bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Role of Humour in Teaching: Teacher Training Students’ Image of Teacher and Views on Teaching
Authors: Szentes Erzsébet , Horváth Zsófia-Irén , Harangus Katalin
Published: November 2020

A common question in teacher training is what trace is left behind by (many years of) institutional learning, that is, what kind of teacher and teaching image a teacher candidate starts his or her preparation with. The main determinants of becoming a teacher are the experiences gained as a student. The source of their approach and views is personal school experience, which can influence their professional development. In our study, we will discuss how future teachers think about the relationship between humour and school, humour and education. In the initial phase of our study, we asked first-year teacher training students about good and bad teachers in order to gain an insight into their views on teachers’ personality and work. After this, we used metaphor analysis to investigate teacher characteristics/qualities that approached the concept of teacher to novel, humorous-playful images. In this phase of our study, we focused on what effective communication tools they have for dealing with tensions and conflicts and the role of humour and playfulness. Not only research (Tisljár 2011; Lazarus, Role, and Genga 2011) but also everyday experience proves that there are a lot of practices in humour that can be learnt and that can shape personality, logic, and memory. The personality of the teacher cannot be formed, or it is very difficult to form, so teacher training has the potential to assist teacher candidates in acquiring skills that help them develop students’ cognitive and affective abilities in a fun way.
Code Play as Translingual Practice
Authors: Biró Enikő
Published: November 2020

The study starts with the definition of local, translocal, and global linguistic context in the digital space. Facebook as a social media platform provides opportunities for everyday digital literacy practices such as code play. Code play allows mixing codes and repertoires usually with a humorous reference. We argue that creative interaction among languages creates the methodological need for a translingual approach besides the traditional code-switching theory to explain online linguistic phenomena. Adopting a netnographic approach, this paper presents two participants’ linguistic history, online linguistic practices, and perceptions of their own digital literacy, exploring their portrayal of (multi)linguistic identity which has local, translocal, and global resonance. The paper exploits possibilities of code play to accomplish communicative goals through code-switching and translingualism with a linguistically diverse audience.
Constructing Ethnic Identity in Transylvania through Humour
Authors: Tudor Noémi
Published: November 2020

In this paper, I put forward a comparative/contrastive analysis of ethnic identity on the basis of humorous texts about Romanians and Hungarians living in Romania within the framework of the Script-Based Semantic Theory of Humour (SSTH). The corpus contains fifty jokes taken from websites and social media, books and recordings in which the Romanians are at the centre and the Hungarians are the butt and vice versa. The overall purpose of the study is to illustrate the main topics and stereotypes used in ethnic jokes. In this research, I will show that Romanians and Hungarians joke about similar topics, the most common ones being the “ownership” of Transylvania, rejection of the other, and language distortion but also friendship among Hungarians and Romanians. I also conclude that stereotypes can be attributed to one ethnic group, but there are also shared stereotypes, and some of them can switch from one group to the other depending on the perspective.
From Subversive Strategies to Women’s Empowerment
Authors: András Orsolya
Published: November 2020

This paper discusses the potential of humour in understanding and deconstructing gender inequalities and analyses the representation of some feminist issues in two Spanish-speaking artists’ works. The theoretical framework explores the interpretation of laughter by feminist authors as well as different approaches of feminist humour in the context of cultural studies. The definition of humour presented here is that it can function as an open space where we can safely observe social structures and experiment with our imagination. In the second part of the paper, some examples from Quino’s comic series Mafalda and Flavita Banana’s vignettes are discussed. In the interpretation of these artworks, the paper highlights two types of feminist discourse and, specifically, of feminist humour. The first one, exemplified through Quino’s Mafalda, uses subversive strategies in order to expose social injustice and sexism. However, these strategies are sometimes still not able to propose an alternative to the existing status quo. The second type of feminist discourse and humour, characteristic of Flavita Banana’s art, also starts from depicting the consequences of patriarchy. However, her approach is not only subversive but also empowering and liberating, constructing a safe imaginative space through humour.
Rendering Science Fiction, Culture, and Language While TranslatingReady Player One
Authors: Imre Attila
Published: November 2020

The amazing science fiction setting and plot depicted by Ernest Cline in hisReady Player Onemay constitute a real challenge to translators and subtitlers alike as his book was also turned into a movie by Steven Spielberg. We have collected hundreds of terms from the original book (2011), its Hungarian translation (2012), the Hungarian dubbed version (March 2018), the most popular Hungarian fansub (2018), and the professional subtitle (July 2018, from the same person who translated the script for the dubbing). Having classified the collected terms into various categories, we have managed to identify successful Hungarian renditions of cultural allusions from the 1980s (movies, books, videogames, shows, songs, characters, objects, vehicles, etc.).
Theoretical and Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Resistance for Compression Bandages
Authors: Aboalasaad A. R. , Sirková B. K. , Mansoor T. , Skenderi Z. , Khalil A. S.
Published: November 2020

The objective of this paper is to report a study on the prediction of the steady-state thermal resistance of woven compression bandage (WCB) by using three different mathematical models. The experimental samples of WCB were 100% cotton, cotton–polyamide–polyurethane, and viscose–polyurethane. The bandage samples were evaluated at extensions ranging at 10–100%, with two- and three-layer bandaging techniques. Experimental thermal resistance was measured by thermal foot manikin (TFM) and ALAMBETA testing devices. The obtained results by TFM and ALAMBETA were validated and compared with the theoretical models (Maxwell–Eucken2, Schuhmeister, and Militky), and a reasonable correlation of approximately 78%, 92%, and 93% for ALAMBETA and 75%, 82%, and 83% for TFM, respectively, was observed.
Isolated Cor Triatriatum Sinister: A Case Report
Authors: Grīnberga Zanda , Sīlis Pauls , Ligere Elīna , Lubaua Ingūna , Bergmane Inta , Auziņa Luīze , Šmits Lauris , Ozoliņš Valts , Sikora Normunds , Lāce Inga
Published: November 2020

Cor triatriatum sinister is a rare congenital cardiac anomaly that has been identified in 0.1% of children with congenital heart disease. It is defined as a fibromuscular membrane that divides the left atrium into two chambers: a superior (proximal) that in most cases receives drainage from the pulmonary veins and an inferior (distal) chamber that communicates with the mitral valve and the left atrium. Cor triatriatum sinister can be an isolated lesion (approximately 25% of cases), but in many cases it is associated with other congenital cardiovascular anomalies, the most common one being – atrial septal defect(3). Symptoms in patients with cor triatriatum sinister are related to obstruction of pulmonary venous drainage, pressure loading of the right side of the heart and congestive cardiac failure. Depending on the severity of the obstruction and presence of associated cardiac anomalies it can be diagnosed at any age. Diagnosis is usually achieved by echocardiography in early infancy. Elective treatment method is surgical excision of the membrane. Here we present a pediatric patient (4 months old) presenting in cardiogenic shock with a successful correction of isolated cor triatriatum sinister. To confirm diagnosis and success of surgical repair, transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography were used.
Literature Review of Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage from Incidence to Treatment Options
Authors: Buce-Satoba Ieva , Rozkalne Daina , Stepanovs Jevgenijs , Mamaja Biruta , Krumina Gaida , Ozolina Agnese
Published: November 2020

Introduction

Aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) is associated with high mortality and morbidity. Rebleeding, cerebral vasospasm (VS) with delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) are major complications after SAH associated with poor neurological outcome.

Aim of the study

To summarize the existing research data on the SAH from incidence, risk factors and clinical presentation to diagnostic, monitoring and treatment options after SAH.

Materials and Methods

Literature review was carried out to identify factors associated with SAH using specific keywords (aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage, rebleeding, cerebral vasospasm, delayed cerebral ischemia) in the PUBMED database. In the time period from 2000 to 2019, 34 full articles were reviewed.

Results

According to the literature, the key risk factors for cerebral aneurysms and the SAH are hypertension, smoking, chronic alcohol abuse, family history of intracranial aneurysms in first-degree relatives and female sex. The key risk factor for early complication - rebleeding after SAH - is hypertension. The factors responsible for late complications - cerebral VS and DCI after SAH - are initially lower Glasgow coma scale and higher grades of Fisher scale, where grade IV and III predict cerebral VS in 31–37%. Furthermore, hyperglycaemic state, hyponatremia, hypotension and cerebral hypoperfusion, increased level of Troponin correlate with the incidence of cerebral VS and DCI. Although the golden standard to detect cerebral VS is digital subtraction angiography, CT angiography has become a routine examination. Transcranial doppler sonography is recommended and regional cerebral oximetry also seems to be promising. To avoid rebleeding for wide-necked, gigantic aneurysms or when SAH is combined with intraparenchymal hematoma, surgical clipping is preferred. For posterior circulation aneurisms, poor grade SAH and patients with age >70 years superior is endovascular treatment. To avoid late complications, the pharmacological method is used with Nimodipine.

Conclusions

SAH is still associated with poor clinical outcome due to the development of early and late complications. The highest risk patients are those with low Glasgow coma scale and high grades of Fisher scale. Timely performed obliteration methods of the ruptured aneurysm are crucial and Nimodipine is the main agent to prevent cerebral VS and DCI.
Non-native plant species in alder-dominated forests in Slovakia: what does the regional- and the local-scale approach bring?
Authors: Slezák Michal , Farkašovská Štefánia , Hrivnák Richard
Published: November 2020

European riparian forests are in general susceptible to plant invasions compared to other natural forest habitats. Their descriptive vegetation overviews with phytosociological affiliation contain detail insight into species composition patterns at various geographical scales, but quantitative assessment of the relationship between non-native plant richness and measured environmental variables is still scarce. We used two vegetation datasets of alder-dominated forests to analyse plant invasion patterns in the Pannonian and the Carpathian region of Slovakia. A large dataset of 918 vegetation plots was used at the regional scale, whereas 40 vegetation plots completed by ecological (mainly soil, climatic) predictors were used at the local scale in order to determine how they shape non-native species richness. We found significant differences (P < 0.05) between the Pannonian and the Carpathian region in the number of non-native vascular plants at both scales, with altitude being the most important predictor. Generalized Linear Models accounted for 56.6% and 59.6% of alien species richness data in the Pannonian and Carpathian region, respectively. Alien richness was affected by altitude and soil pH in the Pannonian region, but only by altitude in the Carpathian region.
Selected climatic variables in Slovakia are favourable to the development of Dothistroma needle blight
Authors: Ondrušková Emília , Ostrovský Radovan , Jánošíková Zuzana , Adamčíková Katarína , Kobza Marek
Published: November 2020

Dothistroma needle blight (DNB) is a disease of pine needles. It causes significant defoliation of affected trees; intensive attacks lead to damages of the whole stand. The relationship of trends in disease severity and intensity with climatic variables were studied in three Austrian pine plantations (Jahodná, Kálnica, Litava) during 2014–2018. During the monitoring period, the greatest variability in disease severity was observed in the top third of the crowns, which showed the highest correlation with the variants of the most important climatic conditions (temperature and relative humidity) tested. For the spread of DNB, based on statistical assessment, a higher number of intervals of environmentally favourable climatic conditions is crucial. Both Dothistroma species (D. septosporum and D. pini), which are causal agents of the disease, were identified in Jahodná. In Kálnica and Litava, only D. septosporum was present.
Three species of Xiphinema americanum-group complex (Nematoda: Longidoridae), from Lorestan province, Iran
Authors: Bazgir E. , Naghavi A. , Zolfaghari Z.
Published: November 2020

The dagger nematodes of the longidorids can cause diseases of various agronomic and horticultural crops, and are consisted of more than 260 valid species. In a forest survey of ecotypes of longidorid nematodes, from the root zone soil of Brant’s oak, (Quercus brantii Lindl.) and hawthorn (Crataegus aronia L.) trees, three species of Xiphinema americanum group namely Xiphinema pachtaicum, X. oxycaudatum and X. plesiopachtaicum were collected and studied based on their morphological and morphometric characters. X. pachtaicum is prevalent Xiphinema species in Iran. In this paper additional data for X. oxycaudatum and X. plesiopachtaicum species are presented. X. plesiopachtaicum is a new record for nematode fauna of Iran.
Helminth parasites and diet of Leptodactylus petersii (Steindachner, 1864) (Anura: Leptodactylidae) from Amapá state, Eastern Amazon, Brazil
Authors: Oliveira-Souza A. E. , Salviano Santana M. M. , Dos Santos Reis T. , Costa-Campos C. E. , Albuquerque de Miranda C. , Melo F. T. V.
Published: November 2020

Leptodactylus petersii is a species of anuran found in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats and occurs from South America to southern North America and the West Indies. Studies involving the fauna of anuran parasites offer complementary information related to ecology. Thus, since there are few studies on the natural history of this species, this research aims to analyze the diet and the presence of endoparasitic helminths of Leptodactylus petersii from the state of Amapá, Brazil. We found 10 different taxonomic categories of prey in stomach contents, with the categories Hymenoptera (Formicidae) with 32.26 % (n = 12) being the most representative. Among the 12 individuals of L. petersii that were analyzed for helminth parasites, 83.3 % were infected with at least one species of helminths allocated to Phylum Nematoda. Our results report a new occurrence site for Rhabdias breviensis, originally described for Leptodactylus petersii in the state of Pará, as well as the second report of Ortleppascaris sp. in Brazil.
Clinical-parasitological screening for respiratory capillariosis in cats in urban environments
Authors: Stepanović P. , Despotović D. , Dimitrijević S. , Ilić T.
Published: November 2020

Respiratory capillariosis is a widely distributed zoonotic parasitic disease caused by the nematodeCapillaria aerophila(Trichocephalida, Trichuridae) that commonly infects wild carnivores but also cats and dogs. This retrospective study aims to describe cases of respiratory capillariosis in cats from the city of Belgrade, Serbia. Between 2015 and 2019, a total of 155 pet cats with or without respiratory symptoms were submitted to physical examination and parasitological examination of the feces. All cats lived indoor but had free access to outdoor. In suburban settlements, wild carnivores commonly share their living environments with owned cats and dogs. It can be assumed that more intense urbanization spreading into the natural habitats of will carnivores creates the opportunity for closer and more frequent contacts between the population of cats and feral carnivores which might increase the risk of feline contamination. The findings confirm the existence of capillaries in cats in urban areas of the city of Belgrade, contribute to a better understanding of the epidemiology of this nematode and warn that, because of close contacts between cats of pets and humans, capillaries can cause human infection.
Overview of Trends in Global Single Cell Research Based on Bibliometric Analysis and LDA Model (2009–2019)
Authors: Jiang Tian , Liu Xiaoping , Zhang Chao , Yin Chuanhao , Liu Huizhou
Published: November 2020

Purpose

This article aims to describe the global research profile and the development trends of single cell research from the perspective of bibliometric analysis and semantic mining.

Design/methodology/approach

The literatures on single cell research were extracted from Clarivate Analytic's Web of Science Core Collection between 2009 and 2019. Firstly, bibliometric analyses were performed with Thomson Data Analyzer (TDA). Secondly, topic identification and evolution trends of single cell research was conducted through the LDA topic model. Thirdly, taking the post-discretized method which is used for topic evolution analysis for reference, the topics were also be dispersed to countries to detect the spatial distribution.

Findings

The publication of single cell research shows significantly increasing tendency in the last decade. The topics of single cell research field can be divided into three categories, which respectively refers to single cell research methods, mechanism of biological process, and clinical application of single cell technologies. The different trends of these categories indicate that technological innovation drives the development of applied research. The continuous and rapid growth of the topic strength in the field of cancer diagnosis and treatment indicates that this research topic has received extensive attention in recent years. The topic distributions of some countries are relatively balanced, while for the other countries, several topics show significant superiority.

Research limitations

The analyzed data of this study only contain those were included in the Web of Science Core Collection.

Practical implications

This study provides insights into the research progress regarding single cell field and identifies the most concerned topics which reflect potential opportunities and challenges. The national topic distribution analysis based on the post-discretized analysis method extends topic analysis from time dimension to space dimension.

Originality/value

This paper combines bibliometric analysis and LDA model to analyze the evolution trends of single cell research field. The method of extending post-discretized analysis from time dimension to space dimension is distinctive and insightful.
Forest Transformation Urgency for Topsoil Diversity Optimization During Environmental Change
Authors: Samec Pavel , Zapletal Miloš , Horáček Matěj
Published: November 2020

Combined effect of environmental change and management variability leads to reduced soil diversity in homogenous forest stands. On the other hand, forest soil diversity is maintained with rich tree species composition. In this study, focus has been put on deriving urgency to change forest tree species composition in order to increase soil diversity in biogeographic regions with uneven impact of environmental change. The relation of forest tree species and soil diversities was compared between the periods of dominant sulphur deposition (1985–1994) and the period of regional environmental change (2003–2012) in the Czech Republic (Central Europe; 78 866 km2; 115–1602 m n.m.). Forest tree species and soil diversities were assessed using linear regression, discrimination analysis and geographically weighted regression including residue analysis. The effect of spatial differences of acid deposition on soil properties, though, decreased, still dependencies between the diversity of bedrock, soils and forest tree species increased significantly. Only 12.9 % of forests in the territory of the CR have optimum tree species diversity. The total of 65.9 % of forest require highly or moderately urgent transformation. An increase in spatial dependencies between soil and tree species diversities confirms the importance of site differentiation in forest transformation.
Travel Time Reliability of Bus Operation in Heterogeneous Traffic Conditions of Dar es Salaam City, Tanzania
Authors: Nyaki Prosper S. , Bwire Hannibal , Mushule Nurdin K.
Published: November 2020

The assessment of travel time reliability enables precise prediction of travel times, better activity scheduling and decisions for all users of the road network. Furthermore, it helps to monitor traffic flow as a crucial strategy for reducing traffic congestion and ensuring high-quality service in urban roads. Travel time reliability is a useful reference tool for evaluating transport service quality, operating costs and system efficiency. However, many analyses of travel time reliability do not provide true travel variation under heterogeneous traffic flow conditions where traffic flow is a mixture of motorized and non-motorized transport. This study analysed travel time reliability under heterogeneous traffic conditions. The travel reliabilities focused on passenger waiting time at bus stops, in-vehicle travel time, and delay time at intersections which were analysed using buffer time, standard deviation, coefficient of variation, and planning time. The data used were obtained from five main bus routes in Dar es Salaam. The results indicate low service reliability in the outbound directions compared to inbound directions. They also intend to raise awareness of policy-makers about the situation and to make them shift from expanding road networks towards optimising road operations.
Gastrointestinal endoscopic practice during COVID-19 pandemic: a multi-institutional survey
Authors: Maruyama Hirotsugu , Hosomi Shuhei , Nebiki Hiroko , Fukuda Takashi , Nakagawa Koichiro , Okazaki Hirotoshi , Yamagami Hirokazu , Hara Junichi , Tanigawa Tetsuya , Machida Hirohisa , Aomatsu Kazuki , Watanabe Yoshihisa , Sato Hiroshi , Uno Hironori , Takaishi Osamu , Nomura Tsutomu , Ochi Masahiro , Oshitani Nobuhide , Adachi Kenji , Higashimori Akira , Ominami Masaki , Nadatani Yuji , Fukunaga Shusei , Otani Koji , Tanaka Fumio , Kamata Noriko , Nagami Yasuaki , Taira Koichi , Watanabe Toshio , Fujiwara Yasuhiro
Published: November 2020

Introduction. An on-going coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a challenge all over the world. Since an endoscopy unit and its staff are at potentially high risk for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, we conducted a survey for the management of the gastrointestinal endoscopic practice, personal protective equipment (PPE), and risk assessment for COVID-19 during the pandemic at multiple facilities.

Methods. The 11-item survey questionnaire was sent to representative respondent of Department of Gastroenterology, Osaka City University Hospital, and its 19 related facilities.

Results. A total of 18 facilities submitted valid responses and a total of 373 health care professionals (HCPs) participated. All facilities (18/18: 100%) were screening patients at risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection before endoscopy. During the pandemic, we found that the total volume of endoscopic procedures decreased by 44%. Eleven facilities (11/18: 61%) followed recommendations of the Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society (JGES); consequently, about 35%–50% of esophagogastroduodenoscopy and colonoscopy were canceled. Mask (surgical mask or N95 mask), face shield/goggle, gloves (one or two sets), and gown (with long or short sleeves) were being used by endoscopists, nurses, endoscopy technicians, and endoscope cleaning staff in all the facilities (18/18: 100%). SARS-CoV-2 infection risk assessment of HCPs was conducted daily in all the facilities (18/18: 100%), resulting in no subsequent SARS-CoV-2 infection in HCPs.

Conclusion. COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on the gastrointestinal endoscopic practice. The recommendations of the JGES were appropriate as preventive measures for the SARSCoV-2 infection in the endoscopy unit and its staff.
Street Names through Sociological Lenses. Part I: Functionalism and Conflict Theory
Authors: Rusu Mihai Stelian
Published: November 2020

Street names are mundane spatial markers that besides providing a sense of orientation inscribe onto the landscape the ideological ethos and political symbols of hegemonic discourses. This review article takes stock of the existing scholarship done on the politics of street naming practices in human (political, cultural, and social) geography and rethinks these insights from sociological perspectives. Drawing on Randall Collins’ taxonomy of sociological theory, the paper interprets urban street nomenclatures along functionalist, conflictualist, constructionist, and utilitarian lines. The analysis is delivered in two installments: Part I addresses urban nomenclatures from functionalist and conflictualist perspectives, while Part II (published in the next issue of this journal) approaches street names as social constructions and examines their utilitarian value. In doing so, the paper advances the argument that urban namescapes in general and street names in particular should make an important object of sociological reflection and empirical analysis. It is one of the key arguments developed in this paper that toponymy encapsulates broader and intersecting issues of power, memory, identity, language, and space which can be rendered visible through sociological analysis.
Street Names through Sociological Lenses. Part II: Constructionism and Utilitarianism
Authors: Rusu Mihai Stelian
Published: November 2020

As toponymic means of inscribing urban space, street names have been addressed mainly by human geographers, who have articulated the field of critical place-name studies. In this paper, I continue the endeavor started in the previous issue published in Social Change Review of reading street names through sociological lenses. Whereas in the first part of this two-part contribution the analysis was made from functionalist and conflictualist perspectives, this second and final part employs social constructionism and the utilitarian theoretical tradition in making sociological sense of street nomenclatures. First, conceiving of street names as forming discursively constructed linguistic landscapes, the paper shows how urban namescapes – the “city-text” – are written, erased, and rewritten to reflect the shifting political powers. Second, the paper examines the neoliberal processes of place branding and toponymic commodification by which street names are turned into sought-after urban commodities with transactional value on the real estate market. The paper concludes by inviting sociologists to join the conversation on street names, which should become an important topic of sociological reflection.
Erythema Nodosum Associated with Staphylococcus Species Infection in a Child
Authors: Knezevic Sanja , Prodanovic Tijana , Radovanovic Marija , Prodanovic Nikola , Kostic Gordana
Published: November 2020

Erythema nodosum (EN) is a poly-etiological disease with an acute flow that is characterized by symmetric emergence of painful nodules often in pretibial areas. A twenty-month-old male child was admitted to hospital for evaluation of the eruptive skin changes in the lower extremities and forearms. The disease began 10 days before getting febricity and loose stools. The laboratory analysis showed an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate and leukocytosis. Blood cultures demonstrated the presence of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, while Proteus vulgaris was isolated in urine cultures. After initiation of the empiric antibiotic therapy and then, the targeted antibiotic therapy according to the antibiogram, there was a significant improvement in a general condition and regression of cutaneous lesions. Erythema nodosum in the present case, is the result of staphylococcal bacteremia although Proteus vulgaris cannot be excluded as a cause.
Changing Attitudes Towards Gender Equality in Switzerland (2000–2017): Period, Cohort and Life-Course Effects
Authors: Bornatici Christina , Gauthier Jacques-Antoine , Le Goff Jean-Marie
Published: November 2020

This paper investigates trends in Swiss women’s and men’s gender attitudes in the period 2000–2017 using the Swiss Household Panel data. Based on pooled OLS and fixed-effects models, we establish the following for women and men: (1) over this time period, attitudes towards gender roles become more egalitarian, while attitudes towards gender equality achievement remain stable; (2) the youngest cohort unexpectedly holds more traditional attitudes; and (3) individual attitudes change over the life course based on life events and the attitudes of one’s partner.
Vocabulary Learning Strategies of Italian-Turkish Bilingual Students: Impact of Simultaneous and Sequential Acquisition
Authors: Karacan Cemil Gökhan , Dikilitaş Kenan
Published: November 2020

Vocabulary learning strategy domain has been one of the areas of research in the language learning strategy field. Bilinguals use different language and vocabulary learning strategies than monolinguals (Hong-Nam & Leavell, 2007; Jessner, 1999). Even though there are numerous studies that investigate and compare monolingual, bilingual, and multilingual language learning strategy use, no studies have been conducted to compare the vocabulary learning strategy use in simultaneous and sequential bilinguals. This paper addresses this gap by investigating and comparing those strategies reported by Italian-Turkish simultaneous and sequential bilingual high school students with a total number of 103 participants, 34 of which are simultaneous bilinguals and the remaining 69 sequential bilinguals. The Vocabulary Learning Strategies Questionnaire (VLSQ) developed by Schmitt (1997) was utilized as the instrument of data collection. We found that simultaneous and sequential bilinguals (a) are medium to high level vocabulary strategy users, (b) report using social strategies the most, (c) do not differ considerably in their choice of vocabulary learning strategy type, but (d) differ substantially in their choices of metacognitive strategy use. The results offer implications for teachers and teacher educators particularly as to how they teach and support bilingual students’ vocabulary learning process in monolingual contexts.
Representations as Metalinguistic Macro-Awareness: An Experiment on 11–12 Years Old Greek Students within the Framework of Pluralistic Approaches
Authors: Krimpogianni Katerina
Published: November 2020

In order to transition from a monolingual foreign language course to a multilingual one, all the elements that are connected to students’ cognition should be taken into consideration in order to facilitate this shift. Working with classes of French as a Foreign Language involving 11–12 years old Greek students, our study revealed that by switching to multilingual teaching, students’ representations of language(s) start to emerge; these representations had in most cases been hidden, incoherent and fossilized in teaching monolingual classes. While considering metalinguistic awareness, a variable that is central to our research, as a prerequisite for resolving problems emerging in a multilingual educational context, this article seeks to show that the representations language learners make of themselves and their learning constitute metalinguistic reflection at a macro level, which may influence how metalinguistic awareness functions when performing multilingual tasks. This paper focuses on the processing of qualitative data: meta-discourse analysis of the learners participating in our study led us to establish a typology of representations that enabled us to highlight what aspects to focus on in the classroom so as to prepare students to reflect on language more intensively. This involved guiding learners towards modifying their representational framework, by addressing deficiencies and correcting their representations characterized as “unproductive”, in order to take full advantage of multilingual teaching/learning situations.
Pedagogic Corpus of Lithuanian: A New Resource for Learning and Teaching Lithuanian as a Foreign Language
Authors: Kovalevskaitė Jolanta , Rimkutė Erika
Published: November 2020

The paper aims to present the first pedagogic corpus of Lithuanian i.e. monolingual specialized corpus, prepared for learning and teaching Lithuanian in a foreign language classroom. The corpus has been collected as a result of the project “Lithuanian Academic Scheme for International Cooperation in Baltic Studies”. It is motivated by the need to have a more appropriate resource which could be representative, authentic and relevant enough concerning the process of learning and teaching Lithuanian as it is known that language represented in other existing corpora of Lithuanian (e.g. Corpus of Contemporary Lithuanian, 140 m tokens) is too complex to use for learning activities. The pedagogic corpus includes authentic Lithuanian texts, selected using such criteria as a learner-relevant communicative function and genre. Spoken language as well as written language are represented in the corpus. The size of the corpus is 669.000 tokens: 111.000 tokens from texts and spoken language for A1–A2 levels, 558.000 tokens from texts and spoken language for B1–B2 levels (according to the CEFR – Common European Framework of Reference for Languages). In this paper, we aim to discuss in detail the written subpart of the corpus (containing 620.000 tokens) which includes levelled texts from coursebooks and unlevelled texts from other sources. The level-appropriate labels were assigned automatically to the texts from other sources and this text classification procedure is presented in the paper. The texts from coursebooks and other sources could be classified into 29 text types (dialogs, narratives, information, etc.) and 4 groups according to the communicative aims: informational texts, educational texts, advertising and fiction. Informational texts comprise the biggest part of the corpus; three mostly represented text types differ in coursebook texts and other sources: the most common coursebook texts are informational, narratives, and dialogs (appr. 78% of all coursebook texts). Texts from other sources are represented with richer diversity – appr. 73% of all texts from this subpart can be classified into 5 text types: subtitles, informational texts, educational texts, fiction, and advisory texts. The future work making pedagogic corpus available for learners and its possible application are presented in the closing remarks.
Promotion of Student Autonomy in Learning the German Language. University Case Study
Authors: Žvaliauskienė Sidona
Published: November 2020

The concept of learner-centered teaching is very popular in modern foreign language didactics. Specialized literature emphasizes repeatedly how important it is to enable individual and self-directed learning processes and to support them with advice. It is obvious that autonomy can be seen as a key competence that is urgently needed in a constantly changing world of work. With the principles of learner orientation and learner autonomy, the roles of university lecturers and students are also changing. So it seems to be essential for lecturers to answer the following questions: Under what conditions can self-determined, efficient and successful foreign language learning take place in a university-learning environment? How much freedom students can or want to endure in a foreign language class? What are the limitations of learner-oriented teaching in foreign language classes? This article reports on the implementation of the pedagogical concepts of learner orientation and learner autonomy and shows why the use of the didactic principle of learner autonomy in universities is a challenging task for both teachers and learners. The statements are based on the insights gained during the BA seminar on contemporary German language at Kaunas Vytautas Magnus University.
Efectul moderator al angajamentului organizațional asupra relației dintre sursele de presiune si consecințele stresului, în cazul unei achiziții internaționale
Authors: Budean Andreea , Pitariu Horia
Published: November 2020

Mergers and acquisitions are corporate events with the potential of creating a high level of stress, with psychological, behavioural and physical consequences, raising problems to both: the functionality of the individuals and of their organizations. In the context of growth of foreign direct investments in Romania and the lack of researches conducted on this type of organizational combinations, this study aims to identify the main stressors associated with the acquisition of a Romanian company by a foreign investor and the moderating effect of organizational commitment of the stress â€“ outcomes relationship. The research was based on the stress model developed by Cartwright & Cooper (2002). The results revealed a moderate level of stress, moderate personal health and a low level of organizational commitment. We did not find support for the moderator role of organizational commitment on the stress-outcome relationship. Only the direct effect of stress on physical health and psychological wellbeing were supported. The hierarchical regression revealed that the perceived commitment of the organization toward its members moderates the stress - health relationship. We regard these results as optimistic, suggesting possibilities of managing the post-acquisition integration process in a manner that diminishes the negative consequences generally associated with these changes.
Modelul Big Five al personalității: abordări teoretice si modelarea empirică a unui chestionar standardizat
Authors: Macarie Alexandra , Constantin Ticu , Orzan Alina , Constantin Loredana , Fodorea Anca
Published: November 2020

The aim of the present study was designing a local standardized questionnaire for evaluating traits of personality, following the Big Five model. The questionnaire was built for applying in organizations and to resist social desirability. The theoretical background used in the construction of the questionnaire were part of the Big Five model for personality evaluation. The methods used in this study were specific to the construction and primary validation of a questionnaire: defining the factors, designing the items, verifying the content validity (expert testing). The constructed questionnaire was completed by 524 subjects from the general population. The results confirm the existence of five personality factors, as defined by the authors: sociability, incertitude, persistance, altruism and openness. These factors correspond to the 5 factors described in speciality literature. The study also analyzed the relations the five factors have with significant traits of personality measured by other psychological questionnaires which were applied along with our questionnaire (introversion - extraversion, emotional stability - neuroticism, originality, efficiency, conformism). We also described the differences between the scores for the five factors depending on age, gender, studies and income.
Reglarea emoțiilor si epuizarea profesională la angajații din sectorul servicii
Authors: Zaharia Daniela Victoria , Apostol Manuela Maria
Published: November 2020

The main objective of this paper is to explore the relations between emotional regulation and burnout among Romanian service employees, and to empirically validate the adequacy of emotional regulation model (Gross, 1998) to the emotional work paradigm. We were interested to clarify not only the relations among positive - negative affectivity of employees and their emotion regulation strategies (attention deployment, cognitive change and response modulation), but also the relations among these strategies and burnout. The empirical research was mainly based on questionnaires developed based on the previous literature in the field, and also on the data gathered directly from Romanian population. The results show that the positive affectivity of service employees relates to certain emotion regulation strategies and prevent burnout. Moreover, certain emotion regulation strategies also prevent burnout. In the end, some practical implications and directions for future research are discussed.
Managerial analysis and assessment of customs authorities' performance
Authors: Gupanova Yu.E. , Goremykina G.I.
Published: November 2020

Subject. The article considers the performance of the Federal Customs Service of Russia, methodology and management analysis of customs authorities’ activities, based on the proposed areas of assessment and generalized system of indicators. Objectives. We focus on developing the assessment and analysis of customs activities in key areas, using the intelligent modeling methods. Methods. The simulation rests on the knowledge technology in the fuzzy logic format. The Mamdani’s algorithm serves as a modeling algorithm. The computer implementation of the mathematical model is conducted, using the MATLAB Fuzzy Logic Toolbox. Results. The comparative analysis of the evolution of approaches to assessing activities of the customs authorities of the Russian Federation and a number of foreign countries unveiled trends and directions in the development of a methodology for assessment, taking into account the needs of all stakeholders. Using the intelligent measurement methodology, we created a mathematical model and implemented it as a computer simulation to assess delivering on objectives related to implementation of the fiscal function of customs authorities. Conclusions. The proposed methodology enables to quantify the performance in different areas of customs authorities' functionality and to make informed management decisions on the basis of the created information base.
Problems of financial support to State guarantees for free medical care under extreme conditions
Authors: Altynov Yu.А.
Published: November 2020

Subject. The article considers the mechanisms of the insurance model of domestic health financing from the perspective of readiness for extreme operating conditions caused by the spread of a new coronavirus infection.
Objectives. The purpose is to assess the financial sustainability of the Russian model of compulsory medical insurance in the fight against the pandemic, and propose measures to improve the financial support to State guarantees of free medical care.
Methods. I employ the methods of logical analysis, statistical analysis, comparison, and other general scientific methods.
Results. Extreme conditions caused by COVID 19 pandemic negatively affect the financial stability of healthcare organizations. However, the Russian version of compulsory medical insurance does not provide for any mechanisms to compensate for financial losses in case of economic instability. Thus, the debate about the need to return to the budgetary model of health care becomes particularly relevant in the new economic situation.
Conclusions. There is a need to modernize the key elements of the financial model of compulsory medical insurance in terms of increased transparency of tariff policy in payments for medical care, financial risk sharing, automation of operational processes in industry management, etc. It is also crucial to continue reforming the public health sector based on the patient-centered approach through strengthening the outpatient medical care, developing the telemedicine, introducing chronic disease management programs, etc.
Segmentation of retail bank customers for the purposes of modeling the loan claim default
Authors: Pavlova E.V. , Roskoshenko V.V.
Published: November 2020

Subject. In the banking practice, approaches to separate modeling of loan claim default (for new and repeat customers, for customers having and not having a history in the Credit Bureau, etc.) are widespread. Such a segmentation of retail bank customers may increase the efficiency of applied scoring system. The practical problem of choosing the optimal heuristic method of segmentation for the scoring remains unresolved.
Objectives. The purpose of this work is to determine the optimal heuristic method of segmentation from those that are known in the literature and the industry.
Methods. The study employs statistical analysis and content analysis of information sources.
Results. We compared over thirty heuristic methods for segmentation of retail bank customers. The comparison showed that according to the classifier of the efficiency metric (AUROC), our proposed segmentation by the disbursed loan size turned out to be optimal. The method consists in the ‘disbursed loan’ variable discretization under the TreeR method.
Conclusions and Relevance. The findings may be helpful in loan scoring and in any statistical modeling, using the logit regression.