An examination of CSR decoupling in Pakistan : a research journey through tight and loosely coupled environments : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, School of Management, Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand

The literature on CSR has been debated among organisational scholars not only for its benefit to society and the environment but also its positive influence on business and organisations. Research suggests that strong government, markets and civil society are also necessary conditions for businesses to behave in a socially responsible way. However, due to its focus on developed economies limited contextual knowledge has emerged, especially that from developing countries. Within this latter context there is a lack of understanding of how businesses use reporting to create an impression of social responsibility while masking their actual performance, suspected to be the result of a weak institutional environment. By drawing on (neo)-institutional theory this research addresses this theoretical gap, demonstrating that CSR policies and practices are shaped by their embeddedness in the prevailing institutional environment. More specifically, this research explores questions related to CSR reporting, practice, and the decoupling between CSR rhetoric and actual performance in Pakistan. The research design comprised a multi-methodological approach using data quadrangulation. First, quantitative content analysis of 29 listed companies was conducted, drawing longitudinal data from publicly listed annual reports (2001, 2006, 2011 & 2017 – five-yearly intervals) to understand the extent of CSR reporting in Pakistan. Second, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 respondents comprising of CSR/sustainability managers, national regulators, and members of CSR promoting institutions in the country. Third, the originality of reports was examined using TurnitinTM and TinEyeTM. Finally, a discourse analysis of text and related images in reports was conducted to describe, interpret and explain contextualised meanings of language used. The results show that CSR, as perceived by many stakeholders actually has limited understanding and currently few benefits in Pakistan. The drivers identified for CSR policies and practices were found to be significantly different from that studied in the developed world. Additionally, unique instances of widespread decoupling are highlighted in the form of the lack of originality in texts, and the use of digitally manipulated images in CSR reports, thereby, suggesting that such behaviour is deliberate. The research makes important theoretical and methodological contributions to the nexus of business and society in a developing country, especially one suffering from a weak institutional environment

The use of natural gas as fuel for motorcycles

Utilization of motorcycle in Malaysia is really synonym especially for lower income group. Statistic for motor vehicles in Malaysia shown that nearly five million units or over the half are motorcycles. These are mostly small capacity, two or four stroke engine motorcycles. The use of low quality fuel to operate motorcycles causes a serious pollutant especially in densely populated areas. Besides, crude oil reserve in Malaysia is expected to finish within 19 years. Natural gas is now acknowledged by the world as being a mainstream alternative fuel. It has a high octane rating that is general indication of the ability of the fuel to burn more efficient and improving engine performance. Malaysia has massive, under exploited natural gas reserve. As such a study has been conducted by a group of researchers from Gas Technology Centre (GASTEG) to diversify the usage of natural gas especially as a fuel for internal combustion engine. The product of this research is a set of natural gas conversion kits and the first prototype of natural gas motorcycle. The exhaust emissions from natural gas motorcycle give complete combustion, which decrease 99.6% of carbon monoxide and 72.5% of unburned hydrocarbon at a speed of 70km/hr. However, the lower heat content of natural gas and the lower burning velocity as compared to gasoline reduces the engine maximum power for about 15% at high engine speed without any modification to the original engine. These parameters can be used as a guidance to the motorcycle industry how to utilise natural gas as a fuel, a new and a leading technology for the world that propelling Malaysia for the next millennium with clean city

Issues of Access in Public and Private Higher Education Institutions in Islamabad Pakistan

The study examined the issues of access in public and private higher education institutions in Islamabad, Pakistan. The policies and institutions currently in place to deal with access related issues are not effective, therefore, not providing students with the support systems to help them succeed at the institutions of higher learning. The study analyzed student perspectives on access, examined access related systems in place at public and private institutions, and kind of students that have access to higher education. The study also analyzed the growth of higher education institutions and their impact on access related issues particularly in last eight years. Continuous planning, support and development needed to provide higher education is discussed. In addition, the research discussed opportunities and challenges experienced by students before entering college, processes involved entrance at college and after arriving at college. Moreover, similarities and dissimilarities between public and private institutions are also discussed. The study makes suggestions to improve access related systems to help students be successful and the need and ways how can they be further developed and strengthened is also discussed. The hope is that this research will contribute to well in-formed policy making that takes into account the complexities of the forces that shape higher education and the development of Pakistan

Consideration of simple approaches for structural health monitoring of structures in developing countries - An overview

Structural health monitoring (SHM) is an advanced tool that revolutionizes the capability of a structure to act as a responsive system – detecting changes and responding with performance analysis. But, for developing countries, its need is undermined due to its costly deployment. However, contrary to the costly belief, its use is direly needed in densely populated developing countries. Therefore, a simple and cheaper technique (despite lesser precision and accuracy) can help in the early detection of damages in structures. Unfortunately, SHM implementation has been inadequate in developing countries, consequently, limited literature is available to assess. Therefore, the main goal of this literature review is to identify and analyze various SHM approaches and then propose a simple yet effective approach for achieving the basic amenities of SHM. By analyzing previous highly reputable journals, it was deduced that vibration-based approaches are the most cost-effective and simplistic to implement, which have resurged recently due to the increased use of computational tools that minimize extraneous data and provide efficient noise removal. The use of combination techniques in SHM can be cost-effective and accessible for developing nations, providing solutions for infrastructure sustainability

A Multi-Source Diary Study on The Job Resourcefulness, Job Satisfaction, and Task Performance: Will Perceive Organizational Support Moderate

Purpose: This multilevel diary study examined the association between day-level job resourcefulness and day-level task performance of employees of tour and travel. Based on the job demands and resources (JD-R) model, we tested the mediating effect of day-level job satisfaction between job resourcefulness and task performance with the moderating effect of perceived organizational support. Methodology: We collected data for five consecutive days with the help of structured questionnaires. Employees (n = 180) rated their general perceived organizational support, daily job resourcefulness, and daily job satisfaction, whereas their immediate supervisors (n = 18) rated their daily task performance. It was a two-level study with days nested in individuals (no. of observations=900). Findings: Multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) results show a positive association between job resourcefulness and supervisor-rated task performance with the partial mediation of job satisfaction at the day level, while the cross-level interaction effect of the perceived organizational support was non-significant. Our hypothesized framework was never tested, which is a unique contribution to job resourcefulness literature and, in this way, for tourism-related entrepreneurs. Conclusion: SMEs are highly dependent on their employees for competitiveness and performance but at the same time face resource-constrained problems. We argue that the employees' job resourcefulness might help achieve work-related goals such as task performance through enhanced job satisfaction daily, where organizational support does not provide the necessary job resources

Preparation and Evaluation of Olive Apple Blended Leather

The aim of the study was to evaluate a suitable combination of olive and apple pulp for the preparation of olive apple blended leather, stored at ambient temperature. The treatments were T0, T1, T2 and T3. The samples were wrapped in aluminum foil and then packed in polyethylene plastic bags and evaluation was carried out for a total period of 150 days. Physiochemically analysis; acidity and moisture and sensory characteristics; color, texture, taste and overall acceptability (using Larmond Scale) were evaluated at 30 days interval. A significant decrease was recorded in moisture (from 13.60% to 11.53%), color (from7.20 to 4.60), taste (from 7.53 to 5.40), texture (from 7.23 to 5.13) and overall acceptability (from 7.33 to 4.85). A significant increase was recorded in acidity (from 0.67% to 0.84%). Among all the treatments T3 was found most acceptable both physiochemically and organoleptically

Al-fikr al-Hdāthi: Muḥammad Shaḥrur wa Taqsimuhu li Ayāt al-Qurʾān al-Karim fi Kitābhi "al-Kitāb wa al-Qurʾān" Namudhjan

Many writers who appeared in our time undertook the study of the texts of the Quran and Sunnah and named it as a “modernist reading”. They claimed that it is in the way to defend Islam and to rescue it from the narrow corner in which Muslims have placed it. They count themselves as the saviours of Islamic thought by rescuing it from pedestrians of the European civilization and traditional Islamic thought, when in fact they had demolished the foundations of the religion and the verses of the book of God. Among these writers is Muhammad Shahrour, as he divided the verses of the Quran into three types and denied mericulous nature of the Quran under one of these types. The research sheds light on the idea of modernity and criticises the division of the Quranic verses by Shahrour and shows its defects

Influence of commercial formulation on the sorption and leaching behaviour of propyzamide in soil

Experiments compared sorption and leaching behaviour for the herbicide propyzamide when applied to two soils either as technical material or in the commercial formulation Kerb® Flo. Sorption was investigated in batch systems as well as using a centrifugation technique to investigate changes in pesticide concentration in soil pore water over incubation periods of up to 28 days. Studies with small soil columns compared leaching of technical and formulated pesticide for irrigation events (6 pore volumes) 1, 7, 14, 21 and 28 days after treatment. There were no differences in sorption of technical and formulated propyzamide when measured by batch systems. Sorption of technical material was significantly greater than that of formulated pesticide in sandy loam (p<0.05), but not in sandy silt loam when measured by centrifugation of soil incubated at field capacity. Partition coefficients measured by batch and centrifugation methods were similar after 1 day and those measured by centrifugation increased by factors of 5.3 to 7.5 over the next 4 weeks. The mass of propyzamide leached from soil columns ranged between 1.1±0.33% and 14.4±3.2% of the applied amount. For all time intervals and in both soils, the mass of propyzamide leached was significantly greater (two-sided t-tests, p<0.001) for the formulated product than for the technical material. Leached losses decreased consistently with time in the sandy loam soil (losses after 28 days were 14-17% of those after 1 day), but with less consistency in the sandy silt loam. There was a highly significant effect of formulation on the leaching of propyzamide through soil (two-way ANOVA, p<0.001) as well as highly significant effects of time and soil type (p<0.001). Results are consistent with modelling studies where leaching from commercial products in the field could only be simulated by reducing sorption coefficients relative to those measured with technical material in the laboratory

Regulating Drug Release Behavior and Kinetics from Matrix Tablets Based on Fine Particle-Sized Ethyl Cellulose Ether Derivatives: An In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation

The design and fabrication of sustained/controlled release dosage forms, employing new excipients capable of extending/controlling the release of drugs from the dosage forms over prolonged periods, has worked well in achieving optimally enhanced therapeutic levels of the drugs. In this sense, the objective of this study was to investigate the suitability of selected cellulose ether derivatives for use in direct compression (DC) and as efficient drug release controlling agents. Controlled release matrix tablets of ciprofloxacin were prepared at different drug-to-polymer (D : P) ratios by direct compression using a fine particle sized ethylcellulose ether derivative (ETHOCEL Standard Premium 7FP) as rate controlling polymer. The tablets obtained were evaluated for various physico-chemical characteristics and in-vitro drug release studies were conducted in phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) using PharmaTest dissolution apparatus at constant temperature of 37°C ± 0.1. Similarity factor f2 was employed to the release profiles of test formulations and were compared with marketed ciprofloxacin conventional tablets. Drug release mechanism and the kinetics involved were investigated by fitting the release profile data to various kinetic models. It was found that with increasing the proportion of ethylcellulose ether derivative in the matrix, the drug release was significantly extended up to 24 hours. The tablets exhibited zero order or nearly zero order drug transport mechanism. In vivo drug release performance of the developed controlled release tablets and reference conventional tablets containing ciprofloxacin were determined in rabbit serum according to randomized two-way crossover study design using High Performance Liquid Chromatography. Several bioavailability parameters of both the test tablets and conventional tablets including Cmax⁡, Tmax⁡ and AUC0-t were compared which showed an optimized Cmax⁡ and Tmax⁡ (P < 0.05). A good correlation was obtained between in vitro drug release and in vivo drug absorption with correlation value (R2 = 0.934). Relative bioavailability was found to be 93%. Reproducibility of manufacturing process and accelerated stability of the developed tablets were performed in stability chamber at 40 ± 2°C and 75 ± 5% relative humidity for a period of 6 months and were found to be stable throughout the stability period