Shaking off the neoliberal shackles: “democratic emergence” and the negotiation of democratic knowledge in the Middle East North Africa context

ABSTRACT

There is a general assumption in democracy promotion that liberal democracy is the panacea that will solve all political and economic problems faced by developing countries. Using the concept of “good society” as analytical prism, the analysis shows that while there is a rhetorical agreement as to what the “good society” entails, democracy promotion practices fail to allow for recipients’ inclusion in the negotiation and delivery of the “good society”. Contrasting US and Tunisian discourses on the “good society”, the article argues that democracy promotion practices are underpinned by neoliberal parameters borne out from a reliance on the transition paradigm, which in turn leave little room to democracy promotion recipients to formulate knowledge claims supporting the emergence of alternative conceptions of the “good society”. In contrast, the article opens up a reflective pathway to a negotiated democratic knowledge, which would reside in a paradigmatic change that consists in the abandonment of the transition paradigm in favour of a “democratic emergence” paradigm.     

Fear of victimization and health

Fear of victimization may have consequences for subjective well-being. I develop and test a model linking fear of victimization to subjective health. I hypothesize that two processes link fear to subjective health-psychological and behavioral. Specifically, I hypothesize that fear of victimization increases psychological distress, and fear decreases outdoor physical activity, especially walking. High levels of psychological distress and low levels of walking, in turn, are associated with poor self-reported health. I find empirical support for the hypothesized processes in a representative national sample of 2031 adults aged 18 to 90 interviewed by telephone in 1990. The negative association between fear and health is explained largely by psychological distress and walking. However, a significant direct effect remains. I conclude with suggestions for future research linking crime and health, focusing on the need for collecting information on community disorganization. Community context is likely the ultimate exogenous variable-the one that sets in motion the destructive cycle of fear, distress, inactivity, and poor health described here.     

Correlates of Mortality in a U.S. Cohort of Youth, 1980–98: Implications for Social Justice

This paper reports results of a study based on a nationally representative sample of U.S. youth (N = 11,549) that asked two questions: (1) How does family structure affect the likelihood of adolescent death beyond that of race/ethnicity, sex, socioeconomic status, personal behavior, and other structural factors and (2) under what conditions might appeals for social justice be warranted for relative mortality statuses and for absolute gains in mortality? The study found that marital instability increases the likelihood of dying when controlling for a variety of other factors including class, race/ethnicity, sex, and unemployment rate in area of residence. The author argues that this finding lends support to social justice arguments to redistribute resources in such a way as to ensure the likelihood of absolute gains in mortality. The study also found, however, that race/ethnicity/sex also accounted for the likelihood of dying independently of family structure when controlling for socioeconomic and other factors. The author argues that this finding lends support to social justice arguments to redistribute resources on the basis of relative mortality statuses.     

工业化中后期苏南地区产业升级的路径选择

在工业化的初始阶段,苏南地区主要依靠要素、投资驱动产业升级.进入21世纪以来,这种高投入、高消耗的产业升级路径,使其进一步发展面临巨大的挑战.借鉴日本和韩国等国相关的做法和经验,处于工业化中后期的苏南地区必须以科技创新引领产业升级.其基本路径是:加大科技人才的培养引进力度,突出企业科技创新的主体地位,努力营造科技创新的机制环境,积极推进国际技术的转移与合作,大力促进产业的企业区域集中,加快传统优势产业的高新技术改造.     

Hearts, as well as Minds: Wellbeing and Illness among Greek Cypriot Refugees

Recently the psycho-social health of refugees has rightly receivedemphasis, but the physical health of long-term refugees warrantssimilar attention. This paper uses qualitative and quantitativedata on informant-reported health outcomes for two Greek Cypriotvillage cohorts, one displaced, the other not displaced. Supplementarydata from a national diabetes prevalence study confirmed a possiblelink between refugee status and greater probability of cardiovascularillness. Depressive illness also seemed higher among the refugeevillage cohort. But it is not only the illness of some of theserefugees, but their surviving this, and the comparative wellnessof others which is important, compared with the ‘demographicshock’ victims of post-socialist Europe, 1989–1995.The paper suggests why the Greek Cypriots have done rather betterin health terms than the post-socialists of Eastern Europe,1989–1995, but argues that refugees in failing statesmay have much worse health outcomes.     

振兴东北的逻辑起点——区域制度创新

新制度经济学认为,造成区域经济发展差异的主要因素是制度,制度创新决定技术创新。东北的落后表现在经济上,反映在制度上。在振兴东北的思路上应当具有系统性与逻辑性。振兴东北的最大障碍是人与制度的关系,从社会层面来看是文化上的落后,缺乏创新精神;从社会管理层面来看是政府示范引导不力,自身改革滞后。更新社会观念,加快政府改革是摆脱制度束缚,振兴东北的逻辑起点。     

监狱人民警察的心理障碍及其调适

监狱人民警察的心理障碍是由心理征候集合而表现出的心理病变状态.监狱人民警察产生心理障碍的因素包括:工作劳累导致"心累";任务繁重,工作压力大;社会不理解,遭人非议;人际关系紧张、冲突;家庭成员的不理解、埋怨等.监狱人民警察的心理调适,是运用心理学的理论和方法,进行科学地有效调整,使监狱人民警察保持积极向上的健康的心理状态的过程.对监狱人民警察中出现的心理失衡现象,其克服的方法和途径主要有自我心理调适;家庭的心理调适;监狱领导机关对监狱人民警察的心理保健措施.     

浅议健康教育的作用

健康教育是解决当今社会主要卫生问题的首要对策.健康教育对于改变人们不健康折行为和生活方式,提高全民族的健康水平,保障社会劳动生产力,维护社会稳定,都具有非常重要的作用.     

“天花板现象“与女性领导胜任力的保障、培育与开发

女性参与和组织公共事务管理活动,是妇女参与的最高形式,在当今世界被视为提高妇女地位的重要方面,也是衡量一个国家社会发展和文明进步的标志之一。但是,我国女性在职务晋升中还存在着只能担任低层职务,或者做到一定职位后便再难晋升的"玻璃天花板"现象。本文分析了这一现象的表现、形成根源,并提出了通过提高女性领导胜任力克服"玻璃天花板"现象的对策措施。     

论市场规则建设中政府的作用

市场规则是一个由众多内容构成的整体,能否将市场规则建立起来,直接关系到经济发展的速缓成败。发展中国家要摆脱贫穷落后的面貌,推动经济迅速发展,必须从自身实际出发,采取有意识地建立市场规则的措施,在这一过程中,政府必须发挥重大的关键性的作用。政府可通过立法手段、行政手段和司法手段来推动市场规则建设,促进经济发展。