Explore the evidence.
Understand the reach.

The purpose of this essay is to discuss the phases and challenges of the explanatory sequential design (ESD hereinafter) of mixed methods research (MMR hereinafter) by reviewing relevant literature. The literature was explored during the design stage of a Ph.D. project that sought to examine the relationship among social capital, education, and employment for foreign students graduating from several Estonian universities. The review finds that the explanatory sequential design of MMR is much more complex than just sequencing how and what kind of data to collect; it also entails selecting how data will be processed and presented using a range of techniques that are often riddled with difficulties. By addressing these ideas, this paper will aid those interested in comprehending the summary of the explanatory sequential design of MMR.

The study aimed to determine the correlation between self-efficacy and work performance as mediated by the work environment. To support the theory of study, literature was reviewed. The study used the descriptive correlational research design and to gather the data, questionnaires were used. The population of the study was all the faculty and employees of the Divine Word Colleges in the Ilocos Region, Philippines. The study found that their self-efficacy is high and it affects the work performance specifically task and contextual work performance but no correlation with the counterproductive behavior. The study found that work environment affects self-efficacy and work performance along with the three dimensions such as task performance, contextual performance, and counterproductive work behavior. Therefore, the hypotheses of the study are accepted.

The main purpose of this study is to measure up to what extent the independent factors defined by capital adequacy ratio, non-performing loans ratio, cost-income ratio, liquidity ratio, and loans-to-deposits ratio impact the financial performance of sixteen commercial banks operating in the United Arab Emirates using panel data for the period of 2013-2019. The secondary data was collected from banks and examined by applying standard descriptive statistics and the random effect model for hypothesis testing. It is concluded from the regression outcomes that non-performing loans ratio and cost-income ratio have a significant negative impact on commercial banks profitability in the United Arab Emirates, while capital adequacy ratio, liquidity ratio, and loans -to-deposits ratio all have a very weak positive relationship on the return on assets but they are not determinants of bank’s profitability due to the insignificant statistical impact on it. It is therefore suggested that to enhance financial performance and minimize the risk of non-performing loans in the future, banks must watch very carefully the loans’ performance and analyze thoroughly the clients’ credit history and ability to pay back their debts prior to any approval of loan applications. Furthermore, banks should continuously improve their assets utilization, liquidity, and techniques of managing operating costs, improve the impact of capital adequacy, and the use of deposits for lending activities from a weak positive impact to a significant positive impact on their profitability. The researchers recommend that future studies on credit risk management influence on banks’ financial performance should consider more independent variables and longer periods of study such as twenty or thirty years to have more accuracy and generalized results.  

Fatigue as an emerging flight safety issue in the aviation industry requires an elaborate understanding and critical approach for proactive aviation management practices. The level of flight crew stress and fatigue must be critically managed to prevent flight accidents. Additionally, stress and fatigue have a negative influence on job satisfaction levels. This paper aims to examine the critical fatigue risk factors that affect the performance and safety of airline pilots and crew in the aviation industry. This paper also analyses the relationship between burnout and job satisfaction sub-dimensions. A factor analysis with a target population of 254 international flight crew has been conducted using the Minnesota Job Satisfaction Survey and Maslach Burnout questionnaire. The main findings of the study demonstrate that (i) cockpit and cabin crews’ job satisfaction and performance have been affected by stress and fatigue, (ii) psychological depression, anxiety and personal problems of the flight crew are the main causes of emotional fatigue, (iii) extensive flight hours and dealing with problematic passengers increase flight crew fatigue, (iv) personal achievements concerns and depersonalization increase flight crew fatigue.

This study aims to examine the effect of competence, independence, experience, and audit time pressure on fraud detection by using the mediation of professional skepticism in the context of internal auditors for the public sector. The research data were obtained through a survey questionnaire on 173 auditors of the Inspectorate General of the Ministry of Education and Culture. The analysis technique in this study used Partial Least Square (PLS). The results showed that competence, independence and audit time pressure had no effect on the ability to detect fraud. Meanwhile, the auditor's experience and professional skepticism had a positive effect on fraud detection. The application of professional skepticism was proven as a mediating variable in the effect of competence, independence, experience and audit time pressure on fraud detection. Auditors’ competence, independence, and experience had a positive effect on professional skepticism and audit time pressure had a negative effect on professional skepticism. The results of this study provide an input that the importance of applying professional skepticism could improve fraud detection.

The automotive industry is standing on the edge of the digital era. Digitization is the motivating force behind this change and is influencing every aspect of consumer behavior. Forces behind this digital transformation are the new technological possibilities which range from comprehensive connectivity, 3D printing, and the social network of virtual solutions as well. The impact of digitization can already be seen in today’s world and also in the automotive industry of India. Digitization will play an imperative role in the upcoming years such as artificial intelligence. This paper is primarily concerned with the recent trends of digitization and it also tries to measure the impact of digitization on the automobile supply chain between automobile manufacturers and suppliers. It is discussed the thrust on the potentialities of digitalization in the automobile industry of India and its impact on the overall performance of the industry. The study concluded that digitization has a significant impact on the automotive industry of India. Today, all the business practices become digitalized and foreign players use advanced technology in their products as compared to the national automotive players. The selling of automotive products is increased after the adoption of more advanced technology. It upgrades the quality of products and its service after sale which ultimately leads to the customer and brand loyalty used by the consumers.

The role of resources is very vital, especially during a pandemic like this. Human resources are reliable and ready to answer challenges and ready to provide services. With a situation like this, it is possible for the organization to change its strategy to survive. For this reason, human resources are needed, who have high performance to realize the goals of the organization. The aim of our research is to find out the effect of internal branding on employee performance with employee engagement and job satisfaction as a mediating variable. The population in this study were all lecturers at AMIKOM University Yogyakarta. Sample collection was done randomly. The sample was collected using a google form, and the data collected were 119 respondents. Data analysis in this study used the PLS-SEM method. The results of this study prove that the internal branding variable has a positive effect on employee engagement. Internal branding also has a positive effect on job satisfaction. Employee engagement has a positive effect on employee performance. Job satisfaction has a positive effect on employee performance. As a mediator, employee engagement also has a positive effect on the pattern of internal branding relationships and employee performance. Likewise, job satisfaction also has a positive effect on the relationship between internal branding and employee performance.

This study aims to find out how social media marketing activities influence consumer equity through brand equity in a culinary brand. The study sample is men and women, 200 respondents, within the age range of 18 to 30 years old This study uses quantitative methods and questionnaires as data collections tools. The data was then analyzed using SmartPLS with the Structural Equation Modelling approach. It is found that social media marketing activities positively influence consumer equity through brand equity in culinary brands. Customer equity is also indirectly affected by brand equity. Therefore, this research can be a basis for future research in social media marketing activities within the scope of culinary brands especially in the context of small-medium enterprises.

Competitiveness is becoming more and more a regional issue-oriented to meet the needs of the economy and citizens, so economic development is essential for the survival of all cities. Economic growth, made because of an economic development plan, brings new capital to city governments by expanding the tax base to further develop as well as improve the quality of life in general. This paper aims to examine the advantages that the city of Prishtina may have in correlation with the capitals of other Southeast European countries to identify the possibilities of what different strategies and concepts have been developed and used to make a valuable crossroads and short-term and long-term effects from a cultural, economic, social and political point of view.

The aim of the paper is to analyze the sustainability of cryptocurrency in blockchain technology in African countries for securing financial business transactions. Following the subprime crisis that shook the world economy, a new perception of money has emerged. It is a fully digital currency whose transactions are made through a distributed network. This algorithm-encrypted currency, reputed to be tamper-proof, transparent and inclusive, relies on a distributed network called the Blockchain. By comparison with traditional registers in which operations are paginated and successively recorded, transactions in blockchain technology are aggregated within the chain of blocks. It is decentralized since it is replicated on several geographic sites around the world. It enables peer-to-peer transactions, automated in real-time, reliable, secure, without intermediaries and non-repudiable. To ensure maximum security during financial transactions, blockchain miners use cryptography. This distributed system is, therefore, a major technological innovation capable of securing the financial infrastructure and mitigating failures by reducing operational risks. According to our analysis based on the Merkle tree model and blockchain energy consumption, the sustainability of cryptocurrency is a major issue for developing countries. Especially in Africa, its practicality poses a number of constraints.