Abdul-Akeem Sadiq

Bio: Abdul-Akeem Sadiq is an academic researcher from University of Central Florida. The author has contributed to research in topics: Emergency management & Preparedness. The author has an hindex of 15, co-authored 61 publications receiving 648 citations. Previous affiliations of Abdul-Akeem Sadiq include Georgia State University & Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis.

How Policy Rules Shape the Structure and Performance of Collaborative Governance Arrangements

Abstract: Local food system governance increasingly occurs in collaborative venues at the local, state, and regional levels. Prominent examples of such are food policy councils (FPCs). FPCs take a systemic approach to improve local food systems by including diverse stakeholders to advise on policy development. The authors study public FPCs to understand how policies structure the stakeholder composition and goals of FPCs and how FPCs’ stakeholder composition facilitates and/or impedes performance. Data come from a content analysis of policies that mandate the structure and functions of public FPCs and interviews with FPC representatives. Findings indicate that FPCs connected to a broader array of food policy actors in their communities produce more diverse policy outputs, but this outcome is tempered by whether council members represent personal or organizational interests.

Disaster Mitigation and Preparedness Comparison of Nonprofit, Public, and Private Organizations

Abstract: Few studies have compared the mitigation and preparedness activities adopted by nonprofit, private, and public organizations. This study contributes to this important literature by comparing the ad...

A review of the community flood risk management literature in the USA: lessons for improving community resilience to floods

Abstract: This study systematically reviews the diverse body of research on community flood risk management in the USA to identify knowledge gaps and develop innovative and practical lessons to aid flood management decision-makers in their efforts to reduce flood losses. The authors discovered and reviewed 60 studies that met the selection criteria (e.g., study is written in English, is empirical, focuses on flood risk management at the community level in the USA, etc.). Upon reviewing the major findings from each study, the authors identified seven practical lessons that, if implemented, could not only help flood management decision-makers better understand communities’ flood risks, but could also reduce the impacts of flood disasters and improve communities’ resilience to future flood disasters. These seven lessons include: (1) recognizing that acquiring open space and conserving wetlands are some of the most effective approaches to reducing flood losses; (2) recognizing that, depending on a community’s flood risks, different development patterns are more effective at reducing flood losses; (3) considering the costs and benefits of participating in FEMA’s Community Rating System program; (4) engaging community members in the flood planning and recovery processes; (5) considering socially vulnerable populations in flood risk management programs; (6) relying on a variety of floodplain management tools to delineate flood risk; and (7) ensuring that flood mitigation plans are fully implemented and continually revised.

Exploring the Predictors of Organizational Preparedness for Natural Disasters

Abstract: There is an extensive body of research on the determinants of disaster preparedness at the individual and household levels. The same cannot be said for the organizational level. Hence, the purpose of this study is to shed light on the predictors of organizational preparedness for natural disasters. Since leaders of organizations have an incentive to overstate their level of preparedness and because surveys of organizational leaders suffer from selection bias and low response rates, we take the novel approach of interviewing employees about the organizations that employ them. Using an online survey, we collected information from a national sample of 2,008 U.S. employees and estimated the predictors of preparedness at the organizational level. We find, among other results, that organization size (facility level) is a consistent predictor of preparedness at the organizational level. We conclude with policy recommendations and outline an agenda for future research on organizational preparedness for natural disasters.

Local capacity and resilience to flooding: community responsiveness to the community ratings system program incentives

Abstract: To incentivize more community flood risks mitigation, the US Congress implemented the community rating system (CRS) in 1990. The CRS seeks to help communities build capacity to address flood risks and become more resilient to future flood disasters. Communities participating in CRS can reduce their flood risks and enjoy discounted premiums (up to 45 %) on federally required flood insurance commensurate with their community’s CRS score. A participant community is placed into one of the ten classes depending on its CRS score. Although previous research finds that the program’s structure creates opportunities for communities participating in CRS to respond to its incentives, no study has examined the characteristics of communities that changed their mitigation behavior due to this incentive scheme. In order to evaluate the performance of CRS and its tiered incentive structure, this study investigates the extent to which communities are responding strategically to CRS incentives and the characteristics of those communities behaving strategically. This study uses a regression discontinuity approach to compare the characteristics of communities above and below CRS class thresholds. The results show strategic behavior of communities participating in CRS. Communities with more information-based flood management activities, lower property values, lower flood risk, and lower population densities are more likely to respond strategically with respect to smaller CRS subsidies. For larger subsidies, the results indicate that CRS communities with higher property values are more likely to respond strategically to the policy incentives. The study concludes with a discussion of the implications of these results for the CRS program.

The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields (Chinese Translation)

Abstract: What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative—leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.

ANNALS of the Association of American Geographers

Abstract: Thirty-three brothels in rural and small-town Nevada, which contain between 225 and 250 prostitutes, are legal or openly tolerated and strictly controlled by state statute, city and county ordinances, and local rules. Twenty-two of the brothels are in places with populations between 500 and 8,000, and the remaining eleven are in rural areas. The legal and quasi-legal restrictions placed on prostitutes severely limit their activities outside brothels. These restrictions in conjunction with historical inertia, perceived benefits of crime and venereal disease control, and the good image of madams contribute to widespread positive local attitudes toward brothel prostitution. Interactions between clients and prostitutes in brothel parlors are also restricted and limited to a few basic types which are largely determined by entrepreneurial philosophy. KEY WORDS : Nevada, Political geography, Prostitution, Restricted activity spaces.

National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism

Abstract: 1 July 7, 2010, marks the fifth anniversary of the 2005 terrorist attacks on London’s Metro system. In 2005, terrorists launched a coordinated attack against London’s transportation system, with 3 bombs detonating simultaneously at three different Metro stations and a fourth bomb exploding an hour later on a city bus. In all, there were 52 victims in these bombings with an additional 700 injuries resulting. The four terrorists who executed the attacks were killed in the explosions.