Spanish Public Administration Research Articles

What is the relation between training transfer evaluation factors and training transfer when measured in the Spanish Public Administration?

The European Commission will reinforce the value of adult training through an evaluation of the impact of actions. Among the existing options in evaluating the impact of actions, training transfer is crucial in determining the degree to which the learning acquired during training is used at work. We validated a predicting transfer model in the Spanish Public Administration (SPA) by analyzing, through structural equation modeling (SEM), results of the application of the Factors for Predicting Transfer (FPT) questionnaire applied after the training, and the Scale of Efficacy (CdE) applied four months after the training (n = 726). Although satisfaction and motivation to transfer were not related to transfer, content relevance and accountability were. This study widens the traditional contexts of the study of training transfer and provides valid and reliable empirical data on transfer embedded in a new context, the Spanish Public Administration. This can help further develop the field of international human resource management (IHRM) by exploring transfer in different cultural contexts.

Doing nothing is no solution: Coastal erosion management in Guardamar del Segura (Spain)

Human activities like dam construction in rivers and urban development in coastal areas, combined with climate change, are degrading coastal systems. As a result, many European countries have implemented laws and strategies to protect their shorelines. This research focuses on Guardamar del Segura in Spain, where human actions in the Segura River basin and changes in wave patterns have significantly damaged the beach-dune system, with erosion rates reaching −0.71 m/year. If these rates and extreme climate events continue to rise, the shoreline will keep retreating, leading to the destruction of beachfront houses and parts of the dune surface by 2050. This will cause changes in land ownership and irreversible ecological damage to the natural ecosystem. The Spanish Public Administration's inaction on coastal protection is due to a lack of coordination between government levels, insufficient technical tools to combat erosion, and inadequate legal mechanisms to fund protective measures. In contrast, countries like Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom have effective models in place. Potential solutions for Guardamar del Segura include beach and dune restoration or adding sand through revetments. Another option is a managed retreat of the most vulnerable buildings to avoid continuous repair and maintenance costs. Coastal erosion is a growing issue, and preserving our coastal ecosystems requires proactive measures, so doing nothing is no solution.

Implementation challenges of Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Strategies in Spain during the period 2014-20

Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Strategies (ISUDS) have become the approach adopted by Spain for the promotion of sustainable urban development co-financed by the ERDF during the period 2014-20. While previous research has mainly focused on the design stage of these policies, this study focuses on the implementation stage. Through document analysis and in-depth interviews with actors from the Spanish public administration, this study reveals a low rate of execution of the strategies and the challenges faced by local entities. This research aims to broaden our knowledge about ISUDS in Spain and to propose measures that could improve the implementation of future European programmes on urban sustainability.

Is adding resources always beneficial? Multiplicative impact of psychological capital and goal-oriented climate on Spanish public worker satisfaction and engagement.

The motivation process from personal resources to commitment of administrative employees is still little studied. This article uses the Job Demands-Resources model to investigate how the multiplicative effect of personal resources and a goal-oriented climate among public employees influences their satisfaction and engagement at work. Specifically, it proposes a model where the influence of psychological capital on engagement is mediated by job satisfaction and moderated by the goal orientation climate. A total of 326 employees of the administrative staff of a Spanish Public Administration answered a self-reported survey. Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) approach was used to evaluate the validity and reliability of the data, as well as, to test the hypotheses formulated. The SEM results show the positive impact of psychological capital on employee engagement, and the mediating role of job satisfaction in this relationship. Furthermore, the existence of a goal-oriented climate negatively moderated the relationship between Psychological Capital and Job Satisfaction, reducing the mediation effect. These findings open new doors for future research in the necessary adaptation of human resource policies to improve the motivation process in the public administration context.

Illicit Trade in Cultural Objects under the Spanish Law: The Cabeza de mujer joven Case

This article seeks to introduce a brief description of the rules of protection of cultural heritage goods in the Spanish Law, using the example of a mediatic case of illicit trade, where the regulations of civil law, criminal law, and administrative law were applied and where the freedoms inherent in the right of ownership collided with the rules on properties of cultural interest. First, it provides an overview of the Spanish cultural heritage law, beginning with the constitutional mandate of assuming and promoting the protection of Spanish cultural heritage, and thereafter focusing on the concept of private ownership and its limits, in accordance with the social function of all property rights under the 1978 Spanish Constitution. Second, it describes a well-known case of illicit trade, focused on a valuable painting by Pablo Picasso. The work Cabeza de mujer joven (Head of a young woman) belonged to a private owner who decided to sell it internationally, using the services of a well-known auction house. When the required permission for exportation was denied by the Spanish public administration, the owner commenced a court proceeding aimed at changing the decision, but also planned to send the painting abroad using a yacht on his property. Thirdly, the article’s conclusion reflects on the level of severity of the Spanish legislation as applied in the case, in the context of the balance between cultural heritage protection and the freedom of disposition inherent to the right of property ownership.

Constitutional and Administrative Aspects of Foreigners’ Status in Spain

Spain, like all of Europe, is struggling with a migration crisis in the 21st century. Although Spanish law regulates the legal and administrative situation of foreigners in quite detail, some of the norms no longer match the current geopolitical situation. The article mainly discusses the legal status of a foreigner through the prism of his fundamental rights contained in the Constitution and the Law on Foreigners, as well as problems related to the bureaucracy of the Spanish public administration system in the field of subjective rights of foreigners.

What is a Smart Destination in Practice? The Interpretation of DMO Managers from Spanish World Heritage Cities

ABSTRACT This work intends to identify how Spanish World Heritage Cities (SWHC) are interpreting and implementing the Smart Destination Spanish Model (SD). The model has been created as a new paradigm of tourist management, and it is being sponsored by the Spanish public administration in different destinations, including Spanish World Heritage Cities. SWHC are historic, major tourist destinations with a large number of visitors. A sequence of qualitative methods has been used, consisting of documentary analysis with semi-structured interviews. The destination managers from each of the 15 cities that take part of the World Heritage Cities Spanish Group have been interviewed. In addition, an executive of the government-owned Tourism Innovation and Technologies company (SEGITTUR) has been also interviewed. The results do highlight the momentum that the model has reached, accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, and serve to identify what kind of strategies have been put in practice.

Development, Measurement, and Validation of a Managerial Competency Model in Spain

Abstract: Modernization of Public Administration (PA), to provide a high-quality service, requires improvements in managerial personnel assessment processes. For this purpose, we developed and validated a management competency model that would enable Spanish PA to enhance organizational achievements and prevent corrupt practices. Relations between managers’ competencies and their performance would be perceived as a fairer assessment of human resources processes and ultimately lead to the promotion of ethical behavior within the organization. We followed a mixed-method approach. Study 1 began with a content analysis of articles referring to managerial competencies, followed by Focus Groups and a Delphi panel procedure with subject matter experts, which resulted in a model of eight competencies. Based on this model, in Study 2, we developed a reliable and invariant-across-gender questionnaire (Public Manager Competencies Questionnaire – PUMACQ), which was validated with composite performance criteria (task, contextual, and unethical pro-organizational behavior), by means of a cross-sectional design survey on public managers from around Spain ( N = 439), using structural equation analyses. Our main results show significant relationships between job performance and the competencies of leadership, communication, engagement with PA, innovation orientation, and ethics. Finally, we discuss the practical applications of the results in the public context.

Artificial Intelligence Risks and Challenges in the Spanish Public Administration: An Exploratory Analysis through Expert Judgements

The expanding use of artificial intelligence (AI) in public administration is generating numerous opportunities for governments. Current Spanish regulations have established electronic administration and support the expansion and implementation of this new technology, but they may not be adapted to the legal needs caused by AI. Consequently, this research aims to identify the risks associated with AI uses in Spanish public administration and if the legal mechanisms can solve them. We answer these questions by employing a qualitative research approach, conducting semi-structured interviews with several experts in the matter. Despite the benefits that this technology may involve, throughout this research we can confirm that the use of artificial intelligence can generate several problems such as opacity, legal uncertainty, biases, or breaches of personal data protection. The mechanisms already provided by Spanish law are not enough to avoid these risks as they have not been designed to face the use of artificial intelligence in public administration. In addition, a homogeneous legal definition of AI needs to be established.

Difficulties for Teleworking of Public Employees in the Spanish Public Administration

This paper studies the extent to which difficulties in teleworking continue to be encountered by civil servants of the Spanish General State Administration (AGE) who, after the mandatory lockdown decreed by the Spanish Government from March to May 2020, continue to carry out their work under this modality. The results obtained support that the main difficulties are the acquisition of bad posture and problems in separating work and family life, and the presence of different types of difficulties differs depending on gender, the structure of the household, or whether the employee belongs to the levels of positions where higher qualification is required. In addition, ambiguity is expressed regarding the provision of resources and lack of training provided by the AGE.

Mas allá de los nudges: Políticas públicas efectivas basadas en la evidencia de las ciencias del comportamiento

Los nudges son un mecanismo psicológico que puede inducir cambios de comportamiento en los individuos a bajo coste y, por ello, se han convertido en un instrumento de política pública que ha demostrado tener éxito en algunos contextos y que cada vez es más aceptado. Sin embargo, para dirigir la modernización de la administración pública hacia el uso de políticas públicas basadas en la evidencia se debe abrazar de forma más ambiciosa el enfoque de la Economía del Comportamiento y no limitarse al uso de nudges, sino incluir otros instrumentos complementarios y sustitutivos, como los incentivos, que tengan en cuenta la diversidad en los procesos de toma de decisiones de los individuos y el amplio espectro de motivaciones que las generan. La experimentación, la disponibilidad de datos públicos, y la evaluación de las políticas públicas son pasos que deben acompañar a la adopción de la economía del comportamiento por parte de la administración pública en España.

Juan Pablo II en España: de la movilización católica a la oposición política

Objective/Context: in recent decades, religion has established itself as one of the most potent instruments to activate political aspirations. The classical paradigms of secularization failed in their predictions, and religion has neither been confined to the private sphere nor has it disappeared from public space. This article looks at how faith is made visible in a particular way and claims its seat in the public discourse. Methodology: the article engages with its objective starting from the analysis of primary sources—ecclesiastic documents, press reports, and references from Spanish Public Administration—and the methods developed around the study of social movements and the cultural history of the political milieu. Originality: the paper focuses on Pope John Paul II’s trip to Spain in October and November of 1982. A few days before his arrival, the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (psoe) had won the general elections by a vast absolute majority. For the first time after General Franco’s death, a nominally left-wing party took over the government’s control. In that context, the Papal visit had great political relevance: significant media and political opposition against that new government came together around John Paul II. Conclusions: through the trips of the Vatican State’s head, the Catholic Church mobilizes Catholics in the streets, which transforms the crowds turning out to accompany the Pope into actual marches in which religious recognition mixes with political demands. The trip analyzed in this article, whose logic echoed in multiple spaces during the Papacy of John Paul II, shows us an institution of a marked transnational character capable of acting as an authentic political agent.

The Diccionario Panhispánico de la Administración Pública (DiPAP): An Example of Terminological Democratization

The Diccionario Panhispánico de la Administración Pública (DiPAP) is a collaborative digital lexicographical project for public administration terminology. This article presents an overview of the dictionary’s construction, as well as the current and future challenges of lexicographic work. The project focuses on the health, education, transportation, and finance public sectors of Argentina, Colombia, Spain, and Mexico. Underlying the project is a panhispanic perspective on the Spanish language, plain language, and public administration terminology. DiPAP provides two types of definitions, institutional and simplified (plain language), along with equivalents in several Spanish varieties. Its database contains a term bank, a document bank, and a government procedures bank, all based on internet sources. These banks make up the Corpus panhispánico de la administración pública (CorpusPAP). CorpusPAP allows users to acquire information from institutional websites and access additional related information, including DiPAP and CorpusPAP. The terminology used in DiPAP’s government procedures bank lies at the intersection between administrative language and the plain language best suited for the general population.

¿Administraciones públicas “genderizadas”?

Dotarse de instrumentos normativos y de políticas de género con el objeto de derrotar las desigualdades estructurales es el objetivo de las acciones para la igualdad entre hombres y mujeres diseñadas por los Estados. En este trabajo, centrado en el estudio de caso de la Administración Pública española, se repasan las medidas adoptadas en el ámbito del acceso al empleo público y la política de personal en el periodo democrático, para responder a las preguntas: ¿cuándo y cómo han sido diseñadas?, ¿qué actores políticos las han impulsado?, ¿en qué momento estamos? El propósito último es identificar los avances y las medidas específicas, trayendo al debate los elementos generales y contextuales que obstaculizan la consecución efectiva de la igualdad. El estudio de la Administración Pública española puede ejemplificar un recorrido, particular pero muy ilustrativo, de las dificultades, retos y estrategias en favor de la igualdad y las políticas públicas con perspectiva de género.

Validation of predicting transfer instruments in Spain

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to validate two scales, the factors predicting transfer (FPT) and the effectiveness questionnaire (CdE), in the Spanish Public Administration (SPA).Design/methodology/approachThe FPT was administered at the end of the training, and the CdE four months after training. Participants had attended one of the 62 trainings offered by the SPA. With 1,457 participants, exploratory factor analysis (EFA; n = 728) and confirmatory factory analysis (CFA) (n = 729), randomly assigned, were performed on the FPT, and CFA (n = 726) was applied to the CdE.FindingsA 30-item and four-factor solution emerged for the FPT through the EFA, which was confirmed by a good model fit through the CFA. A seven-item single-factor solution was confirmed for the CdE. Measurement invariance for the mode of instruction and gender was accepted for both instruments.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research should be done in a more heterogenous sample that includes private organizations, different sectors and sizes. In the human resource development (HRD) field, these results suggest, in line with previous research, the existence of underlying constructs of factors of transfer that migrate across cultures.Practical implicationsThe potential use of the FPT is the diagnosis of factors of transfer, and for the CdE, evaluation of the transfer of interventions at the behavioral level. The instruments are suitable for research and practice that compares online and in-class training.Originality/valueThe study performs the first rigorous analysis of measurement instruments to evaluate factors that predict transfer in Spain.

Development of a Methodology and an Optimization Model for the Performance Evaluation of the Employees in the Public Economic Management and Procurement Systems: The Case Study of the Spanish Air Force

The economic administration and procurement system of public sector structures are composed of a series of management units whose staff assigned to them needs to be optimized. In order to achieve this, the work analyzes the concept of performance evaluation presented in the Spanish Public Administration, similar to other countries of the EU and Latin America. A methodology has been designed to evaluate performance using systemic analysis and organizational behavior, taking as a case study the Spanish Air Force. Traditional performance evaluation models are based on the psycho-sociological research of workers, which are static and require a lot of management effort. Faced with these limitations, a new dynamic and interdisciplinary model has been designed and implemented to evaluate performance and measure workload that can be used with high periodicity and requires little management effort. The model in question focuses mainly on the generation of strategic intelligence through the exploitation of the databases of the economic management information system. This strategic intelligence serves to guide decision-making regarding the reallocation of jobs and personnel to identify training needs and the necessary changes in organizational culture and leadership. In general, this model allows an improvement in the effectiveness, efficiency, economy and service level of the system, and can be applied to other Spanish military organizations or those belonging to other countries of the international community as well as other structures of the public administration dedicated to economic management and procurement.

Cribado del síndrome de apnea/hipopnea del sueño en trabajadores. Cuestionario Epworth frente a Stop-Bang y variables relacionadas

INTRODUCCIÓN: el síndrome de apnea-hipopnea obstructiva del sueño (SAHOS) es el trastorno respiratorio del sueño más frecuente. Para su diagnóstico inicial, como procedi- mientos de cribado se utilizan diversos cuestionarios autoadministrados que cuantifican la gravedad de la somnolencia.Es objetivo de este estudio conocer el riesgo de desarrollo de este síndrome en trabaja- dores y la influencia de variables sociodemográficas y laborales en la prevalencia detectada.MATERIALES Y MÉTODOS: estudio epidemiológico transversal con una muestra de trabajadores de empresas del sector servicios de la administración pública española durante la vigilancia periódica de la salud. Se valora la posibilidad de presentar apneas nocturnas mediante los cuestionarios Epworth y Stop-Bang, y la influencia de variables como edad, sexo, clase social, tipo de trabajo y consumo de tabaco.RESULTADOS: el tiempo medio de sueño al día es de 6,90 horas. Según Stop-Bang, el 77 % de los pacientes tienen un riesgo bajo de SAHOS y el 23 %, riesgo intermedio-alto. Con Epworth, el 74 % tiene un riesgo leve, el 11 % moderado y el 2 % grave. El 13 % de los pacientes no tuvo riesgo. El 1,62 % está en tratamiento con presión positiva continua de la vía aérea (CPAP), mayoritariamente con control regular.El cuestionario Epworth muestra una relación con resultados estadísticamente significa- tivos en todas las variables, excepto en el hábito tabáquico. El cuestionario Stop-Bang solo muestra resultados significativos en las variables de edad y sexo.CONCLUSIÓN: los cuestionarios de Epworth y Stop-Bang pueden ser eficaces en la detección de individuos sanos con riesgo elevado de SAHOS, no diagnosticados ni tratados por problemas del sueño. El cuestionario Stop-Bang parece adaptarse mejor a las valoracio- nes del ámbito laboral.

The reforms in Spanish and Polish public administration in 2010-2015 from the perspective of new public management

We have witnessed fundamental changes in developmental conditions in the last decade. Their pace is constantly growing, and the increasing dynamics of socio-economic transformations create a new reality. The consequences of the changes affect not only companies, but also public administration. Therefore, the goal of the article was to identify the directions of the reforms of new public management in Polish and Spanish public administration in the years 2010-2015. An analysis of the research results shows that the most important trends of the reforms in Poland included: i) transparency of actions, ii) digital administration and e-government and iii) cooperation between various entities of the public sector, whereas Spanish respondents regarded the following trends as the most important: i) digital administration and e-government, ii) reduction of the public sector, iii) transparency of actions. The results of the research show the progressive convergence of the directions and tools of the reforms in EU countries, while maintaining differences in some aspects of development in particular countries.

La comunicación de crisis en la administración pública española: análisis de evidencia empírica

Catástrofes, terremotos, pandemias, enfermedades epidémicas, emergencias y la alteración de los servicios básicos son sólo algunos de los acontecimientos impredecibles que muestran de qué manera las crisis pueden desarrollarse con gran rapidez y la importancia que tiene para los gobiernos y las administraciones públicas gestionar efectivamente su comunicación de crisis.La experiencia de crisis nacionales (la política detrás de la crisis del Ébola, el terremoto de Lorca, el movimiento vecinal de Gamonal en Burgos, la huelga no autorizada de los controladores aéreos en 2010 o el accidente de tren en Angrois) muestran que la comunicación efectiva requiere una extensa preparación y este artículo presenta un trabajo empírico sobre la comunicación de crisis de las administraciones públicas en España.El objetivo de esta investigación es describir el estado de la práctica de la comunicación de crisis en la administración del Estado, comunidades autónomas y municipios, con el apoyo en las percepciones de sus trabajadores. Para lograrlo, realizamos un estudio a través de encuesta con referencias a casos de crisis gestionados por la Administración Pública española.

Evaluación de la eficacia de la formación en la Administración Pública: la transferencia al puesto

El artículo recoge los resultados de la evaluación de la transferencia de la formación en la Administración General del Estado con el fin de conocer los factores que en mayor medida influyen en que se produzca.Se analizaron las respuestas de 1.475 participantes en 69 cursos desarrollados por el INAP (Instituto Nacional de la Administración Pública) durante el primer semestre de 2016. Se evaluó la transferencia directa con el Cuestionario de Eficacia de la Formación (CdE; Pineda, Quesada y Ciraso 2011) y la indirecta con el cuestionario de Factores de Eficacia de la Transferencia (FET; Pineda, Quesada y Ciraso, 2013).Los resultados muestran que los factores de los participantes, del lugar de trabajo, la orientación a las necesidades del puesto y la generación de una red profesional tienen una relación positiva con la transferencia. Sin embargo la duración de la formación, el número de participantes y el número de profesores no presentan relación con la transferencia. El tiempo que el participante tarda en aplicar lo aprendido se relaciona inversamente con la transferencia.La dimensión más relevante de cara a predecir la transferencia es la orientación a las necesidades del puesto.