Ideals and realities: Renaissance state communication in Machiavelli's The Prince and More's Utopia

Communication plays very different parts in two of the most influential political works of the last 500 years, The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) and Utopia by Sir Thomas More (1478–1535). The contrasts between More's carefully controlled and Machiavelli's unconstrained political communication shed light on the communication issues and practices of their times, some of which may still figure in relations between state and citizen.     

Celebrity and politics: Effects of endorser credibility and sex on voter attitudes,perceptions, and behaviors

While much research examines the effects of celebrity endorsements in commercial advertising, scholars have only recently sought to investigate the effects of celebrity endorsements of politicians on voter perceptions and behavior. This study expands existing research on celebrity political endorsement effects via an experiment exploring effects of different versions of a news story describing a celebrity's endorsement of a political candidate on participants’ voting attitudes, perceptions of candidate credibility, and voting behavioral intent. Although participants perceive credibility differences between high- and low-credibility celebrities, neither endorser credibility nor endorser sex impact attitudes toward the endorsed candidate, perceptions of the candidate's credibility, or intended voting behavior. Conceptual relationships to other studies on celebrity endorsement effects are discussed, as are implications, limitations, and directions for future research.     

Three Routes to Pension Reform: Politics and Institutions in Reforming Pensions in Denmark,Finland and Sweden

By analysing pension reforms in three Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland and Sweden – that apply different institutional solutions in their old‐age security programmes, this article argues that the political processes that shaped the country‐specific pension set‐ups in the 1950s and 1960s had important ramifications for subsequent reform possibilities. A high degree of inertia exists not only in the institutions themselves but also in the political reform options and the ways in which pensions were reformed. The analysis shows that the ‘new politics’ was not new in any of the three countries. Furthermore, given the differences in the three cases, the analysis questions the nature of pension reform. The Swedish reform in the late 1990s was a ‘big bang’ that eliminated the old and changed everything; the Finns built on piecemeal reforms of conversion that gradually changed the whole system; and, while the Danish story appears to be one of stability and status quo, the drift of Danish policy ultimately changed the basic characteristics of the system. Although all three countries have more or less thoroughly reformed their pensions, the reform processes have differed according to both historical legacies and institutional frameworks.     

从吸纳到求援：资源变迁背景下的村庄政治

通过对征地前后村庄政治的考察,发现随着村级组织掌握资源形态发生变化,村庄政治运作实现从吸纳向求援的转型。征地之前,村级组织掌握集体经济,通过多种手段吸纳村庄内部各种力量尤其是反对派从而实现村庄政治格局的动态平衡,村庄权力结构呈现体制内精英—中间派—反对派三元均衡的样态。征地之后,集体经济消失,村级治权弱化,为实现权力和利益空间的稳定,村级组织开始向基层政府和村庄外出精英求援,村庄其他势力的话语空间减缩,村庄权力结构逐渐呈现一元独大的形态。而在一元权力格局之下,村级组织逐渐悬浮,村庄治理陷入困境。     

基于神经反射传入过程探释思想政治教育内化机制

生理学中的神经反射传入过程与思想政治教育内化机制在结构上具有同构性、在工作原理上具有共通性。探释神经反射传入过程对思想政治教育内化机制的启悟：前阶段,兼顾受教育者的心理状况、文化层次、个人经历、情商智商、家庭环境的客观情况,尊重和避免受教育者思想突触在较钝性、较温和、较粗糙的思想政治教育环境中容易疲劳特性;后阶段,重视受教育者的思想中枢传播过程和思想中枢处理过程的工作特点,避免受教育者中断对有益的思想政治教育的内化,同时促进受教育者拒绝对有害的思想政治教育的内化。     

义和团运动期间国内政治分野

义和团运动期间,当北方朝廷为恢复旧有统治对八国联军宣战时,南方督抚背离朝廷旨意与列强联手“互保“,南地绅士及知识界则以召开“国会”、举行起义等更为激进的方式对朝廷的举措表示反对。这种大致以南、北为界的政治分野的出现源于经济上的南富北穷、文化心态上的南新北旧、政治控制上的南松北紧。清朝廷在庚子年间的出格举动则是促使这种政治分野公开表现的直接原因。     

南京临时政府法制建设的特点及重要意义

在辛亥革命中 ,孙中山领导的南京临时政府为建设和巩固新生的资产阶级国家政权 ,制定颁布了一系列法律法规 ,虽然带有资本主义法制的显著特征 ,但它在用法律武器摧毁封建君主专制制度、确立现代民主政治的斗争中 ,起到了“唤醒人民、争取自由和建立彻底民主的制度”的重要作用 ,开创了中国政治制度和法制现代化的先河     

海湾地区“什叶派新月带”兴起的宗教政治影响

伊拉克战争推翻萨达姆政权造成的一个最重要结果就是,解除了伊拉克对伊朗什叶派神权政府的多年遏制,还使得伊拉克什叶派在战后政治重建中逐步占据了政治主导地位。随着伊朗什叶派政权和伊拉克什叶派势力的联系日益加强,他们已在海湾地区形成了一股强大的什叶派宗教政治势力。在其影响下,周边其他逊尼派国家内部的什叶派民众纷纷要求扩大政治权力,逊尼派君主制国家政府也感到了什叶派神权思想反对君主制度的严峻压力。目前,正在日益兴起并标志着伊朗伊斯兰革命第二阶段的“什叶派新月带”,已经改变了海湾地区什叶派长期遭受逊尼派压制的传统局面,并直接关系到拥有世界最大石油资源的海湾地区的安全秩序和政治前景。     

政府职能转型与社会组织培育:政治嵌入与个案经验的双重路径

政府购买社会组织服务和社会组织培育是政府职能转型的两个重要动力来源。学界目前对于政府如何购买社会组织服务关注较多,而对于如何培育社会组织以及如何解释当前我国社会组织培育的现状缺乏相应的研究。本文运用嵌入性理论,结合地方政府培育社会组织的个案经验,对我国社会组织的培育现状进行了考察和阐释。整体来看,我国社会组织的培育呈现出政治嵌入的特征,这种政治嵌入的方式属于政府职能转型时期对社会组织培育进行控制的一种过渡性路径,其发展的方向是一种宽松的培育路径。     

论罗尔斯正义概念的多重维度

在西方思想史探讨正义概念的基础上,罗尔斯指出正义是社会制度的首要价值。在古典自由主义传统基础上和设定的背景中,超越古典契约论,从道德人出发,确定了正义的自由平等权利的基本内涵。从原初状态和无知之幕的理论预设出发,在两个差别原则和优先性原则中,罗尔斯向我们展示了理解正义概念的多重维度。作为现代自由主义代表的罗尔斯的正义观遭遇来自古典自由主义和社群主义的批评,在此基础上,罗尔斯的回应也进一步丰富了理解其正义概念的维度。