Comparative Politics: A Comprehensive Approach

1962 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 577-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herbert J. Spiro
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Present Form ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Comprehensive Approach ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Know How ◽  
Definite Risk

This is a tentative outline of a systematic and comprehensive approach to the study of politics. Part I gives the method. Part II indicates some advantages of the approach. Part III anticipates likely objections to it. And Part IV suggests some applications. My purpose in presenting the paper in its present form is to encourage my colleagues to consider this approach and, if they find it potentially useful, to contribute to its refinement through criticism. As David Easton said in his “Approach to the Analysis of Political Systems,” I know “I run the definite risk that the meaning and implications of this point of view may be only superficially communicated; but it is a risk I shall have to undertake since I do not know how to avoid it sensibly.”

scholarly journals Decision Making in Political Systems: Veto Players in Presidentialism, Parliamentarism, Multicameralism and Multipartyism

1995 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Tsebelis
Keyword(s):  
Policy Change ◽  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Veto Players ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Policy Positions ◽  
Veto Player ◽  
Collective Actors ◽  
Parliamentary Systems ◽  
Presidential Systems

The article compares different political systems with respect to one property: their capacity to produce policy change. I define the basic concept of the article, the ‘veto player’: veto players are individual or collective actors whose agreement (by majority rule for collective actors) is required for a change of the status quo. Two categories of veto players are identified in the article: institutional and partisan. Institutional veto players (president, chambers) exist in presidential systems while partisan veto players (parties) exist at least in parliamentary systems. Westminster systems, dominant party systems and single-party minority governments have only one veto player, while coalitions in parliamentary systems, presidential or federal systems have multiple veto players. The potential for policy change decreases with the number of veto players, the lack of congruence (dissimilarity of policy positions among veto players) and the cohesion (similarity of policy positions among the constituent units of each veto player) of these players. The veto player framework produces results different from existing theories in comparative politics, but congruent with existing empirical studies. In addition, it permits comparisons across different political and party systems. Finally, the veto player framework enables predictions about government instability (in parliamentary systems) or regime instability (in presidential systems); these predictions are supported by available evidence.

scholarly journals ‘Knowing How’ in Slovene: Treading the Other Path

Slovene ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Sonnenhauser
Keyword(s):  
Point Of View ◽  
The Other ◽  
Peculiar Feature ◽  
Linguistic Expression ◽  
Knowing How ◽  
Know How ◽  
Slavic Languages ◽  
Modal Verb ◽  
Contemporary Standard

For the linguistic expression of the concept of knowledge, the Slavic languages use verbs deriving from the Indo-European roots *ĝnō and *ṷei̭d. They differ in terms of the availability of both types of verbs in the contemporary standard languages and in terms of their semantic range. As will be shown in this paper, these differences are interesting not only from a language-specific lexicological point of view, but also in the context of the intersection of lexicon and grammar. Covering the domain of ‘knowing how,’ the *ĝnō-based verb in Slovene (znati) has been extending into the domain of possibility and, on this basis, developing into a modal verb. While this development is not surprising from a typological point of view, it is remarkable from a Slavic perspective, since this particular grammaticalisation path towards possibility is otherwise unknown to Slavic. This peculiar feature of Slovene, which most probably relates to its long-lasting and intensive contact with German, is illustrated in the present paper by comparing Slovene to Russian on the basis of three main questions: 1) the semantic range of vedeti / vedatʹ and znati / znatʹ, 2) the lexicalisation of ‘know how,’ and 3) the relation between knowledge, ability, and possibility. The focus is on contemporary Slovene and Russian, leaving a detailed diachronic investigation and the further embedding into a larger Slavic and areal perspective for future analyses.

Formazione e sostenibilitŕ: didattica partecipata e aree protette, arte dell'intreccio e ecodesign

2009 ◽  
pp. 160-175
Author(s):  
Piergiorgio Pizzuto
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Project ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Educational Activity ◽  
Plant Fibers ◽  
Traditional Use ◽  
Plant Materials ◽  
Art And Design ◽  
Know How ◽  
Sustainable Products ◽  
And Training

- The intent of this paper is to present the results and the proceedings of an interdisciplinary research about connections between training and sustainability in the field of eco-design applied in the traditional use of plant fibers. The research has begun three years ago and has taken the form of a pilot project entitled Design Zingaro - a participating experience of planning and training. Creations of Land Art and Design with plant materials. It was realized in an inclusive process of dialogue, trough participation of many university students, artists, naturalists, forest staff and master weaver of traditional know-how of local craft. The educational activity was designed in partnership with all the stakeholders. The action of coordination has revealed vital for the involvement of both participants linked to University and external ones (artists, naturalists, forest staff and master weaver). From the methodological point of view, the process of training and planning has to be analyzed, through an ecological approach to epistemology and by a systemic view. The analysis has to be focused on relationships that enabled the conduct of the process. The main nodal relationships form the basis to build up a reticular and systemic model, able to describe the complexity of our process. There are many thematic issues covered by the research. They are all closely interlinked with each other: 1. the report of the observer with the process under study 2. arrangements and approaches of participing planning and training 3. institutional cooperation 4. the handing down of traditional know how of interlacement with plant fibers 5. fieldwork and residential workshops Abstracts 187 6. design production and artistic outcomes 7. the realization of a quality label for sustainable products 8. public events, promotion and diffusion 9. mass media and international forum.

SPECIAL ARTICLE

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1951 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 598-600
Keyword(s):  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
General Information ◽  
Present Form ◽  
Know How ◽  
Written Examination

IT IS desirable that as many people as possible should know how much care and thought is given both to the preparation and to the subsequent analysis of the examinations of the American Board of Pediatrics. For this reason the following comments on the examination of January 1950 are published for general information. The written examination of the American Board of Pediatrics given in January 1950 has been subjected to statistical analysis. It is proposed that all subsequent examinations be analyzed in a similar or improved way in order to learn whether modifications are accomplishing the purpose for which they were made and in the endeavor to improve the accuracy of the grading. Some of the results of this first statistical analysis may be of interest and may help in understanding how reliable the examination in its present form is. The examination consisted of 200 false and true statements and was taken by 353 candidates. A majority of the candidates marked all of the statements as being either false or true. That is to say, they marked with confidence when they knew and guessed when they did not know. However, a fairly large number of candidates refused to commit themselves at all when they did not know. It is of interest that one of the highest grades ever earned in these examinations was achieved by a candidate also distinguished by having refused to commit himself on the largest number of statements. The method of grading is one which yields essentially the same figure whether or not the candidate elects to guess.

NONLINEARITY AND LEAST SQUARES

CISM journal ◽  
1988 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 321-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.J.G. Teunissen ◽  
E.H. Knickmeyer
Keyword(s):  
Least Squares ◽  
Covariance Structure ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Helmert Transformation ◽  
Know How ◽  
Least Squares Estimators ◽  
Functional Relations ◽  
Geometric Point ◽  
Rotational Invariant ◽  
Almost All

Since almost all functional relations in our geodetic models are nonlinear, it is important, especially from a statistical inference point of view, to know how nonlinearity manifests itself at the various stages of an adjustment. In this paper particular attention is given to the effect of nonlinearity on the first two moments of least squares estimators. Expressions for the moments of least squares estimators of parameters, residuals and functions derived from parameters, are given. The measures of nonlinearity are discussed both from a statistical and differential geometric point of view. Finally, our results are applied to the 2D symmetric Helmert transformation with a rotational invariant covariance structure.

The centrality of politeia for Aristotle’s Politics: Aristotle’s continuing significance for social and political science

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clifford Angell Bates
Keyword(s):  
Political Science ◽  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Homo Sapiens ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Global Concern ◽  
Political Communities ◽  
Regime Analysis

Political theorists today are addressing issues of global concern confronting state systems and in so doing are often forced to confront the concept of Homo sapiens as a ‘political animal’. Thus theorists considering Aristotle’s Politics attempt to transcend his polis-centric focus and make the case that Aristotle offers ways to address these global concerns by focusing on Empire. This article, contra Dietz et al., argues that Aristotle’s political science is first and foremost a science of politeia and that this approach to the operation and working of political systems is far superior to recent attempts at regime analysis in comparative politics. Thus Aristotle’s mode of examining political systems offers much fruit for those interested in approaching political phenomena with precision and depth as diverse manifestations of the political communities formed by the species Aristotle called the ‘political animal’. From this perspective, focusing on the politeia constituting each political community permits an analysis of contemporary transformations of political life without distorting what is being analyzed.

scholarly journals Formative Assessment: Revisiting the territory from the point of view of teachers

2011 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joëlle Morrissette
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
Formative Assessment ◽  
Elementary School Teachers ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
School Teachers ◽  
Know How ◽  
Group Interviews

This research documented the know-how of five elementary-school teachers regarding formative assessment, working from their point of view on the question. Group interviews gave them the opportunity to negotiate their “ways of doing things,” by revisiting and elaborating upon assessment episodes that had been previously identified on classroom videotapes. An interactionist analysis served to describe the territory of formative assessment according to the range of their formal and informal “ways of doing things.”

scholarly journals Clinical formulation: Where it came from, what it is and why it matters

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Baird ◽  
Alan Hyslop ◽  
Marjorie Macfie ◽  
Ruth Stocks ◽  
Tessa Van der Kleij
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Teaching ◽  
Present Form ◽  
Learning Objectives ◽  
Clinical Team ◽  
Effective Management ◽  
Know How ◽  
The Core ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Subject

SummaryClinical formulation was introduced in its present form a little over 30 years ago and is, in essence, a concise summary of the origins and nature of a person's problems, together with opinion on what may go wrong in the future and what steps should be taken to improve matters. In our article we discuss how, in recent times, the task of preparing a clinical formulation has rightly become a multidisciplinary exercise involving the whole clinical team and, even more important, that nowadays the patient – the subject of the clinical formulation – together with their carers should also be actively involved in the process and feel some ownership of the conclusions and decisions. In addition, we compare these developments in clinical formulation with similar developments, arising for the same reasons, in clinical teaching and education.Learning Objectives• Understand the core principles of formulation• Know how to prepare a formulation within a clinical team• Understand the role that formulation plays in the effective management of patients

Cultural and stress-related manifestations of political controversial language in the European Parliament from the view of interpreters

Babel ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vlasta Kučiš ◽  
Simona Majhenič
Keyword(s):  
European Parliament ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Communicative Interaction ◽  
Source Text ◽  
Cultural Transfer ◽  
Know How ◽  
Transcultural Communication ◽  
Communicative Role

Abstract Translation and interpreting are not only linguistic activities, but also to a large extent primarily activities of cultural transfer. Transcultural communication displays complexity, diversity and readiness for conflict in communicative interaction, so the interpreter/translator, as an intercultural mediator, is assigned a special communicative role in this regard. This article examines how interpreters at the European Parliament deal with controversial language rendering evaluative components of political statements as well as whether there is a rise in stress-related disfluencies in the interpretation of such statements and whether intonation (dis)similarities between the source text and the interpretations occur in the context of cultural and lexical know-how. Seven excerpts from four sessions of the European Parliament in the last six years and their interpretations into Croatian, Slovene, English, French and German were analysed from the point of view of stress and culture. Deviations in pitch and intensity levels of both the speaker and the interpreters were calculated and statistically compared in the light of differing cultural know-how. The intonation results for these interpreting examples showed that all the interpreters followed the speaker’s pitch deviations to a certain extent. Analysis of politically-controversial statements also revealed that more than 80% of the interpretations selected contained stress-related disfluencies and almost 70% contained some form of discrepancy with the source text at a lexical level. The interpretations therefore largely contained fewer negative evaluative components of controversial language than the speakers in the European Parliament.

Political Opposition in the Contemporary World

1997 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 462-486 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Blondel
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Politics ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Political Opposition ◽  
General Picture ◽  
Contemporary World ◽  
Classical Work ◽  
The World ◽  
Common Framework ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Western Democracies

ALTHOUGH THE CLASSICAL WORK ON POLITICAL OPPOSITION IN Western Democracies, edited by Robert Dahl, was published decades ago, in 1966, the analysis of the characteristics of opposition, in democracies or elsewhere, has advanced rather less than other aspects of comparative politics. The word ‘opposition’ is used daily to account for a variety of developments; but its many meanings have not been systematically related to the differences among the political systems of the world. A number of comparative studies did appear after the 1966 seminal work, admittedly, including one by Dahl himself in 1973, as well as those by Ionescu and Madariaga in 1968, by Schapiro in 1972, by Tokes in 1979, by Kolinsky in 1988 and by Rodan in 1996; these volumes explore aspects of the concept which could not have been even referred to in the original study, since that study was confined to Western democracies and to the part played by political parties in the context of opposition. Yet the problem has still not been tackled truly comprehensively, as, with the exception of the 1973 Dahl volume, the works on the subject are comparative only in the sense that they deal with more than one country; but their scope remains limited to a region or to a particular type of political system. Meanwhile, many country analyses examine the nature of political opposition in each particular case, but the information which they provide has to be brought within a common framework before we can hope to obtain a general picture of the characteristics of opposition across the world.

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