Institute of Social Sciences

A History of Rwanda

Surprisingly, a comprehensive history of Rwanda has not been written until now, partly due to the fact that many historical documents and sources are scattered around the world, for example in Belgium, Germany, Tanzania, Italy and the United States. The project led by Professor Klaus Bachmann remedies this situation by bringing the first comprehensive history of Rwanda, written in English, to readers around the world.

A typology of the relations between non-governmental organizations in Poland

A close working relationship between NGOs, including knowledge and best practice sharing as well as common planning and project development, supports the growth of the third sector in economy. A research team, lead by Agnieszka Kaim, will examine the relationships between 30 selected NGOs and the overall condition of the NGO sector in Poland.

CEEYouth: The comparative study of Poles and Lithuanians in the context of Brexit

Since the 2004 European Union's enlargement, the mobility of young Poles and Lithuanians has significantly increased. For many of them, Great Britain has become a new home. The situation suddenly changed in June 2016, when the Brexit Referendum results were announced. Researchers from SWPS University and from the Public Policy and Management Institute in Lithuania will research the types of risks that young migrants from Poland and Lithuania may face as a result of Great Britain leaving the EU.

GEMTRA: Transition to Motherhood
Across Three Generations of Women

“It takes a whole village to raise a child,” in Poland this “village” means exclusively women. Although, times are changing, and with them the meaning of parenthood changes too, society is still convinced that it is the mother’s responsibility to raise a child and prepare it to live in a society. Besides personal and social expectations, there is also the reality of motherhood and intergenerational relations between mothers. Researchers from SWPS University will study the process of transition to motherhood through the eyes of three generations of Polish mothers: first-time expecting mothers, their mothers and grandmothers.

Institutionalization of political parties in the parliaments of Central Europe – data mining of parliamentary debates

How do new topics become a source of political conflict? How has the understanding of democracy changed over time? Can you predict which parties will fall quickly and which will become important political actors? The project, led by Dr. Agnieszka Kwiatkowska, aims to analyse the process of institutionalization of political parties in parliaments of five Central European countries (Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Slovakia and Hungary), by using quantitative methods of analysing textual data (parliamentary debates) and numerical data (roll-call votes) on an innovative database that will be created in the project.

Key factors determining strategic goals achievement of memorial museums
with particular emphasis on the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim

Museums and memorial sites of the former Nazi German concentration and extermination camps play an important role as elements of historical education and as a warning against horrific crimes committed by totalitarian regimes. However, for the warning to be loud and clear, these sites must be preserved, function and fulfill their educational role. To safeguard the crucial social values, memorial sites require significant resources. The majority of institutionalized memorial sites face considerable financial and organizational difficulties, although some of them fulfill their social mission very effectively and develop best management, fundraising, and commemoration standards.

MINTE
Migrants' Integration Through Education

Mass migrations due to wars, poverty, and climate change have been a frequent phenomenon in the 21st century. Receiving countries face multiple challenges in communicating with newly arrived refugees from different countries, which hinders provision of necessary services. A consortium of European and Israeli research institutions will examine how different countries organize support and communication channels for displaced people arriving on their territory and will develop tools and recommendations for more efficient services.

MIMY: Empowerment through Liquid Integration of Migrant Youth

Mass migrations due to wars, poverty, and climate change have been a frequent phenomenon in the 21st century. Receiving countries face multiple challenges in communicating with newly arrived refugees from different countries, which hinders provision of necessary services. A consortium of European and Israeli research institutions will examine how different countries organize support and communication channels for displaced people arriving on their territory and will develop tools and recommendations for more efficient services.

Peer Groups and Migration

Mass migrations due to wars, poverty, and climate change have been a frequent phenomenon in the 21st century. Receiving countries face multiple challenges in communicating with newly arrived refugees from different countries, which hinders provision of necessary services. A consortium of European and Israeli research institutions will examine how different countries organize support and communication channels for displaced people arriving on their territory and will develop tools and recommendations for more efficient services.

Political Knowledge in Poland

Are average Poles interested in politics? Do they know their local MPs and the names of Ministers serving in the current government? Have they read the Constitution and are they familiar with laws and regulations decreed by the government? A team of sociologists and political scientists from SWPS University, led by Associate Professor Mikołaj Cześnik, will research what is the state of political knowledge among Poles and how this knowledge impacts their voting decisions and in consequence the politics of the country.

Social entrepreneurship
Fundamentals

The researchers assume that a comprehensive approach applied in the project will guarantee long-term positive impact on the participants and a large number of people who, in the future, will benefit from the social enterprises created thanks to the project.