Public Charging Infrastructure and the Market Diffusion of Electric Vehicles

A comprehensive roll-out of public charging infrastructure will be costly. However, its impact on the diffusion of electric vehicles (EVs) is not clear at all. Our study aims at estimating the extent to which an increasing availability of public charging infrastructure promotes consumers’ decisions to switch to EVs. We make use of a German data set including monthly registrations of new cars at the ZIP-code level between 2012 and 2017 and match it with the official registry of charging stations. We measure charging infrastructure by its visibility, capacity and abundance in order to estimate its impact on EV adoption. A CS-ARDL approach is deployed in order to identify the structural long-run relationship between charging infrastructure and monthly EV registrations. There is evidence of a positive long-run relationship but on a rather low scale. We conclude that consumers do not necessarily react to the mere number of chargers but attach more importance to charging speed

The uncanny return of the race concept

The aim of this Hypothesis and Theory is to question the recently increasing use of the “race” concept in contemporary genetic, psychiatric, neuroscience as well as social studies. We discuss “race” and related terms used to assign individuals to distinct groups and caution that also concepts such as “ethnicity” or “culture” unduly neglect diversity. We suggest that one factor contributing to the dangerous nature of the “race” concept is that it is based on a mixture of traditional stereotypes about “physiognomy”, which are deeply imbued by colonial traditions. Furthermore, the social impact of “race classifications” will be critically reflected. We then examine current ways to apply the term “culture” and caution that while originally derived from a fundamentally different background, “culture” is all too often used as a proxy for “race”, particularly when referring to the population of a certain national state or wider region. When used in such contexts, suggesting that all inhabitants of a geographical or political unit belong to a certain “culture” tends to ignore diversity and to suggest a homogeneity, which consciously or unconsciously appears to extend into the realm of biological similarities and differences. Finally, we discuss alternative approaches and their respective relevance to biological and cultural studies

Spatiality of Social Stress Experienced by Refugee Women in Initial Reception Centers

This study takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the multi-dimensionality of social stress within the spatiality of initial refugee reception centers in Berlin. By focusing particularly on the experiences of women who fled from Syria and Afghanistan, it situates this humanitarian issue within an analytical framework of gender-sensitive and culturally sensitive research and policymaking. Through qualitative interviews with 11 refugee women, the connection between the spatiality of initial reception centers and social stress is explored. This is done by thematically coding the data collected in the context of nine different initial reception centers across various districts in the city of Berlin. The study shows that in terms of the intercultural needs and practices of these women, social stress is triggered by a lack of essential privacy within the spatiality of these structures. However, privacy is not limited to a physical enclosure—it is about having control/freedom over different aspects of everyday life. This article highlights intercultural gaps in gender-sensitive and protection considerations during humanitarian responses.Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (3093)Peer Reviewe

Spatiality of Social Stress Experienced by Refugee Women in Initial Reception Centers

This study takes an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the multi-dimensionality of social stress within the spatiality of initial refugee reception centers in Berlin. By focusing particularly on the experiences of women who fled from Syria and Afghanistan, it situates this humanitarian issue within an analytical framework of gender-sensitive and culturally sensitive research and policymaking. Through qualitative interviews with 11 refugee women, the connection between the spatiality of initial reception centers and social stress is explored. This is done by thematically coding the data collected in the context of nine different initial reception centers across various districts in the city of Berlin. The study shows that in terms of the intercultural needs and practices of these women, social stress is triggered by a lack of essential privacy within the spatiality of these structures. However, privacy is not limited to a physical enclosure-it is about having control/freedom over different aspects of everyday life. This article highlights intercultural gaps in gender-sensitive and protection considerations during humanitarian responses

A qualitative evidence synthesis of refugee patients’ and professionals’ perspectives on mental health support

To generate a more comprehensive understanding of mental health support for refugees, a qualitative evidence synthesis of studies examining professionals’ and patients’ perspectives was conducted. The aim was to identify what refugees and psycho-social professionals working with refugees perceived as positive/helpful and negative/hindering in the therapeutic process.Six electronic databases were searched, followed by citation tracking. Of the 711 studies found, 10 studies were selected for a thematic synthesis based on inclusion criteria such as being qualitative research reports published after 1998. From these studies, referring to 145 insider perspectives, descriptive themes were developed and subsequently synthesised into 13 analytical clusters. The results highlight the importance of a trusting therapeutic relationship, of the adaptation of therapeutic approaches to patients’ needs and situation and of psycho-social support, and of cultural sensitivity and external support structures for professionals. Negative or hindering aspects were identified as a lack of mental health care structures, the impact of the post-migrational situation of patients’ well-being, cultural and language differences, and a context of mistrust and negative experiences. Finally, ambivalences were formulated regarding verbal therapies, trauma exposure, the use of mental health care, and the impacts of this work on professionals. Results are discussed in relation to flexible therapeutic boundaries. Suggestions are made for practice, such as using integrative approaches that focus on psychoeducation and transparency, and for future research, such as investigating psychotherapy with refugees in non-Western countries

A Central Clearing Clinic to Provide Mental Health Services for Refugees in Germany

Objective: To determine migration related distress pattern in refugees and feasibility of a de novo established, central low-threshold outpatient clinic serving more than 80,000 newly arrived refugees in the metropole of Berlin. Methods: In an observational cohort study the relative prevalence of major psychiatric disorders by age, place of living within berlin, language and region of origin were assessed in a refugee cohort from 63 nationalities speaking 36 languages. Findings: Within 18 months, a total of 3,096 cases with a mean age of 29.7 years (11.7) have been referred from all 12 districts and 165 of 182 subdistricts of Berlin to the CCC. 33.7% of the patients were female. The three most frequent diagnoses were unipolar depression (40.4%), posttraumatic stress disorder (24.3%), and adjustment disorder (19.6%). Conclusion: The present data gives insight into the distribution of mental disorders in a large sample of refugees and provides evidence that a CCC is an effective service to quickly and broadly provide psychiatric consultations and thus to overcome classical barriers refugees usually experience in the host communities. In Berlin, Germany, and Europe treatment resources for this population should focus on stress and trauma related disorders

Service provision and barriers to care for homeless people with mental health problems across 14 European capital cities

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Factors associated with quality of services for marginalized groups with mental health problems in 14 European countries

This research was financially supported by DG-Sanco (contract: 800197; 2007-2010). The authors would like to thank all of the professionals and services who participated in the PROMO assessment of services. A PhD grant from Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia–Portugal (SFRH/BD/66388/2009) to the first author is acknowledged

Mental health care for irregular migrants in Europe: Barriers and how they are overcome

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited