Structural change, technology, and economic growth: Brazil and the CIBS in a comparative perspective

Schumpeterian growth theory stresses the role of structural change in long run growth. Countries which increase the share of technology-intensive sectors in their economic structures benefit more from technological learning and innovation. In addition, they are more able to respond to changes in the international markets and to compete in sectors whose demand grows at higher rates. The paper compares Brazil (and to a lesser extent the CIBS group of countries) from the point of view of the direction and intensity of structural change. It is suggested that structural change has been relatively weak in Brazil and that this has been associated with a less dynamic growth performance since the 1980s.     

A Feasibility Pilot Intervention Program to Teach Parenting Skills to Mothers of Poly-Victimized Children

The Parceria (Partnership) Project is a Brazilian intervention program designed for mothers with an intimate partner violence (IPV) history. Its short term goal is to teach parenting skills to abused women, and in the long term, to prevent behavioral problems in their children. The objective of this pilot study was to evaluate the feasibility of the Parceria Project with mothers of children who had experienced multiple forms of maltreatment (poly-victimization), as it was expected that most of the mothers would also have a history of IPV. Seventeen Brazilian mothers took part in this intervention. They completed several types of evaluation. The intervention program using a cognitive-behavioral model took place in each family’s home. All mothers completed the intervention and evaluated the project positively. The study showed that it is feasible to conduct interventions with families who face severe psychosocial risk such as family violence.     

Books received

The Economy of Bangladesh. By Azizur Rahman Khan. London : Macmillan and New York: St. Martins Press, 1972. Pp. xviii + 196; £4.95.

Matching Employment Opportunities and Expectations: A Programme of Action for Ceylon. Report by the International Labour Office. Geneva, 1971. Pp. xvii + 251; £1.60 and U.S.$4.

Price Consistency in Development Planning. By Peter A. Cornelisse. Rotterdam University Press, 1973. Pp. xiv + 154 n.p.

The Mexican Economy: Twentieth‐Century Structure and Growth. By Clark W. Reynolds. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1970. Pp. xxiv, 468; £6.05.

Nutrition, National Development and Planning. Edited by A. Berg, N. S. Scrimshaw and D. L. Call. Cambridge, Mass.: M.I.T., 1973. Pp. 400. £4–50.

The Nutrition Factor: its Role in National Development. By Alan Berg, Portions with Robert J. Muscat. Washington: The Brookings Institution, 1973. Pp. xii 4‐ 290, Tables, Figures. $8.95.

The Ecology of Malnutrition in Mexico and Central America. By Jacques M. May and Donna L. McLellan. New York: Hafner, 1972. Pp. xiii + 397, tables, maps; £7.50.

The Ecology of Malnutrition in the Caribbean. By Jacques M. May and Donna L. McLellan. New York: Hafner, 1973. Pp. viii + 490, tables, maps; £9.95.     

Brands as semiotic molecular entities

The purpose of this article is to contribute to the understanding of how brands are a phenomenon endowed with signs and meanings. From the background of Peirce's process of representation a model is developed that characterises brands as a network with three semiotic dimensions. Signs of brands spread out in the markets and establish relations of dependence between different elements. Brands can be defined through the wholeness of these semiotic elements and their relations, resembling a molecule. Thus, it is proposed that brands can be regarded as tridimensional molecule-shaped networks of semiotic elements that evolve through continuous processes of representation. The implications of the model are discussed and the article ends with suggestions for future research.     

Accountability Mechanisms in Public Services: Activating New Dynamics in a Prison System

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study analyzes the activation of accountability mechanisms in public services and the changing dynamics between relevant actors. It remains unclear how accountability relationships emerge, when they are introduced, and under which circumstances administrative values are challenged over the course of administrative reforms. Our analysis of a Brazilian state prison system elucidates some of these elements by investigating a case in which an institutional crisis resulted in administrative reforms and new accountability dynamics. Our findings suggest that initiating accountability reforms before some services reach the level of severe crisis may be particularly difficult. We demonstrate that the development of accountability relationships is largely influenced by prominent actors capable of strategizing their actions in a collaborative fashion with other stakeholders. Additional layers of external regulation are also crucial to reduce the risks of political and regulatory capture, engage previously absent stakeholders, activate accountability mechanisms, and make reforms possible.     

Brazil's Agrarian Reform: Democratic Innovation or Oligarchic Exclusion Redux?

The government of Fernando Henrique Cardoso (1995–2002) redistributed a surprising amount of land to Brazil's landless. Assessing that reform, this study argues that an adequate appreciation of land redistribution must transcend the debate about the number of beneficiaries and place the reform in the larger context of state policies toward land and agriculture. It then asks to what extent such policies under Cardoso represented the dismantling of past state practices in the countryside. Although the Cardoso administration enacted some significant and democratizing changes, it missed other opportunities to benefit the rural poor, and its policies essentially maintained the agricultural model of the past two decades.     

The contribution of lobby regulation initiatives in addressing political corruption in Latin America

For most of its history, Latin America has lived under authoritarian and elite rule where public decisions were often crafted in the shadows by cabinets and parliaments to the benefit of a small minority. Recently, the development of participatory political systems has brought some transparency to the policy-making process. Such scrutiny reveals evidence of the capture of aspects of policy-making by private interests that use obscure strategies to achieve their political goals. As a consequence, a widespread movement for regulating the role and tactics of interest groups emerged, which is seen as a necessary step to address the root causes of political corruption. This article provides an overview of efforts to regulate lobbying in Latin America. It explains attempts at regulation in four countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Peru), evaluates the level of success of these efforts, and assesses prospects for the future regarding reducing corruption through the instrument of lobby regulations. The authors argue that such regulations alone cannot eliminate political corruption. However, lobby regulations can contribute to increased transparency and aid in developing an anti-corruption culture. It will be shown that lobby laws in Latin America exhibit many of the problems long identified with similar regulations across western democracies. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Automated headspace solid-phase microextraction and capillary gas chromatography analysis of ethanol in postmortem specimens

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is a relatively new solventless sample preparation technique that allows simultaneous sampling, extraction, pre-concentration, and introduction of analytes from a sample matrix in a single procedure. This methodology has been used for the analysis of several drugs of forensic toxicology interest including volatile compounds. This paper describes a methodology for analysis of ethanol and other volatile compounds using automatic headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) and capillary gas chromatography in postmortem specimens. The methodology was initially developed using standard solutions of acetaldehyde, acetone, methanol, and ethanol. Isobutanol was used as internal standard. Postmortem samples of blood, urine, and vitreous humor were obtained during medico-legal autopsies. To date, there are no published paper regarding alcohol analysis in vitreous humor specimens using HS-SPME and limited literature analyzing blood and urine samples. HS-SPME analysis showed that, under optimized conditions, ethanol and isobutanol (internal standard) were well-separated from other volatile compounds such as acetaldehyde, acetone, and methanol considered to be potential interferents in ethanol analysis. The calibration curves for each volatile compound demonstrated good linearity throughout the concentration range from 0.001 to 1.0 g/dl and the detection limit of ethanol in the studied specimens was approximately 0.0001 g/dl.