(in English): The aim of this thesis is to clarify the normative character of language, that is, how we are bound by a certain set of rules in every speech. We will look into this normative character of language by articulating two essential questions: in what is this normativity grounded and which aspects constitute language as an institution. In the first part of the paper we interpret the work of three authors, Ferdinand de Saussure, Charles S. Peirce and Pierre Bourdieu, in order to answer the question on what the normative character of language is founded. In this part we mainly look into the relationship between language and social consensus, habit/acting and institutions. In the second part of the paper we give a definition of language institution which is inspired by the work of Peirce and Bourdieu. Further on we clarify in systematic way those aspects of language which can be considered as normative. Firstly, we point out those which are clearly part of language, such as lexicon, pronunciation and intonation, official language and institution symbolized by language. The last aspects that we will analyse are speech genres, belief, habit/acting and power.

Il s'agit d'une recherche du droit privé romain, en l'occurrence le rôle de la volonté dans le droit des contrats romain. La question de la voluntas est bien connue en matière successorale. Mais il semble qu'elle ne soit pas méconnue du droit des contrats, en effet, l'influence de la volonté ne saurait concerner que les seuls contrats consensuels. Il est manifeste qu'elle intervient aussi en matière de contrats formels ou réels. Cette prise en compte de la volonté semble être l'oeuvre de la jurisprudence romaine. Il s'agit d'analyser les casus des jurisconsultes afin de déterminer le rôle et la portée qu'ils donnent à la volonté des parties. Les principales sources à exploiter sont les Institutes de Gaius, l'édit du prêteur, le Digeste, le Code et les Institutes de Justinien. La recherche concerne le droit classique romain (IIe siècle av. J.C. - IIIe siècle ap. J.C.), et selon les résultats obtenus, elle pourrait s'étendre au droit postclassique (IVe - début VIe), et au droit de Justinien (VIe). / This is a study of Roman private law, more precisely of the role of will in Roman contract law. The question of voluntas is well-known among inheritance matters. But it seems not to be unknown in contract law as well. Indeed, will does not only concern consensual contracts. It clearly also occurs in real or formal contracts. This taking into account of will seems to be the result of Roman jurisprudence. Cases of jurisconsults have to be analyzed in order to determine the role and the relevance they give to the will of the different parties. The main sources which have to be exploited are the Institutes of Gaius, the Praetor’s Edict, the Digest, the Code and the Institutes of Justinian. The study focuses on classical Roman law (2nd century BC - 3rd century AD), and depending on the results, it could reach postclassical law (4th - beginning of 6th), and Justinian law (6th century).

Approved for public release; distribution in unlimited. / This thesis discusses key aspects of the democratization process in post-Castro Cuba following a destructive and chaotic transition of power. The theories of leading democracy and economic theorists are applied to the post-Castro conflict scenario as relevant issues to be addressed by a new Cuban government and the United States in a Cuban transition to democracy. Additionally, the ongoing U.S. efforts in Iraq provided a unique window of opportunity for further scrutiny of democratization theory as select lessons learned from the rebuilding of Iraq are compared to the future democratic transition of Cuba. Even though this thesis took this unique perspective in the democratic transition environment, the resulting research and analysis supported existing theories about the intertwining of political and economic development. The major distinction appears to be the need for greater flexibility in the process, post-conflict, due to the ambiguity involved. What needs to be fixed or rebuilt in Cuba will depend on the severity of damage to the political and economic infrastructure. The theorists selected have been helpful in opening doors for what is relevant during the rebuilding and democratization process, but as was expected, there is not a definitive process to achieving democracy and a free-market economy. / Major, United States Army

Whereas benchmarking experiments are very frequently used to investigate the performance of statistical or machine learning algorithms for supervised and unsupervised learning tasks, overall analyses of such experiments are typically only carried out on a heuristic basis, if at all. We suggest to determine winners, and more generally, to derive a consensus ranking of the algorithms, as the linear order on the algorithms which minimizes average symmetric distance (Kemeny-Snell distance) to the performance relations on the individual benchmark data sets. This leads to binary programming problems which can typically be solved reasonably efficiently. We apply the approach to a medium-scale benchmarking experiment to assess the performance of Support Vector Machines in regression and classification problems, and compare the obtained consensus ranking with rankings obtained by simple scoring and Bradley-Terry modeling. / Series: Research Report Series / Department of Statistics and Mathematics

Collaboration between social services and private schools – an interview study with school staff   It is legislated that social services and schools should collaborate on issues concerning children in distress or at risk of being abused.  The purpose of this study was to from the perspectives of school personnel in private schools investigate the collaboration between these elementary private schools and social services and to highlight suggestions for improvement. We conducted seven interviews with staff from three different private schools. From the perspectives of the interviewees the results indicated that there was no actual collaboration. We have analyzed the results with the help of organization theory and situational leadership theory. The study shows that the interviewed staff from the private schools wish for better and faster collaboration with the social services regarding children in distress or at risk of being abused, in order to better be able to support the children at school. The suggestions for improvement are that the social services should have a routine to provide feedback on each received report regarding concern for children and that there should be a possibility to ease secrecy.     Keyword: Collaboration, consensus, private school, organizational structure, leadership / Det finns lagstadgat att socialtjänst och skola ska samverka i frågor gällande barn som far illa eller riskerar att fara. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur personal vid tre olika friskolor ser på samverkan mellan friskolor och socialtjänsten samt lyfta fram förslag till förbättringar. Vi genomförde sju kvalitativa intervjuer med personal från tre olika friskolor. Resultaten var till stor del entydiga om att det, från den intervjuade personalen på friskolornas perspektiv, inte existerar någon egentlig samverkan. Resultaten analyserades med hjälp av organisationsteori och situationell ledarskapsteori. Studien visar på att den intervjuade personalen vid de aktuella friskolorna önskar en bättre och snabbare samverkan med socialtjänsten kring barn som far illa eller riskerar att fara illa för att bättre kunna stötta barnet i skolan. De förslag på förbättringar som informanterna önskar är bland annat att socialtjänsten ska ha en rutin för att ge en återkoppling på varje inkommen orosanmälan samt att det ska finnas en möjlighet att lätta på sekretessen.   Nyckelord: Samverkan, samsyn, friskola, organisationsstruktur, ledarskap

Thesis advisor: Sarah Babb / In the early 1990s, at the height of the Washington Consensus, its hegemonic model of neoliberal development was strongly challenged by Japan, the U.S.’s greatest ally. The key event characterizing this challenge occurred when Japan’s Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) began criticizing the World Bank’s famous Structural Adjustment Loans (SALs). This subsequently led to the publication of the “East Asian Miracle Report” by the World Bank financed by the Japanese government. This poses a great puzzle considering Japan’s historically submissive and politically deferential relationship with the U.S. since the end of World War II. I address two questions in my thesis to solve the above puzzle: (1) why did the Japanese state choose to oppose American ideological hegemony in the 1990s? (2) how did the ideas involved in this challenge develop within and beyond the institution of Japanese policy bureaucracy? The theory and methods used in this paper are inspired by the historical institutionalist tradition in sociology and political science. I argue that the shift in Japan’s foreign aid strategy in the late 1980s was driven by a mixture of economic, institutional and political factors. This along with the escalating influence of the Washington Consensus and its interference with Japanese aid policy, drove Japan to oppose American ideological hegemony in the 1990s. Furthermore, tracing the policy discourses of the OECF during this period revealed that not only economic and political factors, but also the developmentalist idea that valued the central role of the state in its economic development was essential in instigating Japan’s construction and promotion of its own development model. I conclude that Japan’s challenge was both a local and a global social construct, developed in the processes of transnational interaction with other states and their actors, and drawing on internationally available economic ideas. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2015. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology.

I analyse whether coalitions consisting of one or several parties from both political blocs have a causal effect on the following election results of the Sweden Democrats using election data. I find that, when the largest bloc is unable to reach a seat majority in a municipal assembly and forms a coalition with one or several parties from the other bloc, the Sweden Democrats increase their municipal vote share by on average 11.71 percentage points the following election. I interpret the result as support for the view that Swedish voters punish the established parties when they are perceived as becoming more similar in terms of policy and ideology. Moreover, my results show that the effect is only significant in municipalities where no small and/or local parties exist, indicating that the largest bloc in many municipalities prefer to form a coalition with these parties when the opportunity exists.

O processo de gestão de organizações de saúde necessita de ferramentas de monitoramento para auxiliar a tomada de decisão, contribuindo para a melhor qualidade dos serviços prestados. Objetivo: Explorar as formas de construção de um conjunto de indicadores de modo a possibilitar o estabelecimento de uma medida que permita o monitoramento de um centro cirúrgico. Procura-se, desse modo, elaborar um modelo que utilize uma abordagem baseada em consenso para a definição dos indicadores e para o levantamento dos pesos de ponderação. Metodologia: Considerando o objetivo proposto, foi realizada uma pesquisa de campo e exploratória, utilizando levantamento de dados primários e secundários. Foi utilizada a ferramenta de análise hierárquica de processos (AHP), proposta por Thomas L. Saaty (1991) com foco na definição dos pesos de importância relativa dos indicadores; para o cálculo do consenso, foi utilizada a medida proposta por Wierman e Tastle (2005). Resultados: Após a revisão da literatura e do processo de entrevistas com os especialistas foram propostos 37 indicadores para a composição do painel de monitoramento da unidade de centro cirúrgico. Constatou que a opinião dos especialistas sobre o peso de importância dos indicadores é muito equilibrada e harmoniosa. No cálculo do peso de importância dos indicadores propostos verificou-se que 15 indicadores são responsáveis por 73% do resultado final do painel. No que se refere ao consenso sobre as notas dos indicadores, observou-se uma redução do entendimento dos especialistas. Conclusões: o resultado final da análise das dimensões de estrutura, processo e resultado, a unidade de centro cirúrgico foi considerada satisfatória em uma escada de insatisfatório à excelente. Para que o painel proposto possa ser utilizado de forma dinâmica no processo de gestão sugere-se a redução do mesmo para os 15 indicadores com maior peso de importância. Através da análise dos dados e das medidas de consenso apuradas, verificou-se a necessidade de entendimento sobre as estratégias e metas da organização. A construção de um painel ponderado pelo consenso dos especialistas adiciona a ferramenta de monitoramento a possibilidade de verificar o alinhamento dos indicadores com as metas do planejamento estratégico da organização. / The health organizations management process requires monitoring tools to boost decisionmaking, contributing to a better quality of services. Objective: To explore ways to construct a set of indicators also allowing the establishment of a measure that permits monitoring of a surgical center. Thus, seeking to develop a model using an approach based on consensus on the definition of indicators and for acquiring weights ponderation. Methodology: Considering the proposed objective, a field research and exploration were conducted using survey of primary and secondary data. We used hierarchical analysis tool for process (AHP), proposed by Thomas L. Saaty (1991) focused on defining the relative importance of weights indicators; to calculate the consensus, we used the measure proposed by Wierman and tastle (2005). Results: After reviewing the literature and interviewing process with the experts were proposed 37 indicators for monitoring the composition of the panel of the surgical center unit. It found that the opinions of experts on the weight of importance of indicators is very balanced and harmonious. In calculating the weight of importance of the proposed indicators we found that 15 indicators are responsible for 73% of the final result of the panel. As regards the consensus on the scores of indicators, there was a reduction in the understanding of experts. Conclusions: The final result of the analysis of the structure dimensions, process and result, the surgical center unit was considered satisfactory in an excellent to unsatisfactory ladder. For the proposed panel it can be dynamically used in the management process suggested to reduce even to 15 indicators with greater weight of importance. By analyzing the calculated consensus measures, there is a need for understanding the strategies and goals of the organization. The construction of a panel weighted by consensus of the experts adds monitoring tool the possibility to check the alignment of indicators with the organization\'s strategic planning goals.

A influência da cultura na adaptação individual tem sido uma questão de considerável importância na psicologia, antropologia e em outras ciências sociais; no entanto, dificuldades teóricas e metodológicas têm limitado a possibilidade de investigar diretamente esses processos. A investigação de modelos da vida familiar faz-se importante devido ao papel estrutural da família na sociedade brasileira e sua relação com a saúde mental e desenvolvimento dos indivíduos. Na antropologia cognitiva, modelos culturais servem como uma função diretiva para o comportamento, construindo processos de significação para os indivíduos. O conceito de consenso cultural refere-se ao modo em que os modelos culturais são compartilhados e valorados pelos indivíduos. Enquanto que o conceito de consonância cultural foi proposto para descrever o grau com que o indivíduo, em seu próprio comportamento ou percepção, se aproxima do modelo cultural compartilhado. O presente estudo propôs-se a identificar a presença de modelos culturais na vida familiar, a existência de um consenso cultural acerca desses modelos e analisar a consonância cultural da população urbana estudada em Ribeirão Preto. Este trabalho integrou o Projeto “Cultura e Adaptação Individual" (CADI) e analisou parte dos dados relacionados à vida familiar. Participaram desta pesquisa 295 habitantes de Ribeirão Preto, com idades entre 18 a 67 anos. No método foram empregados técnicas cognitivas (lista livre, agrupamento livre e entrevista de consenso cultural), grupo focal e a Escala de Consonância Cultural da Vida Familiar desenvolvida pela equipe do projeto CADI. Os dados foram analisados utilizando modelos estatísticos apropriados e a análise temática de conteúdo. Nos resultados verificou-se que há um único modelo de vida familiar sendo compartilhado, há um bom compartilhamento desse modelo e uma valorização de elementos afetivos em detrimento de uma dimensão relacionada à estrutura familiar. O modelo cultural da vida familiar foi composto por elementos positivos e negativos aos vínculos familiares. Os elementos positivos puderam ser relacionados à estrutura familiar e ao funcionamento afetivo e qualidade das relações familiares. Os elementos negativos puderam ser distribuídos em um “continuum de poder prejudicial aos vínculos familiares e aos indivíduos". Sendo que “vício", “violência" e “irresponsabilidade" foram os elementos relacionados como potencialmente mais destrutivos aos vínculos familiares e às funções protetivas que a família poderia desempenhar. A configuração familiar vem sendo afetada por transformações sociais, relacionadas principalmente à evolução tecnológica, ao desejo por um novo estilo estilo de vida e a entrada da mulher no mercado de trabalho. A consonância cultural da vida familiar não apresentou diferenças significativas entre os quatro bairros estudados o que demonstra que os sujeitos se percebem vivendo a vida familiar independentemente das diferenças sócio-econômicas. O método empregado mostrouse adequado para a investigação dos objetivos do projeto. Espera-se que este trabalho possa contribuir para um melhor entendimento da família no Brasil e assim auxiliar na adequação e efinição de políticas públicas em nossa sociedade. / The influence of culture on individual adaptation has been a question of considerable importance in Psycology, in Anthropology and other social sciences; however, theoretical and methodological difficulties have limited the ability of researchers to directly investigate these processes. The investigation of familiar life models is important due to the structural role of a family in the Brazilian society and its relation with mental health and the development of individuals. In cognitive Anthropology, cultural models construct meaning for individuals and serve as a directive function for individual behavior. The term cultural consensus has been defined as the way cultural models are shared and rated by individuals. Whereas the concept of cultural consonance has been proposed to describe the degree to which an individual, in their own behavior or belief, approximate shared cultural model in some domain. The present work has been proposed to identify the presence of cultural models in familiar life, the existence of a cultural consensus related to these models and analyze the cultural consonance of the urban population studied in Ribeirão Preto. This work integrated the project “Culture and Individual Adaptation" (CADI- in Portuguese) and analyzed part of the data related to familiar life. Two hundred and ninety-five inhabitants from Ribeirão Preto, between 18 and 67 years old, participated in this research. In the methodology, cognitive techniques were used (free list, pile sort and cultural consensus interview), focal group and the Cultural Consonance Scale of Familiar Life developed by the team of the CADI project. The data was analized using appropriate statistical models and the thematic analysis of contents. In the results, it was observed that there is a single model of familiar life being shared, there is a good division of this model and a valorization of affective elements instead of a dimension related to familiar structure. The cultural model of the familiar life was composed by positive and negative elements in terms of family bonds. The positive elements could be related to familiar structure and the affective functioning and the quality of family relations. The negative elements could be divided into a “continuum of power which is harmful to family bonds and individuals", while “addiction", “violence" and “irresponsibility" were the elements reported as potentially more harmful to family bonds and the protective functions that a family could perform. The familiar configuration has been affected by social changes, due mainly to technological evolution, the desire of a new life style and the growing role of women in the working market. The cultural consonance of familiar life has not shown significant differences among the four neighborhoods studied, a fact that shows that individuals are aware of familiar life no matter the social and economical differences. The methodology applied has proved to be appropriate for the investigation of the goals of the project. This work is expected to contribute to a better understanding of families in Brazil and then, help to fit and define the public politics in our society.

Submitted by Nara Lays Domingues Viana Oliveira (naradv) on 2015-08-29T14:45:35Z No. of bitstreams: 1 sandra.pdf: 848797 bytes, checksum: 6ba5119aad24d5d46a0758287caa0ed4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-08-29T14:45:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 sandra.pdf: 848797 bytes, checksum: 6ba5119aad24d5d46a0758287caa0ed4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-06-28 / Nenhuma / Esta pesquisa aborda o tema do homem como um ser que convive e compartilha de mundos diferentes, buscando suas preferências valorativas, seus gostos e suas aptidões. Em razão disso, necessita vincular-se afetivamente, ser reconhecido e valorizado, para que possa estar em harmonia com o outro e consigo mesmo. O amor, nesse contexto, traduz-se na diretriz de comunicação entre os seres, de modo que o direito de amar e de ser feliz se constitui em dever de compreender e estar com o outro, pois, somente assim, há a ruptura com a individualidade e com conceitos prévios. O conflito, a seu turno, é elemento inerente ao homem, que atua estimulando seu interesse e sua curiosidade, retirando-o de sua zona de conforto natural, para fornecer-lhe condições de promover mudanças individuais e sociais, pois, uma vez compreendido, o conflito tem o poder de se converter num instrumento de transformação de vida. É certo, porém, que no Estado Democrático de Direito, o conflito nascido da sociedade é regulado e tratado no Judiciário, onde é reduzido à figura do litígio, em que o Estado-Juiz aponta a lei ao caso concreto. Assim, diante da tentativa de agir sobre o conflito, ao invés de intervir sobre o sentimento das pessoas, o conflito nunca desaparece apenas se transforma. A presente pesquisa se propõe a buscar o tratamento alternativo para melhor lidar com os conflitos, analisando o modo tradicional de agir do Estado em confronto com o instituto da mediação como ética da alteridade. Por estas razões, será realizada uma releitura da mediação como forma ecológica de resolução de conflitos sociais e jurídicos, permitindo o reestabelecimento da comunicação entre as partes, sob a concepção Waratiana. A mediação é a arte de muito ouvir e pouco intervir. Justificase o estudo na necessidade de se obter uma visão contemporânea da ideia de justiça, investigando a efetividade do Direito e a aplicabilidade da mediação na prevenção e solução de conflitos através no consenso. O método utilizado é o fenomenológico como interpretação, para fazer uma reflexão sobre o ser humano e suas relações sociais conflitivas, e, também, analisar a problemática que surge diante deste modelo alternativo de justiça, fundamentado no consenso construído entre as partes através da comunicação. Na visão de Luis Alberto Warat, a mediação pode ser utilizada como instrumento de dissolução de conflitos em áreas diversas da sociedade, de conflitos familiares, passando pelas ciências humanas, até atingir os conflitos institucionais e comunitários em seus mais variados tipos. Para tanto, é necessária uma urgente modificação no sistema de soluções ou transformações de conflitos, de modo a desconstruir o senso comum teórico dos juristas, porquanto, mais que à decisão pura e fria, a solução do conflito deve apontar a uma melhor qualidade de vida das partes nele envolvido. / This research addresses the theme of man as a being who lives and shares different worlds, looking for his evaluative preferences, his tastes and skills. As a result, he needs to link affectively, be recognised and valued, so he can be in harmony with each other and with himself. Love, in this context, reflects in the communication guideline between human beings, in a way that the right of loving and being happy means a duty to understand and be with each other, because, only in this way, there is a break with the individuality and preconceptions. The conflict is a human being inherent element, which acts by stimulating his interest and his curiosity, removing him from his natural comfort zone, to provide him conditions for promoting individual and social changes, because, once understood, the conflict has the power to become a life transformation instrument. It is true, however, that on a Democratic State of law, a conflict born of society is governed and treated in the Judiciary, where is reduced to a dispute figure, in which the State-Judge applies the law by case. Thus, before the attempt to act on the conflict, rather than act on people’s feelings, the conflict never disappears, just changes itself. This research proposes to find out a solution or alternative treatment for conflict resolution, analyzing the State traditional way of acting in confrontation with the mediation institute as an alterity ethics. For these reasons, it will be held a re-reading of mediation as an environmentally-friendly way of social and legal conflict resolution, allowing the communication re-establishment between opponents, under the Waratiana design. Mediation is the art of more listening than talking. This study is justified on the need of getting a contemporary vision of the Justice idea, investigating the Law effectiveness and the mediation applicability in preventing and resolving disputes through consensus. The method used is the phenomenological as interpretation, to make a reflection on the human being and its controversial social relations, and, also, analyze the problems that arises on this alternative model of justice based on consensus built among opponents through communication. In Luis Alberto Warat’s vision, mediation can be used as an instrument of conflict dissolution in different areas of society, from family conflict, through the humanities, until institutional and community conflicts in their most varied types. To achieve this, it is necessary an urgent change in the solutions or transformation conflict system, in order to deconstruct the Jurists theoretical common sense, because, more than the decision itself pure and cold, the conflict solution must achieve a better life quality for people in it involved.