bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Values and concepts in Max Weber's comparative studies
Authors: BENDIX Reinhard
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This restatement of Max Weber's methodological position takes as its point of departure a point‐by‐point response to a critique by Talcott Parsons of the author's rejection of system, function and evolution as basic concepts of sociological theory – and of studies of political development. In turn, Weber's position that is ‘intermediate’ between materialism and idealism, the purpose of his typological approach, and of his comparative studies are discussed. The last part of the paper restates Weber's position on ‘ideal types’ and examines their assets and liabilities through an analysis of contrast‐conceptions.
Towards the scientific understanding of nationalism and national development: the crucial contribution of Stein Rokkan
Authors: DEUTSCH KARL W.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article is the text of the Stein Rokkan Memorial Lecture delivered at the ECPR Joint Workshops in Freiburg in 1983. It critically evaluates the historical development of studies of nationalism, and then shows how the research strategy developed by Stein Rokkan was an attempt to overcome the weaknesses of earlier approaches.
Stability and crisis: fears about threats to democracy*
Authors: BEALEY FRANK
Published: May 2006

Abstract. A familiar theme in contemporary democratic theory is that of the ‘crisis of democracy’, but it can be misleading to approach the subject through equilibrium analysis. An examination of occasions on which democracy has been terminated illustrates that military coups and foreign invasion feature predominantly. Where democracy is of long standing, foreign invasion has been much more likely than extremism to be the cause. Cultural and ethnic cleavages may call for special institutional arrangements, though often they may prevent democracy being set up at all. Ideological and socio‐economic conflict, leading to public disorder, certainly preceded the interwar overthrow of democracy in Italy and Germany; but there were special features of their situations, and analogies between Weimar and the position of long‐standing democracies today are most inapposite. While there may be some disturbing aspects of modern democratic society, the ‘crisis of democracy’ literature vastly exaggerated their threat to the democratic process. Ordinary democratic citizens, with more stable attitudes than intellectuals, contribute greatly to the legitimacy of democratic regimes.
Aid and ideology
Authors: IMBEAU LOUIS M.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. A conceptualization of international aid‐giving behaviour, based on the notion of bounded rationality and involving the interaction of objective and subjective factors, is developed. From this conceptualization, four hypotheses are deduced to explain the variation of development aid expenditures as a percentage of GNP: the instrumental hypothesis, the humanitarian hypothesis, the ideological hypothesis, and the incremental hypothesis. These hypotheses are tested on data concerning aid allocations of 17 OECD donors for four points in time (1966, 1971, 1976, and 1981), through the use of a regression model. Results show that the model as a whole explains between 85% and 96% of the variance in the dependent variable. Tests of individual hypotheses show that the instrumental explanation is the best predictor of aid as a percentage of GNP if a lagged value of the dependent variable is used on the right‐hand side of the equation. When the lagged value of the dependent variable is dropped from the equations, the best predictor is the ideological explanation. The contribution of the humanitarian explanation to the explained variance is negligible.
The classification of electoral systems
Authors: BLAIS ANDRE
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The paper examines existing classifications of electoral systems, discusses their merits and limits, and proposes a more appropriate classification. It shows that it is possible to extract from the definition of an electoral system three basic dimensions: the ballot structure, the constituency structure, and the formula. It also shows that it is possible to distinguish three components of the ballot structure: the object of the vote, the number of votes and the type of vote, and two components of the constituency structure: its nature and its magnitude. It is argued that the classification proposed here is superior to existing ones. It clarifies and refines existing distinctions. It enables one to identify the basic dimensions of electoral systems as well as the logical connections between them. Finally, it has the property of applying the same criteria to all systems.
Potentials and limitations of executive leadership: the Austrian cabinet since 1945
Authors: GERLICH PETER , MÜLLER WOLFGANG C. , PHILIPP WILFRIED
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article analyzes the Austrian cabinet along the representation‐efficiency and the leadership‐collective decision‐making dimensions. After outlining the respective traditions of the Austrian cabinet some information about the personal styles of Austrian chancellors and their respective ability for leadership is provided. Some aspects of pre‐ministerial careers are analyzed in terms of the representation‐efficiency dimension, while a discussion of cabinet life tries to detect indicators for the systematic analysis of the leadership‐collective decision‐making dimension. The final section links the two dimensions: in the Austrian case high leadership efficiency on the one hand and collective decision‐making representation on the other appear to be positively correlated.
The mixed nature of Belgian cabinets between majority rule and consociationalism
Authors: FROGNIER ANDRE‐PAUL
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Since World War II, Belgian cabinets have presented distinctive characteristics that are worth analysis. Based on the definition of five dimensions used to classify the cabinets of the parliamentary systems of Western Europe ‐ stability, party composition, internal decision‐making, power latitude and recruitment, this article is an attempt to place Belgian cabinets in this framework. Belgian cabinets are not very stable with a small top elite, often rotating ministerial posts. They are formed most often by partial coalitions. They have a rather consensual though hierarchical decision‐making technique. They are rather autonomous vis‐a‐vis the Parliament, but less so vis‐à‐vis political parties and pressure groups, though they are widening their freedom to manoeuvre. Their recruitment is essentially parliamentarian. In order to reach a theoretical interpretation of this descriptive analysis, the validity of applying the principles of ‘consociational democracy’ to Belgian cabinets is also assessed. The findings suggest a pattern of 'semi‐consocia‐tionalism’ with the Belgian cabinet displaying a mixture of techniques both from majoritarian democracy and consociationalism.
Bureaucratic tradition, semi‐presidential rule and parliamentary government: the case of Finland
Authors: NOUSIAINEN JAAKKO
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Primarily on account of the ‘semi‐presidential’ trait of the regime Finland is, along with France, often regarded as a deviant case among Western European states. The presidency certainly restrains the leadership role of the prime minister and curtails the governmental agenda on foreign policy. But in its everyday political process Finland still reveals customary features of European multiparty parliamentarism. With special emphasis on the bureaucratic tradition of the central administration, the article examines the structure of the State Council and outlines four styles of decision‐making.
Neo‐corporatist theory and the politics of industrial decline
Authors: UNDERHILL GEOFFREY R.D.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The case of the French textile and clothing industry during the post‐1974 crisis period illustrates a number of issues relevant to the debate about meso‐corporatism and interest intermediation at the sectoral level in industry. It highlights the importance of attempts to understand the relationships between organised interests and the state in the analysis of the policy process. The pattern of state‐industry relations which evolved was crucial in determining the outcome of conflict between state and industry over the management of restructuring during the crisis.

The inapplicability of the meso‐corporatist model to this case becomes clear. There was a conspicuous absence of either political exchange or a shared policy agenda, each an important element of corporatist patterns of policy formation, in both the formation and implementation of adjustment policies in the sector. Mutual suspicion and a struggle to control the terms of the debate yielded a low level of co‐operation. Eventually the industry was able to appropriate increased public funds on its own terms and to insist on a protective trade regime.

The complexity of the case points to the need to broaden the debate over models of interest intermediation and to relate it to issues in political economy. This is particularly important with regard to the structure of the bureaucratic state and notions of state autonomy.
Bringing culture back in: pluralism and societal corporatism as contexts of strategic adaptation
Authors: ANDERSEN SVEIN S.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The limited literature on offshore industrial relations in Britain and Norway has focused on the deviant nature of such arrangements compared to national traditions. The ‘newness’ of the sector and the special nature of the oil industry have been used to explain the deviance. This study, instead, controls for such factors and shows how contrasting patterns of adaptation can be related to system properties. Industrial relations in the two countries can be viewed as ideal‐type approximations of pluralism and societal corporatism. Within the tradition contrasting pluralism and neocorporatism, the dominant perspective has deliberately excluded cultural aspects, stressing instead structural form. The article argues for the reintroduction of culture and shows how British and Norwegian offshore developments reflect fundamentally different orientations towards industrial relations. Culture is not, however, conceptualized as ideosyncratic characteristics of the two countries. It stems instead from different histories of labour‐capital relations.
Immigration and changes in the French party system
Authors: SCHAIN MARTIN A.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article explores the role of political, especially party, elites in the emergence of the politics of racism in France. It argues that these elites seem to have reacted more to the changing dynamics of the party system than to mass opinion in raising and exploiting the issues of race and immigration. The anti‐immigrant feelings of the electorate were mobilised and provided with a political outlet by these changing dynamics. The electoral rise of the National Front and the decline of the Communist party have profoundly altered the dynamics of French electoral politics. Both of these phenomena are indirectly related to the immigration issue. The changing dynamics of the party system have in turn contributed significantly to the sustenance and development of immigration as an issue in French politics in the 1980s.
From conflict to accommodation: the ‘Foreigners Question’ in Switzerland
Authors: HEISLER BARBARA SCHMITI'ER
Published: May 2006

Abstract. There have been three major periods of post‐war migration to Switzerland. First the classic system of guestworker recruitment which lasted from 1948–1960. Second a period of political controversy from 1961–1978 concerned with ‘overforeignisation’ which brought about increased government intervention accompanied by a slight reduction in the foreign population. Recently Swiss labour recruitment has switched from yearly guestworker recruitment to seasonal workers and border commuters. This has lasted from 1979 to the present. Despite the fact that Switzerland has done very little to assist the integration of the immigrant population, they appear comparatively well integrated and surprisingly satisfied.
Party competition and the politics of economic openness and growth
Authors: STRØM KAARE
Published: May 2006

Abstract.The political effects of economic openness have recently attracted considerable scholarly attention. This paper analyzes the relationships between openness of trade, party competition, and economic performance in 15 advanced Western democracies. Restraints on party competition are found to depend more on domestic social pluralism than on openness of trade. Economic growth is promoted both by economic exposure and by party‐system competition. The results suggest that restraints on political competition may be less beneficial in party systems than in interest group systems.
Neo‐conservative regimes and convergence in telecommunications policy
Authors: HILLS JILL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Starting from the proposition that neo‐conservative governments would wish to increase competition in the telecommunications market and that socialist governments would wish to retain a network monopoly which protects small consumers, this paper explores telecommunications policy in a number of industrialised countries. It argues that there is little convergence between policies adopted by neo‐conservative regimes and that socialist governments are as likely to liberalise or privatise the telecommunications monopoly. A number of explanatory variables are explored, including federalism, trade union strength and industrial policy goals. The article concludes that the conjuncture of political and economic interests in any one country is likely to be different from that in any other. These conjunctures determine outcomes in policy terms and no country is likely to follow closely American experience in liberalisation.
Cycles of the fourth kind: A reply to Mohler's cycles of values
Authors: NAMENWIRTH J. ZVI , WEBER ROBERT PHILIP
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Mohler (1987) claims that German culture does not display thematic cycles like those found by Namenwirth and Weber (1987) in America and Great Britain. We argue that Mohler's claim is not supported by the emperical evidence he presents. We also find his claim to be flawed conceptually and theoretically.
Deregulating broadcasting: the West European experience
Authors: DYSON KENNETH , HUMPHREYS PETER
Published: May 2006

Abstract.This article is concerned with the relationship between systemic and ideological changes affecting West European broadcasting and the nature of the regulatory responses. In theoretical terms the research interest Lies in the question of the extent to which changes in the nature of West European broadcasting regulation are determined by technological factors and forces in the international political economy. Particular attention is given to the factors impeding or constraining deregulation and to the argument that national institutional structures and traditions are mediating the impacts of technology, markets and ideology. Whilst the ultimate effects on future broadcasting regulation remain controversial, certain broad trends can be identified.
The ‘Little Big Bang’ in Paris: financial market deregulation in a dirigiste system
Authors: CERNY PHILIP G.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. French dirigisme since World War II has been identified at four levels: economic planning; the dominance of a neo‐colbertisre civil service elite; Gaullism and the Fifth Republic; and a state‐led, credit‐based system for financing industry. The last of these was seen by Zysman (1977, 1983) as the strategic core of dirigisme, as in Japan, through state control of industrial purse strings. Paradoxically, it was the Socialist Governments of 1981–86, in response to deregulation elsewhere, which initiated extensive capital market reforms intended to replace the state‐led, credit‐based system with an ‘arms‐length’ financial market system. These continued under the right‐wing Chirac Government. However, the reform process itself has been state‐led rather than market‐led; and both rigidities in the markets and shortcomings in the reforms have been highlighted by the October 1987 crash. Much dirigisme of a tactical kind remains, but the state's potential for strategic intervention has been reduced.
Deregulation as regulatory reform: the case of environmental policy in the Netherlands
Authors: HANF KENNETH
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Deregulation in the Netherlands has been associated with the perceived crisis of the welfare state. But in the area of environmental policy it has not meant dismantling those substantive regulations designed to promote improved environmental quality. Deregulation in environmental management has involved the retention of overall regulatory objectives while striving to simplify and streamline existing regulatory procedures, and developing alternatives to the more traditional instruments of regulation. Deregulation in this area is a prime example of ‘re‐regulation’‐ of steps taken to make existing regulations more effective, or to replace rules with other instruments designed to achieve more effectively and efficiently the same behavioural changes sought with the original regulatory scheme.
Regulation, deregulation and public bureaucracy
Authors: CHRISTENSEN JØRGEN GRØNNEGÄRD
Published: May 2006

Abstract.In 1982, a new Liberal‐Conservative government launched a grand deregulatory campaign as part of its programme for restoring the Danish economy. After some initial success, the campaign lost momentum. The government gradually realised that it was difficult to mobilise both economic interests and public opinion for the cause of deregulation. Bureaucratic resistance and disinterest among economic interest organisations together with the erosion of political commitment to deregulation after a couple of years stopped the campaign. Still, some results were reached where least expected.
Comparing non‐voters in the USA and Norway: permanence versus transience
Authors: PETTERSEN PER ARNT
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Voter turnout for the 1984 presidential election in the USA was 30 percent lower than the last parliamentary election in Norway (1985). Similarities among the factors which explains non‐voting in the two nations are apparent, but the factors unique to each country are important for understanding the difference in turnout level as well as patterns of non‐participation. While the Norwegian non‐voters are in a transient situation where youth and limited life‐cycle experience determine non‐voting, factors effecting American non‐voters are more permanent. In particular, if socio‐economic resources are not acquired in youth, the development of political involvement and participation will be obstructed.
Perceptions of macroeconomic performance, government support and Conservative Party strategy in Britain 1983–1987
Authors: CLARKE HAROLD , WHITELEY PAUL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper examines the relationship between macroeconomic performance and party popularity for the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher in Britain from 1983 to 1987. A popularity function is estimated which shows that government support was significantly influenced by inflation and unemployment; perceptions and expectations of economic performance; and a variety of non‐economic variables and political shocks. A monetary policy reaction function is also estimated which shows that the Conservative government manipulated the money supply in order to stimulate the economy in the election year. Finally, an outcome function is estimated showing that monetary policy had a significant influence on inflation and unemployment. The results demonstrate that the Conservatives pursued a strategy of manipulating the economy for political profit, in a way consistent with the political business cycle.
Party strategies and the use of televised campaign debates
Authors: LEDUC LAWRENCE
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper examines the evolution of debates as a significant element of the strategy of election campaigns in a number of countries. Analyzing survey data from two Canadian cases (the elections of 1979 and 1984), it is found that the effects of debates on individual voting behaviour are primarily reinforcing, but that debates have nevertheless grown considerably in importance in strategic decision making by parties and candidates.
Does proportional representation foster voter turnout?
Authors: BLAIS ANDRÉ , CARTY R. K.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper examines the record of western democracies to measure the impact of differing electoral formulae on the rate of voter turnout. The record of 509 national elections in 20 countries provides the basis for a regression analysis that clearly identifies higher turnout rates in PR systems that cannot be explained by a wide variety of control variables or traditional arguments about PR. The data also reveal a marked increase in electoral turnout over the last century.
An international element in the vote?
Authors: HØST VIGGO , PALDAM MARTIN
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The paper tests the ‘folk’hypothesis that the vote at elections in different countries is affected by international opinion swings which are sometimes to the right and sometimes to the left. An hypothesis that, if it had been true, would have allowed us to predict the election outcome in one country by considering the outcome in recent elections in other countries. In order to test this hypothesis all (governmental) elections between 1948 and 1985 in 17 main democracies are considered. A set of series S(i, t), where i is a country and t time, showing the left/right‐swing at the election is constructed. We next delete the i‐index and reach the S(t)‐swing series. The hypothesis is then operationalized as saying that S(t) contains positive autocorrelation. The S(t)‐series is shown to behave as perfect white noise, so the hypothesis is rejected.
Authoritarianism and the concept of class; a reply to Middendorp and Meloen
Authors: DEKKER PAUL , ESTER PETER
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Our reply to the forgoing article by Middendorp and Meloen rejects their critique for three reasons:

their requirement of ‘empirical validity’has no relevance with respect to our argumentation to use E.O. Wright's class measurements.

they fail to see the relational and qualitative character of the class measurements we used, and

they do not show any empirical evidence which contradicts our findings.

We do agree with Middendorp and Meloen on the importance of education for explaining authoritarianism. This is exactly the reason not to mix up education with class: education is just too important to misuse it as a class indicator.
Continuity and change in the West German federal executive elite 1949–1984
Authors: DERLIEN HANS‐ULRICH
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The entire West German federal executive elite, politicians and top level bureaucrats, who held office between 1949 and 1984, is analyzed with respect to social background, professional training and career patterns. The time dimension is dealt with in a dual way by distinguishing legislative periods and political generations. The composition of the elite, it is argued, is the product of the kind of supply offered by a specific generation and the demands generated during political periods. It is demonstrated that the important government changes of 1969 and 1982 accelerated or retarded developments inherent in the recruitment basis. The time series reveal, apart from short‐term oscillations, some long‐term changes. While politicians tend to be more from the middle class, working class background among civil servants has slightly increased. Furthermore, among bureaucrats the monopoly of jurists is waning and uninterrupted civil service careers are being replaced by unorthodox careers. Politicians, on the other hand, have increasingly studied law and have acquired administration experience. Taken together with a considerable recruitment from civil service families, it might be justified to conclude that the state affinity of the German political executive is mediated to some extend through bureaucratic culture.
Micro foundations and macro practice of centralized industrial relations
Authors: PALOHEIMO HEIKKI
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Using Mancur Olson's logic of collective action it is shown that high levels of unionization in the labour market are not necessarily as harmful as liberalists believe, and centralization of industrial relations is not necessarily as useful as corporatists suppose. High levels of unionization are harmful especially in decentralized systems of industrial relations. Centralized industrial relations are a useful way of solving problems of collective action especially in highly unionized labour markets. In special conditions centralized industrial relations can be justified with a micro level theory of rational social action. The micro foundations of centralized industrial relations seem to be compatible with the micro foundations of neo‐classical economic theory. Therefore, we should no longer see liberal‐pluralism and corporatism as competing theories, but rather as complementary sub‐theories of a more general economic and political theory. In empirical analyses hypotheses are tested using regression analyses with interaction terms and cross‐national data on inflation and unemployment in 18 OECD‐countries.
Long‐term dynamics of political values in international perspective: Comparing the results of content analysis of political documents in the USA, GB, FRG and Switzerland
Authors: EISNER MANUEL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Recent empirical research on the long‐term cultural dynamics of political values in the USA and Great Britain suggested that modern societies might be characterized by long cycles of recurring value orientations. This paper analyzes and criticizes the theoretical and methodological foundations that guided this content‐analytic approach which is based on an application of the Lasswell‐value dictionary to political documents. Taking this critique into account, a similar analysis is done on Swiss material. The results are compared to empirical results gained in the United States, Great Britain and the Federal Republic of Germany. They show that there exists a considerable degree of independence in the process of thematic change in national societies. Moreover Swiss data reveal a content‐analytic dimension that distinguishes texts according to the degree to which either instrumental or ethical themes predominate. This dimension seems to be related to long‐term processes of modernisation.
Conflict regulation and party competition in Northern Ireland
Authors: MITCHELL PAUL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper attempts an application of Nordlinger's theory of conflict regulation to Northern Ireland. This represents a shift away from an institutional focus on consociational ‘devices’to the more basic concern of establishing whether the basis for any conciliatory action actually exists in the first place. The first section concludes that structured elite predominance (a virtual precondition for conflict regulation) characterises the main Northern Ireland political parties (although it is relatively weak in the case of the Ulster Unionist Party). However, section two, in an addition to Nordlinger's framework, argues that the existence of a dual party system severely hamstrings the development of elite political security, by stimulating within‐bloc electoral competition. Moreover, section three stresses that the key to an acceptable consociational formula is the balance which is struck between the internal and external dimensions of the problem. Finally, the paper assesses the prospects for ‘coercive consociationalism’, in the light of the Anglo‐Irish Agreement and the political developments over the last five years which it induced.
The workers are not authoritarian
Authors: RAY J. J.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Middendorp and Meloen (1990) claim that working class people are more authoritarian than others on the basis of research which used as its measure of authoritarianism versions of the California F scale. It is pointed out that this scale does not measure what it purports to measure and therefore tells us nothing about levels of authoritarianism in any group. Better evidence on the question is referred to which shows no tendency for working class people to be particularly authoritarian.
The mobilization of the Swedish vote: An ecological analysis of the general elections of 1928, 1948 and 1968
Authors: BERGLUND STEN , THOMSEN SÖREN RISBJERG , WÖRLUND INGEMAR
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper focuses on the floating vote and the floating voter at three critical junctures in modern Swedish political history: the general elections of 1928, 1948, and 1968. The topic is in the mainstream of electoral research, but with one important proviso: it is a study of floating without the benefit of survey data. The analysis is based on Thomsen's (1987) method of ecological inference. The ecological estimates confirm the conventional wisdom that the Swedish elections of 1928, 1948 and 1968 were mobilizing elections, bringing large numbers of new voters to the polls, and marked by considerable mobility between the parties. They were also realigning in that they held out the possibility of a new status quo. In 1928 and 1948 the parties of the right were on the offensive; in 1968 the Social Democrats held the initiative. But the new coalitions were potentially unstable; it was the floating voters, particularly those with a previous history of non‐voting, who spelled the difference between defeat and victory. The paper makes an important contribution to the validation of Thomsen's method.
From an iron triangle to an iron duet?
Authors: YISHAI YAEL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The paper addresses five constructs of policy making: policy curtain, iron triangle, issue network, policy community and an iron duet. The five constructs are distinguished on the basis of two variables: exclusion, denoting the degree of openness to new participants, and interdependence, pertaining to relationship between participants. A policy curtain prevails in the pre‐agenda stage denoting both exclusion and lack of dependence. Iron triangle is characterized by exclusion and interdependence; issue network portrays inclusion and lack of interdependence; a policy community features inclusion and interdependence. A fifth construct — an iron duet combines characteristics of an iron triangle, an issue network and a policy community. The paper suggests that the five constructs of policy making are not only products of political environment but are affected by distribution of resources and primacy of values within a specific issue‐area. It further argues that a sequential development may take place following alterations in the division of power between state agencies and organized groups. The involvement of powerful groups of professionals in a policy community, produced by mutual dependence of state and association, may lead to formation of a policy (iron) duet. The historical evolution of specialization entitlement in Israeli health policy serves as a case study to illustrate the major arguments of the paper.
New directions in the study of policy networks
Authors: RHODES R. A. W. , MARSH DAVID
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper is the product of a collaborative, comparative study of nine policy areas in British Government. It does not describe these several policy areas but summarises recent theoretical discussions in Britain of the concept of policy networks; provides a typology which encompasses the variety identified in the individual, detailed case studies; discusses a set of key problems in the analysis of networks; and identifies some directions for future research.
Environmental policies and justice between generations
Authors: DE‐SHALIT AVNER
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Moral dilemmas that arise from environmental policies are varied. Over and above relations between human beings and either animals or nature, these include relations between contemporaries and future inhabitants of our world. In that sense many environmental policies can be seen as a matter of distribution of access to goods between contemporaries and future generations. In light of this argument a comprehensive theory of justice between generations seems needed to enable political theorists to evaluate environmental problems and to discuss ecological questions with a new approach.
Contemporary right‐wing extremism in West Germany
Authors: WESTLE BETTINA , NIEDERMAYER OSKAR
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The sudden rise of the extreme right‐wing party ‘The Republicans’in the late 1980s in the Federal Republic of Germany has attracted high attention within and outside Germany. After a few remarks on the definition and history of right‐wing extremism in the Federal Republic of Germany, the paper gives an overview of the Republicans’genesis, organization, membership, platforms and style of electoral campaigns. The final part concentrates on the empirical test of hypotheses deduced from various theoretical approaches to explain support for extreme right‐wing parties. The results of this analysis indicate that a considerable part of the Republicans’electorate does not have an extreme right‐wing ideology but consists of protest voters. The party has benefited from socioeconomically and politically motivated dissatisfaction and feelings of threat. At the same time, the established parties have failed to respond adequately to these problems.
The new politics and the new social movements
Authors: ROOTES CHRIS A.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Central to the ‘new politics’is the increased salience of non‐material issues and a heightened concern with participation. ‘New social movements’and ‘new politics’parties are contingent manifestations of this new politics, which is also manifest in changed orientations toward established political parties. In most respects, the British appear no less well‐disposed toward the ‘new politics’than their European neighbours. Yet Britain is distinguished by the absence of either a radical ecology movement or a successful ‘new polities’party. British exceptionalism is explained by institutional arrangements which constrain the environmental movement toward integration rather than opposition, and an electoral system which polarises political competition and inhibits the development of new parties. One consequence is the preservation of the Labour Party as a beneficiary of, and vehicle for, the expression of much political dissent. As a result, in Britain the ‘new polities’is to an unusual degree combined with ‘old polities’.
Conflict and consensus in social policy development
Authors: VÄISÄNEN ILKKA
Published: May 2006

Abstract. In the study of welfare state development, we find divergent approaches which assign differing weights to consensus and conflict as well as to various causal factors behind changes in social policy. This paper moves beyond the traditional concentration on social expenditures and tests the role of different causal factors by focussing instead on the development of social rights in the areas of workplace accidents, sickness, and unemployment insurance. Hypotheses derived from competing approaches are tested in relation to the relative development of social rights in these three policy areas and in relation to variation in social rights in accident insurance.
Variations in third/minor party support in English constituencies
Authors: EAGLES MUNROE , ERFLE STEPHEN
Published: May 2006

Abstract.The paper presents an ecological analysis evaluating two explanatory perspectives on third/minor party advances in recent English general elections. The impact of community cohesion on third/minor party mobilisation is complex and differentiated. Cohesion stemming from the socio‐economic homogeneity of constituency environments tends to buttress support for the two main class‐based parties. However, communal cohesion stemming from workplace‐residence proximity tends to favour the channeling of collective protest into third/minor parties. Third/minor party advances are also shown to be positively related to prior situations of major party dominance in constituencies, particularly in the 1983 election.
Four theorems about the market and democracy
Authors: BEETHAM DAVID
Published: May 2006

Abstract.Schumpeter's account of the relationship between capitalism, socialism and democracy is reviewed by means of a critical analysis of four contemporary neo‐liberal theorems about the market and democracy. It is argued that they each embody partial truths that can only be accepted with considerable qualifications, which the paper seeks to provide. The connection of the four theorems with Schumpeter's work is then traced through the continuities of the liberal political tradition.
The rise and decline of new politics and the Greens in Sweden and Germany
Authors: JAHN DETLEF
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The failure of the Green parties at recent elections in Sweden and Germany makes it necessary to consider the future of ‘new politics’ in each country. With reference to modern organisation theory, the goal of this article is to explain the different character of the Green parties in both countries in terms of external political resources. Above all the features of new social movements on the one hand and the different party systems on the other are of particular importance. It is argued that both factors have an impact on the cleavage structure and social change in Sweden and Germany, as well as being important for the organizational survival of Green parties in both countries. The conclusion is that ‘new politics’ and the Greens have a more promising future in Germany than in Sweden.
Selecting party leaders in the Republic of Ireland
Authors: MARSH MICHAEL
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Traditionally Irish party leaders, elected by their own parliamentary parties, endured a security of tenure only likely to be broken by personal electoral defeat. Now they live under a much more demanding regime. Leaders are challenged frequently and at least one has been deposed. Whereas once successions were managed now contests are normal, and they attract considerable publicity. These changes are bound up with the shift toward greater competition in Irish electoral politics, and a greater uncertainty about the nature of the parties themselves.
The gender gap in comparative perspective
Authors: JELEN TED G. , THOMAS SUE , WILCOX CLYDE
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Although the ‘gender gap’ in Western democratic publics has received an increasing amount of scholarly attention, one interesting anomaly has not been addressed. At the level of many specific issues, women appear to be more liberal than men. However, at the level of general ideological orientations, women are either more conservative, or there are no significant gender differences. We explore this disjuncture between levels of cognitive abstraction through the 1984 Eurobarometer data and conclude that the left‐right continuum appears to have a different meaning for men and for women. Women seem much more likely to regard the left‐right space as referring to ‘preservationist’ values of religion and cultural homogeneity, and men conceptualize the left‐right space in economic and ‘New Polities’ terms.
How iron is the iron law of oligarchy?
Authors: ROHRSCHNEIDER ROBERT
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Probably the most famous dictum about parties' internal structures is Robert Michels' ‘iron law of oligarchy’. Over the past two decades, however, the societal context within which parties are embedded has begun to change which may alter the psychological premise upon which Michels’ law is based. More specifically, we hypothesize that New Politics proponents within established parties are disproportionately likely to rely on cues from local party branches, instead of leadership cues, in forming issue positions on intra‐party controversies. Accordingly, this paper analyzes the influence of New Politics issues on the leadership‐constituency views of party delegates within fifty‐two West European parties. In addition, we analyze the relative contribution of party ideology and party structures to the evolution of mean party support for NP policies and constituency orientations. The data base for this paper is a unique study of convention delegates conducted in all major West European parties, and a study of party characteristics. We find that New Politics supporters, especially within socialist parties, are predisposed to emphasize the representation of their local party constituency, in case the views of local party branches and a party's national leadership clash. We assess the implications of this research for parties and party theories, especially Michels' law.
Banking, interest intermediation and political power
Authors: COLEMAN WILLIAM D.
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This article seeks to introduce the concept of political power more explicitly into the discussion of the organizational attributes of societal interests. In pursuit of this objective, it defines a set of empirical indicators of the organisational conditions of interest intermediation systems that enhance the exercise of political power. The indicators are illustrated through a comparative study of the banking sector at the European Community level and in five countries: Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The comparison of the banking sector interest intermediation systems shows that the power of banks in Germany rests not only on their equity participation in large industrial concerns, but also on a highly developed interest intermediation system, the most integrated of the five countries. The analysis demonstrates from still another perspective the close imbrication of the state and finance in France. Finally; the article demonstrates the deep fragmentation of the US associational system, a system that has acted as a serious obstacle to banking system reform in America.
Social dealignment versus political frustration: Contrasting explanations of the floating vote in Germany
Authors: ZELLE CARSTEN
Published: May 2006

Abstract.The paper contrasts two notions of the floating voter: the ‘modern floating voter’ and the ‘frustrated floating voter’. In doing so, social modernization is contrasted with macro stimuli as explanations of volatility. The ‘modern floating voter’ emerges from social dealignment theories. These claim (1) an increase in volatility, (2) more frequent vote switching among the well educated and the new middle class, and (3) an instrumental view of politics among floating voters. Empirical tests on German data do not deliver any support for these dealignment hypotheses (employing log‐linear models on cross‐sectional and pooled‐cross‐sectional data and ANOVA). On the other hand, the model of the ‘frustrated floating voter’, which denotes vote switching that takes place in a mood of protest, receives some support in the data. Thus, the degree of political dissatisfaction of an electorate emerges as a potential predictor of volatility. In a final step, I test if the drop in political satisfaction between 1990 and 1993 can he attributed to social change, thus indicating an indirect effect of social change on volatility. The data do not support this hypothesis. The drop in satisfaction (and thus the potential increase in volatility) most likely should be attributed to macro stimuli. Thus, the results indicate that macro phenomena (which might be historic events, economic conditions, or the like) might be more fruitful in explaining volatility than social modernization.
Making a case for the rational, self‐regarding, ‘ethical’ voter… and solving the ‘Paradox of not voting’ in the process
Authors: OVERBYE EINAR
Published: May 2006

Abstract.The article offers a new solution to one of the major puzzles facing the public choice‐paradigm: the ‘Paradox of not voting’. Utilizing a principal‐agent model, I argue that voting may be regarded as a rational investment decision:notan investment in a particular electorial outcome, but in a type ofreputationwhich the individual is interested in maintaining when carrying out his/her everyday activities. This solution not only solves the paradox, but may also provide a bridge between adherents of the public choice‐paradigm and scholars who advocate ‘sociological’ approaches to political behaviour.
Mongrels or thoroughbreds: A cross‐national look at social security systems
Authors: & HELEN BOLDERSON , MABBETT DEBORAH
Published: May 2006

Abstract. This paper reviews the methodological issues raised by different commentators' attempts to categorise countries' social security systems into ‘regime types’ or ‘models’. It is argued that there are two major problems with these categorisations: (1) the difficulty of finding empirical counterparts to the theoretical concepts used; (2) the complexity of actual social security systems, arising in particular from the diversity of benefits within each system. Despite these problems, we argue that it is possible to maintain a theoretically‐informed approach to the comparative analysis of social security, by adopting a more flexible methodology. The approach presented in this paper identifies some of the main principles on which social security systems are based, specifies their empirical counterparts, and allows each national system to be analysed in terms of its particular conjunction or combination of principles.
Right‐wing extremism analyzed
Authors: MUDDE CAS
Published: May 2006

Abstract. The so‐called ‘third wave’ of right‐wing extremism has taken both society and social science by storm. In contrast to the many studies that look for possible explanations for the success of this ‘wave’, this article focusses on right‐wing extremism itself. In the first part, the concept is defined on the basis of the existing literature, as a political ideology that consists of a combination of several features. In the second part, these features are first conceptualized and second used in a comparative analysis of the ideologies of three alleged right‐wing extremist parties (the Dutch CP'86, the German NPD and the Austrian NDP). This analysis shows a more differentiated picture of the ideology of this ‘party family’, and is a warning against too careless generalisations.
The first supranational policy in the European Union: Competition policy
Authors: McGOWAN LEE , WILKS STEPHEN
Published: May 2006

Abstract. Competition policy has become a salient issue in the last decade. The purpose of this article is to widen discussion amongst political scientists of an issue that has been dominated by the disciplines of economics and law. The concept of a competition policy is the foundation stone of the entire European Union. It lies at the very heart of efforts to establish a common market and within the EU competition policy arena the decision making powers have laid firmly with the supranational institutions. This article provides an overview of the issue; it traces the constitutive foundations of policy and discusses the functions of the core EU competition policy actors. It is primarily concerned with the European Commission, in particular, DGIV. The paper accounts for DGIV's metamorphosis in the 1980s and the myriad of problems now confronting its procedures and efficiency in the 1990s. Whether these defects can be resolved will ultimately determine the fate of DGIV. Arguments for institutional reform are raging through the European institutions and DGIV provides no exception. The paper concludes with a discussion on the plausibility of the creation of an independent European Competition Office, modelled on the role of the German Federal Cartel Office.