A general concept of procedural fairness for one-stage implementation

A requirement of procedural fairness is introduced and imposed on game forms. According to this axiom, everybody should be able, by varying unilaterally one`s strategy while keeping the others' strategies fixed, to produce the same set of outcomes. This axiom is called « Equality of Attainable Sets ». A necessary and sufficient condition for Nash implementability with Equality of Attainable Sets is provided under a mild domain restriction. This condition is shown to be equivalent to Nash implementability in structured models where each agent is homo oeconomicus.I thank C. d'Aspremont, S. Barbera, K. Binmore, J. Roemer, L. Gevers and an anonymous referee for their comments. The usual disclaimer applies.     

Effectivity functions, game forms, games, and rights

 In this paper we offer an axiomatic approach for the investigation of rights by means of game forms. We give a new definition of constitution which consists of three components: the set of rights, the assignment of rights to groups of members of the society, and the distribution of power in the society (as a function of the distribution of rights). Using the foregoing definition we investigate game forms that faithfully represent the distribution of power in the society, and allow the members of the society to exercise their rights simultaneously. Several well-known examples are analyzed in the light of our framework. Finally, we find a connection between Sen’s minimal liberalism and Maskin’s result on implementation by Nash equilibria. Received: 25 November 1994/Accepted: 28 June 1996     

Justifiable preferences over opportunity sets

In this paper we say that a preference over opportunity sets is justifiable if there exists a reflexive and complete binary relation on the set of alternatives, such that one opportunity set is at least as good as a second, if and only if the there is at least one alternative from the first set which is no worse than any alternative of the two sets combined together, with respect to the binary relation on the alternatives. In keeping with the revered tradition set by von Neumann and Morgenstern we call a reflexive and complete binary relation, an abstract game (note: strictly speaking von Neumann and Morgenstern refer to the asymmetric part of a reflexive and complete binary relation as an abstract game; hence our terminology though analytically equivalent, leads to a harmless corruption of the original meaning). In this paper we obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for the justifiability of transitive and quasi transitive preferences over opportunity sets. I would like to thank Prasanta Pattanaik for motivation in this research. I would also like to thank Maurice Salles and an anonymous referee of this journal for useful suggestions leading to considerable improvement in the presentation. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Sixth Annual Conference on Econometric Modeling for Africa, held at Pretoria from July 4–6, 2001. I would like to thank all the conference participants for their observations on my paper. However, the sole responsibility for errors that do remain is my own.     

Strongly consistent game forms

This paper characterizes strongly consistent game forms in terms of power structure and cardinality (i.e. the number of persons, alternatives or strategies). There are three main new results in this paper. First, I give a necessary condition for a game form to be strongly consistent; it is also sufficient in several cases. Second, from the view point of informational requirements and based on the first result, I give a sharp lower bound on the cardinality of each agent's strategy space, for a game form to be strongly consistent and individually rational. Third, I show that the unanimous rule is the unique game form that attains this lower bound for strong implementation of the individually rational Pareto correspondence.     

Gambling and Federal civil service employment law

Federal sector employment law concerning employee misconduct in which gambling is a factor has evolved significantly since the enactment of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, and is breaking new ground in this aspect of civil rights and employment law. Among other things, a debate is taking place in this sector as to whether compulsive gambling is a handicapping condition similar to alcoholism and drug addiction. Traditionally, disciplinary cases in the Federal Sector may be classified in two categories. The first involves misconduct related to compulsive gambling. The second concerns gambling on-the-job, either through promotion of gambling by, for example, running a numbers game, or by placing bets. While employees who promote gambling by running numbers games can be fired for just one instance of such misconduct, employees whose misconduct on or off the job is the result of compulsive or pathological gambling have a strong affirmative defense restricting the employer's attempts to fire for just cause. As defined by administrative agencies which have primary jurisdiction over Federal civil service law matters, compulsive gambling, generally, is not recognized as a handicapping condition. Developments in Federal sector, however, have required the federal manager to consider the existence of a condition of pathological gambling as a mitigating factor in deciding upon appropriate discipline. Other related developments indicate that compulsive gambling may, in fact, be reclassified as a handicapping condition.The author is an Assistant Professor (Adjunct) of Public Administration at John Jay College, C.U.N.Y., where he teaches Administrative Law and Regulation and Labor Relations in the Public Sector and Employment Discrimination Law in the Master of Public Administration Program. This article is adapted from remarks made at the Second Annual Conference on Gambling Behavior held at Philadelphia, PA, November 19–21 1986.     

Video game playing,dependency and delinquency: A question of methodology?

A methodological challenge to Fisher's (1992) study of adolescent fruit machine gamblers was carried out with young video game players. Fisher (1992) described an association between frequency fruit machine playing, dependency and delinquency. Some methodological concerns were considered that might weaken this conclusion, in particular the use of heterogeneous measures that fail to distinguish between variables. As such measures feature elsewhere in contemporary gambling research it was deemed important to examine some of the potential problems that may arise. 183 11–16 year old video game players (152 males; 31 females) were recruited from four amusement arcades to answer a computerised questionnaire. Using an analysis similar to Fisher (1992) her results for adolescent fruit machine use were confirmed. However a separation of key variables and the use of a multiple regression analysis showed that of money spent, time spent and impaired choice, only the first was a significant predictor of delinquency. It is suggested that delinquents have higher disposable incomes to spend on their leisure activities. Video game playing and possibly fruit machine gambling appear to be independently associated with delinquency; in video game playing this association is not mediated by dependency. It was argued that a similar methodology should be used in the UK to re-examine Fisher's (1992) conclusions for children who use gaming machines.The authors wish to thank Timezone Amusement Arcades for the generous use of their centres, Colin Davis for programming the questionnaire and Dr. Sung-Mook Hong for statistical advice.     

The representation of alienable and inalienable rights: games in transition function form

We propose a new type of cooperative game—a game in transition function (TF) form—as a means of representing social decision-making procedures that is suitable for the analysis of rights. The TF form is a generalisation of the effectivity function (EF) form, and in particular it tells us (where the EF form does not) about the alienability of a right. We describe procedures for generating a (unique) EF game from a TF game, and for generating a (non-unique) TF game from an EF game. We make some specific proposals about the representation of rights as properties of TF games and comment on some implications about the relationship between rights and Pareto efficiency.     

Alcohol’s Effects on Video Lottery Terminal (VLT) Play Among Probable Pathological and Non-Pathological Gamblers

This study tested whether alcohol increases behaviors associated with video lottery terminal (VLT) play, particularly among probable pathological gamblers. Forty-four regular VLT players were designated either probable pathological gamblers or non-pathological gamblers on the basis of scores on the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS); [Lesieur & Blume (1997). American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1184–1188] Gamblers from each SOGS category were randomly assigned to either a moderately intoxicating alcohol dose or a control beverage condition (n = 11 per cell in the 2 × 2 between-subjects design). Following beverage consumption and absorption, participants played a video poker VLT game for up to 30 minutes. Four behaviors were measured: “power-bets” (doubling bet after viewing only two cards of the five-card poker hand); total money spent; mean bet magnitude; and number of minutes played. Alcohol increased time spent playing and rate of power-bets, particular among the probable pathological gamblers. Post hoc analyses revealed that alcohol also influenced the proportion of losing hands played––increasing them among the probable pathological gamblers while decreasing them among the non-pathological gamblers. Clinical and policy implications of the findings are discussed.     

Fulfilling the dialogic promise: A ten-year reflective survey on dialogic Internet principles

A decade ago, using the dialogic theory of public relations as the theoretical framework, Kent and Taylor [Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (1998). Building a dialogic relationship through the World Wide Web. Public Relations Review, 24, 321–340; Kent, M. L., & Taylor, M. (2002). Toward a dialogic theory of public relations. Public Relations Review, 28, 21–37] provided a strategic framework to facilitate relationships with publics though the World Wide Web. Based on a review of research exploring Web-based public relations practices drawing on Kent and Taylor's theoretical framework, this essay offers a ten-year reflective survey on past, current, and future directions of Kent and Taylor's Internet principles, as they relate to the dialogic theory of public relations.     

Understanding gender differences in older people's attitudes towards life-prolonging medical technologies

The power of medical technologies to extend the final stages of life has heightened the need to understand what factors influence older people's wish to use such medical technologies. We analyse gender differences in such views, based on audio-recorded interviews with 33 men and 36 women (aged 65–93) in south-east England. Older women were twice as likely as men to oppose using medical technologies to extend life. More older women voiced ‘other-oriented’ reasons for their opposition, particularly not wanting to be a burden on others. Older men's attitudes were primarily ‘self-oriented’, reflecting a concern to stay alive for as long as possible, with fewer expressing concern about consequences for others. Women's greater life course involvement in caring and empathising with the wishes and concerns of others underlay these gender differences. Thus, women were ‘performing gender’ by putting others before themselves, even at this critical juncture in their lives.     

Fighting back: Vulnerabilities,blunders, and countermobilization by the targets in three animal rights campaigns

Among the determinants of social movement success, the characteristics and responses of nonstate organizations under attack by protestors have been overlooked. We examine three campaigns by animal rights groups against experimentation, in 1976–1977, 1987–1988, and 1988–1989. The first two campaigns stopped the research, while the third did not. One influential set of factors was the preexisting vulnerabilities—e.g., unpopular practices, internal factions—on the part of targeted organizations. Another was the strategic responses of these organizations, especially the avoidance of blunders. A growing countermovement, thirdly, affected the organizations' ability to respond effectively and avoid blunders. As a social movement expands and strengthens, it encourages counterorganizing and a hardening of resistance, so that many social movements may actually be less successful as they become larger and more visible.Revised version of a paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Washington, DC, August 1990.     

Managing a nation's image during crisis: A study of the Chinese government's image repair efforts in the “Made in China” controversy

The image of a nation is crucial in the conduct of international relations (Wang, J. (2006). Managing national reputation and international relations in the global era: Public diplomacy revisited. Public Relations Review, 32, 91–96). A favorable image plays a critical role in asserting one's influence (Benoit, W. L., & Brinson, S. L. (1994). AT&T: “Apologies are not enough”. Communication Quarterly, 42, 75–88; Wang, J. (2006). Managing national reputation and international relations in the global era: Public diplomacy revisited. Public Relations Review, 32, 91–96). Often, strategic communication tools like public relations and media diplomacy are used to enhance a nation's image (Giffard, A., & Rivenburgh, N. K. (2000). News agencies, national images, and global media events. Journalism Quarterly, 77, 8–21). In 2007, China's reputation as “the workshop of the world” (Gaulier, G., Lemoine, F., & Unal-Kesenci, D. (2005). China: A workshop of the Cd and a market for Europe. At: http://ideas.repec.org/a/cii/cepill/2005-245.html. Accessed on 14 May 2009) came under severe threat with a series of product recalls. This was arguably the first time that allegations of product deficiencies were targeted at a country. Using the image repair theory, this paper examined the strategies used and the image these strategies generated for China. Findings showed that the initial defensive strategies generated an image of a hurried and harried country. After it was willing to confront the crises through corrective action, a surer and more determined image emerged.     

The constancy of crime hypothesis: Historical evidence from Plymouth Colony

In extending Durkheimian thought on the relationship between deviance and social order, Erikson (1966) advanced the constancy of crime hypothesis, maintaining that the volume of deviant behavior remains stable over time. Erikson's data for Essex County do show remarkable stability for the years 1651–1680 in the reported offender rate. However, Essex County represents a very limited test of the hypothesis. We present comparative historical data for the entirety of Plymouth Colony, 1633–1679, finding that change—not constancy—best characterizes the evidence. The lack of unequivocal support for the hypothesis suggests a need for its rethinking. Several such possibilities are briefly discussed.We wish to thank our colleagues David L. Smith, Charles J. Dudley, Michael Hughes, Richard Schuster, Alan C. Acock (Sociology), A. Roger Ekirch (Department of History) and the anonymous reviewers ofQualitative Sociology for their helpful suggestions on a prior version of this paper. The research was made possible by a small project grant from VPI & SU, and we gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Catherine L. Hammond in completing the investigation.     

Endogenous agenda formation in three-person committees

This paper analyzes a 3-person voting game in which two or three players have the ability to choose alternatives to be considered. Once the set of possible alternatives and the structure of the voting procedure are known, the players can solve for the outcome. Thus, the actual choice over outcomes takes place in the choice of alternatives to be voted on, i.e., the agenda. An equilibrium to this agenda-formation game in shown to exist under different assumptions about the information relative to the order of the players in the voting game. Further, this equilibrium is computed and found to possess certain features which are attractive from a normative point of view.Prepared for delivery at the 1985 Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association, The New Orleans Hilton, August 29–September 1, 1985. We would like to thank Richard McKelvey, Norman Schofield and two anonymous referees for valuable comments and suggestions. We retain responsibility for remaining errors.     

Crossing divides: Ethnicity and rurality

This paper draws on research with people from African, Caribbean and Asian backgrounds regarding perceptions and use of the English countryside. I explore the complex ways in which the category ‘rural’ was constructed as both essentialised and relational: how the countryside was understood most definitely as ‘not-city’ but also, at the same time, the English countryside was conceived as part of a range of networks: one site in a web of ‘nature places’ across the country, as well as one rural in an international chain of rurals – specifically via embodied and emotional connections with ‘nature’. I argue that alongside sensed/sensual embodiment (the non-representational intuitive work of the body), we need also to consider reflective embodiment as a desire to space/place in order to address the structural socio-spatial exclusions endemic in (rural) England and how they are challenged. I suggest that a more progressive conceptualisation of rurality – a ‘transrural’ open to issues of mobility and desire – can help us disrupt dominant notions of rural England as only an exclusionary white space, and reposition it as a site within multicultural, multiethnic, transnational and mobile social Imaginaries.     

New information communication technologies and the development of a children's 'community of interest'

This paper is concerned with the potential of new InformationCommunication Technologies as a means of furthering a children’s‘community of interest’. A ‘community of interest’is taken from Raymond Williams’ concept of people formingcommunities not around place but around specific ‘interests’.I wish in this paper to explore the forms and tensions of achildren’s ‘community of interest’ that mightbe facilitated around ICTs in general and the Internet in particular.The paper draws on community development literature around thepotentials and use of ICTs as a means of developing communities.The paper highlights these potentials but also investigatesthe obstacles that a children’s online ‘communityof interest’ may confront.     

Abstracts

Bennett, D., Fox, C, Jowell, T., & Skynner, A. C. R. Toward a family approach in a psychiatric day hospital.
Blechman, E. A., Olson, D. H. L., & Hellman, I. D. Stimulus control over family problem-solving behavior: The family contract game.
Butler, J. F. The toilet training success of parents after reading "Toilet Training in Less Than a Day."
Dell, P. F., & Appelbaum, A. S. Trigenerational enmeshment: Unresolved ties of single-parents to family of origin.
Kalter, N. Children of divorce in an outpatient psychiatric population.
Kelly, J. B., & Wallerstein, J. S. Divorce counseling: A community service for families in the midst of divorce.
Kelly, J. B., & Wallerstein, J. S. Brief interventions with children in divorcing families.
Klein, M. H. Feminist concepts of therapy outcome.
Krell, R., & Miles, J. E. Marital therapy of couples in which the husband is a physician.
Leiber, L., Plumb, M. M., Gerstenzang, M. L., & Holland, J. The communication of affection between cancer patients and their spouses.
Rubenstein, R. Briefing on inner space.
Strean, H. S. The extramarital affair: A psychoanalytic view.
Turkel, A. R. The impact of feminism on the practice of a woman analyst.
Wincze, J. P., Caird, W. K. The effects of systematic desensitization and video desensitization in the treatment of essential sexual dysfunction.
Wyatt, G. E., Strayer, R. G., & Lobitz, W. C. The treatment of sexually dysfunctioning couples of Afro-American descent.     

Moral hazard and free riding in collective action

Most political and economic theorists point to moral hazard in teams as the main obstacle to lobbies’ collective action. In this paper, we address this important issue with a coalition-formation game. In the process of doing so, we characterize equilibrium lobby structures both in the absence and in the presence of moral hazard. Three notable results emerge from such an exercise: (1) an equilibrium lobby structure exists under both specifications of the model, (2) moral hazard in teams may raise large groups’ equilibrium lobby size, and (3) it may also raise the level of collective action of large groups with low organizational costs. I wish to express my appreciation to Helmuth Cremer, Philippe De Donder, Kai A. Konrad, Michel Le Breton, Daniel Seidmann, Shlomo Weber, an associate editor of this journal and a referee for valuable comments and suggestions. I am also grateful to Paul Belleflamme, Francis Bloch, Robert Dur, Joan Esteban, Debraj Ray, and the audience at the CESifo Area Conference on Public Sector Economics 2006 and at the 15th Aix-Marseille SSIEIO for helpful discussions.     

Soccer, civil religion, and public relations: Devotional–promotional communication and Barcelona Football Club

The aim of this article is to provide a public relations perspective on the civil religion phenomenon through a study of Barcelona Football Club (BFC) as an institution and its public relations efforts. We believe that BFC can be seen as a form of civil religion that uses a devotional–promotional communication model which sets forth, upholds and reinforces relations with “faithful supporters”. The paper links to three main contributions: the work of [Salvador, J. (2004). Futbol, metàfora d’una guerra freda: Un estudi antropològic del Barça. Barcelona: Proa.] on anthropological approach to BFC, [Giner, S. (2003). Carisma y razón. Madrid: Alianza] on civil religion and its communicative dimension, and [Tilson, D. J. (2006). Devotional–promotional communicationa and Santiago: A thousand-year public relations campaign for Saint James and Spain. In J. L’Etang & M. Pieczka (Eds.), Public relations: Critical debates and contemporary practice (pp. 167–184). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.] on devotional–promotional communication. Thus, this article advances a public relations approach to civil religion.     

Revisiting a theory of negotiation: the utility of Markiewicz (2005) proposed six principles

People invited to participate in an evaluation process will inevitably come from a variety of personal backgrounds and hold different views based on their own lived experience. However, evaluators are in a privileged position because they have access to information from a wide range of sources and can play an important role in helping stakeholders to hear and appreciate one another's opinions and ideas. Indeed, in some cases a difference in perspective can be utilised by an evaluator to engage key stakeholders in fruitful discussion that can add value to the evaluation outcome. In other instances the evaluator finds that the task of facilitating positive interaction between multiple stakeholders is just ‘an uphill battle’ and so conflict, rather than consensus, occurs as the evaluation findings emerge and are debated.As noted by Owen [(2006) Program evaluation: Forms and approaches (3rd ed.). St. Leonards, NSW: Allen & Unwin] and other eminent evaluators before him [Fetterman, D. M. (1996). Empowerment evaluation: An introduction to theory and practice. In D. M. Fetterman, S. J. Kaftarian, & A. Wandersman (Eds.), Empowerment evaluation: Knowledge and tools for self-assessment and accountability (pp. 3–46). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; Patton, M. Q. (1997). Utilization-focused evaluation (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; Stake, R. A. (1983). Stakeholder influence in the evaluation of cities-in-schools. New Directions for Program Evaluation, 17, 15–30], conflict in an evaluation process is not unexpected. The challenge is for evaluators to facilitate dialogue between people who hold strongly opposing views, with the aim of helping them to achieve a common understanding of the best way forward. However, this does not imply that consensus will be reached [Guba, E. G., & Lincoln, Y. S. (1989). Fourth generation evaluation. Newbury Park, CA: Sage]. What is essential is that the evaluator assists the various stakeholders to recognise and accept their differences and be willing to move on.But the problem is that evaluators are not necessarily equipped with the technical or personal skills required for effective negotiation. In addition, the time and effort that are required to undertake this mediating role are often not sufficiently understood by those who commission a review. With such issues in mind Markiewicz, A. [(2005). A balancing act: Resolving multiple stakeholder interests in program evaluation. Evaluation Journal of Australasia, 4(1–2), 13–21] has proposed six principles upon which to build a case for negotiation to be integrated into the evaluation process. This paper critiques each of these principles in the context of an evaluation undertaken of a youth program. In doing so it challenges the view that stakeholder consensus is always possible if program improvement is to be achieved. This has led to some refinement and further extension of the proposed theory of negotiation that is seen to be instrumental to the role of an evaluator.