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While industry tends towards mass personalisation and instant deliveries, the last mile of urban logistics is being challenged to decrease the number of vehicles in circulation and the distances they travel in city centres. The COVID-19 pandemic helped expose the inefficiency of cities in fulfilling citizens' real-time needs. Moreover, the first aim of this paper is to understand the barriers which policymakers face in providing a personalised response to citizens' needs and the second to ascertain how they can proactively serve their communities. In line with these concerns, empirical evidence was collected through a questionnaire to Portuguese policymakers, and the results were discussed in a focus group with experts. The results suggest a lack of tools to enable real-time visualisation and study of scenarios for implementing and organising means of delivery and storage. Moreover, although policymakers feel confident in their capacity to manage the last mile, they would struggle to operate autonomously. Therefore, this paper conceptualises an initial algorithm based on the dynamic collaboration of stakeholders and sharing of resources to guarantee fulfilment of citizens' necessities. Furthermore, future discussions shall emerge about the relationships and technical standards between stakeholders to provide the necessary logistical means for city management and operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: A growing body of evidence suggests that experiences of discrimination may affect physical and mental health through multiple pathways. This paper aims to characterize the extent of everyday perceived discrimination among Brazilian and Cape Verdean immigrant adults in Portugal, to identify its forms and analyze its association with mental health. Design/methodology/approach: This study draws on data from the EQUALS4COVID19 (Equity in health in times of pandemic) project that implemented a cross-sectional survey combining online and face-to-face questionnaires for data collection between February and November 2022. Findings: Women were less likely than men to report no discrimination experiences and more likely to report combined bases of discrimination. While Brazilian women were more likely than Cape Verdean counterparts to report gender and nationality-based discrimination, Cape Verdean women and men were more likely to report experiencing race-based discrimination. Gender (being identified as a woman) and length of stay in Portugal were the main predictors of depression, while resilience and perceived social support were protective factors. Participants with higher levels of resilience showed a significantly diminished association between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. Practical implications: This study highlights the need for further research on the interlocking influences of gender, race, nationality and other structures of power, on health and illness to increase our understanding of what would help meet the specific needs of migrants' mental health and improve equitable health care. Originality/value: The findings on the multiple and intersectional discrimination perceived by the Brazilian and Cape Verdean populations in Portugal illustrated the ways mental health can be affected by social structures, such as gender and ethnic hierarchies, and can be used to inform the relevance to design and implement programs on combating individual and institutional discrimination and improving the rights of all people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Definition: The history of women archaeologists in Portugal and their contribution to the development of the discipline is yet to be studied. However, in recent years, some articles published in Portugal have contributed to the construction of this history. Some of these are from the year 2020, and although the coronavirus pandemic has affected the progress of these investigations, especially regarding fieldwork. Generally, these are quantitative studies based on the number of publications by women archaeologists and their references and interviews in newspapers. These articles, which require significant time for database analysis, have not yet explained the existing gaps. It is not the scope of this paper to pursue this quantitative scope; instead, it intends to conduct a qualitative analysis of the contribution of women archaeologists to the development of prehistoric studies in Northern Portugal. To achieve this goal, we are focusing on analysing the doctoral theses developed by women concerning pre- and proto-historic archaeology in Northern Portugal. With this evaluation, we intend to contribute to the history of Portuguese women's archaeology and, at the same time, highlight their methodological and conceptual achievements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Portuguese companies are increasingly responding to the demand of stakeholders for transparent information about companies' environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance by issuing non-financial reports (NFRs). While the number of NFRs published annually has been increasing over the last two decades, their quality and companies' ESG performance have been questioned, especially in times of crisis. To address these concerns, several jurisdictions have introduced mandatory NFR rules, such as the European Directive 2014/95/EU. Employing an institutional theory lens, this paper's research objective is to evaluate whether the last decade's crises and whether the fact that NFRs became mandatory for certain entities positively affected companies' activities covered in the ESG reporting scope. We used panel data regression models on 45 listed companies in Portugal during the period 2008–2021. Our results show that the ESG reporting scope is not positively influenced by the transition from NFRs to a mandatory and global financial crisis (GFC). However, the COVID-19 crisis positively affected NFR quality. These results have major implications for practitioners, reflecting the importance of promoting these tools in an organization to improve non-financial performance and companies' sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with one of the most pressing concerns that Eurozone periphery economies will face in the near future: how to achieve a sustained recovery from the COVID-19 crisis while dealing with growing public debt-to-GDP ratios. The paper assesses the macroeconomic relationship between public spending, economic growth and debt sustainability. We use a TSLS method to perform the econometric estimation of the public spending multiplier for a panel of 11 Eurozone economies over the 1995–2019 period. We find evidence that the multiplier is positive and close to 1,8, suggesting that the benefits of promoting public investment exceed its initial financing cost. As a result, we conclude that debt sustainability is not only compatible with, but in fact improved by a more expansive fiscal policy and present an alternative policy path for the Portuguese economy in the 2021–2025 period based on this conclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this study is to understand how Portuguese restaurants' solvency was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, considering the factors that influence it. Financial information was collected for the years 2019 and 2020 in the SABI database to elaborate a quantitative methodology; a descriptive analysis was used and Pearson's correlation coefficient, a Paired t-test, a one-way ANOVA test, and a multiple linear regression were used to test the formulated hypotheses. The findings confirm that solvency is affected by several determinants, such as financial autonomy, indebtedness, financial leverage, asset turnover, return on equity, and long-term bank debt. Solvency is influenced positively by financial autonomy and financial leverage. In contrast, solvency is negatively influenced by indebtedness, asset turnover, and long-term bank debt. Additionally, this paper represents the first study, in the restaurant sector in Portugal, which analyses the importance of solvency and its determinants, by facing a normal year with a crisis year. The paper is innovative in terms of knowledge about restaurant solvency behavior in periods of financial crisis and also because the COVID-19 pandemic has added an additional variable to restaurant solvency: short-term bank debt. In terms of theoretical implications, this study provides further insights about the factors influencing solvency in restaurant businesses during periods of a financial crisis. The main practical contributions are linked to improving the leadership skills of restaurant owners and managers to deal with periods of crisis in general, thus improving the solvency of their businesses and decreasing the risks associated with bankruptcy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In 2020, Portugal had high levels of unmet health care needs. Primary Care was reported as the main source of unmet needs. Objectives: To describe face-to-face and remote access to GPs in Portugal during the COVID-19 pandemic. To discover patient experiences and attitudes to access to care. To identify determinants of access to care. Methods: A survey of a random sample of 4,286 adults registered in a group of Family Practices was conducted in 2021. Paper questionnaires were sent by post to patients who had no e-mail address registered with the practice. Patients with an e-mail address were sent a link to an online questionnaire. Outcomes were reported waiting times for face-to-face and remote contacts with GPs, dichotomized to ascertain compliance with standards. Associations between participant characteristics and outcome variables were tested using logistic regression. Results: Waiting times for face-to-face consultations with GPs during the pandemic often exceeded the maximum waiting times (MWT) set by the National Health Service. Remote contacts were mostly conducted within acceptable standards. Waiting times for speaking with the GP over the phone were rated as 'poor' by 40% and 27% reported requests for these calls as unmet. The odds of getting care over MWT increased for participants who reported poorer digital skills. Participants were less likely to get non-urgent consultations over MWT if they found it easy to use the online patient portal to book appointments (odds ratio 0.24; 99% confidence intervals 0.09–0.61), request prescriptions (0.18; 0.04–0.74) or insert personal data (0.18; 0.04–0.95). Conclusion: Patient reported access to GPs during the pandemic was uneven in Portugal. Obtaining non-urgent consultations and remote contacts over MWT affected mainly those patients with poor digital skills. Telephone access to GPs received the worse ratings. Access through traditional pathways must remain available, to prevent the widening of inequities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses firm-level data to investigate the resilience of the Portuguese wine sector’s domestic market in the aftermath of the exogenous shock arising from Covid-19. To address this objective, this article applies a fractional response model. The results allow us to confirm that the impact of the pandemic crisis depends on firm structure and behaviour reflected by variables such as firm size, age, export intensity, market channel as well as on the geographic location of firms. This suggests the need for the development of innovative regional clusters and calls for managers and policymakers to consider the heterogeneity of wineries and dissimilar effects of contingency measures at the municipal level during an exogenous shock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Portugal's tourism industry is essential to the nation's economy, significantly contributing to wealth creation and employment opportunities. However, the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 severely impacted this vital sector. The accommodation and food services were particularly hit, with many businesses facing widespread closures. By early 2022, Portugal's economy faced additional hurdles. Geopolitical tensions and rising inflation created further disruptions on a global scale, complicating the recovery process. Despite these obstacles, Portugal's accommodation and food services sector began to show promising signs of recovery. To gain a deeper understanding of these dynamics, this paper utilizes shift-share analysis to examine the postpandemic business landscape of Portugal's accommodation and food services sector, focusing on data from 2019 to 2022 for active businesses and the number of persons employed. This analytical method breaks down growth into national, sectoral, and regional components, providing a comprehensive view of the factors influencing recovery. The findings indicate that regional and industrial factors played a more significant role in driving recovery than national economic trends alone. Notably, regions such as the Algarve, Madeira, and Açores demonstrated remarkable resilience and growth. These areas benefited from their unique competitive advantages within the sector, which helped them navigate the challenging post-pandemic environment more effectively. The study's insights are invaluable for policymakers and investors. By understanding the importance of regional policies and innovation, stakeholders can make targeted decisions that enhance the sector's competitiveness and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: After two years of psychological, physical, social, economic, environmental, and societal challenges, this paper examines the psychological health and well-being of Portuguese students based on their socioemotional skills (SSES), positive youth development (PYD), depression, anxiety, and stress (DASS), as well as the relationship between these variables and their influence on perceived quality of life and life satisfaction. Methods: This study examined 3235 students from lower to upper secondary, half of whom were female (M = 14.46 ± 1.883 years old). Using SPSS software, descriptive statistics were determined for all variables; mean differences between age and gender were found using ANOVA and the post hoc Scheffe test. Linear regressions with the Enter method were used to study how to predict perceived quality of life and satisfaction with life. Results: Males had scores indicating more SSES|optimism, emotional control, resilience, confidence, sociability, creativity, energy, a sense of belonging to school, and PYD. Girls had better skills for cooperating and relating to teachers but more test anxiety and DASS. Younger adolescents had better psychological health, greater skills, and a better perception of quality of life and life satisfaction when compared to older adolescents. Age, gender, SSES, PYD, and the DASS variables can explain 69% of the variance in life satisfaction, while these variables can explain 60.5% of the variance in perceived quality of life. Conclusions: These results point to the relevance of SSES for psychological health and well-being, suggesting that interventions should focus on promoting these variables, paying special attention to female gender and age-related challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought increased attention to the existing gender asymmetries in academia, which have been extensively studied in the literature. Using the analytical lens of "gendered academic citizenship", this paper takes a micropolitical perspective to examine how the pandemic has impacted the dynamics of academic work, specifically focusing on the often-overlooked aspect of everyday interactions in the work environment. Through qualitative and quantitative analysis of survey data collected from 1750 lecturers and researchers in Portuguese higher education and research institutions, the study uncovers that women, especially those who are younger, single, have specific caregiving responsibilities, and are in the early stages of their careers, were more vulnerable to experiencing "everyday" microaggressions such as silencing, exclusion, belittlement, being ignored, lack of validation, and invisibility compared to men during the pandemic. These findings suggest that, while the marginalization of women in academia is a longstanding issue, the virtual work model has created a platform for the expression of subtle forms of disempowerment and discrimination against women. These dynamics are perpetuated within the micropolitics of organizations, shaping subjective feelings of belonging and circulating differential levels of recognition within academic institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural tourism describes a range of tourism activities which take place in the countryside. Conclusion This paper showed that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant adverse impact on most I TER i businesses and, by extension, on rural tourism in Portugal. Recent scholarly literature has stated that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a positive effect on rural tourism due to the increase of tourists seeking for a safe/low-risk destination in scarcely populated areas (Seraphin & Dosquet, [3]; Vaishar & Stastná, [6]). [Extracted from the article]

In a time of serious health crisis worldwide, this study is the extension of a case study already started (in February and March 2020) about the issue, reading behaviors, and preferences between the use of books and e-books. The COVID-19 pandemic came to impose social distancing in the world, closing universities, schools, and other services. The implementation of Internet services has presented itself as a valid response to the change that has so brutally arisen. Naturally, everyone had to adapt to it. In this context, the question about the preferences in using books or e-books is now even more relevant. This paper analyses the impact of COVID-19 in the behavioral trends in the use of scientific information from printed books and e-books in Portugal and Brazil. To this end, a survey was conducted on a user sample from various Portuguese and Brazilian higher education schools and public libraries. The first part focused on the characterization of the respondents, which includes data on gender and qualifications attended. In the second part, we obtained viewpoints about the advantages and disadvantages of each medium, frequency of use, choice of medium according to the purpose of reading, and devices used. The results let us examine the factors that influence and change the behaviors of users concerning their choice. Research such as this is beneficial to support the decision not only in selecting the information resources to be bought or pondering user preferences, but also to define strategies for advocating the use of various media that, rather than competitors, should be complimentary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyse the relationship between household employment insecurity and the risk of children's exposure to household material deprivation in Spain and Portugal. Specifically, using EU-SILC microdata for 2012, 2016 and 2020, it examines how this relationship evolved during the Post-Great Recession period. Although in both countries there was an improvement in the employment situation of individuals and families after the Great Recession, the main findings reflect an increase in the risk of children's exposure to material deprivation in households where no adults have a secure job. However, there are some differences between the two countries. In the case of Spain, the results seem to indicate that the incidence of household employment insecurity on material deprivation was higher in 2016 and 2020 than in 2012. In Portugal, the increase in the effect of employment insecurity on deprivation seems to have occurred only in 2020, the year the Covid-19 pandemic began. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Geopolitica(s): Revista de Estudios Sobre Espacio y Poder is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Currently, the shipping industry is at a crossroads. Although it has overcome numerous technological barriers and finance and economic crises over the years, the industry is facing its most prominent challenge, which rests on finding the most feasible solutions to deal with industry decarbonisation until 2050. Within this scope, the current Editorial addresses the issue of sulphur emissions that the industry faced with the entrance of the sulphur regulation on 1 January 2020 and draws attention to the road that the industry players need to cover to decarbonise the shipping industry. Innovative measures like the Poseidon Principles or the Sea Cargo Charter are in place, and industry players are coming together to find feasible solutions. Within this regulatory environment, the shipping industry also had to deal with the COVID-19 Pandemic. However, some market segments, such as the container and dry bulk ones, have managed to survive, which is not the case with the tanker market. Altogether, these events draw the industry to deal with the market, technology, and regulatory challenges and risks whose outcome is yet to be seen. The Editorial concludes by presenting briefly the papers published in this Special Issue, which were selected among the ones presented at the 2021 World of Shipping Portugal, an international research conference on maritime affairs, 28–29 January 2021, that took place online from Portugal to the World due to the Covid-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is devoted to identifying online teaching strategies appropriate for blended and face-to-face higher STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education. The study is inspired by the experience gained during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, which forced many higher education institutions worldwide to shift abruptly to distance education and try many new tools, teaching methods, and strategies. Some of these tools and strategies were abandoned as soon as the lockdown had been lifted and the institutions returned to their regular functioning, but some of them are bound to stay. Certainly, it would be beneficial to include the most valuable of the gained skills and competences in traditional on-campus and blended courses. The study is based on an online questionnaire, addressed to the STEM faculty of the University of Aveiro, Portugal (which is an example of an institution that used to provide face-to-face instruction), whose analysis permits to derive a number of important recommendations. The results are compared with our previous work, where the students' perspectives were analyzed, and similarities and discrepancies in appreciation of the involved parties are highlighted. This work extends the body of knowledge about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on STEM education by examining the challenges and opportunities faced by teachers. The recommendations derived contribute to improving the learning outcomes of online STEM education in many similar institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a modified Susceptible‐Infected‐Quarantine‐Recovered (mSIQR) model, for the COVID‐19 pandemic. We start by proving the well‐posedness of the model and then compute its reproduction number and the corresponding sensitivity indices. We discuss the values of these indices for epidemiological relevant parameters, namely, the contact rate, the proportion of unknown infectious, and the recovering rate. The mSIQR model is simulated, and the outputs are fit to COVID‐19 pandemic data from several countries, including France, US, UK, and Portugal. We discuss the epidemiological relevance of the results and provide insights on future patterns, subjected to health policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental sustainability has been a key policy goal of the European Union (EU), particularly under recent EU Cohesion Policy strategic frameworks. This paper contributes to the analysis of the relevance of EU Cohesion Policy-related environmental sustainability investments, by assessing the impacts of the Operational Programme for Sustainability and Use of Resources (POSEUR 2014–2020), in the Portuguese North NUTS II. In detail, the impact scores of the following five analytical dimensions related to this programme were obtained: (i) low-emissions economy, (ii) adaptation to climate change, (iii) risk prevention and management, (iv) environmental protection and (v) resource efficiency. The analysis was supported by a territorial impact assessment methodology (TARGET_TIA) which was complemented by an online analytic geographic information system (GIS) policy evaluation platform (Impact-WEB_GIS). The results showed that the POSEUR's regional implementation efficiency fell short of the stakeholders' expectations. This can be explained by factors such as the obstacles posed by the prior underdeveloped infrastructural conditions, coupled with the panorama created by the Covid-19 outbreak. Nonetheless, the risk prevention and management dimension had a solid positive impact score that reflected the efficacy of POSEUR in tackling environmental threats, mostly in rural ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Ibero-Americana de Estudos em Educação is the property of Jose Luis Bizelli, editor of Revista Ibero-Americana de Estudos em Educacao 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The need to control the sanitary situation during the COVID-19 pandemic has led governments to implement several restrictions with substantial social and economic impacts. We explored people's trade-offs in terms of their income, life restrictions, education, and poverty in the society, compared to their willingness to avoid deaths. We applied a web-based discrete choice experiment to elicit preferences of the Portuguese citizens for these attributes and computed the marginal rate of substitution in terms of avoided deaths. We recorded 2,191 responses that faced the possibility of having 250 COVID-19 related deaths per day as the worst possible outcome from the choice levels presented. Estimates suggested that individuals would be willing to sacrifice 30% instead of 10% of their income to avoid approximately 47 deaths per day during the first six months of 2021. For the same period, they would also accept 30% of the students' population to become educationally impaired, instead of 10%, to avoid approximately 25 deaths; a strict lockdown, instead of mild life restrictions, to avoid approximately 24 deaths; and 45% of the population to be in risk of poverty, instead of 25%, to avoid approximately 101 deaths. Our paper shows that avoiding deaths was strongly preferred to the remaining societal impacts; and that being a female, as well as working on site, led individuals to be more averse to such health hazards. Furthermore, we show how a DCE can be used to assess the societal support to decision-making during times of crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic had an enormous impact on the tourism sector. Economies with a large weight of external tourism were especially affected, as was the case with the Azores region. This paper aims to analyse the level of this crisis and the resilience of tourism recreation companies specializing in canyoning in the Azores region, and whether these reactions led to more sustainable business models. The adopted methodology considered the analysis of recent statistical data on tourism and the available information on COVID-19 pandemic-related impacts. In parallel, questionnaires were applied to all tourism recreation companies in Portugal, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with all the canyoning providers in the Azores region. Results show that all companies survived the crisis, and some have made significant changes to their business models. Furthermore, some degree of success was observed in how services adapted to new demand characteristics, given the small size of most of these businesses and the specialization of their products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Profesorado: Revista de Currículum y Formación del Profesorado is the property of Profesorado: Revista de Curriculum y Formacion del Profesorado 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The implementation of an integrated approach of STEM education with real-life scenarios is crucial to motivate students to learn and to better prepare them for real-world challenges, which is a big challenge for teachers. Therefore, there are implications for teaching practice and consequently the need for professional development. This paper presents an integrated approach of STEM education developed in the context of a collaborative professional development programme implemented in an exclusive online context, provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The programme aimed at providing teachers with knowledge and skills to develop STEM integrated tasks to be implemented in class. This study used a quantitative–qualitative approach to answer the research questions, using mixed methods to collect data. Participants are primary school teachers who participated in the programme during four months in the school year 2020/2021. Based on data collected from questionnaires, participant observation and teachers' final reports, it was verified that teachers recognized the importance of obtaining training in STEM education and that this type of professional development was very relevant and improved their knowledge and skills to implement STEM hands-on practices in class. In addition, a case study of a science and mathematics 6th grade teacher is presented to illustrate how she implement integrated STEM tasks in class based on a real-world scenario such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, teachers recognized the importance of this approach and that it increases students' motivation to learn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has important links with population mobility. Social interaction is a known determinant of human-to-human transmission of infectious diseases and, in turn, population mobility as a proxy of interaction is of paramount importance to analyze COVID-19 diffusion. Using mobility data from Google's Community Reports, this paper captures the association between changes in mobility patterns through time and the corresponding COVID-19 incidence at a multi-scalar approach applied to mainland Portugal. Results demonstrate a strong relationship between mobility data and COVID-19 incidence, suggesting that more mobility is associated with more COVID-19 cases. Methodological procedures can be summarized in a multiple linear regression with a time moving window. Model validation demonstrate good forecast accuracy, particularly when we consider the cumulative number of cases. Based on this premise, it is possible to estimate and predict future evolution of the number of COVID-19 cases using near real-time information of population mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we examine current and future challenges of the teaching profession by reimagining teacher education using Portugal and the USA (i.e. Texas) as examples. Our comparative analyses in this area began in 2016 when we discovered our common research interests and the relevance of these topics for our contexts. In this paper, we particularly focus on challenges related to i) the teacher shortage, ii) the nature of teachers' work, iii) approaches to teacher education in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. We argue that times of crisis may present opportunities to enhance the profession, to recognise its increasingly complex and dynamic nature, and to produce solid, multifaceted knowledge of social and educational significance for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monitoring road traffic is extremely important given the possibilities it opens up in terms of studying the behavior of road users, road design and planning problems, as well as because it can be used to predict future traffic. Especially on highways that connect beaches and larger urban areas, traffic is characterized by having peaks that are highly dependent on weather conditions and rest periods. This paper describes a dataset of mobility patterns of a coastal area in Aveiro region, Portugal, fully covered with traffic classification radars, over a two-year period. The sensing infrastructure was deployed in the scope of the PASMO project, an open living lab for co-operative intelligent transportation systems. The data gathered includes the speed of the detected objects, their position, and their type (heavy vehicle, light vehicle, two-wheeler, and pedestrian). The dataset includes 74,305 records, corresponding to the aggregation of road information at 10 min intervals. A brief analysis of the dataset shows the highly dynamic nature of traffic during the two-year period. In addition, the existence of meteorological records from nearby stations, and the recording of daily data on COVID-19 infections, make it possible to cross-reference information and study the influence of weather conditions and infections on traffic behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When climate change became a global concern in the 1980s, mitigation was considered the best strategy to address all challenges. For a long time, it was thought possible to stabilize atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs), which, according to many experts, brought on an unfit adaptation. There are international agreements designed to significantly reduce CO2 emissions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, but the policy measures taken so far are insufficient to achieve this goal. In addition, the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the relevance of placing this issue at the core of international policies and the need for bottom-up measures and options. The purpose of this paper is to explore how collaborative planning can contribute to adapting the urban tourism sector to climate change in the Porto Metropolitan Area (PMA), located in the northern region of mainland Portugal. In this investigation, we used mixed methods based on the following: (1) the discussion of urban tourism's adaptation planning to climate change with undergraduate students; (2) the application of a modified Delphi questionnaire survey, to 47 international researchers and technicians in the first round and 35 international researchers and technicians in the second round, about the predictability of the adaptation measures; and (3) a theoretical-practical workshop aimed to discuss the main action intentions and ways of adaptation in the short and medium term. All empirical data were collected during the year of 2021. This research highlights the need for more detailed information, the weak interaction between stakeholders and the limitation of resources. Our research identifies the main impacts and local vulnerabilities and determines priorities for adaptation and implementation of actions, aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change and maintaining tourism attractiveness in urban areas. In addition, this investigation allowed the definition of a research agenda, which seeks to guide the area of tourism climatology regarding the new challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The heavy economic, social, and psychological toll of pandemic lockdowns around the world and their disproportionate effect on women are widely acknowledged, but different socioeconomic backgrounds and contexts may influence the degree to which stay-at-home measures impact their lives. Additionally, knowing that violence against women tends to increase during times of crisis, we are testing if the additional burden of victimization represents an added load to the perceived social impacts of the lockdown. Using 2021 survey data from a random sample of 1541 Portuguese women, the paper explores, through logistic regression models, the social impact of the lockdown on the lives of women, its socioeconomic determinants, and the role played by violence against women during the pandemic. The results show that the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown did not equally affect all facets of women's social lives, and women with higher education status and that experienced income reductions due to the measures taken to control the pandemic are more prone to experience a more severe negative impact of the lockdown on the various facets of their lives. Additionally, having been a victim during the pandemic partially mediates the effect of education and income reduction on the social outcomes of the lockdown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the summer of 2020 intra-national mobility restrictions were lifted in most European countries, and domestic tourism partially cushioned the negative impacts of plunging international arrivals. Considering the perceived risk of crowding, low tourist density destinations were expected to benefit from shifts in tourists' preferences. This paper shows that, in the case of Portugal, preference for tourism in rural areas increased substantially and those regions best positioned to offer rural accommodation experienced a stronger and lasting recovery of domestic demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Portugal is one of the European countries that implemented early protective measures in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Portugal declared a state of emergency on 18 March, and a set of regional and national preventive public health measures was progressively implemented. Studies on the psychological impact of pandemics show evidence of the negative impact on mental health. Of particular concern are individuals with previous fragility (e.g. personal, family or occupational) and those undergoing life transitions. In this paper, we present a telephone-based psychological crisis intervention that was implemented to provide brief, appropriate, and timely psychological help. This intervention follows standard models of crisis intervention and is structured in five phases and five different intervention modules to take into account the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of specific risk groups. With these support services, we hope to help our community better cope with the immediate impact of the pandemic and to contribute to preventing serious mental health problems in the medium and long term. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach: This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings: Portugal must strengthen its public sector, remove bureaucratic burdens, stimulate the local economy, and collaborate with foreign stakeholders. Originality/value: The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2020, Portugal has enacted legislation specific to addressing the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, with two distinct moments in this process: one dedicated to the pandemic situation in particular and a more recent one, connected with European funding and its implementation, various energy crises, and effects of economic warfare. As regards the complex and intricately entangled Covid -19 legislation, swift public procurement procedures were established to comply with certain requirements to guarantee competition, since the pandemic constituted an abnormal and unforeseeable circumstance that did not fit into the forecast of urgency provided for in the Directives. Legislation was issued on the modification of long-term contracts, yet with presented a highly debatable solution for the changes' implementation and prohibiting the use of pecuniary compensation. While that legislation has since been repealed, transitory rules and exceptions whose scope is still difficult to understand in full took its place - in the main, the current special legislation on public procurement, Law 30/2021, intended for executing the implementation plan for projects financed or co-financed by European funds, which contains several rules that deviate from the regime resulting from the European directives, plus re-establishment of monitoring by the Court of Auditors, creation of an Independent Commission for supervising the implementation of the associated legislation, and the passing of extraordinary price-revision legislation. The paper presents a brief report on this Portuguese legislative context and on the respective monitoring by both jurisdictionlinked and non-jurisdiction-associated bodies. It directs special attention to the difficulties and perplexities raised by the regimes involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to characterize the main themes of COVID-19-related posts delivered by WeChat official accounts targeting Portuguese news and explore their subscribers' information needs and preferences. Furthermore, the current study set out to evaluate the influence of the coronavirus situation in Portugal on the number of posts, view frequency and total engagement on the WeChat platform. Following the selection of COVID-19-related posts published in 2021 by four official accounts targeting Portuguese news, Chi-square tests were conducted to quantitively describe the differences between the four developmental stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal. Negative binomial regression was employed to establish an association between categorical variables and count data. Regression analysis was used to explore the relationship between COVID-19 infection cases in Portugal and the metrics of selected posts. A total of 3292 COVID-19-related posts remained. The posts regarding the latest epidemic situation in Portugal, COVID-19 vaccination and the economic news were more prevalent. However, the predominant posts were not consistent with followers' information demands, and the most in-demand information did not generate more engagement. In addition, thematic categories were found to be significantly associated with view frequency and total engagement. Furthermore, a significant difference in thematic categories was identified among the four developmental stages, which in turn was related to the overall engagement of posts. The COVID-19 official case counts in Portugal are predictive of post frequency, view frequency and total engagement. The results of this study support the view that social media provided diverse information sources for the Chinese community during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, it is evidently clear from the findings that communicators have to leverage the characteristics of social media not only for delivering real-time news but also to gratify public information needs and attract more followers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Española de Sociología is the property of Federacion Espanola de Sociologia 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The present paper intends to provide an overview and a critical assessment of the administrative simplification policies implemented in Portugal over the past 20+ years. Throughout these decades, the major instruments for administrative simplification have been: (i) Decree-Law n. 135/99, of 22 April; (ii) the Simplex programme; (iii) the 2015 new Code of Administrative Procedure and its 2021 amendment; and (iv) the COVID-19 legislation. Although Decree-Law n. 135/99 (i) was the first attempt to specifically address simplification, it was a very thin one. The Simplex programme (ii), created in 2006, was the first cross-sectoral robust policy of simplification; its motto is "the simpler the better" and it encompassed reforms in all government areas aiming at cutting red tape, promoting administrative efficiency, and making the citizens' and the corporations' lives easier when dealing with State. The new Code of Administrative Procedure (iii), approved in 2015, brought about specific normative solutions to simplify procedures, namely, prior communications, administrative assistance, procedural conferences, and the electronic one-stop shop. Finally, the COVID-19 legislation (iv) was made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic and by the fact that public health restrictions made it impossible for citizens to establish personal contact with the administration in many cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overall mobility declined during the COVID-19 pandemic because of government lockdowns and voluntary social distancing. Yet, aggregate data mask important heterogeneous effects across segments of the population. Using unique mobility indicators based on anonymized and aggregate data provided by Vodafone for Italy, Portugal, and Spain, we find that lockdowns had a larger impact on the mobility of women and younger cohorts. Younger people also experienced a sharper drop in mobility in response to rising COVID-19 infections. Our findings, which are consistent across estimation methods and robust to a variety of tests, warn about a possible widening of gender and inter-generational inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic and related disruptive consequences in the economic, health, and educational sectors have impacted people's lives, contributing to a context of increased economic and social vulnerability. The pandemic has revealed and accentuated social inequalities and discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin. This study aimed to contribute to the promotion of the mental health and well-being of migrant populations living in Portugal via the definition of an analytical framework and recommendations emerging from the EQUALS4COVID19 project. Methods: To gather information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and resilience determinants among immigrants, a mixed-methods approach was implemented in 2022, combining a cross-sectional survey targeting immigrant adults in Portugal, focus groups with immigrants, focus groups with healthcare professionals, and in-depth individual interviews with stakeholders involved in the implementation of measures related to mental health and well-being during the pandemic. The analysis followed an integrated framework; quantitative data informed the script of qualitative data collection methods, and qualitative analysis informed the reinterpretation of quantitative data. Results: The survey with 604 Brazilian and Cape Verdean immigrants revealed that gender (being a woman) was associated with both psychological distress and depression-related symptomatology and that the perception of discrimination was a major risk factor for psychological suffering, while perceived social support and individuals' resilience characteristics were protective factors. Qualitative data provided deeper insights into these findings, revealing the ways mental health is affected by social structures, such as gender and ethnic hierarchies. Migrants tend to work in precarious jobs requiring physical presence, which, together with dense housing conditions, puts them at higher risk of infection. The deterioration of the economic conditions of the general population has also increased the perception of ethnic-racial discrimination, which was found to be related to the increase in insecurity and anxiety-related symptomatology among the migrant population. Newly arrived migrants, with reduced support networks, experienced a greater sense of insecurity as well as concern and anguish regarding relatives who live far away, in their home country. Migrant women reported greater family-related distress, including work-life balance problems. Conclusions: Proposals to address mental health inequalities should be considered in the context of the necessary global changes both at the societal level and in the delivery of mental health services. Additionally, they should be considered with the active involvement of migrants, families, and communities in the design and delivery of mental health promotion and care processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the unemployment issue and accelerated the digital transformation. Real-time data specific to ongoing revolution in applied economic analysis are increasingly demanded to anticipate changes in unemployment to improve decision-making. The aim of this paper is to test whether unemployment rate forecasts based on Google Trends data improve the predictions based only on macroeconomic indicators published with a longer time lag. The research has been carried out at the national level for Spain and Portugal, and the main novelty is the analysis of unemployment rate forecasts at the regional level for Spain using dynamic panel data models to implement the best policies to reduce unemployment. The keywords unemployment and job offers have been used in each language. The results obtained demonstrate the capacity of Google Trends data associated with unemployment to improve the predictions of unemployment rates in Spanish regions. Moreover, predictions based on Google Trends data at national level in Spain and Portugal are significantly more accurate than those based on autoregressive models for both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

University-industry R&D collaborations (UICs) are becoming more critical for discovering innovations that can lead to the development of new products, services, and processes and, more broadly, social impact in terms of employment, economic development, and public health. The Covid-19 pandemic, for example, has seen an unprecedented rise in UICs and illustrates how vital their success can be for positively impacting the collaborators involved and society at large. Several challenges face the successful execution of UICs, not the least of which is the cultural difference between the collaborators. Overcoming these challenges is the subject of several research initiatives that seek to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) that UIC consortiums can use to develop their internal capabilities and project management maturity. The challenges facing one large UIC have been studied in Portugal. Practitioners and researchers were involved in generating insights into how the UIC could be more effective. This paper presents some of these challenges facing the UIC and how they were addressed. It also offers early results into the CSFs deemed essential by researchers and practitioners based on their experience together over seven years. Top CSFs include senior management commitment, effective communication, stakeholder engagement, good leadership, clear and realistic goals, mutual trust and respect, interpersonal teamwork, and clear roles and responsibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ensaio: Avaliação e Políticas Públicas em Educação is the property of Ensaio: Avaliacao e Politicas Publicas em Educacao 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 abstract 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 abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Parental involvement (PI) has particular relevance on children's academic adjustment and on children's general quality of life (QoL). QoL can be influenced by parental stress, specifically the stress suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this study aimed to analyze the differences during the pandemic period (before, after and with no lockdown), comparing these constructs with parental educational level to provide predictors of their children's quality of life. Data collection was performed with a non-probability convenience sampling procedure. It was composed of 129 parents, mainly women (71.8%), with children aged between 6 and 12 years. The family's sociodemographic characteristics were assessed, as well as the PI, parental stress, and children's QoL. The comparison between the three times revealed an increase in the children's QoL, but no differences were found in PI. Based on the parental educational level, as defined by academic qualifications and split into superior and non-superior levels, it is possible conclude that engagement in school activities and parents' meetings increased in the parents with superior education levels and decreased in the parents with lower education levels. This study concluded that despite this difficult and uncertain pandemic period, these parents were able to maintain important aspects of their children's lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The wine sector contributes significantly to economic, environmental and social development. In Portugal, the Setúbal Peninsula is one of the fourteen wine regions. Operated by numerous local businesses in a rural area, the wine industry generates enhanced value and provides jobs in the region. The main purpose of this research is to study the wine sector in the Setúbal Peninsula, Portugal, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and propose a roadmap, which includes strategic mitigation options regarding the impacts of the crisis. This study is based on qualitative data collected through in-depth interviews and focus group interviews. The results show that the wine sector presents a tendency toward concentration with the emergence of producers with scale and notoriety at a national level who, due to the greater dynamism of their activity, have sought international markets of great dimension and with a purchasing power, which values quality products. Finally, a business model is proposed, where companies are advised to offer competitive value propositions, which capitalize on the uniqueness of national grape varieties and traditional production processes in order to offer high-quality products at competitive prices on the global market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The psychological effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Portuguese population are quite relevant and partially related to their repetitive and disruptive thinking about the disease. The successive periods of lockdown contributed to an additional burden on the family–work–life balance for parents. This study aims to validate the Portuguese version of the Obsession with COVID-19 Scale (PT-OCS), which was developed using a general sample from several regions of the country (n = 531) together with a specific sample of Portuguese parents (n = 109). The confirmatory factor analysis results indicate that the PT-OCS includes a set of excellent psychometric properties concerning both the general sample (χ2(1) = 0.446, p = 0.504; CFI = 1.0; GFI = 1.0; RMSEA = 0.0; standardised RMR = 0.003) and the parent group (χ2(2) = 1.816, p = 0.403; CFI = 1.0; GFI = 0.99; RMSEA = 0.0; standardised RMR = 0.016; Bollen–Stine bootstrap p = 0.65). The scale shows very good reliability (0.84 < α/ω < 0.88). As expected, obsession with COVID-19 was highly correlated with COVID-19 anxiety, and women had higher PT-OCS scores. The findings suggest that the PT-OCS is a reliable and valid measure for both persistent and disruptive thinking about COVID-19 in different groups of the Portuguese population, with potential for studying future epidemic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The vast majority of people have experienced the problem of back pain at least once in their lives for a variety of reasons. It is well known that regular physical activity at a moderate level has a number of health benefits regardless of age or gender with positive effects on the musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, respiratory or nervous systems improving fitness levels. During the pandemic, Poland experienced one of the longest periods of school lockdown in Europe. In Portugal, this period was considerably shorter. The aim of this study was to determine the level of physical activity and back pain as well as relationship between physical activity and back pain in a group of Polish and Portuguese students in the following year the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The study was conducted via the Internet among students from Poland and Portugal (398 respondents − 229 from Poland and 169 from Portugal) in October 2022. In the pilot study, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and The Oswestry Disability Index and Neck Disability Index questionnaires were used to assess the level of back pain. Results: There are no statistically significant differences in the level of physical activity and pain complaints of respondents from the two countries. At least half of the students do not report any pain complaints (median in some groups being 0). In the Portuguese men, there is a correlation between the level of physical activity and the Neck Disability Index score (p = 0.0304). Conclusions: The following year, after the pandemic COVID-19 was declared, the prevalence of back pain among students in Poland and Portugal is still significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the start of the pandemic, questions were raised concerning how the pandemic could change or even transform relationships to our living environments. COVID-19 has had a disproportionate impact on the health and well-being of older people due to the increased risk of severity of the disease with both advancing age and associated co-morbidities. Restrictions on the movement of older people have also been more severe, with many countries imposing restrictions based on chronological age. In Portugal, confinement measures were targeted at older persons in terms of sheltering-at-home orders for those over 70. This paper looks at the impact of these restrictions on the lives of older people and asks what we can learn from the pandemic about the concept of age-friendly cities (WHO, 2007a). We look at the lived experience of older people to understand how their well-being and mobility were impacted during the crisis and its aftermath. The study was undertaken in four urban areas: Aveiro, Coimbra, Lisbon, and Faro. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews analysed using a process of thematic coding based on the eight pillars of the WHO's Age-Friendly City Checklist (WHO, 2007b). The results are discussed using conceptualisations from the new mobilities paradigm: existential mobility, connection and (im)mobility governance, offering new ways of thinking about age-friendliness in and out of crisis. • Measures to contain COVID-19 were aimed at older people. • Interview data was analysed to understand the impact in Portugal. • Participants reported an existential need to move and connect. • These findings are essential to understanding age-friendly places. • A multi-dimensional framework of mobility is a necessary starting point for AFCC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]