The work focuses on the analysis of the marketing activity of the both companies emphasizing the communication mix. The theoretical part is dedicated to the marketing mix, its components and its application for the global and local company. Mill's theory of the comparative research closes this chapter. The practical part aims at the communication mix development in both companies from 2001 until 2009 and it finishes with the Mill's theory of agreement, where all of the attributes obtained during the mentioned period are applied to praxis. The last part declares the comparison of the particular elements.

The effect that different electoral systems have on political participation is a widely discussed and researched topic in social sciences. However, this thesis has examined the relationship between western countries' ballot structures and electoral systems and satisfaction with democracy. By using statistical tools such as SPSS, this thesis has conducted a comparative quantitative analysis that aimed to investigate if ballot structures and electoral systems affect western citizens' satisfaction with democracy. The result is presented with the help of graphical tools, such as tables and diagrams to make it easier for the reader to understand the result. The result concluded that Western countries which have implemented a proportional electoral system do have higher levels of satisfaction with democracy among their citizens, compared to western countries that have implemented majoritarian electoral systems. Further, this thesis has concluded that ballot structures do not affect western citizens' satisfaction with democracy in any significant way.

The book is available in both German and English. It can be utilised in two ways: On one hand, it provides an exemplary application of a method developed by Olle Zandén for research in comparative music education, by which dialogue-like and musical-nonverbal “didactical encounters“ are transcribed into quantifiable codes. On the other hand, the book provides complete codes of eight multi-angle-videos recorded in seven countries, which have previously been published in 2018 within the book “Comparing International Music Lessons on Video“, edited by Christopher Wallbaum. These codes may be applied as a concrete handout; to be in turn compared with interpretations of national experts or interpretations conducted by the readers themselves.

abstract: When my attention was brought to the overwhelming lack of family policy support in the United States, my curiosity led me to look into what other industrialized nations are doing to support growing families and find out what policies and programs have been put in place to better facilitate the work-home balance. I first provide a brief background context of family policy in the United States, leading up to the development and implementation of our nation's parental leave legislation, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). I present the crucial concerns of this provision, as well as the effects that policy has on children's well-being. The second major part of this analysis deals with child care programs and the myriad challenges so many families encounter in this realm. Specifically addressed are the topics of affordability, accessibility and quality of child care found in the U.S. After an in-depth look at U.S. policies, I transition to a comparative analysis of parental leave and child care provision in a range of other nations in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), specifically Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Sweden and Norway. I carefully chose these countries to offer a broad spectrum of family policies to compare to our own. I then return to a discussion of limitations of U.S. family policy and the values and ideology it represents, as well as the importance of strengthening such policies. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education 2012

In economic geography, a main research focus is on the relationship between innovation and space. Based on the observations of spatially clustered innovative activities in urban environments, a central argument is that the exchange of innovation-relevant knowledge across firms and other actors as well as the accompanying learning processes are promoted through geographical proximity. Agglomerations are said to offer multiple advantages, e.g. through frequent face-to-face contacts and opportunities for intense collaboration, a common labour pool and shared institutions. From this perspective, a location in large urban environments is beneficial for innovation, while by contrast, being located outside of agglomerations is not (Fitjar & Rodríguez‐Pose 2019). This dissertation relates to growing debates around the unease with the seemingly accepted truths about the strong connection of agglomerations and firm innovation. The research field has been found to be urban-biased, focussed on cases of successful regions and delivering multiple explanations of their success – while neglecting innovations occurring outside of agglomerations and largely portraying such regions and their actors as disadvantaged (Shearmur 2017). Within the emergent studies of innovation in peripheral contexts, some specifics have been proposed based on empirical studies, but a coherent theoretical framework is missing (e.g. Eder 2019). Against this background, this dissertation aims to contribute to a better understanding of innovation from a peripheral perspective based on comparison of firms by location. It explores knowledge creation processes and innovation activities of Hidden Champions in Germany. These highly innovative and globally active manufacturing firms are quite evenly distributed across Germany. By exploring practices and strategies of these firms towards innovation from a comparative perspective, this study investigates the following overarching research question: • What are the characteristics and main drivers of innovation outside of agglomerations and in how far do these differ from those inside agglomerations? This research builds on relational perspectives on economic action by adopting a geographical lens (Bathelt & Glückler 2003, Yeung 2005). It focusses on actors and how they act and interact in space without privileging any spatial scale or mechanism such as local interaction. Spaces and places are not perceived as territorially bounded units but as contexts in which actors organise their often multi-scalar relations. Following these basic theoretical positions, several concepts and approaches are utilised to develop a detailed understanding of firm innovation in space. While notions of slow innovation and the reliance on firm-internal capabilities point towards reduced interaction requirements especially of firms in peripheral regions to innovate (e.g. Shearmur 2015), the proximity approach (Boschma 2005) and the notion of global pipelines (Bathelt et al. 2004) highlight that geographical proximity is not a necessary precondition for interactive knowledge creation and innovation. Based on these conceptual perspectives and linked to the goal of understanding key mechanisms of innovation from a peripheral perspective, the guiding research question is complemented by the following sub-questions: • How and where do firms gain relevant knowledge for their innovation activities? • Which role do internal capabilities as well as external efforts towards innovation play and how do firms assess both dimensions? • What is the role of the firms’ location, especially regarding local options of knowledge creation? Based on a mixed method research design including a quantitative survey among the Hidden Champions and qualitative interviews with representatives of these firms, three dimensions relevant to the understanding of knowledge creation and innovation are considered for the empirical analyses: practices of knowledge creation at the individual level, strategic approaches towards innovation at the organisational level and the socio-spatial contexts in which knowledge creation processes and innovation are organised. The overarching finding of this dissertation is that firms like Hidden Champions largely follow the same principles to innovate independently from their location. Thereby, the results highlight the commonalities of firm innovation in urban and peripheral contexts instead of pointing towards major limitations or specificities of innovation in more peripheral regions. With taking the firm at the centre of analysis, this research demonstrates that regional economic pre-conditions do not necessarily relate to the capacities of firms to innovate. Neither do investigated firms located inside agglomera-tions largely capitalise on options of local interaction, nor do firms located outside of agglomerations face major disadvantages due to the lack of local options to source knowledge and interact. Instead and irrespectively of their location, firms strategically engage in various firm-internal and -external options to gain knowledge and have the capacities to shape their multi-scalar socio-spatial contexts for knowledge creation according to their needs. The results underline that intense interaction with externals is only one out of many options for firms to gain knowledge. Next to strong internal capabilities, non-interactive modes of knowledge sourcing via desk research, for instance, and more informal modes of knowledge creation via the participation in trade fairs have been identified as integral parts of firms’ innovation activities. This study suggests that such forms of ‘selective openness’ have not been sufficiently addressed in the research field so far. Selective openness not only stresses the strategic approaches of firms towards innovation but also the variety of options for knowledge creation which are usually not reliant on or connected to the regional contexts of firms. Moreover, this study finds that the connection between innovation and agglomeration is not as clear as suggested by urban perspectives, at least for the German context. Rather, much of the urban/rural and core/periphery divide seems to be discursively produced. This dissertation complements existing research on the geographies of innovation by providing insights from a peripheral view on innovation. It contributes to current debates on urban-biased perspectives and the dichotomous representation of firm innovation in urban and peripheral contexts. Based on the empirical results, it proposes a more differentiated view on openness and suggests recommendations for place-based policies towards regional development and innovation.:Summary 9 1. Introduction 11 1.1. Research objectives and questions 13 1.2. Hidden Champions in Germany 16 1.3. Structure of the dissertation 18 2. Re-thinking the geographies of firm innovation 21 2.1. Firms and innovation 22 2.1.1. Understanding firm innovation 24 2.1.2. Coordination of internal and external knowledge for innovation 25 2.1.3. Varieties of open innovation 29 2.2. Geographies and innovation 33 2.2.1. Beyond territorial innovation 34 2.2.2. Questioning the status quo: urban bias and the periphery label 41 2.2.3. Current understandings of innovation outside of agglomerations 45 2.3. Conceptual framework 51 2.3.1. Positioning the own research 51 2.3.2. A relational perspective on economic processes in space 55 2.3.3. Beyond dualistic conceptualisations of innovation and space 59 3. Methodological approach 66 3.1. Critical realism as the basic ontological and epistemological perspective 66 3.1.1. Basics notions of critical realism 67 3.1.2. Implications for research methodologies 68 3.2. Research design 69 3.2.1. Multi-dimensional comparative approach 70 3.2.2. Triangulation 72 3.2.3. Comparison 73 3.3. Empirical and analytical methods and proceedings 75 3.3.1. Development of a database of Hidden Champions in Germany 75 3.3.2. Quantitative survey 81 3.3.3. Semi-structured interviews 85 4. Patterns and socio-spatial contexts of firm innovation – Quantitative results 90 4.1. The spatial distribution of Hidden Champions in Germany 90 4.2. Firm characteristics and innovation patterns 93 4.2.1. Organisational and spatial aspects of firm structures 93 4.2.2. Innovation activities 94 4.2.3. Information sources and collaboration 96 4.3. Comparison of the firms by location 98 4.4. Types of innovative firms 101 4.4.1. Approach, implementation and results of the cluster analysis 102 4.4.2. Types of innovators and their locations 107 4.5. Interim results and arising questions 110 5. Strategies and practices towards knowledge creation and innovation – Qualitative results 113 5.1. Firm profiles 116 5.1.1. Firms located outside of agglomerations 116 5.1.2. Firms located inside agglomerations 120 5.2. The global integration of firms 124 5.2.1. Firms, their niche markets and ways of internationalisation 124 5.2.2. Knowledge creation strategies and the role of geography 127 5.2.3. Organisational structures to secure the global reach 134 5.2.4. The significance of innovation and high quality 136 5.3. Strategies towards innovation 137 5.3.1. Corporate culture and ambition 138 5.3.2. Key internal and external drivers of innovation 139 5.3.3. The temporal dimension of innovation 142 5.4. Firm-internal organisation of innovation activities 144 5.4.1. Main challenges 145 5.4.2. The headquarters as the central corporate unit 148 5.4.3. Internationalisation of knowledge creation and innovation 150 5.5. The external dimension of innovation activities 155 5.5.1. Access to external sources of knowledge 155 5.5.2. Collaboration with partners 158 5.5.3. Evaluation of the external dimension for innovation 164 5.6. The role of the regional contexts for firm innovation 165 5.6.1. The perception of regional contexts at the headquarters 166 5.6.2. The regional embeddedness of firms 171 5.6.3. Evaluation of the regional dimension 175 5.7. Summary of findings and comparison with the quantitative results 176 6. Firm innovation beyond agglomeration – Discussion of results 180 6.1. Globally dispersed knowledge dynamics and secrecy 180 6.2. The processual character of innovation activities 185 6.3. The role of the places and spaces for firm innovation 191 7. Main findings, conclusions and outlook 196 7.1. Summary of main findings and contributions of the research 196 7.2. Conclusions and policy recommendations 200 7.3. Reflections on the study and avenues for future research 202 Appendices 206 References 220

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Abstract This comparative study examines the views of Finnish and Japanese student teachers on global perspectives (GP) in relation to their future profession. As global citizens, teachers should know, one, the cultural and historical backgrounds of pupils and their families, and two, how to teach interrelated themes and global issues. The research questions of this study are, "How do student teachers conceptualise global perspectives in relation to their future teaching, in Oulu and Hiroshima?"; "How do those students view the role and significance of GP in their future teaching?"; and, "How does teacher education support the development of GP?" My theoretical framework rests on Gaudelli’s heuristic model of global citizenship education (2009) and on Hanvey’s five aims of GP (1982), enriched by principles of critical pedagogy (Giroux 2004, Freire 1985). The main body of empirical data was acquired through interviews with and questionnaires completed by students in the two contexts. This study found differences and similarities in the Finnish and Japanese student teachers’ views of global perspectives. Those views, in many respects, reflect Hanvey’s model of five aims, "perspective consciousness" and "cross-cultural awareness" in particular. Views derived from critical pedagogy were less visible. Remarkable differences were evident in terms of Gaudelli’s "four orientations" model. The Japanese student teachers expressed nationalistic tendencies more often than their Finnish counterparts, who stressed humanistic principles. Neo-liberalist and transformational orientations were more difficult to detect in the Japanese data. In both cases, the student teachers saw GP as valuable for their future profession, referring to "cross-cultural awareness" within a humanistic orientation. However, the Japanese student teachers stressed "perspective consciousness" as part of a nationalistic orientation, while the Finns justified the teaching of GP in terms of "global dynamics" in a transformational orientation. Both groups saw teacher education programmes as significant to the development of GP, expressing similar views on the importance of curricula and of professors’ knowledge. Yet, while the Finnish student teachers saw peer support and varied assignments as helpful in developing GP, the Japanese considered those factors to be less relevant. / Tiivistelmä Tämä vertaileva tutkimus tarkastelee suomalaisten ja japanilaisten opettajaksi opiskelevien näkemyksiä globaaleista näkökulmista (global perspectives) suhteessa heidän tulevaan ammattiinsa. Maailmankansalaisina opettajien tulisi tuntea oppilaidensa ja heidän perheidensä kulttuurihistorialliset taustat sekä kuinka heidän tulisi huomioida globaalit kysymykset opetuksessa. Tutkimuskysymykset ovat: 1) Kuinka Oulussa ja Hiroshimassa opettajaksi opiskelevat käsitteellistävät globaalit näkökulmat suhteessa heidän tulevaan ammattiinsa? 2) Millaisena nämä opiskelijat näkevät globaalien näkökulmien merkityksen ja tehtävän tulevassa ammatissaan? 3) Kuinka opettajankoulutus opiskelijoiden mielestä tukee globaalien näkökulmien kehittymistä? Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys rakentuu seuraavista osa-alueista: 1) Gaudellin heuristinen maailmankansalaisuuden malli, 2) Hanveyn malli globaalin näkökulman viidestä tavoitteesta sekä 3) kriittisen pedagogiikan pääperiaatteet. Empiirinen aineisto koostuu pääasiallisesti kyselyistä ja opiskelijoiden haastatteluista näissä kahdessa kontekstissa. Tulokset osoittavat, että suomalaisten ja japanilaisten opettajaksi opiskelevien käsityksissä globaaleista näkökulmista on sekä yhtäläisyyksiä että eroavuuksia. Heidän käsityksensä heijastavat suurelta osin Hanveyn mallin viittä tavoitetta, joista vallitsevimpia olivat "näkökulmatietoisuus" ("perspective consciousness") ja kulttuurien välinen ymmärrys ("cross-cultural awareness"). Kriittiseen pedagogiikkaan pohjaavia näkemyksiä esiintyi aineistossa vähemmän. Gaudellin neljän orientaation malliin osalta tuloksissa oli havaittavissa huomattavia eroja. Japanilaiset opiskelijat ilmaisivat nationalistisia tendenssejä useammin kuin suomalaiset, jotka taas painottivat humanistisia periaatteita. Uusliberalistisia ja transformatiivisia orientaatioita oli vaikeampi havaita japanilaisten aineistossa. Sekä japanilaiset että suomalaiset opettajaksi opiskelevat pitivät globaaleja näkökulmia merkittävänä osana tulevaa ammattiaan ja viittasivat perusteluissaan kulttuurien väliseen ymmärrykseen. Japanilaiset opiskelijat kuitenkin painottivat näkökulmatietoisuutta osana nationalistista orientaatiota, kun taas suomalaiset perustelivat globaalien näkemysten opettamista "globaalilla dynamiikalla" osana transformatiivista orientaatiota. Mitä tulee opettajankoulutuksen rooliin, kumpikin ryhmä piti koulutusohjelmiaan merkittävinä globaalien näkökulmien kehittymiselle painottaen opetussuunnitelmien ja opettajankouluttajien tiedon tärkeyttä. Kuitenkin suomalaiset opiskelijat pitivät vertaistukea ja erilaisia tehtäviä oppimisprosessia edistävinä, mikä taas ei korostunut japanilaisten aineistossa.

Cette thèse vient proposer une notion d’action de groupe processuelle. Cette notion est dégagée suivant la méthode comparative. L’action de groupe est censée résoudre différents types de litiges qui mettent en cause un nombre élevé de personnes. L’étude de droit comparé montre en ce sens une notion qui semble plurielle puisqu’il existe différents modèles d’action de groupe. La manière de la concevoir diffère d’un modèle à autre. La terminologie relative à ce sujet est surabondante, souvent considérée en tant que synonyme de l’action collective, du recours collectif, des actions de classe, des procédures modèles, des jugements pilotes... En dépit de cela, il est possible de trouver une notion spécifique, ayant des caractères propres et typiques. Mais cette notion spécifique ne peut être que processuelle. Le procès est un outil de protection des droits et des intérêts juridiques et légitimes, sans importer leur nature. Il est logique que la résolution de ce type de litiges soit envisagée depuis cette perspective. De plus, c’est au niveau procédural que la protection de ce type de situations pose autant de problèmes. L’action de groupe vient alors s’inscrire naturellement dans cette discipline juridique, dévoilant une notion spécifique qui place le juge au cœur de la résolution de ce type de litiges. / The aim of this thesis is to offer a specific notion of the idea of group litigation, in a procedural and comparative perspective. The mass consumer society in which we live has generated a style of litigation that involves a vast number of people. Grouping claimants together in a class action is meant to resolve this sort of litigation. But comparative law illustrates the complexity of the topic. A large number of different models of class action exist. Terminology is vast and often spans interchangeably terms such as group litigation, collective actions, class action, procedural models and pilot decisions. Each model shows different ways to solve the same problem. In spite of this, we can still find a specific framework with distinct and typical characteristics. However, this specific notion can only be procedurally based. Clearly, resolving this type of litigation must be viewed from this perspective. Judicial process is the way by which to protect rights and legal and legitimate interests without considering their nature. But it is at procedural level that protecting this type of situation raises the most problems. Class actions therefore naturally fall within this legal discipline, and bring to light a specific idea that makes the judge the linchpin when deciding the outcome of litigation.

Abstract The aim of this study was to compare the development of the psychiatric health care services, the views about what things can be regarded as good results in psychiatric health care and the factors affecting on them in Finland and in Greece. The study can be used as a point of reference when developing and comparing mental health indicators in and between the European countries. The psychiatric health care services in both the countries appeared to have gone through similar phases of development: isolation, psychopharmacal treatment, work and other activities, psychotherapies and finally, patient-oriented combination of all the methods. The number of psychiatric in-patient beds has decreased in mental hospitals and increased in general hospitals, and the number of rehabilitation and service homes has also increased. The data sets were collected by interviews and from written documents and statistical data sets concerning Finland and Greece (OECD health care data set 2000, European Commission 1997, 1999a, 1999b, 2000, 2001, World Health Organization 1996a, 1996b, 2001a, 2001b). In Finland 44 workers and decision-makers were interviewed within the area of one hospital district, and in Greece, 35 workers were interviewed in two psychiatric hospitals. The qualitative data sets were analyzed with methods of content analysis. The international and national quantitative data were analyzed for similarities and differences. The frame for the comparison was outlined based on the literature and the results of the interviews. In both countries, good results in psychiatric health care included well-being, functional abilities, service capacity and economy. Well-being in both the countries meant alleviation of the symptoms of the illness and satisfaction of the basic physical, psychic and social needs. In Finland patients' positive feelings were emphasized, while in Greece, the value of of equal rights for sick and healthy people was underlined. Functional abilities included the ability to take care of one's everyday life. In Greece the long-term mental patients needed to relearn the skills of daily living, while the Finnish system emphasized patients' ability to use the skills they had but did not use because of their illness. Adequate service capacity in Greece meant the accessibility of the services close to each person's place of residence, while in Finland possibilities to get information and guidance about matters concerning oneself and one's relatives were considered especially important. Economy meant the relationship between the costs and the results. In Greece patients needed sufficient pensions to be able to live outside the hospital. In Finland the challenge was to produce sufficiently high-quality services with the available resources. The factors affecting good results were related to the patient/client and his/her relatives, the health care staff, the methods of treatment, the organization of the system of care and the society in question. The importance of the patient's family, the professional skills of the staff, and the availability of both outpatient and inpatient treatment and medication were emphasized. / Tiivistelmä Tutkimuksessa vertaillaan psykiatrisen terveydenhoidon kehitystä sekä käsityksiä hoidon tuloksellisuudesta ja siihen vaikuttavista tekijöistä Suomessa ja Kreikassa. Tutkimusta voidaan käyttää yhtenä esimerkkinä kehitettäessä psykiatrisen hoidon indikaattoreita ja maiden välisiä vertailuja Euroopassa. Tulosten perusteella psykiatrisessa terveydenhoidossa on havaittavissa molemmissa maissa tietyt kehitysvaiheet: eristäminen, lääkitys, työ ja toiminta, psykoterapiat, ja viimeisimpänä edellä mainittujen potilaslähtöinen yhdistäminen. Sairaalapaikkojen määrä psykiatrisissa sairaaloissa on vähentynyt ja yleissairaaloissa lisääntynyt molemmissa maissa ja kuntoutus- ja hoitokotien määrä on lisääntynyt. Aineisto koottiin haastatteluilla, kirjoitetuista asiakirjoista sekä tilastotiedoista psykiatrisesta terveydenhoidosta Suomessa ja Kreikassa (OECD health care data set 2000, European Commission 1997, 1999a, 1999b, 2000, 2001, World Health Organization 1996a, 1996b, 2001a, 2001b). Suomessa haastateltiin 44 työntekijää ja päättäjää yhden sairaanhoitopiirin alueella, Kreikassa 35 kahdessa sairaalassa. Laadullinen aineisto analysoitiin sisällönanalyysimenetelmällä. Kvantitatiivisesta, kansallisista ja kansainvälisistä lähteistä kootusta aineistosta etsittiin samankaltaisuuksia ja eroavuuksia. Vertailun viitekehys muodostettiin kirjallisuuden ja haastattelujen tulosten perusteella. Psykiatrisen terveydenhoidon tuloksellisuus on molempien maiden tiedonantajien mukaan hyvää oloa, toimintakykyä, palvelukykyä ja taloudellisuutta. Hyvä olo tarkoittaa sairauden oireiden lieventymistä ja psyykkisten, fyysisten ja sosiaalisten perustarpeiden tyydyttymistä. Suomessa korostettiin potilaan myönteisiä tunteita, kreikassa ihmisarvoa samanlaisin oikeuksin kuin muillakin ihmisillä. Toimintakyky sisältää kyvyn huolehtia jokapäiväisen elämän vaatimista tehtävistä. Kreikassa pitkään sairastaneilla oli tarve opetella uudelleen alusta jokapäiväisen elämisen taitoja, Suomessa korostettiin sairauden vuoksi käyttämättömänä olevan osaamisen elvyttämistä. Palvelukyky tarkoitti Kreikassa palvelujen saatavuutta läheltä asuinpaikkaa, Suomessa tiedon ja ohjauksen saamista itseä ja läheisiä koskevissa asioissa. Taloudellisuus tarkoittaa kustannusten ja tulosten välistä suhdetta. Kreikassa potilaiden tulee saada parempia eläkkeitä kyetäkseen asumaan sairaalan ulkopuolella, Suomessa haasteeksi koettiin hyvän hoidon mahdollistaminen olevilla voimavaroilla. Tuloksellisuuteen vaikuttavat tekijät liittyivät potilaaseen/asiakkaaseen ja hänen läheisiinsä, hoitavaan henkilökuntaan ja hoitomenetelmiin, hoidon organisointiin sekä yhteiskuntaan, jossa eletään. Molemmissa maissa korostettiin potilaan läheisten merkitystä, henkilökunnan ammattitaitoa, hoitopaikkoina sekä avo- että sairaanhoitoa ja lääkehoitoa.

À la croisée de la sociologie de l’enseignement supérieur, de la sociologie des professions et de la socialisation, cette thèse a pour objectif d’interroger la sociogenèse du corps professionnel des assistantes de service social (ou, plus communément, des assistantes sociales) au prisme de sa formation et selon une approche comparative. Formations initiales, continues, professionnelles ou universitaires, ces curricula sont, dans les deux pays, structurées autour de la tension entre forme scolaire et apprentissage professionnel. Cette recherche sur la fabrique des assistances sociales explore cette tension à partir d’une sociologie des étudiantes et des institutions qui les (con)forment. Le dispositif d’enquête combine méthodes qualitatives et quantitatives : entretiens, questionnaires et observations ethnographiques au sein de quatre instituts de formation. Dans la perspective d’une sociologie comparée d’espaces disciplinaires et par suivi longitudinal des étudiantes, de l’entrée à la sortie des formations, on a essayé d’éclairer les mécanismes de socialisation en service social. Dans une première partie, par une socio-histoire des deux espaces nationaux de formation en service social, il s’est agi de s’intéresser à la genèse de ces curricula. En France, cette formation se construit à l’écart de l’enseignement supérieur (à l’exception de certains parcours en IUT), alors qu’en Italie, après être longtemps demeurée à l’extérieur du champ universitaire, elle y a été intégrée au cours des années 1990 et 2000. Explorer les luttes et les échecs dans l’institutionnalisation de cette formation, permet de dessiner des parallèles entre l’universitarisation de cette filière et l’injonction à la professionnalisation dans l’espace de l’enseignement supérieur. Dans une deuxième partie, on a porté notre attention sur les aspirations et les orientations dans le service social. En resituant d’abord chaque choix scolaire dans la hiérarchie des filières du supérieur national, on a identifié trois types d’orientation étudiante dans les deux contextes nationaux en fonction des parcours scolaires, des appartenances de classe et des discours mis en avant par les étudiantes enquêtées. D’une typologie statistique aux récits de vie, on a montré les conditions sociales, individuelles et collectives des raisons d’agir et des parcours socio-scolaires des étudiantes qui s’orientent vers ces formations. À l’aide d’une analyse comparée et transversale de dix trajectoires, on a pu repérer pour certaines une continuité socio-scolaire, pour d’autres un réajustement professionnel ou encore une réorientation sociale. La troisième partie s’intéresse aux mécanismes de sélection, à l’entrée et tout au long du cursus, aux contenus et aux savoirs transmis au sein des quatre centres de formation des deux pays. La sélection, axée selon les structures sur une distance, partielle ou revendiquée, avec les connaissances scolaires, permet de cibler des étudiantes aux profils spécifiques, relevant d’origines et d’expériences sociales distinctives. Tandis que les instituts identifiés comme relevant du pôle scolaire visent davantage des étudiantes d’origines populaires, plus conformes à l’institution scolaire, les instituts du pôle professionnel ciblent les dispositions interactionnelles et une adaptabilité aux conditions professionnelles qui concernent davantage des élèves plus dotées en capitaux. Au final, les instituts de formation participent à un tri progressif des populations, toutes les étudiantes n’arrivant pas jusqu’au diplôme. Entre docilité sociale et adaptabilité au marché de l’emploi, l’apprentissage progressif du métier d’assistante sociale passe par des ajustements, des résistances et des réappropriations d’un ethos singulier, au sein d’un espace professionnel en constante redéfinition. / The goal of this dissertation is to question the social origins of social service assistants (or social workers) in France and Italy. Based on a cross-national comparative design focusing on social workers’ training trajectories, this research combines approaches from the sociology of higher education, sociology of professions and theories of socialization. While social workers’ curricula in the two countries vary across forms of “pre-service”, “in-service”, vocational as well as university training, they generally stem from the tension existing between academic and professional educational systems. This study addresses this tension, focusing on the interplay between students’ social background and the logics of education in social assistance. The research design combines qualitative and quantitative methods, including face-to-face interviews, questionnaires and ethnographic observation at four educational institutions. By comparing the configuration of the disciplinary field in the two countries, and by following students longitudinally from entry to graduation, hence, this study aims to shed light on the process of socialization in social work education.The first section offers a social history of training in social service, investigating the background of the different types of curricula in the two national contexts. While social work training in France generally takes place outside of the high education system, in Italy it was ultimately integrated in the university field throughout the 1990s and 2000s. Exploring the more or less successful process of institutionalization of this specific form of training, allows elaborating on the academization of the social service sector in light of the progressive professionalization of higher education. The second section focuses on aspirations and orientations among social service students. By classifying students’ choices hierarchically in the two national higher education sectors, we identify three main types of orientation, which have to do with a student’s educational trajectory, their class membership, as well as her preferred justification.Based on a statistical typology of students’ life stories, we illustrate the social and academic background, as well as the individual and collective conditions, in which students embarking in this type of education are embedded. The comparative, cross-sectional analysis of ten individual trajectories, in fact, shows that while some students display socio-academic continuity, others experience professional readjustment or even social reorientation.The third section addresses selection mechanisms at entry and throughout the educative path in the two countries, while also focusing on the content and skills within the curricula of the four training institutes under study. It shows that, albeit often claiming otherwise, institutes do not select students based on their school background (previous school experience), but rather target candidates with specific profiles stemming from distinctive social origins and experiences. While institutes belonging to the school cluster target primarily students of working class background in line with the tradition of school institutions, those of the professional cluster target specific interactional predispositions as well as adaptability to professional conditions, which are more frequent among students that are better off in terms of cultural capital. Furthermore, all institutes put forth a progressive selection, as not all of the students ultimately get a diploma. Learning social work takes place at the crossroads between social docility and adaptability to the job market, which implies adjustments, resistances and re-appropriations of the singular ethos of a professional space in constant redefinition.