Societal Objectives Research Articles

How do health systems and health contribute to the sustainable development goals?

Abstract While there is considerable research and policy interest into how factors outside the health system (i.e. social determinants) influence health outcomes, there has historically been less interest in how health and health systems affect other economic and societal objectives. Such evidence can be useful to health policymakers making the case for investing in health systems to demonstrate that health systems do more than just improve health. The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies has put together a special issue of the journal Health Policy to explore the evidence on how health and health systems advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provides a helpful conceptual framework for considering economic and societal objectives. The articles each consider a particular SDG and review relevant literature with an emphasis on causal studies to explore the ways in which health and health systems have causal effects on key societal objectives such as poverty reduction, gender equality, climate change, and responsible consumption. In this presentation we will provide a summary of the findings from the special issue, highlighting areas with the strongest (and weakest) evidence and discuss how this work can be factored into budget negotiations and decisions about resource allocation.

7.H. Round table: Advancing societal goals through health systems: Insights from the Renewed HSPA Framework

Abstract The purpose of this workshop, entitled ‘Advancing societal goals through health systems: Insights from the renewed HSPA framework,’ is to take a deeper look at the intricate relationships between health systems and broader societal objectives. We will dissect the contributions of health systems to societal well-being, a concept that stretches beyond mere economic growth to include social cohesion, environmental sustainability, and economic development. The session will examine the renewed global Health System Performance Assessment Framework, which serves as a tool for policymakers to better understand how health systems fit together and explains how they perform. This framework allows for a clearer interpretation of health data and provides a pathway to pinpoint health system issues and design that are most likely to enhance performance and resilience. The workshop will delve into the three dimensions of societal well-being-social cohesion, economic development, and environmental sustainability-nested within the HSPA framework. We will explore the health system’s role in advancing these dimensions, such as fostering community bonds, supporting economic growth through a healthy workforce, and contributing to the sustainable management of environmental resources. Integrating health system performance into societal goals is a practical obligation to create a resilient, cohesive, and economically robust society. This workshop will engage stakeholders in a discourse to translate this integration into multisectoral and actionable policies, aligning health system goals with societal aspirations for a sustainable future. This workshop will focus on: How health system assessments can capture contributions to societal goals, underpinning sustainable economic and environmental practices. Real-world case studies showcasing health systems’ role in fostering societal well-being and advancing public health policies. Interactive discussions will shed light on how health systems can be pivotal in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in the face of modern challenges such as climate change, demographic shifts, and economic pressures. Key messages • Health systems play a pivotal role in advancing societal well-being beyond traditional health outcomes. • The renewed HSPA framework is a robust tool for policymakers to align health system performance with broader societal goals. Speakers/Panelists Scott Greer University of Michigan, European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, Ann Arbor, USA Andrea Schmidt Austrian Public Health Institute, Vienna, Austria

Parental Gender Stereotypes and Student Well‐Being in China

ABSTRACTA prominent gender stereotype claims that “boys are better at learning mathematics than girls.” Confronted with such a parental attitude, how does this affect the well‐being of 11‐ to 18‐year‐old students in Chinese middle schools? Although well‐being has often been shown to be not much gender‐diverse, the intergenerational consequences of such stereotypes are not well studied. Expecting too much from boys and too little from girls might damage self‐esteem among school kids. Using large survey data covering districts all over China reveals that one‐quarter of the parents agree with the math stereotype. It is shown that this has strong detrimental consequences for the offspring's well‐being. Students are strongly more depressed, feeling blue, unhappy, not enjoying life, and sad with no male–female differences, whereas parental education does not matter for this transfer. Various robustness tests including other than math stereotypes and an IV analysis confirm the findings. Moderating such effects, which is in line with societal objectives in many countries, not only supports gender equality but also strengthens the mental health of children.

Access to environmental information in Sweden in the context of principles of good administration

Purpose This paper aims to examine how Sweden, as a member state of the European Union (EU), has implemented the EU Directive on Public Access to Environmental Information (AEI directive) in the context of the principles of good administration. Design/methodology/approach This paper adopts the EU law methodology, as this paper mainly examines the implementation of the EU AEI directive by the member states and, as an EU member state, how Sweden used procedural autonomy to implement the EU directive at the national level. The EU law methodology further guides how national laws are to be interpreted considering obligations under the EU law. This paper further applies a comparative review to determine the differences in the approaches used by the AEI directive and relevant Swedish national laws to facilitate access to environmental information. Findings Despite Sweden used a minimalist approach rather than maximal harmonization while implementing the AEI directive at the national level, the Swedish model of the accessibility and availability of environmental information is fully compliant with the principles of good administration. The Swedish approach has an enormous effect on promoting access to environmental information as an integral part of good governance and fundamental rights. Research limitations/implications It was not possible to perform a comparative review of court cases on relevant issues from different EU member states. Practical implications Access to environmental information could be a tool for environmental democracy and sustainable development. Social implications Access to environmental information could contribute to more public engagement and participation in environmental decision making and hence could make developmental projects more inclusive to meet societal objectives. Originality/value This study makes a unique contribution by evaluating access to environmental information in the context of the principles of good administration under EU law.

Ethical considerations in Risk management of autonomous and intelligent systems

Abstract The rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has raised concerns regarding the potential risks it may pose to humans, society, and the environment. Recent advancements have intensified these concerns, emphasizing the need for a deeper understanding of the technical, societal, and ethical aspects that could lead to adverse or harmful failures in decisions made by autonomous and intelligent systems (AIS). This paper aims to examine the ethical dimensions of risk management in AIS. Its objective is to highlight the significance of ethical considerations in mitigating risks associated with the development, deployment, and use of AIS. The paper provides an overview of various types of AI risks and risk management procedures aimed at mitigating the negative impacts of those risks. We employ a comprehensive risk management approach that combines technical expertise with ethical analysis to ensure alignment with human values and societal objectives. Through the analysis of AI risks and risk management procedures, we advocate for establishing effective mechanisms for ethical oversight and legal control to promote ethical and trustworthy AIS. The findings reveal key risks associated with transparency, accountability, privacy infringement, algorithmic bias, and unintended consequences. To address these challenges, we consider integrating ethical principles into risk management practices, transparent risk communication, continuous engagement with all stakeholders, establishing robust accountability mechanisms, and regular ethical oversight as imperative in ethically designing and operating AI systems. Given the diminished effectiveness of internal audits compared to external audits, we also recommend the implementation of regular monitoring mechanisms through independent external audits when evaluating risk management practices.

An assessment of future rewilding potential in the United Kingdom.

Restoring ecosystems is an imperative for addressing biodiversity loss and climate change, and achieving the targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. One form of restoration, rewilding, may have particular promise but may also be precluded by requirements for other forms of land use now or in the future. This opportunity space is critical but challenging to assess. We explored the potential area available for rewilding in Great Britain until the year 2080 with a multisectoral land-use model with several distinct climatic and socioeconomic scenarios. By 2080, areas from 5000 to 7000km2 were either unmanaged or managed in ways that could be consistent with rewilding across scenarios without conflicting with the provision of ecosystem services. Beyond these areas, another 24,000-42,000km2 of extensive upland management could provide additional areas for rewilding if current patterns of implementation hold in the future. None of these areas, however, coincided reliably with ecosystems of priority for conservation: peatlands, ancient woodlands, or wetlands. Repeatedly, these ecosystems were found to be vulnerable to conversion. Our results are not based on an assumption of support for or benefits from rewilding and do not account for disadvantages, such as potential losses of cultural landscapes or traditional forms of management, that were beyond the modeled ecosystem services. Nevertheless, potential areas for rewilding emerge in a variety of ways, from intensification elsewhere having a substantial but inadvertent land-sparing effect, popular demand for environmental restoration, or a desire for exclusive recreation among the wealthy elite. Our findings therefore imply substantial opportunities for rewilding in the United Kingdom but also a need for interventions to shape the nature and extent of that rewilding to maintain priority conservation areas and societal objectives.

An indicator framework to guide food system sustainability transition – The case of Sweden

Well-aligned food policies are needed at both national and international level to guide food system transformation towards sustainability. Rigorous indicator frameworks are essential in order to facilitate discussion of priorities, enable comparisons, assessment and progress monitoring, and ensure accountability. In this study, we develop a national framework for a sustainable food system, using Sweden as a case. Our framework, the Food System Sustainability House, advances the literature on sustainable food system frameworks in three distinct ways. Firstly, it is tailored to a specific national context (Sweden in our case); secondly, it distinguishes between impacts of domestic production arising within territorial boundaries and impacts related to Swedish consumption independent of country of origin; and thirdly, to facilitate policy priorities, it suggests how different dimensions of sustainability are interlinked at a conceptual level. From a scientific perspective, the Food System Sustainability House postulates the interlinkages between the societal objectives of the food system, the environmental foundations on which production takes place, and the economic system and governance which in the framework are suggested to function as enablers for an overall sustainable system. From a policy perspective, the framework provides a much-needed basis for assessing food system sustainability by suggesting indicators within a comprehensive set of sustainability themes at national level for monitoring distinct perspectives. It also provides the necessary basis for a discussion on how sustainability dimensions are interlinked.

Embedding Democratic Values into Social Media AIs via Societal Objective Functions

Mounting evidence indicates that the artificial intelligence (AI) systems that rank our social media feeds bear nontrivial responsibility for amplifying partisan animosity: negative thoughts, feelings, and behaviors toward political out-groups. Can we design these AIs to consider democratic values such as mitigating partisan animosity as part of their objective functions? We introduce a method for translating established, vetted social scientific constructs into AI objective functions, which we term societal objective functions, and demonstrate the method with application to the political science construct of anti-democratic attitudes. Traditionally, we have lacked observable outcomes to use to train such models-however, the social sciences have developed survey instruments and qualitative codebooks for these constructs, and their precision facilitates translation into detailed prompts for large language models. We apply this method to create a democratic attitude model that estimates the extent to which a social media post promotes anti-democratic attitudes, and test this democratic attitude model across three studies. In Study 1, we first test the attitudinal and behavioral effectiveness of the intervention among US partisans (N=1,380) by manually annotating (alpha=.895) social media posts with anti-democratic attitude scores and testing several feed ranking conditions based on these scores. Removal (d=.20) and downranking feeds (d=.25) reduced participants' partisan animosity without compromising their experience and engagement. In Study 2, we scale up the manual labels by creating the democratic attitude model, finding strong agreement with manual labels (rho=.75). Finally, in Study 3, we replicate Study 1 using the democratic attitude model instead of manual labels to test its attitudinal and behavioral impact (N=558), and again find that the feed downranking using the societal objective function reduced partisan animosity (d=.25). This method presents a novel strategy to draw on social science theory and methods to mitigate societal harms in social media AIs.

Real-time water quality forecasting in rivers using satellite data and dynamic models: an online system for operational management, control and citizen science

Increasingly scarce water resources and growing global populations have exacerbated the problems of water quality in river systems and freshwaters in general. New monitoring methodologies and tools to democratize access to water quality information are needed if we are to reach ambitious societal objectives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the European Green Deal. Here we present a cloud-based system for producing publicly accessible real time water quality forecasts coupled to novel biosensor technology. Short term forecasts of water quality impairments, e.g., as cyanobacteria blooms, sediment plumes and toxic pollution incidents are increasingly relevant both to citizens and stakeholders. Here, we present a new cloud based system that utilizes satellite data to produce real time forecasts of flow and water quality using a chain of dynamic catchment-scale models at multiple locations in a river network. We demonstrate this new system using two case studies: the River Thames and the Essex Colne River (United Kingdom). These rivers are key water supply sources for London and South-East England, respectively and are of high interest to recreational water users. We show how the new system can predict and forecast water quality, estimate toxicity and connect to citizen science observations using an App (www.aquascope.com) for information synthesis and delivery.

Empowering pro-environmental potential among hotel employees: insights from self-determination theory

PurposeThis research examines the role of green, inclusive leadership, corporate social responsibility, and pro-environmental attitudes on proactive pro-environmental behaviour among hotel employees. It further examines the indirect effects of pro-environmental attitudes between green inclusive leadership, corporate social responsibility, and proactive pro-environmental behaviour, as well as the moderating role of psychological contract breach between pro-environmental attitudes and proactive pro-environmental behaviour.Design/methodology/approachThe participants of this cross-sectional study were employees in the Malaysian hotel industry, and 374 usable questionnaires were used for data analysis. The data were analysed using Partial Least Squares – Structural Equation Modelling.FindingsThis study found that green, inclusive leadership, corporate social responsibility, and pro-environmental attitudes significantly influence proactive pro-environmental behaviour. For mediating effects, pro-environmental attitudes have been found to mediate the relationship between corporate social responsibility, green inclusive leadership and proactive pro-environmental behaviour.Research limitations/implicationsThe research proposes actionable measures to encourage environmentally friendly practices in the hotel sector. For companies to succeed, they must integrate green initiatives with their societal objectives. Pro-environmental mindsets are essential for implementing effective environmental policies, which in turn impact recruitment approaches. The advantages of fostering pro-environmental conduct encompass financial savings, enhanced standing, adherence to regulations, increased innovative thinking and improved workplace well-being.Originality/valueOver time, environmental degradation has been contributed by individual behaviours and the combined actions of businesses and organisations. This study significantly contributed to a new model underpinned by the Self-determination Theory by including new constructs influencing proactive pro-environmental behaviour.

Natural regeneration of drylands and associated pathways to human health outcomes: Perspectives from rural households

Land degradation and climate change are intertwined global challenges, their implications on human health are driven by the unsustainable use of natural resources, resulting in the loss of vital ecosystem services that support human health. There are equity implications in that landscape degradation disproportionately affects vulnerable populations that live in the most fragile ecosystems. Solutions to reverse degradation are increasingly considered attractive because of their ability to meet multiple societal objectives, however, their implementation has outpaced research on impact; the research and evidence gaps are particularly acute in relation to quantifying the health and well-being impacts of nature-based solutions. This study documents the experiences of rural communities implementing Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR) in Central Tanzanian drylands, which integrates trees in agricultural landscapes. FMNR technique has been hailed as the largest positive environmental transformation in African drylands due to its effectiveness in restoring landscapes at very low costs. Despite its success, the impact on human well-being is largely unquantified. We used in-depth group discussions across four villages to document how respondents perceive the health and well-being impacts of natural regeneration. We thereafter adapted the ecosystem services cascade model to conceptualise the pathways between natural regeneration and impact on health and well-being. Respondents across all study sites unanimously reported how FMNR implementation has reversed decades of land degradation, resulting in physical and mental health benefits that can be linked to food and nutritional security, improved air and water quality, income diversification, heat adaptation and gender equality. We demonstrate how the application of the cascade model can generate causal pathways that 1) map how changes in ecosystem structure, functions and services can result in measurable health outcomes, and, 2) support empirical investigation by defining concrete metrics for monitoring and evaluation of interventions.

Між минулим і майбутнім: рефлексії навколо нового тлумачення просвітницьких ідей Бориса Грінченка (кін. ХІХ – поч. ХХ ст.)

The research dives into similarities between historical events in the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries, drawing connections to Borys Hrinchenko’s inspirations which resonate with contemporary efforts in resisting russian occupation, emphasizing the struggle for Ukrainian independence, identity, and freedom through primarily ideological, cultural, national, and linguistic means. The article highlights the leading pedagogical ideas of the scientific and journalistic heritage of Borys Hrinchenko, a prominent Ukrainian linguist, writer, poet, playwright, publicist, critic, ethnographer, educator, and public figure of the late nineteenth – early twentieth centuries. The author focuses on various aspects of the scientist’s contributions, including ethnographic research and methodological systematization of Ukrainian folk art, social endeavors aimed at common societal objectives, educational perspectives, and pedagogical intentions. Additionally, the emphasis is on humanizing personal and social interactions among individuals through the promotion of universal moral ideals and spiritual values, among other aspects. The article provides characteristics of educational concepts related to the national upbringing of Ukrainian youth within Borys Hrinchenko’s scientific and journalistic heritage. It outlines the pedagogical discussions on intergenerational transmission in the realm of Ukrainian studies during the specified period. The author attempts to reinterpret the eminent thinker’s persona in intrinsic harmony with well-known figures from the intellectual elite of that era. Significant attention is devoted to the alignment of creative concepts between Borys Hrinchenko and Ivan Franko. The article highlights Kamenyar’s extensive praise for Hrinchenko, mentioning his resilience challenging criticism, often hostile, and his consistent profound love for Ukraine and “sincere democracy” in all his writings. Specific examples are presented to illustrate Hrinchenko’s aimed critique of Khrystyna Alchevska’s idleness, particularly in the context of russifying Ukrainian schools and publishing her books in russian. The research offers an entirely different interpretation of the critical perspective on certain intellectuals’ scientific and literary works from the relevant period. This perspective was aimed at the promotion of Ukrainian studies and national education. The article explores certain aspects of Hrinchenko’s role as a teacher in a rural school, drawing from historical and scholarly references. It emphasizes the strong connection between two generations of the Ukrainian national movement – Borys Hrinchenko and Dmytro Doroshenko – by analyzing their common efforts. The author highlights their effective collaboration in developing the Ukrainian independent press, public engagement, educational initiatives, and shaping the Ukrainian people’s national consciousness and identity.

Supporting spatial planning with a novel method based on participatory Bayesian networks: An application in Curaçao

Land use change is a major driver of environmental degradation, necessitating appropriate planning to navigate trade-offs between societal objectives and ecological impacts. Sound planning is limited in some regions by data scarcity and incomplete scientific knowledge on local dynamics shaping development of land. In this paper, we present a novel expert-based participatory approach that uses Bayesian networks to determine land use suitability and potential conflicts for emerging land uses. This method encompasses a workshop phase for building suitability models for different sectors, data assembly and preparation, spatialization of networks, and iterative validation with experts. Mapped suitabilities for all land uses were used to assess potential competition for land across sectors and to quantify alignment of the expert-modeled outcomes with established land use policy. Applied to Curaçao, a data-poor environment in the Caribbean facing high land use competition, the method enabled the construction and parameterization of 5 Bayesian networks driven by 35 spatial input datasets generated through various methods from participatory mapping to social media analysis. Overlap in suitable locations for conservation and tourism development along segments of the coastline and roadsides of the western island highlight potential conflict stemming from coincidence of desirable natural amenities and ecologically sensitive areas. Results yield key insights that can drive discussion and inform policymakers and spatial planners as they navigate tradeoffs and seek optimal use of limited land resources. Process-based suitability predictions and knowledge of underlying drivers can also enable exploratory analysis into possible future scenarios of change.

Advancing sustainable water treatment strategies: harnessing magnetite-based photocatalysts and techno-economic analysis for enhanced wastewater management in the context of SDGs.

Herein, we explore the holistic integration of magnetite-based photocatalysts and techno-economic analysis (TEA) as a sustainable approach in wastewater treatment aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While considerable attention has been devoted to photocatalytic dye degradation, the nexus between these processes and techno-economic considerations remains relatively unexplored. The review comprehensively examines the fundamental characteristics of magnetite-based photocatalysts, encompassing synthesis methods, composition, and unique properties. It investigates their efficacy in photocatalytic degradation, addressing homogeneous and heterogeneous aspects while discussing strategies to optimize photodegradation efficiency, including curbing electron-hole recombination and mitigating scavenging effects and interference by ions and humic acid. Moreover, the management aspects of magnetite-based photocatalysts are examined, focusing on their reusability and regeneration post-dye removal, along with the potential for reusing treated wastewater in relevant industrial applications. From a techno-economic perspective, the study evaluates the financial feasibility of deploying magnetite-based photocatalysts in wastewater treatment, correlating reduced pollution and the marketing of treated water with social, economic, and environmental objectives. By advocating the integration of magnetite-based photocatalysts and TEA, this paper contributes insights into scalable and profitable sustainable wastewater treatment practices. It underscores the alignment of these practices with SDGs, emphasizing a comprehensive and holistic approach to managing wastewater in ways that meet environmental, economic, and societal objectives.

For a better management of bus service quality in the city of Constantine

Our study desires to address the criticized issue by bus users in Constantine and suggest improvement in terms of service quality, attractiveness, and competition. We adopt an innovative approach that considers the characteristics of the buses and customer satisfaction for continuous improvement by associating the evaluation of the current situation through an in situ survey using well-chosen performance indicators concerning the culture of the Constantinian citizen with measuring satisfaction criteria using the KANO model. The indicators chosen are representative and measurable and allow precise mapping of the situation, the main of our research. The main result highlights the importance of rolling stock as one of the most important segments of the urban transport system, which justifies the amount of criticism it received. In the end, this study's results can help achieve several societal objectives, including safety, comfort, and efficiency of transport, for a better quality of urban life.

Navigating the imperial legacy: exploring the discourse of sport for development and peace in Flanders for communities with a migration background

ABSTRACT Sport is often harnessed to serve broader societal objectives. In Flanders (Belgium) – the region of interest in this research – sport is instrumentalised to promote social integration and inclusion, particularly among communities with a migration background. However, this Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) policy and programming is not straightforward. Scholars have pointed to the lingering imperial residue within SDP, prompting a need for critical examination. Therefore, this research aims to gain an understanding of how contemporary SDP discourse in Flanders is socially and culturally constructed and what its performative implications are for communities with a migration background. To this end, online documents from the sport administration and organisations involved in SDP were subjected to critical discourse analysis informed by the theoretical and cultural understanding of post-colonial theory and decoloniality. The findings indicate that SDP discourse reflects a complex interplay of imperial legacies and neoliberal influences, simultaneously projecting an image of inclusivity and perpetuating inequalities. Consequently, decolonising the SDP discourse in Flanders is an imperative transformative process and requires a comprehensive approach rooted in historical awareness, contextual sensitivity, and challenging existing power structures. This decolonisation may pave the way for a more equitable and inclusive SDP framework, genuinely reflecting the diverse realities of communities with a migration background while acknowledging and rectifying its colonial legacy.

Uncertainty and Triple Access Planning in European Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans: a long way to go yet?

ABSTRACT Triple Access Planning (TAP) is the idea that accessibility can be delivered through physical mobility, digital connectivity, and spatial proximity. There is great uncertainty as to how far one of these three elements will substitute for or complement the others in delivering the accessibility we need in future. Sustainable Urban Mobility (SUM) Planning is touted as a relatively new paradigm in local transport planning oriented to the achievement of a wide range of societal objectives. The paper presents a review of how well SUM Plans from eight European countries, and national guidelines from four currently account for TAP and uncertainty in their approach. Our findings suggest that while the concept of physical proximity is well-understood, other aspects of the TAP and uncertainty approach are not. Digital connectivity is largely ignored. The planning future is treated as largely certain, with no consideration of disruptive factors that might alter this future.

YEVHENIIA KONONENKO’S PROSE: TOPICS, IDEAS, GENRES, AND STYLE

This paper falls under the category of literary portraits and explores the evolution of Kononenko as a writer and intellectual. She embarked on her creative journey with translation and poetry but later focused primarily on prose. The paper underscores Kononenko’s enduring commitment to liberal perspectives, her view of culture as both a primary social catalyst and a societal objective. Kononenko can boast the broadest spectrum of genres in Ukrainian literature, encompassing short stories, narratives, novels, miniatures, and essays. She often employs genre and generic syncretism, which is most evident in her integration of poetry into prose, where she incorporates sonnets and elegies within short prose collections. Furthermore, her works blend genres by combining elements of detective stories with social novels, feminist narratives, and intellectual explorations. The writer boldly experiments with genres to enhance the expressiveness of her writing and engage a wider readership with complex, intellectually profound works. Kononenko’s prose might be classified as intellectual literature. The themes and ideas explored by the author indicate an existentialist orientation in her work. Kononenko herself interprets all her plots and ‘small tragedies’ as reflections of the human experience. The paper highlights the stylistic features of Kononenko’s texts, emphasizing realism, psychologism, and a dialogic nature, along with the significant role of artistic detail, lyrical qualities, trusting intonation, and irony. As for the sources of the author’s inspiration, her works seem to align with Mykola Riabchuk’s prose standing out for its trustworthy tone and candid conversation with the reader. It is worth to emphasize that the writer once made a compelling choice to depart from her first tongue, Russian, in favor of the Ukrainian cultural minority of the late Ukrainian SSR and early Ukrainian state, thereby challenging the traditional orientation of Russian-speaking Ukrainians toward ‘high’ Russian culture.

Is accounting a matter for bookkeepers only? The effects of IFRS adoption on the financialisation of economy

Abstract The process of financialisation has been extensively studied and several stylised facts identified. Short-termism is one of these. This article analyses the role that changes in accounting rules have played in increasing short-termism in company management. Our study considers the adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards in the European Union (EU), showing that the new accounting standards have altered companies’ sensitivity to investment opportunities, leading to underinvestment in the real economy. In doing so, our article highlights the public-policy profile of accounting standards setting and possible tensions with EU societal objectives. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study empirically analysing the role of accounting rules in the financialisation of economy.

Enhancing Public Financial Management through Performance Evaluation and Cost Systems

Purpose: This study aims to explore public financial management (PFM) through performance evaluation and cost systems, seeking to enhance the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of managing public funds. The study highlights the importance of integrating performance evaluation and cost systems to achieve optimal resource allocation and transparency in attaining societal objectives. Research Design and Methodology: This research employs a qualitative approach through a literature review. The research process involves systematic searches of relevant literature, thematic analysis, and synthesis of findings from various studies. The focus is on the design, implementation, and impact of performance evaluation and cost systems in PFM and the challenges and opportunities encountered in their application. Findings and Discussion: The findings indicate that integrating performance evaluation and cost systems can improve public financial management by providing more comprehensive information for decision-making. This integration enables governments to allocate resources more efficiently, identify areas for improvement, and enhance transparency and accountability in managing public funds. However, the study also identifies challenges related to data availability, organizational complexity, and cultural resistance to change. Implications: This study has a practical impact on governments and policymakers in optimizing public financial management. Investment in data infrastructure, capacity-building, and change management strategies is necessary to overcome challenges in implementing integrated performance evaluation and cost systems. Furthermore, the study encourages further research to explore these integrated systems' long-term impact and sustainability in different contexts.