Keywords: comparative testing;quality; market; marketing; eco-labelling
The main purpose of this article has been to prove the importance of comparative testing of consumer products as a means of consumer information and consultation, to analyse its methodology and impact on market structures as well as on the behaviour of companies and consumers, and to determine possibilities for the practical application of comparative testing in Lithuania. The key research objectives have been to analyse the framework of Lithuanian consumer organisations and their capabilities to perform product testing. In addition to this, the peculiarities of the consumer market as well as the need for product information, which are both important factors for product testing, have been overviewed. Utilising comparative product testing methodology and research on how test results could be applied, it can be said that the formation of an independent, wellinformed consumer base that is able to make calculated decisions requires planned and concentrated government efforts. Comparative product testing is one of the tools available for consumer education and information, its significance and effectiveness in creating a society such as this cannot be denied. When creating a comparative product testing system in Lithuania we need to take into account the experience of other Western countries in this field, as well as the potentiality of Lithuanian institutions to prepare and conduct testing of certain products. Research shows that at present in Lithuania these are food products which lend themselves most readily to product testing – services fare worst. From a technological and economic viewpoint, cooperation between the Baltic States and any prior specialisation in this area would be useful when conducting product quality comparative testing.
More...
Keywords: Polysemy; ambiguity; cognition; language philosophy; semantics; prototypically; cognitive semantics; neostructuralism; generative semantics; lexical pragmatics
Polysemy is a semantic phenomenon which occurs when one lexical item has more meanings which can be seen as related to each other. It is to be distinguished from the other extreme pole of ambiguity, homonymy, which occurs when two or more unrelated meanings are by means of an etymologi- cal accident tied to the same orthographic and/or phonological form. Even though polysemy can be considered as a non-issue, since discourse easily solves all of the problems of possible ambiguity for use in everyday language use, accounting for it (in an systematic manner) in terms of how polysemy is represented in the mental lexicon and how to account for the criteria govern- ing the meaning distinctions and the interaction of meanings, for example, is a challenge still not fully met. The paper first gives an overview of the exist- ing theoretical accounts of polysemy which arose over the course of the last two centuries to meet one of the said challenges, namely how polysemy is represented in our minds. The discussion is followed up by a conclusion of the predominant and most plausible theoretical view on multiple meanings stem- ming from the presented philosophical, semantic, and cognitive frameworks and models.
More...Keywords: British travel literature; imagology; orientalism; balkanism; interwar Romania; in – betweeness
The aim of the present study is to analyze the representations about Inter-War Romania, with special attention to the period 1930-1939 and King Carol’s reign, in British travel literature. In what this period is concerned, even if it was still represented by the British visitors in a ambiguous way either as a modern European country, somewhere between the West and the East or as a South-Eastern or Balkan country, somewhere between Europe and the Orient, this liminal condition is no longer the object of criticism and irony for those British visitors who have an agenda: to please their royal and noble hosts, travellers like D. J. Hall (1933), Romanian Furrow, Sacheverell Sitwell (1938), Romanian Journey, R. H. Bruce Lockhart (1938), Guns or Butter. War Countries and Peace Countries of Europe Revisited, Archibald Forman (1939), Rumania through a Windscreen, Derek Patmore (1939), Invitation to Romania. One of the main characteristics of this period as reflected in British literature is that the oscillation between the Eastern/Oriental and Western models is pointing out this time the progress of modern Romania and its European life standards. Another common place is the relationship between gender and national identification.
More...Keywords: interior; decoration; Kapiton Zelentzov; sofa; Alexander Empire style; romantic sense of style; remake; Golizyn; chancellor Golovkin
The article is dedicated to the analysis of interior decoration details captured on 4 paintings. It’s notable that two of them, the picture painting by Kapiton Zelenzov (from Tretyakov gallery) and the canvas of an unknown author (from the State historical museum) have the image of the same room based on the upper level of a landlord’s house, but with a 20 year difference. The first picture is dated 1830, the second — the beginning of 1850s. The interior decoration of a room from Zelenzov painting is typical for the «Alexander Empire style». The furniture made of mahogany has strict and compact lines. The design from the second picture looks brighter and more colorful. The furniture is the same, but it’s changed because of gold plated details that added to a view a romantic sense of style of Nicolas I. The sofa attracts a particular attention as is decorated at the bottom with three-dimensional gold plated details in form of swans, which give it a unique view. But the most astonishing thing is that the very same sofa «with swans» the author of this article found on another picture from the private collection. The picture was published in the journal «Pinacoteca» in 1998 (Vol. 4). It was believed to be one of the variants of a work from the collection of State historical museum, dated 1820s. But the fact that it shows the sofa from 1850s doesn’t allow us to date it back to 1820s as it was thought before. In other words, the picture from a private collection dates 1890s and presents a so-called «remake» of two mentioned canvases from the collection of State historical museum. Thus the image of the same sofa on the three out of four mentioned pictures allows us not only to state a more exact date of one of them, but also to refer the origins of all four to one family collection. The article also has assumptions about those people who are shown on the paintings; the author believes that all of them are members of Golizyn-Golovkin family, whose progenitor was a famous figure of Peter the Great’s époque, a chancellor count G. Golovkin.
More...
Keywords: graffiti; subculture; Bologna; visual sociology;
The city of Bologna (Italy) is mainly known for the rich and well-preserved history, the left-wing political opinions of its inhabitants and for the one of the lowest child birth rates in a European city. These aspects, combined with the fact that the city has the largest university in Europe in terms of number of students,shapes the local urban culture in a particular way. This paper investigates the visual manner in which some inhabitants of Bologna, collectively known as “graffers”, express themselves in an attempt to identify the characteristics of their public voice. Such expression is often in contradiction with the way in which the town officials wish to promote a certain image of Bologna based on historical tradition. The methods of visual sociology are used to analyse the graffiti in terms of locations and content, in an attempt to explain the process of socialisation in a stable and prosperous society.
More...
Keywords: elderly people in the society; active ageing; innovations in care for elderly; home care; social services for elderly
The study presents through international examples of how the security and quality of life of elderly and disabled people can be enhanced. 12 partners in eight Central European countries carried out pilot activities within the framework of the HELPS project. The aim of this international project is to contribute to the decrease of the social exclusion of elderly, and to elaborate practises through which seniors would not be constraint to institutional care, and can live in their homes on a longer term. The study presents the outcomes of these pilots and the ensuing primary experiences. The presented innovative solutions offer possibilities in various fields (housing, services, career, practises, information of relatives) for the home care of elderly and people living with disabilities. Prior to the elaboration and put into practice of the development ideas and plans, the partners evaluated the health care system and related services offered to elderly and disabled people in their homeland. The analyses revealed those shortage areas, where further developments would increase the possibility to keep and care for the target group in their homes.
More...Keywords: early Roman period; Moesia Inferior; Dobrudja; figural bronze pieces; fragments of statuettes; decorative appliqués
Recent studies concerning the figural bronze pieces from Dobrudja have shown their iconographic diversity and the influences that occurred in northeastern Moesia. New discoveries, presented in the present article, bring contributions to the domain of minor statuary pieces, furniture appliqués and zoomorphic representations of the region between the Danubius and the Pontus. Seven fragments of statuettes are presented, of which three made of silver, appliqués representing divinities, mythological characters (such as Amor, Attis, Gorgona/Medusa), anonymous or animal-like figures, an oenochoe handle with the image of a maenad, and one of the rare enamelled figurines representing a rooster. The hereby presented figural bronze pieces, discovered in an unknown place on the Dobrudjan territory, chronologically belong to the 2nd–3rd centuries AD.
More...
Keywords: actions; organizational routines; practice-based study; processual approach; organizational change
Objective: The aim of this paper is to present the problem of everyday organizational practices and routines as loci of organizational persistence, novelty and transformation. Base on qualitative research the article argue that that spontaneous actions are important factors that introduce organizational change. Research Design & Methods: The article presents results of a comparative case study. The methodological choice included interviews and non-participant observation. Sample selection was purposive. The enterprises were selected from creative and textile-apparel industries. Findings: The research illustrates how entrepreneurs respond to everyday phenomena and unplanned situations that co-create their business reality. It turns out that the way of practice reproduction may be of twofold nature: radical and spontaneous or evolution-like and emergent. Implications & Recommendations: Perceiving organizations through day-to-day processes offers an opportunity to understand the concept of organizational change. The field of practice theory is open to more management issues. Contribution & Value Added: Elaborating on the practice-based view within organization studies, the concept of everyday practices and routines offers a promising approach within change management.
More...
Keywords: hotel superstructure; balneology; SPA tourism; certification; European SPA Association
This article discussed the status of systems for certifying the quality of balneology and SPA services in the hotel superstructure in Bulgaria. The analysis was carried out using the method of induction and deduction, critical analysis, method of comparison, benchmarking analysis and based on a survey conducted by the author. As a result of the examination were made conclusions and recommendations in order to comply new regulatory requirements, enhancing the quality and investor interest in the hotel superstructure in balneology and SPA tourism.
More...
Keywords: Relationship Cultivation Strategies; Corporate Blogs; Service-Dominant Logic; Co-creation Process;
The main purpose of this study was to identify the degree to which established corporate online communication strategies gravitate around the new Return on Investment (ROI) which is Return on Blog (ROB). Corporate blogs allow companies to connect and communicate online with both their customers and a much wider range of participants/publics. As blogging is about information, leverage, connections, conversations, discovery, and amplification, the paper focuses on specific communication strategies for cultivating and maintaining organizational-public relationship (OPR), such as openness and interactivity. Furthermore, the importance of company-customer communications has been highlighted in the ServiceDominant Logic (S-D Logic) literature as a crucial precedent for both parties to co-create value. The conducted research is based on a content analysis of the corporate blogs of companies in the Romanian landscape, exploring the two cultivation and maintenance relationship strategies employed by communica
More...
Keywords: sociology of literature; dystopia; outsider; everyday life-world
This paper investigates various tools and methods employed by a social group todefine who is an outsider and who belongs to the group. This issue of group identity is examined on the basis of the novel The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood. The chief aim of this paper is to examine both formal and informal schemes of labeling an outsider in the light of Goffman’s dramaturgical model and with reference to Becker’s theory of stigmatization. The author argues that obtaining labels of stigma is caused by the way some tendencies or behaviors are perceived. Thus, deviance is not inherent to an act, but comes from the strong tendency of majorities to label minorities, or those seen as deviant from commonly accepted cultural norms, negatively. What is of particular interest to the author is the relation of society towards individuals and, consequently, the micro social rules, which govern the theatre of everyday life, as presented in Margaret Atwood’s novel.
More...
Keywords: young people; consumers; financial standing; competences;
The segment of young consumers meets a particular interest on the side of both market researchers and business. As it was noticed in the report Bogactwo mądrości – spełnianie potrzeb starszych konsumentów: “The prevailing in recent decades cult of youth has shaped the way in which firms perceive the consumer. Though at present the bigger and bigger and more and more influential group of consumers are individuals aged 50+, the majority of suppliers of products and services have still been designing and adjusting their offer only to the young generation” (Deloitte, 2012).It is this group of consumers which is perceived as one of potential and innovative consumers. Hence the knowledge of the young people’s financial standing, competences, behaviour is of substantial cognitive and applicative importance. An aim of the article is to present the young Poles’ financial standing in the light of findings of the survey for the National Register of Debts1 as well as the selected competences of young consumers based on results of the quantitative (main2 ) survey carried out among 1000 Poles (recognised as at least minimally competent) in August 2013, for two groups: individuals aged 18-29 accounting for 26% and, for comparison, aged 30-39 accounting for 14% of the population surveyed. The survey was carried out with the use of a questionnaire of the survey by the CATI (computer-assisted telephone interview) method. The surveys carried out by NRD show that more than 1/3 of young Poles receive money from parents or family, or have bills paid thereby. Independently able to subsist is every fourth 25-30-years old individual and as much as 14% 30-years old ones. Young people are more often satisfied than dissatisfied with their financial standing. Almost every second young Pole is satisfied or very satisfied with their financial standing; only 23% are dissatisfied or highly dissatisfied. As much as 30% of the respondents were unable to evaluate their standing. Young Poles’ households’ incomes are highly diversified. On average, young Poles’ families have at their disposal the amount of 2,669 zlotys per month. Living on credit is for many young people the only possibility to start their independent lives. Almost one half of Poles up to the age of 35 years availed themselves with credits and loans whenever. In turn, the authors’ surveys indicate that financial competences of young Poles require educational activities whose need is indicated by the respondents. Many young people do not plan their budget or special purpose spending, do not prepare a purchase list, although many young people display high self-assessment of their competences as regards finance management. The presented research findings have the cognitive and applicative character. The article is of the research nature.
More...
Keywords: Bauhaus; Auschwitz; the avant-garde, design; Art Nouveau Tadeusz Peiper; Walter Gropius
More...
Keywords: competitiveness; tourism business; health tourism; marketing management; standardization.
The actuality of the examined problems is determined by the fact that the Bulgariantourism is looking for forms of achieving non-seasonality in the tourist supply.The object of research is the health tourism, the subject of analysis is the aspects ofmarketing management of health tourism in Bulgaria. The thesis is that, by applyingmarketing management tools, the competitiveness of the product in the tourism business is increased. The purpose of the research is to establish which aspects of marketing management can be applied to introduce innovations in the field of health tourism in order to increase its competitiveness.The purpose of the article is realized through study and validation of basic tasks such as:Clarifying the essence and specificity of marketing management; Analyzing the resourcecapacity and potential of health tourism in Bulgaria; Theoretical issues regarding healthmanagement; Analysis of key aspects such as standardization and certification in healthtourism; Study and evaluation of specialized sites on health tourism in Bulgaria.The following research methods have also been used to achieve the objectives and tasks: An overview of the theoretical scientific developments; An overview of materials of international and European organizations; An overview of company surveys; Empirical study. Main results / directions, groups /: A) Tourism Business Direction - results: Thecharacteristics of marketing management and their application in health tourism havebeen identified; The potential of health tourism has been determined and the opportunities for its development in Bulgaria are outlined. B) Product Competitiveness Direction in the Tourist Business in Bulgaria - results: The factors which prove that Bulgaria can be promoted as a health tourism destination for are outlined; Innovative approaches have been identified in tourism to develop and implement standardized health products; Recommendations were made on which aspects of marketing management can be applied for introducing innovations in the field of health management. Conclusions: A change is required in the overall management of the health tourism in Bulgaria; Implementing innovations in the specialized sites for health tourism is required; Practical consequences: Successful marketing management in tourism can be realized through the application of standardized health products in tourism enterprises.Originality: Currently in Bulgaria the opportunities for health tourism marketingmanagement are still not thoroughly explored as a year-round form of tourism.
More...
Keywords: cultural heritage; goods of cultural heritage; misappropriation of goods of cultural heritage; destruction of goods of cultural heritage
The basic purpose of the present scientific research is the critical analysis of lawmaking updates concerning material object of the criminal offences sanctioned by articles 1991-1994 of the Criminal code of the Republic of Moldova. The systematical method, the comparative method, analysis and synthesis have been chosen. As a result, the present study of penal legal norms was performed in a systematical and comparative way. Especially, there have been concluded that some lawmaking solutions settled in the legislation and penal doctrine of Romania would constitute a relevant scientific support and a good lawmaking sample in order to formulate some suggestions of legislative improvement in the sphere of protection of the cultural heritage by means of Criminal law. Finally, after a critical research there have been detected a great amount of unclear expressions and deficiencies of the modern lawmaking procedure used in the process of creating legal norms, and have been formulated new proposals to reform.
More...
Keywords: level of indebtedness; macro-economic indexes; industrial sector; capital structure; economic development; Slovakia;
The specific corporate indebtedness and capital structure of the companies in individual industrial sectors is a fundamentally serious problem, resulting from a number of factors. The aim of the contribution is to evaluate indebtedness in chosen industrial sectors according to available financial statements and research of the problem in the market with the consequent possible determination of financial situation improving. Due to the evaluation of indebtedness chosen indexes had been evaluated; mainly total indebtedness, financial leverage ratio, and insolvency. Results show numbers of companies overreach recommended indebtedness and threaten their future acting. They need to consistently evaluate obtaining of financial means for covering of their property and in case of overreaching optimum; they need to find the proper alternative to business financing.
More...
Keywords: Foreign trade;export potential;competitiveness;
The relevance of the research subject is related to the fact that exports are an integral part of the overall economic po-tential of any state and largely determine the pace of its eco-nomic development. The slowing of export growth relates to exports to the EU countries in recent years; the negative trade balance of Latvia with these countries increases the need to analyse the factors affecting the realisation of ex-port potential and to search for opportunities to do so. The purpose of this study is to analyse the export potential of Latvia to the EU countries, categorised by groups of goods. To achieve the goal of the study, it was necessary to de-termine the essence of the export potential, identify factors that affect the implementation of the country’s export poten-tial and assess the export potential of trade between Latvia and the EU countries by groups of goods. The study used quantitative and qualitative methods of analysis, statistical data analysis, as well as methods for assessing the poten-tial of Latvian exports to the EU countries. As a result of the study, groups of goods with trade potential for export to the EU countries have been identified.
More...
Keywords: Detective fiction; conventions; Agatha Christie; Hercule Poirot’s ;
Detective fiction has been immensely popular among readers for decades. This paper answers the questions of who the readers of this genre are and what makes detective stories so attractive for them. The first part of the paper discusses why the so-called contemplatives are especially fond of detective fiction, which is often read as escapist literature, as well as why detective fiction is especially popular in Anglo-Saxon countries. In the second part of the paper, Agatha Christie’s novel Her- cule Poirot’s Christmas is used as an example of organized structure and established conventions of detective fiction that make the genre appealing, which includes the setting, characterization, crime, detective, and restored order, i.e. a happy ending.
More...Keywords: neighbourhood; sustainable neighbourhood; walkability;
A sustainable neighbourhood is critical in preserving the environment for future generations, as various societies are suffering from increasing reliance on vehicles and low social interaction. This study aims to compare two neighbourhoods in terms of implementing the sustainable neighbourhood criteria. This study is based on eight sustainable neighbourhood evaluation criteria related to design and urban values are: regional issues, compacted form, mixed land-use, connectivity, pedestrian-oriented building, public sphere of the neighbourhood, relationship with transit, and walkability. University District and Jordan Villa Compound newly developed residential neighbourhoods located in Al-Mafraq city in Jordan were chosen as a case study to evaluate the sustainable neighbourhood criteria. The primary and secondary data were obtained from various resources, including; previous studies that related to the topic, site surveys and personal interviews. The results show that The University District is more sustainable and walkable than the Jordan villa compound; due to several reasons as the grid pattern of planning and the high population density. The importance of this study comes from implementing the sustainable neighbourhood evaluation criteria to develop communities to become more sustainable and walkable.
More...