Search results for: behavioral aspect of attitude
Commenced in January 2007
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Edition: International
Paper Count: 3982

Search results for: behavioral aspect of attitude

3202 Sustainable Development Approach for Coastal Erosion Problem in Thailand: Using Bamboo Sticks to Rehabilitate Coastal Erosion

Authors: Sutida Maneeanakekul, Dusit Wechakit, Somsak Piriyayota

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Coastal erosion is a major problem in Thailand, in both the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea coasts. According to the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, land erosion occurred along the 200 km coastline with an average rate of 5 meters/year. Coastal erosion affects public and government properties, as well as the socio-economy of the country, including emigration in coastal communities, loss of habitats, and decline in fishery production. To combat the problem of coastal erosion, projects utilizing bamboo sticks for coastal defense against erosion were carried out in 5 areas beginning in November, 2010, including: Pak Klong Munharn- Samut Songkhram Province; Ban Khun Samutmaneerat, Pak Klong Pramong and Chao Matchu Shrine-Samut Sakhon Province,and Pak Klong Hongthong – Chachoengsao Province by Marine and Coastal Resources Department. In 2012, an evaluation of the effectiveness of solving the problem of coastal erosion by using bamboo stick was carried out, with a focus on three aspects. Firstly, the change in physical and biological features after using the bamboo stick technique was assessed. Secondly, participation of people in the community in the way of managing the problem of coastal erosion were these aspects evaluated as part of the study. The last aspect that was evaluated is the satisfaction of the community toward this technique. The results of evaluation showed that the amounts of sediment have dramatically changed behind the bamboo sticks lines. The increase of sediment was found to be about 23.50-56.20 centimeters (during 2012-2013). In terms of biological aspect, there has been an increase in mangrove forest areas, especially at Bang Ya Prak, Samut Sakhon Province. Average tree density was found to be about 4,167 trees per square meter. Additionally, an increase in production of fisheries was observed. Presently, the change in the evaluated physical features tends to increase in every aspect, including the satisfaction of people in community toward the process of solving the erosion problem. People in the community are involved in the preparatory, operation, monitoring and evaluation process to resolve the problem in the medium levels.

Keywords: bamboo sticks, coastal erosion, rehabilitate, Thailand sustainable development approach

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3201 Dissocial Personality in Adolescents

Authors: Tsirekidze M., Aprasidze T.

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Introduction: The problem of dissocial behavior is at the heart of the social sciences and psychiatry; however, it should be noted that its psychiatric aspect is little studied, and some issues of the problem are still controversial. This is complicated by the diversity of terminological concepts in defining “dissocial behavior”, “behavioral disorder”, “abnormal behavior”, “deviant behavior”, “delinquent behavior”, etc. In literature, there is no comprehensive definition of the essence of dissociative behavior. Numerous attempts to systematize dissociative disorders should also be considered unsatisfactory, which is primarily related to the lack of solid criteria for defining this group of disorders. According to the clinical classification, dissocial behavior is divided into psychotic and non-psychotic forms. Such differentiation is conditional in nature since it is not always possible to draw precise, clear distinctions between these forms, and in addition, there is a transition of a behavior disorder or so-called intermediate forms. One group of authors distinguishes two main forms of deviant behavior in terms of both theoretical and practical significance - non-pathological and pathological. In recent years, especially, the non-pathological form of behavior disorder has become topical. It refers to a large group of forms of deviant behavior, the emergence of which is associated with psychologically full-fledged reactions of children and adolescents to stressful situations and extreme conditions. According to the authors, its concept is understandable-it is difficult to draw a line between psychologically understandable reactions and psychogenically induced reactive states. In addition, the concept of "normal" child and adolescent is, to some extent, a vague concept, as in medicine, any definition of the norm. From a practical (more precisely, pragmatic) point of view, the term "abnormal behavioral disorder" undoubtedly makes sense, especially for the purpose of forensic psychiatric examination. Non-pathological deviation mainly includes transient situational reactions, microsocial-pedagogical backwardness, and character accentuation.Deviant behavior was predominantly manifested in a non-pathological form, which, in our opinion, is due to the difficult socio-economic situation of the country, moral-ethical deprivation, and expressed frustration. By itself, society is an indicator of deviation. Add to this situation complicated factors such as micro-social-pedagogical leave, unfavorable family environment, and parenting defects. Consideration is also given to the connection of acceptable deviation with the personal structural features of the adolescent. Aim: The topic of our discussion is the dissocial behavior of the non-psychotic register. Methods: We surveyed 120 adolescents with deviant behaviors. 61% of them were diagnosed with various neuropsychiatric disorders. Results: Abnormal forms of deviant behavior were observed in 13%, and non-pathological forms in -69%. A combination of non-pathological and pathological forms was present in 10% of cases. In the case of non-pathological deviation, microsocial-pedagogical acceptance was revealed in 62%, character accentuation in 22%; during the pathological forms, pathological reactions were observed in 21%, and abnormal formation of the person -21%. Conclusion: It should be emphasized that in case of any of the above defects, if the so-called family psychosis, and medical and pedagogical habilitation measures for the adolescent, it is quite possible to prevent the abnormal development of the child's personality, correct his character, regulate behavior and develop positive labor-social relations.

Keywords: dissocial personality, deviant behavior, dissocial, delinquent behavior

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3200 Experimental Investigation on Shear Behaviour of Fibre Reinforced Concrete Beams Using Steel Fibres

Authors: G. Beulah Gnana Ananthi, A. Jaffer Sathick, M. Abirami

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Fibre reinforced concrete (FRC) has been widely used in industrial pavements and non-structural elements such as pipes, culverts, tunnels, and precast elements. The strengthening effect of fibres in the concrete matrix is achieved primarily due to the bridging effect of fibres at the crack interfaces. The workability of the concrete was reduced on addition of high percentages of steel fibres. The optimum percentage of addition of steel fibres varies with its aspect ratio. For this study, 1% addition of steel has resulted to be the optimum percentage for both Hooked and Crimped Steel Fibres and was added to the beam specimens. The fibres restrain efficiently the cracks and take up residual stresses beyond the cracking. In this sense, diagonal cracks are effectively stitched up by fibres crossing it. The failure of beams within the shear failure range changed from shear to flexure in the presence of sufficient steel fibre quantity. The shear strength is increased with the addition of steel fibres and had exceeded the enhancement obtained with the transverse reinforcement. However, such increase is not directly in proportion with the quantity of fibres used. Considering all the clarification made in the present experimental investigation, it is concluded that 1% of crimped steel fibres with an aspect ratio of 50 is the best type of steel fibres for replacement of transverse stirrups in high strength concrete beams when compared to the steel fibres with hooked ends.

Keywords: fibre reinforced concrete, steel fibre, shear strength, crack pattern

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3199 Employees and Their Perception of Soft Skills on Their Employability

Authors: Sukrita Mukherjee, Anindita Chaudhuri

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Soft skills are a crucial aspect for employees, and these skills are not confined to any particular field rather, it guarantees further career growth and job opportunities for employees who are seeking growth. Soft skills are also regarded as personality-specific skills that are observable and are qualitative in nature, which determines an employee’s strengths as a leader. When an employee intends to hold his job, then the person must make effective use of his personal resources, that, in turn, impacts his employability in a positive manner. An employee at his workplace is expected to make effective use of his personal resources. The resources that are to be used by the employee are generally of two types. First type of resources are occupation related, which is related with the educational background of the employee, and the second type of resources are the psychological resources of the employee, such as self-knowledge, career orientation awareness, sense of purpose and emotional literacy, that are considered crucial for an employee in his workplace. The present study is a qualitative study which includes 10 individuals working in IT Sector and Service Industry, respectively. For IT sector, graduate people are considered, and for the Service Industry, individuals who have done a Professional course in order to get into the industry are considered. The emerging themes from the findings after thematic analysis reveal that different aspect of Soft skills such as communication, decision making, constant learning, keeping oneself updated with the latest technological advancement, emotional intelligence are some of the important factors that helps an employee not only to sustain his job, but also grow in his workplace.

Keywords: employabiliy, soft skils, employees, resources, workplace

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3198 Reproductive Behavior of Caspian Red Deer (Cervus Elaphus Maral) in Wildlife Refuge of Semeskande, Sari

Authors: Behrang Ekrami, Amin Tamadon

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Caspian red deer or maral (Cervus elaphus maral) is a ruminant from the family of Cervidae. Maintenance and protection of maral requires knowing the behavioral, physiological, environmental characteristics and factors harmful to this species. In this article, reproductive and behavioral traits of this species in both sexes are presented based on observations and the available records of protected deer in Wildlife Refuge of Semeskande, Sari (one of the sites that preserve the maral in the Free Zones of Hyrcanian forest) from 2006 to 2011. Hart characteristics including sexual behavior, apparent changes during reproductive season and reproductive physiology; and hind characteristics including of ovulation, reproductive cycle, mating, pregnancy and parturition, have been evaluated. Identification of maral reproductive characteristics in Wildlife Refuge of Semeskande, Sari is one of the most important information requirements to preserve and breed this species and will open up new routes for performing new methods of reproduction of this species in Iran wildlife parks or other refuge areas.

Keywords: caspian red deer, reproduction, behavior, Iran

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3197 Voices from Inside and the Power of Art to Transform and Restore

Authors: Karen Miner-Romanoff

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Few art programs for incarcerated juveniles exist; however, evaluation results indicate decreased recidivism and behavior problems. This paper reports on an on-going study of a promising art program for incarcerated adolescents with community exhibits and charitable sale of their work. Voices from Inside, a partnership between Franklin University and the Ohio Department of Youth Services, sponsored three exhibits in 2012, 2013, and 2014. In 2013, youth exhibitor survey results (response rate 47%, 16 of 34) showed that 81% cited as benefits cooperation with others, task completion, and increased self-esteem from public recognition and art sales. Community attendee survey results (response rate 29.5%, 59 of 200) showed positive attitude changes toward juvenile offenders, from 40% to 53%. Qualitative responses were similarly positive. The 2014 youth exhibitor sample was larger (response rate 58%, 29 of 50) and showed that 93% cited positive benefits including increase in self-esteem, decrease in stress, pride or recognition of the ability to reach a goal from completing, exhibiting and selling their art to benefit a charity for at-risk youth. This year, the research was able to conduct ten one-on-one interviews inside of the youth facilities, and qualitative responses were even more positive with one youth explaining, “This art represents my joy, my tears, my pain and my hope.” Community attendee survey results (response rate 50%, 86 of 170) were transformative in that that they indicated significant impression on attitudes toward juvenile offenders and their rehabilitative needs with one attendee stating that the event had an, “Immense impact for me bringing into focus the humanity and value these youth still have for us and society.” Future research indicates a need for a correlation study to determine the extent to which these art programs reduce behavioral incidents inside of the facility and long-term reduction in reoffending rates. Generally, further study of juvenile offenders’ art for rehabilitation and restorative justice, the power of art to transform, and university-community partnerships implementing art programs for juvenile offenders should continue.

Keywords: art, juvenile, incarcerated, restorative justice

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3196 The Role of Behavioral Syndromes in Human-Cattle Interactions: A Physiological Approach

Authors: Fruzsina Luca Kézér, Viktor Jurkovich, Ottó Szenci, János Tőzsér, Levente Kovács

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Positive interaction between people and animals could have a favorable effect on the welfare and production by reducing stress levels. However, to the repeated contact with humans (e.g. farm staff, veterinarians or herdsmen), animals may respond with escape behavior or avoidance, which both have negative effects on the ease of handling, welfare and may lead to the expression of aggressive behaviors. Rough or aversive handling can impair health and the function of the cardiac autonomic activity due to fear and stress, which also can be determined by certain parameters of heart rate variability (HRV). Although the essential relationships between fear from humans and basal tone of the autonomic nervous system were described by the authors previously, several questions remained unclear in terms of the associations between different coping strategies (behavioral syndromes) of the animals and physiological responsiveness to humans. The main goal of this study was to find out whether human behavior and emotions to the animals have an impact on cardiac function and behavior of animals with different coping styles in response situations. Therefore, in the present study, special (fear, approaching, restraint, novel arena, novel object) tests were performed on healthy, 2-year old heifers (n = 104) differing in coping styles [reactive (passive) vs. proactive (active) coping]. Animals were categorized as reactive or proactive based on the following tests: 1) aggressive behavior at the feeding bunk, 2) avoidance from an approaching person, 3) immobility, and 4) daily activity (number of posture changes). Heart rate, the high frequency (HF) component of HRV as a measure of vagal activity and the ratio between the low frequency (LF) and HF components (LF/HF ratio) as a parameter of sympathetic nervous system activity were calculated for all individual during lying posture (baseline) and for response situations in novel object, novel arena, and unfamiliar person tests (both for 5 min), respectively. The differences between baseline and response were compared between groups. Higher sympathetic (higher heart rates and LF/HF ratios) and lower parasympathetic activity (lower HF) was found for proactive animals in response situations than for reactive (passive) animals either during the novel object, the novel arena and the unfamiliar person test. It suggests that animals with different behavioral traits differ in their immediate autonomic adaptation to novelty and people. Based on our preliminary results, it seems, that the analysis of HRV can help to understand the physiological manifestation of responsiveness to novelty and human presence in dairy cattle with different behavioral syndromes.

Keywords: behavioral syndromes, human-cattle interaction, novel arena test, physiological responsiveness, proactive coping, reactive coping

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3195 Knowledge, Attitude, Practice and Contributing Factors on Menstrual Hygiene Among High School Students, Ethiopia: Cross-Sectional Study

Authors: Getnet Gedefaw, Fentanesh Endalew, Bitewush Azmeraw, Bethelhem Walelign, Eyob Shitie

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Introduction: The issue of menstrual hygiene is often overlooked and has not been sufficiently addressed in the fields of reproductive health in low and middle-income countries. Inadequate menstrual hygiene practices can increase the risk of various infectious and chronic obstetric and gynaecological complications for girls and adolescents. Hence, this study seeks to investigate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to menstrual hygiene, along with the factors influencing them, among high school students. Methods: A facility based cross-sectional study was conducted involving a total of 423 study subjects. A systematic random sampling technique was utilized. Data was entered and analyzed through Epi data 3.1 and SPSS 22, respectively. Both univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were employed. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: This study revealed that 365(89.2%), 200(48.9%) and 196(47.9%) of the study participants have good knowledge, good practice, and good attitudes about menstrual hygiene, respectively. Being higher grade students (grade 10) [AOR=3.96, 95% CI =2.0-7.8] and having good practice of menstrual hygiene (AOR=2.52, 95% CI= 1.26-5) had a positive association with menstrual hygiene knowledge. Whereas maternal education level (AOR=1.86, 95% CI=1.18-2.9) and being a grade 10 student (AOR=2.3, 95% CI=1.48-3.56) were associated factors for practising menstrual hygiene. Additionally, being higher grade students (AOR=1.9, 95% CI=1.2-2.8), age ≥18 years (AOR=1.67, 95% CI=1.09-2.55) were statistically and positively associated with the attitude of menstrual hygiene. Conclusion: The study findings indicated that the knowledge of the study participants regarding menstrual hygiene was high, while their attitudes and practices towards menstrual hygiene were low. It is suggested that raising awareness among reproductive health groups and educating their families and parents could potentially lead to a positive change in their poor practices and attitudes towards menstrual hygiene.

Keywords: menstrual hygiene, menstruation, students, reproductive health

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3194 Bee Keeping for Human-Elephant Conflict Mitigation: A Success Story for Sustainable Tourism in Kibale National Park, Western Uganda

Authors: Dorothy Kagazi

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The African elephant (Loxodonta africana) remains one of the most crop-damaging species around Kibale National Park, western Uganda. Elephant crop raiding deprives communities of food and incomes, consequently impacting livelihoods, attitude, and support for conservation. It also attracts an aggressive reaction from local communities including the retaliatory killing of a species that is already endangered and listed under Appendix I of the Convention on Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES). In order to mitigate against elephant crop raiding and minimize conflict, a number of interventions were devised by the government of Uganda such as physical guarding, scare-shooting, excavation of trenches, growing of unpalatable crops and fire lighting all of which have over the years been implemented around the park. These generated varying degrees of effectiveness but largely never solved the problem of elephants crossing into communities to destroy food and shelter which had a negative effect onto sustainable tourism of the communities who often resorted to killing these animals and hence contributing the falling numbers of these animals. It was until government discovered that there are far more effective ways of deterring these animals from crossing to communities that it commissioned a study to deploy the African honeybee (Apis mellifera scutellata) as a deterrent against elephant crop raiding and income enhancement for local people around the park. These efforts led to a number of projects around Kibale National Park where communities were facilitated to keep bees for human-elephant conflict mitigation and rural income enhancement through the sale of honey. These projects have registered tremendous success in reducing crop damage, enhance rural incomes, influence positive attitude change and ultimately secure community support for elephant and park conservation which is a clear manifestation of sustainable tourism development in the area. To address the issue of sustainability, the project was aligned with four major objectives that contributed to the overall goal of maintaining the areas around the parks and the national park itself in such a manner that it remains viable over an infinite period. Among these included determining deterrence effects of bees against elephant crop raiding, assessing the contribution of beekeeping towards rural income enhancement, determining the impact of community involvement of park conservation and management among others. The project deployed 500 improved hives by placing them at specific and previously identified and mapped out elephant crossing points along the park boundary. A control site was established without any intervention to facilitate comparison of findings and data was collected on elephant raiding frequency, patterns, honey harvested, and community attitude towards the park. A socio-economic assessment was also undertaken to ascertain the contribution of beekeeping to incomes and attitude change. In conclusion, human-wildlife conflicts have disturbed conservation and sustainable tourism development efforts. Such success stories like the beekeeping strategy should hence be extensively discussed and widely shared as a conservation technique for sustainable tourism.

Keywords: bees, communities, conservation, elephants

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3193 The Impact of Blended Learning on Developing the students' Writing Skills and the Perception of Instructors and Students: Hawassa University in Focus

Authors: Mulu G. Gencha, Gebremedhin Simon, Menna Olango

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This study was conducted at Hawassa University (HwU) in the Southern Nation Nationalities Peoples Regional State (SNNPRS) of Ethiopia. The prime concern of this study was to examine the writing performances of experimental and control group students, perception of experimental group students, and subject instructors. The course was blended learning (BL). Blended learning is a hybrid of classroom and on-line learning. Participants were eighty students from the School of Computer Science. Forty students attended the BL delivery involved using Face-to-Face (FTF) and campus-based online instruction. All instructors, fifty, of School of Language and Communication Studies along with 10 FGD members participated in the study. The experimental group went to the computer lab two times a week for four months, March-June, 2012, using the local area network (LAN), and software (MOODLE) writing program. On the other hand, the control group, forty students, took the FTF writing course five times a week for four months in similar academic calendar. The three instruments, the attitude questionnaire, tests and FGD were designed to identify views of students, instructors, and FGD participants on BL. At the end of the study, students’ final course scores were evaluated. Data were analyzed using independent samples t-tests. A statistically, significant difference was found between the FTF and BL (p<0.05). The analysis showed that the BL group was more successful than the conventional group. Besides, both instructors and students had positive attitude towards BL. The final section of the thesis showed the potential benefits and challenges, considering the pedagogical implications for the BL, and recommended possible avenues for further works.

Keywords: blended learning, computer attitudes, computer usefulness, computer liking, computer confidence, computer phobia

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3192 A Fresh Look at Tense System of Qashqaie Dialect of Turkish Language

Authors: Mohammad Sharifi Bohlouli

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Turkish language with many dialects is native or official language of great number of people all around the world. The Qashqaie dialect of Turkish language is spoken by the Qashqaie tribe mostly scattered in the southern part of Iran. This paper aims at analyzing the tense system of this dialect to detect the type and number of tense and aspects available to its speakers. To collect a reliable data, a group of 50 old native speakers were randomly chosen as the informants and different techniques such as; Shuy et al interviews, selective listening ,and eavesdropping were used. The results of data analysis showed that the tense system in the Qashqaie dialect of Turkish language includes 3 absolute tenses , 6 aspectual , and 2 subjunctive ones. The interesting part of the study is that Qashqaie dialect enables its speakers to make a kind of aspectual opposition through verb structure which seems to be almost impossible through verb forms in any other nonturkish languages. For example in the following examples sentences 1 &2 and 3&4 have the same translation In English although they are different in both meaning and structure. 1. Ali ensha yazirdi. 2. Ali ensha yazirmush. (Ali was writing a composition.) 3. Ali yadmishdi. 4. Ali yadmishimish. ( Ali had slept.) The changes in the verb structure in Qashqaie dialect enables its speakers to say that whether the doer of the action remembers the process of doing the action or not. So, it presents a new aspectual opposition as Observed /nonobserved. The research findings reveal many other regularities and linguistic features that can be useful for linguists interested in Turkish in general and for those interested in tense and aspect and also they can be helpful for different pedagogical purposes including teaching and translating.

Keywords: qashqaie dialect, tense, aspect, linguistics, Turkish Language

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3191 An Integrative Model of Job Characteristics Key Attitudes and Intention to Leave Among Faculty in Higher Education

Authors: Bhavna Malik

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The study is build on a theoretical framework that links characteristics of job, key attitudes and intention to leave, why faculty may be disengaging from institutional service. The literature indicates that job characteristics, key attitudes and intention to leave are very important for effective organizational functioning. In general, the literature showed that some job characteristics might be the antecedents of job satisfaction and the aggregate variable job scope was positively associated with organizational commitment, and these key attitudes predicted intention to leave negatively. The present study attempted to propose a new integrative model of the relationships among job characteristics, key attitudes, and intention to leave. The main purpose of the present study is to examine the effects of job characteristics on intention to leave. While examining the role of job characteristics, the mediating roles of key attitudes were taken into account in order to better understand how job characteristics affect the exhibition of intention to leave. The secondary purpose is to investigate the effects of job characteristics on key attitudes, and the effects of key attitudes on intention to leave. Job characteristics of remuneration, resource for professional activities, career opportunities were positively associated with the work attitude of job satisfaction. The aggregate job scope was positively associated with the work attitude of organizational commitment although no single job characteristic was significantly associated with organizational commitment. Commitment, however, did not significantly affect time spent on institutional service. Two job characteristics—time spent on research and time spent on teaching—were negatively associated with this behavior. In general, the literature showed that some job characteristics might be the antecedents of job satisfaction and the aggregate variable job scope was positively associated with organizational commitment, and these key attiudes predicted intention to leave negatively. In turn, job satisfaction and organizational commitment were negatively associated with the intention to leave. In addition to these, organizational commitment was negatively associated with the intention to leave. However, no significant direct association was found between job characteristics and intention to leave.

Keywords: Job Characteristics Model, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, intention to leave

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3190 Flow Characteristics around Rectangular Obstacles with the Varying Direction of Obstacles

Authors: Hee-Chang Lim

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The study aims to understand the surface pressure distribution around the bodies such as the suction pressure in the leading edge on the top and side-face when the aspect ratio of bodies and the wind direction are changed, respectively. We carried out the wind tunnel measurement and numerical simulation around a series of rectangular bodies (40d×80w×80h, 80d×80w×80h, 160d×80w×80h, 80d×40w×80h and 80d×160w×80h in mm3) placed in a deep turbulent boundary layer. Based on a modern numerical platform, the Navier-Stokes equation with the typical 2-equation (k-ε model) and the DES (Detached Eddy Simulation) turbulence model has been calculated, and they are both compared with the measurement data. Regarding the turbulence model, the DES model makes a better prediction comparing with the k-ε model, especially when calculating the separated turbulent flow around a bluff body with sharp edged corner. In order to observe the effect of wind direction on the pressure variation around the cube (e.g., 80d×80w×80h in mm), it rotates at 0º, 10º, 20º, 30º, and 45º, which stands for the salient wind directions in the tunnel. The result shows that the surface pressure variation is highly dependent upon the approaching wind direction, especially on the top and the side-face of the cube. In addition, the transverse width has a substantial effect on the variation of surface pressure around the bodies, while the longitudinal length has little or no influence.

Keywords: rectangular bodies, wind direction, aspect ratio, surface pressure distribution, wind-tunnel measurement, k-ε model, DES model, CFD

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3189 The Direct Drivers of Ethnocentric Consumer, Intention and Actual Purchasing Behavior in Malaysia

Authors: Nik Kamariah Nikmat, Noor Hasmini Abdghani

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The Malaysian government had consistently revived its campaign for “Buy Malaysian Goods” from time to time. The purpose of the campaign is to remind consumers to be ethnocentric and patriotic when purchasing product and services. This is necessary to ensure high demand for local products and services compared to foreign products. However, the decline of domestic investment in 2012 has triggered concern for the Malaysian economy. Hence, this study attempts to determine the drivers of actual purchasing behavior, intention to purchase domestic products and ethnocentrism. The study employs the cross-sectional primary data, self-administered on household, selected using stratified random sampling in four Malaysian regions. A nine factor driver of actual domestic purchasing behavior (culture openness, conservatism, collectivism, patriotism, control belief, interest in foreign travel, attitude, ethnocentrism and intention) were measured utilizing 60 items, using 7-point Likert-scale. From 1000 questionnaires distributed, a sample of 486 were returned representing 48.6 percent response rate. From the fit generated structural model (SEM analysis), it was found that the drivers of actual purchase behavior are collectivism, cultural openness and patriotism; the drivers of intention to purchase domestic product are attitude, control belief, collectivism and conservativeness; and drivers of ethnocentrism are cultural openness, control belief, foreign travel and patriotism. It also shows that Malaysian consumers scored high in ethnocentrism and patriotism. The findings are discussed in the perspective of its implication to Malaysian National Agenda.

Keywords: actual purchase, ethnocentrism, patriotism, culture openness, conservatism

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3188 Shared Versus Pooled Automated Vehicles: Exploring Behavioral Intentions Towards On-Demand Automated Vehicles

Authors: Samira Hamiditehrani

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Automated vehicles (AVs) are emerging technologies that could potentially offer a wide range of opportunities and challenges for the transportation sector. The advent of AV technology has also resulted in new business models in shared mobility services where many ride hailing and car sharing companies are developing on-demand AVs including shared automated vehicles (SAVs) and pooled automated vehicles (Pooled AVs). SAVs and Pooled AVs could provide alternative shared mobility services which encourage sustainable transport systems, mitigate traffic congestion, and reduce automobile dependency. However, the success of on-demand AVs in addressing major transportation policy issues depends on whether and how the public adopts them as regular travel modes. To identify conditions under which individuals may adopt on-demand AVs, previous studies have applied human behavior and technology acceptance theories, where Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) has been validated and is among the most tested in on-demand AV research. In this respect, this study has three objectives: (a) to propose and validate a theoretical model for behavioral intention to use SAVs and Pooled AVs by extending the original TPB model; (b) to identify the characteristics of early adopters of SAVs, who prefer to have a shorter and private ride, versus prospective users of Pooled AVs, who choose more affordable but longer and shared trips; and (c) to investigate Canadians’ intentions to adopt on-demand AVs for regular trips. Toward this end, this study uses data from an online survey (n = 3,622) of workers or adult students (18 to 75 years old) conducted in October and November 2021 for six major Canadian metropolitan areas: Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, and Hamilton. To accomplish the goals of this study, a base bivariate ordered probit model, in which both SAV and Pooled AV adoptions are estimated as ordered dependent variables, alongside a full structural equation modeling (SEM) system are estimated. The findings of this study indicate that affective motivations such as attitude towards AV technology, perceived privacy, and subjective norms, matter more than sociodemographic and travel behavior characteristic in adopting on-demand AVs. Also, the results of second objective provide evidence that although there are a few affective motivations, such as subjective norms and having ample knowledge, that are common between early adopters of SAVs and PooledAVs, many examined motivations differ among SAV and Pooled AV adoption factors. In other words, motivations influencing intention to use on-demand AVs differ among the service types. Likewise, depending on the types of on-demand AVs, the sociodemographic characteristics of early adopters differ significantly. In general, findings paint a complex picture with respect to the application of constructs from common technology adoption models to the study of on-demand AVs. Findings from the final objective suggest that policymakers, planners, the vehicle and technology industries, and the public at large should moderate their expectations that on-demand AVs may suddenly transform the entire transportation sector. Instead, this study suggests that SAVs and Pooled AVs (when they entire the Canadian market) are likely to be adopted as supplementary mobility tools rather than substitutions for current travel modes

Keywords: automated vehicles, Canadian perception, theory of planned behavior, on-demand AVs

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3187 Age-Dependent Anatomical Abnormalities of the Amygdala in Autism Spectrum Disorder and their Implications for Altered Socio-Emotional Development

Authors: Gabriele Barrocas, Habon Issa

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The amygdala is one of various brain regions that tend to be pathological in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). ASD is a prevalent and heterogeneous developmental disorder affecting all ethnic and socioeconomic groups and consists of a broad range of severity, etiology, and behavioral symptoms. Common features of ASD include but are not limited to repetitive behaviors, obsessive interests, and anxiety. Neuroscientists view the amygdala as the core of the neural system that regulates behavioral responses to anxiogenic and threatening stimuli. Despite this consensus, many previous studies and literature reviews on the amygdala’s alterations in individuals with ASD have reported inconsistent findings. In this review, we will address these conflicts by highlighting recent studies which reveal that anatomical and related socio-emotional differences detected between individuals with and without ASD are highly age-dependent. We will specifically discuss studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), structural MRI, and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to provide insights into the neuroanatomical substrates of ASD across development, with a focus on amygdala volumes, cell densities, and connectivity.

Keywords: autism, amygdala, development, abnormalities

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3186 Effect of Size, Geometry and Tensile Strength of Fibers on the Flexure of Hooked Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete

Authors: Chuchai Sujivorakul

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This research focused on the study of various parameters of fiber itself affecting on the flexure of hooked steel fiber reinforced concrete (HSFRC). The size of HSFRC beams was 150x150 mm in cross section and 550 mm in length, and the flexural test was carried out in accordance with EN-14651 standard. The test result was the relationship between centre-point load and crack-mount opening displacement (CMOD) at the centre notch. Controlled concrete had a compressive strength of 42 MPa. The investigated variables related to the hooked fiber itself were: (a) 3 levels of aspect ratio of fibers (65, 80 and 100); (b) 2 different fiber lengths (35 mm and 60 mm); (c) 2 different tensile strength of fibers (1100 MPa and 1500 MPa); and (d) 3 different fiber-end geometries (3D 4D and 5D fibers). The 3D hooked fibers have two plastic hinges at both ends, while the 4D and 5D hooked fibers are the newly developed steel fibers by Bekaert, and they have three and four plastic hinges at both ends, respectively. The hooked steel fibers were used in concrete with three different fiber contents, i.e., 20 30 and 40 kg/m³. From the study, it was found that all variables did not seem to affect the flexural strength at limit of proportionality (LOP) of HSFRC. However, they affected the residual flexural tensile strength (fR,j). It was observed that an increase in fiber lengths and the tensile strength the fibers would significantly increase in the fR,j of HSFRC, while the aspect ratio of the fiber would slightly effect the fR,j of HSFRC. Moreover, it was found that using 5D fibers would better enhance the fR,j and flexural behavior of HSFRC than 3D and 4D fibers, because they gave highest mechanical anchorage effect created by their hooked-end geometry.

Keywords: hooked steel fibers, fiber reinforced concrete, EN-14651, flexural test

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3185 Analysis of Basic Science Curriculum as Correlates of Secondary School Students' Achievement in Science Test in Oyo State

Authors: Olubiyi Johnson Ezekiel

Abstract:

Basic science curriculum is an on-going effort towards developing the potential of manner to produce individuals in a holistic and integrated person, who are intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically balanced and harmonious. The main focus of this study is to determine the relationship between students’ achievement in junior school certificate examination (JSCE) and senior school basic science achievement test (SSBSAT) on the basis of all the components of basic science. The study employed the descriptive research of the survey type and utilized junior school certificate examination and senior school basic science achievement test(r = .87) scores as instruments. The data collected were subjected to Pearson product moment correlation, Spearman rank correlation, regression analysis and analysis of variance. The result of the finding revealed that the mean effects of the achievement in all the components of basic science on SSBSAT are significantly different from zero. Based on the results of the findings, it was concluded that the relationship between students’ achievement in JSCE and SSBSAT was weak and to achieve a unit increase in the students’ achievement in the SSBSAT when other subjects are held constant, we have to increase the learning of: -physics by 0.081 units; -chemistry by 0.072 units; -biology by 0.025 units and general knowledge by 0.097 units. It was recommended among others, that general knowledge aspect of basic science should be included in either physics or chemistry aspect of basic science.

Keywords: basic science curriculum, students’ achievement, science test, secondary school students

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3184 Physiological Effects during Aerobatic Flights on Science Astronaut Candidates

Authors: Pedro Llanos, Diego García

Abstract:

Spaceflight is considered the last frontier in terms of science, technology, and engineering. But it is also the next frontier in terms of human physiology and performance. After more than 200,000 years humans have evolved under earth’s gravity and atmospheric conditions, spaceflight poses environmental stresses for which human physiology is not adapted. Hypoxia, accelerations, and radiation are among such stressors, our research involves suborbital flights aiming to develop effective countermeasures in order to assure sustainable human space presence. The physiologic baseline of spaceflight participants is subject to great variability driven by age, gender, fitness, and metabolic reserve. The objective of the present study is to characterize different physiologic variables in a population of STEM practitioners during an aerobatic flight. Cardiovascular and pulmonary responses were determined in Science Astronaut Candidates (SACs) during unusual attitude aerobatic flight indoctrination. Physiologic data recordings from 20 subjects participating in high-G flight training were analyzed. These recordings were registered by wearable sensor-vest that monitored electrocardiographic tracings (ECGs), signs of dysrhythmias or other electric disturbances during all the flight. The same cardiovascular parameters were also collected approximately 10 min pre-flight, during each high-G/unusual attitude maneuver and 10 min after the flights. The ratio (pre-flight/in-flight/post-flight) of the cardiovascular responses was calculated for comparison of inter-individual differences. The resulting tracings depicting the cardiovascular responses of the subjects were compared against the G-loads (Gs) during the aerobatic flights to analyze cardiovascular variability aspects and fluid/pressure shifts due to the high Gs. In-flight ECG revealed cardiac variability patterns associated with rapid Gs onset in terms of reduced heart rate (HR) and some scattered dysrhythmic patterns (15% premature ventricular contractions-type) that were considered as triggered physiological responses to high-G/unusual attitude training and some were considered as instrument artifact. Variation events were observed in subjects during the +Gz and –Gz maneuvers and these may be due to preload and afterload, sudden shift. Our data reveal that aerobatic flight influenced the breathing rate of the subject, due in part by the various levels of energy expenditure due to the increased use of muscle work during these aerobatic maneuvers. Noteworthy was the high heterogeneity in the different physiological responses among a relatively small group of SACs exposed to similar aerobatic flights with similar Gs exposures. The cardiovascular responses clearly demonstrated that SACs were subjected to significant flight stress. Routine ECG monitoring during high-G/unusual attitude flight training is recommended to capture pathology underlying dangerous dysrhythmias in suborbital flight safety. More research is currently being conducted to further facilitate the development of robust medical screening, medical risk assessment approaches, and suborbital flight training in the context of the evolving commercial human suborbital spaceflight industry. A more mature and integrative medical assessment method is required to understand the physiology state and response variability among highly diverse populations of prospective suborbital flight participants.

Keywords: g force, aerobatic maneuvers, suborbital flight, hypoxia, commercial astronauts

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3183 Teachers’ Personal and Professional Characteristics: How They Relate to Teacher-Student Relationships and Students’ Behavior

Authors: Maria Poulou

Abstract:

The study investigated how teachers’ self-rated Emotional Intelligence (EI), competence in implementing Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skills and teaching efficacy relate to teacher-student relationships and students’ emotional and behavioral difficulties. Participants were 98 elementary teachers from public schools in central Greece. They completed the Self-Rated Emotional Intelligence Scale (SREIS), the Teacher SEL Beliefs Scale, the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES), the Student-Teacher Relationships Scale-Short Form (STRS-SF) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) for 617 of their students, aged 6-11 years old. Structural equation modeling was used to examine an exploratory model of the variables. It was demonstrated that teachers’ emotional intelligence, SEL beliefs and teaching efficacy were significantly related to teacher-student relationships, but they were not related to students’ emotional and behavioral difficulties. Rather, teachers’ perceptions of teacher-students relationships were significantly related to these difficulties. These findings and their implications for research and practice are discussed.

Keywords: emotional intelligence, social and emotional learning, teacher-student relationships, teaching efficacy

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3182 The Role of Social Networks in Promoting Ethics in Iranian Sports

Authors: Tayebeh Jameh-Bozorgi, M. Soleymani

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In this research, the role of social networks in promoting ethics in Iranian sports was investigated. The research adopted a descriptive-analytic method, and the survey’s population consisted of all the athletes invited to the national football, volleyball, wrestling and taekwondo teams. Considering the limited population, the size of the society was considered as the sample size. After the distribution of the questionnaires, 167 respondents answered the questionnaires correctly. The data collection tool was chosen according to Hamid Ghasemi`s, standard questionnaire for social networking and mass media, which has 28 questions. Reliability of the questionnaire was calculated using Cronbach's alpha coefficient (94%). The content validity of the questionnaire was also approved by the professors. In this study, descriptive statistics and inferential statistical methods were used to analyze the data using statistical software. The benchmark tests used in this research included the following: Binomial test, Friedman test, Spearman correlation coefficient, Vermont Creamers, Good fit test and comparative prototypes. The results showed that athletes believed that social network has a significant role in promoting sport ethics in the community. Telegram has been known to play a big role than other social networks. Moreover, the respondents' view on the role of social networks in promoting sport ethics was significantly different in both men and women groups. In fact, women had a more positive attitude towards the role of social networks in promoting sport ethics than men. The respondents' view of the role of social networks in promoting the ethics of sports in the study groups also had a significant difference. Additionally, there was a significant and reverse relationship between the sports experience and the attitude of national athletes regarding the role of social networks in promoting ethics in sports.

Keywords: ethics, social networks, mass media, Iranian sports, internet

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3181 Father Involvement in Delaying Sexual Debut among Adolescents in Nigeria Schools

Authors: Ofole Ndidi

Abstract:

Context: Empirical studies show that through dual primary attachment mothers and fathers contribute to children’s development and behaviours. While the contribution of mothers is well documented in past researches, fathers’ involvement in Nigeria has received much less attention. As such, exploring fathers’ involvement in sexual behaviours will provide insight for policy implementation and programming designed to delay sexual debut among sexually inexperienced young people in Nigeria. Objective of study: This study examined the extent to which father involvement (father’s parenting style, attitude, father-child communication, father’s marital status, and father’s socio-economic status) could predict delay in sexual debut of a representative sample of Nigeria adolescents in lower secondary. Materials and Methods: Multistage sampling technique was adopted to draw a cross section of 1023 adolescents with the age range of 10-23 years and mean years of 12±2.1 who reported sexually inexperience from six geographical zones in Nigeria. Multiple Regressions was used to analyze the data collected with four standardized self-report measures at 0.05 level of significance. Results: Findings of this study revealed that the independent variables (father’s parenting style, paternal attitudes, paternal–child communication, paternal marital status and paternal socio–economic status) contributed significantly to the delay of sexual debut. However, fathers’ attitude made the most potent contribution (β = 0.255, P < 0.05). Conclusions: The outcomes of this study have implications for programs that are designed to reduce high-risk behaviors among adolescents. It concluded that sexuality education and interventions should involve the fathers in a more integrated and collaborative fashion.

Keywords: father, sexual debut, adolescents, Nigeria

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3180 Lessons from Implementation of a Network-Wide Safety Huddle in Behavioral Health

Authors: Deborah Weidner, Melissa Morgera

Abstract:

The model of care delivery in the Behavioral Health Network (BHN) is integrated across all five regions of Hartford Healthcare and thus spans the entirety of the state of Connecticut, with care provided in seven inpatient settings and over 30 ambulatory outpatient locations. While safety has been a core priority of the BHN in alignment with High Reliability practices, safety initiatives have historically been facilitated locally in each region or within each entity, with interventions implemented locally as opposed to throughout the network. To address this, the BHN introduced a network wide Safety Huddle during 2022. Launched in January, the BHN Safety Huddle brought together internal stakeholders, including medical and administrative leaders, along with executive institute leadership, quality, and risk management. By bringing leaders together and introducing a network-wide safety huddle into the way we work, the benefit has been an increase in awareness of safety events occurring in behavioral health areas as well as increased systemization of countermeasures to prevent future events. One significant discussion topic presented in huddles has pertained to environmental design and patient access to potentially dangerous items, addressing some of the most relevant factors resulting in harm to patients in inpatient and emergency settings for behavioral health patients. The safety huddle has improved visibility of potential environmental safety risks through the generation of over 15 safety alerts cascaded throughout the BHN and also spurred a rapid improvement project focused on standardization of patient belonging searches to reduce patient access to potentially dangerous items on inpatient units. Safety events pertaining to potentially dangerous items decreased by 31% as a result of standardized interventions implemented across the network and as a result of increased awareness. A second positive outcome originating from the BHN Safety Huddle was implementation of a recommendation to increase the emergency Narcan®(naloxone) supply on hand in ambulatory settings of the BHN after incidents involving accidental overdose resulted in higher doses of naloxone administration. By increasing the emergency supply of naloxone on hand in all ambulatory and residential settings, colleagues are better prepared to respond in an emergency situation should a patient experience an overdose while on site. Lastly, discussions in safety huddle spurred a new initiative within the BHN to improve responsiveness to assaultive incidents through a consultation service. This consult service, aligned with one of the network’s improvement priorities to reduce harm events related to assaultive incidents, was borne out of discussion in huddle in which it was identified that additional interventions may be needed in providing clinical care to patients who are experiencing multiple and/ or frequent safety events.

Keywords: quality, safety, behavioral health, risk management

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3179 The Role of Trust in Intention to Use Prescribed and Non-prescribed Connected Devices

Authors: Jean-michel Sahut, Lubica Hikkerova, Wissal Ben Arfi

Abstract:

The Internet of Things (IoT) emerged over the last few decades in many fields. Healthcare can significantly benefit from IoT. This study aims to examine factors influencing the adoption of IoT in eHealth. To do so, an innovative framework has been developed which applies both the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the United Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model and builds on them by analyzing trust and perceived-risk dimensions to predict intention to use IoT in eHealth. In terms of methodology, a Partial Least Approach Structural Equation Modelling was carried out on a sample of 267 French users. The findings of this research support the significant positive effect of constructs set out in the TAM (perceived ease of use) on predicting behavioral intention by adding the effects identified for UTAUT variables. This research also demonstrates how perceived risk and trust are significant factors for models examining behavioral intentions to use IoT. Perceived risk enhanced by the trust has a significant effect on patients’ behavioral intentions. Moreover, the results highlight the key role of prescription as a moderator of IoT adoption in eHealth. Depending on whether an individual has a prescription to use connected devices or not, ease of use has a stronger impact on adoption, while trust has a negative impact on adoption for users without a prescription. In accordance with the empirical results, several practical implications can be proposed. All connected devices applied in a medical context should be divided into groups according to their functionality: whether they are essential for the patient’s health and whether they require a prescription or not. Devices used with a prescription are easily accepted because the intention to use them is moderated by the medical trust (discussed above). For users without a prescription, ease of use is a more significant factor than for users who have a prescription. This suggests that currently, connected e-Health devices and online healthcare systems have to take this factor into account to better meet the needs and expectations of end-users.

Keywords: internet of things, Healthcare, trust, consumer acceptance

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3178 Social Media: The Major Trigger of Online and Offline Political Activism

Authors: Chan Eang Teng, Tang Mui Joo

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With the viral factor on social media, the sense of persuasion is generated by repetition and popularity. When users’ interest is captured, political awareness increases to spark political enthusiasm, but, the level of user’s political participation and political attitude of those active users is still questionable. An online survey on 250 youth and in-depth interview on two politicians are conducted to answer the main question in this paper. The result shows that Facebook significantly increases political awareness among youths. Social media may not be the major trigger to political activism among youths as most respondents opined that they would still vote without Facebook. Other factors could be political campaigning, political climate, age, peer pressure or others. Finding also shows that majority of respondents did not participate in online political debates or political groups. Many also wondered if the social media was the main power switch that triggers the political influx among young voters. The research finding is significant to understand how the new media, Facebook, has reshaped the political landscape in Malaysia, creating the Social Media Election that changed the rules of the political game. However, research finding does not support the ideal notion that the social media is the major trigger to youth’s political activism. This research outcome has exposed the flaws of the Social Media Election. It has revealed the less optimistic side of youth political activism. Unfortunately, results fall short of the idealistic belief that the social media have given rise to political activism among youths in the 13th General Election in Malaysia. The research outcome also highlights an important lesson for the democratic discourse of Malaysia which is making informed and educated decisions takes more commitment, proactive and objective attitude.

Keywords: social media, political participation, political activism, democracy, political communication

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3177 Nonlocal Beam Models for Free Vibration Analysis of Double-Walled Carbon Nanotubes with Various End Supports

Authors: Babak Safaei, Ahmad Ghanbari, Arash Rahmani

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In the present study, the free vibration characteristics of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) are investigated. The small-scale effects are taken into account using the Eringen’s nonlocal elasticity theory. The nonlocal elasticity equations are implemented into the different classical beam theories namely as Euler-Bernoulli beam theory (EBT), Timoshenko beam theory (TBT), Reddy beam theory (RBT), and Levinson beam theory (LBT) to analyze the free vibrations of DWCNTs in which each wall of the nanotubes is considered as individual beam with van der Waals interaction forces. Generalized differential quadrature (GDQ) method is utilized to discretize the governing differential equations of each nonlocal beam model along with four commonly used boundary conditions. Then molecular dynamics (MD) simulation is performed for a series of armchair and zigzag DWCNTs with different aspect ratios and boundary conditions, the results of which are matched with those of nonlocal beam models to extract the appropriate values of the nonlocal parameter corresponding to each type of chirality, nonlocal beam model and boundary condition. It is found that the present nonlocal beam models with their proposed correct values of nonlocal parameter have good capability to predict the vibrational behavior of DWCNTs, especially for higher aspect ratios.

Keywords: double-walled carbon nanotubes, nonlocal continuum elasticity, free vibrations, molecular dynamics simulation, generalized differential quadrature method

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3176 Between the ‘Principle of Hope’ and ‘Spiritual Booze’: An Analysis of Religious Themes in the Language Used by the Russian Marxists

Authors: George Bocean

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In the mainstream academic spheres of thought, there is a tendency to associate the writings of Russian Marxists as being constantly against the practice of religion itself. Such arguments mainly stem from how the attitude of the Russian Marxists, specifically the Bolsheviks, towards the concept of religion supposedly originates from its own Marxist ideology. Although Marxism is critical of religion as an institution, the approach that Marxism would have on the question of religion is not as clear. Such aspect is specifically observed in the use of language of major leading Russian Marxist figures, such as Lenin and Trotsky, throughout the early 20th century, where the use of religious metaphors was widely used in their philosophical writings and speeches, as well as in propaganda posters of general left-wing movements in Russia as a whole. The methodology of the research will consist of a sociolinguistic and sociology of language approach within a sociohistorical framework of late Tsarist and early Soviet Russia, 1905-1926. The purpose of such approaches are not simply to point out the religious metaphors used in the writings and speeches of Marxists in Russia, but rather in order to analyse how the use of such metaphors represent an important socio-political connection with the context of Russia at the time. In other words, the use of religious metaphors was not only more akin to Russian culture at the time, but this also resonated and was more familiar with the conditions of the working class and peasantry. An example in this study can be observed in the writings of Lenin, where the theme of chudo (miracle) is often mentioned in his writings, and such a word is commonly associated with an idealist philosophy rather than a materialist one, which represents a common theme in Russian culture in regards to the principle of hope for a better life. A further and even more obvious example is Trotsky’s writings about how the revolution of 1905 “would be revived”, which not only resonates with the theme of resurrection, but also prophesises the “second coming” of a future revolution. Such metaphors are important in the writings of such authors, as they simultaneously contain Marxist ideas, as well as religious themes. In doing this research, this paper will demonstrate two aspects. Firstly, the paper will analyse the use of the metaphors by Russian Marxists as a whole in regards to a socio-political and ideological perspectives akin to those of Marxism. Secondly, it will also demonstrate the role that such metaphors have in regards to their impact on the left-wing movements within Russia itself, as well as their relation to the working class and peasantry of Russia within the historical context.

Keywords: language and politics, Marxism, Russian history, social history, sociology of language

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3175 An Online Adaptive Thresholding Method to Classify Google Trends Data Anomalies for Investor Sentiment Analysis

Authors: Duygu Dere, Mert Ergeneci, Kaan Gokcesu

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Google Trends data has gained increasing popularity in the applications of behavioral finance, decision science and risk management. Because of Google’s wide range of use, the Trends statistics provide significant information about the investor sentiment and intention, which can be used as decisive factors for corporate and risk management fields. However, an anomaly, a significant increase or decrease, in a certain query cannot be detected by the state of the art applications of computation due to the random baseline noise of the Trends data, which is modelled as an Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN). Since through time, the baseline noise power shows a gradual change an adaptive thresholding method is required to track and learn the baseline noise for a correct classification. To this end, we introduce an online method to classify meaningful deviations in Google Trends data. Through extensive experiments, we demonstrate that our method can successfully classify various anomalies for plenty of different data.

Keywords: adaptive data processing, behavioral finance , convex optimization, online learning, soft minimum thresholding

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3174 Standardization of the Behavior Assessment System for Children-2, Parent Rating Scales - Adolescent Form (K BASC-2, PRS-A) among Korean Sample

Authors: Christine Myunghee Ahn, Sung Eun Baek, Sun Young Park

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The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cross-cultural validity of the Korean version of the Behavioral Assessment System for Children 2nd Edition, Parent Rating Scales - Adolescent Form (K BASC-2, PRS-A). The 150-item K BASC-2, PRS-A questionnaire was administered to a total of 690 Korean parents or caregivers (N=690) of adolescent children in middle school and high school. Results from the confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses indicate that the K BASC-2, PRS-A yielded a 3-factor solution similar to the factor structure found in the original version of the BASC-2. The internal consistencies using the Cronbach’s alpha of the composite scale scores were in the .92~ .98 range. The overall reliability and validity of the K BASC-2, PRS-A seem adequate. Structural equation modeling was used to verify the theoretical relationship among the scales of Adaptability, Withdrawal, Somatization, Depression, and Anxiety, to render additional support for internal validity. Other relevant findings, practical implications regarding the use of the KBASC-2, PRS-A and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Keywords: behavioral assessment system, cross-cultural validity, parent report, screening

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3173 The Influence of Neighborhood Centers of Tehran Municipality in Living Style of the Residents of Each Neighborhood

Authors: Fahimeh Rafiezade, Fatemeh Kakoyi Dinaki, Maryam Soufi

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This research studies and identifies the important elements of the living style of the residents of one of the neighborhoods of Tehran. The study will also study the role, the degree, and extent of the influence of neighborhood trainings in the lives of these people. Saraymahaleh is one of the centers established by Tehran municipality in various neighborhoods of Tehran in order to provide educational, cultural, etc. services. We carried out our study according to demography, field study, observation, 30 interviews, and 2 focus group discussions (FGD) at Sahebalzaman neighborhood in district 18 of Tehran municipality. We interpreted our observations and interviews with the neighborhoods’ supervisors and city council assistants (Shorayar), supervisor of Saraymahaleh and people who refer to them. We used this information to study the citizens’ lifestyle, values, behavioral, motivational, and attitude preferences in their religious and environmental orientations, cultural consumptions, and spare times, and the influence of Saraymahaleh on these aspects according to specific economic, cultural, and ethnic characteristics. Sahebalzaman neighborhood is considered an underprivileged district in terms of economy, high illiteracy, and low but structured migration of young people. The interviews we made helped us classify the people referring to Saraymahaleh based on their demographic attributes and attitudes and the reason of referring and finally the influence of the rendered services on their lifestyles. The studies indicate that women made the most part of people referring to Saraymahaleh Sahebalzaman. They were mostly young, in their midlives, and generally unemployed without a specialized skill. People referred to Saraymahaleh Sahebalzaman mostly to receive services or for entertainment and recreation purposes, i.e. they did not take part actively. In addition to creating welfare and cultural facilities, Saraymahaleh increases the level of skill training, empowerment, innovation and creativity, and issues skill certificates and documents that helps to increase job and income producing opportunities for the neighborhood residents, improve the quality of their live, and increase their hope for life.

Keywords: lifestyle, living in neighborhood, Saraymahaleh, Tehran municipality, urban life, demography

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