Hungary in April

He is author of The Religious Factorand Power and Privilege: A Theory of Social Stratification,and coauthor, with Jean Lenski, of Human Societies: An Introduction to Macrosociology.     

Richard Musgrave,public finance,and public choice

Review Article

Richard Musgrave, public finance, and public choice     

Institutional Linkages and Policy Networks in the Federal System of West Germany

West German federalism can be understood as a system of interlocking,but distinct and autonomous, "policy networks." Sectoral policynetworks are integrated into overarching networks. The traditionalpluri-centrism of state and societal institutions is contrastedwith an integrated (but not centralized) economic policy networkoriented toward national homogeneity. With the decline of Keynesianmacroeconomic policy, however, regional policy networks arebeing upgraded. At the same time, the political party systemand the politicization of administrative agencies have led tothe development of an overarching network in which bargainingand accommodation have precedence over hierarchical centralization.     

Distribution patterns and functional relationships of the encephalopathy (author's transl)

"Wernicke's encephalopathy", as one of the sequelae of chronic alcoholism, is discussed with regard to its effects on driving ability. The neurological symptoms are presented with reference to 33 cases and the possible personality defects with thalamic lesions and abortive types of disease are emphasized.     

Expressive Voting and Government Redistribution: Testing Tullock's `Charity of the Uncharitable'

Models of expressive voting postulate that voters will`consume' ideological stances on issues by voting for them,even when they are against the voter's own narrow selfinterest, if the probability of being a decisive voter is low.When a voter is unlikely to sway the outcome, the odds that avoter will incur any real personal cost (a higher tax burden,for example) from her own expressive vote is small. We testand find support for Tullock's straightforward empiricalimplication of this model, that government welfare (transfer)payments are inversely related to the probability of being thedecisive voter.     

Children's disability law: the more things change, the more they stay the same

The social security system insures both children and adults who are disabled. Over the years, the Social Security Administration and the courts have developed a number of tests to determine whether a child is eligible to receive social security benefits. In 1997, as part of its attempt to reform welfare, Congress laid out a new, arguably more restrictive standard that must be met before a child can be deemed "disabled." For all of the apparent changes, however, it is unclear how much the standards have changed in practice.     

Strategy first in international joint ventures

International technology- based joint ventures are proliferating despite their inherent complexity and high risk of failure. US firms continue to employ international joint ventures as a vehicle for collaborative research and development (R & D); foreign investors prefer the joint venture for investing in the emerging market economies of Eastern Europe. Tipping the balance in favor of successful joint ventures requires a strategic approach from the very advent of entering into an international R&D arrangement: an approach in which clear objectives are set and alternative ways to reach these objectives are systematically evaluated. Several frameworks are presented that clarify and facilitate the decisionmaking process during the initial phases of considering a joint venture in which project objectives are developed, alternative R&D arrangements are evaluated, and potential partners are identified and eventually selected.     

Consociational Democracy and Corporatism in Switzerland

The Swiss concept of Konkordanzdemokratie (consociational democracy)is examined in this article. The author traces the developmentof this practice from its earliest origins to its current manifestation,focusing especially on the role that religion and linguisticdifferences have played. The influence of the emerging "politicalmarket" is also examined as is the disappearance of traditionalpolitical cleavages. The article concludes with the author'sspeculation on the future relationship between Swiss "consociationaldemocracy" and the European Community.