Protests in Russia: Supporting Systemic Change Prior to 2020's Elections

Russia postponed its national vote on constitutional changes to July 1, 2020. Due to restrictions on freedom of movement and assembly from COVID-19, mass protests are unlikely to result. Nevertheless, managing growing social discontent may well be the Kremlin’s next big challenge as it prepares for September’s regional and parliamentary elections. Given its upcoming EU presidency and Council of Europe chairmanship, Germany could make a positive difference in protecting human rights and EU values in Russia

PLAIN PRODUCTS – A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS VS. BUSINESS IMPLICATIONS FOR COMPANIES

This scientific paper is focused on analysis of plain product concept, by taking in consideration relevant perspectives – a policy perspective, related to the measures and regulations regarding the plain packaging; consumer perspective - behavior, perceptions, associations and other prerequisites for building a consumer loyalty, in terms of branded vs. non branded products and planin packagings, and the companies perspective, through taking in consideration the implication for businesses caused by literal un-branding of these sensitive products. The plain product concept has a significant influence on consumer behavior, and the brand building and loyalty-strengthening processes. It refers to application of generic packaging for potentialy harmful products, as well as removal of brand elements, features and/or trademarks that would be attractive or appealing to consumers, due to institutional environment and policy regulations. Particular attention will be paid to analysis of actual application of this concept in practice

Design of The Learning Environment Considering the Gender Characteristics of Students

In this study, the motivation and cognitive characteristics of students in the implementation of a gender-based approach to teaching and their consideration in the educational process of boys and girls are presented. The purpose of the study is to verify empirically the effectiveness of the design of the learning environment considering the gender characteristics of students by analyzing the cognitive characteristics of children studying in different types of classes. In the study, the following methods were used: “Amthauer Intelligence Structure Test” adapted by L. A. Yasyukova , “Test for assessing the formation of reading skills”, “Test for assessing the independence of thinking”, test “Determining the level of school motivation and emotional attitude to learning (Spilberg-Andreeva)”, as well as observation, comparison and assessment. It is shown that children studying in same-sex classes show a higher motivation for learning; their cognitive abilities manifest themselves differently than in mixed classes