EU referendums in context: What can we learn from the Swiss case?

The rising number of referendums on EU matters, such as the Brexit and the Catalonian independence votes, highlight the increasing importance of referendums as a problem‐solving mechanism in the EU. We argue that the Swiss case provides essential insights into understanding the dynamics behind referendums, which are often lacking when referendums are called for in the EU. Referendums in EU member states on EU matters differ substantially from those in the Swiss context. Nevertheless, proponents of more direct democratic decision‐making regularly cite the Swiss example. Our systematic analysis of why referendums are called, how they unfold and their effects in the EU and Switzerland reveals that the EU polity lacks the crucial conditions that embed direct democracy within the wider political and institutional system. The comparative perspective offers fundamental insights into the preconditions required for direct democracy to function and its limitations in the EU.     

The local state in Canada: theoretical perspectives

Studies of government at the local level tend to be focused on the municipalities. To understand the full range of institutions at this level, a broader conception of the “local state” is required. The latter refers to the state in so far as it is present in and concerned with the local community, and thus it encompasses local agencies of the central state as well as local governments. To conceive of the local state in this way allows for a critical assessment of competing theories of local government in Canada. The latter describe local institutions variously as the third order of government, agencies for special purposes, the local public economy, or local apparatuses of the state. All but the first draw attention to non-municipal agencies at the local level, but none give an adequate account of the structure and functions of the local state as a whole. What is required is a theory that takes the pressure for local self-government seriously, and is sensitive to both geographical variation and historical change.     

Forensic archaeoentomology--An insect fauna from a burial in York Minster

An insect fauna associated with the medieval burial of Archbishop Greenfield, interred in December 1315 in a lead coffin within a stone sarcophagus beneath the floor of York Minster, is examined and compared with the limited entomological data from other medieval burials. The implications of the archaeoentomological data are discussed. The fauna is dominated by the so-called coffin beetle Rhizophagus parallelocollis and the generalised staphylinid predator Quedius mesomelinus, together with a number of subterranean fungal feeders. The beetle assemblage is probably immediately post burial, and the lead coffin in the case of Greenfield had not been able to shield the body from decay.     

When Citizens Fight Back: Justice Sensitivity and Resistance to Political Reform

A considerable number of individuals show resistance to reform, whereas others, although similarly affected, do not react in a resistant way at all. Based on research showing that people differ concerning how sensitive they are toward being a victim of injustice (victim justice sensitivity), we argued that people high in victim justice sensitivity perceive a reform more as an illegitimate limitation to their freedom resulting in more reactance. Consequently, people high in victim justice sensitivity should show more resistance to reform. We conducted three studies to test these assumptions. Our studies revealed that physicians (healthcare reform, Study 1) and students (introduction of tuition fees, Studies 2 and 3) with higher victim justice sensitivity experienced more reactance and thus showed more resistance to reform. The implications of these results for the implementation of political reforms are discussed.