How does the content of so-called 'fake news' differ across Western democracies? While previous research on online disinformation has focused on the individual level, the current study aims to shed ...light on cross-national differences. It compares online disinformation re-published by fact checkers from four Western democracies (the US, the UK, Germany, and Austria). The findings reveal significant differences between English-speaking and German-speaking countries. In the US and the UK, the largest shares of partisan disinformation are found, while in Germany and Austria sensationalist stories prevail. Moreover, in English-speaking countries, disinformation frequently attacks political actors, whereas in German-speaking countries, immigrants are most frequently targeted. Across all of the countries, topics of false stories strongly mirror national news agendas. Based on these results, the paper argues that online disinformation is not only a technology-driven phenomenon but also shaped by national information environments.
Abstract
In the paper is discribed the preparation method of buffer solution for interlaboratory and international comparisons. This technique was developed by scientists of All-Russian Scientific ...Research Institute of Physicotechnical and Radio Engineering Measurements during the preparation of samples for international comparisons in the field of measuring the hydrogen index of borate buffer solution. According to the measurement results, the offered method allows to prepare the homogeneous and stable buffer solutions.
Abstract
International comparisons in organic analysis (OA) are organized and coordinated by the Organic Analysis Working Group (OAWG) of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance (CCQM). ...OAWG also performs strategic planning and highlights the focus areas and challenges in OA. Realizing well that the amount of organic compounds and potential combinations of analyte-matrix is numerous, the OAWG has developed a systematic approach to the comparisons organizing. This approach allows to comprehensively describe the specifics of each comparison and appropriate features combination allows to cover all relevant aspects of OA. In terms of CMCs submission, recently the new concept has been created suggesting a broader view on the NMIs competence – it is the concept of “Broad Scope Claims” (BCs). BCs allow NMIs to submit CMCs for a wider range of analytes and matrices. In 2021 the OAWG has highlighted the priority areas for activities and promising methods and technologies for the OA for the period up to 2030.
In international comparisons on OA Russia is represented by VNIIM. Since 1998 VNIIM has been taking part in more than 35 comparisons covering various aspects of OA. Each successful comparison is a real and documented confirmation of Russia competence in the relevant OA area. At the moment 89 CMCs are presented in the Database, including 25 BCs.
In response to the large number of definitions of social enterprise (SE), various works have sought to cope with such diversity through SE typologies. Many of them are however country-specific and ...only very few of them are built upon solid theoretical foundations. To overcome these weaknesses, Defourny and Nyssens had put forward, in a previous article, some fundamentals for an international typology, including four SE models. The objective of the present article is to test the existence of these models on the basis of a data set covering 721 SEs and resulting from a survey carried out in 43 countries. More precisely, the statistical exploitation of the data set combined multiple factorial analysis with hierarchical cluster analysis. It appears that the existence of three of the four SE models—namely the social-business model, the social-cooperative model and the entrepreneurial nonprofit model—is strongly supported by the empirical analysis in almost all surveyed countries.
The Wealth Inequality of Nations Pfeffer, Fabian T.; Waitkus, Nora
American sociological review,
08/2021, Volume:
86, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Comparative research on income inequality has produced several frameworks to study the institutional determinants of income stratification. In contrast, no such framework and much less empirical ...evidence exist to explain cross-national differences in wealth inequality. This situation is particularly lamentable as cross-national patterns of inequality in wealth diverge sharply from those in income. We seek to pave the way for new explanations of cross-national differences in wealth inequality by tracing them to the influence of different wealth components. Drawing on the literatures on financialization and housing, we argue that housing equity should be the central building block of the comparative analysis of wealth inequality. Using harmonized data on 15 countries included in the Luxembourg Wealth Study (LWS), we demonstrate a lack of association between national levels of income and wealth inequality and concentration. Using decomposition approaches, we then estimate the degree to which national levels of wealth inequality and concentration relate to cross-national differences in wealth portfolios and the distribution of specific asset components. Considering the role of housing equity, financial assets, non-housing real assets, and non-housing debt, we show that cross-national variation in wealth inequality and concentration is centrally determined by the distribution of housing equity.
Using the index of financial inclusion and the World Bank Global Findex database, this study measures the level of financial inclusion across countries. The results reveal a geographical spatial ...aggregation distribution in which developed European and North American countries enjoy higher levels of financial inclusion than the less developed countries of Africa and most of Asia. Accordingly, our spatial analysis proves our hypothesis and reveals dependence and aggregation effects among countries. Then, we employ spatial econometric research to identify those factors significantly associated with financial inclusion. The results show that an individual's income, education and use of communications equipment are important factors that explain the level of financial inclusion, while financial depth and banking health status are the main determinants. Building an inclusive financial system is an important means for most countries to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
Studies on populist parties – or ‘supply‐side populism’ more generally – are numerous. Nevertheless, the connection with demand‐side dynamics, and particularly the populist characteristics or ...tendencies of the electorate, requires more scholarly attention. This article examines in more detail the conditions underlying the support for populist parties, and in particular the role of populist attitudes amongst citizens. It asks two core questions: (1) are populist party supporters characterised by stronger populist attitudes than other party supporters, and (2) to what extent do populist (and other) attitudes contribute to their party preference? The analysis uses fixed effect models and relies on a cross‐sectional research design that uses unique survey data from 2015 and includes nine European countries. The results are threefold. First, in line with single‐country studies, populist attitudes are prominent among supporters of left‐ and right‐wing populist parties in particular. Second, populist attitudes are important predictors of populist party support in addition to left‐wing socioeconomic issue positions for left‐wing populist parties, and authoritarian and anti‐immigration issue positions for right‐wing populist parties. Third, populist attitudes moderate the effect of issue positions on the support for populist parties, particularly for individuals whose positions are further removed from the extreme ends of the economic or cultural policy scale. These findings suggest that strong populist attitudes may encourage some voters to support a populist party whose issue positions are incongruous with their own policy‐related preferences.
In 2 meta-analyses on gender differences in depression in nationally representative samples, we advance previous work by including studies of depression diagnoses and symptoms to (a) estimate the ...magnitude of the gender difference in depression across a wide array of nations and ages; (b) use a developmental perspective to elucidate patterns of gender differences across the life span; and (c) incorporate additional theory-driven moderators (e.g., gender equity). For major depression diagnoses and depression symptoms, respectively, we meta-analyzed data from 65 and 95 articles and their corresponding national data sets, representing data from 1,716,195 and 1,922,064 people in over 90 different nations. Overall, odds ratio (OR) = 1.95, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.88, 2.03, and d = 0.27 0.26, 0.29. Age was the strongest predictor of effect size. The gender difference for diagnoses emerged earlier than previously thought, with OR = 2.37 at age 12. For both meta-analyses, the gender difference peaked in adolescence (OR = 3.02 for ages 13-15, and d = 0.47 for age 16) but then declined and remained stable in adulthood. Cross-national analyses indicated that larger gender differences were found in nations with greater gender equity, for major depression, but not depression symptoms. The gender difference in depression represents a health disparity, especially in adolescence, yet the magnitude of the difference indicates that depression in men should not be overlooked.