Blurred lines: German freelance journalists with secondary employment in public relations

Nearly half of all German freelance journalists have a second job, mainly in public relations (PR). This work combination can be problematic, since journalists and PR practitioners have different responsibilities. Working as a journalist entails contributing to the public duties of journalism such as informing the public, offering multiple viewpoints, and representing societal interests; in contrast, PR practitioners must advocate solely in their clients’ interests. Conflicts can arise between these two roles if a freelance journalist is, for instance, required to critically investigate his or her PR client. However, there has been little research on freelance journalists with secondary work in PR. This study seeks to address this gap in research; therefore, we conducted a quantitative online survey among German “PR-journalists”. Our results show that nearly half of the participants take on secondary PR work for financial reasons; however, a similar number of journalists take on PR-work voluntarily, as they find the work interesting and enjoyable. Moreover, participants described their professional identity very similarly to that of German journalists in general. The PR-journalists surveyed were aware of the potential for conflicts of interest arising from their dual role. While such conflicts have been rarely encountered by those in the study sample, most participants assumed that other PR-journalists face such conflicts often, and expressed concern that these conflicts are not handled professionally.     

Contextual Predictors of Adolescent Antisocial Behavior: The Developmental Influence of Family,Peer, and Neighborhood Factors

Numerous researchers have investigated risk factors for adolescent antisocial behavior (ASB) using social learning theory. Less attention has been directed to how these factors interact across time and context. Using this framework as well as social contextual theory, we examined 1,196 respondents from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to investigate the relations among parenting, peer, and community risk factors of youth ASB. We found that community violence exposure was a strong, direct predictor, and parental monitoring moderated the relation between community violence and ASB. Results suggested that social contextual theory provides a useful framework for predicting ASB.     

The state and use of municipal tree inventories in Swedish municipalities – results from a national survey

Urban trees are an essential component of urban ecosystems, and management of this resource constitutes an essential element of urban open space management. However, municipal tree inventories in Sweden and elsewhere have received limited attention. It is unknown how common municipal tree inventories are in Sweden, factors governing whether a municipality has an inventory and what the inventories are used for. This study therefore sought to: Create an overview of the state of Swedish municipal tree inventories and determine how municipality size, green space budget and management organisation affect the presence and scope of municipal tree inventories. The research questions examined were: What is the current state of Swedish municipal tree inventories? and what affects the status of these municipal tree inventories? A survey with questions related to strategic and operational perspectives of municipal tree inventories, e.g. how they are conducted and used, together with questions relating to budget and potential use of consultants, was sent to all 290 Swedish municipalities. The response rate was 55.5%. The main findings were that municipality size affects whether a municipality has an urban tree inventory and that the municipal organisation form affects how inventories are used. The existence of an inventory also increased the probability of the municipality having a tree management plan. Based on these results we recommend further research related to strategic management perspectives of tree inventories.     

The Decline of Monarchy in Nepal,the Ascendancy of the Professional Middle Class and the Event that Transformed Them

In the years leading up to the dissolution of absolute monarchy in Nepal in 1990, resistance to political authority proceeded fitfully. Opposition to the crown gained momentum after the involvement of the professional middle class. Using Max Weber's theory on legitimate power and class, this paper analyzes the erosion of the legitimacy of absolute monarchy, the ascendancy of the professional middle class, and how one event, a peaceful forum that ended in mass arrest, created momentum for the People's Movement by transforming the political subjectivity of the professional middle class, who, in turn, helped catalyze opposition to absolute rule.     

RATIONING DISCRETIONARY ECONOMIC RESOURCES: A MULTIOBJECTIVE APPROACH

Prior research involving capital rationing has focused on capital budgeting issues: given a limited resource pool, which major long-lived fixed assets should be acquired? However, capital rationing can be extended to include not only new fixed-asset purchases but also expenditures for any other discretionary activity such as advertising, research and development, or maintenance. In this broader situation, measuring the contributions of certain discretionary activities to a single objective (e.g., maximize profits) or to multiple objectives often is hindered by a lack of reliable revenue estimates. This problem severely hampers the usefulness of traditional mathematical programming approaches to capital rationing. In this paper, we modify the usual multiobjective capital rationing procedures by treating each discretionary activity as an objective in itself. In this manner, we can mitigate the difficulties associated with revenue measurement problems and allow a decision maker systematically to explore the various trade-offs between competing discretionary investments.     

Determinanten der Sportaktivität und der Sportart im Lebenslauf

This paper investigates the impact of social class, occupational and family life-course, relocation, age, generation and gender on exercise. Longitudinal, life course-oriented analysis enables identification of the (often diverse) conditions for (re-)uptake and discontinuation of exercise. The paper takes a detailed look at different types of exercise, enabling exploration of the various motivating influences and barriers involved. The database is a retrospective representative survey of the 50 to 70 year old population of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The results show that higher educational qualifications are associated with higher levels of exercise, whereas manual labor and – among women – childcare are associated with lower levels of exercise. With respect to the impact of education, cultural rather than economic capital seems to be the determining influence. Other factors – (un-)employment, partnership, relocation, age and cohort – tend to have more complex effects on exercise. Though being a member of the workforce reduces the likelihood of starting to exercise, it also reduces the likelihood of dropping out. Though partnership encourages the dissemination of exercise, initiation of a relationship is also associated with a higher incidence of discontinuation. Relocation prompts both initiation and discontinuation of exercise. Surprisingly, up to the over-50 age group, increasing age is associated with an increased prevalence of physical activity, especially among women. The results of analysis of social differences in terms of types of physical activity can be used in health programs to provide scientifically founded recommendations for the promotion of specific types of physical activity for lower educational groups, seniors, and other social groups whose lifestyle tends to be inactive.     

Views of Intimate Partner Violence in Same‐ and Opposite‐Sex Relationships

Attitudes toward same‐sex intimate relationships and intimate partner violence (IPV) are changing. Little research, however, has examined norms about IPV in same‐sex relationships. Using a fractional factorial (experimental vignette) design, we conducted random‐digit‐dialed interviews in four languages with 3,679 community‐residing adults. Multivariate analyses of responses to 14,734 vignettes suggest that IPV against gay male, lesbian, and heterosexual women is more likely than that against heterosexual men to be considered illegal and that it should be illegal, police called, and a stay‐away order issued. Regardless of gender and sexual orientation, the type of abuse and whether a weapon was displayed are the strongest predictors of respondents’ judgments about whether a behavior is illegal and merits a range of societal interventions.     

Social Capital in Emerging Democracies

Theorists have linked the creation of social capital to the development of the kind of robust civil society that underwrites the well formed and stable democracy. This understanding raises the problem of what is social capital in specific national contexts. A critical issue is whether and to what extent a model of social capital moulded to the EuroAmerican experience is applicable to the new democracies. Three arguments are made in the context of a review of the works of Putnam and Touraine. First, the question of social capital foundationally concerns not only the production of institutions and values but the conditions of production. Analysis thus needs to grasp not only the specifically social process of its creation, distribution, and institutionalization, but the political culture and economy that serve as its foundation. Second, theories of social capital created in the context of nation-state based production-centered political economy do not capture what is going on in an increasingly globalized and circulatory political economy. And third, theories of social capital centered on the United States and Europe are only partially applicable to the emerging democracies of Africa and the postcolony generally.