All Pardee RAND students complete a policy-relevant dissertation aimed at tackling the most pressing policy issues facing the world. Many Pardee RAND dissertations are partially- or fully-funded through endowed dissertation awards and other prizes.
Dissertations by Date
2015
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Change Talk in a Group Motivational Interviewing Setting and Risk Reduction Among Homeless Young Adults November 3, 2015
Examines how exposure to change talk (CT) during motivational interviewing intervention is related to client behavior change among homeless young adults and how exposure to CT and is related to both substance use and sexual risk behavior outcomes.
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District-Union Collaboration on Teacher Evaluation Reforms: Case Studies of Three School Districts in California October 9, 2015
Presents three case studies of school districts in California that are working to reform their teacher evaluation policies.
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Hello, Goodbye: Three Perspectives on Public School District Staff Turnover September 14, 2015
Three essays each of which explores a different perspective on public school district staff turnover.
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Controlling Tuberculosis Among High Risk Populations in Los Angeles: Three Essays July 9, 2015
Three essays that will help policymakers decide who, how and why to test and treat for latent tuberculosis disease infection.
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Go Gentle into That Good Night: The Past, Present, and Future of End-of-Life Care May 26, 2015
Examines the past, present, and future of end-of-life care in order to shed light on the most effective ways to organize and deliver it.
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Assessing the Feasibility of International Branch Campuses: Factors Universities Consider when Establishing Campuses Abroad May 26, 2015
Explores the steps in the decision-making process higher education institutions go through when establishing an international branch campus and key factors used to evaluate the potential campus.
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Three Studies in Conflict April 28, 2015
Uses a variety of social science research methods to explore the use of conflict prevention, cessation, and recovery interventions.
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The Role of Social Relationships in the Transmission and Prevention of HIV Among Homeless Youth and Male Sex Workers: Three Essays April 24, 2015
Explores the role of social relationships in the transmission and prevention of HIV among marginalized populations.
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Air Transport Pilot Supply and Demand: Current State and Effects of Recent Legislation April 15, 2015
Provides a comprehensive Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) supply and demand model and then assesses the current and future ATP supply and demand pipeline, to include the impact on the U.S. military pilot population.
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Changing Midstream: Providing Decision Support for Adaptive Strategies using Robust Decision Making: Applications in the Colorado River Basin March 27, 2015
Examines how Robust Decision Making can provide decision support to natural resource planners as they create, evaluate, and deliberate about adaptive strategies.
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Enhancing the Assessment of the Costs and Benefits of International Pilot Training (IPT) Within the U.S. Air Force: Is It Worth It? March 18, 2015
Provides a perspective on valuing the total monetary cost and the operational monetary and nonmonetary benefits of international pilot training that have not been explored previously.
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Federal Funding and Academic Productivity: Assessing Policy Levers for Sustainable Energy Researchers March 13, 2015
Examines the relationship between federal funding and research productivity, as revealed through publications and citations, for a sample of academic researchers with sustainable energy technology interests.
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Patenting and Innovation in China: Incentives, Policy, and Outcomes March 6, 2015
Explores the drivers behind China's patent boom, the impact of patenting-promoting policies, and the innovative outcomes of Chinese firms.
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The Relationship Between Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Symptoms and Career Outcomes of Army Enlisted Servicemembers February 25, 2015
Explores the relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder and negative military career outcomes.
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Predicting Active Duty Air Force Pilot Attrition Given an Anticipated Increase in Major Airline Pilot Hiring February 25, 2015
Predicts future pilot attrition given the estimated increase in major airline hiring and recommends several policies that the Air Force can implement to better weather an increase in attrition.
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Positive Youth Development in a School-Based Setting: A Study of the Los Angeles Police Academy Magnet School Program February 18, 2015
Offers a case study of a Los Angeles public school--based positive youth development (PYD) program to examine the extent to which PYD principles are incorporated in school programming and how they relate to a set of youth outcomes.
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China's Health Insurance Reform and Disparities in Healthcare Utilization and Costs: A Longitudinal Analysis February 11, 2015
Analyzes whether the insurance expansion in China reduces rural-urban disparities in terms of health care utilization and financial protection.
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Critical Rare Earths, National Security, and U.S.-China Interactions: A Portfolio Approach to Dysprosium Policy Design January 19, 2015
Examines how the U.S. can pursue a portfolio of policies to reduce American vulnerability to the supply disruption of one critical heavy rare earth, dysprosium.
2014
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Competition and Collaboration: A Comparison of U.S. and Chinese Energy Outward Direct Investment February 5, 2015
Compares and contrasts the characteristics, current positions, and future trends of both the U.S. and Chinese energy outward direct investments.
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Strategies for Managing Sovereign Debt: A Robust Decision Making Approach December 24, 2014
Examines and demonstrates how the Robust Decision Making methodology could be applied to the problem of selecting the government's debt portfolio.
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Improving Turkish-Iraqi Border Security: An Agent-Based Modeling and Simulation Approach December 23, 2014
Analyzes several policy options that could help increase border security by reducing militant actions from safe havens in foreign territory, focusing on a section of the Turkish-Iraqi border that is particularly difficult to protect.
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Essays on Family Welfare and Indian Development Policy December 16, 2014
Explores family welfare and economic development in India.
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Monitoring with Swift, Certain, and Moderate Sanctions to Reduce Alcohol-Related Crime: The South Dakota 24/7 Sobriety Program December 15, 2014
Systematic review of the South Dakota 24/7 Sobriety Program's structure, effectiveness, and cost.
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What Makes a Successful Principal? Incorporating School Principal Background in State and District Policy November 13, 2014
Explores aspects of a potential principal's education and professional experience that states and school districts should look for and cultivate in candidates for the position of school principal.
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Designing Efficient Systematic Reviews Using Economical Allocation, Creation and Synthesis of Medical Evidence October 1, 2014
Uses economical allocation, creation, and synthesis of medical evidence to design efficient systematic reviews.