Search Results

French-language e-books are offered to readers in public libraries in Quebec and in French-speaking minority communities in Canada according to a licensing model. They impose different conditions by allowing but also restricting access. In this article, we look at the paradoxes and trade-offs raised by this model from the perspective of the discoverability of this offer, which allows us to reconcile questions relating to e-books as content, those relating to the platform making them available and those relating to the encounter between this content and its audience.

Keywords: découvrabilité, livre numérique, bibliothèque publique, communautés francophones en situation minoritaire, francophonie, discoverability, e-book, public library, French-speaking world, minority French-speaking communities

The Socialist government in France made sweeping changes towards decentralization in 1981. Was this reform simply a French version of the reorganization of capitalist states or did it involve changes in power relationships between social classes? In his attempt to answer this question, the author situates this reform in its historical context by looking at the transformations of the State apparatus in France since the beginning of the Fifth Republic (when state power was highly centralized) until the recent reform implemented by the Left. He then discusses recent trends in this area and how the interplay between social classes can influence the results of this reform.

Keywords: Loi 21, laïcité, Québec, droits collectifs, commission Pepin-Robarts

Activism in the mutualist movement, the worker in non-profit organizations and the role of private non-profit organizations in social policy were the topics of research that received awards at this year's ADDES conference (Association for the Development of Documentation on the Social Economy). The article is based on the panel of judges' report for the ADDES 2005-2006 conference prize, which was presented during the 20th conference on 7 March 2006. This prize is given in recognition of exceptional scientific work in the social economy field. Two distinct prizes were awarded in 2006: a prize for a master's thesis (master's degree level 1 or 2) and a prize for a doctoral dissertation, which was shared by two dissertations. Whether looking at the political motivation of involvement in mutualism or the voice function of non-profit organizations in public policy debates, or analyzing the forms of socialization of workers in non-profit organizations in between the public and private spheres, what was studied was clearly the unique position of social economy entrepreneurship and the forms of cooperation with government.

Public policies on mobile phones are confronted to a dilemma. On one hand, a scientific controversy flourishes. There is no general agreement among experts about the effects of electromagnetic fields exposure on human health. On the other hand, there is a wide social consensus about the usefulness of mobile phones. But when a base station is to be settled, citizens living nearby often protest against it (the well-known NIMBY effect; see Jobert 1998 ; Marchetti 2005 ), they generally focus more on the electromagnetic fields exposure created by base stations (Crivellari 2006) than on the aesthetics considerations (see the impact of landscape on environmental policies; Blanc et Glatron 2005). The actors involved in the regulation of mobile phones are diverse: decision-makers, experts, operators, pressure groups. Overall, the government takes into account the norms designed by international organizations like the World Health Organization or the European Union. Moreover, in federal States, we must consider its entities. Actually, a policy network (Marsh 1998) shapes this regulation. Relying on the case of Belgian regulation of mobile phones, our article aims at testing the following hypothesis: a public policy on risk is de facto a participatory policy. Public action would thus be built and implemented partially at local level, by the organization of citizen's involvement. Contemporary governance, including sustainable development and deliberative processes, as well as political rescaling, will serve as a general framework to test such a hypothesis.

Keywords: politique publique, risque, démocratie, gouvernance, échelles, Belgique, téléphones mobiles, ondes électromagnétiques, antennes, public policy, risk, democracy, governance, political rescaling, Belgium, mobile phones, electromagnetic fields, base stations

AbstractWhen it is recognized that the actions of the parties are different from their speech, these organizations suffer from a loss of credibility. The parties' characteristics are such that these political actors are more prone than administrations and groups not to act in conformity with their speech. Five functions of speech in relation with action can be singled out : display, concealment, legitimation, contestation, and treatment of contradictions. Some examples are given in the article showing how the actions of the parties can differ from their speech in each of these functions. Some correctives are suggested, all of them consisting, in Max Weber's words, in moderating the parties' convictions—sincere or calculated— through the sense of their responsibility regarding the public.

For a long time, social work has played a central role in family intervention in Quebec. Whether we think of diocesan social service agencies, social service centers, child protection services or the “Famille Enfance Jeunesse” sector in CLSCs, social workers play an important role in family intervention. This article focuses on the changes in social policy and social programs developed to support parents and promote the well-being of children in Quebec. Based on ideas developed by the author as part of her doctoral project, an empirical and theoretical literature review will be presented on data that have influenced these changes, as well as the resulting issues and challenges affecting the contemporary practice of social work with families. An exploration of certain courses of action proposed in the literature for a collectivization of social problems and renewal of social work practices will be presented in the conclusion of the article.