Qualidade de vida e espiritualidade em doentes psiquiátricos

Mestrado em Psicologia - Psicologia Clínica e da SaúdeConstatamos na nossa sociedade que proliferam práticas de âmbito espiritual, que refletem a necessidade humana de se autoatualizar ou até mesmo transcender – o que se pode designar de espiritualidade. Este constructo pode ser tido como complexo e multifacetado, tendo sido abordado em diferentes contextos – com especial enfoque nos seus efeitos psicológicos. Atualmente, existe alguma literatura a este respeito, no entanto, encontram-se poucas investigações que exploram este domínio na doença mental. Neste sentido, pretende-se com o presente estudo contribuir para a compreensão do papel da espiritualidade, enquanto um fator protetor ou de dano na qualidade de vida de doentes mentais. A amostra é composta por 96 utentes, de ambos os géneros e com idades que variam entre os 21 e os 73 anos, do Serviço de Reabilitação Psicossocial do Hospital Magalhães Lemos, EPE; os quais responderam a um protocolo de investigação composto pelos seguintes instrumentos: WHOQOL-BREF (Vaz Serra, et al., 2006) para a apreciação da Qualidade de Vida, a Escala de Espiritualidade (Pinto & Pais-Ribeiro, 2007) e o RICH (Nylicek & Teixeira, 2013) que avalia aspetos de mindfulness. Os resultados gerais suportam a literatura existente e evidenciam que as crenças espirituais dos doentes psiquiátricos associam-se positivamente ao índice de qualidade de vida, ao grau de esperança/otimismo e a componentes de mindfulness dos mesmos. Contudo, as variâncias das relações estabelecidas entre variáveis são moderadas; permitindo considerar que a espiritualidade assume um papel modesto na promoção de qualidade de vida destes sujeitos. A análise de objetivos específicos reforça estes dados e esclarece que os mesmos não dependem do género sexual, nem do diagnóstico. É sugerido que a espiritualidade deve ser tida em conta na compreensão e no tratamento de doentes do foro mental.We note that proliferate in our society practices considered spiritual that reflect the human urge for self-actualization or even transcendence – what may be called spirituality. This construct may be regarded as complex and multifaceted, being addressed in different contexts – with special attention to its psychological effects. Today, there is some literature on this subject, however, there are few investigations that explore this domain in mental disorders. In this sense, it is intended with the present study to elucidate the role of spirituality as a protective or damage fator in mental patient´s quality of life. The sample consists of 96 users of the Hospital Magalhães Lemos, EPE Psychosocial Rehabilitation Service, with ages between 21 and 73 years, who responded to a investigation protocol composed by the following instruments: WHOQOL-BREF (Vaz Serra et al., 2006) for the evaluation of quality of life, the Scale of Spirituality (Pinto & Pais-Ribeiro, 2007) and the RICH (Nylicek & Teixeira, 2013) which assess aspects of mindfulness. The results support the few existing studies, as well as the speculative articles that focus on the issue. The spiritual beliefs of psychiatric patients are related to the quality of life index, to the grade of hope/optimism and to components of mindfulness. However, variances from established relationships between variables are moderate; allowing to account the spirituality as having a humble part in the promotion of quality of life in these subjects. The analysis of the specific objetives reinforces this data and clarifies that this results do not depend on gender and on diagnostic. It is suggested that spirituality should be taken into consideration in understanding and treatment of mental health patients

How do the political constraints of the host country affect the choice of a new geographical market in the construction sector?

MNEs, before taking a decision to internationalize, should analyze the macro environment factors affecting a foreign market, which avoids/decreases uncertainty. Hence, understanding the political constraints when choosing the geographical market is imperative. This is true, especially for the construction industry because it is a regulated industry, which means that companies need to have a permit from the government in order to operate in this industry. Furthermore, companies working in the heavy construction industry have the government as their main client because most of the projects are public. In order to understand the political factors affecting the choice of a new geographical market we did participant observation and conduct four interviews to the managers of a Portuguese scaffolder services provider company. Our findings suggest that the relationships between companies and governments are particularly important in countries characterized by political instability. In countries with high policy discretion, in which the ruling body can change the law suddenly according to their preferences, it is essential to establish close ties with the government. If the company is able to establish stronger ties, it has competitive advantage, if not, managers are risk averse and tend to not invest in that country. Companies that invest in a foreign country, without that capability, may fail due to the institutional distance and the lack of managerial training. Furthermore, the stability of the country influences the commitment and confidence of a firm in that market.Previamente à decisão de internacionalização, as empresas multinacionais devem analisar os fatores macroeconómicos dos potenciais mercados, de modo a prevenir/reduzir a incerteza. Perceber as restrições de índole política na escolha de um mercado geográfico é imperativo. Isto é especialmente verdade para empresas de construção: por ser uma indústria regulada, uma vez que é necessário um alvará atribuído pelo Governo para que uma empresa esteja apta a operar nesse sector; e porque, se forem empresas que trabalhem em projetos de grande especialidade e dimensão, terem o Estado como o seu principal cliente, pois a maioria destes projetos são obras públicas. De modo a compreender os fatores políticos que afetam a escolha de um novo mercado geográfico, fizemos uma observação qualitativa e realizámos quatro entrevistas a gestores de uma empresa portuguesa que fornece e instala andaimes. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que a relação entre empresas e governos é particularmente importante em países caracterizados por instabilidade política. Em países em que os governantes detêm o poder de alterar leis repentinamente de acordo com as suas conveniências, é essencial estabelecer relações próximas com o Poder. A capacidade de estabelecer esses laços fortes confere vantagem competitiva à empresa. Caso contrário, os gestores são adversos ao risco e tendem a não investir nesses mercados. Empresas que investem num país estrangeiro, sem essa capacidade, podem vir a fracassar por não estabelecer laços de proximidade institucional e por falta de experiência dos gestores. A estabilidade de um país influencia o empenho e a confiança da empresa nesse mercado

Cogeração e trigeração. Um caso prático

A necessidade de diminuir os consumos de energia, não só por questões financeiras mas, essencialmente, por questões ambientais fez com que fossem feitos esforços no sentido da implementação de sistemas de energias renováveis ou mesmo com rendimentos o mais elevados possíveis. Surge, então, em alternativa às grandes centrais convencionais e às redes de distribuição em alta tensão, a produção descentralizada de eletricidade, sendo que a cogeração era em finais de 2010 segundo a Galp Energia, responsável pela produção de cerca de 12% de todo o consumo de eletricidade no país e por 34% da produção em regime especial. A cogeração/trigeração surge como uma tecnologia interessante ao garantir economias de energia e competitividade acrescida às empresas e consiste basicamente na produção combinada de energia térmica e elétrica num mesmo equipamento, destinando‐se ambas ao consumo da própria empresa ou de terceiros, evitando ou atenuando a utilização de equipamentos próprios de produção de calor e aquisição de energia elétrica à rede. Neste artigo vamos familiarizar‐nos com esta solução energética, a cogeração/trigeração, que prova ser bastante eficiente, aplicando os princípios da produção combinada de eletricidade, calor e frio

Viability of two new mixture design methodologies for self-consolidating concrete

This paper presents the results from an experimental study of the technical viability of two mixture designs for self-consolidating concrete (SCC) proposed by two Portuguese researchers in a previous work. The objective was to find the best method to provide the required characteristics of SCC in fresh and hardened states without having to experiment with a large number of mixtures. Five SCC mixtures, each with a volume of 25 L (6.61 gal.) were prepared using a forced mixer with a vertical axis for each of three compressive strength targets: 40, 55, and 70 MPa (5.80, 7.98, and 10.15 ksi). The mixtures' fresh state properties of fluidity, segregation resistance ability, and bleeding and blockage tendency, and their hardened state property of compressive strength were compared. For this study, the following tests were performed. slump-flow, V-funnel, L-box, box, and compressive strength. The results of this study made it possible to identify the most influential factors in the design of the SCC mixtures

Didactic experiences involving mobile robotics having microfactory as context

In this paper an analysis of MicroFactory is carried out and the potential for generating a diversified set of didactic experiences based on it is evaluated. MicroFactory is a robotic competition based on a previously existing competition called Robot@Factory. Robot@Factory is a Portuguese robotic competition whose first edition was held in 2011 in Lisbon. The scenario of the competition simulates a factory which has two warehouses, and 8 processing machines. The flow of the materials inside the factory starts at the Incoming Warehouse and ends at the Outgoing Warehouse, eventually passing through one or more processing machines. The robots must collect, transport and position the materials along the process, having to self-localize and navigate while avoiding collisions with walls, obstacles and other robots. There is the option of following predefined tracks present on the floor to ease the navigation problem. Robot@Factory poses challenges like dynamic task scheduling, robot cooperation, trajectory planning, robot navigation with obstacle avoidance, robot self-localization and materials identification and manipulation. Related research contributes to improve AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicle systems) technology. Presently this competition is integrated in Festival Nacional de Robótica, a yearly event which attracts lots of public, contributing also to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) popularization. MicroFactory was conceived to be low-cost and easily implementable in a small space, be it a classroom or the school robotics club. The ground area of the factory scenario was reduced to approximately one ninth of its original value. The scenario materials were simplified – the floor is now an A0 printed sheet and the warehouses and machines dimensions are so that they can be 3D printed or made out of LEGOTM bricks; both machines and parts had active elements with LEDs and now they are passive. Besides the competition scenario it was also conceived an official robot for the competition. It’s a 3D printed robot, based on Arduino and cheap common electronic parts. The creation of this competition is part of a wider Open Source project, aiming to develop project-based collaborative didactic experiences involving robotics and low-cost 3D printed educational robots based on generic electronics to support those experiences. Currently efforts are being dedicated to the inclusion of more sensors in the competition robot, namely low-cost distance sensors and a weight sensor at the claws, the inclusion of different kinds of motors, the development of a new version of the robot incorporating a Raspberry Pi board, the development of a very precise robot localization system, and the conception of a diversified set of didactic experiences based on the MicroFactory competition. This article presents an analysis of MicroFactory and of its inherent challenges. Through this analysis it will be possible to identify topics that can be taught and learned while developing robots to participate in the competition, and to collect elements that will be very useful in the planning and implementation of didactic experiences that work those topics.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio