01226pab a2200169 454500 180718b1998 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d Boyne, George A. The determinants of variations in local service contracting: garbage in, garbage out? 1998 p.150-63 Sep Empirical evidence on the determinants of variations in service contracting across U.S. local governments is evaluated. Four main categories of explanatory variables are analyzed; fiscal stress, scale and market structure, public preferences, and the power of public employees. The evidence contains fundamental deficiencies that include poor measures of the theoretical constructs, reciprocal relationships between contracting out and the explanatory variables, and additive tests of mediative theories. The consequence is that the determinants of service contracting remain largely undetected. Furthermore, the empirical studies add very little to the existing body of knowledge on the reasons for policy variations across local governments. - Reproduced Municipal government - United States Local government Urban Affairs Review 40692 40692 40692 0 0 0 0 IIPA IIPA 2018-07-19 Volume no: 34, Issue no: 1 AR41067 2018-07-19 2018-07-19 AR