Public sector audit and influence the investment institutional background during a pandemic

The study purpose was to assess the impact of public sector audit on investment climate formation under the COVID-19 pandemic and to develop recommendations to improve its effectiveness. For this purpose, a multistage research project was developed with the participation of auditors from Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. The project was based on the primary information obtained in the course of expert interviews. Testing the methodological approach with experts from these countries allowed proving the main study hypotheses, according to which the public sector audit has an indirect positive impact on investment climate formation. Such an audit influences the main impact factors through improving public administration efficiency, the fight against corruption, and the provision of the regulatory framework. During the testing, the main directions for improving public audit for a more favorable investment climate were formulated. The developed methodological approach makes it possible to obtain an expert assessment of the impact of the public audit on investment climate formation. At the same time, partial use of statistical methods makes it possible to replicate the study in the form of an expert interview, which increases its attractiveness for researchers in conditions of shortage of qualified interviewers.     

Changes in Fingerprints and the Quantity of Material Forming the Print Depending on Hand Cleanliness,Gender, and Ambient Conditions

Impressions of friction ridges left on a surface are important evidence for identifying an individual and can be used to confirm his or her presence at the scene of an incident. Factors influencing the durability of fingerprints include the physiological characteristics and cleanliness of the individual, environmental factors, and time. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of atmospheric factors, gender, hand cleanliness and time on the width of friction ridge impressions and the amount of material forming the print. The research shows that factors such as gender, ambient conditions, and hand cleanliness affect the width of the ridge impressions and the quantity of material forming the print. The passage of time significantly reduces both the width of the ridge impressions and the quantity of the material forming the print.     

Maternal and Family Correlates of Intrinsic Religiosity Profiles Among Low-Income Urban African American Adolescents

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - National trends show that African American adolescents, relative to most other demographic groups, are more religious, and show fewer declines in religiosity,...     

Can ICT-enabled real-time data contribute to adaptive management in development programming?

This article aims to explore whether ICT-enabled real-time data (RTD) systems can help to improve the operationalisation of adaptive management of international development programmes. Using a qualitative multi-method approach consisting of 48 semi-structured key expert interviews and four exploratory case studies, we found that RTD can successfully inform rapid tactical adaptive management in development programmes but is, on its own, of only limited use for most strategic adaptive management. The research identified multiple contextual barriers to the use of RTD for adaptive management. These barriers need to be addressed to realise the full potential of real-time adaptive management of programmes.     

Pride and shame in collective memory of Russian and American youths

This article examines collective attitudes of American and Russian students toward national historical events that elicit pride or shame. The authors use the results of a quantitative questionnaire and analysis of in-depth interviews among students of leading American and Russian universities to identify the temporal localization, the content structure, and the prevalence of either hard or soft power in students’ attitudes of pride or shame. The authors argue that perceptions of the past have been a core component of national identity and may have an impact on citizens’ political behavior in the present. The authors also stress that major differences in young people’s understanding of the past may influence future US–Russia relations.     

Stages of PPP and Principal–Agent Conflicts: The Swedish Water and Sewerage Sector

The focus of this article is on public–private partnerships (PPPs). The aim is to both theoretically and empirically illustrate PPP agency problems in four PPP stages, as well as to identify potentially relevant solutions to the agency problems. The study employed a longitudinal case study of one PPP in a municipality in southern Sweden. Through an analysis based on interviews, observations, and documents, the study illustrates a number of agency problems faced by PPPs and highlights the importance of resource allocation, stakeholder management, and the creation of a common identity in reducing these problems.     

Legal Imaginaries and the Anthropocene: ‘Of’ and ‘For’

Law and Critique - This reflection contrasts the dominant imaginary underlying ‘law of the Anthropocene’ with an imaginary reaching towards ‘law/s for the Anthropocene’. It...