Search results for: social stories
1345 A Combinatorial Approach to Planning Manufacturing Safety Programme
Authors: Kazeem A. Adebiyi
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Despite many success stories of manufacturing safety, many organizations are still reluctant, perceiving it as cost increasing and time consuming. The clear contributor may be due to the use of lagging indicators rather than leading indicator measures. The study therefore proposes a combinatorial model for determining the best safety strategy. A combination theory and cost benefit analysis was employed to develop a monetary saving / loss function in terms value of preventions and cost of prevention strategy. Documentations, interviews and structured questionnaire were employed to collect information on Before-And-After safety programme records from a Tobacco company between periods of 1993-2001(for pre-safety) and 2002-2008 (safety period) for the model application. Three combinatorial alternatives A, B, C were obtained resulting into 4, 6 and 4 strategies respectively with PPE and Training being predominant. A total of 728 accidents were recorded for a 9 year period of pre-safety programme and 163 accidents were recorded for 7 years period of safety programme. Six preventions activities (alternative B) yielded the best results. However, all the years of operation experienced except year 2004. The study provides a leading resources for planning successful safety programme
Keywords: Combination, Manufacturing Safety, Monetary Savings, Prevention Strategies.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12411344 Factors Influencing University Students' Online Disinhibition Behavior – The Moderating Effects of Deterrence and Social Identity
Authors: Wang, Kuei-Ing, Jou-Fan Shih
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This study adopts deterrence theory as well as social identities as moderators, and explores their moderating affects on online toxic disinhibition. Survey and Experimental methodologies are applied to test the research model and four hypotheses are developed in this study. The controllability of identity positively influenced the behavior of toxic disinhibition both in experimental and control groups while the fluidity of the identity did not have significant influences on online disinhibition. Punishment certainty, punishment severity as well as social identity negatively moderated the relation between the controllability of the identity and the toxic disinhibition. The result of this study shows that internet users hide their real identities when they behave inappropriately on internet, but once they acknowledge that the inappropriate behavior will be found and punished severely, the inappropriate behavior then will be weakened.
Keywords: Seductive properties of Internet, Online Disinhibition, Punishment Certainty, Punishment Severity, Social Identity.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 38741343 Entrepreneurs’ Perceptions of the Economic, Social and Physical Impacts of Tourism
Authors: Oktay Emir
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The objective of this study is to determine how entrepreneurs perceive the economic, social and physical impacts of tourism. The study was conducted in the city of Afyonkarahisar, Turkey, which is rich in thermal tourism resources and investments. A survey was used as the data collection method, and the questionnaire was applied to 472 entrepreneurs. A simple random sampling method was used to identify the sample. Independent sampling t-tests and ANOVA tests were used to analyse the data obtained. Additionally, some statistically significant differences (p<0.05) were found based on the participants’ demographic characteristics regarding their opinions about the social, economic and physical impacts of tourism activities.Keywords: Tourism, perception, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurs, structural equation modelling.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12171342 Educational and Technological Perspectives in Doraemon - Hope and Dreams in Doraemon’s Gadgets
Authors: Miho Tsukamoto
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A Japanese manga character, Doraemon, was made by Fujiko F. Fujio in 1969, was made into animation in 1973. The main character, Doraemon, is a robot cat, and is a well-known Japanese animated character. However, Doraemon is not only regarded as an animation character but it is also used in educational and technological programs in Japan. This paper focuses on the background of Doraemon, educational and technological perspectives on Doraemon, and comparison of the original Japanese animation and the US remade version, and the animator Fujiko’s dreams and hopes for Doraemon will be examined. Since Doraemon has been exported as animation and manga to overseas, perspectives toward Doraemon have changed. For example, changes of stories and characters can been seen in the present Doraemon animation. Not only the overseas TV productions which broadcast Doraemon but also the Japanese production has to consider violence, sexuality, etc. when editing episodes. Because of representation of cultural differences, Japanese animation is thought to contain more violence, discrimination, and sexuality in animation. With responses from overseas, the Japanese production was cautious about the US remade version. They cared about the US Broadcast Standard, and tried to consider US customs and culture in the US remade version. Seeing the difference, acculturation is necessary for exports of animation overseas. Moreover, observing different aspects of Doraemon domestically, Doraemon provides dreams and hopes to children.Keywords: Animation, Change, Doraemon, Gadgets, Manga, Technology.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 55551341 Financial Inclusion from the Perspective of Social Innovation: The Case of Colombia
Authors: Jaramillo G. Maria Luisa, Turriago H. Álvaro, Thoene Ulf
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Financial inclusion has become a crucially important factor in debates on economic inequality posing challenges to the financial systems of countries around the world. Nowadays governments and banks are concerned about creating products that allow access to wide sectors of the population. The creation of banking products by the financial sector for people with low incomes tends to lead to improvements in the quality of life of vulnerable parts of the population. In countries with notable social and economic inequalities, financial inclusion is a key aspect for equitable economic growth. This study is based on the case of Colombia, which is a country with a strong record of economic growth over the past decade. Nevertheless, corruption, unemployment, and poverty contribute to uncertainty regarding the country’s future growth prospects. This study wants to explain the situation of financial exclusion and financial inclusion with respect to the Colombian case. Financial inclusion is going to be studied from the perspective of social innovation.Keywords: Colombia, financial exclusion, financial inclusion, social innovation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16711340 Motivation and Expectation of Developers on Green Construction: A Conceptual View
Authors: Nurul Diyana, A., Zainul Abidin, N.
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Social cognitive theory explains the power to inaugurate change is determined by the mutual influence of personal proclivity and social factors which will shape ones- motivations and expectations. In construction industry, green concept offers an opportunity to leave a lighter footprint on the environment. This opportunity, however, has not been fully grasped by many countries. As such, venturing into green construction for many practitioners would be their maiden experience. Decision to venture into new practice such as green construction will be influenced by certain drivers. This paper explores these drivers which is further expanded into motivational factors and later becomes the platform upon which expectation for green construction stands. This theoretical concept of motivation and expectations, which is adapted from social cognitive theory, focus on developers- view because of their crucial role in green application. This conceptual framework, which serves as the basis for further research, will benefit the industry as it elucidate cognitive angles to attract more new entrants to green business.
Keywords: Developers, Green Construction, Motivation, Expectation, Social Cognitive Theory.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 47171339 A Utilitarian Approach to Modeling Information Flows in Social Networks
Authors: Usha Sridhar, Sridhar Mandyam
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We propose a multi-agent based utilitarian approach to model and understand information flows in social networks that lead to Pareto optimal informational exchanges. We model the individual expected utility function of the agents to reflect the net value of information received. We show how this model, adapted from a theorem by Karl Borch dealing with an actuarial Risk Exchange concept in the Insurance industry, can be used for social network analysis. We develop a utilitarian framework that allows us to interpret Pareto optimal exchanges of value as potential information flows, while achieving a maximization of a sum of expected utilities of information of the group of agents. We examine some interesting conditions on the utility function under which the flows are optimal. We illustrate the promise of this new approach to attach economic value to information in networks with a synthetic example.Keywords: Borch's Theorem , Economic value of information, Information Exchange, Pareto Optimal Solution, Social Networks, Utility Functions
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14961338 Predictors of Social Participation of Children with Cerebral Palsy in Primary Schools in Czech Republic
Authors: Marija Zulić, Vanda Hájková, Nina Brkić-Jovanović, Linda Rathousová, Sanja Tomić
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Cerebral palsy is primarily reflected in the disorder of the development of movement and posture, which may be accompanied by sensory disturbances, disturbances of perception, cognition and communication, behavioural disorders and epilepsy. According to current inclusive attitudes towards people with disabilities implies that full social participation of children with cerebral palsy means inclusion in all activities in family, peer, school and leisure environments in the same scope and to the same extent as is the case with the children of proper development and without physical difficulties. Due to the fact that it has been established that the quality of children's participation in primary school is directly related to their social inclusion in future life, the aim of the paper is to identify predictors of social participation, respectively, and in particular, factors that could to improve the quality of social participation of children with cerebral palsy, in the primary school environment in Czech Republic. The study includes children with cerebral palsy (n = 75) in the Czech Republic, aged between six and 12 years who attend mainstream or special primary schools to the sixth grade. The main instrument used was the first and third part of the School function assessment questionnaire. It will also take into account the type of damage assessed according to a scale the Gross motor function classification system, five–level classification system for cerebral palsy. The research results will provide detailed insight into the degree of social participation of children with cerebral palsy and the factors that would be a potential cause of their levels of participation, in regular and special primary schools, in different socioeconomic environments in Czech Republic.
Keywords: Cerebral palsy, social participation, Czech Republic, school function assessment.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12271337 Advertising Appeals and Cultural Values in Social Media Commercials in UK, Brasil and India: Case Study of Nokia and Samsung
Authors: Han Nguyen
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The objectives of this study is to investigate the impact of culture on advertising appeals in mobile phone industry via social media channel in UK, Brazil and India. Content analysis on Samsung and Nokia commercials in YouTube is conducted. The result indicates that the advertising appeals are both congruent and incongruent with cultural dimensions in UK, Brazil and India. The result suggests that Hofstede and value paradoxes might be the tools to predict the relationship between cultural values and advertising appeals.
Keywords: Advertising appeal, international advertising, mobile phone advertising, social media advertising.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 52561336 An Analysis of the Social Network Structure of Knowledge Management Students at NTU
Authors: Guo Yanru, Zhu Xiaobo, Lee Chu Keong
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This paper maps the structure of the social network of the 2011 class ofsixty graduate students of the Masters of Science (Knowledge Management) programme at the Nanyang Technological University, based on their friending relationships on Facebook. To ensure anonymity, actual names were not used. Instead, they were replaced with codes constructed from their gender, nationality, mode of study, year of enrollment and a unique number. The relationships between friends within the class, and among the seniors and alumni of the programme wereplotted. UCINet and Pajek were used to plot the sociogram, to compute the density, inclusivity, and degree, global, betweenness, and Bonacich centralities, to partition the students into two groups, namely, active and peripheral, and to identify the cut-points. Homophily was investigated, and it was observed for nationality and study mode. The groups students formed on Facebook were also studied, and of fifteen groups, eight were classified as dead, which we defined as those that have been inactive for over two months.Keywords: Facebook, friending relationships, Social network analysis, social network sites, structural position
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17351335 A Methodology for Investigating Public Opinion Using Multilevel Text Analysis
Authors: William Xiu Shun Wong, Myungsu Lim, Yoonjin Hyun, Chen Liu, Seongi Choi, Dasom Kim, Kee-Young Kwahk, Namgyu Kim
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Recently, many users have begun to frequently share their opinions on diverse issues using various social media. Therefore, numerous governments have attempted to establish or improve national policies according to the public opinions captured from various social media. In this paper, we indicate several limitations of the traditional approaches to analyze public opinion on science and technology and provide an alternative methodology to overcome these limitations. First, we distinguish between the science and technology analysis phase and the social issue analysis phase to reflect the fact that public opinion can be formed only when a certain science and technology is applied to a specific social issue. Next, we successively apply a start list and a stop list to acquire clarified and interesting results. Finally, to identify the most appropriate documents that fit with a given subject, we develop a new logical filter concept that consists of not only mere keywords but also a logical relationship among the keywords. This study then analyzes the possibilities for the practical use of the proposed methodology thorough its application to discover core issues and public opinions from 1,700,886 documents comprising SNS, blogs, news, and discussions.Keywords: Big data, social network analysis, text mining, topic modeling.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16521334 Social and Spatial Aspects of Housing Development Affecting Urban Quality of Life -the Case of Famagusta
Authors: L. Cazacova, A. Erdelhun, A.M. Saymanlier, N. Cazacova, U. Ulbar
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Today due to rising levels of housing- necessities, several problems have been raised regarding to urban quality of life. The aim of the research is to study social and spatial aspects of housing environment and to find out their interaction with the urban quality of life. As a case of study two pilot areas of Famagusta city in North Cyprus, were selected: Baykal, considered as an established urban district and Tuzla, a newly developed peri-urban district. In order to determine urban quality of life in planning and developing of housing areas, social and spatial aspects of selected areas have been examined, differences between them according to the planning policy have been pointed out, advantages and disadvantages of housing planning have been found. As a practical implementation of the research a number of households in each selected area have been interviewed in order to draw a conclusion.Keywords: housing development, Famagusta, quality of life, social and spatial aspects.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17231333 Applications of Social Marketing in Road Safety of Georgia
Authors: Charita Jashi
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The aim of the paper is to explore the role of social marketing in changing the behavior of consumers on road safety, identify critical aspects and priority needs which impede the implementation of road safety program in Georgia. Given the goals of the study, a quantitative method was used to carry out interviews for primary data collection. This research identified the awareness level of road safety, legislation base, and marketing interventions to change behavior of drivers and pedestrians. During several years the non-governmental sector together with the local authorities and media have been very intensively working on the road safety issue in Georgia, but only seat-belts campaign should be considered rather successful. Despite achievements in this field, efficiency of road safety programs far from fulfillment and needs strong empowering.
Keywords: Road safety, social marketing interventions, behavior change, well-being.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11041332 Digital Social Networks: Examining the Knowledge Characteristics
Authors: Nurul Aini M. Nordan, Ahmad I. Z. Abidin, Ahmad K. Mahmood, Noreen I. Arshad
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In today-s information age, numbers of organizations are still arguing on capitalizing the values of Information Technology (IT) and Knowledge Management (KM) to which individuals can benefit from and effective communication among the individuals can be established. IT exists in enabling positive improvement for communication among knowledge workers (k-workers) with a number of social network technology domains at workplace. The acceptance of digital discourse in sharing of knowledge and facilitating the knowledge and information flows at most of the organizations indeed impose the culture of knowledge sharing in Digital Social Networks (DSN). Therefore, this study examines whether the k-workers with IT background would confer an effect on the three knowledge characteristics -- conceptual, contextual, and operational. Derived from these three knowledge characteristics, five potential factors will be examined on the effects of knowledge exchange via e-mail domain as the chosen query. It is expected, that the results could provide such a parameter in exploring how DSN contributes in supporting the k-workers- virtues, performance and qualities as well as revealing the mutual point between IT and KM.Keywords: Digital social networks, e-mail, knowledge management, knowledge worker.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13611331 Representations of Childcare Robots as a Controversial Issue
Authors: Raya A. Jones
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This paper interrogates online representations of robot companions for children, including promotional material by manufacturers, media articles and technology blogs. The significance of the study lies in its contribution to understanding attitudes to robots. The prospect of childcare robots is particularly controversial ethically, and is associated with emotive arguments. The sampled material is restricted to relatively recent posts (the past three years) though the analysis identifies both continuous and changing themes across the past decade. The method extrapolates social representations theory towards examining the ways in which information about robotic products is provided for the general public. Implications for social acceptance of robot companions for the home and robot ethics are considered.
Keywords: Acceptance of robots, childcare robots, ethics, social representations.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10251330 Hubs as Catalysts for Geospatial Communication in Kinship Networks
Authors: Sameer Kumar, Jariah Mohd. Jan
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Earlier studies in kinship networks have primarily focused on observing the social relationships existing between family relatives. In this study, we pre-identified hubs in the network to investigate if they could play a catalyst role in the transfer of physical information. We conducted a case study of a ceremony performed in one of the families of a small Hindu community – the Uttar Rarhi Kayasthas. Individuals (n = 168) who resided in 11 geographically dispersed regions were contacted through our hub-based representation. We found that using this representation, over 98% of the individuals were successfully contacted within the stipulated period. The network also demonstrated a small-world property, with an average geodesic distance of 3.56.Keywords: Social Networks, Kinship Networks, Social Network Analysis, Geospatial Communication, Hubs
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19271329 An Investigation into the Social Factors that Influence Sport Participation: A Case of Gymnastics in the Western Cape
Authors: W. C. Lucas, S. Titus, M. E. M. Young
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Gymnastics is the umbrella term that represents seven different and unique disciplines of gymnastics. Men and women of all ages and abilities practice this sport, and participation in gymnastics can develop both gross and fine motor skills, strength, flexibility, coordination and balance. There are various social factors, such as a family’s socioeconomic status or accessibility to sports facilities that may play a role in affecting levels of participation. The aim of this study is to investigate the social factors that have an influence on gymnastics participation in the Western Cape. To this end, a qualitative approach is adopted to collect data. This study also adopts the ecological systems theory as the theoretical framework, and is used to analyze and interpret current social factors that directly or indirectly influence participation in gymnastics. The study’s objectives were to ascertain which social factors hinder participation, and which social factors promote participation, thus, coaches, parents and gymnasts participated in focus group discussions. Key informant interviews took place with experts in the field of gymnastics in the Western Cape. A thematic analysis was conducted on transcriptions from the focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Social factors investigated in this study occurred in the chronosystem, macrosystem, exosystem, mesosystem, and microsystem, and had both a direct and indirect influence on the gymnast’s continued participation. These systems are defined as the environment of the individual, in which they grow and develop. The research findings of this paper are used to draw conclusions and make specific recommendations for practice and further research. The information gathered in this study can assist all stakeholders within the field of gymnastics, such as parents, judges, coaches, gymnasts, and the supporting community which surround the participating gymnast.
Keywords: Developing child, ecological systems theory, facilities, federation, gymnastics, influence, participation, social factors, socioeconomic status, sport.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23441328 Analysis of Urban Population Using Twitter Distribution Data: Case Study of Makassar City, Indonesia
Authors: Yuyun Wabula, B. J. Dewancker
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In the past decade, the social networking app has been growing very rapidly. Geolocation data is one of the important features of social media that can attach the user's location coordinate in the real world. This paper proposes the use of geolocation data from the Twitter social media application to gain knowledge about urban dynamics, especially on human mobility behavior. This paper aims to explore the relation between geolocation Twitter with the existence of people in the urban area. Firstly, the study will analyze the spread of people in the particular area, within the city using Twitter social media data. Secondly, we then match and categorize the existing place based on the same individuals visiting. Then, we combine the Twitter data from the tracking result and the questionnaire data to catch the Twitter user profile. To do that, we used the distribution frequency analysis to learn the visitors’ percentage. To validate the hypothesis, we compare it with the local population statistic data and land use mapping released by the city planning department of Makassar local government. The results show that there is the correlation between Twitter geolocation and questionnaire data. Thus, integration the Twitter data and survey data can reveal the profile of the social media users.
Keywords: Geolocation, Twitter, distribution analysis, human mobility.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11781327 A Quantitative Study Identifying the Prevalence of Anxiety in Dyslexic Students in Higher Education
Authors: Amanda Abbott-Jones
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Adult students with dyslexia in higher education can receive support for their cognitive needs but may also experience negative emotion such as anxiety due to their dyslexia in connection with their studies. This paper aims to test the hypothesis that adult dyslexic learners have a higher prevalence of academic and social anxiety than their non-dyslexic peers. A quantitative approach was used to measure differences in academic and social anxiety between 102 students with a formal diagnosis of dyslexia compared to 72 students with no history of learning difficulties. Academic and social anxiety was measured in a questionnaire based on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Findings showed that dyslexic students showed statistically significant higher levels of academic, but not social anxiety in comparison to the non-dyslexic sample. Dyslexic students in higher education show academic anxiety levels that are well above what is shown by students without dyslexia. The implications of this for the dyslexia practitioner is that delivery of strategies to deal with anxiety should be seen equally as important, if not more so, than interventions to deal with cognitive difficulties.Keywords: Academic, anxiety, dyslexia, quantitative, students, university.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13021326 Social Networks and Absorptive Capacity
Authors: Rachelle Bosua, Nina Evans
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The resource-based view of the firm regards knowledge as one of the most important organizational assets and a key strategic resource that contributes unique value to organizations. The acquisition, absorption and internalization of external knowledge are central to an organization-s innovative capabilities. This ability to evaluate, acquire and integrate new knowledge from its environment is referred to as a firm-s absorptive capacity (AC). This research in progress paper explores the link between interorganizational Social Networks (SNs) and a firm-s Absorptive Capacity (AC). Based on an in-depth literature survey of both concepts, four propositions are proposed that explain the link between AC and SNs. These propositions suggest that SNs are key to a firm-s AC. A qualitative research method is proposed to test the set of propositions in the next stage of this research.Keywords: Knowledge, Innovation, Absorptive Capacity, Social Networks
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17381325 The Phatic Function and the Socializing Element of Personal Blogs
Authors: Emelia Noronha, Milind Malshe
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The phatic function of communication is a vital element of any conversation. This research paper looks into this function with respect to personal blogs maintained by Indian bloggers. This paper is a study into the phenomenon of phatic communication maintained by bloggers through their blogs. Based on a linguistic analysis of the posts of twenty eight Indian bloggers, writing in English, studied over a period of three years, the study indicates that though the blogging phenomenon is not conversational in the same manner as face-to-face communication, it does make ample provision for feedback that is conversational in nature. Ordinary day to day offline conversations use conventionalized phatic utterances; those on the social media are in a perpetual mode of innovation and experimentation in order to sustain contact with its readers. These innovative methods and means are the focus of this study. Though the personal blogger aims to chronicle his/her personal life through the blog, the socializing function is crucial to these bloggers. In comparison to the western personal blogs which focus on the presentation of the ‘bounded individual self’, we find Indian personal bloggers engage in the presentation of their ‘social selves’. These bloggers yearn to reach out to the readers on the internet and the phatic function serves to initiate, sustain and renew social ties on the blogosphere thereby consolidating the social network of readers and bloggers.Keywords: Personal blogs, phatic, social-selves, blog readers.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19341324 Analyzing the Technology Affecting on the Social Integration of Students at University
Authors: Sujit K. Basak, Simon Collin
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The aim of this paper is to examine the technology access and use on the affecting social integration of local students at university. This aim is achieved by designing a structural equation modeling (SEM) in terms of integration with peers, integration with faculty, faculty support and on the other hand, examining the socio demographic impact on the technology access and use. The collected data were analyzed using the WarpPLS 5.0 software. This study was survey based and it was conducted at a public university in Canada. The results of the study indicated that technology has a strong impact on integration with faculty, faculty support, but technology does not have an impact on integration with peers. However, the social demographic has also an impact on the technology access and use.
Keywords: Faculty, integration, peer, technology access and use.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15451323 Capacities of Early Childhood Education Professionals for the Prevention of Social Exclusion of Children
Authors: Dejana Bouillet, Vlatka Domović
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Both policymakers and researchers recognize that participating in early childhood education and care (ECEC) is useful for all children, especially for those who are exposed to the high risk of social exclusion. Social exclusion of children is understood as a multidimensional construct including economic, social, cultural, health, and other aspects of disadvantage and deprivation, which individually or combined can have an unfavorable effect on the current life and development of a child, as well as on the child’s development and on disadvantaged life chances in adult life. ECEC institutions should be able to promote educational approaches that portray developmental, cultural, language, and other diversity amongst children. However, little is known about the ways in which Croatian ECEC institutions recognize and respect the diversity of children and their families and how they respond to their educational needs. That is why this paper is dedicated to the analysis of the capacities of ECEC professionals to respond to the demands of educational needs of this very diverse group of children and their families. The results obtained in the frame of the project “Models of response to educational needs of children at risk of social exclusion in ECEC institutions,” funded by the Croatian Science Foundation, will be presented. The research methodology arises from explanations of educational processes and risks of social exclusion as a complex and heterogeneous phenomenon. The preliminary results of the qualitative data analysis of educational practices regarding capacities to identify and appropriately respond to the requirements of children at risk of social exclusion will be presented. The data have been collected by interviewing educational staff in 10 Croatian ECEC institutions (n = 10). The questions in the interviews were related to various aspects of inclusive institutional policy, culture, and practices. According to the analysis, it is possible to conclude that Croatian ECEC professionals are still faced with great challenges in the process of implementation of inclusive policies, culture, and practices. There are several baselines of this conclusion. The interviewed educational professionals are not familiar enough with the whole complexity and diversity of needs of children at risk of social exclusion, and the ECEC institutions do not have enough resources to provide all interventions that these children and their families need.
Keywords: children at risk of social exclusion, ECEC professionals, inclusive policies, culture and practices, interpretative phenomenological analysis
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6081322 Research Topic Map Construction
Authors: Hei-Chia Wang, Che-Tsung Yang
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While the explosive increase in information published on the Web, researchers have to filter information when searching for conference related information. To make it easier for users to search related information, this paper uses Topic Maps and social information to implement ontology since ontology can provide the formalisms and knowledge structuring for comprehensive and transportable machine understanding that digital information requires. Besides enhancing information in Topic Maps, this paper proposes a method of constructing research Topic Maps considering social information. First, extract conference data from the web. Then extract conference topics and the relationships between them through the proposed method. Finally visualize it for users to search and browse. This paper uses ontology, containing abundant of knowledge hierarchy structure, to facilitate researchers getting useful search results. However, most previous ontology construction methods didn-t take “people" into account. So this paper also analyzes the social information which helps researchers find the possibilities of cooperation/combination as well as associations between research topics, and tries to offer better results.Keywords: Ontology, topic maps, social information, co-authorship.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17961321 Social Movements and the Diffusion of Tactics and Repertoires: Activists' Network in Anti-globalism Movement
Authors: Kyoko Tominaga
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Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs), Social Enterprises and other actors play an important role in political decisions in governments at the international levels. Especially, such organizations’ and activists’ network in civil society is quite important to effect to the global politics. To solve the complex social problems in global era, diverse actors should corporate each other. Moreover, network of protesters is also contributes to diffuse tactics, information and other resources of social movements.Based on the findings from the study of International Trade Fairs (ITFs), the author analyzes the network of activists in anti-globalism movement. This research focuses the transition of 54 activists’ whole network in the “protest event” against 2008 G8 summit in Japan. Their network is examined at the three periods: Before protest event phase, during protest event phase and after event phase. A mixed method is used in this study: the author shows the hypothesis from social network analysis and evaluates that with interview data analysis. This analysis gives the two results. Firstly, the more protesters participate to the various events during the protest event, the more they build the network. After that, active protesters keep their network as well. From interview data, we can understand that the active protesters can build their network and diffuse the information because they communicate with other participants and understand that diverse issues are related. This paper comes to same conclusion with previous researches: protest events activate the network among the political activists. However, some participants succeed to build their network, others do not. “Networked” activists are participated in the various events for short period of time and encourage the diffusion of information and tactics of social movements.
Keywords: Social Movement, Global Justice Movement, Tactics, Diffusion.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21881320 The Impact of Gamification on Self-Assessment for English Language Learners in Saudi Arabia
Authors: Wala A. Bagunaid, Maram Meccawy, Arwa Allinjawi, Zilal Meccawy
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Continuous self-assessment becomes crucial in self-paced online learning environments. Students often depend on themselves to assess their progress; which is considered an essential requirement for any successful learning process. Today’s education institutions face major problems around student motivation and engagement. Thus, personalized e-learning systems aim to help and guide the students. Gamification provides an opportunity to help students for self-assessment and social comparison with other students through attempting to harness the motivational power of games and apply it to the learning environment. Furthermore, Open Social Student Modeling (OSSM) as considered as the latest user modeling technologies is believed to improve students’ self-assessment and to allow them to social comparison with other students. This research integrates OSSM approach and gamification concepts in order to provide self-assessment for English language learners at King Abdulaziz University (KAU). This is achieved through an interactive visual representation of their learning progress.Keywords: E-learning system, gamification, motivation, social comparison, visualization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14921319 Promoting Social Advocacy through Digital Storytelling: The Case of Ocean Acidification
Authors: Chun Chen Yea, Wen Huei Chou
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Many chemical changes in the atmosphere and the ocean are invisible to the naked eye, but they have profound impacts. These changes not only confirm the phenomenon of global carbon pollution, but also forewarn that more changes are coming. The carbon dioxide gases emitted from the burning of fossil fuels dissolve into the ocean and chemically react with seawater to form carbonic acid, which increases the acidity of the originally alkaline seawater. This gradual acidification is occurring at an unprecedented rate and will affect the effective formation of carapace of some marine organisms such as corals and crustaceans, which are almost entirely composed of calcium carbonate. The carapace of these organisms will become more dissoluble. Acidified seawater not only threatens the survival of marine life, but also negatively impacts the global ecosystem via the food chain. Faced with the threat of ocean acidification, all humans are duty-bound. The industrial sector outputs the highest level of carbon dioxide emissions in Taiwan, and the petrochemical industry is the major contributor. Ever since the construction of Formosa Plastics Group's No. 6 Naphtha Cracker Plant in Yunlin County, there have been many environmental concerns such as air pollution and carbon dioxide emission. The marine life along the coast of Yunlin is directly affected by ocean acidification arising from the carbon emissions. Societal change demands our willingness to act, which is what social advocacy promotes. This study uses digital storytelling for social advocacy and ocean acidification as the subject of a visual narrative in visualization to demonstrate the subsequent promotion of social advocacy. Storytelling can transform dull knowledge into an engaging narrative of the crisis faced by marine life. Digital dissemination is an effective social-work practice. The visualization promoting awareness on ocean acidification disseminated via social media platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram. Social media enables users to compose their own messages and share information across different platforms, which helps disseminate the core message of social advocacy.
Keywords: Digital storytelling, visualization, ocean acidification, social advocacy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9331318 A Textual Analysis of Prospective Teachers’ Social Justice Identity Development and LGBTQ Advocacy
Authors: Mi Ok Kang
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This study examined the influences of including LGBTQ-related content in a multicultural teacher education course on the development of prospective teachers’ social justice identities. Appling a content analysis to 53 reflection texts written by participating prospective teachers in response to the relevant course content, this study deduced the stages of social justice identity development (naïve, acceptance, resistance, redefinition, and internalization) that participants reached during the course. The analysis demonstrated that the participants reached various stages in the social identity development model and none of the participants remained at the naïve stage during/after class. The majority (53%) of the participants reached the internalization stage during the coursework and became conscious about the heterosexual privileges they have had and aware of possible impacts of such privilege on their future LGBTQ students. Also the participants had begun to develop pedagogic action plans and devised applicable teaching strategies for their future students based on the new understanding of heteronormativity. We expect this study will benefit teacher educators and educational administrators who want to address LGBTQ-related issues in their multicultural education programs and/or revisit the goals, directions, and implications of their approach.Keywords: LGBTQ, heteronormativity, social justice identity, teacher education, multicultural education, content analysis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13991317 Residents’ Perceptions towards the Application of Vertical Landscape in Cairo, Egypt
Authors: Yomna Amr Ahmed Lotfi Koraim, Dalia Moati Rasmi Elkhateeb
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Vertical landscape is introduced in this study as an alternative innovative technology for urban sustainable developments for its diverse environmental, economic, and psycho-social advantages. The main aim is to investigate the social acceptance of vertical landscape in Cairo, Egypt. The study objectives were to explore the perceptions of residents concerning this certain phenomenon and their opinions about its implementation. Survey questionnaires were administrated to 60 male and female residents from the Greater Cairo area. Despite the various concerns expressed about the application of vertical landscape, there was a clear majority of approval about its suitability. This is quite encouraging for the prospect of vertical landscape implementation in Cairo, Egypt.Keywords: Vertical landscape, green facades, social acceptance, sustainable urban development.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10501316 Sustainable Energy Supply in Social Housing
Authors: Rolf Katzenbach, Frithjof Clauss, Jie Zheng
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The final energy use can be divided mainly in four sectors: commercial, industrial, residential, and transportation. The trend in final energy consumption by sector plays as a most straightforward way to provide a wide indication of progress for reducing energy consumption and associated environmental impacts by different end use sectors. The average share of end use energy for residential sector in the world was nearly 20% until 2011, in Germany a higher proportion is between 25% and 30%. However, it remains less studied than energy use in other three sectors as well its impacts on climate and environment. The reason for this involves a wide range of fields, including the diversity of residential construction like different housing building design and materials, living or energy using behavioral patterns, climatic condition and variation as well other social obstacles, market trend potential and financial support from government.
This paper presents an extensive and in-depth analysis of the manner by which projects researched and operated by authors in the fields of energy efficiency primarily from the perspectives of both technical potential and initiative energy saving consciousness in the residential sectors especially in social housing buildings.
Keywords: Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Retro-commissioning, Social Housing, Sustainability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2431