Parenthood and the polarisation of political attitudes in Europe

Becoming a parent can affect the lives of men and women by introducing salient new social roles and identities, altered social networks and tighter constraints on financial resources and time. Even though modern family life has evolved in many important respects, parenthood continues to shape the lives of men and women in very different ways. Given that parenthood can change the lives of men and women in profoundly different ways, it seems that it would bring about changes in the way women and men think about politics and policy issues. Using data from the Wave 4 of the European Social Survey, this article investigates how parenthood, and the distinctions of motherhood and fatherhood, influence attitudes. The findings suggest that parenthood can have a polarising effect on attitudes, and that the polarising effect is most evident in countries where there is less support from the state for parental responsibilities.     

Financing Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness: Use of Interlocal Cost‐Sharing

Before this study, much of the research on interlocal collaboration has focused broadly on interlocal service agreements, of which interlocal cost‐sharing is but one dimension. This study is one of the first to examine the nature of interlocal cost‐sharing agreements for a specific (and critically important) functional area. A mail survey of Florida city and county finance officers finds that the most common interlocal cost‐sharing partnership is between local general purpose governments rather than with local special purpose governments. The strongest incentives for interlocal cost‐sharing are (1) inadequate funding for emergency management in a jurisdiction's capital budget, (2) the perceived inadequacy of federal and/or state homeland security funding, and (3) greater faith in horizontal (local‐to‐local) than vertical (federal‐state‐local) intergovernmental agreements. The research also highlights the importance of asking fiscal condition survey questions in a more functionally specific manner rather than as an “overall fiscal condition” question.     

RAPID RURAL APPRAISAL: ITS USE AND VALUE FOR HEALTH PLANNERS AND MANAGERS

Rapid appraisals have proliferated in the field of health in the past decade because of their perceived promise of obtaining information for planning and managing programmes cheaply and quickly. This article examines one type of appraisal, Rapid Rural Appraisal ( rra ) in order to assess the contribution of this approach. The background to its development is described, highlighting the relevance to primary health care ( phc ). Its two essential characteristics – qualitative inquiry and community participation are noted. The approach is examined, the techniques described and case studies which have used the approach are presented. The strengths and weaknesses of the approach based on these examples are assessed. The article concludes that the rra approach should not be seen merely as an approach to get information for the planning process but rather as an integral part of the process itself. Its contribution is to improve the quality of the information planners obtain and to develop plans of action by using qualitative inquiry and involving the community in this process.     

High Conflict Divorce,Violence, and Abuse: Implications for Custody and Visitation Decisions

Today, judges are faced with the daunting task of determining the best interests of the child and making appropriate custody awards to that end. The best interests of children becomes a critical question when domestic violence is involved; yet, determining what constitutes domestic violence is often debated. Research is often divided on what constitutes domestic violence. One body of research focuses on conflict, another focuses on domestic violence. What the first group identifies as intense emotional distress and disagreement, the other identifies as abuse. Judges making custody determinations in such cases are faced with the difficult challenge of distinguishing between a divorce with “high conflict” and a domestic violence case with ongoing abuse. This article will summarize the legal, philosophical, and historical understandings of the “high conflict” family and its potential impact on children. It will also provide practical judicial guidelines for making the important distinction between high conflict and domestic violence and subsequently crafting appropriate and safe child custody awards.     

Mediator Settlement Strategies

Settling cases poses a challenging task for the mediator. Most disputes are hotly contested by both parties or they would not have progressed to the point of entering the court arena or mediation. Yet, despite differences in the nature of their cases, the organization of each program we have studied, and the style of mediation predominating in each, striking similarities exist in the techniques used by the mediators to settle cases. Observation of over 40 different mediators in 175 mediation sessions in three programs suggests that in order to do the job which they are charged with accomplishing—bringing mediation cases to settlement— mediators develop a repertoire of strategies employing a variety of sources of power. Mediator strategies fall into four principal categories: presentation of self and the program, control of the process of mediation, control of the substantive issues in mediation, and activation of commitments and norms. Mediators empower themselves by claiming authority for themselves, their task, or the program based upon values external to the immediate situation, or manipulate the immediate situation so that settlement is more rather than less likely. Based upon their differential use of these strategies, mediator styles fall along a continuum between two types: bargaining and therapy. Mediation seems to range between a bargaining process conducted in the shadow of the court to a communication process which resembles therapy in its focus upon exploring and enunciating feelings .     

The 'paradox of enrollment': Assessing the costs and benefits of party memberships

Abstract. From Duverger onward, students of party organization have failed to address systematically the question of what party members actually do for 'mass' parties. This article argues that a clearer understanding of the particular reasons why parties want to have members can help us better interpret ongoing changes in relations between specific party organizations and individual party members. This article lists a wide range of arguments that parties are most likely to make concerning the costs and benefits of memberships. Which of these types of arguments a specific party highlights has implications about the types of members it is looking to attract, and about what the party will be willing to offer to attract such members. The article concludes with a discussion showing how the perspective developed here can be used to illuminate recent changes in several German and British political party organizations, changes which, by themselves, may appear to be isolated and meaningless organizational details.     

Libel Lawyers as Risk Counselors: Pre-publication and Pre-broadcast Review and the Social Construction of News1

American libel law presents profound dilemmas about how to provide compensation to individuals for injury to their reputation without destroying First Amendment values of free expression and unfettered public debate. This paper looks at the substantial legal costs incurred by publishers and broadcasters in defending themselves against charges of libel, the response of the courts to limit press self-censorship occasioned by the risks of libel litigation, and the perverse effect they both have on the social construction of the news. These tensions are captured in the role of the media lawyer who reviews news stories prior to publication or broadcast and advises editors about libel risks. Data are presented from interviews of 53 in-house and outside counsel who regularly review stories for newspapers, television stations and networks, magazines, and other news organizations. A paradox emerges: media lawyers, in pursuit of constitutional protections of free speech, have come to enforce responsible journalism, while subtly chilling and shaping the ways the news is told.     

Legislative Demands for Bureaucratic Policymaking: The Case of State Medical Boards

Abstract While much is known about the relationship between Congress and regulatory agencies, there has been little examination of the role state legislatures play in the activities of state regulatory bodies, particularly those activities related to timely, salient policy issues. This article explores the relationship of state legislatures to medical boards, which are increasingly becoming more policy active. We find that state legislative involvement and influence are the most important determinants of policy‐active state medical boards; institutional elements play a secondary role. Major changes in the private health care delivery system affect legislative involvement and play an indirect role in predicting policy activism. We drew our data from a 50‐state survey of executive directors of state medical boards.