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An individual’s attitude toward financial risk tolerance (FRT) is an important preference that influences financial decision-making under uncertainty. FRT involves inter-temporal resource allocation. Accurate and reliable measures of FRT are essential for professionals advising consumers as well as researchers who are trying to predict, and understand consumer behavior. This study explores cross-cultural risk tolerance by comparing random samples from Turkey, and the United States. Similar and distinctive attitudes and patterns regarding FRT are identified. Three subjective measures of FRT are employed in this study: Grable and Lytton (1999), Hanna, Gutter and Fan’s (2001) improved version of Barsky, Juster, Kimball and Shapiro (1997), and the Survey of Consumer Finance’s item on risk tolerance. Data was collected via an online survey that used the above-mentioned FRT measures. There were two versions: the original American English version, and a culturally translated Turkish version. To explore the correlation of FRT among measures, we use bivariate analysis by individually employing Pearson Chi-square test of independence, and cross tabulations analysis to each sample. In addition, by pooling both samples, we conduct cumulative logistic regression. We delineate FRT differences and consistencies between countries across subjective financial risk tolerance measures.

This study is about foreign exchange reserves of Bangladesh. The main purpose of this study is to the influence of exchange rateson foreign exchange reserves to the Bangladesh context. Both the primary and secondary data has been used in this study. The primary data has been collected through a structured questionnaire from 50 respondents. The secondary data, namely Bangladesh foreign exchange reserves (FER), Bangladesh current account balance (CAB), Bangladesh capital and financial account balance (CFAB), and BDT/USD exchange rates (ER). This study covers yearly data from July 01, 1996 to June 30, 2005 and quarterly data from July 01, 2005 to June 30, 2012. Findings of this study shows that out of the selected 16 factors affecting foreign exchange reserves, exchange rates occupy the first position, weighted average score (WAS) being 4.56. Foreign exchange reserves (FER) and current account balance (CAB) have increased by 502.9087% and 1451.218%, whereas capital and financial account (CFAB) has decreased by -649.024% on June 30, 2012 compared to June 30, 1997. The influence of other factors held constant, as ER changes by 285.6894 units due to one unit change in FER, on average in the same direction which represents that ER has positive effect on the FER and this relationship is statistically significant. 62.1526 percent of the variation in FER is explained by ER. The outcomes of Breusch-Godfrey test (LM test), ARCH test, and the Normality test are that there is a serial correlation among residuals, the variance of residuals is not constant, and the residuals are not normally distributed.


 
 
 Academic engagement used to refer to the extent to which students identify with and value schooling outcomes, and participate in academic and non-academic school activities. This study aims to investigate the academic engagement and satisfaction from the school among the university students. The data is taken from the undergraduate students in School of Transportation & Logistics in Istanbul University. We used a questionnaire that consisted of two parts. First part of the questionnaire is about to measure the students’ academic engagement that is improved by Schaufeli et al. Second part of the questionnaire is about to measure the students’ satisfaction from the school. K-means cluster analysis is used to determine two groups of students, group the students in to two clusters based on their school satisfaction scores. We named these two groups as “satisfied” and “unsatisfied” students. Secondly we investigate the relationships between the satisfaction scores and the academic engagement. By means of T Test we investigate whether the academic engagement differs between the clusters that are determined according to the students’ satisfaction scores. Finally we found that academic engagement differs according to the identified clusters.
 
 

Equity is one of the basic principles of health systems and features explicitly in the Nigerian health financing policy. Despiteacclaimed commitment to the implementation of this policy through various pro-poor health programmes and interventions,the level of inequity in health status and access to basic health care interventions remain high. This paper examines theequity of health care expenditure by individuals in Nigeria. The paper evaluated equity in out-of-pocket spending (OOP) forthe country and separately for the six geopolitical zones of the country. The methodological framework rests on KakwaniProgressivity Indices (KPIs), Reynold-Smolensky indices and concentration indices (CIs) using data from the 2004 Nigerian National Living Standard Survey (NLSS) collected by the National Bureau of Statistic. The results reveal that health financing is regressive with the incidence disproportionately resting on poor households with about 70% of the total expenditure on health being financed through out-of-pocket payments by households. Poor households are prone to bear most of the expenses in the event of any health shock. The catastrophic consequences thus push some into poverty, and aggravate the poverty of others. The paper therefore suggests that the country’s health financing systems must be such that allows people to access services when they are needed, but must also protect household, from financial catastrophe, by reducing OOP spending through risk pooling and prepayment schemes within the health system.

The manufacturing and service sectors in Bangladesh have been growing rapidly since the beginning of twenty first century. From the beginning of the industrial development in Bangladesh, some sectors including pharmaceutical are demonstrating  extraordinary performance in manufacturing process. The study has been conducted on four large scale pharmaceutical companies based on their employees’ response. Various statistical tools were used including mean, z-test, proportion analysis etc. to analyze the satisfaction level of employees upon the critical aspects of human resource management practices. In this study, it has been aimed to assess the employee satisfaction on human resource management practices of pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh. The human resource management practices are directly linked with the human resources of any organization. The findings of this study illustrate that the recruitment & selection, and training & development are in state of employee satisfaction level except all other aspects of human resource management practices are poor. For the success of the pharmaceutical companies it is crucial time to make the workforce more effective and efficient by practicing the human resource management aspects in their every level of work life.

This study examines the impact of corporate governance structures on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements by companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE) as a leading Arab stock exchange. Using a disclosure index derived from mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements for the fiscal year 2007, this study measures the levels of compliance by a sample of 75 non-financial companies listed on the ASE. This study extends the financial reporting literature and the emerging markets disclosure literature by being one of the first to investigate the influence of corporate governance requirements for best practices on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements by companies listed on the ASE. Results provide evidence of the lack of influence of corporate governance best practices on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements as it is not yet part of the cultural values within the Jordanian context. These findings are consistent with the notions of the theoretical foundation employed in this study.

The purpose of this study is to explore the factors which affect the family functions. Participants of this study consisted of married employees with children at the Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey. The sample size is determined using a random sampling method (n = 551). In this research, family functioning style scale, support functions scale, and family needs scale developed by Dunst, Trivette and Deal (1988) used as well as the socio-economic data such as age, gender, level of education, number of children, and the income level. The majority (64.6%) of the sample was men, 35.4% were women. The ages of the participants ranged from 23-65 years (M = 39.76 years, SD =6.98). More than half of were college or more degree (57.0%) and 43.0% had high school or less graduates. Results of means comparisons showed significant differences on the family functioning style by working hours and working status. Regression analysis results suggested significant relationships exist among emotional support and agency support and family functioning style when controlling for socioeconomic variables.

Stress Management is getting more and more attention now-a-days, particularly in the financial sectors. There is no such thing like stress- free job. Everyone in their work is exposed to tension and anxiety as they gets through the duties assigned to them. Banking industry which is the backbone of the country’s economy is not an exceptional one. The job nature of banking employees is very tedious as it involves the direct customer interaction in all levels. So this study aims to analyse the level of stress faced by bank employees who are under different categories from both public and private sectors of selected banks which resides in Tamilnadu.

This paper investigated the influence of factors on the intention to adopt Internet banking services among students of higher education in Pakistan. Theoretical framework used for this study has been adopted from Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with four independent variables. Convenience sampling method was used with a total of valid 220 respondents, which included students of Khadim Ali Shah Bukhari Institute of Technology (KASBIT), Karachi, Pakistan. Data was collected through self administered questionnaire of two parts: Demographic and Likert scale multi-item scale for variables under study. Results indicatedthat convenience, perceived credibility, and perceived usefulness had significant positive influence among students on the intention to adopt Internet banking. The findings from this research would be useful for banks in the subject area, particularly for students in Pakistan.

In recent decades, it is gaining more and more dominance in both academic and business life that the company exists for and has responsibilities toward a wider group of stakeholders and it must have some objectives other than profitability. To achieve sustainable development and growth, the companies must assume more duties, which is called the term “corporate social responsibility (CSR).” In the literature, it is questioned whether CSR activities benefit the company or not; whether there is any relationship exists between CSR activities and the company’s financial performance and the direction of the relationship. We aimedto explore that whether there is any effect corporate social performance (CSP) on financial performance and position and vice versa. We performed content analysis through annual reports and derived a social score composed of the items included in disclosure guidelines and some criteria used in CSR ratings. We also used several financial position and financial performance indicators. In order to explore the relationship between CSP and financial indicators, we run panel data regressions. We found significant results for some of the indicators, where some of the indicators gave insignificant results. The reporting of CSR activities is in very low levels. The conscious toward CSR and sustainability must be promoted and the companies must assume more active roles. The reporting of those activities is also important.

The International financial crisis caused the recession of the industrial sector in most developed countries. The effect of the crisis in the developing countries was different. This research aimed at investigating the effect of international financial crisis on industrial sector in Jordan. Different financial ratios were estimated using the financial statements of the industrial enterprises for the period 2000-2008. The financial data were classified to two periods. The first period 2000-2005 and 2006-2008 for this purpose. The results show very slight effect on the industrial sector in Jordan results of the limitations of most companies on their activities as a part of risk management policy.

The puzzling momentum strategies’ payoffs are defying the rational financial theory asserting the stocks returns’ unpredictability. Moreover, the momentum effect persist the main stocks returns’ anomaly escaping any risk-based explanation. The resilience of this phenomenon had favoured the development of behavioural financial field, which breaks with the investor’ full rationality hypothesis. This paper attempts to reconcile between the rational and behavioural financial theories, through the introduction of the progressive rationality concept. Especially, we argue that recognizing the temporary inappropriate investors’ reactions; can resolve the puzzling momentum anomaly.  To fulfil our objective, first we correct the monthly returns inherent to 56 stocks listed on the Tunisian stocks market from January 1998 to December 2011, from the related serial autocorrelations involved by the investors’ over and under reactions. Then, we examine the 6/6 momentum strategy’ excess returns before and after the monthly returns serial autocorrelations’ corrections. The result show that the momentum strategy is still profitable but no longer puzzling, since the related excess return is henceforth fully captured by a ? and a size effect..


 
 
 This study is elected to explore the connection between religiosity and new product adoption amongst Pakistani consumers. This paper sheds some light on measured effects of religiosity and the perceived ideologies of Pakistani’s about proffered pharmaceutical products in the country. Total 500 respondents were involved in the study from (fourth largest city) Faisalabad through judgmental sampling to envisage the adoption pattern of Pakistani Muslim consumers. Here religiosity is taken as an independent variable and was analyzed in five dimensions: sacramental, rational, ideological, consequential, and Practical. Moreover new product development is signified as a dependent variable.Islamic tenets influence the adoption of new pharmaceutical products among Pakistani consumers as their attitude persuades adoption patterns that rely on religiosity. All possible substitutes within different dimensions were assessed to find out the most appropriate combination of dimensions which provided the output. Religion is an element of culture that permeates every aspect of a society and saturates the life of individuals whether one is a believer or a non-believer and cultural dimensions are very vibrant in a society, as religious doctrines shape a secure and stagnant pillar in the society. This paper will assist to highlight its significance and implications in product development related decisions of pharmaceutical industry with reference to the use (prescription/recommendation) of pharmaceutical products by Muslim patients (doctors).
 
 

Women’s entrepreneurship is important for women’s position in society, and for economic development of a country. Many scholars pointed out that women faces diverse challenges in doing business in a patriarchal society like Bangladesh. Women are now involved in economic activities than in the past, women constitute around 10 percent of the country's total business entrepreneurs. The present study is an effort to find out the factors which act as pull and push factors to engage women in entrepreneurship development in Bangladesh. In this study mixed method approach has been chosen. To attain the objective of the research researchers relied solely on the secondary sources. The study revealed that Government agencies provide policy, legal and financial support with active support from non-State actors. On the contrary, they do not get proper support from all relevant institutions because of corruption and lack of information. It is suggested that combined initiatives of Government and non- government institutions will be successful in meeting the needs of business women in Bangladesh.

This study aims to investigate the influence of the introduction of a corporate governance code in 2005 on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements by companies listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) as a leading stock exchange in the Middle East. Using a disclosure index derived from mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements for the fiscal year 2007, this study measures the levels of compliance by a sample of 75 non-financial companies listed on the focus stock exchange. This study extends the financial reporting literature and the emerging markets disclosure literature by being the first to investigate the influence of corporate governance requirements for best practices on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements by companies listed on the EGX. Results provide evidence of the lack of influence of corporate governance best practices on the levels of compliance with mandatory IFRSs disclosure requirements as it is not yet part of the cultural values within the Egyptian context. These findings are consistent with the notions of the proposed theoretical foundation.

Nowadays, almost all sectors especially service ones are aware of the fact that the presence of employees who have high level of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors is crucial so as to perform efficiently and productively. Since customer satisfaction and customer loyalty are the main primacy for the banking sector, they need to keep up with all kinds of changes and developments to resist and gain advantages over their competitors subject to the highly increase of competition worldwide.  The main reason of applying this study on the banking sector is its dynamic structure that has been changed both positively and negatively owing to the economic crisis. In connection with this, it is aimed to present the importance of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors on the success of banking sector through the analysis of two variables in terms of their relationship between each other. Additionally, it is intended for setting forth the differences of state-owned and private banks in terms of the level of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors. As a data collection tool, questionnaire technique has been used. It has been benefited from the emotional intelligence scale developed by Wong and Law to obtain the data related to emotional intelligence level; and the innovative work behaviors scale developed by Janssen to obtain the data related to innovative work behaviors. The findings obtained from the questionnaire were applied to 332 employees in Turkish banking sector.

<p>Nowadays, almost all sectors especially service ones are aware of the fact that the presence of employees who have high level of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors is crucial so as to perform efficiently and productively. Since customer satisfaction and customer loyalty are the main primacy for the banking sector, they need to keep up with all kinds of changes and developments to resist and gain advantages over their competitors subject to the highly increase of competition worldwide.  The main reason of applying this study on the banking sector is its dynamic structure that has been changed both positively and negatively owing to the economic crisis. In connection with this, it is aimed to present the importance of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors on the success of banking sector through the analysis of two variables in terms of their relationship between each other. Additionally, it is intended for setting forth the differences of state-owned and private banks in terms of the level of emotional intelligence and innovative work behaviors. As a data collection tool, questionnaire technique has been used. It has been benefited from the emotional intelligence scale developed by Wong and Law to obtain the data related to emotional intelligence level; and the innovative work behaviors scale developed by Janssen to obtain the data related to innovative work behaviors. The findings obtained from the questionnaire were applied to 332 employees in Turkish banking sector.</p>