Search results for "construct"
showing 10 items of 3723 documents
Towards a Variety of Meanings - Multiple Representations of Reputation in the Small Business Context
2010
This paper examines the discursively constructed meanings for reputation in the small business context – an area of reputation research that has so far attracted little attention. We argue that viewing reputation as a social construction makes it possible to uncover and understand the variety of meanings attached to the concept in small businesses. On the basis of 25 thematic interviews with owner-managers we (re)constructed four meanings for reputation: reputation as an economic resource, as social recognition, as a restrictive control mechanism and as a risk for personal status. We also investigate the variety of discursive events in which these meanings are created. The study further emp…
Three-dimensional ultrasonography in prenatal diagnosis
1995
Within the past five years, 3D ultrasonography has developed to the degree that it offers both the patient and the examiner an entirely new visual experience in prenatal diagnosis. With the system described here (Kretz-technik, Austria), any desired plane can be displayed within the stored volume, and within seconds a high-quality 3D surface or transparent image can be calculated and displayed on the ultrasound monitor without need for an external workstation. All of this can be performed routinely in the clinical setting. Since 1989 we have routinely examined a total of 458 fetuses (242 normal and 216 with anomalies) between 16 and 38 weeks of gestation, supplementing our conventional 2D u…
Customer value in tourism and hospitality: Broadening dimensions and stretching the value-satisfaction-loyalty chain
2019
Abstract Customer value research consists of two main streams, with broad recognition in tourism literature: value dimensions (intra-variable perspective) and relationships among value, satisfaction and loyalty (inter-variable perspective). The conceptual framework reviews and categorizes graphically both streams, evidencing the need of research combining both perspectives. The empirical study uses PLS to validate among a sample of 340 hotel guests, a comprehensive causal model with a high number (eight) of value dimensions -functional (efficiency and excellence), social (status and esteem), hedonic (aesthetic and entertainment) and altruistic (ethics and escapism). Moreover, the model adds…
Swine flu in Buenos Aires: beyond the principle of resilience
2011
PurposeThroughout April/May of 2009 a new type of virus surfaced in Mexico and the USA, denominated H1N1 or swine flu, that has been immediately disseminated worldwide. Even though the mortality of this virus has been slow, comparing with other antecedents, the mass‐media articulated a troublesome discourse that put the world in tenterhooks waiting for the evolution of the symptoms. Emulating the mythical archetype of what we knew as Spanish flu, which affected more than 50 million people during 1918 and 1920, journalism triggered panic in the four corners of the world. Under such a context, the purpose of this paper is to explore the connection between the coverage of mass‐media and press …
The strange case of Pomar family: the dangers of roads
2012
Many studies conducted on risk-related issues use quantitative methods. Questionnaires or formal interviews are applied to subjects to construct some attitude or particular opinion about their sense of security. Since the risk-perception theory has been brought from cognitive psychology, there is a biased assumption to think this issue should use these survey types of techniques. In contrast, this article proposes that risk as social construal should be studied according to qualitative analyses that explore the connection between variables. That women perceive more risks than men can be a of second-order explanation, appropriate for opinion polls or managerial policies, but not scientific a…
The Creation of Ethnicity: National Costume as Reconstruction or Construct?
2015
Since its development at the end of 19th century, Latvian national costume has become a symbol of national identity. The task of this article is to trace how the publications of ethnographers during the 20th century shaped the view of Latvian national costume. The appearance of national costume was influenced by the growing knowledge of the national cultural heritage. Although national costume resembling ethnographic examples was recognized as highly authentic, in reality it was a reconstruction created by museum staff and other ethnographic researchers. The public demand for practical publications which could be of use in making national costume hindered more profound research into the his…
A Novel Instrument to Measure the Multidimensional Structure of Professional Agency
2018
This study aimed to construct and validate a quantitative measurement instrument to determine the structure of professional agency in working life. Empirical data (N = 589) were collected via a web-based, theoretically informed questionnaire, within the professional domains of education, healthcare, rescue services, and information technology. The questionnaire items incorporated theoretically based dimensions of professional agency. The structure of professional agency was initially analysed via exploratory factor analysis. Thereafter, using exploratory structural equation modelling, the structure of professional agency was investigated with a view to confirmation and validation. The resul…
Robust technique for 3D shape reconstruction
2017
Abstract In this paper a robust and simple scheme is presented for three dimensional (3D) shape reconstruction of real object. A novel composite pattern technique is proposed for projecting the light pattern on the object of interest. The proposed scheme reduces the number of patterns by combining the primary color coded channels into one composite format. Our approach uses both spatial and temporal intensity variation for calibration and construction phase. Gamma calibration is considered with the propose scheme. High quality depth map is obtained from the linear light reflected by the shape of object without complex calculations. Experimental results demonstrated that proposed technique i…
Reuse of electric vehicle batteries in buildings: An integrated load match analysis and life cycle assessment approach
2019
Abstract The increasing use of renewable energy technologies for electricity generation in buildings will require a growing number of battery energy storage systems (BESS) to enhance the reliability of electricity supply. The increasing number of retired electric vehicle (EV) batteries, expected from the automotive sector, can match this demand as EV batteries can be used as BESS, considering that they have about 80% of their original energy capacity. In this context, the study aims at examining the system, consisting of a BESS made by retired Li-ion EV batteries, a photovoltaic plant (20 kW) and the electricity grid, that provides the electricity required by an existing nearly net zero res…
Measurements of pressure and frictional tractions along walls of a large-scale conical shallow hopper and comparison with Eurocode 1991-4:2006
2014
Abstract A silo׳s hopper supports the majority loads induced by the stored particulate solids. Such loads vary from filling to discharging provided the hopper is steep enough to secure a mass flow; when the hopper is too shallow to promote a mass flow, funnel flow usually prevails – where how loads develop along walls of a shallow hopper remains to be addressed. In the paper, normal pressure and frictional traction were measured with pressure transducers as imposed by testing material sand along the walls of a full-scale conical shallow hopper. The transducers were carefully mounted in the designated positions of hopper walls along a generator. To make the measurement results representative…