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Reconstructing imperialism: from the new imperialism to the new geopolitics
No full textCritical discussion of empire and imperialism has become a key theme in international relations. Much confusion, however, is generated by a lack of consensus on the meaning of imperialism. This paper offers one avenue for clarifying the terms of debate by reconstructing the conceptual history of imperialism from its inception in the late nineteenth century to post-war IR theory. In its initial formulation at the turn of the twentieth century, the theory of imperialism sought to analyse the interplay of capitalist development and geopolitical conflict in the formation and reproduction of international hierarchies. Immediately after World War I, however, an intellectual counter-revolution narrowed the concept into a synonym of colonialism, or the formal rule and administration of subject territory. As anti-colonial struggles won independence in the post-war period, imperialism was increasingly understood as a thing of the past. The paper argues that this conceptual narrowing remains an obstacle to contemporary theorizing, and that a rereading of the classical theories can strengthen contemporary IR frameworks. A key implication of this argument is that renewing the theory of imperialism in IR entails a reintegration of political economy and security studies
Internationalizing industrial policy: how China and the United States use state capacity to secure critical minerals for electric vehicles
No full textIndustrial policies are resurging across the world in response to climate change and geopolitical challenges. Current scholarship predominantly argues that state capacity for industrial policy depends on nationally oriented features, such as bureaucratic efficiency, financial resources, and expertise. However, the increasing uncertainties in globalized industrial supply chains mean that today, industrial policies must often expand into other countries to be successful. We propose complementing the domestically oriented dimension of state capacity with an internationally oriented one, drawing from the international political economy literature on state power. To demonstrate the merit of this approach, we analyze China's and the United States’ state capacity and actions to internationalize their electric vehicle industrial policies, in order to secure critical minerals. We find that both countries use their large market shares of global trade, while China leverages its powerful state bureaucracy and the United States its dominant military and macrofinancial regime. Thus, we argue that in order for a country to internationalize its industrial policy, a country must combine market dominance with capacities that are likely to be highly specific to their own comparative advantage
Childlessness and health in middle age and older adulthood: evidence from Singapore
No full textHealth and well-being in mature adulthood are important concerns given the prevalence of individuals aging without children. We exploit two new instruments for childlessness—infertility and the number of childless siblings—and condition our analyses on a rich set of covariates including childhood health and financial status, to investigate the causal relationship between childlessness and health in middle age and older adulthood. Using a nationwide dataset of 1500 Singaporeans aged 50 and above, we show that OLS underestimates the negative effects of childlessness on health. We find that childlessness leads to higher likelihood of poorer self-reported health and mental distress. The results are robust to a battery of sensitivity analyses, including bounding the effects by relaxing the exclusion restrictions
Mental models of the sixth mass extinction reveal pathways for transformative sustainability action
No full textTo address fundamental challenges to global sustainability posed by unprecedented biodiversity loss and the sixth mass extinction (SME), scientists advocate for transformative changes to systems, policies, and behaviours. Yet public understanding of the biodiversity crisis remains largely unexplored. This article presents the first comprehensive examination of public mental models regarding support for transformative changes using a nationally representative UK survey (n = 739). Whilst only 28% of respondents had heard of the "sixth mass extinction," 93% accepted the phenomenon once explained, with 95% attributing it to human activities. Principal component analysis revealed distinct mental models for policy support (conservation, market regulation, lifestyle changes, and big technology) and behavioural change (citizenship, consumer actions, waste reduction, and nuclear energy use). Attribution to direct human causes strongly predicted support for transformative change (β = 0.44, p < 0.001), while attributions to distant and non-human causes reduced support (β = - 0.20, p < 0.001). These findings demonstrate high latent public support for sustainability transformations and provide actionable insights for science communication and policy engagement strategies addressing the biodiversity crisis
Entre el orgullo y la ira: estrategias emocionales y discursivas en las elecciones europeas de 2024 en España
No full textEste estudio analiza el uso de las emociones y las narrativas en la comunicación política durante las elecciones al Parlamento Europeo de 2024 en España. A través de un análisis de contenido de los spots electorales de los principales partidos políticos (PP, PSOE, Sumar y Vox), se identifican los distintos patrones en el empleo de emociones y narrativas en unas elecciones consideradas de segundo orden. Los resultados muestran diferencias significativas en el empleo de las emociones: mientras que los partidos de gobierno (PSOE y Sumar) utilizaron con mayor frecuencia el entusiasmo, los de la oposición (PP y Vox) recurrieron con mayor frecuencia la ira. Además, se muestran diferencias relevantes en el uso de narrativas: los partidos de la oposición emplearon predominantemente el marco nacional, mientras que los partidos de Gobierno privilegiaron el europeo. Finalmente, este trabajo ayuda a constatar cómo las campañas electorales incrementan la polarización: mediante la asociación de emociones positivas con los simpatizantes del propio partido y negativas con los adversarios políticos
A decision-support system to personalize antidepressant treatment in major depressive disorder: a randomized clinical trial
No full textAntidepressants for moderate to severe major depressive disorder may be discontinued prematurely because the prescribed antidepressant is not always the most appropriate medication for an individual. Guidelines have recommended more precise targeting of antidepressant treatment. To evaluate the efficacy of a web-based tool to personalize antidepressant treatment. This multicenter, randomized clinical trial included persons between the ages of 18 and 74 years with major depressive disorder. The trial was conducted at 47 sites in 3 countries (Brazil, Canada, and the UK). The first participant was screened on November 29, 2022, and the last follow-up visit occurred on January 15, 2025. A total of 540 participants were randomized (1:1) to an evidence-based clinical decision-support system (PETRUSHKA tool; n = 271) or usual care (n = 269). The primary outcome was treatment discontinuation due to any cause at 8 weeks. The secondary outcomes included treatment discontinuation up to 24 weeks due to adverse events and changes in depressive symptoms (measured with the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9]; range, 0-27; higher scores indicate more severe depression) and anxiety symptoms (measured with the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder [GAD-7] questionnaire; range, 0-21; higher scores indicate more severe symptoms). Of the 520 eligible participants, 493 were included in the primary analysis (median age, 35 [IQR, 25 to 48] years; 58% female; PHQ-9 mean score, 16.6 [SD, 5.1]; GAD-7 mean score, 11.5 [SD, 4.1]). At 8 weeks, 41 of 241 participants (17%) in the PETRUSHKA group discontinued the prescribed antidepressant due to any cause vs 69 of 252 (27%) in the usual care group (adjusted relative risk, 0.62 [95% CI, 0.44 to 0.88]; P = .007). At 8 weeks, 22 of 241 participants (9%) in the PETRUSHKA group discontinued the prescribed antidepressant due to adverse events vs 39 of 252 (16%) in the usual care group (adjusted relative risk, 0.59 [95% CI, 0.36 to 0.97]; P = .04). For the assessment of depressive symptoms at 24 weeks, the mean PHQ-9 score was 7.1 (SD, 5.4) in the PETRUSHKA group vs 9.2 (SD, 6.5) in the usual care group (n = 129 in each group; adjusted between-group mean difference, -1.92 [95% CI, -3.06 to -0.78]; P < .001). For the assessment of anxiety symptoms at 24 weeks, the mean GAD-7 score was 4.6 (SD, 4.1) in the PETRUSHKA group (n = 133) vs 5.8 (SD, 4.9) in the usual care group (n = 126) (adjusted between-group mean difference, -1.39 [95% CI, -2.26 to -0.52]; P = .002). Compared with usual care, use of the PETRUSHKA tool increased the number of patients still taking their antidepressant at 8 weeks and improved depressive and anxiety symptoms at 24 weeks. However, lack of a double-blind design and the large amount of missing data limit the validity of these results. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05608330
Gaza, Ukraine, and the lessons of the Nazi past
No full textThis essay discusses Germany’s changing sense of the lessons of the Nazi past and its implications for foreign policy. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Germany suddenly abandoned the commitment to the idea of peace, which, during the previous twenty years, had become increasingly central to its national identity. After October 2023 Germany also doubled down on its unconditional support for Israel, which has become the main expression in German foreign policy of the idea of Nie wieder Auschwitz, or “Never again Auschwitz.” Together these developments complicate our understanding of the outcome of the Historikerstreit in the mid-1980s. In relation to Israel, the idea of singularity is enforced aggressively. But in relation to Russia, the exonerating relativization of Nazism has become quite normal again