Location:
Room 12.2.10 DCSPT - Universidade de AveiroStart Date:
GOVCOPP Research Seminar | June 2026
June 24th, 2026
Room 12.2.10 (DCSPT)
13 p.m. - 15 p.m.
Research Group CIS
Financial Literacy Training with Gamification in the Workplace: Expert Insights and Instrument Validation
Abstract
Organizations invest in employee training as a strategic lever for building workforce capability, yet rigorous tools for evaluating the effectiveness of such programmes remain scarce. Employee financial literacy has gained particular attention as a driver of individual financial well-being and long-term organizational performance, and gamification and serious games have emerged as mechanisms for supporting knowledge retention and motivation in workplace financial education. No validated instrument exists to capture how employees perceive gamified financial literacy programmes across the full pathway from training quality to knowledge acquisition and organizational impact.
This study develops and validates such an instrument through a Delphi method with a panel of 16 international experts in financial literacy, gamification, and human resources. Drawing on two prior literature reviews and open-ended expert responses, the study identifies the key dimensions the instrument should capture. Experts then rate a preliminary set of items on content relevance and clarity, with consensus assessed through descriptive statistics. The final instrument comprises 33 items spanning seven constructs: Programme Quality, Financial Knowledge Acquisition, Engagement and Intrinsic Motivation, Gamified Experience Quality, Financial Capability, Financial Well-Being, and Perceived Organizational Impact. Experts identify individual and organizational benefits of such programmes and highlight the risk that game mechanics may foster short-term motivation rather than lasting financial behavior change.
Abstract
This study uses empirical evidence to analyze the use of negative, neutral, and positive discourses by the leaders of the Portuguese political parties with parliamentary representation in their personal X profiles. The research questions address how leaders compare in the use of negative and positive discourses, considering their political positioning, what topics are most associated with negative and positive discourses, and how negative and positive discourses generate engagement. An exploratory quantitative methods approach is used. Results show that the populist far-right leader is the champion of the negative discourse; that, in general, the opposition leaders resort more to negative discourse; that topics such as corruption, immigration, and security, as well as topics associated with the radicalization of discourse towards political opponents are more prone to negative discourse; and that negative discourse tends to generate more engagement than positive and neutral discourses, which, however, is not true for all leaders
Research Group SAD
Entre norma e prática: a execução do 1.º Direito à luz dos seus princípios orientadores / Between Policy Design and Practice: Assessing the Implementation of the 1.º Direito Programme
Abstract
The 1.º Direito programme is the main instrument addressing severe housing deprivation within Portugal’s New Generation of Housing Policies. Its design is based on three core principles: prioritising housing need, grounding intervention in territorial diagnosis through Local Housing Strategies, and promoting institutional co-responsibility. Despite their centrality, little is known about how these principles are reflected in implementation.
Using municipal-level data for all Portuguese municipalities (N = 308), this study compares three dimensions of the programme: identified housing needs, planned responses, and housing solutions effectively contracted. Drawing on data from the Institute for Housing and Urban Rehabilitation (IHRU) and the Transparency Portal, indicators were developed to assess the relationship between diagnosis, planning, and implementation, as well as patterns of institutional involvement.
The findings reveal significant territorial variation in the translation of diagnosed needs into contracted solutions. Higher levels of need do not systematically correspond to higher implementation rates, suggesting that institutional capacity, financial resources, and implementation readiness influence outcomes. The integration of the programme into Portugal’s Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) appears to have reinforced these dynamics by introducing time-sensitive funding conditions and targets. Patterns of institutional participation also vary across territories, reflecting different forms of co-responsibility in practice.
The study contributes to the debate on housing policy implementation by linking empirical patterns of execution to the programme’s normative foundations. It argues that implementation constitutes a key stage in which policy priorities are operationalised and reshaped, highlighting the importance of examining how territorial, distributive, and governance principles are translated into practice.
Research Group TD
Evaluation of Experience Co-Creation in the Tourism Sector: The Case of Cultural Events in the Ria de Aveiro Region
Abstract
The main objective of this research is to analyze and assess the process of experience co-creation by visitors to three cultural events in the Ria de Aveiro region, the value resulting from this process in terms of satisfaction, place attachment, and loyalty, as well as to identify potential differences according to visitors’ characteristics.
Following an extensive literature review, it was possible to propose a Conceptual Model for the Co-Creation of Experiences and Value in Festivals and Other Events. This model builds on previous models, expanding and connecting them, and serves as the basis for the empirical study. The model-fit results indicated an acceptable evidence of unidimensionality. Thirteen research hypotheses were also proposed.
The methodology adopted in this research was based on mixed methods, or triangulation, with data collected in two phases: first, through a questionnaire survey administered at three events—Festival dos Canais (Aveiro), Festival do Bacalhau (Ílhavo), and Romaria de São Paio da Torreira (Murtosa)—corresponding to the quantitative phase; and second, through a focus group with stakeholders, corresponding to the qualitative phase. To test the hypotheses within the proposed structural model, path analysis was used, and almost all hypotheses were supported.
The research also made it possible to identify several differences, namely in the importance and role of each co-creation dimension, not only across events but also according to visitors’ characteristics. These characteristics influence visitors’ satisfaction with the event, as well as their place attachment and loyalty.
Registrations for lunch+seminar are open until June 17h. Registrations just for the seminar are open until June 23th.
