Why so much stability?: Another opinion

Public Choice - In this paper I have suggested three important factors that render majority rule stable in real world settings; small numbers of alternatives, constraints on agenda setters, and a...     

Modeling the interaction of parties, activists and voters: Why is the political center so empty?

Abstract.  The formal stochastic model of voting should be the theoretical benchmark against which empirical models can be gauged. A standard result in the formal model is the 'mean voter theorem' stating that parties converge to the electoral center. Empirical analysis based on the vote-maximizing premise, however, invalidates this convergence result. We consider both empirical and formal models that incorporate exogeneous valence terms for the parties. Valence can be regarded as an electorally perceived attribute of each party leader that is independent of the policy position of the party. We show that the mean voter theorem is valid for empirical multinomial logit and probit models of a number of elections in the Netherlands and Britain. To account for the non-centrist policy positions of parties, we consider a more general formal model where valence is also affected by the behavior of party activists. The results suggest that non-convergent policy choice by party leaders can be understood as rational, vote-maximizing calculation by leaders in response to electoral and activist motivations.     

Why so few, and why so late? Green parties and the question of governmental participation

Abstract.  Green parties have been represented in the parliaments of European Union countries since 1981, but it was not until recently that a few have entered national governments. Using a data set comprised of 51 government formation opportunities (where the Greens were represented in parliament), the authors of this article show that the parties involved in these bargaining situations are more office-oriented than earlier studies had found. As Green parties are seen to be less office-seeking than other parties, this general tendency for office-seeking behaviour in government formation may partly account for the scarcity of Greens in government. Furthermore, a number of hypotheses derived from theories that account for the specific nature of Green parties in terms of their office-, policy- and vote-seeking orientations are tested. It is found that Greens participate in government when they have lost votes in at least one election, when the main party of the left identifies them as a clear electoral threat and when the policy distance between the Greens and either the formateur party or the main left party is small (the latter condition must be accompanied by a substantial proportion of seats for the Green party in parliament). As most of these simultaneous conditions only materialized recently, and in a few countries, it is argued that this analysis, which is the first comparative and multivariate test focused on this question, explains the scarcity and the delay of Green governmental participation.     

城市社区自治是社会主义新型民主的生长点

我国城市社区建设开始于20世纪80年代的中期。最初,城市社区建设主要以社区服务为突破口和龙头,然后逐步扩展到社区文化、社区卫生、社区环境和社区治安等。目前,我国城市社区建设正转向以社区自治为龙头,以社区组织建设为重点,以社区组织建设带动社区事业建设的全方位社区建设的新阶段。     

网络公共论坛:虚拟空间中的协商民主实践

从逻辑关联看,网络公共论坛与协商民主具有内有内在契合性,它堪称虚拟空间中的协商民主实践.网络公共论坛努力地实践着协商民主的核心理念,它有利于拓展公共参与的空间,扩展公共参与,为公共参与清除时空和代表性等障碍,还有利于打破权威垄断,更能实现参与平等,推动政府官员与公民之间的直接对话.当然,网络公共论坛也是一把"双刃剑",其消极作用也不可忽视.推动网络公共空间中的协商民主茁壮成长、走向成熟是一个相当复杂的系统工程.四个重点问题需要注意:推动互联网建设和网络知识普及;加强网络民主政治的制度建设;构筑社区网络公共论坛;培育参与型政治文化.     

民主是具有普适性的价值

民主作为人类自由权利在政治领域的体现,作为一种普世价值,既没有资本主义民主、社会主义民主之分,其本身也没有阶级性可言。但是,就它的发展进程和实践来看,有史以来的民主都是有产者的民主。这就使它蒙上了一层阶级色彩。所谓资产阶级民主和无产阶级民主、资本主义民主和社会     

我国NGO参与社会福利为何困难重重——体制层面的分析

对于当今中国公众而言,NGO一词并不陌生。改革开放以来的三十余年中,我国各类NGO活跃在社会福利、公共服务、慈善事业等领域,成为社会福利社会化过程中的重要参与主体,也成了社会公众和媒体关注的焦点。然而,同国外相比,我国的NGO发展尚不成熟,其赖以生存制度环境依旧不稳定。我国NGO管理体制上的瓶颈在很大程度上限制了我国NGO的进一步发展。主要从体制层面分析我国NGO参与社会福利过程中的阻力,并寻求解决途径。     

Learning to Love Democracy: Electoral Accountability and the Success of Democracy

This article explains why dissatisfaction with the performance of individual politicians in new democracies often turns into disillusionment with democracy as a political system. The demands on elections as an instrument of political accountability are much greater in new than established democracies: politicians have yet to form reputations, a condition that facilitates the entry into politics of undesirable candidates who view this period as their “one‐time opportunity to get rich.” After a repeatedly disappointing government performance, voters may rationally conclude that “all politicians are crooks” and stop discriminating among them, to which all politicians rationally respond by “acting like crooks,” even if most may be willing to perform well in office if given appropriate incentives. Such an expectation‐driven failure of accountability, which I call the “trap of pessimistic expectations,” may precipitate the breakdown of democracy. Once politicians establish reputations for good performance, however, these act as barriers to the entry into politics of low‐quality politicians. The resulting improvement in government performance reinforces voters’ belief that democracy can deliver accountability, a process that I associate with democratic consolidation. These arguments provide theoretical microfoundations for several prominent empirical associations between the economic performance of new democracies, public attitudes toward democracy, and democratic stability.     

Why Overcoming Prejudice is Not Enough: A Rejoinder to Richard Rorty

Abstract

Misrecognition, taken seriously as unjust social subordination, cannot be remedied by eliminating prejudice alone. In this rejoinder to Richard Rorty, it is argued that a politics of recognition and a politics of redistribution can and should be combined. However, an identity politics that displaces redistribution and reifies group differences is deeply flawed. Here, instead, an alternative ‘status’ model of recognition politics is offered that encourages struggles to overcome status subordination and fosters parity of participation. Integrating this politics of recognition with redistribution enables a coherent Left vision that could redress injustices of culture and of political economy simultaneously.     

网络是民主的引擎?——技术乐观主义的困境与网络民主前景

互联网的诞生与普及激发了人们对现代民主发展的信心,网络和民主的关系问题成为当代政治学的前沿问题。技术乐观主义基于对网络独特的接入建构模式、网络空间的多维发散性和自由开放性、网络公共领域的形成、投票网络化变革等问题的认识,而坚信网络就是民主的引擎,网络以其自身的技术优势能够推进与创造现代民主。然而,网络信息不对称和信息失真、网络不平等和网络鸿沟、网络政治参与的非代表性和非理性、网络精英主义和网络暴政等现象使乐观主义的网络民主观念陷入了困境。网络在性质上只是一种信息传播工具和中性的技术力量,它无法自我民主化,只能在既有的制度框架内发挥着制度指向的政治功能。因此,网络民主的发展前景取决于网外制度设施的民主化程度,从网络的行政化监管转向公民的网络知情权、表达权和参与权的法律保护是推进网络民主的战略之路。