Public servants’ appreciation for themes in public administration scholarship

One of the defining characteristics of Canadian Public Administration is its singular coverage of topics. In this research, we extend Wake Carroll and Kpessa’s (2007) work to see if the themes found in Canadian Public Administration (CPA) for the 2008‐2016 period are in line with the topics published for the 2000‐2006 period. We also compare the contemporary topics published in CPA to the Australian Journal of Public Administration (AJPA). We then surveyed Canadian public servants about their interests. Our results show that they express more interest towards the themes published in CPA in the last decade than during 2001‐2006, and more interest than the ones published in AJPA in the last decade.     

Extending the realm of health policy with a “new public health” approach: A comparative look at the Canadian and Swedish national experiences

Abstract: Modern health‐care systems in OECD countries were built around hospitals and the preferences of organized medicine and are largely focused on acute‐care services and services provided by doctors. Starting in the early 1980s, however, the professionalization in several countries of trades traditionally involved in health promotion, together with the constitution of a group of researchers in social epidemiology and the corresponding development of specialized schools and research centres, brought new actors into health policy‐making worldwide. This led to the extension of contemporary health policy beyond the post‐war bio‐medical model into population health promotion and social policy. This article describes and analyses the means (and limitations) used by Canada and Sweden for extending the action radius of health policies. Results show that national policies in health promotion beyond the health sector contributed above all to developing and legitimizing an official discourse that presents social problems as factors affecting social inequalities in health. Health promotion represented a tool for maintaining central social norms, as national governments were re‐defining their role in social policy. Sommaire: Les systèmes modernes de soins de santé dans les pays de l'OCDE ont été construits autour d'hôpitaux et des préférences de la médecine organisée et sont essentiellement axés sur les services de soins intensifs de courte durée et les services médicaux. Cependant, depuis le début des années 1980, la professionnalisation des métiers traditionnellement impliqués dans la promotion de la santé survenue dans plusieurs pays, associée à la constitution d'un groupe de chercheurs en épidémiologie sociale et le développement d'écoles et de centres de recherche spécialisés ont introduit de nouveaux acteurs dans l'élaboration de politiques en matière de santéà l'échelle mondiale. Cela a entraîné une transformation de la politique de la santé contemporaine, qui a dépassé le modèle biomédical d'après‐guerre pour s'étendre à la promotion de la santé de la population et à la politique sociale. Le présent article décrit et analyse les moyens utilisés par le Canada et la Suède pour étendre le rayon d'action des politiques de la santé et les limites auxquelles ils font face. Les résultats indiquent que les politiques nationales visant la promotion de la santé au‐delà du secteur de la santé ont contribué avant tout à développer un discours officiel qui présente les problèmes sociaux comme des facteurs ayant une incidence sur les inégalités sociales de la santé. La promotion de la santé a représenté un outil pour maintenir des normes sociales nationales, alors que les gouvernements centraux redéfinissaient leur rôle en matière de politique sociale.     

Autonomy and distance from the centre as drivers of innovation in the public sector: Testing a positioning-based hypothesis

A generally accepted assumption is that innovation in the public sector is easier when managers have more autonomy. Previous research has revealed a paradox: the most innovative organizations are autonomous organizations, but also central agencies, more so than ministries. What has not been documented so far in Canada is the quality and nature or type of innovation by location. We developed a database of applications for IPAC's innovative management award with 1712 innovations in federal and provincial governments over the past 29 years. Using statistical analysis that takes into account the proximity of applicant organizations to political power, we provide a picture of innovation and institutional position in the public sector in Canada.     

Characterizing the Performance of Pipe Bombs

Pipe bombs of steel or PVC fragment in reproducible patterns when similarly configured. The power of the explosion correlates with number, mass, and size of the fragments recovered, where a large number of small, low‐mass fragments indicate a high‐power event and vice versa. In discussing performance, describing pipe fragmentation pattern by fragment weight distribution mapping (FWDM) or fragment surface area distribution mapping (FSADM) was useful. When fillers detonated, detonation velocities of ~4.4 mm/μs were measured. In such cases, side walls of the pipe were thrown first; the average fragment velocity was ~1000 km/s. In deflagrations, the end cap was first thrown; fragment velocities were only ~240 km/s. Blast overpressures varied; at 10 feet, 2 × 12 inch steel pipes containing ~550 g of detonable mixture produced overpressures of 5–6 psi; similar nondetonating pipes produced less than 2 psi. Maximum fragment throw distances were 250–300 m, with an average of ~100 m.     

La capacité d'analyse des politiques au gouvernement du Québec : Résultats du sondage auprès de fonctionnaires québécois

Abstract: This research note complements the work of Howlett et al. on the capacity of Canadian governments for public policy‐making. The new public management wave was driven by the notion of a need for improved service delivery to the population. A number of authors, including Metcalfe, pointed out that the government was then neglecting management in favour of “policy advice.” It was fashionable to show interest in policy but not in management. After decades spent seeking greater efficiency, have we gone too far in the other direction? Do governments have the capacity to develop public policy? Have those responsible for developing public policy received the training they require? This research note addresses the Quebec portion of the Canada‐wide survey on the capacity for public policy‐making. It complements the analysis by presenting the results of the survey conducted among public servants in Quebec. We placed particular emphasis on university education and the retraining of the public servants who work on developing and formulating public policy.     

Democracies and Deficits: Prospects for Fiscal Responsibility in Democratic Nations

The financial crisis had significant implications for the fiscal positions of OECD. As nations seek to cope with the economic contraction, budget deficits and debt have risen to near record postwar levels. As the crisis in Europe and other advanced economies has deepened, fiscal consolidation will have to be coupled, and even preceded, by actions to jump‐start crippled economies. Nonetheless, when fiscal consolidation becomes necessary, nations that procrastinate by waiting for a crisis to provide cover for the politically hard choices will pay a steep price indeed both economically and politically. Many in the academic and policy community have raised questions about whether advanced democracies have the political wherewithal to respond to gathering fiscal pressures through early and timely action. Recent fiscal actions in advanced nations suggest that democracies are not doomed to wait for market shocks and crises. Rather, leaders have shown that fiscal sacrifice can be achieved in ways that promote electability. In this article, we discuss the impetus for democratic fiscal actions and the strategies used to gain public support.     

Sources of injustice among individuals with persistent pain following musculoskeletal injury

Evidence supports the negative impact of perceived injustice on recovery following injury. However, little is known about sources that contribute to injustice perceptions in this context. Therefore, this study systematically investigated sources of injustice following painful musculoskeletal injury. Following completion of the Injustice Experiences Questionnaire (IEQ) and measures of pain, depression, and disability, participants completed a semi-structured interview to discuss reasons underlying their IEQ responses. On average, the sample was experiencing moderate levels of pain, depression, and disability, and clinically meaningful levels of perceived injustice. Participants frequently identified employers/colleagues, other drivers, insurers, healthcare providers, family, significant others, friends, and society as sources of injustice. Common reasons for identifying these sources included their contribution to the injury, inadequate assessment or treatment of pain, and punitive responses toward participants’ pain expression. Sex- and injury-related differences emerged in the identification of injustice sources. Potential strategies for preventing perceived injustice following painful injury are discussed.     

National protest agenda and the dimensionality of party politics: Evidence from four East-Central European democracies

Contemporary democracies show considerable differences in the issue composition of their protest politics, which tends to remain relatively stable over time. In countries like Germany or the Czech Republic, the vast majority of protests have been mobilised around sociocultural issues, such as human rights, peace, nuclear power or the environment, and only a tiny portion of protest has focused on economic issues. At the opposite extreme, protest in France or Poland usually has a strongly economic character and voices demands relating to material redistribution and social policy. What lies behind the cross-country differences in national protest agendas? In this article, the national protest agenda depends on what issues mainstream political parties are contesting: the content and strength of the master-issue dimension. In reference to the literature on the multidimensional political space and niche political parties, one should expect that there is a substitutive effect; where the stronger a specific master-issue dimension is in party politics, the less salient that issue dimension is in protest politics. This substitutive effect results from the tendency of electoral politics to reduce political conflict to a single-dimension equilibrium, which decreases the importance of other issues and relegates the contest over secondary, niche issues to the realm of policy-seeking strategies, with protest being a common type of this political strategy. In party systems where single-dimension equilibrium does not exist and the master-issue dimension is weaker, the same dynamics result in a more convergent relationship between party and protest politics and a greater similarity between the protest- and party-system agendas. To investigate this theory, the national protest agendas in four countries are examined. The Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia show four combinations of two crucial factors that are not available in the old Western democracies: the content and the strength of the master-issue dimension. The study draws on an original dataset of protest events organised in the four countries between 1993 and 2010, and on qualitative and quantitative data on issue dimensions of party politics obtained from studies on party politics and expert surveys. The results show that in the Czech Republic, where the master-issue dimension has remained strongly economic, protest has been predominantly sociocultural. In Poland between 1993 and 2001 and Hungary between 1993 and 2006, the master-issue dimensions are strongly sociocultural, while protest is predominantly economic. There is no single-dimension equilibrium in party politics in Slovakia or in post-2001 Poland and mainstream parties compete on both economic and sociocultural issues. Consequently, the substitutive dynamics between party and protest politics is weaker and the issue agendas in party and protest arenas are here more alike.