Migration and War Memory in a European Perspective A Case-Study on Displaced Persons in Belgium. Natolin Research Paper 05/2011

In the aftermath of World War II, about 20,000 people who had experienced displacement entered Belgium.1 Among those there were about 350 soldiers serving in the Polish armed forces in the West, and about 4,000 ostarbeiterinnen - young female Soviet citizens who were deported to Nazi Germany to do forced labour. All the soldiers and Soviet women married Belgian citizens, and most settled in the home town or city of their spouses. This paper focuses on the war memories of these migrants in post-war life, memories that were arguably shaped not only by the characteristics of their war experiences themselves, but also by the changing positions which they held within their home and host societies. Following the migrants from their moment of settlement until today, the article highlights the changing dynamics of their war memories over time, starting during the Cold War era and ending up in present day Europe. As such, the study finds itself on the crossroads of memory and migration studies, two academic disciplines that only recently started to dialogue with each other.2 Before analysing the arrival, settlement and war memories of the Displaced Persons at study, I give an interpretation of academic literature on memory of World War II from the perspective of migration studies.

The individual and society in the GDR under Honecker : orthodoxy, dissidence and internal debate.

The thesis offers a comparative interdisciplinary approach to the examination of the intellectual debates about the relationship between individual and society in the GDR under Honecker. It shows that there was not only a continuum of debate between the academic disciplines, but also from the radical critics of the GDR leadership such as Robert Havemann, Rudolf Bahro and Stefan Heym through the social scientists, literary critics and legal theorists working in the academic institutions to theorists close to the GDR leadership. It also shows that the official line and policy of the ruling party itself on the question of the individual and society was not static over the period, but changed in response to internal and external pressures. Over the period 1971 - 1989 greater emphasis was placed by many intellectuals on the individual, his needs and interests. It was increasingly recognised that conflicts could exist between the individual and society in GDR socialism. Whereas the radical critics argued that these conflicts were due to features of GDR society, such as the hierarchical system of labour functions and bureaucracy, and extrapolated from this a general conflict between the political leadership and population, orthodox critics argued that conflicts existed between a specific individual and society and were largely due to external and historical factors. The internal critics also pointed to the social phenomena which were detrimental to the individual's development in the GDR, but they put forward less radical solutions. With the exception of a few radical young writers, all theorists studied in this thesis gave precedence to social interests over individual interests and so did not advocate a return to `individualistic' positions. The continuity of sometimes quite controversial discussions in the GDR academic journals and the flexibility of the official line and policy suggests that it is inappropriate to refer to GDR society under Honecker simply as totalitarian, although it did have some totalitarian features. What the thesis demonstrates is the existence of `Teiloffentlichkeiten' in which critical discussion is conducted even as the official, orthodox line is given out for public consumption in the high-circulation media.

Issues in creating a corpus for EAP pedagogy and research

UK universities are accepting increasing numbers of students whose L1 is not English on a wide range of programmes at all levels. These students require additional support and training in English, focussing on their academic disciplines. Corpora have been used in EAP since the 1980s, mainly for research, but a growing number of researchers and practitioners have been advocating the use of corpora in EAP pedagogy, and such use is gradually increasing. This paper outlines the processes and factors to be considered in the design and compilation of an EAP corpus (e.g., the selection and acquisition of texts, metadata, data annotation, software tools and outputs, web interface, and screen displays), especially one intended to be used for teaching. Such a corpus would also facilitate EAP research in terms of longitudinal studies, student progression and development, and course and materials design. The paper has been informed by the preparatory work on the EAP subcorpus of the ACORN corpus project at Aston University. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Classifying clinical decision making:a unifying approach

This is the first of two linked papers exploring decision making in nursing which integrate research evidence from different clinical and academic disciplines. Currently there are many decision-making theories, each with their own distinctive concepts and terminology, and there is a tendency for separate disciplines to view their own decision-making processes as unique. Identifying good nursing decisions and where improvements can be made is therefore problematic, and this can undermine clinical and organizational effectiveness, as well as nurses' professional status. Within the unifying framework of psychological classification, the overall aim of the two papers is to clarify and compare terms, concepts and processes identified in a diversity of decision-making theories, and to demonstrate their underlying similarities. It is argued that the range of explanations used across disciplines can usefully be re-conceptualized as classification behaviour. This paper explores problems arising from multiple theories of decision making being applied to separate clinical disciplines. Attention is given to detrimental effects on nursing practice within the context of multidisciplinary health-care organizations and the changing role of nurses. The different theories are outlined and difficulties in applying them to nursing decisions highlighted. An alternative approach based on a general model of classification is then presented in detail to introduce its terminology and the unifying framework for interpreting all types of decisions. The classification model is used to provide the context for relating alternative philosophical approaches and to define decision-making activities common to all clinical domains. This may benefit nurses by improving multidisciplinary collaboration and weakening clinical elitism.

Boundary spanning elements and the marketing function in organizations:concepts and empirical studies

This book presents current research on boundary spanning elements. The editors bring together extant knowledge in the field and present a uniform narrative. Previous studies have often been disseminated across several academic disciplines like services marketing, personal selling and sales management etc. and this monograph aggregates studies dealing with boundary spanning elements or has boundary spanning elements related to the marketing function as the main empirical platform under a uniform theoretical perspective. Each chapter in the book deals with an important research theme and synthesizes studies in relation to boundary spanning elements.

Queer sex work

Sex work is a subject of significant contestation across academic disciplines, as well as within legal, medical, moral, feminist, political and socio-cultural discourses. A large body of research exists, but much of this focuses on the sale of sex by women to men and ignores other performances, practices, meanings and embodiments in the contemporary sex industry. A queer agenda is important in order to challenge hetero-centric gender norms and to develop new insights into how gender, sex, power, crime, work, migration, space/place, health and intimacy are understood in the context of commercial sexual encounters. Queer Sex Work explores what it might mean to 'be', 'do' and 'think' queer(ly) in the study and practice of commercial sex. It brings together a multiplicity of empirical case studies - including erotic dance venues, online sex working, pornography, grey sexual economies, and BSDM - and offers a variety of perspectives from academic scholars, policy practitioners, activists and sex workers themselves. In so doing, the book advances a queer politics of sex work that aims to disrupt heteronormative logics whilst also making space for different voices in academic and political debates about commercial sex. This unique and multidisciplinary volume will be indispensable for scholars and students of the global sex trade and of gender, sexuality, feminism and queer theory more broadly, as well as policymakers, activists and practitioners interested in the politics and practice of sex work in local, national and international contexts.

A Мodel for Assessment of Professional Competence in Physical Therapy Students

Report published in the Proceedings of the National Conference on "Education and Research in the Information Society", Plovdiv, May, 2015

A hazai kis- és közepes vállalatok szociokulturális beállítódása a hofstede-dimenziók mentén = The socio-cultural attitudes of the Hungarianc small and medium enterprises along the Hofstede dimensions

A kis- és közepes vállalkozások (KKV-k) kutatása viszonylag új, és emiatt meglehetősen feltáratlan terület, bár a megjelenő tudományos cikkek és eredmények száma és minősége évről évre jól érzékelhetően nő (Collinson – Shaw, 2001). A KKV-kutatások igen fontos sajátossága továbbá, hogy kifejezetten interdiszciplináris terület, megközelíthető a menedzsment, az innovációkutatás, a marketing, a szervezetszociológia, de akár a pszichológia felől is. Több kutatás is felveti a szociokulturális háttér jelentőségének kérdését KKV-k esetében. A szerzők kutatásuk során kvantitatív felmérést végeztek 200 vállalkozó körében a Hofstedeskála (Hofmeister et al., 2008) felhasználásával, melynek eredményeként kiderült, hogy a KKV-vezetők beállítódása jelentősen különbözik mind a hazai nagyvállalati vezetőktől, mind az általános lakosságtól. Jelen tanulmányunkban bemutatjuk azokat a Hofstede-dimenziókat, amelyek mentén karakteres különbségek jelentkeztek a vállalkozók és a nagyvállalati vezetők, valamint a társadalom összessége között. Az eredmények alapján határozottan kirajzolódnak olyan „vállalkozói” gondolkodásmódbeli sajátosságok, mint a nagyobb versenyszellem, a közvetlenebb, kevésbé hierarchikus működési stílus, a rendkívül erős, rövid távú orientáció, valamint a kockázatvállalás rendhagyóan alacsony foka. _____ Although there has been an increasing academic attention towards small and medium-sized enterprises, it is still a novel research area with a number of unanswered questions. It is also an especially interdisciplinary field as it can be approached from various viewpoints such as management, innovation, marketing, organization sociology or even psychology. Different academic disciplines have studied the influence of socio-cultural factors and concluded that they are relevant aspects of entrepreneurial activity. This paper presents the results of the authors’ quantitative research which aimed at finding patterns in the software of the minds of SME managers where they applied Hofstede’s cultural scale (Hofmeister et al., 2008). Drawing upon data from 200 Hungarian SMEs, the results indicate they have different attitude and way of thinking compared to large company managers and to the general Hungarian population. This paper points out the relevant Hofstede dimensions where significant differences have been revealed. The main finding of the study is that managers of small and medium businesses have a special mindset which can be characterized with higher level competitiveness, more direct and less hierarchic operation, extremely high level of short term orientation and low level of risk taking

Theological reflection at work: A phenomenological study of learning processes

Using the learning descriptions of graduates of a graduate ministry program, the mechanisms of interactions between the knowledge facets in learning processes were explored and described. The intent of the study was to explore how explicit, implicit, and emancipatory knowledge facets interacted in the learning processes at or about work. The study provided empirical research on Yang's (2003) holistic learning theory. ^ A phenomenological research design was used to explore the essence of knowledge facet interactions. I achieved epoche through the disclosure of assumptions and a written self-experience to bracket biases. A criterion based, stratified sampling strategy was used to identify participants. The sample was stratified by graduation date. The sample consisted of 11 participants and was composed primarily of married (n = 9), white, non-Hispanic (n = 10), females (n = 9), who were Roman Catholic (n = 9). Professionally, the majority of the group were teachers or professors (n = 5). ^ A semi-structured interview guide with scheduled and unscheduled probes was used. Each approximately 1-hour long interview was digitally recorded and transcribed. The transcripts were coded using a priori codes from holistic learning theory and one emergent code. The coded data were analyzed by identifying patterns, similarities, and differences under each code and then between codes. Steps to increase the trustworthiness of the study included member checks, coding checks, and thick descriptions of the data. ^ Five themes were discovered including (a) the difficulty in describing interactions between knowledge facets; (b) actual mechanisms of interactions between knowledge facets; (c) knowledge facets initiating learning and dominating learning processes; (d) the dangers of one-dimensional learning or using only one knowledge facet to learn; and (e) the role of community in learning. The interpretation confirmed, extended, and challenged holistic learning theory. Mechanisms of interaction included knowledge facets expressing, informing, changing, and guiding one another. Implications included the need for a more complex model of learning and the value of seeing spirituality in the learning process. The study raised questions for future research including exploring learning processes with people from non-Christian faith traditions or other academic disciplines and the role of spiritual identity in learning. ^

Perceptions of underprepared community college students regarding their educational achievement

The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of underprepared college students who had participated in learning communities and who persisted to complete developmental classes and earned at least 30 college-level credit hours to graduate and the perceptions of their peers who had dropped out of college. The theories posed by Tinto, Astin, and Freire formed the framework for this case study. The 22 participants were graduates or transfer students now attending a public university, currently-enrolled sophomores, and students no longer enrolled at the time of the study. Semi-structured individual interviews and a group interview provided narrative data which were transcribed, coded, and analyzed to gain insights into the experiences and perspectives of the participants. The group interview provided a form of member checking to increase accuracy in interpreting themes. A peer reviewer provided feedback on the researcher’s data analysis procedures. The analysis yielded four themes and 14 sub-themes which captured the essence of the participants’ experiences. The pre-college characteristics/traits theme described the students’ internal values and attributes acquired prior to college. The external college support/community influence theme described the encouragement to attend college the students received from family, friends, and high school teachers. The social involvement theme described the students’ participation in campus activities and their interactions with other members of the campus. The academic integration theme described students’ use of campus resources and their contacts with the faculty. The persisters reported strong family and peer support, a sense of responsibility, appreciation for dedicated and caring faculty, and a belief that an education can be a liberatory means to achieve their goals. The non-persisters did not report having the same sense of purpose, goal orientation, determination, obligation to meet family expectations, peer support, campus involvement, positive faculty experiences, and time management skills. The researcher offers an emerging model for understanding factors associated with persistence and three recommendations for enhancing the academic experience of underprepared college students: (a) include a critical pedagogy perspective in coursework where possible, (b) integrate co-curricular activities with the academic disciplines, and (c) increase student-faculty interaction.

Implementation of service -learning in higher education courses: Perceptions of faculty

This study examined the motivation of college and university faculty to implement service-learning into their traditional courses. The benefits derived by faculty, as well as those issues of maintenance, including supports and/or obstacles, were also investigated in relation to their impact on motivation. The focus was on generating theory from the emerging data. ^ Data were collected from interviews with 17 faculty teaching courses that included a component of service-learning. A maximum variation sampling of participants from six South Florida colleges and universities was utilized. Faculty participants represented a wide range of academic disciplines, faculty ranks, years of experience in teaching and using service-learning as well as gender and ethnic diversity. For data triangulation, a focus group with eight additional college faculty was conducted and documents, including course syllabi and institutional service-learning handbooks, collected during the interviews were examined. The interviews were transcribed and coded using traditional methods as well as with the assistance of the computerized assisted qualitative data analysis software, Atlas.ti. The data were organized into five major categories with themes and sub-themes emerging for each. ^ While intrinsic or personal factors along with extrinsic factors all serve to influence faculty motivation, the study's findings revealed that the primary factors influencing faculty motivation to adopt service-learning were those that were intrinsic or personal in nature. These factors included: (a) past experiences, (b) personal characteristics including the value of serving, (c) involvement with community service, (d) interactions and relationships with peers, (e) benefits to students, (f) benefits to teaching, and (g) perceived career benefits. Implications and recommendations from the study encompass suggestions for administrators in higher education institutions for supporting and encouraging faculty adoption of service-learning including a well developed infrastructure as well as incentives, particularly during the initial implementation period, rewards providing recognition for the academic nature of service-learning and support for the development of peer relationships among service-learning faculty. ^

Perceptions of Underprepared Community College Students regarding their Educational Achievement

The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of underprepared college students who had participated in learning communities and who persisted to complete developmental classes and earned at least 30 college-level credit hours to graduate and the perceptions of their peers who had dropped out of college. The theories posed by Tinto, Astin, and Freire formed the framework for this case study. The 22 participants were graduates or transfer students now attending a public university, currently-enrolled sophomores, and students no longer enrolled at the time of the study. Semi-structured individual interviews and a group interview provided narrative data which were transcribed, coded, and analyzed to gain insights into the experiences and perspectives of the participants. The group interview provided a form of member checking to increase accuracy in interpreting themes. A peer reviewer provided feedback on the researcher’s data analysis procedures. The analysis yielded four themes and 14 sub-themes which captured the essence of the participants’ experiences. The pre-college characteristics/traits theme described the students’ internal values and attributes acquired prior to college. The external college support/community influence theme described the encouragement to attend college the students received from family, friends, and high school teachers. The social involvement theme described the students’ participation in campus activities and their interactions with other members of the campus. The academic integration theme described students’ use of campus resources and their contacts with the faculty. The persisters reported strong family and peer support, a sense of responsibility, appreciation for dedicated and caring faculty, and a belief that an education can be a liberatory means to achieve their goals. The non-persisters did not report having the same sense of purpose, goal orientation, determination, obligation to meet family expectations, peer support, campus involvement, positive faculty experiences, and time management skills. The researcher offers an emerging model for understanding factors associated with persistence and three recommendations for enhancing the academic experience of underprepared college students: (a) include a critical pedagogy perspective in coursework where possible, (b) integrate co-curricular activities with the academic disciplines, and (c) increase student-faculty interaction.

Television history: archives, excavation and the future. A discussion

This article considers possible futures for television (TV) studies, imagining how the discipline might evolve more productively over the next 10 years and what practical steps are necessary to move towards those outcomes. Conducted as a round-table discussion between leading figures in television history and archives, the debate focuses on the critical issue of archives, considering and responding to questions of access/inaccessibility, texts/contexts, commercial/symbolic value, impact and relevance. These questions reflect recurrent concerns when selecting case studies for historical TV research projects: how difficult is it to access the material (when it survives)? What obstacles might be faced (copyright, costs, etc.) when disseminating findings to a wider public? The relationship between the roles of ‘researcher’ and ‘archivist’ appears closer and more mutually supportive in TV studies than in other academic disciplines, with many people in practice straddling the traditional divide between the two roles, combining specialisms that serve to further scholarship and learning as well as the preservation of, and broad public engagements with, collections. The Research Excellence Framework’s imperative for academic researchers to achieve ‘impact’ in broader society encourages active and creative collaboration with those based in public organizations, such as the British Film Institute (BFI), who have a remit to reach a wider public. The discussion identifies various problems and successes experienced in collaboration between the academic, public and commercial sectors in the course of recent and ongoing research projects in TV studies.

The Copenhagen Consensus Conference 2016: children, youth, and physical activity in schools and during leisure time

From 4 to 7 April 2016, 24 researchers from 8 countries and from a variety of academic disciplines gathered in Snekkersten, Denmark, to reach evidence-based consensus about physical activity in children and youth, that is, individuals between 6 and 18 years. Physical activity is an overarching term that consists of many structured and unstructured forms within school and out-of-school-time contexts, including organised sport, physical education, outdoor recreation, motor skill development programmes, recess, and active transportation such as biking and walking. This consensus statement presents the accord on the effects of physical activity on children's and youth's fitness, health, cognitive functioning, engagement, motivation, psychological well-being and social inclusion, as well as presenting educational and physical activity implementation strategies. The consensus was obtained through an iterative process that began with presentation of the state-of-the art in each domain followed by plenary and group discussions. Ultimately, Consensus Conference participants reached agreement on the 21-item consensus statement.

SPINNING NARRATIVES ACROSS POLITICAL DIVIDES: HARNESSING THE CULTURAL POWER OF A STORY WELL-TOLD

This dissertation explores how two American storytellers, considered by many in their to be exemplary in their craft, rely on narrative strategies to communicate to their audiences on divisive political topics in a way that both invokes feelings of pleasure and connection and transcends party identification and ideological divides. Anna Quindlen, through her political columns and op-eds, and Aaron Sorkin, through his television show The West Wing, have won over a politically diverse fan base in spite of the fact that their writing espouses liberal political viewpoints. By telling stories that entertain, first and foremost, Quindlen and Sorkin are able to have a material impact on their audiences on both dry and controversial topics, accomplishing that which 19th Century writer and activist Harriet Farley made her practice: writing in such a way to gain the access necessary to “do good by stealth.” This dissertation will argue that it is their skilled use of storytelling elements, which capitalize on the cultural relationship humans have with storytelling, that enables Quindlen and Sorkin to achieve this. The dissertation asks: How do stories shape the beliefs, perspectives, and cognitive functions of humans? How do stories construct culture and interact with cultural values? What is the media’s role in shaping society? What gives stories their power to unite as a medium? What is the significance of the experience of reading or hearing a well-told story, of how it feels? What are the effects of Quindlen’s and Sorkin’s writing on audience members and the political world at large? What is lost when a simplistic narrative structure is followed? Who is left out and what is overlooked? The literature that informs the answers to these questions will cross over and through several academic disciplines: American Studies, British Cultural Studies, Communication, Folklore, Journalism, Literature, Media Studies, Popular Culture, and Social Psychology. The chapters will also explore scholarship on the subjects of narratology and schema theory.