Research at Webster Vienna
Unveiling the Economic Impact of Aging Populations: A New Study by Professors Antonakakis and Workie
Professors Nikolaos Antonakakis and Menbere Workie Tiruneh from Webster Vienna Private University's Business and Management Department have made a significant contribution to the field of economic research with their latest study published in Applied Economics Letters. Their paper, titled "Is there an Aging Population Kuznets Curve?" delves into the complex relationship between aging populations and economic performance in advanced economies.
This pivotal research, based on data from 126 countries over a span of nearly five decades (1970-2019), employs innovative non-linear growth regression techniques to pinpoint when the aging population begins to negatively impact economic growth and productivity. The study identifies critical thresholds: economic challenges intensify when the portion of the population aged 50 and over exceeds 42% of those aged 15-49, the old age dependency ratio climbs above 14%, and the share of the elderly population surpasses 9%.
Antonakakis and Workie's findings are particularly relevant for countries already beyond these markers, underscoring the urgency of policy reforms in pension and healthcare systems to accommodate demographic shifts without compromising economic stability. Their research sheds light on the pressing need for strategic approaches, including automation and robotization, to counterbalance the dwindling and aging workforce.
The study emerges at a critical juncture, as nations grapple with the repercussions of retirement policy reforms, evidenced by the recent protests in France against raising the retirement age. It offers a timely beacon for policymakers, signaling when to initiate more gradual and socially acceptable policy changes to mitigate potential unrest.
"Is there an Aging Population Kuznets Curve?" stands as a landmark in economic and demographic research, providing a solid foundation for future studies aimed at tackling the challenges posed by aging populations. Professors Antonakakis and Workie's work not only prompts a reevaluation of current policies but also encourages a broader discussion on sustainable strategies to ensure economic prosperity in the face of demographic changes.
Reference: Antonakakis, N. and Workie, M. (2024, in press). “Is there an Aging Population Kuznets Curve?”, Applied Economics Letters. DOI: 10.1080/13504851.2024.2336179
Faculty — Business and Management
Faculty and Staff
Active in 2020-2021
Professor Bátora published his research on “thought communities” in the European Union
How do citizens in European Union (EU) member states think about the EU? And what are the implications of different ‘thinking styles’ for citizens’ preferences regarding formation of policies, politics and polity in the EU? In a new article published in Journal of Common Market Studies, professor Jozef Bátora from IR Department at WVPU and his co-author Pavol Baboš (Comenius University) use relational class analysis (RCA) and analyze perceptions of the EU as a political order by citizens in six selected EU member states.
The article introduces a new approach to analyzing public opinion about the EU: unlike traditional surveys examining attitudes, the current article can identify ways of thinking - intersubjective cognitive constructs - that people use when forming their opinions about the EU. Based on an online survey (N=6000) of respondents in France, Hungary, Germany, Poland, Italy and Slovakia, the analysis identifies two "thought communities" - statists and pragmatists - which are present to varying degrees in individual member states.
People belonging to individual communities think about the Union on the basis of the same construct, but not with the same preferences: for example, statists include nation-state sovereigntists as well as Euro-federalists - all who use the ‘state’ as a frame of reference. The article analyzes the implications of thought communities for public support of different visions of political integration in the EU.
Faculty — International Relations
Faculty and Staff
Active in 2020-2021
Methods of Political Inquiry
Advanced Research Methods
elinabrutschin60@webster.edu
Middle East Area Studies
Globalization
War and Diplomacy
The Age of Total War: Europe 1890-1945
Contemporary Europe: 1945-Present
dieterreinisch07@webster.edu
International Law
Recently, Dr. Wiggins received notification that his article, The Backrooms and Liminal Spaces: Explorations of a Digital Urban Legend’, has been accepted for publication at New Media & Society, a prestigious journal with an impact factor of 5.0. The article provides an analysis of 16 videos published to a YouTube account that depict the digital urban legend known as the ‘Backrooms’. Appearing online in May 2019, in a forum for paranormal discussion on 4chan, it has since become a digital phenomenon. The individual who published the 16 videos recently made an agreement with the production studio A24 to produce a major motion picture. Similar to an older urban legend known as Slenderman, the ‘Backrooms’ features not monsters but rather endless open spaces causing anxiety and dread, perhaps reflecting something of our modern condition online and off. Here is the abstract:
Urban legends form an important part of socio-cultural narratives of shared fears and anxieties, and their presence online has developed similarly. This contribution explores the online urban legend the backrooms and examines its narrative construction offering possible reasons for the popularity and participatory aspect of the backrooms. Appearing on 4chan in May 2019, the backrooms represent an endless liminality. A diegetic analysis of 16 videos produced by Kane Parsons, provides a sequential deconstruction of narrative elements within the backrooms, particularly the elements that exist within the fictional world of the narrative. A concurrent semiotic analysis examines the backrooms videos seen as an interrelated narrative. Narrative construction in the backrooms necessitates liminality alongside notions like video games, nostalgia, postmodern thought, and the vaporwave art/music aesthetic to reveal the backrooms as a digital chronotope. Findings reveal a clearer understanding of liminal spaces in the backrooms and relate how games and play address the narrative construction of the backrooms.
Faculty — Strategic Communication
Faculty and Staff
Active in 2020–2021
Prof. Dr. Didem Kepir Savoly Joins Webster Vienna
Webster Vienna Private University's Psychology Department warmly welcomes Prof. Dr. Didem Kepir Savoly, the latest addition to its academic faculty. Specializing in Counseling Psychology, Dr. Kepir Savoly's scholarly pursuits have primarily focused on the aspects of career development and emotional well-being. Her work on career adaptability examines the transition from educational environments to professional settings, emphasizing the significance of resilience and flexibility in career choices.
Former studies of Dr. Kepir Savoly explored the relationship between career optimism and the well-being of university students, highlighting how personal relationships impact psychological outcomes. Dr. Kepir Savoly's research also extends to the realm of emotion regulation, investigating therapeutic interventions like art therapy for emotional resilience and self-regulation skills training for international students facing cultural transitions. These studies highlight the therapeutic value of creative expression and the critical need for adaptive coping mechanisms in diverse settings. Moreover, Dr. Kepir Savoly's collaborative projects with former master's supervisees have produced insightful analyses of movie and TV-show characters through Transactional Analysis, demonstrating the practical application of psychological theories in understanding complex character dynamics.
Prof. Dr. Didem Kepir Savoly's arrival at Webster Vienna Private University's Psychology Department heralds an exciting new chapter in our pursuit of academic and research excellence. Her research background and innovative approaches to understanding the complexities of human psychology promise to significantly enhance our academic and research endeavors. We look forward with great enthusiasm to the contributions she will make to our academic community, confident that her presence will inspire both our faculty and students to reach new heights in their research and studies.
Unveiling the Influence of Human and Robotic Actions on Object Preference and Memory
In a groundbreaking study led by Dr Luca Ticini and Dr Alex Kafkas of the University of Manchester, researchers have unveiled fascinating insights into how human and robotic actions influence our preferences and memory. The study, titled "Grasp and Remember: The Impact of Human and Robotic Actions on Object Preference and Memory," delves into the cognitive phenomena of goal contagion and its implications in the rapidly evolving landscape of human-robot interactions.
The research team, including Prof Paolo Gallina from the University ofTrieste, embarked on an exploration to understand how observing different types of actions—human vs. robotic—alters our perception and recollection of objects. Participants were presented with a series of objects that were either grasped by a human, a robot, or not acted upon at all (static objects). They were then asked to indicate their preference for each object. To assess the impact of these actions on memory, participants' recollection of the objects was tested after a short delay, including their ability to recognize previously seen objects and distinguish them from new ones.
The findings are striking. Human actions not only heightened the preference for objects but also significantly enhanced the subsequent memory of them, more so than robotic actions. Interestingly, static objects, when presented in the context of human action, were also perceived as more familiar during the recognition task. This suggests that the mere observation of human actions has a profound effect on our cognitive evaluations and memory engagement, fostering the creation of detailed associative memories.
This study's results underscore the critical role of human interaction in cognitive processes, particularly in the context of goal contagion—a concept that describes the tendency to adopt others' goals. The differential effects observed between human and robotic actions highlight the nuanced complexities of our cognitive systems and their interaction with the world.
According to Luca Ticini and his team, these insights have profound implications for the design and implementation of robotic technologies in everyday life. “Understanding the cognitive effects of human versus robotic actions can guide the development of robots that better align with human cognitive processes, potentially enhancing learning, memory, and the overall human-robot interaction experience.”
Faculty — Psychology
Faculty and Staff
Active in 2020-2021
Social Psychology & Occupational Health
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