Perceived Usefulness of Business Coaching on the Relationship between Entrepreneurial Competencies and Business Success

IDRIS, Mohd Mahfudz bin,ABU BAKAR, Saridan bin Korea Distribution Science Association 2020 The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Busine Vol.7 No.10

The present study aims to investigate the perceived usefulness of business coaching as a moderator between the association of entrepreneurial competencies and business success of women micro-entrepreneurs. This study employs a stratified random sampling technique to collect data from women micro-entrepreneurs who attended business coaching sessions. In total, 261 questionnaires were distributed and collected. This study has divided the moderator (i.e., perceived usefulness of business coaching) into two groups, namely, group 1 (with a low mean) and group 2 (with a high mean) for moderation analysis. By using a comparative analysis of the path coefficient for groups 1 and 2, the path is moderated by the perceived usefulness of business coaching if the beta value for group 1 is significant, and the beta value for group 2 is non-significant. The results show that eight out of a total of sixteen hypotheses were supported, while the remaining hypotheses were rejected. The findings of the study suggest that the domains of entrepreneurial competencies for women micro-entrepreneurs, including strategic, commitment, conceptual, opportunity, and relationship competencies, together with the perceived usefulness of business coaching, are vital for the business success and should remain the principal focus of future research in women entrepreneurship.

Mondia whitei, an African Spice Inhibits Mitochondrial Permeability Transition in Rat Liver

Olanlokun Oludele,Bakare Idris,Ofoegbu Benard,Uleh Pius,Olorunsogo Olufunso 한국식품영양과학회 2018 Preventive Nutrition and Food Science Vol.23 No.3

Mondia whitei is an African traditional spice with aphrodisiac properties. Inhibition of mitochondrial permeability transition (mPT) pore is an important cytoprotective process essential for cell survival. In this study, the effects of methanol extract (ME), dichloromethane (DCMF), ethyl acetate (EF), and methanol fractions (MF) of Mondia whitei on mPT, mitochondrial ATPase, lipid peroxidation, testosterone hormone (TH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) were investigated; sperm analyses were also carried out. Male experimental rats were treated intraperitoneally with 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg bw of ME, DCMF, EF, and MF of Mondia whitei for two weeks. The positive and the negative controls received sildenafil citrate and the vehicle, respectively. The results showed that mPT was inhibited by MF at the highest dose. The ME, DCMF, and MF did not enhance ATPase activity. The levels of TH, FSH, and LH varied linearly with the drug dose only in EF. Malondialdehyde levels in the treated groups were significantly higher than the normal control. There were no significant defects in sperm produced by the animals in all the treated groups relative to the control. This study showed that the extract and fractions of Mondia whitei have cytoprotective effects and may prevent mitochondrial-mediated cell death.

A Case Report of Failure to Thrive Caused by Parental Intellectual Disability: The Invisible Population

Atirah Az-Zahrah Abu Bakar,Azidah Abdul Kadir,Nur Suhaila Idris 대한가정의학회 2021 Korean Journal of Family Medicine Vol.42 No.5

This case illustrates the medical complication of a child that arose as a consequence of parents with intellectual disabilities in a primary care setting. A 9-month-old girl presented with multiple admissions because of recurrent pneumonia and was later diagnosed with failure to thrive based on child neglect resulting from the parents’ disabilities. This exemplifies a failure to thrive case with a complex and undiagnosed psychosocial background that required interdepartmental involvement to mitigate the health problem.

High-performance VOx on SrO-γAl2O3 catalyst for oxidative cracking of n-hexane to light olefins under anaerobic environment

Hussein K. Amusa,Sagir Adamu,Idris A. Bakare,Abeer S. Arjah,Saad A. Al-Bogami,Sameer Al-Ghamdi,Shaikh A. Razzak,Mohammad M. Hossain 한국공업화학회 2020 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.89 No.-

Novel VOx/SrO-gAl2O3 catalysts have been investigated in oxidative cracking of n-hexane to light olefins. The supports, with different SrO/gAl2O3 ratios, were synthesized by a surfactant-free method, while VOxwas incorporated on SrO-gAl2O3 by impregnation. NH3-TPD showed that the acidity of the catalystsdecreased with the increase of SrO. The incorporation of SrO also modified the reducibility (H2-TPR) ofthe catalysts. VOx appeared as amorphous polymeric species on the support, confirmed by XRD, Ramanand FTIR analyses. The oxidative cracking of n-hexane was conducted by using afluidized CREC RiserSimulator in absence of gas phase oxygen. Under the studied reaction conditions (525 600 C; 10 25 s),the products contained mainly light olefins (ethylene, propylene and butenes), paraffins, and carbonoxides. Among the synthesized catalysts, VOx/SrO-gAl2O3 1:1 showed highest olefins selectivity (88%) athigh n-hexane conversion (84%) because of its balanced acidity and moderate VOx-support interactions.

Role of Bismuth on Solidification, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of a Near Eutectic Al-Si Alloys

Saeed Farahany,Ali Ourdjini,Tuty Asma Abu Bakar,Mohd Hasbullah Idris 대한금속·재료학회 2014 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.20 No.5

Computer aided thermal analysis and microstructural observation showed that addition of bismuth (Bi) withinthe range of 0.25 and 2 wt% produced a greater effect on the Al-Si eutectic phase than on primary aluminiumand Al2Cu phases. Results showed that with addition of 1 wt% Bi the eutectic silicon structure was refinedfrom flake-like morphology into lamellar. Bi refines rather than modifies the Si structure and increases theAl-Si eutectic fraction solid and more significantly there was no fading even up to 180 min of melt holding. Transmission electron microscopy study showed that the Si twin spacing decreased from 160 to 75 nm which islikely attributed to the refining effect of Bi. It was also found that addition of 1 wt% Bi increased the tensilestrength, elongation and the absorbed energy for fracture due to the refined eutectic silicon structure.

Support for a Campus Tobacco-Free Policy among Non-Smokers: Findings from a Developing Country

Yasin, Siti Munira,Isa, Mohamad Rodi,Fadzil, Mohd Ariff,Zamhuri, Mohammad Idris,Selamat, Mohamad Ikhsan,Ruzlin, Aimi Nadira Mat,Ibrahim, Nik Shamsidah Nik,Ismail, Zaliha,Majeed, Abu Bakar Abdul Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2016 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.17 No.1

Background: A tobacco-free workplace policy is identified as an effective means to reduce tobacco use and protect people from second-hand smoke; however, the number of tobacco-free policies (TFP) remains very low in workplaces in Malaysia. This study explored the factors affecting support for a tobacco-free policy on two healthcare campuses in Malaysia, prior to the implementation of TFP. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 286 non-smokers from two healthcare training centres and two nearby colleges in Malaysia from January 2015 to April 2015. A standardized questionnaire was administered via staff and student emails. The questionnaire collected information on sociodemographic characteristics, support for a tobacco-free policy and perceived respiratory and sensory symptoms due to tobacco exposure. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to estimate the independent effects of supporting a tobacco-free campus. Results: The percentage of individuals supporting completely tobacco-free facilities was 83.2% (N=238), as opposed to 16.7% (N=48) in support of partially tobacco-free facilities. Compared to the supporters of partially tobacco-free facilities, non-smokers who supported completely tobacco-free health facilities were more likely to be female, have higher education levels, to be very concerned about the effects of other people smoking on their health and to perceive a tobacco-free policy as very important. In addition, they perceived that tobacco smoke bothered them at work by causing headaches and coughs and, in the past 4 weeks, had experienced difficulty breathing. In the multivariate model, after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and other factors, only experiencing coughs and headaches increased the odds of supporting a completely tobacco-free campus, up to 2.5- and 1.9-fold, respectively. Conclusions: Coughs and headaches due to other people smoking at work enhances support for a completely tobacco-free campus among non-smokers.