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PurposeThe main research purposes of this paper are to: conceptualize Chinese conflict management behaviors as contingent on the hierarchical relations of conflict parties in an organizational context; and investigate individual characteristics as moderators in this contingency framework.Design/methodology/approachThis emic study consisted of two steps: using nine subject matter experts to develop conflict scenarios and conflict management strategies, and using this instrument to collect data from 704 actual employees across China. Multinomial logistic analysis was used to analyze respondents' choice of strategies.FindingsThe findings supported the hypotheses. Chinese role‐playing a supervisor in a conflict with their subordinate tended to use direct, assertive strategies to resolve the conflict, but the results depended on age, education, gender, region and work experience. As a subordinate in a conflict with their supervisor, Chinese chose indirect, harmony‐preserving strategies, particularly when they were older and more interaction adept. In a conflict with a peer, respondents used a broader spectrum of conflict management strategies, depending on their individual characteristics. No "best practices" were found or universal strategies adopted.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitations include the lack of random sampling and a scenario‐based method. The emic evidence for a contingency perspective of conflict resolution framework was provided. The conflict scenarios may be used in organizational training of conflict management.Originality/valueConflict scenarios and management strategies developed by local subject matter experts were used to evaluate Chinese workers' choices of conflict management strategies. The findings call for the re‐conceptualization of conflict management strategies as a contingent and culture‐specific construct.

PurposeThis paper aims to focus on a little studied but important type of conflict, zero‐sum situations. These conflicts are less likely to take place than those in which participants can come to an integrative agreement, but knowing how to best strategize for zero‐sum conflicts can lead to better outcomes in these situations.Design/methodology/approachParticipants in the study utilized two specific strategies – purposive or contingent – in a rock‐paper‐scissors elimination tournament. The use of the strategy and the outcome were measured in a controlled setting.FindingsResults demonstrate that using a strategy in a win‐lose conflict situation significantly predicts success. Further, competitive individuals are more likely to utilize strategies than other personality types.Originality/valueThis paper builds on the theory that individuals in conflict situations have preferences, pursue goals, and behave purposefully. In particular, the paper studies the antecedents to strategies employed in a conflict situation and that strategy's effect on the outcome.

PurposeThe last decades, neighborhood mediation programs have become an increasingly popular method to deal with conflicts between neighbors. In the current paper the aim is to propose and show that conflict asymmetry, the degree to which parties differ in perceptions of the level of conflict, may be important for the course and outcomes of neighborhood mediation.Design/methodology/approachData for testing the hypotheses were based on coding all (261) files of neighbor conflicts reported to a Dutch neighborhood mediation program in the period from 2006 through 2008.FindingsAs expected, cases were more often about asymmetrical than symmetrical conflicts. Moreover, compared to symmetrical conflicts, asymmetrical conflicts less often led to a mediation session; the degree of escalation was lower; and, particularly in asymmetrical conflicts, a mere intake session already contributed to positive conflict outcomes.Originality/valuePast research on the effectiveness of mediation programs mainly focused on cases in which a mediation session effectively took place. However, persuading parties to participate in a mediation session forms a major challenge for mediators. In fact, many cases that are signed‐up for mediation programs do not result in an actual mediation. The current study examines the entire mediation process – from intake to follow‐up.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how the rational and experiential systems according to the cognitive‐experiential self theory (CEST) are related to conflict‐handling styles.Design/methodology/approachUsing a correlational design, data were collected using an on‐line survey system examining CEST information‐processing systems and five conflict‐handling styles. A total of 426 undergraduate students, with paid jobs, complete the on‐line survey.FindingsResults showed that the rational system, experiential system and constructive thinking had significant positive relationships with both the integrating and compromising conflict‐handling styles. Additionally, the rational system had a positive relationship with the dominating conflict‐handling style and the experiential system and constructive thinking had a positive relationship with the obliging conflict‐handling style. The rational system and constructive thinking had a negative relationship with the avoiding conflict‐handling style.Research limitations/implicationsThe study established a positive connection between CEST information‐processing systems and conflict‐handling styles among undergraduate students, however the results of the study may not be as directly comparable with real and established leaders.Originality/valueBeing the first study to examine the connection between the CEST information‐processing systems and the five conflict‐handling styles, the paper offers interesting insights about how the choice of information‐processing systems can influence the choice of conflict‐handling styles across a wide range of situations.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe an example of populism in the Caribbean. Populism is a worldwide phenomenon but little has been published about the development of populist politics in the Caribbean region, where it may find a unique expression.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on an analysis of the popular media, which were monitored from January 2010 until October 2011. The discourse and presentations of politicians were examined and analyzed. The resulting analyses were shared and debated with political observers and other stakeholders. An early draft of this paper was reviewed by a number of peers who added some critical insights1.FindingsPopulism in the Caribbean is an important phenomenon, because the region has all of the conditions that are necessary for it to thrive.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the analysis of populism in small Caribbean islands.

PurposeHIV prevention campaigns have focused on condom distribution and the dissemination of HIV‐related knowledge, with the goal to reduce risky sexual behavior. However, very little empirical work has been done to reveal any possible association between HIV‐related knowledge and risky sexual behavior. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to estimate such associations, using demographic health survey data for India.Design/methodology/approachThe authors estimate multiple binary response models and calculate average partial effects of every treatment (HIV‐related knowledge) on the outcome variable (risky sexual behavior) controlling for socioeconomic characteristics, location of residence, and state specific effects.FindingsUsing data from the third wave of the national demographic survey, it is found that better HIV‐related knowledge does not always promote safer sexual practices. While, better HIV knowledge increases the likelihood of condom use, it also increases the likelihood of pre‐marital sex, and reduces the likelihood of abstinence. These effects are much stronger for males when compared to females. These results also suggest, albeit indirectly, that informational and condom distribution campaigns are not necessarily promoting safer sexual practices in India.Research limitations/implicationsOne possible limitation of this study is the possibility of endogeneity bias due to omitted variables or reverse causality. The authors follow the literature in the use of controls and interpreted results with caution.Originality/valueThe paper is believed to be the first to derive empirical results relating HIV knowledge and risky sexual behaviour, using a population‐based survey for India.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the role of public and private imbalances in the cyclicality of the current account balance in a sample of advanced and developing countries. Within developing countries, the evidence does not establish the dependency of private investment on private savings and private consumption is the main driver of the saving/investment balance. In contrast, private savings seem to be better mobilized to finance private investment and the latter is the main driver of the saving/investment balance in advanced countries. Deterioration in the current account balance in response to higher private consumption could be detrimental to growth and external stability. In contrast, an investment strategy that promotes growth is likely to attract financial flows and reduce the risk of a widening current account deficit on external stability.Design/methodology/approachThe paper studies determinants of the current account deficit. It studies current account fluctuations in the short‐run and explains these fluctuations by analyzing movements in the underlying components: public and private savings as well as investments and resulting imbalances. Of particular interest is the interaction between the government budget deficit, the private saving/investment balance, and the current account balance.FindingsUsing time‐series estimates, co‐movements indicate that fluctuations in the current account balance in many advanced countries appear to be driven by private investment that determines cyclicality in imports. In contrast, cyclicality in the current account appears to be driven by private consumption that determines fluctuations in imports in many developing countries. In general, fluctuations in the government budget deficit are mostly driven by government investment and fluctuations in the private saving/investment balance are mostly driven by fluctuations in private investment. Further, fluctuations in the current account balance appear to be mostly driven by fluctuations in the private saving/investment balance.Originality/valueThe paper explains the dynamics of the current account in relation to developments in public and private imbalances and its underlying components. It shows the effects of changes in the budget deficit and its underlying components on cyclicality in the current account. Similarly, cyclicality in the current account balance with cyclical movements in private savings and investment is studied, along with which factors affect the components of the current account balance. In particular, the paper establishes which components of the current account significantly respond to the cyclical changes in macroeconomic variables.

THE SPANISH HOLOCAUST. INQUISITION AND EXTERMINATION IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY SPAIN, PAUL PRESTON, 2012 London: Harper Press, 700 pp., ISBN 978-0-00-255634-7, (hbk) £30.00
RECONSTRUCTING SPAIN. CULTURAL HERITAGE AND MEMORY AFTER CIVIL WAR, DACIA VIEJO-ROSE (2011) Eastbourne and
Portland: Sussex Academic Press, 272 pp., ISBN 978-1-84519-435-2 (hbk), £65
A COMPANION TO CATALAN CULTURE. ED. DOMINIC KEOWN, COLECCIÓN TÁMESIS (2011) Serie A: Monografías, 293 (Woodbridge: Boydell & Brewer), ISBN-10: 1855662272, ix + 266 pp., £55

This article defends the hypothesis that the regime built during the Spanish Civil War should be included within the historical category of fascism. The concept of fascistization is used to examine the evolution of the radical right wing and its convergence into a Spanish fascism that
culminated in a civil war. This concept answers the main objections commonly held regarding the fascist nature of the regime that began in 1936: namely the minority standing of the Spanish fascist party, the existence of heterogeneous components in the movement that led to the civil war, a
dictatorship that relied upon traditional segments of society to establish hegemony and the irreconcilable relationship between fascism and the essentially catholic nature of the new regime. Here it is shown that such objections can also be launched against other regimes usually considered
fascist and that fascistization was not an alternative to, but rather the implementation of fascism under the conditions defining Spain in the 1930s.

Fascism in Spain? Almost no historian has spoken of fascism in Franco's Spain without denying it altogether, modifying conceptual boundaries or adding terminological parameters (para-, proto-, pseudo-, -ized). Yet, it is just possible that something is not being handled correctly.
In this article, through a critical review of some of the central features in the field of historical interpretation of fascism, comparative analysis is employed to re-examine the current characterization of the Franco regime and to identify it as fascist during the civil war and immediate
post-war period. In examining some of the latest historiographical debates and advances, this article proposes a coherent reading of Spanish fascism. In this sphere historiography does seem to be in agreement: violence and its contexts occupy a central position in the analysis of fascism.
Violence, institutionalization and context are some of the theoretical issues that aim to re-evaluate the position of Franc's Spain within the European family of Fascism.