Rorschach-in-Action: Some Further Observations on the Semiotic Summons in Police-Citizen Encounters

The police are one of the mostauthoritative and visible agents of thecriminal law; yet, they have often beenconceptualized in an ``unofficial' way, aspseudo-parental figures, counselors, andmediators – and as inkblots that evoke a widerange of reactions from citizens, from anxietyand rage to fear. Explanations for these typesof reactions have been overly impressionistic,speculative, and psychological. In this note, Iconsider the notion of the police as``Rorschach-in-uniform.' By using data fromroutine traffic stops, I demonstrate how thesummons/answer sequence that is commonly foundin social and bureaucratic encounters isreduced and adapted to meet the situationalrelevancies of police work. I argue that it isthrough the semiotic summons that the Rorschachis given a practical embodiment.     

The business of translation: The Johns Hopkins University Discovery to Market program

This article describes the design and implementation of a technology commercialization course at a major research university. It discusses the integration between the scientific research enterprise and the business of innovation through an practice based course, the resources required, the challenges encountered, and the results of the initiative. Policy implications from the lessons learned are discussed. Suggestions on how such a program could be implemented in other institutions of higher learning, together with thoughts on future directions and improvements are offered.     

With Arms Wide Shut: Threat Perception,Norm Reception,and Mobilized Resistance to LGBT Rights

This article utilizes original survey and interview data to explore why norms governing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights mobilize an active resistance in some cases and not in others. Based on a comparison of Poland and Slovenia, this article shows that differing perceptions of threat define the way international norms are received in distinct domestic realms. Threat perception is heightened in cases where religion is historically embedded in the essence of the popular nation. In Poland, the Catholic Church created a role for itself as a symbol of the nation. There, the domestic opposition succeeded in framing a narrative that linked LGBT rights to external forces threatening national values. By contrast, the Catholic Church in Slovenia could neither maintain nor (re-)establish similarly strong ties to the popular nation, stifling the opposition's ability to mobilize a robust popular resistance. Whether resistance is effectual, however, is a related but separate question. The data suggest that resistance produced in high-threat contexts can be self-defeating in that it enhances the salience of the norm in the domestic setting.     

Jurisgenerative role of auditors in transnational labor governance

This article builds on the model of regulatory intermediaries by incorporating insights from the field of legal hermeneutics about the process through which the meaning of a legal rule emerges. It describes how intermediaries can take on a jurisgenerative role in the development of legal rules through their interpretation of legal rules. This role is demonstrated through an analysis of social audits from Chinese and Vietnamese factories involved in the Fair Labor Association (FLA). The analysis illustrates how the integration of fundamental labor rights into the FLA's private Code of Conduct requires auditors to develop new interpretations of the Freedom of Association as a result of uncertainties and contradictions between legal requirements at various levels, as well as with the FLA's own rules. Through this empirical analysis, the article contributes to the literature by identifying regulatory intermediaries’ jurisgenerative capacities when they monitor fundamental labor rights referenced by private governance instruments. It further highlights why legal and regulatory governance scholars need to consider the transformative effects that transnational private labor governance may have on international labor law.     

Variation in the Measurement of Cranial Volume and Surface Area Using 3D Laser Scanning Technology

Abstract: Three‐dimensional (3D) laser scanner models of human crania can be used for forensic facial reconstruction, and for obtaining craniometric data useful for estimating age, sex, and population affinity of unidentified human remains. However, the use of computer‐generated measurements in a casework setting requires the measurement precision to be known. Here, we assess the repeatability and precision of cranial volume and surface area measurements using 3D laser scanner models created by different operators using different protocols for collecting and processing data. We report intraobserver measurement errors of 0.2% and interobserver errors of 2% of the total area and volume values, suggesting that observer‐related errors do not pose major obstacles for sharing, combining, or comparing such measurements. Nevertheless, as no standardized procedure exists for area or volume measurements from 3D models, it is imperative to report the scanning and postscanning protocols employed when such measurements are conducted in a forensic setting.     

The view from city hall: Local perceptions of intergovernmental fiscal relations in the Czech Republic

This article analyzes perceptions of inter-governmental fiscal relations as held by local officials of the Czech Republic. The field study probes local perceptions of progress toward fiscal decentralization in the Czech Republic. A statistical analysis is based on a scaling of cities according to size and according to a generalized, multi-part measure of fiscal autonomy. This measure is effective in discriminating high and low autonomy cities by size, types of expenditures, and funding sources. Cities of diverse sizes are divided into groups reflecting perceptions of greater or lesser autonomy. The implications of the findings are discussed.     

Studying Perceptions of Juror Influence In Vivo: A Social Relations Analysis

Because of legal constraints and statistical limitations there has been little research on social influence in actual juries. We used Kenny's (1994) social relations model to examine jurors' perceptions of social influence in the jury. After rendering a verdict in criminal or civil court cases, jurors rated how influential each member of the jury had been and provided self-reports of their personality traits. Perceptions of influence in the jury were mostly in the eye of the beholder, with jurors high in Conscientiousness and low in Openness being most likely to report that they were personally influenced by other jurors. There were small but statistically significant levels of consensus in the ratings of how influential the jurors were. To the extent that they did agree, jurors rated extraverted, tall men as most influential.     

A latent variable model of the Family-of-Origin Scale for adolescents

The Family-of-Origin Scale (FOS) is a recently developed 40-item instrument originally designed to assess adults' perceptions of the family in which they were raised. A modified version of the FOS has shown promise for assessing adolescents' perceptions of the extent to which their family fosters autonomy and intimacy. The current study involved administration of the FOS to a large sample of adolescents currently residing with their family of origin. Confirmatory factor analysis supports the scale's original 13 theoretical constructs and establishes factorial validity. Follow-up hierarchical tests indicate the current confirmatory model provides a significant refinement over other plausible models proposed by several different authors finding a similar unitary factor employing exploratory factor analyses.