Suchergebnisse

Background: The military conflict in Ukraine that started in 2014 was accompanied with many changes in the political, economic and social spheres. It brought informal volunteering activities (i.e. one form of social capital) to emerge, function and later to be formalized, in order to support soldiers and their families. This situation is unique given the transitional setting of Ukraine, which has led to comparably low levels of social capital and negative indicators of health and well-being. This thesis aims to explore social capital during military conflict in contemporary Ukraine and to analyze the associations between social capital and well-being, as well as the distribution of social capital among Ukrainian women and men. Methods: The study combines a qualitative and quantitative research design. A case study was conducted using qualitative methodology. Eighteen in-depth interviews were collected with providers and utilizers of volunteering services. Grounded Theory and social action ideal types methodology of Weber were used for the analysis. The quantitative research utilized two secondary datasets. The World Health Survey was utilized to analyze the association between social capital and physical and mental well-being for women (n=1723) and men (n=910) by means of multivariate logistic regression. The European Social Survey (wave 6) was used in order to investigate access to social capital and the determinants of gender inequalities in the access with a sample of 1377 women and 797 men. Multivariate logistic regression and postregression Fairlie's decomposition analysis were used to analyze the determinants of the inequalities. Results: The key findings of this thesis show that social capital transforms during military conflict and takes particular forms in transitional settings. There are positive and negative effects on well-being connected to crisisrelated volunteering. The associations between social capital and well-being vary for women and men in favour of women. Social capital is unequally distributed between different social groups. Some forms of social capital may have stronger buffering effect on women than men in Ukraine. Access to social capital can be viewed as an indicator for social well-being, and thus social capital can be used both as a determinant and an outcome in social capital and health research. Conclusion: Informal social participation, i.e. volunteering might play an important role in societal crises and needs to be considered in social capital measurements and interventions. Social capital measurements utilized in stable societies do not evidently capture these forms, i.e. it is not taken into account. The associations between social capital and well-being depend on the measurements that are used. Since social capital has both positive and negative effects on well-being, this should be considered in research, policies and practices in order to prevent negative and promote positive outcomes. In Ukraine, as well as in other settings, social capital is an unequal resource for different societal groups. Reducing gender and income inequalities would probably influence the distribution of social capital within the society. ; Bakgrund: Den militära konflikten i Ukraina som startade 2014 fick många politiska, ekonomiska och sociala konsekvenser. Konfliktsituationen triggade bland annat framväxten av omfattande informella volontärverksamheter (en form av social kapital) som senare formaliserades, för att stödja soldater och deras familjer. Denna situation är relativt unik, med tanke på Ukrainas postsovjetiska historia med jämförelsevis låga nivåer av socialt kapital och negativa indikatorer för hälsa och välbefinnande. Denna avhandling syftar att undersöka betydelsen av socialt kapital under pågående militär konflikt i Ukraina, samt att analysera sambandet mellan social kapital och välbefinnande, såväl som fördelningen av social kapitalt mellan kvinnor och män i Ukraina. Metoder: Studien kombinerar en kvalitativ och kvantitativ forskningsdesign. En fallstudie genomfördes med hjälp av kvalitativa metoder. Arton djupintervjuer med volontärer samt mottagare av volontärstöd genomfördes. Analysen genomfördes med hjälp av Grundad Teori och Webers sociala idealtyper. Den kvantitativa forskningen är baserad på två sekundära datamaterial. Världshälsoorganisationens (WHOs) World Health Survey användes för att analysera sambandet mellan socialt kapital och fysiskt och mentalt välbefinnande för kvinnor (n = 1723) och män (n = 910) med hjälp av multivariabel logistisk regression. European Social Survey (våg 6) användes för att undersöka tillgången till socialt kapital och bestämningsfaktorer för ojämlikhet i tillgången till socialt kapital mellan kvinnor (n = 1377) och män ( n = 797). Analysen genomfördes med hjälp av multivariabel logistisk regression och post-regression Fairlie decomposition analys. Resultat: Resultaten i denna avhandling visar att social kapital transformeras under pågående militär konflikt och antar särskilda former i övergångssamhällen som Ukraina. Det finns både positiva och negativa effekter på välbefinnande relaterat till volontärarbete under pågående samhällskris. Sambanden mellan social kapital och välbefinnande varierar för kvinnor och män till förmån för kvinnor. Vissa former av socialt kapital kan ha en starkare skyddande effekt för kvinnor än män i Ukraina. Resultaten visar också att socialt kapital fördelas ojämnt mellan män och kvinnor. Tillgången till socialt kapital kan betraktas som en indikator för socialt välbefinnande och socialt kapital kan därmed användas både som determinant och ett utfall i studier om socialt kapital, hälsa och välbefinnande. Slutsats: Informellt socialt deltagande, dvs volontärarbete, kan spela en viktig roll i samhällskriser och behöver beaktas i såväl mätningar som interventioner av socialt kapital. Mätningar av socialt kapital i "stabila" samhällen fångar nödvändigtvis inte dessa former av socialt kapital. Sambandet mellan social kapital och välbefinnande beror till stor det på vilka mått för socialt kapital som används. Eftersom socialt kapital har både positiva och negativa effekter på välbefinnande bör det tas i beaktande i forskning, policy och praxis för att kunna förhindra negativa effekter och främja de positiva effekterna. I Ukraina, liksom i andra samhällen, är socialt kapital en ojämn resurs för olika samhällsgrupper. Att minska klyftor mellan könen och inkomstgrupper skulle troligen påverka fördelningen av socialt kapital i samhället.

AbstractSome groups of students—typically those who have suffered because of historical inequality in society—disproportionately experience psychological barriers to educational success. These psychological barriers—feelings of threat to their social identity and the sense that their identity is incompatible with educational success—make substantial contributions to inequalities in educational outcomes between groups, even beyond economic, historical, and structural inequalities. A range of wise psychological interventions can help remove these barriers by targeting students' subjective interpretation of their local educational context. In this review, we outline the Identities in Context model of educational inequalities, which proposes that interactions between students' social identities and features of the local educational context—expectations about a group's academic performance, a group's representation in positions associated with academic success, and a group's orientation towards education—can trigger social identity threat and identity incompatibility in ways that vary considerably across contexts. We present an implementation process, based on the Identities in Context model, that academic researchers, policymakers, and practitioners can follow to help them choose and tailor wise interventions that are effective in reducing educational inequalities in their local context. Throughout the review, we make policy recommendations regarding how educational practices can be altered to help remove psychological barriers for underperforming groups of students and so reduce educational inequalities.

This paper explores challenges a consumer food cooperative must address to combine social inclusion and embeddedness in its urban environment with the food quality standards it targets. While the difficulty in making alternative food networks (AFNs) socially accessible is well documented, little is known about organizational practices that foster inclusion in AFNs. Our research—based on over 100 participant observations of meetings held at the cooperative and on food activities with members of community organizations—has generated insight on how a participative process—through collective decisions, knowledge exchanges and workslot commitments—could facilitate or restrain social inclusion. Our results suggest that promotion of the value of equality for the largest number is hindered by differences in food, material and consumer cultures between cooperative members and non-members. The value of equality for the largest number is pragmatically applied through social inclusion regarding food supply and voluntary work participation. ; info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Abstract
The majority of the world's ultra-poor live in conflict-affected environments. Poverty reduction efforts are increasingly attempting to target the most vulnerable inhabitants of these settings. Few studies have so far examined their impacts. Against the backdrop of one of the largest humanitarian crises in recent years, survey data from the Central African Republic demonstrates that a year after the conclusion of a large social safety net program, the poorest female participants did not benefit proportionately to other women and men. We draw on 257 in-depth qualitative interviews in extremely difficult-to-access conflict-affected sites across the country to explore the puzzle of why the most vulnerable inhabitants of conflict-affected settings may fail to benefit equally from poverty reduction programs. We demonstrate that conditions of social isolation—rather than poverty itself—create two specific barriers to long-term benefits. First, social isolation means that the poorest women recipients lack the social support networks that permit others to respond to conflict-related shocks without draining all their new income on emergency spending. Second, small social networks create a shortage of labor and higher start-up costs for new revenue-generating activities, thereby preventing spending on investment opportunities. These factors highlight the social barriers to poverty reduction, which are often intensified by shocks born from war, that material aid alone fails to redress.

The majority of the world's ultra-poor live in conflict-affected environments. Poverty reduction efforts are increasingly attempting to target the most vulnerable inhabitants of these settings. Few studies have so far examined their impacts. Against the backdrop of one of the largest humanitarian crises in recent years, survey data from the Central African Republic demonstrates that a year after the conclusion of a large social safety net program, the poorest female participants did not benefit proportionately to other women and men. We draw on 257 in-depth qualitative interviews in extremely difficult-to-access conflict-affected sites across the country to explore the puzzle of why the most vulnerable inhabitants of conflict-affected settings may fail to benefit equally from poverty reduction programs. We demonstrate that conditions of social isolation—rather than poverty itself—create two specific barriers to long-term benefits. First, social isolation means that the poorest women recipients lack the social support networks that permit others to respond to conflict-related shocks without draining all their new income on emergency spending. Second, small social networks create a shortage of labor and higher start-up costs for new revenue-generating activities, thereby preventing spending on investment opportunities. These factors highlight the social barriers to poverty reduction, which are often intensified by shocks born from war, that material aid alone fails to redress.

Abstract :In foreign jurisdictions, various models of responsibility for juvenile offenses are adopted. In many countries, like Poland, entirely separate regulations in this field are adopted (England and Wales, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Spain, Ireland, Germany, Scotland, Switzerland, Sweden). In other countries like (Slovakia, Belarus, Estonia, Greece to 2003, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Russia, Slovenia, Ukraine), there are specific rules of responsibility of minors included in criminal codes and codes of criminal proceedings. Different solutions in this regard are partly due to the different traditions of legal systems, and partly due to various axiomatic justifications formulated in these matters. Review of legislation on minority in selected European countries: Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic shows that in terms of the approach to the problem of minority in all legal systems, specific interaction of children and young people who come into conflict with the criminal law are included, as well as those that show signs of corruption, making their proper personal and social development threatened. Adoption of selected concepts of minors legislation, however, does not mean more or less severe approach to the liability of minors. Both discussed issues the theoretical and practical ones, are the subject of the deliberations beneath, their structure includes: 1. Problems of minors in the European countries2. Minors in Polish criminal justice system3. Minors' responsibility in Slovakian criminal justice system4. Czech criminal justice system in relation to a minor Keywords: Polish criminal law, Slovakian criminal law, Czech Republic criminal law, proceedings in juvenile cases, resocialization.

Abstract
In the third century AD, under the pressure of plagues, external invasion, rising army costs, and usurpation, the Roman emperors incrementally debased the silver coinage that was produced at their imperial mints and incrementally took over civic mints. The debasement, from 2.7 g of silver to 0.04 g of silver in the equivalent of a denarius from 160–274 ad, was accompanied by worries from emperors, mint-workers, and bankers about the value of the currency; however, the total loss of purchasing power of the Roman coinage from the same era was 50–70 %, far less than would be expected from the change in metallic content, if it were the primary source of value. The currency reform of Aurelian in 274 ad, despite raising metallic values of coins, was followed by at least a 90 % reduction in the purchasing power of the silver coinage from 274–301 ad, the year of Diocletian's Edict on Maximum Prices, showing a paradoxically inverse relationship between metallic value and purchasing power.
Based on this quandary, I argue that the Roman silver coinage of the third century CE became a fiat currency in some respects, deriving its guarantee from imperial iconography and assurances rather than from bullion value. The fiat nature of the silver coinage was largely present in usage as a medium of exchange for those without as much long-term interest in maintaining liquid stores of value; this is indicated by the differential debasement of the denarius and aureus; imperial actions and hoarding practices indicate the extent to which the currency was accepted at nominal value. I examine the reactions of different social groups in order to determine the perceived value of the Roman coinage during this time, and in order to understand the paradoxical collapse in the currency's value in the late third century.
To demonstrate this, I will present the applicable elements of the modern concept of "fiat" to this context through portrayal of emperors and usurpers on coins, use coin hoard data to determine the effect of Gresham's Law, and examine historical and papyrological accounts of currency reforms. I will also use evidence of the expansion of taxes in kind and the rejection of nominal value by both emperor and subjects to argue that the inflation following Aurelian's reform resulted from an invalidation of the trust in imperial fiat.

Hablar de exclusión social hoy nos confronta a una cuestión compleja, espinosa, problemática. Sabemos que toda nominación y clasificación entraña un orden jerárquico que refracta un orden social no exento de asimetrías y subordinaciones. Sabemos, también, que la exclusión social no escapa a esta lógica. Por ello, el artículo persigue un triple objetivo. En primer lugar, problematizar las concepciones y usos de la categoría exclusión social. Segundo, revisar los criterios desde los que investigamos y formamos a los profesionales de la educación social que trabajan en dichas situaciones. En tercer lugar, abordar las posibles posiciones que estos últimos pueden tomar frente a la imposibilidad de cumplir enteramente los encargos que las políticas sociales les hacen en lo relativo a combatir y erradicar la exclusión social. El modo de proceder analítico pone al descubierto ciertas paradojas epistemológicas, políticas y éticas que atañen tanto a los modos de investigación universitarios como al ejercicio profesional de los educadores sociales. Una paradoja, a priori, es aquello que no tiene solución. Pero ante la imposibilidad a la que nos confronta estamos llamados a tomar alguna posición. En este sentido nuestro análisis sintetiza tres posibles posiciones que los investigadores y profesionales de las ciencias y las profesiones sociales pueden adoptar. Nuestra propuesta, y apuesta, frente a la inherente paradoja es desarrollar una ética del agente doble. ; Talking about social exclusion today confronts us with a complex, thorny and problematic issue. We certainly know that every nomination and classification implies a hierarchical order that refracts a social order, rarely free from asymmetries and subordination. We know too that social exclusion does not escape this logic. For this reason, our article pursues three different goals. First, to problematize the conceptions and uses of the social exclusion category. Secondly, to revise the criteria from which we research and train social education professionals who work in such situations. For the third goal, we approach the possible positions that these professionals may take against the inability to fully carry out the orders of social policies, particularly regarding the fight against and eradication of social exclusion. The analytical procedure reveals certain epistemological, political and ethical paradoxes regarding both the forms of university research and the professional practice of social workers as well. A paradox, a priori, has no solution. But faced with this inability, we are obliged to take a position. In this sense, our analysis synthesizes three possible positions that can be adopted by researchers and practitioners of science and social professions. Our proposal, and position, for the inherent paradox is to develop ethics of the double agent.

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to conceptualise and discuss the possible insights that can be generated for product development by analysing the user-generated content available from various social media platforms.


Design/methodology/approach
– The paper reviews the role of user generated content in developing products and its features (e.g. appearance and shape). It delineates the directions in which the relationship between social media content and customer oriented concepts evolve while developing successful new products.


Findings
– The review and arguments presented in this paper suggest that the social media approach adds more value than the traditional approaches for obtaining insights about the products. Availability of users' opinions and information about existing products provide insights for the improvement in the product design process. Co-creation and self-construal are important components that are based on customer engagement and customer behaviour, respectively, in the product design and development.


Practical implications
– As social media creates new ways of communication with users, businesses can include users into the product development process to improve and refine their products or for making the next generation of products.


Originality/value
– This paper suggests a new approach in getting useful insights about the products from user-generated contents. This way of using social media helps businesses to move forward from the traditional product development paradigms.

Economic development has consequences for many aspects of social life. Some of these social consequences, in turn, have an impact on a nation's political life. Studies of social mobilization, for example, have demonstrated that economic development is associated with sharp increases in the general level of political participation. These studies report strong relationships between aggregate socio-economic measures such as per capita income, median level of education, and percentage of the population in urban areas, on one hand, and aggregate measures of political participation, such as voting turnout, on the other. Simultaneously, scholars conducting surveys of individual political participation consistently have reported that an individual's social status, education, and organizational memberships strongly affect the likelihood of his engaging in various types of political activities.In spite of the consistency of both sets of findings across many studies and although the findings appear frequently in analysis of political stability, democracy, and even strategies of political growth, we know little about the connections between social structure and political participation. With few exceptions the literature on individual participation is notable for low level generalizations (the better educated citizen talks about politics more regularly), and the absence of systematic and comprehensive theory. While the literature on the growth of national political participation has been more elaborate theoretically, the dependence on aggregate measures has made it difficult to determine empirically how these macro social changes structure individuals' life experiences in ways which alter their political behavior.

This article sets out results from a Welsh Assembly government‐funded study of complaints involving children and their use of advocacy services commissioned by local authorities in Wales. As this is the first study of its kind in Wales there is no baseline against which to compare the findings, hence we discuss the data in the context of a wider UK research literature and in relation to two key themes. These are (a) the number of complaints to social services involving children and the main characteristics of these complaints, particularly the involvement of an advocacy service and (b) the views of children about making a complaint and their experience of independent advocacy. The article reveals the adult‐dominated nature of the children's complaints system and the limited involvement of advocacy in supporting children who make a complaint. The pressing need for a more child‐focused approach that gives authentic voice to children and their rights is the key conclusion drawn from the evidence gathered in this study.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common diagnosis among school‐aged children and needs to be understood within the context of cultural expectations. A qualitative study was conducted to explore the effects on mothers of boys diagnosed with ADHD. Family members were interviewed five times, at 3‐month intervals. The boys' teachers were interviewed twice. Convenience sampling was used to choose three couples (and other family members), who had a son, aged 9, diagnosed with ADHD. This paper focuses on the results of interviews with mothers and target boys. Thematic analysis of transcribed interviews yielded several themes, including parental stress, societal expectations, parental confidence and side‐effects of medication. Mothers reported that parenting a child diagnosed with ADHD has a significant social, emotional and personal impact. Results indicate that while medication overall had positive outcomes, there were some side‐effects for the boys, including negative reactions to the ADHD diagnosis.

Following the general election of September, 1953, the German Social Democratic party (SPD) finds itself in the role of a sole opposition party, a phenomenon in modern German politics. Confronted by a nearly solid phalanx of anti-socialist parties, the SPD approaches a period of crisis and of continuous strain. The ability of the Government to marshal an absolute majority at all times and a two-thirds majority when need be, threatens to relegate the party to virtual legislative impotence. Yet there are several factors militating for the continued existence of the SPD as a vigorous opposition party. Not having to compete with an irresponsible Communist organization in Western Germany, the SPD can be considered as the principal representative of the working class. Furthermore, its long history, its highly developed organizational apparatus, the discipline and devotion of its rank and file, coupled with the will to attain power, make the SPD a factor of relative significance in German as well as in European politics.On the other hand, the dynamics of the East-West conflict, and especially Germany's geographic and political relation to it, tend to affect the political fortunes of the party somewhat adversely. The international situation represents a deadly challenge to the SPD and its survival as an influential political organization may well depend upon its ability to generate a counterforce to the pressures exerted upon Germany by the super-powers.

Drawing on nationally representative telephone surveys conducted from 1995 to 2000, James Katz and Ronald Rice offer a rich and nuanced picture of Internet use in America. Using quantitative data, as well as case studies of Web sites, they explore the impact of the Internet on society from three perspectives: access to Internet technology (the digital divide), involvement with groups and communities through the Internet (social capital), and use of the Internet for social interaction and expression (identity). To provide a more comprehensive account of Internet use, the authors draw comparisons across media and include Internet nonusers and former users in their research.The authors call their research the Syntopia Project to convey the Internet's role as one among a host of communication technologies as well as the synergy between people's online activities and their real-world lives. Their major finding is that Americans use the Internet as an extension and enhancement of their daily routines. Contrary to media sensationalism, the Internet is neither a utopia, liberating people to form a global egalitarian community, nor a dystopia-producing armies of disembodied, lonely individuals. Like any form of communication, it is as helpful or harmful as those who use it.

Drawing on nationally representative telephone surveys conducted from 1995 to 2000, James Katz and Ronald Rice offer a rich and nuanced picture of Internet use in America. Using quantitative data, as well as case studies of Web sites, they explore the impact of the Internet on society from three perspectives: access to Internet technology (the digital divide), involvement with groups and communities through the Internet (social capital), and use of the Internet for social interaction and expression (identity). To provide a more comprehensive account of Internet use, the authors draw comparisons across media and include Internet nonusers and former users in their research. The authors call their research the Syntopia Project to convey the Internet's role as one among a host of communication technologies as well as the synergy between people's online activities and their real-world lives. Their major finding is that Americans use the Internet as an extension and enhancement of their daily routines. Contrary to media sensationalism, the Internet is neither a utopia, liberating people to form a global egalitarian community, nor a dystopia-producing armies of disembodied, lonely individuals. Like any form of communication, it is as helpful or harmful as those who use it.