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The use of coupons as a sales promotion technique is not new; manufacturers have been offering cents‐off coupons to customers for over a century. Now, electronic coupons may become the leading edge of a new wave of sales promotion techniques for the 1990s. How much of an impact that wave will make when it hits the American marketplace can only be estimated,but it may indeed be very big.

One of the more difficult problems facing academic, business and government institutions is that of evaluating job and/or promotion candidates. A typical evaluation consists of several tasks. First, applications must be gathered. Then, they must be evaluated using a number of criteria such as education, experience, personality, etc. Finally, a weighted average of the various criteria must be developed for each applicant or promotion candidate which represents the individual’s overall desirability. Two of the chief difficulties in the above process are: rating individuals for each of the criteria; and developing a logical and consistent set of weights for the various criteria. In this paper we will present Saaty’s Analytical Hierarchy Process as a means of dealing with these difficulties. We will also discuss some of the practical problems encountered in applying the method.

This chapter describes the situation of the two ‘official’ linguistic communities within the province of Quebec, Canada, whose primary language is either English or French and who attend post-secondary pre-university colleges. It examines the point of view of young Anglophones learning French as a Second Language (FSL), for whom French instruction is mandatory. A random probability sample of 974 students was selected in 11 colleges. The authors conducted 22 individual interviews and met with 48 students during four focus group sessions. The interviews and the quantitative data show that students at all levels have low levels of motivation for FSL and negative attitudes towards the Francophone community. How students perceive FSL education has a statistically significant impact on motivation: the more positive their perceptions, the higher their motivation. Moreover, the reported number of Francophone friends and the number of hours students reported speaking in French with these friends, has a significant impact on their perceptions. Based on the importance of this friendship dynamic, the authors propose that Second Language Acquisition should not focus primarily on language code proficiency and communication skills, but rather encourage students from different linguistic groups to meet and develop productive relationships, which is scarce in language instruction settings.

This article reports on the intrapersonal, interpersonal and ecological factors that shaped the professional identity (PI) construction of five ESL Malaysian pre-service teachers (PSTs) during microteaching classes and teaching practicum.

The study is qualitative in nature aiming to give voice to ESL PSTs and allow them share their personal experience while constructing their professional identity. The semi-interview data were supported by observation data to validate what PSTs report in their interview. The researchers chose junctural points in the PI construction journey to follow the developmental line of PI growth and to live the experience with the participant. The project was a co-construction of knowledge and enabled a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon.

This inquiry revealed that PI is dynamic and changing constantly as one reinterprets and reevaluates self and interact and react to the various intrapersonal, interpersonal and ecological factors in their context. At the intrapersonal level, lack of practical experience and intrinsic motivation and sense of low self-efficacy created a perception of low PI in the beginning of the simulated practice. The findings also show that supportive interpersonal relationships developed within a facilitating context such as the simulated teaching class smoothed the emergence of high PI. However, when the interpersonal relationships and ecological context in the practicum settings were challenging, they hindered PI development and led to a PI crisis.

The article offers recommendations to enhance the pivotal role of teaching practice during PSTs' journey of becoming.

This study was conducted in one of the understudied contexts in regards of PI construction. It captured a holistic view of the PI construction. It showed that the interplay of interpersonal and intrapersonal factors, in addition to ecological factors, is not isolated from each other. On the contrary, they were like a cycle circumscribing the PSTs and impact their PI construction. Hence, the authors believe that the study contributed with a comprehensive understanding of pre-service PI construction.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships among diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), sport and the metaverse.

The authors overview the metaverse, sport applications and ways multilevel theory can help explain the influence of DEI.

Drawing from multilevel theory, the authors identify parallels between the sport metaverse and traditional sport as well as unique DEI opportunities in the sport metaverse.

The manuscript contributes to the nascent body of research regarding sport and the metaverse, with a specific focus on social issues and the importance of considering unique DEI opportunities.