bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ministerial and Parliamentary Elites in an Executive-Dominated System: Post-Soviet Russia 1991–2009
Authors: Semenova Elena
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This article analyzes the recruitment and circulation of ministerial and parliamentary elites in Russia from the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991 until 2009. The social backgrounds and careers of all ministers in 13 cabinets (1991–2009) and all members of the State Duma during its five terms after 1993 are studied. Especially during Vladimír Putin’s presidency (2000–2008), a shift toward super-presidentialism altered the circulation and composition of ministerial and parliamentary elites. Cabinets in Moscow consisted increasingly of ministers recruited from state bureaucracies, while the State Duma more and more contained businessmen, party politicians, and celebrities who appeared to treat MP service as simply an episode in their wider careers.
Does Personality Matter in Politics? Personality Factors as Determinants of Parliamentary Recruitment and Policy Preferences
Authors: Best Heinrich
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This article inquires into the impact of personality factors on the selection and self-selection of parliamentary elites. I compare personality profiles of German MPs and the German population obtained through survey research, and for some comparisons I utilize elite and mass samples matched for education, gender, and age. I ask further if MPs’ personalities have an impact on their preferences for expansionist or restricted government budgets and welfare state benefits, the extension or limitation of civic rights, and several other policies. Party affiliations of MPs are used as a control variable. I find that MPs’ personality traits differ strikingly from those of the German population and from those of followers in most of the parties with which MPs are affiliated.
Do Ruling Elites Degenerate? American and British Elites Through Pareto’s Lens
Authors: Higley John , Pakulski Jan
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Using Machiavelli’s metaphors, Vilfredo Pareto theorized that over time psychosocial propensities of ruling elites – manifested by predominant personality traits, mentalities, beliefs, and actions – are those of “foxes” or “lions”. Either propensity renders a ruling elite, especially its leaders, prone to bias, closure, and cumulating blunders. This degenerative process leads to a severe economic-political crisis and wide elite circulation, during which groups and persons disposed toward the opposite propensity gain power. Pareto’s theory has much intuitive appeal, but its breadth and elasticity, together with the empirically elusive qualities of elites, risk tendentious applications. Taking this risk, we examine what through Pareto’s lens appear to be cycles of circulation and degeneration among American and British elites since shortly after World War II.
Demonology during the Late Pharaonic and Greco-Roman Periods in Egypt
Authors: Lucarelli Rita
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This paper gives an overview of the beliefs in demons as perceived by the ancient Egyptians during the later phases of the Pharaonic period and under the Greco and Roman rule. It focuses in particular on the so-called “guardian demons” represented and named on the walls of the Ptolemaic temples such as the temple of Hathor at Dendera. These figures of protectors are in fact later reinterpretations of the demonic guardians of the doors and regions of the netherworld as described in the so-called Book of the Dead. Through this and other examples taken from iconographic and textual sources mentioning demons, it is discussed how the conception and ritual practices concerning “demons” changes significantly in Greco-Roman Egypt as compared to the earlier Pharaonic period.
The Iconographic Program of the Sculptures of Alacahöyük
Authors: Taracha Piotr
Published: December 2011

Abstract

The iconographic program of the sculptured friezes flanking the Sphinx Gate of Alacahöyük is analyzed based on numerous representations in Hittite art that may contribute to the understanding of the context and meaning of these carvings. It is argued that the cult and hunting scenes reflect the concept of the main triad of the Hittite state pantheon—Sun-goddess, Storm-god and Tutelary God, combining it with the new ideology of kingship of the later phase of the Empire period, which stresses the special ties between the king and the Tutelary God of the Countryside. Simultaneously, the lower frieze on the West Tower depicts the royal couple officiating at a cult ceremony presumably during a real local festival. Concerning the identification of Alacahöyük with one of Hittite holy towns, Arinna appears the best candidate. In fact, texts relating to the cult from Arinna enable us to interpret the Alacahöyük sculptures. These sculptures might represent the celebrations during the Great Festival in Arinna, which—as we know from the texts—was attended by the royal couple. There are historical and cultural arguments for dating the Sphinx Gate complex with its sculptures to the second half of the 13th century BC.
A Reassessment of the Alphabetic Hurrian Text RS 1.004 (KTU 1.42): A Ritual Anointing of Deities?
Authors: Lam Joseph
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This study provides a reassessment of RS 1.004 (KTU 1.42), the longest known Hurrian text in the alphabetic cuneiform script, in light of its recurring formulae and overall structure. The key phrase in the text is ı̉d̠r ḫd̠r ḫd̠ld̠ DN, which stands at the beginning of each of its 17 sections; based on comparisons with the language of the bilingual Hittite-Hurrian itkalzi-ritual, it is likely that each of these instances refers to an act of anointing by oil of the DN in question. Other formulaic elements in the text, as well as the place of this ritual in the context of Ugarit and the broader ancient Near East, will also be discussed.
The Reversal of Fortune Theme in Esther: Israelite Historiography in Its Ancient Near Eastern Context
Authors: Winitzer Abraham
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This paper examines the idea of reversal in Esther, arguably the most basic thematic constituent of that work, in an attempt to understand its background and meaning. It posits for it a historical context based on a reaction to contemporary ancient Near Eastern intellectual currents. Specifically this centers on Babylonian divination, astrology in particular, whose recognition as a serious branch of scientific reasoning in the ancient world was undeniable—or so it seems. The Book of Esther, which, as this paper demonstrates, manifests an unmistakable familiarity with this divinatory lore, itself partakes in the broader conversation. But, in accordance with its overring theme, it comes down on the matter with a reverse verdict.
Imported Bronze Vessels from the East Catacomb in the Berdyansk Barrow
Authors: Boltrik Yuri V. , Fialko Elena F. , Treister Mikhail Yu.
Published: December 2011

Abstract

This article consists of an analysis of an imported bronze vessel, found in the East Catacomb of the Berdyansk Barrow – a funerary monument of one of the Scythiannomarchsin the region north of the Sea of Azov. The wide range of cited parallels from Scythian sites and sites of other cultures makes it possible to assume that theoinochoeand the basin from the Berdyansk Barrow belonged to one and the same set of imported metal vessels. ‘Services’ of this kind were used by representatives of the highest social stratum of various peoples of the Scythian period. The finds from the Berdyansk Barrow date from the 5thor early-4thcentury BC.
Hellenistic Court Imagery in the Early Buddhist Art of Gandhara
Authors: Galli Marco
Published: December 2011

Abstract

The focus of the paper is on the relationship between Gandharan artistic culture and the presence of a Hellenistic court milieu during the 1stcent. before and after CE in the territories of Ancient Uḍḍīyāna. What emerges from new literary and archaeological evidences are significant interactions between artistic production and the evergetism made by the princes of Apraca and Oḍi: many evidences demonstrate the substantial involvement as donors of these local dynasties in the construction of the sacred landscape. What influence did these local dynasties have in the structuring of religious communication? How was this local power and his Hellenistic background reflected in the images and complex decorative Buddhist monuments? In order to understand the dynamics between power and religious communication in the sacred space of Early Gandharan society not only some well-known iconographic themes are now interpreted as self-representations of an aristocratic habitus, but also the presence of a ‘beholder in the image’ is detected as powerful visual strategy to stage the religious experience as a suggestive ritual performance.
How to Be a Good Muslim Wife: Women’s Performance of Islamic Authority during Swahili Weddings
Authors: Thompson Katrina Daly
Published: December 2011

Abstract

The existing literature on women of the Swahili Coast has focused largely on their involvement in activities labeled as non-Islamic by both male peers and scholars. However, Islam plays an important role in these women’s lives and they often bring Islamic knowledge to bear on their participation in seemingly secular activities. In this study I address women’s role as sex instructors with a specific focus on instructing a bride in contemporary Swahili weddings. Contextualizing participant observation within the existing literature on Swahili puberty rituals, sex instruction, weddings, and language ideologies, I find that the ritual involves a discursive performance of Islamic knowledge and thereby offers women who act as instructors a form of religious authority. This provides an important counterpoint to decontextualized representations of Swahili Islam as excluding women from positions of authority.
The Spirit’s Wish: Possession Trance and Female Power among the Punu of Congo-Brazzaville
Authors: Plancke Carine
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Among the rural Punu of Congo-Brazzaville, possession trance is an essential part of the mainly female celebrations dedicated to the bayisi or water spirits. It is a privileged medium through which these spirits reveal their wishes and conditions their willingness to assure the community’s well-being. On the human side, in order to be possessed an ‘opening of the mind’ is requested and needs to be activated through collective song-dance performances that recall the flowing motions of the spirits’ water world and convey the longing for this maternal universe. As a critique of the predominant use of the term ‘agency’ in reference to autonomy and resistance, this paper adheres to a context-based view that relies on the way the actors experience the phenomenon. In line with the Punu reality this paper considers receptivity, in its ambivalent link to suffering, as the main source of the power these possessions grant to women.
The Predynastic Dancing Egyptian Figurine
Authors: Relke Joan
Published: December 2011

Abstract

In 1962, Peter Ucko wrote his landmark work, The Interpretation of Prehistoric Anthropomorphic Figurines, challenging and permanently changing the prevailing view of prehistoric figurines as representations of a universal great mother goddess. His work focused on the Predynastic figurines of Egypt, and concluded that there was nothing divine about them. They were probably dolls, ancestor figures, talismanic pregnancy aids, tools for sex instruction and puberty rites, twin substitutes in graves and concubine grave figurines. Since then, this group of figurines has received minimal attention. Using Ucko’s four-stage methodology, this study more closely examines these figurines in the context of Ancient Egyptian culture and religion, with specific attention to the contemporary Sudanese religious beliefs and practices, which may share roots with Predynastic Egyptian culture. This study concludes that some Dynastic religious beliefs and iconography relating to female deities can be recognised in many of these figurines, and can be traced back to prehistoric Nilotic rituals.
Spiritist Mediumship as Historical Mediation: African-American Pasts, Black Ancestral Presence, and Afro-Cuban Religions
Authors: Pérez Elizabeth
Published: December 2011

Abstract

The scholarship on Afro-Atlantic religions has tended to downplay the importance of Kardecist Espiritismo. In this article I explore the performance of Spiritist rituals among Black North American practitioners of Afro-Cuban religions, and examine its vital role in the development of their religious subjectivity. Drawing on several years of ethnographic research in a Chicago-based Lucumí community, I argue that through Spiritist ceremonies, African-American participants engaged in memory work and other transformative modes of collective historiographical praxis. I contend that by inserting gospel songs, church hymns, and spirituals into the musical repertoire of misas espirituales, my interlocutors introduced a new group of beings into an existing category of ethnically differentiated ‘spirit guides’. Whether embodied in ritual contexts or cultivated privately through household altars, these spirits not only personify the ancestral dead; I demonstrate that they also mediate between African-American historical experience and the contemporary practice of Yorùbá- and Kongo-inspired religions.
Presumptive Eruv and the Percolation Transition
Authors: Savit Robert
Published: December 2011

Abstract

In this paper I show that, under certain circumstances, it is reasonable to assume the existence of a physical boundary that will constitute a kosher, physical eruv around a Jewish community (presumptive eruv) without having to explicitly construct, or even identify the eruv route. The basis for this contention lies in an important physical phenomenon called the “percolation transition.” The central idea is associated with the problem of finding a long connected path that traverses a given area if the elements of the path (short elements that are co-joined to make up the long connected path) occur randomly with some fixed probability. If the probability of finding these short elements is very small then there will almost never be a long traversing path. But if the probability of finding the short elements is somewhat higher (but still not extremely large), studies of the percolation transition show that one will almost always be able to find a long traversing path. The short elements here are the walls, fences, embankments, wires, etc. that can constitute portions of the eruv, and the traversing path is the eruv itself. This paper presents the central idea of the percolation transition, exhibits its application to eruv, and briefly discusses some of the practical and halachic issues presumptive eruv raises.
Mantids in the Mist – Taxonomy of the Andean genus Pseudopogonogaster Beier, 1942, a cloud forest specialist, with notes on its biogeography and ecology (Mantodea: espidae: Miopteryginae)
Authors: Rivera Julio , Yagui Hiromi , Ehrmann Reinhard
Published: December 2011

The Neotropical lichen mimicking mantid genus Pseudopogonogaster Beier, 1942 is revisited and re-described. The examination of the type species, P. mirabilis Beier, 1942, the first described species of this lineage, allowed us to determine that those species currently included in Pseudopogonogaster and Calopteromantis Terra, 1982 are all congeneric. As a result, the genus Calopteromantis is now considered to be a junior synonym of Pseudopogonogaster. Accordingly, Calopteromantis hebardi Terra, 1982 and Calopteromantis marulandae Salazar, 2002 are transferred to Pseudopogonogaster. The species Calopteromantis otongica Lombardo & Ayala, 1998 from Ecuador was also found to be a synonym of P. mirabilis. In addition, a new species from northwestern Peru, Pseudopogonogaster kanjaris, is described herein, thus constituting a new genus and species record for this country. Analysis of the distribution of the six recognized species of Pseudopogonogaster suggests that this genus is endemic to the mountain forests of Colombia, Ecuador and northern Peru and its members are specialized inhabitants of epiphytic vegetation, exhibiting unique morphological and chromatic adaptations to these habitats. The newly available information on Pseudopogonogaster also allowed to determine that Calopteromantis terrai Jantsch, 1994, described from Mato Grosso, Brazil, is actually a member of the genus Eumiopteryx Giglio-Tos, 1915 (espidae: Pseudomiopteriginae) and, thus, is transferred to this genus as E. terrai (Jantsch, 1994) comb.n.
A new genus of Compactopediina (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) associated with Longipeditermes (Isoptera: Termitidae) in Peninsular Malaysia with a key to and phylogenetic analysis of all genera of the subtribe
Authors: Kanao Taisuke , Maruyama Munetoshi , Hashim Rosli
Published: December 2011

Kistnerella malayensis Kanao & Maruyama, gen. et sp.n. (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae) is described from Ulu Gombak, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia. This new genus belongs to the termitophilous subtribe Compactopediina in the tribe Aleocharini, and is associated with Longipeditermes longipes (Haviland, 1889) (Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermitinae). A key to the genera in Compactopediina is given. The phylogenetic relationships of the genera are investigated, and the host termite relationships and the systematic position of Compactopediina are discussed.
Mecyclothorax palikea sp.n. from the Waianae Range, Oahu, and the biogeographical history of Hawaii's M. flavomarginatus species group (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Moriomorphini)
Authors: Liebherr James K. , Krushelnycky Paul D.
Published: December 2011

Mecyclothorax palikea, sp.n. is described from the vicinity of Palikea, southern Waianae Range, Oahu, HI, USA and is assigned to Britton's Mecyclothorax flavomarginatus species group. Cladistic analysis, based on 20 morphological characters and including several outgroup taxa, places Mecyclothorax impunctatus Liebherr of Molokai as adelphotaxon to the other eight species of the group, with subsequent speciation events successively isolating M. sharpi Britton of West Maui versus a clade of seven Oahu species. Phylogenetic relationships among the Oahu clade species posit three historical speciation events vicariating ancestors on the western Waianae and eastern Koolau Ranges. Mecyclothorax palikea is placed as adelphotaxon to M. carteri (Perkins), a species allopatrically distributed to the north in the Waianae, corroborating existence of southern and northern areas of endemism within the Waianae Range. Relative ages of the respective volcanoes housing M. flavomarginatus group species — Waianae (3.7 million years ago), Koolau (2.6 million years ago), Eastern Molokai (1.8 million years ago), West Maui (1.3 million years ago)—imply that ancestral occupation of Oahu by this group occurred subsequent to completion of the shield building phases of Oahu's two volcanoes, Waianae and Koolau. Diversification within the group on Oahu was associated with vicariance events that occurred within a terrestrial environment. Whereas all four species of the M. flavomarginatus group occupying Waianae Range habitats have been observed recently in nature, collection of M. flavomarginatus in 1906 represents the most recent record for any M. flavomarginatus group species in the Koolau Range, indicating the importance of conserving appropriate Waianae Range habitats in order to preserve representative biodiversity in this species group.
Phylogenetic analysis of the small fungivorous family Merothripidae (Thysanoptera)
Authors: Pereyra Veronica
Published: December 2011

A phylogenetic analysis of the fungivorous Terebrantia family Merothripidae is performed based on 73 morphological characters and 24 taxa representing the three genera of Merothripidae and outgroups. Heterothrips mexicanus Watson, Heterothripidae; Dorythrips Hood, Melanthripidae; and two genera of Aeolothripidae,Gelothrips Bhatti and Orothrips Moulton represent the outgroup. The Melanthripidae and Aeolothripidae genera are included in order to have a first approximation of the phylogenetic relationships between Merothripidae and these two families (previously suggested to be close relatives). According to the results, the monophyly of Merothripidae is recovered; within Merothripidae, Erotidothrips is the sister group of Damerothrips+Merothrips. Dorythrips is supported as the sister group of Merothripidae, and Aeolothripidae are the sister group to that clade. Additionally, Merothripidae genera are diagnosed and illustrated.
Competición intrasexual en el trabajo: diferencias sexuales en celos y envidia en el trabajo
Authors: Buunk Abraham P. , Zurriaga Rosario , González Pilar , Castro-Solano Alejandro
Published: December 2011

Desde una perspectiva evolucionista, este artículo aborda las diferencias sexuales en las características del rival que provocan celos y envidia en el trabajo, y cómo se relacionan con la competición intrasexual. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 114 trabajadores de diferentes sectores profesionales. Los rivales provocaron más celos y envidia en las mujeres que en los hombres cuando eran físicamente atractivos. En ambos sexos, las habilidades sociales y el poder social y dominancia fueron las características del rival que provocaron más celos y envidia. En las mujeres, los celos provocados por el atractivo físico del rival se relacionaron con la competición intrasexual, mientras que en la envidia fue el poder social y dominancia del rival la característica que se relacionó con la competición intrasexual. En los hombres las características del rival no se relacionaron con las diferencias individuales en competición intrasexual. Este estudio es de los primeros en proveer evidencia sobre las diferencias sexuales en celos y envidia en el trabajo
Desarrollo de una Escala de Estrés de Aculturación en Autóctonos
Authors: Ramírez Ma Carmen , Ruiz José-Antonio , Torrente Ginesa , Rodríguez Ángel
Published: December 2011

Presentamos una nueva escala para medir el estrés de aculturación de los autóctonos ante la inmigración, concretamente sudamericana. Hemos partido del concepto de amenaza percibida tomado de la Teoría Integrada de la Amenaza (Stephan y Stephan, 1996). Un análisis de componentes principales realizado con una muestra de 770 participantes ofrece una estructura compuesta por dos dimensiones: estrés de interacción y estrés por recursos. La escala final está formada por 16 ítems más tres de control de la deseabilidad social. Los análisis de fiabilidad han encontrado unos índices de consistencia interna muy satisfactorios, de.91 para la escala general de estrés de aculturación y de.91 y.88 para las dos subescalas. Los datos obtenidos permiten ofrecer un instrumento de medida que constituye una contribución en el estudio de los procesos de aculturación.
Análisis de la relación entre grupo de iguales, vinculación familiar y escolar, autocontrol y conducta antisocial, en una muestra de adolescentes venezolanos
Authors: Rodríguez Juan-Antonio , Mirón Lourdes , Rial Antonio
Published: December 2011

En este trabajo se pone a prueba un modelo teórico en el que se integran variables del grupo de iguales, variables familiares/escolares, y el nivel de autocontrol, con el propósito de comprobar su capacidad explicativa sobre la conducta antisocial de los adolescentes de ambos sexos. La muestra del estudio incluye 471 adolescentes escolarizados en centros públicos del estado de Mérida en Venezuela. Los resultados de los análisis de Estructuras de Covarianza revelan que, tanto para los hombres como para las mujeres, la pertenencia a un grupo desviado, la inadecuada supervisión familiar y un bajo nivel de autocontrol son las variables más relevantes con respecto a la probabilidad de desarrollar conducta desviada. Sin embargo, estas variables dan cuenta en mayor medida de la conducta antisocial de los chicos que de la de las chicas. Se plantea la necesidad de prestart mayor atención al tema del género en la investigación y los modelos teóricos de la delincuencia.
Estilos de gestión del conflicto, factores de personalidad y eficacia en la negociación
Authors: Monteiro Ana-Paula , Serrano Gonzalo , Rodríguez Dámaso
Published: December 2011

Uno de los temas que más interés ha despertado en la investigación relativa al comportamiento de los negociadores durante el proceso de gestión de un conflicto ha sido el relacionado con el estudio de las características de personalidad de dichos sujetos, que puedan estar contribuyendo al éxito o al fracaso del proceso en cuestión. Así pues, la presente investigación tuvo como objetivo principal averiguar en qué medida los factores de personalidad considerados en el Modelo de los Cinco Factores (Amabilidad, Apertura a la Experiencia, Responsabilidad, Extraversión y Neuroticismo) influyen sobre la eficacia en la negociación y los estilos de gestión del conflicto (Integración, Evitación, Compromiso, Dominación y Servilismo). Los principales resultados obtenidos en el estudio, utilizando una muestra de 255 sujetos, demuestran que: el estilo “Integración” se relaciona positivamente con todos los factores de personalidad considerados, a excepción del factor “Neuroticismo”. Los estilos de “Evitación” y “Compromiso” se relacionan positivamente con la “Amabilidad”; mientras que el estilo de “Dominación” se relaciona negativamente con dicho factor de personalidad. La “Extraversión”, la “Amabilidad”, la “Apertura a la Experiencia” y la “Responsabilidad” serían los factores de personalidad que mejor predicen un desempeño negociador eficaz.
Apoyo social en la adolescencia: adaptación y propiedades psicométricas del “Social Support Scale for Children” de Harter (1985)
Authors: Pastor Yolanda , Quiles Yolanda , Pamies Lidia
Published: December 2011

Este trabajo tuvo un doble objetivo, en primer lugar, la adaptación a población adolescente española de la Social Support Scale for Chidren (SSSC) de Harter (1985), y el estudio de sus propiedades psicométricas. Y en segundo lugar, estudiar el apoyo social percibido de los adolescentes, analizando las diferencias en función de la edad y el género. Se administró dicha escala a una muestra representativa de 648 adolescentes escolarizados entre 11 y 16 años del municipio de Elche (Medad = 13.38; DT = 1.70). Los resultados del análisis factorial confirmatorio mostraron una solución de cuatro factores que se asemeja a la escala original. Las relaciones positivas y significativas que los cuatro factores presentaron con la escala de Autovalía Global aportaron evidencias de la validez externa del cuestionario. El coeficiente alfa de Cronbach de la adaptación española adoptó valores iguales o superiores a. 69. El apoyo social que los adolescentes percibían por parte de los padres disminuía con la edad en ambos géneros, mientras que aumentaba el apoyo percibid) del grupo de iguales, particularmente en el caso de las chicas de mayor edad (15 a 16 años).
Building Local Responses to Disaster
Authors: Nadarajah Yaso , Mulligan Martin
Published: December 2011

While there has been much discussion in international disaster management literature in recent years of the need to give affected communities much more ‘ownership’ of recovery and rehabilitation pro-jects and programs, there is little real understanding of what this might mean in practice. There are many calls for post-disaster recovery programs to reduce vulnerability to future risks, or to ‘build back better’. Drawing from an intense study of social recovery and community rebuilding across five tsunami-affected local areas in Sri Lanka and southern India, this article affirms the need for greater community ‘guidance’ of disaster recovery but it argues that different forms of community engagement are required for different stages in the long process from relief to recovery. It argues that ‘build back better’ is possible, but only if aid and other related agencies work more closely with existing capacities for resilience within the affected communities and contribute towards their legitimacy.
Thai Politics in the Post-Thaksin Period
Authors: Jha Ganganath
Published: December 2011

Thailand has been witnessing political uncertainties ever since the ouster of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Although the 1997 Constitution of Thailand was one of the best in terms of evolving democratic institutions and Thaksin was one of the most popular leaders, yet the system could not work. Thaksin was disliked by the traditionally entrenched elite who joined together to remove him arbitrarily from power in which the military and the Royal Privy Council took a prominent part. The system that was adopted under military rule did not like to retain the 1997 constitution but decided to replace them with a new constitution (2007), in which the interests of the military were protected and promoted. In the evolving permutations and combinations, two groups—Yellow Shirts and Red Shirts—have emerged to oppose each other, often violently, to offer thesis and anti-thesis for and against Thaksin and his brand of politics. This article has tried to understand the dynamics of power politics in Thailand, the rise of the Yellow Shirts and Red Shirts and the emerging problems that Thailand will have to address in the future.
Defining Religion Based States in West Asia
Authors: Siddiqui Rushda
Published: December 2011

As speculation grows about the possibility of a turbulent Egypt, Libya, Tunisia or even Algeria drifting from demanding democracy and political liberalism to establishing an Islamic state, this article, by attempting to define religion based states would want to form a background to the speculations. The author would like to point out that the coming power by a political party with a religious affiliation would not make the states into Islamic States. As a matter of fact, given the kind of external and internal forces at play in West Asia and North Africa, it would not be possible for any country to redefine the basis of its identity, let alone transform itself into a theocratic state in classical parlance. With the close of the Second World War and the establishment of nation–states in the new world order, two deviant states were created from Asia. Israel and Pakistan were created taking religion, instead of geography or history of the land or ethnicity or race or existing socio-political structures, for the foundational basis of their identity. It heralded a new era for history. These states were going to be yardsticks for later day religion based socio-political movements. If these movements were going to gain power, they would need to conform to the newly set patterns for religion based states. Re-creating a theocratic state based on classical historical lines, is no longer an option.
Concept of Global Administrative Law
Authors: Tripathi Rajeshwar
Published: December 2011

Globalisation, which has integrated the whole world into a unit by a vast range of regulatory regime, has led to the emergence of a global state through international institutions. These institutions regulate the social, economic and political life of states. Therefore it has led to the emergence of the concept of Global Governance. This concept of Global Governance has led to development of the concept of Global Administrative Law (GAL). This GAL concept is based on the idea of understanding global governance as administration, which can be organised and shaped by principles of an administrative law character. In this way GAL is related to trans-governmental regulation and administration designed to address the consequences of globalised interdependence in such fields as security, trade conditions on development and financial assistance, banking and financial regulations, Intellectual Property Rights, Labour standards and cross-border movements of populations, including refugees. Isolated national regulations cannot govern these different areas and administrative measures and therefore various transnational systems of regulation or regulatory co-operation have been established through international treaties and organisations. To implement these regulations, transnational administrative bodies—including international organisations and informal groups of officials that perform administrative functions, are established. However these institutions are not directly subject to control by national governments or domestic legal systems or, in the case of treaty-based regimes, the states party to the treaty. However their regulatory decisions may be implemented directly against private parties by the global regime or more commonly through implementing measures at the national level. This situation has led to the question of accountability, fairness and transparency and due process in the functioning of these bodies. GAL is developed in response to this question, which attempts to extend the application of domestic administrative law to intergovernmental regulatory decisions that affect a nation.
Legitimizing assertions and the logico-rhetorical module: Evidence and epistemic vigilance in media discourse on immigration
Authors: Hart Christopher
Published: December 2011

Critical Discourse Analysis has recently begun to consider the implications of research in Evolutionary Psychology for political communication. At least three positions have been taken: i) that this research requires Critical Discourse Analysis to re-examine and defend some of its foundational assumptions (Chilton, 2005); ii) that this research provides a useful explanatory framework for Critical Discourse Analysis in which questions can be addressed as to why speakers might pursue particular discursive strategies and why they might be so persuasive (Hart, 2010); and iii) that findings bare little or no relevance for Critical Discourse Analysis (Wodak, 2006). In this article, I take up the first two of these positions and in doing so, of course, implicitly disagree with the third. I consider the positions in i) and ii), then, specifically in relation to Sperber’s (2000, 2001) notion of a ‘logico-rhetorical’ module. Taking the argument that Chilton makes concerning this module one stage further, I suggest that the logico-rhetorical module evolved as much for persuasion as it did for vigilance. I further suggest that the semantic category of evidentiality operationalized in media discourse serves to satisfy the conditions of acceptance laid down by the logico-rhetorical module. I show how this semantic category therefore performs a legitimizing function in media discourse on immigration.
Still something missing in CDA
Authors: Chilton Paul
Published: December 2011

In an important article (this issue), Chris Hart makes the case that CDA needs to draw on a wider range of theoretical sources in Cognitive Linguistics and Cognitive Science, giving particular attention to Evolutionary Psychology. While I support Hart’s case for this approach to CDA, and also support his argument, as a corrective to Chilton (2005), that Evolutionary Psychology actually shows the need for something like CDA, this present article advances three further points, aimed to supplement the cognitive approach to CDA. The first is that CDA could fruitfully draw on Cognitive Linguistics in a more detailed way than it has hitherto, and in particular on work that articulates Cognitive Linguistics with Cognitive Psychology of the kind developed by Tomasello. The second is that the insights of Habermas, much mentioned in CDA, need to be better integrated within a linguistic approach to CDA. The third and most important point is that the question of the underlying moral values of the critical stance in CDA now need to be explicated in view of the global context in which CDA operates. I also show, using Hart’s own data, how values are presupposed (or ‘presumed’) in many types of utterance. Hart is right to focus on evidentials in his data, as evidence of the critical abilities of human communicators. But there is something important missing for CDA to explore further: the presence of contestable values.
Discourse analysis, cognition and evidentials
Authors: de Saussure Louis
Published: December 2011

This article echoes concerns recently formulated regarding CDA’s lack of attention to cognitive science (or evolutionary psychology). From a cognitive pragmatic viewpoint, I argue that discourse analysis should undergo an epistemological change in order to seriously take into account what cognitive (thus naturalistic) approaches have to offer, in particular as regards the automatic processing of utterances and the subsequent non-conscious evaluation of contents vis-a-vis previously held beliefs. I regard the epistemological tension in CDA as stemming from a wider tension of the same sort affecting social science in general. Considering discourse as a process of interpretation and evaluation, I address briefly the influence of evidentiality as a pragmatic category in persuasive discourse and conclude that the uptake of new beliefs on the basis of discourse is oriented towards the maximization of relevance in the sense of Sperber and Wilson.
Epistemic legitimizing strategies, commitment and accountability in discourse
Authors: Marín-Arrese Juana I.
Published: December 2011

Hart (this issue) offers a biologically based explanation for the use of an ‘epistemic positioning strategy’ aimed by speakers/writers at the legitimization of assertions, at persuading addressees of the veracity of the propositions, as a prior condition for the discursive legitimization of actions. This article focuses on various issues addressed in Hart’s article, among them the degree of commitment invoked in speakers/writers’ choice of epistemic stance expressions as legitimization strategies, as well as the expression of subjectivity/intersubjectivity in discourse and the degree to which this involves responsibility and accountability for the speaker/writer. The article also provides an alternative proposal of the categories identified by Bednarek (2006) for the conceptual domain of evidentiality.
Accountability and public displays of knowing in an undergraduate computer-mediated communication context
Authors: Lester Jessica N. , Paulus Trena M.
Published: December 2011

A great deal of research has examined computer-mediated communication discussions in educational environments for evidence of learning. These studies have often been disappointing, with analysts not finding the kinds of ‘quality’ talk that they had hoped for. In this study we draw upon elements of discursive psychology as we oriented to what was happening in the talk from the participants’ perspective in addition to what should be happening from the researcher/instructor perspective. We examine the talk of undergraduate nutrition science students within web logs (blogs), exploring ways in which the students, when asked to make blog posts on their beliefs about and experiences with dietary supplements, display knowing in dynamic and fluid ways. We analyzed 152 blog posts students were asked to make prior to attending the lecture on the topic. Our findings point to how students negotiate and at times resist doing being a knowledgeable student, using disclaimers such as ‘I don’t know’ and script formulations to minimize accountability for their posts. Our findings highlight how students oriented to the blogs as a venue for institutional talk, responding to the required academic task while simultaneously managing their identities as students.
Gender-based differences on Spanish conversational exchanges: The role of the follow-up move
Authors: Maíz-Arévalo Carmen
Published: December 2011

The aim of this article is to analyse Spanish conversational structure, more concretely, to investigate in depth the role of the third move, or follow-up, outside classroom discourse. Since first introduced by Sinclair and Coulthard (1975), the follow-up move has attracted a great deal of attention, as proved by numerous studies. However, these studies have mostly focused on English while Spanish has been neglected. The present study intends to fill in this gap by analysing a corpus of 50 conversational exchanges in Peninsular Spanish. The analysis is qualitative and based on Tsui’s (1994) conversational framework, which has proved methodologically useful. As results will show, the presence or absence of the third move in Spanish conversations seems to rely heavily on a gender-based distinction.
Fertility impact of high-coverage public pensions in sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Holmqvist Göran
Published: December 2011

The potential link between child-related cash transfers and increased fertility is often raised as an issue of concern in debates as to their use. Old age pensions are a form of cash transfer where theory would suggest the opposite impact, namely, pensions equalling decreasing fertility. A handful of sub-Saharan African countries have introduced non-contributory social pensions that cover the great majority of the older population. This makes these countries a distinctive group in relation to the rest of the region, where public old age security arrangements, if they exist at all, are largely confined to the formal sector. This article attempts to trace the impact these high-coverage pension schemes may have had on fertility. The findings suggest there has been such an impact, to the extent of 0.5 to 1.5 fewer children per woman, depending on model specification. However, data limitations and methodological concerns require that the results be interpreted cautiously.
From the global politics of poverty alleviation to the global politics of social solidarity
Authors: Deacon Bob , Cohen Shana
Published: December 2011

This article argues that the important role of the middle class in helping to expand state responsibility for social welfare and a minimum standard of living has been long forgotten, particularly so when it comes to the analysis of how to address ongoing problems of poverty and inequality in the developing world. In light of the global recession and the predicted failure to achieve most of the Millennium Development Goals, this article makes the case for returning to the idea that strengthening the middle class can contribute to improving the quality of life of more vulnerable populations. The ‘global politics of poverty alleviation’, which has been the dominant development discourse for 20 years, needs to be replaced by the ‘global politics of social welfare state building’ or more precisely the ‘global politics of solidarity’. Equality, social mobility and collective welfare would thus become the focus of policy strategies rather than targeted populations and quantitative objectives. The article begins by investigating why the middle class has been neglected in international development and how it is experiencing a rebirth. The article then suggests why a shift in attention to the middle class is critical for addressing global social problems and offers a policy and research agenda for the future.
The diffusion of Conditional Cash Transfer programs in the Americas
Authors: Sugiyama Natasha Borges
Published: December 2011

In the mid-1990s, Brazil and Mexico created innovative social policies known as Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs). Since then, CCTs have spread to countries throughout Latin America and beyond. While these programs reflect a new development norm, their spread is surprising given that some emulating countries lack the basic education and health infrastructure to support increased demand from beneficiaries. This article draws on a policy diffusion framework to explain the spread of CCTs. The author contrasts domestic preconditions (political ideology, state capacity and human development levels) with international pressure (neighborhood effects, professional norm-creation and financial inducements by international financial institutions) to explain the diffusion of CCTs. In order to elucidate the mechanisms that drive diffusion processes, the article draws on mixed methods to uncover learning and emulation among actors.
Bolsa Família, poverty and inequality: Political and economic effects in the short and long run
Authors: Sánchez-Ancochea Diego , Mattei Lauro
Published: December 2011

Created in 2003 by the unification of four earlier initiatives, Bolsa Família currently provides cash transfers to 13 million people and supports more than one-third of the children that go to primary school in Brazil. This article extends and expands previous reviews on the origins, development and impact of the programme. The authors consider the political and economic dimensions in their evaluation of Bolsa Família’s contribution to the reduction of poverty and inequality. They argue that Bolsa Família’s ultimate impact will partly depend on a reduction of inequalities in public provision of health and education, which in turn may require a more active political role for the poor.
Queen Anne Commands: Clothing the Kettle Drummer to the Ordnance, 1705–1708
Authors: Poppy Pat
Published: December 2011

The account books of the Board of Ordnance in the National Archives list the provisions made to the Ordnance, including clothing, and offer a wonderful insight into uniform provided to the soldiers serving with this branch of the military at time of the War of the Spanish Succession. Through a series of accounts dating from 1706 to 1708 this paper demonstrates how one position under the control of the Board of Ordnance, that of the kettle drummer, was ostentatious in the extreme requiring ninety yards of gold lace. The article will relate his clothing to clothing provided to other soldiers, and show how his clothes reﬂected the high status of the kettle drummer.
The Clothing of a Georgian Banker, Thomas Coutts: A Story of Museum Dispersal
Authors: Wilcox David
Published: December 2011

In the early years of the twentieth century, the surviving wardrobe of the Georgian banke r Thomas Coutts (1735–1822) was donated to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. This large collection of clothing was subsequently parcelled up and dispersed to museums around Britain and North America. This essay gives an account of this process and attempts to provide a description of Coutts’ late wardrobe, discusses how it relates to his life and times and re-unites on paper, at least, the surviving strands of the original collection. The essay also presents details of the cut and construction of some of these clothes, through descriptions, photography and annotated cutting diagrams.
‘Does Your Highness feel like a gold person or a silver one?’ Princess Margaret and Dior
Authors: Behlen Beatrice
Published: December 2011

This article charts the relationship between Princess Margaret (1930–2002) and the House of Dior. Her relatively early adoption of the New Look accelerated her rise to a major fashion icon. Choosing a Dior ball gown for her ofﬁ? cial twenty-ﬁrst birthday photographs cemented her image as the archetypal princess. Unusually for a member of the British royal family, Princess Margaret visited the French fashion house in Paris in 1949, 1951 and 1959, ordering couture gowns on several occasions, and also attended Dior fashion shows at Blenheim Palace in 1952, 1954 and 1958. While the close association between the Princess and Christian Dior (1905–1957) was relatively short-lived, it was mutually beneﬁcial and important to the public image of both royal patron and couturier. 1
Elleand the Development ofStylismein 1960s Paris
Authors: Romano Alexis
Published: December 2011

This essay stems from a paper presented at the Costume Society’s Annual Symposium in Leeds in July 2010 on the theme of The Price of Fashion. In this expanded version, the author identiﬁes the construction of stylisme, a new ready-to-wear model in 1960s France, in the pages of Elle magazine. Contextualized in a changing industrial and social landscape, the essay questions how these new depictions of stylisme served to improve consumers’ ideas on ready-to-wear clothing in an industry previously fuelled by haute couture.