Suchergebnisse

The scope of the paper is to explore the underlying determinants of governance quality at the global level. The study suggests that cross-country variation in governance is mainly attributed to differences not only in countries' level of economic development but to the range of political freedom and level of social development. More specifically, the impact of economic development is stronger for the control of corruption, the rule of law and regulatory quality as far as the examined governance dimensions are concerned. Political development is strongly related to political stability and absence of violence as well as voice and accountability. A very interesting finding is the high correlation of social development, as depicted by the relevant human development index, with the level of government effectiveness. Therefore, strengthening and maintaining governance is achieved only through the adoption and effective implementation of the appropriate long-run policies. In a similar vein, concrete policy guidelines lie at the core of the good governance agenda. The associated reforms target a broad list of comprehensive governance objectives in order to achieve government effectiveness, anti-corruption safeguards, high standards of legitimacy and accountability, among other attributes of governance systems. ; peer-reviewed

The study considers the determinants of corruption in the 23 Mediterranean and Balkan countries where it is widely recognized that this phenomenon is widespread. Starting from the general hypothesis that the extent of corruption in any country is a combination of motives and opportunities, our scope is to examine the most important economic, political and social factors that determine corruption in this region. We accept that motives are determined by the level of human development, while opportunities by the degree of government effectiveness, which in turn is determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. We show that the level of corruption is affected by the degree of human development, while the degree of government effectiveness affects crucially the level of corruption. On its turn, government effectiveness is mainly determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. Improving government effectiveness, increasing the levels of human and economic development and establishing a more democratic political system form therefore the pillars of any anticorruption strategies in these countries. ; peer-reviewed

The present study examines the state of youth in contemporary Greece to better understand how Greek young people organize their lives in various important life domains, such as living conditions, education and career, employment, relationships and use of leisure time. It also examines their values, social priorities and worries, while assessing their participation in social life and the wider political scene. The empirical findings demonstrate that young people in Greece develop their social capital and their socialization process in the framework of the nuclear family. In contrast, outside the boundaries of the Greek family,young people demonstrate an alienation from community and public institutions.

In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current period of crisis is analyzed. As a result, groups of countries shall emerge based on which the real developmental archetypes of European space will be shaped. The distinction does not lie on the traditional axis (of favored) North (less favored) South, but mainly, on the under configuration axis (of favored) West (less favored) East. As a result, the regions of Europe that specialize in dynamic sectors of economic activity shall be located. These regions demonstrate comparative advantages, which give rise to export capacities as well. Moreover the intertemporal analysis of indicators shall exhibit the great contribution of sectoral composition in relation to the general socioeconomic basis along with the structural characteristics of countries and regions, which are fundamental for the developmental process.

In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current period of crisis is analyzed. As a result, groups of countries shall emerge based on which the real developmental archetypes of European space will be shaped. The distinction does not lie on the traditional axis (of favored) North – (less favored) South, but mainly, on the under configuration axis (of favored) West – (less favored) East. As a result, the regions of Europe that specialize in dynamic sectors of economic activity shall be located. These regions demonstrate comparative advantages, which give rise to export capacities as well. Moreover the intertemporal analysis of indicators shall exhibit the great contribution of sectoral composition in relation to the general socioeconomic basis along with the structural characteristics of countries and regions, which are fundamental for the developmental process. ; peer-reviewed