Opportunity Knocks: An Economic Analysis of Television Advertisements

Certain aspects of advertising–especially on television–are not easily explained with conventional economic models. In particular, much of the imagery and repetitive thematic content seen in advertisements suggests it is "psychological" in nature, as opposed to "informative". To understand the economic rationale for incorporating such material, we develop a theory of preferences in which information about threshold payoffs induces sudden shifts in demand. These threshold payoffs are best understood in the context of human evolutionary history. Furthermore, the presence of threshold payoffs in consumer preferences gives firms incentive for providing threshold-type information. To examine the use of threshold-related content in television advertisements, we look for this con- tent in a sample of 370 television advertisements. We find considerable evidence that advertisers make strategic use of threshold-type content in television advertisements. Specifically, threshold-related content occurred in 83% of food and beverage advertisements for children and in 71% of advertisements for general audiences. Furthermore, the threshold-related content in children’s food and beverage advertisements occurred with statistically greater frequency than factual content, which isn’t true for food and beverage advertisements for general audiences.

An analysis of the themes of environmental sustainability in the United States curriculum science content standards

This study examined how the themes of environmental sustainability are evident in the national, state and local standards that guide k–12 science curriculum. The study applied the principles of content analysis within the framework of an ecological paradigm. In education, an ecological paradigm focuses on students' use of a holistic lens to view and understand material. The intent of this study was to analyze the seventh grade science content standards at the national, state, and local textbook levels to determine how and the extent to which each of the five themes of environmental sustainability are presented in the language of each text. The themes are: (a) Climate Change Indicators, (b) Biodiversity, (c) Human Population Density, (d) Impact and Presence of Environmental Pollution, (e) Earth as a Closed System. The research study offers practical insight on using a method of content analysis to locate keywords of environmental sustainability in the three texts and determine if the context of each term relates to this ecological paradigm. Using a concordance program, the researcher identified the frequency and context of each vocabulary item associated with these themes. Nine chi squares were run to determine if there were differences in content between the national and state standards and the textbook. Within each level chi squares were also run to determine if there were differences between the appearance of content knowledge and skill words. Results indicate that there is a lack of agreement between levels that is significant p < .01. A discussion of these results in relation to curriculum development and standardized assessments followed. The study found that at the national and state levels, there is a lack of articulation of the goals of environmental sustainability or an ecological paradigm. With respect to the science textbook, a greater number of keywords were present; however, the context of many of these keywords did not align with the discourse of an ecological paradigm. Further, the environmental sustainability themes present in the textbook were limited to the last four chapters of the text. Additional research is recommended to determine whether this situation also exists in other settings.

O aluno com deficiência visual nas aulas de educação física : análise do processo inclusivo = The student with visual impairments : analysis of inclusive process

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

Motivação intrinseca e o estado mental flow em corredores de rua

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

MH 607 FEF/UNICAMP, onde saude coletiva e performance humana se encontram : uma pesquisa-ação

Universidade Estadual de Campinas . Faculdade de Educação Física

Representações sociais do trabalho: uma análise comparativa entre jovens trabalhadores e não trabalhadores

O trabalho na adolescência é justificado, dentre outros aspectos, pela necessidade econômica das famílias. Os objetivos deste estudo foram analisar o conteúdo e a estrutura da representação social do trabalho na adolescência, entre estudantes trabalhadores e não trabalhadores, entre catorze e dezoito anos; comparar as representações nos dois grupos estudados; verificar se as cognições participantes do núcleo central das representações caracterizadas se confirmam em uma segunda técnica de estudo das representações. A amostra foi composta por 724 alunos do ensino médio da rede pública de ensino da cidade de São Paulo. A coleta de dados foi realizada através da técnica de evocações livres de palavras, utilizando o termo indutor "trabalho", e da realização de 21 grupos focais. Os resultados revelam que a representação do trabalho, em ambos os grupos, foi associada a significados morais e psicossociais positivos. Do ponto de vista metodológico, a maioria dos elementos classificados como participantes do núcleo central da representação foram confirmados nos diferentes eixos temáticos da análise de conteúdo dos grupos focais.

Analysis of coaches objectives in artistic gymnastics

The present study is a piece of the main project entitled ""Diagnosis of the Artistic Gymnastics Developing Program in Brazil"". Among many issues included in the main study, we analyzed and discussed the coach`s objectives who are coaching incoming gymnasts who are potential to be representative at the national teams. We interviewed 46 coaches from 29 sports institutions in Brazil. As data collection we used a semi-structured interview, and as data treatment we used the content analysis proposed by Bardin ( 2004). We could evidence that many coaches` objectives is focused on the competition and the highest level, and that the institutions` emphasis on the results in all levels of categories.

Women`s feelings about early contact with their infants on the labour ward

Objectives: to identify women`s feelings after early contact with their newborn infants in the delivery room, and to identify how health professionals involved in mother and infant care behave in the intrapartum setting. Design: a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews and observation. Content analysis was used to derive the three themes that emerged from the interviews. Setting and participants: 23 postpartum women and their caregivers in a public maternity hospital in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil. Findings: three thematic categories emerged from the interviews: heightened fear, severe pain and intense conflict. The professionals` actions revealed that they have theoretical and practical abilities for humanisation of care, but their actions are fragmented. Final considerations: women can feel lonely, fearful and conflicted in the delivery room, and they also experience pain. Giving birth is a major event in a woman`s life, so it is important to facilitate a positive experience. Health professionals were found to display interventionist and impersonal attitudes; these influenced the potential choices of women at their first contact with their infant. Implications for practice: the focus of health care needs to extend beyond the institution. This means fewer normative actions performed by health professionals, enabling women to enjoy their early contact with their newborn infants. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An analysis of accommodation needs of adults with an intellectual disability in Toowoomba and surrounding areas

Introduction The objective of this study was to analyse the accommodation needs of people with intellectual disability over the age of 18 years in Toowoomba and contiguous shires. In 2004, a group of carers established Toowoomba Intellectual Disability Support Association (TIDSA) to address the issue of the lack of supported accommodation for people with intellectual disability over the age of 18 and the concerns of ageing carers. The Centre for Rural and Remote Area Health (CRRAH) was engaged by TIDSA to ascertain this need and undertook a research project funded by the Queensland Gambling Community Benefit Fund. While data specifically relating to people with intellectual disability and their carers are difficult to obtain, the Australian Bureau of Statistics report that carers of people with a disability are more likely to be female and at least 65 years of age. Projections by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) show that disability rates are increasing and carer rates are decreasing. Thus the problem of appropriate support to the increasing number of ageing carers and those who they care for will be a major challenge to policy makers and is an issue of immediate concern. In general, what was once the norm of accommodating people with intellectual disability in large institutions is now changing to accommodating into community-based residences (Annison, 2000; Young, Ashman, Sigafoos, & Grevell, 2001). However, in Toowoomba and contiguous shires, TIDSA have noted that the availability of suitable accommodation for people with intellectual disability over the age of 18 years is declining with no new options available in an environment of increasing demand. Most effort seemed to be directed towards crisis provision. Method This study employed two phases of data gathering, the first being the distribution of a questionnaire through local service providers and upon individual request to the carers of people with intellectual disability over the age of 18. The questionnaire comprised of Likert-type items intended to measure various aspects of current and future accommodation issues. Most questions were followed with space for free-response comments to provide the opportunity for carers to further clarify and expand on their responses. The second phase comprised semi-structured interviews conducted with ten carers and ten people with intellectual disability who had participated in the Phase One questionnaire. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and subjected to content analysis where major themes were explored. Results Age and gender Carer participants in this study totalled 150. The mean age of these carers was 61.5 years and ranged from 40 – 91 years. Females comprised 78% of the sample (mean age = 61.49; range from 40-91) and 22% were male (mean age = 61.7 range from 43-81). The mean age of people with intellectual disability in our study was 37.2 years ranging from 18 – 79 years with 40% female (mean age = 39.5; range from 19-79) and 60% male (mean age = 35.6; range from 18-59). The average age of carers caring for a person over the age of 18 who is living at home is 61 years. The average age of the carer who cares for a person who is living away from home is 62 years. The overall age range of both these groups of carers is between 40 and 81 years. The oldest group of carers (mean age = 70 years) were those where the person with intellectual disability lives away from home in a large residential facility. Almost one quarter of people with an intellectual disability who currently live at home is cared for by one primary carer and this is almost exclusively a parent.

O significado da maternidade para mães de 10 a 14 anos

A maternidade em meninas de 10 a 14 anos é um fenômeno que desafia as políticas públicas de saúde e a academia científica, visto que, sua ocorrência aumenta a cada ano, mesmo com a taxa de fecundidade decrescendo cada vez mais no Brasil. Procurando se aproximar dessa temática para contribuir com o aprofundamento do assunto nessa faixa etária, o presente estudo teve como objetivo compreender o significado da maternidade para mães de 10 a 14 anos de idade a partir de seus relatos de experiência. Parte-se de uma investigação epidemiológica realizada em uma região interiorana do Espírito Santo, no período de Julho de 2012 a Fevereiro de 2013, em que se avaliou a assistência pré-natal de 742 puérperas, através de informações registradas em formulário e contidas no Cartão da Gestante e no prontuário do recém-nascido. Aprofunda-se o estudo dos dez casos relativos às mães que possuíam entre 10 e 14 anos no momento do parto, mediante uma abordagem qualitativa que utilizou entrevistas individuais com roteiro semiestruturado. As falas foram gravadas, transcritas e analisadas através da técnica de análise de conteúdo, com enfoque na análise temática. Os resultados evidenciaram dois temas e cada um deles definiu quatro categorias de análise: 1) A experiência da maternidade: a) A vida familiar e conjugal; b) O que é ser mãe?; c) O apoio recebido após a maternidade e d) Reflexões sobre ser mãe adolescente e 2) A perspectiva após a maternidade: a) A escolaridade; b) A inserção no mercado de trabalho; c) Conselhos para jovens da mesma faixa etária e d) Os planos para o futuro. O estudo considera que o comportamento da maternidade poderá ter características e significados distintos de acordo com o contexto social em que vivem essas meninas. O arcabouço sexual, reprodutivo e familiar possui faces e formas estruturais que diferem dentro de cada grupo e a raiz desse assunto pode estar sendo baseada em uma relação que não depende da idade cronológica das mães.

A estratégia como prática social : um estudo sobre a relação das práticas sociais dos gestores no “fazer estratégia” em uma empresa familiar

Este trabalho tem como objetivo compreender o “fazer estratégia” no seio de uma empresa familiar a partir das práticas sociais que envolvem os seus gestores. As práticas sociais são concebidas como um fenômeno social, o qual nasce e se desenvolve da interação e do relacionamento entre indivíduos em seu grupo social. Este grupo ou mundo social do indivíduo encontra-se em um processo constante de transformações em virtude da infinidade de interconexões sociais ali compartilhadas. Já o “fazer estratégia” apresenta-se aqui sob a ótica da estratégia como prática social que contempla “[...] como os praticantes de estratégia realmente agem e interagem [...]” (WHITTINGTON, 1996, p. 731), ou seja, a confluência entre as construções e práticas sociais cotidianas sobre seu “fazer estratégia”. A contemplação desses constructos teóricos possibilitou a formação de um esquema conceitual que por intermédio de um estudo de caso favoreceu o entendimento de “como as práticas sociais dos gestores se relacionam com o seu ‘fazer estratégia’ na empresa familiar?”. Para coleta de dados utilizou-se das técnicas: pesquisa documental, observação não-participante e entrevista semiestruturada (TRIVIÑOS, 1987). Os dados foram tratados através da técnica de Análise de Conteúdo na abordagem temática (BARDIN, 1977). Conclui-se com este estudo que as práticas sociais dos mais variados contextos nos quais os gestores da Empresa X se inserem, como o contexto familiar, interferem e se inter-relacionam diretamente no seu agir cotidiano e consequentemente no seu "fazer estratégia" a frente da empresa familiar, confirmando, estranhando e transformando a construção social dos sujeitos.

Formal caregivers of older adults: reflection about their practice

OBJECTIVE To understand the job function of caregivers of older adults and contribute to the debate on the consolidation of this professional practice. METHODOLOGICAL PROCEDURES This is a descriptive, qualitative, and exploratory study. Four focal group sessions were performed in 2011 with 11 elderly companions, formal caregivers of older adults in the Programa Acompanhante de Idosos (Program for Caregivers of Older Adults), Sao Paulo, SP, Southeastern Brazil. These sessions, guided by a semi-structured script, were audio-recorded and fully transcribed. Data were analyzed using the Content Analysis technique, Thematic Modality. RESULTS In view of considering the caregivers of older adults as a new category of workers, it was difficult to define their duties. The elderly companions themselves as well as the care receivers, their families, and the professionals that comprised the team were unclear about their duties. The professional practice of these formal caregivers has been built on the basis of constant discussions and negotiations among them and other team members in Programa Acompanhante de Idosos during daily work. This was achieved via a recognition process of their job functions and by setting apart other workers’ exclusive responsibilities. CONCLUSIONS The delimitation of specific job functions for elderly companions is currently one of the greatest challenges faced by these workers to develop and consolidate their professional role as well as improve Programa Acompanhante de Idosos.

Human capital in the knowledge-based society: comparative analysis: Romania-Portugal

The current economic crisis has rushed even more the economists’ concerns to identify new directions for the sustainable development of the society. In this context, the human capital is crystallised as the key variable of the creative economy and of the knowledge-based society. As such, we have directed the research underlying this paper to identifying the most eloquent indicators of human capital to meet the demands of the knowledge-based society and sustainable development as well as towards achieving a comprehensive analysis of the human capital in the EU countries, respectively of a comparative analysis: Romania - Portugal. To carry out this paper, the methodology used is based on the interdisciplinary triangulation involving approaches from the perspective of human resource management, economy and economic statistics. The research techniques used consist of the content analysis and investigation of secondary data of international organisations accredited in the field of this research, such as: the United Nation Development Programme - Human Development Reports, World Bank - World Development Reports, International Labour Organisation, Eurostat, European Commission’s Eurobarometer surveys and reports on human capital. The research results emphasise both similarities and differences between the two countries under the comparative analysis and the main directions in which one has to invest for the development of human capital.

Exploring why portuguese companies expatriate, and portuguese expatriates accept international assignments

This study explores (1) the reasons that lead Portuguese companies to use expatriates and (2) the motivations that led the repatriates to accepting an international assignment. Semistructured interviews were carried out on 44 individuals (14 responsible for organizational management of the expatriates and 30 repatriates), in seven international companies based in Portugal, and analysis of the thematic content was conducted for data processing. Results suggest that the reasons that lead Portuguese companies to expatriating employees are connected to business needs and the control of international operations, while individual motivations are linked to personal and professional ambition, the will to serve the company and organizational pressure. We concluded that Portuguese companies, like most European companies, seem to develop a strategy of International Human Resources Management (IHRM) according to an ethnocentric approach, characteristic to companies in early stages of internationalization. Similarly, the main motivations of Portuguese repatriates are identical to those of other expatriates, though the will to serve the company seems to be more valued by Portuguese repatriates than by expatriates from other countries.

O marketing interno na ótica dos gestores de recursos humanos

Na sociedade atual as organizações estão cada vez mais conscientes do valor que têm os seus recursos humanos. Na Era da grande concorrência e mutações constantes dos serviços, lidera quem primar pela diferença, e sem dúvida que quem faz a diferença são os bons colaboradores. São estes talentos que as empresas querem atrair, motivar, desenvolver e reter. As organizações intentam aplicar o marketing interno, em detrimento das técnicas tradicionais de motivação e gestão dos colaboradores, sendo que aquelas procuravam ações e comportamentos nos colaboradores que possibilitassem atingir os objetivos da organização. O marketing interno assenta na ideia de que antes de satisfazer as necessidades e expectativas dos clientes externos, a organização deve preocupar-se em satisfazer as necessidades e expectativas dos clientes internos. O marketing interno possui ferramentas que utilizadas no seio da organização e de forma estratégica, podem ser cruciais para uma postura cada vez mais adequada, bem como para o comprometimento para com a empresa e desempenho dos colaboradores. Este projeto de investigação busca analisar a implementação do marketing interno, pelo próprio olhar dos gestores de recursos humanos de empresas portuguesas, tendo como objetivo central perceber a importância dada pelos gestores de recursos humanos ao marketing interno. Para tal recorreu-se à metodologia qualitativa, com recurso a entrevistas semiestruturadas, as quais serão analisadas através da análise de conteúdo, nomeadamente a análise temática ou categorial.