Choice of departure station by railway users

This paper applies a multinomial logit model to the choice of a departure railway station by Dutch railway passengers. This is a relevant theme since about 50% of Dutch railway passengers do not travel via the nearest railway station. The passengers’ choices for departure stations are aggregated at the four digit postal code area level. We applied three functional forms for the underlying systematic utility of a station, namely a linear effect of attributes, cross effect of distance and frequency of service, and a translog formulation on distance and frequency of train services. With 3,498 post code areas and 360 railway stations our analysis found consistent effect sizes for distance, frequency of service, intercity status of the station and the presence of park-and-ride facility on the choice of departure station. The effect of distance on the choice of a departure station declines smoothly. The effect of frequency of service is relatively small compared to the effect of distance. A frequency of service increase by a hundred trains per day is equivalent to being 600 m closer to the station. The Intercity status of the station plays the biggest role in the choice of departure station. It has an equivalent effect of a change in 2 km distance or about a frequency of service of 300 trains per day. In addition, the presence of park-and-ride facility in the station poses a sizable effect in the departure station choice. In most cases its effect reaches about 35% of the intercity status effect

The Influence of Education and Socialization on Radicalization: An Exploration of Theoretical Presumptions and Empirical Research

Background and Objective: Research into radicalization does not pay much attention to education. This is remarkable and possibly misses an important influence on the process of radicalization. Therefore this article sets out to explore the relation between education on the one hand and the onset or prevention of radicalization on the other hand. Method: This article is a theoretical literature review. It has analyzed empirical studies-mainly from European countries-about the educational aims, content and style of Muslim parents and parents with (extreme) right-wing sympathies. Results: Research examining similarity in right-wing sympathies between parents and children yields mixed results, but studies among adolescents point to a significant concordance. Research also showed that authoritarian parenting may play a significant role. Similar research among Muslim families was not found. While raising children with distrust and an authoritarian style are prevalent, the impact on adolescents has not been investigated. The empirical literature we reviewed does not give sufficient evidence to conclude that democratic ideal in and an authoritative style of education are conducive to the development of a democratic attitude. Conclusion: There is a knowledge gap with regard to the influence of education on the onset or the prevention of radicalization. Schools and families are underappreciated sources of informal social control and social capital and therefore the gap should be closed. If there is a better understanding of the effect of education, policy as well as interventions can be developed to assist parents and teachers in preventing radicalization. © 2011 The Author(s)

‘Like the stranger at a funeral who cries more than the bereaved’: ethical dilemmas in ethnographic research with children

This article contributes to debates on the practicality and utility of prior ethical review in ethnography and qualitative research using an ethnography of children’s involvement in artisanal gold mining work in Ghana as a case study. Reflecting on dilemmas and obstacles encountered in attempts to employ prescribed institutional ethical guidance modelled for childhood research in the UK during the fieldwork, the discussion brings to attention some of the problems that can arise when ethical guidance is not anchored in the lived realities or value systems of the setting in which fieldwork is conducted. The article seeks to rejuvenate calls for more flexible and socio-culturally responsive ethical review and practice as an alternative to the prescriptive ethical regimes