INTERGOVERNMENTAL AID AND RATIO MEASUREMENT

Those studying public policy at the state and local level have traditionally relied on per capita measures when using regression-based techniques in comparing cities and states with different population sizes. Many have cautioned against the use of these measures. Recent articles have rejected the u...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social science quarterly 1987-09, Vol.68 (3), p.478-486
Main Authors: LYONS, William, FITZGERALD, Michael R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cities
CITIES, TOWNS, VILLAGES
City politics
Correlation coefficients
Correlations
Government (aid)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Measurement
Policymaking
Population size
PUBLIC POLICY
Public schools
Ratios
REGRESSION ANALYSIS
Research methods
State aid
STATE GOVERNMENT
Statistical variance
TARGETING INTERGOVERNMENTAL AID
Unemployment
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Summary:Those studying public policy at the state and local level have traditionally relied on per capita measures when using regression-based techniques in comparing cities and states with different population sizes. Many have cautioned against the use of these measures. Recent articles have rejected the use of per capita index construction in the study of intergovernmental aid. This article examines the per capita controversy in light of these studies and, in particular, questions the alternative measurement approach taken by Pelissero. The burgeoning solutions to the putative flaws in per capita and other ratio indexes are themselves subject to serious questions of validity, reliability, and interpretability.
ISSN:0038-4941
1540-6237