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Currently, there is a global problem of an increasing need of energy. There will be less fossil fuel, which will be more expensive in the future. The regenerative energies are getting more and more important. The subject deals with the problem of economical feasibility of geothermal energy systems. Its goal is to analyze nessesary conditions and aspects for realizing geothermal energy systems in comparison to and competition with traditional energy sources. The geothermal energy recovery is economically advantageous if the investment costs, esp. the drilling costs, could be reduced significantly. It only seems possible to open up a big opportunity for realizing geothermal energy systems by using a rock melt drilling technology, to reduce the investment costs significantly.
Currently, there is a global problem of an increasing need of energy. There will be less fossil fuel, which will be more expensive in the future. The regenerative energies are becoming more and more important. The subject deals the problem of economical feasibility of geothermal energy systems. Its goal is to analyze necesary conditions and aspects of realizing geothermal energy systems in comparison to and competition with traditional energy sources. The geothermal energy recovery is economically advantageous if the investment costs, esp. the drilling costs, could be reduced significantly. It only seems possible to open up a big opportunity for realizing geothermal energy systems by using a rock melt drilling technology, to reduce the investment costs significantly.
This article concerns with the accessibility of Business process modelling tools (BPMo tools) and business process modelling languages (BPMo languages). Therefore the reader will be introduced to business process management and the authors' motivation behind this inquiry. Afterwards, the paper will reflect problems when applying inaccessible BPMo tools. To illustrate these problems the authors distinguish between two different categories of issues and provide practical examples. Finally the article will present three approaches to improve the accessibility of BPMo tools and BPMo languages.
Although most individuals who gamble do so without any adverse consequences, some individuals develop a recurrent, maladaptive pattern of gambling behaviour, often called pathological gambling or gambling disorder, that is associated with financial losses, disruption of family and interpersonal relationships, and co-occurring psychiatric disorders. Identifying whether different types of gambling modalities vary in their ability to lead to maladaptive patterns of gambling behaviour is essential to develop public policies that seek to balance access to gambling opportunities with minimizing risk for the potential adverse consequences of gambling behaviour. Until recently, assessing the risk potential of different types of gambling products was nearly impossible. ASTERIG, initially developed in Germany in 2006-2010, is an assessment tool to measure and to evaluate the risk potential of any gambling product based on scores on ten dimensions. In doing so, it also allows a comparison to be drawn between the addictive potential of different gambling products. Furthermore, the tool highlights where the specific risk potential of each specific gambling product lies. This makes it a valuable tool at the legislative, case law, and administrative levels as it allows the risk potential of individual gambling products to be identified and to be compared globally and across 10 different dimensions of risk potential. We note that specific gambling products should always be evaluated rather than product groups (lotteries, slot machines) or providers, as there may be variations among those product groups that impact their risk potential. For example, slot machines may vary on the amount of jackpot, which may influence their risk potential.
In discussions of gambling addiction to specific games, the market size and the proceeds generated by the game are usually disregarded. Inclusion of these parameters results in a relativization of the picture of gambling addiction. A fundamental principle for such an analysis is the separation between absolute numbers and ratios, which is a common procedure in economic contexts.
Within an elementary decision of March 28th, 2006 the German Federal Constitutional Court implemented the following: “According to the status quo of research it is certain, that gambling and bets can result in morbid addictive behaviour. ... However different gambling products exhibit different addictive potentials.” Up to now a specific identification of the addictive potential of a concrete gambling product was nearly impossible. This being said, the Wissenschaftliches Forum Glücksspiel (Gambling Scientific Forum) developed a globally applicable assessment tool to measure and evaluate the risk potential of gambling products.
AsTERiG is developed by the Gambling Scientific Forum in the years 2006-2010. At the completion of this final version as well as in the composition of this survey the following scientists were involved: Prof. Dr. Reiner Clement, Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University; Prof. Dr. Jörg Ennuschat, University of Konstanz; Prof. Jörg Häfeli, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts; Prof. Dr. Gerhard Meyer, University of Bremen; Chantal Mörsen, Charité Berlin; Prof. Dr. Dr. Franz W. Peren, Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University; Prof. Dr. Wiltrud Terlau, Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University.
Purpose – The aim of the study is to investigate the implementation of corporate sustainability (CS) in the German real estate sector.
Design/methodology/approach – The authors begin by outlining the framework set by the European Union and the German Federal Government for companies wanting to be classified as sustainable. After this, the relevance of sustainability for German real estate companies is discussed. Their empirical section contains an international comparison. Finally, they present an analysis checking the implementation of CS for the main 135 German real estate companies.
Findings – The present analysis shows that German real estate companies compare well with their international counterparts, in 2012 representing 15 per cent of all real estate firms reporting on the basis of the Global Reporting Initiative. However, of the 135 companies in Germany surveyed, only a small proportion classify themselves as CS and CSR (corporate social responsibility) enterprises. This number could be rapidly increased by better documentation of companies’ commitment to sustainability.
Practical implications – The study’s importance lies in the overview it provides of CS activities in the German real estate industry. In addition, it provides hints on how companies can improve their documentation to classify as CSR enterprises. Although the analysis concentrates on Germany, the results are also relevant for companies in other European countries.
The case for basic human needs in coaching: A neuroscientific perspective - The SCOAP Coach Theory
(2014)
It is a euphemism to say that humans use tools. Humans possess a vast repertoire of tools they use every day. In fact, as language or bipedal locomotion, tool use is a hallmark of humans. Tool use has also been often viewed as an important step during evolution (van Schaik et al., 1999) or even as a marker of the evolution of human intelligence (Wynn, 1985). So a fundamental issue is, what are the cognitive and neural bases of human tool use? The present series of papers in this special topic represents the newest additions to that research topic.
People are getting older because of the demographic changes and the rate of disabled people is also going up. This article shows the challenge for BPMTool developer due to these circumstances. It illustrates how these changes impact the usage of BPM-Tools based on an Evaluation of an exemplary BPMTool (Cooper & Patterson, 2007) in terms of IT-Usability and IT-Accessibility. This evaluation was conducted in a research laboratory at the university.
The phenomenon of the deviation between purchase attitudes and actual buying behaviour of responsible consumers is called the attitude-behaviour gap. It is influenced by individual, social and situational factors. The main purchasing barriers for sustainable (organic) food are price, lack of immediate availability, sensory criteria, lack or overload of information as well as the low-involvement feature of food products in conjunction with well-established consumption routines, lack of transparency and trust towards labels and certifications. The last three barriers are mainly of a psychological nature. Especially the low-involvement feature of food products due to daily purchase routines and relatively low prices tends to result in fast, automatic and subconscious decisions based on a so-called human mental system 1, derived from Daniel Kahneman’s (Nobel-Prize laureate in Behavioural Economics) model in behavioural psychology. In contrast, the human mental system 2 is especially important for the transformations of individual behaviour towards a more sustainable consumption. Decisions based on the human mental system 2 are slow, logical, rational, conscious and arduous. This so-called dual action model also influences the reliability of responses in consumer surveys. It seems that the consumer behaviour is the most unstable and unpredictable part of the entire supply chain and requires special attention. Concrete measures to influence consumer behaviour towards sustainable consumption are highly complex. Reviews of interdisciplinary research literature on behavioural psychology, behavioural economics and consumer behaviour and an empirical analysis of selected countries worldwide with a view to sustainable food are presented. The example of Denmark serves as a ‘best practice’ case study to illustrate how sustainable food consumption can be encouraged. It demonstrates that common efforts and a shared responsibility of consumers, business, interdisciplinary researchers, mass media and policy are needed. It takes pioneers of change who succeed in assembling a ‘critical mass’ willing to increase its ‘sustainable’ behaviour. Considering the strong psychological barriers of consumers and the continuing low market share of organic food, proactive policy measures would be conducive to foster the personal responsibility of the consumers and offer incentives towards a sustainable production. Also, further self-obligations of companies (Corporate Social Responsibility – CSR) as well as more transparency and simplification of reliable labels and certifications are needed to encourage the process towards a sustainable development.
Although much effort is made to prevent risks arising from food, food-borne diseases are an ever-present threat to the consumers’ health. The consumption of fresh food that is contaminated with pathogens like fungi, viruses or bacteria can cause food poisoning that leads to severe health damages or even death. The outbreak of Shiga Toxin-producing enterohemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC) in Germany and neighbouring countries in 2011 has shown this dramatically. Nearly 4.000 people were reported of being affected and more than 50 people died during the so called EHEC-crisis. As a result the consumers’ trust in the safety of fruits and vegetables decreased sharply.
Agricultural activities within city boundaries have a long history in both developed and developing countries. In this paper, a broad approach to Urban AgriCulture (UAC) is used, one that includes the production of crops in urban and peri-urban areas and ranges in developed countries from allotment gardens over community gardens to semi-entrepreneurial self-harvest farms and fully commercialized agriculture. With an empirical case study on UAC Initiatives in the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg region this work fills a gap since the lack of comprehensive and comparative studies on urban agriculture (UA) currently makes it difficult for researchers to identify the benefits of UA activities.
Companies often have difficulties determining which criteria to base their investment decisions in different countries on. When considering direct foreign investment several risk indices are available. The PCI (Peren-Clement-Index) in its original form was developed in 1998. Its further refinement improves the PCI in three major ways: First, it offers a dynamic adjustment of criteria and consideration of recent changes in the international environment. Second, it provides business specificities of a company or its industrial sector to be considered in addition to macroeconomic aspects by a two-dimensional presentation, which ensures a customized assessment. Third, the PCI allows for consolidating investment decisions by combining a resource-orientated with a market-oriented view. The PCI allows, unlike other indices, a customized and company-specific strategic planning process. Ultimately companies must take up both perspectives in the context of an international investment decision. The use of risk indices in corporate planning for assessing global investments decision creates a fundamentally new of risk assessment.
Background: Falls are common in older adults and can result in serious injuries. Due to demographic changes, falls and related healthcare costs are likely to increase over the next years. Participation and motivation of older adults in fall prevention measures remain a challenge. The iStoppFalls project developed an information and communication technology (ICT)-based system for older adults to use at home in order to reduce common fall risk factors such as impaired balance and muscle weakness. The system aims at increasing older adults’ motivation to participate in ICT-based fall prevention measures. This article reports on usability, user-experience and user-acceptance aspects affecting the use of the iStoppFalls system by older adults.
Methods: In the course of a 16-week international multicenter study, 153 community-dwelling older adults aged 65+ participated in the iStoppFalls randomized controlled trial, of which half used the system in their home to exercise and assess their risk of falling. During the study, 60 participants completed questionnaires regarding the usability, user experience and user acceptance of the iStoppFalls system. Usability was measured with the System Usability Scale (SUS). For user experience the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) was applied. User acceptance was assessed with the Dynamic Acceptance Model for the Re-evaluation of Technologies (DART). To collect more detailed data on usability, user experience and user acceptance, additional qualitative interviews and observations were conducted with participants.
Results: Participants evaluated the usability of the system with an overall score of 62 (Standard Deviation, SD 15.58) out of 100, which suggests good usability. Most users enjoyed the iStoppFalls games and assessments, as shown by the overall PACES score of 31 (SD 8.03). With a score of 0.87 (SD 0.26), user acceptance results showed that participants accepted the iStoppFalls system for use in their own home. Interview data suggested that certain factors such as motivation, complexity or graphical design were different for gender and age.
Conclusions: The results suggest that the iStoppFalls system has good usability, user experience and user acceptance. It will be important to take these along with factors such as motivation, gender and age into consideration when designing and further developing ICT-based fall prevention systems.
Falls and their consequences are arguably most important events for transition from independent living to institutional care for older adults. Information and communication technology (ICT)-based support of fall prevention and fall risk assessment under the control of the user has a tremendous potential to, over time, prevent falls and reduce associated harm and costs. Our research uses participative design and a persuasive health approach to allow for seamless integration of an ICT-based fall prevention system into older adults’ everyday life. Based on a 6-month field study with 12 participants, we present qualitative results regarding the system use and provide insights into attitudes and practices of older adults concerning fall prevention and ICT-supported self-management of health. Our study demonstrates how it can lead to positive aspects of embodiment and health literacy through continuous monitoring of personal results, improved technical confidence, and quality of life. Implications are provided for designing similar systems.
This study contributes to the growing body of research concerning management consultancies by linking two previously disparate fields of study: (1) the examination of the effectiveness of consulting interventions and (2) the examination of the social processes that aim to create and legitimize the insights, knowledge and capabilities of management consultancies. We propose that consulting firms accumulate social authority in the course of pre-intervention discourse processes that is reflected in their reputation and celebrity. With respect to intervention, this social authority affects change recipients’ commitment to and compliance with the requirements of change implementation. We test the proposed relationships by conducting a measured variable path analysis of 117 change initiatives in German companies that were set up and implemented with the assistance of external consultancies. Our findings indicate that a consulting firm’s levels of both celebrity and reputation affect the change recipients’ commitment to proposed change strategies and thus, indirectly affect their behavioral compliance with the explicit requirements of change implementation.
Continued growth in international experiences for U.S. co++6llege students is a favorable trend. However, the most substantial increase has occurred with of short-term study abroad programs. Many of these programs include extensive travel instead of involving a single site. There is great danger that if not properly managed, these types of international educational experience will default into little more than an organized group tour.
In these types of programs it is challenging to induce student participants to engage meaningfully with local residents as the traveling group tends to form into its own portable society. In addition, the current state of wireless communications means that students participating in these types of programs can easily stay plugged into their home social networks which further reduces meaningful interactions in the cultures being visited.
Incorporating well designed research projects into short-term study abroad programs holds the potential to offset some of the inherent limitations of such programs. Research projects can serve both to prepare the students for the trip and promote meaningful cross-cultural interaction while the program is underway.
In this paper, the authors provide suggestions based on their experiences with short-term travel abroad programs which incorporated student research. Several potential problems are identified and suggestions are given for project design.
The technological development of the digital computer and new options to collect, store and transfer mass data have changed the world in the last 40 years. Moreover, due to the ongoing progress of computer power, the establishment of the Internet as critical infrastructure and the options of ubiquitous sensor systems will have a dramatic impact on economies and societies in the future. We give a brief overview about the technological basics especially with regard to the exponential growth of big data and current turn towards sensor-based data collection. From this stance, we reconsider the various dimensions of personal data and and market mechanisms that have an impact of data usage and protection.
Smallholder farmers as a backbone for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals
(2018)
Argentina substantially contributes to the global organic agriculture and food sector due to its large areas of organically managed agricultural land. However, most of the organic production is intended for export. Overall, food supply for the domestic organic market is hardly tapped. Based on this, we investigate the current importance of organic agriculture and food production as well as consumption attitudes and behavior within the country. The novelty of the study also lies in the observation, documentation and analysis of latest stakeholder‐driven developments towards organic agriculture and food. Furthermore, the publication allows the Argentinean organic market to be significantly more visible for the international audience.
New approaches in securing more sustainable urban food futures: case from Cologne-Bonn region
(2018)
Innovations in the mobility industry such as automated and connected cars could significantly reduce congestion and emissions by allowing the traffic to flow more freely and reducing the number of vehicles according to some researchers. However, the effectiveness of these sustainable product and service innovations is often limited by unexpected changes in consumption: some researchers thus hypothesize that the higher comfort and improved quality of time in driverless cars could lead to an increase in demand for driving with autonomous vehicles. So far, there is a lack of empirical evidence supporting either one or other of these hypotheses. To analyze the influence of autonomous driving on mobility behavior and to uncover user preferences, which serve as indicators for future travel mode choices, we conducted an online survey with a paired comparison of current and future travel modes with 302 participants in Germany. The results do not confirm the hypothesis that ownership will become an outdated model in the future. Instead they suggest that private cars, whether conventional or fully automated, will remain the preferred travel mode. At the same time, carsharing will benefit from full automation more than private cars. However, the findings indicate that the growth of carsharing will mainly be at the expense of public transport, showing that more emphasis should be placed in making public transport more attractive if sustainable mobility is to be developed.
A Method for the Sustainable Documentation of Operations Processes in Parcel Distribution Centers
(2018)
There is often no common understanding on operational processes in logistics companies as they are not properly documented. Hence, people execute the same process differently and training is conducted by experienced operators on an ad-hoc basis. Furthermore, continuous process improvement is hampered as neither the ideal process nor current issues in as-is processes are visible. A major reason for the missing documentation is the complexity of existing business process modelling languages. Modelling experts are required for initially describing the processes and also for updating the models after process changes. Furthermore, operations people are usually not used to read complex process models in EPCs or BPMN diagrams. In order to overcome these limitations, a domain-specific modelling language which facilitates maintaining up-to-date process models has been designed with a large logistics company in Germany. The paper at hand briefly describes this language and illustrates the method on how to apply it in operations environments.
Through the “Act to Strengthen the Non-financial Reporting by Corporations in their Management and Group Management Reports” (Gesetz zur Stärkung der nichtfinanziellen Berichterstattung der Unternehmen in ihren Lage- und Konzernlageberichten) (CSR Directive Transposition Act, „CSR-RUG“) of 11 April 2017[1], the German Bundestag implemented Directive 2014/95/EU (“CSR Directive”)[2] into German law. Following the European impetus, the CSR-RUG enriches the traditional repertoire of forms of action under environmental law by a further instrument. Already the regulatory context gives an idea of its atypical nature: The centrepiece of the CSR-RUG is the amendment of and addition to the Third Book of the German Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch, “HGB”), which deals with the “trading books” of undertakings, i.e., accounting and reporting requirements. Since the reporting year 2017, large capital market-oriented corporations must report extensively within the framework of their annual management reports on their activities and effects in certain areas of “Corporate Social Responsibility”. This also includes environmental matters. The transparency and publicity this entails is intended to generate positive stimuli for more responsible, sustained and not least of all environmentally friendly entrepreneurial action.
Following a brief presentation of the European legal bases and their implementation in Germany (I.), we will classify the provisions within the underlying concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (II.) and analyse and systemise the governance effects of non-financial reporting (III.). A few remarks on selected aspects of the chosen approach and its implementation (IV.) as well as an outlook summarising our conclusions (V.) will complete this article. By detailing the German approach to transposing the CSR Directive, this paper intends to provide an example of the challenges member state legislators face when complying with modern governance concepts such as Corporate Social Responsibility by way of non-financial reporting obligations.
[1] Federal Law Gazette, Part I 2017, 802 et seq.
[2] Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups, OJ EU No. L 330, p. 1.