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AbstractBased on recent studies in historical demography, the author examines the reproductive implications of Chinese and Japanese family systems, in focusing on structural and institutional elements related to culture. This approach goes beyond socioeconomic considerations (while also dealing with the latter) to present a more finely nuanced comparative demographic profile that gives us a better understanding of human behaviour. In the face of changing socioeconomic conditions, coresidence and succession practices in Japanese stem families lead to reproductive behaviours that differ from those forged in extended Chinese households. Nevertheless, a common cultural background results in intrafamilial strategies that place the interests of the household above those of the individual. Generation, gender and kinship ties strongly determine events in the reproductive life of each family member. A large number of family strategies, influenced by culture, shape individual demographic behaviours.

This paper questions, within a theoretical framework articulating contractual theories of governance and comparative institutional analysis, the much discussed hypothesis of the “Americanization” of corporate governance systems in an international context. Using a methodology adapted to the longitudinal nature of the societal data in the Vigéo - Eiris database (2004-2015), our article shows that the hypothesis of an alignment of governance systems with the neo liberal model is not sustainable. Instead, our results support the idea of a differentiated acceptance of corporate governance performance, attributable to institutional particularities and societal strategies aimed at preserving or developing the reputational capital of firms within their economic systems of membership.

Keywords: Performance des systèmes de gouvernance, RSE, modèles de capitalisme, théories néo-institutionnelles, théories contractuelles de la gouvernance, Performance of governance systems, CSR, models of capitalism, neo-institutional theories, contractual theories of governance, Desempeño de los sistemas de gobernanza, RSE, modelos de capitalismo, teorías neo-institucionales, teorías contractuales de gobernanza

Foreign Direct investment (FDI) has for a long time been underrated to the advantage of merchandise trade flow. However, at the end of the 20th century the importance of FDI has made itself felt and it now ranks alongside the factors which will weigh most heavily on the structural transformation of the World economy in the 21th century. Economic analysis provides an analytical framework which allows a partial understanding of the stimuli that give rise to these flows and determine their destination. However, the measurement of these flows and the identification of relationships between old and new forms of investment (technology, assistance, sub-contracting, management agreements, etc.) are still inadequate. Expectations regarding the effects of FDJ growth during the next two decades appear to be highly contradictory. There are those who predict that the privatisation of the international financial System, thanks to the supply of capital to less-developed zones, will render it increasingly unstable. Others, who appear less credible, predict that the developing regions will be the principle victims of an increasing scarcity of capital.

AbstractThe starting point of this article is that China's post-socialist transformation has involved a change in its growth regime. Indeed, during the Maoist era, it took the form of a “forced growth” as theorized by Kornai (1972). In addition, “export aversion” was one of the main characteristics of Chinese external economic relations. Today, it is not the case anymore since China follows an export-led growth strategy. Nevertheless, this situation could be particularly difficult to manage with respect to its dependence on external demand in a context of low domestic-demand.

AbstractAnthropology in the Netherlands : the 1980sThe strong ethnographic bias of Dutch anthropology results from their country's colonial past as well as present day foreign aid programmes. Dutch anthropologists accordingly give little importance to the study of their own society. The recession during the 1970's dried up employment opportunities for young graduates and prodded Anthropology departments to work together to identify their research and teaching priorities. Feminist anthropology currently represents one of the most innovative fields of research in the Netherlands.

AbstractMost research about China's energy policy rely on a rational conception of political actors thus portraying China either under the guise of a rational unitary actor on the scene of energy geopolitics or as a battleground among administrative units protecting their bureaucratic turf. This article wants to shed a different light on China's energy policy. It postulates that three different political frames — strategic, market, and “scientific development” — can be found within China's energy policy community. These frames provide the cognitive foundations for problem definition and policy formulation. The measures forming the country's energy policy are thus the result of debates between advocates of each frame and synthesis between them. Yet, some structural factors (economic culture, political institutions, and administrative procedures to name a few) impose a selection among those frames or limit their conversion into concrete policies.

A study conducted in collaboration with museum institutions as educational sites in a highly multilingual and multicultural environment serves as a reflection to better understand how young multilingual speakers make sense of their languages and writing practices and mobilize multilingual resources to understand and learn in different situations. We present some reflections based on examples from a pilot study conducted with 5-year-old children who participated in science workshops at the museum. During these workshops, they were asked to document and illustrate what they learned about animals and their tracks, through drawing and photos (Molinié, 2009 and 2014) and the collaborative creation of a digital book using a touch pad (Sandvik, Smørdal and Østerud, 2009). This contribution is an opportunity to ask a few questions about the role of French in literacy development in an essentially English-speaking environment where Chinese languages are largely dominant in relation to Canada's other official language.

Indian independence played a significant role in the transmission of the discourse on decolonization around the world, notably in French Canada. India offers not only the example of a British colony freeing itself from the British Empire, the symbol of colonial alienation, but it becomes the incarnation of a certain idea of decolonization that will be adopted in French Canada. This discourse offers to French Canadians a globalized conception of their historical condition. Through the use of Québécois journals and newspapers, notable Le Devoir and L'Action nationale, this article analyses references to Indian independence and show how it shapes a French-Canadian discourse on decolonization well before the Quiet Revolution.

This article addresses the ways in which distance by way of the notion of the radical other highlights the isolation felt by the protagonist of the comic strip Shenzhen (2000) by Guy Delisle. I argue that this notion of distance informs the aesthetic of the book. The character evolves apart, psychologically separated from the environments he frequents, incapable of communicating or even communing with the other. Thus, I show that Guy Delisle participates in the reshaping of a new image of China, very different from that which was circulating at the time of the Quiet Revolution in Québec.