This study investigates the influence of audit committee size and financial expertise on accrual-based earnings management in Vietnamese listed firms and examines whether board independence conditions the effectiveness of these monitoring mechanisms. Using an unbalanced panel of 3,608 firm-year observations from 328 non-financial firms over 2013–2023, earnings management is measured by absolute discretionary accruals. The analysis applies fixed effects, feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) to address heteroskedasticity, and system generalized method of moments (system GMM) to mitigate endogeneity, controlling for industry and year effects. The results show that audit committee size and financial expertise are negatively associated with earnings management, indicating stronger monitoring when committees are larger and more financially knowledgeable. Board independence further strengthens the constraining effect of audit committee size, whereas the moderation effect on financial expertise is not statistically significant. The main findings are robust across alternative estimators, with consistent coefficient signs and statistically significant effects in FGLS and system GMM. This study contributes emerging-market evidence on how audit committee attributes and board independence jointly shape accrual-based earnings management, offering implications for improving internal monitoring and financial reporting transparency.
Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into online learning systems has significantly transformed the landscape of digital education. Grounded in a comprehensive theoretical framework, this study draws upon Flow Experience (FLE) theory, the Technology Acceptance Model's (TAM) construct of perceived usefulness (PU), and the Expectation-Confirmation Model (ECM) to examine the determinants of learners' engagement and sustained usage intentions within AI-powered learning systems. Specifically, this research investigates the influence of key FLE antecedents—confirmation (CONF), challenge-skills balance (CSB), perceived information fit-to-task (PIFT), and online learning self-efficacy (OLSE)—on the formation of FLE. Additionally, it explores the role of CONF in shaping PU and satisfaction (SAT), the impact of PU on both SAT and continuous intention (CI), and the mediating role of FLE in influencing SAT and CI. Empirical data were collected through an online survey of 307 users of an AI-assisted online learning system in Taiwan and were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that all antecedents significantly influence FLE, with CONF showing strong positive associations with PU and SAT, while FLE has a significant impact on both SAT and CI. The study's novelty lies in its theoretical integration of FLE with ECM and TAM, providing a comprehensive account of learner engagement in AI-assisted online learning contexts. These findings offer valuable insights for platform designers and educators.
This research seeks to create a thorough framework for assessing sustainability in project management through a multiscale and multicriteria methodology. A Sustainable Project Management Framework (SPMF) utilizing the PESTEL model is suggested, together with a Sustainable Project Management Index (SPMI) for quantitative evaluation. The approach incorporates literature analysis, focus group conversations, and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to assess the relative significance of sustainability elements. The framework undergoes empirical testing on two farming projects in East Kazakhstan. The results show that political and economic influences are predominant in the initial stages of projects, whereas social and environmental aspects become more significant during the execution and oversight phases. The findings further indicate that sustainability priorities differ based on project type and context. The suggested SPMI offers a versatile and methodical framework for evaluating sustainability performance in various sectors. This research adds to the existing literature by presenting a dynamic, multiscale method that incorporates both temporal and contextual aspects of sustainability into project management, providing valuable insights for decision-makers and project managers.
This article investigates the legal architecture of knowledge and technology transfer in the space sector under conditions shaped by national security requirements, dual-use export controls, public funding rules, and public procurement procedures. The study aims to explain how these interacting regimes influence the commercialization of space technologies and to identify institutional-legal solutions capable of increasing transfer predictability without weakening baseline security safeguards. The research employs an institutional-legal design that combines doctrinal analysis, comparative legal analysis, structural-functional analysis, and content analysis of international legal instruments, Kazakhstan’s legislation, and selected foreign regulatory practices. To move beyond descriptive legal review, the study operationalizes institutional barriers through two composite measures, the Compliance Burden Index (CBI) and the Regulatory Fragmentation Index (RFI), which capture procedural burden and inter-regime inconsistency across the transfer process. The findings show that the most severe barriers emerge not at the stage of technological creation, but at the stages where rights, access conditions, and transfer terms must be legally formalized, especially in procurement contracting and cross-regime coordination. The article demonstrates that weak commercialization performance is explained less by deficiencies in classical intellectual property instruments than by the fragmentation of authorization, export control, funding, and procurement regimes. The study’s novelty lies in proposing a measurable institutional-legal framework and a structured transfer model designed to reduce fragmentation, lower compliance costs, and improve the legal manageability of space technology commercialization.
This study investigates the critical factors influencing the business efficiency of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam and proposes institutional and policy implications to enhance their sustainable competitiveness. A mixed-methods design was employed. First, qualitative interviews with 30 experts were conducted to refine the conceptual framework and measurement scales. Second, a quantitative survey was administered to 700 SME managers in Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai Province, yielding 645 valid responses for analysis. The data were processed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine the relationships among Policy and Law, Finance, Technology, Human Resources, Creative Innovation, Enterprise Size, and Business Efficiency. The findings indicate that Finance, Technology, Human Resources, Creative Innovation, and Enterprise Size all have significant positive effects on business efficiency, while Policy and Law strongly influence these firm-level capabilities. Enterprise Size also plays a moderating role in the relationships between Finance, Technology, and business efficiency. The study’s novelty lies in integrating Institutional Theory and the Resource-Based View into a unified framework and empirically demonstrating how institutional conditions shape internal capabilities and SME performance in a transition economy. These results provide practical implications for improving legal support, financial access, innovation, digital transformation, and human capital development.
