ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses primarily on the political and economic environment surrounding the election process and the growing use of social media as a strategic tool in elections and constituent engagement. Poor economic conditions spark discussions on agenda items related to the well-being of society, such as demands for more student aid support, increased funding for health and human services programs and tax incentives. Innovations like social media not only help to lend credence to an election campaign, but tools also help to build connections with the public. The policy environments both domestically and internationally play a role in how the respective countries manage the give-and-take of the global economy. Shared governance has become widely appropriated within higher education and has diffused into other areas of the private and public sectors, such as the nursing field, where it gained traction in the late 1970s and '80s.
