69 research outputs found
Evolving Patterns of Euroscepticism in the Danish Political Landscape. EPIN Commentary No. 25/15 July 2015
Catharina Sørensen observes in this new EPIN Commentary that the most significant result of the Danish elections on June 18th was not the change of government from centre-left to centre-right, but rather the possibility that the anti-immigration, anti-European integration Danish Peopleâs Party (DPP) would also enter government. While its leadership elected not to do so, but rather to exercise influence from outside, the author further notes that one positive outcome of a new pro-European government that is dependent on a largely eurosceptic supporting party could be that EU issues will finally get the prominence in Danish politics that they deserve
To be in, or to be out: reflections on the Danish referendum. EPIN Commentary No. 29, 10 December 2015
In this EPIN Commentary, Catharina Sørensen offers her reflections on Denmarkâs referendum, held on December 3rd, on whether the country should change its blanket opt-out on all justice and home affairs cooperation in the EU to the more nuanced opt-in model adopted by the UK and Ireland. In her view, the outcome reflected the two separate âlanguagesâ deployed in the public debate over the referendum â the emotional discussion about sovereignty, which appealed to the heart, and the technical argument about cooperation, which appealed to reason. In using these two languages, the campaigners spoke past one another, failed to understand each other and divided Denmark into two opposing camps
Evidence from Denmark: how attitudes toward sovereignty affect support for the EU
The concept of 'sovereignty' is typically taken to mean the ability of states to make their own laws and determine their own policies. But the role of the EU in questions of sovereignty is complex. On the one hand, EU membership requires transferring powers to the European level, but EU membership can also provide an avenue for states to mitigate the impact of globalisation on their decision-making. Drawing on new survey evidence, Catharina Sørensen illustrates how these issues play out in shaping the attitudes of citizens toward European integration
Danmark efter Brexit:Business as usual eller en ny begyndelse for dansk europapolitik?
Den britiske beslutning om udmeldelse af EU har potentielt alvorlige konsekvenser for Danmark. Danmark og Storbritannien har historisk en nÌr samarbejdsrelation, og begge lande har haft en tilgang til den europÌiske integrationsproces, hvor de har hündteret deres position i udkanten af Europa - geografisk og politisk - ved at fremhÌve karakteristika ved deres samfund, som de ansü for büde anderledes og bedre end resten af Europa. Brexit forstÌrker marginaliseringen af Danmark i EU, og samtidig er de danske politiske partier i dag mere EU-skeptiske end tidligere. Danske politiske beslutningstagere er bevidste om risikoen for marginalisering af et lille land ude af takt med de toneangivende aktører i EU, men samtidig bundet af det paradoks, at den danske befolkning büde er begejstret for EU-medlemskab og skeptiske overfor en tÌttere tilknytning til kernen. For at imødegü de negative konsekvenser af Brexit søger Danmark at skabe nye alliancer med andre smü intergovernmentalistiske og atlantisk orienterede EU-medlemslande og at tiltrÌkke arbejdspladser og kapital, der forlader Storbritannien pü grund af udmeldelsen
Nordic responses to Brexit:Making the best of a difficult situation
This policy brief examines how the British decision to withdraw from the EU has influenced the political debates in and foreign policies of the five Nordic states â Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. With the exception of Iceland, all these countries had a stated preference for Britain to remain in the EU â not least due to historical ties and the tendency of Britain and the Nordic countries to have similar approaches to European integration. Three general findings can be highlighted: First, Brexit has featured prominently in political debates in all the Nordic countries since the British referendum, and the causes and consequences of the Brexit vote continue to be discussed with vigour. In all the Nordic countries, Brexit has also stirred debates about their current relationships with the EU, prompting EU critics to demand new privileges or opt-outs. Overall, however, the Nordic governments, supported by a stable majority among their populations, have signalled that they wish to preserve their EU membership or current forms of association models, with the access and benefits these provide. Second, for all the Nordic countries, securing good relations with Britain post-Brexit is a key priority, but they have generally indicated that maintaining good relations with the EU must come first. Finally, the Nordic governments are well aware that Brexit could create a vacuum in EU policy-making, perhaps tipping the balance among internal clusters. Britain has been a highly visible member of the âNorthernâ grouping in the EU, and its absence is likely to be noticed. As the Nordic countries are about to lose what has at times been a powerful ally in EU decision-making, they may have to forge new coalitions to safeguard their interests
Cortisol levels and cognitive profile in major depression: A comparison of currently and previously depressed patients
Source at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.08.024.The association between depressive symptoms and elevated cortisol levels, and depression and cognitive functioning, has been less robust in outpatients with symptoms in the mild to moderate range. Furthermore, the association between elevated cortisol levels and cognitive functioning is unclear. In the present study, currently depressed (nâ=â37), previously depressed (nâ=â81) and never depressed controls (nâ=â50) were assessed on a range of neuropsychological measures. Salivary cortisol was measured in the morning and evening. Participants with current depression were non-hospitalized and had symptoms predominately in the mild to moderate range. Elevated salivary evening cortisol, but not morning cortisol, was significantly related to depressive symptoms. The difference in cortisol levels between the previously depressed group and the never depressed controls was not significant. The groups had significantly different cognitive profiles, with the currently depressed performing poorer on tasks related to working memory compared to the never depressed controls. Both the currently and previously depressed performed worse on attentional tasks. The findings indicate that outpatients with mild to moderate depression have elevated cortisol levels and limited mild cognitive impairments. Furthermore, mild impairments in attention may persist after remission, indicating that this could be a trait-marker in depression. The present study did not find support for a significant relationship between cortisol and cognitive functioning
Do parental cognitions during pregnancy predict bonding after birth in a low-risk sample?
Parental bonding to their infant is important for healthy parent-infant interaction and infant development. Characteristics in the parents affect how they bond to their newborn. Parental cognitions such as repetitive negative thinking, a thinking style associated with mental health issues, and cognitive dispositions, e.g., mood-congruent attentional bias or negative implicit attitudes to infants, might affect bonding.
To assess the influence of cognitive factors on bonding, 350 participants (220 pregnant women and their partners) were recruited over two years by midwives at the hospital and in the communal health care services. Participants were followed throughout the pregnancy and until the infant was seven months old as a part of the Northern Babies Longitudinal Study. Both mothers and fathers took part. First, we measured demographics, repetitive negative thinking, attentional bias, and implicit attitudes to infants during pregnancy, as predictors of bonding two months postnatally. Second, we also measured infant regulatory problems, and depressive symptoms at two months postnatally as predictors of parentsâ perception of infant temperament at five months. Robust regression analyses were performed to test hypotheses.
Results showed that mothers and fathers differed on several variables. Parity was beneficial for bonding in mothers but not for fathers. Higher levels of mothersâ repetitive negative thinking during pregnancy predicted weaker bonding, which was a non-significant trend in fathers. For fathers, higher education predicted weaker bonding, but not for mothers. Mothersâ perception of their infant temperament at five months was significantly affected by bonding at two months, but for fathers, their depressive symptoms were the only significant predictor of perceived infant temperament.
In conclusion, for mothers, their relationship with their infant is essential for how they experience their infant, while for fathers their own wellbeing might be the most important factor. Health care providers should screen parentsâ thoughts and emotions already during pregnancy to help facilitate optimal bonding
Deliberative Democracy in the EU. Countering Populism with Participation and Debate. CEPS Paperback
Elections are the preferred way to freely transfer power from one
term to the next and from one political party or coalition to another.
They are an essential element of democracy. But if the process of
power transfer is corrupted, democracy risks collapse. Reliance on
voters, civil society organisations and neutral observers to fully
exercise their freedoms as laid down in international human rights
conventions is an integral part of holding democratic elections.
Without free, fair and regular elections, liberal democracy is
inconceivable.
Elections are no guarantee that democracy will take root and
hold, however. If the history of political participation in Europe over
the past 800 years is anything to go by, successful attempts at gaining
voice have been patchy, while leadersâ attempts to silence these
voices and consolidate their own power have been almost constant
(Blockmans, 2020).
Recent developments in certain EU member states have again
shown us that democratically elected leaders will try and use
majoritarian rule to curb freedoms, overstep the constitutional limits
of their powers, protect the interests of their cronies and recycle
themselves through seemingly free and fair elections. In their recent
book How Democracies Die, two Harvard professors of politics write:
âSince the end of the Cold War, most democratic breakdowns have
been caused not by generals and soldiers but by elected governments
themselvesâ (Levitsky and Ziblatt, 2018)
Direct Democracy in the EU âThe Myth of a Citizensâ Union. CEPS Paperback, November 2018
The European Union has a democracy problem. The polycrisis that has plagued the EU for years has led to a cacophony of voices calling for fundamental change to the integration project. Yet despite the shock of the Brexit referendum and the electoral upsets caused by nativist parties across the continent, few of the plans for EU reform include concrete proposals to address the perennial democratic deficit.
This book looks at how the relationship between citizens, the state and EU institutions has changed in a multi-layered Union. As such, it focuses more on polity than on populism, and does not engage deeply with policy or output legitimacy. Building on the notion of increasing social, economic and political interdependence across borders, this book asks whether a sense of solidarity and European identity can be rescued from the bottom up by empowering citizens to âtake back controlâ of their Union.
Direct Democracy in the EU: The Myth of a Citizensâ Union is part of the 'Towards a Citizensâ Union' project and is the product of collaboration with 20 renowned think tanks from the European Policy Institutes Network (EPIN). It is the first of three publications that will also cover the state of representative democracy in the EU and the accountability of democratic institutions
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