European social survey

Background: Mental wellbeing is formed by our daily environments, which are, in turn, influenced by public policies, such as the welfare state. This paper looks at how different aspects of life conditions may mediate the welfare state effect on mental wellbeing in oldest old age.
Methods: Data were extracted from Round 6 of the European Social Survey (2012). The dataset comprised of 2058 people aged 80 years and older from 24 countries. Mediation analyses determined possible links between the welfare state, including eleven intervening variables representing life conditions and five mental wellbeing dimensions. Results: Our study confirms that the higher the level of welfare state, the better mental wellbeing, irrespective of dimension. Although several life conditions were found to mediate the welfare state effect on mental wellbeing, subjective general health, coping with income and place in society were the most important intervening variables.
Conclusions: All three variables centre around supporting autonomy in the oldest old age. By teasing out how the welfare state influences mental wellbeing in the oldest old, we can better understand the many drivers of wellbeing and enable evidence informed age-friendly policy making.

It is a common theme in the literature on voter turnout that advanced Western democracies have entered a period of political disengagement and that it is young people, in particular, that participate less. In this paper, I analyse data from the three waves of the European Social Survey and show that while young people are in general less likely to be politically involved than their elders, these diffferences are greater in the United Kingdom than in Italy. In addition, I show that controlling for education accounts for diffferences in political participation between young and older people in Italy. However, education does not appear to mediate youth political involvement in the United Kingdom so that normative concerns about youth political disengagement appear to be more appropriate for the latter of the two countries.

Cet article résume certaines des réflexions et des conclusions empiriques qui sous-tendent un programme d’enquête sur la théorie de la justice procédurale en Europe. Il place la théorie de la justice procédurale au sein d’un ensemble de théories du respect de la loi et en présente les principales caractéristiques, en définissant le concept central de légitimité. Il présente ensuite des conclusions du cinquième volet de l’Enquête sociale européenne d’où il ressort que différents types de confiance de l’opinion publique en la police sont liés à la perception par le grand public de la légitimité de la police, qui est à son tour liée au respect de la loi et à la disposition à collaborer avec la police.

However much we appreciate the enormous scientific contribution by Professor Ronald Inglehart, who initiated the international data collection of the World Values Survey, our re-analysis of the very World Values Survey data [“roll-outs” of the World Values Survey data wvs1981_2008_v20090914.sav] brought us to question Inglehart’s theories, with which he and his associates interpret the mass of the World Values Survey data. Their theoretical approach does not use a sufficiently number of hard-core indicators how global publics view central issues of economic policy, and their theories overemphasize a secularistic view of the religious phenomenon in modern society. Their theories predict the gradual waning of the religious phenomena in parallel with the increase of human security, and even cherish at times the tendencies brought about by such a waning of the religious element in advanced democracies. Inglehart spells them out: higher levels of tolerance for abortion, divorce, homosexuality; the erosion of parental authority, the decrease of the importance of family life et cetera. Is that really something to cherish?

Today, societal and economic development is discontinuous; regional centers of the world economy shift at an enormous speed; and above all, religion and family values can be an important assett in the stability of capitalist development. Economic growth inexorably shifts away from the North Atlantic arena towards new centers of gravitation of the world economy. Alberto Alesina’s and Paola Giuliano’s new maps of global values (Alesina and Giuliano, 2013) present a real break with the hitherto existing secularistic consensus of global value research. Their maps of family ties, respect for parents et cetera coincide with the global map of economic growth today.

Leading representatives of the global economics profession now start to take up the challenge to interpret the mass of the data from the World Values Survey project on their own. The essay by Barro and McCleary (2003) was an important beginning and a good example of how today economic research uses data from the World Values Survey project to study the relationship between religion, denominations and economic growth.

Alesina (2013); Alesina and Angeletos (2005); Alesina and Fuchs-Schündeln (2007); Alesina and Guiliano (2010, 2011, 2013); Alesina, Cozzi and Mantovan (2012); and Alesina, di Tella, and MacCulloch (2004) all show how the economic discipline can gain hard-core, quantitative and valuable insights from comparative knowledge about such phenomena as generalized trust and social capital, individualism, family ties, morality, attitudes toward work and perception of poverty, and religious practice for economic processes.

In our re-analysis, we use the advanced statistical multivariate analysis technique of the Promax factor analysis, which allows for correlations between factors. It is available to the global public via the IBM-SPSS statistical package XXI. We eliminated missing values by listwise delition.

In our first re-analysis, there were 92289 interview partners from around the globe with complete data for all the 30 variables of our research design. Our main model explains 47.89% of the total variance of all the 30 variables. We highlight the relationships between the original 30 variables and the newly derived factor analytical dimensions:

a) economic permissiveness
b) traditional religion
c) racism
d) higher education for the younger generation (education gap between the generations)
e) distrust of the army and the press
f) authoritarian character
g) tolerance and respect
h) the 'ego' company (i. e. the rejection of obedience and unselfishness as values in education)
i) [predominantly] female rejection of the market economy and democracy

We also look at the trajectory of global society by analyzing the factor scores along the path of the Human Development Indicator of the UNDP (“human security indicator”, also used by Inglehart and his associates).

 Economic permissiveness clearly captures the dimension of lawlessness, moral-ethical decay and the shadow economy, so prominent in contemporary economic theory of growth. In statistical terms, it is the most important of all the resulting factors.

 Traditional religion is linked in a very complex way to the absence of economic permissiveness. We also look at the exceptional performers (“residuals”) which best avoided economic permissiveness on each stage of secularization.

We also present Chropleth maps of human values across the globe, and show the regional implications of our analysis.



JEL Classification: A13; Z12; P48; O017; N3


Keywords: Relation of Economics to Social Values; religion; other Economic Systems: Political Economy; Legal Institutions; Property Rights, Formal and Informal Sectors, Shadow Economy, Institutional Arrangements; Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy

Against the background of the general decline in union membership in Western countries, this study analyses factors influencing an individual's choice whether to join a trade union. The focus is on the effects of workplace union density and individual political attitudes. Micro data covering the entire Danish workforce combined with European Social Survey data enable for the first time the statistical analysis of the effect workplace union density has on union recruitment. Workplace union density is used to measure the power of social custom in workplace union membership, constituting an instrumental motive for joining the union. Self-placement on a political left-right scale measures political attitude which is assumed to constitute a value-rational motive. The statistical results indicate that workplace union density is the main predictor of whether or not an employee is going to join a union, even when other variables such as gender, occupation and industry worked in are taken into consideration. In addition, the results indicate that political attitude is also an important factor. 2 Résumé Dans le contexte du déclin général de l'affiliation syndicale dans les pays

This report examines attitudes to, and perceptions of, sentencing and the CJS in England and Wales, drawing mainly on the 2010/11 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). The analysis focuses on perceptions of trust and confidence in justice, as well as presenting findings on knowledge about sentencing and crime trends and attitudes toward sentencing. In order to address issues of public cooperation and institutional legitimacy, the report also draws upon UK data from Round 5 of the European Social Survey (ESS).

Abstrakt: Téma vnímaného bezpečia sa dostáva v súčasnosti do centra pozornosti psychologickej verejnosti. Cieľom príspevku je zistiť rozdiely vo vnímanom bezpečí z hľadiska rôznych atribútov práce ako napríklad zamestnanosť/nezamestnanosť, typ zamestnania a pod. Na účely príspevku sme využili dáta 5.kola Európskej sociálnej sondy (ESS), konkrétne položky zo základného modulu a rotujúceho modulu – Práca, rodina a subjektívna pohoda. Výsledky poukazujú na existenciu týchto rozdielov a našou prioritou je priblížiť pozíciu Slovenska a Českej republiky, pričom sa javí, že obyvatelia Slovenska majú z hľadiska rôznych atribútov práce nižšiu mieru vnímaného bezpečia. Ukázalo sa, že aj subjektívny názor na príjem domácnosti (napr. „zvládame to so súčasným príjmom“; „máme to ťažké so súčasným príjmom“ ...) súvisí s posudzovaním vnímaného bezpečia respondentmi. Príspevok vnímame ako odrazový mostík pre hlbšiu analýzu tejto zatiaľ málo rozpracovanej problematiky. Abstract: Topic of perceived sa...

Abstract

In this study, criticism is exercised on the methodology of conducting , presenting and interpreting the results of statistical analysis in Voulgaris, J.,"Greece in the mirror of Europe , National policies - cultural trends and globalization" in Kafetzis P., Maloutas Th., Tsiganou, I., (ed.) , Politics - Society - Citizens: data analysis of the European Social Survey - ESS, NCSR (ed.), Athens, 2007. The criticism regards the use of statistical multivariate methods: "Factor Analysis" and "Cluster Analysis". The study presents, firstly the theory and technical specifications for validity of the above two statistical methods, secondly, the methodological shortcomings of J. Voulgaris’ article, and thirdly an iteration of the statistical treatment of J. Voulgaris, on the same raw data, using the same two methods (Factor Analysis and Cluster Analysis) but on proper methodological basis. Six clusters of methodological errors where detected in the discussed article and the iteration of the proper statistical treatment –in comparison to that J. Voulgaris’- produced very different results that led to an interpretation with greater heuristic value. This study has significance for researchers , who may utilize it as an model of Factor Analysis and Cluster Analysis usage. In a wider range of interests, it may be of value in a discussion on improving the greek academic community.

The first part of this article looks at the comparability of the cross-country PVQ scale tested on the basis of the Sixth Round of the European Social Survey. To test comparability, the classic 21-item tool is used to measure ten different types of value orientation. These value types are based on Schwartz’s original basic human values theory. In order to test equivalence, a multiple group confi  rmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) was used. The results of the analyses show that the confi  gural and metric equivalences of all seven value types are valid in only 10 out of 23 countries. However, even in those 10 countries, it is impossible to fully rely on scalar equivalence. For more detail, in many countries it is possible to carry out valid comparisons of relations and value types, as well as of other value attitudes or socio-demographic indicators. However, it is not possible to compare national averages of the seven value types. The article then demonstrates that the seven value types are longitudinally comparable across every round of the ESS in the Czech Republic. The second part of the article points out some of the problems in the Czech Republic with the PVQ comparison between different social groups delineated by gender, age, and education. While the averages of the seven value types can be sometimes compared in all groups (male, female), in some cases it is necessary either to amalgamate the groups or to decrease their quantity (age groups, education levels of groups).

Abstract: Religious politics, in which there is a dominant cleavage separating believers (especially if literalist) from nonbelievers is important in the Middle East, South Asia, the Americas and, to a lesser degree, Europe. Will the world eventually become more secular or continue to become more religious? Much of the current secularization debate focuses on fluctuations in the supply and demand,for

In this chapter we discuss some of the fundamental ways by which theory guides measurement and we consider some of the differences between reflective and formative approaches to measurement. We use fear of crime and public attitudes towards policing as substantive examples. We finish with a cautionary tale on what latent variable modelling can and cannot say about conceptual and operational definitions.

This chapter presents findings on public trust in justice drawn from the fifth European Social Survey, carried out in 28 countries in 2010/11. The dataset used here covers 26 of the 28 countries, and has a total sample size of almost 51,000 people. The analysis is thus on a large scale, and serves as an exemplar of a particular approach to comparative research, involving empirical testing of a theoretical model. We and colleagues designed the module on trust to test an elaborated version of Tyler’s (Tyler 2006; Tyler and Huo 2002) procedural justice theory, which posits that fair treatment by police and other justice officials yields public trust in justice, which in turn consolidates the legitimacy of institutions of justice, and thus public cooperation and compliance with the law. To anticipate our conclusions, we find good support across a variety of European countries on the links between trust in the police and people’s perceptions of the legitimacy of the police

The aim of this paper is to map and contrast recent developments in attitudes towards different types of solidarity in Austria and Hungary. The context of the paper is that the economic and the so-called 'refugee' crisis and its social and political consequences have fundamentally affected European attitudes towards solidarity. Such times of crisis are often seen as providing ample opportunities for the populist radical right to prosper. Nevertheless, the above developments do not necessarily mean a weakening of solidarity as its forms may change and its meanings become contested. Based on a comparison of Austrian and Hungarian results of the ESS round 8 (2016) the article-with the help of k-means cluster and multinomial logistic regression analyses-examines what solidarity positions can be observed and contrasted and how they may be linked step-by-step to 1) objective socio-demographic variables, 2) subjective perceptions at the micro-level (like social trust, well-being, and feelings of insecurity), 3) subjective perceptions at the macro-level (like institutional and political trust, attachment to country and the EU), moreover 4) to different values and attitudes like xenophobia, homophobia, conformism or statism on the one hand, and, 5) to political orientations and voting intentions on the other.

This study examines the effect of personal interests and basic human values on the degree of support for a welfare state. Data from the European Social Survey, round 4 (2008) for 29 European countries (total n = 56,752) was used for the study. Results show that values such as
collectivism and altruism promote demand for state intervention in welfare, while values like individualism and egoism negatively affect it. Income has the strongest negative effect on support for a welfare state among all the factors tested, even more so than gender and employment status in all types of welfare states. Compared to other countries (familialistic, social-democratic, conservative, and liberal), former USSR and ex-communist countries seem to be more influenced by collectivistic and individualistic values, and education. In addition, in excommunist countries, altruistic and egoistic values have a crucial impact on the demand for a welfare state. In liberal, conservative, and social-democratic countries, values and education do not have much impact.

The development of comparative social surveys has been increasing in the last decades. Currently, it shows that their one of the most important quality aspects is data equivalence. Unfortunately, social scientists still analyse data without realising the levels of data comparability. This study introduces the issue of data equivalence in detail and outlines the portfolio of statistical techniques which are typically used for testing the level of scales comparability. In the second part of study structural modelling is introduced as more technically advanced method for the evaluation of social capital and political disaffection attitude scales equivalence. There are universal recommendations for substantive comparative work options suitable for dealing with these attitude scales suggested and instruction for own use of this technique is carried out as well.

This article summarises some of the thinking and empirical findings behind a programme of survey work on procedural justice theory in Europe. The paper locates procedural justice theory in a framework of compliance theories and sketches out the main features of it, defining the central concept of legitimacy. It then presents findings from the fifth European Social Survey, drawing on a ‘trust in justice’ module which was designed by the authors and colleagues. This provides good support for the procedural justice hypotheses that we set out to test – that different types of public trust in the police (trust that they are effective, procedurally fair and distributively fair) are related to public perceptions of police legitimacy, which in turn are related to self-reported compliance with the law and preparedness to cooperate with the police.

Concerns for environmental quality and its impact on people's welfare are fundamental arguments for the adoption of environmental legislation in most countries. In this paper, we analyze the relationship between air quality and subjective well-being in Europe. We use a unique dataset that merges three waves of the European Social Survey with a new dataset on environmental quality including SO2 concentrations and climate
in Europe at the regional level. We find a robust negative impact of SO2 concentrations on self-reported life satisfaction.

This Research Note is divided into two parts. The first part examines the income of migrants relative to the native-born population and how it changed over 2007-2013, a period in which economic recession was followed by at best low growth in most parts of the EU. It considers, in particular, those on low income and the potential reasons why more of them are both in the bottom income quintile and at risk of poverty than the native-born, specifically with regard to their age structure, their employment situation, their education level and their household circumstances. It examines also their access to social protection, in specific, to unemployment benefits and healthcare, and their housing conditions, in both cases in relation to the native-born population and how the situation has changed over recent years. The main focus is on whether there is any evidence of their income and living conditions converging towards those of the native-born since 2007. The second part examines social attitudes of migrants, again in relation to those of the native-born population, including their trust in institutions and people; their social values, their voting patterns and other forms of civic and political participation, the extent to which they feel part of society and their perception of the extent of discrimination; and social belonging. The analysis is based on data from the European Social Survey (ESS). As in the first part, a particular interest is in the way that these aspects have changed in recent years and the extent to which they have come closer to the native-born in these respects.

This article compares social welfare attitudes in two major societies with the postsocialist social welfare regime, Poland and Russia. The aim of the article is to identify the differences in the ‘request for welfare’ among Poles and Russians at the beginning of the Great Recession of 2008 and after its end in 2016–2017 by comparing the countries between themselves and in time. The European Social Survey (ESS) data of the 4th and 8th rounds (2008, 2016) are used to contrast the expectations of the scope of welfare, justice in distributing unemployment benefits for various target groups as well as opinions on the negative moral and social consequences of the welfare state. In both countries, the majority support a society with low inequality, but Poles believe much more often that social benefits have negative moral consequences. More Russians expect unconditional financial support from the state and have lower views of the role of social benefits in reducing inequality. Linear regressions also show that the ‘request for welfare’ in Poland is higher among the lower educated respondents and those with high score on the basic value of Security, while in Russia these links are not significant. To sum up, expectations of the comprehensive role of the welfare state are much more widespread in Russia as compared to Poland, despite the market reforms and despite both countries representing a common type of the welfare state.
Сравниваются представления о социальном обеспечении в двух крупнейших странах с постсоциалистическим режимом социального государства – Польше и России. Цель статьи – определить различия в запросе на государство поляков и россиян в начале экономического кризиса 2008 г. и после его завершения в 2016–2017 гг. путем сравнения между собой и во времени. По данным 4-й и 8-й волн (2008, 2016 гг.) Европейского социального исследования (ESS) сопоставляются ожидания в отношении объема социальной ответственности государства, справедливости при рас­ пределении пособий по безработице для разных целевых групп, а также представления о негативных моральных и социальных последствиях социального государства. В обеих странах большинство респондентов считают справед­ ливым общество с низким неравенством, но поляки намного чаще признают, что социальные выплаты оказывают негативное влияние на мораль. Россияне чаще ожидают безусловной финансовой поддержки от государства и ниже оценивают роль социальных выплат в снижении неравенства. На основании линейных регрессий также показано, что запрос на государственную поддержку в Польше выше у менее образованных респондентов и у тех, для кого важно жить в безопасности, а в России такой связи нет. Ориентация на государство в России значительно сильнее, чем в Польше, несмотря на рыночные реформы в обеих странах и их принадлежность к общему типу социального государства.