Search results

This study examines education for sustainability (EfS) within the Chinese context, to specifically enrich the understanding on how EfS is structured and implemented to nurture citizenship in the policy practices of universities in Mainland China and Hong Kong.

A cross-case analysis is recruited to examine the commonalities and differences between two universities and identify patterns in cultivating sustainability citizenship within higher education institutions (HEIs) in China. Data were collected through reviewing documents, including two universities’ strategic plans, action plans, department meeting memos, program introductions, course outlines and publicity coverage. Observation was also adopted to enrich the data for analysis, covering meetings, speeches by senior management, university events and informal conversations about university operations.

Citizenship and sustainability in university strategic planning, curriculum and instruction, carriers of EfS institutionalization, and resources and impacts of EfS beyond the institutes were analyzed in a comparative manner, offering valuable insights into how EfS can be institutionalized in different universities based on their unique appeals, existing curriculum and management systems.

By exploring these intra-national distinctions in EfS, the study sheds light on the variation within China's citizenship education, which is traditionally seen as highly unified with limited room for differences. The detailed exploration of university strategies and program/course content enriches the literature of sustainability as an educational phenomenon on an international scale and modernized citizenship education in China.

This study explores the under-researched phenomenon of workplace bullying against women in male-dominated Pakistani society, highlighting its severe impacts and bridging the research gap on intersectional effects of gender and cultural dynamics in developing countries.

Using a mixed-method research approach, we conducted two-wave surveys with 308 female workers in Pakistan's educational and health sectors. Data analysis examined relationships between workplace bullying and job outcomes like productivity and satisfaction, complemented by insights from in-depth interviews with 18 female workers.

The study reveals that workplace bullying significantly undermines job productivity, increases emotional exhaustion mediated by job anxiety and decreases job satisfaction among female workers. Bullying persists due to weak institutions and inadequate law enforcement, with perceived social support found to be an insignificant moderator.

The study findings underscore the economic implications of workplace bullying, as it drives female workforce attrition, hindering economic development. The study recommends conflict resolution strategies, effective HR policies, national law enforcement and supportive social networks to combat bullying and create a conducive work environment.

This study aligns with the UN's SDG goals #5 (gender equality) and #8 (decent work and economic growth), addressing pertinent issues related to workplace bullying in pursuit of these global objectives.

This study represents a unique attempt to address the intersectional dynamics of gender and culture concerning workplace bullying in Pakistan.

The primary aim of this study is to delve into the causes of occupational stress and burnout amongst administrative staff members in Pakistani universities. It does so by employing a qualitative research strategy, offering a comprehensive understanding of the issue.

This study uses a qualitative research strategy to examine the causes of occupational stress and burnout amongst administrative staff members in Pakistani universities. Around 20 semi-structured interviews were conducted via Teams with administrative employees in renowned universities in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and the Lahore region of Pakistan. Saldana's (2014) structured inductive data analysis method was used to analyse the collected data.

The study sheds light on the harsh realities faced by university administrative staff in Pakistani universities. These include top management ineffectiveness, role ambiguity, role conflict, favouritism, inequality, a communication gap with higher authorities, disparity of rewards and recognition, no career paths and opportunities, feeble leadership, corruption, inappropriate use of power, mishandling of qualified staff and non-acceptance of shifting roles from administration to academia. These are not just academic concepts but real-life challenges that demand immediate attention.

The study's findings have significant implications for Pakistan's Ministry of Education. Based on these findings, the recommendations proposed can serve as a roadmap for enhancing interpersonal development, implementing career development programmes, succession planning and supporting university administrative staff. These initiatives can lay the groundwork for achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal-4 targets, making this research a valuable resource for policymakers.

The study responds to the calls for multilevel approaches in entrepreneurship research and seeks to answer whether the relationships between personal values and entrepreneurship remain stable across different economic conditions, using the unemployment rate as a moderator. It pays attention to the solo self-employed and women, as these groups are particularly vulnerable when crises occur.

We use Schwartz's theory of human values, which has been understudied in entrepreneurship and follow a correlational research design with micro and macro variables. Multilevel logistic regression is applied to the data from the large sample of 151,032 individuals participating in six waves of the European Social Survey. Solo self-employed are distinguished from those employing others, and analyses are run separately for men and women to understand gender differences.

The findings show that self-direction and achievement are positively, and benevolence and security negatively related to entrepreneurship. The high unemployment rate lowers the positive relationships with self-direction and achievement and mitigates the negative relationship with security, but only for the solo self-employed and not for employers. Results mostly hold for both genders.

The study suggests that security-related values should not be omitted from entrepreneurship research focused on entrepreneurs' values. It also emphasizes the need to distinguish between various subgroups of entrepreneurs and their motivation, which is important for efficient active labor market policies.

The study utilizes multilevel analyses that account for individual- and country-level influences on entrepreneurial activity. It contributes to understanding how economic context influences value salience and supports the applicability of Schwartz's theory of human values in entrepreneurship.

This study examines the function of total reserves in light of the relationship between the economic freedom index and the corruption perception index during the COVID-19 period over countries.

This analysis encompasses a sample of 102 nations, spanning the time period from 2020 to 2021, and draws data from several sources. By employing a random effects model, we are able to adequately address the potential influence of year-specific factors, including the effects of COVID-19, as well as country-specific disparities. This approach allows for a comprehensive examination of our primary variables, assuring a nuanced study.

The findings indicate that when economic freedom and reserves are examined separately, they tend to promote corruption. However, when these factors are studied together, they have a complementary effect in reducing corruption. The impact of the COVID-19 period further confirms the relationship, highlighting its substantial influence on the interplay between economic freedom, reserves, and corruption.

The time frame spanning just two years and the sample limited to 102 nations may affect the generalizability of the findings. Therefore, there is a clear need for additional research to facilitate more comprehensive generalizations.

This study is notable for its distinctive examination of the function of Total Reserves in light of the association between the economic freedom index and the corruption perception index. Within the framework of the challenging COVID-19 era, this investigation offers novel perspectives on the intricate dynamics among economic freedom, reserves, and corruption perceptions.

The purpose of this study is to examine diverse risks and barriers that influence customers' attitude leading to their actual use of wearable devices in India. This study used technological literacy as a moderating variable to understand the relationship between barriers and attitudes toward adoption of wearable device.

A survey questionnaire was developed through focused group discussions with field experts. Data were collected through online as well as offline modes. A Google form was created and its weblink was shared with the respondents using wearable devices. Both online as well as offline modes were used for data collection. Several reminders through telephone and revisits were undertaken to approach the respondents.

The results of this study indicated that psychological risk and financial risk emerged strongest barriers of wearable technologies. This was followed by infrastructure barriers and performance risk. The strength of the relationship between technological anxiety and attitudes was lower but still significant. Surprisingly, privacy risk and social risk were not statistically significant. This study also validated the impact of technological literacy as a moderator between risks and attitudes.

This study contributes to the research by validating numerous risks and barriers in the adoption of wearable devices. This study not only offers a novel perspective on researching diverse barriers but also elucidates the moderating role of technological literacy which has not been covered in extant literature.

Blended learning (BL) is becoming more popular as a method of welcoming a progressively diverse range of students while adding value to the learning environment through the integration of online teaching resources. However, BL's approach of combining online instruction with conventional classroom strategies has received attention and expressed reservations over the years. While several research works have been conducted and draw attention to the global challenges of the BL mode of delivering instruction in BL's entirety, there is still no full idea of the challenges and prospects that exist regarding teacher educators' usage of the approach in higher education institutions (HEIs) in the context of developing countries. As a result, this study investigates the prospects and challenges of BL implementation in HEIs from the perspective of educators.

Drawing from the technology acceptance model (TAM), qualitative research methods and semi-structured interviews were used to gather insights from 10 educators. The data were analyzed using a thematic data analysis technique to arrive at the outcome of the study.

The findings reveal that educators deeply comprehend the BL approach and perceive the approach's effectiveness in delivering instruction and student learning. Conversely, educators' challenges are inadequate technology resources, poor internet connections, inadequate professional development training and a dearth of incentives. The study has implications for theory, research, policy enactment and practice regarding the improvement of the BL agenda in HEIs.

The explanatory framework presented here is the qualitative approach to the study of themes regarding the perceptions, prospects and challenges educators experience in their use of the BL approach in teaching and learning in the HEIs.