On the coase theorem and coalitional stability: the principle of equal relative concession

The Coase theorem is argued to be incompatible with bargaining set stability due to a tension between the grand coalition and sub-coalitions. We provide a counter-intuitive argument to demonstrate that the Coase theorem may be in complete consonance with bargaining set stability. We establish that an uncertainty concerning the formation of sub-coalitions will explain such compatibility: each agent fears that others may `gang up' against him and this fear forces the agents to negotiate. The grand coalition emerges from the negotiations if each agent uses the principle of equal relative sacrifice to determine the actual allocation. We also establish the rational basis for the choice of the principle of equal relative concession by the negotiating agents. Hence we argue that the Coase theorem will be valid even if there are stable sub-coalitions.     

Civic-secular and ethnic nationalisms as bases of the nation-state: multiculturalism at the crossroads? 1

The dominant Eurocentric paradigm of the nation and the nation-state was premised on western historical experience that was indigenous to the west but claimed universality for the rest. Many post-colonial countries, particularly those that went through national liberation struggles, like India and China, with multi-ethnic mobilisations, established sovereign states. The nationalist leaders claimed the unity of nationhood for their culturally diverse countries (states), with their millennia-deep civilisational identity, compelling a new discourse on the untenability of the classic Eurocentric paradigm. The second development witnessed the inevitable cultural heterogenisation of the western countries premised on the expansion of the (immigrant) labour market through an ever-enveloping regime of economic liberalisation and world trade. The catharsis of the invasion of cheaper labour from culturally diverse countries, often native-displacing, resulted in western countries attempting to accommodate the emerging changing reality in the context of mono-cultural nations through the concept and policy of multiculturalism. In spite of this, western countries have been witness to intercultural violence, racial discrimination and threats of home grown terrorism. The paper seeks to distinguish between ‘pluralism’ and ‘multiculturalism’ and argues for a reformulation of the concept of the nation-state that will have greater applicability across states.     

ON THE ROBUSTNESS OF MAJORITY RULE

We show that simple majority rule satisfies five standard and attractive axioms—the Pareto property, anonymity, neutrality, independence of irrelevant alternatives, and (generic) decisiveness—over a larger class of preference domains than (essentially) any other voting rule. Hence, in this sense, it is the most robust voting rule. This characterization of majority rule provides an alternative to that of May (1952). (JEL: D71)     

Fuzzy choice functions

The R-greatest and maximal sets of standard choice theory are extended to fuzzy R-greatest and fuzzy maximal sets. Unlike the precise counterparts of these concepts, these two sets do not in general coincide when preferences are reflexive and connected. A stronger than usual version of connectedness under which the two sets are equal is provided. The concept of a fuzzy choice function is introduced and conditions under which a fuzzy choice function may be rationalized as a fuzzy R-greatest or a fuzzy maximal set are discussed. Rationalizability with transitive and weakly transitive fuzzy preference relations is also considered.We are indebted to Professor P. K. Pattanaik for his comments on an earlier version of this paper. We also wish to acknowledge comments made by an anonymous referee from which this paper has benefited greatly. The usual caveat about errors applies.     

The Voices Project

The purpose of the Voices Project was to give children and adolescents a greater voice in the local and global dialogues about the precursors and solutions to all forms of school violence. This exploratory project incorporates input from youngsters, educators, community partners, and university researchers into the development of a model for non-violent schools and communities. In this article, the Voices Project is described and implications for practice forwarded.     

Giving to family versus giving to the community within and across generations

In this paper, we examine the impact of parental giving on the transfer behavior of adult children to family members and community institutions using unique data from the Indonesian Family Life Surveys. Our findings point to persistence of private transfer networks across generations. In particular, the community transfer decisions of adults living outside origin households are positively influenced by the origin household’s community giving. We also investigate the relationship between household transfers to family and community networks. We find that unobserved heterogeneity in giving to family members and community organizations is positively correlated, suggesting important complementarities between transfer networks.     

An American Wordless Picturebook in Italian Classrooms: Inspiring Global Connections of People,Places, and Environments

What happens when five teacher candidates and their professor bring a wordless picturebook into Italian classrooms? This article presents a grounded discussion of our immersive experiences from the United States and the minilessons they taught stemming from a piece of children's literature through our study abroad program in Italy. The opening of Italian classroom doors provided reflective observations of the critical and creative thinking processes of more than 200 Italian students (ages 7–16). We (one professor and five early childhood and special education teacher candidates) taught minilessons in five Italian schools during a monthlong study abroad program offered by our university (further described in Author 1, 2017). Although this project was conducted in Italy, we have since used this minilesson successfully in our own classes, and we invite you to adapt our use to fit your teaching.     

Posttraumatic Growth in Relationally Betrayed Women

The research literature on relational betrayal in a committed relationship has focused on the resulting trauma from the betrayal; however, few studies investigated the potential for posttraumatic growth following a relational betrayal. This study investigated the presence of posttraumatic growth in relationally betrayed women. The research focused on women's perceptions of the relational betrayal, and factors that facilitated posttraumatic growth. Results indicated relationally betrayed women perceived the betrayal as a traumatic event, to the extent that some met criteria for PTSD diagnosis. The passage of time was significant corollary to posttraumatic growth when moderated by a PTSD diagnosis. Finally, certain resources were reported to be more helpful than others in the development of posttraumatic growth. Clinical implications are presented.     

An exploration of gratitude themes and suggestions for future interventions

For many years, the concept of gratitude was not considered worthy of investigation by psychologists since research goals were strongly dominated by the deficit-based approach and gratitude concepts were believed to be derived from common sense, and thus not warranting scientific query. This study, in attempting to understand gratitude themes, explores various events that elicit gratitude among engineering students in India. Thirty-two final year engineering students were introduced to gratitude research, administered gratitude exercises, and asked to provide feedback about the exercises. Nested questions, in the form of three-blessings and benefit finding exercises, were used to identify experiences of students leading to gratitude. Content analysis was applied to identify underlying themes and report them systematically. Four major themes and five minor themes were uncovered. Among these, positive emotions was the most prevalent theme and finance was the least encountered theme. Strategies to improve intervention studies, including restricting the area of investigation to one domain and making exercises interesting, have been suggested. Implications of the research within the socio-cultural context have been discussed with special reference to the complexities in separating the sense of duty and gratitude. Further research will provide us with more insights into the topic, specifically from an Indian socio-cultural perspective.