Working from the basic assumption that the primary motivation for those involved in school governance is self-interest, this paper develops and discusses 15 hypotheses that form the essential elements of an economic theory of school governance. The paper opens with a review of previous theories of governance and their origins in social science…

The public reaction to the proposal that the Australian government should reintroduce fees for tertiary education was surveyed in 1985. The influence of the proposal on the way people would vote in a federal election was also investigated. The fee would be between $900 and $1,500 per year for full-time tertiary education. As part of a McNair…

A survey instrument containing 46 socioeconomic and attitudinal items was administered to a sample of 452 registered voters in the Columbia (Missouri) School District. Three past financial elections and two hypothetical future financial elections were chosen in order to describe and analyze the relationships between socioeconomic and attitudinal…

Recent research in agenda setting, dealing with the ways people perceive campaign issues dependent upon their coverage by the media has left unanswered the question of how context variables such as political framing--the context within which the media present a particular issue-affect the agenda setting process. A study was conducted to test the…

Court cases dating from the 1850s and pertaining to racial integration are reviewed in this paper. The impact that judicial decisions and laws have had on civil rights and on racial integration of the schools is discussed. Cases considered include suits from various states concerning voting rights, segregation of public transportation, segregated…

An investigation of a proposed public transit was based on the assumptions that knowledge of school tax referenda should provide a framework for understanding voter behavior in other types of referenda, and that propositions generated in one type of research should hold up in another. It was anticipated that there would be spillover effects from…

This paper outlines a two-dimensional model of political specialization and discusses its implications for social science education. The first dimension, interest specialization, involves the choice of whether or not to devote time and resources to political affairs at all. The interest specialization process of young adults and adults was…

A study was undertaken to explore the power structure in a Southwestern community of 93,000 and to determine which elements in that power structure had the most influence in a local school bond referendum. The data for the study were collected using two techniques. First, a panel of knowledgeable community members identified 85 politically…

TO DETERMINE CAUSAL FACTORS IN THE SUCCESS OR FAILURE OF SCHOOL BOND ELECTIONS, A STUDY WAS MADE OF SCHOOL BOND ELECTION RESULTS FROM 1960 THROUGH 1964 IN THE 209 IOWA SCHOOL DISTRICTS MAINTAINING A PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL, JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, OR COMMUNITY COLLEGE. SEVENTY-NINE PERCENT OF THE REPORTING DISTRICTS (154 OF 195 TOTAL) SUCCESSFULLY PASSED…

THE SUPERINTENDENTS OF 195 OF 209 SCHOOL DISTRICTS HOLDING BOND ISSUE ELECTIONS DURING A 5-YEAR PERIOD RESPONDED TO A QUESTIONNAIRE. OF THESE, 20 OF THE 24 WHOSE BOND ISSUES INVOLVED VOCATIONAL EDUCATION WERE INTERVIEWED IN A TWO-PHASE STUDY TO ANALYZE THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS, IDENTIFY THE VARIABLES ASSOCIATED WITH SUCCESS OR FAILURE, AND TO…

The ballot, as a device to communicate to the government by citizens, is perceived to be much more effective in some settings--the direct question in a local election--and less effective in others--the major questions and primary offices in a national election. Such political facts of life are part of the resurging interest in the referendum as a…

Data for this study of the relationship between voter status (vote switcher, undecided voter, decided voter) and political knowledge were collected from 141 respondents in five southern Illinois counties during a 1974 congressional election and from 295 respondents in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, during the 1976 presidential campaign. The study…

This report consists of six individual reports that were done by staff members at the Library Research Center as part of the overall project. In Part I, "Financing Public Library Expansion: Case Studies of Three Defeated Bond Issue Referendums," Ruth G. Lindahl and William S. Berner analyze defeated library bond issue referendums in…

"This pamphlet was produced at the request of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and the Economic and Social Council (of the United Nations)...It was written primarily for the use of leaders responsible for the civic and political education of women, whether governmental or non-governmental, and is intended as a basic…

A sequential series of four fifteen minute classroom television programs provide a drama whereby students can identify with a candidate's problems of getting elected to political office. Major purposes of the overall program are: 1) to make students aware of electoral processes in a democracy; 2) to emphasize the importance of each individual's…