2014-05-18 ~ SEARC Blog

Here is the list of academic articles recorded from Database during the 1st and the 2nd week of May:

Aisyah, Siti, and Lyn Parker. 2014. "Problematic Conjugations: Women’s Agency, Marriage and Domestic Violence in Indonesia." Asian Studies Review 38 (2):205-23.

doi: 10.1080/10357823.2014.899312.

Abstract

This paper examines women?s experience of domestic violence within marriage in Makassar, South Sulawesi. It analyses the meaning of marriage for men and women, the roles of men and women within marriage, shifts in marriage practices ? particularly the shift from arranged to ?love? marriage ? and unequal gender positions within marriage. We discuss some salient issues in the ?margins of marriage? in Indonesia: polygyny and constructions of masculinity that condone the practice of polygyny/affairs, and attitudes towards divorce, particularly for women. We then examine women?s perception of the causes and triggers of domestic violence as revealed by fieldwork data, using the lens of women?s agency. Our findings are that women perceive that their expressions of agency ? for instance in challenging men?s authority, moral righteousness and adequacy as breadwinners ? are the most common triggers for male violence within marriage. Finally, we discuss the difficulty for women of escaping domestic violence, thereby getting some purchase on the relative capacity of women to resist, deflect or deal with the violence.

Asplund, André. 2014. "ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights: civil society organizations’ limited influence on ASEAN." Journal of Asian Public Policy 7 (2):191-9.

doi: 10.1080/17516234.2014.896090.

Abstract

The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) has received vocal criticism over its lack of ability to protect human rights in ASEAN. The commission, instead focusing on promotion of human rights, has thus been called ?window-dressing?, conveniently shielding ASEAN from outside criticism. Nonetheless, it has been argued that it is due to strife lobbying by civil society organizations (CSOs) that AICHR has been established, and that potential strengthening of AICHR is dependent on CSOs? ability to further influence ASEAN.By using insights from the origin of the European Convention on Human Rights, and by drawing on empirical data regarding the origin of AICHR, this article argues that the impact of CSOs on the origin of AICHR has in fact been limited, and that a general consensus on the norms that are being prescribed seems needed in order for any progressive development of the commission to take place.

BAYLY, SUSAN. 2014. "How to Forge a Creative Student-Citizen: Achieving the Positive in Today's Vietnam." Modern Asian Studies 48 (03):493-523.

doi: doi:10.1017/S0026749X13000504.

Abstract

The exaltation of achievement as a measure of collective and individual worth and moral agency has been one of the defining features of Asian developmentalism. Yet in today's age of globalized neoliberal attainment monitoring, the question of who and what an achiever actually is within an achievement-conscious society is far from straightforward or uncomplicated. In Vietnam, the notion of doing well and creditably for self and nation can be deeply problematic for those called upon, either officially or by living and ancestral kin, to embody qualities of attainment and creditable life-course functioning in ways recognizable to those who reward and monitor aspiring achievers. Building on recent fieldwork in Vietnam, this paper explores the ways young Hanoians have engaged with a rapidly changing set of ideas about how the country's tightly regulated schooling and examination system can both unleash and constrain the potential for new and ‘creative’ forms of attainment on the part of the nation's most promising and productive citizen-achievers.

Parker, Lyn, and Laura Dales. 2014. "Introduction: The Everyday Agency of Women in Asia." Asian Studies Review 38 (2):164-7.
doi: 10.1080/10357823.2014.899313.

Ray, Ranjan, and Kompal Sinha. 2014. "Multidimensional Deprivation in China, India and Vietnam: A Comparative Study on Micro Data." Journal of Human Development and Capabilities:1-22.

doi: 10.1080/19452829.2014.897311.

Abstract

This study compares living standards in China, India and Vietnam using the recent multidimensional approach. A distinguishing feature of this study is the use of unit record datasets containing household-level information on access to a wide range of dimensions. The study uses the methodology of principal component analysis to measure household wealth. The wealth index is then used to examine the distribution of deprivation and poverty by wealth percentiles. The study distinguishes between multidimensional deprivation and multidimensional poverty and compares the living standards in these countries based on both measures. This paper also presents comparative evidence on the percentage contribution to total deprivation by the various dimensions in each country, and reports several differences between China, India and Vietnam.

Azeez, Rizwana Abdul. 2014. "Creating a Modern Singapore Muslim Community: A Tale of Language Dissonances " ISEAS Working Paper 2014 (#2).

http://www.iseas.edu.sg/documents/publication/ISEAS_Working%20Paper_%20No%202.pdf.

Abstract

In 2003, Singapore officials initiated the Singapore Muslim Identity (SMI) project to disseminate modern state-centric Islamic ideals to Singapore Muslims. These officials’ styles of thinking, writing and speaking, however, have proven to be obstacles impeding the state’s attempts to modernise Muslims according to its visions. In this paper, I argue that there is a disconnection between two of such styles—state officials’ factual, logically coherent ways versus some of their constituents’ norm-based, socially coherent approaches to thinking and discourse. Logical coherence and social coherence, concepts which are explained below, are a study in contrasts, with only the former being associated with modernity. Logically coherent ideas have on occasions rein- forced state power and earned successes for the SMI project, but they do not sit comfortably with traditional Muslim worldviews. Singapore Muslims’ orientation towards Islam is traditional overall (Azhar 2008; Noor Aisha 2008). The two parties’ different epistemological orientations towards understanding and experiencing the world are explored in this paper on language-use to account for some of the roadblocks state officials encountered when persuading Singapore Muslims to accept one of the principles of the SMI project: that they should embrace pluralism and multiculturalism as citizens of multiethnic and multireligious Singapore.

ISEAS, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. 2014. "ISEAS MONITOR." 2014 (NO. 3).

http://www.iseas.edu.sg/documents/publication/ISEAS_Monitor_Issue_2014_No_3.pdf.

Kashiwabara, Chie. 2014. "The Asset/Liability Structure of the Philippine Banks and Non-Bank Financial Institutions in 2000s: A Preliminary Study for Financial Access Analyses." JETRO-IDE Discussion Papers No.468.

http://www.ide.go.jp/English/Publish/Download/Dp/468.html

Abstract

Based on the consolidated statements data of the universal/commercial banks (UKbank) and non-bank financial institutions with quasi-banking licenses, this paper presents a keen necessity of obtaining data in detail on both sides (assets and liabilities) of their financial conditions and further analyses. Those would bring more adequate assessments on the Philippine financial system, especially with regard to each financial subsector’s financing/lending preferences and behavior.

The paper also presents a possibility that the skewed locational and operational distribution exists in the non-UKbank financial subsectors. It suggests there may be a significant deviation from the authorities’ (the BSP, SEC and others) intended/anticipated financial system in the banking/non-bank financial institutions’ real operations.

Hatsukano, Naomi, and Ikuo Kuroiwa. 2014. Inclusive Development in the Era of Economic Integration: Policy Implications for LDCs.

http://www.ide.go.jp/English/Publish/Download/Brc/14.html.

In this Report, we focus on the prevailing inequality in Southeast Asia and derive policy implications for LDCs, which try to achieve inclusive development in the era of trade liberalization and economic integration.

Njoto-Feillard, Gwenael. 2014. "The Islamic Factor in the 2014 Indonesian Elections." ISEAS Perspective 2014 (29).

http://www.iseas.edu.sg/documents/publication/iseas_perspective_2014_29_the_islamic_factor_in_the_2014_indonesian_elections.pdf.

Abstract

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

- Islamic parties in Indonesia had recently been deemed to be on the de- cline, but the parliamentary election in April has shown their resilience. This does not mean, however, that radical Islam is on the rise in Indonesia, since most of the Islamic parties that cleared the electoral threshold can be considered pluralist or at least reflect a moderate form of Islamism.

- Initiatives to form a united Islamic front ahead of the presidential elec- tions in July have so far been unsuccessful. Besides divergent interests, ideological differences seem to present an obstacle to this alliance. Conservative Islam is divided as well, but most movements consider Gerindra’s Prabowo Subianto as an Islam-friendly candidate, in contrast to PDI-P’s Joko Widodo, who is presented by some as the candidate of “unbelievers” and “foreign interests”.

- It remains to be seen whether Joko Widodo’s rivals will indeed openly play the religious card against him. Acknowledging the Indonesian popula- tion’s overall resilience to radical discourse, such a strategy can backfire.

- Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is currently carefully managing his Islamic creden- tials to parry such accusations from his rivals. Jusuf Kalla — known to be a pious Muslim, and also a popular and seasoned politician — is now con- sidered by many to be the ideal running mate for Jokowi in the presidential elections in July.

Sambodo, Maxensius Tri. 2014. "LPG Price Adjustments in Indonesia: An Unfinished Reform." ISEAS Perspective 2014 (30).

http://www.iseas.edu.sg/documents/publication/ISEAS_Perspective_2014_30-LPG_Price_Adjustments_in_Indonesia_An_Unfinished_Reform.pdf.

Abstract

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

- Indonesia’s reforms of its price policies in energy have been difficult to implement.

- At the beginning of 2014, Pertamina (the state-owned oil and gas company) announced its intention to increase the price of non-subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders by 68%; but less than a week later, when a price change did come, the increase was only 17.3%. This was apparently in response to strong critical reactions from households and the business community.

- There are some lessons to be learned from this development.

- For one thing, building support for price reform is critical to its successful implementation, and this requires a display of transparency in the calcula- tion of energy prices.

- It is also necessary to set in place regulations and laws that can address the complicated implementation process involved. This would not only reduce the need for political intervention but also create a more system- atic adjustment mechanism for price movements in the future.

Tan, Danielle. 2014. "China in Laos: Is There Cause For Worry?" ISEAS Perspective 2014 (31).

http://www.iseas.edu.sg/documents/publication/ISEAS%20Perspective%202014_31%20-%20China%20in%20Laos%20-%20Is%20There%20Cause%20for%20Worry.pdf.

Abstract

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

- The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) programme launched by the Asian Development Bank has revitalised the historical trade routes and networks in mainland Southeast Asia, facilitating large flows of Chinese migrants through the North-South Economic Corridor linking Kunming to Bangkok.

- In just a decade, Chinese migration and capital have radically transformed the socio-economic landscape of Laos, particularly in the northern region. China currently ranks among the top three countries investing in Laos, and the number of its investments continues to rise due to China’s “going out” strategy.

- Chinese investment in natural resources (mining, hydropower, agricul- ture) and casino tourism has spurred Laos’ economic growth, but the transformation has come at a high price for both local communities and the environment.

- Conflicts over land between local communities and investors and among foreign investors are expected to increase as the government of Laos is pursuing its “turning-land-into-capital” strategy.

- Contrary to common assumptions, the Lao communist regime is not a helpless spectator and passive victim of Chinese expansion in capital and migration. The Lao rulers rely on their Chinese partners to serve as essential mediators between the state and the global economy in order to cope with the challenges of globalisation and to maintain their power at the same time.

Anduaga, Aitor. 2014. "Earthquake Building Overseas: Military Engineers, Cyclonic-Seismic Affinity and the Spanish Dominion in the Philippines, 1860-1898." Engineering Studies 6 (1):1-22.

doi: 10.1080/19378629.2014.903491.

Abstract

Between the 1860s and the 1890s, Spanish military engineers assigned to the Philippines carried out important advances in earthquake-resistant construction. Within the context of military campaigns against Moro rebels in Mindanao and other islands, engineers like Rafael Cerero and Manuel Cortés sought anti-seismic solutions in rational mechanics. By 1880, the Philippines had become a benchmark: the Spanish colony had one of the earliest established regulations in the world for earthquake construction. This story sheds new light for a revision of the history of early earthquake engineering; i.e., an approach and achievements based on military expertise, rather than on experimental science or civil engineering. This revision also includes the innovative role played by these engineers in studying simultaneously - from the perspective of a unity of action - the effects of earthquakes and cyclones on the stability of buildings. © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Armstrong, Shiro, and Sjamsu Rahardja. 2014. "Survey of Recent Developments." Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies 50 (1):3-28.

doi: 10.1080/00074918.2014.896235.

Abstract

As Indonesia heads to the polls in 2014, its economy is slowing. The end of the commodities boom and the global return to more normal monetary policy has exposed some weaknesses. Exchange-rate depreciation has absorbed some of the adjustment; but structural rigidities are still likely to limit the expansion of non-commodity sectors, and the increased fuel-subsidy bill for imported oil is putting pressure on the current account and the budget. The immediate focus is on demand-side consolidation to manage inflation and the currentaccount deficit.For an economy like Indonesia's to be overheating, and for monetary and fiscal authorities to be engineering a soft landing, when growth is below 6%, points to major structural problems. If Indonesia is to prevent the current rate of growth from becoming the new normal, there will need to be a substantial supply-side response to lift productivity, as well as a restructuring of the economy and the introduction of policies that make the economy more flexible in adjusting to shocks. The current economic slowdown has yet to trigger sweeping reforms; policy coordination remains problematic as Indonesia enters a big political year.Compared with its neighbours, Indonesia is largely on the outside of the regional production networks, and its manufacturing sector does not play into factory Asia. Now, faced with lower commodity prices globally-and growth in non-resource sectors is critical- the lack of a large manufacturing base appears to be a weakness. Indonesia is attracting more foreign direct investment than ever and is climbing the global rankings of preferred economies in which to invest, but this is occurring without improvements to its investment environment or competitiveness. Indonesia can participate more fully in global supply chains and increase its potential for growth by upgrading its infrastructure, improving its investment environment, and using regional initiatives strategically to make strong commitments that reinforce its priorities for domestic reform.In its hosting of APEC in 2013, Indonesia championed infrastructure investment where the lack of structural reform and macroeconomic constraints are inhibiting much-needed expansion, both in Indonesia and in the region. The positive outcome, albeit only a small step forward for the Doha Round, at the WTO Ministerial Conference in Bali, in December, also builds momentum for better regional and global cooperation. The priority now is for Indonesia to commit to, and show leadership in, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community. © 2014 Indonesia Project ANU.

Bandtel, Matthias, and Jens Tenscher. 2014. "Front cover imagery and the social construction of the Vietnam war: A case study of LIFE magazine's iconology and its impact on visual discourse." Journal of War and Culture Studies 7 (2):100-18.

doi: 10.1179/1752627213Z.00000000035.

Abstract

War coverage in the media, its impact on people's perceptions of wars, and its influence on political actors have increasingly been analysed in political communication research. In recent times, there has been a special focus on television war coverage. In this study, the coverage of the Vietnam War in LIFE magazine, the most famous photo magazine of the 1960s and 1970s, is analysed. An iconographic analysis of all the covers devoted to the war in Vietnam (1960/65-1975) helps to identify different periods of the visual construction of the reality of the Vietnam War. Ambivalences and a polysemic variety of competing interpretations which are probably typical for any war coverage become obvious. Those results support the assumption that the growing rejection of the Vietnam operation by US citizens was not the effect of a supposedly homogenous, let alone unambiguous, presentation by the media, but rather of recipients transforming the construction of the social reality of the Vietnam War. © W. S. Maney & Son Ltd 2014.

Bangpan, Mukdarut, and Don Operario. 2014. "'The family is only one part...': Understanding the role of family in young Thai women's sexual decision making." Culture, Health and Sexuality 16 (4):381-96.

doi: 10.1080/13691058.2014.886723.

Abstract

This study aims to understand young Thai women's perspectives about family influences on their sexual decisions with the goal of informing the future development of HIV programmes and interventions for young Thai women in urban areas. Eight focus groups were conducted with 40 young single women aged 18-25 years, recruited through a peer network of key informants from four sites across Bangkok: universities, government offices, slums and garment factories. Predetermined topics relating to family, sexual decisions and HIV were discussed with 4-5 participants in each group. Qualitative thematic and framework-analysis techniques were used to explore participants' narratives. Findings suggest that young Thai women's sexual decisions are complex and take place under a wide range of personal, familial and social influences. Parents were perceived as a barrier to parent-child communication about sex and HIV. Young women regarded mothers as more supportive and receptive than fathers when discussing sensitive topics. Young Thai women described a tension between having a strong sense of self and modern sexual norms versus traditionally conservative relational orientations. Future HIV interventions could benefit by developing strategies to consider barriers to parent-child communication, strengthening family relationships and addressing the coexistence of conflicting sexual norms in the Thai context. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Beban, Alice, and Courtney Work. 2014. "The spirits are crying: Dispossessing land and possessing bodies in rural Cambodia." Antipode 46 (3):593-610.

doi: 10.1111/anti.12073.

Abstract

In 2009, a land spirit disrupted plantation development within a contested Economic Land Concession in Cambodia. The spirit, along with efforts of a monk and NGO, ultimately persuaded state officials to return 5 ha of land to the local temple. In this paper, we bring together literature on the anthropology of religion, political economy of land possession, and critical development studies; we demonstrate that land spirits continue as members of political patronage chains at both the state and the local level, and show how the non-capitalist logics of spirit negotiations both challenged and legitimized large-scale land acquisition projects. The spirit was not subsumed by, but rather shaped, contemporary capitalist expansion in ways that call for a critical examination of the ontological certainty that all land is designed for human production and consumption. © 2014 Antipode Foundation Ltd.

Binti Yusof, Wafaa, and Anita Abdul Rahim. 2014. "The age of criminal responsibility from the perspective of Malaysian Shariah law." Asian Social Science 10 (10):95-104.

doi: 10.5539/ass.v10n10p95.

Abstract

The non-conformity in the use of the terms concerning children and their age in the Shariah criminal legal system in the states in Malaysia has given rise to legal conflict as well as causing difficulties in terms of the execution and enforcement of shariah legal crime and its procedures in each of the afore stated states. The existing laws show that there exists non-dissidence in determining the position of children which conflicts with syariah crime. The term young offender was duly provided in the shariah procedural enactment but not in states' shariah criminal law. Similarly, the term 'baligh' was defined and the position of non-baligh children was elucidated in the said law but not under the shariah procedural enactment. Hence, this articles serves to lay down the provisions of both enactments concerned and to compared them with the shariah criminal principles in terms of ascertainment of age and the position of children which are in conflict with the shariah criminal law through the ulama and Islamic fuqaha's standpoint. This approach was adopted to determine as to what extent are the distinctive provisions shariah-compliant. This article unmasks the lacunae on shariah criminal law in the states particularly those pertaining children, conflicting with shariah. This finding raises the possibility re-examination as to the existing provisions. The analysis depicts the fact that each 'baligh' provision is duly reinforced by the ulama and fuqaha's views which contribute to khilaf in this case. Correspondingly, the provision in shariah procedural enactments in Malaysia that a young offender is one who is not less than 10 years of age and not more than 16 years old is still very much debatable, considering the provisions on baligh. Thus, the detailed re-examination of the shariah criminal legal system pertaining children which conflicts with shariah criminal law is very much necessary for the justice of all of the parties concerned. © the author(s).

Chua, Siah Poh. 2014. "Sex ratio at birth among chinese malaysians, 1963-2003." Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia 29 (1):184-94.

doi: 10.1355/sj29-1g.

Abstract

The preference for a son over a daughter is a product of traditional agrarian society that persists today. The high sex ratio at birth in China and Taiwan shows the close connection between Chinese culture and the preference for a son. It raises the question of whether there is a high sex ratio at birth(SRB) among Chinese Malaysians. Data for SRBs among Chinese in West Malaysia from 1963 to 2003, as obtained from the Department of Statistics, Malaysia, are analysed. The results reveal a rising trend in SRB. SRB has been positively correlated with GDP per capita but negatively correlated with the number of babies born. The results indicate that the younger generation may also be influenced by the cultural preference for sons. Pre-and postnatal discrimination may worsen, as both growth in per capita GDP and falling birth rates are projected in the future. ©2014 ISEAS.

Dressel, Björn. 2014. "Governance, Courts and Politics in Asia." Journal of Contemporary Asia 44 (2):259-78.

doi: 10.1080/00472336.2013.870827.

Abstract

It is widely argued that an empowered judiciary supports better governance by strengthening the rule of law and helping to make government more accountable and stable, but how solidly that reasoning is based in fact has not been carefully analysed. As recent events in Asia illustrate, apparently similar constitutional choices about courts can have very different effects on political life and ultimately governance. To address the relative lack of empirical observation and more closely investigate the nexus between courts and governance, this article first presents a basic typology of judicial politics and then applies it to Thailand, Singapore, Korea and Japan. The intent is to: (1) provide a much-needed and more nuanced view of the unfolding judicialisation phenomenon; and (2) urge closer attention to how specific patterns of judicial behaviour in Asia relate to dimensions of governance. The study thus offers an opportunity to illuminate larger issues at the intersection of judicial engagement and political governance and to advance a theoretical understanding of both. © 2014 © 2014 Journal of Contemporary Asia.

Dy, Aristotle C. 2014. "Planting Good Roots and Creating Affinities: Engaged Buddhism in the Chinese-Filipino Context." Journal of Chinese Overseas 10 (1):33-60.

doi: 10.1163/17932548-12341267.

Abstract

After Chinese Buddhist temples were set up in the Philippines in the 20th century, temple communities proceeded to establish schools, charity clinics, and fund other socio-cultural projects. This paper traces the basis of such works to the concept of Engaged Buddhism in its Chinese manifestation, as well as to Chinese Buddhist history, teachings and contemporary trends in Chinese voluntary organizations. The author also presents fieldwork data that explores the motivations behind socio-cultural projects, using the concepts of planting good roots and creating affinities; these Buddhist concepts are then linked to the Chinese idea of guanxi. Rather than religious conversion or social integration, Chinese Buddhist social projects were aimed at cultural preservation and the practice of Buddhist compassion.

Fanselow, Frank. 2014. "The anthropology of the state and the state of anthropology in Brunei." Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 45 (1):90-112.

doi: 10.1017/S0022463413000611.

Abstract

This article provides a detailed account of the process of invention of a nationalist tradition for Brunei, the most tradition-conscious nation in Southeast Asia. It shows how Brunei's nationalist tradition emerged at the interface of colonial records, indigenous oral and written sources, ethnographic fieldwork, and anthropological theories. For this purpose the article traces the history of anthropological research in northern Borneo from its colonial beginnings to its postcolonial role in nation-building and shows how anthropology and anthropologists have - sometimes unknowingly, sometimes deliberately - played an active role in the shaping of Negara Brunei Darussalam. Copyright © The National University of Singapore 2014.

Faraz, Nahiyah Jaidi, and P.L. Rika Fatimah. 2014. "SMEs woodcrafters self-assessment on transformational leadership in Bantul regency, Indonesia." International Business Management 8 (2):97-105.

http://medwelljournals.com/abstract/?doi=ibm.2014.97.105.

Abstract

The setting of the research is Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Bantul regency. The population covers 72 people and all them are respondents of this research. Regarding the similar characteristics of SMEs woodcrafters, this research used purposive sampling technique. The data collection consists of questionnaires, interviews and documentations. The researcher used the data analysis techniques are percentage, first order Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and rank order correlation. Research result shows that the construct of self-assessment of SMEs transformational leadership for woodcrafters theoretically hypothesized fits the empirical data as indicated by all high and significant factors. In addition, self-assessment of the SMEs woodcrafters to the implementation of the transformational leadership in Bantul regency has implemented all of the dimensions of transformational leadership like modeling, motivating, stimulating and advising which is level varies in other words the leadership style of SMEs woodcrafters in special territory of Yogyakarta is transformative enough. © Medwell Journals, 2014.

Fong, Yang L., and Md Sidin Ahmad Ishak. 2014. "Framing interethnic conflict in Malaysia: A comparative analysis of newspapers coverage on the keris polemics." Ethnicities 14 (2):252-78.

doi: 10.1177/1468796813482310.

Abstract

The keris is a Malay or Indonesia dagger. In 2005, the then United Malays National Organization (UMNO) Youth Chief and Malaysia Education Minister, Hishammuddin Hussein, wielded the keris at the UMNO Youth general assembly, which he claimed to be a means to motivate the Malays. Following that, the UMNO Youth general assembly in 2006 and 2007 was noted for some racist statements made by several delegates in addition to the keris-wielding action repeated by Hishammuddin. The non-Malays perceived the action of wielding the keris as a gesture meant to defend ketuanan Melayu (Malay supremacy) and to threaten those who opposed Malay special rights. After the political tsunami in 2008, the Malaysian Chinese Association and Malaysian People's Movement Party (Gerakan) leaders blamed UMNO for their electoral debacle. Hishammuddin also admitted that his raising of the keris was among the causes of the Barisan Nasional's poor performance in the general election. He apologized to the non-Malays because of the fear to a symbol which was not his intention and to the Malays for not being able to uphold their symbol of heritage. This study aimed to compare the coverage of the keris polemics by mainstream Malay, English and Chinese as well as alternative newspapers. By using framing as the theoretical framework and content analysis as the research methods, it was found that the newspapers framed the issue differently, reflecting the political economic and ideological boundaries within which the journalists work. © The Author(s) 2013 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Foo, Xiang Yi, Muhd. Najib Mohd. Alwi, Siti Irma Fadhillah Ismail, Normala Ibrahim, and Zubaidah Jamil Osman. 2014. "Religious Commitment, Attitudes Toward Suicide, and Suicidal Behaviors Among College Students of Different Ethnic and Religious Groups in Malaysia." Journal of Religion and Health 53 (3):731-46.

doi: 10.1007/s10943-012-9667-9.

Abstract

The variation in suicide patterns across ethnic groups with different religious background is a puzzling social phenomenon. This study sought to examine the impact of religious commitment and attitudes toward suicide on suicidal behaviors of college students across major ethnic and religious groups in a multicultural society of Malaysia. A total of 139 college students completed Religious Commitment Inventory-10, Attitudes Toward Suicide Scale, and Suicidal Behavior Questionnaire-Revised. Findings showed significant discrepancies in attitudes toward suicide, but not suicidal behaviors across ethnic and religious groups. Suicide acceptance significantly affected suicidal behaviors as well. Although religious commitment is not associated with suicidal behaviors, its deviation is reflected in students' acceptance of suicide. Additionally, college students' suicide risk, lifetime, and recent suicide ideation, as well as their likelihood of future suicide attempt can be associated with their acceptance of suicide. The influence of attitudes toward suicide and religion, therefore, should be taken into consideration while implementing suicide prevention programs as it helps shape the norms about suicide among youths. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media New York.

Gayosa, Eduardo S., and Emilyn Cabanda. 2014. "Frontier analysis of the philippine manufacturing efficiency." International Journal of Information and Decision Sciences 6 (1):87-108.

doi: 10.1504/IJIDS.2014.059733.

Abstract

This research investigates the efficiency of 100 firms from ten selected manufacturing industries in the Philippines over the period 1995-2004, using the two frontier models. The aim of this research is to evaluate and measure the technical efficiency of selected firms by applying the data envelopment analysis (DEA) and stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) approaches. A total of 1,000 pooled data are analysed using both DEA and SFA methods. New findings reveal that the average technical efficiency scores of DEA and SFA are 57.4% and 82.63, respectively, but no statistically significant correlation found. New results also suggest that older firms tend to be more technically inefficient than younger firms while larger firms tend to be more technically efficient than smaller firms. Significantly, this research has also found that an imposition of higher tariff rates can make firms to be technically inefficient. Overall, this research provides significant evidences on the usefulness of two frontier methods for evaluating manufacturing efficiency as alternative tools of performance measurement for managerial decision making. © 2014 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

Gray, Clark, Elizabeth Frankenberg, Thomas Gillespie, Cecep Sumantri, and Duncan Thomas. 2014. "Studying Displacement After a Disaster Using Large-Scale Survey Methods: Sumatra After the 2004 Tsunami." Annals of the Association of American Geographers 104 (3):594-612.

doi: 10.1080/00045608.2014.892351.

Abstract

Understanding of human vulnerability to environmental change has advanced in recent years, but measuring vulnerability and interpreting mobility across many sites differentially affected by change remains a significant challenge. Drawing on longitudinal data collected on the same respondents who were living in coastal areas of Indonesia before the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and were reinterviewed after the tsunami, this article illustrates how the combination of population-based survey methods, satellite imagery and multivariate statistical analyses has the potential to provide new insights into vulnerability, mobility, and impacts of major disasters on population well-being. The data are used to map and analyze vulnerability to post-tsunami displacement across the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra and to compare patterns of migration after the tsunami between damaged areas and areas not directly affected by the tsunami. The comparison reveals that migration after a disaster is less selective overall than migration in other contexts. Gender and age, for example, are strong predictors of moving from undamaged areas but are not related to displacement in areas experiencing damage. In our analyses, traditional predictors of vulnerability do not always operate in expected directions. Low levels of socioeconomic status and education were not predictive of moving after the tsunami, although for those who did move, they were predictive of displacement to a camp rather than a private home. This survey-based approach, although not without difficulties, is broadly applicable to many topics in human-environment research and potentially opens the door to rigorous testing of new hypotheses in this literature. © 2014 © 2014 by Association of American Geographers.

Guindon, G. Emmanuel. 2014. "The impact of tobacco prices on smoking onset in Vietnam: Duration analyses of retrospective data." European Journal of Health Economics 15 (1):19-39.

doi: 10.1007/s10198-012-0444-1.

Abstract

The benefits of preventing smoking onset are well known, and even just delaying smoking onset conveys benefits. Tobacco control policies are of critical importance to low-income countries with high smoking rates such as Vietnam where smoking prevalence is greater than 55 % in young men between the ages of 25 and 45. Using a survey of teens and young adults, I conducted duration analyses to explore the impact of tobacco price on smoking onset. The results suggest that tobacco prices in Vietnam have a statistically significant and fairly substantial effect on the onset of smoking. Increases in average tobacco prices, measured by an index of tobacco prices and by the prices of two popular brands, are found to delay smoking onset. Of particular interest is the finding that Vietnamese youth are more sensitive to changes in prices of a popular international brand that has had favourable tax treatment since the late 1990s. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.

Hai, Le Trinh, Pham Hoang Hai, Pham Thi Thu Ha, Nguyen Manh Ha, Ly Trong Dai, Pham Viet Hoa, Nguyen Cao Huan, and Lai Vinh Cam. 2014. "A System of Sustainability Indicators for the Province of Thai Binh, Vietnam." Social Indicators Research 116 (3):661-79.

doi: 10.1007/s11205-013-0315-x.

Abstract

Sustainable Development is a broad and universal concept. Indicators are a basis to measure sustainability and to direct policies that aim to achieve a better quality of life. Thai Binh, a coastal province in North Vietnam is strongly concerned about strategic sustainability development. To select a system of sustainability indicators, the Delphi method was applied in 2012. A two-round questionnaire was organized to use with 32 experts, who acted as participants. 69 indicators were selected from 98 listed indicators: 15 related to economic development, 5 to the sea and coastal zone, 1 to the global economic partnership, 4 to consumption and production patterns, 7 to poverty, 3 to governance, 9 to health, 4 to education, 3 to demographics, 2 to natural hazards, 5 to atmosphere, 7 to land, and 3 to freshwater. Conversely, 29 other indicators were rejected. The Delphi method allows indicator selection for identification of the process of sustainability. The system of indicators, as the first important step of the sustainable development process, provides useful information for decision makers and planners as well sustainability strategy. It is planned that the indicators selected should be applied in the province. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

Haseeb, Muhammad, Nira Hariyatie Hartani, Norâ Aznin Abu Bakar, Muhammad Azam, and Sallahuddin Hassan. 2014. "Exports, foreign direct investment and economic growth: Empirical evidence from Malaysia (1971-2013)." American Journal of Applied Sciences 11 (6):1010-5.

doi: 10.3844/ajassp.2014.1010.1015.

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to empirically investigate the relationship between exports, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and the economic growth in Malaysia. Records of annual time series data from the year 1971 till 2013 have been utilized for this purpose. Upon testing the data for stationarity, the Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model has been applied for the purpose of empirical investigation. The empirical results indicate that the productivity factor and externality effect of exports on the non-export sector are found to be statistically, positively significant, with the exports also having a positive impact on the economic growth and FDI of the country. The results support Exports Led Growth (ELG) and FDI-Led economic Growth (FLG) in Malaysia. The finding further suggests that Malaysia should continuous pursue exports promotion and a liberal investment economic policy in order to maintain and bolster overall economic growth. © 2014 Science Publication.

Hilman, Haim, and Narentheren Kaliappen. 2014. "Do cost leadership strategy and process innovation influence the performance of Malaysia hotel industry?" Asian Social Science 10 (10):134-41.

doi: 10.5539/ass.v10n10p134.

Abstract

This research used strategy implementation perspective and strategic alignment of organizational strategies to investigate the link of cost leadership strategy, process innovation and organizational performance in context of Malaysia hotel industry. The purpose is to show that cost leadership strategy and process innovation have a significant impact on organizational performance. The paper designed a mail and email survey that was sent to top and middle level managers in three stars and above rated hotels, which resulted in 54 usable surveys. The results show that cost leadership significantly affects the process innovation and process innovation also significantly affects the organizational performance. Furthermore, the results show that process innovation mediates the cost leadership strategy and organizational performance link. Consequently, the hotel managers, perhaps make strategic decisions by simultaneously develop cost leadership and process innovation to obtain superior organizational performance and competitive advantage. © the author(s).

Ismail, Shafinar, Farah Azmi, and Ramayah Thurasamy. 2014. "Selection criteria for Islamic home financing in Malaysia." International Journal of Business and Society 15 (1):97-110.

doi: 10.1108/17554171111155357

Abstract

Islamic home financing over the ten year period showed an increasing rate from RM6.8 billion to RM23.3 billion. It is crucial to understand what are the factors that will determine the satisfaction of both Muslims and non-Muslims customer towards Islamic home financing. Therefore, this study investigates the important factors that influence selection of Islamic home financing among working adults in Malaysia. Questionnaires were distributed to the 160 employees in one financial institution. The sampling procedure adopted in this research was stratified random sampling. The questionnaire was designed in two sections, one consisting of demographic information and the second relating to the selection determinants of Islamic home financing. The result indicates that reputation, service quality, religious, media advertisement and social influence becomes the important factors that influence selection of Islamic home financing. Reputation is the best predictor as most of customers are confidents to select Islamic home financing because the Islamic bank has a good reputation and image. This research has been conducted in aggregate form. The study also refers to the employees in one financial institution. Future research could account for employees from other financial institution. The analyses presented in this research can be used by policymakers and managers as a guide to promote Islamic product and services. The study makes a contribution to the literature on Islamic banking in Malaysia. It is the first study to particularly investigate the home selection criteria in Malaysia. The findings achieved in this research will be of interest for practitioners and academics concerned with developments of the Malaysian Islamic banking industry.

Kantabutra, Sooksan. 2014. "Sustainable leadership at Thai president foods." International Journal of Business 19 (2):152-72.

http://www.craig.csufresno.edu/ijb/Volumes/Volume%2019/V192-3.pdf

Abstract

This paper adopts Avery's sustainable leadership practices as a framework to examine the business practices, as informed by the philosophy of Sufficiency Economy, at one of the world's largest instant noodle manufacturers, Thai President Foods (TF). Avery's principles were grouped into six categories for analysis: long-term perspective, investing in people, organizational culture, innovation, social and environmental responsibility, and behaving ethically. Adopting a multi-data collection approach, research teams supplemented case study data with non-participant observations made during visits to the conglomerate and training sessions, and reference to documentation and information supplied by, or published about, the conglomerate. Semi-structured interviews were held with multiple stakeholders. Six core sets of practices consistent with the 19 sustainable leadership practices were identified: a focus on a long-term perspective, staffdevelopment, a strong organizational culture, innovation, social and environmental responsibility and ethical behavior, sharply contrasting with the prevailing business model of short-term maximization of profitability.

Kipgen, Nehginpao. 2014. "Addressing the Rohingya Problem." Journal of Asian and African Studies 49 (2):234-47.

doi: 10.1177/0021909613505269.

Abstract

The simmering tension between Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in Western Myanmar escalated into a violent conflict in 2012, first in June and again in October. The violence led to the loss of over a hundred lives, destruction of thousands of homes, and the displacement of tens of thousands of people. The Myanmar government intervened to end the bloodshed but tension continues to linger. This article argues that, instead of alienating the Rohingyas politically, consociational democracy should be pursued to address the problem. The support and cooperation of both Buddhists and Muslims, and perhaps assistance from a neutral organization like the United Nations, would help achieve a political solution. © The Author(s) 2013.

Koh, Khee Heong, and Chang Woei Ong. 2014. "Gods and/or ancestors: Practicing lineage in contemporary Singapore." Journal of Chinese Overseas 10 (1):3-32.

doi: 10.1163/17932548-12341266.

Abstract

This paper attempts to examine the roles and functions that lineages play in the social and cultural experiences of certain segments of Singapore's Chinese community. Since Maurice Freedman argued over half a century ago that beyond the nuclear families and their immediate kin, the Chinese in Singapore normally did not organize themselves according to the ideal of lineage, researches on Chinese voluntary associations in Singapore have by and large overlooked the fact that the practice of organizing kinsmen around the ideas of lineage has persisted up to the present day. The paper looks at two cases-the Wengshan Hongs and the Bangtou Bais-of lineage practices in contemporary Singapore. The former highlights an intangible display of kinship consciousness in a religious space. Gods, rather than ancestors, are symbols that help to bind its kinsmen together. By comparison, the Bangtou Bai lineage is very explicit in the display of their common ancestry identity. The common surname association, the religious space, and the lineage space have been converged. It is the contention of the authors of this paper that the two cases can represent two major strategies of combining religious affiliations and memories of ancestors in a fast-developing urban environment. © 2014 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden.

Lahiri-Dutt, Kuntala, Kim Alexander, and Chansouk Insouvanh. 2014. "Informal mining in livelihood diversification: Mineral dependence and rural communities in Lao PDR." South East Asia Research 22 (1):103-22.

doi: 10.5367/sear.2014.0194.

Abstract

In the context of mineral extraction in South East Asia, the rural poor are generally portrayed as victims of large, invading corporatized mining enterprises. However, this paper argues that local villagers have also shown considerable agency in taking advantage of the mineral resource boom by diversifying their livelihoods to include informal mining. In South East Asia, the growth of informal mining has occurred within the overall process of agrarian transition. This paper focuses on a mineral-rich valley in southern Laos to highlight the location-specific nature of such transitions. The valley's environmental transformation has both caused and accompanied a modification in the peasant ways of life, and the recent entry of transnational mining companies and the growing market price of tin have fundamentally altered the relationships of the peasants with place, while at the same time encouraging them to claim mineral resource rights in ways that are not accommodated in conventional mining legislation. To conclude, the paper notes the multiple interpretations and contradictions of the increasing mineral dependence among Lao peasants in a rapidly changing world.

Lai, Dennis Hang Hui. 2014. "Combating Financial Crimes in Hong Kong and Singapore and the Quest for Competitiveness: A Political Economy Perspective." Journal of Comparative Asian Development 13 (1):3-30.

doi: 10.1080/15339114.2014.881712.

Abstract

Despite the growing policy attention to financial crimes, theoretical discussions about the policies that the state has pursued to deal with this problem have been lacking. This paper develops a theoretical framework to understand the politics of financial crimes. It argues that policy efforts against financial crimes pursued by the state can be explained with reference to the financialization of the global economy and the quest for global competitiveness. At the same time, these global forces are mediated by the dynamics of domestic politics, which determines the pace and the scope of financial regulation. This paper then applies this theoretical framework to explain the differences between Hong Kong and Singapore in their efforts to deal with financial crimes. The difference in terms of their regulatory thrusts in financial affairs relates to their divergent economic ideologies. The final part of this paper highlights the key challenges that Shanghai is facing in dealing with financial crimes with reference to the relevant historical experiences of Hong Kong and Singapore. © 2014 City University of Hong Kong.

Laiprakobsup, Thanapan. 2014. "Political Liberalization and Agricultural Trade Policy in Indonesia and the Philippines." Asian Journal of Political Science 22 (1):1-19.

doi: 10.1080/02185377.2013.879066.

Abstract

The political regimes in Indonesia and the Philippines have experienced a political transition-from an authoritarian to an electoral system. Such a transition has contributed to changes in the policy-making process, including agricultural trade policy. Unfortunately, few scholars have empirically examined the impact of this political transition on the policy-making process. This article aims to fill this gap by examining the causal relations between political liberalization and agricultural trade policy in Indonesia and the Philippines in order to understand how political liberalization affects the policy-making process. It is hypothesized that the more liberalized the government becomes, the less likely it is to impose control programs on agriculture. Studying the government's intervention in the agricultural sector in Indonesia and the Philippines, it was found that liberal governments are likely to reduce the tax and price control programs imposed on the agricultural sector. This article implies that a liberal regime has a positive impact on rural farmers in that governments are less likely to implement policies that discriminate against farmers' interests. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Lamb, Vanessa. 2014. ""Where is the border?" Villagers, environmental consultants and the 'work' of the Thai-Burma border." Political Geography 40:1-12.

doi: 10.1016/j.polgeo.2014.02.001.

Abstract

This article examines how Thai-Burma border residents are enrolled and engaged in remaking the political border through their knowledge practices and performances, or their own "borderwork". Border residents do not perform this work alone, but in connection with other actors including environmental consultants. In order to highlight this co-production of the political border, I bring together border studies scholarship that see borders as process and performance with work in science studies that has highlighted the way that knowledge and order are co-produced. The importance of this approach is that it facilitates an understanding of the multifaceted and contradictory work to remake the border by multiple actors, a way to study "borders from the bottom up" that illustrates how the border is continually enacted. While this article puts forth the notion that the border represents an important site and process of struggle and negotiation in which marginalized communities invest, it also questions the assumption that because residents are engaged in remaking the border, the border is necessarily more 'democratic'. The discussion and empirical data presented in this article also speak to broader debates in political geography about how borders are remade through practice and performance. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Lee, Sang Kook. 2014. "Siam mismapped: Revisiting the territorial dispute over the Preah Vihear temple." South East Asia Research 22 (1):39-55.

doi: 10.5367/sear.2014.0196.

Abstract

This paper examines the territorial dispute over the Preah Vihear temple on the Thai-Cambodian border. It sheds new light on discussions of the geo-body and nationalism by engaging with cultural theorist Jean Baudrillard's notions of the simulacrum and hyperreality in association with maps. The dispute over the temple of Preah Vihear has centred on one particular map, known as the Annex 1 map, which locates the temple in Cambodian territory. The map has not remained an inanimate object, but has instead become a 'living thing' and attained something of a 'soul'. As a result, any sense of mismapping which results in the loss of territory is no other than the equivalent of a loss of the biological body, as a result of which real conflict ensues. This paper reveals the historical process of how the Annex 1 map has become a simulacrum in Baudrillard's sense of the term, to the extent that it creates an instance of hyperreality to which people are emotionally attached.

Leong, Frederick TL, Jason L. Huang, and Stanton Mak. 2014. "Protestant Work Ethic, Confucian Values, and Work-Related Attitudes in Singapore." Journal of Career Assessment 22 (2):304-16.

doi: 10.1177/1069072713493985.

Abstract

The current article examined the extent to which Western Protestant Work Ethic (PWE) and Eastern Confucian values would influence employee job satisfaction and organizational commitment in an East Asian culture. Based on survey data from 151 employees in Singapore, the study showed that these two values have distinct relationships with job-related attitudes. The PWE had significant relationships with affective, continuance, and normative organizational commitment, whereas the Confucian value dimensions of diligence and harmony were significantly related to job satisfaction and affective/normative commitment, respectively. Additional dominance analysis revealed that Confucian harmony was more useful in predicting affective commitment, whereas PWE was more useful in predicting normative commitment. The cultural validity of the PWE and the cultural specificity of the Confucian values are discussed along with practical implications of the research findings. © The Author(s) 2013.

Lohmann, Carsten, and Ingo Liefner. 2014. "Spatial Patterns of Private Sector and Public Sector Non-Agricultural Jobs in Rural Northeast Thailand." Regional Studies 48 (4):710-26.

doi: 10.1080/00343404.2012.663481.

Abstract

Lohmann C. and Liefner I. Spatial patterns of private sector and public sector non-agricultural jobs in rural Northeast Thailand, Regional Studies. Published evidence from developing countries shows that in rural areas participation in non-agricultural wage-employment rises with proximity to urban centres, while earnings do not. This paper explores the reasons for this phenomenon, analysing the job characteristics of rural workers in detail. The data set consists of 900 jobs. The results show that public jobs are over-represented in rural-remote regions, driving up the mean wage of this type of region. When considering private sector employment only, spatial wage and income differentials do exist, showing that workers in remote areas are economically more disadvantaged than workers in peri-urban areas. © 2013 Regional Studies Association.

Lynn, Richard. 2014. "A study of intelligence in cambodia." Mankind Quarterly 54 (3-4):458-64.

http://www.mankindquarterly.org/spring_summer2014_lynn2.html.

Abstract

A recent study of intelligence in Cambodian and German students gives the Cambodian students an IQ of 84 in relation to a German and British IQ of 100. In both samples males obtained higher mean IQs than females.

Maclean, Ken. 2014. "Counter-accounting with invisible data: The struggle for transparency in Myanmar's energy sector." Political and Legal Anthropology Review 37 (1):10-28.

doi: 10.1111/plar.12048.

Abstract

This article examines the counter-accounting methods one NGO, EarthRights International (ERI), uses to make Myanmar's notoriously opaque energy sector more transparent. ERI's methodological approach relies heavily on the identification of "invisible data," which do not appear in the statistics that governments and foreign energy companies release concerning their joint ventures. However, the data leave patterned traces in other statistical financial data. ERI asserts that it is possible to reconstruct joint venture balance sheets by comparing these traces against what the principles have not disclosed, such as with the controversial Yadana pipeline and the precedent-setting human rights lawsuit connected to it. The choices that ERI made illustrate how financial "facts" are fashioned rather than found, and that technical decisions regarding who does the counting, what gets counted, and what is disclosed to whom are profoundly political in nature. Such decisions also foreground key limitations of NGO-led revenue transparency projects, especially in resource-rich countries. Greater data disclosure does not necessarily result in increased transparency. Rather, the proliferation of structured and unstructured data sources (information that is organized and readily searchable versus information that is not) often leads to greater disagreement among key stakeholders regarding the relevance, neutrality, intelligibility, and verifiability of the numbers available for audit. © 2014 by the American Anthropological Association.

Marbán-Flores, Raquel. 2014. "The microfinance sector in Vietnam: An overview of its present state and future prospects." Local Economy 29 (3):213-27.

doi: 10.1177/0269094214528852.

Abstract

The microfinance sector in Vietnam is appealing for study, due both to the type of institutions operating in it and its impressive growth rates. This article aims to explain the current situation of the sector as well as to point out the main obstacles that could slow down this growth. This is firstly done through an analysis of available published data. Given that these data provide a limited perspective of the actual situation, comprehensive field work was carried out based on surveys and in some cases direct interviews with the different agents operating in the Vietnamese microfinance sector. Special consideration was given to indicators associated with the possible introduction of innovations enabled by Information and Communications Technologies. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Metro, Rosalie. 2014. "From the form to the face to face: IRBs, Ethnographic researchers, and human subjects translate consent." Anthropology and Education Quarterly 45 (2):167-84.

doi: 10.1111/aeq.12057.

Abstract

Based on my fieldwork with Burmese teachers in Thailand, I describe the drawbacks of using IRB-mandated written consent procedures in my cross-cultural collaborative ethnographic research on education. Drawing on theories of intersubjectivity (Mikhail Bakhtin), ethics (Emmanuel Levinas), and translation (Naoki Sakai), I describe face-to-face consent encounters that offer alternate possibilities for ethical practice. © 2014 by the American Anthropological Association.

Minhat, Minhat, and Mazni Abdullah. 2014. "Executive compensation in government-linked companies: Evidence from Malaysia." Applied Economics 46 (16):1861-72.

doi: 10.1080/00036846.2014.887192.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the characteristics of executive pay, equity ownership incentives and pay-performance relationship in government-controlled firms. Data were hand-collected from the annual reports of 179 companies listed on Bursa Malaysia. The results show that executive pay is lower in government-linked companies. Positive pay-performance relationship is also not evident for this category of firms, which indicates that their executives were largely guaranteed with certain level of pay irrespective of performance. The level of equity ownership incentives provides the executives in government-controlled firms with very little incentive to produce effort that can improve firm performance. Overall, our findings are consistent with the inefficient pay hypothesis developed in this study. © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Mokhlis, Safiek. 2014. "The image of retailing as a graduate career: Evidence from Malaysia." International Business Management 8 (2):146-52.

http://medwelljournals.com/abstract/?doi=ibm.2014.146.152.

Abstract

To successfully compete in the 21st century, retailing must be able to attract, recruit and retain a competent workforce. Due to unprecedented growth in organized retailing, more management careers are available to young people than ever before yet retailers face obstacles in recruiting talented graduates due to perceptions that retailing offers a low quality of work-life. This study explored Malaysian undergraduates views of retailing as a career choice. A quantitative methodology, using responses given by 271 marketing students was employed in the analysis. The descriptive analysis revealed that students do not have a noticeably enthusiastic view of retailing. The factors associated with retailing as a career were mixed and include a variety of negative connotations. A comparison was made between the views expressed by three groups of students: Those who were intended to pursue retailing as a career, those who were definitely not doing so and those who were undecided. The results indicate that there was substantially more congruence between pro-retailing students perceptions of a preferred career and their perception of retailing than there were for the undecided and anti-retailing students. The results of this research suggest several implications for marketing educators and graduate recruiters. © Medwell Journals, 2014.

Mokhtar, Mohd, Sany Sanuri, Rushami Zien Yusoff, and Azanin Ahmad. 2014. "Key elements of market orientation on Malaysian SMEs performance." International Journal of Business and Society 15 (1):49-64.

http://www.ijbs.unimas.my/index.php/content-abstract/current-issue/item/237-key-elements-of-market-orientation-on-malaysian-smes-performance

Abstract

Malaysian Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are vital components of the country's economic development. This paper assessed the relationship between market orientation critical success factors and Malaysian SMEs performance. Data were collected via mail survey employing the simple random sampling procedure. A total of 140 SMEs responses to this study. The findings revealed mix relationship among the components of market orientation critical success factors in SMEs performance. Two factors, specifically, customers focus and market dissemination was found to have significant relationships with SMEs performance. On the other hand, the other factors, namely market intelligence and responsiveness did not indicate significant influence on the SMEs performance. Consequently, the result of this study has significant impact to SMEs owners in forwarding organizational excellence. For SMEs to contribute significantly to the realization of the long term business and industrial competitiveness of the country, they need to focus on any activities that related to the market orientation critical success factors.

Ng, Irene YH. 2014. "Education and intergenerational mobility in Singapore." Educational Review 66 (3):362-76.

doi: 10.1080/00131911.2013.780008.

Abstract

International research on the effects of educational regimes on intergenerational mobility suggests that Singapore's education system possesses characteristics that tend to decrease intergenerational mobility. These characteristics include ability-based and school-based streaming, privatization of basic and tertiary education, expansion of tertiary education while increasing fees, and possibly regressive public expenditure on education. These characteristics are motivated by a belief in offering multiple pathways for success, and thereby developing a globally competitive workforce. However, comparisons between Singapore and Finland suggest that greater equity and mobility can be achieved without necessarily compromising students' performance and the nation's economic competitiveness. Given wide income disparity and at best moderate intergenerational mobility in Singapore, evaluations of the mobility effects of the various characteristics of Singapore's education system should be conducted. Priority should be given to rethinking Singapore's educational model. Remedial interventions such as bursaries and peripheral interventions such as the regulation of early education or private tuition have limited effectiveness if the main system reinforces immobility. The lessons in this study for Singapore can also be extended to other countries with differentiated education systems. © 2013 Educational Review.

Nguyen, Toan, and Stephen Burgess. 2014. "A case analysis of ICT for knowledge transfer in small businesses in Vietnam." International Journal of Information Management 34 (3):416-21.

doi: 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2014.02.009.

Abstract

Small businesses face numerous issues in regard to the management of their knowledge, including potential loss of knowledge due to high employee turnover and the willingness and ability of employees to share their knowledge. This case study examines two small ICT companies in Vietnam to determine how knowledge transfer was conducted with and without the use of ICT. A knowledge transfer framework for small businesses was used as a lens to analyse the results. The findings showed differences in knowledge transfer approaches in both cases. It was observed that employees whose jobs required less flexibility needed more explicit knowledge, but if their working procedures were more flexible they were more likely to need tacit knowledge. Tacit knowledge was mainly transferred by non-ICT methods, with explicit knowledge being transferred via a combination of methods. The cases differed in regard to the existence of knowledge transfer guidelines - as well as the willingness and ability of employees to share knowledge with others in the business. Both case businesses lacked appropriate measures to determine the level of success of knowledge transfer activities. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Nguyen, Thuy-Phuong. 2014. "The rivalry of the French and American educational missions during the Vietnam War." Paedagogica Historica 50 (1-2):27-41.

doi: 10.1080/00309230.2013.872683.

Abstract

From 1955 to 1975, the French and the Americans were both active in the educational field in South Vietnam, but their objectives were different. The French were concerned with preserving their influence with the Vietnamese elites and relied on the Mission Culturelle - the heir of the colonial Direction of Education - and its prestigious high schools. The Americans wanted to improve the level of education of the population and strived to reform the Vietnamese administration in order to make South Vietnam a nation strong enough to bar the advance of communism. The main operator was USAID, which coordinated and funded the activities of expert teams, and particularly of academic missions. The French deeply resented the American intrusion into what they believed to be their historical area of cultural influence, and they perceived the United States as aggressive towards them. The Americans did not oppose the French cultural presence but they did try to eliminate those parts of the French legacy - particularly the teaching methods and the administrative structures - that they considered to be obsolete and an obstacle to their reforms. The battle between those two cultural traditions was waged by their Vietnamese supporters, with long-time Francophiles on one side and US-trained educators and administrators on the other. However, this competition was partly artificial, as the French and Americans actually needed each other. Their educational missions also had to deal with the circumstances of the war in Vietnam. In the early 1970s, the French resigned themselves to the dismantling of their educational network while American reform met with substantial resistance in South Vietnamese society, which resented the Americanisation of an educational system that mixed the Confucian and the French academic traditions, as symbolised by the enduring popularity of the Baccalaureate examination that still exists today in Vietnam. © 2014 © 2014 Stichting Paedagogica Historica.

Nisa, Eva F. 2014. "Insights into the lives of Indonesian female Tablighi Jama'at." Modern Asian Studies 48 (2):468-91.

doi: 10.1017/S0026749X13000681.

Abstract

Tablighi Jama'at is one of the most popular Islamic purist movements in the world. Although it has a growing presence in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country, little research has thus far been done on its activities in that country. To gain access to Indonesian society, the Tablighi Jama'at has been particularly original in choosing a uniquely Indonesian institution as its entry point: the pesantren (Islamic boarding schools). The role of pesantren for the Tablighis in Indonesia is not confined to spreading Islamic knowledge, they also serve as a hub of Tablighi activities. This paper focuses on examining the role of the Tablighi pesantren in shaping and transmitting religious knowledge to its Indonesian followers, and in particular to female followers, as there is to date no scholarship on this topic. It analyses the life experiences of female Tablighis inside and outside the pesantren and their passion to belong to a global imagined Tablighi community. Transnational travel of female Tablighis from diverse neighbouring countries is a central part of the pesantren experience. For Indonesian Tablighi women, the presence of these female guests and foreign students who are enrolled in the pesantren play a significant role in strengthening their passionate desire to be part of the global Tablighi Jama'at umma. © 2014 Cambridge University Press .

Nurwati, Etty, Noer Azam Achsani, Didin Hafidhuddin, and Nunung Nuryartono. 2014. "Market structure and bank performance: Empirical evidence of Islamic Banking in Indonesia." Asian Social Science 10 (10):105-17.

doi: 10.5539/ass.v10n10p105.

Abstract

The relationship between market structure and bank performance has been studied extensively in various countries, some of those using a structure-conduct-performance (SCP) approach. Previous studies showed that market structure was found to be one of the main factors of bank performance. Most of the study primarily focused on conventional banking industry, while the study of relationship between market structure and performance of the Islamic Banks in Indonesia is very limited. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between market structure and performance of the Islamic Banks in Indonesia, for a period of 12 years from year 1999 to 2011, using regression panel data analysis. The result of this study indicate the significant relationship between market concentration (HHI) with Return of Equity (ROE) of Islamic Banks in Indonesia. Number of Sharia Business Unit has a positive effect on Return on Assets (ROA) and ROE of Islamic Banks in Indonesia. Meanwhile the firm ownership did not show any significant relationship to ROE and ROA of Islamic Banks in Indonesia. © the author(s).

Ovesen, Jan, and Ing-Britt Trankell. 2014. "Symbiosis of Microcredit and Private Moneylending in Cambodia." Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology 15 (2):178-96.

doi: 10.1080/14442213.2014.894116.

Abstract

Microcredit's potential for poverty reduction is a highly contested issue. In Cambodia, the dramatically increasing commercial microcredit coexists with widespread private moneylending. These two practices are rooted in different economic world views: neoliberalism on the one hand, and the traditional Khmer economic sociality permeated by patronage on the other. The ethnography shows that far from competing with each other, microcredit and private lending have adapted to form a symbiotic relationship, and much private lending is financed through microcredit. While microcredit is often beneficial to people living well above the poverty line, the widespread access to credit, through microloans as well as private lending, is threatening the livelihoods of the economically most vulnerable and precipitating their social, economic and spatial exclusion from their local communities. In contrast to the social and economic exclusion caused by land grabbing and forced evictions, which has received a fair amount of public attention, exclusion as a consequence of indebtedness has, for sociocultural reasons, remained much less visible. © 2014 © 2014 The Australian National University.

Pante, Michael D. 2014. "A Collision of Masculinities: Men, Modernity and Urban Transportation in American-Colonial Manila." Asian Studies Review 38 (2):253-73.

doi: 10.1080/10357823.2014.902034.

Abstract

Early twentieth-century Manila saw the motorisation of its urban transport system. This was a significant transformation not only because of the technological changes it brought about but more importantly because of its role in shaping the highly gendered discourse of colonial modernity. Motorised vehicles, like the streetcar and the automobile, were trumpeted as masculine and modern machines by America's civilising mission. This colonial discourse was continuously shaped and subverted by a collision of masculinities coming from different directions. This essay will focus on four different male groups in an effort to understand how transport motorisation influenced their sense of masculinity. White American colonisers imagined themselves as modern men destined to bring civilisation to the colony through technology. The native elites used the coloniser as their model by appropriating the symbols of masculine modernity. While the male workers of the modern transport sector gained knowledge of and access to the domains of those in power, those in the traditional sector became targets of vilification by the native and colonial elites. Instead of a duel between two sets of masculinity (coloniser vs. colonised) what emerged was a complex set of relationships influenced by the socioeconomic differences that separated these four groups. © 2014 Asian Studies Association of Australia.

Park, Mi. 2014. "Trade Liberalization and Organized Labour in the Asia-Pacific Region: Barriers to Labour Internationalism." Globalizations 11 (1):71-81.

doi: 10.1080/14747731.2014.860799.

Abstract

This article examines the impact of international power politics on trade liberalization and organized labour. Using regional and bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) in the Asia-Pacific region as a case study, it discusses how China's economic rise and the ensuing interstate rivalry in the region have contributed to the proliferation of FTAs. In examining the politics of nation-states and organized labour in the Asia-Pacific with regard to FTAs, it identifies economic nationalism as a barrier to transnational labour solidarity. With a critical examination of alternative trade policies, this article explores alternative venues for global social justice and labour solidarity. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Phommavong, Saithong, and Erika Sörensson. 2014. "Ethnic tourism in Lao PDR: gendered divisions of labour in community-based tourism for poverty reduction." Current Issues in Tourism 17 (4):350-62.

doi: 10.1080/13683500.2012.721758.

Abstract

A simultaneous analysis of gender and ethnicity provides a fuller understanding of how tourism initiatives benefit marginalised groups in developing countries. In this article, the gendered division of labour is analysed as a way to understand the micro-politics of ethnic tourism production aiming at poverty reduction in Laos. The aim is to demonstrate how constructions of gender and ethnicity impact on women's possibilities to benefit from community-based pro-poor tourism initiatives. Socially constructed notions of gendered behaviour influence divisions of tourism labour in specific spatialities, which we argue is crucial knowledge in the implementation of tourism projects aiming at poverty reduction. The assumption that 'the poor' constitute a homogenous group might hide an uneven distribution of tourism benefits in local communities. By focusing on factors which marginalise women, the article demonstrates inequalities between men and women in the division of tourism work. A village in northern Laos is used as a case study to examine aspects impacting on gendered divisions of labour in community-based tourism in Laos. Two examples, the Akha people's belief in and worship of spirits, and provision of massage, are used to illuminate reasons behind gendered imbalances in more detail. © 2012 Taylor & Francis.

Pintak, Lawrence. 2014. "Islam, identity and professional values: A study of journalists in three Muslim-majority regions." Journalism 15 (4):482-503.

doi: 10.1177/1464884913490269.

Abstract

Islam is a religion, but it is also a philosophy. An analysis of surveys in the Arab world, Indonesia and Pakistan reveals that the mission and values of journalists in those Muslim-majority regions closely track Islamic obligations to tell the truth, seek justice and work toward the public interest. This article provides empirical data to bolster the argument that the values of Islam are the prism through which journalists in Muslim-majority countries approach their profession. Those findings add to the body of research supporting the theory that journalistic norms are contextual, shaped by a hierarchy of influences that include global standards and local values such as culture, political climate and religion. But the findings also indicate that in regions where a professional journalistic culture is in the process of emerging, the influence of personal versus professional values is in reverse proportion to those found in more mature journalistic markets. © The Author(s) 2013.

Prabowo, Muhammad Agung, Wisnu Untoro, Irwan Trinugroho, and Arifin Angriawanb. 2014. "State-owned enterprises, efficiency and performance: The case of Indonesia." International Business Management 8 (2):153-8.

http://medwelljournals.com/abstract/?doi=ibm.2014.153.158.

Abstract

Researchers investigate the efficiency and performance of partially privatized Indonesian State-Owned Enterprise (SOEs). Researchers find that partially privatized Indonesian SOEs have higher efficiency and performance than those of their private-owned counterparts. The results might suggest that the SOEs might benefit from better corporate governance, high market power and other privileges and that the benefits are greater than the policy burdens imposed on these firms. © Medwell Journals,2014.

Rocha, Zarine L. 2014. "'Stretching out the categories': Chinese/European narratives of mixedness, belonging and home in Singapore." Ethnicities 14 (2):279-302.

doi: 10.1177/1468796813505554.

Abstract

Racial categorization is important in everyday interactions and state organization in Singapore. Increasingly, the idea of 'mixed race' and new conceptions of mixedness are challenging such classification along racial lines. Although contemporary Singapore is extremely diverse, the underlying ideology of multiracialism remains grounded in distinctly racialized groups, leaving little space for more complex individual identities. This paper explores the identifications of individuals of mixed Chinese and European descent in the Singaporean context, looking at how complexity is lived within firmly racialized structures. Drawing on a series of 20 narrative interviews, this research examines the relationship between categorization and identity, focusing on the identities of individuals with multiple national, cultural and ethnic ties. The practical impacts of racial categorization shape many aspects of life in Singapore, and individuals of mixed descent illustrated a constant tension between official categorization and personal mixedness, seen in the frustrations experienced and strategies developed by individuals around race and belonging. Individuals negotiated their connections around race and nationality both in practical terms around language, social policies and culture, and personally in terms of symbolic feelings of connection. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Rubin, Olivier. 2014. "Social vulnerability to climate-induced natural disasters: Cross-provincial evidence from Vietnam." Asia Pacific Viewpoint 55 (1):67-80.

doi: 10.1111/apv.12037.

Abstract

This paper conducts an analysis of the socioeconomic determinants of Vietnam's cross-provincial variations in natural disaster vulnerability. The purpose is twofold: (i) to capture disaggregated vulnerability variations normally obscured by national statistics, thereby providing more nuanced insights into Vietnam's vulnerability to natural disasters; and (ii) to take advantage of the fact that the overall political system and key institutional structures to a large extent are constant across Vietnam's provinces, which makes the analysis a novel addition to the many disaster studies based on cross-national variations. The paper's analysis indicates that much of Vietnam's cross-provincial variations in natural disaster fatalities and economic costs can be explained by differences in key socioeconomic factors. High provincial rates of inequality, poverty and infant mortality, for instance, appear to drive up natural disaster fatalities. Local adaptation efforts should focus as much on these broader socioeconomic dimensions as they focus on the geophysical susceptibility to natural hazards of individual areas. © 2014 Victoria University of Wellington and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Saksena, S., J. Fox, J. Spencer, M. Castrence, M. DiGregorio, M. Epprecht, N. Sultana, M. Finucane, L. Nguyen, and T. D. Vien. 2014. "Classifying and mapping the urban transition in Vietnam." Applied Geography 50:8-89.

doi: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2014.02.010.

Abstract

The urban transition almost always involves wrenching social adjustment as small agricultural communities are forced to adjust rapidly to industrial ways of life. Large-scale in-migration of young people, usually from poor regions, creates enormous demand and expectations for community and social services. One immediate problem planners face in approaching this challenge is how to define, differentiate, and map what is rural, urban, and transitional (i.e., peri-urban). This project established an urban classification for Vietnam by using national census and remote sensing data to identify and map the smallest administrative units for which data are collected as rural, peri-urban, urban, or urban core. We used both natural and human factors in the quantitative model: income from agriculture, land under agriculture and forests, houses with modern sanitation, and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index. Model results suggest that in 2006, 71% of Vietnam's 10,891 communes were rural, 18% peri-urban, 3% urban, and 4% urban core. Of the communes our model classified as peri-urban, 61% were classified by the Vietnamese government as rural. More than 7% of Vietnam's land area can be classified as peri-urban and approximately 13% of its population (more than 11 million people) lives in peri-urban areas. We identified and mapped three types of peri-urban places: communes in the periphery of large towns and cities; communes along highways; and communes associated with provincial administration or home to industrial, energy, or natural resources projects (e.g., mining). We validated this classification based on ground observations, analyses of multi-temporal night-time lights data, and an examination of road networks. The model provides a method for rapidly assessing the rural-urban nature of places to assist planners in identifying rural areas undergoing rapid change with accompanying needs for investments in building, sanitation, road infrastructure, and government institutions. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Santoso, B., and K. H. Hassan. 2014. "Enforcing minimum wage through criminal sanctions: A case of Indonesia." International Business Management 8 (1):7-12.

doi: 10.3923/ibm.2014.7.12.

Abstract

This study, examines the enforcement of the minimum wage in Indonesia through criminal sanctions. The minimum wage is stipulated under the Manpower Act 2003. Under the Act, employers are prohibited from paying wage lower than the stipulated minimum wage. Employer who violates the minimum wage will be subjected to criminal sanctions in prison and/or a fine. Since 2009, there have been several district courts decisions imposing criminal sanctions on employers who violate the minimum wage provision. One example was a 2008 court decision in the case of Sri Rejeki Mebelindo where in this case, the judges sentenced the director to one and a half years imprisonment and a fine of 250 million rupiah for having paid wages lower than the stipulated minimum wage. In addition, the study proposes that in enforcing the minimum wage through the criminal sanctions, it is necessary to consider that the sanctions will not be counter-productive to the company's business operations, especially when the sanctions are imposed in the form of imprisonment not in the form of a fine. © 2014 Medwell Journals.

Shamsudin, Shamsudin, Siti Fatimah Ismail, Abdullah Al-Mamun, and Sayed Kushairi Bin Sayed Nordin. 2014. "Examining the effect of extracurricular activities on academic achievements among the public university students in Malaysia." Asian Social Science 10 (9):171-7.

doi: 10.5539/ass.v10n9p171.

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine how physical, educational, and social extracurricular activities affect academic achievements of the participating students in Peninsular Malaysia. A cross-sectional design and quantitative method is applied, and complete data is collected from 150 students from three public universities in Peninsular Malaysia. Findings of this study indicate that there is no significant positive association between participation in extracurricular activities and student's academic achievements. These alarming findings suggest that, besides emphasizing on promoting extracurricular activities to improve students' knowledge and understanding, both universities and policy makers should be more aware of designing effective extracurricular activities and should establish a standard framework for continuous assessments of the outcome of these activities. © the author(s).

Sheng, Yu, Hsiao Chink Tang, and Xu Xu. 2014. "The impact of the ACFTA on ASEAN-PRC trade: estimates based on an extended gravity model for component trade." Applied Economics 46 (19):2251-63.

doi: 10.1080/00036846.2014.899676.

Abstract

This article uses an extended gravity model to examine the impact of the free trade agreement between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) on their trade flows and patterns. New determinants are utilized to capture the growing importance of global production sharing and intraregional trade in parts and components in East Asia. We show that the free trade agreement leads to substantially higher and more pronounced bilateral trade flows between ASEAN and the PRC than what a conventional gravity model predicts and the increase is concentrated in ASEAN countries that have stronger industrial linkages with the PRC. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Shono, Aiko, Masahide Kondo, Hiroshi Ohmae, and Ichiro Okubo. 2014. "Willingness to pay for public health services in rural Central Java, Indonesia: Methodological considerations when using the contingent valuation method." Social Science and Medicine 110:31-40.

doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.03.025.

Abstract

In the health sectors of low- and middle-income countries, contingent valuation method (CVM) studies on willingness to pay (WTP) have been used to gather information on demand variation or financial perspectives alongside price setting, such as the introduction of user fees and valuation of quality improvements. However, WTP found in most CVM studies have only explored the preferences that consumers express through their WTP without exploring whether they are actually able to pay for it. Therefore, this study examines the issues pertaining to WTP estimation for health services using the conventional CVM. We conducted 202 household interviews in 2008, in which we asked respondents about three types of public health services in Indonesia and assessed WTP estimated by the conventional CVM as well as in the scenario of "resorting to debt" to recognize their budget constraints. We find that all the demand curves for both WTP scenarios show gaps. Furthermore, the gap for midwife services is negatively affected by household income and is larger for the poor. These results prove that CVM studies on WTP do not always reveal WTP in the latter scenario. Those findings suggest that WTP elicited by the conventional CVM is different to that from the maximum price that prevents respondents from resorting to debt as their WTP. In order to bridge this gap in the body of knowledge on this topic, studies should improve the scenarios that CVM analyses use to explore WTP. Furthermore, because valuing or pricing health services based on the results of CVM studies on WTP alone can exacerbate the inequity of access to these services, information provided by such studies requires careful interpretation when used for this purpose, especially for the poor and vulnerable sections of society. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Sinnott, Megan. 2014. "The libidinal power of revolution: Sexuality in the Thai leftist movement of the 1970s-1980s." South East Asia Research 22 (1):5-22.

doi: 10.5367/sear.2014.0191.

Abstract

Leftist movements of the mid-twentieth century have a well earned reputation for sexual conservatism. However, these movements were not of a simplistic reactionary type, but rather were embedded in sexualized contexts that functioned through the displacement of individual sexual desire. Following from the work of Ka F. Wong and his Lacanian analysis of the way displaced sexuality functioned in the experience of participants in the Chinese Cultural Revolution, this paper applies Lacan's concepts of repressed libidinal energy to analyse the sexual politics of the Communist Party of Thailand (CPT) from the 1970s to the early 1980s. The CPT promoted personal sexual discipline as a moral alternative to the purported sexual licentiousness and moral bankruptcy of their right-wing opponents. The paper, moreover, argues that party discipline, particularly regarding gender and sexuality, was not necessarily experienced as an annoyance or deprivation, but rather was recounted by participants as liberating, necessary, and even spiritual.

Slater, Dan. 2014. "UNBUILDING BLOCS: Indonesia's Accountability Deficit in Historical Perspective." Critical Asian Studies 46 (2):287-315.

doi: 10.1080/14672715.2014.898456.

Abstract

Political blocs and cleavages do not emerge and endure unless political parties construct and cultivate them. When Indonesia democratized in the late 1990s, it appeared that party competition would be characterized by two primary cleavages that had been incubated under Suharto's "New Order": a regime cleavage pitting reformist opponents of the fallen dictatorship against its holdovers, and a religious cleavage distinguishing parties by their views on the proper political role for Islam. Some fifteen years after Suharto's departure, neither a reformist nor a religious bloc exists in Indonesian politics. This is not because reformist and religious themes lack resonance among voters, but because party elites have effectively abandoned cleavage politics by promiscuously sharing power in an all-encompassing party cartel. Party leaders have behaved as if they are more accountable to each other than to their presumptive support blocs, leaving reformist and religious social forces without reliable party champions in national politics. This article traces the origins of Indonesia's "accountability deficit" to the elite deal making that accompanied the formation of the country's first democratic governing coalitions in 1999 and 2001. By promiscuously sharing power across cleavage lines, party leaders fostered voter de-alignment in the 2004 and 2009 elections. This de-alignment has left Indonesian democracy vulnerable to the highly unpredictable politics of individuals rather than the more predictable politics of institutions as the 2014 elections approach, ominously opening the door to populist and anti-system challengers striving to rebuild the political blocs that party elites have recently unbuilt. © 2014 © 2014 BCAS, Inc.

Stegmiller, Ignaz. 2014. "Legal developments in civil party participation at the extraordinary chambers in the courts of Cambodia." Leiden Journal of International Law 27 (2):465-77.

doi: 10.1017/S0922156514000028.

Abstract

For the first time in the history of international criminal justice, victims of mass crimes have been granted the status of so-called 'civil parties' at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). This status grants them-at least theoretically-the right to participate in the proceedings as a formal party with broad participatory rights similar to the those of the defence and the prosecution. While the ECCC is exemplary in how it has addressed the issue of victims' participation, practical necessities and judicial skepticism have led to significant changes in the civil party mechanism and continuously constrained participatory rights. First, changes in the ECCC's Internal Rules have significantly altered the original civil party mechanism and led to a form of victim participation similar to the one practised at the International Criminal Court (ICC), thus departing from the true meaning of a partie civile. Judicial decisions by the ECCC's judges, as well as changes in the Internal Rules, have abrogated the strong civil party mechanism that was originally anticipated in Cambodian criminal procedure law. Second, the practical challenges surrounding victim participation have been enormous. The Court itself was struggling due to lack of funding and lack of prioritization of a meaningful outreach program for victims and civil parties. The ECCC's Public Affairs Section (PAS) and the Victims Support Section (VSS) held the responsibility of reaching out to the general Cambodian population. However, it was Cambodian NGOs that ultimately established a collaborative outreach system and collected more than 8,000 Victim Information Forms (VIFs). All these efforts notwithstanding, only political willingness and a Cambodian discussion of how to deal with the vast number of perpetrators beyond a handful of criminal trials, can lead to a process of coming to terms with one's past. © 2014 Foundation of the Leiden Journal of International Law.

Sundaram, Jomo Kwame. 2014. "'Malaysia incorporated': Corporatism a la mahathir." Institutions and Economies 6 (1):73-94.

http://e-journal.um.edu.my/filebank/published_article/6259/IE%203.pdf.

Abstract

Mahathir's "Malaysia Incorporated" policy is reviewed here against how the Malaysian state evolved before the mid-1980s recession, including the first half decade of Mahathir's premiership. After a decade and a half of growing regulation and public sector expansion, ostensibly to restructure society by strengthening the Malay business and middle classes and in pursuit of Mahathir's heavy industrialisation project, the policy sought to reverse earlier excesses through some economic and cultural liberalisation following the 1985-1986 recession. This was followed by rapid growth from the late 1980s until the 1997-1998 Asian crisis. While business organisations have had limited, if not declining influence, some individual businessmen have become increasingly politically influential in securing state intervention to advance their particular interests. Mahathir's corporatism - implied by the "Malaysia Incorporated" slogan - was largely limited to promoting company-level corporatism through in-house unions and better government-business relations. Instead of mobilising and incorporating organised labour - besides the short-lived Malaysian Labour Organization - in his corporatist project, there was little effort to improve industrial relations, suggesting that his corporatist project was largely limited to bridging the ethnic divide, rather than other social divisions.

Suprawati, Maria, Florencia K. Anggoro, and Danuta Bukatko. 2014. ""I think I can": Achievement-oriented themes in storybooks from Indonesia, Japan, and the United States." Frontiers in Psychology 5 (MAR).

doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00167.

Abstract

The focus of the present study is on the ways in which storybooks communicate cultural ideals about achievement orientation, and in particular, the role of effort, perseverance, and hard work in fostering successful outcomes. Sixty preschool children's books from Indonesia, Japan, and the United States (20 from each country) were examined for the presence of achievement-oriented themes. These countries were chosen due to previously documented cultural differences in models of learning and individualist/collectivist tendencies that could have some bearing on achievement outcomes. Texts were assessed for (1) the frequency with which "challenge events" appeared in the narratives, (2) whether these events derived from sources internal or external to the main character, and (3) whether solutions relied on the main character individually or included the assistance of others. Results show that Japanese storybooks contained significantly more challenge events than Indonesian storybooks. Compared with Japanese storybooks, American storybooks tended to include a greater proportion of challenges derived from internal qualities of the main character as opposed to external factors. Compared with American storybooks, Japanese storybooks contained a significantly greater proportion of challenges that were solved with individual efforts as opposed to efforts involving the assistance of others. Findings from this study contribute to our understanding of how storybook contexts can provide a rich source of information for young children learning about culturally valued qualities and behaviors related to achievement. © 2014 Suprawati, Anggoro and Bukatko.

Sureerattanan, Cheerawit, Kulkanya Napompech, and Vinai Panjakhajornsak. 2014. "Model of leadership and the effect of lean manufacturing practices on firm performance in Thailand's auto parts industry." Research Journal of Business Management 8 (2):104-17.

doi: 10.3923/rjbm.2014.104-117.

Abstract

Automotive industry has played an important role in both regional and global economies. Thailand has become a significant center for automotive parts manufacturing due to its low labor and production costs. In the new era, business leaders and managers are important in creating organizational success in the competitive environment and in implementing change. Also, lean manufacturing has become a critical management tool because it offers an efficient system that enhances operations processes by reducing waste, which results in sustainable growth. This research aims to analyze the relationships among leadership, lean and performance in Thailand's auto parts industry. The survey was conducted by administering questionnaires to 540 managers. Then, structural equation modelling was employed for the analysis. The latent variables were leadership, lean manufacturing practices and firm performance. The results suggest significant relationships among leadership, lean manufacturing practices and firm performance. Performance was most affected by lean manufacturing practices followed by leadership. Leadership also had more of an indirect influence on firm performance than a direct effect. This research contributes to the knowledge regarding the relationships among leadership, lean manufacturing practices and firm performance, facilitating executives and business owners in their process of obtaining desirable organizational performance. To achieve a high level of firm performance in quality, timeliness and efficiency, the organization must concentrate on idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, low setup, controlled processes and productive maintenance. © 2014 Academic Journals Inc.

Tampubolon, Gindo, and Wulung Hanandita. 2014. "Poverty and mental health in indonesia." Social Science and Medicine 106:20-7.

doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.01.012.

Abstract

Community and facility studies in developing countries have generally demonstrated an inverse relationship between poverty and mental health. However, recent population-based studies contradict this. In India and Indonesia the poor and non-poor show no difference in mental health. We revisit the relationship between poverty and mental health using a validated measure of depressive symptoms (CES-D) and a new national sample from Indonesia - a country where widespread poverty and deep inequality meet with a neglected mental health service sector. Results from three-level overdispersed Poisson models show that a 1% decrease in per capita household expenditure was associated with a 0.05% increase in CES-D score (depressive symptoms), while using a different indicator (living on less than $2 a day) it was estimated that the poor had a 5% higher CES-D score than the better off. Individual social capital and religiosity were found to be positively associated with mental health while adverse events were negatively associated. These findings provide support for the established view regarding the deleterious association between poverty and mental health in developed and developing countries. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.

Tan, Teck-Hong. 2014. "Satisfaction and Motivation of Homeowners Towards Green Homes." Social Indicators Research 116 (3):869-85.

doi: 10.1007/s11205-013-0310-2.

Abstract

Whilst green homes have been constructed by housing developers in Malaysia, developers should determine how satisfied homeowners are with their green homes. This paper first reviews data from a survey to determine the satisfaction level of homeowners towards their residence in terms of green features in Iskandar Malaysia. Next, factor analysis is carried out to identify benefits that motivate households to own green homes, and then followed by logistic regression analysis to determine the effects of motivators on housing satisfaction. Results show that homeowners are most satisfied with the green features of high ceiling, North-South orientation, double-glazed panel glass doors and windows, solar panel system and landscaped parks with facilities. Rain water harvesting system and low-flow water fixtures, on the other hand, are the least satisfied green features among homeowners. Four motivators are found that describe households' belief about green homes: 'Financial Incentives', 'Healthy and Sustainable Environment', 'Energy Efficiency' and 'Livability'. The findings also demonstrated that the extent of housing satisfaction may depend on what motivates homeowners to own green homes. It would seem that house buyers do not just demand a typical house to stay in but also sustainable houses that do not compromise the environment. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

Thi Duc Nguyen, N., and A. Aoyama. 2014. "Survey of cross-cultural technology transfer research." Asian Social Science 10 (10):159-81.

doi: 10.5539/ass.v10n10p159.

Abstract

This study aims at reviewing the technology/knowledge transfer literature and identifying which research areas on cross-cultural technology transfer field which should explore to obtain the new insights. With it in mind, the intersection of research fields concerning cross-cultural technology/knowledge transfer, the national culture difference and the extended literature of hybridization in the broad field of cross-cultural management is focused. As a result, this study identifies the five research areas meriting the further research on cross-cultural technology transfer: (1) the impact of cultural differences on technology transfer; (2) management practice factors for achieving efficient technology transfer; (3) the evaluation of current management practices at Japanese manufacturing subsidiaries; (4) the relationship between efficient technology transfer and business performance; and (5) research approach in cross-cultural technology transfer, such as research methodology, viewpoint and theoretical foundation. Accordingly, this study suggests the dimensions for further qualitative and quantitative investigations and the integration of fundamental theories-Hofstede's national culture, Adler's hybridization perspective, Abo's management practice framework and organizational learning view-to underpin the investigating models. Consequently, this study draws the significant ways to answer the prevailing problem of how to implement cross-cultural technology transfer efficiently for achieving the successful business performance. © the author(s).

Wahlberg, Ayo. 2014. "Herbs, laboratories, and revolution: On the making of a national medicine in Vietnam." East Asian Science, Technology and Society 8 (1):43-56.

doi: 10.1215/18752160-2406625.

Abstract

This article examines the making of a national medicine in Vietnam. How can it be that the medical traditions in Vietnam came to be described as Vietnamese during the course of the twentieth century? In this article, I suggest that historical contingencies in Vietnam have facilitated what might be thought of as a "doctrine of combination," somewhat in contrast to the institutionalized and contentious separation of, for example, Chinese and Korean medicine from modern medicine. In particular, I show how when it came to traditional medicine, Hồ Chí Minh and the people around him responsible for health-care-related issues were on the "offensive" from the very outset of their nation-building efforts. © Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan 2014.

Wills Jr, John E. 2014. "A very long early modern? asia and its oceans, 1000-1850." Pacific Historical Review 83 (2):189-203.

doi: 10.1525/phr.2014.83.2.189.

Abstract

This article summarizes background changes that shaped interactions in the Pacific and Indian oceans before and during the age of steam; early modern China as an importer of exotic goods and exporter of skillful entrepreneurs; and early European naval competition, exploration, and settlement. © 2014 by the Pacific Coast Branch, American Historical Association.

Yeoh, Brenda SA, and Maria Andrea Soco. 2014. "The cosmopolis and the migrant domestic worker." Cultural Geographies 21 (2):171-87.

doi: 10.1177/1474474014520899.

Abstract

The cosmopolitan city has been hailed a necessary response to the empirical reality of globalizing multicultural cities. We follow Shah in arguing that the 'assumed equivalence between cosmopolitanism and global' needs more careful attention, and suggest three ways in which the assumption may be unpicked. First, discourses on the cosmopolis tend to focus on a masculinized version of cosmopolitanism, usually equated with creativity and public civility as accompanying conditions for developing productive relations in business and enterprise. More needs to be said about whether cosmopolitan ideals and realities feature in feminized privatized spheres, including those of 'carework' and 'domestic work'. Second, attention needs to be given to understanding how cosmopolitanism at work in the global city shapes political membership. This requires attention to be given not just to settled individuals but also to the mobile-but-not-free populations, such as transnational domestic workers, a category in between Bauman's 'tourist' and 'vagabond'. Third, the inner workings of cosmopolitanism deserve greater attention, and this requires focusing on the everyday and personal expressions and negotiations of cosmopolitan ideals among different groups of people. These observations prompt us to give attention to identifying provisional changes in the subjectivities of Filipino domestic workers as potential working-class cosmopolitans upon migration to Singapore. By exploring changes in consumption patterns, possibilities for cultural learning, the development of new sensibilities and the negotiation of cultural differences, we argue for the value of including migrant domestic workers in discourses on cosmopolitanism and the emancipatory hope of recovering an openness to, and respect for, humanity despite the retrogressive contours of transnational domestic work. © The Author(s) 2013.

Zubillaga-Pow, Jun. 2014. "The dialectics of capitalist reclamation, or traditional Malay music in fin de siècle Singapore." South East Asia Research 22 (1):123-39.

doi: 10.5367/sear.2014.0195.

Abstract

One of the initiatives used by the Singapore government to fortify its own position has been to promote Malay culture. This has been done by strengthening the Malays' attachment to their indigenous culture and also by introducing the customs and practices of the racial minority to non-Malays. This article traces the genealogy of cultural engineering by the state from the 1960s to the present, and argues that the persistence of late capitalism has retained the material dialectic between the political and the popular. Focusing on the local practices of the gamelan and angklung-kulintang, the article explores paradoxes in the way these musical genres are being promoted today by a new generation of non-Malay descendants, who have also become the cultural sculptors of Malay identity for international spectacles.

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