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Social media platforms are being used to shift the balance of power, functioning as tools of resistance for activist publics on social justice issues. This article uses a postmodern approach to public relations with the purpose of clarifying the role of dissensus in social media contexts, connecting it to the principles of the ethics of care that promote dialogue but not necessarily with the aim of achieving consensus. Scholars and practitioners can claim a broader role for public relations in society by considering and analyzing conflicting perspectives in digital communication as a way to engage with activist struggles in social justice and human rights causes. By applying critical discourse analysis (CDA) to a case study that articulates interdisciplinary concepts, this research analyzes the first national weekly Portuguese newspaper Expresso support for the anti-racist cause through its promotion of a manifesto and a Facebook post against racist intimidation. In a contemporary society characterized by fragmentation, taking a public stance on important social and political issues, as in the case analyzed, demands moving beyond consensus-driven communication. The data confirm that social media platforms are not necessarily dialogic spaces and that conflicting communicative perspectives may be a useful way to analyze social change in public relations theory and practice. By taking a public stand against racist intimidation, assuming the possible alienation of specific publics –and "Facebook bullying"– this private newspaper also demonstrated the practical application of the assumptions of the ethics of care.

Le droit n'est pas gravé dans le marbre. Les temps changent – tempora mutandur – et les lois changent avec eux. Tout changement législatif devrait toutefois être le fruit d'une réflexion attentive et non un but en soi ou le résultat de l'humeur politique du moment. Ce sont de nouvelles connaissances scientifiques, des évolutions technologiques, des changements politiques ou des progrès sociaux qui doivent pousser le législateur à réviser une loi, à réglementer un état de fait jusqu'alors inconnu ou à déréglementer un comportement. Au regard de ces considérations, le 19e volume de la série APARIUZ (Analysen und Perspektiven von Assistierenden des Rechtswissenschaftlichen Instituts der Universität Zürich), édité par le Professeur Damiano Canapa, Robin Landolt et Nicola Müller, est consacré au décalage qui peut exister entre les attentes suscitées par une loi et ses effets concrets. Sous le titre Sein und Schein von Gesetzgebung : Erwartungen, Auswirkungen, Kritik, l'ouvrage propose des contributions issues de différents domaines du droit (droit public ; droit privé et des poursuites ; droit économique ; droit pénal ; droit européen, international et étranger) qui s'évertuent à répondre à des questions aussi diverses que : - Quelles attentes avons-nous vis-à-vis des lois et de leurs modifications ? - A quel endroit une modification législative est-elle particulièrement nécessaire ? - Où les buts poursuivis par la révision ont-ils été atteint et où n'est-ce pas le cas ? Dans ce cadre, les auteurs proposent des critiques constructives et des pistes de solutions s'agissant de l'amélioration de la qualité législative, de la mise en œuvre des initiatives populaires cantonales, de l'aménagement du territoire, du maintien de la diversité de la presse, de la loi sur les transplantations, des drones, de l'acquisition de biens culturels étrangers, de l'égalité entre hommes et femmes dans les sociétés anonymes quotées en bourse, de la prévention de l'usage abusif de la procédure de faillite, du régime des sanctions en droit ...

Background. The German National Health Interview and Examination Survey (GHS) is the first government mandated nationwide study to investigate jointly the prevalence of somatic and mental disorders within one study in the general adult population in Germany. This paper reports results from its Mental Health Supplement (GHS-MHS) on 4-week 12-month, and selected lifetime prevalence of a broad range of DSM-IV mental disorders, their co-morbidity and correlates in the community. Methods. The sample of the GHS-MHS (n=4181; multistage stratified random sample drawn from population registries ; conditional response rate: 87.6%) can be regarded as representative for the German population aged 18–65. Diagnoses are based on fully structured computer assisted clinical interviews (M-CIDI), conducted by clinically trained interviewers. Results. 12-month prevalence for any DSM-IV study disorder is 31% (lifetime: 43%; 4-week: 20%) with anxiety disorders, mood disorders and somatoform syndromes being the most frequent diagnoses. Retrospective age of onset information reveals that most disorders begin early in life. Comorbidity rates among mental disorders range from 44% to 94%. Correlates of increased rates of mental disorders and co-morbidity were: female gender (except for substance disorders), not being married, low social class, and poor somatic health status. Health care utilization for mental disorders depended on co-morbidity (30% in 'pure', 76% in highly co-morbid cases) and varied from 33% for substance use disorders to 75% for panic disorder. Conclusions. Results confirm and extend results from other national studies using the same assessment instruments with regard to prevalence, co-morbidity and sociodemographic correlates, covering a broader range of DSM-IV disorders [i.e. somatoform disorders, all anxiety disorders (except PTSD), mental disorders due to substance or general medical factor, eating disorders]. Intervention rates were higher than in previous studies, yet still low overall.

Background: Promoting Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is a major strategy of the "Science with and for Society" work program of the European Union's Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. RRI aims to achieve a better alignment of research and innovation with the values, needs, and expectations of society. The RRI strategy includes the "keys" of public engagement, open access, gender, ethics, and science education. The Structural Transformation to Attain Responsible BIOSciences (STARBIOS2) project promotes RRI in 6 European research institutions and universities from Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Slovenia, Poland, and the United Kingdom, in partnership with a further 6 institutions from Brazil, Denmark, Italy, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States.Objective: The project aims to attain RRI structural change in 6 European institutions by implementing action plans (APs) and developing APs for 3 non-European institutions active in the field of biosciences; use the implementation of APs as a learning process with a view to developing a set of guidelines on the implementation of RRI; and develop a sustainable model for RRI in biosciences.Methods: The project comprises interrelated research and implementation designed to achieve the aforementioned specific objectives. The project is organized into 6 core work packages and 5 supporting work packages. The core work packages deal with the implementation of institutional APs in 6 European institutions based on the structural change activation model. The supporting work packages include technical assistance, learning process on RRI-oriented structural change, monitoring and assessment, communication and dissemination, and project management.Results: The project is funded by Horizon 2020 and will run for 4 years (May 2016-April 2020). As of June 2018, the initial phase has been completed. The participating institutions have developed and approved APs and commenced their implementation. An observation tool has been launched by the Technical ...