Industrial development, agricultural growth, urbanization and environmental Kuznets curve in Pakistan

The debate of environmental issues and their analysis is of vital interest for economic policies. Institutions are engaged in identifying and estimating the extent of environmental impact of determinants controllable via policy measures. Annual data from the on Carbon Dioxide emission, economic growth, consumption of energy, openness for foreign trade, urbanization, industrial growth and agriculture growth on Pakistan is used for 1971 to 2007. Augmented Vector Autoregression technique and cointegration analysis is implemented to test Granger causality. Gross domestic product significantly Granger causes emission of Carbon Dioxide and energy consumption. On the other hand emissions of CO2 affect economic growth, agriculture and industrial growth in the long run. It is also evident that energy consumption unidirectional Granger causes emission of Carbon Dioxide. Industrialization and urbanization bidirectional Granger causes each other. The results indicate the more careful industrial and energy policies to reduce emissions and control global warming.Pakistan, Carbon Dioxide emission, Environment, Energy Consumption, Economic Growth, Foreign Trade

Benefits of Lumbar Facet Joint Block For Persistent Backache After Lumbar Discectomy An Analysis of 58 Patients

Object:  The author evaluated the effectiveness of using facet joint block with local anesthetic agents and steroid medication for the treatment of persistent low-back pain in a medium-sized series of patients who underwent lower lumbar disc surgery. Methods:  Over a period of 2 years, the author performed 130 facet joint injections in 58 patients with persistent low-back pain after lumbar discectomies at L3/4, L4/5 and L5/S1 levels in Combined Military Hospital Rawal-pindi. All of the 21 women and 37 men (mean age 44 years, range 23 to 68) entered into the trial had low back pain for over one month localised to one side with tenderness and local muscle spasm over the facet joints. All had a negative straight-leg-raising test but 17 had slight pain radiating into the posterior thigh on the same side where surgery was performed. The main parameter for the success or failure of this treatment was the relief of the pain. For the first injection mainly a diagnostic procedure the author used a local anesthetic (1 ml bupivacaine 1%). In cases of good response, Depomedral 80 mg was injected in a second session to achieve a longer-lasting effect. Long-lasting relief of the low-back pain was reported by 43 patients (74%) during a mean follow-up period of 10 months. Nine patients (15.2%) noticed a general improvement in their pain. Six patients (10%), however, experienced no improvement of pain at all. There were no cases of infection or hematoma. Conclusions:  Lumbar facet joint block is a minimally invasive procedure to treat facet joint pain in post discec-tomy period. The procedure also seems to be useful for distinguishing between facet joint pain from postoperative pain due to inappropriate neural decompression after lumbar surgery

Lumbar Discectomy Using Lagenbech Retractor, A Cost Effective Minimally Invasive Technique. Study of 520 Cases

Objective:  Conventional disc surgeries though have good results, may result in subsequent damage due to trauma to erector spinae, ligaments and bones.  Materials & Methods:  A total of 520 patients who underwent lumbar discectomy were studied. 388 were male and 132 were female. The mean age in this study was 35 years. Only patients with symptomatic posterolateral disc prolapse were included in the study. All patients were investigated with MRI or CT scan of lumbar spine. Only ten patients were investigated with myelography. The followup period was up to two years. Oswestry Disability Index of low backpain disability was also used as specific parameter in some of the cases. Results:  Overall success rate for pain relief was 93.8%. Only 13% had occasional pain on exertion. The hospital stay was < 2 days. The most common complication was recurrent sciatica (5.7%), and these patients reported within six to eight months postoperatively. Other complications encountered were operation on wrong level (1.34%) discitis (0.76%), dural tear (0.19%), nerve root injury (0.19%) and failed back syndrome (2.30%). Conclusion:  Author concludes that lumbar discectomy performed through a small (< 2.0 cm) incision using manual retraction with Lagenbech retractor, headlight and magnifying loupes is a safe and cost effective procedure with distinct advantages such as reduced hospital stay, minimal post-operative pain, early mobilization and good alternative to conventional laminectomy/discectomy procedures.&nbsp

Linking Social Exchange Relations and Creativity through Mediation of Feeling of Energy: An Evidence from IT Firms

This study was aimed to investigate the dynamic role of social exchange relations and energy as an impetus for creative work involvement of IT professionals. One hundred and seventy five employees and sixty four team leaders were inquired at two points of time. At the first instance they were inquired for the perception of social exchange relations; and at the second instance, for energy and creativity. Analysis through structural equation modeling confirmed that social exchange relations (supervisory and coworker support) positively predict employees’ feeling of energy which results in increased level of creative work involvement. This study highlights the significance of social exchange relations by focusing on the energy and creative involvement as an outcome. This study gives a new direction to the social exchange relation and its possible contribution at work. Its results prove that social exchange relations foster energy and lead to an increased level of creative involvement in IT firms. Implications and future directions for researchers are also given

Relationship between Motivation and Job Satisfaction: A Study of Higher Educational Institutions

Managing human beings is pivotal part of the management process. Like other business units educational institutes consider human resource as their most vital asset, which might offer them greater returns and consider them a route towards their success. To be successful, organizations should motivate its employees on iterative basis. One way to motivate employees is through satisfying their needs. If employee’s needs are met, they will offer better returns in shape of greater importance. This study is aimed to find the impact of motivated employees on their job satisfaction. This study considers three facets of motivation or job satisfaction i.e. compensation, recognition and working conditions. For this study 269 faculty members were selected from five universities of Pakistan. Questionnaire was used for the data collection. Findings of the study specify the positive and significant relationship among working conditions, recognition and compensation on motivation. Further more motivated employees were found to be satisfied with their job

Transformational Leadership: Mediating Role of Green HRM and Moderating Role of Islamic Work Ethics

The current study investigated the impact of green transformational leadership on employee commitment towards the environment, keeping in view the mediating effect of Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) practices and the moderating effect of Islamic work ethics. For this purpose, data collected through a survey questionnaire from 524 hotel employees working in Lahore was analyzed. The analysis was carried out through Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) technique. It highlighted a significant impact of green transformational leadership on employee commitment towards the environment, while GHRM practices were found to partially mediate this relationship. Furthermore, it was also identified that the Islamic work ethics moderate the relationship between GHRM practices and employees’ commitment towards the environment. This study adds value to the literature by considering the mediation mechanism of GHRM practices and the moderating role of Islamic work ethics in the relationship between green transformational leadership and employees’ commitment towards the environment

Self-Efficacy: The Predictor of Educational Performance among University Students

The basic intention of the present research was to explore the association between perceived academic performance and self-efficacy level of the students as it has been an un-explored research area in the Pakistan. Students were selected as an obvious target population. Sample consisted of 250 university students. Questionnaire was used as a data collection instrument. Major portion of the questionnaire had been taken form the research work done by Sherer et al. (1982). Out of 250 students, 212 students contributed in the data collection comprising 85% response rate for the study. SPSS 16.0 was used to analyze data. Findings of the study establish a weak positive association between level of self-efficacy (IV) and DV (perceived academic performance) as IV causes only 3.6% (.036) change in DV (academic performance). Hence, there is a weak dependency of perceived academic performance of students upon their level of selfefficacy

Jobs satisfaction mediates relationship between facets of job and citizenship behavior: a study of female employees of banking sector of Pakistan

Several articles have reported and discussed the job satisfaction and dissatisfaction of female workers in miscellaneous organizations. However, very few empirically-supported explanations have been given to explain how job satisfaction mediates the relationship between facets of job and citizenship behavior in banking sector of Pakistan and specially focusing on female employees. Probes into the explanations of determining how job satisfaction mediates the relationship between facets of job and citizenship behavior, the data were collected from female employees of banking sector of Pakistan. Total 200 self-administered questionnaires were distributed among the female staff of different banks. 188 completed questionnaire were received back with response rate of 94%. The participation in survey was voluntary and confidentiality of responses was ensured. Statistical analysis reveals that there exists significant relationship between facets of job (pay, promotion, supervisor’s behavior and coworker’s behavior) and dependent variables (organizational citizenship behavior); likewise, job satisfaction mediates the relationship between facets of job and citizenship behavior. Limitations and future implementations of this research are also discussed

Navigating Brain Lesions Via Craniometric Points of Human Skull. Effectiveness in Targeted Craniotomy

Background and Objectives: Navigating brain pathologies via external landmarks helps in guiding neurosurgeon to perform and plan brain surgeries without feeling compromised in their competence, when modern neuronavigation is not available. We assessed the navigating art of human craniometry in brain surgery, in terms of accuracy and safety, of our patients.Materials and Methods: A descriptive study was in Department of Neurosurgery Quaid-e-Azam International Hospital on utilizing the art of Craniometry in navigating brain lesions and to see how effective this art is in the execution of neurosurgical procedures.Results: Total of hundred patients were subjected in our study, who were according to inclusion criteria. Mean age calculated was 44 years with STD ± 6, with minimum age of 8months and maximum age of 83years. There were 61% male, and 39% female patients. Supratentorial lesions were 72%, ventriculoperitoneal shunts 11%,and 17% were infratentorial.In 89 surgeries, we were exactly on the target according to our external skull landmarks, in 4 cases we slightly deviated about 0.3 cm, and in 7 surgeries we encounter some difficulty in navigating lesions.Conclusion: Modern navigating technology is very much helpful in neurosurgery, and this fact is undeniable, but because of resources restrained is not always available. Mastering the art of craniometery of human skull guide neurosurgeons to perform/plan neurosurgical procedure of brain without feeling compromised in theircompetence