Can religious values reinvigorate the links between development and falāh?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wahyu Jatmiko ◽  
A. Azizon
Keyword(s):  
Islamic Law ◽  
Empirical Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Religious Values ◽  
Rank Test ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Right

Purpose Previous studies have challenged the Human Development Index’s (HDI) ability to emulate the achievement of falāh (happiness). This paper aims to evaluate the role of religious values in establishing a positive link between the current measurement of development and falāh. Design/methodology/approach First, this study derives an improved value-loaded development measure from the concept of Maqasid al-Shari’ah (the higher objectives of Islamic law). Second, this paper compares the calculated Maqasid al-Shari’ah Index (MSI) with the HDI of some Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries by using the parametric pair difference z-test and t-test along with the non-parametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Finally, the relationship of both indices and the proxy of falāh are examined by using the ordinary least square and the generalised method of moments estimations. Findings As far as the religious-led development is concerned, the HDI underestimates OIC countries’ development progress. Here, the MSI can better embody the attainment of falāh than the HDI. Research limitations/implications This study only covers limited OIC countries due to the data availability issue. Practical implications The cultural-based development stemming from the religious values proves useful for putting the government effort towards the attainment of the objective of human well-being in the right direction. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study examining the empirical relationship between the MSI and falāh.

Revitalising Waqf (endowment) lands for agribusiness: potentials of the anchor company models

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Norfaridah Ali Azizan ◽  
Amirul Afif Muhamat ◽  
Sharifah Faigah Syed Alwi ◽  
Husniyati Ali ◽  
Amalia Qistina Casteneda Abdullah
Keyword(s):  
Household Income ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Islamic Law ◽  
Living Condition ◽  
Previous Literature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
The Right

PurposeWaqf (endowment) lands constitute as among the highest types of waqf (endowment) properties in Malaysia; yet it is still unable to reach its maximum potential due to various challenges such as capital, location, legal and administrative issues. Therefore, this study intends to explore these issues by focussing on the two states in Malaysia (Selangor and Perak) that have fertile lands but different management authorities.Design/methodology/approachThere were series of interviews that had been conducted with ten (10) key informants who are experts and practitioners in the areas of Shariah (Islamic law), farming, agribusiness, land management and waqf.FindingsFindings exhibit that constraints and challenges that had been highlighted in the previous literature still exist (although some improvements had been made), but there is emerging theme that the study intends to highlight which is on the needs to secure market for the agribusiness produce and the potential role of anchor company in the agribusiness. It is pertinent that for agribusiness to thrive, selecting the right anchor company that has the capacity to address the challenges is necessary. This study posits two anchor company models (Waqf Trustee-Anchor Company and Waqf Trustee-Anchor Company-Community Farmers) that can be applied for agribusiness on the waqf lands.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is based on the Malaysia's context influenced by specific country's features. Nevertheless, such findings can still be used as reference or benchmark by other endowment trustees in other countries especially for the Muslim countries as well as the non-Muslim countries that have significant Muslim populations.Social implicationsThe suggested models have potentials to improve the living condition of the B40 (below 40% household income) in Malaysia because the models encourage their participation in the agribusiness activities.Originality/valueThis study focusses on the agribusiness, which is rarely being given attention in previous literature in the context of endowment lands. Therefore, this article bridges the literature gap and at the same time attempts to provide suggestion to address the pertinent issue – the underutilised endowment lands.

Doctoral capital and well-being amongst Australian PhD students: exploring capital and habitus of doctoral students

2021 ◽  
Vol 121 (3) ◽  
pp. 322-336
Author(s):  
Wayne Usher ◽  
Brittany A. McCormack
Keyword(s):  
Doctoral Students ◽  
Social Reproduction ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Reproduction Theory ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
The Right ◽  
Australian Universities

PurposeThe Higher Degree Research (HDR) journey is known for its difficulties, complexities and challenges (Lees-Deutsch, 2020), with many students experiencing multi-faceted issues and concerns (Skopek et al., 2020). Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the relationships that exist between variables, vulnerability factors and doctorial capital of candidates (n = 532) studying at Australian universities (2019).Design/methodology/approachA quantitative cross-sectional correlational research design and Bronfenbrenner's socio – ecological framework (personal, home, university, community) was utilised to collect participants' (n = 532) descriptive statistics. Bourdieu's social reproduction theory was used as a lens to examine how experiences, across the PhD candidature, are influenced by several psychosocial factors and doctoral capital.FindingsFrom such a dual methodological approach, the findings from this study suggests that (1) age, (2) gender, (3) nationality, (4) financial/work status, (5) years of PhD and (6) attending postgraduate (PG) student events, go to significantly (p < 0.001) impact (positively and negatively) on students' experiences and correspondingly, impacts on their self-confidence, motivation and mental health and well-being status.Research limitations/implicationsResearch limitations are related to the recruitment of more doctoral students across more Australian universities. Further research is required from HDR supervisors, so as to “balance” the experiences of the PhD journey in higher education.Practical implicationsIn order to succeed in academia and HDR programs, students need to identify with and develop the “right kind of capital” to successfully navigate fields of social and scholarly play. Investigating how the participants perceive their social and scholarly habitus is seen as crucial in helping students to develop positive dispositions relevant to being a doctoral student.Social implicationsThe concept of doctoral capital and well-being, amongst Australian PhD students, is under researched and requires further investigation as a precursor to developing more specific policy designs aimed at providing heightened positive learning environments/HDR programs tailored to support doctoral students.Originality/valueWhilst reforms to improve PhD experiences are well established across the international literature (Geven et al., 2018; Skopek et al., 2020), evidence for Australia is largely missing. It is envisaged, that findings from this research will further assist in the development of quality policies that would go to provide effective services and support for doctoral students within Australian universities.

North Macedonian crisis spurs move to renewable energy

2022 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Power Plants ◽  
International Market ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Market Prices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Market Situation ◽  
The Government ◽  
Domestic Electricity ◽  
Health And Well Being

Significance Electricity companies wanted a near-38% rise amid soaring international market prices, but the ERC wanted to avoid a price shock. In November, the government declared an ‘energy crisis’ at the ERC’s request, thanks to reduced domestic electricity supply and the global market situation, and extended it in December for six months. Impacts Investment in infrastructure and technologies should contribute to economic growth and create jobs. Care will have to be taken that closing established mines and power plants do not depress economies locally and raise unemployment. Rising domestic utility prices will inflict political damage on a fragile government. Phasing out coal will improve air quality and population health and well-being, with knock-ons for healthcare priorities and spending.

An entrepreneurial way of engaging student entrepreneurs at business school during pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yogesh Brahmankar ◽  
Madhura Bedarkar ◽  
Mahima Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Business School ◽  
Peer Interactions ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Problem Analysis ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Student Entrepreneurs ◽  
Challenging Situation ◽  
The Right

Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand the challenges faced by the higher educational institutes in imparting entrepreneurial education during the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore the institutional response to handle the difficulties posed by COVID-19 through innovative educational initiatives. Design/methodology/approach To understand the challenges faced, data was collected from entrepreneurship students and entrepreneurship educators through focus group discussions. The study followed Kitzinger (1995) as data was analyzed in its entirety as a group and then individually. Groups and individuals were the focus of the analysis. The study applies the Kepner Trego problem analysis technique (KPTA) as the problem-solving technique adopted by the institute and SAP-LAP (situation, actor, process, learning, action, performance) to discuss the findings of the study. Findings The study found that to engage, encourage and enable students to study on their start-up/business ideas; it is important to facilitate peer interactions, internships in start-ups and meaningful engagement with alumni entrepreneurs. Some proactive interventions are also expected from institutes to energize the student community with positivity. It is also important to nurture the emotional well-being of budding entrepreneurs. Research limitations/implications The case study narrates the innovative and agile problem-solving approach of the business school during the pandemic. KPTA focuses more on appreciative dialogue and also helps to replicate the best from other situations to the problem areas. SAP-LAP method also helps practitioners to initiate the right new actions with targeted performance. Practical implications As a greater number of academic institutions impart entrepreneurship education today, the findings of the study would be relevant to the stakeholders, including students, educators and institutes. Social implications The study underpins the importance of the emotional well-being of entrepreneurs/student entrepreneurs and an innovative approach to keep the student moral high during such a challenging situation. Originality/value It is an ongoing exercise at a business school where the challenges were identified, analyzed and solutions were implemented using a structured methodology such as focused group discussions, KPTA and SAPLAP. The innovative initiatives not only engaged the student well but also were able to ensure their emotional well-being.

The Politics of Paternalism

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Le Grand ◽  
Bill New
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
The State ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Right ◽  
Better Than

This chapter examines the politics of paternalism. It first considers the question of whether the government can do better than the individual, outlining a set of justifications for government paternalism and showing how the state can intervene to improve the well-being of its citizens. It then discusses possible ways in which the government could be held to account to ensure that, in its paternalistic interventions aimed at improving its citizens' well-being, it does actually pursue the “right” agenda. It argues that the government can indeed raise the well-being of individuals who suffer from reasoning failure, even when allowance is made for possible reasoning failure among those individuals who constitute the government. However, democratic mechanisms must be put in place to ensure that the latter do not pursue their own agenda and turn the paternalistic state into an instrument of authoritarianism.

Psychological well-being of people living near landfills: preliminary case study in Indonesia

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 365-379
Author(s):  
Hamka Hamka ◽  
Ni'matuzahroh Ni'matuzahroh ◽  
Tri Astuti ◽  
Mein-Woei Suen ◽  
Fu-An Shieh
Keyword(s):  
Personal Growth ◽  
Health Management ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
The People ◽  
The Government ◽  
Voice Recorder

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the psychological well-being of people living around landfills, which constitutes a preliminary case study localized in Samarinda city, Indonesia. Design/methodology/approach This current study used a descriptive, participatory case study design. For data collection, interviews and participatory observation were used. Specifically, this case study took place in Samarinda City, Indonesia. Findings The psychological well-being of the people living around landfills was indicated very low in the light of psychological well-being such as personal growth, life’s goals and self-acceptance dimensions. Research limitations/implications Psychological well-being is part of an attitude of gratitude, thus making individuals happy and satisfied in life. The results of this study point to the fact that people who live around landfills have low psychological well-being due to lack of support from the community and government. In addition, with this research, people who live near landfills are very happy because they feel cared for and care about their condition. People who live near landfills expect the government and surrounding communities to know about their situation so that they become prosperous and well-being. In addition, providing medical team services, sending clean water and providing good solutions can help people who live near landfills. The limitation of this preliminary study was that researchers could deeply explore the lives of people in the next research. Besides, the next research can provide a camera or voice recorder in the state of only observation. In addition, the researcher can analyze more deeply in the next research. The final limitation was that participants could not have enough time to interact with, thus, the researcher could not collect the data to explore further. Practical implications Base on the result in this study, the government needs to have the policy to take care of those people who stay near landfills, for example, improving drinking water, establish the health management and giving a right to people to stay near landfills. Social implications By improving the growing environment, the people live near landfills can have some changes in their life. In addition, the negative stereotype and prejudice can be decreased and establish a more friendly society and increasing their well-being. Originality/value The participants were found to be problematic, primarily in managing their environment and influencing their personal growth. On top of that, the participants appeared to possess a lack exposure of to social interaction with other communities, which might cause them social gap and lack of caring perceived toward the surrounding environment, lack of better life’s goals, the disappointment of current conditions due to low educational and skill backgrounds. Nonetheless, the participants were still of gratefulness upon the situation for they were still granted health for studies to support their families. Besides, the participants did not show any positive attitudes toward themselves because of the disappointment of their condition and personal qualities.

The effects of board size and board composition on CSR disclosure: a study of banking sectors in Bangladesh

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Abdur Rouf ◽  
Md. Alamgir Hossan
Keyword(s):  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Annual Report ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Board Composition ◽  
Board Size ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Female Directors ◽  
The Government ◽  
Csr Disclosure

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a profound understanding of the nature and extent of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in the annual report by the listed banking sectors in Bangladesh for examining the effect of board size and board composition on CSR disclosure. Design/methodology/approach The sample selected of all the 30 listed banks enlisted in the Dhaka Stock Exchange and the study used a content analysis approach. An ordinary least square regression model is fitted to the data for assessing the effect of independent variables on the total CSR disclosure score. An un-weighted approach has been used for this study. Findings The results of the study demonstrate that the extent of CSR disclosure of listed banks in Bangladesh varies from 11.11% to 73.33%, and on average, they report 45.37% and 43.44%, respectively. Moreover, the study observed a significant relationship between the proportion of female directors and CSR disclosure. Conversely, board size has been found no significant relationship with the CSR disclosure but the proportion of independent directors has been found a significant relationship with the CSR disclosure in the annual report by the listed banking sectors in Bangladesh. Social implications The study is expected to get a maximum scenario of CSR disclosure of banking sectors in Bangladesh. Government and other regulatory bodies can also get full information concerning CSR disclosure practices for formulating guidelines in this regard. If the Government of Bangladesh implicates the policies that the banks are to nominate a required number of female directors to boards, the consideration of the significant number of female directors and their power will be able to protect the interests of different stakeholder groups notably. Originality/value The study contributes to the CSR literature as it presents empirical evidence of the effects of board size and board composition on the CSR disclosure of banking sectors in developing countries such as Bangladesh.

Artificial intelligence: HR friend or foe?

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-51
Author(s):  
Peter Hogg
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Business Leaders ◽  
Business Decision ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Right ◽  
Productivity Dilemma

Purpose While the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace is on the rise, few understand how it will affect our jobs. Will it be a hindrance? A threat? Or the solution to the current productivity dilemma? As with any new, and largely untested, technology, AI brings both challenges and opportunities that we need to be conscious of. Design/methodology/approach The current and potential future implementation of AI technologies at Schneider Electric is assessed. Findings In HR, it is our responsibility to help navigate business leaders towards making the best business decision, often with the use of technology. AI, like analytics before it, has huge potential. Originality/value What we know for sure, is that the development of human talent has become one of the top priorities for global CEOs. With severe talent shortages in the UK, finding the right candidates for the job and investing in their professional development and well-being to keep them for longer look like no-brainers.

scholarly journals Job characteristics, employee well-being, and job performance of public sector employees in Malaysia

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-119
Author(s):  
Johanim Johari ◽  
Faridahwati Mohd Shamsudin ◽  
Tan Fee Yean ◽  
Khulida Kirana Yahya ◽  
Zurina Adnan
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Job Performance ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Job Characteristics ◽  
Northern Region ◽  
Peninsular Malaysia ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Sector Employees ◽  
The Government ◽  
Government Reforms

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the structural relationships between the job itself (i.e. job characteristics), employee well-being and job performance in light of the new administrative reform called the Government Transformation Program in Malaysia that stresses on measurable performance outputs. Design/methodology/approach A total of 208 public sector employees from various public agencies and departments in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia were surveyed. Some of the agencies that took part in the study include state departments, the fishery department, agriculture-related agencies and the rural development agency. Findings The authors observed that feedback positively influenced employee well-being, which served as a significant mediator in the relationship between feedback and job performance. The results indicated that 26.4 percent of the variance that explained employee well-being was accounted for by the different characteristics of a job. The authors also demonstrated that employee well-being accounted for 41.8 percent of job performance. Research limitations/implications The authors recommended that public sector managers consider the element of feedback and enhance employee well-being to improve job performance. Originality/value This study offers an insight into the effect of perceived changes in the job itself on employee well-being and subsequent job performance in light of government reforms.

Exploring the barriers to SMEs’ open innovation adoption in Ghana

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Oduro
Keyword(s):  
Open Innovation ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Emerging Market ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Survey Interviews ◽  
The Right ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Purpose Open innovation (OI) is now recognized as one essential innovation paradigm to help small and medium enterprises (SMEs) quell their liability of newness and smallness. However, little is known about SMEs’ OI barriers, particularly in emerging economies. Drawing on both network and transaction cost theory, this study aims to explore the barriers to SMEs’ OI adoption in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted an exploratory sequential research design that involved both qualitative and quantitative study methodologies. A total of 644 responses (21 survey interviews and 623 usable questionnaires) across SMEs in Ghana were collected and analyzed in the study. A qualitative analysis involving quotations extracted from the respondent’s statement was used to present the qualitative findings, whereas SEM-partial least square, co-variance approach, was used to analyze the formulated hypotheses. Findings Results show that significant barriers to SMEs OI adoption are collaboration barriers – difficulty in finding the right partners and problems of cooperation and coordination of operational functions; organizational barriers – lack of flexible internal procedures and structures and organizational inertia; and strategic barriers – opportunistic behavior of partners and lack of strategic and resource fit. Contrary to existing findings, financial and knowledge barriers were disclosed as driving factors, rather than barriers, to SMEs’ OI adoption; these findings challenge conventional thinking about SMEs’ major OI barriers. Research limitations/implications This study focuses on only SMEs in one emerging economy, namely, Ghana, which may limit the generalization of the findings. Practical implications The findings of this study, while limited to Ghana, offer useful insights to SMEs managers, development practitioners and policymakers respecting the overall importance of the OI model, its associated impediments, as well as the strategic measures to quell those barriers. Originality/value This study provides a pioneering empirical investigation into the main barriers to SMEs’ OI adoption in a less-explored emerging market context through a mixed research approach.

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