Towards a Strengths-Based Personal Informatics Framework for Transformative Tourism Experiences: A Phenomenological Study on Serious Leisure Practitioners

Personal technology plays an integral role in shaping people’s quality of life which includes leisure and tourism experiences. A number of personal informatics tools can support people in performing their activities by collecting biometric and environmental data; however, little is known regarding the use of psychological data to enrich leisure and tourism experiences. To address this research gap, this study aims to propose a conceptual framework that fosters memorable and meaningful leisure experiences (MMEs) based on theories from serious leisure and positive psychology. In particular, this study probes into the MMEs of serious leisure practitioners who put their efforts and resources into pursuing intrinsically rewarding leisure activities. Excelling at these activities, which may draw upon participants’ character strengths, yields sustained fulfillment which fosters personal transformation. The idiosyncratic nature of MMEs demands a phenomenological inquiry that involves in-depth interviews concerning the character strengths used and their development trajectories. Using theory triangulation from both positive psychology and serious leisure allows researchers to gain a holistic view of participants’ well-being. Character strengths were found to be the integral factors that contribute to MMEs at different stages of leisure activities. The result identified three aspects of strengths used: strengths well spent, reflection and introspection, and anticipation of the future self, which informs the development of a strengths-based personal informatics framework for leisure and tourism.

Crisis in the Tar Sands: Fossil Capitalism and the Future of the Alberta Hydrocarbon Economy

Using a case study of Alberta, Canada, this paper demonstrates how a geographic critique of fossil capitalism helps elucidate the tensions shaping tar sands development. Conflicts over pipelines and Indigenous territorial claims are challenging development trajectories, as tar sands companies need to expand access to markets in order to expand production. While these conflicts are now well recognised, there are also broader dynamics shaping development. States face a rentier’s dilemma, relying on capital investments to realise resource value. Political responses to the emerging climate crisis undercut the profitability of hydrocarbon extraction. The automation of production undermines the industrial compromise between hydrocarbon labour and capital. Ultimately, the crises of fossil capitalism require a radical transformation within or beyond capital relations. To mobilise against the tar sands, organisers must recognise the tensions underpinning it, developing strategies that address ecological concerns and the economic plight of those dispossessed and abandoned by carbon extraction.

The Comparison and Exploration of the Subject Difference between Lamentations and Lament of Capital Ying

Lamentations and lament of capital Ying are models of city lament in ancient Hebrew-and Chinese classical literary traditions respectively. A comparative study shows that there are significant subject difference between lamentations and lament of capital Ying . Lamentations is the collective works, and its compilation and inheritance function as emotional expression of sufferings of the past, present and future of the Jewish people, reflecting their infinite belief of transcendent God . In contrast, lament of capital Ying is the creation of Qu Yuan, and under the influence of the sage's commitment to the mandate of heaven by his individual virtue. The poetry expresses Qu Yuan’s personal grief through a special literary technique and its succession and experience in later generations are mainly individual. The subject difference of two poetry is a reflection of different development trajectories of the humans-transcendent relationship in Hebrew- and the Chinese civilizations of the Axial Age.

TENDENCIES IN SETTLEMENT PLANNING IN LIGHT OF THE IDEA OF ‘A VILLAGE IN A PARK SPACE’ IN THE OGRODZIENIEC MUNICIPALITY

This paper discusses the planning and spatial transformation of the municipality of Ogrodzieniec in the context of the idea of ‘a village in a park space’. The rural area of the Ogrodzieniec municipality has undergone significant landscape transitions over the past several decades. The dynamic development of single-family housing has generated the greatest amount of functio-spatial and compositional and landscape problems. The idea of ‘a village in a park space’ is to counter these negative development trajectories. It defines general perspectives of rural area development in a spirit of sustainable development.

Proposals of European Citizens for Reviving the Future of Shrinking Areas

Shrinkage, depopulation and the related structural decline threaten development trajectories of more than a quarter of European territories from the present until 2050. In April 2021, the European Commission has launched the Conference on the Future of Europe to involve citizens and players beyond the traditional actors in shaping future policy agendas. The initiative consists of a wide-scale citizen engagement policy offering them a digital framework to actively contribute to the most relevant debates from April to December 2021. Given that shrinkage is a neglected theme in traditional policy arenas, this article examines the proposals of European citizens for reviving the future of shrinking areas. Through content analysis, the article highlights a limited relative presence of shrinkage in the Conference debate. Nevertheless, the results offer insights into the thematic concentration and the affinity of shrinkage with the most popular policy debates. The article also discusses the content of citizens’ ideas for the future of shrinking areas, thus offering concrete proposals that may fuel the definition of future policy agendas.

Assimilation and Accommodation

This research provides a systematic overview of psychological areas using assimilation and accommodation to explain development and adaptation processes from 1998 to 2018. We primarily aimed to identify the main psychological research areas connected to assimilation and accommodation. We used assimilation and accommodation as keywords to extract data from SpringerLink, PsycINFO, and PsycARTICLES. Of 500 articles, 473 were included in the analysis. Ten categories were identified to allow systematization along with different research areas and development trajectories. The meanings of these terms were analyzed in terms of scientific impact, their connection to Piaget and Baldwin, application, and research methods. Our analysis has distilled the most driving and scientifically relevant approaches to assimilation and accommodation within psychological research, with the work of Baldwin and Piaget influencing practically all views. Thus, we have identified a common understanding of assimilation and accommodation, although the direction of the adaptation process should be made explicit in the future. Based on our analyses, we were able to identify white spots on the research map that should be focused on in future work: the need to better understand the interdependence and synchronicity of both processes, the connection to affects and emotions, and the potential co-research with artificial intelligence.

DIRECTOR’S INTERPRETATION OF KAZAKH DANCE: DEVELOPMENT TRAJECTORIES IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF CREATIVITY

The study investigates the director’s interpretations of Kazakh dance in the perspective of creativity on the example of works dated the last quarter of the 20th – early 21st century to determine the choreography’s development vectors with taking into account the aspect of creativity. This research is based on the small and large dance performances analysis. The study relevance lies in the fact that it can become a tool for determining the expression level of the national aspect in Kazakh dance art. The results of the study show the role of creativity in the dance education and its ffectiveness in the development of Kazakh dance art. This tool is necessary for the choreographer’s worldview theoretical analysis and his/her dance interpretation, for the Kazakh choreography subsequent enrichment, and preservation of Kazakh historical identity.