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This comment is stimulated by Max Haller's contribution The Challenge for Comparative Sociology in the Transformation of Europe which appeared in the 1990 issue of International Sociology, and takes it as a starting point and as a challenge for some basic reflections on how to approach the emerging European society. This article gives a short abstract of Haller's argument and appreciates its merits and examines some of his propositions. This will allow the author to formulate a significantly different position. The last paragraph draws some conclusions. Although he does not make this point extremely explicit, the intention behind Haller's paper is, in the author's perception, to demonstrate that Europe is an optimal constellation for making international and intercultural comparisons. Thus, the problems he has to solve are what to compare with what, why, and how. But it is clear that in his view Europe forms an entity, with nations as sub-units. The paper's argument starts with crisis phenomena in Europe and continues to describe Europe's striking internal differentiation. The unity and diversity of Europe are seen as optimal preconditions for comparative research, where unity means external delimitation and internal interlinkage, and diversity means internal differentiation.

Europe today seems to be undergoing a serious crisis. Its several sub-regions and nations, however, are affected very differently by it. Does Europe constitute a meaningful unit from a social scientific point of view at all? The paper argues that this is the case because of its common historical-cultural heritage and because of the increasing density of direct interrelationships between its nations and peoples. Nevertheless, internal differentiations continue to make of this `continent' one of the most complex and variegated culture areas in the world. Three dimensions are of particular relevance in this regard: (a) the level of socio-economic development; (b) linguistic-cultural and religious traditions; (c) the type of political system. If we allocate 25 of the larger European nation-states to this 3-dimensional typology, we can demonstrate a limited number of relatively internally homogeneous clusters of nations. These are distinguished from each other not only in terms of political system, but also in terms of socio-economic development, language and religion. The paper concludes with the thesis that the macro-context Europe' constitutes an ideal base for carrying out international comparisons and pleads for making full use of this potential by including all European nations in such comparisons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phenomenology enjoys striking popularity in Eastern Europe. For those concerned with phenomenology before the collapse of communism it was an antidote to Marxism in its Soviet version. Its popularity was due to the perhaps naive striving for a true philosophy not manipulated by politics, in that its idealism was interpreted as a protest against the materialistic degradation of the human being. What would Husserl say if he was told about this role of phenomenology? Perhaps he would it consider it as self-evident. His allegedly completely apolitical philosophy had political ambitions, since the struggle for phenomenology was for him not merely a philosophical discussion, but a political struggle with pragmatists, advocates of Realpolitik, nationalists and traditionalists. This paper analyses phenomenology as a radical social philosophy which aimed at the revolutionary renewal of European culture. Well-known for his inclination to work on details and for an arduous theoretical analysis, Husserl was not an advocate of small steps in politics. His political philosophy is then contrasted with that of Helmuth Plessner. From Plessner's point of view Husserl's programme can be seen as a manifestation of the striving for the abolition of society and its replacement by community. In his defence of society, Plessner developed a philosophy of the public sphere as a sphere of social roles, prestige ceremonial, tact and diplomacy, in which the absolute character of the Ego is negated in contact with others. The paper poses questions such as which of these philosophies is more adequate for our time and whether the way shown by Husserl in his programmatic writings is still open to us today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This article presents a reply to Bernd Hamm's critique of the transformation of Europe as a challenge to comparative sociology. The main thrust of Bernd Hamm's critique is that the article on the transformation of Europe is pursuing a comparative approach resulting only in the empirical description of similarities and differences between nations. Such an approach, accepting nations as the most important and meaningful entities for comparison, tends to confine research to a static and correlational logic. He asserts that it is characterized by a retrospective and conservative bias, not allowing for a true consideration of patterns of interlinkages between the units of observation nor the dynamics of change. While such an approach, according to Hamm, might have some merits, a truly fruitful comparative research within the context of Europe necessitates a significant different position, an evolutionary approach focusing on the changes going on in Europe. Here, the processes of building European institutions are particularly at issue; only by focusing on them can we contribute to the understanding of Europe as it becomes one society, and to learn lessons from such understanding. There are some specific arguments in Hamm's critique on which the author would like to comment briefly. The first concerns arguments about crisis phenomena in Europe in the first part of the paper. A second, quite important, issue raised by Hamm concerns the question whether nation-states are still the most meaningful units of observation in comparative research.

In the context of the completion, by 1993, of a single European market and of the resulting liberalisation of internal borders, labour migration in Europe is attracting increased attention from policy-makers and social actors in the twelve member states. The present paper is an attempt to analyse and forecast the following major issues relating to migration in Europe after 1992: (i) the evolution and structure of intra-European flows in the forthcoming single European market; (ii) the integration, after 1992, of established immigrant communities, including ethnic minorities and second generation groups; (iii) future immigration from non-EC member states, in relation, inter alia, to the recent coming into play of the Eastern European periphery. The article explains that, in addition to policy-related mutations inherent in the completion of the internal market, other factors (demographic changes and insufficient enrolment of national graduate students in key disciplines) and issues (emergence of atypical groups such as second generation and Eastern European migrants), are due to generate new patterns and modified interests in European labour migration after 1992. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'America has a negro problem', the Swedish economist Gunnar Myrdal stated in the introduction to his modern classic An American Dilemma first published in 1944 Half a century later the so called immigrant problem is moving to the top of the political agenda of EU Europe. To speak about a European dilemma in this context means to relate established European values of social solidarity and social responsibility to an increasingly ethnicised and racialised social inequality in European cities How can the dilemma be made transparent? How can we transcend the disjunctures between 'creed' and reality? Along these lines the paper debates potentialities for transethnic alignment in the US and EU Europe exposed to a common condition of globalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An important challenge for macrosociology in the 1990s is to account for the cluster of social movements in different post-World War II settings, most recently those that intend structural changes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. To account for these extraordinary phenomena of historical significance calls for a new global synchronic and diachronic analysis. After discussing three major waves of these movements that have in common a challenge to the authority of the modern state, this paper proposes that 'neomodernisation analysis' may be the most appropriate macro-paradigm to relate sociology to the comparative study of cycles of modernisation and of centres of modernity. It is highly relevant since many regions of the world are undergoing ah important new phase of modernisation and since there may be taking place ah important shift in the epicentre of modernity. State socialism is bankrupt in Eastern Europe. Governments, ruling parties, of the opposition, experts, and expert committees are desperately searching . . . for a new paradigm, a new social and economic model with which to launch these countries onto a new course of dynamic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various articles within the issue on topics including impact of social change in Europe, increasing recognition of same-sex rights in Europe, and secularization in Poland and Spain.

The main objective of the study is threefold: first, to examine the role of attractiveness in the Czech labour market; second, to assess gender differences in returns of attractiveness; and third, to show that the positive association between attractiveness and earnings does not disappear even when cognitive skills, social background, occupational status and individual characteristics are controlled for. The study uses data from the first large-scale sociological survey focusing on attractiveness carried out in the Czech Republic. The results provide strong evidence for the hypothesis that, in general, more attractive people have a better chance of higher socioeconomic occupational status as well as higher incomes than less attractive individuals even when controlling for cognitive skills, social background, occupational status and personality. However, the analysis also shows that the relationships are different for men and women. The study finds that the income premium for attractiveness is markedly higher among prime-aged women than men. The authors conclude that there have been profound changes in the last 30–40 years in the Western world and that the importance of physical attractiveness and erotic capital has been increasing, especially for women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two models of inclusion of recent immigrants in Western Europe. In the Continental model immigrants are penalized in terms of both probabilities of being employed and job quality. In the Mediterranean one there is a stronger trade-off between a limited risk of unemployment and a lower job quality. Did the recession foster a convergence or a divergence between these two models? This article focuses on this issue and analyses the integration of immigrants in 10 countries, using EU-LFS data (2005–2012) and considering two occupational outcomes: the probability of being employed, and the probability of avoiding the unskilled working class. It also studies the turnover between unemployment and dependent employment. The crisis generated a partial and limited convergence between the two models, involving only male immigrants living in Southern Europe. In these countries immigrants experienced higher risks of unemployment because the crisis diminished their turnover between unemployment and dependent employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses perceived in-group discrimination of 29,189 first and second generation immigrant respondents from 201 different countries of origin currently living in one of 27 EU countries. In addition to testing effects of individual factors, the article estimates the effects of macro-characteristics of both origin and destination countries and community variables. The migration history of these groups is relevant for perceived discrimination: immigrants with citizenship, who speak the majority language at home and have at least one native parent perceive less in-group discrimination, whereas religious respondents, especially from religions that differ more in comparison to the majority, perceive more in-group discrimination. Furthermore, macrocharacteristics of the country of origin are most important in explaining differences between European countries. Immigrants from socio-economically more developed countries with higher living standards and for that reason more comparable to the native population are less likely to perceive in-group discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the role of social class for individual participation in social movements, more specifically in street demonstrations. The authors use protest survey data in order to avoid the limitations of previous research by contextualizing the effect of social class on participation in protest. The analysis focuses on demonstrations addressing redistributive and cultural issues, reflecting a well-known distinction between old and new social movements. The authors show that participants in these two types of demonstrations, as well as in a third, mixed category, present a similar class structure, which casts some doubts on this distinction, although slight differences remain. Furthermore, a comparison of three countries that differ in terms of the strength of the class cleavage (Belgium, Sweden, and Switzerland) suggests that this cleavage acts as a moderator of the relationship between social class and participation in street demonstrations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Foreign language proficiency in general and proficiency in the world’s most widely spoken language, English, are central resources to participate in the globalisation process. Drawing on a survey conducted in 27 European countries the article attempts to explain the huge differences in English proficiency that exist between and within countries. The author presents a general explanatory model for foreign language proficiency, creates hypotheses from this model and tests them empirically by using multilevel techniques. The findings show that the prevalence of a respondent’s native language, the linguistic difference between one’s mother tongue and English, and age affect language acquisition negatively, whereas a country’s level of education has a positive influence. Using Bourdieu’s theory of social class, the author shows that besides other factors a respondent’s social class position and the level of education are important micro-level factors that help to increase a person’s transnational linguistic capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The significance of collective identities has been widely questioned in this age of individualism. However, the difficulty in sustaining collective identities does not mean that a sense of collective belonging has stopped being important. One of the bases on which collective identity may be sustained is in the belonging to a certain territory, expressed locally or regionally, that may contribute to a feeling of sameness. This article reports on a European research project which studied the impact of restructuring on collective identities in six European (former or actual) industrial regions in Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Turkey and the UK, and analysed more than a hundred biographical interviews in the search for narratives of contemporary identity. The findings suggest collective identities take shape and strength through a complex social process to create a sense of belonging and the articulation of the community us. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines cross-national differences in the time parents allocate to their children using aggregate data from 15 countries collected as part of the Harmonized European Time Use Survey (HETUS). The analysis is restricted to married or cohabiting parents with at least one child under the age of seven. Results show large differences between countries; differences which appear to be associated with four main national characteristics: the countries’ level of economic development, the number of hours spent in paid work, values regarding gender roles, and post-materialist values. Some elements of the countries’ work–family policies also appear to matter but their overall effect is less conclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In view of changing job mobility patterns in Europe, the impact of job mobility on job satisfaction is gaining importance, yet has received little attention. This article analyses 23 European countries to address two questions: (1) how do different types of job mobility affect job satisfaction, and (2) do welfare state regimes alter the relationship between job mobility and job satisfaction? Theoretically the study integrates economic and sociological approaches to job satisfaction with insights from the psychology of well-being. The findings show that job mobility differentially affects job satisfaction domains. External upward mobility is decisive to enhance satisfaction with objective working conditions and work–life balance, while internal mobility is pivotal for satisfaction with future career prospects. The experience of unemployment lowers all job satisfaction domains even after re-employment. The article’s findings on welfare regimes indicate that social policies interact with country differences in workforce composition, such as the overall prevalence of unemployment, to determine job satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This review essay argues that József Böröcz reverses explanations that have served as the basis not only for Eurocentric accounts of global social change and the ‘rise’ of Europe but also for the latter’s critics coming from Marxist, postcolonial and world-systems perspectives. Most notably, the review considers why on the basis of Böröcz’s work we have to reject the classic question of how and why Europe and the West have become rich and/or ‘progressive’. The essay considers the wide implications of Böröcz’s novel analysis which focuses on weights of different political entities that he sees as crucial in understanding geopolitical manoeuvring of wide-ranging historical and present-day actors such as the European Union, western colonial powers, as well as state socialist countries and blocs, thus offering a fresh and provocative perspective on global social change. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of International Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of International Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of International Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of International Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This research evaluates the empirical evidence of an emerging transnational corporate community over the past 25 years. In a study of the Fortune Global 500 between 1983 and 1998, we find a significant increase in the total number of interlocking directorates and even greater growth in transnational interlocks. This growth is predominantly among firms within the European Community and between finns in Europe and the US. There has also been a dramatic growth in domestic interlocks in certain European states. These findings suggest that there is, indeed, an emerging transnational business community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Sociology is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this article the approaches to past gross human rights violations are analysed as moral foundations of posts dictatorial or post-totalitarian constitutionalism. The theoretical perspective adopted stresses the discursive elaboration of the past as a means of legitimization for the new political system, and as justification of institutionalized approaches towards the perpetrators and instigators. In light of this, the author investigates the political and cultural discourses, trying to answer the question concerning the great differences among institutional reactions towards past human rights violations in Eastern and Central Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]