Part-time employment: a comparative analysis of Spain and the Netherlands

Most industrialized countries have seen part-time employment as a percentage of total employment increasing in the last decade. This paper presents the results of a comparative study of part-time employment in Spain and the Netherlands. The project comprises a legal comparative study of the effectiveness of the normative solutions provided by the Dutch and Spanish legal orders regarding the protection of part-time workers and the promotion of part-time employment, with special attention paid to the gender dimension of part-time work in both countries; and an analysis, based on data extracted from the European Community Household Panel (1995–2001), of the determinants of part-time employment in both countries and an examination of the extent to which part-time jobs are used as stepping-stones to full-time positions. We have found significant country differences regarding females’ decisions to take part-time jobs. We also have found that, in general, Dutch females are not less likely than their male counterparts to increase the number of hours they work. However, this applies only to those females who are part of a couple or have children younger than 12 years. In Spain, females are 2.6 times less likely than their male counterparts to switch from a part-time to a full-time job.     

Suicide by Intentional Air embolism

Venous air embolism occurs when air enters the venous system. The main causes of venous air embolism include medical procedures, neck and head trauma, and injuries of the genitals. Self‐induced suicidal (and intentional) air embolism is extremely rare. The authors report a rare case of a suicidal air embolism committed using a self‐made tool composed of a plastic bottle and an infusion set, injecting nearly 2000 mL of air into the cubital vein. The toxicological analysis suggested that midazolam, together with air, was also injected into the circulation using the same bottle and infusion set.     

Heteroplasmy in Hair: Study of Mitochondrial DNA Third Hypervariable Region in Hair and Blood Samples*†

Abstract: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis has proved useful for forensic identification especially in cases where nuclear DNA is not available, such as with hair evidence. Heteroplasmy, the presence of more than one type of mtDNA in one individual, is a common situation often reported in the first and second mtDNA hypervariable regions (HV1/HV2), particularly in hair samples. However, there is no data about heteroplasmy frequency in the third mtDNA hypervariable region (HV3). To investigate possible heteroplasmy hotspots, HV3 from hair and blood samples of 100 individuals were sequenced and compared. No point heteroplasmy was observed, but length heteroplasmy was, both in C‐stretch and CA repeat. To observe which CA “alleles” were present in each tissue, PCR products were cloned and re‐sequenced. However, no variation among CA alleles was observed. Regarding forensic practice, we conclude that point heteroplasmy in HV3 is not as frequent as in the HV1/HV2.     

Empathy,Deservingness, and Preferences for Welfare Assistance: A Large-Scale Online Perspective-Taking Experiment

Political Behavior - Online perspective-taking experiments have demonstrated great potential in reducing prejudice towards disadvantaged groups such as refugees or Roma. These experiments trigger...     

The Evolution of the Market of the Hungarian Printing Industry after 1989: The End of a Success Story?

This article examines a case study of one industry in order to explore the factors influencing changing performance levels in the industries of post-socialist economies. It explores the influence on industrial performance of a number of once-only non-repetitive factors of market development that were typical of the transition period and compares them with longer term aspects of the market economy. The case that we discuss here is the development of the market for products of the Hungarian printing industry since the late 1980s. During the transition phase, privatisation, deregulation, the abolition of administrative distribution, and radical cuts in subsidies were all among the factors affecting this industry. Its supply chains also changed radically. However, these lost their importance after the transition had been completed and the long term processes of technical development and consumer behaviour became the main determinants of the behaviour of the printing companies.     

Prospects for Russia-NATO relations: The SWOT analysis

Despite recent changes in international relations and lapse of time since the fall of the USSR, the issue of Russian membership in NATO has been an ongoing fact. Hence, the principle scope of the paper is SWOT analysis of potential Russian membership in NATO from the perspective of the Russian Federation. Through the introduction and evaluation of advantages and disadvantages of such membership in the light of latest geopolitical events in Eurasia suggested by academic and professional circles in NATO countries and Russia, we proceed with identification of fundamental strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that Russia might face. Taking into account such determining factors as the size of its territory, shifting geopolitical conditions in the world, modern understanding of security and a potentially frozen dispute in Ukraine, we come to the conclusion that benefits potentially brought by Russian membership in NATO could be sustained while drawbacks could be eliminated by incorporation of NATO to OSCE and a change in voting procedures of the Alliance.     

The use of local direct democracy in the Czech Republic: how NIMBY disputes drive protest behaviour

Over the past 15 years there has been an increase in the use of local direct democracy in the Czech Republic. The analysis shows that the primary cause has been the regulation of development projects. Using transaction costs economics (TCE) approach it is shown how the regulation related to the siting of development projects leads to a not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) response resulting in political activism that uses institutions of local direct democracy. Drawing from the TCE perspective, in this article it is argued that the key sources of this political mobilisation have been the existence of contractual hazards related to development projects and an inability to form credible commitments between developers and communities. The article highlights a previously neglected explanation for the increased use of direct democracy because sources outside the political system often go unnoticed and contributes to the research on NIMBY disputes and on the expansion of direct democracy.     

Terrorist Attacks on the Energy Sector: The Case of Al Qaeda and the Islamic State

The article focuses on the attitudes of two militant Islamist groups, Al Qaeda and the Islamic State, toward the issue of terrorist attacks in the energy sector. The main aim of the article is both to analyze the importance of attacks on energy infrastructure for the strategies of these two organizations, and to describe specific examples and manifestations of terrorist activities from the side of Al Qaeda and the Islamic State with regard to the energy sector in the Middle East and North Africa. The article is based on the concept of terrorist attacks on the energy sector.     

Fragmentation of presidential elections and governability crises in Latin America: a curvilinear relationship?

Part of the literature views high numbers of presidential candidates as a threat to political stability in presidential democracies. A contradictory model proposes that an overconcentration of the presidential party system is problematic. Both models are hard to reconcile. We approach this puzzle by arguing that the relationship between the level of presidential election fragmentation and governability crises is curvilinear: both very low and very high effective numbers of presidential candidates increase the risk of governability crisis. We test this theoretical claim with ordered logit models drawing on a sample of 108 presidencies in Latin America between 1978 and 2013 and using an ordinal index of the intensity of crisis as the dependent variable. We explore the operation of the theorized causal mechanisms through case studies and argue that they are different at both extremes, high and low levels of fragmentation. Finally, we formulate implications for the design of presidential electoral rules drawing on the debate contrasting runoff and plurality rules.     

The relationship between human trafficking and child recruitment in the Colombian armed conflict

The article rethinks the relationship between human trafficking as organised crime and child recruitment as a war crime. After analysing the records of 132 cases of child and adolescent recruitment brought before Colombia’s ordinary justice system between 2008 and 2016, it became clear that the youngsters involved had performed activities both directly and indirectly related to the conflict, but also that they had been exploited and maltreated, with no control over their situation. Reassessment of the relationship between human trafficking and child recruitment could result in more effective justice for this population by shedding light on alternate ways to construct reparation and reintegration.