Resolution of Family Conflicts in Fiction: A Comparative Study of TV Series from China and the United States

The main objective of this research paper is to conduct a comparative cross-cultural analysis of family conflicts in two distinct cultural contexts, as represented in television fiction from China and the United States. The author focuses on conflicts arising within families and portrayed in television series in both countries. To achieve this, a systematic and objective content analysis method is employed, examining family conflict situations presented in the narratives of these television productions. The results indicate that, for the most part, conflicts are resolved positively, reflecting the typical trend in television fiction to seek a happy ending, especially in commercial series. However, cultural variabilities are also observed in the paths each region has taken to reach these conclusions

An Application of Judgement Modeling to Examine Inter-Cultural Differences Regarding Perceptions of Business Skill Importance

With increased global interaction, cultural awareness among stakeholders is crucial, especially for companies seeking growth in the international environment. This study focuses on comparing the perceptions of business skill importance between student subjects from China/Hong Kong (CHK) and the United States (US). The results show that the six cues representing the business skills/attributes strongly influenced student perceptions of job offer likelihood and the relative importance of these cues were not equal, with Interpersonal Effectiveness (INPER), Internship Experience (INT), and Ethical Awareness (ETH) having a higher impact than Communication (COMM), Cultural Intelligence (CULT), and Critical Thinking (CRIT). The results indicated that INPER, INT, and ETH were associated with similar, substantial effects, while COMM, CULT, and CRIT exhibited smaller and comparable effects. The analysis revealed significant interactions between the country and two cues Interpersonal Effectiveness (INPER) and Ethical Awareness (ETH). Chinese students perceived INPER to be somewhat more important than U.S. students, possibly influenced by cultural dimensions such as the emphasis on interpersonal relationships in Chinese culture. Conversely, U.S. students regarded ETH as more crucial than their Chinese counterparts, aligning with findings that suggest cultural variations, particularly in power distance and collectivism, may influence ethical values. The findings enhance our understanding of the relative importance of business skills in different cultural contexts and provide insights for educational institutions and employers in preparing students for the global business environment. The study contributes to the existing literature by providing direct comparisons of student perceptions across cultures and employing a rigorous judgment modeling methodology

Musical Habits and Smartphone Addiction of College Students: Mediating Role of Self-Control

This study uses theories of habit and self-control to explore the relationship between musical habits and smartphone addiction among college students. Our findings reveal that self-control mediates this relationship, with individual differences playing a significant role. While musical listening habits, impacted by personal genre preferences, positively impact self-control, active music engagement, through playing an instrument and/or creating music, negatively affects it. We suggest using interventions to promote mindful music engagement to mitigate smartphone addiction. These insights contribute to understanding how music habits influence digital behaviors and offer practical strategies for fostering healthier smartphone use among college populations

The Value of Corporate Bond Listing

We study the impact of bond exchange listing in U.S. publicly traded corporate bond markets. We find that listed corporate bonds have lower estimated bid-ask spreads than unlisted corporate bonds. Specifically, we show that listed bonds have estimated spreads of $0.14 lower than unlisted bond spreads. We find that execution venue matters for listed bonds, and that listed bond executions on the NYSE have higher trading costs than listed bond executions off-NYSE. We show that listed bonds are more volatile than unlisted bonds. Last, we study bond trading around earnings announcements and find a slight increase (decrease) in overall (institutional) volume on earnings announcement days compared to non-announcement days

Ancient Seafarer and Maritime Early Civilization in Southeast Asia: Theoretical Debate & New Approach

Traditionally, seas and oceans have become sources of inspiration in seeking the truth from facts to dispel the worldview of those who tended to associate it with myths and superstitions. Seas and oceans are equally realms with their advantages in bridging nations, inculcating a sense of unity, mutual understanding, and cooperation as well as in generating wealth. They are considered priceless treasures, which can neither be exchanged nor modified. In the South East Asia or Nusantara historiography, the relationship between men known as seafarers  is indisputable. It is not far-fetched to suggest that the change and development in present-day Southeast Asia, from traditional kingdoms to modern nation-states are intimately rooted in and shaped by the contributions of our seafaring ancestors. By taking into consideration past maritime historiography, namely the roles and contributions of these seafaring communities, and the presence of the surrounding seas and oceans, it can be deduced that they have contributed immensely to the development of various civilizations in this region.&nbsp

Evaluating current strategies in Response to burglary at residential premises

It is in the best interest of the South African Police Services (SAPS) to assess the effectiveness of the current strategies which they are employing to respond to burglaries at residential premises in South Africa, this knowledge would assist in addressing burglaries more effectively in the future. This study aimed to contribute to this knowledge by evaluating the current strategies which the SAPS in the Newlands East policing precinct are utilizing to respond to burglaries in the study area. This was deemed necessary as residential burglary had been reported as the highest property-related crime in the study area for the five years (2015-2019) preceding the study. In ensuring that the aim of this study was achieved, the qualitative research design was used, which assisted the researcher to focus on exploring the views of the SAPS members on the current strategies they are employing to respond to burglaries. Data collection for this study was based on semi-structured interviews conducted on an individual basis with selected participants. It combined a set of pre-determined questions that enabled the interviewer to explore further particular themes and responses. The findings of this study revealed that the South African Police Service as well as the Community Policing Forum in the study area have implemented some viable strategies to combat burglary at residential premises. However, these strategies are not entirely effective due to limited manpower and limited vehicles allocated to the police station. These findings suggest that there is an urgent need for the government to intervene by increasing the SAPS budget so that more vehicles and manpower may be deployed to local police stations. This would assist the SAPS to effectively respond to burglaries at residential premises in the study area

How Smart Firms Power Global Knowledge Acquisitions Through Socialization Mechanisms: Evidence from Malaysian Foreign Subsidiaries

This concept paper extends research on knowledge transfer based on the network and resource base. It claims smart firms can accelerate their stock of strategic knowledge by employing an efficient socialization process and gaining competitive advantages. Nonetheless, exploiting the knowledge in the corporate network is not straightforward. The transition of substantial strategic resources within a business must be acquired and used efficiently. Using the socialization process thus significantly reduces the barriers to best practices or strategic knowledge transfer. This paper presents a theoretical model explaining acquiring knowledge through socialization. Nevertheless, this paper demonstrates that without socialization mechanisms, subsidiary-headquarters embeddedness could adversely affect

Analysis Of Local Government Financial Performance Based On The Method Value For Money

The purpose of this study was to determine the financial performance of the Makassar City Government based on the Value For Money (VFM) method, namely to analyze the measurement of economic ratios, efficiency and effectiveness (3E). The type of research used is quantitative with a quantitative descriptive approach, namely collecting data, compiling, interpreting, and analyzing it so as to provide conclusions about local government financial performance using Value For Money. The data used is secondary data, namely data on the financial reports of the Regional Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBD) of the Makassar City Government. The results of the indicate that the economic and efficiency ratios have met the Value For Money standard so that the budget can be more targeted and enjoyed by the community, while the effectiveness ratio has not met the Value For Money standard but there is still a need for continuous improvement in public services so that the effectiveness of government performance is achieved even better in the coming year. But the performance of Makassar City Government as a whole is good

Factors For Acceptance of Electronic Fiscal Devices by Small and Medium Enterprises in Tanzania

The study aimed to assess factors for the acceptance of Electronic Fiscal Devices by small and medium enterprises in Tanzania.  The UTAUT model without moderating factors, such as gender, age, and factors, guided this study. The constructs of perceived trust were added as a theoretical contribution to the study. The study employed the Survey strategy in data collection by administering the questionnaires. A sample of 400 respondents was drawn from the population under the study. Quantitative data were analyzed based on descriptive statistical analysis and multiple linear regression Analysis. The survey strategy was employed, and questionnaires were administered to collect data. The sample consisted of 400 respondents selected from the target population. Quantitative data was collected and analyzed using a multiple linear regression model. The study's findings revealed that performance expectancy and effort expectancy significantly acceptance of electronic Fiscal devices (EFD) among business owners in Tanzania. However, perceived trust was found to not influence acceptance of Electronic Fiscal devices (EFD) among business owners in Tanzania. These results validate the UTAUT model and highlight the significance of performance expectancy and effort expectancy in influencing the acceptance of electronic Fiscal devices (EFD) among business owners in Tanzania. Additionally, the inclusion of perceived trust as a construct in the study model, suggests that tax authorities in Tanzania should explore other determining factors beyond perceived trust to enhance acceptance of electronic Fiscal devices (EFD) among business owners in Tanzania

Analysis of Strategic Public Financial Management Reforms on Effective Service Delivery

The overall objective of the study is to analyze the influence of strategic public financial management changes on efficient service delivery, the best metric to use to assess how well the government provides services. To ensure economic growth and development by maximizing the efficient use of scarce public resources, the emerging country PFM reform its wasteful public finance PFM's reforms must prove successful in transparency, accountability, and reporting standards on the usage of public funds to deliver services. Both approaches focused on carefully addressing serious weaknesses in financial control and were demanding in their approach. Establishing effective control was the task, and improving control efficiency is second-order work. Improvements to the current free balance systems, the allocation and prompt payment of operations to spending agencies, the focus on monthly salaries, revenue collection monitoring verification analysis and reporting, budget control, and accounts, reporting, are some of the Public Financial Management reforms that have been put into place. The sequencing, acquisition, and disbursement of funds are all subject to stringent manual controls in public finance. The Central Payment System procurement bill and cash budget disbursement are the focus of the South Sudan PFM Reform Activities, which are information technology-driven and install new, protected, discipline and procedure-driven IFMIS information technology techniques. This study used a sample size of 47 respondents for the Ministry of Finance and Planning due to the small and easily accessible population. This study employed a questionnaire with a Likert scale to collect data. Frequency analysis and descriptive statistics were employed in the study to analyze the data acquired. The analysis was conducted with the aid of the social science statistical program SPSS, and graphs and tables were used to display the findings. Yet, the results revealed that strategic public financial management improvements and accounting methods had little impact on how well the general public was treated. The results also demonstrated that budgeting, stakeholder participation, and regulatory regulations had a favorable impact on service delivery. To prevent going over budget, government institutions should first develop plans and budgets with a high level of public involvement and ownership. The management of the institution should use technology, such as IFMIS, to improve the efficiency, transparency, and accountability of revenue collecting.&nbsp