The Political Epistemology of Science-Based Policy-Making

Improving the use and impact of science-based policies and practices at the national and transnational level is important for enhancing the quality and legitimacy of democratic governance systems. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the major drivers behind strengthening the creation, application and mediation of scientific expertise for policy-making. Science-based policy-making can take different forms, such as evaluation of practices, implementation of independent or commissioned research, application of quantitative and qualitative analyses, or the development of statistical and environmental monitoring systems. However, scientific evidence is only one among several factors contributing to sound democratic decisions. Scientific expertise needs to be mediated through a complex process of social and political deliberation. The paper aims to identify the main policy challenges behind science advisory bodies and to set out an agenda for rebuilding public trust in science-based policy-making.     

Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric analysis of morphine and codeine in human urine of poppy seed eaters

In this study, poppy seeds were examined for a natural constituent that might serve as a maker for the seeds' ingestion as opposed to opiate abuse. Thebaine was selected as possible marker, since it was found to be a component of all poppy seeds examined and was not a natural component of different heroin samples. During the course of this investigation, a new extraction and cleanup procedure was developed for the gas chromatographic/nitrogen phosphorus detection (GC/NPD) and gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric (GC/MS) analysis of morphine and codeine in urine. A linear response, over a concentration range of 25 to 600 ng/mL, was obtained for codeine and morphine (r = 0.9982 and 0.9947, respectively). The minimum detectable level (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ) for morphine were 10 and 30 ng/mL, respectively; whereas LOD and LOQ for codeine were 2 and 8 ng/mL, respectively. The coefficients of variance (CV, n = 6) for morphine and codeine analyses at the 100-ng/mL level were 13.3 and 4.6%, respectively. This procedure was used for the analysis of urine samples from five poppy seed eaters who each ingested 200 g of poppy seed cake. Results indicated that significant amounts of morphine and codeine are excreted in urine and that in all subjects, at least at one point in time, the apparent morphine concentration as determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA) analysis exceeded the cutoff value (300 ng/mL) established for screening. Thebaine was not detected in urine specimens collected following poppy seeds ingestion and thus could not be used as a marker.     

The Impact of the European Union on Coalition Formation in a Minority System: The Case of Denmark

Does European Union membership influence coalition patterns in national parliaments? For governments in the Scandinavian countries – with their relatively high share of minority governments requiring external parliamentary support to form parliamentary majorities – the question of ‘coalition management’ is highly relevant. This article provides an empirical test of three central arguments in the Europeanisation literature on the impact of EU membership on national parliaments when political parties pass legislation in the Danish Folketing. The effect of EU content in a law on coalition patterns is compared across policy areas and four electoral periods from 1998 to 2011 encompassing 2,894 laws. The data provide support for the argument that the loss of national agenda‐setting over the legislative process has an impact on coalition patterns in the Danish parliament. It is shown that the coalition patterns on Europeanised legislation are both broader and more stable compared to national, non‐EU‐related legislation. The focus on Europeanisation of legislative coalitions goes beyond previous analysis with an institutional focus, and demonstrates an example of how the EU systematically has an effect on legislative coalition formation in a national parliamentary system.     

Soap,pin‐up and burlesque: Commercialization and femininity in Danish television

The article takes a close look at the performance and mise‐en‐scène of some new young Danish television hostesses in relation to commercialization and deregulation of television. It is observed that the female hosts not only incarnate visual pleasure as sexual objects and emotive images, but also personify extravagance and visualize abstract ideas. Thus female hosts are of vital importance in deregulated television, which is based on form and style and the ability to catch the eye. It is further observed that the hostesses perform in a detached and ironic mode. Their various pastiches on female stereotypes and their ambiguous playing with surface identify the new hostesses with the postmodern masquerade of the media. Postmodern television provides a space where some female performers can transcend the norms and turn the conventional image of women inside out.     

The political economy of distribution in developing countries: A rent-seeking approach

Economic development in many Third World countries after independence has been biased in the sense that some, mainly urban, social groups have gained much more than the majority of the population who lives in rural areas or urban shantytowns. That bias is to a large extent caused by government policy and, accordingly, by an uneven distribution of political influence. This paper contains an analytical model reflecting the bias in the distribution of the benefits and costs of public sector activities, where those activities are determined by the distribution of political influence. The main elements of the distribution of political influence are determined in a rent-seeking game between society' different social groups.     

Is Small Still Flexible? An Evaluation of Recent Trends in Danish Politics

How has Denmark been able to adjust its economic and industrial policies in an era of major changes in the international economy? The article gives a survey of the last 10 years, especially more recent years. Before 1986 wage policy and public-expenditure policy were dominant. Since then they have been supplemented by a new structural policy to increase the level of technology, to improve education and research and to change the composition of Danish exports as far as products and markets are concerned. The adjustment of policies has taken place in a stable multi-centred political system. The process has been characterized by institutionalized campaigning, moulding of interests and mobilization of compromises and mutual understanding. The capacity for flexible adjustment seems to originate from the stability of the political system. Likewise, uncertainty and instability seem to weaken the capacity for political flexibility. During the last two years the transformation of the elite consensus into state programmes and administrative decision-making has been hampered and the whole structural policy approach has been challenged by a neoliberal alternative. This is mainly due to an extraordinary parliamentary stalemate in a situation of extreme minority parliamentarism.     

Negative Campaigning in a Multiparty System

Research in political campaigning in Scandinavian countries is inadequate, and research in negative campaigning is entirely non‐existent. A ‘negative campaign message’ is defined as an explicit critique of the political opponent. Applying this definition to the 2005 Danish election indicates that negative campaigning comprises a very limited aspect of the political campaigning in the course of this election. The opposition tends to employ negative tactics the most in their attempts to establish their political platform. The media provided extensive coverage to the few negative campaign messages, thus presenting a biased sense of the political campaign to the general public. This biased media coverage encourages parties to ‘go negative’ in their respective campaigns in the battle for media attention.     

The Opportunities and Limitations of Using Mechanical Turk (MTURK) in Public Administration and Management Scholarship

Other social science fields are increasingly conducting research using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk)—an online crowdsourcing platform—but how might MTurk be useful to public administration and management research? This article provides an introduction of the platform and considers both the opportunities and limitations for using MTurk in public administration and management scholarship. We find that MTurk might be relevant for examining particular types of research questions. We identify five areas where MTurk data may complement and enhance public administration and management research: (1) exploratory analyses and survey construction; (2) measurement refinement of latent constructs; (3) experiments; (4) longitudinal research and data collection; and (5) collection of data from citizens. The article emphasizes how a key requisite conditions both the applicability of MTurk data and the validity of MTurk-based findings: the researcher must understand the boundaries and potential of the platform, since the issues related to representativeness, participation, and data quality are non-trivial.     

The effect of political sophistication and party identification on voter–party congruence. A comparative analysis of 30 countries

Partisanship and cognitive mobilization are generally seen as independent and counter-balancing influences on vote choice. While the former is typically regarded as a shortcut, reducing the need for close ideological congruence with one’s preferred party, the latter is associated with increasing levels of political sophistication and the importance of ideological proximity in voter decision-making. This paper tests the strength of these arguments in comparative perspective using data from Wave 3 of the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES). Our results show that in general higher levels of political sophistication are associated with higher levels of voter–party ideological congruence and that a strong party identification reduces this proximity. For voters with both high levels of sophistication and strong partisanship, however, congruence remains high. In a second step we examine whether these relationships are affected by the complexity of the party environment. Our findings show that party system size has no effect on levels of ideological congruence at the individual level, and this holds for different levels of voter sophistication. We conclude that for the most part voter sophistication and party identification are best seen as counter-weights in determining vote choice.