Multiple Voices of Modernization: Some Methodological Implications

This paper systematically examines intra-organizational consensus of perceptions of managerial reform in local government in the UK. The paper questions the role of 'elite surveys' in public sector evaluation research by exploring the extent to which multiple informants agree on the expected impacts of Best Value. Results from a survey of 978 local government officers in 80 local authorities indicate modest levels of consensus. These findings suggest that single respondent surveys are likely to produce unreliable data and misrepresent the impact of public sector policy reforms. Rather than rely on the perceptions of one respondent it is argued that multiple respondent surveys should be employed if rigorous and reliable data are to be used in providing evidence-based policy recommendations for reform in public sector organizations.     

Privacy rights in the classroom: Peer grading Supreme Court judgment 2002

The United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously in the case of Owasso Independent School District v. Falvo that the practice of students grading each other's work and then calling out the marks does not violate the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) 1974. The Court reversed the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals (10th Circuit). The judgment came in the case of a mother, Kristja Falvo, who objected to the practice of peer grading and recording in elementary schools. She felt that the practice was a violation of FERPA. Student grades, she argued, were an education record and should not be released to others in the class without a parent's permission. However, the Supreme Court ruled that such grades did not satisfy the definition of an 'education record' under FERPA. The judgment is significant. Teachers' organisations and bodies representing administrators welcomed the decision.     

Book reviews

Jeff Haynes, Religion in Global Politics (Longman, London, 1998), 243 pp., ISBN 0–582–29312‐X (pb)

Haleh Afshar, Islam and Feminisms. An Iranian Case‐study (Macmillan, London, 1998), 235 pp., ISBN 0–333–73324‐X (hb)

Felix Moses Edoho, Globalization and the New World Order: Promises, Problems, and Prospects for Africa in the Twenty First Century (Praeger, Westport, 1997), 215 pp., ISBN 0–275–95517–6 (hb)

Cyrus Ernesto Zirakzadeh, Social Movements in Politics. A Comparative Study (Longman, London, 1997), 269 pp., ISBN 0–582–20946–3

Mick Ryan, Lobbying from Below: INQUEST in Defence of Civil Liberties (UCL Press, London, 1996), 208 pp., ISBN 1–85728–225–8 (hb), 1–85728–256–6 (pb)

Grant Jordan and William Maloney, The Protest Business? Mobilizing Campaign Groups (Manchester University Press, Manchester and New York, 1997), 213 pp., ISBN 0–7190–4371–9 (pb)     

Landmine clearance and land resettlement in Cambodia: Agents of rural development

Max Boot, War Made New: Technology, Warfare, and the Course of History, 1500 to Today. New York: Gotham Books, 2006. Paperback, ISBN: 9781592403158, 640 pages.

Ramachandra Guha, India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy. UK, US: Macmillan, 2007. Hardcover, ISBN: 9780230016545, 871 pages.

Tim Jeal, Stanley: The Impossible Life of Africa's Greatest Explorer. London: Faber and Faber, 2007. Hardcover, ISBN: 0571221025, 496 pages.

Alex Thomson, An Introduction to African Politics (second edition). London: Routledge, 2004. Paperback, ISBN: 9780415282611, 284 pages.

Lorna Lloyd, Diplomacy with a Difference: The Commonwealth Office of High Commissioner, 1880–2006. Leiden and Boston: Marinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2007. Hardcover, ISBN: 9789004154971, 353 pages.

Ali A Allawi, The Occupation of Iraq: Winning the War, Losing the Peace. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007. Hardcover, ISBN: 9780300136142, 518 pages.

Paul Bremer with Malcolm McConnell, My Year in Iraq: The Struggle to Build a Future of Hope. New York: Threshold Editions, 2006. Hardcover, ISBN: 9781416540588, 419 pages.

Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone. Toronto: Alfred A Knopf, 2006. Hardcover, ISBN: 9781400044870, 320 page's.

Larry Diamond, Squandered Victory: The American Occupation and the Bungled Effort to Bring Democracy to Iraq. New York: Owl Books, 2006. Hardcover, ISBN: 0805080082, 384 pages.

George Packer, The Assassin's Gate: America in Iraq. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005. Hardcover, ISBN: 0374299633, 481 pages.     

Trade union power in Britain: The recent debate

It is frequently claimed in the media that the trade union movement is the dominant political force in Britain. Such conclusions are based upon impressionistic and subjective judgements rather than thorough academic analysis. Fortunately, there has been a resurgence of more serious study of the trade union relationship with, and influence over, government. The aim of this article is to review this literature and it is divided into four major parts: the strategies unions use in influencing government; the growing literature on the economic role of the unions; the effect of unions on government policy making; the power of the trade unions in relation to that of capital.     

The influence of vehicle model and colour on assessments of speed and culpability: the case for (and against) Computer Generated Exhibits (CGE)

Computer Generated Exhibits (CGE) are frequently deployed in legal contexts under the rubric of demonstrative evidence, i.e. to facilitate juror comprehension. However, a number of legal and academic commentators have suggested that the nature of the computerised moving image could exert undue prejudice on decision makers, e.g. judge and/or jury. The current study aimed to assess the manipulation of vehicle characteristics (make and colour) when a road traffic accident was presented in the format of a computer generated animation (CGA). In experiment 1, two groups of subjects watched two different makes of car, a Range Rover Sport and a Volkswagen Touran in a black-and-white format; no significant differences emerged over vehicle model with regards to vehicle speed or overall responsibility for the accident. Experiment 2 presented the same vehicles to four groups of participants in full colour, with the cars in contrasting red or beige; significant differences emerged with regards to culpability for vehicle make only. The findings could have implications for the format and style of CGE used in legal settings.     

Risk assessment and geography teachers: a survey

Recently the issue of health and safety procedures on field trips and school visits has come to the fore, as a result of a series of tragedies involving the deaths of pupils. A review of some of the recent court cases and inquests involving the victims of field trips was undertaken. This indicated that schools and teachers are failing to implement risk assessment procedures which are a requirement of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. The research focuses on the perceptions and practices of geography teachers as leaders of field trips. A central question is whether or not geography field trips are operating to acceptable safety standards. A questionnaire was constructed which set out to explore a sample of Northern Ireland geography teachers' attitudes to issues of liability and risk assessment. The findings indicate that teachers' compliance with Regulation 3, the requirement to conduct adequate risk assessments is variable, and a small proportion never undertake any risk assessments. The majority of respondents indicated that they had not received any training in conducting risk assessments. The findings raise concerns about the self‐regulation of safety procedures by teachers on field trips.     

A Case Study of a Sport‐for‐Development Programme in Brazil

This article examines the ‘Sport Works’ narrative of sport‐for‐development practitioners of an inter‐organisational sport‐for‐development (SfD) programme utilising rugby to foster positive social transformation in Brazil. In doing so, we address an under‐representation of practitioners who are often seen as subjugated voices in SfD programmes. The paper also addresses an under‐representation of Brazil as a research site in SfD literature. Following several site visits and interviews with practitioners, our data concludes that despite a novel context of Brazil and the alternative values to football offered through the sport of rugby, practitioners and programme managers maintain dominant narratives of social transformation through sport without clear monitoring and evaluation.