Conceiving Comparative Policy Analysis : Implementing Air Quality Improvement Programs

The comparative analysis of air quality control policies provides an interesting field for studies of comparative policy analysis including program formulation and implementation processes. In European countries, the problem is comparable, whereas implementation structures, programs and policy impacts vary to a considerable extent. Analysis testing possibilities and constraints of air control policies under varying conditions are likely to contribute to a further development of a theory of policy analysis. This paper presents the analytical framework applied in a continuing empirical study explaining program formulation and implementation processes with respect to the different actors involved. Concrete emitter behavior can be explained by interaction processes at the very local level, by program elements of national legislation, and by structural constraints under which such programs are produced.

Die Reichweite von Theorien als Indikator für ihre Umsetzbarkeit in der Praxis [The scope as an indicator of the applicability of nursing theories to practice]

In der Pflegewissenschaft geben der Einsatz von Theorien und der daraus folgende Gewinn immer wieder Anlass zu Diskussionen. Ein Hauptvorwurf ist, dass Pflegetheorien als sehr abstrakt und wenig praxisnah gelten. Jedoch gibt es wenige Indikatoren, um das Abstraktionsniveau von Theorien und die damit verbundene Reichweite zu bestimmen. Im vorliegenden Artikel werden Fragen basierend auf die Definitionen und Grundannahmen von Theorien erstellt. Damit werden anschließend drei ausgesuchte Theorien auf ihr Abstraktionsniveau und Reichweite untersucht. Es wurden 18 Fragen zu den drei Bereichen ,,Zweck der Theorie", ,,Aufgabe der Theorie" und ,,Beschreibung der Theorie" entwickelt. Diese 18 Fragen wurden auf die Theorie der Adaptation von Sister Callista Roy, die Theorie zur Unsicherheit von Merle M. Mishel und die Theorie der Omnipräsenz von Krebs von Maya Shaha angewendet. [The use of nursing theories and their associated benefits remain an area of repeated discussion in nursing. One of the main objections is that nursing theories are abstract and therefore cannot be easily applied to practice. However, only few indicators exist to help identify a theory's level of abstraction or its scope. In this article, questions based on definitions and assumptions of theories have been developed. These questions have then been applied to three selected theories to investigate their level of abstraction and scope. A total of 18 questions divided into three domains were developed. The three categories were: ,,the purpose of the theory", ,,the aim of the theory" and ,,the description of the theory". The theory of Adaptation by Sister Callista Roy, the Theory of Uncertainty by Merle M. Mishel and the Theory of the Omnipresence of Cancer by Maya Shaha were selected to be analysed following the three domains with the 18 questions.]

Adverse selection, moral hazard, and outlier payment policy

In this article, we analyze the rationale for introducing outlier payments into a prospective payment system for hospitals under adverse selection and moral hazard. The payer has only two instruments: a fixed price for patients whose treatment cost is below a threshold and a cost-sharing rule for outlier patients. We show that a fixed-price policy is optimal when the hospital is sufficiently benevolent. When the hospital is weakly benevolent, a mixed policy solving a trade-off between rent extraction, efficiency, and dumping deterrence must be preferred. We show how the optimal combination of fixed price and partially cost-based payment depends on the degree of benevolence of the hospital, the social cost of public funds, and the distribution of patients severity. [Authors]