Suchergebnisse

The debate over the relative importance of ideology versus party for vote choice in France is enduring. Resolution of the debate would have much value, for the light shed on sources of stability and change in multiparty electoral systems generally. The main reason the debate continues is that previous studies examining that question have been plagued by difficulties pertaining to variable measurement, model specification, election type, and research design. We address these problems and provide new evidence from the 2002 French Electoral Panel. Most notably, these data allow stronger causal inference because party identification and ideological identification are both measured in the first wave of the survey, that is, before the declaration of vote actually occurs. We estimate a multi-equation model of first-round legislative vote intention as measured in the second wave of the panel using two-stage least squares, ordered logit, as well as binomial and multinomial logit techniques. The results indicate that ideological identification systematically outweighs party identification in shaping the French voter's choice. Adapted from the source document.

Introduction and overview -- Global, national and ethical issues -- Analytical and conceptual issues -- Issues and Innovations in population data collection and measurement : registration and administrative data -- Issues and innovations in population data collection and measurement : survey research -- Issues in research design and analysis of migrant integration -- Incorporating demographic research in program design, monitoring, and evaluation -- Issues and innovations in population modeling and projections -- Wrap-up -- References -- Appendixes

Die unübersehbare Präsenz von international vergleichenden Evaluations- und Leistungsstudien über die nationalen Bildungssysteme wie Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), Programme für International Student Assessment (PISA) und Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey (ALL) in der nationalen und zunehmend auch internationalisierten Öffentlichkeit ist mehr als ein Sturm im Wasserglas der Medien. Die ausgedehnten Diskussionen über Ranglisten der Bildungssysteme, über das Leistungsniveau lokaler oder nationaler Bildungssysteme, die Besonderheiten der leistungsstarken und der leistungsschwachen «Modelle» weisen auf bedeutsame Entwicklungen in den Bildungssystemen und in der Bildungspolitik selbst hin: Zum einen ist unübersehbar, dass in den Ländern und politischen Systemen, wo die institutionelle und die inhaltliche Einbindung des Bildungssystems in lokale Gegebenheiten, wo der Bildungsföderalismus bislang noch als politisch unhintergehbare Konstante gehandelt wurde, wie in den USA oder auch in der Schweiz, die Vereinheitlichung oder vielmehr die Einheitlichkeit oder die Vereinheitlichung des Bildungswesens zu einem allgemein akzeptierten Gestaltungsrahmen geworden ist. (DIPF/Orig.)

Labour-market deregulation may have generated more unstable and complex employment life courses. As exposure to highly volatile early-career trajectories has long-lasting consequences for the working lives of individuals, it is especially important to consider how these processes have affected younger workers in countries like Italy. Here, deregulation 'at the margins' of the labour market has been characterized by a strong age divide and has exacerbated the separation between insiders and outsiders. We contrast the "individualization of risk" perspective with the "persistent inequality" hypothesis by looking at differentials by gender and socio-economic status in the degree of early-career complexity of workers who entered the labour market before and after deregulation. The use of an innovative longitudinal dataset (AD-SILC) which combines administrative records on employment episodes and survey data on individuals' socio-economic characteristics allows this study to apply advanced methods in sequence analysis to calculate the complexity of seven-year-long early career trajectories. Complexity is measured by considering the number of transitions between employment states and the length of each episode. We find that early-career complexity increased across cohorts, especially for those more exposed to deregulation. Against the scenario of a generalized increase in labour market dualization, this non-linear dynamic especially affected medium and low-educated individuals and was particularly pronounced for women. Although our analytical strategy does not allow for a causal interpretation of mechanisms engendering the observed trends, this empirical evidence is highly relevant for the implication of changes in early career patterns across cohorts for stratification research.

Dieser Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über die theoretische Konzeptualisierung, empirische Operationalisierung sowie die Erhebung und Kodierung von Bildung in der nationalen und internationalen Umfrageforschung. Bildung bezeichnet hier das erreichte Bildungsniveau eines Individuums und muss von Konzepten wie Kompetenzen, Schulleistungen und Fachrichtungen abgegrenzt werden. Da Bildung häufig bloß routineartig in statistische Modelle aufgenommen wird, wird der Zusammenhang zwischen theoretischem Konzept, Indikator, Messinstrument und Variablen in den Vordergrund gestellt, wobei auf die langjährige sozialwissenschaftliche Forschung zu Bildungserträgen und Bildungsungleichheit zurückgegriffen wird. Dabei werden lineare, ordinale und kategoriale Konzeptionen von Bildung unterschieden, die aus jeweils unterschiedlichen theoretischen Ansätzen hervorgehen und z.T. unterschiedliche Anforderungen an Erhebung und Kodierung stellen. Es herrscht nämlich durchaus keine Einigkeit darüber, wie Bildung zu konzeptualisieren, zu messen, über Länder hinweg zu vergleichen und statistisch zu modellieren ist. Der Beitrag gibt daher auch keine Empfehlung einer "one size fits all"-Bildungsvariablen, die für alle Studien zweckmäßig wäre, sondern versucht stattdessen, den Leser zu einer informierten Entscheidung für die Messung von Bildung im jeweiligen Forschungskontext anzuregen und dabei zu unterstützen.

In both academic literature and political discussions the concept of innovation is recognized as an essential ingredient in economic development and competitiveness for firms, regions, and nations. Innovation also ranks at the top of policy agendas in the field of regional policy. Therefore, the attractiveness of an appropriate innovation index for ranking regions and further developing them along a more or less objective measurement scale is evident. However, whether such rankings help convey a better understanding of innovation and its drivers, or whether they are merely a special type of 'beauty contest' with little substance is the focus of our analyses. To deny the latter, the innovation output indicators used for the composite index have to be appropriate representatives of the underlying innovation concept and each indicator has to be driven by the same impact factors. If this is not the case, interpretation of the index inevitably gives rise to partly inappropriate policy recommendations. In order to demonstrate this claim we elaborate a set of innovation indicators at the regional level based on the theoretical concept of the OECD document 'The Measurement of Scientific and Technological Activities, Proposed Guidelines for Collecting and Interpreting Technological Innovation Data' known as the 'Oslo Manual' (OECD, 2005) and their empirical implementation in the Community Innovation Survey. Additionally, innovation drivers well established in the literature are collected to estimate their impact on each innovation indicator as well as on the composite index derived from the innovation indicators. The question whether 2 innovation should be measured as a multidimensional concept and investigated using various indicators or whether simplifying innovation to a one-dimensional concept is appropriate is clearly answered in favour of the multidimensional approach. Surprisingly, this is not due to the multidimensionality of the indicators themselves (all statistical measures indicate that the considered variables are sufficiently represented by one component), but to our first evidence that the innovation output indicators are driven by various impact factors and can therefore be influenced by various political strategies. According to these findings any type of innovation ranking is of very limited use.

Objective. To describe the methodological design of the National Health and Nutrition Survey in localities with less than 100 000 inhabitants (Ensanut 100k). Materials and methods. The Ensanut 100k is a probabilistic survey that over-represents households with less economic capabilities. This paper describes the scope of the survey, sampling procedures, measurement and inference and logistics organization. Results. 10 461 home interviews and 26 161 individual interviews were obtained. The household response rate was 89 and 92% from individuals. Conclusions. The probabilistic design of the Ensanut 100k allows to make valid statistical inferences about parameters of interest for public health in localities with less than 100 000 inhabitants, localities where 52% of the population lives according to the 2010 census. The comparability of the results with the Ensanut 2012 facilitates the assessment of the government's support actions to populations with lower economic capacities in the period 2012-2018. ; Objetivo. Describir el diseño metodológico de la Encuesta Nacional de Salud y Nutrición en localidades con menos de 100 000 habitantes (Ensanut 100k). Material y métodos. La Ensanut 100k es una encuesta probabilística que sobrerre­presenta a los hogares con menos capacidades económicas. Se describe el alcance de la encuesta, los procedimientos de muestreo, medición e inferencia y la organización logística. Resultados. Se obtuvieron 10 461 entrevistas de hogar y 26 161 de individuos. La tasa de respuesta de hogar fue 89% y de individuos 92%. Conclusiones. El diseño probabilístico de la Ensanut 100k permite hacer inferencias estadísticas válidas sobre parámetros de interés para la salud pública en localidades con menos de 100 000 habitantes, localidades donde vive 52% de la población según el censo de 2010. La comparabilidad de los resultados con la Ensanut 2012 facilita evaluar las acciones de apoyo que otorga el gobierno a poblaciones con menores capacidades económicas en el periodo 2012-2018.

We present cosmological parameter constraints based on the final nine-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) data, in conjunction with a number of additional cosmological data sets. The WMAP data alone, and in combination, continue to be remarkably well fit by a six-parameter Delta CDM model. When WMAP data are combined with measurements of the high-l cosmic microwave background anisotropy, the baryon acoustic oscillation scale, and the Hubble constant, the matter and energy densities, Omega(b)h(2), Omega(c)h(2), and Omega(Lambda), are each determined to a precision of similar to 1.5%. The amplitude of the primordial spectrum is measured to within 3%, and there is now evidence for a tilt in the primordial spectrum at the 5 sigma level, confirming the first detection of tilt based on the five-year WMAP data. At the end of the WMAP mission, the nine-year data decrease the allowable volume of the six-dimensional Delta CDM parameter space by a factor of 68,000 relative to pre-WMAP measurements. We investigate a number of data combinations and show that their Delta CDM parameter fits are consistent. New limits on deviations from the six-parameter model are presented, for example: the fractional contribution of tensor modes is limited to r < 0.13 (95% CL); the spatial curvature parameter is limited to Omega(k) = -0.0027(-0.0038)(+0.0039); the summed mass of neutrinos is limited to Sigma m(nu) < 0.44 eV (95% CL); and the number of relativistic species is found to lie within N-eff = 3.84 +/- 0.40, when the full data are analyzed. The joint constraint on N-eff and the primordial helium abundance, Y-He, agrees with the prediction of standard big bang nucleosynthesis. We compare recent Planck measurements of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect with our seven-year measurements, and show their mutual agreement. Our analysis of the polarization pattern around temperature extrema is updated. This confirms a fundamental prediction of the standard cosmological model and provides a striking illustration of acoustic oscillations and adiabatic initial conditions in the early universe. ; Canadian Institute for Advanced Research ; Johns Hopkins University ; Perimeter Institute by the Government of Canada through Industry Canada ; Province of Ontario through the Ministry of Research Innovation ; NASA NNX08AL43G, NNX11AD25G ; NSF AST-0807649, PHY-0758153 ; Canada Foundation for Innovation under Compute Canada ; Government of Ontario ; Ontario Research Fund-Research Excellence ; University of Toronto ; NASA Headquarters ; Astronomy

We thank Michael Camasso and Radha Jagannathan as well as Asimina Christoforou, Gerbert Kraaykamp, Fay Makantasi, Tiziana Nazio, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Jacqueline O'Reilly and Jan van Deth for their contribution to the CUPESSE project (Seventh Framework Programme; Grant Agreement No. 61325). CUPESSE received additional funding from the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES) and the Field of Focus 4 "Self-Regulation and Regulation: Individuals and Organisations" at Heidelberg University. We further acknowledge helpful comments on this article by two anonymous reviewers. Julian Rossello provided valuable research assistance. ; Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https ://doi.org/10.1057/ s4130 4-018-0186-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. ; Existing datasets provided by statistical agencies (e.g. Eurostat) show that the economic and financial crisis that unfolded in 2008 significantly impacted the lives and livelihoods of young people across Europe. Taking these official statistics as a starting point, the collaborative research project "Cultural Pathways to Economic Self-Sufficiency and Entrepreneurship in Europe" (CUPESSE) generated new survey data on the economic and social situation of young Europeans (18–35 years). The CUPESSE dataset allows for country-comparative assessments of young people's perceptions about their socio-economic situation. Furthermore, the dataset includes a variety of indicators examining the socio-economic situation of both young adults and their parents. In this data article, we introduce the CUPESSE dataset to political and social scientists in an attempt to spark a debate on the measurements, patterns and mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of economic self-sufficiency as well as its political implications. ; CUPESSE project (Seventh Framework Programme; Grant Agreement No. 61325)

The merits of public procurement of innovations (PPI) as a demand-side innovation policy instrument have been identified in both political and academic discussion. In particular, the involvement of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in PPI could be a valuable tool in promoting SME innovations. As such, PPI could play an important role in the entrepreneurial ecosystem in which interdependent actors collaborate. However, the impact of collaboration among entrepreneurial ecosystem actors in the context of PPI on SMEs' competitiveness lacks empirical assessment. This chapter addresses this gap in the literature with a survey of Finnish SMEs. We propose a construct for SMEs' improved competitiveness which can be attributed to involvement in public procurement. A statistical analysis applying a path model suggests that after controlling for firm size and age, innovativeness and industry, collaborating with the public sector customer in developing new products/services, improving production processes and making improvements to existing products/services in response to the public sector customer's demand is associated with improved competitiveness. As a managerial implication, the results suggest that PPI has merits in promoting the competitiveness of SMEs through innovations. ; final draft ; peerReviewed

We explore the effect of offering an open-ended comment field in a Web survey to reduce the
threat of sensitive questions. Two experiments were field in a probability-based Web panel in
the Netherlands. For a set of 10 items on attitudes to immigrants, a random half were offered
the opportunity to explain or clarify their responses, with the hypothesis being that doing so
would reduce the need to choose socially desirable answers, resulting in higher levels of
prejudice. Across two experiments, we find significant effects contrary to our hypothesis – the
opportunity to comment decreased the level of prejudice reported, and longer comments were
associated with more tolerant attitudes among those who were offered the comment field.

Abstract
With the growing availability of multi-wave surveys, social scientists are turning to latent trend models to examine changes in social and political attitudes. Aiming to facilitate this research, we propose a framework for estimating trends in public opinion consisting of three components: the measurement model that links the observed survey responses to the latent attitude, the latent trend model that estimates a trajectory based on aggregated individual latent scores, and representativeness adjustments. We use individual-level item response theory models as the measurement model that is tailored to analyzing public opinion based on pooled data from multi-wave surveys. The main part of our analysis focuses on the second component of our framework, the latent trend models, and compares four approaches: thin-plate splines, Gaussian processes, random walk (RW) models, and autoregressive (AR) models. We examine the ability of these models to recover latent trends with simulated data that vary the shape of the true trend, model complexity, and data availability. Overall, under the conditions of our simulation study, we find that all four latent trend models perform well. We find two main performance differences: the relatively higher squared errors of AR and RW models, and the under-coverage of posterior intervals in high-frequency low-amplitude trends with thin-plate splines. For all models and across all scenarios, performance improves with increased data availability, which emphasizes the need of supplying sufficient data for accurate estimation of latent trends. To further illustrate the differences between the four latent trend models, we present a case study with an analysis of trends in political trust in Hungary, Poland, and Spain between 1995 and 2019. We note the relatively weaker performance of splines compared to other models in this application and conclude by discussing factors to consider when choosing the latent trend model, and further opportunities in this line of research.

The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/BIJ-10-2014-0096 ; Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the results of contract management process maturity assessments in the US Navy using a process capability maturity model. The maturity model is used to benchmark an organization's contract management process maturity and to use the assessment results to develop a road map for implementing process improvement as well as knowledge-sharing initiatives. Design/methodology/approach– This is survey-based research on benchmarking contract management processes in the US Navy. A web-based assessment tool was deployed to US Navy contracting officers located at aeronautical systems, sea systems, and logistics support contracting agencies. The assessment tool consists of survey items related to the use of contracting best practices. The survey responses are then used to calculate the agency's contract management process maturity level. Findings– The benchmarking results reflected higher maturity levels in the pre-award contracting processes (Procurement Planning, Solicitation Planning, and Source Selection), while lower maturity levels were reflected in the post-award contracting processes (Contract Administration and Contract Closeout). The research findings related to process capability enablers also reflected higher mean scores for the pre-award processes and lower mean scores for the post-award processes. These maturity levels and process capability enabler scores reflect the extent of the implementation of contracting best practices within the Navy contracting agencies. Research limitations/implications– This research uses a purposeful sampling approach designed to acquire data on organizational contract management processes. The assessment survey was administered only to qualified Navy contracting officers. The Navy contracting agencies are responsible for procuring billions of dollars in supplies and services in support of the Navy mission. Although the assessed contracting agencies procure different types of systems, supplies, and services, the contract management processes used are common to all Navy, Army, Air Force, and other US federal government agencies. The conclusions based on the analysis of these benchmarking assessments may be applicable to Department of Defense (DoD) and other government agencies. Practical implications– The findings suggest that benchmarking can be effective in measuring and improving contracting process capability within the Navy. Benchmarking contracting processes can have far-reaching effects throughout the DoD. The Under Secretary of Defense's has mandated initiatives related to improving both pre- and post-award contracting processes. The use of these benchmarking assessments can be instrumental in tracking the achievements of these process improvement initiatives. Additionally, the US Congress is leading the push for auditability in procurement operations. By benchmarking and improving its contracting processes, the DoD will be winning the battle toward integrity, accountability, and transparency of its financial operations. Social implications– Benchmarking contracting processes can also have far-reaching effects in society. Many governments are focussing on integrity, accountability, and transparency in public procurement. International organizations such as Transparency International (TI) have identified process capability and process integrity as key for reducing the potential for procurement-related fraud, waste, and abuse. Additionally, NATO member countries and partner nations are focussing on the value of assessing and improving procurement processes for strengthening transparency and accountability. The value of benchmarking and improving contracting processes is gaining much attention in global public procurement agencies as they strive for accountability, integrity, and transparency in their governance processes. Originality/value– There are multiple reports on deficiencies in DoD's contract management processes, identifying poor contract planning, and Contract Administration as just some of the critically deficient areas. In response, the DoD is increasing its emphasis on developing its workforce competence through education initiatives. However, very little attention is being paid to benchmarking contract management processes. This research reflects the value of benchmarking DoD's contract management process maturity and using the results for implementing process improvement initiatives. Using process benchmarking data, agencies can identify process improvement initiatives that will ensure government tax dollars are spent in the most effective and efficient ways.

Examines possible reasons for the wide fluctuations in city quality-of-life ratings provided by Money magazine in its yearly "Best Places to Live in America" feature, eg, measurement variability, changes in attitudes &/or city characteristics, & index construction. It is argued that fluctations are too large to be accounted for by yearly changes in survey results. It is concluded that data interpretation & application, along with the fact that the measurement scale gives heavy weight to economic indicators, is responsible for the wide variability. Recommendations for more accurate sampling techniques are given. 2 Tables, 3 Figures, 11 References. M. Nichols-Wagner