Next Issue
Volume 2, September
Previous Issue
Volume 2, March
 
 

Soc. Sci., Volume 2, Issue 2 (June 2013) – 4 articles , Pages 40-113

  • Issues are regarded as officially published after their release is announced to the table of contents alert mailing list.
  • You may sign up for e-mail alerts to receive table of contents of newly released issues.
  • PDF is the official format for papers published in both, html and pdf forms. To view the papers in pdf format, click on the "PDF Full-text" link, and use the free Adobe Reader to open them.
Order results
Result details
Section
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
510 KiB  
Article
Interactions in Generalized Linear Models: Theoretical Issues and an Application to Personal Vote-Earning Attributes
by Tsung-han Tsai and Jeff Gill
Soc. Sci. 2013, 2(2), 91-113; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci2020091 - 07 May 2013
Cited by 182 | Viewed by 9009
Abstract
There is some confusion in political science, and the social sciences in general, about the meaning and interpretation of interaction effects in models with non-interval, non-normal outcome variables. Often these terms are casually thrown into a model specification without observing that their presence [...] Read more.
There is some confusion in political science, and the social sciences in general, about the meaning and interpretation of interaction effects in models with non-interval, non-normal outcome variables. Often these terms are casually thrown into a model specification without observing that their presence fundamentally changes the interpretation of the resulting coefficients. This article explains the conditional nature of reported coefficients in models with interactions, defining the necessarily different interpretation required by generalized linear models. Methodological issues are illustrated with an application to voter information structured by electoral systems and resulting legislative behavior and democratic representation in comparative politics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Social Sciences)
Show Figures

Figure 1

83 KiB  
Article
Greek Exit from the Crisis—A Pressing and Much-Needed Public Service Reform
by Demetrios Argyriades
Soc. Sci. 2013, 2(2), 78-90; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci2020078 - 23 Apr 2013
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4438
Abstract
Greece is in a deep crisis; the worst in all of Europe and the worst experienced in 45 years. Greece is no stranger to crises, but most have been exogenous: the Second World War and the Cold War, for instance. Sadly, unlike these [...] Read more.
Greece is in a deep crisis; the worst in all of Europe and the worst experienced in 45 years. Greece is no stranger to crises, but most have been exogenous: the Second World War and the Cold War, for instance. Sadly, unlike these crises, the present one is home-made. The wounds that it has caused are largely self-inflicted. It is especially difficult to fathom the logic of strikes by public service unions—repeated, relentless and militant. They paralyzed the country, drove investors and tourists away and added to the burdens that the economy and the people have had to bear. These strikes, and some public servants’ attitudes in the face of the crisis itself, brought into sharp relief the serious capacity deficit in the Greek administrative system, which has been at the root of the problem the country is currently facing. This statement begs the question: how can that be? What, after 30 years of public service reform, presumed to modernize and help the country approximate the standards embedded in the Common European Administrative Space? The paper will suggest that the reforms of the 1980s were only superficially reforms to improve the effectiveness and quality of the Service. Like parallel changes in higher education, the principal objective was harnessing officialdom, and as many voters as possible, to the chariot of PASOK—the political party established by Andreas Papandreou—which effectively governed the country for most of the period in question. The lesson from this experience may be none other, in fact, than clear convincing proof that partisan concerns and institution-building seldom make a good combination. For Greece, in light of the crisis, effective integration in the EU remains a daunting challenge. It calls for bold reforms, but these must be undertaken with institution-building, the country’s general interest, and long term needs in mind. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Eurozone Crisis: A Multidisciplinary Perspective)
355 KiB  
Article
Community Perceptions of Criminality: The Case of the Maltese Walled City of Bormla
by JosAnn Cutajar, Saviour Formosa and Trevor Calafato
Soc. Sci. 2013, 2(2), 62-77; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci2020062 - 16 Apr 2013
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 5438
Abstract
This paper explores the situational factors that explain why crime in Bormla occurs in certain areas and not others. Bormla, one of the oldest cities in Malta, is the fifth crime hotspot on the Maltese Islands. The objective of this paper is to [...] Read more.
This paper explores the situational factors that explain why crime in Bormla occurs in certain areas and not others. Bormla, one of the oldest cities in Malta, is the fifth crime hotspot on the Maltese Islands. The objective of this paper is to find out whether socio-demographic aspects and/or other contextual aspects are linked with the rate and type of crime that takes place within this city. A multi-method approach was adopted for the purposes of this paper. Statistics issued by the Malta police were analysed to find out which criminal offences occur there, and in which location. This analysis took place with the help of Geographic Information System (GIS) software. Qualitative and quantitative data collected through a needs assessment exercise conducted with a sample of Bormla respondents in 2009 and 2010 was also analysed to find out whether residents concurred with this official picture of what type of crime takes place there, and where it occurs. Residents were also asked whether they felt safe living in this crime hotspot, when and where they felt safe, and why. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

168 KiB  
Article
Understanding the Economic Integration of Immigrants: A Wage Decomposition of the Earnings Disparities between Native-Born Canadians and Recent Immigrant Cohorts
by Kristyn Frank, Kelli Phythian, David Walters and Paul Anisef
Soc. Sci. 2013, 2(2), 40-61; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci2020040 - 09 Apr 2013
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 6507
Abstract
This study assesses whether characteristics relating to ethnic identity and social inclusion influence the earnings of recent immigrants in Canada. Past research has revealed that relevant predictors of immigrant earnings include structural and demographic characteristics, educational credentials and employment-related characteristics. However, due to [...] Read more.
This study assesses whether characteristics relating to ethnic identity and social inclusion influence the earnings of recent immigrants in Canada. Past research has revealed that relevant predictors of immigrant earnings include structural and demographic characteristics, educational credentials and employment-related characteristics. However, due to the unavailability of situational and agency variables in existing surveys, past research has generally been unable to account for the impact of such characteristics on the economic integration of immigrants. Drawing on data from Statistics Canada's Ethnic Diversity Survey, this paper builds on previous research by identifying the relative extent to which sociodemographic, educational and ethnic identity characteristics explain earnings differences between immigrants of two recent cohorts and native-born Canadians. The results indicate that immigrants are disadvantaged in the labor market in terms of characteristics relating to sociodemographics and ethnic identity, but are advantaged in terms of human capital. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Social Sciences)
Previous Issue
Next Issue
Back to TopTop