Policy visions of big data: views from the Global South

Abstract

Government intentions stand at the heart of debates about how big data can and should be used in the Global South. This paper provides new insights by examining the political and economic visions promoted by emerging power governments in Brazil, India and China (the BICs). Doing so is crucial as these countries not only comprise some of the world’s largest populations, but have also demonstrated their initiative in national and international promotion of big data politics. Drawing on a content analysis of strategic and legal documents discussing the use of big data, we identify potential areas for big data cooperation among the BICs by determining the compatibility of national policy visions. Three visions are apparent: data as a force for political liberation or repression, for improving public services and for facilitating development. Successful BIC cooperation is likely related to the latter two, but less probable for the liberation/repression vision. We conclude by identifying the implications of BIC engagement with big data for the Global South more broadly.     

Examining state and state-corporate crime surrounding major sporting events

Although prior criminological research has examined sport, most of the attention has been focused on crimes perpetrated by athletes or by fans. Potential examples of state and state-corporate crime as they relate to the bidding process, hosting, and legacy of sport mega-events is the current focus. Drawing on sport and criminology scholarship, the study focuses on Olympic Games and World Cups since the late 1990s, discussing the issues of selection of host sites, police abuse, under-enforcement of street crimes, limitations on civil liberties, removal of ‘undesirables,’ and labor-related concerns.     

Reducing the offending of a UK organized crime group using an opportunity-reducing framework—a three year case study

The proliferation and capability of organised crime groups (OCGs), threaten to overwhelm the finite resources of police agencies. Although proactive ‘intelligence led’ approaches are more adept in identifying the most problematic offenders, responses predominantly rely on enforcement tactics, often delivering limited outcomes at significant cost. This paper outlines a case study involving a northern English police force, working alongside community safety partners and the public, in a bid to reduce the offending opportunities of an OCG. The multi-agency disruption tactics were categorised using the five themes highlighted by Cornish and Clarke (Criminology 25:933–949, 1986) in their Rational Choice Theory framework. The impact of the operation was evaluated by comparing criminal conviction data and police intelligence immediately prior to the police operation with similar data 2 years later. This was supplemented by semi-structured interviews with police officers (including patrol, detective, middle and senior ranking officers), partner agencies and the community. The operation was effective in reducing the threat posed by the OCG and was popular with those involved in its implementation. As it was delivered with no increased resources it provides a viable and cost effective method of reducing the threat of OCGs although further research is required to test its impact in different police agencies and against different OCGs.     

The legal possibilities of Antwerp widows in the late sixteenth century

This article assesses the ability of widows and other women in Antwerp to act independently of men to defend their economic interests and those of their children. Consideration is given to both legal norms and actual practice in a number of different areas including writing wills, making marriage contracts, managing financial assets and pursuing claims and defending themselves in the civil courts. Analyses of these issues indicate that widows in Antwerp enjoyed in practice a greater degree of independence than was available to widows in many other parts of Europe, despite their weaker position in law.

Particular attention is given to the role in Antwerp of women merchants whose position freed them from male control and supervision. It is argued that their favored status did not derive from the desire of the authorities to protect the interests of their male relatives or to advance the economic interests of these women. Rather their legal freedom is seen as reflecting acknowledgement of the importance of their business activities and the wish to safeguard the interests of their customers who could pursue claims against the woman merchant in the event of a dispute.     

Legislative recruitment to upper houses: The Australian senate and house of representatives compared

Although a majority of liberal democracies are bicameral, only four – Australia, the United States, Germany and Switzerland – have upper houses which have any significant legislative authority. However, it is unclear to what extent upper house members differ – in their backgrounds and beliefs – from their lower house counterparts. This article applies multivariate methods to survey data collected among 1993 Australian federal election candidates to examine patterns of legislative recruitment and political attitudes among Australian Senate and House of Representatives candidates. The results show that Senate candidates differ significantly in their personal : and political backgrounds when compared to House of Representatives candidates, although there are few, if any, differences in political views. The findings confirm the strong discipline that the major parties exercise over the Senate, particularly by selecting candidates who are more party – oriented than their lower house counterparts. This is anomalous given that the original purpose of the upper house was to defend the interests of the smaller states and territories. Finally, the article discusses the implications of this increasing partisan control of upper houses for responsible party government.     

Underlying Dimensions of DSM-5 Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder Symptoms

This study examined the relationship between the underlying latent factors of major depression symptoms and DSM-5 posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). A nonclinical sample of 266 participants with a trauma history participated in the study. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to evaluate the fit of the DSM-5 PTSD model and dysphoria model, as well as a depression model comprised of somatic and nonsomatic factors. The DSM-5 PTSD model demonstrated somewhat better fit over the dysphoria model. Wald tests indicated that PTSD’s negative alterations in cognitions and mood factor was more strongly related to depression’s nonsomatic factor than its somatic factor. This study furthers a nascent line of research examining the relationship between PTSD and depression factors in order to better understand the nature of the high comorbidity rates between the two disorders. Moreover, this study provides an initial analysis of the new DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for PTSD.     

Australian opinion on international trade and the security link with the United States

In recent years, the Australian government has shifted the focus of its foreign economic and trade policies away from traditional practices and partners and onto Asia while simultaneously maintaining close diplomatic and defence ties with Washington. Using the results of the 1993 Australian Election Study survey, this note examines the place of public opinion in this continuing exercise. We find that although there is public support for increased trade with Asia, strong protectionist and pro‐alliance sentiments remain strong within the populace at large. These prevailing sentiments and their, albeit at this stage limited, interconnections could serve to complicate any push towards greater trade ties with its Asian neighbours.     

Controlling Federal Agencies: The Contingent Impact of External Controls on Worker Discretion and Productivity

ABSTRACT

Previous scholarship has investigated why legislatures sometimes choose to delegate policy choice to executive agencies, but there is little research on the consequences of the choice to delegate or not. Using a multiple principal-agent framework, this paper provides empirical evidence regarding the impact of legislative delegation and agency discretion on the work of U.S. government employees. Findings suggest that delegation directly reduces employee discretion only in client service agencies; its direct effects on employee productivity are more evident but varied. Legislative delegation is also associated with more executive political appointees, whose presence reduces both employee discretion and productivity. Whether employees with more discretion are more productive than those with less depends on their commitment to the job: employees who like their work more than their pay use their discretion to enhance productivity, while employees who like their pay more than their work use their discretion to reduce productivity.     

Determinants of Financial Transparency in Government

ABSTRACT

The search for enhanced transparency and accountability in government organizations has inspired studies to identify the key factors that facilitate greater disclosure of public financial information. With the advantages provided by the meta-analysis technique, applied to a sample of studies, we identify the most significant factors and incentives underlying the decisions adopted by public managers on policy strategies regarding information transparency and public responsibility. Our study shows the variables analyzed to be positively associated with the disclosure of public financial information, but also that this depends on the context in which the research is carried out. The most influential variables were the moderator variables of the administrative culture and of the measurement unit for the variables.     

Emerging and Submerging Powers: Imagined Geographies in the New Development Partnership at the Busan Fourth High Level Forum

The geopolitics of development is in a state of uncertainty and transition that the Busan High Level Forum both mirrored and contributed to. Busan established a new discourse of international development cooperation in which the old donor-recipient relationship is replaced by an equator-less landscape of a multi-stakeholder global partnership. But by analysing the Busan preparations and conference through textual analysis and participant observation we found it to be a fractured landscape of variable imagined geographies, suggesting that the question of who is ‘North’ and who is ‘South’ will continue to shape global negotiations on the future of development cooperation.