Suchergebnisse

AbstractTwo developments — the fragmentation of governance and the mediatization of politics — lead governmental organizations to engage in discursive and institutional competition. These new circumstances also drastically change the relationship of governmental organizations to clients, target groups and the citizenry as a whole. We empirically investigate these changes through a study of a privately funded community development organization in the Netherlands, the Neighbourhood Alliance. In this case, it is no longer the citizenry that articulates a public discourse, but a public discourse that, through the mediation of an institutional entrepreneur like the Neighbourhood Alliance, stipulates what type of participation is appropriate. This development raises the critical issue of the nature and mechanisms of democratic engagement in a fragmented, mediatized polity.Résumé Deux évolutions — la fragmentation de la gouvernance et la médiatisation de la politique — poussent les organismes gouvernementaux à une concurrence symbolique. Ces contexte nouveau change aussi radicalement la relation de ces organismes avec les usagers, les groupes ciblés et les citoyens dans leur ensemble. Nous examinons ces transformations à travers une étude empirique d'une structure néerlandaise à fonds privés de développement de quartiers, Wijkalliantie (alliance de quartier). En l'occurrence, ce ne sont plus les habitants qui déclinent un discours public, mais un discours public qui, par le biais d'une entreprise institutionnelle comme l'alliance de quartier, spécifie le type de participation approprié. Cette évolution soulève la question cruciale de la nature et des mécanismes de l'engagement démocratique dans un fonctionnement politique fragmenté et médiatisé.

Résumé Dans le champ du développement social au cœur des villes, la pratique de la médiation peut prendre des formes et des orientations assez diverses. Aux Pays-Bas, la médiation constitue notamment le corps d'un type spécifique d'intervention sociale, qui s'est épanoui au cours des cinquante dernières années : l' opbouwwerk (action sociale communautaire). L'observation de la pratique de ce type d'intervention sociale au cours des trente dernières années permet de mettre en évidence la complexité des enjeux de la médiation entre des habitants en conflit ou entre des habitants opposés à des institutions publiques ou parapubliques. Elle permet aussi de distinguer différents types de médiation variant entre deux figures majeures de la médiation, le tiers impartial et le tiers engagé.

An essential perspective on the latest shifts in roles of the health and welfare professionals throughout Europe.

Engaging with the acclaimed American sociologist Eliot Freidson's argument about professionalism's 'third logic' (a viable alternative to bureaucracy and consumerism), Dutch, British, French and German contributors to this volume bring together three political and academic debates rarely tackled jointly: professionalism, change, and policy, in the context of the increasing marketization and bureaucratization of healthcare and welfare. As attempts to cope with Europe's increasingly ageing and multicultural societies are being implemented, this first title in a uniquely positioned series provides an exhaustive analysis of the road travelled so far.

Engaging with the acclaimed American sociologist Eliot Freidson's argument about professionalism's 'third logic' (a viable alternative to bureaucracy and consumerism), Dutch, British, French and German contributors to this volume bring together three political and academic debates rarely tackled jointly: professionalism, change, and policy, in the context of the increasing marketization and bureaucratization of healthcare and welfare. As attempts to cope with Europe's increasingly ageing and multicultural societies are being implemented, this first title in a uniquely positioned series provides an exhaustive analysis of the road travelled so far. - Professionals staan al sinds de jaren zeventig ter discussie. Het eerste verwijt was dat ze te veel bezig waren met hun eigen belangen. Het tweede dat ze heus niet meer wisten dan hun cliënten, die zelf veel kennis in huis hadden. Maar sinds kort klinkt een ander geluid. De professional wordt te veel ondermijnd. De nadruk op het afleggen van verantwoording, marktwerking en vraagsturing holt het beroep van arts, sociaal werker en verzorgende helemaal uit. Daar hebben burgers - ook als mondige consumenten - niets aan. Dit boek laat haarscherp zien dat de introductie van nieuwe beleidsconcepten in veel Europese verzorgingsstaten nodig was, maar in de praktijk van zorg en welzijn veel perverse gevolgen heeft. Er zijn echter ook voordelige gevolgen. Naast de trend van de-professionalisering is er ook sprake van voorzichtige re-professionalisering. Daarnaast is er meer aandacht voor de veranderende rol van burgers - ook in de multiculturele samenleving - en hoe professionals daarop reageren, of zouden kunnen reageren. Niet eerder werden drie terreinen bij elkaar gebracht - beleid, veranderende burgers en professionals - en niet eerder werd de praktijk van professionals (van arts tot maatschappelijk werker) in verschillende Europese landen onder de loep genomen.

Since the rise of a right-wing populist movement in 2002, the issue of the 'unsuccessful' integration of ethnic minorities is at the centre of Dutch public debate. The quest for promising social spheres to bridge gaps between the autochthonous Dutch population and minority groups has brought recreational sport to the political agenda. Sport participation is widely advocated as an effective and unproblematic way for interethnic contact and socialization. In this article we report on two studies conducted in the city of Rotterdam to test these assumptions. One study, focusing on motivations to participate in sport, showed that among participants meeting different people is less valued than expected, especially among marginalized migrant-groups who primarily want to confirm their ethnic identity through homogeneous sport activities. Further research on sport encounters between different ethnic groups made it clear that, particularly in soccer, these encounters frequently result in aggression and can seldom be labelled as trouble-free contact. This can be explained as much by the aggressive elements of the game itself as by the fact that inter-ethnic tensions from other social spheres are imported and even magnified in these sports activities. In sum, although recreational sport (such as soccer) might seem ideal for meaningful cultural crossovers, in practice ethnic differences are reinforced in this sphere instead of bridged.