Manipulatív marketing: fogyasztói észlelések és reakciók

A marketing koncepciónak kezdetektől fogva a vevőorientáció az egyik kulcsfogalma. Tulajdonképpen annak a szemléletváltásnak köszönheti felemelkedését és más menedzsmentdiszciplínától való elhatárolását is, amellyel a vevői igényeket helyezte a vállalati gondolkodás középpontjába. Későbbiekben azonban a kutatók rájöttek arra, hogy maguk az igények az üzleti gyakorlat során nagymértékben kontrollálhatók, és az eladói oldal azóta is él ezekkel a lehetőségekkel. A kutatás arra volt kíváncsi, hogy a vállalatok manipulációs gyakorlata hogyan csapódik le a fogyasztókban, melyek azok a manipulációs eszközök, amelyeket észlelnek, és azokra milyen válaszreakciókat adnak. Azonosíthatók-e tipikus gondolkodási sémák, magatartási mintázatok, amelyek jól jellemzik egyes vevők viszonyát a vállalati manipulációval. A tanulmány feltáró interjúkra épít, amely segít megérteni a fogyasztókban végbe menő komplex mechanizmusokat. Az eredmények azt sugallják, hogy kétfajta folyamat játszódik le a vevői oldalon Egyrészt a fogyasztók idővel rutinszerű magatartásmintákat vesznek fel, amely során a manipulációs eszközök érvényesülése nem tudatos, és a vállalatoknak kedvező reakciókat vált ki. Másrészt, a fogyasztói társadalom is egyfajta érési folyamaton megy át, aminek hatására megtanulják a vállalatok gondolkodásmódját, és – bár a kognitív korlátok miatt azokat nem tudják teljes mértékben lekövetni – igyekeznek önvédő heurisztikákat beépíteni a követett magatartásukba. A kutatás alapján hipotetikusan öt vevőtípust azonosítottunk, akiket egymástól eltérő reakciók jellemeznek. Customer orientation has been the key concept of marketing since the beginning. As a matter of fact, the emergence of marketing and the conceptual distinction between marketing and the related management disciplines can be attributed to this new approach, which put customer needs in the focus of company attention. Later, researchers revealed that the needs themselves can be controlled to a greater extent and sellers have been taking advantage of it since then. The main focus of the research concentrated on the effects of manipulation practices of companies on consumers, which manipulation tools are recognised and how consumers react to them. Furthermore the research also investigated whether typical cognitive, emotional and behavioural patterns, which reflect the relationship between consumers and the manipulation practices of companies, can be identified. The study relies on explorative interviews, which help understand the complex mechanisms of consumer attitudes. The results indicates that the opposite process occur on the consumer side. On the one hand, consumers tend to follow behavioural routines after a while, which help manipulation tools work in an unconscious way that triggers reactions for the favour of companies. On the other hand, the generations of consumers are getting more and more mature and learning the companies’ mentality and, despite having cognitive limitations to identify all the tricks and deceptive attempts, they try to develop and follow defensive heuristics. Based on the data explored we identified five customer types and we described their diverse reactions to manipulation.

The effect of cross -age tutoring routines on the tutor's perception of self as reader

Perception of self as a non-reader has been identified as one of the factors why poor readers disengage from the reading process (Strang, 1967; Rosow, 1992), thus impeding progress. Perception and informational processes influence judgments of personal efficacy (Bandura, 1997). The student's sense of reading efficacy that influence effort expenditure and ultimately achievement, is often overlooked (Athey, 1985; Pajares, 1996). Academic routines within educational programs are implemented without adequate information on whether routines promote or impede efficacy growth. Cross-age tutoring, a process known to improve participants' academic achievement, motivation, and provide opportunities for authentic reading practice, has been successfully incorporated into reading instruction designs (Allen, 1976; Cohen, Kulik & Kulik, 1982; Labbo & Teale, 1990; Riessman, 1993). This study investigated the impact teacher-designed routines within a cross-age tutoring model, have on the tutor's sense of reading self-efficacy. ^ The Reader Self-Perception Scale (Henk & Melnick, 1992) was administered, pre- and post-treatment, to 118 fifth grade students. Preceding the initial survey administration intact classes were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 commonly utilized cross-age tutoring routines or designated as the non-treatment population. The data derived from the Reader Self-Perception Scale was analyzed using an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Results indicated that participation as a cross-age tutor does not significantly increase the tutor's perception of self as reader in 1 or more of the 4 modes of information influencing self-efficacy as compared to the non-treatment group. ^ The results of this study suggests that although a weekly tutoring session that delivers educationally credible routines impacts achievement and motivation, efficacy effect was not evident. Possible explanation and recommendations for future studies are proposed. ^

Fitting model-based psychometric functions to simultaneity and temporal-order judgment data: MATLAB and R routines

Research on temporal-order perception uses temporal-order judgment (TOJ) tasks or synchrony judgment (SJ) tasks in their binary SJ2 or ternary SJ3 variants. In all cases, two stimuli are presented with some temporal delay, and observers judge the order of presentation. Arbitrary psychometric functions are typically fitted to obtain performance measures such as sensitivity or the point of subjective simultaneity, but the parameters of these functions are uninterpretable. We describe routines in MATLAB and R that fit model-based functions whose parameters are interpretable in terms of the processes underlying temporal-order and simultaneity judgments and responses. These functions arise from an independent-channels model assuming arrival latencies with exponential distributions and a trichotomous decision space. Different routines fit data separately for SJ2, SJ3, and TOJ tasks, jointly for any two tasks, or also jointly for the three tasks (for common cases in which two or even the three tasks were used with the same stimuli and participants). Additional routines provide bootstrap p-values and confidence intervals for estimated parameters. A further routine is included that obtains performance measures from the fitted functions. An R package for Windows and source code of the MATLAB and R routines are available as Supplementary Files.

Discovery of Novel Bacterial Cell-Penetrating Phylloseptins in Defensive Skin Secretions of the South American Hylid Frogs, Phyllomedusa duellmani and Phyllomedusa coelestis

Phylloseptin (PS) peptides, derived from South American hylid frogs (subfamily Phyllomedusinae), have been found to have broad-spectrum antimicrobial activities and relatively low haemolytic activities. Although PS peptides have been identified from several well-known and widely-distributed species of the Phyllomedusinae, there remains merit in their study in additional, more obscure and specialised members of this taxon. Here, we report the discovery of two novel PS peptides, named PS-Du and PS-Co, which were respectively identified for the first time and isolated from the skin secretions of Phyllomedusa duellmani and Phyllomedusa coelestis. Their encoding cDNAs were cloned, from which it was possible to deduce the entire primary structures of their biosynthetic precursors. Reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) analyses were employed to isolate and structurally-characterise respective encoded PS peptides from skin secretions. The peptides had molecular masses of 2049.7 Da (PS-Du) and 1972.8 Da (PS-Co). They shared typical N-terminal sequences and C-terminal amidation with other known phylloseptins. The two peptides exhibited growth inhibitory activity against E. coli (NCTC 10418), as a standard Gram-negative bacterium, S. aureus (NCTC 10788), as a standard Gram-positive bacterium and C. albicans (NCPF 1467), as a standard pathogenic yeast, all as planktonic cultures. Moreover, both peptides demonstrated the capability of eliminating S. aureus biofilm.

‘We report the world as it is, not as we want it to be’: Journalistic negotiation of news routines, roles and responsibilities when reporting on suicide

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Dynamic set pieces for CAMBADA team

Robotics is an emergent branch of engineering that involves the conception, manufacture, and control of robots. It is a multidisciplinary field that combines electronics, design, computer science, artificial intelligence, mechanics and nanotechnology. Its evolution results in machines that are able to perform tasks with some level of complexity. Multi-agent systems is a researching topic within robotics, thus they allow the solving of higher complexity problems, through the execution of simple routines. Robotic soccer allows the study and development of robotics and multiagent systems, as the agents have to work together as a team, having in consideration most problems found in our quotidian, as for example adaptation to a highly dynamic environment as it is the one of a soccer game. CAMBADA is the robotic soccer team belonging to the group of research IRIS from IEETA, composed by teachers, researchers and students of the University of Aveiro, which annually has as main objective the participation in the RoboCup, in the Middle Size League. The purpose of this work is to improve the coordination in set pieces situations. This thesis introduces a new behavior and the adaptation of the already existing ones in the offensive situation, as well as the proposal of a new positioning method in defensive situations. The developed work was incorporated within the competition software of the robots. Which allows the presentation, in this dissertation, of the experimental results obtained, through simulation software as well as through the physical robots on the laboratory.

Drosophila Adaptation to Viral Infection through Defensive Symbiont Evolution

Microbial symbionts can modulate host interactions with biotic and abiotic factors. Such interactions may affect the evolutionary trajectories of both host and symbiont. Wolbachia protects Drosophila melanogaster against several viral infections and the strength of the protection varies between variants of this endosymbiont. Since Wolbachia is maternally transmitted, its fitness depends on the fitness of its host. Therefore, Wolbachia populations may be under selection when Drosophila is subjected to viral infection. Here we show that in D. melanogaster populations selected for increased survival upon infection with Drosophila C virus there is a strong selection coefficient for specific Wolbachia variants, leading to their fixation. Flies carrying these selected Wolbachia variants have higher survival and fertility upon viral infection when compared to flies with the other variants. These findings demonstrate how the interaction of a host with pathogens shapes the genetic composition of symbiont populations. Furthermore, host adaptation can result from the evolution of its symbionts, with host and symbiont functioning as a single evolutionary unit.

Defensive realism and the Concert of Europe

Why do great powers expand? Offensive realist John Mearsheimer claims that states wage an eternal struggle for power, and that those strong enough to seek regional hegemony nearly always do. Mearsheimer's evidence, however, displays a selection bias. Examining four crises between 1814 and 1840, I show that the balance of power restrained Russia, Prussia and France. Yet all three also exercised self-restraint; Russia, in particular, passed up chances to bid for hegemony in 1815 and to topple Ottoman Turkey in 1829. Defensive realism gives a better account of the Concert of Europe, because it combines structural realism with non-realist theories of state preferences.

Effects of an in-service training program using the routines-based interview

The focus of this study is an in-service training program rooted in routines-based early intervention and designed to improve the quality of goals and objectives on individualized plans. Participants were local intervention team members and other professionals who worked closely with each team. This training program involved a small number of trainees per group, providing multiple learning experiences across time and various opportunities for self-assessment and monitoring. We investigated (a) the perceptions of the participants about the strengths and weaknesses of the training program, (b) medium-term outcomes of the training with a comparison group, (c) and variables associated with the quality of goals and objectives. This study involved training more than 200 professionals, and results support the effectiveness of the program in improving the quality of goals and objectives, showing the importance of the routines-based interview in producing that improvement.

Rasch analysis of the routines-based interview implementation checklist

The Routines-Based Interview (RBI) is useful for developing functional outcomes/goals, for establishing strong relationships with families, and for assessing the family’s true needs. In this study, the authors investigated the psychometric properties of the RBI Implementation Checklist, conducted by 120 early intervention professionals, specifically looking at the probability of correct responses on the items as a logistic function of the difference between the person and the item parameters.We selected Rasch analysis (Rasch, 1980) for this study so we could answer questions about both how themeasure performed and how the interviewers performed and we related these performances to one another. Results indicate that scores on the RBI Implementation Checklist were reliable. The checklist could possibly benefit from more difficult items to measure the true performance of the few people who had scores higher than the most difficult items and also from additional items that focus on the family.

Routines in a European aquaculture company and the development of a Flavobacterium psychrophilum dose response pre-model in adult Rainbow Trout

An internship in a European company dealing with aquaculture and biotechnology - AquaBioTech Group, Malta - was undertaken to complete the Master Degree of Science in Aquaculture of the School of Tourism and Maritime Technology of the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria. Biotechnology and aquaculture are two areas that have been synergistically used to contribute for the progress and improvement of fish production. The AquaBioTech Group is an example of a company able to integrate these areas to maximizing their services. Located in Mosta (Malta) the company operates in a sustainable way using Recirculation Aquaculture Systems (RAS) to maintain aquaculture species. In collaboration with several companies and institutions, the AquaBioTech Group is involved and supports the development of important international research projects. The present report focuses on two important parts of the internship performed during 6 months. Initially, it will cover the operation and constitution of the company, describing the routines and techniques acquired. Then, it will describe a pathology trial that forms the practical and scientific component of this report. Despite the limitation to describe some confidential assays, this trial consisted in the infection of Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) with the bacterium Flavobacterium psychrophilum in order to evaluate the mortality rates over time. The internship served to solidify theoretical knowledge acquired during the academic training, develop professional skills and provide an understanding of jobs available on the market.

Defensive role of allelopathic secondary compounds in plants I: testing two independent general hypotheses

This study tests two general and independent hypotheses with the basic assumption that phytoactive secondary compounds produced by plants evolved primarily as plant defences against competitor plant species. The first hypothesis is that the production and main way of release of phytoactive compounds reflect an adaptive response to climatic conditions. Thus, higher phytoactivity by volatile compounds prevails in plants of hot, dry environments, whereas higher phytoactivity by water-soluble compounds is preponderant in plants from wetter environments. The second hypothesis is that synergy between plant phytoactive compounds is widespread, due to the resulting higher energy efficiency and economy of resources. The first hypothesis was tested on germination and early growth of cucumber treated with either water extracts or volatiles from leaves or vegetative shoot tops of four Mediterranean-type shrubs. The second hypothesis was tested on germination of subterranean clover treated with either water extracts of leaves or vegetative shoot tops of one tree and of three Mediterranean-type shrubs or with each of the three fractions obtained from water extracts. Our data do not support either hypotheses. We found no evidence for higher phytoactivity in volatile compounds released by plants that thrive in hot, dry Mediterranean-type environments. We also found no evidence for the predominance of synergy among the constituents of fractions. To the contrary, we found either antagonism or no interaction of effects among allelopathic compounds.

Immune Response In Thyroid Cancer: Widening The Boundaries.

The association between thyroid cancer and thyroid inflammation has been repeatedly reported and highly debated in the literature. In fact, both molecular and epidemiological data suggest that these diseases are closely related and this association reinforces that the immune system is important for thyroid cancer progression. Innate immunity is the first line of defensive response. Unlike innate immune responses, adaptive responses are highly specific to the particular antigen that induced them. Both branches of the immune system may interact in antitumor immune response. Major effector cells of the immune system that directly target thyroid cancer cells include dendritic cells, macrophages, polymorphonuclear leukocytes, mast cells, and lymphocytes. A mixture of immune cells may infiltrate thyroid cancer microenvironment and the balance of protumor and antitumor activity of these cells may be associated with prognosis. Herein, we describe some evidences that immune response may be important for thyroid cancer progression and may help us identify more aggressive tumors, sparing the vast majority of patients from costly unnecessary invasive procedures. The future trend in thyroid cancer is an individualized therapy.

Adaptação do handebol para a prática em cadeira de rodas

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física