Pension Reform and International Organizations: From Conflict to Convergence

Analysis of pension schemes and recommendations for their reform have been one of the main items on the agenda of international organizations in recent years. However, the ideas and recommendations of the various organizationsinvolved in pension policy sometimes vary considerably. This paper will explore and compare the ideas on pension policy held by the International Labour Office, the International Social Security Association, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Although, initially, the discussion of pension reform was characterized by fierce debate with a marked ideological bent, all the participants are now aiming at mutual understanding and, in particular, coordination and cooperation in member States and recipient countries. The previous, dogmatic approach has given way to a predominantly pragmatic position.     

基于混合研究法的中国重要休闲议题的识别研究

为了探索未来中国休闲研究的关键问题,28位从事休闲研究的中国学者参加了由北京第二外国语学院主办、美国伊利诺伊大学与加拿大阿尔伯塔大学联合承办的2013年中国休闲与社会进步学术年会及期间的研究项目,这些学者还成为该项目的受访者。运用序列解释混合法对28位专家进行意见征询和反馈,最终,中国学者确定了如下9个休闲议题：时间利用、休闲与幸福（生活满意度）、公共政策和规划、家庭休闲、需要和动机、技术变革、休闲空间和资源、休闲教育、休闲与传统文化。这些领域反映了中国文化与社会焦点的影响力,对21世纪第二个十年的中国社会具有特殊的重要性,对如何改善休闲服务供给问题具有重要启示,同时也对建设和谐社会有重要的参考作用。     

An equivalence test for comparing DNA sequences

The practice of sequence alignment is constantly oscillating between the risk of overlooking important structure and that of discovering any arbitrarily defined kind of structure anywhere. On the other hand, the use of a condensed consensus sequence may lead to a substantial loss in valuable information. While adopting a Mahalanobis‐type index we allow for a certain degree of uncertainty in the measurements. This uncertainty may be caused by inaccurate measurements or ambiguity. In this paper, we test the similarity between DNA sequences within the framework of equivalence testing, accounting for both variances and covariances between frequencies of nucleotides. Statistical methods for testing equivalence were first developed in the context of pharmacokinetics and later extended to the field of clinical trials. Nowadays, (bio)equivalence tests seem to be less frequently used outside the drug testing field, including statistical genetics. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Das „Hochstaplersyndrom“ in der Wissenschaft

Real impostors are people who obtain their academic degrees by fraud. On the contrary, the qualifications of those who suffer from the impostor syndrome are authentic and legally acquired. Nevertheless, they feel they are not worthy of their certificates and are afraid their feeling of inferiority will be “exposed”. After a summary of psychological findings, it is explained by means of different aspects to what extent the impostor syndrome thrives at higher education institutions and why many (female) academics feel like impostors. Subsequently, the significance of this syndrome in the field of coaching (female) academics is made clear and suggestions of methods to be used in order to successfully cope with the impostor syndrome are given.     

Ausbildung von Schlüsselqualifikationen im Fachbereich Wirtschaft

An important goal of the Bologna Process is the improvement of employability. Universities are required to develop courses for the acquisition of key competences. The Department of Business and Management at Bochum University of Applied Sciences has developed an extensive training program for that offers an introduction to the methods “mentoring”, “coaching” and “group dynamics” to the participants. The acquired skills can be put into practise immediately by mentoring new students.     

What is the “right” market orientation for new entrepreneurial ventures?

A general notion in research on entrepreneurial marketing is that new ventures that adopt both strong market orientation and entrepreneurial orientation outperform other firms. The present research provides a more fine-grained analysis of this common wisdom. First, while extant research focuses on responsive market orientation, this research seeks to differentiate responsive from proactive market orientations in young ventures. Second, the study examines the moderating effects of the degree of entrepreneurial orientation on proactive and responsive market orientation’s performance consequences in the context of new ventures since these ventures must understand which orientations are worth pursuing, especially given their resource constraints. The theoretically developed research model is tested using survey data of 259 ventures in operation less than fifteen years from five national cultures in order to detect national dependencies and establish the robustness of the findings. Recommendations concerning which type of market orientation entrepreneurial and less entrepreneurial new ventures should follow are provided.     

Voting for Catholic Candidates: The Evolution of a Stereotype*

Objectives. This article looks at the effects of candidate Catholicism on individual voters, turning the traditional inquiry into voters' religion on its head. Specifically, it hypothesizes that individuals stereotype Catholic candidates based on the voting behavior of Catholics in general, and that these stereotypes help voters make a decision in elections with Catholic candidates. Methods. Using data from the American National Election Studies (ANES), this article argues that citizens hold stereotypes of Catholics based on actual Catholic political behavior—solidly Democratic from the 1950s to the 1970s, but trending Republican starting in the 1980s. It also tests these stereotypes with Gallup data on hypothetical Catholic candidates and analyzes, through election‐day exit polls, the impact on voters of the Catholic conversion of a sitting U.S. Senator. Results. The data analyses strongly support the article's hypothesis, demonstrating that partisan attitudes toward hypothetical Catholic candidates shifted direction as the Catholic electorate shifted. In addition, Senator Sam Brownback's (R‐KS) conversion to Catholicism increased partisan polarization in his support—indicating a conservative shift in perceptions. Conclusions. Candidate religion plays a role in elections. Specifically, voters stereotype candidates based on candidate religion and use this stereotyped information to help them make an electoral decision. This article demonstrates this effect for Catholicism, but other religions should evidence similar impacts.