Suchergebnisse

Australian and international discussions of the broad mission of social work, of its underlying premise that the personal is political, that it is responsive and able to take a leadership role from a clear value base, are sophisticated debates that demonstrate the vitality, dynamism, and enthusiasm of a profession cognizant of changes and challenges occurring outside it. However such developments and considerations are possibly most meaningful for those social workers who are either very clear about what social work is or who are not daily confronted with challenges to explain or account for their profession in performance‐driven agency contexts. This article proposes a simple definition of social work which, while cognizant of the theoretical developments occurring both in and outside the profession, presents the profession in a way that clearly articulates what it is that social workers do.

The trafficking of women and girls for the purpose of sexual exploitation has reportedly been booming in Europe since the 1990s. Governments, international organizations, and private actors have addressed the causes and consequences of sex trafficking in various ways. This article shows that the concept of security governance helps to understand efforts against human trafficking and their shortcomings. The anti-trafficking security governance system consists of five approaches: legal measures, prosecution, protection, prevention in countries of origin, and prevention in countries of destination. Although progress has been made, the security governance system is marked by several pathologies, especially a lack of programs that prevent trafficking in countries of origin and destination, insufficient protection for trafficked persons, and deficient networks bringing together the various actors involved in anti-trafficking. To make governance against human trafficking more effective, efficient, and just, the security governance system must be better balanced and networked.

The contemporary writer and critic Maurice G. Dantec is among those French intellectuals accused of forming part of a `new reactionary' movement. This article sets out Dantec's political position based on a close reading of Laboratoire de catastrophe générale (2001) and focusing in particular on his militaristic view of international relations, his condemnation of the European socialist left and his `evolutionist' account of the history of ideas. The sources of Dantec's thought are located, principally, in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche and in a radical Christianity. It is finally argued, from a Nietzschean perspective, that Dantec's `post-human' somatic and dietary regime tends to give his writing a hyperbolic tone and an ironically self-centred focus, even as his implacable morality bears comparison to other thinkers situated broadly on the left, for instance the Christian-structured ethics of Alain Badiou.

The global development of human embryonic stem cell (HESC) science and its therapeutic applications are dependent on the nature of its engagement at national and international levels with key cultural values and beliefs concerning the moral status of the early human embryo. This article argues that the political need to reconcile the promise of new health technologies with the cultural costs of scientific advance, dependent in this case on the use of the human embryo, has been met by the evolution of bioethics as a political community, transnational network, and bureaucratic device. Bioethics has become the political means for the creation of a global moral economy where the trading and exchange of values is normalized and legitimated. As a result of such trading, value compromises are produced capable of legitimizing the regulatory policies necessary for maintaining public trust in the new science.

Ethics education that prepares students to address ethical challenges at work is a multifaceted and long-term endeavor. In this article, the authors propose an inductive ethics pedagogy that begins the process of ethics education by grounding students in their own individual ethical principles. The approach centers on developing students' ethical self-knowledge in three ways: using an inductive method to aid students in learning ethics from a foundation of their own beliefs, distinguishing ethics from related concepts, and examining ethical conduct at four different levels of analysis—individual, group, organizational, and international perspectives. The authors define ethics and provide a model, new to the literature, that distinguishes ethics from related concepts, such as law, morality, or values. They include a discussion of ethical and cultural relativism and ethical absolutism relevant to the global context. This article is intended for the ethics educator in undergraduate and graduate business courses.

This article explores the relationship between economic reforms and democracy in Latin America between 1970 and 1995. Existing theories suggest divergent effects across time horizons. The implementation of reforms— economic liberalization—may initially destabilize democracy due to popular backlash or overzealous reformers' usurpation of democratic institutions. However, the potential outcome of reforms—greater economic liberalism— may later foster or reinforce democracy by dispersing economic assets, making rulers more susceptible to international constraints, or demobilizing social groups that may otherwise make politically destabilizing redistributive demands. Time-series cross-section analyses using an error correction model provide evidence of this J-curve relationship. Although countries engaging in economic reforms may experience a temporary deterioration of democracy, they tend to become more democratic in the long run. Findings are robust to numerous control variables, country and time fixed effects, and specifications using either Polity IV or Freedom House democracy indicators.

Women's political participation and representation vary dramatically within and between countries. We selectively review the literature on gender in politics, focusing on women's formal political participation. We discuss both traditional explanations for women's political participation and representation, such as the supply of women and the demand for women, and newer explanations such as the role of international actors and gender quotas. We also ask whether women are distinctive—does having more women in office make a difference to public policy? Throughout the review we demonstrate that a full understanding of women's political representation requires both deep knowledge of individual cases such as the United States and broad knowledge comparing women's participation across countries. We end with four recommended directions for future research: (a) globalizing theory and research, (b) expanding data collection, (c) remembering alternative forms of women's agency, and (d) addressing intersectionality.

The World Bank, United Nations and UK Department for International Development (DfID) have spearheaded a recent global drive to regularize artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM), and provide assistance to its predominantly impoverished participants. To date, millions of dollars have been pledged toward the design of industry-specific policies and regulations; implementation of mechanized equipment; extension; and the launch of alternative livelihood (AL) programmes aimed at diversifying local economies. Much of this funding, however, has failed to facilitate marked improvements, and in many cases, has exacerbated problems. This paper argues that a poor understanding of artisanal, mine-community dynamics and operators' needs has, in a number of cases, led to the design and implementation of inappropriate industry support schemes and interventions. The discussion focuses upon experiences from sub-Saharan Africa, where ASM is in the most rudimentary of states.

Résumé Au plan international, la décentralisation fait désormais partie intégrante des recettes de bonne gouvernance promues par les institutions comme la Banque mondiale et les Nations unies. Cet intérêt est fondé sur l'idée que la décentralisation favorisera la démocratie participative, introduira un système de prestation de services plus adapté aux besoins, fera progresser les droits des citoyens et favorisera l'égalité des sexes, profitant donc aux femmes. Toutefois, l'expérience commence à montrer ses limites. La transformation sociale ne suit pas forcément le processus de décentralisation et l'autonomie accrue dont jouit l'administration locale peut même conduire à certaines régressions. Dans le cadre du débat sur l'impact de la décentralisation pour les femmes, nous soulevons ici la question de savoir si les processus de planification décentralisés, en Afrique, ont réellement permis d'augmenter la participation des femmes à la gouvernance municipale, et s'ils sont susceptibles de modifier les relations entre les genres.

This article draws on the experience of conducting fieldwork in Russia, as part of an international comparative examination of health and safety regulatory enforcement in the shipping industry. We discuss the difficulties faced by fieldworkers in ensuring personal safety and maintaining rapport with research respondents in conditions characterized by danger and crisis; a situation made worse by the murder of one of our key gatekeepers. We develop a provisional conceptual framework which draws distinctions between the `frontier'-like nature of settings associated with some research areas, the challenges posed by researching institutions faced by various kinds of crisis, and the sensitivity of the specific research topic in question. We argue that a combination of these dimensions produce particular social spaces, which we term `risksaturated', which are especially corrosive of relations with respondents, and which may pose very real physical threats to field workers.

In order to remain relevant in the 21st century, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) policy statements contend that the profession must address international human rights abuses. Violations stemming from religion are specifically mentioned by NASW as an issue requiring the attention of social workers. Little, if any, material has appeared in the literature on this topic, however, even though the United Nations (UN) has expressed deep concern over the overall global rise in violations of religious freedom rights. To address this gap, the present study reviews internationally sanctioned religious freedom rights along with the increasing violation of those rights. Persecuted people of faith represent some of the most vulnerable, marginalized people in the world. Members of essentially every faith group experience persecution, although Christians are the most victimized globally. Suggestions for advocacy are discussed along with clinical and educational implications.

La guerre au Liban a choqué en Turquie. Fait rare dans ce pays, des manifestations se sont succédées tout au long du mois de guerre, mais en changeant progressivement de nature: les organisations d'extrême gauche et de gauche prenant progressivement le relais de l'islamisme radical, l'argumentation humaniste succédant à celle de la solidarité musulmane, sur fond d'antiaméricanisme virulent et d'antisémitisme. Malgré cette contestation, le gouvernement « islamo-conservateur» de R. T. Erdogan va maintenir une position de critique constructive, alliant condamnation de l'action israélienne et diplomatie souple ouverte au dialogue. Cette politique trouve son aboutissement dans la participation à la FINUL renforcée, qui suscite en Turquie une forte opposition. La gestion de la crise libanaise par la Turquie paraît significative des rapports de force internes notamment entre le pouvoir civil et les militaires, comme d'une approche plus kantienne des relations internationales.

Based on survey data collected from October 2003 to January 2004, this article provides the first systematic empirical analysis of how civic associations in urban China have responded to the internet. It shows, first, that urban grassroots organizations are equipped with a minimal level of internet capacity. Secondly, for these organizations, the internet is most useful for publicity work, information dessemination, and networking with peer and international organizations. Thirdly, social change organizations, younger organizations and organizations in Beijing report more use of the internet than business associations, older organizations and organizations outside Beijing. Finally, organizations with bare-bone internet capacity report more active use of the internet than better-equipped organizations. These findings suggest that the internet has had special appeal to relatively new organizations oriented to social change and that a "web" of civic associations has emerged in China.

The study describes environmental and personal factors that, from the student perspective, impede participation in education in secondary upper schools by students with postlingual deafblindness. The discussion is framed by the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health. The researchers use the theory of social recognition as a theoretical tool in understanding the dynamics between personal factors and environment in the context of secondary upper-school education. Thirty-four students with deafblindness responded to a questionnaire; the survey's findings indicate experiences of barriers in the natural and social environments that restrict participation. Experience of considerateness—such as concern for the special requirements of students with deafblindness—and experience of the lack of considerateness are the most important factors. Negative roles adapted by some students for themselves may be interpreted as resulting from a lack of recognition, in the form of denigration or insults.

This paper addresses the issue of the globalization of food production and consumption in the last half-century through the medium of fats and oils, or lipids. The dual traits of being essential for human life and signifying a diverse range of regional styles of consumption make lipids an ideal bulk commodity to study international differences in food. FAOSTAT food balance sheet data on fats and oils from 1961 and 2003 are interrogated using correspondence analysis, which provides a means of displaying the principal trends in large tables of data. The analyses reveal evidence for a global convergence in lipid availability from 1961 to 2003 (from animal fats to vegetable oils), in addition to a trends towards an increased disparity which at the extremes is between the wealthiest, as importers of diversity, and least affluent regions, as the most resistant areas to homogenizing trends.