Service de la recherche éducation

PurposeThis article aims to explore the implications of means–ends decoupling at the state level for the implementation of the global model of the research university by the deans and department heads. Means–ends decoupling at the state level implies that the policies and practices of the state are disconnected from its core goal of creating public welfare.Design/methodology/approachData that form the basis of analysis were collected through twenty-four semi-structured interviews with deans and department heads from the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences who were in their positions during 2010–2014, at two Ukrainian universities.FindingsApart from means–ends decoupling at the state level, which resulted in institutional complexity, case universities also sustained means–ends decoupling at the organisational level, which led to cultural complexity. Institutional and cultural complexities experienced by the deans and department heads, as well as their practices and values deviated from the global model of the research university, entailed them sustaining means–ends decoupling at the individual level. The degree of means–ends decoupling maintained by the deans and department heads at the individual level varied depending on organisational, disciplinary and individual cultural dimensions.Originality/valueThis research contributes to the policy development and implementation studies highlighting how mismatches in policies at both state and organisational levels hinder the achievement of the intended outcomes.

An outbreak of measles is ongoing in Geneva, Switzerland, since January 2011, in the context of a measles epidemic in neighbouring Rhône-Alpes, France. A total of 41 confirmed cases have been reported, the majority among young adults, many unaware of their non-immune status. There is no large clustering of cases and 14 cases were imported or linked to imported cases. Catch-up vaccination, especially among young adults, may be necessary to prevent further extension of this outbreak.

To speak of youth implies that these individuals have something in common, that they share certain experiences and preoccupations. Yet everyone has his or her own particular ideas about the meaning of youth or adolescence; one can also distinguish various approaches to apprehending this concept. For example, adolescence can be defined in physiological or biological terms when one refers to puberty. From a sociological or economic point of view, one might define youth as a key period for the construction of a stable identity or as a stage of transition from school to work. Thus, to speak of youth is actually a way of classifying or evaluating individuals. For some, young people are a source of innovation; for others, they form a group with its own set of values and its own culture that sometimes disturbs by its behavior. There are different types of discourse about youth, and each focuses on particular categories of behavior and social phenomena.