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One-third of all US counties have enacted Second Amendment Sanctuary (2AS) ordinances, preventing the enforcement of state and federal gun control laws. We test two theories to explain 2AS enactment. First, 2AS may be a manifestation of partisan federalism. This perspective predicts that the nationalization of policy issues has led partisan groups to support "sanctuary" policies in friendly jurisdictions to frustrate the opposition. Second, given the close link between gun policy preferences and racial identities, 2AS enactment may be related to racial dynamics and especially the declining political power of White Americans. Thus, we should expect that 2AS adoptions will occur in majority White counties with declining White populations. We leverage a unique dataset of county-level 2AS enactments to test these hypotheses. We find strong evidence for the partisan federalism hypothesis. In contrast, we find weak and inconsistent evidence for the racial threat hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept 'co-production of knowledge and innovation' (CKI) is gaining prominence. European Union (EU) research and innovation funding programmes like Horizon 2020 (H2020), Horizon Europe, and INTERREG underscore its significance as engaging diverse societal actors is often a requirement. Reality reveals disparities in actor participation in these multinational EU-funded CKI projects. As these projects are perceived as avenues for tackling 'grand societal challenges', such as the transition to sustainable agri-food systems, questions arise about whether they ensure equitable inclusion of diverse perspectives, enable genuine participation, and why barriers to entry persist. This study delves into the complexity of multinational CKI projects, shedding light on these questions. One H2020 and one INTERREG project are analysed using the multilevel innovation system framework incorporating a 'power dynamics' dimension. By including 'power dynamics' in an innovation system-based analysis, we offer a nuanced examination of mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion and a better understanding of potential policy intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article "Bottom Set Citizen: Ability Grouping in Schools—Meritocracy's Undeserving" by Paula Ambrossi critically compares the English school system with those in Chile, highlighting the impact of ability grouping on social inequalities. Ambrossi argues that ability grouping perpetuates neocolonial social, political, and ethnic inequalities, reinforcing lifelong disparities. The text emphasizes the negative effects of ability grouping on children's self-esteem, learning outcomes, and democratic values, advocating for mixed ability classes to promote social justice and equality in education. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the intersection of Freirean pedagogy and environmentalism, focusing on Greg Misiaszek's analysis of Freire's relationship to contemporary environmental issues. Misiaszek argues for the legitimacy of Freirean pedagogy as a response to climate and biodiversity crises, but faces challenges in positioning Freire as an environmental thinker. The text delves into the concept of ecopedagogy, emphasizing the need to deepen students' perspectives on environmental injustice and critiquing neoliberal education models. Misiaszek's work is situated within the critical pedagogical tradition, but some critics argue that he falls short in addressing the systemic issues of capitalism and neoliberalism that contribute to environmental degradation. [Extracted from the article]

Power relationships express one party's dominance, control, influence, and authority over the other. In this article, and using state-of-the-art AI tools, we show that power relationships can be automatically identified in textual data. Generating thousands of synthetic utterances expressing either dominance or compliance, we trained/ran three models that showed good classification performance. Moreover, using GPT-4, we present a novel method for presenting power asymmetry in conversations and visualizing the dynamics of power relationships over time. This methodology is presented and illustrated by analyzing a case study—The play Pygmalion by George Bernard Show. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African American women in the Pacific Northwest played a significant role in local and national political campaigns before the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Despite being a marginal population, they helped secure women's voting rights and created a network of gendered partisan clubs and organizations throughout the region's urban localities. Collectively, they sought to protect fundamental civil and human rights, expand women's freedoms, and improve the lives of African Americans. By 1918, their organizing power and leadership within the Republican Party gave rise to the historic campaign of Alice S. Presto, the first documented Black woman to run for elective office in the United States. This article examines the early activism of western Black women and the ways they wielded their electoral and political influence to help shape the concepts of freedom and progressive politics in the American West. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay considers the role played by economics and sexuality in the development of the imaginary of US settler colonialism by considering George Catlin's destroyed 1832 portrait of an anonymous Mandan 'dandy'. Catlin's representation of Indigenous dandies likely informed Charles Baudelaire's account of the dandy as an avatar of the transition to modernity, but during the gay and Indigenous liberation movements of the 1970s, the Mandan dandy was reclaimed as evidence of pre-colonial queer sexualities. Synthesising these conceptions, the essay argues that this figure illuminates the material conditions of modernity in the fur trade: an unstable assemblage of contradictory Indigenous and Euro-American systems of economic exchange, political power and sexual intimacy. The dandy figures a form of queerness that was conceived as an effect of these socioeconomic conditions, which Catlin condemned as perverse: a queerness that lay at the foundations of settler colonialism rather than in opposition to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article draws on feminist security studies (FSS) to construct a more inclusive cybersecurity. We ask: What can a gendered lens do for cybersecurity? Methodologically, this exploratory piece brings FSS insights to bear on studies in cybersecurity (both traditional and critical) to better conceptualize the risks and benefits embedded in the cybersphere, as well as the role of gender in cyberspace. We propose incorporating a gendered lens (an intersectional approach) to shed light on violence and insecurity online. Without recognizing gendering in the cyber realm, including how gender intersects with other systems of oppression, cybersecurity scholars and policy-makers cannot fully understand what we term the crisis of cyber(in)security. Additionally, we challenge simplistic solutions that rely solely on human rights protections in cyberspace. Such approaches often reinforce existing gender and power hierarchies through protectionist discourse. Our FSS-based understanding of cybersecurity has important policy implications. It calls for increased access and diverse participation in cybersecurity policy-making and diplomacy, and promotes a more thoughtful approach to human rights protection to address a broader range of cyber-based insecurities and forms of violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like most global sports, professional tennis is eager to claim that politics has no place on its playing field. On closer investigation, however, this 'myth of autonomy' soon cracks. In addition to adding tennis as a much-needed case to the study of sport and international affairs, this article develops the concept of 'the circuit' to approach phenomena that criss-cross traditional levels of analysis in international relations. In its first part, the article zooms in on the practice of writing celebratory messages onto the lenses of TV cameras as an example of the power relations that exist in and around professional tennis courts today. In its second part, it zooms out to map the themes and questions that have framed tennis as a political activity around the world and over time. The analysis identifies and characterizes the global tennis circuit as a site within which many of the most pressing political questions of our time are contained, focusing on the prestigious tournaments which make up the Grand Slam, and the elite athletes that participate in them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article "Lost in Translation: Vietnam, the Paris Talks, and the Chennault Affair" explores the intricate diplomatic negotiations during the Vietnam War in 1968, focusing on President Thiệu's reluctance to engage in peace talks due to concerns about the NLF and Hanoi's intentions. The narrative challenges traditional depictions of Anna Chennault's role in the affair, highlighting the complexities of South Vietnamese politics and the influence of key figures like Averell Harriman. By examining Vietnamese sources and U.S. archives, the text sheds light on the intersection of diplomacy and domestic politics, emphasizing the importance of a nuanced understanding of historical events. [Extracted from the article]

The article delves into the complexities of U.S. military advisors' role in Korea during the Korean War, focusing on cultural differences, power dynamics, and the challenges of implementing U.S. military standards in a different cultural context. It highlights instances of corporal punishment and physical abuse within the ROK Army, shedding light on the legacy of imperialism in shaping military practices. The investigation into Captain Paul Thornton's involvement in an assault on Korean National Railroad employees underscores the cultural clashes and concerns about discipline in the ROK Army, revealing the limits of American influence and the selective application of cultural norms in postcolonial contexts. [Extracted from the article]

The article explores India's historical pursuit of major power status in international relations, from the Nehru era to the Modi government. It discusses the challenges India faces in achieving this recognition, including human development issues, military weaknesses, and the need for democratic governance. The author, T.V. Paul, compares India's status-seeking efforts with China's and argues that India must address its shortcomings to gain the respect it seeks in the global arena. [Extracted from the article]

Although the World Health Organization's (WHO's) framework on social and structural determinants of health and health inequities (SSDHHI) has done much to raise awareness of these determinants, it does not go far enough in considerations of politics and power. The framework has become more de-politicized since its publication, with the definition of social determinants shifting toward downstream and individualized factors. In the meantime, new research fields on legal, commercial and political determinants of health and health inequities have emerged; however, these have not become integrated adequately into broader SSDHHI frameworks. To address these challenges, we argue for a re-politicization and an expansion of the WHO's framework by including the agents who have power over shaping structural determinants and the ways they use power to shape these determinants. We also provide a more detailed conceptualization of structural determinants to facilitate research. We propose a guideline for evaluating studies according to the extent to which they point upstream versus downstream and incorporate agents and considerations of power. We then use this framework to encourage more research on associations among agents, mechanisms of power, and structural determinants; how changes in structural determinants affect power dynamics among agents; and a wider focus on structural determinants beyond laws and policies, such as broad economic and sociopolitical systems. We also urge researchers to consider societal and institutional forces shaping their research with respect to SSDHHI. Research based on this framework can be used to provide evidence for advocacy for structural changes and to build more just systems that respect the fundamental human right to a healthy life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite relatively low numbers, Rohingya refugees in India have faced a spiralling, multi-factorial crisis of negative visibility over the past decade, constructed by public opinion, politicians, and media coverage. This paper examines this process of negative visibility, largely outside of the community's control, its very real consequences, and in response, how refugees navigate within an increasingly hostile policy landscape. Relying on qualitative data collected with refugees, community leaders, and NGOs in Delhi, Jaipur, and Hyderabad (2022–23), we make three interrelated arguments. First, the visibility of the Rohingya as 'illegal immigrants' is driven by multiple spatial and episodic factors and actors embedded in India's fragmented refugee governance. Second, refugees seem to adopt strategic mobilities/immobilities and pursue visibility in both mediated and coerced ways to protect themselves against the risks of negative visibility. Third, these strategies have unintended consequences for reassertion of hierarchical power relations within the community and with state authorities. Empirical evidence from the Rohingya case in India contributes to growing scholarly discussion on the co-constitutive politics of (in)visibility, (im)mobility, and fragmented refugee governance in South Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, scholars have highlighted the detrimental consequences of technology-based ageism. Digital technology (DT) is commonly discoursed as an opportunity to promote Successful Aging. Nevertheless, the theoretical implications of ageism, DT, and Successful Aging are underexplored. This paper presents a new theoretical model of Digital Engagement and Ageism (D-EngAge), which elaborates on the potential impacts of ageism on digital engagement and participation in later life and explains how ageism may pose a threat to realizing the potential of DT to promote Successful Aging. The D-EngAge model was developed based on a synthesis of findings from 12 recent studies we conducted on the intersection of ageism and DT. Findings were synthesized through Iversen's clasification of four dimensions of ageism, demonstrating how ageism as a multifaceted construct has a reciprocal relationship with digital engagement on the micro- (individual), meso- (social interaction), and macro-levels (discourses and societal practices). Consequently, digital engagement on these levels may exacerbate or reduce technology-based ageism. This forum paper identifies ageism as a barrier to utilizing DT, critically discusses power imbalances, and deconstructs Successful Aging discourses regarding digital engagement. Theoretical implications and recommendations for future interventions and policy measures to mitigate ageism and promote digital engagement and participation in later life are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholarship on pre-modern popular politics often focuses on speech, identifying the ways in which people outside the elite could have a "voice" in government. Using examples from late medieval English towns, this article argues for the existence of a particular kind of popular politics that centered on seeing and hearing rather than speaking. This type of politics—labeled "popular control"—concerned the right of the urban political community at large to observe rituals of governance and to audit financial accounts. Through these acts of collective witnessing, lesser citizens and non-citizens exerted an indirect political power to restrict leaders' freedom of action and to ensure that their performance of office abided by set rules. The unusually detailed Hall Rolls and Hall Books produced by the civic government of Lynn in 1412–13 and 1418–25 illustrate that "popular control," far from being a vehicle for increasing the urban commons' "voice" in municipal decision-making, often stood in opposition to principles of elected representation. After 1418, more people were being admitted to the inner sanctum of virtuous individuals deemed capable of offering rational counsel to mayors and jurats, but there were fewer opportunities for the wider public to witness performances of governance by this expanded group of decision-makers. The crux of debate in fifteenth-century English towns—and, perhaps, in the tumultuous world of late medieval Europe more generally—was often less about who should exercise political influence and more about how popular political power could be exercised most appropriately and effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"The Great Power of Small Nations" by Elizabeth N. Ellis explores the complex Indigenous history of the Lower Mississippi River Valley and its impact on wider continental and imperial politics. The book sheds light on the diplomatic and political influence of smaller Native nations such as the Tensas, Tunicas, Yazoos, and many others, who formed alliances with other Native nations and Europeans to protect their lands and cultures. The author also highlights the violence and devastation caused by colonial encounters, as well as the ongoing struggles faced by Indigenous communities today, such as the Pointe-au-Chien Indian Tribe, who continue to fight for federal recognition and support in the face of environmental challenges. This meticulously researched book provides valuable insights into the Gulf South and the Indian politics and diplomacy that shaped the modern world. [Extracted from the article]

Intersectoral collaborations are recommended as effective strategies to reduce health inequalities. People most affected by health inequalities, as are people living in poverty, remain generally absent from such intersectoral collaborations. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) projects can be leveraged to better understand how to involve people with lived experience to support both individual and community empowerment. In this paper, we offer a critical reflection on a CBPR project conducted in public housing in Québec, Canada, that aimed to develop intersectoral collaboration between tenants and senior executives from four sectors (housing, health, city and community organizations). This single qualitative case study design consisted of fieldwork documents, observations and semi-structured interviews. Using the Emancipatory Power Framework (EPF) and the Limiting Power Framework (LPF), we describe examples of types of power and resistance shown by the tenants, the intersectoral partners and the research team. The discussion presents lessons learned through the study, including the importance for research teams to reflect on their own power, especially when aiming to reduce health inequalities. The paper concludes by describing the limitations of the analyses conducted through the EPF–LPF frameworks and suggestions to increase the transformative power of future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do states achieve popular recognition and symbolic power as "The State," a collectively recognized entity that serves the common good? While classic work has described the state idea as produced by the actions of state officials, it is ultimately ordinary citizens who must recognize the state as such and consent to its rule. This article, based on 20 months of ethnographic research in a village that, after decades of armed group control, is a key site for the implementation of Colombia's landmark peace deal, describes how the formation of the state's symbolic power occurs (or not) through local emotions. I focus on a coca substitution program that has both stoked pre-existing local desires for the promise of the state as carrier of peace and progress and that has, largely because of its outsourcing to different contractors, failed to live up to its commitments, causing economic collapse and generating feelings of betrayal, mistrust, confusion, and impotence. I show how local feelings respond to the regional transformation state formation has caused, popular representations of the state, and their direct interactions with substitution program officials, including non-state actors. I argue that more than simply byproducts of state formation, these emotions are constitutive of the local imaginations of "The State" that are key to the state's development of symbolic power. It is in the realm of everyday life and emotions, the interplay between local desires for state presence and the frustrations generated by their actual encounters with state power, that state rule is achieved—or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research enriches the field's perspective on value and argues that to seriously address inequality during the next 50 years, consumer research must explore processual aspects of value hierarchy and consider its relationship to inequality. Doing so recognizes the duality of structures as embodying outcomes and agency, as well as the need to view value not only as what it is but also as what it does. To begin to address limitations in the literature, we use empirical evidence from an investigation of the cancer care market from 1970 to 2021 to understand how value hierarchy shapes and manifests as inequality. This is conceptualized as: distribution of multilevel resources, consolidation of consumer power, stratification of consumer agency, and (de)credentialization of worthiness. Building on each of these, we discuss a research agenda for future JCR inquiries and introduce "value hierarchy as inequality" as a big-tent issue for consumer research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article "Wealth, power, and authoritarian institutions" by Michaela Collord compares the dominant parties and parliaments in Tanzania and Uganda, focusing on their institutional trajectories and the impact of ruling elites' wealth accumulation strategies. Collord highlights how Tanzania's party-building led to centralized resource accumulation and reduced legislative autonomy, while Uganda's decentralized wealth accumulation resulted in fragmented elite enrichment and challenges in instilling party discipline. The author also discusses authoritarian discontinuities in Tanzania post-1985 and the skepticism regarding the correlation between legislative strengthening and democratization in both countries. [Extracted from the article]

The article "Controlling Migration from Within" in Diplomatic History explores the impact of the Bracero Program on Mexico's local and national politics, focusing on the complexities and nuances of the program within the context of U.S. priorities. Author Alberto García's book sheds light on the internal dynamics of the program in Mexico, highlighting the challenges faced in controlling migratory flows and the influence of factors such as agrarian reform and environmental issues. The program's ultimate demise was due to opposition stemming from worker exploitation and unrealistic quota limits in new U.S. immigration policies. The book provides a timely reflection on the legacy of the Bracero Program, offering insights into the difficult choices individuals made to leave their country and the lasting impact on both the United States and Mexico. [Extracted from the article]

This article contributes to foreign policy analysis by applying role theory to the study of soft power, evaluating the relationship between a state's chosen international role(s) and susceptibility to non-coercive influence. I argue that in countries where said role involves committed engagement with varied power poles, elites derive benefits from their various partners and thus abide soft power bases such as the Russian Diplomatic Academy (RDA) without violating the principle of autonomy maximization. I utilize a mixed methods approach, using logistic regression as part of a qualitative case study of Kazakhstan. Drawing on an original dataset of Kazakhstani ambassadors since 1992, I find that foreign policy role better explains the continued presence of RDA-trained diplomats within the Kazakhstani ambassadorial corps than traditional security arguments. This outcome demonstrates the promise of examining soft power through the lens of role theory, with an emphasis on the agency of potential targets of influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Declaration of positionality and the confession of privilege as a way of revealing unequal power dynamics in knowledge production has become an increasingly encouraged reflexive practice in international relations and other disciplines. However, we interrogate the potentially negative implications of this methodology, occurring through a reification of material, assumed, and imagined hierarchies between people, which then is advertised and (re)produced by its utterance. We further query the modernist origins of reflexive methodology, which has inspired the practice of declaring positionality, and argue that its underpinning coloniality has bearings for its use today. We then explore how this coloniality manifests: Thus, first, we consider the extent to which publicly acknowledging privilege paradoxically acts as a means of centering whiteness through the narcissistic gaze and an assertion of legitimacy. Second, we argue positionality statements offer a redemption of guilt for the hegemonic researcher. And lastly, rather than ameliorating unequal power dynamics in the production of knowledge, we contend positionality statements may constitute hidden power moves in which one is able to signal and reinstate one's authority vis-à-vis people, but especially women, of color. We end with a call for a reparative scholarship that acknowledges these limitations in positionality statements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What explains the initiation and escalation of International Criminal Court (ICC) involvement in a situation? In light of growing charges of bias against the court, understanding the determinants of ICC involvement is critically important. Building upon research on bounded discretion at international courts, we argue that two potentially competing forces influence the court. While prioritizing impartiality should lead the court to target perpetrators of the gravest violations of human rights in states with domestic impunity, prioritizing powerful states' interests suggests that the court may avoid involvement in powerful states and those with close ties to powerful countries. We test these arguments using original data on ICC involvement and a novel estimator that accounts for the sequential nature of ICC activity. We find that the court acts more in accordance with the legal mandate when initiating preliminary examinations, but power politics play a more dominant role at the formal investigation stage. These findings have several implications for academic and policy work on both the ICC and international courts more generally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do technological revolutions affect the rise and fall of great powers? Scholars have long observed that major technological breakthroughs disrupt economic power balances, yet they rarely investigate how this process occurs. Existing studies establish that a nation's success in adapting to revolutionary technologies is determined by the fit between its institutions and the demands of these technologies. The standard explanation emphasizes institutions suited for monopolizing innovation in new, fast-growing industries (leading sectors). I outline an alternative pathway based on general-purpose technologies (GPTs), foundational advances that boost productivity only after an extended diffusion process across many sectors. Specifically, GPT diffusion demands institutional adaptations that widen the base of engineering skills associated with a GPT. To test this argument, I set the GPT mechanism against the leading-sector mechanism across three cases, which correspond to past industrial revolutions: Britain's rise to preeminence in the early nineteenth century; the United States's overtaking of Britain before World War I; Japan's challenge to US technological dominance in the late twentieth century. The findings support a novel explanation for technology-driven power transitions, directly bearing on how emerging technologies like AI, which some regard as driving a fourth industrial revolution, could influence a possible US–China power transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there has been much writing and speculation on the deliberate use of smallpox as a tool of genocide, this article documents the use of the bluff threat of spreading smallpox as a tool of power and manipulation in the early days of European trade and settlement in the Pacific Northwest. By documenting ten cases when a bluff threat was used, the article argues that it was a common strategy of Europeans when they felt threatened or thwarted. Because it was compatible with existing Indigenous beliefs about the spread of disease, it was highly credible and was occasionally used by Indigenous people to manipulate others. While Europeans in this era did not actually have the power to control smallpox, the fact that outbreaks of the disease often occurred following a threat to spread it gave credence to the threat and to today's widespread belief that some or all of the epidemics were deliberate genocide. Recognizing bluff threat bioterrorism as a tool in the newcomer's arsenal is essential to understanding how the heavily outnumbered and out-gunned newcomers were so often able to manipulate Indigenous people and then establish the settlements that eventually evolved into full scale colonial occupations of Indigenous territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three tensions are said to exist in my relational theory, i.e. between ontology and behavior, between structure and process, and between substance and procedure. Underlying these tensions is a crucial question: How to identify the subject and object and understand the domination–subordination power relationship therein? These seeming inconsistencies appear if observed through a dualistic lens but may well disappear when viewed from the zhongyong dialectic, which, as an epistemological and methodological device, assumes no binary dichotomy in the first place. It believes in immanent relationality and dynamic transformability, holding that interaction based on difference rather than homogeneity generates healthy life and arguing that subject and object, structure and process, substance and procedure—all these categories constructed as dichotomous opposites are in fact mutually transformable as related parts of a whole. The evolution of global society, from international society of nation-states, to global society of humans, and to planetary society of all on earth (or beyond), clearly indicates the relational transformability across the ostensible subject–object divide. Power relations exist, but any unilateral exercise of power is ephemeral, for power over will not last, while power to will. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extensive political science, sociology, and legal literatures on democratic backsliding all tend to approach the issue in the same way: Start with a recent example of democratic decay. Then reason back from that example to generate a more extensive account of backsliding mechanisms or consequences. In contrast, Norwegian political scientist and sociologist Stein Ringen, in a book called How Democracies Live: Power, Statecraft, and Freedom in Modern Societies , offers a diagnosis of democratic backsliding that flips this standard sequence of analysis. Rather than beginning with case studies, Ringen offers an investigation of five "core" concepts of political theory. Those who seek to ameliorate democracy's current woes, he contends, should start with this sort of very general anatomy lesson. Only with the resulting conceptual map of political theory can they develop specific lessons for the task of managing democratic revival today. By negative implication, Ringen suggests, reformers will be led astray by starting with a specific case. The latter approach, he implies, causes them to overlook or misconstrue basic elements of the political order that must be fixed before the democratic ship can be righted. This review considers whether Ringen's anatomy-inspired method yields insights and, further, whether, more generally, an anatomical approach to political concepts can deepen our understanding of democracy and its present travails. It offers reasons for skepticism on both counts. It may well be possible to construct a taxonomy of political concepts to clarify the terms of democratic survival. But the specific taxonomy of core concepts offered in How Democracies Live does not plainly succeed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the topic of the modern welfare state with an emphasis on the United States. The authors, all National Fellows at the University of Virginia’s Jefferson Scholars Foundation, look to define the modern welfare state by examining economic power, regulatory power and political power as well as poverty and inequality.

"Centers of Power in the Arab Gulf States" by Kristian Coates Ulrichsen explores the topic of power within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The book examines different types of power and authority in the six Gulf states, including dynastic families, consultation practices, institutions, representation, opposition, distribution processes, and the role of the military. Ulrichsen takes a relational approach to power, highlighting the influence of external security partners on the Gulf states. While the book provides valuable insights into the power structures of the Gulf monarchies, it also acknowledges the limits of their power. [Extracted from the article]

This article examines the U.S.-Japanese relationship and the challenges it posed to the United States in Southeast Asia during the 1970s. The United States pursued a contradictory foreign policy approach toward Japan, simultaneously trying to collaborate and compete with its ally. While the United States wanted Japan to play an active role in Southeast Asia, it also feared Japan's economic expansion and its impact on U.S. competitiveness in the region. The article highlights the inconsistencies in the U.S.-Japanese relationship and the United States' efforts to maintain regional influence as ASEAN developed closer ties with China and Japan. The United States sought to counter Japan's growing economic dominance in Southeast Asia and ensure that ASEAN's actions did not threaten U.S. regional power. The article also explores the U.S.-Japanese economic rivalry and Japan's role in Southeast Asia, focusing on trade disputes and the normalization of relations with China. The United States pursued a contradictory approach, encouraging Japan's involvement in Southeast Asia while also trying to contain its economic power. The article concludes that the United States could not reconcile its conflicting objectives, resulting in an inconsistent foreign policy toward Japan that alternated between cooperation and economic tension. [Extracted from the article]

Background: Predictors of COVID-19 (coronavirus) vaccination have been extensively researched; however, the contextual factors contributing to understanding vaccination intention remain largely unexplored. The present study aimed to investigate the moderating role of economic development (Gross domestic product - GDP per capita), economic inequality (Gini index), the perceived corruption index and Hofstede's measurements of cultural values-index of individualism/collectivism and power distance index--in the relationship between determinants of satisfaction with the healthcare system, trust in political institutions, conspiracy beliefs and COVID-19 vaccination intention. Methods: A multilevel modelling approach was employed on a sample of approximately 51 000 individuals nested within 26 countries. Data were drawn from the European Social Survey Round 10. The model examined the effect of individual- and country-level predictors and their interaction on vaccination intention. Results: Satisfaction with the healthcare system had a stronger positive effect on intention to get vaccinated in countries with lower perceived corruption and more individualistic countries. Trust in political institutions had a stronger positive effect on vaccination intention in countries with higher economic development and lower perceived corruption, while a negative effect of conspiracy beliefs on vaccination intention was stronger in countries with lower economic development, higher perceived corruption and a more collectivistic cultural orientation. Conclusion: Our findings highlight the importance of considering individual and contextual factors when addressing vaccination intention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intergovernmental Relations in the UK: Cooperation and Conflict in a Devolved Unitary State by Marius Guderjan explores the evolving machinery of intergovernmental relations in the UK, focusing on the tensions and challenges arising from devolution of powers in a unitary system. The book provides detailed accounts of recent constitutional reforms in Scotland and Wales, highlighting the complexities of coordination between devolved and central governments. It also examines the role of the civil service in facilitating intergovernmental relations and offers insights into policy developments in various sectors, making it a valuable resource for understanding the dynamics of devolution and intergovernmental cooperation in the UK. [Extracted from the article]

Former presidents are not resigned to quiet anonymity but instead can remain prominent political actors long after exiting the White House. From Jimmy Carter's personal diplomacy to Donald Trump's caustic social media posts, ex-presidents continue to exercise considerable political power despite lacking any official role or governing authority. We argue that this continued post-presidential influence is an outgrowth of the informal powers of the presidency. A president's rhetorical prowess and ability to command national attention do not dissipate upon exiting office but instead form the basis for post-presidential influence. To test this theory, we conducted two survey experiments of former presidents as elite cue givers. We found that although effects are not uniform, statements attributed to former presidents can substantively alter the policy preferences of recipients. However, these effects appear to be highly individualistic and largely tied to copartisan recipients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes how changes in the concentration of political power affect long-run development. We study Brazil's military dictatorship whose rise to power dramatically altered the distribution of power of local political elites. We document that municipalities that were more politically concentrated prior to the dictatorship in the 1960s are relatively richer in 2000, despite being poorer initially. Our evidence suggests that this reversal of fortune was the result of the military's policies aimed at undermining the power of traditional elites. These policies increased political competition among traditional elites, leading to better governance, more public goods, and higher income levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article "Sovereignty Across Generations: A Comment" published in the Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies delves into the challenge of maintaining a just and stable society in the face of diverse moral, political, and religious convictions. The text explores the response to populism through a normative conception of sovereignty and constituent power, drawing on Rawls's political philosophy. It discusses the limitations of amending constitutions and the potential challenges faced by young democracies in establishing constitutional traditions. The article raises concerns about the ability of political liberalism to effectively counter populist threats to liberal democracies. [Extracted from the article]

This article uses Sri Lanka as a case study to impel engagement of decoloniality with transitional justice. It identifies gaps in the literature critical of transitional justice, specifically structural interpretations of power hierarchies, state-centrism and disregard of ethnicity and religion. It thereby uses a decolonial analytical lens on empirical findings from Sri Lanka's failed transitional justice process to identify and understand continuing colonial power structures, including epistemic coloniality. The empirical findings offer three new insights. First, an ideational, structural and procedural disconnection between victims and the global transitional justice model is noted. The article traces how victim positioning and this disconnection were disregarded in favour of an internationally authoritative, credible and universal model of transitional justice. Second, the ethno-religious challenges to transitional justice, which include its reliance on the state as a neutral provider of justice, are highlighted. The third finding, however, on victim demands for greater international involvement, presents a dilemma to future decolonial consideration of transitional justice. Despite only using decoloniality as an analytical tool, the article nevertheless demonstrates the need for deeper reform, including at the epistemic level, for transformation to occur within the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the context of the first Brazilian antitrust law, between 1930 and 1945. Its goal is to clarify how the 'popular economy'—a constitutional and legal concept of the time—functioned as a protective instrument for the internal market. The study explores the hypothesis that the legislation was directed at foreign economic power, already embedded in national economic structures at the time. The research demonstrates that the antitrust legislation arose not only to control prevailing economic power but also to provide meaning to it within the framework of the Estado Novo and its intent to reformulate the internal market. Furthermore, this article highlights the influence of constitutional and administrative doctrines in this movement, indicating how the antitrust system was modulated on liberal bases, assuming the curious figure of a strong State subsidiary to the private sector. The work demonstrates that, aside from the question of supply, a crisis in the insurance policy market throughout 1938 was crucial to drafting the first antitrust law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Zambia, efforts to produce a tobacco control policy have stalled for over a decade, and the country is not yet close to developing one. Limited studies have explored the dynamics in this policy process and how they affect the attainment of policy goals and outcomes. This study explored how collaborative dynamics within tobacco control policy development shaped shared motivation among stakeholders in Zambia. The study used a qualitative case study design that adopted a collaborative governance lens, comprising an in-depth exploration of the tobacco control policy working group meetings and their internal collaborative dynamics. The integrative framework for collaborative governance, which identifies mutual trust, mutual understanding, internal legitimacy and shared commitment as key elements of shared motivation, was adapted for this study. Data were collected from 27 key informants and analysed using thematic analysis. Several collaborative dynamics thwarted mutual trust among tobacco control stakeholders, including concerns about associated loyalties, fear of a ban on tobacco production, silo-mentality and lack of comprehensive dialogue. All stakeholders agreed that the limited sharing of information on tobacco control and the lack of reliable local evidence on the tobacco burden hindered mutual understanding. Diverse factors hampered internal legitimacy, including sector representatives' lack of authority and the perceived lack of contextualization of the proposed policy content. Acknowledgement of the need for multisectoral action, lack of political will from other sectors and limited local allocation of funds to the process were some of the factors that shaped shared commitment. To accelerate the development of tobacco control policies in Zambia and elsewhere, policymakers must adopt strategies founded on shared motivation that deliberately create opportunities for open discourse and respectful interactions, promote a cultural shift towards collaborative information sharing and address unequal power relations to enable shaping of appropriate tobacco control actions in respective sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender-responsive monitoring and evaluation (M&E) for health and health systems interventions and programs is vital to improve health, health systems, and gender equality outcomes. It can be used to identify and address gender disparities in program participation, outcomes and benefits, as well as ensure that programs are designed and implemented in a way that is inclusive and accessible for all. While gender-responsive M&E is most effective when interventions and programs intentionally integrate a gender lens, it is relevant for all health systems programs and interventions. Within the literature, gender-responsive M&E is defined in different and diverse ways, making it difficult to operationalize. This is compounded by the complexity and multi-faceted nature of gender. Within this methodological musing, we present our evolving approach to gender-responsive M&E which we are operationalizing within the Monitoring for Gender and Equity project. We define gender-responsive M&E as intentionally integrating the needs, rights, preferences of, and power relations among, women and girls, men and boys, and gender minority individuals, as well as across social, political, economic, and health systems in M&E processes. This is done through the integration of different types of gender data and indicators, including: sex- or gender-specific, sex- or gender-disaggregated, sex- or gender-specific/disaggregated which incorporate needs, rights and preferences, and gender power relations and systems indicators. Examples of each of these are included within the paper. Active approaches can also enhance the gender-responsiveness of any M&E activities, including incorporating an intersectional lens and tailoring the types of data and indicators included and processes used to the specific context. Incorporating gender into the programmatic cycle, including M&E, can lead to more fit-for-purpose, effective and equitable programs and interventions. The framework presented in this paper provides an outline of how to do this, enabling the uptake of gender-responsive M&E. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research reveals how a fundamental and pervasive psychological state, feeling powerful, asymmetrically impacts consumers' construction of and response to communications. For senders, power reduces consumers' need-for-justification and lowers the degree of support they seek and use to construct their communications. This lowered degree of support is evidenced by reduced information search, the use of fewer rational-based arguments, and a greater reliance on more concise language. In contrast, for receivers, power increases consumers' expectations for others to justify their positions. As a result, high-power receivers require a greater degree of support in communications from others. Based on a need-for-justification mechanism, the current work derives and demonstrates theoretically driven boundary conditions (e.g. attenuation when a heightened need-for-justification or support already exists) of this relationship. Together, these results provide new insights into how power influences consumers' need-for-justification and how this need affects the ways that consumers construct and respond to communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public reason views hold that the exercise of political power must be acceptable to all reasonable citizens. A growing number of philosophers argue that this reasonable acceptability principle (RAP) can be justified by appealing to the value of civic friendship. They claim that a valuable form of political community can only be achieved among the citizens of pluralistic societies if they refrain from appealing to controversial ideals and values when justifying the exercise of political power to one another. This paper argues against such accounts. In order to justify RAP, one must explain and defend a conception of reasonableness. Civic friendship is unfit to perform this task, rendering it unable to ground public reason alone. Meanwhile, pluralist views that combine civic friendship with other considerations in order to specify RAP either fail or make civic friendship a spare wheel in the argument for public reason. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malcolm Petrie's book, "Politics and the People: Scotland, 1945–1979," focuses on the arguments and ideologies used by political parties in Scotland during this period. Petrie argues that support for the Scottish National Party (SNP) grew at the expense of the Unionist/Conservative party and the Liberal party. The SNP's appeal was based on classic liberal, anti-statist themes such as hostility to centralization and belief in local self-government. Petrie also discusses the Conservative and Labour parties, but does not delve into internal party history. The decline of heavy industry and the perception of control from London were key factors in the SNP's rise. David McCrone's study of contemporary Edinburgh explores the city's changing power dynamics. McCrone examines the town council, institutions like schools and the university, and property development. He argues that control has shifted to undemocratic bodies without roots in the city, leading to loss of local control and social impact. McCrone also touches on the excessive impact of tourism in Edinburgh. [Extracted from the article]

What's more, as Priest illustrates over five chapters, U.S. policy elites retained their increasingly outdated notions of the United States as a fledgling nation in a world of conniving European empires to the end of the nineteenth century (and beyond). Overlooking the remaining U.S. territories (a.k.a. colonies), many Americans have also failed to recognize settler colonialism, as well as imperialism without the direct governance of colonies. How have U.S. policy elites been able to see themselves as anti-imperial when enacting imperial policies?. [Extracted from the article]

The authors argue that Hollywood played an important part magnifying "pro-Israel" sentiment that was of "inestimable value to Israel and its American supporters" (11). I Hollywood and Israel: A History i is a product of a long-standing collaboration between Tony Shaw and Giora Goodman - two historians with extensive expertise researching Cold War propaganda and cinematic politics across borders. Shaw and Goodman have the knack for finding and unpacking interesting examples of how Hollywood stars worked to advance the Israel brand. [Extracted from the article]

"The Origins of Global Economic Governance" by Jamie Martin explores the early development of international economic governance from the 1910s to the 1940s. The book highlights how the World Wars, self-determination movements, and economic crises during this period blurred the lines between national and international affairs. It discusses the emergence of international economic institutions and their impact on state sovereignty, as well as the debates surrounding the democratic legitimacy of institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. The author argues that these institutions transformed the exercise of sovereignty in a new international order based on principles of self-determination. The book provides a comprehensive analysis of the historical context and offers potential avenues for further research in the field of international economic governance. [Extracted from the article]

John Studley's Agamemnon (1566) explores women's rule and how it can combine feminine and masculine elements to achieve and maintain political power. To do so, Studley employs the character of Clytemnestra, who simultaneously retains elements of her previous dramatic versions and is shaped to resonate with early modern English audiences. This process is twofold, taking into consideration linguistic and character traits. Clytemnestra's language is expanded from the Latin through masculine-coded tropes characteristic of vernacular lyric. Moreover, she possesses traits traditionally considered masculine (martial courage, determination, bold speech and skill in weaponry). In Studley's Clytemnestra, then, endurance and action combined create a gender hybridity in speech and behaviour. In turn, her portrayal resonates with discourses surrounding early modern women rulers, from Elizabeth Tudor to Mary Stuart. Ultimately, Agamemnon reshapes the treacherous queen of Mycenae to function as a commentary on how a woman in power could appear, speak and behave. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most important issues for the Polish Episcopate under communism was moral evaluation of sexual activities. Bishops suggested that, along with other immoral activities, homosexuality resulted from the popularization of Marxism and atheization of customs. This article presents a thematic analysis of the episcopal writings from 1945 to 1989, and their evaluation in light of Michel Foucault's theory, in order to discuss Polish episcopal power in the context of its narrative on homosexuality. I present the doctrinal and historical context of the analyzed writings in a trichotomy: the Episcopate of Poland, the Apostolic See, and the authorities of the Polish People's Republic. Moreover, I recognize that components of episcopal discourse suggest a multiplicity of power relations. In the selected period, these forces were the subjects of a game in which the church created strategies and chains of influence, and, as an agent of power, consolidated its position by demanding obedience. This image of the institutional church in Poland was established through a great central mechanism of denial that excluded any possibility of a positive moral evaluation of homosexual and other extramarital acts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arab population in Israel is an ethnic, national, Indigenous minority experiencing discrimination and inequality, especially in education, health and welfare. This population's constant societal change is coupled with social problems such as violence, crime, unemployment and poverty. These characteristics pose many challenges to social workers, particularly those empowered by the Youth Law (Care and Supervision), 1960, known as child protection officers (CPOs). Besides the usual challenges CPOs face, additional challenges stem from the Arab population's being a traditional, collective society with a mistaken view of the CPO's role and also from the state's discriminatory policy. This exploratory qualitative study, using semi-structured interviews, of thirty Arab CPOs in Israel revealed challenges related to the role and to CPOs' representation in the Arab population, namely, as having power backed by the law and being closely linked to the national establishment and institutions. Additional challenges include the lack of community-based treatment facilities, the absence of Indigenous knowledge in training and treatment and the lack of a mechanism to protect Arab CPOs from burnout and dropout. The findings are relevant to societies with minority populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]