The social security number: A small device underpinning big systems

The possession and use of a personal social security number helps to structure people's daily lives. However, despite its fundamental normative importance, the social security number remains a little‐known entity. Increasingly universal and yet diverse in form, it is a legal and technical norm which is as much a mechanism for surveillance and monitoring as it is a necessary instrument for giving effect to social rights. Analysis of this constituent element of social security systems permits as assessment of some of the technical difficulties presented by the ever‐increasing movement of people and data. Overcoming these technical difficulties should permit to envisage a first technical step towards realizing a universal and global social security system.     

Peer Victimization,Self‐esteem,and Ego Resilience Types in Adolescents: A Prospective Analysis of Person‐context Interactions

This study examined bidirectional, longitudinal associations between peer victimisation and self‐esteem in adolescents, and tested for moderator effects of undercontrolling, overcontrolling, and ego‐resilient personality types in these associations. Data were used from 774 adolescents ages 11–16 years who participated in a three‐wave (i.e., 2005, 2006, and 2007) longitudinal study. Structural equation modelling analyses in Mplus demonstrated that, controlling for earlier levels of self‐esteem, self‐reported peer victimization was associated with lower self‐esteem across one‐year time intervals. Vice versa, however, low self‐esteem was not predictive of subsequent self‐reported victimization. Evidence was also found for a moderator effect of personality type on the longitudinal associations between self‐esteem and victimization. Only in the subgroup of overcontrolling adolescents was lower self‐esteem related to subsequently higher levels of peer victimization; their undercontrolling and ego‐resilient peers were unaffected.     

The Dutch IOR Approach to Organizational Design: An Alternative to Business Process Re-engineering?

This paper presents the current Dutchsociotechnical design approach to integralorganizational renewal in a contextual way. Both itsdesign theory and intervention processes are reviewedand some aggregated empirical evidence is presented. Next, thepaper compares the ideas developed in the Dutch approachto those presented in its American, Scandinavian, andAustralian counterparts. It is concluded that, at a meta-level, they all share the ideal ofparticipative democracy, while at the conceptual level,these distinctive approaches appear quite incompatible.Notwithstanding substantial diversity, it is presumed these approaches can be seen as localmanifestations of a single sociotechnicalparadigm.     

Adaptive Strategies,Gender Ideology,and Work‐Family Balance Among Dutch Dual Earners

Using questionnaire data on 149 Dutch dual‐earner couples with young children participating in the European Famwork study, we examine how adaptive strategies and gender ideology relate to parents’ perceived success in balancing work and family. Path analysis indicates that some adaptive strategies may harm individuals’ work‐family balance, particularly when they are made in the domain where the time budget is limited. In the need to succeed in multiple roles, however, endorsement of traits traditionally linked with the opposite gender, that is masculine traits for women and feminine traits for men, seems beneficial. We speculate that two underlying mechanisms — social pressure and time constraints — jointly operate in determining perceived success in balancing work and family.     

Divergent pathways: the road to higher education for second-generation Turks in Austria

The article aims to explore immigrant educational pathways in relation to access to higher education (HE) in the Austrian context. Specifically focusing on Turkish youth, the author presents case studies of students who successfully entered HE in spite of their disadvantaged social, ethnic and geographic background. By further enhancing Ball’s distinction (Ball, Reay, and David 2002) between embedded and contingent choosers, the article provides an in-depth understanding of the cultural and structural context in which these students’ educational choices are played out. Finally, reaching out for Turner’s (1960 Turner, R. H. 1960. “Sponsored and Contest Mobility and the School System.” American Sociological Review 25 (6): 855–867.10.2307/2089982[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) notion of sponsored mobility, the article reflects on how the process of early selection reduces the opportunities for immigrant youth to access seemingly open and free HE.     

Institutional Dynamics in European Industrial Relations

Since the end of the 1970s, all European systems of industrial relations have experienced some common developments. In order to shed some light on this subject we look for common as well as specific changes within some selected systems of industrial relations in Europe. Therefore, we deal with the moving forces behind these tendencies which are, on the whole, global in character. We discuss the institutional responses to these general developments in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. These countries have been chosen because their industrial relations are generally seen as belonging to different types of systems. We conclude that many responses are still national specific and, in line with the distinguished national logics of collective action, to be defined respectively as the logic of contract, the logic of opposition and the logic of cooperation. At the end some reflections about the future of European industrial relations are presented.     

The impact of population growth on the standard of living: Demo-economic scenarios for the Netherlands

The core of the article can be comprised in the question: Will population ageing become a threat to our standard of living? Because the demographic and the economic system — linked together in this question — share significant determinants, the future state of both systems has been derived from the same mother scenarios. In order to explore a broad range of possibilities two strongly contrasting mother scenarios serve as the starting-points of the analyses. The economic-demographic relationship is mediated through a simple Cobb-Douglas production function. The question of whether the ageing process will jeopardize the standard of living, is, for each of the demographic projections, answered by comparing them with three economic targets, formulated in terms of GNP per capita growth and capital stock growth. The most important conclusion is that in the long run neither of the scenarios developed will generate an economic growth comparable with that of the 1960s and 1970s.     

Passion for poker and the relationship with gambling problems: a cross-sectional study

Previous research has shown that poker players spend significant time, large amounts of money and have a high prevalence of gambling problems. While some studies have examined the association between gambling behaviours and passion, none have explored this association specifically among poker players. This study aims to examine the relationships between two types of passion (i.e. harmonious and obsessive) and severity of gambling problems among poker players. A sample of 159 poker players was recruited from across Quebec, Canada. The outcome variable of interest was participants’ scores on the Canadian Pathological Gambling Index and the predictive variable was the Gambling Passion Scale. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify independent risk factors of at-risk poker players. Severity of gambling problems is positively associated with obsessive passion (p < .05). However, harmonious passion is not associated with gambling problems. These results align with previous findings obtained for other gambling activities. Thus, passion could be considered a useful tool when approaching players to talk about risk-taking.     

Effects of Spousal Economic and Cultural Factors on Dutch Marital Satisfaction

Using panel data of Dutch first marriages with children (N _{Time 1}=646, N _{Time 2}=386), the relevance of economic and cultural factors in understanding marital satisfaction is examined. The sample was middle-aged and the average marital duration was 17 years (at Time 1). Besides, couples mainly represent single earner and main-earner households. Our results demonstrate that both economic and cultural factors are valid in understanding marital satisfaction. However, whereas cultural characteristics are more important explaining spousal marital satisfaction at Time 1, economic indicators are important predicting change in marital satisfaction. An interaction effect between cultural and economic factors was found as well. Husbands’ familialism moderates the effect of women’s employment on women’s marital satisfaction at Time 1.Ann Van den Troost, Center for Population and Family Research, Department of Sociology, Catholic University of Leuven, Van Evenstraat 2B, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; e-mail: ann.vandentroost@soc.kuleuven.ac.beAd A. Vermulst, Institute of Family and Child Care Studies, Radboud University, Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9104, 6500 HR, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; e-mail: A. Vermulst@12move.nlJan R.M. Gerris, Institute of Family and Child Care Studies, Radboud University, Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9104, 6500 HR, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; e-mail: jan.geris@ped.kun.nlKoen Matthijs, Center for Population and Family Research, Department of Sociology, Catholic University of Leuven, Van Evenstraat 2B, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; e-mail: koen.matthijs@soc.kuleuven.ac.beJerry Welkenhuysen-Gybels, Business & Decision Brussels, Belgium; e-mail: jwelkenhuysen@businessdecision.com