COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOME PROMINENT MCDM METHODS: A CASE OF RANKING SERBIAN BANKS

In the literature, many multiple criteria decision making methods have been proposed. There are also a number of papers, which are devoted to comparison of their characteristics and performances. However, a definitive answer to questions: which method is most suitable and which method is most effective is still actual. Therefore, in this paper, the use of some prominent multiple criteria decision making methods is considered on the example of ranking Serbian banks. The objective of this paper is not to determine which method is most appropriate for ranking banks. The objective of this paper is to emphasize that the use of various multiple criteria decision making methods sometimes can produce different ranking orders of alternatives, highlighted some reasons which lead to different results, and indicate that different results obtained by different MCDM methods are not just a random event, but rather reality

Hedging by using weather derivatives in winter ski tourism

Tourism, as one of the main driving forces of economic development, is exposed to many risks. Besides frequent fluctuations in foreign currency exchange, prices of fuel and transportation, the tourism industry has become more sensitive to weather conditions lately. One of the new instruments which can be efficiently used for weather risk hedging is weather derivatives (forwards, futures, options and swaps on chosen weather variables - temperature, rain, snow, wind etc.). In this paper, we will present the possibility of weather derivatives application in winter tourism - snowfall forwards - in order to hedge the business of ski lift operator company. Our research is based on snowfall data of Kopaonik mountain ski resort and revenues of ski lift operator company. We will show that weather derivatives might be an effective tool for hedging weather risk and reducing the volatility of companies' revenues in the winter ski tourism business in Serbia

Konstrukcija i psihometrijska evaluacija kratke forme Upitnika šireg autističkog fenotipa

Broad Autism Phenotype (BAP) represents a group of personality traits expressed in limitations in social relations and pragmatic speech dimension, and rigid behavior. The Broad Autism Phenotype Questionnaire (BAPQ) measures personality traits which are crucial in defining the BAP. In the present research, three studies were conducted with the general aim to create a short form of the BAPQ. Study 1 was carried out to determine the factor structure of the BAPQ in a sample of 501 students and to select items for the short form. Obtained components: Aloofness, Rigidity, and Pragmatics, corresponding to the structure of the instrument proposed by authors, accounted for 26.61% of variance. Study 2 was conducted to examine factor structure of the BAPQ short form (BAPQ-SF), in a sample of 298 students. This solution explained 45.76% of the total variance. The aim of Study 3 was to determine psychometric characteristics of the BAPQ-SF in a sample of students (N = 294). Three-factor model of the BAPQ-SF was confirmed. Correlations of the BAPQ-SF with the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ) and the Delta 10 suggest convergent and discriminant validity of the BAPQ-SF.Širi autistički fenotip (eng. Broad Autism Phenotype - BAP) predstavlja grupu crta ličnosti koje se manifestuju u vidu ograničenja u socijalnim odnosima, na dimenziji pragmatičnog govora i u rigidnom ponašanju. Upitnik šireg autističkog fenotipa (The Broad Autism Phenotype Questionnaire - BAPQ) meri crte ličnosti koje su ključne u definisanju šireg autističkog fenotipa. U ovom istraživanju su sprovedene tri studije sa opštim ciljem da se napravi kratka forma BAPQ. Prva studija je sprovedena da bi se utvrdila faktorska struktura upitnika na uzorku od 501 studenta i da se izaberu ajtemi za kratku formu. Dobijene su komponente Povučenost, Rigidnost i Pragmatika. Ove komponente odgovaraju strukturi instrumenta koju su predložili autori i objašanjavaju 26.61% varijanse. Druga studija je sprovedena da bi se ispitala faktorska struktura kratke forme BAPQ (BAPQ-SF) na uzorku od 298 studenata. Ovo rešenje objašnjava 45.76% ukupne varijanse. Cilj treće studije bio je da se utvrde psihometrijske karakteristike BAPQ-SF na uzorku studenata (N = 294). Potvrđena je trofaktorska struktura upitnika. Korelacije mera BAPQ-SF sa količnikom autističkog spektra (AQ) i Delta 10 merama govore u prilog konvergentne i diskriminativne validnosti upitnika

Uticaj nekih motoričih sposobnosti na brzinu bacanja lopte u Golbalu - pilot istraživanje

The aim of the research was to determine the influence of sprint performance and explosive strength on ball throwing velocity in Goalball. The sample of participants consisted of 12 nationally and internationally ranked Goalball players, with an average age of (25.17±8.03). To evaluate sprint performance, the 5 and 10 meter sprint tests were used. To evaluate explosive strength, the standing long jump and seated medicine ball throw were used. The results of the regression analysis have indicated that the entire system of applied variables is statistically significantly connected and influences ball throwing velocity. At the same time, we evaluated the statistically significant influence of the seated medicine ball throw variable. We can conclude that as part of the fitness training of Goalball players, it is necessary to work on improving sprint performance and explosive strength due to the ability of rapid transition of the players from the defensive phase to the attack phase. It is especially important to develop upper-body explosive strength in order to increase ball throwing velocity and create the possibility for greater effectiveness of Goalball players.Cilj istraživanja je bio da se utvrdi uticaj brzine i eksplozivne snage na brzinu bacanja lopte u Golbalu. Uzorak ispitanika je činilo 12 golbalista prosečne starosti (25.17±8.03) godina nacionalnog i međunarodnog ranga. Za procenu brzine korišćeni su testovi trčanja na 5 i 10 metara. Za procenu eksplozivne snage korišćeni su testovi skok u dalj iz mesta i bacanje medicinke iz sedećeg položaja. Rezultati regresione analize pokazali su da ceo sitem primenjenih varijabli ima statistički značajnu povezanost i uticaj na brzinu bacanja lopte. Pojedinačno posmatrano statistički značajan uticaj ima varijabla bacanje medicinke iz sedećeg položaja. Može se zaključiti da je u okviru kondicione pripreme golbalista potrebno raditi na razvoju brzine i eksplozivne snage zbog sposobnosti brzog prelaska igrača iz faze odbrane u fazu napada. Posebno je bitno razvijati eksplozivnu snagu mišića ruku i ramenog pojasa kako bi se povećala brzina bacanja lopte i stvorila mogućnost za veću efikasnost Golbal igrača

Carinski organi u funkciji suzbijanja sive ekonomije

Informal economy or grey economy is one of the possible problems which economy faces and if it is not suppressed or reduced to an acceptable level our country cannot expect any serious economic development. Taking into account such a point of view, it could be concluded that the fight against this kind of criminal economy is directly related to the problem of measures, instruments, and institutions competent for the fight against shadow economy. Grey economy is a problem that heavily burdens underdeveloped countries. Due to the reduction of its annual budget revenues by one-third, the Republic of Serbia is fighting the grey economy to a great extent. The Republic of Serbia's customs service itself can cause the grey economy, facilitating irregular import and export of goods, trafficking, arms/ammunition/drugs smuggling, etc. Customs activities can help in the prevention and control of import-export irregularities, but this can only be done with the participation of other government officials. The cooperation between the customs service and other government bodies such as the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Internal Revenue Service may significantly affect the reduction of grey economy, the increase of funds' flow in the budget and the reduction of unemployment. Scientific and domestic literature in the field of economic destructions and customs services is rather scarce, and it is with good reason suggested that scientific and expert studies of this problem both in our country and in the world are too rare in comparison with the significance of the problem. We are quite sure that the reading of the results we have presented and analysed in this scientific paper will also detect the obstacles resulting from them, which could ultimately lead to the comprehensive state strategy in the fight against grey economy and its transformation into legal flows, where the customs service would surely find its place. Without an intention for this paper to be the paper carrying an old seal of some ancient times, the basic motive is to transform this problem into contemporary flows and to offer as complete information as possible to both laymen and experts on the role of the customs service in the field of the fight against grey economy together with the prominent note of interdisciplinary character.Siva ekonomija je problem koji u velikoj meri opterećuje nerazvijene države. Republika Srbija ulaže napore da bi se obuzdala siva ekonomija koja joj godišnje umanjuje budžetski prihod za jednu trećinu. Neefikasan rad carinskih organa kroz omogućavanje neregularnog uvoza i izvoza robe, kao i šverca robe, može biti uzročnik sive ekonomije. Uprava carina Ministarstva finansija Republike Srbije svojim aktivnostima može u velikoj meri da spreči i suzbije protivpravno ponašanje i druge oblike neformalne ekonomije, što je definisano Poslovnom strategijom Uprave carina 2011-2015. godine. U cilju efikasne zaštite građana i privrede od nezakonite i ilegalne trgovine i svih oblika prekograničnog kriminala u međunarodnom prometu robe, Uprava carina mora sarađivati sa drugim organima državne uprave i državnim organima. Od posebnog je značaja saradnja carinskih organa, Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova i Poreske uprave, koja utiče na smanjenje sive ekonomije, povećanje priliva sredstava u budžet i smanjenje nezaposlenosti. Primarni cilj rada se odnosi na dublju analizu ukorenjenosti neformalne ekonomije u savremeno ekonomsko tkivo i preispitivanje uloge carinskih organa Republike Srbije. Tokom istraživačkog procesa primenjivale su se savremene metode istraživanja, modifikovane za potrebe predmetnog problema. Najviše su korišćeni komparativni, deskriptivni i normativno-pravni metod

Influence of different factors on the RAID 0 paired magnetic disk arrays

The rapid technological progress has led to a growing need for more data storage space. The appearance of big data requires larger storage space, faster access and exchange of data as well as data security. RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) technology is one of the most cost-effective ways to satisfy needs for larger storage space, data access and protection. However, the connection of multiple secondary memory devices in RAID 0 aims to improve the secondary memory system in a way to provide greater storage capacity, increase both read data speed and write data speed but it is not fault-tolerant or error-free. This paper provides an analysis of the system for storing the data on the paired arrays of magnetic disks in a RAID 0 formation, with different number of queue entries for overlapped I/O, where queue depth parameter has the value of 1 and 4. The paper presents a range of test results and analysis for RAID 0 series for defined workload characteristics. The tests were carried on in Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard operating system, using 2, 3, 4 and 6 paired magnetic disks and controlled by Dell PERC 6/i hardware RAID controller. For the needs of obtaining the measurement results, ATTO Disk Benchmark has been used. The obtained results have been analyzed and compared to the expected behavior

The volatility of natural gas prices - Structural shocks and influencing factors

The paper examines the primary drivers and factors influencing the volatility of natural gas prices in the world from January 2007 to July 2020. In addition to the narrow dependence between crude oil and natural gas prices, the influence of renewable energy production and coal production on the price of natural gas has been studied. For that purpose, the method of multiple linear regression was used. The results show that the volatility of natural gas prices significantly depends on the type of the shock in the natural gas market and that the total production of energy from renewable sources, production of coal and natural gas and the price of crude oil have a significant impact on the price of gas.Web of Science37

Functionality in families with children with disabilities

Zdrava i funkcionalna porodica nije ona koja nema problema, već ona koja se otvoreno suočava sa različitim izazovima. Disfunkcionalnom možemo smatrati porodicu koja ne ispunjava razvojne zadatke koje društvo pred nju postavlja. Sa koliko uspeha će se porodica suočiti sa izazovima koje nosi rođenje deteta sa ometenošću, najviše zavisi od kvaliteta odnosa među njenim članovima.Cilj ovog rada je utvrđivanje sličnosti i razlika u kvalitetu interpersonalnih odnosa u okviru porodica koje imaju decu sa ometenošću i porodica koje ovakvu decu nemaju.Istraživanje je sprovedeno na uzorku od 116 roditelja dece od 2 do 8 godina. Uzorak je podeljen na dva poduzorka. Prvi su činili roditelji koji su imali dete sa ometenošću (44%), a drugi roditelji dece tipičnog razvoja (56%). Za procenu kvaliteta interpersonalnih odnosa u okviru porodičnog kruga upotrebljena je Skala za procenu stila porodičnog funkcionisanja. Primenom Man-Vitnijevog U-testa između dve ispitivane grupe roditelja nisu pronađene statistički značajne razlike u ukupnom skoru na Skali za procenu stila porodičnog funkcionisanja (U=1032,000; p=0,301). U oba ispitivana poduzorka registrovane su visoke prosečne vrednosti skorova na Skali u celini, što ukazuje na globalno visok nivo porodične kohezivnosti. Analizom pojedinačnih stavki, primenom Man-Vitnijevog U-testa, registrovano je da su roditelji dece tipičnog razvoja imali značajno više skorove od roditelja dece sa ometenošću na sedam stavki. Ovo istraživanje je realizovano kao studija poprečnog preseka, pa rezultati daju uvid samo u trenutni način funkcionisanja porodica koje imaju dete sa ometenošću. U svetlu dobijenih nalaza može se reći da ometenost deteta nije jedini, a svakako ni odlučujući faktor koji doprinosi funkcionalnosti porodice ili je narušavaA healthy and functional family is not the one with no problems, but the one that openly confronts different challenges. A family regarded a dysfunctional one is the one not fulfilling the development tasks set out by the society. The level of success in facing the challenges brought by having a child with disabilities depends mostly on the quality of its members’ relationships. The aim of this research is establishing the similarities and differences in the quality of interpersonal relationship within families with children with disabilities and families without children with disabilities. The research was conducted on a sample of 116 parents of children of ages between 2 and 8. The sample was divided into two subsamples. The first one consisted of parents with children with disabilities (44%), and the other consisted of parents with children of typical development (56%). For assessing the quality of interpersonal relationships within family circle we used the Family Functioning Style Scale. After applying the Mann-Whitney U-test, no statistically significant differences in the total score on the Family Functioning Style Scale (U=1032.000; p=0.301) have been established between the two assessed parent groups. High average score values have been registered on the Scale as a whole in both assessed subsamples, implying the globally high level of family cohesion. After analyzing the separate items using the Mann-Whitney U-test, it has been registered that parents of the children with typical development had significantly higher scores than the parents of children with disabilities in seven items. This research has been realized as a crosssection study, so the results provide only insight into the current way the families with disabled children function. In the light of the obtained results it can be said that a child’s disability is not the only, and certainly not the decisive factor contributing to the functionality of the family or infringing it

Efekti nastave specijalnog fizičkog obrazovanja na telesnu kompoziciju studentkinja Kriminalističko-policijske akademije

The aim of this research was to determine effects of Specialized physical education classes and effects of 'functional training method' programme application on body composition of female students, during 12 weeks. The research was carried out on sample of 54 female students of the Academy of Criminalistic and Police Studies (ACPS) from Belgrade, Republic of Serbia, aged from 19 to 21 years, divided into experimental group (22 female, BH=169.05±5.03cm, BW=64.91±10.36kg, BMI=22.63±2.87kg/m2) and into control group (32 female, BH=168.29±4.68cm, BW=61.33±6.54kg, BMI=21.65±2.03kg/m2), respectively. Experimental group has applied 'functional methods' of strength development, twice a week, during 12 weeks, no longer than 20 minutes by classes. Female students were tested at the beginning and at the end of the experimental programme, by standardized procedures for body composition assessment. Results of MANCOVA showed, at general level, that there wern't statistically significantly changes in effects between experimental and control group, in case of application of experimental programme on body composition of female students (p=0.610), during 12 weeks. Results of ANCOVA of female students, showed at the individual level, that there wern't statistically significantly changes. It can be concluded that the application of 'functional training method' programme on female students of ACPS, during 12 weeks, had no statistically significant effects on the change of all parameters body composition isn't statistically significantly affected in any of parameters, with some minor changes of observed parameters.Cilj istraživanja bio je utvrđivanje efekata nastave Specijalnog fizičkog obrazovanja i primene dvanaestonedeljnog programa 'funkcionalnog metoda' treninga na telesnu kompoziciju ispitanica. Uzorak istraživanja činile su 54 studentkinje Kriminalističko-policijske akademije (KPA) u Beogradu, uzrasta od 19 do 21 godine, podeljenih na eksperimentalnu (22 studentkinje, TV=169.05±5.03cm, TM=64.91±10.36kg, BMI=22.63±2.87kg/m²) i kontrolnu grupu (32 studentkinje, TV=168.29±4.68cm, TM=61.33±6.54kg, BMI=21.65±2.03kg/m²), respektivno. Eksperimentalna grupa primenjivala je 'funkcionalni metod' razvoja snage u periodu od 12 nedelja dva puta nedeljno, ne duže od 20 minuta po času. Ispitanice su testirane na početku i na kraju eksperimentalnog programa standardizovanim procedurama za procenu telesne kompozicije. Rezultati multivarijantne analize kovarijanse (MANCOVA) pokazali su da kada su efekti dvanaestonedeljnog eksperimentalnog programa na telesnu kompoziciju studentkinja (p=0.610) u pitanju, na generalnom nivou, nije došlo do statistički značajnih promena između eksperimentalne i kontrolne grupe. Univarijantna analiza kovarijanse (ANCOVA), ni na pojedinačnom nivou, nije pokazala statistički značajan prirast parametara telesne kompozicije, kao i da nije postignut statistički značajan prirast rezultata kako na generalnom, tako i na pojedinačnom nivou. Može se zaključiti da primena dvanaestonedeljnog 'funkcionalnog metoda' treninga, na telesnu kompoziciju studentkinja KPA, nije statistički značajno uticala ni na jedan od parametara, uz neznatne promene posmatranih parametara