Suchergebnisse

The author deals with the problem of adjustment to the Bologna process, using the philosophical-political distinctions between open & guided intertraditional exchange, & between utopian & piecemeal social engineering. In his opinion, the process might be perceived as a sort of cultural imperialism that need not be disastrous for its victims. The reform should create the conditions for the organization of serious multidisciplinary studies at the university level (European studies, American studies, gender studies, peace studies, etc). Should changes at the U of Zagreb be implemented systematically, though prudently, the results could be positive. However, the author warns that the role of tradition should not be underestimated nor the possibility of serious quandaries in the implementation of the reform of higher education excluded, even if the changes are introduced gradually. 4 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into one of the most important concepts in the last decade of comparative research: social capital. The concept of social capital was originally developed in sociology, where it denotes potential benefits that individuals enjoy, derived from their involvement in various social networks. This concept was fully utilized in the field of comparative politics into which it was "introduced" by Robert Putnam in Making Democracy Work, in which he presents the results of his research in which he establishes a positive link between social capital -- embodied in the norms of generalized reciprocity, horizontal networks, & trust -- & higher levels of democratic efficiency. In the last decade, the concept has been used in a number of studies in comparative politics, the starting point of which was the thesis that spatial & temporal differences in the levels of political efficiency may, at least partly, be explained by the level of social capital of a community. By comparing the concepts of political culture & social capital, the author concludes that social capital is a major conceptual innovation in comparative politics & represents a revival of social/cultural variables in comparative analysis. 63 References. Adapted from the source document.

The author looks into one of the most important concepts in the last decade of comparative research: social capital. The concept of social capital was originally developed in sociology, where it denotes potential benefits that individuals enjoy, derived from their involvement in various social networks. This concept was fully utilized in the field of comparative politics into which it was "introduced" by Robert Putnam in Making Democracy Work, in which he presents the results of his research in which he establishes a positive link between social capital -- embodied in the norms of generalized reciprocity, horizontal networks, & trust -- & higher levels of democratic efficiency. In the last decade, the concept has been used in a number of studies in comparative politics, the starting point of which was the thesis that spatial & temporal differences in the levels of political efficiency may, at least partly, be explained by the level of social capital of a community. By comparing the concepts of political culture & social capital, the author concludes that social capital is a major conceptual innovation in comparative politics & represents a revival of social/cultural variables in comparative analysis. 63 References. Adapted from the source document.

In the text the author discusses the problem of the European identity -- which emerged in the earlier stage of the process of European integration -- from the perspective of the discourse theory. This approach was overlooked in the early stages of the development of the European studies, in which the economistic approach emphasizing only the economic benefits of the European integration prevailed; today, however, the European identity issue is one of the central questions, & the success of the process of the European integration depends on. The question of the European identity has for a long time been identified with the concept of "Europe's positive public image" appealing to the citizens & to the political communities involved in the process of the European integration. The question of the European identity was for the first time systematically elaborated on in an EC document -- the Copenhagen Declaration of 1973 -- & since then the debate on Europe's political & cultural identity has permanently been on the agenda, particularly of the Eurosceptic political movements & ideas. The author looks into the theory of identity from the perspective of the latest contributions, particularly from the perspective of modern social theories, & suggests that the European studies ought to take into consideration the dual nature of the identification, the discursive & the affective, as well as the symbolic & the libidinal. That is why the European studies have to work out how to thwart Euroscepticism & develop the strategies of countering the phenomena such as a lack of pervasive identifications of citizens with Europe. References. Adapted from the source document.

This article analyses the representation and main characteristics of comparative politics articles published in the journal Politicka misao. Starting from the assumption that the political and academic fields are engaged in a process of 'reciprocal legitimation', we divided the period of analysis into two phases and research subsamples. The first encompasses articles published in the period 1964-1989, while the second covers articles published in the period 1990-2013. Content analysis reveals that during the first phase comparative politics articles were weakly represented in the journal. The few articles that belong to the field were mostly written from a Marxist perspective, and occasionally from the perspective of old normative institutionalism. Overall they were methodologically unreflective, descriptive and configurative. The most frequent topics were self-managing democracy, communist and revolutionary parties, anti-imperial movements and conflicts in Third World countries. The time period after 1990 is characterised by a strengthening of the field of comparative politics. First of all, there is a notable increase in the number of articles dedicated to elections, electoral systems, political parties and party systems, legislatures and governments, constitutionalism and the judiciary, political culture, nationalism, as well as European institutions and processes. Secondly, theoretical approaches are more diversified, ranging from new institutionalism, behavioralism and pluralism to rational choice theory and cultural theory. Though case studies and focused studies with a small-N are the most frequent empirical strategies, overall methodology remains the weakest element of domestic academic production in comparative politics, while explicitly methodological discussions remain extremely rare. Adapted from the source document.

Religion & religious communities as active components of each social & cultural set & as major factors in its functioning may contribute to social processes & relations or affect them both integrationally & disintegrationally. The paper lays out the theoretical & methodological grounds (functionalism) for the analysis of these processes & relations. As the examples of the integrational influence on the social & political processes in Croatia following all the social & political changes, we can mention the activities of the Catholic church (particularly in the Diaspora) &, to a degree, those of the Pentecostal church, while the disintegrational influence was exemplified by the activities of the Serbian Orthodox church. The text also includes a comparative analysis of the empirical data obtained from two studies carried out in Croatia (based on several partial indicators), which indicate a marked turn towards religiosity. Highlighted are possible individual & social aspects of these changes as well as the need for a complex & systematic monitoring of the religious developments in Croatia, the results of which might point to the possible integrational or disintegrational potentials of this "new religiosity" within a broader social framework. 4 Tables, 9 References. Adapted from the source document.

The paper analyzes the link between Kant's 'Perpetual peace' and the democratic peace paradigm with which contemporary International Relations are being interpreted. In doing so, the monadic and dyadic versions of liberal theory of democratic peace are explained through the institutional-structural and cultural-normative models. The theory of democratic peace is critically analyzed, with emphasis on the causal relationship between the independent variable, the democratic regime, and the dependent variable, peace. Empirical studies of cases in which the crises among democratic states have not resulted in war are also questioned, which brings into doubt the causal logic of the theory itself. In critical thought about the democratic peace theory, special emphasis is placed on the realistic interpretation of causes that are believed to contribute to democratic peace, as well as on the existence of the so-called 'democratic war'. There exist a number of factors explaining this foreign policy behavior of democracies and their hiding behind the theses of the theory of democratic peace. An example is the position of power that democracy occupies in International Relations, with which, aside from liberal dependent variables, realistic variables must be taken into account as well, such as the concentration of power, economic interdependence and national interest. Adapted from the source document.

The article presents the results of the research on the reporting about the minorities in Croatian dailies between 2001 & 2003. Besides a review of the existing relevant international & Croatian studies, there is a special focus on the aspects of journalistic selection that vitally influence the readers' ultimate perceptions. The basic findings of the research show that the issues concerning the minorities are predominantly presented as political topics, & reported in journalistic forms with hardly any analytical articles. The representatives of the authorities & the media workers still regard the minority issues as the political ones. The politicians & state officials do this by means of their activities & programs under the pressure of various segments of the public, while journalists do this mainly because of the restrictions of the editorial policies & their paper's profile. At the same time, the representatives of the minorities as a rule do not know how to foist their issues on the media & to focus more on the cultural, social & other aspects of their life, which is vital for their full social integration & their positive public image. 3 Illustrations, 32 References. Adapted from the source document.

The article presents the results of the research on the reporting about the minorities in Croatian dailies between 2001 & 2003. Besides a review of the existing relevant international & Croatian studies, there is a special focus on the aspects of journalistic selection that vitally influence the readers' ultimate perceptions. The basic findings of the research show that the issues concerning the minorities are predominantly presented as political topics, & reported in journalistic forms with hardly any analytical articles. The representatives of the authorities & the media workers still regard the minority issues as the political ones. The politicians & state officials do this by means of their activities & programs under the pressure of various segments of the public, while journalists do this mainly because of the restrictions of the editorial policies & their paper's profile. At the same time, the representatives of the minorities as a rule do not know how to foist their issues on the media & to focus more on the cultural, social & other aspects of their life, which is vital for their full social integration & their positive public image. 3 Illustrations, 32 References. Adapted from the source document.