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In many countries, early attempts in implementing TSA Tables suffer from limitations in available data. For Greece, pilot TSA Tables 1 to 6 were implemented in an EU-funded project for the reference year 2015. However, TSA Table 6 could not be implemented in all details, mainly due to limited resources of ELSTAT, the national statistical office. TSA Tables were not implemented for the years after 2015, partly due to needs for improving the TSA-related database which were revealed in the pilot project. Our paper presents methods for implementing the TSA Table 6 given only limited data on tourism expenditures and Supply and Use Tables and provides estimates of the Tourism Direct GPD for 2010 through 2020. Besides the methodological approach, our results show a rather pleasing picture of Greek tourism. In the years 2010 to 2019, Tourism Direct GDP was steadily growing and increased from 7,026 to 10,994 million Euros, an average annual growth rate of 5.1%; the GDP decreased annually by 2.2% on average. The TDGVA ratio increased from 3.1% to 5.5% and the TDGDP ratio from 3.1% to 6.0%, the average annual growth rate of the Tourism Direct GVA and GPD ratios amounting to 6.7% and 7.5%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Testing is a significant part of the teaching and learning process. An assessment test has to include test items that are tailored to the individual learning needs of the students in order to be more accurate and support learning in a more effective way. In this paper, a fuzzy-based mechanism is presented for automatic personalized assessment in an e-learning system for computer programming. Particularly, the selection of the most appropriate test items for each individual student is based on a variety of criteria: (i) the student's knowledge level, (ii) the student's prior knowledge of computer programming, (iii) the type of programming errors that the student is prone to make, and (iv) the difficulty level of the test items. Linguistic values are used to determine these criteria. Additionally, 45 fuzzy rules are used over these criteria, which imitate the way of thinking of human tutors with regard to deciding about the most appropriate test items that have to be included in an adaptive test. The presented mechanism was used under real conditions and evaluated by experts and students of the Department of Informatics of the University of Piraeus, Greece with very encouraging results. Specifically, both the participating students and experts found that the presented mechanism creates non-repetitive balanced tests that meet learners' knowledge level and needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the statistical properties of the Greek government deficit and debt figures compiled and reported to the European Commission since 1994 for the period 1991 to 2012. On the basis of successive revisions in reported data, it assesses the reliability of budgetary statistics and derives a number of reliability indicators. According to the standard deviations of revisions between the first outturn and final data, Greece have reported the least reliable deficit figures and have had the largest dispersion of revisions. The paper has also shown that data on the yearly changes in debt have been less reliable than those on the deficit. Whatever the cause of these findings, we believe that they create problems for users of the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a brief review of the development of Greek libraries in order to provide a context for the later papers on education for library and information studies in Greece. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Job sites are emerging as a successful way of job finding and filling. Job seekers are using job sites to find appropriate jobs. Recruiters are using job sites to find appropriate employees. This paper provides a Job Site Evaluation Framework (JSEF) both from the job seeker and the recruiter point of view. This framework may be useful for job seekers, recruiters and job site designers. Furthermore, the paper evaluates the state of Greek job sites in comparison to foreigner ones. Guidelines and proposals for job sites improvement are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The present research aims to identify the application of social media for marketing or communication purposes in healthcare. We studied the opinion of healthcare professionals, organizations and health consumers, trying to identify the current status, trends and beliefs. The research reveals that healthcare organizations have to move forward and engage with their customers. The health consumers are more mature than the health providers. The descriptive characteristics of the sample's responses collected during the survey are presented.Objective: The current research tries to identify the application of social media for marketing or communication purposes in healthcare in Greece. The scope of the paper is to investigate the status in Greece and compare it with other countries.Methods: We studied the opinion of healthcare professionals, organizations and health consumers, trying to identify the current status, trends and beliefs. We formed adequate questionnaires which were distributed to the different target groups, while for statistical analysis we performed tests (in order to investigate the dependence between certain respondents' categories) as well as one-way ANOVA analysis for inference purposes. In this context, the results can depict the (average) behavior, as well as the homogeneity of the corresponding general population.Results: The research conducted took into account the individualities of the Greek environment and revealed that both physicians and healthcare organizations have to move forward in order to engage with their customers. There is also a clear need to measure the effectiveness of any such media marketing effort. Most adopters are not yet-taking maximum advantage of the technology. Social networks are prevalent and several paradigms support their adoption for marketing purposes in the sensitive healthcare domain. Even though the expectations are ambitious, there is a lot of work to do in Greece in order to achieve the desired outcome. An important finding is that patients' attitudes are, in general, differentiated from those of healthcare professionals. Even though the results of the present paper can be generalized, according to the statistical analysis performed, further research would be warranted to cover all possible participants in the healthcare chain. It is clear that both physicians and healthcare organizations have to adopt social media marketing in their daily practice in order to meet the needs of their customers. The present paper advances the current state of knowledge, as there is not any prior study on this field in Greece. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the author discusses various topics within the issue including survey sampling in Greece, economic activity, and statistics work.

Background: Literature supports the use of serious games and virtual environments to assess cognitive functions and detect cognitive decline. This promising assessment method, however, has not yet been translated into self-administered screening instruments for pre-clinical dementia.Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the performance of a novel self-administered serious game-based test, namely the Virtual Supermarket Test (VST), in detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in a sample of older adults with subjective memory complaints (SMC), in comparison with two well-established screening instruments, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).Methods: Two groups, one of healthy older adults with SMC (N = 48) and one of MCI patients (N = 47) were recruited from day centers for cognitive disorders and administered the VST, the MoCA, the MMSE, and an extended pencil and paper neuropsychological test battery.Results: The VST displayed a correct classification rate (CCR) of 81.91% when differentiating between MCI patients and older adults with SMC, while the MoCA displayed of CCR of 72.04% and the MMSE displayed a CCR of 64.89%.Conclusion: The three instruments assessed in this study displayed significantly different performances in differentiating between healthy older adults with SMC and MCI patients. The VST displayed a good CCR, while the MoCA displayed an average CCR and the MMSE displayed a poor CCR. The VST appears to be a robust tool for detecting MCI in a population of older adults with SMC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: This paper draws upon a broader empirical qualitative research about the educational and vocational (re-)integration of people with acquired physical disabilities in Greece. OBJECTIVE: Perceived motives and barriers, under the shadow of recession, coping mechanisms as well as the contribution of state, rehabilitation specialists and significant others on the return to the labor market of people with acquired physical disabilities in Greece of crisis are investigated. METHODS: The research was carried out using a focus group with 6 persons and focused semi-structured interviews with 20 persons, members of the Greek Association of Paraplegics and the Greek Company of Multiple Sclerosis. RESULTS: According to the main findings work makes people with acquired physical disabilities (PwAPD) feel useful and creative contributing to their physical and psychological rehabilitation. Despite the significant barriers they encounter, additionally burdened by the recession, e.g. no job offer, limited accessibility, discrimination, educational deficiencies, PwAPD succeeded in developing strategies to overcome their vocational (re-)integration barriers mainly via education, resistance to discriminatory attitudes and the support of the significant others. CONCLUSION: Despite of the existing barriers, affected by the financial crisis, PwAPD, still fight for their re-inclusion to social life, being equipped with a positive attitude. Still, the Greek State along with rehabilitation and relevant services should become more active and flexible to effectively support and empower this right fight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduces a series of articles on computer security presented at the annual conference of the Association of Computing Machinery held on November 1 through 4, 2000 in Athens, Greece.

Disaggregate mode choice models estimation, which are used for evaluating the ridership share on intercity travel service and for identifying modes which will lead to an upgraded traveler's service, constitutes a critical part of evaluating alternative travel service proposals to intercity travel. The aim of this paper is to estimate the choice of mode in intercity travel demand. Disaggregate logit models are estimated by using data collected in order to investigate the passengers' behavior of the broader region under study. The final models are applicable on regional level and have statistics within acceptable region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to provide an estimate of the medium term trend growth rate of real GDP for the Greek economy, for the period 2011-2015. The analysis is based on the GDP identity, according to which, real GDP is decomposed into five components, which are labor productivity, hours worked per employee, employment rate, labor force participation rate and population rate. By using the filtering techniques of the HP and Kalman filters, the trend growth rate of GDP is estimated at -1.65% over the five year period, as the sum of the trend growth rates of its individual components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a comprehensive discussion on the compilation and the dissemination of Greek external sector statistics. We compare them with international statistical standards and examine their potential limitations. Our statistical analysis indicates increased consistency of the various trade statistics and improved comparability over time. The empirical findings vindicate the wide use of Greek external sector statistics by academics and in economic policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims at presenting disability issues in library and information science education in general and in Greece in particular. It also examines whether issues such as people with disabilities, accessibility, alternative format material and assistive technologies are incorporated in the library schools' curricula. Furthermore, the results of this study depict that library education still focuses on services for non-disabled users and the level of awareness of the needs of disabled library users' is lower than necessary. This paper is useful for all stakeholders in the LIS field (faculty and students) so as to help them understand the importance of library services for people with disabilities, review their curricula and finally, incorporate disabled patrons in them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: High levels of mobbing are reported in Greek nurses, but the intraindividual and perceived group emotional correlates are little investigated. OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationship between workplace mobbing (specifically in the nursing sector of a public rural hospital in Greece) and emotional correlates. METHODS: Questionnaires measuring emotional aspects such as Negative Act Questionnaire – Revised (NAQ-R) for measuring perceived exposure to bullying and victimization at work, Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Overall Job Satisfaction Scale (OJS), Job Affect Scale (JAS: positive and negative subscales), Perceived Cohesion Scale (PCS), Ethical Climate Questionnaire (ECQ), and Short General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) were administered. For the analysis of the data, descriptive and parametric tests were performed through the Pearson correlations and regression for the relationship between variables. RESULTS: High mobbing levels were reported (M = 45.93) compared to already established cutoff scores. Statistically significant positive correlations were found for NAQ-R and MBI (Exhaustion subscale) (r =.569, p <.001), NAQ-R and JAS-negative affect (r =.610, p <.001), NAQ-R and GHQ-12 (r =.280, p =.002), and NAQ-R andeducational level (r =.196, p =.033). Statistically significant negative correlations were found for NAQ-R and ECQ (r = –.323, p <.001), NAQ-R and JAS-positive affect (r = –.556, p <.001), and NAQ-R and PCS (r = –.586, p <.001). Only burnout,negative affect, and perceived group cohesion predicted mobbing measured by NAQ- R. CONCLUSION: As mobbing and its consequences are related to specific emotional variables, these perceived individual and group indices, could be targeted in future prevention initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper highlights some of the distinguished episodes in the history of survey sampling in Greece. There are many themes common to other National Statistics Offices (NSOs). Survey sampling in Greece basically started in the 1960s when Raj and Pearl introduced probability sampling into the practice of the Greek statistical agency (NSO) and the education of its senior staff. It is due to this work that the national statistical service is the only institution, conducting on a regular basis, probability sample surveys in Greece. As will be seen, these efforts are in line with those of many government agencies in the European Union (EU). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a comprehensive examination of the methodological evolution of the Annual Industrial Survey from its initiation in 1958 until 2010. Emphasis is given to the compliance of the survey with international methodological standards and to its conformity to relevant widely stipulated and accepted regulations. The existing literature using AIS data highlights its contribution to studies in several fields of economic research, going beyond those concerning the manufacturing sector, as well as to policy making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates workarounds occurring while pharmacists use an electronic prescription (ePrescription) application. ePrescription enables physicians to send prescriptions electronically to pharmacies and was recently introduced in Greece as a solution for controlling the ever-increasing medication costs and improving patient safety. The research was carried out in two phases: (i) review of the relevant documentation, (ii) fieldwork (field observations and semi-structured interviews with the pharmacists) in three pharmacies. The workarounds identified fall into five categories and namely: (a) bypass of ePrescription application (i.e. ePrescription application is not used at all), (b) temporal nonconformity in the use of ePrescription application (i.e. usage of the application, but not at the formally specified time), (c) catachresis of ePrescription application (i.e. usage of the application, but not according to the intended way), (d) ePrescription application substitution by another electronic application, and (e) delegation of ePrescription application usage to non-authorized users. The outcome of the research can be used for the improvement of multiple work system elements such as the tools, the procedures, the organisational arrangements and the policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To design adequate measures for enhancing riders' safety, a necessary first step is to understand the riders' visual scanning strategies under different traffic conditions. This paper presents the preliminary analysis of eye tracking data collected by three riders in the Athens metropolitan area, riding along urban arterial motorways and along an undivided urban road. Apart from the fixation duration and location, the fixated road elements and specific objects were annotated and analysed. The mean duration of fixations was found to be higher on urban roads than on motorways for all traffic densities. Riding in the condition of restricted flow seems to be more demanding for the riders, since the mean duration of fixations was higher in restricted flow than in free or congested flow on motorway and also higher than in free flow on urban road. The riders' fixation locations differed between motorway and urban road, especially in the vertical plane. The analysis of fixated road elements and specific objects indicates the specific points of interest of riders in each case. Although results should be validated with data from more riders, they provide hints on direction of future research efforts to enhance riders' safety in urban environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the differences and similarities of the three library schools educating librarians and information professionals in Greece. The structure of higher education in Greece has recently undergone major changes (2002) integrating technological institutions and universities under one umbrella that of higher education. As a result, technological institutions today are still struggling to find their identity, whilst universities are trying hard to assert their differentiation. Library schools, existing within both types of institution, provide a very good example of how these changes are affecting education processes, field work, professionals, and jobs for graduates. Although Library Schools are all categorized as higher education institutions, they enjoy different status. Library schools spread across two similar, but yet of different types of organisation within the higher education system of Greece also face the challenge of establishing the professional image of their graduates, of modernizing the curricula and of keeping up with the rapid changes demanded by their European and international counterparts. At the same time affiliations of the schools have shaped the corresponding curricula and have marked the image of the profession within the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to present the current state of computer science penetration into librarianship in terms of both workplace and education issues. The shift from material libraries into digital libraries is mirrored in the corresponding shift from librarians into information scientists. New library data and metadata, as well as new automated library processes impose the need for a hybrid form of scientists, equipped with both the rich experience of traditional librarianship and the knowledge of modern techniques of information management based on information and communication technologies (ICT). In this context, the boundaries between computer scientists and information scientists are exercised in terms of research and vocational activities. The object of the computer scientist is hardware and software, which constitute the necessary background of the total information cycle, whereas the information scientist focuses on efficient ways of information organization, representation and management. The increasing job requirements of information scientists are taken into account in the formation of the upgraded educational curricula of Greek Library Science departments. An appendix of undergraduate and postgraduate curricula and career outcomes of some Library and Information Science departments is also given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the historical development of Library and Information Science (LIS) Education in Greece, in order to understand its current position within the field of higher education, and to assess its future prospects. In particular, in tracing changes that LIS Education as an institution has undergone, it argues that institutional transformations, curricular changes, and social and political contexts should all be integrated in an analysis that aims to shed light into education institutions, and their purposes and functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article attempts to trace the history of the debate on Internet governance and tries to identify the main dimensions and subtexts of this debate. It does so from an insider perspective as the author was associated in the first phase of the WSIS as a governmental representative, was subsequently involved in the WGIG process, an observer at the second phase of the WSIS, watching proceedings from the sidelines, and an organiser of the first Internet Governance Forum in Athens, Greece in November 2006. The paper identifies and traces the themes and issues that have occupied participants in the processes surrounding Internet governance during three years from 2005. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents some of the current issues in library and information science education in general and in Greece in particular. It examines the forming of professional identity of information scientists in Greece today. These issues are considered in the context of the framework set by the European Union agreements for convergence and cooperation in Higher Education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The WWW has turned into a development and run-time environment for large-scale and complex applications. Such sophisticated applications are being deployed in increasing numbers without having been developed according to appropriate methodologies and quality standards. The main reason for this ad hoc development philosophy is the lack of specialised training/education on the web engineering subject domain. This domain/discipline is new, still immature and has recently started getting the attention of researchers, developers, and other major players in the web-based application development market and training market. There is now justifiable and increasing concern about the manner in which students and lifelong learners are well educated and trained in this new discipline. It's also only one year ago that few universities have started providing special courses on this discipline and offer seminars to lifelong learners. The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) decided to tackle the didactic need on this subject field, by offering to its postgraduate students one semester course called “Internet Publishing”. In this paper an overview of the course, its web-enriched delivery method as well as the quantitative and qualitative results extracted after an evaluation study which occurred during the autumn semester 1999–2000, are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The serious shortages of nurses are related to increased risk for musculoskeletal disorders during work. The complexity of patient care places nurses at high-risk for injury and high in the list of occupations with risk for work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD). OBJECTIVE: The current study evaluated the association of personal, professional and health factors with the development of WMSD in the nursing staff of hospitals in the capital of Greece. METHODS: The study was conducted online with 394 nurses (age: 37.85±7.48 years (mean±SD), 19.54% male and 80.46% female) using a questionnaire based on the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire, and comparatively examined WMSD across nurses. RESULTS: The prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in general was 98%, with symptoms reported for the waist (85.3%), neck (71.2%) and back (70.7%). The risk for WMSD was higher for specific RN groups: female nurses had higher risk than males (p-value = 0.000 to 0.022), RNs with 11-20 years of work experience (p-value = 0.008) had higher risk than their younger colleagues, RNs that strain their waist, lift loads, etc faced higher risks (p-value = 0.000 to 0.043). Shift work, age and the body mass index also lead to increased risk. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicated that Greek nurses suffer more frequently from WMSD in comparison to their colleagues internationally and this must alert hospital managers and the Greek National Health System to develop a prevention policy for WMSD in Greek hospitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: People with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) need to prevent the further decline of their cognitive functions, and one way to do so is by learning a foreign language. Objective: This study describes the development of a protocol for a novel, non-pharmacological intervention for people with MCI that seeks to prevent or reduce cognitive decline by teaching English through songs. Methods: The development of this protocol follows a mixed-methodology approach, consisting of three stages: 1) development of the protocol of the intervention, 2) a randomized controlled trial study with two arms over six months that includes an intervention group and a control group, and 3) the evaluation of the protocol by trainers. In the second stage, we recruited a total of 128 people with MCI from the five participating countries of this study (Greece, Spain, Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy). This educational program will assess three main outcomes after 6 months of the English Lessons with the Use of Songs for People with Mild Cognitive Impairment (E.L.So.M.C.I.) workshops. Results: Our primary outcome will hopefully be an improvement in general cognition in the intervention group compared to the control group from baseline to 6 months follow-up. Secondary outcomes include a decrease in participants' anxiety and depression and an improvement in their quality of life. Development of English language skills is the last outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The work integration of people who have recovered from addiction is an essential factor in the maintaining treatment outcomes. However, its multidimensionality has not yet received the attention it deserves. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the critical elements shaping the work integration attempts of people who have recovered from addiction and work in Greek social enterprises. METHODS: The data was obtained from 25 interviews which were conducted during the field research period; they were processed using the method of thematic analysis. RESULTS: Work integration is obstructed by a combination of individual constraints, together with obstacles related to how persons interact with their social environment, as well as with broader political, institutional, and socioeconomic parameters. The participants depended predominantly on the treatment program and their social network for work integration. CONCLUSION: The article enriches the existing literature focusing on the workers' perspective on the issue under study. The complexity of the obstacles and limited support sources highlight both the need for client-centered interventions and design of a state-level work integration strategy. In this context, work environments with the potential of a holistic approach to work integration obstacles, such as work integration social enterprises, remain untapped opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) worked towards the introduction of a designated Law governing the 2021 General Censuses in Greece. It was the first time that the General Censuses were conducted by virtue of a legal act which underwent extensive deliberations and legal scrutiny. This kind of strengthening of the statistical legislation demonstrates the wide recognition of the professional independence ELSTAT has established and it provided a solid basis for the Hellenic Statistical System (ELSS) to be able to adequately respond to both current and future challenges. These straightforward institutional arrangements ensured ELSTAT's ability to effectively conduct the Censuses in accordance with the International Recommendations and Standards, while, at the same time, strengthened its capacity to an immediate response to arising needs and challenges. It was then no mystery how ELSTAT was able to immediately adapt to the developing operational conditions by creating a plan for a hybrid census system for all households. At the same time the legal instruments used laid the foundations for the establishment and maintenance of Statistical Registers for Population and Buildings, introducing two unique identifiers ("keys") in the Census variables and creating the institutional infrastructure for linkage to other administrative registers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The size and trends of the Greek underground economy are examined over the period of 1958 to 2011. Estimates vary according to the method used and the time period under investigation. Overall, more than one quarter to one third of Greek economic activities have been either unrecorded or hidden from official statistics. Tax evasion, labour market rigidities, lack of competition and over-regulation are among the contributing factors. The underground economy is often viewed as a serious obstacle to economic growth. However, the empirical results are ambiguous. Dynamic models are explored to examine the relationship between the underground economy and economic growth. In the short run, one percentage point increase in the rate of economic growth would reduce the underground economy by 0.13, and in the long run by 1.26. The Greek Government is currently introducing structural reforms pursuing fiscal consolidation, transparency and e-governance strategies to combat tax evasion, and monitoring strategies in the statistical system to produce valid and reliable data sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) constitutes a natural compound with high protection over cognitive function that could positively alter brain dynamics and the mixture of within and between-frequency connectivity.Objective: The balance of cross-frequency coupling over within-frequency coupling can build a nonlinearity index (NI) that encapsulates the over-excitation of information flow between brain areas and across experimental time. The present study investigated for the very first time how the Greek High Phenolic Early Harvest Extra Virgin Olive Oil (HP-EH-EVOO) versus Moderate Phenolic (MP-EVOO) and Mediterranean Diet (MeDi) intervention in people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) could affect their spontaneous EEG dynamic connectivity.Methods: Forty-three subjects (14 in MeDi, 16 in MP-EVOO, and 13 in HP-EH-EVOO) followed an EEG resting-state recording session (eyes-open and closed) before and after the treatment. Following our dominant coupling mode model, we built a dynamic integrated dynamic functional connectivity graph that tabulates the functional strength and the dominant coupling mode model of every pair of brain areas.Results: Signal spectrum within 1-13 Hz and theta/beta ratio have decreased in the HP-EH-EVOO group in the eyes-open condition. The intervention improved the FIDoCM across groups and conditions but was more prominent in the HP-EH-EVOO group (p < 0.001). Finally, we revealed a significant higher post-intervention reduction of NI (ΔNITotal and α) for the HP-EH-EVOO compared to the MP-EVOO and MeDi groups (p < 0.0001).Conclusion: Long-term intervention with HP-EH-EVOO reduced the over-excitation of information flow in spontaneous brain activity and altered the signal spectrum of EEG rhythms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT), the National Statistical Institute of Greece, as the guarantor of the quality of official statistics in Greece, has been pursuing, since 2016, an ambitious strategy aiming to foster Statistical Literacy, focusing on strengthening ties with citizens in their dual capacity both as providers of data and ultimately as users of statistics, and thus, operate as crucial enablers of a smoothly functioning virtuous circle of official statistics. Objectives include the development of an understanding of basic methodologies and tools used in official statistics, along with the awareness of its institutional foundations and core principles. This critically contributes to the value of official statistics being spread and effectively communicated, making, at the same time, a convincing case for fact-based decision making in the daily lives of the main stakeholders. This article motivates the approach followed in developing a specific strategy on statistical literacy, outlines its philosophy and main objectives and browses through the array of initiatives and actions undertaken over the last five years. In addition, it explores the responsiveness of citizens to these initiatives and the extent to which these initiatives lead to an increased engagement of key targeted stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current trends in education for distance and personalized learning, calls for further investigation on the educational benefits of a Virtual Reality (VR) software, regarding laboratory science courses. In this study, we investigated the teaching effectiveness of a VR-oriented innovative method vs a more traditional pedagogical approach, by measuring the Pre-Post change, commonly called as Learning Gain (LG). An Item Response Theory model, The Rasch Model (RM), was used to assess the LG as the difference between the students' ability before and after the educational treatment. The participants, (N = 54) graduate students enrolled in the Department of Primary Education, at the University of Patras, in Greece, were divided into two groups and followed two different scenarios to be educated on the topic of microscopy. Our findings provided evidence in favor of using simulations as a supplementary tool to the learning procedure. According to the LG analysis, the students that interacted with the VR software showed a higher change in ability, compared to their fellow students, who followed a more classic teaching methodology and obtained no LG between the Pre and Posttesting situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local governments are increasingly developing electronic participation (e-participation) initiatives, expecting citizen involvement in local community affairs. Our objective was to assess e-participation and the extent of its change in local government in Greece. Using content analysis for 325 Greek municipal websites, we assessed e-participation status in 2017 and 2018 and examined the impact of change between these years. The assessment regards two consecutive years, since the adoption of digital technologies by municipalities has been rapid. The main findings show that Greek local governments have made significant small- to medium-scale changes, in order to engage citizens and local societies electronically. We conclude that the integration of advanced digital technologies in municipalities remains underdeveloped. We propose that Greek municipalities need to consider incorporating new technologies, such as mobile apps, social media and big data, as well as e-decision making processes, in order to eliminate those obstacles that hinder citizen engagement in local government. Moreover, the COVID-19 outbreak has highlighted the need for enhancing e-participation and policymakers' coordination through advanced digital technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Several studies have been performed on the relationship between working conditions and health. Numerous parameters still require further study, including working hours and obesity among different groups, specifically older workers in national, regional, and international levels. OBJECTIVE: Working hours have considerable effects on the socio-cultural, psychological, and economic aspects of people's lives and health. While long working hours increases income level and raises living standards, it increases the risk of certain health problems. This study investigated whether working hours are associated with obesity in upper-middle-aged workers. METHODS: The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) dataset was used for the analyses. Analyses were carried out by means of a Cox regression of the panel dataset created with the data in question, surveyed by European Commission to 12,000 participants. RESULTS: The survey was performed in Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Ireland. We found that in most countries, especially Sweden and the Netherlands, upper-middle-aged employees working > 59 hours per week are more likely to gain weight than their counterparts working < 59 hours. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings raise awareness of obesity in older workers, and highlight the need to regulate working conditions and hours in the European Union and other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The early diagnosis of neurocognitive disorders before the symptoms' onset is the ultimate goal of the scientific community. REMEDES for Alzheimer (R4Alz) is a battery, designed for assessing cognitive control abilities in people with minor and major neurocognitive disorders.Objective: To investigate whether the R4Alz battery's tasks differentiate subjective cognitive decline (SCD) from cognitively healthy adults (CHA) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI).Methods: The R4Alz battery was administered to 175 Greek adults, categorized in five groups a) healthy young adults (HYA; n = 42), b) healthy middle-aged adults (HMaA; n = 33), c) healthy older adults (HOA; n = 14), d) community-dwelling older adults with SCD (n = 34), and e) people with MCI (n = 52).Results: Between the seven R4Alz subtasks, four showcased the best results for differentiating HOA from SCD: the working memory updating (WMCUT-S3), the inhibition and switching subtask (ICT/RST-S1&S2), the failure sets (FS) of the ICT/RST-S1&S2, and the cognitive flexibility subtask (ICT/RST-S3). The total score of the four R4Alz subtasks (R4AlzTot4) leads to an excellent discrimination among SCD and healthy adulthood, and to fare discrimination among SCD and MCI.Conclusion: The R4Alz battery is a novel approach regarding the neuropsychological assessment of people with SCD, since it can very well assist toward discriminating SCD from HOA. The R4Alz is able to measure decline of specific cognitive control abilities - namely of working memory updating, and complex executive functions - which seem to be the neuropsychological substrate of cognitive complaints in community dwelling adults of advancing age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a commentary on systematic infection control in Greek physiotherapy practices during the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics including physiotherapy treatments require an interaction between therapist and the patient in close proximity, especially in manual therapy approaches; and the Panhellenic Association of Physiotherapists in Greece has provided specific guidelines to all registered physiotherapists for the protection of clients and physiotherapists from COVID-19.

Background: The influence of cognitive factors on financial capacity across the dementia spectrum of cognitive aging, Alzheimer's disease (AD), and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) has been little investigated, while it has not been investigated at all in other types of dementia as well as in extended samples of elders in Greece.Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate financial capacity, to develop a tool, test its psychometric properties, validate, and then test the tool in groups of healthy controls compared to elders with dementia, while examining other facets of their cognitive performance.Methods: 719 elders from Greece including healthy participants and patients with different types of dementia were examined with Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS) and a battery of neuropsychological tests concerning various cognitive functions.Results: Significantly different profiles in the scores and subscores of LCPLTAS for all the groups of dementia patients were found, with a general incapacity finding for all the dementia groups including the MCI patients. Logistic regression showed that Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale, and Trail Making Part B predicted competence on LCPLTAS for the dementia patients. Persons with MCI and dementia had lower financial knowledge scores than those without cognitive impairment, with MMSE scores below 27 suggestive as an indication of financial incapacity.Conclusion: The LCPLTAS provides information for a strong positive correlation with MMSE, while the use both of MMSE and LCPLTAS as adequate measures of financial (in)capacity is discussed for the Greek legal procedures regarding elder guardianship cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces the journal with a discussion of the development of academic libraries in Greece since the 1970s.

The Public Spending (PS) project is the first attempt to generate, curate, interlink and distribute daily updated public spending data in LOD formats that can be useful to both expert (i.e. scientists and professionals) and naïve users. The PS ontology is based on the UK payments ontology and reuses, among others, the W3C Registered Organization Vocabulary and the Core Business Vocabulary. RDFized data are linked to product classifications, Geonames and DBpedia resources. Online services contain advanced search features and domain level information (e.g. local government), simple and complex visualizations based on network analysis, linked information about payment entities and SPARQL endpoints. During February 2013, the growing dataset consists of approximately 2 million payment decisions valued 44.5 billion euros forming 65 million triples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic and social progress achieved by Greece in the post war decades decelerated after 1974 because all institutions sustaining the efficient operation of democracy and free markes were deliberately and gravely eroded. Under the impetus of hard core socialist provisions introduced in the 1975 constitution, economic policies extended further in the direction of unfettered statism and the international competitiveness of the Greek economy was destroyed. Some researchers have attributed the economic decline of Greece to its entry into the EU. I examine these allegations and find that they have little or no basis in terms of the available evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The European partnership ELSiTO aimed to develop understanding of the nature and processes of social inclusion for persons experiencing mental illness. Participants: Partners were from Belgium, Greece and the Netherlands with over 30 members including mental health service users, occupational therapists and other staff. Approach: A knowledge-creation learning process was used during four international, experiential, visits and local meetings, which included visiting and describing good practice, telling stories of experiences, reflection and discussion. Results: The partnership developed understandings of the nature and process of social inclusion, including both subjective and objective aspects interrelated with the doing of daily activities in the community. Members' work-related experiences, illustrated through their stories, depict the subjective aspects of social inclusion as they are shaped and framed by the objective conditions within a variety of work opportunities. Experiences in paid work, supported employment and voluntary work may both threaten and enhance mental health. Features of successful (voluntary) work experiences are identified. Conclusions: The importance is revealed of looking critically at current understandings of work and to move beyond a narrow focus on paid work in order to provide a range of work opportunities that will empower the individual's potential and promote inclusive communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines, from the viewpoint of archival science, the possibility of creating a common framework for information science in the academic and professional fields alike. Information management, both as an academic platform and as an occupation, makes it necessary for library studies and archival science to co-exist in the curricula of higher education institutions, and for libraries and archives to cooperate on a practical level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of the changes in the information environment, the LIS department of the TEI of Athens developed a curriculum intending to incorporate the changes taking place in the information field's knowledge base, based on a literature review, the comparison of similar curricula in LIS schools worldwide and the demands of the students and the job market identified by a small scale survey among graduate students and senior information professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive research has been conducted on the main issues that organizations face concerning Information Systems (IS) management, in order to exploit the capabilities of the rapidly evolving Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) to the highest possible extent. However most of this research has been directed towards the private sector. The present study attempts to contribute to the research of the critical issues of IS management in the public sector. Based on 32 interviews with IS Managers of Greek Public Sector organizations using a structured questionnaire, the main issues and challenges that the organizations of the Greek Public Sector face concerning the whole cycle of IS management are investigated. From this investigation it is concluded that the most important IS management issue currently faced is to hire 'New IS Human Resources', followed by the issues of 'Extending Use of Office Automation' and of 'Management and Use of Data Resources'. The results shed light on the profile of the modern IS management function, which has become highly complex and multidimensional, containing many both technical and non-technical management issues, which can be either internal or external to the IS Unit. The results also show the highly horizontal nature of the IS function: its success depends more on issues concerning its cooperation and relationship with the other functions of the organization, than on issues concerning its own functional expertise. From the study of the main expected IS management issues after 3 years, it is concluded that about one third of the main agenda currently faced by IS management is expected to change within three years, confirming the highly dynamic nature of the IS management function. The results of the present study were also compared with the results of previous studies of IS management issues conducted in Greece and in USA. From the comparison were determined both similarities and differences as to the main IS management... [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last few years the Internet has evolved into a prominent information source for many people worldwide. Latest research has shown that an ever increasing number of citizens and patients go online in order to access health information and seek support in managing their health, including understanding their condition, adopting life-saving lifestyle adjustments and keeping up with treatment or aftercare guidelines. Due to this rise on the demand of online health information, health-related sites have increased substantially, with each one of them striving to maintain the most comprehensive and reliable source of health and medical information on the Internet. This paper presents a survey conducted among Greek population aiming at exploring participants general attitudes towards using the Internet to access health information as well as their views regarding a specific Greek health-related website, namely Iatronet. To this end, an online Greek version of eHealth Impact Questionnaire has been used which was developed using RedCAP platform.