Understanding the dynamics of support for the European Union among Turkish youth:an examination of the importance of implicit attitudes

Turkish public opinion on EU is a relatively under-studied area in political science literature. To understand the dynamics behind the attitudes towards the EU, this study applies to implicit association test (IAT) and explicit survey measures, and two social psychological theories of inter-group relations, namely social identity, and system justification theories. The recent literature has shown that implicit attitudes can contribute to our understanding of vote choice (see Iyengar and Westwood 2015; Raccuia 2016; Ryan 2017). Employing data from a sample of 247 participants from three universities and the youth branches of the four major Turkish political parties, the study compares the strengths of explicit and implicit attitudes on a hypothetical membership referendum to the EU. The findings suggest that the Turkish national identity occupies a pivotal place in shaping the perceptions and preferences of the Turkish youth toward the EU. In the logistic regression analysis, the explicit EU attitudes predict vote choices on the hypothetical referendum better than any other variable. Even though it shows significant correlations with self-report EU measures, the predictive value of the implicit EU attitudes on voting behavior is not as strong as hypothesized. Nonetheless, in the OLS regression analysis, implicit measures are statistically significant in explaining the legitimacy of the system boundaries between the EU and Turkey. These findings are discussed in relation to their importance in understanding the complex nature of Turkish public opinion on the issue of the EU-Turkey relations and other political preference

Roli i mësimdhënësit në ligjërimin e letërsisë

Ky punim parashikon përmbledhje të ideve dhe kërkimeve mbi rolin e mësuesit në mësimdhënien e letërsisë. Letërsia dhe gjuha janë të lidhura ngushtë dhe ky është një fakt që askush nuk mund ta mohojë. Letërsia përbëhet nga gjuha dhe paraqet një nga përdorimet më të shpeshta. Prandaj, është për të besuar që letërsia e gjuhës angleze ndihmon nxënësit në përmirësimin e fushëveprimit në lexim dhe në mënyrën e tyre të të shprehurit. Mësuesit janë lidhja mes nxënësve dhe diturisë. Mësuesit janë udhëheqësit e mësimit dhe mundësojnë nxënësit për të rritur aftësitë e tyre të të mësuarit të pavarur. Mësuesit janë aktorë të rëndësishëm në procesin e të mësuarit dhe ata duhet të inkurajojnë nxënësit që të diskutojnë, imagjinojnë, lexojnë dhe ritregojnë tregimet në mënyrë që të rritet motivimi dhe vlera e letërsisë

A Spatial Analysis of Obesity and Its Associations with the Built and Natural Environment, Physical Inactivity, and Socioeconomic and Demographic Conditions in the United States of America

Obesity has strong genetic determinants but the genetic composition of the population does not change rapidly. Thus in this study, the major changes in non-genetic factors such as the development of obesogenic environments and shifting socioeconomic status and lifestyle of individuals are hypothesized to increase the risk of obesity. As the prevalence of obesity continue to increase worldwide with substantial attention in the US, a clearer understanding of how spatial associations between obesity and confounding factors are interrelated is crucial to better tackle the issue of obesity. This study employs the ‘global’ and ‘local’ Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA) methods including the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) to investigate obesity and its spatial associations with environmental, behavioral, socioeconomic, sociodemographic, and population based dynamics at the county level. The results from this study have generated empirically-based and useful insights for the 3,105 counties and county-equivalents across the 48 contiguous states, also known as the continental US. A major contribution of this study is exploring obesity and its confounding associations with various factors not only spatially but also temporally for the first time, revealing the temporal changes from 2004 to 2007 and to 2010. By utilizing the ESDA methods, a consistent answer obtained significantly indicates that positive spatial associations exist between obesity and physical inactivity (PIA), poverty, and population-weighted distance (PWD) to parks. Conversely, negative spatial associations exist between obesity and ratio of jobs to employed residents (JER) and population density. Another major contribution of this study is examining and revealing geographic variability in the association between obesity rates and various explanatory variables both nationwide and regionally at the county level for the entire US. By utilizing the GWR, a significant spatial nonstationarity is identified. This finding suggests that the strength of associations between obesity and each of the explanatory variables vary depending on the spatial location. It is also revealed that the confounding variables PIA, high educational attainment, African-American population, and poverty are identified as the top four variables by having relatively stronger effects in explaining obesity rates at the county level both nationwide and regionally

EXAMINING HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ SAFE COMPUTER AND INTERNET USAGE AWARENESS

The use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is rapidly spreading among high school students. These technologies provide the students to gain learning experiences and also involve many dangers such as addiction, loneliness and stress. The aim of this study is to examine awareness levels of different types of high school students towards Safe Computer and Internet Usage Awareness (SCIUA). The data were collected from 715 students studying in the high school students in Turkey by using a questionnaire developed by the researchers. The data obtained from the questionnaire were analyzed based on the pre-determined themes and the students’ information security and computer usage awareness profiles were revealed. It was determined that students mostly use Internet for access to information, playing online games and access to social networks. When the relations among dimensions of students’ awareness towards SCIUA were examined, a strong negative relation was determined between students’ competencies and the problems and threats they faced. Students’ remarks (awareness) vary in terms of social network/communication and dimension of family factor with respect to the places where they connect to the Internet. Also, within the scope of this project, practical information based on the results of this study is offered to implementers of the FATIH project, which is conducted by the Ministry of National Education in Turkey.   Article visualizations

Contribution of neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio to the diagnostic efficiency of computed tomography and polymerase chain reaction in COVID-19 patients

Background: 6.5% of the country's population was diagnosed with COVID-19 disease. Computed tomography scanning and polymerase chain reaction tests are considered reliable methods for the detection of COVID-19. However, the specificity and reliability of polymerase chain reaction tests and ground-glass opacity (GGO) on thorax computed tomography images in diagnosing COVID-19 are still being disputed. Our aim was to compare the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, whose efficiency in differentiating between viral and bacterial infections has previously been studied, with computed tomography and polymerase chain reaction for COVID-19 diagnosis. Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study that included patients treated in a tertiary care hospital emergency service pandemic polyclinic between 14 March and 1 June 2020. The neutrophil/lymphocyte ratios of patients with polymerase chain reaction tests and ground-glass opacities on computed tomography were calculated. The neutrophil/lymphocyte ratios of polymerase chain reaction-negative patients with computed tomography images were compared with the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratios of polymerase chain reaction-positive patients with computed tomography images. Results: A total of 631 patients were included in this study. Thorax computed tomography scans were obtained from all patients. The mean neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio of patients with ground-glass opacities was 3.50 +/- 2.12, whereas that of patients without ground-glass opacities was 2.90 +/- 2.01. This difference was also statistically significant. Polymerase chain reaction swab samples were obtained from 282 patients (44.7%). The mean neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio of polymerase chain reaction-positive patients was 2.38 +/- 1.02, whereas that of polymerase chain reaction-negative patients was 3.97 +/- 2.25. The difference was statistically significant. Conclusion: Many studies are undoubtedly required to determine the efficiency of the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio in COVID-19 diagnosis. However, we postulate that evaluating the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio along with computed tomography and polymerase chain reaction can assist in the diagnosis of patients

Axial vibration analysis of cracked nanorods with arbitrary boundary conditions

The axial vibration of cracked nanorods (carbon nanotubes) with arbitrary boundary conditions is studied. The nonlocal elasticity theory is used, and the crack severity is modeled by an axial spring representing the discontinuity in the axial displacement. The present model is set up by dividing the nanorod into two segments connected by an axial spring located at the cracked section. The axial displacement functions are sought as the combination of two Fourier sine series and Stokes’ transformation. Vibration frequencies of a nanorod for variant crack positions under different boundary conditions are calculated by means of the proposed method. The purpose of this study is mainly to present a general analytical method for the dynamical analysis of cracked nanorods with arbitrary boundary conditions (rigid or restrained) rather than to investigate a specific problem

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION OF ORGANIZATIONAL CYNICISM AND SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS’ BEHAVIOURS OF FAVOURITISM

The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between teachers’ perception of organizational cynicism and school administrators’ behaviours of favouritism. Since the research is a study that was carried out in order to detect the relationship between favouritism and cynicism, it is in correlational survey model. The sample of the research is constituted by 242 teachers who work in formal elementary schools in Van province. “Favouritism Scale in School Management” and “Organizational Cynicism Scale” were used to collect data for the study. Average, standard deviation, t-test, variance analysis, and regression, which are from descriptive statistics, were used in the analysis of the data. As a result of the study, it was observed that teachers’ levels related to their perception of behaviours of favouritism of school administrators and their perception of organizational cynicism are low. Female teachers perform more cynical behaviours compared to male teachers. It has been observed that teachers working in schools which have 40 or more teachers have less cynicism and favouritism perceptions compared to other groups. It has been observed that there is not a significant difference between favouritism and cynicism perceptions of teachers by class, branch, or period of service. It has been observed that there is a significant, positive, and medium level of relationship between favouritism and organizational cynicism. In the scope of this study, it has been observed that the perception of favouritism in schools is a significant predictor of organizational cynicism level.  Article visualizations

Literature and Integrative Motivation in the Language Classroom

In the language classroom, motivating students using learning materials is one of the best pathways for helping students obtain a positive outcome during the language learning process. Literary materials play an important role when teaching a foreign language. Language learning is tied up with integrative motivation, which enhances better and long term learning. This analysis of current research looks at the positive contributions of literary materials in a language classroom and found that students taught with the aid of literary materials were likely to show integrative motivation, resulting in a more long-term and deeper learning of the target language. This analysis demonstrates that students in language classrooms benefit from literature because literature improves their vocabulary, their ability to structure sentences, and their ability to organize various ideas and thoughts. Moreover, it reveals that literary materials and integrative motivation affect each other reciprocally

The role of teachers in teaching literature

This paper provides review of ideas and research on the role of the teacher in teaching of literature. Literature and language are closely related and this is a fact no one can deny. Literature is constituted by language and it represents one of the most recurrent uses of language. Therefore, the belief that Literature in English helps to improve the students’ scope of reading and their mode of expression is reiterated. Teachers are the link between learners and knowledge. Teachers are the facilitators of learning and the authority to enable students to increase their independent learning capabilities. Teachers are important actors in the process of learning and they should encourage students to discuss, imagine, read and retell the stories in order to increase their motivation and appreciation of literature