The Case for Developmental Methodologies in Democratization

Interdisciplinary integration of adult and political development knowledge into the study and process of countries’ democratic transitions is necessary, so democratization does not become an incendiary process further destabilizing the planet. The incoherence in research and practice can be resolved by employing insights into the political reasoning, culture, and institutional structures at key stages of development. Drawing on Chilton’s (1988, Defining political development, Boulder: Lynne Rienner; 1991, Grounding political development, Boulder: Lynne Rienner) theory of political development, this coherent micro/macro connection is required for study of the central co-reinforcing elements for stable democracy: civil society, political society, rule of law, usable state bureaucracy, institutionalized economic society, and cultural conditions for psychologically healthy power relations. Developmental analyses of these factors provide the compelling theoretical framework the political science of democratization requires.     

The Democratization of Art: A Contextual Approach

ABSTRACT

Publicly funded museums and art galleries have been called upon to demonstrate their worth as nodes of social inclusion and facilitators of social change. Flagship galleries have been constructed to foster urban regeneration in part aimed at social inclusivity and transformation. A new museology has emerged that is perceived to be intrinsically more democratic for visitors. This focus on the democratization of art in academia and cultural policy is not matched by a focus on robust empirical research. There are few studies that demonstrate successful democratization and little work that considers methodological issues. This article responds to critiques leveled at three conceptions of the democratization of art to develop a fourth conception—the contextual approach. I argue that collecting visitor sociodemographic data is meaningful only in the context of an institution's social construction and the role of art in the everyday lives of visitors and nonvisitors. Understanding that a good life is possible without engagement with high culture must be part of a democratization agenda.     

税收立法民主化的伦理价值

税收立法民主化的伦理价值主要体现在:税收立法权力来源的人民性,执政党在税收立法权力结构中应当尊重人民的主人翁地位;税收立法程序的公正正义性,能够全面听取各税收关系人的意见;税收立法权责分配结果的合理性,能够有效协调各方税收关系人的利益关系;税法执行的自觉性,确保税收立法目标能够得以充分实现。     

政道民主与治道民主:中国民主政治模式的战略抉择

当代中国的诸民主实践形式与理论证明关注的都是治道民主,治道民主替代了政道民主而发生了僭越.现代民主只能是政道民主基础上的治道民主,缺乏政道民主支持的民主形式是伪民主.种种仅仅落在治道层面的民主形式与种种反对民主的主张,将中国的民主实践推向了一个十字路口,使中国的民主在理论上显得混乱,在实践上走上歧路.分析中国百年来三波民主浪潮,必须首先确立起民主的宪政法治内涵,才足以告别扭曲民主,步入民主政治殿堂.     

民主化引发政治冲突的原因及解决方案

民主化引发国内冲突的原因可以从两个方面来考量,一是冲突国家存在着文化和族群分裂的社会土壤,二是作为民主政体关键要素的选举制度具有诱发冲突的因素.民主能否成功不仅取决于社会、经济和文化条件,也取决于政治制度的设计.为了缓和与调解民主化带来的政治冲突,西方学界从弥补主流选举制度的弊端出发,提出了两种不同的制度设计方案:协和模式与向心模式.两种模式各有优劣,都不能保证一劳永逸地解决分裂社会的冲突问题.从长远来看,民主制度必须嵌入到民主的政治文化土壤之中,才能真正发挥其应有的作用.     

论信用的道德限度

社会诚信的研究和建设是当前伦理学研究和道德建设的重点,且很多学者都把信用制度的建设作为主要途径和突破口,但这是否抓出了问题的要害,却是需要慎思的。我们通过对这两个概念的反思和比较,发现诚信比信用有更高的立意和更丰富的内涵,而信用有其内在的道德限度,表现为:信用主体是抽象的人,诚信主体是现实的人;信用要实现的是外在利益,诚信则立足于人的内在价值;信用体现的是工具理性,诚信体现一种实践智慧。通过两者的比较,我们就能合理地确定信用制度起作用的性质、范围和程度,认识到它的必要性和局限性,从而摆正它在社会诚信建设中的地位。     

信用环境的伦理探析

从伦理意义上讲,信用环境是指由市场经济主体的信用道德观念和信用道德行为在市场的生产、交换、分配、消费等各个经济环节中所表现出来的履行信用契约的伦理状况.优化信用环境,挖掘其伦理价值,是市场经济良性运行的基础.     

信条

数千年来,人类敏锐的思维一直在探寻有关生命与死亡、时间与空间、人类在宇宙中所处位置之类的重大问题。这些问题的答案不但被写入众多宗教的典籍之中,也充斥于浩如烟海的哲学、民间传说和神话书籍里。     

Advancing Shūrā: A Social Agent for Democratization

ABSTRACT

This study is an analytical comparison between Islamic articulations of shūrā (consultation) and notions of representative democracy. It emphasizes various epistemic understandings of shūrā in light of qur’anic exegesis and historical precedents of consultative rule in Islam. In particular, it identifies shūrā as an agent for democratization in contrast to its more familiar manifestation as a top-down consultative system. This is examined together with the works of influential Muslim scholars from modernist, Islamist and pro-democratic backgrounds to elucidate what aspects of democracy they accept and/or reject. The article does not exhaustively analyze each scholar’s interpretation of democracy. Rather, it selects scholars from different historical epochs with distinctive theoretical positions on shūrā. Overall, the study finds shūrā remains largely under-utilized as a result of post-colonial discourses on Islam and authoritarian political systems in Muslim-majority countries. The article finally examines how shūrā can be better facilitated as a social agent to renew civil society and combat authoritarian rule.     

论法律信用与道德信用的特性

加强信用建设 ,需要对信用进行形态梳理和学理分析 ,以避免语义的混乱。本文立足于信用的一般特性、法律与道德的个性特征及其现实表现 ,在比较的视阈中对法律信用和道德信用的特性进行了条陈与辨析 ,并阐述了二者对经济信用的独特功效。     

诚信与医德建设

医疗行业的信用危机是职业道德建设中的突出问题.诚信是职业道德建设的灵魂.诚实守信是医务人员必须遵守的基本准则.信息公开和建立诚信档案是促进医德建设的有效途径.     

近视激光手术治疗几个问题的探讨

近视眼是目前全球发生率最高的屈光不正,我国的近视准分子激光手术水平已与世界先进水平同步,并处于快速、稳健的发展中。依据辩证法正确评价近视激光手术的优缺点,遵循系统论的整体性、最优化、动态化和模型化的基本原则,可以进一步提高激光手术治疗的视觉质量,促进近视激光手术治疗的健康发展。     

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due: A Case of No Sex Bias in Attribution1

This study examines the effects of informational cues on the attribution of success in a masculine task. Israeli managers (subjects) first evaluated the performance of a fictitious male/female manager and then attributed a cause to his/her success in attaining the managerial position. As predicted, performance evaluation affected the attribution and manager sex did not. An unexpected association between leadership style and attribution was found. Implications of these findings for female managers and for further research are considered.