Search results for: Japanese working adults

Authors: Y. Mateyshina, A.Ulihin, N.Uvarov

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Electrolytes with different type of charge carrier can find widely application in different using, e.g. sensors, electrochemical equipments, batteries and others. One of important components ensuring stable functioning of the equipment is electrolyte. Electrolyte has to be characterized by high conductivity, thermal stability, and wide electrochemical window. In addition to many advantageous characteristic for liquid electrolytes, the solid state electrolytes have good mechanical stability, wide working range of temperature range. Thus search of new system of solid electrolytes with high conductivity is an actual task of solid state chemistry. Families of alkali perchlorates and nitrates have been investigated by us earlier. In literature data about transport properties of alkali nitrites are absent. Nevertheless, alkali nitrites MeNO2 (Me= Li+, Na+, K+, Rb+ and Cs+), except for the lithium salt, have high-temperature phases with crystal structure of the NaCl-type. High-temperature phases of nitrites are orientationally disordered, i.e. non-spherical anions are reoriented over several equivalents directions in the crystal lattice. Pure lithium nitrite LiNO2 is characterized by ionic conductivity near 10-4 S/cm at 180°C and more stable as compared with lithium nitrate and can be used as a component for synthesis of composite electrolytes. In this work composite solid electrolytes in the binary system LiNO2 - A (A= MgO, -Al2O3, Fe2O3, CeO2, SnO2, SiO2) were synthesized and their structural, thermodynamic and electrical properties investigated. Alkali nitrite was obtained by exchange reaction from water solutions of barium nitrite and alkali sulfate. The synthesized salt was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction technique using D8 Advance X-Ray Diffractometer with Cu K radiation. Using thermal analysis, the temperatures of dehydration and thermal decomposition of salt were determined.. The conductivity was measured using a two electrode scheme in a forevacuum (6.7 Pa) with an HP 4284A (Precision LCR meter) in a frequency range 20 Hz < ν < 1 MHz. Solid composite electrolytes LiNO2 - A A (A= MgO, -Al2O3, Fe2O3, CeO2, SnO2, SiO2) have been synthesized by mixing of preliminary dehydrated components followed by sintering at 250°C. In the series of nitrite of alkaline metals Li+-Cs+, the conductivity varies not monotonically with increasing radius of cation. The minimum conductivity is observed for KNO2; however, with further increase in the radius of cation in the series, the conductivity tends to increase. The work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic research, grant #14-03-31442.

Keywords: conductivity, alkali nitrites, composite electrolytes, transport properties

Procedia PDF Downloads 299

Authors: N. D'Amico, E. Grossi, B. Colombo, F. Rigiroli, M. Buscema, D. Fazzini, G. Cornalba, S. Papa

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Purpose: To characterize, through a radiomic approach, the nature of nodules considered non-specific by expert radiologists, recognized in magnetic resonance mammography (MRm) with T1-weighted (T1w) sequences with paramagnetic contrast. Material and Methods: 47 cases out of 1200 undergoing MRm, in which the MRm assessment gave uncertain classification (non-specific nodules), were admitted to the study. The clinical outcome of the non-specific nodules was later found through follow-up or further exams (biopsy), finding 35 benign and 12 malignant. All MR Images were acquired at 1.5T, a first basal T1w sequence and then four T1w acquisitions after the paramagnetic contrast injection. After a manual segmentation of the lesions, done by a radiologist, and the extraction of 150 radiomic features (30 features per 5 subsequent times) a machine learning (ML) approach was used. An evolutionary algorithm (TWIST system based on KNN algorithm) was used to subdivide the dataset into training and validation test and to select features yielding the maximal amount of information. After this pre-processing, different machine learning systems were applied to develop a predictive model based on a training-testing crossover procedure. 10 cases with a benign nodule (follow-up older than 5 years) and 18 with an evident malignant tumor (clear malignant histological exam) were added to the dataset in order to allow the ML system to better learn from data. Results: NaiveBayes algorithm working on 79 features selected by a TWIST system, resulted to be the best performing ML system with a sensitivity of 96% and a specificity of 78% and a global accuracy of 87% (average values of two training-testing procedures ab-ba). The results showed that in the subset of 47 non-specific nodules, the algorithm predicted the outcome of 45 nodules which an expert radiologist could not identify. Conclusion: In this pilot study we identified a radiomic approach allowing ML systems to perform well in the diagnosis of a non-specific nodule at MR mammography. This algorithm could be a great support for the early diagnosis of malignant breast tumor, in the event the radiologist is not able to identify the kind of lesion and reduces the necessity for long follow-up. Clinical Relevance: This machine learning algorithm could be essential to support the radiologist in early diagnosis of non-specific nodules, in order to avoid strenuous follow-up and painful biopsy for the patient.

Keywords: breast, machine learning, MRI, radiomics

Procedia PDF Downloads 253

Authors: Ajay Das, Sandip Basu

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Introduction: There is increasing recognition that diverse streams of knowledge can often be recombined in novel ways to generate new knowledge. However, knowledge recombination theory has not been applied to examine the effects of collaborator diversity on the quality of knowledge such collaborators produce. This is surprising because one would expect that a collaborative team with certain aspects of diversity should be able to recombine process elements related to knowledge development, which are relatively tacit, but also complementary because of the collaborator’s varying backgrounds. Theory and Hypotheses: We propose to examine two aspects of diversity in the environments of collaborative teams to try and capture such potential recombinations of relatively tacit, process knowledge. The first aspect of diversity in team members’ environments is geographical. Collaborators with more geographical distance between them (perhaps working in different countries) often have more autonomy in the processes they adopt for knowledge development. In the absence of overt monitoring, such collaborators are likely to adopt differing approaches to knowledge development. The sharing of such varying approaches among collaborators is likely to result in greater quality of the common collaborative pursuit. The second aspect is diversity in the work backgrounds of team members. Such diversity can also increase the potential for knowledge recombination. For example, if one or more members are from a manufacturing center (versus all of them being from a purely R&D center), such members will provide unique perspectives on the implementation of innovative ideas. Again, knowledge that has been evaluated from these diverse perspectives is likely to be of a higher quality. In addition to the above aspects of environmental diversity among team members, we also plan to examine the extent to which individual collaborators are in different environments from the primary innovation center of their employing firms. Proposed Methods: We will test our model on a sample of firms in the semiconductor industry. Our level of analysis will be individual patents generated by these firms and the teams involved in the generation of these. Information on manufacturing activities of our sample firms will be obtained from SEMI, a proprietary database of the semiconductor industry, as well as company 10-K reports. Conclusion: We believe that our results will represent a preliminary attempt to understand how various forms of diversity in collaborative teams impact the knowledge development process. Our dependent variable of knowledge quality is important to study since higher values of this variable can not only drive firm performance but the broader development of regions and societies through spillover impacts on future innovation. The results of this study will, therefore, inform future research and practice in innovation, geographical location, and vertical integration.

Keywords: innovation, manufacturing strategy, knowledge, diversity

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Authors: Sunil Gaikwad

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Gender discrimination is a very prevalent and much used word in the legal parlance. , The more socially, culturally, economically and educationally backward the community, the more gender discrimination is seen there. Gender discrimination is a worldwide Phenomena. In India it was more prevalent, due to illiteracy, bad social and religious customs. in Indian family system male child is considered as inheritor of the family clan, support for parents in their old age and girls as the property of others and unnecessary load on parents and on property as the dowry has to be give at her marriage as also some festivals like Raksha Bandhan and Bhau Teej during Deepawali (wherein having brother is compulsory)insist on having a male child in the family, hence most couples try to give birth only to male child at the cost of female child, hence the female feticide was going on a large scale due to which, sex ratio had considerably decreased creating problem for geeting groom for bride groom thereby putting question mark on family system. To redo the damage done to the society due to the female feticide Government of India has enacted various Laws and introduced various welfare schemes for the upliftment of girl child and also launched countrywide awareness campaign to create awareness among people about the importance of girl child and punitive laws for infanticide which is now bearing fruits but still cases of female feticide are coming fore. There is an urgent need to go to the roots of the problem and to find practicable and effective legal and social measures to overcome this issue, and the purpose of this research paper is the same. The research paper discusses in detail the reasons and superstitions that are responsible for the gender discriminations and comes out with effective measures including necessary and effective changes in the existing Laws, effective awareness campaign against religious superstitions for gender equality. For this research paper doctrinal research methodology is used to drive the research to its logical conclusion, for which various primary and secondary sources literature has been perused and studied. It is worth noting that while working on the paper suggestions and recommendations and conclusions have been drawn where it is suggested and concluded that there is an urgent need to re think about the festivals which encourages gender discriminations, to sensitize and create ample of awareness among people by effectively utilizing Radio, Television, Social Media folk arts, public shows and to make existing laws more effective and strict implementation for the purpose and zero tolerance for female feticide.

Keywords: awareness, effective laws, female foeticide, festivals, superstitions

Procedia PDF Downloads 67

Authors: Vaida Jurgile

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Intercultural learning is one of the approaches taken to understand the cultural diversity of the modern world and to accept changes in cultural identity and otherness and the expression of tolerance. During intercultural learning, students develop their abilities to interact and communicate with their group members. These abilities help to understand social and cultural differences, to form one’s identity, and to give meaning to intercultural learning. Intercultural education recognizes that a true understanding of differences and similarities of another culture is necessary in order to lay the foundations for working together with others, which contributes to the promotion of intercultural dialogue, appreciation of diversity, and cultural exchange. Therefore, it is important to examine the concept of intercultural learning, revealed through students’ learning experiences and understanding of how this learning takes place and what significance this phenomenon has in higher education. At a scientific level, intercultural learning should be explored in order to uncover the influence of cultural identity, i.e., intercultural learning should be seen in a local context. This experience would provide an opportunity to learn from various everyday intercultural learning situations. Intercultural learning can be not only a form of learning but also a tool for building understanding between people of different cultures. The research object of the study is the process of intercultural learning. The aim of the dissertation is to develop a grounded theory of the process of learning in an intercultural study environment, revealing students’ learning experiences. The research strategy chosen in this study is a constructivist grounded theory (GT). GT is an inductive method that seeks to form a theory by applying the systematic collection, synthesis, analysis, and conceptualization of data. The targeted data collection was based on the analysis of data provided by previous research participants, which revealed the need for further research participants. During the research, only students with at least half a year of study experience, i.e., who have completed at least one semester of intercultural studies, were purposefully selected for the research. To select students, snowballing sampling was used. 18 interviews were conducted with students representing 3 different fields of sciences (social sciences, humanities, and technology sciences). In the process of intercultural learning, language expresses and embodies cultural reality and a person’s cultural identity. It is through language that individual experiences are expressed, and the world in which Others exist is perceived. The increased emphasis is placed on the fact that language conveys certain “signs’ of communication and perception with cultural value, enabling the students to identify the Self and the Other. Language becomes an important tool in the process of intercultural communication because it is only through language that learners can communicate, exchange information, and understand each other. Thus, in the process of intercultural learning, language either promotes interpersonal relationships with foreign students or leads to mutual rejection.

Keywords: intercultural learning, grounded theory, students, other

Procedia PDF Downloads 38

Authors: Lauren Kathryn Stretch

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A study was conducted in the underprivileged setting of Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa in order to monitor the progress of learners whose teachers receive training through the Early Inspiration Training Programme. Through tracking children’s growth & development, the effectiveness of the practitioner-training programme, which focuses on empowering women from underprivileged communities in South Africa, was analyzed. The aim was to identify impact & reach and to assess the effectiveness of this intervention programme through identifying impact on children’s growth and development. A Pre- and Post-Test was administered on about 850 young children in Pre-Grade R and Grade R classes in order to understand children’s ability level & the growth that would be evident as a result of effective teacher training. A pre-test evaluated the level of each child’s abilities, including physical-motor development, language, and speech development, cognitive development including visual perceptual skills, social-emotional development & play development. This was followed by a random selection of the classes of children into experimental and control groups. The experimental group’s teachers (practitioners) received 8-months of training & intervention, as well as mentorship & support. After the 8-month training programme, children from the experimental & control groups underwent post-assessment. The results indicate that the impact of effective practitioner training and enhancing a deep understanding of stimulation on young children, that this understanding is implemented in the classroom, highlighting the areas of growth & development in the children whose teachers received additional training & support, as compared to those who did not receive additional training. Monitoring & Evaluation systems not only track children’s ability levels, but also have a core focus on reporting systems, mentorship and providing ongoing support. As a result of the study, an Online Application (for Apple or Android Devices) was developed which is used to track children’s growth via age-appropriate assessments. The data is then statistically analysed to provide direction for relevant & impactful intervention. The App also focuses on effective reporting strategies, structures, and implementation to support organizations working with young children & maximize on outcomes.

Keywords: early childhood development, developmental child assessments, online application, monitoring and evaluating online

Procedia PDF Downloads 178

Authors: Huixia Shi, Can Hu, Jun Zhu, Hongling Guo, Haiyan Li, Hongyan Du

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The identification of human body fluids during forensic investigations is a critical step to determine key details, and present strong evidence to testify criminal in a case. With the popularity of DNA and improved detection technology, the potential question must be revolved that whether the suspect’s DNA derived from saliva or semen, menstrual or peripheral blood, how to identify the red substance or aged blood traces on the spot is blood; How to determine who contribute the right one in mixed stains. In recent years, molecular approaches have been developing increasingly on mRNA, miRNA, DNA methylation and microbial markers, but appear expensive, time-consuming, and destructive disadvantages. Physicochemical methods are utilized frequently such us scanning electron microscopy/energy spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence and so on, but results only showing one or two characteristics of body fluid itself and that out of working in unknown or mixed body fluid stains. This paper focuses on using chemistry methods Raman spectroscopy and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry to discriminate species of peripheral blood, menstrual blood, semen, saliva, vaginal secretions, urine or sweat. Firstly, non-destructive, confirmatory, convenient and fast Raman spectroscopy method combined with more accurate matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry method can totally distinguish one from other body fluids. Secondly, 11 spectral signatures and specific metabolic molecules have been obtained by analysis results after 70 samples detected. Thirdly, Raman results showed peripheral and menstrual blood, saliva and vaginal have highly similar spectroscopic features. Advanced statistical analysis of the multiple Raman spectra must be requested to classify one to another. On the other hand, it seems that the lactic acid can differentiate peripheral and menstrual blood detected by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, but that is not a specific metabolic molecule, more sensitivity ones will be analyzed in a forward study. These results demonstrate the great potential of the developed chemistry methods for forensic applications, although more work is needed for method validation.

Keywords: body fluids, identification, Raman spectroscopy, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Procedia PDF Downloads 112

Authors: A. O. Glazkov, A. S. Krylova, G. G. Nadareishvili, A. S. Terenchenko, S. I. Yudin

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The topic of the presented materials concerns the design of the exhaust system for a certain internal combustion engine. The exhaust system can be divided into two parts. The first is the engine exhaust manifold, turbocharger, and catalytic converters, which are called “hot part.” The second part is the gas exhaust system, which contains elements exclusively for reducing exhaust noise (mufflers, resonators), the accepted designation of which is the "cold part." The design of the exhaust system from the point of view of acoustics, that is, reducing the exhaust noise to a predetermined level, consists of working on the second part. Modern computer technology and software make it possible to design "cold part" with high accuracy in a given frequency range but with the condition of accurately specifying the input parameters, namely, the amplitude spectrum of the input noise and the acoustic impedance of the noise source in the form of an engine with a "hot part". Getting this data is a difficult problem: high temperatures, high exhaust gas velocities (turbulent flows), and high sound pressure levels (non-linearity mode) do not allow the calculated results to be applied with sufficient accuracy. The aim of this work is to obtain the most reliable acoustic output parameters of an engine with a "hot part" based on a complex of computational and experimental studies. The presented methodology includes several parts. The first part is a finite element simulation of the "cold part" of the exhaust system (taking into account the acoustic impedance of radiation of outlet pipe into open space) with the result in the form of the input impedance of "cold part". The second part is a finite element simulation of the "hot part" of the exhaust system (taking into account acoustic characteristics of catalytic units and geometry of turbocharger) with the result in the form of the input impedance of the "hot part". The next third part of the technique consists of the mathematical processing of the results according to the proposed formula for the convergence of the mathematical series of summation of multiple reflections of the acoustic signal "cold part" - "hot part". This is followed by conducting a set of tests on an engine stand with two high-temperature pressure sensors measuring pulsations in the nozzle between "hot part" and "cold part" of the exhaust system and subsequent processing of test results according to a well-known technique in order to separate the "incident" and "reflected" waves. The final stage consists of the mathematical processing of all calculated and experimental data to obtain a result in the form of a spectrum of the amplitude of the engine noise and its acoustic impedance.

Keywords: acoustic impedance, engine exhaust system, FEM model, test stand

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Authors: Kateriina Rannula, Elle Sõrmus, Siret Piirsalu

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Mixed generation classroom is a phenomenon that current higher education establishments are faced with daily trying to meet the needs of modern labor market with its emphasis on lifelong learning and retraining. Representatives of mainly X and Y generations in one classroom acquiring higher education is a challenge to lecturers considering all the characteristics that differ one generation from another. The importance of outlining different strategies and considering the needs of the students lies in the necessity for everyone to acquire the maximum of the provided knowledge as well as to understand each other to study together in one classroom and successfully cooperate in future workplaces. In addition to different generations, there are also learners with different native languages which have an impact on reading and understanding texts in third languages, including possible translation. Current research aims to investigate, describe and compare reading strategies among the representatives of generation X and Y. Hypotheses were formulated - representatives of generation X and Y use different reading strategies which is also different among first and third year students of the before mentioned generations. Current study is an empirical, qualitative study. To achieve the aim of the research, relevant literature was analyzed and a semi-structured questionnaire conducted among the first and third year students of Tallinn Health Care College. Questionnaire consisted of 25 statements on the text reading strategies, 3 multiple choice questions on preferences considering the design and medium of the text, and three open questions on the translation process when working with a text in student’s third language. The results of the questionnaire were categorized, analyzed and compared. Both, generation X and Y described their reading strategies to be 'scanning' and 'surfing'. Compared to generation X, first year generation Y learners valued interactivity and nonlinear texts. Students frequently used strategies of skimming, scanning, translating and highlighting together with relevant-thinking and assistance-seeking. Meanwhile, the third-year generation Y students no longer frequently used translating, resourcing and highlighting while Generation X learners still incorporated these strategies. Knowing about different needs of the generations currently inside the classrooms and on the labor market enables us with tools to provide sustainable education and grants the society a work force that is more flexible and able to move between professions. Future research should be conducted in order to investigate the amount of learning and strategy- adoption between generations. As for reading, main suggestions arising from the research are as follows: make a variety of materials available to students; allow them to select what they want to read and try to make those materials visually attractive, relevant, and appropriately challenging for learners considering the differences of generations.

Keywords: generation X, generation Y, learning strategies, reading strategies

Procedia PDF Downloads 163

Authors: Yinghua Huang, Tsu-Hong Yen

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The latest advance in leadership research has revealed that leadership is co-created through the combined action of leading and following. The role of followers is as important as leaders in the leadership process. However, the previous leadership studies often conceptualize leadership as a leader-centric process, while the role of followers is largely neglected in the literature. Until recently, followership studies receives more attention because the character and behavior of followers are as vital as the leader during the leadership process. Yet, there is a dearth of followership research in the context of tourism and hospitality industries. Therefore, this study seeks to fill in the gap of knowledge and investigate the followership styles in the U.S. hospitality workforce. In particular, the objectives of this study are to identify popular followership practices among hospitality employees and evaluate hospitality employees' followership styles using Kelley’s followership typology framework. This study also compared the generational differences in followership styles among hospitality employees. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the workforce in the lodging and foodservice sectors consists of around 12% baby boomers, 29% Gen Xs, 23% Gen Ys, and 36% Gen Zs in 2019. The diversity of workforce demographics in the U.S. hospitality industry calls for more attention to understand the generational differences in followership styles and organizational performance. This study conducted an in-depth interview and a questionnaire survey to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. A snowball sampling method was used to recruit participants working in the hospitality industry in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. A total of 120 hospitality employees participated in this study, including 22 baby boomers, 32 Gen Xs, 30 Gen Ys, and 36 Gen Zs. 45% of the participants were males, and 55% were female. The findings of this study identified good followership practices across the multi-generational participants. For example, a Gen Y participant said that 'followership involves learning and molding oneself after another person usually an expert in an area of interest. I think of followership as personal and professional development. I learn and get better by hands-on training and experience'. A Gen X participant said that 'I can excel by not being fearful of taking on unfamiliar tasks and accepting challenges.' Furthermore, this study identified five typologies of Kelley’s followership model among the participants: 45% exemplary followers, 13% pragmatist followers, 2% alienated followers, 18% passive followers, and 23% conformist followers. The generational differences in followership styles were also identified. The findings of this study contribute to the hospitality human resource literature by identifying the multi-generational perspectives of followership styles among hospitality employees. The findings provide valuable insights for hospitality leaders to understand their followers better. Hospitality leaders were suggested to adjust their leadership style and communication strategies based on employees' different followership styles.

Keywords: followership, hospitality workforce, generational diversity, Kelley’s followership topology

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Authors: Homeira Asadi Kavan, Seyed Nasrollah Sajjadi, Mehrzade Hamidi, Hossein Rajabi, Mahdi Bigdely

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Positioning strategies of a sports brand can create a unique impression in the minds of the fans, sponsors, and other stakeholders. In order to influence potential customer's perception in an effective and positive way, a brands positioning strategy must be unique, credible, and relevant. Many sports clubs in Iran have been struggling to implement and achieve brand positioning accomplishments, due to different reasons such as lack of experience, scarcity of experts in the sports branding, and lack of related researches in this field. This study will provide a comprehensive theoretical framework and action plan for sport managers and marketers to design and implement effective brand positioning and to enable them to be distinguishable from competing brands and sports clubs. The study instrument is interviews with sports marketing and brand experts who have been working in this industry for a minimum of 20 years. Qualitative data analysis was performed using Atlast.ti text mining software version 7 and Open, axial and selective coding were employed to uncover and systematically analyze important and complex phenomena and elements. The findings show 199 effective elements in positioning strategies in Iran Professional Soccer League. These elements are categorized into 23 concepts and sub-categories as follows: Structural prerequisites, Strategic management prerequisites, Commercial prerequisites, Major external prerequisites, Brand personality, Club symbols, Emotional aspects, Event aspects, Fans’ strategies, Marketing information strategies, Marketing management strategies, Empowerment strategies, Executive management strategies, League context, Fans’ background, Market context, Club’s organizational context, Support context, Major contexts, Political-Legal elements, Economic factors, Social factors, and Technological factors. Eventually, the study model was developed by 6 main dimensions of Causal prerequisites, Axial Phenomenon (brand position), Strategies, Context Factors, Interfering Factors, and Consequences. Based on the findings, practical recommendations and strategies are suggested that can help club managers and marketers in developing and improving their respective sport clubs, brand positioning, and activities.

Keywords: brand positioning, soccer club, sport marketing, Iran professional soccer league, brand strategy

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Authors: Maria Ahmad, Michael Page, Danë Goodsman

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‘Educational’ debriefing – a construct distinct from clinical debriefing – is used following simulated scenarios and is central to learning and development in fields ranging from aviation to emergency medicine. However, little research into educational debriefing in prehospital medicine exists. This qualitative study explored the facilitation and effects of prehospital educational debriefing and identified obstacles to debriefing, using the London’s Air Ambulance Pre-Hospital Care Course (PHCC) as a model. Method: Ethnographic observations of moulages and debriefs were conducted over two consecutive days of the PHCC in October 2019. Detailed contemporaneous field notes were made and analysed thematically. Subsequently, seven one-to-one, semi-structured interviews were conducted with four PHCC debrief facilitators and three course participants to explore their experiences of prehospital educational debriefing. Interview data were manually transcribed and analysed thematically. Results: Four overarching themes were identified: the approach to the facilitation of debriefs, effects of debriefing, facilitator development, and obstacles to debriefing. The unpredictable debriefing environment was seen as both hindering and paradoxically benefitting educational debriefing. Despite using varied debriefing structures, facilitators emphasised similar key debriefing components, including exploring participants’ reasoning and sharing experiences to improve learning and prevent future errors. Debriefing was associated with three principal effects: releasing emotion; learning and improving, particularly participant compound learning as they progressed through scenarios; and the application of learning to clinical practice. Facilitator training and feedback were central to facilitator learning and development. Several obstacles to debriefing were identified, including mismatch of participant and facilitator agendas, performance pressure, and time. Interestingly, when used appropriately in the educational environment, these obstacles may paradoxically enhance learning. Conclusions: Educational debriefing in prehospital medicine is complex. It requires the establishment of a safe learning environment, an understanding of participant agendas, and facilitator experience to maximise participant learning. Aspects unique to prehospital educational debriefing were identified, notably the unpredictable debriefing environment, interdisciplinary working, and the paradoxical benefit of educational obstacles for learning. This research also highlights aspects of educational debriefing not extensively detailed in the literature, such as compound participant learning, display of ‘professional honesty’ by facilitators, and facilitator learning, which require further exploration. Future research should also explore educational debriefing in other prehospital services.

Keywords: debriefing, prehospital medicine, prehospital medical education, pre-hospital care course

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Authors: N. Gelovani, D. Ismailov, S. Bochorishvili

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Religious minorities of Georgia include Muslims. Their composition is sufficiently miscellaneous, enclosing both ethnical viewpoint and belonging to the inner Islamic denomination. A majority of Muslims represent Azerbaijanis, who chiefly live in Kvemo Kartli (Bolnisi, Gardabani, Dmanisi, Tetri Tskaro, Marneuli and Tsalka). The catalyst for researchers of Islamic History is the geopolitical interests of Georgia, centuries-old contacts with the Islamic world, the not entirely trivial portion of Islam confessor population, the increasing influence of the Islamic factor in current religious-political processes in the world, the elevating procedure of Muslim religious self-consciousness in the Post-Soviet states, significant challenges of international terrorism, and perspectives of rapid globalization. The rise in the level of religious identity of Muslim citizens of Georgia (first of all of those who are not ethnic Georgians) is noticeable. New mosques have been constructed and, sometimes, even young people are being sent to the religious educational institutions of Muslim countries to gain a higher Islamic education. At a time when gender studies are substantive, the goal of which is to eliminate gender-based discrimination and violence in societies, it is essential in Georgia to conduct researches around the concrete problem – Islamic tradition, woman and education in Georgia. A woman’s right to education is an important indicator of women’s general status in a society. The appropriate resources, innovative analysis of Georgian ethnological materials, and surveying of the population (quantitative and qualitative research reports, working papers), condition the success of these researches. In the presented work, interrelation matters of Islam, gender and education in contemporary Georgia by the example of the Azerbaijani population in Kvemo Kartli during period 1992-2016 are studied. We researched the history of Muslim religious education centers in Tbilisi and Kvemo Kartli (Bolnisi, Gardabani, Dmanisi, Tetri Tskaro, Marneuli and Tsalka) in 1992-2016, on the one hand, and the results of sociological interrogation, on the other. As a result of our investigation, we found that Azeri women in the Kvemo Kartli (Georgia) region mostly receive their education in Georgia and Azerbaijan. Educational and Cultural Institutions are inaccessible for most Azeri women. The main reasons are the absence of educational and religious institutions at their places of residence and state policies towards Georgia’s Muslims. 

Keywords: Islam, gender, Georgia, education

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Authors: Abudjana Babiker

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The middle of twenty century witnessed an explosion in public housing. After the great depression, some of the capitalists and communist countries have launched policies and programs to produce public housing in the urban areas. Concurrently, modernity was the leading architecture style at the time excessively supported the production, and principally was the instrument for the success of the public housing program due to the modernism manifesto for manufactured architecture as an international style that serves the society and parallelly connect it to the other design industries which allowed for the production of the architecture elements. After the second world war, public housing flourished, especially in communist’s countries. The idea of public housing was conceived as living spaces at the time, while the Workplaces performed as the place for production and labor. Michel Foucault - At the end of the twenty century- the introduction of biopolitics has had highlighted the alteration in the production and labor inter-function. The house does not precisely perform as the sanctuary, from the production, for the family, it opens the house to be -part of the city as- a space for production, not only to produce objects but to reproduce the family as a total part of the production mechanism in the city. While the public housing kept altering from one country to another after the failure of the modernist’s public housing in the late 1970s, the society continued changing parallelly with the socio-economic condition in each political-economical system, and the public housing thus followed. The family structure in the major cities has been dramatically changing, single parenting and the long working hours, for instance, have been escalating the loneliness in the major cities such as London, Berlin, and Tokyo and the public housing for the families is no longer suits the single lifestyle for the individuals. This Paper investigates the performance of both the single/individual lifestyle and the family/society structure in Tokyo and Berlin in a relation to the utilization of public housing under economical policies and the socio-political environment that produced the individuals and the collective. The study is carried through the study of the undercurrent individual/society and case studies to examine the performance of the utilization of the housing. The major finding is that the individual/collective are revolving around the city; the city identified and acts as a system that magnetized and blurred the line between production and reproduction lifestyle. The mass public housing for families is shifting to be a combination between neo-liberalism and socialism housing.

Keywords: loneliness, production reproduction, work live, publichousing

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: Suhair Mereish

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This research is aimed at examining the climate for innovation in organisations with the aim of validating the psychometric properties of the Team Climate Inventory (TCI -14) for Jordan’s collectivist society. The innovativeness of teams may be improved or obstructed by the climate within the team. Further, personal factors are considered an important element that influences the climate for innovation. Accordingly, measuring the employees' personality traits using the Big Five Inventory (BFI-44) could provide insights that aid in understanding how to improve innovation. Thus, studying the climate for innovation and its associations with personality traits is valuable, considering the insights it could offer on employee performance, job satisfaction, and well-being. Essentially, the Team Climate Inventory instrument has never been tested in Jordan’s collectivist society. Accordingly, in order to address the existing gap in the literature as a whole and, more specifically, in Jordan, it is essential to investigate its factorial structure and reliability in this particular context. It is also important to explore whether the factorial structure of the Team Climate Inventory in Jordan’s collectivist society demonstrates a similar or different structure to what has been found in individualistic ones. Lastly, examining if there are associations between the Team Climate Inventory and personality traits of Jordanian employees is pivotal. The quantitative study was carried out among Jordanian employees employed in two of the top 20 companies in Jordan, a shipping and logistics company (N=473) and a telecommunications company (N=219). To generalise the findings, this was followed by collecting data from the general population of this country (N=399). The participants completed the Team Climate Inventory. Confirmatory factor analyses and reliability tests were conducted to confirm the factorial structure, validity, and reliability of the inventory. Findings presented that the four-factor structure of the Team Climate Inventory in Jordan revealed a similar structure to the ones in Western culture. The four-factor structure has been confirmed with good fit indices and reliability values. Moreover, for climate for innovation, regression analysis identified agreeableness (positive) and neuroticism (negative) from the Big Five Inventory as significant predictors. This study will contribute to knowledge in several ways. First, by examining the reliability and factorial structure in a Jordanian collectivist context rather than a Western individualistic one. Second, by comparing the Team Climate Inventory structure in Jordan with findings for the Team Climate Inventory from Western individualistic societies. Third, by studying its relationships with personality traits in that country. Furthermore, findings from this study will assist practitioners in the field of organisational psychology and development to improve the climate for innovation for employees working in organisations in Jordan. It is also expected that the results of this research will provide recommendations to professionals in the business psychology sector regarding the characteristics of employees who hold positive and negative perceptions of the workplace climate.

Keywords: big five inventory, climate for innovation, collectivism, individualism, Jordan, team climate inventory

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Authors: Nino Damenia

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E-commerce opens a new horizon for business development, which is why the presence of e-commerce is a necessary condition for the formation, growth, and development of the country's economy. Worldwide, e-commerce turnover is growing at a high rate every year, as the electronic environment provides great opportunities for product promotion. E-commerce in Georgia is developing at a fast pace, but it is still a relatively young direction in the country's economy. Movement restrictions and other public health measures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have reduced economic activity in most economic sectors and countries, significantly affecting production, distribution, and consumption. The pandemic has accelerated digital transformation. Digital solutions enable people and businesses to continue part of their economic and social activities remotely. This has also led to the growth of e-commerce. According to the data of the National Statistics Service of Georgia, the share of online trade is higher in cities (27.4%) than in rural areas (9.1%). The COVID-19 pandemic has forced local businesses to expand their digital offerings. The size of the local market increased 3.2 times in 2020 to 138 million GEL. And in 2018-2020, the share of local e-commerce increased from 11% to 23%. In Georgia, the state is actively engaged in the promotion of activities based on information technologies. Many measures have been taken for this purpose, but compared to other countries, this process is slow in Georgia. The purpose of the study is to determine development prospects for the economy of Georgia based on the analysis of electronic commerce. Research was conducted around the issues using Georgian and foreign scientists' articles, works, reports of international organizations, collections of scientific conferences, and scientific electronic databases. The empirical base of the research is the data and annual reports of the National Statistical Service of Georgia, internet resources of world statistical materials, and others. While working on the article, a questionnaire was developed, based on which an electronic survey of certain types of respondents was conducted. The conducted research was related to determining how intensively Georgian citizens use online shopping, including which age category uses electronic commerce, for what purposes, and how satisfied they are. Various theoretical and methodological research tools, as well as analysis, synthesis, comparison, and other types of methods, are used to achieve the set goal in the research process. The research results and recommendations will contribute to the development of e-commerce in Georgia and economic growth based on it.

Keywords: e-commerce, information technology, pandemic, digital transformation

Procedia PDF Downloads 56

Authors: David A. Scott, Michelle G. Scott

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The problem of juvenile crime, school suspensions and oppositional behaviors indicates a need for a wide range of intervention programs for at-risk youth. Juvenile court systems and mental health agencies are examining alternative ways to deal with at-risk youth that will allow the adolescent to live within their home community. The previous trend that treatment away from home is more effective than treatment near one's community has shifted. Research now suggests that treatment be close to home for several reasons, such as increased treatment success, parental involvement, and reduced costs. Treatment options consist of a wide range of interventions, including outpatient, inpatient, and community-based services (therapeutic group homes, foster care and in-home preservation services). The juvenile justice system, families and other mental health agencies continue to seek the most effective treatment for at-risk youth in their communities. This research examines two possible treatment modalities, a multi-systemic outpatient program and a residential program. Research examining effective, evidence- based counseling will be discussed during this presentation. The presenter recently completed a three-year research grant examining effective treatment modalities for at-risk youth participating in a multi-systemic program. The presenter has also been involved in several research activities gathering data on effective techniques used in residential programs. The data and discussion will be broken down into two parts, each discussing one of the treatment modalities mentioned above. Data on the residential programs was collected on both a sample of 740 at- risk youth over a five-year period and also a sample of 63 participants during a one-year period residing in a residential programs. The effectiveness of these residential services was measured in three ways: services are evaluated by primary referral sources; follow-up data is obtained at various intervals after program participation to measure recidivism (what percentage got back into trouble with the Department of Juvenile Justice); and a more sensitive, "Offense Seriousness Score", has been computed and analyzed prior to, during and after treatment in the residential program. Data on the multi-systemic program was gathered over the past three years on 190 participants. Research will discuss pre and post test results, recidivism rates, academic performance, parental involvement, and effective counseling treatment modalities.

Keywords: at-risk youth, group homes, therapeutic group homes, recidivism rates

Procedia PDF Downloads 53

Authors: S. H. J. Liu

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This paper aims to explore the role of peer Corrective Feedback (CF) in improving written productions by English-as-a- foreign-language (EFL) learners who work together via Wikispaces. It attempted to determine the effect of peer CF on form accuracy in English, such as grammar and lexis. Thirty-four EFL learners at the tertiary level were randomly assigned into the experimental (with peer feedback) or the control (without peer feedback) group; each group was subdivided into small groups of two or three. This resulted in six and seven small groups in the experimental and control groups, respectively. In the experimental group, each learner played a role as an assessor (providing feedback to others), as well as an assessee (receiving feedback from others). Each participant was asked to compose his/her written work and revise it based on the feedback. In the control group, on the other hand, learners neither provided nor received feedback but composed and revised their written work on their own. Data collected from learners’ compositions and post-task interviews were analyzed and reported in this study. Following the completeness of three writing tasks, 10 participants were selected and interviewed individually regarding their perception of collaborative learning in the Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) environment. Language aspects to be analyzed included lexis (e.g., appropriate use of words), verb tenses (e.g., present and past simple), prepositions (e.g., in, on, and between), nouns, and articles (e.g., a/an). Feedback types consisted of CF, affective, suggestive, and didactic. Frequencies of feedback types and the accuracy of the language aspects were calculated. The results first suggested that accurate items were found more in the experimental group than in the control group. Such results entail that those who worked collaboratively outperformed those who worked non-collaboratively on the accuracy of linguistic aspects. Furthermore, the first type of CF (e.g., corrections directly related to linguistic errors) was found to be the most frequently employed type, whereas affective and didactic were the least used by the experimental group. The results further indicated that most participants perceived that peer CF was helpful in improving the language accuracy, and they demonstrated a favorable attitude toward working with others in the CMC environment. Moreover, some participants stated that when they provided feedback to their peers, they tended to pay attention to linguistic errors in their peers’ work but overlook their own errors (e.g., past simple tense) when writing. Finally, L2 or FL teachers or practitioners are encouraged to employ CMC technologies to train their students to give each other feedback in writing to improve the accuracy of the language and to motivate them to attend to the language system.

Keywords: peer corrective feedback, computer-mediated communication (CMC), second or foreign language (L2 or FL) learning, Wikispaces

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Authors: Priyanka Bharti

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Decades ago designs were based on common sense and tradition, but after an enhancement in visualization technology and research, we are now able to comprehend the cognitive ability involved in the decoding of the visual information. However, many fields in visuals need intense research to deliver an efficient explanation for the events. Visuals are an information representation mode through images, symbols and graphics. It plays an impactful role in decision making by facilitating quick recognition, comprehension, and analysis of a situation. They enhance problem-solving capabilities by enabling the processing of more data without overloading the decision maker. As research proves that, visuals offer an improved learning environment by a factor of 400 compared to textual information. Visual information engages learners at a cognitive level and triggers the imagination, which enables the user to process the information faster (visuals are processed 60,000 times faster in the brain than text). Appropriate information, visualization, and its presentation are known to aid and intensify the decision-making process for the users. However, most literature discusses the role of visual aids in comprehension and decision making during normal conditions alone. Unlike emergencies, in a normal situation (e.g. our day to day life) users are neither exposed to stringent time constraints nor face the anxiety of survival and have sufficient time to evaluate various alternatives before making any decision. An emergency is an unexpected probably fatal real-life situation which may inflict serious ramifications on both human life and material possessions unless corrective measures are taken instantly. The situation demands the exposed user to negotiate in a dynamic and unstable scenario in the absence or lack of any preparation, but still, take swift and appropriate decisions to save life/lives or possessions. But the resulting stress and anxiety restricts cue sampling, decreases vigilance, reduces the capacity of working memory, causes premature closure in evaluating alternative options, and results in task shedding. Limited time, uncertainty, high stakes and vague goals negatively affect cognitive abilities to take appropriate decisions. More so, theory of natural decision making by experts has been understood with far more depth than that of an ordinary user. Therefore, in this study, the author aims to understand the role of visual aids in supporting rapid comprehension to take appropriate decisions during an emergency situation.

Keywords: cognition, visual, decision making, graphics, recognition

Procedia PDF Downloads 251

Authors: Mallikarjun Vaddenkeri, Suresh Jange

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This research study reports results of information behaviour by members of faculty and research scholars of various departments of social sciences working at universities with a sample of 300 and Members of Legislative Assembly and Council with 216 samples in Karnataka State, India. The results reveal that 29.3% and 20.3% of Social Scientists indicated medium and high level of awareness of primary sources - Primary Journals are found to be at scale level 5 and 9. The usage of primary journals by social scientists is found to be 28% at level 4, 24% of the respondent’s opined use of primary Conference Proceedings at level 5 as medium level of use. Similarly, the use of Secondary Information Sources at scale 8 and 9 particularly in case of Dictionaries (31.0% and 5.0%), Encyclopaedias (22.3% and 6.3%), Indexing Periodicals (7.0% and 15.3%) and Abstracting Periodicals (5.7% and 20.7%). For searching information from Journals Literature available in CD-ROM version, Keywords (43.7%) followed by Keywords with logical operators (39.7%) have been used for finding the required information. Statistical inference reveals rejection of null hypothesis `there is no association between designation of the respondents and awareness of primary information resources’. On the other hand, educational qualification possessed by Legislative members, more than half of them possess graduate degree as their academic qualification (57.4%) and just 16.7% of the respondents possess graduate degree while only 26.8% of the respondents possess degree in law and just 1.8% possess post-graduate degree in law. About 42.6% indicated the importance of information required to discharge their duties and responsibilities as a Policy Maker in the scale 8, as a Scholar (27.8%) on a scale 6, as a politician (64.8%) on a scale 10 and as a Councillor (51.9%) on a scale 8. The most preferred information agencies/sources very often contacted for obtaining useful information are by means of contacting the people of Karnataka State Legislative Library, listening Radio programmes, viewing Television programmes and reading the newspapers. The methods adopted for obtaining needed information quite often by means of sending their assistants to libraries to gather information (35.2%) and personally visiting the information source (64.8%). The null hypotheses `There is no association between Members of Legislature and Opinion on the usefulness of the resources of the Karnataka State Legislature Library’ is accepted using F ANOVA test. The studies conclude with a note revamp the existing library system in its structure and adopt latest technologies and educate and train social scientists and Legislators in using these resources in the interest of academic, government policies and decision making of the country.

Keywords: information use behaviour, government information, searching behaviour, policy makers

Procedia PDF Downloads 118

Authors: Vito M. Manghisi, Michele Gattullo, Alessandro Evangelista, Enricoandrea Laviola

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In this work, we compared two solutions for displaying a demo version of an Augmented Reality (AR) manual when the real product is not available, opting to replace it with its computer-aided design (CAD) model. AR has been proved to be effective in maintenance and assembly operations by many studies in the literature. However, most of them present solutions for existing products, usually converting old, printed manuals into AR manuals. In this case, authoring consists of defining how to convey existing instructions through AR. It is not a simple choice, and demo versions are created to test the design goodness. However, this becomes impossible when the product is not physically available, as for new products. A solution could be creating an entirely virtual environment with the product and the instructions. However, in this way, user interaction is completely different from that in the real application, then it would be hard testing the usability of the AR manual. This work aims to propose and compare two different solutions for the displaying of a demo version of an AR manual to support authoring in case of a product that is not physically available. We used as a case study that of an innovative semi-hermetic compressor that has not yet been produced. The applications were developed for a handheld device, using Unity 3D. The main issue was how to show the compressor and attach instructions on it. In one approach, we used Vuforia natural feature tracking to attach a CAD model of the compressor to a 2D image that is a drawing in scale 1:1 of the top-view of the CAD model. In this way, during the AR manual demonstration, the 3D model of the compressor is displayed on the user's device in place of the real compressor, and all the virtual instructions are attached to it. In the other approach, we first created a support application that shows the CAD model of the compressor on a marker. Then, we registered a video of this application, moving around the marker, obtaining a video that shows the CAD model from every point of view. For the AR manual, we used the Vuforia model target (360° option) to track the CAD model of the compressor, as it was the real compressor. Then, during the demonstration, the video is shown on a fixed large screen, and instructions are displayed attached to it in the AR manual. The first solution presents the main drawback to keeping the printed image with everyone working on the authoring of the AR manual, but allows to show the product in a real scale and interaction during the demonstration is very simple. The second one does not need a printed marker during the demonstration but a screen. Still, the compressor model is resized, and interaction is awkward since the user has to play the video on the screen to rotate the compressor. The two solutions were evaluated together with the company, and the preferred was the first one due to a more natural interaction.

Keywords: augmented reality, human computer interaction, operating instructions, maintenance, assembly

Procedia PDF Downloads 106

Authors: Christopher Pullen

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This paper explores the significance of British cinema in the late 1950s and early 1960s as offering a renaissance of realist discourse, in the representation of everyday social issues. Offering a rejection of Hollywood cinema and the superficially of the middle classes, these ‘kitchen sink dramas’ often set within modest and sometimes squalid domestic and social environments, focused on the political struggle of the disenfranchised examining poverty, the oppressed and the outsider. While films like Look Back in Anger and Room at the Top looked primarily at male heterosexual subjectivity, films like A Taste of Honey and Victim focused on female and queer male narratives. Framing the urban landscape as a discursive architectural arena, representing basic living conditions and threatening social worlds, these iconic films established new storytelling processes for the outsider. This paper examines this historical context foregrounding the contemporary films Beautiful Thing (Hettie Macdonald, 1996), Weekend (Andrew Haigh, 2011) and Pride (Marcus Warchus, 2014), while employing the process of textual analysis in relation to theories of affect, defined by writers such as Lisa U. Marks and Sara Ahmed. Considering both romance narratives and public demonstrations of unity, where the queer ‘affective’ body is placed within architectural and social space, Beautiful Thing tells the story of gay male teenagers falling in love despite oppression from family and school, Weekend examines a one-night stand between young gay men and the unlikeliness of commitment, but the drive for sensitivity, and Pride foregrounds an historical relationship between queer youth activists and the miner’s union, who were on strike between 1984-5. These films frame the queer ‘affective’ body within politicized public space, evident in lower class men’s working clubs, tenement housing and brutal modernist tower blocks, focusing on architectural features such as windows, doorways and staircases, relating temporality, desire and change. Through such an examination a hidden history of gay male performativity is revealed, framing the potential of contemporary cinema to focus on the context of the outsider in encouraging social change.

Keywords: queer, affect, cinema, architecture, life chances

Procedia PDF Downloads 337

Authors: Bisemiire Anthony,

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PESH Poultry is a business project proposed specifically to solve unemployment and income-related problems affecting the youths in the Busia district. The project is intended to transform the life of the youth in terms of economic, social and behavioral, as well as the domestic well-being of the community at large. PESH Poultry is a start-up poultry farm that will be engaged in the keeping of poultry birds, broilers and layers for the production of quality and affordable poultry meat and eggs respectively and other poultry derivatives targeting consumers in eastern Uganda, for example, hotels, restaurants, households and bakeries. We intend to use a semi-intensive system of farming, where water and some food are provided in a separate nighttime shelter for the birds; our location will be in Lumino, Busia district. The poultry project will be established and owned by Bisemiire Anthony, Nandera Patience, Naula Justine, Bwire Benjamin and other investors. The farm will be managed and directed by Nandera Patience, who has five years of work experience and business administration knowledge. We will sell poultry products, including poultry eggs, chicken meat, feathers and poultry manure. We also offer consultancy services for poultry farming. Our eggs and chicken meat are hygienic, rich in protein and high quality. We produce processes and packages to meet the standard organization of Uganda and international standards. The business project shall comprise five (5) workers on the key management team who will share various roles and responsibilities in the identified business functions such as marketing, finance and other related poultry farming activities. PESH Poultry seeks 30 million Ugandan shillings in long-term financing to cover start-up costs, equipment, building expenses and working capital. Funding for the launch of the business will be provided primarily by equity from the investors. The business will reach positive cash flow in its first year of operation, allowing for the expected repayment of its loan obligations. Revenue will top UGX 11,750,000, and net income will reach about UGX115 950,000 in the 1st year of operation. The payback period for our project is 2 years and 3 months. The farm plans on starting with 1000 layer birds and 1000 broiler birds, 20 workers in the first year of operation.

Keywords: chicken, pullets, turkey, ducks

Procedia PDF Downloads 66

Authors: Harini Atturu, Divyani Byagari, Bindhu Rani Thumkunta, Sahitya Bammidi, Manasa Badveli

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Introduction: Biological, psychological and social domains influence the outcomes of pregnancy. The COVID19 pandemic had a significant effect on the psychological and social domains of pregnant women all over the world. Everyone has inherent coping mechanisms which ultimately determine the actual impact of such external stimulus on outcomes of pregnancy. This study aims to understand the coping strategies used by pregnant women to overcome the psychological impact of the first wave of the COVID 19 pandemic. Methods: Institutional ethics permission was sought. All pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in the institution during September 2020 were included in the study. Brief-COPE, a self-rated questionnaire, was provided to understand the coping strategies used by them. The Questionnaire consists of 28 questions that fall into 14 themes. These 14 themes were mapped into four domains consisting of Approaching coping (APC) styles, Avoidant Coping (AVC) styles, Humor and Religion. The results were analyzed using univariate and multivariate analysis. Factor analysis was performed to identify themes that are most frequently used. Results: 162 pregnant women were included in the study. The majority of the women were aged between 18 and 30 (90.1%). 60.9% of the respondents were having their first pregnancy and were in the 2nd trimester (59.6%). The majority of them were living in the city (74%), belonged to the middle class (77.6%) and were not working (70.1%). 56 respondents (34.6%) reported that they had contact with suspected or Covid positive patients. Many were worried that their pregnancy might be complicated (43%), their baby may contract COVID (45%) and their family members could get COVID during the hospital visits for antenatal check-ups. 33.6% of women admitted missing their regular antenatal check-ups because of the above concerns. All respondents used various coping strategies to overcome the psychological impact of COVID 19. Out of the 4 coping strategies, participants scored high on Religion with a mean of 5.471.45 followed by Approaching Coping (APC) styles (5.131.25), Humor (4.592.07) and Avoidant Coping (AVC) styles (4.130.88). Religion as a coping strategy scored high for all respondents irrespective of age, parity, trimester, social and employment status. Exploratory Factor analysis revealed two cluster groups that explained 68% of the variance, with Component 1 contributing to 58.9% and component 2 contributing 9.13% of the variance. Humor, Acceptance, Planning, and Religion were the top 4 factors that showed strong loadings. Conclusion: Most of the pregnant women were worried about the negative impact of COVID 19 on the outcomes of their pregnancy. Religion and Approaching coping styles seem to be the predominant coping strategies used by them. Interventionists and policymakers should consider these factors while providing support to such women.

Keywords: coping strategies, pregnancy, COVID-19, brief-COPE

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: Maria De Albuquerque Bercot, Caio Gustavo Mesquita Angelo, Daniela Maria Moreira Siqueira, Augusto Assucena De Vasconcellos, Rodrigo Studart Correa

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Mining is an important socioeconomic activity in Brazil although it negatively impacts the environment. Mineral operations cause irreversible changes in topography, removal of vegetation and topsoil, habitat destruction, displacement of fauna, loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, siltation of watercourses and have potential to enhance climate change. Due to the impacts and its pollution potential, mining activity in Brazil is legally subjected to environmental licensing. Unlicensed mining operations or operations that not abide to the terms of an obtained license are taken as environmental crimes in the country. This work reports a case analyzed in the Forensic Institute of the Brazilian Federal District Civil Police. The case consisted of detecting illegal aspects of sand exploitation from a licensed mine in Federal District, nearby Brasilia city. The fieldwork covered an area of roughly 6 ha, which was surveyed with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (PHANTOM 3 ADVANCED). The overflight with UAV took about 20 min, with maximum flight height of 100 m. 592 UAV georeferenced images were obtained and processed in a photogrammetric software (AGISOFT PHOTOSCAN 1.1.4), which generated a mosaic of geo-referenced images and a 3D model in less than six working hours. The 3D model was analyzed in a forensic software for accurate modeling and volumetric analysis. (MAPTEK I-SITE FORENSIC 2.2). To ensure the 3D model was a true representation of the mine site, coordinates of ten control points and reference measures were taken during fieldwork and compared to respective spatial data in the model. Finally, these spatial data were used for measuring mining area, excavation depth and volume of exploited sand. Results showed that mine holder had not complied with some terms and conditions stated in the granted license, such as sand exploration beyond authorized extension, depth and volume. Easiness, the accuracy and expedition of procedures used in this case highlight the employment of UAV imagery and computational photogrammetry as efficient tools for outdoor forensic exams, especially on environmental issues.

Keywords: computational photogrammetry, environmental monitoring, mining, UAV

Procedia PDF Downloads 295

Authors: Felix Schumann, Giorgia Carratta, Tobias Dauth, Liv Jaeckel

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In the last few decades, the rapid growth of the use and disposal of plastic items has led to their overaccumulation in the environment. As a result, plastic pollution has become a subject of global concern. Today plastics are used as raw materials in almost every industry. While the recognition of the ecological, social, and economic impact of plastics in academic research is on the rise, the potential role of the ‘plastic industry’ in dealing with such issues is still largely underestimated. Therefore, the literature on sustainable plastic management is still nascent and fragmented. Working towards sustainability requires a fundamental shift in the way companies employ plastics in their day-to-day business. For that reason, the applicability of the business model concept has recently gained momentum in environmental research. Business model innovation is increasingly recognized as an important driver to re-conceptualize the purpose of the firm and to readily integrate sustainability in their business. It can serve as a starting point to investigate whether and how sustainability can be realized under industry- and firm-specific circumstances. Yet, there is no comprehensive view in the plastic industry on how firms start refining their business models to embed sustainability in their operations. Our study addresses this gap, looking primarily at the industrial sectors responsible for the production of the largest amount of plastic waste today: plastic packaging, consumer goods, construction, textile, and transport. Relying on the archetypes of sustainable business models and applying them to the aforementioned sectors, we try to identify companies’ current strategies to make their business models more sustainable. Based on the thematic clustering, we can develop an integrative framework for the plastic industry. The findings are underpinned and illustrated by a variety of relevant plastic management solutions that the authors have identified through a systematic literature review and analysis of existing, empirically grounded research in this field. Using the archetypes, we can promote options for business model innovations for the most important sectors in which plastics are used. Moreover, by linking the proposed business model archetypes to the plastic industry, our research approach guides firms in exploring sustainable business opportunities. Likewise, researchers and policymakers can utilize our classification to identify best practices. The authors believe that the study advances the current knowledge on sustainable plastic management through its broad empirical industry analyses. Hence, the application of business model archetypes in the plastic industry will be useful for shaping companies’ transformation to create and deliver more sustainability and provides avenues for future research endeavors.

Keywords: business models, environmental economics, plastic management, plastic pollution, sustainability

Procedia PDF Downloads 74

Authors: Tamadu Perry Egedegu

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Rapid growth in the use of electronic data has affected both the employee and work place. Our experience shows that jobs that have multiple risk factors have a greater likelihood of causing Work Related Musculoskeletal Disorder (WRMSDs), depending on the duration, frequency and/or magnitude of exposure to each. The study investigated musculoskeletal disorder among office workers. Thus, it is important that ergonomic risk factors be considered in light of their combined effect in causing or contributing to WRMSDs. Fast technological growth in the use of electronic system; have affected both workers and the work environment. Awkward posture and long hours in front of these visual display terminals can result in work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSD). The study shall contribute to the awareness creation on the causes and consequences of WRMSDs due to lack of ergonomics training. The study was conducted using an observational cross-sectional design. A sample of 109 respondents was drawn from the target population through purposive sampling method. The sources of data were both primary and secondary. Primary data were collected through questionnaires and secondary data were sourced from journals, textbooks, and internet materials. Questionnaires were the main instrument for data collection and were designed in a YES or NO format according to the study objectives. Content validity approval was used to ensure that the variables were adequately covered. The reliability of the instrument was done through test-retest method, yielding a reliability index at 0.84. The data collected from the field were analyzed with a descriptive statistics of chart, percentage and mean. The study found that the most affected body regions were the upper back, followed by the lower back, neck, wrist, shoulder and eyes, while the least affected body parts were the knee calf and the ankle. Furthermore, the prevalence of work-related 'musculoskeletal' malfunctioning was linked with long working hours (6 - 8 hrs.) per day, lack of back support on their seats, glare on the monitor, inadequate regular break, repetitive motion of the upper limbs, and wrist when using the computer. Finally, based on these findings some recommendations were made to reduce the prevalent of WRMSDs among office workers.

Keywords: work related musculoskeletal disorder, Nigeria, office computer users, ergonomic risk factor

Procedia PDF Downloads 219

Authors: Danny Hjeij, Karine Bilodeau, Caroline Arbour

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Background: Chemotherapy infusions often lead to a cluster of co-occurring and difficult-to-treat symptoms (nausea, tingling, etc.), which may negatively impact the treatment experience at the outpatient clinic. Although several complementary approaches have shown beneficial effects for chemotherapy-induced symptom management, they are not easily implementable during chemotherapy infusion. In response to this limitation, comfort talk (CT), a simple, fast conversational method inspired by the language principles of clinical hypnosis, is known to optimize the management of symptoms related to antineoplastic treatments. However, the perception of nurses who have had to integrate this practice into their care has never been documented. Study design: A qualitative descriptive study with iterative content analysis was conducted among oncology nurses working in a chemotherapy outpatient clinic who had previous experience with CT. Semi-structured interviews were conducted by phone, using a pre-tested interview guide and a sociodemographic survey to document their perception of CT. The conceptual framework. Results: A total of six nurses (4 women, 2 men) took part in the interviews (N=6). The average age of participants was 49 years (36-61 years). Participants had an average of 24 years of experience (10-38 years) as a nurse, including 14.5 years in oncology (5-32 years). Data saturation (i.e., redundancy of words) was observed around the fifth interview. A sixth interview was conducted as confirmation. Six themes emerged: two addressing contextual and organizational obstacles at the chemotherapy outpatient clinic, and three addressing the added value of CT for oncology nursing care. Specific themes included: 1) the outpatient oncology clinic, a saturated care setting, 2) the keystones that support the integration of CT into care, 3) added value for patients, 4) a positive and rewarding experience for nurses, 5) collateral benefits, and 6) CT an approach to consider during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion: For the first time, this study describes nurses' perception of the integration of CT into the care surrounding the administration of chemotherapy at the outpatient oncology clinic. In summary, contextual and organizational difficulties, as well as the lack of training, are among the main obstacles that could hinder the integration of CT in oncology. Still, the experience was reported mostly as positive. Indeed, nurses saw HC as an added value to patient care and meeting their need for holistic care. HC also appears to be beneficial for patients on several levels (for pain management in particular). Results will be used to inform future knowledge transfer activities related to CT in oncology nursing.

Keywords: cancer, chemotherapy, comfort talk, oncology nursing role

Procedia PDF Downloads 67

Authors: Efleda Preclaro Tolentino

Abstract:

Research indicates that an educator’s belief system is reflected in the way they structure the learning environment. Their values and belief system have the potential to positively impact school readiness through an understanding of children’s development and the creation of a stable, motivating environment. Based on the premise that the social environment influences the development of social skills, knowledge construct, and shared values of young children, this study examined verbal and nonverbal exchanges between early childhood teachers and their preschool students within the context of remote learning. Using the qualitative method of data collection, the study determined the nature of interactions between preschoolers and their teachers within a remote learning environment at a preschool in Southeast Asia that utilized the Mother Tongue-based Multilingual Education (MTBMLE) Approach. From the lens of sociocultural theory, the study investigated preschoolers’ use of literacies to convey meaning and to interact within a remote learning environment. Using a Strengths Perspective, the study revealed the creativity and resourcefulness of preschoolers in expressing themselves through trans-literacies that were made possible by the use of online mode of learning within cultural and subcultural norms. The study likewise examined how social skills acquired by young children were transmitted (verbally or nonverbally) in their interactions with peers during Zoom meetings. By examining the dynamics of social exchanges between teachers and children, the findings of the study underscore the importance of providing support for preschool students as they apply acquired values and shared practices within a remote learning environment. The potential of distance learning in the early years will be explored, specifically in supporting young children’s language and literacy development. At the same time, the study examines the role of teachers as cultivators of trans-literacies. The teachers’ skillful use of technology in facilitating young children’s learning, as well as in supporting interactions with families, will be examined. The findings of this study will explore the potential of distance learning in early childhood education to establish continuity in learning, supporting young children’s social and emotional transitions, and nurturing trans-literacies that transcend prevailing definitions of learning contexts. The implications of teachers and parents working collaboratively to support student learning will be examined. The importance of preparing teachers to be resourceful, adaptable, and innovative to ensure that learning takes place across a variety of modes and settings will be discussed.

Keywords: transliteracy, preschoolers, remote learning, strengths perspective

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Authors: Shahzad A. Mughal, Ameer A. P. Ghaloo, Faisal Laghari, Mohsin A. Mirza

Abstract:

Job satisfaction and level of job stressors among employees of a university are considered as essential factors responsible for institutional success. Job satisfaction is usually believed as a single baseline variable for the evaluation of a university human resource area. The objectives of this study were to assess the level of job satisfaction and influence of job stressors among university teachers and their association with long term physical health of the employees in government sector universities in Pakistan. A cross-sectional study was conducted on university employees including faculty members and administrative staff of three government sector universities in Sindh province of Pakistan who have completed at least ten years of their job. The study period was six months. All the employees were randomly selected. The job satisfaction scale Questionnaire with yes and no options, together with questions regarding demographic factors, job stress or other working factors and physical health issues were administered in questionnaires. These questionnaires were handed out to 100 faculty members of both genders with permanent job and 50 non faculty staff of grade 17 and above with permanent employment status. Students’ T test and one way ANOVA was applied to categorical variables and Pearson’s correlation analysis was performed to evaluate the correlations between study variables. 121 successful responses were obtained (effective respondent rate 80.6%). The average score of overall job satisfaction was 65.6%. Statistical analysis revealed that the job satisfaction and work related stressors had negative impact on overall health status of the employees with resultant less efficacy and mental stress. The positive relation was perceived by employees for organizational support and high income with job satisfaction. Demographic features such as age and female gender were also linked to the level of job satisfaction and health related issues. The total variation among all responses regarding correlation between job satisfaction job stressors and health related issues was 55%. A study was conducted on University employees of government sector Universities in Pakistan, regarding association of job satisfaction and job stressors with long term physical health of the employees. Study revealed a moderate level of job satisfaction among the employees of all universities included in this study. Attitude and personal relations with heads of the departments and institution along with salary packages were considered as biggest job stressors related correlated directly with physical health. Demographic features and gender were associated factors for job satisfaction. Organizational support was the strongest factor for job satisfaction and results pointed out that by improving support level from University may improve the quality of job satisfaction and overall health of employees.

Keywords: job satisfaction, organizational support, physical health, university employees

Procedia PDF Downloads 230