News about the CRC 1342

On our Twitter/X channel https://twitter.com/SFB1342 you can find the latest news about the Collaborative Research Center "Global Dynamics of Social Policy".

Contact:
Dr. Maximilian Hohmann
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 5
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57058
E-Mail: hohmann@uni-bremen.de

Lesson‐drawing under authoritarianism

Dr. Armin Müller and Prof. Dr. Tobias ten Brink from project B05 "Inclusion and Benefit Dynamics in the Chinese Welfare Regime" contribute an article in "Asian Politics & Policy".

In the article "Lesson-drawing under authoritarianism: Generosity and cost control in China's hospital payment reforms" (Asian Politics & Policy 2023), Armin Müller and Tobias ten Brink (TP B05) examine recent hospital payment reforms in Chinese cities against their historical background. Using process tracing, the authors reconstruct two waves of reforms from a lesson-drawing perspective, triangulating different data sources (expert interviews, administrative documents, academic studies, and newspaper articles).

Local governments were the driving force behind a first wave of reform in the 1990s. It was dominated by simplified versions of international models that did not include strong prospective payment components and thus protected the interests of local governments and hospitals. In a second wave beginning in the 2000s, the impetus came from central government, leading to greater adoption of syntheses of international models and adaptations with more prospective payment components – and a stronger focus on patient interests. It is noted that significant pressure from the central government was necessary to minimize the bureaucratic self-interest of local governments in more low-cost reform.

Contact:
Dr. Armin Müller
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy, Research IV and China Global Center
Campus Ring 1
28759 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 200-3473
E-Mail: armmueller@constructor.university

Prof. Dr. Tobias ten Brink
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy, Research IV and China Global Center
Campus Ring 1
28759 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 200-3382
E-Mail: ttenbrink@constructor.university

Supporting on data collection between January and April 2024

As part of the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 1342 on “Global Dynamics of Social Policy”, Project A07 on "Global Dynamics of Long-term Care Policies" is researching the generosity of long-term care systems in international comparison as well as the role of international interdependencies in shaping long-term care policies. In working package 1 and 2, the project specifically investigates which inclusiveness criteria shape access to public long-term care benefits and how much of which types of benefits are granted in the respective countries. In working package 3 and 4, we analyse policy transfer between countries and the role of International Organisations in long-term care policy in four case studies in East Asia (South Korea, Taiwan) and Latin America (Uruguay, Chile). You can find more information on the project here. The project team is located at the University of Bremen and the University of Duisburg-Essen.

We are looking for student assistants with 10-18 hours/week to assist with data collection in working package 1 between January and April 2024. Alternatively, it is also possible to do a part- or full-time internship in the project during this period.

The main task is to contributed to data collection on the inclusiveness and scope of benefits of 50 countries’ public long-term care system. In doing so, we use secondary literature, laws and internet sources to systematically extract and code information for pre-defined indicators on the topic. The data collection will be shared within the project team and each person will be responsible for a defined number of countries. During the process, there will be initial training sessions on the tasks and regular exchange within the team for data collection.

Requirements for the position

• Immatriculation as an advanced Bachelor or Master student at a German university
• Student of social or health science study programme
• Experience and knowledge of scientific working (e.g. rules of citation and literature search), knowledge of literature management software Endnote is an asset
• Interest in empirical scientific research, preferably also experience with international comparative research
• Interest in social policy, in particular long-term care policy; knowledge of those topics is an asset
• Very good knowledge and use of written and spoken English; knowledge of additional languages (e.g. Russian, French) is an asset
• Ability to work precisely and conscientious with attention to detail
• Good (self-)organisation skills, communication skills, and team orientation

 

We offer insights into working within a university research project and the praxis of empirical, international comparative social policy research. Additionally, we offer a cooperative working environment in a friendly, interdisciplinary, and divers team at one of the major research projects on comparative social policy study in Germany, where you get the opportunity to apply and develop your skills and knowledge. The position provides you with insights in working in academia and, upon interest, the possibility to attend (online) meetings and lectures of the A07 project and the CRC 1342.

Conditions

Working time and place can, upon agreement, be arranged flexibly. Weekly working time for student assistants should range between 10-18 hours (upon agreement). Payment is based on the usual rates for student assistants at the University of Bremen. For internships, part- or full-time options are available. Please state your preferences regarding type of contract (student assistant/intern), preferred number of weekly working hours and preferred length of contract (2, 3 or 4 months) in the application. Concrete modalities will then be coordinated during the hiring process.

Application

If you are interested in the position please send your application to Johanna Fischer (johanna.fischer@uni-bremen.de) by 8.10.2023. Your application should include a CV, a short letter of motivation as well as a current transcript of records as a PDF document. In case of questions on the position please contact Johanna Fischer. 

Contact:
Dr. Johanna Fischer
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 3
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57074
E-Mail: johanna.fischer@uni-bremen.de

A07: "Global Dynamics of Long-term Care Policies"

As part of the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC) 1342 on “Global Dynamics of Social Policy”, Project A07 on "Global Dynamics of Long-term Care Policies" is researching the generosity of long-term care systems in international comparison as well as the role of international interdependencies in shaping long-term care policies. In working package 1 and 2, the project specifically investigates which inclusiveness criteria shape access to public long-term care benefits and how much of which types of benefits are granted in the respective countries. In working package 3 and 4, we analyse policy transfer between countries and the role of International Organisations in long-term care policy in four case studies in East Asia (South Korea, Taiwan) and Latin America (Uruguay, Chile). You can find more information on the project here. The project team is located at the University of Bremen and the University of Duisburg-Essen.

We are looking for a student assistant with 30 to 40 hours of work per month (by agreement) at the University of Bremen starting January 2024. The position is limited until 31.12.2024 (extension possible).

Tasks:

• Assist with data collection and data management (e.g., research on international data and documents, coding documents, formatting data sets).
• Literature research and management
• Support with preparing publications
• Support in project organisation (e.g. minutes of project meetings, communication with cooperation partners).

 

Requirements:

• Enrolment at a German university
• Student of social or health science study programme (e.g. political science, sociology, social policy, public health)
• Interest in comparative social policy research and/or long-term care systems, preferably already knowledge in these areas
• Experience in scientific work (e.g. citation rules and literature research), preferably also in qualitative and/or quantitative empirical analysis and related IT programs (e.g. Excel, Endnote, Maxqda, R)
• Very good command of written and spoken English
• Good (self-)organizational skills, communication skills and ability to work in a team

 

We offer a collegial working environment in a friendly, interdisciplinary and diverse team. The position provides insights into the work of a university research project and into the practice of empirical, international comparative social policy research. In case of interest, there is the possibility to participate in (online) meetings and lectures of the A07 project, the SFB 1342 and the Socium.

Working hours and location are flexible by arrangement. The salary is based on the usual rates for student assistants at the University of Bremen.

If you have any questions about the position, please feel free to contact Johanna Fischer (johanna.fischer@uni-bremen.de). To apply, please send your documents including a short letter of motivation, CV and certificate/transcript as a PDF document by 8.10.23 via e-mail to Johanna Fischer (johanna.fischer@uni-bremen.de).

Contact:
Dr. Johanna Fischer
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 3
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57074
E-Mail: johanna.fischer@uni-bremen.de

Project A04 “Global developments in health care systems” is looking for a new student assistants (up to 37 hours/month).

At the University of Bremen, the following positions are available in the Collaborative Research Centre 1342's project "Global developments in health care systems": 

Student Assistants with up to 37 hrs/month

Start date: As soon as possible. The position is temporary, but a longer-term employment is intended.

The project is a part of the DFG-funded Collaborative Research Centre 1342 "Global Dynamics of Social Policy" and is directed by Prof. Dr. Heinz Rothgang, Prof. Dr. Sebastian Haunss and Dr. Lorraine Frisina Doetter.

The aim of the project is to map the historical development of health care systems worldwide. In doing so, we collect secondary literature data to classify systems alongside three functional dimensions: service provision, financing, regulation.

 

Tasks: 

• Database and literature research
• Literature review
• Supporting coding of documents
• Supporting on administrative tasks

 

Requirements:

• Enrolled in a German University at least until July 2024
• Excellent command of English
• Experience in literature research
• Independent, reliable and organised working style
• Interest in social policy and/or health policy

 

Desirable:

• Experience with reference management software, especially Zotero
• Experience in coding of text documents

 

Deadline for application: Rolling basis until positions are filled.

Please send applications with CV and short letter of motivation stating expected graduation date to Gabriela de Carvalho (decarvalho@uni-bremen.de).

Contact:
Dr. Gabriela de Carvalho
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 3
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57078
E-Mail: decarvalho@uni-bremen.de

Postdoctoral Researcher (f/m/d), Salary Scale 13 TV-L (100%), Reference Code: A186/23

The CRC 1342 has been funded by the DFG since January 2018 and investigates the global dynamics of social policy. The focus of the second funding phase (2022 – 2025) is on the examination of inclusiveness and the scope of provision of social protection programmes.

The CRC 1342 consists of 15 subprojects and is divided into two project areas: The six subprojects in Area A examine the dynamics of various social policy fields from a global and historical perspective. The eight subprojects in Area B conduct case studies and country comparisons for selected countries/regions and specific social protection programmes. An information infrastructure project is developing the Global Welfare State Information System (WeSIS).

Project A06, led by Prof. Sonja Drobnič, PhD, focuses on the developmental dynamics of family policy in a global comparison. First, a database of the scope and inclusiveness of family policy measures will be established. Second, the role of 'female agency' on both the national and international levels will be examined, in order to understand and explain the developmental dynamics in greater depth.

Job description

• Participation in data collection on family policy developments with regard to scope and inclusiveness
• Examination of family policy profiles from historical and geographical comparative perspectives
• Analysis of the relevance of 'female agency' on the national and transnational levels for the dissemination of family policy

 

Requirements

• PhD degree in sociology, political science, or a related discipline
• Strong background in empirical research and quantitative research methods
• Experience with R, STATA, or similar statistical packages
• Competence in data collection and knowledge of the role of 'female agency' in processes of political and social change will be considered an advantage
• Knowledge of document analysis methods will be considered an advantage
• Excellent English skills are required; knowledge of other languages will be considered an advantage

 

General hints

The university is family-friendly, diverse and sees itself as an international university. We therefore welcome all applicants regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion/belief, disability, age, sexual orientation and identity.

The University of Bremen strives to increase the number of women in the academy and strongly encourages applications from female candidates. Disabled applicants will be given priority if their professional and personal qualifications are essentially the same.

For questions about the job posting, please contact Prof. Sonja Drobnič, PhD
(drobnic@uni-bremen.de).

Applications with cover letter, CV, and copies of degree certificates should be submitted by 6 October 2023, indicating the reference code above, to:

University of Bremen
Prof. Dr. Sonja Drobnič
Mary-Somerville-Str. 9
28357 Bremen

or electronically (preferably in a single PDF file) to Susan Westing-Kilian
(swkilian@uni-bremen.de) and Sonja Drobnič (drobnic@uni-bremen.de).

Costs for the application and the interview cannot be reimbursed.

Citizenship, Migration and Social Rights. Historical Experiences from the 1870s to the 1970s

Dr. Simon Gerards Iglesias, former Research Fellow at CRC 1342, contributed a chapter to Beate Althammer's anthology "Citizenship, Migration and Social Rights. Historical Experiences from the 1870s to the 1970s." This volume was published as part of the book series "Routledge Studies in Modern History".

Argentina's social policy for immigrants in the interwar period

For some time now, the tensions between migration and the welfare state have sparked heated public and academic debates. Little is known about the historical connections between immigration and emigration and the effects and meanings of the emergence of modern welfare states. In a new anthology published by Routledge, this question will be explored from a transnational perspective with studies on different countries.

Simon Gerards Iglesias' chapter discusses Argentine immigration and welfare policies in the interwar period, focusing on those designed for Europeans. Recalling that Europe was a continent of mass emigration in the 19th and early 20th centuries, he shows how a key destination country - Argentina - contributed to the globalisation of welfare discourses that were originally an exclusively European affair. Gerards Iglesias argues that Argentina's efforts in the international socio-political arena were primarily rooted in the ambition to make the country attractive to European immigrants again after the First World War. He illustrates this concretely with the example of workers' compensation - the branch of social security whose internationalisation generally progressed most rapidly. However, Gerards Iglesias also points out the inconsistencies in Argentina's migration policy. For example, although the government concluded several bilateral agreements with European states on occupational injury benefits, it did not ratify the corresponding ILO convention until 1950. And while on the one hand it displayed pro-immigration rhetoric on the international stage, on the other it successively raised the barriers for potential immigrants at the national level. Argentina's political elites, the chapter shows, were torn between the pros and cons of immigration, which in any case always meant European immigrants, while migrants of other than "white" European descent were always unwelcome.

Publications:

Hüther, Michael / Gerards Iglesias, Simon (2022): Wirtschaftliche Entwicklung durch Rückschritt – zu den Perspektiven der russischen Volkswirtschaft, in: Russland-Analysen, Nr. 426, S. 2-6.

Gerards Iglesias, Simon (2022): Inmigración y empresariado transnacional en Argentina a finales del siglo XIX. Los Weil y los Staudt, entre Alemania y Argentina". Cuadernos del Archivo VI/1, Nr. 10 (2022): 26-45.

Gerards Iglesias, Simon (2022): Argentinische Sozialpolitik und die Internationale Arbeitsorganisation (ILO), 1919-1943. Debatten, Konflikte und Kooperationen. Dissertation, Universität Bremen.

Simon Gerards Iglesias studied political economy and economic history in Heidelberg, Göttingen and Buenos Aires. From 2019 to 2022, he worked as a researcher at the CRC 1342 and completed his doctoral thesis on the historical development of social policies in Argentina under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Delia González de Reufels. He currently works at the German Economic Institute in Cologne.

Project A04 “Global developments in health care systems” is looking for a new student assistant

Dr. Lorraine Frisina Doetter, co-director of the A04 project “Global developments in health care systems”, is looking for a new student assistant for the period of October to December 2023 for a total of 40 hours (ca. 3.5 hours weekly), with a possibility of renewal and increased weekly hours in the year 2024.

Start date: 01 October 2023. The position is temporary, but a longer-term employment is intended.

Tasks: 

• Database and literature research
• Format and editing for publications (including tables and figures)
• Support on administrative tasks

 

Requirements:

• Enrolled in a German University
• Excellent command of English and German
• Experience in literature research, especially systematic and scoping review methods
• Experience in Excel (e.g. generation of data tables and graphs)
• Independent, reliable and organised working style
• Interest in social policy, health policy and/or health inequality

 

Desirable:

• Experience with reference management software, especially Zotero

 

Deadline for application: Rolling basis until the position is filled.

Please send applications with CV and short letter of motivation (in English) stating expected graduation date to Katharina Scherf at kscherf@uni-bremen.de.

Contact:
Dr. Lorraine Frisina Doetter
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 3
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-58561
E-Mail: frisina@uni-bremen.de

Research visit in Cologne from 15th of October until 15th of December

A postdoctoral researcher from the A06 project “Pathways to Family Policy Universalism: Coverage and Generosity of Family Policies in a Global Perspective” will participate in the Visiting Researchers Program of the Max Planck Society for two months.

During her research visit from 15th of October until 15th of December at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne, she aims to examine the complex interplay between growth regimes, gender inequality, and welfare policies during the Fordism era, when advanced capitalist economies began to diverge in their paths towards "gender equal" or "conservative" welfare states. 

Keonhi Son’s argument is twofold: first, growth regimes have shaped gender inequality in the labor market since the Fordism era. Growth strategies centered around specific sectors disadvantaged women through wage moderation and gendered hierarchy in the labor market. Second, the demand for women's labor influenced policymakers' preferences on welfare policies for women workers. If female labor played a minimal role in a state's growth strategy, policymakers were likely to perceive women as dependents of male workers in the industrial sector rather than as workers themselves, and thus reluctant to extend welfare policies for working women. To test her arguments, she will conduct a comparative case study that examines the patterns of gender inequality in labor markets, as well as the political discourse surrounding the early development of paid maternity leave in Germany and Sweden during the 1950s and 1960s. 

Her research interest encompasses leave policy development in the Global South, the origin of work-family policies, and the role of female agency on social policy development. She is constructing three historical databases that measure inclusiveness and generosity of maternity, paternity and parental leave in the Global South, covering 165 countries from 1883 until 2018.

Publications:

Son, Keonhi. (2023). The Origin of Social Policy for Women Workers: The Emergence of Paid Maternity Leave in Western Countries, Comparative Political Studies (online first). https://doi.org/10.1177/00104140231169024.

Son, Keonhi. (2022). Colonialism and Paid Maternity Leave Policies in Sub-Saharan Africa, In Dobrotić, Ivana, Blum, Sonja, & Koslowski, Alison. (Eds.), Research Handbook on Leave Policy, 310-323. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800372214.00033.

Son, Keonhi. (2022). Ship of Theseus: from ILO Standards to Outcome of Maternity Protection Policy. Journal of Social Policy. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0047279422000010.

Son, Keonhi. (2022). Do International Treaties Only Have an Impact on Ratifying States?: the Influence of the ILO Maternity Protection Conventions in 160 States, 1883 until 2018. International Labour Review. https://doi.org/10.1111/ilr.12371.

Contact:
Dr. Keonhi Son
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 9
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-99858
E-Mail: son@uni-bremen.de

EPSA XIII 2023, Glasgow

Nils Düpont and Hannes Salzmann presented their paper “The Unforced Force of the Better Argument? Computationally Assessing Arguments in Parliamentary Debates” at the 13th annual conference of the European Political Science Association (EPSA) in June 2023. In cooperation with Gabriella Skitalinska and Prof. Henning Wachsmuth from the Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Leibniz University Hannover, the CRC members from the INF project are about to finish their work.

The article focuses on the analysis of parliamentary speeches in terms of the quantity and quality of arguments. Using a combination of manual annotations, machine learning, and pre-trained models, the authors hope to gain insight into how argument quality evolves over time and how it relates to other party factors such as government or opposition affiliation, ideological/policy positions, or status of the speaker.

The EPSA ranks among the largest political science conferences in Europe with about 1,900 participants in 2023. Within the panel “Qualities of Parliamentary Speech” the colleagues discussed the paper, which had been commented on by Prof. Kenneth Benoit from London School of Economics. Furthermore, Nils Düpont was chairman and moderator of the panel “Intra-Party Politics and Position-taking”.

Beforehand, Hannes Salzmann could introduce their work at this year’s COMPTEXT conference to a specialist peer group of 80 colleagues, also in Glasgow, in Mai 2023. The feedback received was helpful to further improve the article.

The engagement and exchange with colleagues on the latest methods and approaches in quantitative text analysis benefits not only the researchers but also the INF project. After the completion and publication of the paper, data on the average argument quality of government and opposition, for example, could also be added to WeSIS to provide further insight into the formation of social policy.

Contact:
Dr. Nils Düpont
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 7
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57060
E-Mail: duepont@uni-bremen.de

Hannes Salzmann
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy
Mary-Somerville-Straße 7
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-57061
E-Mail: h.salzmann@uni-bremen.de