Past Behavior Research Articles

Trying to buy more sustainable products: Intentions of young consumers

Young adults play a pivotal role in environmental preservation and the future of the planet, but little is known about the predictors of their attitudes and intentions to purchase more sustainable products. Building on the theory of trying (TT) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB), this study addresses the research gap and examines how young consumers seek to conserve the environment by purchasing more sustainable products. The present study tests the conceptual model using multi-group structural equation modeling on samples of young adults from Western, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe with different levels of economic development, sustainable policies, and consumer attitudes toward sustainability. The results show that the predictors proposed by the TT explain the attitudes and intentions to buy eco-labeled products better than the predictors from the TPB and that past behavior plays an important role in this process. This study has both theoretical and practical implications for various stakeholders, including managers, policy makers, consumers, and stakeholder representatives.

Source Determination of Debris Avalanche Deposit based on the Morphology and Distribution of Hummocky Hills on the Northeastern Flank of G. Sundoro and G. Sumbing, Central Java, Indonesia

The presence of hummocky hills as a typical product of debris avalanche deposits is prominently visible in the northeastern flank of G. Sundoro and G. Sumbing, Temanggung, Central Java. In an attempt to better understand the past behavior of both G. Sundoro and G. Sumbing, we identify the source of the debris avalanche deposit. Interpretation is performed on the basis of the assumption of two possible sector collapse sources, i.e., G. Sundoro and G. Sumbing. The Sumbing source scenario is assumed as freely spreading type considering 1) distribution of the hummocky hills are relatively on the northeastern flank of the volcano, and 2) the present crater structure on the summit of the volcano which is opening to the northeast. The Sundoro source scenario is assumed as valley-filling type considering the distribution of the hummocky hills are relatively on the eastern flank of Sundoro extended to the far distal area and bounded by older high topography of G. Sumbing and North Serayu Mountains. The source identification was done on the basis of field observation of the deposit lithological characteristics combined with image analysis, including hummocky hills morphometry, displacement angle, and spatial distribution. Image analysis identifies approximately 645 hummocky hills ranging from 1,851 mz to 623,828 mz and average of 23,482 m2. Petrographic analysis of 5 representative block lava samples shows variation of olivine basalt, pyroxene andesite, to hornblende andesite. The results show that big size hummocky hills dominate the western side, while small size on the east. Displacement angle varied following the valley orientation with typical downslope topography. These suggested that the hummocky hills were originated from G. Sundoro as a valley-filling debris avalanche deposit.

Put Your Voice on Stage: Personalized Headline Generation for News Articles

In this article, we study the problem of personalized news headline generation, which aims to produce not only concise and fact-consistent titles for news articles but also decorate these titles as personalized irresistible reading invitations by incorporating readers’ preferences. We propose an approach named PNG ( P ersonalized N ews headline G enerator) by utilizing distant supervision in readers’ past click behaviors to resolve. First, user preference representations are learned through a knowledge-aware user encoder that comprehensively captures the genuine, sequential, and flash interests of users reflected in their historical clicked news. Then, a user-perturbed pointer-generator network is devised to accomplish the headline generation in which the learned user representations implicitly affect the word prediction. The proposed model is optimized by reinforcement learning solvers where indicators on factual, personalized, and linguistic aspects of the generated headline are regarded as rewards. Extensive experiments are conducted on the real-world dataset PENS, 1 which is a large-scale benchmark collected from Microsoft News. Both the quantitative and qualitative results validate the effectiveness of our approach.

The Role of MWCNTs in Enhancing the Foam Stability and Rheological Behavior of Cement Pastes That Contain Air-Entraining and Superplasticizer Admixtures.

This research delves into the intricate dynamics between multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), air-entraining admixtures (AEAs), and a range of superplasticizers (SPs) in cementitious systems, shedding light on key aspects of construction material innovation. The focus is on how MWCNTs, AEAs, and specific SPs-namely, lignosulfonate (LS), polycarboxylate (PCE), and polyacrylate (PA)-influence the stability of foams and the viscosity and setting times of cement pastes. To assess the impacts of these components, we employed foam stability assessments, viscosity measurement techniques, electrical conductivity analysis, and evaluations of dispersion and setting times. Results indicate that MWCNTs enhance foam stability and viscosity, with the degree of improvement contingent on the type and concentration of SPs and the presence of AEAs. Notably, SPs, particularly PCE and PA, markedly influence the properties of cement paste, including increasing dispersion values and modulating setting times, especially when combined with MWCNTs and AEAs. The study concludes that strategically combining MWCNTs with specific SPs and AEAs alters the physical properties of cementitious materials significantly, underscoring the potential for customizing material design in the construction sector.

Continuous-time modeling of the multivariate relationships between physical activity levels and stationary time in preschool-aged children: an investigation of the ActivityStat hypothesis

BackgroundThe ActivityStat hypothesis proposes that an increase or decrease in physical activity (PA) greater than a certain set point activates behavioural and/or energy compensatory responses to maintain a stable level of total energy expenditure. Few studies have tested this hypothesis in children and even fewer have focused on young children. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the ActivityStat hypothesis by examining the presence and timeframe of the relationships among PA levels and stationary time (ST) in preschool-aged children.MethodsA secondary analysis was performed on repeated measurement data (i.e., day-to-day activity) involving 98 preschool-aged children (age: 4.5 ± 0.7 years) in Edmonton, Canada. Participants were asked to wear an ActiGraph wGT3X-BT on the waist for 7 consecutive days to assess PA levels (i.e., light PA [LPA], and moderate-to-vigorous PA[MVPA]) and ST. Bayesian continuous-time structural equation modeling (CT-SEM) was used to examine the relationship between behaviours over time and the timeframe during which these relationships occur.ResultsEach behaviour (i.e., LPA, MVPA, and ST) positively and meaningfully predicted itself at a later time. These relationships persisted up to 0.5 days later, at which point past behaviour no longer meaningfully predicted future behaviour. In contrast, no relationships were observed between the three behaviours.ConclusionsThis is the first study to investigate the ActivityStat hypothesis using Bayesian CT-SEM in preschool-aged children. When simultaneously taking into account all dynamic relationships suggested by the ActivityStat, the findings fail to support the hypothesis.

Virtual tourism experiences: adoption factors, participation and readiness to pay

ABSTRACTUbiquitous digitalization combined with recent crises has increased the drive to develop new virtual tourism (VT) offerings. However, the factors influencing end-users’ adoption, participation and, most crucially, their readiness to pay have yet to be sufficiently investigated. In the paper, we test behavioral intentions regarding VT experiences and their actual use. We integrate the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) with perceptions of travel risk, past behavior and measurement of actual behavior – the decision to participate and pay for a VT experience. Data were collected from 660 participants, half of whom were offered the virtual tourism experience for free and the other half for a payment. The results show a strong overall intention to use virtual tourism and that the UTAUT2 extended precedents predict it well. Still, once the user is asked to pay for the virtual experience, actual participation rates drop significantly, and strong behavioral intentions are not good predictors of actual behavior. While free virtual tourism experiences might see wide use, ones that are paid for must be carefully crafted.

Modulatory role of sport factors on amateur and competitive athletes’ aggressive and antisocial behaviors

Aggressiveness and unethical behaviors are an important problem in sports today. Understanding how to properly measure and manage an athlete's aggressive tendency is a crucial lesson to be learned within the rulesets of a sporting environment. This study aims at validating the Italian version of the Competitive Aggressiveness and Anger Scale (CAAS), specifically developed to measure aggressiveness and anger in athletes. The second aim is to investigate how aggressive and antisocial behaviors are modulated by sex, competitive level (i.e., amateur and competitive), sport contact (i.e., contact and no-contact), and sport type (i.e., team and individual). Two hundred and ninety-six athletes (mean age = 22.42 years, SD = 2.86) were asked to fill out a survey about sociodemographic variables, sport specific data, attitudes to moral decisions, past cheating behavior, and aggression. The Italian version of the CAAS presented a good fit of the data, adequate internal consistency and its construct validity was supported via convergent and discriminant validity. Both aggressiveness and anger dimensions of CAAS positively related with acceptance of cheating and gamesmanship, and past cheating behavior, while only the aggressiveness dimension of the CAAS negatively related with prosocial attitude. Competitive male athletes practicing contact sport showed the highest levels of aggressiveness, while competitive athletes practicing team sport showed the highest level of anger. This study represents the first empirical construct validity evidence of CAAS among Italian athletes and provides a deeper understanding of how athletes' aggressive tendencies and antisocial behavior differ across athlete populations.

Towards a hybrid recommendation approach using a community detection and evaluation algorithm

<span lang="EN-US">In social learning platforms, community detection algorithms are used to identify groups of learners with similar interests, behavior, and levels. While, recommendation algorithms personalize the learning experience based on learners' profile information, including interests and past behavior. Combining these algorithms can improve the recommendation quality by identifying learners with similar needs and interests for more accurate and relevant suggestions. Community detection enhances recommendations by identifying groups of learners with similar needs and interests. Leveraging their similarities, recommendation algorithms generate more accurate suggestions. In this article, we propose a novel approach that combines community detection and recommendation algorithms into a single framework to provide learners with personalized recommendations and opportunities for collaborative learning. Our proposed approach consists of three steps: first, applying the maximal clique-based algorithm to detect learning communities with common characteristics and interests; second, evaluating learners within their communities using static and dynamic evaluation; and third, generating personalized recommendations within each detected cluster using a recommendation system based on correlation and co-occurrence. To evaluate the effectiveness of our proposed approach, we conducted experiments on a real-world dataset. Our results show that our approach outperforms existing methods in terms of modularity, precision, and accuracy.</span>

Determinants of Adapted Behaviors on Employee and Entrepreneurs Against the Covid-19 Pandemic: Theory of Planned Behavior

New Normal is a change in behavior to continue carrying out normal activities but coupled with the implementation of health protocols to prevent Covid-19 transmission. In Indonesia itself, the new normal is applied as a realistic response from the Indonesian government to the existence of COVID-19 as well as the results of the analysis in various sectors of national life, especially the future of the national economy in the medium and long term. After the implementation of the new normal, it automatically affects the routine activities carried out by the community, especially those activities that were restricted by the government at the time of the New Normal. This study aims to analyze the factors that influence behavior change after the application of the New Normal in the Covid-19 Pandemic. A modified Theory of Planned Behavior is used in this study using testing through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM-PLS). A total of 427 respondents who have worked have answered the online questionnaire containing 61 questions. The results of this study indicate that knowledge and understanding of covid-19 make people understand the severity they feel and the vulnerabilities they may experience. The severity and vulnerability they feel also have an influence on their attitudes, behavior control, past behavior, and subjective norms so that they have a strong factor in building their intention to behave during the pandemic when the new normal is enacted. The intention that has been built with the support of attitudinal factors, past behavior, subjective norms, and behavior control also changes people's behavior. Employees are able to more moderate the relationship between attitudes towards intention and the relationship between past behavior and intention than entrepreneurs.

Enhancing lithic analysis: Introducing 3D-EdgeAngle as a semi-automated 3D digital method to systematically quantify stone tool edge angle and design.

In stone tool studies, the analysis of different technological and typological features is known to provide distinct but interrelated information on the design and use of artefacts. The selection of these features can potentially influence the understanding and reconstruction of past human technological behaviour across time. One feature frequently part of a standard lithic analysis is the measurement of edge angles. The angle of an edge, unmodified or shaped by retouch and an integral part of the overall tool design, is certainly a parameter that influences the interpretation of an artefact. The acuteness of an edge angle is often linked to aspects such as cutting, carving, or scraping efficiency and durability and thus, tool performance. Knowing the actual edge angle of a stone tool can therefore have important implications for its interpretation. In the case of edge angle analyses, manual measuring techniques have been established for many years in lithic studies. Here, we introduce a new method for accurate and precise edge angle measurements based on 3D data (hereafter 3D-EdgeAngle). 3D-EdgeAngle consists of a script-based, semi-automated edge angle measuring method applicable to 3D models. Unlike other methods, 3D-EdgeAngle illustrates an objective way of measuring the edge angle at cross sections along the entire tool edge in defined steps and, moreover, allows measurements at different distances perpendicular to the edge by controlling three involved parameters. Thus, with this method, the edge angle can be measured at any point in a high resolution and scale of analysis. Compared to measurements taken manually, with this method random and systematic errors can be reduced significantly. Additionally, all data are reproducible and statistically evaluable. We introduce 3D-EdgeAngle as a standard method to calculate edge angles with a highly accurate and systematic approach. With this method, we aim to improve the process of studying lithics and thus to increase the understanding of past human tool design.

The Relationship between Physical Activity and Psychosocial Well-Being during and after COVID-19 Lockdown.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an extremely critical event that had a major impact on the physical and mental health of the world's population. The aim of the present work is to investigate whether physical activity plays a protective role in well-being both during the lockdown and afterwards, also assessing the role played by self-efficacy and perception of the risk of contracting COVID-19, as well as past behavior. To this end, two studies were conducted, the first close to lockdown (N = 1061; 76.3% females; mean age = 37.3-range: 18-80) and the second 2 years later (N = 562; 71.0% females; mean age = 33.2-range: 18-76). Descriptive and correlational analyses were performed, along with structural equation modelling. The results confirm the hypothesis of a positive impact of physical activity on emotional well-being alone during lockdown and on more general psychosocial well-being 2 years later. This result showed that physical activity during the pandemic represented an avoidance strategy from the psychological distress that COVID-19 was generating, whereas 2 years later, it represents a proactive strategy aimed at generating a positive mental health condition. These results provide a better understanding of the role physical activity plays in well-being by representing a resource for protecting as well as promoting the mental health of individuals.

Impact of ultrasound treatment on the physicochemical and rheological properties of acid hydrolyzed sorghum starch

The present study aimed to evaluate the influence of ultrasonication on the physicochemical properties of native and acid-hydrolyzed white sorghum starch. Sorghum starch exhibited improved freeze-thaw stability, solubility, swelling power, and paste clarity after mild sonication. Starches sonicated at 30 % amplitude for 10 and 20 min increased the peak viscosity to 249 and 240 BU, gel firmness to 140.23 and 131.62 (g), ΔH to 13.4 and 13.1 (J/g), crystallinity to 29.51 and 29.10 (%), double helix content to 1.11 and 1.07 and degree of ordered structures to 1.16 and 1.09. The sonicated dual-treated samples (sonicated-acid hydrolyzed) exhibited reduced swelling power, peak viscosity, gelatinization temperatures and gel firmness. In contrast, the solubility, paste clarity, ΔH, percentage of crystallinity, double helix content and degree of ordered structures improved. Ultrasonic treatment made cracks and holes in the granule surface, whereas dual-treated starches were more porous and rougher, with deep depressions. All sorghum starches displayed shear-thinning behavior (n < 1). The pseudoplastic behavior and consistency indices of the starch paste decreased with increasing sonication time and amplitude. The G' was always higher than G" and tanδ was <1 for all samples, indicating a more solid/elastic behavior. The increased sonication time and amplitude, as well as the dual-treatment, caused the gel to become more susceptible to shear forces, which resulted in a decrease in G' and G" and an increase in tanδ.

Efficient numerical scheme for studying dual-phase chemical reactions in unsteady Sisko fluid flow with relaxation times

This research article investigated the effects of dual-phase chemical reactions on the unsteady flow of Sisko fluid. Utilizing Caputo's fractional derivatives, the model captured the fractional behavior of the fluid and integrated relaxation times to reflect the viscoelastic nature of the Sisko fluid. The model also considered unequal diffusivities of the chemical species. The resulting equations were discretized using the finite difference method, complemented by the L1 algorithm. Our simulations underscored how memory parameters, β and γ, significantly shaped the concentration trajectories by emphasizing the impact of past flow behaviors. Moreover, the study identified the heterogeneous reaction parameter and the diffusion coefficients ratio as critical determinants in the reaction dynamics, underscoring their role in the system's behavior. This study illuminates the intricate matrix of relationships in the realm of chemical reactions and viscoelastic fluid flow, offering valuable insights for fields ranging from chemical processing to environmental remediation.

An ethnoarchaeological comparison of observed butchery actions to bone surface modifications of the Dobe !Kung San

ABSTRACT The Dobe !Kung were a group of foragers living in northern Botswana in the Kalahari Desert. In the second half of the twentieth century, their butchery actions on animal prey were recorded (1968–1975) and their abandoned camps from 1944–1976 were excavated to retrieve faunal remains from butchered prey animals. Here we test the hypothesis that bone surface modifications on these excavated faunal remains accurately reflect these butchery observations. We find that despite a few exceptions, the observed bone surface modifications follow the expectations derived from observations of butchery of different sized animals. This supports the idea that past butchery actions, based on the location and presence of bone surface modifications on modern bones, can be confidently linked to past butchery behaviours. We also suggest that bone surface modifications can provide information about past hunter-gatherer processing behaviours, cooking styles, and use of hides.

Multi-purpose pots: Reconstructing early farmer behaviour at Lydenburg Heads site, South Africa, using organic residue analysis

About 2000 years ago, Bantu-speaking people introduced an agro-pastoral lifeway into southern Africa and lived in northern and eastern lowland parts of the region by 700 CE. Also defined as the ‘southern African Iron Age’, pottery is the most common and diagnostic artefact category. The soil chemistry of several farming sites resulted in poor faunal preservation and especially within Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, the possibilities for dietary reconstructions based on bone assemblages is very limited. Furthermore, the majority of ceramic research on early farming communities (ca. 200–900 CE) has focused on typology and ethnoarchaeological interpretations. This study represents the first application of Organic Residue Analysis (ORA) applied to southern African early farming pottery to gain a deeper understanding of past human behaviour and subsistence patterns. We investigate the potential and evaluate future prospects of applying this method to southern African early farming pottery. A combined lipid biomarker (GC-MS) and compound specific isotope approach (GC-C-IRMS) was applied to pottery sherds (n = 40) from the Lydenburg Heads site (LHS), dating to the 7th century CE (Mzonjani facies) and 9th to 11th centuries CE (Doornkop facies), to test for lipid preservation, trace possible vessel use and dietary changes through time and embed the research data within the faunal and botanical record available. Our study provides first evidence for the processing of dairy products by early farmers in southern Africa. Both facies imply multi-purpose functionality of the ceramics tested, demonstrated by the mixing of animal fats and plant oils. The obtained ORA data from LHS confirms the processing of ruminant carcass fats within both occupation facies, likely representing domestic animal fats, as well as the processing of wild non-ruminant carcass fats within the earlier Mzonjani facies. The identification of ricinoleic acid in two vessels of the Doornkop facies, provides evidence for potential medicinal use. Preliminary data also indicate that dung could have been involved in different forms of pottery sealing and/or mending during both occupation facies. In this study, we begin to explore biomolecular evidence for dietary choices made by early farmers in southern Africa, shedding light on previously unexplored key products.

Pedestrian behavior interacting with autonomous vehicles during unmarked midblock multilane crossings: Role of infrastructure design, AV operations and signaling

One of the main challenges autonomous vehicles (AVs) will face is interacting with pedestrians, especially at unmarked midblock locations where the right-of-way is unspecified. This study investigates pedestrians' crossing behavior given different roadway centerline features (i.e., undivided, two-way left-turn lane, and median) and various AV operational schemes portrayed to pedestrians through on-vehicle signals (i.e., no signal, yellow negotiating indication, and yellow/blue negotiating/no-yield indications). This study employs virtual reality (VR) to simulate an urban unmarked midblock environment where pedestrians interact with AVs as they cross a four-lane arterial roadway. Results demonstrate that both roadway centerline design features and AV operations and signaling significantly impact pedestrians' unmarked midblock crossing behavior, including the waiting time at the curb, waiting time in the middle of the road, and the total crossing time. But only the roadway centerline design features significantly impact the walking time. Participants in the undivided scene spent a longer time waiting at the curb and walking on the road than in the median and TWLTL scenes, but they spent a shorter time waiting in the middle of the road. Compared to the AV without a signal, the design of yellow signal significantly reduced pedestrian waiting time at the curb and in the middle. But yellow/blue signals significantly increased the pedestrian waiting time. Interaction effects between roadway centerline design features and AV operations and signaling are significant only for waiting time in the middle of the road. Other factors, such as demographics, past behaviors, and walking exposure of pedestrians, are also explored. Results indicate that older individuals tend to wait longer before making crossing decisions, and pedestrians’ past crossing behaviors and past walking exposures do not significantly impact pedestrian walking behavior interacting with AV.

The Rating of Basketball Players' Competitive Performance Based on RBF-EVA Method

Basketball, as an offensive and defensive game centered around high altitude, has become an international mass competitive sport. Traditional methods cannot comprehensively evaluate the future potential of players, nor can they simply add up individual competitive abilities to judge the overall competitive performance of a team. To address these issues, this article proposes a video-based RBF neural network competitive scoring method, which analyzes players' past sports behavior, captures every subtle difference in their abilities, and achieves objective evaluation of players' competitive performance. Through comparative experiments, the accuracy of the test results is improved by about 5% compared to conventional RBF methods. This indicates that the improved RBF neural network designed in this article has significantly better prediction performance than traditional convolutional neural networks. This study provides a new method for evaluating the competitive performance of basketball players and has important guiding significance for basketball training and skill enhancement.

Hydrothermal Treatment via Microwave Radiation Improves Viscoelastic Properties of Native Gluten-Free Flours for Extrusion 3D Printing

The market for gluten-free products is experiencing significant growth due to the increase in the number of gluten/wheat affected patients diagnosed, but largely as a result of the emergence of a new niche market dedicated for consumers who optionally avoid gluten. Native flours are perceived as viable alternative for industrially used starch and hydrocolloids blends, mainly due to their lack of vitamins and minerals, which are abundant in non-refined raw materials. Edible inks for on-demand printing are under significant consideration, while texture building capacity remains an issue. As heat-moisture treatment has proved to be useful for stabilizing the pasting and rheological behavior of various native flours, HMT supported by microwave heating was investigated as printable ink stabilizers. For Spanish and Polish buckwheat flours and two different varieties of teff (white and brown) flour pasting, structural and textural characteristics after the microwave supported heat moisture treatment in 30% of initial moisture content were evaluated. The peak viscosity was reduced by 54% and 60% for Polish and Spanish flour, respectively, while for teff, the reduction was 15% and 43% for the white and brown varieties, respectively. Significant improvement in viscoelastic modulus G’ (for Polish and Spanish buckwheat flour, 32% and 16%, respectively; for white and brown tef varieties, 14% and 18%, respectively) was observed for all the treated samples regardless of the species or variety; this resulted in better performance during 3D printing.

Implicit Identification with Death, Clinician Evaluation and Suicide Ideation among Adolescent Psychiatric Outpatients-The Mediating Role of Depression

Implicit identification with death (i.e., subconsciously self-associating oneself with death), measured by the Death-Suicide Implicit Association Test (D/S-IAT), is associated with Suicide Ideation (SI). Our understanding of the mechanisms underlying this association is limited. The current study examined (1) the mediating role of depression between D/S-IAT and recent SI and (2) the association between SI, D/S-IAT, and clinician evaluation of SI among a clinical sample of adolescents. 148 adolescents aged 10–18 years (69.4% female) from two outpatient clinics were assessed at intake. Participants completed D/S-IAT and self-report measures for recent SI and depression during intake. Findings indicate that depression is a mediator between D/S-IAT and recent SI, controlling for gender, site differences, and past suicidal thoughts and behaviors. D/S-IAT and clinician evaluation were correlated with recent SI but not beyond depression. Our findings highlight the importance of examining the underlying psychological mechanisms regarding the association between D/S-IAT and suicide.

The Byzantine monastery as a commons

Although scholars have paid increased attention to commons, most studies explore modern cases, disregarding historical commons. The analysis of the latter can contribute to understanding the long-term effects of past behaviours on future generations and provide inspiration for solutions to contemporary problems arising from similar social dilemmas. One historical commons that still exists is the Byzantine monastic institution. Drawing on historical sources and contemporary studies, the paper uses (a) historical institutional analysis, to outline the structure of the institution, and (b) the community design principles of successful commons, to explore whether the Byzantine monastery can be classified as a commons. We find that the Byzantine monastery was a successful case of a historical commons, which developed a credible governance structure to sustainably manage and preserve their common goods, both intangible and tangible, despite the lack of direct democratic processes that characterize modern commons.