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"Volunteering and political activism are two key forms of civic engagement. There is a broad consensus that civic engagement, which often involves participation in various forms of collective action, is a cornerstone of a well-functioning democracy. Civic engagement and participation in collective action have traditionally been linked to social movements and voluntary organizations. Collective action is, however, changing as a result of societal- level processes of change, such as digitalization, the emergence of social media, individualization and globalization.

This book investigates how these social changes have affected the ways individuals participate in different forms of collective action. What consequences does digitalization have for civic engagement in Norway? Is the distinction between volunteering and political activism about being wiped out? Are new organizational forms arising as a result of digitalization and individualization? Has globalization led to new forms of transnational networks? And more generally, are the traditional forms of collective action, rooted in civil society organizations, replaced by a new form of ""connective action""? Based on a variety of data sources, including survey data, case studies and in-depth interviews, the authors paint a broad picture of how different forms of collective action and civic engagement in Norway are influenced by processes of social change.

The analyzes in this book are based on a five-year research project within the Center for Research on Civil Society and Voluntary Sector, funded by the Ministry of Culture. The book presents the project's main findings in an edited volume with contributions from an interdisciplinary team of authors." - "Frivillig innsats og politisk aktivisme er to sentrale former for samfunnsengasjement. Det er en bred enighet om at samfunnsengasjement, som ofte innebærer deltakelse i ulike former for kollektiv handling, er en hjørnestein i et velfungerende demokrati. Samfunnsengasjement og deltakelse i kollektiv handling har tradisjonelt vært knyttet til sosiale bevegelser og frivillige organisasjoner. Kollektive handlingsformer er imidlertid i endring som en følge av endringsprosesser på samfunnsnivå, som digitalisering, fremvekst av sosiale medier, individualisering og globalisering.

Denne boken undersøker hvordan disse samfunnsendringene har påvirket måten individene deltar i ulike former for kollektiv handling på. Hvilke konsekvenser har digitalisering for samfunnsengasjement i Norge? Er skillet mellom frivillighet og politisk aktivisme i ferd med å bli visket ut? Oppstår det nye organisasjonsformer som følge av digitalisering og individualisering? Har globalisering ført til nye former for transnasjonale nettverk? Og mer generelt, blir de tradisjonelle former for kollektiv handling, forankret i sivilsamfunns organisasjoner, erstattet av en ny form for «konnektiv handling»? Basert på en rekke datakilder, inkludert surveydata, casestudier og dybde intervjuer, maler forfatterne et bredt bilde av hvordan ulike former for kollektiv handling og samfunnsengasjement i Norge påvirkes av samfunnsendringsprosesser.

Analysene i denne boken bygger på et femårig forskningsprosjekt innenfor Sentret for forskning på sivilsamfunn og frivillig sektor, finansiert av Kulturdepartementet. Boken presenterer prosjektets hovedfunn i en redigert bok med bidrag fra et tverrfaglig team av forfattere."

"In recent years, organizations and authorities in Norway have put a critical spotlight on parenting practices among non-Western immigrants, based on a concern for young people's autonomy and self-determination. The purpose of this book – which deals with parenting and social control in immigrant families from Pakistan, Somalia and Sri Lanka – is to shed light on on this collision between different family norms and practices from different perspectives, and thus help to understand why family relations and social control have become a topic of contention in today's multicultural Norway. The books starting point is a sociological perspective on cultural differences, social control and change in a migration context.
A key point of focus in the empirical analyzes are parental restrictions in young people's social life. How common are such restrictions within different groups? What significance do factors such as religiosity and socio-economic resources play in the exercise of social control? And what are the consequences for children's social participation, mental health and well-being? One aim is to contribute systematic quantitative knowledge on such issues.
At the same time, the book contributes to a more qualitative understanding of people's experiences and actions. How do parents from countries like Pakistan, Somalia and Sri Lanka experience raising children and young people in Norway? What concerns have they had regarding their children's encounters with various parts of Norwegian society? And how do young people navigate between different expectations and demands from the families and communities on the one hand and among their peers and the larger society on the other? We focus on the question of social change. Is the organization of family relationships and the exercise of social control within immigrant populations characterized by continuity or change? And what kind of mechanisms drive such changes forward?
The book, which is published as part of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study in Norway, will illuminate these questions using quantitative data from a comprehensive survey of 16-17 year olds in Oslo and Akershus, as well as qualitative interviews – individually and in groups – with parents, adolescents and young adults with immigrant backgrounds as well as people in public help services and NGOs.
" - "Denne boka tar for seg foreldreskap og sosial kontroll i innvandrede familier fra Pakistan, Somalia og Sri Lanka. Hensikten er å belyse møtet mellom ulike familie- og oppdragelsesidealer fra flere sider, og slik bidra til å forstå hvorfor dette har blitt et hett stridstema i dagens flerkulturelle Norge. Boka tar utgangspunkt i et sosiologisk perspektiv på kulturforskjeller, sosial kontroll og endring i en migrasjonskontekst.

Et siktemål er å bidra med systematisk kvantitativ kunnskap. Hvor utbredt er ulike typer strenge foreldrerestriksjoner i unges sosiale liv? Hvilken betydning spiller faktorer som religiøsitet, sosioøkonomiske ressurser og familiens botid i Norge for utøvelsen av sosial kontroll? Og hvilke konsekvenser har slike foreldrerestriksjoner for barnas sosiale deltakelse, psykiske helse og trivsel?

Et annet siktemål er å bidra til en mer kvalitativ forståelse for hvorfor folk handler som de gjør. Hvordan opplever foreldre det å skulle oppdra barn og ungdom i det som for mange oppleves som et fremmed land? Hvilke bekymringer har de knyttet til ungdommenes møter med det norske samfunnet? Og hvordan navigerer ungdom mellom ulike forventninger og krav fra familie og storsamfunn?

Sosial endring står sentralt. Er familierelasjoner og utøvelse av sosial kontroll innad i innvandrerbefolkningen preget av kontinuitet eller endring? Hva slags mekanismer kan eventuelt bidra til å drive endringer framover? Og i forlengelsen av dette – hvordan kan forskning og offentlig debatt bidra på en konstruktivt måte?

Disse spørsmålene vil belyses ved hjelp av kvantitative data fra en omfattende spørreundersøkelse blant 16–17-åringer i Oslo og Akershus, samt kvalitative intervjuer – individuelle og i grupper – med foreldre, ungdom og unge voksne i de tre gruppene, samt med personer i organisasjoner, hjelpeapparat og førstelinjetjeneste."

Many changes, both internally & externally, have been felt during the 20 yrs that a Democratic majority governed the US. Since Eisenhower's election in 1952 & re-election in 1956, it would be interesting to know to what extent the Republican majority can be considered to be stable. In 1956, the Democrats won the elections, the presidential party having failed, for the 1st time since 1848, to carry a majority to Congress in a Presidential election yr. PO polls show that there are 3 Democrats for every 2 Republicans. Stevenson was defeated because the Republicans were better organized than the Democrats, many of whom voted for Eisenhower or did not vote at all. Finally, the Republicans control almost all of the press & the media of propaganda & information, & the SS of Republicanism is more a matter of prestige than one of soc pressure. The Wc, while still almost exclusively Democratic in 1948, is becoming more & more Republican, while the moderates are gradually drifting from the Democratic party. Cath's, Ru voters, & individuals living in small towns are tending toward Republicanism, while the younger age groups of the New Deal generation are remaining faithful to the Democratic Party. The qualities of the candidates in 1952 & 1956 certainly played a role in the division of the votes, but if the prestige of the General was a factor, Stevenson also had traits in his favor. Domestic issues, especially the Negro question, had their influence, but foreign affairs is the area in which the diff's in the parties is most apparent. Tr by J. A. Broussard from IPSA.

During the Cold War, the Norwegian Armed Forces were organized to fight an invasion against Norwegian territory. The end of this era should at least in principle imply changes not only in military practices on the ground but also in the training and education of officers. This article analyses the inertia in the internationalization of higher military education programs in Norway, where the strengthening of a subject like International Relations began only at the end of the 1990s. One explanation for the discrepancy between the military curriculum, on the one hand, and the new military environment facing the officers, on the other, is that existing practices were taken for granted and reproduced in social structures. The debate about military education also reflects a traditional conflict between those who have seen an academization of military education as an intervention into the monopoly of knowledge of the officer profession, and those who embraced such a development. Adapted from the source document.

The article compares the Norwegian & the German political debate on changes to the respective countries' citizenship laws. The Norwegian law will come into force in September 2006, while the German law was introduced in 2000. In citizenship laws we can find a contrast between an ethnic & cultural understanding of political community & a rights-based understanding. This contrast was hardly touched upon in the Norwegian debate. Among the Norwegian political parties there was broad agreement to carry on with the principle of ethnic decent. Moreover, all parties, with an exception of the Socialist Left Party (SV), wanted to introduce more restrictions on the established Norwegian practice to accept dual citizenship. The German debate dealt with the contrasting principles, & the conflict followed the left/right cleavages. The main difference found between the two countries refers to the left parties. Both with regard to the principle of ethnic decent/territorial principle & the acceptance of dual citizenship, the Social Democrats in Norway & Germany presented opposite standpoints. References. Adapted from the source document.

"This book addresses political conflicts in Norway through an extended time span, from the late autocracy of the 18th century until the democratic challenges of today. The book holds eight articles focusing on historical phases which have been particularly influenced by social and political mobilization. Thus, the book traces an oppositional tradition across borders in time and space. Although the articles are based on limited studies, the authors write with ambition to include their research into this wider context.

In Norway, the Constitution of 1814 marks the shift from autocratic rule to early democracy. 18th century peasant riots may be interpreted as expressions of impotence of the common people, but also as an opportunity for action with the potential to influence the authorities. The 19th century peasant opposition shows the potential for change through parliamentary representation. Around 1850 the first attempts at worker's organizations were criminalized – around 1950, however, the Labour Party dominated Norwegian politics. These trending lines reflect an increasingly developed democracy. The political system is in principle opening for broad popular participation. However, democracy is still being challenged by opposition in ways and by means that occasionally raise concerns about the stability of our political culture.

The book is divided into three parts. Part I is dedicated to the age of late autocracy, part II provides insights into the 19th century democratization processes, while Part III includes articles dealing with opposition and confrontations in the last century, focusing the interwar period, the 1970s, and today's multicultural society.The book is aimed both at researchers, students and the general audience." - "Denne boka tar opp politiske konflikter i Norge gjennom et langt tidsspenn, fra det seine eneveldet til vår tids demokratiske utfordringer. De åtte kapitlene representerer punktnedslag i historiske faser som i særlig grad har vært preget av sosial og politisk mobilisering. Slik bidrar boka til å belyse en opposisjonell tradisjon.

Historikere er blitt kritisert for å fokusere ensidig på avgrensede perioder og hendelser, og være for lite opptatt av å spore linjer på tvers av grenser i tid og rom. Forfatterne av denne boka skriver med bakgrunn i avgrensede studier, men alltid med ambisjon om å sette sine forskningstema inn i en videre kontekst.

I Norge markerer Grunnloven av 1814 skiftet fra eneveldig styre til begynnende demokrati. 1700-tallets bondeopprør kan tolkes som uttrykk for allmuens avmakt, men også som handlingsrom med potensiale til å påvirke myndighetene. 1800-tallets bondeopposisjon viser mulighetene for å nå fram gjennom parlamentarisk opposisjon. Rundt 1850 ble de første forsøk på organisering av arbeidere kriminalisert – rundt 1950 dominerte Arbeiderpartiet norsk politikk. Dette er linjer som speiler et stadig mer utviklet demokrati. Det politiske systemet åpner i prinsippet for bred folkelig medvirkning. Men fortsatt blir demokratiet utfordret av opposisjon i ytringsformer som til tider vekker bekymring for stabiliteten i vår politiske kultur."

Uncertainty at many levels in classical singers' career trajectories and professional practice is a fulcrum in this book. Produced through life history interviews with 14 professional Scandinavian singers, born between 1945 and 1978, the study follows the participants' experiences of possibilities and limitations of action through their life course. It obtains some of the prerequisites that underpin the practical knowledge of the singer considering the cultural traditions of classical singing and the hierarchical field of music the singers aim for and act within. The overarching theoretical framework is founded in Pierre Bourdieu's theory of practice, but the study has an interdisciplinary approach. Here, the pluralistic life course perspective forms the basis for understanding processes and changes over time. The study shows how singers' choices and strategies, reflections, opinions and preferences, can be understood in relation to their backgrounds, and their social positions in the classical music field where music is the interconnecting element. A comprehensive feature of the research material is how uncertainties are expressed as assessments as an answer to the uncertainty that characterizes singers as well as singing education, singing performance and the singing profession. This dominant practice of assessment is interpreted as a circular phenomenon, where the assessment culture becomes a consequence of uncertainty, while increasing uncertainty. - "Hvordan konstitueres klassiske sangeres løpebaner og sosiale praksis? Med utgangspunkt i livshistorieintervju med 14 profesjonelle skandinaviske sangere født mellom 1945 og 1978, søker denne studien en mer nyansert og helhetlig forståelse av denne kunstnergruppens mulighetsbetingelser. I boka ser forfatteren nærmere på sangernes oppvekstår, studietid og yrkesliv, samt overgangen mellom disse. I denne sammenheng gjøres usikkerhet til et omdreiningspunkt. Gjennom den komplekse relasjonen mellom det individuelle og kollektive, analyseres sangeres erfaringer i lys av historiske, sosiale og kulturelle mønstre som former løpebanene og strukturerer praksisen på bestemte måter. Her legger den klassiske sangens tradisjon sterke føringer. Den overordnede teoretiske rammen er fundert i Pierre Bourdieus praksisteori. Det pluralistiske livsløpsperspektivet utgjør grunnlaget for forståelsen av prosesser og endring over tid.

Det konkurransepregede og uforutsigbare arbeidsmarkedet som omgir sangerne medfører høy grad av risiko og usikkerhet. Boka belyser hvordan sangere legitimerer eget yrke og hvordan handlinger, valg, strategier, refleksjoner, meninger og preferanser kan forstås i relasjon til deres bakgrunn og til posisjoner i det klassiske musikkfeltet der musikken er det bindende element. Et gjennomgående trekk i forskningsmaterialet er hvordan usikkerhet kommer til uttrykk som vurderinger. Slik oppstår et sirkulært fenomen, hvor vurderingskulturen blir en konsekvens av usikkerhet, samtidig som den forsterker usikkerheten som preger sangerne så vel som sangopplæringen, sangutøvelsen og sangeryrket."

"Post-war expansion of the welfare state is one of the most central changes in Norwegian society
today and is often a topic in public debate. When certain conceptions about the welfare state
are developed and they are no longer based on systematic analyses but rather ideas and attitudes,
they can turn into myths. However, to be termed myths requires documentation, and
here social research plays an important role. This book rejects and elaborates central myths in
the public debate about the welfare state. The book is structured as an anthology, written by six
welfare sociologists at the University of Bergen. The first article introduces the history of The
Myth of the Welfare State, a book published by Pax in 1970, then revised a few years later, and
with a follow-up version in 1995, 25 years after that. The book became a flaming light within
the social policy debate, because it criticized the welfare state for not solving the problem of
poverty. Although this problem, relatively seen, is reduced, the following five articles show
that, within the framework of the welfare state, there is room for new important critical discussions.
One myth focuses on the idea that a combination of a comprehensive state and an active
civil society with much voluntary work is not possible. Another concerns the idea that welfare
results in dependency. A third is about the "Elder Boom". A fourth concerns single mothers
and assumes that these unlawfully try to get access to welfare. And finally, the last discusses
the ideas that crime should result in punishment and "prison pain". Together, the articles are a
contribution to make the debate about the welfare state richer and more dynamic." - "Utbyggingen av velferdsstaten i etterkrigstiden hører til en av de mest sentrale endringer i
det norske samfunn, og er ofte et tema i den offentlige debatt. Når bestemte forestillinger om
velferdsstaten utvikles og de ikke lenger bygger på systematiske analyser, men på ideer og
holdninger, kan de bli til myter. At det er snakk om myter, må imidlertid dokumenteres, og her
spiller samfunnsforskningen en viktig rolle. Denne boken tilbakeviser og nyanserer sentrale
myter i den offentlige debatt om velferdsstaten. Boken er bygget opp som en antologi, skrevet
av seks velferdssosiologer fra Universitetet i Bergen. Den første artikkelen gir en innføring
i historien om Myten om velferdsstaten, en bok utgitt av Pax i 1970, siden revidert noen år
etter og med en oppfølger i 1995, 25 år etter. Boken ble en brannfakkel i den sosialpolitiske
debatt, fordi den kritiserte velferdsstaten for ikke å håndtere fattigdomsproblemet. Selv om
dette problemet, relativt sett, er redusert, utgjør de etterfølgende artiklene om fem aktuelle
velferdsmyter en argumentasjon for, at det, innenfor velferdsstatens rammer, er rom for nye
viktige kritiske diskusjoner. Én myte handler om at en sterk stat ikke kan forenes med et aktivt
samfunn med stor grad av frivillighet. En annen handler om at velferd skaper avhengighet. En
tredje handler om eldrebølgen. En fjerde handler om at alenemødre antas å lure til seg velferd.
Og endelig handler en siste myte om at kriminalitet må møtes med straff og 'fengselspine'.
Artiklene er samlet sett et bidrag til å gjøre debatten om velferdsstaten rikere og mer dynamisk."