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Fulltext An examination of the factorial and convergent validity of four measures of conspiracist ideation, with recommendations for researchers

Swami V, Barron D, Weis L, Voracek M, Stieger S, Furnham A

PLoS One, 2017;12(2):e0172617.
PMID: 28231266 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0172617

A number scales have been developed to measure conspiracist ideation, but little attention has been paid to the factorial validity of these scales. We reassessed the psychometric properties of four widely-used scales, namely the Belief in Conspiracy Theories Inventory (BCTI), the Conspiracy Mentality Questionnaire (CMQ), the Generic Conspiracist Beliefs Scale (GCBS), and the One-Item Conspiracy Measure (OICM). Eight-hundred-and-three U.S. adults completed all measures, along with measures of endorsement of 9/11 and anti-vaccination conspiracy theories. Through both exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, we found that only the BCTI had acceptable factorial validity. We failed to confirm the factor structures of the CMQ and the GBCS, suggesting these measures had poor factorial validity. Indices of convergent validity were acceptable for the BCTI, but weaker for the other measures. Based on these findings, we provide suggestions for the future refinement in the measurement of conspiracist ideation.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Fulltext Significance of likes: Analysing passive interactions on Facebook during campaigning

Khairuddin MA, Rao A

PLoS One, 2017;12(6):e0179435.
PMID: 28622350 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179435

With more and more political candidates using social media for campaigning, researchers are looking at measuring the effectiveness of this medium. Most research, however, concentrates on the bare count of likes (or twitter mentions) in an attempt to correlate social media presence and winning. In this paper, we propose a novel method, Interaction Strength Plot (IntS) to measure the passive interactions between a candidate's posts on Facebook and the users (liking the posts). Using this method on original Malaysian General Election (MGE13) and Australian Federal Elections (AFE13) Facebook Pages (FP) campaign data, we label an FP as performing well if both the posting frequency and the likes gathered are above average. Our method shows that over 60% of the MGE13 candidates and 85% of the AFE13 candidates studied in this paper had under-performing FP. Some of these FP owners would have been identified as popular based on bare count. Thus our performance chart is a vital step forward in measuring the effectiveness of online campaigning.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Fulltext Asian Organization for Crohn's and Colitis and Asia Pacific Association of Gastroenterology consensus on tuberculosis infection in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor treatment. Part 2: management

Park DI, Hisamatsu T, Chen M, Ng SC, Ooi CJ, Wei SC, et al.

Intest Res, 2018 Jan;16(1):17-25.
PMID: 29422794 DOI: 10.5217/ir.2018.16.1.17

Because anti-tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) therapy has become increasingly popular in many Asian countries, the risk of developing active tuberculosis (TB) among anti-TNF users may raise serious health problems in this region. Thus, the Asian Organization for Crohn's and Colitis and the Asia Pacific Association of Gastroenterology have developed a set of consensus statements about risk assessment, detection and prevention of latent TB infection, and management of active TB infection in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) receiving anti-TNF treatment. Twenty-three consensus statements were initially drafted and then discussed by the committee members. The quality of evidence and the strength of recommendations were assessed by using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology. Web-based consensus voting was performed by 211 IBD specialists from 9 Asian countries concerning each statement. A consensus statement was accepted if at least 75% of the participants agreed. Part 2 of the statements comprised 3 parts: management of latent TB in preparation for anti-TNF therapy, monitoring during anti-TNF therapy, and management of an active TB infection after anti-TNF therapy. These consensus statements will help clinicians optimize patient outcomes by reducing the morbidity and mortality related to TB infections in patients with IBD receiving anti-TNF treatment.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext Asian Organization for Crohn's and Colitis and Asia Pacific Association of Gastroenterology consensus on tuberculosis infection in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor treatment. Part 1: risk assessment

Park DI, Hisamatsu T, Chen M, Ng SC, Ooi CJ, Wei SC, et al.

Intest Res, 2018 Jan;16(1):4-16.
PMID: 29422793 DOI: 10.5217/ir.2018.16.1.4

Because anti-tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) therapy has become increasingly popular in many Asian countries, the risk of developing active tuberculosis (TB) among anti-TNF users may raise serious health problems in this region. Thus, the Asian Organization for Crohn's and Colitis and the Asia Pacific Association of Gastroenterology have developed a set of consensus statements about risk assessment, detection and prevention of latent TB infection, and management of active TB infection in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) receiving anti-TNF treatment. Twenty-three consensus statements were initially drafted and then discussed by the committee members. The quality of evidence and the strength of recommendations were assessed by using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methodology. Web-based consensus voting was performed by 211 IBD specialists from 9 Asian countries concerning each statement. A consensus statement was accepted if at least 75% of the participants agreed. Part 1 of the statements comprised 2 parts: risk of TB infection Recommendaduring anti-TNF therapy, and screening for TB infection prior to commencing anti-TNF therapy. These consensus statements will help clinicians optimize patient outcomes by reducing the morbidity and mortality related to TB infections in patients with IBD receiving anti-TNF treatment.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
To Brexit or not to Brexit: The roles of Islamophobia, conspiracist beliefs, and integrated threat in voting intentions for the United Kingdom European Union membership referendum

Swami V, Barron D, Weis L, Furnham A

Br J Psychol, 2018 Feb;109(1):156-179.
PMID: 28632335 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12252

We used an identities approach to examine voting intentions in the June 2016 UK referendum on membership of the European Union (EU). In April 2016, 303 British adults (58.7% women, age M = 34.73) indicated their voting intentions for the referendum and completed measures of identification with the national in-group, perceived threat from Muslim immigrants, belief in Islamophobic conspiracy narratives, Islamophobia, general conspiracist beliefs, ambiguity tolerance, and belief in a clash of civilizations. Path and mediation analyses indicated that greater belief in Islamophobic conspiracy theories mediated the link between Islamophobia and intention to vote to leave. Islamophobia and Islamophobic conspiracist beliefs also mediated the effects of perceived threat from Muslims on voting intentions. Other variables acted as antecedents of perceived threat or Islamophobic conspiracy narratives. These findings highlight the role that identity-based cognitions may have played in shaping voting intentions for the UK EU referendum.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Nurturing professional identity through a community based education program: medical students experience

Ahmad A, Bahri Yusoff MS, Zahiruddin Wan Mohammad WM, Mat Nor MZ

J Taibah Univ Med Sci, 2018 Apr;13(2):113-122.
PMID: 31435313 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtumed.2017.12.001

Objectives: Community-based education (CBE) has an impact on the types of medical students produced at the end of medical training. However, its impact on professional identity development (PID) has not been clearly understood. This study thus explores the effect of the CBE program on PID.
Methods: A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted on a group of Universiti Sains Malaysia medical students who had finished the Community and Family Case Study (CFCS) program. Data were gathered through focused group discussions and student reflective journals. Participants were sampled using the maximal variation technique of purposive sampling. Three steps of thematic analysis using the Atlasti software were employed to identify categories, subthemes, and themes.
Results: Personal, role, social, and research identities were generated that contribute to the PID of medical students through the CFCS program. The results indicate that the CFCS program nurtured personal identity through the development of professional skills, soft skills, and personal values. Pertaining to role identity, this is related to patient care in terms of primary care and interprofessional awareness. Pertaining to social identity, the obvious feature was community awareness related to culture, society, and politics. A positive outcome of the CFCS program was found to be its fostering of research skills, which is related to the use of epidemiology and research methods.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that the CFCS program promotes PID among medical students. The current data highlight and provide insights into the importance of integrating CBE into medical curricula to prepare future doctors for their entry into the profession.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
The environmental Kuznets curve in the presence of corruption in developing countries

Masron TA, Subramaniam Y

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2018 May;25(13):12491-12506.
PMID: 29464597 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-018-1473-9

Environmental degradation is at an alarming level in developing economies. The present paper examines the direct and indirect impacts of corruption on environmental deterioration using the panel data of 64 developing countries. Adopting the generalized method of moments (GMM) technique, the paper finds evidence that corruption exhibits a positive impact on pollution. Subsequently, there is also evidence indicating that the level of pollution tends to be higher in countries with a higher level of corruption, eliminating the effectiveness of income effect on environmental preservation. These results also suggest that environmental degradation is monotonically increasing with higher corruption and invalidate the presence of the EKC. Hence, a policy focuses that an anti-corruption particularly in the environmental and natural resources sector needs to be emphasized and enforced in order to reduce or possibly to totally eliminate the rent for corruption.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Science in Malaysia: Challenge for the world s oldest prime minister

Meo SA

J Pak Med Assoc, 2018 Oct;68(10):1427-1428.
PMID: 30317335
Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Fulltext Letter from Malaysia

Loh LC

Respirology, 2018 12;23(12):1198-1199.
PMID: 30084515 DOI: 10.1111/resp.13382
Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Intergovernmental relations for environmental governance: Cases of solid waste management and climate change in two Malaysian States

Puppim de Oliveira JA

J Environ Manage, 2019 Mar 01;233:481-488.
PMID: 30594113 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2018.11.097

Institutions for environmental governance evolve differently across sectors. They also vary in the same sector when governments at two levels (national and subnational) have different political alignments. As the policy environment becomes more complex, with global problems like climate change, and politics more dividing, better coordination among various levels of government is a tough governance challenge. Scholars and practitioners need to realize how best to build institutions to bridge the various levels of government in different political environments and environmental sectors. This research analyzes the influence of intergovernmental relations in two environmental sectors in two localities with contrasting political alignments between two levels of government. It draws lessons from solid waste management and climate policy in two Malaysian states (Johor and Penang). In an evolving State and new policy arenas, when formal institutions for intergovernmental relations may not be effectively in place, politics play an even larger role through the discretionary power of federal and subnational authorities. An open political process can help with the engagement of different political groups and civil society to bring legitimacy, resources and efficiency to environmental management, if it is done with robust intergovernmental institutions; otherwise, intergovernmental relations can also become a tool for zero-sum games, cronyism and patrimonialism, which can undermine policies, and result in inefficiencies and ineffectiveness in environmental management.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext The political economy of health financing reform in Malaysia

Croke K, Mohd Yusoff MB, Abdullah Z, Mohd Hanafiah AN, Mokhtaruddin K, Ramli ES, et al.

Health Policy Plan, 2019 Dec 01;34(10):732-739.
PMID: 31563946 DOI: 10.1093/heapol/czz089

There is growing evidence that political economy factors are central to whether or not proposed health financing reforms are adopted, but there is little consensus about which political and institutional factors determine the fate of reform proposals. One set of scholars see the relative strength of interest groups in favour of and opposed to reform as the determining factor. An alternative literature identifies aspects of a country's political institutions-specifically the number and strength of formal 'veto gates' in the political decision-making process-as a key predictor of reform's prospects. A third group of scholars highlight path dependence and 'policy feedback' effects, stressing that the sequence in which health policies are implemented determines the set of feasible reform paths, since successive policy regimes bring into existence patterns of public opinion and interest group mobilization which can lock in the status quo. We examine these theories in the context of Malaysia, a successful health system which has experienced several instances of proposed, but ultimately blocked, health financing reforms. We argue that policy feedback effects on public opinion were the most important factor inhibiting changes to Malaysia's health financing system. Interest group opposition was a closely related factor; this opposition was particularly powerful because political leaders perceived that it had strong public support. Institutional veto gates, by contrast, played a minimal role in preventing health financing reform in Malaysia. Malaysia's dramatic early success at achieving near-universal access to public sector healthcare at low cost created public opinion resistant to any change which could threaten the status quo. We conclude by analysing the implications of these dynamics for future attempts at health financing reform in Malaysia.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics*
Community Engagement in Support of Moving Toward Universal Health Coverage

Allotey P, Tan DT, Kirby T, Tan LH

Health Syst Reform, 2019;5(1):66-77.
PMID: 30924744 DOI: 10.1080/23288604.2018.1541497

Community engagement describes a complex political process with dynamic negotiation and renegotiation of power and authority between providers and recipients of health care in order to achieve a shared goal of universal health care coverage. Though examples exist of community engagement projects, there is very little guidance on how to implement and embed community engagement as a concerted, integrated, strategic, and sustained component of health systems. Through a series of case studies, this article explores the factors that enable community engagement particularly with a direct impact on health systems.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
A New Simplified Visual Assessment Tool Describing Facial Morphotypes Observed and Desired in Asian Populations

Corduff N, Chao YY, Lam SC, Lim J, Lim TS, Lohia K, et al.

J Clin Aesthet Dermatol, 2020 Apr;13(4):23-34.
PMID: 33144908

OBJECTIVE: A group of established aesthetic physicians sought to develop treatment guidelines for assessing Asian face morphologies that reflect accurate and current beauty standards across Asia. DESIGN: Physicians completed surveys, debated, and voted on their clinical strategies and developed an alternative simplified visual tool of assessment (SVAT) that discerns between country variations in genetic and ideal morphotypes. SETTING: Electronic and paper surveys were followed by consensus debates and voting. PARTICIPANTS: Established aesthetic physicians practicing regularly on Asian patients. MEAUSUREMENTS: A clinically applicable SVAT was developed, which considered facial index, mid-face projection, upper and lower face shape, submalar contour, nose length and dorsal height, eye shape and brow shape, proportion of lips-to-lower face and ratio of upper-to-lower lip, and chin shape. RESULTS: For facial shape change, physicians always assessed the horizontal thirds, facial symmetry, and lip-chin complex profile, and also analyzed overall face shapes and Ogee curves. Criteria for creating oval-shaped faces was also defined and included treating indications, such as loss of angularity and bilateral masseter muscle hypertrophy, narrow jawlines, and longer and wider foreheads. Critical differences and similarities in country-specific aesthetic preferences, treatment requests, and considerations or strategies were uncovered, including the inadequacy of assessing overall peripheral facial shapes. CONCLUSION: This consensus establishes the assessment and treatment criteria for achieving ideal shapes for Asian patients. Specific descriptors are affected by variations; therefore, we present the visual criteria for Asian facial morphotypes. We hope that physicians new to treating Asian patients can use this clinical information to improve their practice.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
IFSO (International Federation for Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders) Consensus Conference Statement on One-Anastomosis Gastric Bypass (OAGB-MGB): Results of a Modified Delphi Study

Ramos AC, Chevallier JM, Mahawar K, Brown W, Kow L, White KP, et al.

Obes Surg, 2020 May;30(5):1625-1634.
PMID: 32152841 DOI: 10.1007/s11695-020-04519-y

BACKGROUND: One-anastomosis gastric bypass (OAGB-MGB) is currently the third performed primary bariatric surgical procedure worldwide. However, the procedure is hampered by numerous controversies and there is considerable variability in surgical technique, patient selection, and pre- and postoperative care among the surgeons performing this procedure. This paper reports the results of a modified Delphi consensus study organized by the International Federation for Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders (IFSO).
METHODS: Fifty-two internationally recognized bariatric experts from 28 countries convened for voting on 90 consensus statements over two rounds to identify those on which consensus could be reached. Inter-voter agreement of ≥ 70% was considered consensus, with voting participation ≥ 80% considered a robust vote.
RESULTS: At least 70% consensus was achieved for 65 of the 90 questions (72.2% of the items), 61 during the first round of voting and an additional four in the second round. Where consensus was reached on a binary agree/disagree or yes/no item, there was agreement with the statement presented in 53 of 56 instances (94.6%). Where consensus was reached on a statement where options favorable versus unfavorable to OAGB-MGB were provided, including statements in which OAGB-MGB was compared to another procedure, the response option favorable to OAGB-MGB was selected in 13 of 23 instances (56.5%).
CONCLUSION: Although there is general agreement that the OAGB-MGB is an effective and usually safe option for the management of patients with obesity or severe obesity, numerous areas of non-consensus remain in its use. Further empirical data are needed.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Hybrid Organizations in Health Systems: The Corporatization of Malaysia's National Heart Institute

Virk A, Croke K, Mohd Yusoff M, Mokhtaruddin K, Abdullah Z, Nadziha Mohd Hanafiah A, et al.

Health Syst Reform, 2020 12 01;6(1):e1833639.
PMID: 33314988 DOI: 10.1080/23288604.2020.1833639

Health system reforms across high- and middle-income countries often involve changes to public hospital governance. Corporatization is one such reform, in which public sector hospitals are granted greater functional independence while remaining publicly owned. In theory, this can improve public hospital efficiency, while retaining a public service ethos. However, the extent to which efficiency gains are realized and public purpose is maintained depends on policy choices about governance and payment systems. We present a case study of Malaysia's National Heart Institute (IJN), which was created in 1992 by corporatization of one department in a large public hospital. The aim of the paper is to examine whether IJN has achieved the goals for which it was created, and if so, whether it provides a potential model for further reforms in Malaysia and other similar health systems. Using a combination of document analysis and key informant interviews, we examine key governance, health financing and payment, and equity issues. For governance, we highlight the choice to have IJN owned by and answerable to a Ministry of Finance (MOF) holding company and MOF-appointed board, rather than the Ministry of Health (MOH). On financing and payment, we analyze the implications of IJN's combined role as fee-for-service provider to MOH as well as provider of care to private patients. For equity, we analyze the targeting of IJN care across publicly-referred and private patients. These issues demonstrate unresolved tensions between IJN's objectives and public service goals. As an institutional innovation that has endured for 28 years and grown dramatically in size and revenue, IJN's trajectory offers critical insights on the relevance of the hybrid public-private models for hospitals in Malaysia as well as in other middle-income countries. While IJN appears to have achieved its goal of establishing itself as a commercially viable, publicly owned center of clinical excellence in Malaysia, the value for money and equity of the services it provides to the Ministry of Health remain unclear. IJN is accountable to a small Ministry of Finance holding company, which means that detailed information required to evaluate these critical questions is not published. The case of IJN highlights that corporatization cannot achieve its stated goals of efficiency, innovation, and equity in isolation; rather it must be supported by broader reforms, including of health financing, payment, governance, and transparency, in order to ensure that autonomous hospitals improve quality and provide efficient care in an equitable way.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext Priority-setting to integrate sexual and reproductive health into universal health coverage: the case of Malaysia

Lim SC, Yap YC, Barmania S, Govender V, Danhoundo G, Remme M

Sex Reprod Health Matters, 2020 Dec;28(2):1842153.
PMID: 33236973 DOI: 10.1080/26410397.2020.1842153

Despite increasing calls to integrate and prioritise sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services in universal health coverage (UHC) processes, several SRH services have remained a low priority in countries' UHC plans. This study aims to understand the priority-setting process of SRH interventions in the context of UHC, drawing on the Malaysian experience. A realist evaluation framework was adopted to examine the priority-setting process for three SRH tracer interventions: pregnancy, safe delivery and post-natal care; gender-based violence (GBV) services; and abortion-related services. The study used a qualitative multi-method design, including a literature and document review, and 20 in-depth key informant interviews, to explore the context-mechanism-outcome configurations that influenced and explained the priority-setting process. Four key advocacy strategies were identified for the effective prioritisation of SRH services, namely: (1) generating public demand and social support, (2) linking SRH issues with public agendas or international commitments, (3) engaging champions that are internal and external to the public health sector, and (4) reframing SRH issues as public health issues. While these strategies successfully triggered mechanisms, such as mutual understanding and increased buy-in of policymakers to prioritise SRH services, the level and extent of prioritisation was affected by both inner and outer contextual factors, in particular the socio-cultural and political context. Priority-setting is a political decision-making process that reflects societal values and norms. Efforts to integrate SRH services in UHC processes need both to make technical arguments and to find strategies to overcome barriers related to societal values (including certain socio-cultural and religious norms). This is particularly important for sensitive SRH services, like GBV and safe abortion, and for certain populations.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext Recommendations for the adjuvant use of the poly-antibiotic-resistant probiotic Bacillus clausii (O/C, SIN, N/R, T) in acute, chronic, and antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children: consensus from Asian experts

De Castro JA, Kesavelu D, Lahiri KR, Chaijitraruch N, Chongsrisawat V, Jog PP, et al.

Trop Dis Travel Med Vaccines, 2020;6:21.
PMID: 33110611 DOI: 10.1186/s40794-020-00120-4

This paper proposes recommendations for probiotics in pediatric gastrointestinal diseases in the Asia-Pacific region. Evidence-based recommendations and randomized controlled trials in the region are included. Cultural aspects, health management issues and economic factors were also considered. Final recommendations were approved by utilizing a modified Delphi process and applying the Likert scale in an electronic voting process. Bacillus clausii was recommended as an adjunct treatment with oral rehydration solution for acute viral diarrhea. B. clausii may also be considered for prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, Clostridium difficile-induced diarrhea, and as adjunct treatment of Helicobacter pylori. There is insufficient evidence for recommendations in other conditions. Despite a diversity of epidemiological, socioeconomical and health system conditions, similar recommendations currently apply to most Asia-Pacific countries. Ideally, these need to be validated with local randomized-controlled trials.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Practice Advisory on the Appropriate Use of NSAIDs in Primary Care

Ho KY, Cardosa MS, Chaiamnuay S, Hidayat R, Ho HQT, Kamil O, et al.

J Pain Res, 2020;13:1925-1939.
PMID: 32821151 DOI: 10.2147/JPR.S247781

Cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2 selective and nonselective nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are important in managing acute and chronic pain secondary to inflammation. As a greater understanding of the risks of gastrointestinal (GI), cardiovascular (CV) and renal events with NSAIDs use has emerged, guidelines have evolved to reflect differences in risks among NSAIDs. Updated guidelines have yet to reflect new evidence from recent trials which showed similar CV event rates with celecoxib compared to naproxen and ibuprofen, and significantly better GI tolerability for celecoxib. This practice advisory paper aims to present consensus statements and associated guidance regarding appropriate NSAID use based on a review of current evidence by a multidisciplinary group of expert clinicians. This paper is especially intended to guide primary care practitioners within Asia in the appropriate use of NSAIDs in primary care. Following a literature review, group members used a modified Delphi consensus process to determine agreement with selected recommendations. Agreement with a statement by 75% of total voting members was defined a priori as consensus. For low GI risk patients, any nonselective NSAID plus proton pump inhibitor (PPI) or celecoxib alone is acceptable treatment when CV risk is low; for high CV risk patients, low-dose celecoxib or naproxen plus PPI is appropriate. For high GI risk patients, celecoxib plus PPI is acceptable for low CV risk patients; low-dose celecoxib plus PPI is appropriate for high CV risk patients, with the alternative to avoid NSAIDs and consider opioids instead. Appropriate NSAID prescription assumes that the patient has normal renal function at commencement, with ongoing monitoring recommended. In conclusion, appropriate NSAID use requires consideration of all risks.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext Mitigation measures during elections and it’s impacts on COVID-19 Pandemic: Sabah State (Malaysia), New Zealand and the United States

Syaza Zainudin, Mohd Amiruddin Mohd Kassim, Nor Nadia Mohamad Ridza

Borneo Epidemiology Journal, 2020;1(2):145-156.
MyJurnal

Background and Objective: Countries all over the world respect the election process as one of the fundamental steps in forming a government. However, the exponential spread of COVID-19 has been deeply alarming, with a high number of positive cases and total deaths, forcing World Health Organization to declare it as a pandemic on 11thMarch 2020. During these unprecedented events, governments have had a tough decision to balance between the constitutional obligation to hold an election and the safety of the people. As such, electoral commissions have implemented numerous approaches to allow election to proceed in a safe and controlled setting during the pandemic.
Methods: The preventative measures and standard operating procedures in the Sabah state of Malaysia, NewZealand and the United States elections are discussed, as well as COVID-19 post-election situation in respective countries. Innovative approaches and election flexibilities shall be considered to allow voting in the safest way possible, following the new normal.
Discussion:Nevertheless, countries need to evaluate its strength of public health response when deciding to hold elections due to potential devastating outbreaks following elections despite measures taken.
Conclusion: The election is a fundamental process in a democracy. Countries are required to be flexible and innovative in their approach to hold a safe election. Nevertheless, it may be prudent for countries with fewer resources and poor pandemic control to postpone election as a rise in cases will be catastrophic, putting many lives at risk.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics
Fulltext SENTIMENT ANALYSIS OF PEOPLE’S ACCEPTANCE TOWARDS THE NEW MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT USING NAÏVE BAYES METHOD

R.U GOBITHAASAN, NUR FARHANA SYAHIRA CHE HAMID

UMT Journal of Undergraduate Research, 2020;2(3):93-102.
MyJurnal

Sentiment analysis is a field of research that has a significant impact on today’s nations, politics and businesses. It is an algorithmic process to comprehend the opinions of a given subject based on the Natural Language Processing (NLP) methodologies. It has received much attention in recent years and is proven vital in various fields, e.g., online product reviews and social media analysis (Twitter, Facebook, etc.). This paper reports the outcome of sentiment analysis to investigate people’s acceptance of Pakatan Harapan, as the new Malaysian government, spearheaded by Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad and Dr. Wan Azizah, with an influence of Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim. The objective is to classify tweets into three types of sentiments; positive, neutral and negative using Naïve Bayes method which is readily available in Python. The first step is tweets extraction for a month (March to April 2019) using search queries: {Pakatan Harapan, Mahathir, Anwar Ibrahim, Wan Azizah}. It is followed by tweets wrangling using NLP library and lastly output visualization in the form of a word cloud. A word cloud is a visual representation of text data with various font sizes depending on its probabilities. Final results showed that the tweets related to new government consist of neutral sentiment (41%) followed by positive sentiment (30%) and negative sentiment (29%). Malaysians do prefer the new government. However careful mitigation steps must be crafted to overcome controversial issues such as the ‘Rome Statute’ to avoid negative digital footprint, hence winning the Malaysians’ heart.

Matched MeSH terms: Politics

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