The purpose of this paper is to trace the way in which a popular ritual became one of Vietnam’s most important festivals, elevated as a celebration of national heroism and charts…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to trace the way in which a popular ritual became one of Vietnam’s most important festivals, elevated as a celebration of national heroism and charts its gradual transformation in modern society.
Design/methodology/approach
This research focuses on the combination of a fertility rite and narratives of St Gióng based on nationalism or heroism created a special festival reflecting many traditional cultural characteristics of Vietnam and the Việt people and the transformation of St Gióng from a mythological to a national symbol of heroism in anti-invader history was recorded in texts.
Findings
The paper casts light on the mythologization and historicization of St Gióng in Vietnam’s particular historical context by decoding the Gióng symbol as a core element of the folktales and myths about St Gióng to understand the formation and development of St Gióng in the cultural history of Vietnam.
Research limitations/implications
The paper is not exploring the Gióng symbol within a larger cultural context of nationalism and ethnosymbolic approach in a comparison of national symbolism and heroism.
Practical implications
The paper includes implications for advised scholars to conduct further exploration of the symbol and myth of not only St Gióng in Vietnam but also Kubera in India and Vaisravana in China to connect Kubera, Vaisravana and St Gióng under the connection of literal myth and heroic symbol.
Social implications
The paper shows how processes of historicizing myth and mythologizing history are important features of Vietnamese socio-historical research.
Originality/value
The paper shows how a fertility rite became a historical festival and the figure of St Gióng became a symbol of patriotic heroism.
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R.P. Sundarraj and Thanh Vuong
Mobile devices are generally designed for use in low‐bandwidth environments and therefore have limited ability to handle e‐mail attachments. As such, these devices often have to…
Abstract
Mobile devices are generally designed for use in low‐bandwidth environments and therefore have limited ability to handle e‐mail attachments. As such, these devices often have to be complemented by using a type of electronic agents, known as attachment handling agents (AHAs), which convert the contents of the attachments to a bandwidth‐conserving text‐form that is then sent to the mobile device for viewing. The purpose of this study is to assess whether AHA usage would improve an individual employee’s perceived work‐performance, measured by a multidimensional set of factors. The participants in the survey are employees at an F1000 Canadian company, all of whom have adopted a mobile communication device. Results indicate that AHA usage has a positive impact on productivity and customer satisfaction.
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Minh-Hoang Nguyen, Huyen Thanh Thanh Nguyen, Tam-Tri Le, Anh-Phuong Luong and Quan-Hoang Vuong
The current review aims to examine the growth trajectory, most influential documents, intellectual and conceptual structure of the literature regarding gender issues in family…
Abstract
Purpose
The current review aims to examine the growth trajectory, most influential documents, intellectual and conceptual structure of the literature regarding gender issues in family business research.
Design/methodology/approach
The bibliometric analysis was performed using 224 documents from 1991 to 2020 extracted from the Web of Science database.
Findings
The review finds that this field's knowledge grew exponentially during the last three decades, mainly after 2003 and the last several years. Based on the co-citation analysis, three major research lines are identified: “Women's challenges and opportunities in the family business”, “Gender diversity in the family business corporate board”, and “Gender and family SMEs management.” The temporal co-word analysis reveals that “Gender diversity in the family business corporate board” is the latest research line.
Originality/value
By reviewing prominent cited references and documents that cited them, the authors provide the landscapes and research gaps of three major research lines for further development.
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Tan Vo-Thanh, Huan Minh Nguyen, Triet Minh Nguyen, Danh Cong Pham and Hung Phuc Nguyen
This study aims to examine the relationships among fear of COVID-19, job stress, job commitment and intention to quit. It also investigates the boundary conditions of the impact…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the relationships among fear of COVID-19, job stress, job commitment and intention to quit. It also investigates the boundary conditions of the impact of fear of COVID-19 on job stress and intention to quit, a research gap that has not been addressed yet.
Design/methodology/approach
This research focused on full-time frontline hotel employees who have been working in four- and five-star hotels in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. A pilot test was performed before collecting formal data. The survey was conducted face-to-face on site so that any potential confusion could be clarified right away. 487 valid responses were analyzed using SPSS 28 and SmartPLS 4.
Findings
The majority of hypotheses were supported, with the results suggested that supervisor support contributes to reducing the tendency of hotel employees to quit their job and their job stress. Besides, government support is necessary to make staff feel secure during the pandemic.
Practical implications
This study contributes to pointing out central priorities in making decisions by hotel managers when facing crises. Managers need to focus more on measures to help their employees feel secure and should be available for guidance and feedback when nedeed. Additionally, supportive policies from the government, especially financial support, can provide hotel employees with resources they need to maintain a basic level of living in the face of a severe drop in their income. The study provides the hotel industry not only in Vietnam but also in countries with comparable settings with strategies to cope with unexpected events.
Originality/value
Research on intention to quit a job has mainly focused on a complex interplay of internal factors. However, the influence of fear of COVID-19 on intention to quit a job has not been studied in the context of Vietnamese hotel industry yet. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of hotels in Vietnam had to close due to a lack of visitors, which had a negative impact on human resources. Accordingly, fear, stress, commitment and intention to quit a job are the issues faced by staff.
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Huu Minh Nguyen, Thi Hong Tran and Thi Thanh Loan Tran
“The world needs science, science needs women” is the message given by UNESCO in the program for the development of women in science” (UNESCO, 2017). In Vietnam, women’s…
Abstract
“The world needs science, science needs women” is the message given by UNESCO in the program for the development of women in science” (UNESCO, 2017). In Vietnam, women’s participation and achievements in scientific research is considered a great and important resource for industrialization and modernization. Even so, are there gender differences in scientific achievement in the social science research institutes in Vietnam? What factors influence the scientific achievement of female social researchers? The answers will be based on data from a 2017 survey with a sample of 756 researchers, of which 77.6% were female. The survey was conducted by the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, a leading, ministry-level national center for the social sciences in Vietnam. This chapter analyzed the scientific achievements of researchers through their position as principal investigators of research projects and their publications, and factors that may impact this. Bivariate and multivariate analyses of factors that may affect the scientific achievement of researchers found that gender differences in academic achievement in the social sciences in Vietnam was still prevalent. Female researchers’ scientific achievements were lower than those of their male counterparts. The contribution to science of Vietnamese female researchers was limited by many different factors; the most important were the academic rank of the researchers and gender stereotype that considered housework the responsibility of women.
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Thien Vuong Nguyen, Dai Lam Tran, Tuan Anh Nguyen, Thi Thanh Huong Nguyen, Phi Hung Dao, Van Phuc Mac, Minh Thanh Do, Thi Mai Nguyen and Thi My Linh Dang
This study aims to explore how the inhibitor-loaded nanocontainers can be used in the epoxy coating for protection of steel against corrosion. A self-healing anticorrosive coating…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore how the inhibitor-loaded nanocontainers can be used in the epoxy coating for protection of steel against corrosion. A self-healing anticorrosive coating can be easily fabricated by embedding the inhibitor-loaded nanocontainers into the epoxy coating matrices. For this purpose, first, cerium (a catholic corrosion inhibitor) is encapsulated into silica nanoparticles (SiO2@Ce). Thereafter, an epoxy nanocomposite coating has been prepared on steel substrate using these SiO2@Ce nanoparticles as nanofillers.
Design/methodology/approach
To examine the effect of SiO2@Ce nanocontainers on mechanical properties of epoxy coating, the abrasion resistance, impact resistance and adhesion strength of coating have been evaluated. To reveal the effect of SiO2@Ce nanocontainer on corrosion behavior of epoxy-coated steel, the electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) has been conducted in NaCl solution.
Findings
Transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy/Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analyses indicate that Ce3+ cations have been successfully loaded into the surface of silica nanoparticles (at the content of approximately 2 Wt.%). Mechanical tests of epoxy nanocomposite coatings indicate that the nanocomposite coatings with nanoparticles content of 2.5 Wt.% provide the highest values of abrasion resistance, impact resistance and adhesion strength. EIS results show that the presence of SiO2@Ce3+ nanocontainers increases both coating resistance and polarization resistance. Along with the improvement the coating barrier performance, Ce inhibitor plays an important role in improving the anticorrosive performance at the steel–electrolyte interface.
Originality/value
The application of self-healing epoxy/SiO2@Ce nanocomposite coatings for the protection of carbon steel is very promising.
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This chapter describes how public sector reform (PSR) became important following the ‘Doi Moi’ (renovation) programme in 1986. Restructuring of state-owned sector was regarded as…
Abstract
This chapter describes how public sector reform (PSR) became important following the ‘Doi Moi’ (renovation) programme in 1986. Restructuring of state-owned sector was regarded as crucial for ensuring the quality of economic growth, and the Vietnamese government (www.chinhphu.vn/portal/page/portal/English) put considerable effort in PSR. The 8th Party Congress (1996) emphasized the urgent need for a more transparent, capable and modern public sector, including efforts to improve law-making process and capacity, reducing burdensome bureaucracy, fighting corruption, increasing leadership by senior officials and improving public service delivery. The government specifies the national PSR Master programme, and the Ministry of Home Affairs coordinates its implementation among ministries, central agencies and provincial governments. Local political leaders (party leaders) determine reforms based on guidelines of the party and government. The author writes that in spite of ambitious public service reform programmes and some positive achievements, the quality of public sector remains poor. The professional capacity of civil service is low, pay is low, corruption is high and processes and structures seem ill-fitted for the market economy. Reform scope is too broad, the capacity of public agencies and civil servants is limited and existing monitoring, evaluation and reporting systems are weak. In some successes, leaders use appointment and promotion to encourage lower level to implement reforms and training to increase understanding. They believe that Vietnamese leadership has become less proactive and vigorous in practicing or embracing bold reform experiments.
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Thanh Trung Pham, Robin Bell and David Newton
Many family businesses do not survive into the second generation. A common reason put forward for this is poor succession planning for the second generation. This paper is…
Abstract
Purpose
Many family businesses do not survive into the second generation. A common reason put forward for this is poor succession planning for the second generation. This paper is designed with the aim to explore the role of the father in supporting the son’s business knowledge and development in Vietnamese family businesses.
Design/methodology/approach
This research adopted an inductive qualitative approach using multiple face-to-face semi-structured interviews with five father–son succession pairs. The interview participants were a cross section of Vietnamese family businesses, where the father–son pair was involved in the process of business knowledge transfer and the succession process was at an advanced stage.
Findings
The results suggest that the father plays different roles at different stages of the son’s business knowledge development process. In particular, the father acts as an example during the son’s childhood; a supporter to encourage the son to gain more business knowledge from both formal education and working experience outside the family business; a mentor and trouble-shooter after the son joins the family business as a full-time employee; and as an advisor after the son becomes the leader of the firm.
Originality/value
Most Vietnamese family businesses are still operating under the control of the first generation, and as a result, research into the succession process in Vietnam can help to provide valuable insights. Furthermore, existing research into the role of the predecessor in the whole process from the successor’s childhood until the end of the succession process is ambiguous and requires further research to clarify this research gap.
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Robin Bell and Thanh Trung Pham
The transfer of knowledge has been identified as an important part of the family business succession process. This paper examines the knowledge transfer process from the founder…
Abstract
Purpose
The transfer of knowledge has been identified as an important part of the family business succession process. This paper examines the knowledge transfer process from the founder to the successor to understand and model the factors that influence the knowledge transfer process in the Vietnamese family business context.
Design/methodology/approach
This research adopts an inductive qualitative approach, conducting face-to-face semi-structured interviews with five father-son succession pairs. The interviews with founders and successors, ten in total, formed the basis of five case studies. The cases were all at an advanced stage of the process of business knowledge transfer and family business succession.
Findings
A contextualized model was developed, highlighting the main factors that influence the knowledge transfer process from the founder to the successor in a Vietnamese family business context. This model identifies the influence of factors, some of which are not commonly presented in western family business literature. These include the importance of the role of the mother in mediating the relationship quality between the founder and the successor and the successor pursuing education and external work experience to improve their cognitive and reflective abilities. The need for the affinity between family members is also highlighted as important.
Originality/value
In Vietnam, most family-run businesses are still under the control of the founder. This research provides insight into the succession process in Vietnam. This research addresses calls for further exploration into the factors that influence the transfer of knowledge in the family business succession process and to research this process in a collectivist society, both of which remain under-researched.
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At its 13th National Congress in January-February 2021, the CPV elected Trong to serve a third term as party leader. Trong continues to oversee a campaign against corruption in…