The Mechanism of State Charter School Policy Adoption: The Case of American States

This article concentrates on charter school policy that is regarded as the fastest growing innovative policy in America. Its adoption is more impressive than other innovative policies in the public educational area. By 2008, 40 states among 50 American states have passed charter school law since Minnesota became the first pathfinder to create charter school law about two decades ago. However, 10 states have not adopted charter school law. Based on this dichotomous policy phenomenon, the primary research question of the study focuses on clarifying what factors drive American states to adopt charter school policy. To obtain answers for this research question, the study dedicates to analyzing main hypotheses from the regional diffusion model and state characteristics, using event history analysis. The results demonstrate that the three predictor variables—regional diffusion, similar innovation, and gubernatorial political tendency—positively have significant effects in explaining the adoption of American state charter school policy.     

Practising homeland security across the Atlantic: practical learning and policy convergence in Europe and North America

Abstract

Despite different traditions, interests and perceptions characterizing North American and European approaches to homeland security, since 9/11 policy-makers across the Atlantic have formulated increasingly similar policies to deal with terrorism and other international security threats. Challenging mainstream accounts elaborated in the policy convergence literature, and drawing from sociological works in performance studies, this essay argues that the recent evolution of homeland security policies in Europe and North America can be understood as an instance of ‘practical learning’. From this perspective, this outcome is the result of the acquisition on the part of European and North American policy-makers of the practical knowledge necessary to carry out the new policies, policies learned by mimicking the practices of their counterparts across the Atlantic. This argument is then applied to examine two cases of policy convergence in Europe and North America – the proposal for a ‘European Passenger Name Record’ system and the project of a regional ‘Security Perimeter’.     

Substance Use Among African American Adolescents in the Midwest

The purpose of this article is to examine the attitudes and substance use behaviors of African American adolescents living in the Midwest. A baseline survey was administered to 463 African American teens between the ages of 11–19. The article examines the relationship between attitudes toward drugs and drug-using behavior in this African American sample. Drug use will be compared to national drug use norms established by the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey. Overall participants had fairly negative attitudes toward drugs. Sixty percent of the sample reported that they were committed to a drug-free life, 74% had made a decision to stay away from marijuana, 79% reported making a decision not to smoke cigarettes, and 71% reported they would not get drunk in the next year. Females were more likely to stay away from marijuana than males. In this current study there is cause for alarm; participants reported higher percentages of ever smoking cigarettes and marijuana than the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey. This study shows there is a need to provide substance abuse prevention programs for African American adolescents. Limitations and future directions are also discussed.     

Quality of work environment (QWE): Effects on office workers

Abstract

This article focuses on the physical environment of work as an important, and overlooked, component of working conditions. Quality of Work Environment (QWE) is viewed as one facet of the Quality of Worklife (QWL) movement. Attention is thus paid not only to direct health effects of adverse environmental conditions, but also to how the physical conditions of work contribute to a sense of competence and to job satisfaction and performance. Based on empirical research and theory, a set of general criteria for improving the quality of the work environment are proposed.     

现代生命医学与美国相关法律的发展

近30年来现代医学技术的高速发展及惊人进步挑战着世界各国的法律及道德观念.本世纪更因生命科学的巨大发展而被命名为生命科学世纪.现代生命科学在变革世界的同时也带来了史无前例的道德伦理问题,引发了激烈的争论.为了适应这些新的发展,美国的法律做出了相应的变革.这些新的法律法规影响着美国人民的工作生活及几乎所有的法律领域,例如医疗法、家庭法、遗产法、商业法、专利法、刑法等都极大程度地受到现代医学及相关法律的制约与影响.当代各个领域中的美国律师及政治领导人必须熟悉生命医学的有关法律,以为社会提供高质量和全方位的服务.生命医学法律更是当代世界及美国政坛的激战舞台,美国总统布什于2006年7月19日第一次使用了总统否决权,驳回了美国国会新通过的干细胞研究的法律,此举引发了激烈的政治波澜.着重介绍当代美国生命医学法律中的最热点论题,包括医疗决定权、安乐死、人类克隆及人胚胎干细胞研究等有关法律的发展过程及存在的问题与面临的挑战.     

移植与创新:法律援助合同项目模式在中国的适用

法律援助合同项目模式诞生于美国 ,它对完善美国法律援助制度 ,使美国成为世界上发达的法律援助国家起了重要作用。我国应建立法律援助合同项目 ,建立我国法律援助合同项目势所必然 ,在移植美国法律援助合同项目模式中应从合同主体、性质、适用范围、条款等方面创新。     

美国对华决策政治系统及要求

自 2 0世纪 70年代以来特别是冷战结束以后 ,美国外交决策系统由原来的相对集中和由总统占垄断地位向一个开放和多元的系统转变。本文使用政治的分析方法考察了美国对华决策系统的结构以及各个要求的作用和影响 ,并提出通过影响国会、利益集团和媒体的要求进而影响美国对华政策的观点。     

Unstable Antistatism: The Left, the Right, and The Outlaw Josey Wales

This essay is an examination of the diverse origins of modern conservative antistatism in the United States through an analysis of the 1976 film The Outlaw Josey Wales, and the book on which it was based. The consolidation of a conservative politics in the 1970s was achieved in part by the Right's appropriation of New Left antistatism via older forms of racial discourse. This emphasis on New Left influence helps explain the rise of the New Right in a way that is missed in conventional accounts, while demonstrating more generally that political discourse is always contingent and unstable, and open to unintended articulations.     

美国企业孵化器发展及对我国的启示

企业孵化器发源于美国,在培育和扶持初创型小企业、培育区域经济增长点、促进产业结构调整、增强技术创新能力等方面发挥了重要作用。我国的企业孵化是在借鉴美国的经验并结合中国国情发展起来的,具有自己的特色,也存在一定的问题。为了促进其进一步发展,还必须增强市场意识、服务意识和社会网络意识,使其向企业化、国际化发展,并不断优化融资环境,提高管理队伍的素质,推动我国企业孵化器的健康发展。