Presidential address: From the great society to continuous improvement government: Shifting from "Does it Work?" to "What would make it better?"

Journal of Policy Analysis and Management

Volumn 28, Issue 2, 2009, Pages 199-220

  Besharov, Douglas J ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 76949089982     PISSN: 02768739     EISSN: 15206688     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1002/pam.20423     Document Type: Article

References (95)

1. Aaron, H. J. (1978). Politics and the professors: The Great Society in perspective. Brookings Studies in Social Economics. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution.
2. Amrein-Beardsley, A. (2008). Methodological concerns about the Education Value-Added Assessment System [electronic version]. Educational Researcher, 37, 65-75.
3. Angrist, J. D., & Krueger, A. B. (1991). Does compulsory school attendance affect schooling and earnings? [electronic version]. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 106, 979-1014.
4. Avishai, B. (2008, November 23). Why Detroit can't keep up [electronic version]. Washington Post, B03.
5. Bane, M. J. (1989). Welfare reform and mandatory versus voluntary work: Policy issue or management problem [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 8, 285-289.
6. Barnow, B. S. (2000). Exploring the relationship between performance management and program impact: A case study of the Job Training Partnership Act [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 19, 118-141.
7. Baum, E. B. (1991). When the witch doctors agree: The Family Support Act and social science research [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 10, 603-615.
8. Bavier, R. (2006). Workshop on assessing impacts of the Food Stamp Program. Paper presented at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC.
9. Besharov, D. J., & Germanis, P. (1999). Making food stamps part of welfare reform [electronic version]. Policy and Practice, 57, 6-11.
10. Besharov, D. J., Myers, J. A., & Morrow, J. S. (2007). Costs per child for early childhood education and care: Comparing Head Start, CCDF child care, and prekindergarten/preschool programs (2003/2004) [electronic version]. College Park, MD: Welfare Reform Academy. Retrieved December 11, 2008, from http://www.welfareacademy.org/pubs/childcare_edu/costperchild.pdf.
11. Bloom, H. S., Orr, L. L., Bell, S. H., Cave, G., Doolittle, F., et al. (1997). The benefits and costs of JTPA Title II-A Programs: Key findings from the National Job Training Partnership Act Study [electronic version]. Journal of Human Resources, 32, 549-576.
12. Card, D., & Krueger, A. (1994). Minimum wages and employment: A case study of the fast-food industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania [electronic version]. American Economic Review, 84, 772-793.
13. Child Trends. (2008). Guide to effective programs for children and youth: Nurse-family partnership. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.childtrends.org/lifecourse/programs/NurseHomeVisitingProgram.htm.
14. Cook, T. D., Shadish, W. R., & Wong, V. C. (2008). Three conditions under which experiments and observational studies produce comparable causal estimates: New findings from within-study comparisons [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 27, 724-750.
15. Cook, T. D., & Steiner, P. M. (2009). Some empirically valid alternatives to random assignment [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 28, 165-166.
16. Council of Economic Advisors. (1997). Technical report: Explaining the decline in welfare receipt, 1993-1996 [electronic version]. Washington, DC: Executive Office of the President. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/EOP/CEA/Welfare/Technical_Report.html.
17. Currie, J., & Thomas, D. (1995). Does Head Start make a difference? [electronic version]. American Economic Review, 85, 341-364.
18. Currie, J., & Thomas, D. (1996). Does Head Start help Hispanic children? [electronic version]. National Bureau of Economic Research Series. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved July 17, 2008, from http://www.nber.org/papers/w5805.pdf.
19. DeMuth, C. (1976). Deregulating the cities [electronic version]. The Public Interest, 44, 115-128.
20. Dynarski, M., Agodini, R., Heaviside, S., Novak, T., Carey, N., Campuzano, L., et al. (2007). Effectiveness of reading and mathematics software products: Findings from the first student cohort [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/pdf/20074006.pdf.
21. Flay, B. R., Biglan, A., Boruch, R. F., Castro, F. G., Gottfredson, D., et al. (2005). Standards of evidence: Criteria for efficacy, effectiveness and dissemination [electronic version]. Prevention Science, 6, 151-175.
22. Food and Nutrition Act. (2008). 7 U.S.C. § 2026.
23. Garces, E., Thomas, D., & Currie, J. (2002). Longer-term effects of Head Start [electronic version]. American Economic Review, 92, 999-1012.
24. Gilliam, W. S., Ripple, C. H., Zigler, E. F., & Leiter, V. (2000). Evaluating child and family demonstration initiatives: Lessons from the Comprehensive Child Development Program [electronic version]. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 15, 41-59.
25. Gilmour, J. B., & Lewis, D. E. (2006). Does performance budgeting work? An examination of the Office of Management and Budget's PART scores [electronic version]. Public Administration Review, 66, 742-752.
26. Grogger, J., Karoly, L. A., & Klerman, J. A. (2002). Consequences of welfare reform: A research synthesis [electronic version]. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.rand.org/pubs/drafts/DRU2676/.
27. Grubb, W. N. (1999). Lessons from education and training for youth: Five precepts [electronic version]. In Preparing youth for the 21st century: The transition from education to the labour market: Proceedings of the Washington D.C. conference, February 23-24, 1999 (pp. 363-383). Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
28. Gueron, J. M. (1988). State welfare employment initiatives: Lessons from the 1980s [electronic version]. Focus, 11, 17-24.
29. Gueron, J. M. (2008). Acceptance remarks: 2008 Rossi Award. Retrieved December 12, 2008, from http://www.welfareacademy.org/rossi/2008_gueron_speech.shtml.
30. Gueron, J. M., & Pauly, E. (1991). From welfare to work. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
31. Hamilton, G., Freedman, S., Gennetian, L., Michalopoulos, C., Walter, J., Adams-Ciardullo, D., et al. (2001). National evaluation of welfare-to-work strategies: How effective are different welfare-to-work approaches? Five-year adult and child impacts for eleven programs [electronic version]. New York: MDRC. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/NEWWS/5yr-11prog01/index.htm.
32. Harvey, C., Camasso, M. J., & Jagannathan, R. (2000). Evaluating welfare reform waivers under Section 1115 [electronic version]. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 14, 165-188.
33. Haskins, R. (1991). Congress writes a law: Research and welfare reform [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 10, 616-632.
34. Heckman, J. J., & Hotz, V. J. (1989). Choosing among alternative nonexperimental methods for estimating the impact of social programs: The case of manpower training. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 84, 862-877.
35. Heinrich, C. J. (2007). Evidence-based policy and performance management: Challenges and prospects in two parallel movements. American Review of Public Administration, 37, 255-277.
36. Hong, G., & Raudenbush, S. W. (2005). Effects of kindergarten retention policy on children's cognitive growth in reading and mathematics [electronic version]. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 27, 205-244.
37. Institute for Research on Poverty. (1985). Measuring the effects of the Reagan welfare changes on the work effort and well-being of single parents [electronic version]. Focus, 8, 1-8.
38. Jackson, R., McCoy, A., Pistorino, C., Wilkinson, A., Burghardt, J., Clark, M., et al. (2007). National evaluation of Early Reading First: Final report [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/pdf/20074007.pdf.
39. Jacob, B. (2005). Accountability, incentives and behavior: Evidence from school reform in Chicago [electronic version]. Journal of Public Economics, 89, 761-796.
40. Kroc, R., & Anderson, R. (1987). Grinding it out: The making of McDonald's. New York: St. Martin's Press.
41. Loeb, S., & Plank, D. N. (2008). Learning what works: Continuous improvement in California's education system (PACE Policy Brief 08-4) [electronic version]. Berkeley, CA: Policy Analysis for California Education. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://pace.berkeley.edu/reports/PB.08-4.pdf.
42. Loeb, S., Bridges, M., Bassok, D., Fuller, B., & Rumberger, R. (2005). How much is too much? The influence of preschool centers on children's social and cognitive development [electronic version]. National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved November 3, 2008, from http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=875688#.
43. Ludwig, J., & Miller, D. L. (2007). Does Head Start improve children's life chances? Evidence from a regression discontinuity design [electronic version]. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 122, 159-208.
44. Magnuson, K. A., Ruhm, C., & Waldfogel, J. (2004). Does prekindergarten improve school preparation and performance [electronic version]. National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved December 11, 2008, from http://www.nber.org/papers/w10452.pdf?new_window=1.
45. Manning, W. G., Newhouse, J. P., Duan, N., Keeler, E., Leibowitz, A., & Marquis, M. S. (1987). Health insurance and the demand for medical care: Evidence from a randomized experiment [electronic version]. American Economic Review, 77, 251-277.
46. McCallion, G. (2006). Even Start: Funding controversy [electronic version].Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service. Retrieved January 15, 2008, from http://www.ed.psu.edu/goodlinginstitute/pdf/CRS_even_start_funding_controversy.pdf.
47. McConnell, S., Stuart, E., Fortson, K., Decker, P., Perez-Johnson, I., Harris, B., et al. (2006). Managing customers' training choices: Findings from the Individual Training Account Experiment [electronic version]. Washington DC: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/managecust.pdf.
48. Mead, L. M. (1990). Should workfare be mandatory? What the research says [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 9, 400-404.
49. Mead, L. M. (2005). Policy research: The field dimension [electronic version]. Policy Studies Journal, 33, 535-557.
50. Miller, G. (2003). Panel One: Overview of administration plan and reaction from Capitol Hill. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.brookings.edu/comm/events/20030507wrb.pdf.
51. Millsap, M. A., Brigham, N., Chase, A., & Layzer, C. (2003). Gaining ground: Instructional and management practices in high-performing, high-poverty elementary classrooms final report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education.
52. Moffitt, R. (1984). Assessing the effects of the 1981 federal AFDC legislation on the work effort of women heading households: A framework for analysis and evidence to date. IRP Discussion Paper no. 742-A-84. Madison, WI: Institute for Research on Poverty.
53. Nathan, R. P. (2005). Presidential address: "Complexifying" performance oversight in America's governments [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 24, 207-215.
54. Nathan, R. P. (Ed.). (2007). Point/counterpoint: How should we read the evidence about Head Start? Three views [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 26, 673-689.
55. Nathan, R. P. (Ed.). (2008). Point/counterpoint: The role of random assignment in social policy research [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 27, 401-415.
56. Nyman, J. A. (2007). American health policy: Cracks in the foundation [electronic version]. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 32, 759-783.
57. Obama, B. (2008, September 22). The change we need in Washington [electronic version]. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/09/the_change_we_need_in_washingt.html.
58. Obama for America. (2008). Stop wasteful spending and curb influence of special interests so government can tackle our great challenges. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.governmentexecutive.com/pdfs/092208ts1.pdf.
59. Orr, L. L., Bloom, H. S., Bell, S. H., Doolittle, F., Lin, W., & Cave, G. (1996). Does training for the disadvantaged work? Evidence from the national JTPA study. Washington, DC: The Urban Institute Press.
60. Parsons, C., McCormick, J., & Nicholas, P. (2008, December 9). Barack Obama plans to reach out to Muslim world [electronic version]. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/obama/chi-barack-obama-muslim1210,0,5694976.story.
61. Posner, P. (2007). Performance budgeting: Preparing for a post-PART world. Testimony presented at Committee on the Budget, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
62. Puma, M., Bell, S., Cook, R., Heid, C., & Lopez, M. (2005). Head Start impact study: First year findings [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved December 11, 2008, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hs/impact_study/reports/first_yr_finds/first_yr_finds.pdf.
63. Research Triangle Institute. (1983). Final report: Evaluation of the 1981 AFDC Amendments. Research Triangle Park, NC: RTI.
64. Riccio, J., Friedlander, D., Freedman, S., Farrell, M. E., Fellerath, V., Fox, S., et al. (1994). GAIN: Benefits, costs, and three-year impacts of a welfare-to-work program [electronic version]. New York: MDRC. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.mdrc.org/publications/175/full.pdf.
65. Riggin, L. J., & Ward-Zukerman, B. (1995). Effects on the AFDC-Basic caseload of providing welfare to two-parent families [electronic version]. Social Science Journal, 32, 265-278.
66. Rivlin, A. M., & Timpane, P. M. (Eds.). (1975). Planned variation in education: Should we give up or try harder? Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution.
67. Rogers-Dillon, R. (2004). The welfare experiments: Politics and policy evaluation. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press.
68. Rossi, P. H. (1987). The iron law of evaluation and other metallic rules. In J. H. Miller & M. Lewis (Eds.), Research in social problems and public policy (pp. 3-20). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
69. Rumberger, R. W., & Tran, L. (2006). Preschool participation and the cognitive and social development of language minority students [electronic version]. CSE Technical Report. Los Angeles, CA: Center for the Study of Evaluation. Retrieved October 31, 2008, from http://lmri.ucsb.edu/publications/06_rumberger-tran.pdf.
70. Samuelson, R. J. (1998, February 23). Investing in our children: Sorry, government programs can't undo most of the ill effects of family breakdown [electronic version]. Newsweek, 131, 45.
71. Schochet, P. Z., & Burghardt, J. A. (2008). Do Job Corps performance measures track program impacts [electronic version]. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 27, 556-576.
72. Schochet, P. Z., Burghardt, J., & McConnell, S. (2008). Does Job Corps work? Impact findings from the National Job Corps Study [electronic version]. American Economic Review, 98, 1864-1886.
73. Shoop, T. (2008, September 22). Obama pledges to fire managers, cut redundant programs [electronic version]. Government Executive. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=41022.
74. Snowe, O., & Clinton, H. R. (2007). Letter to U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee [electronic version]. Retrieved January 15, 2008, from http://www.evenstart.org/pdfs/Clinton-Snowe_Even_Start_letter_-_FINAL_w_sigs_-_05-03-07.pdf.
75. St. Pierre, R. G., Layzer, J. I., Goodson, B. D., & Bernstein, L. S. (1997). National impact evaluation of the Comprehensive Child Development Program: Final report. Cambridge, MA: Abt Associates Inc.
76. St. Pierre, R. G., Layzer, J. I., Goodson, B. D., & Bernstein, L. S. (1999). The effectiveness of comprehensive, case management interventions: Evidence from the national evaluation of the Comprehensive Child Development Program [electronic version]. American Journal of Evaluation, 20, 15-34.
77. St. Pierre, R., Ricciuti, A., Tao, F., Creps, C., Swartz, J., Lee, W., et al. (2003). Third national Even Start evaluation: Program impacts and implications for improvement. Cambridge, MA: Abt Associates Inc.
78. St. Pierre, R., Swartz, J., Gamse, B., Murray, S., Deck, D., & Nickel, P. (1995). National evaluation of the Even Start Family Literacy Program: Final report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education.
79. Sweet, M. A., & Applebaum, M. I. (2004). Is home visiting an effective strategy? A metaanalytic review of home visiting programs for families with young children [electronic version]. Child Development, 75, 1435-1456.
80. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1997). Setting the baseline: A report on state welfare waivers [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/isp/waiver2/title.htm.
81. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2005). Head Start Impact Study: First year findings. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
82. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2007). Fiscal year 2007 federal child care and related appropriations [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved January 16, 2008, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/ccdf/appro07.pdf.
83. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2008a). Building Strong Families (BSF): Overview. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/strengthen/build_fam/build_fam_overview.html.
84. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2008b). Employment Retention and Advancement Project (ERA): Overview. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.acf. hhs.gov/programs/opre/welfare_employ/employ_retention/employ_reten_overview.html.
85. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2008c). Fiscal year 2008 federal child care and related appropriations [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved December 11, 2008, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/ccdf/appro08.pdf.
86. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2008d). Head Start impact study and follow-up: Overview. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hs/impact_study/imptstudy_overview.html#overview.
87. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (1996). Expanding housing choices for HUD-assisted families: First biennial report to Congress on the Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing demonstration [electronic version]. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.huduser.org/publications/affhsg/expand/expand.html.
88. U.S. General Accounting Office. (1984). An evaluation of the 1981 AFDC changes: Initial analyses. Washington, DC: U.S. General Accounting Office.
89. U.S. General Accounting Office. (1997). Head Start: Research provides little information on impact of current program [electronic version]. Washington, DC: General Accounting Office. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.gao.gov/archive/1997/he97059.pdf.
90. U.S. Office of Management and Budget. (2003a). Budget of the United States government, fiscal year 2004 [electronic version]. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/fy2004/pdf/budget.pdf.
91. U.S. Office of Management and Budget. (2003b). Rating the performance of federal programs. In Budget of the United States of America: Fiscal year 2004 [electronic version]. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. Retrieved, December 16, 2008, from http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/fy04/pdf/budget/performance.pdf.
92. U.S. Office of Management and Budget. (2008). ExpectMore.gov: Who we are. Retrieved December 16, 2008, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/expectmore/about.html.
93. Walker, D. M. (2007). 21st century challenges: How performance budgeting can help. Testimony presented at Committee on the Budget, House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
94. Whitehurst, G. J. (2007). Acceptance remarks: 2007 Rossi Award. Retrieved December 11, 2008, from http://www.welfareacademy.org/rossi/2007_whitehurst_speech.shtml.
95. Wisconsin Center for Education Research. (2008). Value-Added Research Center works with TIF grantees. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/index.php.