Evaluation: Stakeholder-focused Criteria

Identifying and selecting suitable criteria is an important consideration in evaluating the performance of public sector organizations. Which criteria are chosen, and how they are weighted, will depend largely on the perspective being taken; different stakeholders (for example, clients, providers or commissioners) are likely to emphasize different criteria. In this paper a number of criteria are identified and an argument is developed to indicate which criteria are likely to be valued by various stakeholders. Furthermore, a number of approaches and mechanisms for evaluation are identified and the links between these, the criteria appropriate to them and the various stakeholders are made explicit. Finally, the issue of politics and the distribution of power between the stakeholders is addressed with a call for greater explicitness in using and balancing criteria (for example, as between professionals and the intended beneficiaries of services). In this way, while recognizing the inherent political nature of performance evaluation, the planning and implementation of services may be improved by a more mutually informed approach to evaluation.     

Sample selection in radiocarbon dating

Archaeologists working on the island of O'ahu, Hawai'i, use radiocarbon dating of samples of organic matter found trapped in fish-pond sediments to help them to learn about the chronology of the construction and use of the aquicultural systems created by the Polynesians. At one particular site, Loko Kuwili, 25 organic samples were obtained and funds were available to date an initial nine. However, on calibration to the calendar scale, the radiocarbon determinations provided date estimates that had very large variances. As a result, major issues of chronology remained unresolved and the archaeologists were faced with the prospect of another expensive programme of radiocarbon dating. This paper presents results of research that tackles the problems associated with selecting samples from those which are still available. Building on considerable recent research that utilizes Markov chain Monte Carlo methods to aid archaeologists in their radiocarbon calibration and interpretation, we adopt the standard Bayesian framework of risk functions, which allows us to assess the optimal samples to be sent for dating. Although rather computer intensive, our algorithms are simple to implement within the Bayesian radiocarbon framework that is already in place and produce results that are capable of direct interpretation by the archaeologists. By dating just three more samples from Loko Kuwili the expected variance on the date of greatest interest could be substantially reduced.     

Involving constituents in agency priority setting: a case study

Many government agencies have "constituents" who believe the agencies should hear and consider their needs and desires in establishing program priorities. This article describes how one involves interested constituents (consumers, industry, medical professionals, and state organizations) in the agency's annual priority-setting process. This participation has produced a number of beneficial results-some expected and some unexpected.     

论政党价值观的功能本

政党价值观的功能主要包括显功能和潜功能,显功能又包括正功能和反功能两个方面.政党价值观的正功能,是政党价值观对于政党成员、政党组织乃至整个社会所具有的积极功能,主要表现为合法性辩护、凝聚激励、价值导向和社会整合等功能.政党价值观的反功能,是指政党价值观对政党的生存和发展乃至整个社会产生的消极作用和不良影响,集中体现在错误或落后的价值观的不良影响之中.不为政党成员和广大民众所预期而又确实地对政党乃至社会产生直接或间接影响的一切社会作用或客观结果,便是政党价值观的潜功能.这种结果可能与政党及其成员的主观目的相一致,也可能出现不一致的情况.     

GMM Estimation with persistent panel data: an application to production functions

This paper considers the estimation of Cobb-Douglas production functions using panel data covering a large sample of companies observed for a small number of time periods. GMM estimatorshave been found to produce large finite-sample biases when using the standard first-differenced estimator. These biases can be dramatically reduced by exploiting reasonable stationarity restrictions on the initial conditions process. Using data for a panel of R&Dperforming US manufacturing companies we find that the additional instruments used in our extended GMM estimator yield much more reasonable parameter estimates.     

论荣辱观的基本特征与主要功能

荣辱观是人们对荣誉与耻辱所持的根本观点和态度。荣辱观具有时代性、阶级性和民族性的特征。从社会层面看,荣辱观是社会风气形成的伦理底线;从个体层面看,荣辱观是个体德性修养的道德基石。     

我国行政事业单位国有资产管理探析

行政事业单位资产是我国国有资产的重要组成部分,在履行政府职能、加强公共管理、实施宏观调控、推动经济建设等方面发挥着重要作用。随着经济体制改革的深化,行政事业单位国有资产管理体制改革成为不可回避的一个紧迫问题。这涉及到行政事业单位国有资产的监管问题、如何发挥行政事业单位国有资产的社会效益问题、怎样防止国有资产的流失问题等。     

各省区季度GDP数据质量评估

  国内外学者对我国GDP数据质量的质疑重点已从年度数据转到季度数据,从全国数据转向地方数据。本文通过设计一套较为系统且可操作性强的季度GDP评估指标体系,运用空间面板数据模型对各省区的季度GDP数据质量进行了实证检验。结果表明,整体来看,中国各省区季度GDP同各经济指标的匹配性较好,数据质量较高,并不存在明显的失真现象;从时间上来看,每年一、二季度的GDP存在一定程度的高估,而每年三、四季度的GDP则存在一定程度的低估,但是这种偏差在统计上不显著;分地区来看,尽管一半省区的季度GDP存在一定程度的高估,另一半省区存在一定程度的低估,但大部分省区高估或低估的程度在统计上不显著。文章进一步分析了其中的原因。     

中国经济发展中的深层次问题

中国经济正面临何去何从的方向性问题:是进一步深化改革,抓大放小,无为而治,让市场发挥越来越多的作用;还是国进民退,让政府主导经济,发挥更多的作用?答案无疑是前者。基于以上判断,中国经济的长期深层次根本问题在于:深层次制度障碍未破除,深层次市场化改革滞后,政府、社会与市场的治理边界界定不清晰、不合理。这就导致了三重三轻的不科学发展观:重政府轻市场、重国富轻民富、重发展轻服务。要解决这些深层次问题,下一步改革的关键在于深入推进政府职能的两个根本性转变:第一,从发展型政府向服务型政府转变;第二,从全能型政府向有限型政府转变。     

职业社会工作者的专业标准与考核评价体系研究

我国社会工作职业化进程方兴未艾。实际社会工作从业人员如何转变为专业社工,高校的社会工作专业教育和社会培训机构如何把握专业社会工作者的标准,解决这两大问题的关键在于,尽快制定和建立职业社会工作者的专业标准和考核评价体系。作为整个社会工作者职业制度体系的核心机制,职业社会工作者的专业标准和考核评价体系,为职业社会工作者提供了从业标准和实践规范,从而为打造一支高水平、强素质的社会工作人才队伍提供了科学的制度保障。