Modelling for disability: How does artificial intelligence affect unemployment among people with disability? An empirical analysis of linear and nonlinear effects.

There is a growing debate among scholars regarding the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the employment opportunities and professional development of people with disability. Although there has been an increasing body of empirical research on the topic, it has generally yielded conflicting findings. This study contributes to the ongoing debate by examining the linear and nonlinear effects of AI on the unemployment of people with disability in 40 countries between 2007 and 2021. Using the system Generalized Methods of Moments and panel smooth transition regression, the main conclusions are as follows. First, AI reduces the unemployment of people with disability in the full sample. Second, upon disaggregating the sample based on income level (high income/non-high income) and gender (men/women), the linear model only detects an inverse correlation between AI and unemployment among people with disability in high-income countries and among men, whereas it does not influence unemployment in non-high-income countries and women. Third, the panel smooth transition regression model suggests that the effects of AI on the unemployment of people with disability and among women are only observed once artificial intelligence interest search exceeds a specific threshold level. The effects of AI in non-high-income economies and among women are not significant in the lower regime, which confirms the nonlinear association between AI and the unemployment rate of people with disability. These findings have important policy implications for facilitating the integration of people with disability into the labor market.

Impact of Resistance Training on FEV1 and Functional Exercise Capacity among COPD Patients: A Meta-analysis.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of mortality and morbidity across the Globe. A meta-analysis was conducted to determine the effectiveness of different modes of resistance training on FEV1 and functional exercise capacity among COPD patients. Data bases of Cochrane, PEDro, Embase, CINAHL, PubMed and Google Scholar were searched seeking research articles of interest. All those studies were included in which effect of resistance training was determined on FEV1 and functional exercise capacity of COPD patients and published in English language. All those studies that predated to 2011 were excluded from the review. A sample of 180 COPD patients was included in 5 RCTs. Results of the study demonstrated that resistance training has a mild pool effect in increasing FEV1 with an effect size of (SMD) of 0.160 (95% CI of -0.840 to 0.521) calculated at random effect model, I2 = 62.99% (95% CI of 0.00 to 89.42); whereas, functional exercise capacity demonstrated large pool effect size 0.886 (95% CI of 0.401 to 1.371) with I2 = 0.0 (95% CI of 0.00 to 0.00). The study concludes that there is a small to large impact of resistance exercises in improving functional exercise capacity and forced expiratory volume. Key Words: Resistance training, 6-minute walk test 6MWT, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Functional exercise capacity, Forced expiratory volume.

Does economic, financial and institutional developments matter for environmental quality? A comparative analysis of EU and MEA countries.

The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) with a sample of 58 MEA (Middle East & African) and 41 EU (European Union) countries for the period 1990 to 2011. The empirical analysis is carried out using the GMM-system method to solve the problem of endogenous variables. We focused on direct and indirect effects of institutional quality (through the efficiency of public expenditure, financial development, trade openness and foreign direct investment) and the income-emission relationship. We found a monotonically increasing relationship between CO2 emissions and GDP in both MEA and EU regions. The policy implication is clear: in order to have sustainable positive economic performance and to reduce carbon dioxide emission in the country at the same time, policy makers should regulate and enhance the role and efficiency of domestic institutions.