Perception Of Environment Research Articles

Giving Voice: Examining the Tactical Repertoires of Nonprofit Advocacy for Disadvantaged Populations

Abstract Representation is an important role of the nonprofit sector as these organizations can give voice to the priorities of their constituents. This is particularly important for disadvantaged communities that may lack access to traditional democratic processes. What advocacy tactics are most utilized by nonprofit organizations serving disadvantaged populations? Given variation in nonprofit advocacy tactics, which tactics are perceived as most effective? To answer these questions, we look to the framework of tactical repertoires from sociological studies of social movements. Analysis of a survey of New England nonprofits (N = 656, 55 % response rate) indicates that nonprofits serving disadvantaged populations use similar tactics to organizations advocating for other constituencies but employ them at higher rates. These tactics cluster into three tactical repertoires, each a different combination of advocacy tactics. Perceptions of advocacy effectiveness are associated with the size and nature of tactical repertoires, client participation in advocacy, government funding, and perceptions of the policy environment.

Application of deep neural network identification models based on garden environment perception in plant protection

Perception of garden environment plays a crucial role in the control of invasive plants. Timely and accurate detection of invasive plants can significantly enhance the effectiveness of their control measures. Neural network technology can effectively identify the presence of invasive plants in the environment so that effective measures can be taken to protect garden plants from invasive species. In this paper, we propose a deep bilinear transformed ResNeXt (DBT-ResNeXt) model that replaces ResNet with ResNeXt to construct a two-branch structure for invasive plant recognition. The model is trained and validated using a dataset constructed from publicly available images of invasive plants. Experimental results demonstrate that compared to various other models, DBT-ResNeXt exhibits superior performance, achieving a recognition accuracy of 94.66%.

World models for autonomous driving

Advancements in autonomous driving have been achieved due to the increasing use of artificial intelligence. The existing autonomous driving technology is insufficient to handle intricate traffic conditions. In autonomous driving, the world model is a crucial and innovative technology. Utilizing sensors and pre-existing knowledge, a world model can enhance the autonomous driving system's comprehension of the surroundings, offer essential data for future judgments, and enhance the system's resilience. The paper employs literature analysis and review methods to investigate the research and implementation of world models in autonomous driving, including environment perception and modeling, path planning, decision-making, and safety. This study examines the use of artificial intelligence technology in autonomous driving and analyzes the research and application of the world model in this field. It offers new insights for addressing challenging scenarios in autonomous driving and enhancing the safety of the system.

How meaningless and substantive green claims jointly determine product environmental perceptions

This research examines how consumers perceive products in the presence (and absence) of substantive attribute information and ‘meaningless’ claims. Meaningless claims are product information devoid of any factual, substantive, objective, or concrete detail, which consumers may nonetheless ‘believe’ is a useful claim and on which they base their perceptions. Across three experiments we predict and find that meaningless claims of being ‘friendly to’ or ‘caring about’ the environment are sufficient to increase consumer pro-environmental perceptions. Most importantly, we find that this effect is not additive when meaningless claims co-occur with more substantive information, and that it holds while controlling for consumer environmental identity and skepticism. This has theoretical implications for understanding how consumers assess product information, demonstrating that the impact of peripheral cues such as meaningless claims is not over and above that of objective claims, when these pieces of information are presented together. It also has practical implications for policymakers in terms of consumer advocacy, justifying the need for regulation of such meaningless claims.

Interrelationships among College Students' Perceptions of Smart Classroom Environments, Perceived Usefulness of Mobile Technology, Achievement Emotions, and Cognitive Engagement.

Cognitive engagement is a crucial factor that shapes successful learning outcomes, but our understanding of the factors that influence such engagement in the smart classroom context remains limited. This study aims to narrow this research gap by exploring the relationships among college students' perceptions of the smart learning environment, perceived usefulness of mobile technology, achievement emotions, and cognitive engagement. A total of 1293 college students completed an online questionnaire survey, and 1076 valid responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the interrelationships among these factors. The results revealed that students' perceptions of the smart classroom environment and perceived usefulness of mobile technology as well as two achievement emotions (pride and anxiety) significantly impact cognitive engagement. Both pride and anxiety act as mediators in the relationships among perceptions of smart classroom environments, the perceived usefulness of mobile technology, and cognitive engagement, in which context the mediating effect of pride is stronger than that of anxiety. These findings have practical implications for instructors, who should focus on implementing strategies that promote positive achievement emotions when students use mobile technology in smart classrooms. Additionally, these findings can inform the design and construction of smart classroom environments. Moreover, our study has limitations due to reliance on online data collection and self-reported data, which may introduce biases and measurement errors. Future research should incorporate multimodal data and advanced technologies for a comprehensive assessment to better understand students' engagement in smart learning environments, while also considering individual factors and the educational context to enhance the effectiveness of mobile technology in supporting students' emotions and achievement.

Clinical students’ perception of educational environment in a Nigerian university: a mixed method study

BackgroundLearning environment (LE) research has been given priority in higher education institutions globally because of its influence on learning processes and outcomes. Although studies reporting the perceptions of health science students about LE in Nigeria are available, none have compared the perceptions of students from different health professions. Therefore, this study aimed to assess final-year clinical students’ perceptions of their LE from four programs (dentistry, medicine, nursing, and physiotherapy) and compared their LE perceptions.MethodsThis study adopted a cross-sectional study design using a mixed method approach. The quantitative survey involved all the final-year clinical students at the University of Ibadan, and they completed the Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) questionnaire. The qualitative aspect involved 24 consenting students in four focus group discussions.ResultsA total of 214 out of 223 copies of the DREEM questionnaire were duly completed and returned, yielding 96.0% response rate. The participants’ mean age was 24 ± 2.3 years (ranged between 22 and 25 years, p = 0.001). The mean DREEM scores of the students from the four programs ranged between 119.68 ± 18.02 and 147.65 ± 15.89 out of a maximum of 200, interpreted as more positive than negative perceptions of LE. Physiotherapy students’ DREEM score was significantly higher than those of medical, dental, and nursing students (p < 0.001). The DREEM scores of other students did not differ significantly (p > 0.05). Dental and medical students had similar positive perceptions. The qualitative aspect revealed that the students had positive perceptions of their teachers’ knowledge base and self-acquisition of knowledge but negative perceptions of their teachers’ communication skills, infrastructural facilities, lecturer-student relationships, and hostel accommodations.ConclusionAlthough the survey indicated that these clinical students had more positive than negative perceptions of their learning environment, the qualitative aspect of the study revealed many challenges that the students were confronted with. The clinical students’ perception of their learning environment could be improved if the university authorities would address these challenges.

Enhanced Object Detection in Autonomous Vehicles through LiDAR—Camera Sensor Fusion

To realize accurate environment perception, which is the technological key to enabling autonomous vehicles to interact with their external environments, it is primarily necessary to solve the issues of object detection and tracking in the vehicle-movement process. Multi-sensor fusion has become an essential process in efforts to overcome the shortcomings of individual sensor types and improve the efficiency and reliability of autonomous vehicles. This paper puts forward moving object detection and tracking methods based on LiDAR—camera fusion. Operating based on the calibration of the camera and LiDAR technology, this paper uses YOLO and PointPillars network models to perform object detection based on image and point cloud data. Then, a target box intersection-over-union (IoU) matching strategy, based on center-point distance probability and the improved Dempster–Shafer (D–S) theory, is used to perform class confidence fusion to obtain the final fusion detection result. In the process of moving object tracking, the DeepSORT algorithm is improved to address the issue of identity switching resulting from dynamic objects re-emerging after occlusion. An unscented Kalman filter is utilized to accurately predict the motion state of nonlinear objects, and object motion information is added to the IoU matching module to improve the matching accuracy in the data association process. Through self-collected data verification, the performances of fusion detection and tracking are judged to be significantly better than those of a single sensor. The evaluation indexes of the improved DeepSORT algorithm are 66% for MOTA and 79% for MOTP, which are, respectively, 10% and 5% higher than those of the original DeepSORT algorithm. The improved DeepSORT algorithm effectively solves the problem of tracking instability caused by the occlusion of moving objects.

Moderation Effects of Streetscape Perceptions on the Associations Between Accessibility, Land Use Mix, and Bike-Sharing Use: Cross-Sectional Study.

Cycling is known to be beneficial for human health. Studies have suggested significant associations of physical activity with macroscale built environments and streetscapes. However, whether good streetscapes can amplify the benefits of a favorable built environment on physical activity remains unknown. This study examines whether streetscape perceptions can modify the associations between accessibility, land use mix, and bike-sharing use. This cross-sectional study used data from 18,019,266 bike-sharing orders during weekends in Shanghai, China. A 500 × 500 m grid was selected as the analysis unit to allocate data. Bike-sharing use was defined as the number of bike-sharing origins. Street view images and a human-machine adversarial scoring framework were combined to evaluate lively, safety, and wealthy perceptions. Negative binomial regression was developed to examine the independent effects of the three perceptual factors in both the univariate model and fully adjusted model, controlling for population density, average building height, distance to nearest transit, number of bus stations, number of points of interest, distance to the nearest park, and distance to the central business district. The moderation effect was then investigated through the interaction term between streetscape perception and accessibility and land use mix, based on the fully adjusted model. We also tested whether the findings of streetscape moderation effects are robust when examinations are performed at different geographic scales, using a small-sample statistics approach and different operationalizations of land use mix and accessibility. High levels of lively, safety, and wealthy perceptions were correlated with more bike-sharing activities. There were negative effects for the interactions between the land use Herfindahl-Hirschman index with the lively perception (β=-0.63; P=.01) and safety perception (β=-0.52; P=.001). The interaction between the lively perception and road intersection density was positively associated with the number of bike-sharing uses (β=0.43; P=.08). Among these, the lively perception showed the greatest independent effect (β=1.29; P<.001), followed by the safety perception (β=1.22; P=.001) and wealthy perception (β=0.72; P=.001). The findings were robust in the three sensitivity analyses. A safer and livelier streetscape can enhance the benefits of land use mix in promoting bike-sharing use, with a safer streetscape also intensifying the effect of accessibility. Interventions focused on streetscape perceptions can encourage cycling behavior and enhance the benefits of accessibility and land use mix. This study also contributes to the literature on potential moderators of built environment healthy behavior associations from the perspective of microscale environmental perceptions.

Linking nursing students' professional identity, clinical learning environment, financial incentives, and career opportunities with migration intent: Structural equation modeling.

To investigate how nursing students' professional identity, clinical learning environment, financial incentives, and career opportunities influence their intention to migrate. There is a preponderance of studies about nurse migration and its impact on the global nursing workforce. However, a critical gap remains about nursing students' intentions to migrate, particularly among developing countries like the Philippines. Using a cross-sectional design, third- and fourth-year nursing students (n=316) from the largest comprehensive university in Manila were conveniently recruited. Data were collected from November to December 2023 using five validated self-report scales. Descriptive (e.g., mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (e.g., Spearman rho, covariance-based structural equation modeling) were used to analyze data. The emerging model demonstrated acceptable model fit indices. Nursing students' professional identity (β=0.18, p=0.043) and financial incentives (β=0.10, p=0.046) significantly and positively influence the intention to migrate. The satisfaction with future career opportunities (β=-0.12, p=0.038) and clinical learning environment perception (β=-0.15, p=0.048) negatively influence the intention to migrate. These four predictors accounted for 4.60% of the total variance of intention to migrate. Nursing students' professional identity and financial incentives directly impact intent to migrate, whereas future career opportunities satisfaction and clinical learning environment inversely affect intent to migrate. This study underscores the imperative for nursing colleges and faculty to promote positive professional identity and provide a conducive clinical learning environment to develop sustainable nurses' migration policies.

Perception of park environment and its impact on aesthetic evaluation

Abstract The synthesis of scientific works highlighted a fundamental difference in the methods and approaches used to investigate the aesthetic qualities of park environments involving respondents. A pivotal methodological question in studying the aesthetic qualities of park environments and their human perception lies in determining the research approach - whether natural or using substitutes such as photographs or virtual simulators. In the context of this study, an analysis was conducted to ascertain the correspondence between the perception of the park environment and the assessment of its aesthetic qualities under different survey conditions. The research established that the influence of park environment features on the aesthetic evaluation of landscapes significantly differs depending on the season and the method of research. Characteristics of the park environment noted by respondents, which are closely related to aesthetic evaluation, are positive associative features defining the overall psycho-emotional impression of the landscape. Seasonal changes in the park environment notably affect the perception of compositional characteristics, especially enhancing aesthetic evaluation during summer surveys conducted directly within the park boundaries. Substantial decrease in aesthetic evaluation is observed due to the mismatch between basic features and respondent preferences, a phenomenon independent of the research method employed.

Dynamics of narcissistic grandiosity and vulnerability in naturalistic and experimental settings.

Theoretical accounts of narcissism emphasize the dynamic shifting of self-states in response to social feedback. Status threats are thought to set narcissism's dynamics in motion. Naturalistic ecological momentary assessment (EMA) studies have characterized dynamics of narcissistic grandiosity and vulnerability in relation to perceptions of the interpersonal environment. Experimental studies have emphasized the behavioral responses of narcissistic individuals to putative threats to status. Naturalistic and experimental studies suffer from opposing limitations, namely, a potential for confounding variables to impact results versus ambiguous generalizability to real-life and longer time scales, respectively. Integrating naturalistic and experimental studies has the potential to provide a comprehensive model of how dynamics within narcissism unfold in response to status threat. The present study examined shifts in grandiosity and vulnerability in both naturalistic EMA and experimentally controlled (rigged tournament game) social interactions (N = 437). Grandiosity decreased and vulnerability increased in response to both naturalistic and experimental status threats. Further, the same people who responded with decreased grandiosity in response to status threat in daily life responded with similar decreases in grandiosity to experimental defeat. Trait narcissistic agency amplified many of the observed links between narcissism and status threat experimentally and naturalistically. Given that warmth (in addition to dominance) emerged as an important predictor of shifts in narcissism, implications for status-threatening environments are discussed. The present study elucidates important differences with respect to expressions of grandiosity and vulnerability across naturalistic and experimental methods. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Underpinning Plant Intelligence-A New Arena in Plant Cognition

Like other organisms plants also face crucial challenges for survival and better fitness in a wide range of ecological niches. Complex behaviors like learning, memory, information acquisition, communication, resolving problems and decision making abilities for their own benefits in an ever changing environment are also common in plants like humans and other animals. Plants sense and respond to biotic and abiotic factors of the environment to assess resources. Plants are good timekeepers as well. Without having proper brain and nervous system plants are able to interact with themselves and other organisms via chemical talking. In some plant species emissions of certain volatile chemicals during herbivore attacks are indications of social interactions. These are evidences regarding the occurrence of kin recognitions and responses in plant growth and development in complex environmental conditions. Certain species of plants show the act of mimicry. By adopting different dispersal mechanisms plant reduces parent-offspring and offspring-offspring competition. Seed-dispersal mutualism is a complex physiological interaction between plants and animals. For the last few years the relevance of plant cognition and behavioral ecology has received much attention. Collecting various sensory inputs from the surrounding environment (perception), transducing the signals within the body (cognition) and adapting various strategies plant ensures an output for better survival and reproductive fitness. All these mechanisms explore the domain of plant intelligence.

Indigenous environmental perceptions on the use of cultural keystone species for tourism development

Indigenous environmental perceptions on the use of cultural keystone species for tourism development

Agricultural Engineering Vocational School in Aceh Besar with Behavior Architecture Approach

Currently, Aceh Besar District has a PP Negeri Saree Vocational School in the agricultural section in Saree Aceh Besar, but this school only studies agricultural information. The condition of Aceh Besar District shows that their land use majority is used for agriculture, animal farming and husbandry, fisheries and paddy fields, farm, and other plantations. Abundant natural resources are not processed into a good business due to a shortage of human resources in the field of agricultural engineering. Therefore, it is necessary to include an Agricultural Engineering in those vocational school with aims to create human resources in the field of agricultural machinery and agribusiness. The object design location is on SIM Airport Street, Gani, Kec. Want Jaya, Aceh Besar. The classification of the Agricultural Engineering Vocational School includes the Department of Agricultural Engineering and Agricultural Product Processing Agribusiness. The approach of behavior architecture into the design is behavior setting in completing spatial design, spatial cognition in completing circulation, and environment perception in completing image or building appearance. The analysis used is functional analysis, site analysis and user analysis. The Agricultural Engineering Vocational School in Aceh Besar is designed on an area of 14,950 m2 with multiple building masses. The ground coverage area (KDB) is 40% which is 5,980 m². The facilities in the building meant to support students in the learning process and as well as supporting facilities, those facilities are practice rooms, namely rice threshing machine engineering rooms, rice processing , rice polisher machine, hand tractor, technology for processing agricultural products, quality testing and quality control practice room.

The Impact of Work Environment on Worker Productivity in Companies in Lima

The aim of this study is to analyze the impact of work environment on worker productivity in companies located in Lima by identifying the main factors that influence this environment and its relationship with the levels of work performance. The study had a quantitative applied approach with a non-experimental, correlational, and cross-sectional design. A sample of 381 workers over 18 years of age and of both sexes working in companies in Lima was taken. Data collection was conducted through surveys, and the instrument was a questionnaire consisting of 18 items for the work environment variable, composed of 3 dimensions, and 17 items for the productivity variable, composed of 2 dimensions. The results showed that most workers perceived a positive work environment, with significant percentages in the dimensions of leadership, motivation, and job satisfaction. Specifically, leadership showed a 51.18% perception of a good work environment, followed by motivation with 45.67% and job satisfaction with 43.31%. A positive trend was observed regarding worker productivity, with a high percentage of efficiency (62.20%) and effectiveness (59.84%). It is concluded that there is a favorable work environment that contributes to high levels of productivity among workers in companies in Lima. A moderate positive relationship between work environment and productivity was identified (P&lt;0.05; R=0.784).

A Review of Key Technologies for Environment Sensing in Driverless Vehicles

Environment perception technology is the most important part of driverless technology, and driverless vehicles need to realize decision planning and control by virtue of perception feedback. This paper summarizes the most promising technology methods in the field of perception, namely visual perception technology, radar perception technology, state perception technology, and information fusion technology. Regarding the current development status in the field, the development of the main perception technology is mainly the innovation of information fusion technology and the optimization of algorithms. Multimodal perception and deep learning are becoming popular. The future of the field can be transformed by intelligent sensors, promote edge computing and cloud collaboration, improve system data processing capacity, and reduce the burden of data transmission. Regarding driverless vehicles as a future development trend, the corresponding technology will become a research hotspot.

Connecting Environmental Perception, Awe, Face Consciousness, and Environmentally Responsible Behaviors: A Mediated-Moderated Analysis.

Tourists' environmentally responsible behavior (TERB) is one of the key areas in tourism as it concerns tourism sustainability that further influences a destination's competitiveness and image. This study sought to deepen the formation of TERB through tourists' degree of environmental perception, mediated by their feeling of awe towards the environment, and moderated by their level of face consciousness. Data were collected from tourists in Tibet and the findings indicated that awe exerted partial mediation on the tourists' perception-behavior relationship. Furthermore, face consciousness moderated the mediated relationship of humanistic environmental perception, awe, and TERB. This study adds value to existing tourism studies by revealing the influences of awe on constructing tourists' attitude in sustainable tourism. From a practical perspective, the findings offer insights for destination management organizations (DMOs) in promoting tourists' environmentally responsible behavior that fosters sustainable tourism development.

Health-related quality of life and perceptions of neighborhood physical and social environment in Tehran, Iran

ABSTRACT In light of rapid global urbanization and development, planners have become more concerned with the quality of life in cities. However, the perceptual connections between the built environment and resident well-being deserve more systematic attention. This study investigates the relationship between the perceived physical and social features of the neighborhood environment and the health-related quality of life for 393 adult residents in Tehran, Iran. A questionnaire was developed to examine participants’ perceptions of neighborhood social and physical factors, along with the World Health Organization’s Quality of Life – Brief Form (WHOQOL – BREF) to measure their health-related quality of life. Using factor analysis, correlations, and multiple linear regressions, the findings suggest that all subcomponents of the physical environment (accessibility, amenity, and legibility) and social environment (participation, sense of community, and satisfaction) impact psychological, social relationships, and environmental health, but that amenities were most powerfully predictive of all three types of socio-environmental health.

The relationship between dental students' perceptions of their educational environment and their life satisfaction and psychological resilience

Aims: Students' positive perceptions of the learning environment increase learning efficiency by contributing to increased participation. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between students' perceptions of the educational environment and life satisfaction and psychological resilience. Methods: As part of the research, students were asked questions under 7 subheadings, including age, gender, parents' health status, education level, number of siblings, family income level, systemic diseases, if any, and their impressions of the faculty. In addition, life satisfaction and psychological resilience scales were administered face-to-face. Chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to analyse the data. The significance level was set at p = 0.05. Results: A majority of undergraduate students (90.8%) reported positive initial impressions of their educational institutions. Additionally, a considerable proportion (93.4%) indicated satisfaction with the physical infrastructure, including the number of classrooms and laboratories. While 68.4% of respondents indicated that the intensity and cost of the educational process was negative, 77.6% reported that dental education was stressful. The psychological resilience of the students was examined, and it was found that 44 (57.8%) exhibited low resilience, 23 (30.2%) exhibited medium resilience, and 9 (11.8%) exhibited high resilience. In terms of life satisfaction, 26 (34.2%) of the participants were found to be at a medium level, 13 (17.1%) at a high level, and 3 (3.9%) at a very high level. Nevertheless, 36 (47.3%) of the participants exhibited a low level of life satisfaction. Conclusion: Despite the generally positive perceptions of the faculty held by students, they perceive the cost of dentistry education as high and the stress associated with it as considerable. Given that students' life satisfaction is low and their psychological resilience is moderate to weak, it is necessary to review educational programmes and psychological support systems.

Causal mediation analysis of social and environmental factors in pathways from a metro intervention to eudaimonic wellbeing among older people

BackgroundThis research aims to unravel the pathways linking transport with eudaimonic wellbeing among older people, considering the mediating role of social and environmental factors. MethodsWe focused on outcomes across six dimensions of eudaimonic wellbeing: self-acceptance, autonomy, positive relations with others, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth. Using a new metro line as a natural experiment, we collected cohort data of 449 older adults before and after the opening of a new metro line. The treatment group consisted of participants living within the 400-m buffer zones surrounding the new metro stations, while the control group consisted of those living in comparable station catchments. The mediators include social engagement and environmental perception. We first used difference-in-difference (DID) models to estimate the metro's direct influence on these eudaimonic elements. Causal mediation analyses were then conducted to delved into how the social and environmental factors mediated these effects. ResultThe new metro enhanced the treatment group's environmental mastery, life purpose, and self-acceptance (p < 0.05). These improvements were partly attributed to promoted social engagement and improved environmental perceptions triggered by the metro development (p < 0.05). Notably, the environmental perceptions demonstrated a stronger mediating effect than the social factors. Discussion and conclusionTransport interventions could effectively counteract the age-related eudaimonic decline. The enhancement of environmental perceptions played a key role in the effectiveness of the metro intervention. Our findings contribute to the understanding of casual mechanisms of transport and wellbeing which is vital for developing transport policies and projects that address the needs of an ageing population.