Practical Issues Research Articles

Introduction to the special issue of technoscientific practices of music: critical implications of new technologies

This special issue, emerging from a symposium organised in Helsinki in November 2022, brings together contributions from a group of scholars, exploring the technoscientific practices of music and the critical implications of new technologies. The authors investigate the complex and evolving relationship between human creativity and advanced computational technologies, addressing the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies on creative autonomy, ethical considerations in data and cultural appropriation, and the sustainability of technological consumption. The authors advocate for inclusive and responsible approaches to technology design that enhance human-machine collaboration while maintaining ethical standards. This introduction provides the context and motivation for the issue, outlining the contribution of each article.

Priority rule-based heuristics for distributed multi-project scheduling considering global resource failures

In fields such as construction engineering, maintenance services, and globalized manufacturing, enterprises widely adopt a distributed management mode to coordinate and manage multiple projects sharing global resources. Under this management mode, the distributed resource-constrained multi-project scheduling problem (DRCMPSP) has gradually become a core issue in both project management practices and academic research. This article investigates the intricacies of global resource uncertainty within the DRCMPSP framework, meticulously portraying resource failures through a scenario-oriented approach. With the aim of obtaining a high-quality baseline schedule and adeptly countering the consequences of global resource failures, a comprehensive two-phase DRCMPSP planning-repairing model is established. Additionally, a heuristic algorithm, grounded in a Graded Scoring Rule (GSR) and Repairing Graded Scoring Rule (RGSR), is proposed to solve the model. Extensive simulation experiments carried out on the MPSPLIB problem library demonstrate that the GSR/RGSR excels in handling large-scale instances. As global resource conflicts increase, the competition among projects for resources intensifies, and the utilization of GSR/RGSR proves to be significantly more effective in mitigating project delays and reducing stability costs in comparison to other rules. Furthermore, the GSR/RGSR demonstrates remarkable adaptability to variations in problem size and resource conflict intensity, delivering more consistent and dependable optimization outcomes.

Protection of the Property Relationships in the Banking Sector: Civil-Law, Criminal-Law and Criminological Aspects

Introduction. The role of the banking sector in the modern economy is difficult to overestimate. The banking system transforms savings into investments, manages the payment system, and is a liaison between the citizens and the agroindustrial, industrial and trade sectors. Therefore, the state policy of the Russian Federation aims at protecting the banking system from property infringements using the entire range of legal measures (civil-law, criminal-law, criminological, etc.). However, up till now, the system of measures aimed at efficient prevention, repression, prosecution of the above crimes and restoration of the disrupted social relationships has not been developed. The norms of the Russian Federation criminal law referring to liability for the larceny of non-cash funds have significant shortcomings in their content and legislative technique. Therefore, there arises a need to study the problems of counteracting the socially dangerous acts committed in the banking sector. The aim of the research is to analyse the status quo and trends of larceny in the banking sector and to develop a package of civil-law, criminal-law and criminological measures to protect the property interests of the credit institutions and citizens.Materials and Methods. The research was carried out using both the general scientific methods (analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction) and specific scientific methods of cognition (statistical and sociological survey, content analysis, etc.). The reports, summarised results of law practices, materials of the civil- and criminal-law cases, sentences and court decisions were studied by means of the document analysis method. The modeling method made it possible to formulate the proposals on improving the legislation in the studied field.Results. The status quo and dynamics of larceny in the banking sector have been analysed, typical schemes and methods of committing the above mentioned criminal infringement have been identified, problems in prevention, as well as in the criminal and civil classification of such socially dangerous acts have been distinguished. Measures to improve the criminal law in counteracting the larceny in the banking sector have been proposed, recommendations for resolving the debatable issues of law enforcement practices have been formulated and ways to improve the efficiency of preventive measures have been outlined.Discussion and Conclusion. The banking system plays a key role in the modern economy, therefore one of the priorities of the Russian Federation state policy is protection of the banking sector from the criminal threats using the entire range of legal measures. The conclusions formulated as a result of the research are intended to supplement and extend the theoretical knowledge basis on the features of larceny in the banking sector, the causes and conditions emanating it. The authors have presented the proposals and recommendations aimed at the comprehensive protection of the property interests of the citizens and credit institutions by means of the civil-law, criminal-law and criminological measures.

A Systematic Review of the Existing Evidence on Early Year Interventions for Trauma and Violence Prevention.

Exposure to violence in early childhood is considered a public health issue and is a significant predictor of becoming a victim or perpetrator of violence later in life. There has been a significant increase in violence intervention and prevention programs that are available for children and young people; however, there are few evidence-based interventions for younger children. This review systematically explores the existing impact evidence for available intervention and prevention programs targeted at young children (ages 3-8) across the United States and United Kingdom. It also explores the feasibility and methodological issues faced with school-based prevention work. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, six electronic databases were systematically searched. Of the initial 766 articles, 13 met the final inclusion criteria. The findings showed that early intervention programs for vulnerable children can promote prosocial behaviors and protective factors. Outcomes included improved academic achievement, implementation of Social Emotional Learning-based learning, decrease in violence and criminal justice-related outcomes, and increased resiliency and emotional development among children. Evidence also showed that trauma-informed training for staff and teachers can increase teacher awareness of trauma and the importance of trauma-informed practices. Most programs showed a positive change in children as a result of early intervention programs. We discuss important issues for policy and practice in early years teaching, particularly for high-risk populations, and the importance of trauma-informed practices in the long-term, public health approach to violence prevention and reduction. We also highlight important areas for future research on violence prevention programs.

Project Management Using Critical Path Method (CPM) and Project Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)

Project delivery within the established time line and project cost is one of the persistent issues in current project management practices. This work therefore aimed at assessing the appropriateness of Project Evaluation Review Technique and Critical Path Method in project management with a case study of a UNN lecture hall construction. Consequently, the research establishes the impact of these quantitative operations research tools on the efficient project management. Both of these project management techniques were explained and used in relation to the data that was obtained from the lecture hall construction project manager, concerning the project activities and the time taken for each of these activities. As indicated by the findings of this study, both the methods were posited to achieve success in project management where by relationship and connectivity of the activities that define a project life cycle persist as the key issues. As such, it was suggested that in view of the project critical activities determined by the CPM and/or PERT analyses, more resources and attention should be directed towards effective management of such activities to avoid the occasion of project delay as well as ensure the successful completion of projects.

Assessing Self-Confidence Levels in EFL Students’ Speaking Performance

This study aims to assess the self-confidence levels of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students in terms of their speaking performance. This study uses a quantitative approach with a quantitative descriptive method. The sample of the study consists of twenty-eight EFL students from the English Language Education study program, at Universitas Negeri Makassar using cluster random sampling. The data collection technique used a questionnaire as an instrument. The data were analyzed using SPSS 25 to find out the frequency and percentage distributions and to identify common patterns in self-confidence levels. Additionally, the mean score is calculated to provide a quantitative measure of the overall self-confidence among the respondents. The findings of the data analysis revealed that the level of EFL students’ self-confidence in speaking performance is at a high enough level with a score of 76.51. As a result, this study highlights the importance of self-confidence issues in EFL teaching practices and suggests that fostering a supportive learning environment could enhance students’ speaking performance and overall language proficiency.

Responsible but powerless: staff qualitative perspectives on cheating in higher education

Teaching staff play a pivotal role in the prevention, detection and management of cheating in higher education. They enact curriculum and assessment design strategies, identify and substantiate suspected cases, and are positioned by many as being on the ‘front line’ of a battle that threatens to undermine the integrity of higher education. Against this backdrop, the experiences of teaching staff with contract cheating were investigated by a large-scale Australian survey across eight universities. This paper reports on the qualitative findings from the survey’s only open-text question: “Is there anything else you would like to tell us?”. Of the 1,147 survey respondents, 315 (27.5%) completed this item. Respondents most commonly described contract cheating as a systemic problem, symptomatic of an increasingly commercialised higher education sector. Staff narratives revealed their distancing from, and powerlessness within, their universities, yet clear feelings of responsibility for a problem they struggle to address. Responses did not echo much of the existing literature in reflecting the construct of integrity as a battle between staff and students, but instead framed cheating as an unfortunate, ancillary issue of transactional teaching and assessment practices. This data illustrates a need to re-centre the educative role of teachers when designing institutional strategies that address contract cheating.

EFFECTIVENESS OF RISK MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE ATTRIBUTES IN MITIGATING EARNINGS MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES IN NIGERIA

Recently, there has been a lot of debate on the issues of earnings management practices. Most of these arguments have been confirmed by past studies in developed economies, where their regulations and institutional settings of corporate governance varied from those of emerging markets. Accordingly, corporate governance best practice has been considered an effective monitoring mechanism for strengthening the credibility and reliability of financial reporting. This study examines the effectiveness of risk management committee (RMC) attributes in mitigating earnings management (EM) practices in Nigeria. The study used a sample of 365 firm-year observations of listed non-financial companies from 2018 to 2022. Driscoll and Kraay’s fixed effect standard error regression model was used to test the hypotheses. The study finds that RMC size and expertise have a negative effect on both AEM and REM. However, RMC independence is found to negative effect on REM only. Moreover, additional test validates that RMC scores (effectiveness) are significantly associated with lower EM practices. Our results are robust under alternative regression and measurements for endogeneity. The findings provide enormous insight to regulators, policymakers, and investors on the ongoing debate surrounding the effectiveness of the RMC attributes in mitigating EM practices, and the effectiveness of the revised NCCG 2018. Besides, the findings will provide important intuition to shareholders, financial analysts, and academia about the effective role of stand-alone RMC.

Ionically crosslinked Sodium alginate – Galactoxyloglucan hydrogel beads as a controlled release system for sustainable urea delivery

The prolonged usage of chemical fertilizers often causes deleterious effects on the environment, and it remains an alarming issue in agricultural practices. Smart delivery of fertilizers achieved by hydrogels proved their efficiency in reducing risk in action. In this study, we investigated the optimization of urea-encapsulated hydrogel formulations and evaluated their physical and chemical attributes for agricultural applications. The proposed hydrogel formulation consists of ionically crosslinked two promising plant biopolymers (galactoxyloglucan and sodium alginate) which are specifically developed for the controlled release of urea fertilizer. The FT-IR analysis of the hydrogel beads confirmed the presence of biopolymer functional groups and urea. XRD analysis indicated the amorphous nature of the biopolymers. TGA revealed a thermal stability of up to 350°C. SEM images showed the porous structure of the hydrogel beads. To investigate the controlled release of urea, two kinetic models were employed: Korsmeyer-Peppas and Peppas-Sahlin. The results indicated a controlled release mechanism. The hydrogel beads demonstrated excellent water retention properties, maintaining soil moisture for up to 16 days. Additionally, degradability results demonstrated that in the soil environment, the hydrogel beads were degraded completely in 21 days. Therefore, we are confident that the formulated hydrogel bead exhibits eco-friendly and bio-compatible characteristics, which potentially mitigate the risks associated with urea fertilizers.

Montesquieu’s Thought on Rule of Law-Set Issues for Political Practice in Vietnam

Building the State with the objective: prosperous people, strong nation, democracy, justice and civilization has set an indispensable requirement of the comprehensive renovation of the apparatus of Vietnam in the direction of a modern state, which is the actual reason why we choose the political thought of Montesquieu as a theoretical basis for this article. The purpose of the article is to assess the historical significance, epochal value, positive contributions of the doctrine to theory and practice of mankind through a generalization of Montesquieu's political thought, thereby we draw lessons and the necessity of creatively applying the doctrine to the construction of the rule-of-law state in Vietnam. To achieve this purpose, we structure the content of the article into two sections: In the first section, the article briefly outlines basic contents of the thought that is directly related to our recommendation; In the second section, from the theoretical and practical values of the doctrine, we recommend directional solutions that we believe that they will bring practical effects to the renewal of the political system in Vietnam. With the above content, in the article, we use methods such as: qualitative analysis method, generalization and systemization method, historical - logical method, data synthesis method.

Epilogue: towards a more comprehensive understanding of inclusive and special education

ABSTRACT This epilogue to the special issue entitled ‘The Nordic experience of inclusive and special education’ reflects on the eight articles included in the special issue. The analysis is centred around two specific questions 1) can distinctive Nordic conceptualisationHs of inclusive and special education be identified? 2) what insights can be gained from this special issue for research and practice in the field of inclusive and special education beyond the Nordic community? The findings indicate a degree of consistency across the Nordic countries, yet also highlight significant variations at the national, regional, and local levels, which contrasts with the perception of a distinctive Nordic model of inclusive and special education. The greatest commonality is that all Nordic countries (like other European countries) are striving to advance inclusive education and still have a lengthy journey ahead of them in reducing educational inequalities. However, the definition of special educational needs, the implementation of inclusive and special education, and the professionalisation of teachers, could not be characterised by a universal, uniform Nordic approach.

Спорные вопросы судебной практики по делам об оспаривании ненормативных правовых актов

The subject of consideration is the procedure for challenging non-normative legal acts. The author focuses on a pressing issue for judicial practice in the consideration of administrative legal disputes: aspects of determining whether Chapter 24 of the Arbitration Procedure Code of the Russian Federation is applicable in a particular case. The article reflects the most controversial procedural issues. Attention is drawn to the fact that the courts are obliged in each specific case to evaluate the requirements set out in the petition part, which in form can be like challenging non-normative legal acts, while in essence they are a civil dispute. Related to this problem is the question of whether the chosen method of protecting the violated right is appropriate. Finally, in judicial practice the problem of qualifying contested documents as normative legal acts, non-normative legal acts, or as documents not subject to judicial challenge remains relevant.

Holistic Information Security Management and Compliance Framework

The growing complexity of cybersecurity threats demands a robust framework that integrates various security domains, addressing the issue of disjointed security practices that fail to comply with evolving regulations. This paper introduces a novel information security management and compliance framework that integrates operational, technical, human, and physical security domains. The aim of this framework is to enable organizations to identify the requisite information security controls and legislative compliance needs effectively. Unlike traditional approaches, this framework systematically aligns with both current and emerging security legislation, including GDPR, NIS2 Directive, and the Artificial Intelligence Act, offering a unified approach to comprehensive security management. The experimental methodology involves evaluating the framework against five distinct risk scenarios to test its effectiveness and adaptability. Each scenario assesses the framework’s capability to manage and ensure compliance with specific security controls and regulations. The results demonstrate that the proposed framework not only meets compliance requirements across multiple security domains but also provides a scalable solution for adapting to new threats and regulations efficiently. These findings represent a significant step forward in holistic security management, indicating that organizations can enhance their security posture and legislative compliance simultaneously through this integrated framework.

Device-Performance-Driven Heterogeneous Multiparty Learning for Arbitrary Images.

Multiparty learning (MPL) is an emerging framework for privacy-preserving collaborative learning. It enables individual devices to build a knowledge-shared model and remaining sensitive data locally. However, with the continuous increase of users, the heterogeneity gap between data and equipment becomes wider, which leads to the problem of model heterogeneous. In this article, we concentrate on two practical issues: data heterogeneous problem and model heterogeneous problem, and propose a novel personal MPL method named device-performance-driven heterogeneous MPL (HMPL). First, facing the data heterogeneous problem, we focus on the problem of various devices holding arbitrary data sizes. We introduce a heterogeneous feature-map integration method to adaptively unify the various feature maps. Meanwhile, to handle the model heterogeneous problem, as it is essential to customize models for adapting to the various computing performances, we propose a layer-wise model generation and aggregation strategy. The method can generate customized models based on the device's performance. In the aggregation process, the shared model parameters are updated through the rules that the network layers with the same semantics are aggregated with each other. Extensive experiments are conducted on four popular datasets, and the result demonstrates that our proposed framework outperforms the state of the art (SOTA).

The impact of generative AI on the scholarly communications of early career researchers: An international, multi‐disciplinary study

AbstractThe Harbingers study of early career researchers (ECRs), their work life and scholarly communications, began by studying generational—Millennial—change (c.2016), then moved to pandemic change (c.2020) and is now investigating another potential agent of change: artificial intelligence (2024–). We report here on a substantial scoping pilot study that looks at the impact of AI on the scholarly communications of international ECRs and, extends this to the arts and humanities. It aims to fill the knowledge gap concerning ECRs whose millennial mindset may render them especially open to change and, as the research workhorses they are, very much in the frontline. The data was collected via in‐depth interviews in China, Malaysia, Poland, Portugal, Spain and (selectively) the United Kingdom/United States. The data show ECRs to be thinking, probing and, in some cases, experimenting with AI. There was a general acceptance that AI will be responsible for the growth of low‐quality scientific papers, which could lead to a decline in the quality of research. Scholarly integrity and ethics were a big concern with issues of authenticity, plagiarism, copyright and poor citation practices raised. The most widespread belief was AI would prove to be a transformative force and would exacerbate existing scholarly disparities and inequalities.

Improving the Discipline Character of Students Through the Implementation of the Students’ Handbook

The issue of disciplinary practices among students in Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) is an important topic that needs to be examined. The phenomenon of student behavior that shows a lack of discipline or is far from the values of discipline has affected the teaching and learning process in pesantren. This study aims to describe the implementation of the student handbook as an effort to improve student discipline. This research uses a qualitative method with a case study approach, involving data collection techniques through interviews, observations, and documentation. The focus of this research is to understand how the student handbook is implemented and its effectiveness in improving student discipline. The implementation model used is the MUNASIR model, which includes Modelling, Universal, Natural, Action, Socialization, Internalization, Reward, and Punishment. The results of the study show that the implementation of the student handbook with the MUNASIR model is effective in improving student discipline in pesantren. Through this approach, students become more aware of the importance of discipline and show improved disciplined behavior in their daily lives at the pesantren. This study contributes to the development of more systematic and structured strategies for improving student discipline in Islamic boarding schools

Иджтихад и таклид в деятельности дагестанских реформаторов первой трети XX в. – мнения «за» и «против»

The discussions about Ijtihad and taklid in Dagestan were not abstract in nature: the Ijtihad instru-ment remained relevant throughout the history of Islamic lawmaking. The discussions were con-ducted with varying degrees of intensity during several historical epochs: the pre-colonial, colonial and early Soviet periods and continued, after some interruption, in connection with the processes of re-Islamization in the 90s of the 20th century. The issues of theory were closely related to the practi-cal application of the norms of Islamic law. Emerging challenges in the sphere of socio-political rela-tions required the solution of new issues in Muslim normative practices. All discussions of taklid and Ijtihad in Dagestan were based, first of all, not on the opposition of the two methods, but rather were focused on the permissibility of different levels of Ijtihad within the Shafi'i legal tradition. For Dagestani reformers, Ijtihad served as a means of adapting the Shafi'i legal system to the Russian reality in the late imperial and early Soviet periods.

Integration of Cybersecurity, Usability, and Human-Computer Interaction for Securing Energy Management Systems

The energy sector is a critical contributor to the growth and development of any country’s economy. However, ensuring robust cybersecurity within the context of smart energy services presents persistent usability challenges in an increasingly digital environment. This study explores the intersection of human-computer interaction (HCI), cybersecurity, and usability to identify and address issues that impact the overall security of smart energy management systems. By analyzing the complex relationships between users and security protocols, this research aims to enhance the security framework, promote better user adherence, and improve system usability. The study focuses on three primary objectives: (1) identifying the most prevalent usability issues in current cybersecurity practices; (2) examining the relationship between HCI and user compliance with security measures; and (3) proposing strategies to improve cybersecurity usability by leveraging HCI principles. Hybrid approaches utilizing artificial intelligence facilitate empirical analysis and framework evaluation. Additionally, a comparative study with six existing models has been conducted. By envisioning a future where security measures not only ensure enhanced protection but also integrate seamlessly into user experiences, this approach seeks to provide valuable insights into ongoing cybersecurity discussions and contribute to a more resilient security landscape against evolving digital threats.

Intelligent machines as information and communication technology and their influence on sustainable marketing practices for beneficial impact on business performance: A conceptual framework

Intelligent machines are the machines or devices that make use of artificial intelligence and robotics technologies. It has the ability to accomplish a specific task in the presence of uncertainty and variability in its operating environment. Certainly, it can be used to support information and communication technology to streamline the creation, collection, processing, transmission, and storage of information for sustainable marketing practices. The flawless application of sustainable marketing practices results in beneficial impacts on business performance. In fact, the issue of unsustainable marketing practices can be effectively managed by intelligent machines. Therefore, this study is undertaken to uncover how intelligent machines can influence sustainable marketing practices for beneficial impacts on retailers’ business performance by proposing a unique conceptual framework. The theoretical contributions discuss two techno-sustainable marketing applications. First, intelligent machines improve incremental innovation. This allows retailers to balance technology risk with sustainable marketing and lower the cost of innovations. Second, intelligent machines increase business efficiency by automating sustainable marketing practices. This allows retailers to efficiently manage the inventory, improve fulfilment efficiency, and optimise stock levels. The managerial implications discuss two goals of sustainable marketing practices. First, it can attract sustainability-minded customers who support the retail business for their own well-being. Second, it builds a strong sustainable brand reputation that can lower the price sensitivity.

Sulat Pasa: Its Implications to Local Divorce Practice among the Sama of Tawi-Tawi, Philippines

This study investigates Tawi-Tawi’s sulat pasa (traditional divorce paper), particularly as it relates to Sama divorcees, and if it provides a workable way to end their marriage. Through qualitative-descriptive research, it reviews the characteristics of local divorce documents, the processes involved in getting them, and their effects and implications on local divorce practice. With the institutionalization of the Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines, Muslim Filipinos should follow the divorce procedures laid in it. However, this legal hybridity is seen as inadequate because it looks insensitive to the long-standing customs and beliefs of the Muslims, jeopardizing their autonomy and self-instituting cultural traditions about divorce. Furthermore, because divorce conflicts and their resolution have been entirely integrated into the Philippine judicial system, the existing system does not provide speedy resolution to the satisfaction of the Muslim divorcee/s. Despite the implementation of the Muslim Code, the study found that Sama in Tawi-Tawi continued to present and bring their divorce cases to the traditional authority for enforcement. Given the Code’s lax implementation, local divorce cases outside Shari’ah court proceedings remain critical. The study proposes a measure through direct parliament action, such as adding a provision to the existing Bangsamoro Organic Law once the Muslim Code is upgraded, and, in the interim, this can be done through collaboration with the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, Ministry of Indigenous Peoples Affairs, local religious and elective officials, and women’s organizations to institutionalize the traditional divorce paper as also legal, and binding taking into account issues of accessibility, affordability, practicability, and feasibility.