Terrorism and public opinion: A five country comparison

This article examines public attitudes towards terrorism in five countries: Uruguay, Spain, Italy, Germany and Northern Ireland. It analyzes public concern over terrorism, images of the terrorists, support for the terrorists' goals, and public approval of anti‐terrorist measures. There are significant differences between nationalist and revolutionary terrorism. Nationalist terrorists have a high degree of support from an ethnic constituency, while revolutionary terrorists attract a much smaller degree of support primarily from the educated young. It is concluded that public opinion towards terrorism is a product of complex historical situations, and that public attitudes are unaffected by the terrorist campaign itself.     

Chinese technology transfer policy: the case of the national independent innovation demonstration zone of East Lake

This paper analyzes the technology transfer policies that are being developed to reduce the regional disparities in economic growth in China. In particular, these technology transfer policies focus on increasing the innovative activity in central China, in order to spur economic development and growth.     

Understanding (Mis)classification Trends of Latin Americans in Fordisc 3.1: Incorporating Cranial Morphology,Microgeographic Origin,and Admixture Proportions for Interpretation

Assigning correct population affinity to a skeleton can contribute important information to an investigation—yet recent work highlights high error rates when classifying Latinos with a traditional tool, Fordisc 3.1 (FD3). Our study examines whether misclassification trends exist, and whether these can be used to infer population affinity. We examine the relationships among ancestry, geography, and FD3 misclassifications of Latinos using canonical variate analysis and unsupervised model‐based clustering of craniometrics. Northern Mexicans appear more strongly associated with FD3 references samples with elevated amounts of European ancestry (e.g., American Blacks and Whites), while Southern Mexicans are more strongly associated with FD3 reference samples with reduced amounts of European ancestry (e.g., Guatemalans and Native Americans). FD3 classifications revealed that Latinos exhibited lower posterior probabilities when compared to other common case demographics (Whites and African Americas), even when the classification was “correct.” We make recommendations for practitioner interpretation of FD3 reports for casework.     

Book reviews

In a Collapsing Empire: Underdevelopment, Ethnic Conflicts and Nationalisms in the Soviet Union. Marco Buttino (editor). Milano: Fondazione Giangiacomo Fentrinelli, 1993, 375 pp, Lire80,000.

The Turkic Peoples of the World. Margaret Bainbridge (editor). London: Kegan Paul International, 1993, 403 pp, £65.

Where Two Worlds Met. The Russian State and the Kalmyk Nomads, 1600–1771. Michael Khodarkovsky. Cornell University Press, 1992, 278 pp, illus, index.

Please Don't Call it Soviet Georgia. Mary Russell. London: Serpent's Tail, 1991, viii, 268 pp, £9.99.

Georgia: a Rebel in the Caucasus. Peter Nasmyth. London, Cassell, 1992, 222 pp, £16.99.

Looking Toward Ararat: Armenia in Modern History. Ronald Grigor Suny. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1993, xiii, 289 pp, $17.95.

Muslim‐Christian Encounters. William Montgomery Watt. Routledge, 1991, 164 pp, index.

The Great Game: On Secret Service in High Asia. Peter Hopkirk. London: John Murray, 1990, xiv, 562 pp, illus, £19.95.

The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia. Peter Hopkirk. New York: Kodansha, 1992, xxiv, 564 pp, illus, $30.00.

Francis Younghusband and the Great Game. Anthony Verrier. London: Jonathan Cape, 1991, xviii, 238 pp, illus, £18.00.     

Demographic manipulation in the Caucasus (with special reference to Georgia)

The author discusses political developments in the Caucasus region since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The focus is on the events in Georgia that led to the war in South Ossetia (particularly in Abkhazia), and the author suggests that this development is the latest in a 200-year history of demographic manipulation of minority peoples by the region's two major powers, Russia and Georgia. Parallels are drawn between the Georgian war in Abkhazia and Russia's war in Chechenia. The author questions the value of the principle of territorial integrity, and suggests that alternative principles safeguarding the rights of ethnic minorities would be more appropriate in these circumstances.     

The contextual nature of the family structure/delinquency relationship

It is well established that growing up in a nontraditional family represents a risk factor for delinquent behavior; however, the understanding of whether this effect is universal remains imperfect. The present study examined whether the link between nontraditional family structure and delinquency varies according to six distinct circumstances: gender, race, age, SES, family size, and place of residence. Regression analysis of a nationally representative sample of adolescents between the ages of twelve and seventeen (n = 3,499) suggests that gender, race, SES, and place of residence do not condition the family structure/delinquency relationship. Significant interactions, however, were discovered with respect to age and family size. Generally, living in a nontraditional family is more criminogenic for older adolescents, and for those from larger families. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Perceiving misperception

With Perry to Japan: A Memoir by William Heine, translated, with an introduction and annotations, by Frederic Trautmann. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1990. xv + 237 pp., illus. $32. ISBN 0-8248-1258-1.Images of Japanese Society: A Study in the Social Construction of Reality, by Ross Mouer and Yoshio Sugimoto. Kegan Paul International, London and New York, 1990. xxxii+552pp. £14.95 paperback. ISBN 0-7103-0379-3.Home, Sweet Tokyo: Life in a Weird and Wonderful City, By Rick Kennedy. Kodansha International, Tokyo and New York, 1989. 192 pp. £3.95 paperback. ISBN 0-87011-908-7.Asia in Western Fiction, edited by Robin W. Winks and James R. Rush, Manchester University Press, Manchester, 1990. x + 229 pp. £27.50. ISBN 0-7190-2906-6.     

The administrative impact of international municipal cooperation on Canadian cities and towns: an assessment

Abstract: In recent years, Canadian cities and towns have become increasingly involved in international cooperation projects with partner municipalities located in other parts of the developing world. For the most part, as a number of studies have shown, such initiatives have brought real benefits to municipalities in developing areas in terms of improved structures of local governance, facilities and services to citizens. At the same time, the literature has much less to say about the impact of such involvement on “donor” municipalities in Canada or elsewhere. This is especially true of the possible negative consequences of international participation for municipal administrations and especially for the employees involved. Using a case-study approach, this study provides in-depth examination of two exchanges, involving the municipalities of Kitimat (B.C.) and Charlesbourg (Quebec), in order to explore more fully this aspect of international cooperation. While in both cases the advantages of international municipal cooperation projects for the Canadian cities involved are apparent, equally evident are a range of deleterious effects directly affecting administration. By way of conclusion, the study considers a number of measures that may help mitigate such effects. Sommaire: Depuis quelques années, les villes canadiennes participent de plus en plus aux projets de coopération internationale avec des municipalités partenaires situées dans des pays en voie de développement. Dans la plupart des cas, comme I'indique un certain nombre d'études, ces initiatives ont apporté des avantages réels aux municipalités dans les régions en voie de développement, sous forme d'amélioration des structures de gouvernance locale, des installations et des services foumis aux citoyens. Par contre, peu d'auteurs ont décrit I'effet de cette participation sur les municipalités donatrices au Canada ou ailleurs. Cela conceme particulièrement les conéquences éventuellement négatives de la participation internationale sur I'administration municipale et particulièrement sur les employés impliqués. À partir d'une étude de cas, la présente étude examine en détail deux échanges mettant en jeules municipalités de Kitimat (C.-B.) et Charlesbourg (Québec), afin de mieux cerner cet aspect de la collaboration intemationale. Bien que, dans les deux cas, les avantages des projets de coopération municipale intemationale soient apparents pour les villes canadiennes participantes, on voit se profiler une gamme d'effets nocifs frappant directement l'administration. En conclusion, l'étude considère plusieurs mesures qui pourraient aider à atténuer ces effects.