Al-Qaeda’s Propaganda Decoded: A Psycholinguistic System for Detecting Variations in Terrorism Ideology

We describe a novel hybrid method of content analysis that combines the speed of computerized text analysis with the contextual sensitivity of human raters, and apply it to speeches that were given by major leaders of Al-Qaeda (AQ)—both in its “core” Afghanistan/Pakistan region and its affiliate group in Iraq. The proposed “Ideology Extraction using Linguistic Extremization” (IELEX) categorization method has acceptable levels of inter-rater and test-retest reliabilities. The method uncovered subtle (and potentially non-conscious) differences in the emphases that Usama Bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahiri put on the various components of their ideological justification for terrorism. We show how these differences were independently recognized as the crux of the rift in AQ, based on documents that were confiscated in Abbottabad following Usama Bin Laden’s assassination. Additionally, several of the ideological discrepancies that we detected between AQ “core” and its Iraqi affiliate correspond to schisms that presumably led to the splintering of AQ Iraq and the rise of ISIS. We discuss IELEX’s capability to quantify a variety of grievance-based terrorist ideologies, along with its use towards more focused and efficient counter-terrorism and counter-messaging policies.     

Sustainability Reporting by Australian Universities

There is continuing debate about the consequences of climate change and an increasing emphasis placed on the disclosure of social and environmental indicators by organisations. Universities have been traditionally known as places where intellectual inquiry and advances in knowledge are paramount. Therefore, there is an expectation that universities would place much emphasis on sustainability reporting to fulfil the needs of a range of stakeholders. The objective of this study is to investigate the nature and extent of sustainability disclosures reported by Australian universities in stand‐alone sustainability reports. The findings suggest significant differences in the nature and extent of sustainability disclosures. This study has implications for policy‐makers and university administrators and is a call to senior university leaders to take up the challenge and contribute to the global conversation with regard to sustainability reporting.     

Operationalizing Strategy Content: An Example from the Transit Industry

While models of organizational strategy saturate private sector research, public sector research lags behind. The model created by Boyne and Walker (2004) is an exception. The main objective of this study is to operationalize this model using a unique data set from the US transit industry. Through a survey of 103 local transit agencies, we developed separate strategy profiles for each agency that help us answer important questions about organizational strategy. We find that not only do the organizations adopt a mix of strategic stances through the action areas; they also have distinct profiles, which vary greatly between agencies.     

契约信守何以可能——契约结构的文化分析

契约就其自身的结构而言,包括内容、形式和守约三个要素.内容是契约的核心,形式和守约是内容的外壳.三者各有其独立价值,相互对立,又互相依存.内容、形式和守约共同组成了一个自足的体系,因此,契约可以自己解释和保护自己,而法律对于契约的保护只是外在的.     

论我国文化变迁与律师价值认识的深化

正确认识律师的价值是发展律师事业的重要前提 ,社会文化决定着律师价值的内容和表现形式 ,中西方不同文化特征直接影响了律师的起源。但东西方文化的碰撞、交流 ,最终对律师做出了共同的选择 ,律师的价值主要表现在推动公民对法律理性的认识、促进社会权力平衡和社会秩序的稳定、引导文化发展方向等方面。新世纪的文化发展又赋予了律师价值表现的人性化、渗透性、有限性等特征 ,这对我们正确认识律师、完善律师制度具有重要的指导意义     

军事发展观初探

发展观问题的提出,反映了人类对自身行为及活动方式的深刻反思,体现了人类对发展问题的高度关注。军事是人类社会的一个特殊领域,如何正确认识并确立科学的军事发展观,以此作为军事发展实践的理论指导,直接关系到军事实践的效果及军事价值的实现,具有重要的理论与现实意义。     

受害人同意的效力限制

在美国侵权法中,受害人同意是被告针对原告提起的故意侵权[1]诉讼可以主张的抗辩事由之一.受害人同意是被告针对原告提起的故意侵权诉讼所主张的抗辩事由.被告的抗辩得到法庭支持,必须以同意的有效成立为前提.同意的效力一般会受到同意的能力、同意的范围、同意的基础、同意的内容等因素的影响.     

试论中国警政史的研究内容与范围

警政是对有关警察的国家和政府事务的统称。中国警政史的研究内容是:以治安问题为起点,以警察职能为核心,具体考察中国历史上各种警政思想、警政机构、警政措施的发展演变过程,分析警察职能的行使和政治、经济、文化等因素的相互关系,揭示中国警政制度的产生、发展规律。从时间上看,中国警政史的研究范围包括中国警政萌芽、发展的全过程;从空间上看,新中国成立以前的中国警政史,应该以鸦片战争前的中国版图作为标准。在学科性质上,中国警政史属于史学的专史范畴。但在中国警政史学内部,也可区分出中国警政通史、断代警政史和专门警政史。     

论金融控股公司监管的立法完善

在金融业的各种混业模式中,金融控股公司无论在理论上还是在实践中都成为人们的首选方式,而我国目前对此类公司的法律规制却明显滞后。应当从法律上准确界定金融控股公司,对金融监管权力进行合理的法律配置,完善监管的内容,构建一个科学有效的金融控股公司监管体系。     

略论高校工会维权内涵及其制度建设

工会的维权职能是由工会的性质和地位决定的。高校工会要充分认识新时期维权工作内涵和任务的变化,加强制度建设,把维护学校总体利益和维护教职工具体利益有机统一起来。学校教代会与院系二级教代会、校务公开与院系公开之间的双向互动和相互促进,是切实加强高校工会维权制度建设行之有效的运行模式之一。