General Level Research Articles

Navigating HIV-Related Stigma in Switzerland: A Qualitative Study.

Objectives: This study sought to understand how people living with HIV experience, perceive, and navigate stigma in their everyday life and in care settings in an urban French-speaking area in Switzerland. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 19 people living with HIV in Lausanne concerning their experience of HIV-related stigma in both everyday life and in healthcare settings. Content analysis was performed to identify main and sub-themes. Results: "Living with HIV" posed little or no difficulty for participants. However, the burden of anticipated and internalized HIV-related stigma played a disproportionately large role in their lives. Participants considered the general population's low level of knowledge about HIV as problematic in this regard. While participants reported few examples of enacted stigma generally, healthcare environments were sometimes experienced as sites of prejudice and discrimination. However, some healthcare professionals were also sources of information and knowledge, contributing to participants' "journeys of self-acceptance." Conclusion: Even in an urban environment in a country with ready access to healthcare and education, HIV-related stigma remains a concern for people living with HIV.

Enterprise Credit Risk Decision: Application Based on Improved AHP

The credit risk of Shouguang vegetable enterprises in China is the biggest obstacle to corporate loans. Building a credit risk assessment model for Shouguang vegetable enterprises and accurately rating the risk of loan enterprises is the key to successful loans. This article aims to construct an AHP evaluation model for the credit risk of Shouguang vegetable enterprises. The data is sourced from managers, bank credit personnel, university researchers, and enterprise related customers who are familiar with the enterprise, while considering four risk levels: impact degree(I), occurrence probability(P), risk manageability(M), and government support(S). This article uses AHP and risk index scores to evaluate the credit risk of Shouguang vegetable enterprises. This model calculates the risk index score based on survey data from 41 corporate credit risk professionals, constructs a pairwise comparison judgment matrix, and conducts consistency testing. It calculates the risk level membership vectors of impact degree, occurrence probability, risk manageability, and government support level at four risk levels, and then calculates the comprehensive evaluation membership vector of credit risk for Shouguang vegetable enterprise. The calculation results show that the comprehensive credit risk assessment level of Shouguang vegetable enterprise belongs to the general risk level, with a membership value of 0.5836. The results still show that the credit rating of Shouguang vegetable enterprises in the four risk levels of impact degree, occurrence probability, risk manageability, and government support are all average risk levels, but there are differences in membership values. The maximum membership value under the impact degree level is 0.6163, and the minimum membership value under the risk manageability level is 0.5572. This study provides a feasible and practical model for enterprise credit risk assessment and conducts a detailed evaluation of the credit risk of Shouguang vegetable enterprise, providing valuable reference for enterprise managers, bank credit personnel, and related researchers.

Comparative Analysis of Mortality Rates Among Morbidly Obese Individuals: A Study of Patients Undergoing Bariatric Surgery, Non-surgical Morbidly Obese Individuals, and the General Population.

Mortality decrease following bariatric surgery. We explored the extent of the reduction and whether or not it reaches the general population level in a large cohort of patients with obesity. Compare all-cause mortality between patients with obesity who undergo bariatric surgery and those who do not, with the general Iranian population during the same period. Data from Iran's National Obesity Surgery Database was used to establish a large cohort of patients registered between 2009 and 2019. The current vital status of the patients was determined by utilizing post-surgery follow-up data for those who underwent the operation. For patients without a surgery record, a predefined checklist was filled out through telephone interviews. Death data from the National General Registrar's office was obtained for all cohort members. Of 13313 cohort members, 12915 were eligible for analysis. The median age at the first visit was 38 years, and 78% were women. 6190 patients (47.9%) underwent bariatric surgery, and 6725 patients (52.1%) were not yet operated on at the time of analysis. We observed 139 deaths during 53,880 person-years (PY) follow-ups. The median follow-up for operated-on and not-operated-on groups were 4 and 4.8 years. The mortality rates among non-operated patients were 2.89 times higher (SMR=2.89, 95% CI: 2.36-3.53) than those in the general population, while in operated patients, the mortality rate decreased to 1.82 as high (SMR=1.82, 95% CI: 1.34-2.46). The risk of death has been diminished in the operated-on group. It still remains considerably higher than the risk in the general population.

Development and validation of Chinese compensatory health beliefs scale.

Compensatory Health Beliefs (CHBs), the notion that healthy behaviors can offset the negative effects of unhealthy actions, have been widely explored in Western contexts. Yet, their relevance within the Chinese cultural milieu remains underexplored. The primary objective of this research was to develop and validate a Chinese version of the CHBs scale (CHBs-C), addressing the gap in the literature regarding the applicability of CHBs within the Chinese cultural context. A multi-stage translation (from English to Chinese) was first completed, and exploratory factor analysis was conducted (n = 476), yielding the 14-item scale (CHBs-C scale). Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the validity, and the 2-week test-retest reliability, internal consistency and convergent validity of the scale were also assessed (n = 308). Predict validity was verified through testing the relationships between CHBs and health behaviors and habits (n = 274). Factor analysis showed a different factor structure in Chinese context, with only one factor identical to the original version. The fitness index of the new factor structure was good. However, while the scale exhibited acceptable internal consistency and high test-retest reliability, its convergent validity and predictive validity was found to be limited on a general level. Despite this, significant correlations at the subscale level were identified, highlighting nuanced interactions between CHBs and specific health behaviors within the Chinese population. This study not only establishes the CHBs-C scale as a valid and reliable instrument for assessing compensatory health beliefs in China but also lays the groundwork for further exploration of its applications and the potential cultural adaptability of CHBs.

Successions of terrestrial invertebrate communities during the Tsey Glacier retreat, Central Caucasus

In the Caucasus, the total area taken up by glaciers is known to have reduced by 23% over the last 20 years. This natural experiment allows for additive and replacement models of autogenic succession of biocoenoses within paraglacial landscapes to be tested. A certain risk of the extinction of cryophilic species also exists. However, montane paraglacial successions of invertebrate assemblages have hitherto been studied neither in the Caucasus nor in Russia as a whole. Structural changes of taxocoenoses were traced in a spatial and temporal sequence of ten properly dated paraglacial sites in the Tsey Gorge, North Ossetia − Alania (1–170-years old) among the testate amoebae, earthworms, molluscs, myriapods, mites, spiders, harvestmen, pseudoscorpions, collembolans, and beetles. As the glacier retreats, in place of bare paraglacial wastelands, grassland communities are formed that, after 10–14 years, are replaced by shrub vegetation and, on 30–35-year old surfaces, by forest communities. Most of the invertebrate groups, once “appearing” along a postglacial transect, were recorded from most older plots as well. Yet, their taxocoenoses underwent considerable transformations through increasing (or an increase turning into some decline in beetles) the species diversity and a strong, often complete change in the taxonomic composition and dominance structure. The most considerable transformations were observed at all major vegetation changes. The “appearance” of some groups in the transect was determined not only by dispersion capacities but mainly by the environmental conditions of particular habitats. When comparing the composition of the pioneer postglacial species complex of the study region with that in the mountains of Europe’s south and north, its high-degree regional specificity was noted, sometimes shown at the family level (in spiders). Spatial β-diversity of all larger taxa studied was mainly attributed to turnover (due to “the replacement model” of succession). The general level of change diminished towards the later succession stages. Endemic arthropod species were revealed both in pioneer grassland and developed forest communities.

EXAMINING PHYSICS TEACHERS’ DOMAIN-SPECIFIC PEDAGOGICAL CONTENT KNOWLEDGE COMPONENTS IN LESOTHO SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) is considered an important ingredient in shaping classroom practice. PCK requires valid measurement at domain-specific level on different components excluding the teaching context. While the research focuses on measuring the PCK of unqualified teachers and pre-service teachers, the description of qualified teachers’ domain-specific PCK is often overlooked. The purpose of this study was to measure quantitatively the domain-specific PCK of qualified physics teachers focusing on the five PCK components: content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, assessment knowledge, knowledge of students and curricular knowledge. Data were collected through the paper-and pencil PCK test that was responded to by 87 Physics teachers teaching the last two years of secondary school. Data were analyzed using the Extended Rasch Model and descriptive statistics. The results revealed that Physics teachers have a low PCK in general and low levels of PCK components, the lowest being content knowledge. The study recommends regular refresher workshops for qualified teachers focused on developing different PCK components, with more emphasis on content knowledge. Keywords: pedagogical content knowledge, physics teachers, domain-specific PCK, PCK components

Prevalence of celebrity worship: Development and application of the short version of the Celebrity Attitude Scale (CAS-7) on a large-scale representative sample.

Celebrity worship, defined as an excessive admiration towards celebrities, has generated considerable research and public interest. A widely used assessment instrument to measure celebrity worship is the 23-item Celebrity Attitude Scale. However, concerns have been raised regarding the measurement, including the inconsistent factor structure and lack of a cut-off point to identify "celebrity worshipers". The present study aims to address these concerns by testing the psychometric appropriateness of a short, 7-item version of the CAS (i.e., CAS-7) and estimating the prevalence of individuals with high-level celebrity admiration using a representative sample of Hungarian adults (between 18 and 64 years of age) according to gender, age, geographic location, and size of residence. The total sample comprised 2028 respondents, of which 769 valid responses were administered from participants who reported having a favorite celebrity (51.11% men, Mage = 36.38 years, SD = 13.36). Results indicated an excellent model fit for the two-factor and bifactor model of the CAS-7. Based on the suggested cut-off score of 26, the prevalence of high-level celebrity admiration is 4.53% in the Hungarian adult population (18-64 years of age) and 8.51% among young adults (18-34 years of age). Individuals with this high level of admiration towards a favorite celebrity reported more symptoms of problematic Internet use, depression, anxiety, and stress than individuals with general celebrity admiration levels. TheCAS-7 demonstrated sound psychometric properties, confirming its applicability in research and practice.

How to Measure Polymer Degradation? An Analysis of Authors' Choices When Calculating the Carbonyl Index.

The carbonyl index aims to measure the degradation level and is used in plastic degradation research as a proxy for the general degradation level of collected plastic pieces. According to the choices for carbonyl index calculation, comparison using this index is prevented and must be unveiled by the authors, which does not always happen. In order to study the proper usage of the carbonyl index, regarding the choice of the reference band and the usage of the band intensity or the absorption area, we systematically reviewed the methodologies used for polypropylene as a case study. Based on 95 studies gathered from 2000 to 2024, two main methods were used to determine the carbonyl index: the ratio between the carbonyl band area and the reference band area (33.68%) and the ratio between the highest intensity of the carbonyl band and the reference band (66.31%). The reference band of choice and the type of calculation method produce different carbonyl index values for the same spectra and mean different information, preventing comparison among works with different calculations.

Chemical, microbial, and volatile compounds of water kefir beverages made from chickpea, almond, and rice extracts

AbstractThis study aims to assess the microbial, nutritional, volatile, and sensory characteristics of rice, almond, and chickpea water kefir beverages during refrigerated storage. Plant-based kefirs contained significant amounts of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. The microbial content of kefirs was stable during 14-day refrigerated storage. Lactic acid, acetic acid, and tartaric acid are commonly detected organic acids in kefir samples. Almond and chickpea kefirs were rich in potassium mineral. Almond kefir had the highest ethanol content among plant-based kefirs, followed by chickpea and rice-based kefirs. Ethyl acetate, acetic acid, propionic acid, hexanoic acid, and benzenemethanol were identified as key volatile compounds in almond kefir and chickpea kefir samples using a GC–MS detector during water kefir fermentation. According to sensory analysis results, significant differences are present for all test parameters except odor. Almond kefir was the most accepted, while the other two kefir samples were below the general acceptance level (P < 0.05).

How Learning to Speak the Language of a Computer-Based Digital Environment Can Plant Seeds of Algebraic Generalisation: The Case of a 12-Year-Old Student and eXpresser

When learning in a digital interactive mathematics learning environment (DIMLE) designed to foster the development of specific mathematics content, students come to express their ideas through different languages and representations. We devise a method based on the Theory of Instrumental Genesis (TIG) to analyse aspects of a middle school student’s learning about algebraic generalisation in a DIMLE called “eXpresser”. Our analytic scheme allows us to capture changes in her instrumented schemes when accomplishing a certain task repeatedly, gradually modifying her interactions with the system. The results concern both insights into a specific mathematics learning journey in a DIMLE, and methodological progress at a more general level. Indeed, the method we devised and explored in this specific case can be applied to infer students’ schemes from their actions as they interact with other DIMLEs. This possibility yields great potential because more and more actions can now be recognized directly by software. This has important implications for computer-supported personalised learning, and AI in general.

Statutory Interpretation and Levels of Conceptual Categorisation: The Presumption of Legal Language Explained in Terms of Cognitive Linguistics

AbstractThis article probes the usefulness of selected theories from Cognitive Linguistics in the context of statutory interpretation. The presumption of legal language is a well-established rule of statutory construction in Polish legal practice that comes from the internationally recognised theory by Jerzy Wróblewski. It rests on a controversial assumption that there are different levels of generality in legal language (i.e. the language of statutes) and a single term may be given different meanings depending on the level of generality that is referred to. The authors use the notion of basic level categorisation from the cognitive theory of prototypes to explain this mechanism. Legal concepts, not unlike ordinary concepts, form hierarchical taxonomies. A single term may denote concepts that are situated at different levels in different conceptual taxonomies. In the absence of special circumstances, a legal term should be given the meaning that resides at a higher level of categorisation in the respective legal taxonomy. This way, the presumption of legal language is found to be justified on both linguistic and psychological grounds.

Psychological distress among unemployed migrants settling in southwestern Spain: A cross-sectional study.

Migrants living in the informal settlements of Southern Spain tend to have precarious employment and poor living conditions, making then vulnerable to mental health issues. This study aimed to assess psychological distress in a sample of unemployed migrants residing in informal settlements in the province of Huelva (southern Spain), during the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted during the months of April to June 2021, through a heteroadministered questionnaire, in informal settlements. The measurement instrument was the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), used to analyze psychological distress, and other sociodemographic and health-related variables. Univariate and bivariate descriptive data analysis were performed, using the nonparametric statistics Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis H test, and Tau β correlation. A categorical regression analysis was performed to study the relationship between psychological distress and the rest of the variables. The sample consisted of 317 subjects, 83.9% of whom were males, and the mean age was 33.4 years (SD = 10.7 years). The mean score obtained in the GHQ-12 questionnaire was 13.69 points (SD = 3.86). Significant differences were found between levels of psychological distress and substance abuse (H = 14.085; P = .049), people who wished to stay in Spain (t = 6987; P = .049), people who experienced isolation due to COVID-19 contact (t = 1379.5; P = .001), people who needed medical assistance due to COVID-19 (t = 7.990; P = .018), and those who reported having chronic illnesses (t = 2686.5, P = .02). The mean score of psychological distress indicates general high levels of psychological distress. Participants who had experienced isolation due to COVID-19 contact, who consumed substances, and who had chronic illnesses reported the highest levels of psychological distress.

Shedding light on consumer sentiments: evidence from India

ABSTRACT This paper shows how location-based indicators can predict consumer confidence in India. We capture local economic activity using city-wise night-time luminosity (NTL) data. Using data on unit-level observations on consumer confidence from the Consumer Confidence Survey by the Reserve Bank of India from June 2016 to November 2021, we find that NTL is positively associated with consumer sentiments. Our results are robust to alternative definitions of consumer sentiments. Finally, we extend our study to analyse the role of NTL on several individual components of household sentiments, such as household perception and outlook on household income, spending, employment and general price levels. Overall, our results provide fascinating insights about using NTL as a measure of local economic indicators and its implications on households’ sentiment indicators.

The Influence of Health Literacy among Undergraduates on Health-Promoting Lifestyles mediated by Health Behavior Self-Efficacy: Evidence from Jiangxi Province,China

Purpose This study aims to investigate the relationship between undergraduates' health literacy, health behavior self-efficacy, and health-promoting lifestyles. Method In April 2021, a survey was conducted with 1050 undergraduates from 9 universities in Jiangxi Province, utilizing Health Literacy Scales, Health Behavior Self-efficacy Scales, and Health-Promoting Lifestyle Revision Scales. Results (1) The average health literacy score among undergraduates was (66.17±10.01), with 81.6% of students having high or marginal health literacy. The average score for health-promoting lifestyles was (101.34±16.09), indicating an above-average level. The total score for health behavior self-efficacy was (89.23±18.43), indicating a general level of self-efficacy. (2) Positive correlations were found between undergraduates' health literacy, health behavior self-efficacy, and health-promoting lifestyles (r=0.259 ~ 0.759, P < 0.05). (3) Health behavior self-efficacy was found to mediate the relationship between undergraduates' health literacy and health-promoting lifestyles. Conclusion  To promote a healthy lifestyle among undergraduates, it is crucial to not only improve their health literacy but also enhance their health behavior self-efficacy.

Legal Expertise as a Tool of Countering Violent Extremism in the Web 2.0

The paper deals with the results of the study aimed to countermeasure violent extremism in Web 2.0. The paper focuses on the results of the research entitled “Russian Legal Concept of Media Security” and implemented within the framework of the “Priority-2030” Academic Strategic Leadership Program. The increased number of public crimes committed in the new media using telecommunications technologies makes the study relevant. The study is aimed to improve the understanding of current and future global media security challenges and to explain how to resist them based on legal expertise. Legal expertise is characterized as a tool that can contribute to raising the general level of legal culture and, in this regard, the authors highlight that availability of law and language knowledge is relevant in solving criminal law issues regarding implementation of basic rights and freedoms in the digital environment. The authors examine public relations in the field of education, family relations and youth policy related to those who share traditional morality and focus on countering a destructive ideological impact on children, adolescents, and the youth, carried out in order to neutralize inimical inculcation of spiritual values alien to Russian society. The authors scrutinized social networking, a combination of mini web pages, blogs and searchable communities, to detect signs of extremist propaganda shared via internet communication as a key challenge Russian society is facing nowadays. They elucidate the importance of undertaking effective measures to protect the population from harmful effect of destructive extremist ideology and its negative psychological impact. An interdisciplinary study of media security in the paradigm of criminal law sciences was conducted on the basis of legal expertise — a comprehensive criminalistic, criminology, forensic, psychological and linguistic approach to counteracting a destructive ideological impact on adolescents and neutralizing the mechanisms of implanting alien moral values. The authors have systematized threats to traditional Russian spiritual values and proposed to amend legislation and law enforcement practice to improve media security. Deep efforts should be made to encourage zero tolerance for extremist actions in the information sphere among people, to form their competence to ensure media security, including effective recourse to legal (or forensic) experts and authorized entities in case of violations of the law.

Economic Policy Uncertainty and Household Consumer Confidence: Evidence from Indian Household 
Data

This article aims to analyse how economic policy uncertainty (EPU) affects consumer confidence in India. The study uses unit-level observations on consumer confidence from the Reserve Bank of India’s Consumer Confidence Survey from June 2016 to May 2021. Exploring the variations in consumer confidence across several cities in India, the regression exercise shows how India-specific EPU and global EPU impact consumer confidence. Findings from the study show that EPU has a negative and significant impact on consumers’ perceptions and outlook about the economy. The results also show that the effect of global EPU is stronger, compared to India-specific EPU. A disaggregated analysis is also conducted to analyse the impact of EPU on several consumer confidence indicators, such as the perception and the outlook on household income, spending, employment and general price levels. Contrary to the current literature, this study uses individual-level responses on consumer confidence from survey data and examines the role of EPU on consumer sentiments. Overall, the findings suggest that news-based economic policy-related uncertainty shocks negatively affect households’ sentiments. Moreover, a disaggregated analysis is also conducted for several consumer confidence indicators such as perception and outlook on household income, spending, employment and general price levels. JEL Codes: E66, E71, H31

Qiang Costumes in Maoxian, Sichuan Province: The Revival of Chinese Minority Identity for Application in Design

The purpose of this investigation was to fulfill three objectives: (1) to study the characteristics, connotations and reflected history and social development of Qiang costumes; (2) to study and analyze the cultural identity of Qiang Costumes for development into local products and (3) to design products inspired by Qiang Costumes in Maoxian County, Sichuan. The focus community was the Qiang people in Maoxian County, Sichuan Province, with the research population including local government workers, product sellers, design experts, and target consumers. Using a mixed-methods approach that combined qualitative and quantitative methodologies, the researchers gathered data through surveys, interviews, observations, and questionnaires. Results show that Qiang fabrics in Maoxian County are characterized by a number of local patterns, including fire, clouds, and flowers. These are incorporated into a rich and distinctive ethnic clothing identity. The researchers designed five everyday items based on the symbolism of Qiang clothing: a keychain, tableware, a bookmark, a fridge magnet, and a phone case. A questionnaire distributed to the target group found that the general level of consumer satisfaction with the products was at a very good level (x = 4.83). This investigation provides invaluable insights into the interplay between cultural preservation and economic development, highlighting the crucial role of integrating traditional Qiang culture into modern product design strategies.

Cadmium inhibits calcium activity in hippocampal CA1 neurons of freely moving mice.

Cadmium (Cd) is a ubiquitous toxic heavy metal and a potential neurotoxicant due to its wide use in industrial manufacturing processes and commercial products, including fertilizers. The general population is exposed to Cd through food and smoking due to high transfer rates of Cd from contaminated soil. Cd has been shown to mimic calcium ions (Ca2+) and interfere with intracellular Ca2+ levels and Ca2+ signaling in in vitro studies. However, nothing is known about Cd's effects on Ca2+ activity in neurons in live animals. This study aimed to determine if Cd disrupts Ca2+ transients of neurons in CA1 region of the hippocampus during an associative learning paradigm. We utilized in vivo Ca2+ imaging in awake, freely moving C57BL/6 mice to measure Ca2+ activity in CA1 excitatory neurons expressing genetically encoded Ca2+ sensor GCaMP6 during an associative learning paradigm. We found that a smaller proportion of neurons are activated in Cd-treated groups compared to control during fear conditioning, suggesting that Cd may contribute to learning and memory deficit by reducing activity of neurons. We observed these effects at Cd exposure levels that result in blood Cd levels comparable to the general US population levels. This provides a possible molecular mechanism for Cd interference of learning and memory at exposure levels relevant to US adults. To our knowledge, our study is the first to describe Cd effects on brain Ca2+ activity in vivo in freely behaving mice.

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practice of Pregnant Women about Anemia during Pregnancy in Baghdad Teaching Hospital

Objectives: to assess the level of knowledge, attitude and practice of pregnant women about  anemia. To assess the association between knowledge of pregnant women and their socio – demographic variances. To assess the association between the practice of pregnant women and  their socio – demographic variances. Methods: cross sectional study, carried out among pregnant  at Baghdad Teaching Hospital, from 25th February to 28th April, 2023. A total of 300 pregnant  women participated in the study. The tool of study was questionnaire. Results: The study revealed  63.3% of pregnant women had good knowledge, positive attitude found in 65.3% and health  practice in 59.3% among pregnant women regarding anemia, the study show association between  the knowledge of the pregnant woman and educational level of her and her husband, also there is  association between the practice of pregnant woman and her occupation. Conclusion: A noticeable  general good level of knowledge , attitude and practice among pregnant women regarding anemia  during pregnancy, level of knowledge in pregnant woman associated with the educational level of  her and her husband and healthy practice increase in employed pregnant woman. Recommendations: Raise the level of knowledge and practice for prevention, learn pregnant  women healthy dietary habit and encourage pregnant women to early registration in primary health  care center. 

The Role of Smart City in Achieving Sustainable Development: Google Trends Analysis and Exponential Time Series Smoothing Models

The concept of sustainable smart urban development is an important element of the modern discourse on the future development of cities, regions, and the world as a whole, a key component of a strategy aimed at introducing innovations, improving the life quality of citizens, ensuring inclusiveness and sustainability of local development. It integrates the concept of Smart City as the application of advanced innovative technologies to solve urban problems and the concept of Sustainable Development as a balancing of socio-economic and environmental interests to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. While discussing the problems and prospects introducing any social models or strategies, it is important to understand the level of public interest in this issue, the level of citizens’ awareness, the readiness to receive new information, and the readiness for change. The article is focused on the analysis of retrospective dynamics (from 01.01.2010 to 01.12.2023) and economic and mathematical modelling of forecast trends in changing public interest in the concepts of “Smart City” and “Sustainable Development” (identified using the Google Trends tool). The analysis was carried out for the world as a whole and for Ukraine specifically. The study identifies and describes the evolution of changes in public interest in these topics, identifies the time points of a sharp surge in interest, and conducts a comparative analysis in the content (trends for these two search queries) and spatial context (trends in Ukraine compared to global trends). The countries of the world and regions of Ukraine where user interest in the relevant topics dominates are ranked, and the countries of the world and regions of Ukraine where user interest in the relevant topics dominates are ranked, the TOP-10 are identified. The factors whose influence is relevant to the public interest dynamics are identified (consumer trends, media activity, dynamics of the introduction of relevant concepts, cultural, linguistic, and historical contexts, the general level of education, digital inclusion and consciousness of the population of different countries, etc.) Using the exponential smoothing method, models were built to predict the dynamics of time series – the number of queries from Ukrainian Internet users regarding the concepts of “Smart City” and “Sustainable Development”. Additive forecasting models, which differ in the trend component, are obtained.