bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Methodology to Prioritize Climate Adaptation Measures in Urban Areas. Barcelona and Bristol Case Studies
Authors: Guerrero-Hidalga María , Martínez-Gomariz Eduardo , Evans Barry , Webber James , Termes-Rifé Montserrat , Russo Beniamino , Locatelli Luca
Published: June 2020

In the current context of fast innovation in the field of urban resilience against extreme weather events, it is becoming more challenging for decision-makers to recognize the most beneficial adaptation measures for their cities. Detailed assessment of multiple measures is resource-consuming and requires specific expertise, which is not always available. To tackle these issues, in the context of the H2020 project RESCCUE (RESilience to cope with Climate Change in Urban arEas), a methodology to effectively prioritize adaptation measures against extreme rainfall-related hazards in urban areas has been developed. It follows a multi-phase structure to progressively narrow down the list of potential measures. It begins using less resource-intensive techniques, to finally focus on the in-depth analysis on a narrower selection of measures. It involves evaluation of risks, costs, and welfare impacts, with strong focus on stakeholders’ participation through the entire process. The methodology is adaptable to different contexts and objectives and has been tested in two case studies across Europe, namely Barcelona and Bristol.
A Novel Integrated Approach to Solve Industrial Ground Floor Design Problems
Authors: Turskis Zenonas , Urbonas Kęstutis , Sližytė Danutė , Medzvieckas Jurgis , Mackevičius Rimantas , Šapalas Vaidotas
Published: June 2020

The ground floors of buildings usually have high loads from racks and other storage equipment in industrial buildings and logistics centers. Such types of buildings commonly require lift trucks. Therefore, there are special requirements for flatness tolerance across and along the driving track of truck lifts. Structural design solutions must be optimized and sustainable. The article reviews the behavior of soils and the importance of the actual behavior assessment of soils during the design of the ground floor on the elastic subgrade. The behavior of the ground floor’s areas above pile foundations that support the building’s columns is essential. Calculation results show the impact of subgrade stiffness on the behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) floor slab, especially in areas above pile foundations, where the stiffness of subgrade is much higher. The research provides a solution to achieve the required level of settlement dissimilarity in areas where there are piles underneath a building slab under the columns. The paper proposes a new integrated method for the evaluation of the subgrade reaction coefficient above the pile cap. The proposed method optimizes design time and eliminates the need for specialized geotechnical software. Obtained results confirmed the efficiency of the proposed design method.
Exploring Corporate Social Responsibility under the Background of Sustainable Development Goals: A Proposal to Corporate Volunteering
Authors: Saz-Gil María Isabel , Cosenza José Paulo , Zardoya-Alegría Anabel , Gil-Lacruz Ana I.
Published: June 2020

The research into corporate volunteering (CV) has been prolific, although few studies have focused their approach on senior and retired workers under the framework of the corporate social responsibility (CSR). The social participation of retirees in CV activities contributes to the businesses’ socially responsible performance and can be intimately connected with the global commitment pursued by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the year 2030. This article aims to explore the key issues that might have influence the effective implementation of CV programs to integrate retired and pre-retired workers, promoting a participatory and healthy aging. Based on the interface of internal and external corporate social responsibility, we discuss how CV can achieve social legitimacy, influencing the health and well-being of workers beyond the employment relationship. The main contribution of this article to the state of art is to extend the literature on CSR and CV by elaborating a theoretical model that integrates both perspectives with the focus on the SDGs. The results suggest that SDGs represent an opportunity and a frame of reference for CSR strategies. Companies engaged in senior CV activities could enhance their corporate and social images within the strategic action of social responsibility, indisputably improving people’s health and well-being.
The Impact of Policy Factors and Users’ Awareness on Electricity-Saving Behaviors: From the Perspective of Habits and Investment
Authors: Li Lanlan , Ming Huayang , Yang Ranran , Luo Xuan
Published: June 2020

Exploring the factors affecting residents’ electricity-saving behavior and their mechanisms of action is an important way to conserve regional energy and reduce emissions. Integrating the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and norm activation model (NAM) and introducing the external policy factors, a model of the factors influencing habituation and investment electricity-saving behavior was constructed and an empirical study of urban residents in Hefei city, China was conducted. The results show that residents’ knowledge of the electricity price policy indirectly affects their habitual intentions by affecting their attitudes whereas residents’ knowledge of the subsidy policy have direct effects on their investment intentions. Environmental concern can directly affect residents’ habituation and investment intentions and also indirectly affect their habituation ones by affecting their personal moral norm. However, its indirect effect on the investment intention is not significant. Perceived behavioral control has a significant positive impact on residents’ investment intentions and behaviors, but the impacts on their habituation ones are not significant. The relationships between the personal moral norm and the two kinds of intention and behavior are opposite to those of perceived behavior control. Relevant policy implications for the government, household appliance enterprises, and power enterprises are provided.
Pilot-Scale Study on the Specific Resistance of Beech Wood Dust in a Pulse-Jet Filter
Authors: Potok Zbigniew , Rogoziński Tomasz
Published: June 2020

The specific beech wood dust resistance coefficient values were experimentally determined in the condition of pulse-jet filtration using a pilot-scale baghouse. The experiments were carried out for two variants of the filter medium. One of them had a PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene) membrane on the working surface. Three values of filtration velocity and seven levels of dust concentration at the filter inlet were used to determine the variability of the specific resistance coefficient of beech wood dust accumulated on the filter medium. The values of the specific beech wood dust resistance coefficient depend on filter medium finishing and filtration parameters: filtration velocity and dust concentration at the filter inlet. The high concentration of dust at the filter inlet and low filtration velocity should be used, especially in filters with surface finished media, for the reduction in pressure drop, which would affect in a significant reduction of energy consumption.
Evaluating Supplementary Water Methodology with Saturated Soil Irrigation for Yield and Water Productivity Improvement in Semi-Arid Rainfed Rice System, Burkina Faso
Authors: Kima Aimé Sévérin , Kima Etienne , Bacyé Bernard , Ouédraogo Paule A. W. , Traore Ousmane , Traore Seydou , Nandkangré Hervé , Chung Wen-Guey , Wang Yu-Min
Published: June 2020

Saturated soil irrigation (SSI) has been reported as a great technique that increases water productivity in fully irrigated rice cultivation. However, this technique should be employed in a dry prone area where rainfalls fail to fulfill rice water requirements and fill up reservoirs for sufficient irrigation. Therefore, an experiment was conducted to identify the most effective complementary irrigation that restores soil moisture to saturation and increases water productivity with fewer yield expenses. The study used a complete randomized blocks design with four replications and four soil saturation treatments: Sat200% (farmer practice), Sat160%, Sat120%, and Sat80%. In Sat160%, Sat120%, and Sat80% irrigation was applied once a week in the absence of rainfall. In Sat200%, water was daily applied except the day of rain. The results showed that reductions in soil saturation decreased plant height, tillers, and leaves number by 10%, 18%, and 14%, respectively. Yield and components were reduced between 26.09% and 4.8%. Weekly soil saturation at 120% exhibited greater irrigation productivity (0.69 kg/m3), rainwater productivity (1.02 kg/m3), and water-saving (90.53%) with less production penalty (5 × 10−3 kg/m3). We advocate that saturated soil irrigation should be recommended in the rainfed rice system as a drought mitigation measure in semi-arid conditions.
Effects of the Type of CSR Discourse for Utilitarian and Hedonic Services
Authors: Pérez Andrea , García de los Salmones María del Mar , Baraibar-Diez Elisa
Published: June 2020

In a context of corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication, we explore whether the use of expositive versus narrative discourses interacts with the type of service commercialized by the company (utilitarian vs. hedonic) to determine consumer perceptions and responses to corporate communication. Our main proposal is that, as representative examples of utilitarian services, banking companies would benefit significantly from communicating their CSR efforts with expositive discourses, whereas narrative discourses would be more adequate for hedonic services (e.g., catering). To test the research hypotheses, we use a 2 (expositive/narrative discourse) x 2 (utilitarian/hedonic service) between-subjects experimental design where we expose 302 consumers to different combinations of CSR messages and we evaluate changes in their message attributions and internal and external responses to them. The findings show that the interaction effect is significant and it works in the expected direction for issue importance, CSR fit, and CSR attributions. However, for CSR impact, attitude, trust, purchase, and advocacy intentions, the findings suggest that narrative discourses work better than expositive discourses both for utilitarian and hedonic services. No significant differences between types of discourses are observed for CSR motives, CSR commitment, and C-C identification and the interaction effect is also not significant for these variables.
More Resilient Cities to Face Higher Risks. The Case of Genoa
Authors: Pirlone Francesca , Spadaro Ilenia , Candia Selena
Published: June 2020

This paper analyzes some natural and man-made disasters that happened in recent years, which demonstrate how the resilience of a city does not depend only on the actions carried out by public authorities, but it requires the joint work of all actors that live or work in a city. Resilience represents the ability of an urban system to adapt to an external event and quickly return to normality. In recent years, urban resilience has mainly addressed natural risks, neglecting man-made disaster. Therefore, this study considers the risk issue in relation to the resilience concept within urban planning and policies to achieve sustainability and urban security. Urban resilience has become an important objective for cities, particularly to face climate change. The paper proposes a review of the existing Civil Protection Urban Emergency Plan, as a sector plan to support urban planning at the local level, aimed at building resilience in cities. In particular, the proposed Emergency Plan reduces risk and increases resilience by identifying specific scenarios and actions that every city actor—public authorities, research, enterprises, and citizens—can implement. This proposal contributes to the implementation of the quadruple helix principle, according to which the involvement of these four actors is necessary to achieve a common goal, such as increasing urban resilience. The proposed methodology is then applied to the man-made disasters that have involved the city (such as the flood of 2011 and the collapse of the Morandi Bridge in 2018). Genoa represents a good example to be studied according to the “learning-by-doing” approach to understand how the city has responded, adapting resiliently, to natural and man-made events thanks to the collaboration of all the actors above mentioned. The new scenarios, included in the Urban Emergency Plan, can play a fundamental role, both in the emergency and prevention phase, and can help other cities around the world in planning more resilient cities to face higher risks.
An Analysis of the Effects on Rail Operational Efficiency Due to a Merger between Brazilian Rail Companies: The Case of RUMO-ALL
Authors: Ferreira da Silva Francisco Gildemir , Lúcia Magalhães de Oliveira Renata , Marinov Marin
Published: June 2020

Mergers between companies are motivated by synergy effects that can improve profitability. On February 11, 2015, the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (Cade) approved, the merger between America Latina Logística (ALL), the largest railroad transport company in Brazil and Rumo Logistics (RUMO), an operator with national impact with restrictions, and formed a new entity RUMO-ALL. The approval of this merger suggested that there could be an increase in operational efficiency without compromising the competition. In this work, the operational efficiency of RUMO-ALL is evaluated using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) models for the return of adequate scale. Statistical tests of structural break are performed in order to understand if there are an ex-post merger effects on the operational efficiency after the expansion of the service. The results indicate that the rail service after the merger is efficient, but with marginal reduction of production with an increase of input, which is expected according to neoclassical economic theory for monopolies.
Econometric Studies on the Development of Renewable Energy Sources to Support the European Union 2020–2030 Climate and Energy Framework: A Critical Appraisal
Authors: Quintana-Rojo Consolación , Callejas-Albiñana Fernando-Evaristo , Tarancón Miguel-Ángel , Martínez-Rodríguez Isabel
Published: June 2020

One of the key objectives of the European Union is the transition to a total decarbonization of the economy by 2050. Within this strategic framework, the renewable energy development target plays a key role. This renewable energy deployment must be translated into national and European Union realities through specific political decisions. The econometric analysis techniques have the capacity to represent, in a mathematical and objective way, the system of relations comprising the economic, technical, and political factors that contribute to the deployment of renewable energy, and the impact that such an investment in renewable energy has at an economic, environmental, and social level. Therefore, econometric studies have a high potential to support policymakers who have to translate the guidelines of the strategic plan for renewable energy deployment into concrete policies. This article analyzed the capacity of the econometric literature on renewable energy development to provide this support, by means of a bibliometric study carried out on a sample of 153 documents related to 1329 keywords. The results show that, in general, there is a large literature based on econometric methodology to support the different renewable energy guidelines provided by the European Union 2020–2030 climate and energy strategic framework.
Understanding the University-Sustainability Link through Media: A Spanish Perspective
Authors: Bayas Aldaz Cecilia Elizabeth , Rodriguez-Pomeda Jesus , Sandoval Hamón Leyla Angélica , Casani Fernando
Published: June 2020

This article provides a procedure to universities for understanding the social perception of their activities in the sustainability field, through the analysis of news published in the printed media. It identifies the Spanish news sources that have covered this issue the most and the topics that appear in that news coverage. Using a probabilistic topic model called Latent Dirichlet Allocation, the study includes the nine dominant topics within a corpus with more than seventeen thousand published news items (totaling approximately five and a quarter million words) from a database of almost thirteen hundred national press sources between 2014 and 2017. The study identifies the news sources that published the most news on the issue. It is also found that the amount of news on sustainability and universities declined during the covered period. The nine identified topics point towards the relevance of higher education institutions’ activities as drivers of sustainability. The social perception encapsulated within the topics signals how the public is interested in these activities. Therefore, we find some interesting relationships between sustainable development, higher education institutions’ missions and behaviors, governmental policies, university funding and governance, social and economic innovation, and green campuses in terms of the overall goal of sustainability.
Education and Diet in the Scientific Literature: A Study of the Productive, Structural, and Dynamic Development in Web of Science
Authors: López Núñez Juan Antonio , López-Belmonte Jesús , Moreno-Guerrero Antonio-José , Ramos Navas-Parejo Magdalena , Hinojo-Lucena Francisco-Javier
Published: June 2020

Nutrition-related education is necessary to protect and improve the health status of schoolchildren and to minimize the risk of future diseases. The objective of this research was to analyze the trajectory and transcendence of the concepts “education” and “diet” in the Web of Science literature. The methodology focused on bibliometry, analyzing both the performance and the structural and dynamic development of the concepts through a co-word analysis. A total of 1247 documents were analyzed, and the results show that scientific production experienced a turning point in 2009, in comparison to the level of production reported in previous years. The medium of papers and the language of English were the most common. In relation to the research topic, before 2014, scientific production focused on medical and disease-related aspects; however, since 2014, it has focused on disease prevention and feeding. It was therefore concluded that the theme “diet and education” has been researched for more than 20 years, although it is only in the last decade that it has become more relevant—particularly studies focusing on disease prevention and the type of food, specifically fruit, which is presented as the most outstanding issue for researchers in this field of knowledge.
Digital Competence and University Teachers’ Conceptions about Teaching. A Structural Causal Model
Authors: Mirete Ana B. , Maquilón Javier J. , Mirete Lucía , Rodríguez Raimundo A.
Published: June 2020

Introduction: University teachers, in their ongoing scientific and pedagogical updating, must master the new methodologies and trends in their professional field. ICT’s importance for any person requires ethical responsibility, and it is incumbent on the educational professionals to preserve, improve and update their level of digital competence, and so improve learning and teaching. Method: This study uses a representative sample of 186 university teachers and follows the quantitative descriptive survey method. Two questionnaires were applied (CEE-ACUTIC). The first identified the approach for the transmission of information or the construction of knowledge, and the second measured attitude, knowledge and use of ICT. Results: A causal model of structural equations of maximum likelihood was run. We highlight the positive and significant relationship between the teaching approach oriented to the construction of knowledge and the use of ICTs (β = 0.17, p < 0.01) and, in another sense, a statistically significant but negative relationship between the use of ICTs and the teaching approach focused on the transmission of information (β = −0.16, p < 0.05). Discussion: It is empirically confirmed that the teaching approach conditions the use of technologies for teaching. There is no research in other contexts showing a causal relationship between teaching approaches and digital teaching competence.
Consumer Moral Dilemma in the Choice of Animal-Friendly Meat Products
Authors: Lin-Schilstra Li , Fischer Arnout R. H.
Published: June 2020

More and more consumers, at least in Western developed countries, are attentive to the sustainability aspects of their food, one of which concerns animal welfare. The conflict of harming an animal for the joy of eating meat causes a moral dilemma, affecting consumers’ reactions to, and choices of, animal-friendly products. This systematic review identified 86 studies from Scopus and Web of Science. The review outlines: (1) What are the personal antecedents among consumers regarding moral conflicts?; (2) In what situation do moral conflicts occur in consumer food choice?; (3) How do consumers emotionally experience the moral dilemma?; (4) How do consumers resolve moral conflicts over animal products? Researchers have studied personal factors and situational factors that arouse consumers’ moral dilemma and how the dilemma is solved, during which emotions and dissonance come into play. When synthesizing these findings into a comprehensive model, we notice that the current research is lacking on how personal factors change and interact with situations, which limits the understanding of the real-life context of consumers’ moral dilemma as well as their choices of animal-friendly products. More in-depth studies are needed to find situational factors that contribute to this complex psychological process.
Assessment of Social Responsibility in Education in Secondary Schools
Authors: Burgos Jaime , Carnero María Carmen
Published: June 2020

The increase in the importance given to the social dimension of companies has led to an awareness in society of the right to require economic, social and environmental responsibility. Although several methodologies of corporate social responsibility (CSR) are being introduced in organizations, and in many others, it is already part of the corporate culture; however, it is a concept that is still being explored in the area of education, where there is no prior record of the application of a strategic assessment model in centers of learning. This study describes an innovative multicriteria model designed with the Measuring Attractiveness by a Categorical Based Evaluation Technique (MACBETH) approach to assess CSR in high schools. It is in high schools that students are old enough to internalize the different dimensions of CSR and to include it in their most personal values throughout their entire life. The model is constructed using judgements from three decision centers with a great deal of experience and an extensive professional history in the field of high school teaching. This model, built specifically for centers of learning, assigns a score to the various limits between levels of excellence, considered as actions to be determined to identify the level of centers of learning. The model can be used as a tool for the continuous improvement of CSR as it allows the strengths and weaknesses of each center in the area of educational sustainability to be recognized and action plans to be produced for those with the worst performance. Furthermore, the model can be used as a tool for benchmarking, that is, the comparison of CSR efficiency between high schools, and act as a way of attracting students. The model has been applied in three state high schools of very different types.
Fit to Work in the Business Models of the Industry 4.0 Age
Authors: Dobrowolska Małgorzata , Knop Lilla
Published: June 2020

Global competition, the requirements of sustainable development, building an innovative economy or Industry 4.0 develop the need for changing or creating new legacy business models. Competencies adequate to new working possibilities play a significant role in these changes. The key role played here is the assessment of fit to work in the Industry 4.0. The purpose of the paper is to analyze fit to work in business models using the features and elements of Industry 4.0. There are specific antecedences identified for creating and changing business models in the aspect of implementing Industry 4.0, with particular attention paid to the meaning of competencies and their adaptation for the 4.0 requirements. Quantitative studies have been performed on a sample of 472 employees of Industry 4.0 in three countries: Germany, Poland and Slovakia. Theoretical and empirical considerations use the four-factor model differentiating the supplementary and complementary fit, organizational identification and satisfaction from work.
CSR Activities and Their Impact on Brand Value in Food Enterprises in Slovakia Based on Foreign Participation
Authors: Kádeková Zdenka , Savov Radovan , Košičiarová Ingrida , Valaskova Katarina
Published: June 2020

This paper highlights the activity of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its impact on brand value in food enterprises with and without foreign participation in Slovakia. Attention has been paid to all three pillars—People, Planet, Profit—and their communication in relation to customers, business partners, employees, local communities, environmental protection, and company values. The paper evaluates the impact of these activities on brand value in food enterprises in Slovakia. One hundred and twenty-five food enterprises were included in the research. The paper offers eight statistically tested hypotheses, of which three have been fully confirmed. Almost 86% of food companies with foreign participation apply CSR activities, while companies without foreign participation comprise only 40% of the total share. The biggest differences in the perception of the importance of CSR activities are noticeable in foundations and charitable activities, and in sponsorship and donations, but are less noticeable in terms of ecology, corporate transparency, and cooperation with non-profit organizations. In the field of environmental protection, CSR activities are communicated and used in order to build brand value, mostly in food enterprises with foreign participation. Almost 96% of food enterprises with foreign participation that apply and communicate CSR activities see an increase in their brand value.
Social Responsibility, Communication and Financial Data of Hospitals: A Structural Modelling Approach in a Sustainability Scope
Authors: Creixans-Tenas Judit , Gallardo-Vázquez Dolores , Arimany-Serrat Núria
Published: June 2020

Health is one of the fundamental pillars of public management and should be one of the main objectives of any society that pursues true progress and well-being for its citizens. In recent years, the public health system has been seeking collaborative synergies with the private health system to achieve efficient functioning at the levels of care demand, waiting lists and financial pressure. For this reason, private entities in the hospital field must be analysed through the application of information systems comprised of financial and non-financial indicators. In this organizational context, economic and financial data, communication, and social responsibility are essential to correctly manage the performance of hospital companies. Drawing on stakeholder and dynamic capabilities theories, we have defined a conceptual model that proposes that a greater predisposition to social responsibility actions by hospitals could explain communication practices and economic and financial results. Thus, the main objective of this study is to determine the possible relationship between three important aspects in the management of hospital companies: social responsibility, communication, and economic and financial results. Partial least square technique was applied to estimate a structural equation model to analyse a sample of 122 hospitals operating in Spain. This paper also analyses how communication mediates the relationship between social responsibility and economic and financial results. The main results empirically validate a model that links and predicts the social responsibility actions undertaken by these companies, which are directly related to the business communication that is carried out and the economic and financial results. Related to the implications, managers could adopt strategies once they know that they will contribute to improve their relationships with stakeholders and shareholders.
The Educational Level of Rural Labor, Population Urbanization, and Sustainable Economic Growth in China
Authors: Cao Shu , Yu Nannan , Wu Yang , Wang Zihe , Mi Jianing
Published: June 2020

Since the 1978 economic reform, China has undergone a historical process of rapid urbanization. Although this process has been recognized as a key factor in the development of sustainable growth in China, low quality rural labor continues to limit the effectiveness of the country’s urbanization. Our study uses a spatial analysis framework to explore how the education level of rural laborers moderates the effect of urbanization on economic growth with provincial data collected from 1996 to 2015. Our results reveal that the influence of population urbanization on sustainable growth is mediated by the improvement of consumption capacity of urban dwellers and the industrial structural changes. The education level of rural laborers adjusts the urbanization’s influence on the consumption capacity of residents, which further affects economic growth. Empirical evidence indicates that the educationally limited rural population negatively moderates the impact of urbanization on sustainable economic growth by restraining the consumption capacity of migrating rural labor. It is also found that in some provinces with less-qualified rural labor, such as Gansu, Yunnan and Qinghai, population urbanization has not contributed to a corresponding economic growth, indicating that these provinces may have undergone urbanization without growth. These findings suggest that basic education is critical to the growth of income and consumption capacities of rural labor when laborers are migrating to urban areas. To achieve a valid urbanization process and sustainable growth, state and local governments must improve the basic education scheme, especially the nine-year compulsory education in Chinese rural areas through public financial investment and policy support.
Communicating Climate Change Risk: A Content Analysis of IPCC’s Summary for Policymakers
Authors: Poortvliet P. Marijn , Niles Meredith T. , Veraart Jeroen A. , Werners Saskia E. , Korporaal Fiona C. , Mulder Bob C.
Published: June 2020

This study investigated the effectiveness of climate change risk communication in terms of its theoretical potential to stimulate recipients’ awareness and behavioral change. We selected the summary for policy makers (SPM) of the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in order to conduct a content analysis; the extended parallel process model and construal level theory served as conceptual lenses to perform the analysis. Specifically, we evaluated to what extent the SPM included informational elements of threat, efficacy and psychological distance related to climate change. The results showed that threat information was prominently present, but efficacy information was less frequently included, and when it was, more often in the latter parts of the SPM. With respect to construal level it was found that in the IPCC report concrete representations were used only sparingly. Theoretical relevance and implications for climate change risk communication with key audiences are discussed.
The Protective Role of Emotional Intelligence in Self-Stigma and Emotional Exhaustion of Family Members of People with Mental Disorders
Authors: Trigueros Rubén , Navarro Noelia , Cangas Adolfo J. , Mercader Isabel , Aguilar-Parra José M. , González-Santos Josefa , González-Bernal Jerónimo J. , Soto-Cámara Raúl
Published: June 2020

Parenting a child or teenager is not particularly easy for parents, and this becomes even more difficult if a child has a serious mental disorder. This situation places parents in a vulnerable position that leads to heightened feelings of guilt and emotional stress. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze the influence of the families’ emotional intelligence on their own self-stigma and burnout. A total of 537 family members from Southern Spain who care for individuals with mental disorders participated in this study. To analyze the results of the study, a structural equation model was constructed. The results from the equation showed that emotional intelligence is negatively related to self-stigma and burnout. In turn, self-stigma is positively related to burnout syndrome. Thus, the findings indicate that emotional intelligence may have a protective role against self-stigma, which is closely related to burnout syndrome. The relevance of these results when designing interventions that work with the negative feelings produced by self-stigma and family burnout is discussed.
The Study of Gaining More Detailed Variability Information of Soil Organic Carbon in Surface Soils and Its Significance to Enriching the Existing Soil Database
Authors: Zhang Zhongqi , Li Jingzhang , Tsui Chun-Chih , Chen Zueng-Sang
Published: June 2020

To meet the increasing demands of precision agricultural and environmental management, more abundant and accurate information is needed to describe soil organic carbon (SOC) vertical variation. Based on 923 soil profiles (collected at the depths of 0–15, 15–30, 30–60, 60–90, 90–120, and 120–150 cm) in the central area of Changhua County, Taiwan, the distribution curve of the SOC content of each profile was fitted by the equal-area spline model, and it was possible to obtain the SOC content at all depths. Taking the 0–5 cm (L1), 5–10 cm (L2), and 10–15 cm (L3) sub-layers as examples, their SOC contents and stocks were compared to the mean values of the average 5-cm-thick sub-layers (Lm) derived from the value of the 0–15 cm layer. The results indicated that the SOC contents and stocks both reduced with increasing soil depths. The mean SOC contents of L1, L2, and L3 were 22.1, 21.0, and 18.7 g·kg−1, respectively, with significant variation, and the values of L2 and L3 were 5.0% and 15.4% lower than that of L1. Similarly, the mean SOC stocks were 1.29, 1.25, and 1.16 kg·m−2 of the L1, L2, and L3 layers, also with significant variation, and the values of L2 and L3 were 4.0% and 10.1% lower than that of L1. Meanwhile, it was found that the SOC content and stock of Lm were both close to the corresponding values in L2, but were significantly different to that of L1 and L3. Furthermore, the interpolation contours of the SOC contents and stocks in L1, L2, and L3 by digital soil mapping also presented regular variation with increasing soil depths, while the contours of Lm had nearly identical patterns to that of L2. The results demonstrate that the typically used mean SOC contents with certain thicknesses calculated from the sampling layer can only approximately inflect the SOC situation at intermediate depths, but the SOC content in the upper and lower parts within the sampling layer varies greatly. Therefore, the actual distribution of SOC varies gradually depending on the soil depth. This study indicates that the combination of the equal-area spline model and digital soil mapping can greatly enrich the current soil SOC database and provide more abundant and accurate SOC content and stock information for precision agricultural and environmental management based on legacy soil database.
A Multicriteria Approach for Assessing the Impact of ICT on EU Sustainable Regional Policy
Authors: Koliouska Christiana , Andreopoulou Zacharoula
Published: June 2020

As a global actor, the European Union (EU) plays a leading role in international efforts to promote sustainable development globally. All sustainable objectives and targets need Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) as key catalysts, since ICTs constitute tools of unprecedented power which help people to face the growing challenges of rising population, poverty, epidemics and climate change. Policy makers in the EU are increasingly putting ICTs into relations with sustainable regional development. This paper aims to study and assess the impact of ICT on the EU regional policy in terms of sustainable development by applying the multicriteria approach, PROMETHEE II, using the software Visual PROMETHEE. The criteria that were used in this research are the criteria that both the European Commission and member states define to assess the ICT implications of new EU legislation since 2010. The results revealed that the impact of ICT on EU sustainable regional policy has gotten stronger in the last two decades.
Sustaining Students’ Identities within the Context of Participatory Culture. Designing, Implementing and Evaluating an Interactive Learning Activity
Authors: Esteban-Guitart Moisès , Monreal-Bosch Pilar , Palma Montserrat , González-Ceballos Irene
Published: June 2020

Within the framework of theoretical developments in so-called participatory culture and the context of funds of identity, incorporated within what is known as the funds of knowledge approach, an innovative teaching methodology is implemented that allows students to actively participate in knowledge construction. The project translates into a proposal for educational contextualization and personalization, based on the students’ funds of identity; that is, those resources (people, artifacts, places, activities, institutions) they consider to be most relevant and significant to defining themselves. Once these have been identified through identity artifacts, such as collages or self-drawings, students link some of these funds of identity to curricular content of the subject and produce a video that shows the results of this academic work. The final product is shared on a YouTube channel containing the videos of all of the students in the class. The phases of the project are described and illustrated. We argue that the proposed teaching and learning project, which is cross-disciplinary in nature, allows for principles such as educational contextualization, funds of identity and participatory culture to be incorporated into what we call here the funds of identity 2.0 approach, putting it into educational practice.
Organizational Support and Adaptive Performance: The Revolving Structural Relationships between Job Crafting, Work Engagement, and Adaptive Performance
Authors: Park Yoonhee , Lim Doo Hun , Kim Woocheol , Kang Hana
Published: June 2020

This study has two primary purposes: (1) examining the structural relationships between organizational support, job crafting, work engagement, and adaptive performance, and (2) identifying a revolving relationship derived from these relationships. To that end, the research sampled 250 human resources professionals in companies with at least 300 employees in South Korea and employed structural equation modeling. The study’s findings showed that organizational support affects adaptive performance through job crafting and work engagement. In addition, job crafting and adaptive performance mediated the relationship between organizational support and work engagement. Lastly, revolving relationships existed among job crafting, work engagement, and adaptive performance. Our findings make a positive contribution to comprehending the role of adaptive performance in motivating individuals further to craft their jobs creatively. Moreover, it advances our understanding of the complexities of the revolving relationships among job crafting, work engagement, and adaptive performance.
Effects of Air Pollution on Human Health and Costs: Current Situation in São Paulo, Brazil
Authors: Santana José Carlos Curvelo , Miranda Amanda Carvalho , Yamamura Charles Lincoln Kenji , Silva Filho Silvério Catureba da , Tambourgi Elias Basile , Lee Ho Linda , Berssaneti Fernando Tobal
Published: June 2020

This study focused on verifying whether the emission of air pollutants in São Paulo increases the costs and number of hospitalizations for respiratory diseases in Brazil. Data on pollutant emissions, hospitalizations, and hospital costs were collected from 2008 to 2017 and correlated with air quality standards. The results showed that the concentration of particulate matter increased each year during the study period and was highly correlated with hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases. Ozone (O3) was within the quality standard throughout the study period but registered an increase in the mean and a positive correlation with hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases. The carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels were within the quality standards throughout the study period with a decrease in the last years studied, but showed a positive correlation with hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases. The pollutant emissions and hospitalizations due to respiratory diseases had an inverse relationship with the monthly rainfall curve for São Paulo, which indicates that rainfall tended to reduce pollutant emissions and consequently hospitalizations due to inhalation of these pollutants. Because costs are directly associated with hospitalizations, both increased during the study period—302,000 hospitalizations at an average cost of 368 USD resulted in a total cost of 111 million USD. To reduce these costs, Brazil should implement stricter policies to improve the air quality of its major cities and develop a viable alternative to diesel vehicles.
A Multi-Item Replenishment Problem with Carbon Cap-and-Trade under Uncertainty
Authors: Noh Jiseong , Kim Jong Soo , Hwang Seung-June
Published: June 2020

Recently, as global warming has become a major issue, many companies have increased their efforts to control carbon emissions in green supply chain management (GSCM) activities. This paper deals with the multi-item replenishment problem in GSCM, from both economic and environmental perspectives. A single buyer orders multiple items from a single supplier, and simultaneously considers carbon cap-and-trade under limited storage capacity and limited budget. In this case we can apply a can-order policy, which is a well-known multi-item replenishment policy. Depending on the market characteristics, we develop two mixed-integer programming (MIP) models based on the can-order policy. The deterministic model considers a monopoly market in which a company fully knows the market information, such that both storage capacity and budget are already determined. In contrast, the fuzzy model considers a competitive or a new market, in which case both of those resources are considered as fuzzy numbers. We performed numerical experiments to validate and assess the efficiency of the developed models. The results of the experiments showed that the proposed can-order policy performed far better than the traditional can-order policy in GSCM. In addition, we verified that the fuzzy model can cope with uncertainties better than the deterministic model in terms of total expected costs.
A Life Cycle Analysis of Deploying Coking Technology to Utilize Low-Rank Coal in China
Authors: Li Yan , Wang Guoshun , Li Zhaohao , Yuan Jiahai , Gao Dan , Zhang Heng
Published: June 2020

At present, the excess capacity in China’s coke industry can be deployed to utilize some low-rank coal, replacing coking coal with potential economic gains, energy efficiency, and environmental benefits. This study presents a life cycle analysis to model these potential benefits by comparing a metallurgical coke technical pathway with technical pathways of gasification coke integrated with different chemical productions. The results show that producing gasification coke is a feasible technical pathway for the transformation and development of the coke industry. However, its economic feasibility depends on the price of cokes and coals. The gasification coke production has higher energy consumption and CO2 emissions because of its lower coke yield. Generally speaking, using gasification coke to produce F-T oils has higher economic benefits than producing methanol, but has lower energy efficiency and higher carbon emissions.
Measuring Actions for Nature—Development and Validation of a Pro-Nature Conservation Behaviour Scale
Authors: Barbett Lea , Stupple Edward , Sweet Michael , Schofield Malcolm , Richardson Miles
Published: June 2020

Scientists have classed the ongoing decline in biodiversity—caused by humans—as a mass extinction. To mitigate the consequences of this extinction, immediate action is of the utmost importance. However, effective ways of promoting pro-nature conservation behaviours to preserve and enhance biodiversity require better understanding and measurement. Thus, a reliable and valid measurement tool is needed. While there are measurement tools for general pro-environmental behaviours, as of yet, no measure of behaviours that specifically promote biodiversity exists. Here, we present such a tool: the Pro-Nature Conservation Behaviour Scale (ProCoBS), a psychometrically validated questionnaire scale measuring active behaviours that specifically support the conservation of biodiversity. An item pool developed through consultation with wildlife and biodiversity experts was subjected to psychometric scale development analyses. Data from 300 participants were used to develop the 18-item ProCoBS long form, as well as an 8-item short form. A latent variable model with four factors (Individual Engagement, Social Engagement, Planting, and Wildlife) was identified. In a second study, a subset of 250 of the original participants answered the questionnaire again, in addition to related psychological constructs. The data were used to assess test–retest reliability and construct validity. Results showed that the scale and its short form were reliable (full scale: α = 0.893, short form: α = 0.825) and valid. In a third study, a representative sample of 1298 adults in the UK completed the short form. Confirmatory Factor Analysis demonstrated a good fit for all factors, indicating that the ProCoBS is a psychometrically robust measure. The ProCoBS provides the definitive, much needed tool for measuring conservation behaviours. This will enhance research and impact practical work in the conservation domain for a sustainable future. A cross-cultural examination of the scale is still needed.
When a Fire Starts to Burn. The Relation Between an (Inter)nationally Oriented Incinerator Capacity and the Port Cities’ Local Circular Ambitions
Authors: Van den Berghe Karel , Bucci Ancapi Felipe , van Bueren Ellen
Published: June 2020

This paper assesses the potential of the circular economy (CE) policy ambitions of the port cities of Ghent (Belgium) and Amsterdam (The Netherlands). Both Ghent and Amsterdam are municipalities that potentially lend themselves ideally to set up a more local-oriented circular (re)production and (re)consumption system. Subsequently, both have the ambition that, in 2050, the CE will have become an achieved public value that influences all activities to be more circular in comparison with today. However, while having ambitious policies is important, we explain that a public value also requires alignment with the operational capacity used or needed to achieve this policy ambition. In this paper, we focus on the ‘negative’ CE operational capacity: landfills and incinerators. Our results show that the CE ambitions of Ghent are more realistic than Amsterdam. During the last few decades, Dutch waste management has been largely privatized. This led to a significant increase in incinerator capacity and a lowering of the incineration price. This differs from Flanders, which has a deliberate capping on the allowed incinerator capacity, keeping the price for incineration high. This increases the incentive for urban and maritime actors to climb the waste hierarchy, eventually thus making the port city (potentially) more circular as a whole.