This article provides an overview of the current socio-economic and political situation of the Roma in Europe, the continent's largest and most marginalized minority. While a host of new regulations and initiatives on different levels of government have been issued in order to foster the social inclusion of the Roma in various areas of life, the situation on the ground remains far from hopeful. Poverty and discrimination continue to be huge problems in most of the countries where Roma live. New avenues for political and social mobilization have become available to Roma activists and politicians. Yet also in this area important challenges remain. The recent popularity of extreme right-wing populist responses to Roma mobilization and migration has created important obstacles to the full participation and equal citizenship of Roma in our contemporary societies.

This article critically evaluates the recent developments in Dutch policy formation regarding Roma minorities from the perspective of the increased attention paid to their position at European level. First, the author discusses the so-called ‘Europeanization of Roma representation’, that is the post-1989 representation of the Roma as a European minority and the simultaneous large-scale, Europe-wide devising of development, inclusion, and empowerment programs meant for them. Thereafter, the author argues that some of the risks of the Roma’s Europeanization – such as the isolation and culturalization of policy formation and the diminishing of democratic accountability – have also and ambiguously affected Dutch policies meant for Roma, Sinti and caravan dwellers. By means of a brief analysis of recent policy developments, the author demonstrates that the Dutch shift towards a policy that, at least in name, encourages social participation, has actually tended to result into a one-sided focus on the Roma as a ‘problem group’ and ‘security threat’.

There are numerous situations in which human behavior may escalate; in which persons lose self-control, get abusive, aggressive, and cross behavioral boundaries they would normally not cross. Such situations may occur in crowded outdoor situations (public events, urban night life) as well as in small-scale indoor settings (prisons, service & help desks, psychiatric wards). The De-escalate project studies the utilization of dynamic lighting in preventing escalation and in defusing aggressive situations. In De-escalate, Eindhoven University of Technology cooperates with governmental and non-profit organizations, and commercial partners to develop and test mechanisms for de-escalation through light, for example, by lowering arousal, inducing positive mood, broadening attention, increasing self-awareness and self-control. The project aims to broaden our understanding of the effects of light in controlled laboratory studies, and will develop and test methods of de-escalation through light in situ; in two escalation-prone real life settings including Eindhoven’s inner-city entertainment area Stratumseind.

Both the traditional liberal view of freedom as absence of paternalist state interference and the nonliberal Foucaultian analysis of modern governmentality as fully consisting of behavioural management cannot provide an adequate explanation or justification of the popularity of nudging. Alternatively, the theory of interactive metal fatigue shows why nudging is neither paternalist nor managerial; it is better understood as a much-needed and very contemporary way of assisting the modern individual who is no longer able to carry the full burden of his own emancipation. Nudging is thus found unobjectionable, and even beneficial, as long as it enables individuals to act in accordance with the emancipatory norms they themselves adhere to, but not always manage to act on, due to interactive metal fatigue.

In this article the author deals with some issues concerning fraud in science. First, he wonders if this is a new phenomenon. After exploring the definition of scientific fraud he sets the inquiry to the prevalence of this phenomenon. Various recent science fraud cases are discussed, as well as possible explanations for science fraud. Finally, the author formulates a criminological-oriented hypothetical explanation, which opposes frequently heard explanations dealing with contemporary problems in the universities, such as the publication pressure.

Health care fraud and abuse has long been ignored or downplayed in the Netherlands. Increased media attention has put the issue more on the agenda. Health care fraud can erode the willingness to pay the compulsory contributions for health care among the population. Exact figures on health care fraud are still unavailable, although examples of fraudulent behavior are manifold. The risk of health care fraud is high due to the complexity and lack of transparency of the reimbursement system, the autonomy of the health care professional, the lack of adequate control, governance and attention for compliance in health care. What is needed to combat fraud in health care is a ‘zero tolerance’ policy. For this more attention to compliance and a change in the culture that ignores and condones fraud in health care are necessary.