Material Source of Sediments from West Clarion–Clipperton Zone (Pacific): Evidence from Rare Earth Element Geochemistry and Clay Minerals Compositions - Qiu, Zhongrong; Tao, Chunhui; Ma, Weilin; Dias, Ágata Alveirinho; Hu, Siyi; Shao, Yuexiao; Yang, Kehong; Zhang, Weiyan (Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2022)
The geochemistry and mineralogy of sediments provide relevant information for the understanding of the origin and metallogenic mechanism of ferromanganese nodules and crusts. At present, there are still few studies on the sediment origin of the Clarion–Clipperton Zone (CCZ) of the east Pacific, particularly on the systematic origin of sediments with a longer history/length. Here, bulk sediment geochemistry and clay mineral compositions were analyzed on a 5.7 m gravity core (GC04) obtained at the CCZ, an area rich in polymetallic nodules. The results indicate that the average total content of rare earth elements (REE), including yttrium (REY), in sediments is 454.7 ppm and the REEs distribution patterns normalized by the North American Shale Composite of samples are highly consistent, with all showing negative Ce anomalies and more obvious enrichment in heavy REE (HREE) than that of light REE (LREE). Montmorillonite/illite ratio, discriminant functions and smear slide identification indicate multiple origins for the material, and are strongly influenced by contributions from marine biomass, while terrestrial materials, seamount basalts and their alteration products and authigenic source also make certain contributions. The REY characteristics of the sediments in the study area are different from those of marginal oceanic and back-arc basins, and more similar to pelagic deep-sea sediments. Based on LREE/HREE-1/δCe and LREE/HREE-Y/Ho diagrams, we conclude that samples from the study area had pelagic sedimentary properties which suffered from a strong “seawater effect”.
Keywords: Clarion–Clipperton Zone; material source; rare earth elements; sediments geochemistry

Geological Map of the Macao Special Administrative Region (China) - Quelhas, P; Borgens, R; Dias, Ágata; Ribeiro, L; Costa, P; Mata, J (Journal of Maps, 2021)

Geology of the Macao Special Administrative Region (China) - Quelhas, Pedro; Borges, Ricardo; Dias, Ágata Alveirinho; Ribeiro, Maria Luísa; Costa, Pedro; Mata, João (Journal of Maps, 2021)
A 1:12,000 geological map of the Macao Special Administrative Region has been produced through detailed field work supported by petrographic, mineralogical, geochronological and geochemical data obtained in previous studies. This map aims to represent a reliable tool to understand the geological evolution of the region and for management of the territory. The geology of Macao is dominated by two groups of Jurassic granitic rocks belonging to an intrusive suite located along the coast of Southeast China: Macao Group I (MGI: 164.5 ± 0.6 to 162.9 ± 0.7 Ma) and Macao Group II (MGII: 156.6 ± 0.2 to 155.5 ± 0.8 Ma), including the associated microgranite, aplite and pegmatite dikes and quartz veins. Remnants of the metasedimentary wall-rock are present as Devonian xenoliths enclosed within the granites. Younger Jurassic to Cretaceous andesite to dacite dikes (150.6 ± 0.6 to <120 Ma) intrude the granitic rocks. Additionally, Quaternary sedimentary deposits cover the older lithologies.
Keywords: Jurassic; Macao (South China); Mesozoic; geological map; granites; magmatic rocks

High-precision geochronology of Mesozoic magmatism in Macao, Southeast China: Evidence for multistage granite emplacement - Quelhas, Pedro; Dias, Ágata; Mata, João; Davis, Donald Wayne; Ribeiro, Maria Luísa (Geoscience Frontiers, 2020)

Evidence for mixed contribution of mantle and lower and upper crust to the genesis of Jurassic I-type granites from Macao, SE China - Quelhas, Pedro; Mata, João; Dias, Ágata (GSA Bulletin, 2021)
Abstract Much controversy has occurred in the past few decades regarding the nature of the sources, the petrogenetic processes, and the tectonic regime(s) of the Jurassic magmatism within the Southeast China magmatic belt. This study aims to contribute to the discussion with mineral chemistry, and whole-rock element and Sr-Nd-Hf-Pb isotopic geochemical data from granitic rocks and microgranular mafic enclaves from Macao, where two discrete groups of I-type biotite granites have been identified (referred to as Macao Group I [MGI] and Macao Group II [MGII]). It is proposed that the granitic magmas were generated by partial melting of infracrustal medium- to high-K, basaltic Paleoproterozoic to Mesoproterozoic protoliths (Nd depleted mantle model age [TDM2] = 1.7–1.6 Ga and Hf TDM2 = 1.8–1.6 Ga), triggered by underplating of hot mantle-derived magmas in an extensional setting related to the foundering of a previously flat slab (paleo–Pacific plate) beneath the SE China continent. The main differences between the two groups of Macao granites are attributed to assimilation and fractional crystallization processes, during which upper-crustal Paleozoic metasediments were variably assimilated by MGI magmas. This is evidenced by an increase in initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios with degree of evolution, presence of metasedimentary enclaves, and high percentage of zircon xenocrysts with Paleozoic ages. In addition, other processes like late-stage fluid/melt interaction and magma mixing also left some imprints on granite compositions (rare earth element tetrad effect plus non–charge-and-radius-controlled behavior of trace elements and decoupling between different isotope systems, respectively). The distribution of isotopically distinct granites in SE China reflects the nature of the two Cathaysia crustal blocks juxtaposed along the Zhenghe-Dapu fault.

Magmatic Evolution of Garnet-Bearing Highly Fractionated Granitic Rocks from Macao, Southeast China: Implications for Granite-Related Mineralization Processes - Quelhas, Pedro; Mata, João; Dias, Ágata (Journal of Earth Science, 2021)
The widespread W-(Mo)-Sn-Nb-Ta polymetallic mineralization in Southeast (SE) China is genetically associated with Mesozoic highly fractionated granitic rocks. Such rocks have enigmatic mineralogical and geochemical features, making its petrogenesis an intensely debated topic. To better understand the underlying magma evolution processes, petrography, garnet chemistry and whole-rock major and trace element data are reported for Jurassic highly fractionated granitic rocks and associated microgranite and aplitepegmatite dikes from Macao and compared with coeval similar granitic rocks from nearby areas in SE China. Despite the fact that the most evolved rocks in Macao are garnet-bearing aplite-pegmatite dikes, the existence of coeval two-mica and garnet-bearing biotite and muscovite granites displaying more evolved compositions (e.g, lower Zr/Hf ratios) indicates that the differentiation sequence reached higher degrees of fractionation at a regional scale. Although crystal fractionation played an important role, late-stage fluid/melt interactions, involving F-rich fluids, imparted specific geochemical characteristics to Macao and SE China highly fractionated granitic rocks such as the non-CHARAC (CHArge-and-RAdius-Controlled) behavior of trace elements, leading, for example, to non-chondritic Zr/Hf ratios, Rare Earth Elements (REE) tetrad effects and Nb-Ta enrichment and fractionation. Such process contributed to the late-stage crystallization of accessory phases only found in these highly evolved facies. Among the latter, two populations of garnet were identified in MGI (Macao Group I) highly fractionated granitic rocks: small grossular-poor euhedral grains and large grossular-rich skeletal garnet grains with quartz inclusions. The first group was mainly formed through precipitation from highly evolved Mn-rich slightly peraluminous melts under low-pressure and relatively low temperature (∼700 °C) conditions. Assimilation of upper crust metasedimentary materials may have contributed as a source of Mn and Al to the formation of garnet. The second group has a metasomatic origin related to the interaction of magmatic fluids with previously crystallized mineral phases and, possibly, with assimilated metasedimentary enclaves or surrounding metasedimentary strata. The highly fractionated granitic rocks in Macao represent the first stage in the development of granite-related W-(Mo)-Sn-Nb-Ta mineralization associated with coeval more evolved lithotypes in SE China.

Unveiling retail omnichannel challenges: developing an omnichannel obstacles scale - Radomska, Joanna; Kawa, Arkadiusz; Hajdas, Monika; Klimas, Patrycja; Silva, Susana C. (International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 2024)
Purpose Retail omnichannel implementation faces barriers hindering accurate and efficient integration across marketing channels. Our desk examination identified a need for a broader perspective in investigating these barriers, moving away from a dominant, narrow approach. This research aims to develop a comprehensive set of items to measure retail omnichannel obstacles, refine the scale and assess its reliability and validity for a robust measurement tool. Design/methodology/approach Our approach combines quantitative and qualitative methods, using data from primary and secondary sources to create and validate the omnichannel obstacles scale. Findings This study emphasises the inclusive nature of retail functional areas, departing from prior literature that examined them in isolation. Instead of focussing on separate domains where retail omnichannel obstacles may arise, we adopt a holistic perspective by integrating previously disconnected elements. Originality/value We assert that challenges in retail omnichannel operations encompass three distinct dimensions: operational efficiency, channel inefficiency, and strategy and organisational culture within retailing. In our final validated measurement model, we consolidate the channel inefficiency dimension and refine the omnichannel obstacles scale to emphasise two areas of consideration.

Unveiling retail omnichannel challenges: developing an omnichannel obstacles scale - Radomska, Joanna; Kawa, Arkadiusz; Hajdas, Monika; Klimas, Patrycja; Silva, Susana C. (International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 2024)
Purpose Retail omnichannel implementation faces barriers hindering accurate and efficient integration across marketing channels. Our desk examination identified a need for a broader perspective in investigating these barriers, moving away from a dominant, narrow approach. This research aims to develop a comprehensive set of items to measure retail omnichannel obstacles, refine the scale and assess its reliability and validity for a robust measurement tool. Design/methodology/approach Our approach combines quantitative and qualitative methods, using data from primary and secondary sources to create and validate the omnichannel obstacles scale. Findings This study emphasises the inclusive nature of retail functional areas, departing from prior literature that examined them in isolation. Instead of focussing on separate domains where retail omnichannel obstacles may arise, we adopt a holistic perspective by integrating previously disconnected elements. Originality/value We assert that challenges in retail omnichannel operations encompass three distinct dimensions: operational efficiency, channel inefficiency, and strategy and organisational culture within retailing. In our final validated measurement model, we consolidate the channel inefficiency dimension and refine the omnichannel obstacles scale to emphasise two areas of consideration.

Modelos de Incorporação do Desenvolvimento Sustentável nos Acordos de Comércio - Rafael, Ângelo Patrício; Wei, Dan (Uma viagem Jurídica Entre o Rio das Pérolas e a Pérola do Índico: Publicação Comemorativa dos 25 Anos da Cooperação entre a Faculdade de Direito da Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (FDUEM) e a Faculdade de Direito da Universidade de Macau (FDUM), 2024)

Selection for winners impacts the endocrine system in the Siamese fighting fish - Ramos, A.; Gonçalves, D. (General and Comparative Endocrinology, 2022)
In southeast Asia, males of the Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens, have been selected across centuries for winning paired staged fights and previous work has shown that males from fighter strains are more aggressive than wild-types. This strong directional selection for winners is likely to have targeted aggression-related endocrine systems, and a comparison between fighter and wild-type strains can bring into evidence the key hormones implicated in aggression. Here, we compared the plasma levels of the androgen 11-ketotestosterone (KT) and of the corticosteroid cortisol (F) in F2 males of a fighter and a wild-type strain raised under similar laboratory conditions. We show that F was generally lower in fighter as compared with wild-type males, while no overall differences in KT levels were detected between strains. When presented with a mirror-induced aggressive challenge, post-fight levels of F increased but more significantly so in wild-type males, while KT increased in males of both strains. After the challenge, fighter males had higher levels of KT as compared with wild-type males, while the pattern for F was opposite. As compared with animals in social groups, wild-type males placed under social isolation had lower F levels, while KT decreased for fighters. Taken together, this data suggests that while wild-type males responded to aggression with an increase in circulating levels of both androgens and corticosteroids, males selected for winning fights maintained a blunt F response, increasing only KT levels. These data agree with the hypothesis that a combination of high levels of androgens and low levels of corticosteroids is associated with high aggression. Overall, these results seem to indicate that selection for winning had a stronger impact in the hypothalamus-pituitary-interrenal axis than in the hypothalamus-pituitary–gonadal axis in B. splendens.

Behavioural and endocrine impact of artificial selection for winning in the siamese fighting fish - Ramos, Andreia Maria Cerejo; Gonçalves, David (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Aggression clearly has an adaptive value as it is necessary to secure resources for survival, growth, and reproduction. The Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens, have endured a prolonged process of artificial selection for winning paired-fight contests across Southeast Asia, resulting in strains of short-fin aggressive “fighters”. Across centuries, Thai breeders have been selecting these strains by discarding loser batches and allowing winner batches to breed, claiming that they are significantly more aggressive than wild-types. This natural experiment provides a powerful context to investigate the biological basis of aggressive behaviour in fish, the topic of this thesis. To study aggression, it is important to validate and standardize behavioural assays appropriate for the species under study. Further, different aggression-eliciting stimuli, such as live opponents, 3D models, video playback, or mirror images, may elicit non-equivalent behavioural and physiological responses. For B. splendens, in particular, quantifying aggression from live fights is not ethically acceptable as the high levels of aggression of this species usually result in injuries or even death of the opponent. In Chapter II, it was shown that mirror images elicit very similar aggressive displays and endocrine responses to an interacting opponent behind a transparent partition, validating the use of this test to measure aggression in this model species. Further, it was shown that circulating levels of both androgens (11-ketotestosterone and testosterone) and corticosteroids (cortisol) increased in response to the aggression challenge, even in the absence of conflict resolution, questioning the role of these hormones during present and future aggressive contests. Using the previously validated mirror assay and also tests with live conspecifics, we assessed the impact of selection for winning by comparing, in Chapter III, male and female aggressive behaviour of lab-raised fighter and wild-type strains. The hypothesis that selection for male winners enhanced aggressive displays was confirmed, suggesting that the duration and frequency of threat and attack behaviour correlates with winning probability. However, females of the fighter strain, which are not selected for fights, were also more aggressive than wild-type females. This suggests that male and female aggression share common genetic pathways and physiological mechanisms and raises the possibility that selection for alleles that favour male aggression may have promoted intersexual genetic conflict in this species. After confirming the expected differences in aggressive behaviour between fighter and wild-type fish, the following question was whether endocrine systems, in particular those previously shown to respond to aggression, could have been targeted by the selection process. From previous studies in fish and other vertebrates, it was hypothesised that selection for winners could have increased constitutive levels of androgens or led to an enhanced androgen response to a social challenge. However, in chapter IV, it was shown that levels of 11-ketotestosterone and its response to aggression was similar in males of both strains, questioning the role of androgens in the modulation of aggression in B. splendens. On the contrary, constitutive levels of cortisol and the response of this hormone to an aggression challenge were higher in wild-type compared with fighter fish, supporting previous findings that associated high aggression with a blunted cortisol response. Overall, results from Chapter IV suggest that selection for winning had a stronger impact on the hypothalamus-pituitary-interrenal axis than in the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis. My results support the assumption of the “Challenge Hypothesis” proposed by John Wingfield and collaborators in 1990 to explain the relationship between androgens and aggression, according to which androgen levels above a reproductive baseline are a consequence of the frequency and intensity of social interactions, in particular of male-male agonistic encounters. It is becoming clear that androgens increase rapidly after an aggressive contest, independently of fight outcome. However, the function of this increase remains unclear as the frequency of aggressive displays was unrelated with post-fight androgen levels and constitutive levels of androgens, and androgen responsiveness, were similar between fighter and wild-type males. Results obtained for cortisol agree with a “corticosteroid-mediated dominance hypothesis” whereby low baseline levels and a blunted response of corticosteroids would be associated with a dominant status and high aggression. The work advances our knowledge about the endocrine regulation of aggressive behaviour in B. splendens and opens several testable hypotheses about the role of androgens and corticosteroids in the regulation of fish aggressive behaviour
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Science (D-SC); University of Saint Joseph

Androgens and corticosteroids increase in response to mirror images and interacting conspecifics in males of the Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens - Ramos, Andreia; Alex, Deepa; Cardoso, Sara D.; Gonçalves, David (Hormones and Behavior, 2021)
The role of hormones as modulators of aggressive behavior in fish remains poorly understood. Androgens and corticosteroids, in particular, have been associated with aggressive behavior in fish but it is still not clear if animals adjust the secretion of these hormones to regulate behavior during ongoing fights, in response to fight outcomes in order to adjust aggressive behavior in subsequent fights, or both. With its stereotyped displays and high aggression levels, the Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens is an excellent model to investigate this question. Here, we compared the behavioral and endocrine response of male B. splendens to fights where there is no winner or loser by presenting them with a size-matched live interacting conspecific behind a transparent partition or with a mirror image. The aggressive response started with threat displays that were overall similar in frequency and duration towards both types of stimuli. Fights transitioned to overt attacks and interacting with a live conspecific elicited a higher frequency of attempted bites and head hits, as compared with the mirror image. There was a pronounced increase in plasma androgens (11-ketotestosterone and testosterone) and corticosteroids (cortisol) levels in response to the aggression challenge, independent of stimulus type. Post-fight intra-group levels of these hormones did not correlate with measures of physical activity or aggressive behavior. A linear discriminant analysis including all behavioral and endocrine data was a poor classifier of fish from the conspecific and mirror trials, showing that overall the behavioral and endocrine response to mirror images and conspecifics was similar. The results show that fight resolution is not necessary to induce an evident increase in peripheral levels of androgens and corticosteroids in B. splendens. However, the function of these hormones during present and future aggressive contests remains to be clarified.
Keywords: Aggression; Androgens; Corticosteroids; Live conspecific test; Mirror test

Environmental Education in Macau’s Schools: A Case Study on Teachers' Perceptions of Experiential Pedagogies - Reh, Paul Thu (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Replacement or plume fallout? Both, please! Evidence from active and fossil VMS systems - Relvas, J M R S; Barriga, F; Pinto, A; Marques, A F; Carvalho, J; Dias, A Á (16th SGA Biennial Meeting 2022, 2022)

Editorial: On Cinema - Ribas, Daniel; Crespo, Nuno; Caires, Carlos Sena (Journal of Science and Technology of the Arts, 2020)
In the past decades, the field of cinema has undergone several transformations. The digital turn increasingly called for new forms of production, distribution, and exhibition, which imply different ways of thinking, doing, and experimenting cinema. These new forms also reduced the gap between cinema to other so-called visual arts. If cinema and visual arts were already in the process of merging, the last years forced the naturalization of thinking in similar theoretical grounds. This special issue aims to be a forum for the discussion of new practices of researching cinema, and the changes in cinema’s forms of experience and production.
Keywords: Art and cinema; Cinema; Contemporary cinema; Digital turn; Visual Arts

Exploring the Distinctive Identity of Catholic Education in Three Catholic Secondary Schools in Macau - Ribeiro, Daniel Antonio De Carvalho (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Assessment of the post-acute COVID-19 syndrome cardiovascular effect through ECG analysis - Ribeiro, Pedro; de Souza, Clarice Cristina Cunha; Camerino, Cristine Mayara Cavalcante; Pordeus, Daniel; Leite, Camila Ferreira; Lobo Marques, Joao Alexandre; Madeiro, João Paulo; Rodrigues, Pedro Miguel (2024)
Introduction: SARS-CoV-2, a virus responsible for the emergence of the life-threatening disease known as COVID-19, exhibits a diverse range of clinical manifestations. The spectrum of symptoms varies widely, encompassing mild to severe presentations, while a considerable portion of the population remains asymptomatic. COVID-19, primarily a respiratory virus, has been linked to cardiovascular complications in some patients. Notably, cardiac issues can also arise after recovery, contributing to post-acute COVID-19 syndrome, a significant concern for patient health. The present study intends to evaluate the post-acute COVID-19 syndrome cardiovascular effect through ECG by comparing patients affected with cardiac diseases without COVID-19 diagnosis report (class 1) and patients with cardiac pathologies who present post-acute COVID-19 syndrome (class 2). Methods: From 2 body positions, a total of 10 non-linear features, extracted every 1 second under a multi-band analysis performed by Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT), have been compressed by 6 statistical metrics to serve as inputs for an individual feature analysis by the means of Mann-Whitney U-test and XROC classification. Results and Discussion: 480 Mann-Whitney U-test statistical analyses and XROC discrimination approaches have been done. The percentage of statistical analysis with significant differences (p<0.05) was 30.42% (146 out of 480). The best overall results were obtained by approximating the feature Energy, with the data compressor Kurtosis in the body position Down. Those results were 83.33% of Accuracy, 83.33% of Sensitivity, 83.33% of Specificity and 87.50% of AUC. Conclusions: The results show that the applied methodology can be a way to show changes in cardiac behaviour provoked by post-acute COVID-19 syndrome.

Machine learning-based cardiac activity non-linear analysis for discriminating COVID-19 patients with different degrees of severity - Ribeiro, Pedro; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo; Pordeus, Daniel; Zacarias, Laíla; Leite, Camila Ferreira; Sobreira-Neto, Manoel Alves; Peixoto, Arnaldo Aires; de Oliveira, Adriel; Madeiro, João Paulo do Vale; Rodrigues, Pedro Miguel (Biomedical Signal Processing and Control, 2024)
Objective: This study highlights the potential of an Electrocardiogram (ECG) as a powerful tool for early diagnosis of COVID-19 in critically ill patients with limited access to CT–Scan rooms. Methods: In this investigation, 3 categories of patient status were considered: Low, Moderate, and Severe. For each patient, 2 different body positions have been used to collect 2 ECG signals. Then, from each collected signal, 10 non-linear features (Energy, Approximate Entropy, Logarithmic Entropy, Shannon Entropy, Hurst Exponent, Lyapunov Exponent, Higuchi Fractal Dimension, Katz Fractal Dimension, Correlation Dimension and Detrended Fluctuation Analysis) were extracted every 1s ECG time-series length to serve as entries for 19 Machine learning classifiers within a leave-one-out cross-validation procedure. Four different classification scenarios were tested: Low vs. Moderate, Low vs. Severe, Moderate vs. Severe and one Multi-class comparison (All vs. All). Results: The classification report results were: (1) Low vs. Moderate - 100% of Accuracy and 100% of F1–Score; (2) Low vs. Severe - Accuracy of 91.67% and an F1–Score of 94.92%; (3) Moderate vs. Severe - Accuracy of 94.12% and an F1–Score of 96.43%; and (4) All vs All - 78.57% of Accuracy and 84.75% of F1–Score. Conclusion: The results indicate that the applied methodology could be considered a good tool for distinguishing COVID-19’s different severity stages using ECG signals. Significance: The findings highlight the potential of ECG as a fast and effective tool for COVID-19 examination. In comparison to previous studies using the same database, this study shows a 7.57% improvement in diagnostic accuracy for the All vs All comparison.
Keywords: Accuracy; COVID-19; ECG signals; Machine learning classifiers; Non-linear analysis; –

COVID-19 Detection by Means of ECG, Voice, and X-ray Computerized Systems: A Review - Ribeiro, Pedro; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo; Rodrigues, Pedro Miguel (Bioengineering, 2023)
Since the beginning of 2020, Coronavirus Disease 19 (COVID-19) has attracted the attention of the World Health Organization (WHO). This paper looks into the infection mechanism, patient symptoms, and laboratory diagnosis, followed by an extensive assessment of different technologies and computerized models (based on Electrocardiographic signals (ECG), Voice, and X-ray techniques) proposed as a diagnostic tool for the accurate detection of COVID-19. The found papers showed high accuracy rate results, ranging between 85.70% and 100%, and F1-Scores from 89.52% to 100%. With this state-of-the-art, we concluded that the models proposed for the detection of COVID-19 already have significant results, but the area still has room for improvement, given the vast symptomatology and the better comprehension of individuals’ evolution of the disease.
Keywords: COVID-19; artificial intelligence; computerized diagnostic systems; image processing; signal processing

Evaluation of ECG Non-linear Features in Time-Frequency Domain for the Discrimination of COVID-19 Severity Stages - Ribeiro, Pedro; Pordeus, Daniel; Zacarias, Laíla; Leite, Camila; Alves Neto, Manoel; Aires Peixoto Jr, Arnaldo; de Oliveira, Adriel; Paulo Madeiro, João; Lobo Marques, Joao Alexandre; Miguel Rodrigues, Pedro (Computerized Systems for Diagnosis and Treatment of COVID-19, 2023)
In 2020, the World Health Organization declared the Coronavirus Disease 19 a global pandemic. While detecting COVID-19 is essential in controlling the disease, prognosis prediction is crucial in reducing disease complications and patient mortality. For that, standard protocols consider adopting medical imaging tools to analyze cases of pneumonia and complications. Nevertheless, some patients develop different symptoms and/or cannot be moved to a CT-Scan room. In other cases, the devices are not available. The adoption of ambulatory monitoring examinations, such as Electrocardiography (ECG), can be considered a viable tool to address the patient’s cardiovascular condition and to act as a predictor for future disease outcomes. In this investigation, ten non-linear features (Energy, Approximate Entropy, Logarithmic Entropy, Shannon Entropy, Hurst Exponent, Lyapunov Exponent, Higuchi Fractal Dimension, Katz Fractal Dimension, Correlation Dimension and Detrended Fluctuation Analysis) extracted from 2 ECG signals (collected from 2 different patient’s positions). Windows of 1 second segments in 6 ways of windowing signal analysis crops were evaluated employing statistical analysis. Three categories of outcomes are considered for the patient status: Low, Moderate, and Severe, and four combinations for classification scenarios are tested:  (Low vs. Moderate, Low vs. Severe, Moderate vs. Severe) and 1 Multi-class comparison  (All vs. All)). The results indicate that some statistically significant parameter distributions were found for all comparisons.  (Low vs. Moderate—Approximate Entropy p-value = 0.0067 < 0.05, Low vs. Severe—Correlation Dimension p-value = 0.0087 < 0.05, Moderate vs. Severe—Correlation Dimension p-value = 0.0029 < 0.05, All vs. All—Correlation Dimension p-value = 0.0185 < 0.05. The non-linear analysis of the time-frequency representation of the ECG signal can be considered a promising tool for describing and distinguishing the COVID-19 severity activity along its different stages.
Keywords: COVID-19; ECG signals; Non-linear analysis; Statistical analysis

Macau's First Modern University: Exploring the Early History of the University of East Asia - Roberts, Priscilla (2023)

Once More with Feeling: The Debate Over Yalta Resurrected [Concluding Remarks] - Roberts, Priscilla (H-Diplo State of the Field Roundtable on the Eastern European Settlements during the Second World War: Making the Peace Amidst the War, 2024)

Tracing Modern Macau’s Evolving Global Role Views from Transnational Archives - Roberts, Priscilla (Third Annual Conference of Macao Studies, 2023)

Unsettling Exiles: Chinese Migrants in Hong Kong and the Southern Periphery During the Cold War Angelina Y. Chin. New York: Columbia University Press, 2023. 320 pp., $35.00; £30.00, ISBN 9780231209991. - Roberts, Priscilla (The China Quarterly, 2023)
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«Em caso de dúvida ou persistência dos sintomas, consulte o médico ou farmacêutico» O género textual folheto informativo em Portugal - Rocha, Nuno (Universidade do Porto, 2021)
The main focus of this thesis was to characterize the patient information leaftlets as a text genre in Portugal, compare it with the same text genre in other countries and propose a new form of elaborating these documents in order to rise its comprehensibility levels. Therefore, we proceeded with an analysis of the patient information leaflet as a text genre and its relationship with text linguistics and translation. We also analyzed a corpus of 50 patient information leaflets with focus not only on its content, but also in the way they were created. In order to know the opinion of the general public, a survey about the situation of these documents in Portugal was distributed. In order to find the differences between these documents in different contexts, we made a comparison of a portuguese leaflet with leaflets from other countries. By last, we proposed a new writing scheme for these documents, reformulating one of the leaflets analyzed in the corpus and, to get the opinion of the general public, distributing a survey where the reformulated version was compared to the original one. The results point out to a lack of uniformity between documents and the way that they are created in pharmaceutical companies. The content of the patient informations leaflets in Portugal has an excess of text, technical language and a visual organization that is not appealing, problems that were also pointed out by the public in a survey. In the comparison between leaflets of different countries, big differences were found even when they were produced by the same company. When confronted with the original version and the reformulated version of the same document, the general public prefered the latter.

Enhancing Health and Public Health through Machine Learning: Decision Support for Smarter Choices - Rodrigues, Pedro Miguel; Madeiro, João Paulo; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo (Bioengineering, 2023)
In recent years, the integration of Machine Learning (ML) techniques in the field of healthcare and public health has emerged as a powerful tool for improving decision-making processes [...]
Keywords: n/a

A Financial Valuation of Realty Income Corporation - Rodrigues, Ricardo David Almeida Fernandes (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

The Spread of Buddhism in Japan and The Spirit of Japanese Tea Ceremony - Rosa, Alfredo Augusto da (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
Buddhism was founded by Shakyamuni, and this religion has appeared in opposition to Brahmanism's caste system since its inception. Shakyamuni emphasized the important concept of “all beings are equal” from the very beginning. Buddhism spread from India to other regions, and was introduced to China through Central Asia. In China, Buddhism merged the two native cultures of Confucianism and Taoism and finally produced the socalled Chinese Buddhism. Buddhism and its value of equality were also developed and extended in China, and finally spread to Japan. After Buddhism was spread to Japan, it developed rapidly due to official support. Different Buddhist sects have established their own temples in Japan, and among them, Zen Buddhism has the greatest influence among all social classes in this country. Later, after years of development, Zen Buddhism penetrated into many aspects of Japanese culture, such as religion, aesthetics, garden design, samurai spirit and tea ceremony. With the spread of Zen Buddhism, the core value of Buddhism which is “Buddhist concept of equality” was also spread to Japan. The tea ceremony is precisely the place where this value of equality can be detected. This dissertation explains the many processes that reflect this value no matter inside or outside the tea room, and argues that the spirit of the tea ceremony is to pursue the value of equality
Keywords: Buddhism; Equality; Tea Ceremony; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Philosophy (MPH); University of Saint Joseph

Comment on ''Generalized James' effective Hamiltonian method'' - Rosado, W.; Arraut, Ivan (Physical Review A, 2023)
In the paper carried out by Wenjun et al. [Phys. Rev. A 95, 032124 (2017)], a generalization of the James effective dynamics theory based on a first version of the James method was presented. However, we contend that this is not a very rigorous way of deriving the effective third-order expansion for an interaction Hamiltonian with harmonic time-dependence. In fact, here we show that the third-order Hamiltonian obtained by Wenjun et al. is not Hermitian for general situations when we consider time dependence. Its non-Hermitian nature arises from the foundation of the theory itself. In this comment paper, the most general expression of the effective Hamiltonian expanded up to third order is obtained. Our derived effective Hamiltonian is Hermitian even in situations where we have time dependence.

Anticipare il Futuro della Cina. L’eredità del vescovo gesuita Jin Luxian SJ (“Anticipating the Future of China. The Heritage of the Jesuit Bishop Jin Luxian SJ”) - Rothlin, Stephan (La Civiltà Cattolica, 2020)

Triggering a Change of The Economic Paradigm - Rothlin, Stephan (The Journal of the Macau Ricci Institute, 2021)

Un nuovo paradigma economico.(“Ideas for a New Economic Paradigm”) - Rothlin, Stephan (La Civiltà Cattolica, 2021)
La crisi del Covid-19 ha evidenziato il disagio e il divario sempre più ampio tra ricchi e poveri. La crisi finanziaria del 2007-2009 era già risuonata come un campanello d'allarme sulla necessità di

Crisis Management – Dystopic Scenario VS Real-World Pandemic: The Case of Saramago’s Blindness that Anticipated the Initial Managerial Approach to Covid-19 Pandemic Taken by Unprepared Governments Worldwide - Rouxinol, Hernâni Tiago Caveirinhas (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

ISOLATION AND CHARACTERISATION OF PLASTIC POLYETHYLENE TEREPHTHALATE (PET) DEGRADING AND POLYHYDROXYALKANOATES (PHAs) PRODUCING BACTERIA FROM SOIL AND WATER - Saidu, Muhammad Bashir (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
The demand for plastic has led to enormous plastic waste in the environment, which persist and negatively impact the ecosystems. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is one of the most common thermoplastic polymers available on the market. The concerns about plastic waste generated an interest in strategies to enhance its biodegradation and finding alternative polymers. In this work was investigated the possibility of using bacteria to degrade PET and to produce bioplastics (Polyhydroxyalkanoates, PHAs). Finally, the integration of the two processes was tested. Overall, the work aimed to investigate the potential to recycle PET into bioplastic using bacteria. The potential of bacterial consortia from various environmental samples to degrade PET granules in liquid matrix was investigated. . The results revealed maximum PET granules degradation of 1.1 % by one of the tested consortia. PET degradation intermediate terephthalic acid (TPA) was not detected at the end of 55 days. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) results showed major spectral peak shifts and bends on PET chemical structure compared to non-inoculated control. The biodegradation of PET films buried in the soil (A), with mangrove plants (B), and bioaugmented with a bacterial consortium (C) was also investigated. The experiments were conducted for 270 days at ambient conditions. The results revealed no difference between treatments in the degradation, with a maximum weight loss of 0.118 % in the bioaugmented treatment. Nevertheless, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and FTIR results indicated significant surface changes, spectral peak shifts, and stretches in PET chemical structures. Bacterial consortia isolated from the soil of the experimental treatments were assessed for degradation of PET monomers, TPA and monoethylene glycol (MEG), and intermediate Bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET). The consortia were inoculated in flasks containing minimal media with 1000 mg/L TPA or BHET or1113 mg/L MEG as the sole carbon source. Results showed complete degradation of TPA and significant degradation of BHET (96.09%), and MEG (83.65%) by the consortia. In the second part of the study, bacteria were isolated from various environmental samples and screened for PHA production using Sudan Black B staining on colonies and smeared glass slides. Transmission Electron Microscope images were captured to confirm the intracellular PHA inclusions. A total of 35 isolates were screened for PHA, and 22 showed positive staining. The isolate showing higher levels of PHA synthesis (EC2-30-3) was identified based on 16S rRNA gene sequence as Bacillus sp. and selected for PET monomers degradation and fermentation cultures for PHA production. It was cultured in minimal (Moreira et al., 2013) media with 1000 mg/L TPA and 1113 mg/L MEG as the carbon source for eight days. The isolate grew better in media containing MEG, which was selected as a substrate model for PHA fermentation. To integrate PET monomers biodegradation and production of PHA, the isolate was cultured in 0.2 % MEG. A control with 0.2 % of glucose was prepared, and the cultures were incubated for 96 hours. Bacillus sp. EC2-30-3 showed higher PHA accumulation in media supplied with MEG (40.31%) than glucose (25.53%). This is the first report showing that Bacillus sp. uses PET monomer as carbon source to produce a biopolymer. FTIR results of the extracted PHA identified its functional units as C–H, CH3, C=O, and C–O groups. The absorption bands obtained are closely related to the structure of PHB. The study thus confirmed the ability of the isolated bacteria to degrade PET monomers and produce biopolymers. The results of this work open the possibility for upscaling the use of bacteria to mitigate the impact of PET on the environment while producing environmentally friendly bioplastics
Keywords: Biodiversity; China; Green Roof; Macao SAR; Nature-based Solutions; Sustainability; Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Science (D-SC); University of Saint Joseph

The Trend and Characteristics of Deviant Behavior of Young People in Macao Between 2001 and 2019 - Sam, Lek I. (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

Higher Education students' perceptions towards Information Literacy: a study in Macau - Sanches, Tatiana; Chan, Emily (Ibersid: revista de sistemas de información y documentación, 2023)
Integrating information literacy into learning improves student performance and, for that reason, academic librarians can play a significant role by collaborating in the design and training programs in these areas. In Macao, there is no known study on the information literacy performance of higher education students, so we seek to diagnose this area. For that purpose, a survey was applied to higher education students to assess students' perception of information literacy and their self-characterization regarding the use of resources and the type of skills needed for academic work. A semi-structured interview was also carried out with teachers about the same reality. Students perceive themselves to have a low level of confidence in the performance of their academic tasks, which affects their fulfilment. Faculty are aligned with this diagnosis, revealing the students’ weaknesses in the information search and presentation. Overall, information needs are evident among students as also is the use of preferred information resources in pursuit of their studies. The training aimed at students in search, retrieval, analysis, and use of information seems to be essential, which is why the construction of a tailormade training program in Information Literacy is anticipated.
Keywords: Macao

Perceções das competências requeridas a futuros bibliotecários: um estudo internacional - Sanches, Tatiana; Chan, Emily (Atas do Congresso Nacional de Bibliotecários, Arquivistas e Documentalistas, 2023)
Resumo Os bibliotecários são profissionais que se devem manter constantemente atualizados, procurando ativamente o desenvolvimento das suas competências profissionais, pelas próprias características das funções que desempenham. Porém, é importante perceber o que pensam estes atores acerca da sua atual formação de base, concretamente se esta tem vindo a acompanhar as tendências de atualização. Assim, partindo de uma análise prévia ao conteúdo de diversos documentos orientadores, emanados de associações internacionais, no sentido de encontrar as competências preconizadas para a área de atuação, é realizado um questionário ao nível nacional e internacional a futuros profissionais, estudantes na área das ciências documentais. O principal objetivo é o de procurar entender, comparativamente, que habilidades e competências são valorizadas para o futuro desempenho profissional. O questionário foi aplicado a grupos de estudantes de ciências da documentação e informação em Portugal, Macau e República Checa, evidenciando-se as perspetivas comuns entre os inquiridos sobre as competências necessárias e aquelas que são recebidas na formação inicial, concluindo-se que existem ainda algumas assimetrias entre as necessidades da profissão e a formação recebida, na perspetiva dos futuros profissionais, independentemente do território a que pertencem.

Analysis of the Impact of Environmentally Sustainable Practices on Macau Hotels Guest Engagement - Santos, Ana Sofia Kong (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

Sustainable Practices in Hotel Chains—A Comparative Analysis of Official Annual Hospitality Sustainable Reports from Listed Companies in Macau SAR, China - Santos, Ana Sofia Kong; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo (Springer International Publishing, 2023)
In the last few years, the tourism industry has experienced rapid expansion and diversification, making it one of the fastest-growing financial industries in the world. Consequently, the hotel industry has significantly affected the environment's long-term viability. Many hotels have begun voluntarily implementing environmentally sustainable practices as they become more aware of their ecological footprint. There has been a great deal of discussion about the effects of hotel operations on the environment and tourism sustainability in Macau. It is because of these negative impacts that hoteliers have adopted green practices in an attempt to minimize them. By developing sustainability reports, hotels can set goals, measure performance, and manage change, resulting in better sustainability. It could also be viewed as a strategy to enhance the company’s sustainability reporting to ensure stakeholders know what the company does. The objective of this study is twofold based on the analysis of the official sustainability reports of four major hotel chains. Firstly, seven categories of sustainable practices effectively adopted by these chain hotels are identified and clusterized. Second, it is presented in which areas some hotels performed more efficiently than others, considering the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a reference. The results allow a comprehensive clusterized analysis of the industry in a highly developed gaming and entertainment area of South China and create a clear comparison between relevant players and their concerns about sustainability practices.
Keywords: Environmentally sustainable practices; Macau hotels; Sustainable development goals (SDGs); Sustainable reports; Tourism industry

Risk Analysis in Sustainable Buildings' Construction Projects: A Perspective from Macau and Hong Kong - Santos, Eduardo José Piteira Paulo dos (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

Unequal Access to Shadow Education in South Korea: Selection Processes of Parents from Different Socio-Economic Statuses - Seok-Hoon Jeon (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

The Impact and Attitude of Urban Renewal on Citizen Residents in Macau - Si Cheng Iok (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

An Exploratory Study of Macao's Role as an Arbitration Seat and Venue for Sino-Luso Commercial Disputes - Si, Leung Cheok; Diakite, Ansoumane Douty (Revista Opinião Jurídica (Fortaleza), 2023)
Objective: Over the past decade, arbitration has grown in popularity as a method of resolving commercial disputes worldwide. However, this practice is relatively new in Macao SAR. Recently, official plans were announced to make Macao as a seat of arbitration for commercial disputes between China and Portuguese-speaking countries (Hereinafter PSCs). This article is dedicated to explores the possibility of Macao undertaking and implementing such a role. Accordingly, this article addresses the following issues: What are the strengths and weaknesses of Macao as a seat and eventually as venue for hosting international commercial arbitration between Chinese and PSCs entrepreneurs?Methodology: A mixed-method approach of legal doctrinal and empirical research was used in this article. We first included a thorough study of the concept of arbitration followed by analysis of various legal journals and legislations, including Macao, China, and PSCs’ arbitration laws. An empirical research was then used to collect data by surveying and interviewing with both lawyers and arbitration practitioners from Macao, China and PSCs.Results: This article argues that the strength of Macao resides in the similarities between its legal system and that of the China and PSCs and the languages advantage (Chinese and Portuguese both official languages). In spite of this, arbitration is still relatively underutilized in the region, and there is a limited number of arbitrators and legal professionals with bilingual proficiency.Contributions: This article contributes to the identification of the opportunities and challenges that Macao faces in its potential future development as a seat/venue of arbitration between China and the PSCs.
Keywords: China; Macao; arbitraje internacional comercial; international commercial arbitration; participante y anfitrión de arbitraje; países de habla portuguesa; portuguese-speaking countries; seat and venue of arbitration

Towards an efficient prognostic model for fetal state assessment - Silva Neto, Manuel Gonçalves da; Madeiro, João Paulo do Vale; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo; Gomes, Danielo G. (Measurement, 2021)
Monitoring signals such as fetal heart rate (FHR) are important indicators of fetal well-being. Computer-assisted analysis of FHR patterns has been successfully used as a decision support tool. However, the absence of a gold standard for the building blocks decision-making in the systems design process impairs the development of new solutions. Here we propose a prognostic model based on advanced signal processing techniques and machine learning algorithms for the fetal state assessment within a comprehensive evaluation process. Feature-engineering-based and time-series-based machine learning classifiers were modeled into three data segmentation schemas for CTU-UHB, HUFA, and DB-TRIUM datasets and the generalization performance was assessed by a two-way cross-dataset evaluation. It has been shown that the feature-based algorithms outperformed the time-series ones on data-limited scenarios. The Support Vector Machines (SVM) obtained the best results on the datasets individually: specificity (85.6% ) and sensitivity (67.5%). On the other hand, the most effective generalization results were achieved by the Multi-layer perceptron (MLP) with a specificity of 71.6% and sensitivity of 61.7%. The overall process provided a combination of techniques and methods that increased the final prognostic model performance, achieving relevant results and requiring a smaller amount of data when compared to the state-of-the-art fetal status assessment solutions.
Keywords: Cardiotocography; Classification; Fetal state assessment; Prognostic model; System design

How Do Chinese Manufactured Products Affect Purchase Intention in a SAR of PRC? The Case of Macao - Silva, Márcio Rossano Pegado da (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Theses and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

Human Resource Management and Employee Relations in Angola: Challenges and Opportunities - Silva, Maria Rita (Employee Relations and Trade Unions in Africa: A Critical Approach, 2023)
This chapter presents a systematic review of research on human resources management (HRM) and employee relations (ER) in Angola to identify the main challenges and opportunities presented. To achieve that goal, this chapter characterises research conducted in the country, investigates its main findings, and proposes some directions for the future. Based on a bibliographic search in the EBSCO Discovery database of empirical articles about HRM and ER in Angola, we collected a sample of 28 studies published between 2009 and 2022. Most studies have focused on the development and retention of human resources. Other topics included diversity management, workplace attitudes and behaviours, scale validations, leadership and decision-making, performance appraisal, quality assessment, corporate social responsibility, and expatriates. We identified three main challenges and opportunities in HRM and ER in Angola. First, the policies and the planning, implementing, and evaluating processes of human resources development and retention strategies should be improved. Second, effective leadership and participation should be promoted while navigating the tensions between autocratic and participative leadership styles. Finally, positive ER and employee well-being should be promoted. Understanding these challenges and opportunities may contribute to the development of human capital in Angola and, ultimately, the country’s socioeconomic development.

Physiology, endocrinology and chemical communication in aggressive behaviour of fishes - Silva, Melina Coelho da; Canário, Adelino Vicente Mendonça; Hubbard, Peter Colin; Gonçalves, David (Journal of Fish Biology, 2021)
Fishes show remarkably diverse aggressive behaviour. Aggression is expressed to secure resources; adjusting aggression levels according to context is key to avoid negative consequences for fitness and survival. Nonetheless, despite its importance, the physiological basis of aggression in fishes is still poorly understood. Several reports suggest hormonal modulation of aggression, particularly by androgens, but contradictory studies have been published. Studies exploring the role of chemical communication in aggressive behaviour are also scant, and the pheromones involved remain to be unequivocally characterized. This is surprising as chemical communication is the most ancient form of information exchange and plays a variety of other roles in fishes. Furthermore, the study of chemical communication and aggression is relevant at the evolutionary, ecological and economic levels. A few pioneering studies support the hypothesis that aggressive behaviour, at least in some teleosts, is modulated by “dominance pheromones” that reflect the social status of the sender, but there is little information on the identity of the compounds involved. This review aims to provide a global view of aggressive behaviour in fishes and its underlying physiological mechanisms including the involvement of chemical communication, and discusses the potential use of dominance pheromones to improve fish welfare. Methodological considerations and future research directions are also outlined.

Action research on circular economy strategies in fashion retail - Silva, Susana C.; Neiva, Carolina Rocha; Dias, Joana Carmo (International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 2025)
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.

Modelling the barriers that are preventing e-commerce to thrive – a case study from Portugal, international journal of business excellence - Silva, Susana Costa e; Machado, Joana Costa; Martins, Carla; Duarte, Paulo; Marques, João Alexandre Lobo (International Journal of Business Excellence, 2021)
The identification of barriers for e-commerce to thrive in specific countries is a topic of great interest. This work proposes two models to study the barriers to B2C e-commerce adoption in Portugal, highlighting obstacles less exploited by previous research: the impact of offline shopping pleasure and the influence of the distance to shopping malls on online shopping intent. An online survey was conducted based on different constructs. A multivariate OLS hierarchical regression was used to analyse the proposed models regarding the intention to buy online and the number of online purchases. The results revealed that customer satisfaction is a strong predictor of intent to buy online and that perceived product risk remains a barrier to e-commerce. Consumers living in high urbanised areas have more propensity to buy online. Helpful information is provided regarding the impact of context, culture, product, and individual barriers, showing that multichannel strategies are best suited for success.
Keywords: E-commerce barriers; Online shopping; Portugal; Retail

Analysis of reading errors in Portuguese : digraphs and complex syllabic structures - Simões, Edlia; Martins, Margarida Alves (Análise Psicológica, 2020)
Abstract: The Portuguese language poses several challenges for children in the initial phase of learning how to read, particularly in the case of letters that may correspond to more than one phoneme, two letters that correspond to a single phoneme and in the case of words containing complex syllabic structures. The objective of this study was to perform a psycholinguistic analysis of the reading errors of children, attending the 1st (n=175) and 2nd year (n=137) of schooling, specifically in the case of words containing digraphs or complex syllabic structures and to analyse the differences between children’s reading errors in these two years. An oral reading test was used for data collection. A quantitative and qualitative analysis of the type of reading errors was conducted using words with consonant digraphs (ch, nh, lh, gu, rr, ss), and words with complex syllables <CVC and CCV>. This analysis showed that children presented greater difficulties in some specific digraphs and tended to simplify complex syllables, either by adding or deleting phonemes. The quantity and quality of the reading errors of children attending both grades were discussed in light of reading acquisition theories and children’s phonological development.

Guide to Street Art in Macau. - Simões, Filipa (CURB Center for Architecture and Urbanism, 2023)

A reserva territorial dos aborígenes potiguaras do Brasil: um locus simbólico - Simões, José Manuel (Revista Internacional em Língua Portuguesa, 2023)
The various volumes coordinated by Pierre Nora to pursue a history of the places of memory in France have become a multidisciplinary theoretical reference for those who, like us, seek to reconstruct the memories with which the land of the Potiguara aborigines of Brazil is organized today. In the introduction to the voluminous work that he directed for eight years, Nora explained his epistemic understanding of the notion of “places of memory”, stressing that a “lieu de mémoire” is any significant entity that, material or immaterial in nature, through a human will or the wear and tear of time, has become a symbolic element of a community's memorial heritage. The French historian also added that, since memory is the fundamental structure of this generally lengthy process, it was convenient to understand it as a phenomenon of emotions and magic that only accommodates the facts that feed it. Strictly speaking, memory is always vague, and reminiscent, stirring both general impressions and fine symbolic details. Furthermore, memory is always vulnerable to transference, repressed and imagined memories, censorship, and all kinds of projections. (Nora, 1984). In this article, we try to understand that the places of memory are also almost always what comes to us, stays, and selects the past. The reserve where they live appears as a symbolic locus to which the Potiguara aborigines cling with all their strength to preserve what remains of their past.
Keywords: aborígenes Potiguara; censuras; locus simbólico; lugares de memória; preservar o passado; reconstrução das memórias

Brasil: pela mansidão da Paraíba, de Ponta do Seixas a São Francisco | José Manuel Simões - Simoes, José Manuel (InComunidade, 2022)
Nessa noite decidiram hospedar-se num motel pois queriam acordar às 3.45 para ver o primeiro sol das Américas na Ponta de Seixas, João Pessoa, Paraíba. Subiram à torre do Nazareno às 4.45 e, quando já pensavam que as nuvens não iam deixar assistir ao nascer de mais um dia aprazível, eis que ele, o senhor rei dos dias, surge do mar. Enquanto os olhos brilhavam ao sol, lembrou-se que Chico César era dali perto, do interior da Paraíba, para as bandas de Campina Grande. Recordou que a primeira vez que tentou olhá-lo nos olhos percebeu que ele estava envolvido numa […]

Filosofia de comboio - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2021)

Histórias do Brasil de 1550: na oca do cacique “Luz Lilás” | José Manuel Simões - Simões, José Manuel (InComunidade, 2023)
Sinã, conhecido entre os seus parentes pelo nome de “Luz Lilás”, homem de um imenso metro e noventa, cacique, mandou reunir a sua comunidade na oca central, a maior, situada no ponto mais alto do cimo da falésia, feita de massaranduba e sucupira – as madeiras mais resistentes – entrelaçadas com cipós de fogo.   Pintaram-lhe o longo rosto com traços firmes, a geometria dos signos direcionada ao céu e à terra, protetores das suas gentes. Dessa vez as linhas marcadas na face de “Luz Lilás” eram mais simétricas do que o habitual, as tintas extraídas das sementes de urucu […]

La terre des autochtones potiguara du brésil: une construction sociale et politique - Simões, José Manuel (E-Journal of Intercultural Studies, 2022)
The land of the potiguara indians of Brazil: a social and political construction The space in which the potiguaras of Brazil live is, today as in the past, the result of a longterm process, many negotiations and well-managed refuges. Paradoxically, despite their recurrent discourse invoking the ancestry of their lands of origin, the Potiguara fight and continue to fight politically for the return to the spaces where their colonial refuge took place.

Macau: 7 desenhos, 7 artistas, 7 perfis, 7 pontes entre a China e o mundo lusófono - Simoes, José Manuel (Em português: falar, viver e pensar no século XXI, 2022)

Macau: Carlos Marreiros, macaense, luso-descendente – um testemunho de uma carreira internacional de um arquiteto e artista - Simoes, José Manuel (Em português: falar, viver e pensar no século XXI, 2022)

Mentes abertas, artenativa e um novo Camões - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2022)

Nestes tempos, precisamos aprender a amar de novo - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2022)

No reino dos sentidos - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2022)
José Manuel Simões

No templo de Hare Krishna - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2021)

Prefeace for Espectros Inquietos, Elis Bodêgo - Simoes, José Manuel (2021)

The Media in São Tomé and Príncipe and Its Contribution to the Country Development - Simoes, José Manuel (China, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe – From sporadic bilateral exchanges to a comprehensive multilateral platform, 2022)

The pedagogical role of ethics and deontology for future professionals of communication and media: How to develop and nourish virtues - Simões, José Manuel (IV Jornadas Innovación Educativa en Comunicación y Alfabetización Mediática, 2022)
- Flipped classroom metodologiak eskaintzen dituen abantaila pedagogikoak (Ander Goikoetxea Pérez, Hannot Mintegia Beaskoa). - Conocimiento de la actualidad informativa a partir de la participación del alumnado que ejerce de periodista y lector crítico (María del Mar Rodríguez González, Iñigo Marauri Castillo, Guillermo Gurrutxaga Rekongo). - El papel del procesamiento dual de la información en la discriminación de noticias falsas (José Manuel Meza Cano, Cinthia Aranda-Solís, Blanca Olalde López de Arechavaleta, Santiago Palacios Navarro). - No trespassing: Arau, traba eta mugen bidezko metodologia sortzaile bat kazetaritza gradurako (Hannot Mintegia Beaskoa, Ander Goikoetxea Pérez). - Learning digital journalism: Analysing web media in comparative perspective to learn what is quality in digital communication (Javier Díaz-Noci). - El sistema híbrido vehículo de comunicación educativa (Antonio Vaquerizo Mariscal). - The pedagogical role of ethics and deontology for future professionals of communication and media: How to develop and nourish virtues (José Manuel Simões). - Desgaitasuna duten pertsonen Komunikazio ikasketetako prestakuntzari buruzko gogoetak (Terese Mendiguren, Jesús Ángel Pérez Dasilva, Koldobika Meso Ayerdi, Simón Peña, Ainara Larrondo, María Ganzabal). - Teaching Communication (and Journalism) History from Social History Theory: Some proposals (Javier Díaz-Noci).

Trip to a dejà vu place - Simões, José Manuel (Aspectus. Revista de Arte & Ciência, 2020)

Um país, dois sistemas: reflexões sobre o panorama mediático em língua portuguesa em Macau - Simoes, José Manuel (Em português: falar, viver e pensar no século XXI, 2022)

Multilingual freedom of the press in Macau - Simões, José Manuel; Mayes, Lee ([RMd] RevistaMultidisciplinar, 2020)
There can be no conclusive determining regarding true press freedom in Macau, and perhaps this statement can be applied elsewhere as well. Issues of self-censorship, partisanship, or cultural loyalty exist in cities and countries around the world, and most of the time there is simply no reliable measurement to determine their impact. The Special Administrative Region (SAR) of Macau is separate and distinct from mainland China, but that does not mean that it is entirely without question regarding its freedom of the press, ethical journalistic practices, and interference by non-authorized agencies at the three languages local newspapers.
Keywords: autocensura; ingerência; liberdade de imprensa; partidarismo; práticas éticas

EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WRITTEN COMMUNICATION COMPETENCE AND CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE (CQ): A CASE STUDY OF EFL LEARNERS IN MACAO - Sin, Man Teng (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
Although Macau students received years of English lectures as compulsory, the outcome could be more favorable when applied to English written performance. In that written communication requires the individual to consider audience perception of the message, a challenge for ESL writers, this study explores whether different forms of feedback can enhance one’s cultural intelligence.The current study looked into the effect of incorporating peer involvement and instructor feedback in written communication, gaining insight into cultural nuances. In order to attain the objective, data were gathered through the utilization of an action research methodology employing a mixed-method design. Grade twelve local students attended a six-week six-week intervention consisting of two cycles. The focus of the intervention nurtured essay writing; the topics of which were inspired by popular musical lyrics, and involved a drafting process that incorporated feedback both from peer editing and the instructor.. The data collected throughout the study involved analysis of written samples (scores of draft and final version) using a paired samples t-test. In addition, students completed a pre-test and post-test survey of the cultural intelligence instrument (CQ), which measured their performance across four domains. There were statistically significant differences between cognitive CQ and motivational CQ between the scores attained before and directly after the intervention.. This study's findings suggest that the written communication of ESL students may be enhanced by adjusting . These findings enriched our understanding of how peer editing and teacher feedback with songs affected the outcomes of second language learners
Keywords: Music; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph; cultural intelligence; foreign language anxiety; writing competence

EXPLORING MACAU SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS’ UNDERSTANDING, PROFESSIONAL SKILLS, AND CHALLENGES TO INCLUSIVE EDUCATION OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES/SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS - Sin, Sam I. (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
Quality inclusive education creates educational opportunities for all students to achieve enhanced educational outcomes, and the quality of inclusive teaching depends on teachers’ knowledge, skills, resources and school support. However, not all schools are implementing inclusive education well enough to cater to the learning needs of students with special educational needs. This phenomenological case study explored the perspectives and experiences of five teachers in one inclusive secondary school in Macau. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of the in-depth semi- structured interview data revealed four themes: varied conceptualisations of inclusive education, professional training in inclusive practice, professional knowledge and practice experiences, and challenges to implementing inclusive education. Generally, while the teachers demonstrated awareness and some understanding of inclusive education, they also expressed the need for more knowledge and skills to implement inclusive education effectively in their schools. Additionally, they referred to time pressure, workload and insufficient professional development as impeding their personal processes of evolving inclusive teaching in their school. Recommendations were made considering Booth and Ainscow's (2002) Index of Inclusion to enable effective development and practice of inclusive education in the Macau secondary school and extend this to other schools
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph; students with special education needs; teachers' professional skills; teachers' understanding

SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES ABOUT CANTONESE OPERA IN MACAO ACROSS GENERATIONS: CULTURAL IDENTITY AND SOCIAL BONDING - Sin, Shuk Ching; Silva, Maria Rita (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
"Cantonese opera (CO) represents an art form that had its golden time in Macao during the mid-twentieth century. CO still has many loyal fans but they mainly are in the older generation. The purpose of this study was to explore if CO is considered a cultural capital heritage in Macao, related to cultural identity and transmitted across generations to support social bonding. Applying a qualitative methodology, a script for exploring participants’ experiences and opinions about CO was designed, and different groups of individuals were recruited for semi-structured interviews and focus groups. The data collected was analysed by a thematic analysis of the verbatim transcripts. Findings show that in the past first contacts with CO happened in family and related social context, mainly during participants’ developing age. However, currently CO is no longer passed on to the next generation. Despite that the young generations acknowledging their cultural identities in CO, mainly in terms of Cantonese culture and Cantonese language, older individuals engaged with CO seemed to perceive their cultural identities more in depth in its history, literacy and music. Actually, engagement is an important factor that generates social bonds. The CO leisure practitioners, no matter young or old, experienced the effects of social bonding during the ritual of enquiry in the process of learning and practising CO. To improve CO’s preservation in Macao, the adoption of strategies such as developing new productions, crossover with other media, innovations in promotion targeting the young audiences, and absorbing audiences in the Great Bay area were proposed. Finally, the potential use of CO as a tool in counselling and community work is discussed. "
Keywords: Cantonese Opera; Cultural Identity; Individual Well-being; Social Bonding; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Counselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Medical Information Extraction of Clinical Notes and Pictorial Visualisation of Electronic Medical Records Summary Interface - Singh, Praveen; Chaudhary, Gopal; Lobo Marques, Joao Alexandre (Smart Distributed Embedded Systems for Healthcare Applications, 2023)

探討澳門及香港華德福學前教育的實踐: 來自教師的視角 - Sio, Ka I. (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

A financial Valuation Study for Moody’s Corporation - Sio, Lai Teng (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
This study presents the intrinsic value of Moody’s Corporation, a leading credit rating agency in the U.S. The results of the valuation were compared to the market value of Moody’s Corporation of the same date. The aim of the research is to provide a perspective to the investors on whether the actual value of the Company was overvalued or undervalued in the market, and how much the volatility of the stock price by the change of some factors. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were applied in the research. The historical data, economic outlook, and the Company’s strategies were collected to be the metrics to determine the intrinsic value and provide an analysis of the prospects of Moody’s Corporation. Three valuation models were applied in the research to estimate the intrinsic value of the Company’s common stock. The cost of debt, cost of equity, the weighted average cost of capital, and the market risk premium were introduced and calculated in the research as they were the critical components in the valuation process. Since the valuation was based on assumptions and historical data to determine future growth, which indicates that the results could be changed due to uncertain factors. This study demonstrates that there was some discrepancy between the stock’s market price and the intrinsic value per share of Moody’s Corporation as of December 31, 2021
Keywords: Intrinsic Value; Moody's; Theses and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph; Valuation

A Study of the Perspectives and Experiences of Macau Secondary School Students with Special Education Needs in Inclusive Education - Sio, Man Cheng (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

EXPLORING THE IMPACTS ON MENTAL WELL-BEING OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS UNDER COVID-19 PANDEMIC. A QUALITATIVE STUDY - Sit Chin Pok (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a public health emergency happening worldwide. It brought tremendous impacts to the global economy and people’s mental health (Jiaqi Xiong et al., 2020). Many people suffered physically and psychologically with the sudden arrival of COVID-19. Among the different age groups, studies identified that undergraduate students as a vulnerable group with a higher risk of mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety (Silva et al., 2022; King et al., 2022; Mansor & Ahmad, 2022). This qualitative study collected data from six focus group interviews with undergraduate students studying in Macao. Thematic analysis was used to understand the COVID-19 impact on students' mental well-being and coping strategies, as well as to explore the protective and risk factors that contribute to students’ mental well-being in the local context of Macao. Results showed four themes with 15 contributory sub-themes: COVID-19’s impact on students’ mental well-being, key impacting sources, coping strategies, and risk and protective factors. This study provides a picture of the mental health condition of undergraduate students during the zero-COVID period in Macao and raises an urgent call for extra attention to university students’ mental health during crises, showing the social and mental needs of undergraduates. This research also uniquely contributes insight into how the dysfunctionality of families could be a significant risk factor for students’ mental health during the crisis, which is rarely found in other COVID-19 studies. This research suggests a promotion of future programs or workshops that would strengthen and benefits students’ relationship with their family. Future research could explore the family function in Macao and its relationship with students’ mental well-being
Keywords: Mental Well-being; Qualitative; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); Undergraduate Student; University of Saint Joseph

Parental Stress and Family Relations in Macao: The Mediating Role of Parenting Styles - Siu Kuan Lei (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

Assessing critical thinking disposition through text analysis in traditional Chinese: An empirical study of tourism and gaming undergraduates in Macao - Siu Lam, Carlos; Liu, Yong; Zhang, Yinghong; Wu, Hao (Frontiers in Education, 2025)
Critical thinking disposition (CTD) is increasingly recognized as an important trait in education, reflecting the inclination and habits necessary for addressing complex challenges in today's world. This study assessed the CTD of students enrolled in a tourism and gaming management programme, focusing on two key dimensions: Analyticity and Open-Mindedness. This study was conducted at a university in Macao and involved 65 participants. The students were presented with an article relevant to their major, written in Traditional Chinese, and were asked to provide their opinions on each statement in the article. A rubric was designed to analyze their responses and assess their Analyticity and Open-Mindedness within the CTD framework. The results demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.91) and revealed an association between Analyticity and Open-Mindedness. Using Python programming, the study analyzed the frequency of parts of speech (POS) in students' responses, introducing a novel approach for evaluating CTD in Traditional Chinese. Regression modeling showed that parallel and adversative conjunctions significantly predicted Analyticity, while the frequency of conjunction use varied across Open-Mindedness classifications. These findings highlighted an innovative and objective method for assessing CTD through text analysis, offering promising applications for educational research in Traditional Chinese-speaking contexts.
Keywords: critical thinking disposition; educational assessment; text analysis; tourism and gaming education; traditional Chinese

ACQUISITION OF HIGHER-ORDER THINKING SKILLS IN SECONDARY EDUCATION: A CASE STUDY IN A MACAU SECONDARY ESL CONTEXT - Siu, Ka U. (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This study examined the acquisition of higher-order thinking skills in an English as a Second Language (ESL) classroom at a secondary school in Macau. It included an investigation of the way teaching might affect the development of higher-order thinking skills and language proficiency. This study also included an examination of the degree to which existing societal practices or values might have influenced the acquisition of higher-order thinking skills. Research instruments such as a questionnaire, a twelve-week experiment, pre-and post-tests and interview sessions were used for the data collection. The findings suggested that after twelve weeks the experimental groups developed higher synthetical and evaluative skills than the control groups which instead demonstrated better language skills. The results also identified incongruences between the curriculum and the expectations of the parents and employers
Keywords: ESL Learning; Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Education (D-SE); University of Saint Joseph; critical thinking; higher-order thinking skills

Contribution for the Public Consultation on the Macao SAR Masterplan 2020-2024 (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)

Cross Border Lab: Reframing the Urban Edge - Macau x Zhuhai - Soares, Nuno (Manipal International Symposium on Design, 2020)

Local Matters - Design Driven by Urban Conditions [Video] - Soares, Nuno (TEDx Senado Square. TED Conferences., 2020)

Pavilhão de Bambu Intertwine – Preservação, Inovação e Promoção do Património Imaterial de Macau - Soares, Nuno (VIII Fórum Internacional CIALP, 2022)

Public Matters: Identity, Design, and Placemaking in Macau’s Inner Harbou - Soares, Nuno (Making Place in the Greater Bay Area International Symposium, 2021)

Reframing the Urban Edge - Design Strategies for Macau x Zhuhai Waterfront - Soares, Nuno (The Greater Bay Area Urban Design Conference, 2020)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design: Zone 01 –Manduco (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design: Zone 02 - Padre António (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design: Zone 03 – Ponte e Horta (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design Zone 04 – Harbou (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design: Zone 05 - Felicidade (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Design: Zone 06 – Santo Agostinho (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Conceptual Master Plan (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

Southern Inner Harbour Public Domain – Strategic Vision (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)

The Lotus Network – Masterplan and Design Guidelines for Iao Hon and Toi San Community Public Spaces (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)

Uma Questão de Arquitectura: Luz (Café da Manhã, 2022)

Uma Questão de Arquitectura: Materiais (Café da Manhã, 2021)

Uma Questão de Arquitectura: Pré-existência (Café da Manhã, 2021)

Uma Questão de Arquitectura: Programa (Café da Manhã, 2022)

Uma Questão de Arquitectura: Público e Privado (Café da Manhã, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 – 概念性總體規劃 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 01下環街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 02高樓街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 03司打口街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 04海濱街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 05福隆街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 概念設計：區域 06崗頂街區 (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)

內港南部公共領域 - 策略願景 (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)

Assisting the Creative Processes in Visual Merchandising for Luxury Fashion Retail - Soares, Patricia Alexandra Ferreira (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
This dissertation aims to research the need and viability of creating a digital platform that assists the creative processes naturally linked to Visual Merchandising. Through the proposal of a digital platform that works as a co-creative tool for display archives and a co-creative tool for display set-ups through mood boards, we will aim at improving the teamwork in retail and provide a unique, fast-forward platform for information sharing and input under the direction of Visual Departments. Building on rich source materials such as bibliography, scientific papers, news, and articles, and interviewing Visual Merchandisers actively working in the field, we will show the importance of creativity in Luxury Retail and what are the most common challenges in the field that we will propose a solution to. We will focus on the study of concepts, reviewing digital application tools being used by professionals and their best features and improvement opportunities. By gathering this information, we hope to provide accurate insights and information that proves the viability of this proposal and understand what features could serve best the target audience. Finally, we will present a conceptual idea in the form of sketches with functions of this digital application tool to be fully developed in the future and hopefully build a consistent well, designed commercial web-based application
Keywords: Luxury Retail; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Design (MDG); University of Saint Joseph; VM Digital Platform; VM Display Archives; VM Moodboard; Visual Merchandising

A Psychological and Phenomenological Analysis of Chinese People Who Are Not-Capable-Of-Saying-No - Song, Sok Fong (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Philosophy (MPH); University of Saint Joseph

AN EMPIRICAL STUDY ON THE DRIVERS OF CONSUMER SHOPPING BEHAVIOR IN LIVE-STREAMING COMMERCE - Song, Wilson (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This dissertation identifies factors driving consumer shopping behavior within the realm of live-streaming commerce, an area fast emerging in the e-commerce domain. Live-streaming shopping or commerce involves real-time interaction and entertainment with traditional online shopping, forming a unique endogenous environment where consumers can contact sellers or influencers directly. The study employed quantitative surveys that identified some of the main determining factors of consumer behavior within this context. The findings show that the significant factors in determining consumer behavior are trust and engagement, which are strongly influenced by the credibility and authenticity of the live streamer. Another significant finding is the role of social interaction and community building in providing consumers with a sense of belonging and validation, enhancing their confidence and purchase intention. Moreover, it highlights how marketing strategies of flash sales, limited-time offers, and partnerships with influencers make their way into the system to help invoke engagement and impulsive buying behavior among consumers. The implications of these findings extend to e-commerce platforms and marketers. Any improvements in features leading to trust, engagement, and interactivity within the community would drive higher customer satisfaction and sales. According to researchers, working partnerships with believable influencers and more extensive integrations of real-time marketing might further activate live-streaming commerce. This study thus fills a gap in the existing body of literature by detailing the drivers of consumer behavior toward live-stream commerce. It also identifies areas of future research on the current studies, including developing technologies and the cultural variances in the impact of live-stream commerce, including ethical considerations. These results are principle for guiding work on potential live-stream commerce in the digital age for anybody from workers to academicians
Keywords: E-Commerce; Live-Streaming; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph; consumer behavior

Emotional Support Influence Work Engagement and Mental Well-being in Macau: The Moderating Effect of Self-reflection - Sou, Kam Chan; Kuok, Angus C. H. (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
The purpose of this study is to examine work engagement and mental well-being in Macau, specifically after more than three years of COVID. Examine whether external factors such as emotional support from supervisors, co-workers, and family members have a positive impact on work engagement and mental well-being, and whether the internal factor self-reflection with its three aspects of need for self-reflection, engagement in self-reflection, and insight from self-reflection moderates the relationship between emotional support, work engagement, and mental well-being. The target audience consists of Macau's integrated resort, hospitality, and gaming industry employees. According to the Affective Event Theory (AET), affective events at work generate emotional responses that influence the attitudes and behavior of employees in the workplace. In this study, this theoretical framework was used to clarify the interplay of variables that explain emotional support from supervisors, co-workers, and family members, work engagement, and mental well-being. An online self-response survey (N=325) was used to conduct quantitative and cross-sectional research. There was also a combination of simple random sampling, convenience sampling, and referral sampling. All variables were found to be correlated, and while perceived supervisor support was a significant predictor of all aspects of work engagement and mental well-being, family and co-worker support only predicted certain aspects of these variables. Self-reflection partially moderated the positive effects of certain emotional support on work engagement and mental well-being
Keywords: Co-worker Support; Emotional Support; Family Support; Mental Well-being; Perceived Supervisor Support; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph; Work Engagement

Feasibility study of a Glamping Business in óbidos, Portugal - Sousa, Eugénio Ricardo de (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Theses and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

O Autoconceito no Pré-Escolar em Contexto Educativo Multicultural e Plurilinguίstico=Preschool Children’s Self-concept in a Multicultural and Multilingual Educational Context - Sousa, Joana Luísa Dourado de (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

LEADERSHIP STYLE AND ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE INFLUENCE ON EMPLOYEES’ ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT UNDER THE PANDEMIC SITUATION - Sun Leung, Wai Chai (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of leadership styles and organizational cultures to employee’s organizational commitment under the pandemic situation in Macao. The dependent variables comprise of the three dimensions of organizational commitment. Among those three, affective commitment and continuance commitment are considered to be analyzed in this study. The leadership styles concept and organizational cultures are applied as the independent variables. The objectives are achieved using quantitative research method with questionnaires in Likert scale scores. The two significance reveals that laissez-faire leadership style had a positive relationship with continuance organizational commitment (H4) and innovative culture had a positive correlation with continuance organization commitment (H6). Such outcomes were extended to a qualitative study with qualitative approach on discourse analysis to explore the potential factor and a leadership discourse analysis was initiated. While the findings on influence of leadership and culture on organizational commitment is not a major concern for Macao employees in the pandemic situation, the significance of specific leadership style and culture rationalizes the transformation and status of Macao employees’ views towards leadership and employers’ perspective on organizational culture. The data collected in this study may also provide valuable resources for future study and training programs for the coming batch of employees in the coming new phase of Macao in entering the 2nd round of gaming licensing. Create the right leadership and culture for the organization to bring back the passion of Macao employees
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Organisational Psychology (MOP); University of Saint Joseph

A Small Action Research of Using Flipped Classroom Approach to Supporting Diversity Students’ Learning in University. - Sun, C. R. (International Conference on Learning and Teaching, 2021)

Kindergarten Teachers' Attitudes towards Inclusive Education: Perspectives from Macau. - Sun, C. R. (21st PECERA International Conference, 2021)

Relationship between Student Teachers' Beliefs and Practices on Early Chinese Literacy Instruction - Sun, Chunrong; Ho, Ka Lee Carrie (Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2023)
This study explores the relationship between student teachers' beliefs and practices in early Chinese literacy instruction. Semi-structured interviews, classroom observation, and document analysis were conducted with six student teachers during their teaching practices. Findings indicated that the student teachers believed explicitly teaching literacy skills and imperceptible acquisition of literacy abilities through communication and meaning-making processes are essential in Chinese early literacy learning. However, they mainly taught Chinese literacy skills in their practices, which means the student teachers still needed to practice what they preached fully. The study suggests that possible reasons for the discrepancies include 'direct teaching' and 'rote learning' might be much easier for student teachers to design and conduct a lesson. Student teachers have limited abilities and experiences in conducting an ideal lesson, and the kindergarten curriculum and onsite supervisors highly influenced their teaching practices. The findings from this study suggested that more operational activities (such as designing lesson plans and conducting micro-teaching) should be used during pre-service training. Furthermore, the communication of educational beliefs between the university supervisor and the onsite supervisor should be strengthened.

A Study of the Macau Personal Data Protection Legal Regime - Sun, Wai Lon (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Government Studies (MGS); University of Saint Joseph

SOCIAL MEDIA AND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS' PERSPECTIVE OF RELIGION: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EVERY NATION IN THE PHILIPPINES AND MACAU - Tabilas, Analeah Marie R. (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This research analyzed and compared the Instagram content of Victory Philippines and Every Nation Manila to evaluate its impact on the faith perception of university students associated with these churches. In this digital age, institutions have embraced the shift towards online interactions, including adapting religious practices such as worship services to online platforms. Religious organizations are navigating the dynamics between online and offline communication methods as they adapt to engaging with their audience through social media channels. While previous research has delved into online religious content and virtual church services, no prior studies have specifically compared the social media communication strategies of Every Nation churches in Manila, Philippines, and Macau. The research employed a mixed-method approach, compromising interviews, focus groups, and quantitative content analysis. As per the interviews, these took place with four pastors and four media content creators within the Metro Manila region of Every Nation Philippines, commonly recognized as Victory Philippines, and one pastor and one content creator of Every Nation Macau. These interviews helped gather insights into their thought processes and analyze their social media strategies and plans. Three distinct focus group discussions were carried out, involving 15 undergraduate students from Manila and Macau affiliated with Victory Philippines and Every Nation Macau. The participants were equally divided into three groups. These students also actively engage with the Victory Philippines and Every Nation Macau Instagram posts. These focus group discussions were employed to analyze patterns to understand their thought processes. Furthermore, a quantitative content analysis was carried out on Victory Philippines and Every Nation’s Instagram account as part of the study. Despite the active engagement on social media platforms by Victory Philippines and Every Nation Macau, both organizations maintained a strong offline church community. Interviews conducted indicated that the online activities of these churches significantly influenced the faith of students, while their spiritual growth was further supported by an inclusive offline community. This approach exemplified a multi-generational ethos, fostering collaboration between younger and older members towards the shared objective of evangelism. This research validates the Figuring and Disfiguring theoretical framework of Taylor (2007, apud Åhman and Thorén, 2021). The results of the empirical data may provide strong practical guidance to churches of any size as they build and develop their online presence while strengthening their offline presence
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Communication and Media (MCM); University of Saint Joseph

Mangroves as a nature-based solution for a cleaner and safer Macao - Tagulao, Karen (Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Marine Sustainable Development Seminar, 2022)

Mangroves as a nature-based solution for water and climate change issues in Macao: from scientific research to environmental education - Tagulao, Karen (Fostering applied research on the synergies between biodiversity and climate, 2022)

Mangroves for phytoremediation of coastal water eutrophication in Macao, SAR China - Tagulao, Karen (The 9th WETPOL (Wetland Pollution and Dynamics), 2021)

Nature-Based Solutions for Environmental Education in the East Asian Context - Tagulao, Karen Araño (Enhancing Environmental Education Through Nature-Based Solutions, 2022)
Environmental education (EE) has long been practiced worldwide, while Nature-based solutions (NBS) is a relatively new concept. This chapter aims to provide an overview of the EE and NBS practices in East Asia and evaluate how these two valuable applications can be used concurrently. East Asia has a well developed environmental education (EE) programs and activities, both in formal and informal education. These ranges from developing green schools and campuses to establishing policies and acts. While EE has been actively practiced for decades in the region, the adoption of NBS to address environmental and societal challenges is limited. The educational benefits and opportunities from NBS are also lacking. Although there are some projects that can be classified as NBS, like the use of wetlands for wastewater treatment, they are not clearly categorized as one. These projects are also not integrated into environmental education programs. Considering this, the region should develop innovative environmental education programs for schools, universities and communities, that integrate NBS projects. Integrating the two together will boost the effectiveness of environmental education in raising environmental awareness and changing the environmental attitude and behavior of people, which will also help address societal issues.
Keywords: Environmental awareness; Environmental policies/acts; Green schools; Green universities; Sponge cities; Wetlands

SURVIVAL, MORPHOLOGY AND REPRODUCTION OF ENHALUS ACOROIDES (L.f.) ROYLE IN THE BOLINAO-ANDA REEF SYSTEM, NW PHILIPPINES: EFFECTS OF VARYING LIGHT CONDITIONS - Tagulao, Karen Araño (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
Seagrasses play a critical role in coastal ecosystems worldwide, providing various ecosystem services based on their region and genus. In Southeast Asia, where seagrass biodiversity and extents are at their highest, the livelihoods and food security of many coastal communities depend on these plants. Despite their ecological and economic importance, seagrasses face global threats from human activities such as pollution and land use changes. Enhalus acoroides, a widely distributed seagrass species in the tropical Indo-Pacific region, is particularly valuable for coastal management and conservation efforts due to its size and provision of various ecosystem services. Although previous research has indicated that it is less sensitive to environmental changes than other tropical seagrass species, recent reports highlight its vulnerability to siltation and eutrophication. This dissertation aimed to examine how Enhalus responds and adapts to changes in light availability, taking into account both morphological adaptation and phenotypic plasticity. Field surveys, reciprocal transplantation field experiments, and investigations of sexual reproductive effort were conducted in the Bolinao-Anda Reef system (NW Philippines) to evaluate the impact of long-term environmental changes on Enhalus populations. The findings of this study revealed that Enhalus has the capacity to adapt its traits and survive changes in depth, light gradients, and different habitat types. This is evidenced by larger shoots in low-light environments, which is apparently a response to the reduction in light availability, as evidenced in both in situ and experimental setups. Larger leaf surface area in light-reduced setups also had higher concentration of chlorophylls a and b pigments. Transplants from light-reduced environments, although morphologically large, appeared more vulnerable (with low survival values) to environmental changes associated with translocation. Being morphologically large is therefore likely a stress response to light reduction, allocating more energy on light harvesting than sexual reproduction. Reciprocal transplantation experiments indicated a high survival rate, suggesting the potential of Enhalus for use in rehabilitation. However, despite having wider plasticity to adapt to light-limitation, they can be wiped out when threshold is reached. This thesis underscores the need for further research on Enhalus' response to stressors, genetic variation, and adaptive capacity to address conservation and management challenges
Keywords: Enhalus acoroides; Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Science (D-SC); University of Saint Joseph; light availability; phenotypic plasticity; seagrass; transplantation

Mangrove Conservation in Macao SAR, China: The Role of Environmental Education among School Students - Tagulao, Karen Araño; Bernardo, Allan B. I.; Kei, Loi Hoi; Calheiros, Cristina Sousa Coutinho (International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022)
Mangrove forests are one of the most ecologically valuable ecosystems in the world and provide a wide variety of ecosystem services to coastal communities, including cities. Macao, a highly urbanized coastal city located on the southern coast of China west of the Pearl River, is home to several species of mangroves with many associated flora and fauna. Mangrove forests in Macao are vulnerable to threats due to pressure from rapid and massive urban developments in the area, which led to mangrove loss in the past decades. To address this issue, the local authorities established special Ecological Zones for the management of the local mangroves. To reinforce local conservation efforts, educating the local population about the value of mangroves, especially school students, is of utmost importance. To evaluate the impact of environmental education activities on the environmental orientation, knowledge, and values of students toward mangrove conservation in Macao, a quasi-experimental study was undertaken. The effectiveness of a mangroves exhibition and field visit were evaluated using the New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) Scale—Macao version in a group of local school students who participated in the activities. Overall, the results provided consistently positive evaluations of the impact of the environmental education program. The strongest improvements were found in the students’ pro-environmental orientations, knowledge about mangroves, and value for environmental protection.
Keywords: NEP-New Ecological Paradigm; conservation; environmental orientation; environmental protection; urban mangroves

Macao’s mangroves - Tagulao, Karen; Chan, Sek Kiu (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)

Assessment of Methodologies Employed by Change Agents in Managing Organizational Change: A Case Study in the Hospitality-Gaming Industry - Tagulao, Thea Clarice Saavedra (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

The Application of Nudge Theory in Ensuring Change Acceptance in the Hospitality-Gaming Industry – A Case Analysis from Macau SAR, China - Tagulao, Thea Clarice Saavedra; Marques, Joao Alexandre Lobo (Association for Computing Machinery, 2022)
As the rate of change increases exponentially, organizations must adapt quickly to the business landscape's volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA). As a result, organizations must implement agile strategies and practices to ensure their responsiveness and readiness to any changes brought about by internal or external factors. With a greater number of changes, change agents are tasked with implementing various change management methodologies to ensure that change recipients accept change initiatives. This research will look at one of the methodologies used by change agents, the use of nudges from Thaler and Sunstein's Nudge Theory, which is a subtle intervention to influence an individual's decision-making with the goal of steering them towards a specific desired outcome; and analyze their effectiveness towards the change recipients when implemented. Change agents were interviewed on the application of Nudge Theory to change recipients when managing to change initiatives within their respective organizations. The results indicate that the use of nudges created by the change agents can significantly impact the level of resistance from the change recipients. If used correctly, the Nudge Theory can mitigate change resistance, and the success of a change initiative is higher. But, if change recipients are forced to comply, their resistance will be greater, affecting the organization overall.
Keywords: Change Initiatives; Change Resistance; Nudge Theory; Organizational Behavior; Organizational Change Management

街舞在澳門的在地化的研究1980-2020=: Localization of Street Dance in Macau 1980-2020 - Tai, Chou Wai (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of History & Heritage Studies (MHHS); University of Saint Joseph

PUBLIC POLICIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN MACAO: LOCAL PERSPECTIVES AND EXPERIENCES - Tai, On Teng (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This dissertation explores Macao residents' experiences and perspectives regarding Macao's public policies and infrastructure for electric vehicles. It delves into residents' viewpoints on the effectiveness of electric vehicle policy implementation, the layout and convenience of public facilities such as charging stations and designated parking spaces for electric vehicles, and their actual experiences and feedback while using electric cars. This study is significant because it provides valuable insights into Macao residents' fundamental attitudes and needs toward electric vehicle policies and public facilities. By understanding these perspectives, policymakers can make more informed decisions to optimize electric vehicle policies and improve public facilities, ultimately promoting the healthy development of the electric vehicle market in Macao and facilitating the construction of a green transportation system. In terms of research methods, this study primarily employed questionnaires to collect data from road users in Macao. The questionnaires were designed to gather comprehensive information on their experiences and feedback related to electric vehicle policies, infrastructure, and usage. The findings of this study are intriguing. Firstly, it was discovered that Macao residents have a relatively low awareness of electric vehicle policies, but generally, they believe these policies contribute to environmental protection. Secondly, regarding public facilities, some residents reported issues such as uneven distribution and insufficient number of charging stations, as well as inadequacies in using and managing designated parking spaces for electric vehicles. Additionally, residents provided specific opinions and suggestions regarding the purchase costs of electric vehicles and government subsidy policies. Based on these findings, my conclusion is that there is an urgent need to optimize and improve Macao's electric vehicle policies and public facilities. Policymakers should increase publicity efforts to raise residents' awareness of electric vehicle policies and reasonably plan the layout of charging stations and designated parking spaces for electric vehicles to enhance their convenience and availability. Furthermore, the government could consider providing more subsidies and preferential policies for purchasing electric vehicles to reduce the financial burden on residents. These measures will help promote the further development of the electric vehicle market in Macao and facilitate the construction of a green transportation system
Keywords: Electric vehicles; Green transportation; Macao; Public infrastructure; Public policies; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Government Studies (MGS); University of Saint Joseph

The Effects of an Aikido Based Psychological Intervention Program in Workplace Stress - Tam, Heng Kun (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

The Role of Parents in the Referral Process to Inclusive Education in Macao - Tam, Ka In (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

澳門小學資源教師的工作壓力及其應對方法之個案研究 - Tam, Lai Si (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Transforming struggling reform implementers into effectual reform agents: Hong Kong preschool teachers’ voices on process drama - Tam, Po Chi; Sun, C. R. (Youth Theatre Journal, 2021)

融合班中特殊教育需求學生和普通學生共同學習的過程與效果﹕來自老師和家長的反饋 The Process and Effects of Collaborative Learning of Students in Inclusive Class: Voices from Teachers and Parents - Tam, Sin Leng (譚倩鈴) (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)

探討澳門輟學生經歷之研究 =: A Qualitative Study on the Experiences of School Dropouts in Macau - Tam, Sok Man (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Children's Learning Interest and Social Interaction Through Play: An Action Research Case Study in A Pre-School in Macau= 運用遊戲活動增進幼兒學習興趣與社交互動之行動研究 - 以澳門一幼兒班為例 - Tang Pui I (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARENTING STYLES, ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS OF PRIMARY STUDENTS IN MACAO - Tang, I. Sam (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
"Parenting styles may have various effects on children’s development and educational outcomes, particularly a relationship with behavioral problems and academic achievement. This study examines the relationship of between parenting styles, behavioral problems and academic achievement. A cross-sectional and questionnaire-design (Parenting Style Scale (Saunders et al., 2013); Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman & Goodman, 2009; Goodman, 1999; Goodman, 1997)) study was used with a sample total of 98 parents with the eldest child of the family aged between six to twelve. Results of the findings are mainly inconsistent with the majority of literature. Indulgent and authoritative parenting are the predominant parenting styles, yet parenting styles does not relate to academic achievement. On the other hand, the correlation between behavioral problems, specifically prosocial behaviors and academic achievement are moderate. Furthermore, there is no difference between the type of behavioral problems according to gender. In further studies, a larger sample size, teachers and students as informants, and the inclusion of the analysis of other factors that could be influencing parenting styles, behavioral problems and academic achievement are suggested to be considered. "
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

FLIIP: AN INTERACTIVE MULTIFUNCTIONAL TABLE DESIGN FOR PRESCHOOLERS - Tang, Qinghua (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
With the rapid development of China's social economy, attention to children's education is also increasing. Among them, the preschool stage, the starting point of children's education, is the primary stage of children's cognitive, emotional, social, and motor skills development. At this critical time, providing children with an age-appropriate educational environment can significantly affect their personal growth, intellectual development, and emotional cultivation. Therefore, a multifunctional table that can meet the learning needs of preschool children and promote early cognitive development is essential. This work takes preschool children as the user object of our study to deeply explore the needs and obstacles of the target users. It summarizes the requirements and principles of children's furniture design based on children's physiological and psychological characteristics. A design scheme of an intelligent multifunctional preschool children's table is proposed based on ergonomics and digital technology. The objective through this work, is to create a preschool children's table that not only meets the learning needs of preschool children but also promote fun and can encourage the development of children's early cognitive ability
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Design (MDG); University of Saint Joseph; children's furniture; interactive; multifunctional; preschool children; preschool children's table

Measuring Specific Traditional Chinese Values in Relation to Satisfaction of the Five Maslow Needs - Taormina, Robert J.; Gao, Jennifer H.; Kuok, A. C.H. (Psychological Thought, 2022)
To determine whether living according to specific traditional Chinese cultural values was associated with satisfaction of the five needs in Maslow’s motivational hierarchy and overall life satisfaction, a mixed-method approach was employed, with an empirical questionnaire and supplemental interviews. The questionnaire assessed the hypothesized relationships that traditional Chinese values had with personal life outcomes, including health, employment, satisfaction of the five needs from Maslow’s hierarchy, and life satisfaction. The interviews examined the relationships that several demographic variables had with living by traditional Chinese values. The results of the empirical data revealed that most Chinese people today are still living according to the traditional Chinese cultural values, and that living by those traditional values are strongly associated with satisfaction of all five of the human needs in the Maslow hierarchy, as well as with overall life satisfaction. Additionally, the results of the qualitative interviews readily supported the empirical findings, and also revealed that the time during which inter-generational transmission of the Chinese cultural values occurs is when parents teach those values to their children at a very early age, that is, between 3 and 8 years old, before the children start primary school.

澳門品德與公民教育校本課程初探 - Tchiang, I.; Ge, Yun (2nd Summit of Youth Education and Development in Hong Kong and Macau, 2020)

The use Robotics in the intervention with children with ASD in Macao: a pilot study with Milo - Teixeira, Vitor; Lai, Michael (Revista Portuguesa de Investigação Educacional, 2021)
Robotics are being used in the intervention with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in many places and already for many years. Many robots were developed and different studies are being made in order to evaluate its effectiveness. “Socially Assistive Robotics” is shown to be effective in different areas mainly in social and emotional development. Milo, a robot developed by a team led by Richard Margolin for the Robots4Autism program (RoboKind, 2020), is one of the robots whose use is reported to be successful. In Macao there is no report of studies or experiences on the use of robots in the intervention with children with ASD. In a collaboration between the Macao Science Centre, the Macao Autism Association (MAA) and the University of Saint Joseph, an exploratory study was developed to understand the applicability of Milo to the work with children with ASD in Macao. The study showed that the robot is able to facilitate social and emotional competences of children with ASD. However, several limitations including language, cultural differences, the inexperienced facilitators and the level of sessions are too simple for the participants to be aware of that may affect the effectiveness of the intervention. It is important to show that the adoption of Milo in Macao for intervening children with ASD can be further implemented, with better practical solutions.

The use Robotics in the intervention with children with ASD in Macao: a pilot study with Milo - Teixeira, Vitor; Lai, Michael (Revista Portuguesa de Investigação Educacional, 2021)
Robotics are being used in the intervention with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in many places and already for many years. Many robots were developed and different studies are being made in order to evaluate its effectiveness. “Socially Assistive Robotics” is shown to be effective in different areas mainly in social and emotional development. Milo, a robot developed by a team led by Richard Margolin for the Robots4Autism program (RoboKind, 2020), is one of the robots whose use is reported to be successful. In Macao there is no report of studies or experiences on the use of robots in the intervention with children with ASD. In a collaboration between the Macao Science Centre, the Macao Autism Association (MAA) and the University of Saint Joseph, an exploratory study was developed to understand the applicability of Milo to the work with children with ASD in Macao. The study showed that the robot is able to facilitate social and emotional competences of children with ASD. However, several limitations including language, cultural differences, the inexperienced facilitators and the level of sessions are too simple for the participants to be aware of that may affect the effectiveness of the intervention. It is important to show that the adoption of Milo in Macao for intervening children with ASD can be further implemented, with better practical solutions.

Positive Approach in Preventing Depression in Adolescents: Comparing Local Chinese and Filipino Migrant Adolescents in Macao - Tejada, Anali Jane Gabala (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Motivations of preservice teachers: a case study on career changers to teaching in Macau - Thang, Tony Mana (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

PERCEPTIONS OF, AND ATTITUDES TO CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ IDENTITY AND ETHOS IN MACAO: TOWARDS A COMMON FRAMEWORK OF CATHOLIC SCHOOLS’ IDENTITY - The Reh, Lawrence (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
The thesis identifies concerns preserving, maintaining, and developing the Catholic identity of Catholic schools in Macao, the largest providers of schooling whilst being a minority religion, and with its teachers, parents, and students coming from Catholic and non-Catholic backgrounds, cultures, and values. To understand the present situation of Catholic identity in Macao’s Catholic schools, manifesting itself in part through the Catholic ethos of schools, and to identify key features, mission, vision, values, and areas for the development of Catholic identity, together with its presence and practices, this thesis reports a study of the perceptions of, and attitudes to, Catholic identity held by three key stakeholder parties in a carefully chosen representative selection of Catholic schools: teachers, parents, and students. The thesis reports their views on what the Catholic schools are currently doing in the areas of Catholic identity, and what they consider that they should be doing in these areas. The areas of focus draw on scholarship and teachings on Catholic identity, with particular emphasis placed on documents on Catholic identity and ethos from the Vatican, Archbishop Miller, and Monsignor Stock. A large-scale empirical survey here found that there was considerable support for Catholic schools in Macao, their identity, ethos, and values from the three parties. Two emergent patterns of findings are reported concerning the steps that Catholic schools were taking to promote their identity: (a) what Catholic schools should be doing concerning Catholic identity received consistently higher scores than what they were currently doing; and (b) consistently higher support for Catholic identity came from the teachers, slightly less so from the parents, and slightly less than that from the students. The study conducted a follow-up, small-scale study to investigate why these might be the case, and it suggested that the combination of Catholic values and Chinese cultural features might explain the findings on Catholic identity in the schools. The study identifies areas for possible development of, and improvements to, the identity of Catholic schools, that take account of the local cultural contexts and the teachings of the Catholic church on identity, and how these might be addressed in practice
Keywords: Catholic Schools' Ethos; Catholic Schools' Identidy; Catholic schools; Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Education (D-SE); University of Saint Joseph

Development of Cultural Tourism in Macau through the Visual and Performing Arts - Tique, Ana Teresa Leal (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

An Exploratory Study of Factors Influencing the Consumer Behaviour of Macau Chinese Millennial Women in their Purchasing on Taobao - Tong, Ka Wai (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

An Action Research on Supporting Children's Chinese Literacy Learning by Using Visualization Method - Tong, M. K.; Sun, C. R. (7th International Conference on Teaching Chinese Second Language, 2022)

A Financial Valuation of Netflix, Inc - Tong, Si Weng (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation in Western Balkans Countries - Toshevska-Trpchevska, Katerina; Lei, Weng Chi (Florence); Stojkoski, Viktor (European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 2024)
After the Covid-19 Pandemic crisis in international economic relations it became evident that climate-smart aspects should be considered when re-establishing a new international trade order. International organizations have proclaimed that this momentum should be used to include climate-smart trade and investment provisions to enable sustainable development. It has been acknowledged that trade has an important role to play in the global response to climate change, providing economies with tools to draw on in their efforts to mitigate climate change and to adapt to its consequences. In this paper we focus the analysis on investigating the digital and sustainable component of trade facilitation measures applied in Western Balkans countries. To evaluate the importance of trade facilitation measures and their digital and sustainable components we apply standard gravity model with the data from UN Global Survey on digital and sustainable trade facilitation. The results show that trade facilitation measures are important for improving and increasing trade among the Western Balkans countries. Especially, measures connected to improving transparency procedures in trade and measures for alleviating trade formalities are most significant for increasing bilateral trade among Western Balkans countries. With a lower level of importance are the measures for improving cross-border paperless trade between these countries.
Keywords: Digital and sustainable trade facilitation; UN Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation; Western Balkans countries; gravity model

Experiences and Reflections Related to Mental Health Among University Students during Covid-19: A Case Study - Tou, Un Ieng (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Towards a framework of teacher professional development: The case of early literacy education in Macau - Tse, T. P. M.; Mak, M. C. K; Chu, K. W.; Cheng, P. W.; Ho, G. W. S.; Chan, A. O. K; Ng, M. H.; Leong, K. I. Q. (The 6th Annual Conference for the Association for Reading and Writing in Asia (ARWA 2022), 2022)

Exploring the Application of Online Learning Environment in the Teaching and Learning of Chinese in Elementary Education Sector in Macau=: 探討網上教學摸式在澳門小學中文科教與學的應用 - U Ka Weng (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Macau Sound Gallery: Soundscapes of Macau An Immersive Interactive Installation - U, Chin Cheng (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Design (MDG); University of Saint Joseph

Teaching Portuguese and Patuá Languages at the University of Saint Joseph and its contribution to the Portuguese and Patuá languages in Macau - U, Elvino Agostinho (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This study analyses how to contribute to the Portuguese cultural language in Macau. Macau has a long Portuguese governing history, which has lasted for around 450 years and formed the Portuguese cultural heritage. One of the elements is Portuguese and Patuá languages, the languages the Macau residents used to speak. Since the Portuguese and Patuá cultural heritage influence happened, the Macau government has tried to preserve the Portuguese cultural language as much as possible. In Macau, the University of Saint Joseph is a part of the Portuguese and Patuá language contribution in conducting Portuguese programmes for students. This study aims to find out how to effectively promote the Portuguese and Patuá cultural language via the Macau education system and how to benefit the development of the Portuguese cultural language in Macau. To find out the efficient way of the Portuguese and Patuá cultural language contribution at the University of Saint Joseph, we applied snowball analysis to find the key interviewees to conduct face-to-face semi-structured interviews with six interviewees. The results show that the Portuguese and Patuá cultural languages are vital to the Macau education system, especially for students learning Portuguese. For students, learning Portuguese should be compulsory in Macau
Keywords: Audio-lingual method; Patuá drama; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Communication and Media (MCM); University of Saint Joseph; cultural difference; cultural identity; learning Portuguese; reading-lingual method; translation theory

澳門融合教師職業壓力來源研究: 以澳門某私立小學教師為例 = Occupation al Stress sources of inclusive education teachers in Macau - A study on primary shcool teachers in a private school - U, Ka Chon (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

A Research study on the relationship between work stress and well-being of primary school teacher in Macau =: 澳門小學教師的工作壓力與幸福感之相關研究 - U, Ka Wai (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

TURNOVER INTENTIONS IN MACAO: THE ROLE OF PERCEIVED SUPPORTS AND JOB ALTERNATIVE PERCEPTIONS - U, Lai Heng (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
The aim of the current study was to explore the relationship between perceived organisational support and co-worker support, with turnover intentions, and the role of perceived job alternatives. Turnover intentions have been a global issue for employers. In this study, we would like to investigate whether the previous global findings could also be applied in Macao. Although some similar researches were conducted in Macau, it’s not exactly the same as ours. We would like to further focus on the front-line and non-frontline group. A quantitative methodology was applied using a cross-sectional design through an online questionnaire disseminated via social media and completed by 339 full-time workers in Macao. We found that only perceived organisational support, not co-worker support, showed a negative relationship on turnover intentions. the effect seems weak for the general sample but stronger for non-frontline workers. Concerning the moderating effect of perceived job alternatives, the analysis confirmed a significant interaction to predict turnover intentions. We discussed that employees may feel trapped in their current positions due to limited job prospects elsewhere. However, employees who perceive high levels of organisational support are more likely to remain loyal and engaged even when external alternatives are scarce. Practical implications include that it might be beneficial for both employees and organisations if organisations in Macao could develop effective human resources policies and retention strategies to enhance employee retention and mitigate the negative consequences of turnover. In this study, we confirmed a negative relationship between POS and turnover intentions, but still, the effect seems weak. The effect of POS on turnover intentions seems much stronger for non-frontline employees. We confirmed co-worker support had a negative correlation with turnover intentions, which was not enough to predict turnover simply based on co-worker support. Moreover, Perceived job alternatives are confirmed to have significant interaction with POS but non-significant interaction with co-worker support on turnover intentions
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Organisational Psychology (MOP); University of Saint Joseph; co-worker support; perceived job alternatives; perceived organisational support; turnover intentions

Enhancing Secondary Students' English Language Skills and Engagement through Cooperative Learning: An Action Research Study - U, Tat Si (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

The Development of Brand Equity in the Five-star Hotel Industry of Macao - U, Weng I. (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT FULFILLMENT, WORK ENGAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOR, AND ABUSIVE SUPERVISION OF EMPLOYEES IN MACAU SIX GAMING AND INTEGRATED RESORTS - U, Weng Ian (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
In Macau, gaming is a pillar industry. The job performance of the employees is a determining factor for gaming and integrated resorts’ ability to improve their competitiveness in an evolving environment. Therefore, organizational behavior is an important topic for gaming and integrated resorts. In view of social exchange theory, this study takes the employees of the six gaming and integrated resorts in Macau as sampling. The study would be overviewing how psychological contract fulfillment affects their organizational citizenship behavior in the organization, and relationship between work engagement and their abusive supervision in the six gaming and integrated resorts employees in the Macau gaming and related industry. This study takes psychological contract fulfillment as the independent variable, organizational citizenship behavior as the dependent variable, work engagement as the mediating variable, abusive supervision as the moderating variable. Data was collected through random online questionnaire research method and 257 valid questionnaires were obtained. SPSS statistical software applied for reliability and validity analysis, Pearson correlation and regression analysis. The conclusions are listed in following: (1) Psychological contract fulfillment has a partial positive impact on organizational citizenship behavior ; (2) Psychological contract fulfillment has a partial positive impact on work engagement; (3) Work engagement has a positive impact on organizational citizenship behavior; (4) Work engagement has a positive mediating effect between psychological contract fulfillment and organizational citizenship behavior; (5) Abusive supervision has no moderating effect between psychological contract fulfillment and work engagement; (6) Abusive supervision has no moderating effect between work engagement and organizational citizenship behavior
Keywords: Abusive Supervision; Organizational Citizenship Behavior; Psychological Contract Fulfillment; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Organisational Psychology (MOP); University of Saint Joseph; Work Engagement

Integrative Educational Platform Focusing on Steam Approaches: A Macau Case-Study - Un Man Cheng (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Design (MDG); University of Saint Joseph

UNITING - FRAGMENTED SPACES ARCHITECTURE CENTRALIZING HERITAGE INTERPRETATION - Un, Cheng Wai (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
For many people, an art museum is a place to display artifacts, artworks, and the temporaryhistory of a community or country. It also advocates for an artist’s viewpoints on art. In fact,museum design is closely related to politics. The purpose for building a museum in a city is toexhibit information about the development of the local culture. Moreover, high culturalvalue land is usually built with museums displaying their heritage nearby, so that people canexplore and learn more about the local historical background and artifacts of the place.The abandoned Iec Long Firecracker Factory in Taipa Center, Macau has been on hold formany years and has also been used as a war game venue that resulted in scratches on thewalls of the dilapidated old heritage buildings. Recently, the Macau government has finalizedits plans for the revitalization of this local heritage site. Due to its dispersed layout andsurrounding landscape, there are some design constraints around the preservation of thisimportant heritage site. The design for high cultural value land should not only consider thepreservation and renovation of old buildings but also consider more ways to effectively usethe site as an important public venue for the city.For developing the methodologies of this project, several concepts and case studies wereanalyzed to extract ideas that can be referenced and to unveil strategies for designing apossible solution to this problem. This dissertation intends to create a model for developingand integrating architectural design into this heritage site and will study the spacearrangements for both the indoor space and the outdoor space within the concept of afragmented space integration. Fragmented space, means that a place is designed using adecentralized layout. This conceptualization of a design can preserves the original appearance of the cultural value of land and at the same time, the space can be used moreefficiently to create a circulation for the public to visit and enjoy the location
Keywords: Theses and Dissertations Master of Architecture (MARCH); University of Saint Joseph; articulation architecture; decentralized layout; functional museum; integration with architecture; spatial narrative

CUSTOM CLUSTER: DEMAND-DRIVEN VERTICAL HOUSING ARCHITECTURE - Un, Ka Kin (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
Vertical housing is essential for modern cities because of its efficiency in using space (Wang, J. Murakami, A. 2019). The architecture of vertical housing is often determined by developers and designers. Therefore, the architecture of the building is fixed, and the end users are not involved nor can they influence its final appearance. For residential buildings, the unit sizes are based on market demand at a given point in time, which does not reflect the dynamic needs of the population as they evolve and may result in a mismatch between the supply and the demand for housing. The design of housing towers that have demographic characteristics and family size is dependent on housing size and can be very uncharacteristic and repetitive. The research question identified and addressed in this study is: How can residential buildings meet the evolving demand for housing units? Based on this question, this research paper develops a prototype for residential to resolve the dilemma between the supply and the demand in terms of the apartment size and layout. This research is a project-oriented project that focuses on residential that reflects the different family sizes required to be housed in the building and is combined with the open building method to maximize building performance. Ultimately, this research represents a meaningful innovation for market-driven architecture and defines architectural design based on the changing needs of the population using the open construction method. It also provides an opportunity to improve the design efficiency and develop a method for future growth, upgrades, and user needs. It may also be able to reflect the current housing ratio of the residential building. This work can be further explored to verify its effectiveness for other housing types and community living spaces
Keywords: Theses and Dissertations Master of Architecture (MARCH); University of Saint Joseph; Vertical residential design; demand-driven architecture; form follows function; open building; residential clusters; stacking design

THE ANALYSIS OF MACAO TRADITIONAL PUBLICATION INDUSTRY BETWEEN 2000 TO 2023: TRANSFORMATION BEFORE AND AFTER PANDEMIC AND SUGGESTED STRATEGY - Ung, Cheng Nam (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
In this dissertation, the Macau traditional printing industry between 2000 and 2023 is studied. This period is critical for the publication industry due to several key events that have transformed the landscapes of both local and global publishing. These events include the rise of the internet, electronic devices, and the Chinese economy, the establishment of the Macao ISBN Agency, the emergence of online digital platforms, and the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. This dissertation will mainly focus on written Chinese publications and consider publications in other languages as references. Governmental official data, academic literature, questionnaires, interviews, and participant observation analysis will be used as the major approaches when collecting data and analyzing the Macao publication industry. Several development and transformation strategies will be suggested. In the future, the Macau publishing industry will need to make significant adjustments to stay competitive in the market. It will need to incorporate current technologies, such as electronic platforms and Print-on-demand (POD), into the publication process. Books will exist in electronic and physical formats at different stages. Vanity in publications will also be another new trend in the future. The role of the publisher has evolved in the modern publishing industry. Participants in publishing industry will need to acquire new skill sets to adapt to the industrial transformation. Allocating resources to structural training courses will help develop talent in the publication industry during the transition. We hope to provide insights into solutions for the transformation of the publishing industry in Macao
Keywords: Linguistic industry; Print on Demand; Thesis and Dissertations Master of History & Heritage Studies (MHHS); University of Saint Joseph; digital publication; publication; vanity publication

Applying Social Skills Improvement System Intervention Guide to Primary Students with ADHD and Problem Behaviors in Macau: A Case Study - Ung, Hou Cheang (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Counselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Contemporary art as a factor for knowledge generation from video: A arte contemporânea como fator de geração de conhecimento a partir do vídeo - Urrutia, Hernando; Pérez, Pilar; Fernandes-Marcos, Adérito (ARTECH 2021: 10th International Conference on Digital and Interactive Arts, 2021)

The Relationship Between Work-Life-Balance and Burnout: Effect of Gender and Sector of Activity - Vai, Han Kuoc (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Organisational Psychology (MOP); University of Saint Joseph

The Role of Cognition as a Mediator for Narcissism and Trait Aggression as Predictors of Aggressive Driving Behavior - Van, Hou Wai (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Mangroves as ecosystem services providers in an urban context: case study of Macao, SAR China - Vanessa, W. L.; Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Tagulao, Karen (4th Meeting – online edition – Functional Biology and Biotechnology of Plants, 2020)

Mangroves as nature-based solution for coastal water eutrophication in Macao, SAR China - Vanessa, W. L.; Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Tagulao, Karen (CIIMAR, 2020)

The History of Macau’s Portuguese Radio Case study of the first thirty episodes of the programme Frequência Académica - Vidinha, Margarida Sajara (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Communication and Media (MCM); University of Saint Joseph

Neuronal Mechanisms of Behavioural Plasticity in the Peacock Blenny Salaria Pavo - Vieira, Pedro Cachapa (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
"Adult neurogenesis, i.e., the production of new neurons in the adult brain, has been studied intensively in the past years, both in humans and in animal models, as the understanding of this process can have major clinical implications. The study of neurogenesis in fish has been receiving more attention as, unlike mammals, they possess remarkably high levels of adult neurogenesis and a high capability for neuronal regeneration and replacement where neuronal death has occurred. Less is known, however, on the importance of adult neurogenesis for behavioural plasticity, i.e., for the capacity to change behaviour according to context. As a product of the brain, behaviour relies on functional neuronal networks and it may be expected that more permanent changes in behavioural states imply structural reorganization of neuronal circuits, with the integration of new neurons. Interestingly, the high level of brain plasticity of fish is paralleled by a high degree of behavioural plasticity, with many examples of species that change, either reversibly or irreversibly, their behavioural phenotype during their lifetime, as illustrated by species with functional sex-change and alternative reproductive phenotypes. Flexibility in behaviour may thus require a reorganization of neuronal networks underlying these behaviours with recruitment of new neurons. In this thesis, the link between brain and behavioural plasticity was studied in a small marine fish that inhabits the Mediterranean and adjacent Atlantic coasts, the peacock blenny Salaria pavo. In this species, males adopt nests in rock crevices and attract females into the nest for egg laying, with the male taking care of the eggs until hatching. In some populations, a scarcity of nest sites drives smaller and young males to adopt an alternative reproductive tactic to reproduce. These “sneaker” males mimic the females’ morphology and reproductive behaviour in order to illude the larger nesting males and parasitically fertilize eggs during mating events. Sneaker males later transition into the nesting male phenotype, and this major behavioural transformation in the same animal, first courting males and afterwards courting females, may imply significant reorganization of brain areas associated with reproductive behaviour. During the study, a brain atlas for the species was developed and the main cell proliferation regions, i.e. niches of stem cells birth that may differentiate into cells of the nervous system, characterized. Proliferative areas were observed throughout the whole brain and paralleled the pattern described for other teleosts. Proliferative cells were abundant namely in areas like the olfactory bulbs (granular and glomerular), the anterior subdivision of the dorsomedial telencephalon (DMa), the dorsal and ventral part of the ventral subdivision of the dorsomedial telencephalon (DMvd and DMvv), the dorsal part of the dorsal subdivision of the dorsomedial telencephalon (DMdd), the posterior subdivision of the dorsolateral telencephalon (DLp), the posterior zone of the dorsal telencephalic area (DP), the preoptic area (POA), the dorsal, supracommissural and ventral nucleus of the ventral telencephalic area (Vd, Vs and Vv), the optic tectum and its periventricular grey zone (TeO and PGZ), the ventral zone of the periventricular hypothalamus (Hv), the cerebellum, mainly the molecular layer (CCeM) and the caudal lobe (LCa). A study of the brain nuclei activated during female courtship events using immediate early-genes suggested that some of the areas of the social behaviour network (SBN), a set of brain nuclei underlying the expression of social behaviour across vertebrates, are implicated in female courtship, in particular nuclei in the ventral telencephalic regions. This was followed by an experiment to investigate the possible link between cell proliferation and male tactic switch. Nest availability was manipulated to allow a fraction of sneaker males to adopt a nest and start the transition to nesting males. Ten days after the experiment, some of the smaller males had indeed started switching into nesting males, adopting a nest and starting to develop male secondary sexual characters. The pattern of brain proliferation was studied in these fish to try to confirm that the irreversible behavioural transition would be associated with the reorganization of brain nuclei, assuming that cell proliferation relates to neurogenesis and structural reorganization. Transitional males had elevated cell proliferation levels, as compared to males that remained sneakers, in the dorsolateral anterior and posterior telencephalic regions, thought to be homologous to the hippocampus in mammals. Cell proliferation levels were generally elevated in ventral and ventromedial telencephalic nuclei in both sneakers and transitional males, as compared with nesting males and females, areas considered to be homologous to nuclei of the amygdaloid complex of mammals. There was large variation in proliferation levels within transitional males, and in particular one male more advanced in the transition had higher numbers of BrdU-positive cells than the others. This suggests that a longer time-window for detecting the peak in brain cell proliferation associated with tactic transition in some fish may have been needed. Overall, the study supports the hypothesis that behavioural transition in males of this species is paralleled by an increase in cell proliferation in nuclei potentially relevant for the expression of reproductive behaviours, and establishes the peacock blenny as a new relevant model for the study of neuronal plasticity in vertebrates."
Keywords: Behavioural Plasticity; Neurogenesis; Peacock Blenny; Phenotypic Plasticity; Teleost Fish; Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Science (D-SC); University of Saint Joseph

BLOCKCHAIN AND INTERNET OF THINGS BASED COMPUTERISED MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR ENHANCED MAINTENANCE OPERATIONS - Vodenicarski, Dalibor (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This doctoral research delves into the transformative potential of Hyperledger Fabric Blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT) within business management, specifically in the development and implementation of a Computerised Maintenance Management System (CMMS). It suggests that merging these advanced technologies could revolutionise maintenance management and overall system performance. The study assesses the impact on fundamental business processes within the IoT paradigm, highlighting the role of the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain network in ensuring data integrity and enhancing transparency. The integration of Blockchain protocol with IoT offers efficient data transactions, thereby improving business data management and decision-making. The research further validates the robustness of Fabric release V2.4 for CMMS development. The study concludes by emphasising the need for additional research to understand long-term implications and challenges in different business environments
Keywords: Blockchain; Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS); Hyperledger Fabric; Internet of Things (IoT); Thesis and Dissertations PhD in Information System (D-IS); University of Saint Joseph

A Content Analysis of School Bullying: A Review of Macau Newspaper Reports - Vong, Fan Nei (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

Post-Divorce Parent-Child Relationships Impacts and Coping Mechanisma: Qualitative Study In Macao - Vong, Iek Chong (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

Relationship Between the Academic Achievement and Extra-curricular Tutoring of Primary Students: Perspectives From the Parents = 課外補習與小學生學業成績之間的關係----來自家長的視角 - Vong, Sok Kuan (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Education (MED); University of Saint Joseph

THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER SELF-EFFICACY AND PERCEIVED AUTONOMY ON TEACHER WORK ENGAGEMENT: THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF PERCEIVED ORGANISATIONAL SUPPORT - Wan, Sok Leng (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
The aims of the present study are to investigate the level of work engagement of the inclusive teachers in Macau and what potential factors would contribute to the increase of their level of work engagement. In this research, the framework of the self-determination theory developed by Ryan and Deci in 2000 was partially employed. I suggested the inclusive teachers’ self-efficacy and perceived autonomy to act as the independent variables, while perceived organisational support was involved as the mediating variable. Quantitative method was applied in this study by using an online self-response questionnaire (N= 150). The stratified sampling strategy was applied as well in order to ensure the representativeness. No gender difference of work engagement level was found among Macau inclusive teachers. Positive correlations were found among all variables. Besides, perceived organisational support was expressing positive mediating effects on the relationships between independent and dependent variables under some specific circumstances. For example, the relationship between efficacy to use inclusive instructions and emotional and physical work engagement; the relationship between perceived autonomy and cognitive, emotional, and physical work engagement. Theoretical and practical implications for the non-tertiary schools and inclusive teachers can be found in this study. Future studies should be continued to investigate the limitations and suggestions of this field of research
Keywords: PERCEIVED ORGANISATIONAL SUPPORT; TEACHER PERCEIVED AUTONOMY; TEACHER SELF-EFFICACY; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Organisational Psychology (MOP); University of Saint Joseph; WORK ENGAGEMENT

The Valuation of Nvidia Corporation (NYSE: NVDA.) - Wang, Hai (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This dissertation provides an in-depth valuation assessment on NVIDIA Corporation which is a leading technology company known for its GPUs, study its financial results, strategic initiatives by SWOT Analysis, and access its market positioning in semiconductor industry by using PESTEL Analysis and Poter’s Five Forces Analysis. In order to ascertain the intrinsic value and assess the future prospects of NVIDIA, the study then utilizes several financial models, Enterprise Discounted Cash Flow (EDCF), Adjusted Present Value (APV) and Discounted Economic Profit (DEP). The study presents NVIDIA is potentially overvalued
Keywords: Adjusted Present Value (APV); Discounted Economic Profit (DEP); Enterprise Discounted Cash Flow (EDCF); NVIDIA; SWOT Analysis; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

Key Issues for Digital Factory Designing and Planning: A Survey - Wang, Han; Du, Wencai; Li, Shaobin (Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Networking and Parallel/Distributed Computing, 2022)
Digital Factory (DF) planning is the key of intelligent factory construction, where intelligent production technologies of big data analysis, cloud computing, blockchain, Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, 5G, Time Sensitive Network (TSN), Digital Twin (DT), additive manufacturing are included. By applying the modern techniques, DF performs great advantages on the aspects of product lifecycle management, enterprise resource planning, operation management, supply chain management, real-time database construction, advanced process control, as well as the new technologies of distributed control system and fieldbus control system. This article delivers a review of key issues of DF top-level design and planning from the aspects of networking, precision, automation and digitalization. Solutions are explored based on 5G, TSN and DT advanced technologies, literately and practically. Additionally, the article describes the method and application of efficient big data comprehensive solution. Therefore, this study contributes valuable decision-making support for DF applications.
Keywords: 5G; Big data comprehensive solution; Digital Factory; Digital twin; Time Sensitive Network

A Fast Lightweight Based Deep Fusion Learning for Detecting Macula Fovea Using Ultra-Widefield Fundus Images - Wang, Han; Yang, Jie; Wu, Yaoyang; Du, Wencai; Fong, Simon; Duan, Yutong; Yao, Xiaoping; Zhou, Xiaoshu; Li, Qingqian; Lin, Chen; Liu, Jiang; Huang, Lina; et al. (MATHEMATICS & COMPUTER SCIENCE, 2021)
Macula fovea detection is a crucial prerequisite towards screening and diagnosing macular diseases. Without early detection and proper treatment, any abnormality involving the macula may lead to blindness. However, with the ophthalmologist shortage and time-consuming artificial evaluation, neither accuracy nor effectiveness of the diagnose process could be guaranteed. In this project, we proposed a deep learning approach on ultra-widefield fundus (UWF) images for macula fovea detection. This study collected 2300 ultra-widefield fundus images from Shenzhen Aier Eye Hospital in China. Methods based on U-shape network (Unet) and Fully Convolutional Networks (FCN) are implemented on 1800 (before amplifying process) training fundus images, 400 (before amplifying process) validation images and 100 test images. Three professional ophthalmologists were invited to mark the fovea. A method from the anatomy perspective is investigated. This approach is derived from the spatial relationship between macula fovea and optic disc center in UWF. A set of parameters of this method is set based on the experience of ophthalmologists and verified to be effective. Results are measured by calculating the Euclidean distance between proposed approaches and the accurate grounded standard, which is detected by Ultra-widefield swept-source optical coherence tomograph (UWF-OCT) approach. Through a comparation of proposed methods, we conclude that, deep learning approach of Unet outperformed other methods on macula fovea detection tasks, by which outcomes obtained are comparable to grounded standard method.

Research on Risk Management Practices and Countermeasures of Overseas Operations in State-owned Enterprises - Wang, Huan Huan (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
In the current context of intensified economic globalization, Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have actively responded to the "Belt and Road" initiative by expanding their overseas operations, seeking new growth points through competition and cooperation in the global market. However, along with opportunities come the necessity for risk management in the overseas operations of SOEs. Based on theories of systematic and non-systematic risks, this thesis employs methods such as case study analysis and multiple linear regression to thoroughly examine key risk types in SOEs’ overseas operations, including political risks and exchange rate risks. Using quantitative models like the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and neural network early-warning models, the thesis empirically tests the effectiveness of mechanisms for risk identification, assessment, and control. Data sources include national statistics and corporate annual reports, and techniques such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis are applied to reveal statistical characteristics of risk factors and the internal and external linkage mechanisms of risk events. The thesis points out that the management of risks in overseas operations of SOEs not only relies on scientific assessment and precise early warning but also requires the establishment of a risk management framework and governance system that aligns with international rules. Through in-depth analysis of the overseas operations of enterprises like PetroChina and Huawei, the thesis distills strategies for risk prevention and control, such as diversified investment strategies and the construction of compliance risk control systems, and conducts a comprehensive evaluation of the current risk management system, proposing pathways for sustainable development. The outcomes of the research aim to help SOEs enhance their level of risk management, ensure national economic security, and also provide theoretical guidance and practical reference for the implementation of international strategies by SOEs
Keywords: Overseas operation; Risk assessment; Risk control; Risk management; State-owned enterprise; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

A STUDY OF PATTERNS OF CONSUMPTION OF THE NEW GENERATION of Macao - Wang, JiaBao (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
The increasing contribution of Generation Z (Gen Z) to Macao’s economy may be the driving force behind the recent changes in Macao’s consumption patterns. This dissertation analyzes how consumption patterns of Macao’s Gen Z differ from other generations. To investigate the types of goods and services consumed, the shopping modes, and the factors that influence the consumption decisions of different generations of Macao, this study conducts a survey to collect primary quantitative data from 296 Macao residents. This study found that the most Macao residents consumed 21%-60% of their income, showing a balance between consumption and saving. They spent most on food and non-alcoholic beverages, healthcare, and education. In terms of receiving information about new products, many Macao consumers learned from family and friends and social media, such as the Red Book and TikTok. Electronic payments have become increasingly popular, such as the local payment system, MPay. The t tests for statistically significant differences show that Gen Z was more likely to make online purchases when buying beauty products and electronic devices than other generations. Compared to other generations, Gen Z was more concerned with the level of fun of the brand, impacts on the environment, society, and local community of the product, personal preference and research, and the recommendations of online reviewers, influencers, and salesperson. Based on the findings of this study, businesses can develop up-to-date marketing strategies to introduce their products to different generations in Macao
Keywords: Consumption pattern; Generation Z; Macao; Millennial; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph

A network analysis investigation of the comorbidity between sleep dysfunction and PTSD symptomatology among Filipino domestic workers in Macao (SAR) China- ClinicalKey - Wang, Siyuan; Sit, Hao Fong; Garabiles, Melissa R.; Blum, Daniel; Hannam, Kevin; Armour, Chérie; Hall, Brian J. (Journal of Psychiatric Research, 2021)

Influencing Companies’ Green Governance Through the System of Legal Liability for Environmental Infractions in China and Brazil: Lighting the Way Toward BRICS Cooperation - Wei, D.; Rafael, Ângelo Patrício (BRICS Law Journal, 2023)
Peer-rewieved journal

China’s Approach to Sustainable Development in Free Trade Agreements - Wei, Dan; Rafael, Ângelo Patrício (Law and Development Review, 2023)
The question of how to adequately integrate environment and labor provisions in free trade agreements is still a difficult one for both States and academicians. This article explores China’s approach to environment and labor issues in free trade agreements. For reference and comparison, it relies on the European Union’s and the United States’ approaches in their respective FTAs. The article identifies China’s preference for a case-by-case approach to the inclusion of environmental chapters in its FTAs. Additionally, in most FTAs it avoids to include provisions on labor standards. These two preferences represent major divergences from the European Union’s and the United States’ approaches, characterized by inclusion of chapters on environment and labor in all their modern FTAs. The article also finds that China’s FTAs rely solely on consultations and cooperation for the implementation of environmental and labor provisions, within the framework of Joint Committees and avoid the inclusion of civil society mechanisms. Moreover, resolution of disputes relies exclusively on consultations, in a diverse procedure than the one applicable to trade disputes. Despite alignment with the European Union model, this is another major point of divergence with the United States’ model, which applies the same enforcement mechanism for both environment and labor issues and trade issues and includes the possibility of applying sanctions. Finally, the article concludes that China’s options with regards to the treatment of environment and labor concerns in its free trade agreements aligns with both its domestic governance approach and its approach to international cooperation.
Keywords: China; environment and trade; free trade agreements; labor and trade; sustainable development

Impacts of Policies and Infrastructure on the Usage of Electric Vehicles in Macao - Weng Chi Lei; Tai, On Teng (2023 Symposium on Environmental Science and Sustainable Technology (ESST2023), 2023)

Fintech Adoption: A Study of Users in the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (China) - Weng, Chi Lei; Lampo, Alessandro (INTI JOURNAL, 2024)
Intended as an economic and development hub, the Hengqin Cooperation Zone aims to foster collaboration and integration between mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao, serving as a platform for economic development and innovation among the three regions. The zone's development has increased demand for financial services, often offered through fintech. There is, however, a lack of interoperability between the fintech services currently used in Macao and Hengqin. This may hinder Macao users' adoption of the technology. Thus, our research objective is to identify the factors determining Macao residents' adoption of fintech services in the area and provide insights for service providers, developers, and policymakers. A framework based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) was used for this purpose. The responses of 103 Macao residents provided evidence that ease of use significantly and positively impacts the usefulness of the technology. This in turn influences attitudes towards fintech usage. Subjective norms and perceived behavioral control positively impact fintech adoption intentions. The fintech industry and the governments of Macao and Hengqin can work on improving technology's ease of use and usefulness. They can also promote them to Macao users, and provide the resources required for better access to fintech in the zone

Place Marketing: Macao as the Art City for the Future Direction - Wong Ka I (University of Saint Joseph, 2020)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Communication and Media (MCM); University of Saint Joseph

The Roles and Functions of Social Worker Within Crisis Management of the Pandemic COVID-19 in Long-Term Care Facilities of Macau: A Case Study - Wong Oi Lin (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

Social Integration and the Screening of the Early-Stage Dementia in Older Adults: The Mediation Role of Mental Health - Wong Wai Hong (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

The international law against tax avoidance: “status quo” and perspectives for development of the regime - Wong, Chang Man (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
This dissertation examines the critical need to continuously update the international tax law against tax avoidance: “status quo” and perspectives for development of the current regime. Employing a doctrinal methodological approach, the research first seeks to uncover the most common forms of international tax avoidance through an extensive literature review. This crucial step provides invaluable insights into the diverse strategies and mechanisms utilized by individuals and businesses to circumvent taxation on a global scale. The dissertation then proceeds to examine how current international tax law addresses the identified forms of tax avoidance. This implies a multi-faceted analysis, including an identification of the relevant international norms and treaties, and an exploration of the main sources of international tax law and their practical application. Recognizing the dynamic nature of the global tax landscape, the dissertation also provides perspectives for the future development of international tax law to better address the challenge of tax avoidance. By thoroughly examining the strengths and limitations of the current international tax law regime, the dissertation offers recommendations for potential improvements to the application of international tax avoidance conventions. The findings of this comprehensive study contribute to the broader understanding of international tax avoidance and its regulation within the framework of international law. The research questions and objectives serve as a guiding framework, enabling a thorough analysis that can inform practitioners, and scholars engaged in the ongoing discourse surrounding global taxation and its implications for economic fairness and transparency
Keywords: Global taxation; International norms and treaties for tax; International tax avoidance; International tax law against tax avoidance; Limitation and development of current international tax law regime; Status quo; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Lusophone and International Public Law(MLIPL); University of Saint Joseph

Study on User Acceptance on Customer Behavior for Online Payment in Macau: MPAY Case Study - Wong, Chi Cheng (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
With the rapid expansion of mobile e-commerce, an increasing number of businesses have jumped into the fray in all facets of the mobile electric commerce industry chain. The payment link is the most competitive. From the norm in the sector to the consumer market, telecom operator rivalry, as well as third-party payment between different companies, never ceases. In the context of mobile e-commerce, however, competition has shifted from traditional product-centered to customer- centered, and business success frequently rests on the customer. As a result, the competition in the mobile e-commerce payment industry is essentially about competing for users. Mpay is characteristic of mobile e-commerce payment firm representatives; on the basis of theoretical analysis, combined with the reality of the economic background, the study chose Mpay mobile payment users as research subjects and analyzed the major variables of user acceptability. The model was built on the basis of an extensive evaluation of past research results of user acceptance model and reference to UTAUT model. The model considered performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and social influence, facilitating condition as independent variables determining user behavior intention, Based on the conceptual model, the paper conducted an empirical investigation as a case study of a Mpay mobile payment user using data from a questionnaire, while also conducting a separate discussion of the impact of perceived risk and trust on user acceptance. The empirical results indicate that for mobile payment users, performance expectancy has the greatest positive effect on behavior intention, while facilitating conditions, social influence, perceived risk, effort expectancy, and trust have no effect. In addition, gender and age were discovered to influence user acceptance
Keywords: Online mobile payment; SmartPLS; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); UTAUT model; University of Saint Joseph; user acceptance

Exploring Macau Instagrammers’ Motivation for Using Instagram Story - Wong, Choi I. (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Communication and Media (MCM); University of Saint Joseph

澳門露宿者服務社工在新冠疫情情間的工作與挑戰 = The Opportunities and Challenges Facing Macau Social Workers Who Work with Homeless People During the Pandemic of 2020 : A Case Study - Wong, Choi Leng (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Social Work (MSW); University of Saint Joseph

Perception About Challenges and Opportunities of Social Enterprise in Macau - Wong, Chong Chio (University of Saint Joseph, 2022)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Community Development (MCD); University of Saint Joseph

Study of the Cross-Border Family Mediation Mechanisms and Practices in the Greater Bay Area (China, Hong Kong SAR, and Macau SAR”) - Wong, Hang Si (University of Saint Joseph, 2024)
The dissertation is about the study on the usage of mediation as the dispute mechanism on the cross-border family dispute issue in the Guangdong -Hong Kong- Macau Greater Bay Area through a comparative law aspects. Under the background of the Country’s Policy in integrating the citizens of the two SARs into China. The citizens of different provinces in PRC and the two SARs have frequent contact such as in business, in personal affairs and so on, the more the contact the more the possibility disputes will arise. With three different jurisdictions and the backlogs from the Courts, to find out the possibility of using another dispute resolution is essential. The study found out the perspectives of the disputed / litigated parties, courts and legal practitioners in usage of mediation, the nature of mediation in use in GBA and the strengths and limitations on the usage of mediation. This research used a mixed methods including doctrinal legal research, comparative legal research method and empirical legal research method. It result from the finding that though there is no specialized legislation in usage of mediation in Macau SAR, there is practice in usage of family mediation. Besides that the judicial mediation in PRC is not the mediation we defined in the literature review, thus it is the conciliation. Whether the recent development in Hong Kong SAR on the procedures M-FDR and M-CDR are in conflict with the facilitative mediation which has all along been practiced in Hong Kong SAR. In conclusion, the perspectives in usage of mediation in PRC and Hong Kong SAR are higher than Macau SAR and the nature of mediation in usage are different in the three jurisdictions. Lastly, in the dissertation provided some reflections on the development of family mediation mechanism in Macau SAR and how to merge the different natures of mediation in GBA
Keywords: ADR; Alternative Dispute Resolution; GBA; Greater Bay Area; Mediation; Mediation Mechanism; Thesis and Dissertations Master of Lusophone and International Public Law(MLIPL); University of Saint Joseph

認知情緒調節策略在澳門家長的童年創傷經驗與專制式教養模式之間的中介作用 =: Childhood Trauma on Authoritarian Parenting among Macao Parents: The Mediating Role of Cognitive Emotional Regulation Strategy - Wong, Ka Kei (University of Saint Joseph, 2021)
Keywords: Thesis and Dissertations Master of Couselling and Psychotherapy (MCP); University of Saint Joseph

PROJECT MANAGEMENT ADOPTION AND MATURITY LEVEL IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY OF MACAU AND HENGQIN - Wong, Ka Seng (University of Saint Joseph, 2023)
Projects are tactical and operational initiatives, and achieving specific outcomes through projects can help organizations achieve strategic goals. The effective use of project management tools and techniques is essential to achieve successful results, since the goal is to maximize the realization of the project's plan by effectively using the budget, time, and resources provided by the project owner to achieve the project's original purpose. The Project Management Maturity Model (PMMM) is a tool for measuring project management capabilities and is essential to improve project and portfolio performance in different industries. The main objective of this research is to analyze and characterize the maturity level and capacity of the IT industry in Macau and HengQin based on the assessment of the PMMM. The research also aims to assess and compare the maturity level in the IT industry in Macau and HengQin. An online survey was conducted and sent to IT project managers from Macau and HenqQin. A total of 34 responses were collected, divided into 3 different parts: Part I - General Information, Part II - Project Management Areas, and Part III - Perception. The results indicate that, in general, Project Managers state that their companies do not follow Project Management standards and best practices, classifying as Low and Very Low essential PM areas such as Planning and Scheduling (68%), Scope (61%) and Communications (64%). From a comparison perspective, project managers in Macau follow less formal frameworks than Hengqin in managing the triple constraints of the project. The collected data also indicate that Macau's communication management and stakeholder engagement are less mature than Hengqin's. Furthermore, the data indicate that maturity level is not necessarily related to education level, which means not higher education has a higher maturity level. Recommendations are provided for the IT industry in both areas, and specific comments are provided for each group or professionals. In conclusion, this work allows a novel characterization and a better understanding of the Project Management adoption and maturity level of the IT Industry in Macau and Hengqin
Keywords: Theses and Dissertations Master of Business Administration (MBA); University of Saint Joseph; information technology; maturity level; project management; project management maturity model; project maturity assessment