Tasks of research in forensic medicine - different study types in clinical research and forensic medicine

In the last years the research output of forensic medicine has sometimes been regarded as insufficient and as of poor quality, especially when parameters as impact factors and external funding were taken into account. However, forensic medicine has different tasks compared to clinical medicine. The main difference between basic subjects, clinical and forensic medicine is not a lack of scientific efficiency in forensic medicine but is a result of the questions asked, the available methods and specific aims. In contrast to natural-scientific research, forensic science has furthermore important intersections with arts and socio-scientific disciplines. Etiologic and pathogenetic research is of only limited relevance in forensic medicine. Thus, forensic medicine is excluded from these research fields, which are mainly supported by external funding. In forensic medicine research mainly means applied research regarding findings, the probative value and reconstruction as well as examination at different points of intersection between medicine and law. Clinical types of research such as controlled randomised, prospective cross-sectional, cohort or case-control studies can only rarely be applied in forensic medicine due to the area specific research fields (e.g. thantatology, violent death, vitality, traffic medicine, analytical toxicology, hemogenetics and stain analysis). The types of studies which are successfully established in forensic medicine are comparison of methods, sensitivity studies, validation of methods, kinetic examinations etc. Tasks of research in forensic medicine and study types, which may be applied will be addressed.     

Neurobiological determinism: human freedom of choice and criminal responsibility

Several authors have argued that criminal behavior is generally caused by neurobiological deficits. This assumption not only questions the concept of free will and a person's responsibility for his or her own actions but also the principle of guilt in criminal law. When critically examining the current state of research, it becomes apparent that the results are not sufficient to support the existence of a universally valid neurobiological causality of criminal behavior. Moreover, the assumption of total neurobiological determination of human behavior and the impossibility of individual responsibility are characterized by both faulty empiricism and methodical misconceptions. The principle of relative determinism and the analysis of the offender's behavior at the time of the offense thus remain the central and cogent approach to the assessment of criminal responsibility.     

An Unconditional Quantile Regression Based Decomposition of Spatial Welfare Inequalities in Ghana

Ghana has witnessed tremendous economic growth since the 1990s and attained the Millennium Development Goals target of halving poverty. This notwithstanding, inequality in Ghana increased over the same period, suggesting growth benefits were not equitably distributed. This study provides evidence on the determinants of household consumption expenditure and factors that explain rural-urban welfare gaps between 1998 and 2013. The study employs an unconditional quantile regression and recently proposed decomposition technique based on re-centred influence functions. We find significant spatial differences in consumption expenditure across selected quantiles, with rural-urban inequalities driven largely by differences in returns to households’ endowments.     

Dealing with the temporal domain of regime effectiveness: A further conceptual development of the Oslo-Potsdam solution

This paper develops the Oslo-Potsdam solution to measuring regime effectiveness further conceptually. I argue that the temporal domain of regime effectiveness is not adequately dealt with by the current measurement concepts and develop three amendments to the Oslo-Potsdam solution. First, I suggest to measure effectiveness over the time interval the regime is in operation in order to capture welfare gains over time. Second, I propose an amendment that takes the pre-regime phase into account and I suggest a way to assess the loss of potential welfare brought about by delays in negotiating the regime. Third, I take temporal externalities of regime policies into account. Dealing with these three aspects of the temporal domain of regime effectiveness is important for obtaining complete and unbiased measurements. Achieving this is important in itself but also for comparative research, the assessment of regime dynamics, and ultimately for advising on policy.     

Axiomatizations of a positional power score and measure for hierarchies

The extant literature on positional power in hierarchies is mainly restricted to the analysis of power in terms of the authority structure. This is based upon the bare positions of actors and ignores the existence of decision-making mechanisms. The few studies, which also take into account decision-making mechanisms, are ‘membership-based’. In an earlier paper we demonstrated that such an approach is, in general, inappropriate. As a solution we suggested an ‘action-based’ approach and developed a power score and measure ascribing positional power to actors in hierarchies. In this paper we axiomatize this power score and measure and illustrate their applicability.     

Technology assessment in Australia: the case for a formal agency to improve advice to policy makers

The pace and reach of technological change has led to calls for better technology policy and governance to improve social outcomes. Technology assessment can provide information and processes to improve technology policy. Having conducted a review of international best practice, we established a set of quality criteria for TA. In effect, good technology assessments are systematic, broad, inclusive and well resourced and are conducted by organisations that are trustworthy and influential. Although not having a formal TA agency, Australia does have a number of recent examples of TA-like activities in the form of ad hoc processes (such as reviews and inquiries) and within other organisations. Drawing on reports, commentaries, discussions and our observations as participants, we have assessed these activities and processes against our quality criteria. Our findings indicate that TA capacity in Australia is fragmented, uncoordinated and variable in quality and impact. We conclude that a formal TA agency could improve Australian technology policy and capacity for technology governance that would be more in line with other nations, notably in Europe.     

International research collaboration among women engineers: frequency and perceived barriers,by regions

International research collaboration is on the rise—and at the same time, women face potential barriers. Based on responses to surveys conducted among groups of women engineers, this article addresses (1) women’s frequency of international research collaboration; (2) the barriers to collaboration reported for both self and for other women; and (3) the patterns among women students as well as professionals, by national regions. Findings of this study have implications for policies to broaden participation in the increasingly important arena of international research collaboration, based on women in engineering, the scientific field in which women are most underrepresented. This makes the case focal for the study of women, science, and policy.