ü Slovakia
has an institute dedicated to the study of sociology, located in Košice. TheInstitute for Sociology (Sociologický Ústav) is part of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. It was
established in 1965.
ü This
institute publishes the journal, Sociológia, every year. In addition, it keeps a library and an
online archive of research and data, which is accessible to the public.
The Institute for Sociology has studied the following
topics:
How Slovak Society is Changing
Vladimír Krivý studies how Slovakia has changed since the
fall of communism in 1989. He has focused on social stratification, inequality,
and migration in both urban and rural areas of Slovakia. He's also studied
changes in voting behavior, religious beliefs, and career paths of young
adults. He considers how joining the EU has influenced these changes, as well
as the UK's new open borders policy.
Poverty and Social Exclusion
Zuzana Kusá,
member of the Slovak Anti-Poverty Network, has studied poverty in
Slovakia, and says that poverty is not merely based on income, but is
multi-dimensional.
She has proposed several ways to eradicate poverty by
ensuring everyone a fair income, access to social services (education, housing,
and employment), and political participation. As far as income is concerned,
poverty is defined as earning less than 60% of the average income in a country.
In addition, a family is considered poor if they can't afford four of these
nine essential expenses:
- basic monthly fees: rent, mortgage, heat & electricity
- enough heat to keep their home warm
- a meal with meat, at least every other day.
- a car
- a washing machine
- a phone
- a colour TV
- a one week holiday, once a year
- unexpected emergencies
Brain Drain in Slovakia
According to Miloslav Bahna, several statistics indicate
that Slovakia is experiencing brain drain, a condition where the best and
brightest people leave the country, leaving under-qualified citizens to work in
Slovakia's public and private institutions. In 2012, 15% of all Slovak
university students were enrolled in foreign schools. Only Iceland and
Luxembourg have more students abroad. This was up 2% from 2010, and the number
is still increasing every year. Around 69% of these students choose schools in
the Czech Republic, as it's free. Brain drain effects not only Slovakia, but
Europe as a whole. Of all the European students who get their PhD in the United
States or Canada, over 66% choose to stay and live there.
Drug Abuse and Policy in Slovakia
Robert Klobucky has studied drug abuse, focusing on treatment,
law enforcement, harm reduction and prevention. He has found that, although the
number of arrests and imprisonment for drug related crimes has tripled since
Slovakia democratized, the number of drug users is still increasing, and it's
easier to get marijuana here in Slovakia than in the Netherlands. The
introduction of strict new laws have not helped, merely moving the sale of
narcotics from the streets to people's homes.
Living Conditions for the Elderly
