Suchergebnisse

It has become something of an orthodoxy of contemporary sociology that modern democratic industrial societies are essentially alike, and that they are confronted by uniform challenges, whether industrial (strikes and demonstrations), social (the 'crisis of the welfare state'), or political. In this important collection of studies Professor Birnbaum asserts, however, that the very existence of differentiation, challenge such a hypothesis. Linking historical and sociological investigation, Birnbaum argues that it is only through divergent state-formation that regional and national state variations in, for example, industrial conflict, policing or ideological configuration can be explained. His analysis of the influence of each type of state upon the development of various collective action and mobilisation processes establishes the crucial importance of the state as a quasi-independent variable

International audience ; Left Realism, as it emerged in the mid 1980s in the UK was a policy-oriented intervention focusing on the reality of crime for the working class victim and the need to elaborate a socialist alternative to conservative emphases on 'law and order'. It saw the renewal of high crime, deprived communities as involving democratic police accountability to those communities. During the subsequent period developments have moved very much against the orientations of Left Realism. This paper compares two different contexts of renewal--the deprived urban community in the UK and the war-torn 'failed state' in Bosnia--and identifies certain common policy orientations which are then criticised from a Left Realist perspective.

AbstractWhat are the effects of electoral competition on the disbursement of state subsidies in industrialized democracies? I argue that the scope of subsidies, which ranges from economy‐wide to regional and industry‐specific subsidies, is determined by the extent of political (electoral) monopoly conditioned by economic threats from foreign competition. The mechanism through which electoral competition is linked to subsidies is the policy network. I assess this argument by examining thirteen Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in the period 1990–1993. The findings offer amendments to models of policy networks and speak to the importance of domestic institutions on factor mobility and trade policy.

In fiscal year 1981-82, state and local government spending actually exceeded federal nondefense spending. However, past research in public finance has focused on federal spending and policies and paid little attention to the economic problems of state and local governments. Studies in State and Local Public Finance goes far in correcting this omission. Developed from a National Bureau of Economic Research conference on state and local financing, the volume includes papers summarizing and extending recent research as well as commentaries. Covering a wide range of topics, the papers share an empirical orientation and a concern with policy issues. The first two papers look at the role of tax-exempt bonds in local public finance. Their findings suggest that tax policies significantly affect municipal borrowing practices and that financial advantage can be achieved under certain of these practices. Other papers address specific issues related to state and local tax policy: the impact of local taxes on location decisions; efficient road-use charges for trucks; and the relation of income and general sales tax systems over time. Examining issues related to United States federalism, the last paper focuses on the impact of federal grant aid to states. The research and findings these papers report make an important contribution to the study of local public finance and should be of particular interest to policymakers and those involved in private and public financing at the local, state, or federal level

This brief paper attempts to summarise the main lessons learnt in the process of establishing open learning and distance education systems in Africa. It focuses on what has or has not worked well, and proposes some measures that governments, institutions, organisations and individuals should take if Africa is to keep pace with the rest of the world in applying new and enhanced strategies for human resource development. // The paper is aimed at stimulating group discussion and action on what remains to be done. In particular, the roles of governments and professional associations are emphasised. It is expected that the members of the groups will, individually and collectively, identify the common issues and challenges facing education practitioners in Africa, and thus develop appropriate strategies and policies for open learning and distance education at the national, regional and international levels.

The long-established relationships between Argentina and the Arab world are the result of the significant presence of Arab communities and actors in Latin America, due to several migratory waves along history. However, bilateral relations with the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have only deepened much more recently. Initiatives to widen relations such as the Summits of the South American-Arab Countries (ASPA, from its acronym in Spanish) and MERCOSUR-GCC have worked not only as a framework but also as a platform to diversify those relations in terms of the actors and initiatives involved. Since its beginning, the relationship between Argentina and the GCC states has had continuity in terms of trade exchanges and public diplomacy, even during periods defined by the absence of public policies towards the GCC countries. In this context, initiatives of a different nature conducted by sociocultural or religious non-state actors have filled the gap, in a process of multiple exchanges, have added value to the relation and have gone further than the economic realm and formalities of public diplomacy, especially in the period 2003-2015. ; Fil: Lechini, Gladys Teresita. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y Relaciones Internacionales. Escuela de Relaciones Internacionales; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina

AbstractThe author questins the dogma of state administrative reorganization through concentration of power adn integration offunctions under the governor

In 1980, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Military Services, in cooperation with the Department of Labor, sponsored a large-scale research project to assess the vocational aptitudes of American youth. A national probability sample of approximately 12,000 young men and women, selected from participants in the National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) of Youth Labor Force Behavior, was given the military's enlistment and job placement test, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). This research endeavor, known as the "Profile of American Youth," marked the first time a military qualification test, or any vocational aptitude test, had been given to a nationally representative sample. The Profile Study thus offered a rare opportunity to evaluate the cross-sectional character of military enlistees based on a national measure of vocational test performance. Screening for Service describes the results of a research effort that evolved from the Profile Study. Since the Profile Study sample was nationally representative, and it incorporated the scores of contemporary youth on a version of the ASVAB parallel to that currently used to screen military applicants, it was possible to estimate the numbers and proportions of American youth expected to qualify for military enlistment under existing standards. The military "participation rates" of American youth could also be calculated using enlistment eligibility rates of the general population in combination with information on enlistment behavior. ; Research was supported by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Installations, and Logistics), under agreement with the Navy Personnel Research and Development Center and the Naval Postgraduate School. ; Approved for public release, distribution unlimited

The Labour Movement in Britain has long had a commitment to the education of its membership. It is, however, relatively recently that education and training, specifically in areas of industrial relations, has become generally available to the lay officials of unions. The considerable growth in educational provision for workplace representatives has undoubtedly been one of the most significant developments to emerge in British industrial relations during the last ten years. But such a growth has not developed purely out of the interests of trade unions, nor has it just been a response to a need for educational provision and resources to meet the rapid increases in numbers of shop stewards, which began to occur from the middle of the 1960's.