In this chapter, the governmental as well as nongovernmental organization of sports in Belgium will be discussed. However, in the framework of this book, it is not possible to present an in-depth analysis. Therefore, this contribution should be considered as a brief overview of the most relevant features of sport policy and sport participation in Belgium. First, we describe the sport system, including the core principles of the organization of sport in Belgium. Second, attention is given to the fi nancing of sport, with a special focus on household expenditures on sport as well as the economic equivalence of sport volunteerism. Third, the sport policies of the three communities are shortly described. In the last section, the focus is on the active involvement in sport. Here sport participation rates and trends are studied along with the issue of social stratifi cation. Due to the specifi c political structuration of Belgium, the present study mainly focuses on the sport system and sport participation in the northern part of this country, that is, Flanders. Future research is needed to present a more complete study of sport policy and sport participation for the country as a whole.
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In this chapter, a state of the art of empirical findings with regard to running in Flanders (Belgium) is presented. The organisation of sports in Belgium is influenced by the structure of the Belgian state. Because sport is part of the cultural sphere, governmental competences with regard to sport are the exclusive responsibility of three community governments (Flemish community, French community and Germanspeaking community). Due to this structuration, the sports policy and provision of sports (i.e. running) in Flanders is different from the other communities. Therefore, the present chapter mainly focuses on results of conducted research regarding the organisation and participation in running in Flanders.
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"Purpose – Despite the rising number of females in forensic psychiatry, research about their characteristics remains limited and is currently lacking in Belgium. Optimizing knowledge about the characteristics of these women will lead to a better understanding of this specific group. Therefore, the aim of the study was to gain insight into the characteristics of female forensic psychiatric patients in Flanders, Belgium. Design/methodology/approach – A case file study was carried out in the forensic psychiatric hospital Sint-Jan-Baptist in Zelzate, Belgium. The files of female patients admitted in the period 2006–2017 were analysed (N = 82) based on a checklist including sociodemographic, mental health care and offencerelated characteristics as well as historical risk factors. Findings – The study revealed that female patients have been confronted with a large number of adverse experiences during both childhood and adulthood, were frequently diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and usually had an extensive mental health treatment history with many drop-outs. The majority of the female patients had committed violent offences towards relatives. Practical implications – These findings are similar to those of other jurisdictions and highlight the importance of a gender-responsive treatment. This kind of treatment should include trauma-informed care, gender-sensitive risk-assessment and adapted versions of dialectical behavioural therapy and schema-focussed therapy. Additionally, treatment should focus on breaking the intergenerational transmission of violence andmental health problems by targeting parenting skills. Originality/value – To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that scientifically scrutinized the detailed characteristics of female forensic psychiatric patients in Flanders, Belgium. Recommendations for gender-responsive treatment and directions for future research are discussed."
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In the present chapter a status quaestionis of club-organised sport in Flanders/Belgium is presented. More precisely, the most recent and relevant data will be discussed. First, we describe the historical and societal context of sport clubs in Flanders/Belgium. Second, attention is given to the role and the position of sport clubs. Time-trend and cross-sectional data are used to give more insight on this. Third, the main features of sport clubs are presented. Here, we successively focus on the sport clubs’ structural characteristics, their sport provision, their members, their volunteers, their financial situation and the role that sport clubs see for themselves. The fourth section deals with a specific topic, in this way that we provide some data with regard to the question whether sport clubs can be considered as health promoters.
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In the present chapter a status quaestionis of club-organised sport in Flanders/Belgium is presented. More precisely, the most recent and relevant data will be discussed. First, we describe the historical and societal context of sport clubs in Flanders/Belgium. Second, attention is given to the role and the position of sport clubs. Time-trend and cross-sectional data are used to give more insight on this. Third, the main features of sport clubs are presented. Here, we successively focus on the sport clubs’ structural characteristics, their sport provision, their members, their volunteers, their financial situation and the role that sport clubs see for themselves. The fourth section deals with a specific topic, in this way that we provide some data with regard to the question whether sport clubs can be considered as health promoters.
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In Intellectual Output 1 of the SMILES project, researchers from Belgium (Flanders), Netherlands and Spain conducted desk research to describe the current developments for each country around disinformation, particularly those related to the Covid-19 pandemic. In part 2 of the research, they identified training initiatives, courses and media literacy training tools for each country that are specifically focused on the combat against or promotion of resistance to existing disinformation. Each identified activity or tool was characterised by a fixed set of characteristics (appendix 1). In the second stage of this research, some experts for each country were interviewed. Among other things, they were asked for recommendations and tips for interventions that will be developed in Intellectual Output 2 of the SMILES project. All research results were reported in separate country reports. This joint report lists the highlights of the separate country reports. It will end with recommendations for the interventions to be developed in Intellectual Output 2.
MULTIFILE
This article studies the innovation management of 105 creative SMEs in Flanders and the Netherlands. This region appears to have an innovative climate and stimulating life style, well developed infrastructure and proximity of logistics and suppliers. However, we identified many restricting legislations and regulations that hamper creative SMEs. Above that, creative SMEs fail to find sufficient access to capital to invest in their growing innovative activities. Dutch creative SMEs find more easily access to external financial resources and governmental support than their Flemish colleagues. Finally, the use of managerial and financial tools seems uncommon but required among creative SMEs.
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Creative SMEs are heavily focusing on the creating process designing new products and services. Consequently, their managers tend to loose contact with crucial management issues. Especially their knowledge of the financial aspects of their business can be so limited that they fail to connect with the financial viability of their business, which can lead to serious business problems. This paper draws on a number of studies that examine the role of outsiders -contracted professional service providers- in relation to business success of SMEs. In the light of the potential growth of Flemish creative SMEs on international markets the question can be raised as to what extent outsiders, and more specifically financial service providers like accountants and banks, contribute to the export success of these firms. In this paper therefore the role played by accountants and banks was explored to solve export-related questions by small furniture designers in Flanders, Belgium. Export can be considered as the most successful growth and therefore raises interesting management issues for creative SMEs. Little is known about the content and intensity of services of accountants and bank employees in relation to export-related questions of owner-managers of small creative firms. In order to examine the fit between supply and demand the focus is on outsider contribution during six phases of export.
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Given the recent economic crisis and the risen poverty rates, sports managers need to get insight in the effect of income and other socio-economic determinants on the household time and money that is spent on sports participation. By means of a Tobit regression, this study analyses the magnitude of the income effect for the thirteen most practiced sports by households in Flanders (the Dutch speaking part of Belgium), which are soccer, swimming, dance, cycling, running, fitness, tennis, horse riding, winter sports, martial arts, volleyball, walking and basketball. The results demonstrate that income has a positive effect on both time and money expenditure on sports participation, although differences are found between the 13 sports activities. For example, the effect of income on time and money expenditure is relatively high for sports activities like running and winter sports, while it is lower for other sports such as fitness, horse riding, walking and swimming. Commercial enterprises can use the results of this study to identify which sports to focus on, and how they will organise their segmentation process. For government, the results demonstrate which barriers prevent people from taking part in specific sports activities, based upon which they should evaluate their policy decisions.
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As the two prime examples of sport light, running and walking have become very popular sports activities in the past decades. There are references in the literature of similarities between both sports, however these parallels have never been studied. In addition, the current digitalisation of society can have important influences on the further diversification of profiles. Data of a large-scale population survey among runners and walkers (n = 4913) in Flanders (Belgium) were used to study their sociodemographic, sports related and attitudinal characteristics, and wearable usage. The results showed that walkers are more often female, older, lower educated, and less often use wearables. To predict wearable usage, sports-related and attitudinal characteristics are important among runners but not among walkers. Motivational variables to use wearables are important to predict wearable usage among both runners and walkers. Additionally, whether or not the runner or walker registers the heart rate is the most important predictor. The present study highlights similarities and differences between runners and walkers. By adding attitudinal characteristics and including walkers this article provides new insights to the literature, which can be used by policymakers and professionals in the field of sport, exercise and health, and technology developers to shape their services accordingly.
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