No abstract

Countries in the third wave of democratization have introduced competitive elections before establishing basic institutions of a modern state such as the rule of law, institutions of civil society and the accountability of governors. By contrast, countries in the first wave of democratization became modern states before universal suffrage was introduced. Because they have democratized backwards, most third-wave countries are currently incomplete democracies. Incomplete democracies can develop in three different ways: completing democratization; repudiating free elections and turning to an undemocratic alternative; or falling into a low-level equilibrium trap in which the inadequacies of elites are matched by low popular demands and expectations. The significance of incomplete democratization is shown by analysing public opinion survey data from three new democracies varying in their predecessor regimes: the Russian Federation (a totalitarian past); the Czech Republic (both a democratic and a totalitarian past) and the Republic of Korea (formerly an authoritarian military regime).

This article examines whether Confucian Asian values are incompatible with liberal democracy. Analyses of the East Asia Barometer Survey conducted in South Korea reveal that attachment to those values makes it more difficult to reject authoritarian rule than to embrace democracy. These findings suggest that Asian values detract from cultural democratization primarily by keeping the mass public oriented toward the virtues of authoritarian politics.

Patients with unilateral neglect have problems reporting, responding, or orienting to novel or meaningful stimuli that is presented to the side opposite to that of a brain lesion. This creates a serous problem in regards to daily living activities. However, the established methods for assessing and training of unilateral neglect patients have several deficits. Recently, virtual reality (VR) technologies have been used as an assessment and treatment tool for rehabilitation. Hence, this study designed a VR system to assess and train unilateral neglect patients. In addition, the suitability and feasibility of our VR system for unilateral neglect patients was verified.

Thermally reducible pyroprotein-based electronic textiles (e-textiles) are fabricated using graphene oxide and a pyroprotein such as cocoon silk and spider web without any chemical agents. The electrical conductivity of the e-textile is 11.63 S cm , which is maintained even in bending, washing, and temperature variation.

This article synthesizes significant findings of theoretical and empirical research on the third wave of democratization. It addresses a number of central questions. What changes have been taking place in the study of democracy and democratization over the past two decades? How have the concepts of democracy and democratization been redefined for a new generation of scholars oriented to action and advice? What developments in the measurement of the two concepts have been stimulated by the quickening pace of democratization? What has been learned about the dynamics of democratization itself? What mixes of democratic institutions and rules offer the “best” prospect for democratic consolidation? What kinds of strategies and tactics have been prescribed for encouraging democratic reforms in those countries that remain nondemocratic? What are the prospects for the third wave of democratization?

In this research, the effectiveness of neurofeedback, along with virtual reality (VR), in reducing the level of inattention and impulsiveness was investigated. Twenty-eight male participants, aged 14-18, with social problems, took part in this study. They were separated into three groups: a control group, a VR group, and a non-VR group. The VR and non-VR groups underwent eight sessions of neurofeedback training over 2 weeks, while the control group just waited during the same period. The VR group used a head-mounted display (HMD) and a head tracker, which let them look around the virtual world. Conversely, the non-VR group used only a computer monitor with a fixed viewpoint. All participants performed a continuous performance task (CPT) before and after the complete training session. The results showed that both the VR and non-VR groups achieved better scores in the CPT after the training session, while the control group showed no significant difference. Compared with the other groups, the VR group presented a tendency to get better results, suggesting that immersive VR is applicable to neurofeedback for the rehabilitation of inattention and impulsiveness.

How much progress have democracies in East Asia made toward consolidation? Approaching this question from a cultural perspective, our paper attempts to determine whether democracy has become “the only game in town” for a majority of the mass publics in six East Asian democratic countries: Japan, Korea, Mongolia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Thailand. Using data culled from the first wave of the East Asia Barometer surveys conducted in these countries during the 2002-2003 period, we find that majorities of the Japanese, Korean, and Taiwanese people prefer democracy to its alternatives at the levels of both political regime and process. On the basis of this finding, we conclude that only these three East Asian democracies are well on their ways to becoming consolidated democracies.