Search results

Single-family houses are a common form of housing in Europe. Most were built in the context of the suburbanization after World War II and are now facing challenges arising from generational changes as well as increasing living and energy standards. According to the hypothesis of this paper, in several EU regions, single-family houses may face future challenges arising from oversupply and lack of adaptation to current demand. To examine this, the paper analyses the present situation and discusses the prognosis for the challenges described above regarding the three neighbouring north-western European countries Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands, based on available data and a review of country-specific characteristics of housing markets as well as national policies. Despite an impending mismatch between demand and supply, planning policies still support the emergence of new single-family houses. The comparison of Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands shows the growing polarization between shrinking and growing regions and central and peripheral sites apparent at different stages in the three countries. While a high rate of vacancies is already registered for some regions in Germany, in the Netherlands this phenomenon can only be seen near the borders and in villages within the Randstad conurbation. In Belgium also, this phenomenon is not yet widespread, but in some suburban neighbourhoods dating from the 1950's and 1960's more and more single-family houses are becoming more difficult to sell, indicating an emerging mismatch between supply and demand. This article proposes some instruments which enable municipalities to intervene in single family housing neighbourhoods which are largely dominated by private ownership. These instruments are not yet widely established in single-family housing neighbourhoods but that may become important in the future.

Using Hirschman's Exit–Voice–Loyalty–Neglect (EVLN) framework, this study examines the dual-moderating role of the big five personality traits in shaping workers' behavioral responses to psychological contract breach. Building from calls for research on individual differences in psychological contract dynamics, the current study applies the theory of purposeful work behavior to delineate how the higher-order goals prescribed by one's personality jointly guide interpretation processes in forming emotional and behavioral responses. In doing so, we map how certain big five traits shape felt violation and EVLN responses following breach events, while others seem to only moderate emotional or EVLN responses.

A scenario-based experimental study asked participants (N = 610) about their reactions to a breach event. We tested a dual moderated mediation model, in which agreeableness, extraversion, conscientiousness and neuroticism moderated the intensity of felt violation, and the likelihood of each EVLN behavior following from felt violation.

We found evidence for the dual moderating effect of agreeableness on voice responses to breach. Additionally, neuroticism strengthened felt violation following breach, and extraversion weakened endorsement of neglecting work to cope with felt violation. Our results suggest that certain traits are particularly important for individual differences in emotional responses to breach (e.g. neuroticism), while others are important for shaping differences in behavior (e.g. extraversion). Additionally, results shed light on the importance of taking a person-by-situation perspective in understanding work behavior, such that extraversion, while conceptualized as general emotional tendencies, does not significantly influence felt violation in breach contexts.

While previous research has looked at how personality traits moderate either the breach–felt violation relation or the breach–EVLN relation, research has yet to test the moderating effect of personality simultaneously. Excluding one or the other overlooks important individual differences in the process, as interpretation processes guiding emotional and behavioral responses happen concurrently. In doing so, we examine responses to a specific breach event (rather than general breach perceptions), as this better aligns with the conceptualizations of breach (as specific occasions of broken promises) and felt violation (as an emotional state).

VIBu – Virtual Teams in International Business – is the name of a training concept, which is aimed at familiarizing participants with collaborating in a virtual environment. Based on the online business simulation RealGame™, participants are assigned to multicultural virtual teams that represent different companies. These companies are either competing with or depending on each other in typical business processes of an internationally operating manufacturing company. Interaction and negotiation are required throughout the whole simulation. All communication takes place via information and communication technology, mainly Skype and Skype chat. The main challenge in the environment is that participants are located in different countries and time zones all over the world. The book chapter first outlines some of the challenges of global teamwork that organizations face. We argue that students need to learn how to navigate in global teams before they leave university as they are bound to become involved in organizational global teamwork sooner rather than later. We draw on frameworks for experiential learning (e.g., Kolb's learning model, Kolb, 1984) and the constructivist learning paradigm (Lainema, 2009) to outline the learning experiences that students need to gather in order to become effective global team members. In addition, we highlight the potential for learner engagement that this approach offers. The chapter concludes by highlighting the key learning and teaching outcomes from incorporating this cutting-edge simulation technology. Furthermore, we direct the reader's attention to ways in which the simulation can be used for research purposes, international inter-university collaborations, and multidisciplinary research on teaching practices and engaged learning.

Anthony ‘Skip’ Basiel has been involved in e-learning in the United Kingdom for almost two decades. His work with the British Council in 2004 won him eTutor of the Year Award with the Higher Education Academy. As an Adobe International Education Leader he has expertise in new media and web video conferencing consulting organizations such as Oxford University. He is an Adobe Certified Associate in Web Communication (2010).

The chapters in this book focus on using different types of mediated discourse technologies such as classroom response systems and class replay systems to create technology-rich social learning environments within the classroom. Improvements in low-cost, ubiquitous digital technologies and development of modern learning theories are rapidly changing the manner in which we teach and learn in the postindustrial age. These transformative advancements are also refining our views of what it means to teach and learn in a globalized world. At both the individual and group levels, mediated discourse technologies are becoming more prevalent in higher education as teaching and learning tools across a wide range of disciplines to better engage students and create more participatory and engaging learning environments. Using these technologies in a purposeful manner also has the potential of creating more interesting and enjoyable social learning environments for both instructors and students.

Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American preemptive invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and the subsequent prisoner abuse, such an existence seems to be farther and farther away from reality. The purpose of this work is to stop this dangerous trend by promoting justice, love, and peace through a change of the paradigm that is inconsistent with justice, love, and peace. The strong paradigm that created the strong nation like the U.S. and the strong man like George W. Bush have been the culprit, rather than the contributor, of the above three universal ideals. Thus, rather than justice, love, and peace, the strong paradigm resulted in in justice, hatred, and violence. In order to remove these three and related evils, what the world needs in the beginning of the third millenium is the weak paradigm. Through the acceptance of the latter paradigm, the golden mean or middle paradigm can be formulated, which is a synergy of the weak and the strong paradigm. In order to understand properly the meaning of these paradigms, however, some digression appears necessary.

Design problems are unique, complex, and ambiguous. They are considered to be non-routine and ill-structured. Since these kinds of problems require the production of innovative solutions, design problem-solving involves creative thinking. Creativity is concerned with the capacity to restructure old ideas to produce novel solutions, and the ability to search for unusual design alternatives that transcend the known and familiar. In the recent years, there were attempts to gain insight in problem-solving activities that demand creativity, such as design. A question addressed in the current empirical research is how design students assess creativity in architectural design while solving housing problems. Redefining the role of housing in the contemporary city was a main concern. Major factors of design problem-solving, and their contribution to creativity are analyzed.

Results revealed that restructuring of housing design problems was the most significant factor of design problem-solving, followed by search of design solutions. Retrieval of prior knowledge from memory was the weakest factor. Furthermore, innovation was the most significant factor characterizing design creativity, followed by utility and aesthetics. Additional findings showed that restructuring of housing problems was the most correlated factor, and the predictor that had a unique contribution to all creativity factors. Search of housing solutions was a predictor that contributed mainly to innovation.

Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American preemptive invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and the subsequent prisoner abuse, such an existence seems to be farther and farther away from reality. The purpose of this work is to stop this dangerous trend by promoting justice, love, and peace through a change of the paradigm that is inconsistent with justice, love, and peace. The strong paradigm that created the strong nation like the U.S. and the strong man like George W. Bush have been the culprit, rather than the contributor, of the above three universal ideals. Thus, rather than justice, love, and peace, the strong paradigm resulted in in justice, hatred, and violence. In order to remove these three and related evils, what the world needs in the beginning of the third millenium is the weak paradigm. Through the acceptance of the latter paradigm, the golden mean or middle paradigm can be formulated, which is a synergy of the weak and the strong paradigm. In order to understand properly the meaning of these paradigms, however, some digression appears necessary.