Focal Countries Research Articles

Populism as a centrist strategy for disqualification: The use of ‘populism(s)/populist(s)’ in Belgian, French and Spanish Parliaments

Abstract This article examines the uses of the words populism(s) and populist(s)—hereafter populis*—by Members of Parliaments from Belgium, France, and Spain in 2019. It presents noteworthy findings unexplored in the literature on the uses of populis*. First, when employed by MPs, populis* refers mainly to actions, discourses and elusive threats rather than directly blaming political enemies (except in Spain). Second, in the three focal countries, populis* is mainly used pejoratively by right and centre-right MPs as a strategy implemented to disqualify political projects and discourses deemed nationalist, demagogical, and extremist. The originality of our study lies in demonstrating similar trends in Belgium, France, and Spain, while also unveiling differences stemming from national contexts.

Electric vehicle battery chemistry affects supply chain disruption vulnerabilities

We examine the relationship between electric vehicle battery chemistry and supply chain disruption vulnerability for four critical minerals: lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese. We compare the nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) and lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode chemistries by (1) mapping the supply chains for these four materials, (2) calculating a vulnerability index for each cathode chemistry for various focal countries and (3) using network flow optimization to bound uncertainties. World supply is currently vulnerable to disruptions in China for both chemistries: 80% [71% to 100%] of NMC cathodes and 92% [90% to 93%] of LFP cathodes include minerals that pass through China. NMC has additional risks due to concentrations of nickel, cobalt, and manganese in other countries. The combined vulnerability of multiple supply chain stages is substantially larger than at individual steps alone. Our results suggest that reducing risk requires addressing vulnerabilities across the entire battery supply chain.

A synthesis of wild animal-related trade laws in some of the world's most biodiverse countries

We examined the laws and legal provisions governing the commercial trade of terrestrial wild fauna across the trade chain in some of the world's megadiverse countries and how these relate to key animal welfare and conservation concerns. Over the past century, an increase in the quantity and complexity of laws related to commercial wildlife trade has been observed in the 11 focal countries examined. Our review identified 95 laws with 560 provisions adopted since 1910 across these countries. Surprisingly, the level of biological diversity in a country does not correlate with the extent of legislation addressing wildlife trade. Moreover, legislation is unevenly distributed across different stages of the wildlife trade chain, with more provisions on extraction and transportation compared to captive management. Notably, animal welfare considerations are relatively underrepresented in legislation related to wildlife trade, despite their broad implications for public health and economies. Urgent legislative action is needed to meet global biodiversity targets and respond to the challenges posed by the growing scale and complexity of the wildlife trade. Recommendations are made to streamline legislation, consider the legal status of wild animals, and address gaps in enforcement mechanisms. We conclude that alignment of national and international regulations is crucial for the effective protection of both wild animal populations and individual animals' welfare in the context of commercial trade. Further research is needed to assess the effectiveness of existing laws, bridge legal gaps, and address diverse concerns related to wildlife trade, including public health and the rights of local communities.

Public acceptability of policy instruments for reducing fossil fuel consumption in East Africa

ABSTRACT In recent decades, there has been increasing research interest in individuals’ support of and resistance to climate and environmental policy instruments. However, there is an empirical bias in the literature, as few studies have been conducted in low-income countries. Based on a survey with 4,766 respondents we identify the level of public acceptability for climate policy instruments and their determinants in East Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda). While our sample is not fully representative of the East-African population, we capture highly educated individuals in urban areas, who are likely to have a large influence on policy processes. In line with previous studies in other contexts, we find that higher education and climate change concern are linked to the acceptability of policies aimed at reducing fossil fuel consumption. Specifying how the revenue from a climate tax or subsidy removal would be used, almost doubled the support for these policy instruments. In contrast to earlier studies, we find that investments in social programmes, not environmental programmes, was the revenue specification that increased the acceptability the most. One possible explanation would be that in a context where poverty is more prevalent, social issues are more salient to people. We also find weak associations between trust in government and the acceptability of climate policy instruments in East Africa and large heterogeneity across the five focal East African countries. Besides establishing an empirical foundation for future research on climate policy support in East Africa, the study provides essential policy insights: Investing in education and improved information, contributing to increased awareness and understanding of climate concerns, can potentially increase support for climate policy proposals also in the East African context. Earmarking revenues from climate policy instruments for social programmes may also significantly boost support. However, as our study is not fully representative of the population in the five countries and relies on stated preferences, which may be subject to different biases, the results should be interpreted with caution.

Informing climate-health adaptation options through mapping the needs and potential for integrated climate-driven early warning forecasting systems in South Asia-A scoping review.

Climate change is widely recognised to threaten human health, wellbeing and livelihoods, including through its effects on the emergence, spread and burdens of climate-and water-sensitive infectious diseases. However, the scale and mechanisms of the impacts are uncertain and it is unclear whether existing forecasting capacities will foster successful local-level adaptation planning, particularly in climate vulnerable regions in developing countries. The purpose of this scoping review was to characterise and map priority climate- and water-sensitive diseases, map existing forecasting and surveillance systems in climate and health sectors and scope out the needs and potential to develop integrated climate-driven early warning forecasting systems for long-term adaptation planning and interventions in the south Asia region. We searched Web of Science Core Collection, Scopus and PubMed using title, abstract and keywords only for papers focussing on climate-and water-sensitive diseases and explicit mention of either forecasting or surveillance systems in south Asia. We conducted further internet search of relevant national climate adaptation plans and health policies affecting disease management. We identified 187 studies reporting on climate-sensitive diseases and information systems in the south Asia context published between 1992 and 2024. We found very few robust, evidenced-based forecasting systems for climate- and water- sensitive infectious diseases, which suggests limited operationalisation of decision-support tools that could inform actions to reduce disease burdens in the region. Many of the information systems platforms identified focussed on climate-sensitive vector-borne disease systems, with limited tools for water-sensitive diseases. This reveals an opportunity to develop tools for these neglected disease groups. Of the 34 operational platforms identified across the focal countries, only 13 (representing 38.2%) are freely available online and all were developed and implemented by the human health sector. Tools are needed for other south Asian countries (Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan) where the risks of infectious diseases are predicted to increase substantially due to climate change, drought and shifts in human demography and use of ecosystems. Altogether, the findings highlight clear opportunities to invest in the co-development and implementation of contextually relevant climate-driven early warning tools and research priorities for disease control and adaptation planning.

ПРОБЛЕМЫ ГРАЖДАНСКОЙ ВОЙНЫ В ИСПАНИИ 1936-1939 ГГ. В КОНТЕКСТЕ ИТАЛО-СОВЕТСКИХ ОТНОШЕНИЙ

Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 became a factor that significantly determined the situation in Europe on the eve of the Second World War. In this regard, it is important to study the international aspects of this conflict in the context of Italian-Soviet relations. The author reveals how the interests of such focal countries as the USSR and Italy, which supported the opposing sides of the conflict in Spain, intersected at different levels and in different forms. The policy of Non-Intervention to Spain 1936-1939 has also aggravated bilateral, in particular, Italian-Soviet, relations. The Spanish theme was also actively used in mutual informational and psychological confrontation. The Italo-Soviet struggle over the Spanish problem ultimately influenced both the outcome of the Spanish War as well as the balance of power in Europe before the World War II.

National innovation policies and knowledge acquisition in international alliances

AbstractResearch summaryInternational alliances facilitate learning among firms by providing access to knowledge embedded in different countries, yet we do not know how the partnering firms' distinct national contexts shape their learning in alliances. This study brings together research on learning in alliances and research on national innovation systems to examine how innovation policies in the respective home countries of the focal firms and their partners can increase the effectiveness of knowledge acquisition in alliances. Our analyses indicate that supply‐side innovation policies in the focal firms' home countries and demand‐side policies in their partners' home countries increase the focal firms' knowledge acquisition from their partners.Managerial summaryFirms engaging in alliances should consider their national innovation system as a strategic resource they can leverage not only to improve their own knowledge sourcing but also to become a more attractive partner in international alliances, potentially opening opportunities for engaging in reciprocal knowledge exchange. Managers can expect more learning opportunities when allying with foreign partners from countries with innovation policies that stimulate public technology purchasing or encourage public–private R&D collaboration. In turn, managers of firms from countries with innovation policies that provide funding and talent for R&D can capitalize on these resources to improve their firms' knowledge acquisition from foreign partners.

More Human, Not Less: Global Relevance of Values-Based Leadership

As societal demands to become more human, not less, are growing globally, the case to understand the relevance of humanistic leadership approaches such as values-based leadership (VBL) becomes urgent. While multiple leadership theories offer useful perspectives to inform VBL practice, empirical works - especially those focusing on studying its relevance from a cross-national perspective are significantly lacking. Additionally, little is known about the application of VBL in different work domains. This international study addresses these gaps by reporting on survey research from four different countries and six work domains. Specifically, this paper discusses a multi-country study about the relevance of VBL to the political, non-profit, public, private, religious, and community work domains. In general, our findings suggest that VBL is seen as relevant to highly relevant across the focal countries and six work domains. We also discuss some of the key similarities and differences in how respondents rated the relevance of VBL in different contexts. We conclude that VBL potentially offers a timely and robust vehicle to address some of the urgent aspirations that employees and practitioners are expressing globally.

Racialization of public discourse: portrayal of Islam and Muslims

Many developed countries like the USA, UK, Canada and European countries have diverse communities, including Muslim community outreach, as a result of immigration turning the world into a global village for all religions. Persecuting any one religion can lead to unrest and damage the calm of the society at large. This study critically examines the trends and research findings on Islamophobic discourse from 2001 to 2022 by investigating how linguistic strategies have been employed to present Muslims and Islam, the racialization of Muslims, the sense of identity crisis, and the way Muslims encounter and resist Islamophobia. An empirical study is also conducted to analyze the media discourse on recent incidents in Canada and New Zealand. For this purpose, 56 research articles are retrieved from the databases of four publishers: Taylor & Francis, Sage Publication, Pluto Journals, and Science Direct. A systematic review methodology and content analysis of the elected articles reveals that qualitative methodology was used in most articles and the UK and the US are the focal countries where most of the Islamophobia studies are carried out. Interviews and print media are found to be the preferred data samples for Islamophobia research. The most common theme in the articles is how anti-Muslim ideology was constructed by painting negative images of Muslims and Islam and subsequently presenting them as 'others.' The multiple effects of Islamophobia was paid considerable attention by the researchers of the reviewed articles. Themes receiving less attention are Islamophobia for political gain, identity crises, and the racialization of Muslims, whereas the factors behind Islamophobia received scant attention. The development of Islamophobia as a topic within the field of critical discourse analysis has been understudied. A critical discourse analysis of two recent incidents in Canada (2021) and New Zealand (2019) shows how various linguistic strategies are employed to construct negative images of Muslims and Islam.

Can we avert an Amazon tipping point? The economic and environmental costs

The Amazon biome is being pushed by unsustainable economic drivers towards an ecological tipping point where restoration to its previous state may no longer be possible. This degradation is the result of self-reinforcing interactions between deforestation, climate change and fire. We assess the economic, natural capital and ecosystem services impacts and trade-offs of scenarios representing movement towards an Amazon tipping point and strategies to avert one using the Integrated Economic-Environmental Modeling (IEEM) Platform linked with spatial land use-land cover change and ecosystem services modeling (IEEM + ESM). Our approach provides the first approximation of the economic, natural capital and ecosystem services impacts of a tipping point, and evidence to build the economic case for strategies to avert it. For the five Amazon focal countries, namely, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Bolivia and Ecuador, we find that a tipping point would create economic losses of US$256.6 billion in cumulative gross domestic product by 2050. Policies that would contribute to averting a tipping point, including strongly reducing deforestation, investing in intensifying agriculture in cleared lands, climate-adapted agriculture and improving fire management, would generate approximately US$339.3 billion in additional wealth and a return on investment of US$29.5 billion. Quantifying the costs, benefits and trade-offs of policies to avert a tipping point in a transparent and replicable manner can support the design of regional development strategies for the Amazon biome, build the business case for action and catalyze global cooperation and financing to enable policy implementation.

A cross-cultural comparison of ethnocentrism and the intercultural willingness to communicate between two collectivistic cultures

There is a prevalent notion regarding divergence in the extent of ethnocentrism and the intercultural willingness to communicate across cultures. Given this cultural divergence, research is replete with comparative studies of ethnocentrism and the intercultural willingness to communicate between individualistic and collectivistic cultures. However, to our knowledge, a comparison of these crucial cultural tendencies within and their consequences for collectivistic cultures has been overlooked. Thus, this study provides a cross-cultural comparison of ethnocentrism and the intercultural willingness to communicate among university students from two collectivist cultures, i.e., Pakistan and China. The researchers employed a cross-sectional design. A sample of 775 students was collected using a survey technique. The findings show that Pakistani students are more ethnocentric and have a lower intercultural willingness to communicate than Chinese students. Moreover, males were found to be more ethnocentric and less willing to communicate in intercultural settings than females in both countries. These findings validate the notion of ethnocentrism divergence across collectivistic countries and its influence on the intercultural willingness to communicate. Additionally, they demonstrate the role of demographic attributes in evolving ethnocentrism and the intercultural willingness to communicate. Accordingly, these findings also confirm the ecological assumption that contextual factors, such as demographic attributes (e.g., past interactions with foreigners), influence communication schemas. Therefore, concerning its management, these findings suggest that increased people-to-people interactions between the two focal countries can better foster their mutual understanding to reap an increased harvest of the fruits of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Cure-all or curse? A meta-regression on the effect of tourism development on poverty alleviation

The purpose of this study is to synthesize the overall effect size of tourism on poverty alleviation and to unveil underlying factors explaining the heterogeneity of this effect size across estimates. Using a rigorous meta-analysis based on 298 estimates extracted from 33 studies, we calibrate a combined effect size of −0.14 with a 95% confidence interval of [-0.23, −0.05], indicating that tourism moderately reduces poverty. A meta-regression demonstrates that the effect size of the tourism–poverty nexus is susceptible to several factors, such as poverty and tourism measures, focal countries’ development level, and endogeneity treatment. In particular, the results show that use of the Gini coefficient, a popular proxy for the poverty gap, can unexpectedly underestimate the negative effect size. Moreover, funnel plot and Galbraith plot demonstrate that researchers are apt to report a positive tourism–poverty nexus in the literature. Lastly, research and policy implications are provided.

Advancing climate services in South Asia

Many communities in South Asia are highly exposed and vulnerable to weather and climate hazards, and climate services play an important role in managing present and future climate risks. Here we take stock of ongoing climate service activities under the Asia Regional Resilience to a Changing Climate (ARRCC) Met Office Partnership programme. ARRCC aims to strengthen climate resilience in South Asia through co-producing weather and climate services, building institutional capacities, and enhancing coordination across the region and in focal countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. We identify what is working well and challenges that remain in the provision and uptake of climate services, focusing on examples of applying seasonal forecasts, sea-level rise projections, and extreme rainfall information for hydropower decisions. We demonstrate the value of building equitable and sustainable partnerships, enhancing knowledge sharing, strengthening evaluation, and approaches that combine model information within a decision-centred framework. Based on experiences in ARRCC, we find that climate information alone is often insufficient to meet decision-maker needs, and discuss the role for new climate impact services that integrate climate information with knowledge and tools on climate impacts and vulnerabilities.

Future of Accounting Education, Comparative Review of Divergent Issues in Accounting Education: Evidence from Five Focal Countries

Future of Accounting Education, Comparative Review of Divergent Issues in Accounting Education: Evidence from Five Focal Countries

Sličnosti i razlike u praksi upravljanja ljudskim resursima u podružnicama kompanija u stranom vlasništvu u postsovjetskom regionu u poređenju sa državama Centralne i Istočne Evrope

The purpose of this study is to determine interrelations between the characteristics of HRM in local subsidiaries in six focal countries in the light of different organizational variables: year of establishment, sector of MNC, mode of entry and origin of MNCs in selected post-Soviet counties in comparison to Central and Eastern European countries. We profile the HRM practices of almost 234 foreign owned subsidiaries located in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Hungary, Russia, Slovakia and Poland. Using descriptive statistics, we present the general characteristics of the sample and then we use bivariate statistical analysis to test our hypotheses relating to the impact of different factors on the HR practice mix implemented in the subsidiaries of MNCs covered in our survey. The results support a contention that multinational companies following different HR management practices/approaches due to institutional histories. For example, in post-Soviet countries, HR departments have more centralized decision-making with tight control and the number of expatriates is lower when compared to the practices of firms in the CEE region.

Determinants and Cross-National Moderators of Wearable Health Tracker Adoption: A Meta-Analysis

Wearable health trackers improve people’s health management and thus are beneficial for social sustainability. Many prior studies have contributed to the knowledge on the determinants of wearable health tracker adoption. However, these studies vary remarkably in focal determinants and countries of data collection, leading to a call for a structured and quantitative review on what determinants are generally important, and whether and how their effects on adoption vary across countries. Therefore, this study performed the first meta-analysis on the determinants and cross-national moderators of wearable health tracker adoption. This meta-analysis accumulated 319 correlations between nine determinants and adoption from 59 prior studies in 18 countries/areas. The meta-analytic average effects of the determinants revealed the generalized effect and the relative importance of each determinant. For example, technological characteristics generally had stronger positive correlations with adoption than consumer characteristics, except for privacy risk. Second, drawing on institutional theory, it was observed that cross-national characteristics regarding socioeconomic status, regulative systems, and cultures could moderate the effects of the determinants on adoption. For instance, the growth rate of gross domestic product decreased the effect of innovativeness on adoption, while regulatory quality and control of corruption could increase this effect.

China and New Middle East

ABSTRACT A New Middle East is emerging, which is shaped by the result of geo-strategic competitions in the region among key state actors. The power structure of the new Middle East can be summarized as a weakened and divided Arab world facing more powerful non-Arab actors, which has conditioned the emergence of three significant camps in the region. Major regional state actors and some sub-state armed actors are playing an increasing role in the geo-strategic competitions in the focal point countries of Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, and Libya. China has important interests in the Middle East, and key elements of its policy are taking shape. Institutional mechanisms of cooperation have been created and a network of partnerships with some regional countries has been established. The Belt and Road Initiative remains the key framework for China’s cooperation with the region.

U.S. Foreign Policy Priorities for Post-Soviet Countries during the Biden Administration

The article identifies Washington’s updated priorities on the way of implementing its policy towards the post-Soviet space. It analyzes the approaches of the United States to the focal post-Soviet countries that is Georgia and Ukraine, providing the arguments for U.S. ongoing interest towards both countries, investigates the ways and means used by Washington on the way of their mutual rapprochement. The unprecedented level of support provided by Washington to Georgia and Ukraine is manifested in full by the examples of laws, bills and resolutions proposed by the US 115th-117th Congress. At the same time the cooperation of these countries with NATO is lifting up to the extreme: the Alliance is doing everything possible to maximize rapprochement with these countries, but this is not enough for the fulfilling the main tasks NATO has before it on the way of implementing its post-Soviet policy. Thus the updating of Washington's approaches to its priorities concerning politics towards post-Soviet states can mainly be explained by the fierce international competition for global influence that could be considered as getting access to the sea routes as well as a possibility for creating convenient logistics. That is why the U.S. poli cу towards post-Soviet states would be much more proactive as a whole and towards their focal countries – Georgia and Ukraine in particular.

COVID-19 Pandemic with Human Mobility Across Countries

This study develops a holistic view of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) spread worldwide through a spatial–temporal model with network dynamics. By using a unique human mobility dataset containing 547 166 flights with a total capacity of 101 455 913 passengers from January 22 to April 24, 2020, we analyze the epidemic correlations across 22 countries in six continents and particularly the changes in such correlations before and after implementing the international travel restriction policies targeting different countries. Results show that policymakers should move away from the previous practices that focus only on restricting hotspot areas with high infection rates. Instead, they should develop a new holistic view of global human mobility to impose the international movement restriction. The study further highlights potential correlations between international human mobility and focal countries’ epidemic situations in the global network of COVID-19 pandemic.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s40305-020-00317-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health in Ethiopia and Rwanda: A Qualitative Exploration of the Role of Social Norms

This article seeks to address the dearth of evidence on early adolescent understandings and experiences of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) in Ethiopia and Rwanda, drawing on a multisite qualitative research study with 10- to 12-year-old and 14- to 15-year-old male and female adolescents and a range of adult participants. The article is informed by a conceptual framework that draws on Amartya Sen’s capability approach, which calls for investments in a broad set of assets that expand individuals’ capacity to “be” and to “do.” Using SRH as a focal lens, the article considers the role played by gendered social norms in adolescents’ experiences of SRH-related understandings and experiences. Three key interrelated gender themes emerge from our thematic analyses of qualitative evidence generated by our multimethods approach: puberty transitions, sexuality, and victim blaming. In our analyses, we pay attention to diversity (e.g., age, gender, place of residence) among adolescents within and across the two focal countries and consider how discriminatory gendered social norms play a role in hindering the effective uptake of expanding health services. We conclude by emphasizing the need for program designers and implementers to address the role of underlying social norms in a more strategic and context-specific way to help young people navigate their sexual and reproductive lives.