A review of action research - An approach for change and development in management study

This paper introduces action research as an approach for change and development in management research based on its outstanding characteristics and discusses the application notion of action research by critically reviewing its strengths and limitations as well as representing an example case to demonstrate how to employ it in practical setting. Finally, the author draws attention to bias avoidance in action research by introducing three effective practices to mitigate against sources of bias

Domestication of global higher education policies : legitimating narratives in advocating student mobility in Finland and Vietnam

The spread of global higher education policies has recently drawn much attention from scholars in social sciences. Much research conducted on this topic refers to the ritual enactment of world culture as the account for the diffusion of global higher education policies, that is research based on the world society theory perspective. However, the existing research fails to explain how such global policy models become domesticated as part of national higher education policies. It also leaves the important role of local actors with little attention. The intention of this thesis is to fulfill these limitations by approaching the topic from a different angle and that is from the domestication theory perspective. The thesis is organized as a case study, which examines how a global policy idea became part of national higher education policy two countries Finland and Vietnam through the review and analysis of government documents. The central research questions posed in this thesis are: How is student mobility advocated in Finnish and Vietnamese higher education policy debates? What are the different justifications used when actors promote student mobility as a domestic higher education policy objective? Are there differences in the justifications used? If so, what is the explanation for these differences? These questions are answered by applying the notion of discourse by Michel Foucault and the theory of rhetoric by Chaïm Perelman to identify different justifications used in governmental documents to advocate a global policy idea in the two local contexts. These justifications are referred as “legitimating narratives” to illustrate stories or imaginaries which are used by local actors to justify a proposed policy model. The findings of the thesis indicate various justifications or legitimating narratives which Finnish and Vietnamese policymakers have used to advocate student mobility as part of their national higher education policies. Further the findings indicate there are not only commonalities but also differences in the justifications identified. It is also seen from the study that whilst the global education policy idea of student mobility does not originate from either of the two countries in question, it disperses through the nations with justifications directly linked to national interests and gradually develops into a domestic matter. In addition, the findings reveal that local policymakers within both countries, Finland and Vietnam, make use of justifications which are widely shared and accepted within their local societies to advocate student mobility as part of their national higher education policy. This strengthens the domestication theory viewpoint that countries do not construct themselves as imitators. Rather, local policy actors in the domestication process build their justifications for the adoption of global policy models so that they are not be seen to merely imitate what other countries have done. In general, the study has contributed to current discussion about the adoption of global higher education policies and complemented the domestication theory in terms of national higher education policy making. However, future research is recommended with focus on global policies in other fields and different sources of data to discover more comprehensive findings, which will further complement the domestication theory

STUDENTS’ OPINIONS ON VOCATIONAL GUIDANCE: A CASE STUDY

The problem of employment is always a crucial problem and is the concern of most parents and school students. The survey on the perception of 40 students about vocational guidance was carried out in Nguyen Viet Dung High School in Can Tho City, Vietnam. Results show that students are very concerned about their future career; students have a proper perception of vocational guidance and recognize well factors which affect their career choice.  Article visualizations

Purification and characterization of novel fibrinolytic proteases as potential antithrombotic agents from earthworm Perionyx excavatus

Six protease fractions, namely FI, FII, FIII-1, FIII-2, FIII-3 and FIV, were isolated from Perionyx excavatus earthworm biomass by acetone precipitation, followed by serial chromatography using anion exchange, hydrophobic interaction and size exclusion chromatography. All fractions exhibited strong hydrolytic activity towards casein. The activity of six fractions towards fibrin, determined by fibrin plate assay, ranged from 44 to 831 plasmin unit.mg-1 and ranked as FIII-3 > FIII-2 > FI > FIII-1 > FIV > FII. Casein degradation was optimal at pH 7 and 11, and at 45-60°C. All fractions were considerably stable at high temperature and wide pH range. They were completely inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF). The molecular weights (MW) and isoelectric points (pI) determined by 2D-electrophoresis were 27.5-34.5 kDa, and 4.3-5.2, respectively. Tandem mass spectrometry (MS) analysis was used to deduce the amino acid sequences of some peptides from FIII-1 and FIII-2. The sequences shared 16.9% and 13.2% similarity, respectively, with the fibrinolytic enzymes from two related earthworm species, Lumbricus rubellus and Eisenia fetida. The P. excavatus proteases were classified as serine proteases. They could perform rapid hydrolysis on both coagulated fibrous fibrin and soluble fibrinogen monomers without the presence of activators such as tPA or urokinase

Bringing social and cultural considerations into environmental management for vulnerable coastal communities: Responses to environmental change in Xuan Thuy National Park, Nam Dinh Province, Vietnam

This paper elaborates the importance of considering social and cultural factors within management responses to environmental change in coastal areas. The case study taken is Xuan Thuy National Park in Nam Dinh Province, Vietnam. This is a marginalised coastal area where rising sea levels, increasing storm surges and saltwater intrusion place pressure on coastal ecosystems, yet where communities continue to rely on these same ecosystems for agriculture- and aquaculture-related livelihoods. We interview stakeholders in Xuan Thuy National Park, connecting these with a narrative review of existing research into social and environmental change in the park to understand research gaps and challenges for vulnerable coastal areas like the Nam Dinh coast. Based on our findings, we suggest that whilst the effects of a changing environment on physical health and economic activity are increasingly well understood, effects on wellbeing and social relations can be even more immediate and profound in daily living. In turn, we argue environmental management has a crucial role to play not only for ecosystem-based adaptation, but also in sustaining wellbeing and allowing culturally meaningful practices to continue – especially in coastal regions where changes can be even more intense and immediate. However, we caution that whilst techno-scientific solutions grounded in environmental management do have significant potential in reducing impacts of extreme events and slower-onset environmental changes, they must not divert attention away from structural issues that can make some people or areas more vulnerable in the first instance

Studying Magnetic Fields and Dust in M17 Using Polarized Thermal Dust Emission Observed by SOFIA/HAWC

We report on the highest spatial resolution measurement to date of magnetic fields (B-fields) in M17 using thermal dust polarization measurements taken by SOFIA/HAWC+ centered at a wavelength of 154 μm. Using the Davis–Chandrasekhar–Fermi method, in which the polarization angle dispersion calculated using the structure function technique is the quantity directly observed by SOFIA/HAWC+, we found the presence of strong B-fields of 980 ± 230 and 1665 ± 885 μG in the lower-density M17-N and higher-density M17-S regions, respectively. The B-field morphology in M17-N possibly mimics the fields in gravitationally collapsing molecular cores, while in M17-S the fields run perpendicular to the density structure. M17-S also displays a pillar feature and an asymmetric large-scale hourglass-shaped field. We use the mean B-field strengths to determine Alfvénic Mach numbers for both regions, finding that B-fields dominate over turbulence. We calculate the mass-to-flux ratio, λ, finding λ = 0.07 for M17-N and 0.28 for M17-S. These subcritical λ values are consistent with the lack of massive stars formed in M17. To study dust physics, we analyze the relationship between dust polarization fraction, p, emission intensity, I, gas column density, N(H2), polarization angle dispersion function, S, and dust temperature, T d. p decreases with intensity as I −α with α = 0.51. p tends to first increase with T d, but then decreases at higher T d. The latter feature, seen in M17-N at high T d when N(H2) and S decrease, is evidence of the radiative torque disruption effect

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

Domestication of global higher education policies : legitimating narratives in advocating student mobility in Finland and Vietnam

The spread of global higher education policies has recently drawn much attention from scholars in social sciences. Much research conducted on this topic refers to the ritual enactment of world culture as the account for the diffusion of global higher education policies, that is research based on the world society theory perspective. However, the existing research fails to explain how such global policy models become domesticated as part of national higher education policies. It also leaves the important role of local actors with little attention. The intention of this thesis is to fulfill these limitations by approaching the topic from a different angle and that is from the domestication theory perspective. The thesis is organized as a case study, which examines how a global policy idea became part of national higher education policy two countries Finland and Vietnam through the review and analysis of government documents. The central research questions posed in this thesis are: How is student mobility advocated in Finnish and Vietnamese higher education policy debates? What are the different justifications used when actors promote student mobility as a domestic higher education policy objective? Are there differences in the justifications used? If so, what is the explanation for these differences? These questions are answered by applying the notion of discourse by Michel Foucault and the theory of rhetoric by Chaïm Perelman to identify different justifications used in governmental documents to advocate a global policy idea in the two local contexts. These justifications are referred as “legitimating narratives” to illustrate stories or imaginaries which are used by local actors to justify a proposed policy model. The findings of the thesis indicate various justifications or legitimating narratives which Finnish and Vietnamese policymakers have used to advocate student mobility as part of their national higher education policies. Further the findings indicate there are not only commonalities but also differences in the justifications identified. It is also seen from the study that whilst the global education policy idea of student mobility does not originate from either of the two countries in question, it disperses through the nations with justifications directly linked to national interests and gradually develops into a domestic matter. In addition, the findings reveal that local policymakers within both countries, Finland and Vietnam, make use of justifications which are widely shared and accepted within their local societies to advocate student mobility as part of their national higher education policy. This strengthens the domestication theory viewpoint that countries do not construct themselves as imitators. Rather, local policy actors in the domestication process build their justifications for the adoption of global policy models so that they are not be seen to merely imitate what other countries have done. In general, the study has contributed to current discussion about the adoption of global higher education policies and complemented the domestication theory in terms of national higher education policy making. However, future research is recommended with focus on global policies in other fields and different sources of data to discover more comprehensive findings, which will further complement the domestication theory

Variation in Growth and Yield of Sacha Inchi (Plukenetia Volubilis L.) under Different Ecological Regions in Vietnam

The sacha inchi seeds (Plukenetia Volubilis L.), collected from different ecological regions of Vietnam (the Northern Mountainous region, the North Central region, and Central Highlands Area), were sown in the spring crop (March 2020) in Gia Lam district, Hanoi city, Vietnam. The variety S18 was copyrighted by Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developmentof Vietnam in 2019 as a special medicinal plant variety. During the period of 26 months after planting, the agronomical parameters, growth and development characteristics (leaf form, number of inflorescences per branches, number of female flowers per inflorescences, etc.), pests and diseases, yields and yield components (number of seeds per fruit, seed weight, seed grain, etc.), ratio of kernel per seed and ratio of oil per seed were evaluated. The evaluation results show that the collected sacha inchi lines have a time from sowing to flowering and fruiting of 108–125 days, a fruiting to ripening of 123–125 days, and a time from sowing to harvesting the first batch of 244–250 days. The annual harvest is carried out at two main times: May–June and November–January. The actual yield of the first two periods is high (2.66–3.07 tons per hectare), and the highest yield is collected in the Northern Mountainous area is 3.07 tons per hectare (in Tuyen Quang province), while and 3.01 tons per hectare are collected in the North Central region (in Thanh Hoa province). In the nursery, root rot caused 2.1–5.3% deaths and green wilt caused 3.1–4.8% deaths of seedlings. In the planting garden, fruit borers, stem borers, cavity worms and red spiders were discovered, causing more serious damage than other types (from 5 to over 50%). The results of evaluation of growth, development, yield components and yield showed that the sacha inchi lines collected in the North Central region (in Thanh Hoa province) and the Northern Mountainous region (in Tuyen Quang province) is the best