An exploratory study looking at the relationship marketing techniques used in the music festival industry

There are current issues and trends in the music festival market, which may affect the success of an event, and market saturation is at the forefront of these issues. Previous literature, maintaining the need for a marketing approach to festivals, identifi es the need for maintaining strong stakeholder relationships in order to succeed in a business environment; attention has been focused to the theory of relationship marketing (RM) because of the recognition that this practice is complementary to the marketing of festivals. The very nature of the music festival as an annual, usually, 4-day event means that effective marketing is needed to keep connections with the consumer throughout the year. This article focuses on the RM techniques utilised within the music festival industry from the viewpoint of the festival organiser in an attempt to establish how festival organisations value and monitor organisational relationships. This article explores the extent to which these relationships are valued and managed; furthermore, the variations between these intricate relationships are considered by focusing on those held with the organisation ’ s consumers and sponsors, the results of which have provided the ability to establish the importance and relevance of RM to the industry and further identify the marketing communication methods employed to establish and maintain such relationships. In-depth, convergent interviews have been conducted with a segment of music festival organisers from a range of events. The results have been integrated with the study of current literature to best exemplify these issues. It has been established that RM has a strong role in today ’ s commercial and independent music festival industry; technological advances are enabling the organiser to support online relationships further and increase consumer loyalty. There is a need to expand the research further because of the complexity of organisational relationships and the varying categories of festivals

Problematic Facebook use and problematic video gaming as mediators of relationship between impulsivity and life satisfaction among female and male gamers

Over the past few decades, many new technologies have emerged, such as portable computers, the internet and smartphones, which have contributed to improving the lives of individuals. While the benefits of these new technologies are overwhelmingly positive, negative consequences are experienced by a minority of individuals. One possible negative aspect of new technologies is their problematic use due to impulsive use which may lead to lower life satisfaction. The present study investigated the mediating role of problematic video gaming (PVG) and problematic Facebook use (PFU) in the relationship between impulsivity dimensions and life satisfaction as well as the relationship between impulsivity dimensions and problematic behaviors. Additionally, the potential impact of gender differences was also examined. The study comprised 673 gamers (391 females) aged 17–38 years (M = 21.25 years, SD = 2.67) selected from 1365 individuals who completed an offline survey. PFU was assessed using the Facebook Intrusion Scale, and PVG was assessed using the nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale–Short-Form (IGDS9-SF). Impulsivity dimensions such as attention, cognitive instability, motor, perseverance, self-control, and cognitive complexity were assessed using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), and life satisfaction was assessed using the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS). Depending on the specific impulsivity dimension, findings showed both positive and negative relationships between impulsivity and life satisfaction. Attention and perseverance subtypes of impulsivity were primarily associated with problematic behaviors. Additionally, cognitive complexity was associated with PFU among female gamers, whereas cognitive instability was associated with PVG among male gamers. Additionally, PVG was primarily associated with lower life satisfaction. However, there was no mediation effects between impulsivity dimensions and life satisfaction via PFU or PVG. These findings provide a better understanding of the relationship between problematic behaviors, life satisfaction, and impulsivity among gamers and the differences between male and female gamers

Determining Visitor Engagement through Augmented Reality at Science Festivals: An Experience Economy Perspective

Augmented reality (AR) has been increasingly implemented to enhance visitor experiences, and tourism research has long understood the importance of creating memorable experiences, leading to the research era of experience economy. Although technology-enhanced visitor engagement is crucial for science festivals, research focusing on visitor engagement through AR using the experience economy perspective is limited. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine how the educational, esthetics, escapist and entertainment experience using AR affect visitor satisfaction and memorable experience, and eventually, lead to visitor engagement with science experiences in the context of science festivals. A total of 220 data inputs were collected as part of the European City of Science festivities and Manchester Science Festival 2016 and analyzed using structural equation modelling. Findings show that the four realms of experience economy influence satisfaction and memory and, ultimately, the intention for visitor engagement with science research at science festivals. Theoretical contributions and practical implications are presented and discussed

Investigation of effect of vitamin E on serum lipids

32nd Congress of the Federation-of-European-Biochemical-Societies (FEBS) -- JUL 07-12, 2007 -- Vienna, AUSTRIA[Abstract not Available]Federat European Biochem So

Investigation of oxidative stress and some antioxidants in patients with acute and chronic viral hepatitis B and the effect of interferon-alpha treatment

Objective: The aim of the study was to determine oxidative stress in patients with acute and chronic viral hepatitis B. Design and methods: 23 (11 F, 12 M) healthy controls, 23 (8 F, 15 M) patients with acute viral hepatitis B (AVHB) and 25 (9 F, 16 M) patients with chronic viral hepatitis B (CVHB) were studied. Serum malondialdehyde (MDA), conjugated dienes (CD), ALT, AST, total and direct bilirubins, beta-carotene and whole blood reduced glutathione (GSH) levels of all subjects were measured. In patients with CVHB, these parameters were measured both before and 6 months after treatment with interteron-alpha (IFN-alpha). Results: MDA, CD, ALT, AST and total and direct bilirubin levels of the patients with AVHB and CVHB before treatment were significantly higher (P < 0.001) whereas GSH and beta-carotene levels were lower (P < 0.001) than those of the controls. MDA, CD, GSH, beta-carotene, ALT, AST and total and direct bilirubin levels of the patients with CVHB returned approximately to normal levels 6 months after treatment with IFN-alpha. Conclusion: Our results clearly show that patients with AVHB and CVHB are under the influence of increased oxidative stress (MDA and CD were increased) associated with lower levels of some antioxidants (beta-carotene and GSH). These impairments return to normal levels after IFN-alpha treatment of CVHB patients. These findings suggest that antioxidant supplementation might be considered in patients with acute or chronic hepatitis B. (C) 2005 Published by The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists

Effects of highly consumed dietary oils on several hepatic transaminases and lipid oxidation in chick

The incidence of cardiovascular disease is well correlated with diets high in saturated fatty acids (such as butter). On the other hand, oils, which are rich in unsaturated fatty acids (e.g., sunflower oil and corn oils), reduce cholesterol synthesis and thus show protective effects against arteriosclerosis. However, sunflower oil and corn oil are also considered as risk factors for their sensitivities to free radical formation because of their high contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). The aim of the present study described herein was to investigate the production of reactive oxygen metabolites (an indicator of oxidative stress) and the activities of several transaminases (markers of hepatic injury) in chick liver treated with highly consumed dietary oils (differing in the degree of saturation). The animals were randomly assigned to six groups of 29 and fed dietary butter, margarine, olive oil, sunflower oil, or corn oil for 2 months. The results indicated that the level of reactive oxygen metabolites (ROM) was lowest in the dietary butter-fed group but highest in the corn oil-fed group. Similarly, the activities of all transaminases measured were lowest in the butter group, and in the margarine-fed group only the Gama-glutamyl transaminase activity was lowest as compared to the control group. From these findings, it was concluded that the dietary butter was the most resistant oil to lipid oxidation, whereas corn oil was the most susceptible one, which may thus challenge the antioxidant defense system and increase the susceptibility of tissues to degradation products of lipid oxidation