Schar School of Policy and Government
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Item Policy Design for Competitive Retail Electric Institutions: Artificial Intelligence Representations for a Common Property Resource Approach(2001) Pandit, Nitin S.; Pandit, Nitin S.; Haynes, Kingsley EABSTRACTItem Weather-Related Crashes on Public Land(2007-10-09T19:45:26Z) Moore, Lewis; Moore, LewisThis research examines weather and road conditions relation to traffic crashes on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service (FS) land in three states: Idaho, Oregon and California. Crash data for Idaho and Oregon were supplied by the state transportation departments while the California data were obtained from the Federal Highway Administration’s Highway Safety Administration (FHWA) . The results are mixed, probably because of the different methods of data collection: Idaho seems to have particularly severe crashes during bad weather on these public lands when all roads on the public lands are compared with other rural Idaho state and federal highways. Oregon's comparable weather-related crashes do not show such severe crashes in poor weather or road conditions, but Oregon on these federal lands crashes in good weather are very severe as are the “non-weather” crashes on lightly traveled rural highways in the State. California’s FHWA Highway Safety Information System data offered a much more objective test of crashes on the public domain, based on federal and state roadways versus private, rural land roads during "weather" and “non-weather” conditions. In the aggregate, weather-related crash differences appear non-significant for California’s public and private lands. The salient finding in California is that on average, "nonweather" crashes on BLM and USFS land are significantly more severe than on comparable rural roadways in the State. Using FHWA projections of crash costs, the BLM and FS crashes produce about 30 percent greater losses.) The latter finding may be a result of more speed with good weather conditions, adverse roadside environments and the increased time required for emergency response to public land crashes. Future deployments of Intelligent Weather technology for rural California roadways could benefit from the database assembled for this research, especially the weatherrelated crash analysis for roadway/county/federal or rural land contingencies in Appendix A. Dramatic differences in local crash costs were observed in the limited fine-scale analysis done in this study. Providing weather and location crash cost in a Geographical Information System would further assist management and policy-makers in efforts to reduce rural crash risk.Item Information Technology, Science, and Public Policy(2007-12-20T16:12:23Z) Cheney, David; Cheney, DavidThis dissertation addresses how information technology (IT) affects science, and the resulting implications for investments in IT and in research. The dissertation reviews relevant science policy literature and literature on the effects of information technology, and then examines in detail the applications of IT in the geosciences and biosciences. The dissertation develops models of the effects of advances in IT on the productivity, quality, and impact of science. It then tests this model though three case studies of malaria research, earthquake research, and Chesapeake Bay research. The research found there to be a significant impact of IT on science in all of the fields studied. IT affects science not just through improving efficiency but primarily through enabling new types of research. Some of the most significant effects include a huge increase in the productivity of data collection and the availability of data, an increased ability to deal with complexity, the development of fundamentally new approaches to research, and the expansion of collaboration in both geographic and disciplinary dimensions. IT helps to enable researchers to address some of the complex problems that are most important to society, and provides tools for communicating with users and stakeholders of science, increasing the impact of science. Although IT was found to influence all of the fields studied, there are also substantial differences among the fields, due both to the nature of the science and the organizational and cultural history of the fields. Measurement difficulties do not allow one to determine whether there is under- or over-investment in IT for science, but, based on the magnitude of past impact, continued investment in IT for science appears prudent. Because some IT used in science is highly generic while other IT is specific to certain types of science or specific fields, it is suggested that there be multiple sources of funding for these different categories.Item The Effects of Bilateral and Regional Investment Agreements on the FDI Inflows into ASEAN Countries(2007-12-20T18:24:37Z) Booppanon, Sarasin; Booppanon, SarasinThe competition for foreign direct investment (FDI) has resulted in many developing countries resorting to international investment agreements (IIAs) as a legal mechanism to encourage FDI based on the basis that these international commitments are more credible than domestic policy choices for the cost of reneging on them is more costly. IIAs are legal instruments that contain a set of rules governing FDI and specifying the rights and obligations of foreign investors, investing countries and recipient countries. The proliferation of IIAs over the years illustrates the belief of the policymakers in the efficacy of these policy instruments in helping to attract FDI. However, there is still very limited empirical evidence to support the claim of their positive role. The aim of the research is to contribute to the existing empirical literature on FDI by incorporating international FDI policies that to date have not yet been thoroughly studied. It employs Dunning’s ownership-location-internalization (OLI) framework to investigate the extent to which investment agreements play a role in attracting FDI inflows from within ASEAN and outside ASEAN to the countries and compare these influences with those of other macroeconomic and institutional factors over time. The analysis is undertaken using a panel data set covering ten ASEAN countries over the period 1980-2005. The findings demonstrate that BITs or the bilateral type of IIAs made with developed countries have a positive impact on FDI inflows into ASEAN countries and confirm the crucial role played by the quality of domestic institutions. The results are robust to changes in model specification. The empirical results also indicate that BITs function as a complement rather than a substitute for domestic institutional quality. However, there is no evidence that the ASEAN Investment Area, which is a regional type of IIA made among ASEAN nations serves to stimulate intra-regional or inter-regional FDI flows to the region.Item Public Policies for Hybrid-Electric Vehicles: The Impact of Government Incentives on Consumer Adoption(2008-03-31T14:16:35Z) Diamond, David; Diamond, DavidThis dissertation examines the outcomes and effectiveness of public policies designed to promote the adoption of hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs). As a primary methodology, I employ cross-sectional analysis of hybrid registration data over time for U.S. states and Virginia municipalities to examine the relationship between hybrid adoption and a variety of socioeconomic and policy variables. I also compare hybrid adoption patterns over time to the U.S. average for specific states that have changed incentive policies, to determine whether these policy changes are consistent with significant changes in adoption patterns. The results of these analyses suggest a strong relationship between gasoline prices and hybrid adoption, but a much weaker relationship between incentive policies and hybrid adoption. Incentives that allow hybrids to access High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes with only one occupant may also be effective in promoting adoption, but only under specific circumstances and with the potential for significant unintended consequences.Item Mulling Over Massachusetts: Health Insurance Mandates And Entrepreneurs(2008-06-02T19:34:51Z) Jackson, Scott; Jackson, ScottThe author examines the impact of the Massachusetts’ health reform law of 2006, Chapter 58 of the Acts of 2006: An Act Providing Access to Affordable, Quality, Accountable Health Care, which uses both individual and employer insurance-mandates on Entrepreneurship in the formation of new organizations. Previous studies have employed policy analysis and simulation modeling to the impact of theoretical mandatory health insurance regimes on small business, but the contributions of this study are that it is the first to explore the impact of a real world health insurance system or policy change on the entrepreneur and to do so empirically, in real time and within the most natural economic geography, a single MSA or Labor Market Area. It therefore tests whether a given social policy facilitates or impedes the formation of new organizations, and therefore, encourages or discourages employment growth via new organization formation. The author finds significant and persistent suppression of new organization formation when controlling for organization size, sector and owner gender, and limited evidence of geographic displacement of firms across the New Hampshire border. While theory suggests mandatory insurance should reduce insurance costs and improve worker productivity, the author finds that the regulation has no significant impact on worker productivity and limited evidence of increases in insurance costs, and estimates the expected cost in terms of lost employment, sales to the local economy and tax revenue to in the majority of cases exceed the benefit.Item Policy Intersections or Policy Chasms – State Elder Mobility Policy, Practice and Long-Term Care Reform(2008-06-30T17:47:59Z) Leary, Mary A.; Leary, Mary A.This dissertation research assessed whether a relationship exists between state initiatives to increase elder mobility through transportation policy, planning and collaboration, and state long-term care reform. The policy domains of aging, long-term care and transportation are stove-piped; most federal programs and academic research delve deeply into each domain but seldom address the interrelationships between the three policy areas. Thus, this study sought to establish a baseline from which to begin cross-policy domain measurement between aging, long-term care and transportation. The study found a statistically significant relationship between state systems change in long-term care reform and state elder mobility policy, planning, and collaboration when both policy and practice are assessed: Over this 10-year period for every 10% increase in a state’s level of elder mobility policy and planning, a state had a 1.5% greater shift in its level of Medicaid expenditures to home and community-based services (HCBS); when controlling for nursing home institutionalization rates. With U.S. long-term care Medicaid spending in excess of $93 billion in the United States in 2006 (Burwell, Sredl, & Eiken, 2007), a 1.5 percentage point change in long-term care Medicaid dollars to the more cost-efficient and consumer-preferred community-based care would equate to a shift of $1.5 billion to HCBS. This finding suggests that there is a relationship between state transportation coordination actions and increases in home and community based services, and that merit exists in drilling further into the relationships between elder mobility and long-term care reform. Policy domains can intersect; and in this case, evidence suggests transportation, aging, and long-term care do. Perhaps it is time to increase the level of policy focus on the essential role community transportation plays in Medicaid reform. Even as economic challenges intensify across communities, it may be important to consider investment in transportation infrastructure as an important enabler of community based care, rather than bow to short-term budget pressures.Item Population Health Measures as Indicators of Fertility Change(2008-12-11T20:33:15Z) Metscher, Karen N.; Metscher, Karen N.This dissertation examines the relationships among measures of mortality, fertility, burden of disease, and socioeconomic factors. Regression modeling is used to determine (1) whether population mortality or child mortality better forecasts fertility levels; (2) if a child health model provides a stronger indicator of fertility than child mortality alone; and (3) what impact socioeconomic controls have on the application of these models. A global dataset of 143 countries over a fifteen-year time span (1990-2005) is used. Results indicate that both the child mortality rate and the child health model are strong indicators of fertility change and produce better results than population mortality or socioeconomic factors alone. Use of health measures has an additional advantage over child mortality: health indicators are easily linked to policy and lend themselves to action. The models were then applied at the country level with regional data from India, Mexico, and the Philippines. As with the global analysis, population mortality was found to be a relatively poor indicator of fertility levels. However, the performance of the child health model varied significantly, as did the significance of individual predictor variables within the model. In all country analyses, the model assisted in the identification of the child health factors that are most related to fertility rates within each particular setting. The use of health measures as indicators of fertility change adds value in two ways: (1) by facilitating the linkage of changes in fertility levels to specific contributing factors that can inform good health policy decisions and (2) by associating health status to population growth, health advocates can elevate the importance of health policies among the many competing national priorities.Item Internet Disseminated Medical Information: An Investigation of Three Regulatory Policy Tools(2008-12-12T17:06:41Z) May, Kyle P.; May, Kyle P.The advent of the Internet has been an information revolution that continues to have far reaching impacts on twenty-first century medical information consumers. Unlimited access to medical information may generally be considered a positive outcome of the Internet. However, when the information provided to users comes from questionable sources, provides intentionally or unintentionally inaccurate data or is otherwise tainted in its nature, questions arise over whether this type of medical information should be regulated. This work focused on three regulatory policy tools currently used to monitor Internet disseminated medical information, prohibition, information provision, and certification.Item Assessing the Impact of Prison Siting On Rural Economic Development(2008-12-12T17:32:48Z) Holley Jr., William T.; Holley Jr., William T.From 1980 to 2002, the U.S. prison population grew from 330,000 to 1,350,000 inmates. To house these prisoners, hundreds of new prisons were constructed in non-metro counties. Most communities accepted prisons on the promise of new jobs and the hope of economic development, but little research has been done to determine the actual economic development value these institutions provide to the rural counties where they are located. In order to measure the impact of new prisons on the rural economy, this research compares indicators of economic development between non-metro counties with new prisons and similar non-metro counties without prisons. Prisons, as a public good, are limited in their ability to stimulate economic development.Item Impacts of Telecommunications Infrastructure and Its Spillover Effects on Regional Economic Growth in China(2008-12-22T18:04:56Z) Liu, Yanchun; Liu, YanchunThis dissertation empirically tests the impacts of telecommunications infrastructure as well as its spillover effects on regional economic growth in China. Based on data for 29 regions of China for the period 1986-2006, a panel data approach is used in the context of conditional convergence theory for estimation. A modified shift-share analytical framework is used to decompose regional economic output changes by labor and capital factor inputs. With appropriate controls for heteroscedasticity and spatial autocorrelation, the research findings of this dissertation include: 1) that for total regional economic growth, telecommunications infrastructure has significant negative impacts, implying the possibility of “investment congestion” in the telecommunications sector in China’s regions during the examined period; 2) that for regional economic growth due to capital factors, telecommunications infrastructure has significant and positive impacts, indicating a positive relationship between this key input and regional output growth; 3) that negative and significant spillover effects of telecommunications infrastructure are identified for total regional economic growth, whereas the spillovers have positive influences on regional growth due to capital factors only; 4) conditional convergence has been occurring among China’s regions, providing further evidence to the conditional convergence literature.Item Transportation Policies and Quality of Life: An Analysis of the Socioeconomic Effects of Implementing Ramp Metering, High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes and High Occupancy (HOT) Lanes within an Urban Transportation Network(2009-01-14T20:43:43Z) Jefferson, Katherine D.; Jefferson, Katherine D.Transportation policies affect a diverse group of stakeholders who depend on decision makers to provide a network within which they can achieve their travel objectives. Individuals and households with varying values of time and different levels of income expect to have access to a dependable transportation system. They expect reliable travel times to destinations, whether they are going to work or school, or engaging in leisure activities. Commercial interests hinge their success upon being able to move goods and provide services in a way that promotes sustainability and prosperity. When the travel activities of these disparate entities – individuals, households and businesses – occur in concert or in conflict with each other, traffic congestion is a common byproduct. Litman (2007) defines traffic congestion as the incremental delay resulting from interference among vehicles in the traffic stream as a roadway reaches its capacity. Weisbrod, Vary and Treyz (2001) also correlate vehicle delay and roadway capacity by asserting that traffic congestion is a condition of traffic delay that exists because the number of vehicles trying to use the roadway exceeds the traffic network’s capacity to handle them. These authors argue that traffic congestion has three dimensions of variation – spatial, temporal and stochastic. Cambridge Systematics (2005) links congestion to seven sources – traffic incidents, work zones, weather, fluctuations in normal traffic, special events, traffic control devices and physical bottlenecks or capacity. Three strategies that are used to mitigate the effects of traffic congestion are Ramp Metering, High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes and High Occupancy Toll (HOT) Lanes. Ramp Metering is the use of traffic signals at freeway entrances to control the rate at which vehicles enter the freeway (Pearson, Black and Wanat 2001). HOV Lanes give priority for the use of entire roadways or specific travel lanes to vehicles with two or more occupants (and to motorcycles and hybrid vehicles in some instances). HOT Lanes allow Single Occupant Vehicles (SOVs) to access otherwise restricted roadways or travel lanes (typically HOV Lanes) by paying pre-established or variable tolls based on congestion conditions. Ramp Metering and HOT Lanes are categorized as Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)-enhanced strategies. All three strategies are purported to enhance freeway operations by decreasing travel time and improving trip reliability. However, Verhoef (1996) argues that there appears to be an inverse relationship between efficiency and effectiveness and the social feasibility of transportation regulation (policy approaches). Considering this assertion, one wonders how the three strategies mentioned above affect quality of life – safety, personal security and socioeconomic wellbeing. The socioeconomic effects of implementing Ramp Metering, HOV Lanes and HOT Lanes within an urban transportation network are examined to identify consequences, benefits and costs beyond (or in addition to) those typically obtained from traffic simulation models and field operational tests. Survey data and expert judgments (an electronic road user survey, a statistical analysis of survey responses, and a Planning Balance Sheet Assessment) are used to examine perceptions of and findings regarding the benefits and consequences of the three strategies. The analyses are also used to gather information to examine the premise that traditional tools and approaches (e.g. simulations of policy interventions and operational field test data) should be augmented with qualitative data to more adequately assess the quality of life concerns of transportation policy stakeholders. The results of the analyses reveal statistically significant associations between implementing Ramp Metering, HOV Lanes and HOT Lanes and quality of life considerations.Item A Study in Direct Democracy: The Citizen Initiative & the Determinants of Voter Behavior(2009-02-03T16:28:50Z) Schum, Richard M.; Schum, Richard M.This research looked at the use of citizen initiatives in the American states to identify trends in voter behavior. The findings indicate that voters structure their choices on ballot measures with at least one thought in mind: to hold government actors and institutions accountable. While there are many factors that affect the electoral fate of an initiative, it appears that reforming government is paramount, given the prevalence of governance reforms during the period under scrutiny. This priority is often construed as a conservative bias in favor of limited government; however, the prevalence of successful policy measures that expand the size or scope of government suggests that this is not the case. Rather, two different dynamics are in play—one that tends to limit the discretion of government officials and another that tends to expand the policy scope of government.Item Shifting Alliances in the Accreditation of Higher Education: On the Long Term Consequences of the Delegation of Government Authority to Self-Regulatory Organizations(2009-02-06T18:15:26Z) Weissburg, Paul; Weissburg, PaulThis dissertation uses the accreditation of U.S. higher education as a case study with which to analyze the applicability of multiple-principals theory to self-regulating professions. The multiple-principals theory, an offshoot of principal-agent theory, has been used in the past to examine the long term consequences of the delegation of government authority to private, self-regulatory organizations. As with most literature on self-regulation, it occurred within the context of an industry. This dissertation is the first application of the multiple-principal problem to a profession rather and it is one of the very few papers in the field of private governance to address the implications of that distinction. The agents in this case-study are regional accreditation associations, which were originally created by colleges and universities to act as self-regulatory bodies, and the two principals are the regionals’ member institutions and the federal government. The history of the accreditation of higher education is explored through the use of historical documents, texts and scholarly articles, original government legislation, transcripts from Congressional Hearings, letters exchanged between key players, news articles, and a series of interviews that has been conducted with the executive directors of five of the regional accreditation associations, an accreditation historian who is also the Vice President of one of the regionals, and the Co-Chair for the George Mason University Compliance Committee for the 2011 Reaffirmation of Accreditation. The final chapter of the dissertation uses additional data gathered from each of the five executive directors to identify which principal was the primary determinant of the associations’ actions at various, crucial junctures in the history of accreditation. Ultimately, analysis of the data provides only mild support for the version of multiple-principals theory that is used in this dissertation, revealing a large number of significant variables that have been overlooked. The underlying concept of multiple-principals, however, is found to be a significant determinant of the agent’s actions, although it is not the only one; three other significant determinants are also identified. The dissertation concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings for the delegation of government authority to private, self-regulatory organizations in both industries and professions.Item A House Divided: Evolution of EU Asylum Policy after the Bosnian War(2009-05-15T19:55:06Z) Shoemaker, Melissa K.; Shoemaker, Melissa K.This dissertation examines the role of the Bosnian refugee crisis in generating support within EU Member States for a centralized, EU-level asylum policy after the 1992-95 Bosnian war. As the Bosnian war occurred on the heels of the Cold War and the signing of the Maastricht Treaty creating the European Union, this study assesses whether non-state and inter-state actors and EU institutions urging a centralized asylum policy supplanted traditional, internal sources of policy influence, such as public opinion and political partisanship. The methodology includes a review of scholarly literature, interviews with EU and nongovernmental organization (NGO) officials, press reports from all EU Member States, EU polling data, and reports from NGOs and EU institutions. The study concludes that NGOs and EU institutions lobbying for an EU-level policy as a result of the Bosnian refugee crisis carried substantial influence on EU Member State positions on such a policy, while political partisanship and public opinion did not bear out significant results.Item Export Processing Zones: Tools of Development or Reform Delay?(2009-05-18T15:12:48Z) Virgill, Nicola A. V.; Virgill, Nicola A. V.After the failure of import substitution programs many developing countries turned to export processing zones (EPZs) to promote growth and development through trade. However, in many instances, the performance of the EPZ model has been disappointing leaving many to question whether EPZs are good for reform. This dissertation will examine the institutional factors related to why EPZs emerge. Second, positing that domestic entrepreneurship is important to economic development, the relationship between EPZs and domestic entrepreneurship is examined. Third, it will examine the effects of EPZs on economic wellbeing controlling for factors which affect entrepreneurship.Item From Tariffs to the Income Tax: Trade Protection and Revenue in the United States Tax System(2009-11-13T18:11:12Z) Magness, Phillip W.; Magness, Phillip W.Utilizing historical and statistical data, it is argued that the federal income tax amendment of 1913 drastically, and somewhat inadvertently, altered the constitutional political economy of congressional trade politics by decoupling the import tariff from its traditional role as a revenue device. Prior to this change, the revenue attributes of the tariff system acted as a mild constraint upon the extreme protectionist interest group politics that characterized the early 20th century. The removal of this constraint and its ensuing policy effects are illustrative of the complex and often overlooked role that revenue may play in trade and tariff politics. By treating the 16th amendment as a trade policy measure gone awry, this study challenges the prevailing historical consensus on the original purposes and intent of federal income taxation.Item A Macroeconomic Analysis of Investment under Public-Private Partnerships and its Policy Implications - the Case of Developing Countries(2009-12-17T14:37:42Z) Checherita, Cristina D.; Checherita, Cristina D.The objective of the present dissertation is to propose a theoretical model of the decision to invest under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) contract and to test empirically both the determinants of such investment and its economic impact. The basic theoretical model proposed in the dissertation outlines the conditions for the optimal timing and the scale of monopoly production associated with the decision to invest in a PPP project, in which the two partners fully cooperate. Based on the theory of irreversible investment under uncertainty, it concludes that the optimal decision to invest under a PPP depends negatively on the risk and uncertainty associated with the project, and the real cost of capital, while it could be underpinned when the government tax burden and the associated cost of taxation is high. Two extensions of the theoretical model conclude that PPP arrangements (i) have the potential to diversify risk, when risks facing the private and the public partners are correlated; (ii) may provide the private partner with the possibility to exit the contract at a later stage should economic conditions deteriorate; through contract renegotiation, explicit or implicit government guarantees, or bailing-out expectations, PPP offer a put option that induces the private partner to undertake the investment more readily or in a larger amount even under higher uncertainty. Together with the findings of the basic model, this results in an ambiguous effect of uncertainty on PPP investment. The theoretical predictions of what determines the decision to invest under PPP programs, as well as the potential economic impact of PPP investment, are tested empirically for the case of developing countries, using the World Bank database on private participation in infrastructure for the period 1990-2005. This is the largest database of this kind, which uses a consistent methodology across developing countries and time to record investment commitments in four infrastructure sectors: transportation, energy, water and sewerage, and telecommunication. As regards the determinants of investment under PPP, several predictions of the basic theoretical model are confirmed by the empirical analysis, while the evidence for the others is weaker or difficult to control for empirically. One measure of risk proves to be a robust determinant of PPP investment, that is, the political risk through its component of investment profile risk. Two other measures seem to be significantly associated with the number of PPP infrastructure projects initiated in developing countries over the period 1990-2005, that is, exchange rate uncertainty and uncertainty regarding public investment. Similarly, as indicated by the theoretical model, a higher tax burden is likely to induce governments to engage in larger PPP programs. Another prediction of the theoretical model—that the nominal lending interest rate is likely to have a negative effect on PPP investment—is weakly confirmed by the empirical model in the whole sample, but it turns more robust in the restricted sample of Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) countries where PPP programs are more developed. Finally, the empirical analysis provides evidence as to other significant determinants of PPP investment, that is: (i) the experience with PPP programs; (ii) the size of the economy; (iii) complementarity with private investment; (iv) external aid; (v) time and regional dummies. As regards the impact of PPP investment, at a macroeconomic level, larger PPP programs in infrastructure may induce, on balance, higher fiscal risks for governments in developing countries through the attached explicit or implicit contingent liabilities. However, they may also contribute to improving fiscal positions in the future through higher upfront payments to the government or by substituting part of public investment. In several countries of Latin America, private investment in roads may have been a factor associated with higher economic growth since the mid-80s. The qualitative analysis based on the literature review, as well as the results of the theoretical and empirical models, indicate that, while the experience with PPP in developing countries has been mixed, there is overall more evidence in favor of undertaking PPP investment.Item Foreign Science and Engineering Doctoral Attainment at American Universities(2010-01-08T18:26:38Z) Hamilton, Robert V.; Hamilton, Robert V.This dissertation analyzes the nearly 100,000 foreign students who attained science and engineering (S&E) doctorates in the five fields of physical sciences, life sciences, engineering, mathematics and computer sciences, and social and behavioral sciences at American universities from 1994 to 2005. Two models are presented. In the first model controlling for population, multivariate regression results testing for whether foreign students from higher or lower income nations (181 nations) tended to attain S&E doctorates showed that certain S&E fields tended to be represented by students from higher income nations early in the time period (e.g. 1994 to 1999) but the national income variable explaining foreign S&E doctoral attainment was not statistically significant in four of the fields after the year 2000. Four nations, China, India, South Korea and Taiwan stand out due to their large S&E doctoral student presence at American universities, but virtually all growth in foreign doctoral attainment in four of the S&E fields from 1994 to 2005 came from Chinese students, and this growth was most pronounced after the year 2001. In short, whereas the foreign student populations from South Korea and Taiwan were the outliers in 1994 and as such skewed testing results, they had largely been displaced in 2005 by the increased presence of Chinese students. From the US public policy perspective, to the extent that growth in foreign S&E doctoral attainment is an issue to include its related costs and benefits, the appropriate policy focus should shift more specifically towards the growth in Chinese S&E doctoral attainment. Further, with the exception of China and India, foreign doctoral students from the lowest income nations of the world in all five S&E fields were greatly under represented on American campuses from 1994 to 2005. Testing results from the second model complement the findings in the first model. Whereas the first model tested for the effects of national income on foreign S&E doctoral attainment, the second model tested for changes in foreign S&E doctoral attainment over the time period 1994 to 2005. Specifically, testing results for the second model indicated that changes in S&E doctoral attainment by students from the lower income nations tended to more closely track changes in education-related R&D funding compared to students from higher income nations. These results suggest that to the extent the US government desires to increase foreign doctoral attainment in specific S&E fields, students from lower income nations might have a greater tendency to “chase” education-related R&D dollars in the targeted S&E fields. Finally, testing results for both models indicate that there was variation between the five S&E fields, and that highly-skilled migration patterns in certain S&E fields changed relatively quickly during the time period 1994 to 2005. These results suggest that foreign S&E doctoral attainment should be disaggregated both temporally and by S&E population in order to adequately measure and understand this phenomenon.Item Worldview and Public Policy: From American Exceptionalism to American Empire(2010-02-01T20:08:33Z) Lavender, Wayne; Lavender, WayneA worldview provides the framework in which to perceive reality: it is the existential construct through which humans focus and establish a context to the environment in which they live. Linked to the culture in which one lives, it can be expressed as a philosophy, a cognitive map, image, mindscape, symbolic universe, world hypotheses, assumptive worlds or moral orders, and is derived from the German Weltanschauung. A worldview is complex and dynamic and may be held by a majority or a minority within a society. The building blocks for a worldview include history, collective memory, religious heritage, symbols, and myths / legends / folktales. Every culture, every society and every nation has a unique history, collective memory, religious heritage and collection of myths / legends / folktales. The combination of these factors creates a worldview, a context in which individual and national decisions are framed. The collective experience of the US leads to its current status in the world as the only superpower, a unipolar status unequaled in history. Total military spending in the US by the Pentagon and Department of Defense (FY2009) is approximately one trillion dollars. This represents approximately 54.5 percent of the total amount of defense spending of the entire world. David Kilcullen writes: “In mid-2008, counting supplemental budget allocations for the Iraq War, the U.S. defense budget is approaching 70 percent of total global defense spending.” The US has stationed at least 267,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines in, according to a Washington Post op-ed piece coauthored by then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, more than 115 foreign nations. Meanwhile, federal funding for development and diplomacy combined encompasses only a tiny fraction (5 percent) of total federal revenue designated for military spending. This imbalance has been cited by proponents of 3 – D Security (Defense, Diplomacy and Development) as problematic: a fully “balanced approach,” they argue, will mitigate war and advance peaceful solutions through the application of “smart power.” Evidence collected and presented suggests the existence of a dominant worldview within the United States that supports redemptive violence and therefore supports the status quo in relation to appropriations for defense, diplomacy and development. The research also indicates the presence of a recessive gene that supports international cooperation, conflict resolution and peaceful coexistence. Research was conducted using a concurrent triangular strategy methodology, an approach that combined elements of quantitative and qualitative research. Following the presentation and analysis of the data, policy recommendations are offered in an effort to nurture the recessive gene of cooperation in order to address other pressing concerns of the 21st Century such as environmental degradation, pandemic poverty, and a world awash with weapons.