Abstracts
issue 2/2010 (English)
Alexandra Lamprecht: Condition or Enrichment? Non-governmental Actors in the Open Method of Co-ordination for Social Inclusion in Austria
The participation of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the new modes of European governance, such as the open method of coordination for social inclusion (OMC), has raised expectations after 2000 – not only of political scientists and actors at the European level, but also of those who are being directly affected at the national level: political and administrative decision-makers and the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that take part. Yet, the Austrian Ministry of Social Affairs and the involved NGOs have a different understanding of the role that NGOs should play: while the ministry seeks primarily the specific NGO expertise, the NGOs demand an equal integration in the national coordination process. This article provides insight into characteristics and mechanisms of NGO participation in the Austrian OMC process and answers the question, to which extent these two different expectations are being realized, but also influenced by which factors.
Other abstracts in this issue:
- National Identity Construction in Austrian and Swiss Sports Media Coverage – a Qualitative Content Analysis of the European Football Championship 2008
- Implementation of Gender Mainstreaming in the Rural Development of Austria – Neglects and Perspectives
- »Taking a Chance« – The Understanding of Contraception in Context of the Desire to Have a Child in Advanced Age
- Social Prestige of Music Styles in Austria – Discussion of the Questionability of Music Preference Surveys Based on Selected Results of the Study »Wozu Musik?« (»Why Music?«)