Contemporary challenges to the German vocational training system

The German vocational training system has played a central role in sustaining the competitive strength of German manufacturing. This article provides an analysis of contemporary developments in this system to assess its likely future trajectory. I begin by underscoring the differences and similarities of the German system to alternative arrangements that have emerged in other countries. I then turn to recent trends in Germany that have caused concern among policy‐makers about the continued strength and viability of the vocational training system. I discuss reforms undertaken in the past few years that point to incremental, though possibly transformative, changes in the system designed to reduce costs and increase flexibility through renegotiations on two fronts: between general training standards and firm needs and training practices, and between the in‐plant and school‐based components of training.     

警察职业能力测评的初步研究——警察认知能力结构的验证性因素分析

“警察认知能力”测验,由专注—效率、记忆、想象、创造、逻辑推理能力等五个维度,内含12类项目组成。本研究在对178份有效资料进行信度效度检验的同时,还运用结构方程模型(SEM)对“警察认知能力”的结构效度进行验证性因素分析。结果提示:该结构模型的适应性,五因素间的独立性,五因素模型的拟合指数均为良好,表明警察认知能力五因素理论模型的拟合程度可以接受。     

The regulation of cognitive enhancement devices: refining Maslen et?al.'s model

Our (2014) model for the regulation of cognitive enhancement devices (CEDs) received a great deal of interest from those involved in European device regulation and from academic commentators. Further, since the publication of our recommendations, the number of manufacturers of brain stimulation devices for non-medical purposes has increased, underscoring the need for a regulatory response. In this paper, we clarify aspects of our original proposal and address additional regulatory issues beyond our original focus on the sale of devices. We begin with theoretical points pertaining to the definition of a CED and the distinction between treatment and enhancement. We then respond to practical challenges raised by the prospect of implementing our regulatory framework. Next, we address some wider societal considerations relating to users and other stakeholders. Finally, we revisit the broader regulatory context within which the various discussions are situated.     

Early adopters of the magical thinking cap: a study on do-it-yourself (DIY) transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) user community

Among currently available technologies, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is one of the most promising neuroenhancements because it is relatively effective, safe, and affordable. Recently, lay people have begun to build—or purchase—the tDCS device to use it at home for treatment or as a cognitive enhancer. The tDCS device is currently not covered by the existing regulatory framework, but there are still significant potential risks of misusing this device, and its long-term effects on the brain have not been fully explored. Thus, researchers have argued the need for regulations or official guidelines for the personal use of tDCS. However, until now, no systematic research on the do-it-yourself (DIY) tDCS user community has been done. The present study explores the basic demographic characteristics of DIY tDCS users as well as why and how they are using this device through a questionnaire survey, in-depth interviews, and a content analysis of web postings on the use of tDCS. This preliminary but valuable picture of the DIY tDCS user community will shed light on future studies and policy analysis to craft sound regulations and official guidelines for the use of tDCS.     

In the Tracks of Imperialism

Abstract

Imperialism is subject to a seemingly ever-extending conceptual elasticity. The primary concern of this article is with the adequacy of the concept of imperialism for Marxism. It is contended that a proper understanding of the concept derives from Marxian economic analysis of capitalism. Not from oblique notions of asymmetric power of states within the international order.     

A Bonfire of the Regulations,or Business as Usual? The UK Labour Market and the Political Economy of Brexit

Employment and labour market regulation initially appeared as one of the solid red lines in the UK's renegotiation of the country's place in the EU. The basic argument is that the UK's more deregulated labour market would sit uneasily in the more organised models, based on statutory instruments or collective bargaining, found on the continent. While there is a legitimate problem here, EU employment regulations appear manageable from the point of view of business, while unions see them as important tools for socially responsible economic restructuring. Most of UK employment case law is now deeply entangled with EU law; labour market regulations have, on the whole, become part of the way of doing business in the Single Market; and a simple cost–benefit analysis appears impossible because some costs are not quantifiable and the costs of others are reduced when taken as a bundle. Labour unions agree that transposition of European law needs to be done taking into account local sensitivities, while internationally oriented companies do not see EU regulations on the whole as detrimental to business. Importantly, though, the costs and benefits of EU employment regulations are not symmetrically distributed across different companies: large companies are better able to reap the rewards and accommodate the costs of operating in the Single Market than smaller companies.     

The social order of Chinese capitalism: socio-economic uncertainty,communist party rule and economic development, 1990–2000

China's financially repressed economy remains characterized by a distinctly resilient political structure (the Chinese Communist Party, CCP) that penetrates both increasingly rational ‘private’ (market) and ‘public’ (state) organizations. How are we to understand the financial system's role in this persistently illiberal yet marketizing political economy? This paper develops a theory of China's financial reform as the management of socio-economic uncertainty by the CCP. Since the early 1990s, the financial system has formed a locus of the CCP's capacity both to manage and to propagate socio-economic uncertainty through the path of reform. The unique path of financial reform in China should thus not be viewed solely in terms of ‘partial’ or ‘failed’ free-market reform, but rather as the product of a more concerted vision of how the financial system enabled a mode of economic growth that combined the drive for accumulation of capital with the distinctive legacies of China's post-1989 socio-political circumstances.     

成人学习能力及相关影响因素的研究

成人学习者的学习质量与效果,与学习者本人的认知能力、职业、家庭、经济状况、健康状况等诸因素有关,也与目前成人教育制度及学习形式有关.随着社会变革和成人学习者需求的上升,成人教育制度和成人学习形式会发生更大的改革,并为成人教育事业带来新的生机.     

The enhanced cognitive interview: could individual differences in visuo-spatial working memory explain differences in recalling an event?

The Enhanced Cognitive Interview (ECI) is one of the most useful witness interviews, consisting of 5 techniques (context reinstatement: CR; report everything: RE, mental imagery: MI, change order: CO and change of perspectives: CP) aimed at increasing both the quantity and the quality of elements recalled. All the techniques require mental imagery skills. The present study investigates the relationship between forward and backward visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) and correct elements recalled through the ECI with respect to its techniques. 99 college students (48 males) watched a color videotape of a fictional crime and performed a visuo-spatial working memory task. The following day they were interviewed about what they had seen. Results showed that high forward VSWM capacity has a role in favoring the total amount of correct information recalled, specifically in the MI technique. This suggests that maintaining and processing mood-related contents in VSWM is easier for individuals with high working memory skills.     

艾灸督脉组穴联合认知功能训练治疗脑卒中后认知障碍临床观察

目的 观察艾灸督脉组穴联合认知功能训练对脑卒中后认知障碍（post-stroke cognitive impairment, PSCI）患者认知功能的影响。方法 将60例PSCI患者随机分为观察组和对照组,每组30例。对照组予认知功能训练,观察组在对照组基础上采用艾灸督脉疗法。采用蒙特利尔认知评估量表(Montreal cognitive assessment, MoCA)、简易精神状态评价量表(mini-mental state examination, MMSE)评价患者的认知功能,采用功能独立性评定量表（functional independence measure, FIM）评价患者的功能与生活能力,监测患者血清神经细胞特异性烯醇化酶(neuron-specific enolase, NSE)、同型半胱氨酸(homocysteine, Hcy)水平及观察血管性痴呆辨证量表(the scale for the differentiation of syndromes of vascular dementia,SDSVD)评分情况。结果 两组基于MMSE评分的疗效比较,差异具有统计学意义（P＜0.05）,观察组临床疗效显著优于对照组。与治疗前比较,两组患者治疗后MoCA、MMSE、FIM评分均显著升高(P<0.05),且观察组升高程度显著大于对照组(P<0.05)。与治疗前比较,观察组患者治疗后SDSVD积分显著降低(P<0.05)。与治疗前比较,两组患者治疗后血清NSE、Hcy水平均明显降低(P<0.05),且观察组降低程度明显大于对照组(P<0.05)。结论 艾灸督脉组穴联合认知功能训练能保护血管内皮细胞,修复中枢神经损伤,有效提高PSCI患者的认知功能及日常生活能力。