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The author analyzes Adam Smith's principle book, The Wealth of Nations (1776), which is the cornerstone of the doctrine of liberal economy. In a way, this book represented the declaration of independence for economists. The author points out the topicality of certain parts of Smith's book. Adapted from the source document.

The theory of public choice is a major link between political science & economic science. It includes economic research into the issue of non-market decision making, ie, the application of economic analysis to political decision making. The champions of the theory of public choice have the most confidence in the market & market institutions. They try to explain political decision making by means of the standards operating in the market. The public choice theory approach is based on the concept of methodological individualism & homo oeconomicus, since individuals try to promote their own interests both in the market & in politics. Theoreticians of public choice investigate voters' behavior, the roles of politicians, political parties, & interest groups in complex democratic societies. Central for their research is the political process in which voters behave as buyers, & politicians as entrepreneurs, while bureaucrats are prone to self-aggrandizement; their ambition is to boost the significance of their office. The theory of public choice emphasizes the category of exchange (political exchange) & the catalectic approach to economy. 12 References. Adapted from the source document.

The significance of positive political theory is recognized in the text, placing special emphasis on the theories of public choice & voting. The main reasons for the study of political, particularly electoral, processes from the viewpoint of positive theory are enumerated. The author further questions certain fundamental postulates of normative theories of democracy & their lack of viability. He goes on to analyze the phenomenon of the so-called electoral or voting paradoxes & their possible influence on electoral results &, ultimately, on democratic norms themselves. The existence of voting paradoxes & their theoretical rationale is considered unequivocal & is mathematically proved. The author also reviews the most significant works on voting paradoxes & the theory of public choice. 3 Figures, 31 References. Adapted from the source document.

The adoption and continued use of innovations by societies, organisations and individuals has been a subject of research since before the 1930s. A variety of different theories have been developed to account for the different speeds at which innovations are adopted and the factors that affect the adoption process. This paper reviews theories of the adoption of innovations with particular reference to the recent phenomenon of the e-book as a cultural innovation that is having an impact on individuals, organizations and national policy makers. The paper will suggest which theories are most appropriate for the different levels at which the innovation is employed. ; Usvajanje i kontinuirana upotreba inovacija od strane društva, organizacija i pojedinaca predmetom je istraživanja još od 1930-ih. Niz različitih teorija oblikovano je kako bi odgovorilo na različitu brzinu kojom se inovacije usvajaju i čimbenike koji utječu na taj proces. Ovaj rad razmatra teorije usvajanja inovacija s posebnim osvrtom na fenomen e-knjige kao kulturalnu inovaciju koja utječe na pojedince, organizacije te one koji stvaraju nacionalne politike. U radu će se predložiti teorije koje su najprikladnije za različite razine usvajanja inovacije.

The author's starting point in this article is a presupposition that the laissez faire tradition in economy and politics is legitimate. Still, the globalization processes point out the weaknesses of that presupposition. The author shows that the politicians (and theorists) of the most powerful countries have joined the antiglobalization camp. They no longer hold to the spirit of unity and humanity, and they spread capitalism with unpopular means: political and military might. In that sense the author points out to evidence that leads to a conclusion that the chances for a liberal political and economic philosophy are very weak. In fact, it is only an ideal. That is the sad result of the globalization process to date after the promise of Fukuyama's 'End of History'. Still, the author believes that not everything is lost. Adapted from the source document.

The author's starting point in this article is a presupposition that the laissez faire tradition in economy and politics is legitimate. Still, the globalization processes point out the weaknesses of that presupposition. The author shows that the politicians (and theorists) of the most powerful countries have joined the antiglobalization camp. They no longer hold to the spirit of unity and humanity, and they spread capitalism with unpopular means: political and military might. In that sense the author points out to evidence that leads to a conclusion that the chances for a liberal political and economic philosophy are very weak. In fact, it is only an ideal. That is the sad result of the globalization process to date after the promise of Fukuyama's 'End of History'. Still, the author believes that not everything is lost. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into Buchanan's contribution to the contemporary political economy. His starting point is that Buchanan's concept of economy as exchange links political science & economics, showing that this is feasible, since Buchanan has rejected the theory of allocation, a standard in economics, & promoted the market theory based on exchange. The theory of allocation is dubious for Buchanan since it reduces the subject of economics to a set of problems & not to a characteristic form of human activity. That is why he uses the concept of the symbiotic, meaning the attitude based on the study of links among various actors that are beneficial for all. Buchanan's basic concept evolved & was shaped in the 1980s in the form of the constitutional political economy, which is an attempt to explain the possibilities of different legal-constitutional rules that determine the basic framework for selecting economic & political actors. The author claims that for political science, particularly important is the fact that Buchanan defines this type of political economy as a redux of the political in economics. In this way, on the one hand, it became questionable in economics as a discipline, & on the other, more acceptable for political science. However, the fact that Buchanan's work transcends the rigid boundaries of social disciplines does not mean that he unreservedly paves the way for political science. On the contrary, Buchanan is pursuing such a fundamental revision of the rigid boundaries among disciplines in social sciences that it may challenge the present status of political science. 31 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author gives an account of the evolution of the theories of institutional design or constitutional engineering in political science in the last twenty years. This is a special branch of political science that looks into how political institutions may serve as the means of conflict management in divided societies & whether they may be constructed in such a way as to contribute to the conflict resolution, democratization & the democratic stability of societies in general. Their rise was theoretically enabled by new institutionalism & historically by the third wave of democratization of autocratic political regimes since the 1970s & particularly since the 1990s. Using several seminal works to illustrate her point, the author shows how the theories of institutional design overlap with the theories of democratic transformation, consociational democracy, liberal democracy, & others. 42 References. Adapted from the source document.

In the last two decades, turnout research has disintegrated into a plethora of studies which focus on partial aspects of turnout. The overall idea of why people vote has been lost. Despite extensive research on turnout, we know relatively little about why people vote. The aim of this text is to present and critically discuss basic theories that explain voter turnout at the individual level. Overall, six theories are presented: the theory of socio-economic status and resources, the theory of civic orientations, the theory of mobilization and involvement in society, the theory of rational choice, the theory of valence politics, and the theory of habitual voting. These theories are discussed mainly from three aspects: (1) the causal mechanisms explaining why people vote; (2) the extent to which each theory links the decision to participate in an election with the decision about which party or candidate to vote for, as well as the sequence of these decisions; and (3) the timing of voters' decisions to participate in an election. The author argues that because of the heterogeneity of voters and the nature of the decision whether or not to vote, it is necessary to understand individual theories not as competitive, but rather as complementary. Adapted from the source document.

The author discusses some recent changes in the theoretical literature on globalization. He claims that the irreversibility of the globalization process is no longer taken for granted as in the enthusiastic literature on the subject during the 1990's. The globalization is no longer regarded as an untouchable structure, and for over a decade now, we are witnessing an overall questioning of the globalization process itself. Therefore, the author pays special attention to the theoretical works of Justin Rosenberg who claims that the age of globalization is over. For Rosenberg, the globalization was only an ideological construction supported by the so called globalization theory which has failed in all its aspects: as a general social theory, as a historical and sociological argument and as a basis for interpretation of actual events. As opposed to Rosebenrg, the author claims that globalization should be regarded as a 'metapolitical' concept with its semantic and political functions. Using the methodological assumptions of Reinhart Koselleck, the author shows that 'metapolitical' concepts reach their intellectual and political high point by accelerating history and by transcending the actual situation. After their revolutionary peak, they disappear or they change their meaning in order to refer to the 'new reality'. Based on the insights of Hannah Arendt, the author shows that globalization has lost its revolutionary potential, but also that the end of globalization theory would not necessarily follow. Adapted from the source document.

The author discusses some recent changes in the theoretical literature on globalization. He claims that the irreversibility of the globalization process is no longer taken for granted as in the enthusiastic literature on the subject during the 1990's. The globalization is no longer regarded as an untouchable structure, and for over a decade now, we are witnessing an overall questioning of the globalization process itself. Therefore, the author pays special attention to the theoretical works of Justin Rosenberg who claims that the age of globalization is over. For Rosenberg, the globalization was only an ideological construction supported by the so called globalization theory which has failed in all its aspects: as a general social theory, as a historical and sociological argument and as a basis for interpretation of actual events. As opposed to Rosebenrg, the author claims that globalization should be regarded as a 'metapolitical' concept with its semantic and political functions. Using the methodological assumptions of Reinhart Koselleck, the author shows that 'metapolitical' concepts reach their intellectual and political high point by accelerating history and by transcending the actual situation. After their revolutionary peak, they disappear or they change their meaning in order to refer to the 'new reality'. Based on the insights of Hannah Arendt, the author shows that globalization has lost its revolutionary potential, but also that the end of globalization theory would not necessarily follow. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into the thesis about the cognitive-theoretical & scientific-political congruence of George Soros' & Karl Popper's thinking. Although Popper is considered to be the originator of the idea & the concept of the open society while George Soros is thought of as a practitioner who attempted to implement the idea, the author nevertheless points out an array of dissimilarities between these two major thinkers of the 20th century & claims that the assumed identicalness cannot be convincingly defended. On the contrary, though it is possible to glean several potential reasons why Soros took up philanthropy, the desire to put Popper's concept into practice is not the most important one among them. Thus he concludes that their close relationship can be primarily explained at the level of emotive generosity, the result of very similar life experiences. Tables, Figures, References. Adapted from the source document.