Insights into Lithuanian students’ choice of university and study program in management and economics

The purpose of this study is to determine factors influencing the choice of university and study program in management and economics for first-year students in public and private universities in Lithuania. The quantitative research method – Internet survey – was used to survey first-year management and economics students studying at Lithuanian universities. The survey questionnaire consists of questions relating to the factors of study program selection, university selection, and general questions on respondent and his/her demographic data. A total of 224 properly filled questionnaires were obtained, making the sample representative, with a 6.5 percent sample error and a 95 percent confidence level. The review of the scientific literature revealed that students behave as consumers when choosing a university and a study program. The empirical research revealed that when choosing a study program student’s personal characteristics as well as study related factors, e.g. career possibilities, study prestige, etc., had the biggest influence. When choosing a university, university reputation and city the university is in were ranked highest. University and city infrastructure and social life were ranked lowest. Regarding the stakeholders having an impact on the decision, parents and current students were ranked highest. However, the influence in general was rated rather low which shows that respondents mostly rely on their own opinion. There are several limitations of the study. The questionnaire response rate could be higher. In addition, the majority of respondents represent one university which might have an impact on the final results. Therefore, future surveys could complement the results by proportionally distributing respondents to all the universities. The survey gives an insight to the universities offering study programs in management and economics. The survey reveals which factors admission and marketing departments should emphasize in order to attract students

Examining domestic transactions of incoming tourists with credit cards in Turkey

The purpose of this study is to determine factors influencing the choice of university and study program in management and economics for first-year students in public and private universities in Lithuania. The quantitative research method – Internet survey – was used to survey first-year management and economics students studying at Lithuanian universities. The survey questionnaire consists of questions relating to the factors of study program selection, university selection, and general questions on respondent and his/her demographic data. A total of 224 properly filled questionnaires were obtained, making the sample representative, with a 6.5 percent sample error and a 95 percent confidence level. The review of the scientific literature revealed that students behave as consumers when choosing a university and a study program. The empirical research revealed that when choosing a study program student’s personal characteristics as well as study related factors, e.g. career possibilities, study prestige, etc., had the biggest influence. When choosing a university, university reputation and city the university is in were ranked highest. University and city infrastructure and social life were ranked lowest. Regarding the stakeholders having an impact on the decision, parents and current students were ranked highest. However, the influence in general was rated rather low which shows that respondents mostly rely on their own opinion. There are several limitations of the study. The questionnaire response rate could be higher. In addition, the majority of respondents represent one university which might have an impact on the final results. Therefore, future surveys could complement the results by proportionally distributing respondents to all the universities. The survey gives an insight to the universities offering study programs in management and economics. The survey reveals which factors admission and marketing departments should emphasize in order to attract students

History and Options Regarding the Unfunded Liabilities of Alaska’s Public Employees’ and Teachers’ Retirement Systems

In early 2003, financial analysts working for the State of Alaska announced that the two largest public employee retirement systems in Alaska had become significantly underfunded.3 From fiscal year 2006 (July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2006) to date, the state has paid $6.951 billion— (an average of$534.7 million annually)—to pay down these obligations, which will be called “unfunded liabilities” in this paper.4 The State of Alaska has substantial unfunded liabilities remaining to pay off for these two systems, the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) and the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS). There is uncertainty about the size of these unfunded liabilities, and there are also different ways of calculating them. For example, the State of Alaska’s snapshot balance-sheet approach, subtracting the accrued liabilities from the assets, based on their actuarial value, produces an estimate of $6.609 billion for the combined unfunded liabilities of PERS and TRS.5 That figure is an estimate of the unfunded liabilities discounted to the present day. Estimates of the size of the unfunded liabilities particularly vary based on the use of different critical assumptions, such as the rate of future returns on investment. As an example, using an estimated rate of return of 2.142 percent instead of the State of Alaska’s assumption of 8 percent produces an estimate of$33.9 billion for the state’s unfunded liabilities. 6 The State of Alaska has committed to paying off the unfunded liabilities under a 25-year amortization schedule that started in 2014, so another highly relevant measurement of those liabilities appears to be the amount actuaries for the state currently project will be needed under that pay-off plan, which runs through fiscal year 2039. The state’s actuaries project that from fiscal year 2019 through fiscal year 2039 the state will pay a total of $10.815 billion in extra contributions—called “state assistance” or “additional state contributions” in this paper—to pay off the unfunded liabilities. 7 In contrast to the state’s snapshot estimate of$6.609 billion, this estimate of $10.815 billion in state assistance represents a flow of annual cash payments. That is, the$10.815 billion is an estimate of the total amount needed to eliminate the unfunded liabilities of PERS and TRS under the 25-year amortization schedule the state adopted in 2014. 4 Note that this state assistance is above and beyond the amount the state is projected to owe in its role as employer in the normal course of funding the two systems.8 Employers other than the state—primarily local governments and school districts—also participate in PERS and TRS, and the figure for state assistance covers not only unfunded liabilities attributed to the state but also a portion of the unfunded liabilities attributed to non-state employers. As explained more later, the state has assumed, by statute, the responsibility to pay for a share of the unfunded liability of these other employers. 9 This paper: • Describes the structure of the Alaska public employee retirement systems in the context of some unusual features of public employment on the Last Frontier • Reviews how the problem of unfunded liabilities came about • Examines how concerns over unfunded liabilities produced both changes and proposed changes in the retirement systems over the past dozen years, including proposals for changes in the allocation of burdens between the state and local governments in paying for retirement benefits • Describes current projections of future amounts needed to pay off the unfunded liabilities • Discusses how future estimates of the unfunded liabilities might change in response to economic and demographic factors • Discusses legal provisions protecting the rights of beneficiaries of the retirement systems • Lays out options for policymakers—other than the current policy of paying down the unfunded liabilities over time—including buyout, bailout, and bankruptcyNorthrim Bank University of Alaska Foundatio

A comparison between e-government practices in Taiwan and New Zealand.

Few studies have focused on comparing the state of e-government in Western- and Non-Western settings, where the political, social, economic, and cultural environments can be markedly different. This paper compares the views of local authority policymakers in Taiwan and New Zealand, in order to judge the sophistication of their e-government initiatives via the formal and informal policies underpinning website development. Good level of agreement were observed between the Taiwanese and New Zealander respondents for the high levels of significance they attached to 3 key issues, which the authors argue are critical for successful e-government: Accessibility, Security and Privacy. Similarly, the policymakers agreed on a medium level of significance for the 7 key issues: E-procurement, Digital Divide, Private Sector, Taxation, Cultural Obstacles, IT Workforce, and Social Effects (and on a low level of significance for E-Tailing). It was concluded that government policymakers in both countries, in an era of commercial online social networking, are continuing to favour pushing(what they deem to be important) information to citizens, rather than creating collaborative service channels with citizens, contractors and suppliers or integrating separate service processes to satisfy all stakeholders. An attendant lack of commitment to promoting heightened (e-)democracy was also noted, especially in New Zealand

Internet Information and Communication Behavior during a Political Moment: The Iraq War, March 2003

This article explores the Internet as a resource for political information and communication in March 2003, when American troops were first sent to Iraq, offering us a unique setting of political context, information use, and technology. Employing a national survey conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life project. We examine the political information behavior of the Internet respondents through an exploratory factor analysis; analyze the effects of personal demographic attributes and political attitudes, traditional and new media use, and technology on online behavior through multiple regression analysis; and assess the online political information and communication behavior of supporters and dissenters of the Iraq War. The factor analysis suggests four factors: activism, support, information seeking, and communication. The regression analysis indicates that gender, political attitudes and beliefs, motivation, traditional media consumption, perceptions of bias in the media, and computer experience and use predict online political information behavior, although the effects of these variables differ for the four factors. The information and communication behavior of supporters and dissenters of the Iraq War differed significantly. We conclude with a brief discussion of the value of "interdisciplinary poaching" for advancing the study of Internet information practices

Understanding the threats posed by non-native species: public vs. conservation managers.

Public perception is a key factor influencing current conservation policy. Therefore, it is important to determine the influence of the public, end-users and scientists on the prioritisation of conservation issues and the direct implications for policy makers. Here, we assessed public attitudes and the perception of conservation managers to five non-native species in the UK, with these supplemented by those of an ecosystem user, freshwater anglers. We found that threat perception was not influenced by the volume of scientific research or by the actual threats posed by the specific non-native species. Media interest also reflected public perception and vice versa. Anglers were most concerned with perceived threats to their recreational activities but their concerns did not correspond to the greatest demonstrated ecological threat. The perception of conservation managers was an amalgamation of public and angler opinions but was mismatched to quantified ecological risks of the species. As this suggests that invasive species management in the UK is vulnerable to a knowledge gap, researchers must consider the intrinsic characteristics of their study species to determine whether raising public perception will be effective. The case study of the topmouth gudgeon Pseudorasbora parva reveals that media pressure and political debate has greater capacity to ignite policy changes and impact studies on non-native species than scientific evidence alone

Vortex of the Web. Potentials of the online environment

This volume compiles international contributions that explore the potential risks and chances coming along with the wide-scale migration of society into digital space. Suggesting a shift of paradigm from Spiral of Silence to Nexus of Noise, the opening chapter provides an overview on systematic approaches and mechanisms of manipulation – ranging from populist political players to Cambridge Analytica. After a discussion of the the juxtaposition effects of social media use on social environments, the efficient instrumentalization of Twitter by Turkish politicans in the course of the US-decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is being analyzed. Following a case study of Instagram, Black Lives Matter and racism is a research about the impact of online pornography on the academic performance of university students. Another chapter is pointing out the potential of online tools for the successful relaunch of shadow brands. The closing section of the book deals with the role of social media on the opinion formation about the Euromaidan movement during the Ukrainian revolution and offers a comparative study touching on Russian and Western depictions of political documentaries in the 2000s

"If they come they will build it" : managing and building e-democracy from the ground up

The possibilities for using online media to promote deliberative democracy and enhance civic participation have been identified by many. At the same time, the ‘e-democracy score card’ is decidedly mixed, with the tendency of established institutions in both government and the mainstream media to promote a ‘push’ model of communication and information provision, which fails to adapt to the decentralized, networked, interactive and many-to-many forms of communication enabled by the Internet. This paper will discuss the experience of the National Forum, which is building an Australian e-Democracy site of which is the first stage. It aims to be a combination of town-square, shopping centre of ideas, and producers’ co-operative which will allow citizens, talkers, agitators, researchers and legislators to interact with each other individually and through their organisations. Its aim will be to facilitate conversations, and where required, action. This project can be understood from a myriad of angles. At one level it is an open source journalism project, at another it deals with knowledge management. It can also be approached as a forum, an archive, an internet arketing initiative and an eCommerce resource for civil society. Central to the project is the development of feedback mechanisms so that participants can better understand the debates and where they stand in them as well as gauging the mood, desires and interests of the nation on a continuous basis. This paper deals with the practice, theories and economic models underlying the project, and considers the contribution of such sites to community formation and the development of social capital

The Court, FCC and Internet Policy: Partly with

The paper aims to explore the contour of internet regulation with a thread of Brand X , which navigates through constitutionalism, separation of powers, as well as business and economic or political implications enshrined behind it. An exemplary insight with the Korean case was adverted that could lead to the comparative perspective of internet law and regulation for the future research. The research was conducted by employing qualitative investigation, mainly relying on textual analysis and documentary examination. The outcome of research generally corroborates with our assumption that i) the increasing administrative state will variegate the traditional interplay of three branches, ii) expert bureaucracy stands at the core of policy shaping because of the necessary new concept of market and policy specialization, iii) the role of US government is not only pioneering, but also influential as a regulator, but comparatively with differing national jurisdictions if not a negligible implications on the international competition or even conflict