Okun's Law in the Visegrád Group Countries

Abstract

The article assesses the empirical validity of Okun's law on the relationship between a country's unemployment and its output with a focus upon the Visegrád Group economies and upon the post-transition period from the first quarter of 2000 until the first quarter of 2016. The study also accounts for cyclical fluctuations in male and female unemployment and applies different approaches to the estimation of Okun coefficients. Fixed long-run Okun coefficients are compared to the trajectories identified under the state space approach based on the Kalman filter in an attempt to capture their possible time non-constancy. The findings cast doubt about the universal validity of Okun's law in the Visegrád countries in the investigated period.     

How many truths are there? Reconciliation and agonistic dialogue in the former Yugoslavia

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we offer a possible interpretation of reconciliation in the former Yugoslav area. In a conflicting past and not-reconciled region, it is presumed that the truth should be the main pillar of reconciliation. However, according to our empirical analysis of 146 reconciliation projects implemented in the period between 2002 and 2015, there are many interpretations of truths in the region which are opposed to each other. These interpretations are the result of different national political constructions, supported by the dominant structures of the societies in question. Accordingly, instead of insisting on a single factual truth, we propose the introduction of the ‘agonistic dialogue’ principle, where multiple truths would coexist, thus turning former war enemies into political adversaries in the post-conflict setting.     

Identity and Media-use Strategies of the Estonian and Latvian Russian-speaking Populations Amid Political Crisis

Abstract

In this essay, we examine the connections between media use and trust strategies, and the identity development of the Russian-speaking populations in Estonia and Latvia in the context of the political crisis in Ukraine. We argue against the levelling, uniform view of Russian-speaking audiences as being completely under the influence of Russian media and thereby politically identifying themselves with the Kremlin. We present a typology of Russian-speaking audiences, explain how they construct their identities as audience members within these types in times of political crisis, and discuss how this self-identification as audience members shapes the development of broader civic and ethnic identities among the Estonian and Latvian Russian-speaking populations.     

论宪法发展与刑法进步

《宪法》是国家的根本大法,是刑法立法和刑事司法的依据。但宪法发展与刑法进步之间存在互动关系。1982年至今,我国现行《宪法》历经30年的发展,在理念、制度和规范等方面都取得了极大的进步,指引、带动了刑法的进步。未来,我国应在宪法发展的指引下,提升刑法理念,促进刑法的宪法化、宪法的刑法化和刑法的法典化。     

Violent behaviors in drug addiction: differential profiles of drug-addicted patients with and without violence problems

This study explored the prevalence of violent behaviors in patients who are addicted to drugs. A sample of 252 addicted patients (203 male and 49 female) who sought outpatient treatment was assessed. Information on violent behaviors, sociodemographic factors, consumption factors (assessed by the European version of the Addiction Severity Index [EuropASI]), psychopathological factors (assessed by Symptom Checklist-90-Revised [SCL-90-R]), and personality variables (assessed by Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory [MCMI-II]) was collected. Drug-addicted patients who were associated with violent behaviors were compared on all variables with patients who were not associated with violent behaviors. The rate of drug-addicted patients with violent behaviors in this sample was 39.68% (n = 100). There were significant differences between the numbers of patients who did and did not demonstrate violence on some variables. Patients with violence problems were younger than those without violence problems and were more likely to report having been a victim of abuse. Moreover, they were significantly more likely to have experienced an overdose and showed a significantly higher score on several EuropASI, SCL-90-R and MCMI-II variables. According to these results, patients with violence control problems present with both a more severe addiction and several comorbid problems. The implications of these results for further research and clinical practice are discussed.     

浅析“扶老困局”的消解路径

＂乐于助人＂、＂尊老爱幼＂是中华民族的传统美德,然而＂老人摔倒无人敢扶＂已经成为日常生活中的一个景象,这虽然是社会转型时期的社会失范导致的短暂社会现象,但也应该引起我们对社会公德和法律冲突的思考,积极探索＂扶老困局＂的消解路理十分必要。     

Legal Principles vs. Statutory Ambiguity in Criminal Justice: Lithuanian Court Experience

Criminal Law Forum - In any state where the rule of law is applied, criminal justice serves to guarantee the efficiency and legitimacy of liability and all legally sanctioned coercive measures. Its...