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Across the western United States and elsewhere, the frequency and intensity of wildland fires are projected to increase, posing a challenge to natural‐resource management. While collaborative, multi‐benefit partnerships can provide opportunities to overcome barriers to effective management, in many cases these collaborations have been slow to form. To investigate this issue, we surveyed natural‐resource professionals in California to identify barriers to effective management and potential solutions in the form of collaborations. Analyzing our data using social network analysis, results show that limited financial and human capital were the most salient barriers in our sample, while lack of public support and data were less common concerns. Collaboration networks were dominated by land‐management and other public agencies, as they were the most frequently mentioned as collaborators. Tribes, universities, private‐sector organizations, and watershed‐service providers mentioned other actors as collaborators more often than they were mentioned as collaborators, while the opposite was true for land‐management and other public agencies. Universities, land managers, watershed‐service providers, and private‐sector organizations displayed a strong desire to establish new collaborations, while other public agencies and tribes displayed less of a desire to do so. Overall, this study highlights insufficient financial and human capital as barriers confronting natural‐resource management in California. It also shows that organizations with the capacity and capability to help mitigate these shortcomings, such as the private sector and universities, are among those most positive toward additional collaborations. Our findings suggest that initiatives to expand regional collaborative partnerships could increase the effectiveness of natural‐resource management in California. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humanity is facing rapid declines in both biodiversity and cultural diversity. As effective conservation policies often require strong public support, it is critical to understand whether individuals view diversity loss through a moral lens and whether they value diversity for its own sake, independent from instrumental or individual‐centric concerns. Across two studies (N = 796), we found that individuals assigned moral value to both biodiversity and cultural diversity. Individuals assigned greater moral value to animals, plants and – to a lesser extent – languages when diversity was threatened, compared to when it was not threatened, despite an equal number of entities at risk, and they were willing to sacrifice a large number of these entities to prevent a loss in diversity. Additionally, we found (N = 12,000) that a general concern for diversity underlies concern for both biodiversity and cultural diversity. These findings suggest that emphasizing the inherent value of diversity may be effective for increasing public support for conservation of diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study aims to examine how inter‐Korean events influence South Korean public opinion on unification. It seeks to understand the impact of various political events, including South‐North contacts and North Korean nuclear provocations, on South Koreans' attitudes towards unification. Methods: Using annual survey data from the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University (IPUS), this study creates a novel time‐series dataset spanning from 2007 to 2021. We test how each of the inter‐Korean political events affects support for unification and how key individual dispositions moderate the level of support. Results: The empirical findings reveal that inter‐Korean summits and family reunions positively affect unification sentiment, with family reunions showing surprisingly stronger impacts than inter‐Korean summits. Regarding North Korea's provocations, nuclear tests negatively influence public support for unification, while ballistic missile launches do not significantly impact unification sentiment, likely due to public habituation. Conclusion: This study contributes to existing literature by providing new empirical insights into the relationship between inter‐Korean political events and public opinion. The findings suggest that policymakers should focus on strategic short‐term initiatives, particularly increasing inter‐Korean contacts, to foster long‐term positive sentiment towards unification. However, it's important to note that individual variables become more influential in shaping public opinion over the long term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accommodating new religious communities has become a central issue in Western Europe. However, the role of religious identification in shaping intergroup relations still needs to be better understood. This study addresses this gap by analyzing the factors influencing public support for the accommodation of religious diversity, drawing on two statistically representative surveys conducted in Catalonia, Spain. The results revealed that religious identification moderates the relationship between the perception that religions other than Catholicism threaten society's way of life and the level of support for accommodating religious diversity. Contrary to initial assumptions, practicing Catholics were more supportive of religious accommodation than nonpracticing Catholics and nonbelievers, regardless of the level of threat they perceived. Moreover, cross‐group friendships mitigated the negative impact of perceived threat on support for religious accommodation, particularly among nonbelievers. Overall, the findings underscore the importance of cross‐group friendships in fostering more inclusive societies and provide valuable insights for religious governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Related Articles The number of monetary redress programs for survivors of nonrecent abuse in out‐of‐home care is growing. These programs help make monetary remedies more accessible to survivors. However, the reasons that justify these programs also encourage policy makers to adopt paternalistic measures. This article argues that most paternalistic restrictions are unjustified because they infringe on survivors' autonomy without clearly benefiting them.Kahn‐Nisser, Sara. 2018. “Constructive Criticism: Shaming, Incentives, and Human Rights Reforms.” Politics & Policy 46(1): 58–83. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12240.Winter, Stephen. 2020. “Tools for Tragedy: Procedures for Assessing Historic Redress Claims.” Politics & Policy 49(1): 162–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12385.Woessner, Matthew, and April Kelly‐Woessner. 2006. “Slavery Reparations and Race Relations in America: Assessing How the Restitutions Debate Influences Public Support for Blacks, Civil Rights, and Affirmative Action.” Politics & Policy 34(1): 134–54. 10.1111/j.1747‐1346.2006.00007.x. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many countries are implementing carbon taxation to limit emissions, and this provides a new form of tax revenue. Studies have taken up the question of what forms of expenditure from carbon taxation receive public support and whether 'revenue recycling' can improve support for carbon taxation. However, public attitudes are ambiguous. We argue that some of the diverse findings partly reflect that previous studies have lacked the trade‐offs that come with expenditures and that we need to expand focus beyond what the average citizen wants. Therefore, we use an approach where members of the Danish public are asked how they would like to divide the total sum of carbon tax revenues between eight specific areas. We employ hierarchical cluster analysis, which shows a diverse field of groups. This reveals that, while generally popular, expenditures toward climate mitigation and adaptation need to be complemented by social spending to achieve broader support. Related Articles: Ike, Vivian. 2020. "The Impact of Veto Players on Incremental and Drastic Policy Making: Australia's Carbon Tax Policy and Its Repeal." Politics & Policy 48(2): 232–64. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12346. Lachapelle, Erick, Thomas Bergeron, Richard Nadeau, Jean‐François Daoust, Ruth Dassonneville, and Éric Bélanger. 2021. "Citizens' Willingness to Support New Taxes for COVID‐19 Measures and the Role of Trust." Politics & Policy 49(3): 534–65. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12404. Tuxhorn, Kim‐Lee, John D'Attoma, and Sven Steinmo. 2021. "Do Citizens Want Something for Nothing? Mass Attitudes and the Federal Budget." Politics & Policy 49(3): 566–93. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12406. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How does right‐wing populism affect public preferences for foreign development aid spending across the liberal/conservative ideological spectrum? This research examines the complex interplay between exposure to right‐wing populist messages targeting aid and political ideology at the mass level in Germany, the United States (U.S.), and the United Kingdom (UK) with data from original survey experiments. First, the experiments indicate that populist rhetoric reduces public support for foreign aid across all countries albeit to varying degrees. Second, the moderating role of political ideology is variable and complex across the different countries. In Germany, populist anti‐aid messages reduce support among voters on the center of the ideological spectrum and among those without clear ideological preferences. In the U.S., anti‐aid messages affect those on the left. In the UK, the effect of populist anti‐aid rhetoric surprisingly does not vary cross ideological groups. Our results have implications for the prospects of public support for development cooperation in the shadow of populism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas globally serve as crucial sanctuaries for biodiversity, playing a pivotal role in conserving endangered species and maintaining ecological balance. In the United Kingdom (UK), 25% of land is currently designated as public protected areas and discussions are underway regarding the implementation of new protected areas, including the establishment of new National Parks in all four nations of the UK. Wild places have an important role to play in understanding and deciding where public protected areas should or could be. People form profound connections to wild places locally and nationally. We used two online surveys to gather information on the UK public's local and national favourite wild places, and the characteristics of those places which make them their top choice. Our analysis revealed that respondents preferred different wild places based on their survey group, with significant differences in the importance placed on characteristics like ‘Accessibility’, ‘Nature’ and ‘Scenery’ across local and national scales. Demographic factors, including age and settlement, had some impact, but the overall importance of characteristics like ‘Peace and Quiet’ and ‘Nature’ were consistently high across both surveys. Recognising the prevalence of favourite wild places outside of designated areas underscores the importance of engaging the different viewpoints of the public in conservation initiatives, and indicates that public support for conservation might extend beyond officially protected regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effectiveness of strategic psychology‐based marketing techniques for increasing public support for conservation is poorly understood. We assessed how such techniques affect support for tropical rainforest restoration with a controlled online experiment with 1166 nationally representative residents of the United Kingdom. We tested whether support increased when adding ecosystem service (ES) framings to typical nongovernmental organizations’ (NGOs) biodiversity‐focused messages that emphasize benefits to UK residents or people living near the tropical restoration site and a dynamic social norm nudge that emphasized increasing popularity of environmental restoration. We considered how respondents’ psychological traits (nature connection, self‐efficacy, psychological benefits of supporting charities, awareness of environmental degradation in the Global South, and climate change skepticism) influenced responses. Outcomes included respondents’ reported advertisement sufficiency, sympathetic attitudes, behavioral support, and financial support. The study population typically found advertisements sufficient and exhibited sympathetic attitudes and financial, but not behavioral, support. Younger people exhibited greater conservation support than older respondents. Messages framed solely on biodiversity conservation were as effective as those highlighting additional ES benefits received by UK residents and people near the tropical restoration site. This suggests that framing around ESs, rather than nature's intrinsic value, may not strengthen public support for conservation. The dynamic social norm nudge had perverse effects. It reduced perceived social norms and most outcome variables. Alternative dynamic norm nudges warrant testing, but our results support research suggesting dynamic norm nudges can be ineffective when associated with activism, challenging their use by conservation NGOs. Psychological benefits of supporting charities and perceived self‐efficacy increased support for advertisements, highlighting the benefits of including impact statements relating respondents’ support to specific outcomes. Climate change skepticism decreased support, whereas nature connection and perceived static social norms increased it, highlighting the need to increase nature connection and pro‐environmental social norms to elevate public support for conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In her 2024 Mais lecture, soon‐to‐be chancellor Rachel Reeves made the case for prioritising national economic security over the pursuit of ‘hyperglobalisation’. She put national economic productivity improvements at the heart of Labour's political‐economic strategy, reflecting the emergence of a dual consensus on economic government that has developed independently of the Labour Party in recent years. Reeves has recognised that this offers space for the pursuit of a moderate social democratic agenda, but the political challenge for the Labour government will be to maintain public support until its gradualist growth policies begin to take effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about species' locations can influence what happens to them—from supporting habitat protection to exposing poaching targets. Debate about releasing locations when new species are found highlights the trade‐off between the risk of loss and the benefits of funding and public support. No research so far has collected data on how such decisions are made, and no decision tools easily compare a range of decision‐making scenarios. Here, we present a method to compare the costs and benefits of decisions about the disclosure of information about newly discovered species and populations. We implement our method for seven species where information is completely or partially secret. We ask decision‐makers to estimate the costs and benefits associated with these case studies and apply our method. Results show a range of implications from choices that are always better, to others that depend on risk attitude, and demonstrate that the process of decision‐making can be transparent and easily communicated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This article employs three theoretical approaches (cultural, institutional, and informational) to explain public willingness to support two major forms of digital surveillance policies—video surveillance and internet surveillance—in the countries with varying levels of political trust. Methods: Utilizing the data from World Values Survey (WVS) and the other sources, this study conducts a multi‐level analysis involving 75,721 respondents from 50 countries or regions. Results: The results show that public support for digital surveillance policies varies across digital surveillance types and political trust contexts. The cultural approach demonstrates consistent effects that remain robust irrespective of the type of digital surveillance or political trust. The institutional approach varies by the level of political trust, and the informational approach differs between video and internet surveillance. Conclusion: The effects of three theoretical approaches are compared across digital surveillance types and across political trust contexts. The comparison examines the privacy calculus theory in different scenarios and reveals the intricate trade‐off mechanism inherent in public support for digital surveillance policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A prominent scholarship contends that presidential norms are particularly vital to a well‐functioning democracy. However, scant empirical research exists on the topic. I investigate public attitudes toward a novel battery of what many scholars and journalists consider presidential norms and examine the extent to which partisan and policy concerns affect attitudes toward them. Original survey data show that Americans strongly support presidential norms. I argue that there are two salient dimensions of presidential norms—what I call structural norms and presentation norms. Structural norms promote and support constitutional government. Presentation norms concern expectations about when and how presidents should present themselves before the public. Partisans evaluate the two types of presidential norms differentially, with Republicans notably expressing lower support for structural norms. I then present experimental evidence that the public's support for presidential norms is malleable to partisan framing. These results suggest that the public supports presidential norms in the abstract, but compelling rhetoric can facilitate presidential norm violations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childcare has been considered a ‘new’ social risk and various childcare regimes have been developed worldwide to tackle this social problem. While welfare attitude studies have paid attention to public attitudes toward childcare services, little is known about public attitudes toward other childcare‐related family policies (i.e., leave and allowance). Using novel and unique survey data on welfare attitudes from China, this article investigates how socioeconomic factors matter to general as well as prioritised support for three types of childcare‐related family policies and to policy regimes in China where low fertility crisis is emerging. The survey data suggests the biggest gap between general and prioritised support is found in allowance policy and the smallest in service policy. Regression models suggest that the biggest gap between general and prioritised support for allowance policy can be explained by the reversed and negative effects of education and gender. We further develop a typology of public support for childcare regimes using Latent Class Analysis (LCA) and find four types: implicit and explicit familialism, de‐familialism, and ambiguous familialism. The results of multinomial logistic regression on public support for childcare regimes confirm the findings on prioritised support for different policies and suggest a bifurcation effect of age on regime preferences. We discuss the implications of the findings in the conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research shows that information cues influence public opinion on international cooperation, yet it is unclear whether all cues are equally effective in the context of a global crisis. This paper sheds light on this issue by analysing how frames in public discourse influence support for multilateral vaccine cooperation during Covid‐19. Building on research on in‐group favouritism, decision‐making under uncertainty, and public support for multilateralism, the paper argues that frames emphasizing vaccine nationalism are more potent than those emphasizing international cooperation and that nationalist political identities moderate these framing effects. An original survey experiment in the United Kingdom confirms this argument and shows that public support for multilateralism is substantial but vulnerable. A vaccine nationalism frame reduces support for multilateralism, while an international cooperation frame has no effect. Moreover, 'Brexit identities' moderate this framing effect, with 'Leavers' being more susceptible to the detrimental effect of the vaccine nationalism frame than 'Remainers'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests that a defendant's history of experiencing childhood abuse, and its effects on their life and later decision‐making, may impact public support for a defendant's sentencing, particularly mitigation. However, no existing research has examined how and why sentencing support may vary based on the time period when the abuse occurs during a defendant's childhood. This experiment, using a sample of the U.S. public (N = 400), examines how the age at which a defendant's childhood physical abuse occurs affects lay support for the goals of their sentencing. We hypothesized that participants with higher levels of social and biological trait essentialism would moderate their increased support for more punitive sentencing goals—particularly when a defendant was abused earlier, rather than later, in childhood. Results suggest that social essentialism is associated with increased support for restoration and rehabilitation toward defendants with histories of childhood physical abuse, potentially indicating that the public views the effects of child abuse as more of a social, versus biological, process which may affect support for utilitarian punishment goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to explain fertility dynamics during the pandemic, while considering countries' institutional context. We argue that containment policies disrupted people's lives and increased their uncertainty more in countries with weak welfare support systems, while health‐related and economic support NPIs mitigated such disruptions much more there, as they were less expected by citizens. We estimate monthly "excess" crude birth rates (CBRs) and find that countries with low public support—Southern Europe, East Asia, and Eastern Europe—experienced larger decreases and less of a rebound in CBRs than countries with histories of high public spending—Western, Central, and Northern Europe. However, in low support countries, NPIs are much more strongly associated with excess CBRs—containment NPIs more negatively and health and economic support NPIs more positively—with the exception of the one‐month lag of containment NPIs, for which the opposite holds. When putting these coefficients into broader perspective, our findings suggest that the actual implementation of all NPIs taken together mitigated fertility declines. This is especially the case for low public support countries, whereas one might have seen a birth decline even in high support countries if the NPIs were not implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issue Addressed: This study explored trends in public support for obesity prevention policies in Western Australia (WA). Methods: A series of cross‐sectional surveys of a representative sample of WA adults aged 25–49 years (N = 11 534) were undertaken between 2012 and 2020 as part of an evaluation of the LiveLighter® mass media campaign, a component of a statewide healthy lifestyle education and promotion programme. Computer‐assisted telephone interviews were used to gauge support for a range of obesity prevention initiatives that could be implemented by government. Results: A majority of respondents supported a range of obesity prevention policies, including taxes on sugary drinks, urban planning regulations, food labelling and packaging regulations, restrictions on advertising and sponsorship, bans on the sale and marketing of unhealthy food and drink in retail environments and support for education and campaigns. Obesity prevention policies were highly supported by women, people with a healthy weight, and those who had completed secondary school. Support for regulation was high compared to other studies. Notably, there were significant increases in support between baseline and 2020 for 'taxing soft drinks and using the money to reduce the cost of healthy food' (72% cf. 80%) and 'restricting junk food promotions/advertisements on public transport' (73% cf. 83%). Conclusions: There is substantial public support for regulatory action on obesity prevention in WA, providing strong rationale for government interventions to improve nutrition and reduce obesity. The LiveLighter® programme may have contributed to increases in support for obesity prevention policies in WA. So What?: There is potential to implement robust obesity prevention policies in WA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation: Vulnerability to poverty derives from adverse shocks and adaptive capacity. To alleviate poverty, policy‐makers must understand sources of vulnerability, household coping strategies, and the effectiveness of current insurance. Vietnam is an important case due to the many hazards that rural households face and the inadequacy of social safety nets. Purpose: This article investigates the role of adverse shocks on vulnerability, coping strategies, and recovery of households in rural Vietnam. Approach and methods: Using a unique panel data set from Vietnam Access to Resources Household Surveys (VARHSs) during 2008–2016, I first estimate and deconstruct sources of vulnerability. To examine household behaviour when coping with adverse shocks, I use a multivariate probit model; to investigate whether coping strategies help households recover from shocks, I use a multinominal probit model. Finally, I evaluate the effectiveness of existing risk‐management mechanisms. Findings: The average rural household in Vietnam experiences a 72% decrease in utility due to shocks. Idiosyncratic shocks contribute 32% of the loss. Rural households are highly dependent on informal coping, such as reducing food consumption, withdrawing savings, taking children out of school or selling capital assets. Household savings allow the wealthiest households to recover; but for low‐income households, consumption has to be cut, which depletes human capital development and prevents recovery. Policy implications: Rural Vietnamese need more public support to cope with and recover from shocks. Because idiosyncratic shocks hit households hard, public support should focus on alleviating their impacts. Expanding health insurance to all rural households should be a priority. Households suffer less in areas with higher levels of economic development, so economic growth is a defence against shocks. More roads and links to towns and more irrigation would help. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research either focused on self‐interest or left–right ideology to explain support for demanding active labour market policies (ALMPs). This article focuses instead on how attitudes towards these policies are rooted in the underlying policy paradigm. We link attitudes towards ALMPs to two pillars of the activation paradigm: distributive justice and unemployment attributions. Structural equational modeling is employed on the Belgian National Election Study data of 2014 (N = 1901). Individuals supporting the principles of need and equity and who blame the unemployed are more in favour of demanding activation. These frameworks and hence the policy paradigm thus have substantial predictive power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores public sentiment towards strike action among healthcare workers, as a result of their perceived inadequate pay. By analysing survey data collected in England between 2022 and 2023, the study focuses on NHS nurses and junior doctors, due to their critical role in delivering essential public services. Results indicate higher public support for strikes by nurses and junior doctors compared to other professions such as postal workers, teachers, rail workers, airport workers, civil servants and university lecturers. However, variation in support for strikes by healthcare workers is observed across societal segments. Significant disparities in support are linked to individual political affiliations, left–right ideological positions and trust in the NHS. In short, nonconservative voters, individuals leaning towards left‐wing politics and those with greater trust in the NHS demonstrate higher likelihoods of supporting strikes by health workers. These findings carry implications for future strike decisions and highlight specific target groups for enhanced communication efforts to garner increased public support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents novel empirical findings on whether and under what conditions the public supports apprenticeship subsidies paid to training firms during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Drawing on the literature on justice research and deservingness theory, we construct an experimental factorial survey among individuals from German administrative records. The findings suggest selective support targeting the neediest firms, for example, small firms and firms strongly affected economically. Furthermore, we find that perceived deservingness is higher for firms offering apprenticeships in an area of skill shortage. Our results furthermore suggest that personal characteristics impact the assessment of the distribution of state support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study contributes to the understanding of the speed of the effects of publicly funded research – R&D grants – on firm R&D, innovation and innovation behaviour. We argue that while the speed of the positive effects on R&D (i.e. input additionality; IA) tightly relates to public support programmes' requirement of private contribution in R&D spending, the positive effects on innovation (i.e. output additionality; OA) and innovation behaviour (i.e. behavioural additionality; BA) are temporally delayed, linked to the explorative nature of learning associated with publicly funded projects and obstacles to changes in the innovation behaviour of firms. We empirically test our theoretical framework for a sample of R&D‐intensive UK firms to find that while IA occurs in the year following receipt of R&D grants, BA takes 3 years after receipt of R&D grants to occur. We do not find that grants have a positive effect on either product or process innovation. In measuring BA, we employ a 'classical' treatment and control group evaluation without relying on firms' perceptions of how the receipt of grants affected their innovation behaviour. Our findings have significant implications for both management practice and policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public support for and voluntary compliance with protective policy measures are crucial to mitigating the spread of infectious disease. However, it is unclear why and how people with diverse cultural biases support particular protective policies. Relying on the Cultural Theory (CT) of risk, we hypothesize that value congruence with social distancing and a vaccine mandate during the COVID‐19 pandemic influences the level of public support for and compliance with these protective policies. Analyzing a Chinese nationwide sample, we find that the effects of cultural biases on public support and compliance vary not only with cultural biases but by how these are mediated through value congruence with particular protective policies. As hypothesized, hierarchical cultural biases increase public support for and compliance with social distancing and a vaccine mandates both directly and (indirectly) through value congruence. By contrast, as hypothesized, fatalistic cultural biases decrease public support for and compliance with social distancing both directly and (indirectly) through lack of value congruence and individualistic biases decrease public support for and compliance with social distancing and a vaccine mandate both directly and (indirectly) through lack of value congruence. However, the hypothesized effects of fatalistic biases did not hold for the vaccine mandate. We discuss reasons why these latter hypotheses regarding the vaccine mandate were not validated and suggest that risk analysts and communicators do more to discover and explain why particular protective policies are congruent with diverse cultural values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Few studies have measured public attitudes about reform proposals for changing direct primaries. Despite strong public support over the past century for holding primaries, does the public want to change the direct primary, given its very low voter turnout and its potential role in fostering political polarization? Method: Using a unique nationally representative survey of 3000 U.S. adults conducted in March 2023 by YouGov, this study shows that a majority of Americans support reform of primary elections. Results: The reforms which receive the greatest support are those that seem more "democratic" such as establishing national congressional primary and holding open primaries. There is lower support for reforms that give political parties more control over selecting candidates, such as state party conventions. There are significant differences between Republicans, Democrats, and independents, while factors such as interest, education, gender, and race have a minimal impact. Individuals living in states with nonpartisan primaries are more favorable toward this specific reform, ranked‐choice voting, and open primaries, but primary type was not significant in regression models. Conclusions: The public is opposed to reforms that give parties more say in choosing candidates, consistent with public sentiment a century earlier when the direct primary was adopted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the bridging role non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can play between a divided public administration in a conflict-ridden country. Based on interviews with various stakeholders in Yemen, we argue that NGO might need to mediate between conflicting authorities to effectively carry out their activities. By doing so, they serve as a bridge that could help maintain relations between the two fragmented administrations and possibly facilitate the process of post-conflict state building. While not all NGOs are capable or required to fulfill this role, we identify four enabling factors: (1) the readiness of stakeholders to engage; (2) public support for the NGO; and (3) NGOs' adequate capacity; and (4) the donor's support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Replacing car travel with walking and cycling is at the core of the shift to healthier and more sustainable societies. Implementing dedicated infrastructure is a common measure to achieve this aim. But policymakers in multiple countries regularly contend with two obstacles: designing infrastructure that people will make use of and securing public support for implementation. We review and synthesize relevant research from behavioral science that sheds light on how to overcome these two obstacles. Given available literature, we focus on cycling infrastructure. We find that research on moderators of the success of active travel initiatives points to the importance of proximity, connectivity, and safety perceptions, particularly among women, older adults and children. We review empirical findings on which design elements make infrastructure both safe to use and perceived as safe. With respect to public support, we summarize common concerns and review research from behavioral economics and psychology that may help to counter misperceptions of the effects of active travel infrastructure. We also draw on evidence regarding support for climate policy and opinion formation more generally. The paper offers an evidence‐based guide for policymakers to design and implement active travel infrastructure, seen through the lens of behavioral science. It also highlights fruitful avenues for future research. This article is categorized under:Perceptions, Behavior, and Communication of Climate Change > Behavior Change and ResponsesThe Carbon Economy and Climate Mitigation > Policies, Instruments, Lifestyles, BehaviorPolicy and Governance > Governing Climate Change in Communities, Cities, and Regions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As interest in universal basic income (UBI) policy has peaked in recent years, the study of public support for such a policy is rapidly developing. While recent studies recognise the multidimensionality of the UBI proposal, we still know little about to what extent support for UBI is unambiguously supported or rejected. We show that the public holds distinct but related opinions towards three dimensions of UBI: universalism, redistribution and unconditionality. The higher and lower educated are equally ambivalent towards the policy, suggesting a lack of political entrenchment towards UBI in Dutch society. Post hoc comparisons show that key demographics and constituencies support some dimensions while rejecting others, enabling both compromise and division on the issue. Despite these distinct controversies, however, the strong correlation between attitudinal dimensions suggests that survey experiments tend to overstate the degree of multidimensionality by ignoring the strong commonalities in support for policy aspects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article aims to study the effect of output additionality of public innovation funding on firm innovation, measured as economic returns of innovation, across firms of different sizes. A panel sample consisting of 4125 Spanish firms observed during years 2009–2014 has been analysed, using a treatment model. Robustness tests have also been used. The findings show the effects of output additionality of innovation funding support for small, medium and large firms, with a greater effect on large firms and a lower effect on medium firms. However, there has a weak effect for very large firms, which do not benefit in terms of output additionality. Since it is relatively easy for large firms to benefit from public support for innovation, some of the resources allocated to them should be passed on to small and medium firms. Medium firms seem to be less inclined to benefit from economies of scales than large firms and may be less affected by public innovation policy given the priority for small firms' development. Small and medium enterprises can benefit further from well‐designed targeting programmes, with a prevalence of demand‐side support measures compared to the supply‐side measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, parole decision makers have grappled with an intensifying challenge in addressing public concerns. While discussions on the rise of 'parole populism' have emerged, especially in Canada, the United States, Australia and England and Wales, little is known about the way public concerns influence parole release in Japan. This article engages in legal‐systematic analysis of the intricate relationship between public concerns and Japanese parole decision making in general and release from life imprisonment in particular. The article argues that, while Japanese selective parole decision making considering public concerns in secrecy may have partially contributed to political rhetoric encouraging parole, it also poses unique challenges distinct from those in Anglophone jurisdictions. It reveals the value of fostering a transparent and accountable parole decision‐making system to promote a more balanced and fairer approach to parole in the Japanese context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the adoption of business‐like practices, such as commercialization and managerialization, may enhance the capacity and sustainability of nonprofit organizations, these practices may elicit negative reactions from the general public. This tension poses a challenge for nonprofit organizations as they seek to strike a balance between implementing practices that promote growth and survival and maintaining public support. This study focuses on people's moral judgment of nonprofits' practices and offers a social psychological explanation for why some business‐like practices may be viewed as inappropriate by the public. Specifically, we illuminate the significance of people's normative preferences for communal‐ or market‐focused principles as a basis for determining how an organization should operate and deliver its services. Using an online experiment with a sample size of 1255 participants, we found that: (1) people express a relatively high level of moral acceptance of business‐like practices, but this level is significantly lower than that of nonprofits' societal practices; (2) individuals are more likely to rate business‐like practices that have revenue‐seeking intentions as less acceptable when they believe that an organization should operate and deliver services based on communal principles. Moreover, our findings reveal that people's normative preferences differ more based on the service (e.g., health, microfinance, art) than on the organizational ownership (nonprofit vs. for‐profit). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smart cities are increasingly evolving, initializing new strategies, and programs that have a significant influence on policy making and scheduling while coexisting with urban facilities. To recognize urban planning offers to a smarter city context, it is now necessary to understand the contribution of the smart city in overall urban planning and vice versa. Currently, transportation has been seen as a connection to all aspects of life across the world. This article presents the results of a survey testing into whether the public supports the concept of green transportation in the smart cities. The green urban mobility model has been proposed to investigate urban traffic information to characterize important features of smart mobility in the smart cities. The development of intelligent transportation systems using the proposed model that makes traffic easier in the city to transport safe and more comfortable. The experimental results suggest the required factors of green transportation and realistic behavior of smart mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public support is a key contributor to successful policy adoption and implementation. Given the urgency of climate change mitigation, scholars have explored various determinants that affect public support for climate change mitigation policy. However, the relative decisiveness of these factors in shaping public support is insufficiently examined. Therefore, we deploy interpretable machine learning to understand which factors, among many previously investigated, are most decisive for structuring public support for various climate change mitigation policies. In this paper, we particularly look at the decisiveness of problem definition for shaping public support among various factors. Using U.S national survey data, we find that how individuals define the issue of climate change is more decisive for structuring public support for promoting renewable energy and regulating pollutants to mitigate the risks associated with climate change. However, the results also indicate that the most decisive factors associated with public support vary depending on the types of mitigation policy. We conclude that different strategies should be utilized to increase public support for various climate change mitigation policy options. Our findings contribute to a scholarly understanding of the specific politics of problem definition in the context of environmental and climate change policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Alcohol exposure is common in popular films, and research has demonstrated a link between alcohol exposure and use. The likelihood of implementing specific policies to reduce the amount of film exposure is dependent on the level of public support; however, evidence is currently lacking. This study investigated how supportive people are of film‐related alcohol policies and whether providing information about the amount of film exposure increased support. Methods: Australian adults (N = 252) first provided estimates of how much alcohol they thought were in popular films and then were randomised to either see an infographic about the amount of alcohol in films or not. All participants rated how supportive they were of eight policies. Results: The items 'alcoholic beverages and consumption should not be shown in G or PG rated films' (M = 3.54) and 'alcohol should not be glorified in films' (M = 3.49) were rated significantly higher than the scale's midpoint of 3 (p < 0.001). Participants who were older, female or reported lower alcohol use were more supportive of the policies. Only one policy item, 'information about alcohol sponsorship should be provided' received higher support from those who received the infographic compared to those who did not (M = 3.53 vs. M = 3.05; t(250) = −3.09, p = 0.002). Discussion and Conclusion: Participants were relatively supportive of film alcohol policies. However, providing information about the amount of alcohol in films did not make a difference on the level of support for most film alcohol policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Public Administration is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Policy & Internet is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Latin American Policy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the current media environment, Americans increasingly tune into cable news programs with distinct ideological brands. This paper extends existing work on media source cues to coverage of the US Supreme Court, an institution which depends entirely on media outlets to communicate its rulings to the American public. We argue that the source cues associated with celebrity media personalities serve as a heuristic that helps individuals form their opinions about public policy. Using a nationwide survey experiment with over 2000 respondents, we find that commentary on Supreme Court decisions from cable news hosts affects public agreement with the Court's rulings, with key differences between how liberal and conservative respondents respond under certain conditions. While unexpected positions espoused by in‐group messengers shift the views of liberals and conservatives alike, signals from out‐group messengers yield more of an effect for conservatives than for liberals. Our results show that counter‐stereotypical (unexpected) position taking has a powerful impact on public perceptions of policy outcomes and suggest that well‐known media figures may have an important role in mitigating ideological polarization in America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What preferences do people have for cross‐country cooperation on irregular migration and refugee protection? Existing research improves our understanding of how voters react to large‐scale inflows of asylum seekers, like those experienced by European countries in 2015–2016, and the type of asylum seekers and policies preferred by European citizens. We know less, however, about people's views concerning a particular European Union (EU) response to the so‐called 'refugee crisis', namely the cooperation with Turkey in March 2016 to stem inflows of asylum seekers and other migrants. To study such views, we build on several strands of the international relations literature exploring key determinants of public preferences for international cooperation on cross‐national issues, namely (a) sociotropic concerns, (b) humanitarian considerations, and (c) perceptions of fairness and reciprocity. Our research design leverages conjoint experiments conducted simultaneously in Germany, Greece and Turkey. We find that the three factors indeed play a role in explaining preferences in the three countries. Moreover, while respondents are favourable to several core features of the current EU–Turkey migration deal (regarding the return of irregular migrants, financial aid to refugees, and border controls), we also find evidence of public support for increased cooperation on resettlement and EU support to Greece to deal with migration, which goes beyond the status quo. In certain aspects of cooperation, public preferences seem to respond to interactions between policy dimensions that capture reciprocity. These findings have important implications for research on public preferences for asylum and migration policies and public support for international cooperation more generally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research Summary: European law enforcement agencies have begun to use targeted online ad campaigns to raise cybercrime awareness among at‐risk populations. Despite their rapid proliferation, there is little research to support their efficacy and effectiveness. This study uses a quasi‐experimental difference‐in‐differences design to evaluate the effect of seven campaigns deployed in 2021 and 2022 on the volume of (distributed) denial‐of‐service or (D)DoS‐attacks recorded in six European countries: Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Portugal. The results show mixed effects, suggesting that the campaigns are not clearly effective in reducing DDoS‐attacks in the short term. Policy Implications: Law enforcement has partly justified the use of targeted online ad campaigns on the premise that they reduce DDoS‐attacks. However, this study shows that the evidence in this regard is inconclusive. If public support for the use of such campaigns is to be secured in the long term, law enforcement will likely need to rely on stronger arguments. The effect of this type of campaigns needs to be further investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy entrepreneurship theory seeks to explain how actors, institutions, actions and interactions influence policy makers and policy outcomes; however, the role of citizens in this process remains largely unarticulated. Adopting a conception of policy entrepreneurship as a (distributed) pattern of agency rather than the actions of an individual, we analyse the development of local government climate emergency declarations (CEDs) (many of which visibly involved citizen advocacy). This analysis expands on the role of citizens in policy change and provides evidence of how citizen entrepreneurs interact collaboratively with more traditional forms of policy elites, in this case local elected representatives. Since 2018 hundreds of local governments in the United Kingdom (UK) have issued CEDs in a surge of expressions of local climate ambition. Whilst CEDs have attracted attention from scholars, the underlying dynamics and politics which drove the adoption of these policies, including the role played by citizens, remain unexplored in the literature. Interviews with councillors, council officers, and citizens reveal that citizens carry out a range of activities related to policy entrepreneurship, including problem framing, identifying solutions, networking and building coalitions, and seeking attention and opportunities. We find that they carry out these activities collectively with other citizens and collaboratively with elected representatives; whilst precise coalition‐internal dynamics vary, citizens frequently exploit opportunities to demonstrate the strength and breadth of public support for their cause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Takeaways: "Water quality aesthetics" describes various customer concerns, such as taste and odor, color, turbidity, and effects of pipe corrosion. As end users, customers are on the front lines of emergent water issues and can indicate aesthetic quality changes for water suppliers. Managing aesthetic quality in a proactive manner not only can save a water supplier money but also build public confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2021, the Biden Administration issued mandates requiring COVID‐19 vaccinations for U.S. federal employees and contractors and for some healthcare and private sector workers. These mandates have been challenged in court; some have been halted or delayed. However, their costs and benefits have not been rigorously appraised. This study helps fill that gap. We estimate the direct costs and health‐related benefits that would have accrued if these vaccination requirements had been implemented as intended. Compared with the January 2022 vaccination rates, we find that the mandates could have led to 15 million additional vaccinated individuals, increasing the overall proportion of the fully vaccinated U.S. population from 64% to 68%. The associated net benefits depend on the subsequent evolution of the pandemic—information unavailable ex ante to analysts or policymakers. In scenarios involving the emergence of a novel, more transmissible variant, against which vaccination and previous infection offer moderate protection, the estimated net benefits are potentially large. They reach almost $20,000 per additional vaccinated individual, with more than 20,000 total deaths averted over the 6‐month period assessed. In scenarios involving a fading pandemic, existing vaccination‐acquired or infection‐acquired immunity provides sufficient protection, and the mandates' benefits are unlikely to exceed their costs. Thus, mandates may be most useful when the consequences of inaction are catastrophic. However, we do not compare the effects of mandates with alternative policies for increasing vaccination rates or for promoting other protective measures, which may receive stronger public support and be less likely to be overturned by litigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do governance reforms affect public acceptance of regulatory decisions, and if so, how? We tackled this critical but under‐studied question through a pair of linked survey experiments on public attitudes toward the reform of European Union (EU) pesticides regulation among a representative sample of the adult population in six EU member states. We tested the expectation that citizens are more likely to accept a regulatory decision that runs counter to their prior policy preferences if it is taken under a procedure they support. We first conducted a conjoint experiment to study whether the specific design of decision‐making procedures impacts public support for EU pesticide regulation. In a second linked experiment, we asked respondents whether farmers should be allowed to use glyphosate, the best known and most controversial pesticide. We then asked respondents if they would accept an authorization decision on glyphosate contrary to their prior expressed preference if it were taken under a decision‐making procedure they supported. The results demonstrate that a regulatory decision‐making procedure respondents support increases their willingness to accept a hypothetical authorization decision contrary to their prior expressed preference. Contrary to the findings of previous research, our study thus provides strong evidence that governance reforms supported by citizens can enhance acceptance of controversial regulatory decisions, even on politicized issues such as pesticides authorization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As representative democracy is increasingly criticized, a new institution is becoming popular among academics and practitioners: deliberative citizens' assemblies. To evaluate whether these assemblies can deliver their promise of re‐engaging the dissatisfied with representative politics, we explore who supports them and why. We build on a unique survey conducted with representative samples of 15 Western European countries and find, first, that the most supportive are those who are less educated and have a low sense of political competence and an anti‐elite sentiment. Thus, support does come from the dissatisfied. Second, we find that this support is for a part 'outcome contingent', in the sense that it changes with respondents' expectations regarding the policy outcome from deliberative citizens' assemblies. This second finding nuances the first one and suggests that while deliberative citizens' assemblies convey some hope to re‐engage disengaged citizens, this is conditioned on the expectation of a favourable outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of People & Nature is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: Despite declining and historically low membership, labor unions remain important and relevant actors in American politics. Accordingly, we have learned a good deal about the economic and political consequences of labor unions and union membership. However, we know less about the dynamics, determinants, and political consequences of public attitudes toward organized labor. Methods: I use a variety of survey data to (1) track public support for labor unions over time, (2) to examine the microlevel determinants of labor attitudes, and (3) to examine how such attitudes shape voting behavior in national elections. Results: First, I show that American public opinion has consistently been "pro‐labor" and that such sentiment is growing in recent years, despite historically low levels of union membership. Second, I show that while the strongest individual‐level correlate of union support is labor union affiliation, pluralities, and in some cases majorities, of nonunion‐affiliated Americans hold "pro‐labor" attitudes as well. Finally, I show that labor union attitudes significantly predict (among both union and nonunion‐affiliated Americans) support for the Democratic presidential candidate, net of partisanship, ideology, core political values, and macroeconomic conditions. Conclusion: Overall, these results show that low levels of union membership do not imply an "anti‐union" mass public. These findings also demonstrate that attitudes toward labor unions are politically consequential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study used two randomized experiments in a prospective design (Study 1 N = 297, Study 2 N = 296) to examine how multilevel causal attribution dimensions (internal vs. external to an individual or a country) shape domestic and foreign policy support to counter transboundary risk. Results from Study 1 and 2 showed that external‐country (vs. internal‐country) causal attribution reduced perceptions of internal‐country attributions of responsibility, which had a cross‐lagged effect on support for domestic‐industry policies to mitigate the risk. In contrast, perceptions of external‐country attributions of responsibility increased support for foreign policies in a 2‐week follow up. This study offers theoretical insights into the demarcation of multilevel causal attribution dimensions in studying media framing effects. It also highlights some important causal mechanisms of how media frames shape public support for policies aimed at transboundary risk mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new generation of greenways has emerged in recent years, the most ambitious of which are nationwide, interconnected networks of multi‐use, multi‐purpose greenways and trails, clustered under a single national vision. However, because these initiatives have been the focus of so few research studies, opportunities to glean lessons from their planning and implementation have been limited. This paper contributes to addressing this knowledge gap by presenting a comparative account of two networks, the Trans Canada Trail in Canada and Sendero de Chile in Chile. Using document analysis and interviews with officials closely involved in their development, the evolution of both networks is documented over time, emphasizing similarities and differences related to their planning and implementation. Both initiatives have faced significant challenges in reaching their connection goals and have availed themselves of a diverse range of opportunities and strategies to advance their agendas. A simple model of a virtuous cycle is proposed to highlight the positive feedback—between political and public support, sustained funding, partnership development, accessibility for urban residents, and connectivity of the network—generated by sustained network expansion over time. It is hoped that the insights offered from this analysis may offer guidance to inform the development of similar scale projects elsewhere. Key Messages: The scale and ambition of nationwide interconnected greenways and trails merits their recognition as a distinctive stage of third generation (G3) greenways, referred to here as G3+.Lessons learned from the experience of developing nationwide greenways, such as the Trans Canada Trail and the Sendero de Chile, have received limited scholarly attention to date.A model of a virtuous cycle brings attention to the reliance of large‐scale greenways development on the positive feedback between political and public support for the network connectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]