Assessing puberty-related health needs among 10–15-year-old boys: A cross-sectional study approach

Community Awareness and Knowledge About Precocious Puberty in Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia

Background Puberty is the process of physical maturation where an adolescent reaches sexual maturity and becomes capable of reproduction. On average, puberty typically begins between 8 and 13 years old in females and 9 and 14 years old in males. The traditional definition of precocious puberty is the development of secondary sexual characteristics before eight years of age in girls and nine years in boys. In this study, we aimed to assess the knowledge and awareness of Riyadh residents in Saudi Arabia about precocious puberty and its complications. Methodology A cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate the awareness and knowledge among Riyadh residents about precocious puberty and its complications; 426 participants were included in this study. Participants completed a pretested self-administered questionnaire that included sociodemographic data, knowledge about precocious puberty definition, risk factors, complications, and treatment. Results This study enrolled 426 participants. Overall, 10.1% were correct about the precocious puberty age for girls, and 8.5% knew about the precocious puberty age for boys. The overall mean knowledge score among the study sample was 5.56 (SD = 2.79), with poor knowledge being prominent and constituting 68.8%, while fair and good knowledge were 30% and 1.2%, respectively. Working in a non-medical field was the sole independent significant predictor of incorrect answers of knowledge about precocious puberty. Conclusions Awareness strategies are needed to increase awareness among the community to encourage prevention and treatment for precocious puberty as the awareness and knowledge of Riyadh residents in Saudi Arabia about precocious puberty and its complications are low.

Analyzing psychological resilience in college students: A decision tree model

In the evolving landscape of higher education, particularly in the post-pandemic era, it is crucial for college students to face societal challenges and achieve success by understanding and predicting psychological resilience. To deepen our understanding of psychological resilience, this study used a decision tree model to explore influencing factors. We surveyed 776 college students and collected data on demographic information, self-esteem, sense of school belonging, pro-environmental behavior, subjective well-being, internet game addiction, life autonomy, and academic procrastination using several scales. The decision tree model identified eight key predictors of psychological resilience, which are as follows in order of importance: self-esteem, sense of school belonging, pro-environmental behavior, subjective well-being, academic procrastination, life autonomy, internet game addiction, and academic achievement. This model's accuracy reached 73.985 %, emphasizing its potential utility in educational settings. The findings not only provide a novel and data-driven perspective to understand psychological resilience in college students compared to existing research but also provide practical guidance for educational practitioners and policymakers on how to develop psychological resilience in college students.

Investigating the effect of psychological contract breach on counterproductive work behavior: The mediating role of organizational cynicism

BACKGROUND: The negative consequences of Counterproductive work behaviors (CWBs) include intentional malfeasance that damages an organization or its employees. These include decreased output, increased costs, decreased employee morale and discontent. When CWBs exist, the company’s reputation and employee turnover rates may suffer. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to increase the current understanding of PCB and CWBs, as well as the mediating function of OC in this relationship, among higher education employees. METHODS: Using IBM SPSS AMOS, the results of the survey were analyzed. RESULTS: PCB is positively correlated with CWB-O and CWB-I, suggesting that employee perspectives on PCB negatively influence their emotions and contribute to unethical business behavior. This study found that OC mediates the relationship between PCBs and CWBs and that uninformed organization behavior causes employees to be more discouraged and angrier and participate in CWB. CONCLUSIONS: Academic administrators must discover salary and benefit inadequacies to give incentives based on accurate performance reports, taking into consideration their bosses’ PC infractions. Therefore, institutions must promote loyalty and belonging to reduce PCB if it is poorly broken. Managers may lessen employee cynicism by stressing organizational support and listening to and rewarding employees.

Strategic information planning and performance of SMEs: A structural equation modelling approach

BACKGROUND: The business environment is getting unstable due to which execution of decision support systems has become significant to maintain competitive advantage. Small and medium enterprises in particular confront issues, such as insufficiency of devising strategic planning, strategic decision-making, and information exchange, as well as difficulty increasing performance. Because functional strategic management and decision-making are required, strategic information systems planning is employed to accumulate information and assist decision-makers in developing and implementing the best strategy for gaining superior performance. Executives in information systems focus on technical difficulties while ignoring decisions to support strategic plans. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this article is to investigate how strategic information systems planning contributes to increased performance in SMEs. METHODS: Data was gathered through questionnaires distributed to information system executives in SMEs, primarily in Jordan. The data was collected with the help of questionnaires adopted from prior studies. For Analysis after applying the diagnostic tests, structural equation modelling has been applied to test the framework developed based on the literature. RESULTS: A structural equation modeling (SEM) was conducted, the individual loadings of the SEM items are investigated, reliability and discriminant validity is tested, and path coefficients of hypothesized relationships of the developed model are tested. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggested that managers should prioritize implementing strategic information systems planning so that they can gain superior performance with better agility in the future. This research not only enhances the current understanding of the significance of strategic information systems planning but also assists supervisors to improve the procedure.

Transformative and sustainable insights of agricultural waste-based adsorbents for water defluoridation: Biosorption dynamics, economic viability, and spent adsorbent management

With the progression of civilization, the harmony within nature has been disrupted, giving rise to various ecocidal activities that are evident in every spheres of the earth. These activities have had a profound and far-reaching impact on global health. One significant example of this is the presence of fluoride in groundwater exceeding acceptable limits, resulting in the widespread occurrence of "Fluorosis" worldwide. It is imperative to mitigate the concentration of fluoride in drinking water to meet safety standards. While various defluoridation techniques exist, they often have drawbacks. Biosorption, being a simple, affordable and eco-friendly method, has gained preference for defluoridation. However, its limited commercialization underscores the pressing need for further research in this domain. This comprehensive review article offers a thorough examination of the defluoridation potential of agro-based adsorbents, encompassing their specific chemical compositions and preparation methods. The review presents an in-depth discussion of the factors influencing fluoride biosorption and conducts a detailed exploration of adsorption isotherm and adsorption kinetic models to gain a comprehensive understanding of the nature of the adsorption process. Furthermore, it evaluates the commercial viability through an assessment of regeneration potential and a cost analysis of these agro-adsorbents, with the aim of facilitating the scalability of the defluoridation process. The elucidation of the adsorption mechanism and recommendations for overcoming challenges in large-scale implementation offer a comprehensive outlook on this eco-friendly and sustainable approach to fluoride removal. In summary, this review article equips readers with a lucid understanding of agro-adsorbents, elucidates their ideal conditions for improved performance, offers a more profound insight into the fluoride biosorption mechanism, and introduces the concept of effective spent adsorbent management.

RETRACTED: Enhancing online health consultations through fuzzy logic-integrated attribute-based encryption system

This article has been retracted. A retraction notice can be found at https://doi.org/10.3233/JIFS-219433.

Elucidating Cyathula Officinals' mechanism in osteoarthritis treatment: Network pharmacology and empirical evidence on anti-inflammatory actions

In this study, we explored the therapeutic potential of Cyathula Officinals (CNX) in Knee Osteoarthritis (KOA) treatment. Utilizing network pharmacology and in vitro experiments, we identified active ingredients, action targets and pathways in CNX. Our analysis, integrating databases like TCMSP, SwissTarget Prediction, Genecards, CTD, STRING, and DAVID, highlighted 396 action targets and 283 disease targets, pinpointing 64 intersection genes linked to KOA. The significant involvement of the MAPK and NF-κB pathways in CNX's anti-inflammatory action was validated through qPCR, which might underlie CNX's efficacy in inhibiting chondrocyte apoptosis and IL-6 expression. These findings suggest CNX's potential in KOA management, offering insights for its clinical application.

Computer vision based deep learning approach for toxic and harmful substances detection in fruits

Formaldehyde (CH₂O) is one of the significant chemicals mixed with different perishable fruits in Bangladesh. The fruits are artificially preserved for extended periods by dishonest vendors using this dangerous chemical. Such substances are complicated to detect in appearance. Hence, a reliable and robust detection technique is required. To overcome this challenge and address the issue, we introduce comprehensive deep learning-based techniques for detecting toxic substances. Four different types of fruits, both in fresh and chemically mixed conditions, are used in this experiment. We have applied diverse data augmentation techniques to enlarge the dataset. The performance of four different pre-trained deep learning models was then assessed, and a brand-new model named "DurbeenNet," created especially for this task, was presented. The primary objective was to gauge the efficacy of our proposed model compared to well-established deep learning architectures. Our assessment centered on the models' accuracy in detecting toxic substances. According to our research, GoogleNet detected toxic substances with an accuracy rate of 85.53 %, VGG-16 with an accuracy rate of 87.44 %, DenseNet with an impressive accuracy rate of 90.37 %, and ResNet50 with an accuracy rate of 91.66 %. Notably, the proposed model, DurbeenNet, outshone all other models, boasting an impressive accuracy rate of 96.71 % in detecting toxic substances among the sample fruits.

Using the health beliefs model to implement mobile puberty health education in Iranian adolescent boys: a randomized controlled trial

Introduction

Given boys' low health knowledge and their unhealthy behavior during puberty, which can cause many physical, mental, and psychological problems, it is important to prevent these complications. This study was therefore aimed to determine the efficacy of a mobile health educational intervention based on the Health Beliefs Model (HBM) on Iranian adolescent boys.

Materials and methods

This randomized controlled trial involved junior high school boys (n = 148) in Iran studying during the 2020-2021 school year. Educational content concerning healthy behaviors during puberty (e.g., the importance of bathing) was developed based on HBM and sent to the intervention group via mobile phone. HBM addresses multiple factors (e.g., perceived disease risk) that explain health behaviors. The intervention was delivered in five sessions over four weeks using real-time Internet communication and texting. The control group did not receive any intervention. One school was randomly selected from each of the four districts of the study site. The schools were then randomized into intervention and control groups. The boys were then randomly selected from each school to participate in the study. Data collected at baseline and 2-month follow-up assessments included demographic information, health knowledge (e.g., physical changes during puberty), health behaviors (e.g., bathing), and HBM constructs (e.g., self-efficacy to perform healthy behaviors). Data analysis was done using the chi-square, independent and paired t-tests, and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA).

Results

The two groups did not differ in terms of demographic characteristics. Before the intervention, the two groups were slightly different in terms of knowledge, health behavior, and HBM constructs. Following the intervention, the scores of the intervention group improved significantly (p < 0.05). After adjusting for pre-intervention knowledge, HBM, and health behavior scores, the intervention group remained superior to the control group in terms of improvement of knowledge, HBM constructs, and healthy behaviors (p < 0.05). Effect sizes ranged from medium to large (0.25-0.86).

Conclusion

Mobile phone education based on the HBM is efficacious in encouraging healthy behavior in boys during puberty. Organizations interested in encouraging healthy behaviors in boys should consider the use of such a program.

Exploring the impact of emotionalized learning experiences on the affective domain: A comprehensive analysis

The central aim of this research endeavor was to delve into the profound influence of affective learning experiences on the cognitive and psychomotor domains. Concurrently, the study sought to discern the effects of these experiences on students' academic accomplishments within the three domains. This differentiation was predicated upon the interplay between pedagogical resources and the multifaceted dimensions of cognitive, affective, and social contexts for learning. Over the course of four consecutive semesters, data were meticulously collected from a cohort of 140 undergraduates enrolled at a private-sector university. The experimental cohorts 1, 2 and 3, comprising 35, 46, and 31 students, respectively, were instructed through distinct methodologies - namely, activity learning, reflective learning, and collaborative learning. In parallel, the control group, composed of 28 students, received instruction via the discussion method. The findings eloquently established a robust and affirmative linear correlation between affective experiences and achievements within the cognitive and psychomotor domains. This correlation notably underscored the far-reaching influence of the affective domain upon its cognitive and psychomotor counterparts. Furthermore, the variable of emotional context for learning emerged as a conspicuously noteworthy determinant of students' achievements across all three domains. In contrast, the remaining independent variables - namely, pedagogical resources, cognitive learning context, and social learning context - did not exhibit a substantial contribution. However, it was observed that the amalgamation of all four independent variables yielded a statistically significant relationship with achievements within the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. This underscored the imperative nature of accounting for all pertinent factors when formulating instructional approaches that yield optimal outcomes.

The primacy of ocular perception: a narrative review on the role of gender identity in eating disorders

BACKGROUND

Phenomenological research has enriched the scientific and clinical understanding of Eating Disorders (ED), describing the significant role played by disorders of embodiment in shaping the lived experience of patients with ED. According to the phenomenological perspective, disorders of embodiment in ED are associated with feelings of alienation from one's own body, determining an excessive concern for external appearance as a form of dysfunctional coping. The purpose of the present narrative review is to address the role of gender identity as a risk factor for EDs in the light of phenomenological approaches.

METHODS

Narrative review.

RESULTS

The current study discusses the interplay between perception, gender identity, and embodiment, all posited to influence eating psychopathology. Internalized concerns for body appearance are described as potentially associated with self-objectification. Furthermore, concerns on body appearance are discussed in relation to gendered social expectations. The current review also explores how societal norms and gender stereotypes can contribute to dysfunctional self-identification with external appearances, particularly through an excessive focus on the optical dimension. The socio-cultural perspective on gender identity was considered as a further explanation of the lived experience of individuals with ED.

CONCLUSIONS

By acknowledging the interplay between these factors, clinicians and researchers can gain a deeper understanding of these disorders and develop more effective interventions for affected individuals.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level V narrative review.

Does healthy city construction facilitate green growth in China? Evidence from 279 cities

In the face of the challenge of balancing urban economic development and environmental protection, the concept of a healthy city has emerged as a promising model for sustainable urban development. This study empirically investigates the impact of healthy city construction on green growth by utilizing a difference-in-difference model estimation on a panel dataset of 279 Chinese prefecture-level cities from 2007 to 2019. The findings reveal that healthy city construction significantly contributes to green growth, particularly in pilot cities, and this effect is observed across cities of different sizes and economic bases. Additionally, we identify two channels through which healthy city construction promotes green growth: enhancing innovation capacity and enriching human resources. These findings have implications not only for Chinese cities navigating the path towards green growth but also for other developing nations striving for economic transformation and environmentally sustainable development.

E-learning enhancement through educational data mining with Covid-19 outbreak period in backdrop: A review

E-learning is fast becoming an integral part of the teaching- learning process, particularly after the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. Educational institutions across the globe are striving to enhance their e-learning instructional mechanism in accordance with the aspirations of present-day students who are widely using numerous technological tools - computers, tablets, mobiles, and Internet for educational purposes. In the wake of the evident incorporation of e-learning into the educational process, research related to the application of Educational Data Mining (EDM) techniques for enhancing e-learning systems has gained significance in recent times. The various data mining techniques applied by researchers to study hidden trends or patterns in educational data can provide valuable insights for educational institutions in terms of making the learning process adaptive to student needs. The insights can help the institutions achieve their ultimate goal of improving student academic performance in technology-assisted learning systems of the modern world. This review paper aims to comprehend EDM's role in enhancing e-learning environments with reference to commonly-used techniques, along with student performance prediction, the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on e-learning and priority e-learning focus areas in the future.

The intercultural communication competence improvement for pre-service CSL teachers: A blended learning method based on SVVR

BACKGROUND: With the growing global influence of new coronary pneumonia and an increasing number of successful education case, spherical video-based virtual reality (SVVR) has arisen as an application for effective integration with teaching and learning. OBJECTIVE: This is a mixed-methods study on SVVR-based training for pre-service CSL teachers to more effectively develop their cross-cultural communication and interaction abilities. METHODS: An experimental strategy was adopted in this work. First, the processing of VR technology for designed TVET courses, including practical training courses, had been completed; The second experiment was a group experiment of one month; Finally, the hypotheses were tested by an independent sample t-test. RESULTS: Based on experiment data of the learners, this study build a multi-modal hybrid training and recognition model and confirm hybrid approach effectively improves the intercultural communication abilities of pre-service CSL teachers. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study confirm that information technology plays an important role in pre-service CSL teacher training, and teachers should incorporate more information technology, design more hands-on interactive activities and scenarios, and take into account the individual differences of learners in the teaching process. Several policy proposals are offered to ensure that ICT is better integrated into classroom instruction.

Scientists' deficit perception of the public impedes their behavioral intentions to correct misinformation

This paper investigates the relationship between scientists' communication experience and attitudes towards misinformation and their intention to correct misinformation. Specifically, the study focuses on two correction strategies: source-based correction and relational approaches. Source-based approaches combatting misinformation prioritize sharing accurate information from trustworthy sources to encourage audiences to trust reliable information over false information. On the other hand, relational approaches give priority to developing relationships or promoting dialogue as a means of addressing misinformation. In this study, we surveyed 416 scientists from U.S. land-grant universities using a self-report questionnaire. We find that scientists' engagement in science communication activities is positively related to their intention to correct misinformation using both strategies. Moreover, the scientists' attitude towards misinformation mediates the relationship between engagement in communication activities and intention to correct misinformation. The study also finds that the deficit model perception-that is, the assumption that scientists only need to transmit scientific knowledge to an ignorant public in order to increase understanding and support for science-moderates the indirect effect of engagement in science communication activities on behavioral intention to correct misinformation using relational strategies through attitude towards misinformation. Thus, the deficit model perception is a barrier to engaging in relational strategies to correct misinformation. We suggest that addressing the deficit model perception and providing science communication training that promotes inclusive worldviews and relational approaches would increase scientists' behavioral intentions to address misinformation. The study concludes that scientists should recognize their dual positionality as scientists and members of their community and engage in respectful conversations with community members about science.

Moderating the role of social progress with greenhouse gases to determine the health vulnerability in developing countries

Human activities have compelled massive environmental degradation, which causes climate vulnerability and that has emerged as a significant health issue. The present study assesses the role of social progress with greenhouse gases to determine the health vulnerability in 77 developing countries from 2011 to 2020. The empirical results are estimated by using the panel ARDL econometric approach. The study found that greenhouse gas emission proposes a U-shaped relationship to determine health vulnerability. In this study, social progress is used as the moderator variable, which shifts the turning point of the U-shaped curve. For this purpose, the interaction term of social progress with greenhouse gases shifts the turning point to the left side of the U-shaped curve and further flattens it. Furthermore, this study explores that urbanization, export openness, and government education expenditure negatively impact health vulnerability while industrialization increases health vulnerability. The study recommends that government should pay special attention to declining greenhouse gases and rising social progress to improve health vulnerability.Graphical abstact.

Psychometric assessment of organizational readiness scale for digital innovations and antecedents of organizational readiness

BACKGROUND: This article aims to perform a psychometric assessment of the scale of organizational readiness for digital innovations in a transition economy and to examine the antecedents of organizational readiness for digital innovations. METHODOLOGY: The study employed a quantitative research method to analyze data collected from a sample of 1236 health professionals. The scale secondary confirmatory factor and linear regression analysis were employed to verify organizational readiness and test the respective hypotheses about organizational readiness for digital innovation, respectively. RESULTS/CONCLUSIONS: The research findings show that the organizational readiness scale for digital innovations is valid and reliable in transition economies. Findings show that the relationship between variables such as adaptation of human resources (AHR), cognitive readiness (COR), planning for new telehealth and e-health (PNTH), IT readiness (ITR), resource readiness (RR), partnership readiness (PR), and cultural readiness (CUR) are correlated with the innovations implementation effectiveness (IIE), and organizational readiness for digital innovation is positive statistically significant. Findings also suggest that Integration of old technologies (IoT) and organizational readiness for digital innovation is statistically significant and have negative relationship.

The moderating role of information technology governance in the relationship between board characteristics and continuity management during the Covid-19 pandemic in an emerging economy

The main aim of the current study is to investigate the relationship between governance characteristics, information technology governance, and continuity management during Covid-19 in an emerging economy. The study also examines the moderating role of information technology governance in the relationship between governance characteristics and business continuity management. The quantitative approach is used by utilising a survey questionnaire. A sample of 232 questionnaire surveys has been collected from the board of directors, top and middle management executives, external auditors, information technology experts, and some other respondents. The results were estimated using structural equation modelling. The results indicate that information technology governance has a statistically significant effect on business continuity. Board size, board independence, audit committee independence, audit committee diligence, and external audit have a statistically significant positive effect on information technology governance. Further, the results indicate that information technology governance significantly moderates the effect of board size, board independence, board diligence, audit committee independence, audit committee diligence, and external audit on business continuity. However, information technology governance does not moderate the relationship between board committees and business continuity, which indicates less board involvement in information technology governance. The current research provides insight into the role of information technology governance in business continuity management during crises. The present study provides a unique contribution as it investigates the relationship between corporate governance characteristics, information technology governance, and business continuity management during Covid-19, providing empirical evidence from an emerging country.

The rise of diarrheal illnesses in the children of Pakistan amidst COVID-19: A narrative review

Background

In Pakistan, 74 children out of 1000 lose their lives annually due to diarrheal illness. This commentary addresses the contributing factors aggravating this growing dilemma and the effect of a simultaneous rise in COVID-19 cases in a healthcare system ready to collapse, along with providing recommendations to alleviate the problems causing this spike in diarrheal cases.

Methods

This narrative review has emphasized the causes of the spike in pediatric diarrheal illnesses in Pakistan as well as recommendations offered to lessen the burden by incorporating recent literature (n = 68). Tactics to tackle COVID-19 alongside diarrheal illnesses were also included. Pakistan was chosen to be assessed due to its high burden of child and infant mortality due to preventable causes.

Results

The provision of safe drinking water, the proper use of Integrated Management of Newborn and Childhood Illnesses (IMNCI), adequate awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding, the use of correct rehydration techniques such as Oral Rehydration Therapy, and the crucial implementation of the EPI vaccination schedule can curb this increase in diarrheal cases.

Conclusion

The increased prevalence of diarrheal diseases amongst the pediatric population of Pakistan can be attributed largely due to unsanitary drinking water. Emphasis must be put in the provision of safe drinking water. During the first years of life, children can be kept safe from deadly pathogens just by adequate breastfeeding. IMNCI and EPI must also be properly implemented.

Lockdown in Chinese university dormitories: Significant increase in negative feelings and time perception distortion

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a global crisis resulting in lockdowns worldwide. Studies found that these could amplify negative affects predictive of disturbances in time perception. However, all existing studies on this topic concentrated on the general population during a lockdown at home. There was no research on university students living in dormitories. This study fills a gap in the literature by investigating the affective states and awareness of the passage of time of Chinese university students during an exceptional dormitory lockdown. Using a snowball sampling approach, this web-based study recruited 225 volunteers (136 girls, 17-27 years old) during a dormitory lockdown. The online survey consisted of questions on demographic information, affective states (the Chinese version of the depression anxiety stress scales-21 (DASS-21) on depression, anxiety, and stress), and sense of the passage of time (the translated version of the assessment of passage of time over daily, weekly and yearly periods). The researchers shared the questionnaire link via the social media application WeChat. The study applied descriptive statistics and column charts to represent students' affective states and sense of the passage of time under extreme conditions and Pearson's correlation analysis to examine the impact of affective states on their sense of time. The study's results indicate that the dormitory lockdown caused a significant increase in all depression, anxiety, and stress categories of the DASS-21, as well as a distortion of the sense of time passing. However, the direction of the distortion differed from that in previous studies. Moreover, a Pearson correlation analysis showed that none of the three negative affects could be associated with students' sense of time. The findings of this study indicate an increased vulnerability of students due to the lockdown. Their emotions were strongly affected, requiring particular interventions to preserve their mental well-being. In addition, they showed a different distortion direction of time passage. Finally, they differed in the correlations between negative affect and the sense of passage of time compared to the general population in lockdown at home. This shows a need to investigate the impact of psychological states on students' routines and quality of life in emergencies. This study's scope should be expanded by incorporating additional factors pertaining to the passage of time and by integrating cross-cultural comparisons.

Land-use and food security in energy transition: Role of food supply

Food security in a just energy transition is a growing debate about designing sustainable food secure networks worldwide. Energy transition, land-use change, and food security are crucial factors for food security and provision. The increased demand for food products and customer preferences regarding food safety provide various issues for the current agriculture food supply chain (AFSC). Along with rising sustainability concerns, strict government regulation, food security, and traceability concerns compel managers, business houses, and practitioners working in AFSC to adopt new tools, techniques, and methodologies to model current food supply chain problems. Thus, in turn, design the food logistics network for food security. Hence, this study investigates the core determinants of food security and supply in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, and Lebanon over the period of 2010–2019. In order to estimate the objectives of the study, we employ the fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) and dynamic ordinary least squares estimators (DOLS) to draw the study findings. However, the estimated results show a negative association of land use with food security and supply. Likewise, energy transition, gross domestic product, and agricultural value added (AVA) contribute to the food security supply. In contrast, urbanization's negative but insignificant contribution to the food supply in selected economies exists. Besides, another core objective of the study is to investigate the moderate role of the energy transition on the gross domestic product, agriculture sector, and land use and find the significant contribution to the food supply. However, the current study also tries forecasting for the next 10 years and employs the impulse response function (IRF) and variance decomposition analysis (VDA). Congruently, this study uses the pairwise panel causality test and finds exciting outcomes. The COVID-19 crisis has posed challenges such as energy consumption and food security issues. On behalf of the results, the current study proposes imperative policies to investigate the desired level of food supply. The findings provide valuable insights for experts, policymakers, and officials to take practical measures for energy use and food security challenges.

Intervention to Improve Menstrual Health Among Adolescent Girls Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior in Iran: A Cluster-randomized Controlled Trial

OBJECTIVES

Poor menstrual health may lead to school absenteeism and adverse health outcomes for adolescents. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of pubertal and menstrual health education on health and preventive behaviors among Iranian secondary school girls.

METHODS

A quasi-experimental study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of a health intervention program. A total of 578 students (including intervention and control participants) in 12 schools in Tehran Province, Iran were included by multistage random sampling. The program comprised seven 2-hour educational sessions. After confirming the reliability and validity of a researcher-made questionnaire, that questionnaire was used to collect the required data, and the groups were followed up with after 6 months.

RESULTS

After the educational intervention, the mean scores of menstrual health-related knowledge and constructs of the theory of planned behavior were significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group (p&lt;0.001 for all dimensions).

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this study emphasize the effectiveness of menstrual health interventions in schools. These findings should also encourage health policy-makers to take committed action to improve performance in schools.

Research on the relationship between marital commitment, sacrifice behavior and marital quality of military couples

Based on the actor-partner interdependence model, this paper studied the relationship between marital commitment, sacrifice behavior and marital quality of military couples. A convenience sample of 171 Chinese military couples from Guangdong, Jiangsu and Sichuan province was used. All participants completed the self-report questionnaires independently including the Dimension of Commitment Inventory (DCI), the Couples Sacrifice Behavior Scale (CSBS) and the Evaluation and Nurturing Relationship Issues, Communication and Happiness (ENRICH). Results showed that the scores of marital commitment and marital quality of male soldiers were significantly higher than that of their spouses. Compared to their spouses, male soldiers reported higher frequency of sacrifice behaviors and perceiving sacrifice behaviors of spouses. Furthermore, the marital commitment of military couples had significant influence on their own marital quality and frequency of perceiving each other’s sacrifice behavior Military couples’ perception of the frequency of each other’s sacrifice behavior partially mediated the effect of marital commitment on their marital quality. Male soldiers’ perception of spouse’s sacrifice behavior frequency significantly predicted the marital quality of their spouses.

An analysis of best practices to enhance higher education teaching staff digital and multimedia skills

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the teaching ways in universities, rapidly moving from face-to-face delivery models to online and distance learning. Consequently, the multimedia and digital competencies of the teaching staff were suddenly put onto the stage, resulting in the realisation that many of them were not sufficiently skilled to face this challenge due to a lack of prior training. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this explanatory research is to present and make a comparison of key training programs, deemed best practices, that address different ways to assist higher education teaching staff to acquire the multimedia competencies required to be technologically- proficient in their classes. METHODS: A desk research provides the data for a multiple case study of courses implemented in universities of five European countries, namely Spain, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Romania, and Slovenia. RESULTS: The results of the study show a total of 28 courses ranging from how to deliver online teaching to gamification, going through other topics such as photo and video editing, that enable higher education teachers to acquire digital skills. The main challenges detected for the success of these training programs are the teachers’ lack of time for training, non-positive attitudes towards technology, and lack of innovative capacity in their teaching processes. Among the positive outcomes, we can find that these universities opt for programs with courses varied in content, to cover a wider range of skills, as well as offering courses at several levels of development so that all staff may improve, from the very beginners to more advanced tools. CONCLUSION: By identifying the challenges and success factors behind the best practices hereby analysed, the lessons obtained from this research may serve as benchmarks for other universities to develop efficient multimedia training programs for university staff.

From Cultural Tourism to Social Entrepreneurship: Role of Social Value Creation for Environmental Sustainability

Cross-cultural exchanges among the locals and the tourists have been beneficial in terms of social value creation and sustainability. The present study has examined the role of cultural tourism and social entrepreneurship on social value creation and environmental sustainability. The study has drawn a sample through a non-probabilistic convenience sampling method for desired data collection, as investigators approached tourists visiting the tourism destinations. The study reports data received with the help of tourists visiting cultural heritage in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. The study has employed the PLS_SEM approach for analysis purposes to draw the results. The findings showed a significant relationship between cultural tourism, environmental sustainability, and social value creation that significantly predicts environmental sustainability. The results revealed a significant positive association between social entrepreneurship, social value creation, and environmental sustainability. Besides, results showed that social value creation mediates the relationship between cultural tourism and environmental sustainability and social entrepreneurship and environmental sustainability. The study's findings climax the importance of cross-cultural interactions that enriches the cultural understanding and gives new perspectives to the existing cultural traditions. Pursuing environmental sustainability through social value creation requires an excellent combination of the administrative and political collaborative strategy that integrates cultural tourism and social entrepreneurship in tourist destination development and aims to attain improved tourist attractions. Besides, this research identifies a significant effect of cultural tourism on environmental sustainability. However, the relationship between tourism and environmental sustainability is bidirectional. It might provide direction for further study. The findings deliver valuable insight into global cultural tourism and social entrepreneurship activities that provide tourism destinations for community development. This investigation produces a systematic and holistic research framework to help explore the influence of cultural tourism and social value creation on the environmental sustainability at tourism destinations. The generalizability of the findings supplies helpful directions for future research on environmental sustainability related to social entrepreneurship and cultural tourism that leads to social value creation.

Investigating the Effects of Capital Structure and Corporate Governance on Firm Performance: An Analysis of the Sugar Industry

The objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of capital structure and corporate governance on firm performance. To test the hypothesis of study, data was collected from annual reports of sugar sector companies listed in PSX. This study data covers from 2015 to 2020. The results of study showed that both proxies of capital structure, i.e., D/A and D/E negatively influence the company performance. Whereas two out of three proxies of corporate governance, i.e., board size and chairman/CEO duality negatively indicate association with company performance while audit committee size has a positive impact on the company performance.

Monitoring and Efficiency in Governance: A Measure for Sustainability in the Islamic Banking Industry

Corporate governance is a set of rules, regulations, procedures, processes, and practices through which an organization is controlled and directed. The present study aimed to examine the monitoring methods used in Islamic banking, including standardized measures for better performance, an individual's aptitude towards Islamic financial markets, risk propensity, and the level of efficiency of the Islamic banking industry in Pakistan and Malaysia. There is room to improve monitoring systems for Islamic banking operations and standardized measures could improve efficiency, leading to more sustainable performance. The study uses a self-developed semi-structured scale based on literature and expert interviews, after content and context validity to gain a wide range of diverse information. In Pakistan and Malaysia, individuals' perceptions are different because of differences in the banking environment and preferences. Eventually, the Islamic banking growth rate may differ in Pakistan and Malaysia. Thus, there should be regular monitoring to improve banking performance. Similarly, standardized measures for Islamic banking operations and governance performance in Pakistan and Malaysia will result in more sustainable performance. The antecedents of Islamic corporate governance could be improved to enhance banking performance, which helps individuals make decisions based on available product information. The business growth of the banking industry is based on convenient monitoring policies, standardized performance measures, and, most importantly, excellent corporate governance mechanisms. Improved monitoring measures will further enhance these business operations.

Social Media Application as a New Paradigm for Business Communication: The Role of COVID-19 Knowledge, Social Distancing, and Preventive Attitudes

Business firms and the public have encountered massive consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. This pandemic has become the most significant challenge and influenced all communities. This research study focuses on exploring the relationship between COVID-19 knowledge, social distancing, individuals' attitudes toward social media use, and practices of using social media amid the COVID-19 crisis. This study examines how attitudes toward social media use mediate the linkage between COVID-19 knowledge, social distancing, and practices for social media use. This survey uses a non-probability convenience sampling approach to collect samples and recruit willing respondents with their consent for data collection. This study recorded the feedback from 348 participants who encountered the indirect/direct effects of nationwide lockdowns, restrictions on social gatherings, and COVID-19 infection. The findings validate the proposed hypotheses for their direct effects and indicate significant β-values, t-statistics, and the p-values at p <0.001. The results validate a relationship between the COVID-19 knowledge of and social distancing practices. Similarly, the results approved a positive link between social distancing and attitudes toward social media use amid COVID-19. The findings validate the relation between social distancing and attitudes toward social media use during COVID-19 challenges (β-value = 0.22 and t-statistics = 3.078). The results show the linkage between attitudes toward social media use and practices of using social media (β-value = 0.41, and t-statistics = 7.175). Individuals' attitude toward social media use during COVID-19 mediates the connection between COVID-19 knowledge and COVID-19 practices of using social media use. The results validate the first mediation at β-value = 0.21 and t-statistic = 5.327. Similarly, the findings approve that attitudes toward social media use in the pandemic have positively mediated the relation between distancing and practices for social media use amid the crisis of COVID-19 (β-value = 0.09 and t-statistic = 2.633). The findings indicate how people have been indulged in social media to pave their business communication needs. The results provide valuable insights for the global business community. This study provides a systematic and holistic research model that helps in exploring the consequences of COVID-19. The generalizability of the findings provides valuable directions for future research related to the current pandemic.