The article aimed to pit Eurocentric against Afrocentric punishment systems in eclectic contexts of the globe and adopted a literature review methodology drawing data from different data engines such as Google Scholar, JSTOR, ResearchGate, EBSChost, and the WSU library. Keywords used to gather data included the following: restorative justice, retributive justice, traditional African justice, hybrid justice systems, Ubuntu and justice, Eurocentric punishment, Afrocentric punishment, and comparative justice systems. Data was thematically synthesized and established the following findings: Divergent philosophical foundations of punishment; Punishment as retribution versus restoration; Cultural legitimacy and community engagement; Coexistence and tensions in hybrid justice systems; Implications for justice and social cohesion. Conclusively, incorporating Afrocentric restorative justice principles into Eurocentric-dominated legal systems can offer more culturally respectful, socially cohesive, and holistic approaches to punishment—moving beyond retaliation toward healing and reconciliation. This integration can foster a more equitable and compassionate model of justice by addressing the needs of victims, offenders, and communities, while effectively resolving conflicts within hybrid judicial frameworks.
This study proposes an integrated entrepreneurial model to optimize Learning Management System (LMS) adoption in South African higher education (HE). It addresses connectivity, content, and technical support barriers through multidisciplinary collaboration, expanding LMS use for teaching, research, and community engagement. It employed a mixed-methods approach involving a multidisciplinary consortium from computer science, IT, statistics, operations research, and education. Data included a literature review, surveys (337 responses), interviews, and workshops to co-design an integrated LMS adoption model. Results revealed major barriers in connectivity, digital content, and technical support. The proposed model emphasizes infrastructure upgrades, localized content, capacity-building, and strategic policies, showing initial pilot improvements in LMS usage and stakeholder satisfaction. The study concludes that effective adoption of LMS requires a holistic, multidisciplinary approach addressing interconnected barriers of infrastructure, content, technical support, and institutional strategy. The integrative entrepreneurial model developed offers a scalable and contextually relevant framework to optimize LMS use across teaching, research, and community engagement. Key recommendations include prioritizing broadband expansion with hybrid connectivity solutions tailored to diverse regional needs, co-creating localized and culturally relevant digital content, and implementing comprehensive capacity-building programs involving ongoing user training and AI-supported help desks. Institutionalizing LMS integration through clear policies and nurturing entrepreneurial partnerships with technology providers and government agencies is essential for sustainability. Continuous monitoring and adaptive refinement based on data-driven evaluations can ensure responsiveness to emerging challenges and evolving technological landscapes. This comprehensive strategy can overcome persistent inequities and unlock the transformative potential of digital education in South Africa’s HE sectors.
Many dominant trauma models assume that safety can be established before trauma processing begins. This assumption is often invalid in contexts marked by displacement, chronic violence, and persistent threat. For many individuals, trauma is not a past event but an ongoing physical, relational, and existential reality. Existing stage-based and event-focused frameworks frequently fail to account for the state-dependent nature of trauma presentations, where individuals may demonstrate regulation and competence in some contexts while remaining significantly dysregulated in others, sometimes within the same session. This paper presents EMBER-T, an integrative trauma formulation framework designed to support ethical clinical decision-making when trauma persists rather than resolves. EMBER-T conceptualises trauma presentation across five dynamic, interrelated domains: Embodied Activation, Meaning Making, Breaks in Connection, Endurance-Oriented Identity Work, and Reclamation and Re-Patterning. Central to the framework is the concept of Trauma Endurance, the capacity to maintain functioning, dignity, and relational connection despite unresolved and ongoing threat. EMBER-T is not a treatment protocol or a replacement for evidence-based interventions. It functions as a meta-framework that assists clinicians in evaluating readiness, pacing, and the ethical sequencing of interventions when standard readiness conditions cannot be assured. Drawing on polyvagal theory, attachment theory, narrative approaches, existential psychology, and Ubuntu-informed relational perspectives, the framework addresses a critical gap in trauma care for humanitarian, displacement, and ongoing-threat contexts. Clinical illustrations and identity mapping tools are included to support practical application.
This study examines the effect of Green FinTech platform transparency on sustainable investment intention, with a focus on the mediating role of perceived credibility. Based on signaling theory, the research proposes that transparent disclosure practices enhance investors’ perceptions of platform credibility, which in turn fosters stronger intentions to engage in sustainable investments. Data were collected from 255 respondents using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that green fintech platform transparency has a significant positive impact on both perceived credibility and sustainable investment intention. Additionally, perceived credibility partially mediates the relationship between transparency and investment intention. These findings offer important theoretical contributions by demonstrating the dual pathways through which transparency influences sustainable investment behavior. Practically, the study underscores the necessity for Green FinTech platforms to prioritize transparent communication and credibility-building strategies to effectively mobilize capital toward environmentally responsible investments.
Purpose: This study analyses the cultural identity mix present in a Chinese bank operating in South Africa to understand its impact on social structures and how structural consensus is achieved within multicultural organizational settings. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative case study approach was employed, guided by the interpretivism paradigm. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 participants working for a Chinese bank (Chinese and South African nationals). The Chinese bank chosen has been operating in South Africa for over five years. Data analysis followed Colaizzi's seven-step descriptive phenomenological method, supported by Atlasti software for data management. Findings: The study revealed that national culture significantly influences individual behavior even in host countries. South Africans displayed values emphasizing social interaction, transparency, and work-life balance, while Chinese participants prioritized hard work, respect for hierarchy, and goal achievement. The cultural identity mix resulted in learned behaviors and adaptive communication strategies, though conflict avoidance and perceived consensus characterized the social order. Practical implications: The research provides insights for multinational organizations, particularly Chinese banks operating in culturally diverse markets, on managing cultural differences, improving communication strategies, and fostering genuine consensus rather than mere accommodation. Social implications: The study contributes to understanding intercultural dynamics in the South African banking sector and offers theoretical insights into structural consensus theory and its application to multicultural organizational settings. Originality/value: This research addresses a gap in the literature regarding Chinese-South African cultural dynamics in the banking industry, providing empirical evidence of cultural identity mix phenomena and challenging some of Hofstede's cultural dimension assumptions at the individual level.
Land sale and purchase transactions frequently give rise to legal disputes in Indonesia, particularly when buyers acting in good faith later face claims arising from defects in land ownership or prior legal irregularities. This study examines the essence and effectiveness of legal protection for good-faith land buyers within the Indonesian legal system, with a specific focus on practices in South Sulawesi. Employing a normative-empirical legal research method, the study analyzes statutory regulations, court decisions, and empirical data obtained through questionnaires distributed to legal practitioners and stakeholders involved in land transactions. The findings indicate that, normatively, Indonesian law provides a strong foundation for protecting good-faith buyers through the Civil Code, the Basic Agrarian Law, and Supreme Court Circular Letters (SEMA No. 7 of 2012 and SEMA No. 4 of 2016). These instruments emphasize the principle of good faith, legal certainty, and the preference for registered rights. However, empirically, the implementation of such protection remains less effective. Inconsistent judicial decisions, inadequate due diligence practices, limited public legal awareness, and the absence of detailed implementing regulations for Article 1338 of the Civil Code significantly weaken legal certainty for buyers. The study further reveals that the emergence of digital and virtual land transactions presents new legal risks that are not yet comprehensively regulated. Therefore, this research recommends the formulation of more specific implementing regulations, strengthening the proactive role of Land Deed Officials (PPAT/Notaries), and continuous legal education programs conducted by land authorities. Such measures are essential to ensure that good-faith buyers are not unjustly disadvantaged and that land law functions to deliver justice, certainty, and legal protection in an increasingly complex transactional environment.
Social change has significantly influenced parenting practices, which in turn affect children's emotional development. These changes reflect evolving societal norms, economic conditions, and cultural landscapes. The goal of this study was to investigate the impact of different parenting styles on the development of children’s emotion regulation capacities. This research is a cross-sectional study on the correlation between parenting styles, Parenting Behavior Inventory (PBI) (Lovejoy et al., 1999), and Child-Parent Relationship Scale (CPRS) (Rinaldi et al., 2023). More than 300 respondents from Hong Kong and Mainland China responded to the survey. Structural Equation Modeling was adopted to investigate the relationships between various parenting practices and children’s emotional development. Parents’ beliefs about children’s emotions and parental stress were identified as the independent study variables. These specific variables were chosen because of the increased potential for these parental factors to influence the way parents emotionally socialize their children, thereby influencing children’s overall emotional development (Root & Denham, 2010), characteristics on the development of children’s emotion regulation capacities. Findings from this study highlighted the significant effect of emotion socialization on children’s emotion regulation and liability.
This study revisits Rebecca Oxford’s framework of Language Learning Strategies (LLS) and Strategic Self-Regulation (S2R) through a qualitative narrative inquiry of Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) at the Makassar Air Traffic Service Center (MATSC). In the high-stakes environment of aviation, where English proficiency is a safety-critical mandate rather than an academic pursuit, the application of LLS diverges significantly from traditional classroom settings. Through in-depth interviews with 20 controllers stratified by proficiency achievement, this research identifies a “Great Divergence” between mastery-oriented learners who employ proactive, continuous strategies, and compliance-oriented learners who rely on reactive, event-driven tactics. The findings reveal two critical paradoxes, the “Social Strategy Paradox” and the “Remedial Reward Paradox”, which suggest that institutional environments can function as “anti-strategies,” actively constraining the self-regulation of even highly autonomous learners. This article argues for an expansion of the S2R model to explicitly account for institutional alignment as a prerequisite for the successful deployment of social and metacognitive strategies in professional contexts.
Traditional Male Circumcision (TMC) remains a culturally significant rite of passage in South Africa, particularly in the Eastern Cape, despite rising concerns about morbidity and mortality associated with unsafe practices. This narrative literature review synthesises the largely overlooked voices of women—central caregivers, cultural stakeholders, and key observers of initiation outcomes—to examine their roles, perspectives, and influence within the TMC continuum. Five dominant themes emerged. First, women act as cultural custodians who strongly support TMC for its role in identity formation, yet fear that biomedical alternatives threaten cultural continuity. Second, women express deep anxiety about escalating health risks, including deaths, amputations, and psychosocial trauma arising from botched procedures. Third, entrenched patriarchal norms and ritual secrecy systematically exclude women from decision-making, limiting their agency despite their substantial caregiving responsibilities. Fourth, women highlight heightened vulnerability to post-initiation harms, including increased male aggression, risky sexual behaviours, and associated HIV risks. Lastly, pervasive medical mistrust and misinformation reinforce women’s preference for traditional practices over safer medical circumcision options. The findings demonstrate that women’s voices are critical yet marginalised components of TMC governance. Meaningfully integrating women’s perspectives is essential to advancing culturally grounded, gender responsive, and health-protective reforms.
This study examines whether and how Indonesia’s Supreme Audit Institution (BPK) mediates the relationships between economic growth, local revenue, investment, and sustainable regional development (SRD) across 33 districts/municipalities in North Sumatra. Using a quantitative, explanatory design with PLS-SEM, we integrate survey responses from 539 local officials (finance offices, inspectorates, and strategic agencies) with administrative indicators. SRD is modelled as a second-order reflective construct (economic–social–environmental), while BPK is treated as a governance mediator operating through findings and follow-up (TLRHP). Results show a large, precisely estimated positive direct association between growth and SRD (β = 0.709, p < .001). Growth (β = 0.280, p = .001) and local revenue (β = 0.294, p < .001) are both positively associated with audit intensity, yet the same-year association between BPK and SRD is negative (β = −0.261, p = .008), yielding negative derived indirect effects via BPK for growth (−0.073) and revenue (−0.077). Investment has no significant direct effect on SRD (p = .243) and only a modest link to BPK (β = 0.134, p = .036), producing a small negative indirect effect (−0.035). The pattern is consistent with problem-triggered, corrective audits: oversight intensifies where outcomes lag, so contemporaneous correlations are negative and benefits emerge with a policy-cycle lag (t+1) once findings are closed and integrated into RKPD/APBD. Policy implications include institutionalizing audit-to-budget linkages (TLRHP→RKPD/APBD-P), adopting lag-aware performance indicators, and targeting high-elasticity investments (connectivity, basic services) to convert fiscal capacity into sustainable development outcomes.
This article studies the eating styles and practices of young university students from two interrelated fields: anthropology and sociology. The eating practices and habits acquired during such a crucial stage of life as youth are determinants of health in adulthood. Beyond its biological function, food serves as an instrument of socialization and identity construction among young people. The methodology chosen for this research was a literature review from the perspective of the anthropology and sociology of food, and an in-depth, semi-structured questionnaire administered to 40 young university students between the ages of 18 and 25. The questionnaire was structured around three dimensions: (1) food, identity, and personal trajectory; (2) social, cultural, and media influences on eating choices; and (3) the values and meanings attributed to the act of eating, including health, ethics, and sustainability. The results indicate that young people's dietary choices and eating habits are influenced, among other factors, by their socioeconomic context and the influence of social media, which exerts substantial pressure on their image and eating habits. Furthermore, the results also reflect the coexistence of traditional diets, such as the Mediterranean diet, with newer eating patterns. Finally, it was found that students with knowledge of nutrition or food science are less susceptible to media pressure regarding eating practices.
The problem of infertility is not only medical, but also a social, moral, and political issue. This article aims to analyze the problem of infertility from an anthropological and sociological perspective, focusing on the experiences of women and men who have undergone assisted reproductive treatments in Spain and Latin America in urban and peripheral contexts. The methodology used includes a theoretical review with an ethnographic design, as well as in-depth interviews and life histories. The findings reveal that infertility influences people's identity, altering their family relationships, their experience with their bodies, their daily routines, and their perception of social acceptance. Furthermore, it is shown that the growth in reproductive technology has created, in addition to opportunities for conception, inequalities related to social class, gender, and access to treatment. The research also shows that infertility is a form of suffering produced by society, that it manifests unequally, and that biomedical institutions play a significant role in this regard, acting as both beacons of hope and emotional marketplaces. From a social science perspective, infertility allows for the analysis of contemporary social pressures regarding the body and gender, as well as reproductive neoliberalism and current changes in family and kinship.
Across Saudi universities, attendance rates among undergraduates have been quietly trending downward for several years — but the explanations provided by institutional reports rarely stray far from descriptive accounts based on student disengagement or poor planning. This study adopts a different perspective. Rather than asking why students don't make it to class, we asked what they're actually deciding when they don't come in, and found a picture much more complex than the policy discourse is often prepared to recognize. Drawing on a convergent mixed-methods approach, we gathered questionnaire data from 87 undergraduates enrolled in three public Saudi universities and conducted 45- to 75-minute semi-structured interviews with 15 students selected for diversity by gender, discipline, and attendance pattern. Multiple regression analysis identified AI reliance (β = .35, p < .001), perceived learner independence (β = .32, p < .001), and social media engagement (β = .27, p = .009) as the dominant predictors of absenteeism, collectively accounting for 48% of variance (R² = .48). Mediation analysis (PROCESS Model 4; 5,000 bootstraps) confirmed that AI reliance exerts part of its effect indirectly — by amplifying students' sense of learning independence — which in turn drives higher absence rates. The interview data complicate any simple technological-determinism reading of these numbers. Students draw explicit distinctions between lecture formats they consider substitutable and interactive sessions they regard as irreplaceable. Family obligations — disproportionately carried by women — explain a further share of absences that have nothing to do with motivation. And a recurring theme across almost every interview was a direct challenge to institutional authority: attendance mandates that cannot be pedagogically justified provoke skepticism rather than compliance. Taken together, the findings suggest that attendance policy in Saudi higher education needs to be rebuilt around the actual conditions shaping student decisions rather than assumptions calibrated to an earlier technological era.
This study investigates the long run and short run dynamic impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth in SADC region. Using the Chudik and Pesaran (2013) Panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (P-ARDL) model and an annual data spanning 1970-2023 across SADC countries, the study finds an evidence of a long term impact of FDI on economic growth. It is further observed that despite various short-term impacts, GDP per capita and human capital have a significant long-term effects on economic growth in the region. While both FDI and GDP per capital have a strong positive impact, human capital has a negative impact on economic growth in the region. These results contribute to understanding the roles and relationships of human capital, GDP per capita and FDI in addressing SADC's development challenges. As a policy recommendation, SADC’s policymakers should prioritize FDI attraction, human capital reform, job creation, infrastructure development, and institutional strengthening in order to achieve a sustainable economic growth.
Maximizing citizens’ happiness and life satisfaction—commonly referred to as subjective well-being (SWB) is a key objective of policy frameworks developed by international organizations. To design effective interventions that enhance SWB, it is essential to identify its main determinants. However, much of the existing empirical evidence is based on non-representative samples and is largely drawn from developed countries, limiting their applicability to developing contexts. Using data from all five waves of the National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS) panel, this study investigates the determinants of subjective well-being among urban and rural populations in South Africa. The analysis employs a random effect ordered probit (REOP) model to control for unobserved individual heterogeneity, while robustness is assessed using a pooled ordinary least squares (OLS) approach. The results show that income, marital status, religious participation, gender, access to electricity and clean water, and age (squared) are significant determinants of SWB in the full sample. Employment is positive but insignificant overall, though it is positive and significant in rural areas and negative and insignificant in urban areas. Overall, the findings highlight the importance of income and basic services in enhancing well-being, as well as important urban–rural differences in the determinants of happiness.
Energy efficiency assessment in public and commercial buildings plays a pivotal role in supporting sustainable development and energy conservation strategies. However, traditional evaluation approaches often fall short in accommodating the inherent uncertainty and subjectivity associated with building energy performance indicators. This study proposes a computational modeling framework based on fuzzy logic to assess energy efficiency using end-use energy consumption categories. Energy use data were categorized into six primary types: appliances & others, lighting, cooling, cooking & water heating, distributed heating, and central heating, which were normalized and processed through fuzzification, rule-based inference, and defuzzification stages. The proposed model was tested on a dataset from various building types in China, and validated through expert judgment. The results demonstrated that the fuzzy logic approach effectively captures nuanced energy consumption patterns and provides a more adaptable and interpretable evaluation metric compared to conventional binary classifications. The model offers insights into energy optimization potentials specific to different usage patterns. This research contributes a flexible and scalable methodology that can be implemented across various building typologies and geographies. The findings also highlight the potential for integrating fuzzy-based assessments into future smart energy management systems.
Corruption is recognized as an extraordinary crime due to its systemic and destructive impact on state finances, governance, and public trust. This study aims to examine the essence of granting or revoking remission rights for corruption convicts within the Indonesian positive legal system and to analyze how such policies reflect the balance between prisoners’ rights and public interests. This research employs a normative juridical approach by analyzing statutory regulations, legal doctrines, and relevant legal principles related to remission and corruption crimes. The findings indicate that remission, as regulated under Law Number 22 of 2022 concerning Corrections, is normatively recognized as a right of prisoners conditioned upon good behavior and participation in rehabilitation programs. However, for corruption convicts, remission is not an absolute right but a conditional privilege due to the extraordinary nature of corruption crimes, which require stricter legal treatment. Additional requirements, including cooperation with law enforcement authorities and full payment of fines and compensation, demonstrate the conditional nature of remission policies for corruption offenders. Furthermore, remission revocation may occur when convicts fail to meet legal and administrative requirements, thereby reinforcing accountability within the correctional system. The study concludes that remission policies for corruption convicts must be implemented selectively, transparently, and accountably to maintain deterrence, ensure substantive justice, and uphold legal certainty. Strengthening regulatory frameworks and ensuring consistent implementation are essential to achieving a balanced correctional policy that aligns with anti-corruption objectives and public expectations.
This study explains how Chinese-Indonesian elites in North Sumatra convert long-run economic centrality into formal political incorporation, and under what electoral conditions these advantages yield vote gains. Using an explanatory-sequential mixed-methods design, we combine administrative and electoral records, association and business registries, media/archival sources, and 25–35 semi-structured interviews. Quantitatively, Model A (logit) estimates the probability of incorporation as a function of economic centrality and capital depth; Model B (OLS/fractional logit) evaluates the effect of recruitment signals on vote share and their interaction with cleavage softness; Model C tests whether associational density mediates the effect of economic centrality on incorporation. Results show that economic centrality significantly increases incorporation (β₁>0), that recruitment advantages translate more strongly into votes in mixed/urban areas (θ₃>0), and that associational density provides a small-to-moderate but significant mediating channel (indirect effect; complementary partial mediation). Findings are robust to alternative operationalizations, matching, and instrumental-variable strategies, and placebo tests suggest group-specific mechanisms rather than sectoral artifacts. Theoretically, the evidence integrates Push–Pull legacies (spatial–sectoral selection), Diaspora-based social capital (organizational density and bridging), and Middleman Minority incentives (resource-based institutional embedding). Practically, parties and local governments can enhance pluralistic representation by recruiting community-embedded candidates and investing in multiethnic civic programs that convert private resources into public goods. The framework is portable to other plural democracies featuring commercially central minorities.
Introduction: Service-Learning (SL) has become established as an innovative pedagogical methodology that combines academic learning processes with community service and social engagement, thereby contributing to the holistic education of students. Despite its expansion within the Spanish university context, the degree of institutionalisation of SL varies considerably across institutions. At the University of Seville in particular, SL initiatives appear fragmented and poorly systematised, which hinders their visibility. This study aims to conduct an institutional diagnosis of SL at the University of Seville by identifying existing experiences, areas of development, gaps, sectors with low representation, and opportunities for improvement, and by proposing recommendations to enhance the visibility, coordination, and promotion of new SL initiatives. Method: The study adopts a qualitative and interpretative approach, combining documentary and institutional analysis. A systematic review of public sources from the University of Seville was conducted, including websites, annual reports, course syllabi, innovation funding calls, collaboration agreements, and documentation from vice-rectorates. Results: The findings reveal an uneven presence of SL, concentrated mainly in the fields of Social and Legal Sciences and Health Sciences, with limited formal curricular integration and a strong reliance on individual initiatives or specific funding calls. No explicit institutional policies or stable monitoring and evaluation systems were identified. Discussion: It is concluded that SL at the University of Seville is at an early stage of institutionalisation, characterised by substantial inequalities between faculties and the absence of shared mechanisms for dissemination. The need for institutional strategies to support recognition, curricular integration, staff training, and sustainability is emphasised. In this regard, the creation of an institutional system for the registration and visibility of SL experiences is proposed to enable systematic monitoring, evaluation, and dissemination, thereby strengthening their academic and social recognition.
Aims: This research aims to examine behavior; the use of technology serves as a tool, with its results dependent on the individuals who engage with it. Methodology: Investigate a number of significant implications that artificial intelligence has for creative thinking and Critical thinking. As the function of artificial intelligence differs between the fields of creative processes. Co-creation is a method that can be used to describe creativity in the AI era. Artificial intelligence is necessary for scientists to achieve reliable results, while some artists use AI for collaborative creative work. The magic sauce is the combination of critical thinking and creative thinking. The processes of creative and critical thought are interdependent and recursive. The two modes of thinking are interconnected and serve as complementary elements within a broader, often cyclical, problem-solving process. Thus, the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) brings about a paradigm change across a number of different fields, including mathematics, which is not immune to this development. In that field, for instance, artificial intelligence has the potential to automate the process of proving theorems. This would result in the production of new ideas, an improvement in the ability to solve mathematical problems, and ultimately an expansion of the boundaries of mathematical knowledge. In the realm of Human Machine Interface (HMI) hardware, artificial intelligence is utilized to customize (self) learning. Self-regulated learning (SRL) is increasing in popularity within the context of the learning system because of the advantages it offers over traditional learning. The process of gaining an understanding of the learning attitudes of students and helping to boost their learning interests is challenging. In this paper we introduce an analysis of a questionnaire that was used to evaluate four characteristics of self-organized learning including the utilization of subscales such as cognitive self-regulation and critical thinking. Results: AI ought to be utilized to safeguard and enhance human cognitive abilities such as curiosity, creativity, and deep critical thinking, all while optimizing efficiency and data handling. Self-directed students with critical thinking skills succeed in utilizing AI to enhance creativity, research, exploration, and innovation in conjunction with human thought processes.
