David Oliver Kasdan
Biographic Data
| ID | 1923732 |
|---|---|
| NAME | David Oliver Kasdan |
| GIVEN NAMES | David Oliver |
| FAMILY NAME | Kasdan |
| SIGNATURE | KASDAN D O |
| AFFILIATIONS | Sungkyunkwan University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-6709-1424 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 22 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 58 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 22 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2010 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Toe the line or walk the plank? Principled bureaucracy under Trump 2.0
Disaster risk reduction in the wicked problems framework
Purpose Applying the wicked problems framework to disaster risk reduction makes for a more appropriate understanding of the modern challenges of mitigation that may inform better strategies and communications. Design/methodology/approach This research employs a literature review of wicked problems to posit a theoretical application of the concept to disaster risk reduction in the format of a reflective examination and argument with reasoned lesso…
The globalizability of temporal discounting
Economic inequality is associated with preferences for smaller, immediate gains over larger, delayed ones. Such temporal discounting may feed into rising global inequality, yet it is unclear whether it is a function of choice preferences or norms, or rather the absence of sufficient resources for immediate needs. It is also not clear whether these reflect true differences in choice patterns between income groups. We tested temporal discounting an…
Governance quality, administrative values and disaster risk management
Purpose This study explores the relationships between governance quality and disaster risk in respect to the pillar values of public administration. The objective is to strengthen the focus and resolve of bureaucratic institutions to engage with disaster risk management (DRM) as a core function. Design/methodology/approach Multiple correlation analysis is conducted using data from global indices of disaster risk and governance quality. This is si…
Dataveillant Collectivism and the Coronavirus in Korea: Values, Biases, and Socio-Cultural Foundations of Containment Efforts
COVID-19 is as much a social as a biological problem and securing mass compliance with public health directives is a necessary condition of suppressing the pandemic. South Korea's containment has been characterized by high levels of such compliance We contend that Korea's neo-Confucian traditions, ongoing exposure to diverse existential threats, and technology-driven development inform a set of biases and social practices that facilitate positive…
Do Koreans like being nudged? Survey evidence for the contextuality of behavioral public policy
This study explores the nuances of South Koreans' approval for nudge policies by replicating a survey conducted in global nudge research, and then extending the analysis and discussion with greater detail about the context. The traditions, culture, and development of Korea have contributed to a distinct behavioral bias profile that must be integrated into approaches for nudge policy design and implementation. This article proposes the qualities o…
Dichotomies of disaster management: A reflection on the politics of efficient decision making
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the variety of dichotomies related to disaster management with an objective to gain a better understanding of how and when dichotomous thinking can improve disaster management, especially in the discourse of disaster management politics. Design/methodology/approach This is a reflective essay that surveys dichotomies from multiple disciplines in respect to their potential contributions to disaster ma…
The Cure for Catastrophe: How We Can Stop Manufacturing Natural Disasters
Nudging the Neoliberal Agenda: Administrative Opportunities in the Deregulated State
The current climate of neoliberalism in the executive branch is attended by active deregulation and distrust of the administrative state. As protections are rolled back, there is concern that individuals may be susceptible to information asymmetries that will influence their decision making, leading to detrimental outcomes for both their own and the general welfare. Behavioral public administration—the bureaucratic conception of “nudge” theory—of…
The Ostrich Paradox: Why We Underprepare for Disasters
Toward a theory of behavioral public administration
The connection between public administration and behavioral economics goes back to Herbert Simon, who recognized the tension between the institutional demands of rational efficiency and the reality of individuals’ alternate objectives. There is now a concentrated research push at the intersection of behavioral economics and governance, following recently publicized evidence of favorable synergies. Public administration can use behavioral economic…
From K-Pop to K-Preparedness: Korea confronts disaster reduction
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe a recent effort by the South Korean Government to stimulate a domestic disaster risk reduction (DRR) technology industry for the export market. The project is a novel form of public-private partnership (PPP) that simultaneously fulfills the mandates of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction while promoting Korea’s economic development agenda. Design/methodology/approach The research is pr…
Considering socio-cultural factors of disaster risk management
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between factors of socio-cultural contexts and disaster risk. Recent efforts by international organizations and research scholarship have emphasized that applying contextual understandings of human behavior can improve the effectiveness of disaster risk management (DRM). Design/methodology/approach – The research employs multiple correlation analysis to find significant relationsh…
Emergency Management 2.0: This Time, It’s Financial
There are more causes of fiscal distress than remedies. A nascent field is emerging built on the practices utilized to confront fiscal distress. The usual method follows a federal structure in that the state has ultimate responsibility when local governments fail, leaving communities to live in a “new normal” of austere oversight. As more urban areas contend with extended economic downturns, political paralysis, and social apathy in the face of u…
One More Look at (Neo-)Pragmatism in Public Administration: Seeing the Forest and the Trees
The continued interest in (neo-)pragmatism for public administration is a validation of the very kind of democratic discourse that the philosophy holds dear. Yet the back-and-forth also reinforces a critique coming from one of its major figures, Richard Rorty: We seem to be jockeying for position in an analytic language game that will never have a winner. The matter may not be “settled” per se, but the groundwork of (neo-)pragmatism’s use in publ…
A Tale of Two Hatchet Men: Emergency Financial Management in Michigan
Fiscal stress in local governments has reached catastrophic levels in Michigan, which has implemented emergency management legislation in an attempt to keep apace of the problems it faces, including Detroit's bankruptcy. It is time to consider what kind of public administrator is needed to address the problems of modern fiscal distress. Whereas the political approaches and policies for emergency financial management across the country may differ,…
Much Ado About “Great Books” of Public Administration
Great Books” of Public Administration, 1990-2010: Revisiting Sherwood’s Survey in the Wake of Reinventing Government
Twenty years ago, Frank Sherwood attempted to identify the most influential book in public administration from 1940 to 1990. This article makes a modest attempt to recreate that study for the span of 1990 to 2010 with a striking difference in its results. Whereas Sherwood’s panel picked a book that was well liked and respected in the academic community, the current study produced a winning volume that was almost universally derided by the panel o…
A Neopragmatist Approach to Administrative Authority: Using Rorty's Liberalism for Social Progress
Public administration is challenged to provide a coherent model of authority. A warrant for authority is necessary for governance, yet it is also anathema to many of the tenets of liberal constitutionalism. From the postmodern perspective, a nondiscriminatory approach to governance requires new understandings of the source and purpose of administrative authority. This process involves deflating the metanarratives of governance and the foundationa…
Alternative Ways of Thinking About Expertise
Response to “The History in Urban Studies: A Comment”
The purpose of our paper “What is Urban Studies?” was to provide a general empirical description of the field, from its origin to the present. We sought to approach this problem as systematically a
What Is “Urban Studies”? Context, Internal Structure, and Content
The record of learned concern with cities is nearly as old as the city itself. In the past several decades, however, a distinct academic field of “Urban Studies” has emerged. This article characterizes the context, internal structure, and content of the field through interviews with leading scholars, probabilistic multidimensional scaling analyses of survey data, and a content analysis of a leading journal. The article concludes that although Urb…
What Is “Urban Studies”? Context, Internal Structure, and Content
The record of learned concern with cities is nearly as old as the city itself. In the past several decades, however, a distinct academic field of “Urban Studies” has emerged. This article characterizes the context, internal structure, and content of the field through interviews with leading scholars, probabilistic multidimensional scaling analyses of survey data, and a content analysis of a leading journal. The article concludes that although Urb…
Toward a theory of behavioral public administration
The connection between public administration and behavioral economics goes back to Herbert Simon, who recognized the tension between the institutional demands of rational efficiency and the reality of individuals’ alternate objectives. There is now a concentrated research push at the intersection of behavioral economics and governance, following recently publicized evidence of favorable synergies. Public administration can use behavioral economic…
A Tale of Two Hatchet Men: Emergency Financial Management in Michigan
Fiscal stress in local governments has reached catastrophic levels in Michigan, which has implemented emergency management legislation in an attempt to keep apace of the problems it faces, including Detroit's bankruptcy. It is time to consider what kind of public administrator is needed to address the problems of modern fiscal distress. Whereas the political approaches and policies for emergency financial management across the country may differ,…
The globalizability of temporal discounting
Economic inequality is associated with preferences for smaller, immediate gains over larger, delayed ones. Such temporal discounting may feed into rising global inequality, yet it is unclear whether it is a function of choice preferences or norms, or rather the absence of sufficient resources for immediate needs. It is also not clear whether these reflect true differences in choice patterns between income groups. We tested temporal discounting an…
Dataveillant Collectivism and the Coronavirus in Korea: Values, Biases, and Socio-Cultural Foundations of Containment Efforts
COVID-19 is as much a social as a biological problem and securing mass compliance with public health directives is a necessary condition of suppressing the pandemic. South Korea's containment has been characterized by high levels of such compliance We contend that Korea's neo-Confucian traditions, ongoing exposure to diverse existential threats, and technology-driven development inform a set of biases and social practices that facilitate positive…
Emergency Management 2.0: This Time, It’s Financial
There are more causes of fiscal distress than remedies. A nascent field is emerging built on the practices utilized to confront fiscal distress. The usual method follows a federal structure in that the state has ultimate responsibility when local governments fail, leaving communities to live in a “new normal” of austere oversight. As more urban areas contend with extended economic downturns, political paralysis, and social apathy in the face of u…
Great Books” of Public Administration, 1990-2010: Revisiting Sherwood’s Survey in the Wake of Reinventing Government
Twenty years ago, Frank Sherwood attempted to identify the most influential book in public administration from 1940 to 1990. This article makes a modest attempt to recreate that study for the span of 1990 to 2010 with a striking difference in its results. Whereas Sherwood’s panel picked a book that was well liked and respected in the academic community, the current study produced a winning volume that was almost universally derided by the panel o…
Toe the line or walk the plank? Principled bureaucracy under Trump 2.0
One More Look at (Neo-)Pragmatism in Public Administration: Seeing the Forest and the Trees
The continued interest in (neo-)pragmatism for public administration is a validation of the very kind of democratic discourse that the philosophy holds dear. Yet the back-and-forth also reinforces a critique coming from one of its major figures, Richard Rorty: We seem to be jockeying for position in an analytic language game that will never have a winner. The matter may not be “settled” per se, but the groundwork of (neo-)pragmatism’s use in publ…
A Neopragmatist Approach to Administrative Authority: Using Rorty's Liberalism for Social Progress
Public administration is challenged to provide a coherent model of authority. A warrant for authority is necessary for governance, yet it is also anathema to many of the tenets of liberal constitutionalism. From the postmodern perspective, a nondiscriminatory approach to governance requires new understandings of the source and purpose of administrative authority. This process involves deflating the metanarratives of governance and the foundationa…
Response to “The History in Urban Studies: A Comment”
The purpose of our paper “What is Urban Studies?” was to provide a general empirical description of the field, from its origin to the present. We sought to approach this problem as systematically a
What Is “Urban Studies”? Context, Internal Structure, and Content
The record of learned concern with cities is nearly as old as the city itself. In the past several decades, however, a distinct academic field of “Urban Studies” has emerged. This article characterizes the context, internal structure, and content of the field through interviews with leading scholars, probabilistic multidimensional scaling analyses of survey data, and a content analysis of a leading journal. The article concludes that although Urb…
A Neopragmatist Approach to Administrative Authority: Using Rorty's Liberalism for Social Progress
Public administration is challenged to provide a coherent model of authority. A warrant for authority is necessary for governance, yet it is also anathema to many of the tenets of liberal constitutionalism. From the postmodern perspective, a nondiscriminatory approach to governance requires new understandings of the source and purpose of administrative authority. This process involves deflating the metanarratives of governance and the foundationa…
Alternative Ways of Thinking About Expertise
Response to “The History in Urban Studies: A Comment”
The purpose of our paper “What is Urban Studies?” was to provide a general empirical description of the field, from its origin to the present. We sought to approach this problem as systematically a
Great Books” of Public Administration, 1990-2010: Revisiting Sherwood’s Survey in the Wake of Reinventing Government
Twenty years ago, Frank Sherwood attempted to identify the most influential book in public administration from 1940 to 1990. This article makes a modest attempt to recreate that study for the span of 1990 to 2010 with a striking difference in its results. Whereas Sherwood’s panel picked a book that was well liked and respected in the academic community, the current study produced a winning volume that was almost universally derided by the panel o…
Much Ado About “Great Books” of Public Administration
A Tale of Two Hatchet Men: Emergency Financial Management in Michigan
Fiscal stress in local governments has reached catastrophic levels in Michigan, which has implemented emergency management legislation in an attempt to keep apace of the problems it faces, including Detroit's bankruptcy. It is time to consider what kind of public administrator is needed to address the problems of modern fiscal distress. Whereas the political approaches and policies for emergency financial management across the country may differ,…
One More Look at (Neo-)Pragmatism in Public Administration: Seeing the Forest and the Trees
The continued interest in (neo-)pragmatism for public administration is a validation of the very kind of democratic discourse that the philosophy holds dear. Yet the back-and-forth also reinforces a critique coming from one of its major figures, Richard Rorty: We seem to be jockeying for position in an analytic language game that will never have a winner. The matter may not be “settled” per se, but the groundwork of (neo-)pragmatism’s use in publ…
Considering socio-cultural factors of disaster risk management
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between factors of socio-cultural contexts and disaster risk. Recent efforts by international organizations and research scholarship have emphasized that applying contextual understandings of human behavior can improve the effectiveness of disaster risk management (DRM). Design/methodology/approach – The research employs multiple correlation analysis to find significant relationsh…
Emergency Management 2.0: This Time, It’s Financial
There are more causes of fiscal distress than remedies. A nascent field is emerging built on the practices utilized to confront fiscal distress. The usual method follows a federal structure in that the state has ultimate responsibility when local governments fail, leaving communities to live in a “new normal” of austere oversight. As more urban areas contend with extended economic downturns, political paralysis, and social apathy in the face of u…
From K-Pop to K-Preparedness: Korea confronts disaster reduction
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe a recent effort by the South Korean Government to stimulate a domestic disaster risk reduction (DRR) technology industry for the export market. The project is a novel form of public-private partnership (PPP) that simultaneously fulfills the mandates of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction while promoting Korea’s economic development agenda. Design/methodology/approach The research is pr…
The Ostrich Paradox: Why We Underprepare for Disasters
Toward a theory of behavioral public administration
The connection between public administration and behavioral economics goes back to Herbert Simon, who recognized the tension between the institutional demands of rational efficiency and the reality of individuals’ alternate objectives. There is now a concentrated research push at the intersection of behavioral economics and governance, following recently publicized evidence of favorable synergies. Public administration can use behavioral economic…
Dichotomies of disaster management: A reflection on the politics of efficient decision making
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the variety of dichotomies related to disaster management with an objective to gain a better understanding of how and when dichotomous thinking can improve disaster management, especially in the discourse of disaster management politics. Design/methodology/approach This is a reflective essay that surveys dichotomies from multiple disciplines in respect to their potential contributions to disaster ma…
The Cure for Catastrophe: How We Can Stop Manufacturing Natural Disasters
Nudging the Neoliberal Agenda: Administrative Opportunities in the Deregulated State
The current climate of neoliberalism in the executive branch is attended by active deregulation and distrust of the administrative state. As protections are rolled back, there is concern that individuals may be susceptible to information asymmetries that will influence their decision making, leading to detrimental outcomes for both their own and the general welfare. Behavioral public administration—the bureaucratic conception of “nudge” theory—of…
Dataveillant Collectivism and the Coronavirus in Korea: Values, Biases, and Socio-Cultural Foundations of Containment Efforts
COVID-19 is as much a social as a biological problem and securing mass compliance with public health directives is a necessary condition of suppressing the pandemic. South Korea's containment has been characterized by high levels of such compliance We contend that Korea's neo-Confucian traditions, ongoing exposure to diverse existential threats, and technology-driven development inform a set of biases and social practices that facilitate positive…
Do Koreans like being nudged? Survey evidence for the contextuality of behavioral public policy
This study explores the nuances of South Koreans' approval for nudge policies by replicating a survey conducted in global nudge research, and then extending the analysis and discussion with greater detail about the context. The traditions, culture, and development of Korea have contributed to a distinct behavioral bias profile that must be integrated into approaches for nudge policy design and implementation. This article proposes the qualities o…
Governance quality, administrative values and disaster risk management
Purpose This study explores the relationships between governance quality and disaster risk in respect to the pillar values of public administration. The objective is to strengthen the focus and resolve of bureaucratic institutions to engage with disaster risk management (DRM) as a core function. Design/methodology/approach Multiple correlation analysis is conducted using data from global indices of disaster risk and governance quality. This is si…
The globalizability of temporal discounting
Economic inequality is associated with preferences for smaller, immediate gains over larger, delayed ones. Such temporal discounting may feed into rising global inequality, yet it is unclear whether it is a function of choice preferences or norms, or rather the absence of sufficient resources for immediate needs. It is also not clear whether these reflect true differences in choice patterns between income groups. We tested temporal discounting an…
Disaster risk reduction in the wicked problems framework
Purpose Applying the wicked problems framework to disaster risk reduction makes for a more appropriate understanding of the modern challenges of mitigation that may inform better strategies and communications. Design/methodology/approach This research employs a literature review of wicked problems to posit a theoretical application of the concept to disaster risk reduction in the format of a reflective examination and argument with reasoned lesso…
Toe the line or walk the plank? Principled bureaucracy under Trump 2.0
Political science (16 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Economics (10 works) · Law (9 works) · Public Administration (9 works) · Public Administration (9 works) · Disaster Management and Resilience (8 works) · Law (8 works) · Business (7 works) · Politics (7 works)