Governance is #4 in public administration, #12 in political science by impact
Governance is now ranked #4 for impact among scholarly journals in public administration, according to ISI’s Journal Citation Report for 2010, released on June 29. Among journals in political science, Governance is ranked #12. Since 2008, Governance is the only journal in the world that is ranked within the top twenty in both public administration and political science.
SOG invites paper proposals for 2012 IPSA World Congress
The submission period for panel proposals for the upcoming IPSA World Congress in Madrid July 8-12 2012 has opened this month. For the regular IPSA programme, each RC may propose an unlimited number of panels which are endorsed by its Board. Research Committee 27, on the Structure and Organization of Government — otherwise known as SOG, the academic sponsor of Governance — encourages the submission of panel proposals on topics related to the mission of the committee. Panel proposals may also be co-sponsored with other IPSA Research Committees. Download this file for more details. The deadline for proposals is 31 July 2011.
Book reviews: Latin American utility regulation; influencing health outcomes in the global South
In the current issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011) Mauricio Dussauge Laguna reviews Political Competition, Partisanship and Policymaking in Latin American Public Utilities by Maria Victoria Murillo. Murillo “offers a comprehensive analysis of how the region’s electricity and telecommunications regimes have been transformed . . . [and] shows that political parties still matter” in shaping regulatory policies. Read the review. And Joseph Wong reviews Wealth, Health and Democracy in East Asia and Latin America by James W. McGuire. McGuire challenges the idea that economic development is the key determinant of health outcomes in the global South, pointing out the effectiveness of relatively inexpensive interventions “even in the context of difficult economic circumstances.” Wong says McGuire’s analysis is “powerful and provocative.” Read the review.
The international debate about childhood education and care: Choice of frame matters
Early childhood education and care issues have increasingly become the focus of attention for a number of international organizations. In the current issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011), Linda White of the University of Toronto examines the different frames which these organizations use to understand these policies: sometimes in terms of rights; sometimes as parental employment policies; and sometimes as exercises in “social pedagogy.” White finds that the choice of frame has important implications for attention to questions of gender justice and child well-being. Read the article: The Internationalization of Early Childhood Education and Care Issues.
How Swiss family policy affects mothers’ labor force participation
How much does a mother’s individual characteristics influence the impact of family policy on her labor market participation? In the current issue of Governance (24.2, April 2011), Isabelle Stadelmann-Steffen of Universität Konstanz (right) explores this question, using data from the Swiss Labor Force Survey. She finds that family policies most strongly influence women with medium levels of education, for whom labor market participation is regarded as optional. High cash benefits to families tends to reduce participation by women with lower levels of education. Read the article: Dimensions of Family Policy and Female Labor Market Participation.
A pessimistic view of competition in voluntary governance
Voluntary schemes for promoting corporate responsibility in social and environmental matters have proliferated, and several schemes may operate in a single industry. The overlap has “negative consequences for the effective functioning of these arrangements,” says Luc Fransen of the University of Amsterdam in the current issue of Governance. Previous studies have suggested that these negative effects will decline over time, as the practices converge. But Fransen says a more pessimistic approach is warranted. Focussing on self-regulatory schemes in the garment industry, Fransens finds that political factors can cause fragmentation and competition to persist, “despite the efforts of parties inside and outside the field to stimulate cooperation.” Read the article: Why Do Private Governance Organizations Not Converge?
Call for Papers: SOG conference in Melbourne January 27-29, 2012
The next conference of the IPSA Structure and Organization of Government Research Committee (SOG) will be hosted by the Centre for Public Policy at University of Melbourne on January 27-29, 2012. SOG is the sponsoring organization of Governance. A Call for Papers is now available. The theme for the conference is “Public Policy and Public Management: Exploring the Changing Linkages.” The deadline for paper proposals is August 31. For more information, contact Damon Alexander at University of Melbourne.
Book reviews: Democratic governance, IMF decisionmaking, groupthink in international relations
In the current issue of Governance, Henrik Enroth of Linnaeus University reviews Democratic Governance by Mark Bevir. The book makes “vital contributions to our understanding” of the rise and spread of the language of governance, Enroth says. Read the review. Richard Allen reviews The International Monetary Fund in the Global Economy by M.S. Copelovitch. Allen says that Copelovitch “provides a comprehensive review of how decisions are taken in the IMF . . . and is exceptional in terms of the depth of its coverage and adroit use” of evidence. Read the review. And Paul ‘t Hart reviews Groupthink vs. High Quality Decision Making in International Relations by Mark Schafer and Scott Crichlow. Their study “adds a whole new layer of analysis” about the way leaders’ traits and behavior can affect high-level policymaking, ‘t Hart concludes. Read the review.
Christopher Hood lectures on “WikiLeaks World”
Professor 
Christopher Hood of the University of Oxford gave a keynote address on the advent of “WikiLeaks World” at the First Global Conference on Transparency Research at Rutgers University on May 19. Professor Hood’s address was sponsored by Governance and will appear as a commentary in the October 2011 issue of the journal. Photo: Alasdair Roberts, co-editor, Governance; Christopher Hood; and Suzanne Piotrowski, Rutgers University, conference chair.
Kerala’s ombudsman: potential limited by an unresponsive state government
In a research note in the current issue of Governance, Joshua Stark reports on the first decade of work by the ombudsman of the Indian state of Kerala. Kerala was one of a host of jurisdictions in the developing world that adopted the ombudsman model to improve accountability within government. Kerala’s ombudsman has had notable successes but its potential is “constrained by an unresponsive state government,” Stark says. The note is based on a longer study supported by Centre for Policy Research and the Research Foundation for Governance for India. Read the research note.
