When Bentham Meets Big Data in Times of COVID-19

2020 has been marked by a ‘once in a century crisis' that influenced the dynamics of the globe deeply. Soon after the COVID-19 pandemic, most daily practices had to be transferred to online platforms as humanity was supposed to adopt social and physical distancing to avoid the risk of infection. Even technologically illiterate people were abruptly charged with online tasks as part of their jobs or responsibilities. It suddenly turned out to be high time to go online and have a digital identity to keep pace with the new normal life. Thus, internet has taken its place among the basic needs more specifically than before. This chapter is about the technology-driven supervisory social credit system which is said to have contributed to Chinese state to manage the COVID-19 crisis in a short time. Exploring the foundations, motives, and highlights of the system, this chapter proposes a framework for a potential digital governance model coined as the Cyber Leviathan and bears importance in terms of crisis management.

The Dehumanising Consequences of Gamification

While gamification represents one of the largest technology trends of the last decade, only a limited selection of literature exists that explores the negative outcomes of contemporary gamified services, applications, and systems. This chapter explores the consequences of gamified systems and services, investigating contemporary implementations of gamification and acknowledging the ethical concerns raised by researchers towards contemporary gamified services. This chapter further explores these ethical concerns through a critical instance case study of China's Social Credit System and arrives at informed observations on the potential for gamified cycles of reward and punishment to encourage unethical activity within organisations as well as legitimise ideological objectives that violate fundamental human rights. Recommendations are then made for researchers to explore this potential further, while recognising how gamification may justify the authority and practices of organisations, particularly those engaged in unethical and dehumanising behaviour.

The main aspects of modernization of the higher education system in the perception of students and teachers: a sociological analysis

Introduction. The Rome Conference of Ministers of Science and Higher Education set a new direction for the implementation of key commitments necessary for the full functioning of the European Higher Education Area. As a participant in the Bologna process, Russia is rapidly increasing the pace of modernization in the higher education system, which actualizes the need to analyze the results and consequences of the ongoing reforms. The research purpose is to identify the specifics of perception of the main aspects of the modernization process by students and teachers as key agents in the provision and consumption of educational services. Materials and methods. During the study, a questionnaire survey was conducted among first-to-fifth year students (N=300) and teachers (N=100) of the Volgograd Institute of Management, a branch of the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. Results. The research results demonstrate an ambiguous attitude towards the ongoing reforms. 39.3% of the surveyed students and 37.8% of the teachers support the transition to a two-tier higher education system, 28.6% of the students and 44.4% of the teachers do not approve of it. The main risk of the reform relates to the loss of the quality of education when changing the field of study and a student’s obligation to obtain a master’s degree in order to be in demand in the labor market. The transition to a modular-rating training system is perceived positively by more than a third of the surveyed students and teachers. Negative consequences of the reform affected teachers to a greater extent: an increase in time costs and the risk of error when completing modules with teaching materials. The transition to the credit system as a tool for the development of academic mobility is supported by 62% of the surveyed teachers and 39.9% of the students. The contradictory attitude to stimulating the change of universities is associated with the risks of student adaptation and stereotyped education as the consequences of reforms. Conclusions. Based on the research results, the authors come to the conclusion that to overcome the ambiguous attitude towards the ongoing reforms, it is important to develop and implement measures to highlight the current modernization directions, goals and results: at meetings of the Academic Council or through teaching and student exchanges at the regional and international level. Also, the identified problems can be compensated by the intensification of advanced training courses taken by teachers to use the tools of work against the backdrop of new tasks, the development of a regulatory framework that regulates the transition between levels of education and measures to prevent the risks of students’ adaptation when changing universities.

LOANS SETTLEMENT AT FEDERAL INTERNATIONAL FINANCE Ltd. (FIF) BANDAR LAMPUNG CITY

There are many ways to purchase a vehicle, including a credit system. However, various problems arise in its application regarding the settlement of bad loans caused by default debtors. This study aims to analyse the efforts made by Federal International Finance Ltd. (FIF) Bandar Lampung City in resolving motor vehicle bad loans due to default debtors. This study uses empirical normative legal research methods and qualitative descriptive methods. The data is obtained from direct observations and interviews, then linked to legal regulations concerning the default problem. The results indicate that Federal International Finance Ltd. has an ideal solution to resolve bad Loans through litigation and non-litigation. Efforts to settle bad loans through non-litigation could be made by giving a subpoena to the debtor. Furthermore, the creditor could take litigation by filing a civil lawsuit against the debtor for default according to Article 1243 of the Civil Code.