Alynna J. Lyon, Christine A. Gustafson and Paul Christopher Manuel: Pope Francis as a Global Actor: Where Politics and Theology Meet. 1st edition. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2018, 292 pages. ISBN: 978-3319713762

Pope Francis confuses many observers because his papacy does not fit neatly into any pre-established classificatory schemes. To gain a deeper appreciation of Francis’s complicated papacy, this volume proposes that an interdisciplinary approach, fusing concepts derived from moral theology and the social sciences, may properly situate Pope Francis as a global political entrepreneur. The chapters in this volume ask what difference it makes that he is the first pope from Latin America, how and why different countries in the world respond to him, how his understanding of scripture informs his ideas on economic, social, and environmental policy, and where politics meets theology under Francis. In the end, this volume seeks to provide a more robust understanding of the enigmatic papacy of Francis.

The interaction of multiple drivers of intra-organizational change in ministerial administrations: A study of three decades of structural reforms in the Austrian Ministry of Agriculture

Administrative reform policies cutting across several sectors are commonplace in the public sector. However, reform policies do not necessarily result in organizational change. This article examines intra-organizational change within the Austrian Ministry of Agriculture in a longitudinal case study covering a period of three decades, which allows us to study short-term and long term-effects of administrative reforms. Whereas existing research mainly uses single-factor explanations for inter- and intra-organizational change, this article emphasizes the interplay of various drivers of organizational change within government organizations. In analytical terms, we draw on the multiple streams framework to study intra-organizational decision-making which is embedded in government-wide administrative reform policies. We find that reform leads to intra-organizational change when a political entrepreneur is able to couple solutions and problems in a decision window, which may happen decades after the initial reform attempts, underscoring that short-term reform failure may turn into success in a long-term perspective.

Social Origin Is No Destiny: Background, Institutionalization, and Electoral Performance of New Political Parties in Slovakia

The existing research suggests that socially rooted new political parties are more likely to be reelected to parliaments than parties emerging without links to preexisting social groups. It is argued that the two groups face different prospects of institutionalization: Rooted parties are more viable because their links to preexisting societal groups contribute to a higher sustainability of their electoral support and stronger institutionalization. We assess the link between the origin of parties, their level of institutionalization, and their electoral performance in the context of Slovakia, a new Eastern European democracy. We add to the existing state of knowledge in three ways. First, we empirically assess the link between the social origin of parties and their level of institutionalization. We also provide rich empirical material on the intraparty processes resulting in various levels of institutionalization. Subsequently, we assess whether rooted parties record better electoral performance than political entrepreneur parties. Second, we provide some illustration of the fact that agential factors, especially the decisions and activities related to leadership contestation, directly impact both party institutionalization and electoral performance. Third, we show that developing the links to a sociostructurally well-defined electorate may be a viable strategy to secure a parliamentary relevance for a prolonged period of time for some political entrepreneurs. Our findings suggest that parties with different levels of institutionalization are able to secure reelection, and that their electoral performance is not directly linked to their social origins.

Parivar Raj (Rule of Family): The Role of Money and Force in the Making of Dynastic Authority

This article explores the making of a political dynasty in action in a district in western Uttar Pradesh. The founder of the dynasty is a dabang: a self-made violent political entrepreneur. It is argued that the figure of the dabang offers a special ethnographic entry point to contrast forms of power that are achieved versus forms of power that are acquired (inherited) and examines the existing tensions between paternalistic and autonomous models of power. Importantly, such exercise highlights the challenges that dabangs have in cultivating their individual charismatic authority and simultaneously establishing their Parivar Raj (rule of family) by using force and money. On the whole, the presented case study helps us to reflect on the very diverse ways in which dynasties form and work according to the type of authority that is passed through generations.

Political psychology of Indonesian political figure: A case study of a political entrepreneur who is not hesitant in paving a new way

An understanding of the personal history of political figures and a disclosure of the social motives behind the public action of a political figure are essential to improve the quality of the citizen’s political vote. A comprehensive and balanced analysis is required in this context, and political psychology could play a pivotal role. However, in Indonesia, such efforts are still relatively rare. This study contributes by conducting a case study on a political figure (n = 1), Surya Paloh. The method of personality measurement at a distance was used to compose profile of Surya Paloh with the following arrangements: (1) General psychobiography, (2) Beliefs and reasoning patterns, (3) Cognitive aspects, (4) Social motives, (5) Personality traits, and (6) Leadership Competency, each with its strengths and risks. This research concludes that Surya Paloh is a political entrepreneur, with high neuroticism, high excitement seeking, low compliance, and high achievement striving.