Authors:Petr Kupka , Vladimír Naxera Pages: 7–28 - 7–28 Abstract: This study follows the constructivist tradition of corruption research. Specifically, we analyze representations of corruption and anti-corruption in the electoral manifestos of Czech political parties and movements between 1990 and 2017. In these documents, corruption is primarily construed as a security issue and is framed within the context of economic and organized crime. The causes of corruption, the main actors behind it, and the proposed countermeasures draw on three dominant discourses: neoliberal, centrist, and populist. Neoliberal discourse attributes corruption to the overextended nature of the state, with public officials as the primary perpetrators of corruption. Countermeasures are based on streamlined public administration and personal accountability of government employees in this discourse. Centrist discourse sees the interweaving of economic and political power as the cause of corruption perpetrated by the mafia or lobbyists. Countermeasures are rooted in legal regulation and cooperation with anti-corruption forces in this discourse. Populist discourse provides an updated interpretation of the former two discourses. It borrows the metaphoric labeling of perpetrators from the centrist repertoire and the logic behind the proposed countermeasures from neoliberal discourse. In the conclusion, we compare our findings with the political constructions of corruption in other cultural contexts. We also shed light on some of the circumstances that may have contributed to framing corruption as a security issue in Czechia. PubDate: 2023-08-02 DOI: 10.5817/SOC2023-33476 Issue No:Vol. 20, No. 1 (2023)
Authors:Petr Mezihorák Pages: 29–4 - 29–4 Abstract: Based on an analysis of public hearings organised to select the Chair of the Office for the Protection of Whistleblowers in Slovakia, this study asks how the notions of “public interest” and “anti-social activity” have been interpreted and re-enacted, and what role the topic of corruption played in this process. The analysis reveals the tension between a narrow understanding of anti-social activity as corruption and its wider interpretation, which encompasses a broader notion of public interest. In fact, the hearing stimulated an exploration of larger ethico-political questions related to the role of the state in the protection of “the social”. Therefore, this article argues that the organisation of the hearing, and specifically its public dialogical character, led to a shift away from the strict anti-corruption framing of whistleblowing. Second, the article contributes to the theoretical debate on whistleblowing by emphasising the so far rather neglected institutional and relational elements. PubDate: 2023-08-02 DOI: 10.5817/SOC2022-33073 Issue No:Vol. 20, No. 1 (2023)
Authors:Tomáš Doseděl, Marcela Petrová Kafková, Lucie Vidovićová Pages: 47–6 - 47–6 Abstract: Accelerated digitalization during the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition from mobile phones to smartphones have increased the need for ICT literacy among the general public, including knowledge of the potential risks and their management. Generally, it is assumed that some population groups are more at risk of being left behind. Original empirical data collected in autumn 2020 as part of the PRECOBI project were used to identify the sociodemographic groups at risk of insufficient knowledge of biometrics and ICT safety. The novelty Biometrics Knowledge and ICT Safety Index (BIKIS index) was constructed to identify these and analyzed in the context of the Czech Republic. The OLS regression shows that the combination of higher age and lower education is associated with the highest risk of digital illiteracy, potentially resulting in digital exclusion. Regarding biometrics and ICT safety knowledge, the age of 50 is the cut-off point, with those with elementary and lower secondary education at a disadvantage compared to those with higher levels of education. The results show that in terms of ICT literacy, old age starts considerably earlier than in other societal contexts, which is important to note when designing ICT and biometrics-related risk mitigation strategies. The role of early life educational attainment should be supported to ensure ICT literacy in later life. PubDate: 2023-08-02 DOI: 10.5817/SOC2022-21291 Issue No:Vol. 20, No. 1 (2023)
Authors:Tomáš Zvoníček, Martin Kreidl, Petr Fučík Pages: 65–8 - 65–8 Abstract: It can be reasonably assumed that the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic have taken a toll on family and interpersonal relationships. Previous research has established that job insecurity and financial hardship lead to reduced relationship quality and a higher incidence of partner conflicts. Our goal is to investigate the dynamics of partnership satisfaction and partnership conflict during the COVID-19 pandemic among Czech couples, focusing on pandemic-related employment change and perceived job insecurity. We use longitudinal panel data from “Czech GGS COVID pilot study”, which was conducted in December 2020, and from a follow-up survey organized in April 2021. Our results show that the immediate effects of economic hardship during the pandemic were not as strong and uniform as we expected. Many families apparently had the resources to bear the economic impacts of COVID-19 in terms of maintaining subjective relationship quality and curbing conflict between spouses. The most important conclusion worth further investigation is the gendered nature of these mechanisms. There are contradictory, gender-specific associations hidden under the weak total effects. This suggests that the perception of family life could be very different for men and women in relation to economic circumstances. PubDate: 2023-08-02 DOI: 10.5817/SOC2022-20990 Issue No:Vol. 20, No. 1 (2023)
Authors:Maryna Lakhno Pages: 89–1 - 89–1 Abstract: The term “policy framework” is frequently used. Surprisingly, however, there are no definitions for it; nor have there been any systematic attempts to conceptualize or clarify what a policy framework is. The fact that in spite of its ubiquitous use the term is not defined might signify that its meaning is considered self-evident. In reality, however, as we will show in this article, this is not the case – far from it. Even if it were, the place of the term “policy framework” in the public policy vocabulary and as a concept in the cognitive universe of public policy is too important to dispense with the task of defining it explicitly. The present article outlines a rationale for the conceptualization of the term and an approach towards achieving it. The main justification for attempting a definition of the concept is the need for cognitive hygiene. Methodologically, this research is inspired by the thinking of Sartori (1970) and scholarship surrounding his ideas on concept formation. Indeed, the paper does not aim to ‘reinvent the wheel’ in public policy, but strives to extract the meaning of “policy framework” from already existing definitions, implicit if not explicit, and, in this way, to systematize pre-existing scholarship by providing empirical references to current policy frameworks across thematic fields. PubDate: 2023-08-02 DOI: 10.5817/SOC2023-35675 Issue No:Vol. 20, No. 1 (2023)
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