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This paper considers migrant parenting as a dynamic project that entails interactions between social class, migration experiences, individual and collective beliefs, and transnational attachments. Previous research has examined migrant parenting predominantly concerning children's social mobility in the immigration country by using the acculturation framework or by comparing migrants with non-migrants. Recently, research has accounted for child rearing in transnational families with an emphasis on gendered parenting and role reversal among parents who take care of their children from a distance. This paper analyses parenting orientations among settled migrants who maintain close connections to their country of origin. Findings from in-depth interviews with mothers from Poland with different class backgrounds who raise their children in Germany highlight their varying migration experiences and structural conditions for child rearing. The analyses show how these mothers engage in building successful migration projects for themselves and their children, albeit with very diverse socio-cultural and economic resources that shape their child rearing, navigating between support of children's accommodation, transnational connections and ethnic identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the push to strengthen European defence cooperation, the topic of whether a European strategic culture is emerging has become widely contested. Since convergence between member states is the key that would unlock the way to a European strategic culture, this paper examines how they perceive crucial aspects of strategic culture and in what aspects they have converged and diverged. This study selected Germany, Poland, and Ireland as cases of the EU-27 member states. It compared the three national strategic cultures in three aspects: strategic environment, cooperation patterns, and strategic goals and means, by conducting a computer-based content analysis of strategic documents and official speeches of high-level national policymakers between 2000 and 2020. This study found that despite the persistent divergence in strategic goals and means, the three countries have shown greater convergence in their perceptions of the strategic environment and that while their preferences on cooperation patterns are largely unchanged, they seem to be accepting the EU as a legitimate and favourable platform for security and defence cooperation. These findings suggest that the prospects for the emergence of a European strategic culture and further developments of the EU's Common Security and Defence Policy are both challenging and promising. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies regional economic development on the municipality-level in Poland and Germany along the Oder–Neisse border. We use high-quality satellite night-time light intensity data as an innovative and comparable measure to proxy for overall economic activity on both sides of the border consistently over a long period of time (1992–2012). We use descriptive heat maps as well as regression analysis to investigate two aspects: first, how far is the economic convergence along the Polish-German border? Second, what effect does the distance to the border have on economic activity as measured with light emissions? Our findings suggest that convergence in overall activity across the border has been complete. Polish municipalities that used to be economically much weaker have caught up with those on the German side of the Oder and the Neisse rivers. As regards the importance of distance, we highlight different results for Germany and Poland. While distance to the border never mattered significantly for German regions, Polish municipalities closer to the border used to be substantially worse off in the early 1990s but caught up with regions further to the east by the end of the period of our analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper is concerned with the spatial dimension of the coronavirus crisis and the tensions it created in multilevel governance in the Polish–German border region. Regarding the spatial dimension of the crisis, territoriality is referred to as the political competence to exert control over a national territory and over places particularly affected by the coronavirus crisis and its management – from local hubs of outbreaks to twin cities in border regions facing closed borders. Territoriality was mirrored in the unilateral decisions of the central governments to close national borders in Europe. Considering spatiality as well as the asymmetric multilevel setting of cross-border Polish–German relations, this paper investigates to what extent subnational actors were able to interact in a cross-border sense in this situation. The paper shows the relevance of subnational political authorities and highlights the significance of civil society actors in times of crisis, as they were able to lobby for a less restrictive border management response and helped to hold – merely through digital activities – the web of bilateral relations together. In this light, it may enhance the ability of further research to take a multilevel territorial perspective for a more nuanced picture of the pandemic's effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research undertaken as part of the EU funded EPPIC project, this paper aims to update and elaborate on the relationship between drug use and offending behaviours by exploring variations within a cross-national sample of drug-experienced young people in touch with criminal justice systems. Adopting a trajectory-based approach, interviews were undertaken with 198 young people aged 15–25 in six European countries (Austria, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, and UK). Data were analysed by applying the Bennett and Holloway categorization of the drugs-crime link, with a focus on the concept of social exclusion as developed by Seddon. Three main types of mechanisms (economic, pharmaceutical, and lifestyles) are used to interpret the data, showing how the relationship between drugs and offending can vary according to type of substances and over time. Furthermore, it can be associated with very different degrees of social exclusion and needs. The results suggest that while economic inequalities still play key roles in explaining drug use and offending, both behaviours can originate from a state of relative deprivation, resulting from the contradictions inherent in 'bulimic societies' that raise aspirations and desires while providing young people scarce opportunities for self-realisation and social recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As compensation for their disempowerment in the process of European integration, national parliaments have been provided with various new rights and powers since the 1990s, culminating in the current provisions of the Lisbon Treaty. This paper argues, however, that rather than simply re-enhancing traditional powers of national parliaments, these reforms imply ideas of a new type of parliamentary democracy in Europe. It identifies three different roles for national parliaments in the EU: preventing rather than shaping legislation (gatekeeping role), cooperating with other parliaments and supranational institutions (networking role), and adopting a uniform mode control of government across all party groups (unitary scrutiniser role). All these roles require a significant deviation from the standard role legislatures usually play in European parliamentary democracies. The paper briefly explores how national parliaments in two ‘old’ (France, Germany) and one ‘new’ (Poland) member state fulfil these three new roles. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper reviews seasonal migration from Poland to Germany from the perspective of gender. The main lenses used are the participation in this migration by individuals as members of families, the informal recruitment mechanisms that bring new migrants on board, and the legal environment. The paper argues that the selection of a migrant by the family depends importantly on the costs of migration for the family, and shows how this consideration bears on the choice of women as seasonal migrants. In addition, the paper argues that the patterns of recruitment are gender-specific, explains why women recruit new migrants in a manner which differs from that of men, and assesses the impact of the underlying legal environment on the differential participation of women and men. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Since 1989 the building of new Polish-German relations has been carried out in the dimensions of both time (historical reconciliation) and space (reintegration eastern and western parts of Europe). This determines their fundamental importance for contemporary Europe. This article presents an analysis of Polish-German relations from the perspective of issue salience. The source base of this paper comprises Addresses by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs (AMFAs), i.e. annual speeches given by foreign ministers presenting the major goals of Poland's foreign policy. It makes it possible to adopt a long-term perspective (1990-2018). The quantitative analysis was based on the rules of the Comparative Manifesto Project. Its results allowed the author to determine the position of Germany in Poland's foreign policy; to identify the major periods in mutual relations; to indicate the main concepts of the Polish governments concerning Polish-German relations; and to specify the major problematic issues in mutual relations. The performed analysis shows that relations with Germany play the dominant role in the structure of Polish foreign policy, and particularly European policy. This stands in stark contrast to the ambivalence of the Polish political elites, especially those on the right side of the political spectrum, towards the western neighbour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Depression is highly prevalent worldwide and generates significant economic burden. Despite this, there is still insufficient information on hospitalisation costs related to depression. Therefore, this paper presents a comparison of costs of inpatient care of depression among patients hospitalised in 2014 in Kiel (Germany) and in Poznan (Poland). Methods: The retrospective study was conducted from October 2015 to May 2017 in Kiel and in Poznan and concerned all patients (n = 548 and eventually included n = 444; 334 in Kiel and 110 in Poznan) hospitalised in these centres. Results: The annual cost of inpatient care of patients hospitalised due to depression in 2014 was EUR x ¯ = EUR 9397.21 (total EUR 313,8667.2) in Kiel and EUR x ¯ = EUR 2962.90 (total EUR 325,919.38) in Poznan. In Kiel, the most frequently prescribed medicine was mirtazapine while in Poznan it was venlafaxine. Conclusions: The 3-fold difference in average costs of hospitalisation might result from differences in funding of mental health care which in Poland needs urgent amendment. Besides, mental health care was underfunded in Poznan. In general, treatment was comprehensive in both centres. Non-pharmacological treatment, however, was more comprehensive in Kiel. The cost of inpatient care of depression was very high both in Kiel and Poznan. Inpatient care of depression is long-lasting, but a reduction in the length of hospital stay seems to be possible. Hospital stay is the main part of costs of inpatient care of depression. Treatment of depression should be comprehensive, but differences e.g. in pharmacotherapy used are possible between hospitals and/or countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the diversity in patients' experience of biomedicine and contrasts it with the normative view characteristic of health professionals. Ethnographic fieldwork among Polish migrant women in London, Barcelona and Berlin included interviews about their experiences with local healthcare and health professionals. Themes drawn from the narratives are differences between the cities in terms of communication between patients and health professionals, respect for patients' choices and dignity, attitudes to pregnancy and birth (different levels of medicalization), and paediatric care. It is argued that patients continuously negotiate among their own views and expectations based on previous experiences and knowledge from personal communication; internet forums and publications; and the offer of medical services in the countries of their settlement. Patients experience pluralism of therapeutic traditions within and outside bio-medicine. In turn, representatives of bio-medicine are rarely aware of other medical practices and beliefs and this leads to various misunderstandings. By highlighting the pluralism of medical practices in European countries and the increasing mobility of patients, this case study has useful implications for medical anthropologists and health professionals in a broader Western context, such as raising sensitivity to different communication strategies and a diversity of curing traditions and expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The information presented here is based on 174 sites; it is a result of a detailed historical collection revision of materials from Silesia and also the first comprehensive paper after the early German and Polish compilations. Though our work includes both quantitative and qualitative updates, it is neither exhaustive nor complete. It is very likely that many finds have not yet been reported to scientific institutions or museums, or else remain in private collections. The localities concerned are dominated by remains found under or within alluvial deposits of the last glaciation or in the context of loess sediments. Most of the documented remains are from the Late Pleistocene. Cold-adapted members of steppe-tundra faunal assemblages, such as Mammuthus primigenius, Equus ferus, Coelodonta antiquitatis, Rangifer tarandus, Ovibos moschatus, and Bison priscus dominate. Most artiodactyls were found in alluvial sediments, in bogs or swamps, while carnivores are represented only by isolated remains. The location of faunal assemblages and isolated finds shows the importance of river valleys as migrations routes. Silesia stretches along the Odra River, which runs in a roughly south-north direction, and connects the Sudety Mts and the Głubczyce Plateau with the wide, open lowlands of Eastern Germany and Western Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mirwaldt K. The small projects fund and social capital formation in the Polish–German border region: an initial appraisal, Regional Studies. This paper examines the small projects fund, a European Union-funded initiative to promote good citizen relations across borders. This paper presents this fund as an attempt to foster ‘social capital’ in the Polish–German border region. The fund is examined in light of seven conditions of social capital formation. In the Polish–German border region, the fund scores well on the first four conditions, related to the promotion of individual trust. It performs less well on the three conditions for scaling up individual trust to form social capital. However, it remains to be seen whether small project support can deliver improved citizen relations. Mirwaldt K. Le fonds de microprojets et la formation de capital social dans la zone frontalière polono-allemande: une première évaluation, Regional Studies. Cet article cherche à examiner le fonds de microprojets, une initiative financée par l'Union européenne visant la promotion du civisme transfrontalier. On présente ce fonds comme une tentative d'encourager le ‘capital social’ dans la zone frontalière polono-allemande. On examine le fonds à la lumière de sept conditions de la formation de capital social. Dans la zone frontalière polono-allemande, le fonds obtient un bon score pour ce qui est des quatres premières conditions, qui se rapportent à la promotion de la confiance individuelle. Il obtient de pires résultats quant aux trois conditions nécessaires à l'augmentation de la confiance individuelle afin de former le capital social. Cependant, il reste à savoir si, oui ou non, l'aide financière pour le développement des petits projets peut assurer un civisme amélioré. Fonds de microprojets?Capital social?Eurorégions?Frontière polono-allemande Mirwaldt K. Der Kleinprojektefonds und der Aufbau von Sozialkapital in der deutsch-polnischen Grenzregion: eine erste Bewertung, Regional Studies. Dieser Artikel behandelt den Kleinprojektefonds, eine EU-finanzierte Initiative, die gutnachbarschaftliche Bürgerbeziehungen über Grenzen hinweg fördert. Der Fonds kann in der deutsch-polnischen Grenzregion als ein Versuch, ,Sozialkapital' aufzubauen, gewertet werden. Er wird hier im Hinblick auf sieben Voraussetzungen für die Entstehung von Sozialkapital analysiert. In der deutsch-polnischen Grenzregion schneidet der Fonds bei den ersten vier Voraussetzungen, die das zwischenmenschliche Vertrauen betreffen, gut ab. Weniger gut erfüllt der Fonds drei Voraussetzungen, um individuelles Vertrauen in Sozialkapital zu umzuwandeln. Es bleibt daher abzuwarten, ob der Kleinprojektefonds dauerhaft die Bürgerbeziehungen verbessern kann. Kleinprojektefonds?Sozialkapital?Euroregionen?Deutsch-polnische Grenze Mirwaldt K. El fondo para proyectos pequeños y la formación de capital social en la región fronteriza entre Polonia y Alemania: una valoración inicial, Regional Studies. En este artículo se analiza el fondo para proyectos pequeños, una iniciativa financiada por la Unión Europea para fomentar las buenas relaciones transfronterizas entre los ciudadanos. Este fondo se caracteriza como un intento de fomentar el ‘capital social’ en la región fronteriza entre Polonia y Alemania. Se examina el fondo teniendo en cuenta siete condiciones de la formación de capital social. En la región fronteriza entre Polonia y Alemania, el fondo puntúa bien en las primeras cuatro condiciones relacionadas con el fomento de la confianza individual. El desempeño es peor en cuanto a las tres condiciones para aumentar el nivel de la confianza individual a fin de formar capital social. Sin embargo, queda por ver si el apoyo a los pequeños proyectos puede mejorar las relaciones entre los ciudadanos. Fondo para proyectos pequeños?Capital social?Eurorregiones?Frontera entre Polonia y Alemania [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Data on the moisture level of grassland sites have traditionally been based on the water supply levels according to Petersen (1952) in east German relevant technical literature. The question was to what extent these data are comparable to Ellenberg's widely-known moisture indicator values. The transformation scale for water supply levels and moisture values suggested in this paper was based on more than 500 grassland relevés collected in the German federal states of Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The water supply levels were appraised according to the bioindicative method by Hundt (1964). There was a high rank correlation coefficient between average moisture values and water supply levels (rSpearman=0.939). The water supply levels were related to the following amplitudes of the average moisture values: W5-/4-: < 3.5; W3-: 3.5 – 4.4; W2-: 4.5 – 5.3; W2 +: 5.4 – 6.1; W3 +: 6.2 – 7.1; W4 +: 7.2 – 8.4; W5 +: > 8.4. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the urban context and spatial manifestations of the construction of shared heritage sites resulting from cross-border interactions in Polish–German border towns. A comparison of the three border towns of Frankfurt (Oder)/Słubice, Guben/Gubin and Görlitz/Zgorzelec offers insights into the relationship between the creation of transnational urban places and the contrasting spatial circumstances in the urban environments of the border towns. The greater permeability of the border in the Schengen period from 2007 has intensified cross-border activity, and actors from both sides of the river have cooperated to create new shared places, most prominent among these are heritage sites. These new transnational heritage sites emphasise different aspects of the past, including valorising ‘neutral’ heritage, rediscovering sites of trauma and victimhood, or reinventing existing sites. While divisions persist, rooted as much in the burden of the past as current socio-economic asymmetries, some evidence is coming to light of the forging of shared heritage sites linked to narratives of reconciliation and mutual recognition. The creation of shared heritage is a fragile process which depends on contingent urban conditions. This paper draws attention to the need for heritage sites to evolve gradually and with significant participation from civil activists if they are to gain local transnational significance. Moreover, heritage sites only have transformative potential when they become integrated in the urban environment as active settings for everyday life which transcend commemorative or tourist purposes alone. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Athletes' participation in sports governance gains momentum at multiple levels and challenges the long-prevailing power relations in organised sport. At the same time, the sport-specific discourse on good governance extends to the field of anti-doping, following low levels of testing effectiveness, untransparent decision-making and ethical misconduct in leading anti-doping authorities. Adopting a case-oriented comparative approach between the National Anti-Doping Organisations (NADOs) of Germany (NADA) and Poland (POLADA), two consecutive data collection steps were applied in mixed-methods design to assess and compare the status quo, and to discuss the future development of athletes' participation in anti-doping through the lens of democratic processes in good governance research. First, document analysis showed important similarities and differences between the organisations' approaches to athletes' participation. Overall, NADA implements a more democratic and transparent approach than POLADA. Second, expert interviews revealed three key issues in relation to democratic forms of athletes' participation in the two NADOs: athletes' and their representatives' (limited) personal resources and engagement (individual); an adequate degree of codification and institutionalisation of athletes' representation on NADOs' internal bodies (organisational); and NADOs' operational (in-)dependence (political/systemic). Researchers and practitioners are recommended to further examine how NADOs' control functions over athletes and athletes' participation in their decision-making can be adequately balanced as part of aspirations to foster democratic governance in these organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an analysis of a short customer-vendor dialogue between a German couple and a Polish vendor at a food bazaar on the Polish border with Germany. In this situation, interactants have to negotiate and construct framings of hospitality abroad, customer-vendor relations, as well as intercultural relations. It is assumed that individuals hold their own subjective concepts of these three variables. Using tools from ethnomethodology's membership categorization analysis, this paper will delineate aspects of this constructionist process in which participants make use of concurrent and alternative framings to steer the interaction to a positive end for themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article concerns social relations in the estate villages of northern Germany between 1890 and 1923. It focuses primarily on the strategies adopted by seasonal labourers from Russian Poland in their relations with estate managements. Using police and union reports, and the letters and accounts of the migrants themselves, it argues that seasonal workers cannot simply be viewed as exploited, passive victims of this phase of agricultural modernization. This is evident, above all, in the practice of job-switching, which, although criminalized, was a widespread phenomenon both before 1914 and during the war, when the Poles were kept back as forced labour. Escaping estates to which they had been contracted, many workers outsmarted the system of registration by carrying multiple sets of identity papers. But such ‘contract breaking’ was also greatly facilitated by the endemic shortage of labour in the countryside; there were always some owners prepared to hire illegal fugitives. Examining the post-war years, the article also argues for a more nuanced understanding of relations between foreign and local workers. While most contemporary and historical accounts concentrate on social distance and mutual hostility between Germans and Poles, evidence from a number of different villages in the Mecklenburgs indicate that amicable relations and mutual cooperation were not uncommon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on materials in Polish archives and unpublished papers in the Hoover Institution, this article examines the question of Polish war-time collaboration with the Nazis by focusing on the actions of Władysław Studnicki and Leon Kozłowski, prominent members of the Polish pre-war political elite. These two biographies highlight the nature of contacts between Polish conservatives and German authorities. Studnicki's story demonstrates the futility of collaborationist initiatives in Poland due to Nazi indifference. Insinuations of collaboration against Kozłowski, a member of the pre-war government, reflected the tension between pro- and anti- Sanacja politicians. In the end, the actions of these two men demonstrate that in the absence of a 'Quisling' regime in Poland there was a sliding scale between 'collaboration' and 'co-operation'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

KRÄTKE S. (1999) Regional integration or fragmentation? The German-Polish border region in a new Europe, Reg. Studies 33, 631-641. This paper deals with the problems of regional economic integration in the German-Polish border area, focusing on the nature and intensity of cross-border inter-firm linkages. It firstly emphasizes the differentiation of regional development paths in East Central Europe, contrasting a 'high road' and a 'low road' to development. Then the problems of cross-border regional integration are discussed with regard to exogenous and endogenous influences. Exogenous influences on the development of the border region include the investment strategies of western firms in former East Germany and Poland. Endogenous influences include communication barriers and a 'low trust environment' which is rooted in the particular development history of this region. These factors help to explain why only weak and qualitatively 'low level' approaches to economic co-operation between regional firms on both sides of the border have emerged. KRÄTKE S. (1999) Intégration régionale ou morcellement?: la région frontalière entre l'Allemagne et la Polognè a l'heure européenne, Reg. Studies 33, 631-641. Cet article cherchè a aborder la question de l'intégration économique, régionale dans la zone frontalière entre l'Allemagne et la Pologne, portant sur les caractéristiques et l'importance des maillons interentreprises, transfrontaliers. Dans un premier temps, on souligne la différenciation entre les sentiers de croissance régionale dans l'est de l'Europe centrale, tout en comparant un 'sentier haut' à un 'sentier bas'. Dans un deuxième temps, on discute de la question de l'intégration régionale transfrontalière quant aux influences exogènes et endogènes. Les influences exogènes sont, parmi d'autres, les stratégies d'investissement des entreprises occidentales situées dans l'ex Allemagne de l'Est et la Pologne. Les influences endogènes comprennent les barrières à la communication et un 'milieu à faible investissement' lequel remontè a l'histoire particulière du développement de cette région. Ces facteurs aident à expliquer pourquoi il s'est fait jour des façons faibles et qualitativement 'de bas niveau' d'aborder la coopération économique entre les entreprises situées des deux côtés de la frontière. KRÄTKE S. (1999) Regionale Integration oder Zersplitterung? Das deutsch-polnische Grenzgebiet in einem neuen Europa, Reg. Studies 33, 631–641. Dieser Aufsatz befaßt sich mit den Problemen regionaler wirtschaftlicher Integration im deutsch-polnischen Grenzgebiet, wobei Natur und Intensität grenzüberschreitend miteinander verknüpfter Firmen in den Blickpunkt gerückt werden. Er betont zunächst die Unterschiede regionaler Entwicklungswege in Ostmitteleuropa, bei denen sich Wegge zur Entwicklung ‘von oben' und ‘von unten' gegenüberstehen. Dem folgt eine Diskussion der grenzüberschreitenden regionalen Integration im Hinblick auf exogene und endogene Einflüsse. Zu den exogenen Einflüssen auf die Entwicklung des Grenzgebiets gehören die Entwicklungsstrategien westlicher Firmen im ehemaligen Ostdeutschland und Polen, zu den endogenen die Kommunikationsschranken und ein ‘Milieu geringen Vertrauens', das seine Wurzeln in der besonderen Entwicklungsgeschichte der Region hat. Diese Faktoren tragen dazu bei, zu erklären, warum nur schwache, oder verhältnismäßig bescheidene Ansätze zu wirtschaftlicher Zusammenarbeit zwischen Firmen beiderseits der Grenze gemacht wurden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the transition of post-communist economies has long been aimed at the identification of obstacles to growth. The idea behind this article relates to the paradigm of the middle-income trap and its characteristics. We adopt this conceptual framework because the economic position of Poland is determined by the nature of global value chains, its geographical proximity to Germany and the inflow of foreign direct investments which sustain cost and efficiency advantages and foster technological dependence. We embark on an analysis of trade in high-tech goods with a particular emphasis placed on Polish-German relations in the most significant sectors: machinery, electrical and electronic equipment. The results show tendencies typical for the middle-income trap, which has particular implications for the development of the semi-peripheral Polish economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims. Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are prevalent in Europe but occurrence in primary care and the proportion of treated cases are understudied. This study reports prevalence of AUDs and their treatment in European primary health care settings and compares them with general population estimates.Procedure. We sampled 358 general practitioners (GPs, refusal rate: 56.4%) across six European countries (Germany, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Poland, and Spain) who assessed 13,003 patients including providing AUD diagnoses. A subsample of 8,476 patients (refusal rate: 17.8%) was interviewed subsequently, assessing DSM-IV AUD diagnoses via the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Final AUD diagnoses combined GP and patient interview information.Findings. Past year AUDs were prevalent with 11.8% (95% CI: 11.2–12.5%) across all regions, which is 1.6 times the European general population AUD estimate. Of those diagnosed with AUDs, 17.7% (95% CI: 15.4–20.0%) received professional help. Compared to general population estimates, AUDs and their treatment were more prevalent in primary care settings in most countries, with disproportionally high AUD rates in Italy and Spain and unexpectedly low AUD rates in Hungary.Conclusions. We found higher prevalence and treatment rates of AUDs in primary health care compared to general population surveys, with large variability between the observed countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: During the course of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), patients and their families are faced with existential decisions concerning life-prolonging and -shortening measures. Correct anticipation of patient's well-being and preferences is a prerequisite for patient-centered surrogate decision making. Methods: In Germany (N = 84), Poland (N = 77) and Sweden (N = 73) patient-caregiver dyads were interviewed. Standardized questionnaires on well-being (ADI-12 for depressiveness; ACSA for global quality of life) and wish for hastened death (SAHD) were used in ALS patients. Additionally, caregivers were asked to fill out the same questionnaires by anticipating patients' perspective (surrogate perspective). Results: Caregivers significantly underestimated patients' well-being in Germany and Poland. For Swedish caregivers, there were just as many who underestimated and overestimated well-being. The same was true for wish for hastened death in all three countries. For Swedish and Polish patients, caregivers' estimation of well-being was not even associated with patients' responses and the same was true for estimation of wish for hastened death in all three countries. Older caregivers and those with the most frequent encounter with the patient were the closest in their rating of well-being and wish for hastened death to the patients' actual state, while caregivers with chronic disease him/herself were more likely to underestimate patient's well-being. Discussion: Despite distinct cultural differences, there was a clear discrepancy between patients' and caregivers' perspective on patients' well-being and preferences towards life in all three countries. This possible bias in caregivers' judgment needs to be taken into account in surrogate decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the presented study was to explore the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the sustainability of school education by comparing Polish and German experiences in coping with the problems caused by the switch to emergency remote learning based on the school principals' opinions. A qualitative approach was used for data collection and analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 26 principals (13 from Poland and 13 from Germany). Thematic analysis was used to categorize the findings and to create themes and subthemes. The findings revealed that principals of both countries demonstrated clear positions for sustainable school functioning and proved their leadership competences to face the challenges of remote teaching during the pandemic. However, most of the participants reported issues regarding the organization and maintenance of sustainable e-learning, effective ICT integration and technological support. Both Polish and German school principals asserted, despite the lack of major institutional support, that their teaching staff managed to adapt quickly to the complex crisis conditions to mitigate the negative consequences of the COVID-19 on education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union also known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop or Hitler-Stalin pact that was signed on August 23, 1939. It mentions that the Soviet Union has saved 12 million people including two million Jews in Poland from Hitler's wrath due to Stalin's wise decision of signing the Soviet-German pact. It also discusses insights of several American Jewish Communists arguing the importance of the pact and denouncing imperialism.

As COVID-19 puts older people in long-term institutional care at the highest risk of infection and death, the need for home-based care has increased. Germany relies largely on migrant caregivers from Poland. Yet the pandemic-related mobility restrictions reveal the deficiencies of this transnational elder care system. This article asks if this system is resilient. In order to answer this question, the research team conducted interviews with 10 experts and randomly selected representatives of brokering and sending agencies in Germany and Poland. We interviewed 13 agencies in Germany and 15 in Poland on the agencies' characteristics, recruitment strategies, challenges of the pandemic, and impact of legal regulations in the sector. The analysis shows that the system could mobilize adaptive capacities and continue to deliver services, but its absorptive capacity is limited. To enhance resilience, policies working toward formalization and legalization of care services across national borders are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the trade relations between Poland Germany in the interwar period and after 1989. Trade interdependency between Poland and Germany; Trade structure and competitive patterns between the two countries; Intensity and patterns of Polish-German intraindustry specialization.

In this article, we look at the fissures in United Europe from both sides of the region where a post-Cold War 'Middle/Central Europe' should have been forged. How do leading German and Polish newspapers treat the categories of 'Central' or 'Middle' Europe relative to the concept of the Eastern–Western European divide and what are the discourses associated with these perspectives? At the time of a looming redefinition of the entire European project, what can media reports from Germany and Poland tell us about its future? We conclude that the media narratives in these two countries portend further tensions for European unity, since the new divisions now overlap the old ones. Our findings have implications for the future of democracy in the newly democratic countries of Central and Eastern Europe, including Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are a number of physical restrictions that develop in the course of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). While loss of speech and motor control may be partially compensated by the support of assistive devices, swallowing difficulty and respiratory insufficiency require medical interventions (percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy, noninvasive, and invasive ventilation). Based on the data collected within the NEEDSinALS study, we found major differences in personal satisfaction with the financing, healthcare provision, medical infrastructure, and regulations of German and Polish ALS patients, despite minor differences in economic burden caused by the disease. In order to explain this phenomenon, we thoroughly reviewed the legal basis, structure and organization of the healthcare systems in Germany and Poland to determine the range of obstacles in the everyday lives of patients and their caregivers that are attempting to attain an assistive device or care after the start of medical interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about the knowledge and use of technology-based interventions (TBIs) by health personnel working in the addiction field across Europe. Methods: An online questionnaire was designed using SurveyMonkey® in order to determine the level of knowledge, use and perceived efficacy of TBIs in substance use disorders (SUDs), among health professionals across six EU Member States: Germany, Italy, UK, France, Poland and the Netherlands. The survey was sent to a convenience sample of 1200 addiction experts. Results: Surveyed participants (311, response rate 26%), had a mean professional addiction experience of 17 years; 23% stated to have good knowledge of TBIs, while 12% use them in their clinical practice. Forty-six percent consider TBIs useful in the treatment of addiction, and 44% foresee a significant increase of them in the future. TBIs were considered important for people facing barriers to accessing treatment (63%) and for providing support outside the formal care settings (60%). Lack of technical support (48%), poor infrastructure and equipment (42%), and lack of digital literacy among health workers (38%) were identified as the main obstacles in the diffusion of TBIs. Conclusions: Knowledge and utilisation of TBIs among health workers in drug addiction field is low. Nevertheless, TBIs are perceived as a possible means of facilitation in providing access to treatment, and as therapeutic tools which will become more important in the future. The need to improve training policies, awareness and attitudes towards TBIs among EU health professionals, working in the field of addiction is paramount. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between pornography use and sexual behavior in young adults from two culturally different countries. Data were collected in an online survey among German (n = 1,303; G) and Polish (n = 1,135; P) university students aged 18 to 26 years. Pornography use was associated with engaging in a greater variety of sexual activities (e.g., sexual role playing, using sex toys; G > P) rather than with a high number of sex partners or condom use consistency. The differences between the samples were found primarily for females (in anal sex experience and age at the first sexual intercourse; G > P). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The objective of this study is to determine whether persons with neuropsychiatric disorders experience a common set of psychosocial difficulties using qualitative data from focus groups and individual interviews.Method: The study was performed in five European countries (Finland, Italy, Germany, Poland and Spain) using the focus groups and individual interviews with persons with nine neuropsychiatric disorders (dementia, depression, epilepsy, migraine, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, stroke and substance dependence). Digitally recorded sessions were analysed using a step-by-step qualitative and quantitative methodology resulting in the compilation of a common set of psychosocial difficulties using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) as a framework.Results: Sixty-seven persons participated in the study. Most persons with neuropsychiatric disorders experience difficulties in emotional functions, sleeping, carrying out daily routine, working and interpersonal relationships in common. Sixteen out of 33 psychosocial difficulties made up the common set. This set includes mental functions, pain and issues addressing activities and participation and provides first evidence for the hypothesis of horizontal epidemiology of psychosocial difficulties in neuropsychiatric disorders.Conclusions: This study provides information about psychosocial difficulties that should be covered in the treatment and rehabilitation of persons with neuropsychiatric disorders regardless of clinical diagnoses.Implications for RehabilitationEmotional problems, work and sleep problems should be addressed in all the treatments of neuropsychiatric disorders regardless of their specific diagnosis, etiology and severity.Personality issues should be targeted in the treatment for neurological disorders, whereas communication skill training may also be useful for mental disorders.The effects of medication and social environment on patient’s daily life should be considered in all the neuropsychiatric conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective:To compare speech reception thresholds (SRTs) in noise using matrix sentence tests in four languages: German, Spanish, Russian, Polish.Design:The four tests were composed of equivalent five-word sentences and were all designed and optimized using the same principles. Six stationary speech-shaped noises and three non-stationary noises were used as maskers.Study sample:Forty native listeners with normal hearing: 10 for each language.Results:SRTs were about 3 dB higher for the German and Spanish tests than for the Russian and Polish tests when stationary noise was used that matched the long-term frequency spectrum of the respective speech test materials. This general SRT difference was also observed for the other stationary noises. The within-test variability across noise conditions differed between languages. About 56% of the observed variance was predicted by the speech intelligibility index. The observed SRT benefit in fluctuating noise was similar for all tests, with a slightly smaller benefit for the Spanish test.Conclusions:Of the stationary noises employed, noise with the same spectrum as the speech yielded the best masking. SRT differences across languages and noises could be attributed in part to spectral differences. These findings provide the feasibility and limits of comparing audiological results across languages. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article centralises a unique collection of ego documents created under Communism in which Polish former child forced labourers articulate their war experiences. A comparative analysis of them with recent testimonies reveals that these ego documents offer a more nuanced depiction of Germans and display richer information on the specific working conditions and daily routine for children than the contemporary ones. A comparative reading of the archival testimonies with their published equivalents shows how the streamlining of a publicly acceptable version of the past under Communism went both ways, that is, at times foregrounding the propaganda content of autobiographical wordings, but also at other moments downplaying this element. The collection increases our understanding of child forced labour experiences during the Second World War, specifically the ways in which children perceived that experience, and offers insights into the negotiated appropriation of Communist ideology at the individual level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article is an in-depth exploration of local efforts to build a transnational sense of cultural citizenship in the border cities of Frankfurt(Oder), Germany and Słubice, Poland. Based on ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2004 and 2006, this article focuses on the various strategies and activities of ‘Słubfurt’, a community-based NGO with the goal of redefining Słubice and Frankfurt(Oder) as a unified social space. In pursuing this goal, Słubfurt engages with European Union-wide social and political dynamics aimed at enhancing international cooperation and integration by de-emphasizing national borders and promoting a transnational sense of ‘European’ identity. This article therefore addresses the interplay between local cultural politics and the tactics and techniques of supranational forms of governmentality, and examines attempts to establish new symbols, events, practices and traditions that support the development of a cross-border community identity and cultural citizenship within the two cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses cross-border development, institutional setting and modes of spatial governance in the Oderpartnership, a new and progressing initiative between Germany and Poland. The analysis, using the ‘governance approach’, shows new structures and decision procedures as well as on-going deficits in stakeholder involvement, and misfits in both territorial governance and between territorial and functional governance. The comparison of the results with activities in the European region CENTROPE (Central European Region) gives rise to suggestions for future developments of institutional structures and governance. The article is based on an empirical study by Chinalski ( 2010 ), supplemented by the analysis of political statements and planning documents, and the discussions of a working group of the German Academy of Spatial Research and Regional Planning (ARL). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article argues that the harmonisation of national memories facilitates genuine reconciliation, while memory divergence resulting from national mythmaking hampers reconciliation. After World War II, Sino-Japanese and West German-Polish relations were antagonised by the Cold War structure, and pernicious myths prevailed in national collective memory. Then China and Japan brushed aside historical legacy for immediate diplomatic normalisation, but their reconciliation was impeded by elite mythmaking practices. Since the 1970s West Germany and Poland have de-mythified war history and engaged in historical settlement, paving the way for deep reconciliation after the Cold War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. The symptom checklist SCL-27 is a short, multidimensional screening instrument for mental health problems. It contains six scales: depressive, dysthymic, vegetative, agoraphobic and sociophobic symptoms; symptoms of mistrust; and a global severity index (GSI-27). Methods. A survey of two student samples from Poland and Germany ( n ∼∼ 400) is presented. Results. Most scales of the SCL-27 showed good to satisfactory reliability (i.e. Cronbach's αα > 0.70). Some items displayed different characteristics in students than in non-student samples. These discrepancies can be explained partly by the particular situation students face and partly by some country-specific or language-specific aspects of the measuring instrument. Differences between Polish and German students were marginal at best; in general, the Polish students tended to assent more easily to the items of the SCL-27 than did the German students. Conclusions. The SCL-27 is suitable for international comparisons. In both, Germany and Poland, students display a characteristic response pattern that differs from those of other samples. It can be applied as a separate instrument or for reanalysis of data collected with the SCL-90_R. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Germany, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic have always been loyal members of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP). Yet they have never shown enthusiasm for it or displayed noteworthy activism within a co-operation framework that is perceived by their foreign policy elite as a necessary concession to southern EU member states in order to secure the latter's support for continuing pro-active EU engagement in eastern Europe. With this in mind, this study provides a comparative analysis of the foreign policy of Germany, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic toward the southern Mediterranean and discusses in particular the different responses of their governing, economic and societal elites to plans to create a Mediterranean Union (UM). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines how Dortmund police dealt with the dilemma of providing for both a 'time to make friends' and security at the high-risk game between Germany and Poland during the World Cup 2006. It was expected that the application of a friendly but firm low profile approach would establish positive group relations and marginalize disorderly behaviour. Data collection was carried out in real time on policing strategy and tactics and fan psychology, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Specifically, the study compares two incidents that occurred in the city centre on match day, resulting in more than 400 arrests. Findings suggest that a successful event is not only related to the absence of disorder but a matter of facilitating legitimate behaviour, while a concentration on risk fans bears the danger of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. The role of preventive arrests and media reports are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article will analyse the challenges facing the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) through an evaluation of the impact that differing member state strategic cultures have on the EU Battlegroup Concept, highlighted through the examples of Germany and Poland. The concept was initiated to give the EU an increased rapid reaction capacity. However, as emphasised through the cases of Germany and Poland, divergences in EU member states' strategic cultures remain, including when, where and how force is used. When this is combined with the cost of plugging military capabilities' gaps, the political willingness to deploy a Battlegroup can be affected. Whilst the article highlights that the role that member states want to play within CSDP as well as international expectations can override constraining factors, the Battlegroups rely on a rotation system. As some member states are more willing to deploy the Battlegroups than others, the concept risks becoming a declaratory policy thus undermining CSDP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The January 1933 appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany marked the beginning of the end of the fragile post-war peace throughout Europe. The Polish leadership had good reason to fear his threats of revising the Treaty of Versailles. Realising that Hitler was too dangerous to remain in power, the Polish leadership led by Marshal Jozef Piłsudski prepared for a preventive war against Germany. Unfortunately, the appeasement policy among the Western Powers condemned this plan to failure and forced Poland into signing a non-aggression pact with Germany in 1934; thus dooming Poland's existence. To test his premonitions about Hitler, Piłsudski created several international “incidents” concerning the Free City of Danzig, designed to test both Germany and whether the Western Powers would fight to uphold the Treaty of Versailles. Piłsudski's efforts offer proof that Poland deserves more credit for its determination to deal with a rising tide of Nazi Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European University Viadrina located on the German-Polish border, with a high number of international students, was founded to promote the 'growing-together' of Europe. Despite those aims, it is becoming more evident that international institutions must develop special strategies to sensitize their members on an intercultural level and to encourage intercultural communication. The case of Viadrina University serves as example of how a course programme can be created in order to promote intercultural competence. One of the programme's main aims is to give students the possibility of experiencing, discovering and discussing the diversity of values and worldviews in special workshops. Today, the training programme, which at first had not been considered necessary by many university employees, has turned into a success story which can be transferred to other international academic institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The larva, nymphal stages and adult of Hydrozetes longisetosus sp. nov. are described and illustrated, and the relationship of this species with the other European species of Hydrozetes is investigated. This species was first found at the edge of a forest lake, Dury 3, in the Tuchola Forest (Poland). Subsequently, we studied specimens that had been collected in 1976 by Dr H.M. Engelmann 40 km north of Gorlitz Niederspree (Germany). Many adults of this species have three setae of the c-series, which is rare in Hydrozetes and is considered a primitive character. Most adults have two pairs of p-series setae, which is not common in Brachypylina and is unique among European Hydrozetes. The nymphal stages have many long setae in the marginal part of the gastronotum (whole l- and h-series and seta p 1), and some or all long setae of the c- and d-series, which is unique among European Hydrozetes. In H. longisetosus neotrichy occurs in the h-series, as in H. parisiensis Grandjean, 1948. Therefore, the former species is closely related to the latter, and also to H. lacustris (Michael, 1882) and H. octosetosus Willmann, 1932, which rarely retain all the c-series setae in the adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the impact of the bilateral Polish-German migration regulations on patterns of Polish migration to Germany. A shift is revealed from the long-term, legal settlement of the Post War period to an increase in commuter migration of both legal and undocumented migrants since the 1990s. Included are two cases of migrant women from Poland that exemplify and explore the interface between migration policies and migrants' individual decisions. Migration policies constitute an opportunity structure for individual migrants which is modified by socioeconomic, gender and political relations. The two cases illustrate the discrepancies between the intended effect of migration policies and the actual strategies that migrants employ, which is largely reliant on the migrant's individual choices and social networks. Upon examination of how migration policies shape migration and integration patterns, it becomes clear that restrictive migration policies, intended to prevent people from migrating, rather have the effect of pushing migrants into insecure circumstance and hampering their integration. Under scrutiny, integration policies are shown to be less able to achieve their intended effect when faced with insufficient intercultural competence of the relevant host country institutions and a lack of gender specific integration measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The troubled, historical relationship between Russia, Poland and Germany is revealed in their struggles for dominance over borderland territories. Berlin, Moscow and Warsaw boast scars left by dynastic wars and cultural skirmishes between these nations before 1914. The final Partition of Poland (1795), making Warsaw the third largest city in the Russian empire, and its destruction in 1944-5, epitomise their deadly rivalry. WWI was a watershed: Imperialism and the belle epoque in architecture were replaced by socialism and modernism; the urban working class demanded security against a system founded on the 'callous cash nexus'. This socialist phase was, like its predecessor, memorialised in monuments and statues, buildings, architecture and urban design. The fall of the Berlin Wall symbolised the opening of the era of choice, quintessentially expressed in the Mallification of public spaces. The concomitant of choice is risk, whose antidote may not be sought in class-based actions but in pre-socialist, nationalist narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

East Germany's 1989–90 democratisation is among the best known of East European transitions, but does not lend itself to comparative analysis, due to the singular way in which political reform and democratic consolidation were subsumed by Germany's unification process. Yet aspects of East Germany's democratisation have proved amenable to comparative approaches. This article reviews the comparative literature that refers to East Germany, and finds a schism between those who designate East Germany's transition “regime collapse” and others who contend that it exemplifies “transition through extrication”. It inquires into the merits of each position and finds in favour of the latter. Drawing on primary and secondary literature, as well as archival and interview sources, it portrays a communist elite that was, to a large extent, prepared to adapt to changing circumstances and capable of learning from “reference states” such as Poland. Although East Germany was the Soviet state in which the positions of existing elites were most threatened by democratic transition, here too a surprising number succeeded in maintaining their position while filing across the bridge to market society. A concluding section outlines the alchemy through which their bureaucratic power was transmuted into property and influence in the “new Germany”. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article serves as an introduction to this special issue as well as a self-standing contribution. Using the lens of technology, we situate European integration (typically viewed as a political process) as an emergent outcome of a process of linking and delinking of infrastructures, as well as the circulation and appropriation of artefacts, systems and knowledge. These processes carried, shaped, flagged, and helped to maintain a sense of Europeanness, bringing out tensions in Europe and tensions about Europe. We call this ‘hidden integration.’ Yet the story of integration does not point to a seamless and inevitable process, a grand project with a set agenda. Instead it was a contested process throughout the 20th century leading to fragmentation as well as to integration. Our approach is contrasted with standard interpretations of European integration that treat European integration as an episode in international relations between nation-states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bell's well-known assumption that the nation-state is becoming too small for the big problems of life and too big for the small problems of life, has become commonplace in the contemporary debate on the nation-state in a global age. Against the background of the upcoming EU East-enlargement, the article investigates some of the environmental policy implications behind this catchphrase. Drawing on Beck's thesis of an 'unbinding of politics' it is argued that a globalizing civil society continues to be embedded across various cultural and regulatory spaces. Attempts to (re)vitalize bottom-up policy input therefore require special attention to the dynamics of regional culture and local society, where the political and the sub-political actually intersect. This, however, is not an argument for a crude bottom-up model of governance, but rather a refined understanding of multi-level governance. The argument is supported by case study material form the German--Polish border region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Germany has become one of Poland's most favoured international partners. The public perception not only sees Germany as the most desirable partner for political cooperation and economic contacts but also regarding military relations Germany ranges high on the list of preferable partners. This classification in public opinion, however, is less the result of a special love for the western neighbour but rather stems from a sober assessment of cooperation potentials and the situation of European interests. It also contrasts with views of large majority of Polish political elite which orients itself towards the U.S.

Investigates the socio-cultural closure between border communities particularly in the German-Polish twin-city Guben-Gubin. Description of the German-Polish border region; Details on narratives from three borderlanders from the twin city; Conclusion.