Governing the academies: Sub‐central secondary education policy making in France

In the context of the growing debate on the reshaping of the state in western Europe, this article maps out the changing relationships between the principal policy actors involved in French sub‐central secondary education policy. Based on extensive primary interviews in two French academies, the article maintains that, while the paradigms of networks and governance are useful in understanding certain features of education policy‐making, they have to contend with the persistence of a particular state tradition which is endemically strong in French secondary education.     

The presidential party and the fifth republic

Until 1986 the prevailing interpretation of the French Fifth Republic was one of encroaching presidential domination; notwithstanding some welcome revisionism occasioned by ‘cohabitation’, presidentialism continues to permeate analysis of contemporary French politics. This article attempts a comparative assessment of the presidential party as it has functioned under the first four presidents of the French Fifth Republic: de Gaulle, Pompidou, Giscard d'Estaing and Mitterrand. It is contended that each presidential party has shared certain attributes, resulting from systemic influences in France's semi‐presidential system; while retaining distinct characteristics derived from its identity as a particular type of party, and from the experience of a varying political context. The opportunities and constraints faced by successful presidential parties outweigh in importance their dissimilarites, inherited from their experience of different models of party organisation and ideology. No presidential party that has fallen from grace has managed to survive unscathed, nor to recover its position of former influence.     

Local policy networks in France and Britain: Policy co‐ordination in fragmented political Sub‐Systems

This article applies the concept of local policy networks to understand the emergence of local governance in France and Britain. Although the concept of policy networks needs to be used with caution, it is a useful way of mapping out the complex interdependencies of local decision makers in both states. Traditional approaches to central‐local politics in Britain and France emphasised the contrasts between the two countries, and while these continue, Cole and John argue that recent institutional and policy changes suggest a convergence to a more complex institutional environment and more decision making based on networks between organisations.     

UK corporate governance: To what end a new regulatory state?

This article questions the importance of recent changes in the regulation of UK corporate governance. Michael Moran has observed that a new regulatory state is emerging. In the case presented here new authority was created but little changed substantively. Under Labour and Conservative ministers, governance policy was reactive and cautious. For all the new institutional capacity, governance problems and policies were conceived within existing structures of power and advantage. Any ambitions to social control that threatened the political-economic status quo were ruled out. While this may be no surprise, it suggests regulatory reorganisation need not herald dramatic change, even when politicised.     

Book reviews

Patterns of Democracy. Government Forms and Performance in Thirty‐Six Countries. By Arend Lijphart. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1999. Pp.351, biblio., index. £26 (cloth); £10.95 (paper) ISBN 0–300–07893–5.

Critical Citizens. Global Support for Democratic Governance. Edited by P. Norris. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1999. Pp.xv + 303, 37 figures, 59 tables, biblio, index. £45 (cloth) ISBN 0–19–829479–4.

Continuity and Change in Contemporary Capitalism. Edited by H. Kitschelt, P. Lange, G. Marks and J.D. Stephens. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Pp.xiii + 527, biblio, index. £45 (US$69.95) (cloth) ISBN 0–521–62446–2; £16.95 (US$27.95) (paper) ISBN 0–521–63496–0.

Comparative Public Policy ‐ Patterns of Post‐war Transformation. By Francis G. Castles. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 1998. Pp.368, £59.95 (cloth) ISBN 1–858989–816–0; £19.95 (paper) ISBN 1–858989–823–3.

The Political System of the European Union. By S. Hix. London: Macmillan, 1999. Pp.ix + 427, 52 tables and 28 figures, biblio, index. £16.99 (paper) ISBN 0–333–71654‐X; £49.50 (cloth) ISBN 0–333–71653–1.

The Long Presidency. France in the Mitterrand Years, 1981–1995. By Julius Friend. Boulder, CO and Oxford: Westview Press, 1998. Pp.xi + 308, biblio, index. £30.95 (cloth) ISBN 0–8133–2850–0.

Historical Dictionary of Modern Italy. Edited by Mark F. Gilbert and K. Robert Nilsson. The Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland and London, 1999. Pp.xxxvi + 463. 18 tables. $65 (cloth) ISBN 0–8108–3584–3

Zukunft der Sozialpartnerschaft: Veränderungsdynamik und Reformbedarf. Edited by F. Karlhofer and E. Tálos. Vienna: Signum, 1999. Pp.301, 9 tables, 3 figures, ATS 350 ISBN 3–85436–297–8.

Geografia della cittadinanza sociale in Italia. By Valeria Fargion. Bologna: II Mulino, 1997. Pp.351, biblio, index. L.45,000 (paper) ISBN 88–15–06127–4.     

Intimate partner violence, relationship status, and protective orders: does "living in sin" entail a different experience?

The legal status of women's intimate relationships may allow for different experiences with intimate partner violence (IPV) and the protections received from the criminal justice system. There has been limited research examining differences in IPV and protective orders for women in marital and cohabiting intimate relationships. This study examines differences in experiences with IPV and factors related to protective orders: stipulations, violations, and perceived efficacy in a sample of married (n = 392) and cohabiting (n = 307) women with protective orders. Results suggest (a) married and cohabiting women are significantly different on a number of demographic characteristics; however, after controlling for these demographic differences, (b) married and cohabiting women's experiences with IPV are similar in almost all dimensions, except with the psychological tactic of degradation; and (c) married and cohabiting women receive similar protective order stipulations, experience similar rates of violations, and have the same overall perceptions of safety, freedom, and effectiveness pertaining to the domestic violence order. Implications for policy are discussed.     

Development of a harmonised method for the profiling of amphetamines: IV. Optimisation of sample preparation

The suitability of liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) and solid-phase extraction (SPE) for the preparation of impurity extracts intended for gas chromatographic profiling analyses of amphetamine were evaluated. Both techniques were optimised with respect to the extraction of selected target compounds by use of full factorial designs in which the variables affecting the performance were evaluated. Test samples consisted of amphetamine synthesised by the Leuckart reaction, by reductive amination of benzyl methyl ketone and by the nitrostyrene route. The performance of LLE and SPE were comparable in terms of repeatability and recovery of the target compounds. LLE was considered the better choice for the present harmonised amphetamine profiling method due to the lack of information on the long-term stability of SPE columns.     

Evaluating Simulant Materials for Understanding Cranial Backspatter from a Ballistic Projectile

In cranial wounds resulting from a gunshot, the study of backspatter patterns can provide information about the actual incidents by linking material to surrounding objects. This study investigates the physics of backspatter from a high‐speed projectile impact and evaluates a range of simulant materials using impact tests. Next, we evaluate a mesh‐free method called smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) to model the splashing mechanism during backspatter. The study has shown that a projectile impact causes fragmentation at the impact site, while transferring momentum to fragmented particles. The particles travel along the path of least resistance, leading to partial material movement in the reverse direction of the projectile motion causing backspatter. Medium‐density fiberboard is a better simulant for a human skull than polycarbonate, and lorica leather is a better simulant for a human skin than natural rubber. SPH is an effective numerical method for modeling the high‐speed impact fracture and fragmentations.