O objeto desta dissertação é a estrutura de preferência do consumidor (EPC). O objetivo geral é estudar os métodos de mensuração da EPC (MMEPC) e o tema é a mensuração desta estrutura, utilizando a técnica estatística Conjoint Analysis (CA). A CA proporciona uma maneira realista de medir o impacto de cada atributo de um produto na preferência do consumidor. Esta técnica estatística tem sido cada vez mais aplicada em problemas de Marketing. Alguns softwares têm surgido e provocado o aumento de uso desta técnica. A dissertação discute uma aplicação real desta técnica num problema de definição de um tecido de linho ótimo para um conjunto de especialistas. A ênfase está no planejamento do experimento fatorial fracionário para a estimação do modelo individual cuja variável resposta é posto e os atributos são qualitativos. Modelos lineares de célula de referência e de desvios foram construídos para a análise do experimento. Utilizou-se o modelo linear aditivo não-saturado. Alguns dos principais softwares foram analisados: SPSS, SAS, ACA, CBC e CVA. O autor define um projeto de software de planejamento de experimentos fatoriais fracionários ótimos segundo a eficiência-D. O estudo dos MMEPC pode proporcionar as seguintes contribuições à Administração: otimização de projetos de produtos/serviços/conceitos, quantificação da EPC, segmentação de mercado, determinação da probabilidade de escolha ou participação esperada do mercado de produtos/serviços/conceitos num determinado cenário e simulação (predição) de preferências individuais e agregadas. / The purpose of this dissertation is the consumer’s preference structure (CPS). The general objective is to study the methods of mensurement of CPS (MMCPS) and its main purpose is to measure that structure using the statistical technique Conjoint Analysis (CA). The CA provides a realistic way to measure the impact of the attribute of a product on the consumer’s preference. This statistical technique is being used more and more in marketing problems. Some softwares have emerged and increased the use of this technique. This dissertation discusses a real application of this technique on the problem of definition of a linen tissue for a specialist group. The emphasis is on the design of a fractional factorial experiment for estimation of a individual model in wich the response variable is rank and the attributes are qualitative. Linear models of a cell of reference and deviations were constructed for the experimental analysis. Used one a non satureded linear model. Some of the main softwares were analysed: SPSS, SAS, ACA, CBC and CVA. The author defines a software project for optimum fractional factorial experimental design and analysis, according to D-efficiency. MMCPS studies can provide the following contribution to Management: products/services/concepts optimization, CPS quantification, marketing segmentation, choice probability determination on the expected participation of the products/services/concepts market in a particular scenario and the simulation (prediction) of individual and aggregate preferences.

Introdução: pesquisas sobre consumo de café têm sido feitas para determinar os componentes da bebida e suas respectivas funções, além de características sensoriais e efeitos associados à saúde humana. A cafeína é uma das substâncias psicoativas mais consumidas no mundo. Durante as últimas cinco décadas, seu consumo mundial per capita dobrou através do consumo de água cafeinada, de bebidas energéticas e, principalmente, do café. Por este motivo, muitos trabalhos têm sido realizados sobre os efeitos fisiológicos desta substância, resultando na impossibilidade de se chegar a um consenso sobre seus efeitos positivos e negativos. Tal dicotomia acarreta um aumento do consumo de café descafeinado, muitas vezes por aconselhamento médico. A descafeinação é realizada nos grãos crus inteiros, antes do processo de torrefação. A maioria dos métodos de descafeinação existentes utiliza solventes para extração da cafeína, como diclorometano, clorofórmio, álcool, acetona, água e outros, sendo o diclorometano mais utilizado no Brasil. Embora existam vários estudos sobre a composição química do café integral, pouco se sabe sobre a composição do café descafeinado. Tais modificações químicas podem acarretar não somente alterações nas características sensoriais da bebida, como também em termos fisiológicos. Objetivo: identificar o grau de aceitação e de preferência da bebida de café preparada com grãos submetidos a diferentes condições de extração da cafeína em consumidores habituais da bebida. Métodos: três amostras de café foram submetidas aos métodos: tradicional (não descafeinado), descafeinado pelo método químico (diclorometano) e descafeinado pelo método natural (água), depois torrados e moídos. Cento e dez consumidores receberam as amostras do café, de forma monádica e aleatória, e o açúcar ou adoçante porcionados. Os testes foram executados pelo teste afetivo de aceitação com escala hedônica (1: desgostei muito a 7: gostei muito) para 4 atributos (cor, aroma, corpo e sabor). O café foi preparado e filtrado na concentração 7%. Os resultados foram coletados e analisados prelo programa Fizz (Byosysteme) - ANOVA e Tukey, p = 0,05). As amostras foram submetidas à análise física para determinar umidade, cinzas, proteínas, lipídios totais, carboidratos e cafeína. Resultados: o café descafeinado tratado pelo método químico apresentou média abaixo dos outros dois cafés nos quatro atributos, mas com diferenças estatisticamente significativa para o sabor e corpo. Entretanto, em relação ao sabor, houve diferença estatística entre os cafés tradicionais e descafeinado com água e o descafeinado com o diclorometano. Foram encontradas diferenças significativas nas análises físico-químicas para proteína e lipídios nos cafés descafeinados em comparação ao tradicional Discussão: a extração de compostos do café pelos métodos físico e químico resultou em diferentes bebidas no que se refere ao sabor. O método químico pôde mudar as características sensoriais da bebida. / Introduction: researches have been made to determine the coffee components and its functions, sensory characteristics and effects related to human health. Caffeine is one of the most consumed psychoactive substances in the world. During the last five decades, the worldwide caffeine consumption almost doubled, mainly trough coffee. For this reason, many studies have been conducted on the effects of this substance, resulting in the inability to reach a consensus on its positive and negative effects. This dichotomy ultimately causes increased consumption of decaffeinated coffee, often for medical advice. The decaffeination and raw whole grains in place before the process of roasting. Several methods of decaffeination use solvents for extraction of caffeine, dichloromethane is the most used in Brazil. During the extraction of caffeine, the loss of other components is expected. Objective: identify the degree of acceptance and preference of coffee prepared with different conditions of extraction of caffeine for habitual consumers of the drink. Methods: three samples of coffee were obtained: traditional (not decaf), decaffeinated by chemical method (dichloromethane) and decaffeinated by the natural method (water) and after roasted and grounded. 110 consumers received the coffee samples, monadic and random, with portionated sugar or sweetener. Tests were performed with affective form of quantitative assessment of (1: I hate very much to 7: I like very much) for 4 attributes (color, aroma, body and flavor). The coffee was filtrated (concentration 7%). The results were collected and analyzed through the Fizz (ANOVA and Tukey, p = 0,05) The samples were submited by a physicochemical analysis to determine moisture, ash, protein, total lipids, carbohydrates and caffeine. Results: the decaffeinated coffee treated by chemical methods presented lower acceptance when compared with the other two coffees on 4 attributes, but with differences to the flavor and body. However, related to flavor, there was statistical difference between the traditional and decaffeinated coffees with water with decaffeinated with the dichloromethane. Significant differences were found in physical-chemical analysis for protein and lipids in decaffeinated coffee compared to the traditional one. Discussion: the extraction of different compounds of coffee by the method of decaffeination showed particular physical and chemical differences of coffee flavor on the extraction with chemical method. This chemical method might change the sensory characteristics of the drink. No differences were perceived through the physicochemical analysis.

Lawns have become ubiquitous and have dominated cities and residential land for decades. Turf covers approximately 1.9% of the continental US, centered mostly around suburban and residential areas that are maintained through large amounts of water consumption, chemical applications, and mowing (Larson and Brumand, 2014). As drought in the Southwest has only become more severe and consistent, there has been a lot of research completed on what policy makers and conservationists can do about Americans’ landscape behaviors in order to increase plant biodiversity and lower outdoor water usage. Many variables such as income, environmental awareness, gender, and historical legacies have been found to have major effects on the kinds of landscapes Americans prefer, but the largest effect on landscape preference seems to be the broad and neighborhood social norms of the area. Local policy makers have been working to change the social norms of neat, mowed lawns as a symbol of wealth and social status by incentivizing homeowners to transition away from turf to native, drought-tolerant landscaping, but more education and financing options will be necessary in order to get better adoption rates and long-term benefits from these programs. In this thesis, I propose to examine spatial landscape patterns over time in Claremont using Geographical Information Systems and Google Earth technologies to better understand neighborhood norms and how important events such as awareness about the severity of the California drought or policy changes play a part in the city’s landscape behaviors.

No description available.

Given the background of rising economic inequalities, the topic has reentered the field of economic science. Yet the problem of how economic inequality is being mediated to the public is not discussed in economics at all, and hardly mentioned in communication studies. Through an analysis of recent empirical studies on the coverage of inequality in the media, we debate the role mass media play as information providers. Assessing the underlying assumptions and the methodological approaches guiding the respective empirical findings, we can highlight the merits of this body of work and identify open questions for further research. The last part of the article provides a discussion of (currently rather neglected) political economy theories that offer rich theoretical approaches to study media, power, and inequality.

Temperature preference, behavioral tolerance, and physiological tolerances were determined for locally captured, invasive juvenile lionfish at four different acclimation temperatures (13°C, 20°C, 25 °C and 32°C). Temperature preferences and avoidance temperatures were evaluated using an automated shuttlebox system that presents subject-driven temperature stimuli to subjects, who control the temperature with their movement throughout the tank for 12 hours. Subjects are tracked by a computer system, with data output approximately every second. Acute preference was calculated from the archived data as the mean temperature that the fish occupied during the first two hours of dynamic experimentation. Acute preference measurements were used to determine final temperature preferendum and avoidance temperatures were used to determine behavioral tolerance. Critical thermal methodology (CTM) determined the CTmin and CTmax of the lionfish with loss of equilibrium (LOE) as the endpoint. It is assumed that beyond this temperature, the fish would be unable to survive. Temperature was increased or decreased by 0.33°C per minute until the end point was reached. Thermal tolerance polygons provide a visual representation of the lower and upper thermal avoidance temperatures, delineating the thermal range of the species. Their CTmin and CTmax (acclimated to 25°C) were compared experimentally with two other Florida reef fish species (Cephalopholis cruentata and Lutjanus apodus). Acute preferences of juvenile invasive lionfish showed a final preferendum at 28.7 ± 1°C, but with no significant difference between acclimation temperatures. The thermal tolerance polygon of invasive lionfish shows a strong correlation between CTM and acclimation temperature, with the highest CTmax at 39.5°C and the lowest CTmin at 9.5°C. The thermal polygon, preference, and avoidance data describes the thermal niche of the lionfish. Lionfish CTM (24.61°C) is narrower than those of C. cruentata (25.25°C) and L. apodus (26.87°C).

Sacoglossan sea slugs are one of the best known examples of specialist herbivores in the marine environment and can be found strongly associated with their algal hosts and food sources. Perhaps the most intriguing characteristic of many sacoglossans is their ability to sequester functional chloroplasts from their algal food sources in a process called kleptoplasty. Despite this, there continues to be issues regarding taxonomic identification of species. In turn, the ecological characteristics of many of these slugs, such as algal host and food source preference, as well as their behavioral aspects, have received little attention. A prime example of these issues arises in one such kleptoplastic sacoglossan found at Sunset Beach, Tarpon Springs, USA. The slug had previously been identified as Elysia patina based on a recent description, but later evidence suggested this was incorrect. Furthermore, despite the evidence found for the slug’s photosynthetic capabilities, little was known of its ecological relationships and behavior. The purposes of this study were to: 1) correct the uncertain taxonomy of the Tarpon Springs slug previously identified as Elysia patina, and 2) explore the ecological and behavioral characteristics of the slug. First, a comparative study was performed between the Tarpon Springs slug and its original description, as well as descriptions for the superficially-similar congener slug, Elysia papillosa. The gross anatomy, dorsal surface vascular morphology, radular morphology, egg mass morphology, and developmental timeline of the Tarpon Springs slug were used as means of comparison with the previous descriptions. The results of the comparison show that the Tarpon Springs slug was in fact E. papillosa rather than E. patina, and that the most recent description used to identify the slug as E. patina was incorrect and should not be used. Second, a descriptive study of the ecological and behavioral aspects of E. papillosa at the Sunset Beach site were performed. From October 2014 to September 2015, bi-weekly algal collections were made to determine the seasonal abundance of the slug and a possible relationship between slug abundance and algal abundance. Next, a second collection study was performed bi-monthly from April to July 2016 to identify the preferred algal host of E. papillosa between the three most abundant rhizophytic algae at the site, Penicillus capitatus, Penicillus lamourouxii, and Halimeda incrassata, all of which have been previously reported as being hosts of E. papillosa. The results of these studies showed no relationship between slug abundance and algal abundance, however E. papillosa was found to have a seasonal population fluctuation, with the fewest slugs found in winter and summer months and the most slugs found in the spring and fall months, especially in April and May. Elysia papillosa was also found in significantly higher numbers on the alga P. capitatus compared to the other two algal species, although some slugs were found on P. lamourouxii. Only one slug was found on H. incrassata, indicating it is not being used as a host despite previous reports. Further exploration into the genetics of sequestered chloroplasts would provide critical details into E. papillosa’s feeding behavior in situ. Lastly, because of E. papillosa’s photosynthetic abilities, an experiment was performed to determine if E. papillosa exhibited phototactic behavior. Fully-fed slugs were found to have no preference for either light or dark conditions, indicating their behavior was not being influenced by their photosynthetic abilities. This information provides a means of comparison with future studies of the phototactic behavior of kleptoplastic slugs, and could provide insight into how the longevity of functional chloroplasts in each species of slug could influence their behavior.

Reflecting the growing interest from both consumers and policymakers, and building on recent developments in Willingness to Pay (WTP) methodologies, we evaluate consumer preferences for an archetypal traditional food product. Specifically we draw on stated preference data from a discrete choice experiment, considering the traditional Hungarian mangalitza salami. A WTP space specification of the generalized multinomial logit model is employed, which accounts for not only heterogeneity in preferences but also differences in the scale of the idiosyncratic error term. Results indicate that traditional food products can command a substantial premium, albeit contingent on effective quality certification, authentic product composition and effective choice of retail outlet. Promising consumer segments and policy implications are identified. (authors' abstract)

The overall aim of the thesis was to study clinical decision making in nursing. This was performed by evaluation of the quality of nurses’ diagnostic statements and comparison of the concordance between nurses and patients’ perceptions of the patients’ nursing needs, as well as patient preferences for participation in clinical decision making. Further, predictors regarding patients’ active participation were investigated. Quasi-experimental, comparative and cross-sectional descriptive study designs were used to collect data in acute care settings from randomly selected patient records (n = 140), nurse-patient dyads (n = 80), and patients discharged from hospital care (n = 428). Data were gathered using questionnaires and review of patient records. The quality of nurses’ diagnostic statements improved by the means of education directed to nurses and implementation of new forms for recording supporting nursing care planning (I). Discrepancies were found concerning patients and nurses’ perceptions about what constitutes a problem for the patient as well as the severity and importance of acting on the problem (II). Further, nurses perceived that their patients preferred to be more active in clinical decision making compared with the patients’ own preferences for participation (III). Gender, education, living situation, and occupation were identified as predictors for preferring an active role in clinical decision making (IV). The conclusions are that the accuracy of diagnostic statements needs to be addressed and validated further through systematic assessment of the patients’ perceptions and preferences concerning the health situation and preferences for participation in clinical decision making. Clinical implications are that nurses need to involve patients in identifying patient problems of relevance for nursing. Further, nurses also need to be aware of patients’ preferences for participation in clinical decision making in order that they can plan care in accordance with patient preferences and allow participation to the degree preferred by the patient. / Patientens delaktighet i kliniskt beslutsfattande i omvårdnad – ett gemensamt ansvar för patienter och sjuksköterskor Bakgrund Patienten har, med bas i lagstiftning och förordningar, en stark ställning inom svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Det grundas delvis på en samhällelig uppfattning om betydelsen av patientens delaktighet i såväl planering som genomförande av sin egen vård. I ett etiskt perspektiv har delaktigheten ett värde i sig själv, som en förutsättning för individens autonomi och integritet. Sjuksköterskan identifierar patientens behov och problem i syfte att kunna ge en individuellt anpassad omvårdnad. Sjuksköterskan har ofta djupgående professionell kunskap om patientens omvårdnadsproblem, medan patienten har preferenser och värderingar om vårdens genomförande. Om planeringen av omvårdnaden inte utgår från patientens preferenser så finns det stor risk att patientens perspektiv inte kommer med som bedömningsgrund. En samsyn mellan patient och sjuksköterska om patientens behov av omvårdnad och roll i beslutsfattandet kan öka möjligheten att optimera omvårdnadsinsatserna och främja en hög kvalitet på omvårdnaden. Kunskapen om kliniskt beslutsfattande inom omvårdnad är bristfällig, framförallt med fokus på patientens delaktighet och graden av samsyn mellan patienternas och sjuksköterskornas subjektiva perspektiv. Syfte Avhandlingens övergripande syfte var att undersöka kliniskt beslutsfattande inom omvårdnad med speciellt fokus på omvårdnadsdiagnosers kvalitet, patientens delaktighet i beslutsprocessen och överensstämmelsen mellan patienters och sjuksköterskors uppfattningar om behov och problem inom omvårdnad. Specifika syften för respektive delarbeten var att I) undersöka effekten av utbildning i omvårdnadsdiagnostik riktad till sjuksköterskor och utveckling av journaldokument på omvårdnadsdiagnosers kvalitet; II) beskriva överensstämmelse i patienters och sjuksköterskors bedömningar av förekomst, svårighetsgrad och betydelse av problem inom omvårdnaden; III) beskriva samstämmighet mellan patienters och sjuksköterskors uppfattning om patientens preferenser för delaktighet i kliniskt beslutsfattande i omvårdnaden, samt samstämmighet mellan patienters preferenser och faktiska erfarenhet av delaktighet; och IV) identifiera prediktorer för patienters preferenser att delta i kliniskt beslutsfattande om den egna omvårdnaden. Material och metod Studier har genomförts med beskrivande, jämförande och kvasi-experimentell design på avdelningar inom somatisk sjukhusvård. Urvalet består av 140 patientjournaler (studie I), 80 patient-sjuksköterskepar (studie II och III), samt 428 patienter som nyligen blivit utskrivna från somatisk sjukhusvård (studie IV). Data har insamlats genom granskning av innehåll i patientjournaler samt genom enkäter till patienter och sjuksköterskor. Instrumenten CAT-CH-ING och Control Preference Scale har använts tillsammans med frågeformulär som utvecklats specifikt för studien. Resultat Delarbete I Kvaliteten på omvårdnadsdiagnoserna förbättrades signifikant efter att sjuksköterskorna på experimentavdelningen genomgått en utbildning och nya journaldokument hade introducerats. Störst kvarvarande svårigheter var förknippade med hur etiologin i omvårdnadsdiagnosen formulerades. Omvårdnadsdiagnosernas kvalitet förbättrades inte på motsvarande sätt på kontrollavdelningarna. Delarbete II Sjuksköterskorna identifierade de omvårdnadsbehov och problem som patienterna uppfattade sig ha med en sensitivitet på 0.53 och ett prediktivt värde på 0.50. Det innebär att patienterna delvis identifierade andra problem än sjuksköterskorna, framför allt var det vanligt inom områdena nutrition, sömn, smärta och känslor/andlighet. Sjuksköterskorna underskattade problemens svårighetsgrad för 47 % av de behov och problem som hade identifierats gemensamt av patienter och sjuksköterskor. En gemensam uppfattning om betydelsen av att få stöd och hjälp med att lösa omvårdnadsproblemet fanns i knappt hälften av fallen. Delarbete III En majoritet av sjuksköterskorna uppfattade att patienterna föredrog att vara mer aktiva i det kliniska beslutsfattandet om omvårdnad än vad patienterna själv uppgav. Sammanlagt 61 % av patienterna föredrog en passiv roll i beslutsfattandet medan sjuksköterskorna angav att 24 % ville vara passiva. Preferenser om en aktiv roll i beslutsfattande angavs av 9 % av patienterna medan sjuksköterskorna hade uppfattat att 45 % av patienterna föredrog en aktiv roll. Totalt 71 % av patienterna upplevde att de inte hade varit delaktiga i den utsträckning de själva hade föredragit, 37 % hade varit mer passiva och 34 % mer aktiva. Patienterna uppgav att de intagit en mer passiv roll än vad de hade önskat i samband med behov och problem inom områdena kommunikation, andning och smärta, medan en mer aktiv roll än önskat förekom i samband med behov och problem inom områdena aktivitet och känslor/roller. Delarbete IV En majoritet av patienterna i sluten somatisk vård föredrog att inledningsvis under vårdperioden inta en passiv roll i kliniskt beslutsfattande om omvårdnad. Sammanlagt 22 % av patienterna föredrog en aktiv roll. Faktorer som predicerade preferenser för att inta en aktiv roll var kön (Odds ratio [OR] = 1.8), utbildning (OR = 2.2), levnadsförhållanden (OR = 1.8) och sysselsättning, d.v.s. om personen var yrkesarbetande eller pensionär (OR = 2.0). Sannolikheten var 53 % att en pensionerad högutbildad kvinna som levde ensam föredrog att vara aktiv i beslutsfattandet om sin egen omvårdnad. Sannolikheten för att en yrkesarbetande lågutbildad man som levde tillsammans med någon annan föredrog att vara aktiv var 8 %. Slutsats Kvaliteten på de omvårdnadsdiagnoser som sjuksköterskan ställer kan förbättras genom utbildning men orsakerna till omvårdnadsproblemet behöver identifieras på ett tydligare sätt. Det fanns en skillnad i hur patienter och sjuksköterskor uppfattade vad som utgjorde ett omvårdnadsbehov eller problem samt problemets svårighetsgrad och betydelse. Sjuksköterskan identifierade 53 % av de omvårdnadsproblem som patienten själv identifierade, samtidigt som sjuksköterskan identifierade andra omvårdnadsproblem som inte patienten uppfattade. Uppfattningarna skiljde sig också åt om vilken roll patienten föredrog att ha i det kliniska beslutsfattande om omvårdnad. Faktorer som kunde predicera patientens preferenser att ha en aktiv roll i kliniskt beslutsfattande var kön, utbildningsnivå, boendesituation och om personen yrkesarbetade eller var pensionär. En slutsats av den påvisade diskrepansen i uppfattningar är att sjuksköterskor i högre grad behöver involvera patienterna i en diskussion om hälsotillståndet, behovet av omvårdnad och patientens önskan att delta i beslut om sin omvårdnad. Det är nödvändigt för att så långt det är möjligt kunna uppnå en samsyn som grund för planering och genomförande av omvårdnaden. Om sjuksköterskan validerar sina egna bedömningar om behovet av omvårdnad med patienten kan kvaliteten på bedömningarna förbättras. Patientens perspektiv blir en explicit del av beslutsunderlaget vid planering av omvårdnad vilket sannolikt också påverkar omvårdnadens innehåll och därmed även omvårdnadens kvalitet. Det bästa sättet att identifiera det individuella perspektivet är genom en systematisk bedömning i dialog mellan sjuksköterskan och den enskilde patienten. Mötet och dialogen mellan patienten och sjuksköterskan är en förutsättning för en god omvårdnad men är också en central del av själva omvårdnaden.

Comparative studies of taste perception have found that primates may differ markedly in their sensitivity for substances perceived as sweet by humans. These findings raise questions about the reason that may underlie these differences in sweet-taste sensitivity between species. The aim of the present study was to assess the taste responsiveness of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) to seven substances tasting sweet to humans and to compare the results with those of other primate species. Using a two-bottle preference test (1 min) I found that the taste preference thresholds of the chimpanzees for five food-associated carbohydrates ranged between 20-30 mM for sucrose, 20-50 mM for fructose, 60-80 mM for glucose, 50-80 mM for maltose, and 30-80 mM for lactose. Taste preference thresholds for two steviol glycosides ranged from 0.04-0.05 mM for stevioside, and 0.03-0.05 mM for rebaudioside A. The chimpanzees displayed clear preferences for all sweet-tasting substances presented. In line with data obtained in other primates, the taste preference threshold of the chimpanzees for sucrose was lower compared to the other carbohydrates presented and the taste preference thresholds for stevioside and rebaudioside A were lower compared to sucrose. In general, the taste sensitivity of the chimpanzees fell into the range of data reported in other nonhuman primate species. Interestingly, the taste preference thresholds of the chimpanzees reported here are similar to the taste detection thresholds obtained in humans, despite the fact that the former are only a conservative approximation of an animal’s taste sensitivity. This suggests that chimpanzees may be as sweet-taste sensitive as humans.