The inventory of differences

The new democratic left interprets socialism as involving the radical democratization of civil society and the state. Both conceptions of democracy and conceptions of socialism are variations on the theme of a self-govering community. The first part of this paper explores the diversity of accounts of democracy and of the issues in dispute between them. Part 2 then proceeds to identify conceptual difficulties with these ideas, and to examine some of their consequences for political analysis. While the theme of a self-governing community has always been somewhat problematic there are significant features of the modern world that further undermine any plausibility it may once have had. These conceptual weaknesses inherent in ideas of democracy and of socialism limit their untility as tools of political argument, and help to account for some of the difficulties socialists have in coming to terms with the world in which they now find themselves. The argument is not that the idea of socialism as enhanced democratization should be abandoned, but rather that such an idea is radically incomplete. A socialism that is worthy of support must address the substantive social and political problems of the societies in which it operates. The slogan of democratization is of limited value in identifying those problems or in establishing solutions to them.     

How Adenauer Lost Power: Understanding Leadership Rivalry and Succession Conflict in Political Parties

In this article, we reconstruct and interpret the Adenauer–Erhard leadership rivalry in the CDU. This leadership struggle culminated in Erhard replacing Adenauer in 1963 and Adenauer's continued ‘guerrilla’ warfare against Erhard's leadership, which was one of the contributing factors to the brevity of Erhard's tenure. The case is of intrinsic historical interest but also provides a muster for recent and ongoing leadership succession predicaments in governing parties in Germany and elsewhere. The article presents a conceptual framework of party leadership succession, and zooms in on the (mis)match between the tactical choices made by the incumbent leader and key succession candidates as a key factor explaining the nature and impact of successions. The framework is then applied to the case, and the implications of the findings are placed in a broader comparative context.     

农民工文化生活性别差异研究——以福建省为例

利用2010年福建省农民工文化生活状况调查数据,从性别角色、资源交换和生命周期三种理论入手,分析了福建省农民工文化生活在婚姻、年龄、教育程度和经济收入因素影响下的时间、金钱投入及文化活动种类方面的性别差异,并就研究结论提出有针对性的建议。     

Barriers to third‐party advertising in Canadian elections

A survey of public interest group leaders suggests some reasons why few third parties have chosen to advertise in recent elections. It indicates that public interest groups abstain from election advertising not because of the strictures of the Canada Elections Act but for other reasons, notably cost and fear of losing charitable status or of jeopardizing their access to and influence with officials. While the significance of these findings is limited by the scale of the survey, the results do raise tantalizing questions that warrant further research.     

The Relationship Between School Engagement and Delinquency in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence

Engagement in school is crucial for academic success and school completion. Surprisingly little research has focused on the relationship between student engagement and delinquency. This study examines whether engagement predicts subsequent school and general misconduct among 4,890 inner-city Chicago elementary school students (mean age: 11 years and 4 months; 43.3% boys; 66.5% black; 28.8% Latino). To improve upon prior research in this area, we distinguish three types of engagement (emotional, behavioral, and cognitive), examine whether the relationship between engagement and misconduct is bidirectional (misconduct also impairs engagement), and control for possible common causes of low engagement and misconduct, including peer and family relationships and relatively stable indicators of risk-proneness. Emotional and behavioral engagement predict decreases in school and general delinquency. However, cognitive engagement is associated with increases in these outcomes. School and general delinquency predict decreased engagement only in the cognitive domain. Suggestions for future research and implications for policy are discussed.     

基于SNA视角的政府投资项目合谋关系研究

政府投资项目中腐败案件和工程事故的背后往往存在着合谋问题,合谋主体之间通过社会关系网结成合谋网络。本文从社会网络视角研究合谋关系结构特征,以上海"11.15"大火为例通过SNA分析政府投资项目中各利益主体之间的合谋关系及其利益关系。研究表明合谋关系网与利益关系网之间存在不一致性,合谋关系网中建设单位与总承包单位居于核心位置,合谋网络呈现多个中心性质。在结构洞位置,关键中间人通过收取建桥费获得高额合谋收益,而其他结构洞位置行为人通过收取过桥费获得合谋收益。合谋网络的核心结构行为人具有跨项目合谋特性,而其他行为人合谋具有单个项目性质。本文实现了微观具体主体行为与宏观关系网络相结合,拓展了社会网络分析方法在合谋领域的应用,丰富了对合谋关系的认识,强调在治理合谋问题时在关注合谋利益的同时,应关注关系网络。     

公共政策与社会政策：一个系统论的比较

公共政策与社会政策是多学科的交叉研究领域,二者行动主体和作用客体是存在差异的。公共政策的主体更多的是社会权威机构,以政府和利益集团为核心进行政策制定和决策分析;社会政策的主体是以政府为先导,更加依靠非政府的民间组织发挥政策制定和实施的功能。公共政策偏重权威资源的调配,其制定和决策更多是从宏观层面、整体布局上解决问题;而社会政策由于有社会民间组织的积极参与,使得它有可能关注具体而微的个体生活困境,直接面向需要解决困难的社会成员。