REPOSITORY
THE NICOLAUS COPERNICUS UNIVERSITY
IN TORUŃ
is an institutional repository of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The task of the Repository is to promote scientific achievements and research conducted at NCU and to support teaching.
Recent Submissions
How do national governments shape and control cities’ international cooperation? Metagovernance analysis of city diplomacy
(Sage, 2026-01-29) Gawłowski, Robert; Szpak, Agnieszka; Modrzyńska, Joanna; Modrzyński, Paweł; Dahl, Michał
Cities play an increasingly important role in international relations and are indispensable in solving global challenges. In this context, the authors have been wondering to what extent they can interact autonomously on the international stage, and what tools do national governments use to shape and control their actions? This paper uses the meta-governance approach to examine intergovernmental relations in the context of cities’ international relations. The authors reveal that states mostly rely on a full range of hands-off tools rather than hands-on ones. Attempts to hierarchically regulate cities’ international relations are limited and depend on the country’s context. Furthermore, the authors reveal that informational tools play a dominant role in intergovernmental relations and are rarely the result of strategic policy structuring by the state government. These findings have important implications for future efforts to address the multi-level governance approach in the context of cities’ international cooperation.
Horror VR as a tool supporting the emotional training of students of the uniformed services. Results of a research experiment
(Springer Nature, 2025) Majewska, Kamila
One of the most popular video game genres that have been attracting the attention of players for years is horror games. Their unique character is that they evoke a range of strong emotions. From a VR perspective, the above game genre gains a new, and more immersive dimension and, as a result, enables particularly intense experiences. The presented research was a pedagogical experiment and was conducted in 2024. The results covered a group of 140 players – students of the uniformed services. The selection for the research was intentional. The study used a quantitative-and-qualitative method. The collected data showed that VR horror games evoke statistically significantly higher levels of emotions such as fear, disgust, vigilance, ecstasy, and admiration, compared with PC horror games. According to the respondents, this tool supports learning how to manage stress, panic, and negative emotions, while offering an interesting and credible form of presentation.
Consequently, it may be applied in emotional training. Compared with traditional training methods, VR horror provides a more immersive, emotionally intense experience, suggesting potential added value in this respect. Statistical calculations were performed using the Student’s T test and the Mann Whitney U test. During the analyses, the mean, mode, as well as the minimum, and maximum values were also determined. This study is not without limitations. It includes a relatively small and homogeneous sample limited to Polish students of the uniformed services. These constraints should be taken into account when interpreting the findings.
Development of a chromatographic method for the analysis of risdiplam in serum extracts
(Taylor and Francis, 2026-01) Balińska, Natalia; Lemska, Anna; Mazurkiewicz-Bełdzińska, Maria; Studzińska, Sylwia
Background: Risdiplam has been used to treat spinal muscular atrophy for three years. There are limited number (4) of papers devoted to its analytics. Until now, risdiplam and its metabolites have only been analyzed using a C18 column, while the sample preparation method involved only protein precipitation.
Research design and methods: Risdiplam was analysed using reversed-phase UHPLC. The experiment was designed to compare the retention of risdiplam on five columns using various mobile phases. The protein precipitation was used as the sample preparation method.
Results: Risdiplam shows greater retention on phenyl columns, where π-π interactions take part in retention. The increasing of mobile phase pH caused increased risdiplam retention, while salt concentration had no significant effect. An octadecyl column with pentafluorophenyl groups was selected with a mobile phase containing 10 mM ammonium formate (pH 4) and acetonitrile. The method was characterized by good linearity, precision, repeatability, and short analysis time. It was applied to risdiplam analysis in serum samples after protein precipitation with different solvents. Finally, proteins were effectively precipitated using 10% TFA solution, providing 90% recovery.
Conclusions: The developed procedure of extraction and determination of risdiplam is simple, fast, accurate, and reliable. It may find application for routine monitoring of risdiplam or for quality control.
Virtual Reality in the Context of Opinions and Preparation of Teachers for Its Use in the Educational Process. A Large-Scale Survey
(2025) Majewska, Kamila
Virtual reality (VR) is an interesting teaching tool that is increasingly being incorporated into the educational process. Thanks to VR goggles equipped with appropriate sensors and software, it is possible to support the educational process to various extents and at various levels. Of course, in order to achieve the expected results, it is important to properly prepare the teacher – the leader of the educational process. In the context of working with VR goggles, both knowledge and skills in using the new technology are important.At present, little is known about preparing teachers to work with VR technology. As a result, it was decided to conduct mixed research (qualitative and quantitative), verifying the level of knowledge and preparation of teachers to use VR technology in the educational process. As part of the procedure, teachers’ opinions on the possibilities of the educational use of virtual reality were also verified. The research was carried out using a survey sent to randomly selected schools. As a result, the research covered 870 teachers working in both primary and secondary schools. During the research, depending on the analysed values, the following were determined: mean, mode, median, Spearman’s rho correlation, and Cramer’s V correlation were used. The collected data have shown that teachers’ opinions on virtual reality are correlated with their age, gender, and the subject taught. Regarding the preparation of teachers to use VR goggles during education, it should be noted that approximately 74% of them have very low or low knowledge in this area. 18% of teachers have average knowledge of VR goggles, dedicated software, as well as the possibilities and principles of their use in the VR virtual space. On the basis of the collected data, it can be concluded that only 8% of teachers are adequately prepared to teach classes using VR goggles, and their knowledge in this area is at a good or very good level.
Konstrukcja Eighteen-Item VR Gaming Disorder Test (VRGDT-18) jako nowego narzędzia do wstępnej oceny uzależnienia od gier VR dzieci w wieku 8–11 lat
(Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek, 2025) Majewska, Kamila
Publikacja poświęcona jest problematyce behawioralnego uzależnienia od rzeczywistości wirtualnej. Przedstawia proces konstrukcji, weryfikacji poznawczej, walidacji psychometrycznej oraz standaryzacji nowego narzędzia diagnostycznego – Eighteen-Item VR Gaming Disorder Test (VRGDT-18), opracowanego do wstępnej oceny uzależnienia od gier VR wśród dzieci w wieku 8–11 lat. W obliczu rosnącej popularności rzeczywistości wirtualnej oraz braku wystandaryzowanych narzędzi diagnostycznych uwzględniających jej specyfikę, zaprojektowany test wypełnia istotną lukę poznawczą. VRGDT-18 składa się z 18 twierdzeń, na które badani udzielają odpowiedzi: nigdy, czasem lub często. Skala obejmuje trzy wymiary:
(1) zaangażowanie w gry VR, (2) emocje towarzyszące graniu oraz (3) relacje społeczne. Narzędzie wykazało wysoką trafność diagnostyczną, umożliwiając identyfikację dzieci z grupy ryzyka uzależnienia behawioralnego od gier VR. Dane wskazują ponadto, że test skutecznie rozpoznaje również osoby spoza grupy ryzyka, minimalizując liczbę fałszywych alarmów. Opracowany test stanowi pierwsze w Polsce narzędzie przesiewowe pozwalające na wczesne rozpoznanie problemowego użytkowania rzeczywistości wirtualnej wśród najmłodszych.