Search

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are contributors to economic growth. Many studies have mentioned a broad range of factors that influence the development of SMEs. However, studies examining SME growth between developed and developing countries have not been comprehensively investigated. The growth of SMEs relies on the entrepreneurial skills of the entrepreneur, who has the ability to manage business effectively, achieve profit, identify market opportunities, and enhance innovation by optimizing all available resources. The objective of this article was to synthesize the factors that influence the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across developed and developing countries. This study particularly synthesized interrelationship factors depicted in a framework addressing resources and capabilities for SME growth. A systematic literature review (SLR) was employed to examine the research activities on this topic, referring to 108 articles from the Scopus and Web of Sciences databases. The articles synthesized individual studies to analyze the trend of SME growth research in developed and developing countries. Next, the factors of SME growth were identified into 6 (six) categories, including human capital resources, entrepreneurial perspectives on marketing, innovation, SMEs partnership, technology, and entrepreneur personality. The result represents that the factor extensively studied concerning SME growth is innovation capability, both in developed and developing countries. Differences exist in both critical factors and interrelationships among factors in developed and developing countries, particularly in the innovation capability, SME partnership and marketing capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: There is a need to better understand the impact of different contexts depending on their economic and social development on women’s entrepreneurial experience, that is how belonging to certain cultures may affect women entrepreneurs’ experiences differently. Design/methodology/approach: Using interviews, this research explores the narratives of 35 women entrepreneurs in Nigeria (sub-Saharan Africa) in a context of scarcity and where the burden of care and support falls on women. It is important to understand how entrepreneurs feel and think about the barriers and catalysts they have encountered and their identity in specific contexts. Findings/results: In Nigeria, the discourse around women entrepreneurship revolves around personal characteristics that women should emphasise, such as self-confidence, self-efficacy and determination. Therefore, they build their identity in a communitarian and pluralistic way, which is not common in developed countries that are more individualistic. Practical implications: We cannot assume that a developed world perspective, however dominant, is well-equipped to explain entrepreneurship everywhere. In developing countries, women still must fight for their legitimacy as entrepreneurs, while in developed countries women show greater agency in trying to counteract the gendered construction of entrepreneurship. Originality/value: The article follows calls in the literature, specifically that dealing with women’s entrepreneurship, to contextualise the analysis, focus on developing countries and use a qualitative approach.

Sustainability is a process that characterizes in a broad sense a nation’s ecological performance and may display a time-varying pattern. Such dynamic trajectories may vary among different countries and prompt not only intriguing questions on space–time convergence but also on the possibility of club convergence. The scope of this study is to investigate the long-run convergence pattern of 137 countries, as presented by their sustainable development index (SDI) over the period 1990–2019. The statistical–econometric analysis used to identify convergence across (groups of) countries is based on the advanced Phillips and Sul (JAE 24:1153–1185, 2009; ECTA 75:1771–1855, 2007) method. The empirical findings from our study allow us to identify two SDI convergence clubs of countries. The first and the biggest club includes mainly the developing African and Asian countries; whereas, the second club includes many OECD countries including inter alia the US, Canada, and Australia. Our analysis brings to light that the transition paths of these two clubs show a significant divergence pattern; this a-symmetry calls also into question the effectiveness of global green policies, such as the clean development mechanism as foreseen in the Kyoto protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractHealthy state is priority in today’s world which can be achieved using effective medicines. But due to overuse and misuse of antibiotics, a menace of resistance has increased in pathogenic microbes. World Health Organization (WHO) has announced ESKAPE pathogens (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp.) as the top priority pathogens as these have developed resistance against certain antibiotics. To combat such a global issue, it is utmost important to identify novel therapeutic strategies/agents as an alternate to such antibiotics. To name certain antibiotic adjuvants including: inhibitors of beta–lactamase, efflux pumps and permeabilizers for outer membrane can potentially solve the antibiotic resistance problems. In this regard, inhibitors of lytic domain of lytic transglycosylases provide a novel way to not only act as an alternate to antibiotics but also capable of restoring the efficiency of previously resistant antibiotics. Further, use of bacteriophages is another promising strategy to deal with antibiotic resistant pathogens. Taking in consideration the alternatives of antibiotics, a green synthesis nanoparticle-based therapy exemplifies a good option to combat microbial resistance. As horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in bacteria facilitates the evolution of new resistance strains, therefore identifying the mechanism of resistance and development of inhibitors against it can be a novel approach to combat such problems. In our perspective, host-directed therapy (HDT) represents another promising strategy in combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This approach involves targeting specific factors within host cells that pathogens rely on for their survival, either through replication or persistence. As many new drugs are under clinical trials it is advisable that more clinical data and antimicrobial stewardship programs should be conducted to fully assess the clinical efficacy and safety of new therapeutic agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Our research aims to delve into the influence of diverse national cultures on the consumption of life insurance across various countries. We will conduct a comprehensive analysis, drawing on Hofstede's cultural dimensions, to understand how national cultural dimensions shape life insurance consumption's landscape in developed and developing nations. Design/methodology/approach: This study utilized data from 57 countries from 1996 to 2020 and employed a comprehensive set of regression models in our analysis, encompassing pooled Generalized Least Squares (GLS), Feasible Generalized Least Squares (FGLS) after accounting for autocorrelation and heteroskedasticity, random GLS with control for country-specific autocorrelation, the Fama-MacBeth model, and cross-sectional analysis employing means of time series. Findings: Uncertainty avoidance, long-term orientation, and indulgence significantly influence life insurance demand. The impact of uncertainty avoidance and indulgence varies between developed and developing countries. Variables such as dependency ratio, the percentage of the Muslim population, tertiary education, and world governance indicators display differing effects in developed and developing nations. Conversely, national income, social security, bank development, stock market development, inflation, individualism, and power distance consistently impact life insurance demand in both contexts. Research limitations/implications: Limitation of this study lies in the utilization of static national cultural dimensions, without considering their gradual fluctuations. Our findings are useful for life insurance managers to formulate product launch plans tailored to countries with distinct cultural characteristics. Our findings remind investors in insurance companies to exercise caution once the insurance company tends to enter into developed countries which score high in IVR or MAS, or developing countries with high PDI or UAI scores. Originality/value: This paper provides a comprehensive empirical analysis of the determinants of life insurance expenditures in developed and developing countries, which fills a gap in the literature and helps scholars, insurance practitioners, and policymakers to understand more comprehensively the insurance needs of people in different cultures.

A sustainable information and communication flow (ICF) supports lifelines in floods, especially transport systems. A detailed insight into barriers regarding effective ICF through the implementation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the lifecycle of floods was given for evolved and evolving economies, i.e., York and Head-Marala, with sample sizes of 240 and 300 experts, respectively. All experts responded on an ethically approved questionnaire with further information notes that were used whilst discoursing the factors. ICTs were segregated into two groups, ranging from simple to advanced technologies. KMO and Bartlett's tests confirmed high sampling adequacy with values ranging from 0.679 to 0.823 (≥0.5) with p-values ≤ 0.05. An amended version of Q-Methodology was used to identify nine factors in total. Each factor with an Eigenvalue ≥1 was retained, and all factors were highly reliable with values between 0.89 and 0.96. Factors were explained through communalities, factor loadings, pattern and structure matrices, and notes from experts. Results showed that under-evolved economies have limited technological resources and under-developed flood coping plans compared to evolved economies. Also, the unacknowledged possibility was uncovered that ICF can certainly be sustained if all possibly available ICTs are engaged through a thorough deployment plan of action. Authorities needed to make ICT engagement plans simple and efficient through effective coordination among different institutions. Though authorities were trained and equipped with modern tools, equipment, and technologies, dense and dependent populations overwhelmed the rescue capabilities. Other than VMS, social media pages, and radio, other ICTs were not tried and tested in floods for the exchange of transport–flood ICF. These findings are useful for stakeholders from all communities, transport planning institutions, and flood managers who are not fully benefiting from the extended use of ICTs to manage travel activities in floods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reactions between natural organic matter, anthropogenic contaminants, ions, and disinfectants lead to the formation of disinfection by-products (DBPs) such as trihalomethanes (THMs) in drinking water. The formation of THMs is strongly related to the chlorination of water. The study's central objective was to compare the concentration of THMs in twenty developed and developing countries and their disinfection techniques. The THM concentration in 11 developed and 9 developing countries ranged from 0.5 µg/L (Germany) to 215 µg/L (Russia) and 3 µg/L (China) to 439.2 µg/L (Bangladesh), respectively. The developed country has partially succeeded in reducing THM concentration in drinking water, whereas significant steps are needed in developing countries to reduce the existing high THM concentration. The concentration of THMs in water varies among these countries because of the different water sources, water quality, environmental conditions, and efficiency of water treatment technologies. A meaningful relationship has been observed between the properties of water and the THM formation. The use of chemical disinfectants will result in new forms of DBPs that are undesirable due to their carcinogenic and mutagenic effects on human health. The DBP guidelines by various national and international agencies have helped to control and manage the THM concentration in drinking water. However, these regulatory standards are not continuously monitored. Therefore, the formation of these compounds should be prevented either by removing THMs forming precursors or by using an integrated approach for controlling THM formation by implementing advanced water treatment technology. Extensive research is desirable in domains like THM minimization strategies which are easy to deploy, scalable, and cost-effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior studies have shown that innovation has a mediating effect on the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance. This study compares this mediating effect in developed and developing countries using agency theory and signaling theory. A panel sample of 2,688 firms in developing and developed countries is analysed for the period of 2002-2017. The empirical findings demonstrate that corporate innovation fully mediates the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance in developed countries. However, innovation partially mediates the relationship between corporate governance and firm performance in developing countries. This could be because of different socioeconomic factors and capabilities of innovators involved in corporate governance structure. The study has both theoretical and policy implications and provides insights for policy makers for identifying the influence of innovation on firm value and evaluating the importance of corporate governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of tourism growth on tourism destinations' income inequality is an important question for policymakers. In this study, we explore if this relationship is affected by economic and financial development and their interactions. We find that tourism growth affects a country's income inequality differently. Post-redistribution, tourism growth eases income inequality in the lower economic development regime but may worsen income inequality in the upper economic development regime. However, tourism growth helps to alleviate income inequality in the lower financial development regime but may also lessen income inequality in the upper financial development regime. We also find some evidence that improving opportunities to access finance does a better job of helping to utilise the effect of tourism growth on easing income inequality in more developed nations rather than their counterparts. In line with these, our results also indicate that inflation tends to have different effects on income inequality, subject to the selection of thresholds. Our results are drawn from a dynamic panel threshold approach across 71 developed and developing countries during 1996–2016. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coal is crucial for economic progress but equally baneful to the environment. Thus, the coal consumption-environmental sustainability nexus attracted the attention of both policymakers and scholars. This study evaluates the coal consumption-environment nexus in developed and developing countries over the period 2000–2020. We used panel data econometric techniques and the Augmented Anderson–Hsiao (AAH) two-step GMM estimator to assess and compare the impact of coal consumption on CO2. The findings revealed that the consumption of coal aggravates environmental pollution and hinders environmental sustainability. Thus, this study confirms the environment-destroying effect of coal consumption. However, the findings reveal that the negative consequence of coal consumption on the environment is more for the sample of developed countries than that of developing countries. This suggests that coal use harms the environment developed economies than the developing countries. Specifically, we found that the carbon emissions emanating from a one percent (1%) increase in coal consumption of the developed countries is about six-fold more than that of the developing countries. Therefore, this study suggests a gradual phase-out, rather than sudden phase-out, of coal consumption with greater emphasis on developed countries. The implementation of the coal phase-out policy and the removal of fossil fuel subsidies should start with the developed countries or be made more stringent in such countries than the developing economies. The developed countries should relinquish a greater proportion of their coal consumption than the developing countries.

الملخص: أهداف البحث: في عام 2013، جعلت المملكة العربية السعودية اعتماد المجلس المركزي لاعتماد مؤسسات الرعاية الصحية (سباهي) إلزاميا لجميع مرافق الرعاية الصحية، بما في ذلك مراكز الرعاية الصحية الأولية، وحددت هدفا لاعتماد 502 من مراكز الرعاية الصحية الأولية بحلول عام 2020. ومع ذلك، هناك فجوة حقيقية في المعرفة والبحث حول تأثير اعتماد المركز السعودي لاعتماد المنشآت الصحية على مراكز الرعاية الصحية الأولية. تم ربط هذا النقص في البحث بعدم فهم برنامج الاعتماد. لذلك، أوصى الباحثين بأن المملكة العربية السعودية يمكن أن تتعلم من تجارب الدول الأخرى لتحسين تنفيذ السياسات وتجنب التعقيدات المستقبلية. طرق البحث: تهدف هذه الدراسة إلى استكشاف الدروس التي يمكن للمملكة العربية السعودية استخلاصها من الدول المتقدمة والنامية التي نفذت برامج اعتماد للرعاية الصحية الأولية. تقوم الدراسة بمراجعة الأدبيات باستخدام منهج منظم للبحث عن مقالات تدرس اعتماد مراكز الرعاية الصحية الأولية. تم فحص المقالات من خلال تطبيق معايير التقييم فيما يتعلق بنقل السياسة المرتقب. النتائج: أسفرت نتائج البحث عن 22 منشورا من دول مختلفة. كانت هناك اختلافات بين البلدان في تفاصيل المعلومات الموجودة. ومع ذلك، كان لدى الدنمارك أكبر عدد من المقالات التي تقدم معلومات مفصلة. فيما يتعلق بأهدافها، شاركت معظم الدراسات نفس الهدف المتمثل في تحسين الجودة وسلامة المرضى. بشكل عام، كانت هناك مناقشة محدودة لفشل السياسة مقارنة بنجاح السياسة. بالإضافة إلى ذلك، كانت معظم الدول في طور تنفيذ الاعتماد المحلي. وكانت جميع الدول التي نفذت برامج خارجية تقريبا من الدول النامية. من حيث معايير التطبيق، قدمت غالبية الحالات توصيات للبرنامج أو للرعاية الصحية الأولية. الاستنتاجات: تشير هذه المراجعة إلى أنه بسبب الاختلاف في المعلومات بين الدول والأماكن، لا توجد تجربة بلد مثالية يمكن للمملكة العربية السعودية أن تنقل الدروس منها. سوف تحتاج الدروس من خارج المملكة العربية السعودية إلى دراسة متأنية عند تبنيها في السياق المحلي للمملكة. Abstract: Background/Objectives: In 2013, the KSA made Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions (CBAHI) accreditation mandatory for all healthcare facilities, including primary health care centres (PHCs) and set a target to have 502 PHCs accredited by 2020. However, there is a real gap in knowledge and research on the impact of CBAHI accreditation on PHCs. This absence of research has been linked to the lack of understanding of the accreditation programme. Therefore, it was recommended by scholars that the KSA could learn from the experience of other countries to improve policy implementation and avoid future complications. Methods: This study aimed to explore lessons that KSA can draw from developed and developing countries that have implemented accreditation programmes for PHCs. We performed a literature review using a systematic approach to identify articles related to the accreditation of PHCs. The identified articles were examined by applying evaluation criteria in respect of prospective policy transfer. Results: The research results yielded 22 publications from different countries. There were variations among the countries in the specific information acquired. However, Denmark had the highest number of articles providing detailed information. Regarding their aims, most studies shared the same goal of improving quality and patient safety. Generally, there was limited discussion of policy failure compared with policy success. In addition, most of the countries were in the process of implementing local accreditation. Almost all of the countries that had implemented external programmes were developing countries. In terms of application criteria, most cases made recommendations for the programme or for PHCs. Conclusion: Analysis indicated that because of the differences in information between countries and settings, there is no ideal country-based experience from which the KSA can transfer lessons. Lessons from outside the KSA would need careful consideration when adopting them in the local context of the Kingdom.

Introduction: Health is one of the most important factors of human capital. Health affects labor supply both qualitatively (higher productivity) and quantitatively (not missing working days due to illness). Most countries have experienced a rapid growth in their health care costs in the past years. But nfortunately, some countries still think that any activity in the field of improving health will increase costs It should be noted that the skilled workforce can be the focus of development and increase production when it has physical health and a cheerful spirit. Although health expenses and then human capital play a significant role in the development of societies, however, the factors affecting health expenses and the impact of each of its constituent factors have not been well investigated and analyzed.Therefore, according to the increasing growth of the expenses of this sector, it seems important to identify the components that affect the health expenses.Therefore, in order to properly plan in the health-economic fields, one should have a precise and accurate understanding of the factors affecting health expenditures.The same subject led the current research to investigate the comparative-comparative factors affecting private and public health care expenditures in selected developed and developing countries.Methodology: This research used time series data for the period 2000-2019 and based on the panel data method, the variables affecting health expenditure for the private and public sectors of 15 selected developed countries including: Switzerland, Australia , Canada, Netherlands, Singapore, Germany, Sweden, Italy, USA, Norway, France, Japan, Denmark, Austria and Belgium; And also 15 selected developing countries including: Islamic Republic of Iran, Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, China, Serbia, Ukraine, Peru, Lebanon, Panama, Albania, Armenia, Cuba, Mexico and Costa Rica will be analyzed and investigated. Variables of gross domestic product (GDP), life expectancy (EXP), population over 65 years old (POP), population under 14 years old (age), urbanization rate (URB), literacy rate (EDU), out-of-pocket payments (OOP) And foreign aid (ODA) is one of the influencing factors on health care expenses in this research. Also, the statistics and figures used in this research were extracted from the World Bank and the World Atlas (Knoema).Results and Discussion: The variable coefficient of GDP, which is one of the effective variables in private and public health care expenditures in developed and developing countries, is positive and significant; the estimated coefficient of life expectancy variable is positive and significant.The impact of the variable population over 65 years old in developed and developing countries in both private and public sectors has been positive and significant.Also, the population under 14 years of age in both groups of developed and developing countries had a negative and significant relationship with health care expenditures in both private and public sectors; Also, the variable impact of urbanization rate in developed and developing countries has been positive and significant in both private and public sectors;The effect of the out-of-pocket variable has been negative and significant in developed countries and positive and significant in developing countries .And the variable coefficient of foreign aid in developing countries is negative and significant. And finally, the results of this study showed that there is no significant statistical relationship between the literacy rate and health costs.Conclusion: Considering the share of public and private sectors in health expenditures in developing countries, governments, as the largest public institution, should take the necessary measures to increase the share of public sector in health expenditures.

International interest in using waste-to-energy (WtE) technology toward a circular economy (CE) is developing, spurred by environmental challenges such as inefficient solid waste dumping, pollution, and resource depletion. Incineration, pyrolysis, gasification, landfill, and anaerobic digestion are standard WtE technologies. Although these methods have been used for many decades, all countries try to implement the best plans based on their technologies and capacities. Therefore, an up-to-date comprehensive study is needed to evaluate the existing barriers to draw a logical roadmap for WtE to CE. Therefore, this review addresses the recent policies adopted by developed and developing countries for WtE technologies. Based on the findings, most countries seek the most cost-effective and environmentally sustainable pathways in WtE to CE; meanwhile, international collaboration and governmental support are needed to overcome the existing barriers and find a sustainable and economically viable plan for both developed and developing countries in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The main objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between employment and economic growth in developed and developing countries over the period of 1970–2019. As documented in the literature in the past, economic growth in most developing countries has been less job-generating than in developed countries, even though high economic growth is observed in most of the developing world, indicating jobless growth. Based on the Cobb–Douglas production function, we developed an employment demand model to find the employment elasticity with respect to economic growth using working hours and population as explanatory variables. The main findings of the present study reveal that the employment elasticities with respect to GDP are positive and significant in developing and developed countries. But in the developing countries, the employment elasticity is relatively very low (0.11 to 0.15) compared to the developed countries (0.43 to 0.48), which led to the conclusion that a possibility of jobless growth exists in these countries. The findings of the study imply that policymakers should focus more on employment-led growth policies instead of growth-led employment policies, especially in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of countries' financial markets shows whether investors will be exposed to global or local risk factors in international financial asset investments. In this context, the aim of the study is to evaluate the level of financial integration of developed and developing countries with global markets. In the study, the financial market integration of 65 countries was calculated using the correlation approach and the International Capital Asset Pricing Model-based approach. According to these approaches, it shows that the integration of developed and developing countries with global markets is not complete. For this reason, investors have to consider both global and local risk factors in investments made in the countries that are the subject of the analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the impact of openness on human capital in 112 countries worldwide in 2000–2019. An two-stage least square fixed-effect model with instrumental variables is used to unravel the complicated relationship between human capital and its key determinants. The empirical results show that the impacts of openness vary greatly among different groups of countries. For example, while FDI has no effect on human capital in developed and upper-middle-income developing countries, its effect is positive in lower-middle-income countries and negative in low-income countries. Exports stimulate human capital formation in developed countries but in low-income developing countries, they act as an impediment to human capital formation. Imports have a positive effect on human capital in developing countries; however, in developed countries, the effect of imports on human capital is negative. International cooperation effectively raises the level of human capital in developed, upper-middle-income and low-income countries; however, it has no effect in lower-middle-income countries. In light of mindsponge—mindspongeconomics and the SM3D knowledge management system, the study's findings particularly shed light on the long-term development roadmap associated with human capital and openness expansion in less developed and emerging countries in years to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on the current environment, social responsibility, and sustainability, especially expecting the industrial business sector to be more responsive to society and the environment. Therefore, practitioners must focus more on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosure when they operate businesses. To discuss the model of disclosing CSR, this study adopts two studies: (1) comparing the differences in CSR disclosure of listed companies on the stock exchanges between Japan and Taiwan (developed countries) and Thailand (developing country), and (2) exploring the relationship between the disclosure of corporate social responsibility and companies’ performance in terms of financial by secondary data from these three countries. A total of 134 companies from Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand Stock Exchanges from 2016 to 2020 were included in this study. The findings revealed that developed countries have more social responsibility disclosures than developing countries, and the disclosure of CSR scores has a significant relationship with the company’s financial performance. The results from this study will be helpful for corporate executives or other stakeholders to use the information from the current study to assist their future decision-making related to CSR disclosure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Çalışmada, gelişmiş ve gelişmekte olan ülkeler bazında sağlık harcamalarına etki eden faktörlerin panel regresyon yöntemi aracılığıyla belirlenmesi amaçlanmaktadır. Bu amaç kapsamında temel varsayımların karşılandığı dirençli tahmincilerle regresyon tahmini yapılmıştır. Analiz sonucunda elde edilen bulgulara göre, ilgili faktörler gelişmiş ülkelerde teoride beklenenin tersi, gelişmekte olan ülkelerde ise teoride beklenen etkiyle uyumlu etki göstermektedir. Gelişmiş ülkelerde kişi başında düşen gelir, doğumda beklenen yaşam süresi ve şehirleşme oranı en fazla etkiye sahipken, gelişmekte olan ülkelerde ise kişi başına düşen gelir ve doğumda beklenen yaşam süresi etkilidir. Ayrıca bulgulara göre, ülkeler arasındaki gelişmişlik farklarından dolayı gelişmiş ülkelerde sağlık harcamalarında kamu ve özel sektör ayrımı belirli bir şekilde görülürken, gelişmekte olan ülkelerde ise ağırlıklı olarak kamu sektörü üzerinde artırıcı etki oluştuğu görülmektedir.

This research aims to investigate the impact of energy consumption, financial development, and economic development on the ecological footprint in a panel of 119 developed and developing countries between 2002 and 2018. The study employs panel unit root and autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model to achieve this goal. The ARDL results reveal that several factors such as energy consumption, financial development, urbanization, globalization, foreign direct investment, and population growth have a positive relationship with the ecological footprint in developed countries. On the other hand, the human development index and natural resources negatively affect the ecological footprint in developed countries. Moreover, the ARDL results indicate that energy consumption, financial development, urbanization, foreign direct investment, and population growth positively impact the ecological footprint in developing countries in the long run. In contrast, the human development index, natural resources, and globalization have a negative impact on the ecological footprint. These findings imply the need for different policy implications for both developed and developing countries to reduce their ecological footprint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At odds with the large literature devoted to the fiscal discipline effects of fiscal rules, only few contributions investigate their impact on public spending. Estimations based on the entropy balancing method reveal the following causal effects: fiscal rules significantly reduce total public spending and public consumption, leave public investment mostly unaffected, and increase the public investment‐to‐public consumption ratio. Moreover, the type of fiscal rule and countries' level of economic development influence the way fiscal rules affect public spending. Lastly, fiscal rules' features are a major driving force of the way governments change public spending in the presence of fiscal rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use large panel data of 107 developed and developing countries to examine the impact of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) adoption on governance quality. Our results show that IPSAS has a positive and significant influence on governance quality, suggesting that IPSAS ensure accountability and transparency between the government and its citizens. However, we find that the positive effect of IPSAS is limited to developing countries. The findings provide empirical evidence to policymakers and regulators in their pursuit of global harmonisation of governmental accounting through the adoption of IPSAS, especially in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mental health issues affect rich and poor, young and old, and are widespread in Asia as well as in Europe. However, few studies have investigated the influence of perceived stress and income on mental health among general population in China and in Germany. Methods: We conducted an online survey from December 2021 to February 2022 to investigate how perceived stress and income affect mental health among the general population in China (N = 1123) and in Germany (N = 1018). Accordingly, we used the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) and the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). We ran a multiple linear regression model to investigate the relationship between perceived stress, income, and mental health. Results: Overall, we found that 53.4% participants reported mental health issues (GHQ-12 score ≥12). The proportion of our sample who reported mental health issues was higher in Germany (60.3%) than in China (44.8%). The regression model revealed that a higher perceived stress score was associated with more mental health issues in both countries (b = 0.60, p

A sustainable information and communication flow (ICF) supports lifelines in floods, especially transport systems. A detailed insight into barriers regarding effective ICF through the implementation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the lifecycle of floods was given for evolved and evolving economies, i.e., York and Head-Marala, with sample sizes of 240 and 300 experts, respectively. All experts responded on an ethically approved questionnaire with further information notes that were used whilst discoursing the factors. ICTs were segregated into two groups, ranging from simple to advanced technologies. KMO and Bartlett’s tests confirmed high sampling adequacy with values ranging from 0.679 to 0.823 (≥0.5) with p-values ≤ 0.05. An amended version of Q-Methodology was used to identify nine factors in total. Each factor with an Eigenvalue ≥1 was retained, and all factors were highly reliable with values between 0.89 and 0.96. Factors were explained through communalities, factor loadings, pattern and structure matrices, and notes from experts. Results showed that under-evolved economies have limited technological resources and under-developed flood coping plans compared to evolved economies. Also, the unacknowledged possibility was uncovered that ICF can certainly be sustained if all possibly available ICTs are engaged through a thorough deployment plan of action. Authorities needed to make ICT engagement plans simple and efficient through effective coordination among different institutions. Though authorities were trained and equipped with modern tools, equipment, and technologies, dense and dependent populations overwhelmed the rescue capabilities. Other than VMS, social media pages, and radio, other ICTs were not tried and tested in floods for the exchange of transport–flood ICF. These findings are useful for stakeholders from all communities, transport planning institutions, and flood managers who are not fully benefiting from the extended use of ICTs to manage travel activities in floods.

Objective: to analyze the expected economic transformations in the 21st century in various countries of the world. Methods: abstract-logical method, methods of modeling of socio-economic self-organization, methods of long-term forecasting of world dynamics, theory of institutional matrices.Results: based on the performed analysis, the following conclusions are made: 1) in the coming decades, a complex continuum of types, transitions, combinations and forms of economic structures will be observed in the world (with an increase in the proportion of post-industrial forms). At the same time, there will be a shift towards strengthening distributive institutions in developed countries and a shift towards strengthening market institutions in developing countries that continue the processes of economic and socio-political modernization; 2) the process of internationalization of the labor force will be intensified (due to the development of remote employment) along with the internationalization of capital; 3) a new technological wave (2030s – 2070s) will bring new resources and expand the sphere for production and services, which will support economic growth in both developed and developing countries; 4) at the same time in some areas, in particular in medicine, a very significant regulation of economic activity is inevitable, while in other areas, in particular in robotics, economic mechanisms of a market-corporate type may strengthen; 5) thus, the most important task in the coming decades is to increase the flexibility of socio-economic development of all countries of the world, namely, gaining the ability to regulate the ratio of market and distribution mechanisms depending on the spheres of activity and tasks to be solved without the pressure of ideological dogmas.Scientific novelty: based on the historical trends analysis using the theory of institutional matrices, a forecast of economic transformations in the 21st century is made for the countries of various types and the expected features of these transformations are substantiated.Practical significance: the proposed methods of long-term forecasting can be used in strategic planning systems in the Russian Federation.

Copyright of Current Social & Economic Processes / Jelenkori Társadalmi és Gazdasági Folyamatok is the property of University of Szeged, Faculty of Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article investigates the impacts of global value chain (GVC) participation on the shadow economy size (SES). GVC participation is classified by the source of the value-added in exports, looking both backward and forward from the perspective of a reference country. First, by using a global sample of 33 developed and 23 developing countries during the 2005–2015 period, the empirical results demonstrate that GVC participation has a negative impact on SES. Second, our findings confirm the presence of a non-linear bell-shaped association between backward GVC and SES while forward GVC has a significant increasingly negative influence on the SES. Third, the positive effects of backward GVC on SES are greater for developing countries, while the forward GVC plays a more critical role in reducing SES in developed countries. Finally, in the short term, both backward and forward GVC participation reduce SES, but the effects follow a U-shaped curve. In the long-term, there is evidence on the bell-shaped non-linear relationship between backward GVC and SES in developing countries, and between forward GVC and SES in developed countries. Backward GVC is an effective tool to control the SES of developing countries, while forward GVC is more important for developed countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Situation in COVID-19 pandemic forced educational activity to shift from face-to-face to blended learning or to full online learning. This situation becomes a problem in different academic levels, especially secondary education as some teachers and students were not ready. This “E-Learning Adoption Readiness in Secondary Education: A Systematic Literature Review†article summarized the influencing factors and issues of readiness in adopting e-Learning in high school, including the technologies and communication tools, as the foundation of analysis. The research objective is to identify and compare e-Learning adoption between developed and developing countries during pandemic. This article used Kitchenham and Charter method which extract data research published in databases such as Scopus and Science Direct. This research found distinct gaps between developed and developing countries in the context of e-learning readiness adoption and factors that influenced the said adoption. We conclude that there are still a numbers of basic internal and external factors that need to be considered in e-Learning adoption, especially in developing countries. The implication and recommendation for the adoption during pandemic is hoped to be insightful for future research in the same field, as there are significant differences in developing and developed countries, especially regarding IT literacy.

The aim of this paper is to analyze the participation in the global textile and apparel value chain with special attention, first, to the case of three dynamic and interrelated economies (Mexico, the United States, and China); and second, to a general approach to a larger sample of countries through the analysis of trade in value added. From the descriptive analysis, a high domestic share in each country's exports is found. However, China is the leading exporter in the industry, accounting for around a third of the domestic value added in the global textile final demand. An econometric estimation has also been carried out to observe the effects of tariffs, FDI, and labor costs on the total and backward participation in the textile GVC. In this case, the sample has been extended to 39 developed and 22 developing countries. The results reveal tariff protection as a determinant of the degree of participation of the sector, especially when backward participation and developing economies are considered. However, FDI and labor costs only show the expected results in the case of developing countries. This may be due to the different tasks performed by developing economies (primarily manufacturing) versus developed economies (branding, design) within the sector's value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates empirically the effect of export diversification (i.e. both export product diversification and services export diversification) on financial openness, using a sample of 119 countries (including both developed and developing countries) over the period 1985–2014. Based on the Blundell and Bond's two-step system Generalized Method of Moments, the analysis has revealed that both export product diversification and services export diversification influence positively financial openness. However, this outcome hides differentiated effects across countries in the full sample. Especially, countries with a very high real per capita income experience a positive effect of export concentration on financial openness, while for countries with a relatively lower per capita income, it is rather export diversification that drives positively financial openness. Interestingly, the effect of export diversification on financial openness depends on the size of external shocks that affect domestic economies, as well as countries' economic growth performance. Overall, these findings add to the empirical literature on the effect of international trade on financial openness by showing that both export product diversification and services export diversification matter for financial openness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the impact of openness on human capital in 112 countries worldwide in 2000–2019. An two-stage least square fixed-effect model with instrumental variables is used to unravel the complicated relationship between human capital and its key determinants. The empirical results show that the impacts of openness vary greatly among different groups of countries. For example, while FDI has no effect on human capital in developed and upper-middle-income developing countries, its effect is positive in lower-middle-income countries and negative in low-income countries. Exports stimulate human capital formation in developed countries but in low-income developing countries, they act as an impediment to human capital formation. Imports have a positive effect on human capital in developing countries; however, in developed countries, the effect of imports on human capital is negative. International cooperation effectively raises the level of human capital in developed, upper-middle-income and low-income countries; however, it has no effect in lower-middle-income countries. In light of mindsponge—mindspongeconomics and the SM3D knowledge management system, the study’s findings particularly shed light on the long-term development roadmap associated with human capital and openness expansion in less developed and emerging countries in years to come.

The primary aim of this research is to analyse the effect of Foreign Real Estate Investment (FREI) on tourist development using a panel dataset of 33 countries over the time period 2000–2016. Given the potential dynamic and endogenous relationship in the FREI-Tourism development nexus, this paper employs a Panel Vector Error Correction Model (PVECM) and a comparative analysis is further conducted by segregating the sample into sub-samples of developed and developing countries. The empirical results indicate that FREI is positively significant, although to varying extent, in explaining tourist growth. There is also evidence of reverse causality, as tourism is observed to also affect FREI in a positive and significant way, at least in the long run. This study is believed to contribute to the debate by bringing additional evidences in the developing countries context while also analysing the link between tourism development and FREI in a comparative setting of developed countries and developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research topic addresses the phenomenon of the gross discrepancy between the quantity of unpaid care work between men and women throughout developed and developing countries. Specifically, this study compares the percentage of a day men and women spend in unpaid work across developed and developing countries through the analysis of secondary data obtained from reputable sources. The results showed that women in both developed and developing countries did a higher proportion of unpaid work in all countries; the disparity between the two genders was significantly higher in most developing countries, with a few exceptions. The disproportionate burden borne by the women among the three groups is also underscored by the fact that the proportion of the day spent in unpaid labour is the same for both developed and developing countries. Additional exploration of related literature suggests that socioeconomic and cultural characteristics of the developing countries, which place women in a disadvantaged position in terms of the opportunity for self-development, further accounts for these differences. Various factors, like culture, were identified to account for the differences. As such, the following recommendations were made institution of gender-equitable policies, free/affordable compulsory education for all, creation of a model to generate monetary values for unpaid labour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The G20 comprises rich, industrialized, and powerful nations that advance the world economy through foreign direct investment (FDI). Nevertheless, these countries account for the largest share of global carbon dioxide emissions (CO 2). Enforcing intellectual property rights (IPRs) has become a useful tool for stimulating clean technologies to mitigate climate change. This study examines how IPR enforcement moderated the inflow of FDI and carbon emissions in the G20 from 2001 to 2017. We applied the Driscoll-Kraay robust standard error technique, Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS), Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS), and Dumitrescu-Hurlin causality tests. The results show that FDI increases emissions, thus confirming the pollution haven effect. Long-term estimates suggest that the moderating role of IPRs in FDI significantly reduces environmental degradation. Causality analysis shows that FDI causes CO 2 emissions in the long run, and carbon emissions enforce IPR regulations. Furthermore, we observed bidirectional causality between IPRs, FDI relationships, and carbon emissions. Based on these results, policymakers should enhance IPR policies and encourage clean technology through FDI among G20 members. In addition, governments should promote the clean-up of industrial processes, green finance, and the consumption of eco-friendly technologies, such as renewable energy, to achieve carbon neutrality. • The role of intellectual property rights (IPR) on FDI and CO2 emissions was examined. • FDI inflows across G20 countries support the pollution haven hypothesis. • IPR negatively moderate the relationship between FDI and CO2 emissions. • IPR enforcement can help transfer clean technologies through FDI. • Governments should promote trade, financing, and renewables to achieve sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]