Klasse und Geschlecht als Kategorien sozialer Ungleichheit

The issue of the formative influence of class versus gender, respectively, as the two main structural categories of modern societies is discussed in this paper. It presents results of an empirical research project. An overview of recent women’s and gender studies is given, taking a critical look at inequality relations. Selected empirical results of the crossing effects of class and gender are presented, referring mainly to Bourdieu’s (class) model of the multidimensional space of social positions. The materials used in the analysis are quantitative data of the representative West-German Socio-Economic Panel and qualitative biographical interviews with selected women (from interviewed couples) in contrasting social positions. The ?gender class“ hypothesis is being checked quantitatively by positioning it in connection with employment on the basis of mean average comparisons and a factor variance analysis. The ?class gender“ hypothesis is checked qualitatively by means of the case reconstructions on the basis of sequential analysis of interview interpretation. Finally, a theoretical reflection on the results is made in view of both crossing hypotheses.     

Geschlecht und Schulerfolg: Ein soziales Stratifikationsmuster kehrt sich um

In this paper, we seek to identify factors that account for the declining school performance of boys and young men. After reviewing and analysing the international literature on gender and education, we integrate various explanatory approaches into a model that is rooted in the theory of socialisation. The model focuses on the developmental tasks which young men face during adolescence. Our central thesis is that the declining school performance of young men cannot be fully explained by their failure to cope with educational challenges, i.e., their problems with respect to the developmental task “qualification”. Rather, a comprehensive explanation requires the incorporation of three other central developmental tasks, “social attachments”, “regeneration”, and “participation”. In the last decades, it has become easier for young women to cope with these tasks than it is for young men. Thus a rare sociological incident has occurred: the reversal of centuries-old pattern of social stratification. Nowadays, young women and not young men acquire the privileged certificates offered by the educational system, and it is them who gain the more promising career prospects. Our thesis can be supported with data from a broad range of international studies. The crucial implication is that supporting young men at school will show only limited results. Rather, to improve the school performance of young men, it is also necessary to address their deficits in coping with the other aforementioned developmental tasks, all of which point to challenges that young people are expected to master in today's individualised, achievement-oriented society.     

Sektionen Arbeits- und Industriesoziologie und Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Sektionen Kultursoziologie und Stadt- und Regionalsoziologie

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Modellvergleich und Ergebnisinterpretation in Logit- und Probit-Regressionen

In the social sciences logit and probit models are often used multivariate data analysis procedures for binary dependent variables. Both procedures can be thought of as resting on a linear model for an unobserved variable y* from which a nonlinear model for the probability of y?=?1 is derived. We first show that compared to linear models this nonlinearity leads to problems of interpreting results from such analysis. In particular odds ratios (exponentiated logit coefficients) often used in logistic regression are problematic in this respect. Instead we recommend using graphical procedures and reporting (corrected) average marginal effects (AME). Based on a series of Monte-Carlo simulations we next demonstrate that the regression coefficients from logit and probit models should not be compared between nested models. Because model building in the social sciences often employs a stepwise procedure a method allowing valid comparisons of effect sizes between models would be advantageous. Results from our simulation study show that average marginal effects and regression coefficients corrected by a method proposed by Karlson et al. (Sociological Methodology 42, 2012) lead to satisfactory results in many different scenarios. In contrast, y*-standardized coefficients are of limited utility and coefficients from a linear probability model should only be used with normally distributed variables.     

Mentoring und soziale Netzwerke — Theorie und Praxis

In a permanently changing environment measures for staff development always win more importance. This article demonstrates with theoretical bases first, that mentoring and active networking represent suitable solutions for it. Furthermore the practical realization and the necessity of networking are explained and discussed with the results of an empirical study in the form of expert interviews.     

Kommunikation und Kooperation in Team und Großunternehmen

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Spielarten des Kapitalismus und Kompetenzen von Hochschulabsolventinnen und -absolventen

The assumption that differences in Higher Education (HE) systems can be related to Varieties of Capitalism (VoC) is the underlying hypothesis of this article. Drawing on the example of skills and competencies of HE graduates in the UK and Germany, complementarities between the educational and economic system are analysed. First, hypotheses about differences in competencies are deduced on a theoretical basis from the VoC-approach. Second, the analysis of data from an international comparative survey (REFLEX) confirms that these differences indeed can be found empirically: German graduates put more emphasis on specific skills, while UK-graduates stress more general competencies. Additionally, the fit between study and later job is closer in Germany. These results show, first, that the complementarities postulated by the VoC-approach can also be found for the field of HE. Second, the recourse on the relationship between economic and educational system can stimulate research in comparative and international education. Third, these findings are also relevant for the current HE reform discourse.     

Fremdheit und Unterschied als Hürde und Chance

This paper is based on the personal experience of persons who have been strangers themselves and discusses the effect of (actual and attributed) strangeness on a person’s identity within a group, the subjective perception people have of others who are different, and also the way groups handle this strangeness. The attempts to explain these experiences and the observed social phenomena within groups serve to introduce the issue of what role ‘difference’ plays in organizational development. Difference is perceived both as barrier and opportunity, a window to self-knowledge, learning and further development.