Fixed-Term Work Contracts and Anti-Immigration Attitudes:A Novel Test of Ethnic Competition Theory

Whether labor market competition is shaping anti-immigration attitudes is a contentious issue. We conduct a novel test of ethnic competition theory by comparing the attitudes towards immigration of workers with fixed-term contracts to those with permanent jobs in Europe. Fixed-term contract workers are particularly at risk of competition as they have to compete for jobs in the foreseeable future. In the first step of our investigation, we analyze cross-sectional data (ESS, 2002–18) from 18 Western European countries. We find that—contrary to our expectation—fixed-term workers are less anti-immigration. The effect is substantively small. In the second step, we use a fixed-effects design with longitudinal data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP, 1999–2015) to rule out time-constant unobserved heterogeneity. We find that transitioning from a fixed- to a permanent contract does not affect anti-immigration attitudes. Our combined results thus add to the growing body of studies that do not find evidence for labor market competition as an explanation of anti-immigrant attitudes

Work-to-family enrichment and gender inequalities in eight European countries

All social roles have positive and rewarding as well as negative/problematic aspects. Research on the work–family interface has predominantly focused on conflicting roles. In contrast, this paper extends research on work–family enrichment (WFE), a positive aspect of work and gender differences in WFE in a cross-national context. Drawing upon social role theory and the culture sensitive theory on work–family enrichment, we examined gender differences in experiences of developmental WFE in a sample of service sector employees in eight European countries. In line with traditional gender roles, women reported more WFE than men. The relationship was moderated by both an objective and subjective measure of gender egalitarianism but in the opposite direction as hypothesized. The gender gap in WFE was larger in more gender-egalitarian countries, where women may be better able to transfer resources from the work domain to benefit their family role than in low egalitarian societies. National differences in labour market factors, family models and the public discourse on work–life balance mainly explain the unanticipated findings

Assisted Reproductive Technologies in Europe. Usage and Regulation in the Context of Cross-Boarder Reproductive Care

This chapter reviews assisted reproductive technologies (ART) usage and policies across European countries, and scrutinizes emerging issues related to cross-border reproductive care (or “reproductive tourism”). Although Europe is currently the largest market for ART, the extent of usage varies widely across countries, largely because of differences in the laws, the affordability, the types of reimbursement, and the norms surrounding childbearing and conception. Since 2009, the regulation of ART has been expanding in Europe, and all countries now have some form of ART legislation. Countries where the treatments are completely covered by national health plans have the highest level of ART utilization. Being in a legal marriage or a stable union is often a prerequisite for access to ART. Currently, only half of European countries allow single women to use ART, and even fewer grant access to lesbian women. Surrogate motherhood is strictly prohibited in many countries in Europe, and where it is allowed, strong restrictions against commercial surrogacy are in place. While restrictive national legislation can be easily circumvented by crossing national boundaries for ART treatments, questions of equity of access have been raised, as not all prospective parents can afford to travel for treatment

Visualizing individual outcomes of social mobility using heatmaps

Research on the consequences of social mobility usually draws on information about categorical origin and destination variables as well as an outcome variable. The author shows an example of a heatmap created in Stata to visualize the relationship between social mobility and poor self-rated health in Germany and discusses the advantages of this heatmap approach to other visualization approaches

Visualizing individual outcomes of social mobility using heatmaps

Research on the consequences of social mobility usually draws on information about categorical origin and destination variables as well as an outcome variable. The author shows an example of a heatmap created in Stata to visualize the relationship between social mobility and poor self-rated health in Germany and discusses the advantages of this heatmap approach to other visualization approaches