Book reviews

Historically speaking, the self-identification process of Russia has revolved around the West–East axis. However, there has been a considerable asymmetry in the impact of these two poles. In this article I will argue that “the West” was a dominating concept in the self-narration of Russians and “the East” was mostly a function of the interaction between Russia and the West. The difference in the level of attention and emotions which Russia manifests towards the West and the East has been caused by the religious factor, which was crucial for shaping Russia's identity and her sense of uniqueness. While the West and Western Christianity presented a challenge to the Orthodox fundamentals of Russia's self-image, China was neutral in terms of religious identity. The negligible importance of the religious factor added to rationality in Russian policy towards China. In the article I analyze the Chinese factor in Russia's self-identification process in the context of Moscow's attitude towards the West and the East by using two main elements: identity and fear. Comparing the historical pattern with the present one, I attempt to determine the consequences of these two factors for the Russian Federation.     

The French Constitutional Law of 23 July 2008 as seen by MPs: Working or Talking Parliament?

The French constitutional law of 2008 is, with the modification of 47 articles, the most important revision of the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, at least in quantitative terms. Surprisingly, there have been few attempts to evaluate the effects of the reform, whose official aim was to improve the status of the role of the (traditionally weak) French parliament. The purpose of this contribution is to analyse how MPs themselves judge this reform and its effects, especially on the role of the parliament and its everyday work. To do so we make use of the data of the LEGIPAR research project (September 2009–January 2011): 227 MPs answered closed and open questions about their perception of parliamentary work in face-to-face interviews. The data of the project DEPASTRA (2005–6) allow for a comparison with MPs' positions before the vote of the constitutional revision of 2008.     

China's security agenda after the cold war

The end of the cold war has changed China's basic perception of world politics and its conception of national security. In the cold war era, Chinese leaders tended to view national security from the perspective of global balance of power and China's strategic relations with the two superpowers. It was in Beijing's security interests to maintain a comfortable position in a strategic triangular relationship with the Soviet Union and the United States. When the Soviet Empire and the East European communist regimes collapsed, the structure of the postwar international system dissolved, and the old parameters for Beijing's security strategy disappeared. The Chinese leadership suddenly found itself in a totally new world in which China needed to reorient and redefine its security strategy on a new strategic axis.

Beijing's security strategy after the cold war is redefined by its domestic priorities, growing foreign economic relations, the new security environment in Asia, and concerns over territorial disputes. In a sense, the myopic conception of security based on war and peace is fading away. Beijing's thinking on national security becomes more inclusive, diverse, and complicated. The nature and intensity of external threats has changed. China's growing economic ties with the outside world have redirected Beijing's attention to economic interests and security. The Chinese leadership realizes that its security is affected not only by the military forces of other countries, but also by political, economic, societal, and environmental factors in international relations Beijing needs to employ both traditional military defence and non‐military actions to safeguard its territorial integrity and to realize its full capacity in world affairs.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse China's security agendas after the cold war. It first examines the impact of the end of the cold war on China's thinking on national security, then discusses Beijing's threat perception and changing defence strategy. This is followed by an examination of domestic stability considerations and economic interests in Beijing's security strategy. Finally, it discusses the implications of China's growing power for regional security.     

RESIDENT PERCEPTIONS OF CRIME AND DISORDER: HOW MUCH IS “BIAS”, AND HOW MUCH IS SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT DIFFERENCES?*

This study attempted to disentangle the extent to which residents are systematically biased when reporting on the level of crime or disorder in their neighborhood. By using a unique sample of households nested in household clusters, this study teased out the degree of systematic bias on the part of respondents when perceiving crime and disorder. The findings are generally consistent with theoretical expectations of which types of residents will perceive more crime or disorder and contrast with the generally mixed results of prior studies that used an inappropriate aggregate unit when assuming that residents live in the same social context of crime or disorder. Estimating ancillary models on a sample of respondents nested in tracts produced mixed results that mirror the existing literature. This article shows that Whites consistently perceive more crime or disorder than their neighbors. It also shows that females, those with children, and those with longer residence in the neighborhood perceive more crime or disorder than their neighbors.     

WILLINGNESS‐TO‐PAY FOR CRIME CONTROL PROGRAMS*

This paper reports on a new methodology to estimate the “cost of crime.” It is adapted from the contingent valuation method used in the environmental economics literature and is itself used to estimate the public's willingness to pay for crime control programs. In a nationally representative sample of 1,300 U.S. residents, we found that the typical household would be willing to pay between $100 and $150 per year for programs that reduced specific crimes by 10 percent in their communities. This willingness amounts, collectively, to approximately $25,000 per burglary, $70,000 per serious assault, $232,000 per armed     

非文本化音乐分析方法与音乐能力发展的关系

将音乐分析方法与音乐教育心理学结合,可以发现非文本化(音响)分析方法与音乐欣赏的音响整体感知能力、音乐的记忆能力、音乐的理解能力和音乐的创作能力发展的关系。     

Assessing the regulatory model for water supply in Jakarta

This article assesses the regulatory model for urban water supply services in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia. Water supply services have been privately operated there since February 1998 after two companies—Thames PAM Jaya (TPJ), operating in Eastern Jakarta, and PAM Lyonnaise Jaya (PALYJA), operating in Western Jakarta—signed 25‐years concession contracts with the state‐owned Jakarta City Water Company (PAM Jaya). An independent regulatory body, the Jakarta Water Supply Regulatory Body (JWSRB) was established in 2001. The article compares the regulatory system in Jakarta with the French and English approaches to water regulation. It then assesses this regulatory system from the perspective of customers in order to assess how well customer protection, a central purpose of regulation, is being performed. The article concludes that although the essential regulatory mechanisms and activities are operating in Jakarta, the key regulatory role of customer protection is not being performed because customers do not perceive that they receive an acceptable level of water supply services. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

北京高校教师职业健康风险认知特征研究

教师不仅是集脑力与体力劳动于一体的职业，也承受着较大的职业压力，其职业健康问题成为 影响我国教师队伍建设的关键制约因素。通过对北京 4 所高校教师职业健康现状进行的调查分析，发现学校因 素是影响教师职业健康最主要的因素之一。进一步建立了北京高校教师职业健康风险认知的回归模型，对影响 北京高校教师职业健康风险认知的 13 种因素进行分析，发现了制约当前教师职业健康风险认知的 5 个变量，即 年龄、职称、职业压力、心理健康和身体健康。其中职业压力对高校教师的职业健康风险认知影响最为显著， 而性别因素未呈现出差异。在此基础上，结合北京高校实际，提出了缓解教师职业压力的对策。