scholarly journals Boundaries From Borders: Cross-Border Relationships in the Context of the Mental Perception of a Borderline – Experiences from Spanish-French and Polish-German Border Twin Towns

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwona Markuszewska ◽  
Minna Tanskanen ◽  
Josep Vila Subirós
Keyword(s):  
Social Bonds ◽  
Principal Point ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Common Space ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Living Together ◽  
The Common ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Mental Perception

Abstract In this paper, the borderlands, in the context of the psychological perception of frontiers, were presented. The common relationships between different nationalities living in border twin towns was a principal point of analysis. During the investigation two main research questions were asked: Is a frontier a barrier or a bridge in the common relationships between nationalities living on both sides of the borderline? and Does the trans-border casual social integration stimulate openness to neighbours? The study was conducted in two double towns: la Jonquera (Els límits) - Le Perthus at the Spanish-French border and Słubice - Frankfurt-am-Oder at the Polish-German border. The data were gathered from surveys by questioning locals and visitors during street polling. The design of the questionnaire included three main groups of questions relating to: 1) the perception of the borderline and the role of the border twin towns, 2) the attitude towards neighbours and identification with the borderlands, and 3) the future of the borderline in the context of the twin towns existence and cross-border linkages. The results showed that the historical circumstances and cultural background play a crucial role in the current bilateral interrelations between nations sharing the common space of the twin towns. These two aspects of the borderland have an influence on the psychological perception of the border that creates mental boundaries in local societies. However, as the results proved, the necessity of living together pushed locals to be more open-minded, which as a consequence supported the establishment of social bonds.

scholarly journals The bodily community. The gesture and the rhythm as manners of the living-together

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-23
Author(s):  
Maricica Munteanu
Keyword(s):  
Personal Identity ◽  
The Body ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Formal Approach ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Common Space ◽  
Ethical Debate ◽  
Living Together ◽  
Common Practices ◽  
The Common

The present article explores the collective imaginary of the cenacle, referring to the case of Viața românească literary group from Iași, focussing on the bodily community and its representations in the common space, understood as space-in-common. This approach shifts the interest from the ideological component that is the ‘poporanism’, as promoted by Viața românească revue, to the ethical and social aspects of the community. This does not mean that the bodily community is “more real” than the ideological community, or that it translates with fidelity the common practices of the cenacle; the bodily community is in fact another form of representation, a phantasm of the living-together, analysed through Roland Barthes’s theory as the space where solitude and sociability coexist. The corporal representations of the community, always engaged in an ethical debate, is further discussed through two manners of the living-together: the gesture and the rhythm. The theoretical reference of this analysis is Marielle Macéʼs book Styles. Critique de nos formes de vie, which proposes a formal approach of life, concentrating on the ethical implications. The issues derived from this sort of reading state the relation between the body and the environment, the vicinities and the somatic interactions between the members of the cenacle, the adjustment of distances, and the maintenance of solitude inside the community. The gestures, attitudes, behaviour, verbal and non-verbal tics, clothing, the manners of speech or the rhythm of doing certain things are seen not as marks of personal identity that positions itself inside the spaces of power, but as collective signs, as form of encounter and interaction, of exposure to the others but also responsiveness of the others, of expropriation as well as appropriation, of affirmation as well as alteration of the forms of life.

scholarly journals Breaking Boundaries: Pressing Issues in Equity, Computing, and Problem-Solving in STEM Undergraduate Education

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-12
Author(s):  
Anna Bargagliotti ◽  
Dorothea Herreiner ◽  
Jefrey A. Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Undergraduate Education ◽  
National Science Foundation ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Science Technology ◽  
The Common ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Education Conference

The April 2017 National Science Foundation-funded Breaking the Boundaries in STEM Education conference brought together Southern California science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) faculty to explore equity, problem-solving, and computing in an interdisciplinary manner. Two main research questions guided the overall scope of the conference: (1) What are the common threads across disciplines to approach the teaching and learning of skills that are relevant in STEM? (2) What are the challenges and barriers that need to be overcome in order to foster collaboration across disciplines to impact the teaching and learning of skills relevant in STEM? We describe the background of the conference and provide an overview of the questions addressed.

Strengths of Online Travel Agencies From the Perspective of the Digital Tourist

2019 ◽  
pp. 187-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mercedes Marzo-Navarro ◽  
Carmen Berne-Manero ◽  
María Gómez-Campillo ◽  
Marta Pedraja-Iglesias
Keyword(s):  
Distribution System ◽  
Mobile Technologies ◽  
Theoretical Discussion ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Literature Reviews ◽  
Travel Agencies ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
Online Travel Agencies

Recent tourism literature reviews the movement of the current distribution landscape toward disintermediation as the Internet and mobile technologies provide consumers with more and more tools for researching suppliers/providers and purchasing products and services directly. This calls into question the necessity and role of retailers in the industry. Focusing on online travel agencies (OTAs), this chapter is aimed at solving three main research questions: What is the current position of online tourism retailers as indirect channels in the online tourism distribution system? What are the strengths of OTAs as seen by their customers? and How should OTAs face the future? A database drawn from a survey of Spanish digital tourists is used to illustrate the initial theoretical discussion and concluding remarks.

Cabinet Decision-making in Parliamentary Systems

2020 ◽  
pp. 437-459
Author(s):  
Michelangelo Vercesi
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Power Distribution ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Prime Ministers ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Collective Decisions ◽  
Parliamentary Systems ◽  
Research Questions

This chapter deals with the internal decision-making process of political executives in parliamentary systems, that is, how executives take their own collective decisions. The focus is on the cabinet system as a whole, including both cabinet members and other involved party-political and bureaucratic actors. In particular, the chapter reviews literature’s debates about the nature of cabinet government, the role of prime ministers, and variations of decision-making. A special attention is payed to factors explaining intra-cabinet power distribution and the choice of different decision-making arenas. After introducing the topic, an overview of conceptual issues and main research questions is provided. Subsequently, the work discusses the way in which scholars have addressed these issues and the findings they have reached. The final part stresses existing deficits and seeks to set the agenda for future research.

scholarly journals Intuitive Feeling of Closeness to Solution Preceding Insight in Anagram Tasks

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 16-23
Author(s):  
Alexey Medyntsev ◽  
◽  
Alena Kogan ◽  
Pavel Sabadosh ◽  
Olga Dyatlova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Analytical Solutions ◽  
Visual Features ◽  
Final Solution ◽  
Unconscious Processing ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Successful Solution ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
The Difference

One of the main research questions related to creativity is the dilemma of specificity vs. non-specificity of the mechanisms underlying insight solutions as compared to analytical solutions of a problem. The first goal of our study was to verify insight solution specificity on solving anagram tasks. The second goal was to test a hypothesis about the existence of unconscious processing prior to insight solutions. We presented two types of stimuli to participants: anagrams and pseudowords. During the experiment, participants had to perform two successive tasks. First they had to judge whether they were being shown an anagram or a pseudoword, and then they had to solve the anagram. Anagrams and pseudowords differed in some visual features, of which the participants were not aware. It was expected that unconscious processing (if it exists) would be influenced by the implicit difference between the appearance of stimulus categories. During the solving process, participants had to rate how close they were to a solution. After a successful solution, they also had to indicate which way they found it: analytically or with insight. Our results showed that prior to an insight solution, participants felt that they were farther from the final solution than in the case of an analytical solution. These results confirm Metcalfe and Wiebe’s (1987) conclusions on the difference between insight and analytical solutions. According to these data, we can propose different specific mechanisms for insight solutions and analytical solutions in anagram tasks. At the same time, the presence of visual differences between stimulus categories did not influence the anagram solving process. The current results did not show evidence for an important role of unconscious processing before insight solutions of anagrams

THE ROLE OF MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF OPERATIONAL CAPITAL GROUPS FROM HIGH AND LOW TECHNOLOGY SECTORS

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 37-51
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Melnarowicz
Keyword(s):  
Mergers And Acquisitions ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
High Technology ◽  
Specific Role ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Questions

This article presents the analyses the role of M&A transactions in the development of operational capital groups from the perspective of high and low technology sectors. Two main research questions were asked: 1. what is the role of M&A in the development and competitiveness of operational capital groups; 2. is there specificity in the role of M&A transactions of operational capital groups in high and low technology sectors? The purpose of this article is to tentatively find, based on two case studies, the specific role of mergers and acquisitions in the development of operational capital groups in low and high technology sectors. In order to initially answer the questions asked, two case studies, one each from the high-tech and low-tech sectors, were conducted. Finally, it was recommended that a larger study be conducted on operational capital groups, which could confirm the validity of the preliminary answers to the research questions asked.

The Dynamics of Brokering in Second Generation Transnationalism

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armand Gutierrez
Keyword(s):  
Mexican Americans ◽  
Second Generation ◽  
Home Country ◽  
Filipino Americans ◽  
Interpersonal Contact ◽  
Cross Border ◽  
Transnational Ties ◽  
The Common ◽  
Linguistic Proficiency

Abstract This study uses the concept of brokerage to explain how the transnational ties of the children of migrants born in the host country, i.e., the second generation, are initiated and sustained. By examining second generation Mexican- and Filipino-Americans, two groups that differ in linguistic proficiency, geographical proximity to the home country, and interpersonal contact with nonmigrants, this study highlights the common role of a broker for both groups. These findings also reveal the ways in which second generation ties can differ. The second generation utilized middleman brokerage, in which a broker is present throughout each connection; and catalyst brokerage, in which a broker facilitates only the initial ties. Overall, these forms of brokerage were shaped by the type of cross-border connection, linguistic proficiency, interpersonal contact, and emotional attachments between nonmigrants and the second generation. While Filipino-Americans in the sample generally required a middleman broker to be present throughout each connection, Mexican-Americans had a greater capacity to eventually engage in dyadic connections. Given the triadic nature of connections, cross-border ties were shaped and limited by the capacities and emotional attachments of those in the ancestral homeland, immigrant brokers, and the second generation.

scholarly journals Living Together as Neighbours: Rethinking the Reasonableness Standard in Nuisance Law Under the Constitution

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Tina Kotzé ◽  
Zsa-Zsa Boggenpoel
Keyword(s):  
Common Law ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Narrow Sense ◽  
Underlying Principle ◽  
Living Together ◽  
The Common ◽  
Nuisance Law ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Relationship

The Covid-19 pandemic, with its concomitant "stay at home" catchphrase, has certainly made living together as neighbours in a constitutional dispensation more tangible. Conflicts between neighbours will inevitably increase, especially in a time when citizens from different social, cultural, customary or religious backgrounds and with different rights and interests are restricted to the boundaries of their properties as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic has provided us with the impetus to reflect upon the notion of "reasonableness" in neighbour law, particularly nuisance law in the narrow sense. In this context the role of neighbour law is ordinarily to regulate the relationship between neighbours. Therefore, neighbour law is crucial in that it resolves conflicts that arise between neighbours due to their everyday use of their properties. Whether the nuisance is objectively reasonable or goes beyond that which can be reasonably tolerable under the circumstances requires weighing up various factors dependant on the prevailing circumstances, rights, interests, values and obligations of the neighbours and the community. In the constitutional dispensation, based on the values of human dignity, equality, and freedom, this may inadvertently require courts to balance out and reconcile often opposing constitutional rights. To this end the underlying principle of nuisance law encapsulated in the phrases "give and take" and "live and let live" arguably already encapsulates the notion of balancing respective rights (constitutional or otherwise) and interests given the context of each case. However, courts do not always correctly apply the reasonableness test in a principled and coherent fashion, as illustrated in Ellaurie v Madrasah Taleemuddeen Islamic Institute 2021 2 SA 163 (KZD). This may lead to the conclusion that constitutional rights are ignored when the reasonableness test for nuisance law is applied. It is necessary to reconceptualise the reasonableness test in order to ensure that the common law is infused with constitutional values. There are numerous ways in which the ideals and values of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (and even specific constitutional rights other than property rights) could be advanced if courts were more willing (not being held back by conservatism) and able (equipped with the necessary vocabulary) to apply the common law in line with the Constitution. It is pivotal that courts apply the reasonableness test correctly, considering all the relevant circumstances of the case, including the broader constitutional values and ideals such as ubuntu. It is arguable that if this were done, nuisance law would have a greater potential to incorporate a wider range of rights, interests and values so that the outcomes would be fairer and more equitable, which is, after all, the goal of the reasonableness standard in neighbour law.

The Role of IT in Family Firm Internalization Through Strategic Alliances

2006 ◽  
pp. 170-202
Author(s):  
Alfonso Miguel Marquez-Garcia ◽  
Guadalupe Fuentes-Lombardo ◽  
Sebastián Bruque-Camara
Keyword(s):  
Strategic Alliances ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Future Trends ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Impact On Family ◽  
Role Of It ◽  
Near Future ◽  
Technological Integration

In this chapter we analyze the potential impact of information technology (IT) on the internationalization processes of family firms via cooperation agreements. With this in mind, we address the main research questions concerning the management of family firms and internationalization processes via strategic alliances. Subsequently, we carry out an analysis to determine IT’s impact on family firms’ internationalization processes. Our conclusions and the future trends that we observe suggest that family firms should undertake a series of internal adjustments in order to exploit, with more possibility of success, the changes resulting from the technological integration processes that can be expected in the near future.

scholarly journals Exploring the International Food Safety Authorities Network as a Community of Practice: Results from a Global Survey ofNetwork Members

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Joseph Savelli ◽  
Céu Mateus
Keyword(s):  
Food Safety ◽  
Community Of Practice ◽  
Foodborne Illness ◽  
Support Network ◽  
Global Network ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Functional Community ◽  
Research Questions

The International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) is a global network of national food safety authorities from 190 countries, managed jointly by FAO and WHO, which facilitates the rapid exchange of information during food safety incidents. Until now, INFOSAN has never been characterized or examined as a functional community of practice and its value, as understood from the perspective of its members, has never been determined in a systematic or rigorous way.The purpose of this study is to explore and describe the experiences and opinions of INFOSAN members to better understand the role of the network in improving food safety and mitigating the burden of foodborne illness globally. There are four main research questions: 1) How is the INFOSAN Community Website being used to support network activities? 2) What are the barriers to active participation in INFOSAN? 3) Do INFOSAN members believe that participation in the network prevents foodborne illness and saves lives? 4) Does participation in INFOSAN create value for members and if so, through what mechanisms does this occur?To answer these questions, an online questionnaire was developed and adapted from English into French and Spanish before being disseminated to INFOSAN members. Responses were received from 239 INFOSAN members in 137 countries over a 10-week period between August and October 2019.This study represents the first ever to explore and describe the experiences of INFOSAN members with respect to their participation in network activities to improve global food safety and prevent foodborne diseases and to describe the characteristics of INFOSAN as a community of practice. The results suggest that INFOSAN is a valued tool, utilized globally to reduce the burden of foodborne illness and save lives. The INFOSAN Secretariat could utilize the results to prioritize future activities to further strengthen the network and support participation of members.

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