Tiltai

Scientific journal TILTAI/BRIDGES/BRÜCKEN published by Klaipėda University (established in 1991) is devoted to the issues of social sciences. The publications attempts at analysing and solving actual problems of economy, management, demography, social geography, geopolitics, political sciences, history, education, religious, regional planning and land use, other social problems. Science hasn’t borders. Therefore scientific cooperation is one of the most important elements in the progress of world’s community. Scientists from different countries of the world are kindly invited to write for and contribute to the journal.TILTAI/BRIDGES is the scientifical periodical magazine, which publications, by the decision of Lithuanian Science Council, are recognized as convenient for doctoral dissertations and pedagogical scientific names.

In this article the efforts of social workers to promote inclusive practices in children day care centres is analysed. Changes in education based on life-long learning culture require active and conscious participation of parents in child’s education process. However, this participation becomes overburden if family is socially excluded because of the deviant lifestyle or poverty. Indeed, practical observations together with results of the studies reveal that the collaboration between social professions, which aim to implement child welfare and parents is insufficient. In order to help these families children day care centres were established. The aim of the article is to reveal how social workers construct professional help with parents on the purpose to help overcoming child’s issues at school. The study is based on hermeneutical methodology. During Soviet period development of child’s skills belonged to the educational institutions outside the family. Research participants still struggles for the ownership of these developments, pushing neglectful parents aside. The research revealed that within transformation process social workers adapts the forms of professional posture, however, the content of their performance is inherited from the past experiences and historical development.

In the article the importance of national cultures towards effectiveness of public sector‘s modernization reforms is analyzed with the aim of creation of public value abstractedly – on the governance macro level, as well as on meza level – concretely and adequately corresponding to the trajectories of national states development. The significance of national cultures in the article is analyzed in such dimensions as acquired status, length of service, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, contradiction with hierarchy, standpoint of time, universalism and particularism, integration, individualism and collectivism, masculinity and femininity.

The article discusses XXI c. trends of tourism development in the Kaliningrad Region, Russian Federation. The main focus is on the analysis of regional tourism development program documents and basic projects of tourism sector. Based on statistical data, parameters of tourism development in the Kaliningrad Region are assessed, and factors and problems slowing down the process are identified.

This article analyses the experiences of men who are suffering homelessness. The aim of this article is to identify the main problems of social services and to show their potential development. In today’s Europe, no one can be forced to sleep on the street just because there are no high-quality services that meet human needs. The state must ensure the rights of persons, who are suffering homelessness and to preserve their dignity by providing efficient and high quality social services, because only this kind of services allows to talk about the development of the modern state, shaping and reshaping the model of social services. This research allows to understand the phenomenon of homelessness from the point of view of homeless men and to identify the main problems that hinder to overcome homelessness. This article presents the empirical study, which results showed that social services in Lithuania are based on the material supply, so homeless men have poor access to quality social services. The infrastructure of hostels is not adapted for person with disability; social housing is difficult to obtain because of the long queues; homeless men also have difficulties to access independent living or nursing homes for the elderly.

Sustainable development philosophy leads to meaningful human and social development. Sustainable development concept and perception is very important, it should influence the practical application of human life. The article deals with modern problems of ecological culture scientific reasons, currently monitored social-natural contradictions aggravation, sustainable development with emphasis on the ethical aspects of ecological consciousness, ecological, cultural and spiritual importance of sustainable development for future development prospects. The article emphasizes on spirituality, because in each culture existing distinctive values and values orientation affect not only the worldview of society but also the perception of life.

This article presents findings of the study on the structure of social representation of lecturers’ activities and their dynamics on the basis of the credibility of a source of information. The study is sought to find out what constitutes central and peripheral elements of social representation of lecturers’ activities in view of survey participants (undergraduate programme students of Klaipėda University), whether the said elements change upon reliable and unreliable sources of information, and what determines potential dynamics of elements of the representation. Answers to the above questions will significantly help to understand lecturer-student relationships, to change negative or adverse communication attitudes into positive ones. Insights of this study can be applied in lecturers’ activities so as to better understand today’s students, a role of lecturers, formation of positive attitudes in students towards lecturers’ activities and communication.

A changing socio-economic situation, constant stress at work and in personal life, receding retirement age and increasing tension in the world in general highly influence well-being of people. Secondary analysis of literary sources revealed that well-being of elderly women was impacted by the following factors: low social and economic status; stress caused by physical or psychological load at work, unfavourable interaction between work and family, genetic and biological factors, women’s participation in the system of health care, influence of family circumstances, lifestyle and personal self-expression. The narrative research (a narration created on the ground of the life stories of five women) does not contradict the factors found in the scientific study, but rather complements them, it is revealed in new aspects, with a different content. The interaction of the factors is emphasised.

This study analyzes the genesis of distance education functions within the contextual conversion of technological and educational paradigms. The genesis is based on the technological and educational environment consistency factors, therefore, it is analyzed as an integral technology and education symbiosis phenomenon. The study distinguishes between historical and educational distance education genesis paradigms, which are defined on the basis of distance education functions’ interchange. Distance education genesis is described within nine stages and is expressed as a holistic model through objectives, approaches and functions genesis. On the basis of this model, distance learning genesis cycles and their components are identified. In accordance with modern teaching theories, distance education objectives and functions are substantiated in technological and educational paradigm interchange contexts, defining consensus and dichotomy of teaching / learning processes.

The article analyzes the practical aspects of quality evaluation of beauty therapy services quality at the thepractical teaching center and describes the beauty therapy service quality and its criteria of introdusing quality test results from perspective of a consumer This article is based on the analysis of scientific and normativeliterature and the results of quality research which are based on the model of beauty therapy service quality evaluation.