Editorial

Ohne Zusammenfassung

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Editorial

     

Untersuchung der autoritären Einstellung bei ungarischen StudentInnen

We asked daytime university and college students to complete the survey, which aimed at examining the authoritarian attitude of those questioned, and the factors in connection to it. The questionnaire was made up of 23 statements, and those questioned had to express how far they agree on a five grade scale (N = 349). On the basis of the answers it could be stated that the different groups of those planning to work in different fields differ from each other also from the point of view of accepting authority: from those groups which were examined in greater numbers the physical education teachers and the theologians were the most authoritarian, while the social workers and students of human studies were the least. Those answering differed also in terms of religiousness: those considering themselves religious and close to the church seemed to be the most authoritarian and those who are not religious the least. The results were interestingly coloured by the fact that in assessing specific social situations the social workers and the convinced non-religious ones showed signs of more authoritarian attitude. Results also proved that the own opinion about authoritarianism is related to the opinion of the parents. Beside many other questions we also examined whether authoritarianism is related to the situation when someone is stricter to him/herself and to those emotionally closer than to others.     

MONITORING OF WORKERS AND PRODUCT MARKET COMPETITION: THE ROLE OF WORKS COUNCILS

Often the consent of worker representations, such as works councils, is required before firms are allowed to install technologies that monitor workers' behavior. Absent monitoring, workers produce low output, while at the same time receiving an information rent. To gain the works council's consent to the installation of a monitoring technology, firms need to compensate workers for the lost information rent. Hence, by making it more costly to produce high output, works councils can serve firms as an instrument to commit to low output levels. This provides a rationale for why works council rights are not opposed more strongly by employers. (JEL D43, D86, J83, L13)     

Searching for Innovative Design: Architectural Competitions in the Silvering Swedish Welfare State

The new millennium has seen an increased interest in appropriate housing for the senior part of the Swedish population, defined as those aged 65 years and older. In 2010, the Swedish government launched a 2-year program called “Growing Old, Living Well” that targeted the living conditions of not only older people with few or some needs for homecare services, but also the smaller group of dependent and frail older persons whose everyday living depends upon regular caregiving. The program promoted architectural competitions as a tool for innovation. This article assesses the outcome of 3 architectural competitions that were carried out by 3 municipalities in accordance with the program. It concludes that existing notions about appropriate space for aging populations prevailed, since the competition briefs evolved from existing data and consequently allowed for only a low degree of innovative thinking. Hence, the relationship between architectural design and older people's age-related needs was only addressed indirectly. Further work needs to be done in the area of housing for the Swedish silvering welfare state in order for this factor to become an essential criterion for creating innovative architecture and urban design.     

The Role of Social Performance and Physical Attractiveness in Peer Rejection of Socially Anxious Adolescents

This study addressed the role of social performance and physical attractiveness in the link between social anxiety and peer rejection in first‐time social situations. Recordings of 20 high and 20 low socially anxious adolescents giving a speech were rated by unfamiliar peers (N = 534) with regard to desire for future interaction (lower scores indicating rejection), social performance, and physical attractiveness; trained adult raters also evaluated social performance. Findings showed high interrelations between the different peer ratings and moderate correlations between adult and peer ratings. High socially anxious students were more rejected and social performance and physical attractiveness partly mediated the link between social anxiety and rejection. The findings may have important implications for socially anxious youth entering new social situations.     

Toward a Grammar of Collaboration

Inspired by Susan Leigh Star’s work, we propose a conceptual grammar for analyzing and comparing culturally and historically different kinds of collaboration. Drawing on cultural-historical activity theory and Bakhtin’s theorizing, the grammar is tested and concretized with the help of the macroscale case of different types of social movements and the microscale case of different types of collaboration in home care encounters. There is no direct mapping across these scales, but the conceptual lens seems to work at both. This is seen as a first step toward a grammar of collaboration that allows some continuity of movement across the levels.     

Corporate Social Responsibility through Cross‐sector Partnerships: Implications for Civil Society,the State,and the Corporate Sector in India

Corporations are increasingly forced to widen their agendas to include social and environmental concerns, or corporate social responsibility (CSR). This development has been recorded in the current academic debate, and the views regarding its implications for business, the state, and civil society diverge. However, there is agreement within the CSR and corporate governance literatures that there is a lack of thorough empirical studies of these effects. Based on a case study of the multinational wind energy company Suzlon Energy's CSR projects in rural India, this article contends that CSR projects implemented through cross‐sector partnerships can help to build the capacities of civil society organizations (CSOs). Although the risk of corporate steering of the civil society agenda is reduced when CSR prioritizes community needs over business imperatives, CSOs tend to bear the highest costs in partnerships, through credibility losses and insecurity concerning project terms and funding, reinforcing the importance of critical cooperation and complementary core competencies in cross‐sector partnerships. The results have implications for the strategies of corporations, CSOs, and governments as well as for the planning of national and international development aid.