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The key purpose of this study is to systematically examine the landscape of education research funded by the National Plan of Educational Research Funding (NPERF) in China. The study aims to: (1) identify the thematic focus areas that reflect the national education agenda, (2) analyze the general funding patterns of education research projects and (3) gain insights into the distinctive nature of the research agenda in China. The study employs a rigorous data-driven approach to offer valuable insights into the dynamic discourses within the field of education research in China, which has received relatively little attention despite its potential significance.

In this study, we utilized word co-occurrence analysis and corpus-based frequency analysis to analyze the research projects funded by the National Plan of Educational Research Funding (NPERF) from 2011 to 2020.

The key characteristics of these projects highlight the focus on higher education research, addressing the interests of specific cohorts of students, teachers and disadvantaged populations. Furthermore, these projects demonstrate a remarkable responsiveness to the policy needs of the country and a robust inclination toward an international comparative framework.

The findings offer valuable insights into the landscape and features of funded education research in China, revealing a strong emphasis on addressing practical needs and enhancing the capacity of the education system in the country.

This paper presents a systematic examination of the topics covered in funded research under the National Plan of Educational Research Funding (NPERF) scheme from 2011 to 2020. It contributes to the advancement of understanding regarding knowledge traditions and practices in the Chinese context. Methodologically, this paper is the first in the literature to be prototyped with a word co-occurrence analysis approach to systematically investigate the funded education research in China. Additionally, it includes the development of a comprehensive corpus list to uncover the key characteristics of the funded projects. The analysis provides unique insights into the priorities and directions of education research supported by the Chinese government, which are of potential interest to international readers.

The practices of sustainable and responsible investment (SRI) among Islamic financial institutions (IFIs) nowadays still rely on the existing environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. However, based on observation, some of the existing criteria listed by the reports of certain authorities and organizations do not seem to be aligned with Shariah principles. Therefore, this study aims to investigate those criteria to help develop Islamic-SRI (i-SRI) criteria based on the ESG concept.

This study adopted the qualitative method via content analysis of documents and interviews with experts.

Based on the analysis, a set of i-SRI criteria is developed based on the ESG concept, of which 33 elements are environmental, 50 elements are social and 26 elements are governance issues. Overall, this study finds that there is no obvious contradiction with the Islamic philosophy in the existing ESG criteria, with the exception of four criteria, i.e. promoting human rights, freedom of expression, freedom of censorship and freedom of association under social criteria. These four existing criteria are not aligned with Islamic teaching and not appropriate with Islamic ESG criteria.

The creation of Islamic ESG criteria can assist relevant authorities to improve the current ESG criteria and to embed an Islamic perspective within it.

This study developed a set of i-SRI criteria, which may be suitable as a source of reference to relevant parties.

Gamification has been constantly demonstrated as an effective mechanism for employee engagement. However, little is known about how gamification reduces cyberloafing and the mechanism by which it affects cyberloafing in the workplace. This study draws inspiration from self-determination and social bonding theories to explain how game dynamics, namely, personalised challenges, social interactivity and progression status, enhance tacit knowledge sharing behaviour, which, in turn, reduces cyberloafing. In addition, the study also examines the negative moderating effect of fear of failure on the positive relationship between game dynamics and tacit knowledge sharing.

Using a sample of 250 employees from information technology organisations, the study employed a 3-wave study to examine the conditional indirect effects.

The results ascertain that tacit knowledge sharing plays a central role in the relationship between gamification and cyberloafing. Further, game dynamics positively influenced tacit knowledge sharing, which in turn reduced cyberloafing. Especially, social interactivity and progression status greatly reduced cyberloafing behaviour when the fear of failure was low.

This study is one of the initial studies that suggest gamification as a progressive tool to reduce workplace cyberloafing behaviours. It utilises a problematisation approach to analyse and criticise the in-house assumptions regarding cyberloafing prevention measures. Further, the study proposes a conceptual model explaining the link between gamification and cyberloafing through alternate assumptions.

This study proposes a novel method utilising a speech-word pair bipartite network to examine the correlation structure between members of parliament (MPs) in the context of the UK- China relationship.

We construct MP-word pair bipartite networks based on the co-occurrence relationship between MPs and words in their speech content. These networks are then mapped into monopartite MPs correlation networks. Additionally, the study calculates correlation network indicators and identifies MP communities and factions to determine the characteristics of MPs and their interrelation in the UK-China relationship. This includes insights into the distribution of key MPs, their correlation structure and the evolution and development trends of MP factions.

Analysis of the parliamentary speeches on China-related affairs in the British Parliament from 2011 to 2020 reveals that the distribution and interrelationship of MPs engaged in UK-China affairs are centralised and discrete, with a few core MPs playing an integral role in the UK-China relationship. Among them, MPs such as Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, David Cameron, Lord Hunt of Chesterton and Lord Howell of Guildford formed factions with significant differences; however, the continuity of their evolution exhibits unstableness. The core MP factions, such as those led by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon and David Cameron, have achieved a level of maturity and exert significant influence.

The research has several limitations that warrant acknowledgement. First, we mapped the MP-word pair bipartite network into the MP correlation network for analysis without directly analysing the structure of MPs based on the bipartite network. In future studies, we aim to explore various types of analysis based on the proposed bipartite networks to provide more comprehensive and accurate references for studying UK-China relations. In addition, we seek to incorporate semantic-level analyses, such as sentiment analysis of MPs, into the MP-word -pair bipartite networks for in-depth analysis. Second, the interpretations of MP structures in the UK-China relationship in this study are limited. Consequently, expertise in UK-China relations should be incorporated to enhance the study and provide more practical recommendations.

Firstly, the findings can contribute to an objective understanding of the characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations, thereby informing adjustments of focus accordingly. The identification of the main factions in the UK-China relationship emphasises the imperative for governments to pay greater attention to these MPs’ speeches and social relationships. Secondly, examining the evolution and development of MP factions aids in identifying a country’s diplomatic focus during different periods. This can assist governments in responding promptly to relevant issues and contribute to the formulation of effective foreign policies.

First, this study expands the research methodology of parliamentary debates analysis in previous studies. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to study the UK-China relationship through the MP-word-pair bipartite network. This outcome inspires future researchers to apply various knowledge networks in the LIS field to elucidate deeper characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations. Second, this study provides a novel perspective for UK-China relationship analysis, which deepens the research object from keywords to MPs. This finding may offer important implications for researchers to further study the role of MPs in the UK-China relationship.

This study proposes a novel scheme for analysing the correlation structure between MPs based on bipartite networks. This approach offers insights into the development and evolving dynamics of MPs.