TYPOLOGY OF PROFESSIONAL DEFICITS AMONG TEACHERS IN THE KRASNOYARSK TERRITORY

Statement of the problem. The authors consider the assessment of teachers’ professional deficits as a key problem. The expanded interpretation of deficits and assessment systems interfere with the real qualitative professional level of teachers and do not allow them to predict, plan and implement the necessary actions and activities that are aimed at professional development. The purpose of the article is to construct a typology of professional teacher deficits based on cluster analysis in the context of municipalities of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Methodology (materials and methods). The article was prepared with the support of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Foundation for the Support of Scientific and Technical Activities in the framework of the project “Comprehensive study of professional deficits and difficulties among teachers of the Krasnoyarsk Territory”. The authors define professional deficits as a disadvantage (limitation) in professional competence that hinders the effective implementation of professional actions. Based on a questionnaire survey of 3,375 teachers of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, a typology of professional deficits is built using factor and cluster analysis. Research results. Empirically, 13 groups of municipalities have been identified for which an appropriate profile has been established for 15 factors. The obtained profiles characterize each combined group by the professional deficits of teachers who are differentiated relative to clusters. Conclusions. The results obtained significantly specify the connections and establish latent stable characteristics. The revealed typology shows the characteristic features of the model of professional teacher deficits in the context of municipalities. The use of the data obtained contributes to the development of a qualitative system for improving the qualifications of teachers.

Segmentation of Social Media Users for Destinations

This is a study into the segmentation of social media users interested in traveling into groups and aims to ascertain if differences exist in benefits among segments. It is based on a survey that examines the benefits they see social media as having before, during, and after a trip to a destination, using their responses to generate a data-driven segmentation. Data from a total of 218 questionnaires were analyzed using factor and cluster analysis in sequence, specifically applying a hierarchical cluster analysis using the Ward method and a K-means algorithm. The analysis led to the identification of four useful types of social media user: info-seeker, communication-seeker, interaction-seeker, and hybrid segments, each of which seeks different things from social media and use it in different ways (e.g., to seek information, to see what other people have said about a destination, or to post their own experiences). As such, the implications of our findings offer useful insights for both scholars and destination marketers, highlighting the significance of offering appropriate marketing strategies for each type of segment.

Factors affecting the purchase behaviour of farmers’ markets consumers

The main purpose of this study is to determine the factors that motivate consumers who shop at farmers’ markets. The data for this study were gathered from questionnaires of 363 consumers from eight farmers’ markets in seven districts of Izmir province, Turkey. To reveal the consumer profile of the farmers’ markets examined in this study, consumer segments were determined using factor and cluster analysis. Two different consumer segments—‘conventional’ and ‘conscious’—were identified in the farmers’ markets examined. ‘Conventional Consumers’ reflect typical consumer behaviours and give more importance to factors such as the location of and access to the market, quality and freshness of the products, activities at and around the market and the availability and variety of products. ‘Conscious Consumers’, in contrast, represent a group that is more sensitive about food safety. The majority of consumers (63.64%) who visited farmers’ markets were from the Conscious Consumer segment. The majority of the consumers who visit farmers’ markets are conscious consumers, requiring the strategies related to these markets to be revised. Farmers’ markets should be improved in terms of selecting vendors, food safety, physical facilities and social activities.

Students' Preferences in Visual Consumption on Instagram as the Basis for the University PR-strategy

In the mediatized society, traditional institutions, specifically high school, are included into economic and communicational competition. They face the necessity to communicate with their publicities by new unfamiliar means, like Instagram, and sometimes fail this challenge because of poor strategy preparation. The present study addresses the issue of incongruity between the visual communication of a higher education organization (Karazin Kharkiv National University as the case) and its young audience’s preferences in visual consumption. To gain a deeper understanding of the real and potential students’ preferences, an online survey was conducted. Data analysis included distributions, means, factor and cluster analysis. As a result, we identified the favorite patterns of photos and their perception, segmented the audience on Instagram by practices of picture evaluation. All this allowed proposing the strategical recommendations for the University PR-strategy, which has already shown its effectiveness for Karazin University and is potentially implementable for any educational institution facing the same challenges

Not as Bad as I Thought: Consumers' Positive Attitudes Toward Innovative Insect-Based Foods

Considering that the demand for food will increase by 70% by 2050, consuming insect-based foods appears as a protein alternative due to their nutritional quality and low environmental impact. However, there is a need to investigate the acceptance of these innovative foods, especially in traditional meat-eating markets, such as in Southern Brazil (land of the Gauchos). The purpose of this manuscript is to analyze consumers' attitudes toward innovative insect-based foods. The methodological procedures were divided into two stages. In the qualitative stage, 14 interviews were conducted regarding meat consumption habits. In the quantitative stage, a survey was carried out with 433 consumers. A factor and cluster analysis were performed, and two different groups of consumers were found. The results clearly show a segment with positive attitudes toward insect-based foods. This group had a low degree of neophobia. The products were perceived as not tasty and disgusting, but they were considered modern, with high nutritional value, positive, safe, and beneficial to the environment. Appearance, price, and packaging, combined with flavor, proved to be the attributes considered by consumers as the most important for their acceptance.

Hydrodynamic and hydrochemical investigation of the transboundary aquifer system in Prespa-Ohrid watershed

Οι διασυνοριακοί υδροφορείς των λιμνών της Οχρίδας και της Πρέσπας μοιράζονται την Αλβανία, την Ελλάδα και τη Βόρεια Μακεδονία. Αυτές οι λίμνες είναι από τις παλαιότερες λίμνες του κόσμου, με τεκτονική προέλευση, που ανήκουν στην εποχή του Πλειόκαινου ή στο ανώτερο Μειόκαινου. Αυτές οι δύο λίμνες έχουν απασχολήσει ερευνητικά τους ειδικούς για μεγάλο χρονικό διάστημα. Η υδροδυναμική και υδροχημική έρευνα της παρούσας διδακτορικής διατριβής αποσκοπεί στην κατανόηση των παραγόντων που προκάλεσαν μείωση της στάθμης του νερού της λίμνης Πρέσπας στα χαμηλότερα επίπεδα των τελευταίων χρόνων. Η υδραυλική σύνδεση μεταξύ αυτών των δύο λιμνών είχε διαπιστωθεί από παλαιότερες έρευνες. Οι αλλαγές της κίνησης του νερού που σημειώθηκαν σε αυτήν τη λεκάνη απορροής, οδήγησαν στην ανάγκη λεπτομερών υδρογεωλογικών ερευνών. Προκειμένου να εξαχθεί ένα επιστημονικό συμπέρασμα σχετικά με την υδροδυναμική και την υδροχημεία του νερού σε αυτόν τον διασυνοριακό υδροφορέα, απαιτείται συνέργεια μεταξύ διαφορετικών επιστημών όπως: υδρογεωλογία, γεωλογία, γεωφυσική και υδροχημεία. Οι περιοχές των λεκανών των λιμνών της Οχρίδας και της Πρέσπας οριοθετούν τον διασυνοριακό σύστημα των υδροφορέων. Από υδρογεωλογική άποψη είναι πολύ ετερογενείς, σχηματίζοντας διαφορετικές υδρογεωλογικές ενότητες. Έτσι, αξιοποιήθηκαν τα αποτελέσματα των γεωφυσικών μεθόδων (ηλεκτρική αντίσταση και ρηχά σεισμικά) και υδροχημικών μεθόδων με κατασκευή διαγραμμάτων Stiff και μεταβολής των ιοντικών λόγων. Τα αποτελέσματα της ανάλυσης και των δύο επιστημών που αναφέρθηκαν παραπάνω ήταν πολύ σημαντικά. Όπως είχε διαπιστωθεί, η ροή του νερού από τη λίμνη της Πρέσπας προς τη λίμνη της Οχρίδας είναι δυναμική όχι μόνο κατά την ξηρή περίοδο, όπως ήταν αναμενόμενο, αλλά και κατά τη διάρκεια της υγρής περιόδου του υδρολογικού έτους. Η στατιστική ανάλυση (Factor and Cluster analysis) χρησιμοποιήθηκε για την επιβεβαίωση της προαναφερθείσας έρευνας. Ένα από τα κύρια πεδία εφαρμογής των σταθερών ισοτόπων αφορά την προέλευση και την ανάμιξη των υπόγειων υδάτων. Προκειμένου να υποστηριχθεί η πηγή προέλευσης του νερού στην περιοχή, τα σταθερά ισότοπα (δD και δ18O) στο νερό εφαρμόσθηκαν σε αυτήν την έρευνα. Η ανάλυση σταθερών ισοτόπων υποστηρίζει τα αποτελέσματα της γεωφυσικής και υδροχημικής έρευνας. Συμπερασματικά, η υδροδυναμική και υδροχημική διερεύνηση του διασυνοριακού υδροφορέα των λιμνών Οχρίδας και Μεγάλης Πρέσπας φέρνει νέα δεδομένα και αποτελέσματα, τα οποία είναι σημαντικά από υδρογεωλογική άποψη. Τέλος, με βάση τα αποτελέσματα της ανάλυσης SWOT (Πλεονεκτήματα, Αδυναμίες, Ευκαιρίες και Απειλές), προτείνεται μια σειρά μέτρων και δράσεων για τη βιωσιμότητα του διασυνοριακού υδροφορέα και των εξαρτώμενων οικοσυστημάτων υπό συνθήκες κλιματικής κρίσης. Η μελλοντική έρευνα θα πρέπει να διερευνήσει λεπτομερώς τις κλιματικές αλλαγές και τον αντίκτυπό τους σε αυτόν τον τομέα. Αυτό μπορεί να επιτευχθεί παρακολουθώντας το ισοζύγιο νερού του διασυνοριακού υδροφορέα των λιμνών Οχρίδας και Πρεσπών. Η κατασκευή υδρογεωλογικών χαρτών, στο πρόγραμμα GIS, που σχετίζεται με μια βάση δεδομένων (Παράρτημα Α και Παράρτημα Β), ήταν ένα σημαντικό επίτευγμα που βοήθησε στην αναπαράσταση του τελικού αποτελέσματος όλων των εργασιών που έγιναν. Σε αυτήν τη βάση δεδομένων δίνονται γενικά υδρογεωλογικά και υδροχημικά δεδομένα. Ο χάρτης κατασκευάστηκε σε κλίμακα 1: 50.000 και προσαρτήθηκε στο υλικό. Το Παράρτημα Γ και το Παράρτημα Δ περιέχουν κλιματικά ημερήσια δεδομένα της Περιφέρειας της Οχρίδας, τη στάθμη του νερού της λίμνης της Μεγάλης Πρέσπας και της λίμνης της Οχρίδας, καθώς και της παροχής της πηγής Tushemisht τα τελευταία 10 χρόνια.

European Nordic Countries Stock Market Listed Companies’: Factor and Cluster Analysis Approach

Public financial markets are crucial in the access to the funding and as a platform for investments to the investors in today’s world. Nordic European Union countries such as Sweden, Finland and Denmark are considered to have advanced and well-developed stock markets, while neighboring three Baltic States have rather small stock market. Backbone of the stock market are there listed companies. In this analysis authors attempt to analyze 510 Nordic countries listed companies’ absolute value indicators using factor and cluster analysis and to compare results with similar analysis of the Baltic States. Factor and cluster analysis revealed the homogeneity of Nordic countries stock market listed companies’ absolute values, authors obtained three complex factors, explaining 89% of dispersion within the indicators, which in turn resulted in being able to obtain the portrait of Nordic States stock market listed company. Similar results were obtained for Baltic States listed companies, though on different scale. Authors have not seen as detailed analysis of Nordic Stock market on the level of listed companies financial statement analysis. Time period covered in this research of the financials are from 2004 to 2018. The analysis could be beneficial for other researchers focusing on the Nordic region stock market companies and also to the policy makers in the Baltic States, how the neighboring well-developed countries indicators could be interpreted and obtained results used for the enhancement of Baltic States stock market. Doi: 10.28991/esj-2020-01244 Full Text: PDF