O estudo analisa e sistematiza tecnicamente a atuação dos usos negociais não só enquanto pautas interpretativa e integrativa dos contratos empresariais como, também, especificamente, um elemento objetivo formador de obrigações contratuais empresariais em decorrência da repetição de condutas negociais, daqueles que exercem a empresa, praticadas habitualmente, com intuito de padronizar as relações, de reforçar a confiança e de estabilizar as expectativas. A pesquisa tem como objetivo estudar os usos negociais, diferenciando-o dos demais relevantes elementos consuetudinários, abordando o seu conteúdo e o seu alcance no processo contratual empresarial. Serão identificadas e analisadas as funções desempenhadas pelos usos negociais nos seus diferentes papéis – hermenêutico, integrador e normativo – ainda que não se possa, em variadas situações, categorizá-los a priori em apenas uma dessas dimensões. O objetivo específico deste estudo é investigar a extensão e a relevância da atuação dos usos negociais em relação aos contratos, em especial no contexto empresarial, buscando investigar eventuais critérios para a aferição de juridicidade vinculante ao poder normativo social. Mesmo diante do princípio constitucional da reserva legal, vigente no ordenamento jurídico brasileiro, o trabalho revela as vantagens e até mesmo a necessidade da (re)valorização dos usos negociais, os quais podem, inclusive, predominar – ainda que apenas materialmente – à lei, em determinadas situações, sem, contudo, descurar da primazia da intenção das partes. / This study analyzes and technically systematizes the trade usage practices not only as an interpretative and integrative guideline of business contracts, but also specifically as an objective element that shapes business contractual obligations as a result of the repetition of business conducts by those who run the company in order to standardize relations, strengthen trust and stabilize expectations. The research aims to study the concepts of the most relevant customary institutes, addressing their content and their scope in the formation, development and compliance of business contracts, as well as to explore what the functions of trade usages are in their different roles - hermeneutic, integrative and normative - although it is not possible, in various situations, to categorize them a priori in only one of these dimensions. The specific objective of this study is to investigate the extent and relevance of the trade usage practices in relation to contracts, especially in the business context, seeking to investigate any criteria to measure the legality binding on social regulatory power. Even in view of the constitutional principle of the legal reserve, in force in the Brazilian legal system, the work reveals the advantages and even the need for trade usage (re)valorization, which may even predominate - albeit only materially - to the law in certain situations, without however neglecting the primacy of the parties' intention.

This thesis puts the European Union’s (EU) normative power in a historical context and combines it with EU’s development of social goals and measures surrounding the turn of the twenty-first century. This provides social normative power to be central phenomenon. The development of EU’s social normative power is analyzed through its founding Treaties. It shows how this development leads to the construction of the European Constitution in the beginning of the twenty-first century. This treaty got rejected by the Netherlands through a national referendum, but was reused almost in its entirety in the Lisbon Treaty only a few years later. Since the development of social normative power and these controversial events have taken place in the same period, the connection between the two is examined. This is done by focusing on the national debate in the Netherlands during the period of the European Constitution and the Lisbon Treaty through newspaper articles that were published at that time. It is researched how social normative power influenced Dutch national debate during the indicated period. This research will show that EU’s social normative power made the lack of democratic capacity of the EU more visible for Dutch citizens and that it contributed to a negative attitude towards the EU.

It has been argued that individuals receiving traditional alcohol treatment do not necessarily perceive life-long abstinence from alcohol as a favorable treatment outcome, and that negative expectations associated with this abstinence goal may have an adverse effect on treatment outcome. However, "abstinence expectancies" have never been systematically explored. This study used the Theory of Planned Behavior to investigate the relationship between the abstinence outcome expectancies of alcoholics beginning treatment and subsequent alcohol consumption. The independent and combined effects of abstinence outcome expectancies, alcohol outcome expectancies, self-efficacy expectancies (to abstain from alcohol use), and the normative beliefs of individuals beginning inpatient abstinence-oriented alcohol treatment were related to level of drinking during the 90 days following treatment. One hundred ten individuals receiving inpatient alcohol treatment were recruited for the main portion of this study. A questionnaire that included belief-based measures of attitude toward alcohol and abstinence, a belief-based measure of social normative pressure to either use or abstain from alcohol, a belief-based measure of one's perceived behavioral control to abstain from alcohol, and a measure of behavioral intention to use alcohol during the 3 months following treatment was developed for use in this study. The questionnaire was administered to all subjects. During the 90-day Follow-Up period, subjects were sent brief questionnaires and asked to report any alcohol or drug use. Eighty-nine percent of the subjects provided follow-up information for the first 30 days, while 76% provided information for the entire 90 days. An analysis of the data indicated that scores obtained from the belief-based measure of perceived behavioral control and scores from the belief-based measure of attitude toward abstinence were moderately correlated with intention to abstain from alcohol, while alcohol attitude scores and subjective norm scores were uncorrelated. Contrary to expectations, scores obtained from a measure of intention to use alcohol and the measure of perceived behavioral control were minimally predictive of scores from follow-up measures of drinking. However, intention and perceived behavioral control were minimally predictive of scores from follow-up measures of drinking. However, intention and perceived behavioral control scores were somewhat more predictive of drug use for the 90-day Follow-Up period. These results were discussed in light of the Theory of Planned Behavior and the similarities between alcohol expectancies and drug expectancies.