Vienna University of Economics and Business
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Professionalization and Corporate Social Responsibility: A Comparative Study on German and US Job Requirements in CSR
Full text linkGiven the steady interest in corporate social responsibility (CSR), this study explores the process of professionalization of CSR. Drawing upon the literature on ‘organizational’ professionals, explicit and implicit CSR, as well as varieties of capitalism, professionalization of CSR is explored in order to trace processes of explicitization and potential cross-national differences between the United States and Germany. In a comparative longitudinal study, we analyse job announcements in the field of CSR and find that although the hybridity of explicit and implicit CSR between the US and Germany is starting to unfold, job characteristics and job requirements in CSR in Germany and the US are still not the same. Our results suggest there is a more distinct trend in professionalization in the US than in Germany in terms of the manifestation of explicit CSR and that the institutional context is linked to how employers drive professionalization processes in non-traditional professions
Unconscious bias in organizations: Discriminatory forces at work
Full text linkThis special issue revolves around the topic of unconscious bias in organizations. The six articles included draw on diverse disciplinary, theoretical, and methodological approaches to show how unconscious bias play out in organizational settings and how they lead to various forms of discrimination. The articles contribute to the current bias literature by (1) elevating the idea of bias from individualist perspectives toward more contextual considerations, (2) drawing on multiple perspectives from different research fi elds and thereby creating a more interdisciplinary understanding, (3) considering unconscious and discriminatory gender bias in intersection with other markers of social inequality, and (4) by reframing current understandings of bias in organizations toward a more actionable and change-oriented perspective. To conclude, the special issue illustrates novel approaches to and discussions on the matter of investigating bias at the root of discrimination in organizations
Entwicklung des Einsamkeitsempfindens im Alter in Zeiten von COVID-19 - Gruppenvergleiche älterer Menschen vor und in der ersten Welle der Pandemie
Full text linkThe article investigates the development of loneliness before and in the first months of the Covid-19 pandemic against the background of the socio-economic situation of older people. For this purpose, variance analyses are carried out with data from Lower Austria utilizing two surveys (pre-pandemic, peri-pandemic). The analyses show that older people are not a homogeneous group, i.e. the level of loneliness was already divergent before the pandemic and these existing differences were largely maintained at a somewhat higher level during the pandemic with little variation
Inequalities in Spatial Accessibility of Childcare: The Role of Non-profit Providers
Full text linkEqual access to childcare services is a key concern of childcare policy. This article analyses social inequalities in the availability of such services. We explore how observed disparities are related to the socio-economic status of neighbourhoods and investigate how different provider types contribute to such differences. To do so, we use data on all childcare centres in the city of Vienna, Austria, on the spatial distribution of children aged under six and on three measures of neighbourhood status, over a period of eight years. We find that spatial accessibility is highest in neighbourhoods with the highest socio-economic status, that such inequality has increased over time and that both effects can be attributed to the role of non-profits. The results indicate that the policy change undertaken in Vienna towards increased communitarisation – that is, a shift towards non-profit provision – has undermined the universal character of the city's childcare system
Government Openness and Public Trust: The Mediating Role of Democratic Capacity
Full text linkThe open government paradigm implies public processes are becoming more transparent, public information is available online, and citizens and non‐governmental organizations are encouraged to interact with public administration through new platform‐based forms of participation and collaboration. Though these governmental efforts to open up organizational procedures to the public are meant to strengthen the relationship between citizens and the government, empirical evidence is currently sparse and mixed. This article argues that positive impacts of openness depend on citizens' democratic capacity defined as individual sense of empowerment to influence governmental systems. By matching individual survey data from the European Social Survey with secondary institutional data the authors investigate the relationship between individual and structural level variables. Findings indicate that structural openness is, in general, positively associated with higher trust. Further, the effect of openness on public trust is partially mediated by an individual's perception that they have meaningful opportunities for political participation
Bias in Geographic Information Systems: The Case of Google Maps
Full text linkUsers’ perception of geographic space depends heavily on geographic information systems (GIS). GIS are the most common way for users to estimate travel time, provide routing information and recommend appropriate forms of transportation. This article analyses how predictions made by Google Maps, one of the most popular GIS, influence users’ perceptions and travel choices. To analyze this influence, a pre-study in a classroom setting (n=36) as well as an online survey (n=521) were conducted. We study users intuitive perception of travel time, before using the Google Maps Mobile App as a ’treatment’ to see how it influences their perceptions of travel time and choice of transportation type. We then contrast this original Google Maps treatment to a mock-up ’warning label version’ of Google which informs users about biases in Google Maps and an ’unbiased version’ of Google Maps based on ground truth data. Our analysis suggests that Google Maps systematically underestimates necessary car driving time, which has an impact on users’ choice of transportation
Informational capital and the transition to university: First‐in‐family students' experiences in Austrian higher education
Full text linkThe agenda for widening participation in higher education
has led to increasing numbers of students with a broader
range of education and family backgrounds. However,
transitioning to the university landscape remains a highly
complex negotiation process, especially for first-in-family
students, who cannot draw on previous experience from
higher education in their families. Gaining access to informational capitala combination of cultural and social capital—plays a crucial role in managing education transitions.
We draw on rich empirical data obtained from 26 autobio-
graphical narrative interviews with first-in-family university
students in Austria to investigate how transitions to university are affected by informational capital. We also explore
how access to informational capital was influenced by (1) institutional practices, such as initiatives to support students,
especially first-year students; and (2) cultural fit—the extent
to which a student's cultural capital corresponded with the
dominant cultural capital in the field of their chosen discipline or higher education establishment. Our findings show
that gaining access to informational capital was strongly affected by the institutional practices at universities within
the different disciplines, thus highlighting the importance
of higher education institutions in supporting their stu-
dents during transition processes. We conclude with policy implications for how higher education institutions can assist.
first-in-family students to succeed at university
Finanzbildung – „Life Skill“ zur Erschließung der Welt?
Full text linkFinancial literacy und financial education, die beiden am häufigsten verwendeten englischen Begriffe für Finanzbildung, sind nicht nur an priorisierter Stelle der politischen Agenda vieler Länder und Organisationen. Sie haben auch in der wissenschaftlichen Forschung Fuß gefasst, was in einer in den letzten zehn Jahren stark steigenden Zahl von Publikationen zu diesen Themenbereichen und
ebenso stark steigenden Zahl von Zitationen zum Ausdruck kommt. Die Publikationen zeigen, dass viele unterschiedliche Begriffe verwendet werden, die teilweise wie Synonyme, teilweise für unterschiedliche inhaltliche Akzentuierungen verwendet werden. Nicht in allen Publikationen wird das Begriffsverständnis offengelegt. Es stellt sich aber nicht nur die Frage, was Finanzbildung genau ist und wie der Stand an Finanzbildung überhaupt empirisch erhoben werden kann, sondern auch ob Finanzbildung überhaupt die postulierte Bedeutung für das finanzielle Wohlergehen der Individuen und der Gesellschaft hat oder eine weit überschätzte Modeerscheinung ist. Manche Kritiker vermuten sogar ideologisch begründete Motive hinter der Forschung zum Stand der Finanzbildung. Die Zielsetzung dieses Beitrags besteht daher darin, den Begriff Finanzbildung und damit inhaltlich verwandte Begriffe, die in der einschlägigen Literatur verwendet werden, zu klären und voneinander abzugrenzen. In diesem Zusammenhang interessiert auch das Verhältnis von Finanzbildung zu Ökonomischer Bildung. Darüber hinaus untersucht dieser Beitrag die Frage, wie Finanzbildung und ihre Auswirkungen empirisch untersucht worden sind und interpretiert ausgewählte empirische Ergebnisse und ihre Aussagekraft. Auf dieser Grundlage wird abschließend die Frage beantwortet, ob Finanzbildung ohne Übertreibung ein
„life skill“ genannt werden kann oder ob es sich um eine – womöglich ideologisch
motivierte – Modeerscheinung handelt
Investigating factors influencing quality-of-life effects of home care services in Austria, England and Finland: A comparative analysis
Full text linkEuropean countries have developed a range of long-term care (LTC) policy responses to support the increasing share of older people. However, little is known about the effectiveness of LTC services and benefits, particularly their impact on older peoples’ quality of life (QoL). This paper investigates the role of personal, care service and environmental characteristics on the effects of home care services on QoL across England, Finland and Austria. We used data from surveys conducted in England, Finland and Austria. In total, 811 older adults were included in the analysis. OLS regression including main effects and country-specific interactions was used to explore variation in gains in long-term care service-related quality-of-life (LTC-QoL). Explanatory variables were derived from the production of welfare framework and comprised home care service user socio-demographics, needs indicators, social support and environmental variables and characteristics of home care service provision. In all three countries, LTC-QoL gains increased with needs, indicating that home care services perform well, with additional gains declining the higher the needs. Also, better process quality contributed to LTC-QoL improvements in all three countries. In addition, the availability of informal care, social contact, financial household situation and living alone, were associated with changes in LTC-QoL only in one or two of the countries. Home care services increased service users’ QoL in all three European countries. The increase in QoL, however, varied across the countries. The results also provide insights into the benefits and limits of home care service provision and areas for future improvements