John Lawrence – författare

First published in 1999. This book will help professions and professionals to identify their contribution to society and to understand the argument in which they must engage if they are to justify their conduct. Because of their specialized expertise and power, the task is both difficult and pressing. The work is divided into two parts. Part 1 discusses the concepts ‘ethics’ and ‘professional conduct’, indicating their dimensions and contested nature. In each case, following examination and analysis of relevant literature, a conceptual framework or model is proposed for locating instances of, in turn, ethics and professional conduct. In part 2, the model of ethical choice is used to discuss the ethical justification of professional conduct in the various forms, locations, and stages provided by its social setting. In this way, it provides grounding arguments for relevant action by professionals and others dealing with professionals. The book concludes with a proposal for a national standing commission on the professions.

First published in 1999. This book will help professions and professionals to identify their contribution to society and to understand the argument in which they must engage if they are to justify their conduct. Because of their specialized expertise and power, the task is both difficult and pressing. The work is divided into two parts. Part 1 discusses the concepts ‘ethics’ and ‘professional conduct’, indicating their dimensions and contested nature. In each case, following examination and analysis of relevant literature, a conceptual framework or model is proposed for locating instances of, in turn, ethics and professional conduct. In part 2, the model of ethical choice is used to discuss the ethical justification of professional conduct in the various forms, locations, and stages provided by its social setting. In this way, it provides grounding arguments for relevant action by professionals and others dealing with professionals. The book concludes with a proposal for a national standing commission on the professions.

In Russia in the Making (originally published in 1957), John Lawrence presents the long and complicated history of Russia as a living and intelligible whole from the very beginning. Based on a wide knowledge of Russian history and a considerable experience of Soviet ways, his book provides an admirable starting point for wider reading. The author gives a clear outline which demonstrates how authoritarianism is in the tradition of Russian history. Full value is given to the immense changes brought about by the revolution, and the book ends with an analysis of the changes in social structure that forced Stalin’s work into another mould.

This book demands no previous knowledge of its subject. The author has used his knowledge of Soviet ways to produce from a complicated and confusing record a most readable and easily digestible narrative.