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This paper examines the congruity between mothers' preferences and actual experiences when raising preschool children, using data on mothers of reproductive ages (18-49) from the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) (1994, 2002, and 2012). The findings show that (i) with one exception, in all the countries and years, mothers whose preferences were congruent with their actual employment statuses outnumbered those whose preferences and employment statuses were incongruent; (ii) whereas Czech mothers improved their situations during the period (the congruity increases), Polish mothers - who began the period with the highest congruity - experienced a decrease in congruity, while Hungarian mothers showed the lowest congruity and saw a slight improvement in their situations (they achieved more congruity); and (iii) women who had their children during the communist regimes were more likely to experience incongruity because they worked more than they desired to, while women who became mothers during the post-communist period were more likely to experience congruity when they stayed at home, but they were also more likely to experience incongruity because they were inactive and considered working desirable. Therefore, the results confirm similar trends and diverging paths among the three countries. The high degree of incongruity between preferences and actual experiences is a sign of the problems faced by mothers attempting to reconcile work and family life and also impacts other phenomena, such as female employment, gender equality and fertility.

The power of individual EU Member States has been changing over the past decades as a result of revisions to the voting systems and the enlargements of the European Union. The present article analyses the development of the voting power of individual Member States in the Council of the European Union before and after the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union. We use the calculation of the standardized Banzhaf power index to calculate the legislative power of the Member States. The calculations recorded in the table point to changes in the weights of national votes caused by Brexit. The article pays special attention to the Visegrad Group, which we define within the European Union as an informal group consisting of four Central European states - the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and the Slovak Republic. The results indicate a significant growth of the voting power in Poland and more moderate growth in the other three Visegrad Group countries which contributes to the shift in the voting equilibrium within the ordinary legislative procedure of the European Union.

Diese Studie konzentrierte sich auf die Bewertung der Recyclingfähigkeit von Verpackungen in Australien und der Tschechischen Republik, indem sie die Abfallsammlung, die Trennung, die Recyclinginfrastruktur und die Gesetzgebung in diesen Ländern untersuchte. Die primäre Forschungsfrage war die Recyclingfähigkeit spezifischer Verpackungsmaterialien in beiden Ländern, während die sekundären Forschungsfragen die Entsorgungsmethoden für Verpackungen, die Sammelverfahren, die Materialtrennung, die Recyclingverfahren und die Recyclingraten untersuchten. Die Studie nutzte einen Mix aus verschiedenen Ansätzen, einschließlich Literaturrecherche, Datenanalyse und Experteninterviews, um Informationen über die Recyclingfähigkeit von Verpackungen zu sammeln. Die gesammelten Daten zur Recycling-Infrastruktur wurden in die Software Packaging Cockpit (PACO) implementiert, um die technische Recyclingfähigkeit von Verpackungssystemen in Australien und der Tschechischen Republik zu berechnen. Um die Daten zu validieren, wurden vier Verpackungsarten mit PACO getestet und die Ergebnisse analysiert und verglichen. Die Studie ergab, dass beide Länder über eine funktionierende Recycling-Infrastruktur für Papier, Aluminium, Glas, PE starr, PP starr und PET blasgeformt verfügen. Für Materialien wie flexibles PS, Hart- und Weich-PVC sowie flexibles PET gibt es jedoch an beiden Standorten keine Recyclingsysteme. Bemerkenswerte Unterschiede ergaben sich bei der Verwertbarkeit bestimmter Materialien. So werden in der Tschechischen Republik Getränkekartons aus Verbundstoffen recycelt, in Australien hingegen nicht. Ähnlich verhält es sich mit PS starr und PE flexibel, die in beiden Ländern vor ähnlichen Herausforderungen stehen. Im Gegensatz dazu unterliegt das Recycling von Weißblech in der Tschechischen Republik Beschränkungen, während es in Australien gut etabliert ist. Australien arbeitet aktiv am Aufbau einer Recycling-Infrastruktur für PE flexible, PP flexible und PET thermogeformte Materialien, was auf ein Engagement zur Erweiterung der Recyclingkapazitäten hinweist. Die Resultate dieser Studie sind von großer Relevanz für zentrale Stakeholder der Wertschöpfungskette von Verpackungen, wie beispielsweise politische Entscheidungsträger, Verpackungshersteller, Abfallwirtschaftsbehörden oder auch Verbraucher. Sie bieten wichtige Einsichten in unterschiedliche nationale Gegebenheiten der Recyclingfähigkeit und zeigen Strategien auf, um die Recyclingquoten zu verbessern, Abfall zu reduzieren und nachhaltige Verpackungspraktiken zu fördern. Die Studie unterstreicht die Bedeutung einer Kreislaufwirtschaft, die Verringerung der Umweltauswirkungen und die Schaffung eines effizienten und effektiven Recyclingsystems, um Ressourcen zu erhalten und die Umweltverschmutzung zu verringern. Es wird auf die Einschränkungen hingewiesen, auf die man bei der Untersuchung gestoßen ist, wie z. B. die begrenzte Resonanz von Kunststoffrecyclingunternehmen und der Mangel an relevanten wissenschaftlichen Artikeln. Zu den Empfehlungen für künftige Forschungsarbeiten gehören die Aktualisierung der Recyclingströme entsprechend der Entwicklung der Recyclingkapazitäten der Länder und die Beobachtung der Marktnachfrage nach recycelten Materialien. This study focused on assessing the recyclability of packaging in Australia and the Czech Republic by examining waste collection, separation, recycling infrastructure, and legislation in these countries. The primary research question addressed was the recyclability of specific packaging materials in both countries, while secondary research questions explored packaging disposal methods, collection processes, materials separation, recycling processes, and recycling rates. The study utilized a mix of approaches, including literature review, data analysis, and expert interviews, to gather information on packaging recyclability. The collected recycling infrastructure data was implemented in the Packaging Cockpit (PACO) software to calculate the technical recyclability of packaging systems in Australia and the Czech Republic. To validate the data, four packaging types were tested using PACO, and the results were analyzed and compared. The study revealed that both countries have functional recycling infrastructure for paper, aluminum, glass, PE rigid, PP rigid, and PET blow molded items. However, materials like flexible PS, rigid and flexible PVC, and flexible PET lack recycling systems in both locations. Notable differences arose regarding the recyclability of certain materials. For instance, the Czech Republic recycles composite beverage cartons, while Australia does not. Similarly, PS rigid and PE flexible face similar challenges in both countries. In contrast, tinplate recycling has restrictions in the Czech Republic but is well-established in Australia. Australia is actively working on establishing recycling infrastructure for PE flexible, PP flexible, and PET thermoformed materials, indicating a commitment to expand recycling capabilities. The findings of this study have significant implications for policymakers, packaging manufacturers, waste management authorities, and consumers, providing insights into recyclability and informing strategies to improve recycling rates, reduce waste, and promote sustainable packaging practices. The study emphasizes the importance of a circular economy, reducing environmental impact, and creating an efficient and effective recycling system to conserve resources and mitigate pollution. The limitations encountered during the research are acknowledged, such as the limited response from plastic recycling companies and the scarcity of relevant scientific articles. Recommendations for future research include updating recycling streams as countries' recycling capabilities evolve and monitoring market demand for recycled materials. Abweichender Titel laut Übersetzung der Verfasserin/des Verfassers Masterarbeit Wien, FH Campus Wien 2023

Regional parliaments have only limited formal possibilities to engage in the European Union’s (EU’s) multi-level system of governance. Our paper focuses on networking activities of regional members of parliaments (MPs) as informal attempts to make agency claims and as a main driver for perceived collective agency. We employ a relational perspective, taking into account the various stakeholders and environments which regional parliaments have to deal with in the EU. Engaging in such networks can enhance collective agency since such activity is linked to recognition and can open doors to new resources and networks. We use data from a survey of regional deputies in Austria, Germany, Spain, and the Czech Republic to investigate these associations. The results point to the importance of such activities for the perceived influence of regional parliaments on political decision-making in the region and for perceptions about the future role of regions in the EU. Contacts with European actors prove to be crucial in this respect since they can lead to new, agency-enhancing contacts and resources., Historical Social Research Vol. 48, No. 3 (2023)

In this article, issues of loneliness and exclusion from social relations in old age are examined from the perspective of older men and women. Our focus is on sources of loneliness they themselves perceive and what strategies they use to cope with it. Twenty‐nine interviews with older adults at risk of loneliness in the Czech Republic and their models of social convoys are analyzed. Surprisingly small gender differences in feelings of loneliness are found. A major source of loneliness for both men and women is the loss of a life partner. Perceptions of loneliness and the shape of social networks differ substantially in the case of lifelong singles and childless people. A second significant source for feelings of loneliness includes unsatisfactory relationships with close family. Based on the participants’ accounts, three strategies for coping with loneliness are identified.

According to the Framework Education Programme for Elementary Education in the Czech Republic, part of Health Education is nutrition and food intake, including the drinking regimen. This paper���s objective is to analyse that using the results of two extensive curricular studies performed at the Faculty of Education, Palack�� University Olomouc. Both studies used data from representative samples of pupils in grade nine from elementary schools in the Czech Republic. The research instruments were designed according to applicable documents of the state-level implemented curriculum and showed good reliability. The results of the subjective evaluation of the implemented curriculum in health education suggest that in the area ���healthy lifestyle and health care���, the subtopic ���nutrition and health ��� healthy diet principles, drinking regimen, eating disorders��� was most dominant. The testing of the level of the adopted curriculum regarding fluid intake revealed a problematic level of pupils��� knowledge (the average percentage of task achievement was around 46%). Conclusions and recommendations for practice: nutrition and food intake (including the drinking regimen) is a very important topic in health education in elementary education in the Czech Republic, which is consistent with other research studies. However, the cognitive dimension of the pupils��� curriculum is inadequate. Qualitatively and quantitatively, the recommended drinking regimen may support natural health determinants, while an inappropriate or insufficient regimen may result in medical complications. The issue of adequate nutrition and diet and drinking regime must be taught by professionally and didactically competent teachers. Students should not only be taught cognitively, but their affective and behavioural abilities should also be formed. (DIPF/Orig.)

The study estimates the size of the gender pay gap (GPG) for the Czech Republic in the years 2006-2017 using data from the EU-SILC survey. The size of the GPG (and the related variables) remains relatively time-invariant with a statistically weak relation to the business cycle. Using the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition, we found out that the unexplained part of the GPG amounts to 50% of the whole GPG (on average) and only one third of the GPG is caused by an endowment effect or an interaction between the endowment effect and the coefficient effect. Selection bias plays a statistically insignificant role in terms of the GPG formation and explanation. Parenthood is the most important driver of the GPG. For parents, the GPG is about 30 percentage points higher than the one for non-parents. Women are able to narrow the GPG created by the effect of motherhood and reach original unexplained levels of approximately 15% after reaching the age of 50 and higher. Besides parenthood, there is no other demographic characteristic that has any substantial impact on the formation and persistence of the GPG. The GPG is most pronounced for the lowest- and the highest-earning quantiles, indicating the existence of a glass ceiling and a sticky floor on the Czech labour market.

Objective: We test whether real online-user mating behavior corresponds with expectations from both the sociobiological and social perspectives and explore the age differentials that individuals opt for when searching for a mate and how this evolves relative to the user’s age and gender. Background: Age plays a vital role in partner choice. Previous studies have focused primarily on age differences between couples and their self-reported preferences for partners of a certain age. However, little is known about how age affects behavior in the online dating market. Method: We use behavioral data from a Czech online dating app, Pinkilin and analyze 197,519 invitations that users sent to each other in July 2017. Results: Men strongly prefer young women, and women prefer partners of their age or slightly older. At older ages, men’s preference for younger women widens, while women's preferences become more diverse. Homogamous tendencies are stronger among younger users and women. Conclusion: Overall, our results corroborate those of previous research on online dating, but we extend this research in terms of age differences in the Czech context.

Attitudes towards migrants and refugees are created and reflected at the level of public policies, as well as in local communities which cultivate traditional approaches and a specific worldview. The refugee crisis in Europe in the mid-2010s showed how public opinion translated into voting behaviour and became a source of strength for nationalist anti-immigrant movements and parties across the continent. East-Central Europe was no exception, regardless of the absence of a long-term, massive inflow of refugees. Nevertheless, the migration crisis created a new political narrative which exploited deeply rooted resentments, complexes, and fears. This article aims to analyse the official policy responses to the refugee crisis in the four East-Central European countries: Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic, which together constitute the so-called Visegrad Four. It puts the emphasis on the discriminatory practice of misnaming the refugees, which became deeply anchored in the political discourse of these countries. Based on a qualitative content analysis supplemented by the findings of public opinion polls, the argument developed in the article is that reluctant and defensive attitudes towards the refugees have been determined by the revival of parochialism as a radical reaction to the challenges of global trends and supra-local processes. The theoretical framing of the refugee problem is built on politicization, in connection with the concept of parochialism, seen from political and social perspectives, and the meaning of the use of the misnomer as a policy instrument. The article concludes that the migration crisis petrified traditional cleavages at the supra-local level, reinforcing simultaneously the sense of parochial altruism and hostility towards “the other.”

Today Russia has difficulty doing business-as-usual with EU states. It seems that the countries of the Visegrad Group (V4) and the Baltic Assembly/Baltic Council of Ministers (BA/BСM) have contributed substantially to this state of affairs. Overall, the tensions between Russia and the EU are building up — another tendency that did not arise on the Russian initiative. This article aims to address the question of whether Russia should establish direct relations with the V4 and the BA/BCM as tools to overcome the mentioned difficulties. On the one hand, these associations date back to before the countries acceded to the Union. On the other, they are products of regionalisation in the EU. In answering this question, we achieve three objectives. Firstly, we look for an appropriate theoretical and methodological framework for the study. Secondly, we produce a comparative description of the V4 and the BA/BCM. Thirdly, we examine the capacity of these associations to pursue an independent foreign and domestic policy. This study uses a comparison method to analyse the activities of the two organisations and identify their significance for the EU.

Using data from a 2017 survey of Czech academics this article examines the casualisation of working conditions in the Czech academic labour market (ALM) and explores gender, sectoral, and institutional inequalities through the lens of the theory of labour market segmentation. A hierarchical cluster analysis reveals three segments in the Czech ALM: core (40%), periphery (28%), and semi‐periphery (32%), which roughly align with work positions in the early, middle, and senior stages of an academic career. In the semi‐periphery gender is found to be a key factor in in determining working conditions, while in the periphery working conditions are most affected by the type of institution. In the core, gender differences are mainly reflected in the gender wage gap. The effects of casualisation on working conditions are found to be more pronounced in STEM fields than in the social sciences and humanities across the ALM, but wages are generally higher in STEM fields.

This mixed‐methods article focuses on childlessness and barriers to parenthood among non‐heterosexual men in Czechia. On the quantitative sample of 419 men (165 gays, 125 bisexuals, and 129 heterosexuals with same‐sex romantic/sexual attraction), recruited on a representative online panel, we map the parenting desires, intentions, and perceived barriers to parenthood. Our analysis identifies a substantial group of gay men without parenting desires and intentions compared to heterosexuals and bisexuals, and the lack of legal recognition of same‐sex families as a crucial barrier to gay parenthood. The qualitative enquiry, based on semi‐structured interviews with 23 self‐identified gay men aged 25 to 47 years, explores how they reflect on (not) becoming parents and contextualises those reflections. The deployed concept of “parental consciousness” captures the variety of considered pathways to gay parenthood and proves itself useful in understanding the low parenting desires and a generational shift among Czech gay men. We argue that men able to come out in their early adulthood in the post‐socialist context tend to have more diversified perspectives on possible pathways to parenthood. Among gaymen without children, we identified three distinct perceptions of the state: given childlessness, chosen childfree life, and a life stage/indecision. The informants pursuing parenthood have seen identity‐specific barriers to parenthood as crucial, which is discussed in the context of state selective regulations of the relational lives of persons with non‐normative identities. Although Czech gay men’s parental consciousness has increased, legal conditions remain crucial for increasing their real‐life options.

Warum haben die slowakische und die litauische Regierung der monetären Integration Priorität eingeräumt, während die tschechische und die polnische Regierung die monetäre Autonomie ihrer Länder unterstützten, als sie ihre Präferenzen für den Beitritt zur Eurozone formulierten? Warum halten die litauische und die polnische Regierung die Wirtschaftssanktionen gegen Russland für ein wirksames Instrument der EU-Außenpolitik, während die tschechische und die slowakische Regierung der Wirksamkeit dieser Sanktionen zurückhaltend gegenüberstehen? Um die obigen empirischen Rätsel zu lösen, wird der Societal Approach von Stefan Schirm verwendet. Somit zeigt dieses Dissertationsprojekt, dass erstens die unterschiedlichen Präferenzen der untersuchten Regierungen auf unterschiedliche gesellschaftliche Ideen und Interessen zurückzuführen sind. Zweitens spezifiziert es die Bedingungen für den individuellen Einfluss wertgestützter Ideen oder materieller Interessen auf die Regierungspräferenz. Why did the Slovak and Lithuanian governments prioritize monetary integration while the Czech and Polish governments support their countries’ monetary autonomy when formulating their preferences on Eurozone accession? Why do the Lithuanian and Polish governments believe the economic sanctions against Russia to be an effective instrument of EU foreign policy, while the Czech and Slovak governments hold a restrained position towards these sanctions’ effectiveness? In order to resolve the above empirical puzzles, the societal approach to governmental preference formation by Stefan Schirm is employed. In applying the societal approach, this dissertation project fulfils two goals. First, it demonstrates that the variation of preferences among the governments under scrutiny stems from divergent societal ideas and interests. Second, it specifies the conditions for either value-based ideas’ or material interests’ individual bearing on the governmental preference.

PurposeThe authors aim to demonstrate the impact of allowing for unequal intra-household distribution of resources on income poverty and income inequality.Design/methodology/approachThe paper applies a collective consumption model to study the intra-household distribution of resources in Visegrád countries (V4). It utilises subjective financial satisfaction as a proxy for indirect utility from individual consumption to estimate the indifference scales within couples instead of the traditional equivalence scale. The European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) 2013 and 2018 data are applied.FindingsThis study’s results indicate substantial economies of scale from living in a couple that are generally higher than implied by the commonly applied equivalence scale. The sharing rule estimates suggest that at the mean of distribution factors, women receive a consumption share between 0.4 and 0.6; however, some of the results are close to an equal sharing of 0.5. The female consumption share rises with her contribution to household income. Regarding income poverty and inequality, the authors show that both these measures might be underestimated in the traditional approach to equal sharing of resources.Originality/valueThe authors add to the empirics by estimating indifference scales for Czechia (CZ), Hungary (HU), Poland (PL) and Slovakia (SK), countries that have not been involved in previous research.

The article investigates long-term trends in the work ethic in the Czech Republic and Slovakia from the perspective of modernisation theory. In particular, it examines whether the work ethic in the two culturally similar societies decreased during the years of growing material prosperity and whether this trend originated in intergenerational population replacement. The study uses data from three pooled waves of the European Values Study (EVS) covering the period 1999-2017 to which it applies the linear decomposition technique and multivariate statistical analysis. The results show that, even though the work ethic decreased in the Czech Republic and increased in Slovakia, intergenerational population replacement contributed to its weakening in both countries. Furthermore, the results indicate that the reason this process dominated the overall trend in the Czech Republic but not that in Slovakia may be the historical differences in levels of socioeconomic development and the different paces of population replacement. Finally, tentative evidence in favour of modernisation theory is presented, indicating that population replacement universally contributed to a decrease in the work ethic in all the other European countries with comparable EVS data. publishedVersion

Fundamental aspects of human existence such as birth and death are at the core of our values and profoundly sensitive to our religious beliefs, our ideals as a society, and our opinions on the extent to which individuals may interfere in these basic life issues. This article analyses the factors that explain people's attitudes towards key beginning- and end-of-life issues. To do this, we first tracked variations across two points in time, and then looked at the effects of value orientations and socio-demographic factors in comparative perspective across countries. Based on previous literature, we consider justification for euthanasia, abortion, and in vitro fertilisation as a latent variable using European Value Study data from the 2008 and 2017 waves. Five European societies were analysed: Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and Russia. All the countries observed showed growing levels of justification for these practices, although significant differences were found in the value orientation effects and respondents´ background variables on attitudes towards life and death issues. In order to properly address comparability, multi-group confirmatory factor analyses across countries and across waves were conducted, and measurement invariance tested. From our analyses, we can conclude that age and religiosity, alongside other sociodemographic variables, are important explanatory factors in the justification of life and death issues in all the countries examined; however, value orientations show less conclusive effects on such attitudes.

This theoretical study deals with interconnecting learning tasks of art education with the parent discipline of art education (that is, with the artistic field as defined by Pierre Bourdieu, 1996), while reflecting on the quality of art lessons in the Czech Republic. The authors draw on current theoretical and empirical research of quality that identifies individual quality factors. The most salient factors are the connection with the artistic field and the resulting ability of conceptual integration, together with curricular normativity, the intentional work of the teacher with educational content, characteristics of teaching such as the support of divergence, creative approaches, associativity, imagination, reflection, searching for intersections between pupils’ experience and the content of the subject, etc. The text also emphasises the fact that judgement on the quality of learning tasks should be based only on ontological-didactic and psychological-didactic aspects. The former relate to the cultural and artistic context of learning tasks, that is, the current values in the field of visual culture and the artistic field, while the latter consider the personal characteristics of each and every pupil.

Populism and technocracy reject vertical accountability and horizontal accountability. Populism and technocracy can combine to form ‘technocratic populism.’ The study assesses the extent to which democratic decay can be traced to the actions of technocratic populists as opposed to institutional factors, civil society, fragmentation and polarization. The main findings of this article are that technocratic populism has illiberal tendencies expressed best in its efforts at executive aggrandizement (cf. Bermeo, 2016). Without an effective bulwark against democratic erosion (cf. Bernhard, 2015), technocratic populism tends to undermine electoral competition (vertical accountability), judiciary independence, legislative oversight (horizontal accountability), and freedom of the press (diagonal accountability). The most effective checks on technocratic populist in power, this study finds, are the courts, free media, and civil society. This article highlights the mechanisms of democratic decay and democratic resilience beyond electoral politics. It indicates that a combination of institutional veto points and civil society agency is necessary to prevent democratic erosion (cf. Weyland, 2020). While active civil society can prevent democratic erosion, it cannot reverse it. Ultimately, the future of liberal democracy depends on the people’s willingness to defend it in the streets AND at the ballot box.

In the paper, we understand social capital as a variable that affects the quality of life. A variable whose change affects another variable is called a predictor. The paper is based on Putnam’s understanding of social capital with the dimensions of trust, norms and networks. Trust is considered the most important dimension, and for the purposes of the paper social capital is identified with trust. Quality of life is a holistic concept with two dimensions expressing an assessment of satisfaction with life. After society became richer—in the 1960’s in the West and, after the collapse of the bipolar world, also in Central and Eastern Europe—the need for quantity was replaced by the need for quality. The paper is focused on Czechia, with social capital as a predictor of quality of life being investigated geographically at the level of districts. According to the research hypothesis, social capital will have a strong influence on the quality of life of residents in Czechia, i.e., it will be its predictor. To test the validity of the research hypothesis, research was conducted. The aim of the paper is to outline the epistemology of social capital from the aspect of quality of life, description of quality of life and then to test the validity of the research hypothesis by measurements. The result of the quantification of social capital and quality of life at the level of districts and their correlation is important from an epistemological point of view for two reasons. The first is to question the generally accepted premise of the position of social capital as a strong predictor of quality of life. The second is the recognition that the premise of the position of social capital as a strong predictor of quality of life applies in the districts with the highest quality of life.

A populist surge in Europe is affecting Euro-Mediterranean cooperation 25 years after the Barcelona Process was launched, reinforcing existing trends of de-Europeanization and renationalization of foreign policies. This article analyses the landscape of political contestation of Mediterranean cooperation in Europe in a new age of populism, focusing on France, Italy and Spain as well as the Visegrad 4 states that have turned from bystanders to veto players in Mediterranean affairs. We find that the 'thick' ideologies from which populists are borrowing condition the thrust of their influence. The impact of right-wing populism trumps that of its left-wing counterpart in quantity and quality, while market-liberal populism is in decline and regional populism is mainly an issue only in Spain. Populism has personalized decision-making and shaped political agendas directly and indirectly, most notably on migration. It has whitewashed authoritarian leaders in the southern Mediterranean and fragmented the European Union's position on key issues such as the Arab-Israeli conflict. National interests and the weight of institutions have, however, formed a counterbalance to the focus on migration emanating from domestic politics. Populism alone cannot be blamed for renationalization trends that have existed before, but it does build on and reinforce them.

Transitioning to a decarbonized economy is a crucial part of climate change mitigation, with the phasing-out of coal, as the most significant source of carbon dioxide emissions, being the centerpiece of this effort. In the European context, the increasing pressures exerted especially on the basis of the European Union’s energy and climate policy, coupled with the inherent uncertainty of the transition process, encourage various struggles among the involved policy actors over the setting of specific transition pathways. One site of such contestation is media discourse, which may facilitate or limit policy change through agenda-setting, framing, and other processes. Importantly, discursive struggles also include industry incumbents, who have a vested interest in preserving the existing sociotechnical regime. This article focuses on the position of incumbents in terms of their relationship with governing political parties and the discursive strategies they employ. It explores the policy debate on coal mining expansion which took place in 2015 in the Czech Republic, a post-communist country with a coal-dependent economy, a skeptical position on energy transition, and a powerful energy industry. The research employs discourse network analysis to examine a corpus compiled from daily newspapers and applies block modeling techniques to analyze patterns of relationships within and between actor groups. The results show that incumbents successfully prevented policy change in the direction of rapid coal phase-out by exploiting discourse alignment with governing parties and efficiently employing discursive strategies based primarily on securitization of socioeconomic issues.

The Visegrád countries (Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia) faced a sharp decline in fertility rates after the regime change in 1989. Since then, total fertility rates have largely remained below the EU average, although they have increased during the past decade. Family policies (support for the parental caregivingmodel) and the conditions of women’s employment might be shaping these trends. Besides the pronatalist rhetoric, there is another reason why people might alter their fertility plans: climate change‐related worries. Our analysis in this article examines whether such concerns exist in these four countries, pointing out that the efficacy of pronatalist measures depends on the widespread adoption of such attitudes among young people of childbearing age. Pronatalist pressure is strong in the V4 countries but may be diluted by strengthening environmentalist norms. Scholarship about the relationship between climate change‐related concerns and fertility in these pronatalist countries is scarce. I examine this potential relationship by analysing respondents’ ideas about the generally and personally ideal number of children using Eurobarometer data from 2011 through logistic regression analysis. The results are contradictory: Climate change concerns seem to be positively associated with a smaller ideal family size in Hungary, but only from a general perspective (i.e., not for respondents personally). A positive relationship can be found in the Czech Republic regarding climate concerns and personal ideal family size. In Slovakia, a strong negative association was observed between climate change‐related concerns and smaller general and personal ideal family sizes.

European journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults 13 (2022) 2, S. 193-208, The study deals with the perceived reasons for nonparticipation in adult learning and education (ALE), drawing on existing research concerning the motivation for lifelong learning, adult attitudes towards education, and the study of dispositional barriers. The aim of the study is to determine the subjective reasons/motivation of adults not to participate in ALE and what factors influence their nonparticipation. For this purpose, we drew on self-determination theory (SDT). Based on that we have created the research tool “Motivation to Nonparticipation Scale” (MNP-S), which measures three factors: extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation, and amotivation. The empirical research was conducted with a representative sample of adults (N = 943, age: 19 to 81 years) who had not participated in ALE. Contrary to theoretical assumptions of SDT, amotivated adults do not predominate among nonparticipants, with the main subjective reasons for nonparticipation based on intrinsic or extrinsic motivations. (DIPF/Orig.)