Understanding the developing role of global health partnerships on access to medication: an STS perspective

A conceptual framework for studying the role of global health partnerships (GHPs) in determining policy practices on access to medication is presented. Although GHPs are of a practical nature, they are implicitly theory informed. The narratives used by GHP partners in relating to access to medication have theoretical origins. Building on the theoretical literature on models and the notion of embodied knowledge found in science and technology studies, GHPs are conceptualized as models that mediate between theory and practice. The proposed framework can be used to investigate the role of theory in the creation of GHP models and how the models shape global and national policy practices. A social constructivist approach is suggested as a suitable method for empirical analysis

Financial Crises, Politics and Financial Sector Restructuring: A Comparison between Japan and the United States

This article analyzes and compares the financial sector restructuring process after the financial crises in Japan and the United States. As these financial crises deepened, countries shifted their policies away from postponing financial sector restructuring toward more thorough reforms. The impacts of different political structures are examined through the Small-N Case Study method. Cases include: the bursting of the financial bubble in the 1990s in Japan and the Savings and Loan crisis in the 1980s in the USA, both of which are analyzed through a review of academic literature, journalistic writings, and statistical data from the World Wide Web

The European Union and a Changing Europe: Establishing the Boundaries of Order

This article seeks to explore the relationship between the European Union (EU) and the changing European order, with particular respect to the ways in which the EU structures and shapes the boundaries between itself and the broader European arena. It evaluates a range of available international relations theories, and adopts a 'critical neoliberal-institutionalist' approach to the problem. It applies this approach by assessing the EU's boundary-constructing and boundary-maintaining behaviour in a number of areas, before developing two models of the EU's role: the 'politics of exclusion' and the 'politics of inclusion'. After spending most of its life practising the 'politics of exclusion', the EU has moved towards a 'politics of inclusion' to reflect the changing demands of the European order. Nevertheless, the tensions between the two types of politics will continue to be a central feature of the EU's role. Copyright 1996 BPL.