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This paper examines new forms of study-abroad expertise on social media and their role in mediating Indian student mobility to Germany. Firstly, it explores how mutual-support Facebook and WhatsApp groups—used by prospective international students in India to support each other through the process of applying to German universities—have contributed to the emergence of new forms of education consultancy, offered by Indian students or graduates of German universities, whom I call 'Student Guides'. In addition, it shows how some Indians studying in Germany have started 'Study in Germany' YouTube channels, aimed at aspirant student migrants, and have become important 'study-abroad influencers'. The paper analyses how these new forms of study-abroad expertise offer prospective international students social and cultural capital important for successful student migration, apart from shaping their imaginative geographies of Germany, and embedding them in cultures of mobility. Furthermore, the paper highlights how these new forms of study-abroad expertise intersect with, and critique, a more 'traditional' study-abroad expert: the professional education consultant. The paper draws on a digital ethnography of 'Study in Germany' Facebook and WhatsApp groups and YouTube channels, as well as interviews with the YouTubers, Student Guides, and Indian students in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance and urgency of IPLE (intellectual property literacy education) are increasingly prominent. This paper aims to build an IPLE mode to provide support for the talent cultivation in university libraries facing opportunities and challenges in the service transformation period. The IPLE mode and content of the Regional Patent Information Centers (PIZ Regional Centers) in German universities and university libraries are studied through network research, literature research, and comparative analysis. Based on the practical experience, educational characteristics and advantages, this paper constructs an IPLE mode of university library that includes six modules. Building the IPLE mode of university libraries can provide reference for university libraries in the work of IPLE, and gradually form an IPLE system that meets the needs of users' training, conforms to the university's talent training objectives, and improves the development plan of the university libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The main purpose of the paper is to offer a personal view on the development of documentation/information and documentation (IuD) in Germany, while pointing out the need to further investigate the specific features of its development paths. The methodology is based on critical review of the available literature sources in the German language. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses the method of critical review of published documents in journals (especially in Nachrichten für Dokumentation), books and reports of state and provincial administrations that are directly related to monitoring and/or encouraging the development of the young field of documentation. Findings: The paper offers a review and interpretation of the most significant development phases, the contributions of individuals and the influence of the official state and information policy based on the consulted sources. Research limitations/implications: This research is limited to the literature written in German language. Practical implications: The paper could be of interest to researchers and professionals who are interested in the development of documentation. Social implications: The paper covers the period after the World War II until the end of 1980s that is especially interesting from the social point of view in divided Germany. Originality/value: To the author's knowledge, there is no comprehensive history of documentation in German-speaking countries written in English. This paper is the result of a research project started three years ago with colleagues from Germany, Austria and Switzerland, that aims to cover all phases of the appearance and development of information science in German-speaking countries and could be understood as a kind of introduction to papers planned to follow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The political landscape of the radical right has long been a major discussion point in the political and social sciences. By considering the variety of radical right organizations (movement parties and non-parliamentary organizations) and the particular national and transnational political and discursive opportunity structures, the paper aims at a comparative analysis of the main discursive frames present in political programs and manifestoes of radical right social movement organizations and movement parties in Poland (Konfederacja Wolność i Niepodległość and Obóz Narodowo-Radykalny) and Germany (Alternative für Deutschland and Identitäre Bewegung Deutschland). Moreover, based on approaches developed by Cas Mudde and Jens Rydgren, this article analyses how the features presumed essential to the radical right (nativism, authoritarianism and populism) are reflected and interconnected in the official discourses of the selected radical right organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global climate budget for 1.5°C necessitates distributing future CO2 emissions to individual countries. In Germany, this translates to 3.1 billion tons (January 2022). All sectors must engage to meet this target, particularly the lignite (i.e. low-grade brown coal) sector. This entails leaving significant reserves untapped. Also, economic factors are already driving a decline in coal consumption, aided by Germany's renewable expansion and rising CO2 prices. Forecasts suggest lignite phase-out by 2030, prompting reevaluation of mining plans without devastation of villages. The paper proposes new mining plans for the main lignite regions Rhineland and Lusatia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The political participation literature has documented a long-term trend of the normalization of noninstitutional participation that is often equated with the conventionalization of engagement in protest politics. Less is known on the extent to which noninstitutional forms are differentiated by their mobilization context. Population surveys find it difficult to contextualize individual engagement, and on-site surveys point to effects that are hard to generalize. This study fills this gap by emphasizing differentiation and distinguishing participation according to the issue of engagement. It introduces a conceptual distinction between political insiders and outsiders, defined based on the extent to which they are embedded in the organizational landscape of the dominant cleavage dimension. Using an original survey conducted in Germany during the Covid-19 crisis, the analysis demonstrates that general-population surveys are fit to examine issue-specific participation patterns. The results expose an insider and outsider divide, captured by the effect of attitudinal and behavioral indicators, and demonstrates that the two groups are equally likely to participate in noninstitutional forms. However, insiders engage on the established issues of climate and anti-racism, whereas outsiders engage on the new issues of Covid-19 related economic assistance and civil liberties restrictions. In addition, dynamic models reveal that noninstitutional participation is rooted in volatile issue preferences. Overall, the paper argues that participation during the Covid-19 crisis has furthered the trend towards a differentiated protest arena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political participation is socially distorted: Socio-economic resources affecting the probability of individuals becoming politically active question the principle of political equality. Such inequality in participation based on social stratification is well documented for elections, while research on inequality in referendum participation is still scarce. Based on the observation that such inequality varies between referendums, this paper explores referendum-specific contextual factors that may affect socially distorted referendum participation. We leverage information from an original dataset covering 1788 districts in 35 German municipalities for 68 local referendums held between 2000 and 2019. The results of our multilevel models indicate that concurrent first-order elections boost referendum turnout and decrease social stratification, while the closeness of the decision increases turnout but does not affect stratification bias. Moreover, we find a curvilinear relationship between turnout and stratification, with stratification only diminishing from participation levels above 40–50%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To describe activities and professional characteristics of nurses in expanded roles in acute care in Germany and achieve a greater understanding of the current situation of advanced practice nursing. Background: Advanced practice nursing plays an important role in meeting increased demands in healthcare and promoting high‐quality care. Introduction: In Germany, advanced practice nursing is still at an early stage with a lack of studies describing the scope of practice of nurses in expanded roles. Methods: We conducted a cross‐sectional‐study using a paper‐and‐pencil questionnaire. In a nationwide convenience sample, we surveyed nurses with an academic degree, who work in an acute care hospital and take over expanded roles in direct patient care. Reporting followed the STROBE checklist. Results: Of 108 eligible nurses, 84 (77%) completed the survey. The majority had a Master's degree (63.1%) and the average work experience was 18.2 years. Participants carried out activities in all the domains that were queried (direct clinical practice, guidance and coaching, consultation, leadership and research) with differences within and between domains. Foci were on direct clinical practice and coaching and guidance. Discussion: In Germany, qualifications are nearing the international standard of advanced practice nursing. Results suggest that participants partly undertake activities within the scope of registered nurses' practice that do not correspond fully to their formal qualifications. Conclusion and implications for nursing and/or health policy: In order to foster the role development of expanded practice nurses in Germany, political efforts are needed in terms of training (e.g. specific Master's programmes), funding of corresponding positions in practice and control mechanisms (e.g. professional registration). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the one hand, unemployment is known to have detrimental effects on individuals' mental health. On the other hand, poor mental health reduces re‐employment chances quite drastically, creating a vicious cycle. Active labour market policies (ALMPs) such as training programs or wage subsidies have been shown to ameliorate negative effects on mental health and improve labour market integration on average for the general unemployed population. In the context of individuals with severe mental health issues, however, it is unclear whether these interventions can be expected to deliver similar positive effects. In fact, one may argue that they have the potential to worsen employment prospects of individuals by adding additional stress to their pre‐existing mental health problems. Hence, this paper estimates the long‐term causal effects of ALMPs on the labour market integration of individuals with self‐reported severe mental health issues and compares estimates to individuals without such issues using unique combined survey and administrative data. Effects are estimated using the innovative double machine learning method and show that ALMPs do not only improve labour market integration of unemployed individuals with severe mental health issues, but they do so more effectively than for other unemployed individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines school management and policies in Germany and Australia during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study, which is comparative and qualitative, explores the interrelationship between different levels of governance and the responses of teacher unions. The inquiry is informed by the perspectives of historical institutionalism and path dependency, and the document analysis is conducted by utilising the justification categories of value, collective, and formal and procedural driven arguments. We argue the contestation which occurred between different levels of school governance and the teacher unions amidst the pandemic created the potential for changes in policy settings and influence over the administration of schooling. However, there is no indication of fundamental shifts in the organisation, policy direction or control over schooling in Germany or Australia. Instead, there is a conformity to established institutional arrangements and path dependencies, which secure and protect the vested interests of the different policy actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses implications and challenges of Germany's upcoming military deployment in Lithuania. A permanent stationing of brigade-sized military unit on NATO's Eastern frontier represents a major change in its force posture and a significant shift in Germany's defence policy. Despite the official German position that the implementation of its military commitments is contingent on Lithuania's timely improvement of its host nation support infrastructure, the paper suggests that the speed, quantity, and structure of Germany's deployment also depends on the progress made in rearming the Bundeswehr and its defence policy priorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The motivation for this paper comes from the recognition that our understanding of specialisation might be too simplistic and that the dichotomy of specialisation and diversification could be outdated not reflecting the richness of real complex economic and technological relations among industries. Drawing on a qualitative study of the Hamburg Aviation (HAv) cluster, this paper discusses the peculiarities of a cluster profile in the digital time - the age of Industry 4.0 (I4.0), touching upon the issues of cluster structure and the complexity of production, synchronising specialisation with diversification, branching, and bridging, and the I4.0 attributes facilitating complementarity. The final research proposal, which is empirically embedded in the studied context, states that related variety encompassing both 'specialisation in diversification' and 'diversification within specialisation' can be further developed by a blending process. This can lead to branching and is modulated by the universal character of the I4.0 and a problem-solving attitude. It takes the form of an additive (new entries) or multiplicative (spinoffs) evolution, and, ultimately, owing to the complementarity, it can provide sustainable competitive advantages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several northern European countries have announced ambitious plans to become carbon neutral already before the year 2050. Recent research has, however, highlighted how potential bottlenecks in raw material and resource availability could significantly delay or hinder wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) expansion and continued biomass usage in parts of Europe. To address this issue, this paper assesses how exposed the national energy and climate plans (NECPs) of Finland, Estonia, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark are to resource limitations and techno-economic risks by reviewing and analysing 2030 NECP targets compared to statistical energy use data in these countries. The results indicate that the NECPs of Denmark and Germany are particularly exposed to risks related to global raw material availability, as Denmark plans to rapidly grow the share of wind and solar PV in electricity generation to 81% and 13% by 2030, respectively, followed by Germany, which outlines a 39% and 16% share of wind and solar PV in its national climate strategy. The NECPs of Finland and Germany are also shown to be vulnerable to limitations in biomass availability, as there is a significant disparity between the projected biomass usage and legally binding European Union (EU) targets for land use, land use change, and forestry (LULUCF) sector emissions in 2030 in these countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Towards the end of the Cold War, the vocabulary of global power, space and economy received a qualitative update. Amongst the terms rapidly gaining prominence since the early 1990s has been the notion of geoeconomics, the coining of which has frequently been attributed to the strategist Edward N. Luttwak. In his interpretation, it signified a transition away from Cold War ideological and military geopolitical competition towards commerce and market‐based geo‐power. Over the past three decades, a 'geoeconomics boom' set in, characterised by think tanks and a varied body of politico‐economic literature making extensive use of the term. Conventionally treated as a neologism, the provenance and earlier iterations of geoeconomics, some dating back more than a century, have been largely ignored by both celebratory and critical accounts. In this paper, we trace and contextualise these earlier instances, leading us to the Geopolitik era in Germany and references to geoeconomics in the United States in the decades after WWII. We thereby offer a critical genealogy of geoeconomics, conceptualised as an object of definitional struggle. Proponents of the term sought to position it variously as a tool of national economic cohesion and competition or as a way of understanding and harnessing shifting global power relations, whilst others sought to subsume geoeconomics to geopolitics. These past struggles track forward into ongoing dialectical tensions between geoeconomics and geopolitics as competing but related geostrategic visions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper reports on the first evaluation of infertility counselling in Germany. Methods: Sixty-nine infertility counsellors provided feedback via 524 survey sheets and 182 questionnaires were filled in by clients. Results: The results show a high level of satisfaction on behalf of the clients. They valued the emotional support, information, and exploration of family-building options with and without medical assistance and the counsellors' expertise. During counselling, coping with the emotional burden of infertility was an important issue, but in more than half of all counselling sessions, future parental issues were addressed. The group of clients seeking support can be described to be very heterogeneous, and counselling issues comprise a wide range of aspects. Conclusions: This piece of research suggests that the following issues need to be considered to improve infertility counselling. Better integration of counselling in infertility clinics, more awareness for infertility counselling for other medical and non-medical professions Better funding for counselling so that its uptake is not dependent upon the financial resources of clients Awareness for new groups of clients and counselling issues such as single and transgender individuals, co-parenting families There is a need for more research and the development of counselling concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the determinants of support for future generations, using novel survey data for the case of Germany. I find significant, but not overwhelming support for prioritizing the needs of future generations vs. the acute needs of present-day citizens. Moreover, individual-level and contextual factors matter too. High-income and highly educated citizens are on average more supportive of the needs of future generations, the elderly and women less so. Left-wing supporters are equally more supportive of future generations, especially supporters of the Greens and those subscribing to 'green-alternative-liberal' values. Supporters of the right-wing populist AfD are most strongly opposed. General political trust boosts support for future generations, and economically thriving local economies are associated with higher levels of support for future generations as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Syrian refugee crisis posed enormous challenges for the child welfare system and immigration authorities in Germany. Based on qualitative interviews and publicly available data, this paper explores the responses of frontline workers to the surge in unaccompanied refugee minors (UAMs) during the crisis and how their actions were experienced by UAMs. Results illustrate how frontline coping strategies created effective barriers to UAMs being united with their families. The findings raise questions about the relationship between ambiguous policy goals, frontline practice and formal legislation in the context of the right to asylum and the best interests of the child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While some of the founders of American cultural anthropology and British social anthropology were part of the transregional Jewish and non-Jewish German speaking community, Jewish anthropology, and anthropology by or on Jews in German-speaking countries, was seriously impacted by the Shoah. Some sources in the area of historical anthropology engage with Jews, who were anthropologists, and who were murdered or who fled, others focus on the appropriation of Jewish cultural heritage and zoom in on discourses about Jews. Living Jews are oftentimes covered in dissertations, after which the nascent ethnologist/anthropologist vanishes from academia, or leaves the country: research on living Jews seems an unsustainable career move. This paper is a first attempt to sketch out the developments of Jewish anthropology – in the broadest sense – in Germany post-1945. It will pay due attention to structures, societal, social, and academic; the place of anthropology within these structures; and Jews, as an ethno-religious group being researched by anthropologists (and other ethnographers); and the anthropologists/ethnographers who research them. By paying close attention to the anthropologists and ethnographers themselves, it is possible to "map the margins" (Crenshaw 1991) of anthropological and ethnographic work in an emotionalized, ideologized, and politicized field, a field that is indicative of post-genocidal intergroup relations in situ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the authors discuss their experiences with ungrading at a small public university in the U.S. and a large public university in Germany. The courses described are Calculus 1 and a content course for pre-service secondary teachers of mathematics. The professors teach differently: one with lecture, the other with inquiry-based learning, and choose to use elements of ungrading in different ways. In one case, the professor lets students self-evaluate their homework, while in the other the professor uses a mix of specifications grading and ungrading for the final grade. We outline and compare our assessment approaches and discuss student performance and feedback. We also present some patterns relating to gender: in both cases, we observed that women students chose lower self-evaluations than men students. We end this paper with a general reflection on our teaching experience and our plans to use ungrading in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By analysing the childcaring experiences of female skilled workers from South Korea (hereafter, Korea) in Germany, this paper maintains that the challenges in labour market participation for highly skilled women, and especially those with children, should be understood in the context of their encounters with similar and different care and employment regimes between their home and host countries. On the theoretical level, this research confirms the argument that the migration of highly skilled workers should be contextualized not from a neoclassical perspective in which the maximization of economic profits takes priority, but from an institutional point of view in which social and cultural norms, practices, and policies in both the home and host societies are taken into consideration. Specifically, through a series of in-depth interviews conducted with skilled female migrants from Korea, this paper highlights the significance of taking the function of similar and different caring and employment regimes into account in explaining the challenges faced by highly skilled migrant women in labour market participation. On the empirical level, this paper sheds light on the migration experiences of skilled women from Asia as well as the (dis)integration processes of newcomers from third-national countries in Germany, with a focus on female migrants from Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assuming that policy design can impact gender equity in caretaking, this paper examines how expectant mothers and fathers understand and respond to specific parental leave policy elements when shaping their parenting practices. Taking Germany as a case study, this research draws on semi-structured interviews conducted between October 2019 and March 2020 with 18 couples, who were expecting their first child at the time of the interview. Germany's parental leave policy has shifted substantially since 2007, most notably with the establishment of non-transferable parental leave months for fathers. Exploring the link between policy design at the macro-level and parental involvement at the micro-level, this paper focuses on how mothers and fathers make sense of their leave entitlements when dividing leave, which (policy) aspects they consider as helping or hindering an equal leave division and how mothers and fathers anticipate using parental leave benefits. Results indicate that the current parental leave policy design enables greater equity in caretaking by normalizing some leave-taking by fathers. However, by providing an option for fathers' leaves to be split and to be taken concurrently with mothers the policy limits fathers' solo parenting responsibility and consequently prevents a transformation of gendered parenting practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While communication generally embodies an essential part of public leadership, this is even more true in times of crisis when uncertainty prevails, and the public expects the leader not only to take adequate measures to mitigate the crisis, but also to justify and explain these measures. In the COVID-19 pandemic, Angela Merkel's communication differed from other Western political leaders who strongly relied on a war narrative. This paper focuses on the framing by the German Chancellor during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic (March--July 2020). We examine Merkel's crisis communication in three different public arenas: her public speeches, her press conference appearances and her weekly podcasts. Based on a qualitative content analysis, our study provides three relevant insights. First, it proves that the claim for solidarity -- national as well as European solidarity - represents the crucial element of Merkel's meaning-making narrative. Second, the study shows that both statements on the protection of public health and of economy strongly resonate in her communication, but that the prioritisation shifted over time. Finally, our analysis manifests how Merkel's framing differs in the three communicative arenas. Additionally, our findings indicate that Merkel followed a modified leadership style during the COVID- 19 crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the late 20th century, public discourse in Muslim‐minority countries has centered around the question of how to classify Muslims. In this paper, we compare the state, academic, and self‐classification of Muslims in two countries: the United Kingdom and Germany. We propose that the historical experience of anti‐Semitism makes religion a more salient master category to understand Muslims in Germany, while the history of both anti‐Semitism and anti‐Black racism largely resulting from colonial domination means that religion together with race are master categories used to understand Muslims in the United Kingdom. Through this multilayered ethnographic and historical analysis, we challenge taken‐for‐granted assumptions in both the political and academic milieu about what it means to be Muslim, emphasizing the importance of the interplay between sociopolitical categories and self‐identifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the push to strengthen European defence cooperation, the topic of whether a European strategic culture is emerging has become widely contested. Since convergence between member states is the key that would unlock the way to a European strategic culture, this paper examines how they perceive crucial aspects of strategic culture and in what aspects they have converged and diverged. This study selected Germany, Poland, and Ireland as cases of the EU-27 member states. It compared the three national strategic cultures in three aspects: strategic environment, cooperation patterns, and strategic goals and means, by conducting a computer-based content analysis of strategic documents and official speeches of high-level national policymakers between 2000 and 2020. This study found that despite the persistent divergence in strategic goals and means, the three countries have shown greater convergence in their perceptions of the strategic environment and that while their preferences on cooperation patterns are largely unchanged, they seem to be accepting the EU as a legitimate and favourable platform for security and defence cooperation. These findings suggest that the prospects for the emergence of a European strategic culture and further developments of the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy are both challenging and promising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper charts the space of lifestyles in Germany in order to assess whether its structure resembles that famously uncovered in France by Bourdieu. Mobilising multiple correspondence analysis and using data from a bespoke national survey of tastes and lifestyles fielded in 2017–18 (n = 2244), it unveils a two-dimensional system defined by tastes for the culturally exclusive and the economically exclusive. These dimensions are strongly associated with indicators of cultural capital and economic capital, and reveal differences by both capital volume and capital composition, but they are also structured by age and ethnic origin. While age is indicative of Bourdieu's concept of trajectory, the effects of ethnicity underscore the relative autonomy of the space of lifestyles and suggest its determination by more than one structural force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Densification and more efficient use of land are important planning challenges across Europe intended to aid the pursuit of sustainability goals. Property taxation influences land use. It can discourage or incentivize efficient land use. In the international academic debate, the land value tax is considered an effective land policy instrument that can promote more efficient use of land. Germany is currently transforming its property taxation system and has discussed different property tax models in the political decision-making process. This paper explores the political motivations of this reform based on a discourse analysis of plenary sessions and complementary in-depth expert interviews. On the one hand, the empirical findings highlight the experts' positive assessment of the potential of the land value tax for efficient land use and densification. On the other hand, they also show how the potential allocative effects of the land value tax were largely overlooked during the political debates. Instead, discussion centred around distributional aspects of the property tax. It can be shown that despite the great potential for tackling urgent planning issues, policymakers are hesitant to adopt and apply instruments of land policy that intervene in existing private property rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political elite studies so far have often dealt with career paths before entering a particular political position, focusing mostly on individual states of a career. However, they have consistently neglected what comes after a political office and the temporal–sequential character of biographies. This paper addresses these two issues. Using sequence analysis techniques, it examines the post-cabinet careers of ministers from the German states in the period 1945–2014 using a newly created, original dataset containing 1400 trajectories and over 12,000 coded person years. The descriptive analysis shows partly significant differences in post-cabinet careers by gender, state, decade, and last ministerial portfolio, but less so by party membership. Three of the five clusters found represent comparatively homogeneous post-cabinet career structures. Whereas in the early years of the republic most politicians did not have a subsequent (long) professional career after leaving office, switching to the private business sector and, above all, remaining in politics at the state level, represent the two most prominent career paths. A springboard career in federal politics, on the other hand, is rare, but certainly possible. From a methodological point of view, this study shows the potential, but also the problems of sequence analysis for research on political elites and offers ideas on how to continue with this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Higher education institutions, as influential social institutions, play an important role in promoting social responsibility and sustainable practices. However, approaches to implementing sustainable development (SD) in higher education institutions (HEIs) themselves remain fuzzy. One way to achieve holistic embedding can lie in organizational culture. This study aims to examine ways by which internal sustainability governance can promote sustainability culture by using empirical data from German HEIs. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses factor analysis to identify relevant governance indicators. With a regression analysis, this study assesses the indicators' effects on organizational sustainability culture in HEIs. A moderator analysis tests potential determinants derived from literature and their influence on sustainability governance and sustainability culture. Findings: Operationalizing formalized sustainability governance for holistic implementation reveals a gap in sustainability management at HEIs. This study proposes a model for operationalizing sustainability governance and shows an effect on sustainability culture at the formal organizational level. Originality/value: Based on the operationalization of sustainability governance, this empirical study provides evidence for the development of a holistic approach along a sustainability culture in organizations. This paper proposes a model for operationalization, analyzes multiorganizational data and shows the effects of sustainability governance on formalized organizational sustainability culture. This paper provides a transorganizational perspective for implementing SD following a top-down approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper addresses the relationship of planning systems and related processes of institutional change. It evaluates the persistence and change of the German planning system with a focus on recent impacts of Europeanisation. It shows that the ability to transform institutional patterns of spatial planning in Germany is rather limited. The German planning system has not undergone revolutionary shifts during the last five decades, but it is 'by-passed' by a new and mostly informal planning sphere recently. The latter is triggered by financial incentives bound to European structural funds and characterized by a strong focus on experimental spatial development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following reunification after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the eastern German city of Dessau lost population and entire industrial sectors to the more dynamic economies of western Germany, leaving behind a glut of vacant and derelict properties. Dessau's planners proscribed their demolition, replacing them with a greenway surrounding neighbourhoods as water does an archipelago that has substantially increased biodiversity but has failed, despite the city's encouragement, to attract community support. This paper explores what adjustments might be necessary for the archipelago model to be more readily adopted by other shrinking cities and new urban developments worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on anthropological fieldwork among protesters against the Covid policy in Germany, this paper elaborates the symmetry of accusations made against each other by proponents and opponents of the state-imposed protection measures against the backdrop of an asymmetrical distribution of power. The social dynamics that emerged during the pandemic are often understood as the result of a knowledge controversy that most participants thus categorize as a media problem. A key finding of my research on protests against the German Covid policy is that, as in my research on the controversy over mediumism, the controversy is about the agency of human and nonhuman actors and carried out to a great extent based on the same values on both sides, which at the same time accuse each other of not conforming to these values. The protesters are part of a heterogeneous minority that in large parts embodies the values of the majority and, in a way, exceeds them, i.e., a minority that is hypercritical and has extreme expectations about the values of the majority society – in this case: of solidarity, science, transparency, rationality, and coherence. From its marginal position, the minority develops a canny eye for the unfulfilled promises of the majority: its contradictions and conscious or unconscious double standards are perceived as bigotry against the backdrop of the aspiration to absence of contradiction. Therefore, this minority suspects that the motivations and goals behind the measures taken are other than just the protection of health, while the majority in turn see the minority's commitment to society and democracy as (self-)deception and also suspect hidden motives and actors behind it. This mutual suspicion leads to a hysterical state of doubt and distrust, which is rooted in the nature of mediality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the availability of populist radical right voters for mainstream parties. Are there segments within the electorate of PRRPs that can be regained by (specific) established non-populist parties? Focusing on the German context, the paper analyzes the availability of AfD voters on the electoral market. We demonstrate that relatively low availability can be traced back to the voters' distance in issue positions, the strength of populist attitudes and the interplay of distance and populist attitudes. Strong populist attitudes decrease the role of issue proximity for the likelihood of winning (back) AfD voters. Accordingly, simple repositioning towards stricter immigration laws is not a substantively profitable strategy. Our results indicate that an AfD voter's willingness to vote for an established party varies across parties. Generally, the German populist radical right voter's availability for the mainstream parties are rather low, and we shall thus discuss the strategic implication of our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main focus of the study was to explore the experiences of inequalities and the expectations of a good life of girls at the age of 14 to 16 years old from a Turkish background living in Germany. Essentially, the research focused on identifying the gaps and analyzing inequality through girls' interpretation of a good life in Germany. Specifically, this paper will concentrate on the finding "capabilities for other girls". Girls who participated in the interview have experienced exclusion in their everyday life which made them feel other and this paper will highlight what are the valuable capabilities for these girls not too feel other. To find the inequalities in the life of socially vulnerable girls of Turkish origin, this research conceptualized how ethnicity and migration background deprives or enhances the capabilities (opportunities) of 2nd, 3rd and 4th generation Turkish migrant origin girls living in Germany. The data for research was collected in collaboration with schools and youth institutes in the Federal State of North Rhein Westphalia in Germany. A pilot study was conducted to define the research design, research questions, data collection methods and methodology. The pilot study had identified that focus groups provided a rich amount of data but were not enough to analyze the experienced inequalities and the individual agency of the participants. The pilot study revealed that it needed to be triangulated with a socio-economic questionnaire, to be able to report the distribution of the socio-economic backgrounds of the participants among the Turkish immigrant youth. An individual life history interview was used as a method of data collection to analyze how Turkish girls interpreted their feelings of inequality and active agency. As a result of analyzing the pilot data using Grounded Theory methodology, two goals of the research were identified. The first one was to determine how girls of Turkish origin living in Germany developed a positive view of themselves; such as empowerment, agency, emancipation, inspirations and aspirations, as they were challenged at school and in the German society. The second was to ascertain how girls of Turkish origin living in Germany interpreted challenges, at school and in the wider society, to obtaining a good life. I aimed to develop the literature review with concepts derived through the results of the pilot study, because a literature review that has been conducted with the concepts relevant to the objective of the study results in building the background of the research (Hammick, 1996). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The terms 'fake news' and 'alternative facts' have lost their shock value in today's public discourse and seem to have become part of our normal political vocabulary. Fake news, mis- and disinformation are not a problem of a particular country but are found in politics around the world. In this paper, I look at how disinformation appears as a problem for democracy. Empirically, this paper explores dominant patterns of argumentation with a focus on the US, Germany and Czechia. I discuss the themes of media literacy, hybrid warfare and the emergence of fringe media. This paper argues that more attention needs to be paid to the affectual dimension of why people share fake news. Even though there is no easy solution for dealing with fake news, a first step is to stop denouncing people for believing in fake news and putting all our hope in media literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employing new and original survey data collected in three waves (April/May and November 2020 as well as May 2021) in Germany, this paper studies the dynamics of individual-level support for additional health care spending. A first major finding is that, so far, health care spending preferences have not radically changed during the Covid-19 pandemic, at least at the aggregate level. A more detailed analysis reveals, secondly, that individual-level support for additional spending on health care is strongly conditioned by performance perceptions and, to a lesser extent, general political trust. Citizens who regard the system as badly (well) prepared to cope with the crisis are more likely to support (oppose) additional spending. Higher levels of political trust are also positively associated with spending support, but to a lesser degree. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these findings for policy-making and welfare state politics in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many economies in the Western world have been through a regime shift towards fiscal austerity since the 1970s. Existing scholarship ascribes trends in austerity to globalisation or the influence of a new economic paradigm. This paper develops a different approach by stressing the strategic intervention of central banks in governments' fiscal decisions. It analyses archival documents from the German Federal Cabinet and the Bundesbank Council over more than two decades (1960–1981) and finds that the fiscal regime was shaped by changes in transnational institutions which the central bank used to strategically expand its institutional power within the larger macroeconomic framework. With the breakdown of the Bretton Woods system, the Bundesbank was able to greatly increase its power resources while the government's powers diminished. The Bundesbank used its new powers to strategically 'overreach' into the fiscal sphere and 'bargain' with the government to achieve fiscal reforms. By shedding light on the interactions of global legal and economic developments and the micro-level strategies of state actors, the paper proposes a more complex view of the role of the state and brings state-actor strategies into our understanding of the grand shifts in economic policymaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities have increasingly been subjected to policy- and industry demands to produce multi- and interdisciplinary knowledge. This paper explores the extent to which different higher education policy instruments are used to promote interdisciplinarity in teaching and research at universities in the German higher education system comparing them across different federal states. Based on a manifest content analysis of higher education laws and performance agreements with universities in the 16 German states, we were able to distinguish between three types of states: Those a) with a general use of policy instruments aimed at all universities in a state, whereas considerable differences could be observed with regard to the degree of coercion (enabling versus prescriptive provisions) and scope (teaching or research), b) a directed use of policy instrument, targeting specific universities, and c) a hybrid use of policy instruments using both general and directed elements. This paper provides a novel mapping of the promotion of interdisciplinarity in German higher education policies through a variety of policy instruments and hereby contributes to the extant literature on interdisciplinarity in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing interest in understanding development processes and opportunities in small and medium-sized towns that so far did not attract much attention in mainstream urban theory. Conventional growth-oriented approaches fail to capture the complexity of local development and policy-making processes because they prioritise production factors and underrate the role of discourse and place-based identity. This paper aims to explore the linkages between narratives, place identity, and local development. As local actors try to make sense of a place's past and future, they select, contribute to, and mobilise various local narratives. Multiple narratives feed into and are part of a place's identity that defines a frame for possible development options. The paper uses the case of Zeitz in Saxony-Anhalt (Germany) to analyse the evolution of local development narratives from the 1970s until today. The paper concludes that: i) narrative-making is not a linear process; narratives, spatial imaginaries and local identity are complex, dynamic, and interconnected with each other; ii) local narratives help to construct a coherent imaginary of a place and are mutually intertwined with local development and policies; and iii) local narratives are interdependent with external events and strategies requiring a multiscalar relational perspective on local development processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind energy is an effective solution for achieving the carbon-neutrality target and mitigating climate change. The expansion of onshore wind energy evokes extensive attention to environmental impact in the locality. The landscape visual impact has become the critical reason for the local protest. This paper proposed a landscape visual impact evaluation (LVIE) model that combines the theoretical framework and practical solutions and optimizes the onshore wind farm planning procedures. Based on the theoretical research on landscape connotation, the evaluation principles, criteria, and a quantitative indicator set is constructed for LVIE model with three dimensions: landscape sensitivity, the visual impact of WTs, and viewer exposure. The practicality of this evaluation model is conducted through multi-criteria GIS analysis by the case study of Friedrich-Wilhelm Raiffeisen Wind Farm in Germany. The evaluation results illustrate detailed, visualized outcomes of landscape visual impact that are deeply combined with planning procedures. The innovation of this paper is to refine the form of evaluation results, optimize the procedures of wind farm planning, and enable cooperation between different planning departments and stakeholders with definite, visible, user-friendly evaluation results. This research provides precise comparison opportunities for different projects or the same project at different periods to obtain quantitative conclusions and feedback information. This paper enhances the accurate processing of multiple information and standardization process in wind energy visual impact evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

General practices are rooted in the local community and considered to be particularly well‐positioned for engaging in preventive and health‐promoting activities. The overall aim of the scoping review is to identify priorities and gaps in research published in the past 20 years on preventive and health‐promoting activities provided by general practitioners or their teams in general practices in Germany. MEDLINE and Embase databases were systematically searched in November 2020. Papers were selected in dual‐review mode and extracted in single‐review mode. Data analysis was finished by May 2021. In total, 530 papers were included in the synthesis. Little research has been carried out into collaboration opportunities both within the general practice team and in communities as a whole, with specialists (18%), hospitals (9%), and health insurance companies (6%) being the most frequent cooperation partners of GPs. 15%–20% of papers each dealt with 'early detection', 'information provision' and 'cardiovascular prevention'. Secondary (53%) and tertiary prevention (43%) was more often the subject of research than primary (39%) and quaternary prevention (15%). Healthy subjects (26%) were less often studied than people with pre‐existing conditions (42%) and risk factors (48%). Little information was available on preventive activities in terms of gender, young people, migration background, housing conditions or educational background. Personal counselling (15%) was the most frequently described approach to health promotion in general practices, along with printed information materials (10%). This scoping review provides information on which to base targeted interventions and future research that can contribute towards transforming general practices into promoters of health within the community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does good governance matter for exporting to the highly competitive markets of developed countries, especially those committed to a developmental mission centered on promoting good governance? This paper is investigating this research question. The focus of the analysis is the case study of Arab exports to the German economy, where a comparatively poor performance in comparison to that of other regions of the world is witnessed, despite geographical proximity and preferential trade agreements. Using statistical data and the literature on the subject, the paper engages in a discussion on German trade flows from Arab countries and whether governance indicators provide a good explanatory framework. The research question is then investigated empirically by running several regressions using the two-stage least-squares and Poisson pseudo maximum likelihood models. Different indicators of German exports are used as dependent variables while the independent variables are various governance indicators together with the control variables suggested by the gravity model. The obtained empirical results suggest that good governance generally boosts Arab exports to Germany and relatively more than it does for non-Arab exporters to Germany. This is especially true for governance indicators that directly affect exporting activities, such as regulatory quality and government effectiveness. For some indicators that indirectly affect exporting, however, the results are mixed for both Arab and non-Arab countries, especially for the textile industry. This sheds doubts on Germany's developmental commitment to fostering good governance principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global comparison of planning systems faces several theoretical and normative challenges. Against the background of ongoing debates on the comparability of emerging and existing ideas and practices of planning in the Global North and South, we propose a comparative approach based on field theory. Comparisons of planning systems often focus on the institutional dimension or are mere juxtapositions of cases studies. A comparison based on field theory is more appropriate for the comparative study of planning cultures as the approach allows to interpret planning as an emerging practice influenced (or not) by globalized or European knowledge communities. The two planning systems under scrutiny in this paper are Germany and Brazil. Germany presents a mature field of planning while Brazil's field of planning is emergent. The paper is based on a literature review that supports the formulation of assumptions and tests the approach through a comparison of Brazil and Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While e-shopping may trigger more but shorter trips, i.e., within walkable distances, frequent e-shoppers see private car as more reliable. However, research addressing the interplay between e-shopping and transport mode choice is scarce and mostly focused on urban areas. Against this background, the paper complements current literature by answering the following research question: Is e-shopping behaviour associated with walking to in-store retail instead of using a private car, and what are the differences between urban and rural environments? Germany serves as the spatial laboratory, with the data from the 2017 Mobilität in Deutschland (MiD) survey providing comprehensive insights on mobility and its socio-economic elements. Three logistic regression models are carried out to explore the impact of e-shopping frequency on transport mode choice for three different spatial settings: large agglomerations (≥100,000 inhabitants), urban counties, and rural counties. The results show that people who buy online more frequently in urban and rural counties tend to reach in-store destinations by car instead of walking. On the other hand, the frequency of e-shopping and walking mode choice do not present any association on large urban agglomerations. The socio-economic analysis shows that car owners tend to reach in-store retail by car, while those with higher household incomes are more likely to walk. The paper ends with a discussion of how the results can inform sustainable transport systems to find a balance between online and in-store shopping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global socio-environmental challenges and local impacts, global agendas, and local implementation: multi-level governance has never been more important – or more complex. To keep track of progress and the challenges in sustainable urban development, monitoring systems at all levels are at different stages of development and in need of harmonisation. In this context, national reporting can link the global level with the local one by identifying and reviewing framework conditions, and setting indicator and data standards for cities, counties, and municipalities. This raises questions about the awareness of different issues, resource imbalances and, not least, the effectiveness of standardised monitoring. This paper provides valuable insights into the lessons learned from the preparation of the first national progress report on the implementation of the New Urban Agenda. The reflections could support further governance and monitoring efforts not only at the national level but also across all levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We causally analyse the link between immigrants and crime in Germany for 2008–2019. • The effect is positive for the early sub-period and negative or insignificant for the later one. • When analyzing the total period, the estimates average out to zero. • We study the composition of the migrant group. • The type of residence permit plays an important role. The paper empirically analyses the causal relationship between immigrants and crime using data for German administrative districts between 2008 and 2019. Before the refugee crisis (2008–2014), an increase in the current share of immigrants increased the total crime rate. In contrast, the effect was negative (or insignificant) during and after the refugee crisis (2015–2019). When analysing the total period, the estimates average out to zero. Studying more closely the composition of the migrant group, a plausible explanation of the negative (or insignificant) effect of immigrants on crime in the later period is related to a larger share of migrants with a less certain residence status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior studies have reported a right-leaning bias in the media's reporting of how the public thinks of political issues, raising the question: Why, and to what extent, is this the case? One reason in particular has been discussed in this regard: Journalists judge public opinion to be more right leaning than it actually is (Beckers et al. 2021; Lewis et al. 2004). This paper therefore studies to what extent journalists misjudge audience opinion. The analyses are based on large-scale representative surveys of journalists (1993/2005) and the voting-age population (1994/2005) in Germany. Results show that German journalists (mis-)judge audience opinion to be more right-leaning than the audience sees itself. The results also show that journalists judge audience opinion to be to the right of their own stances, and that journalists in federal states with a right-leaning government and in West Germany judge audience opinion to be even further to the right. Audience feedback does not push journalists' judgements of their audience towards the right, however. These results are discussed vis-à-vis research showing that there is a consistent bias in the depiction of opinions expressed by ordinary citizens, and research documenting that political elites overestimate public support for right-wing policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy crisis in Europe in 2022 and its consequences have brought changes to approaches towards the issue of energy security, energy policy, and the ability to react to crisis phenomena in the energy market in a short period of time. European countries that are dependent on Russian fossil fuels have faced numerous dilemmas and challenges in 2022. This paper aims to analyse the instruments and energy policies introduced as the reactions of European countries, specifically with the examples of Poland and Germany, to the ongoing fossil fuel crisis in the context of a short period. Due to the specificity of the energy market, the countries' energy policies mainly concern long- and medium-term goals. In 2022, there was an unprecedented situation in which many European countries had to make significant changes to their fossil fuel imports quickly. We analyse and evaluate how two European countries that are heavily reliant on imported energy resources responded in a short time to the necessity of modifying their patterns of fossil fuel supply and demand. The results of our research are models that illustrate both countries' reactions to the disturbances in the energy market during the initial months of the energy crisis. As part of the research, we conducted an analysis of the energy mix of Poland and Germany, their import energy dependency, and self-sufficiency. We then compared them with the short-term energy policies of both countries. As a result, we elaborate on a comparative analysis of the models of Poland's and Germany's responses to the crisis. The research also assesses the similarities and differences in the response models in Poland's and Germany's short-term energy security policies. The results of our research may help, in the future, to choose the available short-term instruments in the energy policy of countries in the face of a sudden need resulting from disruptions in supply chains. The article contributes to the future discussion on renewed national and regional energy security, as well as efficiency concepts. Our research findings could be valuable in selecting appropriate short-term energy policy tools for countries during supply chain disruptions. This article provides significant input for future deliberations on enhancing national and regional energy security, and also efficiency strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Eurozone's export-oriented policy regime and pursuit of trade surpluses remains thoroughly puzzling. Rooted in overly strict fiscal policies, inequality and underinvestment; undermining growth and contributing to trade tensions– it defies economic self-interest. This paper develops an analytical framework to confront this puzzle. It argues that these policies are self-harming, but are nonetheless pursued, because of three fallacies that obscure the cost-benefit calculus attached to them. These fallacies are rooted in the empirical problem of observational equivalence: the same observed surplus can be driven by different underlying processes, and its net benefit will depend on our assumptions about these drivers. The first fallacy is mistaking external enablers for domestic competitiveness—interpreting export success to be linked to domestic reform, when it was largely explained by better links to faster growing trading partners. The second fallacy is mistaking weak imports for strong exports—interpreting surpluses as 'winning', even when they are not driven by superior exports but sluggish imports. The third fallacy is mismeasuring multinational firms' contributions to national exports—interpreting profit shifting and assets stashed in low tax jurisdictions as export performance. Germany and Ireland, as paradigmatic 'success cases of austerity', are used to expand the argument. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In forced migration literature, there is a lack of studies on the impact of war trauma on interpersonal mistrust among refugees and their interpersonal trust in members of the host society. To contribute to filling this gap, the author studied the impact of war trauma on interpersonal mistrust among Syrian refugees in Germany and their interpersonal trust in Germans. The data are based on semi-structured qualitative interviews with 20 Syrian refugees and asylum-seekers conducted in 2018 and 2019. The author argues that because traumatised refugees are powerfully influenced by past traumatic events experienced in their home country, they tend to mistrust people who can be associated with the place where these traumatic experiences occurred. In contrast, they are inclined to trust people who cannot be linked to the geographical location of the traumatic experiences. The main result of this study is that similarity—that of war-traumatised refugees sharing the same socio-cultural backgrounds—leads to interpersonal mistrust, while dissimilarity leads to interpersonal trust. The author of this paper calls for considering trust-building among war traumatised refugees, which has significant importance for refugee integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores Twitter adoption and social media engagement of private German environmental foundations. The study follows Lovejoy and Saxton's (2012) approach to the hierarchy of social media engagement. It demonstrates the domination of an information provision role on Twitter and the almost equal relevance of action mobilizations and community building posts. At the same time, the study supplements the existing typology with the additional dimension of communication partners addressed in each type of tweet. Finally, using data from interviews, the study interprets and explains the role of social media tweets and patterns of engagement with different groups. In-depth analysis of tweets and interviews with the foundation representatives confirmed a limited use of social media as a means for dialogue and community development. Simultaneously, analysis shows that tweets posted by foundations predominantly address a professional community of other civil society actors, experts and politicians, creating an online expert bubble. Interviews confirmed that such online connections mirror offline cooperation networks that are perceived to be more important for successful communication and project development by the investigated organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]