Metagovernance and the Role of Cultural Norms in the Regulation of Foreign Direct Investment: Trans-Tasman FDI Regimes

Australia and New Zealand provide a unique set of comparators with which to examine similarities and differences in approaches to the regulation of foreign direct investment (FDI). By examining experience with regulation of FDI in these two states we show how they act in the governance space to enable state directed regulation and how these states differ in their approach to regulation. In particular we focus on the influence of cultural norms in shaping metagovernance responses from each of the states. Textual analysis of the treatment of investment in bi-lateral discussions associated with Closer Economic Relations (CER) demonstrates that political social cultural and institutional factors are integral to modelling the challenges faced by national governments in regulating FDI

Metagovernance and the Role of Cultural Norms in the Regulation of Foreign Direct Investment: Trans-Tasman FDI Regimes

Australia and New Zealand provide a unique set of comparators with which to examine similarities and differences in approaches to the regulation of foreign direct investment (FDI). By examining experience with regulation of FDI in these two states we show how they act in the governance space to enable state directed regulation and how these states differ in their approach to regulation. In particular we focus on the influence of cultural norms in shaping metagovernance responses from each of the states. Textual analysis of the treatment of investment in bi-lateral discussions associated with Closer Economic Relations (CER) demonstates that political social cultural and institutional factors are integral to modelling the challenges faced by national governments in regulating FDI

Metagovernance and the Role of Cultural Norms in the Regulation of Foreign Direct Investment: Trans-Tasman FDI Regimes

Australia and New Zealand provide a unique set of comparators with which to examine similarities and differences in approaches to the regulation of foreign direct investment (FDI). By examining experience with regulation of FDI in these two states we show how they act in the governance space to enable state directed regulation and how these states differ in their approach to regulation. In particular we focus on the influence of cultural norms in shaping metagovernance responses from each of the states. Textual analysis of the treatment of investment in bi-lateral discussions associated with Closer Economic Relations (CER) demonstrates that political social cultural and institutional factors are integral to modelling the challenges faced by national governments in regulating FDI

Facial stereotypes and perceived mental illness

It is well established that we carry stereotypes that impact on human perception and behaviour (e.g. G.W. Allport, “The nature of prejudice”. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1954). Here, we investigate the possibility that we hold a stereotype for a face indicating that its owner may have a mental illness. A three-stage face-perception experiment suggested the presence of such a stereotype. Participants first rated 200 synthetic male faces from the EvoFIT facial-composite system for perceived mental illness (PMI). These faces were used to create a computer-based rating scale that was used by a second sample of participants to make a set of faces appear mentally ill. There was evidence to suggest that the faces that participants identified using the PMI scale differed along this dimension (although not entirely as expected). In the final stage of the study, another set of synthetic faces were created by artificially increasing and decreasing levels along the scale. Participants were asked to rate these items for PMI and for six criminal types. It was found that participants assigned higher PMI ratings (cf. veridical) for items with inflated PMI (although there was no reliable difference in ratings between veridical faces and faces with decreased PMI). Implications of the findings are discussed

Red hot frogs:Identifying the Australian frogs most at risk of extinction

More than a third of the world’s amphibian species are listed as Threatened or Extinct, with a recent assessment identifying 45 Australian frogs (18.4% of the currently recognised species) as ‘Threatened’ based on IUCN criteria. We applied structured expert elicitation to 26 frogs assessed as Critically Endangered and Endangered to estimate their probability of extinction by 2040. We also investigated whether participant experience (measured as a self-assigned categorical score, i.e. ‘expert’ or ‘non-expert’) influenced the estimates. Collation and analysis of participant opinion indicated that eight species are at high risk (>50% chance) of becoming extinct by 2040, with the disease chytridiomycosis identified as the primary threat. A further five species are at moderate–high risk (30–50% chance), primarily due to climate change. Fourteen of the 26 frog species are endemic to Queensland, with many species restricted to small geographic ranges that are susceptible to stochastic events (e.g. a severe heatwave or a large bushfire). Experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for poorly known species (those with <10 experts), while non-experts were more likely to rate extinction probability higher for better-known species. However, scores converged following discussion, indicating that there was greater consensus in the estimates of extinction probability. Increased resourcing and management intervention are urgently needed to avert future extinctions of Australia’s frogs. Key priorities include developing and supporting captive management and establishing or extending in-situ population refuges to alleviate the impacts of disease and climate change