Showing papers in "Politics and Governance in 2018"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a regime typology that distinguishes cases classified with a high degree of certainty from those with "upper" and "lower" bounds in each category.
Abstract: Classifying political regimes has never been more difficult. Most contemporary regimes hold de-jure multiparty elections with universal suffrage. In some countries, elections ensure that political rulers are—at least somewhat—accountable to the electorate whereas in others they are a mere window dressing exercise for authoritarian politics. Hence, regime types need to be distinguished based on the de-facto implementation of democratic institutions and processes. Using V-Dem data, we propose with Regimes of the World (RoW) such an operationalization of four important regime types—closed and electoral autocracies; electoral and liberal democracies—with vast coverage (almost all countries from 1900 to 2016). We also contribute a solution to a fundamental weakness of extant typologies: The unknown extent of misclassification due to uncertainty from measurement error. V-Dem’s measures of uncertainty (Bayesian highest posterior densities) allow us to be the first to provide a regime typology that distinguishes cases classified with a high degree of certainty from those with “upper” and “lower” bounds in each category. Finally, a comparison of disagreements with extant datasets (7%–12% of the country-years), demonstrates that the RoW classification is more conservative, classifying regimes with electoral manipulation and infringements of the political freedoms more frequently as electoral autocracies, suggesting that it better captures the opaqueness of contemporary autocracies.
191 citations
TL;DR: The authors examines the development of campaigns against "gender ideology" in Europe, leading to the emergence of a specific family of mobilizations that we call anti-gender campaigns, and argues for a more complex understanding of the ways in which distinct and sometimes competing projects can converge in specific settings.
Abstract: This article examines the development of campaigns against “gender ideology” in Europe, leading to the emergence of a specific family of mobilizations that we call anti-gender campaigns. These campaigns, started in the mid-1990s as a Catholic project in reaction to the results of the UN conferences of Cairo and Bejing, but developed significantly in several European countries after crucial encounters with right-wing populism. While recognizing the importance of these crossovers, we contend the interpretation that mobilizations against “gender ideology” and right-wing populism are the two faces of the same coin, and we plead for a more complex understanding of the ways in which distinct—and sometimes competing—projects can converge in specific settings. We argue that research on the “Global Right Wing” should therefore disentangle the various components of this phenomenon, and locate them in concrete settings. We show that this research strategy allows us to better grasp the specificities of each project and the ways in which they interact. Opening our eyes on crucial developments in contemporary Europe, this strategy also prevents researchers from falling into the trap of a global and unqualified backlash against everything achieved in terms of gender and sexuality in the last decades.
127 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on the various ways in which feminist politics are opposed and why, on what the impact of such opposition is, and how to improve our theoretical understanding of this particular manifestation of gender and politics.
Abstract: Is the feminist project under threat in Europe? This thematic issue addresses the question in both theoretical and empirical ways, focusing on the various ways in which feminist politics are opposed and why, on what the impact of such opposition is, and how to improve our theoretical understanding of this particular manifestation of gender and politics. The issue addresses three major challenges: a need to reflect on the most suited concepts and theories in political and social sciences to understand what is at stake in Europe today; a need to vernacularize existing knowledge while forging global frames of analysis; and a need to avoid the risk of reifying oppositional forces and of reiterating dichotomous frames and categories. The responses to these challenges are: to analyse the threats to the feminist project as parts of larger projects against social justice and equality; to contrast macro narratives by engaging with the microlevel of the anti-feminist project, enabling a critique of mainstream scholarship; to analyse the threats to the feminist project as related to processes of changes to democracy, such as democratic backsliding; to give prominent attention to discursive, epistemic and symbolic processes; and finally to include studies on the response of feminist actors to the threats experienced. This collection of articles offers a variety of perspectives on the various threats to the feminist project in Europe today.
110 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore gender equality policy backsliding in fragile democracies, and propose a conceptual framework discussing these two conceptually interesting realms: backslided in gender equality policies, and feminist responses to back-sliding.
Abstract: Trends of de-democratization across Europe and the Americas are emerging, along with opposition to gender equality and threats to previous gender equality policy gains. Yet de-democratization has been barely analysed through the lens of gender equality, and so far, efforts to systematically analyse the implications for inclusive democracy and the representation of gender interests are lacking. Backsliding in gender policies, and new forms of feminist engagement with hostile states and publics, also raise new challenges to the literature on gender and politics. In this article we explore gender equality policy backsliding in fragile democracies. Backsliding and de-democratization processes in these contexts pose a series of important challenges to how we have thought about gender policy change in progressive, mainly Western democratic contexts until now. We propose a conceptual framework discussing these two conceptually interesting realms: backsliding in gender equality policies, and feminist responses to backsliding. We illustrate our framework with empirical observations from four backsliding or temporarily backsliding Central and Eastern European countries: Croatia, Hungary, Poland and Romania. With our article we aim to contribute to the understanding of gendered aspects of de-democratization both in gender and politics literature and in mainstream democratization literature.
52 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that an assemblage framework provides the best means for understanding the complex configuration of cyber security actors, given that contemporary cyber security practices do not conform to the traditional public-private and global-local distinctions used in security studies and International Relations literature.
Abstract: In the context of globalisation and privatisation, an emerging body of literature has applied the concept of an ‘assemblage’ to international relations and security studies. This article will argue that an assemblage framework provides the best means for understanding the complex configuration of cyber security actors, given that contemporary cyber security practices do not conform to the traditional public-private and global-local distinctions used in security studies and International Relations literature. With the configuration of cyber security actors, and the relationships between them in constant flux, an assemblage framework provides a means for understanding the contested, dynamic and diachronic nature of contemporary cyber security provision. While the concept of security assemblages is favoured in this article, the process and context in which the term has traditionally been used cannot be blindly imposed on the issue of cyber security. This article will therefore propose a different model of how cyber security assemblages have developed and explain the implications this has on contemporary security dynamics.
38 citations
TL;DR: The article posits that the study of cyberpolitics would benefit from two innovations: a focus on cybersecurity as social practice―enacted and stabilized through the circulation of knowledge about vulnerabilities―and afocus on the practices employed in the discovery, exploitation and removal of those vulnerabilities.
Abstract: This article sets out to show how different understandings of technology as suggested by Science and Technology Studies (STS) help reveal different political facets of cybersecurity. Using cybersecurity research as empirical site, it is shown that two separate ways of understanding cybertechnologies are prevalent in society. The primary one sees cybertechnologies as apolitical, flawed, material objects that need to be fixed in order to create more security; the other understands them as mere political tools in the hands of social actors without considering technological (im)possibilities. This article suggests a focus on a third understanding to bridge the uneasy gap between the two others: technology defined as an embodiment of societal knowledge. The article posits that in line with that, the study of cyberpolitics would benefit from two innovations: a focus on cybersecurity as social practice―enacted and stabilized through the circulation of knowledge about vulnerabilities―and a focus on the practices employed in the discovery, exploitation and removal of those vulnerabilities.
38 citations
TL;DR: The authors argued that the American economy was portrayed as a story of the people versus corrupt elites offering greater audience resonance that ultimately derailed President Obama's plan to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership and ushered in an era of economic nationalism under President Trump.
Abstract: In 2016, a wave of American populism triggered emotional reactions to issues like trade and immigration, and dramatically impacted the Obama administration’s plans to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) during President Obama’s final year in office. This article asks how do emotions infuse populism with political power, and why was populism effective in sparking American economic nationalism and retreat from free trade during the 2016 presidential campaign? Drawing on a psychoanalytic, narrative framework, the article argues that populist narratives deployed by US presidential candidates Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders characterized the American economy as a story of the people versus corrupt elites offering greater audience resonance that ultimately derailed President Obama’s plan to pass the TPP and ushered in an era of economic nationalism under President Trump. The article contributes to the literature on emotions and foreign policy and explores the under-studied emotional features of populism as a discursive narrative.
34 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors extend the conception of participatory urban governance by adapting Rosanvallon's (2008) three democratic counterpowers (prevention, oversight and judgement) to consider options for institutionalising agonistic participatory practices.
Abstract: The theory and practice of urban governance in recent years has undergone both a collaborative and participatory turn. The strong connection between collaboration and participation has meant that citizen participation in urban governance has been conceived in a very particular way: as varying levels of partnership between state actors and citizens. This over-focus on collaboration has led to: 1) a dearth of proposals in theory and practice for citizens to engage oppositionally with institutions; 2) the miscasting of agonistic opportunities for participation as forms of collaboration; 3) an inability to recognise the irruption of agonistic practices into participatory procedures. This article attempts to expand the conception of participatory urban governance by adapting Rosanvallon’s (2008) three democratic counter-powers—prevention, oversight and judgement—to consider options for institutionalising agonistic participatory practices. It argues that these counter-governance processes would more fully realise the inclusion agenda that underpins the participatory governance project.
34 citations
TL;DR: Local interaction platforms (LIPs) as discussed by the authors are innovative responses to these challenges, developed in two African and two European cities between 2010 and 2014, and the value of this approach lies in its context-sensitivity and iterative flexibility to articulate between internationally shared challenges and distinctive local practices.
Abstract: Urban sustainability is a wicked issue unsuited to management through traditional decision-making structures. Co-productive arrangements, spaces and processes are inscribed in new organisational forms to bridge between diverse forms of knowledge and expertise. This article suggests that local interaction platforms (LIPs) are innovative responses to these challenges, developed in two African and two European cities between 2010 and 2014. Through elaborating the design and practice of the LIPs, the article concludes that the value of this approach lies in its context-sensitivity and iterative flexibility to articulate between internationally shared challenges and distinctive local practices. Six necessary conditions for the evolution of LIPs are presented: anchorage, co-constitution, context-sensitivity, alignment, connection and shared functions. In the context of increased uncertainty, complexity and the demand for transdisciplinary knowledge production, the platform concept has wider relevance in surfacing the challenges and possibilities for more adaptive urban governance.
32 citations
TL;DR: The authors advocates a range of novel theoretical and methodological directions applicable to cybersecurity studies, drawing on critical International Relations theory, Science and Technology Studies, participant observation, quantitative political science, and other social science methods and theory.
Abstract: This thematic issue advocates a range of novel theoretical and methodological directions applicable to cybersecurity studies. Drawing on critical International Relations theory, Science and Technology Studies, participant observation, quantitative political science, and other social science methods and theory, the contributors advance modes of invigorating the exploration of cybersecurity as an assemblage of sociotechnical practices. In so doing, this issue seeks to enhance understanding of the politics and strategies of cybersecurity, one of the most complex and diverse technical and political challenges of our contemporary world.
32 citations
TL;DR: It is proposed that cybersecurity expertise is best understood as a skilled performance which satisfies decision-makers’ demands for risk management, and that the ritualized physical separation between disinterested knowledge-sharing and commercial advertisement at cybersecurity conferences enacts an ideal of “pure cybersecurity expertise rarely encountered elsewhere.
Abstract: This article applies the concept of ritual to cybersecurity expertise, beginning with the cybersecurity “skills gap”: the perceived lack of suitably qualified professionals necessary to tackle contemporary cybersecurity challenges. It proposes that cybersecurity expertise is best understood as a skilled performance which satisfies decision-makers’ demands for risk management. This alternative understanding of cybersecurity expertise enables investigation of the types of performance involved in key events which congregate experts together: cybersecurity conferences. The article makes two key claims, which are empirically based on participant observation of cybersecurity conferences in the Middle East. First, that cybersecurity conferences are ritualized activities which create an expert community across international boundaries despite significant political and social differences. Second, that the ritualized physical separation between disinterested knowledge-sharing and commercial advertisement at these conferences enacts an ideal of “pure” cybersecurity expertise rarely encountered elsewhere, without which the claims to knowledge made by cybersecurity experts would be greatly undermined. The approach taken in this article is thus a new direction for cybersecurity research, with significant implications for other areas of international politics.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a typology of four modes of governance by which adaptation takes place (hierarchy, market, network, and community) and use examples of initiatives from across Canada to compare and evaluate the governance of adaptation initiatives.
Abstract: Climate change adaptation is a complex field of public policy that requires action by multiple levels of government, the private sector, and civil society. In recent years, increasing scholarly attention has been focused on the governance of adaptation, which has included exploring alternatives to state-centric models of decision-making and identifying appropriate roles and responsibilities of multiple actors to achieve desired outcomes. Scholars have called for greater clarity in distinguishing between different approaches to adaptation governance. Drawing on the rich scholarship about public governance, this article articulates and applies a typology of four modes of governance by which adaptation takes place (hierarchy, market, network, and community). Using examples of initiatives from across Canada, the article offers a framework for describing, comparing, and evaluating the governance of adaptation initiatives.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyze the positions of extreme right populist parties in the Netherlands and their discursive attacks on the feminist project in which these opponents use a redefined concept of cultural Marxism.
Abstract: This article aims to better understand current opposition to feminist politics by analyzing positions of extreme-right populist parties on gender knowledge, “explicit and implicit representations concerning the differences between the sexes and the relations between them, the origins and normative significance of these, the rationale and evidence underpinning them and their material form” (Cavaghan, 2017, p. 48). These understandings contribute to constructing a societal truth on gender and/or to setting the terms of the political debate about gender issues. This article introduces and uses the theoretical concept of episteme to highlight the systematic nature of discursive institutional settings, and the role knowledge and truth production plays in processes reproducing or countering gender inequality. The article analyzes the positions of extreme-right populist parties in the Netherlands and their discursive attacks on the feminist project in the Netherlands, in which these opponents use a redefined concept of ‘cultural Marxism’. Through this analysis, the article illustrates the theoretical argument that epistemic dynamics play a strong role in opposition to feminist politics, that the shifting epistemic framing of science is important in these oppositions and that more comprehensive attention for the epistemic dimension is needed.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors suggest that the lack of experience in dealing with cyber operations encourages uncertainty, which motivates decision-makers to base their judgements on pre-existing, and possibly incorrect, conceptions of cyberspace.
Abstract: Advances in cyber capabilities continue to cause apprehension among the public. With states engaging in cyber operations in pursuit of its perceived strategic utility, it is unsurprising that images of a “Cyber Pearl Harbor” remain appealing. It is crucial to note, however, that the offensive action in cyberspace has only had limited success over the past decade. It is estimated that less than 5% of these have achieved their stated political or strategic objectives. Moreover, only five states are thought to have the capabilities to inflict or threaten substantial damage. Consequently, this raises the question of what accounts for the continued sense of dread in cyberspace. The article posits that this dread results from the inappropriate use of cognitive shortcuts or heuristics. The findings herein suggest that the lack of experience in dealing with cyber operations encourages uncertainty, which motivates decision-makers to base their judgements on pre-existing, and possibly incorrect, conceptions of cyberspace. In response, the article segues into potential solutions that can mitigate unsubstantiated dread towards cyberspace by peering into the role that attributes at the organizational level can play in tempering the position of individuals. The suggested considerations are rooted in the interactions between the micro and macro level processes in forming judgments, sensemaking, and ultimately, mobilizing actions.
TL;DR: This commentary provides recommendations to propel big data applications in public policy and management including technologically, embrace cloud analytics, and explore “fog computing”—an emerging technology that enables on-site data sense-making before transmission to the cloud.
Abstract: Cloud computing adoption enables big data applications in governance and policy. Singapore’s adoption of cloud computing is propelled by five key drivers: (1) public demand for and satisfaction with e-government services; (2) focus on whole-of-government policies and practices; (3) restructuring of technology agencies to integrate strategy and implementation; (4) building the Smart Nation Platform; (5) purpose-driven cloud applications especially in healthcare. This commentary also provides recommendations to propel big data applications in public policy and management: (a) technologically, embrace cloud analytics, and explore “fog computing”—an emerging technology that enables on-site data sense-making before transmission to the cloud; (b) promote regulatory sandboxes to experiment with policies that proactively manage novel technologies and business models that may radically change society; (c) on the collaboration front, establish unconventional partnerships to co-innovate on challenges like the skills-gap—an example is the unprecedented partnership led by the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy with the government, private sector and unions.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors trace the development of the concept of friendship and present several theoretical conceptualisations and methodological approaches that can be readily applied when making sense of friendship, both on a personal level between elite actors and on the international level between states.
Abstract: In recent years, the study of friendship has gained traction in political science. The aim of this article is threefold: (1) to offer an overview of the status of friendship studies and how it relates to the emotional turn in international relations, (2) to present a wide variety of different approaches to studying friendship, and (3) to highlight the contribution that a friendship perspective can make to other fields, such as Peace and Conflict Studies. From Aristotle and Plato onwards, we trace the development of the concept of friendship, and present several theoretical conceptualisations and methodological approaches that can be readily applied when making sense of friendship, both on a personal level between elite actors, and on the international level between states. We end by drawing attention to the merit of the study of friendship specifically for the field of Peace and Conflict Studies, where it helps to address the lacuna of research on positive peace.
TL;DR: There are three main absences not addressed by the current designs of cybersecurity architectures: consensus as to whose security is being addressed, evidence of equivalence between the mechanisms that control behaviour, and two-way legibility.
Abstract: Assumptions are made by government and technology providers about the power relationships that shape the use of technological security controls and the norms under which technology usage occurs. We present a case study carried out in the North East of England that examined how a community might work together using a digital information sharing platform to respond to the pressures of welfare policy change. We describe an inductive consideration of this highly local case study before reviewing it in the light of broader security theory. By taking this approach we problematise the tendency of the state to focus on the security of technology at the expense of the security of the citizen. From insights gained from the case study and the subsequent literature review, we conclude that there are three main absences not addressed by the current designs of cybersecurity architectures. These are absences of: consensus as to whose security is being addressed, evidence of equivalence between the mechanisms that control behaviour, and two-way legibility. We argue that by addressing these absences the foundations of trust and collaboration can be built which are necessary for effective cybersecurity. Our consideration of the case study within the context of sovereignty indicates that the design of the cybersecurity architecture and its concomitant service design has a significant bearing on the social contract between citizen and state. By taking this novel perspective new directions emerge for the understanding of the effectiveness of cybersecurity technologies.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors consider several questions that arise from revealing the intramovement divisions at various levels of the pro-life movement, including tension relating to the relationship between orthodoxy and institutionalized politics, and conflicts over modes of action.
Abstract: Studies of the pro-life movement have invariably been undertaken in relation to the pro-choice movement The stress on comparison has tended to homogenize the two sides, thus understating their internal differences This article extends beyond an analysis bounded by a movement―countermovement dichotomy Based on ethnographic data and on the Italian case, it considers several questions that arise from revealing the intramovement divisions at various levels First, there are tensions relating to the relationship between orthodoxy and institutionalized politics: how far, if at all, should there be doctrinal compromises in exchange for influence over public policy? Secondly, the conflicts over modes of action In this respect, should protests be visible in public spaces, and if so how? These two issues govern the tense relationship between the Movimento per la Vita and more radical groups Thirdly, the issue that divides the Movimento itself; the ongoing dialogue over the attitude to be taken towards contraception, and thus sexuality At the heart of these intramovement struggles is the definition of what a ‘real’ pro-life movement is, and how a ‘real’ pro-life movement should mobilize This article reveals a complex and highly fragmented image of the pro-life movement that, like every social movement of a certain size, is heterogeneous in its demographic composition, objectives and strategies To show this complexity, the article adopts an emic approach that does not limit itself to a reading of conservative movements through the eyes of progressive movements
TL;DR: The authors extended previous meta-analyses, noting that the availability of more data enables them to conduct a sub-group analysis by disaggregating the sample into different time horizons and assess if there are temporal shifts in aid effectiveness.
Abstract: As research on the empirical link between aid and growth continues to grow, it is time to revisit the accumulated evidence on aid effectiveness. This paper extends previous meta-analyses, noting that the availability of more data enables us to conduct a sub-group analysis by disaggregating the sample into different time horizons and assess if there are temporal shifts in aid effectiveness. The new and updated results show that the earlier reported positive evidence of aid’s impact is robust to the inclusion of more recent studies and this holds for different time horizons as well. The authenticity of the observed effect is also confirmed by results from funnel plots, regression-based tests, and a cumulative meta-analysis for publication bias.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated gender equality and processes of de-democratization in Spain in the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis and argued that neoliberalism, authoritarian shifts, and political corruption are three key dimensions of the processes that contribute to oppose gender equality.
Abstract: Democracy is an ally of the feminist project and a necessary condition for its success. The European post-crisis context shows evidence of de-democratization processes that represent a remarkable challenge. This article investigates gender equality and processes of de-democratization in Spain in the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis. It argues that neoliberalism, authoritarian shifts, and political corruption are three key dimensions of the processes of de-democratization in Spain that contribute to oppose gender equality. However, political contestation and feminist collective agency both in movements and institutions have played a key role in counteracting these dynamics. Civil society and feminist movements’ struggles for democracy, equality and social justice, the role of new populist left parties in channeling some of the protesters’ demands, gender equality institutions keeping gender on the agenda despite austerity cuts, and new local governments emerging from civic platforms after the 2015 elections have been effective in resisting attacks to Spanish democracy. A thorough revision of academic literature and other secondary sources helps to capture the specificities of this complex political setting.
TL;DR: In this paper, a conceptualization of the subjective quality of democracy is developed consisting of citizens' support for three normative models of democracy (electoral, liberal, and direct democracy).
Abstract: In recent years, several measurements of the quality of democracy have been developed (e.g. Democracy Barometer, Varieties of Democracy Project). These objective measurements focus on institutional and procedural characteristics of democracy. This article starts from the premise that in order to fully understand the quality of democracy such objective measurements have to be complemented by subjective measurements based on the perspective of citizens. The aim of the article is to conceptualize and measure the subjective quality of democracy. First, a conceptualization of the subjective quality of democracy is developed consisting of citizens’ support for three normative models of democracy (electoral, liberal, and direct democracy). Second, based on the World Values Survey 2005–2007, an instrument measuring these different dimensions of the subjective quality of democracy is suggested. Third, distributions for different models of democracy are presented for some European and non-European liberal democracies. They reveal significant differences regarding the subjective quality of democracies. Fourth, the subjective quality of democracy of these countries is compared with the objective quality of democracy based on three indices (electoral democracy, liberal democracy and direct popular vote) developed by the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project. Finally, further research questions are discussed.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors unpacked three accepted conceptual divisions between public and private, state and market, and the political and economic, and located how this set of theoretical assumptions shortcut reflection on these larger issues.
Abstract: Cybersecurity sits at the intersection of public security concerns about critical infrastructure protection and private security concerns around the protection of property rights and civil liberties. Public-private partnerships have been embraced as the best way to meet the challenge of cybersecurity, enabling cooperation between private and public sectors to meet shared challenges. While the cybersecurity literature has focused on the practical dilemmas of providing a public good, it has been less effective in reflecting on the role of cybersecurity in the broader constitution of political order. Unpacking three accepted conceptual divisions between public and private, state and market, and the political and economic, it is possible to locate how this set of theoretical assumptions shortcut reflection on these larger issues. While public-private partnerships overstep boundaries between public authority and private right, in doing so they reconstitute these divisions at another level in the organization of political economy of liberal democratic societies.
TL;DR: The authors argue that despite these many achievements, there remain tensions between conceptualisations of democracy and human rights over the degree to which one includes the other, the temporal and spatial empirical relationships between them, and the measures that have been developed to operationalize them.
Abstract: The empirical literature on democracy and human rights has made great strides over the last 30 years in explaining (1) the variation in the transition to, consolidation of, and quality of democracy; (2) the proliferation and effectiveness of human rights law; and (3) the causes and consequences of human rights across many of their categories and dimensions. This work has in many ways overcome the ‘essentially contested’ nature of the concepts of democracy and human rights conceptually, established different measures of both empirically, and developed increasingly sophisticated statistical and other analytical techniques to provide stronger inferences for the academic and policy community. This article argues that despite these many achievements, there remain tensions between conceptualisations of democracy and human rights over the degree to which one includes the other, the temporal and spatial empirical relationships between them, and the measures that have been developed to operationalize them. These tensions, in turn, affect the kinds of analyses that are carried out, including model specification, methods of estimation, and findings. Drawing on extant theories and measures of both, the article argues that there must be greater specificity in the conceptualisation and operationalization of democracy and human rights, greater care in the development and use of measures, and greater attention to the kinds of inferences that are made possible by them.
TL;DR: In this article, a fine-grained, structured conceptualization of the three core dispositions (democratic commitments, political capacities, and political participation) that make up the citizen component of democratic quality is presented.
Abstract: This article advances the argument that quality of democracy depends not only on the performance of democratic institutions but also on the dispositions of citizens. We make three contributions to the study of democratic quality. First, we develop a fine-grained, structured conceptualization of the three core dispositions (democratic commitments, political capacities, and political participation) that make up the citizen component of democratic quality. Second, we provide a more precise account of the notion of inter-component congruence or “fit” between the institutional and citizen components of democratic quality, distinguishing between static and dynamic forms of congruence. Third, drawing on cross-national data, we show the importance of taking levels of inter-dispositional consistency into account when measuring democratic quality.
TL;DR: The authors argue that debates about public innovation among governance scholars risk essentialising the concept of public innovation, and re-think public innovation as both a pragmatic process, a way of responding to developments in contemporary governance, and an inherently public and democratic practice.
Abstract: This article argues that debates about public innovation among governance scholars risk essentialising the concept. Rather than recognise the inherently normative content of public innovation, some scholars have created taxonomies that conflate very different forms of ‘innovation’ in the public and private sectors, the latter of which is deeply contradictory to public values. We re-think public innovation as both a pragmatic process, a way of responding to developments in contemporary governance, and an inherently public and democratic practice. Our analysis addresses three points: who innovates; what is the object of innovation, and what are the effects of innovation? From this analysis we specify public innovation as both inescapable and democratically necessary to safeguard and promote the important values of public life.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare the extent to which these concepts encompass "violence" and "gender" and find that the latter is the most appropriate concept to capture the turn to the right.
Abstract: Is Europe cascading into fascism? The answer to this question matters for understanding the opposition to gender equality projects in Europe. The article addresses some of the key concepts needed to answer this question. Is ‘fascism’ or ‘authoritarian neoliberalism’ or just ‘neoliberalism’ the most appropriate concept to capture the turn to the right? The article compares the extent to which these concepts encompass ‘violence’ and ‘gender’. ‘Fascism’ is an important benchmark from European history, but Europe has not yet reached its levels of violence. The qualifier ‘authoritarian’ is not needed for ‘neoliberalism’ since it generates a trajectory towards violence. Some conceptual work is required in order to develop ‘neoliberalism’ to encompass ‘gender’ and ‘violence’, but there are bodies of work that support such a development. Including gender in analyses of the macro level changes occurring in Europe requires the concept of ‘varieties of gender regime’, which enables the conceptualisation of neoliberalism as gendered.
TL;DR: This paper employed a two-level analysis to compare the discursive performance of gender on social media in Hungary and Romania; the two countries with the lowest percentage of women in politics in the European Union (EU).
Abstract: This article employs a two-level analysis to compare the discursive performance of gender on social media in Hungary and Romania; the two countries with the lowest percentage of women in politics in the European Union (EU). First, by revealing the tension between conservative views about gender roles, and social and political specificities in the two countries, the research illustrates how various parties on the conservative right ideological continuum―from the center-right to right-wing populism―relate to the feminist project. Secondly, it analyzes how selected women politicians within this continuum negotiate their ideological beliefs about gender roles with their political career interests, by means of social media (Facebook). The analytical constructs of idealized motherhood and feminine toughness are employed to examine a period of intensive political campaigning in 2014 in both Hungary and Romania. The study triangulates the multi-layered discursive circumstances (the historical, contextual, and social media contexts) in Hungary and Romania, and maps out the similarities and differences that are disclosed when comparing the selected women politicians. The article makes a significant theoretical and empirical contribution to scholarship on gender and conservatism in particular and raises questions for the wider study of gender, politics, and social media in general.
TL;DR: No type of data is superior to others in all respects, so the main priorities must be to establish a high degree of concept-measure consistency and to provide high coverage.
Abstract: Different measures of democracy rely on different types of data. Some exclusively rely on observational data, others rely on judgement-based data in the form of in-house coded indicators or expert surveys. A third set of democracy measures combines information from indicators based on different types of data, some of them also data from representative surveys of the mass public. This article discusses the advantages and disadvantages of these different types of data for the measurement of electoral and liberal democracy. The discussion is based on the premise that the main priorities must be to establish a high degree of concept-measure consistency, i.e. indicators capture relevant aspects of the core concept of interest in a precise and unbiased manner, and to provide high coverage. The basic argument of the article is that no type of data is superior to others in all respects. The article draws on examples from extant datasets to illustrate the tradeoffs and it offers suggestions about how to reduce some of the potential drawbacks.
TL;DR: This work first posit what can be known about cyber security interactions with data as well as what cannot, and examines the known works in the field that utilize data and evidence to examine cyber security processes to offer a different path forward.
Abstract: Moderate and measured takes on cyber security threats are swamped by the recent flood of research and policy positions in the cyber research field offering hyperbolic perspectives based on limited observations. This skewed perspective suggests constant cyber disasters that are confronting humanity constantly. The general tone of the debate argues that cyber war is already upon us and our future will only witness more cyber doom. However, these hyperbolic perspectives are being countered by empirical investigations that produce the opposite of what is to be expected. It is generally observed that limited cyber engagements throughout the geopolitical system are the dominant form of interaction. Our task here is to offer a different path forward. We first posit what can be known about cyber security interactions with data as well as what cannot. Where is the water’s edge in cyber security research? We then examine the known works in the field that utilize data and evidence to examine cyber security processes. Finally, we conclude with an offering of what types of studies need to be done in the future to move the field forward, away from the prognostication and generalizations so typical in the discourse in this constantly changing and growing field.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors highlight the lack of engagement in the current literature with the application of big data at the cross-section of governance of data and its utilization in the policy process and draw out aspects related to its definition and future research agenda.
Abstract: The editorial sets the scene for this thematic issue on big data applications in governance and policy. It highlights the lack of engagement in the current literature with the application of big data at the cross-section of governance of data and its utilization in the policy process and draws out aspects related to its definition and future research agenda. The contributions highlight several aspects related to big data in different contexts, such as local and national government as well as a variety of policy areas. They converge on the idea that big data applications cannot overcome existing political and structural limitations that exist in government. This leads to a future research agenda that looks at the disconnect between data production and usage as well as identifying policy issues that are more or less suitable for data analytics.