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International students are potential highly skilled workers who can enter in their host country’s labor market. In Switzerland, migration policies regulate the selection criteria for migrant workers, including international students who subsequently seek employment after graduation. However, Switzerland has competing national interests: on the one hand, economic efficiency requires highly skilled workers who are partially recruited abroad; on the other hand, the state has to address concerns related to immigration, social cohesion, national identity, and security. We analyze the dynamic of international graduates’ integration in the Swiss labor market. We first provide an overview of the stay rates of graduate students based on register data, and then we conduct a multivariate analysis of Swiss labor market integration based on graduate surveys from the Swiss Federal Statistical Office. We complement the analysis with responses to problems encountered by the international graduates when seeking employment. We find that Switzerland accesses a pool of variously skilled graduates upon their graduation from Swiss universities. While Swiss employers recruit both European and non-European graduates, the priority rule and facilitated mobility for EU nationals are reflected in higher employment rates of EU graduates. Graduates with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) are more likely than non-STEM graduates to find employment in Switzerland. Yet, this factor is not as strong as expected for all non-EU nationals: STEM graduates from both EU and non-EU countries, as well as the Asia-Pacific region, are employed at a significantly higher rate than non-STEM graduates from the same region.

Taking into account the heterogeneity of reproductive behaviours during the baby boom in Switzerland, this paper focusses on the people who did not participate in the rise of births because they remained childless. Childless people during the baby boom are particularly interesting, as their life trajectories lack events that were frequent and highly valorised during this period. Analysis of their trajectories allows interrogating the cultural and ideational context of the baby boom through non-normative life experiences. How can we explain the reproductive trajectories of people who did not have children in a context where most people had children, fertility rates were on the rise and family values were highly valorised?

Interest in the study of vulnerability has experienced impressive growth across various disciplines. To contribute to this major but scattered development in the study of vulnerability, this article argues for a multidisciplinary life-course framework. This framework promotes a systemic and dynamic perspective focused on three complementary research directions: multidimensional, multilevel, and multidirectional. On the basis of this life course perspective, the authors also propose a definition of vulnerability as a dynamic process of stress and resources across various domains of life (i.e., work, family, health, migration, etc.), levels (i.e., person, group, collective), and time (i.e., long-term processes). The concept of vulnerability has recently captured a lot of attention. The topic emerged without a consensual definition, and paradoxically, its vagueness is likely part of its success. In this article, we show the richness of vulnerability as a concept used and that can be developed in a multi- and hopefully interdisciplinary effort. We define vulnerability in terms of the dynamics of stress and resources across the life course and illustrate its potential through the discussion of empirical examples, notably drawn from the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES (www.lives-nccr.ch). On this basis, we propose three research directions aiming at developing a life-course framework for understanding the systemic and dynamic properties of vulnerability: multidimensional, multilevel, and multidirectional analyses.

This issue defines vulnerability as a key interdisciplinary concept for understanding life trajectories. Moreover, it develops a life course framework to study vulnerability along three structuring axes of research: multidimensionality, multilevel, and multidirectionality.

Cet article etudie l’impact de la flexibilite temporelle sur les coordonnees de la negociation sociale dans le contexte suisse. Il s’agit notamment de voir a quel niveau – inter-organisationnel, intra-organisationnel ou interpersonnel – les diverses dimensions de cette flexibilite sont negociees et si les processus de decision prennent la forme d’une negociation distributive ou integrative ou doivent au contraire etre envisages comme une prerogative des employeurs. Ces questions sont abordees a travers l’evocation de scenes ordinaires et d’episodes conflictuels de negociation sociale au sein d’entreprises de l’industrie des machines et de la grande distribution.

This article presents the PST R package for categorical sequence analysis with probabilistic suffix trees (PSTs), i.e., structures that store variable-length Markov chains (VLMCs). VLMCs allow to model high-order dependencies in categorical sequences with parsimonious models based on simple estimation procedures. The package is specifically adapted to the field of social sciences, as it allows for VLMC models to be learned from sets of individual sequences possibly containing missing values; in addition, the package is extended to account for case weights. This article describes how a VLMC model is learned from one or more categorical sequences and stored in a PST. The PST can then be used for sequence prediction, i.e., to assign a probability to whole observed or artificial sequences. This feature supports data mining applications such as the extraction of typical patterns and outliers. This article also introduces original visualization tools for both the model and the outcomes of sequence prediction. Other features such as functions for pattern mining and artificial sequence generation are described as well. The PST package also allows for the computation of probabilistic divergence between two models and the fitting of segmented VLMCs, where sub-models fitted to distinct strata of the learning sample are stored in a single PST.

BackgroundEarly-life socioeconomic circumstances (SEC) are associated with health in old age. However, epidemiological evidences on the influence of these early-life risk factors on trajectories of healthy ageing are inconsistent, preventing drawing solid conclusion about their potential influence. Here, to fill this knowledge gap, we used a statistical approach adapted to estimating change over time and an outcome-wide epidemiology approach to investigate whether early-life SEC were associated with the level of and rate of decline of physical, cognitive and emotional functioning over time.MethodsWe used data on more than 23 000 adults in older age from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, a 12-year large-scale longitudinal study with repeated measurements of multiple health indicators of the same participants over time (2004 –2015, assessments every 2 years). Confounder-adjusted linear growth curve models were used to examine the associations of early-life SEC with the evolution of muscle strength, lung function, cognitive function, depressive symptoms and well-being over time.ResultsWe consistently found an association between early-life SEC and the mean levels of all health indicators at age 63.5, with a critical role played by the cultural aspect of disadvantage. These associations were only partly explained by adult-life SEC factors. By contrast, evidences supporting an association between early-life SEC and the rate of change in health indicators were weak and inconsistent.ConclusionsEarly-life SEC are associated with health in old age, but not with trajectories of healthy ageing. Conceptual models in life course research should consider the possibility of a limited influence of early-life SEC on healthy ageing trajectories.

Objective: The adverse effects of anxiety on cognition are widely recognized. According to Attentional Control Theory, worry (i.e. facet of cognitive anxiety) is the component that is responsible for these effects, and working memory capacity (WMC) plays an important role in regulating them. Despite the increasing importance of this problem with aging, little is known about how these mechanisms interact in old age. In this study, we explored the distinct contributions of the somatic and cognitive components of anxiety to neuropsychological performance, and the potential moderating role of WMC. Method: We administered cognitive tasks testing processing speed, cognitive flexibility and working memory to 605 older adults, who also underwent depression and test anxiety assessments (data from VLV study). Results: Multiple regression analyses showed that cognitive (but not somatic) aspects of anxiety affected cognitive flexibility. The effect of cognitive anxiety on processing speed was moderated by WMC: the anxiety-performance association was lower for participants with greater WMC. Conclusion: Results confirmed the specific role of worry in the anxiety–performance relationship in old age and supported the hypothesis that working memory resources regulates its deleterious effect on cognition. The absence of a moderation effect in the more costly switching task may reflect a limitation of resources with aging.

Previous research has deepened our understanding of the reasons that both push and pull individuals to leave a place to settle in a new country. However, little is known about individuals who have undertaken multiple international migrations. Based on the Migration-Mobility Survey data, this chapter explores both the migration trajectories and why frequent international movers have arrived in Switzerland. The chapter provides new insights about serial migrants in the European context and contributes to the literature by disentangling the relationships between multiple migrations and individual levels of qualification, origin, family composition, and aspirations to undertake a further migration. This research shows a strong association between level of education and degree of multiple migrations. It also demonstrates an important heterogeneity in migration practices between origins that can be explained not only by individual factors but also by institutional dimensions. In particular, short geographical and cultural distances contribute to reducing the number of international movements. Furthermore, non-EU migrants tend to be particularly mobile and to undertake stepwise trajectories to Switzerland.

L'accroissement des vitesses de déplacements a entrainé une hausse de la grande pendularité, soit des travailleurs se déplaçant plus de deux heures par jour, plusieurs jours par semaine entre leur domicile et leur lieu de travail. La Suisse romande n'échappe pas à cette tendance. Ce mémoire a pour objectif de comprendre les logiques des grands pendulaires habitant dans le Canton du Valais ou de Fribourg et travaillant à Genève. Nous constatons que ces individus viennent de différents horizons géographiques (tous n'étaient pas ancrés en Valais avant leur pendularité) et que chacun décide de penduler selon ses propres raisons et caractéristiques : situation familiale, professionnelle, compétences, histoire familiale, projets, perceptions. L'intérêt dans le travail, le salaire, le marché immobilier genevois défavorable et la possibilité de penduler en train, moyen de transport jugé fiable et rapide, sont les raisons principales qui poussent les travailleurs à favoriser la grande pendularité.

In this article, we propose a methodology for the validation of sequence analysis typologies based on bootstraps. The method works by comparing the quality of the obtained clustering with the quality obtained by clustering similar but unstructured data. Several models are proposed in order to test the different structuring aspects of the sequences that are important in life course research, namely sequencing, timing and duration. The framework is extended to multichannel sequence analysis by looking at the structure stemming from the association between the channels.

Migration is a risk factor for depression, however little is known on how the different migrant integration policies followed by the host countries may influence migrants' depression risk. Using the data from the European Social Survey carried out the period of 2014-2015 and the overall score of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX 2015), a selected sample of countries is divided in two group of countries based on whether they follow more or less inclusive integration policies. Natives' attitudes towards migrants and migrants' social and socioeconomic characteristics are tested in relationship with migrants' depression risk for the two groups of countries. Country-level analysis shows that countries with higher depression risk do not necessarily have more negative attitudes towards immigrants. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicates that for both groups of countries the most prominent predictor for depression is permanent medical conditions and disability, followed by low socioeconomic conditions and low social support. On the other hand, discrimination is a predictor only for the countries following less inclusive integration policies. Lastly, gendered analysis per length of stay for first-generation migrants reveals that different mechanisms influence newly arrived and established immigrants. After-migration processes, and mostly after-migration stress, increase the depression risk for newly arrived immigrants for both groups of countries and genders. However, in the long term, particularly for females that are more vulnerable to depression, less supportive integration policies result in increasing migrants' depressive feelings.

Après dix ans de sanctions économiques, l'Irak a été envahi et occupé par les forces militaires américaines et par leurs alliés. Il en a résulté de vives tensions, un long conflit et une occupation terminée en 2011. L'objectif de ce mémoire est d'étudier les effets du conflit sur le système sanitaire du pays et sur la santé de la population et de déterminer si ces effets ont eu un impact sur la mortalité entre 2003 et 2011. Plus particulièrement, le type de mortalité étudiée est la mortalité indirecte. Tout au long de ce travail, la méthodologie employée est l'analyse secondaire. À la lumière des différents éléments étudiés, nous n'avons pas pu conclure à la question de recherche. Si d'un côté, certains des résultats des enquêtes étudiées semblent suggérer la présence d'excess deaths indirectes, ainsi qu'une légère évolution au niveau des causes de décès non violents, de l'autre, les données présentées ne permettent pas de confirmer le lien entre ces éléments et la détérioration du système sanitaire.

Aims: We investigated the mediating role of leisure activity engagement in the longitudinal relation between openness to experience and subsequent change in executive functioning over 6 years as measured through performance changes in the Trail Making Test (TMT). Methods: We analyzed longitudinal data from 897 older adults (mean = 74.33 years in the first wave) tested on TMT parts A and B in two waves 6 years apart. Participants reported information on leisure activity engagement and openness to experience. Results: Latent change score modeling revealed that 37.2% of the longitudinal relation between higher openness to experience in the first wave of data collection and a smaller subsequent increase in TMT completion time from the first to the second wave (i.e., a smaller decline in executive functioning) was mediated via a higher frequency of leisure activities in the first wave. Conclusion: Individuals with higher openness to experience show greater activity engagement in old age. By enhancing their cognitive reserve, this activity engagement may finally result in smaller subsequent decline in executive functioning.

Ce rapport de stage porte sur la pratique du syndicalisme de terrain appliquée par le Syndicat des services publics aux HUG. En premier lieu il essaye de donner les caractéristiques des syndicats des services publics ainsi que leurs spécificités en Suisse. Par la suite il définit le syndicalisme de terrain et l'insère dans le contexte suisse afin d'expliquer pour quelle raison il s'agit d'un outil applicable à ce pays. Cette stratégie est même dans l'intérêt des syndicats suisse (en déclin) car elle permet de renforcer leur présence sur les lieux de travail, en recrutant des nouveaux membres et en impliquant davantage les salariées dans le processus de prise de décision au sein des entreprises. Le syndicalisme de terrain est davantage applicable aux syndicats des services publics en Suisse qui sont faibles en comparaison internationale et représentent un secteur « protégé » de la concurrence internationale. Enfin à travers l'analyse de 3 campagnes, différentes dans leur nature dans les stratégies utilisées et dans les objectifs recherchés, essaye d'expliquer pourquoi cette pratique est une approche valide pour améliorer les conditions de travail des salariés de cette institution et défendre la mission de service public de l'hôpital.

The scarce studies on Latin American migration to Switzerland have mainly focused on communities, slightly less on individuals, and there has been little research on Latin-American migrants' participation in migrant associations from their countries of origin. The lack of knowledge and understanding of migrant associations from Latin American countries in general and from the Andean countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in particular, is the primary motivation for this study. It seeks to fill this gap by examining the origins, aims and main activities of Andean migrant associations from the above-mentioned countries in the Cantons of Geneva and Vaud in Switzerland to understand the degree to which they contribute to the integration of Andean migrants in their host country, and engage with their countries of origin. This study seeks to also understand Andean migrant associations' structure, capacity development, and interactions with other migrant associations, civic organizations and public authorities.

Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the highest fertility rate and lowest contraceptive prevalence in the World. However, the rate of contraceptive use does not entirely match the levels of expected fertility. Efforts to solve this enigma have led researchers to wonder about hidden means of fertility regulation that were not adequately measured in international surveys. Recent literature has indicated that women in West and Middle Africa have marked preferences for traditional means of birth control (such as the calendar method and withdrawal) but tend to under-declare them. In parallel, sexual inactivity within marriage seems to be a widespread phenomenon in sub-Saharan Africa, and researchers are wondering whether abstinence is a prevalent (but unmeasured) means of birth control. This thesis tries to find out whether abstinence is indeed a common yet hidden means of contraception, and to ascertain the potential contraceptive needs of sexually inactive couples.

La perception des enjeux sanitaires touchant l'Afrique subsaharienne se réduit souvent aux épidémies, à la malnutrition et aux maladies infectieuses. Or, les pathologies non transmissibles et chroniques sont aussi un enjeu majeur, en particulier chez les citadins. La capitale du Burkina Faso compte aujourd'hui 2 millions d'habitants avec un taux de croissance de plus 7 % par an. Cette forte croissance s'est accompagnée d'une extension géographique, avec des quartiers entiers constitués de manière informelle, certains bénéficiant du lotissement et de la mise en place d'infrastructures collectives. En Afrique, peu d'études se sont intéressées à la santé des populations vivant en marge des villes, pauvres et souvent issues du milieu rural. Depuis 2008, l'Observatoire de population de Ouagadougou mène une enquête à passages répétés dans cinq quartiers périphériques. À partir de ces données devenues une source incontournable sur la santé urbaine en Afrique de l'Ouest, cet ouvrage dresse un bilan des différents fardeaux de maladies qui pèsent aujourd'hui sur leurs habitants de façon inégale selon les caractéristiques socioéconomiques et environnementales. Les résultats présentés s'avèrent précieux pour étudier la transition sanitaire en Afrique et aider à l'élaboration de politiques de développement et d'amélioration des conditions de vie.

Background Childhood misfortune is associated with late-life depressive symptoms, but it remains an open question whether adult socioeconomic and relational reserves could reduce the association between childhood misfortune and late-life depressive symptoms. Methods Using the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), data from 8'357 individuals (35'260 observations) aged 50–96 years and living in 11 European countries were used to examine associations between three indicators of childhood misfortune (adverse childhood events, poor childhood health, and childhood socioeconomic circumstances) and late-life depressive symptoms. Subsequently, we tested whether these associations were mediated by education, occupational position, the ability to make ends meet, and potential or perceived relational reserves; that is family members or significant others who can provide help in case of need, respectively. Analyses were stratified by gender and adjusted for confounding and control variables. Results Adult socioeconomic reserves partly mediated the associations between adverse childhood events, poor childhood health and late-life depressive symptoms. The associations with the third indicator of childhood misfortune (childhood socioeconomic circumstances) were fully mediated by adult socioeconomic reserves in men, and partly mediated in women. None of the associations were mediated by relational reserves. However, perceived relational reserves were associated with fewer late-life depressive symptoms. Conclusion Childhood socioeconomic disadvantage can be mitigated more easily over the life course than adverse childhood events and poor childhood health, especially in men. Perceived relational reserves work primarily as a protective force against late-life depressive symptoms and may be particularly important in the context of the cumulative effect of childhood adversities., Highlights • Socioeconomic reserves can mediate the effect of childhood socioeconomic disadvantage on late-life depressive symptoms. • Education turned out to be the strongest mediator. • Findings showed a lasting effect of adverse childhood experiences and poor childhood health on late-life depressive symptoms. • Relational reserves did not mediate the effect of any of the childhood misfortune indicators on late-life depressive symptoms. • Relational reserves were associated with fewer late-life depressive symptoms suggesting a potential protective function.

This paper integrates life course principles to investigate interdependencies between residential, family and professional trajectories following an international migration, and enhance the more classic microeconomic explanations of foreign-born internal migration. Using retrospective data from the Swiss Household Panel survey, we follow foreign-born residents for a six-year period and analyse long- and short-distance mobility outcomes. By considering repeated migration in a multilevel framework, we tackle the question of whether successive migration is due to a short-term adjustment process or rather to a long-term phenomenon for a hypermobile segment of the population. The results corroborate important synchronicities between marriage, employment transitions and spatial outcomes, but fail to confirm the simultaneous process of childbirth and residential relocation. We conclude that successive long-distance and successive short-distance migration are confined to a selected segment of the population with high latent mobility propensity, while a long-short migration sequence rather results from a process of housing adjustment.

Background: Muscle weakness – a biomarker of health – may have its origins in early life and be related to factors such as adverse childhood experiences (ACE), which refer to a set of early-life traumatic and stressful psychosocial events out of the child’s control. To date, evidence of an association between ACE and muscle strength in older age is lacking. ­Objective: Here, we assessed the associations between ACE during the first 15 years of life and the risk of low muscle strength (LMS) later in life. We also examined whether adult-life socioeconomic circumstances (i.e., educational attainment, main occupational position, and satisfaction with household financial situation) and unhealthy behaviors (i.e., physical inactivity, unhealthy eating, smoking, and high level of alcohol consumption) explained this association. Methods: We used data from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe, a 12-year cohort study with 6 ­repeated measurements between 2004 and 2015. Muscle strength was measured using a handheld dynamometer. Confounder-adjusted logistic mixed-effect models were used to examine the associations between ACE (child in care, parental death, parental mental illness, parental drinking, period of hunger, or property taken away) and the risk of LMS in older age. ­Results: 24,179 participants (96,372 observations; 13,477 women; aged 50–96 years) living in 14 countries were included. LMS increased with age for both genders. For women, there was a gradual increase in the risk of LMS with the number of experienced ACE (ORs = 1.22 for 1 ACE, 1.74 for ≥2 ACE compared to no ACE). However, there was no significant association among men. This association was only slightly attenuated when adjusting for socioeconomic circumstances and unhealthy behaviors in adulthood. Conclusions: ACE are associated with later-life muscle weakness among women. These associations were not compensated by the adoption of healthy behaviors or an improvement in socioeconomic circumstances in adulthood. These results suggest that tackling these early-life risk factors in women could promote long-term grip strength, a biomarker of aging.

In Switzerland, mothers' involvement in paid work often occurs on a part-time basis. The mechanisms driving the decisions and opportunities to access part-time employment differ between native and immigrant populations. In this paper, we address the extent to which the employment behaviours of the female population differ by birthplace and family situation. Using data from the Swiss Labour Force Survey, we decompose the effect of human capital and household income on participation and the number of hours worked. Contrasting patterns of employment emerge among women born in Switzerland, within the EU, and outside the EU, especially in the presence of resident children. Women's education has a stronger positive effect on participation for natives, whereas household income is proved to have greater influence on the participation outcomes for the foreign-born population. Nevertheless, compared with immigrant women having the same level of education and household income, natives work the fewest number of hours.

This dissertation explores the politically neglected and complex housing phenomenon of backyarding in Cape Town's township Manenberg by drawing on concepts of urban poverty and vulnerability. Census, community enumeration and qualitative data are evaluated with the aim to understand the motivations (positive choice vs. survival strategy) of backyarders behind the decision-making process concerning the choice for this form of housing and to depict the socioeconomic realities of backyarders shaped by their form of living, embedding the findings in a broader context of physical and social consequences for the residents and its environment. Irregular or the lack of income, as well as inadequate infrastructure, tenure insecurity, but also a high level of dependency and vulnerability have been identified as key challenges for the residents of backyard dwellings. Based deprivations, the inertia of the government and clashes of realities, a high level of frustration, perceived racial discrimination and mistrust towards the political institution have been developed. Acknowledging the potential of backyarding as a rental submarket, the findings urge for political action to address the negative outcomes through responses adapted to the needs and priorities of the communities in situ.

Background Poor lung function in late life may stem from early-life risk factors, but the epidemiological evidence is inconsistent. We investigated whether individuals who experienced disadvantageous socioeconomic circumstances (SEC) in early life showed lower levels of respiratory function in older age, a steeper decline over time, and whether these relationships were explained by adult-life SEC, body mass index, and physical inactivity in older age. Methods We used data from the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement in Europe (2004–2015). Participants’ peak expiratory flow (PEF) was assessed with a mini-Wright peak flow meter at second, fourth, and sixth waves. Confounder-adjusted linear mixed-effect models were used to examine the associations between early-life SEC and PEF in older age. A total of 21,734 adults aged 50–96 years (46,264 observations) were included in the analyses. Results Older adults with disadvantaged early-life SEC showed lower levels of PEF compared with those with advantaged early-life SEC. The association between early-life SEC and late-life PEF persisted after adjusting for adult-life SEC, smoking, physical inactivity, and body mass index. PEF declined with age, but the effect of early-life SEC on this decline was not consistent across robustness and sensitivity analyses. Conclusions Early life is a sensitive period for respiratory health. Further considering the effect of SEC arising during this period may improve the prevention of chronic respiratory diseases.

Alors que le baby-boom est connu bien au-delà de la communauté scientifique, ses causes ne font toujours pas consensus parmi les chercheurs. De nouvelles approches ont émergé ces dernières années, les unes qualitatives, les autres quantitatives. Dans cet article, nous présentons un design de recherche qui articule les données, leurs modes de collecte et leurs analyses. Nous partons d'un échantillon de calendriers de vie collectés parmi les résidents en Suisse de 65 ans et plus, qui a été complété pour un sous-échantillon de récits de vie. Demander à des personnes âgées de rapporter leur vie implique des oublis (volontaires ou non), des erreurs ou approximations. Nous en discutons les implications en termes de qualité, de validité et de représentativité des données. L'approche du parcours de vie offre le cadre nécessaire pour approcher la complexité, pour situer les biographies dans des contextes qui évoluent, pour intégrer les matériaux objectifs et subjectifs. Deux types de méthodes statistiques (exploratoire et confirmatoire) sont ensuite combinées avec le jugement rétrospectif des individus sur leurs trajectoires.

L'augmentation des flux migratoires crée de nouveaux défis et de nouvelles opportunités sur le marché du travail. Les gouvernements, qui doivent évaluer les conséquences de la migration, nécessitent d'évidence théorique et empirique pour identifier les moyens d'action qui peuvent favoriser l'intégration des migrants dans l'économie locale. Cette thèse, analyse la relation entre la migration et le chômage en Suisse. Deux thématiques sont abordées : d'une part une analyse contrefactuelle montre les effets d'un accroissement de la concurrence sur le marché du travail pour les chômeurs et leurs stratégies de sortie du chômage. D'autre part, les déterminants du différentiel de taux de chômage entre les travailleurs suisses et les migrants sont analysés. Les résultats aident à identifier les défis et les opportunités créés par la migration. Ils contribuent à un débat sur l'intégration des migrants sur le marché du travail et sur la protection des chômeurs confrontés aux nouveaux flux migratoires.

In this paper, vulnerability to unemployment is conceptualised as an individual's latent risk of experiencing unemployment at a given point in time. The aim of the paper is to describe individual trajectories of vulnerability to unemployment in the medium term during the Great Recession in relation to individual characteristics using longitudinal panel data. Individual-level data allows us to take into account both within- and between-individual differences in the evolution of vulnerability to unemployment. This allows us to go beyond investigating aggregate labour market outcomes and focus on how individuals were able to cope with a generalised increase in the risk of unemployment. The paper highlights differences in the evolution of vulnerability to unemployment in the UK and Switzerland.

In the context of important migration flows within the EU/EFTA countries, understanding the process of migration decision-making is central to better comprehending current migration patterns in today’s legal context of free movement of persons. By means of newly collected survey data, this paper examines the emigration intentions and plans of German immigrants living in Switzerland. This migrant group presents a lower duration of residence at emigration than other nationalities and is highly educated and integrated in the labour market. The results show that labour market considerations prevail over family obligations. Furthermore, they confirm the heterogeneity between groups regarding emigration intentions, a finding that cannot be confirmed for emigration planning. Moreover, whereas emigration intentions are explained by perceived opportunity differentials and wishful thinking between the place of residence and the destination, emigration planning is based on real opportunities. Migration policy and, more specifically, integration policy have a small impact on emigration, since planning an emigration is triggered by external or personal factors.

Considering the literature about gender roles and gender in advertisement, this thesis analyses the portrayal of Colombian women and men as they are displayed in television advertisements. Through the analysis of 62 Colombian television advertisements we identified differences in the representation of gender. Overall women are overrepresented in advertisements, they appear 1.6 times more than men. It also turns out that the representation of men is more likely to be associated with competence traits while the display of women is more associated with sociability characteristics. Women are more likely to be displayed in the private sphere while men are more likely to be represented in the public sphere. In addition, male characters are often depicted as sick while females are taking care of them. Finally, we observe that advertisers emphasize more the physical appearance of women and unlike females, when it comes to promoting a product for physical appearance for males, advertisers emphasize more the romantic or sexual gain that males can have in using the product.

Extant literature in the interdisciplinary field of globalization and world cities defines global cities as the intertwined product of a seemingly paradoxical trend: the dispersal of economic activities and societal trends in an increasingly networked society while the power over these activities and trends is being more and more centered and concentrated. This concentration of power resulted in some leading cities being globally interconnected hubs with a dominating role within the world economy. Global cities are centers for multinational corporations' headquarters and places in which they exert their “control and command” functions. The role of global cities for SMEs with internationally or globally dispersed activities has not yet been extensively studied. This thesis aims to explore the role of global cities for such internationalizing SMEs, in particular with regard to Singapore and Southeast Asia.

Le projet de coopération au développement Senior Dual a été élaboré par l'ONG ASF dans le but de répondre à deux problématiques très différentes mais complémentaires selon ses créateurs. D'une part, le projet a l'objectif de faciliter l'insertion socioprofessionnelle des jeunes des pays en développement. D'autre part, celui de proposer une activité adressée au seniors suisses dans le but de diminuer le processus de marginalisation sociale qu'ils sont susceptibles de subir. Le présent rapport vise à vérifier les fondements théoriques du projet et à tester sa pertinence avec les réalités du terrain.

Les femmes dans les métiers scientifiques et techniques : une étude exploratoire

Depuis l'introduction du concept imprécis de travail décent, par le Directeur Général de l'Organisation internationale du Travail, en 1999, plusieurs indicateurs ont été proposés pour le mesurer. À l'origine de ma réflexion, j'identifie les indicateurs utilisés dans deux pays afin d'établir la compréhension respective du concept. Les pays choisis pour appuyer ma recherche et illustrer la mesure du travail décent sont le Bangladesh et l'Autriche, deux pays-pilote issus du projet MAP1 de l'OIT. Au terme de ma recherche, je déduis la compréhension du travail décent respective selon l'OIT, par rapport à la situation socioéconomique des deux pays, le choix d'indicateurs spécifiques utilisés et la subjectivité à déterminer des déficits au travail décent. Au Bangladesh, dans une situation de pauvreté répandue et de grandes inégalités, l'OIT considère le travail décent vis-à-vis d'une homogénéité entre les métropoles et les zones rurales, d'un revenu adéquat, du temps de travail (ni trop faible, ni excessif), de la formalité, de l'égalité des sexes, d'un socle social et du tripartisme. Tandis qu'en Autriche, dans un contexte de peu de pauvreté, d'éducation répandue et de forte migration, l'OIT comprend davantage le travail décent du point de vue de l'inclusion des personnes jeunes et âgées, des femmes et des migrants sur le marché du travail, ainsi que de la formation continue et du taux de travail.

Quels sont les facteurs déterminants dans l'engagement des jeunes bénévoles en 2018 ? Le bénévolat est-il devenu une stratégie des jeunes pour faciliter leur insertion sur un marché du travail précarisé ou est-ce le fruit d'un comportement bienveillant et généreux ? Sortir des explications binaires entre altruisme et égoïsme lorsque l'on s'intéresse aux motivations relatives au bénévolat est essentiel pour apporter un éclairage plus complet sur les variables déterminantes au moment de l'engagement. En partant d'un cas d'étude particulier - le projet de bénévolat intergénérationnel (BIG) de Caritas Genève - cette étude explore les raisons de l'engagement des jeunes participant-e-s de BIG. En considérant l'engagement comme un processus multidimensionnel, cette analyse qualitative explore l'influence de multiples facteurs explicatifs, en intégrant tant le rôle des circonstances sociales, qu'individuelles ou organisationnelles sur les motivations des bénévoles.

Plusieurs régions du monde ont connu une série de catastrophes dévastatrices. Les tempêtes Harvey, Irma et Maria, des vagues de chaleur meurtrières en Inde, des sécheresses en Afrique et des inondations en Asie du Sud-Est. Les catastrophes naturelles ont causé la mort de 54,000 personnes, ont touché 97 millions d'autres et ont entraîné des pertes économiques de 27 milliards de dollars en moyenne par an. Chaque année, elles poussent environ 26 millions de personnes dans l'extrême pauvreté. Les pays les plus vulnérables et pauvres sont les plus touchés et subissent les conséquences de l'aggravation du changement climatique. Ce rapport met en évidence que les impacts de catastrophes sont endogènes aux développements socio-économiques. Les catastrophes ne sont pas naturelles. Elles ne sont pas considérées désormais comme des menaces uniquement exogènes, mais plutôt comme le résultat d'une croissance économique qui ne prend pas en compte le développement durable. Les catastrophes sont déclenchées par des aléas et leurs impacts sont amplifiés par des facteurs sous-jacents. Une bonne compréhension des risques de catastrophes dans un contexte de changement climatique est fondamentale. Une approche plus intégrée entre catastrophes, changement climatique et les actions induites par l'homme est nécessaire pour atteindre les objectifs de développement durable.

L’article analyse une evolution recente du programme de transferts sociaux, Prospera au Mexique. Le gouvernement mexicain tente de lier ces aides a des produits financiers (credit, epargne) pour les beneficiaires. Justifie comme une question technique dans un souci de meilleure efficacite, nous montrons que ce passage s’accompagne de transformations profondes a la fois des acteurs impliques dans la mise en œuvre de cette nouvelle generation de programmes sociaux financiarises et d’injonctions contradictoires qui cadrent l’usage des transferts monetaires. Ainsi, monnaie a usage social et monnaie vouee a produire des dettes financieres ne s’averent pas naturellement convertibles. Classification JEL : D14 ; O16 ; O38

Objectives: The present study sets out to investigate the relation of cognitive abilities to well-being and its interplay with key life course proxies of cognitive reserve and social capital in a large sample of older adults. Method: Three thousand eighty older adults served as sample for the present study. Physical well-being (EuroQoL-5D questionnaire) and psychological well-being (Satisfaction with Life Scale) as well as cognitive performance in terms of verbal abilities (Mill Hill vocabulary scale), processing speed (Trail Making Test part A), and cognitive flexibility (Trail Making Test part B) were assessed. Participants reported information on education, occupation, cognitively stimulating leisure activities, the different languages regularly spoken as well as family and close friends. Results: Moderation analyses showed that the relation of cognitive performance to physical and psychological well-being was significantly attenuated in individuals with a higher cognitive level of the first job after education, a larger number of midlife and current cognitively stimulating leisure activities, a larger number of languages regularly spoken, a larger number of significant family members and friends, and more frequent contact with and more confidence in significant family members. Conclusion: Present data suggest that the relation of low cognitive abilities to low well-being in old age is attenuated in individuals with greater cognitive reserve and greater social capital accumulated over the life course.

Global initiatives aim to add 120 million new family planning (FP) users by 2020; however supply‐side interventions may be reaching the limits of their effectiveness in some settings. Our case study in Niger used demand analysis techniques from marketing science. We performed a representative survey (N = 2,004) on women's FP knowledge, attitudes, needs, and behaviors, then used latent class analysis to produce a segmentation of women based on their responses. We found that Nigerien women's demand for modern FP methods was low, with majorities aware of modern methods but much smaller proportions considering use, trying modern methods, or using one consistently. We identified five subgroups of women with distinct, internally coherent profiles regarding FP needs, attitudes, and usage patterns, who faced different barriers to adopting or using modern FP. Serving subgroups of women based on needs, values, and underlying beliefs may help more effectively drive a shift in FP behavior.

Objective We investigated cross-lagged relations between leisure activity participation and Trail Making Test (TMT) performance over 6 years and whether those reciprocal associations differed between individuals. Method We analyzed data from 232 participants tested on performance in TMT Parts A and B as well as interviewed on leisure activity participation in 2 waves 6 years apart. Mean age in the Wave 1 was 73.42 years. Participants were also tested on vocabulary (Mill Hill scale) as a proxy indicator of crystallized intelligence and reported information on early and midlife cognitive reserve markers (education and occupation). Latent cross-lagged models were applied to investigate potential reciprocal activity-TMT relationships. Results The relation of leisure activity participation predicting TMT performance 6 years later was significantly larger than was the relation of TMT performance predicting later leisure activity participation. Statistically comparing different moderator groups revealed that this pattern was evident both in individuals with low education and in those with high education but, notably, emerged in only young-old adults (but not in old-old adults), in individuals with a low cognitive level of job in midlife (but not in those with a high cognitive level of job in midlife), and in individuals with high scores in vocabulary (but not in those with low scores in vocabulary). Conclusions Late-life leisure activity participation may predict later cognitive status in terms of TMT performance, but individuals may markedly differ with respect to such effects. Implications for current cognitive reserve and neuropsychological aging research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Dans les sociétés postindustrielles contemporaines, les migrants ont généralement des risques de mortalité plus faibles que les natifs malgré des positions sociales tendanciellement plus basses. La recherche académique peine toujours à expliquer pleinement les origines de ce paradoxe. Bien que les facteurs individuels soient les causes fondamentales des inégalités face à la mort, l’influence de l’environnement social, économique et culturel est aussi décisif. En prenant l’exemple de la Suisse, cet article détermine dans quelle mesure les contextes socioéconomique, culturel et géographique parviennent expliquer le différentiel entre les natifs et les migrants. Par des modèles bayésiens multiniveaux, les auteurs décomposent, pour chaque population, les inégalités spatiales de mortalité dans les communes et les quartiers Suisses. In Western societies, migrants are known to have lower mortality risks than natives although they are characterized by a lower socioeconomic status. Academic research has found some explanations, but the causes of the migrant mortality paradox are still partially unknown. Individual factors are generally seen as the fundamental causes of death, but recent research showed that social, economic and cultural environments also produce inequalities in mortality. This article aims at determining the influence of socioeconomic, cultural and geographic contexts in explaining the mortality differences between migrants and natives. In running multilevel bayesian models, the authors decompose spatial inequalities in mortality between migrants and natives within Swiss municipalities and neighborhoods.

Since the 1990s, microfinance has become a central element in international development policies, focusing in particular on market building, and mainly driven by private financial players. The end of the 2000s, however, was marked by a return of state legitimacy, through policies and strategies of financial inclusion. Government intervention is motivated by the persistence of social, gender or geographical inequalities. In this perspective, financial inclusion can be a tool for establishing, reforming and strengthening state institutions. In this article, we will situate these latest trends within the evolution of Indian and Mexican social policies. Our argument is that the deployment of financial inclusion policies in these two countries can lead to ambiguous effects. On the one hand, these financial inclusion policies allow vulnerable populations to access new rights, and promote embryonic forms of citizenship. On the other hand, these policies may encourage the emergence of new ways of controlling the behaviour of beneficiary populations.

Objectives The present study set out to investigate relations of the number of chronic diseases (as a global indicator of individuals’ multimorbidity) to cognitive status and cognitive decline over six years as measured by changes in Trail Making Test (TMT) completion time in old adults and whether those relations differed by key life course markers of cognitive reserve (education, occupation, and cognitively stimulating leisure activities). Method We analyzed data from 897 participants tested on TMT parts A and B in two waves six years apart. Mean age in the first wave was 74.33 years. Participants reported information on chronic diseases, education, occupation, and cognitively stimulating leisure activities. Results Latent change score modeling testing for moderation effects revealed that a larger number of chronic diseases significantly predicted stronger increase in TMT completion time (i.e., steeper cognitive performance decline). Notably, the detrimental relation of the number of chronic diseases to stronger increase in TMT completion time (i.e., cognitive performance decline) was significantly stronger in individuals with less engagement in cognitively stimulating leisure activities in midlife. Discussion Present data suggest that disease-related cognitive decline may be steeper in individuals who have accumulated less cognitive reserve in midlife. However, greater midlife activity engagement seemed to be associated with steeper cognitive decline in any case. Implications for current cognitive reserve and neuropsychological aging research are discussed.

Despite renewed interest in postpartum family planning programs, the question of the time at which women should be expected to start contraception after a birth remains unanswered. Three indicators of postpartum unmet need consider women to be fully exposed to the risk of pregnancy at different times: right after delivery (prospective indicator), after six months of amenorrhea (intermediate indicator), and at the end of amenorrhea (classic indicator). DHS data from 57 countries in 2005–13 indicate that 62 percent (prospective), 43 percent (intermediate), and 32 percent (classic) of women in the first year after a birth have an unmet need for contraception (40 percent when including abstinence). While the protection afforded by postpartum abstinence and lactational amenorrhea lowers unmet need, further analysis shows that women also often rely on these methods without being actually protected. Programs should acknowledge these methods' widespread use and inform women about their limits. Also, the respective advantages of targeting the postnatal period, the end of six months of amenorrhea /exclusive breastfeeding, or the resumption of sexual intercourse to offer contraceptive services should be tested.

Objectives: A key question in gerontological research concerns whether good functioning can be maintained in some cognitive abilities in old age, even if deficits occur in other cognitive or sensory abilities. Our goals were to investigate relations of cognitive and sensory abilities in old age, whether these relations differed in size across old age, and whether this was affected by general cognitive ability (processing speed), educational level, and/or general health status. Methods: Two thousand eight hundred and twelve older adults (aged 65-101, M = 77.9 years) from the Vivre-Leben-Vivere survey served as cross-sectional sample for the present study. We administered psychometric tests on processing speed (the speed of cognitive processing), cognitive flexibility (the ability to alternate between cognitive operations), and verbal abilities (vocabulary). In addition, we interviewed individuals on their hearing, eyesight, educational level, and general health status. We regressed sizes of relations between abilities (calculated within each 1- year age tranche) on mean age within the corresponding age tranche, with the number of participants within the corresponding age tranche as case weights. Results: We observed a decrease in relations between processing speed and cognitive flexibility in old age that was particularly pronounced in individuals with high educational level (r = -.41). In contrast, we did not find differences in relations between other cognitive and sensory abilities across old age, which held for different levels of general cognitive ability, education, and general health status. Conclusion: Present data do not support the view of a generally increased relation of cognitive and sensory abilities in old age.

Until recently, WHO operationally defined unsafe abortion as illegal abortion. In the past decade, however, the incidence of abortion by misoprostol administration has increased in countries with restrictive abortion laws. Access to safe surgical abortions has also increased in many such countries. An important effect of these trends has been that, even in an illegal environment, abortion is becoming safer, and an updated system for classifying abortion in accordance with safety is needed. Numerous factors aside from abortion method or legality should be taken into consideration in developing such a classification system. An Expert Meeting on the Definition and Measurement of Unsafe Abortion was convened in London, UK, on January 9–10, 2014, to move toward developing a classification system that both reflects current conditions and acknowledges the gradient of risk associated with abortion. The experts also discussed the types of research needed to monitor the incidence of abortion at each level of safety. These efforts are urgently needed if we are to ensure that preventing unsafe abortion is appropriately represented on the global public health agenda. Such a classification system would also motivate investment in research to accurately measure and monitor abortion incidence across categories of safety.

La déqualification professionnelle des femmes migrantes à travers l'association Découvrir : une étude exploratoire. Rapport d'un stage effectué au sein de l'association Découvrir à Genève

Background:From a conceptual point of view, close friends are an important resource for promoting activity engagement in old age. Leisure activity engagement in turn is a key predictor of cognitive performance. Empirically, it remains unclear so far whether leisure activity engagement mediates between having close friends on the one hand and cognitive performance on the other, which we investigated in a large sample of older adults.Methods:We assessed cognitive performance (Mill Hill vocabulary scale and Trail Making Test (TMT) parts A and B) in 2,812 older adults. Participants reported information on leisure activity engagement and close friends.Results:A larger number of leisure activities and a larger number of close friends were significantly related to better cognitive performance in the Mill Hill vocabulary scale and TMT parts A and B. A larger number of close friends were significantly related to a larger number of leisure activities. The number of leisure activities mediated more than half of the relation of the number of close friends to performance in all three cognitive measures.Conclusions:Having close friends may be helpful to stimulate and promote activity participation in old age. By enhancing individuals’ cognitive reserve, this may finally preserve their cognitive performance level in old age.