Search results for: regression analysis (RA)

Authors: Mona Hoyng

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In times of digitalization nowadays, the use of games became a crucial new way for digital game-based learning (DGBL) in higher education. In this regard, the development of a gameful experience (GE) among students is decisive when examining DGBL as the GE is a necessary precondition determining the effectiveness of games. In this regard, the purpose of this study is to provide deeper insights into the GE and to empirically investigate whether and how these meaningful learning experiences within games, i.e., GE, among students are created. Based on the theory of experience and flow theory, a double-mediation model was developed considering instructional support, group engagement, and flow as determinants of students’ GE. Based on data of 337 students taking part in a business simulation game at two different universities in Germany, regression-based statistical mediation analysis revealed that instructional support promoted students’ GE. This relationship was further sequentially double mediated by group engagement and flow. Consequently, in the context of DGBL, meaningful learning experiences within games in terms of GE are created and promoted through appropriate instructional support, as well as high levels of group engagement and flow among students.

Keywords: gameful experience, instructional support, group engagement, flow, education, learning

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Authors: Mohammad Ahangari

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Schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder with symptoms that include cognitive deficits and nicotine has been suggested to have an effect on cognition. In recent years, the advents of Genome-Wide Association Studies(GWAS) has evolved our understanding about the genetic causes of complex disorders such as schizophrenia and studying the role of genome-wide significant genes could potentially lead to the development of new therapeutic agents for treatment of cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. The current study identified six Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNP) from schizophrenia and smoking GWAS that are located on or in close proximity to the nicotinic receptor gene cluster (CHRN) and studied their association with cognition in an Irish sample of 1297 cases and controls using linear regression analysis. Further on, the interaction between CHRN gene cluster and Dopamine receptor D2 gene (DRD2) during working memory was investigated. The effect of these polymorphisms on nicotinic and dopaminergic neurotransmission, which is disrupted in schizophrenia, have been characterized in terms of their effects on memory, attention, social cognition and IQ as measured by a neuropsychological test battery and significant effects in two polymorphisms were found across global IQ domain of the test battery.

Keywords: cognition, dopamine, GWAS, nicotine, schizophrenia, SNPs

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Authors: Abdreheman Seid Abdella

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This study examined instructors willingness, self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes and knowledge about provisions of instructional accommodations for students with disabilities in universities. Major concepts used in this study operationally defined and some models of disability were reviewed. Questionnaires were distributed to a total of 181 instructors from four universities and quantitative data was generated. Then to analyze the data, appropriate methods of data analysis were employed. The result indicated that on average instructors had positive willingness, strong self-efficacy beliefs and positive attitudes towards providing instructional accommodations. In addition, the result showed that the majority of participants had moderate level of knowledge about provision of instructional accommodations. Concerning the relationship between instructors background variables and dependent variables, the result revealed that location of university and awareness raising training about Inclusive Education showed statistically significant relationship with all dependent variables (willingness, self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes and knowledge). On the other hand, gender and college/faculty did not show a statistically significant relationship. In addition, it was found that among the inter-correlation of dependent variables, the correlation between attitudes and willingness to provide accommodations was the strongest. Furthermore, using multiple linear regression analysis, this study also indicated that predictor variables like self-efficacy beliefs, attitudes, knowledge and teaching methodology training made statistically significant contribution to predicting the criterion willingness. Predictor variables like willingness and attitudes made statistically significant contribution to predicting self-efficacy beliefs. Predictor variables like willingness, Special Needs Education course and self-efficacy beliefs made statistically significant contribution to predict attitudes. Predictor variables like Special Needs Education courses, the location of university and willingness made statistically significant contribution to predicting knowledge. Finally, using exploratory factor analysis, this study showed that there were four components or factors each that represent the underlying constructs of willingness and self-efficacy beliefs to provide instructional accommodations items, five components for attitudes towards providing accommodations items and three components represent the underlying constructs for knowledge about provisions of instructional accommodations items. Based on the findings, recommendations were made for improving the situation of instructional accommodations in Ethiopian universities.

Keywords: willingness, self-efficacy belief, attitude, knowledge

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Authors: H. Mahdavinezhad, M. Labbaf, H. R. Tavakoli

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In recent decades, the study and control of the destructive effects of explosive vibration in construction projects has received more attention, and several experimental equations in the field of vibration prediction as well as allowable vibration limit for various structures are presented. Researchers have developed a number of experimental equations to estimate the peak particle velocity (PPV), in which the experimental constants must be obtained at the site of the explosion by fitting the data from experimental explosions. In this study, the most important of these equations was evaluated for strong massive conglomerates around Dez Dam by collecting data on explosions, including 30 particle velocities, 27 displacements, 27 vibration frequencies and 27 acceleration of earth vibration at different distances; they were recorded in the form of two types of detonation systems, NUNEL and electric. Analysis showed that the data from the explosion had the best correlation with the cube root of the explosive, R2=0.8636, but overall the correlation coefficients are not much different. To estimate the vibration in this project, data regression was performed in the other formats, which resulted in the presentation of new equation with R2=0.904 correlation coefficient. Finally according to the importance of the studied structures in order to ensure maximum non damage to adjacent structures for each diagram, a range of application was defined so that for distances 0 to 70 meters from blast site, exponent n=0.33 and for distances more than 70 m, n =0.66 was suggested.

Keywords: blasting, blast-induced vibration, empirical equations, PPV, tunnel

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Authors: L. Edirisinghe, P. Mukherjee, H. Edirisinghe

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Virtual Container Yard (VCY) is a modern concept that helps to reduce the empty container repositioning cost of carriers. The concept of VCY is based on container interchange between shipping lines. Although this mechanism has been theoretically accepted by the shipping community as a feasible solution, it has not yet achieved the necessary momentum among container shipping lines (CSL). This paper investigates whether there is any legal influence on this industry myopia about the VCY. It is believed that this is the first publication that focuses on the legal aspects of container exchange between carriers. Not much literature on this subject is available. This study establishes with statistical evidence that there is a phobia prevailing in the shipping industry that exchanging containers with other carriers may lead to various legal implications. The complexity of exchange is two faceted. CSLs assume that offering a container to another carrier (obviously, a competitor in terms of commercial context) or using a container offered by another carrier may lead to undue legal implications. This research reveals that this fear is reflected through four types of perceived components, namely: shipping associate; warehouse associate; network associate; and trading associate. These components carry eighteen subcomponents that comprehensively cover the entire process of a container shipment. The statistical explanation has been supported through regression analysis; INCO terms were used to illustrate the shipping process.

Keywords: virtual container yard, legal, maritime law, inventory

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Authors: Amit G. Dhorde

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It is now well established that the global surface air temperatures have increased significantly during the period that followed the industrial revolution. One of the main predictions of climate change is that the occurrences of extreme weather events will increase in future. In many regions of the world, high-temperature extremes have already started occurring with rising frequency. The main objective of the present study is to understand spatial and temporal changes in days with heat and cold wave conditions over southern India. The study area includes the region of India that lies to the south of Tropic of Cancer. To fulfill the objective, daily maximum and minimum temperature data for 80 stations were collected for the period 1969-2006 from National Data Center of India Meteorological Department. After assessing the homogeneity of data, 62 stations were finally selected for the study. Heat and cold waves were classified as slight, moderate and severe based on the criteria given by Indias' meteorological department. For every year, numbers of days experiencing heat and cold wave conditions were computed. This data was analyzed with linear regression to find any existing trend. Further, the time period was divided into four decades to investigate the decadal frequency of the occurrence of heat and cold waves. The results revealed that the average annual temperature over southern India shows an increasing trend, which signifies warming over this area. Further, slight cold waves during winter season have been decreasing at the majority of the stations. The moderate cold waves also show a similar pattern at the majority of the stations. This is an indication of warming winters over the region. Besides this analysis, other extreme indices were also analyzed such as extremely hot days, hot days, very cold nights, cold nights, etc. This analysis revealed that nights are becoming warmer and days are getting warmer over some regions too.

Keywords: heat wave, cold wave, southern India, decadal frequency

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Authors: Nahid Ehsani, Amir Hossein Rezvanfar

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The main objective of this study is to investigate psychological and socio-cultural factors effective on the tendency of the villagers to use e-banking services. The current paper is an applied study considering its objectives. The main data gathering tool in the current study is a made questionnaire which is designed and executed based on the conceptual background of the subject matter and the objectives and hypotheses of the study. The statistical population of this study includes all the customers of rural branches of Agricultural Bank in Ilam Province (N=82885). Among these 120 participants were chosen through sample size determination formula and they were studied using stratified random sampling method. In the analytical statistics level the results obtained from calculating Spearman’s Correlative Coefficient showed that socio-cultural and psychological factors had a significant impact of the extent of the tendency of the villagers to use e-banking services of the Agricultural Bank at the 99% level. Furthermore, stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that both sets of psychological factors as well as socio-economic factors were able to explain 50 percent of the variance of the independent variable; namely the tendency of villagers to use e-banking services.

Keywords: e-banking, agricultural bank, tendency, socio-economic factors, psychological factors

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Authors: Motlatso Rampedi

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Nigeria has the fifth highest Total Fertility Rate in Sub-Saharan Africa at 5.5 children born to a woman. Some demographic research has found that there is an association between region of residence and fertility in Nigeria, with the Northern regions pertaining to high fertility and the Southern regions pertaining to low fertility levels. Even so, little attention has been given to understanding the effect of region of residence on fertility. Instead, a significant amount of research has been conducted on exploring the proximate determinants of fertility in Nigeria. The objective of this study was to test whether there is an association between region of residence and fertility in Nigeria. Using a sample size of 38 948 women aged 15-49 derived from the 2013 NDHS and the Poisson regression model for analysis, the study has found that region of residence has a significant effect on fertility. Moreover, the ANOVA test has shown that there is a socioeconomic disparity by region of residence in Nigeria. The Northern regions of Nigeria have shown to have higher levels of fertility as compared to the Southern regions. Therefore, while proximate determinants of fertility and socio-demographic characteristics of women are important, region of residence remains one of the fundamental determinants of fertility. Given these findings, it is recommended that government should not exhaust its resources or focus its fertility reduction policies and programmes at entire populations but target specific regions where fertility is most prevalent.

Keywords: high fertility, region, socioeconomic disparity, socio-demographic characteristics

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Authors: Mustafa Gok, Sair Kahraman, Mustafa Fener

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In rock engineering applications, determining uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), Brazilian tensile strength (BTS), and basic index properties such as density, porosity, and water absorption is crucial for the design of both underground and surface structures. However, obtaining reliable samples for direct testing, especially from rocks that weather quickly and have low strength, is often challenging. In such cases, indirect methods provide a practical alternative to estimate the physical and mechanical properties of these rocks. In this study, tuff samples collected from the Cappadocia region (Nevşehir) in Turkey were subjected to indirect testing methods. Over 100 tests were conducted, using needle penetrometer index (NPI), point load strength index (PLI), and disc shear index (BPI) to estimate the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), Brazilian tensile strength (BTS), density, and water absorption index of the tuffs. The relationships between the results of these indirect tests and the target physical properties were evaluated using simple and multiple regression analyses. The findings of this research reveal strong correlations between the indirect methods and the mechanical properties of the tuffs. Both uniaxial compressive strength and Brazilian tensile strength could be accurately predicted using NPI, PLI, and BPI values. The regression models developed in this study allow for rapid, cost-effective assessments of tuff strength in cases where direct testing is impractical. These results are particularly valuable for geological engineering applications, where time and resource constraints exist. This study highlights the significance of using indirect methods as reliable predictors of the mechanical behavior of weak rocks like tuffs. Further research is recommended to explore the application of these methods to other rock types with similar characteristics. Further research is required to compare the results with those of established direct test methods.

Keywords: brazilian tensile strength, disc shear strength, indirect methods, tuffs, uniaxial compressive strength

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Authors: Jameson McFarlane, Thorne J. McFarlane, Leon Bernard

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Social network sites (SNS) is an emerging phenomenon that is here to stay. The popularity and the ubiquity of the SNS technology are undeniable. Because most SNS are free and easy to use people from all walks of life and from almost any age are attracted to that technology. College age students are by far the largest segment of the population using SNS. Since most SNS have been adapted for mobile devices, not only do you find students using this technology in their study, while working on labs or on projects, a substantial number of students have been found to use SNS even while listening to lectures. This study found that SNS use has a significant negative impact on the grade point average of college students particularly in the first semester. However, this negative impact is greatly diminished by the end of the third semester partly because the students have adjusted satisfactorily to the challenges of college or because they have learned how to adequately manage their time. It was established that the kinds of activities the students are engaged in during the SNS use are the leading factor affecting academic performance. Of those activities, using SNS during a lecture or while studying is the foremost contributing factor to lower academic performance. This is due to “cognitive” or “information” bottleneck, a condition in which the students find it very difficult to multitask or to switch between resources leading to inefficiency in information retention and thus, educational performance.

Keywords: social network sites, social network analysis, regression coefficient, psychological engagement

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Authors: Muhammad Kashif

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The primary aim of this paper is to investigate the influence of financial technology (FinTech) on sustainable finance. The sample for this study spans from 2010 to 2021, encompassing data from 89 countries worldwide. The study employed two-stage least squares (2SLS) regression approach with the instrumental variables and validated the findings using a two-step system generalized method of moments (GMM). The findings indicate that fintech has a significant favorable impact on sustainable finance. While other factors such as institutional quality, socio-economic condition, and renewable energy have a significant and beneficial influence on the trajectory of sustainable finance, except globalization's impact is positive but insignificant. Furthermore, fintech is crucial in driving the transition toward a sustainable future characterized by a lower carbon economy. The study found that fintech has extensive application across various sectors of sustainable finance and has substantial potential to create long-term positive effects on sustainable finance. Fintech can integrate extensively with other technologies to facilitate diversified growth in sustainable finance. Additionally, this study highlights fintech-related trends and research opportunities in sustainable finance, showing how these can promote each other worldwide with important policy implications for countries looking to advance sustainable finance through technology.

Keywords: sustainable development goals (SDGs), financial technology (FinTech), genuine savings index (GSI), financial stability index, sustainable finance

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Authors: Samaneh Nadali, Masrah Azrifah Azmi Murad, Nurfadhlina Mohammad Sharef

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Sarcasm is a common phenomenon in social media which is a nuanced form of language for stating the opposite of what is implied. Due to the intentional ambiguity, analysis of sarcasm is a difficult task not only for a machine but even for a human. Although sarcasm detection has an important effect on sentiment, it is usually ignored in social media analysis because sarcasm analysis is too complicated. While there is a few systems exist which can detect sarcasm, almost no work has been carried out on a study and the review of the existing work in this area. This survey presents a nearly full image of sarcasm detection techniques and the related fields with brief details. The main contributions of this paper include the illustration of the recent trend of research in the sarcasm analysis and we highlight the gaps and propose a new framework that can be explored.

Keywords: sarcasm detection, sentiment analysis, social media, sarcasm analysis

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Authors: Ignatius Madu

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The study aims at assessing the environmental and socioeconomic determinants of climate change resilience in rural Nigeria. This is necessary because researches and development efforts on building climate change resilience of rural areas in developing countries are usually made without the knowledge of the impacts of the inherent rural characteristics that determine resilient capacities of the households. This has, in many cases, led to costly mistakes, delayed responses, inaccurate outcomes, and other difficulties. Consequently, this assessment becomes crucial not only to policymakers and people living in risk-prone environments in rural areas but also to fill the research gap. To achieve the aim, secondary data were obtained from the Annual Abstract of Statistics 2017, LSMS-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture and General Household Survey Panel 2015/2016, and National Agriculture Sample Survey (NASS), 2010/2011.Resilience was calculated by weighting and adding the adaptive, absorptive and anticipatory measures of households variables aggregated at state levels and then regressed against rural environmental and socioeconomic characteristics influencing it. From the regression, the coefficients of the variables were used to compute the impacts of the variables using the Stochastic Regression of Impacts on Population, Affluence and Technology (STIRPAT) Model. The results showed that the northern States are generally low in resilient indices and are impacted less by the development indicators. The major determining factors are percentage of non-poor, environmental protection, road transport development, landholding, agricultural input, population density, dependency ratio (inverse), household asserts, education and maternal care. The paper concludes that any effort to a successful resilient building in rural areas of the country should first address these key factors that enhance rural development and wellbeing since it is better to take action before shocks take place.

Keywords: climate change resilience; spatial impacts; STIRPAT model; Nigeria

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Authors: Shinoy Vengaramkode Bhaskaran, Kaushik Sathupadi, Sandesh Achar

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Human locomotion recognition is important in a variety of sectors, such as robotics, security, healthcare, fitness tracking and cloud computing. With the increasing pervasiveness of peripheral devices, particularly Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) sensors, researchers have attempted to exploit these advancements in order to precisely and efficiently identify and categorize human activities. This research paper introduces a state-of-the-art methodology for the recognition of human locomotion patterns in a cloud environment. The methodology is based on a publicly available benchmark dataset. The investigation implements a denoising and windowing strategy to deal with the unprocessed data. Next, feature extraction is adopted to abstract the main cues from the data. The SelectKBest strategy is used to abstract optimal features from the data. Furthermore, state-of-the-art ML classifiers are used to evaluate the performance of the system, including logistic regression, random forest, gradient boosting and SVM have been investigated to accomplish precise locomotion classification. Finally, a detailed comparative analysis of results is presented to reveal the performance of recognition models.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, cloud computing, IoT, human locomotion, gradient boosting, random forest, neural networks, body-worn sensors

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Authors: Shi Yu, Rong Liu, Jingyun Lv

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Compression textiles with ergonomic-fit and controllable pressure performance have demonstrated positive effect on prevention and treatment of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI). Well-designed compression textile products contribute to improving user compliance in their daily application. This study explored the effects of multiple knitting variables (yarn-machinery settings) on the physical-mechanical properties and the produced pressure magnitudes of tubular compression fabrics (TCFs) through experimental testing and multiple regression modeling. The results indicated that fabric physical (stitch densities and circumference) and mechanical (tensile) properties were affected by the linear density (yarn diameters) of inlay yarns, which, to some extent, influenced pressure magnitudes of the TCFs. Knitting variables (e.g., feeding velocity of inlay yarns and loop size settings) can alter circumferences and tensile properties of tubular fabrics, respectively, and significantly varied pressure values of the TCFs. This study enhanced the understanding of the effects of knitting factors on pressure controlling of TCFs, thus facilitating dimension and pressure design of compression textiles in future development.

Keywords: laid-in knitted fabric, yarn-machinery settings, pressure magnitudes, quantitative analysis, compression textiles

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Authors: Morteza Naderi

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The Persian fallow deer was considered as a globally extinct species until 1956 when a small population was rediscovered from Dez Wildlife Refuge and Karkheh Wildlife Refuge in southwestern parts of Iran. After long species rehabilitation process, the species was transplanted to Dasht-e-Naz Wildlife Refuge in northern Iran, and from where, follow deer was introduced to the different selected habitats such as Ashk Island in Lake Uromiyeh National Park. During 12 years, (from 1978 to 1989) 58 individuals (25 males and 33 females) were transferred to Ask Island. The main threat to the established population was related to the freshwater shortage and existing just one single trough such as high mortality rate of adult males during rutting season, snake biting and dilutional hyponatremia. Desiccation of Lake Uromiyeh in recent years raised new challenges to the conservation process, as about 80 individuals, nearly one third of the population were died in 2011. Connection of Island to the mainland caused predators’ accessibility (such as wolf and Jackal) to the Ask Island and higher mortality because of follow deer attraction to the surrounding mainland farms. Conservation team faced such new challenges that may cause introduction plan to be probably failed. Investigations about habitat affinities and carrying capacity are the main basic researches in the management and conservation of the species. Logistic regression analysis showed that the presence of the different fresh water resources as well as Allium akaka and Pistacia atlantica are the main environmental variables affect Follow deer habitat selection. Habitat carrying capacity analysis both in summer and winter seasons indicated that Ashk Island can support 240±30 of Persian follow deer.

Keywords: carrying capacity, follow deer, lake Uromiyeh, microhabitat affinities, population oscillation, predation, sex ratio

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Authors: Oluwatayo Abioye, Anthony Okoh

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In the past view decades; human has experienced outbreaks of infections caused by pathogenic Vibrio spp which are commonly found in aquatic milieu. Asides the well-known Vibrio cholerae, discovery of other pathogens in this genus has been on the increase. While the dynamics of occurrence and distribution of Vibrio spp have been linked to some physicochemical parameters in salt water, data in relation to fresh water is limited. Hence, two rivers of importance in the Eastern Cape, South Africa were selected for this study. In all, eleven sampling sites were systematically identified and relevant physicochemical parameters, as well as Vibrio spp density, were determined for the period of six months using standard instruments and methods. Results were statistically analysed to determined key physicochemical parameters that determine the density of Vibrio spp in the selected rivers. Results: The density of Vibrio spp in all the sampling points ranges between < 1 CFU/mL to 174 x 10-2 CFU/mL. The physicochemical parameters of some of the sampling points were above the recommended standards. The regression analysis showed that Vibrio density in the selected rivers depends on a complex relationship between various physicochemical parameters. Conclusion: This study suggests that Vibrio spp density in fresh water does not depend on only temperature and salinity as suggested by earlier studies on salt water but rather on a complex relationship between several physicochemical parameters.

Keywords: vibrio density, physicochemical properties, pathogen, aquatic milieu

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Authors: Sennanda Musa, Ahmed Mutunzi Kitunzi, Gerald Kasigwa, Ismail Kintu

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This paper is an analysis of the empirical relationship between project financing by Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the poverty trends in the context of countries benefiting from IsDB. Specifically, the study seeks to find out whether there is a statistically significant relationship between the project financing dollar amounts by IsDB (PF) and the GNI Per Capita, PPP of 57 countries for the years 2002 to 2021. The research is a longitudinal, desk-top triangulation of correlation, regression, hypothesis-testing employing the linear dynamic panel data GMM model as an estimator of the empirical relationships between the key variables of the study. The study results show that there is a significant positive relationship between the PF dollar amounts from the IsDB and the GNI Per Capita, PPP in these 57 countries. Therefore, countries that receive higher PF dollar amounts from the IsDB, generally have more GNI Per Capita, PPP (less poverty) than their counterparts. It is, therefore, recommendable for countries to formulate policies that facilitate Islamically financed projects to mitigate poverty. This paper develops policy discussions regarding allocation of political attention to the policy topics on poverty mitigation, and their relation to financing projects Islamically, thus generate information on policy choices regarding the Islamic financing alternative.

Keywords: gross-national-income, IsDB-project-financing, public policy, poverty

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Authors: Chetsada Noknoi

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The acceptance of Y series refers to the willingness and enjoyment of watching Y series without feeling different from general series. This occurs when people watch Y series and derive happiness and entertainment from it. The viewing experience has the most significant impact on Y series acceptance. This research aims to 1) investigate the levels of acceptance of sexual diversity, image of Y series Actors, media exposure, and Y series acceptance among the residents in three southern border provinces of Thailand, and 2) examine how acceptance of sexual diversity, actor perceptions in Y series, and media exposure influence Y series acceptance in these provinces. The sample consisted of 322 participants from the three southern border provinces of Thailand. The research instrument used was a questionnaire, and data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and multiple regression analysis. The findings revealed that overall, acceptance of sexual diversity, Image of Y series Actors, and Y series acceptance among the residents in three southern border provinces of Thailand were at a high level, while media exposure was moderate overall. However, the two factors that had the most significant impact on Y series acceptance in these provinces, ranked from highest to lowest influence, were media exposure and acceptance of sexual diversity. Both of these factors had a positive effect on Y series acceptance among the residents in three southern border provinces of Thailand. Collectively, these factors accounted for 40.7% of the variance in Y series acceptance among the residents in three southern border provinces of Thailand.

Keywords: acceptance, acceptance of sexual diversity, image of Y series actors, media exposure, Y series

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Authors: Melek Göregenli, Pelin Karakuş

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This present study explored the acculturation strategies and urban related identity of Turk and Kurd internal migrants from different regions of Turkey who resettled in three big cities in the west. Besides we aimed at a comparative analysis of acculturation strategies and urban-related identity of voluntary and internally displaced Kurd migrants. Particularly we explored the role of migration type, satisfaction with migration decision, urban-related identity and several socio demographic variables as predictors of Kurds’ integration strategy preference. The sample consisted of 412 adult participants from Izmir (64 females, 86 males); Ankara (76 females, 75 males); and Istanbul (43 females, 64 males and four unreported). In terms of acculturation strategies, assimilation was found to be the most preferred acculturation attitude among Turks whereas separation was found to be most endorsed acculturation attitude among Kurds. The migrants in Izmir were found to prefer assimilation whereas the migrants in Ankara prefer separation. Concerning urban-related identity mean scores, Turks reported higher urban-related identity scores than Kurds. Furthermore the internal migrants in Izmir were found to score higher in urban-related identity than the migrants living in Istanbul and Ankara. The results of the regression analysis revealed that gender, length of residence and migration type were the significant predictors of integration preference of Kurds. Thus, whereas gender and migration type had significant negative associations; length of residence had positive significant associations with Kurds integration preference. Compared to female Kurds, male Kurds were found to be more integrated. Furthermore, voluntary Kurd migrants were more favour of integration than internally displaced Kurds. The findings supported the significant associations between acculturation strategies and urban-related identity with either group.

Keywords: acculturation, forced migration, internal displacement, internal migration, Turkey, urban-related identity

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Authors: Bharti Singh, Shri K. Singh

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Child malnutrition is a multifaceted issue that transcends geographical boundaries. Malnutrition not only stunts physical growth but also leads to a spectrum of morbidities and child mortality. It is one of the leading causes of death (~50 %) among children under age five. Despite economic progress and advancements in healthcare, child malnutrition remains a formidable challenge for India. The objective is to investigate the impact of women's empowerment on child nutrition outcomes in India from 2006 to 2021. A composite index of women's empowerment was constructed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), a rigorous technique that validates the measurement model by assessing how well-observed variables represent latent constructs. This approach ensures the reliability and validity of the empowerment index. Secondly, kernel density plots were utilised to visualise the distribution of key nutritional indicators, such as stunting, wasting, and overweight. These plots offer insights into the shape and spread of data distributions, aiding in understanding the prevalence and severity of malnutrition. Thirdly, linear polynomial graphs were employed to analyse how nutritional parameters evolved with the child's age. This technique enables the visualisation of trends and patterns over time, allowing for a deeper understanding of nutritional dynamics during different stages of childhood. Lastly, multilevel analysis was conducted to identify vulnerable levels, including State-level, PSU-level, and household-level factors impacting undernutrition. This approach accounts for hierarchical data structures and allows for the examination of factors at multiple levels, providing a comprehensive understanding of the determinants of child malnutrition. Overall, the utilisation of these statistical methodologies enhances the transparency and replicability of the study by providing clear and robust analytical frameworks for data analysis and interpretation. Our study reveals that NFHS-4 and NFHS-5 exhibit an equal density of severely stunted cases. NFHS-5 indicates a limited decline in wasting among children aged five, while the density of severely wasted children remains consistent across NFHS-3, 4, and 5. In 2019-21, women with higher empowerment had a lower risk of their children being undernourished (Regression coefficient= -0.10***; Confidence Interval [-0.18, -0.04]). Gender dynamics also play a significant role, with male children exhibiting a higher susceptibility to undernourishment. Multilevel analysis suggests household-level vulnerability (intra-class correlation=0.21), highlighting the need to address child undernutrition at the household level.

Keywords: child nutrition, India, NFHS, women’s empowerment

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Authors: A. Lianah, B. Peter Sopade, C. Krisantini

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Walikadep/Tetrastigma glabratum (Blume) Planch is a traditional herb that has been used by people of Blumah village; it is believed to have a stimulant effect and ailments for many illnesses. Our survey demonstrated that the people of Blumah village has exploited walikadep from Protected Forest of Mount Prau. More than 10% of 448 households at Blumah village have used walikadep as traditional herb or jamu. Part of the walikadep plants used is the liquid extract of the stem. The population of walikadep is getting scarce and it is rarely found now. The objectives of this study are to examine the stimulant effect of walikadep, to measure growth and exploitation rate of walikadep, and to find ways to effectively propagate the plants, as well as identifying the impact on the environment through field experiments and explorative survey. Stimulant effect was tested using open-field and hole-board test. Data were collected through field observation and experiment, and data were analysed using lab test and Anova. Rate of exploitation and plant growth was measured using Regression analysis; comparison of plant growth in-situ and ex-situ used descriptive analysis. The environmental impact was measured by population structure vegetation analysis method by Shannon Weinner. The study revealed that the walikadep exudates did not have a stimulant effect. Exploitation of walikadep and the long time required to reach harvestable size resulted in the scarcity of the plant in the natural habitat. Plant growth was faster in-situ than ex-situ; and fast growth was obtained from middle part cuttings treated with vermicompost. Biodiversity index after exploitation was higher than before exploitation, possibly due to the toxic and allellopathic effect (phenolics) of the plant. Based on these findings, further research is needed to examine the toxic effects of the leave and stem extract of walikadep and their allelopathic effects. We recommend that people of Blumah village to stop using walikadep as the stimulant. The local people, village government in the regional and central levels, and perhutani should do an integrated efforts to conserve walikadep through Pengamanan Terpadu Konservasi Walikadep Lestari (PTKWL) program, so this population of this plant in the natural habitat can be maintained.

Keywords: utilization, medical plants, traditional, Tetastigma glabratum

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Authors: Snezana Mugosa, Zoran Todorovic, Zoran Bukumiric, Ivan Radosavljevic, Natasa Djordjevic

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Introduction: Various studies have shown that the frequency of clopidogrel resistance ranges from 4-40%. The aim of this study was to provide in depth analysis of genetic and non-genetic factors that influence clopidogrel resistance in cardiology patients. Methods: We have conducted a prospective study in 200 hospitalized patients hospitalized at Cardiology Centre of the Clinical Centre of Montenegro. CYP2C19 genetic testing was conducted, and the PREDICT score was calculated in 102 out of 200 patients treated with clopidogrel in order to determine the influence of genetic and non-genetic factors on outcomes of interest. Adverse cardiovascular events and adverse reactions to clopidogrel were assessed during 12 months follow up period. Results: PREDICT score and CYP2C19 enzymatic activity were found to be statistically significant predictors of expressing lack of therapeutic efficacy of clopidogrel by multivariate logistic regression, without multicollinearity or interaction between the predictors (p = 0.002 and 0.009, respectively). Conclusions: Pharmacogenetics analyses that were done in the Montenegrin population of patients for the first time suggest that these analyses can predict patient response to the certain therapy. Stepwise approach could be used in assessing the clopidogrel resistance in cardiology patients, combining the PREDICT score, platelet aggregation test, and genetic testing for CYP2C19 polymorphism.

Keywords: clopidogrel, pharmacogenetics, pharmacotherapy, PREDICT score

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Authors: Eda Orhun

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This paper studies how the financial performance of North American and global banks has changed after the COVID-19 crisis by comparing the banks’ financial ratios of the first and second quarters of 2020 to the first and second quarters of 2019. The results confirm that the profitability and efficiency ratios of North American banks have significantly declined in 2020 after the outbreak of COVID-19. On the other hand, the real effects of the COVID-19 crisis became more evident in the second quarter for global banks, with a significant decrease in profitability and efficiency (ATO) ratio despite no significant changes in the first quarter. Finally, the paper performs a regression analysis of whether the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has a significant effect on the observed changes in the financial ratios. The results show that the number of COVID-19 cases is a significant determinant of the observed changes in the profitability, efficiency and Tier 1 capital ratios of banks in the first quarter of 2020. The higher number of confirmed cases in the banks’ home country leads to a deterioration in these specific ratios. Similar results hold in the second quarter as well, and the number of COVID-19 cases start to have an impact on a wider range of risk ratios, including EM, TLE and CAPSTAR, in the second quarter of 2020, indicating an increase in risk levels due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Keywords: COVID-19, bank performance, financial ratios, risk level, efficiency, profitability

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Authors: Mohammad Aynal Haque

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Under the international cooperation — Paris Agreement — countries outline their self-determined policy ambition for emissions reduction in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) as a key to addressing climate change globally. Although practically all countries commit themselves to reach the Paris landmark (below 20 C) globally, some act as climate leaders, others behave as followers, and others turn out to be climate laggards. As a result, there is a substantial variation in ‘emissions reduction targets’ across countries. Thus, a question emerges: What explains this variation? Or why do some countries opt for higher while others opt for lower ‘emissions reduction targets toward global mitigation efforts? Conceptualizing the ‘emissions reduction targets by 2030’ outlined in NDCs by each country as the climate policy ambition (CPA), this paper explores how certain national political, economic, environmental, and external factors play vital roles in determining climate policy ambition. Based on the cross-country regression analysis among 168 countries, this study finds that democracy, vulnerability to climate change effects, and foreign direct investment have substantial effects on CPA. The paper also finds that resource capacity has a minimal negative effect on CPA across developed countries.

Keywords: climate change, Paris agreement, international cooperation, political economy, environmental politics, NDCs

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Authors: Shuai Liu

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In corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting, companies are expected to present both the positive and negative parts of the social and environmental impacts of their performance. This study investigates how the companies that listed in fortune 500 respond to this challenge by analyzing the representations of negative part especially the safety performance. It has found that in the level of genre analysis, it presented 3 major moves and 11 steps in terms of the interdiscursivity analysis. It was made up of three dominant discourse.. The study calls for greater focus on the internal and external analysis of the negative aspect of aspects of companies’ self-disclosure.

Keywords: CSR reports, negative parts, critical genre analysis, interdiscursivity

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Authors: S. Umar, B. F. Umar

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This study was conducted at Giron Masa village, located 30 km from Yauri town. The study determines the socio-economic factors influencing the use of coping strategies among farmers and herders during post-conflict situation. Simple random sampling was employed to select one hundred respondents (50 farmers and 50 herders) from the study area. Logistic regression analysis (LR) was used to ascertain the socioeconomic variables that influenced the use of the coping strategies. The results of the study shows that age, income, family size and farming experience were individually significant and thus influenced the use of POCS by farmers. Annual income and production system influenced the use of POCS by herders. Age, farm size and farming experience were found to be individually significant in influencing the use of EOCS among farmers. Specifically, years of occupation experience among the herders increased the use of emotion oriented coping strategies among herders. The use of SSCS among farmers was influenced by educational level; farm size and farming experience, while the variables are not collectively significant in influencing the use of SSCS among the herders. The research recommends a need to adopt the strategy of community coping to cope with stress.

Keywords: farmers, herders, conflict, coping strategies

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Authors: Etienne Sugewe

Abstract:

Purpose: The establishment of a positive HIV serologic status of an individual could have been an inhibitory factor to prevent risk behaviours in people living with HIV/AIDS. We conducted a cross-sectional study in order to assess the prevalence and predictors of risk behaviors among HIV-positive people in Douala-Cameroon. Methods: We used pre-checked questionnaires to systematically collect data from four HIV treatment centers in Douala. This was done to some of them during the distribution of drugs and to others during their classical rendezvous between the months of May and July 2012. The Chi-Square and Student t-test were used for cross tabulation of variables; multiple regression analysis was performed to identify predictors of risky sexual behaviours. Results: Of the 330 persons interviewed, sixty percent were reported to have had sexual intercourse after the diagnosis of HIV. We obtained 37% HIV-positive partners, and 63% had HIV- negative partners or partners with unknown status. Among our patients, 45% of the subjects with regular partners reported to have had anal or vaginal sex. Those whose score on the knowledge about HIV/AIDS was < 50% and where 90% of them were less susceptible to the condom during intercourse (p: 0.01). About 74% of patients on ARV were less susceptible to the use of condoms during sexual intercourse (p: 0.03). Conclusion: Risk sexual behaviours among people living with HIV/AIDS are common and potentially expose their partners. For HIV-positive partners, these habits pose a real risk of suprainfection by other strains of HIV. The need to increase awareness and education among people living with HIV is therefore highly recommended.

Keywords: HIV/AIDS, behaviours, HIV positive, Douala, 2012

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Authors: Maram Elkady

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Purpose: The purpose behind this study is to determine the impact of some factors on achieving successful accounting information systems (AIS) outsourcing in Egypt, taking into account two factors: the selection of an effective accounting service provider and the quality relationships between the client firm and the accounting service provider. The researcher measured outsourcing success through the perceived benefits, including (strategic, technological, and economic benefits). Design/Methodology/Approach: A survey was carried out by means of questionnaires answered by 152 small and medium Egyptian firms outsourcing their accounting activities. The researcher targeted the personnel in the client firms who were in direct contact with the accounting outsourcer. The hypotheses were tested through multiple regression analysis using SPSS 24 and AMOS 22. Findings: Building a quality relationship with the provider is found to have more impact than the effective selection of the AIS provider on the success of the AIS outsourcing process. Originality/Value: The researcher found that some proxies of each success determinant can be more influential than others based on type of benefits perceived from AIS outsourcing (strategic, technological, and economic).

Keywords: accounting information system, AIS, outsourcing, successful outsourcing, AIS service provider selection, relationship with the accounting service provider

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Authors: Abdullah Al Mamoon, Ataur Rahman

Abstract:

Due to climate change, future rainfall will change at many locations on earth; however, the spatial and temporal patterns of this change are not easy to predict. One approach of predicting such future changes is to examine the trends in the historical rainfall data at a given region and use the identified trends to make future prediction. For this, a statistical trend test is commonly applied to the historical data. This paper examines the trends of daily extreme rainfall events from 30 rain gauges located in the State of Qatar. Rainfall data covering from 1962 to 2011 were used in the analysis. A combination of four non-parametric and parametric tests was applied to identify trends at 10%, 5%, and 1% significance levels. These tests are Mann-Kendall (MK), Spearman’s Rho (SR), Linear Regression (LR) and CUSUM tests. These tests showed both positive and negative trends throughout the country. Only eight stations showed positive (upward) trend, which were however not statistically significant. In contrast, significant negative (downward) trends were found at the 5% and 10% levels of significance in six stations. The MK, SR and LR tests exhibited very similar results. This finding has important implications in the derivation/upgrade of design rainfall for Qatar, which will affect design and operation of future urban drainage infrastructure in Qatar.

Keywords: trends, extreme rainfall, daily rainfall, Mann-Kendall test, climate change, Qatar

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