Published by De Gruyter

Volume 11 Issue 1

Issue of World Political Science

Contents
Journal Overview

Publicly Available May 4, 2015

Frontmatter

Page range: i-iii

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December 6, 2014

The Turnover and Politicisation of Lithuanian Public Sector Managers

Vitalis Nakrošis

Page range: 1-22

Abstract

This article presents the results of our research on party patronage and state politicisation in different Lithuanian public sector organisations (government agencies and agencies under the ministries, state-owned enterprises, personal health care and educational institutions). Although repeating alterations of governments best explained the frequent turnover of some public sector heads, their politicisation was related to the length of party rule in power, beliefs of the political and administrative elite and density of the party networks. The legal protection of civil service jobs was only important in the case of the agencies under the ministries whose managers always held career civil service positions. Furthermore, substantial variation in the scope of politicisation was related to such administrative factors as the political salience of policy areas and organisational functions, as well as budget size, which suggested different motivations and opportunities of party patronage in the Lithuanian public sector.

February 5, 2015

Political-Knowledge Regimes: Building a New Concept from Selected Policy-Change Events in the Tabaré Vázquez Administration (Uruguay, 2005–2009)

Adolfo Garcé

Page range: 23-45

Abstract

In recent years authors have paid increasing attention to the study of contextual factors that shape the use of research into a country’s public policies. One of the most significant recent contributions to this body of literature is Campbell and Pedersen’s concept of Knowledge Regimes, which focuses on the central characteristics of the relevant social research in a given country. This article is a critique of this concept based on the study of three key policy-change events during the Tabaré Vázquez administration in Uruguay. In order to explain the dynamics of social research it is not merely enough to understand the main features of the supply side; it is also necessary to study the demand. This critical perspective has led to the construction of a new concept.

April 22, 2015

Social Movements and Political Opportunities: Lesbians, Gays and the Inclusion of Sexual Orientation in the Québec Charter of Human Rights

Manon Tremblay

Page range: 47-73

Abstract

In December 1977, the Québec government, formed by the Parti québécois (PQ), amended the Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms to include sexual orientation as a prohibited ground of discrimination. Québec thus became the first jurisdiction in North America to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. This paper examines the reasons why the PQ government stood ahead of everybody else in this matter. It argues that the Québec lesbian and gay movement drew on favorable political and cultural opportunities to secure legal protection against discrimination.

April 14, 2015

Campaign-Personalization and Constituency Focus in a Mixed-Member Electoral System. The Case of Hungary

Zsófia Papp

Page range: 75-95

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to uncover the micro-factors structuring campaign personalization in the case of Hungarian Members of Parliament. It is presumed that in a party-centred environment, the effects of the various independent characteristics are filtered by the parties. Thus, due to the electoral rules, personalization cannot contradict party centeredness. Representatives do not wish to distance themselves from their parties. Personalization is more of the result of the positions they hold or wish to fill in than the desire to defy party lines out of individualistic motivations. Based on the data from the 2010 MP-survey of the Hungarian Election Study, the article unveils the circumstances under which campaign personalization prevails. The international scholarly literature sets several hypotheses with regards to the factors influencing three dimensions of campaign personalization (norms, means and agenda), out of which several will be tested in this article. The analysis concludes that even under party-centred circumstances, the role of individual motivations and habits cannot be overlooked in defining the degree of personalization, nevertheless the interpretation of such effects requires caution.

April 17, 2015

World Organizations – (Re-)Conceptualizing International Organizations

Martin Koch

Page range: 97-131

Abstract

The article tries to theoretically re-conceptualize international organizations as world organizations. As International Relations Theories primarily concentrate on the linkage between states and international organizations they mostly neglect conceptualizing them and their changing roles in world politics. This contribution therefore suggests conceptualizing international organizations from an organization studies perspective as open system embedded in and influenced by its societal environment, i.e., world society. Thus, international organizations having no spatial restrictions concerning its membership shall be conceived as world organizations by differentiating four key characteristics: world semantics, inner world, external relations, and world order. Taking an open system’s perspective as the common ground for these four characteristics world organizations will be illustrated by focusing on the World Trade Organization and World Bank.

April 14, 2015

Critical Analysis of Civil Service Politicization in Slovenia

Marko Čehovin, Miro Haček

Page range: 133-155

Abstract

Even though some level of politicization is pressed into the “genetic material” of administrative systems, the majority of experts agree that a system with high levels of politicization is less efficient, as most individuals do not have the chance to develop their full potential. The weaknesses of politicization are even more devastating in smaller states such as Slovenia, as they have a limited amount of human resources available. Based on a detailed analysis of the politicization of civil service in Slovenia, the authors can confirm that the level of politicization is quite high. After accession into the European Union (2004) and the adoption of austerity laws (2010–2013), politicization increased even further. Despite the formal existence of a meritocratic civil service system, politicians have an increasingly decisive role in the employment and advancement of civil servants, and total control over the appointment and dismissal of senior civil servants. The authors conclude that the predominance of politicians with relationships to senior civil servants can be changed with relatively simple adjustments to formal acts.

April 24, 2015

The Nagygate Affair, Corruption and Organized Crime: Corruption Networks and their Potential Impact on the Quality of Democracy in the Czech Republic

Petr Kupka, Michal Mocht’ak

Page range: 157-185

Abstract

This paper addresses the influence of organized crime on the performance of democracy in the Czech Republic and seeks to determine which dimensions of its political system (if any) are most endangered. We construe organized crime in terms of corruption networks, questioning in effect the predominant understanding of these two concepts as distinct or even exclusive phenomena. The paper thus construes corruption and organized crime as concepts referring to transgressive acts (i.e., behavior that involves a violation of moral or social boundaries that need not be legally codified), rather than in terms of legal norms. The influence of corruption networks is demonstrated using the “Nagygate” affair, which is analyzed using Maltz’s framework of potential harm. We argue that the debate on organized crime in the Czech Republic is, in fact, inherently tied to the study of corruption, since corruption constitutes an integral part of organized crime activity. Our findings are that transgressive behavior has a mostly negative impact, including loss of trust, the widespread belief that injustice goes unpunished, a weakening of the political system, and degeneration of the democratic regime. Moreover, the Nagygate scandal provides evidence that democratic institutions are not solely victims of organized crime but also a potential source of transgressive acts.

About this journal

The journal World Political Science (WPS) has ceased publication and no longer publishes with DeGruyter Publishing.