Pension Participants’ Attitudes, Beliefs, and Emotional Responses to the New Dutch Pension System

As of 2022, the Dutch pension system will be overhauled. The success of this as well as other pension reforms also depends on how participants react to and accept such changes. We therefore studied participants’ attitudes, beliefs, and emotions toward the new pension system. We composed a text to inform them about the new system and qualitatively analyzed their responses. We investigated which beliefs and attitudes prevail among different age groups. The results show that many participants base their comments on previous experiences, misconceptions and (sometimes false) interpretations of the information in the text. Moreover, we find that young people are more optimistic, whilst older participants tend to feel victimized. Since the new Dutch pension rules have yet to be introduced, the results of our study contain valuable information for policymakers and pension funds who should acknowledge and address the oftentimes intense emotions, beliefs, and attitudes that influence the way that intentionally neutral information is perceived and accepted. A diversified communication strategy, mindful of different beliefs, emotions and attitudes among participants should help to empower citizens to get insight in their financial situation after retirement and to make informed choices.

Barriers to Prevention and Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Among Outpatients in Belarus

ObjectivesThis study aimed to determine the main barriers and reasons for non-adherence to preventive measures and treatment for type 2 diabetes mellitus among outpatients in Belarus.MethodsAn anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted with 814 adults aged 18 years and over who visited outpatient health care units and hospitals in Belarus. The questionnaire was developed to analyze the perceived barriers that limit adherence to preventive measures and treatment for type 2 diabetes.ResultsThe proportion of respondents who reported doing daily physical activity was 53.2%, and 46.6% consumed at least 400 grams of fruit and vegetables per day. Among the 42.8% of respondents with a prescribed treatment for type 2 diabetes mellitus, 50.1% sometimes forgot to take their medicine. The specific barriers to treatment most frequently identified by survey respondents were “Financial situation” (23.5% of respondents), and “Fear of side effects” (25.2%). Those for lifestyle instructions were “Insufficient knowledge” (29.3%), “Financial situation” (27.9%), and “Lack of motivation” (21.7%).ConclusionsThe study revealed that the main barriers to adherence were insufficient knowledge of diabetes and its treatment and an underestimation of the role of behavioral risk factors in health, combined with financial difficulties. We recommend that physicians should take a patient-centered approach to raising awareness of behavioral risk factors for type 2 diabetes mellitus, and suggest that the importance of adhering to preventative measures and treatment should be promoted in consultations in Belarus.

Impact of COVID-19 on the economic-financial health of the company REIPROACERO S. A., during the periods 2019-2020

This research article focused on evaluating the economic-financial situation of the company REIPROACERO SA, through the application of financial analysis methods and financial ratios, in order to determine the impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, within the investigative process the scientific method is applied, since it allowed to have an approach to the fact of interest, having contact with the data and information and real facts, which provided clues for the formulation of hypotheses and antecedents, building knowledge and leading to the verification of the same. Likewise, the qualitative descriptive approach was used, since the Financial Statements of the company, obtained from the Superintendencia de Compañias, Valores y Seguros, were analyzed; with a documentary design because information was obtained from scientifically recognized sources such as journals, articles in order to scientifically strengthen research. Where the results obtained showed excessive liquidity, low profitability and poor portfolio rotation.

Relationship between vulnerability and life satisfaction in older population in Russia

The article examines the relationship between various components of vulnerability and life satisfaction among older people in Russia. Empirically, the study bases on data from the first wave of the WHO Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) for 2007–2010. The analysis showed that physical vulnerability, or frailty, is associated with a significantly lower level of life satisfaction of the older population. At the same time, there are differences in this relationship between age groups, and an increase in the physical vulnerability of individuals aged 75–89 years old reduces their subjective well-being to a greater extent in comparison with the group of individuals aged 60–74 years old. The financial situation of individuals also plays a significant role: lack of income to cover daily needs negatively affects subjective well-being. Socializing with friends is another predictor of life satisfaction in older age.

Practical application of the CCB model in Czechia

This research aimed to present a new bankruptcy prediction model and apply this original prediction method in practice. The Come Clean Bankruptcy (or CCB) model uses relevant financial indicators and ratios to detect the signs of impending financial distress in time so that the management can take appropriate measures to avoid it. The model was applied to the data reported by 199 entities operating in the textile/clothing industry in the Czech Republic. Analyzing data reported for the previous seven years enabled us to predict which companies are more likely to end in a difficult financial situation. Afterward, comparing these predictions with the actual development of those companies in 2013-2020 serves to verify the efficacy and usability of the model to corporate reality. The research has shown that companies that went bankrupt in the analyzed period represented only a fraction of the data set (roughly 4.5%). Despite the small number of financial failures occurring during the analyzed period, the CCB model could detect impending bankruptcy in one-third of the cases.

Ponadczasowość regulacji prawnych dotyczących niewypłacalności

The study describes the legal regulations concerning insolvency in the period of the Second Polish Republic. The political system of the Republic of Poland in the years 1926–1935 is described as authoritarian in order to distinguish it from the total fascist system. The difficult economic and financial situation of the Polish state during the post-partition period required state interference in introducing legal regulations ensuring protection of creditors, while taking into account the rights of debtors who became insolvent for no fault of their own. Bankruptcy became a society-wide problem, albeit of varying severity. The study describes legal regulations concerning insolvency, which are included both in the Ordinance of the President of the Republic of Poland of 24 October 1934, the Law on Settlement Proceedings (Journal of Laws of 1934, No. 93, item 836, with binding force from 1 January 1935), and in the Ordinance of the President of the Republic of Poland of 24 October 1934, the Bankruptcy Law (Journal of Laws of 1934, No. 93, item 834, with binding force from 1 January 1935). The above-mentioned legal acts contained regulations adjusted to the state of insolvency, which is the result of the debtor’s difficult economic and financial situation. The state of the debtor’s insolvency or the threat of insolvency determined whether it was possible to conduct a procedure in which the debtor entered into an arrangement with creditors or whether the debtor should be declared bankrupt. In the case of bankruptcy, a trustee appointed by the bankruptcy court managed the assets of the bankrupt, constituting the bankruptcy estate, and the bankrupt was deprived of the right to manage their assets. The main purpose of bankruptcy proceedings was to sell the assets included in the bankruptcy estate and to achieve equal satisfaction of creditors of the bankrupt debtor. The course of these proceedings was different and depended on whether it was possible to make an arrangement with the creditors or whether it was necessary to implement procedures related to the liquidation of the bankrupt debtor’s assets. Although both legal acts were enacted in the interwar period, they were in force until the entry into force of the Act of 28 February 2003, the Bankruptcy and Reorganization Law (Journal of Laws of 2003, No. 60, item 535), that is, for almost 60 years. Therefore, regardless of the changes in the political system of the Polish state, the insolvency regulations from the authoritarian period in the Second Republic remained in force for many decades. The timelessness of these regulations is confirmed by the fact that some of the legal regulations that were enacted in 1934 are still applied today, although they have been partially modified and adapted to the current economic situation. The entry into force on 1 January 2016 of the Law of 15 May 2018 on Restructuring Law (Journal of Laws of 2015, item 978) resulted in a return to the separation of legal regulations that can be implemented depending on the debtor’s difficult financial situation. The Restructuring Law currently regulates the proceedings enabling an insolvent debtor or a debtor at risk of insolvency to enter into an arrangement with creditors, the effects of an arrangement as well as the conduct of the rehabilitation proceedings. The purpose of the various types of restructuring proceedings is to avoid declaring bankruptcy. On the other hand, the Bankruptcy Law, similarly to the period of the Second Polish Republic, regulates the procedure, the main purpose of which is to achieve equal satisfaction of the creditors of the debtor in the bankruptcy to the highest possible extent, and only if rational considerations allow the debtor’s current enterprise to be retained.

LABOR MOTIVATIONS OF THE POPULATION OF BASHKORTOSTAN IN A MARKET ECONOMY (according to ethnosociological surveys)

The transition to a market economy has created certain difficulties in the field of employment and the material and financial situation of the population of the country. In this regard, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, due to the uneven settlement of ethnic groups in cities and in rural areas, there were certain difficulties. Despite the development of a market economy, a significant part of the population, regardless of ethnicity, prefers to work in state-owned enterprises, the number of which has significantly decreased over the years. At the same time, the share of those who want to engage in entrepreneurship and work "for themselves" is growing. The ongoing privatization of state property in the country is also ambiguously perceived by the population of the country. The problem of the economic and financial situation of the population motivates them to look for new sources of earning money to improve their financial condition.

An analysis of students’ response to changes in financial situation during the pandemic by digital traces in the VKontakte social network

В статье представлены результаты исследования круга проблем и вопросов финансового положения студентов в период пандемии по цифровым следам в социальных сети ВКонтакте студенческой аудитории. Для анализа были использованы тексты постов в сообществах студентов и комментарии к ним за период второго учебного года в условиях пандемии. Для оценки контента обсуждаемых тем и вопросов в сообществах использованы результаты НИР Консорциума исследователей больших данных «Образование в условиях коронавируса: большие данные как инструмент измерения реакции общества» за февраль – июнь 2020 г. Подготовка данных для анализа включала выгрузку данных из социальных сетей, отбор релевантных сообщений, выявление категорий и тематических сюжетов, определение тональности сообщений. По предварительно выгруженным с использованием специализированного программного обеспечения (Polyanalyst, библиотек машинного обучения) сообщениям сообществ вузов региона была проведена разметка всех сообщений по релевантности изучаемой темы, что позволило в дальнейшем систематизировать сообщения по тематике и тональности. Контент анализируемых релевантных сообщений позволили выделить четыре основные тематические категории такие, как стипендия и материальная помощь, стоимость образовательных и дополнительных услуг, возможность получения дополнительных доходов, разное. В группе сообщений по вопросам стипендии и материальной помощи были выделены тематические сюжеты о размере и сроках выплаты стипендии и материальной помощи и о процедуре начисления стипендии. В группе сообщений по вопросам стоимость основных и дополнительных услуг были выделены тематические сюжеты о цене-качестве образовательных услуг, возврата стоимости за обучение в условиях дистанционного формата работы, а также ценообразование образовательных услуг. В группе сообщений по возможности получения дополнительных доходов студенты рассуждали преимущественно о размере стипендии в сопоставлении со сложившимися ценами на товары и услуги и о необходимости поиска дополнительных источниках доходов. В группе разное были рассмотрены низкочастотные сообщения по различным тематическим сюжетам. Тональность сообщений, в которых студенты высказывали свое мнение и оценку, преимущественно нейтральная, но негативная тональность доминировала на начало каждого учебного семестра. Полученные результаты исследования на основе выборки данных социальной сети ВКонтакте за анализируемый период могут послужить обоснованием для дальнейшего исследования сообщений в социальных сетях с целью выявления и анализа обратной связи студентов о качестве, эффективности и развитии дистанционного образования в стране, а также мониторинга появления/развития/отмирания проблем и вопросов в сфере финансового состояния студентов. The article presents the results of a survey on the range of problems and questions of students regarding financial situation based on digital traces in the VKontakte social network. The analysis was based on posts in student communities and comments to them during the second academic year during the pandemic. To assess changes in the content of the discussed topics and issues in the communities, the results of research work of the Consortium of Big Data Researchers “Education in the context of coronavirus: big data as a tool for measuring the reaction of society” for February – June 2020 were used. Preparing data for analysis included downloading data from social networks, selecting relevant messages, identifying categories and thematic plots, and determining the sentiment of messages. According to the messages from the communities of the universities in the region, previously unloaded using specialized software (Polyanalyst, machine learning libraries), all messages were marked up according to the relevance of the topic being studied, which made it possible to further systematize messages by topic and tone. The content of the analyzed relevant messages allowed us to single out four main thematic categories such as scholarships and material assistance, the cost of educational and additional services, the possibility of obtaining additional income, and miscellaneous. In the group of presentations on the issues of scholarships and material assistance, thematic stories were highlighted on the amount and timing of payment of the scholarship and material assistance and on the procedure for awarding the scholarship. In the group of messages on the cost of basic and additional services, there were highlighted thematic stories about the price-quality of educational services, the return of the cost of training in a distance format of work, as well as the pricing of educational services. In the group of messages about the possibility of obtaining additional income, students talked mainly about the amount of the scholarship in comparison with the prevailing prices for goods and services and the need to search for additional sources of income. In the Miscellaneous group, low-frequency messages were considered on various thematic topics. The tone of the messages in which the students expressed their opinion and assessment was predominantly neutral, but the negative tone dominated at the beginning of each academic semester. The results of the study based on a sample of data from the VKontakte social network for the analyzed period can serve as a rationale for further research of messages on social networks in order to identify and analyze student feedback on the quality, efficiency and development of distance education in the country, as well as monitor the emergence / development / withering away problems and questions in the field of the financial condition of students.

The Nature of Interethnic Relations in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) During the Pandemic

The article is devoted to the analysis of interethnic relations in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) against the background of the coronavirus pandemic. The study was conducted taking into account the methodology of monitoring studies implemented by the FADN of Russia. This material presents data that allow us to make comparisons with representative ethnosociological studies carried out in the RS(Ya) in different years, and to trace the patterns of development of interethnic relations. The article presents conclusions about the state of interethnic relations in the RS (Ya) in 2020. The results of the study allow us to speak about a benevolent interethnic climate in the republic: 75% of Yakuts assess interethnic relations in the republic as benevolent and normal. These indicators are close to the all-Russian ones. The analysis of assessments of interethnic relations in the settlements of the republic for the period 2015–2020 shows a positive dynamics. The interethnic attitudes of the respondents demonstrate a positive trend – 70–80% of the respondents expressed their readiness for interethnic interactions in the labor and informal spheres. The dynamics of measurements on the Bogardus scale demonstrates a steady reduction in the socio-cultural distance. The factors influencing the current trends in interethnic attitudes are highlighted. Negative assessments of the social well-being of the population affect the perception of interethnic relations. Those who are dissatisfied with their life and financial situation are more likely to assess the interethnic situation in their locality as tense.

Institutes of Financial Socialization of Russian Students

The paper examines the factors influencing the financial socialization of Russian students. It provides an overview of research on the impact of family institutions (parental household), financial independence, and the maturity of financial behavior on the financial socialization of young people. We analyze the relationships between basic socio-demographic characteristics of Russian students (gender, age, marital status), their behavioral characteristics (risk preference, propensity for offense or unethical behavior, prodigality, credulity), and socio-economic characteristics (level of financial status, financial independence, financial maturity). The empirical part of the study is based on the data of the author's survey of 1291 students from 17 Russian universities, processed by methods of statistical, correlation, and econometric analysis. To assess the level of financial well-being, we develop an original methodology where the financial situation shows the availability of goods and services that are unaffordable to most members of this group. Likewise, financial maturity is the students' proficiency in financial instruments poorly mastered by the majority of other respondents. The survey revealed a significant financial dependence of Russian students on their parents and their low level of financial maturity. We found an increased level of credulity and a low level of propensity for offense or unethical behavior; established positive correlation between the risk preference and the propensity for offense or unethical behavior, between the level of credulity and prodigality. We established that as financial dependence on parents gradually decreases, young people make more mature financial decisions, and their growing risk preference is replaced by a shift to more prudent financial practices. In groups where young people provide for themselves, their assessments of their financial situation rise sharply from a certain point, and the level of prodigality decreases. The constructed model of ordered logit regression showed a significant positive effect of age, marital and employment status, risk preference and level of financial maturity, as well as a significant negative effect of prodigality and credulity on financial independence of Russian students. The research results are applicable for the further development of theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of effective financial behavior of young people and the management of student financial socialization processes.