A Committee of No Importance? Assessing the Relevance of the Committee of the Regions

As a result of its formal weakness, the Committee of the Regions is often presumed to be inconsequential in the development of European Union policy. This article draws on ongoing research to argue against this assumption. From an analysis of the Committee's output and an assessment of its impact on both Commission proposals and final legislation, it emerges that the Committee is already playing an important role in decision making. Moreover, the Committee has a strong and devoted protector in the Commission, enabling it further to escape the peripherality of the position it was assigned in the Maastricht Treaty.     

Worries and Health in Adolescence: A Latent Variable Approach

In this study, the most salient worries of Dutch adolescents are examined and the most often reported symptoms are ranked. The relationship between worrying and health is explored using structural modeling as are the frequently found gender differences in these areas. Worrying is postulated as an indicator of psychosocial well-being along with affectivity, ease of parental communications, tiredness, and loneliness. Health, or physiological status, is indicated by reported symptoms, frequency of doctors visits, aspirin consumption, and a global health measure. Four hundred and sixteen high-school students (211 girls and 205 boys) fitted in a questionnaire during school hours. The structure of the bet fitting model was the same for boys and girls, indicating that gender differences are a question of degree, and not of different structural relationships. Psychosocial well-being explained 77% of the variance in physiological status. The implications of the findings for health education are discussed.     

The fate of the Assyrian minority in early independent Iraq: a test case of political violence based on rational primordialism

Analyzing ethno-national conflicts is usually not easy in that not all quantitative scientific tools are useful to the student of a conflict based on primordial elements. The burden of studying the outcome of a conflict is all the more complex given that the two conflicting groups might be at two different stages of their political development at any given time during the course of the conflict. In the case of the fate of the [Eastern Christian] Assyrian community in early independent Iraq, the political rationale for decisions taken by each party was drawn from different sociological, historical and political realms. Decisions in times of conflict and their political and historical ramifications are not always rational, since they draw upon primordial/communal considerations rather than the accurate reading of the overall true strategic scene.

The violence was an outcome of a combination of primordial differences and rational choice. The Iraqis sought to establish a new sovereign state with minimal disturbances from its Christian minority that they perceived as not belonging to the new nation. As for the Assyrians, they chose violence believing that at least some superpowers would support them. Historically, this rational decision based upon a primordial dispute turned out to be a mistake primarily because of lack of external support, weak internal cohesion of the group, and feeble leadership.     

Contents of Volume 22 (2003)

Volume Contents

Contents of Volume 22 (2003)     

A Constitution for Antidiscrimination: Exploring the Vanguard Moment of Community Law

It is a commonplace that 'non-discrimination' is a fundamental principle of Community Law. If the principle is taken to express a broader commitment to equality, however, there appears to be something quite unusual about it. When compared with the standards set by modern constitutional law, the commitment to equality is, at least with respect to Member State action, less extensive; in the context of indirect gender discrimination, however, the principle acquires remarkable scope. Although this 'vanguard moment' of Community Law is tacitly acknowledged in the practice of the ECJ, it is, at the same time, subdued; the resources of the principle might be tapped, however, by moving toward a constitution for antidiscrimination. The article explores both the philosophical presuppositions and the institutional context of what could become a constitutionalisation of antidiscrimination at the level of Community Law.     

Attachment as an Organizational Construct for Affect,Appraisals, and Coping of Late Adolescent Females

The purpose of this study was to 1) compare general affective dispositions (depression and anxiety) and negative affect during interpersonal conflict as a function of attachment security, 2) examine appraisals as a function of attachment style and as predictors of coping, 3) compare strategies of coping with interpersonal conflict as a function of attachment style, and 4) investigate the roles of attachment style, affect, and appraisals in predicting coping in the context of interpersonal conflict. Seventy-three late adolescent females participated. Insecure participants reported higher levels of depression, anxiety, and negative affect during interpersonal conflicts. Insecure participants were more likely to cope with interpersonal conflicts through support seeking or avoidance. Hierarchical regression analysis indicated that general and specific attachment style, affect, and appraisals significantly predict coping strategies. Implications for general and specific models of attachment as organizational constructs and attachment as a predictor of coping with interpersonal and non-interpersonal stressors are discussed.     

The development of air transport law within the European Community

I would like to acknowledge the funds provided by the ESRC and the help and advice of Professor John Usher.     

Literatur

Ohne Zusammenfassung