitudes Towards Dating Violence Scales can be used to increase our understanding of the development and maintenance of violence-supportive attitudes in adolescents of all ages.     

Development of a GC-MS method for the simultaneous analysis of latent fingerprint components

Latent fingerprint residue is a complex mixture of organic and inorganic compounds. A full understanding of the composition of this mixture and how it changes after deposition is lacking. Three solvent systems were compared for the simultaneous extraction and derivatization with ethyl chloroformate of selected amino and fatty acids from a nonporous substrate (Mylar for subsequent analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. A solvent system comprised of sodium hydroxide, ethanol, and pyridine was found to be the most effective. This method was applied to the analysis of latent fingerprint residue deposited on Mylar and preliminary data are presented. Twelve amino acids (e.g., serine, glycine, and aspartic acid) and 10 fatty acids (e.g., tetradecanoic, hexadecanoic, and octadecanoic acids) were identified. The potential application of this method to further the understanding of latent fingerprint chemistry has been demonstrated.     

A legal analysis of sobriety checkpoints

Law enforcement agents are asked to help solve problems involving alcohol abuse in a society exhibiting reluctance to change its attitude about drinking and driving. As the public’s concern over drunken driving intensifies, use of the sobriety checkpoint is becoming a major law enforcement/public policy issue. Recent case law upholds use of the checkpoint in order to deter and detect the drunken driver. Although the United States Supreme Court has not directly ruled on the constitutionality of the sobriety checkpoint, there is a considerable body of state case law upholding its validity. Generally, with some exceptions, sobriety checkpoints appear to be constitutional if law enforcement agents follow proper guidelines and procedures. This paper analyzes case law pertaining to checkpoints, and gives law enforcement agencies direction in establishing constitutionally sound sobriety checkpoints, in conclusion, the article synthesizes roadblock and sobriety checkpoint law to provide law enforcement officers a plan for proper checkpoint construction.