Made available in DSpace on 2014-08-20T13:46:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Jennifer_Morais_Dissertacao.pdf: 908520 bytes, checksum: bcdba7ec423b9eef63f279bd40f108d1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-05 / A construção de uma usina hidrelétrica ocasiona impactos sociais, pois os cidadãos atingidos precisam ser realocados e escolher entre uma das modalidades de remanejamentos apresentadas pelo empreendedor. Com o objetivo de problematizar o processo, este estudo analisa a influência do controle da informação, da cultura política e do capital socialna tomada de decisão dos cidadãos atingidos por usinas hidrelétricas na bacia do rio Uruguai. A pesquisa analisa dados quantitativos do Projeto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Avaliação dos Resultados e Proposição de Modelo de Elaboraçãode Programas de Remanejamento da População Atingida por Empreendimentos Hidrelétricos (2010-2014) . Os resultados da dissertação demonstram a influência destas variáveis no processo decisório do cidadão atingido, destacando a importância da informação e apontando a relação entre capital social e a opção pela modalidade Reassentamento Rural Coletivo / A construção de uma usina hidrelétrica ocasiona impactos sociais, pois os cidadãos atingidos precisam ser realocados e escolher entre uma das modalidades de remanejamentos apresentadas pelo empreendedor. Com o objetivo de problematizar o processo, este estudo analisa a influência do controle da informação, da cultura política e do capital socialna tomada de decisão dos cidadãos atingidos por usinas hidrelétricas na bacia do rio Uruguai. A pesquisa analisa dados quantitativos do Projeto de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Avaliação dos Resultados e Proposição de Modelo de Elaboraçãode Programas de Remanejamento da População Atingida por Empreendimentos Hidrelétricos (2010-2014) . Os resultados da dissertação demonstram a influência destas variáveis no processo decisório do cidadão atingido, destacando a importância da informação e apontando a relação entre capital social e a opção pela modalidade Reassentamento Rural Coletivo

As our world globalizes and grows smaller, there is increasing concern about questions related to the future of liberal democracy. Following the breakdown of communism on the European continent and the ensuing emphasis on the universalization of liberal democratic values as ‘the end of history’, much research has been centered on understanding the crafting of stable democratic systems in East-Central Europe. Recently, the widely observed phenomenon of ‘illiberal backsliding’ has evoked considerable scholarly attention. However, the research community lacks a deeper understanding of the factors determining the prospects of sustainable democratic consolidation in a post-authoritarian environment. This case study therefore relates the problems associated with anchoring democratic governance in the post-communist states of East-Central Europe to a broader framework of democratization theories. It is argued that consolidating democracies is a far more complex task than has earlier been acknowledged, as it depends on a multitude of interrelated socio-cultural and political determinants. As is further proposed, the post-communist countries have largely been entrapped in an unsustainable state of incomplete democratic consolidation, evident specifically in the prevalent lack of civic culture and a deficient process of citizenship formation, entailing a serious risk of authoritarian backlash. A somewhat paradoxical hypothesis is suggested: that periods of illiberal government actually could be instrumental to generate the kind of social community needed for a long-term sustainable democratic society. In a concluding discussion on the prospects of consolidating democracy on a global scale, it is stated that the liberal democratic endeavor may be facing two future trajectories: while the first one is that of a global democratic decline in the face of authoritarian reaction, the opposite trajectory implies that liberal democracy may well have a universal future, although to accelerate to that point, it needs to overcome an initial state of instability requiring some setbacks.

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Die Dissertation beschäftigt sich mit dem Verhältnis der französischen Politik unter Staatspräsident Jacques Chirac zur 2004 vollzogenen Osterweiterung der Europäischen Union. Unter besonderer Berücksichtigung von politisch-kulturellen Faktoren wird analysiert, worin für Frankreich sowohl auf der politischen als auch auf der gesellschaftlichen Ebene die Schwierigkeiten bei der Einbeziehung der Osterweiterung in das traditionelle französische Verständnis der europäischen Integration bestanden.:Inhaltsverzeichnis Teil A: Vorstellung des Themas und methodische Einordnung 14 Kapitel I: Einleitung, Fragestellung und Zielsetzung 14 1. Von 1989 nach 2009 – Das Ende des Eisernen Vorhangs und die Osterweiterung der Europäischen Union 14 2. Fragestellung und Zielsetzung 16 2.1 Untersuchungsgegenstand 16 2.2 Der Untersuchung zugrundeliegende Annahmen 18 2.3 Zielsetzung 20 3. Frankreich und die EU-Osterweiterung 21 4. Konsequenzen der EU-Osterweiterung für die französische Europapolitik 28 4.1 Positive und negative Aspekte 28 4.2 Die Herausforderung der Vermittlung der Osterweiterung in Frankreich 32 4.3 Systematisierung des französischen Verhältnisses zur Osterweiterung mit Hilfe von Analysekategorien 34 Kapitel II: Methodische Einordnung, begriffliche Klärungen und Vorgehensweise 37 1. Forschungsstand und Desiderate 37 1.1 Französische Außen- und Europapolitik 37 1.2 Osterweiterung 38 1.3 Forschungsrelevanz 40 2. Schnittstelle Kulturwissenschaft 42 2.1 Kultur in der Politikwissenschaft 43 2.2 Romanistische Landes- und Kulturwissenschaften 44 3. Schnittstelle Politikwissenschaft 47 3.1 Civic Culture und Politische Kulturforschung 47 3.2 Außenpolitische Kultur und deren Forschungsrelevanz 50 4. Vorgehensweise und Korpusbestimmung 54 4.1 Definitionen für die vorliegende Arbeit 54 4.2 Bestandteile des Forschungsdesigns 56 4.2.1 Umfragedaten 56 4.2.2 Reden und Stellungnahmen des Staatspräsidenten 60 4.2.3 Presse 64 5. Aufbau der Arbeit und Vorgehensweise bei der empirischen Analyse 70 Teil B: Inhaltliche Grundlagen 76 Kapitel III: Frankreich und Europa 76 1. Tradition mit Widersprüchen 76 2. Französische Europapolitik seit 1958 78 2.1 Verfassungsrechtliche Vorgaben – und die Verfassungswirklichkeit: Die Europapolitik als Teil der domaine réservé des Staatspräsidenten 78 2.2 Umsetzung französischer Europapolitik im Rahmen der Institutionen der V. Republik 80 2.3 Die großen Linien französischer Außen- und Europapolitik 1958-1995 83 3. Jacques Chirac und Europa 88 3.1 Kurzabriss der politischen Karriere 88 3.2 Entwicklung von Jacques Chiracs Haltung zur europäischen Integration – Vom „Appel de Cochin“ zum Europäer 89 3.3 Fazit 97 Kapitel IV: Frankreichs Beziehungen zu Mittel- und Osteuropa vor und nach 1989 99 1. Frankreich und der Osten Europas bis 1989 99 2. Politische und wirtschaftliche Beziehungen zu Mittel- und Osteuropa zu Beginn der 1990er Jahre 101 3. Französische Initiativen zur Einbindung der mittel- und osteuropäischen Staaten vor deren EU-Beitritt 102 4. Zwischenfazit 105 Kapitel V: Politische Kultur und außenpolitische Kultur in Frankreich 107 1. Das republikanische Modell 107 2. Politische und außenpolitische Kultur der V. Republik 110 3. Französische politische Kultur und europäische Integration 115 Teil C: Empirische Analyse 121 Kapitel VI: Die ersten Amtsmonate von Jacques Chirac als französischer Staatspräsident (1995) 121 1. Erste europapolitische Grundsatzentscheidungen des neuen Staatspräsidenten Chirac und der Europäische Rat von Cannes 122 2. Bewertung der ersten europapolitischen Schritte Chiracs in der Presse 133 3. Stand der öffentlichen Meinung zu Europa zum Zeitpunkt der französischen Ratspräsidentschaft 137 4. Einhaltung der Konvergenzkriterien oder Bekämpfung der fracture sociale? 141 5. Der Europäische Rat von Madrid 146 6. Bilanz der ersten Amtsmonate von Staatspräsident Chirac 150 Kapitel VII: Die Osterweiterung im Fokus französischer Europapolitik (1996) 151 1. Europa in der französischen Presse zu Beginn des Jahres 1996 152 2. Das europäische Sozialmodell als Thema französischer Europapolitik 155 3. Die Regierungskonferenz zur Reform des Maastricht-Vertrages 162 3.1 Französische Positionen für die Regierungskonferenz 165 3.2 Pressebewertung der Regierungskonferenz 172 3.3 Umfragedaten zur Regierungskonferenz 176 4. Reise nach Polen 183 5. Zwischenfazit und Bilanz des Jahres 1996 189 Kapitel VIII: Einigung über den Vertrag von Amsterdam (1997) 191 1. Reisen nach Ungarn, Rumänien und in die Tschechische Republik 192 2. Auflösung der Nationalversammlung und vorgezogene Neuwahlen – „Et puis, il y a l’Europe.“ 203 3. Europäischer Rat von Amsterdam 207 3.1 Reformbeschlüsse von Amsterdam in institutionellen und verfahrenstechnischen Fragen 207 3.2 Pressebewertung der Beschlüsse von Amsterdam 213 3.3 Umfragedaten im zeitlichen Umfeld des Amsterdamer Gipfels 215 4. Die Agenda 2000 und weitere Schritte zur Vorbereitung der Erweiterung 217 5. Europäischer Rat von Luxemburg 223 6. Umfragedaten im Umfeld des Luxemburger Gipfels 227 7. Bilanz des Jahres 1997 230 Kapitel IX: Auf dem Weg zu einer größeren Union: Der Beginn der Beitrittsverhandlungen (1998) 233 1. Die französische Haltung zur Erweiterung in den ersten Monaten des Jahres 1998 234 2. Die Europäische Konferenz in London und die Eröffnung der ersten Beitrittsverhandlungen 239 3. Chiracs Pressekonferenz zu Europa 243 4. Weiterentwicklungen im Erweiterungsprozess und bei der Reform der EU-Institutionen in der zweiten Jahreshälfte 1998 248 4.1 Europäischer Rat von Cardiff 248 EXKURS: Regierungswechsel in Bonn 250 4.2 Die Eröffnung der ersten Kapitel der Beitrittsverhandlungen 251 4.3 Europäischer Rat von Wien 253 5. Umfragedaten 1998 258 6. Zwischenfazit am Ende des Jahres 1998 260 Zwischenfazit 1995-1998: Die Osterweiterung als abstrakte Perspektive im Hintergrund der französischen Europapolitik 261 Kapitel X: Einigung über die Agenda 2000 auf dem Weg zu einer neuen Erweiterungsstrategie (1999) 266 1. Die Ratifizierung des Amsterdamer Vertrages in Frankreich 267 2. Europawahlen und Umfragedaten im Frühjahr 1999 271 3. Fortführung der Vorbereitung der EU-Erweiterung unter deutscher Ratspräsidentschaft im ersten Halbjahr 1999 277 3.1 Einigung über die Agenda 2000 277 3.2 Europäischer Rat von Köln 281 4. Europäischer Rat von Heldinki unter finnischer Ratspräsidentschaft 285 5. Umfragedaten 1999 293 6. Zwischenfazit zum Ende des Jahres 1999 294 Kapitel XI: Französische Ratspräsidentschaft und Vertrag von Nizza (2000) 296 1. Europäische Ratstreffen von Lissabon und Santa Maria da Feira unter portugiesischer Ratspräsidentschaft 297 2. Im Vorfeld der französischen Ratspräsidentschaft 299 3. Jacques Chiracs Staatsbesuch in Deutschland 307 4. Stand der öffentlichen Meinung zu Europa am Beginn der französischen Ratspräsidentschaft 319 5. Französische Ratspräsidentschaft 324 6. Europäischer Rat von Nizza 333 6.1 Ergebnisse 334 6.2 Pressebewertung 345 6.3 Umfragedaten im Umfeld der französischen Ratspräsidentschaft 351 7. Bilanz des Jahres 2000 und der französischen Ratspräsidentschaft 353 Kapitel XII: Einleitung des europäischen Verfassungsprozesses vor dem Hintergrund einer neuen weltpolitischen Lage nach den Anschlägen des 11. September 2001 357 1. Die Bilanz von Nizza in der Diskussion 358 2. Schwedische Ratspräsidentschaft – Europäischer Rat von Göteborg 366 3. Umfragedaten in der ersten Jahreshälfte 2001 368 4. Reise ins Baltikum 375 EXKURS: Die Anschläge des 11. September 2001 386 5. Umfragedaten aus der zweiten Jahreshälfte 2001 387 6. Europäischer Rat von Laeken 390 6.1 Inhalte und Ergebnisse 390 6.2 Pressebewertung 392 7. Zwischenfazit am Ende des Jahres 2001 398 Kapitel XIII: Von Kopenhagen nach Kopenhagen: Der Abschluss der EU-Beitrittsverhandlungen für acht mittel- und osteuropäische Länder, Malta und Zypern (2002) 402 1. Präsidentschafts- und Parlamentswahlen in Frankreich 404 1.1 Europa in Chiracs Präsidentschaftswahlkampf 406 1.2 Nach dem ersten Wahlgang 414 1.3 Zwischenfazit 419 2. Die öffentliche Meinung in Frankreich zum Zeitpunkt der Wiederwahl Chiracs 420 3. Fortschritte im Erweiterungsprozess unter spanischer Ratspräsidentschaft 426 4. Dänische Ratspräsidentschaft 428 4.1 Deutsch-französischer Kompromiss zur Agrarpolitik 429 4.2 Europäischer Rat von Brüssel 436 4.3 Europäischer Rat von Kopenhagen 440 5. Umfragedaten zur Erweiterung im zeitlichen Umfeld des Kopenhagener Gipfels 452 6. Bilanz des Jahres 2002 460 Zwischenfazit 1999-2002: Der Versuch der Gestaltung des Erweiterungsprozesses im französischen Interesse 463 Kapitel XIV: Krieg im Irak, Abschluss des Erweiterungsprozesses, vorläufiges Scheitern der Europäischen Verfassung (2003) 467 1. Symbolträchtige Relance der deutsch-französischen Beziehungen: 40 Jahre Elysée-Vertrag 468 2. Der amerikanische Militäreinsatz gegen den Irak 472 2.1 Fakten und Positionen 472 2.2 Chiracs Kritik an der Haltung der mittel- und osteuropäischen Staaten im Irak-Krieg 476 3. Griechische Ratspräsidentschaft 485 4. Umfragedaten des Frühjahrs 2003 491 5. Beginn der Debatte über eine Europäische Verfassung in Frankreich 499 6. Umfragedaten Herbst 2003 508 7. Europäischer Rat von Brüssel 513 7.1 Themen und Ergebnisse 513 7.2 Jacques Chirac zu den Ergebnissen von Brüssel im Dezember 514 7.3 Pressebewertung 518 8. Bilanz des Jahres 2003 521 Kapitel XV: Diskussion über die Europäische Verfassung vor dem Hintergrund der vollzogenen Osterweiterung und der Frage des EU-Beitritts der Türkei (2004) 526 1. Ungarn-Reise und Pressekonferenz zu Europa 527 1.1 Ungarn-Reise 528 1.2 Pressekonferenz zu Europa 532 2. Umfragedaten im Frühjahr 2004 541 3. Einigung über einen Verfassungsentwurf und Fortsetzung der innerfranzösischen Debatte 545 3.1 Irische Ratspräsidentschaft - Themen und Ergebnisse des Ratstreffens vom Juni 2004 546 3.2 Entscheidung für eine Ratifizierung des Verfassungsvertrages per Referendum 550 4. Niederländische Ratspräsidentschaft 559 5. Umfragedaten im Herbst 2004 563 6. Bilanz des Jahres 2004 566 Kapitel XVI: Scheitern der Europäischen Verfassung in Frankreich (2005) 570 1. Verlauf und Charakteristika der Debatte zur Europäischen Verfassung in Frankreich 571 2. Chiracs Beiträge zur Verfassungsdebatte 576 2.1 Die Verfassung als Thema der Neujahrsgrüße des Präsidenten 576 Exkurs: Die Bolkestein-Richtlinie 578 2.2 Fernsehdebatte über die Verfassung zwischen dem Präsidenten und jungen Franzosen 581 2.3 Chirac als Gast der 20Uhr-Nachrichten auf France 2 587 2.4 Weitere Stellungnahmen Chiracs 591 2.5 Zusammenfassende Bewertung der Interventionen Chiracs in der Referendumskampagne 596 3. Die Ablehnung der Verfassung durch die Franzosen und ihre innen- und europapolitischen Folgen 599 3.1 Analyse des Abstimmungsergebnisses 599 3.2 Auswirkungen des französischen Neins auf die europäische Ebene 602 4. Ein „Europa der Projekte“ als neue französische Politikstrategie 606 5. Bilanz des Jahres 2005 und Überblick über die französische Europapolitik nach dem gescheiterten Referendum 613 Zwischenfazit 2003-2005: Politische und institutionelle Anpassung an die Realitäten der Union der 25 619 Teil D: Fazit und Perspektiven 627 Kapitel XVII: Rekapitulation der Untersuchungsergebnisse und Ausblick 627 1. Die französische Erweiterungspolitik in den Jahren 1995 bis 2005 627 2. Der französische Diskurs zur Erweiterung 629 3. Der Erweiterungsprozesses in der französischen Presse 638 4. Das französische Meinungsbild zur Erweiterung 645 5. Schlusswort und Ausblick 652 Teil E: Quellenverzeichnis 658 I. Primärquellen 658 1. Reden, Stellungnahmen, Interviews und Pressekonferenzen von Staatspräsident Jacques Chirac 658 2. Presseartikel 672 3. Umfragedaten 687 4. Weitere Primärquellen 689 II. Sekundärquellen 692

1 About Political and Economic Development of Austria in Years 1931-1934 Miroslav Šepták Abstract The aim of the presented dissertation is the analysis of the Austrian foreign political development in the years 1931-1934 with the emphasis on the general development of the international relations. Furthermore, the selected intra-political events and the economic and social development of Austria will not be omitted as well. The time frame of the presented dissertation, i.e. years 1931 and 1934, has been chosen with respect to the important events which exceeded the Austrian boarders because of their significance and impact on the contemporary international politics. The first milestone is connected with publication of the plan of the German-Austrian customs union. Assassination of the Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss represents the second milestone. There occurs the deficit of the detailed analysis of the Austrian foreign policy, especially in the relationship towards Germany and Italy, in the existing historiography so far. It is particularly the absence of comparison of unpublished documents, Austrian, German and Czechoslovak, with related published sources, contemporary memoirs and press articles as well as scholarly literature. The presented dissertation, which is the result of the four-year...

The purpose of this thesis is to describe V. French Republic, its unique mode of operation and particularly the position of president, as a characteristic symbol of semi- presidential systems. The beginning of the thesis and its first chapter is devoted to historical conditions and circumstances that led to the creation of the Fifth Republic. Afterwards, the work describes basic political institutions of the French system. The second part of the work deals with various theories of the semi-presidential systems and understanding of the French prototype within these definitions. The third chapter then compares the political practice in the United States and France. Likewise it compares the two kinds of presidents in those countries. Finally, the theme of the final chapter is French president's ability to govern as a modern "monarch" within the V. French Republic. Keywords V. French Republic; Semi-presidential system; cohabitation; President; Prime Minister; Political culture; United States of America; constitution

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Most recent literature that analyzes parties from an organizational perspective focuses often on the concepts of intra-party democracy and party organizational democratization (Scarrow, 1999a; Scarrow and Kittilson, 2003; LeDuc, Niemi and Norris, 2002; Bosco and Morlino, 2007). Le Duc (2001) and Rahat and Hazan (2007) underline that the most used instrument for implementing this ‘democratization’ process is the enhancement of the inclusiveness of the methods for candidate and party leadership selection. The actors endowed with candidate and leader selection powers are the central actors in the functioning of the party according to many authors (Gallagher and Marsh 1988, Marsh 1993; Massari, 2004; Hazan and Rahat, 2010). At the moment, the most inclusive method identified by the literature for selecting candidates for elections or the party leader is represented by party open or closed primaries, i.e. internal direct elections by party members and, in the case of open primaries, supporters and voters (Cross and Blais, 2011; Kenig, 2009b).<p>In this study, we explore two specific dimensions of party politics: membership and internal activisms, on the one hand, and on the other hand the internal democratization processes and in particular those dealing with broadening the inclusiveness of leadership selection procedures. Therefore, this study integrates in particular the debate on the nature and consequences of party organizational democratization. The debate finds its origins both in the influential work of Michels on the “iron law of oligarchy” thesis but has been more recently boosted by the theories of May (1973), Mair (1994) and also the studies on intra-party democracy in the British Labour (Shaw, 1994; Russell, 2005).<p>However, we are interested in the point of view of members themselves on the consequences of internal democratization. We are interested on how members perceive these organizational changes, in whether they are frustrated form the actual consequences on their role and powers and whether they perceive them as a potential threat that could undermine their organizational position within the party. In order to respond to the debate on the consequences of intra-party democracy at individual level, we rely mainly on three questions. The main research questions of this study are thus the following: to what extent party organizational changes in the sense of greater democratization affect the membership role at individual level? How are these organizational changes perceived by members? To what extent members’ perceptions of their own role affect their behaviors and in particular their internal activism?<p>The aim of this study, thus, is to empirically assess the impact on members’ activism of party internal democratization and in particular of the perception of membership role. We are interested in whether party members’ attitudes are changing as a result of parties’ organizational changes, particularly if these changes are giving members more say over outcomes. This is a study of how (and whether) perceived roles affect behaviour. The independent variable is constituted by the members’ perception of their own role within party organizational structures and in particular with regard to the leadership selection methods, whilst the dependent variable is represented by the level of activism of party members, in terms of participation to party activities in general. In fact, the impact of party rules at individual level will be addressed, as well as how the perception of organizational rules affects individual attitudes and behaviors. In particular, the focus is on leadership selection methods that integrate party members at some point in the overall process (Lisi, 2009), such as direct elections (Hazan and Rahat, 2006). The case selection is thus implemented on the basis of the research question: the comparison is developed across parties (and not across time) using different instruments for enhancing intra-party democracy.<p>Therefore, we analyze the role perception, attitudes and behaviors of grass-roots members of three contemporary Western European parties: the Belgian French-speaking socialist party (Parti Socialiste, PS), the British Labour and the Italian Democratic Party (Partito Democratico, PD). Among the selected parties, one (PD) holds primaries open to all voters for selecting their leader and one (Belgian PS), on the contrary, has chosen the closed primary (OMOV) system. The British Labour Party uses an electoral college for electing its leader since 1981. The Electoral College method refers to a system in which specific groups are allocated a specific share of the leadership vote. In the case of the UK Labour, the votes are equally divided among its constituency members, the parliamentary caucus and the trade union members.<p>Concerning the first research question of our study, our empirical results underline that in the three selected cases organizational changes affect indeed the membership role at individual level and that grass-root members perceive very clearly this impact on their status and organizational rights, obligations and privileges. When grass-roots members evaluate their role within the party, in particular with regard to the procedure for selecting the leader and the involvement of non-members and passive members within party organization, their perceptions take into account their organizational power as defined, among other factors, also by their share of votes in leadership selection. Thus, we expect that PD members perceive their role as more blurred than Labour members and particularly than PS members. In the case of parties, such as the PS, adopting direct elections of the party leader only by the affiliates, the majority of the members are expected to perceive clearly the distinction of the position, privileges and functions between members and non-members and the extensive role reserved for the affiliates.<p>Our data show that the perception of own role vary among members, but also that many members perceive their own role as being rather blurred. They display in fact nuanced but generally negative attitudes towards the integration of voters and supporters within the selection of party leader. On the basis of our survey data, the observed variation in the perception of membership role within and between the three parties seems to correspond to what we expected. A higher proportion of PD surveyed members declare to perceive their role as blurred, while smaller proportions of PS and particularly labour respondents share this evaluation. In general, our data confirm that party members do not evaluate positively the fact that these formal privileges are extended not only to all individual members, not only to activists but even to passive ones, but also to party voters and supporters. Mair’s “activists’ disempowerment” thesis (Mair, 1994) seems to be supported by our data, at least in terms of individual perceptions.<p>Moreover, our data show that the degree of satisfaction with intra-party democracy significantly vary among parties and is generally not nearly as high as could be expected on the basis of party politics literature. If in the British Labour survey the responses of grass-roots members seem to form a more positive picture, with a great majority of member declaring that the party leader is not too powerful, the level of dissatisfaction with party functioning is rather higher in the other two parties. Nevertheless, PS members are fairly more convinced than PS members that the party internal decision-making is democratic. This is what we expected to find on the basis of our first hypothesis. In fact, our first hypothesis postulated that the perception of the role of party membership by affiliates in terms of (lack of) distinction between members and non-members affects inversely their level of satisfaction with the internal functioning of the party and their degree of perceived political efficacy. The stronger the perception of the blurred role of membership, the lower will be the level of political efficacy and specific support for the party. According to our data, among PD members the perception of the blurred, undefined role of members is rather high and so is the degree of dissatisfaction with intra-party functioning. On the contrary, within the other two parties and especially within the Labour, the role perception by grass-roots members is rather positive and well-defined and the level of specific support for the party is also higher.<p>The expectations formulated on the basis of our first hypothesis appear to be supported by the empirical data also with regard to the variations in the sense of external political efficacy of members. Our data seem consistent with the hypothesis, developed by several scholars (Katz and Mair, 1995; Carty, 2004; Bolleyer, 2009), that expanding the leadership selectorate and granting formal powers to party members and supporters may hide, on the other hand, the perception by enrolled members to be actually loosing power. On the basis of our data, it is possible to assert that grass-roots members seem to be aware of the possibility of a trade-off between extreme inclusiveness of decision-making procedures and actual centralization of organizational power in the hands of party elites.<p>With regard to the third research question of this study, our results confirm that indeed members’ perceptions of their own role, in relation to internal democratization, affect their behaviors and in particular their internal participation. The three parties appear to have different features in terms of internal activism, at aggregate but in particular at individual level. Secondly, not only the overall level of intra-party activism of grass-roots members vary between and within the three selected parties, but appears to be influenced by members’ attitudes towards the party. In fact, our second hypothesis postulated that the levels of specific support for the party and political efficacy of party members impact directly on their level of activism. The lower the level of political efficacy and specific support for the party, the lower will be the degree of activism of all members (as well as the quality of the activities they perform) and vice-versa. In a party holding open and direct elections to choose its leader, party membership is thought to be divided between a highly active avant-garde and a larger mass of inactive affiliates, feeling inefficacy, frustrated with intra-party democracy and perceiving their own role as blurred and undefined. Consequently, dissatisfied or low efficacy members are argued to participate less.<p>Our data only partially support the expectations. In fact, the impact of the sense of external efficacy is clear and strong in all the three cases, while on the contrary the relationship between specific support and intra-party activism is less clear-cut than expected. The results are therefore nuanced with regard to the expectations formulated in the second hypothesis of this study. The explanatory power of external efficacy and specific support in terms of internal mobilization is only partially supported by our data. Therefore, the evaluation of the consequences of the implementation of party organizational changes such as the adoption of open primaries depends on what party elites are interested in: if the goal is to assure membership loyalty, adopting open primaries is not a good way to strengthen membership involvment in the party.<p>We believe that real intra-party democracy is normatively impossible with regard to the position of members. Organizational power cannot be too dispersed among different units without jeopardizing not only effective functioning of the party, as the old debated on the trade-off between democracy and efficacy asserted (Duverger, 1951; Panebianco, 1988), but also the incentives for internal participation of the party base. Party members are well aware that internal power cannot be too dispersed. From the point of view of members, a party should have a clear chain of command and should be composed by elites, activists and members. Each one of them should also be endowed with clearly defined tasks and responsibilities. In conclusion, we believe that intra-party democracy is a symbolic element of party organization but not as actually implementable.<p>In sum, intra-party democracy does not mean the same for different party units. For party elites, it represents a process for either legitimizing the party, changing party image, mobilizing electoral support, managing internal faction or even indirectly increasing their own organizational room for manoeuvre. For party members, intra-party democracy represents an incentive for mobilizing and a political identification tool until a certain point. After that, it becomes a threat to their rights and their status. For grass-roots affiliates, intra-party democracy is not a value per se, but it depends on its real intensity and actual implementation. In conclusion, at theoretical level, we can conclude that party organization theories should increasingly take into account membership’s point of view. On the contrary, at practical level, we can conclude that parties should adapt their strategies with regard to intra-party democracy according to their goal. If party elites are interested in tightening their grip on internal decision-making while increasing their room for manoeuvre and legitimizing party image at the same time, increasing intra-party democracy could be the best organizational strategy. On the contrary, if the leadership’s aim is to mobilize members and guarantee a stable and loyal membership, then it should be noted that increasing intra-party democracy is not always the best choice. To this regard, it might be useful for party elites to find other and more effective ways to loyalize member.<p><p> / Doctorat en Sciences politiques et sociales / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Politische Kultur hat politischer Kultiviertheit wenig zu tun. Sie erfasst vielmehr die „subjektive Dimension von Politik“ – Meinungen, Einstellungen und Werte der Bevölkerung gegenüber Politikern, dem Parlament, den Institutionen uvm. Mehr als ein Vierteljahrhundert nach der Deutschen Wiedervereinigung fragt dieses, aus einem Forschungsseminar an der TU Chemnitz hervorgegangene Umfrageprojekt nach ausgewählten Aspekten der lokalen politischen Kultur in Chemnitz. Dazu zählen die Wahrnehmung der politischen Institutionen, die Einschätzung der demokratischen Teilhabechancen, das Sozialkapital sowie schließlich die Nutzung digitaler Medien. / Political Culture has nothing to do with a civilized mode of political behaviour, Instead, it embraces the “subject dimension of politics” – opinions, attitudes and value orientations of society toward politicians, parliament, and other institutions of political life. More than 25 years after German re-unification this project – a product of a research seminar conducted at TU Chemnitz in 2016 – illuminates selected aspects of local political culture in “Saxony’s Manchester”, including the societal perception of political institutions, the evaluation of democratic participatory opportunities, social capital as well as the relevance of social media for political participation.

Text in Afrikaans / In die politieke en administratiewe stelsel van Frankryk bestaan die ministeriele cabinet as 'n instelling eiesoortig aan Frankryk, met die doel om ministers individueel in stoat te stel om die politieke wil van die regering ten uitvoer te bring. Die gesag van die cabinets is kontroversieel en word enersyds geprys en andersyds gekritiseer. Die Franse ministeriele cabinet neem die plek in van 'n permanente departementshoof. en bestaan uit 'n groep persoonlike personeel wot aan elke minister verbonde is. Sy funksie is om horn te ondersteun en te adviseer sodat hy 'n ingeligte oordeel kan fel voordat hy besluite neem, en ook om te verseker dot sy beleid geformuleer, verduidelik en uitgevoer word. Die ministeriele cabinet was oorspronklik 'n politieke instelling wot in die algemeen uit politieke bondgenote van die minister bestaan het. In die Vyfde Republiek het dit egter ontwikkel tot 'n formele instelling. Dit het 'n onontbeerlike rol begin speel om die skakeling van die politieke stelsel met die administratiewe stelsel te bewerkstellig en ko6rdinering te verseker. Net soos die ministers, funksioneer die cabinets op daardie kruispunte waar verskeie politieke en administratiewe instellings met mekaar skakel. Hulle vervul gevolglik 'n sleutelrol om skakeling te fasiliteer en samewerking te bewerkstellig. Ministeriele cabinets verbind dus die politieke partye, die Parlement, belangegroepe en drukgroepe met ministeries (staatsdepartemente) as uiNoerende instellings. In hierdie proefskrif word die funksionering van die cabinets ontleed en hulle besondere rol in die Franse politieke en administratiewe stelsel vertolk. Die skrywer het bevind dot, waar cabinets effektief funksioneer, hulle doelmatige en doeltreffende meganismes is om die verhouding tussen die politieke en administratiewe stelsel in die bree te versterk tot voordeel van goele regering. Cabinets wot egter nie effektief funksioneer nie, lei tot 'n verswakking in die verhoudinge in en tussen ministeries met nadelige gevolge vir die regering. Voorts is bevind dot die cabinets 'n belangrike rol vervul om die kloof tussen die minister en die amptenare in sy ministerie te oorbrug. 'n Cabinet kan dus 'n minister se loopbaan bevorder of benadeel. / The French political and administrative system includes the ministerial cabinet, a uniquely French institution that exists with the purpose of enabling individual ministers to execute the political will of the government. The authority of the cabinets is either praised or criticised. The French ministerial cabinet substitutes for a permanent head of a deportment, and consists of a group of personal staff serving each minister. Its function is to support and advise him, in order to enable him to make informed judgements before taking decisions, and also to ensure that his policy is formulated. clarified and executed. In its original form the ministerial cabinet was a political institution, generally consisting of political allies of the minister. However. in the Fifth Republic it was transformed into a formal institution. It acquired an indispensable role in effecting liaison and co-ordination of the political system with the administrative system. The cabinets, like the ministers, function at the intersections of political and administrative institutions. Thus they play a key role in facilitating liaison. Hence. ministerial cabinets link the political parties, Parliament, interest groups and pressure groups, with the ministries (state deportments) as executive institutions. This thesis consists of an analysis of the functioning of cabinets, and interprets their particular role in the French political and administrative system. The author has found that where cabinets function as efficient and effective mechanisms, they strengthen the relationship of the political and administrative systems in general to the advantage of good governance. Ineffective cabinets, however. impair the relations within and among ministries to the disadvantage of the government. It has also been established that cabinets play an important role in bridging the gap between the minister and the officials in his ministry. A cabinet can thus improve or damage a minister's career. / Public Administration and Management / D. Litt. et Phil. (Publieke Administrasie)