Suchergebnisse

Thirteen states in the United States have adopted state growth management legislation that aims to preserve environmentally sensitive areas, improve the quality of urban areas, and reduce urban sprawl. Although there is a considerable amount of literature describing such policies, there is very little that examines the effectiveness of such policies. The author researched the efficacy of state growth management laws in controlling urban sprawl by examining the change in urban densities in 49 states over a 15-year period. He found that growth-managed states generally experienced a lesser density decline than states without growth management. However, regression analysis revealed that state growth management programs did not have a statistically significant effect in checking sprawl. The author concludes with several suggestions for modifying state regulations to curb sprawl more effectively.

This paper focuses on the relationship between the conceptual and methodological problems in the study of social and ethnic identity. The author argues that the theoretical and conceptual deficiencies in defining and understanding the notions of "identity" and "ethnic identity" are reflected in the quality and type of research strategies used to asses empirical claims to ethnic identity. The first part of the paper critically reviews and analyses the use of the concepts "identity" and "ethnic identity" in social science and the humanities. The author focuses in particular on the conceptual history and geography of "identity" stressing its cultural and historical exclusivity. The second part of the paper assesses how these conceptual, historical and cultural problems affect methodological and research strategies in the study of ethnic identity.

Family practitioners who provide divorce education programs should be aware that a child in a sole-custody household (especially one headed by the father) is highly likely to lack insurance coverage for access to health care services for healthy development. Examining 543 divorce records in New Hampshire, the author analyzed coverage across divergent family types following custody negotiations and found that a child in a sole-custody household was at higher risk for lacking coverage than was one in a shared-custody household. These results were confirmed by a chi-square test and logical regression statistical analysis. In a multivariate analysis, the author found that teenagers, children whose parents earned high incomes, and those with working mothers were likely to be covered, although the likelihood was lower in the case of daughters.

SummaryThe aim of the European Court of Human Rights is to bring about a situation in which individuals are able to get effective guarantees of their rights within their national legal systems. With this in mind, the author reviews some of the recent developments in cases before the court relating to evolutionary interpretation of the provisions of the convention, the role of the separation of powers in ensuring the protection of freedoms under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and the notion of human dignity within the convention framework. The author also considers the growing case load before the court and the need for reform and concludes by pointing out that the European system is the most effective international system yet for securing human rights protection.

The author analyzes the position of journalists at the time of elections. It turns out that they are subject to pressures by politicians, who try to use the media for their promotion. Electoral reporting is extremely & precisely regulated; it would be hard to find some other field of journalism with such clearly elaborated recommendations & rules. Nevertheless, journalists are exposed to various methods of manipulation & pressures. Legal provisions are necessary, but it is also vital to understand the laws of the journalistic profession & the media. Also important is advertising or hidden advertising. The author concludes that reporting about elections could be professionalized primarily by decreasing the influence of political parties on the media, strengthening the institutions of civil society, & permanently educating journalists. 15 References. Adapted from the source document.

In a reply to Vujevic's response to his earlier review of the latter's FTRPoliticka i medijska kultura u HrvatskojR ([Political and Media Culture in Croatia] 3PLMS 2003 1), the author points out the polemical nature of invoking fascism, communism, etc, to make rhetorical points; also notes that Vujevic fails to grasp his own nuanced thought, & that he also fails to distinguish between tolerance as a virtue of the civil society & tolerating in the sense of tacitly accepting the odious. The author takes issue with Vujevic's definition of tolerance as embracing difference rather than supporting it, & also asserts his claim that Vujevic does not analyze his own data correctly, claiming that a 38% sector of the population in favor of legally protecting political parties of various ideological stripes is a majority. 1 Table. A. Siegel

The author argues that sustainability of a global environment depends on implementation of current knowledge & capacities to manage the transition to a sustainable future. A historical account of a paradigm shift away from Baconian attitudes about nature is evidenced by international environmental conferences, but evidence shows that human's increased capacity to manage the environment has not been matched by the will to do so. The author argues that governance is our greatest challenge to manage issues such as water & food security, & that all expert sources need to adopt systemic, integrated & multi-disciplinary approaches for the transition to sustainability. Suggestions are offered for a system of governance advocating greater involvement of civil society, & the role of the UN in global commons issues. References. J. Harwell

The author argues for the importance of humor both as a part of the human condition & as particularly important to the modern condition. Humor is often seen as a low form of intellect, & the author does not deny that this may be true. But he argues that this "lowness" is not the same thing as unimportance. Indeed, he believes that it is the task of late modernity, of post-historical humanity, to focus on humor. Other eras have contributed great ideas & lofty ideals to society & to the history of humanity. They have left our age to fill in the lower intellectual strata, including those layers dedicated to humor. It would be a violation of our place in history to fail to do so. D. Knaff

Paper prepared for presentation at the national conference of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Canada, August 2003. ; This paper was presented at the national conference of the American Psychological Association in Toronto, Canada, August 2003. The author examines three different perspectives on the military's treatment of gays during the 1990s. One perspective comes from disinterested observers in another place and time. For the purpose of alliteration, these observers are termed spacemen. A second perspective comes from the author, who works in the community of scholars, and feels the pressing need to tell a story from years past. The third perspective—and the main focus of the paper—comes from Navy officers, or sailors, who participated in three surveys that span the history of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy on gays.

The author discusses the PAN's evolution from 1994 to 2000, analyzing the party's most important transformations during that period: its electoral victories & defeats, changes in its organizational structure, & changes -- including ideological changes -- that contributed to its institutional consolidation. These changes helped it overcome the disruptive potential of Fox's candidacy, which was imposed on the party without significant costs to its internal stability. The author also discusses a crucial aspect regarding the question of how predictable was the party's victory in the 2000 presidential election, & analyzes not only the influences that affected the party's development & its degree of institutional maturity but the weight of each of these factors regarding the PAN-Fox binomial during the last six-year administration under the PRI's hegemony. Adapted from the source document.

Discusses the gradual emergence of a movement from below demanding political change since the shift to an authoritarian market economy in the 1980s; some focus on the debate over the relevance of civil society to China.

The author argues that the People's Republic of China, considering its geopolitical situation, its extensive control over the water resources of south & southeast Asia, & relatively high intelligence & educability of its population, will emerge as the dominant world power by the middle of the 2lst century. An important dimension of its international influence will derive from the fact that as a nation with a population estimated to approach possibly 1.8 billion, its highly educable & hardworking people will be able to out-produce the rest of the world at salaries unacceptable to the West. The author suggests that its power will create a new Asian hegemonic association of states, possibly including even Korea & Japan. Only internal instability can prevent it from attaining world dominance by the late 21st century. Adapted from the source document.

The article reviews pragmatic, conservative, radical, idealistic, neutral, critical, and vulgar-managerial worldview approaches to the interpretation of public relations' social role in a society wide-familiar within the theory and practice of Western countries. Sharing the American scholar James Grunig's and his colleagues' point of view on the normative theory of ethical PR, the author shows that only in case of the practical application of symmetrical (ideal) model of communication between organizations and publics, the social institute of public relations may overcome an utilitarian approach to ethics and become more effective and socially responsible. The author comes to the conclusion that application of such a symmetrical model of public relations in Ukraine will promote the democratic development and creation of a civil society in this country.

The author used a random sample of 57 cities with populations between 25,000 and 1,000,000 to predict the impact of the form of government on voter turnout in city elections, controlling for socioeconomic variables and the timing of elections. Results show that voter turnout is dependent on the form of government. Political cities have the highest voter turnout, while administrative cities have the lowest voter turnout. By comparing structural differences between cities with different forms of government, the author determined that the direct election of the mayor, the expansion of mayoral executive authority, the separation of political power between the mayor and council, and/or the full-time status of the mayor and council are likely contributors to higher voter turnout in city elections.