scholarly journals Marketing Channel Selection by Pineapple Smallholder Growers in Samarahan, Sarawak

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aqila Nahar ◽  
Abdul Rahman Saili ◽  
Nur Masriyah Hamzah ◽  
Ahmad Shahir Abd Aziz ◽  
Zubaidah Yusop

The surging demand of pineapple creates opportunities for smallholder growers in maximising their income. However, the pineapple is a type of fruit that is very perishable in nature, thus it requires immediate sale to consumers for them to get the best quality of the fruit. Moreover, its commodity price also depends on its quality on the shelves. In this respect, it is important for the smallholders to decide for the best marketing channel to distribute their farm produce to get maximum profit. This study was conducted to investigate the preferred pineapple marketing channel among smallholder pineapple growers in Samarahan, Sarawak. Questionnaires were distributed to 123 respondents and the data was analyze using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) version 22. The findings show that the most popular marketing channel is farmer’s market.  

Author(s):  
Mats Alvesson ◽  
Yiannis Gabriel ◽  
Roland Paulsen

This book argues that we are currently witnessing not merely a decline in the quality of social science research, but a proliferation of meaningless research of no value to society and modest value to its authors—apart from securing employment and promotion. The explosion of published outputs, at least in social science, creates a noisy, cluttered environment which makes meaningful research difficult, as different voices compete to capture the limelight even briefly. Older, but more impressive contributions are easily neglected as the premium is to write and publish, not read and learn. The result is a widespread cynicism among academics on the value of academic research, sometimes including their own. Publishing comes to be seen as a game of hits and misses, devoid of intrinsic meaning and value and of no wider social uses whatsoever. This is what the book views as the rise of nonsense in academic research, which represents a serious social problem. It undermines the very point of social science. This problem is far from ‘academic’. It affects many areas of social and political life entailing extensive waste of resources and inflated student fees as well as costs to taxpayers. The book’s second part offers a range of proposals aimed at restoring meaning at the heart of social science research, and drawing social science back, address the major problems and issues that face our societies.


2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 168.2-168
Author(s):  
L. Wagner ◽  
S. Sestini ◽  
C. Brown ◽  
A. Finglas ◽  
R. Francisco ◽  
...  

Background:Inborn metabolic disorders (IMDs) currently encompass more than 1,500 diseases with new ones still to be identified1. Each of them is characterised by a genetic defect affecting a metabolic pathway. Only few of them have curative treatments, that target the respective metabolic pathway. Commonly, treatment examples include diet, substrate reduction therapies, enzyme replacement therapies, gene therapy and biologicals, enabling IMD-patient now to survive to adulthood. About 30 % of all IMDs involve the musculoskeletal system and are here referred to as rare metabolic RMDs. Generally, IMDs are very heterogenous with respect to symptoms and severity, often being systemic and affecting more children than adults. Thus, challenges include certified advanced training of adult metabolic experts, standardised transition plans, social support and development of therapies for diseases that do not have any cure yet.Objectives:Introduction of MetabERN, its structure and objectives, highlighting on the unique features and challenges of metabolic RMDs and describing the involvement of patient representation in MetabERN.Methods:MetabERN is stratified in 7 subnetworks (SNW) according to the respective metabolic pathways and 9 work packages (WP), including administration, dissemination, guidelines, virtual counselling framework, research/clinical trials, continuity of care, education and patient involvement. The patient board involves a steering committee and single point of contacts for each subnetwork and work package, respectively2. Projects include identifying the need of implementing social science to assess the psycho-socio-economic burden of IMDs, webinars on IMDs and their transition as well as surveys on the impact of COVID-193 on IMD-patients and health care providers (HCPs), social assistance for IMD-patients and analysing the transition landscape within Europe.Results:The MetabERN structure enables bundling of expertise, capacity building and knowledge transfer for faster diagnosis and better health care. Rare metabolic RMDs are present in all SNWs that require unique treatments according to their metabolic pathways. Implementation of social science to assess the psycho-socio-economic burden of IMDs is still underused. Involvement of patient representatives is essential for a holistic healthcare not only focusing on clinical care, but also on the quality of life for IMD-patients. Surveys identified unmet needs of patient care, patients having little information on national support systems and structural deficits of healthcare systems to ensure HCP can provide adequate clinical care during transition phases. These results are collected by MetabERN and forwarded to the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE) of the European Commission (EC) to be addressed further.Conclusion:MetabERN offers an infrastructure of virtual healthcare for patients with IMDs. Thus, in collaboration with ERN ReCONNET, MetabERN can assist in identifying rare metabolic disorders of RMDs to shorten the odyssey of diagnosis and advise on their respective therapies. On the other hand, MetabERN can benefit from EULAR’s longstanding experience regarding issues affecting the quality of life, all RMD patients are facing, such as pain, stiffness, fatigue, rehabilitation, maintaining work and disability claims.References:[1]IEMbase - Inborn Errors of Metabolism Knowledgebase http://www.iembase.org/ (accessed Jan 29, 2021).[2]MetabERN: European Refence Network for Hereditary Metabolic Disorders https://metab.ern-net.eu/ (accessed Jan 29, 2021).[3]Lampe, C.; Dionisi-Vici, C.; Bellettato, C. M.; Paneghetti, L.; van Lingen, C.; Bond, S.; Brown, C.; Finglas, A.; Francisco, R.; Sestini, S.; Heard, J. M.; Scarpa, M.; MetabERN collaboration group. The Impact of COVID-19 on Rare Metabolic Patients and Healthcare Providers: Results from Two MetabERN Surveys. Orphanet J. Rare Dis.2020, 15 (1), 341. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13023-020-01619-x.Acknowledgements:The authors thank the MetabERN collaboration group, the single point of contacts (SPOC) of the MetabERN patient board and the Transition Project Working Group (TPWG)Disclosure of Interests:None declared


2009 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-84
Author(s):  
Walter Nicgorski

AbstractThis essay treats the inspiration and nature of Yves Simon's philosophical life. His embrace of that life was importantly shaped by his engagement with the republican tradition in France, his passionate opposition to the fascist threat to France, and his later attachment to the aspirations of American democracy. However, his early philosophical interests took direction and inspiration from his encounter with Jacques Maritain who drew him to Thomism. His devotion to the truth was fierce, and he confronted honestly the threats to this defining quality of philosophical life from the pressures of social conformity and from the discouragement of seeing the inadequacies and disagreements in the history of philosophy. He came, as especially evident in his most influential book, Philosophy of Democratic Government, to esteem highly the virtue of prudence, seeking to protect it from both philosophy and social science.


2021 ◽  
pp. 107554702110188
Author(s):  
Jennifer Shannon ◽  
Claire Quimby ◽  
Chip Colwell ◽  
Scott Burg

This is a call to science communicators and science journalists to feature social science research and researchers in their reporting, with an emphasis on anthropology and its potential to increase public empathy, improve the quality of public discourse, and contribute to contextual and narrative news trends.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (87) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nataliia Dovha ◽  
◽  
Hryhorii Tsehelyk ◽  

The processes of optimization of the production plan according to certain criteria by modeling were investigated. Achieving effective results directly depends on the optimal production plan. The most important thing in determining the optimal production plan is the choice of modeling criteria. For the most part, the quality of decisions is characterized not by one but by many incomparable criteria. Therefore, it is necessary to make decisions based not on one but on many criteria. This so-called multi-objective optimization problem. For solving such problems is widely used mathematical methods. Mathematical approach can be used to solve problems in any particular activity as mathematics abstracted from specific features characteristic of a particular solution. Therefore, from the point of view of mathematics, the optimal result can be obtained with various established criteria, but from the economic point of view it is important to choose the ones that are of decisive importance. That is, their weight is important for the consumer when making a purchase decision, and for the manufacturer – in terms of production capabilities of certain types and results (production efficiency). The basis of the operation of any enterprise is a production program (production and sales plan). The main task of the production plan is to meet the needs of consumers in high-quality products, which are produced with the best use of resources, on the one hand, and the enterprise to get the maximum profit, on the other. With this in mind, a two-criteria optimization model that allows to make a production plan was proposed. The plan ensures that products are produced with the best use of available resources and at the same time ensures maximum quality of manufactured products and maximum profit from sales of these products. The solution of the problem with two objective functions and linear constraints is achieved by step-by-step solution of the proposed mathematical model of optimization of the production plan using the method of sequential restrictions. The simplex method was also used. An example shows an algorithm for solving the optimization problem.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 137
Author(s):  
James Young

International Journal of Social Science Studies (IJSSS) would like to thank the following reviewers for reviewing manuscripts from September 16, 2013, to March 31, 2014. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Many authors, regardless of whether IJSSS publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Redfame Publishing appreciates the following reviewers’ rigorous and conscientious efforts for this journal. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review during this period. Remigiusz Janusz Kijak Anna Maria Mouza Patricia Wiener Paulito Valeriano Hilario Michael Brooks Parveen Kaur Shani Bardach Luigia Simona Sica Raymond Chan Federica Palumbo Linda Chernus Mónica Martínez Gómez Joy D. Patton Mariano D. Perelman Zitha Mokomane Jamie Spinney Lee Pugalis Yaghoob Foroutan Maja Gori Ofer Katchergin Nina V Gunnarsson Roberto Franzini Tibaldeo Xue Bai Kimberly Schutte Shahadat Hossain Mei-Se Chien Mohammed Nasarat Laura K Taylor Sudershan Pasupuleti Suman Kasturi Russell Kabir Noraida Endt Suman Kasturi Maria Merino Quinn Keefer Flavia Cangia' Russell Kabir Aprinalistria Aprinalistria Begoña Montero-Fleta


Author(s):  
Patti Tamara Lenard ◽  
David Miller

This article examines evidence from social psychology and comparative social science on the trust-related effects of having a national identity. The starting hypothesis is that identities provide a foundation for extending trust by permitting those who share them to make assumptions about the motivations and intentions of others. The discussion in the article establishes that this hypothesis is empirically supported, and examines the trust-related effects of national identities in particular. We are attentive to the strength and quality of these identities, which correlate with how inclusive or exclusive they are. We then propose that public policy steers national identities in a culturally civic direction, emphasizing elements that are accessible to newcomers and minorities and downplaying those that are not.


Author(s):  
Nicholas Charron

This chapter discusses a wide scope of the available indicators of quality of government. It begins with a brief history of the development of the indicators and their scientific impact on social science research. The chapter posits a typology of the various ways in which indicators of governance can differ and implications of such differences. The chapter then reveals the degree to which contemporary cross-country indicators of corruption in particular correlate. Next, several well-established critiques of contemporary data are presented. The chapter concludes with several comments on what makes a good quality indicator and puts for several suggestions for future work in this ever-growing field.


2012 ◽  
pp. 143-172
Author(s):  
Gaetano Chinnici ◽  
Biagio Pecorino ◽  
Alessandro Scuderi

The common agricultural policy over the years has expanded the tools of promotion and protection of farm produce quality. At the national level but also from Europe we are witnessing a change in consumer behavior: they become more and more relevant information needs, safety and food security, increasing demand for quality products and the willingness to pay for those products that meet consumer expectations. The paper focuses on the perceived quality of local products in order to identify those variables that influence purchasing decisions and dietary habits and consumer group. The survey was conducted using a principal components analysis to summarize the information that characterizes the choices of consumption, followed by cluster analysis which allowed us to confirm the presence of different segments of consumers of local products.


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