Hurricane Katrina vividly showed that policy compliance can be a life-or-death matter in times of natural disasters. Although a substantial number of emergency management studies examined the determinants of evacuation compliance, they largely focused on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. Research in policy implementation shows that public confidence in government institutions and knowledge about policies implemented are critical factors for securing compliance from target populations. Building upon this literature, we examine whether confidence and knowledge factors can predict compliance behaviors with policies of disaster response. Our analysis of a nationwide survey indicates that confidence in Federal Emergency Management Agency significantly increases the probability of compliance with evacuation orders. Individuals with better knowledge of local disaster response plans are also more likely to comply with evacuation orders than others. These findings suggest that enhancing the effectiveness of disaster management policy may require a fundamentally different approach with a new focus on institutional capacity and process.

No abstract

No abstract

Faced with ever increasing pressures for better performance and financial bottom line, governments around the world are devolving more responsibilities to subnational governments. Especially in developing countries, this trend has coupled with increased demands for greater democracy and disaffection with the services provided by the central government. This article examines what has happened in South Korea since its devolution reform in 1995. Specifically, it examines political capital factors in determining the amount of intergovernmental transfers to the regional governments. The analysis shows that political decentralization has resulted in financial weakening of the subnational governments of general purposes and that although the incidence of intergovernmental transfer is affected by the political considerations, Korea has substantially improved horizontal fiscal imbalance.

This study explores how the gender and racial composition of the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) portion of the federal workforce has changed, and how female and minority employees with STEM degrees compare with White majorities and those with degrees in non-STEM fields. Using a series of ordinary least square analyses of a 1% random sample of federal employees for 1983, 1996, and 2009, this study finds that gender and racial pay disparities have decreased over the study period, and that the extant gender pay gap can be explained largely by educational attainment, work experience, and particularly by the changing composition in STEM majors. Despite the decrease in pay disparity, a racial pay gap still remains even after controlling for education level, federal experience, and other major factors.