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A study of the role of influentials (INF's) in 4 Swedish communities - the industrial communities of Vasteras & Kolsva, the city of Malmo, & the Ru community of Bralanda - to discover to what extent the 2-step hypothesis of COMM is applicable in Sweden, & to examine the soc characteristics of Swedish opinion leaders. The communities, & the nature of the INF's therein, are described & the results of 112 personal interviews with INF's are presented. The general hypothesis is upheld, though 'INF' has been used in this case to designate a group which influence; PO in communities, whereas in many US studies it refers to a group which influences policy decisions. 'One feature which seems to distinguish Swedish communities from US communities is the prominent role played by leaders of the labor org's in the power & influence groups.' This reflects a basic diff between Swedish & US pol'al life. I. Taviss.

This study aims to investigate the Thai PM Gen Prayuth Chan-o-cha's use of stance expressions to construe trust, comprising attitudinal stance, epistemic stance and modality, in his weekly addresses broadcast on national television from March to December, 2017. The linguistic investigation incorporating Critical Discourse Analysis and trust frameworks shows that the three main aspects of trust are pursued. Integrity is however predominantly constructed through the use of a modal verb kʰᴐ̌ː 'would like' and an attitudinal verb jà:k 'want'. Interestingly, a relatively small number of stance markers are found to project competency and benevolence. The results have led to the conclusion that the PM's trust-building strategies mainly involve the construal of integrity by asserting his moral values linked with national reform, reconciliation, and advancement. These characteristics of linguistic hegemony via the construction of trust-building are expected to raise more sociopolitical awareness in the Thai political context.

This study presents a multidisciplinary framework for the analysis of evidential meaning in the Greek political discourse during the period of the current European debt crisis, and moving beyond a mere content analysis it sheds light on how political elites position themselves towards the knowledge they communicate, taking also into consideration the several ideological and political aims related with the legitimization of austerity. Our main point is that the construction of evidential meaning is a form of a social act, therefore an approach is developed that enhances the discursive approaches to the Epistemic Stance with a detailed theory of context. Emphasizing the context sensitivity of the expression of evidential meaning, we spell out the various Epistemic Stance types adopted by the political actors across several institutional genres, as well as their legitimizing function, since they enhance the speakers' evidential standing and authority during the struggle for exercising epistemic control over the audience.

In recent years, the role of non-state political groups, particularly in the Middle East has become more prominent. Islamic Republic of Iran has to have a policy toward such groups. One of these groups is Yemen's Ansar Allah who, after the outbreak of protests in the country since 2011, has had a high and effective role in the political arena of Yemen. In this study, based on Constructivist theory of international relations, we attempted to answer this fundamental question that "what is the strategy of Islamic Republic of Iran toward Yemen's Ansar Allah?" Islamic Republic of Iran with regard to the definition of their identity and perceptions of the structure of the international system and the behavior of important regional and international actors as well as their opinions about Ansar Allah Movement as a Shiite, popular, anti-Israel, anti-American, and anti- Saudi group aligned with the values and principles of Islamic Republic System, has taken a supportive stance. Iran's support for Yemen's Ansar Allah is political, diplomatic, media and if possible, material supports (e.g. sending foods and medicine).

Attempts to recover the views and opinions of the English people during the early modern period--limited on this occasion to the years 1660-85--on the major political and religious events of their own times. (JLN)

Provides information on 61 public opinion polls conducted in Belgium during 1991, including general survey topics, keywords, survey dates, & publication data for published material. Polls are categorized by subject, eg, foreign policy, social policy, economic policy, financial policy, domestic policy (including electoral behavior surveys). A. Levine