Repayment Performance of Self-Help Groups in Uttar Pradesh: An Empirical Investigation

This paper aims to study the determinants of repayment performance of self-help groups in India’s Uttar Pradesh state, which has one of the highest numbers of defaulting self-help groups. The study is based on primary data collected in 2017 through a field survey covering 300 members across 100 self-help groups from the rural areas of Sultanpur and Faizabad districts. The survey reveals an overall repayment rate of about 55% with better pay-back performance seen among members of old self-help groups. The results, computed with the help of the Tobit model, show that factors such as group maturity (age of the group), ratio of family workers to household size and household income are negatively associated with the incidence of delinquency while peer group pressure and social ties associate positively with delays and overdues.

The Impact of Fraud on Financial Performance of Deposit Money Banks: Evidence from Nigeria

This study demonstrated new evidence sustaining the idea that the issue of fraud has a long history and that fraud in deposit money banks affect performance when fraud are proxied with data extracted from inappropriate auditing process, peer group pressure, computer fraud and management looting using the Generalized Least Square Method (GLS) and the z-statistics as method of data analysis. The data used in the study were adjusted with the Jarque-Bera test of normality to remove any form of spurious result as variable normality is a standardized requirement for any linear model while the cronbach apha value was used to test the validity, consistency and reliability of the data. The main aim of the study is to investigate if variables like computer fraud, managers looting; inappropriate auditing, peer group pressure affect bank performance. To achieve this objective, research questions and hypotheses were formulated and variables were proxied for fraud and deposit banks performance as distilled from related literatures. The GLS result was used to test the formulated hypotheses with a standard z-value of 1.96. The GLS regression results revealed that there are negative relationships between bank frauds and performance while the z-test shows that bank frauds affect deposit money bank performance in Nigeria. The study therefore recommends that an efficient and modern financial technological structure such as Computer Aided Auditing Tools & Techniques (CAATTs) would combat fraud in deposit money banks in Nigeria.

Impacts of Unemployment on Graduates in Bangladesh: A Case Study

The study attempts to explore the impacts of unemployment; how the state of unemployment is becoming the cause of social, economic, physical, personality, and psychological costs on the unemployed graduates with identification of reasons for unemployment in Bangladesh. The study area was the unemployed graduates of the social science faculty of the University of Dhaka. The study followed a qualitative approach by using the case study method. Capacity mismatch, corruption, the incapacity of the graduates, absence of job specialization, outdated curriculum were the leading reasons for unemployment, the study identified. The impacts of unemployment are invariably alike on graduates-mental depression, embarrassment, socio-economic vulnerability, erosion of inner potentiality, degradation of personality, and frustration. The study explored that sense of self-esteem erodes due to peer group pressure and their attitudes towards unemployed graduates. The findings significantly guide that Bangladeshi graduates, who hailed from lower and middle strata, lack in entrepreneurial spirit and are bound in cyclical craziness to secure a job primarily a government job. It recommends for further evaluation of Bangladesh’s education systems, the focus on higher education which will meet the capacity mismatch between market demands and education; and changes in attitudes-overindulgence on government jobs, associated with cultural factors, must be needed to minimize the vulnerabilities. Academia, learners, policymakers, scholars, policy advocates will get significant insight from the findings of the study.

Consumption of Substances in Nightlife Settings: A Qualitative Approach in Young Andalusians (Spain)

Adolescence and youth are stages of exploration and experimentation, when the consumption of psychoactive substances for recreational or experimental purposes often begins. The general objective of this study was to explore youth consumption habits in nightlife settings and associated factors in Andalusia (Spain). To this end, we took into account young people’s perceptions about patterns of drug polyconsumption in nightlife settings and the perceptions and actions of health and teaching professionals towards this issue. We carried out a qualitative methodology with 24 in-depth interviews and 3 discussion groups with Andalusian girls and boys aged between 16 and 22 (n = 45) and 13 in-depth interviews with social agents (health and teaching professionals). We performed narrative discourse analysis and triangulation of identified categories and measured the units of analysis. The results show information relating to gender, age of initiation, most commonly consumed substances, motivation and effects, peer group pressure and how they obtained the substances, and the perceptions held and main activities carried out in the educational institutions and health centers.

Role of Socialization Patterns in Adopting Rigid Sectarian Identities

Religion is an essential part of individuals’ daily routine practices in the Pakistani society. People rigorously own and defend their particular religious beliefs in the extremely diversified population of the country. The induction of sectarian ideologies in the mindset of children begins with their early socialization. This process further develops with the passage of time and the mindset of children becomes extremely rigid. Sectarian rigidity advances the elements of disrespect and intolerance among the believers of adverse sectarian groups. This study was aimed to explain the role of socialization patterns (religious ideological orientation, cultural socialization and peer group pressure) in enhancing sectarian rigidity in the society. Survey research was conducted in two high ranking universities of Lahore (one government university and one private university). It was based on the responses collected from 250 participants who were selected through the application of simple ransom sampling technique. Two hypotheses were tested to evaluate the relationship and the predictive role of socialization patterns in enhancing the element of sectarian rigidity in individuals. The results of the current study revealed that there was a significant positive relationship between socialization patterns and sectarian rigidity after the application of Pearson product-moment correlation test. Furthermore, the results computed through multilinear regression analysis showed a significant and positive predictive role of socialization patterns in enhancing sectarian rigidity. Thus, religious ideological orientation, cultural socialization and peer group pressure influenced the behavior of individuals that generate rigid sectarian identities in the society.

A study of habits of tobacco use among medical students and influence of various factors including medical education

Background: Tobacco use is a major preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. Tobacco usage among medical professionals should be reduced. It is important that they are aware regarding effects/ill effects of tobacco use, anti tobacco strategies, tobacco cessation technique to reduce tobacco usage among population. Authors undertook this study to understand tobacco use among medical students.Methods: Authors conducted cross sectional, descriptive study by collecting anonymous data of 414 undergraduate medical students of medical college, Jamnagar in predesigned forms. Data were analysed using MS-excel and graphpad prism. Authors used Fagerstrom test for nicotine dependence to assess nicotine dependence.Results: Tobacco users were 19.57%, among them 83.95% were smokers. Prevalence was higher in male (34.35% in male and 1.09% in female subgroup) and students with positive family history (36.81% in positive and 6.03% in negative family history subgroup). Current users were 7.73%. They were 8.20% in hosteller and 2.78% day scholar subgroups. Authors didn’t find statistical significant association of medical education with habit. Leading causes of starting tobacco use were curiosity/recreational purpose (35.8%), peer group pressure (32.10%) and stress (25.93%). Most of current user had low nicotine dependence (73.33%).Conclusions: Tobacco use among medical students is a significant problem. Important factors affecting it are gender, family history, current living status, stress, peer group pressure, media influences. Authors recommend that special awareness programme and specific training regarding tobacco cessation should be given to medical students.