In this paper, we provide an analysis of the deployment of labour market and career guidance as an instrument of liberal governmental rationality, and hence as a key tool for shaping attitudes suitable for the labour market. We characterize such processes and their effects on both those in receipt of guidance and those delivering it, on the basis of a three-year study in France, Slovenia, Spain…
The authors draw on a natural experiment to demonstrate that states can reconstruct conflictual interethnic relationships into cooperative relationships in relatively short periods of time. The article examines differences in how the gentile population in each of two neighboring territories in Romania treated its Jewish population during the Holocaust. These territories had been part of tsarist…
This paper sets out to critically explore the use of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) in relation to young people with learning disabilities. It brings together an emerging body of evidence, from a range of sources, which suggests that these marginalized and vulnerable young people are over-represented amongst those made subject to ASBOs. In this context it will provide a critique of existi…
There is international enthusiasm for the idea that sport can contribute to social inclusion strategies. Sport now features in various targeted youth initiatives, including Positive Futures: a sport and activity based social inclusion programme currently operating in England and Wales. The processes through which these sports-based interventions might promote social inclusion require,…
The authors review three theoretical approaches to strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR), which can be defined as voluntary CSR actions that enhance a firms competitiveness and reputation. The end result of such activities should be an improvement in financial and economic performance. Based on an overview of recent empirical evidence, the authors conclude that economic theories of s…
This article contributes to research on strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR) by detailing the condition-sets governing the emergence of market-led demand for CSR. We build on external effects theory to evaluate the strategic options a company can adopt to manage its negative external effects in a way that creates social and economic value. We draw on the economic concepts of rivalry …
Despite the numerous forays into understanding the concept and consequences of Corporate Social Performance (CSP), very little is known about how CSP impacts employees. In response, this study examines the relationship between employee perceptions of CSP and organizational commitment in a manufacturing industry setting. Survey data are collected from 136 production employees at three kitchen ca…
Inconsistent results in prior work that link environmental strategy to competitive advantage may be due to the empirical difficulties of marrying the theoretical connection between a firms resource base and its environmental strategy. The authors contribute to the field by developing a measure that is congruent with the natural resourcebased view, a dominant paradigm in this line of work. Thi…
Although existing research evaluates how the adoption of proactive environmental strategies affects corporate performance, there is little understanding of the organizational mechanisms that link such strategies to competitive advantage. It is, therefore, unclear how environmental strategies relate to other management strategies that could lead to a competitive advantage. In this article, we an…
This article examines the effect of social shareholder activism on one of the most visible aspects of corporate social behavior, namely corporate pollution management practice. Social shareholder activism is a distinct form of social movement that engages firms in the suites. We theorize the effect of social shareholder activism using three social movement mechanisms: (a) disruption of routin…
This study contributes to the work on board composition and firm corporate social responsibility by extending it to the environmental domain. It evaluates the relationship between boards of directors composition and environmental corporate social responsibility (ECSR) by integrating literatures on board composition, firm corporate social responsibility, and individual differences in attitudes …
Under what conditions do motherhood penalties emerge in countries undergoing transition from state socialism to capitalism? This analysis identifies the ways managers in global financial firms employ gendered assumptions in constructing and implementing labor practices among highly skilled professional workers in Hungary. Relying on 33 in-depth interviews with employers as well as interviews wi…
I explore gender messages in Boy Scout and Girl Scout handbooks through an analysis of how gender is infused in the context and content of Scout activities as well as in instructions about how the Scouts are to approach these activities. I find that girls are offered more activities intended to be performed in group contexts than are boys. Boys are offered proportionately more activities with s…
Despite a declining interest in the relationship between leadership, culture, and performance in the scholarly literature, culture change is alive and well among leaders in the public sector as a means to improve performance. This essay reviews the trajectory of culture studies and proposes a modest model of organizational culture that sets aside many of the conceptual and methodological argume…
Few topics in the study of contemporary public organizations better illustrate the burdensand potential benefitsof sustaining dialogue between practitioners and scholars than the interplay between leadership, organizational culture, and public sector performance. Following two decades of intensive research and advocacy, the last 10 years have seen diminished scholarly attention to this subjec…
Changes during the last decade have significantly altered the nature of election administration and driven up its costs. Interviews with practitioner representatives from the elections community reveal a number of issues that continue to influence this field. Expense data from two counties illustrate how policy changes affect election costs. Scheduled ending of federal funding threatens a perf…
Interlocal cooperation through service-sharing agreements has a long history, but its use has increased in popularity during the last 20 years. The decisions of local government units to collaborate through intergovernmental service agreements are best understood as a two-stage process. The first stage, in which communities decide whether to consider interlocal cooperation, involves the nature …
Eminent domain is an urgent problem facing local government administrators and scholars throughout the United States. However, the literature is sparse regarding how local leaders make decisions on this hot-button issue. A 2006 Government Accountability Office report noted a lack of data about local governments use of their eminent domain authority. A survey of county managers in North Carolin…
Data from approximately 1,000 small, mostly rural municipalities in Illinois, New Hampshire, and Wisconsin address local choices on production and contracting arrangements for a wide range of services. The results suggest that the use of both for-profit contractors and cooperative agreements with other governments correlate negatively with population size. Small municipalities are less likely t…
What is the current state of research on business improvement districts (BIDs)? What is an appropriate framework for analysis? What are key questions for advancing future BID research? BIDs can be understood best within a network governance framework. The research shows, first, a blurring of the line between the public and private spheres as a result of BIDs; second, BIDs are increasingly impor…