Politics

Why do top-down reforms to public services so often over-promise and under-deliver? Using five concepts from psychology, economics and organisational sociology and diverse examples of successes and failures, Thomas Elston addresses this pressing question of good governance.

Alison Young provides the first consolidated account of constitutional changes taking place which strengthen governmental powers and weaken political and legal checks, arguing that the democracy is being endangered.

Featuring contributions from around the world, this edited collection provides a comprehensive account of unarmed civilian protection (UCP). It brings together a wide range of UCP practices and provides an important illustration of the contributions UCP can make, while also discussing its limitations and failures.

Based on the findings of a major research project, this book investigates how European societies confront their troubled pasts. The text explores what measures can be taken and which strategies endorsed to overcome difficult historic legacies in seven European states, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Cyprus and Poland.

Exploring the relationship between humour and offensiveness, this book delves into offensive jokes, their impact, and the dark side of laughter. It blends cultural analysis, politics, and philosophy to offer an antidote to positive thinking and guide readers through offensive humour.

Using case studies from around the world, Transparency and the open society surveys the adoption of transparency globally, providing an essential framework for assessing its likely performance as a policy and the steps that can be taken to make it more effective.

Based on a multidisciplinary analytical framework, it explains why and how some peripheral cities have become the locus of violent orders, whereas others have managed to control violence, and to examine the role of violence in the workings of local governance.

Matthew Quinn plots a landmark reimagination of governance and public administration, underpinned by sustainable development and civic republicanism.

This book sets out how people’s lives can be positively transformed through diverse forms of community involvement. It shows how communities can become more collaborative and resilient in dealing with the problems they face and provides a guide to what a holistic policy agenda for community-based transformation should encompass.

In the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges, Henry Tam explores what should be done to revive democracy, setting out in a clear and accessible manner 9 key areas where reforms are necessary to ensure we can govern ourselves more effectively.

This Separated Isle explores how concepts of ‘Britishness’ reveal an inclusive range of understandings about our national character. Featuring a diverse range of photographic portraits and narrative stories from across the UK, this landmark book examines the relationship between identity and nationhood, revealing the ties that bind us together.

This edited collection explores areas such as social enterprise, capacity building, volunteering and social value, and charts the historical development of the state-third sector relationship, reviewing the major debates and controversies accompanying recent shifts in that relationship.