Introduction An Appraisal of Participant Observation Methodology

All different sciences are defined in a specific way. It is not enough to define anthropology as a science that has studied human beings at all times and all places. It is the methodology of anthropology that is unique and increasingly appreciated by other fields. With the spread of COVID-19, as displacement became a problem, for the researcher and for those s/he had to be with, this methodology was temporarily put into question: social media or simply telephone contacts to gather data was used. The collection of articles in this issue reconfirms that it is through participant observation that the researcher can diligently and exhaustively study a topic or shine new light upon well-studied topics. Our topics are varied this time, some papers are from different fields, our methodology remains the same. © The Author(s)

The Influence of Characteristics of Mobile Live Commerce on Purchase Intention

Mobile live commerce is emerging as a new distribution channel as connectivity and information sharing become easier due to the increase in the use of SNS and mobile phones. Nevertheless, there is a lack of research in this field, and it is meaningful to look at how this new technology-based commerce leads to purchase intention in terms of the value of shopping perceived by consumers. This study aims to (1) analyze the characteristic factors of mobile live commerce, which is rapidly emerging due to brisk changes in the distribution industry in the non-contact era;and (2) verify the relationship between shopping value and purchase intention. We analyzed 283 surveys using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SM) with statistical product and service solutions (SPSS) and R-programming. We inferred that convenience, ubiquity, social presence, attractiveness, and vividness were the characteristics of mobile live commerce that had a positive effect on the pleasure value, and that social presence, attractiveness, vividness, professionalism, information quality, and compatibility had positive effects on the perceived value. The hedonic value also had a positive effect on the perceived value, and both pleasure and perceived values had strong positive effects on the purchase intention. However, the professionalism of the sources did not affect the hedonic value, and the convenience and ubiquity did not affect the perceived value.

Problematic mobile phone use and cyberbullying perpetration in adolescents

The phenomenon of problematic mobile phone use has become increasingly common among adolescents during the lockdowns mandated by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, research is still scarce on the impact of such use on delinquent cyberspace conduct (i.e. cyberbullying). This study applies the theoretical framework of general strain theory to examine how problematic mobile phone use affects the perpetration of cyberbullying. The results of this empirical examination of longitudinal survey data obtained from 2,161 adolescents in South Korea reveal that problematic mobile phone use is positively associated with engagement in cyberbullying. It is a type of strain that induces negative emotional states and results in the perpetration of cyberbullying. Furthermore, this study investigates the moderating roles of both traditional bullying experiences (i.e. traditional bullying and victimisation) in the association between problematic mobile phone use and the perpetration of cyberbullying. We found traditional bullying perpetration positively moderates the effects of problematic mobile phone use on cyberbullying. On the other hand, we found the moderating effect of traditional bullying victimisation of adolescents was insignificant.

Addressing immediate public health needs as part of Afghan evacuees' resettlement to the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVES: Since the removal of US troops from Afghanistan in 2021, the United States welcomed Afghan evacuees through Operation Allies Welcome. Using cell phone accessibility, the CDC Foundation worked with public-private partners to protect evacuees from the spread of COVID-19 and provide accessibility to resources. STUDY DESIGN: This was a mixed methods study. METHODS: The CDC Foundation activated its Emergency Response Fund to accelerate public health components of Operation Allies Welcome, including testing, vaccination, and COVID-19 mitigation and prevention. The CDC Foundation began the provision of cell phones to evacuees to ensure access to public health and resettlement resources. RESULTS: The provision of cell phones provided connections between individuals and access to public health resources. Cell phones provided means to supplement in-person health education sessions, capture and store medical records, maintain official resettlement documents, and assist in registration for state-administered benefits. CONCLUSIONS: Phones provided necessary connectivity to friends and family for displaced Afghan evacuees and higher accessibility to public health and resettlement resources. As many evacuees did not have access to US-based phone services upon entry, provision of cell phones and plans for a fixed amount of service time provided a helpful start in resettlement while also being a mechanism to easily share resources. Such connectivity solutions helped to minimize disparities among Afghan evacuees seeking asylum in the United States. Provision of cell phones by public health or governmental agencies can help to provide equitable resources to evacuees entering the United States for social connection, healthcare resources, and resources to assist in the process of resettlement. Further research is needed to understand the generalizability of these findings to other displaced populations.

Visualizing electrical energy consumption with virtual augmented technology and the internet of things

Power consumption was considered one of the major expenses in households and small offices in the COVID pandemic situation. The proposed method employs virtual augmented technology and the Internet of Things (IoT) to provide a visual solution for monitoring the power consumption of electrical equipment. The IoT sensors are linked via mobile phones or portable communication devices. For the proposed work, the energy sensor devices are installed on the 4 single-phase electrical devices in the office room equipment. That equipment’s electrical consumption was saved, processed through the ESP8266 board, and then transmitted through WiFi to collect data on the cloud server. The saved electrical energy data in the dashboard can be displayed as a visual comparison with AR technology by using the mobile phone camera to scan the marker of each electrical device. The experimental results show that the value of electrical energy is accurate, and the data values can be used to manage the power consumption of electrical equipment.

ONLINE TRAINING DURING A PANDEMIC – AN ADVANTAGE OR DISADVANTAGE FOR STUDENTS.

At the end of November 2019, in Wuhan, Central China, a coronavirus called SARS-Cov-2 appeared. This is because, for no apparent reason, people develop pneumonia in December that does not respond to known treatments. There are evidences of human-to-human transmission of the virus, with the fastest spread in mid-January 2020. This challenging situation was the reason for a full lockdown of the whole country. By order of the Rector of the University ‘’Prof. Dr. Assen Zlatarov’’ in this period of complete isolation, students from the Department of Health Care, officially switched to an alternative form of learning-online education. Online education is education that is conducted using the Internet and devices such as computers, laptops, tablets or mobile phones. Different formats can be used during the online education-text, video, audio, graphic images, interactive content, etc. Purpose: The research aims to examine the advantages and disadvantages of students during the online education. In the period from 15.03-15.04.2022 between the future health care professionals ‘’Medical assistant’’, ‘’Nurse’’, ‘’Midwife’’ studying at the Faculty of Public Health and Health Care – Burgas. The motives of 74 students ‘’Medical assistant’’-32.9%, ‘’Nurse’’-52,1%, ‘’Midwife’’-15,1% were examined. Conclusion: The main advantages of online learning for students and also for teachers are its flexibility and accessibility from anywhere, as well as the access to resources. The main disadvantages are mostly related to the limited opportunities for communication: there is no face-to-face communication, and the very mediocrity of communication and its dependence on technological constraints also hinders the normal learning process. Most of the respondents believe that online learning is not able to fully replace the face-to-face learning process. Another difference is that students are relatively more positive about online learning in general, however, a significant part of them believe that in the long term that having such training during their studies will negatively affect the quality of the education they received. In the long term, this factor may have a negative effect on satisfaction with university education in general. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Management & Education / Upravlenie i Obrazovanie is the property of Prof. Dr. Assen Zlatarov University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the economic situation and food security of rural households in India

Purpose>The purpose of the study is to understand what impact the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 had on the income and food security of rural households in India and whether it differed across socioeconomic factors. Moreover, the study assesses the needs of rural households and determines whether they had received adequate support services during the lockdown.Design/methodology/approach>The study adopted a repeated-measures quantitative survey design with 1,319 rural women from 16 states of India and conducted a telephonic survey.Findings>The lockdown had directly impacted rural households' employment status and income but the impact differed depending on the type of employment. For example, working in a salaried job or on one's farm led to a lower likelihood of a complete decline in income in states other than Kerala as the lockdown continued. The study also revealed a change in the pattern of food consumption, with higher consumption of subsidized staple foods. It also became evident that the aid announced by the government reached the rural population with some delay.Research limitations/implications>A limitation of the study was that many respondents refused to participate in phase 2, which reduced the sample size when comparing the two phases because the women did not own mobile phones. Instead, they were using their husbands' phones.Originality/value>The study's findings can help better understand the needs of rural populations during crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This can help to plan better and build preventive actions for such populations once their needs are understood. In addition, this can aid disadvantaged people for a minimal level of preparedness and security during such a crisis in the future.

Eating Behaviour and Lifestyle Changes Among Elderly During COVID-19 Pandemic

This web-based cross-sectional survey aimed to explore the changes in eating behaviour and lifestyle pattern among elderly residing in Delhi during the Covid-19 pandemic. 113 elderly persons (46 males and 67 females), age varying from 61 yrs. to 75 yrs., were purposely selected in this study. The data was collected using Google Form and the participants were asked to fill in the online Google Form whose link was shared via email and WhatsApp. Telephonic interviews were conducted for those who did not have android mobile phones. The findings of the study revealed that 44.44 per cent elderly were consuming healthier meals in joint families. 23.01 percent of participants were often skipping meals. 66.37 percent of participants reported neutral mood, 61.06 per cent of participants reported that emotions influence their eating pattern. Participants meals were based on their health status (66.37%), likes and dislikes (56.64%), hunger (53.1%), and family (44.25%). A significant relationship was observed between gender and skipping meals (p<0.05) in which the frequency of skipping meals was higher in males (61.53%). Only 35.4 per cent of the participants was physically active in which most of them were going for a walk (69.91%) while 37.17 per cent of participants were engaged in extracurricular activities. Thus, this study shows an impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the psychological and emotional responses in the elderly thereby affecting their eating behaviour including changes in meal patterns and physical activity level that directly or indirectly pose a risk to public health. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Indian Journal of Gerontology is the property of Indian Gerontological Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

PANDEMIC COMMUNICATION - A CHALLENGE AT THE RIGHT TIME?

Long before the isolation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic became a necessity, the practical part of the lecture entitled "Specialized Radio Work Techniques," which I teach the journalism students from Apollonia University of Iasi, was conducted with the help of the new technologies. I used the mobile phone and its various applications in order to replace the recorder, the magnetic tape and the editing studio in order to exemplify and create the necessary skills for a radio journalist. "Another life!" might say some users of the old Nagra recorder which, from a recording point of view, had similar performances, weighted over 15 kilos and was not able to record more than half an hour without interruption. If we look at things in such a manner, isolation triggered by the pandemic seems to have come at the right time. Meaning precisely at that moment in which human intelligence had the necessary substitutes ready. Information technology had already created the critical mass of electronic devices capable to preserving the life of the society in circumstances of ... social isolation. Experts emphasize the fact that restrictions did not obstruction communication. The numerous social networks and the already existent devices (television and mobile telephony) successfully ensured "the normality" of the human being life. Psychological and psychiatric consequences that specialists have not yet ruled on are not taken into account.

Attitudes towards the use of social media, the use of video games and cell phones in primary school students in public schools for vulnerable groups

The purpose of the research was to establish the causal relationship between attitudes towards social media, the use of video games, in the attitude towards the use of cell phones, likewise, the relationship of influence of the attitude towards video games in the use of social media. The study was carried out in Peru, with students of the primary level of economic condition of extreme poverty, where the cell phone is the most recurrent device of communication and social interaction in times of pandemic due to the presence of Covid-19. The study aims to validate a relationship model between the independent and dependent variables, for this purpose the investigation was designed in two phases, the first comprises an exploratory factor analysis using the IBM-SPSS, the second, was the realization of a confirmatory analysis, for this the PLS-SEM methodology was used, which is a multivariate method called, Modeling of Structural Equations with Partial Least Squares. The model was validated with a sample of 71 students, whose ages range from 11 to 13 years, from the Moquegua region. The study would reveal causal relationships, especially between the attitude towards the use of video games and its influence on the use of social media, in the same way, the level of influence that independent variables would exert, such as the attitude towards the use of networks. social and the use of video games in the attitude towards the use of cell phones. © 2021 IEEE.

Trees to towers shift: Power lines emerging as a novel habitat for birds in Gujranwala, Pakistan

Power infrastructure (electricity towers, mobile phone towers, transmission lines and wires) is a unique anthropogenic structure in terms of material composition, design and continuity serving as artificial habitat to avian wildlife for roosting and nesting. This study aimed at finding out the diversity, abundance and behaviour of birds using the power structures as artificial habitat in the Gujranwala city area, Pakistan. Field data was collected in Feb-Mar 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns in the city by recording all birds species and nests on power lines along a circular path (~32 km) by dividing into sampling zones. A total of 24 bird species of 16 families were found to be using these structures as roosting and nesting sites. The occupation rate of mobile phone towers is found to be 61%, transmission lines 32%, and electricity towers 1.8%. House crow was the most common species (~20% population) followed by the Black kite (~ 18% population). The spatial distribution pattern of nests on power structures indicated higher concentration in the southwestern area contrary to the highest abundance and diversity in the northwestern area close the urban forest planation. Total 112 nests of 4 species (Black kite, House crow, Common myna and Eurasian collard dove) were present on power lines. Black kite is the most frequent nesting species (>80% of all nests), preferring high structures i.e. transmission lines (99% of all nests) and mobile phone towers (78% of all nests) for making nests. House crow and Common myna make nests on electricity towers at low height. It is found that the area where cutting of trees during the past time period occurred, birds have shifted their nesting habitat from trees to towers (i.e., power structures). Moreover, if habitat destruction continues these power lines will be the new nesting habitat of the birds in the urban area, hence, posing risks to both birds and utility structures. This study also highlighted the importance of strategic plantation in relation to spatial distribution and protection of urban birds.

Awakening City: Traces of the Circadian Rhythm within the Mobile Phone Network Data

In this study, call detail records (CDR), covering Budapest, Hungary, are processed to analyze the circadian rhythm of the subscribers. An indicator, called wake-up time, is introduced to describe the behavior of a group of subscribers. It is defined as the time when the mobile phone activity of a group rises in the morning. Its counterpart is the time when the activity falls in the evening. Inhabitant and area-based aggregation are also presented. The former is to consider the people who live in an area, while the latter uses the transit activity in an area to describe the behavior of a part of the city. The opening hours of the malls and the nightlife of the party district are used to demonstrate this application as real-life examples. The proposed approach is also used to estimate the working hours of the workplaces. The findings are in a good agreement with the practice in Hungary, and also support the workplace detection method. A negative correlation is found between the wake-up time and mobility indicators (entropy, radius of gyration): on workdays, people wake up earlier and travel more, while on holidays, it is quite the contrary. The wake-up time is evaluated in different socioeconomic classes, using housing prices and mobile phones prices, as well. It is found that lower socioeconomic groups tend to wake up earlier.

Development of Big Data-Analysis Pipeline for Mobile Phone Data with Mobipack and Spatial Enhancement

Frequent and granular population data are essential for decision making. Further-more, for progress monitoring towards achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs), data availability at global scales as well as at different disaggregated levels is required. The high population coverage of mobile cellular signals has been accelerating the generation of large-scale spatiotemporal data such as call detail record (CDR) data. This has enabled resource-scarce countries to collect digital footprints at scales and resolutions that would otherwise be impossible to achieve solely through traditional surveys. However, using such data requires multiple processes, algorithms, and considerable effort. This paper proposes a big data-analysis pipeline built exclusively on an open-source framework with our spatial enhancement library and a proposed open-source mobility analysis package called Mobipack. Mobipack consists of useful modules for mobility analysis, including data anonymization, origin–destination extraction, trip extraction, zone analysis, route interpolation, and a set of mobility indicators. Several implemented use cases are presented to demonstrate the advantages and usefulness of the proposed system. In addition, we explain how a large-scale data platform that requires efficient resource allocation can be con-structed for managing data as well as how it can be used and maintained in a sustainable manner. The platform can further help to enhance the capacity of CDR data analysis, which usually requires a specific skill set and is time-consuming to implement from scratch. The proposed system is suited for baseline processing and the effective handling of CDR data;thus, it allows for improved support and on-time preparation.

Assessing the Adoption of Mobile Technology for Commerce by Generation Z

E-commerce has gained momentum with the rapid development of technology, and nowadays, we are permanently connected, with constant access to information and a wide range of products. Not only does a desktop computer offer us this possibility, but the latest-generation tablets and mobile phones create a broad framework. This paper investigates Romanian consumers’ attitudes towards adopting mobile technology for commerce (m-commerce), taking into account its development in the last few years, especially among younger generations. The main objectives of the research are to identify the preference for m-commerce use among Generation Z, establish the ways and the devices used by Gen Z individuals to inform about the products and services and order them, and analyze the factors influencing the use of m-commerce applications. The research methodology consists of conducting an empirical analysis using a distributed survey among youngsters from Generation Z in Romania. We used descriptive statistics, such as the analysis of frequency and the mean of variables, artificial neural network analysis (ANN), and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), to validate the hypotheses. The research results indicate a solid inclination for m-commerce among Generation Z. The results are helpful for companies that can shape their marketing strategies to boost their sales using m-commerce channels among the younger population.

Social Media Usage of Higher Secondary School Students - A Pilot Study

In the context of the lock down due to Covid-19, usage of mobile phones has increased among the adolescents. Usage of mobile phones for educational purposes as well as for entertainment makes them more addicted to mobile phones and electronic gadgets. In this scenario, Nomophobia, that is fear towards the situation when there is no phone, has increased among the adolescent. In this study, investigators developed and standardized a Nomophobia rating scale (NPRS) to identify the addiction rate of Higher Secondary school students to mobile phones. NPRS applied to 82 Higher Secondary School students and the study shows that most of the students are prevalent to nomophobia. But the nomophobic rate do not depend on their locality, gender, course stream, but depend on management of school.

The value of network data confirmed by the Covid-19 epidemic and its expanded usages

Data driven analysis is proven to create a competitive advantage to business. Governments and nonprofit organizations also turn to Big Data to harness its benefits and use it for social good. Among different types of data sources, location data collected from mobile networks is especially valuable for its representativeness, real-time observation, and versatility. There is a distinction between mobile positioning data (MPD) generated by the exchanges between mobile devices and the core network;versus over-the-top or system-level location data collecting individual GPS location. MPD is composed of all mobile network events regardless of the mobile phone brand, operating system, app usage, frequency bands or mobile generation;it is uniform and ubiquitous. Getting the best out of MPD relies on the knowledge of how to create an advanced algorithm for homogeneously processing this massive, complex data into insightful indicators. Anonymized and aggregated MPD enables the testing of multiple combinations with other data sources, fully abiding by GDPR, to arrive at innovative solutions. These unique insights can help tackle societal challenges (the state of mobile data for social good June 2017 GSMA, UN Global pulse). It can help to establish accurate statistics about population movements, density, location, social patterns, finances, and ambient environmental conditions. This article demonstrates how MPD has been used to help combat Covid-19 in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Furthermore, depending on the future direction, MPD and data analysis can serve powering economic development as well as working toward the Sustainable Development Goals, whilst respecting data privacy.

Profiling Residents’ Mobility with Grid-Aggregated Mobile Phone Trace Data Using Chengdu as the Case

People’s movement trace harvested from mobile phone signals has become an important new data source for studying human behavior and related socioeconomic topics in social science. With growing concern about privacy leakage of big data, mobile phone data holders now tend to provide aggregate-level mobility data instead of individual-level data. However, most algorithms for measuring mobility are based on individual-level data—how the existing mobility algorithms can be properly transformed to apply on aggregate-level data remains undiscussed. This paper explores the transformation of individual data-based mobility metrics to fit with grid-aggregate data. Fifteen candidate metrics measuring five indicators of mobility are proposed and the most suitable one for each indicator is selected. Future research about aggregate-level mobility data may refer to our analysis to assist in the selection of suitable mobility metrics.

Artificial Intelligence-Empowered Chatbot for Effective COVID-19 Information Delivery to Older Adults

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic poses a threat to the everyday life of people worldwide and brings challenges to the global health system. During this outbreak, it is critical to find creative ways to extend the reach of informatics into every person in society. Although there are many websites and mobile applications for this purpose, they are insufficient in reaching vulnerable populations like older adults who are not familiar with using new technologies to access information. In this paper, we propose an AI-enabled chatbot assistant that delivers real-time, useful, context-aware, and personalized information about COVID-19 to users, especially older adults. To use the assistant, a user simply speaks to it through a mobile phone or a smart speaker. This natural and interactive interface does not require the user to have any technical background. The virtual assistant was evaluated in the lab environment through various types of use cases. Preliminary qualitative test results demonstrate a reasonable precision and recall rate.

Participatory Surveillance of COVID-19 in Lesotho via Weekly Calls: Protocol for Cell Phone Data Collection.

BACKGROUND: The increase in cell phone ownership in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) has created an opportunity for low-cost, rapid data collection by calling participants on their cell phones. Cell phones can be mobilized for a myriad of data collection purposes, including surveillance. In LMIC, cell phone-based surveillance has been used to track Ebola, measles, acute flaccid paralysis, and diarrheal disease, as well as noncommunicable diseases. Phone-based surveillance in LMIC is a particularly pertinent, burgeoning approach in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participatory surveillance via cell phone could allow governments to assess burden of disease and complements existing surveillance systems. OBJECTIVE: We describe the protocol for the LeCellPHIA (Lesotho Cell Phone PHIA) project, a cell phone surveillance system that collects weekly population-based data on influenza-like illness (ILI) in Lesotho by calling a representative sample of a recent face-to-face survey. METHODS: We established a phone-based surveillance system to collect ILI symptoms from approximately 1700 participants who had participated in a recent face-to-face survey in Lesotho, the Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (PHIA) Survey. Of the 15,267 PHIA participants who were over 18 years old, 11,975 (78.44%) consented to future research and provided a valid phone number. We followed the PHIA sample design and included 342 primary sampling units from 10 districts. We randomly selected 5 households from each primary sampling unit that had an eligible participant and sampled 1 person per household. We oversampled the elderly, as they are more likely to be affected by COVID-19. A 3-day Zoom training was conducted in June 2020 to train LeCellPHIA interviewers. RESULTS: The surveillance system launched July 1, 2020, beginning with a 2-week enrollment period followed by weekly calls that will continue until September 30, 2022. Of the 11,975 phone numbers that were in the sample frame, 3020 were sampled, and 1778 were enrolled. CONCLUSIONS: The surveillance system will track COVID-19 in a resource-limited setting. The novel approach of a weekly cell phone-based surveillance system can be used to track other health outcomes, and this protocol provides information about how to implement such a system. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/31236.