Looking into the Educational Mirror: Why Computation Is Hardly Being Taught in the Social Sciences, and What to Do About It

Nie dotycz

Testing strengths-based interventions: a preliminary study on the effectiveness of a program targeting curiosity, gratitude, hope, humor, and zest for enhancing life satisfaction

The study compares the impact of character strengths-based positive interventions in a sample of 178 adults. An experimental group that trained strengths of the Values-in-Action classification that typically correlate highly with life satisfaction (curiosity, gratitude, hope, humor, and zest) was compared in its gain in life satisfaction with a group that trained strengths that usually demonstrate low correlations with life satisfaction (appreciation of beauty and excellence, creativity, kindness, love of learning, and perspective) and a wait-list control group. If pre and post measures in life satisfaction were compared, the group with the strengths most correlated with life satisfaction improved significantly (statistically) in their satisfaction in comparison to a control group. This could be interpreted as support for the idea that primarily those strengths that correlate highly with life satisfaction should be addressed in strengths-based interventions. When asked for subjective ratings of well-being after the interventions concluded, participants in both intervention groups indicated gains above that of a wait-listed control group. Further analyses underscore the special role of self-regulation in facilitating success in the interventions. Overall, the data underline the potential of strength-based interventions for improving human well-being

Selbstmanagement als Kernkompetenz

Mitarbeitende und Führungskräfte sind in Zeiten tiefgreifender Veränderungen mehr denn je gefordert, ihre Leistungsfähigkeit und Leistungsbereitschaft kontinuierlich zu überprüfen und mittels bewusst gestalteter Reflexions- und Entwicklungsprozesse zukunftsorientiert zu stärken. Ziel sollte sein, die eigene Arbeitsfähigkeit und Arbeitsmarktfähigkeit im Lebensverlauf bestmöglich zu erhalten. Durch die zunehmende Verflechtung von Berufs- und Privatleben integriert ein modernes Verständnis von Arbeitsfähigkeit und Arbeitsmarktfähigkeit Fragen zu den verschiedenen Lebensfeldern und die vorhandene Ausprägung von Wohlbefinden im Privat- und Berufsleben. Dies zu leisten setzt u. a. umfassende Fähigkeiten des Selbstmanagements voraus. Im Beitrag wird das Modell der Selbstmanagement-Kompetenz mit seinen neun Bausteinen vorgestellt. Ein spezieller Fokus wird dabei im Kontext des Sammelbands auf Herausforderungen einer modernen Arbeitswelt gelegt

Progressive and sustained school reforms: Framing and coalition building in Swiss cities

Urban politics in the early 21st century is structured by conflicts over social cohesion and economic competitiveness. Education policy takes center stage in this struggle as schools are institutions of both social and economic reproduction. I draw on arguments of urban regime and policy frame analysis to examine the politics of urban school reform in two Swiss cities. Empirically, I analyze neighborhood-embedded bottom-up school reforms committed to social cohesion. The paths these reforms eventually take were shaped by different coalitions geared around specific school policy frames. Frames indeed play a crucial role in building a coalition toward progressive school reforms. In addition, their sustainability in a political environment, increasingly shifting toward development policies, hinges on the dominant frame underlying the reforms as well as the properties of the network advancing them