Strategic environmental assessment for planning mangrove ecosystems in guinea

Located between the cities of Conackry, Dubréka and Boffa the Sangarea Bay is home to mangrove-type forests undergoing various forms of pressure. In 1992, a forest management plan was put into place in order to manage the resources. It aimed at promoting socioeconomic activities while keeping the mangrove ecosystem in balance. This plan was assessed in 1999. The results showed that even though it integrated environmental and economic objectives, it failed to include the social as well as cultural contexts and it did not involve the social actors in the decision process. Hence, the plan did not meet the expected results. Still today, the economic, environmental, social and cultural criteria and effective actor involvement in the resource management have to be taken into account to maintain the fragile balance of the Bay. This study is an attempt to include these criteria while opting for a new approach for a sustainable management of the resources of the Bay. This study is a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) based on the use of the multi-criteria decision tool in a context where there are several actors involved. Structuring objectives and issues at stake allows the criteria to be identified. Using the sociological data available simulated the value-system of each actor involved, and subsequently, they were all put into a model by giving various weights to the criteria. The SEA compares the existing plan (sector-wise approach) with alternative scenarios including an “integrated management plan” scenario (holistic approach), or “a complete protection of the area” scenario. The scenarios were assessed according to the quantitative and qualitative data available. The results illustrate how the multi-criteria method can be relevant as a decision tool when choosing a sustainable way to manage natural resources. Karim Samoura is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Quebec at Montreal, and Director of SIFéE (Francophone Secretariat for Impact Assessment). In addition, he is a member of the interdisciplinary Study group in geography and regional environment (GEIGER) and a member of CERESCOR (Research Group on Mangrove and Coastal Ecosystem in Africa). His research interests are in the area of coastal environment, multi-actor decision-making aid, especially in Africa. Anne-Laure Bouvier is a member of the interdisciplinary study group in geography and regional environment (GEIGER) and a private environmental consultant. Her research interests are environmental impact assessments in the energy sector and the social impacts of natural resource projects (hydroelectricity, mining), as well as the use of sustainability assessments. Jean-Philippe Waaub is professor at the Department of Geography, University of Quebec at Montreal, and member of the Interdisciplinary Research Group in Geography and Regional Environment (GEIGER). His research focuses mainly Strategic Environmental Assessment, decision aid tools applied to territorial and environmental management (multicriteria decision aid, ecological mapping, Integrated System for Decision Aid, Group Decision Support Systems) and techno-economic modeling of industrial systems in connection to climate change.     

Reexamining the Nature of Learner Control: Dimensionality and Effects on Learning and Training Reactions

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to advance learner control as a psychological construct by reexamining its dimensionality and effects on learning and reactions in the context of technology-delivered training.

Design/methodology/approach

Learners (n=384) completed a 2-h web-based Microsoft Excel training. The amount of instructional and scheduling control was manipulated in order to introduce variance in control perceptions. Outcome measures included off-task attention, declarative knowledge, and training reactions.

Findings

Learner control is a multidimensional construct with differential effects on training outcomes. By focusing on learners’ perceptions of control, we found that instructional control perceptions decreased learning by increasing off-task attention, while scheduling control perceptions increased learning.

Implications

Though both dimensions of perceived learner control are positively related to training reactions, they differentially predict learning. Combined with factor analytic evidence, our study suggests that learner control research should differentiate between objective and perceived learner control, and between instructional and scheduling control perceptions. Organizations should consider how learner control affects learning prior to designing training.

Originality/value

Scheduling control is an often used but rarely researched form of learner control. We address this gap by expanding the construct domain of learner control to include scheduling control. Further, this study provides the first empirical examination of learner control perceptions. Despite calls for learner control literature to differentiate between objective and perceived control, no study had previously examined control perceptions directly. Our results may be used to inform organizational decisions regarding the amount and type of control included in training.     

Cheating,Reactions, and Performance in Remotely Proctored Testing: An Exploratory Experimental Study

Purpose

We sought to provide empirical insight and develop theory for a new organizational phenomenon: remote proctoring for Internet-based tests. We examined whether this technology is effective at decreasing cheating and whether it has unintended effects on test-taker reactions, performance, or selection procedures.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants (582) were randomly assigned to a webcam proctored or honor code condition and completed two (one searchable, one non-searchable) cognitive ability tests online. Complete data were collected from 295 participants. We indirectly determined levels of cheating by examining the pattern of test-score differences across the two conditions. We directly measured dropout rates, test performance, and participants’ perceived tension and invasion of privacy.

Findings

The use of remote proctoring was associated with more negative test-taker reactions and decreased cheating. Remote proctoring did not directly affect test performance or interact with individual differences to predict test performance or test-taker reactions.

Implications

Technological advances in selection should be accompanied by empirical evidence. Although remote proctoring may be effective at decreasing cheating, it may also have unintended effects on test-taker reactions. By outlining an initial classification of remote proctoring technology, we contribute to the theoretical understanding of technology-enhanced assessment, while providing timely insight into the practice of Internet-based testing.

Originality/value

We provide timely insight into the development and evaluation of remotely proctored tests. The current study utilizes a unique randomized experimental design in order to indirectly determine levels of cheating across two conditions. Following the results of the current study, we outline an integrative model for future research on remotely proctored tests.     

Integrating European Muslims Through Discourse? Understanding the Development and Limitations of Euro-Islam in Europe

This paper examines the dynamics of the development of Euro-Islam as a discourse which offers a modern interpretation of Islam that fits with European context. It investigates how Europe-wide Muslim umbrella organisations promote Euro-Islam discourse while at the same time gain position to represent European Muslims at the European level by mobilising the discourse. Drawing from constructivist literature, this paper argues that Tariq Ramadan’s version of Euro-Islam has been in the stage of socialisation characterised by (1) the existence of network of organisational platforms such as Federation of Islamic Organisation in Europe (FIOE) and Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations (FEMYSO), (2) the support from supranational actors such as European Parliament and European Commission, and (3) the efforts to codify the discourse through the creation of the Muslims of Europe Charter. However, given the lack of organisational infrastructure to diffuse the discourse due to the diverse nature of Muslim communities in Europe, further internalisation of the discourse has been hindered. Additionally, the connection between Euro-Islam’s organisational platforms with Islamist movement has made the discourse on Euro-Islam being perceived as a camouflage for Islamist agenda. Thus, at this stage, Euro-Islam has become “empty signifier” that are open to continual contestation which serves Muslim umbrella organisations with speaker position to lobby at the European level.     

Characterizing visual behaviour in a lineup task

Eye tracking was used to monitor participants' visual behaviour while viewing lineups in order to determine whether gaze behaviour predicted decision accuracy. Participants viewed taped crimes followed by simultaneous lineups. Participants (N = 34) viewed 4 target‐present and 4 target‐absent lineups. Decision time, number of fixations and duration of fixations differed for selections vs. non‐selections. Correct and incorrect selections differed only in terms of comparison‐type behaviour involving the selected face. Correct and incorrect non‐selections could be distinguished by decision time, number of fixations and duration of fixations on the target or most‐attended face and comparisons. Implications of visual behaviour for judgment strategy (relative vs. absolute) are discussed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Job Stress and Employee Well-Being Among Airline Personnel in an Asian Developing Country

This study examined the relationship between job stress and employees' well-being in a developing country in Asia. Job stress was operationalized in terms of perceived experiences at jobs which were chronic in nature. Employee well-being was operationalized in terms of organizational commitment, job involvement, and job satisfaction. Data were collected by means of a structured questionnaire from 150 employees working in a national carrier in a developing country in Asia. Pearson correlation and moderated multiple regression were used to analyze the data. Job stress was significantly related to organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Moderated multiple regression did not support the role of gender as a moderator of the stress–outcome relationship.