Representations of Euro-Asian relations in 2010: South Korean newspapers report on ASEM and German newspapers on Asia (especially China). EU Center/Singapore Working Paper No. 2, December 2010

Empirical studies of EU-East Asian relationships as depicted in the media are increasingly moving into the foreground of discursive international relations analysis concentrated on the ASEM process. Yet region-to-region perceptions are still largely conceived within national, historical and linguistic prisms which are only gradually transferring into trans-regional ones. This working paper considers two interrelated moments, as indicated in the title, and hopes to make a modest contribution to the academic study of the construction of perceptions as a necessary precondition of and complement to an emerging sense of a common, shared and mutually beneficial inter-regional cooperation

Semantico-grammatical consciousness raising in an ESL programme for primary school teacher trainees

This study investigates the effect of multilevelled semanticogrammatical consciousness raising procedures on fossilised verb structures. It is hypothesised that these procedures will reactivate grammaticisation processes leading to the destabilisation of fossilised structures. The study attempts to establish whether fossilised structures can be destabilised, how processes of grammaticisation may be activated, whether adult advanced learners are still able to improve grammatical accuracy levels, what cognitive processes operate in interlanguage change, and how ESL teaching in the primary school classroom may be improved. The subjects are first-year ESL teacher trainees who have been learning English in formal classrooms for eight to ten years. They are subjected to pretests, a ten-week consciousness raising intervention programme, and posttests. The consciousness raising activities are set in a primary school teaching context, thus establishing relevance. The varied strategies used are presented progressively on different levels of consciousness. The theoretical contributions of the study are the insights gained in respect of the psychodynamics of fossilisation and learning theory as it relates to semantico-grammatical consciousness raising within a Cognitive Theory paradigm. According to the findings the total number of verb errors are significantly reduced and self-monitoring and other-monitoring skills significantly improved after the intervention. The semantic value of verb structures evidently acts as a regulator of form: semantically significant structures are destabilised but semantically vacuous structures do not respond to semanticogrammatical consciousness raising strategies. By implication, semantic significance of structures promotes learnabili ty whereas semantic vacuity is conducive to fossilisation. A relatively invariant ability gap between self-monitoring and other-monitoring is also identified. Subjects are significantly better at monitoring structures produced by others than their own. Self-monitoring, which is a necessary prerequisite for interlanguage change, is improved by consciousness raising but is apparently affected negatively by conventional analytical rule-based teaching. This study concludes that multilevelled semantico-grammatical consciousness raising procedures may precipitate defossilisation and that fossilised structures are not necessarily immutable.Linguistics and Modern LanguagesD. Litt. et Phil. (Lunguistics

A Conceptual Framework for the Inclusion of Recreational Therapy within South African Healthcare Paradigms

Final-phase rehabilitation in South Africa is synonymous with the professions of Physiotherapy and Biokinetics; no consideration is given to the contribution of the profession of Recreational Therapy, which successfully contributes to other international healthcare paradigms. The primary aim was to determine whether collaborative relationships exist between South African recreational therapists and physiotherapists or biokineticists. A secondary aim was to review the potential inclusion of the profession of Recreational Therapy within the existing South African patient referral system of the multidisciplinary healthcare paradigm. An electronic search of the Google Scholar and Sabinet databases identified no records regarding interprofessional collaborative relationships between Recreational Therapy, Physiotherapy and Biokinetics. The authors therefore used two indirect records that prescribe interprofessional collaboration among South African healthcare practitioners during final-phase exercise rehabilitation. The quality of these individual records was appraised using the modified Downs and Black Scale in order to reduce bias. While there is a paucity of literature identifying the absence of interprofessional collaborative relationships between Recreational Therapy, Biokinetics, and Physiotherapy, the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) guide nevertheless allows for dynamic overlap among final-phase exercise therapists, thereby providing an opportunity for the inclusion of Recreational Therapy within the existing dynamic, multidisciplinary, South African healthcare paradigm. The inclusion of the profession of Recreational Therapy, as part of a collaborative team effort, can be helpful in order to address the multifaceted challenges experienced by many South African patients

Developing a common evaluation methodology for CCAM

The European research and innovation action FAME is developing a common evaluation methodology (CEM) that provides guidance on how to set up and carry out an evaluation or assessment of direct and indirect impacts of cooperative and connected automated mobility (CCAM) solutions. The CEM will be part of European framework for testing [of CCAM] on public roads. The objectives set for CEM include ensuring that subsequent evaluation results are easy to compare, allowing all projects to benefit from the best methodological practices found. This should maximise the benefits of the evaluation work carried out in this domain. Once the first version of CEM is complete it will be validated and piloted, i.e., applied in actual projects that need to prepare for an evaluation or impact assessment. For good uptake, consensus and CEM community building will be needed, as well as a strategy for the application of CEM in future projects

The validity and utility of violence risk assessment tools to predict patient violence in acute care settings: An integrative literature review

To examine risk assessment tools to predict patient violence in acute care settings. An integrative review of the literature. Five electronic databases – CINAHL Plus, MEDLINE, OVID, PsycINFO, and Web of Science were searched between 2000 and 2018. The reference list of articles was also inspected manually. The PICOS framework was used to refine the inclusion and exclusion of the literature, and the PRISMA statement guided the search strategy to systematically present findings. Forty-one studies were retained for review. Three studies developed or tested tools to measure patient violence in general acute care settings, and two described the primary and secondary development of tools in emergency departments. The remaining studies reported on risk assessment tools that were developed or tested in psychiatric inpatient settings. In total, 16 violence risk assessment tools were identified. Thirteen of them were developed to assess the risk of violence in psychiatric patients. Two of them were found to be accurate and reliable to predict violence in acute psychiatric facilities and have practical utility for general acute care settings. Two assessment tools were developed and administered in general acute care, and one was developed to predict patient violence in emergency departments. There is no single, user-friendly, standardized evidence-based tool available for predicting violence in general acute care hospitals. Some were found to be accurate in assessing violence in psychiatric inpatients and have potential for use in general acute care, require further testing to assess their validity and reliability

The study design of UDRIVE: the Naturalistic Driving Study across Europe for cars, trucks and scooters

Purpose: UDRIVE is the first large-scale European Naturalistic Driving Study on cars, trucks and powered two wheelers. The acronym stands for "European naturalistic Driving and Riding for Infrastructure & Vehicle safety and Environment". The purpose of the study is to gain a better understanding of what happens on the road in everyday traffic situations. Methods: The paper describes Naturalistic Driving Studies, a method which provides insight into the actual real-world behaviour of road users, unaffected by experimental conditions and related biases. Naturalistic driving can be defined as a study undertaken to provide insight into driver behaviour during everyday trips by recording details of the driver, the vehicle and the surroundings through unobtrusive data gathering equipment and without experimental control. Data collection will take place in six EU Member States. Results: Road User Behaviour will be studied with a focus on both safety and environment. The UDRIVE project follows the steps of the FESTA-V methodology, which was originally designed for Field Operational Tests. Conclusions: Defining research questions forms the basis of the study design and the specification of the recording equipment. Both will be described in this paper. Although the project has just started collecting data from drivers, we consider the process of designing the study as a major result which may help other initiatives to set up similar studies

How I reduce fuel consumption: An experimental study on mental models of eco-driving

Eco-driving has the potential to reduce fuel consumption and therefore emissions considerably. Previous research suggests that drivers have a certain level of eco-driving knowledge and skills, which they refrain from practising in their everyday lives. At the same time misconceptions and ambiguous messages from eco-driving support systems can confuse and demotivate. This research aimed to identify the mental models of eco-driving that regular drivers have. A driving simulator experiment with a varied road layout comprising urban and motorway sections was designed. The study used simple driving task instructions to investigate changes in the participants’ behaviour and thoughts in three conditions. Sixteen drivers were asked to ‘Drive normally’, ‘Drive safely’ or ‘Drive fuel-efficiently’. Behavioural measures, think aloud protocols and interviews were compared and analysed. The emphasis of this study was on eco-driving relevant indicators such as accelerating, braking, coasting and car-following. The results show that the participants do have mental models of eco-driving, which they did not use in the Baseline drive, when they were instructed to ‘Drive normally’. Misconceptions about speed and travel time provide the potential for more effective communication with the driver about the momentary efficient speed as well as resulting time losses and fuel savings. In addition, in-vehicle guidance can increase driving safety compared to practicing eco-driving without them