Political accountability,fiscal conditions and local government performance—cross‐sectional evidence from Indonesia

Why are some local governments more successful than others in managing resources and delivering services? And even more vitally, how can malfunctioning governments be reformed so that they perform their responsibilities more effectively? This article contributes to our understanding of theses overarching questions by exploring the interactions between political institutions and public sector performance in the context of decentralisation and local governance. It shows–both theoretically and empirically–that performance outcomes are determined by the extent to which people can hold their governments accountable through political institutions. The basic hypothesis underlying this research is that political accountability, either by encouraging sanctions upon non‐compliant public agents or simply by reducing the informational gap regarding government activities, will create forceful incentives for elected officials and civil servants to reduce opportunistic behaviour and improve performance. Using a cross‐sectional regression the hypothesis is empirically tested against evidence from newly empowered local governments in Indonesia. The empirical findings broadly support our hypotheses. Improved public services on the ground, both in terms of quantity and quality, require informed and well functioning decision‐making processes that allocate resources to priority areas that meet the demand of the broader community. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Values Shaping Australian Asylum Policy: The Views of Policy Insiders

Drawing on interviews with former political leaders and senior public servants, this article maps the values that have guided asylum policy decisions over the past three decades. The findings support the view that a culture of control permeates policy decisions, but pushing deeper, that policy‐maker perceptions of asylum issues are shaped by two primary values: nation building and good governance. Values that tend to preoccupy policy critics, for example human rights, compassion, international legal obligations and national character, are by no means absent, but are subsumed within and harnessed to the desire to be a good engineer and responsible governor. The study adds to the insights required for constructive dialogue between governments and refugee advocates, and affords a comprehensive framework within which asylum policy can be understood and analysed.     

对知识经济内涵的剖析

认识知识经济,应当深入了解知识的概念和知识经济的内涵。知识经济改变了传统的资源配置方式和生产要素的投入比例,改变了产业结构,是世界一体化经济。     

社会资本：农村基层公共服务供给体制创新——以汕头市C村为例

随着税费改革的完成,农村追入後农业税收时代。大多数乡镇基层政府陷入“财空、责大、权小”的治理困境,其提供公共服务能力追一步弱化。因此,如何克服国家制度的有限性,发挥体制外精英提供公共服务的积极性,成了我们研究的课题。汕头市C村农村公共服务的成功做法一政府与社会力量借助社会资本合作互动,增加公共服务供给总量,对其他农村地区公共服务的提升具有借鉴意义。     

Universities and State Policy Formation: Rationalizing a Nanotechnology Strategy in Pennsylvania

Technology‐based economic development programs have become a salient feature of the state policy landscape since the 1980s. While much research exists on the topic, little attention has been given to the processes of policy formation. State programs have moved towards high technology areas emphasized at the federal level over the past decades, and nanotechnology became one of the latest targets. This paper examines the eight‐year process through which Pennsylvania adopted a “state‐wide strategy,” culminating in the Pennsylvania Initiative for Nanotechnology. In this process, programs that responded to the interests of multiple agents came first, and a state policy was formulated after the fact. This pattern of “rationalized policy formation,” as opposed to rational policy formation, may be more common than suspected. Its strengths and weaknesses in this Pennsylvania case are discussed.     

Two hypotheses about the emergence of a post-national European model of citizenship

Citizenship is not just a status (defined by a set of rights and obligations), it is also an identity that expresses membership in a political community. It also has a substantive political dimension of active participation in the public sphere. Traditionally, collective identity and the membership dimensions of citizenship have been seen as intrinsic to the nation-state. The processes of globalization that have undermined the sovereignty of the nation-state make it necessary to reconceptualize citizenship in light of a ‘post-national’ framework. At the same time, however, the ‘culturalization’ of the social and the ‘multiculturalization’ of societies are putting into question the homogeneity of a collective identity. According to a recent hypothesis, a new post-national model of citizenship is emerging, one of European construction. In seeking to explore this position, the paper advances two additional hypotheses: (i) EU policy-making and governance are likely to foster a post-national European civil society with multi-level citizenship participation; and (ii) European anti-discrimination regulations are likely to accelerate the emergence of an alternative model to multiculturalism that can address differences within a universal framework of rights.     

Limits to non‐state market regulation: A qualitative comparative analysis of the international sport footwear industry and the Fair Labor Association

Non‐state market regulation has become a central focus and continues to receive scholarly attention. The present paper provides an assessment of the conditions under which multinational firms join a multi‐stakeholder certification initiative. The cases of the Fair labor Association and 17 international sport footwear companies have been selected for this purpose. A Qualitative Comparative Analysis of the 17 cases is performed. The paper argues that the combination of sustained NGO pressure and public ownership of a firm is a necessary precondition for firms joining a multi‐stakeholder certification initiative. The theoretical and policy implications of this result are discussed.     

中医辨证治疗出口梗阻型便秘30例

目的 观察中医辨证治疗出口梗阻型便秘的临床疗效。方法 将60例出口梗阻型便秘患者随机分为治疗组和对照组。治疗组实秘患者以小承气汤为基本方加减治疗,虚秘患者以济川煎为基本方加减治疗,对照组患者接受心理疏导治疗。观察两组临床疗效,以及临床症状积分和便质积分。结果 治疗组临床效果显著优于对照组（P<0.05）;治疗后两组肛门坠胀、排便间隔时间、每次排便时间、便感、排便方式和便质积分均较治疗前显著降低（P<0.01）,治疗组在降低排便时间及便质积分方面显著优于对照组（P<0.01）。结论 辨证论治对出口梗阻型便秘具有较好疗效。     

坚守中医学核心内涵是高等中医教育的根本

中医学的核心内涵是病机的主体地位及其审证求因、审因论治的构建过程,表现为关系中心论;西医学的核心内涵是基于解剖学的靶点金标准,表现为实体中心论。中西医学的核心内涵是认识中西医学差异的出发点,也是消除当代高等中医教育所面临的困惑——公众不了解中医科学体系的前提。按照中医学的自身规律对现有的课程体系、教学内容和教学方法进行改革是解决上述困惑的必由之路,而中医学专业教师对于中医学核心内涵的把握是其中的关键。     

社会治理视角下的彝族教育经典《玛牧特依》

彝族著名教育经典《玛牧特依》,蕴涵着丰富的道德教育智慧,基于推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化背景下,运用社会治理理论,从《玛牧特依》的凝聚力、向心力、约束力、吸引力和影响力五个维度切入,挖掘出《玛牧特依》的五个核心思想,即教育、廉耻、礼仪、仁善、慎独。其中,教育是《玛牧特依》的主旨和出发点,廉耻是《玛牧特依》的精髓和道德底线,礼仪是《玛牧特依》的大德和最高法律准则,仁善是《玛牧特依》的核心和道德宗旨,慎独是《玛牧特依》的落脚点和最高道德境界。《玛牧特依》在调节人与自然、人与人、人与社会之间的关系中发挥着积极作用,为彝区创新社会治理模式提供了一种新思路,应该凝聚《玛牧特依》文化力量,协同发展,多元共治。