Experiences, needs and expectations of welfare benefits recipients regarding the welfare to work services and their caseworker:Preliminary results from a mixed methods study.

Introduction: This study explored experiences, needs and expectations of welfare benefits recipients from a large municipality in the Netherlands, regarding their caseworker and the welfare to work (WTW) services. Preliminary results are presented, final and more extensive results will be published in a peer reviewed journal. Material and Methods: We used quantitative data from a client satisfaction survey that was held between July and December 2019 and filled in by 213 people who had received WTW services (response rate 15,6%). General satisfaction rate and agreement with 31 statements were assessed. Four group interviews with a total of 15 people receiving WTW services were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide. Verbatim transcripts were analysed using the principles of thematic analysis. Results: The survey showed that the majority of clients is reasonably satisfied with the WTW services. The qualitative data showed positive and negative experiences of clients. Most clients described the relationship with their caseworker as hierarchic and expressed the need for a collaborative and trusting relationship. Clients want to work together with their caseworker and do not want to be pushed or forced to accept any job. Conclusions: Our findings illustrate there is room for improvement in the WTW services. It is likely that WTW services that match the needs and expectations of welfare benefits recipients are more effective in terms of clients finding and keeping a job and thus no longer being dependent on welfare benefits

Nonresponse Bias and Stimulus Effects in the Dutch National Election Study

election research, Hawthorne-effect, nonresponse bias, stimulus effects,

Nonresponse Bias and Stimulus Effects in the Dutch National Election Study

Bias is a much-debated issue in survey research. Answer effects (respondents claim to have behaved differently than they did in reality), nonresponse bias (nonrespondents differ on important variables from the respondents) and stimulus effects (by participating in a previous wave of a study, respondents change their behavior or attitude) can seriously distort the results of survey research. By using data from the 1998 Dutch National Election Study the authors show that the results of election research can indeed be affected by bias. Not only are significant effects found in the distribution of political attitude and voting behavior variables as a result of both nonresponse bias and stimulus effects, it is also shown that relations between variables change as a result of bias

Experiences and needs of welfare benefit recipients regarding their welfare-to-work services and case workers

Abstract Background This study aimed to explore the experiences and needs of (ex-)welfare benefit recipients from a large urban municipality in the Netherlands regarding their welfare-to-work services and their case workers. Methods Quantitative data from a client satisfaction survey that was filled out by 213 people (response rate 11%) who received welfare-to-work services was combined with results from four group interviews with a total of 15 people receiving welfare-to-work services. Verbatim transcripts from the interviews were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Results The survey results showed that most clients were reasonably satisfied with the welfare-to-work services they received. Four main themes emerged from the interviews: (1) experiences and needs related to the interactions between case workers and benefit recipients; (2) the need for tailored services; (3) the complicating role of the system the case workers operate within; and (4) the existence of differences between case workers regarding how strict they followed the rules and to what extent they connected with their clients on a personal level. Conclusions Our findings show that clients were reasonably satisfied with the welfare-to-work services provided by their municipality but that there is still room for improvement. Case workers should have good social skills to build a trusting relationship with the client, welfare-to-work services should be tailored to the individual, and clear concise information should be given to welfare benefit recipients, especially with regard to what benefit recipients can expect of the municipality and the case workers, given their dual role in supporting (re-)integration to work and monitoring benefit eligibility

Additional file 2 of Experiences and needs of welfare benefit recipients regarding their welfare-to-work services and case workers

Supplementary Material

Qualitätsmedien in Pressesystemen: Wandel der Medienstrukturen gleich Wandel der Medieninhalte?

Die Qualität von Medien hängt von den Strukturen ab, in die sie eingebettet sind (Altmeppen 2006; Giddens 1992). Diese Strukturen haben sich in mehreren europäischen Ländern in jüngster Zeit stark gewandelt. Die Strukturtransformationen umfassen beispielsweise das rasche Aufkommen von Gratiszeitungen in Österreich (Bakker / Seethaler 2009) und der Schweiz, die punkto Auflage und Inserate-Aufkommen die Qualitätszeitungen (allerdings auch die Kauf-Boulevardzeitungen) überflügeln, oder die Finanzierungsgrundlage der Qualitätszeitungen, die sich von „kulturell eingebundenem“ Kapital hin zu anonymem Kapital zu wandeln droht und die publizistische Leistung unter kurzfristigen ökonomischen Erwartungsdruck setzt (Habermas 2007; Jarren/Zwicky 2008). Jedoch sind diese Phänomene, in einer zeitlichen und länderübergreifenden Perspektive betrachtet, erstens nicht neu. In Großbritannien beispielsweise haben Medienanbieter, die gleichzeitig in medienfernen Branchen investierten, bereits vor einigen Jahrzehnten eine große Rolle gespielt (z.B. Roy Thomson, der in den 1960er Jahren die Times kaufte). Zweitens sorgen spezifische medienpolitische Ausgestaltungen für entsprechende Trägerschaften. So beschränkt in Frankreich ein Gesetz aus dem Jahre 1986 die Investitionen ausländischen Kapitals an französischen Zeitungen, was einen Gang an die Börse und die Bildung von primär renditeorientierten Medienunternehmen erschwert (Benson/Hallin 2007: 28); hier sorgen eher die oftmals problematisierten engen Verflechtungen der (französischen) Medienanbieter mit etablierten politischen Akteuren für Herausforderungen an die Qualitätspresse (Kuhn 2007: 253ff.)