bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Gynaecological cytology in women under the age of 30—the impact of P16/KI67 dual-staining cytology
Authors: Silva F , Rocha C , Teixeira P , Oliveira R , Martins D , Mendes F , Fernandes G , Cipriano A
Published: August 2021

Background

The HPV detection test is not recommended as a primary screening of cervical lesions, before the age of 30, because the high rate of HPV infections with a high rate of spontaneous resolution in this age group. This study aims to evaluate the performance of p16/Ki67 dual staining in detecting high-grade squamous cervical lesions in these women.

Methods

Cervical-vaginal samples from 67 women HPV positives under the age of 30 and cervical biopsies of 41 of these women. Results of p16/Ki67 dual staining, cytology and histology were analysed. In 53 of the women, 159 results of p16/Ki67 dual staining, HPV test and cytology, obtained in 3 follow-up medical visit, were compared.

Results

The p16/ki67 dual staining was positive in 23.9% and negative in 76.1% of all 67 women. All women with high squamous intraepithelial lesion cytology, 39.1% with low squamous intraepithelial lesion cytology, 17.4% with negative for intraepithelial lesion cytology and 10% with atypical squamous cells cytology, were p16/Ki-67 dual staining positives. In the 41 women with histological diagnosis, p16/ki67 dual staining showed a sensitivity of 87.5% and a specificity of 96% to detect HSIL. When comparing, the tests differ significantly (P < 0.001), p16/ki67 dual staining was positive in 24% of positive cytology and in 19.5% of positive HPV tests.

Conclusions

Our results demonstrate that p16/Ki67 dual stain has good sensitivity and specificity to detect HSIL and can be useful on women under the age of 30, avoiding excessive diagnosis and reducing colposcopy referrals. Further studies are required in a large number of women.
The induced dose of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis was not determinant and proportional to histopathological findings
Authors: Perussolo Maiara Carolina , Mogharbel Bassam Felipe , de Noronha Lucia , de Carvalho Katherine Athayde Teixeira
Published: August 2021

Background

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system, characterized as an inflammatory demyelinating disease. It presents a diversity of neurologic signs and symptoms as well the incapacities. Since the need for advances in MS treatment, many studies are for new therapeutic technologies, mainly through using preclinical models as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). This study aimed to observe and analyze the development in Lewis rats-induced model of EAE.

Methods

It was used 23 females of Rattus norvegicus, from 6 to 8 weeks, weighing around 170 g. Of 23 rats, 19 underwent EAE induction distributed in six groups to establish the evolution of clinical signs. B. pertussis toxin (PTX) doses were 200, 250, 300, 350–400 ng, and four animals as the control group. The animals had weight and scores analyzed daily, starting seven and ending 24 days after induction. Then, all animals were euthanized, and the brain and spinal cord were collected for histopathological analyses.

Results

The results showed that the dose of 250 ng of PTX induced de higher score and weight reduction. All groups who received the PTX demonstrated histopathological findings. Those characterized as leukocyte infiltration, activation of microglia and astrocytes, and demyelinated plaques in the brain. In the spinal cord, the loosening of the myelinated fibers was observed by increasing the axonal space in all tested doses of PTX.

Conclusions

EAE was not dose-dependent. Histopathological findings do not proportionally related to clinical signs, as in human patients with MS.
Comparative study on the social representations of cancer and breast cancer
Authors: Pocinho Margarida , Matos Fatima , Amaral Ana
Published: August 2021

Background

The symbolic universe of cancer is associated with death, but its treatment has undergone innumerable innovations, which may lead to a new meaning for social representations. The theory of social representations seeks the new, which changes in the knowledge of common sense (Guareschi & Jovchelovitch, 1994). Thus, the objective of this work is to identify the social representations of cancer and breast cancer, identifying their changes and their meanings based on the central nucleus and the peripheral system.

Methods

Qualitative and descriptive study, based on the structural approach of the theory of social representations. The sample was non-probabilistic and due to accessibility. The collection instrument was a Word Evocation Test with two inducing words, ‘cancer’ and ‘breast cancer’. The subjects were asked to mention three words that came to their mind immediately and spontaneously. The SPSS and IRAMUTEQ software were used.

Results

753 subjects participated and 2316 words were evoked for each inducing word. In the central core of cancer the words pain, illness, death, suffering. Central core of breast cancer: treatment, pain, feeling, woman, strength.

Conclusions

The social representation of cancer is still strongly death, while in breast cancer it is the treatment. Suffering and pain are part of the central core of the two words and continue to characterize the disease, but in breast cancer the word strength appears. It is concluded that the social representation of breast cancer is being reframed.
Biomechanical device for quantification of parameters associated with the ‘sit-to-stand’ patients performance
Authors: Oliveira Natacha , Maranha Vitor , Cruz Nuno , Carvalho Filipe , Lains Jorge , Roseiro Luis
Published: August 2021

Background

In Daily Living Activities, the ‘Sit-to-Stand’ movement is essential to carry out several tasks, many of them starting from sitting and needing to get up. This movement stimulates a set of important muscles in the context of physical-motor activity and lower limb rehabilitation procedures. This work presents an interactive biomechanical device, based on two instrumented arms, to monitor the support force and arms angle, necessary to perform the ‘Sit-to-Stand’ movement.

Methods

The prototype incorporates aluminum support and two tubular arms instrumented with eight strain gauges, connected to a NI data board and a PC, allowing the quantification of the force applied during the sit-to-stand performance as well as the angle of the arms. A Labview user interface interacts with the user and the data can be visualized and recorded during the time.

Results

The device has been tested with a group of healthy volunteers, performing a sit-to-stand test protocol from a chair. In all the tests, the force applied, and the hand position have been quantified during the time necessary to perform the task.

Conclusions

The biomechanical device provides the quantification and identification of the harm force and position during the sit-to-stand movement. The system can be used as a force-time/position-time analysis, providing the analysis of recovery in patients who are undergoing physical-motor rehabilitation procedures of the lower limbs, such as post-stroke patients and institutionalized geriatric populations. The device can also allow biofeedback stimuli in rehabilitation activities through a graphical computer interface, such as a game.
Relevance of social and community mediation for health, in processes of reinsertion of people with addictive behaviors and dependencies (ABD)
Authors: Almeida Helena Neves , Carvalho Sara , Barbosa Jorge , Silva Merícia , Rodrigues Emídio , Lino Rui , Proença Cristina , Cunha Celestino , Martelo Sofia , Neto Ana Paula
Published: August 2021

Background

The knowledge of the importance of intervention in the reintegration of people with addictive behaviors and dependencies (ABD), combined with the complexity of the process and the multiplicity of associated factors (SICAD, 2014), has motivated a study developed on social and community mediation, through a interinstitutional collaboration of seven public entities, linking the academy to entities that intervene in the field of health (SICAD, in press). This paper aims to explore and disseminate some of the research results, reflecting on the importance of social intervention in the global health of the citizen.

Methods

This research was carried out according to a mixed case study plan (multi-case and multi-perspective), which involved reinsertion professionals, people with ABD, families and other stakeholders, in a total of 18 cases, 51 interviews and 21 questionnaires. It has a national scope and combines the descriptive component with the analytical and reflective component.

Results

Crossing the mapping of the diagnosed problems with the results and impacts of the developed intervention, which translate into changes perceived by the interviewees in several areas, it is possible to explore axes of the effectiveness of the intervention implemented in the reinsertion process.

Conclusions

The results show a high level of effectiveness (individual, family and community level), which goes beyond the changes in the scope of dependencies and affects the various areas of life of the citizen. The developed intervention generated impacts felt in the health level by the interviewees as positive and allowed to modify the fragile conditions that were identified in the diagnosis.
Marine sponges maintain stable bacterial communities between reef sites with different coral to algae cover ratios
Authors: Campana Sara , Demey Celine , Busch Kathrin , Hentschel Ute , Muyzer Gerard , de Goeij Jasper M
Published: August 2021

Marine sponges play a major ecological role in recycling resources on coral reef ecosystems. The cycling of resources may largely depend on the stability of the host–microbiome interactions and their susceptibility to altered environmental conditions. Given the current coral to algal phase shift on coral reefs, we investigated whether the sponge-associated bacterial communities of four sponge species, with either high or low microbial abundances (HMA and LMA), remain stable at two reefs sites with different coral to algae cover ratios. Additionally, we assessed the bacterial community composition of two of these sponge species before and after a reciprocal transplantation experiment between the sites. An overall stable bacterial community composition was maintained across the two sites in all sponge species, with a high degree of host-specificity. Furthermore, the core bacterial communities of the sponges remained stable also after a 21-day transplantation period, although a minor shift was observed in less abundant taxa (< 1%). Our findings support the conclusion that host identity and HMA–LMA status are stronger traits in shaping bacterial community composition than habitat. Nevertheless, long-term microbial monitoring of sponges along with benthic biomass and water quality assessments are needed for identifying ecosystem tolerance ranges and tipping points in ongoing coral reef phase shifts.
A Systematic Review and Correlational Meta-Analysis of Factors Associated With Resilience of Normally Aging, Community-Living Older Adults
Authors: Górska Sylwia , Singh Roy Anusua , Whitehall Lucy , Irvine Fitzpatrick Linda , Duffy Nichola , Forsyth Kirsty
Published: August 2021

Background and Objectives

Global policy emphasizes the need to promote healthy aging through supporting inclusivity, safety, and functional independence. Research indicates that efforts to enhance resilience can contribute to meeting these objectives. We employed a meta-analytical approach to examine evidence on resilience in community-living older adults.

Research Design and Methods

We searched electronic databases until January 13, 2020 for observational studies investigating factors associated with resilience in this population. Articles had to provide quantitative data based on standardized assessment and include samples where mean participants’ age and lower 95% confidence interval were more than 55 years. We included 49 studies reported in 43 articles and completed 38 independent meta-analyses, 27 for personal and 11 for contextual factors associated with resilience.

Results

A range of personal and contextual factors were significantly associated with resilience, with effects sizes predominantly small to moderate (0.1 < r < 0.49). Factors reflecting psychological and physical well-being and access to/quality of social support were associated with higher resilience. Factors indicative of poorer psychological well-being and social challenges were associated with lower resilience. Longitudinal evidence was limited. The level of between-study heterogeneity was substantial to considerable. Where relevant analysis was possible, the identified publication bias was also considerable.

Discussion and Implications

The quality of the available evidence, as well as issues related to measurement of resilience, indicates the need for further work relative to its conceptualization and assessment. The presented findings have important clinical implications, particularly within the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 impact on resilience in older adults.
Trademark Opposition Proceedings in Switzerland: An Empirical Study of Legal Reasoning
Authors: Thouvenin Florent , Gerber Daniel , Altwicker Tilmann
Published: August 2021

This study is the first empirical analysis of legal reasoning in trademark opposition proceedings in Switzerland. We examine a novel dataset on trademark opposition proceedings brought before the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI). In these proceedings, the likelihood of confusion between two (or more) trademarks is assessed based on the similarity of the trademark signs and the similarity of the goods and services, taking into account a series of additional aspects such as the distinctive character of the opposing trademark and the level of attention of the average consumer when buying the goods and services for which the earlier trademark is registered. Our dataset contains information on 2,453 cases relating to proceedings between June 2002 and August 2018. In particular, we examine which substantive factors drive the outcome of these decisions. Some of our findings call into question the established legal doctrine. For example, our data suggest that the importance of the beginning of words for establishing similarity between word marks is overrated by legal doctrine. Furthermore, our data show no clear influence of the level of attention on the assessment of the likelihood of confusion. Instead, we found striking differences between the success rates of different types of trademarks. In fact, the data reveal a sliding scale with word marks being the most successful trademarks followed by figurative trademarks that contain a word element, and purely figurative trademarks. Based on our empirical findings, we make suggestions on how to improve the legal reasoning when assessing the likelihood of confusion.
5. Affirmative Action and Discrimination
Authors: Abel William , Kahn Elizabeth , Parr Tom , Walton Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter argues that affirmative action is sometimes justifiable. ‘Affirmative action’ refers to policies beyond anti-discrimination law that directly regulate selection procedures to enhance the representation of members of various socially salient groups, such as those based on gender, race, and ethnicity. The chapter outlines an argument in support of affirmative action by distinguishing three prominent forms of wrongful discrimination and by showing that affirmative action is the appropriate response to the past and present wrongful discrimination suffered by members of socially salient groups. It also adds a second argument for affirmative action that appeals to the importance of enhancing diversity and social integration. The chapter then tackles several objections and reflects on the implications of these arguments for the design of affirmative action policies.
10. Judicial Review and Democracy
Authors: Abel William , Kahn Elizabeth , Parr Tom , Walton Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter argues that the state should use judicial review to constrain democracy. It identifies several rights that individuals possess, and then defends judicial review as a mechanism for protecting these rights. The chapter then considers the objection that judicial review is undemocratic because it constrains the laws that an electorate or their representatives might adopt. To explore this idea, it distinguishes two arguments in defence of democracy. The first holds that democracy is valuable because it produces good outcomes, and the second holds that democracy is valuable because it treats each member of a society equally when they disagree about which outcomes are good.
13. Environmental Taxes and Intergenerational Justice
Authors: Abel William , Kahn Elizabeth , Parr Tom , Walton Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter evaluates environmental taxes as part of a set of policies to address the threats that climate change poses. These taxes increase the price of activities that are environmentally harmful. In doing so, they discourage such behaviour and raise revenue that the state can use to redress its effects. The chapter embeds these considerations in an account of intergenerational justice, arguing that the current generation has a duty to provide future generations with prospects at least equal to its own. It also examines the objection that the proposed approach allows historical emitters off of the moral hook, showing that the state can adjust environmental taxes to take account of this. Finally, the chapter explores how to amend these taxes so that they are not regressive and that they do not present undue barriers to particularly valuable activities.
2. International law and international relations theory
Authors: Scicluna Nicole
Published: August 2021

This chapter discusses international law (IL) and international relations (IR) theory. It studies legal theory in order to better understand what law is, and how IL compares with domestic law. The chapter then introduces the major schools of IR theory, with a focus on how they conceptualize IL and its role in enabling and constraining the conduct of international politics. The disciplinary estrangement between IR and IL began to ease at the end of the 1980s. By that time there were already important strands within IR, including the English School, that were seeking to explain the prevalence of cooperation in an anarchical international system. New generations of IR scholars began theorizing the role of IL in structuring international politics, particularly from the perspectives of liberalism and constructivism, as well as from a range of critical approaches.
7. Global economic and trade governance
Authors: Scicluna Nicole
Published: August 2021

This chapter addresses the intersection of international law and international politics as it relates to global trade. To study global economic governance is to study international law, international relations, and international political economy (IPE) all at once. The chapter begins with a brief introduction to IPE, a discipline which seeks to understand the workings of the global economy in its political context. It examines the relationship between economic globalization and state sovereignty, before turning to the construction of the postwar global economic order, with a focus on the Bretton Woods institutions. The postwar global economic order has often been described as ‘liberal’ by virtue of its underlying assumptions and the ideological convictions of its framers. Importantly, the postwar liberal order was built by, and for, the developed countries of the Global North-a fact that has informed critiques emanating from the developing countries of the Global South. The chapter then assesses global trade governance, analysing the structure, powers, and role of the World Trade Organization.
10. International law and the use of force
Authors: Scicluna Nicole
Published: August 2021

This chapter explores the justness, legitimacy, and legality of war. While 1945 was a key turning point in the codification of jus ad bellum (i.e. international law on the use of force), that framework did not emerge in a vacuum. Rather, it was the product of historical political contingencies that meant that codification of the laws of war was contemporaneous, both geographically and temporally, with the solidification of the norms of sovereign nation-statehood and territorial integrity. The chapter focuses on the UN Charter regime and how it has shaped the politics of war since 1945. Importantly, the Charter establishes a general prohibition on the use of force in international relations. It also grants two exceptions to the prohibition: actions undertaken with Security Council authorization and actions taken in self-defence. Today, many of the most serious challenges to the Charter regime concern the definition and outer limits of the concept of self-defence. Another set of challenges to the Charter regime concerns the contested concept of ‘humanitarian intervention’. The chapter then looks at the development of the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ doctrine.
1. An Overview
Authors: Pollack Mark A. , Roederer-Rynning Christilla , Young Alasdair R.
Published: August 2021

The European Union represents a remarkable, ongoing experiment in the collective governance of a multinational continent of nearly 450 million citizens and 27 member states. The key aim of this volume is to understand the processes that produce EU policies: that is, the decisions (or non-decisions) by EU public authorities facing choices between alternative courses of public action. We do not advance any single theory of EU policy-making, although we do draw extensively on theories of European integration, international cooperation, comparative politics, and contemporary governance; and we identify five ‘policy modes’ operating across the 15 case study chapters in the volume. This chapter introduces the volume by summarizing our collective approach to understanding policy-making in the EU, identifying the significant developments that have impacted EU policy-making since the seventh edition of this volume, and previewing the case studies and their central findings.
8. The Common Agricultural Policy
Authors: Roederer-Rynning Christilla
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the processes that make up the European Union’s common agricultural policy (CAP), with particular emphasis on how the Community method functions in agriculture and how it upheld for decades the walls of fortress CAP. Today’s CAP bears little resemblance to the system of the 1960s, except for comparatively high tariff protection. The controversial device of price support has largely been replaced by direct payments to producers. The chapter first provides an overview of the origins of CAP before discussing two variants of the Community method in agriculture: hegemonic intergovernmentalism and competitive intergovernmentalism. It argues that the challenge for CAP regulators today is not to prevent a hypothetical comeback to the price-support system or generalized market intervention, but to prevent the fragmentation of the single market through a muddled implementation of greening and the consolidation of uneven regimes of support among member states.
15. Justice and Home Affairs
Authors: Lavenex Sandra
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the European Union’s justice and home affairs (JHA), which have evolved from a peripheral aspect into a focal point of European integration and today are at the centre of politicization in the EU. It first considers the institutionalization of JHA cooperation and its gradual move towards more supranational competences before discussing political contestation as expressed in the context of Brexit and the crisis of the common asylum and Schengen systems. The development of cooperation is retraced, looking at the main actors in the JHA, the organization and capacities of EU institutions, the continuity of intergovernmentalism, the proliferation of semi-autonomous agencies and databases, and the flow of policy, taking into account asylum policy and immigration policy, police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, and the challenge of implementation. The chapter shows how the gradual move of cooperation among national agencies concerned with combating crime; fighting terrorism; and managing borders, immigration, and asylum from loose intergovernmental cooperation to more supranational governance within the EU has remained contested, and argues that this contestation exemplifies the limits of political unification.
7. The Executive Branch
Authors: Schleiter Petra
Published: August 2021

This chapter offers a clear introduction to the history, constitutional structure, and powers of the modern executive in European countries. It provides an overview of the constitutional position of the political executive in parliamentary and semi-presidential democracies, then charts variations in the powers of key actors (including prime ministers, cabinets, and presidents) and their political implications for conflict within government, cabinet stability, and policy processes. The text complements its coverage of the political executive with an analysis of the civil service and the political challenges of controlling it, and concludes with a comprehensive assessment of the rise in executive autonomy and its political implications in the twenty-first century.
8. Parties in Government
Authors: Kostadinova Petia , Thomson Robert
Published: August 2021

This chapter explores a cornerstone of democratic theory: the idea that parties mediate the effect of public opinion on government policies. It begins by discussing whether elections give parties a mandate to pursue their campaign promises, a supposition that many political theorists find problematic. The chapter then reviews theories that predict and explain post-election coalition formation, as the type of government formed affects parties’ success in shaping government policies. Finally, the chapter reviews three of the main approaches to studying the impact of parties on public policies: welfare state models, public spending, and the keeping of election campaign promises.
11. Levels of Government
Authors: Keating Michael
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the division of power between different levels of government in European countries. Some states are unitary, while others are federal with a constitutional division of power between the centre and the federal regions. Even within unitary states there are local and regional levels of government. The major debates about centralization versus decentralization are reviewed, including arguments about economic efficiency, democratic quality, and equity. The chapter also examines nationalist movements within states and the way they have sought greater autonomy or even secession. Finally, it considers issues of rescaling—that is, the shift of power and tasks across different levels—especially in the context of European integration.
13. Migration
Authors: Triandafyllidou Anna , Gropas Ruby
Published: August 2021

Migration poses a complex set of challenges and opportunities to the European countries. This chapter starts by discussing definitions of who is a migrant and how and when migrants can become citizens. It puts recent migration trends into historical perspective, looking at the impact that the end of the Cold War, the economic crisis of 2008, and the post-2011, post-Arab Spring period have had on immigration into Europe. European countries are presented, organized into four groups in relation to the length and nature of their migration experience, as countries of destination, origin, or transit. The chapter highlights the interplay between migration policies and the politics of migration in approaches towards migrant integration.
4. Liberalism
Authors: Russett Bruce
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the expansion of three central phenomena associated with liberalism and its emphasis on the potentially peace-promoting effects of domestic and transnational institutions: the spread of democracy throughout most of the world; globalization; and the proliferation of intergovernmental organizations, especially those composed primarily of democratic governments. Each of these assumptions supports and extends the other in a powerful feedback system envisioned by Immanuel Kant. The chapter first considers four major changes in the world over the last century and particularly over recent decades before discussing the ‘epidemiology’ of international conflict. It then explores constraints on war from the perspective of realism vs. liberal institutionalism, whether democracies are peaceful in general, and how order is nurtured within anarchy. It also presents a case study of the European Union and concludes with some reflections on power, hegemony, and liberalism.
6. The English School
Authors: Dunne Tim
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the main assumptions of the English school, the principal alternative to mainstream North American theorizations of International Relations. It first provides an overview of what the English school is and how it emerged before discussing its methodology as well as its master-concept of international society. It then considers three concepts that are the primary theoretical contribution of the English school: the social order established by states and embodied in the activities of practitioners must be understood alongside the dynamics of the international system and world society. The chapter proceeds by exploring the English school’s position on the issue of human rights and its implications for justice in international relations.
9. Constructivism
Authors: Fierke K. M.
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines the key debates that have shaped the development of constructivism in International Relations (IR). It first considers the idea that international relations is a social construction, as it emerged from the critique of more traditional theories of IR. It then explores the distinctions among various constructivisms, with particular emphasis on the contrast between those who seek a ‘better’ social science, and hence better theory, versus those who argue that constructivism is an approach that rests on assumptions at odds with those of positivist method. The chapter proceeds by discussing constructivists’ critique of rationalism, along with constructivism as a ‘middle ground’ between rationalist and poststructuralist approaches to IR. It also analyses the role of language and causality in the debate between rationalists and constructivists. Finally, it links all these insights to the War on Terror and the war on Covid-19.
UK Politics
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

UK Politics gives an introduction to this subject, providing the foundational understanding, critical perspectives, and historical knowledge needed to make sense of politics in the UK today. Part I looks at the way people are governed in the UK. This includes an analysis of the Cabinet and the Prime Minster, parliament, and the UK and human rights. Part 2 looks at how people participate in politics through examining the party system, elections, and voting. It also considers the issue of referendums. The third part is about how society affects UK politics. This part of the text examines communication and public opinion and considers identity, equality, and power. The final part is about the UK relates to the rest of the world. The key concepts here are devolution, local government, the nations and the union, and the outside world.
2. The Cabinet and the prime minister
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter examines two closely connected institutions that lie at the epicentre of UK politics and these are the Cabinet and the Prime Minister (PM). The chapter considers the basic characteristics of both. It describes the way in which they operate, including policy, the functions of the Prime Ministerial role, the supporting staff, and the place of both in the UK constitution and system of government. The principle of the collective responsibility of ministers is touched upon. The chapter gives some practical examples of how selective PMs have worked with their Cabinets to demonstrate how these theories can play out in practical terms. The chapter also provides historical material to illuminate the background to the issues it considers. Finally, the chapter asks: is collective government, that is, government by a group rather than a single leader, the right approach for the UK today? The chapter also touches on the issue of Brexit and questions what we have learnt from the Brexit experience in terms of the UK political system.
3. The UK government
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter concentrates on the UK government, the part of the UK political system responsible for creating policy and putting it into effect. The chapter looks at the nature of the UK government, and the way it is made up of ministers, and civil servants and departments. The chapter also looks at the types of ministers, their legal and political powers, and the rules applying to them. The chapter assesses the constitutional position of the civil service, and its relationship with ministers and Parliaments. It also describes the departmental structure of the UK government and the so-called arm’s-length bodies within it. The chapter presents a number of perspectives on the way in which power operates within government and considers how the various ideas play out in reality. The chapter revisits the issue of Brexit but this time in the context of the civil services and ministers.
9. Communication and public opinion
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter discusses the way in which political ideas are put forward and relates this to the forming and mobilization of political opinions. It looks the forms of communication used, the means of ‘media’ for transmission; the approach that political parties and government take towards it; and the influence it can exert from within the democratic system. The chapter looks at how people transmit information and how organizations do too. An important element of this discussion is how people form political opinions in the first place and how they make decisions based on them. A key question is: how can the right to vote be used to transmit and impact a political view point? The chapter also examines the role of social media and recent phenomena such as ‘fake news’. It also asks: how can public opinion be measured? The chapter provides a number of theoretical perspectives and real-life examples: the ‘Leveson Inquiry’ of 2011–12 and what it revealed about political communication and the online parliamentary petitioning process. Finally, the chapter explores a debate about whether the Internet has made political communication more supportive of democracy.
11. Devolution and local government
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter turns to the forms of government that cover specific areas within the UK. These territories fall into two general categories: devolved and local government. The chapter introduces the general roles of these tiers of government, their powers, their responsibilities and how they function. It introduces a number of theoretical perspectives to these subjects. It looks at the balance of power between the various systems that exist. It offers examples as to how that balance of power works in reality. The chapter also considers the mechanisms for regulating interventions by the UK Parliament into devolved spheres of operation; the process of expansion of Welsh devolution over time; the devolution of responsibility for police and justice in Northern Ireland; devolution to local government in England; and innovatory approaches in Scotland. The chapter provides an assessment of devolution and local government and gives some historical context as well. Finally, the chapter looks at the relationship between Brexit and devolution.
13. The UK and the outside world
Authors: Blick Andrew
Published: August 2021

This chapter starts by asking what are the things that a community regards as fundamental to the well-being of its citizens? They could be economic prosperity, security, or a stable environment. However, a state doesn’t exist in isolation. There is an outside world with which it has to interact with. This chapter explains how both the decisions that the UK takes about external policy and the way in which it takes them are subjects of intense interest and sometimes even controversy. They have consequences for the outside world as well as for the UK. These are two spheres that cannot be totally separated. An important question related to this discussion is: how far should external policy involve the self-interest of the UK? How far should we take into account our wider responsibilities as members of the global community? What powers can the UK wield internationally? To what extend is external policy subject to democratic accountability?
4. Ideology and Issues
Authors: De Vries Catherine E. , Hobolt Sara B. , Proksch Sven-Oliver , Slapin Jonathan B.
Published: August 2021

This chapter looks at the changing nature of ideology in Europe. It also delves into the issue of voter preference and considers how that has changed over time. It is all too often assumed that voters, as well as parties, exist along a single ideological left-to-right continuum. However, the truth is that there more deviations from this continuum than we might have in the past assumed. With the emergence of new salient issues, such as immigration, the environment and European integration, the old assumptions no longer hold true. The chapter also looks at populism, which it defines as a thin-central ideology. The final questions of this chapter are: how has populism challenged our current model of democracy? What does the future hold in this regard?
9. Party Competition
Authors: De Vries Catherine E. , Hobolt Sara B. , Proksch Sven-Oliver , Slapin Jonathan B.
Published: August 2021

This chapter looks at competition between parties. First, the chapter outlines the ways in which party systems are described and categorized, in terms of the number of parties (in other words, fragmentation) and their ideological position (polarization). The chapter then addresses the theological models that aim to explain party competition. The chapter uses the simple spatial model here which predicts that parties position themselves close to the centre of politics to appeal to the modern voter. It then looks at competition models. These models expect parties to champion issues they ‘own’. The chapter also looks at valence models which focus on competence, leadership traits and other non-party characteristics of candidates and parties. The chapter ends with a discussion of mainstream parties, looking at how they seek to respond to the rise of challenger parties.
10. Political Systems and Government Formation
Authors: De Vries Catherine E. , Hobolt Sara B. , Proksch Sven-Oliver , Slapin Jonathan B.
Published: August 2021

This chapter considers executive branch politics in a number of European democracies. It addresses the nature of parliamentary democracy and compares it with other forms of democracy. For example, it looks at separation-of-powers systems using the principal–agent framework of Chapter 2. The chapter examines in detail the link between parties and institutions in order to understand the process of government formation and government collapse. It begins to consider the foundations of the process of law-making which is relevant for the remainder of the book.
1. Introducing Global Politics
Authors: Lawson Stephanie
Published: August 2021

This introductory chapter provides an overview of global politics, starting with an account of the global political sphere as a specialized area of study—more conventionally known as the discipline of International Relations (IR)—and including an explanation of the distinction between the ‘global’ and the ‘international’. It also addresses the extent to which the world is ‘globalized’, even as some pundits herald a halt to globalization and a return to the closed politics of nationalism. The chapter then explores the history of globalization, which provides an essential backdrop to the understanding of the phenomenon in the present, and the challenges to it. This includes attention to the interweaving of globalization’s political, economic, social, and cultural dimensions and some of the implications for the current state-based world order. Finally, the chapter considers the role of theory and method, including concerns raised by the notion of a ‘post-truth’ world.
2. States, Nations, and Empires
Authors: Lawson Stephanie
Published: August 2021

This chapter discusses what is often regarded as the central institution, not only of domestic or national political order but also of current international or global order—the state. Alongside the state, we must also consider the idea of the nation and the ideology of nationalism—perhaps the most powerful political ideology to emerge in the modern world. There is, however, another form of international political order that has actually been far more common throughout history, and that is empire. With the rise of modernity from around the beginning of the seventeenth century, we also encounter the rise of the modern state and state system in Europe along with ideas about sovereignty, citizenship, the nation-state, and democracy. The chapter then looks at the effective globalization of the European state system through modern imperialism and colonialism and the extent to which these have been productive of contemporary global order.
Bayesian Inference
Authors: Dufays Arnaud
Published: August 2021

This chapter evaluates Bayesian inference, which refers to the Bayesian statistical method for estimating the parameters of a model and for testing a hypothesis. It relies on subjective statistics and extensively uses Bayes’s theorem. In the early 1990s, Bayesian statistics boomed with the emergence of sampling techniques. These new tools rely on the computational power to sample from (rather than evaluate) the posterior probability. However, the main drawback of the Bayesian approach lies in the computation of the posterior probability. The analytical computation of the posterior probability is a complex problem for any application, and this has limited Bayesian statistics for years.
Big Data
Authors: Dufresne Yannick , Davidson Brittany I.
Published: August 2021

This chapter assesses big data. Within the social sciences, big data could refer to an emerging field of research that brings together academics from a variety of disciplines using and developing tools to widen perspective, to utilize latent data sets, as well as for the generation of new data. Another way to define big data in the social sciences refers to data corresponding to at least one of the three s of big data: volume, variety, or velocity.. These characteristics are widely used by researchers attempting to define and distinguish new types of data from conventional ones. However, there are a number of ethical and consent issues with big data analytics. For example, many studies across the social sciences utilize big data from the web, from social media, online communities, and the darknet, where there is a question as to whether users provided consent to the reuse of their posts, profiles, or other data shared when they signed up, knowing their profiles and information would be public. This has led to a number of issues regarding algorithms making decisions that cannot be explained. The chapter then considers the opportunities and pitfalls that come along with big data.
Boolean Algebra
Authors: Hasić Jasmin
Published: August 2021

This chapter addresses Boolean algebra, which is based on Boolean logic. In the social sciences, Boolean algebra comes under different labels. It is often used in set-theoretic and qualitative comparative analysis to assess complex causation that leads to particular outcomes involving different combinations of conditions. The basic features of Boolean algebra are the use of binary data, combinatorial logic, and Boolean minimization to reduce the expressions of causal complexity. By calculating the intersection between the final Boolean equation and the hypotheses formulated in Boolean terms, three subsets of causal combinations emerge: hypothesized and empirically confirmed; hypothesized, but not detected within the empirical evidence; and causal configurations found empirically, but not hypothesized. This approach is both holistic and analytic because it examines cases as a whole and in parts.
Causation
Authors: Vivien Sierens , Coman Ramona
Published: August 2021

This chapter studies causation, which occupies a central place in the social sciences. In their attempts to understand and explain ‘why’ social, economic, and political phenomena occur, scholars have dealt with causality in many different ways. The way to define and observe causal relationships has always been at the heart of harsh academic debates in social as well as natural sciences. Drawing on distinctive ontological and epistemological standpoints, at least four different understandings of causation have emerged in political science. Most authors have adopted a correlational-probabilistic understanding of causation, but some have preferred a configurational one, while others have adopted a mechanistic or even a counterfactual understanding. To illustrate the concrete methodological challenges generated by this theoretical pluralism, the chapter discusses how scholars have dealt with causality to explain the impact of European integration on domestic policies and institutions.
D. Deductive, Inductive, and Retroductive Reasoning
Authors: Giese Dominik , Schnapp Kai-Uwe
Published: August 2021

This chapter looks at deduction, induction, and retroduction, which are three forms of reasoning that explain observations or develop new explanations from observations, by connecting sentences to a logical structure. Deduction explains individual occurrences of a phenomenon based on general sentences (laws) and respective circumstances. Induction derives general sentences (laws) from repeated observations of similar events. Retroduction, also often referred to as ‘abduction’, is an educated guess about the likely explanation for an observation, which can then be tested. The purpose of applying these forms of reasoning to observational studies is to make logic an explicit tool that applies extant knowledge, or develops new knowledge. While deduction applies extant knowledge, induction and retroduction develop new knowledge. The basic structure of all three forms of reasoning is derived from classical syllogisms (arguments), i.e. a structure in language that combines sentences (premises) to a conclusion. The chapter then considers examples of scientific work that applies the three forms of reasoning.
Descriptive, Explanatory, and Interpretive Approaches
Authors: Imbeau Louis M. , Tomkinson Sule , Malki Yasmina
Published: August 2021

This chapter assesses descriptive, explanatory, and interpretive approaches. ‘Description’, ‘explanation’, and ‘interpretation’ are distinct stages of the research process. Description makes the link between what is to be described and a concept and its empirical referent. It defines a way to understand empirical reality, as variations, significations, or processes. Description refers to the ‘what’ question, as the first step towards explanation. When it comes to answering the ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions, some social scientists differentiate between explanation and interpretation. For them, the aim of social sciences is to ‘understand’, that is, to uncover the meanings of individuals’ or groups’ actions through the interpretation of their beliefs and discourses, whereas the aim of natural sciences is to ‘explain’, that is, to establish causality and general laws. The chapter presents an approach which offers a broader perspective for the social sciences, advocating an explanatory pluralism that allows for a more ecumenical approach.