| This dissertation questions the development of circumstantially based, transitory political subsystems and coalitions within the governmental involvement surrounding the staging of the Olympics. The various American Olympic experiences since the 1984 Los Angeles Games are used as case studies to better explain the development of subsystems and coalitions embodied in the political challenges facing local governments hosting the Games. Additional case study material has been gathered from the Sydney, Australia Olympics in 2000, the Nagano Winter Olympics of 1998, and official documents of the International Olympic Committee and its member organizations.;This dissertation helps expand our knowledge of subsystem theory in several areas: (1) It questions the development of single issue, problem-based coalitions in the context of the Olympics. (2) It improves understandings of Olympic transitory subsystems versus their institutional counterparts. (3) It helps explain political conflict as a catalyst to Games related subsystem development and behavior. (4) It questions organizational effectiveness when driven by the unique political circumstances surrounding the Olympics. (5) It uses theoretical and pragmatic approaches to help entities reconcile the political challenges associated with hosting the Games.;Theoretical foundations include Sabatier, Jenkins-Smith and, more recently, McCool's work on subsystem development and behavior. Also helpful is Anderson's approach to pragmatic liberal theory. The foundations for much of the Olympic research originate with Burbank et al., Rutheiser, Cashman, Dunn and McQuirk, and the official reports specific to various Olympic events.;Subsystems and coalitions are often viewed as strategies to mitigate political conflict. However, our Olympic experiences suggest they may also be intrinsic to political conflict and organizational uncertainty. If, as Dahl suggests, subsystem theory appeals to the notion that government is controlled by special interests and closed processes, then, can the unique political challenges brought on by the Olympics suggest that subsystems can also be "captured" by special interests?;Finally, this dissertation argues that there are lessons for local governments in the American experiences in hosting large and complex events such as the Olympics. The forces of political conflict, economic development, and public-private partnerships that come to bear on local governments in the context of hosting the Games are predictable and manageable. |
