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How Public Administration / Government / Political Science Research could be different



Government department headquarters could be located outside of the capital

Moneyball / clear data / 10-K reports could be built for government

Public pensions could be too high in some places / to some people / could be capped at some amount

FEMA could have a better / quicker / less fragmented / less complicated / adequately staffed and funded response to natural disasters / emergencies

U.S. food safety legislation could be less complicated / overlapping

Civil grand juries could help keep government accountable

The U.S. military industrial complex could be too powerful / create wars

News media, journalism, and/or social media could be independent of government / censorship

Government positions could not be obtained by bribes

Continuous quality improvement / customer satisfaction surveys / stakeholder feedback through interviews & focus groups / data outcomes / sharing best practices could be used in government programs

A majority of U.S. FDA funding could not come from the pharmaceutical industry

Prediction markets could improve future forecasts / public policy

Psychiatric / addiction care for homelessness could be coordinated by the state rather than county

Countries could be prevented from taking on crippling debt / having public financial mismanagement

Government operations could be paperless / automated

Homelessness / drug addiction could be dealt with more comprehensively than "Housing First"

Philanthropy could encourage policy options that are beneficial

Services delivered could be audited at nonprofits / government contractors and feedback could be continuously collected from service recipients

The revolving door between government / private business could be fixed

Governments / organizations could improve "use it or lose it" deadline budgeting

Homelessness government spending could be more efficient, less regulated, coordinated, prioritized, and tracked

U.S. infrastructure could or could not be privatized

Democracies could not have ethnic / tribal / religious political parties

Companies / people could not bribe, give donations, and/or gifts to government officials

Citizens could access government records

Qualified government leaders could serve for longer terms

Civics education could be a part of school curriculums

Decentralization could or could not lead to better government

Meritocratic recruitment/rewards/wages/benefits, smaller government, intrinsic motivation, decentralization, and performance monitoring/auditing/feedback could improve governments

Government contracting with nonprofits vs. private organizations could be examined

Clinical knowledge, health workers' absenteeism rates, corruption/bribes/theft, power outages, and drug/medical supply availability / counterfeit medications could be improved in global health

Public sector unions could prevent government reform / lead to adverse decisions

Countries could have universal healthcare coverage

Infrastructure could be built more quickly by learning from China

Duplication, fragmentation, and overlap could be fixed across government

Duplication, overlap, and fragmentation could be fixed for U.S. mental health services

U.S. cybersecurity companies/contractors could be protected against attacks

U.S. intelligence agencies could be streamlined, have a command authority for better coordination, and/or resemble MI-5/CSIS

Federal and state legislation could adhere to a single, defined subject without rider amendments

U.S. political appointees could be qualified, accountable, have different criteria for selection, and be reduced in size

Government RFPs could have be simpler, have less requirements, and elicit more solutions from industry

International aid could focus on improving government services and private development

Public servants (and relatives) could not serve on company boards / own companies to prevent conflicts of interest

Competition, trial phases, past performance evaluation, and effective monitoring could create more efficient government contracting

Puerto Rico's tax shelter for the rich could demonstrate economic development

Government privatization / contracting / consulting could create inefficient spending not in the public interest

Government employees could perform services instead of contractors / consultants to save taxpayer money

Lotteries could be used to fill (student) government seats

Malfunctioning police departments could be disbanded to create reform

A "Nation Building Best Practices Model" could be used in international development

The World Health Organization's structure, management, and focus could improve

Organization research could focus more on public administration

Government contracting could have share-in savings, contests, rewards for cost-saving ideas, and more meaningful past/public performance evaluations

Government purchasing managers could have oversight and rewards/penalties for performance

Governments could show the impact of economic development subsidies / corporate incentives and tax breaks

Auditors could be audited

Government performance auditing could be publicized more and tackle risky topics

Government audits of public resources could reduce corruption

Politicians and judges could undergo psychological screenings

The revolving door / regulatory capture between government and industry could be fixed

Local governments could have one integrated data system and universal intake

Public program evaluation could include comparable cost benefit analysis

Human-centered design could be used in the social sector and business

RCTs could be a marginal way to inform public policy

Behavioral economics, consumer insight research, and mystery shopping could be used in the design and delivery of public programs

Public policy ideas could be easier to access through artificial intelligence

Social services could be coordinated / mapped out across agencies and community organizations

Local governments could consolidate services

Public policy clearinghouses could be easier to use / more comprehensive

Government agencies, schools, hospitals, police, universities, foundations, prisons, workplaces, elections, judiciary systems, and nonprofits could collect, publicize, and use citizen feedback

Children could be registered at birth

Networks of schools implementing proven programs could lead to school reform