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Rena Lohan, Mark Conrad, Ken Hannigan, and John A. Jackson, eds.: For
the Record: Data Archives, Eletronic Records, Access to Information and
the Needs of the Research Community. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration,
1996. VIII, 120 pp. ISBN 1-872002-63-3. £ 14.00.
The papers collected in this volume were presented at a conference reflecting
the title of the volume, held in Dublin on 11 December 1995. Although
some years have already passed since publication, the book is still of
importance. The main aim of the conference was to discuss developments
in information technology, European integration, and the position and
tasks of national archives and social science data archives. Experiences
from the US, the UK, and the Nordic countries in data archiving are reported,
thus encouraging data archiving in Ireland (and, more specifically, the
establishment of an Irish social science data archive).
Research Centres
The Slovak Documentation and Information Centre for Social Protection
(DISSO) at the Research Institute for Labour, Social Affairs and Family,
Bratislava was newly established in 1999. Here an excerpt from the presentation
of the institute: 'The wider objectives of DISSO are:
- To support the ongoing transformation process in the Slovak Republic
through the improvement of the given information structure in the social
sphere.
- To collect and to disseminate information on social security and social
protection at the local, European and international level.
- To create a contact point for a wide network of Slovak organisations
and institutions active in the social sphere and facilitate the process
of communication and cooperation between the different actors, institutions
and agencies.
The specific objective of DISSO is:
To coordinate the activities of different actors in the field of social
protection, improve cooperation and optimise their output. It will be
a catalytic agent between all functions and actors in the Slovak Republic's
social protection landscape through
- The collection and dissemination of information on social security
- The exchange and coordination of information on the activities undertaken
by the various social actors and
- The promotion of cooperation between these institutions.
DISSO offers:
Documentation centre: In the first place, DISSO is a documentation centre
that contains basic information (books, periodicals, research reports,
etc.) on social protection in the Slovak Republic as well as at the European
and international level.
Exchange of information: The main task of the Centre is to coordinate
the different actors active in the field of social protection. However,
as these actors are often unaware of the activities of other actors, DISSO
will publish ist own 'Newsletter on Social Protection', that will be sent
to all the target groups. This newsletter will contain basic information
on current running projects and activities; on recent publications, reports
or articles published by the different actors active in the field of social
protection and on international programmes.
Data bases: The Centre has some unique data bases. They contain not only
information on what is published in the field of social protection (bibliographic
information by way of an author catalogue; a subject catalogue; a catalogue
of periodicals and reports) but also enables everyone to find out 'who
does what'.'
Information: Slovak Documentation and Information Centre for Social Protection
(DISSO), Research Institute for Labour, Social Affairs and Family, pitálska
6, 812 41 Bratislava, Slovak Republic. Tel.: (421)(7) 5975 2618, Fax:
(421)(7) 5296 6633, E-mail: disso@vupsvr.
ov.sk.
Recent Social Reports in Europe
In France, the INSEE published the tenth edition of the three-annual
Données Sociales in 1999, with the first edition having appeared
as early as 1973. The present edition is highly characterized by a comparative-both
internationally and European-and a historical orientation. As an innovation
it includes at the end of each chapter tables with Tendances, summarizing
statistically the main longterm trends and the place of France in the
spectrum of the European nations. The Données sociales emphasize
the dimension of inequality between nation states, social classes, age
groups and sexes; this is one feature which makes it unique when compared
with other national social reports. There is another positive characteristic:
the contributions are innovative, tackle social questions not covered
before, and also deal with topics not belonging to mainstream thinking.
One example for this approach is the article written by L. Olier on the
'costs of our children' (Combien nous coûtent nos enfants?).
INSEE-Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques: Données
Sociales. La Société Française. Édition 1999.
Paris: INSEE, 1999. 506 pp. ISBN 2-11-066-795-8. ISSN 0758-6531. In French.
Another important title in the field of monitoring the overall living
conditions of the French population is the Social Portrait of France (France,
portrait social), which is published annually. While the Données
Sociales provide extensive analyses of the structure and development of
the living conditions according to living domains, the Social Portrait
tries to present a picture of more recent social, demographic and economic
developments in France. The book is divided into three sections: the summary
view of the last year; the section 'Dossier', and the 'Fiches thématiques'.
The first section includes short articles discussing and analyzing major
developments in the last few years. The second section contains selected
substantive articles, while the third section presents approximately 30
small contributions on nearly all aspects of social development. It also
includes 'fiches' with data on European countries.
INSEE-Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques: France:
Portrait social. La Société Française. Édition
1999-2000. Paris: INSEE, 1999. 218 pp. ISBN 2-11-067-030-4. ISSN 1279-3671.
In French.
In the United Kingdom, the third edition of 'Trends in British Society
Since 1900' appeared with the title 'Twentieth-Century British Social
Trends'. The first edition was issued in 1972, and a second enlarged version
came out in 1988. This is the most formidable account of long-term trends
in British society since the beginning of the last century. In 6 parts
and 20 chapters all main subjects of long-term social trends are covered,
starting with population and family, and ending with crime. Acknowledged
capacities in their field were recruited for the individual chapters.
The social trends covered in this volume are based on a large number of
official statistics sources, but social survey material was used as well.
Halsey, A.H., and Josephine Webb, eds.: Twentieth-Century British Social
Trends. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, and London: Macmillan Press,
2000. xxviii, 738 pp. ISBN 0-333-72149-7.
In Germany, the 1999 edition of the 'Datenreport' appeared. This is the
fifth issue in a series produced jointly by official statistics and social
scientists. The traditional separation into two sections has been maintained:
the first section deals with social trends on the basis of official statistics
('objective indicators'), while the second section has been written by
social scientists on the basis of the repetetive Welfare Survey and the
German Household Panel. Most contributions in the second part refer to
'subjective indicators'.
For the first time, figures and tables are presented in colour, improving
visualization a lot. Also for the first time, data have been made accessible
electronically via a CD-ROM accompanying the volume.
Statistisches Bundesamt, in cooperation with WZB and ZUMA, ed. Datenreport
1999. Schriftenreihe, vol. 365. Bonn: Bundeszentrale für politische
Bildung, 2000. 623 pp. ISBN 3-89331-383-4, ISSN 0435-7604. A library edition
is available from Olzog Verlag, Munich.
Historical Statistics
The economy of Luxembourg during the 20th century is described historicoquantitatively
on the basis of the extensive historical statistics of Luxembourg collected
during the last few years by STATEC. The voluminous book not only deals
with economic topics; it also has a broader frame of reference, presenting
growth processes in the field of population, employment, economic production.
Many tables present long timeseries; furthermore, long-term developments
are presented by graphs. Extensive bibliographical references enable further
investigations into the valuable material presented.
STATEC, sous la direction de Robert Weides: L'économie luxembourgeoise
au 20e siècle. Luxembourg: Editions le Phare. Editpress Luxembourg
S.A. 551 pp. In French.
The Welsh Office published a new edition of the Welsh Historcial Statistics,
covering the years 1974-1996. It is a follow-up to the two-volume Digest
of Welsh Historical Statistics, published in 1985, which covers the time
period from the earliest times statistics were compiled (population figures
from the 16th century, baptisms, marriages and burials since 1700) to
the years 1973/4 resp. the census of 1971.
Welsh Office/Y Swyddfa Gymreig: Digest of Welsh Historical Statistics
1974-1996. By. L.J. Williams. Cardiff: Welsh Office, 1998. ISBN: 0-7504-2299-8.
xiv, 342 pp.
Statistics Finland produced a useful historical account of Finland's population
from 1749-1999. On the basis of time series for 150 years, basic tendencies
of population development are highlighted, and projections until the mid-21st
century are made: the growth of Finland's population, population ageing,
demographic transition, epidemiological transition, infant mortality,
and life expectancy. The appendix includes long time series from 1749-1999
with main demographic variables.
A related title is 'Finnish Life Tables since 1751', published by Väinö
Kannisto, Oiva Turpeinen and Mauri Nieminen in Demographic Research, Vol.
1(1), the journal of the Max-Planck-Institute for Demographic Reserach
in Rostock (http://www.demographic-research.org).
The authors have extended the Finnish life tables back to 1751 and are
thus able to identify four stages of mortality transition, separated by
the years 1880, 1945 and 1970.
Statistics Finland/Mauri Nieminen: Väestötilastoja 250 vuotta:
Katsaus väestötilaston historiaan vuosina 1749-1999. [Population
Statistics 250 Years: Overview of Historical Population Statistics for
the Years 1749-1999]. Väestö [Population] 1999:8 (=ISSN 0784-8447).
Helsinki: Statistics Finland. 75 pp. ISBN 951-727-679-6. In Finnish.
Guides and Bibliographies of National Population Censuses
Although already published more than ten years ago, the reference book
by Ralph S. Clem on the Russian and Soviet Censuses deserves to be presented
here. The book deals with the Russian census of 1897 and the Soviet censuses
of 1920, 1926, 1937 and 1939, 1959, 1970 and 1979. The book is the best
gateway to the census material collected in Russia and the Soviet Union
during an eighty-year time span. Several descriptive chapters deal with
the main topics covered by a population census: ethnicity and language,
occupation and work force, urbanization and migration, marriage, family
and fertility, and education and literacy. Three introductory chapters
deal with the usefulness of the Soviet censuses for research, comparability
problems, and the history of the Russian and Soviet censuses. The second
main section of the handbook presents an index and guide to the Russian
and Soviet censuses 1897-1979. The index lists in English all titles of
the individual tables and abstracts its main contents. A keyword index
breaks down the contents of the tables of the different censuses according
to subject categories.
All in all, this handbook is a very valuable instrument for all those
working with census data either on the national level or for comparative
purposes. A similar documentation of the 1989 census and the 2000 census
would be highly welcomed.
Clem, Ralph S., ed.: Research Guide to the Russian and Soviet Censuses.
(Studies in Soviet History and Society). Ithaca, N.Y. et al.: Cornell
University Press, 1986. ISBN 0-8014-1338-0. 323 p.
Journals and Newsletters
European Union Politics (EUP). This journal appears three times a year
in February, June and October, starting in 2000. London: Sage Publications.
ISSN 1465-1165. Subscription: individual rate, two-year subscription £
60, one-year subscription £ 30; institutional rate, two-year £
240, one-year £ 120.
Executive editor: Gerald Schneider, University of Konstanz, Germany; Associate
editors: Simon Hix, London School of Economics and Political Science,
UK; Matthew Gabel, University of Kentucky, Lexington, USA. Editorial office:
E-mail: eup@uni-konstanz.de,
Homepage: www.uni-konstanz.de/FuF/Verwiss/
GSchneider/eup.html.
Excerpt from the announcement: 'European Union Politics will stimulate
the scientific debate on the political unification of Europe and bridge
the gap between the theoretical and empirical analyses in this area. The
journal will publish high quality work on the theory of integration, decision
making in the European Union, the political aspects of fiscal and monetary
policy integration, and the relations between the EU an the non-member
states. European Union Politics particularly welcomes articles that offer
a new theoretical argument, analyse original data in a novel fashion or
present an innovative methodological approach. The editorial team invites
submissions from any subfield of contemporary political science, including
international relations, comparative politics, political economy, public
administration, public policy, and political theory. While contributing
to new developments at the cutting edge of theory and method, the journal
will also be accessible to students and policy experts.'
Ordering: Sage Publications, 6 Bonhill Street, London, EC2A 4PU, UK. Tel.:
+44 (0)171 374 0645, Fax: +44 (0)171 3748741, EUP Web Page: http://www.sagepub.
co.uk/journals/details/j0x296.html.
Newsletter of the Robert Schuman Centre (RSC) for the Advanced Studies
at the EUI in Florence. It is published three times a year and distributed
free of charge. The newsletter was started in 1997 (no. 7 in Dec. 1999).
Ordering: Robert Schuman Centre, European University Institute, Via dei
Roccettini, I-50016 San Domenico de Fiesole, Italy. Tel.: Fax: 39 055
4685 770. Internet:
http://www.iue.it/RSC/Welcome.html.
Social Science Japan. Newsletter of the Institute of Social Science, University
of Tokyo. Three issues per year. ISSN 1340-7155. Free airmail subscriptions
are available to institutions and individuals. Social Science Japan is
also available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.iss.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
The newsletter was started in July 1994. The most recent issue is no.
18 of April 2000.
Ordering: Published by the Information Centre for Social Science Research
on Japan, Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1,
Bunkyoku, Tokyo 113-0033 Japan. Tel.: +81 3 5841-4931, Fax: +81 3 5841-4905.
E-mail: ssjinfo@iss.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
New MZES Publications
Working Papers
Since the beginning of 1999 all working papers of the MZES are published
in one common working paper series (ISSN 1437-8574). The following working
papers have been released and can be obtained from the MZES, University
of Mannheim, D-68131 Mannheim. Tel. +49-621-292-1885, Fax +49-621-292-1735.
Working papers published since 1997 are also available over the Internet
and can be downloaded.
Helena Laaksonen: Young Adults in Changing Welfare States: Prolonged Transitions
and Delayed Entries for Under-30s in Finland, Sweden and Germany in the
'90s. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 12).
Claudia Gardberg Morner: Making Ends Meet: Lone Mothers' Local Subsistence
Strategies. Case Studies from Italy and Sweden. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working
Paper no. 13).
Egbert Jahn: 'Nie wieder Krieg! Nie wieder Völkermord!': Der Kosovo-Konflikt
als europäisches Problem. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no.
14).
Eriikka Oinonen: Nations' Different Families? Contrasting Comparison of
Finnish and Spanish 'Ideological Families'. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working
Paper no. 15).
Jakob Edler: Die Genese des Forschungsprogramms BRITE: Institutionalisierungsprozesse
zur Überwindung eines europäischen Konsensdilemmas: eine reflexivinstitutionalistische
Analyse. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 16).
Rüdiger Wolfrum: Vorbereitende Willensbildung und Entscheidungsprozeß
beim Abschluß multilateraler völkerrechtlicher Verträge.
Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 17).
Claus Wendt und Mathias Maucher: Mütter zwischen Kinderbetreuung
und Erwerbstätigkeit: Institutionelle Hilfen und Hürden bei
einem beruflichen Wiedereinstieg nach einer Kinderpause. Mannheim: MZES,
2000 (Working Paper no. 18).
Frank Kalter: Measuring Segregation and Controlling for Independent Variables.
Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 19).
Susan Stewart: Sprachenpolitik als Sicherheitsproblem in der Ukraine.
Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 20).
Hermann Schmitt und Jacques Thomassen: Dynamic Representation: The Case
of European Integration. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 21).
Carsten G. Ullrich: Die soziale Akzeptanz des Wohlfahrtsstaates: Anmerkungen
zum Forschungsstand. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 22).
Uwe Kischel: The State as a Non-Unitary Actor: The Role of the Judicial
Branch in International Negotiations. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper
no. 23).
Markus Gangl: European Perspectives on Labour Market Entry: A Matter of
Institutional Linkages between Training Systems and Labour Markets? Mannheim:
MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 24).
Markus Gangl: Education and Labour Market Entry across Europe: The Impact
of Institutional Arrangements in Training Systems and Labour Markets.
Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working Paper no. 25).
Markus Gangl: Changing Labour Markets and Early Career Outcomes: Labour
Market Entry in Europe over the Past Decade. Mannheim: MZES, 2000 (Working
Paper no. 26).
New Books from MZES
van Deth, Jan W., and Thomas König, eds.: Europäische
Politikwissenschaft: Ein Blick in die Werkstatt. [Mannheimer Jahrbuch
für Europäische Sozialforschung, vol. 4]. Frankfurt/New York:
Campus, 2000. 457 pp., DM 98.00,
ISBN 3-593-36362-3.
This volume provides an excellent insight into the high level of European
research in political science. The authors examine, among other things,
the mediating role political institutions have, the relation between politics,
bureaucracy and institutional reform, regionalization in the era of globalization,
the safeguarding of peace, fiscal policy after the introduction of the
euro, and problems related to the Eastern enlargement of the EU.
Caramani, Daniele: Elections in Western Europe since 1815: Electoral
Results by Constituencies. 'The Societies of Europe': A Historical
Datahandbook Series, ed. by P. Flora, F. Kraus, and F. Rothenbacher. London:
Macmillan, 2000. 1,090 pp. + CD-ROM. ISBN: 0-333-77111-7.
This data handbook and the CD-ROM contain the systematic and standardized
collection of general elections results at the level of single constituencies
for 18 Western European countries since the 19th century, accompanied
by thorough documentation. The handbook is divided into 3 parts. Part
I provides a comparative description of the mechanics of electoral laws,
the institutional development of elections and the territorial structure
of the vote. Part II provides information by country: dates and types
of elections, the evolution of party systems, the connectivity of constituency
level results to official statistics, and results tables. Part III provides
additional information with regard to the most profitable use of the data,
such as the evolution of election statistics, etc.
This book is part of the historical data handbook series 'The Societies
of Europe', edited by members of the MZES.
Ebbinghaus, Bernhard, and Jelle Visser, eds.: Trade Unions in Western
Europe since 1945. 'The Societies of Europe': A Historical Datahandbook
Series, ed. by P. Flora, F. Kraus, and F. Rothenbacher. London/New York:
Macmillan/Grove, 2000. 807 pp. + CD-ROM. ISBN: 0-333-77112-5.
Trade unions are one of the major social institutions in modern industrial
societies. Today, when they increasingly face pressures from social, economic
and political changes, it is appropriate to look at their evolution over
the last half of this century. This handbook aims to map the variations
in union organization and membership in fifteen western European countries.
The introductury guide, comparative overview, country profiles, chronologies,
cross sectional and time series tables, as well as comparative indicators
are intended to facilitate and encourage the comparative and historical
study of modern trade union organization. In addition, the CD-ROM provides
easy electronic access to handbook tables and to additional databases
on national union organizations and their membership series for further
individual indepth analysis.
The book is part of the historical data handbook series 'The Societies
of Europe', edited by members of the MZES (see also pages 21-2 of this
newsletter).
Forthcoming Events:
Third Conference of the International Society for Quality of Life Studies,
20th-22st July 2000, Girona, Spain. Organized by The University of Girona
(UdG), through ist Institut de Recerca sobre la Qualitat de Vida (IRQV)
(Research Institute on Quality of Life) with the International Society
for Quality-of-Life Studies (ISQOLS). Information about the conference:
Birona Convention Bureau, Gran Via Jaume I, 46, 17001-Girona, España.
Phone: 34-972-418500, Fax: 34-972-418501, E-mail: Q2000@cambreascat.es,
Internet: http://
business.wm.edu/isqols, http://www.
cob.vt.edu/market/isqols/.
IAOS Conference 2000 on 'Statistics, Development and Human Rights', 4th-8st
September 2000, Montreux, Switzerland, Convention Centre of Montreux.
Organized by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (SFSO) and the Swiss
Development Cooperation Agency (SDC) for the International Association
for Official Statistics (IAOS), a section of the International Statistical
Institute (ISI).
Information about the conference: IAOS Conference Secretariat, Swiss Federal
Statistical Office, Espace de l'Europe 10, CH-2010 Neuchâtel, Switzerland.
Fax: +41 32 713 60 93, E-mail:
iaos2000@bfs.admin.ch.
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