The Informal Sector in Developed and Less Developed Countries: A Literature Survey

The main goal of this study is two-fold: (1) to provide ageneral overview of the contributions to the literature on theinformal sector, with a special focus on the public choiceapproach; and (2) to compare these contributions across twoinstitutionally different types of countries: developed andless developed (developing and transition) countries. Thepaper focuses on the criteria used to define the informalsector, the relationship between the formal and informaleconomy, tax evasion, and public choice analysis. It isstressed throughout this paper that the distinction betweenthe two types of countries is of key importance.     

The effects of unfair procedure on negative affect and protest

The present study extends earlier research on procedural unfairness by assessing subjects' reactions to a procedural change before they learn about the outcome of the changed procedure. Subjects performed a series of four tests. After three tests, the procedure to calculate the test scores was changed into a procedure that was very inaccurate or slightly inaccurate compared to what subjects had experienced until then. The very inaccurate procedure was judged as more unfair as the slightly inaccurate procedure. As predicted, the unfair procedure raised negative affect and motivated subjects to protest. Implications of the results for procedural justice theory are discussed.     

Youth organizations as a Battlefield in the Cold War

In the late 1960s it was revealed that ever since 1952 the CIA had financed and was still financing, by way of a whole series of ‘screen’ foundations, the overwhelming majority of youth and student organizations, not only in the United States, but throughout the free world. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as respectable as the International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY), Pax Romana and the World Assembly of Youth (WAY) had benefited, at various times in their history, from the generosity and ‘liberalism’ of the CIA. The key to understanding this paradoxical American involvement in leftist organizations lies in the Soviet Union's policy of systematically infiltrating Western civil society and international organizations. Its constant aim, relentlessly pursued and never openly avowed, was to control Western opinion and further the goals of Soviet foreign policy. By 1950 the communists had succeeded in effectively controlling all the international mass organizations. This study deals with the crucial Berlin Youth Festival of 1951 and the East-West struggle for dominance in the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) and the International Union of Students (IUS).     

Sustaining Peace One Day at a Time: Inclusion,Transition Crises,and the Resilience of Social Contracts

ABSTRACT

This article argues that inclusion is a key driver of resilient social contracts and a foundation for sustaining peace. Drawing on case studies conducted under the Forging Resilient Social Contracts project and building on the literature on transitions from war to peace and authoritarianism to democracy, the theoretical framework links inclusion to peace sustainability. Interrogating how and why processes of inclusion matter, we argue that resilient social contracting is driven by elite inclusion, societal inclusion and their interactions. Four case-studies illustrate the arguments. Resilient social contracting, findings suggest, allows countries to weather crises and survive to ‘transition another day’.     

Sacred year or broken reed? The Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919

ABSTRACT

The Sex Disqualification (Removal Act 1919) enabled women to enter some professions including law for the first time. Virginia Woolf calls 1919 a ‘sacred year’ because of this Act in her later essay ‘Three Guineas’. However, the historical literature largely considers the act to be a ‘broken reed’, focussing on its failure to equalise the franchise, remove the marriage bar or to enable women to sit in the House of Lords. This article argues that such negative verdicts fail to take into account the political and Parliamentary situation in 1919 and overlooks the genuine achievements of the Act.     

Engel Curves for Fair Trade Consumption and Development Perspectives for Producers: Evidence from Data on Real Fairtrade Purchases

While Fairtrade sales have exhibited two-digit growth rates over recent decades, their capacity to become large enough to generate substantial gains for producers is still uncertain. Estimating Fairtrade Engel curves based on real purchases, this article describes how Fairtrade consumption varies with consumer characteristics and total income. Results show high expenditure elasticities for Fairtrade demand, and suggest that market expansion lies in the growth of income per capita in import countries and in an increase in the diversity, availability, and quality of products. Implications for producers are drawn from the results.     

Death by potassium chloride intravenous injection: evaluation of analytical detectability

Potassium chloride intravenous injection is used in suicide attempts and lethal procedures for state-sanctioned punishment. Owing to its relatively high concentrations in hemolyzed blood (25-80 mM) compared to serum (about 4 mM), it is difficult to conclude potassium poisoning by postmortem analysis of biologic samples. A 41-year-man was found dead with an injection sign on his foot and a syringe close to the corpse. No particular signs were noted during the autopsy. Blood, bile, and urine were submitted to xenobiotic screening procedures used in the laboratory. Syringe content was found positive to potassium ions. Blood potassium concentration was determined by ion-selective electrode measurement (range 3.0-150 mM). Blood was found positive for diazepam at therapeutic level. Potassium concentration was 160.0 (cardiac) and 87.3 mM (femoral blood). Our results show that potassium concentration was significantly higher in heart blood in a suicide case. Hence, the general issue of considering potassium poisoning hardly demonstrable by toxicology needs to be questioned and thoroughly studied.     

On Mimicry and the Psychology of the Belief in a Just World: Imitating the Behaviors of Others Reduces the Blaming of Innocent Victims

Innocent victims of crime are often blamed for what happened to them. In this article, we examine the hypothesis that victim blaming can be significantly reduced when people mimic the behavior of the victim or even a person unrelated to the crime. Participants watched a person on a video after which we assessed the extent of their spontaneous mimicry reactions (Study 1) or participants were instructed to mimic or not to mimic the movements of this person (Study 2). Then, they were informed about a rape and criminal assault and judged the degree to which they thought the victims were responsible for the crime. One of the crimes happened to the same person as the person they previously did or did not mimic. The other crime happened to a person unrelated to the mimicry situation. Results of both studies revealed that previously mimicking the victim or an unrelated person reduced the degree to which victims were being blamed.