Regulate Yourself

The Leveson Inquiry recommended that a new press regulator be created, with a statutory backing—which the government and opposition agreed should be a Royal Charter. Presently, a Press Recognition Panel, backed by the Charter, has been created, but has attracted no requests for recognition. Only one regulator has been set up—IPSO: it has a membership of most of the newspaper and magazine groups in the UK, but will not ask for recognition, since it does not wish to have any formal link with the state. Though the campaign against the Royal Charter has been grossly overblown, the press is right to refuse to join an institution which is guaranteed by the state. State‐backed regulation, in any form, will not in the UK lead to tyranny, censorship or any more than occasional meddling. But a link to the state is a bad idea for an independent press. Not only does this set a bad precedent, opening up a temptation for behind‐the‐scenes pressure, but more importantly it misses the point. Bad and abusive journalism is not improved by regulation. It is improved by journalists understanding the main task of journalism is to report and analyse accurately and neutrally. This complements robust debate and opinion and contributes greatly to a well‐informed citizenry.     

Evaluation and education: the ideal learning community

In this article we develop philosophically Cronbach's (1982) suggestion that the evaluator is an educator. The motivation for this article arose from problems encountered by us on a major evaluation project and from dissatisfaction with the existent philosophical underpinnings of evaluation theory. We propose, and provide a justification for, a model of evaluation based upon the notion of the evaluator as educator, which is sufficiently broad philosophically not only to subsume scientistic and humanistic models, but also to transcend them. Within this broad philosophical model we develop a particular theory of evaluation, based essentially upon Wittgenstein, and in which the notion of a learning community is taken as central. Finally we consider some practical implications of this theory of evaluation.     

Cross-Border Criminal Investigation in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion: International Policing and the Theory of (inter-) Organisational Conflict

This article presents findings of the research by Nelen, Peters and Vanderhallen (2013b) regarding cross-border police cooperation in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion. These findings are scrutinised in light of the conceptual framework of inter-organisational conflict (Scott, Austral Social Work 58:132–141, 2005) to provide an enhanced and more in-depth analysis of the possibilities and difficulties in international police cooperation. Potential conflict between cooperating organisations is identified by five levels of analysis: (i) inter-organisational; (ii) intra-organisational; (iii) inter-professional; (iv) interpersonal and (v) intra-personal. Obstacles for international police cooperation are mainly found at the inter-organisational level and interpersonal level. Particularly, the Euroregional police organisations and their case management systems are ill attuned, creating conflict in cooperation. The article concludes with the potential benefits for further police cooperation in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion which are identified through the analysis and provides feedback on the conceptual framework.     

Classifying Risk Development and Predicting Parolee Recidivism with Growth Mixture Models

Using two data sets, containing 582 total cases, this study investigates whether classifying offenders on trajectories of risk scores helps predict parolee recidivism. One data set has 4 years of risk scores and another has three. Both data sets contain control variables measuring released inmates’ characteristics. The dependent variable measures arrest or return to prison over a 2-year span. A growth mixture model, classifies offenders into three classes, a stable and high trajectory group, a group with a high but declining risk trajectory, and a small, low-risk group with little change. Trajectory class membership correlates with recidivism in both data sets. Supplementary analyses show that assigned classes are better predictors of recidivism than last risk scores or simple change scores. Discussion centers on the appeal and relevance of trajectories of risk, as opposed to static measures, for predicting offender misconduct and other outcomes.     

Repeatability and reproducibility of comparison decisions by firearms examiners

In a comprehensive study to assess various aspects of the performance of qualified forensic firearms examiners, volunteer examiners compared both bullets and cartridge cases fired from three different types of firearms. They rendered opinions on each comparison according to the Association of Firearm & Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE) Range of Conclusions, as Identification, Inconclusive (A, B, or C), Elimination, or Unsuitable. In this part of the study, comparison sets used previously to characterize the overall accuracy of examiners were blindly resubmitted to examiners to assess the repeatability (105 examiners; 5700 comparisons of bullets and cartridge cases) and reproducibility (191 examiners of bullets, 193 of cartridge cases; 5790 comparisons) of firearms examinations. Data gathered using the prevailing AFTE Range were also recategorized into two hypothetical scoring systems. Consistently positive differences between observed agreement and expected agreement indicate that the repeatability and reproducibility of examiners exceed chance agreement. When averaged over bullets and cartridge cases, the repeatability of comparison decisions (involving all five levels of the AFTE Range) was 78.3% for known matches and 64.5% for known nonmatches. Similarly averaged reproducibility was 67.3%% for known matches and 36.5% for known nonmatches. For both repeatability and reproducibility, many of the observed disagreements were between a definitive and inconclusive category. Examiner decisions are reliable and trustworthy in the sense that identifications are unlikely when examiners are comparing non-matching items, and eliminations are unlikely when they are comparing matching items.     

Parliamentary control of CSDP: the case of the EU's fight against piracy off the Somali coast

Parliamentary involvement remains a key tool for the democratic control of executive policies. This article explores the web of parliamentary involvement in decision-making on European Union (EU) military operations, using insights gained in an in-depth case study on the EU's anti-piracy mission Atalanta. We find that parliaments at all levels became involved only after key political decisions had already been made. At the member state level, we find highly uneven involvement with only some parliaments being very well informed and closely monitoring, if not influencing government policy. The European Parliament became active only after the launch of the mission but then scrutinised it intensely, profiting (in contrast to national parliaments) from its access to top military officials and key decision-makers. Finally, transnational parliamentary assemblies as well as more informal networks provided opportunities to transmit information across the boundaries of individual parliaments and party-groups thus potentially enhancing the ability of parliamentarians to scrutinise government policies.     

Social Norms Theory,Enforcement, and Management Concepts: An Analysis of Local Smoking Ban Ordinances

Although there is substantial research on the consequences of smoking and the economic loss resulting from tobacco use, there is a scarcity of work on the enforcement of smoking ordinances at the local level. As municipalities around the country pass ordinances restricting smoking in public places, research should be conducted to understand enforcement outcomes. This article examines the management concepts being employed by managers in the enforcement of smoking ordinances. This article shows that management concepts are salient in policy enforcement and are employed to manage smoking enforcement ordinances. The theory of social norms is used to explain this phenomenon.