Conditional Cash Transfer Programs and Electoral Accountability: Evidence from Latin America

Do conditional cash transfer programs reduce voters' incentives to hold their government accountable for its performance? Studies show that these programs generate considerable electoral returns for the governments responsible for them. One important and unexplored question is whether these popular programs have also changed the landscape of accountability in Latin America. Survey data from 16 Latin American countries that have adopted CCT programs do not offer support for the claim that such programs have a detrimental effect on electoral accountability for corruption and for the economy. Only in countries where CCT programs do not follow strict rules do beneficiaries attribute relatively less weight to the government's economic performance, but this effect is marginal. These findings fill an important gap in the literature and offer reassuring evidence that cash transfers can alleviate poverty while preserving voters' incentives to exercise electoral accountability in crucial areas of government performance.     

A Fatal Case of Poisoning with Fentanyl Transdermal Patches in Japan

Fentanyl transdermal patches have been used to treat cancer‐ and noncancer‐related chronic pain. However, its inappropriate or illegal application may cause fatal poisoning. We herein present the case of a Japanese woman in her 40s who was found dead with seven 25‐μg/h fentanyl transdermal patches on her body. We established a detailed toxicological analysis procedure to quantify fentanyl, and its metabolite norfentanyl, and other drugs (acetaminophen, allylisopropylacetylurea, celecoxib, estazolam, promethazine, and sertraline) in human whole blood by ultra‐high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. The measured fentanyl and norfentanyl concentrations in the femoral and cardiac blood were 0.051 and 0.072 μg/mL and 0.033 and 0.076 μg/mL, respectively. The decedent's fentanyl concentrations were consistent with previously reported postmortem blood levels for fatal cases of poisoning by fentanyl transdermal patches. Based on the decedent's case history, autopsy findings, and toxicological analyses, the cause of death was identified as intoxication with transdermal fentanyl.     

Middlemen in the Chinese Welfare State: The Role of Philanthropists in Refugee Relief in Wartime Shanghai

This paper examines the impact of different models of public/private partnerships for refugee relief. Through case studies of different refugee relief programs in China, the paper shows that philanthropists are attractive but risky partners for state officials in welfare provision. Their cooperation can indeed expand access to welfare, improve state capacity, and enhance state/society relations. But because philanthropists can control significant resources and gain considerable social prestige, weak states can find it very difficult to control and contain them. In some circumstances, the relationship can turn competitive, and philanthropists can even threaten the state’s efforts to expand its capacity and build up its own legitimacy. The key to the balance of power between state officials and private philanthropists is control over the funding for the partnership.     

Facilitating the Delivery of Justice Services to Rural and Remote Communities

There are many projects that facilitate the delivery of services to various cyber communities around the world (see S. Turkle , Life on the Screen. Identity in the Age of the Internet, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 1996). The major projects concentrate on helping the building up of these cyber communities and facilitating the training and awareness raising of these communities. The communities are educated on the use of technology and the importance of using internet and multimedia based technology to enhance some or a few aspects of their lives. The delivery of health and justice related services require the development of overall technology infrastructure that incorporates the use of existing and planned telecommunications developments for remote and rural communities. The facilitation required for the delivery of these services to remote and rural areas requires that the government and private sector cooperate to provide the necessary environment (P. Uimonen Internet as a Tool for Social Development UNRISD, Geneva, 1997) . In the developed world this has been achieved by the governments providing generic funding for the advancement of the telecommunication carriers that in turn provide the infrastructure development to rural areas. In the developing world, the issues are very different and there is currently aid related funds being channelled to improve the telecommunication barriers faced by these countries (International Telecommunications Union Report, 1997) . This paper attempts to outline a model to deliver justice services to remote and rural communities. The infrastructure issues that help to deliver such services effectively and an evaluation format for such a project will be outlined. The training issues involved in such a project will also be discussed. The paper will identify factors that help to provide these services to a larger proportion of the rural population.     

Administrative reorganization as a signal: Bounded rationality,agency merger,and salience of policy issues

Although administrative reorganization has been a major political instrument in many democracies, there has been limited research on its effects. Aiming to address this gap, this study examines the reorganization of Korean government ministries, specifically, the impact of reorganization in the form of a merger of ministries performing interrelated but dissimilar functions. Examining the salience of policy issues expressed in official government press releases during the 12‐year period from 2001 to 2012, we found that administrative reorganization in the form of a merger has a significant impact on the relative salience of government policy agendas. Specifically, the interrupted time series estimates indicate that the salience of science and technology policy issues (in relation to education policy issues) decreased by approximately 12% to 17% following the dissolution of the Ministry of Science and Technology. We explain this finding based on the bounded rationality view of bureaucratic information processing.