Suchergebnisse

The articles in this volume reflect the work carried on during a seminar organized by an interdisciplinary center at the Free University of Brussels. While the seminar was organized with sufficient flexibility to allow different participants to pursue their own research interests, all of the articles focus on at least one of the two central themes for the year. These themes are the ways in which cultural & social knowledge are transmitted across time & between & among individuals & the ways in which human conceptions of space & time are culturally determined. D. Knaff

The political tolerance & urban sociology literature indicates that urban residence is positively linked to tolerant attitudes & behavior. Because the city favors more contacts with unconventional groups & individuals, urban dwellers develop a higher level of political tolerance. The present article tests the empirical relevance of the rural-urban cleavage in the Canadian context. The paper shows that "urban" political tolerance may be specific to the US. 2 Tables. Adapted from the source document.

The existence of "specific interests" which could be naturally associated to women is widely discussed in contemporary literature (Dodson et Carroll 1991; Sapiro 1998; Tremblay 1998; Pateman 2000). Following some authors, women could traditionally be more incline toward political topics such as childhood policies, sexual discrimination, birth control, & so on, & less interested to others. However, & even if a huge literature exists on what a "woman interest" should be, very few researches try to measure the effects of such interests on women's political behavior. In fact, no analysis has yet been made in order to test whether the existence of a specific interest in the political topic at stake (for example when taking a decision during a ballot) can increase the intellectual engagement of women. Through a comprehensive analysis of federal ballots in Switzerland for the 1999-2005 period, & more precisely by relying on post-ballot VOX data, we aim to test whether or not the specific interest shown for a particular topic has an effect on the cognitive strategies activated by citizens during the opinion formation process. Starting from dual models drawn from political psychology literature (Chaiken 1980; Eagly et Chaiken 1993; Chen et Chaiken 1999), our analyses show clearly that women activate more demanding strategies more easily than men when the topic at stake is closer to them, & this under control of major individual determinants such as their level of political awareness. Adapted from the source document.

Examines the defense industry in Europe; argues that it should be based on a common European defense policy, which would transcend individual national differences.

2003 EU accession referenda results in the 8 East Central European countries (Slovenia, Hungary, Lithuania, Slovakia, Poland, Czech Republic, Estonia, & Latvia) have been analyzed examining regional dimension of their results. Two criteria, active euro-optimism (percentage of YES voters out of all the electorate in particular region), & active euro-skepticism (percentage of NO voters out of all the electorate in the region), have been used. Comparison with two other variables, economic (GDP per capita in the region) & ethnic (percentage of ethnic group other than title one, if remarkable) has been made; Pearson correlations have been calculated. Though there is common agreement on suppositional influence of regional factors (possibly, North-South, East-West, urban-rural, richer-poorer regional cleavages, exceptional case of the capital city, influence of densely inhabited ethnic groups etc.) in previous euro-integration referenda, there were no consistent analyses on it. Examining of 8 East Central European countries has showed both varieties from country to country as well as a number of general trends. In Slovenia, region of its capital city, Ljubljana, is more euro-optimistic compared with eastern Pomurska region (Maribor & Ptuj). Though regional economic irregularities not enough significant, as well as the number of examples too small for generalization, one can suppose West-East cleavage connected with the economic factor here. In Hungary, though voters' turnout was exceptionally low, both factor of higher euro-optimism in the capital city, Budapest, was evident, as well as strong relation between economic factor & voting behavior. However, Hungary has its own specifics: higher economic development of the region increases both active euro-optimism & active euro-skepticism, too. This, in turn, cannot exclude that factor of "passive euro-skepticism" is important here. In Lithuania, strong relations between size of ethnic minorities in the region & both active euro-optimism (negative) & active euro-skepticism (positive) were evident. More complications were, to evaluate influence of the economic factor: present statistics of GDP per capita in apskritys are far not enough to support supposition that voting results in particular Lithuania's territories are related with their economic development, too. In Slovakia, quite strong influence can be found of the size of Hungarian ethnic minority, but the opposite compared to Lithuania: increasing number of ethnic Hungarians do increase active euro-optimism & decrease active euro-skepticism. This is in good accordance with widely known believe of Hungarian ethnic group that EU membership will improve their status. Surprisingly, in Slovakia it was impossibly to evaluate the influence of another ethnic factor: though this country is widely known by the problems connected with Roma ethnic group, official statistics does not even show remarkable percentage of Roma in any region at all. Influence of economic factor, though number of examples is very small, is also present in Slovakia: the higher is GDP per capita, the higher is active euro-optimism, & at the same time the lower active euro-skepticism. In Poland, clear pattern of lower active euro-optimism was shown for its eastern regions, Podlaskie, Lubelskie, & Podkarpackie; they are economically poorest, at the same time, & characterized by specific political culture (bigger number of orthodox, smaller agricultural incomes, dependence on small trans-border trade, etc.). In the Czech Republic, regional economic pattern is also present: increase in regional GDP per capita also increases the active euro-optimism. Capital city, Prague, has exceptional position: it is most economically developed, & most euro-optimistic, too. For Estonia, complicated picture of inter-related influence of both ethnic & economic factors is typical. On one hand, there are no clear correlations between economic & voting variables. On the other, eastern Ida-Virumaa region, densely populated by ethnic Russians & the least economically developed, is described at the same time as mostly active euro-optimistic, & less euro-skeptical. The most reliable explanation would be, economic underdevelopment & ethnicity, complicated by stronger trans-border relations of individuals living near Russian border, may reinforce uncertainty in euro-integration perspective. For Latvia, the ethnic factor is very much evident: Pearson correlation between regional percentage of Russian population & active euro-skepticism is 0.906; reversely, it is connected with active euro-optimism. Eastern regions of Daugavpils & Rezekne affected also by economic underdevelopment were the most euro-skeptical among all 8 East European countries & became only regions where bigger part of inhabitants were actively opposed EU integration than supported. Thus, a number of cleavages can be generalized for majority of the acceding countries examined. "Center-periphery" cleavage is more or less evident for all countries except of Lithuania & Latvia: better socio-economic development seems to be overcomplicated by ethnic factors in two the latter. In Slovenia, Poland, and, especially, the Baltic States, the East-West cleavage is important. This can be explained by specifics of eastern regions: economic underdevelopment, personal & business ties beyond border, especially among Russian ethnic group in the East of the Baltic States, can lead to rational individual arguments against integration into European Union. With reversed relation, ethnic factor is typical for Hungarian ethnic group in Slovakia: support for euro-integration is predominant within it. The universal factor influencing electoral behavior in referenda is economic one, especially remarkable for Visegrad countries & Slovenia. Adapted from the source document.

Industrial disputes against restructuring projects are often intense. To understand the construction of these forms of resistance, we rely on life histories conducted with thirty-five union activists who led the struggle against restructuring projects. In a situation of high tension with important issues in terms of control by the activist, of duration of the mobilization, of potential differences on the aims of the struggle, but also of ways to reconcile personal and activist lives for the leader himself, it appears that open and hidden actions, collective and individual actions are articulated to organize resistance. This organization is based on the constitution of a network, on interaction devices with employees, and on a small team of confident persons. This raises finally the question of individual and contextual factors as they seem to favor the emergence of these resources. Adapted from the source document.

The aim of this article is to compare two of the leading contemporary theories of equality: those of left-libertarianism & perfectionist liberalism. I argue that, in theoretical terms, the chief difference between the two regards the State's responsibility for "wasted lives." Libertarianism rejects State spending on individual self-realization if such expenditure conflicts with the right of self-ownership. Perfectionist liberalism, in contrast, accepts this possibility. I also look at case studies that bring out ramifications of perfectionist liberalism unacceptable to left-libertarians. Specifically, only the former advocates public spending to cultural, humanitarian or economic ends. Adapted from the source document.

It is a common perception that 20 years after the fall of communism, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CCEE), even though they have joined the EU, belong to the group of post-communist countries. This article analyses whether a clear distinction in the quality of democracy between the CCEE, which are new member states of the EU, and the old member states still could be made. The analysis has been performed by comparison of the democracy indicators of the countries of Southern Europe, Nordic countries and the CCEE. The research has revealed that the scores of democracy indicators of the countries of Southern Europe and the CCEE do not differ significantly, and in some cases, the scores of the group of the CCEE correspond to a better quality of democracy. The scores of democracy indicators of the individual countries of the two groups overlap in most cases. However, the analysis has exhibited a considerable difference of the democracy indicators between the countries of Southern Europe and Nordic countries, although these countries belong to the group of the old member states of the EU. Thus, the difference in the scores of democracy indicators inside the group of the old member states of the EU is bigger than the difference between the CCEE and the countries of Southern Europe. This means that the requirements for the quality of democracy, which are applied to mature Western democracies, have to be applied to the CCEE. Adapted from the source document.

The analysis of the relationship that forms between the political & religious spheres on the national level leads the researcher to three distinct yet complimentary levels of observation. Beyond the institutional & individual & collective behavior levels, the researcher has to focus on the matrix (a kind of long-term memory) of religion that maintains its effects despite its normative weakening. In this regard, & despite the profound differences in their political-religious trajectory & their present configuration, Southern European countries share a common heritage: the Catholic Church -- & the Orthodox Church in Greece -- that has largely contributed to the development of the anthropological conception of politics & the public good that prevails in these countries, & to the formation of the social link. 1 Table, 56 References. Adapted from the source document.

Argues that the ideas of representation & political participation are at the heart of democracy. However, over the past 200 years concepts & practices have changed. States that it is generally agreed that there is a crisis at present in both areas. Cites as evidence lower voting participation with the result that elected officials are no longer representative of the population. Identifies voter apathy & lack of confidence in systems & individuals as a source. Maintains collective life suffers as a result with excessive individualism & disaffection as consequences. Further, introduces the role of new technologies as an influence. Generalizing about contributions to this edition of the journal, notes the awareness that political parties are on the decline while other group-oriented movies (rights movements, ecological movements) are flourishing. Observes petitions, strikes, demonstrations exist apart from standard elective politics. These facts provide a context for social science when investigating the reality of non-participation. Classical approaches are said not to apply in all instances. To this end contributors make use of some important & original methodologies. In other instances, they seek to explain the emergence of the changes observed. Such longstanding issues as Quebec sovereignty are addressed with research showing differences among groups of young Canadians. Political participation among young artists is at the heart of one essay. New methodology, involving interactive technology, is introduced in this contribution. Issues addressed include the role of context (social, social, institutional, political) in fashioning individual political behavior. In addition to individuals, groups have been studied in how coalitions have renewed political participation, expression of citizenship, & other forms of organized engagement. Conscious of adopting an iconoclastic approach to political participation, the authors regard themselves as describing a form of mobilization in process of development because these coalitions have the potential of replacing more official forms of political organization. Parallel to this is the increase in purely local politics, especially when it comes to ecological issues. Such developments raise issues about political spaces where the population is more eager to participate in small neighborhood spaces & less likely to do so in larger municipal spaces. In such instances, life space & political space become synonymous. This point of view has a serious effect on representation & participation. Generational differences also figure importantly here as well since young (18 to 30 years old) differ from their elders. Finally, mentions new forms of participation: Internet mobilization, for example. R. Ruffin

The foreign policies of Central European countries cannot be summarized simply through a systematic Atlanticism, a fact that could be explained by the fear of a threat coming from Russia. The countries' diverse policies have grown out of national differences and evolve in response to domestic political contexts and the international situation. The Eastern Partnership, though there are different opinions about it, maintains an important place within EU policy. (Politique étrangère (Paris) / SWP)