The relationship between serial sexual murder and autoerotic asphyxiation

This case series documents and examines the association between autoerotic asphyxiation, sadomasochism, and serial sexual murderers. Autoerotic asphyxiation, along with other paraphilias found in this population, is reviewed. Five cases of serial sexual killers who engaged in autoerotic asphyxiation were identified worldwide: four from the United States and one from Russia. Case reports for each are provided. All (100%) were found to have sexual sadism in addition to autoerotic asphyxiation. Furthermore, two (40%) had bondage fetishism, and two (40%) had transvestic fetishism, consistent with these paraphilias co-occurring in those with autoerotic asphyxiation. Overall the group averaged 4.0 lifetime paraphilias. Some possible relationships were observed between the offenders' paraphilic orientation and their modus operandi, e.g., all of these serial killers strangled victims-suggesting an association between their sadistic and asphyxiative paraphilic interests. The overlap of seemingly polar opposite paraphilias in this sample--sexual sadism and autoerotic asphyxiation--is explored from a historical and clinical perspective. Multiple commonalities shared between these five offenders and serial sexual murderers in general are addressed. A primary limitation of this study is its small sample size and empirical basis; the results may not be generalizable beyond the sample. The findings from this study support the supposition that crime scene behaviors often reflect paraphilic disturbances in those who commit serial sexual homicides.     

Large‐Scale Social Protest: A Business Risk and a Bureaucratic Opportunity

The public versus private nature of organizations influences their goals, processes, and employee values. However, existing studies have not analyzed whether and how the public nature of organizations shapes their responses to concrete social pressures. This article takes a first step toward addressing this gap by comparing the communication strategies of public organizations and businesses in response to large‐scale social protests. Specifically, we conceptualize, theorize, and empirically analyze the communication strategies of 100 organizations in response to large‐scale social protests that took place in Israel during 2011. We find that in response to these protests, public organizations tended to employ a “positive‐visibility” strategy, whereas businesses were inclined to keep a “low public profile.” We associate these different communication strategies with the relatively benign consequences of large‐scale social protests for public organizations compared with their high costs for businesses.     

Gender and local executive office in regional Russia: the party of power as a vehicle for women’s empowerment?

We employ a political ambition framework to study women’s under-representation in Russian local politics. We conduct a survey of current heads of municipal districts and municipal urban and rural settlements in four regions of the Russian Federation. The study reveals gendered pathways to local leadership positions. The advantage of incumbency is fully used by male politicians: male incumbents are more likely than female incumbents to run for re-election. Self-initiated ambition, term in office, and age explain the decisions of male executives to run for re-election. Female incumbents are likely to run for a subsequent term only if they are supported by the United Russia Party.     

Maritime Strategies of Rising Powers: developments in China and Russia

Abstract

This paper seeks to uncover the drivers of maritime strategy formulation in Russia and China, two active players on the international stage that have often been identified as both rising and regional powers. The paper takes as its starting point the realist theory of state power and threat perception, which provide the means and motivation for states to accumulate material capabilities in an effort to safeguard their position in the international system. Given the increasing pressures of a changing security environment, China’s and Russia’s maritime strategies show a trend towards greater complexity and capability. The paper also addresses the impact of the revolution in military affairs ( rma ) and its subsequent manifestation as force transformation in Western states, especially the USA. Given that this new, qualitatively focused way of war has gained supremacy, at least where high-intensity inter-state war is concerned, the question remains of whether the Chinese and Russians will choose to emulate the leading powers in the system or, instead, will forge into the unknown and formulate an entirely different and innovative maritime strategy.     

The Origins of Atlanticism in Central and Eastern Europe

This article argues that the Atlanticism of Central and Eastern Europe originates in a specific set of historical experiences these countries have had with the United States over the past century. These include the Central and East European encounter with both Nazi and communist totalitarian regimes; a recognition of the leading role the US played in toppling communism and in facilitating the integration of these countries into Euro-Atlantic institutions; and the strategic calculation of many countries in the region that their national interests in Europe are better preserved via active American engagement that balances the influence of other major European powers.     

The current EU/US–Russia conflict over Ukraine and the WTO: a preliminary note on (trade) restrictive measures

In 2012, the Russian Federation (RF) joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) as its 156th member. Two years later, an international conflict over the developments in Ukraine in general and the changing status of Crimea erupted, which henceforth saw the RF, the United States (US), and the European Union (EU) drawn into a circle of the unilateral imposition of trade and other restrictive measures. This article looks at the trade aspects of the ensuing conflict and provides a detailed survey of the restrictive measures imposed by the EU, the US, and the RF from the perspective of the national legal orders of the jurisdictions concerned, as well as from the international perspective of the applicable WTO trade rules. It includes a critical assessment of the compatibility of economic sanctions with the parties' WTO commitments, as well as the possibility of addressing the current divergences under the WTO dispute settlement mechanism.     

Performance measurement in Australian water utilities. Current state and future directions

Ensuring universal and affordable water supply is a central objective of government. An efficient water supply sector plays a primary role in ensuring this objective is met. Scale economies and capital-intensive immobile assets means monopoly emerges as the dominant organizational form, and when combined with an essential character, a strong case exists for economic and technical regulation. Yet diversity in water service provider scale means economic regulation, which is costly, is not always viable. A comprehensive performance monitoring and reporting regime for water service providers is thus crucial. It is crucial for oversight of unregulated entities, and for regulated entities in generating competition by comparison. In this article, we undertake an expansive literature review and summarize approaches to performance measurement by the water industry. Academic literature reveals researchers have centered their approach using comprehensive methods such as data envelopment analysis and stochastic frontier analysis. With the exception of the Victorian Essential Services Commission, the Australian Industry persists with partial indicators. Given water and sewerage price increases of more than 100% in real terms from 2005 to 2014, we find a strong case for implementing advanced methods to address the task of providing a holistic picture of utility performance.     

Shared Services in Australian Local Government: Rationale, Alternative Models and Empirical Evidence

Widespread enthusiasm amongst Australian policy elites for structural reform in local government has evaporated as disappointing outcomes of council amalgamation programs became evident. As a consequence, emphasis has now shifted towards shared serviced models as a means of enhancing service provision and reducing costs. However, a disturbing feature of the current debate on shared services has been the absence of a well-articulated economic and political rationale for this form of service delivery, a lack of analysis of alternative models of shared service provision and a neglect of available empirical evidence. This article seeks to remedy these deficiencies by considering the analytical foundations of shared local services, conducting a review of alternative models as vehicles for shared services and evaluating available empirical evidence.     

Financial development policies in Uzbekistan: an analysis of achievements and failures

This paper provides a detailed analysis of Uzbekistan’s performance in liberalising its financial system. Two major areas are considered in the paper. First, we review financial development reform in Uzbekistan from independence until 2006, including the banking sector, non-bank financial institutions and securities markets. Second, it examines the policy achievements and failures of the Uzbek path and the sequence of reforms in each of these areas. Policy recommendations are then offered to remedy the existing problems that we identify. This paper is first to make a detailed analysis of policy successes and failures in Uzbekistan financial reform.