Universitatea Transilvania din Brasov

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Universitatea Transilvania din Brasov Open Access Repository

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Universitatea Transilvania din Brasov

Recent Submissions

Ideomotor representation, motor control, and body aesthetics in juvenile rhythmic gymnasts: between reciprocal support and differentiated trajectories within a personalized training program
(Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 2026-07-20) Ciorășteanu Roxana Maria; Mijaica Raluca; Balint Lorand
Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a personalized integrative training program on ideomotor representation, motor control estimated through whole-routine performance, and body aesthetics in juvenile rhythmic gymnasts, as well as to examine short-term transfer to competitive performance. Methods: The study used a pre–post intervention design and included 9 competitive rhythmic gymnasts aged 8–11 years who followed, for 14 weeks, a program integrated into their regular training. The assessment included whole-routine performance, used as an operational expression of motor control, computerized video analysis, the Movement Imagery Questionnaire-3 (MIQ-3), and the Evaluation of Body Aesthetics in Sports (EBAS). Results: All athletes showed increases in total whole-routine score, with the group mean rising from 16.06 ± 1.10 to 17.26 ± 1.00 points, while the mean difficulty realization rate increased from 64.66% to 72.82%. At the inferential level, ideomotor representation was the only variable that showed a statistically significant change between T0 and T2 (Z = −2.25, p = 0.024). Indicators of whole-routine performance and body aesthetics showed favorable directional improvements, but these were not statistically significant at group level. At the individual level, the response to the intervention was differentiated, and short-term transfer to competitive performance remained variable. Conclusion: Ideomotor representation was the dimension most responsive to the intervention and may provide a useful reference point for optimizing performance organization in juvenile rhythmic gymnasts, even though the relationships among ideomotor representation, motor control, and body aesthetics remain unevenly consolidated in the short term and transfer to competitive performance is expressed differentially.
Greener Websites: A Digital Carbon Footprint Audit of Higher Education Homepages Across the UNITA Alliance
(Sustainability, 2026) Briciu, Victor-Alexandru; Zinger, Elia; Strempel, Christian-Gabriel; Briciu, Arabela
Abstract Higher education institutions increasingly rely on digital infrastructures, but these systems also contribute to carbon emissions through their digital carbon footprint. Institutional websites are an important part of this footprint, serving both as sources of emissions and as platforms for communicating sustainability initiatives. This study evaluates the carbon footprints of the homepages of the 12 member and associate university websites of the UNITA Universitas Montium Alliance, a European Universities Initiative focused on digital transformation and sustainability. Using the Website Carbon Calculator (v4), an audit conducted in June 2026 measured CO2e emissions per page view, estimated annual emissions under standardized traffic, hosting energy use, and the number of trees required to offset emissions. Results showed considerable variation, with ratings ranging from B to F and emissions between 0.08 and 2.38 g CO2e per page view. Five institutions already use green hosting. The same 12 homepages were re-measured under an identical protocol on 20 July and 17 August 2026; eleven returned identical values in all three rounds and the twelfth varied by 0.05 g CO2e per page view. These findings extend a technical carbon-footprint auditing methodology previously validated only within single-country university systems to a comparative, multi-country alliance setting, and are consistent with website design and hosting choices, not national electricity grids, playing the dominant role in the observed differences between institutions. For UNITA, this points to a concrete opportunity to coordinate action through its existing Green Sustainability and Virtual Campus work packages, aligning the alliance’s digital infrastructure with the sustainability standards it already promotes elsewhere.
Academic Staff Perceptions of the Implementation of Gamification in Higher Education: An Explorative Study from Romania
(Revista Românească pentru Educație Multidimensională, 2026) Briciu, Victor-Alexandru; Istrate, Flavia Elena; Briciu, Arabela; Meseșan-Schmitz, Luiza
Gamification is increasingly being promoted as an innovative strategy for higher education. However, its effectiveness depends on the academic staff who implement it, and there is little evidence of their perspectives, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe. This study examines the knowledge, practices, attitudes, perceptions and behavioural intentions of academic staff regarding gamification in Romanian higher education. A quantitative survey comprising a 40-item questionnaire incorporating a validated 32-item, seven-point scale measuring attitude, perception, and intention to use gamification was conducted among 25 academic staff members of a faculty of social sciences and communication, comprising full-time and hourly-paid associate teaching staff. The data were analysed using reliability analysis, descriptive statistics and independent-samples t-tests. Given the small sample size, frequencies are reported as absolute counts rather than percentages. Despite recognising the latter almost unanimously as gamification elements, respondents reported frequent use of low-threshold mechanics such as immediate feedback (23 out of 25 respondents), points (21 out of 25 respondents), and storytelling (20 out of 25 respondents), and marginal use of badges and symbolic rewards (three out of 25 respondents each). Intention recorded the highest reliability and mean (ω = 0.913; M = 5.36), in comparison with attitudes (ω = 0.842; M = 4.31) and perceptions (ω = 0.698; M = 4.37). Gender, teaching experience and academic profile produced no significant differences. The recognition gap suggests practical rather than conceptual barriers, with implications for staff training and institutional support.
COMPARING THE ERGONOMIC METHODS USED TO ASSESS THE IMPACT OF HUMAN BODY POSITION ON VISUAL COMFORT FOR COMPUTER USERS AND PROGRESSIVE LENS WEARERS
(TECHNICAL UNIV CLUJ-NAPOCA, FAC MACHINE BUILDING DEPT SYSTEMS ENGB-DUL MUNCII NR 103 105, RM C01, CLUJ-NAPOCA CP 400 641, ROMANIA, 2025-11) Lungu, Adrian Catalin; Cristea, Luciana; Baritz, Mihaela Ioana; Druga, Cornel; Repanovici, Angela; Railean, Serghei; Tataru, Anca Ioana; Bodi, Gyory
The principles of the field of ergonomics applied and used in various studies of behavior assessment in comfort as well as in opportunity studies to identify causes of manifestation of musculoskeletal dysfunctions are increasingly developed to create effective and safe mechanisms of analysis for specialists in the field. Thus, the authors of this paper intend to analyze, in relation to the criteria highlighted in various studies, the opportunity to use one or another of the ergonomic methods in assessing the influence of the human body posture on the level of visual comfort for computer users and progressive ophthalmic lens wearers. In the first part of the paper, some general aspects are reviewed so that in the second part to identify the useful set of ergonomic methods for this combined field - posture and sensory systems. In the third part of the paper, the authors present a case study for a subject, a carrier of progressive ophthalmic lenses and performing computer activity, to identify the most effective, complete and useful method of assessing comfort. The end of the paper presents the results and conclusions from the analysis.
From Prediction to Decision Support: A Critical Review and Six-Layer Framework for Responsible Artificial Intelligence in Sport Science
(2026-09-02) Alecu Stefan; Onea Gheorghe Adrian
Artificial intelligence is increasingly used in sport science to classify movement, analyse tactics, estimate readiness, forecast performance and injury risk, and support rehabilitation. Predictive performance alone, however, does not establish practical usefulness, safety, or responsible use. Through purposive source selection and critical synthesis, this review integrates sport-specific evidence with guidance on prediction modelling, human–AI interaction, and AI risk management. It highlights five recurring gaps: limited data and labels; leakage-prone or temporally inappropriate validation; weak reporting of calibration and uncertainty; unclear translation from prediction to action; and insufficient attention to athlete rights and post-deployment monitoring. We propose a six-layer framework covering data and context, prediction, decision translation, individualisation, human oversight, and deployment monitoring. For each applicable layer, the framework specifies evidence to document, appraisal questions, and common failure modes. It distinguishes model development from operational decision support and links technical evaluation with workflow utility, fairness, privacy, accountability, contestability, and lifecycle governance. The framework is conceptual, not a validated scoring or certification instrument. Sport-science AI should be evaluated as a socio-technical intervention rather than an isolated algorithm. Future studies should prioritise athlete-level and temporal validation, calibrated probabilities, external and prospective evaluation, prespecified action pathways, subgroup performance, documented override procedures, and ongoing monitoring.