Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Other Interests (other + interest)
Selected AbstractsDoes Administrative Corporatism Promote Trust and Deliberation?GOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2002Perola Öberg How corporatist arrangements actually work has not been empirically demonstrated, despite the theoretical focus on interest intermediation. This article investigates whether corporatism affects trust and deliberation in state activities, using Swedish public administration as a case study. First, it is doubtful that corporatism directly promotes trust among citizens, but it very likely promotes trust within and between the represented organizations. Second, interest,group representation cannot be understood as a process of strict delivering of positions adopted in advance. Preferences are often transformed in discussions where other interests are involved. Furthermore, the case investigated here shows that the decision,making process within a corporatist arrangement resembles deliberation, rather than negotiations between "contesting interests." [source] Sir Robert Walpole after his Fall from Power, 1742,1745HISTORY, Issue 302 2006JONATHAN OATES It is often assumed that Sir Robert Walpole's career in politics ended with his ceasing to be chief minister in 1742. During his remaining years, however, he continued to exert political influence by bolstering and advising the government, especially in 1743,4. Even without political office, he was still seen as the fount of patronage. He was also able to pursue his other interests in this time and enjoyed favour with both King George II and his former political colleagues. Yet his health, never good, deteriorated rapidly towards the end of 1744 and he died bravely in the spring of the following year. [source] User perspectives on relevance criteria: A comparison among relevant, partially relevant, and not-relevant judgmentsJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 5 2002Kelly L. Maglaughlin This study investigates the use of criteria to assess relevant, partially relevant, and not-relevant documents. Study participants identified passages within 20 document representations that they used to make relevance judgments; judged each document representation as a whole to be relevant, partially relevant, or not relevant to their information need; and explained their decisions in an interview. Analysis revealed 29 criteria, discussed positively and negatively, that were used by the participants when selecting passages that contributed or detracted from a document's relevance. These criteria can be grouped into six categories: abstract (e.g., citability, informativeness), author (e.g., novelty, discipline, affiliation, perceived status), content (e.g., accuracy/validity, background, novelty, contrast, depth/scope, domain, citations, links, relevant to other interests, rarity, subject matter, thought catalyst), full text (e.g., audience, novelty, type, possible content, utility), journal/publisher (e.g., novelty, main focus, perceived quality), and personal (e.g., competition, time requirements). Results further indicate that multiple criteria are used when making relevant, partially relevant, and not-relevant judgments, and that most criteria can have either a positive or negative contribution to the relevance of a document. The criteria most frequently mentioned by study participants were content, followed by criteria characterizing the full text document. These findings may have implications for relevance feedback in information retrieval systems, suggesting that systems accept and utilize multiple positive and negative relevance criteria from users. Systems designers may want to focus on supporting content criteria followed by full text criteria as these may provide the greatest cost benefit. [source] The challenges of sustainability in mining regions: The coal mining region of Santa Catarina, BrazilNATURAL RESOURCES FORUM, Issue 1 2005Simon Glauser Abstract Throughout history, mining communities have invariably found themselves striving for a good quality of life and a long-term future. In the 21st century, problems of maintaining the economic vitality of mining regions are now compounded by concerns about the biophysical integrity of the local environment. In regions of the world where the economic viability of the resource is marginal and achieving a reasonable quality of life is a daily struggle, sustainable mining may seem to be a dubious prospect at best. Yet the twin imperatives of global political forces and burgeoning environmental concerns are requiring industry, governments and other interests to re-conceptualize the way in which mining takes place in communities. Although mining itself may not be seen as an industry that contributes to the achievement of environmental objectives, it could , with careful planning , be used as a tool to foster a more sustainable and healthier community. This argument is considered in the context of the coal mining region of Santa Catarina, Brazil. [source] Closing Ranks: Fundamentals in History, Politics and AnthropologyTHE AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 2 2006Kirsten Hastrup In this presentation, I discuss fundamentalism from a processual perspective, seeking to tease out some general qualities of the processes involved in a return to fundamentals amidst social change. I start with an analysis of the historical dynamics of Icelandic society in the period 1400,1800, showing how the increasing insistence on old patterns and cultural fundamentals contributed to the gradual destruction of a one time flourishing medieval society. This devolution, I suggest, is closely correlated with a process of amplification (Sahlins) of a particular set of values, leading to a loss of flexibility in the response to environmental and other changes. Next follows a discussion of present day concerns with nationalism and other interests in bounding oneself off from the surrounding world, and demanding recognition in return. One of the processes discussed is a process of transvaluation (Tambiah), assimilating particulars to a larger and less context-bound scheme and thereby gradually deepening the cleavage between selves and others, sometimes to the point of epistemological closure (Ignatieff). Finally, one of the anthropological fundamentals, holism, is discussed with a view to reassessing its potential for present-day anthropology. It is argued that through the process of knowing implied in fieldwork, anthropologists arrive at a dual understanding of perceived wholes and creative agents. A new sense of holism may still grant both consistency and uniqueness to the anthropological discipline. [source] Comparative Effectiveness Research and Evidence-Based Health Policy: Experience from Four CountriesTHE MILBANK QUARTERLY, Issue 2 2009KALIPSO CHALKIDOU Context: The discussion about improving the efficiency, quality, and long-term sustainability of the U.S. health care system is increasingly focusing on the need to provide better evidence for decision making through comparative effectiveness research (CER). In recent years, several other countries have established agencies to evaluate health technologies and broader management strategies to inform health care policy decisions. This article reviews experiences from Britain, France, Australia, and Germany. Methods: This article draws on the experience of senior technical and administrative staff in setting up and running the CER entities studied. Besides reviewing the agencies' websites, legal framework documents, and informal interviews with key stakeholders, this analysis was informed by a workshop bringing together U.S. and international experts. Findings: This article builds a matrix of features identified from the international models studied that offer insights into near-term decisions about the location, design, and function of a U.S.-based CER entity. While each country has developed a CER capacity unique to its health system, elements such as the inclusiveness of relevant stakeholders, transparency in operation, independence of the central government and other interests, and adaptability to a changing environment are prerequisites for these entities' successful operation. Conclusions: While the CER entities evolved separately and have different responsibilities, they have adopted a set of core structural, technical, and procedural principles, including mechanisms for engaging with stakeholders, governance and oversight arrangements, and explicit methodologies for analyzing evidence, to ensure a high-quality product that is relevant to their system. [source] Das Geschäft mit den Schutzplanken , Wissenschaftliche und andere InteressenBAUTECHNIK, Issue 3 2008Hans-A. Als Schutzeinrichtungen am Rande von Straßen und Brücken konnten Stahlschutzplanken fast ein halbes Jahrhundert lang einen unangefochtenen Spitzenplatz einnehmen. Zu ihrer erfolgreichen Vermarktung haben eine wirksame Interessenvertretung sowie unkritische Betrachtungen des Anprallvorgangs beigetragen. Unter Vernachlässigung der an einer Schnittstelle von Bau-, Fahrzeug- und Verkehrstechnik notwendigen interdisziplinären Zusammenarbeit kam auf europäischer Ebene eine fragwürdige Norm zustande. Daran geäußerte Kritik störte das gesicherte Geschäft mit Schutzplanken und wurde mit disziplinarischen Maßnahmen beantwortet. Nachdem auch auf deutschen Straßen Vorteile von Schutzwänden aus Beton sichtbar werden, bedürfen frühere Fehleinschätzungen und Festlegungen einer Korrektur. Business on guardrails , scientific and other interests. For about half a century steel guardrails could rank in first place among safety devices at the borders of roads and bridges. An effective lobby as well as an uncritical observation of the impact test contributed to a successful marketing. Disregarding the need of interdisciplinary cooperation concerning road construction, motor vehicles, and traffic a questionable standard on European level has been accepted. Criticism of that standard seemed to be out of line with safe business on guardrails and was responded by disciplinary measures. After advantages of concrete safety walls are visible on German highways, too, former wrong assessments and agreements should go under review. [source] | ||||||||||