MPA Students Research Articles

Does Servant Leadership Affect Public Employees’ Innovative Behavior? The Mediating Role of Organizational Identity

Objective: In the context of China’s deepening reform era, innovation is the first driving force leading development. Involving a sample of 576 public employees from government agencies in Yunnan, China, the present study investigates the impact of servant leadership on public employees’ innovative behavior, as well as the underlying mechanisms of this relationship. Theoretical Framework: According to social identity theory, organizational identity signifies the extent to which individuals acknowledge and identify with their organization. Previous research has shown that leadership styles indirectly affect employee behaviors (e. g., innovative behaviors) through employees’ cognition and emotion [16-18], therefore, organizational identity may be a potential mediating variable in the correlation between servant leadership and the innovative behavior exhibited by employees. Method: Data was collected between September 2023 and January 2024 among public sector employees in Kunming, located in the Yunnan province. The data was collected in two phases at different time points. First, we distributed questionnaires among part-time MPA students in a university in Yunnan province in the first stage. Then, we continued to distribute questionnaires among full-time public employees at various public sectors in Kunming city. Results and Discussion: The results revealed a positive impact of servant leadership on the innovative behavior of Chinese public employees. Additionally, organizational identity partially mediated the association between servant leadership and the innovative behavior of Chinese public employees. These findings may provide some suggestions for the public organizations in China. Research Implications: The present study also has several practical implications for policy-makers within the public sector. First, public organizations ought to attach importance to the servant leadership because it can effectively promote employees’ innovative behavior. Specifically, public organizations can regard the traits of servant leadership as a criterion for selecting leaders within the public sector. By doing so, public organizations can encourage servant leadership style by selecting and promoting those employees with awareness and traits of serving others. Originality/Value: After deleting invalid questionnaires, 576 completed questionnaires were obtained finally. Of all the participants, 24% (n = 138) was male and 76% (n = 438) was female.77.6% of the participants were under the age of 26 years (n = 447). 61.8% (n = 356) have worked less five years in the public sector.

Experiential learning in the master of public administration classroom: An application of the family-friendly campus toolkit

Public administrators can play a vital role in the articulation of demands emerging from the community and can serve to advance these demands by their position of authority, skills and knowledge to help facilitate the development of programs and projects to address public needs. This article describes the role that a small Master of Public Administration program and several of its faculty and students played to support a project which sought to aid the development of family-friendly policies and programs on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, a mid-sized, public university in the Northeastern United States. The article lays out the personal experience of the authors as they relate to their decision to participate in the program, a description of the project and the assistance that MPA students were able to render the initiative, the manner in which integrating the commitment to campus improvement for pregnant and parenting students influenced the content of several MPA courses, and the synergies which developed as students worked to develop skills in communication, focus-group moderation, qualitative data analysis, presentation delivery and report-writing.

“Every day of your life you deal with death:” Incorporating dirty work into the MPA curriculum

ABSTRACT Aspects of public service often involve tasks sometimes considered taboo, including working with grit, grime, blood, guts, grease, and stigmatized populations. Yet scholarship in our field directly incorporating dirty work remains limited yet growing. Importantly, if MPA students are not trained in how to work with and manage public sector employees engaged in such work, there is a chance for misunderstanding and mismanagement. In this paper, we draw on the concept of dirty work and showcase several ways how it can be incorporated into the MPA curriculum through topics such as regulation and compliance, emotional labor, budgeting and procurement, and public health. We rely on stories from deathcare workers throughout the U.S. to supplement the points. A dirty work practitioner from a large Iowa medical examiner department lends expertise in each section, and we conclude with case scenarios and questions for incorporating dirty work into MPA classes.

“How may i help?”: Using New Amsterdam as a case study to link theory to practice

Teaching public administration theory and linking it to practice can be challenging; yet are central goals to MPA programs. Using relevant examples that students can relate to is instrumental in achieving the pedagogical goals of linking theory to practice and achieving the NASPAA competencies. New Amsterdam is used as a case study for MPA students to achieve the above mentioned goals. In this work, I provide a list of episodes accompanied by themes of the episode and core public administration areas each apply to such as budgeting, human resources, decision making, as well as discussion questions used. This work contributes to our pedagogical toolbox by adding relevant examples in a healthcare administration setting that helps students master the NASPAA competencies while linking theory to practice.

Integrating S-ERP systems and lean manufacturing practices to improve sustainability performance: an institutional theory perspective

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the impact of integrating Sustainable Enterprise Resource Planning (S-ERP) systems and lean manufacturing (LM) practices on sustainability performance, especially in Egypt as an emerging country.Design/methodology/approachThe authors carried out an experimental study with a sample of 144 professional accountants of MPA, MBA and DBA students at two of the top universities in Egypt.FindingsThe results provide significant evidence that the integration of S-ERP systems and LM practices implementation improve sustainability performance. However, there is no significant evidence that S-ERP adoption contributes to the success of LM practices implementation.Research limitations/implicationsBecause of the chosen research approach, this study is limited to use of a laboratory experiment design. Empirical evidence based on quasi experiments on a field setting would add value to the current literature.Practical implicationsFindings provide practical insights for the manufacturing sector managers into the benefits of integrating S-ERP systems and LM practices for sustainability performance improvement (e.g. reducing cost and waste, increasing operational efficiency). For ERP vendors, findings highlight how ERP vendors introduce “enablers” that incorporate LM best practices into their ERP systems and also how those vendors conform to the software sustainability criteria in the design of ERP applications.Originality/valueContrary to previous studies that addressed the individual impact of S-ERP systems and LM practices on performance, this paper experimentally gives an indication of the impact of concurrent implementation of S-ERP and LM practices on sustainability performance, especially in developing countries.

Enhancing professional and practical experiences for MPA students: Lessons from a manager-in-residence program

ABSTRACT Considerable scholarly attention has been paid to various efforts aimed at preparing graduate students for careers as practitioners of public administration. One such approach is hiring practitioners-in-residence (PIR) or employing professors of practice. This paper first reports results of a web content analysis of 355 NASPAA programs that determined the extent of use of PIRs. Results show that only 17% of programs explicitly list a practitioner-in-residence. Given that less than a fifth of programs have practitioners-in-residence on their faculty, this paper provides an in-depth description of one such initiative i.e., Texas State University’s experience with the Manager-in-Residence (MIR) program. Numerous ways in which the MIR program helped connect MPA students with the practice side of public administration are described. Finally, the implications of such a program for public administration pedagogy and practice and its potential for adoption by programs are discussed.

Founder or flounder: When board and founder relationship impact nonprofit performance

ABSTRACT This case study describes the complex relationships between nonprofit boards of directors and executive directors, especially when the executive director is the organization’s founder. The case takes the perspective of an MPA student, with limited professional experience, who is asked to serve on a board of a new nonprofit. It is an exciting opportunity; however, the student soon is overwhelmed as issues begin to arise in working with the organization’s founder. There are tensions between some board members and the founder regarding board roles, and questions arise around whether the nonprofit can survive. Teaching notes guide educators to broach topics including, but not limited to, board roles and responsibilities, nonprofit incorporation, performance measurement, board and executive director relationships, fiscal responsibility, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Who can serve as the proxy for public employees in public administration experiments? a cross-sample comparison

ABSTRACT This article examines whether convenience samples such as undergraduate students, MPA students, and online subjects can replicate the findings based on public officials in experimental research. We used a 2 × 2 factorial experimental design (High/Low Help-deservingness Clients × With/Without Situational Stress) with scenarios of discretionary decision-making by street-level bureaucrats in China. The four samples showed a consistent pattern in the impact of client help-deservingness on discretionary decision-making, but differed in the effects of situational stress on discretionary decision-making. We suggest that researchers be cautious in using convenience samples as surrogates for professional bureaucrats when the scenarios require professional expertise.

A profile of MPA students’ perceptions of online learning: What MPA students value in online education and what they think would improve online learning experiences

ABSTRACT What do MPA students value in online education and what do they think would improve online learning experiences in an MPA program? Ironically, few studies have tried to derive more than a couple of factors in a single study. Integrating the key concepts from across the literature, the perceptions about an array of quality factors were identified and studied both quantitatively and qualitatively with a survey of 160 MPA students. The results distinguish and rank seven factors affecting students’ perceptions of quality online education in a theoretically coherent framework. Those factors are: basic online modality, teaching presence, instructional support, interactive online modality, social presence, cognitive presence, and trust in the online teaching system. The overall impressions of online learning examined include the degree of online acceptance, the likelihood of taking online classes, and the effects of instructional skill.

Work Values of Chinese MPA Students: Underlying Dimensions and Group Differences

ABSTRACT The empirical examination of MPA students’ work values is scant. Surveying 277 full-time and part-time MPA students from a Chinese public administration school, the present study investigated the underlying dimensions of work values and how those dimensions are emphasized differently by students who differ on gender, career preferences, and affiliations. Six underlying dimensions of work values were revealed, and significant gender differences were found on three of the six dimensions. Furthermore, full-time students who prefer government career over business career and part-time students from government and para-government sectors showed their preferences on different dimensions. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

How Stress Hinders Health among Chinese Public Sector Employees: The Mediating Role of Emotional Exhaustion and the Moderating Role of Perceived Organizational Support.

Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the detrimental effect of hindrance stressors on self-rated health among a sample of Chinese public sector employees. Analysis of survey data based on 404 MPA students from a leading Chinese university who are working in various public organizations across China suggested that hindrance stressors were negatively related to both physical and mental health (β = −0.11, p < 0.01 and β = −0.38, p < 0.001, respectively), and emotional exhaustion mediated those relationships (95% bias-corrected confidence intervals for the indirect effects on physical and mental health based on 5000 bootstrapped samples were −1.64 to −0.35 and −3.51 to −1.81, respectively, excluding 0). Furthermore, perceived organizational support moderated the effect of hindrance stressors on emotional exhaustion (β = −0.10, p < 0.05), and moderated the indirect effects of hindrance stressors on physical and mental health via emotional exhaustion (index of moderated mediation was 0.116 with bootstrapped confidence interval of 0.018–0.296 for physical health, and 0.317 with bootstrapped confidence interval of 0.008–0.663 for mental health). The effects of hindrance stressors were weaker when perceived organizational support was high, suggesting a moderating effect. Our findings not only provide important theoretical contributions to the literature on public employees’ work-related stress and associated health outcomes, but also offer practical implications to those who are interested in stress intervention to improve the wellbeing of public employees and general society.

Clinical Pharmacology Learning Tools for the Tech Savvy in a Physician Assistant (MPA) Program

Students of our MPA program are expected to master a vast amount of information in a short 28‐ month curriculum leading up to their clinical practice. In addition, students find learning clinical pharmacology difficult as it involves memorizing hundreds if not thousands of medications, their mechanism, interactions, and adverse effects. In order to maximize learning, we delivered a Clinical Pharmacology (CP) course in a flipped classroom model using technology1.CP I and II are two 3‐credit courses taught over 4‐month each with two 2‐hour didactic lectures every week. In its place, we introduced short 15 – 20 minute videos recorded using Explain Everything or Camtasia software and posted them a couple of days prior to in‐class sessions2. In addition, a complete slide‐deck and a study guide with open‐ended questions designed to reinforce the clinically relevant facts and concepts in each class were also posted. Students listened to the recording, used the slide‐deck and study guide to master the concepts. An anonymous survey at the end of the course collected the feedback on this new model of course content delivery and their learning experience3.More than 55 students participated in the survey. An overwhelming 82% of the respondents wanted the course to be delivered based on this model in the future. About 75% agreed that the new model allowed them more time to study other subjects. Another 76% felt the new model helped them feel prepared for the exams. Although we had reduced the student‐faculty contact time by 50%, about 70% of the survey respondents felt the new model provided them adequate faculty exposure and interaction.Unlike reported by some studies that the students prefer only about half of the class sessions to be “flipped” 4; our MPA students wanted us to follow this new model for the entire course. Following our success with this new model, other Course Directors have started introducing flipped classes in their courses.Based on the favorable feedback we received from the students and performance index on their course assessments, we recommend utilizing this model of active learning in your health sciences education programs.Support or Funding InformationThis abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Gendered differences in choice of concentrations in Master of Public Administration programs

ABSTRACT This study investigates the question of whether there are gender differences in the choice of specializations/concentrations by students enrolled in Master’s Programs in Public Administration (MPA), and considers potential implications for MPA students and the broader field of public administration. We analyzed data provided by NASPAA-accredited MPA programs to identify if gender differences exist in students’ concentration selections. After obtaining information on students’ concentrations, we surveyed MPA directors, asking them if they, in their experience as program directors, noticed any variability in preferences for concentrations across genders. Our expectations, based on the literature, regarding the gendered nature of MPA specializations/concentrations were validated in the case of Budgeting/Finance, and City and State, which our analysis found to be statistically significantly skewed male, and in the case of Health, Nonprofit and Human Resources, which were found, to be overrepresented by women by the same measure of conferred degrees.

An Unconscious Drive to Help Others? Using the Implicit Association Test to Measure Prosocial Motivation

ABSTRACT:We introduce an Implicit Association Test whose purpose is to measure implicit—or unconscious—prosocial motivation. In doing so, our aim is to provide researchers with a tool that can serve as a complement to explicit, survey-based measures of prosocial and public service motivation. We present the results of a series of tests designed to probe the validity of our version of the Implicit Association Test, which we call the “Pro-IAT.” First, we test the Pro-IAT’s known groups’ validity by administering it to four groups of subjects that theory and empirical evidence suggest differ in their prosocial and public service motivation—MPA students, MBA students, Mturk adults, and local government employees. Second, we examine correlations between subjects’ scores on the Pro-IAT and subjects’ survey-based prosocial and public service motivation. Third, we use an online task to test whether subjects’ scores on the Pro-IAT are associated with the amount of (real) money they pledge to charity. Fourth, we use a survey experiment to test whether the Pro-IAT is resistant to a randomly assigned social desirability prime. Our tests provide strong support for the Pro-IAT’s known groups’ validity and modest support for the Pro-IAT’s predictive validity. Additionally, they suggest that the Pro-IAT is resistant to social desirability bias and is measuring a different dimension of prosocial/public service motivation than survey-based measures.

Full Disclosure Policy (FDP) Compliance of the Davao del Norte Province at the FDP Portal

The study evaluated the availability of the financial transactions and procurement reports in the government portal of all the 11 Local Government Units (LGUs) under the Province of Davao del Norte which specifically determined the extent of its implementation of e-Governance particularly in implementing the Full Disclosure Policy (FDP) as a practice of transparency. In particular, the assessment was done to verify if the following reports were uploaded in the portal: (a) Budget Reports; (b) Procurement Reports; (c) Special Purpose Fund Reports. Fourteen (14) relevant reports were queried at the portal as accessed at http://fdps.blgs.gov.ph/ from year 2012 to 2013. Results were initially obtained through an assessment done by the researchers in checking into the availability of the inquired reports at the portal. Preliminary findings were triangulated as a group of MPA students verified the initial results. Quantitative tools such as frequency counts, means and percentages were employed to know the available reports. Findings showed that there was an increase of compliance percentage for the LGUs of Asuncion, New Corella, San Isidro and Sto. Tomas while there was a noticeably slight decrease of compliance for the rest of the LGUs. Moreover, Budget Reports were the most complied while Procurement Reports were the least complied. The study concludes that while all LGUs have utilized the portal through submission of the reports, other factors affecting prompt and complete compliance and distance and income classification should be looked into. It is suggested in the study that each LGU should maximize the adoption and utilization of the government portal as a medium in promoting transparency and accountability as a practice of good governance.

A Public Servant: To Be or Not to Be. The Determinants of Employment Decisions Among the Russian MPA Students

ABSTRACTThis study concerns the determinants of Russian MPA students’ work preference. The authors explore the relationship between the image of a civil servant, the pre-employment work expectations, and the MPA students’ intentions to work for government. The data are collected from four Russian universities by surveying 203 MPA students. The authors factor analyzed the descriptors of the civil servant image and the work expectations and applied logistic regression analysis to predict the probability of the MPA students’ choice of public employment.

Science Fiction and Administrative Truths: The Short Story and Novella as Administrative Cases

Pre-service and in-service MPA students share a common desire for hands-on, real world instruction related to their professional career goals, leading to a pedagogic discounting of fiction as an appropriate tool for analyzing and "solving" problems. However, several factors weigh heavily in favor of using science fiction short stories and novellas in the MPA classroom setting. These include the need for interesting case scenarios exploring various administrative issues; leveling the playing field between the two types of students by de-emphasizing the use of "contemporary" cases; access to literature that explores the future shock of increasing organizational complexity; and the desirability of Rorschach type materials that facilitate discussion of. values and administrative truths. The discussion proceeds by tracing the development of the case study technique, its advantages and disadvantages in the classroom, addressing the utility of "fiction" as an educational resource, and showing how the science fiction literature has matured to the point where it can be applied in all of the major sub-fields of public administration. Several outstanding examples are detailed, and a thorough bibliography is provided.

A practical note on transferring ideas and methods from consultancy practice to the MPA classroom

At the lead author’s home institution – Copenhagen Business School (CBS) – the combination of theory and practice is seen as very important in teaching. Research-based teaching is the slogan. In this respect, CBS has the same ambition as other universities. But it seems as if CBS has an advantage at the master’s level, because students come with a lot of experience. The average age of the MPA students is generally over 40. Consequently, they are able to bring practice into the classroom and to confront it with theories and also the experiences of their fellow students. There are, however other ways of bringing practice and theory together. In this note, the author reviews a three-year consultancy/research project in a merging hospital department. The aim of the note is twofold. One is to detail the more exploratory methods used to develop the organization. The second is to evaluate whether these methods can be transferred to a potential MPA module at CBS. It is concluded that for some of the methods such as diary-keeping and agenda-setting, transfer is easy. Other methods, such as using a cross-sectional group or manager role-analysis, may not transfer easily but could be applied in the home organizations of participants. The design of the module and the non-traditional roles of the teachers are very important for successful implementation.

Motivating MPA Students to Independently Develop Linkages among Multiple Courses

Students are empowered and creativity is encouraged whenever students are expected to shoulder a greater share of the responsibility for learning. In this study, the shift is partially achieved by the expectation that students, rather than their instructors, assume primary responsibility for selecting concepts from previous coursework that assists in understanding the assigned readings. The data indicate that a greater percentage of the cited concepts are derived from recent courses and assignments that apply lesser cognitive dimensions such as remember. In addition, the cited concepts are derived from each of the MPA program’s non-quantitative core course and the required public management concentration courses—regardless of whether they were completed within the previous year or three years. The data therefore indicate that students assume responsibility for selecting pertinent concepts from a variety of other courses when they are motivated to do so.

An Analysis of the Locus of Control of the Public Administrators in Gomal University Dera Ismail Khan Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Locus of control because of its importance as your locus of control says a lot about how you view the world and your role in determining the course of your life. Present study investigates the relationship among demographic groups and research variables. The literature does provide support for the relevant relationship among these variables; however, such evidence is not entirely unambiguous and, therefore, deserving of future study. The sample for the present study comprised of 30 MPA students; 16 males and 14 females. Statistical treatment of the data obtained for the research was done using t-test. Result showed that there is no significant difference between the variables and demographic groups (gender/domicile). Only one variable ‘Influence’ was found to have significant difference with gender. The study points that why and how influence effects the people’s perceptions and how to direct that stream in a positive direction.