Political Agenda Research Articles

Мировоззренческие и идеологические предпосылки международного сотрудничества ирландских левых националистов и РСДРП(б) в 1916–1917 гг.

The article examines the ideological and attitudinal prerequisites of the international cooperation between Irish leftist nationalists and the RSDLP (Bolsheviks) in 1916–1917. It describes the historical aspects characterizing the essence of the ideological orientations of Ireland’s national liberation organizations at the beginning of the 20th century within the context of the RSDLP (Bolsheviks) international agenda during 1916–1917. The analysis draws upon lesser-known domestic sources from the 1910s, some of which are introduced into scholarly discourse for the first time. The author expresses the opinion that during this period, Bolshevik leaders, particularly V.I. Lenin, I.V. Stalin, and L.D. Trotsky, placed considerable hopes on the socialist awakening in Ireland. For the international communist movement, Britain remained the primary imperialist predator, and the struggle against global imperialism continually shaped the political agenda in Soviet Russia. The article notes the existing Bolshevik viewpoint on the Irish question in international affairs during those years, according to which Ireland’s movement against English imperialism represented a progressive social process and therefore needed to be supported through both overt and covert means. In conclusion, the article sheds light on the intricate dynamics of international collaboration between Irish leftist nationalists and the RSDLP (Bolsheviks) during the pivotal years of 1916–1917. Overall, it enriches scholarly discourse by offering a comprehensive analysis supported by primary sources, normative-legislative base, and representative literature.

The trustification of AI. Disclosing the bridging pillars that tie trust and AI together

Trustworthy artificial intelligence (TAI) is trending high on the political agenda. However, what is actually implied when talking about TAI, and why it is so difficult to achieve, remains insufficiently understood by both academic discourse and current AI policy frameworks. This paper offers an analytical scheme with four different dimensions that constitute TAI: a) A user perspective of AI as a quasi-other; b) AI's embedding in a network of actors from programmers to platform gatekeepers; c) The regulatory role of governance in bridging trust insecurities and deciding on AI value trade-offs; and d) The role of narratives and rhetoric in mediating AI and its conflictual governance processes. It is through the analytical scheme that overlooked aspects and missed regulatory demands around TAI are revealed and can be tackled. Conceptually, this work is situated in disciplinary transgression, dictated by the complexity of the phenomenon of TAI. The paper borrows from multiple inspirations such as phenomenology to reveal AI as a quasi-other we (dis-)trust; Science & Technology Studies (STS) to deconstruct AI's social and rhetorical embedding; as well as political science for pinpointing hegemonial conflicts within regulatory bargaining.

COVID-19 grassroots memorial practices in the UK

At the time of writing, confirmed UK deaths from COVID-19 number over 160,000. While the restrictions on burial rituals and closure of faith spaces during successive UK lockdowns have impacted the commemoration of COVID-19 victims, the emergence of grassroots memorial practices – from street art campaigns to yellow hearts in the windows of bereaved households – demonstrates the extent to which communities have adapted ceremonial processes in a period of national trauma. This visual essay examines a selection of grassroots activities, created both during and between UK lockdowns, charting the way in which apparently coherent aesthetic approaches to COVID-19 memorialisation provide cover for diverse political and personal agendas.

Legislative Foundations: Exploring Land Take Laws and Urban Regeneration Policies in Italy and Europe

Soil is now a central issue on the European as well as the national political agenda, as it represents a fundamental ecosystem for human survival on the planet. Today, more than ever, its protection and proper use in various contexts (agricultural, natural, urban) require stringent policies that can be implemented immediately. The difficult reversibility of urban transformations is the main threat to the ecosystem integrity of soil. Starting from this statement, the main objective of the proposed work is to analyze how the main European countries (Italy, France, Germany, and Spain) are addressing the issue of the goal of zero net land take by 2050 by examining the current laws and strategies. The results highlight how the regulatory aspect plays a key role in managing the phenomenon and how the absence of a national framework law can generate strong distortions and different interpretations of the soil ecosystem. The analysis of the Nature Restoration Law, adopted by the European Commission in July 2023, enables us to assess whether the regulations and measures adopted by the major European countries align with the European Union’s trends. Through a comparative perspective, the study aims to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of sustainable development practices and provide valuable insights for policymakers, urban planners, and academics.

Voices unheard: Inclusive journalism in Indonesian election reporting

The media holds a pivotal role in shaping the public agenda, particularly in the context of elections. In this process, media coverage is expected to embody inclusivity by encompassing the multifaceted nature of our society, incorporating diverse sources, and narrating a story that reflects a myriad of perspectives, including those of marginalized groups. This research, grounded in the principles of inclusive journalism, investigates how Indonesian media sheds light on people with disabilities (PwD) within the framework of election reporting. Utilizing a descriptive qualitative approach, this study examines articles published on two prominent online platforms – Kompas.com and Detik.com – focusing on their coverage of issues pertaining to PwD within the electoral context. The research highlights generally positive media coverage but notes a limited representation of PwD. Government sources dominate, indicating a need for more inclusive journalism. While legal and human rights perspectives prevail in framing, there is a call for more direct voices from PwD. Overall, the study underscores the importance of inclusive reporting, recognizing PwD as active participants in both politics and society for a more equitable democracy in Indonesia.

Society and Archaeological Sites in Interwar Greece

Throughout the twentieth century, Greek society invested in the enhancement and management of archaeological sites and monuments seen as particularly important for the nation’s political and diplomatic agendas. Antiquities have always been part of public life in modern Greece, as evidenced by national campaigns emphasizing the timeless value of ancient Greek culture, promoted in the service of national, political and economic ends. In this context, the Greek Archaeological Service has long carried out works for landscaping and demarcating archaeological sites, as well as for enhancing access to them. This study, drawing on archival material of the Directorate for the Management of the National Archive of Monuments (DMNAM) and other sources as well as two case studies—the Temple of Apollo Epicurius at Bassae/Andritsaina and the archaeological site of Delphi—examines the factors that have determined the relationships between antiquities and Greek society. In particular, it focuses on contradictions, and occasional conflicts, related to such relationships during the interwar period (1918–1939) and the social impact of the promotion and enhancement of archaeological sites. The paper also emphasizes local communities’ and authorities’ involvement in managing archaeological sites in their regions due to high tourist interest during this period.

Bienestar subjetivo, agenda pública y mejores políticas gubernamentales

This article summarizes and updates information on subjective well-being and its role in the public agenda, design, and evaluation of public policies including its definition, measurement, main findings reported in the literature, and its use in the design-evaluation of public policies and introduction into government agendas. A narrative literature review was conducted, its results show that subjective well-being is a tool used to guide public action in developed countries; however, in Latin America, knowledge about it and its role in government is new and fragmented. In some countries, progress has been made by constant measurement through the national statistical agencies, but its incorporation into government performance is scarce.

Shocking Experience: How Politicians’ Issue Strategies Are Shaped by an External Shock During Campaigns

In this article, we focus on how the issue strategies of political leaders are influenced by an external shock that completely changes the public agenda of the election campaign. The 2022 Hungarian parliamentary election campaign is a unique case to investigate this question, as Russia attacked Ukraine six weeks before the election day (April 3, 2022). The study aims to investigate whether the campaign’s issue strategies changed due to this shocking event, and if so, what are the main directions of the changes. The examination relies on a manual content analysis of Hungarian party leaders’ Facebook posts during the campaign, covering both the period before and after the outbreak of the war. First, based on the literature, we distinguish between different issue strategies such as issue ownership, issue stealing, “riding the wave,” and multi-issue and issue-poor strategies. We categorize political leaders’ issue strategies based on their issue focus before and after the external shock. Our results show that while war, economy, and foreign policy play a greater role in the communication of most political actors after February 24, there are remarkable differences between political actors. The communication of opposition party leaders seems to persist with their original issue strategies (issue-poor and multi-issue campaigns), while Viktor Orbán clearly changed his focus immediately after the invasion of Ukraine and ran a “riding the wave” campaign with a focus on war.

Entrepreneurial Creative Thinking and Venture Performance: Reviewing the Influence of Psychomotor Education on the Profitability of Small and Medium Scale Firms in Port Harcourt Metropolis

The significance of small and medium enterprises to an economic development of a country cannot be overemphasized. The growth of a business depends on the development of abilities needed to execute a smooth running of day business activities. Research has established the fact that fast economic growth of regions lies on the extent of trade activities in the area. Given this established importance of enterprise, this present study aims at empirically developing the relationship between entrepreneurial creative thinking and venture performance with specific reference to small and medium scale firms in Port Harcourt metropolis. Descriptive survey design was adopted and primary data were used. The data collected were analyzed using mean, aggregate mean, and Spearman rank correlation with the aid of statistical package for social sciences, version 25. Findings shows that there is a significant and positive relationship between psychomotor education (our proxy for creative thinking) and profitability, as indicated by p-value of at 0.05 level of significance. We conclude that entrepreneurial creative thinking is an ingredient that managers of small and medium enterprises deploy to achieve maximum profit. Based on the empirical findings and conclusion, we recommend that there should be a need for policymakers to consider developing small and medium enterprises, not only through the provision of social amenities but also development of public agenda for the acknowledgement of creative thinking, skill development, and prioritization of skills improvement for both expert and non-expert business owners.

Corruption and Co-Optation in Autocracy: Evidence from Russia

Do corrupt officials govern differently in elected office? This article develops a theoretical framework and analyzes new data from financial disclosures to estimate the governing costs of corruption. First, I uncover substantial hidden wealth held by roughly one quarter of the legislators in the Russian Duma; these “kompromat deputies” are vulnerable to damaging information being used against them by the regime. Analyzing their behavior in office, I find that these deputies are less active and more absent members of parliament. When called to vote, kompromat deputies from the opposition also more eagerly support the regime’s political agenda. Finally, kompromat deputies are less likely to win reelection, suggesting that they have shorter time horizons as well as that parties have incentives to rotate them out. Autocrats permit and then monitor corruption in order to co-opt potential challengers, who in turn trade loyalty to the regime in exchange for opportunities to self-enrich.

A patient perspective on kidney disease in the public health agenda.

A patient perspective on kidney disease in the public health agenda.

China's Cultural Revolution and Mao's External Threat Inflation: Crushing Soviet-Style Capitalist Restoration, 1966–1969

Abstract Stoking fear and hatred of foreign countries to serve internal needs has been a recurring pattern in Communist China. This article examines Chinese discursive treatment of the Soviet Union in 1966–1969 in textual, visual, and audio outlets. During the height of the Cultural Revolution, radical followers of Mao Zedong deliberately choreographed anti-Soviet propaganda in accordance with their evolving political agenda at home. By emphasizing the need to forestall “capitalist restoration” in China, the propagandists alleged that capitalism had already been restored in the USSR. In the face of strong inner-party objection to the terror and destruction of the Cultural Revolution, Maoist polemicists discredited and attacked their domestic foes by accusing them of disloyalty and collaboration with Soviet “revisionists” to subvert China's Communist system. The radical Maoists sought to justify the chaotic violence of the Cultural Revolution by conjuring up the threat of a Soviet invasion, hoping to refocus domestic mass struggle on alleged sympathizers of the USSR. Yet Mao's invocation of this war scare triggered a dangerous security dilemma and turned the USSR into a strategic enemy, a striking example of a self-fulfilling prophecy in world politics.

Spain: Political Developments and Data in 2023

AbstractThe year 2023 was marked by a dense and turbulent political period. The country faced local and regional elections, snap elections and the reformulation of the left‐wing coalition government. Spain also chaired the Council of the European Union during the second semester. The victory of the right (the Partido Popular and Vox) in the local and regional elections held in May in 12 regions (Autonomous Communities), precipitated the call for general elections in July 2023. This process culminated in the renewal of the Sánchez coalition government with support from the Basque and Catalan pro‐independence parties and the exclusion of Podemos leaders from the new governing coalition. The decline of Podemos, the emergence of Sumar and the disappearance of Ciudadanos characterise the new Parliament. The reform of the law on sexual consent and the start of negotiations on a controversial amnesty law dominated the political agenda. In terms of the Spanish economy, the negotiation of an addendum to the National Recovery and Resilience Plan also stands out.

Pertekliniai įsiskolinimai – finansinės atskirties pranašas

The article explores the link between financial exclusion and the problems of social exclusion and the at-risk of poverty and highlights relevance in the context of social policy. The study seeks to analyze the problem of over-indebtedness as a threat to financial exclusion. The purpose of the study is implemented by disclosing the concept and causes of financial exclusion, analyzing over-indebtedness measurement and management. The tendency to over-indebtedness is determined by a whole palette of factors: social, demographic, economic, psychological, behavioral. It examines which groups of society are most likely to face financial difficulties in fulfilling their financial obligations and other household payments and to be over-indebted. Assessing gross debts of households and the scope of over-indebtedness, links with the socio-economic environment and available demographic data of debtors in Lithuanian municipalities are established. Over-indebtedness figures are analyzed using a secondary analysis of the Centre of Registers (database of open bailiffs’ files, 1995–2023), the Official Statistics Portal, and the Employment Service for 2022. The data are analyzed using descriptive statistics, also Pearson correlation and linear regression were performed. The result of the study shows alarming increase in the amount of over-indebtedness in Lithuania. Over-indebtedness arrears are unevenly distributed among the population of different ages. The situation is not homogeneous between large and small municipalities. Results show that in large municipalities there is strong positive link between debts per person, poverty rate and amount of average salary. The problem of financial exclusion, and especially over-indebtedness, requires further extended research and increased attention in the political agenda.

Interventions to Reduce Child Maltreatment: A Systematic Review with a Narrative Synthesis

Child maltreatment has been a prominent topic on the political agenda for the past decade. However, while there are several types of interventions that can potentially benefit the prevention of child maltreatment, uncertainties remain regarding the transferability of these interventions to different contexts and their overall impact. Consequently, we conducted a systematic review of intervention studies aimed at preventing child maltreatment. We searched for studies published between 2016 and 2021, using predefined keywords from various bibliographical databases including PsycINFO, SocINDEX, Social Care Online, Web of Science, and ASSIA. The initial literature search yielded 3221 studies based on titles and abstracts, after removing duplicates. Out of these, 251 studies were screened based on full texts, resulting in the selection of 56 studies that met our inclusion criteria and were retained for extraction and analysis. The screening and data extraction processes were conducted by at least two independent reviewers. Given the heterogeneity of the included studies, we performed a narrative synthesis and categorized the 56 studies based on intervention type, control condition, outcomes, effects and quality. The results indicated that most of the studies employed individual randomization, with the control group most often receiving treatment as usual. Home visiting programs and educational interventions emerged as the most prevalent types of interventions. The review also demonstrated that a significant number of the included studies reported positive effects on one or more outcomes, such as indicators of maltreatment, suboptimal parenting practices, and problematic child behaviors. While nearly one-third of the studies did not report an effect size, those that did reported varying types of effect sizes. Additionally, only a few studies met the assessed quality criteria.

Biodiversity management challenges: A policy brief

Global biodiversity has been lost at an alarming rate in the past century leading to what is often described as ‘the sixth mass extinction'. Leading causes of this loss are chemical pollution, habitat loss, unsustainable use of resources, invasive species, and climate change. Such environmental change can alter ecosystem functions irreversibly, leading to a direct loss of ecosystem services, such as food provision, climate regulation, and cultural services, which are estimated to have a global value of tens of trillions of dollars. International governing bodies have repeatedly set targets to preserve biodiversity and ecosystem services, especially within the framework of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Despite nation states’ pledges at the Rio Summit in 1992 to conserve biological diversity, progress has been lamentable. One reason for such failure is that action to redress biodiversity loss depends on national governments but it is of relatively low concern on the public agenda. This article reviews the UK and EU legal and policy biodiversity frameworks and exposes some of the complexities surrounding biodiversity loss, including non-compliance, public awareness, and valuation. Following a multidisciplinary roundtable on biodiversity in 2023, we suggest policy recommendations to overcome these issues.

Mobilizing social transformation with technology. The shaping of social processes since the development of industrial society and beyond: innovation input and social processes

Technological development is a key factor for shaping social life, transforming the ways in which societies organize their production, mobility and communication processes. Since the beginning of industrialization, the pace of the transformations brought about by technological change has increased dramatically, and has further accelerated since the advent of the new digital technologies. These development processes has also impacts in terms of social, economic and environmental costs, a fact that has been addressed in the past few decades by various social movements as well as theoreticians, becoming a key issue in political and social discussion agendas. In this paper, we outline a historical perspective of these changes and their effects, from pre-industrial, industrial, post-Fordism and network societies, and we focus on the mobilizing potential of technological change. We analyze the role that technological interfaces play today in social transformation, as well as the implications for our present day that our interactions become increasingly intermediated by digital technologies. Finally, we discuss digital technologies and their impacts on social inequity. We argue that a public and democratic agenda comprising both development and technological issues should be put in place for guaranteeing social development processes.

The reaction of London newspapers to the proclamation of the Monroe doctrine

The presented article analyzes the reaction of the British press to the proclamation of the Monroe Doctrine by the American president in 1823. The reaction of leading London periodicals such as The Examiner, The Monthly Magazine, The London Magazine and The Morning Post is considered. The author describes in detail the diversity of opinions: from support for Republican ideals and their contrast with the monarchical aspects of the policy of the Holy Alliance to expressing concerns about the negative impact of the doctrine on Britain's trade and economic interests in Latin America. The author concludes that the London newspapers have a balanced, albeit emotional assessment of the influence of the Monroe Doctrine on international relations and the specific interests of Great Britain. The article focuses on the period of the 1820s and the British reaction to American foreign policy activity, neglecting to consider the British position in the context of the War of Independence of the Spanish colonies of 1808-1819. In the study of newspaper materials by domestic and foreign scientists, general philosophical (deduction and induction, systematic approach, synergetic approach, etc.), general scientific (observation, comparative method, etc.) and private scientific methods specific to a particular field of knowledge. The Monroe Doctrine provides a rare example of a 200-year-old speech that remains the subject of regular references when discussing the current international political agenda to this day. The article examines the reaction to the Monroe Doctrine, which is one of the fundamental documents of American public policy, which became one of the first steps for the formation of American strategic culture in its current state. The relevance of the article is based on the need for a comprehensive study of the reports of the leading London press to identify their impact on international relations and the specific interests of the United Kingdom. Despite the fact that the Monroe Doctrine has been around for two hundred years, it does not lose its relevance in relation to Latin American states with the United States, and, more importantly, in relation to the United States, with other actors in world politics.

관동대지진과 ‘유언비어’

This paper is an attempt to examine the use of “rumors” in the national narrative of the massacre of Koreans during the Great Kanto Earthquake. It is important to note that “rumor” is a term that is judged ex post facto and that from the perspective of security forces, “rumor” is a target for cracking down on, so this paper argues that it is necessary to distinguish between the period before and after the security forces perceived information about Koreans as “rumors”. Therefore, this paper analyzes the “rumor” records of Taisho Daishinkasaishi by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (1925) as the records after the security forces perceived “rumors,” ex post facto records. To reveal the intended use of “rumors” selected, revised, and manipulated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, I trace the primary sources of the “rumor” records in Taisho Daishinkasaishi and contrast them with those sources to show that “rumor” records have a political agenda. This attempt may contribute to emphasizing the importance of verifying the historical account of the Great Kanto Earthquake as portrayed by official documents and government publications.

The Politics of Memory: Tradition, Decolonization and Challenging Hindutva, a Reflective Essay

This self-reflective essay explores the wider implications of the BJP’s inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, from the perspective of a scholar of Sanskrit and classical Indian religions. What questions does it raise about our relationship with history, heritage, decolonization and the politics of memory? How can one decolonize oneself and society by reclaiming tradition and heritage, without political agendas and misinterpretations of the past? The article argues for a critical, non-passive, creative, reclamation of tradition for the formation of a truly free decolonized political consciousness.