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présidée par M. le Comte Siméon ; Kopftitel ; Volltext // Exemplar mit der Signatur: München, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek -- 4 Acad. 107,15,1

Gerhard Lehmbruch's 75th birthday is the reason to reflect on his role 30 & more years ago, when he had a significant impact on the development of political science in Austria. As an academic -- especially due to his work "Proporzdemokratie" -- & as a colleague he was one of those Non-Austrians who inspired the thinking of the small number of young Austrian political scientists in the 1960s. Gerhard Lehmbruch was among the (especially US-American & German) political scientists, who -- directly & indirectly -- helped political science to define itself in a country which had buried most of its memory of modern social sciences' specific Austrian roots. 14 References. Adapted from the source document.

Political Liberalism is a major addition to the political theory of John Rawls. In many respects, it develops or alters views expressed in his famous A Theory of Justice. For changes that appeared in various articles Rawls published after the earlier book, Political Liberalism tends to offer nuances of difference. The most original chapter is about public reason, and my comments are directed to that subject, which has now become a centerpiece of Rawls's theory. I draw in Rawls's other views only as they bear on public reason. My aim is to present some problems I see with his account. When I am unclear about how he means to deal with a difficulty, I suggest various possibilities. Once I have settled on an interpretation of Rawls, I compare that with the position I find most persuasive. This is not the occasion to provide any full account of my own views, but some readers may be encouraged to read further.

"This volume unfolds the ebbs and flows of Muslim thought in different regions of the world, as well as the struggles between the different intellectual discourses that have surfaced against this backdrop. With a focus on Turkey, Egypt, Iran and the Indian Subcontinent - regions that, in spite of their particular histories and forms of thought, are uniquely placed as a mosaic that illustrates the intertwined nature of the development of Muslim socio-political thought - it sheds light on the swing between right and left in different regions, the debates surrounding nationalism, the influence of socialism and liberalism, the rise of Islamism and the conflict between state bureaucracy and social movements. Exploring themes of civil society and democracy, it also considers current trends in Muslim thought and possible future directions. As such, it will appeal to scholars across the fields of sociology, anthropology, political science, history and political economy, as well as those with interests in the study of religion, the development of Muslim thought, and the transformation of Muslim societies in recent decades"--

We develop and study a two-period model of political competition with office- and policymotivated candidates, in which (i) changes of policies impose costs on all individuals and (ii) such costs increase with the magnitude of the policy change. We show that there is an optimal positive level of costs of change that minimizes policy polarization and maximizes welfare. One interpretation of this finding is that societies with intermediate levels of conservatism achieve the highest welfare and the lowest polarization levels. We apply our model to the design of optimal re-election hurdles. In particular, we show that raising the vote-share needed for re-election above 50% weakly reduces policy polarization and tends to increase welfare. Furthermore, we identify circumstances where the optimal re-election hurdle is strictly larger than 50%.

There is growing evidence that rising levels of prosperity in Western economies since 1945 have not been matched by greater incidences of reported well-being and happiness. Indeed, material affluence is often accompanied instead by greater social and individual distress. A growing literature within the humanities and social sciences is increasingly concerned to chart not only the underlying trends in recorded levels of happiness, but to consider what factors, if any, contribute to positive and sustainable experiences of well-being and quality of life. Increasingly, such research is focusing on the importance of values and beliefs in human satisfaction or quality of life; but the specific contribution of religion to these trends is relatively under-examined. This unique collection of essays seeks to rectify that omission, by identifying the nature and role of the religious contribution to wellbeing. A unique collection of nineteen leading scholars from the field of economics, psychology, public theology and social policy have been brought together in this volume to explore the religious contribution to the debate about happiness and well-being. These essays explore the religious dimensions to a number of key features of well-being, including marriage, crime and rehabilitation, work, inequality, mental health, environment, participation, institutional theory, business and trade. They engage particularly closely with current trends in economics in identifying alternative models of economic growth which focus on its qualitative as well as quantitative dimensions. This distinctive volume brings to public notice the nature and role of religion's contribution to wellbeing, including new ways of measurement and evaluation. As such, it represents a valuable and unprecedented resource for the development of a broad-based religious contribution to the field. It will be of particular relevance for those who are concerned about the continuing debate about personal and societal well-being, as well as those who are interested in the continuing significance of religion for the future of public policy.Introductory essay: developing an overview as context and future John Atherton Part 1: Political Economy 1. Economic theory and happiness Ian Steedman 2. Happiness, welfare and capabilities Carl-Henric Grenholm 3. Happiness through thrift: The contribution of business to human wellbeing Peter Heslam 4. Happiness, work and Christian theology Peter Sedgwick 5. Happiness .

This project explores the historical context from which four Latin American political theorists emerged in the 19th century and analyzes the extent to which they promoted the liberal ideal of equality in the governments they worked to establish. Mariano Moreno, José de San Martín, Simón Bolívar, and Agustín de Iturbide played central roles in the Latin American independence movement and the establishment of government institutions in the years that followed. I demonstrate that each theorist neglected to include large swaths of society in their discussions of equality while advocating for systems of governance from which they would personally benefit.