The implementation of complex social policy: Institutional layering and unintended consequences in the National Disability Insurance Scheme

In this article, we identify the unfolding unintended consequences which flow from one instance of policy layering in Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). We show how use of a causal diagram, which highlights feedback loops and emergent properties, to map complex chains of causal factors can assist policy scholars and policy practitioners to understand the likely direction of change and possible responses. In the case of Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme, our analysis suggests that the likely direction of change will work against two of the fundamental design features of the NDIS: providing participants with more choice and control, and ensuring all eligible Australians are able to access appropriate services and supports regardless of where they live. Our analysis points to the use of price regulation as the site of potential intervention because of the role it plays in subsequent feedback loops and the development of the two, unwelcome, emergent properties.     

Contested multilateralism 2.0 and regional order transition: causes and implications

This article proposes a new concept of ‘contested multilateralism 2.0’ to describe the puzzling institutional building efforts by non-ASEAN members after the 2008 global financial crisis (GFC) in the Asia-Pacific. It suggests that different to ‘multilateralism 1.0’ of the 1990s, which was mainly led by ASEAN, this wave of multilateralism has been initiated by other powers, such as the United States, China, Japan, Australia and South Korea, either by forming new institutions or by reinvigorating existing ones. This article advances an institutional balancing argument. It suggests that ‘contested multilateralism 2.0’ is a result of institutional balancing among major states under the conditions of high strategic uncertainty and high economic interdependence after the GFC. One unintended consequence may be that it could well lead to a more peaceful transformation of the regional order in the Asia-Pacific if regional security hotspots, such as the Korean crisis and the South China Sea dispute, can be managed appropriately.     

Transparency in transnational governance: The determinants of information disclosure of voluntary sustainability programs

The rise of “new” transnational governance has intensified debates about a lack of accountability in global politics. Reviewing the mechanisms through which transparency can foster accountability beyond the state, this article explores the determinants of information disclosure in the field of transnational sustainability governance. Examining the institutional design of 113 voluntary sustainability programs, we find a positive correlation between the involvement of public actors and information disclosure. In contrast, the role of civil society is more ambiguous. There is no statistical support for arguments linking non‐governmental organization participation to increased transparency. At the same time, our analysis reveals a robust correlation between civil society‐led metagovernance and information disclosure. Moreover, we find that crowding has a negative effect on transparency, whereas normative peer pressures have no influence. At a broader level, the analysis reveals a lack of “deep transparency” among transnational sustainability governors. This limits the scope for transparency‐induced accountability in this policy domain.     

Institutional change in the European Parliament: balancing legislative ethics and parliamentary independence

Research on legislative ethics has shown how scandals often trigger ethics reform; yet, the content of the reform often differs from that of the scandal. Why is this the case? And if scandals don't explain legislative ethics reform outcomes, then what does? If not this kind of external shock, then what factor(s) shape legislative reform outcomes? These questions provide the point of departure for a case study of the European Parliament's 2011 ethics reform. Drawing from the legislative ethics literature and from recent theories of institutional change, the article examines the impact of the scandal that initiated the reform, the interests and strategies of reform agents who wanted a quick reform process that would not undermine the EP's independence; and the institutional order in which those actors were embedded. It argues that an institutional logics perspective offers a convincing and comprehensive account of EP ethics reform, and suggests a new analytical framework that might be used by researchers in future research on legislative ethics.     

Quantitative Statistics and Identification of Tool‐Marks

This study was designed to establish a feature identification method of tool‐mark 2D data. A uniform local binary pattern histogram operator was developed to extract the tool‐mark features, and the random forest algorithm was adopted to identify these. The presented method was used to conduct five groups of experiments with a 2D dataset of known matched and nonmatched tool‐marks made by bolt clippers, cutting pliers, and screwdrivers. The experimental results show that the proposed method achieved a high rate of identification of the tool‐mark samples generated under identical conditions. The proposed method effectively overcomes the disadvantage of unstable illumination of 2D tool‐mark image data and avoids the difficulty in mark inspection caused by manually preset parameters in the existing methods, thus reducing the uncertainty of inspected results.     

MARKETIZED MENTALITY,COMPETITIVE/EGOISTIC SCHOOL CULTURE,AND DELINQUENT ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR: AN APPLICATION OF INSTITUTIONAL ANOMIE THEORY*

We analyze the individual‐level and school‐level determinants of delinquency through the lens of a macro‐sociological theory of crime—institutional anomie theory (IAT). The concept of a “marketized mentality” is introduced as a predictor of students’ delinquency, along with an egoistic/competitive school culture—a feature of the school community. Five hypotheses pertaining to the readiness to use violence and self‐reported delinquency were assessed using multilevel modeling with data from a survey in Germany for 4,150 students clustered in 69 schools. The results largely meet theoretical expectations. The measure of marketized mentality exhibits robust relationships with both forms of delinquency at the individual level, and an egoistic/competitive school culture helps explain variation in levels of these forms of delinquency across schools. Also consistent with expectations, the anti‐social effects of marketized mentality are accentuated for both the readiness to use violence and committing instrumentally motivated property offenses as a competitive/egoistic school climate increases. The results of our analyses reveal that bringing in concepts of IAT can appreciably enhance understanding of the characteristics of students and features of communal school organization that are conducive to youthful offending.     

Online fraud victims’ experiences of participating in qualitative interviews

Institutional Review Boards often raise concerns about qualitative research with vulnerable populations such as crime victims, and assume that research with vulnerable populations will be distressing for participants. It is therefore vital to examine whether participants do in fact experience adverse effects stemming from their participation. The existing research is clear that some members of vulnerable populations do feel distressed when they participate in research; however, in most cases, this distress is outweighed by the benefits of participation, such as a sense of having contributed to community awareness raising. This literature is, however, predominantly quantitative. In addition, it overwhelmingly focuses on violent trauma, providing no insight into participants’ experiences of research on non-violent traumatic events. The current study addresses these shortcomings by examining the research participation experiences of victims of online fraud. Specifically, an online questionnaire designed to elicit qualitative data was administered to victims of online fraud who had previously participated in a semi-structured qualitative interview. Among other findings, the study suggests that perceptions about the outcomes of research, in addition to the research process, influence victims’ satisfaction with their participation in qualitative research.     

我国市场要素型破产法的立法目标及其制度构造

我国破产立法存在的最大问题是未能准确定位破产法在整个市场经济法律体系中的核心地位,工具主义思想严重。未来,破产法改革应以市场经济为导向,以商事法律理念为指导,以市场要素型破产法为改革目标,按照市场经济的内在要求,构建以市场为导向,以淘汰和拯济相结合,以破产重整为核心的现代破产制度。其具体内容包括适当扩大破产法的适用范围;区分不同类型的破产人,分别设计不同的破产法律制度;完善破产前置程序,引入简易重整制度。同时大力推进破产审判的专业化建设,从组织上、技术上、程序上保证破产审判的实际效果,设立专门的破产事务管理机构,充分发挥政府对破产审判的支持作用。     

马克思主义和新制度主义制度变迁理论的比较与综合

马克思主义和新制度主义在制度与制度变迁、制度变迁的动力与机制、制度变迁的形式与方式等方面都做了比较系统的论述,因而都提出了比较完整的制度变迁理论。新制度主义与马克思主义的制度变迁理论既包含相互补充、相互融合的方面,也包含相互排斥、相互冲突的方面。新制度主义制度变迁理论一部分是科学的,一部分是非科学的。我们应该吸取新制度主义制度变迁理论中的科学因素,摈弃其非科学的成分,形成以马克思主义为基础的制度变迁理论的新综合。     

地方自治的宪法保障——以德国基本法规范及宪法诉讼为考察对象

在联邦德国地方自治是宪法保障的重要内容之一。制度保障理论是地方自治宪法保障的理论基础。法律主体保障、客观法制度保障以及主观法律地位保障,是地方自治宪法保障的主要内容。联邦宪法法院在实施地方自治宪法保障的实践中,发展了一系列的宪法原则。理论与实践的相互促进,使地方自治制度在联邦德国得到了全面的发展。