Tourists' Engagement on Tourism Organizations' Facebook Pages: The Role of User-Generated Content

Tourism industry prospects are presented by digital marketing and consumer travel behaviour changes. Given this fact, digital content marketing (DCM) assumes greater significance for enhancing social media user engagement. Providing valuable and relevant information that differentiates the company and catches the consumers' attention has been one of the current challenges in this area. The wide availability of information on the Internet changes how consumers engage with it. Therefore, creating and disseminating educational and pertinent content is now mandatory. To ensure the effectiveness of the process, it is crucial to understand with whom, how, when, and where communication will be carried out. Thus, tourism organisations must offer targeted, tailored, and appealing information to interest customers more about the destinations. Social media is a commonly used strategy for tourism promotion initiatives, where User Generated Content (UGC) has emerged as one of the most popular means to achieve this goal. “Turismo Centro de Portugal” is responsible for publicizing the Centre region of Portugal, including cities such as Coimbra, Aveiro, Viseu, and Leiria. Turismo Centro de Portugal has won several communication-related awards, having already been recognized internationally for its advertising campaigns. Numerous studies analyzing user-generated content and digital content are available, but they invariably look at businesses rather than tourism-related institutions. Hence, conducting a study to identify follower engagement and involvement in digital content marketing posts versus user-generated content posts applied to the Turismo Centro de Portugal was considered pertinent. For this purpose, a qualitative analysis of the existing content and its results on Turismo Centro de Portugal's Facebook page was developed based on a social media content analysis framework adapted from other authors. The results revealed the importance of using user-generated content in a social media communication strategy for tourism organisations.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Comportamientos parentales, orientación motivacional y objetivos deportivos: un estudio con atletas jóvenes

Este estudo analisou a relação entre comportamentos parentais, orientação motivacional e perceção de rendimento desportivo em jovens atletas. Participaram nesta investigação 711 atletas (89 raparigas e 622 rapazes), com idades entre os 12 e os 19 anos (M = 14.77; DP = 1.86). Os participantes responderam a um protocolo de avaliação composto por quatro instrumentos: Questionário Demográfico, Questionário de Comportamentos Parentais no Desporto; Escala de Objetivos de Realização para o Desporto Juvenil e Escala de Avaliação dos Objetivos de Rendimento. Verificaram-se diferenças nestas dimensões psicológicas em função de variáveis pessoais e desportivas dos atletas e salientou-se a importância dos comportamentos parentais e da perceção de obtenção dos objetivos individuais de rendimento na predição da orientação motivacional. Em suma, os resultados revelaram a importância destas variáveis na explicação da experiência psicológica dos jovens atletas e a continuação de investigações nesta área.This study analyzed the relationship between parental behavior, achievement goal orientation and perception of achievement of sport goals in youth sport. The sample included 711 athletes (89 girls and 622 boys), with ages between 12 and 19 years old (M = 14.77; SD = 1.86). The athletes answered an evaluation protocol with four instruments: Demographic Questionnaire, Questionnaire of Parental Behaviors in Sport, Achievement Goal Scale for Youth Sport, and Performance Goal Incongruence Scale. The results showed differences among these psychological variables according to personal and sport variables of athletes. Parental behavior and achievement of personal goals were also relevant in the prediction of achievement goal orientation. In conclusion, the results showed the importance of parental behavior, achievement goal orientation, and perception of achievement of sport goals in the study of the psychological experience of young athletes, suggesting the need for further investigations in this field.Este estudio examinó la relación entre los comportamientos parentales, la orientación motivacional y la percepción del rendimiento deportivo en atletas jóvenes. Participaron en esta investigación 711 atletas (89 chicas y 622 chicos), con edades entre 12 y 19 años (M = 14.77, DT = 1.86). Los participantes completaron un protocolo de evaluación constituido por cuatro instrumentos: Cuestionario Demográfico, Cuestionario de Conductas Parentales en el Deporte; Escala de Logro de Metas para el Deporte Juvenil y Escala de Evaluación de los Objetivos de Rendimiento Deportivo. Los resultados mostraron diferencias en estas dimensiones psicológicas en función de variables personales y deportivas de los atletas. Asimismo, mostraron que los comportamientos parentales y la percepción del rendimiento deportivo fueran variables predictoras de la orientación motivacional. En resumen, los resultados revelaron la importancia de estas variables en la explicación de la experiencia psicológica de los deportistas jóvenes y la importancia de continuación de la investigación en esta área

Käytännön eväitä monikulttuuriseen ohjaukseen

Opinnäytetyö tarkastelee maahanmuuttajien työssäoppimisen ohjausprosessia työssäoppimisen ohjaajan näkökulmasta. Tavoitteena oli selvittää, miten perehdytys, ohjaaminen sekä palautteen antamien ja arviointi tapahtuvat työssäoppimispaikoilla tällä hetkellä ja mitä tietoa työelämän edustajat toivovat maahanmuuttajaopiskelijasta ennen työssäoppimisen alkua. Lisäksi kartoitettiin ohjaajakoulutuksen tarvetta maahanmuuttajaopiskelijoiden työssäoppimisen ohjaajille. Tietoja kerättiin haastattelemalla kahdeksaa maahanmuuttajaopiskelijoiden työssäoppimisen ohjaajaa. Haastattelu toteutettiin teemahaastattelun menetelmin. Haastatteluja ohjaavat teema-alueet muodostettiin työssäoppimisen prosessin mukaisesti. Haastattelut tehtiin tammikuussa 2009. Aineisto koostui neljän siivousalan yrityksen työssäoppimisen ohjaajan kokemuksista. Haastattelun tuloksista nousi useita kehittämisalueita. Suomen kielen taito ja työelämän pelisääntöjen hallinta koettiin työssäoppimisen onnistumisen kannalta tärkeimmiksi asioiksi. Työssäoppimisen aikaa toivottiin riittävän pitkäksi, jotta maahanmuuttajaopiskelija ymmärtää työtehtävien kokonaisuudet. Toivottiin enemmän tietoa maahanmuuttajaopiskelijan kulttuuritaustasta ja erityispiirteistä. Työssäoppimisen ohjaajakoulutuksen järjestäminen koettiin tarpeelliseksi. Haastattelun tulosten johtopäätöksistä nousee kolme erillistä kehittämisaihetta. Ensimmäinen aihe on järjestää perusteellisempi perehdyttäminen ja opastaminen niin työssäoppimisen ohjaajille kuin maahanmuuttajaopiskelijoille. Toinen aihe on järjestää työssäoppimisen ohjaajille koulutus, jossa käsitellään monikulttuurisuuteen liittyviä asioita. Kolmas aihe on maahanmuuttajakoulutusten alkukartoitusten järjestelmällisen organisoinnin aloittaminen. Tätä opinnäytetyötä voidaan hyödyntää alan koulutuksissa.The thesis examines the process of supervising immigrants in workplace learning from the supervisor’s point of view. The aim of the study was to find out how introduction, supervision as well as feedback and evaluation currently take place in sites for workplace learning and what information concerning the immigrant student the representatives of workplaces expect to have prior to the beginning of workplace learning. In addition, the need for training for supervisors of immigrant students’ workplace learning was examined. The data was gathered by interviewing eight supervisors of immigrant students’ workplace learning. The interviews were conducted by using the methods of a theme interview. The themes guiding the interviews were constructed according to the process of workplace learning. The interviews were conducted in January 2009 and the data consists of the experiences of four supervisors of workplace learning in cleaning companies. Several areas of development arose from the interviews. Proficiency in Finnish and mastering the rules of working life were considered to be the most important factors for successful workplace learning. The time for workplace learning should be long enough so that the immigrant student would understand the entities formed by different work-related tasks. Organizing training for supervisors was also considered necessary. The results indicate three different areas for development, which are, firstly, a more thorough introduction and guidance for both the supervisors of workplace learning and the immigrant students; secondly, organizing training for supervisors of workplace learning which would deal with issued related to multiculturalism; and thirdly, organizing a systematic initial survey. The results of the study can be utilized in organizing training in this area

Portuguese teachers’ views about geosciences models

Geoscience teachers use models to help students to learn phenomenon, because they simplify the explanation of abstract scientific theories. For that reason, modelling is an important tool to be used in geosciences classrooms to help students to understand theories. However, resorting to that strategy implies that teachers recognize its importance and are prepared to guide students in their learning processes through modelling. In the present research we analyse the views of Portuguese science teachers about geosciences models covered by Portuguese science curriculum. Data analysis led us to the conclusion that the majority of teachers have solid scientific knowledge regarding the geosciences models. It’s crucial that teachers understand scientific models, so they can present them clearly to students, through a model-based approach

Prevalência de fatores de risco para doenças crônicas não transmissíveis na população adulta do Distrito Federal em 2007

Monografia (Bacharelado em Nutrição)— Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, 2014.Introdução: As doenças crônicas não transmissíveis (DCNT) representam um conjunto de doenças com causas multifatoriais. A transição nutricional, demográfica e epidemiológica favoreceu o aumento das DCNT, assim como dos seus fatores de risco. As DCNT representam um grave problema de saúde pública no mundo e no Brasil. Metodologia: Estudo epidemiológico transversal, observacional, descritivo, de base populacional, realizado a partir de inquérito domiciliar, com amostra probabilística representativa da população adulta, homens e mulheres, residentes no Distrito Federal, no ano de 2007. Foi conduzida entrevista com aplicação de questionário estruturado, análise bioquímica de glicemia e perfil lipídico, aferição da pressão arterial e medidas antropométricas. Para cálculo da prevalência dos fatores de risco assim como a distribuição das variáveis sociodemográficas foi considerada a natureza complexa da amostragem, utilizando-se o programa STATA versão 13 para as análises estatísticas. Resultados: Foram entrevistadas 2.726 pessoas, sendo 810 homens e 1916 mulheres. Os fatores de risco mais prevalentes foram o baixo consumo de frutas (60,5%) e excesso de peso (48,9%). O baixo consumo de frutas e hortaliças foi mais prevalente entre os homens (p<0,001). A circunferência abdominal apresentou-se com valores considerados de risco em parcela significativa da população estudada, principalmente no sexo feminino (39,97%; p<0,001). Em cerca de 25% da população foram encontrados valores não controlados de pressão arterial, principalmente no sexo masculino (30,45%; p<0,001). Os fatores de risco de maior prevalentes entre os homens foram o sedentarismo, baixo consumo de frutas, excesso de peso e baixo consumo de hortaliças. Entre as mulheres os mais prevalentes foram: sedentarismo, baixo consumo de frutas, excesso de peso e CC aumentada. Os fatores de risco bioquímicos de maior prevalência foram o HDL baixo e a hipertrigliceridemia, em ambos os sexos, sendo que as prevalências de inadequação foram maiores entre homens. Conclusão: Os fatores de risco com maior prevalência na população estudada foram o baixo consumo diário de frutas e hortaliças, o excesso de peso, a hipertrigliceridemia e a circunferência abdominal aumentada. As prevalências dos outros fatores de risco considerados são também elevadas e, analisadas em conjunto, são semelhantes ao que foi encontrado no estudo piloto e no país. Este resultado reforça a necessidade de adequação de políticas públicas nacionais e locais mais eficazes a fim de reduzir a ocorrência dos fatores de risco e da ocorrência das DCNT e seus agravos

How is the reintroduction of extinct animals regarded through age? A comparative study with students from two distinct school levels

The Portuguese curriculum includes the issue of endangered species but it omits the reintroductions of endangered or already extinct species. Therefore, this study aimed to verify and compare the position of 435 students, attending the 4th (n1=210, age average 8,8) and the 9th year (n2=225, age average 14,3) of schooling, about the hypothetical reintroduction of three emblematic mammals from the Iberian fauna in Portugal: the wild goat, the bear and the lynx, which has a very different situation in this country. To this end, a questionnaire was applied, also demanding the reasons of their choice. The students of both groups supported the reintroductions with percentages that were very similar, but the reasons for their support had a different frequency. In a very general way, the older students gave more personal and ecological arguments and the younger produced more arguments centred on the animals and on the human being. However, the incidence of ecological arguments was lower than expected, due to the fact that students from the 9th have approached throughout schooling, more precisely at the 3rd, 5th and 8thyears, several ecological issues. Some misconceptions about the utility of the animals for humans, especially in the case of the wild goat, and their dangerousness, in the case of the bear and lynx, were also detected. Because this issue has proved to be very controversial in countries that have already started a reintroduction policy of some species of their fauna, we support its discussion during schooling, in Science Education and Environmental Education, for a better understanding of the reasons for and against the reintroductions that may allow reducing the importance of empathy for an animal as the most important one.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A semi-supervised Genetic Programming method for dealing with noisy labels and hidden overfitting

Silva, S., Vanneschi, L., Cabral, A. I. R., & Vasconcelos, M. J. (2018). A semi-supervised Genetic Programming method for dealing with noisy labels and hidden overfitting. Swarm and Evolutionary Computation, 39(April), 323-338. DOI: 10.1016/j.swevo.2017.11.003Data gathered in the real world normally contains noise, either stemming from inaccurate experimental measurements or introduced by human errors. Our work deals with classification data where the attribute values were accurately measured, but the categories may have been mislabeled by the human in several sample points, resulting in unreliable training data. Genetic Programming (GP) compares favorably with the Classification and Regression Trees (CART) method, but it is still highly affected by these errors. Despite consistently achieving high accuracy in both training and test sets, many classification errors are found in a later validation phase, revealing a previously hidden overfitting to the erroneous data. Furthermore, the evolved models frequently output raw values that are far from the expected range. To improve the behavior of the evolved models, we extend the original training set with additional sample points where the class label is unknown, and devise a simple way for GP to use this additional information and learn in a semi-supervised manner. The results are surprisingly good. In the presence of the exact same mislabeling errors, the additional unlabeled data allowed GP to evolve models that achieved high accuracy also in the validation phase. This is a brand new approach to semi-supervised learning that opens an array of possibilities for making the most of the abundance of unlabeled data available today, in a simple and inexpensive way.authorsversionpublishe

The role of geology in a sustainable society: perceptions of university students

Geology has been at the service of an instrumental view of nature contributing to its exploitation, and helping providing the raw materials needed for economic development, frequently with high ecological impacts. However, Environmental Geology and Geoconservation are fields more concerned with environmental protection and its preservation. At the same time, Geology is responsible for a certain ambiguity of values, choosing the hammer as a symbol but focusing its action on the field, which helps to generate a sense of reverence for Earth. Based on these ideas, a questionnaire was applied to 36 master students who will teach Geology (20) or will exercise other professions related with it (16), in order to ascertain how respondents characterize the work of geologists related to nature, and see their opinion about the contribution of this science to a fairer and more sustainable society. The general results show that the students identify more with a less exploiting view of this science and prefer to highlight its role for a fairer and more sustainable society especially concerning a more sustainable exploitation of Earth resources and rising of awareness of geohazards. This can support the idea of paradigm changing in Geosciences, adding an element of caution to our actions instead of helping the mutilation of the planet.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pupil’s mental models of earth internal structure

Mental models are fundamental for understanding the construction of knowledge and people’ actions, constituting an important area in science education. In fact, Johnson-Laird (1983) argued that people think and reason with mental models, as it is impossible to directly understand the world. For this author, human mind construct internal representations, which are considered a bridge that connects people with the world. Mental models represent objects or specific situations, capturing its essential characteristics. Although mental models are considered to be personal, incomplete, unstable and unscientific they allow pupils to understand and explain phenomena. As so, according to their experiences, pupils construct their own mental models, which are useful for their daily life. On the other hand, conceptual models are considered to be precise representations coherent with scientific knowledge that are introduced to them in the classroom. When pupils are confronted with conceptual models which are frequently different from their own mental models, restructuring processes may occur in diverse ways. Consequently, it is important that teachers become aware of the difficulty of this process and recognize the relevance of the diversity of their pupils’ mental models, in order to promote activities that allow them to construct their models in an effective way. Pupils should have the opportunity to evaluate the importance of conceptual models and to correctly compare them with their previous knowledge. The present study aims to analyze how primary pupils imagine and represent the internal structure of the Earth. To attain this purpose, a questionnaire was constructed and validated by two university experts in primary education. The questionnaire asked pupils to draw the Earth’s interior and to write an explanation of their own drawing intending to get an approximation of their Earth’s internal structure mental models. One hundred and seventeen pupils of the last year of the primary school participated in this study. The sample had 58,1% of boys and 41,9% of girls, with ages ranging from 9 to 11 years old. The collected data was analyzed and mental models were classified into different categories: (i) Real Concentric Layers Model; (ii) Unreal Concentric Layers Model; (iii) Simple Random Structure Model; (iv) Complex Random Structure Model; (v) Fictional Model; (vi) Mixed Model; and (vii) External Model. Complex Random Structure Model was the model represented by the majority of pupils. In fact, only 35,9% of participants represent the Earth’s internal structure divided into layers. Although pupils were allowed to represent movement with arrows, most of them possess a static mental model of the Earth.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio