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Research on the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) has tended to have a bad reputation within the field of public administration. In this manuscript, I discuss the issue of impactful research within the field and provide an argument for why we should be focusing more on pedagogical research than more traditional avenues. Not only does pedagogical research directly impact what and how we teach in the classroom, but it tends to be read and cited at higher rates than some of the subfields within the discipline.

A core feature of academic research is the peer review process. The thinking behind this process is straightforward: in an effort to ensure the validity of research, opinions regarding the reliability, thoroughness, and appropriateness of reports on research findings are solicited from outside experts before they are cleared for publication. However, little guidance is provided in the literature or in the development and training of scholars regarding precisely what constitutes effective peer review. The aim of this article is to help to fill this gap. Drawing on our experience as scholars and editors of academic journals, we trace the peer review process from the selection of reviewers through to the crafting of a coherent set of recommendations for the author(s) of a manuscript under consideration. We conclude by urging peer reviewers to approach the process with the care, professionalism, and rigor demanded by this fundamental part of the scholarly endeavor.

As saliency of the tax burden increases, the preference for a lower burden increases, but most counties are restricted by the state from adopting new taxes or changing the existing rates. Some states allow counties to adopt a charter, freeing them from state control. Using a panel of Florida counties from 1980 to 2017, we explore whether citizens act to reduce their property tax once a charter is passed. Citizens act against their preferences not by lowering burden but rather by increasing it in the case of debt service, suggesting citizens are maximizing their optimal tax burden in exchange for services. Applications For Practice: The passage of a charter impacts the county's fiscal policy space.Citizens did not lower their total millage and operating millage rates after the passage of a charter.The presence of a charter was tied to increases in the tax burden of debt service.Citizens are not choosing to maximize their income by reducing their burden, but rather they are adjusting or expanding the public services provided by a county government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The change in course modality had impacts on both the students of MPA programs and their faculty. Even if the courses had little meaning for students staying in country after graduation, do we not have a responsibility for training those students who will go out afterwards? To conduct their analysis, the authors studied the concentration titles, course titles and descriptions, and course syllabi. [Extracted from the article]

Research in the field of public administration has changed and advanced significantly in recent years. These advancements concern both how we engage in research—such as the methods we apply, the interdisciplinary nature of the theories we use, and the research questions we ask. Increasingly, we are witnessing a shift in public‐sector values away from efficiency and effectiveness and toward a paradigm that highlights equity. In this article, we reflect on these changes from our position as editors‐in‐chief of some of the leading journals in the field. In addition to describing the progress of this discipline, we explore emerging windows of opportunity for new research. One such window is research on ways to incorporate interdisciplinary perspectives and methods. We also see the need for work in such areas as social equity, comparative administration, artificial intelligence, and climate change. Finally, we argue for a more proactive approach in disseminating research to those involved in the day‐to‐day decision‐making processes of public organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments frequently use financial incentives to encourage the creation, expansion, or relocation of businesses within their borders. Research on financial incentives gives little clarity as to what impact these incentives may have on governments. While incentives may draw in more economic growth, they also pull resources from government coffers, and they may commit governments to future funding for public services that benefit the incentivized businesses. The authors use a panel of 32 states and data from 1990 to 2015 to understand how incentives affect states' fiscal health. They find that after controlling for the governmental, political, economic, and demographic characteristics of states, incentives draw resources away from states. Ultimately, the results show that financial incentives negatively affect the overall fiscal health of states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many studies in public administration have modeled employees' person–organization fit perceptions as a function of public service motivation, but previous work has not adequately addressed the causal relationship between these concepts. This article represents the first attempt to explain the "black box" that links public service motivation to person–organization fit. Given the various positive benefits associated with person–organization fit in the literature, an understanding of the mechanisms that underpin its relationship with public service motivation has important managerial implications for leaders regarding their interactions with individual employees. Extending the work-based affect model designed by Yu, we explore how PSM increases person–organization fit perceptions through employee followership and leader support as a potential causal chain. The results from a survey of 692 faculty members at a public university are consistent with the predicted three-path mediation model. Among these respondents, higher levels of public service motivation were associated with greater followership behavior, which, in turn, increased positive perceptions of person–organization fit through greater leader support. Points for practitioners This study suggests that having high levels of motivation to serve the public (i.e. public service motivation) does not directly influence how one perceives his or her fit with the organization. Instead, high public service motivation was associated with person–organization fit indirectly through its influence on active followership behaviors. Managerial actors are thus encouraged to pursue open communications with their subordinates to maintain high levels of public service motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the vertical diffusion of a policy between a state and its local governments. Although policy diffusion typically relies upon multiple mechanisms, diffusion between a state and its local governments relies primarily on coercion. Using a case study of state-mandated adherence to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), we show that the coercion mechanism is dependent upon the capacity of the state and local governments to adopt and implement a policy, as well as the discretion available to a local government. Utilizing data from all 50 states as of 2008, our findings show that the vertical diffusion of a policy is reliant on a state’s fiscal capacity and the personnel capacity of the local government. We also found that strong institutional autonomy at the local level leads a state to adopt a GAAP mandate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important question stemming from the collapse of the Soviet Union is how defense spending has influenced the economic performance of the 15 member states since their establishment as market economies. This study furthers the understanding of the relationship between defense spending and economic growth using data from the states of the former Soviet Union from 1992 to 2007. A nonlinear production function was used for direct effects, and models of investment and employment were employed for indirect effects. Contrary to expectations, the findings show that continued reliance on the defense sector in post-Soviet states has helped overall economic growth. Similarly, the growth effect of defense spending has remained nearly constant since the collapse of the Soviet Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented which discusses articles within the issue on topics including use of nonprobability sampling in public administration, curriculum of Master of Public Policy and Master of Public Administration programs in Canada, and curriculum planning for indigenous issues.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses articles in the issue on topics including public affairs and the scholarship of teaching and learning; and public service values in Network of Schools of Public Policy (NASPAA) member programs.