In an ageing Czech society, the age of retirement has become an important issue in the debates over how to reform the pension system. In this article, which deals with the transition to retirement, the central questions posed are what perspective Czechs have on the timing of their retirement, and whether they are beginning to prepare themselves for the eventuality that they will have to retire much later than has thus far been the case. Using the results from various Czech representative surveys, the paper uncovers the paradox of early retirement. This consists of contradictory links. The Czechs know that their society is ageing, that they are living longer and that the number of pensioners is increasing. They know also that after retirement their level of income (pension) will decrease substantially, having a serious impact on their standard of living. Yet despite these facts, middle-aged and elderly Czechs (45 years and older) not only are opposed to any increase in the statutory retirement age, but more frequently they even indicate a preference for early retirement. Interestingly, research conducted among the elderly has shown that many of those who are already retired today admit that they did not really want to retire. This article tries to find an explanation for this paradox in the mentality that exists with regard to retirement, which was formed by the peculiarities of the socialist labour market, and/or in the psychology of the life course.
The article tackles the phenomenon of the one-child family in the Czech Republic. The authors try to answer the question of whether it is possible to expect that a significant proportion of Czech fertility intentions will be fulfilled when families conceive and give birth to an only child. Can it be assumed that one-child families will be a significant phenomenon in Czech society in the years to come? To answer the questions the authors used two different datasets in the analysis. The article includes a description of the socio-demographic characteristics of people who have or intend to have just one child. They then proceed to present some of the covariates that determine whether people have or intend to have one child in comparison with those who have other fertility intentions. Some of the findings indicate that it is likely that about 20-25% of women who finish their reproductive period within the next two decades will have only one child. The results indicate that being an only child increases the chances of intending to and having only one child. The opposite effect can be noticed when the place of residence is considered - living in small towns and rural areas may have a negative influence on the decision to have only one child.
Adult education as a part of lifelong learning is nowadays the topic emphasised in all documents concerning educational policy, employment policy, and human resources development in the Czech Republic. Older empirical data indicate, however, that the participation of the Czech adult population in programmes of adult learning is not very common. The aim of this article, which is based on a special representative survey, 'Adult Learning 2005', is to confront how far Czech reality is from the ideal concepts of 'lifelong learning' and a 'learning society'. The authors pursue three questions: 1) To what extent is it true that education in the Czech Republic is a lifelong affair? 2) Does education of this kind occur on both a formal and non-formal level? 3) Do the Czechs engage in lifelong education, regardless of age, attained level of education, gender, and occupational status? Empirical data reveal that, despite the fact that Czech educational authorities give formal support to adult education, reality 'n the field' is somewhat different. Education in the Czech Republic is still not lifelong; if it exists it occurs mainly within the framework of non-formal education, and only higher educated people and those with some experience in adult education participate in it.
The article explains the various errors that occur in the use of the concept of statistical significance. It points to the problem of census, nonprobability sampling, sampling of small populations and small samples. Another topic is the use of statistical methods on aggregated data files, especially from international research, and on weighted data. The authors point out that in many cases the use of statistical significance is not appropriate, and they warn against the incorrect use of traditional statistical methods. The article also presents methods that can be used to avoid the problems to which the authors have drawn attention.
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