Trust is a field of research in social sciences that has complex, well-developed theoretical
approaches, but its empirical tools are less precisely grounded. The most common survey tool
for measuring generalized trust is a formula often referred to in the literature as “standard”
trust question, which reads as follows: “Generally speaking, would you say that most people can
be trusted or that you need to be very careful in dealing with people?” The aim of the paper is to
examine this standard survey item along the dimensions of reliability and validity. In our analysis,
we use Hungarian data obtained from various international surveys. Our results indicate serious
validity problems, as the standard question shows only weak linkage with additional variables,
which, based on the conceptual background, should be in a close relationship with trust.
KEYWORDS: trust, generalized trust, survey methods, reliability, validity

The early “research of Gypsies”, romology, then the visible and the hidden processes of
“tziganology” in anthropology included a shift in the state of understanding between the
hillside of critical interpretation studies and that of local group psychology. They also involved
the research of folk tales, dancing, poverty, examining segregation and participatory action
methodology as well as innovation and rebirth of the musicological research of Gypsy music.
The terminological aspect of “us” and “others”, expressing alterity and identity, points towards
the more complex study of (ethnic) “minorities”, moreover knowledge and field studies, and
results of examining narratives (such as tales, dances, visual worksof art, publicity, religion and
community), bring us closer (by way of political and scientific pragmatism) to signalling a new
era of empathic understanding. The aim of the paper is to highlight the ways leading to that
goal, putting the musical aspects of the shift in focus, consisting of stylistic inventions, a worldmusic-based openness towards instruments and performance cultures, which nevertheless still
carries the signs of a new era of projection and knowledge contents, first-person-narrative and
narrative identities. Finding answers to the question “where did it come from” might be aided
by contemplating “where does it go”. This would be both the aim and partially the structure of
my thematic essay.

This article is an account of our practical research and cooperation experience from a
participatory research project on homelessness and psychosocial disability carried out in a
Hungarian university context, by a student and two experts by experience in a researcher role.
We argue for the involvement of disadvantaged people using social services in research related
to disadvantaged people and social services, highlighting the advantages and challenges of this
kind of research based on our experience. Finally, we formulate practical recommendations that
migh be useful for beginners – like we used to be – in participatory research in this field.

Recently the investigations were focused rather the polarization, so the questions connected
with the inner structure of the different strata got less interesting, The most important aim of
our study to give an empirically founded picture about the heterogenity of the different strata,
and paralelly about the conservation of „the big structure” of the society. The study was based on
the survey of stratification carried out by The Hugarian Statistical Office, in 2016. Observations
showed, that the revealing of the attributes of the heterogenity can be solved only by developing
the different modells and schemes. The key question was, that by the modification of Andorka
scheme could we gather more punctual informations about the formation of the inequality? Our
results mirrored, that by the help of the revised schemes we could show bigger inequality, than
with the originel ones.

A radical electoral reform took place in Hungray in 2011, as a consequence of the sweeping
victory of the Fidesz-KDNP coalition in 2010. The government initiated and implimented
a reform which was not based on a consensus of all political parties. Taking advantage of its
political position (qualified majority government), Fidesz introduced among other changes the
winer compensation, and gave voting right to non-resident Hungarians. The present paper tries
to present some of the value-based and interest-oreinted arguments related to the reform of
2011, showing that the real (power) interests were hushed up, while the government tried to
legitimize the electoral reform based on several value-oriented arguments.

The paper examines the party system of the European Parliament (EP) between 2004–2019
through European Parliamentary Groups. It applies party system typologies in an international
case. The examined period starts from 2004, which marks the largest enlargement of the
dominating the decision-making In addition to the widely used typologies developed by Blondel
and Sartori, the present paper focuses on the relationship between the political groups in the
EP and their role in decision-making. It draws conclusions about the nature of the party system
and its changes over three cycles from the internal cohesion indices and coalition statistics of
the political groups. The party system of the EP is a polarised pluralist system dominated by
two political groups (bidominant). In the period under review, the party system of the EP can be
characterized as balanced, showing only small changes.

The purpose of this study is to examine, in what extent the mainstream approaches of scientific
theories can be applied on the field of the value-research. Therefore, I will examine these models
through the lense of scientific philosophical approaches of 20th century. Of the three most
significant philosophical theory (Popper’s falsification theory, Kuhn’s paradigm theory, and Imre
Lakatos’s theory of scientific research programs), I apply Lakatos’s theory, since it fits the best
to explain, how parallel research streams emerged on the field of value research. In this study I
strive for conciliate Lakatos’s program and the three significant value models. In the scientific
research program theory Lakatos found that many research programs coexist simultaneously.
Each has a hard core or negative heuristic (as Lakatos calls it) of theories immune to any revision
surrounded by a protective belt or positive heuristic of malleable theories. Every research
program vies against others to be most progressive. In my opinion the core of the program is
the value definition itself, which is used by the different researchers in the field of value studies.
This value definition barely changed during the past few decades. On the other hand, there are
numerous value models aimed to assess people’s value system. These models can be considered
as the protective belt revolving around the hardcore definition. The aim of this paper is not to
emphasize Lakatos’ theory from the philosophical approaches of science, but to examine value
research through a philosophical eye. This approach also can ease the communication between
the value research by exploring the common core of them.

The study deals with the transformation of decisions and division of labor within the family by
processing the results of a qualitative, interviewed study of the target group of weekly workers.
The study shows how decisions are restructured according to roles within the family and how
the roles of women and men change as a result of the regular absence of one family member.
From the point of view of the approach to domestic work, the differences between weekdays and
weekends, which can be considered as a consequence of weekend, come to the fore. In the course
of the analysis, we examined whether there was a change in the decision-making processes
within the family as a result of the weekly (and if so, what areas were affected by the change)
and whether there was a radical change in the division of family responsibilities as a result of the
weekend. I present the results on the basis of two dimensions, on the one hand, of the phenomena
of disposition and decision-making over income, and, on the other hand, of the division of family
responsibilities and problem-solving.

The article gives a summary of the most relevant results of the sociological and sociopsychological special literature concerning the transition to market economy and political
pluralism in Hungary. The transition affected the different regions and different social groups
disproportionately. The article points out that the last three decades were not enough for the
destruction of the legacy of state socialism resulting learned helplessness and paternalism.

Scholars engaged in research into the history of Debrecen have long been eager to get an
answer – beyond their specific research inquiries – to the question whether the development of
the city had had unique features and if they had what would hallmark the unique character of
development? Was there or is there a kind of “Debrecenness”?
My study examines – with the help of a GIS relational database (DTTTA1870) – what
peculiarities can be grasped in the transformation of the traditional spatial and social structure
of Debrecen enforced by the political change and industrial modernization processes two
decades after the change of feudal regime (1848/49).
The analysis focuses on whether the alteration process of the factors determining the social
status (residential segregation, neighborhood, spatial segregation and coexistence, other spatial
and social hierarchical characteristics) in the cases of the “deep-rooted Debrecen residents”
(cívis) and of the settlers showed specific types described in the literature or showed specific
features.

Wang, Zhihe (2020): Folyamat és pluralizmus. Kínai elmélkedés a sokszínűség harmóniájáról. Budapest, Pallas Athéné, 243 oldal, fordította: Radó Nóra