Christopher L. Atkinson

University of West Florida | UWF · College of Business

Rural development involves efforts that are economic and social in nature intended to encourage concepts of retention, growth, and expansion in areas outside cities, including improving quality of life for rural residents through such activity.

Semiotic Analysis and Public Policy evaluates several key areas of public policy that are dependent on narrative, naming, sign, and branding to create meaning. Semiotic analysis, drawing on the work of Saussure, Peirce, and others, allows for creation of a case-oriented model of brand versus product, and of medium compared with message. Using a cr...

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed remarkable stress on all aspects of society, from health care and the economy to the psychological well-being of communities. While the crisis is still playing out in the United States and around the world, it is nevertheless appropriate to begin to assess its impact. This paper asks: What documentable public failur...

Climate change has resulted in negative impacts upon rural communities, notably in the Global South; these impacts expose vulnerabilities that exist on individual and societal levels, necessitating consideration of adaptive capacity given the climate change threat, as well as the role of government in responding to hazards, and encouraging resilien...

This review examines current knowledge in the literature on informal settlements, specifically those contributions that include emphases on governance and the role of public administration. Given that informal settlements task the public sector with specific challenges that test the limits of infrastructure, while also presenting considerable human...

This chapter explores the roles of elected officials, political parties, and interest groups in impacting public service design. The public sector environment is fraught with political challenges, competing priorities, and resource limitations, which together affect public service design decisions and outcomes. First, the matter of policy design in...

This theme-based book review considers four recent titles related to governments? role in development and public finance: Sustainable Urban Futures in Africa, edited by Patrick Brandful Cobbinah and Michael Addaney; Research Handbook on Public Financial Management, edited by Komla D. Dzigbede and W. Bartley Hildreth; Decisions, Preferences, and Heu...

For decades, academic freedom and shared governance have stood as cornerstones of higher education in the United States, but these principles face unprecedented challenges. Recent developments point to a disturbing decline in these critical values, stirring debates on the future viability of the higher education system. This study delves into the p...

This study analyzes insurance claim data from an 11-county area in the Florida Panhandle following the landfall of Hurricane Michael. The data includes 1467 non-mobile home structures, with 902 (61.5%) storm-damaged structures in Bay County. The analysis focuses on Wind Mitigation form 1802. Specifically, building design variables were analyzed via...

While the definition of resilience is disputed or even fuzzy, due in no small part to the diversity of its applications, the concept generally involves the ability to withstand and bounce back from shocks; vulnerability as a related concept involves the tendency to suffer from shocks, given existing characteristics that may prevent resilient respon...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles focusing on public administration in China: Handbook of Public Policy and Public Administration in China, edited by Xiaowei Zang and Hon S. Chan; Governance and Public Administration in China, edited by Toby S. James, Wei Liu, and Caixia Man; and Public Administration and Governance in Chin...

This study offers a comprehensive examination of environmental governance within the European Union (EU), focusing on the comparative experiences of Bosnia and Herzegovina (a non-EU member) and Croatia (an EU member). The research uses policy transfer theory to investigate the practicality and effectiveness of EU-led environmental initiatives when...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles related to the challenges faced by nonprofit organizations: the new fourth edition of Understanding Nonprofit Organizations: Governance, Leadership, and Management, edited by Lisa A. Dicke and J. Steven Ott; Resilience and the Management of Nonprofit Organizations: A New Paradigm, by Dennis...

This research explores the veracity and reliability of existing approaches to conducting disparity studies by methodologically drawing on a 54-city, nine-firm analysis, with over 900 diverse businesses surveyed. Despite efforts to initiate systemic development opportunities for diverse businesses, disparity studies merely alert society to obstinate...

Southeast Asia has the most significant tropical peat/peat carbon storage area in the world, with Indonesia being the primary location for much of it. Anthropogenic changes to peatlands have resulted in a threat to these endangered ecosystems; policies that have favored industrial and elite interests above those of local communities have resulted i...

This theme-based book review considers four recent titles related to reform: They Eat Our Sweat: Transport Labor, Corruption, and Everyday Survival in Urban Nigeria, by Daniel E. Agbiboa; Assessing Public Management Reforms, by Patrick Gibert and Jean-Claude Thoenig; Combating Money Laundering in Africa: Dealing with the Problem of PEPs, by John Ha...

This chapter contributes to the literature by focusing on public initiatives that have sought to capitalize on migrant-led efforts to build a new and resilient Scotland, potentially yielding an environment that can foster positive social change. First, this chapter reflects on Scotland as a place and destination for immigrants. Next, economic devel...

From 2020 to 2021, the University of West Florida public administration human resources course had an integrated research/practice component. The project began with the premise that students themselves might have an opportunity to play a role as researchers through a class project, learning important interviewing skills while also contributing to a...

According to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), emergency management is “charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to threats/hazards and cope with disasters” (FEMA, n.d.). Local government emergency management involves the efforts of municipalities, cities, counties, and special government...

The individual interpretations of purchasing policies weaken fair government purchasing practices. However, this does not fully account for the nature of the media’s coverage of government contracting, taken as a whole. The authors seek to understand better framing in newspaper stories on government procurement, with the government as a force that...

The rationale for this review paper is to take stock of the current knowledge in the literature on the intersection of telework and work–life balance—an area that has grown in importance due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The review also considers the context of the government’s role in pursuing policies to reduce the impacts of the pandem...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles related to risk and uncertainty: The Dynamics of Risk: Changing Technologies and Collective Action in Seismic Events, by Louise K. Comfort; Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe, by Niall Ferguson; and Fragile Futures: The Uncertain Economics of Disasters, Pandemics, and Climate Change, by Vito...

This theme-based book review considers four recent titles related to the intersection of business and government: Outsourcing in the UK: Politics, Practices and Outcomes, by Janice Morphet; Public Financial Management in the European Union: Public Finance and Global Crises, by Marta Postula; Handbook of Business and Public Policy, edited by Aynsley...

Governments have a history of intervention in the market to aid small, minority, and women-owned businesses. This research explores women-owned business development programs across the United States. The paper begins with a discussion of programs to serve women-owned businesses, noting barriers that exist for women business owners to access markets...

Diversity management in the workplace is essential for ensuring a high quality, representative public service and strengthening organizations' sustainability. For the public sector to remain effective and productive, the management of today’s dynamic workforce requires a perspective that values and welcomes diversity. The promotion of diversity in...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles related to public policy problems, processes, and solutions, from scholarly and practitioner perspectives: The Political Formulation of Policy Solutions, edited by Philippe Zittoun, Frank Fischer, and Nikalaos Zahariadis; A Guidebook for City and County Managers: Meeting Today’s Challenges,...

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed unprecedented demands on the whole of society. The public sector human resources (HR) function has played a key role in responding to COVID-19. This paper considers: How did public sector HR organizations in Northwest Florida respond during the COVID-19 pandemic? What are lessons learned f...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles related to competence, from practitioner and scholarly perspectives: Administrative Competence: Reimagining Administrative Law, by Elizabeth Fisher and Sidney A. Shapiro; Handbook of Research Methods in Public Administration, Management and Policy, edited by Eran Vigoda-Gadot and Dana R. Va...

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has historically relied upon state-centred approaches to governance. However, there have been a number of instances where ASEAN has sought to shift to, or at least signal value in, people-centred approaches to governance. Notably, there is a range of approaches within ASEAN nations towards human ri...

In Australia, the National Immunisation Program and its Standard Vaccination Schedule are administered by the Australian Government Department of Health. While the public vaccination program’s safety and worth are generally agreed upon by doctors and public health professionals, some continue to see vaccinations as a source of danger and harm. The...

This theme-based book review considers three recent titles related to public sector corruption: Populism and corruption: The other side of the coin, edited by Jonathan Mendilow and Eric Phelippeau; Critical perspectives on public systems management in India, by Amar KJR Nayak and Ram Kumar Kakani; and Handbook on corruption, ethics and integrity in...

The implementation of sustainability and green public procurement (GPP) initiatives in school districts has been the subject of some debate; questions over definitions and programme goals have led to inconsistency and concerns about programme achievements. The legitimacy of programmes rests not only with the announcement of policy by officials, but...

This paper considers online courses in human resources, public budgeting, and public procurement, within a public administration program, developed and taught during one calendar year at a public regional university in the southeastern United States. Each course had an underpinning of required reading, but also included individual and collaborative...

The objective of the (U.S.) Federal Aviation Administration Airport Improvement Program (AIP) is “to help in developing a nationwide system of public-use airports that meets the current needs and the projected growth of civil aviation” (FAA 2002). Despite its importance to airports, academic study of the program – its effect, benefits, and deficien...

This research examines the complex interactions underlying disparity studies. While communities do frequently encounter disparity in public procurement, the commissioning of a disparity study may not ultimately solve the pressing challenges that hinder access to public contracts. Instead, disparity studies promise a politically palatable “quick fix...

International focus on the Myanmar military regime and liberalization and reform within the nation’s press circles has increased, in light of the ongoing plight of the Rohingya people. Where information and official messaging has been tightly controlled, differentiation in products of government-led and private-sector news outlets is worthy of atte...

While hydropower projects have been seen as a sort of panacea for clean energy production in an increasingly environmentally-sensitive time, allowing for continued development, dam projects have nevertheless been a source of significant negative social and environmental impacts. The topic of hydropower projects, associated political-administrative...

This theme-based book review highlights three recent texts, on immigration policy in the United States and European Union; corruption and exclusion; and applied ethics in executive and administrative practice. The review includes Ethical dilemmas of migration: Moral challenges for policymakers, by Jean-Claude Garcia-Zamor; Legal but corrupt: A new...

Governments have sought to respond to increasing pressures to accomplish aims with efficiency and at low cost. A perception of the potential for corruption and waste of public resources has been met with calls for transparency and accountability. Competition is believed to lead to impartial, optimal outcomes, but attention paid to competition in th...

This brief article focuses on the flow of information between business, government, and the public, preceding and in the aftermath of a hazard event, focusing on the intersection of the public, government, and business/industry. Drawing from practical understanding obtained during the 2017 hurricane season, comparisons and best practices are detail...

This entry considers the concept of parity in government procurement, the compelling interest of government in achieving parity, an overview of a disparity study, and concludes with considerations for the future of disparity studies in public procurement.

A review essay of Performance Management in the Public Sector, by Wouter Van Dooren, Geert Bouckaert, and John Halligan; Government Performance and Results: An Evaluation of GPRA ’ s First Decade, by Jerry Ellig, Maurice McTigue, and Henry Wray; and The PerformanceStat Potential: A leadership strategy for producing results, by Robert D. Behn.

Post-hazard event response and recovery depends in no small part on a resilient business community. When employers are disrupted by disaster, whether natural or technological, they may not be able to swiftly and completely recover in the post-hazard event environment. Jobs may be lost, and these losses in turn put a significant damper on the abilit...