Perspective Of Citizens Research Articles

Exploring the Challenges and Opportunities: A Multifaceted Study on the Experiences of Senior Citizen Migrants in Urban Areas of Punjab, Pakistan

This comprehensive research explores the urban experiences of elderly migrants in Punjab, Pakistan, providing insights into the obstacles and possibilities they face. The study employs a comprehensive approach to investigate various aspects of the mobility of elderly individuals, taking into account social, economic, and cultural factors. Its objective is to uncover the challenges that seniors encounter when adjusting to urban life while acknowledging the potential benefits and opportunities associated with their relocation. This is achieved by examining the perspectives of senior citizens. The research utilized qualitative research design and case study methodology for data collection. The results reveal that senior citizen migrants in urban Punjab face significant obstacles, including social isolation, limited healthcare access, and financial difficulties. Navigating unfamiliar urban environments, these individuals often face with social isolation, leading to a sense of alienation. The challenges are compounded by restricted access to high-quality healthcare, impacting their overall well-being. Furthermore, in urban settings, traditional support systems may weaken, potentially affecting financial stability and exacerbating economic constraints. The insights from the study can guide the development of policies and interventions aimed at improving the welfare of this demographic in urban areas.

RECYCLING OF OIL USED FOR THE PRODUCTION OF HANDMADE LIQUID SOAP AS AN EXPERIMENTAL ACTIVITY IN CHEMISTRY

This article aims to carry out a reflective analysis on the production process of homemade liquid soap from the waste of cooking oil generated. Every day, it becomes more evident to the population how much the commitment we must have with the care of the environment is necessary, as there are a number of problems that oppose the existence of a healthy environment, among these are those arising from the practices of everyday life such as the poor disposal of cooking oil after use, whose final destination, in most cases, are sink drains, causing their clogging, the gullets of large urban centers, damaging the bodies of water and causing in environmental problems such as pollution of the aquatic environment and economic losses such as the increase in the cost of processes in effluent treatment plants. Through this practical-experimental activity, it is understood that teaching Chemistry through experimentation develops logical reasoning, stimulates thinking, creativity and the ability to resolve situations related to the content, which will be linked to the reality of everyday life there. students, from a formative and citizen perspective. In addition, making use of an approach that involves current issues and content of general interest, it helps the student to understand Chemistry in its daily applications, awakening him to value the sciences and motivating him to search for new knowledge.

Learning through participation processes

Abstract. The Site Selection Act (StandAG) defines the selection of a repository as a learning process (lernendes Verfahren) in § 1. Learning is also an essential aspect of transdisciplinary (td) research projects – apart from capacity and network building in addition to supporting change. Transdisciplinarity means that different academic disciplines (interdisciplinary) work together with practitioners (e.g. citizens, NGOs and government officials) to integrate the knowledge, interests and values from various sources to solve a real-world problem (Klein et al., 2001). Joint working involves a functional dynamic collaboration of disciplines and societal actors, starting with problem framing (co-design) through problem analysis and exploring the impact at the end (co-production). Learning can take place during all phases of the research process and at all levels (i.e. from the individual to the institution). Moreover, how and what is learnt is specific to the project context, topic (e.g. renewable energy) and coincidence of different knowledge types (system, transformation and target knowledge). The Transdisciplinarity Lab (TdLab) carries out the accompanying research in TRANSENS. TRANSENS is one of the few td research projects found internationally in the field of nuclear waste management. The TdLab analyses, amongst other things, the learning that stems from participation activities. Therefore, we would like to identify the manifold learning experiences of stakeholder integration during the site selection procedure, on the one hand, and of td research projects, on the other hand. Taking into account the perspectives of citizens, practitioners and scientists, this interactive workshop seeks to accomplish the following (see Fig. 1): make visible the learning areas from participation processes in the “real world” (practice; e.g. site selection process) and under “laboratory conditions” (research projects; e.g. TRANSENS), identify the transferability of learning areas from science to practice (including limitations), determine useful learning areas from research projects for practice, and identify knowledge gaps in the “real world” for research projects in the future. From the interactive workshop, we expect the identification of key learning areas, their specific relevance for nuclear waste management and the identification of topics for future research.

How to successfully implement population health management: a scoping review

BackgroundDespite international examples, it is unclear for multisector initiatives which want to sustainably improve the health of a population how to implement Population Health Management (PHM) and where to start. Hence, the main purpose of this research is to explore current literature about the implementation of PHM and organising existing knowledge to better understand what needs to happen on which level to achieve which outcome.MethodsA scoping review was performed within scientific literature. The data was structured using Context-Mechanism-Outcome, the Rainbow model of integrated care and six elements of PHM as theoretical concepts.ResultsThe literature search generated 531 articles, of which 11 were included. Structuring the data according to these three concepts provided a framework that shows the skewed distribution of items that influence the implementation of PHM. It highlights that there is a clear focus on normative integration on the organisational level in ‘accountable regional organisation’. There is less focus on the normative integration of ‘cross domain business model’, ‘integrated data infrastructure’, and ‘population health data analytics’, and overall the perspective of citizen and professionals, indicating possible gaps of consideration.ConclusionsA first step is taken towards a practical guide to implement PHM by illustrating the depth of the complexity and showing the partial interrelatedness of the items. Comparing the results with existing literature, the analysis showed certain gaps that are not addressed in practice, but should be according to other frameworks. If initiators follow the current path in literature, they may be missing out on some important components to achieve proper implementation of PHM.

Exploring Public Preference and Willingness to Pay for the Ecosystem Benefits of Urban Green Infrastructure: Evidence from a Discrete Choice Experiment of Pilot Sponge Cities in China

Global extreme weather events such as rainstorms, floods and droughts have become increasingly frequent, posing significant threats to human beings worldwide. Green infrastructure has been implemented for decades to mitigate these issues. However, its widespread adoption in cities is still limited. A lack of sustainable funds was viewed as a great challenge for its widespread implementation. Many developed countries have practiced public participation and stormwater fee systems to mitigate these challenges. To assess the value that citizens place on the ecosystem benefits provided by urban green infrastructure is of great importance for increasing public participation and their willingness to pay. Thus, this paper aims to explore public preferences and their willingness to pay for the benefits of green infrastructure to support the construction and maintenance costs. A discrete choice experiment method was employed and five attributes were selected: reduction in run-off pollutant, degrees of ponding, plant type, planting aesthetics and the amount of payment. The Ngene1.2 software was used to generate a questionnaire, and data collected from the case cities, Xianyang and Xi’xian New Area, China, were analyzed using the mixed logit model. The results revealed that in Xianyang, the willingness to pay was not significantly associated with cognition, while in Xi’xian New Area, willingness to pay was positively related to cognition. Respondents exhibited a significant willingness to pay for green infrastructure to achieve reduced degrees of ponding in both cities, as well as improving planting aesthetics in Xi’xian New Area. Based on these findings, we conclude that government decision-makers should prioritize disseminating knowledge about green infrastructure to residents before implementing such projects in communities. The findings provide valuable insights into the potential economic value of urban green infrastructure and can guide policymakers and urban planners in making decisions regarding the design, implementation, and management of green infrastructure. This study contributes to the understanding of citizen perspectives and the economic evaluation of ecosystem services provided by urban green infrastructure.

Smart cities - spatial planning and disaster risk reduction of Pune city, India

Cities are becoming the preferred choice of populations to reside in due to the opportunities they offer. While the concentration of populations is increasing in the cities, there is an immediate need to equip the cities for efficient functioning and providing safety and security. The unplanned urbanization of cities is adding vulnerability, especially to the spatially relevant hazards such as earthquakes and floods. Initiatives such as the Smart City Mission support cities with investments to improve the quality of life for people and enhance the efficiency of the civic systems by integrating infrastructure and technology. However, the top down approach to decision making, especially in spatial planning, leaves out the perspective of citizens. This study, hence, attempts to gather the perception of citizens on smart city initiatives and disaster risk reduction (DRR) through a questionnaire survey in the smart city of Pune, India. The objective of this study is to understand how smart city initiatives influence the key spatial planning components for DRR. The study reveals smart city initiatives proposed for the city impacts each spatial planning component. Smart city initiatives may further stress these components, increasing the exposure to disaster risks. Therefore, there is a need for holistic integration in spatial planning for DRR. This study can help in modulating the smart city initiatives for enhancing the safety of the citizens.

Abstracts from the 26th Nordic Congress of Gerontology

This paper is dedicated to the research presented at the 26th Nordic Congress of Gerontology in Odense, Denmark, in June 2022, which was organized by the Danish Gerontological Society and the Danish Society for Geriatrics. The overall topics of the congress were change and continuity. Participants were invited to explore questions on change and continuity from the perspective of ageing and later life within the following congress themes: digitisation and technology; housing, generations and mobility; lifestyle, engagement and transition; education and competences in ageing societies; morbidity, medical treatment and ageing processes; and a good life and a good death. Life is about change and continuity. We experience ourselves and our surroundings differently throughout our lives. For most people, later life is characterized by major transitions, moving towards frailty and multiple losses. But it may also be a part of life with more time to engage in preferred activities, explore new possibilities, and to cope and come to terms with new challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic proved to be a challenge to the world beyond imagination, particularly for frail and vulnerable people and societies. However, it also provided valuable new insights and reminded us of the values in life. We, therefore, also welcomed presentations and discussions on societal perspectives such as citizen perspective, ethnicity, inequality, sustainability and ecology, the pandemic and lockdown. We thank the organizers, scientific committees and all participants for a great congress with high-quality presentations and discussions.

Investigating the attitude and perspectives of Indian citizens toward COVID-19 vaccines: A text analytics study

Background and aimsThe COVID-19 pandemic has created havoc and an unprecedented global health crisis worldwide. In order to minimize the COVID-19 severity, the government of India started its mass vaccination program on January 16, 2021. This study attempts to investigate the attitude, viewpoints, and concerns for different types of COVID-19 vaccines voiced in social media by Indian citizens using text analytics. MethodsThe study applied sentiment and emotion analysis methods on social media posts to uncover the attitude and perspectives of Indian citizens toward COVID-19 vaccines, namely “Covishield” and “Covaxin”. Furthermore, topic modeling was performed to gain insights about issues and concerns associated with different COVID-19 vaccines. ResultsSentiment analysis findings report that the majority of posts related to COVID-19 vaccines posted in social media by Indian citizens were in a neutral tone followed by a positive tone. In addition, findings of emotion analysis highlight that ‘Surprise’ was the noticeable emotion toward “Covaxin”, while ‘Sad’ and ‘Fear’ emotions were related to “Covishield”. Further, topic modeling results show that ‘vaccine effect’, ‘vaccine efficacy’, and ‘government's vaccine action plan’ are the key topics of concern toward both COVID-19 vaccines. ConclusionsThe study recommends that Indian government organizations should identify the citizen's concerns voiced in social media for different types of COVID-19 vaccines and develop a proactive action plan to expedite the vaccination drive. Subsequently, it would help them to improve future vaccination drives.

Divergence and Convergence on Police Transparency: Comparing Officers’ and Citizens’ Preferences on Body-Worn Camera Footage Release

The adoption of body-worn cameras (BWCs) by law enforcement agencies is commonly viewed as a means of enhancing police transparency, holding officers accountable, and building trust with the communities they serve. The effectiveness of BWCs in promoting police transparency, however, is still debatable, with many jurisdictions still lacking clear BWC footage disclosure policies. Following a mixed-method design, this article investigates the perspectives of officers and citizens on police transparency and, more specifically, the divergences and convergences in their expectations regarding BWC footage release. The data were collected from 78 police officers (through interviews and focus groups) and 1,609 citizens from the province of Quebec (through phone surveys). The two groups share the belief that the public release of BWC footage is significant in promoting police transparency. Yet they hold differing views on its use to reach accurate assessments of police interventions. While citizens expressed worries about the integrity of BWC footage, officers appeared more concerned about the potential misunderstanding of events following the release of BWC footage. The variations in expectations between officers and the public highlight the multifaceted nature of police transparency, which should serve to inform future BWC footage disclosure policies.

Pathways to Empowerment as a working method for local social support services.

According to recent legislation, support provided by local authorities in the Netherlands ought to be strengths-based and empower inhabitants to gain control over their lives. This study examined the outcomes, critical elements and working mechanisms of Pathways to Empowerment (PTE), a person-centered, strengths-based intervention, in local social support services provided by a medium size Dutch local authority, from the perspective of citizens needing support. A year after implementation of PTE, semi-structured face-to-face interviews were held with 17 citizens onto their experiences with the provided support with PTE, inquiring their experiences with certain principles of PTE and the changes the support has brought into their lives. The outcomes of support with PTE were: resilience, self-consciousness, positive connections and access to resources and services. According to citizens, 'being there', an empowering approach, listening and taking them seriously, focusing on strengths and qualities, working on naturally occurring resources and made-to-measure support is what makes support with PTE work. Working mechanisms connecting the critical elements with the reported outcomes were: building trust and rapport in the client-professional relationship, stimulating trust in and empowerment of self, stimulating social trust and awareness of naturally occurring resources, as well as support, guidance and mediation. The results of this study can help local authorities to better substantiate their choice for applying strengths-based interventions, like PTE, in local social support services.

Overview of the Monopoly Rights of the Social Security Administering Body (BPJS) from the Perspective of Citizens' Health Protection

The monopoly right to health protection granted to the Social Security Administration Agency (BPJS) in Law no. 24 of 2011 concerning BPJS is an attempt to organize a health insurance program effectively and efficiently. However, this monopoly right also raises several problems, first, institutional problems in the implementation of the national social security system (SJSN) and related to choosing a hospital location that is not in accordance with the wishes of BPJS participants. In this legal research, it has a normative research type with a statutory approach related to the BPJS monopoly right in health protection. The research results show that in order to ensure that the national health insurance program can run effectively, coordinated and integrated efforts are needed between the government, BPJS Health, health service providers, and the community. The government needs to increase the allocation of the health budget, ensure efficient use of funds, and find alternative sources of funding

What diplomats do: US citizen perspectives on the work of public diplomacy

What diplomats do: US citizen perspectives on the work of public diplomacy

E-Government Services Adoption Assessment From the Citizen Perspective in Jordan

Jordanian government has made a commendable effort towards designing and disseminating e-government portals on the web. However, there are certain barriers that have caused a significant deterioration in the e-government development index (EGDI) rank for Jordan in the last few years. The paper aims to understand the influence of the factors relating to e-government adoption to improve upon the trailing factors and move further on the EGDI. This study proposes a research model considering constructs such as relative advantage, perceived trust, computer self-efficacy, perceived awareness, resistance to change on behavioral intention. The data were collected through questionnaire survey. The data were analysed using structural equation modeling (SEM) of AMOS 25.0. The results of the analysis showed that relative advantage, perceived trust, computer self-efficacy and perceived awareness have a positive and significant influence on behavioral intentions whereas resistance to change found to negatively influence the citizens' behavioral intentions to adopt the e-government services.

Automating public administration: citizens’ attitudes towards automated decision-making across Estonia, Sweden, and Germany

ABSTRACT Although algorithms are increasingly used for enabling the automation of tasks in public administration of welfare states, the citizens’ knowledge of, experiences with and attitudes towards automated decision-making (ADM) in public administration are still less known. This article strives to reveal the perspectives of citizens who are increasingly exposed to ADM systems, relying on a comparative analysis of a representative survey conducted in Estonia, Germany, and Sweden. The findings show that there are important differences between the three countries when it comes to awareness, trust, and perceived suitability of ADM in public administration, which map onto historical differences in welfare provisions or so-called welfare regimes.

Criminal law regulation of cyber fraud crimes—from the perspective of citizens’ personal information protection in the era of edge computing

Currently, cloud computing provides users all over the globe with Information and Communication Technology facilities that are utility-oriented. This technology is trying to drive the development of data center design by designing and building them as networks of cloud machines, enabling users to access and run the application from any part of the globe. Cloud computing provides considerable benefits to organizations by providing rapid and adaptable ICT software and hardware systems, allowing them to concentrate on creating innovative business values for the facilities they provide. The right to privacy of big data has acquired new definitions with the continued advancement of cloud computing, and the techniques available to protect citizens’ personal information under administrative law have managed to grow in a multitude. Because of the foregoing, internet fraud is a new type of crime that has emerged over time and is based on network technology. This paper analyzed and studied China’s internet fraud governance capabilities, and made a comprehensive evaluation of them using cloud computing technology and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). This paper discussed personal information security and the improvement of criminal responsibility from the perspective of citizens’ information security and designed and analyzed cases. In addition, this paper also analyzed and studied the ability of network fraud governance in the era of cloud computing. It also carried out a comprehensive evaluation and used the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method to carry out the evaluation. A questionnaire survey was used to survey 100 residents in district X of city Z and district Y of the suburban area. Among the 100 people, almost all of them received scam calls or text messages, accounting for 99%, of which 8 were scammed. Among the people, more than 59.00% of the people expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s Internet fraud satisfaction survey. Therefore, in the process of combating Internet fraud, the government still needs to step up its efforts.

Can Interest Groups Improve Democratic Representation? A Citizen Perspective

ABSTRACT This article aims to examine how citizens evaluate the contribution of interest groups to the functioning of representative democracies, focusing on several dimensions related to political representation and democratic governance. Drawing on an original online survey conducted to a representative sample of the population in Portugal, we investigate the correlates of citizens’ perceptions regarding interest groups, in particular the impact of individual-level factors related to political involvement, partisanship, party closeness and ideology. We find that associational membership and partisan identities positively impact citizens’ views, while higher levels of (perceived) proximity between political parties and groups increasenegative perceptions. Moreover, people displaying greater trust in interest groups are more likely to hold positive views of organised interests. Overall, political features shape citizens’ attitudes towards groups to a great extent, as people anchored to the political system are more prone to support the institutional role of organised interests and to evaluate their contribution to the functioning of democracies more positively.

Персональний податковий менеджмент: теоретичні аспекти та практична реалізація

Abstract. Introduction. In modern economic literature, tax management is considered at three levels: macro-, microand sub-micro levels. Each of the levels has its subjects, object of management, structure, purpose, methods, tasks and tools. State and corporate tax management are actively researched by domestic scientists, while personal tax management is practically unresearched and needs a more thorough study of theoretical and practical aspects. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to determine the theoretical aspects of personal tax management and to study its practical implementation in our country. Results. The authors gave and analyzed the definitions of domestic scientists and proposed a number of clarifications. In particular, consider personal tax management not from the perspective of an individual citizen, but from the perspective of a household. Also, it is proposed to consider as an object not the management of personal income, but the management of the tax burden, which is calculated as the ratio of the amount of taxes paid to the amount of income. Based on the analysis of the definitions of domestic scientists, an own definition was proposed. In addition, a description of the main elements of the personal tax management system was given. Subjects, object, purpose, methods and tools, stages and blocks of personal tax management are defined. The main reasons for insufficient theoretical justification and practical application of personal tax management in Ukraine are described. Conclusions. As a result of the study, the authors came to the conclusion that personal tax management is an integral part of the financial literacy of the population and consists in the application of tax planning and tax optimization methods. The goal of personal tax management is to reduce the tax burden on the household and maximize their net income. Regarding the prospects for the development of personal tax management in Ukraine, taking into account the extremely unfavorable demographic situation, which has worsened even more due to the war and the crisis of the solidarity pension insurance system, it is extremely necessary at the state level to introduce various mechanisms for increasing the level of financial literacy of the population. The state should encourage households (including through tax instruments) to plan their future incomes, retirement by participating in non-state pension and health insurance, as well as effectively manage savings by using financial market instruments.

The role of e-government in reducing corruption and enhancing transparency in the Afghan public sector: a case study

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the role of e-government in reducing corruption and achieving transparency from the perspective of citizens and public servants of the National Statistics and Information Authority in Afghanistan.Design/methodology/approachThis study applies a mixed-method research design to explore whether e-government can combat corruption and increase transparency in the public sector of a developing nation. The data collection involves a survey of (n = 280) citizens and interviews with six National Statistics and Information Authority public servants. Data analysis includes descriptive statistics, Spearman’s correlation for the survey and qualitative content analysis for the interviews.FindingsThe results of this study reveal that e-government distributes and decentralizes power among public servants, reduces corruption and promotes transparency and accountability by reporting corruption through social media, online complaint forms, emails and the 450 toll-free number. In addition, the major factors are identified that reduce corruption through e-government.Research limitations/implicationsThis study proposes a model for using e-government that has implications for designers, developers and policymakers to create user-friendly systems that reduce bureaucracy and physical interactions with public servants while minimizing paper-based systems.Practical implicationsGovernments can reduce corruption among high-ranking public servants by implementing a decentralized system that prevents system manipulation. This involves measures like surveillance, ICT training, process automation, reduced bureaucracy, simplified procedures and real-time customer support.Social implicationsDespite the potential of e-government to reduce monopoly power and intermediaries among low-ranking officials, high-ranking Afghan officials still engage in corrupt practices. Nonetheless, 75% of Afghans believe e-government promotes transparency and accountability and reduces corruption.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study in the Afghan public sector that explores the role of e-government to reduce corruption and achieve transparency.

Identifying the crucial factors of e-government success from the perspective of Australian citizens living with disability using a public value approach

The prevalence of disability across the globe is substantial and is predicted to increase as the population ages. As of 2022, almost one in six citizens in Australia has a disability, with most relying on e-government services to support aspects of their daily living. To cope with the growing service demands, the government is using e-government services as a “default” means to deliver government policy outcomes that create public value for citizens living with disability. It is therefore critical that e-government succeed, as failure to provide adequate services to citizens living with disability can lead to measurable economic and social consequences. This study aims to identify the factors that influence e-government success from the perspective of citizens living with disability, using a public value approach. The study examines twenty cases representing citizens living with disability in Australia, analysed through the ‘lived’ experience of these citizens using e-government.

Everyday governance in areas of contested power: Insights from Mozambique, Myanmar, and Pakistan

SummaryMotivationHow do poor and marginalized people solve problems and claim rights and entitlements in places affected by conflict and where state authority is contested? Understanding such processes is important as the numbers of poor people living in difficult settings grows, yet existing research on governance in conflict largely misses a “citizen's eye” view of these processes.PurposeThe article focuses on “everyday governance” from a citizen's perspective. What do engagements with the multiple state and non‐state actors that prevail in such settings look like? We present insights from longitudinal research in conflict‐affected areas in Mozambique, Myanmar and Pakistan.Methods and approachResearch was undertaken in two phases over the period 2017–2021. Researchers developed an innovative method, “governance diaries,” in which we interviewed the same set of poor and marginalized households over a period of a year, capturing an unfolding citizen's eye view of governance. We subsequently used the same method to include key intermediaries to whom households went with problems.FindingsWe find that in most instances poor and marginalized households did not rely on the state or other formal or external authorities to resolve problems. Mostly, they simply “lived with” those problems, or resolved them through “self‐provision”—mutual aid and community action. When they did go to authorities, they used “governance intermediaries”—actors that connect people with authorities or mediate between households. These intermediaries played a central role in local governance, using their networks and deploying a range of strategies with a focus on local resolution of problems.Policy implicationsThese findings challenge some core assumptions of contemporary development practice. First, development programmes tend to focus on improving state‐run services, rather than engaging with the diversity of how public goods are governed on the ground. Second, policies assume that people can go directly to authorities with their problems, and do not take into account the role that intermediaries play. Finally, the highly diverse networks of governance actors that matter to specific places challenges the common focus on formal systems rather than informal practices.