Curtis J. Evans
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195328189
- eISBN:
- 9780199870028
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195328189.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This book is about the crucial role that black religion has played in the United States as an imagined community or a united nation. The book argues that cultural images and interpretations of ...
More
This book is about the crucial role that black religion has played in the United States as an imagined community or a united nation. The book argues that cultural images and interpretations of African American religion placed an enormous burden on black religious capacities as the source for black contributions to American culture until the 1940s. Attention to black religion as the chief bearer of meaning for black life was also a result of longstanding debates about what constituted the “human person” and an implicit assertion of the intellectual inferiority of peoples of African descent. Intellectual and religious capacities were reshaped and reconceptualized in various crucial historical moments in American history because of real world debates about blacks' place in the nation and continuing discussions about what it meant to be fully human. Only within the last half century has this older paradigm of black religion (and the concomitant assumption of a genetic deficiency in “intelligence”) been challenged with any degree of cultural authority. Black innate religiosity had to be denied before sufficient attention could be paid to actual proposals about black equal participation in the nation, though this should not be interpreted as a call for insufficient attention to the role of religion in the lives of African Americans and other ethnic groups.Less
This book is about the crucial role that black religion has played in the United States as an imagined community or a united nation. The book argues that cultural images and interpretations of African American religion placed an enormous burden on black religious capacities as the source for black contributions to American culture until the 1940s. Attention to black religion as the chief bearer of meaning for black life was also a result of longstanding debates about what constituted the “human person” and an implicit assertion of the intellectual inferiority of peoples of African descent. Intellectual and religious capacities were reshaped and reconceptualized in various crucial historical moments in American history because of real world debates about blacks' place in the nation and continuing discussions about what it meant to be fully human. Only within the last half century has this older paradigm of black religion (and the concomitant assumption of a genetic deficiency in “intelligence”) been challenged with any degree of cultural authority. Black innate religiosity had to be denied before sufficient attention could be paid to actual proposals about black equal participation in the nation, though this should not be interpreted as a call for insufficient attention to the role of religion in the lives of African Americans and other ethnic groups.
Pavel Gregoric
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199277377
- eISBN:
- 9780191707537
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199277377.003.0011
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy
This chapter indicates that the phrase ‘common sense’ probably has not yet crystallized into a technical term with Aristotle. Nevertheless, there can be little doubt that, owing to Aristotle, it ...
More
This chapter indicates that the phrase ‘common sense’ probably has not yet crystallized into a technical term with Aristotle. Nevertheless, there can be little doubt that, owing to Aristotle, it became a technical term at some point between Theophrastus and Alexander of Aphrodisias. There is consistency in Aristotle's use of the phrase ‘common sense’ which, on its own, would imply that the phrase is a technical term for Aristotle, functioning as a proper name for the sensory capacity of the soul. However, a survey of the other uses manifest variation which suggests that the phrase really did not have the status of a technical term for Aristotle. Depending on the context, the terms which make up the phrase can take different nuances in meaning within their respective semantic horizons and assume different word order to express different ideas. Aristotle takes advantage of this variability in different contexts, and it is possible that he would not be inclined to do so had the phrase been fixed in his mind as a technical term. Less
This chapter indicates that the phrase ‘common sense’ probably has not yet crystallized into a technical term with Aristotle. Nevertheless, there can be little doubt that, owing to Aristotle, it became a technical term at some point between Theophrastus and Alexander of Aphrodisias. There is consistency in Aristotle's use of the phrase ‘common sense’ which, on its own, would imply that the phrase is a technical term for Aristotle, functioning as a proper name for the sensory capacity of the soul. However, a survey of the other uses manifest variation which suggests that the phrase really did not have the status of a technical term for Aristotle. Depending on the context, the terms which make up the phrase can take different nuances in meaning within their respective semantic horizons and assume different word order to express different ideas. Aristotle takes advantage of this variability in different contexts, and it is possible that he would not be inclined to do so had the phrase been fixed in his mind as a technical term.
Andrew Jordan and Adriaan Schout
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199286959
- eISBN:
- 9780191713279
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199286959.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter introduces the basic administrative mechanisms for coordinating EU policy in the five actors. For each actor, it describes the most important administrative parts and explains the ...
More
This chapter introduces the basic administrative mechanisms for coordinating EU policy in the five actors. For each actor, it describes the most important administrative parts and explains the processes through which they seek to coordinate their input to EU policy making, both internally (that is, intra-departmentally) and with cognate actors (that is, inter-departmentally). To permit comparison, it begins by analysing the main coordination instruments and roles within each actor. It then describes the mechanisms through which each coordinates the various phases of EU policy making described in Chapter 2. Finally, it comments on how each is currently attempting to upgrade its coordination system.Less
This chapter introduces the basic administrative mechanisms for coordinating EU policy in the five actors. For each actor, it describes the most important administrative parts and explains the processes through which they seek to coordinate their input to EU policy making, both internally (that is, intra-departmentally) and with cognate actors (that is, inter-departmentally). To permit comparison, it begins by analysing the main coordination instruments and roles within each actor. It then describes the mechanisms through which each coordinates the various phases of EU policy making described in Chapter 2. Finally, it comments on how each is currently attempting to upgrade its coordination system.
Andrew Jordan and Adriaan Schout
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199286959
- eISBN:
- 9780191713279
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199286959.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter analyses the administrative capacities that this actor has developed to coordinate the implementation of EPI across the whole of the EU (that is, EU-EPI). In so doing, it moves on from ...
More
This chapter analyses the administrative capacities that this actor has developed to coordinate the implementation of EPI across the whole of the EU (that is, EU-EPI). In so doing, it moves on from looking at the ways in which this particular actor operates in its immediate institutional space, to gauge how all the actors coordinate together in a network or networks. This chapter is written to fit a standard analytical framework, which is outlined in Chapter 2.Less
This chapter analyses the administrative capacities that this actor has developed to coordinate the implementation of EPI across the whole of the EU (that is, EU-EPI). In so doing, it moves on from looking at the ways in which this particular actor operates in its immediate institutional space, to gauge how all the actors coordinate together in a network or networks. This chapter is written to fit a standard analytical framework, which is outlined in Chapter 2.
Gerda Falkner (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199596225
- eISBN:
- 9780191729140
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199596225.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union, International Relations and Politics
Fritz W. Scharpf's renowned joint‐decision trap model has suggested that the requirements of (nearly) unanimous decisions in the EU's Council of Ministers, combined with conflicting preferences among ...
More
Fritz W. Scharpf's renowned joint‐decision trap model has suggested that the requirements of (nearly) unanimous decisions in the EU's Council of Ministers, combined with conflicting preferences among member governments, will systematically limit the problem-solving effectiveness of European policies. Certain conditions have significantly changed during the 25 years of this theory's existence: the unanimity rule has been replaced by qualified-majority voting in most issue areas, and successive rounds of enlargement have augmented the diversity of member state interests and preferences. This book presents a comparative study on the differential politics in EU policies. Looking at the political dynamics in an array of EU activities, it analyses breakthroughs as well as stalemates and asks why leaps occur in some areas whilst blockades characterize others. The dynamics that allow the EU to escape various forms of decision trap are analysed in depth. Such mechanisms are from both the type expected by ‘rationalist’ theorists (supranational-hierarchical steering, Treaty‐base games and arena shifting) and from the kind acknowledged by ‘constructivist’ approaches (socialization). The downside of the findings is that when the EU is confronted with a high degree of problem pressure in a given issue area, these mechanisms will often not be available because most remain outside politicians' immediate grasp.Less
Fritz W. Scharpf's renowned joint‐decision trap model has suggested that the requirements of (nearly) unanimous decisions in the EU's Council of Ministers, combined with conflicting preferences among member governments, will systematically limit the problem-solving effectiveness of European policies. Certain conditions have significantly changed during the 25 years of this theory's existence: the unanimity rule has been replaced by qualified-majority voting in most issue areas, and successive rounds of enlargement have augmented the diversity of member state interests and preferences. This book presents a comparative study on the differential politics in EU policies. Looking at the political dynamics in an array of EU activities, it analyses breakthroughs as well as stalemates and asks why leaps occur in some areas whilst blockades characterize others. The dynamics that allow the EU to escape various forms of decision trap are analysed in depth. Such mechanisms are from both the type expected by ‘rationalist’ theorists (supranational-hierarchical steering, Treaty‐base games and arena shifting) and from the kind acknowledged by ‘constructivist’ approaches (socialization). The downside of the findings is that when the EU is confronted with a high degree of problem pressure in a given issue area, these mechanisms will often not be available because most remain outside politicians' immediate grasp.
Melvin Delgado
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195125467
- eISBN:
- 9780199864188
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195125467.003.0013
- Subject:
- Social Work, Communities and Organizations
This chapter presents a synthesis of the lessons learned in undertaking urban-based community capacity-enhancement practice. The rewards, challenges, hopes, and despair that are often associated with ...
More
This chapter presents a synthesis of the lessons learned in undertaking urban-based community capacity-enhancement practice. The rewards, challenges, hopes, and despair that are often associated with practice in urban areas must energize social workers in their quest for economic and social justice for undervalued groups that often face multiple jeopardies in their lives. Recommendations for future work are discussed. These recommendations cover a variety of arenas regarding practice and social work education as a means of bringing these two “worlds” together.Less
This chapter presents a synthesis of the lessons learned in undertaking urban-based community capacity-enhancement practice. The rewards, challenges, hopes, and despair that are often associated with practice in urban areas must energize social workers in their quest for economic and social justice for undervalued groups that often face multiple jeopardies in their lives. Recommendations for future work are discussed. These recommendations cover a variety of arenas regarding practice and social work education as a means of bringing these two “worlds” together.
Joshua Landy
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195188561
- eISBN:
- 9780199949458
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195188561.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
This book offers a new rationale for the place of literary reading in the well-lived life. While it is often assumed that fictions must be informative or morally improving in order to be of any real ...
More
This book offers a new rationale for the place of literary reading in the well-lived life. While it is often assumed that fictions must be informative or morally improving in order to be of any real benefit to us, certain texts defy this assumption by functioning as training-grounds for the capacities: in engaging with them we stand not to become more knowledgeable or more virtuous but more skilled, whether at rational thinking, at maintaining necessary illusions, at achieving tranquillity of mind, or even at religious faith. Instead of offering us propositional knowledge, these texts yield know-how; rather than attempting to instruct by means of their content, they hone capacities by means of their form; far from seducing with the promise of instantaneous transformation, they recognize, with Aristotle, that change is a matter of sustained and patient practice. Their demands are high, but the reward they promise is nothing short of a more richly lived life.Less
This book offers a new rationale for the place of literary reading in the well-lived life. While it is often assumed that fictions must be informative or morally improving in order to be of any real benefit to us, certain texts defy this assumption by functioning as training-grounds for the capacities: in engaging with them we stand not to become more knowledgeable or more virtuous but more skilled, whether at rational thinking, at maintaining necessary illusions, at achieving tranquillity of mind, or even at religious faith. Instead of offering us propositional knowledge, these texts yield know-how; rather than attempting to instruct by means of their content, they hone capacities by means of their form; far from seducing with the promise of instantaneous transformation, they recognize, with Aristotle, that change is a matter of sustained and patient practice. Their demands are high, but the reward they promise is nothing short of a more richly lived life.
Pavel Gregoric
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199277377
- eISBN:
- 9780191707537
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199277377.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy
The conceptual division of the soul enables Aristotle not only to proceed systematically by explaining one capacity of the soul after another, but also to divide the soul along different joints , and ...
More
The conceptual division of the soul enables Aristotle not only to proceed systematically by explaining one capacity of the soul after another, but also to divide the soul along different joints , and thus to account for other, more complex, activities of animals. This is what Aristotle does in some treatises from the collection Parva Naturalia. In this chapter some crucial distinctions are drawn. First, there is the perceptual capacity of the soul which can operate not only as this or that individual sense, but also, on account of its unity, as a higher-order perceptual power which co-ordinates and monitors the senses. This power is known as the ‘common sense’ in the Aristotelian tradition, and it is the subject of the rest of this book. Second, there is the sensory capacity of the soul which comprises the perceptual capacity described above plus the imaginative capacity. This more general capacity can operate not only as perception or as imagination, but it can also combine their activities. It will be shown that this latter power is what Aristotle himself calls the ‘common sense’. Failure to observe these distinctions is the main source of problems surrounding Aristotle's notion of the common sense. Less
The conceptual division of the soul enables Aristotle not only to proceed systematically by explaining one capacity of the soul after another, but also to divide the soul along different joints , and thus to account for other, more complex, activities of animals. This is what Aristotle does in some treatises from the collection Parva Naturalia. In this chapter some crucial distinctions are drawn. First, there is the perceptual capacity of the soul which can operate not only as this or that individual sense, but also, on account of its unity, as a higher-order perceptual power which co-ordinates and monitors the senses. This power is known as the ‘common sense’ in the Aristotelian tradition, and it is the subject of the rest of this book. Second, there is the sensory capacity of the soul which comprises the perceptual capacity described above plus the imaginative capacity. This more general capacity can operate not only as perception or as imagination, but it can also combine their activities. It will be shown that this latter power is what Aristotle himself calls the ‘common sense’. Failure to observe these distinctions is the main source of problems surrounding Aristotle's notion of the common sense.
Jonathan Beere
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199206704
- eISBN:
- 9780191709784
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199206704.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology, Ancient Philosophy
Doing and Being confronts the problem of how to understand two central concepts of Aristotle's philosophy: energeia and dunamis. While these terms seem ambiguous between actuality/potentiality and ...
More
Doing and Being confronts the problem of how to understand two central concepts of Aristotle's philosophy: energeia and dunamis. While these terms seem ambiguous between actuality/potentiality and activity/capacity, Aristotle did not intend them to be so. Through a careful and detailed reading of Metaphysics Theta, the author argues that we can solve the problem by rejecting both ‘actuality’ and ‘activity’ as translations of energeia, and by working out an analogical conception of energeia. This approach enables the author to discern a hitherto unnoticed connection between Plato's Sophist and Aristotle's Metaphysics Theta, and to give satisfying interpretations of the major claims that Aristotle makes in Metaphysics Theta, the claim that energeia is prior in being to capacity (Theta 8), and the claim that any eternal principle must be perfectly good (Theta 9).Less
Doing and Being confronts the problem of how to understand two central concepts of Aristotle's philosophy: energeia and dunamis. While these terms seem ambiguous between actuality/potentiality and activity/capacity, Aristotle did not intend them to be so. Through a careful and detailed reading of Metaphysics Theta, the author argues that we can solve the problem by rejecting both ‘actuality’ and ‘activity’ as translations of energeia, and by working out an analogical conception of energeia. This approach enables the author to discern a hitherto unnoticed connection between Plato's Sophist and Aristotle's Metaphysics Theta, and to give satisfying interpretations of the major claims that Aristotle makes in Metaphysics Theta, the claim that energeia is prior in being to capacity (Theta 8), and the claim that any eternal principle must be perfectly good (Theta 9).
John E. Hare
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198269571
- eISBN:
- 9780191683701
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198269571.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion, Theology
This book is about the gap between the moral demand on us and our natural capacities to meet it. The author starts with Kant’s statement of the moral demand and his acknowledgement of this gap. He ...
More
This book is about the gap between the moral demand on us and our natural capacities to meet it. The author starts with Kant’s statement of the moral demand and his acknowledgement of this gap. He then analyses Kant’s use of the resources of the Christian tradition to make sense of this gap, especially the notions of revelation, providence, and God’s grace. Kant reflects the traditional way of making sense of this gap, which is to invoke God’s assistance in bridging it. The author goes on to examine various contemporary philosophers who do not use these resources. He considers three main strategies: exaggerating our natural capacities, diminishing the moral demand, and finding some naturalistic substitute for God’s assistance. He argues that these strategies do not work, and that we are therefore left with the gap and with the problem that it is unreasonable to demand of ourselves — a standard that we cannot reach. In the final section of the book, the author looks in more detail at the Christian doctrines of atonement, justification, and sanctification. He discusses Kierkegaard’s account of the relation between the ethical life and the Christian life, and ends by considering human forgiveness, and the ways in which God’s forgiveness is both like and unlike our forgiveness of each other.Less
This book is about the gap between the moral demand on us and our natural capacities to meet it. The author starts with Kant’s statement of the moral demand and his acknowledgement of this gap. He then analyses Kant’s use of the resources of the Christian tradition to make sense of this gap, especially the notions of revelation, providence, and God’s grace. Kant reflects the traditional way of making sense of this gap, which is to invoke God’s assistance in bridging it. The author goes on to examine various contemporary philosophers who do not use these resources. He considers three main strategies: exaggerating our natural capacities, diminishing the moral demand, and finding some naturalistic substitute for God’s assistance. He argues that these strategies do not work, and that we are therefore left with the gap and with the problem that it is unreasonable to demand of ourselves — a standard that we cannot reach. In the final section of the book, the author looks in more detail at the Christian doctrines of atonement, justification, and sanctification. He discusses Kierkegaard’s account of the relation between the ethical life and the Christian life, and ends by considering human forgiveness, and the ways in which God’s forgiveness is both like and unlike our forgiveness of each other.
Patarapong Intarakumnerd and Peera Charoenporn
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199574759
- eISBN:
- 9780191722660
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199574759.003.0012
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Innovation
This chapter discusses the case of Thailand and argues that technological learning by firms has been slow and passive owing to three factors: the failure of the educational system to create a strong ...
More
This chapter discusses the case of Thailand and argues that technological learning by firms has been slow and passive owing to three factors: the failure of the educational system to create a strong cadre of technically trained people, the inability of government to develop and enforce policies to enhance Thai firms to develop technological and innovative capabilities, and little pressure on multinationals to build and upgrade their technological and innovative capabilities locally. Thai intellectual property regime was, until the early 1990s, characterized by weak protection and yet it was not pro‐diffusion either. That is, it was not particularly favorable to catch‐up and the lack of preconditions did not help either, for instance, the absence of sufficient indigenous absorptive capacity of firms, the lack of mechanisms or coordinated policy for knowledge diffusion and utilization, and the environment in general not being favorable to innovation.Less
This chapter discusses the case of Thailand and argues that technological learning by firms has been slow and passive owing to three factors: the failure of the educational system to create a strong cadre of technically trained people, the inability of government to develop and enforce policies to enhance Thai firms to develop technological and innovative capabilities, and little pressure on multinationals to build and upgrade their technological and innovative capabilities locally. Thai intellectual property regime was, until the early 1990s, characterized by weak protection and yet it was not pro‐diffusion either. That is, it was not particularly favorable to catch‐up and the lack of preconditions did not help either, for instance, the absence of sufficient indigenous absorptive capacity of firms, the lack of mechanisms or coordinated policy for knowledge diffusion and utilization, and the environment in general not being favorable to innovation.
You‐tien Hsing
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199568048
- eISBN:
- 9780191721632
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199568048.003.0003
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Political Economy
Chapter 2 discusses local politics at the municipal government level. It focuses on land battles in the urban core between high‐ranking state units (or “socialist land masters”) ...
More
Chapter 2 discusses local politics at the municipal government level. It focuses on land battles in the urban core between high‐ranking state units (or “socialist land masters”) and municipal governments. It argues that while the socialist land masters occupy premium land parcels inherited from the planned economy, the municipal government's authority is reinforced by a modernist discourse, Western urban planning doctrines, and recent policies that grant authority over state‐owned urban land to the territorial government. Rather than settling the matter of power in the city, however, municipal leaders' granted authority is tested and defined by their political, regulatory, organizational, and moral authority in negotiations with those above, within, and below them. The municipal government's regulatory capacity is especially challenged by a fragmented real estate industry that includes players from state, non‐state, and hybrid sectors.Less
Chapter 2 discusses local politics at the municipal government level. It focuses on land battles in the urban core between high‐ranking state units (or “socialist land masters”) and municipal governments. It argues that while the socialist land masters occupy premium land parcels inherited from the planned economy, the municipal government's authority is reinforced by a modernist discourse, Western urban planning doctrines, and recent policies that grant authority over state‐owned urban land to the territorial government. Rather than settling the matter of power in the city, however, municipal leaders' granted authority is tested and defined by their political, regulatory, organizational, and moral authority in negotiations with those above, within, and below them. The municipal government's regulatory capacity is especially challenged by a fragmented real estate industry that includes players from state, non‐state, and hybrid sectors.
Christian Smith
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195162028
- eISBN:
- 9780199849673
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195162028.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
What kind of animals are human beings? And how do our visions of the human shape our theories of social action and institutions? This book offers answers to these and other fundamental questions in ...
More
What kind of animals are human beings? And how do our visions of the human shape our theories of social action and institutions? This book offers answers to these and other fundamental questions in sociological, cultural, and religious theories. The research for this book is based on the assumption (unfashionable in certain circles) that human beings have an identifiable and peculiar set of capacities and proclivities that distinguishes them significantly from other animals on this planet. It argues that all people are at bottom believers, whose lives, actions, and institutions are constituted, motivated, and governed by narrative traditions and moral orders on which they inescapably depend. Despite the vast differences in humanity between cultures and across history, no matter how differently people narrate their lives and histories, there remains an underlying structure of human personhood that helps to order human culture, history, and narration. Drawing on recent insights in moral philosophy, epistemology, and narrative studies, the book argues that humans are animals who have an inescapable moral and spiritual dimension. They cannot avoid a fundamental moral orientation in life and this, the book says, has profound consequences for how sociology must study human beings.Less
What kind of animals are human beings? And how do our visions of the human shape our theories of social action and institutions? This book offers answers to these and other fundamental questions in sociological, cultural, and religious theories. The research for this book is based on the assumption (unfashionable in certain circles) that human beings have an identifiable and peculiar set of capacities and proclivities that distinguishes them significantly from other animals on this planet. It argues that all people are at bottom believers, whose lives, actions, and institutions are constituted, motivated, and governed by narrative traditions and moral orders on which they inescapably depend. Despite the vast differences in humanity between cultures and across history, no matter how differently people narrate their lives and histories, there remains an underlying structure of human personhood that helps to order human culture, history, and narration. Drawing on recent insights in moral philosophy, epistemology, and narrative studies, the book argues that humans are animals who have an inescapable moral and spiritual dimension. They cannot avoid a fundamental moral orientation in life and this, the book says, has profound consequences for how sociology must study human beings.
Luiz Carlos Bresser-Pereira
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- November 2004
- ISBN:
- 9780199261185
- eISBN:
- 9780191601507
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199261180.003.0015
- Subject:
- Political Science, Democratization
The basic idea is that activities that use state power should be within the state organization; the state should mainly finance social, cultural, and scientific activities involving externalities and ...
More
The basic idea is that activities that use state power should be within the state organization; the state should mainly finance social, cultural, and scientific activities involving externalities and dealing with basic human rights, and public non-state service organization should execute them. Additionally, public management reform is concerned with the democratic character of government officials’ decisions. Thus, while it emphasizes more autonomy for government officials in their decisions, given the complexity of the problems that government faces today and the speed required for some decisions, it demands, as a trade-off, greater transparency and accountability in the decision-making process. Finally, public management reform’s objective is not just to make the state organization more efficient but to build state capacity.Less
The basic idea is that activities that use state power should be within the state organization; the state should mainly finance social, cultural, and scientific activities involving externalities and dealing with basic human rights, and public non-state service organization should execute them. Additionally, public management reform is concerned with the democratic character of government officials’ decisions. Thus, while it emphasizes more autonomy for government officials in their decisions, given the complexity of the problems that government faces today and the speed required for some decisions, it demands, as a trade-off, greater transparency and accountability in the decision-making process. Finally, public management reform’s objective is not just to make the state organization more efficient but to build state capacity.
Matthew Flinders
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199271603
- eISBN:
- 9780191709241
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199271603.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, UK Politics, Political Economy
The delegation of functions and responsibilities to quasi-autonomous bodies operating with a significant degree of autonomy arguably empowers governments to address a wide range of social issues ...
More
The delegation of functions and responsibilities to quasi-autonomous bodies operating with a significant degree of autonomy arguably empowers governments to address a wide range of social issues simultaneously without having to be involved with the minutiae of day-to-day socio-political interactions. Delegation therefore provides a structural and esoteric capacity beyond the cognitive and physical limits of politicians. There is nothing wrong with delegation as such. The problem relates to the failure to manage delegation in Britain. And yet we actually know very little about how the state beyond the core actually operates, how many bodies exist, what they do, how they are recruited, or why they were created. These gaps in our knowledge are all the more problematic in light of recent pronouncements by politicians at the national and European levels that ‘depoliticization’ is a central strand of their approach to governing. This book seeks to fill these gaps in our knowledge while at the same time cultivating a more balanced or sophisticated approach to the study of delegation. Delegated public bodies as they have been used as a tool of governance in the past should not be confused with how they might be used in the future. This book draws upon research conducted within the very core of the British political system during a Whitehall Fellowship within the Cabinet Office. It argues that the British state is ‘walking without order’ due to a general acceptance of the logic of delegation without any detailed or principled consideration of the administrative of democratic consequences of this process.Less
The delegation of functions and responsibilities to quasi-autonomous bodies operating with a significant degree of autonomy arguably empowers governments to address a wide range of social issues simultaneously without having to be involved with the minutiae of day-to-day socio-political interactions. Delegation therefore provides a structural and esoteric capacity beyond the cognitive and physical limits of politicians. There is nothing wrong with delegation as such. The problem relates to the failure to manage delegation in Britain. And yet we actually know very little about how the state beyond the core actually operates, how many bodies exist, what they do, how they are recruited, or why they were created. These gaps in our knowledge are all the more problematic in light of recent pronouncements by politicians at the national and European levels that ‘depoliticization’ is a central strand of their approach to governing. This book seeks to fill these gaps in our knowledge while at the same time cultivating a more balanced or sophisticated approach to the study of delegation. Delegated public bodies as they have been used as a tool of governance in the past should not be confused with how they might be used in the future. This book draws upon research conducted within the very core of the British political system during a Whitehall Fellowship within the Cabinet Office. It argues that the British state is ‘walking without order’ due to a general acceptance of the logic of delegation without any detailed or principled consideration of the administrative of democratic consequences of this process.
Richard Heffernan and Paul Webb
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- April 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199252015
- eISBN:
- 9780191602375
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199252017.003.0002
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
Reviews a wide range of evidence to demonstrate three things. First, election campaigns have become more candidate-centered, with parties offering leaders greater prominence in their election ...
More
Reviews a wide range of evidence to demonstrate three things. First, election campaigns have become more candidate-centered, with parties offering leaders greater prominence in their election campaigns and the media devoting greater attention to them. This development seems to have taken place since 1960, which coincides with the spread of mass access to television in Britain, and the erosion of class politics. Second, today’s major-party leaders are in significant ways more strongly placed to exert intra-party power than they were in 1980, much as we might expect of electoral-professional organizations. Third, and perhaps most important, it seems likely that the potential for prime ministerial power within the state’s political executive has been enhanced because of structural changes that have generated a larger and more integrated ‘executive office’ under his or her control since 1970.Of course, these developments have occurred in the context of a highly partified form of parliamentarism. Thus, it is not contended simply that Prime Ministers have become completely indistinguishable from Presidents, but rather, that a number of changes have occurred that are mutually consistent with the working logic of presidentialism.Less
Reviews a wide range of evidence to demonstrate three things. First, election campaigns have become more candidate-centered, with parties offering leaders greater prominence in their election campaigns and the media devoting greater attention to them. This development seems to have taken place since 1960, which coincides with the spread of mass access to television in Britain, and the erosion of class politics. Second, today’s major-party leaders are in significant ways more strongly placed to exert intra-party power than they were in 1980, much as we might expect of electoral-professional organizations. Third, and perhaps most important, it seems likely that the potential for prime ministerial power within the state’s political executive has been enhanced because of structural changes that have generated a larger and more integrated ‘executive office’ under his or her control since 1970.
Of course, these developments have occurred in the context of a highly partified form of parliamentarism. Thus, it is not contended simply that Prime Ministers have become completely indistinguishable from Presidents, but rather, that a number of changes have occurred that are mutually consistent with the working logic of presidentialism.
Richard Caplan
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- July 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199263455
- eISBN:
- 9780191602726
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199263450.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
The most distinctive feature of transitional administrations is the establishment and management of interim administrative structures with wholesale responsibility for the implementation of public ...
More
The most distinctive feature of transitional administrations is the establishment and management of interim administrative structures with wholesale responsibility for the implementation of public policy and the delivery of essential public services—the core functions of a government. Examines the structures and practices that have been adopted for the purpose of performing civil administrative functions and the relationship these institutions have to local governmental bodies. A better balance, it is argued here, needs to be struck between the demands for effective and efficient international administration in the short term and the strengthening of local capacity in the longer term if transitional authorities are not to leave behind weak states or territories as a part of their legacy.Less
The most distinctive feature of transitional administrations is the establishment and management of interim administrative structures with wholesale responsibility for the implementation of public policy and the delivery of essential public services—the core functions of a government. Examines the structures and practices that have been adopted for the purpose of performing civil administrative functions and the relationship these institutions have to local governmental bodies. A better balance, it is argued here, needs to be struck between the demands for effective and efficient international administration in the short term and the strengthening of local capacity in the longer term if transitional authorities are not to leave behind weak states or territories as a part of their legacy.
Sharan Jagpal
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195371055
- eISBN:
- 9780199870745
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195371055.003.0009
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Marketing
This chapter shows how the firm can use marketing-finance fusion to choose bundling strategies to increase its performance. Topics covered include: how to price interdependent products, how and when ...
More
This chapter shows how the firm can use marketing-finance fusion to choose bundling strategies to increase its performance. Topics covered include: how to price interdependent products, how and when to use cross-couponing strategies, how to allow for production capacity constraints, and how to reward managers of multidivisional firms when cross-couponing strategies are used. It analyzes why many bundling strategies fail in the marketplace; in addition, it proposes new metrics for measuring consumers' willingness to pay for products and bundles.Less
This chapter shows how the firm can use marketing-finance fusion to choose bundling strategies to increase its performance. Topics covered include: how to price interdependent products, how and when to use cross-couponing strategies, how to allow for production capacity constraints, and how to reward managers of multidivisional firms when cross-couponing strategies are used. It analyzes why many bundling strategies fail in the marketplace; in addition, it proposes new metrics for measuring consumers' willingness to pay for products and bundles.
Frederick L. Coolidge and Thomas Wynn
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199545872
- eISBN:
- 9780191720369
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199545872.003.0013
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
Recursion is considered to be the hallmark of modern language. This chapter addresses fundamental questions about its evolutionary emergence: ‘What is the relationship of recursion to modern language ...
More
Recursion is considered to be the hallmark of modern language. This chapter addresses fundamental questions about its evolutionary emergence: ‘What is the relationship of recursion to modern language and thinking?’ and ‘What might be the mechanism or subspecies of recursion that bestows its advantages to cognition?’ In addressing these questions, empirical evidence is presented which shows that recursion requires not only greater working memory capacity but also greater phonological storage capacity. The chapter proposes that recursion arose as a function of an increase in phonological storage capacity and/or working memory capacity. These capacities were enhanced by a genetic neural mutation that occurred sometime between 150,000 and 30,000 years ago. That change made possible longer recursive and canonical utterances and a consequent increase in the complexity and information content of sentences.Less
Recursion is considered to be the hallmark of modern language. This chapter addresses fundamental questions about its evolutionary emergence: ‘What is the relationship of recursion to modern language and thinking?’ and ‘What might be the mechanism or subspecies of recursion that bestows its advantages to cognition?’ In addressing these questions, empirical evidence is presented which shows that recursion requires not only greater working memory capacity but also greater phonological storage capacity. The chapter proposes that recursion arose as a function of an increase in phonological storage capacity and/or working memory capacity. These capacities were enhanced by a genetic neural mutation that occurred sometime between 150,000 and 30,000 years ago. That change made possible longer recursive and canonical utterances and a consequent increase in the complexity and information content of sentences.
Patrick Cohendet and Laurent Simon
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199545490
- eISBN:
- 9780191720093
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199545490.003.0010
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies, Knowledge Management
This contribution focuses on the relationship between the urban milieu and high creativity firms, focusing on the videogames sector in Montreal. It reveals an organizational frame of a lack of large ...
More
This contribution focuses on the relationship between the urban milieu and high creativity firms, focusing on the videogames sector in Montreal. It reveals an organizational frame of a lack of large R&D departments and a lack of global networks of subsidiaries or partners through which firms access creative knowledge. None of these classical ways to enhance creativity is present. Instead, creativity relies on distributed and independent communities of knowing which generate, exploit, and develop a ‘creative slack’ as a source of growth for the firm. These communities find their source of inspiration and innovation in the fertile soil of a creative city.Less
This contribution focuses on the relationship between the urban milieu and high creativity firms, focusing on the videogames sector in Montreal. It reveals an organizational frame of a lack of large R&D departments and a lack of global networks of subsidiaries or partners through which firms access creative knowledge. None of these classical ways to enhance creativity is present. Instead, creativity relies on distributed and independent communities of knowing which generate, exploit, and develop a ‘creative slack’ as a source of growth for the firm. These communities find their source of inspiration and innovation in the fertile soil of a creative city.
