Many attempts have been conducted during the last decades to define a quality measurement scale in the health sector, however there is not yet a complete agreement on which dimensions impact satisfaction. Besides, a quality scale encompassing all patient concerns related to his/her hospitalisation is still lacking. In this context, the purpose of this study is three aimed: (i) defining a scale (HospQual) to assess patients' perceived quality of hospital service; (ii) analysing the impact of perceived quality on patient satisfaction; and (iii) analysing the mediation role of fulfilment of patients' expectations between quality and satisfaction. To capture data regarding Catalan patients' perceived quality of hospital service, two surveys were launched: the first collected 200 questionnaires in June 2016, and the second collected 601 questionnaires in December 2016. An array of exploratory factor analyses was carried out with the first sample to establish the HospQual scale dimensions, which showed appropriate psychometric characteristics. The second sample was used for confirmatory purposes and also to analyse the research model analysis addressed to determine the mediating role of fulfilment of expectations. Findings confirmed HospQual dimensions impact satisfaction. Additionally, fulfilment of expectations is proved to be a mediator between quality and satisfaction.

Desde hace más de una década, existen diversas iniciativas internacionales y nacionales para que las universidades asuman un rol de liderazgo para promover una educación para el desarrollo sostenible y dar respuestas a los retos globales de la sociedad actual. Es preciso analizar la efectividad de esas iniciativas y preguntarnos si las universidades están formando a sus estudiantes para afrontar con responsabilidad dichos retos.Éste es uno de los objetivos del proyecto EDINSOST, dentro de cuyo marco hemos llevado a cabo una investigación de tipo cualitativa, desarrollando grupos de discusión con estudiantes de últimos cursos de distintas universidades y perfiles académicos. Esto nos ha permitido integrar en nuestros análisis la perspectiva del alumnado universitario.En este artículo se presentan las aportaciones más relevantes en relación a la visión de los estudiantes sobre la sostenibilidad, su experiencia formativa en la universidad y su opinión sobre cómo podría mejorarse. Los resultados muestran que la formación en sostenibilidad que aporta la universidad es insuficiente, y que los estudiantes no se sienten preparados para integrar la sostenibilidad en su actividad profesional. Sin embargo, consideran fundamental que la universidad incluya la sostenibilidad en sus currículos académicos, y enfatizan la importancia de emplear metodologías activas que conecten al alumnado con la realidad y fomenten la reflexión.La investigación muestra que queda mucho trabajo por hacer para integrar la sostenibilidad en la formación universitaria. Las propuestas del alumnado están alineadas con las de los expertos en educación para la sostenibilidad, y para llevarlas a cabo se requiere tanto la formación y compromiso del profesorado como la implicación institucional.

It is of utmost importance to innovate in current teaching practices at higher education in order to enhance learners' involvement, comprehension, cooperation and motivation. In non-STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) programmes, students tend to display a negative attitude towards mathematic-related courses. Aiming at overcoming this, game-based learning is regarded as a potential means of improving students' confidence and increasing their motivation. In this study we propose a teamwork activity inspired by gamebased learning, presented in the form of a competition. To test the suitability of the activity, we report its implementation in the subject of Mathematics 1, taught as part of the Business Administration Degree at Universitat Internacional de Catalunya (Spain). We hope that the underlying idea of the activity as well as the encouraging results obtained stimulate lecturers to implement game-based learning activities in their courses.

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Purpose The purpose of this study is to analyse how different patterns of production factors consumption of Spanish universities lead to specific technology transfer (TT) profiles (outcomes). Design/methodology/approach Adopting a resource-based view perspective (RBV), qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) is used to analyse the relationship between different combinations of resources – human resources, financial resources and support services – and various portfolios of TT outcomes – intellectual or industrial property agreements, spin-offs and TT income. Findings Results indicate that there is no unique formula of resource consumption that leads to a specific portfolio of TT outcomes. These results seem to reflect the characteristics and competencies added by universities, along with the characteristics of their socioeconomic context. From a RVB perspective, this indicates that the considered resources are substitutable. Practical implications The effectiveness of university policies is expected to vary by university, for example depending on the type of resources that is most relevant in the university’s production process. To develop competitive advantages Spanish public universities must resort to internal intangible resources or specific and inimitable combinations of the available resources. Social implications Since Spanish universities are heterogeneous and display different TT portfolios they address the needs of different users. Originality/value Previous studies have failed to acknowledge the heterogeneity among universities. To perform the analysis QCA is used, an innovative methodology in the higher education sector that enables us to purposefully acknowledge institutional diversity (in both resources and results). This allows us to indirectly take into account the capabilities of universities using a more holistic approach to evaluate their competitiveness.