Governance and the transformation of political representation

About the book: There has been an explosion of new forms of governance as societies adapt to economic, social and political change. This book highlights the dynamics of the social, cultural and institutional practices involved in 'remaking' governance. It is structured around three key themes: the remaking of peoples, publics and politics

Rawls and deliberative democracy

This chapter offers arguments to support the following conjectures: (1) despite claims by Rawls and some commentators, Rawls is not and cannot be a deliberative democrat; the evidence for this can be gleaned by focussing on various interpretations of the structure of Rawls’ arguments in A Theory of Justice (1972) and Political Liberalism (1993) respectively; and (2) if we ask more directly how the ideal dialogue of the original position might be approximated in real-world conditions, we can reach suggestive conclusions about institutions and deliberative democracy radically different from those reached by Rawls himself

Representation

About the book: This edited volume presents a unique challenge to mainstream political theory • Offers fourteen ‘think pieces’ by renowed international scholars • Presents a comprehensive examination of core political ideologies and core political concept

In search of the hollow crown

The first volume in a series of comparative studies within the ESRC's Whitehall Programme focuses on core executives in five parliamentary democracies comparing the Westminster model as in Australia, Canada and Britain with the continental democracies of Germany and the Netherlands showing how political leadership is shackled by a vast array of constraints, from globalisation to internal fragmentation and rationalisation, making a heroic model of decisive political leadership hard to sustain

Veil of influence: the legacy of John Rawls

Michael Saward looks at the influence of the work of John Rawl

Democratic theory and indices of democratization

About the book: The rapid worldwide phase of democratization since the 1980s has stimulated a renewed interest in how we define and measure democracy. The contributors to this volume include leading political theorists, political scientists and experts in comparative government from across Europe. Defining and Measuring Democracy offers an integrated analysis of key debates and issues ranging from the question of how to define democracy to the issue of cultural diversity. Each chapter offers new insights and approaches placed in the context of contemporary debates

The State and Civil Liberties in the Post 9-11 World

About the book: Developments in British Politics 8 continues its tradition of providing accessible state-of-the-art coverage, but with a new editorial team and a new set of chapters by leading authorities. A new feature is a set of chapters providing wide ranging analysis of key debates and thoughts about British politics after Tony Blair

Less than meets the eye: Democratic legitimacy and deliberative theory

About the book: Democratic Innovation is an original look at the political future of democracy, exploring the latest ideas aimed at renewing popular power. Featuring new writings by leading European, American and Australian democratic theorists, this book explores the following themes: * the importance of public deliberation in democracies * how effective representation for all might be acheived * the role that voluntary associations can play in democratic governanc

The zoo as ecotourism attraction – visitor reactions, perceptions and management implications: the case of Hamilton Zoo, New Zealand

This paper reports results from a survey of 359 visitors to Hamilton Zoo, New Zealand. The questionnaire comprised items relating to motives for visiting the zoo, and evaluations of attributes, thereby permitting an importance-evaluation approach. The construction of the questionnaire was prompted by zoo management wishing to learn more about what motivated visits, and whether there were perceived deficiencies in visitors' experiences of the zoo. Like other studies (e.g. Turley, 2001) it was concluded that zoos represent an opportunity for family-based trips. However, while some opportunities exist for learning, on the whole visitors were not generally interested in acquiring detailed information about wildlife. Indeed, more importance was attached to the viewing of animals than to the recognition that possibly animals might require 'private places'. These findings prompt a discussion about the extent to which zoos might be able to replace or supplement trips to natural habitats as a means of viewing animals, and concludes that for this to happen significant changes in zoo layout would be required. Additionally, possible implications for zoo management are discussed

Liminal representation

After elaborating the idea of liminality and briefing defending an understanding of representation as practice, the chapter will focus on four distinctions often deployed to divide up and map conceptually the field of political representation. Representation’s liminal character presses us to question the neatness and the realism of many such distinctions. For each of the four distinctions I focus on the transitional or intermediate nature of representation, and the consequences that follow for theoretical analysis. Finally, I show how these four contribute to a larger and more encompassing distinction between representative democracy and democratic representation, arguing that the former –often the sole focus of debates on representation –is one (crucial) part of the latter