Segmenting Visitors to Battlefield Sites: International Visitors to the Former DMZ in Vietnam

Vietnam is an emerging tourist destination with rapid development in the tourism industry over the last decade. Well-known for the Vietnam War, it is expected that battlefield sites are among the country's main attractions for international tourists. However, to date, there has been no research examining visitors to battlefield sites in Vietnam. This study aims to contribute to filling this perceived gap by examining the visitors to the former Vietnamese De-militarised Zone (DMZ). Its objectives are: (1) to identify tourist motivations for visiting the DMZ, (2) to segment the DMZ visitors based on motivations, and (3) to determine the importance of battlefield sites in tourists' decision to travel to Vietnam. International visitors to the Vinh Moc Tunnels, a site often included in the DMZ tour, were chosen as a study sample. Data in this study was collected in an intercept self-completed questionnaire survey, which resulted in a sample of 481 respondents. Statistical analysis of the data was supplemented by content analysis of qualitative findings where appropriate. The findings show that respondents visited the DMZ for a variety of motivations. Five motivations were generated from the factor analysis of 22 quantitative motivational items namely: Personal involvement, Interest in war related sites and exhibitions, Education and exploration, Location and convenience, and Novelty seeking. These delineated motivations were supported and extended by respondents' self-expressed motivations. Based on these motivations, three groups of visitors to the DMZ were identified using cluster analysis: the Battlefield Tourism Enthusiast, the Opportunist, and the Passive Tourist. These three visitors segments differed significantly in terms of socio-demographic characteristics, trip related characteristics, and especially travel decision-making. The Enthusiasts had the highest interest in visiting battlefield sites in Vietnam. The Opportunists tended to visit sites based on location and convenience, and the Passive Tourists indicated relatively low rankings for all reasons for visiting battlefield sites. This study also found that battlefield sites only played a small role in tourists' decision to visit Vietnam and that most tourists visited Vietnam for its culture, landscape and history. Several implications and recommendations arise from this study, including the need for continuing research on motivations for battlefield tourism in other countries. In addition, it is suggested that the educative function should be emphasised in developing battlefield sites as tourist attractions

Para-Social Interaction and Trust in Live-Streaming Sellers

Live streaming is one of the modern methods that allows sellers to create, transmit, or broadcast some content on the internet in real-time, and it has been used by many small individual merchants. Understanding how live streaming contributes to online consumption is becoming increasingly important in social commerce as the live-streaming industry has grown more and more popular. However, the number of studies on live streaming is still quite limited in Vietnam. Therefore, this research will look at the mechanism that enables live streaming to boost customer trust in streamers. Using PLS-SEM on a sample of 360 respondents who viewed selling live streams on social network sites in Vietnam, we discovered that other members' endorsement, value similarity, hedonic value, and utilitarian value contribute to good para-social interaction. Next, utilitarian and hedonic values, streamer product expertise, and para-social interaction all positively affect trust in the streamers. The findings could help live-streaming sellers better understand their social interactions with viewers, resulting in increased customer trust. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2023-07-03-06 Full Text: PD

STRESS AND COPING STRATEGIES OF SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN TRA CU DISTRICT, TRA VINH PROVINCE, VIETNAM

By using a cross-sectional study, this study aimed to determine the ratio of occupational stress, stress levels and the relationship between stress status and social characteristics of the sample, factors at work, as well as how secondary school teachers respond to stress in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province. The study conducted a survey to investigate 466 teachers currently teaching at 14 secondary schools in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province, from May 2020 to June 2020. Research results showed that the percentage of teachers who suffered mild stress and severe stress was 18.9% and 8.1%, respectively. The signs of stress in teachers correlated with several factors such as job demand, work control and ways of coping at work. When the average score of the assessment “job demand” or “work control” increased by one point, the rate of stress on teachers was reduced by 23% (95% CI: 0.73 – 0.81) and 12% (95% CI: 0.84 – 0.93) respectively. By contrast, the average score of “confrontation” increased by one point  leading to 3.21 times higher (95% CI: 2.61 – 3.96) possibility of causing stress. As well as the average score of "avoidance" increased by one point, the possibility of causing stress in teachers increased 3.03 times (95% CI: 2.45 – 3.74). The findings showed that mental health problems in teachers at secondary schools, in general and in Tra Cu District, Tra Vinh Province in particular, had not received sufficient attention. Therefore, the problems should be taken seriously not only by teachers school administration

Лексические средства связности в речи телеведущего в жанре интерактивной белорусскоязычной телебеседы

Материалы XII Междунар. науч. конф. студентов, магистрантов, аспирантов и молодых ученых, Гомель, 16–17 мая 2019 г

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

Segmenting Visitors to Battlefield Sites: International Visitors to the Former DMZ in Vietnam

Vietnam is an emerging tourist destination with rapid development in the tourism industry over the last decade. Well-known for the Vietnam War, it is expected that battlefield sites are among the country's main attractions for international tourists. However, to date, there has been no research examining visitors to battlefield sites in Vietnam. This study aims to contribute to filling this perceived gap by examining the visitors to the former Vietnamese De-militarised Zone (DMZ). Its objectives are: (1) to identify tourist motivations for visiting the DMZ, (2) to segment the DMZ visitors based on motivations, and (3) to determine the importance of battlefield sites in tourists' decision to travel to Vietnam. International visitors to the Vinh Moc Tunnels, a site often included in the DMZ tour, were chosen as a study sample. Data in this study was collected in an intercept self-completed questionnaire survey, which resulted in a sample of 481 respondents. Statistical analysis of the data was supplemented by content analysis of qualitative findings where appropriate. The findings show that respondents visited the DMZ for a variety of motivations. Five motivations were generated from the factor analysis of 22 quantitative motivational items namely: Personal involvement, Interest in war related sites and exhibitions, Education and exploration, Location and convenience, and Novelty seeking. These delineated motivations were supported and extended by respondents'  self-expressed motivations. Based on these motivations, three groups of visitors to the DMZ were identified using cluster analysis: the Battlefield Tourism Enthusiast, the Opportunist, and the Passive Tourist. These three visitors segments differed significantly in terms of socio-demographic characteristics, trip related characteristics, and especially travel decision-making. The Enthusiasts had the highest interest in visiting battlefield sites in Vietnam. The Opportunists tended to visit sites based on location and convenience, and the Passive Tourists indicated relatively low rankings for all reasons for visiting battlefield sites. This study also found that battlefield sites only played a small role in tourists' decision to visit Vietnam and that most tourists visited Vietnam for its culture, landscape and history. Several implications and recommendations arise from this study, including the need for continuing research on motivations for battlefield tourism in other countries. In addition, it is suggested that the educative function should be emphasised in developing battlefield sites as tourist attractions.</p

Spectrum of MECP2 mutations in Vietnamese patients with RETT syndrome

Abstract Background Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder in children characterized by a normal neurodevelopmental process in the first 6–18 months followed by a period of motor and vocal deterioration with stereotypic hand movements. Incidence of RTT is mostly due to de novo mutation in the MECP2 gene (methyl-CpG-binding protein 2). Methods The study assessed 27 female patients presented with classical RTT phenotype age range from 18 months to 48 months. Specialist carried out the clinical evaluation and diagnosis according to RTT diagnosis criteria. Blood samples from patients were then collected for genomic DNA extraction. We next performed MECP2 gene amplification and sequencing of the whole coding region to screen for mutations. Result MECP2 mutation was found in 20 patients (74%) including: 2 missense, 4 nonsense, 6 frameshift and 2 deletion mutation. The study identified 14 pathogenic mutations which we found 4 mutation, to our knowledge and extensive search, not priory reported in any mutation database or publication: c.1384-1385DelGT, c.1205insT, c.717delC and c.1132_1207del77. High percentage of C > T (70%) in CpG sites mutation was found. Conclusion Our result reveals a high percentage of C > T mutation in CpG hot spot, which is more prone to modification and more likely to be detected in RTT as a disorder is strictly due to de novo mutations. The study is the first to identify the mutation spectrum of MECP2 gene in Vietnamese patients and also an important step toward better diagnosis and care for RTT patients in Vietnam