政治心理视角下的网络政治参与

网络政治参与在我国已成峰火燎原之势.在网络政治参与众语喧哗的背后,蕴藏着我国公民对廉洁政府、服务型政府和社会公平正义的诸多期待.这种期待是网络政治参与动机的重要构成部分.网络政治参与动机主要有三种:经济利益动机、伦理道德动机、归属和成就动机.在多种动机驱动下的网民,通过网络上的学习、交流和强化,最终形成网络"群体极化"现象."群体极化"现象的形成,客观上要求政府对网络政治参与心理进行调适和疏导.     

中文BBS论坛中涉日议题的网络民族主义呈现

互联网BBS论坛为民族主义问题的开放讨论提供了全新而自由的平台。基于特殊事件的民族主义分析框架,是否适用于网络常态舆论中与民族国家相关问题的探讨,是一个值得检验的命题。本研究发现,网络常态舆论中的涉日议题在不同论坛具有不同类型偏好;涉日议题并非均为负面话题,也不能普遍性地引发具有民族主义倾向的讨论;该类议题所触发语言暴力的程度低于其他常规性议题;不同论坛间用户在部分议题类别上呈现出较为明显的态度差异。     

国家极化与当代欧美民主政治危机

国家极化现象是当代欧美民主发展的最新趋势,是理解当前欧美政治危机的症结所在。国家极化是经济极化和政治极化的深度扩张,是社会极化和文化极化的双重累加,呈现简单而线性的演进逻辑与复合而显著的现实特征。在经济获益失衡、多元文化主义受挫、公民价值观念扭转、政治传播转型以及政治版图洗牌与选民阵营重组等诸多因素的强势推动下,国家极化不断升级、愈演愈烈。国家极化内含强大的破坏力、解构力和重塑力,对欧美国内政治形势、国际关系格局和未来政治走向影响深远,尤以否决政体、极端政治、信任危机、"后真相政治"的出现以及全球秩序的重构最值得关注。国家极化现象为发展中国家带来了新的契机和挑战,为未来政治发展提供了新的可能。     

中国比较政治研究的议题、价值与方法

改革开放至今,中国比较政治学发展可以分为"制度—行为主义"和"理论与方法自觉"两个时期。近年来,专业研究机构的相继成立、研究刊物建设的长足发展和相关学术会议的不断召开,使得比较政治学出现爆发性的发展势头。然而,这当中也存在行业组织缺乏、原创性成果薄弱、国际化程度不高等问题。中国比较政治学的进一步发展亟须厘清议题、价值和方法等一系列问题:首先,中国比较政治学的议题设置应以国家治理为核心,并在与其相关的具体问题领域上逐步展开;其次,在价值定位上,中国比较政治学界要充分利用后发国家的优势,超越普遍主义和特殊主义的极化争论;最后,在方法创新上,中国比较政治研究要致力于具体方法创新、文献学建设和指数化等内容。总之,比较政治研究是一国软实力的重要组成部分,而中国比较政治研究的水平与目前中国日益崛起的国际影响力已不相符合。在这一背景下,中国比较政治研究的内涵性发展势在必行。     

媒介信息处理能力与政治认知关系实证研究——以广州高校大学生为例

大学生是使用大众媒介的主要群体以及社会主义社会民主政治建设的主体力量,在信息时代背景下探讨大学生的媒介信息处理能力与政治认知的关系具有重要的研究价值。为此笔者以广州的大学生为例,抽取了广州市八所高校的大学生进行问卷调查,1分析结果发现大学生的媒介信息处理能力与政治认知是相互影响的,媒介信息处理能力越高,其政治认知程度也越高;政治认知程度越高,其媒介信息处理能力也越高。     

青年网民的媒体使用偏好与政治信任

基于"网民社会意识调查"的相关数据,探讨媒体使用偏好对青年网民政治信任的影响。研究发现,在日常情境下,青年网民的官方媒体使用偏好会对其政治信任产生正面的影响作用,而社交媒体使用偏好的影响并不显著,对青年政治信任具有负面影响的是海外媒体使用偏好;在突发事件中,媒体使用偏好对青年政治信任的影响出现两极分化效应,官方媒体使用偏好越强,青年网民的政治信任程度越高,而社交媒体与海外媒体使用偏好则会带来显著的负面影响;青年网络表达参与的程度越高,越有利于提升他们对基层政府的信任水平。网络时代媒体使用偏好是影响青年政治信任的关键因素,这为数字政府治理提供一定的政策启示。     

社会分层视野下的政治认同——基于三种群体利益实现的视角

利益认同是政治认同的逻辑起点.改革开放初期,人民内部的利益关系得到较好的调整,政府与执政党积累了较好的政治认同基础.现阶段,社会利益分化加剧、阶层分化明显,不同的阶层、同一阶层内部不同的群体因为利益实现的程度不同而形成了不同的政治认知和评价.基于利益分化与获得,可将我国人民分为既得利益阶层、中间阶层和弱势利益阶层.既得利益阶层中既有基于信仰形成的价值认同,也有基于利益获得与维护形成的"赞同"却"不认同"的政治态度;中间阶层其政治情感表现在认同中有挣扎、在肯定中有迷茫、在否定中有期待,还有一小部分中间阶层政治情感走向极端;弱势利益群体因为社会支持不够、参政能力和参政渠道有限等问题,其政治认同总体走低.     

社会转型下的政治焦虑

转型时期的政治焦虑突出表现在政治迷失感、群体极化趋势、隐蔽式"暴力"寻租,而基于政治人格的政治盔甲以及政治生态的解构、对虚拟政治的不适和政治紧张则是政治焦虑的导源体。构建合理的政治参与秩序、疏通多样的政治流通渠道、科学调适政治心理、构建社会保障体系,是消弭政治焦虑、形成政治幸福指数的关键。     

当代中国公民网络政治参与的主体困境探析

当代中国公民网络政治参与的主体主要包括以"新意见阶层"为主体的网民、以网络意见领袖为主体的网络政治精英和以基于共同的兴趣爱好或者共同的利益诉求而结成的网络政治共同体。他们在政治参与的过程中往往面临着参与理念、参与能力和参与方式的困境,参与理念困境表现为民主参与理念与追求利益之争的冲突,参与能力困境表现为实现网络权利与现实数字鸿沟的冲突,而参与方式困境则表现为多元互动方式与"群体极化"行为的冲突。     

算法政治转向与治理功能弱化：新科技革命下西方政党政治发展趋势研判

新科技革命呈现出计算机化、网络化、智能化等三个阶段性特征。从新科技革命对西方政党政治发展的影响来看,在政党组织结构的特征上,计算机化作为一种辅助性的工具并未对政党组织结构产生较大影响;网络化通过社交媒体增加了政党精英与选民的直接沟通,使得欧洲政党组织结构出现美国化转向;智能化通过智能技术增加了对选举结果的预测和引导,改变了传统的政党组织结构,加剧了年轻人的政治冷漠和政党结构凝聚力的弱化。在政党意识形态的特征上,计算机化可以辅助政党对新议题作出快速回应;网络化导致政党意识形态的碎片化,可能引发政治的无序;智能化则进一步加剧政党意识形态的极化,可能导致政治的失序。西方选举政治异化的两个特征是政治算法化和政治极化。要解决这一问题,西方国家需要重新思考政党的作用,让政党的治理功能更加发挥作用。在未来中国共产党的建设中,我们需要积极推动新技术在党的建设中的应用,并充分认识新兴技术的两面性,强化政党的政治目的和治理意义。     

Preferential trade agreements and power asymmetries: the case of technological protection measures in Australia

Since the 1980s states have sought to harmonise economic standards to aid the flow of goods, services and finance across borders. The founding agreements of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), for example, harmonised standards on services, intellectual property and investment. However, mutlilateral trade negotiations in the WTO have since stalled. In response, the United States (US) has engaged in forum shopping, using preferential trade agreements at the bilateral, regional and multinational level to harmonise international standards. This article argues that through forum shopping the US has been able to export standards that support the commercial interests of US-based industries more than they encourage economic exchange across borders. Furthermore, because power asymmetries are starker in preferential trade negotiations smaller and middle power states should not enter trade agreements, which include regulatory harmonisation. This is illustrated with the case of the US-Australia free trade agreement, looking specifically at a copyright standard known as technological protection measures (TPMs). It was clear before, during and after the agreement was signed that Australia’s existing standard on TPMs was more popular than the US-style standard. Nevertheless, a US-style standard is in effect domestically because of the trade agreement.     

In Pursuit of Civic Participation: The Early Experiences of the Northern Ireland Civic Forum, 2000–2002

Northern Ireland's Civic Forum is a key civic participation mechanism agreed as part of the Belfast Agreement and established under the Northern Ireland Act 1998. It brings together representatives from various sectors to act as a 'consultative forum' on 'social, economic, and cultural issues'. This article argues that 'civic society' has to be understood as a 'transactional reality' in the Foucauldian sense, such that the task of the Civic Forum – to allow the participation of 'civic society'– entails the continual construction of its own boundaries and remit. These are contested, not only outside the forum where political considerations have made it somewhat controversial, but also within. It is argued here that this is necessarily so, given the need for the forum to carve out a position between its constitutive outsides. Of particular concern has been the meaning of 'consultative', as competing understandings of this key term position the forum differently with respect both to the legislative Northern Ireland Assembly and to Northern Irish society as a whole. Additionally, the ethical imperative to give voice to wider society is examined, as it influences the way members of the forum articulate their role. Finally, I discuss the forum's sense of its unique identity – as given by its opportunity to enact an inclusive and diverse political space. The argument draws throughout on a qualitative sociological study that employed observation of the forum's plenary sessions over an eighteen-month period (2000–2002) and semi-structured interviews with selected members.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Forum Internum</Emphasis> Revisited: Considering the Absolute Core of Freedom of Belief and Opinion in Terms of Negative Liberty,Authenticity, and Capability

Human rights theory generally conceptualizes freedom of thought, conscience, religion, and belief as well as freedom of opinion and expression, as offering absolute protection in what is called the forum internum. At a minimum, this is taken to mean the right to maintain thoughts in one’s own mind, whatever they may be and independently of how others may feel about them. However, if we adopt this stance, it seems to imply that there exists an absolute right to hold psychotic delusions. This article takes the position that this conclusion is ethically problematic from the perspective of psychiatric treatment and the rights of persons with psychosis. The article reflects on this particular challenge and sets forth an understanding of freedom in the forum internum that might apply to situations where for various reasons it is not, necessarily accurate to maintain that persons have an absolute right to their own thoughts. For the purpose of proposing such an understanding, the article engages with current debates within human rights theory and political philosophy and analyzes discussions about psychotic delusions and the way in which involuntary treatment is justified. Based on this analysis, this article in turn conceptualizes freedom in the forum internum as ‘negative liberty’, ‘authenticity’, and ‘capability’. This article suggests that when forum internum is redefined as encompassing a right to certain internal capabilities, the right remains meaningful for persons with psychotic delusions as well.     

Theoretically refining the multiple streams framework: An introduction

This introduction to the forum section on the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) developed by John W. Kingdon argues that the conditions under which policy making takes place today increasingly resemble the assumptions upon which Kingdon built his lens. At the same time, while the framework is extremely successful with regard to citations and has been applied in various contexts that often differ remarkably from those for which the framework was originally developed, a systematic theoretical debate about the Multiple Streams Framework is still lacking. It is the intention to spark such a debate with this forum section.     

Big Questions for a Significant Public Administration

During the 1999 "Building Bridges Tour" (see Stivers 2000), PAR readers encouraged the editors to focus more attention on the so-called "Big Questions/Big Issues" of the field of public administration. In response to this suggestion, we created a new forum for scholarly discourse simply called "Big Questions/Big Issues." This inaugural forum begins with a context setting essay by John Kirlin,a leading proponent of the Big Questions/Big Issues perspective. Kirlin' essay is immediately followed by Laurence E. Lynn Jr.'s thought provoking piece, "The Myth of the Bureaucratic Paradigm: What Traditional Public Administration Really Stood For." Lynn' essay is important for it takes to task those who carelessly attack "traditional public administration." We asked J. Patrick Dobel (University of Washington), David Rosenbloom (American University), Norma Riccucci (State University of New York at Albany), and James Svara (North Carolina State) to respond to Lynn' essay. We invite PAR readers to join the conversation using PAR' message board online at ASPA's Online Community (http://www.memberconnections.com/aspa/) or by writing directly to theauthors and/or editors.—LDT     

Crisis over,G20 struggles to prove its utility

It is four years since, in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis, the Group of 20 (G20) was created as a key forum for global governance. But despite its initial promise as a useful means of marshalling a coordinated response to the crisis, cooperation among G20 governments has since become more difficult as they focus on domestic economic and political issues, and the body's effectiveness has declined.     

Integrating Public Deliberation into Engineering Systems: Participatory Technology Assessment of NASA’s Asteroid Redirect Mission

We discuss an experiment employing participatory technology assessment (pTA), a public deliberation method for eliciting lay citizen input prior to making decisions about science and technology to inform upstream engineering decisions concerning technical aspects of NASA’s Asteroid Initiative. In partnership with NASA, the Expert and Citizen Assessment of Science and Technology network conducted a pTA forum on NASA’s Asteroid Initiative in 2014. The goal of the exercise was to assess citizens’ values and preferences about potential asteroid detection, asteroid mitigation, and exploration-based technologies associated with NASA’s Initiative. This article discusses the portion of the forum that focused on the Asteroid Redirect Mission, an effort to redirect an asteroid into lunar orbit that astronauts can study. The forum sought public input on two options for performing the mission that NASA included in technical assessments to make a down select decision: Option A to capture a 10-meter-diameter asteroid; or Option B to redirect a several-meters-diameter boulder from the surface of a larger asteroid. We describe the values and perceptions participants had about Option A and B, how these results were used by NASA managers, and the impact the results of the pTA had on the down select.     

APEC and the WTO: Collision or co‐operation?

Abstract

The creation of an integration scheme of the dimensions of the Asia‐Pacific Economic Co‐operation forum (APEC) is causing concern for the future of the world trading system. APEC will either turn into an economic bloc or it will become a forum of limited relevance. If APEC decided to form a classic free trade area and provided its trade concessions only on the basis of reciprocity, there would be little need for the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the future. Considering its size, APEC could then easily develop into a competing system for the liberalization of trade. If, however, APEC continues its policy of ‘coordinated unilateral liberalization’, the motivation for APEC will have to be questioned: if trade liberalization following the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) logic, i.e. on a non‐discriminatory basis following the most‐favoured nation principle, is desired, should not this aim be pursued in the appropriate forum, i.e. in the World Trade Organization (WTO)?     

Toward Participatory and Transparent Governance: Report on the Sixth Global Forum on Reinventing Government:

The Global Forum on Reinventing Government has made government reform and new forms of comparative public administration and politics global issues. Since the forum was initiated in the United States in 1999, it has been held in locations around the world with broad representation. Yet the proceedings of these forums have not been fully reported to the international public administration community. This paper reports on the ideas on reinventing governance that emerged from the Sixth Global Forum. Many of the participants in the forum came from developing countries, so the paper also provides ideas and points of view on governance that are beyond the mainstream literature in this area.     

Rivalry and superior dispatch: an?analysis of competing courts in medieval and early modern England

In most areas, economists look to competition to align incentives, but not so with courts. Many believe that competition enables plaintiff forum shopping, but Adam Smith praised rivalry among courts. This article describes the courts when the common law developed. In many areas of law, courts were monopolized and imposed decisions on unwilling participants. In other areas, however, large degrees of competition and consent were present. In many areas, local, hundred, manorial, county, ecclesiastical, law merchant, chancery, and common law courts competed for customers. When parties had a choice, courts needed to provide a forum that was ex ante value maximizing.