Voluntary participation of citizens in formal organizations is considered an important indicator of an efficient civic society. It is also one of the assumptions of functional democratic regime. In this diploma thesis, I explain the differences between countries in civic involvement with general characteristics of national cultures. These characteristics were clearly described and defined by Geert Hofstede. I use his dimensions in this paper. The paper should contribute to understanding the motivations for engaging in formal organizations. As it proves that commitment is significantly related to the culture of the nation (especially to the cultural dimension Uncertainty Avoidance), it is clear that the change in the activity of citizens can be very slow and the differences between nations are likely to remain.

The main task of the thesis is to describe intercultural differences among the Czech republic, Germany and Austria. The goal is to characterize not only the differences in behaviour of each country, but also to understand and to apply it in business negotiations. There is also included the research of Geert Hofstede and his dimensions. After that is research compared to the praxis and real experiences from business area. First part speaks about communication. Second part is about culture, cultural dimensions and standards. Third part is dedicated to business negotiations, their phases and traditions in all three countries. Fourth part shows results of Hofstede's research in Czech republic, Germany and Austria. Fifth part belongs to the interview with HR Manager of german developing company in Czech republic.

People interact with each other through natural language to express feelings, thoughts, intentions, instructions etc. These interactions as a result form relationships. Besides names of relationships like siblings, spouse, friends etc., a number of dimensions (e.g. cooperative vs. competitive, temporary vs. enduring, equal vs. hierarchical etc.) can also be used to capture the underlying properties of interpersonal interactions and relationships. More fine-grained descriptors (e.g. angry, rude, nice, supportive etc.) can also be used to indicate the reasons or social-acts behind the dimension cooperative vs. competitive. The way people interact with others may also tell us about their personal traits, which in turn may be indicative of their probable success in their future. The works presented in the dissertation involve creating corpora with fine-grained descriptors of interactions and relationships. We also described experiments and their results that indicated that the processes of identifying the dimensions can be automated.

In the recent decades a new type of economic system based on collaborative consumption has increased in popularity. The new cost competitive model challenges the traditional business model that has fueled the hyper consumption, which the 20th century is known for. This research focuses on how national cultures impact the development of this new economic system, in order to understand how much people of different cultures are willing to share. A conceptual model was created to try to understand cultural influence on sharing. Hofstede’s cultural dimensions have been used to measure and compare the empirical data, that was collected through five focus groups representing four different countries: Sweden, France, China and United States. Out of the six cultural dimensions, it was found that the indulgence dimension together with power distance might influence people’s willingness to share. Indulgence was also found to explain socialization as a motivational factor together with power distance and long-term orientation. In conclusion, four different sharing sectors were analyzed, and it was found that transportation and clothing was considered shareable, disregarding national culture. Accommodation might be dependent on national culture since the focus groups that were supposed to be indulgent showed resistance to share, while the restraint groups showed a greater willingness. Technology was not considered shareable by any group. Furthermore, three motivational factors, that might be depend on national culture, was identified. These are environment, socialization and technology. An additional four motivational factors were identified, but these might be independent of national culture. These four are personal, economical, trust/safety and convenience. Lastly, additional findings showed that similar genders have similar willingness to share across cultures which makes it a topic of interest for future research.

<p>The future success of agriculture in arid and semi-arid areas globally will be highly dependent on the ability of farmers and agricultural systems to adapt to climate change. Most of these areas, though tremendously productive, suffer from the same limiting resource: water. As that resource becomes more scarce and availability more difficult to predict, water managers and farmers will be forced to implement new, creative solutions to water supply challenges. This anticipated exposure suggests that an improved understanding of agricultural adaptation to water stress in such areas is critical to successful outcomes in these regions under a changing climate. This work focuses specifically on the adaptation strategies employed by farmers, strategies which are determined by farmers’ assessment of their exposure and sensitivity to a stressor as well as their capacity to implement changes. This process of implementing change to limit vulnerability is broadly referred to as adaptation. </p> <p> This project focuses on the Eastern Snake Plain of southeastern Idaho as a case study in agricultural adaptation to increased water stress. The Eastern Snake Plain (ESP) is a diverse and productive agricultural basin in the inter-mountain region of the American West. The region’s primary products are potatoes, sugar beets, barley, and alfalfa, as well as a significant volume of livestock dominated by dairy cattle, and each of these products forms a significant share of the total US market for that crop. More than 74% of this agricultural land is irrigated, inextricably tying both the future of agriculture and the future of the Idaho economy to water in the state. In the mid-2000’s, legislators and water managers from across the plain came together to negotiate a new water rights settlement, now known as the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer Comprehensive Aquifer Management Plan (CAMP). The negotiations came in response to years of litigation involving groundwater and surface water conjunctive management in the region, and the resulting plan was designed to accomplish three goals: stabilize reach gains in the lower Eastern Snake Plain, replenish Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer (ESPA) levels, and ensure sustainable water resources for agricultural, industrial, and domestic users across the basin. Though the water settlement was not directly caused by climate change, it is likely that water shortages will become more frequent under climate change, and this settlement represents a simulation of just such a shortage.</p> <p>Broadly, this work and the work of collaborators hope to understand adaptation and decision-making of groundwater farmers throughout the Eastern Snake Plain as they adapt to the on-average 12.9% reduction in water availability. This thesis is divided into three primary sections (Chapters 2, 3, and 4). </p> <p>Chapter 2 investigates tradeoffs in adaptation decision making, employing semi-structured interviews to learn more about tradeoffs as a framework for understanding adaptation more broadly. In particular, the work seeks to understand the types of tradeoffs present in ESP adaptation and when and how tradeoffs are implicitly or explicitly acknowledged. Findings indicate that tradeoffs occur both at the individual and regional scale and that shifts in crop patterns and irrigation water sourcing may have important implications for adaptation policy moving forward. </p> <p>Chapter 3 employs a household survey and statistical analysis to investigate the iterative and complex relationships between exposure, adaptive capacity, sensitivity, and vulnerability. As an early attempt to examine these relationships quantitatively in the context of US agriculture and water stress, the works focuses on laying out a clear theoretical and methodological framework for continued exploration of adaptation and vulnerability in this context. Findings indicate that under-theorized components of adaptive capacity like linking capacity and exposure to simultaneous stressors may play important roles in determining farmer vulnerability in the context of policy-induced water scarcity. </p> <p>Chapter 4 is designed to investigate and develop a novel tool for exploratory work in adaptation, examining the feasibility and predictive accuracy of an agent-based model of agricultural adaptation driven by social-psychological decision-making theories and parameterized using both secondary data sources and primary fieldwork. Findings indicate that such models may have the potential to produce well-informed macro-level patterns based on theoretically-informed micro-level inputs. This has important implications for the broader agent-base modeling community, and the work concludes with a call for further collaboration between agent-based modelers and social science theorists. </p> <p>Collectively, this work seeks to inform theory on agricultural adaptation and vulnerability, as well as explore the potential role of theoretically-informed agent-based modeling in investigating such dynamics. In doing so, it lays the groundwork for future exploration of these ideas in the Eastern Snake Plain and throughout the arid American West. </p>

Psychological research regarding mental imagery is heterogeneous in nature owing to its internal nature. Mental imagery involving music is most simply defined as hearing music in the mind’s ear. Musical imagery (MI) is an understudied phenomenon particularly by means of non-experimental methods. This study investigated four dimensions of everyday MI: namely it’s content, nature, constancy and associated corporeal manifestations (for instance, foot-tapping, humming and so forth), via experience-sampling methods. Stage one of data collection involved a cross-sectional survey (n = 87) whereby participants provided retrospective self-reports concerning MI, pertinent demographic information, and particulars concerning their musical history. Stage two – implemented subsequent to piloting – utilised iterative sampling to illuminate the dimensions and descriptive facets of MI during everyday activities. Each participant (n = 16; 8 musicians; 8 non-musicians) was selected based on specific inclusion criteria, following stage one participation, and were invited to complete 21 questionnaires over seven days, receiving three SMS prompts per day. In terms of prevalence, MI was consistently experienced by participants, regardless of their musical background although musicians reported higher rates of MI occurrences. There was a statistically significant association between MI and musical training/experience (χ² = 6.35; d.f. = 1; p = .012). Furthermore, odds ratios suggested that the musicians demonstrated an 85% likelihood of experiencing MI as compared to the non-musicians (OR 1.85; CI 1.14 – 2.99). Daily exposure to music appeared to be an equally significant factor relating to every day MI incidences, particularly given the finding that the majority of participant’s MI episodes were familiar and recently heard.

Syftet med studien var att undersöka om det fanns en skillnad mellan män och kvinnor gällande hur de upplever det psykologiska kontraktets uppfyllelse samt om någon av kommunikationsdimensionerna (personlig feedback, relation med överordnad, kommunikationsklimat och delaktighet i organisationen) kan predicera upplevelsen av det psykologiska kontraktet. Data samlades in genom en webbaserad enkät som besvarades av 62 respondenter. Enkäten bestod av tre delar som behandlade bakgrundsfrågor, psykologiska kontrakt (med frågor från Psychological contracts across employment situations, PSYCONES) och nöjdheten med kommunikationen (Communication Satisfaction Questionnaire, CSQ). Genom t-test och regressionsanalys i SPSS, konstaterades det att det inte fanns någon signifikant skillnad mellan hur män och kvinnor upplever det psykologiska kontraktet samt att kommunikationsdimensionen delaktighet i organisationen predicerar upplevelsen av det psykologiska kontraktet. / The aim of the study was to investigate whether there was a difference between men and women how they perceive the fulfilment of the psychological contract and if any of the communication dimensions (personal feedback, relationship with supervisor, communication climate and organizational integration) can predict the psychological contract. Data was collected through a web-based survey that was answered by 62 respondents. The survey had three parts that included background questions, psychological contracts (questions from Psychological contracts across employment situations, PSYCONES) and communication satisfaction (Communications Satisfaction Questionnaire, CSQ). Through t-test and regression analysis in SPSS it was found that there was no difference between how men and women perceived the psychological contract and that participation in the organization predicts the experience of the psychological contract.

Introdução: A partir da implantação do PSF como estratégia de operacionalização das diretrizes do SUS, surgiu a necessidade de reorganização da assistência, principalmente, em relação às demandas até então desconhecidas pelos profissionais. No caso específico da UBS Jd. Boa Vista, os usuários portadores de lesões de pele crônica, demandou uma reestruturação das práticas de cuidado. O presente estudo, portanto, foi desenvolvido no âmbito das tecnologias na atenção para o cuidado de famílias com pessoas portadores de lesões de pele, tendo como objeto, a reconstrução das práticas de enfermagem na UBS Jd. Boa Vista à luz da Promoção da Saúde. Objetivo: Descrever as tecnologias presentes na intervenção de enfermagem realizada na UBS Jd. Boa Vista. Caminho Metodológico: A metodologia escolhida para desenvolver a pesquisa insere-se na abordagem qualitativa, a partir de dois casos selecionados do projeto de intervenção realizado na UBS Jd Boa Vista. O método escolhido para o desenvolvimento do trabalho foi o “fluxograma analisador", um diagrama muito usado por diferentes campos de conhecimento, com a perspectiva de \"desenhar\" um certo modo de organização de um conjunto de processos de trabalho. A escolha desse método para o tema em questão, diz respeito à perspectiva de compreensão e análise com vistas aos processos emancipatórios do campo da promoção da saúde. Resultados e Discussão: Considerando a complexa configuração tecnológica do trabalho em saúde, este estudo evidenciou que somente as tecnologias-duras (equipamentos, materiais e infra-estrutura) não são suficientes para se transformar a realidade. Ao realizar uma intervenção em saúde, é essencial a utilização dos nossos conhecimentos de como trabalhar a relação de cidadania entre o usuário e o serviço (tecnologias leves), além de incorporar às ações, conceitos como empowerment, advocacy, educação em saúde e abordagem familiar / Introduction: From the implantation of the PSF as strategy of operation of the lines of direction of the SUS, the necessity of reorganization of the assistance appeared, mainly, in relation to the demands until then unknown for the professionals. In the specific case of the UBS Jd. Boa Vista, the carrying users of chronic injuries skin, it demanded a reorganization of the practical of care. The present study, therefore, was developed in the scope of the technologies in the attention for the care of families with carrying people of skin injuries, having as object, the reconstruction of the practical of nursing in the UBS Jd. Boa Vista to the light of the health Promotion. Objective: To describe the technologies existing in the intervention of nursing carried through in the UBS Jd. Boa Vista, from cases of carrying users of chronic injuries of skin Method: The chosen methodology to develop the research is inserted in the qualitative boarding, from two selected cases of the project of intervention carried through in the UBS Jd Boa Vista. The method chosen for the development of the work was the \"analytic flowchart\", a very used diagram for different fields of knowledge, with the perspective \"to draw\" a certain way of organization of a set of work processes. The choice of this method for the subject in question says about to the perspective of understanding and analysis with sights to emancipation processes of the field of the health promotion. Results: Considering the complex technological configuration of the work in health, this study evidenced that the main technologies that we have to use to carry through the actions are much more in our knowledge of how to as work the relation of citizenship between the user and the service and the activities of group of management, instead to equipment, physical spaces, and others, although to be necessary. Beyond concepts as empowerment, advocacy, education in health, familiar boarding and education in health, to reveal essential for the concretion of an intervention in health

O presente trabalho investiga o estado do corpo na cibersociedade através de um leque variado de abordagens e teorias. Para introduzir o assunto, foi elaborada inicialmente uma retrospectiva da sutil transformação do corpo em imagem, processo que tem suas raízes fincadas tanto nos primórdios do cristianismo, que legitimou o culto às imagens do corpo de Cristo, quanto nos estudos de anatomia do início da modernidade. As duas heranças contribuíram para a consolidação de um modelo generalizado baseado no corpo morto, hipóteses levantadas pelo pensador alemão Dietmar Kamper, e que anunciam a ascensão do corpo como máquina. Daí, passou-se à pós-modernidade, mais especificamente ao que Jean Baudrillard chama de hiper-realismo, isto é, momento em que as simulações do mundo substituem o próprio mundo, para entender o processo análogo de constituição dos simulacros do corpo. Chega-se, então, finalmente à hipermodernidade, termo encabeçado pelo canadense Arthur Kroker, para indicar que o real torna-se cada vez menos assimilável e que o corpo estaria gradativamente desaparecendo. Com base nestes pressupostos, partiu-se para a investigação de algumas teorias que afirmam que o corpo hoje é um híbrido, formado pela junção entre o orgânico e o inorgânico, também conhecido como corpo-ciborgue, ou biocibernético, e que anunciaria um estágio pós-evolutivo do homem. Através do pensador Lucien Sfez, percebeu-se como estas teorias harmonizam-se tanto com uma utopia que procura criar uma Super-Humanidade, quanto com os ideais ascéticos tão criticados por Friedrich Nietzsche. Portanto, investigou-se na obra do filósofo alemão as considerações relativas ao corpo, conjugando-as com as do pensador francês Antonin Artaud, a fim de localizar em ambos autores como se dá, através do corpo, a estratégia de escape da linguagem. Isso conduz à tópica do Real lacaniana e que Dietmar Kamper lança mão para compreender o corpo como não assimilável à linguagem. Kamper também investiga a ligação do corpo com as múltiplas dimensões, chegando à conclusão de que ele, na comunicação digital, precisa abandonar gradualmente seus sentidos a fim de alcançar o ponto zero da abstração total, de modo que a única maneira de recuperá-los seria através de saltos dimensionais. Por fim, retoma-se o corpo sentiente, em quiasma, desenvolvido por Merleau-Ponty, e que surge de seu contato com o mundo e que antecede a linguagem, remetendo a Michel Serres que, apesar de criticar fortemente a fenomenologia, recupera o importante papel dos sentidos e do movimento do corpo como centrais na constituição de um conhecimento que está em constante mutação e que se coaduna com o pensamento de Nietzsche. / The current work investigates how the body is perceived in cybersociety, and the theories and approaches that have been related to it. The introduction presents a retrospective of the process through which the body has been transformed into an image. This process has its roots in early Christian theology, which legitimizes the cult of the image of Christ body, and anatomy studies started in the Modern age. The two approaches of the perception of the human body mentioned contributed to the creation of a single interpretation based of the dead body. This is the hypothesis of Dietmar Kamper and they announce the ascension of the bodymachine. The idea of the body as a machine has been adapted to the post-modern reality, more specifically to what Jean Baudrillard calls hyper-reality the moment when simulations and models substitute the very perception of the world itself. Hyper-reality theory and models were then used to base and reflect the constitution of simulacra of the body. Hence hyperrealism was the term coined by the Canadian thinker Arthur Kroker, and it indicates a state in which reality itself becomes less and less tangible while the perception of the body gradually disappears. Based on these propositions the thesis investigates some of the theories that affirm that the human body today is a hybrid, formed through the junction between the organic and the inorganic, also known as cyborg-body, or biocybernetic-body, which announces a postevolutionary stage of man. Through the thinker Lucien Sfez, it was perceived how these theories are in balance with an utopia that tries to create a Super-Humanity and with the ascetics ideals so criticized by Friedrich Nietzsche. Therefore it was investigated in the german philosopher´s work his observations related to the body, as well as the ones of the french thinker Antonin Artaud, in order to locate in both authors how would happen the strategy of the scape of the language through the body. This leads to the Lacanian concept of the Real and that Dietmar Kamper takes to understand the body as not assimilable to the language. Kamper also looks for the linking between the body and the multiple dimensions, getting to the conclusion that it to be in the digital communication needs to leave its senses gradually in order to reach the zero point of the whole abstraction. The only way to recover the senses would be through dimensional leaps. Finally, it is taken the sentient body concept, in chiasm, developed by Merleau Ponty. This body emerges from the contact with the world and precedes the language, leading to Michel Serres that, although a strong critic to phenomenology, recovers the main role of the senses and the movement of the body in the constitution of a knowledge that is in constant change and which can be associated to the Nietzsche´s thought.

Neste trabalho analisam-se os modelos conceituais e operacionais de brand equity baseado no cliente apresentados na literatura acadêmica. Sendo essa a alternativa para explorar o tema: documentar os modelos de brand equity, bem como as diferenças conceituais e empíricas entre os modelos de brand equity, pela ótica do cliente. Neste contexto, surge o seguinte problema de pesquisa: Os modelos existentes na literatura (teórico-práticos) de brand equity, baseado no cliente, podem compor um modelo de mensuração aplicável à realidade brasileira? Para isso faz-se uma pesquisa descritiva com o intuito de apresentar e enumerar os modelos de brand equity baseados no cliente, constantes entre os autores em ciências sociais aplicadas. Os resultados dessa parte do trabalho são tabelas resumo da literatura, apresentadas em capítulo específico, bem como as interpretações provenientes dessas análises. Elabora-se, então, uma pesquisa empírica para verificar a relação existente entre as dimensões que compõem o brand equity baseado no cliente e o mix de marketing organizacional. É desenvolvido análise da literatura, análise de confiabilidade, regressões, e modelagem de equações estruturais. Nessa pesquisa empírica encontra-se as análises de confiabilidade (Alpha de Cronbach´s), onde verificou-se que as dimensões propostas inicialmente por Aaker (1998) e Keller (1993) têm alta confiabilidade de escala. O patrimônio total da marca e a percepção dos preços, propostos por Yoo, Donthu e Lee (2000) também têm alto poder de confiabilidade na escala em português. Na análise das regressões completa, tradicional, e confiável do brand equity, baseado no cliente, houve uma semelhança de resultados. Apesar de algumas diferenças nos números e valores de R2 e de erro, esses foram muito próximos deixando as três equações propostas com mesma significância e valor de predição. Esse valor de predição para as três equações de regressão são moderados/baixos, demonstrando uma predição da variável dependente em grau leve pelas variáveis independentes, propostas nos modelos de regressão. Seguidos das análises de ajustes, verossimilhança, e significância da modelagem de equações estruturais m.e.e. Os objetivos do trabalho, propostos inicialmente, foram alcançados de forma clara e apresentados melhor no decorrer deste trabalho. Essa pesquisa empírica foi replicada para o Brasil, utilizando-se como base o trabalho de Yoo, Donthu e Lee (2000), sendo uma investigação agora desenvolvida nacionalmente. Tendo como alvo da pesquisa o setor de sapatos esportivos de uma grande marca mundial Adidas. / In this paper examine the conceptual and operational models of based-client brand equity presented in the academic literature. This being the alternative to explore the theme: documenting models of brand equity, as well as differences between the conceptual and empirical models of brand equity, through the eyes of the customer. In this context, there arises the following research problem: The existing models in the literature (theoretical and practical) of based-client brand equity can make a measurement model applicable to the Brazilian reality? For this it is a descriptive research in order to present and list the models of basedclient brand equity, listed among the authors applied social sciences. The results of this study are part of the summary tables of literature, presented in separate chapter, as well as interpretations from these tests. It elaborates, then, empirical research to verify the relationship between the dimensions that comprise the client-based brand equity and organizational marketing mix. It is developed literature analysis, reliability analysis, regression, and structural equation modeling. In this empirical research is the analysis of reliability (Cronbach\'s Alpha), where it was found that the dimensions initially proposed by Aaker (1998) and Keller (1993) have high reliability scale. The total equity of the brand and the perception of prices, proposed by Yoo, Donthu and Lee (2000) also have high reliability in the power of scale in Portuguese. In the analysis of complete regressions, traditional and trusted brand equity, based on the client, there was a similarity of results. Despite some differences in the numbers and values of R2 and error, these were very close to leaving the three equations with the same significance and value prediction. This predictive value for the three regression equations are moderate / low, showing a prediction of the dependent variable in mild by the independent variables proposed in the regression models. Followed by analysis of settings, likelihood and significance of structural equation modeling s.e.m. The objectives of the work originally proposed, were reached in a clear and better presented in this all paper. This empirical research has been replicated in Brazil, using as basis the work of Yoo, Donthu and Lee (2000), an investigation now being developed nationally. Targeting the research sector of athletic shoes of a great global brand - Adidas.