Thesis--Hamburg. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 449-476).

Thesis (M.A.) in Liberal Studies--University of Maine, 2005. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 68-71).

[No abstract submitted] / Arts, Faculty of / Political Science, Department of / Graduate

In 1946, the United Nations inaugurated the Technical Assistance Programme, a new and international application of "mutual aid" and "self-help" principles. There are many aspects to these programmes, which focus particularly on raising standards of living through increased productivity in the "under-developed" countries. The present study singles out the social welfare activities only, starting in the Advisory Social Welfare Services (1946), and the Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance which followed. The method adopted is twofold: (1) An examination of the major principles of Technical Assistance, (a) as enunciated in official statements of policy, and (b) as indicated in operational practice. The significance of the use of experts, U.N. fellowships, seminars, and demonstration projects is explored in this light. (2) The principles of Technical Assistance are compared, in broad terms, with the basic principles of social work. One of the important by-products of Technical Assistance Administration, an international survey of professional social work, and a definitive statement of the nature of social work skills, is referred to in this connection. As a means of highlighting the principles and methods of the advisory social welfare services, two countries are referred to as examples of a receiving country (Guatemala) and a contributing country (Canada). They serve in conclusion to illustrate the interrelatedness of welfare programmes with local needs, with education for social work, and with overall national policies. A major part of the material used for this study is derived from United Nations documents, available from library sources. It is supplemented by essential data from the United Nations Headquarters and from Canadian Government agencies concerned with participation in these programmes. Interviews with Canadian social welfare personnel who have participated in several of the programmes helped considerably to compensate for the need of first-hand material in the role of advisers, and the problems and procedures of fellowship and scholarship programmes. A number of points were also clarified by correspondence. The study reveals positive achievements in practical methods of promoting peace, which deserve greater publicity. Much more remains to be done; of most relevance for social work, however, is perhaps the need for increased professional writing on the field experience of social worker participants, and further research directed to analysis of methods, process, and results. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

The aim of this thesis is to show that, although the various phases of the membership controversy are fundamentally a part of the overall Soviet -Western crisis, the immediate reason for their development stems not only from the dominant position that the United States occupies internationally but as well from the extreme overbalance of representation in the United Nations in favour of the Americas. This situation, not the free use of the veto by the Soviet Union, is mainly responsible for the stalemate in the admission of new members. The Soviet Union has felt compelled to use its veto lavishly in an effort to protect and strengthen its minority role in the United Nations. It is because the USSR regards the veto in this light that any suggestion to abolish it as far as admission of new members is concerned is completely impractical. The issue would not be of primary import if the Western States had used their preponderant voting power responsibly and the practice of bloc voting had not become such a prominent feature of the United Nations. But these developments which are partially attributable to the existing state of international tension have made the membership composition of the United Nations a matter of great concern, especially to the USSR. In these circumstances it is not surprising that Article 4 has received little more than lip service. Both the Soviet and Western blocs have set up a standard of admission for their own candidates which differs substantially from that applied to candidates of the other. This has left each side open to charges of discrimination and neither has been slow in pointing out the iniquities of the other's obstinacy. In the eyes of the Secretary General of the United Nations, who is well qualified to judge, all the disappointed applicants would qualify if the standard set by Article 4 was administered reasonably. In harmony with this view the USSR has offered what seems to be the only fair compromise, that it will vote for the Western candidates if the Western states will vote for the Soviet candidates. The stalemate is perpetuated because the Western bloc unwisely chooses to regard this offer to compromise as a 'horse trade' or 'blackmail.' A new twist to the membership controversy has been supplied by the fact that there are two claimants to the seat held in the name of China. This is not a question of admitting a new state but merely one of representation. The difficulty in the case of China is that the de facto government, which should logically occupy the seat, is in conflict with: the military forces of the United Nations, which in the view of the majority disqualifies that government from taking its rightful place. This representation question must eventually be resolved in favour of the Central People's Government or the United Nations will place itself in the position of denying representation to the 450 million people of China, the majority of whom seem to support the Peking Government. / Arts, Faculty of / Political Science, Department of / Graduate

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / What do Americans think about the United Nations? Social scientists have put forward an array of viewpoints on the subject, focusing on such things as partisan differences in the attitudes of Americans towards the work of the UN to public skepticism of the organization’s objectives and effectiveness. I argue, in this thesis, that public opinion is a causal factor because of its potential to influence political outcomes. For example, public opinion can influence the effectiveness of the UN’s work in three main ways: 1) It can serve as an instrument for establishing the credibility of the international body’s work and/ or in discrediting the system as a whole; 2) it can serve as a link between the US and the UN in encouraging support for the United Nations in one of its most important members; and 3) Public opinion can stress the importance of a particular issue and pressure influential actors to take action. I choose to focus solely on the United States in this thesis despite the UN’s 192 other member states for the reason that overwhelmingly negative assessments have been offered of the organization since the Iraq War. The research depicting this idea points to a decline in American popular support for the UN in the past decade. By investigating six different hypotheses which seek to explain this possible decline, I conclude that American public support for the international body after the Iraq war has declined and can best be explained by hypothesis 3 on inadequate coverage of UN matters in the media and hypothesis 5 on the thought that the UN is “ineffective;” although this presumed decline is not steady due to opinion level variations in the recent decade.

No description available.

No

Thesis (doctoral)--Lapin yliopisto, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 340-369).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Sydney, 2006. / Title from title screen (viewed 1 June 2007). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Faculty of Law. Includes bibliographical references. Also issued in print.