Comparison between ANN developed for one year and ANN with seasonal adjustments.
\\n\\n
These books synthesize perspectives of renowned scientists from the world’s most prestigious institutions - from Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute in Japan to Stanford University in the United States, including Columbia University (US), University of Sidney (AU), University of Miami (USA), Cardiff University (UK), and many others.
\\n\\nThis collaboration embodied the true essence of Open Access by simplifying the approach to OA publishing for Academic editors and authors who contributed their research and allowed the new research to be made available free and open to anyone anywhere in the world.
\\n\\nTo celebrate the 50 books published, we have gathered them at one location - just one click away, so that you can easily browse the subjects of your interest, download the content directly, share it or read online.
\\n\\n\\n\\n\\n"}]',published:!0,mainMedia:null},components:[{type:"htmlEditorComponent",content:'
IntechOpen and Knowledge Unlatched formed a partnership to support researchers working in engineering sciences by enabling an easier approach to publishing Open Access content. Using the Knowledge Unlatched crowdfunding model to raise the publishing costs through libraries around the world, Open Access Publishing Fee (OAPF) was not required from the authors.
\n\nInitially, the partnership supported engineering research, but it soon grew to include physical and life sciences, attracting more researchers to the advantages of Open Access publishing.
\n\n\n\nThese books synthesize perspectives of renowned scientists from the world’s most prestigious institutions - from Fukushima Renewable Energy Institute in Japan to Stanford University in the United States, including Columbia University (US), University of Sidney (AU), University of Miami (USA), Cardiff University (UK), and many others.
\n\nThis collaboration embodied the true essence of Open Access by simplifying the approach to OA publishing for Academic editors and authors who contributed their research and allowed the new research to be made available free and open to anyone anywhere in the world.
\n\nTo celebrate the 50 books published, we have gathered them at one location - just one click away, so that you can easily browse the subjects of your interest, download the content directly, share it or read online.
\n\n\n\n\n'}],latestNews:[{slug:"webinar-introduction-to-open-science-wednesday-18-may-1-pm-cest-20220518",title:"Webinar: Introduction to Open Science | Wednesday 18 May, 1 PM CEST"},{slug:"step-in-the-right-direction-intechopen-launches-a-portfolio-of-open-science-journals-20220414",title:"Step in the Right Direction: IntechOpen Launches a Portfolio of Open Science Journals"},{slug:"let-s-meet-at-london-book-fair-5-7-april-2022-olympia-london-20220321",title:"Let’s meet at London Book Fair, 5-7 April 2022, Olympia London"},{slug:"50-books-published-as-part-of-intechopen-and-knowledge-unlatched-ku-collaboration-20220316",title:"50 Books published as part of IntechOpen and Knowledge Unlatched (KU) Collaboration"},{slug:"intechopen-joins-the-united-nations-sustainable-development-goals-publishers-compact-20221702",title:"IntechOpen joins the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Publishers Compact"},{slug:"intechopen-signs-exclusive-representation-agreement-with-lsr-libros-servicios-y-representaciones-s-a-de-c-v-20211123",title:"IntechOpen Signs Exclusive Representation Agreement with LSR Libros Servicios y Representaciones S.A. de C.V"},{slug:"intechopen-expands-partnership-with-research4life-20211110",title:"IntechOpen Expands Partnership with Research4Life"},{slug:"introducing-intechopen-book-series-a-new-publishing-format-for-oa-books-20210915",title:"Introducing IntechOpen Book Series - A New Publishing Format for OA Books"}]},book:{item:{type:"book",id:"7806",leadTitle:null,fullTitle:"Public Sector Crisis Management",title:"Public Sector Crisis Management",subtitle:null,reviewType:"peer-reviewed",abstract:"The term “crisis management” was applied to business only after the publication of the monograph “Crisis Management: Planning for the Inevitable” by Steven Fink in 1986. Since then, this term has turned from a journalistic cliche into a scientific concept, and its concept, theory, and methodology have been further developed.It is the turning point in the meaning of the word “crisis” that indicates the possibility of changing the situation by making decisions that contribute to changing the vector of development of events from destruction to recovery and further development. From the above, the general definition of the term “crisis management” follows as a process of saving the system from its destructive effects. The activity of the crisis manager is always temporary and stops as a result of a favorable overcoming of the crisis or vice versa—the destruction of the system. Therefore, the criterion for the success of a manager in emergency crisis management is effectiveness as an absolute measure of the presence or absence of a result—it either exists or does not exist.",isbn:"978-1-83880-982-9",printIsbn:"978-1-83880-981-2",pdfIsbn:"978-1-83880-983-6",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.77623",price:119,priceEur:129,priceUsd:155,slug:"public-sector-crisis-management",numberOfPages:174,isOpenForSubmission:!1,isInWos:null,isInBkci:!1,hash:"84a998820880e0f006a5e9eac40d83e7",bookSignature:"Alexander Rozanov, Alexander Barannikov, Olga Belyaeva and Mikhail Smirnov",publishedDate:"October 28th 2020",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7806.jpg",numberOfDownloads:6386,numberOfWosCitations:0,numberOfCrossrefCitations:3,numberOfCrossrefCitationsByBook:0,numberOfDimensionsCitations:3,numberOfDimensionsCitationsByBook:0,hasAltmetrics:1,numberOfTotalCitations:6,isAvailableForWebshopOrdering:!0,dateEndFirstStepPublish:"June 3rd 2019",dateEndSecondStepPublish:"December 25th 2019",dateEndThirdStepPublish:"February 23rd 2020",dateEndFourthStepPublish:"May 13th 2020",dateEndFifthStepPublish:"July 12th 2020",currentStepOfPublishingProcess:5,indexedIn:"1,2,3,4,5,6",editedByType:"Edited by",kuFlag:!1,featuredMarkup:null,editors:[{id:"233092",title:"Dr.",name:"Alexander",middleName:null,surname:"Rozanov",slug:"alexander-rozanov",fullName:"Alexander Rozanov",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/233092/images/system/233092.jfif",biography:"Dr. Alexander S. Rozanov is a specialist in Global Security and a graduate of Lomonosov Moscow State University (Russia). He is the author of more than 60 scientific publications. After graduating, Dr. Rozanov worked in the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Russian Government. In 2014 he received his Ph.D. in Politics from Lomonosov Moscow State University. From 2014 to 2017, Dr. Rozanov was invited as a guest lecturer in several well-known universities – University of California, Santa Barbara (USA), Paris-Sorbonne (France), and Wroclaw University (Poland). Dr. Rozanov specializes in the analysis of global and regional conflicts, as well as the global dynamics of world development. He is a member of the European International Studies Association (Great Britain). Dr. Rozanov is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Regional Studies and International Cooperation at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.",institutionString:"Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"4",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"1",institution:{name:"Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration",institutionURL:null,country:{name:"Russia"}}}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,coeditorOne:{id:"303094",title:"Dr.",name:"Alexander",middleName:null,surname:"Barannikov",slug:"alexander-barannikov",fullName:"Alexander Barannikov",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/303094/images/system/303094.jfif",biography:"Dr. Barannikov has a PhD in Economics and Management. From 2012 to 2014, he was an independent expert of the Commission of the Federal Agency for the supply of weapons, military, special equipment and materiel on compliance with the requirements for official behavior of Federal civil servants of the Central Office of the Federal Agency. His list of scientific works includes more than 87 scientific works, including 39 inventions. Dr. Barannikov is a Professor at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.",institutionString:"Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"1",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"0",institution:null},coeditorTwo:{id:"303097",title:"Dr.",name:"Olga",middleName:null,surname:"Belyaeva",slug:"olga-belyaeva",fullName:"Olga Belyaeva",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/303097/images/system/303097.jfif",biography:"Dr. Olga Belyaeva is an Associate Professor at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration at the Department of Regional Management of the Faculty of International Regional Studies and Regional Management. She has a PhD in Regional Economy. Dr. Belyaeva has 2 specialties – a professional lawyer and an economist. Dr. Belyaeva has published more than 80 scientific publications. She has been providing lectures since 2006. From 2003 to 2006 she worked in the field of audits of small and medium-sized businesses.",institutionString:"Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"0",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"0",institution:null},coeditorThree:{id:"308591",title:"Dr.",name:"Mikhail",middleName:null,surname:"Smirnov",slug:"mikhail-smirnov",fullName:"Mikhail Smirnov",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/308591/images/system/308591.jfif",biography:"Michael Smirnov is a Professor at the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. He has a PhD in Law. For more than 15 years, Dr. Smirnov worked as a practical lawyer in international banks and consulting companies, at the same time providing lectures at Lomonosov MSU and Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. He is the author of more than 60 scientific publications. Dr. Smirnov is currently the head of the Academic Program ‘Legal Support of Financial Technologies’.",institutionString:"Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"0",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"0",institution:null},coeditorFour:null,coeditorFive:null,topics:[{id:"272",title:"Management",slug:"management"}],chapters:[{id:"72017",title:"Crisis Management and Communication Strategies: RUSAL’s Case",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.91644",slug:"crisis-management-and-communication-strategies-rusal-s-case",totalDownloads:637,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"No company is immune to crisis situations, an affirmation which, despite its triviality, is undeniably true. However, from the early 2014, such statement may have become even more true to Russian corporations, as the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula gave start to rounds of economic sanctions that are still perpetrated today. Such measures, which were initiated in response to the Kremlin’s political maneuvers, have hit a number of Russian companies, and increased the degree of uncertainty in which they have to operate, as they see economic restriction’s impact not only on the business activity tangible factors—i.e., economic rewards, service, and performance—but also on intangible factors—i.e., image and reputation—as well. Crises are integral parts of all world systems, unfortunately. While they are a theoretically well-understood issue, in practice, crises are perceived as a very painful phenomenon. A crisis can be compared to riding a roller coaster. First, as we gain speed and climb up the tracks we are filled with a sense of joy and delight. These feelings are quickly replaced with anticipation, panic, and fear as the roller coaster plunges into the “abyss.”",signatures:"Alexander Rozanov, Maria Ivanchenko, Alexandra Baranova, Mikhail Smirnov, Olga Belyaeva, Alexander Barannikov, Mikhail Ilichev, Ludmila Ilicheva, Biyaslan Tambiev, Maria Krotovskaya, Vladimir Chilingaryan, Tatiana Grabovich, Zaru Dulatkyzy, Alla Nikolaeva, Svetlana Ivanova, Kwame Boateng, Mattia Masolletti, Marina Danilina, Dmitry Medvedev and Natalya Ogneva",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/72017",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/72017",authors:[{id:"233092",title:"Dr.",name:"Alexander",surname:"Rozanov",slug:"alexander-rozanov",fullName:"Alexander Rozanov"},{id:"303094",title:"Dr.",name:"Alexander",surname:"Barannikov",slug:"alexander-barannikov",fullName:"Alexander Barannikov"},{id:"312160",title:null,name:"Olga",surname:"Belyaeva",slug:"olga-belyaeva",fullName:"Olga Belyaeva"},{id:"312161",title:null,name:"Mikhail",surname:"Smirnov",slug:"mikhail-smirnov",fullName:"Mikhail Smirnov"},{id:"312162",title:null,name:"Alexandra",surname:"Baranova",slug:"alexandra-baranova",fullName:"Alexandra Baranova"},{id:"312163",title:null,name:"Natalya",surname:"Ogneva",slug:"natalya-ogneva",fullName:"Natalya Ogneva"},{id:"312164",title:null,name:"Dmitry",surname:"Medvedev",slug:"dmitry-medvedev",fullName:"Dmitry Medvedev"},{id:"312165",title:null,name:"Marina",surname:"Danilina",slug:"marina-danilina",fullName:"Marina Danilina"},{id:"312197",title:"Ms.",name:"Maria",surname:"Ivanchenko",slug:"maria-ivanchenko",fullName:"Maria Ivanchenko"},{id:"316770",title:"Dr.",name:"Mattia",surname:"Masolletti",slug:"mattia-masolletti",fullName:"Mattia Masolletti"},{id:"316771",title:"Dr.",name:"Kwame",surname:"Boateng",slug:"kwame-boateng",fullName:"Kwame Boateng"},{id:"317588",title:"Dr.",name:"Svetlana",surname:"Ivanova",slug:"svetlana-ivanova",fullName:"Svetlana Ivanova"},{id:"317589",title:"Dr.",name:"Alla A.",surname:"Nikolaeva",slug:"alla-a.-nikolaeva",fullName:"Alla A. Nikolaeva"},{id:"317590",title:"Dr.",name:"Zaru",surname:"Dulatkyzy",slug:"zaru-dulatkyzy",fullName:"Zaru Dulatkyzy"},{id:"317773",title:null,name:"Tatiana",surname:"Grabovich",slug:"tatiana-grabovich",fullName:"Tatiana Grabovich"},{id:"317774",title:null,name:"Vladimir",surname:"Chilingaryan",slug:"vladimir-chilingaryan",fullName:"Vladimir Chilingaryan"},{id:"318393",title:null,name:"Maria",surname:"Krotovskaya",slug:"maria-krotovskaya",fullName:"Maria Krotovskaya"},{id:"318394",title:null,name:"Biyaslan",surname:"Tambiev",slug:"biyaslan-tambiev",fullName:"Biyaslan Tambiev"}],corrections:null},{id:"72314",title:"The Political Economy of Crisis Recovery",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.92586",slug:"the-political-economy-of-crisis-recovery",totalDownloads:589,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"The aftermath of the global financial crisis marked another stress test for welfare states and varieties of capitalism. More than ever before, governments were forced to consider substantial reforms to welfare provision and enact flexibility-enhancing measures in order to improve financial solvency and economic performance. The crash, however, was not only a regionally uneven process in its origins but also led to makeshift or uneven policy responses. As a result, the socio-economic effects of the downturn and political reactions to it varied considerably among countries. Nevertheless, there have been some common trends in outcome measures. These have served to blur the dividing lines between different welfare states and production systems, so vividly captured in the mainstream political economy literature.",signatures:"Mohammad Ferdosi",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/72314",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/72314",authors:[{id:"316998",title:"Dr.",name:"Mohammad",surname:"Ferdosi",slug:"mohammad-ferdosi",fullName:"Mohammad Ferdosi"}],corrections:null},{id:"72395",title:"Contagion, Exchange Rate, and Financial Volatility: Indonesian Case in Global Financial Turbulence",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.92275",slug:"contagion-exchange-rate-and-financial-volatility-indonesian-case-in-global-financial-turbulence",totalDownloads:583,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"Global turbulence after the financial crisis has hit Indonesia and almost all emerging countries. Quantitative Easing (QE) normalization (tapering of) has caused the capital outflows from emerging countries. Trade war and increasing geopolitical tension together raise the pressure. Argentina and Turkey have been experiencing economic shock. Indonesia should identify the contagion possibility and refer to Thai baht contagion experience in 1997. This paper assesses the contagion, exchange rate, and financial volatility triggered by global turbulence and Argentina-Turkey crisis in 2018. We use vector autoregression (VAR), simple correlation, dynamic conditional correlation (DCC), and regression method. We will investigate the potential contagion both in stock and exchange rate markets and in the rupiah exchange rate determination from both contagion and fundamental factors regarding the balance of payment (BOP) condition. The empirical result shows the potential contagion from Argentina and Turkey’s financial crisis to the Indonesian economy, especially to the stock market and exchange rate. The regression and correlation result also shows that Turkey has a higher financial contagion effect than Argentina to Indonesian financial market. Balance of payment condition also has the significant effect to explain rupiah exchange rate depreciation.",signatures:"Telisa Falianty and Arif Budimanta",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/72395",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/72395",authors:[{id:"317414",title:"Dr.",name:"Telisa",surname:"Falianty",slug:"telisa-falianty",fullName:"Telisa Falianty"},{id:"317419",title:"Dr.",name:"Arif",surname:"Budimanta",slug:"arif-budimanta",fullName:"Arif Budimanta"}],corrections:null},{id:"73192",title:"State Capitalism in Belarus: Behind Economic Anemia",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.93606",slug:"state-capitalism-in-belarus-behind-economic-anemia",totalDownloads:876,totalCrossrefCites:2,totalDimensionsCites:2,hasAltmetrics:1,abstract:"Belarus’ economic model looked rather successful in the late 1990s and in the 2000s with its economic growth above 7% per year. But during the last decade, Belarusian annual economic growth has fallen at the average level around 1% per year. This chapter reveals the rarely known case of state capitalism in this post-Soviet country with its specific indicators, and instruments behind economic anemia. It also outlines several traps on the way of Belarusian economic growth: “debt trap,” “middle-income trap,” “social burden trap,” “resource curse trap,” “conflict neighbors trap,” and “forceful pressure trap.” These pitfalls lead to the long-term economic slowdown in the Republic of Belarus. The consequences of such economic anemia bring to another discussion about the role of public values in support of state capitalism in Belarus.",signatures:"Kiryl Rudy",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/73192",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/73192",authors:[{id:"323827",title:"Prof.",name:"Kiryl",surname:"Rudy",slug:"kiryl-rudy",fullName:"Kiryl Rudy"}],corrections:null},{id:"70824",title:"Crisis Management and the Public Sector: Key Trends and Perspectives",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.90855",slug:"crisis-management-and-the-public-sector-key-trends-and-perspectives",totalDownloads:1007,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:1,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"A crisis is a situation approaching a dangerous phase, which requires urgent intervention to avoid harmful effects on the body of an organization in order to return to normal situation. It is a decisive and critical time for the organization, where the wrong decision can even cost its viability. This situation can shape political, legal, economic, and governmental impact on its activities. From different definitions of crisis, we seek to underscore key elements of a crisis that may threat a public organization and, also, to highlight both the elements of management responsiveness resulting in the loss of control in the organization, regarding the short time demand for decision-making. The key purpose of this chapter is to illustrate the basis available in the international literature, upon which public risk mechanisms can be reviewed and chosen in public sector organizations under the scope of their applicability.",signatures:"Christos Lemonakis and Antonios Zairis",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/70824",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/70824",authors:[{id:"311797",title:"Dr.",name:"Christos",surname:"Lemonakis",slug:"christos-lemonakis",fullName:"Christos Lemonakis"},{id:"313069",title:"Prof.",name:"Antonios",surname:"Zairis",slug:"antonios-zairis",fullName:"Antonios Zairis"}],corrections:null},{id:"72981",title:"Applying Monte Carlo Simulation in New Tech",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.91264",slug:"applying-monte-carlo-simulation-in-new-tech",totalDownloads:371,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"Monte Carlo in Monaco is given to the theory for mathematics, whose simulation process involves generating chance variables and exhibiting random behaviours in nature. This simulation is a powerful statistical analysis tool and widely used in both non-engineering fields and engineering fields for new perspectives. This simulation has been applied to diverse problems ranging from the simulation of complex physical phenomena such as atom collisions, to the simulation of river boundary layers as meanders and Dow Jones forecasting. It can deal with many random variables, various distribution types and highly nonlinear engineering models, while Monte Carlo is also suitable for solving complex engineering problems in two areas which are varying randomly. Monte Carlo simulation is given as an application for hydrogen energy potential determination.",signatures:"Levent Yilmaz",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/72981",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/72981",authors:[{id:"305285",title:"Prof.",name:"Levent",surname:"Yilmaz",slug:"levent-yilmaz",fullName:"Levent Yilmaz"}],corrections:null},{id:"71352",title:"Management of Tourism Crisis in the Middle East",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.90174",slug:"management-of-tourism-crisis-in-the-middle-east",totalDownloads:647,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"This study looks for to recognize the realism of management of tourism crisis in Jordan (Amman Hotels’ Bombing case study). In order to show the role of the management and its effects in facing the tourism crisis in Jordan, the researcher will try to handle a group of points: finding a special concept for tourism crisis, crisis generative environment, management of tourism crisis, and studying Jordan management of the Hotel bombing in Amman. To clarify and achieve the objectives of the research, the researcher adopted the descriptive analytical approach to what is stated in the most important books and references Arab and foreign periodicals, statistics, and official reports relating to the ethics of the research. It is recommended, in this study, to provide training opportunities for all people who have a role in the management of tourism crisis especially in the communication sector, the massive presence of police in the tourism site, hotels, and all the tourism places under the condition of not being seen, and to provide the qualified policemen with modern defensive weapons.",signatures:"Omar Jawabreh",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/71352",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/71352",authors:[{id:"311791",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Omar",surname:"Jawabreh",slug:"omar-jawabreh",fullName:"Omar Jawabreh"}],corrections:null},{id:"70464",title:"Exploring the Three-Way Destination Safety Solution to Crisis Management in Tourist Destinations in Rural Nigeria",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.89727",slug:"exploring-the-three-way-destination-safety-solution-to-crisis-management-in-tourist-destinations-in-",totalDownloads:616,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"Development of tourist destinations is among topical issues in national discourse for economic growth and sustainability. The past two decades have witnessed massive development and investment in tourist destinations in rural areas. This is owing to the fact that rural tourism has been identified as among the development options for rural communities in most developing nations. Of recent, crisis and other safety issues have been among the militating factors against tourist destinations hence the cry for destination safety. These are said to emanate from the activities of the three major principals in the management of tourist destinations (hosts, tourism resources, and tourists/visitors). Incidentally, destination safety discourse is source of worry for these principal factors in tourist destination management. This has left many tourist destinations devastated, abandoned and abused. However, this chapter proposal would seek to identify the way out of this predicament. It tends to explore the meaning and application of the three-way destination safety (TWaDeSS) model in the management of crisis at tourist destinations in rural Nigeria. This will not only promote harmony among the three major principals in tourist destination but also enhance the rate of investment as a result of quality crisis control in these destinations.",signatures:"Elochukwu A. Nwankwo",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/70464",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/70464",authors:[{id:"308906",title:"Dr.",name:"Elochukwu",surname:"Nwankwo",slug:"elochukwu-nwankwo",fullName:"Elochukwu Nwankwo"}],corrections:null},{id:"69310",title:"Crisis Management in Nigeria’s Public Sector and the Impact of the Organised Labour Union: Interrogating the Nexus between Industrial Harmony and Political Stability",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.89562",slug:"crisis-management-in-nigeria-s-public-sector-and-the-impact-of-the-organised-labour-union-interrogat",totalDownloads:450,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:1,abstract:"This study sought to explore the dynamics in managing crisis in the Nigerian public sector and its engagement with the organised labour, with a view to determining the interface between industrial harmony and political stability in the country. This study is predicated on the fact that crisis management is essentially embedded in humanity. Additionally, the study was informed by the established and widely held view by scholars, that social groups by their nature and context, are in fact characterised by conflicts. Consequently, the study established that the public sector in every society is not immune against conflict or crisis, and this will naturally arise as long as there is interaction between and among human elements in the two sectors. The author used the terms—crisis and conflict—interchangeably in the study, and pointed out that the methodology adopted was a descriptive and analytical approach. This is informed by the sources of information accessed which are essentially secondary. The study concluded by asserting that given the humanity-linked nature of conflict, its management in the public sector, particularly in Nigeria, will continue to be an unavoidable responsibility of the government. This is to ensure that the right environment is created to guarantee smooth governance.",signatures:"Daniel Taye Medoye",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/69310",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/69310",authors:[{id:"308852",title:"Dr.",name:"Daniel Taye",surname:"Medoye",slug:"daniel-taye-medoye",fullName:"Daniel Taye Medoye"}],corrections:null},{id:"71859",title:"The Police Development and Protection of Soft Targets",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.92072",slug:"the-police-development-and-protection-of-soft-targets",totalDownloads:613,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,hasAltmetrics:0,abstract:"This paper describes the function and development of the requirements for modern and high-quality equipment and accessories and also equipment used by the specialized units of the police force of the ČR with a practical example. This is offered in the form of a draft requirement for a transport means – a multifunctional special vehicle, intended specifically to intervene in situations against demonstrators, extremists, and football hooligans. 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The main objective of key performance indicators (KPIs) evaluation and monitoring consists in detecting low performance in power plant operation, investigating issues and setting up maintenance plans in order to minimize the operational costs. Another objective is to point out the commissioning and inspection of power plants after major repairs so that the results recorded during a period of at least 6 months will be compared with the expected results from the climatic conditions, design and exposure point of view, etc. The objective entails identifying errors related to layout in case of renewables (especially photovoltaic power plants), incorrect installation, equipment failure, damage, premature aging, etc.
In order to provide a real time and complete analysis of KPIs, it is necessary to develop informatics systems that monitor and report the operational activity of the power plant and offers decision support for stakeholders. Various informatics solutions and applications are currently proposed and used, especially for renewable power plants’ management: decision support systems (DSS) for wind power plants with (GIS) Geographic Information Systems capabilities [1], DSS for off-shore wind power plants [2] or GIS DSS for photovoltaic power plants [3]. Also, there are well-known software solutions for power plants’ complete management provided by Siemens or Emerson that can be set up and customized depending on the equipment’s configuration, location and size.
In this chapter, we will present the main key performance indicators for wind and photovoltaic power plants, identify new indicators for maintenance activities and propose an informatics solution that monitors and analyzes these KPIs through an interactive dashboard developed as a business intelligence portal accessed as a cloud computing service. The proposed solution is developed as part of the research project—intelligent system for predicting, analyzing and monitoring performance indicators and business processes in the field of renewable energies (SIPAMER), funded by National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation, Romania, during 2014–2017.
The main objectives of assessing the technical performance of power plants based on renewable sources are
Monitoring the operation of generating units or groups, identifying decline in their performance and also the need to perform maintenance/repairs on the affected groups. In this case, we recommend the use of energy performance index (EPI) and compensated performance ratio (CPR);
Commissioning, recommissioning or evaluation after repairs, benchmarks for measuring and comparing further performance. We recommend using energy performance index (EPI) and power performance index (PPI);
Calculating specific parameters such as yield, performance ratio (PR) to enable comparisons between power plants operation in different geographical areas and assisting decisions regarding investment in new groups or extending existing ones. In some cases, depending on the objectives, it is recommended to use several indicators (yield, PR, CPR, and/or EPI, depending on the level of effort and the level of uncertainty), so that the comparison to be more efficient.
Technical performance indicators allow the following comparisons:
Operation of the power plant or a group compared with expectations at some different points in its runtime period;
Operation of the power plant for a period of assessment compared to other power plant operation under similar climatic conditions;
Standard power plant operation on short and long term in comparison with power plant operation under certain conditions (design, location, exposure, etc.);
Power plant operation in consecutive time, the current performance being compared to past performance.
The main objective of the technical performance evaluation consists in detecting the decrease of power plant performance, investigating issues and completion of the maintenance operations, so that the involved costs are minimal.
In this section, we will present a series of key performance indicators for monitoring the operation of the wind power plants (WPP) and photovoltaic power plants (PPP). For a better analysis, we grouped KPIs in four categories: operational KPIs, indicators for photovoltaic power plants, indicators for wind power plants, and maintenance KPIs.
The average power (
onshore WPP, t = 1900 hours/year;
offshore WPP, t = 3500 hours/year;
solar, t = 1100 hours/year.
The average power calculated at different time intervals is necessary to determine the installed power load factor.
Installed power load factor (
This coefficient can be calculated on monthly, quarterly or annually basis and indicates the availability of renewable resource and production capacity of the power plant. Also, it can indicate the degree of generating units or equipment’s aging but must be correlated with meteorological factors that influence the production. For example, for wind power plants, the installed power load factor can range between 0.15 and 0.39.
Installed power load duration (
For photovoltaic power plants, the number of operating hours can be accordingly reduced, considering only those daytime hours when the PPP is operating. We may consider [4] for reference to operational time.
Maximum power load duration (
Power factor (cos
Power factor is monitored for energy quality assurance.
Performance index (PI) is the ratio between the generated power/energy and forecasted power/energy:
As described in [5], unlike performance ratio, index performance should be very close to 1 for the proper functioning of the PPP, and it should not vary from season to season due to temperature variations. There are several definitions of formal performance index:
Energy performance index (EPI)—measures the energy (kWh) for a specific time period;
Power performance index (PPI)—measures the effective power of the power plant (kW).
Energy or power forecast can be determined using different prediction models (regression model using historical data operation or system advisor model (SAM) which uses current climate data as input), thus the accuracy of performance index depends on the accuracy of the used forecast model. In Section 3, we will present a forecasting model based on artificial neural networks (ANN) for estimating the generated energy for photovoltaic and wind power plant.
Several technical performance indicators for PPP were defined by different organizations, for example, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) [6], the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) [7], associations and companies in the industry. Some of them are described in the following sections:
1. Performance ratio (
Where:
Performance ratio can be evaluated on different time intervals (hourly, monthly, quarterly and annually). The main disadvantage of this indicator is that it is sensitive to temperature variations, and when plotted in a typical year, the index values are lower in warm periods and higher in cold periods.
It can be calculated on annual basis to make comparisons between photovoltaic power plants having similar climatic conditions but is not suitable for short periods of time or for comparing PPP efficiency under different climatic conditions.
2. Compensated performance ratio (CPR)
As reflected in the performance ratio formula, it is directly influenced by the energy produced by the photovoltaic power plant, which is directly influenced by solar irradiation and indirectly by the cell temperature. Therefore, it appears that PR decreases with increasing temperature.
According to [5, 8], offsetting factors such as cell temperature (
Where
This indicator is suitable for daytime values due to the fact that during night, the PPP production, irradiation and insolation are zero.
3. The yield is the ratio between the PPP’s produced energy (kWh) during the operation time (
The yield is determined annually based on the formula:
Due to the fact that the yield increases with the number of hours of operation and insolation etc., a high yield due to favorable climatic conditions can mask problems of premature aging of the equipment and vice versa.
When comparing the performance for two power plants or the yield for the same PPP in different periods of time, then the number of hours, insolation and cell temperature must be equivalent to achieve a fair comparison. Also, the power plant output (measured annually or at smaller intervals) can be compared with PPP’s output from previous years. In this case, it must be taken into consideration the climate influence and correct the differences with a correction coefficient, to avoid masking problems of degradation of solar panels.
4. Normalized efficiency is another KPI for measuring the performance ratio [8]:
Where:
Exposure to irradiation measures the total available solar exposure, and it is based on location exposure and direction of modules. It is calculated at the module level and average at central level. In order to maximize exposure to irradiation, modules are oriented towards the equator, the tilt modules depending on geographical latitude of the location. Optimal orientation in terms of space restrictions may not coincide with the orientation that maximizes exposure (due to the fact that a lower slope leads to more modules in a project).
One drawback of the performance index is that the normalized efficiency is sensitive to temperature variations, as any change in temperature leads to changes in efficiency, power and consequently in the produced energy.
Changing efficiency or power for a photovoltaic module can be quantified using the temperature coefficient of power γ, which allows the module power (or efficiency) to be modelled to a certain temperature. For silicon crystals, γ is between −0.3%/°C (for newer technologies) and −0.5%/°C (for older technologies).
Power for a certain temperature for a photovoltaic cell is determined by:
Where
The temperature—corrected power (
Thus, the temperature-corrected normalized efficiency can be expressed as:
This indicator shows the performance of the photovoltaic module as if it operates at standard temperature (TSTC). In this way, the technical performance of the PPP can be attributed to other factors, such as the irradiance spectrum or inverter efficiency at lower irradiances [9].
1. Specific energy production (SPE) measured in kWh/m2 for a wind turbine is defined in [10] as the ratio between total energy production during nominal period (W) and swept rotor area (SSR):
The nominal period is the period covered by the report, usually considered as 1 year. SPE is also called as energy yield or energy productivity [11], and it depends on the turbines’ rated power.
2. Capacity (load) factor (CF %) defined in [11] is the ratio between total energy production during the nominal period (
Usually, the capacity factor varies depending on the turbines specifications and climate conditions between 18 and 40% for onshore turbines and 30–40% for offshore turbines.
3. Equivalent full load hours (
4. Availability factor (%) represents an important indicator especially for WPP due to the wind influence that affects the turbines’ generation and can be calculated as ratio between total hours of operation during the reported period (
Several maintenance strategies have been developed as described in [12, 13] with the main objective to preserve the efficiency of power plants’ components. Each of these methodologies has its own characteristics, but mainly they focus on internal characteristics of the power plants’ components. The industry has adopted for a long period of time maintenance that focuses on corrective actions. But, in recent years, the maintenance plans focus on predictive maintenance where monitoring or inspection activities are performed to determine the best time to start the maintenance in order to minimize the efforts compared to corrective maintenance.
Preventive maintenance activity has a direct impact on the reliability of the equipment or components by improving their technical condition and prolonging their life. All maintenance procedures involve both costs and benefits. Maintenance operations are profitable when the costs are lower than associated potential cost of a failure, which these operations are trying to prevent. Most of the maintenance plans on short and medium term do not take into account the operation conditions in which the components operated throughout their runtime but rather are scheduled based on the occurrence of defects and previous repairs. But, in recent years, several applications for continuous monitoring of current operation led to the development of a variety of diagnostic techniques. According to [14], these techniques verify certain parameters and then analyze whether certain components are defective at the moment and can make an estimate of their evolution.
The main purpose of the maintenance plan is to minimize production costs per unit of energy generated. In general, this is achieved by minimizing operational and maintenance costs, improving turbine/photovoltaic panels’ performance and efficiency and lowering insurance policy and equipment’s protection. Thus, we proposed two KPIs for determine the loss due to preventive (planned) maintenance or to corrective (unplanned) maintenance.
1. Preventive loss indicator (PLIplan) is the ratio between estimated energy loss caused by planned interruptions and the maximum energy that can be produced during the reported period (usually 1 year).
Where:
2. Corrective loss indicator (PLIunplan) is the ratio between estimated energy loss caused by unplanned interruptions and the maximum energy that can be produced during the reported period.
Where:
Depending on these indicators, the maintenance policy can be schedule in order to minimize the production losses.
In order to analyze and monitor the key performance indicators, the executives of the power plants require an advanced decision support system (DSS). Our proposal consists in developing an informatics solution based on three levels architecture that involves models for data management, analytical models and interfaces (Figure 1):
SIPAMER’s architecture.
The architecture components are as follows:
All data sources gathered from wind/photovoltaic power plants are extracted, transformed and loaded into a central relational database running Oracle Database 12c Edition in order to enable user access through cloud computing. The sources are heterogeneous: measuring devices for climate conditions (wind speed, direction, temperature, atmospheric pressure, and humidity), sensors for photovoltaic cells and wind turbines, SCADA API for measuring real-time parameters regarding power plant output. These sources are mapped into a relational data stage; then, the extract, transform and load (ETL) process is applied, and data are finally loaded into a relational data mart that organizes objects as dimensions and facts. This approach makes it easier the development of the analytical model with KPIs framework and enables an advanced roll-up/drill-down interfaces.
Based on the executives’ requirements regarding the KPIs, we designed the main structural entities (objects) that will enable multidimensional data exploration. They will be organized as dimensions (subject entities) with descriptive attributes structured on hierarchies with multiple levels to enable typical OLAP operations: roll-up/drill-down, slicing and dicing. The data mart contains the following dimensions: DIM_STAKEHOLDER, DIM_POWERPLANT, DIM_REGION, DIM_TURBINE, DIM_PV and DIM_TIME.
Facts tables are objects that contain attributes like measures (metrics) and foreign keys to the dimension tables. Facts are usually numerical data that can be aggregated and analyzed by dimensions’ levels. The model contains the following facts: FACT_PV_OUTPUT and FACT_WIND_OUTPUT. The objects are organized in a snowflake schema as shown in Figure 2.
Snowflake schema for the KPIs data mart.
The data mart allows us to design the KPIs framework in a subject-oriented and multidimensional view.
This level contains models for forecasting the power plant output on short term (hourly, up to 3 days) and the KPIs analytical framework.
We identified the input parameters (irradiance, temperature, wind speed & direction, tilt, exposure) and the output (power), and for the training and validation, we used a data set that consist of 50,631 samples from every 10 minutes direct measurements in a PPP located in Romania, Giurgiu County, during January 1, 2014—December 31, 2014. Within this photovoltaic power plant are installed two types of ABB—PSV800 invertors, with 600 kW and 760 kW, 30,888 solar panels and the solar module has a rated power of 245 W with a 20-kV connection. The configuration is widely used in other PPP; therefore, the developed ANN can be easily implemented in other power plants with similar configuration.
Since solar energy presents seasonal variations related to the various climate conditions of the year, we designed the neural networks adaptable to irregular seasonal variations by changing the settings on the number of neurons in hidden layers and developed two types of ANN.
First, we designed one neural network for each of the three algorithms (LM, BR and SCG) based on the whole year data. The results were good, with an average mean squared error (MSE) of 0.19, and average for correlation coefficient, R = 0.95, with 0.9573 for LM.
Then, we consider the second option, to take into account the seasonal variations for solar energy, and we designed neural networks based on LM, BR and SCG for each month. So, we obtained 36 neural networks with a much better results than the previous case (yearly ANNs). Comparing results from the monthly data, we found that the prediction accuracy is excellent in all months, and monthly performance indicators have comparable values. The MSE is between 0.03 and 0.1, and coefficient R is between 0.997 and 0.999. For example, Figure 3 shows the correlation coefficient for the neural network
Regression between target values and the output values of the neural network
By comparing the forecasting results through the development of neural networks based on the three algorithms, we found that in 69% of cases, neural networks developed with Bayesian regularization produced a better generalization than networks developed with Levenberg-Marquardt and SCG algorithms. But, in 31% of cases, the forecasting results with the highest level of accuracy have been obtained in the case of Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm.
If, in order to improve the accuracy of the forecasting model, new elements are added as input data, the LM algorithm will offer the advantage of a higher training rate compared with the BR algorithm but would have the disadvantage of an increased memory consumption. When new inputs are added and we want to obtain a high speed and performance, then the best solution is to develop the ANN based on SCG algorithm as it is faster than the other two algorithms (LM and BR) requiring low memory consumption, with the drawback that it provides a lower level of prediction accuracy.
We identified the input parameters (temperature, wind speed & direction at 50 m, 55 m, 75 m, 90 m, humidity, atmospheric pressure, turbine height, soil orography, slipstream effect) and the output (power). For ANN training and validation, we used a data set of 17,491 samples from hourly measurements in a WPP located in Romania, Tulcea, for 2 years (January 1, 2013–December 31, 2014). In this WPP, there are two types of wind turbines: V90 2MW/3MW IEC IA/IIA, with a height of 90 meters. These types of wind turbines are commonly used, so we can consider the data set suitable for training a generalized neural network, as described in [17].
Since wind energy presents seasonal variations over 1 year period, we design two sets of ANN based of three algorithms: Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm (LM), Bayesian regularization algorithm (BR) and scaled conjugate gradient algorithm (SCG).
First, we designed the neural network based on data set covering 2 years records for each algorithm (LM, BR and SCG). For the second solution, we take into account seasonal variations that affect wind energy and designed neural networks for each season, dividing the data into 4 sets corresponding to 4 seasons specific to Romania region. The results between the ANN trained for the whole year and the ANN trained for corresponding season are compared in Table 1.
Period | MSE | R | Errors interval | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
LM | BR | SCG | LM | BR | SCG | LM | BR | SCG | |
Year | 0.06090 | 0.05789 | 0.06640 | 0.92922 | 0.93306 | 0.92739 | −0.9651; 0.8758 | −1.001; 0.8677 | −0.7543; 0.7062 |
Spring | 0.04817 | 0.03608 | 0.05079 | 0.96238 | 0.95877 | 0.94980 | −0.3296; 0.2347 | −0.3811; 0.1868 | −0.2089; 0.3043 |
Summer | 0.06692 | 0.05970 | 0.05985 | 0.95232 | 0.95695 | 0.93996 | −0.2564; 0.1772 | −0.2558; 0.1779 | −0.3218; 0.28 |
Autumn | 0.07313 | 0.06837 | 0.11224 | 0.92163 | 0.93524 | 0.93134 | −0.6642; 0.5724 | −0.2466; 0.2653 | −0.4059; 0.261 |
Winter | 0.05927 | 0.05591 | 0.06317 | 0.95109 | 0.95147 | 0.94960 | −0.3932; 0.5173 | −0.3445; 0.4948 | −0.3835; 0.5423 |
Comparison between ANN developed for one year and ANN with seasonal adjustments.
The best approach is to develop and train the neural networks adjusted with seasonal data, due to the fact that the prediction accuracy is excellent in all seasons, and performance indicators have comparable values. Comparing the results for each algorithm (LM, BR, SCG), in most cases, neural networks based on Bayesian regularization produced a better generalization than Levenberg-Marquardt or SCG algorithms, but LM performed faster and with minimum memory consumption.
The forecasting and analytical models are integrated into an online dashboard developed in Java with application development framework (ADF). The dashboard is built as a business intelligence (BI) portal with a very friendly interface and interactive charts, reports, pivot tables, maps and narrative elements that allows executives and stakeholders to easily analyze the KPIs. The dashboard contains three sections:
Production management—it contains reports for power plant current operations and maintenance plans, it displays the generation groups’ configuration and location, real time data gathered from measuring devices, SCADA and generation groups or the entire power plant;
Forecasting—it contains access to the forecasting models and offers reports and charts to display the estimations versus actual values for different periods of time, selected by the user. For example, Figure 4 shows a chart that displays for one day interval, on hourly basis, the forecasted energy (orange line) versus actual produced energy (green line) for a WPP group. The chart displays also other 2 generation groups (grey and light blue lines) situated in the same region with the green marked group and the difference between estimated and actual values (light orange line).
KPIs Analytics—contains analytical Business Intelligence elements (interactive charts, gauges, reports, maps, pivot tables) that enable KPI advanced analysis through dimensions’ hierarchies that allows executives to compare indicators over different periods of time, regions and locations, aggregate/detailed KPIs over power plants’ groups or module/turbines. For example, Figure 5 shows the average power, installed power load factor, installed power load duration and maximum power load duration for a wind power plant with two groups of 5 and 10 MW.
Forecast versus actual energy for WPP groups.
KPIs dashboard.
The dashboard is developed in a cloud computing architecture, and it is accessible as a service, customized and configured depending on stakeholders’ interest.
In this study, we proposed a framework for calculating the most relevant key performance indicators for wind power plants and photovoltaic power plants that offer a realistic perspective on technical aspects of the operational and maintenance activities. Also, it is proposed an informatics solution for KPIs analysis that can support decision process and integrates models for data management, analytical models and interactive interfaces.
Through the business intelligence dashboard that integrates the key performance indicators, the stakeholders can monitor the current operation of power plant and identify the decline in performance and the need to set up the maintenance strategy. Also, the KPI framework is useful for commissioning, recommissioning or evaluation after major repairs, establish benchmarks for measuring and comparing further performance.
The proposed solution integrates two major components: the forecasting model that provides estimations regarding the wind power plants’ or photovoltaic power plants’ output with a good accuracy for short-term interval (intraday and up to 3 days); the KPIs analytical model that allows a very interactive analysis of power plant management regarding past operation, detecting possible issues, offering smart analyses of KPIs, setting thresholds for metrics and present them in a user friendly and interactive dashboard.
This paper presents some results of the research project: Intelligent system for predicting, analyzing and monitoring performance indicators and business processes in the field of renewable energies (SIPAMER), PNII—PCCA 2013, code 0996, no. 49/2014 funded by National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation, Romania.
Schools are considered essential for health promotion interventions [1], but several complex aspects are necessary for successful implementation [2, 3, 4]—for instance, teamwork, leadership, assistance, and contextual factors [2, 3]. Likewise, the competence of the individual teachers and support from the organization they work within is necessary [5]. Through practice-developing school research, teachers’ professional knowledge base can be strengthened and developed [6]. Continuing professional learning among teachers is necessary for supporting and encouraging the improvement of knowledge and practice (e.g., [7]). One way to keep this is by conducting different forms of professional development programs for teachers in school (e.g., [7]). Previous research has shown that professional development positively influences teachers’ capacity to reflect on new knowledge and practices [8]. It could be significant to teacher professional learning [9]. Teachers will suffer from a lack of professional learning if they are alone for most of their working time, do not receive feedback and support from their colleagues, and do not have contact with teachers at other schools [10]. Collaborative reflection [11] and ‘shared values and vision, collegiality and joint practical activities’ have been identified as essential parts of professional learning programs [12]. Moreover, scholars describe that professional learning is based on research, engagement, and agency and that teachers are considered active producers instead of recipients of knowledge (e.g., [7, 13]). However, professional communities for learning need architecture or a design; if they are to produce results, they must be organized and arranged [10].
One way of working with professional communities for learning or collegial learning in schools is through so-called research circles, in which teachers and researchers collaborate on specific content [7, 14, 15, 16]. Research circles can be regarded as an action research approach, where researchers and practitioners see the process as a collective work [17]. Thus, the action research approach means, for instance, that those affected by the study are involved in joint exploratory work throughout the process on equal terms [17]. A previous study that has used research circles showed that the collaboration and reflections contributed to improvements in their daily professional practices [7]. Furthermore, the teachers anchored their experiences from the research circle in their preschool development plans [7]. Another study among teachers in schools showed that the research circle worked to deepen the development of teachers’ competencies [16]. A conclusion from a recent study with teachers who had participated in research circles stresses the importance of when researchers and practitioners work together to translate research-based knowledge and theoretical concepts into practice and specify how practitioners can apply it when developing their actions [18].
Moreover, a study about school leader perspectives shows that they perceived it as an advantage that the teachers who participated in a research circle could exchange experiences from their everyday practice. Another benefit from the school leaders’ perspective was that the researchers were necessary for the processes generated in the research circle. For example, they acted as catalysts for the conversation and the ideas that arose [15]. However, there are also challenges surrounding the implementation of a research circle and for example, not having suitable organizational conditions and getting enough time and space aside for the work. Despite this, it can be difficult for teachers to have enough time to participate. Another challenge may be that many teachers at the school are not included in the development work if the research circle focuses on a limited number of teachers, e.g., physical education (PE) teachers [15]. Research circles build on work that fits well in schools since education must be based on scientific grounds and proven experience [19]. In this context, practice-based research projects have a role to fill [6, 20] since teachers can continue professional learning based on research. This is important from a health promotion perspective where participation and capacity building are highlighted [5, 21]. Moreover, scholars [22] recommend that health-promoting researchers engage users in the analysis and reporting phase and expand their ability to share their research outside academia.
In this study, physical education (PE) teachers collaborated with the researchers (the study’s authors) in a research circle consisting of three meeting practices. The ambition was to increase professional learning regarding developing and implementing a health-promoting intervention (the Pulse for Health and Learning Intervention, PuLH) which incorporated a child-centred coaching approach. PuLH lasted for one academic year and focused on three mandated moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) sessions per week which lasted 30 min. The pupils were supposed to be in a heart rate zone between 60% and 80% of their maximum heart rate for at least 20 min. The MVPA sessions were implemented for pupils in primary and middle school, in addition to the two ordinary PE lessons [23]. The purpose of this study was to draw benefit from physical education teachers’ discussions and reflections of the implementation of PuLH, a health promotion intervention in school. The questions to be addressed are; (1) How do the practice architectures enable and constrain the PE teachers’ implementation of PuLH? and (2) What discourses are visible in the PE teachers’ discussions and reflections of the implementation of PuLH?.
The development of professional learning among individual health promoters is a necessity but not a sufficient prerequisite for achieving effective health promotion work. The staff in an organization also need, for example, the support of their principals and colleagues and the resources needed to effectively implement health-promoting strategies [5]. The theory of ‘practice architectures’ [24] is used in this study to interpret, discuss and make sense of what PE teachers’ discussed during the research circle about the implementation. Namely, what discourses had enabled and constrained their implementation of PuLH. The theory comprises three interrelated dimensions: cultural-discursive, material-economic, and socio-political arrangements [25]. The arrangements in the theory of practice architectures are structures that influence what is possible to say, do, and how one relates to each other in specific situations that influence practice. The arrangements can, just like the practice, be analytically distinguished, but they are also interwoven. These arrangements form the architectures of practice that enable and constrain or even hinder it [24].
Cultural-discursive arrangements are influenced by what is possible to say and talk about in a specific context and place in a particular time. The PE teachers’ speeches in practice are influenced by how they talk about PuLH, what they can do, what is possible to do both in the local context and by discourses that exist both nationally and internationally. The PE teachers’ speeches might also shape the tradition of sharing knowledge and reflecting on developing new ways of talking about content in PuLH, form, conditions for implementation, etc. Thus, the arrangements might shape the PE teachers’ speeches about content and new ways of ‘doing’ to understand the role as an implementer and the knowledge that is important for creating new strategies and solutions for developing PuLH.
Material-economic arrangements influence opportunities for collaboration and meetings in practice. The research circle might enable PE teachers to collaborate and reflect on the implementation of PuLH. But, the time and place for meetings in the research circle influence the opportunity for everyone to meet. Material-economic arrangements also influence the opportunities that exist in the PE teachers’ practice to, for example, be able to conduct the PuLH sessions with suitable facilities and equipment.
Socio-political arrangements influence how PE teachers relate to each other. For example, how the PE teachers share their experiences of running PuLH, what activities they do, how the activities work, how they support each other in the development work. These arrangements shape practice based on power, communication, and approaches. Since a research circle is based on participation and collaboration, PE teachers have the opportunity to contribute with knowledge to each other. In addition, the schools’ different decisions about PuLH condition the PE teachers’ opportunities to run PuLH.
The arrangements keep practices in place, and for a practice to change, the arrangements must also change. In turn, a practice can also contribute to changing the arrangements and influence other practices (a local practice can also influence an entire municipality) [25]. Therefore, it is not only the specific practice that is studied but also its arrangement.
This study has an action research approach [26] using research circles that aim to understand and change PE teachers’ practices and the conditions that enable and constrain them. The action research approach requires PE teachers to inquire into their practices and is, by nature, participatory [27]. This implies that action research in this study aims to promote change derived from and responsive to the PE teachers’ commonly addressed ideas and concerns, grounded firmly in their experiences.
The Pulse for Health and Learning Intervention (PuLH) was conducted in eight mixed socio-economic municipalities (population 7000–30,000 inhabitants) in the region of Jönköping, Sweden. The PuLH-intervention involved eight primary and middle schools from grades 4 to 9 (see reference [23] for a more detailed description of the PuLH intervention). During the PuLH-intervention, PE teachers in charge at each school participated in a collegial learning research circle (cf. [28]).
PuLH was a practice-based health promotion intervention, and the initiative to start the PuLH intervention arose from schools’ need to increase pupils’ chances of improving their grades [23]. The idea of the intervention was based on some research showing that physical activity (PA) and MVPA correlated with pupils’ academic performance [29, 30, 31] and that MVPA has a beneficial effect on their health [32, 33]. In this study, the research circle consisted of three full days of research circle meetings: in September 2017, in December 2017, and May 2018. The researchers, PE teachers, and each municipality’s development managers planned to conduct the research circle. The research circle process was an iterative process where PE teachers discuss dilemmas and the content in the meetings with researchers, plan for a new act, and then act and so on (Figure 1).
The research circle process.
The research circle was arranged to reflect in discussions the experiences of the implementation of PuLH and increase PE teachers’ understanding of a coaching approach to include all children. The PE teacher’s knowledge of their practice in the PuLH was also in focus, and discussions and reading aimed to give new insights to improve practice. The goal was to provide the PE teachers with conditions that enable them to change their practice and address the constraints satisfactorily (i.e., [34, 35]). Indeed, previous research has shown the value of researchers and practitioners working together [18, 22].
Activities were undertaken on a shared electronic platform between the three research circle meetings. This virtual space was supportive and allowed everybody to prepare and express their ideas and views for the meetings and read texts and scientific articles distributed by the researchers. During the research circle meetings, the researchers contributed to the process of relating the PE teachers’ knowledge about their practices to scientific knowledge in a critical way.
We divided the PE teachers into two groups (A and B). At each meeting, the groups were mixed to receive input from different PE teachers and schools. Group A started to participate in lectures and applied workshops, and group B discussed experiences of the implementation of PuLH. After that, the groups switched. The researcher in charge at Halmstad University led each research circle meeting, and the two other researchers were observers. The first research circle meeting focused on health promotion and a child-centred coaching approach. The second meeting covered self-determination theory (SDT) concerning coaching. The third meeting focused on MVPA activities for pupils with disabilities and a presentation of preliminary results on the pupils’ voices of PuLH [23] which we jointly reflected and discussed. The researcher asked relevant questions in the discussions but had a lowkey during the discussions. During the discussions, the PE teachers were encouraged to exchange experiences of the implementation of PuLH. Researchers led the lecture, and PE teacher educators led the applied workshops.
The first two research circle meetings were held at the conference room distributed by the Department of Research and Development within Education, Region Jönköping County, and the last one at Halmstad University.
The participants were PE teachers (N = 22, approximately 18 per meeting) from eight different primary and middle schools. The PE teachers represented a wide span, from a few years to those with several years of experience in the profession. At the beginning of the research circle meetings, only a few PE teachers had the experience of running MVPA activities at schools.
The data consist of group discussions, (n = 6) audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim in the research circle meetings. The transcribed empirical data amounted to 302 pages, Times new roman 12 points, double line spacing.
The PE teachers permitted to participate in the study and were informed of its purpose. They were ensured the data could not be traced to individual respondents or workplaces. The principles concern that all participants provided written consent and confidentiality. The Regional Ethics Review Board of Lund University approved this study (DNR 217/601), and the research follows The Swedish Research Council’s guidelines [36].
The first and last author conducted the data analysis. However, to reach a consensus in the data analysis, all research group members discussed all phases and steps. An abductive data analysis approach was adopted [37], which allowed us to engage in a dialectic process of considering data and draw on the theory of ‘practice architectures’ [24].
The analysis started with the transcripts being read several times to gain an overall impression of the material and distinguish patterns, variations, and differences in PE teacher’s discussions. The intention was to get an initial picture of the visible text through close empirical reading. Second, the selected texts were decontextualized into meaning units that covered the PE teacher’s sayings, doings, and relating’s that shaped the practice [26]. The meaning units were enabling and constraining aspects that we marked, condensed, and coded. Third, the codes were sorted and compared to identifying and arranged into discourses. Fourth, we identified key concepts in each discourse to highlight the nuance of the discourses (Table 1). Quotations from the PE teachers are presented to illustrate the discourses.
Discourse | Key concepts |
---|---|
Technical-rational | An optimistic approach To handle challenges |
Participating | Challenges to motivate all pupils Including all pupils |
Steering and supporting | Anchoring work Issues with scheduling Principal prioritization Support from principals and colleges |
The identified discourses and key concepts in the research circle meetings.
During the analysis, three discourses were identified consisting of key concepts: how the practice architectures enabled and constrained the PE teachers’ implementation of PuLH (Table 1). The findings are discussed about practice architectures [24] in the following section. In the excerpts, “IP” means interview person and “R” means researcher.
The
During the discussions in the first research circle meeting, large parts covered the challenges with the technical solutions. The PE teachers discussed the MVPA session’s duration and how long the pupils should be in the correct heart rate zone. A joint decision was made in the discussions, i.e., a heart rate zone between 60 and 80%, since the PE teachers saw a risk of not receiving the desired effect if the heart rate was too high or too low. They expressed that it was challenging to get the pupils to be within the correct heart rate zone, i.e., not too high and not too low heart rate, and sometimes pupils’ efforts did not seem to match what the heart rate monitor showed. Besides, the PE teachers discussed that some pupils need to get to know their bodies better, and they informed the pupils that it is not dangerous to have a high heart rate. In the first and second research circle meetings, the PE teachers also discussed that they shared experiences regarding difficulties in performing satisfactory maximum heart rate tests among pupils. That was especially difficult among pupils who had poor physical fitness, which can be seen in the following excerpt:
The maximum heart rate test among pupils [38] and the correct heart rate zone were problematized during the meetings due to methodological differences in previous studies (e.g., [39, 40, 41, 42]).
At this time in Sweden, there was a societal discussion about MVPA and that these would positively impact pupils’ academic performance and grades. The PE teachers’ attitude to and discussions about this might have been influenced by cultural-discursive arrangements (cf. [24]), such as this societal discussion and an attentive book [43] within the theme and similar projects at other schools (e.g., [44]). The PE teachers’ positive view of MVPA’s impact on academic performance and grades might also have been influenced by results from systematic literature reviews, which indicate a relationship between MVPA and increased academic performance [40, 41, 42]. This shows that both national and international discourses influence what is possible to say and do in a specific context at a particular time [24]. However, the researchers problematized the evidence of MVPAs impact on academic performance within the research circle meetings since studies show that only one-third of the studies meet the criteria for estimating statical power (e.g., [42]). Likewise, MVPA has a minimal beneficial impact on the pupil’s academic performance or even a negative impact [39].
In the PE teachers’ discussions in the two first research circle meetings, the PE teachers discussed allowing pupils who have learned to be in the correct heart rate zone to do MVPA without a heart rate monitor.
In the third research circle meeting, discussions of the importance of technical solutions were no longer dominating. The PE teachers developed knowledge over time in parallel with us presenting and problematizing current research results (e.g., [39, 40, 41, 42]) and their experiences of implementing PuLH and the possibility to discuss with each other. The PE teachers discovered that if MVPA can be conducted without a heart rate monitor, it provides an opportunity for them to be outdoor and space for more classes to participate in MVPA. Some schools had a sports hall for MVPA sessions, whereas others were forced to have MVPA sessions in a big lecture hall that was unsuitable for PA. Thus, the material-economic arrangements [24] constrained some of the PE teachers’ practices by not having the opportunity to have the PuLH lessons in a sports hall and having a heart rate monitor for all pupils.
The
This discourse covers PE teachers’ discussions regarding
At the first and second research circle meetings, the PE teachers also discussed motivation issues covering some pupils not wanting to participate if they show their bodies in front of peers. They said, for instance, some pupils express discomfort in the locker room when they put on the heart rate monitor since they must expose their bodies in front of peers. This also emerged in the study where we interviewed the pupils in the PuLH intervention [23]. Indeed, some pupils associate PE and MVPA with anxiety and discomfort due to negative self-image and body perception [45]. The social-political arrangements [24] enabled the PE teacher to share the experience of some solutions. For example, some PE teachers expressed that they adapted the locker room situation by motivating the pupils to shower in private such as using shower curtains or having school staff in the locker room. Other PE teachers shared experiences adapting the MVPA activities to include all pupils, such as listening to pupils’ voices of their needs so that all could and wanted to participate. The PE teachers also discussed that since the MVPA activities were not graded, it made it easier to
To encourage the pupils to participate in the MVPA activities, the PE teachers created individual solutions for pupils with special needs, such as neuropsychiatric disabilities and physical disabilities. For example, they were offering additional MVPA activities each week to make it possible for them to concentrate better in the classroom, which also was found in the study with the pupils [23]. Furthermore, to make it possible for all pupils to want to participate in MVPA activities, they offered some pupils (often girls, pupils with overweight, and immigrants) to enter the locker room earlier to avoid exposing their bodies. The following excerpt illustrates how one PE teacher creates a solution to increase the possibility for pupils with overweight to want to participate:
These adjustments align with the content of the research circle meetings in which the PE teachers took part in lectures and workshops on health promotion and health coaching. These activities might explain this adaptation and development of PuLH. The PE teachers received lessons and workshops on adapted PA and health coaching in the research circle meetings to encourage all pupils to participate. In the last research circle meeting, the PE teachers shared the experience that they had adapted the MVPA sessions over time to create opportunities for all pupils to participate. The PE teachers also described that they noticed that the pupils’ conflicts had decreased, and cohesion improved. Thus, the cultural-discursive arrangement [24] has enabled the PE teachers to jointly reflect and contribute to shaping the PE teachers’ talk about PuLH content and new ways of coaching and knowledge necessary for creating new ways and solutions to develop PuLH activities.
The
The PE teachers in the theoretical subjects have a power position over the pupils, which indicates the importance of clearly anchoring the implementation of PuLH in the schools so that all PE teachers facilitate a good situation for the pupils. The PE teachers discussed the importance of scheduling MVPA carefully to prevent pupils’ stress. Some of the pupils in PuLH also expressed that they experienced negative stress due to poor scheduling [23]. The school’s decision on how MVPA activities’ scheduled is a social-political arrangement [24] that conditions the PE teachers’ opportunities to run PuLH. PE teachers at schools who had planned PuLH carefully described that the scheduling between ordinary lessons and PuLH had worked well. The PE teachers also discussed the importance of schedule MVPA before lunch to positively affect the pupils during the whole school day. Similar findings were also found among the pupils in PuLH [23].
The PE teachers discussed the pupils’ energy balance, and the need to promote their opportunities to get enough food at school as they became hungry when they were more physically active. Some of the PE teachers describe that the pupils became hungrier after PuLH started; despite this, they were not allowed to eat more lunch because there was no more food available. The limited school lunch constrained the practice and therefore was framed by the material-economic arrangement [24] because the pupils had difficulty coping with the lessons after PuLH if they were hungry. At the same time, this arrangement enables the practice in other schools since the
This discourse also involves discussions regarding PE teachers’ experience of
Another aspect of this discourse covers that PuLH was arranged so the PE teachers could participate in the research circle meetings and discuss with teachers in the same profession and be free from teaching during the three full-days meetings. This material-economic arrangement [24] of the practice enabled all PE teachers to participate in research circle meetings. In the last research circle meeting, the PE teachers reflected upon the value of taking part in these meetings. The PE teachers discussed that they had learned a lot since they had had the opportunity to discuss with the researchers and support and help each other since they share many similar experiences.
The social-political arrangements [24] for the meeting practice made it possible for the PE teachers to collaborate and develop the activities. Indeed, a previous study confirms the value of researchers and practitioners working together to develop teachers’ actions [18]. Finally, some PE teachers expressed that their school principal had decided that PuLH should become an ordinary part of the school day, which is a material-economic arrangement [24] that enables the PE teachers’ implementation of PuLH.
When implementing a health-promoting intervention with an influence of a bottom-up approach such as PuLH, the PE teachers’ interests, and questions are central, unlike other more traditional top-down programs [46]. However, the implementation of PuLH has been challenging since the implementation is both enabled and constrained by the practice of other PE teachers and principals practices. Challenges often arise when interventions are implemented [2, 3]. The material-economic arrangement [24] shapes the practice visible in the steering and supporting discourse, which meant that all PE teachers were allowed to participate in the research circle meetings and were given enough time aside to implement PuLH. This is essential for PE teachers to be able to run and implement interventions (cf. [3, 15]). In this study, the findings demonstrate that PuLH worked well for the pupils in the schools that provided enough food (refreshments, lunch, and sometimes breakfast) and extended the school day to reduce stress between PuLH and the next lesson. In these cases, PuLH was well-planned and proved to offer equal conditions for all pupils. Indeed, PuLH promoted health and well-being among the pupils [23]. Well-planned health promotion interventions in school should promote pupils’ well-being and thus align with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) [47]. At the same time, the findings also demonstrate that some PE teachers were given unequal conditions to implement PuLH. For example, a low level of anchoring had been implemented, they had poorer scheduling and received less support from colleagues and principals, which constrained the implementation work. Good conditions in health promotion interventions are essential for teachers to be able to run and implement interventions [2, 3]. However, the discussion in the research circle meetings about contextual factors increased the PE teachers’ awareness that structural challenges must reach the principals of schools where this was a problem.
Another conclusion is that the PE teachers’ reflections and discussions were shaped by cultural-discursive arrangements (cf. [24]), showing how the PE teachers strengthen each other by willingly sharing experiences and helping each other during the research circle meetings to develop a well-planned PuLH. By sharing experiences, they found out how others dealt with practical issues, and in turn, they could bring new insights to their practice to develop, reflecting the idea within the research circle (i.e., [34, 35]). With PE teachers’ interactions and openness in the social intersubjective space [24], the research circle meetings assisted new relationships and collegial support. The PE teachers’ professional development might have been influenced by the other teachers’ practices and initiatives and their ability to collaborate with the others. In addition, the PE teachers’ professional development may have benefited from the collaboration with the researchers when jointly critically reflecting on the implementation of a child-centred perspective on practice. Indeed, researchers can act as catalysts for the discussions within the research circle meetings necessary for teachers’ processes and professional development (cf. [15]).
The process of the research circle meetings demonstrated that the PE teachers started to problematize the implementation of PuLH. The PE teachers’ new insights and transformed views were shaped by social-political arrangements (cf. [24]). In this arrangement, the technical-rational discourse dominated initially and then decreased during the meetings. The PE teachers took a critical stance, revalued the heart rate equipment, and found new ways of using it by sharing experiences. For instance, the PE teachers became convinced that the heart rate equipment is not needed in the same way and extent. They maintained that it is helpful in the beginning when pupils need to get to know their body and their heart rate. In the participating discourse, it was clear that the PE teachers created solutions to include all pupils in PuLH, for instance, listening to the pupils’ voices, adapting the locker-room situations, and tailored solutions for pupils with special needs. The content might explain this solution-oriented approach in the research circle meetings, which focused on a child-centred coaching approach. The participating discourse in this study is also in line with a health promotion practice (cf. [48]).
An action research approach can play an essential role in implementing health-promoting interventions for pupils. In this way, PE teachers are stimulated to participate more actively in the research process than is usual. The researchers helped shape the design of the PuLH, and at the same time, the PE teachers have contributed insights into what works and does not work in practice. Thus, the PE teacher’s specific knowledge of their practice is essential since an intervention needs to be implemented within the particular context and their contextual factors [2]. Through this collaboration, theory and practice have intertwined as both parties have contributed with experiences and knowledge that developed PuLH. This has been important to stimulate critically conscious acting and decision-making, which is essential when building coalitions between researchers and practitioners.
We are grateful for receiving funding from the Center of research on Welfare, Health and Sport (CVHI), School of Health and Welfare, Halmstad University, and the Department of Research and Development within Education, Region Jönköping County, Sweden, and the participating municipalities in the Region Jönköping.
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
The authors are grateful to the Directors of Education, the principals, development managers where data collection occurred. We especially thank the PE teachers who participated in the study. We also gratefully acknowledge Yvonne Lindén Andersson, Department of Research and Development within Education, Region Jönköping County, Sweden, for transcribing the recorded discussions during the research circle meetings.
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Milanzi",authors:null}],mostDownloadedChaptersLast30Days:[{id:"70904",title:"Addressing the Pension Decumulation Phase of Employee Retirement Planning",slug:"addressing-the-pension-decumulation-phase-of-employee-retirement-planning",totalDownloads:642,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:1,abstract:"Longevity increases and population ageing create challenges for all societal institutions, particularly those providing retirement income, healthcare, and long-term care services. At the individual level, an obvious question is how to ensure all retirees have an adequate, secure, stable, and predictable lifelong income stream that will allow them to maintain a target standard of living for, however, long the individual lives. In this chapter, we review and discuss the main pension decumulation options by explicitly modelling consumers’ behaviour and objectives though an objective function based on utility theory accounting for consumption and bequest motives and different risk preferences. Using a Monte-Carlo simulation approach calibrated to US financial market and mortality data, our results suggest that purchasing a capped participating longevity-linked life annuity at retirement including embedded longevity and financial options that allow the annuity provider to periodically revise annuity payments if observed survivorship and portfolio outcomes deviate from expected (or guaranteed) values at contract initiation deliver superior welfare results when compared with classical annuitization and non-annuitization decumulation strategies.",book:{id:"8090",slug:"who-wants-to-retire-and-who-can-afford-to-retire-",title:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?",fullTitle:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?"},signatures:"Jorge Miguel Ventura Bravo",authors:null},{id:"72453",title:"The End of the Retirement “Age”: How the New World of Work Is Transforming the Old World of Retirement",slug:"the-end-of-the-retirement-age-how-the-new-world-of-work-is-transforming-the-old-world-of-retirement",totalDownloads:635,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:1,abstract:"The nature of work is undergoing fundamental transformation in the twenty-first century with drivers including digitalization, automation, and new forms of work organization. This chapter explores how the concept of retirement itself is increasingly redundant in relation to the new world of work. Of course, working lives inevitably do come to an end, but for whom, and at what point, and under what personal and social financial conditions, is this end point? Many people will want, and be required by public policy, to continue their working lives well into later life. In addition, the new dynamics of work and employment unfolding may enable this later life engagement. But in the “post-work” world predicted by many scholars, will later life employment be a possibility for them, and even for many people in their middle and younger years? This chapter explores the implications of the future of work for how traditional models of working lives and retirement need to be restructured and examines the one vital reform to ensure everyone can sustain a decent life in the new highly volatile world of work.",book:{id:"8090",slug:"who-wants-to-retire-and-who-can-afford-to-retire-",title:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?",fullTitle:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?"},signatures:"Veronica Sheen",authors:null},{id:"71893",title:"Alternatives to Serve the Interests of Russian Pensioners",slug:"alternatives-to-serve-the-interests-of-russian-pensioners",totalDownloads:433,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,abstract:"The results of the analysis of statistical data on the Russian labor market, employment and wages, as well as the specific features of the Russian pension system, provide the basis for several important conclusions. Firstly, the living standards of the majority of Russian pensioners do not meet their needs as the Russian pension system is focused on the achievement of minimum living standards. Secondly, the regulation on the functioning of the pension system established by Russian legislation is often violated by the regulators without coordination with economic entities and citizens, participants of the pension system, which prevents future pensioners from feeling protected upon retirement. For this reason, citizens of the retirement age do not seek to retire even when they reach the retirement age. The growth rate of working pensioners (who pay taxes, including insurance deductions to the Pension Fund of Russia and private pension funds) confirms this. Thirdly, there is a need to create a socially-comfortable environment for pensioners, to counteract the psychological problems of older people their sense of “uselessness” to society. The article proposes practical measures to mitigate the negative phenomena in the pension provision of Russian citizens.",book:{id:"8090",slug:"who-wants-to-retire-and-who-can-afford-to-retire-",title:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?",fullTitle:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?"},signatures:"Elena Ivanovna Kulikova",authors:null},{id:"71593",title:"Called to Plan: Changing Patterns and Perceptions of Retirement for Australian and New Zealand Faith-Based Ministers",slug:"called-to-plan-changing-patterns-and-perceptions-of-retirement-for-australian-and-new-zealand-faith-",totalDownloads:543,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,abstract:"The rising tide of aging citizens globally suggests a compelling argument for increasing understanding of factors impacting retirement. Factors such as health and finance have been identified as principal, but these results generally apply to homogenous groups with little reference to the impact of culture and tradition. This study adopted an ex post-facto, cross-sectional, self-reporting survey from working faith-based ministers in Australia and New Zealand to ascertain personal and professional factors affecting retirement perception in specific context including results for age-related differences. Results from four areas of foci show participants generally regarded retirement as a positive season. They were, however, less confident about their preparedness and mostly dissatisfied with the level of planning for retirement. Significant differences were noted in age-related groups with health and financial considerations constituting the primary differences. Increased understanding of changing patterns and perceptions for specific groups including age differences, potentially aids the response of state and society to the ageing phenomenon.",book:{id:"8090",slug:"who-wants-to-retire-and-who-can-afford-to-retire-",title:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?",fullTitle:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?"},signatures:"Bernadene Erasmus and Peter John Morey",authors:null},{id:"71712",title:"The Age Pension Means Tests: Contorting Australian Retirement",slug:"the-age-pension-means-tests-contorting-australian-retirement",totalDownloads:585,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:1,abstract:"Most Australian retirees are likely to be subject to the Age Pension assets or income test at some point. Evidence is that many retirees adapt their consumption to increase Age Pension entitlements, but long-term implications are difficult to determine—even if the current rules were to remain in place. This chapter evaluates the current approach to means testing against the principles set out in a Department of Social Services discussion paper on this topic. We evaluate the implied “effective marginal tax rates” (EMTRs) on the assets of part pensioners who are subject to the assets test. We find that depending on a variety of parameters such as assumed future earnings rates, demographic status, drawdown strategy and the base level of assets held, the EMTRs are high enough to explain material distortions to savings decisions of those still in employment, and the spending and investment decisions of retirees. Optimal decisions in this context require contorted retirement strategies that do not appear to be in anyone’s interest. Some possible remedies are suggested, which should include incorporating the value of the principal residence within the assets test. The chapter therefore illustrates the application of principled analysis to policy issues of this sort.",book:{id:"8090",slug:"who-wants-to-retire-and-who-can-afford-to-retire-",title:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?",fullTitle:"Who Wants to Retire and Who Can Afford to Retire?"},signatures:"Anthony Asher and John De Ravin",authors:null}],onlineFirstChaptersFilter:{topicId:"1337",limit:6,offset:0},onlineFirstChaptersCollection:[],onlineFirstChaptersTotal:0},preDownload:{success:null,errors:{}},subscriptionForm:{success:null,errors:{}},aboutIntechopen:{},privacyPolicy:{},peerReviewing:{},howOpenAccessPublishingWithIntechopenWorks:{},sponsorshipBooks:{sponsorshipBooks:[],offset:0,limit:8,total:null},allSeries:{pteSeriesList:[],lsSeriesList:[],hsSeriesList:[],sshSeriesList:[],testimonialsList:[]},series:{item:{id:"24",title:"Sustainable Development",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.100361",issn:null,scope:"