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Immigrant minority (IM) languages have a significant presence in certain European regions. Nonetheless, these languages are not usually included in the school curriculum. This paper aims to analyse the studies published between 2010 and 2020 considering IM languages in multilingual European education contexts. The method included a search of academic papers published in the databases ERIC, Web of Science and Scopus, which yielded 42 studies. The studies were analysed by considering: (1) the demographic characteristics of the countries where the studies were conducted, (2) the sociolinguistic or psycholinguistic focus of the papers in relation to the European country, and (3) the characteristics of the bi-multilingual education programme including IM languages. The results indicate that: (1) the demographic characteristics of the country are not strictly related to the number of studies published, (2) most studies have a sociolinguistic approach even though many studies analyse both sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic factors, and (3) only seven multilingual education programmes including IM languages were described in these papers. We conclude that there is a lack of research focusing on IM languages in educational settings and discuss how addressing these gaps could create opportunities for building equitable multilingual communities in Europe.

This paper presents and discusses the results of a study which investigated the needs, attitudes and beliefs of foreign language teachers of refugees in Greece and other countries of Europe. The research which was conducted in two phases, with the one being the pilot phase, involved approximately 120 teachers who commented on the difficulties that they face in contexts with students from refugee and migrant backgrounds. Students' trauma experiences, lack of schooling experience, behavioral problems, lack of specially designed materials catering for the needs of refugees, and of course the language barrier, were among the most frequently claimed problems. The paper ends with some empirically derived suggestions on how teachers could deal with the challenges related to this new reality.

This paper considers recent evidence on autism education in Greece in order to shed light on current developments and attitudes. Given the increase in relevant research in the country, a scoping review to identify topics that have been explored so far and propose areas for future research and implications for practice is timely and necessary. Peer-reviewed papers published between 2000 and 2019 were identified via electronic databases and their main themes were analysed. Themes related to autistic individual (i.e. the voice of autistic individuals and intervention studies), the family around them (i.e. the role of family and stigma), the role of teachers (i.e. teacher training and teacher stress levels) and the wider society (i.e. parent-teacher collaboration, the medical/deficit model of disability and inclusion) emerged from the review. The above themes are discussed in the light of the cultural characteristics of Greece and the recent economic crisis the country underwent as well as similar findings from other European countries.

Museums seek to be places for democratization, inclusion and polyphony. In this paper we present the multimodal conversations of the participating adolescents in the course of a museum pedagogical program in the Museum of Contemporary Art of Crete. The program's topic is Europe and the concept of European identity. Firstly, we prepare the ground through creating an environment of safety and confidence, and next, together with our groups we study the selected artworks, following the routines of 'Artful Thinking', which propose the development of critical thinking through specific questions. This process reinforces reflective thinking and skills of participating in a dialogue. Our aim is to describe and share how a museum through its collections and programs can constitute a space where democratic dialogue and healthy debate are cultivated. In this space, everybody is invited to participate in inquiring, reflecting on self, answering, sharing, with and through the art.

This paper is concerned with multimodal literacy involving the different kinds of knowledge required to fully access texts with multiple semiotic resources used in reading comprehension test tasks. Such literacy requirements have not drawn researchers' attention to date, mainly because the foreign language teaching and testing project has primarily focussed on the verbal features of reading comprehension texts. Drawing on data from the Greek National Foreign Language Exams (known with the acronym KPG) -- one of the few high-stakes examination systems which use multimodal reading comprehension texts -- the paper approaches reading comprehension as a meaning-making process highly dependent on both image and language used in test tasks and the relations between them (i.e. "intersemiosis"). Working mainly within the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL), this study has attempted a systematic description of the visual and intersemiotic literacy indicators of 86 multimodal media texts used in KPG reading comprehension test tasks. For the SFL-oriented multimodal discourse analysis, Tan et al.'s categories of system choices suggested for the analysis of different types of multimodal media texts, and the Multimodal Analysis Image (MMA) interactive software program were used.

Children from Roma communities are consistently among the lowest academic achievers in many European countries and this holds true in Greece. In Greek schools, Roma students experience high dropout rates and low performance compared to their non-Roma peers. Moreover, in Greece, as elsewhere, Roma experience wide-spread discrimination. Drawing on a set of in-depth interviews with 20 Greek Roma who have entered higher education, this paper examines how these participants account for their educational success. In particular, this article analyses the influence of 'community factors' on the participants' academic progression. This article highlights aspects of the Greek case of Roma's educational success that may contribute towards addressing aspects related to Roma's educational exclusion and promoting educational progression in the European context more widely.

This paper aims to present research on measuring competences for democratic culture. It describes the development of a multiple-item scale that measures competences in teaching democratic citizenship and human rights through religious education. A principal component analysis based on the 135 items of the Council of Europe's Reference framework of competences for democratic culture was carried out in two phases, in order to construct and refine the scale. The result was a 52-item scale divided into six components. This was tested for its reliability, factor structure and validity; firstly on a sample of 123, and secondly on a sample of 403 secondary RE teachers (2018-19). The research scrutinises the concept of democratic competences as being the ability to mobilise and deploy relevant values, attitudes, skills, knowledge and/or understanding. It concludes that these competences are more complex structures than has been assumed.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review the use of "competence" as a concept and through the use of occupational competence standards in six European countries. Design/methodology/approach: Partners in an Erasmus+ project in each of the six countries prepared a review of the use of "competence" in their countries using a common template. The authors of this paper reviewed additional literature, summarised the individual country reviews and provided an analysis and commentary. Findings: "Competence" is becoming a widely used concept across Europe, but its interpretation and application both vary. Between them, the countries in the study illustrate the use of separate occupational standards, both as a national strategy and developed by self-governing professions; as well as competence embedded directly in qualification and training specifications. The use of separate standards as a mandatory component in national vocational education and training systems is questioned, while the use of appropriate standards for licensing and qualified status is largely endorsed. Research limitations/implications: The country reviews were conducted principally from the perspective of informing the developments taking place in the project, so were not comprehensive and also differed in emphasis between countries. Practical implications: The study points to the need to avoid promoting any particular model of occupational competence at a European level, as opposed to seeking common ground that will aid mutual recognition of qualifications. It also cautions against the uncritical transfer of models and policies from one national system to another. Originality/value: The paper provides additional evidence against "policy borrowing" without careful consideration of context, and contrasts the use of competence standards as part of a system-wide strategy with their tailored application for specific purposes.

This paper reports on an investigation examining provision of physical education continuing professional development (CPD) in European countries undertaken to identify the types of practices being employed. We begin by providing a brief overview of what we currently know about CPD internationally in general education and physical education. Data are reported to reflect Parker and Patton's (2017) key characteristics of CPD that highlight effective CPD, summarise current trends and issues in physical education, and are intended to serve as a guide to how teachers learn and how they might be better served in that learning in these European countries. Studying current practices in CPD provision identified in this study provided modest insight to inform teacher education programmes and CPD providers on the current status of physical education CPD currently being employed in Europe. We propose these findings might inform international and comparative education with respect to CPD and set the foundation for physical education colleagues in Europe to develop a CPD network where endeavours such as sharing of CPD practices, engaging in discussion of those practices, and the design of collaborative research on such CPD practices are based.

This article presents results from an extensive systematic and meta-analytical review of the effectiveness of school-based bullying prevention programs. Its main aim is to explore the results of this meta-analysis specifically in regard to variations in the effectiveness of school-bullying programs globally and the effectiveness of specific anti-bullying programs. Our meta-analysis included 100 independent evaluations, and found that, overall, programs were effective in reducing school-bullying perpetration and victimization. In the present paper, we focused on 12 countries (e.g., Italy, Norway, USA, UK), three regions (i.e., Europe, North America, and Scandinavia) and four anti-bullying programs (i.e., KiVa, NoTrap!, OBPP, and ViSC) with multiple evaluations. Our results showed that anti-bullying programs evaluated in Greece were the most effective in reducing bullying perpetration, followed by Spain and Norway. Anti-bullying programs evaluated in Italy were the most effective in reducing bullying victimization, followed by Spain and Norway. Evaluations conducted in North America were the most effective in reducing bullying perpetration, and evaluations conducted in Scandinavia were the most effective in reducing bullying victimization. Evaluations of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program produced the largest effect sizes for bullying perpetration outcomes, but the NoTrap! Program was the most effective in reducing bullying victimization. We also systematically review the core components of the intervention programs and make recommendations for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore and present a higher education initiative towards the training and development of Eastern European citizens, who migrate to Greece, in pursuit of bettering their economic conditions and, simultaneously, become evolving social entities, adaptable to heterogeneous environments. Design/methodology/approach: Motivated by the motto "education for all", the initiative is based on data drawn from local and public authorities and interviews that were carried out with immigrants, mainly from Albania and Ukraine. Findings: This paper proposes a learning policy and training mechanism for foreigners and the establishment of a Mediator Office providing educational services. Research limitations/implications: Further efforts are necessary to improve the teaching content in order to be in full conformity with the characteristics and requirements of non-native learners. Practical implications: Some of the constraints hampering the implementation of this initiative are the lack of the necessary financial resources, the absence of legal framework, as well as the shortage of bilingual adult training and education instructors. Originality/value: There have been limited autonomous educational programmes concerning immigrants' lifelong learning provided by the Greek Ministry of Education, focused mainly on the Greek language and history learning. This work introduces a novel educational structure, which may be established in any higher education institution and which will involve anyone in any kind of subject, anytime and anywhere.

This paper presents a comparative examination of four local learning centres that provide learning opportunities throughout life in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey. The paper aims to assess some of the strengths and weaknesses of different types of local learning centres and partnerships in South-Eastern Europe--in line with the value and impact of the Lisbon strategy for developing multipurpose local learning centres for "brining learning closer to home"--in order to draw some conclusions on how to promote greater collaboration and a culture of co-operation, in an area where a lifelong learning culture is still underdeveloped, compared with that in other parts of the European Union. (Contains 1 figure and 55 notes.)

This study presents an update of forensic accounting of the numbers and demographics of migrants found deceased in the Evros region of Greece in the years from 2015–22. Compared to data from 2000–14, this update reflects the mounting number of border‐related deaths in the region, as well as the changing demographic trends associated with the migrants who perish crossing the Greek‐Turkish border. Specifically, the paper documents a broadening of locations from which migrants originate, the increasing diversity of migrant death locations, and a shift in the leading causes of death. It contains important forensic accounting of the unique humanitarian crisis occurring along the Greek‐Turkish land border while also providing an additional context for the global migration crisis. The data presented here offer insights into other forensic stakeholders impacted by the global migration crisis, with respect to what factors contribute to and detract from identification rates, and can help stakeholders make informed policy decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lasting imbalances between the demand for educated labor and the size and educational composition of the supply of university graduates has been a common phenomenon for both developed and developing countries. Drawing on human capital theory, this paper develops a methodology to help education planners restore the balance. Includes 49 references. (MLH)

Copyright of Cuadernos Europeos de Deusto is the property of Universidad de Deusto 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.)

The slogan that prefaces the paper provides the theoretical caveat for the tensions, limitations, and contradictions of academic discourses in conjuring the daily realities of the era of the ‘refugee crisis' in Greece. This paper has the form of a dialogue between a sociologist and photographer (Myrto) and a political theorist and activist (Anna) who investigate different forms of the ways the ‘refugee crisis' is changing the socio-political landscapes in Greece. The multiple aspects of our identities provide valuable tools with which we unpack the multiple and contradictory narratives of researching, learning, and disseminating in the current milieu. In particular, we are interested in the ways we shape knowledge and the tension between the epistemological and the ontological ways of knowing. In other words, by moving from theory to praxis and back, we are attempting to reconcile the problem of knowing and the problem of being part of a specific crisis milieu. For example, how can we use crisis as a research methodology? What can we learn from the ongoing ‘refugee crisis' in relation to issues of citizenship, belonging, and the future of the European project? Furthermore, the paper attempts to transcend discursive borders between social sciences and the humanities by analysing the deeply performative, situated and embodied practices of doing research in moments of crisis. For example, how to navigate multiple, and at times contradictory, aspects of one’s identity without returning to outmoded discourses of positivism and objectivity? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing interest in island economies within Europe. In the European Union (EU) this has led to enhanced Cohesion Policy support for islands, along with a number of other regions facing geographical challenges. Because of major problems with data, comparative research on islands across different EU member states has been of limited extent. This paper explores the use of national data sets to undertake comparative cross-country analysis of islands. The paper concentrates on two member states, Greece and Britain, which have large numbers of offshore islands. Data from national population censuses are drawn upon to allow typologies of the islands to be developed. These typologies are utilised to identify similarities and differences between British and Greek islands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyse discourses about Europe in Greek debates about immigration and citizenship and highlight the complexities of 'Europeanness' as a symbolic resource for argumentation in these debates. Our data consist of lay discourses from 2 rounds of online public deliberation (2009-2010 and 2015) about a controversial new citizenship law in Greece. Our analysis shows that Europe is an ambivalent category. On the one hand, Europe symbolises progress, but, on the other hand, it is also constructed in terms of decline and 'contamination' by multiculturalism. Further, our analysis shows that the category of Europe can be mobilised in contradictory ways, in order to support arguments for and against citizenship rights for migrants. The paper concludes with a discussion of the ways in which constructions of Europe are implicated in processes of othering and inclusion in the context of current immigration debates. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores variation in motives among outbound holidaymakers traveling to typical summer season destination areas in Greece and Spain. The study reveals differences in self-reported motives between visitors to the two countries and also some differences in relation to their gender, level of education and previous experience of these destinations. Four holiday interest structures are identified: 1) place experience and contemplation; 2) family togetherness, romance and relaxation; 3) beach life and pleasant climate; and 4) nightlife and new acquaintances. The data are derived from a national year-long survey of international charter flights from Norway. By way of conclusion, the paper suggests some alternative perspectives on popular summer holiday trips from Northern to Southern Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can the rise of wealth–income ratios observed in rich economies be found in the case of Greece as well? This paper uses a generalization of a two‐good wealth accumulation equation to estimate the evolution of the national wealth–income ratio, and finds that, similarly to the European evidence, the ratio rises from about 280 percent in the 1970s to about 500 percent on the eve of the current financial crisis. On average, during 1974–96, the saving‐induced wealth growth cancels out the capital losses, whereas in the subsequent decade, 1997–2007, the balance changes considerably when the saving effect vanishes and the prolonged capital gains result in a rising wealth–income ratio. During the recession, income falls faster than wealth. The results remain robust to several alterations of the benchmark framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic crisis signifies a turning point for Greek national self-image. The present paper explores the ideological function of interpretative repertoires in relation to the reproduction and contestation of national identity. We focus on two basic repertoires: a victimizing and a self-blaming one. Even though connotations of victimhood are not homogenous, its association with an external enemy is very popular. This paper demonstrates that discourses of victimization are not unambiguous and solidified; they interact with self-blaming discursive patterns, thus leading to hybrid perceptions of the national self-image that are adjusted to particular political actors’ strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Are housing provision systems in southern Europe (Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece) different from those in northern Europe? Answering this question requires a way of theorizing housing systems, which locates them within their broader societal contexts. After setting out some of the key empirical differences between northern and southern, the paper reanalyses Esping-Andersen's work on welfare regimes and reviews housing-specific work using these ideas as a basis for identifying differences between northern and southern European welfare and housing systems. Three key factors emerge from this analysis: the capacity of civil administration, the linkages between formal and informal segments in the labour market, and the operation of extended familial networks in welfare distribution. On this basis, the paper presents a more institutionally robust analysis of the relationships between welfare and housing provision systems in southern Europe. The conclusions address the problems of using welfare regime theory to analyse housing provision as well as some of the specific housing problems associated with socio-economic change in southern Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The expansion of urban ecosystems and climate change, both outcomes of massive lifestyle changes, contribute to a series of side effects such as environmental deterioration, spread of diseases, increased greenhouse gas emissions and introduction of invasive species. In the case of the Athens metropolitan area, an invasive mosquito species—the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus)–has spread widely in the last decade. This spread is favoured within urban environments and is also affected by changing climatic trends. The Asian tiger mosquito is accompanied by risks of mosquito-borne diseases, greater nuisance levels, and increased expenses incurring for its confrontation. The main aims of this paper are (i) to estimate the various costs associated with their control of this invasive species, as well as its health and nuisance impacts, (ii) to evaluate the level of citizens’ well-being from averting these impacts and (iii) to record citizens’ and experts’ perceptions regarding alternative control measures. Evidence shows that experts tend to place a high value on mosquito control when associated with serious health risks, while citizens are more sensitive and concerned about the environmental impacts of control methods. The synthesis of results produced by the current study could act as a preliminary guide for the estimation of societal welfare from the confrontation of similar problems in the context of a complex ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: As the burden of migration to Europe increases, Greece is in a critical geographical crossroad and despite its longstanding financial troubles, is now mapping new paths for coping with modern immigration influx via adhering to improved social status of refugees and migrants. In terms of access to health services by refugees and immigrants in Greece, it should be noted that the institutional framework concerning access has been relatively restricted until recently. Aim: The main objective of this paper is to explore factors associated with nursing and contemporary migration and also to present an overview of the European and Greek policies and initiatives to protect migrants' health. Method: A critical literature search was performed, seeking key material and benchmark policy statements exploring and explaining the complexities and the challenges associated with migration per se and the impact on people's health. Findings-Discussion: Findings are grouped and discussed further under five pillars, i.e.: Immigration in Europe in Recent Years, Configuring Europe's migration policy to address first migration rates, How is Europe securing migrant's health, Health care provision and utilization for migrants in Europe and Health care provision and utilization for migrants in Greece. Overall, it can be argued that the refugee crisis had a major impact on the Greek NHS and that the influx of forcibly displaced people raised critical issues concerned health care provision including services for mental comorbidities and psychosocial support. Yet, efforts are made to adjust policy and practice in the light of meeting health needs for migrants despite economic limitations, which are affecting both locals and refugees alike. Conclusions: Nursing, in this turbulent health provision environment is expected to provide health interventions addressed to migrants. As the spectrum of migration into Europe continues due to various political, social and financial complexities, the need for societal responses including appropriate policy implementation and relevant nursing education is essential. Thus, migration will continue to pose challenges to society and to health in Greece and beyond. Only through continuous attentiveness will it be possible to identify, and then avoid or reduce health disadvantages faced by persons with a migration background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background This paper provides the socio-economic context of the MIGHEAL study, the results of which are presented in this special issue. The aim of the MIGHEAL study was to compare the physical and mental health of the native and migrant populations of Greece in the wake of the economic crisis that commenced in 2008. Methods The background of the migrant population of Greece is described, drawing on population censuses of Greece and data on residence permits held by foreigners. Then the migrant and native populations are compared with respect to several socio-economic outcomes, using Eurostat data on unemployment and the risk of poverty. Results The settled migrant population of Greece is largely of Central and Eastern European origin, resulting from the massive migrant inflowsthat started at the beginning of the 1990s after the collapse of socialist regimes in the area. Before the economic crisis, migrant unemployment was lower than that of natives, but after its onset, the unemployment of migrants surpassed that of natives. Prior to the crisis, migrants were already subject to greater risk of poverty than natives, but the gap widened considerably subsequent to the crisis. Conclusion The Greek institutional framework has restricted access to citizenship for both first- and second-generation migrants while conditions for permit renewal are onerous, rendering citizenship an important factor differentiating socio-economic outcomes. The different outcomes observed among the native and migrant populations after the onset of the Greek economic crisis create concerns regarding health inequalities between the two populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faced with claims for recognising religious diversity, liberal European democracies have shifted in the last 10 years towards a more restrictive view of integration. This paper seeks to make a contribution to this line of research on how European countries deal with migration-related ethnic and religious diversity today by investigating the case of a southern country, notably Greece. Greece is an interesting case to study: it has by now 20 years of experience as a host country, but still its migrant integration policies are under-developed. In addition Greece it is currently experiencing an acute economic crisis while irregular migration towards the country is on the rise. These developments have contributed to bringing migration on to centre stage in political discourse with a concomitant rise of racist and xenophobic discourses against migrants. This paper takes, as a case study, the public Muslim prayer that took place in several squares of Athens on 18 November 2010 as a peaceful protest against the fact that Athens still does not have a formal mosque. We use this event as an opportunity for interviewing social and political actors directly or indirectly involved in it on their views regarding migration, religious diversity and their accommodation in the Greek public space. We analyse their discourse on whether and under what conditions religious diversity, Islam in particular, should be tolerated or accepted in Greek society. We propose here the notion of ‘nationalist intolerance’ to make sense of Greek discourses and propose a dynamic understanding of tolerance and intolerance as concepts that do not emanate from abstract norms but are rather negotiated in specific contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary & Nonprofit Organizations is the property of Springer Nature 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.)

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to identify the componsents of consumer-based brand equity from the perspective of experts in brand management in the UK, Germany and Greece. Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected from semi-structured interviews with senior brand consultants and managers, five in the UK, five in Germany and five in Greece. Findings - The findings suggested four categories of measures which can be used to define brand equity. These are the consumers' understanding of brand characteristics; consumers' brand evaluation; consumers' affective response towards the brand; and consumers' behaviour towards the brand. Specific dimensions are identified as indicators of each category. Research limitations/implications - Although the focus of this study is Europe, data were only collected from the UK, Germany and Greece, countries representing three of the five European cultural clusters. The resultant taxonomy adds to the fragmented literature on brand equity measurement by proposing four categories to gauge brand equity. Practical implications - The suggested taxonomy provides indicators of a framework managers could use when assessing brand equity. Originality/value - There is little agreement on what constitutes brand equity and therefore measures of brand equity are fragmented. To date, the views of practicing managers have not been taken into account in research. This paper draws on the views of practitioners and academics to suggest a taxonomy of categories of measures for brand equity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses certain issues of regional development theory in combination with long-forgotten conditions of uneven geographical development in the context of the current financial and debt crisis in the eurozone. The dominant explanations of the crisis are mainly macroeconomic and financial but this paper argues for its geographical components/foundations. After a short descriptive comment about the current debt crisis in the eurozone and particularly in Southern Europe as part of the wider global crisis of over-accumulation, an alternative interpretation is provided based on uneven geographical/regional development among Euro-regions, especially since the introduction of the euro. The paper also discusses the shift towards what we may call the neoliberal urban and regional development discourse, which is responsible for a de-politicized shift in regional theory and hence downplaying or simply overlooking questions of socio-spatial justice. The discussion about justice and solidarity goes beyond the controversial rescue plan introduced by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, which was supposedly designed to help one of the so-called – in a typical colonial way – PIIGS (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain), namely Greece. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to identify the critical factors that support European food retailers' internationalisation via an investigation of the importance of Dunning's eclectic paradigm advantages (ownership, location and internalisation). Senior managers from seven firms that operate in the Greek food multiple retail sector were interviewed, and three propositions were put on test. In general, the findings indicate the critical role of the internalisation advantage during the international expansion of European food multiple retailers into that market. The findings also reveal that this advantage is the main superior and sustainable competitive element that European food multiple retailers possess when competing with local firms. The latter can be considered as an extension to the findings of previous studies that have exclusively emphasised the importance of ownership advantage factors in the course of the retail internationalisation process. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Since the outbreak of the crisis in Southern Europe, young highly educated Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese and Greeks have been taking their talents and expertise to other countries in search of a better quality of life and career prospects. This paper explores the characteristics of these new emigrants, the reasons for which they are leaving, and whether these reasons are shaped by the economic crisis, by pre-crisis grievances, or by other factors. We analyse original data from 6377 questionnaires collected in 4 countries through an e-survey we ran in 2013. We refer to the existing literature on the drivers of highly skilled emigration and the (un)employment situation in the four aforementioned Southern European countries which have been hardest hit by the economic crisis. We suggest that while gender is not important, age, marital status, education and satisfaction with current employment (both income related and with regard to future prospects) are important factors predicting emigration. Non-economic factors, notably career opportunities, quality of life and future prospects supersede all other considerations in the decision to emigrate for these highly educated Europeans. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Rostrum of Asclepius / Vima tou Asklipiou is the property of Technological Educational Institute of Athens 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 the context of a cross-national economic crisis, questions about democratic legitimacy are again topical. We explore the question of democratic legitimacy in Portugal and Greece by employing the conceptual differentiation between diffuse and specific regime support. Our findings indicate that while specific support has fallen in both countries, only Greece has experienced a precipitous fall in diffuse support, suggesting a link between regime performance and support for democracy. Individual-level analyses do not reveal any clear patterns concerning the impact of long-term societal factors or short-term economic considerations. Due to data quality limitations the paper has a predominately exploratory nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Europe has a long history of non-native species introductions given its central role in global trade in recent centuries. Currently, approximately two hundred cerambycid species have been found in Europe, as the result of introductions between and within biogeographical regions; still, despite better monitoring and stronger restrictions, the arrivals and spread of non-native Cerambycidae continue. New information: The aim of this contribution is to report and discuss the first European records of the nonnative longhorn beetle Olenecamptus bilobus (Fabricius, 1801) on the basis of three specimens recorded almost simultaneously in Spain and Greece, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Is there a date signaling the beginning of a new era? As regards Europe, at least, a potential candidate is the year 1992 - the year of the Maastricht Treaty - which marked the beginning of EU's expansion, thus investing the term "globalization" with a new meaning. But 1992 is also the year that marked a significant, symbolic change in the Hellenic Higher Education system: it is the year in which women were first permitted to join the Military Academy of Greece. My paper will therefore trace the trajectory of female cadets at the Hellenic Military Academy, focusing on the relation of gender to educational institutions that traditionally resist change (such as the Academies of the Armed Forces), and examining the extent to which the process of globalization has influenced both the cadets' own perception of the role of the contemporary Army Officer, and the very notion of a "proper," "feminine" career. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper employs Hong's (2001) causality-in-mean and causality-in-variance tests to investigate the spillovers between business confidence and stock returns for the four economically distressed Southern European countries, namely Greece, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. The sample uses monthly data and covers the period from January 1988 to December 2010. Our causality-in-mean results indicate that there is feedback relationship between stock returns and business confidence in Portugal. The direction of causality-in-mean runs from business confidence to stock returns in Italy, but it is in the reverse direction in the case of Spain. Nevertheless, there is still evidence of a contemporaneous interaction between business confidence and stock returns in both Italy and Spain. On the other hand, causality-in-variance indicate the presence of volatility spillovers from business confidence to stock returns in Portugal, while a causal relationship is found in the current month in the case of Italy. Business confidence causes stock returns only in the mean in Greece. These results indicate that the stock market and business confidence relationship has its own idiosyncratic properties and that the stock market reactions to the current macroeconomic environment and expectations about the future developments might evolve differently in each country. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithic artifacts were still in use in Bronze Age Europe, in spite of the emergence of a new technology, namely metallurgy, during this period. In fact, stone technology continued to be used everywhere until at least the end of the Early Bronze Age, and even until the end of the Late Bronze Age in specific areas. This is especially true for Greece where lithic raw material and/or tool networks were still operating during the whole Bronze Age. During the Middle Bronze Age in mainland Greece, obsidian and high-quality chert were still widely used, especially in settlements. This raises the question of the necessity of the use of obsidian instead of a stronger or more versatile material (chert or metal). Why was volcanic glass, which required considerable investment in terms of know-how and long-distance transportation, still used in spite of the technological context (where metallurgy was already developed)? The purpose of this paper is to contribute to this debate through the use-wear analysis of obsidian tools. Artifacts from settlement levels of the Middle Helladic site of Kirrha (Phocis, Greece) have been examined. In this domestic-use context, bronze and chert were also found. The main results of this study show an exclusive form and use of obsidian: bladelets were used for cutting soft and siliceous plant matter, with the exception of Graminae harvesting activity. These results point to the specialization of the lithic industry in terms of raw materials, where sharp obsidian artefacts were employed for cutting of soft and flexible materials, depending on the relative brittleness of the rock, at least at Kirrha. Thus, among the numerous propositions concerning continued obsidian circulation during the entire Bronze Age, a functional use (at least) could be proven, if this observation is also made elsewhere in Greece. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The technological systems and subsistence strategies of Middle Pleistocene hominins in South-East Europe are insufficiently understood due to the scarcity of well-preserved, excavated assemblages. In this paper, we present first results from the study of the lithic and bone artifacts unearthed at the Lower Palaeolithic site Marathousa 1 (MAR-1), Megalopolis, Greece. The context of the site represents a depositional environment close to a lakeshore, where rapid burial in a very fine-grained matrix ensured extraordinary conditions for preservation. Lithic artifacts occur in spatial and stratigraphic association with remains of the elephant Palaeoloxodon antiquus as well as other mammals. Bones, including those of elephants, show clear anthropogenic flaking scars, cut-marks and fracture patterns indicating deliberate breakage and modification by early humans. The MAR-1 lithic assemblage is composed of small-sized debitage, retouched tools, a few small and exhausted cores, as well as a large number of debris and retouch products, such as chips and resharpening flakes. Currently, there are no indications of Acheulean bifacial debitage, large cutting tools are missing, and a key aspect of the material refers to its 'microlithic' character. The scarcity of cores and primary flakes indicates a fragmented reduction sequence and complex discard patterns that require further investigation. On the basis of the on-going analysis of lithic material from three field seasons, we discuss aspects of assemblage composition and the role of raw material types, the main technological and typological traits of the industry, as well as the potential contribution of the MAR-1 assemblage in broader discussions about Middle Pleistocene lithic techno-complexes and subsistence strategies in Eurasia. Finally, we briefly present a small sample of bone artifacts, which suggest that hominin exploitation of the animal carcasses was not restricted to marrow extraction and bone processing for nutritional needs, but included also the knapping of bones, potentially with the aim of using the knapped products as tools. The MAR-1 archaeological record compares well with other important Eurasian sites yielding 'small tool assemblages', such as Ficoncella, La Polledrara, Bilzingsleben, Schöningen and Vértesszőlős, some of which, like MAR-1, have provided evidence of elephant or other mega-fauna exploitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The PaGE Project survey of the Megalopolis Basin (Arcadia, Greece), conducted in 2012–2013 over a period of two field seasons, was an intensive, target-oriented surface survey of Pleistocene sediments. Implementing a modified version of field methods applied in our survey of cave systems and Pleistocene cave sediments, the main goal of this systematic research focused on the identification of intact stratified remains from either stratigraphic sections or on remnants of exposed ancient surfaces. The project area consisted of the active open-cast lignite mine of Megalopolis, where access to recently exposed sections were abundant, and of the alluvial fans in the surrounding uplands, where hominins exploited the commanding views of the ancient lake. This paper presents the survey results and applied field methods for conducting archaeological research within the remnants of an Early to Middle Pleistocene ancient lake system. The project succeeded in identifying at least five surface and stratified sites, the latter including the Lower Paleolithic remains of Marathousa-1. This site is currently under investigation, but has already yielded the oldest chronometrically dated archaeological remains in Greece. Therefore, PaGE has not only managed to place mainland Greece on the Lower Paleolithic map of Europe, but has also successfully tested a methodological corpus for survey research targeting the earliest phases of the Paleolithic period in a Mediterranean landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent German Focus cover which shows the statue of Venus de Milo flipping off the European Union, and calls the Greeks the "cheats of the euro zone" caused major outbursts from the Greek media. The airbrushed statue of Venus expressing the communal German sentiment has provoked massive reactions that lay bare the tension underlying the construction of a universal, seamless European identity. In my essay I will attempt a reading of the Focus-cover and the discourses that have developed around it. In particular, I will examine the relationship between the dominant claim of constructing a unified European identity, and the attempt to master the current social and economic crisis in terms of national identity, drawing from Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, Jacques Lacan, and Discourse Theory. The paper is built around the three forms of objectification articulated by Foucault: the production of power-knowledge through discourse, dividing practices, and the turning of the self into a subject. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The global trend of fisheries overexploitation and collapse has resulted in the need to reduce fishing effort, and providing alternative employment for fishermen is a frequently mentioned policy option in order to achieve this goal. Reducing fishing effort is central to the European Commission Common Fisheries Policy and over the years, the Commission has developed a number of socio-economic measures to encourage labour mobility among fishermen, and as such mitigate the impact caused by the structural adjustment. Considering this aim, this paper seeks to identify European fishermen''s willingness for occupational and geographical mobility and the characteristics that influence this willingness. A survey was conducted with the participants in the inshore commercial fisheries of the Highlands of Scotland (UK), the Algarve (Portugal) and the South Evoikos Gulf (Greece), and logit models fitted to identify the characteristics that influence willingness for labour mobility. The paper argues that there are differences in attitudes towards labour mobility among fishermen from the different countries and that personal preferences, demographic characteristics, job-related and financial reasons influence the willingness for both occupational and geographical mobility. The paper concludes by pointing out the importance of taking local conditions and the heterogeneity that characterizes fishermen''s behaviour into account, in order to achieve successful policy measures aimed at providing alternative occupations for fishermen. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Anti-Westernism is a widespread phenomenon in the Orthodox world today, particularly in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, expressed by numerous actors, manifested at various levels and operating in different contexts, religious and otherwise. Historically it can be traced back to the long-term differentiation between the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) and the Western Roman Empire, as well as between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchates. Because many Orthodox earlier used to identify Europe with the West, anti-Westernism is sometimes closely connected with anti-Europeanism. Drawing examples mostly from the Greek and Russian cases, this paper attempts to assess Orthodox anti-Westernism in its contemporary dimensions by pointing to its numerous antinomical manifestations, which can hardly render it an obstacle and a threat to European integration today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The databases of children's anthropometric parameters are often outdated, rarely representative and are not always available at an international level. Objectives: To present children's anthropometric parameters in six European countries that contributed to the Feel4Diabetes project and find country-specific differences. Design/Setting: The Feel4Diabetes study was performed between 2016 and 2018, targeting children in Belgium, Bulgaria, Finland, Greece, Hungary and Spain. The current study presents data from the baseline and the yearly follow-up anthropometric measurements. Subjects: In total, 20,832 measurements of children (48.7% boys) between 6 and 10 years of age were conducted. Main outcome measure: weight, height, BMI. Results: Belgian boys had the lowest body weight and height, while Greek boys had the highest body weight, and Finnish had the highest body height. The highest proportion of overweight (percentile above 85%) and obese boys (percentile above 95%) was in Greece, followed by Hungarian, Spanish, Bulgarian and Finnish boys. In contrast, Belgian boys had the lowest ratio in both categories. Among girls, Greece had the highest; Belgium had the lowest body weight; Finland was the highest in all age categories. The ratio in the overweight range was the highest in Greece, followed by Spanish, Bulgarian and Hungarian girls, who were second in the obese category. Finnish girls had lower and Belgian girls had the lowest ratio in both BMI categories. All the detailed data are presented in tables, and the trends are figures. Conclusions: Our study presents fresh and comparable anthropometric data of children between 6 and 10 years of age in six European countries, supporting the need for appropriate obesity prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article analyses the impact of the ongoing economic crisis on Greek urban economies. Utilizing a dataset of socio-economic, demographic and policy variables at the municipal level and applying spatial econometric techniques, it provides strong statistical evidence of heterogeneous effects on regional-municipal labour markets and welfare with the cities/municipalities that performed best in the pre-crisis period suffering more than the lagging municipalities and with urban agglomerations more vulnerable to crisis, thus questioning the length of bottoming. However, exogenously set variables, tourism and policy related, the inherent features of urban economies, such as the specialization of industry, and their inter-linkages with their peri-rural municipalities, act as stabilizers that ease the crisis effects and may support recovery. Fiscal policy has been cyclical to the economic downturn. The findings have substantial policy implications for crisis management, recovery policy measures and the country's cohesion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]