Anti-Immigrant Parties,Local Presence and Electoral Success

Abstract

Does the local organisational presence of anti-immigrant parties affect their chances for electoral success? In order to answer this question, the article explores the potential of a supply-oriented explanation to anti-immigrant party success by examining the electoral advancements the Sweden Democrats (SD) made in the 2006 and 2010 elections. Our results indicate that traditional demand-side explanations to anti-immigrant party success can be successfully complemented by an ‘internal supply-side argument’ to make the electoral fates of these parties more intelligible. Whether the SD had a local organisational presence had a substantial effect on its results in the national election and on the probability of gaining representation in local councils. Thus, the party’s fate in the national as well as local elections was largely determined by whether or not it had a local organisational presence in Swedish municipalities.     

Identity,Ideology, and Information: The Sources of Iraqi Public Support for the Islamic State

ABSTRACT

This article explores the amount and sources of support for the Islamic State among Iraqis. We argue that, in addition to shared identity and ideology, a neglected factor in debates about support for Islamist militancy is the messaging and information that individuals receive about a given group. We test these arguments using regression analysis on public opinion data collected in Iraq in April 2015. The analyses largely support our contentions, showing that exposure to news coverage of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant substantially reduces support for the group, even among alienated Sunnis or ideological Islamists.     

Literatur

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

How Employee Race Moderates the Relationship Between Non-Contingent Punishment and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors: A Test of the Negative Adaptation Hypothesis

The negative adaptation hypothesis states that Black employees, but not White employees, have psychologically adapted to the occurrence of interpersonal mistreatment in organizations because they experience more negative events across different domains of social life than Whites. Consequently, Blacks react less strongly to the same level of actual interpersonal mistreatment compared to Whites. The authors applied this prediction to the relationship between non-contingent punishment and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). As expected, in a field study among 456 manufacturing plant workers, the relationship between non-contingent punishment and supervisory-rated OCB was negative and significant for Whites, but not for Blacks. Implications for the study of race, interpersonal mistreatment, and the perpetuation of racial inequalities in organizations are discussed.

Predicting Attrition From Treatment Programs for Abusive Men

Attrition in male battering treatment programs is a serious problem. To keep clients in treatment, it is crucial to understand why they drop out. The current study examined the contribution of both client and program characteristics in predicting dropout from treatment programs for abusive men. Data were collected at intake from 306 abusive men who sought treatment at four different sites. The rate of preprogram attrition (from intake to the first treatment session) was higher in the program that had a lengthy waiting list (46%) than in the other programs amp lpar3%-13%). In-program attrition was more highly related to client characteristics than program characteristics (all programs had rates between 36% and 42%). Those men who dropped out after starting treatment tended to have unstable lifestyles (e.g., substance abuse problems, criminal history, unemployment) and to have inflicted more severe abuse than those who completed treatment. Results also supported a significant interaction between verbal aptitude and structure of program; men with low verbal aptitude were the most likely to drop out of an unstructured program. Possible strategies for preventing attrition are discussed.     

Presidents and the Diversionary Use of Force: A Research Note

This study represents an attempt at further developing the diversionary theory of force. The analysis covers the period 1949 to 1994 using a simultaneous system of equations that treat presidential approval and force as endogenous variables. After controlling for opportunities and Soviet/Russian crisis behavior, the model reveals a rally effect and that unemployment has a positive effect on force levels. I discuss how presidential decisions to divert are made in the context of poliheuristic decision processing.     

Issue ownership attack: how a political party can counteract a rival’s issue ownership

Abstract

A central part of representative democracy is that voters evaluate political parties based on how competently they handle issues, so-called ‘issue ownership’. Since issue ownership is a central ingredient in the vote choice, rival parties often try to influence how voters evaluate a competing party. This is an issue ownership attack. However, despite intense scholarly interest in issue ownership, the understanding of how parties shape issue ownership is very limited. Therefore a new theoretical model is tested here to understand issue ownership attack. Using several survey experiments, the analysis shows that a mainstream party can counteract another mainstream party’s issue ownership by reframing the issue and by blaming the party for its performance, but not by changing its own position on the issue. Hence, the study not only advances the understanding of issue ownership stability and change but also brings important insights on how parties influence voters.     

MEDIATION AND DIVORCE

This article describes the Danish system, tracing its roots from the days when the crown dealt with all matters involving the family. The role of the amtmen in granting divorce through this administrative process is described. A total of 94% of all divorces in Denmark are handled through this procedure.