Final Paper
PAD 6108
Fall 2012
Hedge
Outlined below are the options for the final paper.
Option # 1 -- Synthesis Paper -- Students who pursue this
option
will write a paper which synthesizes in a coherent and
insightful
manner a major literature in public administration. For
some of
you this might be a paper that starts with some of the
literature
covered in class but which then considers additional analysis
and
research. Possible paper topics might include the
influence of
interests groups on bureaucratic decision making, citizen
participation
mechanisms, or privatization. Others of you might choose
to
review some organizational topic we have not covered in
class.
Examples here might include regulatory reform, bureaucratic
responsiveness, leadership, affirmative action programs in the
public
sector, policy implementation, or the role of policy analysis
within
bureaucracies. In grading your paper, I will pay
particular
attention to the comprehensiveness and completeness of your
literature
review as well as the quality of your synthesis.
Option # 2 -- Application Paper -- The second option
entails
applying the literature, including, but not necessarily limited
to, the
readings in this course, to a particular case (or cases) in
public
administration. Part of the paper would provide a
synthesis of
the relevant literature. The remainder of the paper would
then
use those insights to analyze some aspect of public
organizational
life. Your application should be well-documented and
grounded in
additional readings and analysis. Examples of an
"applications"
paper might include an assessment of city-county police
consolidation
in Alachua County, an analysis of proposals for reforming health
care
in Florida (with particular attention to organizational issues)
or a
paper that examines the implementation of some public policy
initiative
(e.g. educational reform initiatives or the privatization of
prisons).
Option # 3 – Research Design – For doctoral students with
the
requisite research skills and interests, a third option is a
“fully
articulated” research design. The expectation here is that
you
would carefully review the relevant literature (s), develop a
set of
credible hypotheses and outline the appropriate methods for
testing
those hypotheses. Needless to say, your research topic
must be
relevant to the study of public organizations or bureaucratic
politics..
Regardless of which option you choose, your paper should
run
about 15 pages (double-spaced, typewritten). I also
encourage
each of you to discuss possible paper topics and directions with
your
instructor and/or other members of the political science
faculty.
Your paper is due Monday, December 10, 2012 and will be
submitted
through Turnitin.com. Late
papers will be penalized in grading at the discretion of the
instructor.
A Note on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty
–
Plagiarism is a serious violation of the student honor
code and
will not be tolerated. Students who commit an act of
plagiarism
will receive an appropriate sanction and the offense will
be
reported to the Dean of Students Office. Information on what
constitutes plagiarism, UF’s honor code and other pertinent
information
can be found on the Dean of Students web page.