bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING OF HIGHER CIVIL SERVANTS IN FRANCE: THE ECOLE NATIONALE D'ADMINISTRATION
Authors: KESSLER MARIE‐CHRISTINE
Published: May 2006

L'École Nationale d'Administration was established by ordonnance on October 9, 1945. Michel Debré, the architect of the ordonnance, wanted to change the previous system of recruitment and training of higher civil servants in France in two major ways. The first was a political change implying an increase in democracy and equality both for society at large and for the French civil service in particular. The second change was of a more technical nature and provided for a standardization of qualifications for all higher civil servants, a standardization however, at a qualitatively high level. The political aims of the 1945 reform proved difficult to achieve; despite subsequent tinkering, the degree of democratization and standardization of the higher civil service remains doubtful.

As far as the technical aspects of the reform are concerned, however, ENA reached, indeed surpassed, the target initially set. Few people doubt the quality of the civil servants ENA turns out. And yet the upshot of ENA's insistence on a high level of factual knowledge coupled with intensive training has been the creation of an elite more likely to collaborate directly with ministers than to provide an efficiently functioning administration. Whether the ENA can therefore be termed a civil service college rather than a training ground for the exercise of power remains a debatable question.
ARE SCOTTISH NATIONALISTS AUTHORITARIAN AND CONSERVATIVE?
Authors: RAY J.J.
Published: May 2006

The psychology of Scottish Nationalism has been little explored. Using a mainly student sample, Britton (1971) showed S.N.P. voters to be low on authoritarianism where theory would predict them to be high. The Ray (1976) Directiveness scale and 10 items from the Wilson (1973a) conservatism scale were applied to 100 randomly sampled Glaswegians. The S.N.P. voters were neither authoritarian nor conservative. The S.N.P. was identified as being supported by voters of the political centre.
THE CHANGING NATURE OF PARTISAN DIVISIONS IN THE WEST: TRENDS IN DOMESTIC POLICY ORIENTATIONS IN TEN PARTY SYSTEMS
Authors: THOMAS JOHN CLAYTON
Published: May 2006

The nature of partisan divisions in the West has been a continuing source of controversy for several decades. This article seeks to improve our understanding of those divisions by examining how Western parties have changed their positions on major domestic policy issues in recent decades. The research employs longitudinal data developed through content analysis on the parties of ten Western nations: Australia, Austria, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden, the United States, and West Germany. Analysis of the data shows that, as expected, partisan divisions have declined in almost all of the party systems, although the decline has unexpectedly been accompanied by a slight tendency toward leftward movement, belying suggestions of a “conservative turn” in Western politics. The paper also considers the possibility that new issues may develop to supplant the declining traditional issues. The paper concludes that a revival of pronounced partisan divisions is unlikely, but that a revival probably is not necessary for the continued viability of Western parties.
THE DYNAMICS OF EUROPEAN PARTY SYSTEMS: CHANGING PATTERNS OF ELECTORAL VOLATILITY
Authors: PEDERSEN MOGENS N.
Published: May 2006

In recent years it has become increasingly difficult to maintain that the European party systems are stable and that they reflect the societal cleavage structures of the past. One developmental aspect of the party systems is singled out for description and analysis in this paper. It is argued that European party systems in terms of electoral volatility, i.e. rates of net change in the electorates, are drifting away from each other. Some of the party systems which have traditionally been considered volatile, apparently are becoming less so, while some other systems are taking on the character of highly volatile party systems. A simple set of hypotheses, based upon the notion of party space, is proposed in order to account for the variation observed. The data lend support to the hypothesis that electoral volatility is a function of the format of the party system and of short‐term changes in that format.
ANALYSING INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS *
Authors: RHODES R.A.W.
Published: May 2006

The study of central–local relations in Britain is in a state of flux. Traditionally the subject has been the preserve of Public Administration but work in this tradition has been incisively criticised. However, no cogent alternative framework of analysis has been offered. This paper briefly reviews the existing British literature before assessing the contribution of recent theoretical developments in the sociology of organisations to the understanding of intergovernmental relations. It concludes that the literature on interorganisational analysis has become pre‐occupied with methodological questions and in its most common manifestations will not facilitate the analysis of intergovernmental relations. However, if interorganisational analysis is located within a theory of intra‐ and interorganisational power, it can provide a series of concepts of considerable utility. Although the paper focuses on understanding British practice, recent work on interorganisational relations in France, West Germany and the United States of America is discussed.
The Role of Interest Groups in Collective Interest Policy‐Making: Consumer Protection in Norway and the United States*
Authors: ROSE LAWRENCE E.
Published: May 2006

Issues of collective interest, to the extent they are brought into the public policy‐making arena, pose serious theoretical challenges for democratic societies ‐ challenges primarily associated with interest representation and agenda setting practices. The present article takes these challenges as its point of departure, focusing in particular on the role interest groups may play in meeting these. Using consumer protection policy‐making in Norway and the United States for illustrative purposes, the article explores the characteristics of consumer protection as a collective interest and then sets forth six alternative means of such interest articulation. The actual infrastructure of consumer interest representation in the Norwegian and U.S. cases is then examined, revealing major differences, and the implications of these differences are considered. The principal conclusion is that independent consumer associations are in all likelihood a sufficient, but certainly not necessary, condition for the realization of public consumer protection policies. The same also applies to a corporatist interest group arrangement as practised in Norway. Additional observations are offered regarding patterns of agenda setting and possible policy convergence in advanced industrial societies.
A Preliminary Survey of the Theories and Findings on Vote and Popularity Functions
Authors: PALDAM MARTIN
Published: May 2006

The survey covers the rapidly growing body of literature on party‐support models estimated on time series data for elections and popularity polls. The movements in the popularity of the parties are explained by their government participation and, mainly, the economic conditions as measured by the standard macroeconomic indicators. Sections 1 and 4 present the central qualitative findings and ideas of about 50 of the most important articles and conclude that the economic indicators explain around 1/3 of the variations in the party popularities; the main drawback of the models is their lack of stability. The remaining Sections—2 and 3 ‐ discuss the theory behind the models and some of the theoretical implications of the findings. That is, the problems involved in an adequate representation of the political factors; the time horizons at play; the relations to the micro theory of voting and the social welfare function; the formations of the expectations relevant and how people perceive the economy.
Party Organization and Minority Nationalism: A Comparative Study in the United Kingdom*
Authors: McALLISTER IAN
Published: May 2006

Political organization is a contingent, not a fixed, factor for most social groups. For such groups to gain electoral success, they must at some stage take a formal decision to construct a political organization and fight elections. Traditionally, political science has concentrated on the exogenous factors conducive to electoral success: it has rarely examined the endogenous factors which have brought political groups to adopt an electoral strategy and a differentiated organization. This paper argues that exogenous theories are by their nature only partial explanations, in so far as they ignore the endogenous factors of change within political groups. The argument is illustrated by a comparison of three minority nationalist groups in the United Kingdom: the Scottish National Party, Plaid Cymru in Wales, and the Northern Ireland Social Democratic and Labour Party. The paper examines the endogenous organizational changes which have ultimately resulted in each winning a measure of electoral success in the past decade.
Electoral Voting Preferences and Political Orientations of Athenians in Greece: A Three‐Perspective Model*
Authors: DOBRATZ BETTY A. , KOURVETARIS GEORGE A.
Published: May 2006

Using a three‐perspective model of stratification, group and issue‐oriented variables, an effort was made to examine the relevance of three perspectives in predicting voting behaviour among Athenians in Greece. The model was based on an analysis of 478 cases from data collected in Athens in the spring and summer of 1977. Pro‐Western attitudes and politics of friends were found to be the most important variables in predicting vote among the Athenians. Unlike other European countries, education and occupation were not important while income and age were. The primary group variable of father's politics had important indirect effects while the secondary group variable of workers’ membership in political or occupational organisations had a significant direct effect. The interdependence of the variables in the three‐perspective model were also delineated in the analysis.
The Conditions for Consociational Democracy: a Logical and Empirical Critique*
Authors: PAPPALARDO ADRIANO
Published: May 2006

The predictive power of the consociational model cannot be assessed without a rigorous analysis of the conditions that are conducive to overarching élite cooperation. However, neither Lijphart nor other scholars deal satisfactorily with the problem because many of the conditions that they identify often fail to satisfy one or more criteria that test their reliability. Only two conditions are unambiguously favourable to consociational cooperation: inter‐subcultural stability and élite predominance over a politically deferential and organizationally encapsulated following:
Three Dependency Explanations of Economic Growth: A Critical Evaluation
Authors: WEEDE ERICH , TIEFENBACH HORST
Published: May 2006

Three different dependency explanations of economic growth are evaluated through cross‐sectional regression analyses for 98 countries between 1960 and 1977, using logged GNPC, its square, gross domestic investment and the military participation ratio as control variables. Galtung's A Structural Theory of Imperialism seems to contain one useful predictor of economic growth, commodity concentration, which hurts the growth prospects of nations, but neither his vertical trade nor his partner concentration has any significant impact. Rubinson's state strength approach receives no support at all, since strong states, operationalized by government revenue/GDP, come closer to hurting than to promoting economic growth. Bornschier's investment dependency approach also fails to explain why some LDCs do so much better or worse than others. It is suggested that future research on linkages between the world system and the economic performance of LDCs might profit from broadening the research agenda to include power politics and its military participation effects in addition to political economy variables.
An Explanatory Model for Differing Types of Participation*
Authors: MULLER EDWARD N.
Published: May 2006

Democratic participation (conventional and unconventional methods of legal political activity in democracies) and aggressive participation (civil disobedience and political violence) are analytically distinct types of political behaviour. Previous explanatory models have assumed (usually implicitly) that these types of behaviour are uncorrelated. But an accumulation of recent research evidence shows them to be correlated expirically; therefore an important current priority of political participation research is development of integrated model to explain both types. Using 1974 survey data from the Federal Republic of Germany. a preliminary simultaneous‐equation model is specified and tested.
A Territorial versus a Class Appeal?: the Labour Parties of the British Isles' Periphery*
Authors: MAIR PETER , McALLISTER IAN
Published: May 2006

Traditional accounts of the mass party have emphasised its role as a coalition of interests. Such parties can experience significant intra‐party tension, particularly concerning policy questions. This article looks at six Labour parties in the periphery of the British Isles with a view to assessing the extent to which they have experienced intra‐party tension between a territorial appeal on the one hand and a class appeal on the other. A framework is suggested which is based on the timing of the emergence of the territorial dimension, the policy response of the parties, the source of pressure on the parties, and their organisational response. It concludes by suggesting that territorial and class appeals are not necessarily overly incompatible, and that socialist parties can develop a territorial appeal relatively easily. A number of explanations are offered for this.
The Moray Firth Working Party: ‘Performance’ Without ‘Conformance’*
Authors: JORDAN GRANT
Published: May 2006

The case was selected as being (reportedly) one of successful implementation: the interest was in the preconditions of success. To meet a forecast shortage of housing for oil‐related construction workers, the Scottish Development Department convened a working party on which it, eight local authorities, a representative of the local industrial lobby and various other relevant central government departments were involved. A joint programme was organized so that the local authority contracts would be ‘pooled’. This was intended to attract a national‐scale builder with his own workforce into the area and relieve the skilled labour shortage by phased development. The housing problem was turned round to a housing surplus, but this resulted from the over‐optimism of the forecast need and a variety of building responses rather than the straightforward success of the joint operation. The case illustrates that implementation success depends on a range of dimensions; the implementation question dissolves into multiple aspects.
Implementation Beyond Hierarchy: Swedish Energy Research Policy
Authors: WITTROCK BJÖRN , LINDSTRÖM STEFAN , ZETTERBERG KENT
Published: May 2006

Implementation analyses have increasingly gone beyond the study of the working of well‐defined bureaucratic hierarchies. The key role played by informally coordinated clusters or complexes of different organizations, so‐called implementation structures, has instead been emphasized. This article on a major programme for energy research and development in Sweden agrees with the thrust of this latter approach. However, three substantial reformulations of the basic thesis about non‐hierarchical implementation arc advanced. First, it is argued that the role of implementation structures is by no means limited to the implementation process proper but may involve a crucial contribution to the definition and setting of a policy problem. Second, the article rejects the thesis that a purposive commitment to some common programme objective or rationale is a prerequisite for the successful implementation of a programme. Third, it underscores the importance of understanding linkages between public and private sectors in different bargaining arenas. But analysis cannot focus only on the uses of existing linkages and arenas. Programmes may well involve policies for affecting distant transactions. They will then have to cope with uncertainties about the future nature of such arenas as well as the conditions for shaping, or even creating, them.
Politico‐economic Models in Competition with Alternative Models: Which Predict Better?*
Authors: FREY BRUNO S. , SCHNEIDER FRIEDRICH
Published: May 2006

Empirically estimated politico‐economic models which study the interdependence between the economy and the polity are confronted with competing models using the hard test of ex ante forecasts. The politico‐economic models in which the government is taken to act in a political framework (it wants to be reelected and to put its ideology into action) yield superior forecasts compared to the models in which a ‘benevolent dictator’ government directly reacts to macroeconomic conditions. These results suggest that political influences are indeed important and can be adequately analysed in the framework of politico‐economic models.
A Cognitive Approach to International Negotiation*
Authors: JÖNSSON CHRISTER
Published: May 2006

When it comes to the study of international negotiation processes, game theory has certain shortcomings. It is basically static in nature; it tends to homogenize actors and ‘blackbox’ information processing; and it assumes unitary actors. This article suggests a cognitive approach to the study of international negotiation processes as one way to overcome these shortcomings. The suggested model regards information processing as the link between inter‐state negotiation and decision‐making within the state, and emphasizes the role of belief systems in shaping expectations and interpretations. Specifically, the negotiating actors’ images of the adversary, self‐images, and images of situation are singled out as suitable objects of study. Relevant insights and hypotheses concerning the relationship between different parts of the actors’ belief systems are identified.
Global Conference Diplomacy and International Policy‐Making: The Case of UN‐Sponsored World Conferences*
Authors: RIITBERGER VOLKER
Published: May 2006

The article purports, first, to review briefly the evolution of conference diplomacy from the age of the Congress of Vienna until the era of the United Nations. Building upon this historical evidence, it attempts then to outline the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of research on conference diplomacy in general, and on global conference diplomacy as represented by UN‐sponsored world conferences in particular. The bulk of the article is devoted to an analysis of the ‘typical’ unfolding of conference processes, moving through the four stages of initiation, preparation, negotiation for decision‐making, and implementation. Here, the article seeks to demonstrate the analytical usefulness, if not necessity, of distinguishing between two major types of world conferences: action‐orientated and rule‐making conferences.
Political and Economic Gender Inequalities in Capitalist Polyarchies*
Authors: JENSEN ULLA SKOVGAARD
Published: May 2006

This paper develops two indicators of gender inequality: for political gender inequality, percent female members in the legislature; for economic gender inequality, male/female wage ratios. Nineteen capitalist polyarchies are compared with respect to these indicators. The comparison reveals substantial cross‐national differences in politico‐economic gender inequality. Possible reasons for the observed cross‐national differences in politico‐economic gender inequality are discussed, and the suggested explanatory variables are evaluated through multiple regression analysis. The findings suggest an answer to the question of why capitalist polyarchies differ in the extent of their politico‐economic gender inequalities. The answer consists of an assertion of a spill‐over from high female labour market participation to relatively gender‐neutral political and economic indicators. Within the economic sphere the spill‐over is facilitated by the strength of socialist parties. In politics, however, political institutions interfere with the asserted spill‐over. Electoral systems constitute different institutional barriers: as a consequence of their different modes of operation, female access to the legislatures becomes efficiently blocked in plurality systems, whereas proportional representation allows the spill‐over to occur.
The Public Policy Effects of Independence: Ireland as a Test Case*
Authors: ROSE RICHARD , GARVIN TOM
Published: May 2006

Two mutually exclusive theories of the effects of independence upon public policy exist: the nationalist hypothesis predicts the adoption of many distinctive policies, whereas the external determination hypo thesis, advanced by functional and Marxist writers, suggests that independence makes little practical difference to policies. These competing theories are tested by an examination of Ireland since it became independent of Britain in 1921. Three distinctive periods are covered: that of the consolidation of the regime, a subsequent era of nationalist activism in government, and the present era, emphasizing economic development. Three separate policy domains are examined: the state's defining concern with foreign affairs, law and order, taxation, national identity and representation; the mobilization of economic resources; and the provision of welfare services. In all domains and periods independence has a major effect upon public policies. This is not only a consequence of nationalist ideological aspirations but is also because the institutionalization of a regime gives politicians both incentives and opportunities to pursue national interests, and to respond distinctively to common problems of contemporary government.
Economic Crisis and Political Management: an Introduction to the Problems of Political–Economic Interdependence*
Authors: KEMAN HANS , LEHNER FRANZ
Published: May 2006

The management of political–economic interdependence is rather neglected in political theory as well as in political research. We propose a tentative framework of analysis concentrating on the processes of interaction between ‘politics’ and ‘economics’. Three levels of interaction are introduced and discussed in relation to current literature and to the contributions to this ‘special issue’. In particular, attention is paid to the potential role of political and non‐political factors, the extent to which interest‐aggregation and modes of conflict‐regulation are important, and to the salient feature of the degree of correspondence between public policy–formation and its consequences in terms of economic performance.
Party Government and the Political Control of Public Policy*
Authors: LEHNER FRANZ , SCHUBERT KLAUS
Published: May 2006

In view of an ongoing debate on the relevance of political parties in public policy formation, this article discusses capacities and limits of party control over public policy in advanced capitalist states. Due to a strong political–economic interdependence, parties, like any other relevant public or private actor, have only severely limited capacities to influence public policy formation. This, however, does not imply that parties do not matter. Rather, the ‘parties do not matter’ theories contain a misunderstanding of the role and the influence of parties. Parties still may have considerable capacities for imposing guidelines and restrictions on the policy process. These capacities, however, depend on conditions which are often difficult to be effected. As a result, the prospects of party government are rather ambivalent.
Interest Groups and Political X‐inefficiency*
Authors: DEAN JAMES W.
Published: May 2006

This paper analyses the Interest Group approach to political choice, an approach that has recently been adopted by economists. The paper argues that Interest Group theorists have overlooked, and sometimes denied, the potential of their approach to distinguish between optimal and non‐optimal (or ‘inefficient’) policy outcomes. The analysis is illustrated with examples from banking regulation.
Norwegian and Catalan Communism: Relativism in the Use of Models of Electoral Behaviour
Authors: BERNTZEN EINAR , SELLE PER
Published: May 2006

The application of a model of Communist voting to two rather different geographical and historical contexts yielded varying empirical results. The model, composed of traditional socioeconomic explanatory variables as well as organizational and historical variables, proved fruitful in the Norwegian case, much less so in the Catalan case. This difference in explanatory power may be understood in terms of varying levels of modernization. Models of electoral behaviour should be more sensitive to developments of this kind. Higher flexibility in the use of models is thus desirable. What is needed is a battery of models of electoral behaviour, and a more conscious attitude on the part of electoral sociologists to the implications of time and space for the choice of theoretical approach.
Party Identification and Political Socialization: a Note on Australia and Britain*
Authors: McALLISTER IAN , KELLEY JONATHAN
Published: May 2006

The inheritance and continuity of party identification is usually traced to the predominant influence of parental political socialization. This paper applies multivariate analysis to Australian and British data to examine (1) the relative importance of parents' partisanship and social milieu on the respondent's own partisanship and (2) the influence of parentsapos; partisanship on the preferences of the respondent in later life. The analysis shows that, in both countries, the social milieu of the family has little or no effect on the preferences of the children and it is the partisanship of the parents that is the dominant factor. In addition, we show that the influence of parents' partisanship is limited to early adulthood and to the first partisanship of the child; it has little or no direct influence on the respondent's subsequent electoral behaviour.
Comparative Public Policies: Some Methodological and Theoretical Notes from a Scandinavian Research Project
Authors: SAETREN HARALD
Published: May 2006

A better understanding of political system performance from a public policy point of view requires a more rigorous concern with methodological and theoretical aspects of research design. In many comparative studies the lack of focus on the sub‐systemic, intermediate level of the political system is striking and it is maintained that recent developments in organizational theory offer rich opportunities to analyse the effects of institutional and organizational factors on political system performance.

A Scandinavian research project covering Finland, Norway and Sweden, based on a ‘most similar systems’ research design, is used as an illustrative example of how the author thinks comparative studies may lead to an agglomeration of more cumulative knowledge in the field of public policy.
Party Factions and Government Reshuffles: a General Hypothesis Tested against Data from 20 Post‐war Democracies*
Authors: BUDGE IAN
Published: May 2006

In the context of a general policy‐based theory of how parties behave in democratic governments, a specific hypothesis on party factional behaviour is proposed and tested for the post‐war period in 20 democracies. The hypothesis is that reshuffles (replacements and transfers of individuals between ministries) are more frequent where Prime Ministers have more freedom of action and decline where they have less freedom. As Prime Ministerial power is greatest in single‐party governments, these are expected to produce more reshuffles – an expectation strongly confirmed by the evidence.
Trends in policy sciences research: determinants and developments
Authors: De LEON Peter
Published: May 2006

Abstract.The policy sciences have been evolving as a discipline over the past thirty years, but the development has been less than clear, its directions somewhat uncertain. Still, the founding characteristics, as set forth by its early proponents, have remained relevant and relatively constant. The policy sciences have been defined by their multidisciplinary perspective, their problem‐oriented, contextual approach, and their treatment of normative standards. This paper reviews the development of the policy sciences in light of these three hallmarks and observes how each has experienced great variations. Finally, the paper suggests six emerging conditions which could have a significant effect on the future development and practice of the policy sciences.
Determinants of policy change: a cross national analysis
Authors: SARANGI Prakash
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This study is an attempt to explain redistributive policy changes in democratic political systems. The two major competing paradigms of such determinants are the ‘political environments matter’ hypothesis and the economic resources model. This study attempts to show that there is an interdependent or exchange relationship between the choices of the policy makers and the policy takers, and that the periodic elections and the parties are important institutional mechanisms which make the exchange relationship possible. Several propositions about the conditions of policy change emerge from the assumptions about the behaviour of the policy makers and the policy takers. These propositions along with those emerging from the socio‐economic and the political factors are tested using data from 21 contemporary democratic regimes beteen 1952–1980. The two dependent variables in the model are expenditures on the direct transfers to the households, and revenue from the direct taxes. Multiple regression analyses are utilized in the statistical tests. These analyses confirm the contention that political exchange plays an important part as a determinant of policy outcomes. It explains as much, if not more, variation in the model as the socio‐economic or political environment variables.
Issue transfer and symbolic legislation: a case study of the Austrian Equal Treatment Act
Authors: MÜLLER Wolfgang C.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Three strategies which may emerge out of politicians’ concepts of rationality (problems solving, agenda management, creation of consensus) are applied to one of the main features of Austrian politics, namely the differentation of policy sectors dominated either by political parties or interest groups. The Equal Treatment Act, which had been transferred from the corporatist arena to the arena of the party system, involved the rationalities of both political parties and interest groups. This paper analyses the ‘extended’ process of legislation of this law (including implementation). The empirical findings are then linked to the theoretical propositions about the rationalities of the respective political actors. Finally, hypotheses about the conditions of issue transfers from the corporatist arena into the arena of the party system are suggested.
Maximizing utility at the polls? A replication of Himmelweit's ‘Consumer Model of Voting’ with German election data from 1983
Authors: KUECHLER Manfred
Published: May 2006

Abstract. A rational choice model of voting behaviour suggested by Himmelweit et al. is put to an empirical test in the context of the 1983 West German general election. Compared to the traditional measure of party identification, an indicator based on multi‐attribute utility theory (MAUT) considerations fails to be as dominant as in the original British data. However, specific context effects were at work in the German 1983 election. Also, the party identification measure is problematic itself. It is concluded that the MAUT approach deserves further elaboration; several methodological improvements are discussed.
Fair models of political fairness
Authors: DE MEUR Gisèle , HUBAUT Xavier
Published: May 2006

Abstract. In this note we study different methods of aggregation of preferences met on the occasion of elections. Through a simple geometrical representation, we analyse several of their properties, in particular those linked to Arrow's theorem for ordinal rankings; we pursue this discussion in the case of cardinal rankings, the qualities of which convince us of the usefulness of experiencing their introduction in real ballots.
Causes, forms, and consequences of sectoral policy‐making: some Danish evidence
Authors: DAMGAARD Erik
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The article reviews policy‐making patterns with respect to the importance and limits of sectorization and adds new analyses of the involvement of interest groups and bureaucrats in the legislative process. The pattern of sectoral policy‐making appears to vary according to types of actors involved, stages of the process, party in government, and policy area in question. Basically however, it is a process of affected interests in action. While the findings fit well with some democratic principles they also give reason for some concern.
Do policies develop like scientific paradigms? On occupational safety and health legislation in Finland
Authors: AHONEN Guy
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The article adds to the attempts to describe and explain legislation as an extended process. The case of Finnish labour protection policy is used as an illustration. It is argued that the labour protection policy is pursued in accordance with an established labour protection paradigm, which consists of the way of cognitively structuring the safety and health problem, of the accepted methods to deal with the problem and of the values underlying the policy. It is argued that the Finnish labour protection paradigm does not correspond with the real function of labour protection. Generally, the paper suggests that the paradigm‐nature of public policies implies an inherent conservatism, allowing only partial adaption to social and political change.
Collective and individual economic judgments and voting in West Germany, 1961–1984
Authors: RATTINGER Hans
Published: May 2006

Abstract: : This article attempts to provide individual‐level support to findings of longitudinal macro‐level studies of the relation between economic variables and electoral outcomes in the Federal Republic. The theoretical framework is one of incumbency‐oriented vs. policy‐oriented political responses to collective vs. individual economic judgments (Kiewiet, 1983). The data base consists of 25 surveys from 1961 through 1984. Empirical analysis comprises three steps: First, the relation between economic judgments and partisan sympathies is analyzed, since it appears likely that part of the covariations between voting and such judgments is spurious due to a common dependence upon partisan orientations. Second, the impact of both kinds of economic judgments upon voting over time is investigated with and without controls for partisan affiliation. Finally, the impact over time of macropolitical and macroeconomic variables on individual political response patterns to economic judgments is estimated at the longitudinal macro‐level. The analysis demonstrates that collective economic judgments are generally a more potent predictor of electoral choice than individual economic judgments, and that there is clear empirical evidence both for the incumbency‐oriented and the policy‐oriented hypothesis linking such judgments to the vote.
The determinants of structural changes in public budgets: a theoretical and empirical analysis for the Federal Republic of Germany
Authors: MÜLLER Frank G. , ZIMMERMANN Klaus
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Since there is no generally accepted and satisfactory theory that can explain structural changes in public budgets over time, this article focuses on the determinants of the budget structure and its changes over time. Thus, it would already be an improvement in the development of a complex and coherent theory of budgetary structures and its changes if initially appropriate variables could be identified which could explain in the short, intermediate and long runs the structural changes in public budgets with respect to the various governmental levels. Potential candidates for explaining structural changes could be socio‐economic, political and institutional variables. These sets of variables will be analyzed here in detail for the Federal Republic of Germany for the time period 1964–1978. The results are very similar to those found in various U.S. studies. In comparably developed nations with similar political (federal) structures, institutional factors seem to play the dominant role in determining and explaining changes in the budgetary structure.
The battlefield of ideas: the legitimation of political violence in Northern Ireland
Authors: BAIRNER Alan
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Northern Ireland has suffered consistently from the effects of political violence since the late 1960s. This article argues that anyone who engages in political violence seeks legitimation for his acts and it assesses the attempts by Republicans and Loyalists in Northern Ireland to legitimate their violence. The legitimation of both Loyalist and Republican violence is shown to consist of arguments drawn from a wide range of theoretical traditions by no means confined to Northern Ireland. Republicans draw upon nationalism, Catholicism and Marxism whilst Loyalists make use of contractarian ideas and Protestant theology. Both sides have been relatively successful in persuading potential supporters of the legitimacy of their activities. The article concludes by analysing weaknesses in each attempt at legitimation and by indicating how the diversity of the rival packages may prove counterproductive in the long run. The capacity of each group to generate the additional support needed to achieve its ends is seriously doubted.
Countries in comparative European politics
Authors: DAALDER Hans
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article reviews the place which the comparative study of European countries has occupied in the development of political science as an academic discipline, and discusses how single country studies can contribute towards the construction of new models for cross‐national research. Particular attention is paid to the contribution made by the late Stein Rokkan to this development.
Unions in politics: public opinion in the United Kingdom and Denmark
Authors: NIELSEN Hans Jørgen
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The paper examines public opinion about the political involvement of trade unions in the UK and Denmark. Both are systems in which trade unions are linked to a political party and both have high rates of union density. However, whereas British unions have contested governments of both parties and opposed regulation of industrial relations, Danish unions have a tradition of cooperation with government and are entangled in a web of institutionalized industrial relations. Results, however, are amazingly similar. Both the public at large and union members accept unions in general and also their political involvement, but oppose contestation of political authority. Irrespective of union behaviour, beliefs in the supremacy of parliament seems to be firmly rooted in public opinion.
Cycles of value change
Authors: MOHLER Peter Ph.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The main focus of this paper is a comparison of results from studies on cycles in value change of the British and West German political systems. While the British data span more than two hundred years and the German data not more than 35 to 65 years, the British data are taken as a reference or constant. The comparison results in the observation that there is no indication of a general cyclical process of value change. This result contrasts with former results of British and American studies, which indicated a common cyclical process for these two nations.
Testing theories of electoral cycles
Authors: VAN DER EIJK Cees
Published: May 2006

Abstract. A common form of electoral cycle theory asserts that support for government parties is dependent on the proportion of an inter‐election interval which has passed since the last national election. Weekly opinion poll data for the Netherlands are used to test whether or not such ‘cyclical’ patterns of change can be detected in the inter‐election periods of 1977–1981 and 1982–1986. The relative merits of two methods of analysis, polynomial regression and ARIMA, are discussed and demonstrated. The latter is shown to be the more suitable of the two; the former may yield misleading outcomes. The analyses reported do not display even a glimpse of empirical support for the alleged cyclical phenomenon. The ARIMA analyses can be used, however, to describe how processes and events in a society impinge on (noncyclical) developments in the electoral support for political parties.
Neoconservatism and conservative‐liberal economic policy in West Germany
Authors: GRANDE EDGAR
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article outlines the development of contemporary German conservatism, its renaissance in the 1970s and its (partial) transformation into neoconservatism in the 1980s. Its purpose is to explain, in the case of economic‐ and social policy, one of the subjects most relevant within the neoconservative discourse – why the impact of neoconservative ideology on the policies of the conservative‐liberal government since 1982 has remained weak. The findings will be discussed in the light of recent theories about a ‘new institutionalism’ in policy research. The main argument is that it was the political, organizational and institutional fragmentation of West German politics that prevented neoconservatism from becoming hegemonial within the conservative‐liberal government.
Constraint in European party activists’ sympathy scores for interest groups
Authors: VAN SCHUUR Wijbrandt H.
Published: May 2006

Abstract.This paper presents an analysis, country by country, of sympathy scores given by European party activists from 58 political parties in 11 countries of the European Community to more than 100 different national interest groups. In all countries but one, the left‐right dimension is the predominant criterion for interpreting the sympathy scores given. In Belgium, the exception, a regional (Flemish‐Walloon) cleavage line is most important. The analyses were performed with a new adapted version of the unidimensional Coombsian unfolding model. Bad fit to the unidimensional model is not remedied by postulating additional common dimensions, but by identifying and removing stimuli (interest groups) that do not conform to the unidimensional unfolding model. The nonrepresentability of these stimuli can be attributed to lack of agreement among activists about the location of these stimuli on the left‐right dimension. More specifically, certain relatively popular stimuli are perceived by most respondents as close to their own location on the left‐right scale, and, conversely, certain relatively unpopular stimuli are perceived by most respondents as distant from their own location.
Working‐class authoritarianism: a re‐examination of the Lipset thesis
Authors: DEKKER PAUL , ESTER PETER
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Almost thirty years ago Lipset published his well‐known article ‘Democracy and working‐class authoritarianism’. His central thesis is that the working class more than other social classes, is predisposed to authoritarian and anti‐democratic attitudes. Several authors have criticized this thesis, especially by questioning Lipset's concept of democracy. Our approach is somewhat different in that in our opinion Lipset's conceptualization and measurement of social class is inaccurate and inappropriate. Using an empirical class model elaborated by Eric Olin Wright, our findings do not show that the working class is more authoritarian than other social classes. Education and not social class seems to be the most important factor. It is concluded that the measurement of social class is crucial to whether the theory of working‐class authoritarianism is empirically supported or not. Some theoretical consequences are briefly discussed.
The demanding citizen: driven by policy, self‐interest or ideology?
Authors: MOURITZEN POUL E.
Published: May 2006

A number of the basic assumptions made by economic theories of democracy are tested by means of a general model of the formation of citizens’ attitudes towards changes in public spending. The test is performed on Danish individual‐level data in combination with city‐level data. The results generally confirm the validity of some of the assumptions of economic theories of democracy: that people have some knowledge of public policies, that they react accordingly, and that some sort of cost benefit calculus is at work because attitudes to some extent are a function of individual self‐interest. On the other hand, the model also points towards mechanisms which are indicative of the limitations of narrow self‐interest‐oriented economic reasoning because people's ideologies seem to be more important than self‐interest measures.

One can hardly conceive of a theory of representative democracy‐normative or positive‐which is not based on specific assumption about the relationship between public policies and voter attitudes. This relationship is a two‐way relationship. On the one hand, voter attitudes are assumed to influence public policies either through the voting process or through more direct processes such as, for example, organized pressure. Second, public policies are assumed to affect voter attitudes. If, for instance, public policies change in a direction favoured by voters, it is expected that voters become more satisfied.

The purpose of this article is to test the latter relation. The proposition to be tested is:

Preferences for higher public spending are negatively related to the level of services, the level of taxation, the increases in services, and the increases in taxation.

The test is based on individual level data and on aggregated measures of local spending, service levels and taxation. In order to perform the test a general model explaining voter attitudes will be formulated. The model comprises four major explanatory categories: public policies, private benefit indicators, ideology and political culture indicators.
The EC as an international corporate actor: Two case studies in economic diplomacy
Authors: KENIS PATRICK , SCHNEIDER VOLKER
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Within the arena of international politics the European Community sometimes acts as an actor, but sometimes it does not. As is shown in this article:‘traditional’ European‐integration approaches fail to explain this. The authors introduce an actor concept which seems to overcome such shortcomings. This approach is applied to a study of two action domains of the EC: one on chemicals control policies and non‐tariff trade barriers, and the other on the Multi‐Fibre Agreements.
Capitalism, socialism, and democracy: An empirical inquiry
Authors: BRUNK GREGORY G. , CALDEIRA GREGORY A. , LEWIS‐BECK MICHAEL S.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Some prominent economists have argued that the structure of a nation's economic life – capitalist or socialist ‐ helps to shape its political institutions. Though its importance seems self‐evident, scholars have not yet integrated this idea into the literature of empirical democratic theory. Drawing on previous work, we formulate four propositions about the relationship between economic structure and political democracy. Economic structure does in fact mould political forms, but not in a simple, linear fashion. Rather, it does so in a more complex, non‐linear manner, a relationship we label the ‘mixed‐economy’ model. This relationship survives and flourishes in the face of extensive challenges. Its implication is simple: democratic political practice reaches a maximum under moderate amounts of public direction of economic affairs, but suffers at the extremes of both unfettered capitalism and socialism.