Measuring attachment to life in old age: the Portuguese version of the Positive Valuation of Life Scale (Positive VOL)

TitleMeasuring attachment to life in old age: the Portuguese version of the Positive Valuation of Life Scale (Positive VOL)
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsAraújo, L, Ribeiro, O, Teixeira, L, Azevedo, MJ, Jopp, D, Rott, C, Paúl, C
JournalQuality of Life Research
Volume24
Issue10
Pagination2385-2389
Keywordsold, Portugal, quality of life, validation studies, very old age
Abstract

Purpose
This study aims to present the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of the Positive Valuation of Life Scale (Lawton et al. in J Aging Ment Healt 13:3–31, 2001).

Method
Sample included 207 community-dwelling elders (129 women; M Age = 77.2 years, SD = 7.5). The data collection included the translated and adapted Portuguese version of Positive Valuation of Life Scale, Life Satisfaction Index Z, Meaning in Life Questionnaire and Geriatric Depression Scale.

Results
From exploratory factor analysis, two factors emerged, existential beliefs and perceived control, explaining 49 % of the total variance. Both factors were positively related with meaning in life and life satisfaction and negatively related with depression (p < 0.05). The values obtained for internal consistency for the total scale and for each subscale were good (α > 0.75).

Conclusion
The Portuguese version of Positive VOL Scale represents a reliable and valid measure to capture the subjective experience of attachment to one’s life. The two-factor structure is an update to Lawton’s previous work and in line with findings obtained in the USA (Dennis et al. in What is valuation of life for frail community-dwelling older adults: factor structure and criterion validity of the VOL, Thomas Jefferson University, Center for Applied Research on Aging and Health Research, 2005) and Japan (Nakagawa et al. in Shinrigaku Kenkyu 84:37–46, 2013). Future research is required to investigate VOL predictors and the potential changes toward the end of the life span.

DOI10.1007/s11136-015-0981-z
Refereed DesignationRefereed

How could lay perspectives on successful aging complement scientific theory? Findings from a U.S. and a German life-span sample

TitleHow could lay perspectives on successful aging complement scientific theory? Findings from a U.S. and a German life-span sample
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsJopp, D, Wozniak, D, Damarin, A, De Feo, M, Jung, S, Jeswani, S
JournalThe Gerontologist
Volume55
Issue1
Pagination91-106
Keywordslay perspective, qualitative interviews, successful aging
Abstract

Purpose of the Study: This article investigates lay perspectives of the concept of successful aging in young, middle-aged, and older adults from 2 cultures, the United States and Germany, to potentially guide the development of scientific theories of successful aging. The empirical findings are embedded in a comprehensive overview of theories of successful aging and life-span development and offer implications for theory development.
Design and Methods: Two samples of young, middle-aged, and older adults from the United States (N = 151) and Germany (N = 155) were asked about definitions and determinants of successful aging. Codes were developed to capture common themes among the answers, resulting in 16 categories.
Results: Themes mentioned included resources (health, social), behaviors (activities), and psychological factors (strategies, attitudes/beliefs, well-being, meaning). There were striking similarities across countries, age, and gender. Health and Social Resources were mentioned most frequently, followed by Activities/Interests, Virtues/Attitudes/Beliefs, Well-being, and Life management/Coping. Age differences were limited to Growth/Maturation and Respect/Success, and gender differences were limited to Social Resources and Well-being. Educational and cultural effects were limited to psychological factors and Education/Knowledge, which were more often mentioned by U.S. participants and individuals with more education.
Implications: Young, middle-aged, and older lay persons from the United States and Germany have quite similar concepts of successful aging, which they view in far more multidimensional terms than do established scientific theories (Rowe & Kahn, 1998). Given evidence that factors mentioned by laypeople do promote successful aging, considering them in more comprehensive theoretical models may enhance our understanding.

DOI10.1093/geront/gnu059
Refereed DesignationRefereed

The irony of social trust: Individual-level and contextual-level links with protest intention and radical right support in Switzerland

TitleThe irony of social trust: Individual-level and contextual-level links with protest intention and radical right support in Switzerland
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2016
AuthorsGlaeser, S
JournalJournal of Community and Applied Social Psychology
Volume26
Issue2
Pagination110-124
Keywordscollective action, exclusion, inclusion, multi-level analysis, protest, radical right support, social capital, social trust, Switzerland
Abstract

This research examines how social trust translates into dynamics of mobilisation for inclusion or exclusion in Swiss cantons by studying how social trust is linked to equality-directed protest intention versus radical right support, comparing individual-level and contextual-level relationships. The study is based on data from the Swiss Household Panel collected between 2002 and 2008. The impact of individual-level and contextual-level social trust is analysed in three-level regression models of repeated observations, nested in individuals who are nested in cantons. The results indicate complex patterns that depend on the level at which social trust is assessed and confirm the need for a contextualised view of social trust and social capital. For individuals, higher social trust is associated with higher protest intention and lower radical right support. However, in cantons characterised by higher rates of social trust, individuals are less likely to engage in protest actions and more likely to support the radical right. Further analyses show that canton-level social trust is intertwined with other contextual factors, suggesting that in certain configurations, that is, combined with low levels of cultural and social diversity, climates of social trust may be linked to more restricted forms of solidarity and the persistence of inequality.

DOI10.1002/casp.2237
Refereed DesignationRefereed

Instaurer des normes de bonne parentalité. Les indicateurs statistiques des risques et du bien-être de l’enfant aux États-Unis

TitleInstaurer des normes de bonne parentalité. Les indicateurs statistiques des risques et du bien-être de l’enfant aux États-Unis
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsGaberel, P
EditorMartin, C
Book Title«Être un bon parent»: Une injonction contemporaine.
Series TitleLien social et Politiques
Chapter1.2
Pagination53-72
PublisherPresses de l'École des hautes études en santé publique
Place PublishedParis
ISBN Number978-2-8109-0260-6
Keywordschildren, parenthood, risk, statistics, USA, wellbeing
Abstract

A l’instar de la littérature sur la parentalité dont le volume a triplé chaque dix ans de 1950 à 1989 pour doubler dans les années 90 et s’accroître ensuite plus régulièrement ces quinze dernières années (Modak, Gaberel, & Hounet, 2012), la publication d’indicateurs de risques et du bien-être de l’enfant débute dans la décennie 1950 et s’accroît depuis régulièrement en diversifiant les lieux, les niveaux et les populations dont les risques et le bien-être sont évalués (Arieh, 2006). Une recherche récente sur les controverses de la parentalité nous a conduit à mettre en lien le développement de ces systèmes d’indicateurs et les normes de la bonne parentalité qui répondent aux changements démographiques et sociaux comme la rareté de l’enfant, la fragilisation des liens conjugaux, la multiplication des formes familiales, l’augmentation de l’insertion professionnelle, la fragilisation des conditions économiques ou encore la réforme des dispositifs de prise en charge de l’enfant. Nous avons ainsi retenu un petit nombre de documents faisant explicitement le lien entre parentalité et indicateurs de bien-être de l’enfant. D’abord centrée sur les années 2000 à 2011 en Amérique du nord, nous avons élargi notre investigation à la décennie précédente. En effet, depuis 1990, plusieurs organismes états-uniens développent et promeuvent des systèmes d’indicateurs statistiques mesurant le bien-être de la population enfantine et de la jeunesse de nombreuses villes et états des Etats-Unis. Le premier programme, initié par le Centre pour l’étude de la politique sociale situé à Washington DC (Center for the Study of Social Policy, CSSP) et financé par la fondation Annie E. Casey, s’intitule « Kids Count » (CSSP, 1990). Il propose un ensemble d’indicateurs décrivant des situations locales laissant aux acteurs du lieu, municipalités, communautés urbaines, services de protection de l’enfance de l’État ou acteurs privés, le soin de mobiliser ces indicateurs pour analyser la situation de l’enfance ou de la jeunesse en terme de bien-être, de risque ou de politique sociale, familiale ou de formation. Ces systèmes d’indicateurs ont ceci d’intéressant qu’ils définissent implicitement les conditions de la bonne parentalité même si, à l’origine, ils mesurent essentiellement des mises en danger des enfants par des risques sanitaires, économiques et environnementaux.

Populations Roms et santé

TitlePopulations Roms et santé
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsJackson, Y, Tabin, J-P, Hourton, G, Bodenmann, P
JournalRevue médicale suisse
Volume2015
Issue467
Pagination735-739
Abstract

L’état de santé des personnes dites «Roms» est largement moins bon que celui des populations non roms voisines avec une espérance de vie inférieure de 5 à 15 ans. Cet état de fait résulte essentiellement d’une exposition à des déterminants de santé défavorables et à l’expérience de politiques d’exclusion. La recherche biomédicale et en sciences sociales s’est peu intéressée à ces populations et les connaissances disponibles sont limitées. L’accès insuffisant aux services publics, notamment de santé, et les pratiques cliniques non optimales sont des facteurs modifiables. Des interventions ciblant ces domaines peuvent réduire les inégalités sociales de santé, y compris en Suisse.

The feminization of occupations and change in wages: A panel analysis of Britain, Germany and Switzerland

TitleThe feminization of occupations and change in wages: A panel analysis of Britain, Germany and Switzerland
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsMurphy, E, Oesch, D
JournalSOEPpapers
Volume2015
Issue731
Pagination1-38
PublisherDIW Berlin
Keywordsdiscrimination, gender, occupations, sex-segregation, wages
Abstract

In the last four decades, women have made major inroads into occupations previously dominated by men. This paper examines whether occupational feminization is accompanied by a decline in wages: Do workers suffer a wage penalty if they remain in, or move into, feminizing occupations? We analyze this question over the 1990s and 2000s in Britain, Germany and Switzerland, using longitudinal panel data to estimate individual fixed-effects for men and women. Moving from an entirely male to an entirely female occupation entails a loss in individual earnings of thirteen percent in Britain, seven percent in Switzerland and three percent in Germany. The impact of occupational feminization on wages is not linear, but sets apart occupations holding more than 60 percent of women. Moving into such female occupations incurs a wage penalty. Contrary to the prevailing idea in economics, differences in productivity – human capital, job-specific skills and time investment – do not fully explain the wage gap between male and female occupations. The wage penalty associated with working in a female occupation is also much larger where employer discretion is greater – in the private sector – compared to where wage-setting is guided by formal rules – the public sector. These findings suggest that wage disparities across male and female occupations are due to gender devaluation.

URLhttp://www.diw.de/sixcms/detail.php?id=diw_01.c.496852.de

Contextualizing women's academic careers: Comparative perspectives on gender, care and employment regimes in seven European countries

TitleContextualizing women's academic careers: Comparative perspectives on gender, care and employment regimes in seven European countries
Publication TypeBook
Year of Publication2015
Series EditorLe Feuvre, N
Series TitleGARCIA working papers
Number of Pages403
PublisherGARCIA
Place PublishedTrento, Italy
ISBN Number978-88-8443-609-2
Keywordsacademic, careers, Europe, gender, occupation
URLhttp://garciaproject.eu/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/GARCIA_report_wp1D1.pdf

Trajectoires migratoires des personnes confrontées à des violences collectives en ex-Yougoslavie: le cas de la Bosnie (1990-2005)

TitleTrajectoires migratoires des personnes confrontées à des violences collectives en ex-Yougoslavie: le cas de la Bosnie (1990-2005)
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsGauthier, J-A, Widmer, E
JournalMigrations Sociétés
Issue156
Pagination31-41
Keywordsmigration, sequence analysis, trajectories
Refereed DesignationRefereed

Déterminants socioéconomiques et culturels du contrôle des naissances dans les bidonvilles de Mumbai: une contribution à la compréhension du malthusianisme de la pauvreté

TitleDéterminants socioéconomiques et culturels du contrôle des naissances dans les bidonvilles de Mumbai: une contribution à la compréhension du malthusianisme de la pauvreté
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsBertrand, A-L, Oris, M, Prabhat, D, Oza, S
EditorAdjamagbo, A, Antoine, P
Book TitleDémographie et politiques sociales (Actes du XVIIe colloque, Ouagadougou, novembre 2012)
Pagination1-18
PublisherAIDELF
Place PublishedParis
ISBN Number978-2-9521220-4-7
Keywordsbidonvilles, contrôle des naissances, malthusianisme de la pauvreté, préférence pour les fils, stérilisations
Abstract

This paper explores how the theory of the Malthusianism of poverty applies in the context of the slums of Mumbai. In fact, despite a declining fertility level, Indian women continue to give birth at young age and with short inter-birth intervals. The Malthusianism of poverty explains this paradox. In this paper, we will highlight three nuances that could be brought to this model. First, extreme poverty can constitute an obstacle to the use of birth control methods, since a minimal degree of agency seems to be required to resort to family planning. Second, gender discrimination in the sex of children (the well-known “son preference”) and religion have a huge impact on couples’ choice of contraception. Third, women empowerment plays an important role in the decision about family planning. We conclude on the integration of two apparently antagonist theories: following a logic of immediate survival (the model of the Malthusianism of poverty), couples tend to practice birth control, which mostly means sterilization. However, thanks to better educational levels, children – less numerous and better educated – will be able to help their parents in their old age (Caldwell’s theory of fertility decline).

URLhttp://www.erudit.org/livre/aidelf/2012/004086co.pdf

Introduction

TitleIntroduction
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsNota, L, Rossier, J
EditorNota, L, Rossier, J
Book TitleHandbook of life design: From practice to theory and from theory to practice
Chapter1
Pagination10-15
PublisherHogrefe
Place PublishedGöttingen

Égalité de chances? Une comparaison des conditions de vie des personnes âgées immigrées et "nationales"

TitleÉgalité de chances? Une comparaison des conditions de vie des personnes âgées immigrées et "nationales"
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsBolzman, C, Vagni, G
JournalHommes et Migrations
Volume1309
Pagination19-28
Abstract

L'amélioration des conditions de vie des nouveaux retraités perceptible en Suisse comme ailleurs en Europe exige, dans le cas des migrants, d'être fortement nuancée. Une enquête menée en 2012 dans plusieurs cantons suisses permet de mieux cerner leurs conditions de vie en fonction de leur nationalité, de leur parcours socioprofessionnel ou de leur état de santé. La démocratisation de la vieillesse, c'est-à-dire la possibilité pour des personnes ayant connu la migration de vieillir dans des conditions d'égalité des chances par rapport aux non-migrants, n'est pas un fait acquis.

Refereed DesignationRefereed

Educated preferences or selection effects? A longitudinal analysis of the impact of educational attainment on attitudes towards immigrants

TitleEducated preferences or selection effects? A longitudinal analysis of the impact of educational attainment on attitudes towards immigrants
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2015
AuthorsLancee, B, Sarrasin, O
JournalEuropean Sociological Review
Volume31
Issue4
Pagination490-501
Keywordsattitudes, education, immigration, Swiss Household Panel
Abstract

While previous studies unequivocally show that education and attitudes towards immigrants correlate, the underlying mechanisms remain debated. The liberalization effect claims that education fosters egalitarian values and analytic skills, which translate into positive attitudes. Additionally, the higher educated are less likely to face economic competition from immigrants. However, research on socialization shows that political attitudes develop early in life. Thus, there may be self-selection into education. While there is reason to expect both education and selection effects, previous work has relied exclusively on cross-sectional analyses, thus confounding the two mechanisms. Drawing on the Swiss Household Panel, we find that virtually all variation in education disappears when only within-individual variance is modelled. While we find strong differences in attitudes towards immigrants between individuals, we observe little change in attitudes as individuals pass through education. Furthermore, our findings show that when entering the labour market, higher educated individuals also become more likely to oppose immigrants. This suggests that differences between educational groups are mostly due to selection effects, and not to the alleged liberalizing effect of education. We conclude that future research on attitudes towards immigrants would greatly benefit from addressing selection into education.

DOI10.1093/esr/jcv008
Refereed DesignationRefereed

Social capitalization in personal relationships

TitleSocial capitalization in personal relationships
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsMilardo, RM, Helms, H, Widmer, E, Marks, S
EditorAgnew, CR
Book TitleSocial influences on romantic relationships: Beyond the dyad
Pagination33-57
PublisherCambridge University Press
Place PublishedCambridge
ISBN Number9781107029361
Abstract

Families accrue advantages through their investments in their immediate mem bers and in their relationships with kin and a variety of personal associates. Although the term investment is quite familiar to relationship and family scholars (e.g., Goodfriend and Agnew, 2008; Rusbult, Drigotas, and Verette,1994), in recent decades it has been given new focus through the idea of social capital, a concept that has found a captive audience principally among network scholars and sociologists. Despite the controversies that have arisen concerning this construct (Lin, 2001a; Portes, 1998; Sandefur and Laumann, 1998), we believe that its value warrants further attempts to clarify the essential meaning of the concept. In particular, we believe that family and relationship scholarship is especially well suited both to guide this clarification and to benefit from integrating this concept into its work. In this chapter, we present an understanding of how this integration might unfold.

Sociologie de la famille. Un demi-siècle de pluralisation des formes familiales, et après?

TitleSociologie de la famille. Un demi-siècle de pluralisation des formes familiales, et après?
Publication TypeBook Chapter
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsWidmer, E
EditorServais, P
Book TitleRegards sur la famille, le couple et la sexualité
Pagination35-46
PublisherAcademia L'Harmattan
Place PublishedLouvain-la-Neuve
ISBN Number978-2-8061-0155-6
Keywordsconfigurations familiales, sociologie de la famille
Abstract

La recherche sociologique nous a permis de mieux comprendre la pluralisation des formes familiales contemporaines. La conclusion que l'on peut tirer est que, s'il y a bien eu une pluralisation des formes familiales, cette évolution ne doit pas être interprétée comme l'expression d'une individualisation ou d'une désinstitutionalisation radicales, voire d'une égalisation des hommes et des femmes dans le cadre familial. Une majorité d'individus suivent aujourd'hui des trajectoires familiales relativement classiques, qu'un petit nombre de types permettent de saisir. Les configurations familiales dont ils font partie sont limitées en nombre et facilement repérables

La variété des configurations familiales après une recomposition: choix et contraintes

TitleLa variété des configurations familiales après une recomposition: choix et contraintes
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsDe Carlo, I, Aeby, G, Widmer, E
JournalRevue suisse de sociologie
Volume40
Issue1
Pagination9-27
Keywordsconfigurations familiales, familles recomposées, liens familiaux, ménage familial, réservoir de parenté
Abstract

Les recompositions familiales mettent en exergue les limites des études de la famille fondées sur le ménage. En effet, la famille qui compte dépasse de toute évidence, dans cette situation, les frontières de celui-ci. Sur la base d’un échantillon de 300 femmes ayant un enfant entre 5 et 13 ans, la moitié en situation de recomposition familiale, cette recherche rend compte de la diversité de la composition des contextes familiaux significatifs aux yeux des individus, en distinguant neuf configurations-types. Ces configurations se retrouvent tant dans les familles de première union que dans les familles recomposées. Elles dépassent le cadre du ménage en répondant aux choix familiaux des individus, ainsi qu’aux contraintes socio-démographiques imposées par le réservoir de parenté et l’institutionnalisation du couple.

Refereed DesignationRefereed

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