An anti-establishment backlash that shook up the party system? The October 2015 Polish parliamentary election

The October 2015 Polish parliamentary election saw the stunning victory of the right-wing opposition Law and Justice party which became the first in post-communist Poland to secure an outright parliamentary majority, and equally comprehensive defeat of the incumbent centrist Civic Platform. In addition to the fact that the outgoing ruling party could no longer rely on invoking the ‘politics of fear’, the main factor accounting for this was widespread disillusionment with the country’s ruling elite. The election also saw the broad ‘post-transition’ socio-demographic and ideological divide and Law and Justice-Civic Platform duopoly continuing to dominate party competition. However, there were some indications of greater party system fluidity and question marks over who would emerge as the main representative of the anti-Law and Justice side of this divide

Migration and diversity in a post-socialist context: Creating integrative encounters in Poland

This article explores ‘integrative encounters’ between immigrants and Polish people in Warsaw. Rather than focus on new arrivals we pay attention to the integration experiences of the host population in recognition that this is a group who have been relatively neglected in the literature. Post-socialist European countries where population mobility was circumscribed during the communist era and as a consequence became perceived as relatively homogenous white societies but which are now seeing a rise in immigration, have been largely neglected by non-domestic scholars. In Poland organised group activity is an important means to provide the established population with an opportunity to encounter migrants because such encounters are less likely to occur in everyday spaces. Drawing on research with a Warsaw based NGO which runs a football league to bring Polish people and immigrants together, we argue that attention needs to be paid to the issue of ‘motivation' to participate in integration projects and to the significance of sociality. In doing so, we suggest that creating the conditions for spontaneous connections to develop, even in contrived projects, is a way to overcome indifference to difference. Here, we highlight the qualities of football as a bridging activity to facilitate integrative encounters

"Don't try to teach me, I got nothing to learn": Management students' perceptions of business ethics teaching

[EN] Interest is growing towards including business ethics in university curricula, aiming at improving ethical behaviour of future managers. Extant literature has investigated the impact of ethics education on different ethics-related students' cognitive and/or behavioural outcomes, considering variables related to training programmes and students' demographic aspects. Accordingly, we aim at assessing students' understanding of business ethics issues, by focusing on the differences in students' perceptions depending on gender, age, work experience, and ethics courses taken. Testing our hypotheses on a sample of 307 management students at a Polish university, and controlling for social desirability bias, we obtained mixed and partially surprising results. We found significant differences in students' understanding of business ethics depending on their gender and age (female and older students showed more ethical inclinations), but not depending on having taken ethics courses-actually perceptions of such courses worsened after taking them. Besides, work experience was not a significant variable. Moreover, course exposure intensiveness (i.e., number of ethics courses completed), and time passed since completion of the latest course, did not confirm hypothesized effects on most of the dependent (sub)variables. These findings stimulate further questions and challenges for future research (e.g., around course design and methodology, and social/cultural/contextual issues).Tormo-Carbó, G.; Oltra, V.; Klimkiewicz, K.; Seguí-Mas, E. (2019). "Don't try to teach me, I got nothing to learn": Management students' perceptions of business ethics teaching. Business Ethics: A European Review. 28(4):506-528. https://doi.org/10.1111/beer.12236S506528284Adkins, N., & Radtke, R. R. (2004). Students’ and Faculty Members’ Perceptions of the Importance of Business Ethics and Accounting Ethics Education: Is There an Expectations Gap? Journal of Business Ethics, 51(3), 279-300. doi:10.1023/b:busi.0000032700.07607.02Allen, W. R., Bacdayan, P., Berube Kowalski, K., & Roy, M. H. (2005). Examining the impact of ethics training on business student values. Education + Training, 47(3), 170-182. doi:10.1108/00400910510592220Auger, P., & Devinney, T. M. (2007). Do What Consumers Say Matter? The Misalignment of Preferences with Unconstrained Ethical Intentions. Journal of Business Ethics, 76(4), 361-383. doi:10.1007/s10551-006-9287-yBampton, R., & Cowton, C. J. (2012). Taking Stock of Accounting Ethics Scholarship: A Review of the Journal Literature. Journal of Business Ethics, 114(3), 549-563. doi:10.1007/s10551-012-1341-3Bampton, R., & Maclagan, P. (2005). Why teach ethics to accounting students? A response to the sceptics. Business Ethics: A European Review, 14(3), 290-300. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8608.2005.00410.xBates, A., & Godoń, R. (2016). Tackling knowledge ‘like a business’? Rethinking the modernisation of higher education in Poland. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, 47(4), 454-467. doi:10.1080/03057925.2016.1234931Beggs, J. M., & Dean, K. L. (2006). Legislated Ethics or Ethics Education?: Faculty Views in the Post-Enron Era. Journal of Business Ethics, 71(1), 15-37. doi:10.1007/s10551-006-9123-4Bernardi, R. A., & Bean, D. F. (2010). Ranking North American accounting scholars publishing ethics research: 1986 through 2008. Research on Professional Responsibility and Ethics in Accounting, 139-174. doi:10.1108/s1574-0765(2010)0000014010Blanthorne, C., Kovar, S. E., & Fisher, D. G. (2007). Accounting Educators’ Opinions about Ethics in the Curriculum: An Extensive View. 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(2000). Journal of Business Ethics, 23(4), 401-409. doi:10.1023/a:1006150718834Lau, C. L. L. (2009). A Step Forward: Ethics Education Matters! Journal of Business Ethics, 92(4), 565-584. doi:10.1007/s10551-009-0173-2Lehnert, K., Park, Y., & Singh, N. (2014). Research Note and Review of the Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: Boundary Conditions and Extensions. Journal of Business Ethics, 129(1), 195-219. doi:10.1007/s10551-014-2147-2Lewicka‐Strzalecka, A. (2006). Opportunities and limitations of CSR in the postcommunist countries: Polish case. Corporate Governance: The international journal of business in society, 6(4), 440-448. doi:10.1108/14720700610689559Loe, T. W., Ferrell, L., & Mansfield, P. (2000). Journal of Business Ethics, 25(3), 185-204. doi:10.1023/a:1006083612239Low, M., Davey, H., & Hooper, K. (2008). Accounting scandals, ethical dilemmas and educational challenges. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 19(2), 222-254. doi:10.1016/j.cpa.2006.05.010Luthar, H. K., & Karri, R. (2005). Exposure to Ethics Education and the Perception of Linkage between Organizational Ethical Behavior and Business Outcomes. Journal of Business Ethics, 61(4), 353-368. doi:10.1007/s10551-005-1548-7Macfarlane, B., & Ottewill, R. (2004). Business Ethics in the Curriculum: Assessing the Evidence from U.K. Subject Review. Journal of Business Ethics, 54(4), 339-347. doi:10.1007/s10551-004-1823-zMaclagan, P., & Campbell, T. (2011). Focusing on individuals’ ethical judgement in corporate social responsibility curricula. Business Ethics: A European Review, 20(4), 392-404. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8608.2011.01634.xMadison, R. L., & Schmidt, J. J. (2006). Survey of Time Devoted to Ethics in Accountancy Programs in North American Colleges and Universities. Issues in Accounting Education, 21(2), 99-109. doi:10.2308/iace.2006.21.2.99Malinowski, C., & Berger, K. A. (1996). Undergraduate student attitudes about hypothetical marketing dilemmas. Journal of Business Ethics, 15(5), 525-535. doi:10.1007/bf00381928Marnburg, E. (2001). Journal of Business Ethics, 32(4), 275-283. doi:10.1023/a:1010643309056Marnburg, E. (2003). Educational impacts on academic business practitioner’s moral reasoning and behaviour: effects of short courses in ethics or philosophy. Business Ethics: A European Review, 12(4), 403-413. doi:10.1111/1467-8608.00341May, D. R., Luth, M. T., & Schwoerer, C. E. (2013). The Influence of Business Ethics Education on Moral Efficacy, Moral Meaningfulness, and Moral Courage: A Quasi-experimental Study. Journal of Business Ethics, 124(1), 67-80. doi:10.1007/s10551-013-1860-6Mayhew, B. W., & Murphy, P. R. (2008). The Impact of Ethics Education on Reporting Behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 86(3), 397-416. doi:10.1007/s10551-008-9854-5McCabe, A. C., Ingram, R., & Dato-on, M. C. (2006). ‘The Business of Ethics and Gender’. Journal of Business Ethics, 64(2), 101-116. doi:10.1007/s10551-005-3327-xMedeiros, K. E., Watts, L. L., Mulhearn, T. J., Steele, L. M., Mumford, M. D., & Connelly, S. (2017). What is Working, What is Not, and What We Need to Know: a Meta-Analytic Review of Business Ethics Instruction. Journal of Academic Ethics, 15(3), 245-275. doi:10.1007/s10805-017-9281-2Nguyen, N. T., & Biderman, M. D. (2008). Studying Ethical Judgments and Behavioral Intentions Using Structural Equations: Evidence from the Multidimensional Ethics Scale*. Journal of Business Ethics, 83(4), 627-640. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9644-5O’Fallon, M. J., & Butterfield, K. D. (2005). A Review of The Empirical Ethical Decision-Making Literature: 1996–2003. Journal of Business Ethics, 59(4), 375-413. doi:10.1007/s10551-005-2929-7Pan, Y., & Sparks, J. R. (2012). Predictors, consequence, and measurement of ethical judgments: Review and meta-analysis. Journal of Business Research, 65(1), 84-91. doi:10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.02.002Peppas, S. C., & Diskin, B. A. (2001). 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Scale and Study of Student Attitudes Toward Business Education’s Role in Addressing Social Issues. Journal of Business Ethics, 68(4), 381-391. doi:10.1007/s10551-006-9000-1Sojkin, B., Bartkowiak, P., & Skuza, A. (2014). Changes in students’ choice determinants in Poland: a comparative study of tertiary business education between 2008 and 2013. Higher Education, 69(2), 209-224. doi:10.1007/s10734-014-9770-9Stachowicz-Stanusch, A. (2011). The Impact of Business Education on Students’ Moral Competency. Vision: The Journal of Business Perspective, 15(2), 163-176. doi:10.1177/097226291101500207Stedham, Y., Yamamura, J. H., & Beekun, R. I. (2007). Gender differences in business ethics: justice and relativist perspectives. Business Ethics: A European Review, 16(2), 163-174. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8608.2007.00486.xStrahan, R., & Gerbasi, K. C. (1972). Short, homogeneous versions of the Marlow-Crowne Social Desirability Scale. 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Addressing social representations in socio-technical transitions with the case of shale gas

While sociologists of science and technology have long understoodtechnological diffusion and adoption as processes of social embed-ding, the psycho-social processes involved have received relativelylittle attention in the socio-technical transitions literature. Here weconsider the value of Moscovici’s social representations theory interms of its potential contribution to a theory of socio-technicalchange, the multi-level perspective (MLP). Using fracking-derivedshale gas as a technology case study and newspaper representa-tions of the technology in Poland, Germany and the UK as data,we address and illustrate connections between the processes ofanchoring and objectification that are central to social represen-tations theory and the socio-technical dynamics observed. In so doing, we set out an approach for further work on agency in the MLP and socio-technical change processes generally, informed by a social psychological approach that aligns with structuralist concepts

Phase 1-3 of the cross-cultural development of an EORTC questionnaire for the assessment of sexual health in cancer patients: the EORTC SHQ-22

To develop and pretest an European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer Sexual Health Questionnaire (EORTC SHQ-22) for the assessment of physical, psychological, and social aspects of sexual health (SH) in male and female cancer patients and survivors. Questionnaire construction started with creating a list of relevant SH issues based on a comprehensive literature review. Issues were subsequently evaluated for relevance and prioritization by 78 healthcare professionals (HCP) and 107 patients from 12 countries during in-depth interviews (phase 1). Extracted issues were operationalized into items (phase 2). Phase 3 focused on pretesting the preliminary questionnaire in a cross-cultural patient sample (n = 171) using debriefing interviews. Psychometric properties were preliminary determined using a principal component analysis and Cronbach’s alpha. We derived 53 relevant SH issues from the literature. Based on HCP and patient interviews, 22 of these 53 issues were selected and operationalized into items. Testing the preliminary 22-item short questionnaire resulted in a change of wording in five items and two communication-related items; no items were removed. Preliminary psychometric analysis revealed a two-factor solution and 11 single items; both scales showed good reliability indicated by a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.87 (sexual satisfaction) and 0.82 (sexual pain). Cross-cultural pretesting of the preliminary EORTC SH questionnaire has indicated excellent applicability, patient acceptance, and comprehensiveness as well as good psychometric properties. The final development phase, that is psychometric validation (phase four) including large-scale, cross-cultural field testing of the EORTC SHQ-22, has commenced

Conversion and neuro-inflammation disorder observational study (CANDO). Protocol of a feasibility study

Background: Conversion disorder (CD) or functional neurological disorder (FND) affects at least 764,000 people in the UK per year. As its origin is unknown and treatment has limited effects the condition forms a high individual and societal burden and clinically-unmet need. Research aiming to improve the outlook for people with this condition is urgently required. Exploration of the role of stress response and systemic low-grade inflammation (SLI) in CD/FND is warranted. The first step is to establish the feasibility of identifying, recruiting and assessing a clinical cohort of CD/FND patients for biomarkers of SLI, in addition to objective and subjective measures of stress and related factors. Methods: The settings are currently clinics and services within the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV). Phase 1 and phase 3 of our work are described in this paper, assessing the feasibility of assessing a cohort of CD/FND patients. Ethical approval has been granted for this study. The study will use observational measures including a blood sample for assessment of inflammation biomarkers; hair cortisol testing; self-report measures of stress, childhood trauma and health; targeted neurocognitive functioning and psychiatric examination. The findings will be used to inform future phases of our work. Discussion: Study outcomes will be knowledge about levels of SLI, psychological and cognitive symptoms in patients with CD/FND that is so far largely unknown. Knowledge regarding the feasibility of conducting a study in this population will also be gained. This will enable a comprehensive testing and evaluation of the proposed processes of recruitment, retention and data collection. This is hoped to lay the groundwork for future work leading to the development of novel treatments for CD/FND patients. Registration: researchregistry.com researchregistry528

‘Other’ Posts in ‘Other’ Places: Poland through a Postcolonial Lens?

Postcolonial theory has tended to focus on those spaces where European colonialism has had a territorial and political history. This is unsurprising, as much of the world is in this sense ‘postcolonial’. But not all of it. This article focuses on Poland, often theorised as peripheral to ‘old Europe’, and explores the application of postcolonial analyses to this ‘other’ place. The article draws upon reflections arising from a study of responses to ethnic diversity in Warsaw, Poland. In doing so we conclude that postcolonialism does indeed offer some important insights into understanding Polish attitudes to other nationalities, and yet more work also needs to be done to make the theoretical bridge. In the case of Poland we propose the ‘triple relation’ be the starting point for such work