RCAAP Repository

Food reminds us every day that we are a part of nature and with our daily choices it is we who preserve or not biodiversity and species. It is we who promote or not the production of more health and fresh food. In an increasingly informed society about the benefits of having a balanced diet, meals started to be seen as tasting flavours and aromas, a moment of well-being, where the origin, production and method of preparation of agricultural products play a leading role. Because the market has changed, it is no longer anonymous it became personalized and essentially motivated by what you can enjoy, which implies a willingness to participate and build its own experience. In general, the companies believe that design collaboration is an advantage but if they do not have means of measuring design’s cost/benefit, it will not be easy to understand design as an investment that brings value to business. The purpose of this research is to draw the attention for the importance of design management, by evaluating the return of design’s investment in the Portuguese agro-food industry and by developing a model that allows them to assess the return on investment in design.

The study and academic training of citizens in issues of forest and protected areas shapes the environmentally friendly attitudes to graduates. Attitudes include public beliefs and assessments of ecosystem management activities. In education it is necessary to redefine our values ​​and ethical norms and obligations towards man and the natural environment. The field of study and gender have an impact on environmental attitudes and behaviors of students. The protected areas are subject to ample scientific research and have educational interest. The purpose of this research is to measure attitudes on Protected Areas (PA) of Forestry students in Greece. The questionnaire used as a research tool, based on the scale FVS (Forest Values ​​Scale) which is suitably adapted for PA. Based on the results of this survey it was found that the majority of the sampled students showing more biocentric attitude to Protected Areas which is largely due to the subject of their studies. With regard to gender on the positive attitude towards the environment was found to be statistically significant in favor of women. Students largely support positive environmental attitudes and found that there is a relationship between the level of knowledge about protected areas and the attitude towards the environment.

In this paper an empirical assessment of injury patterns is supplied as an example of social endurance - resilient societies can be built by means of geographical analysis of injury data, providing better support for decision makers regarding urban safety. Preventing road traffic collisions with vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians, could help mitigate significant loses and improve infrastructure planning. In this sense, the geographical aspects of injury prevention are of clear spatial analog, and should be tested regarding the carrying capacity of urban areas as well as vulnerability for growing urban regions. The application of open source development tool for spatial analysis research in health studies is addressed. The study aims to create a framework of available open source tools through Python that enable better decision making through a systematic review of existing tools for spatial analysis. Methodologically, spatial autocorrelation indices are tested as well as influential variables are brought forward to establish a better understanding of the incremental concern of injuries in rural areas, in general, and in the Greater Toronto Area, in particular. By using Python Library for Spatial Analysis (PySAL), an integrative vision of assessing a growing epidemiological concern of injuries in Toronto, one of North America’s fastest growing economic metropolises is offered. In this sense, this study promotes the use of PySAL and open source toolsets for integrating spatial analysis and geographical analysis for health practitioners. The novelty and capabilities of open source tools through methods such as PySAL allow for a cost efficiency as well as give planning an easier methodological toolbox for advances spatial modelling techniques.

Reported cases of traumatic brain injuries are increasing among the Canadian population. With an annual rate of 187,000 reported cases a year and growing, there is an extrapolated growth of 239,000 cases of traumatic brain injuries occurring annually by 2036. As Ontario intends to be a completely accessible province for those with disabilities by 2025, this paper utilizes GIS to visualize and better understand the relationship between post-TBI residents living in Brampton and their accessibility to public transportation. As Brampton is currently the most expensive city to insure a vehicle because of frequent collisions occurring within the city, creating a more accessible, reliable, and efficient public transportation system can integrate those who have experienced a traumatic brain injury back into society while reducing the required use of a personal vehicle. This will contribute to a safer city, as there are fewer vehicles on the road at risk of being involved in a road accident. There are also further benefits to this, as it will also reduce levels of congestion in the foreseeable future.

This research presents a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis approach based on the global spatial autocorrelation of road traffic injuries for identifying spatial patterns. A locational spatial autocorrelation was also used for identifying traffic injury at spatial level. Data for this research study were acquired from Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) based on 2004 and 2011. Moran’s I statistics were used to examine spatial patterns of road traffic injuries in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). An assessment of Getis-Ord Gi* statistic was followed as to identify hot spots and cold spots within the study area. The results revealed that Peel and Durham have the highest collision rate for other motor vehicle with motor vehicle. Geographic weighted regression (GWR) technique was conducted to test the relationships between the dependent variable, number of road traffic injury incidents and independent variables such as number of seniors, low education, unemployed, vulnerable groups, people smoking and drinking, urban density and average median income. The result of this model suggested that number of seniors and low education have a very strong correlation with the number of road traffic injury incidents.

An understanding of consumer behavior when choosing property as accommodations improves the use of limited resources such as land and may promote the suitable development of tourism destinations. Knowledge of the factors that influence consumer behavior and that condition the process of purchasing a residential tourism property is useful in managing and designing strategies for segmenting tourism destinations. This study analyzes the influence of membership groups such as social class, culture, and family on choosing the type of property (ownership versus renting or using family or friends’ property) and the typology (single- or multifamily) that is in demand among residential tourists in the destination. Firstly, we identify which membership groups specifically influence the selection of type of property (social class and family). Then, we identify which groups influence the property typology (social class and people who are traveling) and, in addition, those that influence both choices (social class).

Destinations are currently seeking to become more distinctive in an increasingly competitive market in which image is a decisive element in tourists’ destination selection. This study sought to understand the Azores’ overall image as a tourist destination in major source markets and to ascertain these markets’ level of satisfaction and behavioural intentions concerning the archipelago.The literature review in this paper addresses the definition of tourist destination image and the issue of satisfaction, since these influence intention to return and/or intention to recommend tourist destinations. The results indicate that (1) overall image influences satisfaction and intention to recommend and/or return to tourist destinations and (2) satisfaction influences intention to recommend and/or return to tourist destinations. This study also verified that most tourists are very satisfied with the Azores, as well as having a quite positive overall image of this destination.

The present paper regards the application of some forecasting methods in regards to the SPA and Wellness tourism in South-West Bulgaria such as: the linear trend forecasting, the double exponential forecasting (the Holt’s method), the ARIMA method, the naïve method and the indexed naïve method. Specially designed model for estimation of the weight coefficient needed for determining the size of the sector of the SPA and Wellness tourism in the time series of the available data and in the forecast values is being presented. Future and past predictions have been achieved based on statistical records of a time series of 18-year periods. The present paper regards also several major problems in the application of the univariate forecasting methods for the purpose of the long-run forecasting of the volume of the tourism receives and especially the ones in the sub-sector of the SPA and Wellness tourism in South-West Bulgaria. These problems include as: (i) the problem of finding of a suitable general indicator; (ii) Determining the time series pattern, or the so-called “forecast profile” and selecting and using of suitable forecasting techniques; (iii) Calculating of short-run and long-run forecasts; (iv) comparing of the results of the forecast techniques on the basis of the errors in the forecasts; (v) Estimating the size of the SPA and Wellness tourism in South-West Bulgaria in certain terms, so that the forecast(s) of the above-mentioned general indicator could be particularized especially for regarded sub-sector and region. The results from the different forecasting methods and techniques are being presented and conclusions are drawn on the reliability of the achieved forecasts.

This study aims to identify how tourism professionals realize sustainable development in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil, to that end, a questionnaire based on Sen (2010) sustainable development model was applied to a sample of 127 elements and a search in secondary socioeconomic data was performed. The data obtained through the questionnaire were subjected to analysis with the Statistical Package for Social Sciences software to perform an Exploratory Factor Analysis and after, it was made a Confirmatory Factor Analysis using AMOS software. As a result, the socio-economic data indicated the emergence of social and economic problems over time and that the sustainable development model has not been identified, suggesting that, according to the tourism-related professionals, the management model applied to the island does not track the path that leads to sustainability, even when a special attention is given to the preservation of the local environment.

Consumer behaviour refers to some subjective characteristics of individuals, their cultural principles and living experiences throughout their lives, aspects that awaken the individual’s desire to consume certain products and services and sometimes the tendency to give up some personal and discretionary resources to concretize this consumption, in other words, to make sacrifices. In this present study, the emphasis focuses on the understanding of the way Dutch and Brazilian consumers carry out the sacrifice in diving experiences, while the practice of sustainability is required. Therefore, the aspects that motivated this study are related to the need to explore the sacrifice theme in consumer relations, mainly when associated with products and services where the hedonic experience is felt, as it is through diving. The research is interpretative, considering that it captures objective results from the studied phenomenon, by using semi-structured interviews collected with divers, totalling twenty-three interviews in Brazil and Netherlands. The collected data was analysed according to content analysis. The results pointed out the relationship between sacrifices and sustainability, in diving experiences associated with the abdication of resources such as: recreation, time, comfort and money. Moreover, the predisposition to sacrifice something is directly related to living experiences during the practice of the activity, considering that it awakens positive feelings and generates a strong individual affective commitment. These aspects emphasize the provision of the individuals to follow the rules for sustainability determined by tourist destinations for diving, as well as the desire to explore without destroying, aiming to keep practicing that activity are that location.

Business travel is nowadays a key component of tourism industry and an important instrument for reducing seasonality. Literature has identified several attributes that affect the decision-making process when choosing a destination to hold an event. The main objective of this research is to determine their importance and how they influence the decision-making process. Vilamoura in Portugal and Marbella in Spain are the destinations under analysis, as they are important seaside destinations where business travel has contributed to a successful meeting industry. In order to achieve the study’s aim, a qualitative methodology based on semi-structured interviews both to event organisers and suppliers has been conducted. The findings confirm the hypothesis that underpinned the study, demonstrating that destination image is the main determining site-selection factor. This investigation, proposed as an exploratory examination for further research, could constitute a useful resource for event professionals to improve their destination promotion and their positioning.

In recent decades the importance of destination image has been increasingly analyzed and it is generally considered to be vital in the marketing of destinations. It can be noted that the tourism industry in Russia has not been the subject of a great deal of research with regard to its destination image. Therefore the purpose of this work is to assess Russia’s destination image in the perspective of Portuguese people. The research instrument was an online questionnaire, comprised of open-ended and closed questions. A combination of two software programs, NVivo and IBM SPSS Statistics 21, was employed to analyze the data. This exploratory study suggests that Portuguese peoples’ perceptions of Russia are mostly favorable and they have a high awareness about Russia’s destination features.

Faro Beach, a heavily urbanized settlement in Ria Formosa, southern Portugal, is highly vulnerable to coastal hazards, namely beach erosion and overwashes caused by storms, that have resulted in house and road damage on several occasions. Despite the risks, local residents accept to live there. Four semi-structured interviews were conducted to understand residents’ beliefs, risk perceptions and preparedness regarding coastal risks. We used a qualitative content analysis to derive manifest contents from the interviews. Three main themes were identified in the interviews: how residents feel about Faro Beach; how they perceive coastal hazards and risks; and how they deal with those risks. Positive feelings regarding Faro Beach were identified in all residents, reflecting a strong sense of place that includes high levels of place attachment, rooting, sense of community and place identity. Residents’ personal experiences with hazards probably undersized their perceptions regarding the risks that they are exposed to. Their willingness to participate in disaster risk reduction measures seemed associated with behavioral barriers driven by mistrust in authorities and externalization of responsibility. Residents also revealed low levels of preparedness towards coastal hazards, probably due to their low risk perceptions and their perception of threats as distant in time.

Climate change will further induce a generalized rise in temperature, heat waves, exacerbation of heat island effect, alteration of the precipitation regime variability with higher occurrence of high precipitation and flood events, reduction of quantity and quality of freshwater resources, disruption of agricultural production, leading to food security risk, degradation of recreational and aesthetic amenities, and loss of biodiversity. On other hand, Green Infrastructure, that is, the network of natural and semi-natural spaces within and around urban spaces, brings a constructive and protecting element that may mitigate and adapt to the local level impacts of climate change, strengthening local resilience. This paper presents a comparative study of various green infrastructures’ implementation based on analytics in the United States of America, United Kingdom and Portugal, and focuses on the degree of its alignment with the public policies of mitigation and adaptation to the impacts of climate change. Pursuant to the identification of successes and failures, this paper infers common strategies, goals and benchmarking on outcomes for more adequate decision implementation and sustainable spatial planning, considering the importance of green infrastructure.

Empirical results of the concept of territorial capital suggest that the Hungarian regional economic development is defined by the coopetitive networks of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Therefore, overall purpose of this paper is to scrutinize theoretically and empirically on one hand the structural characteristics of the Hungarian coopetitive networks of SMEs, on the other hand is to analyze effects of the networks of same firms on regional economic development. Altogether three Hungarian coopetitive networks of SMEs were found and analyzed longitudinally embracing 127 entrepreneurs thus 127 interviews and 127 questionnaires were conducted as well. Since the coopetitive networks of enterprises have territorial extension, the advanced methods of network science and spatial econometrics were combined. The key findings show that focal firm plays outstanding role in redistributing market information, organizing mutual transportation and guarantees robustness of the coopetitive networks. Finally, the coopetitive networks of SMEs determine significantly the new jobs creation and pay raise, in general, the accumulation of territorial capital at regional scale as well.

We are witnessing a need for a quick and intelligent reaction from organizations to the level and speed of change in business processes.New information technologies and systems (IT/IS) are challenging business models and products. One of the great shakes comes from the online and/or mobile apps and platforms.These are having a tremendous impact in launching innovative and competitive services through the combination of digital and physical features. This leads to actively rethink enterprise information systems’ portfolio, its management and suitability. One relevant way for enterprises to manage their IT/IS in order to cope with those challenges is enterprise and process architecture. A decision-making culture based on processes helps to understand and define the different elements that shape an organization and how those elements inter-relate inside and outside it. IT/IS portfolio management requires an increasing need of modeling data and process flows for better discerning and acting at its selection and alignment with business goals. The new generation of enterprise architecture (NGEA) helps to design intelligent processes that answer quickly and creatively to new and challenging trends. This has to be open, agile and context-aware to allow well-designed services that match users’ expectations. This study includes two real cases/problems to solve quickly in companies and solutions are presented in line with this architectural approach.

This article seeks to demonstrate the impact three economic concepts that gained traction in the last decades of neoliberalism – experience, attention and ubiquity – have caused in the current role of digital arts and artists in society, both on and off-line, as well as how they have changed the arts ecosystem, namely by altering the relationships between artists, audience, curating, public spaces – material and virtual, academia and companies. It addresses the commoditisation of creativity and innovation, which are now organised and consumed like products. It also offers insights on how the concept of art ownership has been replaced by experience, how mass-individualization of the selfie generation artists in a globally aestheticised and exposure-addicted world has contributed to the dismantling of community and association mind-sets and how the architecture of participation, presented as a vector of globalisation, inclusion, and democratisation of access to creation and enjoyment, actually revealed itself as a vector of inequality. It concludes by showing how hacktivism and artivism rise as new vanguards in an environment that is written and reads itself, bridging materiality and virtuality, in a multiplicity of blended spaces.

Summary: Comparative evaluation on Quality of Life (QoL) perception on different communitarian residential institutional environments for senior citizens. Method: Cross-sectional comparative study, using a deductive and a descriptive statistical method on a sample of 50 senior citizens inhabitants in the Retirement-village St. Joseph of Alcalar (Alcalar group), 56 senior residents in traditional retirement homes (RSS group) and on 52 senior attendees of day care institutions (DCI group). This research comprised on two self-applicable questioners for elderly citizens on WHOQOL-BREF e WHOQOL-Old PT. We evaluated 158 senior citizens selected from 22 Institutions. Results: QoL levels perceived by Alcalar Retirement-village inhabitants were predominantly higher than QoL levels perceived by residents in RSS and DCI attendees. The trend in QoL results obtained by the Alcalar Retirement-village inhabitants just wasn’t absolute because they were overcome by DCI attendees results in some (few) areas assessed in both WHOQOL scales. Conclusion: The Alcalar Retirement-village group globally showed higher levels of Quality of Life perception by comparison with the other two group subjects’ residents and attendees, respectively, from RSS and DCI.

The purpose of this study was to revisit the inventory developed by Galvão and Pinheiro (2016), measuring seven psychological traits common to business owners, and to propose an inventory that could improve the measuring of psychological traits of Portuguese business owners. The 26 items inventory was used on two samples. Sample 1, included 229 individuals (33.2% business owners) and Sample 2, used to cross-validate findings, included 257 individuals (44.0% business owners). Correlational statistical tests and a Principal Component Analysis were carried out, resulting in items loading to 3 components. The loading items were presented to 17 business owners to validate the trait they most associated to each question, resulting in a fit to 16 items also identified by the authors as having theoretical foundations. Structural Equation Modelling was performed showing good fits for both sample 2 (RMSEA=0.052; TLI=0.942; CFI=0.951) as sample 1 (RMSEA=0.036; TLI=0.966; CFI=0.971). With this study we were able to create the Portuguese Entrepreneurial Psychological Traits Inventory (PEPTI), an inventory that measures psychological traits that are significantly higher in business owners and that is adapted to Portuguese culture and that overcame the issues pointed out by Galvão and Pinheiro (2016) in their study.

Originally the Attachment-Aversion model of consumer-brand relationships, elaborated by Park, Eisingerich & Park in 2013, was analyzed with the help of the sample of English speaking respondents, living in Great Britain and the USA, and focused on two brands: Manchester United Football Club and Apple iPhone. The present study tries to validate the model regarding other type of brand and in conditions of another cultural background. The focal brand for the study was chosen from a high-end beauty category (Chanel). For the purposes of this research, a questionnaire was designed and spread online within the target population: the current students and alumni of Belarusian universities that are Russian/speaking, fluent in English and had a class in branding. A total of 273 responses was analysed using structural equation modelling. The outcomes of the research have shown that the Attachment-Aversion model of consumer-brand relationships has not proven to be totally versatile, while applied in the conditions of the other cultural background as some of the relationships of the model have shown to be insignificant. The enticing determinant has no effect on brand attachment relationship and the enabling determinant has no effect on the brand prominence. The implications of the findings are discussed.