Papers by Alexander Seymer
Österreichische Zeitschrift für Soziologie, 2015
Ich danke den beiden anonymen GutachterInnen für Ihre konstruktive Kritik und Anmerkungen.
The Austrian Social Survey investigates changes in the social structure, living conditions, socia... more The Austrian Social Survey investigates changes in the social structure, living conditions, social attitudes and values of the residential population of Austria. Abstract in German: Die Demokratie und der Rechtsstaat in Österreich basieren ähnlich wie die meisten Demokratien innerhalb der EU auf einem starken Fundament des sozialen und institutionellen Vertrauens der Bürger*innen. Mit den Daten des <strong><em>Sozial Survey Österreich 2021</em></strong> (SSÖ 2021) wird im Folgenden gezeigt, dass das Vertrauen der Bürger*innen trotz abnehmender Tendenzen in Politik und Medien weiterhin sehr hoch ist. Partiell zeigen sich deutliche Vertrauenserosionen bei FPÖ Wähler*innen und Personen mit niedrigerem sozialen Status.
Aggregated data-set combining smartphone mobility data, selected subjective mental health indices... more Aggregated data-set combining smartphone mobility data, selected subjective mental health indices and COVID-19 incidence data in the summer of 2020.
Full edition for scientific use. The COVID-19 pandemic offers unique opportunity - a natural expe... more Full edition for scientific use. The COVID-19 pandemic offers unique opportunity - a natural experiment indeed - to study how people's moral values change during times of crises. In the face of lacking evidence, we cannot take it for granted that the stability of values observed in normal times continues throughout the Corona crisis. This dataset represents the Austrian data of the first wave of a longitudinal study which is conducted in several countries all over the world. A second wave is planned in 2021, a third wave about one year after the crisis. Under the current contact restrictions, using an online panel is the only option to achieve potentially representative data of the Austrian population. The study investigates basic values (measured with classical value concepts such as the Inglehart Index and the short Portraits Values Questionnaire (by Shalom Schwartz) which is also implemented in the European Social Survey). Additional item batteries refer to concepts which are...
Hintergrund: In der häuslichen Versorgung eines Menschen mit Demenz (MmD) tragen professionelle U... more Hintergrund: In der häuslichen Versorgung eines Menschen mit Demenz (MmD) tragen professionelle Unterstützungsangebote dazu bei, Belastungen pflegender Angehöriger zu reduzieren und eine vorzeitige Institutionalisierung der MmD zu vermeiden [ref:1]. Trotz vorhandener Unterstützungsangebote[zum vollständigen Text gelangen Sie über die oben angegebene URL]
All Life, 2021
We aimed to explore the association of national COVID-19 data with the objective and subjective m... more We aimed to explore the association of national COVID-19 data with the objective and subjective mental health proxies (i.e. location variance, self-reported sleep quality, level of recovery, perceived risk of infection) in team and staff members of five professional Austrian Football clubs. Data were conveniently collected during the implementation of a novel monitoring concept. The concept was designed to enable safe continuation of professional Football during the COVID-19 pandemic. These data were matched with Austrian COVID-19 data and smartphone collected location data. Multivariable linear regression models explored the association of COVID-19, defined as daily novel or active Austrian cases of COVID-19, with the mental health proxies. An increasing number of novel Austrian COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with deteriorating sleep quality (B 0.48, 95% CI 0.05;1.00). An increasing number of active Austrian COVID-19 cases was significantly associated with an increase in perceived infection risk (B 0.04, 95% CI 0.00;0.07) and location variance (B 0.28, 95% CI 0.06;0.49). An increasing Austrian COVID-19 incidence is adversely associated with mental health in professional Footballers and staff members. During the ongoing pandemic, targeted mental care should be included in the daily routines of this population.
Scientific Reports, 2021
Since the beginning of the COVID -19 pandemic, many contact sport teams are facing major challeng... more Since the beginning of the COVID -19 pandemic, many contact sport teams are facing major challenges to safely continue training and competition. We present the design and implementation of a structured monitoring concept for the Austrian national football league. 146 professional players from five clubs of the professional Austrian football league were monitored for a period of 12 weeks. Subjective health parameters, PCR- test results and data obtained from a geo-tracking app were collected. Simulations modelling the consequences of a COVID-19 case with increasing reproduction number were computed. No COVID -19 infection occurred during the observation period in the players. Infections in the nearer surroundings lead to increased perceived risk of infection. Geo tracking was particularly hindered due to technical problems and reluctance of users. Simulation models suggested a hypothetical shut-down of all training and competition activities. A structured monitoring concept can help ...
Objective We aimed to explore the association of COVID-19 incidence with mental health in 225 tea... more Objective We aimed to explore the association of COVID-19 incidence with mental health in 225 team and staff members of five professional Austrian Football clubs captured by objective (location variance) or subjective (self-reported sleep quality, level of recovery, perceived risk of infection) mental health proxies. Methods Data collected during the implementation of a novel monitoring concept to enable safe continuation of professional Football during the COVID-19 pandemic were matched with Austrian COVID-19 incidence data and smartphone collected location data (time-period June 17th to July 31st, 2020). Multivariable linear regression models explored the association of COVID-19 incidence, defined as daily novel or active cases of COVID-19, with the objective and subjective health proxies while adjusting for the occurrence of one COVID-19 case in a staff member in one of the clubs, team status (i.e. player vs staff) and game days. Results Data from 115 participants were analysed. ...
Historical Social Research, 2020
»Potentiale und Grenzen der automatischen Klassifikation von Big Data-Eine Fallstudie«. This case... more »Potentiale und Grenzen der automatischen Klassifikation von Big Data-Eine Fallstudie«. This case study highlights the potentials and limits of big-data analyses of media sources compared to conventional, quantitative content analysis. In an FFG-funded multidisciplinary project in Austria (based on the KIRAS security research program), the software tool WebLyzard was used for an automated analysis of online news and social media sources (comments on articles, Facebook postings, and Twitter statements) in order to analyze the media representation of pressing societal issues and citizens' perceptions of security. Frequency and sentiment analyses were carried out by two independent observers in parallel to the automated WebLyzard results. Specific articles on selected key topics like technology or Muslims in two major online newspapers in Austria (Der Standard and Kronen Zeitung) were counted, as were user comments, and both were evaluated according to different sentiment categories. The results indicate various weaknesses of the software leading to misinterpretations, and the automated analyses yield substantially different results compared to the sentiment analysis carried out by the two raters, especially for cynical or irrelevant statements. From a social-sciences methodological perspective, the results clearly show that methodology in our discipline should promote theory-based research, should counteract the attraction of superficial analyses of complex social issues, and should emphasize not only the potentials but also the dangers and risks associated with big data.
Die Lebenssituation von Migrantinnen und Migranten in Österreich, 2019
Die Integration von Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund steht in der osterreichischen Gesellschaft... more Die Integration von Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund steht in der osterreichischen Gesellschaft und Politik heute im Fokus des Interesses. Eine Vielzahl medialer, politischer und offentlicher Diskurse rankt sich um das Thema Zuwanderung und Integration. In diesem Beitrag soll die strukturelle Integration, Schichtzugehorigkeit und soziale Mobilitat der Zugewanderten aus der Turkei und aus dem ehemaligen Jugoslawien prazise in den Blick genommen werden.
Background This study aimed to explore which measures and risk factors for a COVID − 19 infection... more Background This study aimed to explore which measures and risk factors for a COVID − 19 infection are considered most important in the general population, health experts and policymakers and to assess the level of agreement across the groups from Austria and Germany. Methods A two-phased survey was conducted, participants were matched according to age and gender. Three different groups were asked which measures they considered most relevant in reducing a COVID-19 transmission, to determine which factors contribute most to the risk of disease, and to evaluate the level of agreement in the assessment of risk factor relevance for (a) the transmission of the disease and (b) the risk of a severe course of COVID-19. Results Risk factors for an infection that were selected from all three groups were immunosuppression/deficiency, cancer, chronic lung disease, smoking, age and working as a health care professional. Interrater agreement per population was only poor to slight and results were ...
OZP – Austrian Journal of Political Science I ISSN 2313-5433 I http://oezp.at/ Vol. 47, issue 2 I... more OZP – Austrian Journal of Political Science I ISSN 2313-5433 I http://oezp.at/ Vol. 47, issue 2 I DOI 10.15203/ozp.2393.vol47iss2 Abstract Incentives are often discussed in the literature on the topic as a way to increase response rates. In this article, sample composition and item nonresponse are also considered. Using social exchange theory, the concept of social inequality is theoretically linked to the effect of incentives and is empirically tested using data from a recruitment experiment for an online survey in Austria. Since the participants of the Austrian micro-census were used as the selection framework, a detailed analysis of nonresponse is possible. Based on the four different incentives (a brochure, a €2 commemorative coin, a €5 commemorative coin and a €10 voucher), conclusions can be drawn about the different forms incentives take and the values they hold. The results underline the potential of incentives to increase response rates, but at the same time they reveal pot...
Background: Since the beginning of the COVID -19 pandemic, many contact sport teams are facing ma... more Background: Since the beginning of the COVID -19 pandemic, many contact sport teams are facing major challenges to safely continue training and competition. Objective: We present the design and implementation of a structured monitoring concept for the Austrian national football league Methods: 146 professional players from five clubs of the professional Austrian football league were monitored for a period of 12 weeks. Subjective health parameters, PCR- test results and data obtained from a geo-tracking app were collected. Simulations modelling the consequences of a COVID-19 case with increasing reproduction number were computed. Results: No COVID -19 infection occurred during the observation period in the players. Infections in the nearer surroundings lead to increased perceived risk of infection. Geo tracking was particularly hindered due to technical problems and reluctance of users. Simulation models suggested a hypothetical shut-down of all training and competition activities. C...
Health & Social Care in the Community, 2021
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-... more This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
Sociological Research Online, 2014
This study addresses how political attitudes are shaped across national contexts. It does so by i... more This study addresses how political attitudes are shaped across national contexts. It does so by investigating the influence of nation-specific political articulation and framing on the relationship between human values and political attitudes. Based on the literature, two attitude dimensions can be identified. First, the socioeconomic dimension captures the tension between economic equality and equity (rewarding achievements and effort). Second, the sociocultural dimension captures the tension between individual/civil liberties and traditions/conservative norms. Very few comparative studies systematically investigate the influence of a coherent structure of more basic and abstract motivations (values) on political attitudes. We fill this gap by examining the influence of basic human values on the socioeconomic and sociocultural attitude dimensions across national contexts. To investigate the impact of human values and political attitudes, individual-level data from the European Soci...
The British Journal of Radiology, 2015
To prospectively analyse the diagnostic value of semi-quantitative breast-specific gamma imaging ... more To prospectively analyse the diagnostic value of semi-quantitative breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI) in the work-up of suspicious breast lesions compared with that of mammography (MG), breast ultrasound and MRI of the breast. Methods: Within a 15-month period, 67 patients with 92 breast lesions rated as Category IV or V according to the breast imaging reporting and data system detected with MG and/or ultrasound were included into the study. After the injection of 740-1110 MBq of Technetium-99m (99m Tc) SestaMIBI intravenously, scintigrams were obtained in two projections comparable to MG. The BSGI was analysed visually and semi-quantitatively by calculating a relative uptake factor (X). With the exception of two patients with cardiac pacemakers, all patients underwent 3-T breast MRI. Biopsy results were obtained as the reference standard in all patients. Sensitivity, specificity, positive-and negative-predictive values, accuracy and area under the curve were calculated for each modality. Results: Among the 92 lesions, 67 (72.8%) were malignant. 60 of the 67 cancers of any size were
Brain Sciences
Dementia is a progressive disease that puts substantial strain on caregivers. Many persons with d... more Dementia is a progressive disease that puts substantial strain on caregivers. Many persons with dementia (PwDs) receive care from a relative. Since male and female caregivers experience different issues related to stress, it is important to meet their different needs to prevent the early nursing home placement of PwDs. This study investigated the multifactorial aspects of caregiver burden and explored gender differences in caregiver burden in a rural setting. This was a cross sectional study that administered anonymous questionnaires to family caregivers of PwDs. Caregiver burden was assessed using the Burden Scale for Family Caregivers—short version. A path model was used to determine the multivariate associations between the variables. To reflect the multifaceted aspects of caregiver burden, we used Pearlin’s model with its four dimensions. A total of 113 family caregivers responded to our survey. The overall burden of caregivers was moderate. According to the path model, gender d...
Österreichische Zeitschrift für Soziologie
Age and Ageing
Background Persons with dementia (PwD) need support to remain in their own homes as long as possi... more Background Persons with dementia (PwD) need support to remain in their own homes as long as possible. Family caregivers, homecare nurses and general practitioners (GPs) play an important role in providing this support, particularly in rural settings. Assessing caregiver burden is important to prevent adverse health effects among this population. This study analysed perceived burden and needs of family caregivers of PwD in rural areas from the perspectives of healthcare professionals and family caregivers. Methods This was a sequential explanatory mixed methods study that used both questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Questionnaires measuring caregiver burden, quality of life and nursing needs were distributed to the caregivers; health professionals received questionnaires with adjusted items for each group. Additionally, in-depth qualitative interviews were carried out with eight family caregivers. Results The cross-sectional survey population included GPs (n = 50), homeca...
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Papers by Alexander Seymer