Political Crisis in Central Government and Bureaucrats’ Responses in Provincial Government: The Impact of Governors’ Characteristics

2021 ◽  
pp. 106591292110536
Author(s):  
Soonae Park ◽  
Don S. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Intergovernmental Relations ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Original Survey ◽  
The Impact

Scholars have debated the question of what influences bureaucrats’ policy implementation in provincial government, some taking the top-down and some the bottom-up approaches. However, less well understood in this debate is the impact of governors’ characteristics, particularly at a time of national political crisis. Given that their roles have been proven important for the performance of provincial governments, this is a significant oversight. To fill this gap, we examine the effect of governors’ political characteristics on provincial bureaucrats’ responses to the center by leveraging a unique setting, that of presidential impeachment in South Korea. Using original survey data on 655 civil servants from all 17 provincial governments, gathered as part of a representative survey, we find that bureaucrats are less responsive to the central government after impeachment. Our results show that this difference between pre- and post-impeachment is driven by several political characteristics, such as governors’ political ideology and tenure in office. Our findings have implications for the role of governors in intergovernmental relations and the management of provincial governments’ performance.

scholarly journals Empathy in Piano Duet Rehearsal and Performance: A Response to Haddon and Hutchinson

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 157
Author(s):  
Fred Seddon
Keyword(s):  
Verbal Communication ◽  
Original Study ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Dual Roles ◽  
Unique Role ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Prior Relationship

<p>This review comments upon the article entitled above. The article is well written and describes an interesting and original study. This review critiques the Method and Discussion sections of the article and offers suggestions for future research. Three specific points from the method are considered relating to: dual roles as researcher-musicians, the use of reflective diaries in research, and the impact on the research of the prior relationship between the authors. The unique role of &ldquo;written empathy&rdquo; is discussed within the context of empathic relationships. Also, this review considers how shifts from verbal to non-verbal communication may indicate movement from a &ldquo;top-down&rdquo; to &ldquo;bottom up&rdquo; response, and how this shift is related to &ldquo;empathetic attunement.&rdquo;</p>

scholarly journals From Social Trust and Happiness to Government Trust: The Moderating Role of Political Systems and Governance in the Philippines

PCD Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 305
Author(s):  
Erickson D Calata ◽  
Reginald G. Ugaddan
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Social Trust ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Trust In Government ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

There are frequent calls to enhance citizens' trust in government to pave the way towards a new paradigm of participatory governance and strong citizen support for government. In various realms, citizens may directly or indirectly engage with the government through various available mediums, even though, despite the availability of various policies and services provided by the government, citizens are generally passive and adamant in trusting the public sector. While many studies have explored a set of determinants that influence citizens' trust in government (i.e., central government, local government, parliament, and the legal system), few studies have ascertained the relationship and the role of social trust, happiness, governance, and political systems. These are critical factors that may influence trust in government. To address this gap, this study draws on the theoretical lens of social capital theory, proposing that cognitive social trust and citizen happiness—environment and performance—are the most likely predictors of citizen trust in government. This study assumes that citizens' perceptions of governance and political systems will moderate the effect of social trust and happiness on trust in government. Using data from the Asia Barometer Survey 2007, and focusing on data collected from the Philippines, this study tests a latent model employing the structural equation modelling technique. It finds that happiness negatively predicts trust in the central government and the legal system, while all other predictors do not have a significant effect. The findings also show that the political system moderates the impact of social trust and happiness on trust in government. Finally, this article points out its theoretical, empirical, and practical implications and provides directions for future research.

The Limits of Regionalization: The Intergovernmental Struggle over EU Cohesion Policy in the Czech Republic

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 863-884 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Baun ◽  
Dan Marek
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Intergovernmental Relations ◽  
Cohesion Policy ◽  
Central State ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Structural Funds ◽  
Funds Management

What explains national variation in the implementation of EU Cohesion Policy, in particular when it comes to the role of regions in Structural Funds management? This is an important question because, as some scholars have claimed, Cohesion Policy has the potential to empower regions and promote regionalization in Europe. Particularly in the new CEE member states, where relations between central and subnational authorities often remain unsettled or in a state of flux, the ability of regional authorities to exercise a substantial role in Cohesion Policy implementation could significantly impact intergovernmental relations and the balance of power between the central state and regions. This article examines this question in the case of one CEE member state, the Czech Republic, where the role of regions in Structural Funds management has been a particularly contentious issue over the course of three programming periods beginning in 2004. The article argues that the standard explanation in the literature for variation in Cohesion Policy implementation—national constitutional arrangements and governmental traditions—cannot explain the change of implementation systems in the Czech Republic because these remained constant over the three programming periods under investigation. Instead, the Czech case suggests the primary importance of regional administrative capacity and performance as a factor affecting Cohesion Policy implementation, while domestic politics and EU-level influences play important though secondary roles.

Political Calling in an Age of Technology

2019 ◽  
pp. 41-70
Author(s):  
George Pattison
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Personal Relationship ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
Contemporary Society ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Communications Technologies ◽  
The Impact

The modern world has been marked by a recurring sense of the degradation of language. According to Hannah Arendt, for whom the possibility of politics is interdependent with the possibility of authentic speech, this generates a political crisis, connected to the role of science in contemporary society. The impact of science on the language of public discourse is further explored through Habermas and Uwe Poerksen. Their analyses receive added force through the development of new communications technologies that are proving fateful both for individuals and their personal relationship as well as for political life. Though acknowledging the optimism still associated with these technologies in some quarters, the chapter asks how we can protect against their negative effects. The thought of Byung-Chul Han is used to identify the need for attentive listening and a sense of the uniqueness of the human countenance and name to counter the digital shitstorm.

Taking Social Cohesion to Task: Perceptions of Transgender Military Inclusion and Concepts of Cohesion

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Spindel ◽  
Robert Ralston
Keyword(s):  
Political Ideology ◽  
General Public ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
Elite Level ◽  
Unit Effectiveness ◽  
Original Survey ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Unit Cohesion

Abstract Recent political debates over the inclusion of transgender servicemembers in the US military center around the impact such inclusion will have on unit cohesion and effectiveness. Missing from the debate, however, are the perceptions of those who do the soldiering. What are their perceptions of cohesion? Do they, like political leaders and the general public, believe unit cohesion leads to military effectiveness? In other words, how much does the narrative at the elite level—that insists excluding minority groups is a military necessity—match the perceptions of those who serve? Drawing on an original survey of 151 current and former members of the US military, our results suggest that servicemembers’ perceptions mirror those in the general public: political ideology is correlated with beliefs that minority groups disrupt unit cohesion. We find that conservatives are more likely to believe that the inclusion of transgender soldiers will negatively impact cohesion and undermine unit effectiveness. Moreover, conservatives are more likely to endorse a conceptualization of cohesion that hinges on the social—“people like me” or “band of brothers”—dynamics of cohesion rather than more professional, task-oriented conceptions of cohesion. However, military experience affects these perceptions: respondents with combat experience, who held/hold a higher rank, and who are currently serving are more likely to endorse a task-based conception of cohesion that ties cohesion to professionalism and competence, rather than social identity.

scholarly journals The Impact of Mobile Phone Uses in the Developing World

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 20-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvain K. Cibangu ◽  
Mark Hepworth ◽  
Donna Champion
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Impact

In recent years, the rise of information and communication technologies (ICTs) contrasted with the dire living conditions of the world's poorest has been the subject of debate among industry and academia. However, despite the amount of writings produced on mobile phones, Western bias is surprisingly unbridledly prevailing alongside the fêted dissemination of mobile phones. Expansive literature tends to present the rapid adoption of mobile phones among rural individuals, with little to no indication of how local values and voices are respected or promoted. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 16 rural chiefs to inquire into ways in which mobile phones enabled socio-economic development in the rural Congo. Rather than using quantitative, large-scale, or top-down data, we sought to give voice to chiefs themselves about the role of mobile phones. We found that Western bias dominates the literature and deployment of mobile phones more than usually acknowledged. We suggested some paths forward, while bringing the African communal Utu or Ubuntu culture to the center stage.

scholarly journals Empowerment of local government in New Zealand: A new model for contemporary local-central relations?

2008 ◽  
pp. 30-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Cheyne
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Government Policy ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Intergovernmental Relations ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
The Relationship

Since 2000 intergovernmental relations in New Zealand have been evolving rapidly as a result of a significant shift in government policy discourse towards a strong central-local government partnership. New statutory provisions empowering local government to promote social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing have significant implications for the range of activities in which local authorities are engaged. In turn, this has consequences for the relationship between local government and central government. The effectiveness of the new empowerment and the prospects for further strengthening of the role of local government are critically examined. Despite some on-going tensions, and an inevitable mismatch in the balance of power between central and local government, it is argued that there is a discernible rebalancing of intergovernmental relations as a result of new legislation and central government policy settings which reflect a ‘localist turn’. On the basis of developments since 2000 it may be argued that the New Zealand system of local government is evolving away from the recognised ‘Anglo’ model. However, further consolidation is needed in the transformation of intergovernmental relations and mechanisms that will cement a more genuine central-local government partnership.

scholarly journals You Win Some, You Lose Some: Pension Reform in Bachelet’s First and Second Administrations

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Borzutzky
Keyword(s):  
Political Ideology ◽  
Pension System ◽  
Pension Reform ◽  
Presidential Power ◽  
Pension Policy ◽  
The Will ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Government Coalition

This article analyses and compares President Bachelet’s successful efforts to reform the Chilean pension system in 2008 and her failure to achieve the same objective in 2017. The article addresses the impact of electoral promises, policy legacies, policy ideology, presidential power, the role of the private sector, and the role that the government coalitions had in the process of pension reform during the Bachelet administrations. We argue that the 2008 reform was possible because of Bachelet’s personal commitment to reform and the presence of a stable governing coalition that had the will and capacity to legislate. In the second administration, although the policy legacies and ideology had remained the same, the reform did not materialise due to intense conflict within the administration and within the government coalition, as well as conflict between the administration and the coalition. These conflicts, in turn, generated a vicious cycle responsible for Bachelet’s declining popularity, limited political capital, and reduced support for reform. A stagnant economy further undermined these efforts. In brief, this article argues that when assessing success and failure in pension policy reform it is important to analyse not only policy legacies and political ideology but also the strength of the executive, the cohesion of the governing coalition, and the country’s economic performance.

Who Won the “Wool War”?: A Case Study of Rural Product Marketing in China

1989 ◽  
Vol 118 ◽  
pp. 213-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew watson ◽  
Christopher Findlay ◽  
Du Yintang
Keyword(s):  
Economic Reform ◽  
Open Economy ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Economic Management ◽  
Strategic Goals ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Intensive Development

The absence of a systematic programme has been a distinctive feature of China's economic reform process. The Chinese did not set out to develop a step-by-step plan of reform to be phased in over a period of years. Instead they adopted a number of strategic goals, and in 1978 launched incremental and pragmatic changes aimed at realizing them. Essentially the strategy adopted had four main aspects: a shift from economic growth expressed mainly through statistical targets towards an emphasis on satisfying the consumption needs of the population; a change from extensive development based on new investment towards intensive development through greater efficiency; an acceptance of greater economic autonomy for producers, with a broader mix of methods of economic management and types of ownership; and the adoption of a much more open economy. The reforms adopted over the succeeding years have all been consistent with these objectives, but they have not been implemented through a carefully planned series of stages. Overall the process has been marked by different rates of reform across sectors, by occasional pauses and even retreats, and by problems generated by the interaction of the differing rates of reform. Enterprise managers, for example, have found that plan controls over their production or sales have disappeared at a faster rate than controls over their supply of inputs. Given the dual price system and the continuing role of the central government in the supply of strategic materials and energy, the impact of the uneven pace of change on managers’ behaviour has therefore been very complex.

The Public Debt of French Local Government

1985 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre-Henri Derycke ◽  
Guy Gilbert
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Interest Rates ◽  
Public Debt ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Tight Control ◽  
The Public ◽  
Policy Measures ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTAfter a sharp increase, the public debt of French local communities has been stabilized in real terms: its amount reached 54 per cent of total public debt in 1980. In the French institutional framework, local government borrowing policy is under the tight control of central agencies. An econometric model of the borrowing behaviour of local governments since 1965 is presented; it emphasizes the role of internal determinants of local debt (needs for investment, self-financing ability of governments), external constraints (e.g. interest rates and the financial resources of lenders, such as households savings), and finally the impact of macroeconomic policy measures from the central government.

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