Book reviews

Global Security: North American, European and Japanese Interdependence in the 1990s Eric Grove (Ed.). Brassey's (London) 1991.109 pp. £7.50, $13.50 (PBk) ISBN 0–0804–0988–1.

Revolution and Political Change in the Third World Edited by Barry M. Schutz and Robert O. Slater. Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 1991. 260 pp. £28.50 (HBk). ISBN 0–7449–0025–5.

British Security Policy; The Thatcher Years and the End of the Cold War Stuart Croft (Ed.). Harper Collins, 1991. 231 pp. £10.95 (PBk) ISBN 0–04–445819–3.

The Near East Since the First World War By M.E. Yapp. Longman: 1991. 526 pp. £24.95. ISBN 0582–09499–0.

Crimes of Obedience: Towards a Social Psychology of Authority and Responsibility By Herbert C. Kelman and V. Lee Hamilton. Yale 1990. 382 pp. £10.95 (PBk)

Palestinians Between Israel and Jordan By Raphael Israeli. Praeger. 1991. 206 pp. £35.95 (HBk) ISBN 0–275–93938–3.

Review of Edwina Mountbatten: A Life of her Own By Janet Morgan. Harper Collins. London. 1991. £20.

Politics and Government in the Middle East and North Africa By Tariq Y. Ismael and Jacqueline S. Ismael. Florida International University Press. Miami. 1991. 570 pp. £31.95 (HBk). ISBN 0–8130–1043–8.

Soviet Military Art in a Time of Change. Command and Control of the Future Battlefield By Robert Hall London: Brassey's. 1991. 203pp. £22.50 (HBk) ISBN 008–0413218.

Europe in Turmoil ‐ The Struggle for Pluralism. European Defence and Strategic Studies Annual 1990–91. Edited by Gerald Frost. Adamantine Press Ltd. 1991. 377pp. £32.50 (PBk) ISBN 0–7449–0029–8.     

Adjustments in municipal fiscal crises. Are they different according to the gender of the mayor?

The literature on gender has attempted to explain the differences between the public outcome depending on whether the ruler is male or female, on the basis that men and women have different preferences. This scientific research has not yet examined issues related to fiscal crises, and our research aims to fill this gap. In a context of generalised economic crisis, our research examines if the gender of the mayor affected the fiscal adjustment policies carried out by municipalities with fiscal deficits in the Spanish region of Galicia. Our paper suggests that although gender of the mayor does not seem to have affected the level of adjustment in total current expenditure, it does seem to have influenced the way in which social and non-social spending were adjusted. Our study also highlights that female mayors are associated with lower levels of tax revenues and this could slow the adjustment processes of fiscal imbalances.     

The influence of site of collection on postmortem morphine concentrations in heroin overdose victims

When assaying for postmortem morphine concentration, significant site sampling variability exists between central and peripheral sampling sites and even within sampling regions of the body. To study the variation, 76 suspected heroin overdoses were identified. Each had femoral artery (FA) and vein (FV), left and right ventricle and pooled heart blood samples obtained at autopsy. Forty-four tested positive for morphine. Morphine concentrations were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, with sampling site differences reported as log-transformed ratios and compared by signed rank test.The mean FA to FV ratio for total morphine was 1.2 (range 0-4.5). The ratio for left heart to right heart total morphine was 1.1 (range 0.4-3.2). Left ventricular to FV total morphine ratio was 2.0 (range 0.6-6.9). In these opioid overdose deaths, FA and FV morphine concentrations are usually similar, although up to 4.5-fold differences were noted. Centrally obtained morphine concentrations are on average twice as high compared with peripheral morphine concentrations. Left and right ventricular morphine concentrations were usually similar, although up to 3.2-fold differences were noted (left side higher).     

Reliability in age determination by pulp/tooth ratio in upper canines in skeletal remains

Estimation of age of skeletal remains is one of the most complex questions for anthropologists. The most common macroscopic methods are based on dental wear and histological evaluation of bone remodeling. These methods are often qualitative, require great technical expertise, and have proved inexact in the estimation of ages over 50 years. Certain dental methods investigate the apposition of secondary dentine, in the study of tooth cross-sections, and X-rays to study width, height, and pulp area. The primary author previously proposed a method of estimating the age of a living person based on the pulp/tooth ratio (PTR) method in the upper canines. The aim of the present study is to verify whether the PTR method can also be used to estimate the age at death of skeletal remains. This paper investigates the study of historical samples of known age as a means to validate the proposed method.     

Regional psychiatric boards in Israel: expectations and realities

As laid down by Israeli legislation, the Regional Psychiatric Board constitutes one of the chief instruments in the monitoring of compulsory hospitalization, of compulsory outpatient treatment and of the quality of all inpatient care of the mentally ill. This article presents the findings of a study into the working of these boards. Taking a sample of every second application (N=168) over a 6-month period to one of Israel's six existing Regional Psychiatric Boards, an examination was made of the decisions issued by the board and of other aspects of its functioning. Explanations for the findings of this analysis are suggested, and generalizing from these findings, recommendations are offered for the improvement of the future functioning of all six Boards.     

European‐Chinese relations in the Nineties

In recent decades, there have been many international campaigns on numerous issues. In turn, scholars have analysed the activist networks promoting human rights, environmental quality and global justice, developing theories of transnational advocacy, strategies and outcomes. However, analysts have seldom noted that the ‘progressive’ networks on which these theories have been based seldom act unopposed. Instead, on numerous global issues leftwing groups face fierce opposition from networks of rightwing activists. This article provides examples of such clashes, focusing on these understudied conservative networks. In addition, it outlines a theory for understanding the conflict of networks over many policy issues.     

Identifying neighborhood thresholds: An empirical exploration

Abstract

In this article, we investigate the threshold‐like effects of four aspects of neighborhood environment: poverty rate, adult nonemployment rate, female headship rate for families with children, and secondary school dropout rate. We used a sample consisting of virtually all census tracts from U.S. metropolitan areas. The relationship between the value of numerous neighborhood indicators in 1980 and subsequent changes in each of the four dimensions of neighborhood quality of family life from 1980 to 1990 was evaluated statistically using a regression model with a spline specification to test for nonlinear, threshold‐like processes.

Stressing the exploratory nature of the study, we find evidence of threshold‐like effects in an endodynamic relationship (poverty rate and subsequent changes in that rate), and in exodynamic relationships (occupational status and rental rates and subsequent changes in several neighborhood quality indicators). Implications for research and a spatially targeted neighborhood reinvestment policy are derived from the analysis.