Rationalism in Public Law

Rationalism is ‘the stylistic criterion of all respectable politics’. So lamented political philosopher Michael Oakeshott in a series of essays published in the 1940s and 1950s. Rationalism, for Oakeshott, is shorthand for a propensity to prioritise the universal over the local, the uniform over the particular and, ultimately, principle over practice. It culminates in the triumph of abstract principles over practical knowledge in a manner that erodes our ability to engage in political activity. Although Oakeshott's critique was made with the practice and study of politics in mind, it has a wider relevance. Rationalism, as we see it, has become the dominant style in public law. We draw upon Oakeshott's critique to elucidate the risks associated with rationalism in public law and call for a renewed engagement with practical knowledge in the study of the constitution.     

The British Far Right's South African Connection: A.K. Chesterton,Hendrik van den Bergh,and the South African Intelligence Services

Utilising a new documentary source, namely correspondence between A. K. Chesterton (1899–1973), one of the most important figures of the post-war far right in Britain, and H. J. van den Bergh (1914–1997), the head of the South African Bureau of State Security (BOSS), this article presents a case study that leads to an enhanced understanding of the nature and workings of the overseas activities of the South African security apparatus during the 1960s, its allies and its targets. The article examines and evaluates the evidence presented in this correspondence regarding the covert operations of the South African secret services against anti-apartheid activists and other exiled ‘subversives’ based in Britain. It will demonstrate how the South African apartheid regime operated through an ideologically aligned far right proxy to physically disrupt anti-apartheid meetings and to monitor exiled dissidents, their activities and potential sources of finance, as well as exploring how Chesterton helped to refine van den Bergh's personal intellectual framework and his definition of the who and what stood behind ‘sabotage’ and ‘subversion’ in South Africa     

Skill Development and Regional Mobility: Lessons from the Australia-Pacific Technical College

Developing countries can lose part of their investment in training skilled workers who later emigrate. One innovative response is for migrants’ destination countries to help finance skilled emigrants’ training ex ante – linking skill creation and skill mobility. We describe one such project, the Australia-Pacific Technical College (APTC), which has financed vocational training in five Pacific island developing countries for employment both at home and abroad – including employment in Australia. The APTC has attained its goal of skill creation, but not its goal of skill mobility. We offer explanations for this result and lessons for future policy innovation.     

One size does not fit all: choosing methods to inform area development

There have always been debates about the methods that should be used to inform and assess development programmes. Experimental methods have become highly advocated as agencies seek rigorous ways to show programme value. However, the benefits and appropriateness of these methods are frequently overstated. We use the Aga Khan Development Network's Quality of Life studies to show that periodic mixed methods approaches are useful to analyse programme contributions and inform area development. We argue that experimental methods should not be idealised, and that research questions and organisational learning should guide pragmatic methodological choices to inform development intervention in real-life contexts.

Une taille unique ne convient pas toujours : comment choisir des méthodes pour éclairer le développement des régions

Il y a toujours eu des débats sur les méthodes qui devraient être employées pour éclairer et évaluer les programmes de développement. Les méthodes expérimentales sont devenues très préconisées dans le cadre de la quête par les organisations de manières rigoureuses de démontrer la valeur de leurs programmes. Cependant, les avantages et le caractère approprié de ces méthodes sont souvent exagérés. Nous utilisons les études sur la qualité de la vie de l'Aga Khan Development Network pour montrer que les approches périodiques basées sur des méthodes mixtes sont utiles pour analyser les contributions des programmes et éclairer le développement des régions. Nous soutenons que les méthodes expérimentales ne devraient pas être idéalisées, et que les questions des recherches et l'apprentissage organisationnel devraient orienter des choix méthodologiques pragmatiques afin d'éclairer les interventions en matière de développement dans les contextes réels.

La unitalla no le queda a todos: seleccionando métodos que informen el desarrollo de áreas

Siempre han existido debates en torno a los métodos que deben usarse para fundamentar los programas de desarrollo y valorarlos. A medida que las agencias han buscado métodos rigurosos para demostrar el valor de sus programas, ciertos métodos experimentales han sido altamente promovidos. Sin embargo, los beneficios y lo apropiado de tales métodos a menudo se ha exagerado. En el presente artículo, los autores utilizan los estudios sobre la Calidad de Vida realizados por la Red de Desarrollo Aga Khan, con el fin de mostrar que los enfoques de métodos mixtos aplicados periódicamente resultan útiles para analizar los aportes de los programas y para potenciar el área de desarrollo. Asimismo, sostienen que no deben idealizarse los métodos experimentales y que las inquietudes de investigación y el aprendizaje organizacional deberán guiar las opciones metodológicas pragmáticas orientadas a fundamentar las acciones de desarrollo en la vida cotidiana.

Um único tamanho não serve para todos: Escolhendo métodos para informar a área de desenvolvimento

Tem havido frequentemente debates sobre os métodos que deveriam ser utilizados para informar e avaliar programas de desenvolvimento. Métodos experimentais têm sido altamente defendidos quando as agências buscam formas rigorosas de mostrar o valor do programa. Porém, os benefícios e adequação destes métodos são frequentemente superestimados. Utilizamos os estudos sobre Qualidade de Vida da Aga Khan Development Network para mostrar que abordagens de métodos mistos periódicos são úteis para analisar as contribuições dos programas e informar o desenvolvimento de área. Argumentamos que métodos experimentais não devem ser idealizados e que questões de pesquisa e aprendizado organizacional devem orientar escolhas metodológicas pragmáticas para fornecer informações à intervenção de desenvolvimento em contextos da vida real.     

Technology transfer model for Austrian higher education institutions

The aim of this paper is to present the findings of a PhD research (Heinzl 2007, Unpublished PhD Thesis) conducted on the Universities of Applied Sciences in Austria. Four of the models that emerge from this research are: Generic Technology Transfer Model (Sect. 5.1); Idiosyncrasies Model for the Austrian Universities of Applied Sciences (Sect. 5.2); Idiosyncrasies-Technology Transfer Effects Model (Sect. 5.3); Idiosyncrasies-Technology Transfer Cumulated Effects Model (Sect. 5.3). The primary and secondary research methods employed for this study are: literature survey, focus groups, participant observation, and interviews. The findings of the research contribute to a conceptual design of a technology transfer system which aims to enhance the higher education institutions’ technology transfer performance.     

How Can We Help Witnesses to Remember More? It’s an (Eyes) Open and Shut Case

Five experiments tested the idea that instructing a witness to close their eyes during retrieval might increase retrieval success. In Experiment 1 participants watched a video, before a cued-recall test for which they were either instructed to close their eyes, or received no-instructions. Eye-closure led to an increase in correct cued-recall, with no increase in incorrect responses. Experiments 2-5 sought to test the generality of this effect over variations in study material (video or live interaction), test format (cued- or free-recall) and information modality (visual or auditory details recalled). Overall, eye-closure increased recall of both visual detail and auditory details, with no accompanying increase in recall of false details. Collectively, these data convincingly demonstrate the benefits of eye-closure as an aid to retrieval, and offer insight into why hypnosis, which usually involves eye-closure, may facilitate eyewitness recall.     

Mediation: important preliminary questions: trustee's duties in trust disputes and trustee's powers of compromise

Before trustees can proceed to mediation, they need to knowwhether they have a duty to resist the claim that is being mediated.Before entering into mediation, trustees need to understandits duties in relation to the claim, and the scope of compromise.Applications for blessing are two ways of protecting to enterinto a compromise. These are considered in this article.     

Déjà vu All Over Again: Investigating Temporal Continuity of Adolescent Victimization

An important theoretical issue in the study of criminal victimization focuses on state dependence or the extent to which prior victimization causally affects subsequent victimization. Framing this issue are two conceptual arguments that posit divergent predictions regarding the impact of past victimization. While “victim labeling” suggests that the experience of prior victimization increases victimization in the future, “victim rationality” suggests that past victimization decreases subsequent victimization. To date there has been little longitudinal research that explicitly evaluates these competing viewpoints. In response, the current study uses panel data from a sample of adolescents to assess the merit of these opposing theoretical frameworks. Against this theoretical backdrop, it is shown that prevailing strategies for the analysis of panel data—random-effects and fixed-effects—produce erroneous results that add confusion to the debate regarding the nature of state dependence processes in criminal victimization. Drawing from advances in econometrics, two estimators that can overcome the problems that plague more traditional panel data models are used to provide a test of the competing victimization perspectives. Results from those analyses suggest support for the thesis that past victimization increases subsequent victimization, but the magnitude of this positive relationship is more modest than is indicated by analytic models that have been utilized in prior longitudinal victimization research.

Partnering for e‐government: Challenges for public administrators

Abstract: Governments around the world are spending huge sums of money implementing electronic government. Public‐private partnerships with information and communication technology firms have emerged as the vehicle of choice for implementing e‐government strategies. Concerns are raised about the capacity of governments to manage these complex, multi‐year, often multi‐partner relationships that involve considerable sharing of authority, responsibility, financial resources, information and risks. The management challenges manifest themselves in the core partnering tasks: establishing a management framework for partnering; finding the right partners and making the right partnering arrangement; the management of relationships with partners in a network setting; and the measurement of the performance of e‐government partnerships. The article reviews progress being made by governments in building capacity to deal with these core partnering tasks. It concludes that many new initiatives at the central agency and departmental/ministry level seem designed to centralize control of e‐government projects and wrap them in a complex web of bureaucratic structures and processes that are, for the most part, antithetical or, at best, indifferent to the creation of strong partnerships and the business valuethat e‐government public‐private partnerships promise.