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Following Coleman's statement about contemporary society being asymmetric, the purpose of this paper is to assess the differents kinds of public action that recur in present-day societies. Generally speaking, political and sociological literature has given priority to public action dominated by associations, which are observed as the protagonists of the defence of citizenry in an asymmetric society. In this respect, the design of public policies aimed at strengthening and expanding associative activity is legitimated. The main reason for this type of policy is that the decline of associative activity has often been linked with a decline in the democratic fabric of a particular community. In the second part of this paper, we suggest that far from producing this decline, we can confirm the emergence of other forms of participation which, while not starting out from the hypothesis of an associative movement, do share the political scenario with associations. We also demonstrate that both public administrations and civil associations are reporting on this type of participation, which makes its emergence both possible and easy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we compare the programs of Niklas Luhmann's General Theory of Social Systems (GTSS) and Bruno Latour's Actor-Network Theory (ANT) from a systematic perspective based on the comparison of functional equivalents related to what are considered the main problems addressed by sociology. We propose to compare three specific concepts from the theoretical foundations of their sociological programs, namely: the definition of sociology's unit of analysis and its connections to the unitary factor of social order and the sequential factor of social change. Our hypothesis suggests that, although they diverge in emphasis and nuances, both programs converge in the dyadic definition of the sociological unit of analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines the epistemological and methodological specificities of the Biographic-Narrative Interpretive Method, developed in Britain (under the name 'BNIM') and Germany (where it is known as 'Interpretative Biografieforschung'). Based on phenomenology and hermeneutics, this method seeks to express subjects' past and present frames of meaning through the use of a non-directive interview. This interview is analysed by a reconstructive process that differentiates between the 'lived life' and the 'told story', and subsequently connects both dimensions. The main steps for the application of the method are explained through the case study of Adriana, taken from a R&D&i research project on immigration and the labour market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents research findings that focus on analyzing the conditions that enable and/or complicate the development of the critical intercultural approach in Pre-schools and Primary schools. To this end, three case studies were conducted in schools in the Spanish Autonomous Region of Andalusia. The main data production techniques used were: participatory observation, interviews and documentary analysis. The results are organized around three dimensions of analysis: the concept of inequality and/or diversity as a driving force for change in schools and the opening-up of the school setting as a challenge/ reproduction of cultural homogeneity and hegemony. The findings show how the dynamics and interactions that exist within these schools provide opportunities but also create limitations when it comes to shaping new intercultural realities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes and explains the recent trends in life expectancy at birth in Spain from an interdisciplinary perspective. It is based on two methods: segmented linear regression, and decomposition of life expectancy. The study consists of three sections. First, a description is provided of the demographic factors that explain the increase in the life expectancy at birth of the Spanish population from 1910 to 2009, which is in excess of 40 years. Second, the effect that changes in mortality have had on life expectancy at birth during 1980-2009 is analysed by cause of death of the population aged 65 and above. And third, the social and epidemiological causes underlying that increase are described. It is concluded that the increase of life expectancy at birth in Spain is mainly due to the reduction of mortality at advanced ages and a decrease in cardiovascular mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper pretends to demonstrate the complementary relations between three relatively recent sociological theories, each one of which explains a different aspect of the same social object: the origin, diffusion and change of social and cultural values, aiming at demonstrating that there is not such a thing as a sociological theory that explains all, but rather diverse theories that offer partial explanations of social reality. To that effect, and on the basis of the necessary relationship between theory and research, three different theories are evaluated separately: Hawley's and Duncan's theory of the social ecosystem, Galtung's centre-periphery theory, and Inglehart's theory of values' change in modern-industrial societies, offering theoretical and empirical evidence of their complementary relations, based on Spanish and international data. Social ecosystem and centre-periphery theories show a high level of generalization (through space and time) and a high level of abstraction, though both can easily operationalize their main concepts through valid and reliable indicators. The theory of values' change, however, though showing a high level of generalization, is limited in time to the historical period after World War II, and also shows a high level of abstraction. Centre-periphery theory and values' change theory use individual and collective units of analysis, but social ecosystem theory only uses collective units, by definition. The three theories lead to the conclusion that 'security' values will gain a growing importance in present societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with historical memory in Chile from a theoretical life course perspective. For this purpose, the topic is conceptualized on the basis of a collective and historical generation component concerning the memory of different age groups in the six municipalities of the metropolitan area of Concepción (Chile). The information was gathered by means of a standardized questionnaire, and the sample comprised individuals spread across five different age groups. The results show a memory of recent history centered on national events for the whole sample, incorporating supranational elements among younger cohorts. The study confirms the existence of both national and generational memories centered around various significant socio-historical changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analysed in this paper are the dynamics of the generation and transformation of social institutions. Two basic paradigms are studied and compared. The utilitarian framework or rational choice theories, according to which institutions are an attempt to overcome market failures through institutional mechanisms that lead to socially optimum situations, in the sense that they are preferable for the individual protagonists involved. Theories of a more sociological or culturalist nature, on the other hand, emphasize the importance of the cultural component of institutions, as well as their socio-historical determinants that evolve through complex social processes. While the former provide theoretically contrastable solutions for a range of limited problems, the latter analyse deeper problems, although at the risk of producing less conclusive results. In particular, the difference between both conceptions of social institutions become clear when the factors that give rise to the development of institutions, as well as the processes through which institutional frameworks change and evolve in response to different factors, are analysed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]