Transitional socioeconomic and political environments of public relations in Mexico

This qualitative research on the socioeconomic and political environments of public relations in Mexico documents how national context influences the practice of the profession. The evolution of public relations in Mexico has accelerated since the establishment of the North America Free Trade Agreement with the United States and Canada. This advancement is attributed to the practices of transnational corporations and the democratization process that motivates openness, greater professionalism and the expansion of public relations across diverse organizations.     

Cross-national variation in political network size,distribution, and prediction

Network size has a fundamental influence on other network properties. As studies of social network size have accumulated beyond the U.S. and Western Europe, diversity in the networks examined and methods used to construct size estimates have hindered the ability to make direct cross-national comparisons. We employ data from a summary political discussion network size measure in 17 surveys conducted in 15 countries between 2012 and 2018. We offer improved cross-national data on political network size distributions and estimate aggregate and country-specific models to understand the factors, both social and political, that predict political network size within countries.     

Name generation in interpersonal political network data: Results from a series of experiments

We present results from three large scale survey experiments focused on the manipulation of political name generators. Using syntax that is widely employed outside of political science, we generate interpersonal political network data by varying the roles of alters, the time horizons of relationships, and the specific political nature of social exchanges. Across varying samples and electoral environments, we look for differences in these conditions on a wide range of common interpersonal network items, assess latency data on these treatments, and employ more detailed information on named discussants than most existing political ego-centric studies. We evaluate how well the now standard “compound” political name generator captures interpersonal political networks, finding that it does quite well save a few items of significant political importance. We discuss the implications of this research agenda for theories of social influence and the study of disagreement in democratic politics.     

The Use of Remittance Income in Mexico

Immigration affects sending countries through the receipt of remittance income. The impact of these cash transfers on households and communities has brought attention to remittances as a development mechanism. This study attempts to understand the degree to which household consumption is affected by the receipt of remittance income and the ways in which the broader communities may be impacted. Using household income and expenditure data for Mexico, expenditure patterns of remittance‐receiving households are analyzed. Regression analysis indicates that remittance‐receiving households spend a greater share of total income on durable goods, healthcare, and housing.     

The State of the Unions in Mexico

Significant developments during a period of transition for the labor movement in Mexico are described, including general declines in union membership; expansion of the maquiladora system accompanied by determined opposition to union-ization; and the effects of global labor markets, as reflected in limited ability of unions to raise wages and improve working conditions. Effects of the end of the 70-year rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party in which party-aligned unions exploited their own members are examined. The development of independent unions and federations are described as significant forces which, along with reformed unions previously aligned with the PRI, now provide alternatives for legitimate representation of the interests of their members.     

The political process and the Jews in Britain

Muslim migration to Australia took place over three distinct periods – the Colonial, the ‘White Australia’ and the Multicultural periods. This article discusses the settlement issues of Muslims during the ‘White Australia’ period (1901–73). It particularly focuses on five distinct ethnic groups – Indians, Afghans, Malays, Javanese and Albanians – in Queensland and Western Australia. It questions whether these groups were treated ‘differently'because of their Islamic beliefs. The study draws upon both primary and secondary sources, including archival materials and oral testimonies. From the evidence presented, it is clear that a hardening attitude against Muslims has been apparent and that historical antipathies and long-lived antipathies have grown in the specific context of the current geopolitical climate     

The political consequences of contemporary immigration

This article synthesizes research on political outcomes associated with increasing immigration, with an emphasis on cross‐national studies of European countries, where immigration is a relatively newer phenomenon compared to the United States and other traditional immigrant destinations. We begin with explanations of and research on anti‐immigrant sentiment, not a political phenomenon in itself but considered an important precursor to other relevant political attitudes. Next, we review scholarship on the relationship between immigration and support for the welfare state, as well as exclusionary attitudes regarding immigrants' rights to welfare benefits. Then, we review research on immigration and political party preferences, in particular radical right parties, whose platforms often combine anti‐immigration and welfare chauvinistic positions. We conclude by discussing how these processes may ultimately shape social policies, which may in turn influence immigration itself.     

The political mobilization of Irish farmers

L'article cherche une explication à la rébellion agraire en Irlande à la fin du dix-neuvième siècle. Bien que le niveau de mécontentement en Irlande rurale ait étéélevé lorsque la rébellion a éclate, une telle situation n'était pas sans précédent. Le mécontentement avait été tout aussi intense auparavant (surtout durant la première moitié du dix-neuvième siècle) sans de conséquences politiques semblables. Afin de comprendre pourquoi c'est à la fin du dix-neuvième siècle que les tenanciers ruraux irlandais se sont rebellés, il faut se rendre compte qu'un nouvel ensemble de conditions sociales favorables à la mobilisation politique rurale sont apparues durant les décades qui ont précédé la rébellion. Sans épuiser le sujet, l'auteur suggère que ces conditions étaient un leadership fourni par le mouvement nationaliste et une base organisationnelle fournie par un nombre de structures, en particulier la relation de coopération qui s'est développée durant la période qui a suivi la famine entre les tenanciers ruraux et une partie de la population des villes. L'étude supporte la thèse de la mobilisation plutôt que celle du mécontentement pour l'analyse des mouvements de contestations. This paper seeks to explain why an agrarian rebellion broke out in Ireland in the late nineteenth century. Although the level of discontent in rural Ireland was certainly high when the rebellion broke out, such a situation was not unprecedented. Discontent had been just as intense at earlier points in time (most notably during the first half of the nineteenth century) without similar political consequences. In order to understand why it was in the late nineteenth century that Irish rural tenants rebelled, we have to recognize that in the decades preceding the rebellion there had developed a new set of social conditions that facilitated rural political mobilization. Without exhausting the subject, the author suggests that these conditions consisted of leadership provided by the nationalist movement and an organizational base, provided by a number of structures, among which special emphasis is given to the cooperative relationship that emerged in the postfamine period between rural tenants and a segment of the town population. The study gives support to the mobilization rather than to the discontent thesis for the study of social protest.     

The future of unions as political organizations

I am grateful to Peter Feuille and Susan Schwochau for helpful comments on an earlier draft.     

The contradictory political economy of minority nationalism

Times have arguably never been better for minority nationalism. The hollowing out of the nation-state has provided spaces for minority nations to assert their identities and seek wider forms of self-rule. Their position is strengthened by the increased salience of development strategies at the regional scale that draw on the cooperation and coordination of economic actors. In this context, minority nationalism can help foster regional economic success by providing increased cohesion and cross-class collaboration. In return, regional economic success promises to strengthen the nation by providing resources to smooth over class divisions. This article lays out this argument, but raises a number of political and economic contradictions that threaten to interfere both with the construction of regional strategies, and with their ability to paper over class divisions within the nation. It concludes with a brief discussion of the Québec case to show how the promise of a mutually reinforcing relationship between minority nationalism and regional strategies runs up against a series of contradictions in practice.     

The schizophrenic character of Canadian political economy

J'explore dans cet article le caractère Schizophrène de l'économie politique au Canada: le même vocabulaire marxiste est utilisé par deux traditions bien distinctes, qui toutes deux se logent à l'enseigne de ‘l’économie politique'. D'un côté on trouve des historien(ne)s idiographiques, des nationalistes qui insistent sur la position dépendante du Canada dans l'économie mondiale et qui postulent que l'histoire canadienne est principalement produite hors du pays. L'autre camp regroupe les internationalistes, des théoricien(ne)s nomothétiques qui s'intéressent à des questions bien différentes: l'ordre social et la révolution. Bien que ces dernier(e)s admettent que le Canada fait partie d'un ordre capitaliste international, ils/elles postulent que la classe capitaliste canadienne est en grande partie indigene, comme c'est le cas d'autres pays capitalistes avancés. Les deux perspectives ont tendance àêtre grevées d'idéologie et souffrent d'extrémisme épistémologique et méthodologique. Ce qui produit un dialogue de sourds. Je conclus en suggérant des pistes qui devraient permettre à chaque perspective de se renouveler et d'ouvrir des avenues prometteuses. This paper explores the schizophrenic character of Canadian political economy. Use of the same Marxist vocabulary cannot hide the existence of two very different perspectives under the rubric ‘political economy.’ On one side are nationalist idiographic historians who focus on Canada's dependent position in the world economy and assume that Canadian history is largely made outside of Canada. On the other side are nomothetic ‘internationalist’ theorists who address entirely different issues - those of social order and revolution. While the latter assume that Canada is part of an international capitalist order, they assume the Canadian business class is largely indigenous, as in other advanced capitalist countries. Both perspectives tend to be ideologically charged and engage in epistemological and methodological extremism. The result is a dialogue of the deaf. The paper concludes by suggesting ways by which each perspective can renew itself and lead in more fruitful directions.     

The Persistence of the slave market in seventeenth-century Central Mexico

This study, based on an extensive notarial database, demonstrates the significance of slavery in Central Mexico during the seventeenth century. Thousands of bills of sale from Mexico City and Puebla – the largest and most lucrative slave markets in the region – show that the slave trade did not collapse with the end of the Portuguese asiento in 1640. A growing population of American-born creoles sustained the market during the subsequent decades, along with a modest number of new African arrivals. In 1700, slavery remained integral to Central Mexico's economy.     

The study of political tolerance in the South African context

South Africa with its heart transplants uses some of the most sophisticated medical technology in the world. At the same time, with 250 per thousand babies dying in their first year of life in some rural areas the Republic's infant mortality rate ranks it far down in the world scale. South Africa is one of the few countries exporting food yet within her borders malnutrition is rife. For those concerned with the health of people it is clear that the allocation of resources needs to be investigated. A recent conference in Cape Town on the economics of health care attempted to do just that when some 150 doctors, nurses, social scientists and others from different parts of Southern Africa met for a week to discuss some of the issues. This article is a summary of the main points in the 75 papers presented at the conference.     

The effect of violent crime on teenage pregnancy in Mexico

Review of Economics of the Household - This paper explores the effect of violent crime on teenage pregnancy in Mexico using data from a nationally representative longitudinal survey conducted...