Co-edited by Randall E. Adkins, UNO faculty member Chapter 11, Chabot vs. Driehaus in Ohio’s Firs... more Co-edited by Randall E. Adkins, UNO faculty member Chapter 11, Chabot vs. Driehaus in Ohio’s First Congressional District: The Rematch in the City of Seven Hills, co-authored by Randall E. Adkins and Gregory A. Petrow, UNO faculty members. After Barack Obama’s historic 2008 victory, Democrats were riding high. But a number of tough fights on policy initiatives, coupled with an economy struggling to recover, put Democrats in a difficult position leading up to the 2010 congressional elections. With nearly all the electoral gains Democrats made during 2006 and 2008 now lost and the House returned to Republican control, this is one of the most dramatic shifts in congressional power in history. Examining a sample of congressional campaigns waged during this important election provides readers with an account of how Republicans were able to make such impressive gains and how Democrats were unable to stem this tide. Adkins and Dulio provide a clear explanation of the macro trends in this e...
Editors: Randall E. Adkins (UNO faculty member) and David A. Dulio Chapter 11, Courting the Obama... more Editors: Randall E. Adkins (UNO faculty member) and David A. Dulio Chapter 11, Courting the Obama-Terry Voter: Terry vs. Esch in Nebraska’s Second Congressional District, co-authored by Randall E. Adkins and Gregory A. Petrow, UNO faculty members. During the 2008 elections, nowhere was change more anticipated than in the House and Senate. Going into Election Day, most analysts predicted a large majority of Democratic wins in both chambers. However, while many Republicans lost and Democrats came away with a clear majority, some of the most vulnerable managed to hang on and win reelection. Cases in Congressional Campaigns illustrates how embattled incumbents defended their turf in such a difficult year for Republican candidates, the Republican Party, and the Republican brand. It focuses on how selected congressional incumbents played defense ―successfully or not―in an election cycle that was dominated by the theme and message of change. Each chapter is written by political scientists ...
In 2006 the Democratic Party swept both houses of Congress. It was a tidal wave. For the first ti... more In 2006 the Democratic Party swept both houses of Congress. It was a tidal wave. For the first time since 1994, both branches of the legislature were under Democratic Party control. While many of his Republican colleagues lost in 2006, Steve Chabot survived by narrowly defeating Cin-cinnati City Council member John Cranley by roughly 9,000 votes. The political environment favored the Democrats again in 2008, and this year the Democrats believed that Steve Driehaus, the Minority Whip in the Ohio state legislature, was the person to unseat Chabot
Survey experiment testing hypotheses about Americans' reactions to primes of American nationa... more Survey experiment testing hypotheses about Americans' reactions to primes of American national identity versus control and positive or negative information about the COVID-19 pandemic versus a control
Scholars studying scholastic achievement in higher education find that students have specific cou... more Scholars studying scholastic achievement in higher education find that students have specific course grades in mind that satisfy their desires for academic performance. When students believe that they are on-track to achieve those grades, they divert resources to other endeavors. This paper tests a resulting hypothesis: Students balance higher grades on easier assignments with lower grades on more difficult ones. After experimentally inducing time stress by assigning students to participate in an experiential learning exercise, those busier with volunteer work did balance their higher grades on the easier, experiential assignments, against lower ones on the course exams. Additionally, the time stress produced a strong interaction effect. Among the busier students, the time stress reduced their course grades (those not related to the experiential learning), while among the less busy, those grades increased. Instructors should be aware that some course activities are less linked to le...
This paper presents the results from a focus group and an experiment conducted with Mexican immig... more This paper presents the results from a focus group and an experiment conducted with Mexican immigrant farm workers as participants. The idea is to investigate free trade attitudes among a group little studied in the debate over immigration and its role in globalization. We can readily illustrate, as we do via our focus group participants, that many of these migrants understand their political situation. Our focus then turns to the political psychology of these workers: how does this understanding manifest itself in their political attitudes? The experiment exposes them to a standard set of arguments for and against economic globalization drawn from actual newspaper accounts. We find that this experimental design did prime the issue of economic globalization among those with a sense of self interest in the issue, implying that they held attitudes that the treatment brought to the "tops of their heads," as it were. This implication is further supported by the finding that a political value (in this case, valuing an active government) mediates the relationship between globalization messages and support for free trade, indicating that there is at least some structuring to their political opinions in this area.
Cuba faces considerable domestic and global challenges as they strive to compete in the global ma... more Cuba faces considerable domestic and global challenges as they strive to compete in the global marketplace and increase their population's quality of life. Cuba has invested in human capital development activities (i.e. universal access to education and guaranteed healthcare, food rations and housing) which are unique to the region. While these efforts have made an impact, research reveals a more holistic human capital development strategy is needed to maximize internal and external resources. Therefore, the researcher will use the outcome-based Model for Effective Human Capital Development in Developing Economies (Muger, 2017) as a means to examine the domestic factors impacting Cuba's human capital development efforts. The domestic factor from Muger's (2017) model will be used to discuss how workforce planning, talent and resource management, governance, and marketplace opportunities have impacted Cuba's development strategy. The researcher argues the Cuban population would greatly benefit if the Cuban state instituted a truer participative governance model, gradually increased marketplace opportunities for small and medium private enterprises, incentivized the educated and talented workforce to stay or return to Cuba, and encouraged private enterprises in domestic production through tax reductions and other forms of incentives. The paper concludes with a discussion of future research areas.
. The effects of racial prejudice on the predicted probability of voting occur among all Whites, ... more . The effects of racial prejudice on the predicted probability of voting occur among all Whites, as well as White Republicans, White Democrats, and White conservatives. The effects of White race liberalism occur among all Whites, as well as White Democrats and White liberals. The effects are strongest when Whites are in elections with Black candidates that are either challengers or in open seats.
This paper evaluates three general approaches to understanding presidential persuasion: strategic... more This paper evaluates three general approaches to understanding presidential persuasion: strategic advantages, compliance gaining, and sequencing. It generates empirical expectations from these three approaches and then tests those against a database of recorded presidential persuasive encounters. The empirical results support the general strategic approach derived from political science suggesting that presidential leadership and persuasion differ substantially from other forms of persuasion and leadership. The empirical results do not support the other approaches. For forty years, political scientists have asserted that on the center-stage of American politics stands presidential persuasion. Yet, this conception of presidential power rests on a mystery-the president's ability to convince powerful others to do things that they would not otherwise do. The Founders designed the constitutional gap between the policy-making actors in order to make persuasion both necessary and difficult. Hence, a practical politician, like a Lyndon Johnson, reflecting on his experiences as congressional leader and then as president, could sum up this essential constitutional challenge by quipping, "You can tell a man to go to hell, but you can't make him go." Yet, theory has little to say that might help a president facing this reality The most celebrated theories of persuasion in economics (e.g. Harsanyi 1976 or Osborne and Rubinstein 1990 and 1994) model elements of persuasion-who has the most to lose and who goes first, respectively-not likely important in bargaining between experienced, national politicians (e.g.,
candidate, political science, UNC-Chop~I Hill ' TI't1t. JtSllllJ M C fron, 1 .bt NBUOn~I Bcawn St... more candidate, political science, UNC-Chop~I Hill ' TI't1t. JtSllllJ M C fron, 1 .bt NBUOn~I Bcawn Strme Poll conduct«! on £J«tlon ~., ~ad! or thtst Vf:ltt. l hoc proporcions tt:tl«~ how tlw: ru poodcnts llnsw,eff!d 1hc! fini NES p,1rty idefltffia1Km quc~tlon: "Do you typiir.,iJly lhfnk of ~ourscll as a Oemomt. J\q>ublic.1111, lncumbcnl. Of wh.111" thus. ,:1rong1nd wat piiniun~ JI C in lht Republican-and Ormo<ntic a 1egories. All lndtpendt:nb, hMfading 1ticm lt1nins lo tie Otmocratk itr.t ttcpubllQn ~rtl'=', ar~ In I.he lndcpend'"t 0 1egoJY,
Comn,1Utt lot lhe S1uify of 11\r An.erian El«to.rnle sourHNow II NEws1c11u or THE PROGRA~I ON sou... more Comn,1Utt lot lhe S1uify of 11\r An.erian El«to.rnle sourHNow II NEws1c11u or THE PROGRA~I ON soumERN P01.111cs. ~1Eo1A AND rusuc wt
Although research indicates that men and women enjoy similar electoral success, individual-level ... more Although research indicates that men and women enjoy similar electoral success, individual-level studies reveal subtle differences in how voters evaluate male and female candidates. Stereotype effects have received a great deal of scholarly attention, with mixed results. However, less studied have been the effects of gender-specific expectations resulting from broadly held social roles, as described by Social Role Theory, and how the moral role expectations of men and women may lead to different evaluative standards and consequences for female candidates (cf. male candidates). Our experiment tested how evaluations of male and female candidates for high-level political office vary as a result of the candidates’ integrity level. In a mixed factorial design, we tested the effects of multiple reports of a candidate’s integrity, to determine how candidate gender and integrity level operate together to affect evaluations of political candidates. As hypothesized, in the absence of actual i...
Co-edited by Randall E. Adkins, UNO faculty member Chapter 11, Chabot vs. Driehaus in Ohio’s Firs... more Co-edited by Randall E. Adkins, UNO faculty member Chapter 11, Chabot vs. Driehaus in Ohio’s First Congressional District: The Rematch in the City of Seven Hills, co-authored by Randall E. Adkins and Gregory A. Petrow, UNO faculty members. After Barack Obama’s historic 2008 victory, Democrats were riding high. But a number of tough fights on policy initiatives, coupled with an economy struggling to recover, put Democrats in a difficult position leading up to the 2010 congressional elections. With nearly all the electoral gains Democrats made during 2006 and 2008 now lost and the House returned to Republican control, this is one of the most dramatic shifts in congressional power in history. Examining a sample of congressional campaigns waged during this important election provides readers with an account of how Republicans were able to make such impressive gains and how Democrats were unable to stem this tide. Adkins and Dulio provide a clear explanation of the macro trends in this e...
Editors: Randall E. Adkins (UNO faculty member) and David A. Dulio Chapter 11, Courting the Obama... more Editors: Randall E. Adkins (UNO faculty member) and David A. Dulio Chapter 11, Courting the Obama-Terry Voter: Terry vs. Esch in Nebraska’s Second Congressional District, co-authored by Randall E. Adkins and Gregory A. Petrow, UNO faculty members. During the 2008 elections, nowhere was change more anticipated than in the House and Senate. Going into Election Day, most analysts predicted a large majority of Democratic wins in both chambers. However, while many Republicans lost and Democrats came away with a clear majority, some of the most vulnerable managed to hang on and win reelection. Cases in Congressional Campaigns illustrates how embattled incumbents defended their turf in such a difficult year for Republican candidates, the Republican Party, and the Republican brand. It focuses on how selected congressional incumbents played defense ―successfully or not―in an election cycle that was dominated by the theme and message of change. Each chapter is written by political scientists ...
In 2006 the Democratic Party swept both houses of Congress. It was a tidal wave. For the first ti... more In 2006 the Democratic Party swept both houses of Congress. It was a tidal wave. For the first time since 1994, both branches of the legislature were under Democratic Party control. While many of his Republican colleagues lost in 2006, Steve Chabot survived by narrowly defeating Cin-cinnati City Council member John Cranley by roughly 9,000 votes. The political environment favored the Democrats again in 2008, and this year the Democrats believed that Steve Driehaus, the Minority Whip in the Ohio state legislature, was the person to unseat Chabot
Survey experiment testing hypotheses about Americans' reactions to primes of American nationa... more Survey experiment testing hypotheses about Americans' reactions to primes of American national identity versus control and positive or negative information about the COVID-19 pandemic versus a control
Scholars studying scholastic achievement in higher education find that students have specific cou... more Scholars studying scholastic achievement in higher education find that students have specific course grades in mind that satisfy their desires for academic performance. When students believe that they are on-track to achieve those grades, they divert resources to other endeavors. This paper tests a resulting hypothesis: Students balance higher grades on easier assignments with lower grades on more difficult ones. After experimentally inducing time stress by assigning students to participate in an experiential learning exercise, those busier with volunteer work did balance their higher grades on the easier, experiential assignments, against lower ones on the course exams. Additionally, the time stress produced a strong interaction effect. Among the busier students, the time stress reduced their course grades (those not related to the experiential learning), while among the less busy, those grades increased. Instructors should be aware that some course activities are less linked to le...
This paper presents the results from a focus group and an experiment conducted with Mexican immig... more This paper presents the results from a focus group and an experiment conducted with Mexican immigrant farm workers as participants. The idea is to investigate free trade attitudes among a group little studied in the debate over immigration and its role in globalization. We can readily illustrate, as we do via our focus group participants, that many of these migrants understand their political situation. Our focus then turns to the political psychology of these workers: how does this understanding manifest itself in their political attitudes? The experiment exposes them to a standard set of arguments for and against economic globalization drawn from actual newspaper accounts. We find that this experimental design did prime the issue of economic globalization among those with a sense of self interest in the issue, implying that they held attitudes that the treatment brought to the "tops of their heads," as it were. This implication is further supported by the finding that a political value (in this case, valuing an active government) mediates the relationship between globalization messages and support for free trade, indicating that there is at least some structuring to their political opinions in this area.
Cuba faces considerable domestic and global challenges as they strive to compete in the global ma... more Cuba faces considerable domestic and global challenges as they strive to compete in the global marketplace and increase their population's quality of life. Cuba has invested in human capital development activities (i.e. universal access to education and guaranteed healthcare, food rations and housing) which are unique to the region. While these efforts have made an impact, research reveals a more holistic human capital development strategy is needed to maximize internal and external resources. Therefore, the researcher will use the outcome-based Model for Effective Human Capital Development in Developing Economies (Muger, 2017) as a means to examine the domestic factors impacting Cuba's human capital development efforts. The domestic factor from Muger's (2017) model will be used to discuss how workforce planning, talent and resource management, governance, and marketplace opportunities have impacted Cuba's development strategy. The researcher argues the Cuban population would greatly benefit if the Cuban state instituted a truer participative governance model, gradually increased marketplace opportunities for small and medium private enterprises, incentivized the educated and talented workforce to stay or return to Cuba, and encouraged private enterprises in domestic production through tax reductions and other forms of incentives. The paper concludes with a discussion of future research areas.
. The effects of racial prejudice on the predicted probability of voting occur among all Whites, ... more . The effects of racial prejudice on the predicted probability of voting occur among all Whites, as well as White Republicans, White Democrats, and White conservatives. The effects of White race liberalism occur among all Whites, as well as White Democrats and White liberals. The effects are strongest when Whites are in elections with Black candidates that are either challengers or in open seats.
This paper evaluates three general approaches to understanding presidential persuasion: strategic... more This paper evaluates three general approaches to understanding presidential persuasion: strategic advantages, compliance gaining, and sequencing. It generates empirical expectations from these three approaches and then tests those against a database of recorded presidential persuasive encounters. The empirical results support the general strategic approach derived from political science suggesting that presidential leadership and persuasion differ substantially from other forms of persuasion and leadership. The empirical results do not support the other approaches. For forty years, political scientists have asserted that on the center-stage of American politics stands presidential persuasion. Yet, this conception of presidential power rests on a mystery-the president's ability to convince powerful others to do things that they would not otherwise do. The Founders designed the constitutional gap between the policy-making actors in order to make persuasion both necessary and difficult. Hence, a practical politician, like a Lyndon Johnson, reflecting on his experiences as congressional leader and then as president, could sum up this essential constitutional challenge by quipping, "You can tell a man to go to hell, but you can't make him go." Yet, theory has little to say that might help a president facing this reality The most celebrated theories of persuasion in economics (e.g. Harsanyi 1976 or Osborne and Rubinstein 1990 and 1994) model elements of persuasion-who has the most to lose and who goes first, respectively-not likely important in bargaining between experienced, national politicians (e.g.,
candidate, political science, UNC-Chop~I Hill ' TI't1t. JtSllllJ M C fron, 1 .bt NBUOn~I Bcawn St... more candidate, political science, UNC-Chop~I Hill ' TI't1t. JtSllllJ M C fron, 1 .bt NBUOn~I Bcawn Strme Poll conduct«! on £J«tlon ~., ~ad! or thtst Vf:ltt. l hoc proporcions tt:tl«~ how tlw: ru poodcnts llnsw,eff!d 1hc! fini NES p,1rty idefltffia1Km quc~tlon: "Do you typiir.,iJly lhfnk of ~ourscll as a Oemomt. J\q>ublic.1111, lncumbcnl. Of wh.111" thus. ,:1rong1nd wat piiniun~ JI C in lht Republican-and Ormo<ntic a 1egories. All lndtpendt:nb, hMfading 1ticm lt1nins lo tie Otmocratk itr.t ttcpubllQn ~rtl'=', ar~ In I.he lndcpend'"t 0 1egoJY,
Comn,1Utt lot lhe S1uify of 11\r An.erian El«to.rnle sourHNow II NEws1c11u or THE PROGRA~I ON sou... more Comn,1Utt lot lhe S1uify of 11\r An.erian El«to.rnle sourHNow II NEws1c11u or THE PROGRA~I ON soumERN P01.111cs. ~1Eo1A AND rusuc wt
Although research indicates that men and women enjoy similar electoral success, individual-level ... more Although research indicates that men and women enjoy similar electoral success, individual-level studies reveal subtle differences in how voters evaluate male and female candidates. Stereotype effects have received a great deal of scholarly attention, with mixed results. However, less studied have been the effects of gender-specific expectations resulting from broadly held social roles, as described by Social Role Theory, and how the moral role expectations of men and women may lead to different evaluative standards and consequences for female candidates (cf. male candidates). Our experiment tested how evaluations of male and female candidates for high-level political office vary as a result of the candidates’ integrity level. In a mixed factorial design, we tested the effects of multiple reports of a candidate’s integrity, to determine how candidate gender and integrity level operate together to affect evaluations of political candidates. As hypothesized, in the absence of actual i...
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