SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
The digital news preservation and management of low-resource languages are challenging tasks, especially in vast collections. Unique identification of individual digital objects is possible with well-defined attributes to assure efficient management, such as access, retrieval, preservation, usability, and transformability. The metadata element set is required to maximize the available attributes related to the digital objects. To create a comprehensive metadata set that contains all the necessary attributes and data about the digital news objects. It is more challenging and complicated when the archive contains articles from low-resourced and morphologically complex languages like Urdu and Arabic, which is difficult for machines to understand. The study presents challenges in low-resource languages (LRL) and research challenges. This metadata will help to link news articles based on similarity with other news articles stored in the digital news stories archive (DNSA) and ensures accessibility. In this study, we introduced 38 metadata elements set for the digital news stories preservation (DNSP) framework, of which 16 are explicit and 12 are implicit metadata elements. The paper presents how the digital news stories archive (DNSA) is enhanced to a multilingual archive and discusses the digital news stories extractor, which addresses major issues in implementing low-resource languages and facilitates normalized format migration. The extraction results are presented in detail for high-resource languages, that is, English, and low-resource languages (HRL), that is, Urdu and Arabic. The LRL encountered a high error rate during preservation compared to HRL, 10%, and 03%, respectively. The metadata extraction results show that HRL sources support all metadata elements as compared to LRL. The LRL has good support for explicit meta elements and many implicit meta elements with low extraction percentages. The LRL needs a more detailed study for accurate news content extraction and archiving for future access.
Consumers’ Perception of Risk Facets Associated With Fintech Use: Evidence From Pakistan
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
Studies illustrate progress in financial technology in Pakistan; nevertheless, the uncertain obstacle that prevents clients from adopting financial technology remains unclear. The research on the perceived risk, particularly in using financial technology in Pakistan, is limited. Therefore, this research bridges this gap. Two hundred ten members partook in this exploration. We have used the structural equation modeling approach to probe the acquired information and hypothesis. Empirical results show that three of eight perceived risk factors: performance risk, financial risk, and overall risk, have a substantial adverse effect on the intention to utilize financial technology. The highest impact was performance risk, followed by financial risk and overall risk. Whereas the other five risks: social risk, time risk, security risk, legal risk, and psychological risk, statistically have no substantial adverse effect on intent to utilize financial technology. The outcomes help experts better conceptualize and diminish hazard boundaries in planning for the disturbance of financial technology (fintech). Experts are likewise encouraged to focus on fintech’s operational aptitudes and utilitarian framework execution in fintech administrations.
Studies illustrate progress in financial technology in Pakistan; nevertheless, the uncertain obstacle that prevents clients from adopting financial technology remains unclear. The research on the perceived risk, particularly in using financial technology in Pakistan, is limited. Therefore, this research bridges this gap. Two hundred ten members partook in this exploration. We have used the structural equation modeling approach to probe the acquired information and hypothesis. Empirical results show that three of eight perceived risk factors: performance risk, financial risk, and overall risk, have a substantial adverse effect on the intention to utilize financial technology. The highest impact was performance risk, followed by financial risk and overall risk. Whereas the other five risks: social risk, time risk, security risk, legal risk, and psychological risk, statistically have no substantial adverse effect on intent to utilize financial technology. The outcomes help experts better conceptualize and diminish hazard boundaries in planning for the disturbance of financial technology (fintech). Experts are likewise encouraged to focus on fintech’s operational aptitudes and utilitarian framework execution in fintech administrations.
Improving Older Adults’ Functional Health Using the Progressive Stay Strong, Stay Healthy Program
Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
This study assessed the Stay Strong, Stay Healthy (SSSH) level two resistance training program in 406 older adults (69.3 ± 8.1 years). SSSH included 10 exercises completed during 60 minute sessions, which were offered twice weekly for eight weeks. 30-second sit-to-stand (30STS), timed-up-and-go (TUG), flexibility, and balance poses were completed pre/post-SSSH. Paired t-tests with Bonferroni corrections showed the whole group improved 30STS, TUG, flexibility, and total balance scores over time (p < .001). Repeated measures analyses of variance showed both geography and age groups improved 30STS, TUG, flexibility, and total balance scores over time (all time effects p ≤ .039). Independent t-tests showed rural participants improved to a similar or greater absolute extent than their urban neighbors for nearly all measures and all age groups improved to a similar absolute magnitude over time. This study demonstrates SSSH level two improves physical function in older adults and these benefits are similar across geography and age groups.
This study assessed the Stay Strong, Stay Healthy (SSSH) level two resistance training program in 406 older adults (69.3 ± 8.1 years). SSSH included 10 exercises completed during 60 minute sessions, which were offered twice weekly for eight weeks. 30-second sit-to-stand (30STS), timed-up-and-go (TUG), flexibility, and balance poses were completed pre/post-SSSH. Paired t-tests with Bonferroni corrections showed the whole group improved 30STS, TUG, flexibility, and total balance scores over time (p < .001). Repeated measures analyses of variance showed both geography and age groups improved 30STS, TUG, flexibility, and total balance scores over time (all time effects p ≤ .039). Independent t-tests showed rural participants improved to a similar or greater absolute extent than their urban neighbors for nearly all measures and all age groups improved to a similar absolute magnitude over time. This study demonstrates SSSH level two improves physical function in older adults and these benefits are similar across geography and age groups.
Person-Centered Home Care: Exploring Worker-Client Relationships Using an Intersectional and Critical Disability Framework
Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
More research is needed into how “person-centered care” (PCC) manifests in home care (HC) worker-client relationships. Qualitative data were collected at three time points from twelve HC workers and others to better understand how approaches to care shape the pathways of older adult HC clients with chronic conditions in two Canadian health jurisdictions. This paper uses critical disability and intersectionality frameworks to highlight ways in which PCC enables social and instrumental benefits for workers’ and clients. It also exposes difficulties in being flexible and developing interpersonal relationships because of HC policies. Workers also acknowledged risks when trying to prioritize client preferences, sometimes drawing distinctions between reasonable and unreasonable demands. Implications for enhanced training and support for workers around navigating flexibility and boundaries and using a relational approach to PCC are discussed, as are implications for policy-making that protect all parties.
More research is needed into how “person-centered care” (PCC) manifests in home care (HC) worker-client relationships. Qualitative data were collected at three time points from twelve HC workers and others to better understand how approaches to care shape the pathways of older adult HC clients with chronic conditions in two Canadian health jurisdictions. This paper uses critical disability and intersectionality frameworks to highlight ways in which PCC enables social and instrumental benefits for workers’ and clients. It also exposes difficulties in being flexible and developing interpersonal relationships because of HC policies. Workers also acknowledged risks when trying to prioritize client preferences, sometimes drawing distinctions between reasonable and unreasonable demands. Implications for enhanced training and support for workers around navigating flexibility and boundaries and using a relational approach to PCC are discussed, as are implications for policy-making that protect all parties.
Development of the Research Literacy Scale for Teachers
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
Research literacy is essential for teachers to practice their profession based on research-based knowledge. The present study aimed to develop and validate the Research Literacy Scale (RLS) and investigate teachers’ research literacy based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and research utilization models. The data was collected from teachers working in primary and secondary schools for two separate studies. According to the exploratory factor analysis results, a 20-item, four-factor solution emerged: research awareness, attitude toward research, research skills, and research use. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the four-factor model fit the data well, and all items are significant under the relevant factors. The sub-factors of the RLS demonstrated high internal consistency. Measurement invariance tests revealed showed full configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance across gender. Teachers doing research had significantly higher scores on all four dimensions, and those who followed scientific journals had higher scores on the three dimensions except for attitude. As a conclusion RLS has good psychometric features to measure teachers’ research literacy, and variables related to research experience cause a significant difference in research literacy.
Research literacy is essential for teachers to practice their profession based on research-based knowledge. The present study aimed to develop and validate the Research Literacy Scale (RLS) and investigate teachers’ research literacy based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and research utilization models. The data was collected from teachers working in primary and secondary schools for two separate studies. According to the exploratory factor analysis results, a 20-item, four-factor solution emerged: research awareness, attitude toward research, research skills, and research use. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the four-factor model fit the data well, and all items are significant under the relevant factors. The sub-factors of the RLS demonstrated high internal consistency. Measurement invariance tests revealed showed full configural, metric, scalar, and strict invariance across gender. Teachers doing research had significantly higher scores on all four dimensions, and those who followed scientific journals had higher scores on the three dimensions except for attitude. As a conclusion RLS has good psychometric features to measure teachers’ research literacy, and variables related to research experience cause a significant difference in research literacy.
Acceptance Toward Coursera MOOCs Blended Learning: A Mixed Methods View of Vietnamese Higher Education Stakeholders
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
This triangulation mixed methods study employed the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to investigate the factors affecting continuance intention toward Coursera MOOCs blended learning (CMBL) with undergraduate students at a Vietnamese private higher education institution (HEI). IBM AMOS version 24 was employed, with which Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were used to examine the reliability and validity of the data collected from 637 students. Manual coding and thematic analysis of qualitative data collected from 30 interviewees, namely administrators, lecturers, curriculum developers, and students, were also conducted to identify the emerged themes and sub-themes. Content feature, social influence, and perceived usefulness were critical factors influencing the HEI students’ continuance intention to use CMBL. This study makes two significant contributions. First, we contribute to the literature from a theoretical standpoint by comparing factors influencing students’ acceptance of CMBL from critical stakeholders in a higher education institution. Second, our findings have practical implications on increasing undergraduate students’ acceptance of blended learning using MOOCs for the long term, which could provide beneficial pointers for HEIs planning to integrate MOOCs for teaching and learning within the higher education context.
This triangulation mixed methods study employed the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to investigate the factors affecting continuance intention toward Coursera MOOCs blended learning (CMBL) with undergraduate students at a Vietnamese private higher education institution (HEI). IBM AMOS version 24 was employed, with which Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were used to examine the reliability and validity of the data collected from 637 students. Manual coding and thematic analysis of qualitative data collected from 30 interviewees, namely administrators, lecturers, curriculum developers, and students, were also conducted to identify the emerged themes and sub-themes. Content feature, social influence, and perceived usefulness were critical factors influencing the HEI students’ continuance intention to use CMBL. This study makes two significant contributions. First, we contribute to the literature from a theoretical standpoint by comparing factors influencing students’ acceptance of CMBL from critical stakeholders in a higher education institution. Second, our findings have practical implications on increasing undergraduate students’ acceptance of blended learning using MOOCs for the long term, which could provide beneficial pointers for HEIs planning to integrate MOOCs for teaching and learning within the higher education context.
The Effect of Firm-Specific Environmental Punishment on Stock Price Crash Risk: Evidence From China
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
Even though previous studies have investigated the effect of environmental regulation policy on stock price crash risk, little is known about how the firm-specific environmental punishment would impact stock price crash risks. By applying difference-in-difference method with manually collected firm-specific environmental punishment data for the listed firms in China, our study finds that the implemented environmental punishment leads to larger stock price crash risk accumulation of the punished firms. This effect can be mitigated by better information disclosure behavior, higher media reputation, healthy fundamentals, and optimal capital structure. Our study also finds the consecutive punishment effect only exists in a long period. Our work is among the first to rigorously analyze the effect of firm-specific environmental punishment on firm’s stock price crash risk. This research provides relevant policy suggestions on the environmental punishment practice.
Even though previous studies have investigated the effect of environmental regulation policy on stock price crash risk, little is known about how the firm-specific environmental punishment would impact stock price crash risks. By applying difference-in-difference method with manually collected firm-specific environmental punishment data for the listed firms in China, our study finds that the implemented environmental punishment leads to larger stock price crash risk accumulation of the punished firms. This effect can be mitigated by better information disclosure behavior, higher media reputation, healthy fundamentals, and optimal capital structure. Our study also finds the consecutive punishment effect only exists in a long period. Our work is among the first to rigorously analyze the effect of firm-specific environmental punishment on firm’s stock price crash risk. This research provides relevant policy suggestions on the environmental punishment practice.
Public Willingness to Pay for an Entrance Fee to National Elephant Conservation Center (NECC), Peninsular Malaysia
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
Wildlife especially large mammals such as elephants are an important part of an ecosystem providing various ecological functions and services, although they are often involved in human-wildlife conflict. The National Elephant Conservation Center (NECC) in the Pahang state of Peninsular Malaysia was established to ensure that the survival of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) in Peninsular Malaysia through direct management, as well as educational and public awareness activities. However, no entrance fee has been imposed since the establishment of the center in 1989 (32 years). This study aimed to determine public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC. By using the open-ended contingent valuation method (CVM), the mean public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC during the non-peak season amounted to RM4.65/person/visit whereas it was RM7.09/person/visit during the peak season. The study would serve as a reference for entrance fee implementation for a conservation center as a form of financial aid to sustain the center as well as highlight the importance of public engagement in elephant conservation.
Wildlife especially large mammals such as elephants are an important part of an ecosystem providing various ecological functions and services, although they are often involved in human-wildlife conflict. The National Elephant Conservation Center (NECC) in the Pahang state of Peninsular Malaysia was established to ensure that the survival of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) in Peninsular Malaysia through direct management, as well as educational and public awareness activities. However, no entrance fee has been imposed since the establishment of the center in 1989 (32 years). This study aimed to determine public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC. By using the open-ended contingent valuation method (CVM), the mean public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC during the non-peak season amounted to RM4.65/person/visit whereas it was RM7.09/person/visit during the peak season. The study would serve as a reference for entrance fee implementation for a conservation center as a form of financial aid to sustain the center as well as highlight the importance of public engagement in elephant conservation.
Measuring Child Labor in Oil Palm Production in Sabah, Malaysia
SAGE Open, Volume 13, Issue 4, October-December 2023.
Can we measure child labor? It may sound simple and a classic question to ask, but scholarly discourse continues to raise doubts about how best to measure it accurately, at what level of measurement, and how to differentiate between child labor and a range of almost similar terms such as children assisting parents and working children. In this article, as part of our long-term research project in oil palm production in Sabah (Malaysia), we attempt to measure child labor focusing on four domains, (i) children’s involvement in oil palm activities; (ii) time spent in performing such activities; (iii) types of activities; and (iv) time spent on the learning and undertaking recreational activities. To better understand their involvement in oil palm activities, further analysis is undertaken from four social lenses: gender, age, identity, and education. Our overall findings indicate that while there is a clear conceptual difference and practice between children assisting parents and working children, it is challenging to distinguish between working children and child labor. Instead, most of our child respondents categorized as working children fall within the broader definition of child labor. Given the complex interplay between local contexts and root causes that create conditions of child labor, this article highlights the urgency to refresh scholarly discourse and the way we understand and measure child labor.
Can we measure child labor? It may sound simple and a classic question to ask, but scholarly discourse continues to raise doubts about how best to measure it accurately, at what level of measurement, and how to differentiate between child labor and a range of almost similar terms such as children assisting parents and working children. In this article, as part of our long-term research project in oil palm production in Sabah (Malaysia), we attempt to measure child labor focusing on four domains, (i) children’s involvement in oil palm activities; (ii) time spent in performing such activities; (iii) types of activities; and (iv) time spent on the learning and undertaking recreational activities. To better understand their involvement in oil palm activities, further analysis is undertaken from four social lenses: gender, age, identity, and education. Our overall findings indicate that while there is a clear conceptual difference and practice between children assisting parents and working children, it is challenging to distinguish between working children and child labor. Instead, most of our child respondents categorized as working children fall within the broader definition of child labor. Given the complex interplay between local contexts and root causes that create conditions of child labor, this article highlights the urgency to refresh scholarly discourse and the way we understand and measure child labor.
Exploring social cognition in individuals with neuropsychiatric symptoms following acquired brain injury
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