This thesis will analyze the effect of the 2015 reform, which restructured the Dutch student financial aid structure, on students’ reported effort, motivation, and satisfaction. From September 2015...Show moreThis thesis will analyze the effect of the 2015 reform, which restructured the Dutch student financial aid structure, on students’ reported effort, motivation, and satisfaction. From September 2015 onwards, new Dutch students were not automatically eligible for a so-called basic grant. Instead, these students were now only able to loan this money. Prior research has shown how this has increased parental contributions to students and lowered student expenditure (Broeders, Been & Knoef, 2020). But since criticism in Dutch society rose due to unfulfilled promises of extra investments into the higher education system and reports stating that students are experiencing more stress due to stricter finances (NOS, 2019; ISO, 2019), it also seems appropriate to research if this reform affected students’ effort and motivation and satisfaction. The findings of this study are mainly in line with our expectations. This study finds that the 2015 reform positively affects reported effort and motivation. We also find a decrease in reported satisfaction, but this result is not statistically significant. The coefficients of the effects are small, and therefore there are no major effects visible on reported effort and motivation.Show less
Electoral competition has been an essential part of acquiring the American presidency since Jackson’s election of 1828. Competition made strategic considerations to ensure the maximization of...Show moreElectoral competition has been an essential part of acquiring the American presidency since Jackson’s election of 1828. Competition made strategic considerations to ensure the maximization of electoral support increasingly relevant. One phenomenon that traditionally dominated strategic thinking during American elections is ‘Outsiderism’: during campaigns candidates deliberately assume an outsider position in the electoral arena, not on the basis of genuine motivations, but for the categorical purpose of vote-maximization. Despite the fact that Outsiderism has constantly been deployed over the course of history, it has yet to receive scholarly attention. This thesis, therefore, offers an analysis of Outsiderism in the realm of American presidential campaigns. It investigates Outsiderism’s roots in the subsequent campaigns of Jackson and Van Buren through an analysis of their respective campaign biographies. Furthermore, it links Outsiderism to the framework of Rational Choice Theory, which elucidates the rather manipulative motives that induce Outsiderism. Thus, this thesis seeks to clarify to what extent Jackson and Van Buren conformed to Outsiderism during their campaign. Why did they as would-be presidents see the need to present themselves (to a certain extent) as outsiders to American politics? The results suggest that both Jackson and Van Buren as presidential candidates employed Outsiderism, although Jackson to a lesser extent than Van Buren, because they deemed it as advantageous for garnering the required support to get elected. As a result, they have paved the way for a campaign strategy that has remained dominant until today.Show less
According to the rational choice theory acting cooperative in collective goods problems is not rational because the benefits of cooperating do not outweigh the costs. The fact that some countries...Show moreAccording to the rational choice theory acting cooperative in collective goods problems is not rational because the benefits of cooperating do not outweigh the costs. The fact that some countries do cooperate in international collective goods problems means that something must be missing from traditional rational choice models. IR theorists have tried to explain how it is possible that some countries do cooperate in collective goods problems while others do not.This research examines oil wealth as an explanation for non cooperative behavior in collective goods problems. This explanation is derived from the realist school of thought. The results of this research show that in two different cases oil wealth is negatively related to cooperative behavior in collective goods problems. Also other explanations from realist, liberalist and constructivist theories have been tested and compared to understand the importance of any of these explanations when explaining state behavior in collective goods problems.Show less
