Do citizens hold mayors accountable for local conditions? Evidence from Italian municipalities

Using data on 75 big Italian municipalities between 2010 and 2015, this paper looks at the extent to which citizens’ evaluations of mayors are responsive to changes in local performance indicators. While local economic and crime measures are found not be associated with mayoral approval ratings, there is a correlation between mayors’ popularity and indicators for local public transportation and air quality. Mayors of municipalities where more individuals use public transport and where there is less polluted air enjoy higher approval ratings. Additional analysis shows that this result is driven by very big municipalities (with a population over 500,000) that are more likely to be exposed to high levels of traffic congestion and pollution.     

Effect of Parental Migration on the Academic Performance of Left Behind Children in North Western China

China’s rapid urbanisation has induced large numbers of rural residents to migrate from their homes in the countryside to urban areas in search of higher wages. As a consequence, it is estimated that more than 60 million children in rural China are left behind and live with relatives, typically their paternal grandparents. These children are called Left Behind Children (LBCs). There are concerns about the potential negative effects of parental migration on the academic performance of the LBCs that could be due to the absence of parental care. However, it might also be that when a child’s parents work away from home, their remittances can increase the household’s income and provide more resources and that this can lead to better academic performance. Hence, the net impact of out-migration on the academic performance of LBCs is unclear. This paper examines changes in academic performance before and after the parents of students out-migrate. We draw on a panel dataset collected by the authors of more than 13,000 students at 130 rural primary schools in ethnic minority areas of rural China. Using difference-in-differences and propensity score matching approaches, our results indicate that parental migration has significant, positive impacts on the academic performance of LBCs (which we measure using standardised English test scores). Heterogeneous analysis using our data demonstrates that the positive impact on LBCs is greater for poorer performing students.     

An Evaluation Crucible: Evaluating Policy Advice in Australian Central Agencies

Policy advice is a core function of government that until quite recently remained outside the formal processes of performance evaluation. Evaluation, by its very nature, is designed to question both the effectiveness and relevance of government activities; applying it to policy advice opens up a traditionally confidential and politically sensitive arena. This paper reports on an evaluation experiment in Australian government — policy management reviews (PMRs) — that sought to evaluate the quality of central agency policy advice. It traces the development of the PMR model around interdepartmental committee processes, the bureaucratic politics that diluted the focus on policy outcomes, and examines how central agencies steered evaluation away from questions of public accountability towards arrangements for achieving more effective control of the processes underpinning production of advice. By targeting the process rather than outcomes of policy advising, PMRs sought unsuccessfully to adhere to the divide between management and policy and, in doing so, marked out the limits to performance evaluation.     

Diatom test with Soluene-350 to diagnose drowning in sea water.

The authors tested the Soluene-350 method to detect diatoms in three cases of sea water drowning. The negative results obtained in all three cases prompted us to re-test the method on samples of fresh water and sea water microalgae. The experiment showed that the siliceous frustule of sea water diatoms is solubilized by Soluene-350 while that of fresh water diatoms is resistant to the treatment. The method, which is effective in cases of drowning in fresh water, should therefore be used with caution in sea water drowning.     

Suicide by hara-kiri: a series of four cases.

The authors describe four cases of suicide by hara-kiri. This very painful form of suicide consists of self-inflicting a wound in the abdomen using a sharp instrument. It was first reported in 988 A.D. in the East but has now become rare in both the East and West. These four cases occurred over a 40-year period in the Trieste and Bari medicolegal area. In two of our cases the victims were afflicted with mental illness, whereas the other two suffered from depression. In cases of death by hara-kiri, it is important to establish a differential diagnosis between suicide and homicide; the presence of trial wounds (inflicted by the victim as a form of practice to overcome any hesitation before stabbing the abdomen with the cutting weapon) can prove very helpful.     

系统化：改进我国政府人事制度的思考

公共人事管理包含人力资源规划、人力资源获取、人力资源开发、纪律与惩戒等四项基本职能,这四项职能共同组成了政府人事管理的完整系统。目前我国政府人事制度改革过程中存在的突出问题就是系统化程度不够,缺乏科学的职位分类机制、合理的考核机制和全方位培训机制,晋升和辞退渠道不畅,也是导致整个系统低效的原因之一。要改变这一现状,就要从整体入手,建立科学的职位分类制度、合理的考核机制以及全方位的培训机制,完善科学畅通的任用、晋升和辞退机制等;同时,还应坚持从系统的角度入手,抓住重点、把握全局,积极借鉴企业优秀的人力资源管理经验,才能在改革中取得良好的效果。     

论辅警制度及中国辅警制度的构建

境外辅警制度历史悠久,且在警务工作中发挥着重要的作用。在我国,借鉴国外的经验建立辅警制度是可行的。具体来说,可从任职资格、工作内容、管理方式、工作时间及待遇、经费来源、考核奖励及抚恤等方面采用适合我国国情的做法,对我国辅警制度进行构建。