Analyzing and visualizing state sequences in R with TraMineR

TitleAnalyzing and visualizing state sequences in R with TraMineR
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsGabadinho, A, Ritschard, G, Müller, NS, Studer, M
JournalJournal of Statistical Software
Volume40
Issue4
Pagination1-37
PublisherThe American Statistical Association
Place PublishedAlexandria, VA
ISSN1548-7660
Keywordscategorical sequences, dissimilarities, optimal matching, R, representative sequences, sequence complexity, sequence visualization, state sequences
Abstract

This article describes the many capabilities offered by the TraMineR toolbox for categorical sequence data. It focuses more specifically on the analysis and rendering of state sequences. Addressed features include the description of sets of sequences by means of transversal aggregated views, the computation of longitudinal characteristics of individual sequences and the measure of pairwise dissimilarities. Special emphasis is put on the multiple ways of visualizing sequences. The core element of the package is the state sequence object in which we store the set of sequences together with attributes such as the alphabet, state labels and the color palette. The functions can then easily retrieve this information to ensure presentation homogeneity across all printed and graphical displays. The article also demonstrates how TraMineR’s outcomes give access to advanced analyses such as clustering and statistical modeling of sequence data.

URLhttp://www.jstatsoft.org/v40/i04
Refereed DesignationRefereed

Le parcours professionnel des chômeurs de longue durée en Suisse

TitleLe parcours professionnel des chômeurs de longue durée en Suisse
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBigotta, M, Losa, FB, Ritschard, G, Stephani, E
JournalLa Vie économique
Volume2011
Issue7/8
Pagination51-54
PublisherSecrétariat d'État à l'économie (SECO), Département fédéral de l'économie (DFE)
Place PublishedBern
Abstract

Cet article présente les premiers résultats d’un projet de recherche qui étudie le parcours professionnel de personnes confrontées au chômage de longue durée en Suisse au cours de l’année 2002. L’étude, qui couvre les trois ans avant et les trois ans après la période de chômage, cherche notamment à répondre aux questions suivantes: quels sont les facteurs qui conduisent au chômage de longue durée? Existe-t-il un profil type des chômeurs de longue durée? Le chômage de longue durée est-il un événement plutôt unique ou récurrent? Combien de chômeurs de longue durée arrivent-ils à réintégrer le marché du travail? Qui sont-ils et comment s’y prennent-ils? Quelles sont les catégories les plus exposées et donc exclues du marché du travail?

Refereed DesignationRefereed

Jeder Generation ihre eigene Intervention? Inwieweit spielt die Generationenzugehörigkeit eine Rolle bei gerontologischen Interventionen?

TitleJeder Generation ihre eigene Intervention? Inwieweit spielt die Generationenzugehörigkeit eine Rolle bei gerontologischen Interventionen?
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsPerrig-Chiello, P
JournalPsychotherapie im Alter
Volume30
Issue2
Pagination179-191
PublisherPsychosozial-Verlag
Place PublishedGiessen
ISBN Number16132637
Abstract

In Forschungsliteratur und Praxis scheint es ein Alltagsverständnis zu geben, was gerontologische Interventionen sind. Die meisten davon zielen zum einen darauf, altersassoziierte körperliche, kognitive und soziale Ressourceneinbußen vorzubeugen oder zu kompensieren, zum andern fokussieren sie altersbezogene Entwicklungsaufgaben und liefern die Basis für gerontologische Beratung und Lebenshilfe. Dabei wird häufig von der impliziten Annahme ausgegangen, dass sowohl Ressourceneinbußen als auch Entwicklungsaufgaben altersspezifisch sind. Damit verbunden ist der Anspruch, dass diese Interventionen einen Zeit überdauernden Wert haben, wobei häufig übersehen wird, dass Altern sich immer im Kontext eines spezifischen historisch-gesellschaftlichen Kontexts vollzieht. Die Zugehörigkeit zu einer bestimmten Geburtskohorte und damit die Kontextbedingungen, in denen Menschen aufgewachsen sind, sowie die unterschiedlichen Erfahrungen, die sie als Generation machten, prägen im Wesentlichen auch die Art und Weise, wie sie altern. Es stellt sich somit die Frage, inwiefern die Generationenzugehörigkeit bei der Konzeption von psychologischen Interventionen berücksichtigt werden muss und wo sie hingegen vernachlässigbar ist.

Refereed DesignationRefereed

Les pratiques de subjectivation des femmes. Une analyse par le révélateur du rapport à l’argent dans le couple

TitleLes pratiques de subjectivation des femmes. Une analyse par le révélateur du rapport à l’argent dans le couple
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBachmann, L
JournalSociologie et sociétés
Volume43
Issue1
Pagination287-304
PublisherLes Presses de l’Université de Montréal
Place PublishedMontréal
ISSN0038-030X
Keywordsautonomy, care of the self, couple, gender, money, subjectification work
Abstract

This article deals with the issue of women’s appropriation of the democratic ideal of autonomy and equality, through studying the association of women in relationships to money. It considers the meaning women give to money in an ideal context of emancipation, as well as in one with objective inequalities between the sexes. Thus, the association with money serves as an indicator of identity, of the autonomy they claim or of their place in the gender division of work. Our study shows that for women in conditions where they are able to think about emancipation, the democratic ideal becomes a way to express a care of the self. Their ethical requirements, revealed through their association with money, implicitly reflect the domination of one gender by the other, some aspects of which are no longer tolerated. As a new social norm, these needs encourage them to move beyond the status of an object to that of a subject through subjectification work, in conjunction with the democratic ideal. In showing that today women strive for emancipation on an individual and not a collective level, without drawing upon a gender critique of social relationships, this qualitative research reintroduces the question of the feminist legacy of the 1970s.

Refereed DesignationRefereed

Devenir parent

TitleDevenir parent
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsLe Goff, J-M, Levy, R
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue8
Pagination1-36
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleRapport de recherche
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordscollecte de données, enquête, transition à la parentalité
Abstract

Le présent document présente la méthodologie de collecte de l’enquête Devenir parent qui a été réalisée en Suisse romande entre décembre 2005 et juin 2009 par le centre PAVIE. Cette enquête, qui a pour objet d’analyser les changements dans l’existence au moment où des couples deviennent parent pour la première fois, est un panel en trois vagues. La première vague a été réalisée durant la grossesse, la deuxième dans les quelques mois ayant suivi la naissance de l’enfant et la troisième plus d’un an après. L’enquête comporte un volet quantitatif (N=232) et un volet qualitatif (N=31). La population enquêtée - des couples dont la femme était enceinte pour la première fois - s’est avérée peu facile à contacter et à recruter. Nous avons ainsi été amenés à développer progressivement différentes stratégies de recrutement. Ces stratégies ont toutefois induit certains biais de sélection, en favorisant notamment le recrutement de couples issus des classes moyennes. Par ailleurs, l’échantillon a connu une certaine attrition au fur et à mesure du déroulement des vagues de l’enquête. Nous présentons ainsi dans ce rapport les méthodologies de recrutement des couples et de réalisation des interviews. Nous proposons, en outre, une analyse approfondie de la distorsion de l’échantillon enquêtée en comparant les couples recrutés avec la population des femmes vivant en couple en Suisse romande et ayant un enfant de moins d’un an lors du recensement 2000. Cette analyse s’appuie, notamment, sur le développement d’une méthode de Monte Carlo visant à indiquer quels ont été les facteurs ayant été les plus discriminants dans la sélection des couples. Enfin, nous développons une analyse de l’attrition. Le présent rapport est destiné aux utilisateurs des données de cette enquête, qui seront dans les prochains mois archivées à FORS, ainsi qu’à tout chercheur e intéressé(e) par la collecte de données longitudinales sur des populations particulières.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.8

Why should parental leave policies (not) be implemented? A frame analysis of French-speaking Swiss press articles: 1999-2009

TitleWhy should parental leave policies (not) be implemented? A frame analysis of French-speaking Swiss press articles: 1999-2009
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsValarino, I, Bernardi, L
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue7
Pagination1-18
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch paper
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordsgender, media analysis, parental leave policies
Abstract

This paper analyses the media coverage of parental leave policies (parental and paternity leaves) in Swiss French-speaking press articles from 1999 to 2009. Switzerland is one of the rare European countries, which has no statutory parental or paternity leave. The aim is to describe the mediatisation of these policies and to analyse the arguments in favour and against their implementation. We proceed with a content analysis of 579 press articles, as well as a frame analysis on a subset in which parental leave policies are the central theme (N=206). Results show that paternity leave is the predominant public issue addressed in the dataset. A mediatisation peak was reached in 2007, following an initiative of a member of the Federal executive to implement a short paternity leave. Parental leave policies are predominantly represented in a positive light. The primary positive frame is economic, in which leaves are represented as serving the interests of companies. Involved fatherhood and gender equality are also frequently mentioned as positive frames. The main negative frame presents parental leaves policies as secondary measures which are not truly necessary. Also, financial costs, for the employers and for society at large are frequently mentioned. We discuss the predominance of the economic frame in the media coverage of parental leave policies and suggest future avenues of research on parental leave policies in Switzerland.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.7

Field, habitus, and economic reason: Prospects of conceptualizing economic action

TitleField, habitus, and economic reason: Prospects of conceptualizing economic action
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsHanappi, D
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue6
Pagination1-20
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch paper
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordseconomic man, economic sociology, embeddedness, preferences, self-interest, symbolic interaction
Abstract

The limitations of rationality in economic action have stimulated sociological approaches to the economy as positive critiques of orthodox economics. This paper contributes to design a view of the social basis of economic action under uncertainty. Starting out from some critique of the rational actor model, and informed by the embeddedness tradition, the article proposes a field and habitus approach to economic action. Bringing the complex elements of field and habitus to the center of attention helps in examining how cognitive acts matter for economic reason, but remain obscure in orthodox economic models. The simultaneous inclusion of the field and habitus concept and the emphasis on cognitive acts are applied to signaling decisions. This helps explain how economic action is shaped by resources in a way well suited to economic reason and thereby contributes to an understanding of the social dynamics of markets.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.6

Gender role-set family orientations, and fertility intentions in Switzerland

TitleGender role-set family orientations, and fertility intentions in Switzerland
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBernardi, L, Le Goff, J-M, Ryser, V-A
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue5
Pagination1-16
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch paper
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordsfertility intentions, gender
Abstract

This paper investigates women’s attitudes towards paid employment and family in relation to the share of paid and domestic workloads within a couple and in relation to the intention to have a child. We use longitudinal data from the Swiss Household Panel that questions both partners separately on family and work values, fertility intentions, and gender division of tasks. Our multilevel estimations confirm the important role of subjective evaluations of the couple’s roleset: being satisfied with the couple’s role set favors fertility intentions for women who are already mothers. However, for childless women, aspirations to economic independence and being employed have an independent and negative effect on fertility intentions.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.5

TRACES: Methodological and technical report

TitleTRACES: Methodological and technical report
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsSpini, D, Elcheroth, G, Fasel, R
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue4
Pagination1-46
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch report
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordsex-Yugoslavia, life calendars, social attitudes, transition to adulthood, victimization
Abstract

Transition to Adulthood and Collective Experiences Survey (TRACES) is a research program focusing on war and economical victimization in ex-Yugoslavia and their impact on young adult’s attitudes and values. The main quantitative survey was launched in 2006; Principal Investigator: Dario Spini; Project Coordinator: Guy Elcheroth. Its design included two partially embedded samples following a random sampling strategy stratified in 80 areas covering the entire ex-Yugoslavian territory. An individual-based questionnaire (Cohort sample, including individuals born between 1968 and 1974; N = 2’254) was coupled with a representative sample of the adult population (Random sample; N = 3’975). This second sample enabled to record, using life calendars, valid data on the experiences communities faced from 1990 to 2006 and during individuals’ transition to adulthood (from 15 to 35 years old) across diverse regions of former Yugoslavia. As a result TRACES presents an innovative multilevel survey design enabling the location of respondents’ experiences in time and space. This methodological and technical report provides details about survey design and instruments, about the context of the production of data and data quality. The purpose is to offer information as transparent as possible for current and future data users and to share this experience with the broad scientific community.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.4

A mixed-method social networks study design for research on transnational families

TitleA mixed-method social networks study design for research on transnational families
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBernardi, L
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue3
Pagination1-13
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch paper
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordschildren, family relationships, fertility intentions, methodology, qualitative, social support
Abstract

This paper advocates for mixed-method networks research design to describe and analyse egocentered social networks in transnational family research. Drawing on the experience of the “Social networks’ influences on family formation”, we show how the combined use of network generator tools and open ended interviews produces unique data on family configurations and their impact on life course choices. A mixed-methods network approach presents specific advantages research on children in transnational families: quantitative analyses reconstruct the potential and actual relational support available to children in a context where kin interactions may be hindered by temporary and prolonged period of separation; qualitative analyses address families strategies to maintain relationships across legal borders and geographical distance, and the implications for children well-being.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.3

An integrative approach to managerial and professional careers in post-industrial labour markets

TitleAn integrative approach to managerial and professional careers in post-industrial labour markets
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsHanappi, D
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue2
Pagination1-28
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleResearch paper
ISSN2296-1658
KeywordsBourdieu, career development, educational inequalities, quantitative analysis, transition to work
Abstract

Within the dynamic nature of post-industrial labour markets, managerial and professional careers have witnessed major transformations in recent decades. This paper presents an integrative approach to analyzing managerial and professional careers using a career field and habitus model based on the framework of sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. This approach examines the correlation between personal characteristics of graduates from different Austrian educational institutions and early career outcomes, and delineates the impact of higher education, as a key element within social structure. Possible explanations for the development of early managerial and professional careers are offered, with suggested ideas to conceptualize careers as reflecting the values, aspirations, and socio-structural characteristics of specific groups. A first empirical analysis underscores group differences in socio-economic variables between the two graduate groups. However, results for group differences in psychological factors and career outcomes suggest a high degree of standardisation within the entry stage of careers. The last section of this paper discusses some major limitations of these findings and implications of the career field and habitus concepts for future research on theory development and organizational practice.

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.2

Risk, vulnerability, and the life course

TitleRisk, vulnerability, and the life course
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsMarshall, VW
JournalLIVES Working Papers
Volume2011
Issue1
Pagination1-21
PublisherNCCR LIVES
Place PublishedLausanne
Type of ArticleInaugural Presentation
ISSN2296-1658
Keywordslife course, vulnerability
Abstract

As the first contribution to the Working Paper Series LIVES we are honored to present our readers Professor Victor Marshall’s speech “Risk, Vulnerability, and the Life Course”, held at the inauguration ceremony of the Swiss National Center of Competence in Research LIVES, on March 8th 2011, at the University of Lausanne.

Victor Marshall on the content and structure of his speech: “I will first suggest to you that the life course perspective is a vast improvement over previously accepted perspectives in the human and social sciences. I will then identify some of the key constructs of the life course perspective, highlighting their relationships to vulnerability. I will conclude by addressing policy issues in relation to the life course, relating these to the stated mission of LIVES.”

DOI10.12682/lives.2296-1658.2011.1

Money of her own: Women’s struggle for emancipation through their dealings with money

TitleMoney of her own: Women’s struggle for emancipation through their dealings with money
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBachmann, L
JournalJournal of comparative research in Anthropology and Sociology
Volume2
Issue1
Pagination1-15
ISSN2068-0317
Keywordscare of the self, family, gender, money, women
Abstract

Our study explores women’s appropriation of the democratic ideal of equality and autonomy as revealed through their handling of money within a couple-relationship. We based our study on 30 in-depth interviews with partners of heterosexual couples in [country]. Our results show that women problematize themselves in terms of their autonomy and equality between the sexes through their relationship with money. They are rooting a core issue concerning their emancipation in ordinary, everyday, and apparently insignificant gestures which are often invisible to a casual onlooker. What is being witnessed, therefore, is the gendered personalisation of a social issue, with women working towards their emancipation individually rather than collectively. Gender relations are thus being reshaped, integrating two contemporary values: women’s emancipation and the emphasis on the individual.

Refereed DesignationRefereed

Türkeistämmige Kinder in der Schule

TitleTürkeistämmige Kinder in der Schule
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBolzman, C, Gomensoro, A
EditorIdeli, M, Suter Reich, V, Kieser, H-L
Book TitleNeue Menschenlandschaften: Migration Türkei - Schweiz 1961-2011
Series TitleSchriftenreihe der Stiftung Forschungsstelle Schweiz-Türkei
NumberBand 3
Pagination283-305
PublisherChronos
Place PublishedZürich
ISBN Number978-3-0340-1105-1

Extracting and rendering representative sequences

TitleExtracting and rendering representative sequences
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsGabadinho, A, Ritschard, G, Studer, M, Müller, NS
EditorFred, A, Dietz, JLG, Liu, K, Filipe, J
Book TitleKnowledge Discovery, Knowledge Engineering and Knowledge Management
Series TitleCommunications in Computer and Information Science
NumberVol. 128
Pagination94-106
PublisherSpringer
Place PublishedBerlin
ISBN Number978-3-642-19031-5
Keywordscategorical sequences, dairwise dissimilarities, discrepancy of sequences, representatives, summarizing sets of sequences, visualization
Abstract

This paper is concerned with the summarization of a set of categorical sequences. More specifically, the problem studied is the determination of the smallest possible number of representative sequences that ensure a given coverage of the whole set, i.e. that have together a given percentage of sequences in their neighbourhood. The proposed heuristic for extracting the representative subset requires as main arguments a pairwise distance matrix, a representativeness criterion and a distance threshold under which two sequences are considered as redundant or, identically, in the neighborhood of each other. It first builds a list of candidates using a representativeness score and then eliminates redundancy. We propose also a visualization tool for rendering the results and quality measures for evaluating them. The proposed tools have been implemented in our TraMineR R package for mining and visualizing sequence data and we demonstrate their efficiency on a real world example from social sciences. The methods are nonetheless by no way limited to social science data and should prove useful in many other domains.

Glücklich oder bloss zufrieden? Hintergründe und Fakten zum Paradoxon des Wohlbefindens im Alter

TitleGlücklich oder bloss zufrieden? Hintergründe und Fakten zum Paradoxon des Wohlbefindens im Alter
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsPerrig-Chiello, P
EditorHolenstein, A, Meyer Schweizer, R, Perrig-Chiello, P, Rusterholz, P, von Zimmermann, C, Wagner, A, Zwahlen, SM
Book TitleGlück
Series TitleBerner Universitätsschriften
NumberBand 56
Pagination241-254
PublisherHaupt
Place PublishedBern
ISBN Number978-3-258-07689-8

Lebenslange Entwicklung: Selbstverantwortlichkeit und Schicksal

TitleLebenslange Entwicklung: Selbstverantwortlichkeit und Schicksal
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsPerrig-Chiello, P
EditorNoth, I, Morgenthaler, C, Greider, KJ
Book TitlePastoralpsychologie und Religionspsychologie im Dialog / Pastoral psychology and psychology of religion in dialogue
Series TitlePraktische Theologie heute
Pagination169-183
PublisherW. Kohlhammer
Place PublishedStuttgart
ISBN Number978-3-17-021835-2

Well-being and social role experience in middle-aged women. The impact of different living contexts

TitleWell-being and social role experience in middle-aged women. The impact of different living contexts
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsPerrig-Chiello, P, Hutchison, S
EditorPraz, A-F, Burgnard, S
Book TitleGenre et bien-être: Questionner les inégalités
Series TitleQuestions de genre
Pagination118-134
PublisherSeismo
Place PublishedZürich
ISBN Number978-2-88351-051-7

Conclusions

TitleConclusions
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsOris, M
EditorPraz, A-F, Burgnard, S
Book TitleGenre et bien-être: Questionner les inégalités
Series TitleQuestions de genre
Pagination220-225
PublisherSeismo
Place PublishedZürich
ISBN Number978-2-88351-051-7

Couple formation as a transition between families

TitleCouple formation as a transition between families
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsBernardi, L, Oppo, A
EditorJallinoja, R, Widmer, E
Book TitleFamilies and kinship in contemporary Europe: Rules and practices of relatedness
Series TitleStudies in Family and Intimate Life
Pagination133-157
PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
Place PublishedBasingstoke, UK
ISBN Number978-0-230-28428-9

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