Municipal size and local electoral participation

The issue of the appropriate scale for local government has regularly appeared on the agenda of public sector reformers. In the empirical work devoted to this issue, the principal focus has been on the implications of size for efficiency in local service provision. Relatively less emphasis has been placed on the implications of size for the character and vitality of local democracy. This paper summarizes findings from a comparative research project which has sought to redress this imbalance by means of undertaking a closer inspection of relationships between municipal size and a set of indicators regarding the character of local democracy in four European countries, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands. The investigation draws upon cross-section interview data collected by means of a nested sample design consistent with the hierarchical nature of the issues involved. Empirical analyses are based on a strategy whereby theoretical models are developed and investigated for several different indicators of local democracy in a successive, cumulative fashion using a ‘funnel of causality logic’. This paper reports on results concerning local electoral political participation. We conclude that with the exception of the Dutch case there is no clear evidence of significant direct or indirect effects of municipal size on the likelihood of voting in local elections

Size and local democracy

How large should local governments be, and what are the implications of changing the scale of local governments for the quality of local democracy? These questions have stood at the centre of debates among scholars and public sector reformers alike from antiquity to the present. This monograph offers the first systematic cross-national investigation of these questions using empirical evidence gathered specifically for this purpose. Results provide insights that offer important touchstones for reform activities and academic research efforts in many countrie

Reforming Local Governments in Times of Crisis: Values and Expectations of Good Local Governance in Comparative Perspective

A lot has been written about normative and theoretical expectations of local government. In this chapter we give the word to the citizens. How satisfied are they with the way local democracy works in their municipality and what do they expect from their municipalities in terms of facilities and services? With the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, and Switzerland, our study covers four relatively well-off countries holding top positions in most overall assessments of democracy. We start with a general evaluation of the citizens’ satisfaction with their life in their municipality. In a next step we address the different ideas citizens have about the very essence of local democracy and local governance. The chapter ends with a discussion of varying degrees of satisfaction considering the different expectations

Mayors and urban governance: developing a facilitative leadership style?

Modern urban governance, because of its demanding and complex environment, requires a facilitative style of local political leadership that is visible, outward looking, open, and less partisan than more established forms. This article examines the impact of new constitutional expressions of local political leadership in England since the introduction of executive forms of governance for larger municipalities in 2002. The mayoral form, though established in only a handful of municipalities, is showing signs of supporting a more facilitative leadership style compared to the more widespread council leader model. This finding may be explained by the decision-making resources of mayors and their relationship to followers, which are, in turn, created by the institutional framing of their role by new constitutional arrangements. Political leadership is not simply a product of personality, capabilities, or contingency—although all of these factors play a part. Crucially, from the perspective of reformers, institutional design does make a difference and can encourage leadership practices of a particular style and form

International Social Survey Programme: Work Orientations II - ISSP 1997

The International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) is a continuous programme of cross-national collaboration running annual surveys on topics important for the social sciences. The programme started in 1984 with four founding members - Australia, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States – and has now grown to almost 50 member countries from all over the world. As the surveys are designed for replication, they can be used for both, cross-national and cross-time comparisons. Each ISSP module focuses on a specific topic, which is repeated in regular time intervals. Please, consult the documentation for details on how the national ISSP surveys are fielded. The present study focuses on questions about work, employment and work orientations.Desired distribution of time for selected activities such as work, leisure time usw.; work orientation (scale); carrying out work in household; importance of selected demands of a job; most important criteria for determination of amount of salary; influence of new technologies on job offerings and on quality of job; preference for work in service area or industry as well as in private economy or public sector; preference for employee status or occupational self-employment as well as for working in a large concern or in a small company; part-time employment; interest in full-time work; expected difficulties in looking for a job; payment of work; description of personal commitment to work; preference for more work and more pay or for more leisure time; certainty of one´s own job; significance of career opportunities and structuring of flexible working hours; characterization of work as hard physical activity and description of the extent of stress on the job; physical exhaustion after work; dangerous and unhealthful job situations; personal opportunity to influence the structuring of the work day or work processes; general job description; benefit of skills learned during time in school or university; judgement on the relationship between management and employees; atmosphere at work; work satisfaction; absence in the last 6 months; search for new job in the next 12 months. Those not employed were asked: work for more than one year and time of end of last paid job; reasons for the end of employment; expected difficulties in the job search; current search for work; manner of search for work; primary income source. Demography: sex; age; marital status; living together with a partner; education and duration of education; current employment status; employment in private or public sector; self-employment or employee; personal employees; time worked each week; superior function and span of control; company size; income; religious denomination; religiousness; union member; self-assessment of social class; self-assessment on a left-right continuum; party preference; size of household and composition; city size; region; original country of origin or ethnic group affiliation.Das International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) ist ein länderübergreifendes, fortlaufendes Umfrageprogramm, das jährlich Erhebungen zu Themen durchführt, die für die Sozialwissenschaften wichtig sind. Das Programm begann 1984 mit vier Gründungsmitgliedern - Australien, Deutschland, Großbritannien und den Vereinigten Staaten - und ist inzwischen auf fast 50 Mitgliedsländer aus aller Welt angewachsen. Da die Umfragen auf Replikationen ausgelegt sind, können die Daten sowohl für länder- als auch für zeitübergreifende Vergleiche genutzt werden. Jedes ISSP-Modul konzentriert sich auf ein bestimmtes Thema, das in regelmäßigen Zeitabständen wiederholt wird. Details zur Durchführung der nationalen ISSP-Umfragen entnehmen Sie bitte der Dokumentation. Die vorliegende Studie konzentriert sich auf Fragen zur Arbeit, Beschäftigungsverhältnissen und Arbeitsorientierungen.Gewünschte Zeitaufteilung für ausgewählte Tätigkeiten wie Arbeit, Freizeit usw.; Arbeitsorientierung (Skala); Erledigung von Arbeiten im Haushalt; Wichtigkeit ausgewählter Ansprüche an einen Arbeitsplatz; wichtigste Kriterien für die Bestimmung der Gehaltshöhe; Einfluß neuer Technologien auf Arbeitsplatzangebot und auf Arbeitsplatzqualität; Präferenz für die Arbeit im Dienstleistungsbereich oder in der Industrie sowie in der Privatwirtschaft oder im öffentlichen Sektor; Präferenz für Arbeitsnehmerstatus oder berufliche Selbständigkeit sowie für das Arbeiten in einem Großunternehmen oder in einem kleinen Unternehmen; Teilzeitbeschäftigung; Interesse an einer Vollzeitbeschäftigung; erwartete Schwierigkeiten bei einer Jobsuche; Bezahlung der Arbeit; Beschreibung des eigenen Engagements bei der Arbeit; Präferenz für mehr Arbeit und mehr Lohn oder für mehr Freizeit; Sicherheit des eigenen Arbeitsplatzes; Bedeutung von Karrieremöglichkeiten und flexibler Arbeitszeitgestaltung; Charakterisierung der Arbeit als harte physische Tätigkeit und Beschreibung des Ausmaßes von Streß bei der Arbeit; physische Erschöpfung nach der Arbeit; gefährliche und ungesunde Arbeitsplatzsituationen; eigene Einflußmöglichkeit auf die Gestaltung des Arbeitstages bzw. der Arbeitsabläufe; allgemeine Arbeitsplatzbeschreibung; Nutzen der erlernten Fähigkeiten aus der Schul- oder Universitätszeit; Beurteilung des Verhältnisses zwischen Management und Mitarbeitern; Betriebsklima; Arbeitszufriedenheit; Abwesenheit in den letzten 6 Monaten; Suche nach neuer Arbeit in den nächsten 12 Monaten. Nichterwerbstätige wurden gefragt: Arbeit für mehr als ein Jahr und Zeitpunkt des Endes der letzten bezahlten Arbeit; Gründe für das Ende der Beschäftigung; erwartete Schwierigkeiten bei der Jobsuche; momentane Suche nach Arbeit; Art der Arbeitssuche; Haupteinkommensquelle. Demographie: Geschlecht; Alter; Familienstand; Zusammenleben mit einem Partner; Ausbildung und Ausbildungsdauer; momentaner Beschäftigungsstatus; Beschäftigung im privaten oder öffentlichen Sektor; Selbständigkeit bzw. Arbeitsverhältnis; eigene Angestellte; Wochenarbeitszeit; Vorgesetztenfunktion und Kontrollspanne; Betriebsgröße; Einkommen; Konfession; Religiosität; Gewerkschaftsmitglied; Selbsteinschätzung der Schichtzugehörigkeit; Selbsteinschätzung auf einem Links-Rechts-Kontinuum; Parteipräferenz; Haushaltsgröße und Zusammensetzung; Ortsgröße; Region; ursprüngliches Herkunftsland bzw. ethnische Gruppenzugehörigkeit

International Social Survey Programme: Religion I-III ADD ON - ISSP 1991-1998-2008

The release of the cumulated ISSP ´Religion´ modules for the years 1991, 1998 and 2008 consists of two separate datasets: ZA5070 and ZA5071. This documentation deals with the supplementary dataset ZA5071. It contains all those, mainly national-specific background variables that belong to the current ISSP standard, but could not be cumulated for various reasons. The variables, however, can be matched easily to the cumulated file if necessary. A comprehensive overview on the contents, the structure and basic coding rules of both data files can be found in the following guide: Guide for the ISSP ´Religion´ cumulation of the years 1991, 1998 and 2008 Religion - (non-cumulated background variables of the individual modules) Variables for all countries and modules if available: country-specific education and degree; country-specific occupation (respondent as well as partner); earnings of respondent (country specific); family income (country-specific); country-specific party affiliation; size of community (country-specific); country of origin or ethnic group affiliation (country-specific); type of community: urban-rural area. Single variables: spouse’s working for private or public sector or self-employed 2008; self-placement on a top-bottom scale 2008, administrative mode of data-collection 2008, case substitution flag 2008