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This article explores the relationship between the spatial distribution of elite power and geophysical factors in two regions within the Low Countries between c.1350 – c.1650. It does so through a focus on seigneuries, bundles of territory and rights through which premodern lords and ladies across Europe held jurisdiction and economic prerogatives over local subjects. Historians have often assumed that the uneven distribution of such jurisdictions in different regions was connected to the fertility and commercial potential of the landscape. This article pioneers a structured, transregional approach to test this hypothesis, by quantifying and visualizing the spatial distribution of seigneuries in connection with three geophysical features – soil fertility, proximity to waterways, and relief – within and between two Netherlandish principalities, Guelders and Hainault. Through visualization and quantification of the spatial clustering of seigneuries, the analysis confirms that these institutions gravitated towards areas that were most fertile and commercially viable. In addition, the data suggest a hierarchy in the relative importance of geophysical features. Soil fertility emerges as the prime factor, with relief (Hainault) and waterways (Guelders) as secondary (interdependent) factors. • Spatial patterns of seigneuries in the Late Medieval Low Countries. • Lordship distribution is visually and quantitatively linked to the physical landscape. • Influence of soil composition, relief, hydrographical infrastructure. • Mapping premodern rural jurisdictions in the principalities Guelders and Hainault. • Methodology for linking socio-political institutions and geophysical features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This introductory piece for the research cluster 'The Economic Power of European Queens: Sources, Resources and Expenditure both delineates the content of the cluster and places it in the context of wider research. The article highlights common themes among the four articles in the cluster and common issues with the survival of sources which document the economic activity of royal women. It also highlights the importance of new research which is beginning to illuminate the financial element of queenship and helping us to understand this vital, yet understudied, part of the queen's office. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mini publics have become cornerstones of the European Union's Future of Europe (FoE) initiative. However, weaknesses in their designs bring their political influence into question. Often-unsystematic in design, they fail to strengthen participants' understandings of the issues under evaluation and induce silo-thinking and the formation of pseudo-preferences. These come at a cost to informed and deliberatively deduced recommendations which speak to underlying functional/operational technicalities which fundamentally determine the form and delivery of policy interests. Guided by the adage that form follows function, this paper argues that mini publics pertaining to the FoE must primarily encourage participants to think about the ways policies are made in the EU before they formulate policy recommendations. To do this, they must consider the EU's overall form (or prospective forms). Utilising data from focus group analysis, the paper demonstrates that scenario (vignette) models are conducive to strengthening participants' understandings of both existing and alternative EU forms, and their functional consequences for EU policies, thus enabling them to formulate concrete and potentially deliverable policy recommendations. Subsequently, the paper encourages organisers of relevant mini-publics to employ the European Commission's 'Five Scenarios for the FoE' as entry-points to strengthen the deliberative quality and democratic outputs of such exercises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates which countries are seen as leaders in combatting AMR in Europe, and why they are seen as leaders. We do this by testing the explanatory capacity of three models specifying features of leaders attractive to followers. They are (1) performance, (2) power and (3) common interests. We use data from a survey among experts in the AMR field in 29 European countries, along with empirical indicators, to measure the three models. Our findings show that only eight of the 29 European countries are seen as leaders and that Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands are considered the three top AMR leaders in Europe. Denmark is the top leader in the animal sector and Sweden in the human sector. We also find demand for several possible types of leadership and followership in the AMR problem. Performance explains the leading role of the top three countries, as they all score low on indicators of the severity of AMR. Power and influence explain why France, Germany and the UK are seen as AMR leaders. We also find support for the role of common interests. This factor may explain why neighbouring countries are often seen as leaders in AMR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Economic nationalism has been on the rise for the past two decades. Scholars have also noted the shift away from globalization and deregulation toward a more prominent role of the state in the economy. I explore the role played by populist governments in the increased adoption of economic nationalism and in this return of the state. I argue that the populist worldview lends itself naturally to a consolidation of power—not just political, but also economic. This consolidation of economic power results in a more prominent state even in countries where the populist regime is a right‐leaning one. Methods: I test this argument quantitatively by analyzing governments in 30 European countries since 1990, levels of state ownership in the economy, and a battery of economic and political controls. Results: The election of a populist government is associated with a strengthening of state ownership in the economy. Conclusion: I conclude with a discussion of the prospects for the future study of this populist economic agenda both domestically and internationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When Giorgia Meloni, the leader of a party with fascist roots, was elected Italy's prime minister, liberal alarm bells went off. Concerns soon evaporated, however, as Meloni continued Italy's policy of support for Ukraine against Russia and refrained from picking fights with the European Union. Her adherence to what looked like a traditional centre-right foreign policy mystified observers across the Atlantic, who neglected her more troubling domestic policies. In liberal-minded and pro-EU quarters, the belief emerged that if Meloni showed that moderation could pay off electorally, other far-right parties could follow suit. However, Meloni's foreign policy is arguably less the result of a genuine change of heart than of contingent factors such as a strongly Atlanticist US administration, Italy's need for EU cash and a lack of competition for the leadership of Europe's far right. All these conditions may vanish in the coming years, and if they do, Meloni may find that her experiment in moderation is not politically expedient after all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand the political dimension of dissident legacies, we need first to understand the components that "made" the dissidents and follow their reconfiguration after 1989, leading to initial empowerment followed by gradual demise of the liberal post-dissident elite. Dissidence in the form that first appeared in the late 1960s and early 1970s in central and eastern Europe constituted a particular mode of political practice, combining open, non-violent dissent with universalist moral claims. The phenomenon of dissidentism was transnational, as political empowerment of oppositionists was achieved through a particular network of relationships between domestic audiences, repressive regimes, and Western media, social movements, trade unions, political parties, and policymakers. The specificities of the dissidents' empowerment can partly explain key features of post-dissident politics and the visible backlash against former prominent dissidents, which has contributed to the rise of illiberalism and to democratic backsliding. This article traces the post-1989 trajectories of a few who belonged among central Europe's most prominent representatives in this symbolic category, to try to explain the causes and character of the swift backlash against them—or as Václav Havel put it, their "expulsion from the fairytale." Three pillars of dissident political power turned into the roots of their demise. First, critics question the dissidents' uniqueness and rewrite their master narrative. Further, we see a clash of representations that results from the dissidents' transnational empowerment, and third, the broader anti-elite and anti-intellectual tendencies that always accompanied dissidence as its shadow became amplified by more recent populist rhetoric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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]

Political initiatives promoting a far-right agenda have gained significant political influence in Western European democracies. This has occurred despite apparent broad-based public rejection of Europe's Nazi past. This is a puzzle, since there are affinities between the old and the new far right. This article addresses that puzzle. Theoretically, the article distinguishes between broad and narrow interpretations of what it means to reject Europe's Nazi past. Empirically, it shows how a well-established survey experimental template reveals substantive variations in public political tolerance of the far right. For citizens in five key Western European democracies, rejecting the Nazi past only means rejecting initiatives explicitly identified as neo-Nazi. For other far-right initiatives, political tolerance is more common and increases in accordance with these initiatives' institutionalisation in the party system. For far-right parties fully institutionalised in the party system, public political tolerance is at the same level as for other political parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the social structure of individual autonomy in Europe. Drawing on the capability approach and human empowerment theory, it investigates how individuals' sense of autonomy is structured by individual means and conversion factors as well as economic, cultural, and institutional context conditions. Using data from the European Social Survey and the European Quality of Life Survey, these relationships are analyzed for 107,070 individuals in 18 European countries and four points in time between 2006 and 2016. Multilevel analyses reveal financial security, health, and social connectedness as the most important drivers of individuals' sense of autonomy. On the macro level, national wealth, civil liberties, and an emancipative value climate are all found to be positively linked to individuals' sense of autonomy, albeit weakly. Considering the value individuals attach to leading an autonomous life and the beneficial effects autonomy has been shown to have on people's well-being, these findings shed first light on the unequal distribution of autonomy and autonomy resources on the individual and macro levels. Concluding, the paper highlights the potential for future research and policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Judicial and political power are inextricably linked, but at this point in time that link seems more important, more pervasive, and more fragile than ever before. Courts are now under stress in many, even consolidated, democratic countries, becoming one of the most stimulating topics for understanding European politics. Indeed, bringing Courts back to the centre of political analysis is a privileged perspective for understanding how and why democracies change. By highlighting the characteristics of the complex political context of conflicting actors, institutions and political processes, this special issue of European Politics and Society reveals the different dynamics and patterns of the role of Courts in contemporary European politics. This paper presents the phenomenon of 'Courts under stress' and the related research questions. In addition, it introduces the articles that make up this special issue, which are indicative of the maturation of Courts as a crucial topic in European political science. Indeed, each article emphasizes different aspects of their role, bringing out new perspectives and complementary theoretical approaches and methodologies, thereby advancing comparative studies of judicial behaviour and constitutional jurisprudence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the theme of the ISSEI conference in 2023, which focuses on the role of intellectuals in responding to the crises faced by the Western world. It explores the absence of religious terms in a book on keywords and emphasizes the importance of acknowledging historical continuities amidst change. The article also highlights the need for a holistic and irenic approach to understanding and valuing different perspectives. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of the humanities and sciences working together to address social and political polarization and protect democratic values. The collection of articles in this text explores various challenges facing academic institutions and Western societies, including the clash between universalism and historicism, the decline of the European Geist, the crisis of transcendent values in higher education, the role of universities in the demise of democracy, the power of words in shaping discourse, the persistence of racist ideology, the need for questioning and insecurity, and the importance of reclaiming ethical monotheism. [Extracted from the article]

In the longstanding debate over how to characterize the EU as a global actor, knowledge is conspicuously missing. We introduce the term Knowledge Power Europe to emphasize the importance of knowledge for the EU's foreign policy efforts, particularly as they relate to addressing the urgent and complex global challenges that have become central to the EU's global strategy. Conceptually, we show how considering the EU as a knowledge power can help overcome the limitations of other EU power concepts, and empirically, we justify our characterization by providing evidence of the use and role of knowledge in terms of what the EU is, says, and does. We conclude by discussing how a knowledge power approach can help advance an understanding of the EU's capacity for global leadership and power in global governance efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to study the new energy of Sanskrit renaissance in Europe due to European voyages to India, followed by trade and then the construction of British India. It created a new social impetus to Sanskrit in India too, and the Indian intelligentsia, empowered by western education also began to examine texts written in the language. Interpretations came out in a pouring manner of these ancient texts, some locating them as the manufacturers of caste system, and some appreciating their contribution to science, literature, and philosophy and especially law. We have to re-understand how German intelligentsia interpreted and viewed these texts. The concept of nation in the age of nationalism, and its ideology of an imagined community with similar culture and shared beliefs has brought forth the necessity to enquire into the foundation of India’s modern identity, as perhaps, constructed by Oriental scholarship and the knowledge with new developments it brought forth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proliferation of diasporas has expanded the intricate web of political relations on a global scale. Transnationality has increasingly replaced methodological nationalism, and relationality blurred diaspora's boundaries. This article argues for framing diasporas as socio‐material assemblages to capture the political agency of diasporas in action in a transnational space. This highlights diasporas' ability to forge their transnational political actorness and to expand their power of attractiveness. By tracing ideas and things behind the essential task of representing the homeland, this research explores the connections of the Kurdish freedom movement in Europe, making three main arguments. First, it outlines the existence of transnational infrastructures of solidarity, which highlight a multi‐ethnic plurality at work. Second, it illuminates the diasporas' role in the south–north flow of knowledge and political influence. Third, the article examines the desire which stabilizes the assemblage and makes the circulation of ideas possible and smooth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The starting point for many analyses of European state development is the historical fragmentation of territorial authority. The dominant bellicist explanation for state formation argues that this fragmentation was an unintended consequence of imperial collapse, and that warfare in the early modern era overcame fragmentation by winnowing out small polities and consolidating strong states. Using new data on papal conflict and religious institutions, I show instead that political fragmentation was the outcome of deliberate choices, that it is closely associated with papal conflict, and that political fragmentation persisted for longer than the bellicist explanations would predict. The medieval Catholic Church deliberately and effectively splintered political power in Europe by forming temporal alliances, funding proxy wars, launching crusades, and advancing ideology to ensure its autonomy and power. The roots of European state formation are thus more religious, older, and intentional than often assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extensive use of fossil fuels in recent decades is a well-known cause of the climate crisis. Climate action inevitably requires the strategic reorientation of industries that are part of the fossil fuel regime. International oil companies are central to this regime and possess the incumbent's characteristic power and influence to steer this process. However, European international oil companies continue to invest in fossil fuels, even as they acknowledge the climate crisis imperative. Socio-political and economic dynamics can either reinforce the oil regime or pressure firms to take climate action. We aim to comprehensively analyse the dynamics between external socio-political and economic actors' pressures to climate action on the one side, and the industry response on the other, from 2005 to 2019, using Geels Triple Embeddedness Framework. Drawing on a wide range of qualitative and quantitative longitudinal data (e.g. regulations, oil and renewables market trends, companies' investments in oil, renewables, and low-carbon technologies), we characterised the pressures and responses of the different analytical categories and established three phases. The results indicate that policy pressure on the oil regime in this period lacked constancy and comprehensiveness. The Kyoto Protocol ratification produced an initial momentum that prompted some companies to invest in alternative fuels and renewables, but efforts faded after 2010. Societal calls for a transition from fossil fuels and divestments from oil companies have risen since 2017. Recent socio-economic pressures combined with policy pledges for net-zero emissions have prompted all companies to invest beyond fossil fuels. However, efforts are still marginal and additional advancements in climate policy are necessary to foster the renewables market and to promote the phase-out of oil. Key policy insights Europe lacks a comprehensive policy framework to support the fast deployment of available alternative fuels. Policies need to foster the development and adoption of alternatives to petrochemical products, alongside their reduction and recycling. Apart from supporting renewable energy and other alternatives to oil, policies also need to target the phase-out of oil and send a clear signal to companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contends that the responsible artificial intelligence (AI) approach--which is the dominant ethics approach ruling most regulatory and ethical guidance--falls short because it overlooks the impact of AI on human relationships. Focusing only on responsible AI principles reinforces a narrow concept of accountability and responsibility of companies developing AI. This article proposes that applying the ethics of care approach to AI regulation can offer a more comprehensive regulatory and ethical framework that addresses AI's impact on human relationships. This dual approach is essential for the effective regulation of AI in the domain of mental health care. The article delves into the emergence of the new "therapeutic" area facilitated by AI-based bots, which operate without a therapist. The article highlights the difficulties involved, mainly the absence of a defined duty of care toward users, and shows how implementing ethics of care can establish clear responsibilities for developers. It also sheds light on the potential for emotional manipulation and the risks involved. In conclusion, the article proposes a series of considerations grounded in the ethics of care for the developmental process of AI-powered therapeutic tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Europe as a spatial concept and space in practice has witnessed a variety of integrative as well as disintegrative tendencies over the past decades. While a binary concept of the terms integration and disintegration has dominated a vast proportion of public discussion as well as academic literature, some authors advance a more differentiated view. The introduction of this special issue will pick up the threads of these debates and connect them to considerations of the spatialities of such processes. While theoretically dissecting the roles and meanings of spatial imaginations, narratives and everyday practices and conceptualizing their entanglements within Europe's growing together and apart, the introduction will provide a basis for the detailed and empirical accounts of this issue. By paying particular attention to the meaningful and symbolic power of imaginations and narratives used within the struggles around European (dis)integration, the main aim is to engage closer with the central mechanisms facilitating and underlying the current struggles around European (dis)integrations. Consequently, the introduction opens the view for a multitude of spatially enhanced processes ranging between encounters and borderings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An accelerated transition to renewable energy sources is foreseen in the very near future in Europe, including a 25-time enhancement in terms of offshore wind power capacity which is planned until 2050 in relationship with 2021. The potential of the Mediterranean Sea, although not so significant as that of the North or of the Baltic Seas, cannot be neglected and many wind projects will become operational in the next years in this nearshore. In this context, the objective of the present work is to give a perspective of the past and future expected wind power dynamics in the Mediterranean Sea until the end of the twenty-first century. Data from two different Regional Climate Models were processed considering the scenario RCP4.5. An analysis of the historical wind data provided by these two climate wind models for the past 30-year period 1976–2005 is also performed and compared with the ERA5 data. The average and extreme wind power conditions are analysed. Further on, two different future time intervals are considered. These are near future, the 30-year interval 2041–2070, and distant future, the interval 2071–2100. The results indicate that the wind power is expected to remain significant in the Mediterranean Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper explores the relationship between the EU's current re-imagining as a global security actor and its stance as a global promoter of progressive gender norms. For this purpose, we analyse how gender and race are constitutive of the meanings of security and Europe in major EU security strategies, and how this relates to the way gender (equality) is addressed as a policy issue. We find that, in the context of waning liberal world order and manifold internal and external crises, EU security actorness is constructed through narratives of masculinisation that entail feminisation of the EU's own past as a "peace project" and "soft power"; Othering of non-EU spaces and subjects; colonial perspectives on the EU's role in the world as "White Man's burden" and the reconstruction of whiteness through notions of "neutral" masculinities associated with technocratic professionalism, superior knowledge production, and market rationality. This intersectional gendering of EU security limits the emancipatory potential of gender policy through the racialisation of Other women and the simultaneous invisibilisation of postcolonial structures of inequality. Our analysis provides the groundwork for addressing how and why the EUropean security project continues to reproduce intersectional power relations and insecurities, despite commitments to gender equality and non-discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2008, a negative image of China has prevailed in Europe, leading to the country's image crisis in the region. The state has implemented several policies to improve such a perception. This paper aims to examine the major tools of China's attempts at influence in Europe, targeting the media and public opinion. Applying the concept of soft power and public diplomacy, we analyse the tools China uses to modify and shape public opinion about itself in Europe. The research framework comprises secondary resources on China's foreign policy, soft power, public diplomacy and media strategy in Europe. We distinguish four primary influence tools: China buys European media outlets to prevent negative information about itself; it pays for inserts in leading European newspapers; it signs cooperation agreements with media organisations and holds media forums; and it limits access to its market to affect media, film and academic content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In current political philosophy there is a prolific debate about the implications of the translation model to shed light on asymmetric socio-cultural and socio-political interactions. However, up to now there are dissimilar interpretations about the symmetry postulate that open other edges of the disputed questions typical of a transatlantic critical theory, which links emancipating philosophical currents in Europe and Latin America. This work deals with clarifying some theses that seem to oppose the intercultural dialogue and the decolonizing struggle, fostered by a decolonial prism, and we place it from a critical debate about the meaning of a decolonial option of intercultural ethics, at least as understood by Maesschalck and Salas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between 'Germany' and 'power' remains a sensitive issue. While observers tend to agree that Germany has regained the status of the most powerful country in Europe, there is a debate whether that is to be welcomed or whether that is a problem. Underpinning this debate are views, both within Germany and amongst its neighbours, regarding the kind of power Germany has, or should (not) have. Against this backdrop, the article reviews the dominant role conceptions used in the expert discourse on German foreign policy since the Cold War that depict Germany as a particular type of 'power'. Specifically, we sketch the evolution of three prominent conceptions (constrained power, civilian power, hegemonic power) and the recent emergence of a new one (shaping power). The article discusses how these labels have emerged to give meaning to Germany's position in international relations, points to their normative and political function, and to the limited ability of such role images to tell us much about how Germany actually exercises power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of policy uncertainty on firm performance and to examine how the different cultural societies deal with the policy-induced uncertainty. Design/methodology/approach: The authors use data of European non-financial firms to extend the growing literature on policy uncertainty, firm performance and national culture. The authors consider financial as well as market proxies to measure firm performance and use Hofstede's cultural dimensions as a proxy for national culture. The authors apply the generalized method of moments (GMM-system) regression technique on a dataset of 702 non-financial European firms, listed during the period 2002–2018. Findings: The authors find overwhelming evidence that policy uncertainty reduces the performance of the European firms; however, cultural differences among different European countries moderate the impact of policy uncertainty on the financial as well as the market performance of the firms. The results of this study show that European cultures with high power distance, individualism, masculinity and indulgence efficiently deal with the economic policy uncertainty. While the European societies with high uncertainty avoidance fail to cope with policy-induced uncertainty. The results are robust to different regression models, alternate proxies of firm performance and endogeneity issues. Practical implications: The authors argue that policy uncertainty increases information asymmetry and decreases firm performance, therefore, the policymakers shall be considerate of the consequences of the policy-induced uncertainty in the society and business arena that would not only adversely affect the firms but also the economy. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that investigates the role of national culture on the relationship between policy uncertainty and firm performance in the European context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Illegal wildlife trade (IWT) is commonly identified as one of the drivers of global biodiversity loss and has gained increasing attention from national governments, conservation NGOs, international institutions and the private sector. We argue that analyses of drivers and dynamics of IWT within Europe must evaluate the overlooked interconnections between legal and illegal trades. In this brief commentary, we develop a new conceptual lens that brings together cutting-edge theories of political ecology and green criminology. We apply this to the European IWT context, to deconstruct the power dynamics and inequalities that underlie environmental harms caused by green-collar crime. We use the dynamics of illegal trade in brown bears, eels and songbirds as illustrative examples, and consider three cross-cutting issues that shape the trade: consumption, uncertain scientific knowledge and legislative frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the functions of spatial governance and planning systems are generalizable, 30 years of comparative studies, especially in Europe, have shown the heterogeneity characterising these 'institutional technologies'. This contribution builds on the materials of the recently concluded ESPON COMPASS research project to propose a European typology on the capacity of public authorities to control spatial development, a crucial aspect for the life of entire cities, regions and countries. Based on the opinions expressed by respective national experts, the systems of 39 countries (28 EU and 11 non-EU) are compared in relation to the mechanisms to allocate land use and spatial development rights as well as to the prevalence of the state vs. the market in guiding the development decisions. As a result, the European systems are placed on an X-Y diagram, which makes it possible to cluster them in consistent types that raise new comparative observations and general findings. In summary, the capacity for public control of spatial development looks variegated in Europe, although limited overall. Even if the power relations between state and market established in each institutional context are certainly influential, the models adopted for allocating spatial development rights also play a role in determining the observed trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political economy approaches have been criticized for their focus on top-down processes with insufficient attention to non-elite agency. Here, we expand archaeological applications of political economy by integrating a bottom-up perspective on the construction of social power, drawing mainly from collective action theory and anarchist theory. An array of interacting agents, diverse interests, and decentralized powers exists in non-state societies. Social segments with countervailing interests and strategies confront, limit, and co-opt elite power. These countervailing forces are fundamental to political economies in these societies, and focusing on them illustrates the ways in which social power and cooperation actually work as differing interests and objectives exist in perpetual tension. The significance of these bottom-up forces is illustrated with synthetic summaries of three historically independent, long-term archaeological sequences—Northwest Coast hunter-gatherer-fisher societies (case 1), Early Neolithic expansions into Europe (case 2), and the Island Southeast Asia and Pacific region (case 3). We draw together relevant theoretical threads to conceptualize how dialectical relationships exist among a diversity of social interests that stem from the material conditions that structure labor and resource flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At a time when existential crises – environmental disaster, pandemic, war – jostle for pole place in our hierarchy of concerns, it is not surprising that not only what is happening, but our responses to it, come under intense scrutiny. Young people, whose responses to the social world, historically, have been subject to surveillance and representation as 'trouble', are again centre-stage in society's imagination. They appear, at once, as the symbol of all that is wrong with the world and as the repository of hope for the future. In this special issue, we draw on new ethnographic research in multiple European contexts to explore the implications of this positioning from young people's perspectives. Specifically, we aim: to consider the shared experiences of young people across Europe as they navigate negative everyday representations of themselves; and to understand the complex configuration of power relations that drives the cycle of (mis)representation, stigmatisation and misrecognition that compounds the exclusion of young people from equal participation in social life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Suleyman Demirel University Institute of Social Sciences is the property of Suleyman Demirel University, Institute of Social Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The recent success of new movement parties in Europe brought the attention of party politics scholars to this hybrid party type. There are still many under-analysed theoretical and empirical aspects related to their organization and this article aims to show that despite sharing older movement parties' traits, these 'new' movement parties introduce for the first time a unique combination of plebiscitarian intra-party democracy and party leadership empowerment. The implications of these findings are twofold: first, despite promoting intra-party democracy mainly through new digital tools, the main function of party membership is that of cheerleading; second, the leadership exercises strict control over the organization, thus restricting bottom-up 'voice' from the rank-and-file. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since 2017, PERFORM2Scale, a research consortium with partners from seven countries in Africa and Europe, has steered the implementation and scale-up of a district-level health management strengthening intervention in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda. This article presents PERFORM2Scale's theory of change (ToC) and reflections upon and adaptations of the ToC over time. The article aims to contribute to understanding the benefits and challenges of using a ToC-based approach for monitoring and evaluating the scale-up of health system strengthening interventions, because there is limited documentation of this in the literature.Methods: The consortium held annual ToC reflections that entailed multiple participatory methods, including individual scoring exercises, country and consortium-wide group discussions and visualizations. The reflections were captured in detailed annual reports, on which this article is based.Results: The PERFORM2Scale ToC describes how the management strengthening intervention, which targets district health management teams, was expected to improve health workforce performance and service delivery at scale, and which assumptions were instrumental to track over time. The annual ToC reflections proved valuable in gaining a nuanced understanding of how change did (and did not) happen. This helped in strategizing on actions to further steer the scale-up the intervention. It also led to adaptations of the ToC over time. Based on the annual reflections, these actions and adaptations related to: assessing the scalability of the intervention, documentation and dissemination of evidence about the effects of the intervention, understanding power relationships between key stakeholders, the importance of developing and monitoring a scale-up strategy and identification of opportunities to integrate (parts of) the intervention into existing structures and strategies.Conclusions: PERFORM2Scale's experience provides lessons for using ToCs to monitor and evaluate the scale-up of health system strengthening interventions. ToCs can help in establishing a common vision on intervention scale-up. ToC-based approaches should include a variety of stakeholders and require their continued commitment to reflection and learning on intervention implementation and scale-up. ToC-based approaches can help in adapting interventions as well as scale-up processes to be in tune with contextual changes and stakeholders involved, to potentially increase chances for successful scale-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opposition to Israel’s occupation and in particular its settlement enterprise on what the European Union (EU) perceives to be Palestinian/Syrian territories has been a consistent EC/EU policy since 1977 when what was then called the European Community (EC) issued its first declaration against the settlements. While there has been a long historical precedent for EU differentiation in the conflict, the ‘differentiation strategy’ was inofficially operationalized first in 2013. Using the theory of ‘Normative Power Europe’ (NPE) as a framework of analysis, this article argues that while the differentiation strategy has worked in the sense that it has created a normative, legal and in a few cases economic separation in the EU’s dealings with the internationally-recognised Israel and the non-recognised settlements, it has with some very minor, insignificant exceptions, not changed the realities on the ground in Israel-Palestine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Historia i Polityka is the property of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Social relevance has become a key element to assess the social legitimacy of an academic discipline. This contrasts with a widespread sentiment among political scientists about the existence of a relevance gap. The context of multiple crises Europe has experienced since the late 2000s has provided political scientists with a multitude of opportunities to demonstrate the social relevance of their work and the usefulness of the discipline. This introductory article to the special issue aims to offer an explorative framework and a preliminary discussion of empirical examples to assess the phenomenon of political scientists' relevance in the public sphere during recent turbulent times. The framework (which emphasises three basic dimensions of social relevance – partisanship, visibility, and impact) is used to interpret the main results of the five case studies included in the special issue. Results show that contextual factors (salience of the issue, political and media contexts) influence political scientists' engagement in the public sphere, the role they adopt and their visibility. The article ends emphasising the importance of collective action within the discipline as an instrument to enhance its social relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article builds on existing scholarship on populism while shifting the lens to focus on the ideational and discursive dynamics of populist power. It defines populism as, at its core, the discursive construction of discontent, as charismatic leaders claiming to speak for the people against the elites use post-truth language to give expression to peoples' grievances, to mobilize them via real and virtual networks of support, and to disseminate their ideas via social and traditional media in order to win elections and then to govern differently. This article deploys the discursive institutionalist framework of analysis to consider the four main features of the discursive construction of populism – the message, the messenger, the medium, and the milieu. Throughout, the article illustrates by considering not only the rise of populist anti-system parties in European countries but also the special challenges this poses for the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From educational to entertainment devices, games have the power to alter our sense of time as much as our priorities and perception. The first recorded musical games in modern history were a series of publications that appeared in Europe during the second half of the eighteenth century. This article discusses the nature of musical games and tries to present a definition of game as it applies to musical activities. Based on this discussion, the article analyzes an anonymous work called Ludus Melothedicus, published in Paris around 1758. It also provides information on how to play the work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the settler colonial roots of family therapy, positing that much of what is considered the standard or ideal family form comes from colonialism. Utilising settler colonial theory as a guide, I identify how the colonial nations, built through the violent exclusion of Indigenous and exogenous peoples, utilised the family to further their goals. Rather than suggest settler colonialism was an historic event, I consider how it continues today, privileging white families of European descent. To move the conversation forward on how white therapists from majoritised cultures can engage with racialised clients, I describe the negotiated spaces as a meeting ground where therapists and clients navigate differing worldviews. In these negotiations, our clients trust us, and to be accountable to this trust, we can unsettle the influence of settler colonialism. To conclude this paper, I discuss four possible pathways to begin the complicated process of unsettling. Practitioner PointsSettler colonialism contributed to the standardisation of the nuclear family, informing the foundations of family therapy.Establishing a 'negotiated space' in therapy can encourage ethical engagement between therapist and client as they navigate differences in culture, knowledge and meaning.To ethically be in the negotiated spaces, therapists from majoritised cultures can 'unsettle' settler colonialism's influence.Learning personal and disciplinary relationships to settler colonialism, developing cultural humility and attending to power is the first step in unsettling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While not typically the focus for academic or journalistic analyses, centre right political parties have been, are and will likely remain key actors in migration policy and politics across Europe. This special issue introduction questions and qualifies the extent to which the 2015 migration crisis affected centre-right parties' politics, positioning and policy positions on immigration, problematising the idea that the crisis represented an 'external' challenge to party politics and stressing instead the agency and role of political parties in imbuing crisis-like events with particular meanings. It argues that the crisis refracted and intensified social and value conflicts that were already developing in European party politics. While some policy innovations did occur, they tended to confirm directions that were evident before – sometimes long before – the crisis. The article emphasizes the need to pay attention to significant variation within the centre-right party family on immigration policy, and changes made over time by parties preoccupied with public opinion, with inter-party competition and with challenges posed by real-world events that were often beyond their control, but also with internal power struggles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The left-right self-placement scale is often used in political science as a proxy for the policy positions of voters and parties. Yet studies have suggested that, for voters, this relation is dependent on education level. These studies were, however, hampered by data limitations and restricted statistical analyses. In addition, the extent to which the relation between the left-right self-placement scale and policy positions differs for parties and voters has not been explored. This article looks at the differential relation between left-right self-placement and policy positions for voters with different education levels on an integrated dataset containing over 50 voter and party policy positions. It is found that the left-right self-placement scale is a much better predictor for the policy positions of parties than it is for the policy preferences of voters. Robustness checks show that neither the saliency of the policy positions nor their complexity moderates these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite the increasingly reported incidence of sexual harassment among female elected representatives and staff members around the world, many more cases may not surface due to the power asymmetries, partisan logics and male organisational culture underpinning parliaments. No workplace is immune to sexual harassment, but when such misconducts occur in parliaments women's right to fully and equally participate in political life is severely infringed. While international organisations have issued numerous resolutions calling parliaments to take action, this article shows that most legislative chambers in Europe and the Americas lag behind the adoption of adequate preventative measures, complaint mechanisms and reparation measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Scienza & Politica is the property of University of Bologna, Department of Political & Social Sciences Alma Mater Studiorum and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

To fully understand northeastern Europe's cultural pluralism, it helps to apply a concept first coined for a very different time and place: "intersectionality." This idea begins with a simple recognition that every person embodies a cluster of identities, some personally embraced and some imposed by others. All of these identities are positioned within cross-cutting relationships of power and privilege that interact in complicated ways. Although the term "intersectionality" dates back only three decades, those of us who study northeastern Europe are familiar with the underlying issues. Both the people of that region, and those who study them, were thinking about this problem long before anyone had a word for it. The virtue of the intersectional approach is that it prevents us from even attempting to walk the tightrope balanced between the blunt reification of national communities on the one hand, and the totalizing story of a singular (unmarked) "Polish" history on the other. It allows us to see, and when appropriate to prioritize, the various categories of gender, religion, language, status, or class that swirled around everyone living along the Vistula River basin. At the same time, it allows us to avoid the fraught dualisms of a "Polish-Jewish History" approach, which by its very label assumes that those two adjectives will everywhere and always be the most important ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing number of digitally-enabled social innovation initiatives have recently attracted social scholars' interest; and required an attentive consideration the complex entanglements between innovation, social agency and power. This paper contributes to the debate on this juvenile research field by analysing the different conceptualisations, cultural framing, and socio-political entanglements of digitally-enabled social innovation. It adopts a Foucauldian perspective in order to analyse the diverse discourses on socially transformative digital initiatives that work as 'social technologies' and support distinctive power/knowledge nexuses within diverse coalitions of actors. To this end, the paper applies a combination of bibliographic and text-mining methodologies to a large number of academic publications (191 scientific papers) and grey literature (1948 EU-project reports). Retrieved data are elaborated to map the emerging discursive field and identify a genealogy of associated concepts, the distribution of co-incidences and linkages with other concepts, and their ideological layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article builds on the criticism of the international socialisation narrative which mistakenly represents compliance as socialisation and recognises agency only to the extent it fails to comply. It pertains to the argument that such a narrative can lead to stigmatisation which reinforces social orders characterised by specific hierarchies of power and spatial relations. The example of EU member states from Central Europe (CE) that went from 'star pupils of norm adoption' to 'misbehaving children of Europe' serves as a case study. The research of literature treating CE countries as socialisees and international organisations (OSCE, NATO and EU) as socialisers shows two things. Firstly, it demonstrates that CE countries internalised norms even before they complied with norm-based rules, which challenges views that (under)socialisation was (is) an issue with these states. Secondly, it shows that non-compliance of the CE countries did not have much to do with non-acceptance of norms as such. It was rather related to hypersensitivity towards specific norms and rules in a context of multiple crises with asymmetric effects for the CE countries. In this process, the EU and CE used (non)compliance to reinforce their identities, thus creating stigma (the EU) and the attempt to resist it or even wear it as the source of pride (CE). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]