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The philosophy of Rudolf Steiner’s Anthroposophy, fundamental to Waldorf education, provides an alternative view on education to that in the non-western world. The article illustrates a rhizomatic, informal diffusion of ‘alternative education’ in contrast to ‘policy borrowing’ in education, reporting how Waldorf education and Anthroposophy are regarded and operated in an East Asian context. An initial exploratory study of this provides insider perspectives of ‘knowledgeable’ practitioners in Waldorf early childhood centres in East Asia, regarding their understanding and practices of Anthroposophy and its three key concepts: the Four Temperaments; the Seven-Year [development] cycle; and the Twelve Senses. Participants identified key features of Waldorf education: holistic development of the child; nature relatedness; modelling and imitation; and contextualisation and localisation. Many features of Waldorf education ran counter to significant values and practices in schooling in the local culture. The paper indicates how to reconcile these, and makes recommendations for further research.

This thesis explores the impact of the exploration of methadone treatment programs in heroin-dependent the perspective from use and the quality of life. The primary objective of this research is to investigate how different types of participants that methadone will affect their quality of life. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative surveys with qualitative interviews to gather comprehensive data from a sample of 59 participants, 8 female, and 51 male, for the questionnaire to know about their quality of life and well-being. A structured questionnaire was used to quantitatively assess participants' quality of life, well-being, and satisfaction with methadone treatment. The survey included standardized scales measuring various dimensions of quality of life, such as physical health, mental health, social functioning, and overall life satisfaction. A mixed-methods approach was adopted, combining quantitative and qualitative research methods to provide a comprehensive understanding of treatment efficacy and genetic influences. In the course of this research on the impact of methadone treatment programs on the quality of life for heroin-dependent individuals, several key findings emerged from both the quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews. To overall improvement in quality of life the participants reported significant improvements in various dimensions of quality of life after starting methadone treatment. On average, scores for emotional well-being, social functioning, and physical health showed marked increases over the treatment period

This research focuses on common misconceptions about the factors driving women to purchase footwear impulsively. Its primary objective is to explore how emotional and social triggers specifically influence women's purchasing decisions, contrasting with the traditionally rational consumer models.,An online questionnaire was administered to a sample of women, yielding 199 useable responses.,The findings reveal the key determinants of women's impulsive retail footwear purchases, which include self-regulation, hedonic motivations and the influence of the retail store environment. This research challenges the prevailing assumption that women's passion for shopping is driven solely by inherent characteristics and suggests that external factors substantially shape their impulsive buying behaviour. In summary, the stereotypical portrayal of women as compulsive retail footwear shoppers may result more from external stimuli and environmental factors rather than an intrinsic trait.,This study improves the existing knowledge of women’s impulsive buying behaviour by unveiling the determinants of women's impulsive footwear purchases and assessing whether prevailing stereotypes hold true.

Purpose The aim of this study is to explore the role and impact of action research in the adoption of circular economy strategies by a fashion retail brand. This exploration is motivated by the need to address the underutilization of action research in management studies, despite its potential to foster a deep understanding of organizational processes and to drive positive transformations. The study seeks to illustrate how action research can contribute to the practical implementation of sustainability initiatives, specifically within the context of new environmental legislation and growing demands for sustainable practices in retailing. Design/methodology/approach This research employs an action research methodology, particularly suited to the retail field, where understanding and influencing organizational processes are key. Through a detailed case study of a fashion retail brand, the study illustrates how action research facilitates the adoption of circular economy strategies. Findings The findings of this study underscore the effectiveness of action research in implementing circular economy strategies within the fashion retail industry. Specifically, it highlights how this approach has led to the successful reduction of waste and reintegration of products into their lifecycle. Originality/value The originality of this study lies in its thorough application of action research to measure and refine the outcomes of circular economy strategies in retailing. This novel approach provides substantial insights into the potential of the circular economy to drive practical innovations in business practices within retail.

The fifth Sustainable Development Goal of the United Nations targets achieving gender equality by 2030, but recent progress has been sluggish. Gender inequalities in the labor markets may have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 recession. This paper aims to investigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on gender inequalities in the labor markets by...

This research unveils to predict consumer ad preferences by detecting seven basic emotions, attention and engagement triggered by advertising through the analysis of two specific physiological monitoring tools, electrodermal activity (EDA), and Facial Expression Analysis (FEA), applied to video advertising, offering a twofold contribution of significant value. First, to identify the most relevant physiological features for consumer preference prediction. We integrated a statistical module encompassing inferential and exploratory analysis tools, which identified emotions such as Joy, Disgust, and Surprise, enabling the statistical differentiation of preferences concerning various advertisements. Second, we present an artificial intelligence (AI) system founded on machine learning techniques, encompassing k-Nearest Neighbors, Support Vector Machine, and Random Forest (RF). Our findings show that the RF technique emerged as the top performer, boasting an 81% Accuracy, 84% Precision, 79% Recall, and an F1-score of 81% in predicting consumer preferences. In addition, our research proposes an eXplainable AI module based on feature importance, which discerned Attention, Engagement, Joy, and Disgust as the four most pivotal features influencing consumer ad preference prediction. The results indicate that computerized intelligent systems based on EDA and FEA data can be used to predict consumer ad preferences based on videos and effectively used as supporting tools for marketing specialists.

The aim of this study is to examine the online learning experiences of university students with Special Educational Needs (SEN), and how their experiences might differ from their typically developing peers. Fifty typically developing students (mean age = 22; 29 females) and 31 students with SEN (mean age = 22; 15 females) from a local

This dissertation examines the relationship between internal corporate communication (ICC)strategies and occupational safety and health (OSH) Management practices in Macau's hospitality industry. The primary objective is to investigate how communication approaches can enhance workplace safety protocols and improve OSH outcomes for corporations in the leisure and entertainment sectors. The study aligns with Macau's several policies and economic development on promoting health and safety. It highlights the critical role of OSH Management in the post-COVID-19 business environment, influencing consumer choices and industry practices. The mixed-methods research identified critical success factors, including aligning OSH goals with corporate objectives, utilizing diverse communication platforms, and establishing a safety culture. Areas for improvement were also uncovered. The findings provide valuable insights for hospitality organizations, emphasizing the critical role of internal communication in driving effective OSH Management. By integrating communication strategies with OSH initiatives, organizations can cultivate a robust safety culture, ensure regulatory compliance, and enhance employee well-being and customer satisfaction - key factors for long-term business success

With the increasing number of tourists coming to Macau after the three years of lockdown period, more quality services are expected. However, organisations are now facing a big challenge in maintaining sufficient employee, managing their employees’ performance and productivity. Employee engagement plays an important role because it will not only affect individual performance but also the performance of an organisation. This is the first study to provide evidence of the engagement level of general employees working in Macau, and of its relationships with job autonomy, organisational justice and organisational culture. The study results revealed that the levels of vigour, dedication and absorption of employees working full time in Macau were slightly above the mid-point value 3 of the scale, with about 30% of employees were found less engaged or disengaged. Criteria autonomy, method autonomy, schedule autonomy, organisational justice and collectivism culture were positively and significantly correlated with all three dimensions of employee engagement (i.e. vigour, dedication and absorption). There is no significant negative relationship between power distance culture and employee engagement. Method autonomy was the strongest positive predictor of all three dimensions of employee engagement, followed by organisational justice, while collectivism culture was a positive predictor for vigour and absorption. The implications for management will be discussed in terms of organisational support and communication

The purpose of this study was to explore the correlation between empathy, love maintenance behaviors, relationship satisfaction in a convenience sample of young adult lovers in Macau. Participants were N = 183 (84 males, 99 females) recruited from the social media platform (e.g. Instagram, WeChat, Facebook). Firstly, young adult lovers who tended to have high relationship satisfaction and empathy are tended to use positive love maintenance behaviors but less likely to use negative love maintenance behaviors. Besides, there were differences found by gender in empathy (affective empathy & total empathy), some dimensions of positive love maintenance behaviors (openness & advice), and negative love maintenance behaviors (causing jealousy, destructive conflict & negative love maintenance behaviors in general). Lastly, the findings in this study supported the hypotheses that love maintenance behaviors mediated the relationship between relationship satisfaction and empathy among young adult lovers in Macau. It was revealed that there was higher satisfaction in younger adult lovers in younger group (18-24 years) compared to older groups (32-40 years). For empathy, it correlated positively with relationship satisfaction and most positive love maintenance behaviors, but also with certain negative love maintenance behaviors. Positive love maintenance behaviors mediate the relationship between relationship satisfaction and empathy, highlighting their critical role in maintaining healthy relationships

Since early times, the effects of a booming sector in other sectors of a small economy have been of interest to scholars. There is a general perception that the booming Gaming sector has contributed to the overall growth in Macau through the trickle-down effect, passing on the benefits of growth to other sectors. After the liberalization of the gaming industry in 2002, this booming sector experienced several years of exponential growth, becoming the driving industry for Macao’s economy. Several scholars and researchers have dedicated their studies to the effects of the casino gaming industry as a booming sector in such a small economy. However, there is a gap in what concerns measuring the influence of the Gaming sector as a driving industry for several other sectors or following industries of Macau’s economy. The purpose of this research study is to investigate in what measure the Gaming sector in Macao leveraged the other economic sectors and how related or correlated are the different industries of Macao’s Economy. A protocol-driven understanding of the state of the art on the interrelations between economic sectors and different techniques used to study those inter-relations was conducted through a systematic literature review. Given the limited available data on the Gross Value Added (GVA), or Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on the supply side, as a central measure of economic activity in the different sectors, several possible interpolation models using auxiliary high-frequency data (indicators) were compared, to achieve the optimal model for interpolation of each variable. Several forecasts for the future performance of Macau's four major economic sectors were presented based on different regression techniques. Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) models were developed to assess the dependence of the future performance of a sector’s GVA on its past performance. Optimal Vector Autoregressive (VAR) models were created to identify the explanatory power of some sectors of Macau’s economy in others. Based on available auxiliary data in high-frequency (quarterly) it was possible to interpolate the quarterly GVA per economic sector, available only in low-frequency (annually), for the major sectors of Macao’s economy. Some sectors have a considerable explanatory power on the performance of other sectors, however, the proposed regression models did not identify a clear relation between the performance of the Gaming sector and the performance of other major sectors from Macao’s economy

Given the rapid growth of China's economy and its maturing financial market, state-owned banks have played a crucial role in driving national economic growth and ensuring financial stability. However, this progress has been accompanied by a pressing challenge - the accumulation of non-performing assets (NPAs), which pose significant obstacles to both the banking industry and China's economic development. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehensively analyze strategies aimed at mitigating NPAs in state-owned commercial banks, with an emphasis on seeking more effective resolution mechanisms. This study delves into the institutional environment surrounding NPAs in state-owned banks, including improvements in laws and regulations as well as advancements in financial market structures and legal frameworks. The initial step involves analyzing the current status and manifestations of NPAs within state-owned banks to clarify their ambiguously defined areas. Furthermore, considering China's unique policy context and socio-economic landscape, this study conducts an analysis and comparison of diverse strategies for addressing NPAs from the perspectives of asset quality management, risk-profit equilibrium, and legal regulatory support system. Ultimately, several suggestions are proposed regarding the trajectory of NPA resolution