Traditional Institutional Structures Research Articles

Has the Welfare State failed?

This essay aims to examine whether the Welfare State project has failed and how this apparent failure is intrinsically connected to the rise of citizen discontent. By tracing the historical roots of the Rechtsstaat and its development into the Welfare State, we highlight how the increasing gap between grand promises and their limited fulfillment has fueled widespread discontent. The much-acclaimed Welfare State seems to have transformed itself into a Malaise State, marked by a dual institutional failure: the inability to universalize its promises and the lack of political responses to the social discontent caused by that first incapacity. In this context, what was once considered a collective social desire has become (hyper)individualized within a “turboglobalized” world, inverting the traditional relation in which public improvement had the capacity to positively impact private life. Despite this, the responsibility of governments remains justified, as the transfer of power through democratic elections inherently carries the condition of accountability. However, democracy by itself seems unable to resolve these crises, especially when it comes to the well know populisms that carry out the so-called policies of disconcertment. Traditional institutional structures and power divisions also fall short, as the crisis of liberal democracy transcends national borders, becoming a shared Western dilemma. This scenario presents a paradox: while liberal democracy struggles with its self-created problems, abandoning its core values risks descent into tyranny. How, then, can we bridge the democracy gap while remaining democratic? We identify that a forward-thinking State philosophy, rooted in institutional (re)imagination and a reconstruction of the political and conceptual foundations of power, offers a viable pathway for addressing these impasses and envisioning effective solutions.

SOCIAL POLICY DEVELOPMENT IN THE CONDITIONS OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF SOCIETY

The article shows that digitalization has changed every sphere of human life and reformed the social order in society, but at the same time, this process has contradictory consequences digital inequality, an increase in the share of a new social class of the precariat, deprived of most social guarantees within the traditional institutional structure of state social policy. The purpose of the article is to comprehensively study the role of social policy in the process of digital transformation of society in Western countries and to identify, on this basis, the general and specific patterns of formation and implementation of social policy, changes in the political approaches of the state to the development of the social sphere, including in the context of globalization processes.

Collaboration between EAP teachers and content teachers: Insights from the literature for the Chinese context

Partnership with content teachers is sought after by EAP practitioners working in many contexts. However, such a partnership has not been a common phenomenon in EAP practice. In the Chinese context, the traditional institutional structure which maintained compartmentalization of disciplines did not encourage language-content dialogue. A review of the relevant (English-medium) literature would be timely as insights can be derived to inform the praxis in the Chinese context. For this purpose, in this review article, I aim to illuminate some literature-derived themes that seem particularly relevant for the Chinese context. The article will conclude with a consideration of the implications of these insights for the Chinese context.

Promena obrazovnog okruženja - za vreme i posle pandemije virusa korona

The aim of this paper is to describe and analyze the response to COVID-19 and evolution through different models of online instruction during the pandemic at a large Canadian university. This paper primarily focuses on the approach taken by the Faculty of Education including the necessary restructuring of the processes, organization of the workforce, support configurations, and institutional constraints. The factors that impacted changes in the curriculum are examined. Three distinct phases were identified and compared: 1) remote teaching, 2) fully online using a combination of synchronous and asynchronous instruction, and 3) a diversity of hybrid approaches. The paper highlights a number of challenges experienced with online education during the pandemic. Each one of them presents both barriers and opportunities. The process has made way for a potential transformation of educational practice at North American universities. This will likely come as a combination of increased knowledge and practice of online learning during the pandemic, and as a need to reshape traditional institutional structures to reflect the shifted landscape of education. It has opened discussions on equity and accessibility, learner-centered design, and the potential for change in the classroom and educational programming.

Urban Growth and Environmental Concerns: The Venture of the Greater Mexico City Metropolitan Area

During the second half of the twentieth century, Mexico City, the country’s capital, exhibited unprecedented demographic growth and physical expansion involving numerous local government jurisdictions transcending the historical city limits. The resulting spatial distribution of population and location of economic activities in a complex metropolitan structure generated direct and indirect pressures on the Mexico Valley environment and beyond. Comprising the metropolitan area, a set of weak municipalities impose an apparent insurmountable barrier to transcend roles and a traditional institutional structure. Most, if not all, metropolitan municipalities have shown limited capabilities to respond to what seems to be the cross‐cutting character of these trends that require coordinated multisectorial and multiscale management solutions. This article analyzes the impact of those processes and explores the scope (challenges and opportunities) of urban and environmental metropolitan policy responses.

Italian energy security, the Southern Gas Corridor and the new pipeline politics in Western Europe: from the partner state to the catalytic state

The establishment of the internal energy market and the development of the European Union’s (EU) external energy policy have challenged the longstanding politics of Western European energy security, particularly in the gas sector. The traditional institutional structure was based mainly on a combination of national politics and bilateral energy diplomacy, with a ‘national champion’ responsible for securing the supply of each country independently; this structure is currently under a process of transformation. The Italian gas sector provides a useful example to examine the emerging national and foreign politics of energy security in EU member states. The old pipeline politics and energy diplomacy of Italy are contrasted with the new strategy, exemplified by the government involvement in the development of the Southern Gas Corridor and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline. The model of the ‘catalytic state’ is shown to be the most appropriate model to describe the role of member states in the new institutional structure related to the security of the EU’s gas supply.

Marijuana Use and Behavioural Outcomes among Adolescent Youths in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

The study investigated the effects of marijuana use on the behaviour of adolescent youths in Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The population consisted of all adolescent youths of the study area. The study purposively adopted 200 respondents as its sample size in view of the non-availability of data on the actual number of adolescents that use marijuana in the study area. Snow ball sampling technique was used in selecting the respondents. A 35-items structured questionnaire was used to measure the substantive issues. Only one hundred and ninety-seven copies of questionnaire administered to 200 marijuana users were found useful. Simple percentages and chi-square statistics (x2) was used in data analysis. Data analysis revealed marijuana use and associated behavioural effects among adolescent youths in Ibesikpo Asutan Local Government. Finding shows a significant association between marijuana use and disrespectful behaviour among adolescents. Equally, a significant relationship between marijuana use and criminal behaviour among adolescent youths was found. Further findings revealed a significant association between marijuana use and financial mismanagement among youths of the study area. The study recommended that parents should be up and doing in the task of care giving to their wards; particularly, being watchful on the company kept by their wards. Campaigns against marijuana use should be incorporated in health education curriculum for primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions with special focus on the nature and consequences of drugs. In the same vein, the fight against drug abuse including marijuana by law enforcement agencies (Nigeria Police Force, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, and the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control) should be intensified. The collaboration of Law Enforcements with traditional institutional structures not just in checking the drug suppliers but also the users could be helpful in this regard. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n5p349

The Developments of Customary Marine Rights A Case Study in Kei Islands, Southeast Maluku Regency

This study is aimed to describe the developments and design a concept of recognition of customary marine rights in future in Kei Islands. The method of this study is juridical empirical and the specification of it is descriptive analytical. The data consists of primary data and secondary data. It is analyzed by qualitative method. This study results that the developments of customary marine rights include only in norms as a translation of customary law principles. The developments of it occur in legal subject and legal object of customary marine rights, traditional institutional structure and the customary law of Kei people. There are many factors that influence the developments of customary marine rights such as economic, social, cultural, and political factors. The principles of customary marine rights in Kei Islands are : (a). basically the using customary marine rights just for Kei people, but foreigners can use them too if knowledge of head of village; (b). communal; (c). religious-magical; (d). the highest authority in the head of village; (e).basically the using of customary marine rights only to fulfill the needs of daily living; (f). the using of rights that must be based on customary law. The concept of recognition for customary marine rights in Kei Islands in the future includes the existence legal subjects, legal objects, customary law and the functioning of the traditional institutional structure.

Engaged Scholarship in the Academy: Reflections from the Margins

This paper represents a series of reflections on collective and individual efforts of diverse women scholars to reconcile alternative views of scholarship within the academy. We document our collective experience with embedding the concept of the “scholarship of engagement” in our practice of research, teaching, and service through a process of collaborative inquiry. In addition, we discuss individual efforts to challenge university colleagues and students (many of whom are teachers in training) to interrogate issues of social justice, diversity, and marginalization in their academic environments. Our experiences provide a critical examination of the supports needed for diverse women faculty who engage in critical dialogues that challenge traditional institutional structures while on the tenure path.

Miscellanea U: post‐disciplinary networks in social media

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to consider the pedagogical, disciplinary, and institutional implications of social media for higher education.Design/methodology/approachThe paper examines current theories on educational technology and social media in the context of specific social media (Second Life and iTunesU) used in pilot programs.FindingsThe paper finds that social media dramatically alter the material contexts in which we make decisions about how to organize people and information in higher education. The operation of social media, particularly the low costs of group formation and risk‐taking, is difficult to accommodate within the traditional institutional structures of higher education.Originality/valueThis paper expands the conversation of social media in higher education beyond the limited (though certainly significant) tasks of technical innovation and policy making to recognize the larger institutional and disciplinary challenges and opportunities they represent.

The Past and Future of Commercial Banking Viewed Through an Incomplete Contract Lens

Commercial banks emerged at a time when contracts were quite incomplete and property rights insecure. They typically offered demand deposits, made loans on demand, and were regulated. Each of these aspects of the institutional structure were essential in helping the bank provide the twin functions of liquidity and safety. I argue that recent theories of banking, which I collectively refer to as “Incomplete Contract” theories of banking, explain well the origins of banking. I also claim that they can explain recent changes in banking; as th e informational, legal, and property rights environment has improved, there appear to be fewer synergies between various aspects of the traditional institutional structure of the bank. It is now time to think whether there is anything special about the institutional form of the bank, or whether all that is special is that it is regulated.

Institutional Theory and Economic Transformation: Enterprise Employment Relations in Bulgaria

This article employs institutional theory to analyse the remodelling of employment relations after the transformation from socialism to a market-based economy. Such transformation is subject to constraints deriving from institutional legacies which include both structures and ideational forces, and which create path dependence. We report empirical research on employment relations within Bulgarian enterprises, and show how path dependency has interacted with intentional design. We identify the structural and cultural residues that mould post-socialist employment relations. The result is a system of industrial relations that combines conscious redesign along a continental European model of corporatist interest representation and collective bargaining with institutional residues from socialism which have themselves mutated with the collapse of traditional institutional structures after the revolution.

Public Policy and the Emergent African Land Tenure System

Several economists have questioned the existence of land markets in African economies. As a U.N. publication (1973) states,' is paradoxical to note that although most African countries have very low population densities and land speculation is intense, there exists practically no urban land market (p. 3). Such statements are understandable given that some have even questioned the usefulness of conventional economic theory in the analysis of resource allocation in general in the so-called African subsistence economies. Dalton (1962) stated that the African is indifferent to material abundance or efficiency because, unlike the West, the economy neither compels producers to seek out maximization, nor provides them with economic directives to make economizing decisions in work arrangements. Sadie (1960) argues that the basic cause of lack of economic progress is the nonmaterialistic, noncapitalistic nature of African institutions. Although most economists today concede that the African is rational and that conventional economic analysis is useful when examining resource allocation decisions, they view the traditional institutional structure as an outdated anachronism that impedes economic progress and, therefore, should be changed by external political means to eliminate all vestiges of the traditional system (Ault & Rutman, 1979). It is important to emphasize that the traditional institutions that govern land use and occupation are changing rapidly in response to economic, social, and political

Interdisciplinary Centers: A Natural and Necessary Force for Creativity and Change in Engineering Research and Education

AbstractBecause problem‐solving is the distinguishing feature of engineering education and innovation, interdisciplinary approaches are essential since technologically‐related problems do not align themselves neatly in accordance with traditional academic disciplines or professional societies. The challenge is to sustain the evolution of institutional and academic structures to keep pace with rapid advances in technology and social concerns. The tension is between quality control as administered by traditional institutional structure and emerging societal needs and technological opportunities like the environment. Interdisciplinary centers with budget autonomy, in conjunction with re‐aligned engineering “departments and professional designations”, can be important vehicles for change. The ultimate measure of success of these proposed structures is that change will be institutionalized, and engineering education will constantly evolve to meet society's emerging needs.Reading through the directories of most major universities (admittedly, no substitute for serious academic research), I am struck by the burgeoning list of acronyms representing administrative units of interdisciplinary centers. As an example, at Cornell there are over 50 interdisciplinary programs and centers. They have become nearly as numerous as the traditional academic departments.

Rebuilding the Christian Commonwealth: New England Congregationalists and Foreign Missions, 1800-1830

The foreign missionary movement of the early 19th century grew out of the efforts of churches in New England to deal with the changes then taking place in society. The erosion of traditional institutional structures and social values plus the rise of Unitarianism threatened the destruction of the traditional faith. Mr. Andrew holds that the Congregational clergy used foreign missions not only to implant New England culture in heathen lands but also to awaken a sense of community at home.

On the Political Mobilization of the Agrarian Population in Finland: Problems and Hypotheses

SummaryThe hypotheses and suggestions laid out in the preceding pages have as their premiss the view that the political mobilization of the agrarian population in Finland could and should be studied by analyzing regional variations in the changeover from peasant to farmer. What were the major shifts in the institutional context within which men had to make their choices? What were the emerging alternative institutions, and could the peasant make a viable commitment to them when he could no longer rely on his accustomed institutional arrangements? No area remained outside this process of change‐over which in Finland gathered momentum in the 1870s. However, the dissolution of the traditional institutional structures took place in different ways and to a different extent in each region of the country.This paper has suggested that the most appropriate starting point is provided by the differential impact of the forest industry in the countryside. The fact that some areas were overwhelmed by the boom and other areas were not has importance as such. Yet the structure and nature of the peasant communities which experienced the boom affected the mode of its impact. Because these factors are intertwined with so many others, it is difficult to assess their importance; therefore the following suggestions may well need modification. Certainly one of the important problems in need of further study is how, in a concrete way, the prior and also contemporaneous ‐ indications of the market orientation among peasants through grain and butter sales were related to the impact of the timber boom.In Ostrobothnia and the province of Viipuri the impact of the rise of the forest industry was not essential to political mobilization. In those areas, the prevailing social organization was preserved and political mobilization took place within this framework: consequently, the Conservatives and/or the Agrarian Union found strong support in these areas. Specific conditions in these two regions ‐ which in some respects bore marks of backwardness' ‐ became increasingly pronounced, because political mobilization was making comparisons within the national framework relevant for the first time. More than elsewhere, the prevailing arrangements were undermined in the southwestern and eastern regions. In the southwest, lumbering had decisively contributed to a class conflict between different agrarian groups ‐ hence the strong support for the Social Democrats and Conservatives. Ant capitalist feelings were strong also in the east. However, they did not become manifest in relations between agrarian groups, but rather in relation to an outsider, the economic mediator through which capitalism intruded into the eastern countryside. The timber companies had the central role in mediation; ant capitalism was partly socialist and partly peasantist by nature.To conclude: where capitalism intruded into the countryside through lumbering, the Social Democrats received heavy support indicating the heightening of class conflict in those regions. In regions where class conflict was manifest in the relations between agrarian groups, the Social Democratic support was accompanied by support for the Conservatives; in those areas where the conflict brought by capitalism manifested more in relations between the agrarian population and the outside economic agent, Social Democratic support was accompanied by support for the Agrarian Union. On the other hand, in those areas where capitalism did not intrude into the countryside through lumbering and where there was no sharp break with the past, the Agrarian Union alone, or the Agrarian Union and the Conservatives together, gained the most support.