Manpower Planning in Social Welfare

The discipline of history has been much neglected in curriculum planning in schools of social work at every level—undergraduate, MSW and Ph.D. The study of history may recover lost experiments in social service; it may provide the student with methods relevant to social analysis; it may provide models for apprentice social workers; and it may provide insights into social process.     

Peer Group Affiliation of Children: The Role of Perceived Popularity,Likeability, and Behavioral Similarity in Bullying

To understand children's peer group affiliation, this study examined to what extent children in naturally occurring groups resemble each other on bullying, likeability, and perceived popularity. Participants were fourth‐ to sixth‐grade pupils (N = 461). Peer groups were identified using the social cognitive map procedure. Resemblance on bullying, likeability, and perceived popularity was evaluated by means of variance components models. Resemblance in peer groups was strongest for perceived popularity, followed by bullying and likeability. Moreover, resemblance on bullying could for a large part be attributed to the high‐perceived popularity of the group, and to a lesser extent, to the low likeability of the group. It is concluded that children showing bullying seem to affiliate with each other most of all to attain or maintain their position in a perceived popular peer group. Results stress the importance of considering the functionality of bullying from a group perspective.     

The quincunx: history and mathematics

Received: December 30, 1999; revised version: July 19, 2000     

Zentrum und Peripherie im globalen Wissenschaftssystem

We use an experimental design to analyse the effect of symbolic capital of a nation’s higher education system and of single universities on students’ opportunities for international mobility. Fake applications of international doctoral students were sent to German sociology professors, who were asked to serve as supervisors during a research visit in Germany. Our fake applicants come from four different universities: Yale, Pennsylvania State University, National University Singapore, and Vietnam National University Hanoi. The results show that applicants from both US institutions get more positive, more informative and more personal feedback than applicants from Singapore and Vietnam. Moreover, the symbolic capital of a university seems more important than the quality of a specific department, which is problematic in normative terms.     

The Effects of United Way Membership on Employee Pay in Nonprofit Organizations

This research investigates the relationship between United Way membership and the compensation level of employees in nonprofit organizations. This study is based on questionnaires completed by 1,811 employees from sixty‐nine nonprofit agencies in a large metropolitan area. Managerial capitalism, agency theory, and United Way funding and governance roles were used to develop the hypotheses. We found that employees of organizations belonging to the United Way receive pay premiums, suggesting that the United Way member agencies are higher‐quality agencies that pay their employees higher wages.     

Prosoziales Arbeitsverhalten: Entwicklung und Überprüfung eines Messinstruments zur Erfassung des freiwilligen Arbeitsengagements

A German version of the Organizational Citizenship Behavior Questionnaire (GOCBQ) is developed and tested. Study 1 was conducted with 150 students working together in 39 project groups. The results show that the internal consistency and test-retest-reliability of the GOCBQ are good. Moreover, the GOCBQ measures a general altruism orientation which can be interpreted as a stable trait. The GOCBQ does neither correlate substantially with demographical variables nor with extroversion or neuroticism. Instead, substantial correlations are registered with mood and group atmosphere. In study 2 results from study 1 were cross-validated with data from 128 voluntary and professional helpers, in study 3 with data from 43 professionals. Implications for future research and applications in working life are discussed.     

Citizenship and Labor Market Position: Turkish Immigrants in Germany and the Netherlands1

The relation between citizenship and labor market position is complex. Besides a causal impact from citizenship towards labor market position, several selection mechanisms may cause particular immigrants to choose for naturalization. We investigate the empirical relation on the basis of German and Dutch survey data. For the Netherlands we find a positive relation between citizenship and labor market position, while for Germany we find mixed results as citizenship is negatively related to tenured employment. The contrasting results may be explained by institutional differences. In Germany, economic self-reliance is more strictly required for naturalization than in the Netherlands. This may lead to a stronger incentive to naturalize for workers with a temporary contract in Germany.     

Fertility Changes Among Immigrants: Generations,Neighborhoods, and Personal Characteristics*

Objective. To understand how adaptation/assimilation, disruption, and diffusion interact to produce changes in fertility levels among successive generations of Mexicans and Central Americans in the United States. Method. Using restricted access data that link individual data (CPS) to neighborhood data (census tracts), we examine the role of generation, personal characteristics, and neighborhood characteristics in determining children ever born (CEB). Results. There are significant differences in fertility across generations and, to a lesser extent, between women who live in ethnic enclaves and those who do not. Once personal characteristics are considered, the independent effect of generation on fertility is nearly eliminated. Personal characteristics dominate neighborhood characteristics in their ability to predict fertility. The most consistent predictor of CEB at the neighborhood level is the percentage of Hispanic adults. Conclusions. Personal characteristics dominate fertility change across generation, and were it not for increases in educational attainment, fertility might be higher in successive generations rather than lower or unchanged.     

Anti-Semitic Attitudes in Europe: A Comparative Perspective

The article uses available survey data to depict the depth and spread of anti-Semitic attitudes across Europe. The main assumption is that European anti-Semitism, both currently and historically, is closely tied to issues and crises of national self-identification; for this reason, social identity theory is employed to study the varying configurations of anti-Semitic prejudice. In most European countries, Jews are a small and socially integrated minority. Attitudes toward them are determined less by concrete experiences of cultural differences, or conflicts over scarce resources, but rather by a perceived threat to the national self-image. This leads to an accentuation of the pertinent prejudices that blame Jews to be responsible for that threat. This perspective brings to light considerable differences between Eastern and Western Europe and the continuing influence of national traditions.