Does the economy really matter for satisfaction with democracy? Longitudinal and cross-country evidence from the European Union

Research focusing on the relationship between the economy and satisfaction with democracy often presents mixed results. This article argues that this uncertainty is mainly due to model specification, number of surveys and measurement. After discussing why the role of the economy should not be overlooked, by using an empirical strategy that applies Bayesian cross-classified mixed models to 572 national surveys in 28 European countries from 1973 to 2013 drawn from the Eurobarometer, it is shown that objective macro-economic indicators and a subjective indicator seem to substantially affect citizens’ satisfaction with democracy in Europe. The findings are robust when controlling for various institutional and political variables and using alternative model specifications.     

Working Overtime in East Asia: Convergence or Divergence?

Working long hours has become a routinised part of life in East Asia. The different patterns of overtime across this region are understudied, however. This study represents a first systematic attempt to analyse overtime and its determinants in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and China by testing hypotheses that specify the distinctive influences of employment status and job contracts on work hours. Class exploitation, post-industrialism and flexibility theories are mobilised to identify distinctive but supplementary factors in long working hours. Using data from a recent four-country survey, a Tobit regression analysis of full-time workers’ hours reveals that employers and self-employed people work longer hours than hired workers across this region. Despite this convergence, there is a contrast across occupations. In Japan, overtime is positively associated with occupational prestige, while a reverse pattern operates in China, where low-skilled workers work more overtime. Contract workers in the private sector in South Korea and China also have longer overtime when compared to public sector employees. In sum, this study highlights more divergence than convergence of working conditions within East Asia.     

适用刑事和解化解矛盾纠纷工作机制探讨

建立健全贯彻宽严相济刑事司法政策的检察工作机制和办案方式,在办理刑事案件中强化化解矛盾的工作。     

论平等权权利冲突的理论问题

平等权权利冲突在我国目前屡见不鲜,是一个现实的急待探讨的问题。其表现在不同的权利主体、权利自身因素、不同法律价值诉求、立法与立法之间。而平等权是一个自创生的系统,由于平等权权利冲突导致其自创生力下降的原因是多方面的、是一种机制,所以,体制的完善、经济的全面发展、法律意识的提高和健康平等权心态就是平等权权利冲突的平衡路径。     

加快形成各种所有制经济平等竞争相互促进新格局

形成各种所有制经济平等竞争、相互促进新格局是党的十七大在所有制问题上提出的一个新观念、新理论、新亮点。"新格局"最主要、最根本之"新",是彻底改变了对非公有制经济的认识、观念、政策和法律,进而彻底改变了非公有制经济在中国的命运。"新格局"有几个重要方面:一是形成各种所有制经济的新观念新理论,二是制定各种所有制经济的新法律新政策,三是确立各种所有制经济的新地位新作用,四是赋予各种所有制经济以新内涵新形式,五是带来各种所有制经济社会阶层的新变化新关系。     

歧视与平等机会的法律透视

平等机会就是人们参与社会政治、经济等活动,根据一定的标准和原则,平等地拥有争取或获得某种资源的可能性.这种机会的获得不因某种身份状况而得到不公平的待遇.歧视就是基于某类人所具有的某种身份状况,以不合理的或不相干的理由,给他人以较差的待遇,从而使其利益受损的行为.歧视的后果就是使他人丧失争取或获得资源的平等机会.反歧视是实现平等机会的重要措施.     

Constraints on the turnout gap between high and low knowledge (or income) voters: Combining the Duncan-Davis method of bounds with the Taagepera method of bounds

Countries differ quite substantially in mean turnout levels, and it is equally well known that there may be substantial within-country variation as well, for example, between high income and low-income groupings or between high political knowledge and low political knowledge groupings. It has been hypothesized that the size of such between-group gaps will fall as turnout rises, and conversely (Franklin, 2004. Blais, 2000). However, as Franklin (2004) also noted, there are mathematical constraints on the size of the turnout gap that are related to the level of turnout. For example, in the limit, if turnout is 100%, then all groups must have identical turnout. Here we build on this insight by adapting the classic work on boundary conditions done by two sociologists (Duncan and Davis, 1953) to show precisely what the boundary constraints look like over the entire range of turnout values. Then we show how these constraints can help make sense of the strong relationship found between overall turnout and the size of the gap between voters above and below the median in political knowledge in the Fisher et al. (2008) cross-national study. To do so we draw on ideas in Rein (Taagepera, 2007) and (Taagepera, 2008) about how to use boundary condition information to develop better theoretical models.     

Adipocere Formation in Subtropical Climate of Northern India: A Retrospective Study

Adipocere formation depends upon multiple environmental factors. In comparison with temperate countries, it usually develops early in the subtropical climate. We have studied a retrospective data of 31 cases with adipocere formation at Department of Forensic Medicine at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. Most of the cases were recovered during the month of May to October from closed rooms at home, open grounds, open forest areas, various water sources, and riverbanks. The time duration of recovery from the time of death was from 12 h to 7 days 12 h. In 10 cases, adipocere formation was seen within 2 days, and in four male cases among them, the adipocere formed within a day. Most of the bodies showing adipocere formation within 2 days were recovered from land. These facts showed that subtropical climate having hot and humid weather promotes early adipocere formation compared to temperate climate.     

The price of personalizing politics: Political distrust and economic performance in Latin America, 1996–2006

While research has provided evidence that culture and institutional performance shape individual level trust in political institutions, scholars have neglected to adequately estimate the effect of political institutions and macroeconomic conditions on trust. Using data from the World Value Surveys for eleven Latin American cases, we test if countries with “partyizing” electoral systems - those with rules that encourage voters to hold the party, not individuals, accountable for government performance - experience lower levels of distrust in political parties and the legislature in times of poor economic conditions than those countries with “personalizing” electoral rules. Our analysis shows that the macro political and economic context largely conditions the impact of culture and institutional performance on political trust.     

诉权视角下的民事起诉条件

诉权是民事诉讼法学的核心理论,民事诉讼中设计的许多规章制度都是为了保证当事人的诉权能够得到顺利的实现.起诉条件和诉讼要件与诉权有实质的联系,对它们进行分析,有利于掌握立法者的意图,在理论上为起诉条件的设立找到根据.同时,从比较法视角观察我国的起诉条件能够更加直观地发现现行规定的缺陷,有利于提出改进建议.在实践中发现立法缺陷,并最终在理论的指导下修改法律,是完善我国民事诉讼起诉条件的最好的途径.