View All Items
(1 - 10 of 10)
- Title
- Social Media Usage by Municipal Elected Officials for Open Government Community Engagement.
- Creator
-
Stoeckel, Sarah, Bryer, Thomas, Mitchell, David, Hu, Qian, Brown, Tim, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
As public administration has evolved with the technological advances in today's society, it can be challenging to ensure the demands of the public are being met in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, and engagement. Nonetheless, a focus on community remains at the forefront of public administration. When looking at technology and the community, the tool known as social media emerges. Social media has allowed people to interact in new ways and therefore, has allowed the government to interact...
Show moreAs public administration has evolved with the technological advances in today's society, it can be challenging to ensure the demands of the public are being met in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, and engagement. Nonetheless, a focus on community remains at the forefront of public administration. When looking at technology and the community, the tool known as social media emerges. Social media has allowed people to interact in new ways and therefore, has allowed the government to interact with citizens in ways they have not been able to in the past. In addition to attempting to modernize public administration, there has been an increased focus on building citizen trust through providing a more open government structure. The Open Government Directive issued by President Barack Obama focused on three tenets, which included transparency, participation, and collaboration. One of the ways government entities within the United States are strengthening these areas is through the implementation of various social media sites as a means to stay connected with citizens. With an increase of users utilizing social media tools for both information and connection, many government departments and agencies have incorporated social media use into their workplace as a function for their department. However, it is elected officials that are the ones who represent the citizens from their governmental role and thus, can aid in bridging the gap between citizens and government. Yet, there is little research on how elected officials, specifically in municipalities, are utilizing social media to connect with their constituents. This study discusses social media use by municipal elected officials and how it relates to open government community engagement. Open government community engagement is defined in terms of the three tenets of the Open Government Directive: transparency, participation, and collaboration encompassing the rungs of Arnstein's ladder of citizen participation. For this qualitative study, fifty-seven Florida municipal elected officials were interviewed regarding their social media use or lack thereof in terms of engagement with citizens. The interviews are followed-up with content analysis of social media sites. An ethnographic approach is utilized to uncover and develop common themes related to open government community engagement. The findings suggest while some municipal elected officials are utilizing social media well in terms of open government community engagement, there is a lack of clear understanding of social media use within the context of the Sunshine Law, as well as other barriers prohibiting utilizing social media for more of the participation and collaboration components. There are several reasons municipal elected officials opt to avoid social media altogether, while additional concepts related to open government limited engagement and closed government community engagement are explored. The concept of avoidance was addressed, especially as it pertained to the practical implications for both city administrators and elected officials.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2018
- Identifier
- CFE0007377, ucf:52083
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007377
- Title
- Social Media and Stakeholders' Relationship in Nonprofit Organizations.
- Creator
-
Shi, Wanzhu, Bryer, Thomas, Hu, Qian, Zavattaro, Staci, Saxton, Gregory, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Social media tools, as the advanced technology, have penetrated into nonprofit management field prevalently. Nonprofit organizations adopt social media tools, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest for attracting potential supporters, raising advocacy, and running fundraising campaigns. Social media tools break the limitation of time and space through the Internet. They change the way of how people communicate and interact with each other. The philanthropy industry hopes that...
Show moreSocial media tools, as the advanced technology, have penetrated into nonprofit management field prevalently. Nonprofit organizations adopt social media tools, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest for attracting potential supporters, raising advocacy, and running fundraising campaigns. Social media tools break the limitation of time and space through the Internet. They change the way of how people communicate and interact with each other. The philanthropy industry hopes that social media tools could bring them the new opportunities to engage with their stakeholders, such as donors, volunteers, and customers. However, since this technology is still developing, the studies of using social media in nonprofit field are still at the infant stage. Many nonprofit practitioners are confused and questioning the effectiveness of adopting social media for civic engagement. The dissertation aims to examine how to adopt social media advantageously for helping nonprofit organizations to engage with their stakeholders. Therefore, this study uses a mix of methodology to examine how social media tools could help nonprofit organizations to gain a stronger relationship with their stakeholders. Also, the study explores in more details about the content that nonprofit organizations have sent on their social media platforms. To develop the theoretical framework, this study used social capital and social exchange theory as the guidance. To observe and examine the strategy of using social media in nonprofit organizations, the study is inspired and adopts the social media typology from Lovejoy and Saxton's (2012) research and the communication models from Lewis, Hamel, and Richardson's work (2001). The study proposed that to gain a stronger relationship with the stakeholders, nonprofit organizations should apply a well-designed comprehensive strategy with multiple goals on their social media platforms. This strategy should consider more about the stakeholders' desires and needs and allows the organizations to communicate with the stakeholders effectively. Also, the study also argues that the content that an organization presents on its social media would impact on the stakeholders' interaction greatly. The study targeted on the art/culture/humanities nonprofit organizations in the United States (n = 195). Data was collected directly from the targeted organization's social media platforms (Facebook and Twitter). The regression analysis was conducted to investigate what strategy that nonprofit organization used could gain a high engagement from their stakeholders. A content analysis was also conducted to explore what posts and tweets could influence how stakeholders react. The results indicate that most nonprofit organizations realize the importance of adopting social media, but a few of them still have not embraced the benefits of the technology essentially. Comparing with the activities on Twitter, both nonprofit organizations and their stakeholders were more active on Facebook. On social media, the primary goal for most nonprofit organizations was to disseminate the information. But sending out the information can be an effective strategy. If a nonprofit organization could combine their values/missions/programs with the hot spot on social media, it can promote the stakeholders' engagement greatly. Building a dialogic content on the organization's social media is still overlooked. But no evidence in this study shown that initiating a dialog would receive a high engagement from the stakeholders. The results of this study also show that a nonprofit organization delivered the posts or tweets more frequently does not necessarily mean it would receive a higher interactivity from its stakeholders. The organization's size (the annual budget) does not influence how nonprofit organizations used their social media tools to interact with their online stakeholders. Overall, the study explored how art/culture/humanities nonprofit organizations used their Facebook and Twitter to interact with their online stakeholders. The study helps both the researchers and the practitioners to understand the strategies of using social media tools in nonprofit organizations. It also reveals several practical examples to illustrate what kind of social media content could attract or discourage the online stakeholders' engagement. The study is also a good benchmark report for nonprofit practitioners to evaluate their social media usage.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- Identifier
- CFE0006659, ucf:51244
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006659
- Title
- The Impact of Public Service Motivation on Reentry Managers' Decision-making Practices.
- Creator
-
Pryor, Marie, Kapucu, Naim, Hu, Qian, Blessett, Brandi, Potter, Roberto, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The goal of this exploratory study is to examine the effects of public service motivation (PSM) in predicting decision-making of criminal justice personnel (reentry managers) in the management of former prisoners. The overarching research question seeks to answer if, and in what way, PSM score influences reentry managers' approach to their work with the formerly incarcerated, who are in transition from prison back into the community. The main assumption of this study is that those reentry...
Show moreThe goal of this exploratory study is to examine the effects of public service motivation (PSM) in predicting decision-making of criminal justice personnel (reentry managers) in the management of former prisoners. The overarching research question seeks to answer if, and in what way, PSM score influences reentry managers' approach to their work with the formerly incarcerated, who are in transition from prison back into the community. The main assumption of this study is that those reentry managers with a higher PSM score will be more inclined to take an assistance oriented approach with former prisoners and be more likely to make rehabilitative decisions than those with lower PSM scores, who will be more inclined to assume a punitive role. This study utilized binomial logistic regression and chi-square analysis to test hypotheses. Survey data was collected over a period of three months in the summer and fall of 2014, and was based upon a national sample of 108 reentry managers whose agencies had received funding from a federal reentry grant. Follow-up interviews were also conducted with nine participants to provide deeper understanding of responses and explain some of the quantitative findings. Overall findings supported the key assumption with the overall sample possessing medium to high PSM scores and a greater frequency of making rehabilitative decisions.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0006050, ucf:50973
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006050
- Title
- Predictors of an Effective Performance Measurement System: Evidence from Municipal Governments in Turkey.
- Creator
-
Eliuz, Sedat, Kapucu, Naim, Hu, Qian, Martin, Lawrence, Wang, Xiaohu, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The aim of this study is to examine the predictors of effective performance measurement in the context of Turkish municipalities. In the study, mainly the theoretical guidance of context-design-performance model has been utilized to examine the contextual and design factors which have influenced the effective use of performance measurement systems in Turkish municipalities. The following research questions were examined in this study: To what extent do Turkish municipalities implement...
Show moreThe aim of this study is to examine the predictors of effective performance measurement in the context of Turkish municipalities. In the study, mainly the theoretical guidance of context-design-performance model has been utilized to examine the contextual and design factors which have influenced the effective use of performance measurement systems in Turkish municipalities. The following research questions were examined in this study: To what extent do Turkish municipalities implement performance measurement systems effectively?, What are the predictors of effective performance measurement in Turkish municipalities?, and whether or to what extent do quality of performance measures, technical capacity of the municipality for performance measurement, organizational support, and external support for the use of performance measurement have influence on the effectiveness level of performance measurement systems in Turkish municipalities? In the study, the data were collected from Turkish municipalities by a self-administered online survey and were analyzed by using the structural equation modeling (SEM). It is hypothesized in the study that external support and organizational support for the use performance measurement, and technical capacity for the performance measurement are associated with quality of performance measures and effectiveness of performance measurement systems in general. The results of the study supported the hypotheses of the study regarding the relationships among organizational support, technical capacity, quality of performance measures, and effectiveness of performance measurement. Although the results confirmed that external support has an indirect effect on effectiveness of performance measurement via technical capacity and quality of performance measures, the hypothesis regarding the direct effect of it on effectiveness of performance measurement was not supported. Moreover, the study found that support of employees and citizens for the use of performance measurement in Turkish municipalities are relatively low, the municipalities have deficiencies both in the quantity and the quality of staff that are responsible for performance measurement activities, and the level of employee involvement in the development of performance measures is low.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005487, ucf:50364
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005487
- Title
- Use of Performance Information by Local Government Administrators: Evidence from Florida.
- Creator
-
Dimitrijevska-Markoski, Tamara, Kapucu, Naim, Martin, Lawrence, Hu, Qian, Wang, Xiaohu, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
This study examines the factors that facilitate and hinder the use of performance information by public administrators in local governments in Florida. Acknowledging the incompleteness of many theoretical and conceptual models in previous performance management studies and the absence of theory on the use of performance information; this study utilizes a grounded theory approach to develop and test a model analyzing the use of performance information. The research focuses on cities and...
Show moreThis study examines the factors that facilitate and hinder the use of performance information by public administrators in local governments in Florida. Acknowledging the incompleteness of many theoretical and conceptual models in previous performance management studies and the absence of theory on the use of performance information; this study utilizes a grounded theory approach to develop and test a model analyzing the use of performance information. The research focuses on cities and counties, members of the Florida Benchmarking Consortium (FBC), and surveys public administrators whose tasks are related with the collection and/or reporting of performance information. The study examines three research questions: First, to what extent and in what capacity do local government administrators use performance information? Second, what are the predictors of the use of performance information among local government administrators? Finally, to what extent does the design adequacy of a performance measurement system (PMS), institutionalization of performance measurement (IPM), organizational support (OS), individual factors (IF) and external influences (EI) impact the use of performance information among local government administrators? To collect data on the above questions, an online survey was administrated to public administrators involved in the 2015-2016 FBC data collection cycle. The data were analyzed with structural equation modeling (SEM). The results of the study demonstrate that institutionalization of performance measurement has the strongest statistically significant positive association with the use of performance information followed by the influence of the design adequacy of the performance measurement system. Organizational support, through institutionalization of performance measurement, has an indirect influence on the use of performance information. Interestingly, in this study individual factors were not found to be significantly associated with the use of performance information.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- Identifier
- CFE0006586, ucf:51261
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006586
- Title
- The Impact of Board Capital and Servant Leadership on Board Effectiveness: A Study of Florida Community Foundations.
- Creator
-
Obyrne, Lauren, Kapucu, Naim, Hu, Qian, Feldheim, Mary Ann, Sowa, Jessica, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Community foundations have considerable potential for positive social change in the communities they serve yet are understudied in nonprofit management and leadership literature. Recently, community foundations have become one of the largest avenues of organized philanthropy. The boards of community foundations frequently consist of a different composition of members than other nonprofit organizations, making a focus on individual characteristics of board members a worthwhile area of study....
Show moreCommunity foundations have considerable potential for positive social change in the communities they serve yet are understudied in nonprofit management and leadership literature. Recently, community foundations have become one of the largest avenues of organized philanthropy. The boards of community foundations frequently consist of a different composition of members than other nonprofit organizations, making a focus on individual characteristics of board members a worthwhile area of study. This exploratory study considers board capital through human capital, structural capital, and social capital and the impact this has on board effectiveness. In addition, it considers the impact of servant leadership on board effectiveness. The purpose of the study is to assess capital and leadership factors of community foundation board members and examine their influence on perceived board effectiveness. Based on survey data from 71 community foundation board members and executive directors representing 13 different community foundations associated with the Florida Philanthropic Network, the dissertation uses ordinal regression to test hypotheses. Additional data was also collected with follow up focus groups. The study finds that board capital, measured by human capital, structural capital, and social capital, as well as servant leadership, do play a factor in board effectiveness. Further, community foundation boards in the survey population are highly effective, and have unique attributes that make them distinct from other types of nonprofit boards. Follow up focus groups suggested that, although board members define board effectiveness in a number of ways, boards are creating social change within their communities in different ways. Findings have potential for significant insight on an important segment of nonprofit sector organizations, particularly for strengthening communities through philanthropy.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2016
- Identifier
- CFE0006155, ucf:51135
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006155
- Title
- Collaborative Crisis Management in the Public Sector: Effective Leadership under Stress.
- Creator
-
Ustun, Yusuf, Kapucu, Naim, Hu, Qian, Sadri, Houman, Van Wart, Montgomery, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The primary aim of this study is to discover how leadership competencies affect the perceived effectiveness of crisis management. Leadership skills exhibited by public managers in crisis times may help eliminate panic and help victims recover from the difficult situation as soon as possible. The existence of effective leadership in a crisis is one of the most important inputs in order to diminish the harmful effects of crises and disasters. The absence of effective leadership in times of...
Show moreThe primary aim of this study is to discover how leadership competencies affect the perceived effectiveness of crisis management. Leadership skills exhibited by public managers in crisis times may help eliminate panic and help victims recover from the difficult situation as soon as possible. The existence of effective leadership in a crisis is one of the most important inputs in order to diminish the harmful effects of crises and disasters. The absence of effective leadership in times of crisis may be one of the most significant problems in the public administration because it may result in loss of human life and property. By answering the following research questions this study provides useable knowledge for public managers and leaders during crises: Are there any different leadership features or characteristics for effective leadership at time of crises than the leadership in normal time? What is the role of effective leadership in managing crises and disasters (natural or man-made)? How do a public administrator's leadership traits and skills impact the effectiveness of crisis leadership? How do a public administrator's leadership behaviors (task-, people-, and organization-oriented behaviors) influence the effectiveness of a crisis leadership? With the aim of revealing these relations, a self-reported survey was sent to 2,095 current and former Turkish public security network managers. The study found that the core leadership competencies (decisiveness, flexibility, communication, problem solving, managing innovation and creativity, team building, managing and organizing personnel, motivating, networking and partnering, decision making, scanning the environment, and strategic planning) have a positive relationship with the effectiveness of crisis leadership. Among three categories of leadership behaviors, task-oriented leadership behaviors were found with the highest level of impact on the effectiveness of crisis leadership. The study indicated the importance of the core leadership competencies in the effectiveness of crisis leadership. According to the results, the hypothesis testing with the covariance structure model supported the positive impact of the core leadership competencies on the effectiveness of crisis leadership. This study contributes to the literature on leadership during crisis situations, and also provides proposals for public managers and practitioners in order to increase their effectiveness in leading their organizations during a crisis situation.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005557, ucf:50279
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005557
- Title
- Managing Effective Collaboration among Law Enforcement, Intelligence Services, and Military Forces in Fight against Terrorism and Organized Crime.
- Creator
-
Demirhan, Cihan, Kapucu, Naim, Hu, Qian, Feldheim, Mary Ann, Rivera, Fernando, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
The fight against terrorism and organized crime require strong collaboration between public security organizations. Public security networks include several agencies that are not bound to each other with strong hierarchical ties. Because of a lack of the strong hierarchical structure, managing public networks is not similar to managing a single government agency. This study aims to examine the factors influencing network effectiveness in the public security sector. The main research questions...
Show moreThe fight against terrorism and organized crime require strong collaboration between public security organizations. Public security networks include several agencies that are not bound to each other with strong hierarchical ties. Because of a lack of the strong hierarchical structure, managing public networks is not similar to managing a single government agency. This study aims to examine the factors influencing network effectiveness in the public security sector. The main research questions of the study are: Which factors are important for effectiveness in public security networks? What is the role of inter-organizational trust among partner agencies? Which kind of leadership style will achieve the highest performance in public security networks? What is the relative importance of goal convergence and organizational culture in network effectiveness? How does the relationship between inter-organizational trust, leadership style, goal convergence and organizational culture impact network effectiveness? In order to find these relations, a self-reported survey was sent to 2,095 current and previous Turkish public security network managers. The study found that inter-organizational trust and goal convergence have a positive relationship with network effectiveness. Although facilitator leadership is found to be the most common leadership style in Turkish public security networks, it is found as inappropriate to achieve higher network effectiveness. According to the results, the co-producer network leadership is the most convenient leadership style in terms of network effectiveness. While the results of the descriptive statistics confirm that six specific features of organizational culture in public security sector have negative influence on network effectiveness, the hypothesis testing with the covariance structure model only support the negative impact of competition among partner organization. This study contributes to the literature on network effectiveness with particular proposals for the public security managers and practitioners.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005479, ucf:50350
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005479
- Title
- Social Media Responsiveness in the Public Sector: A Study of Social Media Adoption in Three Functional Departments of U.S. Cities.
- Creator
-
Seigler, Daniel, Bryer, Thomas, Hu, Qian, Norris Tirrell, Dorothy, Fine, Terri, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Public administration research strongly supports the argument for administrator-citizen collaborations and shows that Web 2.0 social media tools have the potential to increase these collaborations. Some public managers have fully embraced the adoption of social media tools to their fullest collaborative potential while other managers have chosen to limit their full collaborative potential. This study examines four environmental influences to determine if they are the cause of the diverse...
Show morePublic administration research strongly supports the argument for administrator-citizen collaborations and shows that Web 2.0 social media tools have the potential to increase these collaborations. Some public managers have fully embraced the adoption of social media tools to their fullest collaborative potential while other managers have chosen to limit their full collaborative potential. This study examines four environmental influences to determine if they are the cause of the diverse levels of social media adoption among public administrators. A survey of 157 department managers from 261 large cities across the U.S. shows that 82% of the respondents are currently using some form of social media tools to engage citizens. The results show that perceived organizational influences and perceived administrator preconceptions of social media tools are having the greatest impact on the respondents' decision to adopt social media. Provided that response rate bias is not occurring in this study, there are two possible explanations for the results. One possible explanation is that Web 2.0 social media adoption may be following a similar path as the adoption of earlier forms of Web 1.0 e-government tools. The other possible explanation is that managers may be operating within a rational environment when deciding whether or not to adopt Web 2.0 social media tools.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005709, ucf:50115
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005709
- Title
- Reconceptualizing Responsiveness for Network Governance: Insights from Cross-Sector Efforts to Assist the Displaced Population From Puerto Rico in Central Florida.
- Creator
-
Prysmakova, Safiya, Bryer, Thomas, Hu, Qian, Sadiq, Abdul-Akeem, Piccolo, Ronald F, Meek, Jack, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
This study further expands current knowledge on responsiveness in the public administration field and examines factors that contribute to more responsive public service delivery networks. This research reconceptualized the concept of responsiveness under the lens of New Public Governance as a legitimate democratic public value and answered the following research questions: What constructs constitute to the concept of public service responsiveness? How can public service responsiveness be...
Show moreThis study further expands current knowledge on responsiveness in the public administration field and examines factors that contribute to more responsive public service delivery networks. This research reconceptualized the concept of responsiveness under the lens of New Public Governance as a legitimate democratic public value and answered the following research questions: What constructs constitute to the concept of public service responsiveness? How can public service responsiveness be measured at the network level? Does the complexity of public service provision affect perceived public service network responsiveness? How do collaborative processes across network partners, community support, and resource munificence affect the responsiveness of public delivery networks? The study utilized a multi-method case study approach. The case of the study is focused on the cross-sector efforts in response to the crisis, caused by the massive displacement of the Puerto Rican population to Central Florida after Hurricane Maria. The data was collected using surveys administrated to the displaced population, and interviews conducted with the managers of service delivery organizations. Using quantitative methods, this study developed a valid and reliable model for measuring perceived public service network responsiveness, which is built on the constructs that include the sufficiency of service provision, dignity, clarity of communication and public engagement. The findings suggested that the displaced population that sought a higher number of low complexity services had a more negative perception of public service network responsiveness. The study suggested that negative perception in low complexity service provision can be caused by the low capability of the public service system and low level of public input, and can be characterized as (")consumeristic(") approach. The qualitative findings showed that collaborative processes can affect the responsiveness of public service networks. Increased community support proved to be a positive factor for public service network responsiveness, while a lack of flexible funding is a negative factor for public service network responsiveness.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019
- Identifier
- CFE0007852, ucf:52762
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007852
