Rethinking measures of democracy and welfare state universalism: Lessons from subnational research

ABSTRACT

Democracy and the welfare state are two of the most extensively studied concepts and themes in the field of comparative politics. Debate about how to best measure the two concepts has failed to contemplate the extent to which political and social rights are uniformly present across distinct regions of the national territory, despite the presence of substantial subnational research that underscores wide variation inside countries. We argue that this omission hampers our understanding of the two phenomena and we propose a new measure of democracy and healthcare universalism, which we call the Adjusted Measures of Democracy and Welfare Universalism. The new measures integrate territorial inequality into existing national-level indicators, providing a more accurate picture of country performance and opening the door to new, multi-level theory building.     

Social Policy by Other Means: Theorizing Unconventional Forms of Welfare Production

Abstract

The goal of this special issue is to highlight the importance of unconventional social policies, theorize their development in comparison with traditional welfare state accounts and outline a new research agenda. In this introduction to the special issue, the editors present the concept of social policy by other means as encompassing two kinds of unconventional social policy (from the point of view of mainstream comparative research): First, functional equivalents to formal systems of social protection and, second, non-state provision of benefits. The concept builds upon a sizeable, but fragmented literature in comparative welfare state research. While numerous examples demonstrate that social policy by other means is more pervasive in both OECD and non-OECD countries than often acknowledged, a brief survey of the top 20 articles in the field reveals that this fact is not sufficiently reflected in the academic literature. With reference to both existing studies and the contributions to this special issue, the editors go on to explore (1) the different forms of social policy by other means, (2) explanatory theories and (3) their effectiveness in terms of social outcomes. They close by outlining a research agenda.     

Zombies,Gender, and Student Active Learning

Abstract

While the use of active learning exercises and the incorporation of popular culture in the classroom have increased in recent years, the study of potential gendered effects on learning and engagement when it comes to these practices has been limited. In this study, data are collected from international politics courses using a zombie outbreak as the theme for a United Nations simulation to explore whether there are unintentional gendered outcomes from these activities. Contrary to expectations of previous literature, no statistical differences manifest between men and women in enjoyment and learning when using zombie themes in active learning.     

Bricks in the wall: the politics of housing in Europe

Abstract

Housing has important economic, political, and social ramifications for Western Europe and beyond. Despite its importance in shaping economic and political outcomes, however, housing remains in the peripheral vision of major comparative political economy debates. This introduction to the special issue accomplishes four objectives. First it demonstrates how housing defies current political economy typologies by failing to conform to their theoretical and empirical predictions. Second it summarises the current state of housing research within political science, which still remains in its infancy. Third it highlights how the contributions in this special issue expand our understanding of how housing causes and is shaped by political and economic outcomes in Europe. Finally, this introduction concludes by outlining how the special issue contributions demonstrate housing’s importance for the welfare state, political preferences and electoral shifts, regulatory and redistributive policies, and financialisation and household indebtedness in Europe.     

慕课对传统高职教育的冲击及应对预案

慕课虽然是在高等教育领域发端的，但随着云技术和互联网业的迅猛发展，其产生的“鲶鱼效应”将对我国高职教育产生一系列重大而深远的影响，从而导致我国高职教育的变革。基于此，文章旨在通过慕课可能对我国高职教育的管理、教与学、课程、师资队伍、学习与教学的考核与评估等许多方面，甚至包括高职教育的形态产生的影响和冲击进行深入系统的研究，并提出相对具体、有针对性、切实可行的预案和对策，从而促使我国高职教育进一步与国际接轨，深化高职教育改革。     

国家赔偿责任的民法基础

历史上盛行国家无不法行为能力理论,据此国家不对其公务员履行职务时的侵权行为承担责任,公务员要自己承担赔偿责任。随着法治国家观念的确立,国家开始代替其公务员向受害人承担赔偿责任,即所谓的代位责任。也有国家确立了国家的直接赔偿责任,即自己责任。但无一例外,国家的赔偿义务均建立在民法基础上,以全额赔偿为原则。我国国家赔偿制度确立了独一无二的"个人不赔,国家不全赔"的赔偿模式,偏离了赔偿法所固有的民法属性,无法良好保护受害人。而其根源则在于欠缺对国家赔偿责任的历史与本质的全面理解。有鉴于此,应尽快修订《国家赔偿法》,确立国家的全额赔偿责任,更好地服务法治国家的建设。     

试析斯考契波的“国家自主性”理论

“国家自主性”是20世纪70年代以来兴起的概念，它表明国家重新进入政治研究的核心视野中。西达?斯考契波（Theda Skocpol）的国家自主性理论是在对非马克思主义国家观、马克思主义国家观以及新马克思主义国家观批判的基础上来进行构建的。其以现实主义、结构主义和历史主义的视角，在宏观层面剖析出国家的强制性特征、国家利益以及国家能力等要素，从而证明国家具有“潜在自主性”。斯考契波打破了传统国家研究的社会中心主义视角，将国家作为自主实体的研究推向了新的高度。     

新时代大学生的爱国主义教育现状调查与分析——以Z大学为例

爱国主义是中华民族精神的核心,爱国主义教育是大学教育的重要内容。通过对Z大学的调查发现,部分大学生对爱国主义的认识不够全面。在实际的学习与生活中,大都有参与爱国主义教育的实践活动。大学生们普遍表示希望加强爱国主义教育。提升大学生的爱国主义教育,可以从加强党史和社会主义发展史的教育,有效地将影视作品运用于爱国主义教育的教学中,以及组织学生就近参观爱国主义教育基地等方面努力。     

扣紧理论创新与实践路径的双重逻辑：论党的十八大对思想政治教育的创新与发展

党的十八大报告是新的历史起点上继续发展中国特色社会主义的政治宣言和行动纲领,更是指导我国新时期思想政治教育工作的重要文献.它的理论意义在于深化了思想政治教育学科的指导思想与时代内涵,而它的实践意义则在于拓展了思想政治教育的载体和创新了思想政治教育工作的实践路径.     

创新党史学习教育的有效途径

加强党员干部的党史学习教育,是提高党的建设科学化水平的重要途径。目前,各级培训机构在党史教育中还存在着不少问题,如对党史教育重视程度不够、存在＂庸俗化＂倾向、专业人才缺乏、教育方式针对性不强等。因此,相关部门必须高度重视并合理安排党员干部进行党史学习教育,加强党史教育工作队伍建设。各级培训部门在党史教育过程中要突出重点把握规律,增强其有效性和针对性。