Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Jog, Jogászat És Jogtudomány Hatása Weber Módszertani Nézeteire [The Impact Of Law, Lawyering, And Jurisprudence On Weber’S Methodological Views], Péter Cserne

Péter Cserne

Law and legal science have played a significant, but hitherto underestimated role in Weber's life, both professional and non-academic. Trained as a lawyer, he drew upon an existing vocabulary of legal scholarship and adapted from it, more or less implicitly a large number of conceptual and methodological tools for his sociological projects. The goal of this paper is to identify and evaluate these complex links between Weberian sociology and contemporary legal scholarship, with special emphasis on Jhering's and Jellinek's theories. (This paper is a significantly revised Hungarian version of my 2005 English language essay on Weber.)

Evaluation Of The Efl Materials Taught At Iranian High Schools, Ali Jahangard

Ali Jahangard

This article evaluates four EFL textbooks which have been prescribed for use in the Iranian high schools by the Ministry of Education. The merits and demerits of the textbooks are discussed in detail with reference to 13 common criterial features extracted from different materials evaluation checklists. The paper then gives some suggestions as to how to alleviate some of the shortcomings encountered in the textbooks.

The Soft Power And Persuasion Of Translations In The War On Terror: Words And Wisdom In The Transformation Of Legal Systems, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

The power of words is the power of persuasion. The exportation of the foundational legal principles that helped form the American republic can serve as instrumental "soft power" tools in the war on terror. Efforts promoting projects like the Arabic Book Program are important vehicles to cross-cultural and cross-lingual international relations. This Article argues that an arsenal of words can be as, or more, powerful than an arsenal of artillery. The West has much to offer, but the rest of the world needs to be able to read it without getting lost in translation. Providing linguistic access to the documents …

Is The Brazilian Stockmarket Efficient?, Caio Guttler, Roberto Meurer, Sergio Da Silva

Sergio Da Silva

Employing both cointegration analysis and a variety of Granger causality tests, we examine whether the Brazilian stockmarket is efficient in processing new information about public macroeconomic data (semi-strong efficiency). We find the stockmarket to be inefficient, which is in line with most results for other emerging markets.

What Would Vincent Do? Vincentian Higher Education And Poverty Reduction, Marco Tavanti, Craig Mousin

Craig B. Mousin

The worldwide Vincentian major higher education institutions have best practices and pedagogical innovative strategies for linking their educational mission with poverty alleviation. This edited volume includes experiences from DePaul University, St. John;s University, Niagara University, Adamson University, Santa Isabelle University and All Hallows College.

Mega-Cases, Diversity, And The Elusive Goal Of Workplace Reform, Nancy Levit

Nancy Levit

Employment discrimination class action suits are part of a new wave of structural reform litigation. Like their predecessors - the school desegregation cases in the 1950s, the housing and voting inequalities cases in the 1960s, prison conditions suits in the 1970s, and environmental lawsuits since then - these are systemic challenges to major institutions affecting large segments of the public. This article explores the effectiveness of various employment discrimination remedies in reforming workplace cultures, promoting corporate accountability, and implementing real diversity.

Reviewing the architecture and aftermath of consent decrees in five major employment discrimination cases - the cases against Shoney's, …

Facebook: What The Heck Is It And Why Should I Care?, Robert A. Eckhart

Robert A. Eckhart

A simple explanation of the educational purposes of Facebook, especially as compared to using blogs from other providers/websites in class.

The Racialization Of Crime And Punishment: Criminal Justice, Color-Blind Racism, And The Political Economy Of The Prison Industrial Complex, Rose Brewer, Nancy Heitzeg

Nancy A. Heitzeg

Democracia, Presidencialismo Y Partidos Políticos En América Latina: Evaluando La "Difícil Combinación", Daniel Chasquetti

Daniel Chasquetti

¿Qué son y qué papel han jugado las coaliciones de gobierno en América Latina durante las últimas dos décadas? ¿En qué se diferencian de los gobiernos de partido? ¿Qué resultado producen? ¿Qué elementos del sistema político las favorecen y cuáles las entorpecen? ¿Por qué pueden las coaliciones ser consideradas como estrategias óptimas para presidentes con minoría en el congreso? ¿Cuánto duran estos gobiernos y que factores determinan su ruptura? ¿Existe alguna relación entre la fragmentación partidaria y la estabilidad del proceso de gobierno? Éstas y otras preguntas encuentran respuesta en el libro Democracia, presidencialismo y partidos políticos en América Latina: …

Politics In The Public Sphere: The Power Of Tiny Publics In Classical Sociology, Gary Alan Fine, Elisabeth Brooke Harrington, Sandro Segre

Brooke Harrington

As Fine and Harrington [2004] have argued, the relationship between individuals and the social systems which they inhabit is shaped within face-to-face groups. Early work by Habermas and others on the development of the public sphere suggests that interactional arenas – salons, taverns, coffee houses, or other small group modalities – create arenas of discourse in which civil society is enacted and made concrete. However, this research has not led – as one might have expected – to the explicit theoretical attention by political sociologists to small groups and their political incarnation as “tiny publics.” In this article, we make …

Call For Constructive Criticism [Letter To The Editor], Anthony Molaro

Anthony Molaro, PhD, MLIS

No abstract provided.

Space, Revolution And Resistance: Ordinary Places And Extraordinary Events In Caracas, Clara Irazabal

Clara Irazabal

As discussed in the introduction, many scholars have argued that public space is a prerequisite for the expression, representation, preservation and enhancement of democracy (Boudreau, 2000; Caldeira, 2000; Holston and Appadurai, 1999; Low, 2000; Sassen, 1996; Low and Smith, 2006). This has not been more true than in the capital cities of Latin America in recent decades, where political demonstrations have played a critical role in the demise of totalitarian regimes and the reestablishment of democracy. Caracas, capital city of Venezuela, is a prime example in that key urban spaces have been sites for popular demonstrations since Hugo Chavez became …

Housing For Livelihoods: The Lifecycle Of Housing And Infrastructure Through A Whole-Of-System Approach In Remote Aboriginal Settlements, Kurt W. Seemann, Matthew Parnell, Stephen Mcfallan, Selwyn Tucker

Kurt W Seemann

This study set out to review work to date on sustainable investment in desert settlements, reporting on extending the lifecycle of remote, particularly Aboriginal, settlement housing and infrastructure relative to social, technical and economic investment. We aimed to synthesise emerging understandings, articulate new thinking in relation to these understandings, and develop keystone strategies for exploring new ideas in the next stage of research. The main thesis of this project is that technical and economic considerations alone are inadequate for developing innovative responses to expressed need. Key factors for success are local end-user experiences and the capacities of desert people in …

Analytical Thomism: Traditions In Dialogue, Mario Šilar

Mario Šilar

No abstract provided.

The Cy Pres Problem And The Role Of Damages In Tort Law, Goutam U. Jois

Goutam U Jois

Class action litigation presents a common problem that has received little discussion in the academic literature. In almost every case, the plaintiff class’s recovery is not fully distributed. For example, all possible plaintiffs may not come forward with their claims, the plaintiffs may not be ascertainable, or claims may not be timely submitted. Administrators are regularly posed with the problem of what to do with these residual funds. Currently, courts are free to do virtually anything with such funds. The system is ad hoc, unpredictable, and unguided by any normative principle. In these cases, I propose that the funds should …

The Developer’S Decision Calculus: An Agent-Based Model Of Commercial Development, Mirya R. Holman, Travis Coan

Mirya R Holman

While considerable research has been devoted to understanding the impact local regulatory environments on housing development, few studies have examined the implications of land-use regulations for commercial development. The paucity of studies is unfortunate given that commercial development often provides municipalities with considerable economic benefits (e.g., employment) and a crucial source of tax revenue. This study presents a formal model of the commercial development process that explicitly incorporates the dynamic interaction of commercial developers and local cities. Specifically, we construct an agent-based model (ABM) of the commercial development process that represents some key features of the development process. We form …