Ambivalence,Political Consensus and Conditionality: Support for Whistleblowing among Danish Employees

Whistleblower research is understandably focused around the protagonists of the practice. We still know surprisingly little about how whistleblowing is perceived in the wider population. Drawing on a representative survey of Danish employees (N = 1,709), this paper analyses how whistleblower public support is distributed along variables such as political preference, political interest and job type, and tests whether it is conditional on whistleblower motivation and type of wrongdoing. The paper finds that public support is strong but also ambivalent. It shows that support is evenly distributed along party preference. It also demonstrates that support is not uniform but conditional on the characteristics of the whistleblower situation. These insights are important for both social and political reasons in the present situation where whistleblowing seems to be on the rise. From a policy perspective, it offers policymakers an important evidence‐based navigation tool in devising whistleblower legislation.     

Poverty across the Life Cycle: Evidence from the PSID

The likelihood of experiencing poverty at some point during the adult life cycle is estimated. These probabilities are derived through a set of life tables built upon 25 waves of data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, and represent an alternative approach to studying poverty than prior empirical studies. Life table analyses are divided into early adulthood (ages 20–40), middle adulthood (ages 40–60),and later adulthood (ages 60–80). The findings indicate that individuals within the sample face a significant risk of poverty at some point during their adult lives, particularly during the early and later stages of adulthood. Duration tends to be relatively short (1 or 2 years), but once poverty occurs, it is likely to occur again. Results also reveal the profound life‐course effect that race, education, and gender have upon the likelihood of encountering poverty during the adult years. Several policy and research implications are discussed. © 2001 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Einschleusung von Migranten

In jüngster Vergangenheit hat sich die Einschleusung von Migranten zu einem neuen Massenphänomen weltweiter Wanderung entwickelt. Trotz seiner international steigenden Bedeutung wird der Menschenschmuggel von der Migrationssoziologie bislang kaum beachtet. Vor diesem Hintergrund gibt der vorliegende Beitrag zum einen — vorwiegend aus deutschem Blickwinkel — grundlegende Informationen über die Einschleusung von Migranten, zum anderen nähert er sich seinem Gegenstand aus soziologischer Perspektive. Menschenschmuggel lässt sich als sozialer Prozess verstehen, der durch ein Tauschgeschäft zwischen Migranten und Schleusern in Gang kommt und immer organisierter abläuft. Die starke Expansion der Einschleusung kann vor allem durch Globalisierungsprozesse und schleusungsbedingte Eigendynamiken erklärt werden. Wie die abschließende Evaluation bisheriger staatlicher Gegenmaßnahmen zeigt, können westliche Gesellschaften auch in nächster Zukunft nicht auf eine verstärkte Grenzsicherung verzichten.