Synthetic Indicator Research Articles

A Hybrid Fuzzy TOPSIS Method to Analyze the Coverage of a Hypothetical EU Ecolabel for Fishery and Aquaculture Products (FAPs)

This study presents a hybrid fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity of the ideal solution (TOPSIS) method (FTOPSIS) to analyze the coverage of a hypothetical EU ecolabel for fishery and aquaculture products (FAPs) by integrating a synthetic indicator to determine the level of acceptance for the inclusion of different types of information apart from environmental issues, considering different stakeholders and other segments of analysis. Data were obtained from a public consultation of the EU on “ecolabels for FAPs”. The results indicate that ecolabels should not only include environmental issues but also other types of information, with social and ethical issues being the most relevant, followed by animal welfare issues, health and safety issues and food quality issues. The findings also show that consumers, producers and stakeholders who are more interventionist and support the fact that public bodies and governments should be involved in the control of eco-labeling are more accepting of including additional information apart from environmental issues. Synthetic indicators (SIs) have also been found to be mostly inelastic, except for the owners of ecolabels on social and ethical issues. The implications of the future implementation of the EU ecolabel for FAPs are discussed based on the findings.

ASSESSING THE ADEQUACY OF PENSION SYSTEMS IN GEORGIA AND EUROPE

For several decades, pension systems across the world have been undergoing reforms. The main reasons for this are demographic changes and increasing life expectancy. As life expectancy increases and the birth rate decreases, more people retire than are added to the workforce. To make these reforms more effective and ensure that they are based on the best benchmarks, the European Union (EU) has introduced the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) in the field of pensions. Pension system reform is on its way in Georgia since 2019, January. OMC evaluates pensions systems in terms of the three main objectives: adequacy, sustainability, and modernization of pensions. Our methodology is based on multivariate statistical analysis, and employs synthetic indicators for adequacy objectives, in case of Georgia and 27 EU countries, in the years 2010, 2015 and 2018. The article contributes to the existing literature on pension reforms through investigation of the convergence of EU27 and Georgia pension systems in terms of one of the OMC objectives, in order to evaluate the adequacy of the pension systems.

Índices sintéticos para medir la responsabilidad social del estudiante universitario

La responsabilidad social se fundamenta en la capacidad de elegir la propia conducta de manera consciente, deliberada, voluntaria, libre y en relación con otros. Cada generación tiene que responder del impacto de sus acciones y de la repercusión de estas sobre el desarrollo sostenible. Analizar y medir este tipo de constructos tiene importancia capital para la mejora de la Política Institucional en la Educación Superior como propone la UNESCO. El objetivo del presente estudio es ofrecer a la comunidad universitaria internacional un indicador sintético (índice) para la medida de la responsabilidad social del universitario que permita, con una escala de tan solo 6 u 8 ítems, evaluar con eficacia el grado de Responsabilidad Social del Estudiante Universitario (en adelante RSEU) en cualquier momento de su desarrollo académico. Un indicador con garantías de fiabilidad y validez suficientes y semejantes a los obtenidos en el instrumento inicial de 20 ítems. Se analiza la fiabilidad, homogeneidad y capacidad predictiva de estos índices sobre muestras de estudiantes universitarios de 2º y 4º curso de diversas facultades. Los resultados muestran el buen comportamiento de estos índices, así como su semejanza al instrumento completo.

Soil Physical Quality and Relationship to Changes in Termite Community in Northwestern Colombian Amazon

Conversion from Amazon forest to low-management pasture or agriculture causes not only degradation of aboveground vegetation but also negative changes in soil properties and ecosystem services. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of physical soil degradation on termite community changes in three contrasting land uses (natural regeneration, rubber plantations, and silvopastoral systems). Soil physical quality was assessed through a set of physical variables, such as bulk density, porosity, soil macro-aggregation state, Visual Evaluation of Soil Structure (VESS) and penetration resistance, which were summarized in an overall synthetic indicator of physical quality. Besides, transects of 20 × 2 m were established in each land use; each transect was divided into four sections of 5 m to search and collect termites during 1 hour in each section; likewise, termites were collected from blocks of soil 25 × 25 × 10 cm (length, width, and depth, respectively) adapted from the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility (TSBF) method. In total, 60 transects were evaluated, 20 in each land use. A total of 41 species were collected across the three land uses evaluated: natural regeneration presented 60% of the collected species (25 species), silvopastoral systems 53% (22 species), and rubber plantations 39% (16 species). Additionally, composition species from the silvopastoral, agroforestry systems, and natural regeneration were different, and a close association between these last land uses was observed. Soil physical characteristics showed significant variations between land uses. The rubber plantations presented lowest values of soil physical quality, while the natural regeneration showed high soil physical quality. These changes affected termite community and lead to changes in its composition with disproportionate loss of some species; however, there are some that can acclimate well to the decline in the soil physical quality.

Pobreza multidimensional intraurbana na região metropolitana de Belém

O objetivo deste artigo é analisar as múltiplas dimensões da pobreza intraurbana na Região Metropolitana de Belém, por meio dos microdados do Censo de 2010. Para isso, são utilizados os arcabouços teóricos da Abordagem das Capacitações e da pobreza multidimensional e aplica-se a metodologia de Alkire e Santos (2010). Os resultados evidenciam existência de diferenças entre a pobreza monetária e a pobreza multidimensional e mostram que áreas consideradas menos pobres em termos multidimensionais não são as mesmas quando avaliadas em termos monetários. Percebe-se que as áreas de ponderação, em que praticamente coincidem os indicadores de renda e o multidimensional, não estão na mesma posição na classificação geral dos indicadores sintéticos de avaliação sobre pobreza. Adicionalmente, a composição de privações domiciliares difere entre as áreas de ponderação e a incidência da pobreza multidimensional ainda é elevada, mesmo após os avanços sociais vastamente relatados na literatura nos últimos 15 anos.

Uranyl Nitrates: By-Products of the Synthetic Experiments or Key Indicators of the Reaction Progress?

Six novel uranyl nitrate compounds K3[(UO2)(NO3)Cl3](NO3) (1, 2), α-Cs2[(UO2)(NO3)Cl3] (3), [(UO2)(NO3)2(H2O)2][(CH3NH3)2(NO3)2] (4), Cs2[(UO2)(NO3)4] (5), and [(UO2)2(OH)2(NO3)2(H2O)3](H2O) (6) have been prepared from aqueous solutions. Their structures were analyzed using single-crystal X-ray diffraction technique. Structural studies have shown that the crystals of 1 and 2 are isotypic but differ in the distortion at the counter ion’s sites. The crystal of 3 is a low-temperature polymorph modification of the recently studied compound. The crystal structure of 4 is composed of uranyl-dinitrate-dihydrate and methylamine-nitrate electroneutral complexes linked through the system of H-bonds. The crystal structure of 5 is based on the finite [(UO2)(NO3)4]2− clusters that are arranged in pseudo-chained complexes extended along [100] and are arranged according to a hexagonal packing or rods. The crystal of 6 is also a novel polymorph modification of previously studied compound, the structure of which is based on the very rare topological type of the finite clusters. Nowadays, uranyl nitrate finite clusters of nine various topological types are known. We give herein a short review of their topological features and relationships. Crystallization of uranyl nitrates usually occurs when all other competitive anions in the system have already formed crystalline phases, or the reaction of reagents have slowed down or even stopped. Thus it is suggested that crystallization of uranyl nitrates can be used as a key indicator of the reaction progress, which points to the necessity of the initial concentrations of reagents correction, or to the replacement of reagents and adjustment of the thermodynamic (P,T) parameters of the synthesis.

Measuring the Efficiency of Economic Growth towards Sustainable Growth with Grey System Theory

In the paper, a new indicator exemplifying the conversion efficiency of expenditures towards economic growth into results pertaining to sustainable development, dubbed the “Synthetic Efficiency Indicator for Economic Growth” (hereinafter: “SEI-EG”) has been proposed. The inspiration for proposing such an indicator was the identification of the lack of connections between research on economic convergence and the research area connected with sustainable growth category. It was assumed that, in the first place, outcomes of the proposed convergence will be visible in developed economies, represented by EU15 member states. The set goal was to provide an answer to the question of difference between EU15 member states with respect to efficiency of converging expenditures exemplifying economic growth into results pertaining to sustainable growth. The research was conducted for 2016–2018 using Grey System Theory. With the use of the elaborated indicator, the authors created a ranking list of countries based on the efficiency of economic growth towards sustainable growth criterion. The conducted research proved that, in general, the smaller EU member states are characterized by significantly higher efficiency of converging expenditures exemplifying economic growth into results pertaining to sustainable development in the researched area. Among the countries with large economies, only Germany showed efficiency comparable to smaller ones.

CONTEMPORARY TENDENCIES IN MONITORING THE READINESS OF COUNTRIES FOR THE APPLICATION OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE POST-COVID PERIOD

<jats:p>Monitoring the readiness of countries for the application of information and communication technologies (ICT) has a long tradition. It is reflected through the application of various synthetic indicators - indexes, which were created for these purposes by various organizations and associations. These indicators are expected to reflect new trends in the field of ICT, and also to measure the readiness and achievements of individual countries in the ICT usage. The aim of this paper is to show significant changes in the structure of one of the most well-known indices in this area - Network Readiness Index, which has been in use for almost two decades. The paper emphasizes the application of this index in monitoring the process of digital transformation at the level of economic and social development of individual countries, especially in the COVID crisis. Also, the tendencies of this process in the post-COVID period are considered. Monitoring the process of digital transformation at the country level is characterized by a multidimensional approach. In this sense, the complex structure of the NRI latest version is presented. It is based on 60 indicators grouped in four areas: technological trends, human resources capacity, government regulations and the impact of new technologies on the economy, quality of life and achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals adopted in 2015. Also, the paper discusses the position of Serbia and other Western Balkans countries measured in the context of the newly created index, and presents a comparison of these countries with European Union countries.</jats:p>

Risk in Carsharing – Identification and Assessment

AbstractThe purpose of this article is identification of risks in carsharing and their latter assessment in terms of probability of occurrence, impact on customer relationships, importance of a given category and cost they generate. A way of aggregating various categories of risks into one synthetic indicator in order to prioritize them was proposed. Methodology of the process was based on a methodological triangulation which is based on the following studies – analysis and criticism of literature which helps to place discussed research problem on theoretical basis, qualitative research and observations allowing to identify individual categories of risks and quantitative research enabling the description of given categories of risks by appropriate variables on which further risk modelling is performed. Such research may be a basis to subsequent analysis and be an impulse to an academic debate. Also it may contribute to creation of further studies dealing with the problem of assessment of the risk in concepts related to sharing economy.

Geotouristic Potential of Former Quarries in Northern Bohemia

Former quarries are among the places that are interesting for geotourism: they are mineralogical or paleontological sites; some quarries are valuable from an aesthetic or environmental point of view. In the quarries where mining was stopped centuries ago, traces of earlier mining technologies can be found, having significant historical value. Despite all the listed values, it is a sad fact that most of the quarries in the Czech Republic are revitalized after the end of mining in a way that destroy the values of the geosite. If nature conservation authorities intervene, it is usually because geosite is also a habitat for endangered species of fauna and flora, not for the protection of inanimate nature. The article analyses the process of making former quarries accessible to the public. First, the geosite evaluation methodology is presented, on the basis of which the localities with the greatest tourist potential and the lowest risks are selected. The methodology is based on six synthetic indicators, which are scientific value, cultural-historical value, aesthetic value, educational value, tourist value and vulnerability of the site. The methodology is explained on two examples of former quarries in northern Bohemia: Panská skála and Hamerský Špičák. The purpose of the methodology is to select suitable geosites, whose values should be protected and used to popularize geosciences and for geoeducation. The discussion points to good examples of making former quarries accessible to geotourism from nearby regions (e.g. UNESCO Geopark Muskauer Faltenbogen / Łuk Mużakowa). On the contrary, the issue of safety of visit to the geosite is mentioned too, which is in some cases the biggest obstacle to access to quarries. The conclusion summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of the use of former quarries for geotourism purposes.

The Maze Test: A Computer Tool for Testing Perseverance.

IntroductionPerseverance is an important component of human functioning. The main factors that allow people to achieve their goals are perseverance and the motivation for change. The concept of perseverance is not new, but most studies in this field do not define it precisely. Perseverance is a formal trait of behaviour determined by situational (external) and personality-related (internal) factors − a complexity which can cause problems when one tries to measure it.MethodsIn this project, we present the Maze Test, a novel tool for testing perseverance. We discuss the theoretical foundations of the test, including the definition of perseverance, as well as the indicators on which this tool is based. We present the basic methodological properties of the test and report two studies which illustrate how it can be applied in practice: Study 1 – measurement of personality-conditioned perseverance, and Study 2 – measurement of situation-conditioned perseverance.ResultsIn Study 1, a significant weak correlation between the indicators of perseverance and the Big Five model personality traits was discovered. Neuroticism correlated negatively with the number of maze tasks solved and the Synthetic Indicator of Perseverance. Positive correlations were found for conscientiousness and agreeableness. In Study 2, mental simulations were observed to have a medium to high effect on the indicators of perseverance.ConclusionThe tool presented in this study affords a new approach to perseverance. Based on an analysis of how the tasks were being solved by the subjects, we developed perseverance indicators which allow to view perseverance as a multidimensional construct. The tool has been designed for use in both laboratory tests and remote web tests. A major advantage of the tool is that it is available for general use free of charge.

Beyond standardized mortality ratios; some uses of smoothed age-specific mortality rates on small areas studies

BackgroundMost epidemiological risk indicators strongly depend on the age composition of populations, which makes the direct comparison of raw (unstandardized) indicators misleading because of the different age structures of the spatial units of study. Age-standardized rates (ASR) are a common solution for overcoming this confusing effect. The main drawback of ASRs is that they depend on age-specific rates which, when working with small areas, are often based on very few, or no, observed cases for most age groups. A similar effect occurs with life expectancy at birth and many more epidemiological indicators, which makes standardized mortality ratios (SMR) the omnipresent risk indicator for small areas epidemiologic studies.MethodsTo deal with this issue, a multivariate smoothing model, the M-model, is proposed in order to fit the age-specific probabilities of death (PoDs) for each spatial unit, which assumes dependence between closer age groups and spatial units. This age–space dependence structure enables information to be transferred between neighboring consecutive age groups and neighboring areas, at the same time, providing more reliable age-specific PoDs estimates.ResultsThree case studies are presented to illustrate the wide range of applications that smoothed age specific PoDs have in practice . The first case study shows the application of the model to a geographical study of lung cancer mortality in women. This study illustrates the convenience of considering age–space interactions in geographical studies and to explore the different spatial risk patterns shown by the different age groups. Second, the model is also applied to the study of ischaemic heart disease mortality in women in two cities at the census tract level. Smoothed age-standardized rates are derived and compared for the census tracts of both cities, illustrating some advantages of this mortality indicator over traditional SMRs. In the latest case study, the model is applied to estimate smoothed life expectancy (LE), which is the most widely used synthetic indicator for characterizing overall mortality differences when (not so small) spatial units are considered.ConclusionOur age–space model is an appropriate and flexible proposal that provides more reliable estimates of the probabilities of death, which allow the calculation of enhanced epidemiological indicators (smoothed ASR, smoothed LE), thus providing alternatives to traditional SMR-based studies of small areas.

IDENTIFICATION AND RISK ASSESSMENT IN CARSHARING

There are many new concepts for doing business in the modern market. Carsharing is one of such models that are directly related to the sharing economy. The current body of literature shows an absence of reports about risk management in carsharing operators. Further investigation of scientific databases confirms the existence of a research gap in this field. The purpose of this article is for identification of risks in carsharing and their latter assessment in terms of probability of occurrence, impact on customer relationships, the importance of a given category and the cost they generate. A way of aggregating various categories of risks into one synthetic indicator to prioritise them was proposed. The methodology of the process was based on a methodological triangulation which is established on the following studies – analysis and criticism of literature which helps to place discussed research problems on a theoretical basis, qualitative research and observations allowing to identify individual categories of risks and quantitative research enabling the description of given categories of risks by appropriate variables on which further risk modelling is performed. Such research may be a basis for subsequent analysis and an impulse to an academic debate. Besides, it may contribute to the creation of further studies, which deal with the problem of assessment of the risk in concepts related to sharing economy.

Disintegration scenarios in the European Union: A case study of Eastern European economies

This paper examines the progress of countries’ integration within the EU, and the expansion to include many Eastern European countries in this phenomenon. We create a multisectoral and multiregional input-output model (MRIO) to study a group of “counterfactuals” to evaluate the economic integration/disintegration phenomenon in this context. As an initial experiment, we conduct a study of the “non-integration” of Eastern European countries. On the basis of the MRIO model and, inspired by the synthetic indicators methodology and hypothetical extraction methods, we first study the trends in their trade relationships and technological and structural composition. Second, we design hypothetical scenarios based on the behavior observed in these trends to analyze the contribution of the disintegration process to economic growth and structural specialization. We find that Eastern Europe is highly vulnerable to the effects of trade with other European countries; the impact of a possible exit of Eastern countries would be almost three times greater for those countries than for the rest of Europe.

Proposal for a Dynamic Composite Indicator: Application in a Comparative Analysis of Trends in the EU Member States Towards the Europe 2020 Strategy

This paper contributes, with a dynamic approach, to the research on the creation of comparable composite indicators by presenting a proposal for an exploratory factor analysis protocol to enable a comparative trend analysis. The originality of the study lies in the three dimensions of information for analysis: observations, variables and units of time. The proposal involves various stages of analysis with the ultimate, albeit not exclusive, aim of obtaining what is known as a Global Dynamic Indicator. The analysis process begins by structuring the data into a three-dimensional global matrix, thereby conditioning, while also, and primarily, enriching the later stages. A combination of multiple factor analysis and a clustering technique is the selected approach for successfully meeting the challenges involved. The appropriateness and versatility of the proposal are validated through the analysis of the trends of the EU member states towards the targets set by the 2020 Strategy. The study period runs from 2009 to 2018. The empirical work enables the visualisation and quantification of trend differences and similarities across member states collectively and individually, and across all the variables and years selected for analysis. The relevant findings will be quantified by means of a synthetic indicator for each unit of time and a global indicator for the period as a whole. Some of the conclusions reached by this paper are consistent with those already published by various authors.

Labour integration of young people at risk of social exclusion through the development of key competencies

This study examines the key competencies that young people at risk of exclusion must develop to achieve integration into the labour market, and assesses their level of integration after their participation in the programme proposed. A programme for developing Social Skills is undertaken for three weeks. A methodology is presented to that end, based on constructing three synthetic indicators which aggregate and measure the different components proposed: Appearance, Confidence, Attitude, and Organisation and Planning. These three models measure the aspects before the programme and the aspects after the programme and the improvements are analysed. The results of the study are based on a sample of 373 young people between 18 and 30 belonging to vulnerable groups. An analysis of the results shows that the competencies that underwent the most significant changes were Attitude and Organisation and Planning. Control variables are applied (gender, age, experience and level of education). The results obtained in the model studying the aftermath of the programme show that the competence of Confidence influences the student's recruitment and incorporation into employment.

A Novel Multiscale Deep Health Indicator with Bidirectional LSTM Network for Bearing Performance Degradation Trend Prognosis

As rolling bearings are the key components in rotating machinery, bearing performance degradation directly affects machine running status. A tendency prognosis for bearing performance degradation is thus required to ensure the stability of operation. This paper proposes a novel strategy for bearing performance degradation trend prognosis, including health indicator construction techniques and a performance degradation trend prediction method. To more accurately represent the degradation trend, the multiscale deep bottleneck health indicator is proposed as a new synthesized health indicator to remove high-frequency detail signals from features, which can reduce possible fluctuations in conventional synthetic health indicators. A suitable method for selecting the statistical characteristics required for fusion is also presented to solve the problem of information redundancy that affects trend representation. In addition, a stacked autoencoder network is used for deep feature extraction of selected statistical features. A bidirectional long short-term memory network prediction model is also proposed for the prediction of degradation trend, which can make full use of historical and future information to improve prediction accuracy. Finally, experiments are carried out to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Diversity of Regional Labour Markets in Poland

Purpose: The aim of this article is to assess real changes taking place on regional labour markets in Poland over the last ten years. The starting point for the analysis was 2008 – the time of the economic crisis – and it was compared to 2018, a year marked by a significant improvement in the economy, including the labour market. Design/Methodology/Approach: To assess the initial and current situation on regional labour markets, the authors use variables obtained from CSO resources, diagnosing the situation in individual Polish voivodships. The identified set of variables served to create a synthetic indicator reflecting the situation on regional labour markets in Poland as a derivative of the condition of the economy. In order to conduct a comparative analysis of regional labour markets, the authors made rankings of voivodships for the two analysed periods with the use of the Hellwig method. The next stage of the study involved an estimation of the multiple regression model, which explains how the identified factors (determinants) affect the position of voivodships in the context of their employment potential. The authors adopted a ratio of the employed per 1,000 inhabitants as a dependent variable, while the variables determining the demand for labour were considered as independent variables. Findings: A ten-year comparison period adopted for the analyses showed that the economic crisis did not have a major impact on economic and labour market changes in Polish regions. Practical Implications: The proposed research methodology is universal and can be used to assess regional labour markets in other countries. Originality/Value: The conducted research allowed for the identification of factors influencing the situation on the labour market and the assessment of changes taking place on regional labour markets.

Exploring the relationship between new-type urbanization and sustainable urban land use: Evidence from prefecture-level cities in China

The rapid development of urbanization has driven irreversible changes in land use, the Chinese government has adopted ‘the National New-type Urbanization Plan’ focusing on rational utilization of resources, which will be of great significance effect to the sustainability, rational and intensive land use. This article built indicator systems to measure the level of new-type urbanization and the sustainability of land use by using the full permutation polygon synthetic indicator method and analyzed the relationship between the new-type urbanization and sustainable land use by using panel data model from 2002 to 2016 in 203 prefecture-level cities in China. Assessment results showed that there were serious problems of insufficient efficiency of land use in most cities and far behind the level of new-type urbanization. This indicated that the quality of current urbanization was low quality as the urban sprawled frequently and exceed the quality, and the coordinated development of urbanization and sustainable land use has not been achieved. The results of econometric model showed that new-type urbanization has a significant positive impact on land use, which implied that the implementation of the policy has not reduced the sustainability of land use, but played a significant role in improving it. Therefore, the current main task is to explore an intensive, efficient, ecological, rural-urban integration and harmonious urbanization way to pursue a harmonious relationship between urbanization and sustainable land use.

Three-photon imaging of synthetic dyes in deep layers of the neocortex

Multiphoton microscopy has emerged as the primary imaging tool for studying the structural and functional dynamics of neural circuits in brain tissue, which is highly scattering to light. Recently, three-photon microscopy has enabled high-resolution fluorescence imaging of neurons in deeper brain areas that lie beyond the reach of conventional two-photon microscopy, which is typically limited to ~ 450 µm. Three-photon imaging of neuronal calcium signals, through the genetically-encoded calcium indicator GCaMP6, has been used to successfully record neuronal activity in deeper neocortical layers and parts of the hippocampus in rodents. Bulk-loading cells in deeper cortical layers with synthetic calcium indicators could provide an alternative strategy for labelling that obviates dependence on viral tropism and promoter penetration, particularly in non-rodent species. Here we report a strategy for visualized injection of a calcium dye, Oregon Green BAPTA-1 AM (OGB-1 AM), at 500–600 µm below the surface of the mouse visual cortex in vivo. We demonstrate successful OGB-1 AM loading of cells in cortical layers 5–6 and subsequent three-photon imaging of orientation- and direction- selective visual responses from these cells.