bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Normative Analysis of Individual Brain Differences Based on a Population MRI-Based Atlas of Cynomolgus Macaques
Authors: Lv Qiming , Yan Mingchao , Shen Xiangyu , Wu Jing , Yu Wenwen , Yan Shengyao , Yang Feng , Zeljic Kristina , Shi Yuequan , Zhou Zuofu , Lv Longbao , Hu Xintian , Menon Ravi , Wang Zheng
Published: August 2020

The developmental trajectory of the primate brain varies substantially with aging across subjects. However, this ubiquitous variability between individuals in brain structure is difficult to quantify and has thus essentially been ignored. Based on a large-scale structural magnetic resonance imaging dataset acquired from 162 cynomolgus macaques, we create a species-specific 3D template atlas of the macaque brain, and deploy normative modeling to characterize individual variations of cortical thickness (CT) and regional gray matter volume (GMV). We observed an overall decrease in total GMV and mean CT, and an increase in white matter volume from juvenile to early adult. Specifically, CT and regional GMV were greater in prefrontal and temporal cortices relative to early unimodal areas. Age-dependent trajectories of thickness and volume for each cortical region revealed an increase in the medial temporal lobe, and decreases in all other regions. A low percentage of highly individualized deviations of CT and GMV were identified (0.0021%, 0.0043%, respectively, P < 0.05, false discovery rate [FDR]-corrected). Our approach provides a natural framework to parse individual neuroanatomical differences for use as a reference standard in macaque brain research, potentially enabling inferences regarding the degree to which behavioral or symptomatic variables map onto brain structure in future disease studies.
Daratumumab (Anti-CD38) for Treatment of Disseminated Nontuberculous Mycobacteria in a Patient With Anti–Interferon-γ Autoantibodies
Authors: Ochoa Sebastian , Ding Li , Kreuzburg Samantha , Treat Jennifer , Holland Steven M , Zerbe Christa S
Published: August 2020

Patients with autoantibodies to interferon-γ (IFN-γ) may develop severe nontuberculous mycobacterial infections. We describe the novel use of daratumumab in a patient with autoantibodies to IFN-γ who had progressive infection, resulting in clinical and radiographic improvement.
Incidence of Invasive Pneumococcal Disease Higher Among People Notified With Markers of Hepatitis C Virus Infection: Population-based Surveillance in Victoria, Australia, 2001–2017
Authors: Gibney Katherine B , MacLachlan Jennifer , Coutts Rachel , Higgins Nasra , Strachan Janet
Published: August 2020

Background

Worse outcomes from invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) have been reported among those coinfected with hepatitis C. We aimed to establish if IPD notification rates are higher among people notified with markers of hepatitis C virus infection than the general population.

Methods

IPD cases notified in Victoria, Australia, from July 2001–December 2017 were linked with hepatitis C cases (diagnosed by serology or PCR testing) notified from January 1991–December 2017. IPD incidence was calculated using population data and the estimated number of Victorians with hepatitis C.

Results

From July 2001–December 2017, 6407 IPD cases were notified. Hepatitis C infection was notified in 342 (5.3%) of IPD cases overall, and 24.4% among IPD cases aged 45–49 years. Among IPD cases also notified with hepatitis C, 55.3% were infected with 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine serotypes and 82.8% with 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine serotypes. Compared with IPD cases without hepatitis C, IPD cases also notified with hepatitis C were younger (mean age, 45.7 vs 49.4 years; P = .011) and more often male (65.5% vs 55.5%, P < .001). Annual IPD notification incidence was 6.8/100 000 among people without hepatitis C and 39.4/100 000 among people with hepatitis C (IRR, 5.8; 95% CI, 5.2–6.4; P < .001).

Conclusions

IPD notification incidence was 5 times higher among people notified with markers of hepatitis C than the general population. Pneumococcal vaccination should be offered to people with markers of hepatitis C virus infection. To facilitate appropriate treatment, young and middle-aged adults with IPD should be tested for hepatitis C.
The Local Inflammatory Profile and Predictors of Treatment Success in Subarachnoid Neurocysticercosis
Authors: Harrison Sarah , Thumm Lauren , Nash Theodore E , Nutman Thomas B , O’Connell Elise M
Published: August 2020

Background

Subarachnoid neurocysticercosis (SANCC) represents the most severe and difficult to treat form of neurocysticercosis. The inflammatory response contributes significantly to the morbidity and mortality of the disease. This study sought to understand the nature and evolution of the inflammation associated with SANCC, and evaluate for predictors of time to cure.

Methods

There were 16 subjects with SANCC (basilar cistern, sylvian fissure, and/or spinal involvement) during active infection who had cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cytokine and chemokine profiling, of whom 9 had a second CSF sample at (or following) the time of cure. The relationships between clinical parameters and cytokine/chemokine results were assessed.

Results

Compared to pools of healthy donor CSF, those with active SANCC showed a significant (P < .05) increase in chemokines and cytokines associated with Type 1 immunity (interferon [IFN] γ, interleukin [IL] 12p70, C-X-C Motif Ligand 10 CXCL-10); Type 2 immunity (IL-10, IL-13); IFNα2; and the chemokines Macrophage inflammatory protein MIP-1α/CCL3, MIP-1ß/CCL4, and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor VEGF that appears to be locally (central nervous system [CNS]) produced. Compared to those with active disease, those with CSF taken at the time of cure showed a significant decrease in most of these chemokines and cytokines. Despite this, CSF from cured SANCC patients had levels of IL-10 (P = .039), CXCL-10 (P = .039), and IL-12p70 (P = .044) above those seen in CSF from uninfected subjects. High ratios of IL-12p70/IL-10 early in infections were associated with a shorter time to cure (r = −0.559; P = .027), and a high Taenia solium burden (by quantitative polymerase chain reaction) was associated with longer times to cure (r = 0.84; P = .003).

Conclusions

SANCC is associated with a marked, CNS-localized cytokine-/chemokine-driven inflammatory response that largely decreases with curative therapy, though some analytes persisted above the normal range. The relative balance between proinflammatory and regulatory cytokines may be an important determinant for a cure in SANCC.
Case-fatality From Orally-transmitted Acute Chagas Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Authors: Bruneto Eduardo G , Fernandes-Silva Miguel M , Toledo-Cornell Cristina , Martins Silvia , Ferreira João M B , Corrêa Valeria R , da Costa Joicely M , Pinto Ana Yecê das N , de Souza Dilma do S M , Pinto Maria Carmelinda G , Neto José Albuquerque de F , Ramos Alberto N , Maguire James H , Silvestre Odilson M
Published: August 2020

Orally-transmitted acute Chagas disease (CD) is emerging as an important public health problem. The prognosis of acute infection following oral transmission is unknown. The aim of this study was to analyze and summarize data on orally-transmitted acute CD. We searched for publications from 1968 to 31 January 2018. We included studies and unpublished data from government sources that reported patients with acute orally-transmitted CD. We identified 41 papers and we added 932 unpublished cases. In all, our study covered 2470 cases and occurrence of 97 deaths. Our meta-analysis estimated that the case-fatality rate was 1.0% (95% CI 0.0–4.0%). Lethality rates have declined over time (P = .02). In conclusion, orally-transmitted acute CD has considerable lethality in the first year after infection. The lethality in symptomatic cases is similar to that from other routes of infection. The lethality rate of orally-acquired disease has declined over the years.
Relationship Between the ABO Blood Group and the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Susceptibility
Authors: Zhao Jiao , Yang Yan , Huang Hanping , Li Dong , Gu Dongfeng , Lu Xiangfeng , Zhang Zheng , Liu Lei , Liu Ting , Liu Yukun , He Yunjiao , Sun Bin , Wei Meilan , Yang Guangyu , Wang Xinghuan , Zhang Li , Zhou Xiaoyang , Xing Mingzhao , Wang Peng George
Published: August 2020

To explore any relationship between the ABO blood group and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) susceptibility, we compared ABO blood group distributions in 2173 COVID-19 patients with local control populations, and found that blood group A was associated with an increased risk of infection, whereas group O was associated with a decreased risk.
Protocolized Urine Sampling is Associated with Reduced Catheter-associated Urinary Tract Infections: A Pre- and Postintervention Study
Authors: Frontera Jennifer A , Wang Erwin , Phillips Michael , Radford Martha , Sterling Stephanie , Delorenzo Karen , Saxena Archana , Yaghi Shadi , Zhou Ting , Kahn D Ethan , Lord Aaron S , Weisstuch Joseph
Published: August 2020

Background

Standard urine sampling and testing techniques do not mitigate against detection of colonization, resulting in false positive catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI). We aimed to evaluate whether a novel protocol for urine sampling and testing reduces rates of CAUTI.

Methods

A preintervention and postintervention study with a contemporaneous control group was conducted at 2 campuses (test and control) of the same academic medical center. The test campus implemented a protocol requiring urinary catheter removal prior to urine sampling from a new catheter or sterile straight catheterization, along with urine bacteria and pyuria screening prior to culture. Primary outcomes were test campus CAUTI rates, compared between each 9-month pre- and postintervention epoch. Secondary outcomes included the percent reductions in CAUTI rates, compared between the test campus and a propensity score–matched cohort at the control campus.

Results

A total of 7991 patients from the test campus were included in the primary analysis, and 4264 were included in the propensity score–matched secondary analysis. In the primary analysis, the number of CAUTI cases per 1000 patients was reduced by 77% (6.6 to 1.5), the number of CAUTI cases per 1000 catheter days was reduced by 63% (5.9 to 2.2), and the number of urinary catheter days per patient was reduced by 37% (1.1 to 0.69; all P values ≤ .001). In the propensity score–matched analysis, the number of CAUTI cases per 1000 patients was reduced by 82% at the test campus, versus 57% at the control campus; the number of CAUTI cases per 1000 catheter days declined by 68% versus 57%, respectively; and the number of urinary catheter days per patient decreased by 44% versus 1%, respectively (all P values < .001).

Conclusions

Protocolized urine sampling and testing aimed at minimizing contamination by colonization was associated with significantly reduced CAUTI infection rates and urinary catheter days.
The redistributive consequences of paying off the national debt: Ricardo and his plan
Authors: Barba Aldo
Published: August 2020

This article analyses Ricardo’s plan for paying off the national debt by a tax on property. The main thesis is that the capital levy, although apparently conceived as equally shared among all the components of the owning class, would imply substantial redistribution of wealth. The argument is developed by discussing the quantitative estimates provided by Ricardo about the amount of capital to be subjected to taxation. By establishing a connection between these estimates and the main statistical figures that were at the centre of the economic debate at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, it is shown in what manner the burden of this extraordinary measure would be divided between capitalists and landlords.
Hypergraphs for predicting essential genes using multiprotein complex data
Authors: Klimm Florian , Deane Charlotte M , Reinert Gesine
Published: August 2020

Protein–protein interactions are crucial in many biological pathways and facilitate cellular function. Investigating these interactions as a graph of pairwise interactions can help to gain a systemic understanding of cellular processes. It is known, however, that proteins interact with each other not exclusively in pairs but also in polyadic interactions and that they can form multiprotein complexes, which are stable interactions between multiple proteins. In this manuscript, we use hypergraphs to investigate multiprotein complex data. We investigate two random null models to test which hypergraph properties occur as a consequence of constraints, such as the size and the number of multiprotein complexes. We find that assortativity, the number of connected components, and clustering differ from the data to these null models. Our main finding is that projecting a hypergraph of polyadic interactions onto a graph of pairwise interactions leads to the identification of different proteins as hubs than the hypergraph. We find in our data set that the hypergraph degree is a more accurate predictor for gene essentiality than the degree in the pairwise graph. In our data set analysing a hypergraph as pairwise graph drastically changes the distribution of the local clustering coefficient. Furthermore, using a pairwise interaction representing multiprotein complex data may lead to a spurious hierarchical structure, which is not observed in the hypergraph. Hence, we illustrate that hypergraphs can be more suitable than pairwise graphs for the analysis of multiprotein complex data.
Mobile health applications for the detection of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review
Authors: Lopez Perales Carlos Ruben , Van Spall Harriette G C , Maeda Shingo , Jimenez Alejandro , Laţcu Decebal Gabriel , Milman Anat , Kirakoya-Samadoulougou Fati , Mamas Mamas A , Muser Daniele , Casado Arroyo Ruben
Published: August 2020

Aims

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia and an important risk factor for stroke and heart failure. We aimed to conduct a systematic review of the literature and summarize the performance of mobile health (mHealth) devices in diagnosing and screening for AF.

Methods and results

We conducted a systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Forty-three studies met the inclusion criteria and were divided into two groups: 28 studies aimed at validating smart devices for AF diagnosis, and 15 studies used smart devices to screen for AF. Evaluated technologies included smartphones, with photoplethysmographic (PPG) pulse waveform measurement or accelerometer sensors, smartbands, external electrodes that can provide a smartphone single-lead electrocardiogram (iECG), such as AliveCor, Zenicor and MyDiagnostick, and earlobe monitor. The accuracy of these devices depended on the technology and the population, AliveCor and smartphone PPG sensors being the most frequent systems analysed. The iECG provided by AliveCor demonstrated a sensitivity and specificity between 66.7% and 98.5% and 99.4% and 99.0%, respectively. The PPG sensors detected AF with a sensitivity of 85.0–100% and a specificity of 93.5–99.0%. The incidence of newly diagnosed arrhythmia ranged from 0.12% in a healthy population to 8% among hospitalized patients.

Conclusion

Although the evidence for clinical effectiveness is limited, these devices may be useful in detecting AF. While mHealth is growing in popularity, its clinical, economic, and policy implications merit further investigation. More head-to-head comparisons between mHealth and medical devices are needed to establish their comparative effectiveness.
Effectiveness of a On-site Medicalization Program for Nursing Homes With COVID-19 Outbreaks
Authors: Bernabeu-Wittel M , Ternero-Vega J E , Nieto-Martín M D , Moreno-Gaviño L , Conde-Guzmán C , Delgado-Cuesta J , Rincón-Gómez M , Díaz-Jiménez P , Giménez-Miranda L , Lomas-Cabezas J M , Muñoz-García M M , Calzón-Fernández S , Ollero-Baturone M
Published: August 2020

Background

Nursing homes are highly vulnerable to the occurrence of COVID-19 outbreaks, which result in high lethality rates. Most of them are not prepared to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic.

Method

A coordinated on-site medicalization program (MP) in response to a sizeable COVID-19 outbreak in 4 nursing homes was organized, with the objectives of improving survival, offering humanistic palliative care to residents in their natural environment, and reducing hospital referrals. Ten key processes and interventions were established (provision of informatics infrastructure, medical equipment, and human resources, universal testing, separation of “clean” and “contaminated” areas, epidemiological surveys, and unified protocols stratifying for active or palliative care approach, among others). Main outcomes were a composite endpoint of survival or optimal palliative care (SOPC), survival, and referral to hospital.

Results

Two hundred and seventy-two of 457 (59.5%) residents and 85 of 320 (26.5%) staff members were affected. The SOPC, survival, and referrals to hospital occurred in 77%, 72.5%, and 29% of patients diagnosed before the start of MP, with respect to 97%, 83.7%, and 17% of those diagnosed during the program, respectively. The SOPC was independently associated to MP (OR = 15 [3–81]); and survival in patients stratified to active approach, to the use of any antiviral treatment (OR = 28 [5–160]). All outbreaks were controlled in 39 [37–42] days.

Conclusions

A coordinated on-site MP of nursing homes with COVID-19 outbreaks achieved a higher SOPC rate, and a reduction in referrals to hospital, thus ensuring rigorous but also humanistic and gentle care to residents.
International Relations Since 1945
Authors: W. Young John , Kent John
Published: August 2020

International Relations Since 1945 provides a comprehensive introduction to global political history since World War II. The text has been comprehensively updated to cover the period between 2001 and 2012. Discussing the World Trade Center bombing and concluding with the run-up to the 2012 US presidential elections, a new final section outlines broad developments including the changing world order and the global financial crisis. Three new chapters look at terrorism, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the rise of major new powers, including China. Student learning is supported by a range of helpful learning features, including biographies of key figures and chronologies of events.
13. ‘Stagflation’ and the Trials of Détente, 1973–6
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the onset of the so-called stagflation and the problems that beset détente during the period 1973–6. In the aftermath of Israel’s victories in the Six Day War, a situation of ‘no peace, no war’ prevailed in the Middle East. Attempts in 1970 and 1971 by the United Nations and the United States to make progress on a peace settlement proved futile. The chapter first considers the Middle East War of October 1973, which sparked a confrontation between the US and the Soviet Union, before discussing the impact of stagflation, especially on the Bretton Woods system. It then explores political problems in Europe and how European détente reached a high point in the Helsinki conference of 1975. It concludes with an analysis of détente and crises in less developed countries such as Chile, South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Angola.
16. The ‘Second’ Cold War, 1981–5
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the so-called ‘second’ Cold War spanning the years 1981–5. Ronald Reagan came to power on the back of a general rightwards shift in the political mood. He concentrated on a presentational role in government and pursued a simple foreign policy. He dismissed détente as a communist trick, was initially determined to resist the spread of the Soviet Union’s influence wherever it threatened and, going beyond that, wanted to carry the new Cold War into the Soviet camp. The chapter first considers US–Soviet relations during the new Cold War, paying attention to ‘Reaganomics’, before discussing the crisis in Poland in 1980–2. It then explores the issue of nuclear weapons control and the ‘Year of the Missile’ and concludes with an assessment of the war in Afghanistan up to 1985.
17. Middle East Conflicts in the 1980s
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on conflicts in the Middle East during the 1980s. Despite the Camp David settlement, peace remained elusive in the Middle East. An Egyptian–Israeli settlement could neither resolve the conflict between Israel and the Arab states nor bring stability and peace to the region. Anwar Sadat and Menachim Begin had achieved a limited peace for Egypt. Egypt, for its part, had abandoned the myth of Arab unity between the competing states of the region and pursued national interests. However, other conflicts were taking place in the region, including those arising from the Lebanese Civil War, which added to the fundamental failure to deal with the Palestinian Question. The chapter first considers Israel’s invasion of Lebanon before discussing the Arab–Israeli conflict and the Palestinian Question, the Iran–Iraq war of 1980–8, and the accusation of the US, that Libya was a supporter of ‘international terrorism’.
19. The Decline of the Cold War, 1985–9
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the decline of the Cold War during the period 1985–9. It begins with a discussion of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev’s ‘new diplomacy’, a more flexible, less ideological foreign policy based on his belief that ‘a less confrontational stance towards the outside world would provide greater security than endless rearming’. It then considers Gorbachev’s reforms, the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty signed in December 1987 by Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan, and US–Soviet relations under George H. W. Bush and Gorbachev. It also analyses the end of the Cold War in less developed countries such as Afghanistan, Angola, and Cambodia, before concluding with an assessment of the demise of Soviet communism in Eastern Europe.
23. The ‘War on Terror’ and the War in Afghanistan
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the ‘war on terror’ of the US and its involvement in the war in Afghanistan. In the later years of the twentieth century, Middle Eastern groups launched terrorist acts against Western targets. The advent of suicide bombers and groups like al-Qaeda changed the relationships between means and ends in the use of terror. The end of the Cold War severely undermined the effectiveness of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in gathering intelligence on terrorists. The chapter first provides an overview of terrorism prior to 9/11, before discussing George W. Bush’s ‘war on terror’, the defeat of the Taliban in Afghanistan during the period 2001–3 and its revival, and the problem of Pakistan. It concludes with an assessment of Barack Obama’s strategy for Afghanistan.
25. Economic Problems in the West and the Economic Rise of China in the East
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the shift in global balance that began in the post-2007 economic crisis. For a considerable time before the 2008 crisis, the United States and most European states had been living on high levels of debt both national and individual, public and private. Manufacturing in the developed West, and its provision of secure jobs for many workers, was undermined by the new economic environment of globalization, as well as the growth of cheaper manufacturing in China and the other BRIC countries. A new epoch of financial capitalism, which had emerged since the 1980s, was in full swing by the start of the Noughties. The chapter first considers the post-2007 economic crisis, before discussing the continuing rise of China and Russian foreign policy under Vladimir Putin. It concludes with an assessment of international reactions to China’s rise, including those of East Asia, international organizations, and Taiwan.
28. Threats to the Existing Global Order: Challenges from the East
Authors: Young John W. , Kent John
Published: August 2020

This chapter considers challenges from Russia, North Korea, and China. The first section describes Vladimir Putin’s acquisition and retention of power, and his antagonistic approach towards former members of the Soviet Union. Russia’s rift with the West was exacerbated by its annexation of Crimea and military intervention in Syria. The second section discusses tensions arising from North Korea’s nuclear policy, and attempts by Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un to achieve a lasting peace agreement. The third section examines the economic growth of China, the development of its international role since joining the WTO, its increasing military strength, and its foreign policy. The chapter concludes with an assessment of the opportunities and the geopolitical risks for Asia and China while the influence of the United States, European Union, and Russia wanes.
7. Legislatures
Authors: Kreppel Amie
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the political roles and powers of legislatures. It first describes different types of legislatures on the basis of their functions and relationship with the executive branch, before analysing the roles of legislatures within the political system as a whole, as well as several critical aspects of the internal organizational structures of legislatures. It then examines the relationship between the political power and influence of a legislature and the structure of the broader political and party system. The discussion focuses on legislatures within modern democratic political systems, although many points apply to all legislatures, regardless of regime. The chapter also explains how legislature differs from assembly, parliament, and congress.
8. Governments and Bureaucracies
Authors: Müller Wolfgang C.
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the decision-making modes of governments and their capacities to govern, with particular emphasis on bureaucracies that support governments in their tasks of ruling and administrating the country. It first presents the relevant definitions before discussing different modes of government that reflect the internal balance of power: presidential government, cabinet government, prime ministerial government, and ministerial government. It then considers the autonomy of government, especially from political parties and the permanent bureaucracy, along with the political capacity of governments, the relevance of unified versus divided government, majority versus minority government, and single-party versus coalition government. The chapter concludes with an assessment of the bureaucratic capacities of government, focusing on issues such as classic bureaucracy, the politicization of bureaucracies, and New Public Management systems.
13. Party Systems
Authors: Caramani Daniele
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines how competition between political parties gives rise to different party systems. In liberal democracies, competition for power is based on popular votes. The shape and dynamics of party systems are determined by the electoral game, with parties as main actors. A party system is thus essentially the result of competitive interactions between parties. A party system has three main elements: which parties exist, how many parties exist and how big they are, and how parties behave. An obvious but important point is that party systems must be composed of more than one political party. The chapter begins with a discussion of the origins of party systems, followed by an analysis of the format of party systems, such as two-party systems and multiparty systems. It then considers the influence of the electoral system on party systems, before concluding with an assessment of the dynamics of party systems.
20. Policy-Making
Authors: Knill Christoph , Tosun Jale
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the process related to policy-making as well as potential determinants of policy choices. It begins with a discussion of conceptual models of policy-making, namely the institutional, rational, incremental, group, elite, and process models. It then considers the policy cycle, which models the policy process as a series of political activities, consisting of agenda setting, policy formulation, policy sadoption, implementation, and evaluation. It also analyses the role of institutions, frames, and policy styles in policy-making and concludes with an assessment of the most crucial domestic and international factors shaping the design of policies, focusing in particular on theories of policy diffusion, policy transfer, and cross-national policy convergence, along with international sources that affect domestic policy-making.
21. The Welfare State
Authors: van Kersbergen Kees , Manow Philip
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the emergence, expansion, variation, and transformation of the welfare state. It first considers the meaning of the welfare state, before discussing three perspectives that explain the emergence of the welfare state: the functionalist approach, the class mobilization approach, and a literature emphasizing the impact of state institutions and the relative autonomy of bureaucratic elites. It then describes the expansion of the welfare state, taking into account the impact of social democracy, neocorporatism and the international economy, risk redistribution, Christian democracy and Catholic social doctrine, and secular trends. It also explores variations among developed welfare states, as well as the effects of the welfare state, and concludes with an analysis of the challenges and dynamics of contemporary welfare states. The chapter shows that the welfare state is a democratic state that guarantees social protection as a right attached to citizenship.
1. Introduction: The Nature of Politics and Political Analysis
Authors: Garner Robert
Published: August 2020

This introductory chapter examines the nature of politics and the political, and more specifically whether politics is an inevitable feature of all human societies. It begins by addressing questions useful when asking about ‘who gets what, when, how?’; for example, why those taking decisions are able to enforce them. The discussion proceeds by focusing on the boundary problems inherent in an analysis of the nature of the political. One such problem is whether politics is equivalent to consensus and cooperation, so that it does not exist in the event of conflict and war. The chapter then explores different forms of political analysis — the empirical, the normative, and the semantic—as well as deductive and inductive methods of studying politics. Finally, it asks whether politics can ever be a science to rival subjects in the natural sciences.
13. Executives, Bureaucracies, Policy Studies, and Governance
Authors: Ferdinand Peter
Published: August 2020

This chapter explores the relations between the executive and legislative branches of government, along with their role in formulating government policy. It first describes the general framework of legislature–executive relations before discussing the civil service and its embedded autonomy. It then examines theories of bureaucratic policy-making, with particular emphasis on the problem of facilitating policy innovation, as well as the more recent proliferation of government agencies and the concepts of governance and good governance. It also considers the spread of the domain of policy-making beyond state officials or civil servants to issue networks and policy communities and concludes by analysing the emergence of a ‘network state’ and its implications for civil servants.
17. Traditional Theories in Global Politics
Authors: Lawson Stephanie
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines traditional theories in global politics. It begins with a discussion of early liberal approaches, with particular emphasis on liberal international theory whose proponents include U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and Norman Angell. Liberal international theory is characterised by an optimism concerning the prospects of a peaceful international order established through strong international institutions underpinned by international law. The chapter proceeds by considering the emergence of ‘realism’ as a general approach to the study of politics, along with the different approaches to the study of international politics following World War II, including positivism. It also explores the rise of the English School and the concept of international society before concluding with an analysis of neo-liberalism and neorealism that resulted from revisions of both liberalism and realism in the post-war period.
20. Diplomacy and Foreign Policy
Authors: Lawson Stephanie
Published: August 2020

This chapter discusses diplomacy and the conduct of foreign policy, both of which are fundamental to relations between political communities worldwide. It first considers diplomacy and its related concept, statecraft, in global history, focusing on some important concepts such as raison d’état (reason of state) and machtpolitik (power politics). It then examines diplomatic practice in contemporary global politics, with particular emphasis on track-two diplomacy and third-party mediation, along with developments in diplomacy during the Cold War. It also looks at public diplomacy, which may be understood as an instrument of ‘soft power’ in contrast with the methods of power politics. It concludes with an overview of the European Union’s common foreign and security policy.
22. Global Political Economy
Authors: Lawson Stephanie
Published: August 2020

This chapter provides an overview of the field of Global Political Economy (GPE), also known as International Political Economy (IPE). It begins with a discussion of how GPE/IPE has developed as a major focus of study within the broader field of global politics over the last four decades. It then considers the rise of mercantilism as a theory of GPE, along with its relationship to nationalism and colonialism. It also examines the emergence of liberal political economy, Marxism and critical IPE, and the international economic order after World War II. In particular, it looks at the Bretton Woods system, which emerged after the war as a compromise between liberalism and nationalism. The chapter concludes with an analysis of international political, economic, and social problems associated with the North–South gap, globalization and regionalization in the post-Cold War period, and financial crises that rocked the global economic system.
4. Asking Questions: How to Find and Formulate Research Questions
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter deals with the first step of the research process: the formulation of a well-crafted research question. It explains why political research should begin with a research question and how a research question structures the research process. It discusses the difference between a topic or general question, on the one hand, and a focused research question, on the other. It also considers the question of where to find and how to formulate research questions, the various types of questions scholars ask, and the role of the ‘literature review’ as a source and rationale for research questions. Finally, it describes a tool called the ‘research vase’ that provides a visualization of the research process, along with different types of questions: descriptive, explanatory, predictive, prescriptive, and normative.
5. Finding Answers: Theories and How to Apply Them
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter shows how to develop an answer to a particular research question. It first considers the requirements and components of an answer to a research question before discussing the role of ‘theory’ in social science research, what a ‘theoretical framework’ is, and what a hypothesis is. It then explores the three components of a hypothesis: an independent variable, a dependent variable, and a proposition (a statement about the relationship between the variables). It also looks at the different types of hypotheses and how they guide various kinds of research. It also explains why conceptual and operational definitions of key terms are important and how they are formulated. Finally, it offers suggestions on how to answer normative questions.
6. Research Design
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the basic principles of research design. It first considers different types of research design, including experimental designs, cross-sectional and longitudinal designs, comparative designs, and historical research designs. It also discusses two types of research validity: internal validity and external validity. The chapter proceeds by describing various methods of data collection and the sort of data or evidence each provides, including questionnaires and surveys, interviewing and focus groups, ethnographic research, and discourse/content analysis. Finally, it examines six issues that must be taken into account to ensure ethical research: voluntary participation, informed consent, privacy, harm, exploitation, and consequences for future research.
9. Comparative Research
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter explores the principles of comparative research design as well as the issues and problems associated with different aspects of the approach. In particular, it considers the issue of case selection, the common sources of error that are associated with comparative research, and what can be done to try and avoid or minimize them. The comparative method is one of the most commonly used methods in political research and is often employed to investigate various political phenomena, including democratization, civil war, and public policy. The chapter discusses the three main forms of comparison, namely case study, small-N comparison, and large-N comparison. It also describes two main approaches used to select cases for small-N studies: Most Similar Systems Design and Most Different Systems Design. It also evaluates qualitative comparative analysis and concludes with an analysis of issues arising from case selection and data collection in large-N comparative research.
10. Historical Research
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the distinctions between historical research and social scientific research, and how these are being challenged by scholars in pursuit of a genuinely ‘historical social science’. It begins with a discussion of historical approaches in Politics and International Relations, including historical events research, historical process research, and cross-sectional comparative research. It then examines three approaches for addressing temporality as the sequential active unfolding of social action and events: historical institutionalism, process tracing, and event structure analysis. It also explains how to locate essential historical information and evaluate various types of sources, and what special considerations need to be made in using documents, archival sources, and historical writing as data in historical research.
14. Textual Analysis*
Authors: Halperin Sandra , Heath Oliver
Published: August 2020

This chapter discusses the principles of textual analysis as a means of gathering information and evidence in political research. Textual analysis has generated strong interest as a research method not only in Politics and International Relations, but also throughout the social sciences. In political research, two forms of textual analysis have become particularly prominent: discourse analysis and content analysis. The chapter examines discourse analysis and content analysis and explains the use of documents, archival sources, and historical writing as data. It considers the distinction between discourse analysis and content analysis, as well as the differences between qualitative and quantitative content analysis. It also describes the procedures that are involved in both quantitative and qualitative content analysis.
16. The Court of Justice of the European Union
Authors: Bulmer Simon , Parker Owen , Bache Ian , George Stephen , Burns Charlotte
Published: August 2020

This chapter focuses on the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which comprises two courts: the CJEU and the General Court. It first provides an overview of the CJEU’s structure and functions, and then discusses some of its main rulings and their significance. It further considers rulings on the powers of the institutions, some key legal judgments made in response to questions referred to the CJEU by national courts, the impact of CJEU rulings on EU policy, and post-Maastricht trends in the CJEU and EU law. It also assesses the evolving political reactions towards the judgments of the Court, along with the debate over whether the member states have been able to effectively curb the CJEU’s radical jurisprudence.
21. Agriculture
Authors: Bulmer Simon , Parker Owen , Bache Ian , George Stephen , Burns Charlotte
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the European Union’s (EU’s) policy on agriculture. The importance that the EU has given to the agricultural sector can be attributed in large part to food shortages at the end of the Second World War. Governments agreed that it was important to ensure adequate supplies of food at reasonable prices. To achieve this, it was necessary to provide an adequate income to farmers, while taking measures to increase their productivity. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was the first redistributive policy of the European Community, and for many years the only one. The chapter reviews the history of the CAP and explains the main drivers for reform, which include costs, EU enlargement, environmental pressures, and the growing powers of the European Parliament. Another key driver for change has stemmed from external pressure from world trade talks. The chapter concludes by reviewing the prospects for the next iteration of the CAP from 2021–27.
12. Global Growth, Inequality, and Poverty:
Authors: Wade Robert Hunter
Published: August 2020

This chapter argues that economists have oversold the virtues of globalization, displaying confidence in derived policy prescriptions well beyond the evidence. The most spectacular recent demonstration of hubris is the failure of almost the whole of the mainstream economics profession in the few years before 2007–8 to forecast a major recession. The chapter then outlines the neo-liberal world view and its application in the form of the development recipe known as the Washington Consensus. Since the 1980s, the Western economic policy ‘establishment’ has espoused a doctrine of ‘best economic policy’ for the world which says, put too simply, that ‘more market and less state’ should be the direction of travel for developed and developing countries. This overarching neo-liberal ideology embraces globalization as a major component, relating to the nature of integration into the international economy. The chapter then looks at trends in world income distribution and poverty, bearing in mind the optimistic claims of the globalization argument.
14. The Political Economy of the Environment
Authors: Dauvergne Peter
Published: August 2020

This chapter assesses the global political economy of the environment. The growth of the world economy is transforming the Earth's environment. Nothing is particularly controversial about this statement. Yet, sharp disagreements arise over the nature of this transformation. Is the globalization of capitalism a force of progress and environmental solutions? Or is it a cause of the current global environmental crisis? The chapter addresses these questions by examining the debates around some of the most contentious issues at the core of economic globalization and the environment: economic growth, production, and consumption; trade; and transnational investment. It begins with a glance at the general arguments about how the global political economy affects the global environment. The chapter then traces the history of global environmentalism — in particular, the emergence of international environmental institutions with the norm of sustainable development. It also evaluates the effectiveness of North–South environmental financing and international environmental regimes.
Global Environmental Politics
Authors: Morin Jean-Frédéric , Orsini Amandine , Jinnah Sikina
Published: August 2020

Global Environmental Politics provides an up-to-date introduction to the most important issues dominating this fast-moving field. Going beyond the issue of climate change, the text also introduces readers to the pressing issues of desertification, trade in hazardous waste, biodiversity protection, whaling, acid rain, ozone-depletion, water consumption, and over-fishing. Importantly, the text pays particular attention to the interactions between environmental politics and other governance issues, such as gender, trade, development, health, agriculture, and security. Adopting an analytical approach, the text explores and evaluates a wide variety of political perspectives, testing assumptions and equipping readers with the necessary tools to develop their own arguments and, ultimately, inspiring new research endeavours in this diverse field.
2. Ideas about environmental protection
Authors: Morin Jean-Frédéric , Orsini Amandine , Jinnah Sikina
Published: August 2020

This chapter explores the ideas and debates which shape global environmental politics. At least three types of socially constructed ideas play a key role in international environmental governance: world views, causal beliefs, and social norms. However, ideas are not universally shared, which means that ideological clashes are a feature of global environmental governance. The chapter looks at five of the major ideological debates that have marked the evolution of global environmental governance. The first two debates present conflicting world views: the first concerns the scope of environmental values, while the second examines the intrinsic values of non-human organisms. The following two debates concern causal beliefs: one is about the relationship between human intervention and environmental protection, while the other concerns the relationship between economic growth and environmental degradation. The last debate considers different social norms related to environmental justice and the appropriate behaviours expected towards historically marginalized populations.
Introduction
Authors: Morin Jean-Frédéric , Orsini Amandine , Jinnah Sikina
Published: August 2020

This introductory chapter presents global environmental politics as an important area of international and transnational cooperation and as a distinct field of study. First, as an area of cooperation, global environmental politics emerged out of the need to work together internationally and transnationally to address some pressing environmental problems, such as biodiversity loss, climate change, the depletion of the ozone layer, and the rapid reduction of global fish stocks. Independent state action at the local and national levels is not sufficient to address global environmental issues: these issues require cooperation through global governance. Second, as a field of study, global environmental politics investigates the various dimensions of emerging actions on global environmental issues. It is a diverse field of study from both theoretical and disciplinary perspectives.