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Showing 1 - 20 of 4889 items
By Maik Bieleke, Wanja Wolff, Corinna S. Martarelli. 2024
This comprehensive text is a unique handbook dedicated to research on boredom. The book brings together leading contributors from across…
three continents and numerous fields to provide an interdisciplinary exploration of boredom, its theoretical underpinnings, its experiential properties, and the applied contexts in which it occurs.Boredom is often viewed as a mental state with little utility, though recent research suggests that it can be a powerful motivator of human behavior that shapes our actions in many ways. The book examines boredom from a range of perspectives and is comprised of three parts. Part I delves into the theoretical approaches to boredom, presenting methods for its measurement, explaining when and why boredom occurs, and scrutinizing the impact it has on our behavior. Part II focuses on the psychological and neural properties of boredom and its associations with a multitude of mental and interpersonal processes, such as self-control, mind-wandering, flow, and aggression. Part III presents boredom in practical contexts like school and work, and sheds light on its role for health-related behaviors, psychosocial well-being, and aesthetic experiences. The book concludes by summarizing the state of boredom research, identifying promising areas for future research, and providing directions for how research on boredom can be advanced. As the authoritative book on boredom, this handbook is an essential resource for students and researchers of psychology, sociology, education, sport science, and computer science.By Philip Berners. 2024
This timely book critically evaluates the factors which shape an events industry as it develops, with the aim of helping…
to narrow the disparate behaviours and practices of organisers within the global marketplace of international events.Stemming from an innovative qualitative research project, which included interviews with senior events organisers at landmark venues in both the UK and Poland, this volume provides an insight into both the emerging events industry in Poland and the developed events industry in the UK, highlighting cross-cultural risk and safety gaps that may impact organisers, clients, attendees, suppliers, and workers. The book highlights the importance of a unanimous global approach to events organisation, the creation of a professional community of practice, and ethos of self-learning within the events industry and the need for an international professional association for organisers involved with providing international events. The book explores the three themes of 'Event Culture', 'Tourism and Events', and 'Risk Awareness at Events', thus focusing on long-term factors of events industries.International in scope, this book will appeal to students on courses such as managing events, planning events, project management, and hospitality and tourism studies, as well as events organisers in locations where events is an emerging industry.By Yannick Slade-Caffarel. 2024
Social ontology is the study of the nature and basic structure of social reality. It is a rapidly growing field…
at the intersection of philosophy and social science that has the potential to greatly assist social researchers of all kinds. One of the longest running projects in social ontology has developed over the better part of the last four decades through the work of Tony Lawson and the Cambridge Social Ontology Group. Cambridge social ontology has its origins in an assessment that the widespread explanatory failure of modern mainstream economics, as well as in the social sciences more generally, is due to sustained ontological neglect and the resulting use of research methods that are inappropriate, given the nature of social material. The Cambridge project’s aim has been to rectify this neglect through conducting explicit and sustained inquiry into the nature of social material with a view to elaborating an explanatorily powerful conception of social ontology. The result is social positioning theory. This book is an introduction to the key features of social positioning theory, provides context as to the theory’s development and illustrates how social positioning theory can clarify the natures of phenomena such as gender and the corporation.Cambridge Social Ontology is for social scientists, philosophers and all readers interested in gaining a better understanding of the nature of social phenomena.By Sławomir J. Magala, Christiane Erten, Roger Matthew Bell, Marie-Therese Claes, Senem Yazici, Atila Karabag. 2024
Hofstede Matters offers an updated presentation of the evolving views of academics and teachers who have worked with Hofstede’s research…
findings since the publication of the first edition of Culture’s Consequences in 1980. The authors reflect on their changing beliefs about the concept of cultural dimensions that led to a radical change in the way cultures were dealt with in business schools across Europe and beyond. Hofstede’s dimensions made "thinking" about culture more accessible overnight by creating a conceptual framework that teachers, students, managers, and consultants could grasp and easily apply in international comparisons. The book shows the man behind the value dimensions framework through the eyes of teachers and academics many of whom dealt with Hofstede personally. Contemporary contributors as well as younger academic fellow researchers evaluate the past paradigms and look behind the scenes to better understand the developments of the more recent ones. Jointly, they try to decide if Hofstede still helps us to overcome uncertainty when confronted with actions undertaken with different values in mind. Did he nudge us in the desirable direction? Offering a unique analysis of the strengths, criticisms, and legacy of Hofstede’s work, this book will appeal to academics and students across disciplines including cross-cultural management, critical management studies, and international management.By Sarah Horton, David Sloan. 2024
Accessibility is a core quality of digital products to be deliberately addressed throughout the development lifecycle. What Every Engineer Should…
Know About Digital Accessibility will prepare readers to integrate digital accessibility into their engineering practices. Readers will learn how to accurately frame accessibility as an engineering challenge so they are able to address the correct problems in the correct way.Illustrated with diverse perspectives from accessibility practitioners and advocates, this book describes how people with disabilities use technology, the nature of accessibility barriers in the digital world, and the role of engineers in breaking down those barriers. Accessibility competence for current, emerging, and future technologies is addressed through a combination of guiding principles, core attributes and requirements, and accessibility‑informed engineering practices.FEATURES Discusses how technology can support inclusion for people with disabilities and how rigorous engineering processes help create quality user experiences without introducing accessibility barriers Explains foundational principles and guidelines that build core competency in digital accessibility as they are applied across diverse and emerging technology platforms Highlights practical insights into how engineering teams can effectively address accessibility throughout the technology development lifecycle Uses international standards to define and measure accessibility quality Written to be accessible to non‑experts in the subject area, What Every Engineer Should Know About Digital Accessibility is aimed at students, professionals, and researchers in the field of software engineering.By Wolfgang Garn. 2024
We are drowning in data but are starved for knowledge. Data Analytics is the discipline of extracting actionable insights by…
structuring, processing, analysing and visualising data using methods and software tools. Hence, we gain knowledge by understanding the data. A roadmap to achieve this is encapsulated in the knowledge discovery in databases (KDD) process. Databases help us store data in a structured way. The structure query language (SQL) allows us to gain first insights about business opportunities. Visualising the data using business intelligence tools and data science languages deepens our understanding of the key performance indicators and business characteristics. This can be used to create relevant classification and prediction models; for instance, to provide customers with the appropriate products or predict the eruption time of geysers. Machine learning algorithms help us in this endeavour. Moreover, we can create new classes using unsupervised learning methods, which can be used to define new market segments or group customers with similar characteristics. Finally, artificial intelligence allows us to reason under uncertainty and find optimal solutions for business challenges. All these topics are covered in this book with a hands-on process, which means we use numerous examples to introduce the concepts and several software tools to assist us. Several interactive exercises support us in deepening the understanding and keep us engaged with the material.This book is appropriate for master students but can be used for undergraduate students. Practitioners will also benefit from the readily available tools. The material was especially designed for Business Analytics degrees with a focus on Data Science and can also be used for machine learning or artificial intelligence classes. This entry-level book is ideally suited for a wide range of disciplines wishing to gain actionable data insights in a practical manner.By Null Chander Velu. 2024
What strategic challenges are faced by both start-ups and incumbent firms, and what opportunities do these challenges create for business…
model innovation? Focusing on the underpinning theory and concepts of business models, this book identifies new business models capable of creating sustainable competitive advantage, and guides readers through their implementation. A detailed introduction outlines current research in business model innovation (including directions for future research) and global business cases are applied throughout to illustrate key issues. Topics covered include market creation, leadership, digital technology adoption, small- and medium-sized enterprises, start-ups, sustainability, socio-economic development and conduct risk. Also discussed are the principles of the architecting economic systems, the role of government in influencing business models design, and how organisational 45structures must adapt in the context of business model innovation.France was interwar Poland’s main ally, and the biggest source of the country’s foreign investment. The two roles were closely…
connected: Paris used its position in Warsaw to win preferential treatment for its firms, while Polish authorities depended on France to finance their modernization policies and military spending. The relationship’s asymmetric character bred conflict, and in the 1930s dissenting voices compared French actions in Poland to imperialism and colonial expansion. This book untangles the complex mix of economics, policy, and politics in Franco-Polish relations. Based on government and company-level sources, it evaluates the part played by French capital in Poland and discovers the mechanisms ruling French FDI and public loans. Exploring case studies of specific sectors and themes, it asks questions about the modernizing potential of FDI, interwar economic imperialism, the workings of asymmetric investment, and the interactions between investments and politics. Understanding the unequal footing of Warsaw and Paris, it goes beyond imperialistic interpretations, and examines the leeway available to the weaker partner of the relationship. The book contributes to economic history of Central and Eastern Europe, and, more generally, to our understanding of the position of peripheral countries in the interwar global system.By Siobhán E. Merriman, Katherine L. Plant, Kirsten M. Revell, Neville A. Stanton. 2024
Since the introduction of Automated Vehicles (AVs) on roads, there have been a number of high-profile collisions, which have highlighted…
significant driver challenges. These include challenges associated with drivers’ trust in the automation, their knowledge and awareness of the AV’s capabilities and limitations and their reduced situation awareness of the road environment and the vehicle. Solutions are needed to overcome these challenges, so that the expected benefits of AVs can be realised.Driver Training for Automated Vehicles: A Systems Approach identifies the training requirements for drivers of AVs and takes a systematic approach to design, develop, implement and evaluate a comprehensive training package to address these requirements. This book explores how training can overcome the driver challenges associated with AVs by improving drivers’ mental models, trust in automation, decisions and behaviour when activating a Level 4 AV. It presents a systematic approach to the training lifecycle, by first presenting the current state of research into AVs, identifying the challenges and training requirements for drivers of AVs, and then developing and evaluating a training programme to achieve these requirements. This fascinating title highlights the need for drivers to undergo training for AVs, and takes us a step closer to this need. It walks readers through a systematic, four-step process and provides practical guidance to develop and evaluate an effective training programme. The reader will develop a thorough understanding of the current driver challenges with AVs and the methods and systems to mitigate them through current knowledge and research.This book is an ideal read for practitioners, designers and academics with a professional or research interest in AVs. Its appeal extends to those in the fields of automotive design, Systems Engineering, Human Factors and education and training.By Maria Cristina Longo, Pete Canalichio. 2024
This book presents a roadmap for a brand licensing strategy to enable companies to leverage brand value and expand into…
other product categories or into different markets. Readers will understand both the risks and the benefits of partnerships, how to make the most of a brand's potential in the digital platform, and how to extend a product portfolio through established brands. Brand licensing can be of interest to many stakeholders, including large companies, entrepreneurs, retailers, agencies and even celebrities. This is also a relevant strategy for small and medium-sized enterprises that want to expand their business abroad, reconciling their limited size with their flexibility. Examples of long-standing partnerships are presented and analyzed, with detailed consideration of what has made them so successful.Through the presentation of case studies in the sectors particularly interested in brand licensing, including the art, character, entertainment, fashion, jewelry, sports and toys sectors, this book aims to highlight opportunities, limits and challenges from both the licensor and licensee’s perspectives. In particular, these case studies represent an effective basis for comparing different experiences and brand licensing strategies, allowing readers to understand both best practices and pitfalls to avoid when building an effective and enduring licensing program. Chapter objectives, summaries, key learning points and discussion questions reinforce understanding and aid reflection.Practical yet theoretically grounded, this book is particularly suitable for postgraduate, MBA and executive education students interested in strategic brand management, licensing strategy and brand expansion. This book can also serve as a valuable guide for professionals interested in expanding their brand portfolio.This book provides effective tools to evaluate the strategic side of brand licensing and the selection of the appropriate company to be a licensee. Online resources include PowerPoint slides, a test bank of exam questions, a case list and discussion questions.By Elaine Glass. 2024
"This book has the power to connect you with your soul and transform your life."— Kristen Butler, founder of Power…
of PositivityWe're living in frenetic times. Amid the busyness and complexity, you may also feel directionless and overwhelmed. Maybe you know there&’s more to life, but you have no idea what that "more" is. Maybe you sense there's a message you need to hear, but the noise of everyday life is drowning it out.Get Quiet is your guide to turn down the volume and tune in to the voice of your soul.In these pages, coach and healer Elaine Glass invites you to walk with her on the Get Quiet Way—a practice of healing and transformation inspired by the classical form of the labyrinth. You&’ll follow seven circuits of reflection and discovery, each engaging an energy point on the body to awaken its particular power, until you reach a still point at the center—a sacred space where you can connect deeply with the truth of who you are. Finally, you'll step back into the world feeling stronger and clearer, more at peace, and open to new possibilities for a life of purpose and joy."A timely antidote to the overwhelm that so many of us are feeling. Just as healthy foods are the right medicine for your body, Get Quiet is the right medicine for your soul."— Mark Hyman, M.D., author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Young ForeverBy Jon Kabat-Zinn. 2023
Find quiet reflective moments in your life—and reduce your stress levels drastically—with this classic bestselling guide updated and featuring a…
new introduction and afterword. When Wherever You Go, There You Are was first published in 1994, no one could have predicted that the book would launch itself onto bestseller lists nationwide and sell over 1 million copies to date. Thirty years later, Wherever You Go, There You Are remains a foundational guide to mindfulness and meditation, introducing readers to the practice and guiding them through the process. The author of over half a dozen books on mindfulness, Jon Kabat-Zinn combines his research and medical background with his spiritual knowledge to help readers find peace and change their lives. In this new edition, readers will find a new introduction and afterword from Kabat-Zinn, as well as factual updates throughout to address changes in research and knowledge since it was originally published. After the special tumult of the last few years, as well as the promise of more unrest in the future, Wherever You Go, There You Are serves as an anchor for a whole new generation of readers looking to find their center and achieve their true self.By Cash Lambert. 2024
A deep look into the surf therapy movement, the therapists at the forefront of this radical new treatment, and its…
many applications for treating anxiety, PTSD, and more. Surfing? As a form of therapy? It&’s not just possible—it&’s powerful. Surf therapy is an emerging field with promising results which aims to address the mental, physical and emotional epidemics of the modern age. In Surf Therapy, author Cash Lambert paddles out with today&’s leading surf therapy practitioners and surf therapy organizations to discover how surfing is changing lives for the better.See how much surf therapy can help in treating: • Drug addiction and addiction recovery• Children and adults diagnosed with autism• Social development of at-risk inner-city children• Physical disabilities like spinal cord injuries• PTSD in active-duty police officers• Terminal illnesses like cystic fibrosis• Women recovering from abusive living situationsWith interviews from today&’s leading surf therapy practitioners and data from groundbreaking studies, Surf Therapy is a story of science, resilience, and the lengths that humans will go to help one another in need.By Bev Saunder, Yvonne Mackey. 2022
Target exam success with My Revision Notes. Our updated approach to revision will help youlearn, practise and apply your skills…
and understanding. Coverage of key content is combinedwith practical study tips and effective revision strategies to create a guide you can rely on tobuild both knowledge and confidence.My Revision Notes: WJEC Level 1/2 Vocational Award in Hospitality and Catering helps all students:- Develop subject knowledge by making links between topics for more in-depth exam answers- Plan and manage revision with our topic-by-topic planner and exam breakdown introduction- Build quick recall with bullet-pointed summaries at the end of each chapter- Understand key terms needed for the exam with user-friendly definitions and a glossary- Avoid common mistakes and enhance exam answers with exam tips- Improve subject-specific skills with an exam skills checkbox at the end of each chapter- Practise and apply skills and knowledge with Exam-style questions and frequent Now test yourself questions, and answer guidance online&“A holistic vision breathtaking in scope.&”—Frances Moore LappéDistilling a lifetime&’s insights on the triangle of healing emotional pain, social justice…
work, and spiritual growth, veteran activist and educator John Bell shares personal stories and reflective practices to help us on our path of personal and collective transformationUnbroken Wholeness brings an integrated lens of social justice, trauma healing, and spiritual practice to the work we do in the world and the pressing concerns of our times.Collectively, these writings help us access a view of the world as unbroken, even in the face of obvious suffering and disharmony. With searching questions and easy-to-follow practices, Unbroken Wholeness offers a way for activists to apply mindfulness and insight to bring about healing for seemingly intractable social divisions. &“Skillfully handling our emotional pain about the world while cultivating a joyful and kind heart helps us navigate the troubled waters of our life,&” says John Bell. Continuing the peace work of his teacher, the Vietnamese social activist and Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, John Bell brings forward the importance of cultivating a practical yet visionary, ennobling view of humankind when engaging in the &“mud&” of daily difficulties that gives rise to the lotus of an enlightened, compassionate heart.By Matthew McKay. 2024
• Offers a step-by-step process to unleash the unconscious and intuitive wisdom held in the awareness of your soul: Deep…
Knowledge Meditation • Includes guided journal prompts to help you listen to your heart and shine a light on your own deepest wisdom and soul knowledge • Shares channeled lessons from the author&’s late son Jordan on the mysteries of human existence, including what the divine or god is, the nature of a soul, the nature of matter and energy, the role of love in our lives, and the origin of the universe Human life is surrounded by mystery. At the center of this mystery is the question: Why are we here? is there a purpose to our existence, a reason why we&’re experiencing the beauty and pain of physical life? There is also the mystery of the universe itself. What is it and where did it come from? Religious and spiritual traditions have created complex cosmologies to answer these questions, but each tradition has a different answer and we are left with profound uncertainty about deeper reality. As psychologist Matthew McKay reveals, we can each discover our own answers to these questions, our own inner truth, by connecting with the wisdom of our souls. In this guided workbook, McKay offers a step-by-step process to unleash the unconscious and intuitive wisdom held in the awareness of your soul. He explains how to use &“deep knowledge meditation&” to access all of your soul&’s accumulated knowledge, everything you have learned across all of your incarnations. Channeling his late son, Jordan, a discarnate soul who has lived hundreds of lives, McKay shares Jordan&’s lessons on the mysteries of human existence, including what the divine or god is, the nature of a soul, the nature of matter and energy, the role of love in our lives, and the origin of the universe. Accompanying these channeled teachings are journal prompts from Jordan, to be used with deep knowledge meditation, to help you listen to your heart and shine a light on your own deepest wisdom and soul knowledge. Guiding you on a journey of self-discovery, this book offers the opportunity to find your soul&’s truth about your life&’s purpose and the nature of physical reality.By Maria Papadaki, Marinos Themistocleous, Khalid Al Marri, Marwan Al Zarouni. 2024
This book constitutes selected papers from the 20th European, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern Conference, EMCIS 2023, which was held in…
Dubai, UAE, during December 11-12, 2023. EMCIS covers technical, organizational, business, and social issues in the application of information technology and is dedicated to the definition and establishment of Information Systems (IS) as a discipline of high impact for IS professionals and practitioners. It focuses on approaches that facilitate the identification of innovative research of significant relevance to the IS discipline following sound research methodologies that lead to results of measurable impact. The 43 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 126 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: Part I: Metaverse; blockchain technology and applications; digital governance; healthcare information systems; artificial intelligence; Part II: Big data and analytics; digital services and social media; innovative research projects; managing information systems; smart cities.By J. Shola Omotola, Samuel Oyewole. 2024
Providing unique perspectives on one of the leading hotspots of kidnapping in the world, this book examines the political and…
socioeconomic dimensions of the causes, manifestations, and consequences of kidnapping in Nigeria, as well as some of the control measures that have been adopted at different levels of governance and their effectiveness. The topics covered in the volume include details on the framework of understanding kidnapping, the evolution of kidnapping from pre-colonial to post-colonial eras, and the relationship between ungoverned spaces and kidnapping in the country. The book further sheds light on kidnapping in the context of insurgent campaigns, with insights into oil-related militancy in the Niger Delta region, with the Islamist Boko Haram insurgency and terrorism in the Northern region of Nigeria. It discusses non-insurgent kidnapping, situating kidnapping in the contexts of banditry, ransoming, ritualism, baby factory, and human trafficking. Additionally,the volume analyses the emerging gender and transnational frontiers of kidnapping in Nigeria. Expanding the discussion on state responses, this book also looks into responses of non-state actors to kidnapping as well as negotiations in hostage crisis management. Finally, it examines other unique subjects, such as media coverage of kidnapping, and the consequences for Nigeria’s international image. The book will appeal to students, scholars, and researchers of political science, international relations, economics, sociology, history, law and business management in general, as well as African studies, security studies, criminology, peace and conflict studies, and geography and area studies. It will also be helpful for public policy-makers, African security experts and professionals, as well as business managers, risk analysists and insurance industry that are interested in a better understanding of kidnapping and associated political, social, economic, and security dynamicsin Nigeria and beyond.By Dennis Bock, Friedrich Sebastian Fülscher. 2024
Dieses Buch enthält – insbesondere für Studierende, aber auch Berufseinsteiger – eine Einführung in das Steuerstrafrecht sowohl in materieller als…
auch verfahrensrechtlicher Hinsicht. Die Autoren aus Wissenschaft und Praxis verbinden ihre Erfahrungen zu einem mit zahlreichen Beispielsfällen (vornehmlich aus der aktuellen Rechtsprechung) versehenen Lehrwerk, welches sich zum Ziel setzt, eine auf den ersten Blick nicht leicht zugängliche Materie einprägsam darzustellen.By Maximilian Krüger. 2024
In 2015 and 2016 more than a million people sought refuge from conflict and hardships in Germany. While the response…
was ambivalent, across the country large networks of supporters formed, offering various kinds of assistance to the arriving persons. This book takes these developments as a starting point. It reports on an HCI project, building on the emancipatory traditions of Participatory Design and the Socio-Informatics approach, aiming to develop assistive technologies for forced migrants as well as their supporters. It focusses on the design process and reflects on the nature of intervening through participatory design in matters of migration and arrival. The work draws on feminist conceptualisations of care and outlines how care and participation interacted in this context to support the longterm maintenance of the design results, but also how care relations between the different participant groups undermined the democratic aims of participation. It draws out preliminary lessonsfor an interventionist HCI practice.