Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences

About: Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences is a education organization based out in Hanoi, Vietnam. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Vietnamese & Poverty. The organization has 228 authors who have published 222 publications receiving 1690 citations. The organization is also known as: VASS.

Methadone Maintenance Treatment Reduces the Vulnerability of Drug Users on HIV/AIDS in Vietnamese Remote Settings: Assessing the Changes in HIV Knowledge, Perceived Risk, and Testing Uptake after a 12-Month Follow-Up

Abstract: Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) program has been considered a medium through which human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) risks assessment and prevention on drug use/HIV-infected population can be effectively conducted. Studies concerning the implementation of such idea on patients in remote, under-developed areas, however, have been limited. Having the clinics established in three mountainous provinces of Vietnam, this study aimed to evaluate the changes in knowledge of HIV, perceived risk, and HIV testing uptake of the patients. A longitudinal study was conducted at six MMT clinics in three provinces with a pre- and post-assessments among 300 patients. Outcomes of interest were compared between baseline and after 12 months. The magnitude of changes was extrapolated. The proportion of participants reporting that their HIV knowledge was not good fell by 4.4% (61.3% at the baseline vs. 56.8% at 12 months). The significant improvement seen was in the knowledge that needle sharing was a mode of transmission (82.7% vs. 89.6%). Nevertheless, the majority of participants reportedly considered mosquitoes/insect and eating with the HIV-infected patient were the route of transmission at both time points (84.7% vs. 89.1%, 92.2% vs. 93.3%, respectively). This study found a limited improvement in HIV knowledge and testing uptake among MMT patients following a 12-month period. It also highlighted some shortcomings in the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of these patients, in particular, incorrect identification of HIV transmission routes, among patients both at program initiation and follow-up. The findings lent support to the argument for enhancing education and counseling efforts at MMT clinics regarding HIV, as well as for improving access to preventive and health care services through the integration of MMT/HIV services.

Does a free-market economy make mother nature angry? Evidence from Asian economies

Abstract: The linkage between a free market and the environment has been under debate for a long time. In the traditional view, environmental issues are one of the free market’s failures. However, a free market is a solution for environmental problems through the lens of free-market Environmentalism because free markets can be more successful than governments in solving environmental issues. Whether or not a free-market economy leads to environmental degradation and makes Mother Nature angry is a challengeable research gap. This paper fills this gap by examining the impact of a free-market on Mother Nature’s anger in 35 Asian economies over the period 2000–2018. Our empirical results show that a free-market economy reduces the Mother Nature’s anger (proxied by total number of deaths and total economic losses from natural disasters), and this beneficial impact is intensified with the improvement of property rights and government integrity. Our findings assert the important role of a free-market economy, property rights, and government integrity in mitigating the anger of Mother Nature.

Affective computing scholarship and the rise of China: a view from 25 years of bibliometric data

Abstract: Affective computing, also known as emotional artificial intelligence (AI), is an emerging and cutting-edge field of AI research. It draws on computer science, engineering, psychology, physiology, and neuroscience to computationally model, track, and classify human emotions and affective states. While the US once dominated the field in terms of research and citation from 1995–2015, China is now emerging as a global contender in research output, claiming second place for the most cited country from 2016–2020. This article maps the rhizomatic growth and development of scientific publications devoted to emotion-sensing AI technologies. It employs a bibliometric analysis that identifies major national contributors and international alliances in the field over the past 25 years. Contrary to the ongoing political rhetoric of a new Cold War, we argue that there are in fact vibrant AI research alliances and ongoing collaborations between the West and China, especially with the US, despite competing interests and ethical concerns. Our observations of historical data indicate two major collaborative networks: the “US/Asia-Pacific cluster” consisting of the US, China, Singapore, Japan and the “European” cluster of Germany, the UK, and the Netherlands. Our analysis also uncovers a major shift in the focus of affective computing research away from diagnosis and detection of mental illnesses to more commercially viable applications in smart city design. The discussion notes the state-of-the-art techniques such as the ensemble method of symbolic and sub-symbolic AI as well as the absence of Russia in the list of top countries for scientific output.

Stakeholder Expectations of Future Policy Implementation Compared to Formal Policy Trajectories: Scenarios for Agricultural Food Systems in the Mekong Delta

Abstract: The development of a coherent and coordinated policy for the management of large socio-agricultural systems, such as the Mekong delta in southern Vietnam, is reliant on aligning the development, delivery, and implementation of policy on national to local scales. Effective decision making is linked to a coherent, broadly-shared vision of the strategic management of socio-agricultural systems. However, when policies are ambiguous, and at worst contradictory, long-term management and planning can consequently suffer. These potential adverse impacts may be compounded if stakeholders have divergent visions of the current and future states of socio-agricultural systems. Herein we used a transferable, scenario-based methodology which uses a standard quadrant matrix in order to explore both anticipated and idealized future states. Our case study was the Mekong delta. The scenario matrix was based upon two key strategic choices (axis) for the delta, derived from analysis of policy documents, literature, stakeholder engagement, and land use models. These are: (i) who will run agriculture in the future, agri-business or the established commune system; and (ii) to what degree sustainability will be incorporated into production. During a workshop meeting, stakeholders identified that agri-business will dominate future agricultural production in the delta but showed a clear concern that sustainability might consequently be undermined despite policy claims of the contrary. As such, our study highlights an important gap between national expectations and regional perspectives. Our results suggest that the new development plans for the Mekong delta (which comprise a new Master Plan and a new 5-year socio-economic development plan), which emphasize agro-business development, should adopt approaches that address concerns of sustainability as well as a more streamlined policy formulation and implementation that accounts for stakeholder concerns at both provincial and national levels.