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This study aims to investigate the impact of job loss on the mental health of individuals in Tunisia during the COVID-19 crisis.

In this research, the authors use the counterfactual decomposition technique and the potential outcome approach. In the first part, the authors calculated mental health indicators for all individuals included in the sample based on the World Health Organization-5 items. The individuals were then grouped into two subpopulations: the first group included those who had lost their jobs and the second group included individuals whose status in the labor market had remained unchanged. In the second part, the authors used the Blinder and Oaxaca decomposition to explain the mean difference in the mental health scores between the two groups and determine the factors contributing to this difference.

The empirical results identified symptoms of depressed mood, decreased energy and loss of interest in several individuals. Based on these three symptoms, the authors were able to classify individuals into three types of depression: mild, moderate and severe. In addition, it appeared that job loss had significantly contributed to the worsening mental health of the individuals.

Although the psychological impact of the COVID-19 outbreak among health-care professionals has been the subject of other studies in health literature on Tunisia, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no research has addressed the impact of job loss on the mental health of Tunisian workers. Thus, this study fills this gap in the literature.

This study aims to identify and discuss influential aspects of accounting education literature in the digital era, such as key streams, themes, authors, keywords, journals, affiliations and countries. It also constructs agendas for future research.

The current study uses a bibliometric approach to analyze 287 studies indexed by the Scopus Database from 1982 to 2023.

The analysis reveals three themes: “the impact of emerging technologies on the accounting profession,” “the essential skills for modern accountants” and “the integration of technology into the accounting curricula.” Beyond this, the analysis points out that Macquarie University and the Queensland University of Technology were the most productive institutions. Furthermore, the leading journal was the Accounting Education Journal. The USA and Australia were leading in total citations and publications, while 2023 was the peak publishing year.

The study acknowledges that alternative search keywords, databases and research categories may reveal unexplored relationships. The present study’s findings have crucial theoretical and practical implications for researchers in the accounting domain, higher education institutions and policymakers.

The study contributes to the extant accounting literature by presenting a holistic view of the impact of emerging technologies on accountants’ skills, profession and accounting curriculum, identifying gaps in the literature and proposing a research agenda.

This study aims to explore how the structure of the board of directors is influenced by national informal culture values and the strength of formal institutional environments, as measured through legal regulations, market conditions and investor protection regulations.

This study analyzes data from 432 companies listed in the S&P Global 1200 index using structural equation modeling. National cultural dimensions from Hofstede’s (2011) framework capture informal cultural aspects, while the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators assess formal institutions. This study examines board structure in terms of leadership style, board size, board independence, board committee structure and board diversity.

The results reveal that national cultural values are negatively associated with rule of law institutions, indicating that culture can substitute for legal institutions, acting as “soft” regulation. Cultural values establish social norms and accountability when legal frameworks are weak. In addition, national culture positively relates to open market institutions, enhancing transparency, fairness and competition in strong markets. The findings also show that national culture and formal institutions significantly shape managerial perceptions of the board’s role and structure, impacting how firms prioritize monitoring versus resource provision.

The findings offer valuable insights for managers in diverse institutional contexts, enabling them to adjust board structures according to cultural and institutional factors.

The research advocates for tailored governance practices that fit specific institutional and cultural contexts. Multinational corporations can benefit from customizing their governance structures according to the cultural and institutional environments of the countries in which they operate.

This paper contributes to existing literature by focusing on complementarity as well as substitution mechanisms between national cultural characteristics and formal institutions in shaping board structure.

This study aims to simultaneously and stochastically maximize autonomous flight performance of a variable wing incidence angle having an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and its flight control system (FCS) design.

A small UAV is produced in Iskenderun Technical University Drone Laboratory. Its wing incidence angle is able to change before UAV flight. FCS parameters and wing incidence angle are simultaneously and stochastically designed to maximize autonomous flight performance using an optimization method named simultaneous perturbation stochastic approximation. Obtained results are also benefitted during UAV flight simulations.

Applying simultaneous and stochastic design approach for a UAV having passively morphing wing incidence angle and its flight control system, autonomous flight performance is maximized.

Permission of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation in Turkish Republic is necessary for real-time flights.

Simultaneous stochastic variable wing incidence angle having UAV and its flight control system design approach is so useful for maximizing UAV autonomous flight performance.

Simultaneous stochastic variable wing incidence angle having UAV and its flight control system design methodology succeeds confidence, excellent autonomous performance index and practical service interests of UAV users.

Creating an innovative method to recover autonomous flight performance of a UAV and generating an innovative procedure carrying out simultaneous stochastic variable wing incidence angle having UAV and its flight control system design idea.

The aim of this paper is to advance autonomous flight performance of a piston-prop tactical unmanned aerial vehicle (TUAV) by simultaneously and stochastically redesigning its vertical tail and autonomous flight control system (AFCS).

A TUAV is produced in the Erciyes University Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Laboratory. Its vertical tail can be changed before flight. AFCS parameters and vertical tail parameters are simultaneously and stochastically redesigned for maximizing autonomous flight performance index using a stochastic optimization strategy. Obtained results are benefitted during simulation of autonomous flight.

Applying simultaneous and stochastic design procedure for a piston-prop TUAV owing varying vertical tail and AFCS, autonomous flight performance is maximized.

Permission of Directorate General of Civil Aviation in Republic of Turkey is crucial for flight tests of unmanned air vehicles.

Creating a novel solution for recovering autonomous flight performance of a piston-prop TUAV and also creating a novel algorithm for application of simultaneous and stochastic TUAV’s vertical tail and its AFCS design.

This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of using some polymers at different concentrations in the consolidation of vegetable-tanned leather artifacts.

New vegetable-tanned leather samples were prepared. The consolidants used were polyacrylamide (PAM) and polymethyl methacrylate/hydroxyethyl methacrylate (MMA-HEMA). Accelerated heat aging was applied to the untreated and treated samples. Analytical techniques used were Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), digital microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM), change of color and mechanical properties.

The characteristic FTIR bands showed the effect of accelerated heat aging on the molecular structure of the studied samples, but treated and aged treated samples used were better than aged untreated samples. Microscopic investigations (digital and SEM), and mechanical properties proved that 2% was the best concentration for polymers used. The change in the total color difference of the treated and aged treated samples was limited.

This study presents the important results obtained from PAM and poly(MMA-HEMA) used for the consolidation of vegetable-tanned leather artifacts. The best results of the studied polymers can be applied directly to protect historical vegetable-tanned leathers.

In the modern era, the concept of sustainability has become pervasive, permeating various sectors, including the construction industry. Driven by growing environmental concerns, construction organizations are increasingly compelled to seek operational excellence while realigning their practices towards environmental sustainability goals. Hence, this paper investigates the capability of lean construction (LC) principles in enhancing environmental performance (EP) within the construction industry using a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach.

The study employs SEM to explore the relationship between LC components and environmental performance factors in the construction context. This methodology integrates both empirical and qualitative analyses within a structured framework to explore the relationship between LC components and EP factors in the construction context. By collecting and statistically testing data from 307 Moroccan construction companies, the study evaluates the impact of five LC principles – process transparency and standardization, continuous improvement, waste elimination, planning and scheduling and material flow and pull – on four environmental performance indicators: material use, energy consumption, non-product output and pollutant releases.

The analysis reveals that, among the five LC principles – process transparency and standardization, continuous improvement, waste elimination, planning and scheduling and material flow and pull – the principles of waste elimination and planning and scheduling significantly contribute to environmental improvements. These practices were shown to impact positively four environmental performance indicators: material use, energy consumption, non-product output and pollutant releases.

This research fills a critical gap in empirical studies on the beneficial effects of LC practices on environmental sustainability in the construction industry. It provides theoretical insights and practical recommendations for managers and practitioners to effectively implement LC principles, thereby promoting more efficient and sustainable practices, particularly in developing countries.

This study aims to synthesize two organic heterocyclic compounds, (2E,3E)-6-chloro-2,3-dihydrazinylidene-1-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxaline (MR1) and (2E,3E)-2,3-dihydrazinylidene-1-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxaline (MR2), characterize them using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR and 13C-NMR) and evaluate their effectiveness as corrosion inhibitors in an acidic environment (15% HCl).

The synthesized compounds, MR1 and MR2, were tested for their corrosion inhibition properties using potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Post-corrosion, the steel surface was analyzed with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to confirm the adsorption of the compounds. The experimental findings were further supported by density functional theory calculations and molecular dynamics simulations.

The results indicated that both MR1 and MR2 exhibit significant anticorrosive activity in a 15% HCl environment. The analyses performed with SEM, EDX and AFM confirmed the effective adsorption of the inhibitors on the steel surface, forming a protective layer. Theoretical studies provided additional insights into the adsorption mechanisms and stability of the inhibitors.

This work introduces novel organic heterocyclic compounds based on quinoxalinone as effective corrosion inhibitors in acidic environments. The combined experimental and theoretical approach provides a comprehensive understanding of their anticorrosive behavior.

This study aims to examine the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) in the Islamic finance industry and to identify legal issues and design an appropriate supervisory model to promote the Islamic finance industry.

This type of research is legal research. This legal research uses a statute approach, conceptual approach and comparative approach between Indonesia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The utilization of AI in Islamic finance is becoming increasingly important in various sectors. In the front office, AI simplifies credit evaluation, Takaful (Islamic insurance) and chatbots, improving client interactions and decision-making processes. In the middle office, AI is an integral part of anti-money laundering, counter-terrorist financing (CTF), know your customer protocols and fraud detection. In the back office, AI improves capital management, market impact assessment, risk management and asset and wealth management. In addition, AI substantially enhances regulatory technology (RegTech) and supervisory technology (SupTech), ultimately improving the effectiveness of regulatory compliance and supervision in the Islamic finance industry. These technologies simplify compliance processes, evaluate data quality, detect potential hazards and adapt to complex regulatory frameworks. Nonetheless, the incorporation of AI faces significant obstacles, most notably the absence of a comprehensive legal framework governing the application of AI in the Islamic finance industry. The current regulations, including the Islamic Banking Law and Insurance Law, do not adequately address AI. Moreover, the use of AI raises concerns about Shariah compliance, particularly about transparency and possible algorithmic bias in the decision-making process. The effectiveness of supervision in Islamic finance largely depends on the membership of the Islamic supervisory board, which must have technological expertise to ensure compliance withShariah norms. Therefore, the development of more sophisticated and effective supervisory procedures is essential for the proper implementation of AI in Islamic banking. An efficient supervisory framework should provide transparency, data security, regular auditing of AI systems and integration of RegTech and SupTech technologies within the Islamic finance sector.

This research examines the use of AI in the Islamic finance industry in Indonesia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and the UAE.

This research is important to mitigate the risks of using AI in the Islamic finance industry such as AI decision transparency and explanation, AI job transfer bias and AI conflict with Islamic finance principles. This research is also important to formulate a regulatory framework to enhance AI supervision in the Islamic finance industry.

This research improves and encourages the growth of the Islamic finance industry using AI.

This research identifies the problems and legal issues of using AI in the Islamic finance industry and formulates a supervisory model.

The “United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal” 9 seeks to “… foster innovation” in all sectors of an economy. Thus, this conceptual piece addresses the indirect effect of innovative behaviour (INB) between total quality management (TQM) and innovation performance (INP). It further explores the context-contingent effect of four external factors [government regulation (GOV), market dynamism (MKD), competitive intensity (CMP) and technological turbulence (TUR)] on the TQM–INB linkage.

By incorporating both theoretical and empirical works in the fields of strategic management, innovation and business performance, this conceptual piece constructs a conceptual model, using a systematic literature review, alongside suppositions that can be tested in further studies.

This conceptual piece puts forward that TQM will be favourably connected to INP, and this favourable association will be mediated by INB. Moreover, GOV, MKD, CMP and TUR will have a favourable context-contingent effect on the favourable direct connection between TQM and INB.

This conceptual piece affords suggestions for both practitioners and researchers alike in the areas of innovative and strategic decision-making in banking establishments for reinforcing INP by introducing TQM, INB, GOV, MKD, CMP and TUR as innovative-strategic tools. It also delivers suggestions for forthcoming academics to examine this conceptual piece, empirically, in diverse banking sites worldwide.

Practical lessons for managers, employees, customers and consultants within the banking sector for the superior advantage of all key stakeholders are deliberated.

This study provides a new model to demonstrate how TQM leads to INP by passing through INB of employees, and how TQM fosters INB under diverse degrees of GOV, MKD, CMP and TUR. It shows how internal factors (7 TQM dimensions) and external factors (GOV, MKD, CMP and TUR) interact to foster employee INB. It also underscores the theoretical authority of three theories utilised, both individually and in combination, by using them to explain new relationships.