Rezension: Dominik Schrage & Markus R. Friederici (Hrsg.) (2008). Zwischen Methodenpluralismus und Datenhandel. Zur Soziologie der kommerziellen Konsumforschung. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften; ISBN 978-3-531-15470-1;

Die Beiträge in dem Sammelband "Zwischen Methodenpluralismus und Datenhandel" diskutieren die Rolle der kommerziellen Konsumforschung aus soziologischer Sicht. Dabei stehen nach einer einleitenden Diskussion zur Situierung der kommerziellen Konsumforschung Fragen zum Methodenpluralismus und zum Handel mit Daten im Zentrum der Betrachtung. Neben der Validität als Prestigewert der kommerziellen Konsumforschung werden Transfers zwischen akademischer und kommerzieller Forschung anhand von praktischen Beispielen und einer umfassenden empirischen Untersuchung erläutert. Die Rolle des Internet in der Konsumforschung wird anhand des personalisierten Massenkonsums und der Transparenz von Märkten thematisiert

Parity-specific weights for the Austrian Generations and Gender Survey

The 'Generations and Gender Survey (GGS)' is an important data source for studying the dynamics of families and family relationships, it was out in Austria in 2008/09. After adjustment for age, sex, employment status, country of birth and living arrangements, we revealed a bias towards women with higher parities among the cohorts born until the mid- 1970s. Since parity is an important aspect for fertility analyses, weights were generated for the female sample that additionally adjust for the cohort-specific parity distribution. In this paper, we describe the original prevailing bias and inform the GGS user about the adjustment with the weights for the Austrian GGS. These weights are provided by VID to the international scientific community and are included in the Austrian GGS dataset

Wissenschaftlerinnen in Österreich: Zusatzerhebung im Rahmen des GGS. Dokumentation der Datenerhebung und deskriptive Ergebnisse

The 'Generations and Gender Survey (GGS)' is an important data source for studying the dynamics of families and family relationships, it was carried out in Austria in 2008/09. Additionally, the Austrian Academy of Sciences financed data collection among female scientists in Austria. In total, 247 women up to the age of 45 years who applied for a scholarship at the Austrian Academy of Sciences within the last ten years were interviewed the core GGS questionnaire as well as further questions related to scientific work. In this documentation, we inform about data collection, sample size and basic characteristics of the sample. Up to now, very little was known about the fertility behaviour of academic women in Austria, but also in other modern societies. The current sample - although very selective - will allow new insights in the fertility behaviour and in the family formation process of women working in the academic field

Grandparents Caring for Their Grandchildren: Findings from the 2004 Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe

Introducing findings from the 2004 Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), this research complements the large number of recent U.S. studies on the role of grandparents in caring for their grandchildren. For 10 continental European countries, we investigate cross-national variations in grandparent provided child care as well as differences in characteristics of the providers and recipients of care. While we find a strong involvement of grandparents in their grandchildren’s care across all countries, we also identify significant variations in the prevalence and intensity of care along the geographic lines of different child care and (maternal/female) employment regimes in Europe. Rooted in long-standing family cultures, the observed patterns suggest a complex interaction between welfare-state provided services and intergenerational family support in shaping the work-family nexus for younger parents. We conclude with a brief discussion of possible consequences of grandmothers’ increasing labor force participation for child care arrangements.

The 67th Annual Meeting of the NYSEA, USA

Conference Note

Ein Vergleich der Ergebnisse der ersten Welle des Österreichischen Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) und der Österreichischen Gesundheitsbefragung (ATHIS)

To anticipate future challenges that arise from the ageing society in Austria, it is necessary to analyse already today the health of elderly people. Currently, two datasets are available for this purpose, namely the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) and the Austrian Health Interview Survey (ATHIS). In a first part, the present study depicts a qualitative comparison of both questionnaires concerning the coverage of the state of health, health behaviour and health care utilisation. In a second, it presents a comparison of descriptive findings for persons aged 50 years and more regarding the prevalence of various chronic diseases. A comparison of the included questions shows that both surveys are in different ways adaptive to the requirements of elderly people. Yet the benefit of SHARE is that it captures the socio-demographic circumstances of elderly people much more broadly than ATHIS. Moreover, SHARE allows a dynamic analysis of the ageing process due to its longitudinal design. The results of descriptive analyses reveal a higher prevalence for most diagnoses of chronic diseases in ATHIS. Certain diseases - like cancer or osteoporosis - tend to be underrepresented in SHARE. In general, the persons interviewed in SHARE tend to be healthier than those included in ATHIS. The higher level of education of the SHARE sample might only partly explain this discrepancy

Are you ready for a child? A methodological triangulation on fertility intentions in Austria

Research on fertility has been mainly using quantitative methods, and it is only in the last few decades that qualitative research methods have become more common in demography. Combining qualitative and quantitative methods in a so-called triangulation is even more uncommon. Applying a triangulation, the current paper aims to better understand the concept of fertility intention with regard to family formation. During problem-centred interviews with childless men and women, the issue of feeling ready was mentioned again and again. It turned out that apart from economic circumstances, this individual aspect is important for the decision to have a child. In this paper, we explain the rather complex concept of feeling ready using interviews. Based on these qualitative results, additional questions were included in the Austrian 'Generations and Gender Survey' (GGS) which allow to analyse the dimension of being ready also quantitatively in a national representative dataset. Our results clearly support the theory of planned behaviour in the context of family formation, as social norms, attitudes and behaviour control are significantly associated with childbearing intentions. In the contextual framework of the theory of planned behaviour, our quantitative results revealed that the feeling of being ready has additional explanatory power for childbearing intentions among childless men and women in Austria

Ageing in Austria: An overview of “Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe” (SHARE) with special focus on aspects of health

After a short introduction to the “Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe” (SHARE) we present results for Austria focusing on different aspects of health. Among Austrians aged 50 and above—especially at higher ages—strong gender-specific differences are observed for physical health, mental health and disabilities. Older persons getting help due to difficulty with IADLs and/or ADLs mostly receive the assistance that meets their needs. Social support is rather common. On the one hand, three out of ten older persons reported that they personally or their spouses or partners have received help from any family member, friend or neighbour outside the household during the past twelve months. On the other, one out of four persons aged 50 and more reported to have given help to others. Children living outside the household provide an essential support for their parents. The network of the older persons is rather diverse, especially of those living alon

Austria: Persistent low fertility since the mid-1980s

This chapter offers an in-depth analysis of fertility in Austria, a country which has experienced a low and relatively stable fertility level and a gradual postponement of childbearing since the mid-1980s. We begin by summarising Austrian population trends in the post-World War II period and highlighting recent relatively high migration levels. We outline the long history of sub-replacement fertility and high childlessness in Austria and look in detail at recent parity-specific developments, trends in family size, delayed childbearing and persistent fertility differences by education level, country of origin and religious affiliation. The chapter then summarises main trends in family-related behaviour, including the changing patterns of leaving parental home, the rise in cohabitation, the decline in marriage and the rise of divorce and the diversity in non-marital childbearing, which has a long tradition in many parts of the country. We discuss the development of family policies in Austria and their relationship to fertility during the past decades. Social policies in Austria provide only a limited support for a reconciliation of childrearing and employment among mothers with children below the age of three. A combination of one of the highest family spending rates among the OECD countries and the low fertility rates indicate that structural constraints (such as the availability of childcare) constitute part of the explanation of low fertility.Austria, childbearing, Europe, fertility