College of Behavioral & Social Sciences
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The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations..
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Item BUILD to WIN: Community Organizing, Power, and Participation in Local Governance(2009) Bullock, John Thomas; Kaufmann, Karen; Government and Politics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This dissertation focuses on community organizing and uses it as a mechanism to compare the political environments in Baltimore and Washington over the last three decades. By conducting comparison case studies, I identify the contextual circumstances that affect the ability of grassroots organizations to achieve desired ends. The fact that both cities have functioning Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) affiliates - Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD) and the Washington Interfaith Network (WIN) - provides the opportunity to investigate the conditions that give rise to community organizing. Examining the interactions between BUILD/WIN and mayoral administrations over time sheds light on the varying temporal contexts while also explicating the different managerial styles of central political actors. By conducting these case studies, I highlight the optimal political conditions for the inclusion of grassroots organizations representing the interests of neglected neighborhoods.Item Exerting Local Power Over Federal Process: Stakeholder Negotiation Process in the Canyon Forest Village Land Exchange Process 1992-2002(2006-05-01) Kearney, Barbara Ann; Geores, Martha E; Geography; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This is a study of the National Forest Land Exchange process as it relates to the development of gateway communities. The study area is outside the Kaibab National Forest in Northern Arizona. This land exchange represented a collaborative partnership between the National Park Service, the Forest Service meant to consolidate private inholdings within the forest and to provide services for the Grand Canyon National Park outside park borders. The stakeholders involved in the land exchange discourse included the Forest Service, the developer, the National Park Service, the gateway communities of Tusayan, Williams, and Flagstaff, the Havasupai tribe, and environmental organizations. This study demonstrates that the public interest is dependent on scale. Using a mixed methodological approach, this study examined the impact stakeholders had on the land exchange process. A content analysis of articles and editorials written in local and regional newspapers, of public comments on the Environmental Impact Statement, and of semi-structured interviews of key participants in the land exchange debate helped to elucidate the most prominent concerns resonating with each category of stakeholder. A survey of the city of Williams, Arizona, was also conducted. Though it never came to fruition, the Canyon Forest Village land exchange demonstrated the economic issues facing gateway communities and their vulnerability to the actions and policies of public land agencies. By voicing their concerns and conducting a media campaign against the development plan, the gateway communities took control of both the land exchange process and their own economic development.Item WE WON'T TURN BACK: THE POLITICAL ECONOMY PARADOXES OF IMMIGRANT AND ETHNIC MINORITY SETTLEMENT IN SUBURBAN AMERICA(2005-12-06) Frasure, Lorrie Ann; Williams, Linda F.; Government and Politics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)This study investigates the intersection of suburban political economy and recent immigrant and ethnic minority suburbanization in the United States. It uses both quantitative and qualitative methods to address: what factors lead various minority groups to move to multi-ethnic areas called suburban melting pot metros (SMPMs); how these spatial location decisions vary by class or race-based preferences; and how suburban institutions respond to the issues raised by immigrant and ethnic minority groups. Using the 1990 and 2000 Census Public Use Micro-data Series (PUMS), I test some key theories of residential migration, including spatial assimilation, place stratification, and 'economic sorting'. In a multivariate logit regression analysis, between non-Hispanic whites, blacks, Asians, and Latinos, residing in 29 US suburban areas, I find that SMPMs attract groups with lower levels of educational attainment. Moreover, rising income increases the likelihood that blacks and Latinos seek multi-ethnic suburban residence. While racial change had little impact on SMPM settlement, post-1980s immigration and linguistic isolation were significant predictors of SMPM settlement. Rises in housing values are likely to increase SMPM settlement for whites and Asians, but property tax increases are not a significant predictor of SMPM settlement for any of the groups. These Census results are supplemented by a case study of suburban Washington, DC. Data from five focus group discussions between black, Chinese, Iranian, Korean and Latino groups reveal that quality schools, safe neighborhoods, employment and housing opportunities, and pre-established family ties commonly attracted these individuals to certain suburban DC jurisdictions. Spatial location decisions, particularly for blacks, are limited by income. Perceptions of a county's ability to deliver local goods and services or the race/ethnicity of current county residents also influenced location decisions. Finally, using qualitative data from a collection of 114 in-depth interviews with elite officials in suburban Washington, DC, I develop a concept called 'Suburban Institutional Interdependency' (SII) to examine how local institutions respond to the issues raised by immigrant groups. The central tenets of this approach suggest that through repeated interactions, generalized reciprocity, and an exchange of selective incentives, suburban institutions may collaborate, to meet the needs and demands of suburban newcomers.Item Growing Expectations: Understanding the Politics of Smart Growth in the American States(2005-12-07) Gray, Regina Cathlyn; Uslaner, Eric M.; Government and Politics; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)When asked what is on the minds of voters during the previous two national election cycles, many citizens responded unfavorably to air pollution, traffic congestion, and inadequate access to public facilities, parks and recreation. They specifically blame the lack of open space as the basis of their discontent. What voters are concerned about is sprawl--a condition in which development is too widely spread throughout a limited geographical area. This kind of random, unplanned development creates negative externalities on the infrastructure of cities, suburbs, and some rural areas, but also leads to environmental hazards like smog and stormwater runoff. Smart Growth initiatives seek to remove the barriers to homeownership, public services, and job opportunities by providing access to valuable land resources in suburban and urban centers. Twenty states have implemented Smart Growth policies. As other states continue to grapple with ways to address sprawl, many of them have begun to experiment with similar strategies, such as urban growth boundaries, limitations on exclusionary zoning, and the imposition of impact or development fees to stave off encroaching development. The interesting question is under what conditions do states consider instituting these innovative approaches to address society's most pressing problems? And this dissertation specifically asks: Under what conditions will states adopt a Smart Growth strategy to address urban sprawl? Based on my research, I concluded that the political determinants of public policy matter more than economic considerations, such as the health of the state economy. In other words, a state with an influential governor and strong constitutional powers or a professional legislature is more likely to pursue and adopt Smart Growth, even when accounting for economic conditions. More important, Smart Growth appears to have an ideological dimension: politically liberal states were more likely to adopt Smart Growth than conservative ones. And although some in the Smart Growth community are aware of the growing conservative sentiment around the country today, in many instances they were able to convince both Republicans and Democrats to embrace the Smart Growth approach to growth management.Item ANALYZING FOREST CHANGE AND POLICY IN WASHINGTON, DC SUBURBAN COUNTIES(2005-05-27) Jantz, Claire Ann; Geores, Martha E; Geography; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Geographical approaches for landscape studies have emphasized the interpretation of landscape change as a cultural phenomenon, but often have neglected modern geographic techniques, such as remote sensing observations and quantitative spatial analysis, to characterize and understand landscape change. This study attempts to bridge these gaps by integrating a socio-cultural analysis of land use policy formation and quantitative assessments of land cover change to demonstrate how policy decisions can influence forest landscape patterns in suburban areas. Historical data from Montgomery County, MD and Fairfax County, VA, two counties adjacent to the Washington, DC urban core that have different governmental structures, were assembled and analyzed. A policy database was developed and analyzed using qualitative techniques, such as grounded theory and content analysis, to address questions related to policy formation and trends. Key findings included the identification of a strong link between land use policies and the broader environmental discourse, demonstrating that dominant cultural values are institutionalized in the development of land use policy. Furthermore, many policies related to forest management and preservation, particularly in recent decades, had a strong focus on protecting riparian forests. Land cover change between the late 1930s and 1998 was studied for local case study areas using time series of aerial photographs, and between 1990 and 2000 across both counties using satellite-derived land cover maps. Using a statistical technique, weights of evidence, the processes of new development, deforestation, and forest persistence were modeled. The results highlighted the role of biophysical variables, such as steep slopes and the presence of poorly drained soils, in constraining new development and enhancing forest persistence. However, the role of land use policies was also evident in enhancing forest persistence through the establishment of protected areas and riparian protection policies. This study demonstrated the impact that land use regulations can have on the evolution of forested landscape patterns within the built environment. The links between socio-cultural values and policy formation highlighted the institutional and cultural barriers that prevent rapid shifts in policy orientation, despite social and environmental problems that arise within a rapidly changing landscape.