Chinese democracy: The lessons of failure

China's experiments with democracy in this century were few in number, short in duration, and limited in their democratic characteristics. Democratic institutions malfunctioned in numerous ways. Nine sets of causes for the failure of Chinese democracy can be suggested: ideology, internal and external war, military intervention, Chinese political culture, underdevelopment, a peasant mass, flaws in the design of Chinese constitutions, moral failures by democratic politicians, or the lack of transactional benefits for military‐based elites in the process of democratic transition. Each of these factors is reviewed critically with an eye to its possible lessons.     

Sudden death in angiodysplasia of the gastroesophageal junction.

A 22-year-old Korean soldier, who had received blows to the neck and epigastrium from an officer 10 h earlier, suddenly died after massive hematemesis. He had been in relatively good health except for episodes of blood-tinged vomiting approximately 5 and 7 months prior to this event. Postmortem examination revealed angiodysplasia involving the gastroesophageal junction, and the stomach was distended with blood. No abnormal findings were present around the whole viscera, and the duodenum was free of blood. The pathologic significance of upper gastrointestinal angiodysplasia as a potential source of bleeding and a chronologic correlation between the trauma and bleeding are discussed.     

The DutchAlgemene Rekenkamer and its role in light of contemporary theory

European Journal of Law and Economics - In this article I try to find answers for three questions: Which functions are exercised by the Court of Audit in the Netherlands, and what kinds of...     

Preadolescent peer friendships: A critical contribution to adult social relatedness?

The primary aim of this paper is to review the literature on preadolescent friendships in order to examine the relationship between preadolescent friendships and social support in adulthood. Social supports are important to health, both directly and as a stress buffer. Few studies, however, have specifically examined adult social supports from the perspective of their developmental precursors and critical developmental periods. Some data indicate that the preadolescent period may be of particular importance to the development of adult social skills and ties. Observational and empirical studies of preadolescent peer relationships, and in particular best friendships, suggest unique and critical contributions to adult social relatedness. Present research is suggestive but is insufficient to validate preadolescence as a critical period in adult social relatedness. Our review has implications for better understanding the mechanisms by which preadolescent friendships effect adult social support—an important mediator of the effects of stress on health. Further longitudinal study is needed.Received Ph.D. from University of Maryland. Research interests are social supports and psychological responses to trauma and disaster.Received M.D. from Yale University. Research interests are social supports and traumatic stress.     

IS AGE IMPORTANT? TESTING A GENERAL VERSUS A DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY OF ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR*

We tested competing hypotheses derived from Gottfredson and Hirschis (1990) general theory and Moffitt's (1993a) developmental theory of antisocial behavior. The developmental theory argues that different factors give rise to antisocial behavior at different points in the life course. In contrast, the general theory maintains that the factor underlying antisocial behavior (i.e., criminal propensity) is the same at all ages. To test these competing predictions, we used longitudinal data spanning from age 5 to age 18 for the male subjects in the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. Using reports from three sources (parents, teachers, and the boys themselves), we estimated second-order confirmatory factor models of antisocial behavior. These models provided consistent support for the developmental theory, showing that separate latent factors underlie childhood and adolescent antisocial behavior. Moreover, we found that these childhood and adolescent factors related in ways predicted by Moffitt's developmental theory to four correlates of antisocial behavior: Childhood antisocial behavior was related more strongly than adolescent antisocial behavior to low verbal ability, by per activity, and negative/impulsive personality, whereas adolescent antisocial behavior was related more strongly than childhood antisocial behavior to peer delinquency. The two underlying latent factors also showed the predicted differential relations to later criminal convictions: Childhood antisocial behavior was significantly more strongly associated with convictions for violence, while adolescent antisocial behavior was significantly more strongly associated with convictions for nonviolent offenses.