Search results

The Burmese military has been ruling Burma (Myanmar) since Burma's independence from the British in 1948. With increased militarization has come increased ethnic conflicts and the creation of armed ethnic groups. For instance, the Burmese military has been fighting with the Karen armed ethnic group since 1957, making it the longest conflict in the world. The recent coup in 2021 escalated the civil war in Burma. This conflict and war have led to devastation and destruction in ethnic regions, resulting in many ethnic people fleeing to neighboring countries for safety and security. It has also led to increased incidences of gender-based violence and human trafficking. This chapter will examine the history of military rule and ethnic conflicts in Burma. It will explore the impact of war on women's lives including their security, migration, and sustainability. This chapter will also highlight the importance of women's roles in the recent movement against the coup and the importance of women's involvement in social and political movements for peace, democracy, security, and sustainable development.

This study aims to use an additive process for the first time to develop a microfluidic device that uses centrifugal technique for precise and repeatable generation of microdroplets. Droplets have versatile applications in life sciences, but so far centrifugal devices for their production have been made mainly using standard subtractive techniques. This study focused on evaluating the applicability of 3D printing technology in the development of centrifugal microfluidic devices and investigating their properties and future applications.

First, the background of this interdisciplinary research, including the principle of droplet microfluidics and the centrifugal technique, is explained. The developed device has the form of a disc (similar to an audio CD), containing an integrated microfluidic system for droplet generation. The disc is rotated at a specific spin profile to induce controlled liquid flow and accurate production of oil-in-water microdroplets. The device was fabricated using material jetting technology. The design, operation principles, printing process parameters and post-processing steps are explained in detail.

The device was thoroughly characterised, including its mechanical properties, the impact of chemical treatment and the flow measurement of the liquids. The study confirms that the disc can be applied to produce various emulsions using centrifugal force alone. 3D printing technology enables potential mass production and other applications of the device.

The 3D printing process allowed for easy design, fabrication and duplication of the device. Compared to standard PMMA discs, a simpler fabrication protocol and a more flexible and monolithic structure were obtained. The device can be adapted to other microfluidic processes in a lab with high potential for point-of-care applications.

Over recent years, public health threats, economic losses and crises of confidence resulting from adverse events along the global food chains have pressured food traceability systems to operate more efficiently. Based on that, this paper aims to expand the body of knowledge on the connection between Industry 4.0 technologies and food chain traceability and how they have been integrated.

Before conducting a systematic literature review (SLR), we consulted academic experts in traceability and Industry 4.0 technologies to define the leading 4.0 technologies adopted. We then developed protocols and criteria for article selection. Based on the developed codebook, we performed a content analysis, refining it through discussions with experienced researchers.

This paper identified seven Industry 4.0 technologies applied in conjunction with support and device systems. These combinations hold promise for generating value for food chain traceability systems. Value for the food supply chain originates from five sources: trust, process improvement, data processing, security, sustainability and regulation. Besides, three barriers to implementing such traceability technologies were identified: resources, lack of structure, stakeholders and values.

While this study focused specifically on the food chain, the technology combinations, values, barriers and categories identified herein can inform analyses for other chains, e.g. the pharmaceutical chain. Moreover, due to the recent growth of this topic, some existing values and barriers may not have been fully explored and the technology combinations may vary slightly.

The results of this study provide food chain professionals with a comprehensive understanding of the values and corresponding barriers associated with employing Industry 4.0 traceability technologies. This knowledge can be leveraged to develop effective strategies and implement improvements in traceability, thereby benefiting society and addressing identified barriers.

This study expands the literature on using Industry 4.0 technologies for traceability in food chains, providing valuable directions to build safer, more efficient, transparent and potentially more sustainable food chains. Additionally, we provide promising avenues for future research.

Recent worldwide developments have altered how businesses operate. As a result, when making business decisions, the emphasis for many industries has shifted towards digital adoption to ensure sustainability, and the food supply chain is no exception. However, a substantial gap exists in assessing the barriers to a digitised food supply chain enabled by Industry 5.0 technologies. This study strives to bridge the gap by identifying and assessing the barriers to improved traceability.

For this study, a mixed method approach was used encompassing both qualitative and quantitative techniques, including an online survey, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and the fuzzy evidential reasoning approach (FERA). The literature survey and expert opinion first yielded a list of 18 barriers, which were subsequently examined using EFA. As a result, four barriers were removed. The remaining 14 barriers were then assessed using FERA from the perspectives of the Technology, Organisation and Environment (TOE) framework. Further, a sensitivity analysis was performed to test the model’s reliability.

The present study resulted in the prioritisation of barriers from the TOE perspective. According to the findings, the top three barriers that impede the traceability of Industry 5.0-enabled digital food supply chains are Limited Digital and Physical Infrastructure, Inadequate Capital Investment, and the Intricate Supply Chain Framework.

The findings from this research will prove valuable for decision-makers, practitioners and policymakers in developing methods for improving traceability within the digital food supply chain. Concerned stakeholders may use the findings to identify and take immediate action for better decision-making.

This study’s originality lies in its position as one of the first to identify and examine the challenges to better traceability in an Industry 5.0-enabled digital food supply chain. It also adds value by broadening the TOE framework’s scope in the Industry 5.0-enabled digital food supply chain context.

This study aims to empirically examine the influence of transformational leadership on job satisfaction in Jordanian commercial banks through knowledge sharing as a mediator. The data were collected from 232 employees and then analyzed through regression analysis using SPSS. The results revealed that there is a significant influence of transformational leadership on job satisfaction, as well as a significant influence of knowledge sharing on this relationship. These findings imply that if managers adopt transformational leadership, their subordinates can be satisfied with their jobs, specifically if they facilitate knowledge sharing. This study sheds light on improving organizational performance and employee engagement in a specific context and provides excellent direction for future contributions.

Scientific impact is traditionally assessed with citation-based metrics. Recently, altmetric indices have been introduced to measure scientific impact both within academia and among the general public. However, little research has investigated the association between the linguistic features of research article titles and received online attention. To address this issue, the authors examined in the present study the relationship between a series of title features and altmetric attention scores.

The data included 8,658 titles of Science articles. The authors extracted six features from the title corpus (i.e. mean word length, lexical sophistication, lexical density, title length, syntactic dependency length and sentiment score). The authors performed Spearman’s rank analyses to analyze the correlations between these features and online impact. The authors then conducted a stepwise backward multiple regression to identify predictors for the articles' online impact.

The correlation analyses revealed weak but significant correlations between all six title features and the altmetric attention scores. The regression analysis showed that four linguistic features of titles (mean word length, lexical sophistication, title length and sentiment score) have modest predictive effects on the online impact of research articles.

In the internet era with the widespread use of social media and online platforms, it is becoming increasingly important for researchers to adapt to the changing context of research evaluation. This study identifies several linguistic features that deserve scholars’ attention in the writing of article titles. It also has practical implications for academic administrators and pedagogical implications for instructors of academic writing courses.

This study aims to investigate the strategies and challenges of deploying Blockchain within the context of mobile public bazaars’ (MPBs) food supply chains (FSCs) in the tourism and hospitality industry (T&H).

Drawing on qualitative data gathered from 20 semistructured interviews with stakeholders (e.g. producers, food service businesses and government agencies), the study uses theme analysis to identify patterns and insights.

Findings reveal four strategies (i.e. implementations, digital literacy and awareness, government incentives and interoperability) and four challenges (i.e. public perception, business logic, constraints, legislative and administrative) arising from the deployment of Blockchain in the FSCs of MPBs.

The study contributes to the literature by offering a comprehensive examination of the strategies and challenges associated with deploying Blockchain in the FSCs of MPBs within the T&H industry. It extends beyond singular theoretical frameworks, using a multitheory approach and offers a novel smart contract model for practical implementation.

本研究旨在探讨在旅游与酒店行业（T&H）背景下, 将区块链技术应用于移动公共集市（MPBs）食品供应链（FSCs）的策略和挑战。

通过对20位利益相关者（例如生产者、食品服务企业和政府机构）的半结构化访谈收集定性数据, 研究采用主题分析法以识别模式和洞察。

研究结果揭示了四大策略（即实施、数字素养与意识、政府激励、互操作性）和四大挑战（即公众认知、商业逻辑、约束条件、法律与行政问题）, 这些问题与区块链在MPBs的FSCs中的应用相关。

本研究通过对MPBs中FSCs区块链部署相关策略与挑战的全面分析, 丰富了现有文献。研究超越单一理论框架, 采用多理论方法, 并提出了一个创新的智能合约模型以供实践应用。

The link between sleep disturbance and aggression among forensic psychiatric patients is well established. However, the relationship between subjective experience of sleep quality and sleep hygiene, reported head injury, age, neuropsychological functioning and risk within these populations remains poorly understood. A study is described examining the relationships between these factors in a sample of individuals deemed a “grave and immediate” risk toothers. The aim of this study is to explore these relationships in more detail.

A service evaluation project examining the prevalence of self-reported sleep dysfunction, age and the relationship with neuropsychological functioning, reported head injury and dynamic risk appraisals of a UK high secure psychiatric patient sample is described (n = 84).

Self-reported poor sleep quality and poor sleep hygiene is present among 65% of patients, especially those in admission and high dependency wards. Whilst there are no differences between those with a self-reported head injury history in sleep quality, there is in sleep hygiene. Older patients also report more sleep hygiene problems. The combination of poor sleep quality, poor sleep hygiene and performance within selective aspects of executive functioning tasks has some relationship with dynamic risk.

The importance of sleep management and cognitive remediation is discussed, as is the need for more robust research and inclusion of an assessment of sleep within forensic neuropsychological and psychiatric evaluations.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine the relationship of sleep disturbance, neuropsychological functioning and head injuries and risk within a high secure psychiatric patient sample.

For a public servant (PS) to be innovative, he or she needs to gather and process enough vital information from budget setting processes. However, research addressing how budgetary participation (BP) can trigger innovative behaviour (IB) in PSs and eventually foster task performance (TP) is rare, which is why the authors conduct this research. The purpose of this study is to understand how BP shapes TP through the IB of PSs.

The authors develop and test a mediation model with 860 responses from public sector workers across 25 government agencies using the PLS-SEM technique of Smart PLS 4. Possible control factors were addressed for both the mediator and target-independent construct. In particular, the authors use sex, age and tenure as control factors for IB. Also, the authors use job satisfaction, job engagement and perceived fairness in the budgetary system as control factors for TP.

The authors find a favourable and significant relationship between BP and TP; BP and IB; and IB and TP. The authors also find that IB partially mediates the relationship between BP and TP, such that BP fosters TP through the innovativeness of PSs. This finding suggests that PSs who participate in budget preparation are able to innovate, which, in turn enable them to perform tasks effectively.

The authors call on forthcoming researchers to test the mediation model in other public sector settings worldwide. They may also consider other variables that can possibly mediate the positive impacts of BP on TP.

Lessons are discussed for governments, human resources directors and managers, management accountants, budget officers, procurement officers and other public sector workers and consultants.

The authors show how BP fosters TP through the innovativeness of PSs, since there is much more to know in this regard. The authors also help to resolve the paradox of inconsistency in the BP–TP literature by using IB as a mediator.

Traceability is predicted to usher in a fundamental shift in the way transactions in supply chains (SCs) are carried out. By reducing the negative aspects of trust-related issues in a SC, traceability enables improved visibility and transparency.

We advance research on traceability adoption in the perishable products supply chain by developing and validating an integrated model that combines the technology acceptance model (TAM), the technology readiness index (TRI) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB). A quantitative approach was employed, collecting data through an online survey of 174 supply chain professionals in major Indian cities using a five-point Likert scale. Participants were selected via LinkedIn, each with at least two years of SCM experience. Nonresponse bias was assessed by comparing early and late respondents, revealing no significant differences. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test various research hypotheses derived from literature. Composite reliability and discriminant validity of constructs were verified before examining the relationships among the constructs within the structural model.

The study found that the TRI components of optimism and innovation did not impact perceived ease of use or perceived utility. Additionally, behavioral intention is shaped by perceived utility, attitude and perceived behavioral control.

This research provides valuable insights for managers aiming to adopt traceability in supply chains (SCs). It helps identify critical factors for effective traceability adoption, showing that perceived ease of use (PEU) and perceived usefulness are pivotal in shaping practitioners’ intentions. Managers should prioritize developing intuitive, user-friendly traceability applications that demonstrate clear value in optimizing SC efficiency. The study also reveals that while practitioners are generally optimistic about traceability, they may feel indifferent or lack a sense of control over it. Therefore, companies should focus on marketing strategies that empower decision-makers, highlighting the ease of use and practical benefits of traceability. Additionally, the findings suggest that perceived behavioral control, combined with intention, can effectively predict traceability adoption. By understanding these dynamics, managers can better guide their firms in successfully implementing traceability, ensuring both technological acceptance and operational efficiency.

This research offers a novel and in-depth exploration of traceability as an emerging concept in supply chains, particularly in India, where adoption remains limited. It highlights that while SC practitioners recognize traceability’s potential, they lack practical expertise, often driven by curiosity about decentralized databases. It underscores the critical role of artificial intelligence, IoT devices and big data in ensuring precise data collection and analytics, essential for successful traceability. The research also introduces a predictive model combining TAM, TRI and TPB constructs, identifying perceived usefulness, attitude and perceived behavioral control as key factors influencing traceability adoption.