International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science

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.  

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 study aims to determine the correlation between organizational climate and work engagement of the employees. To strengthen the theory of the study, related literature was reviewed. The study used a descriptive correlational research design. To gather the data, questionnaires were used. The population of the study was all faculty and employees of the colleges in the Ilocos region. Since it is a quantitative study, the statistic was used to interpret the data. The weighted mean was used to determine the average mean of different organizational climate dimensions and different dimensions of work engagement, while Pearson r Correlation was used to determine the correlation between the organizational climate and work engagement of the employees. The results indicate that there is a significant correlation between organizational climate and work engagement of employees.

Independent retailers face many challenges that influence their growth and development. Independent retailers are small businesses facing competition from major retailers in South Africa (SA) that have penetrated the townships and rural areas. The purpose of the study was to investigate the challenges that influence the development of independent retailers in SA. A survey was conducted among small independent retailers in SA. The convenience sampling method was adopted for the study due to the inaccessibility of a database on independent retailers in SA. Existing literature was used to design a questionnaire, targeted at small independent retailers, to investigate the challenges that influence their business performance. The findings of the study revealed that finance and marketing are the major challenges influencing the operations of small, independent retailers. Business-related challenges are the least challenging aspects for small independent retailers in SA. Independent retailers need to manage their businesses appropriately in order to survive and sustain their businesses. Independent retailers buy products from wholesalers while a few of them buy directly from manufacturers.

Brand choice has historically played an important role in a wide range of industries, particularly in the private sector, where billions of Rands are invested to entice potential customers. Taking this into consideration, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of brand awareness and brand image on first-year student selection of a University of Technology in KwaZulu-Natal. The objectives of the study were to establish and identify the brand preference and image attributes that entice first-year students’ selection of a University of Technology (UoT). The study also examined the biographic variables of those students. To accomplish these objectives, an exploratory study using a quantitative research approach was conducted, in which questionnaires were administered to 500 first-year students at the selected Universities of Technology in KwaZulu-Natal. The study revealed that topics such as investments in brand awareness and brand image, safety and security, the caliber of staff, delays in academic programmes, student-lecturer relationships, and service delivery were identified as factors that influenced the participants' selection and willingness to recommend their institutions to potential students. Thus, the study recommends that UoTs should pay more attention to branding strategies as an agendum to ensuring institutional profitability and viability, relationship management, and human resource.  Finally, the findings of this study are limited to KwaZulu-Natal and should not be extrapolated outside this region.

Green marketing has evolved, although the market share of green products remains considerably low. Green products are part of comprehensive green marketing, and this sort of marketing has progressed to the point that practically every consumer is aware of it. The study focuses on the factors that influence the adoption and consumption patterns of green goods in the greater Durban area. The study used a quantitative, non-probability, and random sampling strategy to discover consumers' sentiments toward the purchase of green products. The data was collected through the use of questionnaires and analyzed using the SPSS.  The sample size was 384 customers from retail malls in selected Durban suburbs, representing a wide demographic and cultural background. The study's findings revealed that customers in the greater Durban area are aware of green products. Green products, on the other hand, are regarded as affluent due to their high pricing. This means that companies developing green products will have to look for ways to cut their pricing. The survey also reveals that when customers must pick between green and non-green items, pricing is a crucial factor. The study's findings are limited to the confines of the wider Durban area and cannot be extrapolated.

This study examines the effects of challenge-based and activity-based learning approaches on technical college students’ achievement, interest and retention in woodwork technology. A quasi-experimental research design was adopted. The study constituted a total number of 122 subjects, 63 for Challenge-based learning, while 59 were for activity-based learning. The study revealed that students who taught woodwork using the challenge-based learning instructional approach had a higher mean score than students taught using the activity-based learning teaching method in cognitive achievement tests, psychomotor achievement tests and tests for retention of learning.  Consequently, the research recommended that the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) should consider a review of the Woodwork work curriculum for Technical Colleges with a view to incorporating the challenge-based learning instructional approach into the teaching of the woodwork.                                                                                              

The study sought to determine challenges to food security among households of CBOs implementing agroforestry in Rongai Sub County in Nakuru and mitigation factors. The study was anchored on the systems theory and employed a mixed research methods design with simple random sampling used to get the CBOs from which the respondents were drawn. The target population was 630 members of all forty-seven (47) CBOs implementing agroforestry in the study area. The sample size was 245 respondents selected using the proportionate random sampling method. Questionnaires comprising of both open-ended and closed-ended questions were used to collect the data. From the study, the food produced by the households is insufficient and has to be supplemented by those outside the households. The food produced is of quality controlled by factors including farm management practices and capital availability for production. There is food inaccessibility as those produced are a source of income for the households yet insufficient. However, there is an improvement compared to previous years. The households’ food production is unstable as shown by variations in production and insufficiency of the food. Food security is challenged by the failure of all members of CBOs to take part in decision-making processes, reporting, roles, and responsibilities not being assigned appropriately. Mitigation factors are hardly employed by the CBOs to curb the challenges faced in implementing agroforestry. The study recommends building the capacity of CBOs implementing agroforestry in areas of resource mobilization, empowering them to harmonize governance processes, developing and implementing an M&E framework. It also recommends the development and implementation of sound policies that promote agroforestry expansion