Confrontational Approach Research Articles

Die Energiewende kollaborativ gestalten – eine demokratische Innovation

Scientific and practical knowledge about political consultation and policy advice : The Journal for Political Consulting and Policy Advice (ZPB) sees itself as the authoritative forum for the professionals, as well as a scientific journal. It offers scientific, but primarily practical, knowledge for decision-makers from politics, science, business, media and civil society. It is committed to the idea that successful consulting and the overall professionalization of the consultancy sector depend on the professional know-how at the intersection of politics, academia and consulting. Mission : Political decisions require the appropriate exchange of scientific and communicative-strategic expertise. The Journal of Political Consultation and Policy Advice wants to contribute to this exchange of knowledge and to the networking of key actors and institutions. It is the first scientific journal in this field and also the key forum for professional practice. Structure : Academic essays, practical reports, portraits of important facilities and incisive contributions in the forum, as well as short announcements, reviews and an overview of interesting events. ZPB is concerned with maintaining a high level of quality. The spectrum of ZPB is as extensive as policy advice and political communication itself and has no theoretical, empirical or methodological constraints. The journal is not confined to one discipline, but provides information on policy advice and policy management in its entire scope – in a comprehensive and at times confrontational approach. ZPB is open to all authors in the field of political consulting. Website: www.zpb.nomos.de

A Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA) in Practice: Evaluating NGO Development Efforts

Human rights-based approaches (HRBAs) promise greater alignment of development efforts with universal norms, as well as a focus on the root causes of poverty. While HRBAs have been widely adopted across the development sector, there is little systematic evidence about the actual impact of this strategic shift. Evaluating the effectiveness of HRBAs is challenging because various non-governmental and other organizations have developed very different understandings of how to apply a rights-based framework in the development context. This essay takes a step toward the rigorous evaluation of HRBAs by offering a comprehensive review of rights-based programming implemented by Plan International, a child-centered organization. It shows that Plan's adoption of HRBA-inspired strategies has transformed its interactions with local communities and added an explicit focus on the state as the primary duty bearer. There is evidence for a systematic increase in individual rights awareness, greater ownership exercised by community organizations, and the application of evidence-based advocacy aimed at scaling up proven program activities. But Plan's peculiar brand of HRBA neglects collaboration with domestic social movements and civil society, largely avoids a more confrontational approach towards the state, and has yet to produce evidence for regular successful rights claims by disadvantaged communities against governmental representatives at local, regional, or national levels. The study also reveals a limited ability of Plan to address disparities and discrimination within local communities, as well as a need to define clearly the organization's own accountability and duties deriving from its presence in local communities across more than fifty developing nations.

Raoul Peck'sLumumbaandLumumba: La mort du prophète: On Cultural Amnesia and Historical Erasure

Abstract:This article examines two films by Raoul Peck—Lumumba: La mort du prophèle(1992) andLumumba(2000) that offer vastly divergent methods for remembering, memorializing, and meditating on the life and death of Patrice Lumumba. Peck succeeds in creating films that do more than preserve or resuscitate a historical record. The earlier film in particular performs analytic historical work as it delves into the conflicted historical record in which Lumumba is remembered. Peck uses an experimental and confrontational approach to reveal the ongoing forms of cultural censorship that have attempted to erase Lumumba and his legacy.

Social support as a motivator of self‐management among adults with type 2 diabetes

oftedal b, bru e & karlsen b (2011) Journal of Nursing and Healthcare of Chronic Illness 3, 12–22 Social support as a motivator of self‐management among adults with type 2 diabetesAim. This paper is a report of research on how people with type 2 diabetes perceive social support, how social support is associated with diet and exercise management, and the degree to which these relationships are mediated by the expectations people with type 2 diabetes have of their own ability.Background. Many people with type 2 diabetes have difficulties in motivating themselves to self‐manage diet and exercise. It has been suggested that the social support provided by healthcare practitioners, family and friends may be an essential contributor in motivating people with type 2 diabetes to adopt and maintain diet and exercise management. However, there has been little research to explore how social support interacts with motivation in the self‐management of type 2 diabetes.Methods. This study had a cross‐sectional design. The data were collected by a postal questionnaire assessing perceived social support as well as ability expectations, diet and exercise management. A sample comprising 425 adults aged 30–70 years with type 2 diabetes completed the questionnaire. The data were collected during September/October 2008.Results. The descriptive results showed that the majority of the participants reported constructive support from healthcare practitioners, whereas relatively few felt they had support from family and friends. Only modest associations were found between social support and self‐management. Some of the associations, however, were mediated by ability expectations. Associations of variables assessing social support with diet management were strongest among those who had the disease <6 years.Conclusions and relevance to clinical practice. Findings indicate that it is important for healthcare practitioners to consider the balance between empathic, non‐confrontational and confrontational approaches. For some people with type 2 diabetes, a more confrontational approach could be appropriate. They should also be aware that stimulating self‐management is challenging and complex and may depend on tailor‐made and ongoing support. Finally, findings suggest there is room for improvement in support from family and friends.

A Human Rights-based Approach (HRBA) in Practice: Evaluating NGO Development Efforts

Human rights-based approaches (HRBAs) promise greater alignment of development efforts with universal norms as well as a focus on the root causes of poverty. While HRBAs have been widely adopted across the development sector, there is little systematic evidence about the actual impact of this strategic shift. Evaluating the effectiveness of HRBAs is challenging because various non-governmental and other organizations have developed very different understandings of how to apply a rights-based framework in the development context. This essay takes one small step towards the rigorous evaluation of HRBAs by offering a comprehensive review of rights-based programming implemented by Plan International, a child-centered organization. It shows that Plan’s adoption of HRBA-inspired strategies has transformed its interactions with local communities and added an explicit focus on the state as the primary duty bearer. There is evidence for a systematic increase in individual rights awareness, greater ownership exercised by community organizations, and the application of evidence-based advocacy aimed at scaling up proven program activities. But Plan’s peculiar brand of HRBA neglects collaboration with domestic social movements and civil society, largely avoids a more confrontational approach towards the state, and has yet to produce evidence for regular successful rights claims by disadvantaged communities against governmental representatives at local, regional, or national levels. The study also reveals a limited ability of Plan to address disparities and discrimination within local communities as well as a need to define clearly the organization’s own accountability and duties deriving from its presence in local communities across more than fifty developing nations.

Activist e-mail action alerts and identification: Rhetorical relationship building strategies in collective action

This study analyzed 111 e-mail action alerts from three activist groups on opposing ends of the political and religious ideological continuum for examples of Burke's three identification strategies. Findings show the organizations employed identification by antithesis with the greatest frequency, indicating that activist groups most often take a reactionary or confrontational approach to establishing identification with publics.

A policy framework for trans‐boundary wastewater issues along the Green Line, the Israeli–Palestinian border

The annual discharges of municipal wastewater across the Green Line (the Israeli–Palestinian border) are causing a bi‐national conflict with political, environmental, and economic dimensions. This paper surveys the current scope of wastewater facilities in Palestinian communities and discusses the immense challenges to achieving sustainable wastewater treatment facilities. Current Israeli water policy hinders effective regional solutions to trans‐boundary wastewater issues. This paper proposes a less confrontational approach to solve common problems. The better management of bi‐national wastewater resources could establish sustainable trans‐boundary sanitation facilities. This would bring a range of benefits to health, the environment, and socio‐economic life.

Négocier avec la Corée du Nord ?

Negotiating with Nuclear North Korea Dealing with North Korea is perhaps one of the most difficult challenges in global politics today. Totalitarian and reclusive, ideologically isolated and economically ruined, it is the inherent ‘other’ in a globalised and neo-liberal world order. The respective approaches are correspondingly divided : a confrontational approach relies on the projection of military threats and aims to undermine the authoritarian regime as fast as possible, leading to a quick disintegration and subsequent absorption. The second approach favours engaging North Korea in political, economic and cultural interactions. The essay outlines why engagement is more suited to diffusing tension on the peninsula and avoid a war. But it also draws attention to key issues that remain largely unaddressed : how exactly people divided by the traumatic memory of conflict and death might coexist in a respectful and non-violent manner, or whether or not forgiveness is necessary to promote reconciliation. ■

Insect Pest Control on Potato: Harmonization of Alternative and Conventional Control Methods

The development of insect pest management strategies for potato has long been based on the eventual replacement of insecticides by alternative methods. This paper discusses the importance of moving away from this confrontational approach and toward the harmonization of conventional and alternative insect control concepts. A harmonized set of control methods should speed up progress towards a truly integrated management approach that provides both long and short term crop protection. Changing the paradigm does not resolve all the problems. Constraints to the development and implementation of the different types of control methods are discussed using selected examples. The harmonization concept has been discussed in general terms elsewhere but to the best of my knowledge it is applied here for the first time specifically to potato crop protection.

The role of crowd theory in determining the use of force in public order policing

Social psychological research suggests that where police hold a theoretical view of the crowd in line with the ‘classic’ crowd psychology of Gustavé Le Bon this can lead to police practices that inadvertently escalate public disorder. This research reflects debates within the criminology literature which suggests that a primary factor governing police tactics is police knowledge. However, the existing research on the specific relationships between police theoretical knowledge of crowds and their practice towards them is limited by its reliance on post hoc data. This paper addresses this limitation by examining the role of police theoretical view of crowd psychology and their operational practice during a high risk football crowd event. The analysis supports the argument that when the police hold a view of the crowd as inherently irrational and dangerous they rely upon tactics of mass containment and dispersal. This study advances the literature by suggesting that this ‘classic’ theoretical view of the crowd is leading to missed opportunities for the police to develop more efficient, effective and less confrontational approaches to the management of public order during crowd events.

Review: Fire and the Full Moon Canada and Indonesia in a Decolonizing World

FIRE AND THE FULL MOON Canada and Indonesia in a Decolonizing World David Webster Vancouver University of British Columbia Press, 2009. 272PP, $32.95 paper ISBN 9780774816847In standard texts on post-Second World War foreign policy, Indonesia is scarcely noted, and it receives only a rare mention in studies of overseas development assistance. It was only after the 1991 Dili massacre in East Timoi (which Indonesia invaded in 1975 and which achieved independence in 2002) that Canadian-Indonesian relations began to receive more attention. The focus, however, was primarily on East Timor and the coverage did not really touch on events before the 1970s. With Fire and the Full Moon, David Webster confronts these gaps in the literature, situating more recent developments within a larger historical trajectory of alliance-driven foreign policy, and tracing the influence of relations with Indonesia on Canada's self-perception as a helpful mediator in world affairs.Indonesia, Webster reveals, has been a relatively marginal but recurrent concern for decision-makers since the Second World War. A great strength of this book is the detail it offers on relations between the two countries, especially during the first two decades after the war. As a work of history, it provides the first account of Canada's involvement in decolonization in and around Indonesia, with chapters devoted to the active part Canada played in the negotiations that led to Indonesian independence (1945-49), me minimal connections Canada forged with Indonesia through the Colombo plan (1950-63), the limited role Canada defined for itself during the international crises over the future of West New Guinea (1957-63) and British-administered territories in northern Borneo (1963-66), and the shift in emphasis from the promotion of economic interests to the pursuit of a political solution for East Timor (1968-99). In developing this historical narrative, which draws on extensive primary (especially archival) research, Webster recalls little-known aspects of Canadian-Indonesian relations, for instance that Canada supplied a Dutch division that fought in postwar Indonesia, opened its first southeast Asian embassy in Indonesia, and first sent military aid to the region in the 1960s in response to Indonesia's confrontational approach to northern Borneo. Moreover, aside from reconstructing these events in diplomatic history, Webster employs the Indonesian case to develop two core claims about the nature of foreign policy.The first is that Canadian government policies [towards Indonesia] on decolonization flowed from alliance-driven thinking (4). Although others (such as Robert Bothwell) have made similar arguments, Webster reveals how the alliance mentality affected the margins (a decolonizing country) rather than the centre (western countries) of foreign policy. For example, in facilitating Indonesian independence, Canada sought an orderly process that would prevent splits within the Commonwealth and divisions with Holland and United States in the North Atlantic community. …

Running with the Hares and Hunting with the Hounds: An Impossibility?

Vascular surgery has emerged as an independent speciality in India. The growth and development of vascular surgery in India has been slow, yet steady. It is a matter of concern that almost a quarter century down the line this speciality is faced with several problems. This article examines the issue of whether it is feasible for vascular surgery to exist as an independent subspeciality. Does one follow a conciliatory or a confrontational approach with the ‘competing specialities’?

Confrontational Approach Has No Role in Addressing Physician Addiction–Reply–I

Confrontational Approach Has No Role in Addressing Physician Addiction–Reply–I

Confrontational Approach Has No Role in Addressing Physician Addiction

To the Editor: The article by Berge et al1 entitled “Chemical Dependency and the Physician” contained little new information and several inaccuracies. First, contrary to the views of the authors who state “the problem of physician addiction has largely escaped the public's attention,” the public is fascinated with this subject. CNN recently reported on the closing of the California Diversion Program, US News and World Report published a survey regarding “Would you want to know if your doctor is addicted?” and during the past 20 years there have been repeated news upheavals and hysteria regarding this issue. The fascination by the public likely represents the incongruity of the mainstream view of addiction as a moral failure that affects lower class individuals and the image of the physician. Second, the section on intervention is misinformed. The authors suggest using a “confrontational approach, [wherein] the addict is faced by a roomful of family members, coworkers, supervisors, etc, who offer specific evidence of the addictive behavior….” In 28 years of working in the arena of physician health, I have performed thousands of interventions, and this type of “Johnson model” intervention is ill-advised, risky, more difficult to arrange, and less effective. In contrast, the most common model of intervention performed by Physician Health Programs (PHPs) is a nonconfrontational “professional intervention” model, in which evaluation is “strongly advised because concerns have arisen” without pressing the issue of whether or not there is a bona fide problem. Immediate discontinuation of work is recommended to avoid liability issues. If the physician considers refusing, he or she is gently advised that the alternative to the clinical (and usually confidential) approach of the PHPs is to refer the matter to the regulatory board. Prompt entry into the “safe harbor” of evaluation can be accomplished in the vast majority of cases without confrontation, thus avoiding the stress and attendant risk associated with confrontation. We frequently handle such interventions by telephone. In our series of 328 such interventions by telephone, there have been no differences in successful entry into evaluation and no deaths, compared with in-person intervention. Finally, the authors refer to the oft-repeated and likely faulty data published almost 2 decades ago by Menk et al,2 before advances gained by PHPs, in which 16% of relapses were associated with death. Articles that document highly successful treatment and long-term care of anesthesiologists were not mentioned.3-5 The article by Berge et al is well written but contains substantial misinformation. Involving a medical director of a PHP, an ultraspecialized area of medicine, who is on the front line of intervention and management of addicted physicians for future reviews would be optimal.

Confronting Delinquency: Probations Officers’ Use of Coercion and Client-Centered Tactics to Foster Youth Compliance

Youthful compliance with juvenile court mandates is a cornerstone of effective probation practice. Despite this, research has not examined probation strategies for encouraging and enforcing youthful compliance with probation conditions. This study describes the use of confrontational tactics and client-centered approaches reported by probation officers in their supervision of delinquent youths. The study was conducted with data from a Web-based survey of probation ( N = 308). Results indicate that officers balanced confrontational approaches with client-centered approaches. Officers employed confrontational tactics more frequently than client-centered strategies for youths with substance use problems, with younger youths, and with African American females. Alternatively, officers reported more client-centered approaches with females who had higher histories of prior service utilization and with youths who were perceived by officers to be honest. These findings open new avenues for research on the effectiveness of confrontation and client-centered approaches toward an evidence base for effective probation practice.

Corporate responsibility for individual, cultural, and biodiversity

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to show how corporate responsibility (CR) could be utilized to manage and develop individual, cultural, and biodiversity and turn them into business strategies.Design/methodology/approachCase studies of two multinational forest companies are used to demonstrate present and possible corporate values, words, and actions of diversity.FindingsForest companies tend to react on external pressure in diversity issues. They often take a confrontational or minimum legal compliance approach. Biodiversity, cultural diversity, and individual diversity form an intertwined hot topic all over the world.Practical implicationsFor future prospects, forest companies should take initiative in diversity enhancement and become entrepreneurial, particularly as pulp and paper production is a declining industry and new business visions are needed. In cooperation with indigenous peoples, environmental organizations, governments, and other stakeholders forest companies could replace monocultural tree plantations with multicultural forest gardens, which provide many ecosystem services, natural products, and employment, and participate in large‐scale forest leasing for conservation. Multinational forest companies could also make better use of their diverse individual and cultural resources.Originality/valueThis is the first attempt to build a CR/diversity framework by studying different kinds of diversity issues through CR and by analyzing corporate values, words, and actions. Integrating diversity into CR helps companies to turn it into a business strategy.

Working with or against the stores?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse the implementation by a non‐governmental organization (NGO) of an intervention with two different strategies – one employing confrontational approaches, the other cooperative ones – aiming to reduce the rate of successful purchase attempts (PAs) of medium‐strength beer in Sweden.Design/methodology/approachThe Swedish Youth Temperance Movement (UNF) has been responsible for the development and implementation of the intervention, and a research team at Örebro University for the evaluation. The outcome analysis is based on 1,475 PA from 25 Swedish cities during 2003‐2006. Annual reports, discussions and telephone interviews have been used to understand the intervention process.FindingsIn 40 per cent of all registered PAs, beer is sold to minors. In the eight cities using a structured strategy, there is a significant decrease from 2003 to 2006 (44‐27 per cent; p<0.001). The confrontation method, compared to no model, is more than four times (OR = 3.8; CI 2.0‐7.0) more likely to yield a positive result. Compared to the cooperation method, it is even more likely to yield a positive result (OR = 4.7; CI 2.1‐10.7).Practical implicationsWorking with a structured strategy gives significantly better results than working without one. The confrontation method is more successful than the cooperation method. Developing a preventive strategy takes time, cooperation perhaps requiring even more time to succeed than confrontation. The result reveals the importance of building local networks in the municipalities.Originality/valueThe advocacy for Swedish alcohol policy by the young members of UNF and participatory research is a unique combination.

Remember elephants and icebergs… “Your lung function should be here, but it is there!”

In the present issue of the European Respiratory Journal , Kotz et al. 1 report on a study aimed at determining the incremental benefit of spirometry in a smoking cessation intervention in individuals with as yet undiagnosed airflow obstruction compatible with mild and moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In a randomised clinical trial (RCT) study design, the authors compared an experimental group (nortriptyline and medium-intensity advice with spirometry) with two control groups: C1 (nortriptyline and medium-intensity advice without spirometry) and C2 (passive physician advice). The primary end-point was sustained cessation at week 52 with urinary cotinine-validated definitions. Regrettably, the study did not provide evidence that the confrontational approach increases the rate of long-term abstinence from smoking compared with an equally intensive treatment in which smokers were not confronted with spirometry. In contrast, both the British Lung Age RCT by Parkes et al. 2 and the Swedish RCT by Stratelis et al. 3, along with the large Polish cross-sectional study by Bednarek et al. 4, add support to the notion that giving information about lung damage to smokers improves cessation rates. Why do these results differ? There are many possible explanations. It is likely that a reduced sample size and the high failure rates (>88%) in the trial by Kotz et al. 1 …

Commentary: The ACGME: Fostering Public Trust and Addressing Residentsʼ Needs

The author explores the relationship between the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)s allegiance to residents' education and its core obligation to protect the broad interests of patients and the public. In an accompanying article, Lypson et al pose the question: who should protect residents' rights and well-being-labor unions or the ACGME? The author contends that unions are ill suited to serve as advocates for residents' concerns about their learning environments because organized labor's fundamentally confrontational approach to negotiation risks compromising residents' professionalism. The ACGME, by contrast, is vitally concerned about the conditions under which residents learn because of its fundamental mission to improve the public's health by ensuring that physicians are optimally prepared. Through the institutional standards it sets and enforces, and through the channels it maintains for direct communication, the ACGME ensures that residents' interests are addressed as a matter of collegial, professional responsibility. Residents are advised to ignore the seductive appeals of organized labor because of what the specter of unionized physicians is likely to do to public trust in the medical profession.

Iran's Power in Context

Iran–US relations – strained at the best of times since the 1979 Iranian revolution – have never been worse than during the past six years, due to the much more intense interaction between the two ...