Testing the Goodness of the EVS Gender Role Attitudes Scale

This study provides a critical evaluation of the gender role attitude scale included in the fourth wave of the European Values Study. The goodness of this scale is tested considering first of all its reliability and the stability of the factorial structure. The results suggest caution in the use of this instrument: the scale presents a deep variation in reliability across countries and its configuration is not stable, displaying several different factor structures from one country to another. In considering the source of this instability, this study addresses a priming effect due to questions introduced in 2008 immediately prior to the use of the gender role attitudes scale that modified the context of response.Cette étude fournit une évaluation critique de l’échelle d’attitude du rôle de genre incluse dans la quatrième vague de l’étude des valeurs européennes. La qualité de cette échelle est testée en considérant d’abord sa fiabilité et la stabilité de la structure factorielle. Les résultats suggèrent une prudence dans l’utilisation de cet instrument : l’échelle présente une variation profonde de la fiabilité entre les pays et sa configuration n’est pas stable, affichant plusieurs structures de facteurs différents d’un pays a l’autre. En étudiant la source de cette instabilité, la présente étude aborde un effet d’amorçage en raison des questions posées en 2008 immédiatement avant l’utilisation de l’echelle des attitudes du rôle de genre qui a modifié le contexte de réponse

Regulation of Cell Cycle by E2F1 in Primary Cells

Deregulation of the retinoblastoma protein (pRB) pathway is a hallmark of cancer, and in the absence of other genetic alterations, results in lack of differentiation, hyperproliferation and apoptosis. pRB acts as a transcriptional repressor by targeting the E2F transcription factors whose functions are required for S phase entry. Increased E2F activity can induce S phase in quiescent cells and this fact is a central element of most models for the development of cancer. I provide evidence that E2F1 alone is not sufficient to induce S phase in diploid mouse and human fibroblasts. However, increased E2F1 activity can result in S phase entry in diploid fibroblasts in which the p53-mediated Gl checkpoint is suppressed. Furthermore, I show that E2F1 can induce S phase in primary mouse fibroblasts lacking pRB. These results demonstrate that in addition to working as an E2F-dependent transcriptional repressor, pRB is also required for retaining the Gl checkpoint in response to unprogrammed proliferative signals. The role of E2F in cell proliferation is not completely understood because it is not known if the E2Fs mainly function as transcriptional repressors or activators. E2Fs need dimerisation with a DP protein to give rise to functional E2F activity and to regulate promoters containing E2F binding sites. I inactivated endogenous DP in tissue culture by RNA interference providing evidence that loss of DPI abrogates E2F DNA binding activity. DP is required for tumour and normal cell growth. In addition, the expression of E2F target genes is severely impaired. These results define a crucial role for DPI in cell proliferation

Gender role attitudes in Italy: 1988-2008 - a path-dependency story of traditionalism

Considering gender role attitudes as part of a broader cultural change related to the modernization process, this study adopts a path-dependency approach to analyze the support for the role of women in the public sphere in Italy since 1988. Modernization processes varied across Italian regions and the paper explores how different gender patterns developed accordingly. Using pooled data from European Values Survey, World Values Survey, and International Social Survey Program, the author assesses if this specific change is part of the postmaterialist shift and investigates the mechanisms of change carrying out cohort decomposition methods. The results address a reinforcement of traditionalism mainly due to the period effect that shows regional differences given by history

Can We Compare Solidarity Across Europe? What, Why, When, and How to Assess Exact and Approximate Equivalence of First- and Second-Order Factor Models

Although measurement invariance is widely considered a precondition for meaningful cross-sectional comparisons, substantive studies have often neglected evaluating this assumption, thereby risking drawing conclusions and making theoretical generalizations based on misleading results. This study offers a theoretical overview of the key issues concerning the measurement and the comparison of socio-political values and aims to answer the questions of what must be evaluated, why, when, and how to assess measurement equivalence. This paper discusses the implications of formative and reflective approaches to the measurement of socio-political values and introduces challenges in their comparison across different countries. From this perspective, exact and approximate approaches to equivalence are described as well as their empirical translation in statistical techniques, such as the multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) and the frequentist alignment method. To illustrate the application of these methods, the study investigates the construct of solidarity as measured by European Values Study (EVS) and using data collected in 34 countries in the last wave of the EVS (2017–2020). The concept is captured through a battery of nine items reflecting three dimensions of solidarity: social, local, and global. Two measurement models are hypothesized: a first-order factor model, in which the three independent dimensions of solidarity are correlated, and a second-order factor model, in which solidarity is conceived according to a hierarchical principle, and the construct of solidarity is reflected in the three sub-factors. In testing the equivalence of the first-order factor model, the results of the MGCFA indicated that metric invariance was achieved. The alignment method supported approximate equivalence only when the model was reduced to two factors, excluding global solidarity. The second-order factor model fit the data of only seven countries, in which this model could be used to study solidarity as a second-order concept. However, the comparison across countries resulted not appropriate at any level of invariance. Finally, the implications of these results for further substantive research are discussed

Using Alignment Optimization to Test the Measurement Invariance of Gender Role Attitudes in 59 Countries

Several repeated cross-national surveys include measurements of attitudes toward gender roles to investigate individuals’ beliefs regarding the appropriateness of men and women’s roles in a particular context. When used to compare attitudes across countries, these measurements reveal critical factors that could cause a lack of equivalence between different cultural contexts, and that could therefore produce misleading results. Nevertheless, the use of such measures to compare country means without assessing measurement equivalence is common. It should also be considered that the assessment of equivalence within a large-scale sample from cross-sectional surveys through multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MGCFA) often fails because of the strict requirements necessary. The current article is used to assess the measurement equivalence of the gender role attitudes scale included in the last wave of the World Values Survey in 59 countries, with the main goal of identifying the most invariant model for the largest number of groups. The study involved comparing two methods belonging to the frequentist approach: MGCFA and the frequentist alignment procedure, a highly novel and promising method that is still rarely used. Using the first technique, partial scalar invariance was achieved for 27 countries. By employing the frequentist alignment optimization, an acceptable degree of noninvariance was achieved for 35 countries. Thus, the study confirmed the frequentist alignment procedure as a viable alternative to the MGCFA

Baudoncourt – Champs de la Chaux

L’extension future d’une sablière, située sur la commune de Baudoncourt, au lieu-dit « Champs de la Chaux », est à l’origine de sondages. Cette opération d’évaluation, sur une superficie de 2,2 ha environ, n’a livré aucun vestige archéologique, malgré la présence de sites archéologiques proches du secteur concerné et un contexte topographique particulièrement favorable (zone de confluence). Sur la totalité de la zone diagnostiquée, les données stratigraphiques sont homogènes. La couche de ter..

The implementation of the European Commission recommendation on open access to scientific information: comparison of national policies

International audienceTwo years after the publication of the European Commission recommendation on open access to scientific information, the critical threshold of accessibility to fifty percent of papers has been crossed. However, this figure is an average and the implementation of the EC recommendation varies from one country to another. The topical issue now is to observe the different steps of implementation and to wonder about the reaseons of such a disparity. In order to suggest many elements of the response, this research compares the different levels of implementation in the EU28. Contrary to what the European Commission might expect further to its communication [ 1 ] and its recommendation [ 2 ] (concerning open access to and preservation of scientific information within the framework Horizon 2020) after being published dated 17th July 2012 its implementation by national governments and EU research funders have not led to a standardization of open access policies. This recommendation has undergone all manner of implementations concerning the level of incentive, the contents which are concerned, the embargo periods, etc. First and foremost this paper propose doing a comparison between the national implementations of the CE recommendation in the EU28. The suggested analysis is a good example of its various interpretations and implementations. We compare the adopted action plans and their methods : mandatory deposit and national recommendation, delegation to each institution and research funder, national consultation of stakeholders'opinion, no policy at all

The end of pan-Arab media? National, transnational media and identity in Morocco, Tunisia and Jordan after 2011

The article explores the relation between identity definition and trust in different information sources in Morocco, Jordan and Tunisia following the 2011 Uprisings. While prior to 2011 literature mostly highlighted the role of pan-Arab news channels in consolidating a transnational Arab public sphere, recent studies argued that there has been a reinforcement of national media and identities in the Middle East and North Africa, as a consequence of a partial liberalisation of national broadcasting. Our study is based on the Arab Transformations survey (2014), which unlike previous surveys included questions covering both media consumption and identity definition. We looked at how in the three countries the choice of Muslim, Arab or national identity definition was associated with the preference for distinct sources of political news. The results only partially confirmed the hypothesis of a renewed importance of national media and showed that in the three countries people tended to attribute very different values to the same news sources

Numerical study on the influence of boundary conditions on the blast response of composite plates

Blast loading represents a critical dynamic condition for both metal and composite structures. The blast response of metal materials has been extensively dealt with by researchers through experimental, analytical and numerical analyses, while composite materials appear to have been investigated in less detail. In this work, the blast response of a composite plate is numerically investigated employing the pure Lagrangian and the fully coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian (CEL) approaches using the LS-DYNA® software package. The latter methodology is set up to describe the effects determined by close-range explosions, such as the strongly non-uniform pressure distribution on the plate exposed area. Moreover, this work focuses on the characterisation of the influence of the boundary conditions on the plate response. The numerical methodology established in this work is set up and validated according to similar studies present in the literature

Gender Role Attitudes in the International Social Survey Programme: Cross-National Comparability and Relationships to Cultural Values

Differences in societal views on the roles of men and women have been addressed in many large-scale comparative studies by employing indicators of gender roles attitudes from cross-sectional surveys. Assuming that cross-country differences in gender role attitudes are linked to the prevailing cultural value orientations in each society, this study aims at investigating the association between societal views on gender roles, as measured by the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), and the prevailing cultural values, as defined by Schwartz’s theory. However, to carry out meaningful comparisons, we first assessed the prerequisite of measurement equivalence between countries. The comparability of gender role attitudes is limited when using traditional methods based on the concept of exact equivalence (multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis). However, the recently established alignment optimization procedure reveals approximate measurement equivalence and suggests that the mean comparison is trustworthy. Based on these results, we correlate the national mean levels of gender role attitudes with the cultural values of embeddedness, hierarchy and egalitarianism, showing that traditional gender roles are displayed in societies emphasizing hierarchy and embeddedness while progressive views are more expressed in egalitarian societies