Political Self-Understanding, Cultural Openness and Public Attitudes Towards Immigrants in Western Greece

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-145
Author(s):  
Theodoros Iosifides ◽  
Thanasis Kizos
Keyword(s):  
Intercultural Communication ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
General Public ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Balkan Countries ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Western Greece ◽  
Cultural Openness

The aim of this article is to present research findings from a study of public attitudes towards immigrants in the region of Western Greece (the vast majority of them from Balkan countries). Positive and negative attitudes towards immigrants in the region are correlated with political self-understanding (across the left-right spectrum) and cultural openness as reflected in attitudes towards different languages and religions and towards intercultural communication between immigrants and locals. The findings suggest that the degree of cultural openness is indeed related to the orientation of general public attitudes towards immigrants and that political self-understanding across the left-right spectrum remains relevant for explaining these attitudes. The study nevertheless found that there is only limited willingness to develop close social relationships with Balkan immigrants and that the degree of such willingness is not significantly correlated either with cultural openness or with political self-understanding. 

scholarly journals Public Perception of Artificial Intelligence in Medical Care: Content Analysis of Social Media (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuqing Gao ◽  
Lingnan He ◽  
Yue Chen ◽  
Dan Li ◽  
Kaisheng Lai
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Medical Care ◽  
General Public ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Data Set ◽  
The Public

BACKGROUND High-quality medical resources are in high demand worldwide, and the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in medical care may help alleviate the crisis related to this shortage. The development of the medical AI industry depends to a certain extent on whether industry experts have a comprehensive understanding of the public’s views on medical AI. Currently, the opinions of the general public on this matter remain unclear. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to explore the public perception of AI in medical care through a content analysis of social media data, including specific topics that the public is concerned about; public attitudes toward AI in medical care and the reasons for them; and public opinion on whether AI can replace human doctors. METHODS Through an application programming interface, we collected a data set from the Sina Weibo platform comprising more than 16 million users throughout China by crawling all public posts from January to December 2017. Based on this data set, we identified 2315 posts related to AI in medical care and classified them through content analysis. RESULTS Among the 2315 identified posts, we found three types of AI topics discussed on the platform: (1) technology and application (n=987, 42.63%), (2) industry development (n=706, 30.50%), and (3) impact on society (n=622, 26.87%). Out of 956 posts where public attitudes were expressed, 59.4% (n=568), 34.4% (n=329), and 6.2% (n=59) of the posts expressed positive, neutral, and negative attitudes, respectively. The immaturity of AI technology (27/59, 46%) and a distrust of related companies (n=15, 25%) were the two main reasons for the negative attitudes. Across 200 posts that mentioned public attitudes toward replacing human doctors with AI, 47.5% (n=95) and 32.5% (n=65) of the posts expressed that AI would completely or partially replace human doctors, respectively. In comparison, 20.0% (n=40) of the posts expressed that AI would not replace human doctors. CONCLUSIONS Our findings indicate that people are most concerned about AI technology and applications. Generally, the majority of people held positive attitudes and believed that AI doctors would completely or partially replace human ones. Compared with previous studies on medical doctors, the general public has a more positive attitude toward medical AI. Lack of trust in AI and the absence of the humanistic care factor are essential reasons why some people still have a negative attitude toward medical AI. We suggest that practitioners may need to pay more attention to promoting the credibility of technology companies and meeting patients’ emotional needs instead of focusing merely on technical issues.

scholarly journals Public Perception of Artificial Intelligence in Medical Care: Content Analysis of Social Media

10.2196/16649 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. e16649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuqing Gao ◽  
Lingnan He ◽  
Yue Chen ◽  
Dan Li ◽  
Kaisheng Lai
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Medical Care ◽  
General Public ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Data Set ◽  
The Public

Background High-quality medical resources are in high demand worldwide, and the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in medical care may help alleviate the crisis related to this shortage. The development of the medical AI industry depends to a certain extent on whether industry experts have a comprehensive understanding of the public’s views on medical AI. Currently, the opinions of the general public on this matter remain unclear. Objective The purpose of this study is to explore the public perception of AI in medical care through a content analysis of social media data, including specific topics that the public is concerned about; public attitudes toward AI in medical care and the reasons for them; and public opinion on whether AI can replace human doctors. Methods Through an application programming interface, we collected a data set from the Sina Weibo platform comprising more than 16 million users throughout China by crawling all public posts from January to December 2017. Based on this data set, we identified 2315 posts related to AI in medical care and classified them through content analysis. Results Among the 2315 identified posts, we found three types of AI topics discussed on the platform: (1) technology and application (n=987, 42.63%), (2) industry development (n=706, 30.50%), and (3) impact on society (n=622, 26.87%). Out of 956 posts where public attitudes were expressed, 59.4% (n=568), 34.4% (n=329), and 6.2% (n=59) of the posts expressed positive, neutral, and negative attitudes, respectively. The immaturity of AI technology (27/59, 46%) and a distrust of related companies (n=15, 25%) were the two main reasons for the negative attitudes. Across 200 posts that mentioned public attitudes toward replacing human doctors with AI, 47.5% (n=95) and 32.5% (n=65) of the posts expressed that AI would completely or partially replace human doctors, respectively. In comparison, 20.0% (n=40) of the posts expressed that AI would not replace human doctors. Conclusions Our findings indicate that people are most concerned about AI technology and applications. Generally, the majority of people held positive attitudes and believed that AI doctors would completely or partially replace human ones. Compared with previous studies on medical doctors, the general public has a more positive attitude toward medical AI. Lack of trust in AI and the absence of the humanistic care factor are essential reasons why some people still have a negative attitude toward medical AI. We suggest that practitioners may need to pay more attention to promoting the credibility of technology companies and meeting patients’ emotional needs instead of focusing merely on technical issues.

Gay Marriage Affiliation and Location in Return of Lost Letters: Reply to Waugh, Plake, and Rienzi (2000)

2001 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 316-318
Author(s):  
F. Stephen Bridges
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Gay Marriage ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Previous Conclusion

Reinspection of Waugh, Plake, and Rienzi's 2000 data allowed for several additional analyses. Statistical confirmation was found for no more negative attitudes toward gay marriage as measured by returned responses among churchgoers than among the general public. Confirmation was also found for their previous conclusion that the putative gay marriage controversy among Christian church attendees would be greater than among the general public, but for reasons different from those they proposed. Finally, it is argued that the limitations for the lost letter technique in “prohibiting fine distinctions” is not always correct because their analysis of one research question seemed not too subtle a distinction for the technique.

scholarly journals Doctors’ maintenance of professional competence: a qualitative study informed by the theory of planned behaviour

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anél Wiese ◽  
Emer Galvin ◽  
Janet O’Farrell ◽  
Jantze Cotter ◽  
Deirdre Bennett
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Theory Of Planned Behaviour ◽  
Professional Competence ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Planned Behaviour ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Meaningful Engagement

Abstract Background Medical regulators worldwide have implemented programmes of maintenance of professional competence (MPC) to ensure that doctors, throughout their careers, are up to date and fit to practice. The introduction of MPC required doctors to adopt a range of new behaviours. Despite high enrolment rates on these programmes, it remains uncertain whether doctors engage in the process because they perceive benefits like improvements in their practice and professional development or if they solely meet the requirements to retain medical registration. In this study, we aimed to explore the relationship between doctors’ beliefs, intention and behaviour regarding MPC through the lens of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to make explicit the factors that drive meaningful engagement with the process. Methods We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. From a pool of 1258 potential participants, we purposively selected doctors from multiple specialities, age groups, and locations across Ireland. We used thematic analysis, and the TPB informed the analytic coding process. Results Forty-one doctors participated in the study. The data analysis revealed doctors’ intention and behaviour and the factors that shape their engagement with MPC. We found that attitudes and beliefs about the benefits and impact of MPC mediated the nature of doctors’ engagement with the process. Some participants perceived positive changes in practice and other gains from participating in MPC, which facilitated committed engagement with the process. Others believed MPC was unfair, unnecessary, and lacking any benefit, which negatively influenced their intention and behaviour, and that was demonstrated by formalistic engagement with the process. Although participants with positive and negative attitudes shared perceptions about barriers to participation, such perceptions did not over-ride strongly positive beliefs about the benefits of MPC. While the requirements of the regulator strongly motivated doctors to participate in MPC, beliefs about patient expectations appear to have had less impact on intention and behaviour. Conclusions The findings of this study broaden our understanding of the determinants of doctors’ intention and behaviour regarding MPC, which offers a basis for designing targeted interventions. While the barriers to engagement with MPC resonate with previous research findings, our findings challenge critical assumptions about enhancing doctors’ engagement with the process. Overall, our results suggest that focused policy initiatives aimed at strengthening the factors that underpin the intention and behaviour related to committed engagement with MPC are warranted.

scholarly journals Public Attitudes Toward People With Intellectual Disabilities After Viewing Olympic or Paralympic Performance

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Ferrara ◽  
Jan Burns ◽  
Hayley Mills
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
People With Disabilities ◽  
Term Effect ◽  
Attitudes Toward Disability ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Positive Direction ◽  
People With Intellectual Disabilities

Despite some changes to the way that people with intellectual disabilities (ID) are viewed in society, negative attitudes prevail. One of the aspirations of the 2012 Paralympic games was to influence the public’s attitudes toward people with disabilities. The aim of this study was to investigate whether stimuli depicting people with ID performing at Paralympic level of competition change attitudes toward ID. A mixed randomized comparison design was employed comparing 2 groups: those who viewed Paralympic-level ID sport footage and information and those who viewed Olympic footage and information. One hundred fourteen students, mean age 25 yr, were administered measures of implicit (subconscious) attitudes toward disability and explicit (belief-based) attitudes toward ID. Implicit attitudes significantly changed in a positive direction for both groups. The findings provide evidence that both Paralympic (ID) and Olympic media coverage may have at least a short-term effect on attitudes toward people with disabilities.

Winning hearts & minds (!)

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (6) ◽  
pp. 819-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Efe Tokdemir
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Aid ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Regime Type ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Policy Tool ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Individual

Foreign aid is a policy tool implemented with the purpose of fostering both hard and soft power abroad. Yet, previous research has not probed the effects of US foreign aid on public attitudes toward the US in the recipient countries. In this article, I argue that US foreign aid may actually feed anti-Americanism: aid indirectly creates winners and losers in the recipient countries, such that politically discontented people may blame the US for the survival of the prevailing regime. Drawing on Pew Research for Global Attitudes and on USAID Greenbook datasets, I focus on determining both the conditions under which foreign aid exacerbates anti-Americanism and the type of aid most likely to do this. The findings reveal that political losers of the recipient countries are more likely to express negative attitudes toward the USA as the amount of US aid increases, whereas political winners enjoy the results of US aid and view the USA positively accordingly. Moreover, the effect of US aid on attitudes toward the USA is also conditional on the regime type. While US aid increases the likelihood of anti-American attitudes among the losers in non-democratic countries, it decreases the likelihood of anti-Americanism among the losers in democratic ones. This article has important implications for policy in terms of determining how and to whom to provide aid in the context of the possible ramifications of providing aid at the individual level.

scholarly journals Analysis of the Impact of Macroeconomic Stability on the Level of Global Competitiveness of Western Balkan Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-37
Author(s):  
Nikola Milović ◽  
Mijat Jocović ◽  
Nikola Martinović
Keyword(s):  
Strong Impact ◽  
Group Company ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Complex Concept ◽  
Balkan Countries ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Global Competitiveness Index ◽  
National Economies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Macroeconomic Stability

Abstract Competitiveness, as a complex concept, can be observed in different ways, from the perspective of an individual, group, company and/or state. The subject of this paper deals with competitiveness of national economies observed through factor analysis, with a particular focus on the level of macroeconomic stability. Through the application of the Analytical-Hierarchical Process (AHP) method, special attention has been paid to the comparative ranking of Western Balkan countries. The ranking has been made in relation to macroeconomic stability and the positions of countries in the ranking of the World Economic Forum, based on the Global Competitiveness Index, for three defined periods of time. The paper identifies key factors that affect the competitiveness of Western Balkan countries. Research findings show that macroeconomic stability has a strong impact on the level of global competitiveness of national economies.

scholarly journals The Impact of Characteristics of Immigrant Offenders on Attitudes Towards Immigrant Crime

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-71
Author(s):  
Mateja Vuk ◽  
Dalibor Doležal ◽  
Ena Jovanović
Keyword(s):  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Punitive Attitudes ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
The Public ◽  
Minority Threat ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Threat Theory ◽  
Research Show

Minority threat theory and existing research show that public attitudes towards certain types of offenders (e.g. ethnic and racial minorities) are often more punitive. Research also reveals that a significant proportion of the public associates the increase of immigration with higher crime rates. Negative attitudes, as well as an overall anti-immigration sentiment, have been increasing internationally. Therefore, we hypothesise that the public will have more negative and punitive attitudes towards immigrant offenders than towards citizens. Using a sample of students from the University of Zagreb, this research tested the above-mentioned hypothesis and explored whether factors like immigration status, ethnic identity, type of offense, and the age of the hypothetical offender impact student attitude on immigrant crime. To test this proposition, we used online surveys with factorial vignettes. The results show that participants ask for harsher sentences for undocumented immigrants, but immigrant status and the national origin of the immigrant are not associated with the perception of recidivism, dangerousness, or criminal typicality of offender.

scholarly journals Human and long-tailed macaque conflict in Central Java, Indonesia

2020 ◽  
Vol 202 ◽  
pp. 06011
Author(s):  
Wahyuni Fitria ◽  
Azis Nur Bambang ◽  
Jafron Wasiq Hidayat
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
Negative Attitudes ◽  
Crop Pest ◽  
Central Java ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Human Conflict ◽  
Determinant Factor ◽  
People’S Perceptions

Long-tailed macaques are highly adaptive in various types of habitats. Their behaviour who are accustomed to living in groups with specific activities greatly affects the home range in getting food. They have ecological and cultural values for a particular community; unfortunately, it was well known as an agricultural crop pest. Quality of the habitat to be one determinant factor of macaques disruptions. The purposes of the study are to understand the conditions of conflict humans and macaques in Central Java that used as a reference in determining solutions. Data analyzed descriptively from various reports and research findings. The data collected identified from 2011 to 2019. Disturbance of long-tailed macaque in Central Java occurs at least 15 regencies with the population reaching thousands of individuals of damage to crops and even enter settlements. The macaque's behaviour that is considered detrimental causes conflicts with humans which at the end, creating various handling efforts ranging from expulsion to hunting. Some research findings show that people's perceptions of wild animals will affect efforts to resolve or mitigate the problem of human conflict with wildlife and negative attitudes can cause adverse effects for conservation efforts.

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