A study investigated whether the frequency of a legislator's direct contact with constituents was related negatively to the legislator's evaluation of mass media as sources of information on constituent concerns. The study also explored whether the legislators' evaluations of mass media as sources of information on constituent concerns were more…

Representing the earliest findings in an ongoing national survey examining how black elected officials view the community press, 113 black state senators and legislators (33% response rate) from 50 states were surveyed using five-point Likert-type items with responses ranging from "Strongly Agree" to "Strongly Disagree." Mean…

A study was conducted to investigate the role perceptions of the state directors of community college education in 11 states. The directors were asked to rate 67 managerial activities in terms the importance of the activity and the amount of time they spent on it. They were also asked to identify the activities needing more of their time and those…

A study examined how Alabama legislators' ratings of news media for job-relevant information correlate with their views on news media adversary and consensus agent roles. Eighty-two questionnaires (out of 140 mailed) were completed by Alabama state representatives and senators for a return rate of 59%. Results suggested that lawmakers who believe…

To replicate previous studies indicating a consistent pattern of unequal treatment of women in newspaper coverage, a study examined how 21 Michigan newspapers treated stories involving male and female state officials over an eight-week period. In particular, the study focused on the amount of coverage, the context of the coverage, the length of…

In an attempt to provide a framework for research and theory building in public management information systems (PMIS), state officials responsible for computing in personnel operations were surveyed. The data were applied to hypotheses arising from a recent model by Bozeman and Bretschneider, attempting to relate organization theory to management…

Survey and observational research on educational lobbying organizations in the Pennsylvania state legislature yielded both data on influence processes and a set of seven guidelines for educational lobbyists. A survey of Pennsylvania legislators at the 1973-74 session examined their attitudes about education bills, educational lobbies and their…

Exchanges within the mentor-protege relationship, the effect of age and gender on that relationship, and the effect of that relationship on career progress and subsequent mentoring behavior are here studied for the first time in the context of a state government agency. Twenty-five males and 25 females were selected randomly from among 250…

California state officials vary in their perceptions of the functions and uses of state Department of Education evaluations, according to state legislators, legislative staff members, department administrators, and outside evaluators whose opinions were gathered through interviews and at a 1981 symposium. Highlighted here are the legislators'…

This paper presents findings of a case study that examined the influences that shaped an Ohio governor's education reform proposals from a vantage point inside the governor's office, during the late 1980s. Data were obtained through document analysis (of the period from fall 1987 to January 1989), interviews with the governor, and a literature…

As part of an in-progress study of Black state legislators' evaluation of the performance of White-owned newspapers in their communities, mail questionnaires were sent to 342 Black state senators and state representatives listed in "Black Elected Officials: A National Roster." One hundred seventeen officials have returned the…

A survey of 50 secondary state officials and one district official with supervisory responsibility for business education was conducted to assess business-subject-related certification/endorsement practices. More specifically, the instrument was designed to determine the following: (1) the number of different types/titles of…

Managerial approaches to budget planning for state universities were investigated using an open budgeting model that emphasizes the function of communication, technical analysis, and participative decision making. System-level and central officers in 32 research universities were surveyed to determine whether they used and endorsed technical…

Individual members of state legislatures wield the greatest influence in state level policy formation. This was one of the findings of a study that identified the power and influence context of state-level policymaking. Data were gathered from six states (Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Illinois) using an instrument…

The role of governors in higher education was studied through a 1984 survey of 70 former governors from 40 states. Attention was directed to issues such as: how often and when governors get involved in university issues, the influence of various higher education constituencies on gubernatorial decision making, gubernatorial views on private higher…