Historical changes in the Canadian university presidency: An empirical analysis of changes in length of service and experience since 1840

The number of Canadian university presidents terminated by their Boards of Governors has increased dramatically. Examining this phenomenon requires situating it in its historical context, yet there has been little empirical work. This study examines the total length of service and the average years of experience of presidents at 102 Canadian institutions. The analysis runs from 1840 until 2011 and shows that presidents spend much less time in office than was historically the case. The percentage of women serving in these roles increased during the 1980s reaching approximately 20% in the mid‐1990s and has since remained at that level. The recent increase in terminations and early departures are discussed in light of the changing nature of the university presidency.     

Academic judgement,the university Visitor and the Human Rights Act 1998

Students have proved increasingly willing to challenge academic judgements in court, and the passage into law of the Human Rights Act 1998 is likely to have a major bearing on future challenges. The Act will make it unlawful for a public authority (including both a university and the courts) to act in a way which is incompatible with many of the provisions in the European Convention on Human Rights (and the Protocols attaching thereto). It will also permit a victim of such unlawfulness to bring proceedings in an appropriate court or tribunal, whether in the High Court as part of an application for judicial review or as an ordinary civil action for negligence or breach of contract. The court will have the power to grant whatever remedy it considers to be just and equitable, including an award of damages where it feels such an award to be appropriate. This could have significant consequences for the use of the Visitor in chartered universities as the final arbiter in disputes over academic judgements. For the Visitor does not conduct hearings in public and often fails to follow any recognised procedure. It may even be doubted whether the Visitor can be said to be truly independent of the institution against whose decision the student is appealing. In future, therefore, universities may have to be prepared to justify any marks awarded in the public forum of the courtroom.     

When Does the EU Make a Difference? Conditionality and the Accession Process in Central and Eastern Europe

A number of recent studies examining the accession of states from Central and Eastern Europe into the European Union have provided a much more sophisticated understanding of when, why and how the EU shaped, directed and occasionally determined change in the region since 1989. Although acknowledging the EU was at times a motor of change, its power was limited to particular points in the accession process and varied significantly across policy areas. Even in cases such as Slovakia, often used to demonstrate the power of EU conditionality, the influence of the EU on domestic actors and policy change has been exaggerated. The EU's 'transformative power' is at its greatest when deciding to open accession negotiations, a finding which has implications for the EU's ability to enact change in Croatia and Turkey.     

Towards an Explanatory Taxonomy of Adolescent Delinquents: Identifying Several Social-Psychological Profiles

Taxonomic structure is examined in two large samples of delinquent youth in a domain of socio-psychological and personality factors. This paper offers a partial empirical test of the overlapping theoretical taxonomies of Moffitt (Pshycol Rev 100:674–701, 1993), Lykken (The antisocial personalities, 1995) and Mealey (1995). The first sample consisted of juvenile offenders (n = 1,572) from three state systems. Multiple cluster analysis methods were applied (Wards method, standard K-means, bootstrapped K-means and a semi-supervised pattern recognition technique). Core or exemplar cases were identified by means of a voting procedure. Seven clusters recurrently emerged across replications. While clear analogues of Moffitt’s two main categories were found, several additional stable subtypes emerged that were clearly reminiscent of Lykken’s sociopathic, neurotic-internalizing and “normal” types. However, boundaries between types were fuzzy and unstable, and many unclassified cases existed. Internal validation was assessed by cross-method verification. External validation assessed type differentiation on several delinquent behaviors. Finally, generalizability was assessed by repeating the clustering on a large replication sample (n = 1,453) from another state. Six of the seven initial types re-emerged.     

How can the poor benefit from private investment in agricultural research? A case study from Bolivia

This article evaluates potential mechanisms for facilitating increased private-sector engagement in agricultural research for development and technology transfer (ARDTT), with particular emphasis on Bolivia. It reviews the mixed results of efforts, in developed and developing countries alike, to decentralise ARDTT and to encourage private-sector investment. Potential mechanisms for Bolivia are considered within three broad categories: taxation schemes; co-funding arrangements; and output-based approaches. The constraints to participation in ARDTT by the private sector that arise from concerns over high transaction costs, intellectual property rights, and the legal and regulatory environment are also assessed. The article concludes that compliance, or a hybrid of compliance and a competitive co-funding scheme, is most suited to Bolivia's needs. A flexible approach to intellectual property rights systems is required, although it remains a challenge to identify appropriate taxation regimes.