Individual and Collective Resources and Health in Morocco

The interaction between available individual and collective resources in the determination of health is largely ignored in the literature on the relationship between poverty and health in developing countries. We analyse the role public resources play in the perception that rural women in Morocco have of their health. These resources are taken to contribute directly and indirectly to the improvement of individual health by, on the one hand, providing a health-promoting environment and, on the other, improving the individual?s ability to produce health. The empirical results of multilevel models confirm the expected associations between socioeconomic status, individual vulnerability factors and health. Furthermore, the random part of the model suggests that variation in state of health is also associated with the presence of collective resources. However, the higher the level of women?s individual wealth, the less the characteristics of the community in which they live seem to be associated with their health, and the less the potential vulnerability factors seem to constrain their ability to maintain or improve health. Our results suggest that collective investments derived from various areas of activity will be more favourable to improving health, insofar as they are adapted to the initial capacity of women to benefit from them.health, poverty, rural, women, Morocco

Acoustic coupling between two air bubbles in water

The acoustic coupling between two air bubbles immersed in water is clearly demonstrated. The system is acoustically forced, and its response is detected. The experimental results confirm that both theoretically predicted eigenmodes, respectively symmetrical and antisymmetrical, do exist. Their frequencies, measured as a function of the bubbles spacing, follow theoretical estimations within a 10% accuracy.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, submitted to European Physical Journal E (2nd version

Comment identifier le rôle des associations familiales dans la définition de l’action publique en Europe ?

International audienceWho represents the interests of families in a democratic system? In a research conducted for the European Commission in five Member States of the European Union (Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal and the UK), Martin and Hassenteufel have analysed the role played by some of these organisations in social and family policy. The study focuses on family organisations in the five countries, highlighting two aspects: their ways and means of establishing links with the policy domain, and the degree of their involvement in the policy-making process. Special priority has been given to the role of counselling and lobbying, i.e. the interest group logic developed by some of these organisations.Qui représente les intérêts des familles dans un système démocratique? Dans une recherche conduite pour la Commission Européenne dans cinq Etayts membres (Belgique, France, Allemagne, Portugal et Royaume-Uni), Martin et Hassenteufel proposent d'analyser le rôle joué par certaines de ces organisations, les association familiales, dans la définition des politiques familiales et sociales. L'étude se concentre sur la manière dont agissent ces organisations au niveau des pouvoirs publics, et leur rôle dans le Policy-framing. Une priorité est donnée à deux modes d'action: le lobbying et le conseil ou l'expertise

La politisation de la longévité : une configuration singulière ?

International audienceCette presentation au colloque international organisé pour le 30° anniversaire du CERMES 3 sur le thème: "savoirs, pratiques, politiques", Les sciences sociales et les transformations contemporaines des mondes de la santé", du 25 au 27 mai 2016 avait pour objectif de render compte de la manière dont la question de la longévité et de l'aging ont été construit comme problème public et politisé

Southern Welfare States: Configuration of the Welfare Balance between State and the Family

International audienceSince the mid-nineties, following the publication of Esping-Andersen's seminal book, " The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism " (Esping-Andersen 1990), a discussion has developed about the hypothesis of a fourth welfare regime: a Southern European one, i.e. a common model shared by Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece. Some authors argued that common traits justify the existence of a Southern or Mediterranean ideal-type beside the continental, liberal and universalist ones, while others considered the Southern configuration as a late development of a continental regime, possibly with some historical, institutional and cultural specificities (Katrougalos 1996). After having reached its acme in the nineties, this discussion was rediscovered recently, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the publication of Andersen's crucial and inspiring book. Looking back, it seems as if this debate arose only due to the discussion related to Esping-Andersen's model; a discussion which, in the end, seems weakly connected to the broader literature on the historical making of Southern Europe. However, unquestionably, the historical context of this scientific debate has changed drastically in the last three decades. In this paper, we propose, in the first section, to come back and synthesize the main arguments of this debate since the nineties and argue that this discussion is crucial, not only for academic or theoretical concerns, of course, but also to think of the present of Europe and offer a guide for understanding the general process of restructuring European welfare states. In the second part, we focus on one of the characteristics of Southern configuration underlined in the nineties: the central role of the family as a source of protection against risks and vulnerability, or a social bumper. The question nowadays is not only the transfer of responsibility for social problems from the state, or even local authorities, to the family in a shedding process but the careful investigation of, first, the transformation of the family itself in the meantime and also of the emergence of new social risks which are challenging caring capacities of our societies

What really is new under the spotlight? (Re)-discovering parents and parenting in France

As in many other European and non-European countries, an explicit parenting support policy made its way onto the French political agenda during the early 1990s: a ‘turn to parenting’ complete with its trail of new terms, instruments and institutions. In France, some decision-makers now consider this parenting support policy (politique de soutien à la parentalité) as a new, but still financially marginal, ‘pillar of French family policy’. It responds to a growing political demand for a solution capable of guaranteeing the success of the parental educational mission, or at the very least of helping avoid its failure, as well as the consequences of such a failure for the entire community. In this paper, we analyse the French case, in a bid to clarify this question. We argue that the slow policy process that led to current French parenting support policy is at once the consequence of a political desire to structure and manage a myriad of grassroots initiatives, and the outcome of an ideological battle (Martin, 2014). This battle brings into conflict fundamental alternatives pitting universalism against targeting, parental empowering against parental control, offering support to parents via services versus re-educating them through advice and behavioural training, and local and community actions versus national regulatory actions. A fiercely-fought battle of ideas around the parenting issue is taking place behind the scenes, mixing old and new ideas, reactivating norms and stereotypes that are deeply rooted in our social history concerning the private and public spheres respectively as well as the respective roles of mothers, fathers and public institutions. Although parenting support does indeed concern many European and non-European countries, following a mainstream of ideas, instruments and issues, we argue that the French configuration has certain specificities that need to be addressed, not only in order to estimate the commonalities but also to avoid making hasty generalisations. Our paper is organised in three steps: first, consideration of the hypothesis of an international turn to parenting; second, a presentation of the policy process and arguments in the French configuration; third, a return to a very longstanding tradition of policing family and, finally a conclusion on our main question: “What really is new?