Legitimacy

Performing Schengen: myths, rituals and the making of European territoriality beyond Europe

by Ruben Zaiotti

Review of International Studies April 2011 Vol. 37 No.2 : pp 537-556

Myth-making has historically been an essential component of the modern state's quest for territorial control and... more Myth-making has historically been an essential component of the modern state's quest for territorial control and legitimacy. As a sui generis post-national political entity in search for identity and recognition, the European Union (EU) seems to mimicking its more established national counterpart. By formulating and reproducing a narrative that hails Europe's border control regime (‘Schengen’) as a success story of European integration and by deploying evocative imagery at Europe's common borders, the EU is in fact trying to establish itself as an integral part of the European political landscape. This article argues that what we are witnessing today in Europe is indeed the emergence of the ‘myth of Schengen’; however, the regime's mythopoiesis goes beyond the EU's official narrative and symbolic representations. To capture the full range of actors, locations and activities involved in the establishment and reproduction of this post-national myth, it is necessary to shift the attention to the performative dimension of this process. To support this argument, the article relies on the insights of anthropological and sociological works that have emphasised the role of rituality and performativity in constituting social structures and identities. These insights are then applied to examine the rituals and performances characterising four cases of ‘unofficial’ Schengen myth-making beyond Europe: a hotel in Beijing, street kids in Kinshasa, a British music band, and a group of Eastern European artists.

La légitimité du premier usurpateur : violence, pouvoir, droit.

by Francesco Mancuso

A paraitre in J.-F. Kérvegan - L. Jaffro, La violence et la norme, 2012

Legittimità
Effettività
Legalità Legittimità
Effettività
Legalità

Abstract: Performance, Meaning, and Ideology in the Making of Legitimacy

by Florian Schneider

Resolving Accountability Ambiguity in Nonprofit Organizations

by Andrew Williams

Co-authored with Jennifer Taylor

Accountability is a much studied subject in the social sciences and is known for its complexity, context dependence,... more Accountability is a much studied subject in the social sciences and is known for its complexity, context dependence, and ambiguity. By conducting a comprehensive literature review and analysis across nonprofit, public, and private sector literatures, this article identifies the causes of ambiguities present in many accountability frameworks and describes the trend toward understanding accountability as a constructed concept combining both instrumental and interpretive elements. The relationship between legitimacy and accountability is considered. The authors develop a holistic accountability framework that facilitates defining and implementing accountability in complex, multi-stakeholder environments, by providing a means to operationalize commonly encountered but ambiguous accountability goals through a social process of deliberative dialogue. The authors conclude by summarizing limitations of the approach and describing future research needed.

Cross-National Reconstruction of Managerial Practices: TQM In Turkey

by Sukru Ozen

Co-authored with Ümit Berkman, published in Organization Studies, 2007, 28 (6) 825-851.

Drawing on the discursive and translative perspectives, we examine the discourse produced by an elite group of... more Drawing on the discursive and translative perspectives, we examine the discourse produced by an elite group of corporate executives to legitimate TQM (total quality management) at the national level in Turkey. The findings indicate that the legitimating
agencies largely used ethos justifications exploiting the macro-cultural discourses prevalent in the Turkish context. As such, they reconstructed TQM as a blueprint embracing solutions to the problems at societal, organizational, and individual levels.
Based on the findings, we propose that reconstruction of imported practices in recipient contexts is more likely to involve ethos justification when compared to the construction of the original rhetoric because of the nature of cross-national translation. The strategy of ethos justification is even more likely when legitimating actors also strive to legitimate themselves as a social group, and/or to promote the practice to the public. Furthermore, the recipient discourse will be less coherent if legitimating actors have less formal authority and loose structure, and the target audiences have diverse values and expectations. We suggest that, under these circumstances, the
reconstruction of the imported practices is more likely to produce fashions than institutions, a limited diffusion of the practice in contrast to the intentions of legitimating actors.
Keywords: cross-national reconstruction of managerial practices, new institutional theory, TQM, legitimation, translation, discourse, rhetoric

The Special Education Profession and the Discourse of Learning Disability in Germany

by Justin J.W. Powell

Democracy as Justification for Waging War: The Role of Public Support

by Andrea Pereira

Falomir-Pichastor, J. M., Staerklé, C., Pereira, A., & Butera, F. (2012). Democracy as Justification for Waging War: The Role of Public Support. Social Psychological and Personality Science. 3(3), 324-332. doi:10.1177/1948550611420172

Abstract

Democracy is positively valued. This positive evaluation extends to a democracy’s actions, even if... more Abstract

Democracy is positively valued. This positive evaluation extends to a democracy’s actions, even if it is to wage war. The authors investigated whether the perceived legitimacy of military interventions depends on the political structure (democratic vs. nondemocratic) of the countries involved and on the aggressor country’s popular support for the government’s aggressive policy. Participants learned that an alleged country planned to attack another. The political structure of both countries was manipulated in the two experiments. The support of the aggressor’s population toward military intervention was measured in Experiment 1 and manipulated in Experiment 2. Both experiments confirmed that military intervention was perceived as being less illegitimate when the population supported their democratic government’s policy to attack a nondemocratic country.

Significando el cirujeo como trabajo digno. Ciudad de Buenos Aires (2002-2008)

by Mariano Perelman

When Trust is Lost: The British and their Police after the Tottenham Riots

by Jonathan Jackson

Bradford, B & Jackson, J (2011). ' When Trust is Lost. The British and their Police after the Tottenham Riots', Books & Ideas, 8 November 2011. ISSN : 2114-074X. URL : http://www.booksandideas.net/When-Trust-is-Lost.html

Are rioters different from the rest of the British people when it comes to their relationship with the police? Public... more Are rioters different from the rest of the British people when it comes to their relationship with the police? Public debates have answered in the affirmative, and demanded more aggressive policing styles. But trust in the police might be as important in explaining rioting as it is in explaining compliance.

‘Victors’ Justice’? Historic Injustice and the Legitimacy of International Law

by Daniel Butt

in Lukas H. Meyer (ed) Legitimacy, Justice and Public International Law (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009)

Trust in Justice: Topline Findings from the European Social Survey

by Jonathan Jackson

European Social Survey (2011). ‘Trust in Justice: Topline Findings from the European Social Survey’, ESS Topline Results Series Issue 1. By Jackson, J., Hough, M., Bradford, B., Pooler, T. M., Hohl, K. and Kuha, J.

Public trust in their justice systems, public compliance with the law, and public cooperation with legal authorities –... more Public trust in their justice systems, public compliance with the law, and public cooperation with legal authorities – all these are crucial to the maintenance of social order. They are also important social indicators of a society’s health and well-being. The Fifth Round of the European Social Survey, which includes 45 questions on Trust in Justice, was conducted at the end of 2010 in 28 European countries. In this paper we present key findings from the 20 countries for which comparative data were available in November 2011. We illustrate variation in trust in justice and legitimacy of justice institutions across Europe. Some clear patterns emerge: the Nordic countries are most trusting of their police and courts and believe that their institutions are legitimate holders of power and authority; while Eastern and sometimes Southern European countries tend to be less trusting. An important part of our country-level comparison is the multi-dimensional nature of both trust and legitimacy. Trust, we assume, is revealed in public assessments of the trustworthiness of institutions along three dimensions: effectiveness, procedural fairness, and distributive fairness. Legitimacy, we assume, is revealed in people’s consent to power and their sense of the normative justifiability of power. These definitions help us to bring to life the complex and multi-faceted nature of these vital social and political phenomena.

Different Things to Different People? The Meaning and Measurement of Trust and Confidence in Policing Across Diverse Social Groups in London

by Jonathan Jackson

Bradford, B. and Jackson, J. (2010). ‘Different things to different people? The meaning and measurement of trust and confidence in policing across diverse groups in London’, Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1628546.

One of the first actions of the new Home Secretary was to scrap public confidence as the single performance indicator... more One of the first actions of the new Home Secretary was to scrap public confidence as the single performance indicator of policing in England and Wales. But public trust and confidence will remain important to policing policy and practice. Trust and confidence can (a) encourage active citizen participation in priority setting and the running of local services, (b) make public bodies more locally accountable and responsive, and (c) secure public cooperation with the police and compliance with the law. Analysing survey data from London we find that overall 'public confidence' condenses a range of complex and inter-related judgements concerning the trustworthiness of the police. This is the case across different population groups and those with different experiences of crime and policing. Even recent victims and those worried about crime seem to place less priority on police effectiveness compared to police fairness and community alignment when responding to summary confidence questions. We argue that confidence summarises a motive-based trust that is rooted in procedural fairness and a social alignment between the police and the community. This social alignment is founded upon public assessments of the ability of the police to be a 'civic guardian' who secures public respect and embodies community values (Loader & Mulcahy, 2003). By demonstrating their trustworthiness to the public, the police can strengthen their social connection with citizens, and thus encourage more active civic engagement in domains of security and policing.

Social Connections and Material Interests: On the Relational Basis of Voluntary Cooperation with Legal Authorities

by Jonathan Jackson

Tyler, T. R., Jackson, J. and Bradford, B. (in press). 'Social Connections and Material Interests: On the Relational Basis of Voluntary Cooperation with Legal Authorities', chapter in Harris, N. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Springer-Verlag. Available at SSRN at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1907137

A deterrence model of legal authority is not only expensive and minimally effective; it also undermines forms of... more A deterrence model of legal authority is not only expensive and minimally effective; it also undermines forms of social capital that promote long-term public commitment to the law and, crucially, the public cooperation on which legal authorities fundamentally rely. The exercise of authority via the application of fair process strengthens the social bonds between individuals and authorities. Procedural justice promotes normative modes of compliance and cooperation that are both more stable and more sustainable in the long run. Using the example of the UK, we show how specific policing contexts can modulate, but not fundamentally alter, these associations. We argue that moral alignment with the police is one of a broader range of motivations to cooperate with legal authorities – that are based not on material interests, but on social values and normative commitment.

Going Outside the Law: The Role of the State in Shaping Attitudes to Private Acts of Violence

by Jonathan Jackson

Jackson, J., Huq, A., Bradford, B. and Tyler, T. R. (2011). ‘Going Outside the Law: The Role of the State in Shaping Attitudes to Private Acts of Violence’, University of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 372.

Why do people believe it is acceptable to resort to private or informal violence? A new study of young men from... more Why do people believe it is acceptable to resort to private or informal violence? A new study of young men from various ethnic minority communities in London links procedural justice and police legitimacy to public attitudes towards violence as a form of social control (as a substitute for the police) and attitudes towards violence as a tool for social change (through violent protests, or terrorism). Prior studies have conceptualized legitimacy as public recognition and justification of the power of the police. Yet legitimacy may have an additional and hitherto unrecognized empirical property -- as public recognition that the state has a monopoly over use of force in society.

Legitimacy and the Future of the European Court of Human Rights: Critical Perspectives from Academia and Practitioners

by Alan Greene

Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou & Alan Greene, Legitimacy and the Future of the European Court of Human Rights: Critical Perspectives from Academia and Practitioners, 12 German Law Journal 1707-1715 (2011), available at http://www.germanlawjournal.com/index.php?pageID=11&artID=1380

Brand Trial After a Credibility Change

by J Armstrong

Co-authored with David B. Montgomery. Published in Journal of Advertising Research, 10 (5), 1970, 26-32.

An analysis on the effects of changes in brand name reliability and appeal in consumer behavior. An analysis on the effects of changes in brand name reliability and appeal in consumer behavior.

Former Communists Condemning Communism: Ethos, Legitimacy & Ad Hominem Argumentation

by Alexandru Cârlan

“Sua sponte facere”: The Problem of Legitimacy of the Unauthorized Contiones in Rome under the Republic

by Roman Frolov

published in: "The Traditional Mediterranean: Essays from the Ancient to the Early Modern Era" / Ed. by Jayoung Che, Nicholas C. J. Pappas. Athens: Athens Institute for Education and Research History Research Unit; Institute for Mediterranean Studies of the Pusan University of Foreign Studies, 2011, pp. 187-196. ISBN 978-960-9549-21-9

The paper considers one of the types of the Roman republican non-decision-making public meetings (contiones). Over a... more The paper considers one of the types of the Roman republican non-decision-making public meetings (contiones). Over a long period of time the issue had not been systematically examined by scholars, until F. Pina Polo published a monograph about contiones in 1988. However he does not believe that the contio, not summoned by a magistrate, was a political institution. The main argument for such view is that unsanctioned contiones were regarded in Roman public law as illegitimate. In this paper it is proved that this type of contiones was held in accordance with customs and laws, as may be deduced not only from particular accounts of narrative sources, but also from legal sources. Unsanctioned contio could be dismissed (if it could) only by appealing to it, which implied its being recognized as sanctioned. The fact that the XII Tables forbid only night-time unsanctioned gatherings (coetus nocturni) means that other such gatherings were not illegal. The sources do not show any other restrictions concerning unsanctioned (not initiated by magistrates) gatherings till 44 B.C. Though assemblies in question were gradually restricted by the law, the process became intense only in the late Republican period; under the Empire unsanctioned contiones were completely forbidden. It is concluded that in the Republican time unsanctioned contiones functioned as established, important and recognized social and political institution as well as official contiones summoned and headed by a magistrate. Unauthorized contiones ensured a legal dialogue between the elite and the masses and helped to develop the principle of representation in the system of Roman public law.

Intergroup bias and inequity: Legitimizing beliefs and policy attitudes

by Jack Glaser

Dazzling Dining

by Simon Malmberg

in L. Brubaker and K. Linardou (eds.), Eat, Drink and Be Merry (Luke 12:19) – Food and Wine in Byzantium. Papers of the 37th Annual Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies in Honour of Professor A.A.M. Bryer (Ashgate 2007), pp. 75-91.

This paper examines how banquets hosted by the Roman emperor were vehicles of imperial propaganda and expressions of... more This paper examines how banquets hosted by the Roman emperor were vehicles of imperial propaganda and expressions of the ruler’s political legitimation. Five aspects are here used in the analysis of imperial banqueting: traditional values, religion, precedence, acclamation and tradition. Through banquets, the emperor showed that he adhered to these values, had the appropriate qualities of a ruler and served the common good of the elite.