A Case Study of Learners’ Engagement in Mobile Learning Applications

Although mobile learning applications play a crucial role in today’s education and can support learning, the low retention rate is a prevalent challenge in mobile learning. Existing studies have found that interpersonal interaction, high expectations, and supportive environment (from an educational perspective) as well as compatibility, interactivity, and usability (from a marketing perspective) can impact learners’ engagement in learning activities and customers’ engagement in mobile applications. However, comprehensive studies investigating learners’ engagement in mobile learning applications from educational and marketing perspectives are rare. To fill the research gap, we analyzed learners’ reviews on five top-ranked lifelong learning applications (Udemy, LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, edX, and Skillshare). Inductive coding was used to identify critical factors impacting learners’ engagement in mobile learning applications, such as usability, availability of learning experiences, features to facilitate learning, interpersonal interaction, and incentives for completion. We further explored specific engagement strategies displayed in the analyzed applications through an analytical evaluation. Besides, this study expands Hew’s model of learners’ engagement and suggests new conceptual relationships between critical factors impacting learners’ engagement, self-determination theory, and learners’ engagement.

System alignment supports cross-domain learning and zero-shot generalisation

Recent findings suggest conceptual relationships hold across modalities. For instance, if two concepts occur in similar linguistic contexts, they also likely occur in similar visual contexts. These similarity structures may provide a valuable signal for system alignment when learning to map between domains, such as when learning the names of objects. To assess this possibility, we conducted a paired-associate learning experiment in which participants mapped objects that varied on two visual features to locations that varied along two spatial dimensions. We manipulated whether the featural and spatial systems were \textit{aligned} or \textit{misaligned}. Although system alignment was not required to complete this supervised learning task, we found that participants learned more efficiently when systems aligned and that aligned systems facilitated zero-shot generalisation. We fit a variety of models to individuals' responses and found that models which included an offline unsupervised alignment mechanism best accounted for human performance. Our results provide empirical evidence that people align entire representation systems to accelerate learning, even when learning seemingly arbitrary associations between two domains.

Conclusion

The chapter summarizes the main argument of the book and draws out its broader theoretical implications. An account of the relationship between party, capitalism, and the state should begin by establishing the historical conditions of possibility for articulation. By understanding when articulation is possible and when it is not, we gain insights into how social fragmentation might enable political organization. The social fragmentation produced by economic and political primitive accumulations is—perhaps paradoxically—conducive to party organization. The discussion in the chapter is organized around three sorts of conceptual relationships that can be approached from the vantage point of the theory and evidence presented so far: the relationship between party and the modern capitalist state, the relationship between socio-economic structure and modalities of political activity, and, finally, the contemporary relationship between the party-form and neoliberalism.

Quantum Fields as Category Algebras

In the present paper, we propose a new approach to quantum fields in terms of category algebras and states on categories. We define quantum fields and their states as category algebras and states on causal categories with partial involution structures. By utilizing category algebras and states on categories instead of simply considering categories, we can directly integrate relativity as a category theoretic structure and quantumness as a noncommutative probabilistic structure. Conceptual relationships with conventional approaches to quantum fields, including Algebraic Quantum Field Theory (AQFT) and Topological Quantum Field Theory (TQFT), are also be discussed.

A novel taxonomy of smart sustainable city indicators

Building a smart city that follows sustainability goals enhances the quality of life and preserves environmental, human, and social capital. Yet, existing smart sustainable city projects have concentrated on the technological dimensions of smart cities such as using big data or smart devices to follow sustainability goals. Currently, there is no comprehensive category of smart sustainable city indicators in the literature. This paper aims to discover these indicators by considering the common features of sustainability and smart city concepts. Two rounds of the content analysis technique were employed to investigate semantic, lexical, and conceptual relationships between smart city and sustainability indicators. This paper employed the Sustainable Development Indicators suggested by OECD and the Smart City Index Master by Cohen as the two main groups of indicators. The findings offer a novel set of indicators that enables policymakers and researchers to consider the smartness and sustainability of their projects simultaneously. This includes socio-cultural, economic, environmental, and governance categories with 28 associated indicators. The outcome of this paper offers a unique combined category of smart sustainable city indicators by considering the key elements of sustainability and smart city concepts. Academics and policymakers can also employ this set of indicators as a guideline to build a smart sustainable community.

Conceptualizing breakthrough pain

The concept of breakthrough pain (BTP) is examined through the development of a conceptual model with a long-term goal of positively impacting the management of chronic pain patients who experience BTP when hospitalized. The model is based on a 2008 Health Economic Model of Breakthrough Pain developed by Abernethy, Wheeler, and Fortner, which will be referred to as the parent model. The conceptual model of BTP, titled, Novel Conceptual Model of Breakthrough Pain (NCMBP) shares a similar structure in regards to the relationships of major constructs. Like the parent model, the NCMBP is based on three major constructs which are analyzed and explained further with associated concepts. The NCMBP is primarily concerned with the importance of a pain management plan and the endpoint result of patient-perceived analgesia. The NCMBP is viewed as a necessary foundation for continuing safe and effective pain management in the setting of a current opioid overdose epidemic in the United States. The structure and conceptual relationships of the NCMBP are preliminary and will continue to undergo revision as conduction of research is attempted to test the model.

Clone-structured graph representations enable flexible learning and vicarious evaluation of cognitive maps

Cognitive maps are mental representations of spatial and conceptual relationships in an environment, and are critical for flexible behavior. To form these abstract maps, the hippocampus has to learn to separate or merge aliased observations appropriately in different contexts in a manner that enables generalization and efficient planning. Here we propose a specific higher-order graph structure, clone-structured cognitive graph (CSCG), which forms clones of an observation for different contexts as a representation that addresses these problems. CSCGs can be learned efficiently using a probabilistic sequence model that is inherently robust to uncertainty. We show that CSCGs can explain a variety of cognitive map phenomena such as discovering spatial relations from aliased sensations, transitive inference between disjoint episodes, and formation of transferable schemas. Learning different clones for different contexts explains the emergence of splitter cells observed in maze navigation and event-specific responses in lap-running experiments. Moreover, learning and inference dynamics of CSCGs offer a coherent explanation for disparate place cell remapping phenomena. By lifting aliased observations into a hidden space, CSCGs reveal latent modularity useful for hierarchical abstraction and planning. Altogether, CSCG provides a simple unifying framework for understanding hippocampal function, and could be a pathway for forming relational abstractions in artificial intelligence.

Institutional betrayal in nursing: A concept analysis

Background: Ethical relationships are important among many participants in healthcare, including the ethical relationship between nurse and employer. One aspect of organizational behavior that can impact ethical culture and moral well-being is institutional betrayal. Research aim: The purpose of this concept analysis is to develop a conceptual understanding of institutional betrayal in nursing by defining the concept and differentiating it from other forms of betrayal. Design: This analysis uses the method developed by Walker and Avant. Research context: Studies were reviewed using health literature databases with no date restrictions. Ethical considerations: Analysis was conducted using established guidelines for ethical research. Findings: Although institutional betrayal is a concept applied in the literature, there was a paucity of studies exploring the concept within nursing. Examples of the concept in the literature include violation of trust between organization (i.e. employer) and nurse, such as provision of inadequate workplace protections, ineffective or hostile management, and gaslighting of those who experience negative events. Examples of institutional betrayal have become more visible during the COVID-19 pandemic. Discussion: A conceptual definition of institutional betrayal is a deep violation of trust or confidence or violation of moral standards committed by an institution toward a nurse. This definition incorporates experiences and issues suggested by the literature. Outcomes are likely negative, including impacts on nurse psychological and workplace well-being. This concept likely fits within a framework of ethical workplaces and has conceptual relationships with moral distress and moral resilience. Further studies can help qualitatively explore and empirically measure this concept. Conclusion: In the pursuit of improving the ethical culture of healthcare workplaces, this concept can provide meaningful insight into organizational behavior and its consequences. Naming and describing the concept can promote conceptual clarity and equip researchers, nurses, and leaders to identify and mitigate the issue.

Organizational power embodied in hand and finger touchlines

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a nuanced interpretative frame that can help global managers with recommendations to avoid misapplied power with group and organizational situations.Design/methodology/approachEmbodied metaphor is applied in analysis of the theory-praxis nexus to reconceive the bases, processes and resources associated with group and organizational power. Identified are patterns of relations in organizational bases and circuits of power, as expressed through literal and symbolic aspects of human hands and fingers. The paper does not revolve around gesticulations; instead focusing upon a novel, meta-cultural development of touchlines of the human hand, revealing conceptual relationships with the implementation of influence.FindingsA differentiated understanding of the touchline powers of technology, information, self-awareness, relation to others and access to money can respectively improve decisions and actions. Insights are provided in the areas of controlling people to achieve objectives, demeaning others, managing change and resistance for personal gain, negotiating contracts, advancing personal interests and coordinating reward or punishment.Research limitations/implicationsChoosing one metaphor may contribute to the exclusion of other perspectives, however, the embodied nature of the hand and touchlines tends to cross cultures and may assist further research to address the embedded nature of abuses of organizational power.Originality/valueThe contribution is in the theory-praxis nexus to assist global managers in addressing the risk of potential misuse of power and influence in organizations and to respond to calls for ancient indigenous epistemological systems to assume a role in contemporary management studies.

Entertained by Amazement and Wonder

Anecdotal evidence suggests that fascination, amazement, and wonder are regular audience responses to entertainment fare and substantially fuel users’ entertainment experiences. However, so far entertainment theory has largely overlooked these states. This chapter attempts to conceptually describe these experiences with the emotion awe and offers a case for awe as an important element in media entertainment. In a first step, it models conceptual relationships between awe and both hedonic and eudaimonic entertainment experiences. In a second step, it systematically discusses what entertainment fare is capable to elicit awe. To do so, it draws on appraisal theories of emotion and distinguishes different levels of media use, stimuli, processes, and preconditions likely involved in the elicitation of awe during media use. Its model shows that awe is potentially experienced frequently during the reception of many forms of media and is able to contribute substantially to media users’ entertainment responses.