"Nested and Overlapping Regimes in the Transatlantic Banana Trade Dispute"

The decade long trans-Atlantic banana dispute was not a traditional trade conflict stemming from antagonistic producers’ interests. Instead, this article argues that the banana dispute is one of the most complex illustrations of the legal and political difficulties created by the nesting and overlapping of international institutions and commitments. The contested Europe-wide banana policy was an artifact of nesting--the fruit of efforts to reconcile the single market with Lomé obligations which then ran afoul of WTO rules. Using counter-factual analysis, this article explores how the nesting of international commitments contributed to creating the dispute, provided forum shopping opportunities which themselves complicated the options of decisionmakers, and hindered resolution of what would otherwise be a pretty straightforward trade dispute. We then draw out implications from this case for the EU, an institution increasingly nested within multilateral mechanisms, and for the issue of the nesting of international institutions in general

Divided but United: European Trade Policy & EC-U.S. Agricultural Negotiations in the Uruguay Round. CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, No. 07.3, 1996

How has the integration of trade policy and negotiating authority in Europe affected the external bargaining capabilities of the European Community (EC)? This paper analyzes the bargaining constraints and opportunities for the EC created by the obligation to negotiate as a single entity. The nature of demands in external~ the voting rules at the EC level, and the amount of autonomy exercised by EC negotiators contribute to explaining, this paper argues, whether the EC gains some external bargaining clout from its internal divisions and whether the final international agreement reflects the position of the median or the extreme countries in the Community. The Uruguay Round agricultural negotiations illustrate the consequences of the EC's institutional structure on its external bargaining capabilities. Negotiations between the EC and the U.S. were deadlocked for six years because the wide gap among the positions of the member states at the start of the Uruguay Round had prevented the EC from making sufficient concessions. The combination of a weakened unanimity rule and greater autonomy seized by Commission negotiators after the May 1992 reform of the Common Agricultural Policy made possible the conclusion of an EC-U.S. agricultural agreement. Although the majority of member states supported the Blair House agreement, the reinstating of the veto power in the EC and the tighter member states' control over the Commission eventually resulted in a renegotiation of the U.S.-EC agreement tilted in favor of France, the most recalcitrant country

Missing in Action? France and the Politicization of Trade and Investment Agreements

Negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the European Union (EU) and the United States (US) and for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada have provoked massive mobilization throughout Europe, both on the streets and online. Yet France, long at the epicenter of anti-globalization and anti-Americanism, has played a surprisingly modest role in the mobilization campaign against these agreements. This article asks why France did not contribute to anti-TTIP mobilization and, more broadly, how patterns of French mobilization over trade have changed over the past two decades. Using comparative-historical analysis, we explore to what extent this puzzling French reaction can be traced to changing attitudes towards the US, agenda-shaping by the French government, and transformations in the venues and techniques of social mobilization. We thus contribute to the growing literature on the politicization of trade agreements and offer insights into the links between domestic and international politics

The end of naivety : assertiveness and new instruments in EU trade and investment policy

For decades the European Union (EU) was a pillar of free trade liberalization in the world. It pursued a liberal free trade agenda predicated on achieving true freedom of movement within its internal market and using access to its market as both carrot and stick for the rest of the world. EU commercial policy was guided by a liberal ideology rooted in a strong belief that the opening of markets around the world was essential for prosperity, democracy and peace – in addition to being a goal in itself. As one of the world’s three largest traders, the EU has long been a central player in the World Trade Organization (WTO) regime and one of its most ardent defenders. When the first cracks appeared in political support for globalisation in the late 1990s, the EU doubled down its efforts to open markets and bring emerging economies such as China into the multilateral fold. Indeed, exporting its regulatory model by building capacity and increasing membership of the WTO and other international organisations became one of the EU’s main instruments in its attempt to ‘manage’ globalisation. After the 2008 financial crisis, with the multilateral system and, more broadly, the liberal international economic order increasingly challenged, the EU continued to carry the torch of liberal globalisation and to try to lead by example, even in the face of growing unilateral protectionist actions by its largest trade partners

Le changement organisationnel : la prédiction des comportements de soutien et de résistance par le biais des préoccupations

Depuis plus de 50 ans, les chercheurs s’intéressent à la résistance au changement. Or, malgré plusieurs années de recherche, on ne sait toujours pas exactement quelles variables peuvent prédire les comportements de résistance et encore moins ceux de soutien. La présente thèse vise à pallier cette lacune en identifiant des variables pouvant expliquer à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance lors d’un changement organisationnel majeur. Le modèle des phases de préoccupations (Bareil 2004a) s’avère intéressant à cet effet puisqu’il intègre bien les savoirs actuels et s’adapte à différents changements. L’objectif principal de cette thèse est donc de vérifier jusqu’à quel point les comportements de soutien et de résistance peuvent être prédits par les phases de préoccupations, en tenant compte de l’engagement affectif envers le changement comme variable médiatrice et du rôle des acteurs et de l’avancement de la mise en œuvre comme variables modératrices. Pour ce faire, une étude a été menée auprès d’enseignants, de professionnels et de directeurs d’une Commission scolaire québécoise ayant implanté une réforme majeure provoquant des préoccupations d’intensité variée et des comportements divers, allant de la résistance au soutien. Les analyses acheminatoires effectuées auprès de deux échantillons indépendants (n=464 et n=171) indiquent que les premières phases du modèle (centrées sur le destinataire, l’organisation et le changement) sont liées positivement aux comportements de résistance et négativement à ceux de soutien. À l’inverse, les dernières phases (centrées sur l’expérimentation, la collaboration et l’amélioration continue) sont liées négativement aux comportements de résistance et positivement à ceux de soutien. Ainsi, plus on avance dans la séquence des phases de préoccupations, plus les comportements de soutien augmentent et ceux de résistance diminuent. Également, l’engagement affectif envers le changement agit à titre de variable médiatrice et permet d’expliquer davantage de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. De plus, les analyses de régression indiquent que les phases de préoccupations expliquent davantage de variance des comportements de soutien des agents de changement, alors qu’elles expliquent plus de variance des comportements de résistance des destinataires. On constate aussi que c’est au début de la mise en œuvre que les phases de préoccupations expliquent le plus de variance des comportements de soutien et de résistance. Finalement, un troisième échantillon (n=143) permet de suivre l’évolution des participants ayant répondu deux fois au questionnaire. Les tests t ne rapportent aucune différence significative entre les deux temps de mesure et ce, autant pour les phases de préoccupations que pour les comportements de soutien et de résistance. On constate que lorsque les phases de préoccupations n’évoluent pas, les comportements de soutien ou de résistance demeurent les mêmes. En somme, ces résultats indiquent qu’il est possible de prédire à la fois les comportements de soutien et de résistance avec les phases de préoccupations. En outre, on sait maintenant à quel moment et avec quel type d’acteurs le modèle des phases de préoccupations s’avère le plus utile. Afin de généraliser ces résultats, il serait pertinent de reproduire cette recherche dans une autre organisation qui implante un changement majeur.For over 50 years, researchers have been interested in resistance to change. However, despite several years of research, it remains unclear which variables can predict resistance and support behaviours. The aim of this thesis is to fill this gap by identifying variables that can explain both support and resistance behaviours during a major organizational change. The stages of concerns’ model (Bareil, 2004a, adapted from Hall & Hord, 2001) is an interesting option for this purpose since it includes many current knowledge and can be adapted to various changes. Thus, the main objective of this thesis is to ascertain to what extent support and resistance behaviours can be predicted by stages of concerns, taking into account affective commitment to change as a mediator variable and the actor’s role and the progress of the implementation as moderator variables. To this end, a study was conducted with teachers, professionals and directors of a school board in Quebec, implementing a reform causing major concerns of different intensities and various behaviours, ranging from resistance to support. The path analysis performed with two independent samples (n = 464 and n = 171) indicates that the first stages (focused on the employee, on the organization and on the change) are positively related to resistance behaviours and negatively related to support behaviours. Conversely, the last stages (focused on experimentation, on collaboration and on continuous improvement) are negatively related to resistance behaviours and positively related to support behaviours. Thus, the further along the sequence of stages of concerns, the more supportive behaviours increase and resistance behaviours decreases. Also, affective commitment to change can act as a mediator variable in this relation. Moreover, regression analysis indicates that the stages of concerns explain more variance in supportive behaviours of change agents as they explain more variance in resistance behaviours of employees. We also note that it is in early implementation that the stages of concerns explain the most variance in support and resistance behaviours. Finally, a third sample (n = 143) follows the evolution of participants who completed the questionnaire twice. The t-tests report no significant difference between the two measurement time, and this for both preoccupations and support and resistance behaviours. We note that when the stages of concerns do not change, support or resistance behaviours remain the same. In sum, these results indicate that we can now predict both support and resistance behaviours with the stages of concerns. In addition, this study permitted to know when this model is the most appropriate and who benefits the most of it. To generalize these results, it would be appropriate to replicate this research in another organization implementing a different major change

BINAURAL LOUDNESS OF MOVING SOURCES IN FREE FIELD: PERCEPTUAL MEASUREMENTS VERSUS AT-EAR LEVELS

International audienceMost investigations on the variations of loudness with the spatial position of a sound source have been made for static sounds. The purpose of this work was to study the loudness of a moving source. By analogy with studies on difference in loudness between sounds increasing or decreasing in intensity (without movement of the source), we studied the global loudness of a moving sound. The analogy with the sounds whose intensity varies is direct because the at-ear level depends on the position of the source, so a moving sound will create levels that vary over time at the entrance of the auditory canal. We measured the overall loudness of a moving source as a function of the starting and ending positions of the stimulus and of its direction of rotation. Overall, we did not find any overall loudness difference according to the direction of variation of the source. Moreover, the results obtained with a static sound seem to confirm, with absolute magnitude estimation, the amount of directional loudness sensitivity measured previously with an adaptive method. In free field, loudness depends on the position of the sound source (Sivonen and Ellermeier, 2006). In order to quantify the effect of the incidence angle on loudness, the directional loudness sensitivity (DLS) is measured. DSL is defined as the level difference required for equal loudness between a frontal reference sound (azimuth 0°, elevation 0°) and a test sound at a given position. A negative DLS means that the test sound has been perceived softer than the frontal sound and vice versa. In a previous study, we showed a decrease in DLS with an increase in azimuth of an amount of more than 10 dB on average (25 listeners, Meunier et al., 2016). Different studies have also examined the loudness of sounds that increase and sounds that decrease in level. For sounds that only differ in temporal envelop, it has been shown that the global loudness of a sound whose level increases is greater than the global loudness of a sound whose level decreases (Ponsot et al., 2015a, 2015b). This phenomenon has been called asymmetry in loudness. When a sound source is moving around a listener, the at-ear level of the sound varies. Moreover, if we refer to the studies on directional loudness, its loudness should also vary. The aim of the work presented here was to explore how global loudness of moving sounds is formed and the main point was to determine whether there is an asymmetry between sounds that move in opposite directions as their level and loudness also vary in opposite directions

Job security and the promotion of workers’ wellbeing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: A study with Canadian workers one to two weeks after the initiation of social distancing measures

Background: Due to the current coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, workplaces have had to make significant alterations in the way they conduct business. This, in addition to the current financial instability, may put workers at risk of experiencing job insecurity and, in turn, lower wellbeing. Job insecurity is a key determinant of wellbeing, but little is known on how it is impacted by public health crises, and more specifically how it relates to workers’ positive and negative wellbeing in the midst of a pandemic. Research is lacking on resilience levers that workplace interventions should target to support wellbeing in times of insecurity. Objective: Framed from a multidisciplinary perspective (public health, positive and organizational psychology), the study explores (1) workers’ job (in)security during the COVID-19 pandemic one to two weeks after social distancing measures were implemented by Canadian governments, (2) how job (in)security relates to wellbeing during the pandemic, and (3) the potential positive effects of workplace-related resilience levers. Method: 1,073 Canadian workers working full-/part-time or who were temporarily laid off completed an online survey, including measures of wellbeing at work or in general, job security and potential resilience levers (workplace disaster preparedness, policy, social capital). Results: Multiple regression findings highlight that marginalized workers (e.g., women, migrants, people facing financial hardships) reported lower job security, and having temporarily lost one’s job was negatively associated with job security. Low job security was related to lower scores across measures of wellbeing. Distress was high in the sample. Workplace disaster preparedness, policy and social capital were associated with higher wellbeing. The effects of these resilience levers tended to be stronger at higher job security levels. Discussion: Recommendations include a systemic, collaborative approach that includes policies fostering job security as well as resilience-promoting interventions in the workplace to protect/increase the wellbeing of workers during COVID-19

Auditory time-frequency masking: psychoacoustical data and application to audio representations

International audienceIn this paper, the results of psychoacoustical experiments on auditory time-frequency (TF) masking using stimuli (masker and target) with maximal concentration in the TF plane are presented. The target was shifted either along the time axis, the frequency axis, or both relative to the masker. The results show that a simple superposition of spectral and temporal masking functions does not provide an accurate representa- tion of the measured TF masking function. This confirms the inaccuracy of simple models of TF masking currently implemented in some percep- tual audio codecs. In the context of audio signal processing, the present results constitute a crucial basis for the prediction of auditory masking in the TF representations of sounds. An algorithm that removes the in- audible components in the wavelet transform of a sound while causing no audible difference to the original sound after re-synthesis is proposed. Preliminary results are promising, although further development is re- quired

Factores de protección y de riesgo para la salud mental de las mujeres después de un aborto espontáneo

Objetivo: examinar factores de protección y de riesgo personales y contextuales asociados a la salud mental de la mujer después de un aborto espontáneo. Método: se llevó a cabo un estudio transversal en el que 231 mujeres que habían sufrido un aborto espontáneo en los últimos 4 años respondieron a un cuestionario online de autoinforme para evaluar su salud mental (síntomas de depresión, ansiedad, duelo perinatal) y para recopilar características personales y contextuales. Resultados: las mujeres que habían sufrido un aborto espontáneo en los últimos 6 meses obtuvieron una puntuación más alta en lo que respecta a síntomas de depresión que las que lo habían sufrido entre 7 y 12 meses atrás, mientras que el nivel de ansiedad y el duelo perinatal no variaron según el tiempo transcurrido desde la pérdida. Además, la baja condición socioeconómica, el estado de inmigración y la falta de hijos se asociaron con una peor salud mental después de un aborto espontáneo. En cambio, la calidad de la relación conyugal y la satisfacción con la atención de la salud se asociaron positivamente con la salud mental de las mujeres. Conclusión: las mujeres en situaciones vulnerables, como las inmigrantes, las de baja condición socioeconómica o las mujeres sin hijos son especialmente vulnerables a problemas de salud mental después de un aborto espontáneo. Sin embargo, más allá de esos factores personales y contextuales, la calidad de la relación conyugal y la satisfacción con el cuidado de la salud podrían ser importantes factores de protección.Objetivo: examinar os fatores pessoais e contextuais de proteção e de risco associados à saúde mental das mulheres após aborto espontâneo. Método: foi realizado um estudo transversal, no qual 231 mulheres que sofreram aborto espontâneo nos últimos quatro anos responderam a um questionário on-line, cujo intuito era avaliar a saúde mental (sintomas de depressão, ansiedade, luto perinatal) e coletar informações pessoais, além de características contextuais. Resultados: mulheres que sofreram aborto espontâneo nos últimos seis meses apresentaram escores mais altos para sintomas depressivos do que mulheres que sofreram aborto espontâneo entre sete e 12 meses atrás, ao passo que o nível de ansiedade e o luto perinatal não variaram de acordo com o tempo transcorrido desde a perda. Além disso, baixo nível socioeconômico, status de imigrante e ausência de filhos foram associados a pior saúde mental após aborto espontâneo. Por outro lado, a qualidade do relacionamento conjugal e a satisfação com a assistência à saúde foram associadas positivamente à saúde mental das mulheres. Conclusão: mulheres em situação de vulnerabilidade, como as imigrantes, com baixo nível socioeconômico ou sem filhos estão particularmente vulneráveis a problemas de saúde mental após um aborto espontâneo. No entanto, além desses fatores pessoais e contextuais, a qualidade do relacionamento conjugal e a satisfação com a assistência à saúde podem ser importantes fatores de proteção.Objective: to examine personal and contextual protective and risk factors associated with women’s mental health after a spontaneous abortion. Method: a cross-sectional study was carried out where 231 women who had experienced spontaneous abortions in the past 4 years answered a self-reporting online questionnaire to assess their mental health (symptoms of depression, anxiety, perinatal grief) and to collect personal as well as contextual characteristics. Results: women who had experienced spontaneous abortions within the past 6 months had higher scores for depressive symptoms than those who had experienced spontaneous abortions between 7 and 12 months ago, while anxiety level and perinatal grief did not vary according to the time since the loss. Moreover, low socioeconomic status, immigrant status, and childlessness were associated with worse mental health after a spontaneous abortion. In contrast, the quality of the conjugal relationship and the level of satisfaction with health care were positively associated with women’s mental health. Conclusion: women in vulnerable situations, such as immigrants, women with a low socioeconomic status, or childless women are particularly vulnerable to mental health problems after a spontaneous abortion. However, beyond those personal and contextual factors, the quality of the conjugal relationship and the level of satisfaction with health care could be important protective factors