Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a substantial economic and psychological impact on workers in Saudi Arabia. The objective of the study was to assess the effects of the COVID-19 epidemic on the financial and mental well-being of Saudi employees in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Purpose: The COVID-19 epidemic has resulted in significant economic and societal ramifications. Current study indicates that the pandemic has not only precipitated an economic crisis but has also given rise to several psychological and emotional crises. This article provides a conceptual examination of how the pandemic impacts the economic and mental health conditions of Saudi workers, based on contemporary Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) models. Method: The current study employed a qualitative methodology and utilized a sample survey strategy. The data was gathered from Saudi workers residing in major cities of Saudi Arabia. The samples were obtained from professionals such as managers, doctors, and engineers, as well as non-professionals like unskilled and low-skilled laborers, who are employed in various public and private sectors. A range of statistical tools, including Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Pearson’s Correlation, Factor analysis, Reliability test, Chi-square test, and regression approach, were employed to analyze and interpret the results. Result: According to the data, the pandemic has caused a wide range of economic problems, including high unemployment and underemployment rates, income instability, and different degrees of pressure on workers to find work. Feelings of insecurity (about food and environmental safety), worry, dread, stress, anxiety, depression, and other mental health concerns have been generated by these challenges. The rate of mental health decline differs among demographics. Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic has universally affected all aspects of our lives worldwide. It resulted in an extended shutdown of educational institutions, factories, offices, and businesses. Without a question, it has profoundly transformed the work environment, professions, and lifestyles of billions of individuals worldwide. There is a high occurrence of poor psychological well-being among Saudi workers. However, it has been demonstrated that both economic health and mental health interventions can effectively alleviate the mental health burden in this population.
The characteristics of agricultural products are influenced by the ecosystem, from the perspective of biotic and abiotic factors, which produce in the plant physiological responses and in turn in the fruit unique physicochemical properties, which are the basis for designations of origin and strategies to add value to the product in the current market. In the present work, ten cocoa materials (Theobroma cacao L.) were selected for their outstanding productivity (FSV41, FLE3, FEAR5, FSA12, FEC2, SCC23, SCC80, SCC55, ICS95 and CCN51), which were established in the departments of Santander (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (931 m a.s.l.) and Huila (931 m a.s.l.). These were established in the departments of Santander (931 m a.s.l.), Huila (885 m a.s.l.) and Arauca (204 m a.s.l.), the main cocoa-producing areas in Colombia. For the evaluation of the physical characteristics of the collected materials, 21 quantitative descriptors were used to determine the physical variability of the fruit according to clone and place of collection. The data collected were analyzed by means of Pearson’s correlation matrix and principal component analysis, it was possible to identify those descriptors that contribute most to the variability among materials (ear index, diameter length ratio, seed weight and diameter, and fruit weight and length). In addition, it was possible to verify the effect of the place of harvest on the physical characteristics of the materials, high-lighting the importance of the adaptation study prior to the planting of the cocoa material, with the objective of guaranteeing a premium, productive and quality cocoa crop for the industry, which is competitive in the market.
With the purpose of knowing the phytosocilogy of weeds associated to a carrot crop (Daucus carota L.) under conditions of the municipalities of Ventaquemada and Jenesano-Boyacá, one lot per municipality destined to carrot cultivation was selected and a W-shaped layout was made covering an area of 500 m2. Relative density, relative frequency, relative dominance and the importance value index (IVI) were calculated, as well as the Alpha and Beta diversity indices for the sampled areas. A total of 6 families and 11 species were counted, of which 63.64% were represented by annual plants and 36.36% by perennial plants. The class Liliopsida (Monocotyledon) was represented by the Poaceae family. The Magnoliopsida class (Dicotyledon) was represented by the following families: Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Boraginaceae, Leguminosaceae, Polygonaceae, the last one being the one with the highest number of species. The species R. crispus and P. nepalense were the ones with the highest values of Importance Value Index (IVI) with 0.953 and 0.959, respectively. According to the Shannon-Wiener diversity and Simpson’s dominance indices, the evaluated areas presented a low species diversity and a high probability of dominant species. The results obtained can serve as a basis and tool for carrot growers in the evaluated areas to define management plans for the associated weeds and thus optimize yields in this crop.
In the era of IR4.0, environmental dynamism and satisfying customer needs through digital innovations have evolved across IT industries. This article attempts to examine the effect of technological culture (TC) and knowledge sharing (KS) on digital innovation (DI), organizational performance (OP), and the moderating effect of self-efficacy (SE) on the link between TC, KS, and DI. This study evaluates a novel conceptual framework utilizing survey data from 270 samples of IT firms’ employees in Bangladesh and analyzing it employing the PLS-SEM approach. The findings indicate that knowledge sharing and technological culture have a significant impact on DI and DI also significantly mediates the relationship between operational, financial, and employee performance. The findings suggest businesses recognize the chance of developing digital technologies and the digitalization trend in IT sectors by being devoted to embracing new technological cultures and upgrading their knowledge exchange to become innovation leaders and increase OP. This study describes how new digital technologies and knowledge sharing may be exploited to produce innovative digital creative digital solutions’ innovative products and services which ultimately increase their OP, where the managers of the IT organizations can apply this knowledge in respected fields.
The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of single and mixed infections of nematode (Meloidogyne javanica), fungus (Fusarium oxysporum) and bacterium (Xanthomonas axonopodis) on nodulation and pathological parameters of Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterrenea (L.) Verdc.) in field condition. Nematode infested field was used while other pathogens were obtained from diseased plants. The Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) was adopted in a 5 × 9 × 5 factorial design (5 blocks, 9 treatments and 5 replicates per treatments) resulting in 225 experimental units. In each experimental unit, three seeds were sown to a depth of 5cm and thinned to one plant per planting hole after germination at day 7. Treatments were inoculated into test plant following standard methods. As a result, the control treatment recorded the highest number of nodules (64.0 ± 6.91), followed by bacterium (45.2 ± 5.11) while N + F + B had the lowest number of root nodules (23.4 ± 2.42). Simultaneous treatment (N + F + B) gave the highest percentage reduction in nodulation (63.44%), followed by treatment N + F7 (56.25%). Fungus treatment recorded the highest mean wilted plants (3.8 + 0.20) followed by N + F7 treatment (3.40 + 0.40). Gall formation in the nematode treatment increased proportionately by 56.33% as the highest recorded, followed by treatment N + F7 with 50.0%. Treatment N + F7 had the highest reproduction factor (Rf) value of 9.30 followed by nematode (8.30), N + B7 (7.40), N + F + B (6.80) and N + F14 (6.50). Zero (0) Rf value was recorded in fungus, bacterium and control treatments. The observed differences in nodulation and pathological parameters among the treatments are significant (P < 0.05). The data provided in this work is important in the control of the three pathogens affecting the productivity of Bambara nut. Formulation of a single protectant should be designed to have potent effects on the three pathogens to achieve effective protection and good production of Bambara nut.
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