Nargis Islam, Nigel Harris and Christopher Eccleston
Assistive technology is a term used to describe any device ranging from simple equipment to complex technologies that can assist a person with a disability. The term is now…
Abstract
Assistive technology is a term used to describe any device ranging from simple equipment to complex technologies that can assist a person with a disability. The term is now applied to new technological devices to facilitate active rehabilitation as well as to equipment to enable a person to live with their condition. Current developments such as technology for stroke rehabilitation are rarely brought to the attention of health and social care practitioners, even though frontline staff will be at the forefront of implementation, and their views of the nature of devices and their appropriateness is pivotal. This paper describes some of the technologies being developed to assist the process and delivery of stroke rehabilitation, their potential benefits in practice and stakeholder perceptions of these new technologies.
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Md Shamim Hossain, Md. Sobhan Ali, Chui Ching Ling and Chorng Yuan Fung
This study aims to identify factors affecting tax avoidance and tax evasion in Bangladesh and propose a future research agenda.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to identify factors affecting tax avoidance and tax evasion in Bangladesh and propose a future research agenda.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper reviewed 423 articles published between 2010 and 2023 using a systematic literature review (SLR) approach.
Findings
The review classified the factors into three categories, namely individual taxpayers, corporate taxpayers and tax administration. Income level, tax penalty, tax morale, inefficient tax return system and tax assessment process are associated with the individual’s tax avoidance and tax evasion activities. Profitability, corporate governance and financial restrictions are key factors influencing corporate taxpayers’ involvement in tax avoidance and tax evasion. Factors related to tax administration include lack of social interaction, distrust of national officials, complexities of policies, politicisation of tax authority, lack of political stability, incompetent auditing, insufficient recording, lack of administrative cooperation, lack of accountability, insufficient counselling and compromising in tax prosecution cases.
Practical implications
This paper provides tax regulators with insights to improve regulations and lessen tax avoidance and tax evasion activities.
Originality/value
This paper is the first attempt to provide guidance for academics when examining tax avoidance and tax evasion in Bangladesh.
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Shakil Ahmad, Rejaul Karim, Nargis Sultana and Reshma Pervin Lima
Introduction: The insurance industry is undergoing constant transformation to keep up with the demands of digitally savvy consumers. “Insur-Tech” refers to using technological…
Abstract
Introduction: The insurance industry is undergoing constant transformation to keep up with the demands of digitally savvy consumers. “Insur-Tech” refers to using technological breakthroughs in the insurance sector to boost competition, innovate new products, increase customer happiness, and improve operational operations. Insurance technology has many potential applications across the complete product lifecycle, from initial research and development to post-contract administration, back-office processes and risk management.
Purpose: This chapter discusses the insurance industry’s current and potential future state with the emergence of insur-tech. The objective is to explore the emergence of new-age technologies in the insurance industry and the challenges faced in their implementation.
Methodology: Researchers conducted an extensive literature review and analyzed recent news articles to explore the digital transformation of the insurance industry through InsurTech. The literature review encompassed academic journals, industry reports, and relevant books to provide a theoretical framework and historical context. Concurrently, researchers examined news articles from reputable sources to capture current developments, real-world applications, and emerging trends. This dual approach allowed researchers to assess the role of digital innovations on the insurance.
Findings: The findings reveal how large and continuing databases impact the operational processes and general insurance markets, facilitating the acquisition of optimal policyholder behavior and speeding up claims processing. This chapter delves into how AI improves traditional insurance processes, spanning from the first point of contact to claims processing and how potential changes brought about by blockchain technology.
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Sudhansu Sekhar Nanda, Anindita Das and D. D. Tewari
The poverty rate in India is still very high despite considerable economic reforms over the past 20 years and a rapid decline in that rate. Even if the accomplishments have…
Abstract
The poverty rate in India is still very high despite considerable economic reforms over the past 20 years and a rapid decline in that rate. Even if the accomplishments have received much praise, it is crucial to comprehend the dynamics of poverty by recognising those who entered and emerged from it. The literature on multidimensional poverty dynamics is not as well established as that on poverty entry and leave, despite the wealth of available empirical research on both topics. This chapter uses the multidimensional measure of issues related to health, education and infrastructure; social barriers to advancement; a lack of resources and a lack of competence to make decisions for the benefit of the household to investigate the dynamics of poverty and its underlying causes. This chapter distinguishes between chronic and sporadic poverty, and emphasizes the need to focus on the unique factors that determine each type. It is stated that when one individual has lived in poverty for a longer period of time, it is morally required to help. Furthermore, the causes of chronic and temporary poverty may differ, requiring policymakers to treat them as separate categories when developing policies. The theoretical work cited in this chapter laid the groundwork for a model of poverty dynamics, which could prove useful in elucidating the root causes of and pathways out of poverty for policymakers.
The conceptual studies on poverty raise a number of concerns, most notably how poverty is quantified and defined; its origins, dynamics and causes; and where and how it is distributed geographically.
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Md. Saidur Rahaman and Md. Mizanur Rahman
Construction workers contribute significantly to the economic development of a country, but the working conditions and the living standard for construction workers in Bangladesh…
Abstract
Purpose
Construction workers contribute significantly to the economic development of a country, but the working conditions and the living standard for construction workers in Bangladesh are inhumane. This study aims to focus on the actual scenario of the quality of work-life (QWL) of the construction workers who work without meeting basic human needs.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, researchers used a mixed-method approach. An inclusive one-to-one (F to F) interview has operated at the beginning of the research; later on, focus group discussion (FGD) and a structured questionnaire have been used to investigate the construction workers' QWL workers in Bangladesh.
Findings
The findings showed that construction workers are highly dissatisfied with their position, working hours and leaves, payment system, accommodation, food, sanitation and drinking water, education, leisure, entertainment and religious freedom, health safety and security. Consequently, that hinders the natural growth of the said sector where there is no initiative to implement these rights.
Practical implications
Based on this study's findings, the construction industry's higher authority can make some policies to make workers' lives a little happier. Besides, this study will play a vital role in improving academic literature regarding the workers' current condition in Bangladesh's construction industry.
Originality/value
To best the authors' observation, this is the first study in the Emerald Insight publishers on the overall inhuman quality of construction workers' work-life in Bangladesh.
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Ma. Regina M. Hechanova, Lynn C. Waelde and Alicia N. Torres
Southeast Asia (SEA) is a region highly susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis, though the region has been underrepresented in disaster mental health…
Abstract
Southeast Asia (SEA) is a region highly susceptible to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis, though the region has been underrepresented in disaster mental health research. This chapter addresses risk factors for SEA, including its disaster-prone location, the psychological toll of frequent disasters, and stigma and shame and lack of psychoeducation about psychological help-seeking. Collectivism, strong family ties, and religious faith are among SEA’s resilience factors. Culture should be heavily accounted for in mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), considering the wide array of cultural differences in spirituality, affect and expression, power distance, and gender and masculinity in SEA. Because culture affects treatment satisfaction, treatment engagement, and treatment outcomes, future research should explore how aspects of SEA culture impact accessibility and engagement in MHPSS.
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Prince P. Asaloko, Simplice Asongu, Cédrick M. Kalemasi and Thomas G. Niyonzima
The purpose of this study is to assess the role of renewable energy as a means of promoting women’s economic participation and improving their health by mitigating climate…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to assess the role of renewable energy as a means of promoting women’s economic participation and improving their health by mitigating climate vulnerability.
Design/methodology/approach
To shed light on this relationship, the authors assess the capacity of renewable energy to reduce the negative impact of climate vulnerability on women’s economic empowerment and health, using the generalized method of moments estimator for 36 African countries over the period 1990–2021.
Findings
The empirical results show that climate vulnerability reduces economic empowerment and climate vulnerability increases child mortality. These results are mitigated by the use of renewable energy. The use of renewable energy mitigates the negative impact of climate vulnerability on women’s economic empowerment. Renewable energy use also reduces the pressure of climate vulnerability on child mortality. In addition, the authors take into account regional heterogeneities and find distinct effects. The results remain stable after further robustness testing.
Originality/value
Renewable energy thresholds are provided at which climate vulnerability no longer reduces women’s socio-economic well-being.
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Imon Chowdhooree and Kanu Kumar Das
Mud architecture as one of the expressions of vernacular architecture illustrates the success of indigenous knowledge of traditional communities. Due to the pressure of…
Abstract
Purpose
Mud architecture as one of the expressions of vernacular architecture illustrates the success of indigenous knowledge of traditional communities. Due to the pressure of industrialization, urbanization and globalization, the trend of using non-traditional measures guided by the Western-Euro-centric knowledge and technologies considers the traditional practices as expressions of backward past, under-development and poverty. Though mud as a building material is usually assumed as a fragile and ephemeral material that cannot survive against natural hazards, the surviving traditional mud buildings are needed to be investigated to know their performances during and after different types of natural hazard incidents.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper intends to study the available cases of mud architecture of Chattogram, Bangladesh to trace the history of their survival despite of experiencing multiple natural hazards and to understand their status and prospect of resisting hazards. Three individual homesteads are chosen as cases for conducting physical survey as well as engaging inhabitants and local masons of the locality in semi-structured interviews in a story telling mode to know the construction process and histories of experiencing natural hazards. Available literatures are reviewed, and experts are interviewed to understand the causes of their performances and possible ways to improve the quality.
Findings
Collected information on mud architecture demonstrates their quality of surviving against many natural challenges and this hazard-resilient quality can be enhanced through using contemporary building technologies and materials, promising to co-exist with the global trend.
Originality/value
This study as an attempt to reinvent the vernacular architectural heritage endorses the need of appreciating indigenous knowledge for enhancing community resilience against natural hazards.
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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…
Abstract
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.