COVID-19, Social Inequity, Immigration Enforcement, Open Records, and Representation

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JPMSP Introductory Pages

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Internet access levels are not the sole determinant of howtransparent government websites are.

Does increased Internet access lead to higher levels of governmental transparency? In new resealed, Grichawat Lowatcharin and Charles Menifield assess the impact of geographic, demographic, socioeconomic, and institutional factors on governmental transparency across more than 800 counties in the twelve U.S. Midwestern states. They found that total land area, population density, percentage of minority population, educational attainment, and the council-manager form of government are statistically associated with higher levels of government transparency at the county level via the Internet

JPMSP Introductory Pages

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A avaliação dos critérios de elegibilidade para alunos iniciantes e na metade da carreira profissional: Evidências de um Programa MPA nos EUA

As applications for graduate and professional degree programs have reached unprecedented levels over the past decade, the applicant pool has become more diverse with more mid-career students deciding to return to school. Given the growth and diversification of the graduate applicant pool, many graduate programs are struggling to develop stronger admission package criteria that assure students admitted to their program have the pre-requisite skills needed to succeed. We examine which commonly used graduate admission criteria, particularly the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), correlate with the academic performance of both early and mid-career professional students. Using data from student files from a southeastern U.S. graduate public administration program, we find that the GRE score, undergraduate grade point average, and type of undergraduate institution are good predictors of graduate performance, but that the value of these admission criteria differs for early and mid- career students.Las aplicaciones para los programas de posgrado han alcanzado niveles sin precedentes en la última década, el número de solicitantes se ha vuelto más diverso, con más estudiantes en la mitad de sus carreras profesionales tomando la decisión de regresar a la universidad. Dado el crecimiento y la diversificación del grupo de solicitantes de postgrado, muchos programas de están luchando para desarrollar criterios de admisión de más fuertes que aseguren los estudiantes admitidos en sus programas tienen las habilidades y pre-requisitos necesarios para ser exitosos en sus estudios. Examinamos los criterios de admisión de posgrado comúnmente utilizados, en particular el Graduate Record Exam (GRE), y como se correlacionan con el rendimiento académico de los estudiantes, tanto principiantes como los profesionales a mitad de carrera. El uso de datos de los archivos del estudiante de un programa de administración pública de posgrado de del sudeste Estados Unidos, encontramos que la puntuación de GRE, el promedio de las notas y el tipo de institución de pregrado son buenos predictores para el desempeño en posgrado, pero que el valor de estos criterios de admisión difieren para estudiantes principiantes y estudiantes a mitad de carrera.As inscrições nos programas de pós-graduação alcançaram níveis sem precedentes na última década, o grupo de candidatos tornou-se mais diversificado, com mais alunos no meio das suas carreiras profissionais tomando a decisão de voltar para a faculdade. Dado o crescimento e diversificação do grupo de candidatos de pós-graduação, muitos programas estão procurando desenvolver critérios de aceitação mais rigorosos para assegurar que os estudantes aceitos em seus programas tinham as habilidades e pré-requisitos necessários para ser bem sucedidos em seus estudos. Foram examinados os critérios de admissão de pós-graduação comumente utilizados, especialmente o Graduate Record exame (GRE), e como eles se relacionam com o desempenho acadêmico dos alunos, novatos e dos profissionais em meio das carreiras. Usando dados dos estudante de um programa de pós-graduação da administração pública do sudeste dos Estados Unidos, descobrimos que GRE, a média das avaliações e do tipo de instituição de graduação são bons indicadores de desempenho em pós-graduação mas o valor destes critérios de admissão são diferentes para alunos iniciantes e alunos em meio de carreira profissional

Impact of Stand Your Ground, Background Checks and Conceal and Carry Laws on Homicide Rates in the U.S

In recent years, the number of gun related killings appear to be on the rise. In fact, data show that gun related murders rose 32% between 2014 and 2017 (Gramlich 2019). While the second amendment to the U.S. Constitution allows citizens to bear weapons, many states have passed additional laws regulating the industry. These include restrictive and prohibitive laws. The goal of this paper is to assess the impact of changes in hand gun related legislation on firearm homicide rates in the United States for the period 1999-2015. More specifically, we focus on the impact of stand your ground, right to carry and background checks laws and how they impact changes in homicide rates. Using a unique data set, we created a change point model and used regression models to show that changes to handgun laws do in fact impact homicide rates in many state

Trends of obesity and abdominal obesity in Tehranian adults: a cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Considering the increasing trend of obesity reported in current data, this study was conducted to examine trends of obesity and abdominal obesity among Tehranian adults during a median follow-up of 6.6 years.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Height and weight of 4402 adults, aged 20 years and over, participants of the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS), were measured in 1999-2001(phase I) and again in 2002-2005(phase II) and 2006-2008 (phase III). Criteria used for obesity and abdominal obesity defined body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 and waist circumference ≥ 94/80 cm for men/women respectively. Subjects were divided into10-year groups and the prevalence of obesity was compared across sex and age groups.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The prevalence of obesity was 15.8, 18.6 and 21% in men and 31.5, 37.7 and 38.6% in women in phases I, II and III respectively (p < 0.001). The prevalence of abdominal obesity in men was 36.5, 57.2 and 63.3% and in women was 76.7, 83.8 and 83.6% in the three periods mentioned (p < 0.001). Men aged between 20-29 years had highest increase rates of obesity and abdominal obesity in phase III in comparison with phase I (with a respective rates of 2.2- and 3.3-fold). In both sexes, an increased trend was observed between phases I and II, whereas between phases II and III, this trend was observed in men, but not in women.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study demonstrates alarming rises in the prevalences of both obesity and abdominal obesity in both sexes especially in young men, calling for urgent action to educate people in lifestyle modifications.</p

The industrial structure of the California Assembly: Committee assignments, economic interests, and campaign contributions

This paper examines the provision of campaign contributions made by economic interests to incumbents seeking reelection in the 1984, 1986, and 1988 California Assembly elections. The study tests whether the distribution of campaign contributions by specific industrial sectors corresponds to legislator possession of the policy property rights associated with membership on relevant Assembly standing committees. A non-parametric statistical model compares the distribution of campaign contributions from groups within a given industrial sector to members of relevant policy committees with the distribution of contributions from all other contributor classes. The empirical analysis confirms that committee assignments significantly affect the allocation of special interest resources in Assembly elections, substantiating the importance of institutional considerations in influencing special interest activity. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1998