Rechtsextremismus von Jugendlichen

Compared to other topics, right wing extremism has been experiencing a decrease in attention from the general public. However, the extent of right wing extremism and its causes are still to be explored. Based on a self-administered survey of 4,300 juveniles in Bavaria, the extent of right wing attitudes among juveniles is determined. In addition, several explanatory concepts are assessed using path analysis. Next to anomy theory and social disintegration theory, the following concepts are tested: socio-economic status and relative deprivation, theory of transgression, theory of the authoritarian personality, and contact thesis. Among the concepts tested, the theory of the authoritarian personality reveals the most profound impact on right wing attitudes; the concept of social disintegration, too, yields considerable, though less pronounced, regressions weights. Based on these findings, consequences for the future development of explanatory concepts are discussed. In our perspective, right wing attitudes are considered to be a result of social change and social disintegration to which some juveniles react with archaic patterns of the self and of social relations: People considered different in terms of ethnicity or other socially relevant characteristics are downgraded while at the same time the own person is emphasized.     

Population and labour force projections for 27 European countries, 2002-052: impact of international migration on population ageing

Population and labour force projections are made for 27 selected European countries for 2002-052, focussing on the impact of international migration on population and labour force dynamics. Starting from single scenarios for fertility, mortality and economic activity, three sets of assumptions are explored regarding migration flows, taking into account probable policy developments in Europe following the enlargement of the EU. In addition to age structures, various support ratio indicators are analysed. The results indicate that plausible immigration cannot offset the negative effects of population and labour force ageing.     

Darling-Erdös-type test for change detection in parameters and variance for stationary VAR models

The aim of this article is the construction of the test statistic for the detection of changes in vector autoregressive (AR) models where both AR parameters and the variance matrix of the error term are the subjects of a change. The approximating distribution of the proposed statistic is the Gumbel distribution. The proof stands on the approximation of weakly dependent random vectors by independent ones and by application of Horváth’s extension of Darling-Erdös extremal result for random vectors, see Darling and Erdös (1956) Darling, D.A., Erdös, P. (1956). A limit theorem for the maximum of normalized sums of independent random variables. Duke Math. J. 23:143–155.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] and Horváth (1993) Horváth, L. (1993). The maximum likelihood method for testing changes in the parameters of normal observations. Ann. Stat. 21(2):671–680.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]. The test statistic is a modification of the likelihood ratio.     

Evaluation of the location of cities in terms of land cover on the example of Poland

Urban Ecosystems - The increasing availability of remote sensing materials of varying spatial resolution inclines to look for methods enabling their use, both at planning the spatial structure of...     

Flow and stock analysis of Polish unemployment: January 1990-June 1991*

Abstract. Unemployment is and will be for the foreseeable future one of the major issues of economies in transition. Not onIy is unemployment in post-communist economies a socially explosive problem; what happens on the unemployment front allows us to also make inferences about the state of the transition process in general. In this paper we look at Polish unemployment as it evolved from January 1990 to June 1991. A framework is developed which allows us to discuss flows into and out of unemployment. In analyzing the determinants of the various flows we discuss the macroeconomic environment brought about by the reforms and the role of prices and wages. However, we stress above all institutional and structural factors which have an impact on labour flows in the Polish post-communist economy. The stocks of several variables are also analyzed. We relate the trends of some unemployment stocks (especially the stocks of school leavers and group layoffs) to the trend of the overall stock of unemployment. We also look at the trends of vacancies and of various UIV ratios and touch upon the short run and long run trends of employment by sector. The main conclusion of the paper is that the high level of unemployment in Poland is neither due to the elimination of hidden unemployment (it actually increased in 1990!) nor a result of restructuring. The level of unemployment is high because of large inflows from outside the labour force and because hirings have been much fewer than in previous years while separations have only been slightly greater.     

III. „Generationenbeziehungen — Innenansichten von Familien“? oder „Kein Krieg der Generationen!“

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Needs of homeless children in the Czech Republic

The needs of homeless children living in shelters and hostels in the Czech Republic have been not sufficiently explored yet. The paper therefore aims to analyse and describe the needs of homeless children living in shelters and hostels in the Czech Republic, thus creating a basis for social work with homeless children and their families. As part of a qualitative research strategy carried out through interviews with parents, children and their social workers, five categories of homeless children's needs (based on Matěj?ek's theory) were identified and described in detail based on a data analysis using Charmaz's Grounded Theory; these categories were the need for stimulation, the need for a meaningful world, the need for love and emotional safety, the need for identity and finding one's own place in society and the need for a life perspective and open future. Based on the identified needs, implications for social work with families were identified, strengthening a sensitive approach of helping professions to the needs of homeless children.     

Kognitive Prozesse und Antwortverhalten in einer Internet-Befragung

So far, certain problems of web surveys have received great attention: Coverage problems, sampling issues and response rates as well as screen design and usability issues. With some of the disadvantages mentioned diminishing, web surveys are increasingly adopted by survey researchers. In terms of the validity of web surveys early studies suggested that — controlling for other sources of survey error — little differences are to be expected in terms of response distributions. However, little insight is available regarding the cognitive processes at work in a respondent’s mind when answering a survey question on the internet. We assume that the cognitive capacity available when answering a survey question is impaired by the respondent’s navigational efforts when working through the questionnaire. Comparing the navigational tasks in a paper and pencil survey and a web survey, the later is considered to be more demanding compared with a paper questionnaire. Reading and flipping through pages is a task that can be done with little distraction from the question answer process. By contrast, browsing through an online form using mouse and buttons while reading is more demanding and distracting for the respondent. Thus, working through an online survey reduces the respondent’s attention for the question answer process. In this paper we present results from a large scale field experiment (n = 5,000) on measurement error in mixed mode survey (p&p and online) among the German youth conducted in spring of 2001. In this survey, 5 experiments on measurement error were incorporated: 1 experiment on question order, 2 experiments on response categories, and 1 experiment on response order in long lists and 1 experiment on social desirability. The results suggest that measurement effects are generally smaller in the web portion of the survey. In the conclusions the paper discusses the question whether or not we need to worry about the respondent’s redued atteniton to the survey questions under web conditions.     

Multiple belongings: transnational mobility,social class,and gendered identities among Polish migrants in Norway

ABSTRACT

Using ethnographic research in Norway and in Poland, this article focuses on the dynamics of multiple belongings of Polish migrants. It explores their experiences of belonging in relation to social class, gendered identities, and their different strategies of transnational mobility between Poland and Norway. By approaching belonging ‘from below’, we posit that it is a dynamic, processual, and socially and culturally constructed attachment to places, times, and communities, which includes experiential, practical, and affective dimensions. Considering the importance of questions of belonging and home-making in migrants’ lives, always contextually produced and read through performative reiterations, we focus on migrants’ daily routines and migratory practices, and argue that belonging is a multifaceted process, which takes on diverse forms and meanings of ‘who’ belongs to ‘what’, ‘where’ and ‘when’. Following intersectional perspective, the article aims at problematizing dependencies between mobility, gender, class, and migrants’ multiple belongings, and thereby, enhancing the understanding of the notion of belonging and its embeddedness in the inter-related social, cultural, economic, and political realms.