Sorina Poledna

Bio: Sorina Poledna is an academic researcher from Babeș-Bolyai University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Prison & Health education. The author has an hindex of 2, co-authored 4 publications receiving 12 citations.

The Role of Information Technology in Health Education: Strengths and Weaknesses

Abstract: The present study gives an overview of the use of information technology in different phases of health education planning: analyses phase, behavioral intervention phase and continuation phase. Strengths and weaknesses of the use of information technology for health education from the perspective of Romanian context and experiences are also underlined. The data show that information technology offer valuable help for data collection, development, implementation and evaluation of health education programs. Tailored health education programs are an important and appealing innovation for health education, which increase the perceived personal relevance of health messages, which consequently, helps create ideal environments for persuasion and behavior change to occur. Romania is still at a beginning phase of using information technology for health education, especially regarding the development and use of tailored health education programs. Efforts are needed in order to develop appropriate tailored health education in Romania, based on the experience in this field from other countries.

How was your day? Exploring a day in the life of probation workers across Europe using practice diaries

Abstract: This article presents a reflection upon the preliminary analysis of diary research conducted during the period 2014–2015 in five European countries (England, France, Norway, Romania and Slovakia). The authors gathered and analysed data from a pilot project that used semi-structured diaries to generate data on probation workers’ daily lives with a view to understanding ‘a day in the life’ of probation officers across jurisdictions. The findings open up questions in relation to diary research in probation practice (diary format, follow-up interview, etc.) and we use this article to discuss the relative advantages and benefits of using diary research in this area. We conclude with the argument that diaries as a method of social research hold considerable potential for conducting research in the context of probation but acknowledge that the method we employed requires some development and greater clarification in terms of the aims of the research.

Prison Leave in Romania and the Power of Street Level Bureaucrats

Abstract: The paper analyses the policy and legal framework around prison leave in Romania. Prison leave practice is also analysed based on interviews with prison staff. The paper explores the historical evolution of prison leave in Romania, covering both the use of leave as a reward and the application of discretion in awarding leave. In the first part, we will provide contextual information about prisons and prison regime in Romania. In the second part of the paper, we will introduce the rules and regulations relating to prison leave and will comment on these. The conclusion of this analysis is that the decision-making process continues to allow too much discretion in relation to prison leave, and this may create problems for procedural justice and legitimacy. Prison guards—those called to trigger the rewards procedure—enjoy vast amounts of unguided power, and the appeal mechanisms are sometimes informal or inaccessible for prisoners. The article calls for in-depth empirical research on this topic and puts forward a few recommendations intended to improve the policy regarding prison leave in Romania. The article further discusses a number of improvements which would make the practice of awarding prison leave more predictable and equitable for prisoners.

Penitentiary social work from an agentic perspective

Abstract: Starting from the characteristics of the prison and the implications of the restriction of liberty, the role of social work and the specific profile of the social worker in the penitentiary is discussed regarding the „passing ritual” of the prisoner from the experience of detention to community life. For this purpose, his accountability becomes an important dimension around which convergent efforts can be matched to his/her rehabilitation and social reintegration. The accountability of the persons deprived of their liberty is seen not as an end in itself, but as a multi-level construction, in different areas of society, aiming at multiple and complementary ends. These steps to accountability, we analyse them from an agentic perspective, from the concept of agency, a construct that implies a set of qualities that contribute to the personal competence and the force of an autonomously engaged person, in a deep and long-term pro-social change.

The culture of control: crime and social order in contemporary, society

Abstract: Nos últimos trinta trinta anos, houve profundas mudanças na forma como compreendemos o crime e a justiça criminal. O crime tornou-se um evento simbólico, um verdadeiro teste para a ordem social e para as políticas governamentais, um desafio para a sociedade civil, para a democracia e para os direitos humanos. Segundo David Garland, professor da Faculdade de Direito da New York University, um dos principais autores no campo da Sociologia da Punição e com artigo publicado na Revista de Sociologia e Política , número 13, na modernidade tardia houve uma verdadeira obsessão securitária, direcionando as políticas criminais para um maior rigor em relação às penas e maior intolerância com o criminoso. Há trinta anos, nos EUA e na Inglaterra essa tendência era insuspeita. O livro mostra que os dois países compartilham intrigantes similaridades em suas práticas criminais, a despeito da divisão racial, das desigualdades econômicas e da letalidade violenta que marcam fortemente o cenário americano. Segundo David Garland, encontram-se nos dois países os “mesmos tipos de riscos e inseguranças, a mesma percepção a respeito dos problemas de um controle social não-efetivo, as mesmas críticas da justiça criminal tradicional, e as mesmas ansiedades recorrentes sobre mudança e ordem sociais”1 (GARLAND, 2001, p. 2). O argumento principal da obra é o seguinte: a modernidade tardia, esse distintivo padrão de relações sociais, econômicas e culturais, trouxe consigo um conjunto de riscos, inseguranças e problemas de controle social que deram uma configuração específica às nossas respostas ao crime, ao garantir os altos custos das políticas criminais, o grau máximo de duração das penas e a excessivas taxas de encarceramento.

Solicited diary methods

Abstract: To date, solicited diaries have been relatively neglected as a research method within the health and social sciences. Yet, the gathering of chronologically organized diary data can provide unique insights into the life-worlds inhabited by individuals; their experiences, actions, behaviors, and emotions and how these are played out across time and space. Solicited diaries enable informants to actively participate in both recording and reflecting (either in written, oral, or visual formats) on their own data. While inevitably these data are reflected upon with a certain research agenda in mind, most qualitative diary methods allow space and time for diarists to depict their own priorities. As such, this research technique affords participants greater control of the data, enabling individuals to not only consider their responses but reveal as little or as much as they feel willing to do so. Solicited diary methods can be used to gather both qualitative and quantitative data, but in this chapter we focus specifically on the use of qualitative diary techniques. We address the methodological underpinnings of these approaches and the contribution they can make to the study of different questions, phenomena, and social problems. We also consider the strengths and limitations of solicited diary methods including debate about the extent to which they are viable techniques for undertaking research with all groups and individuals. Finally, we discuss how the rise of digital technologies is opening up new and exciting approaches for solicited diary techniques, the possibilities for which are only newly being explored.

Prison Leave Across Europe: Some Reasons to Think About it

Abstract: In diesem Artikel gehen wir naher auf den Hafturlaub ein, eine Lockerungsmasnahme, die die Wissenschaft grostenteils vernachlassigt. Uber den Hafturlaub in Europa (und anderswo) ist sehr wenig bekannt. In diesem Artikel konzentrieren wir uns auf Fragen, die sich im Zusammenhang mit einer Analyse des Hafturlaubs in acht Landern Europas ergeben haben. Wissenschaftler*innen aus Belgien, Danemark, Finnland, Frankreich, Italien, Rumanien, Spanien und der Ukraine legten uns detaillierte Berichte uber den Hafturlaub in ihrem jeweiligen Land vor. In diesem Beitrag greifen wir auf dieses Wissen zuruck, um allgemeine Fragen zu den Zwecken und Funktionen des Hafturlaubs, den Kriterien fur dessen Gewahrung, der Befugnis fur seine Gewahrung, dem Zusammenhang zwischen Hafturlaub und Gefangnisleben und dem Zusammenhang zwischen Hafturlaub und Ruckfallen aufzuwerfen. Wir schliesen diesen Artikel, indem wir die Aufmerksamkeit auf eine zugrunde liegende Spannung lenken: Ist Hafturlaub ein Privileg oder ein Recht? Daruber hinaus schlagen wir zusatzliche Fragen vor und hoffen, andere Wissenschaftler zur Analyse des Hafturlaubs in ihren jeweiligen Landern zu motivieren.

Use of information technology by adolescents and young people and its effect on health promotion

Abstract: This paper focuses on the effects of the use of information technology by adolescents and young people and its effect on health promotion among them. The data are based on literature review. The threats posed by the use of these technologies include increasing risk for sedentary behavior in combination with inappropriate alimentary habits, risk for bulling, risk of exposure to advertisement for tobacco and alcohol products. On the other hand, information technologies have the potential to help and boost the implementation of effective, accessible and sustainable health education programs, but there are several research questions and challenges which should be addressed, such as a. type of theoretical concepts, educational strategies and materials which stimulates self-directed, curiosity-based learning and development of skills and increase confidence for adopting healthy lifestyle b. finding ways to improve teachers’ skills or formal education they need to empower learners to pursue their own interests and free class time for more experiential forms of learning c. understanding how social media can be used for healthy lifestyle promotion and how to avoid missteps is very important d. the challenge to enable pupils to work in collaboration with classmates and teachers to create environments which stimulates education for healthy lifestyle promotion. e. creating authentic learning environment stimulated through games, discussions, and group tasks. In the present, in Romania it is under development an educational program for healthy lifestyle promotion for pupils with hearing disabilities using communication networks, information technology and media.

E-öğrenmenin Gelişimi ve İnternetin Eğitim Sürecine Yansimalari: Gazi Üniversitesi Örneği Development of E-learning and Reflections of the Internet on the Process of Education: A Case Study at Gazi University

Abstract: Since the second half of the 20th century, the developments in the field of information technologies and the Internet have introduced significant changes in both traditional and distance learning and e-learning has become one of the fundamental elements of education. While e-learning and educational use of the Internet have been getting more common, higher education institutions have been reviewing and restructuring their own positions in line with the developments in these areas. Around 50 universities in Turkey started remote education programs. Furthermore new tools to promote face to face education continue to exist on the Internet and to increase the efficiency of the courses. Since the beginning of the second part of 2000s, the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TUBA) has been leading the work for the implementation of the project of open course materials in order to improve the effectiveness of face to face courses and it has been supported by a number of universities. In the study, the situation in Gazi University was evaluated; the informatics system and the open course materials developed by the university in the process of e-learning were examined and the study also determined the extent to which students use the Internet for educational purposes. The result of the research shows that the efforts for creating open course materials in Gazi University have not proved sufficient yet. According to the results of the research, it was determined that the students’ belief in their self-efficacy in the educational use of the Internet was at medium level. Gender and educational status of father were found to be related with self-efficacy. On the other hand, it was revealed that self-efficacy was not linked to the educational status of mother, having a computer, or taking computer classes in high school.