« I Am the King of the World » - A game to discover the diversity of family life courses
22.04.2020

« I Am the King of the World » - A game to discover the diversity of family life courses

In the current lockdown situation, the NCCR LIVES searched its archives to find activities to do with family or friends. With this game developed by LIVES and the "Mystères de l'UNIL 2013" team, children explore a ship in a Goose game mode.

Along the way, players come across life events such as education, health accidents or family problems that either move them forward or backward or induce inactivity. The aim is to make children aware that we are all in the same boat: an economic crisis, for example, will affect all players. Some key concepts of life-course theory have been applied in a simplified way to write the rules of the game: linked lives, intentionality, temporality of events, etc. 

To play, simply print the game board (boat) and the rules (list of life events). You then only need one pawn per person and a die. What will your life course be? 

 

Share your pictures with us!

Take photos or videos during the game and share them on social networks by tagging the LIVES page!

 

20.04.2020

Enquête : la pandémie de COVID-19 et les personnes âgées de 65 ans et plus en Suisse

Le contexte actuel de la pandémie de COVID-19 pose des questions au sujet de l’impact du confinement sur le vécu des personnes âgées de 65 ans et plus. Un questionnaire mis en place par des chercheur·es de l'Université de Genève permet aux seniors de s'exprimer sur leur situation actuelle.

Le questionnaire est disponible en ligne jusqu'au 26 avril et peut être rempli de 2 façons: 

  1. Le/la répondant.e, agé.e de 65 ou plus, peut compléter le questionnaire directement en ligne ;
  2. Une personne qui connait un.e possible répondant.e lui fait passer le questionnaire par téléphone et le complète en ligne.

Par cette enquête, les chercheur·es souhaitent récolter d'importantes informations au sujet de l'immobilité, contacts sociaux et formes alternatives de mobilité des seniors. 

COVID-19 - A guide to support professionals involved in effective mobilisation in crisis situations
20.04.2020

COVID-19 - A guide to support professionals involved in effective mobilisation in crisis situations

In this period of crisis caused by COVID-19, many actors in society are mobilising to help people in vulnerable situations. Public authorities, professionals, parents and the media are all participating in the common effort and implementing new public actions to curb the spread of the disease. However, in an emergency, it is sometimes difficult to assess whether the implemented measures will achieve the desired effect. Prof. Guy Elcheroth, a researcher at the National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES “Overcoming Vulnerability: A Life Course Perspective” at the University of Lausanne, collects 10 practical tips and 10 scientific results in the form of a guide to mobilise 3 types of social behaviour: protection, solidarity and resilience.

A great deal of research in social psychology and related disciplines has already been conducted internationally and indicates which practices have proven to be effective (see fact-sheet). In view of the urgency associated with a period of crisis, the main challenge is to make the right decisions quickly and avoid known pitfalls. This guide is intended to support all actors involved in coordinating public action during this health crisis. The implementation of this knowledge takes on its full meaning in the current situation related to COVID-19. These practices are transferable to other crises and, ideally, are applied upstream at the beginning of a project.

A common goal: Getting the public onboard

In the multitude of initiatives currently being implemented to help newly vulnerable people and those already in vulnerable situations, the objective is the same: to get the whole population to adhere to public health measures. The difficulty lies in mobilising three social behaviours, which are real bulwarks against this health crisis: protective behaviours that include respect for health instructions such as spatial distancing, solidarity behaviours that facilitate support for vulnerable people and commitment to the continuity of essential services and resilience behaviours aimed at preventing further damage generated by a distressing situation. The course of the health crisis and its human consequences depend on the successful mobilisation of these three behaviours by the entire population.

>>> How to mobilise protective, supportive and resilient behaviours effectively in times of crisis? Full guide (PDF)

>>> 10 practical tips based on 10 scientific findings - Fact-sheet (PDF)

>>> List of all Policy briefs "LIVES IMPACT"

An International Study on Social Relations in the Time of COVID-19
16.04.2020

An International Study on Social Relations in the Time of COVID-19

Researchers in psychology launch the international study "Love in the Time of COVID" and look at our social relationships in these times of confinement. How are our social relationships - couple, family, friends - changing and can they help us cope in times of crisis? Who are the most vulnerable individuals? Dr. Anik Debrot, Lecturer at the National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES - Overcoming Vulnerability: A Life Course Perspective at the University of Lausanne, is part of the team for this longitudinal research, which aims to make comparisons between countries and cultures.

Already available in 8 languages (French, English, German, Italian, Spanish, Turkish, Dutch and Indonesian) and soon also in Thai and Chinese, the international study "Love in the Time of COVID" is launched by the University of Georgia (UGA) in the United States by prof. Richard Slatcher and looks at the uniqueness of this pandemic period. "Confinement has important psychological and relational effects. In order to help future generations to cope with similar situations, we have a duty to document. We have a duty to document," says Dr. Anik Debrot, Lecturer of Clinical Psychology and Psychopathology.

A longitudinal and international study

Respondents, who are volunteers, adults and anonymous, complete an online questionnaire every two weeks during and shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic, lasting 15-20 minutes. The researchers' goal is to gather as many responses from as many countries as possible in order to make national and cultural comparisons.

Contact: Dre Anik Debrot, anik.debrot@unil.ch 

For more information: study website “Love in the Time of COVID” 

Since 2011, the National Centre of Competence in Research LIVES - Overcoming Vulnerability: A Life-Course Perspective studies the effects of the economy and society on the evolution of situations of vulnerability through longitudinal and comparative studies. It aims to gain a better understanding of the emergence and evolution of vulnerability and the means of overcoming it in order to foster the emergence of innovative socio-political measures. When its funding by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) ends in 2022, it will be replaced by the LIVES Centre, which will resume its research activities.

Class norms and gender determine adolescents' career choices
08.04.2020

Class norms and gender determine adolescents' career choices

On April 7 2020, Dinah Gross brilliantly defended her thesis entitled "How gender and class norms shape our worldview: Occupational representations of teenagers in Switzerland" at the University of Lausanne. This work focused on adolescents' representations of professions in terms of gender and prestige.

Sex-type and prestige are two elements that are usually considered to be a founding factor in terms of professional aspirations. Using a questionnaire that surveyed 3125 young people aged 12 to 15 and their parents in Switzerland, Dinah Gross was able to examine how these professional representations vary according to social parameters and how they influence the future career aspirations of these young people.

She was able to show that gender representations of occupations vary according to the sex, gender identity and sexism of the participants. The result is a hierarchical and segregated perception of which occupations are considered suitable for each sex. This perception is in part inherited from parents through the transmission of attitudes and representations. This work also shows that the theory of circumscription and compromise (Gottfredson), indicating that young people choose their future profession following a circumscription process of acceptable alternatives in terms of sex, prestige and difficulty, is unreliable. Indeed, prestige, as well as difficulty, do not seem to be adequate dimensions to predict the future career orientation of young people.

LIVES offers a Doctoral Programme which is primarily designed for doctoral students in the social sciences and psychology who integrate a life course perspective into their work. This programme aims at promoting courses that lead to quality doctorates within a reasonable time frame and to professional integration, particularly in academic careers.