Feelings Of Satisfaction Research Articles

COVID-19, LOCKDOWN AND FAMILY LIFE IN A NEW REALITY

The COVID-19 global pandemic, the risk of infection, lockdown, social and physical isolation, self-isolation, and unspecified period of quarantine have subjugated life on the Earth to the newest unprecedented rules. Permanent multi-day staying of families in a limited space and greater than usual proximity has become a great challenge, which has affected their mental health, psychological well-being and family relationships. The study aim was to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine on the functioning and psychological well-being of families in Ukraine. The data were collected from the 14th to the 22nd of May, 2020 with the help of Google Forms via the social media. The study involved 238 parents aged 24 to 57 years. At the survey time, the quarantine has the form of a lockdown and lasted for more than two months, so the experience of the corona-virus infection threat was accompanied by severe restrictions against leaving home, distance work, a significant reduced income, and spontaneously organized distance learning for children, so parents were forced to teach their children. The following questionnaires were used for the data collection: the questionnaire on people’s lives in quarantine “Thermometer-COVID” (Haletska, Klymanska & Klimanska, 2020); a set of questionnaires to assess family relationships, parental effectiveness and children’s emotions during the epidemic (Gambin at al., 2020); Patient Health Questionnaire (modules PHQ-9 and GAD-7) and the Parental Stress Scale (Berry & Jones, 1995). Descriptive, variance, correlation, cluster and discriminate analyzes were used for the data analysis. The results show that quarantine has become a powerful stimulant of family unity: more than one-third of the respondents claimed that quarantine helped family members to become closer to each other (36,13%), a small percentage (7,14%) reported about worsened relationships, and 17,23% did about problems with order and control of their family situation. Increased tensions in marital relations occurred only at 6-8% of families, while improvements were observed at 20%. There were two key trends in the relationship with children: parents’ relationships with children became more tender and closer, while this emotionality led to inconsistencies in relationships with children, loss of patience, use of harsher punishments, or, conversely, excessive compliance. About one-third of the respondents had problems with the organization of their personal time, balancing of work and family responsibilities. About 80% of parents made conscious efforts to explain the situation with the epidemic and quarantine to their children; they accepted the negative emotions of children related to the quarantine (70,17%) and taught them preventive actions (80,25%). The average indicators of depressive and anxiety symptoms for all group corresponded to minimal depressive symptoms and moderate anxiety. There were no correlations between financial well-being, the number of people living together, the number of children and anxiety or depression. With the increased numbers of people living together and children in a family, the level of closeness with the children, satisfaction with the time spent together, the feeling of satisfaction with parenthood decreased, while the children (according to the parents’ opinion) had deeper depression, apathy, and sadness, were quick in tears and concentrated poorly their attention. In the case of family member’s poor education and/or financial status, a higher tendency to «conspiracy theories» of the virus origin (“corona-virus was created as a biological weapon with the aim of economic and political rearrangement of the world”) was observed. Those respondents who knew infected people felt a higher risk of corona-virus infection, adhered to preventive behaviour, considered corona-virus as more dangerous and information about it in media as more reliable, and were less pro-conspiracy theorists. They believed that quarantine helped families become closer, talked with children about the epidemic situation more often, but had lower tolerance to stress. Three types of family response to the quarantine situation were identified: “Resilience” (41%) - bringing family members closer, improvement of the family’s situation, despite the quarantine situation; “Distress” (33%) - tension and aggravation of conflicts, lack of control, disorganization and complication of family life; “Stability” (26%) - the family relationship without changes. There were difficulties in communicating with children, dissatisfaction with parenthood; children were more anxious, felt psychological tension and irritability in the families that reported about more family conflicts, worsened relationships, inability to balance work and family responsibilities in the new realities. The research results correspond to the findings presented at the scientific literature: a life-threatening event motivates significant actions and changes people’s lives, but does not determine clearly the pattern of reactions. The research results suggest that an important factor in psychological and family well-being is people’s ability to organize their lives in new conditions and circumstances, so it is important to prevent the destructive effects of stresses, to provide advice and assistance to people and families on adequate and effective planning and adjustment of life and conditions of daily life.  

Role of Advertising and Sales-Promotions to Create Brand-Satisfaction in the FMCG; Evidence from Pakistan

The role of brand satisfaction as a predecessor of brand loyalty has been acknowledged by researchers, academicians, and practitioners for long. Various concepts, theories, and models have been presented in the literature to understand the antecedents and predictors of brand satisfaction. It has been propounded that advertising supports to incite brand satisfaction. At the same time, many studies go against this point of view indicating its detrimental role in this regard. Although the research on sales promotions and brand satisfaction in the context of quality, performance, and value perceptions is meagre, it tends to depict it, for the most time, damaging and therefore unsuitable. This empirical research is an attempt to explore the comparative effectiveness of sales promotions and advertising to induce brand satisfaction taking into account all important constructs. The research has been conducted on the FMCG sector involving two most frequently purchased products consuming minimal household budget i.e. bath soap and toothpaste. The study findings, although determine advertising relatively more efficacious to produce feelings of satisfaction towards a brand, the role of sales promotions cannot be downplayed as they are equally important in respect of brand quality and utilitarian value.

Online reputation, virtual experience and tourists’ revisit intentions. The case of Vilakazi street tourism corridor in Soweto

Background: Academic literature has documented the benefits of technology for the tourism business. However, the influence of the fourth industrial revolution environment on the destination reputation, pre-visit experience, visit intentions and how these affect tourists’ satisfaction and loyalty intentions have not received much attention, especially within the African context. Aim: The purpose of this study was to empirically test the effect of this environment on all these variables. Setting: This study is one of the few empirical types of research conducted in an urban tourism destination centre in a South African context. Methods: The study employed a positivist quantitative research methodology. Primary data ( N = 235) were collected from tourists who visited the Vilakazi Street precinct during October–November 2019, using the convenient probability sampling approach. For analysis, the study employed structural equation modelling. Results: There are positive relationships between the fourth industrial revolution environment and the online reputation and the pre-visit experience. These, in turn, have a positive effect on the intention to visit the precinct, which affects the tourists’ feelings of satisfaction after actually visiting the centre. Satisfaction has a positive impact on their loyalty intentions. Conclusion: The findings create a space for future research by providing another framework for investigating the usefulness of new technology in the tourism industry, which can also extend to other industries. For managers, the findings can help in the creation of online advertisement strategies, online reputation management and online pre-visit experience enhancement.

How Does Ambivalence Appear in Women's Relationship to Cosmetics?

Some studies have subtly demonstrated the existence of a tension of ambivalence in women's subjective feelings while wearing makeup. This paper consists in analyzing how feelings of ambivalence towards cosmetics appear in women, and how women feel when they remove or put on cosmetics. The study consists of an online survey and a walk-along experience. The survey included 261 women, among these 229 cosmetics users and 32 non-users. It used the double-blank method while asking the participants to express their feelings about various situations evoking their facial appearance, such as looking at their face when being in front of the mirror. A multiple case analysis of four selected survey respondents has also been done in order to compare 2 regular users and 2 non-users in regard to their way of dealing with tension. The walk-along experience included interviews and observations in the following conditions according to the groups: 1. Removing makeup (for regular users) / wearing makeup (for non-regular users) in front of a mirror; 2. Walking outside in public; 3. Wearing makeup again (for regular users) / removing makeup again (for non-regular users) in front of a mirror. Our findings showed that ambivalent tension (in most users and non-users) was mostly visible through a divergence going from positive feelings (such as feelings of satisfaction) to negative, contradictive feelings and that some similarities were present between users' and non-users' tensions despite the context differences. Ambivalence is shown not only toward the "masked" face (i.e. face with makeup on it), but also the natural face. Makeup is therefore not necessary to experience a tension of ambivalence towards one's own face. However, the tensions revealed themselves as being rather minimal, as the "mask" is minimal itself. An interesting possible direction in future research would be to explore the origin of this ambivalence about the natural (unmasked) face, especially with regard to the appearance of facial skin including the worry about facial flaws such as acne spots.

THE IMPACT OF INSTAGRAM MARKETING ADOPTION TOWARDS CONSUMER PURCHASE DECISION ON FASHION

Social networking sites have been emerged and transformed the world, bringing the world and its people closer. Social media which are part of social networking sites have become more effective in marketing tools; it helps in creating opportunities and awareness to consumers. Social media platform such as Instagram has recently become the most popular social networking sites among the young people. In addition, selling and market the products in the virtual store on Instagram represents a new shopping mode for most consumers, especially youngsters both men and women, and they represent an important role in influencing fashion consumer purchase decision through social networking sites. This study attempted to investigate impact of social networking sites towards consumer purchase decision on fashion industry. Therefore, questionnaires are spreaded out to 110 respondents who are social media users in Medan in order to gather the necessary information and data. The results of this research, it is concluded that social networking sites (the usability of Instagram) influences and give impact towards consumer purchase decision on fashion. Moreover, both of the variables have a strong relationship on each other and considered to be linear. The results also demonstrate that Instagram influences fashion consumer purchase decision through its usability such as good metrics, eye catching content, and recommendations from others. Furthermore, Instagram is also proved to have a positive impact towards consumer purchase decision by creating awareness, provide satisfaction feeling and creating virtual communities which may motivates consumer to do an online purchase.

Satisfação de discentes no Ensino Superior: uma análise a partir do curso de Agronomia do Instituto Federal Goiano

Este estudo tem como objetivo avaliar a satisfação percebida pelos alunos do curso de agronomia de dois campis do Instituto Federal Goiano em relação ao curso de Agronomia. A identifica­ção dos principais componentes da Satisfação Geral dos estudantes foi feita com base em estudos ante­riores. Os dados foram coletados por aplicação de questionários a 149 estudantes do curso de do curso de agronomia e analisados através das técnicas estatísticas Análise de Cluster Hierárquica e Regressão Linear Múltipla, para estabelecer de forma não paramétrica, uma vez que os construtos não apresentaram distribuição normal, quais dos construtos estudados representam a satisfação geral dos estudantes. Os resultados apon­taram que o Envolvimento do Professor e Interação entre o Professor e o Estudante, são os construtos determinantes para a satisfação geral do estudante, demonstrando nesse estudo que o papel do professor se mostra de grande importância na sensação de satisfação por parte do aluno do curso de agronomia.

COLLABORATIVE METACOGNITIVE ACTIVITIES, STUDENTS’ SOCIALLY MOTIVATED METACOGNITIVE EXPERIENCES, AND STOICHIOMETRIC PROBLEM-SOLVING

Purpose of the study: This study investigates the effect of collaborative metacognitive activities (CMA) on students’ socially motivated metacognitive experiences (SMME) during stoichiometric problem-solving. Methodology: This descriptive research employed mixed methods. To document and analyze students’ CMA, dual coding process, discourse analysis, and social network analyses were used. There were 18 participants selected purposively and grouped homogeneously based on their academic ability. Main Findings: The findings revealed that CMA affects students’ SMME quantitatively in stoichiometric problem-solving across ability groups and chemistry tasks. Successful collaboration occurs when feedback requests and other monitoring responses on the assessment of understanding and strategy influences students’ estimates of solution correctness and feeling of satisfaction across ability groups and affects the feeling of difficulty across chemistry tasks. Applications of this study: This study will help teachers design student activities that could capitalize on the advantages of collaborative metacognitive activities to help students achieve successful collaboration during problem-solving activities not only in chemistry but also in the allied fields. Novelty/Originality of this study: This study explains clearly the relevance of CMA and SMME during stoichiometric problem-solving. Moreover, this study elucidated the mechanism of successful and unsuccessful collaboration used by the different groups of students in solving the algorithmic and conceptual chemistry tasks.

Physiotherapists' lived experiences of decision making in therapeutic encounters with persons suffering from whiplash-associated disorder: A hermeneutic phenomenological study.

Conceptual discussions related to clinical reasoning and decision making have evolved over the years from biomedical to incorporating more holistic approach to reasoning. Empirical studies exploring clinical reasoning and decision making in physiotherapy practice have mostly focused on aspects of managing persons with low back pain, such as exercise prescription, education and communicating diagnosis. There is a paucity of studies exploring decision making in whiplash-associated disorder (WAD); thus, the aim of this study was to explore the physiotherapists' lived experiences of decision making related to treating persons with WAD. A qualitative research design based on hermeneutic phenomenological methodology was used in this study. Five participants (physiotherapists) were purposefully recruited, and data are collected via semistructured interviews, which were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used as a method for analysing the data. Emergent, superordinate and master themes emerged from the data to illuminate the lived experiences under exploration. Three master themes were identified: (1) sense of collaboration; (2) sense of being out of control; and (3) sense of emotional engagement (subthemes: feeling of satisfaction and feelings of distress and uncertainty). A sense of collaboration revealed varied meaning related to the role of persons receiving care, suggesting a lack of conceptual clarity related to shared-decision making. A perceived loss of a sense of being in control was related to experienced emotions, such as feelings of distress and uncertainty. The findings of this study highlight the importance of providing space for reflection and mentoring in the workplace.

A Lawyer's Guide to Lawless Action

A Lawyer's Guide to Lawless Action Sonali Chakravarti (bio) Jack Jackson. Law Without Future: Anti-Constitutional Politics and the American Right. Philadelphia: Penn Press, 2019. 200 pp. $45.00 (hb). ISBN: 9780812251333. Jack Jackson has written a powerful and memorable book about the precursors to and implications of the anti-constitutionalism championed by the Right; he acutely identifies legal phenomena many of us have been thinking about but have not been able to put into words. Drawing on the cases of Bush. v. Gore, the Torture Memos, and Terri Schiavo to understand legally justifiable decisions that are meant to offer no precedent, he writes, "Anti-constitutionalism rules without producing a new juridical norm or legal order but instead generates a show and shadow of legality that becomes the claimed basis of authority—law thus governs at the precise moment it withdraws. In this withdrawal, the temporal underpinnings of constitutional politics disappear: futurity evaporates (11)." With erudition and style, Jackson shows how Trump's legal interventions are a continuation of the long-standing strategy on the Right to ground politically expedient decisions in the law in unusual ways while circumventing much of what precedent and constitutional protections would require. Just as Mitch McConnell feared no reprisal from Democrats or his constituency when he refused to grant a hearing to Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, the proponents of the anti-constitutionalism Jackson describes have no fear of being accused of hypocrisy or irresponsibility. The weakening of the law, norms, and precedent are of ultimately no concern to them when so much is at stake in terms of political power in the present. Anti-constitutionalism emerges as the dialectical result of the forces of legal realism and political nihilism and it finds its apotheosis in a legally codified apocalyptic vision. In Chapter Two on the Torture Memos (a chapter that I am eager to share with my students for the concise way it combines history and theory), Jack-son chronicles the futile effort of the left's appeal to the law in reaction to the [End Page 837] regime of terror inflicted on detainees at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and other sites with an appeal to the law, including appeals to domestic law and international human rights law. The irony of the situation, Jackson notes, is how much legal attention was already being paid to the matter—there were, literally and metaphorically, planes full of lawyers spending time at the sites and constructing a legal foundation for the regime. Ignoring the reality of the legal care that went into the Torture Memos distorts our understanding in two ways: (1) we remain blind to the legally sanctioned conditions of prisoners in the US prior to and existing after the Global War on Terror, and (2) we fail to see how the legal action in the case furthers the idea of the "constitutional zero," Jackson's term for a decision that is written in a way that both thwarts precedent and is not meant to generate precedent. Of the torture memo of August 1, 2002, he writes, "the spaces opened up and the practices set into motion by the memo tear asunder the constitutive bonds holding together the practice of law, but they are no means 'outlaw': They rule as law through the institutional from which they emerge (the OLC), the professional credentials of the authors (the elite sector of the profession), the form through which they communicate (the genre of the legal memorandum), and the power that they confer (the immunity they bestow upon the interrogators)." (52) His analysis is compelling and the reader experiences a feeling of satisfaction in making sense of a seemingly chaotic and distressing sequence of recent events. At the same time, the apocalyptic horizon of a "law without future" comes sharply into focus. His analysis also prompts the perennial question about the nature of justice as a struggle between the routinized and the exceptional case. While he does not grapple with it directly, the underlying thesis of the book is that there is a value to certain types of predictability, order, and promise-keeping in the law, but how can this be weighed against the value of the contextual...

Modeling the Relationship Between Organizational Trust, Job Performance, Identity and Organizational Identification

Purpose – Organizational trust and job performance are important variables for hospitals, employees and patients. Numerous studies emphasize the critical role of organizational trust and employee performance in enhancing organizational performance. The primary aim of the study is to examine the effect of organizational identification and identity on organizational trust, and, as a secondary aim, to investigate the effects of organizational trust, organizational identification and identity on job performance Design/methodology/approach – This cross-sectional study was carried out in three public health institutions providing different types of services in a city in Turkey between 02.02.2017 and 02.03.2017. The participants were 649 health professionals. Data were collected using a personal information form, the organizational trust scale, the job performance scale, the Utrecht-Management of Identity Commitments Scale (U-MICS), and the organizational identification scale. The correlation coefficients between the variables were calculated. Determinants of organizational trust and job performance were examined using Structural Equality Models (SEM). Findings – A path analysis was performed for the model established with SEM. Organizational identification and identity variables were found to be significant predictors of organizational trust. Also, organizational identification and identity were also important variables affecting job performance. Discussion – The findings of the study reveal how important it is for the employee to identify with the organization and to establish a permanent identity in the increase of trust level. A gradual decrease in the feeling of satisfaction with existing commitment can adversely affect employee trust. Higher perception of organizational identification and identity can have a positive impact on job performance.

Hubungan Antara Literasi Digital Dengan Prestasi Belajar Siswa Sma Negeri 6 Kota Bogor

Abstract Digital literacy is the ability to understand and use information in various forms from a variety of very broad sources that are accessed through computer devices. Learning achievement is the result of learning activities, namely the extent to which students master the material of the lesson being taught, followed by the emergence of feelings of satisfaction that he has done something well. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between digital literacy and student achievement in SMA Negeri 6 Bogor. Digital literacy consists of information competencies, communication competencies, content creation competencies, and security competencies. While learning achievement is measured by ranking. This study uses a quantitative approach with a correlation method. The population in this study were students of SMA Negeri 6 Bogor in class X and XI in 2018/2019 with sample criteria using probability sampling techniques. Data collection techniques in this study used questionnaires, observations, and literature. The analysis technique used is descriptive data analysis techniques and inferential analysis. The results and conclusion of this study indicate that there is a significant relationship between information competency, communication competency, content creation competency, and security competence with student learning achievement.

The Perceived Impact of Macadamia Nut Consumption on Feelings of Satisfaction and Bowel Function

Abstract Objectives To assess subject perception of their level of various components of satisfaction, and changes in bowel habits, while consuming macadamia nuts during a free-living intervention study. Methods This was a randomized, crossover study in which free-living subjects (n = 35) were allocated to an 8 week macadamia nut (15% kcals) intervention and control (usual diet) phases. Eligibility criteria included a BMI of 25–39 kg/m,2, abdominal obesity, and presence of at least 1 other cardiometabolic risk factor. Subjects attended a biweekly clinic with the study dietitians to receive a supply of pre-weighed daily portions of nuts (mixture of raw and roasted), instructions and reinforcement on ways to incorporate the nuts into their habitual diet. A 14-item macadamia nut satisfaction questionnaire was administered at the end of the study, to assess various factors including perceptions of taste, ease of use, ease of preparation of the nut, and fullness. A 9-item bowel habits questionnaire was administered at the end of both the treatment and control phases, assessing factors including bowel frequency, perceptions of change in digestion, and stool consistency, using the Bristol Stool chart. Subject responses to the satisfaction questionnaire were calculated as proportions. Bowel movement frequency, and stool type were compared between the macadamia nut and control phases using the Wilcoxon signed rank sum test. Results Most subjects liked the taste (89%) of macadamia nuts, found the nuts easy to use (95%), and incorporate (95%) into their daily diet, and did not feel deprived (86%) while eating macadamia nuts. About half of the subjects felt strongly that macadamia nuts added flavor and variety to their diets, and 80% really liked including macadamia nuts into their habitual diet. In terms of bowel function, no significant difference in bowel movement frequency was noted between the macadamia and control phases. Stool consistency (Bristol stool assessment) was significantly different between the macadamia and control phases (P = 0.049). Conclusions Most subjects indicated favorable perceptions towards, and satisfaction with macadamia nuts. Self-reported stool consistency was different between the macadamia and control phases. Funding Sources Hort Innovation, Sydney, Australia.

Hypothesis of the law of material satisfaction and its perception by human

The research topic is aimed at solving the problem of achieving the stable development of society, so it is relevant. The problem is that, according to the existing axiom of the economy, the material needs of a man are limitless. Thus, this axiom justifies and stimulates the pursuit of enrichment, which is achieved even by breaking laws. An insatiable effort to be financially successful has led to inequalities between people and countries. In spite of all the efforts, inequality is increasing rapidly. The question is, what pleasure does a person enjoy in achieving material goals? The study of human satisfaction with material benefits has been widely reported in the literature, however, a mathematical model of human satisfaction with material goods and a unit of satisfaction has not been developed. The absence of a mathematical model makes it impossible to find out the regularities of this phenomenon - human satisfaction in the process of obtaining material goods. The paper hypothesizes that the law of human satisfaction with material goods is expressed by a logarithmic function, which is shifted along the abscissa axis so that at zero abscissa the function equals zero. A unit of satisfaction, called comfort, has been introduced. The feeling of satisfaction is expressed as the first derivative of the logarithmic function. It is known that this function approaches zero as the argument grows. The introduction of the human satisfaction law from material goods in the form of a mathematical model gives grounds to make fundamental conclusions. Since the increase in satisfaction with the increase in material goods is slowing down, and the feeling of satisfaction in general approaches zero, it is not necessary to follow the basic axiom of the economy of a capitalist society and spend exertion to satisfy material needs, especially since the feelings of it will become zero. Scientific research proves that a person is able to absorb new ideas, able to learn and apply the acquired knowledge in everyday life. This gives confidence that due to the qualitative motivational implementation of the proposed law, people will realize it as a personal life strategy, and the development of society will become more stable.

PRS63 COMPARISON OF CLINICAL OUTCOMES ASSOCIATED WITH DIFFERENT INHALER DEVICES IN ASTHMA AND COPD

Comparison of clinical outcomes associated with different inhaler devices in Asthma and COPD patients. Asthma, COPD, MDI, DPI, Clinical Outcome. A prospective, observational study was conducted in a tertiary care teaching hospital among asthma patients and COPD patients for a period of six months. Data were collected using data collection form and Electronic Data Capture. Patients’ symptom control, Health Related Quality of Life, Feeling of Satisfaction with Inhaler were assessed with standard validated questionnaires. A checklist was provided to measure the correct inhaler technique. The patients were followed up in the end of 30 days, 60 days and 90 days and the scores were compared. A total of 213 patients out of 230 enrolled patients completed the study. It was observed that majority of Asthma and COPD patients were MDI users (68.42% & 81.02% respectively) than DPI users (31.58% & 18.98% respectively).The patients with Asthma used MDIs and DPIs equally with a less percentage difference. The patients with COPD used more DPIs than MDIs in the study. This study, draws a conclusion that Metered Dose Inhalers (MDI) and Dry Powder Inhalers (DPI) equally controlled the symptoms of patients with Asthma and COPD. Device satisfaction have proved to be a major assessing scale for drawing conclusions regarding device use in different diseases such as Asthma and COPD. The use of correct inhaler techniques directly aids to better symptom control, Qol and device satisfaction, which is due to the provided checklist analysis, ambulatory patient counselling and Pharmacists’ intervention in the hospital setting. The study could interpret that with better device satisfaction, patient can coordinate with the device technique which helps in better control of symptoms and ultimately both outcome control and Health Related QoL are equally improved.

The Relationship between Brand Authenticity, Brand Equity and Customer Satisfaction

This study examines the relationship between brand authenticity, brand equity, and customer satisfaction. A total of 263 participants participated in this study. Participants rated a set of three brands: Apple, Starbuck, and Nike. Each participant rated the extent to which the items described his or her authenticity with the brands listed, the equity of the brands listed, and feelings of satisfaction toward the brands. This study employs confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. The results indicate that 1) brand authenticity positively relates to brand equity, and 2) brand authenticity effects to customer satisfaction. The findings suggest that marketers can use the brand authenticity for assessment, planning, and tracking purposes to understand the authenticity of their brands for their customers. Products of authenticity brand are better liked, viewed as higher quality, offer greater value and are more likely to be purchased than less authenticity brand. They can command a significant price premium. The findings provide useful support and evidence for brand management, as well as companies in other developing countries, to engage more in brand practices as a core element of their strategic and brand management. This means that managers should work to increase perceptions of authenticity for their offerings.

Some days are more satisfying than others: A daily-diary study on optimism, pessimism, coping, and academic satisfaction.

Feelings of satisfaction fluctuate across time and situations, and focusing on within-person experiences opens up the door to a better understanding of the daily lives of university students. Our overarching goal was to situate academic satisfaction not only as a relatively enduring characteristic but also as a transient state that fluctuates across days in the lives of student. In the present study, we explored how optimism and pessimism related to inter-individual differences in academic satisfaction. We also investigated the association between coping and academic satisfaction at both the between- and within-person levels. A sample of 235 undergraduate students (Mage =19.14) participated in this study. Students completed baseline measures of optimism and pessimism. They were then asked to complete daily-diary measures of academic coping strategies and academic satisfaction during six consecutive days. At the between-person level, results from multilevel mediation analyses demonstrated that optimism was associated with greater academic satisfaction and that task-oriented coping was a significant mediator of this association. At the within-person level, our analyses revealed that the daily satisfaction of students varies according to the coping strategies used on those specific days. Almost half of the variance in academic satisfaction can be attributable to daily fluctuations. This source of within-person variance is non-negligible and supports the need to also conceive academic satisfaction as a question of when. These findings illustrate the importance of considering the role of personality and daily coping to better conceptualize and understand academic satisfaction of university students.

Aristotel’s Teaching on Virtues and its Social Prospects

The article is devoted to the issue of an understanding of a person's way of life through the prism of perception of Aristotle's ethical teachings as an important element of human culture, expressed in the virtuous attitude of people to the world. The presented article reveals the key aspects of virtue in the "Aristotelian" sense and the understanding of the correctness of human actions by the ancient philosopher. As the main value and moral guideline, the scale of virtuous knowledge developed by Aristotle is considered, where virtue itself is the "golden mean", and extremes (vices) are found on different sides of the latter. This work reflects the views of the ancient philosopher on human virtue. He considers the right actions of a person from the point of view of conscious moderation and reasonable prudence in their commission while rejecting the desire to help a person at any cost, as the basis of the measure virtue. Aristotle sees the achievement of "happiness" as the main goal of human behavior. But a feeling of satisfaction from the blissful state should not be expressed as a result of neglect of the moral principles of society but rather through personal growth, achieved through self-improvement, self-restraint, and detachment from attachment to the benefits of the outside world. According to Aristotle, sensory pleasures are achieved not by striving to achieve a comfortable existence in any way but by sensible and moderate motives of a person to feel genuine pleasure through the right actions. It is noted that the Aristotelian doctrine of virtue requires its theoretical understanding and analysis within the framework of the ethics of virtue, which claims to be the practical application of its results in modern society.

Improving non-academic student outcomes using online and text-message coaching

We design and experimentally evaluate two low-cost, scalable interventions – an online preparatory module to help students reflect on and overcome barriers and a text-message coaching program – in a sample of over 3000 undergraduate students at a large Canadian university. Supplementing administrative data on academic outcomes with a unique follow-up survey on student well-being, we estimate positive program effects on non-academic outcomes such as feelings of satisfaction and belonging, despite estimating null effects on course grades and credit accumulation. Given the low costs associated with administering these programs, our results suggest that the positive impacts on student well-being may warrant program expansion even in the absence of impacts on academic outcomes.

Examining Students' Satisfaction and Learning Autonomy through Web-Based Courses

Web-based learning settings are more convenient than face-to-face learning settings, whereas they present additional opportunities for education that occurs in various environments. However, many educational institutions specially in the third world countries are not prepared for the challenges involved in offering quality Web-based courses. This research aimed to identify Web based courses effects on students' satisfaction and learning autonomy based on Moore’s transactional distance theory (TDT) through web-based courses. Therefore, this study seeks to develop a model to measure students’ background, students’ experience, students’ learning autonomy, students’ dialogue with their instructor, and students’ satisfaction. A quantitative approach was implemented in this study. Whereas a questionnaire was the major data collection tool, thus it was distributed amongst 377 learners. Furthermore, the obtained data was examined using AMOS-SEM. More specifically, SEM was applied for the independent variables which were dependent in a subsequent dependent correlation. The results showed that students’ background, students’ experience, students’ learning autonomy, and students’ dialogue there were positive and significant relationship with students’ satisfaction. Additionally, the students had a feeling of satisfaction. Therefore, the results proposed a guideline for instructors of institutions of higher learning in Palestine to design and create web-based courses that would increase students’ autonomy and satisfaction in the Web-based learning settings.

Socio-environmental influences on Nordic walking participation and their implications for well-being

This article presents a mixed method approach to merge the results from quantitative and qualitative studies into Nordic walking. By doing so, this study provides the multiple perspectives of the social and environmental influences on participation in Nordic walking together with exploration of the relationships between Nordic walking and well-being. Two hundred twenty British Nordic walking practitioners completed the online questionnaire about socio-environmental influences on their walking and measured their mental wellbeing using the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS). Ten women and two men with various levels of Nordic walking experience were interviewed during walking events in the United Kingdom. By employing a thematic analysis, socio-environmental influences and their implications for well-being were explored.This study adds a further dimension to the theoretical knowledge of the role of the social and environmental factors that influence the engagement in Nordic walking and contribute to well–being.The findings suggest that Nordic walking can benefit well-being through promoting positive feelings related to the companionship in a group, offering social support of instructors in reaching individual health and fitness goals, providing the options for exploring personal capacities and developing skills, which contribute to a sense of achievement and self-worth, and leading to feelings of satisfaction with the activity. Management implicationsThe management implication of this study is in acknowledging that the growing popularity of Nordic walking as a leisure activity provides the opportunity for reinventing leisure walking as an innovative means to maintain and improve physical health of the sedentary and older populations.Public health strategies for adopting Nordic walking as a health intervention should also acknowledge its well-being benefits, positive social interactions and skills development that rise from the participation.Urban planning policies should focus on developing aesthetic walkable neighbourhoods characterised by well-maintained paths and lighting that promote physical activity.The successful implementation of strategies to promote Nordic walking clearly has the potential to make a substantial contribution towards increasing the activity levels of the sedentary and older populations.