Researching norms,narratives, and transitional justice: focus group methodology in post-conflict Croatia

This article is based on the assumption that norms can help better understand one of the expressivist aims of transitional justice, that of building a new narrative about the past. The main argument is that focus groups, as an interactive method of inquiry, are well suited to investigating how this “judicial” narrative interacts with the official and dominant war narrative in Croatia. Focus groups are more adept at this than other methodological approaches since they can effectively reflect independence of opinion; they lead to more truthful answers through spontaneity; they effectively probe taken-for-granted concepts; and they can more easily overcome distrust in post-conflict societies, especially with ex-combatants. The approach faces new challenges in such a situation since recruitment problems, insider/outsider status, and post-traumatic stress disorder, among other ethical concerns, present problems that often arise due to the group process. The powerful and unpredictable effect of the group dynamic can, therefore, provide a deep exploration of social norms, but it can also cause significant upset among participants. In this instance the methodology explores how widely accepted the war narrative is, how it is constructed, and how important the public believes it is not to question it.     

日本消费者团体诉讼制度评析

为了保护消费者合法权益、防止经营者使用的不当格式条款或不当经营行为对消费者造成损害,日本的消费者团体可以向法院提起禁令请求诉讼。这一具有强烈公益色彩的诉讼制度提高了消费者保护的实效性,减轻了消费者个人维权负担。但这一新制度所存问题尚多,需继续给予完善。     

The Feminisation of the Conservative Parliamentary Party: Party Members' Attitudes

Under David Cameron's leadership reforms have been made to the Conservative party's parliamentary selection procedures and distinct women's policy initiatives have been developed. This article, based on focus group data with party members, explores attitudes towards measures designed to recruit more women Conservative MPs. Broadly, we find that, despite widespread support for the principle of greater social diversity among PPCs, members are uncomfortable with the specific measures that have been introduced. This is largely on the grounds that anything approaching 'positive discrimination' should be eschewed in favour of the 'meritocratic' selection of candidates. Further, the members tend to resent central party 'interference' in what has traditionally been the domain of local Constituency Associations.     

论我国环境公益诉讼的起诉主体

目前,我国由于缺乏完善的环境公益诉讼制度,环境公益诉讼起诉主体缺位,致使很多环境损害行为不能及时有效地得到预防和纠正。本文从环境公益诉讼的概念和起诉主体类型入手,分析各类型起诉主体在司法实践中的表现,最终提出构建我国环境公益诉讼起诉主体制度的几点建议。     

先秦巴蜀地区百濮和氐羌的来源

先秦巴蜀地区各族,除巴、蜀两族外,主要为百濮和氐羌两大民族系统。巴蜀地区的百濮,多为商周时代即已在当地定居的族群,也有春秋时代从江汉地区迁徙而来的濮人支系,主要分布在四川盆地、四川西南和四川东部。巴蜀地区的氐羌民族系统至少在夏商时代就已出现,主要分布在川西高原。     

The survival of interest groups: evidence from Germany

Abstract

Interest groups are important intermediary organisations that function as a transmission belt between societal interests and political decision-makers. However, while some interest groups survive over decades, others only last a few years. This article argues that the survival of interest groups depends on their ability to mobilise resources which is crucially affected by interest group type and the public salience of an interest group’s policy domain. The theoretical expectations are tested based on a novel dataset mapping the survival of 1699 interest groups registered at the German Bundestag between 1974 and 2012. Using event history analysis, it is shown that interest group type and public salience indeed affect whether interest groups survive. Sectional groups last significantly longer than cause groups, and interest group survival increases with the public salience of their policy area. The results have major implications for our understanding of interest groups and political representation in contemporary democracies.     

Is All Politics Indeed Local? A Comparative Study of Dual Mandate‐Holders’ Role Attitudes and Behaviours in Parliament

The practice of dual mandate‐holding, i.e. the simultaneous occupation of a political mandate at the (sub)national and the local level, is understudied in the comparative literature. Dual mandate‐holders embody the most direct link between local and central government, yet research has disregarded whether these actors actually feel and act as local ambassadors in parliament. In this article, we study whether councillors in parliament feel responsive for local grievances in terms of their respective role attitudes and behaviour, using the PARTIREP Comparative MP Survey. The estimated regression models demonstrate that dual mandate‐holders indeed perceive themselves as local brokers, even when controlling for various systemic‐, party‐ and individual‐level factors. On the other hand, they struggle to translate their localized attitudes into localized parliamentary behaviour, which could call one of the main arguments in favour of dual mandate‐holding into question.     

Long-Term Absenteeism From Work: Disentangling the Impact of Sector,Occupational Groups and Gender

Absenteeism is critical to organizational performance. Although absenteeism is higher in the public than in the private sector, surprisingly little public administration research has studied this topic. We investigate and test potential explanations for these differences: is it because the public sector employs more women and occupational groups that have higher absence? Using register data, we find that for six out of seven occupational groups long-term absenteeism is more likely for public than for private sector employees; generally, this is true for both genders. We discuss potential explanations and future avenues for investigating these sector differences.     

Buying Amendments? Lobbyists' Campaign Contributions and Microlegislation in the Creation of the Affordable Care Act

When do campaign contributions matter? This article advances the claim that a group that gives campaign contributions to US Members of Congress is more likely to achieve legislative success when (1) a single legislator can deliver to the group (2) a private benefit (3) without attracting negative attention. Using an original data set based on the written comments of nearly 900 interest groups lobbying the US Senate Finance Committee on health reform legislation in 2009, I link group requests to corresponding legislation. The analysis shows a significant relationship between lobby groups' campaign contributions and their legislative success, and at distinct units of analysis—the group, the side, and the group-senator dyad. The relationship is particularly strong in predicting senators’ amendments in committee. The rare data presented here offer compelling evidence that interest groups' legislative victories are sometimes connected to campaign contributions in a way that previous studies could not identify.     

从"民族内婚"到"族际通婚"的突破——关于凉山彝族族际通婚的探讨

上个世纪50年代完成的民主改革,结束了在凉山延续千年的奴隶制度。但与原有社会形态相适应的以"民族内婚、家支外婚、等级内婚、姑舅表优先婚和姨表不婚"等为核心内容的旧有婚姻制度仍然主宰着凉山彝族的婚姻生活,且得到习惯法的严格保护。直至改革开放,凉山彝族旧有婚姻制度才被打破,族际婚姻不断增加和扩展。本文主要讨论凉山彝族婚姻制度之"民族内婚"到"族际通婚"的突破、演变及其影响。