A LASSO-based model for financial distress of the Vietnamese listed firms: Does the covid-19 pandemic matter?

Financial distress is a vexing managerial challenge for businesses worldwide, especially during a turbulent period like the COVID-19 pandemic. Motivated by an increasing number of closed businesses in Vietnam during the recent COVID-19 pandemic, this study is conducted to provide a comprehensive analysis of financial distress for Vietnamese listed firms. Machine learning approaches are employed using the annual data of 492 listed firms from 2012 to 2021. Specifically, we aim to identify the appropriate distress predictors for the Vietnamese listed firms using LASSO, a technique known to be superior compared to other variable selection techniques. Empirical results reveal that there are four key financial distress predictors for the Vietnamese listed firms, namely the ratios of (i) working capital and total assets, (ii) retained earnings and total assets, (iii) earnings before interest and taxes and total assets and (iv) net income and total assets. We also conducted an industry-level analysis and found that the Energy sector experienced the highest number of financially distressed firms during Covid-19. In contrast, Communication Services, Health Care, and Utilities had the lowest number of distressed firms. Policy implications have emerged based on these important findings from our analysis.

Factors affecting students' career choice in economics majors in the COVID-19 post-pandemic period: A case study of a private university in Vietnam

The requirement for quantity and quality of human resources, especially occupations in the economics field, has played a significant role in recovering and improving the COVID-19 pandemic economic situation in Vietnam. Therefore, this encouraged economics majors to attract a large number of students to enrol in 2021. This study aims to determine the factors affecting the career choices of economic students in Vietnam. The research focuses on analysing six factors to determine the relationship between variables that help explain students' compatibility and their chosen majors. A survey questionnaire using simple random sampling collected 309 data points from economics students at a private university in Vietnam. Methodologies such as Cronbach's Alpha, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, regression, and structural equation modelling were employed using SPSS and Amos software to check the correlation between factors and draw conclusions about factors affecting students' career choices. The results revealed that influencers, interests, financial resources and career opportunities were critical elements that influenced students' decisions in choosing a major. Interest (to pursue passion) was considered by students in choosing a major - which could also encourage them to develop their own capabilities. Additionally, the data proved that most job selections were based on future employability;therefore, career opportunities had the most positive impact on students' decisions. The findings of this study identify determinants of students' choice in economics majors and their relationships and can improve students' awareness and future orientation before deciding to choose a major. Moreover, this study provides valuable data for universities to formulate and develop strategies to attract students, such as career consulting. © 2023 The Author(s)

Towards a sustainable integrated management approach to uncertainty surrounding COVID-19

Traditional approaches to system management are not suited to highly uncertain conditions. Hard system approaches with a top-down management approach are often used to manage well-defined systems that are not easily able to cope with uncertainty. Soft system approaches of the with bottom-up or participative style may cause a lack of conformance to industry standards. Few studies have investigated these approaches within the context of COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this paper aims to use the philosophy of Total Systems Intervention to investigate the applicability of an integrated management approach to cope with the uncertainty of COVID-19. Three different countries from Europe, Oceania and Asia are selected as typical case studies to clarify the strengths and weaknesses of differing management approaches. The case studies demonstrate that using an integrated management approach can potentially assist decision-makers to deal with crises and conclusively reveal the superiority of the integrated approach, independent of cultural milieu. © 2023 The Authors. Systems Research and Behavioral Science published by International Federation for Systems Research and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Students' perceptions towards the application of peer assessment in a virtual English writing class

Writing skills are not easy to develop in English language learning, especially when online learning is being implemented amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to improve students' writing skills, as well as increase students' autonomy, peer assessment is often adopted. The article presents findings of the research conducted in late 2021 on students' perceptions towards the use of peer assessment in an online English writing class in Vietnam. The research applied a mixed method model with a questionnaire and an interview as the instruments. The questionnaire has 18 items divided into 4 parts: students' personal information, students' attitudes towards peer assessment, advantages of peer assessment, and disadvantages of peer assessment. The participants were 97 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students who experienced one semester studying "Advanced Writing Skills” in online classes. The findings of the research revealed that students had negative attitudes towards the application of peer assessment to improve writing skills and they shared ideas of advantages and disadvantages of peer assessment. It is recommended that specific guidelines on how to do peer assessment with samples should be provided before teachers implement this teaching technique in class. In addition, in online classes, teachers need to be aware of making students familiar with peer assessment, as well as in the virtual environment. Practitioner Notes 1. Peer assessment can be applied as an effective method to develop students' writing skills in both offline and online situations. 2. To implement online peer assessment, practitioners should carefully design the activity with well-prepared peer assessment criteria and familiarise students with the way to do online peer assessment. 3. Technical issues and platforms used to conduct online peer assessment should be accounted for as an effective implementation of peer assessment. 4. Students' attitudes towards the application of peer assessment to develop writing skills may vary due to various factors like the organisation of the activity. 5. Whether peer assessment can develop students' soft skills like critical thinking and team work depends much on practitioners' ways of implementing the activity. © 2023, University of Wollongong. All rights reserved.

PRESERVED SARS-COV-2 VACCINE CELL-MEDIATED IMMUNOGENICITY IN INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE PATIENTS ON IMMUNEMODULATING THERAPIES

BACKGROUND: Immune-modulating medications for inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) have been associated with suboptimal vaccine responses. There is conflicting data with SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. METHODS: We measured SARS-CoV-2 vaccine immunogenicity at 2 weeks post 2nd mRNA vaccine in IBD patients as compared to normal healthy donors (NHD). We measured humoral immune responses to SARS-CoV-2: anti-spike Immunoglobulin G (IgG) and anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) IgG were measured by ELISA, and neutralizing antibody titers were measured using recombinant, reporter SARS-CoV-2. Antigen specific memory B cells were measured using recombinant SARS-CoV-2 proteins. Activation induced marker T cell (AIM) assays were performed using SARS-CoV-2 spike megapools. Immunophenotyping was performed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: We enrolled 29 patients with IBD (19 with Crohn's disease, 10 with ulcerative colitis) on infliximab (IFX) monotherapy (N=9), IFX combination therapy with a thiopurine (N=9), vedolizumab monotherapy (N= 11) as compared to matched NHD (N=12). At 2 weeks post vaccination, all subjects made detectable anti-spike IgG and anti-RBD IgG. There were no differences in anti-spike IgG titers among the different groups. IBD patients on IFX monotherapy, but not IBD patients on IFX combination therapy or vedolizumab monotherapy, had lower anti-RBD and neutralization titers as compared to NHD (p-value: 0.041 and 0.023, respectively) (Fig. 1). There were no significant differences in the percentage of spike-specific or RBD-specific memory B cells in IBD patients as compared to NHD (Fig. 1). There were no differences in the percentage of spike-specific CD4+ or CD8+ T cells in all IBD patients as compared to NHDs (Fig. 2). CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate overall comparable and perserved cell-mediated immunity to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in a small cohort of IBD patients treated with a range of different immune-modulating medications as compared to healthy controls. Larger numbers of patients are needed to validate these findings.

Stigma syndemics and ESKD in disenfranchised urban communities fighting COVID-19

Background: Although COVID-19 is impacting all communities, the distribution of its harms is not equal. Poor, urban people of color with compromised health are particularly hard-hit. This study explores how patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), living in underprivileged urban communities, manage their illness and treatment experiences and disease-associated stigmas in the face of COVID-19. Methods: We used purposive sampling to enroll patients with ESKD at a safety net hospital in Boston, MA. 12 remote ethnographic interviews were conducted from December 2020 to June 2021. Interviews were recorded and transcribed, and data were analyzed using grounded theory and dimensional narrative analysis. We identified dominant themes reflecting the biosocial harms caused by ESKD as well as patients' sense of isolation and stigmatization before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: The mean age of patients was 56±14 years, 50% were female, and 90% selfidentified as Black. Almost all patients reported adverse effects from dialysis treatment which leaves them depleted and precludes them from working. Facing the biosocial implications of dialysis, patients also experienced severe economic hardship which has been intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. While many patients framed COVID-19 as just one more thing and denied increased stigmatization by others due to their potentially increased susceptibility to infection, male patients more frequently reported experiencing racial stigmatization and narrated it as contributing to and exacerbating their chronic illness and suffering. Conclusions: Biosocial and environmental factors as well as institutional racism and stigmatization play significant roles in amplifying the burden of ESKD in patients of color who are now syndemically impacted by COVID-19 (Figure 1). A better understanding of how these factors interplay will help to inform policy makers in alleviating tensions and structural conditions that impinge on patients' well-being and health outcomes.