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Political corruption takes many forms across different countries and regions. The types of corruption that occur in American politics are drastically different from the clientelism, nepotism, and corrupt electoral practices that are seen in the developing world. This chapter will analyze three distinct cases of political corruption in Southeast Asian politics: clientelism in Cambodia, nepotism in Thailand, and the 2021 coup d'état in Myanmar. All three cases highlight the unique challenges facing developing democracies and reveal that, while political corruption affects all countries to a degree, distinct regional and cultural differences produce different forms of corruption in Southeast Asia than in the United States.

This paper aims to demonstrate the synthesis of polyesterification reaction of non-edible jatropha seed oil (JO) and acrylic acid, which leads to the production of acrylated epoxidised-based resin. To understand the physico-chemical characteristics when synthesis the JO-based epoxy acrylate, the effect of temperature on the reaction, concentration of acrylic acid and role of catalyst on reaction time and acid value were studied.

First, the double bond in JO was functionalised by epoxidation using the solvent-free performic method. The subsequent process was acrylation with acrylic acid using the base catalyst triethylamine and 4-methoxyphenol as an inhibitor respectively. The physico-chemical characteristics during the synthesis of the epoxy acrylate such as acid value was monitored and analysed. The formation of the epoxy and acrylate group was confirmed by a Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectra analysis and nuclear magnetic resonance analysis.

The optimum reaction condition was achieved at a ratio of epoxidised JO to acrylic acid of 1:1.5 and the reaction temperature of 110°C. This was indicated by the acid value reduction from 86 to 15 mg KOH/g sample at 6 hours.

The JO-based epoxy acrylate synthesised has a potential to be used in formulations the prepolymer resin for UV curable coating applications. The JO which is from natural resources and is sustainable raw materials that possible reduce the dependency on petroleum-based coating.

The epoxidised jatropha seed oil epoxy acrylate was synthesised, as a new type of oligomer resin that contains a reactive acrylate group, which can be alternative to petroleum-based coating and can used further in the formulation of the radiation curable coating.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the cultural issues and difficulties encountered when conducting ethnographic fieldwork and interviews in Myanmar and to discuss the measures to overcome such challenges. It aims to provide insight for foreign researchers seeking to collect rich, meaningful and reliable data while establishing fruitful relationship with Burmese participants.

This paper draws on results from a research on cross-cultural dispute resolution in a Chinese-invested enterprise in Myanmar. The authors reflect on their fieldwork experience to present examples of cultural challenges, as well as the strategies used to deal with those challenges.

This paper finds that when conducting ethnographic fieldwork and interviews in Myanmar, researchers should take into consideration “anade” – an important Burmese social convention, perceived power distance between researchers and Burmese participants, roles of cross-cultural interpreters and possibility of cultural stereotypes, especially in a multicultural site. Measures need to be taken to adjust fieldwork arrangement and interview style, reduce perceived power distance and address the impact of prevalent stereotypes. Furthermore, researchers should properly conduct training and discussion sessions with Burmese interpreters to ensure they provide accurate yet culturally informed interpretation.

The cultural challenges in conducting ethnographic fieldwork and interviews in Myanmar remain under-explored. This paper addresses the knowledge gap and discusses various Myanmar-specific cultural issues that await researchers.