Suchergebnisse

UNESCO has frequently been criticized for not having devoted enough of its efforts and resources to the social sciences. To some extent, such criticism may appear justified (and not to social scientists alone), and it provides little comfort to know that UNESCO is, in this respect, by no means unique, but reflects orthodox patterns and attitudes in relation to the social sciences. However, its work In this field is hampered ab initio by two serious obstacles which do not prevail to the same degree in other scientific disciplines. In the first place, there is the lack of international associations of social scientists. UNESCO is not a university or research center which aims primarily at the advancement of the frontiers of human knowledge, but is, rather, a clearing house whose main purpose is to make available already existing knowledge for socially and internationally useful purposes. UNESCO can, and does, perform a significant function by planning projects which cannot be carried out by a single country, but depend on the working together of scientists from many parts of the world; such projects, desirable as they may be, cannot be easily realized in those areas of learning, however, in which, as in the social sciences, no—or no effective—international professional organizations exist. Much of the actual research and writing in an internationally planned enterprise has to be "farmed out" to individual institutions and persons in various countries, and the absence of representative international social science associations has constituted a serious obstacle to the implementation of UNESCO programs.

Money in essential for electoral politics yet its use and abuse often raises problems of graft, corruption, and cronyism. To throw new light on these challenges, this book addresses three questions: what types of public policies are commonly used around the world to regulate the role of money in politics? What triggers landmark reforms in political finance? And, 'what works,' what fails, and why - when countries reform regulations? Checkbook Elections? compares a diverse range of affluent societies and long-established democracies such as Sweden, Britain and the United States, as well as emerging economies such as Russia, South Africa, India, and Brazil.

This monograph presents a well-informed overview and analysis of political transitions, democratic struggles and elections in West Africa. It explores the ways in which various authoritarian regimes across the sub-region have tried to subvert democracy and how the citizens of various countries have struggled against dictatorship and impunity, to achieve the return to democratic rule. Drawing on insights from the Ghanaian model of free and fair elections, Niger's difficult, but successful transtion to democracy, elections in post-conflict Sierra Leone and Liberia, and the struggles for democracy in Nigeria, Jibrin Ibrahim proposes concrete strategies that will empower the people of West Africa to make political choices which will advance and secure their individual and collective socio-economic and democratic rights.

First published in 1998, this is the second of two volumes which will be of great value to scholars and students of politics in East and Southeast Asia. A rich, readable reference tool, they offer extensive surveys of the history, structure, culture, legal context, and financing, as well as the progress, travails, and prospects, of political parties and electoral systems in 13 countries. The excellent introduction and the detailed country case studies demonstrate the wide range of political experiences in Asia. Rather than affirm the thesis of a common set of "Asian values" hostile to democracy, they show that in much of East and Southeast Asia, people want the political choice and accountability that come from free and fair electoral competition with open, effective political parties.

ABSTRACTHow international in scope is publishing in political science? Previous studies have shown that the top journals primarily publish work by scholars from the United States and, to a lesser extent, other global-north countries. However, these studies used published content and could not evaluate the impact of the review process on the relative absence of international scholars in journals. This article evaluates patterns of submission and publication by US and international scholars for the American Political Science Review—one of the most selective peer-reviewed journals in the discipline. We found that scholars from the United States and other global-north countries are published approximately in proportion to submissions but that global-south scholars fare less well. We also found that scholars affiliated with prestigious universities are overrepresented, irrespective of geographic location. The article concludes with observations about the implications of these findings for efforts to internationalize the discipline.

Here's a preview of some of the articles that will be published in
the October issue of PS: Political Science and
Politics.