Reforming the Spanish Senate: Mission Impossible?

Attempts in recent years to reform the Spanish Senate have proven futile. Using an institutionalist approach, this article highlights some of the weaknesses of the Spanish Senate in terms of its constitutional design and institutional development. The article explains how attempts at reforming political institutions are influenced by the historical context in which the institution was originally designed and the political context in which it has subsequently developed. The debate over Senate reform is analysed by examining the Senate's institutional setting and its relationships to broader political settings such as the legacy of the transition to democracy, political party discourse, and a competitive culture in Spain's system of intergovernmental relations.     

构建科学发展制度机制的路径思考

党的十八大报告指出"科学发展观是中国特色社会主义理论体系最新成果,是中国共产党集体智慧的结晶,是指导党和国家全部工作的强大思想武器。科学发展观同马克思列宁主义、毛泽东思想、邓小平理论、‘三个代表’重要思想一道,是党必须长期坚持的指导思想。"坚持科学发展观,就要把科学发展思想转化为刚性的政治经济文化等制度,提出构建与科学发展观相配套的制度机制,以确保经济社会实现又好又快发展。     

“美丽中国”愿景与生态文明制度建设

“美丽中国、民生幸福”是中华儿女世世代代的不懈追求,内涵着实现生态价值导向的人与社会的现代化和中华民族的永续发展的愿景目标。要实现美好愿景,最根本的是加强生态文明制度建设,包括正式制度和非正式制度。我国的生态保护规制体系已经形成,人民大众的生态意识日益觉醒,已经汇成了推动生态文明建设的强大社会力量。进一步的制度建设,应针对存在的问题,抓好顶层设计,注重系统集成,实行分类指导,填补制度空白,优化制度衔接与匹配,完善、细化、系统化制度体系,增强执行力,从根本上解决守法成本高、违犯成本低的问题。同时着力提升全民生态意识,培育全民生态责任,构筑政府、企业、社区、家庭、个人齐心协力进行生态文明建设的大格局。     

简论信访制度功能的改进路径——以信访制度纠纷解决功能为讨论中心

信访制度在我国的社会生活中发挥着难以替代的作用,其所承载的公民政治参与、意见表达与权利救济功能不能截然分开,中央和省(市)级信访工作应以公民意见表达为中心,基层信访工作应以纠纷解决(公民权利救济)为中心。信访制度纠纷解决功能的实现机制而非这一功能本身,是造成目前信访困境的根本原因;为保障人们的合法权益,化解目前的信访困境,对信访制度纠纷解决功能的实现机制进行法治化改造或许是改良信访制度的可能路径。     

中国政府机构改革30年回顾与反思

本文以30年改革开放历史为线索,对中国政府机构6次改革进行了回顾与反思,认为:中国政府机构改革的核心是适应经济和社会发展的需要来调整政府机构的结构与运行,重点调整政府与社会、政府与市场、中央与地方的关系。在回顾机构改革的目标、方向与内容的基础上,本文对改革的价值与缺失进行了探讨。     

中国公共服务体制改革30年

本文总结了改革开放30年来中国公共服务发展的成就,指出了存在的问题,并对其体制、机制障碍进行了剖析,在此基础上提出了构建政府公共服务职责体系,深化公共服务体制改革;加快公共财政体制改革,推进基本公共服务的均等化;完善城乡公共服务体系,提升公共服务绩效;创新公共服务供给方式,构建多元主体协同治理格局等对策建议。     

法官职业化的反思与重构

我国法官职业化建设存在着三个缺失:精英理念的缺失、制度性独立的缺失和法律方法论的缺失.法官职业化建设只能依照精英化的策略来完成,制度性独立是实施法官职业精英化策略的基本条件,法律方法论是法官职业精英化的重要内涵.     

经济全球化下东南亚国家的经济制度变迁初探

20世纪80年代中期之后，东南亚国家的经济制度发生了重大变革。促进制度变迁的动力除了“自上而下”和“自下而上”的两股推进经济全球化的力量之外，东南亚区域经济一体化及1997年爆发的金融危机也极大地推动了东南亚国家的经济体制改革与变迁。本文探析经济全球化下东南亚国家经济制度改革与变迁的诱因，并以新加坡和菲律宾的贸易体制改革与变迁为研究案例，勾勒东南亚国家经济体制改革与变迁的多样性。     

Transferring technology across borders: institutional effects in Chinese context

Effective technology transfer across borders is very complex and difficult. There are so many factors that affect the effectiveness of technology transfer across borders, and the host country’s institutional profile is a critical factor. The country institutional profile reflects the institutional environment in that country and is defined as the set of all relevant institutions that have been established over time, that operate in that country, and that are transmitted into organizations through individuals (Kostova 1997, 1999; Kostova and Roth 2002) [Country institutional profiles: Concept and measurement. Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings, pp. 180–189; Transnational transfer of strategic organizational practices: A contextual perspective. Academy of Management Review, 24(2), 308–324; Adoption of an organizational practice by subsidiaries of multinational corporations: Institutional and relational effects. Academy of Management Journal, 45(1), 213–233.]. There have been some studies about the relationship between institutional profile and technology transfer, but there are few studies with a Chinese context. Technology transfer plays an important role in developing countries and has been as one of vital strategies to build an innovative nation in China. Therefore, it is urgent to focus on the relationship between China’s institutional profile and technology transfer. The results of structural equation modeling, the subject of this paper, were based on an empirical study of 167 foreign ventures sampled in China, but they did not fully confirm what the institutional theory emphasized about the effectiveness of technology transfer. The normative dimension of the country institutional profile was shown to have a significantly positive effect on the effectiveness of technology transferring across borders, but contrary to expectations, the regulatory dimension of the country institutional profile was shown to have a significantly negative effect on the effectiveness of technology transfer, while the cognitive dimension has no significant effect on it. The concluding section of the paper discusses some practical implications and potential future study directions.