It is epistemologically motivated to describe the human sciences as divided into one objectivistic (nature/body) & one intersubjectivistic (society) part. The problem is to bridge these parts, & evolutionary theory is chosen as a possible instrument. As a preparation it is necessary to find the relevant epistemological & ontological categories. Two epistemological (objectivism & intersubjectivism) & three ontological (levels of aggregation, position of actors & plans of reality) dimensions are discussed together with some fundamental methodological problems. Another important part of the task is to elucidate societal change in relation to different types of societal patterns (from laws to similarities & differences). 8 Figures, 104 References. Adapted from the source document.
Comparative research emphasize Social Democratic parties as leading political forces when universal welfare states are reformed in accordance with market-oriented principles. Considering the traditional portrayal of universal welfare states as an institutional feature of Nordic political economics, which tends to favor the Social Democrats in the political power struggle, this is a highly surprising conclusion. In contrast to the conventional wisdom, that Social Democratic market reforms are caused by economic constraints, this article postulate reforms to be conducted for political & strategic purposes. The theoretical argument goes like this: Social Democrat governments decide upon reforms when the parry-elite perceive policy problems as potential threats to the legitimacy of the universal welfare state. Hence, market-oriented reforms are expected to re-invigorate the legitimacy of the universal welfare institutions. For political institutions to be efficient power resources they are requited to be deemed legitimate by a democratic constituency. Otherwise they can work counterproductive in the ongoing power-struggle. The theory is tested empirically in a structured comparison of Swedish & Danish school policy in the 1990s, & is confirmed with some slight modifications. References. Adapted from the source document.
Power is the key concept within political science. The majority of political scientists argue that power should be defined in behavioral terms as a relation of coercion between human agents. The traditional view confines power to human behavior & directly observable actions & reactions. Drawing on modern sociological, structuration theory, it is possible to generate a concept of structural power that goes beyond the behavioral perspective. Power is coercion, but the concept of power also refers to agents' structural capabilities. In a fundamental sense the concept of structural power directs attention to the unequal resource agents derive from their structural positions within the societal system. Moreover, structural power is intimately linked to other key notions, such as anticipated reactions & enduring relations of control. Finally, the structuralist perspective on power is highly illuminating of permanent barriers to full democratization in modern society. Unequal resources & social inequality represent major obstacles to the realization of the principles of political equality. 3 Figures, 1 Skema, 31 References. Adapted from the source document.
Institutional logics create order and stability. They organize interaction and prescribe how we should behave towards each other. Such logics have generally been regarded as exclusive, in the sense that an organizational field is always guided by a single institutional logic. If there are two or more institutional logics in one setting at the same time this will create conflicting demands and contradictions. So how do organizations and individuals that act in these settings, where different institutional logics do meet, cope with the conflicting demands? This question is researched by studying actors who organize partnerships between corporations and non-profit organizations. Institutional logics have typically been studied at field level. My study follows a more recent literature strand focusing on individuals and their way of coping with conflicting institutional logics. In this thesis, interviews, text analysis and observations are used. The interviews were conducted with CSR managers of corporations, managers of corporate partners at non-profit organizations, CSR consultants, and project managers of intermediary organizations. These actors are working in an environment where conflicting institutional logics are played out. Using a narrative approach it is shown how these actors are aware of their institutional environment and its conflicts which requires them to constantly act as translators. The study shows that the actors organize an interplay between a market-logic and a social-welfare logic by bringing together the logics and establishing limits to what extent logics can be mixed. Thus, the actors can be understood as bilingual, rather than hybrids. Furthermore, it is argued that a narrative approach provides the possibility to understand institutional logics in empirical contexts as more present and visible than they are usually considered to be. The study concludes that bilingual actors balance conflicting demands and negotiate requirements set by institutional logics in their day-to-day work. Settings where institutional logics meet can hence be understood as both a contradiction and an ongoing interplay.
A reading of David Hume with the intent to highlight components of a reformistic approach to social change. The well-known formulation about "reason as the slave of passions" poses the first problem. In spite of this, it is maintained that reason plays a decisive role in Hume's theory of knowledge as in his practice as a political philosopher. Connected with this problem is Hume's skepticism, which is based on the discovery of the logical impossibility of inductive inference. However, this theoretical skepticism does not lead to defeatism regarding the possibility of improving knowledge & society; it just leads to modesty &, paradoxically, to an even more important role for reason. A parallel to Hume's criticism of induction is his demonstration of the impossibility of deducing values from facts. Again, it is necessary to notice the difference between his theoretical position & his recommendations for politics. The task of the historian is to give a causal explanation of social institutions &, on the basis of this, point out values inherent in the institutions. This gives the instrument for a rational discussion of maintaining or reforming the institutions. Obviously, Hume is a relativist, but not in the usual & careless meaning of individual or collective subjectivism. Values are produced by men in a historical process, but as they stand before the historian & the politician, they are as objective as facts. Finally, it is worth mentioning that Hume with his view of the importance of an informed & critical discussion of social problems comes close to critical-rationalism. 28 References. Adapted from the source document.
Abstract Olsson, Karin (2009). Den (över)levande demokratin. En idékritisk analys av demokratins reproducerbarhet i Robert Dahls tänkta värld. (Sustainable Democracy. Exploring the Idea of a Reproducible Democracy in the Theory of Robert A. Dahl). Acta Wexionensia 185/2009, ISSN: 1404-4307, ISBN: 978-91-7636-677-6. With a summary in English. Everybody loves democracy. The problem is that while everybody calls himself democratic, the ideal form of democracy is hard to come by in the real world. But if we believe in democracy and believe that it is the best form of government, I argue that we should try to design a theory of democracy that is realisable – and reproducible. This thesis, then, focuses primarily on the question whether we find support in democratic theory for an idea of a self-reproducing democracy. It proceeds by means of an investigation of Robert A. Dahl's theory of democracy. He is one of the most well-known and highly regarded theorists in the field of democratic research, whose work covers both normative and empirical analysis. When analysing the reproducible democracy, I argue that it is essential to study both normative values and empirical assumptions: the values that count as intrinsic to democracy, the assumptions that are made about man, and the institutions that are needed for the realisable and reproducible democracy. In modern social science man is often pushed into the background. This is also the case in theories of democracy, even though man (the individual) is the one who has the right to vote, the one who has the autonomy to decide – the one who has to act democratically in order to preserve democracy. The study yields the following findings. First, in Dahl's theory political equality and autonomy come out as intrinsic values. Second, the assumptions made about man show that even if he seems to be ignored, he is always present. When Dahl construes his theory, he does it with full attention to man's qualities, interests, manners of acting and reacting, and adaptability to the values of democracy. Third, the institutions needed to realise and reproduce democracy go further than the institutions of polyarchy. They need support from the judicial system, political culture, education and the market. Fourth, when it comes down to making democracy work and reproducing democracy, Dahl puts the full responsibility on man as he is not willing to allow too rigid constitutional mechanisms. Fifth, even though Dahl puts the emphasis on the empirical situation of the real world, he does not alter his normative ideals in order to make the theory more adaptive. For him, political equality and autonomy are imperative demands, too important to alter. And the only way to get full procedural democracy is to trust the democratic man.
Over the last decades there has been a growing interest in normative theory within the social sciences in general & political science in particular. Timeless questions of good & bad, right & wrong, & of the nature & justification of the good society -- of what the good society ought to be -- have thus surfaced again. However, not much has been written on the specific methodological issues that arise when explicitly approaching normative questions on social scientific, i.e. systematic & inter-subjective, grounds. Departing from a reflection concerning the conceptual meaning of norms & values -- the anchor of normative analysis -- & by confronting different axiological positions, this essay formulates a few guiding principles for a normative methodology. These principles include requirements on internal validity (accuracy, consistency, clarity, coherence, & intersubjective reasoning) as well as external validity (external justification, plausibility, & empirical relevance). 46 References. Adapted from the source document.
High hopes for democracy and sustainability are placed on participatory planning. Policy makers and scholars argue that broad participation can revitalise democracy and tackle sustainability challenges. Yet, critics claim that power asymmetries stand in the way of realising the potential of participatory planning. In the everyday practices of planning, this controversy comes to a head. Here, planners interact with citizens, politicians and developers around making choices about places and societies. Planners' practices are contested and they are challenged by the complexity of power relations. They need conceptual tools to critically reflect on what power is and when it is legitimate. Reflective practice is a prerequisite for making situated judgements under conditions of contestation. Yet, the planning theories, which are most influential in practice, have not been developed with the intention of conceptualising power. Rational planning theory, which still is influential in practice, largely reduces planning into a technical power-free activity. Communicative planning theory, which underpins participatory practices, instead suggests that expert power ought to be complemented by inclusive dialogue. This theory criticises hierarchical power relations as domination, without providing elaborated understanding of other facets of power. Hence, the conceptual support for reflective practice is too reductive. The aim of this thesis is to rethink power in participatory planning by developing concepts that can enable reflective practice. I draw on power theory and explore the utility of treating power as a family resemblance concept in participatory planning. Applying this plural view, I develop a family of power concepts, which signifies different ideas of what power is. The usefulness of this "power family" is tested through frame analysis of communicative planning theory and Swedish participatory planning policy and practice. The result of the research is a family of power concepts that can enable reflective practice. 'Power to' signifies a dispositional ability to act, which planning actors derive from social order. This ability can be exercised as consensual 'power with' or as conflictual 'power over'. The latter is conceptualised as an empirical process which, on a basic level, can be normatively appraised as illegitimate or legitimate. This thesis contributes to planning theory and environmental communication by problematising reductive notions of power and, as an alternative, rethinking power as a family resemblance concept. This theoretical contribution matters to planning practice as it can enable planners to develop their ability to be sensitive to what a situation requires, i.e. to acquire practical wisdom (phronesis).
The strategic approaches towards radical right-wing populist parties (RRP-parties) are in special focus for the thesis. The aim of the thesis is reconstruction and analysis of the content of the established parties' strategic approaches towards parties that are seen as challenging central principles of liberal democracy, such as pluralism and tolerance, and who´s presence are creating a democratic dilemma. The aim has been operationalized within a Swedish context with focus on the strategic approaches used by the Social Democratic party and the Conservative party towards the Sweden Democrats, a Swedish RRP-party. The methodological framework is built upon a qualitative perspective with focus on interviews with representatives for the two established parties and the Sweden Democrats. The empirical material has been analyzed with the PSO-theory (Position, Salience and Owner-ship theory) as point of departure. The theory shows how strategic approaches used by the established parties are related to 1)the specific political issue raised by the RRP-party and 2) the degree of threat posed by the challenging RRP-party towards the established parties. The results generated from the thesis show that the content of the strategic approaches from the established parties towards the Sweden Democrats have changed since the election 2006, from a common dissmissive strategy to a strategic approach marked by tendencies of divergence (the Social Democratic party) and vauge tendencies of convergence (the Conservative party). The thesis also shows that the specific issue politicized by the Sweden Democrats, i.e. the immigration- and refugee issue, is central to the way the content of the strategic approaches used by the two established parties has been shaped. The thesis indicates that the presence of RRP-parties have caused a situation where the democratic dilemma have become subordinated to a strategic dilemma. The established parties need to relate to the goals they are striving towards through the strategic approach of the RRP-party (such as maximation of votes) at the same time as they relate to the strongly value-charged political issue monopolized by the RRP-party.
The involvement of local communities in public space planning and design processes is widely promoted as an essential element of landscape architecture and urban design practice. Despite this, there has been little theorisation of this topic within these fields. Furthermore, the implementation of ideals and principles commonly found in theory are far from becoming mainstream practice, indicating a significant gap between the theory and practice of participation. This thesis aims to contribute to the development of theories of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. It steps away from the prevailing normative and procedural approach to theory development, and instead adopts a critical approach grounded on the deep understanding of the challenges of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. Case studies of two urban renewal projects, in Medellin, Colombia, and in Barcelona, Spain, and their participatory processes, are used for building up the theoretical contribution. The empirical and theoretical findings foreground the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. Contextual, in the sense that the implementation of ideals and principles found in theory is facilitated or hindered by the social, political and economic context in which a participatory process takes place. Political, in the sense that in complex contexts that comprise a wide range of actors, and where contrasting goals and agendas are at stake, the implementation of these theoretical ideals and principles is significantly challenged by politics involving deep differences, conflicts and power relations. The findings also show that prevailing theories of participation within landscape architecture and urban design do not take into consideration the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. This renders these theories weak in their capacity to respond to the challenges encountered by participatory processes in contemporary public space projects. This is particularly so as the dynamics of increasing pluralisation, muliticultarisation and neoliberalisation of cities create contexts that hinder the implementation of the ideals and principles found in theory, and increase the challenges caused by their political nature. Consequently, this thesis proposes a new theoretical approach to participation in the planning and design of public spaces, that allows context-based distinctions and judgements about the qualities of participatory practices for just decision-making. Difference, conflict and power are central in this approach. This thesis establishes this theoretical departure point and makes a significant contribution towards the development of the proposed theoretical approach.
Etablerade partiers strategiska bemötande av radikala högerpopulistiska partier(RHP-partier) står i fokus för avhandlingen. Syftet med avhandlingen ärrekonstruktion och analys av innehållet i de etablerade partiernas strategiskabemötande av partier som anses utmana centrala principer inom den liberalademokratin, såsom pluralism och tolerans, och vars närvaro också anses skapa ettdemokratiskt dilemma. Syftet har operationaliserats inom ramen för en svenskkontext med fokus på Socialdemokraternas och Moderaternas strategiskabemötande av ett svenskt RHP-parti i form av Sverigedemokraterna. Detmetodologiska ramverket utgår från ett kvalitativt perspektiv med fokus påintervjuer med representanter för de två etablerade partierna ochSverigedemokraterna. Det empiriska materialet har analyserats med hjälp av PSOteorin(Position, Salience and Owner-ship theory). Teorin visar hur de etableradepartiernas strategiska bemötande av RHP-partier kan relateras till 1) den specifikasakfråga RHP-partiet politiserar och 2) till vilken grad RHP-partiet hotar deetablerade partierna i fråga om väljarstöd. Avhandlingens resultat visar attinnehållet i de etablerade partiernas strategiska bemötande avSverigedemokraterna har förändrats sedan valet 2006 och att den sakfråga somSverigedemokraterna politiserat, flykting- och invandringsfrågan, är central förutformningen av de etablerade partiernas bemötande av partiet. ; The strategic approaches towards radical right-wing populist parties (RRP-parties)are in focus for the thesis. The aim of the thesis is reconstruction and analysis ofthe content of the established parties' strategic approaches towards parties thatchallenge central principles of liberal democracy, such as pluralism and tolerance,and who´s presence are creating a democratic dilemma. The aim has beenoperationalized within a Swedish context with focus on the strategic approachesused by the Social Democratic party and the Conservative party towards theSweden Democrats, a Swedish RRP-party. The methodological framework is builtupon a ...
The contemporary crises become increasingly complex, accompanied by more hostilities leading the infected societies to witness more unfortunate events, especially when political solutions are absent in war times or internal conflicts. The humanitarian sector, on the other hand, has to mitigate the severe effects of these crises on communities and provide assistance despite lack of funding and data. The action of UNHCR during the conflict in Syria has been taken as a case study due to the complexity of the situation in Syria. Contingency theory has been adopted within this study to investigate how does the humanitarian crisis in Syria impact the structure of UNHCR. Furthermore, contingency planning as a vital element to address emergencies effectively, enabling the organization to absorb shocks entirely or even partly, is adopted to investigate whether the UNHCR's crisis management is efficient or not. The study reveals that UNHCR's emergency preparedness planning is a sophisticated tool in meeting emergencies, particularly when adopting and implementing these plans on the ground and in coordination with the other stakeholders. Emergency preparedness planning has been observed to be an advantage to the organization primarily when the existing hazard or the predicable one is described as very dynamic. The case study discovers that UNHCR experienced extreme conditions in Syria, such as lack or absence of the data, funding gaps, and safety threatening. Despite these challenges, the organization developed an inclusive response action in which it collaborates with the other humanitarian organizations in Syria and involves the local communities to design site-oriented and more accurate plans.
Local natural resources (LNRs) are essential for the socioeconomy of rural societies. The United Nations (UN) Agenda 21 and "Our Common Future" state that local spatial planning is central for the prospect of balancing ecological, social and economic sustainable development (SuD). Stakeholder participation in spatial planning enhances acceptance and improves preconditions for successful planning outcomes. Consequently, it is important to increase knowledge about LNRs and the use of them and to integrate such knowledge in local spatial participatory planning with a landscape perspective. These opening statements apply to Swedish boreal municipalities and describe the intentions of Swedish municipal comprehensive planning (MCP). The purpose of this work was to examine and analyze the preconditions for integrating MCP with a landscape perspective in rural municipalities. The thesis is based on case studies in Swedish, rural, municipal contexts reported in five papers. In Papers I & II, local businesses in Vilhelmina Municipality were surveyed to describe the societal importance of LNRs. The results showed that LNRs are vital to 78 % of the businesses, of which half are based on forest farming, and there are strong bonds between entrepreneurs, their businesses, the municipality and LNRs. Papers III & IV present and discuss the characteristics of MCP in theory and practice. An e-mail survey was sent to municipal officials in all Swedish mountain municipalities. MCP-stakeholders in municipalities in Bergslagen, in central Sweden, were interviewed. Respondents in both case studies stated a belief that MCP can offer prospects in planning for SuD. However, resources and stakeholder participation in planning are generally scarce, especially in rural municipalities. Paper V illustrates how new knowledge on forest land use (to support MCP) can be gained by combining spatial and temporal data on forest condition, owners and land use values in a geographic information system (GIS). This thesis provides scientific and practical contributions to aid in efforts aiming for SuD. It is done by framing MCP theoretically and contextually and by suggesting that MCP should be extended to include forest land use and by stressing the rural context in local spatial participatory planning. Opportunities in MCP have to be embraced, but local governments need enhanced knowledge about local land use, specifically forest land use. Moreover, stakeholder participation needs to be developed, requiring more resources. In the case of a Swedish rural municipality, it is crucial that efforts are made to develop MCP as a tool, not just in theory but also in practice.
The Canadian federal government has introduced policy to phase out coal-fired electricity generation by 2030, as part of its climate change mitigation commitments under the Paris Agreement. The policy plan, positioned as a just transition, includes funding and measures to help workers and communities manage economic difficulties arising from the coal phaseout. Sustainability transitions, however, are rarely a purely economic process, as changes in demographics, values, norms and meanings may also ensue. Understanding this process as one of symbolic coping, wherein coal communities must socially come to terms with the phaseout and the resulting threat to their identities, adds another dimension to the just transition concept. This study aimed to better understand the social-psychological processes of sense-making in sustainability transitions, by investigating how coal communities are understanding and coping with the coal phaseout, and how social representations of the coal industry are transforming as a result. Social representations theory (SRT) was the main conceptual framework used, as it explores group-level common-sense understandings, which can be useful in analyzing processes of disruption or transition. Through qualitative case study research in two coal producing communities in Saskatchewan, one of four Canadian provinces affected by the coal phaseout, I explored the dynamics of the social representation of the local coal industry. Using the central core approach to SRT, I identified a core element based in shared history, stability and prosperity, which seemed to provide a foundation for making sense of the coal phaseout policy. From this foundation, I found two models of social representation transformation, resisting and progressive, implicating a split in the social representation of community life after coal. With this theoretical application, I explored social implications of the Canadian coal phaseout, illustrated a model of social representation transformation, and demonstrated a framework that can be applied to transition research in other contexts. I also discussed potential governance implications for designing just transition policies.
One of the aims of the new electoral law of Hungary has been to define a fairer apportionment into voting districts. This is ensured by a set of rules slightly more premissive than those laid out in the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters of the Venice Commission. These rules fix the average size of the voting districts, require voting districts not to split smaller towns and villages and not to cross county borders. We show that such an apportionment is mathematically impossible. We make suggestions both to the theoretical approach to resolve this problem, study the properties of our approach and using our efficient algorithm and the data of the 2010 national elections we determine the optimal apportionment. We also study the expected effect of demographic changes and formulate recommendations to adhere to the rules over the long term: increase the number of voting districts to about 130, allow the number of voting districts to change flexibly at each revision of the districts and base the districts on regions rather than counties.
