Quality of life is a term that has been used in various ways by researchers in different fields. In regional or community research, researchers have been concerned to a large extent with a persons overall quality of life as affected by factors such as income, housing, marital status, gender, and regional/community human services. The present research concerns the relationship between perception of quality of life and the use of human services in the community. The data were from Lexington-Fayette County, Kentucky. Family systems theory served as the underlying conceptual framework for this study. Family systems theory would predict that residents perception of quality of life is generally affected by the availability/use of resources and services. These resources and services can be classified as internal and external. According to family systems theory, three domains were identified as potentially affecting ones perception of quality of life: (1) individual characteristics; (2) family characteristics, and (3) use of community human services. Results from the individual perspective showed that being currently married, ownership of residence, education, and young age were positive contributions to perceptions of quality of life. There were no gender or race differences in perceived quality of life. From a family perspective, perception of quality of life was influenced by household income and health situation. From the community human services perspective, neighborhood safety was an important contributor to perception of quality of life. As for financial assistance, turning to family or friends, banks, utility companies, Community Action Council or Department of Community-based Services, and Medicare were more common uses of services than churches or clergy, food banks, the Salvation Army, social/survivor income, and other persons or agencies. This study also investigated gender, income, and age differences in the association of perception of quality of life with the presence of urgent needs for basic living by use of community-based human services. The results provided a broad context for interpreting perception of quality of life. In conclusion, this study provided baseline information concerning perceptions of quality of life and use of community human services by households. The findings provided insight into residents perceptions of quality of life based on their individual characteristics, family situation, and community human services as components contributing to perceptions of quality of life.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:51:33Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 BrunoLM_DISSERT.pdf: 2677185 bytes, checksum: 59d6c7f2a5582f186ddaa89a7bb20002 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-12 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / Diante da crescente preocupa??o com os aspectos ambientais e os impactos negativos que s?o ou que podem ser gerados quando uma destina??o tur?stica ? oferecida, intensifica-se a urg?ncia de adotar ferramentas capazes de promover a sustentabilidade dessa destina??o e tamb?m criar a vantagem competitiva necess?ria dentro do mercado, agregando valor aos produtos e servi?os tur?sticos. Neste contexto, o presente estudo tem como objetivo principal analisar a percep??o do turista sobre a qualidade ambiental e de servi?os tur?sticos apresentados no destino Jo?o Pessoa (PB). A escolha do objeto de estudo justifica-se por Jo?o Pessoa estar inserida numa realidade onde se encontra relev?ncia ambiental, o que pede uma aten??o referente ao comportamento dos envolvidos no processo tur?stico local. Como procedimentos metodol?gicos da pesquisa, optou-se por uma revis?o bibliogr?fica, levantamento de dados secund?rios e uma pesquisa emp?rica, de cunho quantitativo, aplicando-se a caracteriza??o s?cio demogr?fica da amostra definida e as an?lises descritiva e fatorial das dimens?es e vari?veis obtidas com base nos modelos de pesquisa ECOSERV de Khan (2003), SERVQUAL de Parasuraman, Berry e Zeithalml (1985) e SERVPERF de Cronin e Taylor (1992). Tal question?rio, que de acordo com os resultados se mostrou confi?vel, permitiu analisar o desempenho, depois de adaptado, da destina??o em quest?o. Os resultados forneceram uma an?lise detalhada do perfil dos visitantes e do desempenho das dimens?es e vari?veis da qualidade ambiental e de servi?os tur?sticos, apontando, neste sentido, caminhos mais assertivos, na tomada de decis?o gerencial, a exemplo do marketing verde, para compor um destino tur?stico coerente com os produtos e servi?os oferecidos

La presente investigación tuvo como principal objetivo determinar la percepción de calidad de las usuarias de los servicios Control Prenatal y Parto en clínicas de categorías II y III de Lima Metropolitana y cómo esta información puede ser considerada como valiosa para generar un incremento de la demanda de atenciones en dichos establecimientos de salud. La metodología empleada se ha enmarcado dentro del enfoque cuantitativo porque ha estado conformada por un conjunto de procesos secuenciales que buscan determinar el nivel de percepción de la calidad. Para analizar las dimensiones que constituyen la calidad del servicio se ha utilizado la metodología Valoración del Desempeño – SERVPERF (por sus siglas en inglés). Para evaluar la percepción de la calidad de servicio se han establecido las siguientes dimensiones: Fiabilidad, Seguridad, Tangibilidad, Capacidad de Respuesta y Empatía. Para ello se construyó un cuestionario, que fue validado por criterio de especialistas y estadísticamente mediante el Coeficiente Alfa de Cronbach; obteniendo un resultado equivalente a 0,935 que indica una alta confiabilidad. El resultado general ha mostrado que sólo el 32,9% de las encuestadas ha percibido la calidad de los servicios de Control Prenatal y Parto en clínicas de categorías II y III de Lima Metropolitana como buena. El 65,3% la ha percibido como regular y un 1,8%, como mala. Las dimensiones más valoradas como buenas han sido las de Seguridad y Tangibilidad con un 42,67% y 40,87%, respectivamente. La Capacidad de respuesta ha sido la dimensión más valorada como mala (11,31% del total de las personas encuestadas). / The main objective of this research was to determine the perception of quality of the users of prenatal control and childbirth services in category II and III clinics of Lima Metropolitana and how this information can be considered valuable to increase in the demand for care in these health facilities. The methodology used has been framed within the quantitative approach because it has been made up of a set of sequential processes that seek to determine the level of perception of quality. The Performance Valuation – SERVPERF methodology has been used to analyze the dimensions of service quality. The following dimensions have been established to assess the perception of quality of service: Reliability, Safety, Tangibility, Responsiveness and Empathy. To do this, a questionnaire was built, which was validated by specialist criteria and statistically by the Cronbach Alpha Coefficient; obtaining a result equivalent to 0.935 indicating high reliability. The overall result has shown that only 32.9% of respondents have perceived the quality of Prenatal Control and Childbirth services in category II and III clinics in Lima Metropolitana as good. 65.3% have perceived it as regular and 1.8% as bad. The dimensions most valued as good have been Safety and Tangibility with 42.67% and 40.87%, respectively. Responsiveness has been the most valued dimension as bad (11.31% of the total respondents). / Tesis

No description available.

This study investigated the perceptions of quality held by undergraduate students enrolled in an online degree program, and examined the connections between these perceptions and retention in an online learning environment. Three main research questions guided this study: (1) What are the characteristics of quality that are desirable for academic success in online distance education? (2) How well does the university manage selection and retention of students and control dropout rates in online learning environment? and; (3) How well does the university foster learning based on information about (a) student engagement, (b) the time and effort students devote to educationally sound activities (within and outside the classroom), (c) policies and practices the institution uses to induce students to take part in those activities, and (d) policies and practices at their institution, even if unintended, that hinder students' full participation? What are the connections between student perception of quality and retention in an online learning environment? A group of students at a medium-sized state university in central California composed of sophomores, juniors and seniors enrolled in a psychology course participated in interviews. The study employed a qualitative method to collect opinions and data from students who chose to learn in an online environment, examined students' experiences, determined those efforts that promote or hinder learning and higher student retention as perceived by the students, and presented from three main domains; (a) administration, (b) faculty, and (c) students. The findings of the study indicate that some of the characteristics of quality perceived by students as desirable include individual discipline and instructors that are more understanding and encourage students to learn. Administrative and technical support was also rated high on the list. Overall, students desired programs that were convenient and provided sufficient flexibility to accommodate other of life's challenges. The study confirmed expert opinions that when a student has positive personal experiences, possesses positive individual motivation, in an environment with positive attrition factors, it is predictable that the student could attain completion of course or program. The connections between the student's perception of quality and retention then are those personal experiences, individual motivation and positive attrition factors within the distance education learning culture. The quality of these connection variables determines a student's commitment to complete online education and commitment to the university.

nÃo hà / O Projeto CinturÃo Digital do Cearà (CDC) à uma iniciativa do Governo local, em parceria com o MinistÃrio da CiÃncia, Tecnologia e InovaÃÃo (MCTI), para prover internet de alta velocidade, com qualidade, objetivando universalizar o acesso à informaÃÃo. Este trabalho objetiva analisar se existe efeito do CinturÃo Digital quanto à qualidade do acesso à internet nas escolas pÃblicas estaduais do CearÃ. Esta medida de qualidade à definida pelas percepÃÃes dos diretores, extraÃdas dos questionÃrios socioeconÃmicos contidos na Prova Brasil (INEP) referentes aos perÃodos de 2009 (antes do projeto), e de 2011 (apÃs a implementaÃÃo do CDC). Como nem todas as escolas foram beneficiadas pelo CDC, foi possÃvel empregar o mÃtodo de diferenÃas em diferenÃas, para avaliar os resultados e impactos ocasionados pelo projeto. Verificou-se pela estatÃstica descritiva que os diretores das escolas beneficiadas perceberam uma melhora absoluta e relativa quanto à qualidade do acesso à internet para uso dos alunos. O diferencial em favor destas foi de 7,4 pontos percentuais nas mÃdias. No entanto, no modelo logit estimado, o diferencial positivo a favor das escolas beneficiadas nÃo foi estatisticamente significante, fazendo com que os resultados de impacto nÃo sejam robustos. / Digital Belt design of Cearà (CDC) is an initiative of the local government, in partnership with the Ministry of science, technology and innovation (MCTI), to provide high-speed internet, with quality, aiming to universalize the access to information. This work aims to analyze whether there is Digital belt effect on the quality of internet access in public schools State of CearÃ. This measure of quality is defined by perceptions of Directors, drawn from socio-economic questionnaires contained in Brazil (INEP) relating to periods of 2009 (before the project), and 2011 (after implementation of the CDC). As not all schools were benefited by the CDC, it has been possible to employ the method of differences in differences, to assess the results and impacts caused by the project. It was found by descriptive statistics that the directors of the schools benefited realized an improvement absolute and relative quality of internet access for use of the student use. The differential in favour of these was 7.4 percentage points in the medium. In estimated logit model, however, the positive differential in favour of schools benefited was not statistically significant, causing the impact results are not robust.

The Kano method1 was used in order to determine the benchmark requirements of an educational web portal. A comprehensive list of possible specifications for an educational portal was constructed by examining the characteristics of educational portals globally. This information was used to develop a questionnaire in accordance with the Kano method. A number of hand-picked expert users were asked to answer the questionnaire. The results obtained from these questionnaires were used to categorize the importance of each component of a web portal as a “one-dimensional”2 , “must-be”3 or “attractive”4 requirement. The components categorized as “must-be” requirements were used to generate the benchmark of the minimum specifications of an educational web portal. Copyright / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Curriculum Studies / MEd / Unrestricted

Actualmente, se conoce que existe una gran variedad de métodos multidimensionales que permiten medir la calidad del servicio del cliente que ofrecen los restaurantes, por lo tanto, resulta de gran importancia contar con un estudio que permita conocer los beneficios y limitaciones que tiene cada uno de estos para así aplicar el más adecuado según corresponda. Por tal motivo, el propósito de la presente investigación, es el de realizar un análisis comparativo del uso de los distintos métodos y herramientas que actualmente existen para poder medir la calidad de servicio en los distintos tipos de restaurantes. Para la realización de este trabajo de investigación se realizó una exhaustiva revisión bibliográfica, tanto en inglés como en español, de este modo se obtuvo distintos puntos de vista desde perspectivas completamente diferentes de la percepción de la calidad de servicio y la expectativa del consumidor. Cabe mencionar que la totalidad de las fuentes son actuales, dado que se encuentran entre los años de 2015 como máximo al 2020. Las fuentes encontradas mencionan que la calidad de servicio es un término que varía según el contexto en el que este sea evaluado y de manera específica dependiendo del tipo de establecimiento. Por ello, se explica que existen una gran diversidad de métodos que son empleados para medir la calidad de servicio en restaurantes: Servqual, Kano Model, Servperf y Dineserv. Por lo tanto, se concluye que de todas las herramientas y métodos que han sido comparados, Dineserv es aquel que presenta un mayor número de beneficios con respecto al resto de modelos, pues es específico para el sector de restauración. / Currently, it is known that there are a variety of multidimensional methods that allow us to measure the quality of customer service that is being offered in restaurants. Therefore, it is of huge importance to count with a study that allows knowing the benefits and limitations of each of these in order to apply the most appropriate. Due to these, the purpose of the present investigation is to make a comparative analysis of the use of the different methods and tools that currently exist to measure the quality of service depending on the restaurant type. To carry out this study, there has been an exhaustive investigation of bibliographic sources from different authors both in spanish and in english. In this way it will allow us to obtain different perspectives around the world about the perception of the quality of service and the consumer’s expectative. It is worth mentioning that the totality of the sources are current, since they are between the years of 2015 at most to 2020. The sources found mention that the quality of service is a term that varies depending on the context in which it is evaluated and to be more specific it depends on the type of establishment. Due to this, it is said that there are a variety of methods that are used to measure the quality of service in restaurants: Kano Model, Servperf and Dineserv. Because of that we can conclude that these tools and methods have been compared in terms of limitations and benefits in order to determine which of these adapts better according to the type of restaurant that is being analyzed. / Trabajo de investigación

Los requerimientos de los individuos van cambiando continuamente a causa de la globalización. Por tal motivo, las empresas de servicio deben responder de manera inmediata, con la finalidad de satisfacerlos y ser sostenibles en el tiempo. Sin embargo, muchas de estas organizaciones no les dan importancia a las necesidades de los empleados ni a los factores que influyen en el proceso de creación de nuevas ideas y atención al cliente. Es por ello que la presente investigación tiene como objetivo analizar el impacto de la satisfacción de los empleados de primera línea (FLE – frontline employees) en la percepción de calidad y la satisfacción del cliente en una organización. En consecuencia, se utilizó un método de estudio que consta de la recopilación de revistas científicas que ayudaron a analizar los comportamientos de los FLE y de los clientes. Asimismo, se identificaron los diversos elementos motivacionales durante el encuentro de servicio. Como resultado, se obtuvo que la satisfacción del cliente se ve influenciada por el desempeño y la satisfacción laboral de los FLE, ambos son producto de un agradable clima organizacional. Así, esta investigación es de gran utilidad para que los gerentes puedan conocer la percepción de la organización por parte de sus empleados y clientes, y para elaborar propuestas de mejora en los elementos del clima organizacional y favorecer los resultados de la organización. / The requirements of individuals are constantly changing due to globalization. For this reason, service companies must respond immediately in order to satisfy them and to be sustainable over time. However, many of these organizations do not give importance to the needs of employees and the factors that influence the process of creating new ideas and customer service. Therefore, this research aims to analyze the impact of front-line employee (FLE) satisfaction on the perception of quality and customer satisfaction in an organization. Accordingly, a study method was used, consisting of the collection of scientific journals that helped to analyze the behaviors of FLE and customers. The various motivational elements during the service encounter were also identified. As a result, it was found that the level of customer satisfaction is influenced by the performance and job satisfaction of FLE, both of which are products of a pleasant organizational climate. Therefore, this research will be useful for managers to learn about the perception of the organization by their employees and customers. Furthermore, it will be useful for developing proposals to improve the elements of the organizational climate and to improve the results of the organization. / Trabajo de Suficiencia Profesional