Downbound spiral? Economic grievances,perceived social protection and political distrust

Abstract

Momentous events in Western democracies have brought renewed attention to how various aspects of government-controlled policy outputs and outcomes affect citizens’ trust in politics. Unlike most previous research, this study uses individual-level panel data to test the link between government performance evaluations and political trust. Moreover, it gauges performance in more policy areas than previous research, including key aspects of government-controlled social services as well as a wide range of economic risks. The study finds that evaluations of government performance affect political trust but that the evidence is stronger for evaluations of social protection than for economic risks. Crucially, the analysis suggests that the relationship between performance evaluations and distrust is reciprocal. The relationship may be described as a ‘downbound spiral’ where dissatisfied groups develop distrust, which in turn makes for a more pessimistic interpretation of economic risks and welfare state performance.     

Migration and public trust in the commonwealth of independent states

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the post-Soviet space has seen regional integration in the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The CIS while moribund has affected migration in the post-Soviet space. Despite its persistence and effect on migration, few studies have sought to explore public perceptions towards the CIS. We address this limitation by developing several arguments, anchored on the literature on public opinion and European integration, to explain how perceptions towards migrants and employment status affect public trust in the CIS. Our analyses make use of the sixth wave of the World Values Survey that includes seven CIS member-states and finds strong support for our hypotheses. Our contribution lies in the investigation of public attitudes in a non-EU setting while applying arguments from EU literature and the wide coverage of our study compared to the extant literature on the CIS and public opinion.     

It depends whose data are being shared: considerations for genomic data sharing policies

There is an urgent need for consistent data sharing policies that promote the advancement of science while respecting the values and interests of those providing their genetic data for research. Responding to the article of Jalayne J. Arias, Genevieve Pham-Kanter, and Eric G. Campbell, ‘The Growth and Gaps of Genetic Data Sharing Policies in the United States’, this commentary further explores the challenges of human subjects’ protection in existing data sharing policies. We will elaborate on the need for data sharing policies to accommodate variation in individual and group preferences around data sharing and privacy concerns by comparing our previously published data on patients’ and parents’ consent to data sharing and attitudes about privacy to data from focus groups with HIV-positive, underserved individuals who were asked about their willingness to participate in genetic research and share their data broadly. These studies support the observation of Arias, Pham-Kanter, and Campbell that researchers, and funding agencies will need to balance the privacy interests of groups as well as individuals in future genomic data sharing policies.     

论我国涉外信托的法律适用

信托是一种起源于西方的财产法律制度。我国借鉴英美法系和大陆法系的信托制度,颁布了《信托法》。随着国际经济交往的加深,特别是我国加入WTO后,涉外信托有了长足的发展。但遗憾的是,我国《信托法》对涉外信托的法律适用没有作出具体规定。本文拟通过对《海牙公约》以及英、美等国有关涉外信托制度的具体分析,找出其中具有共性的特征,并为我国的涉外信托立法提出若干建议。     

为谁诉讼 何以信托

关于诉讼信托制度,我国理论界存在三种不同的观点:第一种诉讼信托是民事诉讼法中的当事人制度,在民事诉讼法学主流学说中,它和民事诉讼担当制度同义;第二种诉讼信托是公益诉讼信托,是公共利益机关介入私权的表现。这两种诉讼的信托都以扩大当事人适格范围为基本目的;第三种诉讼信托,是当前我国立法禁止的以诉讼为目的的信托制度。三种制度的起源、所属法域、基本内涵、基本功能各不相同,学术研究和立法也应当作出不同的取舍。     

动产物权登记制度研究

登记是几类重要动产物权的公示方法,其主要功能在于公示动产物权的变动.动产物权登记的效力也有生效要件主义和对抗要件主义之别,我国现行立法采取的是一种折中主义或者说是一种混乱的立场,物权法应当将之统一为对抗要件主义.登记对抗力的本质是未经登记的物权变动在当事人之间业已完全有效成立,在对第三人的关系上亦非绝对无效,仅该受让物权的当事人不得对抗善意第三人主张物权变动的效力而已.对于第三人,应采限制说.我国未来的物权法或者民法典物权编应当统一动产登记的公信力规则,即统一赋予动产登记以公信力.     

冷战后大国关系的调整及其特点

大国地位和大国关系不是一成不变的 ,它随着国际形势的演变而不断变化。冷战以后大国关系与冷战期间相比有许多深刻的变化 ,形成新的特点。当今世界大国关系中一极世界与多极世界之争将是长期的 ;大国之间竞争与合作并存 ,互信、互利、平等、协作的新型关系在一些大国间得到可喜的发展 ;各大国都重视参与各种国际组织的活动 ,在多边外交中谋求更广泛的合作 ,实现各自的战略利益。     

我国行政许可的基本原则

根据《行政许可法》规定,我国行政许可的基本原则有七项:许可法定原则;公开、公平、公正原则;便民原则;权利救济原则;信赖保护原则;许可不得转让原则;监督原则。这些基本原则鲜明地体现了我国行政许可法的现代行政精神。     

Are Europeans ready for a more democratic European Union? New evidence on preference heterogeneity,polarisation and crosscuttingness

Some scholars and policy makers argue in favour of increasing democratic contestation for leadership and policy at the European level, for instance by having European‐wide parties campaign for competing candidates for President of the European Commission ahead of European Parliament elections. But do such changes put the survival of the European Union at risk? According to the consociational interpretation of the EU, the near absence of competitive and majoritarian elements has been a necessary condition for the stability of the EU political system given its highly diverse population. This article contributes to the debate in two ways. First, it develops a more precise understanding of ‘problematic’ diversity by examining how three variables – the heterogeneity, polarisation and crosscuttingness of citizen preferences over public polices – affect the risk of democratic contestation generating persistent and systematically dissatisfied minorities. Second, it uses opinion surveys to determine whether the degree of diversity of the European population is problematically high compared to that of established democratic states. It is found that the population of the EU is slightly more heterogeneous and polarised than the population of the average Member State, although policy preferences in several Member States are more heterogeneous and polarised than the EU as a whole. Strikingly, however, policy preference cleavages are more crosscutting in the EU than in nearly all Member States, reducing the risk of persistent minorities. Moreover, policy preferences tend to be less heterogeneous and polarised, and nearly as crosscutting, in the EU as a whole as in the United States. For observers worried about how high polarisation and low crosscuttingness in policy preferences may combine to threaten democratic stability, these findings should be reassuring.     

Community Resilience to Militant Islamism: Who and What?: An Explorative Study of Resilience in Three Danish Communities

Building community resilience to violent extremism increasingly figures as a goal in national security strategies and debates. The exact meaning of resilience remains unclear, complicating an informed discussion of whom and what to support. This article presents findings from an explorative study of resilience to militant Islamism in three Danish communities. It shows how families and trust-based networks, including local government, are the major sources of resilience, but also how punitive national policies and discourses work at cross purposes with resilience-building by reducing local actors’ willingness and ability to share their problems, tailor solutions to local conditions, and mobilize collectively.