bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
TECNOLOGIAS, CURRÍCULO, SOLIDARIEDADE: O FUTURO DA EDUCAÇÃO PÓS PANDEMIA
Authors: Gonçalves Mori Katia Regina , Franco Monica Gardelli
Published: December 2021

O isolamento e o distanciamento social necessários ao enfrentamento da pandemia causada pelo SARS_COV-19 causaram um impacto importante nas atividades que dependem fortemente das relações sociais. Tais impactos sobre o funcionamento da sociedade se complexificaram nos espaços escolares, em especial os sistemas públicos, que carecem de recursos e condições para manter uma rotina educacional que garanta a aprendizagem e o desenvolvimento integral dos alunos. As tecnologias, seus aplicativos e plataformas se tornaram o principal meio de superar as exigências relacionadas ao isolamento e distanciamento. No entanto, o retorno da rotina escolar nos coloca diante de imensos desafios: o abandono escolar e as defasagens de aprendizagens decorrentes da descontinuidade do processo e do programa escolar e a implementação de um currículo. Este artigo pretende provocar uma reflexão sobre o futuro da educação e a importância de um currículo voltado para a apropriação crítica das tecnologias e para o desenvolvimento da consciência solidária como elementos fundamentais para o futuro pós-pandemia.
RECUPERAÇÃO DE PETRÓLEO: POTENCIALIDADES DA INJEÇÃO DE POLIACRILAMIDAS
Authors: Santana Jeferson Santos , Bonvino Rafael Machado , Rodrigues Vinicius Santos , Gomes Clauveston De Mendonça , Sarmento Richarlison Nascimento , Cardoso Elisangela Silvana
Published: December 2021

Atualmente o número novas descobertas envolvendo reservatórios vêm caindo, tornando-se essencial a aplicação dos métodos de recuperação avançado (EOR  Enhanced Oil Recovery). A escolha da técnica de recuperação é importante devido às diversas características que os reservatórios podem possuir ao longo do tempo de produção, impactando em um melhor aproveitamento. Por este motivo este trabalho tem como objetivo, através de revisão bibliográfica, avaliar a eficiência da injeção de polímeros em EOR focando na adição da Poliacrilamida [PAM]. A injeção dos polímeros em processos EOR podem ocasionar mudanças na viscosidade, permeabilidade, concentração e retenção dos fluidos melhorando a recuperação do mesmo. A aplicação de PAM possui de 5% a 30% de fator de recuperação, maximizando a a produção de um reservatório, a qual, expande-se com a aplicação de reticuladores aumentando a viscosidade e diminuindo a taxa de permeabilidade para que menos água seja produzida no reservatório
DE QUEM É O VERDE URBANO? UMA ANÁLISE GEOTECNOLÓGICA DA INIQUIDADE ARBÓREA DO MUNICÍPIO DE SÃO CARLOS, SP
Authors: Roque Guerrero João Vitor , Tonelli Caiche Daniel , Gomes Morato Rúbia , Kawakubo Fernando Shinji , Verola Mataveli Guilherme Augusto
Published: December 2021

As áreas arbóreas prestam serviços ecossistêmicos essenciais aos seres humanos, principalmente em ambientes urbanos como forma de resiliência da natureza perante a intervenções antrópicas de grande impacto. Entretanto, o acesso a esse recurso nem sempre é igualitário dentre todas as camadas da sociedade, gerando iniquidades arbóreas ao longo dos municípios. Nesse sentido, o objetivo deste estudo foi utilizar técnicas de sensoriamento remoto, geoprocessamento e análise de dados geográficos para analisar a iniquidade arbórea do município de São Carlos, SP. Os resultados demonstraram que o perímetro urbano de São Carlos contém 11% de cobertura arbórea que, entretanto, ainda não é acessível a todos os cidadãos, principalmente aquelas áreas que estão segregadas pelos portões de condomínios fechados de alto padrão e àquelas preservadas pelas universidades locais. Ainda assim, foram identificadas áreas de remanescentes florestais em áreas periurbanas que prestam serviços ecossistêmicos essenciais em áreas públicas, que merecem atenção para que possam ser utilizadas como serviços culturais aos cidadãos locais.
Gürültülü ortam çalışanlarında iş yaşamı ve genel yaşam kalitesinin ilişkisi
Authors: KARTAL ÖZCAN Ecem , DİNÇER D’ALESSANDRO Hilal , ÖZBAL BATUK Merve , SENNAROĞLU Gonca
Published: December 2021

Quality of work life and its link to quality of life by noise-exposed workers Objective: It was aimed to evaluate both the quality of work-life and quality of life of factory workers working in noisy environments by using the quality of work-life scale and the WHOQOL-BREF (TR) scale and to examine the correlation of the two scales. The secondary aim of our study is to draw attention to the negative impact of noise-induced hearing loss on quality of life and the necessity of measures to protect individual workers. Material and Method: Forty participants aged between 18-45 with and without noise-induced hearing loss (20 participants) were included in the study. Pure tone audiometry tests were performed on the participants. Then, they were asked to answer the WHOQOL-BREF (TR) and Quality of Work Life Scale items. Results: A statistically significant difference was found between the years of work, quality of life, and quality of work-life scores between participants with and without hearing loss. Moderate to strong correlations were observed between the scales assessing the quality of life and work-life. Conclusion: Occupational noise is an important risk factor for hearing loss in workers. Considering that the quality of life of workers exposed to noise is adversely affected, it is necessary to determine the noise exposure, evaluate the negative psychological effects of noise and reduce exposure to noise if necessary. Keywords: Occupational noise, noise exposure, industrial noise, hearing loss, quality of life, quality of work-life
İşitme cihazı kullanıcısı bebeklerin görsel pekiştirmeli konuşmayı ayırt etme yöntemi ile değerlendirilmesi: Olgu serisi
Authors: AKKAPLAN Selvet , ÖZBAL BATUK Merve , SENNAROĞLU Gonca
Published: December 2021

Evaluation of babies with hearing aids using visual reinforced ınfant speech discrimination method: A case series Speech perception measurements are an important part of the audiology test battery. It is important to investigate hearing loss in the early period and to evaluate the auditory pathway in terms of speech perception for appropriate amplification. Due to the level of language development in infants, it is not possible to objectively evaluate speech perception skills with the speech test battery used in adults. It is necessary to use a test battery that gives objective results for the measurement of speech perception in infants. Visual Reinforcement Infant Speech Discrimination (VRISD) method is the most commonly used test technique to evaluate speech discrimination skills in infants. The aim of this study is to evaluate the speech discrimination skills of 3 babies aged 6-18 months, who are hearing aid users, with the VRISD test method. In the VRISD test protocol used in this study, test stimuli were created by matching /a/ with /i/ and /ba/ with /da/ speech stimuli. These stimulus pairs are arranged as one target sound and the other background sound, and they are presented at 70 dB via loudspeaker by creating a repeating sound sequence. Animated video that attracts the attention of the baby was used as visual reinforcement. Speech discrimination skills of 3 babies with bilateral hearing aids were evaluated with the VRISD test, and the results of the cases are presented. As a result of the study, speech discrimination skills of babies with hearing aids will be evaluated with the VRISD test method. These results contribute to habilitation and amplification programming. Keywords: Hearing aid, speech perception, pediatric audiology
D VİTAMİNİNİN MATERNAL VE FETAL SAĞLIK ÜZERİNE ETKİSİ: FETAL PROGRAMLAMA, GENETİK VE EPİGENETİK MEKANİZMALAR
Authors: KÜÇÜKCANKURTARAN Sevtap , CAFEROĞLU Zeynep
Published: December 2021

Gebelikte D vitamini homeostazını etkileyen birçok faktör vardır. Özellikle gebeliğin ikinci ve son trimesterinde fetüsün kemik gelişimine bağlı olarak D vitamini gereksinimi artmaktadır. Son yıllarda D vitamininin kemik gelişimi dışındaki etkilerinin ortaya çıkması ve fetal programlamada etkili olması nedeniyle, D vitamini güncel bir konu haline gelmiştir. D vitamini prekonsepsiyonel dönemden itibaren hem maternal hem de fetal hastalıkların patogenezinde rol oynamaktadır. Düşük prenatal ve neonatal 25(OH)D seviyeleri yetişkin dönemde şizofreni, tip 1 diyabet, solunum yolu hastalıkları, otoimmün hastalıklar, multiple skleroz ve kanser gibi hastalıklarla ilişkilendirilmektedir. Azalmış veya artmış maternal 25(OH)D konsantrasyonu annede preeklemsi ve gestasyonel diyabet gibi hastalıklara; fetüste ise başlıca intrauterin gelişim bozukluklarına, genetik ve epigenetik değişikliklere neden olmaktadır. Antiinflamatuar yanıtta kalsiyum metabolizmasında ve glukoz homeostazında görev alması ile bilinen D vitamininin, epigenetik mekanizma ile ilişkisi promotor metilasyonuyla açıklanmaktadır. Ayrıca yüksek serum 25(OH)D konsantrasyonu bazı genlerde (CYP24A1, CYP27B1, CYP2R1) mutasyona neden olarak genetik hastalıklarla ilişkilendirilmektedir. Bu doğrultuda maternal, plasental ve fetal D vitamini düzeylerinin optimal seviyede seyretmesi, olası hastalıkları önlemede etkin bir mekanizma olabilir. Bu derlemede, D vitaminin söz konusu prekonsepsiyonel, gebelik ve doğum sonrası dönemdeki etkilerine ve önemine dikkat çekmek istenilmiştir.
Structural Analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant Proteins
Authors: Yang Qiangzhen , Syed Ali Alamdar Shah , Fahira Aamir , Shi Yongyong
Published: December 2021

The spread of the latest SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron is particularly concerning because of the large number of mutations present in its genome and lack of knowledge about how these mutations would affect the current SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and treatments. Here, by performing phylogenetic analysis using the Omicron spike (S) protein sequence, we found that the Omicron S protein presented the longest evolutionary distance in relation to the other SARS-CoV-2 variants. We predicted the structures of S, M, and N proteins of the Omicron variant using AlphaFold2 and investigated how the mutations have affected the S protein and its parts, S1 NTD and RBD, in detail. We found many amino acids on RBD were mutated, which may influence the interactions between the RBD and ACE2, while also showing the S309 antibody could still be capable of neutralizing Omicron RBD. The Omicron S1 NTD structures display significant differences from the original strain, which could lead to reduced recognition by antibodies resulting in potential immune escape and decreased effectiveness of the existing vaccines. However, this study of the Omicron variant was mainly limited to structural predictions, and these findings should be explored and verified by subsequent experiments. This study provided basic data of the Omicron protein structures that lay the groundwork for future studies related to the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant.
Las escuelas segregadas son el mensaje
Authors: Bello Manuel
Published: December 2021

La segregación escolar por niveles socioeconómicos (NSE) opera agrupando a los estudiantes de familias similares en pobreza o en riqueza. En el Perú la segregación escolar por NSE ha crecido mucho en las últimas décadas, impulsada por dinámicas de mercado en la educación. Diversos estudios han encontrado que el nivel de pobreza de los estudiantes de cada escuela se asocia de manera relevante con la calidad de las condiciones escolares y con los resultados en evaluaciones de logros de aprendizaje. En este artículo se revisa y discute como el carácter segregado y la ubicación de cada escuela en la pirámide estratificada por NSE que es el sistema escolar peruano, opera como un mensaje implícito y tiene efectos en las familias, en los estudiantes y en la sociedad. La composición social es uno de los criterios que aplican las familias para seleccionar la escuela para sus hijos, junto con algunas características relacionadas con las expectativas del grupo social al que pertenecen o aspiran a pertenecer. Para los estudiantes, el carácter segregado de su escuela es parte del currículo oculto, que propicia determinadas representaciones, actitudes y valores, diferentes para cada NSE; tiende a ocultar o naturalizar las desigualdades, justificar los privilegios, reducir las expectativas de los jóvenes más pobres, además de reducir la cohesión social, aumentar la intolerancia y la discriminación de los diferentes. Se recomienda profundizar la investigación sobre los efectos de la vivencia de la segregación por NSE, que ahora prevalece sobre las intenciones democratizadoras del currículo escolar oficial.
A Study of the Rituals and Beliefs Performed in the Lives of Sangam Women
Authors: C Rajalakshmi
Published: December 2021

Palanthamil literatures are literatures which are the biographical record of Palanthamil. The Sangam literature is the best of them all. In the Sangam literature, it is the introductory songs rather than the exodus that convey the biological values ​​of our Adithamizhan. Intro songs are all about the event of the leader, the leader's love. In the inner life the leader separates the leader for the sake of war or for the sake of material. The leader should wait for the leader to arrive. Therefore, in the Sangam literature, the woman has been the only one to take care of the family, especially the children, from home to be the male interpreter. However, women were respected during the Sangam period. Education, excelled in questions. Forgotten women lived with heroism as their honor. The importance of women diminished after the society in which they lived during the Sangam period was transformed into a landed society. The man sought to subdue the woman by his physical strength and by the woman's inability to do certain things. Thus, feminist rituals are the result of the male race attempting to oppress the female in the name of learning. In Sangam literature, female rituals are subjected to various rituals of the society from birth to death. Some of these rituals are performed to keep women safe. The mind and body of women matures through these rituals. However, due to certain rituals, women suffer a lot. The study reveals that women who have lost their husbands and helpless women are treated with contempt by this society because they marry men who do not have personality traits.
Determinants of Privatization: Evidence from Pakistan
Authors: MUHAMMAD TAHIR KHAN
Published: December 2021

Privatization is something that can take the ownership factor from state and give it to other and since form 1990’s it has turned out to be a most important for both the developing countries as well as for the developed countries. However, in this study we identify the determinants that can lead the government of Pakistan towards privatization by relying on the data that has been taken from privatization commission of Pakistan (PCP) and state bank of Pakistan database between the years 1991 to 2014. Our results identify that the decision for privatization has been initiated by external factor i.e international financing agencies and after that it has been shaped by internal factors that is basically due to economic condition.
Role of Capital Structure in Firm’s Value: A Case of Pakistani Firms
Authors: MUHAMMAD ASIF  , MUHAMMAD USMAN HAMEED  , ZAINULLAH KHALIL
Published: December 2021

The Most important and critical decision for a finance manager is adequate Capital structure. Modigliani and Miller had started the debate of capital structure in creating firm’s value. The research was conducted to find out the impact of capital structure and the value of the firm in Pakistan. The research was conducted on 71 non-financial firms of KSE 100 index. Using fix effect regression in the study it was found that there is significant effect of Capital structure on firm’s value but the use of debt financing had negative relationship with the firm’s value.
Examining Determinants of Absenteeism among Blue Collar Employees in Petroleum Sector of Pakistan
Authors: ZEESHAN NOOR SIDDIQUI  , KAMRAN NOOR SIDDIQUI  , AYESHA NOOR SIDDIQUI
Published: December 2021

The study focuses on the relationship between job satisfaction, job performance, and social / family compulsion and absenteeism in blue collar employees working in petroleum sector of Pakistan.150 blue collar employees from refineries and oil marketing companies were included in the survey and responded the questionnaire, encompassing all variables. Results prove hypothesis 1 whereas, hypothesis 2 could not be proven. Results will help Pakistani organization to reduce absence rate in their blue collar employees by understanding the social and family compulsions.
Impact of Terrorism on KSE 100: Evidence from Karachi
Authors: SAMI UR REHMAN  , QAZI SIKANDAR HAYAT  , GHAYYUR QADIR
Published: December 2021

Terrorism is a critical issue throughout the world. In Pakistan, terrorism is one of the major obstacle in the growth of economy. The purpose of the study is to analyze the impact of terrorism in Karachi on the performance of KSE 100. Overall 27 big terrorist activities are considered in four years, ranging from 2011 to 2014. The performance of Karachi stock exchange is measured from the return of KSE 100 index. Moreover, the performance of KSE 100 index against terrorism in Karachi are analyzed through event study methodology and t-test. The result of the study shows that terrorism in Karachi has no significant impact on Karachi stock exchange 100 in all estimation windows. There is a little impact of some pre-event days on post-event days. But overall there is no significant result of terrorism in Karachi on KSE 100. The result highlights that the intensity of terrorist events is an important contributor in signifying the impact of terrorist events on KSE 100 index.
Drivers of Celebrity Endorsement and Its Effect on Consumer’s Buying Behavior: A Case Study of FMCGs in Peshawar
Authors: SHAHZAD KHAN  , SAQIB SHAHZAD  , NAUMAN HABIB  , GHAYYUR QADIR
Published: December 2021

Because of a business environment of cut-throat competition, companies must find ways to strike for survival and sustain a competitive position in the market. Celebrity endorsement is one of the strategies which companies frequently used to promote the brand thus enhance sales and ultimately increase market share. There are a number of researches which investigated the effects of celerity endorsement on consumers’ buying behavior. However, traits such as credibility, expertise attractiveness and compatibility of celebrity endorsers have not been investigated. Therefore, this research is to investigate effects of celebrity endorsement on consumers’ buying behavior. In order to obtain a more reliable result, a quantitative research is carried out to investigate the topic. In general it was found that which trait of a celebrity is most significant in influencing consumer buying behavior. For instance the credibility, expertise, attractiveness and compatibility of the endorser were found to be the most important traits of the celebrity that can influence consumer buying behavior. Generally the effect of celebrity endorsement is found to have little direct impact on consumers’ purchase decision, yet it is still an effective strategy because it is suggested as a good way to grab consumers’ attention. This research also suggests some criteria for selecting the celebrity endorsers with the right attributes for their products. Therefore companies are recommended to conduct sufficient research in order to generate the best effect of a celebrity endorsement.
The Effect of Total Quality Management on Service Quality in the Context of Services Based Small and Medium Enterprises of Pakistan
Authors: DR. SAIMA BATOOL  , YASIR KHAN  , MUHAMMAD TAHIR
Published: December 2021

Pakistani economy is making a transition from strong manufacturing base to the services and in this scenario, service based small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are playing a major role. In current study, we focus on total quality management (TQM) which has the potential to enable the service based SMEs to improve their competitiveness in current highly dynamic environment. The objective of the study was to assess the current level of TQM implementation and its effects on the service quality in the context of service based SMEs of Pakistan. A survey was designed to collect primary data and the measures for TQM and service quality were adapted from previous sources. The study utilized quantitative approach and through stratified random sampling, data is collected from 135 participants belonged to the management of SMEs located in three cities of Pakistan. Our findings indicate that the dimensions of TQM including top management commitment, customer focus, people management, supplier quality management, continuous improvement, and the process management are only moderately followed by the Pakistani service based SMEs. In terms of effects, three out of six TQM dimensions are having positive and significant effects on the service quality and together these TQM dimensions explain up to 60.7% change in the dependent variable of service quality. Based on the findings, we recommend that service based SMEs should give more attention to the TQM implementation
The Impact of Investors Overconfidence on Trading Activities and Stock Returns in Pakistan Stock Exchange
Authors: MUHAMMAD TAHIR KHAN  , GHAYYUR QADIR  , SHAH RAZA KHAN  , ABDUL LATIF
Published: December 2021

This study investigates the hypothesis of investor overconfidence that impact stock activity and stock return, using vector auto regressive model. Data observed consist of Monthly and daily returns from PSX 100 index. The results of the study shows that there are specific months in which the variables respond to each other or they are some actions that appears after some interval or else there is no significant relationship of current monthly return to past months volume, volume with volatility in stock returns as it is not increased with increase in volume. And there is no relationship of current monthly volume with previous market returns, Investor overconfidence has negative impact on trading activity as it keep them high and exaggerated level as it is not the real value of the securities and it may harm the investors. The results further marked that immediate past month return has an impact on current trading activity that is denoted from volume of trade.
Factors Affecting Commercial Banks Profitability in Pakistan
Authors: DR. MUMTAZ HUSSAIN SHAH  , SAJJAD KHAN
Published: December 2021

Due to significant contribution of commercial banks in the economic progress of Pakistan, this research has been carried out to analyse the possible effect of different relevant factors on the profitability of commercial banks in the country. Profitability is measured by return on assets (ROA). Using pooled regression analysis on yearly data collected from the annual reports for a panel of 14 commercial banks for eight years from 2007 to 2014, it was found that equity to assets, debts to assets, deposits to assets, bank size and assets management have a significant influence on the commercial banks profitability in Pakistan.
Commodity Market Prices and Its Impact on Exchange Rate of Pakistan
Authors: ASAD SARFARAZ KHAN  , DR. SHAKIL IQBAL AWAN  , DR. SYED ABDUL MOIZ
Published: December 2021

Pakistan’s economy and exchange rate has experienced many ups and downs in the last ten years. The exchange rate has depreciated from Rs.59/$ to Rs.104/$. This is causing a massive dent to Pakistan economy. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, Pakistan is consistently facing a current account deficit for the last several years and a depreciated currency is one of the main reasons for the deficit. This study analyzes the relationship between the commodity market prices and exchange rates in Pakistan both in long and in short run. This research utilized the monthly data for the past ten years from Jan-2006 to Dec-2015. The results are quite surprising because in Pakistan, none of the prices of the commodities (i-e oil and gold) have short term relationship with the exchange rate of Pakistan. This study also does not find any long-term relationship among the variables.
Investigating the Relationship between Intellectual Capital and Financial Performance in Cement Sector firms in Pakistan
Authors: ALAM REHMAN  , ADIL KHAN  , FARMAN ULLAH
Published: December 2021

The study examines the relationship between intellectual capital performance and financialperformance of cement sector firms listed on Pakistan stock exchange. The study has been conducted using human capital, structural capital and relational capital as the determinants of intellectual capital and return on assets as the proxy of financial performance. The study applies random sampling technique for 20 cement sector firms for the period 2007 to 2016. The study uses correlation and simple OLS to test the hypothesis. The results reveal that intellectual capital as a composite and all its determinants i.e. human capital, structural capital and relational capital have positive significant impact on the financial performance of cement sector firms. The study has practical as well as theoretical implications. The results are expected to help policy makers to rehash their policies by encompassing the approaches that facilitate the intellectual capital of their firms. The study will also help researchers in strengthening their level of understanding of these relationships. Replication of the study may help to validate the hypothesized model and their consequent application in the organizations that share somewhat similar organizational structures.
Reagent Effect: Counterproductive Behavior and Psychological Capital
Authors: ASIA ZAMAN  , MEHNAZ  , DR. SAREER BADSHAH
Published: December 2021

Counter Productive Work Behaviour (CWB) is vibrant phenomena existing in contemporary workplace setting which has to be encountered. This study explores the Psychological Capital (PC) interference towards controlling CWB. Study structure was based on quantitative and cross sectional research. Questionnaires were distributed amid 240 workers of SNGPL KPK, Pakistan. Structure Equation Modeling (SEM) besides regression plus correlation techniques was applied for data analysis. The outcomes of study explore that there occurs solid affirmative correlation amid PC interference in the direction of controlling CWB. The forthcoming research zone is also integrated in this study.
The Impact of Interest Rate Volatility on Stock Returns Volatility: Empirical Evidence from Pakistan Stock Exchange
Authors: ARIF HUSSAIN  , AHMAD BILAL HUSSAIN  , SHAHID ALI
Published: December 2021

Apprehension pertaining to Stock return volatility always has been producing the appreciable significance in the various current research works and it has been lucrative to many researchers for forecasting stock market volatility. This study is about the forecasting of stock returns volatility on the basis of interest rate volatility in the well established Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). The stock returns are calculated on the basis of KSE 100 index and interest rate volatility is calculated on the basis of monthly treasury bills rate during a period of 1994 to 2016. Various volatility models like Auto Regressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (ARCH) and Generalized Auto Regressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (GARCH) were used to predict stock return volatility on the basis of interest rate volatility in Pakistan. ARCH model is one of the well known methods to forecast the error term in the data and which will certain our forecast regarding stock prices. In the Pakistan Stock Exchange the ARCH (1, 1) has been statistically significantly proved. The GARCH (1, 1) model is also used to estimate the stock volatility. This model shows the short run volatility affect the lagged stock returns and is contributing to the overall volatility. The sum of α and β is less than 1 so the short run volatility is positively related to the overall stock volatility. The GARCH (1, 1) model has outperformed the other volatility models in the case of Pakistan Stock Exchange.
Evaluating Post Merger Pakistan Stock Exchanges’ Market Efficiency
Authors: MUHAMMAD AMIN KHAN  , IHTESHAM KHAN  , DR. ADNAN AHMAD
Published: December 2021

The development and the formation of financial markets and institutions is indeed very instrumental for causing the robust economic growth. Although, as a fact the security prices are readily fluctuated by the market information known as market efficiency, making it a riskier investment. Subsequently, the investors accept the undiversifiable risk (Systematic risk) and cancel out the diversifiable risk (Unsystematic risk) through active diversified Portfolio Management, such a portfolio of securities, selected through market information reflects market efficiency. Thus, this study investigates the post- merger market efficiency for the Pakistan stock exchange as the three stock exchanges of the country has recently merged into Pakistan stock exchange. The analysis is based on event methodology, covering the pre-post-merger accumulated daily abnormal returns for a duration of 90 days (three months). Thus, the study proofs with respect to the accumulated daily abnormal returns, that the merger has increased the market efficiency. Consequently, the study supports the extant literature on merger and related market efficiency and provides another empirical evidence with respect to a developing country such as Pakistan. Rationally, the recent increase in the market efficiency will assure the supply of correct market information; consequently, boosting confidence of all investors and the regulators have a great opportunity to pursue continuous improvement in the present regulatory polices to promote healthy investment environment and increase the national revenue as well.
Impact of Job Design on Employees Psychological Work Reactions (Job Satisfaction &Turnover Intentions, Organizational Commitment & Organizational Citizenship Behavior): Empirical Evidence from the Universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Authors: ADIL KHAN
Published: December 2021

This study explores the effect of job design on employees psychological work reactions i.e. (job satisfaction and commitment) on employee’s organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) of public sector universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. The objective of the study was to measure the effect of job characteristics on OCB, satisfaction and commitment and regression analysis predicts that a job characteristic was found as a significant predictor of OCB, job satisfaction and job commitment in public sector employee. Result of the study revealed that job characteristic is a significant predictor of OCB, job commitment and job satisfaction. Recommendation and suggestions are also included in the study.
Profitability and Working Capital Management Nexus: Evidence from Food & Personal Care Products Sector Firms Listed on Pakistan Stock Exchange
Authors: DR. MUMTAZ HUSSAIN SHAH  , FAYYAZ KHAN
Published: December 2021

Working capital management (WCM) usually have an essential role to play in a firm’s overall performance, especially those of manufacturing sector. The key aim of the current research work is to find the empirical association amid profitability and working capital management of the Food & Personal Care Product sector Pakistani firms. Eight companies are selected randomly as a sample from the firms listed on Pakistan Stock Exchange. Secondary data for six years, that is, 2010 - 2016 is gathered from the financial reports of these companies and evaluated through Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis techniques, using STATA software. The results prove that Return on Assets (ROA) is negatively correlated with Average Collection Period (ACP) and positively correlated with Inventory Turnover in Days (ITID), Average Payment Period (APP), Current Ratio (CR) and Sales Growth (SG). All the relationships are significant except ITID and SG ones.
Impact of Dividend Policy on Shareholders’ Wealth: An Empirical Analysis of Listed Insurance Companies in Pakistan
Authors: MUHAMMAD SHABEER KHAN  , DR. SAID SHAH  , SYEDA UROOJ BABER
Published: December 2021

This study aims to investigate the impact of dividend policy on shareholders’ wealth using secondary data of 17 listed insurance companies in Pakistan employing non-probability convenience sampling for 2012-2015. Shareholders’ wealth is used as dependent variable measured by earning per share whereas dividend policy as independent variable measured by three ratios namely dividend per share, Retention ratio and dividend payout ratio. Analysis techniques include descriptive statistics, regression analysis and correlation analysis. The results show that all the independent variables impact dependent variable positively with dividend per share and retention ratio significant at 5%. Moreover study reveals that the theory of dividend irrelevancy failed in the case of insurance industry of Pakistan.
The Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Poverty Reduction
Authors: DR. FAHAD SULTAN  , JUNAID AHMAD  , ASAD SARFARAZ KHAN  , RAZA UR RAHMAN
Published: December 2021

The key aim of the study was to investigate the role of social entrepreneurship in poverty alleviation in district Mardan. The researcher studied previous investigations, associated with this study earlier while adopting the study method. To find out the specific objectives of the study, the researcher followed quantitative method, based on the past study of Chebbi (2016), and data was collected through questionnaire. The questionnaire was a developed questionnaire from the study of Ali and Ali, (2013).The questionnaire was distributed to 200 social entrepreneurs providing their services in different local and international NGOs, social welfare foundations operating in district Mardan. In response, a total of 150 questionnaires were received, the response rate was 75%. It is a good response rate. In which 68.7% were male while the percentage of female respondents were 31.3. In which the percentage of age group under 20 were 2%, from 20-30 their percentage were 64.7, while the percentage of the respondents with 31-40 age group were 16.7, and the age group from 41 to 50 their percentage were 12.7. While the age of the respondents above 50 were of 4.0%.In the total 150 of the respondents, there were 55.3% single respondents while 43.7% were married respondents. Similarly, the respondents having no education or illiterate, their percentage were 0.0, while the respondents having highest school level education, there were of 4.7%, and the respondents having highest college level education there percentage were 6.7, while the respondents having highest level of education were university graduate, their percentage were 87.7%. Likewise, the obtained data were entered and analysed by SPSS.
Monetary Policy, Fiscal Policy and Capital Structure
Authors: ZIA UR REHMAN  , ASAD KHAN  , SHER ALI KHAN  , SHAH RAZA KHAN
Published: December 2021

Instruments of monetary and fiscal policy are beyond the control of the management but they do influence the short-term as well as long-term decision making of the firm. Empirical studies with respect to their effect on financing decisions of the firm are somewhat under researched particularly in the context of developing countries. The aim of the study was to analyse the effect of these instruments on the financing decisions of the non-financial firms listed on PSX for the period 2008-2015. Fixed effect model was used to analyse the effect of instruments of monetary policy and fiscal policy on the financing decisions of firms. Based on sample of 338 firms, the findings of the study revealed that instruments of monetary policy and fiscal policy do influence the financing decisions of the firm. M2, tax revenue and government debt has a significant effect on the debt ratio of listed firms whereas real interest rate is insignificantly related. Moreover, the relationship between real interest rate, M2 and tax revenue and debt ratio is negative whereas in case of government debt it is positive.
Investor Sentiment in Stock Market: A Case of Pakistan Super League in Pakistan Stock Exchange
Authors: FURQAN ULLAH  , MUHAMMAD ASIF  , MUHAMMAD ZAHID  , FAIZA MEHREEN
Published: December 2021

This study investigates whether sentiments play any role while investors make financial decisions which results in the stock returns. The paper analyzes the major two sports events (2016-2017) of Pakistan Super League (PSL). The study utilizes the stock market data from Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)-100 index for the period of two financial years starting from June 2015 to July 2017. PSL T20 data is collected from the official PSL website. The empirical results of the studyshow that PSL sports events are highly statistically significant and imply that the events trigger investor sentiments (optimistic and pessimistic behaviors) in the PSX.When the whole PSL games were played on United Arab Emirates (UAE) grounds in 2016, later on, which badly affected the investor moods and resulted in a negative abnormal return in PSX-100 index. While in case of PSL event in 2017, in which only final match of the event was held in Lahore, Pakistan and resulted in a positive abnormal return in PSX-100 index. The study provides implications for different authorities such as Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), PSX and other development authorities in order to promote such activities for the overall economic and social benefits. While founding no previous studies concerning the subject in the Pakistani context, the Scholar selected the issue to conduct a research and make a considerable contribution for investors in Pakistan with respect to PSL events and its impact on PSX. Keywords: Investor Sentiments, Stock returns, behavioral finance, Pakistan Super League, Pakistan Stock Exchange
Effect of Institutional and Insider Ownership on Dividend Policy: Evidence from Pakistan
Authors: RIFFAT SHAHEEN  , DR. SABEEH ULLAH
Published: December 2021

This research study aimed to examine the effect of institutional and insider ownership on dividend policy of a firm. Ownership structure play a vital role in explaining firm dividend policy. To investigate the effect of institutional and insider ownership on dividend policy, a random sample of 50 non-financial firms was selected for the period of 2009 to 2013. The study based on panel data so for the selection of appropriate panel data model among pooled OLS, Random effect and Fixed effect, Breusch Pagan LM test, Chow test, and Hausman test were used and random effect model was found best fitted. Results indicated that institutional ownership has positive relationship while insider ownership has negative relationship with dividend payout. Further, inclusion of institutional ownership along with insider ownership has increased the explanatory power of the model by 5.56% which is the incremental effect of the institutional ownership. Moreover, free cash flows and leverage have negative while firm size and market to book value have positive relationship with dividend payout.
Telecommunication Infrastructure Development and FDI into Asian Developing Nations
Authors: DR. MUMTAZ HUSSAIN SHAH  , FAISAL KHAN
Published: December 2021

This study strives to evaluate the effects of infrastructure availability and development on foreign direct investment (FDI) in host developing nations.Employing fixed effects panel estimation technique, panel data for 23 Asian developing countries, from 1990-2009 is used with heteroscedasticity corrected standard errors. The results reveal a strong favourable impact of telecom infrastructure (measured by mobile subscriptions) in drawing inward FDI. Therefore, it is concluded that a country with improved infrastructure in general and telecom infrastructure in particular is likely to pull in more FDI. Other variables such as market size, economic development, and currency valuation (measured by exchange rate) appear important in captivating multinational investors, as they exhibit significant coefficients. On the contrary, high-inflation significantly deters inward FDI.
The Impact of Behavioural Biases on Stock Volatility: Evidence From Pakistan Stock Exchange
Authors: IRFAN ULLAH  , DR. MUHAMMAD ZAHID  , ZAIN ULLAH
Published: December 2021

The main purpose of the current study is to investigate the impact of behavioural biases such as confidence, optimism, and pessimism on stock volatility evidence from Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). Prospect theory and overconfidence theory formed the foundation of this study. The methodology composed of positivist philosophical stance, deductive approach and quantitative methods with secondary data. Data analysis involved the use of descriptive statistics, correlation and regression. The study consists ofa 10-years analysis from June 2008 to June 2018 and includes daily trading volumes KSE-100 index in PSX. Results reveal that behavioral biases such as confidence have a positive impact on stock volatility. Similarly, optimism bias has also a positive impact on stock volatility. While pessimism bias has recorded a negative impact on stock volatility. Therefore, it is concluded that behavioural biases have an impact on stock volatility. The current study has a contribution to the body of knowledge on the ground that it attempts to change the traditional notion of society who believes in the efficient market hypothesis. The study has implications for different stakeholders of stock markets.
Predicting the Perception of SMEs on the Selection of Bank Decision in Pakistan: A Partial Least Square (PLS) Model
Authors: Zafar Iqbal  , Dr. Saima Batool  , Dr. Muhammad Khalique  , Dr. Mushtaq A. Sajid
Published: December 2021

The main objective of this study was to examine the main factors which may have influence on the bank selection decision in Pakistan. Quality of service, quality of service provider, interaction dimensions and relationship image recommendations experience were employed as independent variables while the bank selection decision SMEs was used as a dependent variable. The data were gathered through structured questionnaire survey. A total of 300 questionnaires were distributed to the targeted respondents while 223 were involved in the study. The respondents were selected through purposive sampling technique. Four research hypotheses were established. Smart Partial Least Square (PLS) 3 was used to test the proposed research hypotheses. The empirical findings of this study showed that the four research hypotheses were supported. This is the first study in Pakistan to address this issue.
Leadership And Decision Making In The Project Management Life Cycle: A Knowledge Management Perspective
Authors: Fazaila Shad  , Dr. Mehnaz Gul  , Dr. Muhammad Zahid
Published: December 2021

All organisations are adopting the project-based approach to carry out operational and business activities. There are many challenges of knowledge management during the project management life cycle because every project has unique characteristics with a changing workforce. Project management involves the leadership and critical decision making which requires the internal and external experts and knowledge. The study is conducted to find out how knowledge management affects leadership and critical decision making in the project management life cycle. The objective of the study is to explore the role of knowledge management in project management and to evaluate the problems of knowledge management in the project management life cycle. In the project management life cycle, much information is generated and experienced. Thus, the study finds out that if the knowledge is not accumulated and recorded correctly, it will be lost and cannot use in future projects. Leadership and critical decision making are affected by knowledge management. Thus, to ensure the best leadership and better decision making there must be proper knowledge management.
The Impact of Macroeconomic Factors on Banks Liquidity Risk: Evidence From Pakistan
Authors: Muhammad Yar Khan  , Javaria Liaqat  , Tahira Awan  , Wajid Khan
Published: December 2021

The aim of the study is to identify the factors that influence liquidity risks of the banks by considering the panel of 18 top listed banks in Pakistan during a period of 2010 -2016. The study employed panel random effect regression model to absorb time-invariant shocks, which gives robust inferences. The results of liquidity risk confirmed that the country’s economic growth and price inflation further escalates liquidly risk while, FDI inflows reduces liquidity risks in Pakistani’s banks, thus it is concluded that bank’s liquidity risks required easy monetary policy to advancing loans and charging low interest rate, which ultimately will increase ROA, and ROE, while it would helpful to decrease high risk of bank’s liquidly in a given country.
Are push and pull factors for entrepreneurship and brain drain same? Perception of students and professionals
Authors: Dr. Uzma Munawar  , Dr. Fariha Gul  , Dr. Shaista Noreen
Published: December 2021

Brain drain has gained attention since past few decades, this phenomenon is very apparent in Pakistan as number of people applying for immigration is increasing day by day. Although there are many measures that can be taken to reduce the process, however the best one in current local scenario is developing a safe and sound entrepreneurial niche. This study aims to provide causes of brain drain and preventive measures for this. Secondary aim of the study is to identify opinion of respondents about significance for using self-employment opportunities as solution for slowing the process of brain drain. Third this study will try to examine the relationship between factors causing brain drain and barriers preventing self-employment as career choice. Sample of the study was divided into two strata. First group consisted of 25 respondents from five high-notch professions including medicine and engineering. Second part of the sample was 20 students from doctoral (PhD), masters, medicine and engineering classes. A self developed instrumentwas be used to collect data. It is a semi-structured interview schedule for taking responses of first two segments of sample. Data was analyzed by using thematic analysis to achieve objectives of the study. It is evident that factors that are causing brain drain are almost same as those serving as barrier for adopting entrepreneurship as career choice. The officials can control brain drain by establishing entrepreneurial niche.
Impact of Cash Holding on Firm Performance with Moderating Role of Corporate Governance
Authors: Naveed Anjum  , Dr. Faisal Khan  , Shoib Hassan  , Dr. Muhammad Arif
Published: December 2021

The main aim of this research is to analyze the association between cashholding and firm performance with moderating role of corporate governance. For the purpose of analysis, secondary data of 145 non-financial firms listed at Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) is taken from 2006-2017. The dynamic Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) is applied to cater the problem of unobserved heterogeneity. The results of this study suggest that cash holding has a significant impact on firm performance. Moreover, corporate governance significantly moderates the relationship between cash holding and firm performance.
Economic Effects of Covid-19 on Tourism Sector in Pakistan
Authors: Dr. Asma Akmal  , Bisma Laeeque  , Bakhtawar Mehar
Published: December 2021

This research is done to ascertain the economic condition of the people of Pakistan duringCOVID-19 and the condition of tourism in the country. Despite of fact that travel bans were madealong with school closure, however these hurdles did not affected tourism in Pakistan. The company’s balance sheet depicts more profit in comparison to previous years but that it is because of high fare and arrangement charges. Not due to increase in number of tourists. Purposive sampling strategy was used and the data was collected from pirvate travelling companies working in Pakistan. It is depicted by the results that the overall profit secured by the companies increased during corona (Mean profit before corona= 89666; Mean profit during corona = 102915). Furthermore the hypothesis was accepted that covid-19 positively effected tourism industry of Pakistan [p<.005; t=1.51 (df=23) SD= 43005.98].