22 research outputs found
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Building Social Capital in the Polish-German border region: An Evaluation of the effectiveness of EU-funded Small Projects
Our research examines the development of 'social capital' in border regions.
Specifically, we analyse whether participating in social or cultural events such as
creative workshops or sporting competitions – so-called small projects – promotes
neighbourly trust and the emergence of cross-border networks across one of the
historically most difficult borders in Europe: in the Polish-German border region.
Social psychologists have long argued that under certain conditions contact between
the members of different nations leads to improved relations between these nations.
The small projects fund (SPF) is an EU-funded financial instrument to encourage
municipalities or NGOs to organise events that permit personal encounters between
Poles and Germans who live in the Euroregions across the Polish-German border.
The goal is to help potentially prejudiced border region residents realise that their
fears are unfounded, to develop a sense of trust in people from the other side, and to
gradually develop cross-border networks.
However, there is so far no unambiguous empirical evidence that cross-border contact
leads to greater trust in, or stronger networks with, the neighbours from the other side.
Our research takes a qualitative, interview-based approach and examines this
proposition, as well as the conditions under which social capital develops as a result
of thorough personal contact. In the summer and autumn 2013, we observed 17 small
projects with a variety of themes and conducted 90 interviews with 51 Polish and
German participants. We interviewed most of these participants twice: once before
they participated in the project and immediately afterwards, to trace how perceptions
change as a result of personal contact. We also interviewed project organisers as well
as a control group of 30 Poles and Germans to determine if the people who participate
in small projects are in any way atypical. We found no major differences between our
control group and the actual project participants, which indicates that small projects
do not attract a completely atypical group of people.
The border region is a site of lively and regular exchanges, though these are often
quite cursory, for example to go shopping. This lively exchange goes hand in hand
with a sense of familiarity and no major prejudices. When asked how they would
react if a neighbour of the other nationality moved into their street, or if one of their
family members wished to marry a person from the other side, most people reacted
positively. We encountered hardly any dislike and distrust of people from the other
side. On the contrary, there is much affinity and readiness to trust. Most of our
respondents described people from the other side in very positive terms, such as
likeable, sociable, open or hospitable, though some negative attributes were also
mentioned, including chaotic, sly or stiff.
Most participants became involved in the project through their membership in an
organisation, such as a club or through voluntary organisations. For many youth
projects, recruitment took place through schools or youth organisations.
Quite a few people had heard of the Euroregions and could define their activities in
the border region. However, most of our respondents had either not heard of the
Euroregions or were unable to define them.
In the context of small projects, communication between Poles and Germans is often
hindered by the language barrier, though some basic communication is possible in
English, through interpreters, or using body language. And indeed, we observed a
range of contact situations in small projects. For example, several projects such as
joint workshops offer many opportunities to interact, while certain solitary activities
by nature make it harder for the Polish and German participants to mingle. In such
circumstances, it is even more important to have a strong supporting programme on
the side of the main activity of a project, such as concerts, parties or barbecues.
In some projects there were many such surrounding activities, while in others there
was no real programme to bring people together outside of the main project activity.
We also witnessed some spontaneous and very cordial interactions, for example
during unplanned evening activities or on the side of village fetes.
To be sure, sometimes contact gives rise to conflicts or misunderstandings.
We observed one such conflict in a youth camp. However, all in all, Polish-German
exchanges during projects tend to be very positive experiences. For the vast majority
of our interviewees, no opinion change occurred because their perceptions were
already very good to begin with. We observed change in only five cases. In two of
them, this was a change for the worse that directly resulted from the conflict during
the abovementioned youth camp. In the three remaining cases, a noticeable
improvement took place in young participants' opinions as a result of their positive
experiences during the project.
While a good deal of trust in the neighbours already exists in the Polish-German
border region, there is still room for building new relations as well as deepening and
developing the scope of existing cross-border networks. To this end, and based on the
conclusions from this research, we recommend the following measures to perfect the
small projects fund
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Alternative routes to good jobs in the service economy: Employment restructuring and human resource management in incumbent telecommunications firms
This is a practitioner report detailing findings from a three-year study on organizational restructuring and employment outcomes at 10 incumbent telecommunications firms, supported by the Economic and Social Research Council. It presents background on markets, ownership, and institutions in the case study firms and countries, and compares restructuring policies in three areas: downsizing and employment adjustment; diversifying employment contracts; and work organization and human resource Management. The report concludes with policy recommendations, based on findings from the study.ESRC Grant RES-061-25-044
Institutions and Inequality in Liberalizing Markets: Explaining Different Trajectories of Institutional Change in Social Europe
Economic and Social Research Council [grant number RES-061-25-0444]
In defence of open borders: why Schengen remains valuable to European countries – including the UK
The Schengen system, which has removed passport checks and border controls between its member states, has come under strain from the migration crisis and the recent terrorist attacks in France and Belgium. But have these developments made Schengen unworkable? Katja Sarmiento-Mirwaldt writes that the principle of open borders remains extremely valuable to European states, including the UK. She notes however that for Schengen to function effectively it is necessary to have trust that the external borders, such as those in Greece, will be credibly enforced
Recommended from our members
Marktliberalisierung und der Wandel der Beschäftigungsverhältnisse in der deutschen Telekommunikationsbranche
Gerade für die deutsche Industrie galt lange der Befund, dass ihre Stärke aus den tariflich
und betrieblich koordinierten Interessen von Arbeitnehmern und Arbeitgebern erwächst.
Die Koordinierungsinstitutionen – namentlich Flächentarifvertrag und betriebliche Mitbestimmung
– geraten jedoch zunehmend unter Liberalisierungsdruck. Den daraus resultierenden
Wandel und seine Auswirkungen auf Arbeitsorganisation und Arbeitsqualität
zeichnen wir am Beispiel der Telekommunikationsbranche nach
Germans’ transnational contact and trust in other nations: A methodologically cosmopolitan approach
This article considers Germans’ relationships with other nations from a perspective of methodological cosmopolitanism. It examines the claim that ever-increasing contacts with members of different nations can bring about a sense of trust in these nations. Using data from a 2006 opinion poll, it analyzes Germans’ contact with and trust in six other nations. The study suggests that Germany as a whole is too large as a level of analysis. Germans’ transnational relationships are better examined at a subnational level such as political districts. It is shown that transnational contact is particularly likely to occur in border regions and in parts of Germany with a high proportion of foreign residents. The two types of contact, however, have a differential effect on Germans’ trust in other nations. Cross-border contact appears to be influenced by Germany’s long-standing relationships with its western allies, since such contact has a positive effect on trust in western nations but not eastern ones. Conversely, multicultural contact with immigrant communities has a generally positive effect on levels of trust in other nations
Union campaigns to organize across production networks in the European telecommunications industry: lessons from the UK, Italy, Sweden and Poland
Freely available on the publisher's website: https://www.etui.org/Publications2/Books/The-outsourcing-challenge-organizing-workers-across-fragmented-production-networkshttps://www.etui.org/Publications2/Books/The-outsourcing-challenge-organizing-workers-across-fragmented-production-network
The Article 50 ruling means Parliament must not merely rubber-stamp Brexit with a three-line bill
The High Court has ensured the government cannot trigger Brexit without parliamentary approval, write Dimitrios Giannoulopoulos, Geoffrey Nice QC, Ben Chigara, Julian Petley, Ignacio de la Rasilla and Katja Sarmiento-Mirwaldt, on behalf of the Britain in Europe think tank. If the Supreme Court upholds the ruling, MPs and peers now have a responsibility to scrutinise the government’s plans and not merely rubber-stamp a legislative act with a three-line mandate for triggering Article 50
Cross-border cooperation in central Europe: A comparison of culture and policy effectiveness in the Polish–German and Polish–Slovak border regions
Cross-border cooperation is recognised as an important aspect of regional development and especially EU cohesion policy. Policy effectiveness depends on how well programmes are suited to different border regional contexts. This essay analyses the factors that shape cooperation by comparing the Polish–German and Polish–Slovak border regions. Particular emphasis is placed on the cultural factors that set these two regions apart. The essay reveals that close-knit networks across the Polish–Slovak border promote successful policy definition and implementation. At the same time, the absence of such networks across the Polish–German border has led to a high degree of policy innovation