Suchergebnisse

This article inquires into the connection between individualisation and environmental issues. Following an introduction to the topic in the opening of the article in chapters II and III the author provides a definition of some basic concepts and asks whether and how the relationship between individualisation and environmental issues is reflected in sociological literature. In chapter IV the author formulates a general framework that in chapter V gives insight into the inconsistent conception of individualisation in environmental ideologies. The article closes with chapter VI, in which, with the aid of a theoretical sociological framework, the author formulates some themes for studying the environmental aspects of the individualised lifestyle.

The author reviews the theory of socio-economic inequality in health & concludes that the use of cultural values to explain the ubiquitous association between the socio-economic standing (SES) of individuals & their health is becoming increasingly prominent. Inspired by this, the author examines whether & to what extent several aspects of lay knowledge about & attitudes towards health can explain the social gradient in subjective health in Central & Eastern Europe. The author uses data from the second round of the European Social Survey & limits the analysis to data from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, & Slovenia. The data show that while there is a strong relationship between education & subjective health & also a relationship between education & various measures of lay knowledge about health, beliefs about health are only very weakly related to subjective health & thus fail to account for its dependence on SES. The author concludes that this may be the result of reciprocal causation between lay knowledge & subjective health. More enhanced research designs would be required in order to gain a better empirical evaluation of the causal relationships between SES, lay knowledge, & health.

In the article, the author presents money as a category of analysis in political science, & briefly embeds research in this field in a broader disciplinary context (economics, sociology, financial geography). Emphasis is stressed on Helleiner's book "The Making of National Money." Helleiner deals with the emergence of territorial currencies in the long-term, & is considered to be the most important & influential author within the field of political science. In the first part, the article focuses on Helleiner's description of the structural-historical conditions for the introduction of territorial currencies, as well as on the ideological motivations that led political elites to introduce territorial currencies. A comprehensive historical description of this process is put aside. At the end, the author critically evaluates Helleiner's contribution to this problem. Adapted from the source document.

The article deals with the idea of Central Europe and aims to identify common developmental tendencies of the region in the medieval period and early modern age. The author emphasizes the advantages of the comparative approach primarily in the case of the medieval and early modern Polish, Czech and Hungarian states. Alongside common developmental tendencies the author emphasizes also important differences which cast doubt on the very idea of Central Europe.

When examining the gender of institutions of parenthood, lone motherhood is a key issue. In this article the author focuses on the economic implications of lone motherhood and on the strategies that women living with children without a partner develop in order to ensure their livelihood. The author begins by presenting the theoretical background and some results from European and North American research on lone motherhood. She then provides an overview of research on lone parenthood done in the Czech Republic since 1959. Finally, the author describes the qualitative study she conducted on divorced mothers. The results show how women deal economically with marital separation and which livelihood strategies they opt for. The research methodology was based on constructivist grounded theory and the technique of interviews. From the research results the author distinguishes fi ve basic strategies that can be combined and that are based on the sources that women have at their disposal. Those strategies may differ in terms of their degree of success, dependence/independence on others, and their efficacy at different points in time. The results also indicate that the success of these working strategies depends mainly on the age of the youngest child in the family and the caring responsibilities required by that age. The author argues that while for some women heading one-parent families paid work is an option that allows them to obtain a certain degree of independence and self-confidence, its efficacy depends on the context and immediate conditions in which the women find themselves. Overstressing the employment of lone mothers as a universal solution may thus lead to new dependencies.

The article aims to introduce the phenomenon of public diplomacy, highlighting the key features of the concept. The author is looking into why public diplomacy is worth of the attention of academics, pointing out the reasons for considering public diplomacy a relevant & legitimate segment of foreign policy -- and not just a trendy phrase. The article presents a brief overview of the development of public diplomacy so far, identifying the main reasons for public diplomacy being an important item on today's foreign policy agenda. Seeking to clarify what public diplomacy is & what its implications are, the author highlights some core features of public diplomacy & their temporal & thematic change. The article also touches upon the relationship between public diplomacy & propaganda, branding, international cultural relations & traditional diplomacy. The author concludes with effective public diplomacy strategies & preconditions for its further development. Adapted from the source document.

This article is divided into two parts. The first part describes the cartel party presented by R. Katz and P. Mair and the discussion about the new party type between the two and R. Koole. The second part compares the theoretical descriptions with practical features of Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ) and Slovak political system. While the system author finds cartel supporting and not yet cartelized, SDKÚ is not a cartel party but rather one of the new alike types. Author agrees with the demand of R. Koole on search for a scheme of similar party types rather than one perfect type. ; This article is divided into two parts. The first part describes the cartel party presented by R. Katz and P. Mair and the discussion about the new party type between the two and R. Koole. The second part compares the theoretical descriptions with practical features of Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ) and Slovak political system. While the system author finds cartel supporting and not yet cartelized, SDKÚ is not a cartel party but rather one of the new alike types. Author agrees with the demand of R. Koole on search for a scheme of similar party types rather than one perfect type.

This text inquires into the problem of cadenced step as the disciplinary technique of the body, according to theories of Marcel Mauss and Michel Foucault. Author explores historical core of military body techniques in social context, developed by Dutch army reformers Counts of Nassau during 1590s and refined by the Prussian military in 1740s. Author interprets cadenced step inside framework of shifting paradigm of power, as Foucault analyses the sequence of three stages of power emerging during european Early modernity.

The author presents a critical reply to Barsa's interpretation of his monograph (Jakoubek, M. Romove: konec/ne/jednoho mytu. Tractatus Culturo/mo/logicus, Socioklub, Praha 2004) & of two anthologies he has co-edited (Jakoubek, M. & Poduska, 0. [Eds], Romske osady v kulturologicke perspektive, Doplnek, Brno, 2003 & Jakoubek, M., Hirt, T. [Eds], Romove: kulturologicke etudy. Etnopolitika, pribuzenstvi a socialni organizace, Cenek, Plzen 2004). Taking the examples of his alleged orientalism & of his (also alleged) idea that Gypsies are carriers of the culture of poverty, the author illustrates that Barsa's interpretation is full of mistakes & inaccuracies. He also argues that the concept of culture used by Barsa is unacceptable in the social sciences & accuses his critic (together with the whole discourse of multiculturalism) of ethnocentrism. Regarding methodological issues, the author demonstrates that although Barsa claims to offer a better method of analysis, in actuality he fails to do so. References. Adapted from the source document.

Denmark is considered to be one of the most Euroskeptical member states of the European Union (e.g. it rejected the Treaty of the European Union in 1992 & refused to adopt the euro in 2000). This article analyzes the attitudes of relevant Danish political parties towards European integration. The author of this article utilizes Nicolo Conti's typology of political parties' attitudes towards the European Union based on their spatial position on the political spectrum. Conti supposes that the Euroskeptical attitude (the so-called hard Euroskepticism) is mostly represented by the right- & left-wing parties, while a pro-European attitude is typical of the center & governing political parties. First, the author of this article categorizes the relevant Danish political parties on the basis of Conti's typology. Second, the author compares their real attitudes to European integration to the assumed ones. 2 Tables, 1 Diagram, 36 References. Adapted from the source document.

The article aims to review the political developments in African states throughout their recent post-colonial past. Uprooting political violence & anchoring a stable structure based on a society-wide consensus being just two of the several prerequisites for solving so many other problems which trouble Africa today, this article aims to diagnose at least some root causes & consequences of the generally unsatisfactory political situation on the continent. Having identified a set of political instability symptoms (coups d'etat, civil wars, failed putches etc.) the author first ranks African states according to their political instability rate. On the basis of statistical correlation analysis, the author then investigates the relation between political instability in Africa & a number of quantifiable geographical, demographical, military & economic variables. The author has identified some dispositions increasing -- though with only small statistical significance -- the probability of instability in African states. In order of importance, these include: large territory, high illiteracy rate, low urbanization, high number of ethnic groups living within the territory, & large population. Also, there is a close link between political instability & governmental military spending. It probably has a negative impact on a number of key economic indicators, be it GDP growth, GDP per capita levels, domestic savings, or price level developments. In the final part of his article, the author makes a brief summary of political developments in African countries in the 21st century. Tables, Appendixes, References. Adapted from the source document.

The paper deals with the phenomenon of globalization. The author finds globalization highly questionable concept because there is deep disunity about its definition among the authors. In the first part of the paper different concepts of globalization are summed up. According to authors view there are two main approaches towards globalization -- the first considers it as (more or less lasting) integration & the second as a completely new contemporary process. The author regards globalization as a long lasting integration. But he finds that the present integration has a few specifics that are analyzed in the following part of the paper. In the consequent subchapters the author deals with two more topics -- the pros & cons of globalization & the durability of the process. The main conclusion of the paper is that globalization is a process that has been allowed by the governments by withdrawing from certain areas & thus releasing creative forces in the world markets. The process can be again (anytime) interrupted by the governments but it would bring serious consequences for the functioning of the world economy. Adapted from the source document.

Based on a systematic study of Polish sociological literature produced in the period stretching between the elevation of Wladyslaw Gomulka to the post of the Party's first secretary in October 1956 to the first free elections in Poland in June 1989, the author of this article offers an account of the main dilemmas & the varieties of pluralism in Polish sociology during the state socialist era. The author claims that, with the exception of the Stalinist period, Polish sociologists always occupied diverse positions on 'government' & 'society', but this diversity yielded to change in response to a particular time. Generally, in 1956-1989 Polish sociology was something unique in comparison with sociology in other so-called people's democracies, as it had a considerably high status in the country & in the world, including the West. The author argues that Polish sociology did not have to undergo a revolution in 1989 & make the move from Marxist to bourgeois sociology, as since 1956 (or even earlier, since 1945) it had been undergoing continuous change & constant reform (in theoretical domain & concerning its division into sub-disciplines) & maintained a consistent level of diversity in various respects.

The text deals with question of European state formation in research of contemporary British sociologist Perry Anderson . Its first intention focus on how modern European medieval and absolutistic states emerged. The article consists from four main parts: (1) Introduction to theory of state-formation. (2) Analysis of structural and analytical connections between state and society in author´s treatise. (3) Third main part deals with analysis of course of European state-building. On this problem we apply specific analytical model, which distinguish causes, components, progression, and impacts on state formation processes. In this case, author analyzes mechanisms of state building in feudal period 9–15th century and period of absolutistic states (16--19th century). (4) Last part is focuses on conclusion of our findings, especially on drawings specific conceptual model of this process. ; The text deals with question of European state formation in research of contemporary British sociologist Perry Anderson . Its first intention focus on how modern European medieval and absolutistic states emerged. The article consists from four main parts: (1) Introduction to theory of state-formation. (2) Analysis of structural and analytical connections between state and society in author´s treatise. (3) Third main part deals with analysis of course of European state-building. On this problem we apply specific analytical model, which distinguish causes, components, progression, and impacts on state formation processes. In this case, author analyzes mechanisms of state building in feudal period 9–15th century and period of absolutistic states (16--19th century). (4) Last part is focuses on conclusion of our findings, especially on drawings specific conceptual model of this process.

In this article its author wanted to treat the history and presence of the system constitutional institutions competent for the area of conception, execution and control of security and defence policy of the Czech Republic and also addresses in short the function and content of the main security documents of the country. The author tried to sketch the institutional and documentary framework of the Czech security policy and to explain roles, relations and obligations of the highest-level constitutional bodies in the process of creation and carrying out of this policy (especially positions of the President, the Parliament, the Government and its so called power ministries and other important institutions). This text does not take a lot all this theme in detail, but it is more aimed at basic information and its target is to expound these problems to those interested, especially to foreign students. ; In this article its author wanted to treat the history and presence of the system constitutional institutions competent for the area of conception, execution and control of security and defence policy of the Czech Republic and also addresses in short the function and content of the main security documents of the country. The author tried to sketch the institutional and documentary framework of the Czech security policy and to explain roles, relations and obligations of the highest-level constitutional bodies in the process of creation and carrying out of this policy (especially positions of the President, the Parliament, the Government and its so called power ministries and other important institutions). This text does not take a lot all this theme in detail, but it is more aimed at basic information and its target is to expound these problems to those interested, especially to foreign students.