Positive Short-term Impact Research Articles

A Systematic Review of Omega-3 Fatty Acid Consumption and Cognitive Outcomes in Neurodevelopment.

This systematic review addresses the effects of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids consumption on human neurodevelopment. It evaluates articles published between 2000 and 2022 investigating the cognitive outcomes during the period of neurodevelopment: from fetal development to adolescence. For the purpose of this review the terms LC PUFA and omega-3 fatty acid will be used interchangeably. Data were sourced from several major databases including PubMed (MEDLINE), Web of Science, and ProQuest Central. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs), nonrandomized controlled trials, prospective or retrospective cohort studies, and observational studies investigating the effects of omega-3 fatty acid consumption from dietary supplements, multiple-nutrient supplement, or food questionnaire on neurodevelopment were considered. Study population was separated in three developmental phases: (1) in-utero, (2) lactation/infancy, and (3) childhood/adolescence. Each article was evaluated for several key factors such as study type, type/dosage of PUFAs, number of subjects, length of intervention, participant age range, population characteristics, outcome measure (both primary/cognitive and secondary/other), results, conclusion, and confounding variables/limitations. A total of 88 articles were included in the review, 69 RCTs and 19 longitudinal or observational studies. The results indicate equivocal effect of intervention, with some short-term benefits observed in the areas of visual attention, working memory, executive function, and communication. Omega-3 supplement might have a short-term positive impact on neurodevelopment in all three phases. Supplementation is recommended throughout life, rather than only during the earliest developmental stage.

The Effects of Household Debt and Oil Price Shocks on Economic Growth in the Shadow of the Pandemic

In a sample of 34 countries during 1965Q2 to 2021Q3, this paper offers an empirical analysis of how household debt and oil price shocks influence economic growth in the shadow of the pandemic. We exploit the quarter lags inherent in the response of debt and the oil price to output to pin down the relationship between household debt, the oil price, and economic growth in an unrestricted panel VAR model. We find that household debt has a short-term positive impact on economic growth, and this impact is lagged, while oil price shocks have a negative effect on economic growth. Pandemic uncertainty has an obvious and positive effect on household debt, while it has an obvious and negative effect on economic growth and oil price. The results hold under several robustness tests.

Market Concentration and Market Share’s Effects on the Financial Performance of Jordanian Banks

This study explores market concentration and market share and their impact on both short and long-term financial performance of Jordanian banks. Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) method was used to analyse annual bank data from 2006-2020 to illustrate the impact of market concentration and market share on the financial performance of the Arab Bank and the Housing Bank for Trade and Finance. Results found market concentration’s negative and significant impact on the short and long-term rate of return on assets for both the Arab Bank and the Housing Bank for Trade and Finance. This contradicts with the Structure-Conduct-Performance hypothesis and therefore excludes collusive behavior between banks mostly concentrated in the Jordanian banking market. The market share of deposits also has a short and long term positive and significant impact of on the rate of return on assets for both the Arab Bank and Housing Bank for Trade and Finance coinciding with the Traditional Efficiency hypothesis in the Jordanian banking market. We recommend inviting Jordanian banks to study their environmental influences, and raise employee efficiency and technological adaptability to competitively participate in the larger banking industry, thus improving their own performance.

Comparative effect of a nutraceutical compound based on a flavonoid complex from bergamot on plasma lipids, glucose metabolism, and liver enzymes: a 3-arm, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial.

Bergamot and opuntia (prickly pear cladodes) standardized extracts have been demonstrated to have positive metabolic effects in preclinical and clinical models. The aim of this study was to evaluate the metabolic effect of a combined nutraceutical containing 150 mg of Opuntia ficus Indica extract, 400 mg of plant sterols, 12.5 mg of thiamine, and 200 mg of Brumex® a phytocomplex from bergamot fruit (Citrus bergamia Risso et Poiteau, fructus) standardized 40% in total flavonoids and min 5% in 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-flavanones. Thus, we carried out a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial on 75 hypercholesterolaemic subjects randomized to take the active compound (2 tablets per day), placebo (2 tablets per day), or both (1 per product per day). After 12 weeks of treatment with 1 tablet per day, we observed a significant reduction of a number of metabolic parameters: total cholesterol (TC) (-14.6%), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (-19.9%), non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDLC) (-22.1%), triglycerides (TG) (-13.1%), Apolipoprotein B (-16%) (all p < 0.05 both versus baseline and versus placebo), fasting plasma glucose (-5.1%), glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (-7.8%), glutamate pyruvate transaminase (-7.3%), and γ-glutamyl transferase (-34.4%) (all p < 0.05 versus baseline). High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) was increased 6.9% by the use of 1 tablet per day (p < 0.05 versus baseline). All parameters were reduced to the same extent when taking the full dose (2 tablets), beyond TG. the tested nutraceutical compound based on a flavonoid complex from bergamot and opuntia showed a short-term positive impact on plasma lipids, fasting plasma glucose, and liver enzyme in overall healthy subjects affected by hypercholesterolaemia with low cardiovascular risk.

Impact of spinal cord stimulation on sick leave and disability pension in patients with chronic neuropathic pain: a real-world evidence study in Sweden.

Current research indicates that spinal cord stimulation (SCS) has a positive short-term impact on outcomes, such as quality of life, pain, and productivity in patients with chronic neuropathic pain. However, there is a need for studies on larger population samples. This study used data from Swedish national registers to analyze change and predictors of sick leave and disability pension 2 years before and after SCS treatment. Patients with SCS implanted between 2006 and 2017, and a reference group consisting of 5 individuals matched to each SCS patient without replacement with respect to age, sex, and region of residence, were included. A difference-in-difference approach was used to compare the average change (2 years after treatment vs 2 years before treatment) in net disability days and indirect cost related to disability days for the SCS group, compared with the average change for the reference group. The results showed that SCS treatment in Sweden is associated with a decrease of 21 disability days and consequent decrease in indirect cost of €4127 in working age patients. Large work loss prior to index date was also demonstrated (average 214 days before 1 year), indicating a significant burden on the patient, employers, and the society at large. The number of disability days varied considerably depending on age, sex, socioeconomic variables, and comorbidities; however, the effect of SCS seemed to have little association with patient characteristics. This economic benefit needs to be considered, as well as the clinical outcome, when evaluating the full societal value of SCS.

A Personal Journey of Studying Positive Psychology: Reflections of Undergraduate Students in the United Arab Emirates

Background An increasing number of undergraduate positive psychology courses offer students a holistic view of the broader discipline of psychology. Even short-term participation in positive psychology activities as part of a taught course may improve psychological well-being and lower stress. However, there is a dearth of qualitative evidence on how students experience this learning process. Objective This study aimed to explore UAE-based undergraduate students’ reflections on their experiences of an elective positive psychology course and their participation in various positive psychology interventions (PPIs). Method This qualitative study explored 21 UAE-based undergraduate students’ reflections on taking a semester-long positive psychology course, in which they participated in PPIs. The rich data from semi-structured interviews were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results Three main themes emerged, namely rethinking positive psychology, changes in perspective on happiness and search for positivity, and enhanced relationships. Conclusion and Teaching Implications The study suggests that positive psychology may reach past the time and space of the taught course and have at least a short-term positive impact on students' mental and social lives. Findings from this study imply the potential of positive psychology in higher education and point towards further integration of such courses in undergraduate programs in the UAE and beyond.

The dynamic moderating function of the exchange rate market on the oil-stock nexus

Oil price movements have an important impact on the stock market, and this impact could be dynamically moderated by the exchange rate, which could not be effectively depicted by VAR or GARCH methods widely used in previous studies. This paper adopts a more flexible nonlinear model to investigates this dynamic moderating effect of the exchange rate market on the oil-stock nexus for 45 major countries from November 30, 2005 to November 22, 2019. We also compare the differences in this moderating effect between oil-importing and oil-exporting countries and confirm the presence of a wealth transfer effect. Specifically, the empirical results show that (1) In the stage where domestic currency depreciation or appreciation degree is not serious (the growth rate is less than 0.1), an increase in crude oil prices has a positive impact on stock market returns, and this positive impact is weakened when the growth rate of the exchange rate return approaches zero. (2) As the local currency continues to appreciate (the growth rate is greater than about 0.22), the increase in crude oil prices may negatively influence stock market returns to an increasingly greater extent among crude oil importers. (3) The increase in crude oil prices may have a short-term positive impact on stock market returns in oil-exporting countries due to the wealth transfer effect when the domestic currency appreciates at a faster rate. Finally, we discuss the policy implications of our findings to help investors avoid risks due to fluctuations in international oil prices.

Does government subsidy stimulate or shackle new energy industry efficiency? Evidence from China.

During 2013-2017, the new energy industry in China experienced prosperous growth with the financing support of the government. To evaluate the real performance of this industry and the government subsidy effect during this period, this paper measures both the original and adjusted industry efficiencies and investigates the non-linear impact of the government subsidy. Applying a four-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) method to a sample of listed companies during 2013-2017, we find that: (1) China's new energy industry obtains relatively a high efficiency while showing a noticeable decline after a rising trend; (2) the industry efficiency presents a downward adjustment after eliminating the environmental factors; (3) a single threshold of government subsidy is identified, indicating a shackle after a short-term positive impact; (4) the positive mediating effect of cash flow and R&D investments are identified; and whereas the management self-interest presents a negative mediating effect, (5) the regional and ownership endogeneity of the government subsidy effect are recognized.

Corn Price Prediction in China's Futures Market during COVID-19

Using data from the Dalian Commodity Exchange from January 2010 to December 2019 as a training set, this study develops an optimal seasonal autoregressive integrated moving average model (SARIMA) in Python to predict the settlement price of corn futures. Further, the model’s forecast accuracy and applicability are tested by predicting the price of corn futures from January 2020 to December 2020 and comparing it with the actual settlement price of active corn futures contracts in 2020 after the outbreak of COVID-19. The results show that the SARIMA (2,1,0) (3,1,1)12 model can accurately predict the settlement price. Moreover, COVID-19 had a positive short-term impact on the settlement prices.

Airport passenger flow, urban development and nearby airport capacity dynamic correlation: 2006-2019 time-series data analysis for Tianjin city, China

&lt;abstract&gt; &lt;p&gt;Airports, as integral components of the global aviation industry, experience dynamic changes in air passenger traffic load, which are also related to the trends of local urban development and airspace restrictions of nearby airports. Using time-series data from 2006 to 2019, this study comprehensively applied the autoregressive distributed lag and vector auto-regression mode approaches to identify causal relationships between the urban development factors, including GDP, population, tourism industry, industrial structure, etc., of Tianjin city (China); the Tianjin airport passenger flow; and the Beijing Capital airport's airspace restriction factor, namely, airport aircraft sorties. The results show that the growth of Tianjin city's GDP, primary industry and disposable income per capita was accompanied by a long-term decline in the passenger flow at the Tianjin airport. In addition, increased aircraft sorties of Tianjin airport, as well as the growth of primary, secondary and tertiary industries in Tianjin city, led to a short-term decline in passenger flow at the Tianjin airport. In general, there is variability in the long- and short-term impacts of urban economic structure on airport passenger flow, and this variability applies to other airports. The increased aircraft sorties at the Beijing Capital airport had a short-term positive impact on passenger flow at the Tianjin airport but resulted in a long-term decline of the latter's aircraft sorties. This phenomenon indicates that there is interaction between airports and that this influence varies depending on the competition and cooperation mechanisms between airports. The findings of this study are considered instrumental in guiding the competitive and cooperative strategies of nearby airports and predicting the coupled trends of the airport and urban development.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/abstract&gt;

Identifying the volatility spillover risks between crude oil prices and China's clean energy market

&lt;abstract&gt;&lt;p&gt;Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the global economy has been hit hard, and the development of renewable energy and energy transitions has become a common choice for all countries. The development of clean energy firms has become a hot topic of discussion among scholars, and the relationship between the stock prices of clean energy firms and the international crude oil market has attracted more attention. In this paper, we analyze the volatility connectedness between crude oil and Chinese clean energy firms from 2016 to 2022 by building time-varying vector autoregressive models with stochastic volatility components and time-varying spillover index and dynamic conditional correlation GARCH models. The results of the shock effects analysis show that international crude oil volatility had a significant short-term positive impact on Chinese clean energy firms during the COVID-19 outbreak period. Regarding spillover analysis, firms with large total market capitalization tended to be the senders of volatility spillovers, while smaller firms were likely to be the recipients. In terms of dynamic correlation analysis, the correlation between international crude oil and each clean energy firm was found to be volatile, and the dynamic correlation coefficient tended to reach its highest point during the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, from the optimal portfolio weighting analysis, it is clear that all optimal weights of international crude oil and medium clean energy firms will increase during an epidemic outbreak, and that more assets should be invested in clean energy firms.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/abstract&gt;

Innovative Foreign Direct Investment Policy: Latvia’s Case

As globalization accelerates, the influence of innovative foreign capital on economic development and employment level becomes more significant. However, the impact of FDI on the standard of welfare and economic development is controversial. The demand to promote or target innovative FDI has increased as it has been seen as an innovative tool to stimulate regions’ economic growth or intervene in economic structure changes by orienting it in the most favourable way for the host country. Interest in attracting foreign direct investment has increased since the 1980s as it is one of the external financing sources for both developing and developed countries. However, scientists still argue whether the impact of foreign capital on economic growth is positive or negative. Some researchers state that inward FDI is limited to a short-term positive impact. In contrast, others maintain that the performance of multinational corporations cannot harm the host country at all, and FDI only positively influences economic growth. Modern economic science questions whether it is worthwhile for the state to interfere with the market and stimulate the identified target business sectors with the help of innovative FDI policy. In this way, even significant market flaws are revealed, and some companies are doomed to fail. The benefits of FDI are obvious: the creation of new jobs, «know-how», and the tendency to increase exports. In this sense, the host country should attract specific MNCs motivated towards expanding business through research and development. The article proposes a targeted, complex, innovative FDI policy while applying the ANP method. The methods applied in this research include Analytic Networking Method based on the SWOT approach. The ANP has been chosen as a qualitative method based on the experts’ opinion, allowing determining the best or several alternatives. The findings &amp; value added of the study demonstrated that to gain a competitive advantage, Latvia should attract more innovative FDI into the service business area, followed by manufacturing. The research contributes to the internalization theory while emphasizing the importance of promoting innovative FDI.

Study on the Volatility Relationship between the Price of China's Live-hogs Industrial Chain and CPI

This paper uses the SAVR model to study the dynamic relationship between monthly corn prices, live hog prices, pork prices, and CPI volatility from January 2011 to August 2021. It is found that: 1. live-hog prices is the cause of pork price fluctuation, and live hogs and pork prices is the cause of CPI change. 2. live hog prices has short-term positive brunt on CPI, and pork prices has short-term positive and negative impact on CPI. 3. pork prices change is mainly caused by live hog price and its own change, and CPI change is mainly caused by spontaneous factors, live hog prices and pork prices change. Based on the above research, relevant policy recommendations to smooth out the fluctuation of pork prices are proposed.

Social protection and multidimensional poverty: Lessons from Ethiopia, India and Peru

• We investigate the impact of three large-scale social-protection schemes in Ethiopia, India, and Peru on multidimensional poverty. • We employ a difference-in-differences strategy to produce estimates that deal with non-random program assignment. • We find a significant decline in multidimensional poverty incidence and intensity, particularly for the severely poor. • We also find a positive sustained impact on asset formation, livestock holding, and some living standard indicators. • The effects of the social programs mainly emanate from the direct income effect of benefits irrespective of their design. We investigate the impact of three large-scale social-protection schemes in Ethiopia, India, and Peru on multidimensional poverty. Using data from the Young Lives cohort study, we show the trend, changes and evolution of multidimensional poverty for individuals in program participant households. We follow a number of strategies to produce estimates that deal with non-random program placement. Our findings show that both the incidence and intensity of multidimensional poverty declined in all three countries over the period 2006–2016, more so for program participants than non-participants. We find positive short-term impact on asset formation, livestock holding, and some living standard indicators. In all three countries these positive impacts are sustained even in the medium and longer-term.

Effect Of Trabeculectomy On Ocular Biometry And Refractive Errors In Pediatric Glaucoma

Background: Pediatric glaucoma triggers refractive errors by modifying the biometry of the eye. This study was conducted with the objective of estimating the short-term biometric and refractive changes prior to and post trabeculectomy in pediatric glaucoma. Material and Methods: A 12-month, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out from January to December 2019, using patients operated on for pediatric glaucoma. Pre- and post-operative biometric and refraction measurements were noted. Visual acuity, axial length, corneal diameter and refraction were obtained. All ethical requirements (anonymity, free, informed, and continuous consent) were satisfied. Data analysis was done using SPSS 20.0. Results: In the present study, 47 eyes of 27 patients were surgically operated upon, from January 2019 to December 2019 at CHU-IOTA. The predominant sex was male (17 patients) at 63%, giving a sex ratio (M / F) of 1.7. The mean age was 5.04 ± 4.24. Preoperatively, the mean corneal diameter, and D90 were respectively 13.83 ± 1.51 and 12.55 ± 0.99. Preoperatively, the mean axial length, and D90, were 23.87 ± 1.29 and 22.28 ± 1.07, respectively. Preoperatively and at three month, the mean myopia (n = 36), were respectively -3.13 ± 1.83 and -1.59 ± 0.97. The mean preoperative astigmatism (n = 47) and D90 were respectively, -1.59 ± 0.77 and -1.23 ± 0.57. A statistically significant relationship (p &lt;0.05) was found to exist between the preoperative and postoperative data of the axial length, corneal diameter, and refractive errors. Conclusions: Trabeculectomy significantly exerts a short-term positive impact on the biometrics and refraction by modifying the initial measurements and diopters.

Identification of Leadership Behaviors that Impact General Surgery Junior Residents’ Well-being: A Needs Assessment in a Single Academic Center

Emerging literature has started to link leadership with the well-being of team members; however, this link during residency training has not been studied. The objective of this study was to perform a needs assessment to identify leadership behaviors among senior residents and evaluate the impact that these behaviors have on junior residents' well-being. A semi-structured question script was developed and ∼60 minute virtual focus groups were held during protected educational time, until data saturation was reached. Data analysis was performed in the tradition of grounded theory. This study was performed at Oregon Health & Science University, one of the largest general surgery programs. Participants enrolled in the general surgery residency program from July 2020 to February 2021 were included. 35 general surgery residents participated in the focus groups. Two major themes resulted from the data analysis: (1) Effective leadership behaviors and their positive consequences, and (2) Ineffective leadership behaviors and their negative consequences. Effective and ineffective leadership were characterized by the presence or absence of 6 main behaviors: supportive and empowering, team building, management skills, emotional intelligence, effective communication, and teaching. Effective and ineffective leadership positively and negatively impacted residents' well-being, individual growth, and psychological safety. The results from this study identified leadership behaviors from senior residents and demonstrated that those behaviors have a significant short-term and long-term positive and negative impact on junior residents' well-being. These results fill a gap in the literature, and can serve as a guide for surgical educators to develop evidence-based leadership curricula.

Does privatization of public sector banks affect stock prices? An event study approach on the Indian banking sector stocks

PurposeWith a sample of 22 banks, this study examines the significance of the news contents about the privatization of two public sector banks in India. New information does impact the stock markets. This study provides evidence on how the privatization of public sector banks impacted the returns of the Indian banking sector.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs the standard event study methodology with the market model for estimating the normal returns.FindingsThe statistical results indicate that while the private sector banks experienced positive average abnormal returns on the event day, the cumulative effect of the announcement is negatively significant for both private and public sector banks. The statistical results also provide evidence of information leakage, with significant results before the announcement date. The shorter event windows analysis exhibits significant positive returns in the 5-days [−2, +2] window for the private sector banks and the entire sample, signifying a positive short-term impact on the private sector banks.Originality/valueThe event study literature captures the impacts of many events. However, to the best of our knowledge, the impacts of the privatization of the Indian public sector banks have never been examined using the event study methodology. Hence, this study anticipates being the first-ever study to fill this gap and extend the available literature in finance. In addition, although we provide Indian evidence, future studies may be oriented to capture cross-country impacts.

Money supply as an instrument of monetary policy and the promotion of economic growth

Subject. The article analyzes the influence of the money supply as an instrument of monetary policy impact on stimulating the economic growth, namely, the impact of instrumental indicators on the target economic indicator of GDP. Objectives. The paper makes an attempt to contribute to the discussion on the role of money supply as an instrument of monetary policy in achieving the economic growth. Methods. The study uses a new mathematical tool that takes into account the direct control effect of the instrument of monetary policy on the achievement of the target economic indicator. Results. I suggest three management scenarios in the impact of money supply on GDP: a change in the money supply with violations of the response to management in certain periods that determined the growth of GDP; the lack of response to control action; and a transition scenario, when a short-term positive impact is recorded from time to time, which, in fact, is close to the second scenario. Conclusions. The first scenario includes Russia, the United States and Brazil, in which the instrument of monetary policy (the money supply) determined the growth of GDP with individual periods of disruption of management; the second scenario includes Germany, Denmark, and Japan, with no response to the management impact; the third scenario is observed in China, Norway, and India. This conclusion enables to identify the specifics of the impact of the set of monetary policy instruments on economic growth, considering the J. Tinbergen’s theory of economic policy.

The importance of ecologically oriented social work in solving social problems during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

The base of this study is Critical Discurs Analysis which deals with argumentation strategies that were recorded in the media public debate in the period March–April 2020 in the Slovak Republic and discusses their connection with the application of eco-social approaches to solving social problems using the example of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The main research question is: What are the eco-social topics linked to solving social problems during the coronavirus pandemic through ecologically oriented social work? On the basis of the presented results these topics are mainly the importance of man’s awareness about our dependence on the environment in which we live created by the topos of disadvantage, that shows short-term positive impact of the pandemic on the environment and it is expected that the situation after pandemic will deteriorate, the support of social cohesion and members of the society and the importance of reducing pressure from the social structures which causes self-exploitation of modern man.

Declining wintering shorebird populations at a temperate estuary in California: A 30-year perspective

Abstract Worldwide, shorebird populations are declining. Our objectives were to examine abundance trends of shorebirds regularly wintering at Tomales Bay, Marin County, California, accounting for the local effects of rainfall, raptors, and the restoration of part of the bay to tidal wetlands. From November 1989 to February 2019, we conducted 177 comprehensive winter shorebird surveys of Tomales Bay; we averaged 5.7 ± 0.9 (mean ± SD) winter surveys per year. In 30 yr, we counted 1,215,821 shorebirds of 31 species. We used generalized linear models and multi-model inference to evaluate trends in shorebird abundance while accounting for local sources of variation. We conducted separate analyses for 14 species seen in at least 20 of the 30 yr of monitoring and for all shorebird species combined. During the study, the abundance of all species combined declined 66% (52% in the North Bay and 81% in the South Bay) with the most rapid decline in the first 10 yr of monitoring. Of 13 species for which year was in the top model, 10 species decreased in abundance and 3 species increased. Dunlin and Western Sandpiper accounted for the greatest losses in total numbers. The best-supported models to estimate trends in shorebirds included predictors for year and North Bay vs. South Bay. Of the local variables we considered, rainfall was included in 10 of the 15 best-supported models (including all species combined), negatively affecting the numbers of all species except Willets. The wetland restoration project was included in 5 top models, with a short-term positive impact. Raptor abundance was included in 3 top models with mixed results. Our results show that effective conservation and management of local shorebird populations must be linked with regional/global efforts if we are to reverse negative shorebird trends.