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This article explores and discusses one of the main findings of the author’s recent dissertation, namely that parents’ and pupils’ choice of language of instruction in formal schooling depends on its social prestige. The author first reviews the latest research on language in education in sub-Saharan Africa, and asks why indigenous languages are so rarely used in formal schooling in this region, despite political demands for their greater use and ample scientific research showing their positive effects. Burkina Faso exemplifies this seemingly contradictory situation. Indigenous languages and French are complementary in formal and non-formal schooling as well as in areas of informal education; however, a closer look at the areas of application of each language reveals that indigenous languages have lower prestige than French, as well as lower expected and required outcomes. This is one possible explanation for the low usage rates of indigenous languages in formal schooling and reveals the extent to which the choice of language of instruction depends on its social prestige.
We investigate the effectiveness of professional development (PD) aimed at promoting teachers' language-support skills in elementary school science instruction. In a 2-year quasi-experimental field trial study with 32 teachers in Germany, an intervention group (IG) and a control group (CG) received PD for teaching selected science topics; the IG additionally received PD for language support. Strong treatment effects emerged on teachers’ language-support skills and, to a lesser extent, on language support activities in classroom teaching. All teachers gained pedagogical content knowledge and self-efficacy for teaching elementary school science, thus pointing to the effectiveness of the PD.
Material gerontology poses the question of how aging processes are co-constituted in relation to different forms of (human and non-human) materiality. This paper makes a novel contribution by asking when aging processes are co-constituted and how these temporalities of aging are entangled with different forms of materiality. In this paper, we explore the entanglements of temporality and materiality in shaping later life by framing them as spacetimematters (Barad, 2013). By drawing on empirical examples from data from a qualitative case study in a long-term care (LTC) facility, we ask how the entanglement of materiality and temporality of a fall-detection sensor co-constitutes aging. We focus on two types of material temporality that came to matter in age-boundary-making practices at this site: the material temporality of a technology-in-training and the material temporality of (false) alarms. Both are interwoven, produced and reproduced through spacetimematterings that established age-boundaries. Against the backdrop of these findings, we propose to understand age(ing) as a situated, distributed, more-than-human process of practices: It emerges in an assemblage of technological innovation discourses, problematizations of demographic change, digitized and analog practices of care and caring, bodily functioning, daily routines, institutionalized spaces and much more. Finally, we discuss the role power plays in those spacetimematterings of aging and conclude with a research outlook for material gerontology.
An interdisciplinary group of researchers from both Israel and Germany came together in December 2021 to exchange and discuss findings on the effects of the COVID-pandemic on children and older adults in Israel and Germany.This white paper provides a selection of empirical research findings, policy recommenda-tions and identified blind spots for future research with respect to a “linking ages” perspec-tive. The authors emphasize on loneliness in early and late life from a specific social science perspective and based on a selected set of definitions.
When discussing possible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, it seems certain that the effects of the pandemic will most likely magnify existing educational disparities in Europe and around the world. However, so far, little is known about how the conditions and consequences of distance learning intensify existing dynamics of educational inequalities. This paper aims at answering the question of how educational disadvantages in socially deprived settings are exacerbated through the pandemic. On this basis, it reflects on potential educational practices that can help countering these dynamics. For this study, interviews with teachers in socio-economically disadvantaged (n = 12) and in privileged settings (n = 4) were conducted, transcribed and investigated through qualitative data analysis. The data were categorized with reference to Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of capital to analyze and systematize the empirical results. Finally, a case study from the interview material offers options for action that can counteract a possible worsening of educational disadvantages and help (re-)think school and teaching based on the experiences gained during the lockdown.
The article re-examines the relationship between the works of Alfred Schütz and Harold Garfinkel, focusing on their respective approaches to temporality in interaction. Although there are good reasons to emphasize the differences between Schütz’s notion of individual projects of action and Garfinkel’s interest in communicative sequencing, there is also an interesting historical connection. In order to elucidate this connection, the article provides a close reading of the steps that lead Schütz from his premise of ‘egological’ time consciousness to his understanding of the reflexive and interactive process of meaning establishment and interpretation developed in his first book, The Phenomenology of the Social World (1967 [1932]). The article reflects further upon which aspects of Schütz’s considerations resonated with Garfinkel in his formative years and how Garfinkel related to them variously in his later development of ethnomethodology. Hence, it appears that Garfinkel’s ethnomethodology successively departs from many of Schütz’s premises while simultaneously incorporating and further developing some of his notions on the sequential organization and temporal flux of interactive processes.
Efforts to come to terms with sexual violence against children and adolescents are predicated on a desire to achieve justice. Based on the work done by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Germany, this article attempts to identify the interfaces between the Inquiry’s undertakings and the field of transitional justice. Using an approach informed by the theory of childhood, it examines the issues that arise when survivors bear witness to past childhood events. This must adopt a perspective that is sensitive to childhood and adolescence as unique life phases. That, in turn, requires accounting for concomitant factors, such as the context presented by a child’s growth and development, the function of families, the role played by educational institutions, and the legal position accorded children by society. The article thus adopts a framework rooted in childhood theory that considers children both generally as human beings and specifically as children.
The policy review is part of the project EQualCare: Alone but connected? Digital (in)equalities in care work and generational relationships among older people living alone, a three-year international project involving four countries: Finland, Germany, Latvia and Sweden. EQualCare interrogates inequalities by gender, cultural and socio-economic background between countries, with their different demographics and policy backgrounds. As a first step into empirical analysis, the policy review aims to set the stage for a better understanding of, and policy development on, the intersections of digitalisation with intergenerational care work and care relationships of older people living alone in Germany.
The policy review follows a critical approach, in which the problems policy documents address are not considered objective entities, but rather discursively produced knowledge that renders visible some parts of the problem which is to be solved as other possible perspectives are simultaneously excluded. Twenty publicly available documents were studied to analyse the processes in which definitions of care work and digital (in)equalities are circulated, translated and negotiated between the different levels of national government, regional governments and municipalities as well as other agencies in Germany.
The policy review consists of two parts: a background chapter providing information on the social structure of Germany, including the historical development of Germany after the Second World War, its political structure, information on the demographic situation with a focus on the 60+ age group, and the income of this age group. In addition, the background presents the structure of work and welfare, the organisation of care for old people, and the state of digitalisation in Germany. The analysis chapter includes a description of the method used as well as an overview of the documents chosen and analysed. The focus of this chapter is on the analysis of official documents that deal with the interplay of living alone in old age, care, and digitalisation.
The analysis identified four themes: firstly, ageing is framed largely as a challenge to society, whereas digitalisation is framed as a potential way to tackle social challenges, such as an ageing society. Secondly, challenges of ageing, such as need of care, are set at the individual level, requiring people to organise their care within their own families and immediate social networks, with state support following a principle of subsidiarity. Thirdly, voluntary peer support provides the basis for addressing digital support needs and strategies. Publications by lobby organisations highlight the important work done by voluntary peer support for digital training and the benefits this approach has; they also draw attention to the over-reliance on this form of unpaid support and call for an increase in professional support in ensuring all older people are supported in digital life. Fourthly, ageing as a hinderance to participation in digital life is seen as an interim challenge among younger old people already online.
In summary, the analysis shows that the connection between ageing and digitalisation remains a marginal topic in current politics. The focus on older people merely as a potential group at risk of being left behind implies a deficit perspective on ageing and a homogenising of a large and diverse age group. Lessons learnt from the pandemic should not be interpreted in a one-sided way, by merely acknowledging the increasing number of (older) people moving online, but by acknowledging intersecting inequalities that mitigate social participation.
The use of scaffolding to promote preschool children’s competencies of evidence-based reasoning
(2021)
Scientific reasoning encompasses individuals‘ evaluation of evidence with regard to a given hypothesis. In this study, we investigated whether preschool children are able to reason with empirical evidence in the science context of elasticity. N = 63 preschoolers were presented with tasks following the deductive reasoning paradigm and were asked to evaluate the relevance of given events (objects) with regard to a hypothesis. In a repeated measures experimental design with three groups, we tested whether different forms of scaffolding (adaptive prompts with/without modeling of advanced reasoning) would promote children’s reasoning compared to a control group without intervention. We found that adaptive prompts with modeling significantly improved children’s evaluation of irrelevant events in the posttest. Further, these children’s reasoning patterns scored significantly higher than those of the control group. Our results suggest that preschool children are able to reason with evidence if they are given adequate support. Specifically, the modeling of advanced reasoning functioned as a scaffold beyond the use of adaptive prompts in irrelevant event evaluations.
As some cognitive functions decline in old age, the ability to decide about important life events such as medical treatment is endangered. Environmental support to improve the comprehension of health-related information is therefore necessary. With a small-scale explorative approach, the present survey study aimed at investigating person-environment fit (PE-fit) of support provided during medical consultations. This fit was calculated by assessing the match between aids provided by five medical practitioners during medical consultations and aids most appreciated by the geriatric patients (N = 88). The results showed that the largest discrepancies of used and appreciated aids could be found concerning the opportunity to discuss decisions with relatives, the possibility to take notes, the use of objects, pictures and a keyword list. Female patients indicated a lower PE-fit. These findings highlight discrepancies between the use of specific aids and the wishes of patients and call for thoughtful use of aids during consultations with geriatric patients.
As some cognitive functions decline in old age, the ability to decide about important life events such as medical treatment is endangered. Environmental support to improve the comprehension of health-related information is therefore necessary. With a small-scale explorative approach, the present survey study aimed at investigating person-environment fit (PE-fit) of support provided during medical consultations. This fit was calculated by assessing the match between aids provided by five medical practitioners during medical consultations and aids most appreciated by the geriatric patients (N = 88). The results showed that the largest discrepancies of used and appreciated aids could be found concerning the opportunity to discuss decisions with relatives, the possibility to take notes, the use of objects, pictures and a keyword list. Female patients indicated a lower PE-fit. These findings highlight discrepancies between the use of specific aids and the wishes of patients and call for thoughtful use of aids during consultations with geriatric patients.
Previous research has found higher levels of heatwave mortality and morbidity among urban residents with a migration background because of their social, health and environmental conditions. The purpose of the study was to investigate and compare heat induced changes in the outdoor recreation behaviours of Turkish migrants with those of non-migrants on hot days in Vienna. Specifically, the study compared coping behaviours due to heat such as inter-area, intra-area, temporal and activity displacement between migrants and non-migrants. The study interviewed 400 migrants and non-migrants in four public green spaces of different area sizes and asked about their outdoor recreation motives and activities, as well as behavioural changes, due to summer heat. Results show that migrants have different motives for visiting urban green spaces on hot days, and that they visit these less frequently on hot days compared to non-migrants. While both groups shift their outdoor uses more to shady areas and the cooler times of the day, more migrants visit green spaces in the afternoon, perform more energetic recreational activities, and use sunnier sites more frequently than non-migrants on hot days. Few migrants and non-migrants stated that they would visit alternative green spaces when it is hot. The results indicate that migrants’ behaviours result in higher heat exposure, while making less use of the opportunities larger green spaces such as forests can provide for heat relief. Recommendations on how green and city planners could reduce heat related health risks for both study groups are presented.
In the process of life course transitions, relations between the self and the world transform, which can according to Hartmut Rosa be framed as resonance. This article focuses on the retirement transition and thus on the exit from gainful employment as one of the central spheres of our world relationship in late modernity. It raises the following questions: How do experiences of resonance change in the course of the retirement transition? Does the loss of gainful employment lead to disruptions or even the absence of resonance in terms of alienation? And which role do dimensions of social inequality, such as gender, income, education or mental health status play for resonance transformations in the transition to retirement? In terms of a reflexive mixed-methods design, this article combines quantitative panel data from the German Ageing Survey (2008–17) with a qualitative longitudinal study from the project “Doing Retiring” (2017–21). Our results show that the transition from work to retirement entails a specific “resonance choreography” that comprises a phase of disaffection (lack of resonance) at the end of one’s working life followed by a liminal phase in which people search for intensified experiences of resonance. We outline practices in which transitioning subjects seek out resonance, and the experiences they make within this process according to their social positions. We thereby find that the desire for resonance tends to be beyond intentional resonance management which manifests in products and services like coaching or wellness. In our conclusions, we discuss how resonance theory and retirement research/life course research can be fruitfully combined, but also highlight the methodological challenges the operationalization of resonance entails.
This article addresses the continuing resilience of two post-Soviet governments – Azerbaijan and Lithuania – against community-based engagement and social protection of HIV-positive people by exploring the challenges of two social activists. The analysis shows how basic social and medical needs of people living with HIV/AIDS remain unmet, while stigmatisation informs the local health policies and manifests as a protective mechanism against contrary promotion effects. The findings call for urgent policy changes to prevent the further suffering of these people because of poor state strategies. The aim is to help further intervention practices and improve social care services for HIV-positive people in the two countries.
Few empirical studies have explored psychological attitudes toward out-of-home mobility in old age. We aimed to validate an instrument to assess mobility-related behavioral flexibility and routines in the context of everyday mobility and successful aging. Data were gathered from face-to-face interviews and travel diaries of 211 community-dwelling older adults (aged 65–92) in Germany. Analysis revealed sufficient reliability and confirmed the factorial and convergent validity of the instrument. Mobility-related behavioral flexibility predicted the number of daily trips, particularly by mobility-impaired participants, and was strongly linked to autonomy and to psychological well-being. However, a preference for routines predicted neither out-of-home mobility nor further outcomes. The results demonstrate the importance of mobility-related flexibility in maintaining an active and independent life in old age.
Sex differences in psychiatric comorbidity and clinical presentation in youths with conduct disorder
(2021)
Background: Conduct disorder (CD) rarely occurs alone but is typically accompanied by comorbid psychiatric disorders, which complicates the clinical presentation and treatment of affected youths. The aim of this study was to investigate sex differences in comorbidity pattern in CD and to systematically explore the ‘gender paradox’ and ‘delayed-onset pathway’ hypotheses of female CD.
Methods: As part of the FemNAT-CD multisite study, semistructured clinical interviews and rating scales were used to perform a comprehensive phenotypic characterization of 454 girls and 295 boys with CD (9–18 years), compared to 864 sex- and age-matched typically developing controls.
Results: Girls with CD exhibited higher rates of current major depression, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorder, whereas boys with CD had higher rates of current attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. In line with the ‘gender paradox’ hypothesis, relative to boys, girls with CD showed significantly more lifetime psychiatric comorbidities (incl. Alcohol Use Disorder), which were accompanied by more severe CD symptoms. Female and male youths with CD also differed significantly in their CD symptom profiles and distribution of age-of-onset subtypes of CD (i.e. fewer girls with childhood-onset CD). In line with the ‘delayed-onset pathway’ hypothesis, girls with adolescent-onset CD showed similar levels of dimensional psychopathology like boys with childhood-onset CD, while boys with adolescent-onset CD had the lowest levels of internalizing psychopathology.
Conclusions: Within the largest study of CD in girls performed to date, we found compelling evidence for sex differences in comorbidity patterns and clinical presentation of CD. Our findings further support aspects of the ‘gender paradox’ and ‘delayed-onset pathway’ hypotheses by showing that girls with CD had higher rates of comorbid lifetime mental disorders and functional impairments, and they usually developed CD during adolescence. These novel data on sex-specific clinical profiles of CD will be critical in informing intervention and prevention programmes.
Lockdown measures including the closure of physical activity facilities were installed against the spread of the novel coronavirus in March 2020. The aim of the current online survey was to assess the lockdown effects on physical activity in German adults. We assessed physical activity using the European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) questionnaire. Pre-lockdown vs. lockdown differences were tested with the X2 test and the Student’s t-test for paired data. Predictor variables to explain compliance with physical activity recommendations were identified using a fixed effects binary logistic regression analysis. Data of 979 respondents were analyzed. Transport related and leisure time physical activity decreased (p < 0.001, d = 0.16; p < 0.001, d = 0.22, respectively). Compliance with physical activity recommendations decreased from 38.1% to 30.4% (chi2 [1, 1958] = 12.754, p < 0.001, V = 0.08). In the regression analysis, BMI (OR 0.944, 95% CI 0.909–0.981; p = 0.003), education (OR 1.111, 95% CI 1.021–1.208; p = 0.015), transport related (OR 1.000, 95% CI 1.000–1.000; p = 0.008) and leisure time physical activity (OR 1.004, 95% CI 1.003–1.004; p < 0.001), muscle strengthening (OR 5.206, 95% CI 4.433–6.114; p < 0.001), as well as the ‘lockdown vs. normal’ categorical variable (OR 0.583, 95% CI 0.424–0.802; p = 0.001) showed a contribution, while sex (p = 0.152), age (p = 0.266), work related physical activity (p = 0.133), and remote working (p = 0.684) did not. Physical activity declined in German adults, and should also be promoted in light of the emerging evidence on its protective effects of against COVID-19. Special attention should be given to muscle strengthening activities and groups with lower educational attainment.
Due to the increasingly heterogeneous trajectories of aging, gerontology requires theoretical models and empirical methods that can meaningfully, reliably, and precisely describe, explain, and predict causes and effects within the aging process, considering particular contexts and situations. Human behavior occurs in contexts; nevertheless, situational changes are often neglected in context-based behavior research. This article follows the tradition of environmental gerontology research based on Lawton’s Person-Environment-Interaction model (P-E model) and the theoretical developments of recent years. The authors discuss that, despite an explicit time component, current P-E models could be strengthened by focusing on detecting P-E interactions in various everyday situations. Enhancing Lawton’s original formula via a situationally based component not only changes the theoretical perspectives on the interplay between person and environment but also demands new data collection approaches in empirical environmental research. Those approaches are discussed through the example of collecting mobile data with smartphones. Future research should include the situational dimension to investigate the complex nature of person environment interactions.
Physical activity counseling in primary health care is regarded as a useful complementary preventive and therapeutic measure and is advocated by leading public health institutions. This integrative review summarizes the available data on physical activity counseling in primary care in Germany. A systematic literature search in various databases (peer reviewed and grey literature) was carried out for quantitative and qualitative studies on physical activity counseling and use of “Exercise on Prescription”. The 25 studies included show a very high methodological diversity and, in some cases, considerable risks of bias, with limited comparability across studies. Counseling was provided in all studies by physicians. They report frequent physical activity counseling, which is partly confirmed and partly refuted by patient data. The use of “Exercise on Prescription” is at a very low level. Information on the frequency of physical activity counseling in Germany varies depending on data source and is sometimes contradictory. Our review provides a synthesis of various perspectives on routine physical activity counseling in primary care in Germany. Future studies using standardized and validated instruments in representative samples are needed to further knowledge on counseling and to be able to establish trends in prevalence. Strengthening the topics of physical activity and health and physical activity counseling in medical curriculum is strongly recommended.
Universities typically offer video-based courses and internships to prepare prospective teachers for classroom management. Empirical studies have shown the effectiveness of analyzing video clips in programs for teacher training. However, no empirical studies have explored the relationship between the teaching experience of prospective teachers and the effectivity of video-based courses on classroom management. The research question was: How can classroom management competency be effectively conveyed in video-based courses regarding the differences in practical experiences of prospective teachers. Theory on cognitive load and situated learning suggests that prospective teachers with teaching experience could benefit more from a situated instructional strategy, whereas prospective teachers without this experience benefit more from a cognitive instructional strategy.
The sample consisted of a total of 87 prospective teachers belonging to a first cohort that had participated in an internship and a second cohort that had not yet participated. Participants of both cohorts were randomly assigned to a course following one of the two instructional strategies. A video test was designed to assess classroom management competence. Additionally, measurements of prospective teachers’ attentiveness and their self-efficacy at the start of the internship were included.
The study showed a significant main effect between pretest and posttest. However, neither a significant difference in the effectiveness between the two instructional strategies nor between the two cohorts was found (first order). Also, the effectiveness of the instructional strategy was not influenced by the availability of teaching experience (second order). Scores on the video test were not significantly related to prospective teachers’ attentiveness. The prospective teachers that participated in the course before participation in the internship rated their own classroom management significantly lower than the prospective teachers that participated in the course after participating in their internship.
These results firstly indicate that there was no significant difference in cognitive load between the groups, implying that both instructional strategies are suitable for the conveying of classroom management competence within universities. Secondly, the current study has found no evidence that the trait of attentiveness influences prospective teachers’ performance within video tests. Thirdly, these results give reason to believe that the valid assessment of self-efficacy on classroom management depends on the degree of familiarity with the topic, for example, through previous dealings within video-based courses. The limited reliability of the new video test should be taken into account when interpreting the results of the current study.