Interdisciplinary Research Framework Research Articles

On Some Aspects of European Security and Defence in the Context Of War in Ukraine

The European security environment is currently significantly affected by Russian aggression against Ukraine. However, right from the start of the war, the European Union and its member states acted decisively, they unequivocally condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and began to help it politically, economically, humanitarianly and by supplying military equipment, weapons, ammunition, and training members of the Ukrainian armed forces. And although no European member state of the European Union or the North Atlantic Alliance has been attacked, the ongoing conflict negatively affects European stability and disrupts the European security and defence system. That is also why the authors, using relevant scientific methods and approaches within the framework of interdisciplinary research, deal in the article with some selected aspects of European security and defence in the context of the conflict in Ukraine. They point out how Russian aggression has influenced discussions about the roles of the European Union in ensuring security and defence on the European continent, shed light on the Union's security and defence policy, deal with issues of European strategic autonomy and related relations between the EU and NATO, and at the end of the article indicate challenges, which are closely related to European security and defence in the context of the war in Ukraine.

Irrational behavioral models of personal finance and their evolution in the digital economy

Aim. To review the evolution of scientific concepts investigating the motives for decision[1]making based on irrational consumer behavior and to identify real changes in behavioral models of personal finance. Objectives. To examine the evolution of scientific concepts of the world’s leading scientists on decision-making motives in the consumer market; to consider the effects of irrational consumer behavior; to identify key changes in consumer buying decision behavior caused by digitalization. Methods. The article is based on the analysis of scientific works of leading classical economists, interdisciplinary scientific research of modern foreign and domestic scientists devoted to the issues of decision-making in the field of consumption. The institutional approach was applied, which allowed us to study the evolution of irrational behavior in the field of personal finance depending on the dominant social values. Results. In the process of analyzing theoretical provisions of famous scientists up to the middle of the twentieth century, the justification of consumers’ decision-making in the consumer market based on their desire to maximize pleasure, utility of welfare is presented. Such behavior can be attributed to irrational behavior. Gradually, taking into account the market regulators of consumption opportunities, scientists come to the conclusion about the rational behavior of individuals. However, by the end of the twentieth century, the position of scientists changes towards limited rationality due to the inability of individuals to adequately assess the array of information affecting decision-making in the consumer market. On the basis of conclusions drawn by modern scientists in the framework of interdisciplinary research, such a new direction of economic science as “behavioral economics” emerges, which combined the knowledge of both economics and psychology. Modern research has shown some effects in behavioral finance related to the irrationality of consumer behavior when making a purchase decision: the Veblen effect, the Diderot effect and others. The latest research on the impact of digitalization on consumer behavior reflects the changes taking place in consumer behavior towards rationalization. Conclusions. The concepts and models describing the peculiarities of irrational behavior of individuals related to decision-making and based on irrational spending of personal financial resources from the point of view of classical economic science are considered. The evolution of scientific concepts of irrational behavior of the world’s leading economists during two centuries is presented. The effects of irrational consumer behavior proposed by scientists in the framework of interdisciplinary research are studied. Among them are the Veblen effect, the Diderot effect. The influence of digitalization on personal finance decision-making is shown.

Developing a sense of belonging among ethnic minority youth in Hong Kong: challenges and opportunities

PurposeDeveloping a sense of belonging among immigrant youth in multicultural contexts has attracted significant attention from scholars during the last few decades. Studies have already underscored how various educational factors hinder or facilitate students’ sense of belonging to the school or the larger society. Although most students in Hong Kong schools are ethnic Chinese, a significant number of non-Chinese children make students diversity an essential aspect of schooling. The study investigated how schools can develop a sense of belonging among ethnic minority youth in Hong Kong.Design/methodology/approachAs the education system in Hong Kong lacks a multicultural education policy, how can schools help develop a sense of belonging to the school and the larger society among young ethnic minority people? To answer this question, this paper consolidates the two sets of data originally gathered for two research projects. The data was collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews with nine secondary school teachers (Chinese and non-Chinese) and 15 students (non-Chinese) and analysed thematically.FindingsThe thematic analysis of the qualitative data identified several challenges and opportunities for developing ethnic minority students’ sense of belonging in Hong Kong.Research limitations/implicationsResearchers in comparative education can further explore how multicultural education and inclusive education approach together can help ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all and cater to students' diverse learning needs across the education systems.Practical implicationsGiven that the aims of multicultural education and inclusive education resonate with each other, schools can focus on the Whole School Approach to developing a sense of belonging among ethnic minority youth in Hong Kong. However, policymakers and practitioners may need to adopt a multifaceted perspective on inclusive education that strives to ensure equitable quality education for all.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the existing body of scholarship on multicultural education and inclusive education. The study findings underscore the importance of an interdisciplinary research framework in education and advocate an integrative approach to supporting students with diverse learning needs in multicultural contexts.

Качество жизни и его субъективная оценка: обзор литературы

The article presents a brief overview of scientific publications investigating the issue of subjective perception of the quality of life. etc. It is noted that the quality of life as an object of research has been considered since the second half of the XX century in the framework of interdisciplinary research reflecting a variety of approaches to understanding the essence and content of the quality of life and representing the quality of life as a concept, the perception of which varies depending on from the basic basis of the study. Thus, within the framework of medicine, the quality of life is considered in the context of human health, within the framework of sociology — in the context of social well-being and social interaction, etc. Subjective quality of life is an indicator of a person's self-esteem of the degree of satisfaction with physical, social, economic and other factors of life. The conducted review indicates that the study of the quality of life and the individualization of assessments of its elements is differentiated depending on the socio-demographic characteristics of the individual. It is concluded that the quality of life is a complex and multifaceted concept that is used to study various aspects of people's lives, including physical and psychological well–being, financial independence, social relationships, personal beliefs and life situation.

An Introduction to the Investigation of Conspiracy Theories

Conspiracy theories have become a ubiquitous element of the political and popular culture of contemporary human society in recent years. Theories explaining "how it really is (was), who is (was) behind it, in whose interest it is happening (happened)" and so on have become popular all over the world. Given their global spread and the persistence of many of them in society, it is not surprising that conspiracy theories have become the object of scholarly interest not only for historians, sociologists, psychologists, or anthropologists, but also representatives from other disciplines, e.g., political science, philosophy, cultural studies, security sciences, or mass media studies, and the subject of several scholarly papers in recent years. Therefore, the the primary goal of the author of the study– is to contribute to the academic discussion and to deepen theoretical knowledge about conspiracy theories by using relevant scientific methods within the framework of qualitative theoretical interdisciplinary scientific research and the findings published in the works of renowned foreign and domestic authors.

Reaching Further with Earth Science Data

Earth Sciences cover a broad spectrum of research fields such as petrology, sedimentology, structural geology, seismology, and geomorphology, to name a few, which aim to understand interrelated processes on the surface and in the interior of our planet. Many of the research questions studied in the Earth sciences, such as, understanding past climates, the human impact on the Critical Zone*1, or the co-evolution of the geo- and biosphere, require interdisciplinary approaches, employing methodologies and integrating observations from diverse subdisciplines such as geochemistry, mineralogy, geophysics, and paleontology, but also increasingly from other disciplines, specifically biology and genomics. The use of data and samples in multi- and interdisciplinary research is substantially facilitated by consistent metadata including schemas and vocabularies, data formats, and data exchange protocols. The association of Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG) with the Earth Science part of the Natural Sciences has, until recently, been largely limited to palaeontology, primarily due to its close affinity with biology. Standards have been developed that support the taxonomy of fossils and include terms for "deep time" intervals (chrono- and bio-stratigraphy) and "paleo-surface environment" (sedimentology). Other important and highly relevant fields such as mineralogy, geochemistry, meteoritics, and soil sciences have not been included or coordinated with so far. Although some progress is being made with the ongoing development of the Mineral Extension for Darwin Core and the inclusion of some geological terms in Latimer Core (Woodburn et al. 2022), more effort should be made to link and align with existing and emerging data standards in these Earth Science communities. These Earth Science communities are very active, building their own domain-specific FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data standards and infrastructures with data systems such as EarthChem, the Astromaterials Data System, Mindat, and WoSIS. We will introduce the users, data systems, and community standards and best practices, including metadata, vocabularies, and persistent identifiers for data and samples being used and developed in the subdisciplines of the Earth Sciences mentioned above. We advocate for collaboration and coordination with these fields to make TDWG more inclusive, expand accessible resources, and provide an opportunity for TDWG to link to these other communities. Broader networking within an interdisciplinary research framework has the potential to address more fundamental and over-arching issues of both scientific and public relevance.

Examining the emergence of digital society and the digital divide in India: A comparative evaluation between urban and rural areas.

Contemporary digital society has become a critical agent for transformation in various spheres of life and a new methodological framework for interdisciplinary research. It has emerged as a parallel entity alongside conventional society, where an individual's membership is not only limited to the physical world but also extends to the digital realm. In fact, a person's membership in the physical world is incomplete without their connection to the digital society. Digital technology is instrumental in driving social transformations in areas such as the economy, politics, culture, and religion. The striking feature of digital society is digital data production in the form of big data. Unlike in a conventional society, people's every move and behavior in a digital society are calculated and recorded as data. In this global context of a digital society, India has created opportunities for digitalization for its people since 2000, with significant strides made between 2015 and 2016. Reliance Jio, a telecom company, helped to accelerate this process by offering free unlimited Internet packages on a mass scale. This led to a tremendous surge in service industries and the emergence of new sectors, as well as a digital revolution in the conventional systems of the economy, politics, culture, education, religion, and law. However, this transformation has also exposed a significant challenge-the digital divide or digital inequalities, which cannot be overlooked or undermined in sociological research. It would be wrong to reduce digital inequality to a mere technological divide; it is a complex issue shaped by prevailing socioeconomic conditions, digital inequalities, and capability inequality. The study revealed that India's prevailing socioeconomic divide is the source of its wide digital divide. This digital divide exists across both rural and urban areas, affecting access to digital education and economic opportunities. The digital divide is also found between under-resourced urban areas and affluent residential areas. This study's theoretical framework draws on the studies of Castell on the information society and Dijk's concept of the network society.

Application of an interdisciplinary research framework for discerning land use transitions in the peri-urban areas of India

This paper proposes and applies a novel interdisciplinary framework to study peri-urban land use dynamics in India, which is theoretically embedded in the concepts of land use transition, land change science and neoliberlisation of nature. The framework is operationalised by a mixed methods approach cutting across scale and time to provide a comprehensive understanding of land use transitions. The paper proves the applicability of land use transition theory in India by establishing that the core state Delhi is in the “urbanised/industrialised” stage of land use transition, whereas the peripheral states are in a transition from “frontier” to “agricultural” stage of land use transition. The paper also provides evidence for different political economy-derived logics of nature's neoliberalisation. Field visits as well as expert and household interviews uncover a nexus between the state, civil society and economy in exploitation and degradation of natural resources for their vested interests. The use of local and global open access data in the framework makes it transferable to similar regions of the Global South facing data constrains.

On Unmanned Aircraft as a Security Threat

This paper represents a continuation of the ongoing research of authors who, in the framework of interdisciplinary scientific research, deals with several aspects of ensuring the safety of the Slovak Republic and the European Union in connection with aviation, aircraft, air traffic and airspace protection. In their current research, following these and constant developments in the field of innovation and introduction of new technologies in the field of aviation, the authors deal with unmanned aircraft, which are gradually used not only in the military, but are increasingly penetrating the commercial sphere of civil aviation. Due to the fact, that the unmanned aircraft market is the fastest growing market of all categories of aviation, the authors in the article provide a theoretical and terminological view of the researched issues, including a brief historical view of the development of unmanned aircraft.

Integrating Historical Ecology and Environmental Justice

Environmental justice studies (EJS) provides a framework for interdisciplinary research and advocacy in the realm of cultural heritage research and management. Ethnobiologists, in particular those who focus on environmental archaeology, are no strangers to the heritage arena as our scholarship commonly concerns “cultural keystone places,” which are rich with meaning for one or more groups of people. Three dimensions and three core concepts of EJS can serve as guideposts to research centering on these significant places. These EJS concepts align and intersect with core principles of historical ecology (HE), particularly through the study of landscapes as complex systems. This paper highlights how environmental justice and HE can be conceptually integrated. This EJS-HE framework is relevant to research design in environmental archaeology and more broadly ethnobiology, a framing to be adopted at the beginning of the research process that explicitly considers whether a research question is ethical to approach within a particular heritage context.

A Novel Merging Method for Generating High-Quality Spatial Precipitation Information over Mainland China

Accurate estimation of precipitation is critically important for a variety of fields, such as climatology, meteorology, and water resources. However, the availability of precipitation measurements has proved to be spatially inadequate for many applications. In this study, to acquire high-quality precipitation fields with enhanced accuracy and a fine-scale spatial resolution of 1 km × 1 km, we developed a new data fusion method by establishing an energy function model using the downscaled Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Integrated Multi-satellite Retrievals (IMERG) precipitation product and high-density station observation in mainland China. Our merging approach was inspired by the interdisciplinary research framework integrating the methods in the fields of image processing, earth science, and machine learning. Cross-validation analyses were performed for the monthly precipitation over the period 2009–2018. It was found that the results of the newly developed method were more accurate than the original IMERG products in terms of root mean squared error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), correlation coefficient (CC), and Kling–Gupta efficiency (KGE). The merging precipitation results exhibit consistent spatial patterns with the original IMERG products, yet have good agreement with station observations. The gauge observations were the major source of the prediction skill of precipitation for the proposed method, and the downscaled-IMERG precipitation products added additional spatial details in the final merging results. Results indicate that the proposed merging method can reproduce the spatial details of the precipitation fields as well as enhance their accuracy. In addition, the time evolution of the error index indicates that the improvement in the merged result was stable over time, with KGE improving by 14% on average. The developed approach provides a promising way of estimating precipitation with high spatial resolution and high accuracy, which will benefit hydrological and climatological studies.

Posilnenie európskej bezpečnosti a obrany: skutočne náročná úloha pre Európsku úniu

In recent years, following significant changes in the security environment, a number of initiatives have been chained, both strategic and operational, aimed at extending European Security and Defense Policy to a level where the European Union can ensure effective and efficient security and defense for its citizens, and to their immediate surroundings. At the same time, cooperation between the European Union and the North Atlantic Alliance has deepened in this context. Following the above, the author, using to the goal and the topic appropriate scientific methods in the framework of interdisciplinary scientific research, deals with the issue of European Common Security and Defence Policy, pointing out the significant progress that has been made in recent years in strengthening European security and defence. As a result, after years of words and promises from political representations much more than deeds, there is finally a time when there is a common consensus and the building of a higher level of European resilience, either in close cooperation with NATO or alone at EU level. In conclusion, the author emphasizes that in the context of the conflict in Ukraine, there is essentially no other way for the Union.

Theoretical and Terminological View of Unmanned Aircraft

This paper represents a continuation of the ongoing research of authors who, in the framework of interdisciplinary scientific research, deals with several aspects of ensuring the safety of the Slovak Republic and the European Union in connection with aviation, aircraft, air traffic and airspace protection. In their current research, following these and constant developments in the field of innovation and introduction of new technologies in the field of aviation, the authors deal with unmanned aircraft, which are gradually used not only in the military, but are increasingly penetrating the commercial sphere of civil aviation. Due to the fact that the unmanned aircraft market is the fastest growing market of all categories of aviation, the authors in the article provide a theoretical and terminological view of the researched issues, including a brief historical view of the development of unmanned aircraft.

How the Brain Dynamically Constructs Sentence-Level Meanings From Word-Level Features.

How are words connected to the thoughts they help to express? Recent brain imaging studies suggest that word representations are embodied in different neural systems through which the words are experienced. Building on this idea, embodied approaches such as the Concept Attribute Representations (CAR) theory represents concepts as a set of semantic features (attributes) mapped to different brain systems. An intriguing challenge to this theory is that people weigh concept attributes differently based on context, i.e., they construct meaning dynamically according to the combination of concepts that occur in the sentence. This research addresses this challenge through the Context-dEpendent meaning REpresentations in the BRAin (CEREBRA) neural network model. Based on changes in the brain images, CEREBRA quantifies the effect of sentence context on word meanings. Computational experiments demonstrated that words in different contexts have different representations, the changes observed in the concept attributes reveal unique conceptual combinations, and that the new representations are more similar to the other words in the sentence than to the original representations. Behavioral analysis further confirmed that the changes produced by CEREBRA are actionable knowledge that can be used to predict human responses. These experiments constitute a comprehensive evaluation of CEREBRA's context-based representations, showing that CARs can be dynamic and change based on context. Thus, CEREBRA is a useful tool for understanding how word meanings are represented in the brain, providing a framework for future interdisciplinary research on the mental lexicon.

Rules all the way down: Consumer behaviour from the standpoint of the ‘ONE behavioural’ research programme

AbstractThis article sets out a unified behavioural research programme that integrates compatible elements of old, new and evolutionary behavioural approaches to economics as an alternative to the dominant unified approach to economics based on rational choice theory and a Walrasian view of market coordination. However, the proposed programme can also be viewed as a general framework for interdisciplinary research on consumer behaviour. It employs the view of scientific research programmes proposed by Lakatos, setting out groups of ‘hard‐core’ propositions and their associated ‘do’ and ‘do not’ rules for the conduct of researchers. The unifying theme is that evolution in the economy (and in human systems more generally) entails the creation, adoption and abandonment of rules for dealing effectively with open‐ended choice problems that are bedevilled by infinite regress problems and cognitive challenges that people seek to address via personal repertoires of hierarchically related rules. To anticipate behaviour, researchers need to develop knowledge of these rules (including heuristics and routines), their functionality and the processes by which they get changed or prove difficult to change even where they cause problems.

Virtual Reconstruction of Visually Conveyed Images under Multimedia Intelligent Sensor Network Node Layout

In this paper, multimedia intelligent sensing technology is applied to the virtual reconstruction of images to construct or restore images to the communication media for visual communication. This paper proposes image virtual reconstruction theory based on visual communication research, treats image virtual reconstruction content as open data links and customized domain ontology, establishes an interdisciplinary interactive research framework through the technical means of visual communication, solves the problem of data heterogeneity brought by image virtual reconstruction, and finally establishes a three-dimensional visualization research method and principle of visual communication. The research firstly visual communication cuts into the existing conservation principles and proposes the necessity of image virtual reconstruction from the perspective of visual communication; secondly, the thinking mode of digital technology is different from human thinking mode, and the process of calculation ignores the emotional and spiritual values, but the realization of value rationality must be premised on instrumental rationality. This requires a content judgment and self-examination of the technical dimensional model of image virtual reconstruction on top of comprehensive literature and empirical evidence. In response to the research difficulties such as the constructivity of visual communication, the solution of image virtual reconstruction of visual communication is proposed based on the data collection method and literature characteristics. The process of introducing the tools of computer science into humanity research needs to be placed in a continuous critical theory system due to the uncontrollable and subjective nature of visual content, and finally, based on the construction of information models for image virtual reconstruction, the ontology and semantics of information modeling are thoroughly investigated, and the problems related to them, such as interpretation, wholeness, and interactivity, are analyzed and solved one by one. The transparency of image virtual reconstruction is enhanced through the introduction of interactive metadata, and this theoretical system of virtual restoration is put into practice in the Dunhuang digital display design project.

Making the Most of Soils in Archaeology. A Review

Sediments serve as an archive of human and animal activity and environmental conditions through their physical and chemical properties as well as captured biological traces. Archaeologists have been extracting information from archaeological soils and sediments for decades, but recent technological developments, such as the analysis of lipid biomarkers, proteins, and ancient DNA from soil and the diversification of approaches necessitate a re-examination of standard field practice and a renewed emphasis on soil and sediments as archaeological materials. This review paper brings together a range of specialists to introduce cutting-edge approaches to analysing soils and sediments. From the large to the small scale, pioneering methods can complement established soil analytical methods to address issues of soil formation and erosion processes, heritage preservation, mobility, domestication, land use, human-environmental interactions, cultural and biological complexity, and ecosystem legacies. Soil analyses are poised to enable archaeologists to ask new questions and generate innovative hypotheses in an interdisciplinary research framework.

O Európskej bezpečnostnej a obrannej integrácii v kontexte prístupu malých členských štátov Európskej únie k nej

The European Union is a community of currently twenty-seven member states. Most of them are classified as smaller or small states in terms of geographical area and economic strength as well as military power. Therefore, one of the most researched topics within the European Union's foreign, security and defence policy concerns its small member states and their approaches to security and defence integration. Their interests in this area may differ significantly from those of the larger member states of the Union, as well as their strategies. Considering the already achieved progress in European integration in the field of security and defence, the author therefore deals in the study with the challenges and opportunities that the small member states of the European Union had to deal with. In the above context, within the framework of interdisciplinary theoretical scientific research, it assesses the previous research of small member states within the European security and defence policy, examines developments in the field of security and defence integration, and at the same time analyses the main discussions taking place in the professional literature about small member states of the European Union and their approach to security and defence integration.

A Revised Framework for the Investigation of Expectation Update Versus Maintenance in the Context of Expectation Violations: The ViolEx 2.0 Model.

Expectations are probabilistic beliefs about the future that shape and influence our perception, affect, cognition, and behavior in many contexts. This makes expectations a highly relevant concept across basic and applied psychological disciplines. When expectations are confirmed or violated, individuals can respond by either updating or maintaining their prior expectations in light of the new evidence. Moreover, proactive and reactive behavior can change the probability with which individuals encounter expectation confirmations or violations. The investigation of predictors and mechanisms underlying expectation update and maintenance has been approached from many research perspectives. However, in many instances there has been little exchange between different research fields. To further advance research on expectations and expectation violations, collaborative efforts across different disciplines in psychology, cognitive (neuro)science, and other life sciences are warranted. For fostering and facilitating such efforts, we introduce the ViolEx 2.0 model, a revised framework for interdisciplinary research on cognitive and behavioral mechanisms of expectation update and maintenance in the context of expectation violations. To support different goals and stages in interdisciplinary exchange, the ViolEx 2.0 model features three model levels with varying degrees of specificity in order to address questions about the research synopsis, central concepts, or functional processes and relationships, respectively. The framework can be applied to different research fields and has high potential for guiding collaborative research efforts in expectation research.

New clean energy communities in polycentric settings: Four avenues for future research

Given the gaps between EU ambitions regarding energy community development and the current reality of clean energy communities in Europe, we explore a research framework enabling viable multi- and interdisciplinary research into new clean energy communities. We offer a definition of new clean energy communities, discuss their potential for wider dissemination and identify four factors that contribute to the current mismatch between ambitions and reality in energy community development. As a broader framework for interdisciplinary research into the field of new clean energy communities, we propose polycentric governance theory, considering the fact that the area of community energy systems is essentially multi-scalar, and that the rules of engagement in such systems are of great significance. This opens up four avenues for research on energy communities, which we outline in terms of enabling institutional contexts, potential for learning and transferability, business models and value propositions, and evaluation of outcomes and processes.