Resolving User Conflicts in Multi-user Context-aware Home Environment

Context-awareness is an enabling technology of pervasive computing that allows applications to adapt themselves in responseto contexts (e.g. activity, location, temperature level, etc.). However, an issue of user conflicts in context-aware applicationsmay arise when multiple users want to access the same application. Our research focuses on this issue and proposes aconflict resolution approach that resolves the conflicts in context-aware home applications. The proposed approach takes intoconsideration the users’ special case contexts (e.g. illness of user) along with their priorities and preferences. The proposedapproach is also useful in cases where multiple users with multiple special cases try to access one application or service.To show the usefulness of the proposed approach, we have integrated the proposed conflict manager with the UbiREAL, asimulated context-aware home environment. The conflict manager utilizes different strategies and different approaches toresolve user conflicts according to the involved situation to suit the need of the family. The prototype evaluation shows thatthe users are satisfied with the proposed system and suggests that the use of users’ special case contexts in detecting andresolving the user conflicts is essential and necessary in the context-aware smart home environments.

The European Union, Conflict Management, and the Normative Illusion

The European Union (EU) has recently become the most active conflict manager, currently deploying more operations than any other organisation. There has been a total of 13 operations of military nature from 2003 to 2019, deployed in Europe and in Africa. The discourse at the level of the European Union emphasizes not only the security of its members but also the importance of humanitarian norms. Do these norms drive the deployment of EU’s military operations? There is literature that recognizes the relevance of norms, suggesting that these factors may indirectly or even directly have a driving impact. On the contrary, I suggest that there is no normative driving impact. To be precise, I argue that power distribution and exposure to conflicts are the fundamental conditions driving the deployment of military operations by the EU.

Urban tourism hypertrophy: who should deal with it? The case of Krakow (Poland)

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to analyze the phenomenon of urban tourism hypertrophy (UTH) in the context of the process of tourism-related social conflicts formation; and second, to discuss the extent to which destination management organizations (DMOs) are prepared to take responsibilities and actions undertaken in this process.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts conflict management (CM) theory as a framework for discussing UTH within the city context. The paper then analyzes the empirical example of social conflict in Kraków (Poland) to assess the predispositions of key institutions engaged in destination governance to lead CM process triggered by UTH. The Circle of Conflict approach proposed by C. Moore (The Mediation Process: Practical Strategies for Resolving Conflict, Jossey Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2014) is utilized as the main application method.FindingsThe study shows that DMO is the most appropriate entity to deal with UTH as a conflict manager; however, it has insufficient resources to fulfill all requirements relating to that role. Therefore, the range of responsibilities and roles of the contemporary DMOs should be completed with CM as the permanent task during UTH crisis.Research limitations/implicationsThe example study was based on interviews carried out with a limited number of informants. Also, the contextual nature of the research as well as specific destination governance structure in Kraków blurred the picture of DMOs predispositions to leading the CM process.Practical implicationsThe study supports urban DMO managers by suggesting a tool of diagnosis and intervention in UTH-induced conflicts. Thus, it makes fulfilling the mediator role a destination governance task.Social implicationsCM brings agreement among parties as to the understanding of the nature of conflict, which forms the basis for quick and mutually agreed actions, according to sustainable development principles.Originality/valueThe paper proposes an alternative approach to mitigate UTH-related problems in cities by adopting the CM framework which emphasizes the universal nature of conflict causes and proposes adequate tools for undertaking actions by DMOs.