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This paper aims to explore how Traditional Healers (THs) and Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) support women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postnatal period in Soweto, Johannesburg. Traditional healing remains a central part of maternal healthcare in South Africa, where cultural beliefs and accessibility influence women’s health-seeking behaviours. Using a qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive design, data were collected through key informant interviews with eight participants (five THs and three TBAs) selected through purposive sampling. Thematic analysis was employed to identify patterns in traditional knowledge, practices, and beliefs related to maternal healthcare. Findings revealed that THs and TBAs play an essential role across the maternal care continuum. In the diagnostic phase, they identify fertility challenges, breech pregnancies, and spiritual causes of illness through ancestral guidance, bone divination, and dreams. During the antenatal period, they provide herbal remedies such as isihlambezo to cleanse and strengthen the womb and perform protective rituals against witchcraft and evil spirits. In the perinatal stage, TBAs assist with labour management, delivery, and placental expulsion using culturally informed methods. Their postnatal care includes uterine cleansing, breastfeeding support, newborn care, and follow-up home visits. These practices, grounded in indigenous knowledge systems, coexist with biomedical care and remain vital due to their cultural resonance and accessibility. The study concludes that strengthening collaboration between traditional and biomedical health systems could enhance culturally sensitive, community-based approaches to maternal healthcare in South Africa.

This paper examines the exchange rate pass-through (ERPT) and its impact on home inflation in Bangladesh, particularly in the post-pandemic era. Examining important economic factors including the nominal exchange rate (NER), money supply (M2), industrial production (IP), and global commodity index (GCI) using monthly data from January 2002 to August 2023 helps one to grasp their combined influence on consumer price inflation (CPI). By means of Johansen cointegration and Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) approaches, the study reveals important short-term and long-term dynamics. Contrary to patterns in many emerging nations, the results show that changes in exchange rates have apparently little impact on home prices. Rather, changes in the money supply and world commodities prices mostly influence inflation; the latter becomes a major factor. The study also exposes an unexpected positive link between industrial production and CPI, implying complexity in Bangladesh's production-driven economic structure. Moreover, this investigation underlines how complex monetary expansion, external commodities shocks, and devaluation of money interact to shape inflationary pressures. These results offer legislators important new perspectives and support strong monetary policies and focused involvement in world commodities markets to help to lower inflation. This study clarifies ERPT in developing countries and provides direction on inflation control techniques for Bangladesh.

Workplace stress and nurse retention are critical challenges in healthcare, affecting organizational stability and public health outcomes. Therefore, this study investigates the impact of stressors and job satisfaction on nurses’ turnover intentions in the western region of Ghana, with a focus on the moderating role of transformational leadership. Methodologically, a descriptive cross-sectional design was employed to collect data from 364 registered nurses working in four hospitals. Participants completed an online questionnaire measuring stress factors, job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and transformational leadership. Structural equation modelling was employed to analyze the data using Mplus 8.3. The results revealed stressors (stress from workload, superiors, and coworkers and daily life) significantly increased nurses’ turnover intentions while negatively influencing job satisfaction. Job satisfaction was inversely associated with turnover intentions, and transformational leadership moderated this relationship, reducing the likelihood of such intentions. The findings highlight the importance of fostering job satisfaction and implementing transformational leadership strategies, such as mentorship and effective stress management, to alleviate workplace stress and enhance nurse retention. These insights offer valuable guidance for hospital administrators and policymakers in designing interventions to improve nurse retention and overall organizational performance.

The fraudulent claims for Unemployment Insurance (UI) have also risen massively in the United States especially during the onset of COVID-19 pandemic with billions of dollars that were lost. These approaches applied formerly in fraud detection and prevention have been challenged by new and advanced fraud systems. For this reason, AI, Big Data and Predictive Analytics are now crucial for improving fraud mitigation in UI programs. The aim of this research is to understand how far AI, Big Data and Predictive Analytics have been utilized, for how effective they are and the barriers they pose in tackling unemployment insurance fraud in the United States. An online quantitative self-administered questionnaire was administered where 200 participants from the unemployment insurance agencies of the U.S, covering fraud investigators, IT personnel, data analysts and policymakers, were included in the study. Data were analyzed to establish the correlation between technology adoption to application of anti-fraud measures using descriptive statistics, chi-square test and regression analysis. The survey shows that about 42.5% of agencies actively use AI and 34% of them use Big Data very often. However, difficulties like high costs, integration troubles and limited availability of specialized staff are still issues that make adoption a problem. The results of using AI and Big Data were moderate and optimistic but rather elevated, as seen through regression analysis; on the other hand, predictive analytics demonstrated large potential when applied successfully. The study’s results indicate that AI, Big Data and Predictive Analytics present enormous potential for mitigating UI fraud, although broad integration will not be possible without overcoming essential infrastructural and resource limitations.

Using A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2010 to 2019 and the density of Confucian temples and schools near sample company headquarters, this paper uses regression analysis to estimate the impact of Confucian culture on corporate environmental governance.  Enterprise environmental capital investment as a percent of total assets is the dependent variable used as a proxy for environmental governance. The log of the number of the number of Confucian temples and Confucian academies within a 200-kilometer radius of the company's registered location plus one is the independent variable. This study finds that the environmental capital expenditures increase by 0.007% for every unit increase in the independent variable. Similar results are found when the radius is expanded to 300 kilometers. The greater the influence of Confucian culture is, the more inclined enterprises are to participate in corporate environmental governance. Additionally, environmental governance information disclosure can be a key influence path for this correlation.  Further analysis finds that the relationship between Confucian culture and environmental governance is stronger with more experienced managers, a more developed institutional environment, and after 2015 following the People's Republic of China’s enactment of the Environmental Protection Law.  This study expands the literature on the factors that influence Confucian culture on corporate environmental governance, enriches the empirical evidence of the influence of the informal system of corporate environmental governance on enterprise decision-making, and confirms the modern commercial value of Confucian culture. 

Although the onset of the pandemic pressured monetary and fiscal policy across the globe, deficit finance was aided by the large, established debt markets in countries like the United States.  The expansionary efforts in emerging markets like Latin America put greater strains on their more limited capacity.  Our study analyzes data from seven Latin American countries, three European countries, three Asian countries, and the United States. We utilize panel vector autoregressive (VAR) models to explore the dynamic interactions and feedback mechanisms among the policy variables, while accounting for unobserved country-specific effects.  Our results demonstrate strong and significant interactions between monetary and fiscal policy around the time of the pandemic, with the primary causal effects running from fiscal to monetary policy.  Additionally, our results yield evidence of countercyclical policy reactions to inflation for both monetary and fiscal policy over the pandemic period.  

There is scant literature available in South Africa that explores the knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of student nursing trainees and other healthcare workers who deliver sexual health services to sexual and gender minority (SGM) communities with unique health needs. An online, mixed-method, questionnaire-based survey was employed to conveniently sample 39/78 (50%) final-year Bachelor of Nursing students from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal to understand their knowledge, attitudes and perceptions. Descriptive statistics were applied for quantitative results and thematic analysis was used for free-text qualitative data. Results suggested that over 67% of the participants lack the skills and knowledge to obtain a comprehensive history salient to the health needs of SGM populations. Students reported that social upbringing and religious beliefs impact the care they render, with many showing favourable attitudes toward the SGM community. Overall, students reported no content related to SGMs in the current nursing curriculum, however, students were receptive, highlighting the need to be clinically competent to provide relevant healthcare for SGM to meet their sexual health needs. It thus require that students must be trained and have included the SGM content in their curriculum to meet the sexual health needs of SGM population to enable non discriminatory, equitable health provision. being informed and having the necessary skills and knowledge obtained during training in the health institutions of higher learning can address the issues of greatest concern related to the HIV health needs of SGM populations.

Pennsylvania's aging transportation infrastructure has long been a cause for concern, with bridges, highways, and other vital components approaching the end of their serviceable lifespans. The state's infrastructure, one of the nation's oldest, is in dire need of repair and replacement, particularly in the case of bridges, many of which are over 50 years old and in poor condition. However, the financial investment required for this task is substantial, posing challenges within the state's budget constraints. To address this infrastructure crisis, an amendment to Pennsylvania's existing legislation, Act 88, is proposed. This amendment would permit local governments to engage in Public-Private Transportation Partnerships (P3s), leveraging private sector financial resources and expertise. Such local government Transportation P3s have the potential to alleviate the state's infrastructure and financial woes. Currently, Act 88 prohibits municipal governments from participating in these partnerships, hindering the Commonwealth's ability to secure private funding and expertise when public resources are limited. This study aims to address the structural deficiencies in Pennsylvania's transportation infrastructure and its $2.2 billion financial deficit, which hampers repair and improvement efforts. The study employs a descriptive, multi-case analysis to investigate how an amendment to Act 88 could enable local municipalities to engage in P3 transportation projects. These partnerships could provide solutions to budgetary and funding challenges, particularly in the context of locally owned bridge repair and replacement projects. The selected cases are evaluated against various performance criteria, such as value, pricing, budgeting, public accountability, regulatory control, and capacity, offering a comprehensive assessment of the potential benefits of local government participation in P3 transportation projects.

Is credit card lending by credit unions within the United States primarily a service to members or a profit generating product?  This paper examines the impact of credit card lending on the performance of U.S. credit unions from 2000-2017. A panel data approach using fixed effects regression methodology is undertaken to make comparative analyses of credit union performance across several dimensions including the percentage of the firm’s assets in credit card loans and percent of members with a credit card. Credit unions are stratified into deciles by size and significant results are found using this methodology. Controlling for delinquencies and charge-offs among other variables, credit card lending significantly increases ROA for both large and small credit unions, but only after the Financial Crisis of 2008, and the establishment of the CARD Act in 2009. Interestingly, the ROA of small credit unions significantly increases with the percentage of members using the institution’s credit card.  This result suggests that small credit unions would benefit by increasing the penetration of credit cards within their membership base.

Examining the reasons why Albanians use internet banking services is the focus of this paper. Due to recent technological developments, Albania's banking industry is utilizing technology for an increasing number of banking procedures. We started by presenting some of the key elements that have been identified as having a significant impact on the literature regarding the adoption of online banking, including demographic, socioeconomic, and other elements based on the technology adoption model (TAM). For our empirical research, we used primary data that was collected through surveys that various bank customers in Albania completed. The decreased desire to utilize cash appears to be a key element influencing the rise in the usage of online banking applications and services. Other important factors are the application technical issues and reduction of banking operations time as well as the application security level. The findings of this study will help banks better understand their customers' needs and will provide them with suggestions on how to make technology development plans easier.  

Advocates of blockchain claim widespread impact will be forthcoming shortly. However, the path of innovation in blockchain is uncharted. Investors will assess where blockchain innovation will profit first and most. The timing and impact of each blockchain innovation is a key consideration for business managers. Link, Ruhm, and Siegel (2014) suggest private equity investments forecast which innovations are likely to succeed. Previous research on private equity gives insight on why that ownership structure is especially successful. Private equity investments are collected for two periods and categorized according to basic blockchain components, basic cryptocurrency payment components, and decentralized applications, particularly applications in financial services. The results suggest investors have acted prudently, investing strongly in building blocks, payment systems and fundamental applications, showing a primary emphasis on refining blockchain and realizing standard blockchain protocols before investing in highly complex applications. Further, financial services applications dominate, suggesting investors see financial services as far and away the most likely industry for imminent deconstruction.

To obtain a comprehensive view of the apparel disposal behaviors of young U.S. consumers, this study evaluated antecedents of apparel disposal behaviors using a framework based on the theory of reasoned action (TRA), categorization theory, and prior literature. Data were obtained from a convenience sample of undergraduate students at a large U.S. Midwestern university through a self-administered online survey. A final sample of 358 usable surveys was analyzed through the use of structural equation modeling (SEM) with Amos. The results supported the proposed relationships between environmental apparel knowledge and attitude toward sustainable methods of apparel disposal. In addition, the proposed relationships between attitude and apparel disposal intention (intention to discard, donate, reuse, or resell) were all supported except for intention to resell. While the results showed a significant and positive relationship between subjective norms and intention to resell or donate apparel, no significant relationship was shown between subjective norms and intention to reuse or discard apparel. In addition, subjective norms were a positive and significant antecedent of attitude. Lastly, respondents’ intention to engage in a particular apparel disposal behavior corresponded with the actual apparel disposal behavior.

Cryptocurrencies are attracting considerable attention around the world because of the various advantages that they offer. On the other hand, they also carry some inherent risks. Although monetary authorities broadly agree that cryptocurrencies do not engender an immediate threat to national and global financial systems, the future is full of unknowns. In this regard, drawing a framework based on the current drivers of demand for cryptocurrencies would help visualize the prospects for these assets and create a roadmap to avoid or manage any disruptive risks. This discussion paper aims to contribute to the literature by examining the key factors that will determine the future performance of cryptocurrencies. The main conclusion derived from the discussion is that national regulations will potentially affect the direction of cryptocurrencies, as well as the need for any special efforts in the domain of monetary policy

We examine the security and firm characteristics of a sample of 2,027 non-convertible investment grade floating rate securities (bonds) issued by the US based firms between 1980 and 2018. These bonds pay a coupon based on short term reference rate, such as fed funds rate, plus a fixed quoted margin. Considerable number (81.6%) of these issues are between 1992 and 2007 signifying floating rate as an effective mechanism to mitigate firm’s interest rate risk when the rates are high and expected to fall. A positive and significant abnormal return (CAR = 0.27%), in the event window surrounding issue date, provides strong evidence that the floating rate is viewed as a less restrictive provision as compared to the call option. Majority of the issues (89.3%) are non-callable since the floating rate mitigates interest rate risk for the issuing firm. Lack of put provision in these bonds (in only 7.35% of the sample issues) signifies no significant investor concerns of falling bond prices. Regression analysis reveals that firms with growth options and with higher leverage experience positive CAR due to the financial flexibility these bonds provide. Firms with higher level of information asymmetry benefits less from issuing these securities since most of these bonds (90.13%) are issued at par therefore, the price is not likely to carry information content that mitigates information asymmetry between the firms and the investors.

The aim of this study was to identify the impact of HR activities on competitive advantage in private schools. The study uses primary data collected with the help of a well-structured questionnaire that was developed and distributed among a sample of 92 respondents (49 female and 43 male), questionnaire results were statistically analyzed to test the hypotheses that were developed to identify the impact of HR activities on competitive advantages. Multiple regression analysis was used as a statistical tool and technique to identify five key elements: recruitment and reward system, training and skill development activities, organization climate, employee participation and empowerment; and effective communication system to determine competitive advantage in private schools in Jordan. The results indicated that there is a statistically significant effect of HR activities on the competitive advantage; On the other hand, there is no impact of other variables.

Multidimensional well-being is an important method for understanding the social functioning of communities affected by the Pak Mun Dam, 26 years after its construction. This is the first quantitative research on the well-being of these communities. In six of eight well-being dimensions, the more distant communities are faring better than those in close proximity to the dam. Furthermore, 24 of 40 items that represent each dimension have statistically significant lower means in the affected community. This result shows the long-lasting nature of negative effects on communities and without appropriate policy action, negative impacts will linger preventing developmental progress from occurring.

Understanding the effects on the overall well-being of the communities affected by the Pak Mun Dam construction would fill in the gaps in existing knowledge and facilitate a deeper discussion of the factors that impact overall wellbeing. The Pak Mun Dam was finished in 1994 and from that point on there have been changes affecting local residents. This study attempts to understand the impact of those changes from a well-being perspective using primary data collected from residents in villages close to the dam site. Structural Equation Model (SEM) was a method for this research analysis.  Results from a structural model show that social and economic well-being are important factors that impact the overall well-being of the affected residents from the Pak Mun Dam area. Furthermore, we discuss how information from 20 items within seven dimensions of the well-being measurement model can be used to develop more efficient strategies and policies to increase well-being capital.

The purpose of this paper is two folds: (i) obtain the overall technical efficiencies (TE), pure technical efficiencies (PTE), and scale efficiencies of the Islamic bank of the nine South and Southeast Asian (SSEA) countries during 2011-2016. (ii) compare them among the Islamic banks of the SSEA. The paper applied the Bootstrap Data Envelope Analysis (DEA) for obtaining three efficiencies in the production of loan and earning assets and found that the average TE, PTE, and SE of the Islamic banks in the region were 77.3 percent, 81.2 percent, and 95.3 percent respectively. The comparison of PTE efficiencies across the Islamic banks found: (i) the average TE of the Islamic banks of Malaysia was 81.9 percent and was higher than the average of other countries in the region; (ii) the average managerial efficiency (PTE) of the Islamic banks of Malaysia, excluding Brunei, Singapore, and Thailand, was 87.0 percent and was higher than the average of other countries in the region; (iii) among countries of the South and Southeast Asia, excluding Singapore and Maldives, the Islamic banks of Pakistan were more scale efficient than other countries in the region. The average scale efficiency of Pakistan’s Islamic banks was 96.8 percent. The underlying reason for the Islamic banks of Malaysia and Pakistan most efficient in the region is because they were the forerunners. They were the first countries to introduce Islamic banks. Secondly, the banks of counties survived through competition with conventional banks operating side by side in the Islamic banks. The policy prescription suggests that bank regulators allow the opening of more Islamic banks to compete with conventional banks for improving PTE efficiency.

Using a large sample of U.S. firms during 1987–2011, we find robust evidence that the issuance of seasoned equity is associated with abnormally high future stock price crash risk. The association between seasoned equity offerings and crash risk is stronger among offerings that involve the sale of secondary shares (existing shares sold by insiders or large blockholders). We also find that recent seasoned equity issuers are far less likely to experience sudden positive price jumps relative to firms that have not recently issued equity. Our findings of elevated crash risk and diminished jump risk, when taken together, are consistent with a heightened propensity for firms to hoard bad news but not good news when issuing equity.

Proper management of finances in private primary schools is very imperative to their operations. There are, however, serious financial challenges in these private schools in Kenya as characterized by unprecedented high fees charged on students. The objective of this study was to assess the role of financial control in the growth of private primary schools in Kenya. The study was guided by the Cash Management Theory that gives emphasis to reasonable ways to deal with organizational finance management and efficient utilization as well as the Endogenous Growth Theory which stipulates that, in the long-run growth rate depends on a stable business environment. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative study design, which targeted 7,418 private primary schools in Kenya. Accessible population constituted of 3,431 heads of schools in four regions of Kenya namely: Nairobi, Central Kenya, Northeastern, and the Coastal regions. A random sampling method was used to draw a sample of 320 respondents who were either the principals’/Head teachers or deputy principal of the schools. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Structural Equation modeling using Analysis of Moment Structures was used to analyze the data. The fitness of the hypothesized structural and measurement models was tested using the Normed Fit Index and the Root Mean Squared Error. The overall path coefficients obtained were positive and significant at a 0.05 level of significance. The study established that financial control positively and significantly influenced the growth of private primary schools. The study recommended that private primary schools should have effective budget management mechanisms and strong financial controls.