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The foreign reserves sufficiency is important to maintain macroeconomic stability. The main objective of this paper is to model the behaviour of the central bank in accumulating the foreign reserves in the case of Indonesia. Unlike the previous empirical studies, this paper disaggregates the components of foreign reserves into foreign currency, securities, gold, and special drawing rights. This paper relies on the Almost Ideal Demand System combined with the Error Correction Model. The estimation result for monthly data over the period 2010(1)-2020(12) reveals that the own-price coefficients are negative and statistically significant which is consistent with the standard theory of demand. While the foreign currency-securities pairwise is substitutive, the foreign currency-gold and the foreign currency-special drawing rights pairwise are complementary or even independent. However, the wealth effect is inelastic except for securities reserves. These results imply that the central bank of Indonesia can re-balance its reserves. The securities holding which have the highest proportion of foreign reserve scan be switched to foreign currency, gold, and/or special drawing rights. The rebalancing measures would remain having an optimal level of foreign reserves holding in terms of its opportunity cost. Therefore, the monetary authority can conduct a further macroeconomic stabilisation without substantially losing the returns.

This paper investigates the dynamics of market synchronicity and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) adoption in Africa. It seeks to determine whether or not IFRS is an augmentor or inhibitor of market synchronicity in Africa. This study is not only a foundational study that unfolds the dynamics of market synchronicity and IFRS adoption in Africa but also extends the scope of synchronicity from firm-level assessment to country-level market synchronicity. It is one of the few studies which have shifted the literature on synchronicity from one largely limited to firm-level synchronicity to country-level synchronicity through analyses of cross-border market synchronisation. It employs Dynamic Ordinary Least Square (DOLS) and Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) to investigate the market synchronicity-IFRS nexus. The study uses monthly data from March 2005 to November 2021 in five African markets: Botswana, Ghana, Namibia, Nigeria, and South Africa generating 1005 observations in an 18-year data span. The paper reveals a significant negative consequence of IFRS on market synchronicity. Thus, IFRS exhibits an inhibition role in market synchronicity (reduces synchronicity) and improves price informativeness. A decreasing pattern was also observed immediately after IFRS was adopted by the stock markets and persisted for about five years. It implies that the price informativeness of stock markets through IFRS makes them good candidates for intra-Africa portfolio diversification due to reduced investors’ risk exposure to market synchronicity.

Purpose – This paper aims to analyze the thematic content of research addressing the relation between board of directors (BoD) and business transformation (BT) to obtain better understanding of status and to derive future areas of study. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews literature through a bibliometric analysis based on co-occurrence of articles published in Web of Science Core Collection ™ (WoS) between 1990 and 2022, identifying key concepts, setting network of relations and identifying the strategic importance of clusters of concepts. Findings and implications are discussed, future lines of research are presented and limitations are noted. Findings – Thematic research on boards addressing transformation shifted from the analysis of individuals' traits to an organizational approach with majority of research centered on the role of boards under different theories and the consequences of strategic changes on firm's performance. Further research is around gender diversity, sustainability and the moderating role of ownership structure and business culture. Research limitations/implications – Some limitations are also noted. This analysis considered articles indexed by WoS for Q1+Q2 publications as source of literature, while including others such as Scopus would increase knowledge base. Also, to identify main streams of research, the authors considered keywords with cumulative occurrence spanning from 30% to 40% while increasing this percentage would add terms that might improve precision to the connections among keywords. Other techniques could have been used such as co-citation or bibliographic coupling, although the authors find these as better suited to investigate the basic structure behind the foundational knowledge of the topic while the authors’ intention was to understand the positioning of study fields regarding the degree of research progress. Practical implications – This paper presents some practical implications for future researchers. Those who wish to leverage previous evidence to address new research questions might look into principal themes covering BoD dynamics and composition to exert CG, and the relation between strategic decisions and performance measured by different variables. Those who wish to position their research as new findings to shed light on dilemmas, might find opportunities in the fields of climate change-sustainability, R&D for growth and innovation under the perspective of intangible assets. Originality/value – This paper, is the first to the best of the authors’ knowledge, to identify research clusters for the intersection of boards and transformation and to determine their stage of development. 研究目的 – 本文旨在分析探討董事會與業務轉型之間的關係的學術研究的專題內容，以能對有關課題的研究狀況有更深入的了解，並擬從分析中取得未來可供研究的範疇。 研究設計/方法/理念 – 本文透過科學計量分析法來進行文獻探討。方法乃基於在1990年至2022年期間在Web of Science Core Collection 刊載的學術論文的共現分析而進行; 透過這個研究方法，研究人員建立了聯繫的網絡，並確認了各個概念群組的策略重要性。在本文中，研究結果和研究結果帶來的啟示會被討論，未來的研究領域和方針也會得到說明，研究的局限也會被認定和記錄下來。 研究結果 – 探討董事會而又涉及業務轉型的專題研究，由當初集中探討董事個人的特質、轉移到現在研究整體的組織理念和處事取向，而就後者來說，大部份的研究都集中於在不同的理論框架裡董事會所扮演的角色，以及因策略上的改變而為公司的業績帶來的影響。進一步的學術研究都是圍繞著性別多元化、可持續性、所有權結構所扮演的緩和角色和商業文化的研究。 研究的原創性/價值 – 盡我們所知，本文乃為首篇學術論文，去鑑定關於董事會與業務轉型之間的關聯的研究集群，也是首篇學術論文，去確定這些研究集群的發展階段。

Purpose – The gap that this research attempts to fill is to analyse the explanatory factor “industry” when assessing the reputation of a corporate group. In other words, this research attempts to demonstrate the impact of the “industrial halo” on the assessment of corporate reputation, given that, to date, the academic literature has not considered industry as an explanatory variable in the assessment of the reputation of private companies. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 43 Spanish companies was used to analyse the relationship between the reputation of firms as measured by the Merco Empresas index, and the industries to which they belong, after controlling for company performance, size, turnover, public recognition of their leadership, and corporate responsibility. This involved conducting a cross-sectional analysis of the relationship between the variables for each year in the time period from 2005 to 2016. The available data were taken from the firms' annual financial reports and websites, as well as from the Merco. Findings – The paper shows the existence of industrial halos that account for the corporate reputation of businesses in Spain. It is also shown that industrial halos are not permanent over time, and that they tend to occur in years of crisis. Research limitations/implications – It would have been desirable for this study to have had sufficient data to include other industries, but this was not possible. As for possible extensions, in addition to expanding the period considered, other analytical techniques, such as panel data models, could be applied to allow comparison with the results obtained here. Practical and social implications – The results of this study have some practical implications. Firstly, firms that publish corporate reputation rankings should be aware of the distortion that the industrial halo can produce, especially in times of uncertainty, and seek to correct for it in their measurements. And secondly, corporate groups themselves should assume that the reputation of the industry affects their individual reputation, and consequently, they should see the other companies in the industry not only as competitors but also as “reputational allies”. They should therefore make collective efforts to improve in this respect, especially in the face of reputational crises. Originality/value – This paper provides a better understanding of the relationship between the reputation of a company and the industry to which it belongs, and of its permanence over time. This relationship has been little studied in the Spanish market to date. 研究目的 – 本研究擬分析當企業集團的信譽被評估時的解釋性因素-行業,以填補現時的研究缺口。具體來說,研究人員鑒於學術文獻至今仍未於評估私營企業的信譽時、把行業當作是一個解釋變量來看待,故擬進行研究、以顯示行業光環在評估企業信譽時所產生的影響。 研究設計/方法/理念 – 研究使用的樣本為43間西班牙公司。研究人員分析以Merco Empresas 指數來測量的公司信譽與公司所屬行業之間的關係。有關的分析調控了公司的業績、規模、營業額、企業責任、以及企業領導能力的公眾認可程度所帶來的影響。研究人員對有關變量間的關係進行橫向分析 分析於2005年至2016年期間年度性地進行。現有數據取自有關公司的年度財務報表和其網站,也有取自Merco的。 研究結果 – 研究結果表明了可解釋西班牙企業信譽的行業光環是存在的。研究結果亦顯示、行業光環不是永恆的,而且,行業光環往往會在營運極其困難的年度內出現。 研究的原創性/價值 – 本文讓我們更深入瞭解公司信譽與公司所屬行業之間的關係,以及其在時間上的永恆性。就這相關的關係而言,探討西班牙市場的研究至今為數不多。

Purpose – This paper aims to identify the antecedents and postcedents of customer satisfaction, including utilitarian, social and emotional factors, in a fair trade (FT) coffee consumption context. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on a broad range of 177 consumers of FT coffee in Spain, the data analysis used structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS/AMOS 26.0 software. Findings – This paper supports that both customer social value and quality affect perceived value (PV). PV in turn has effects on customer satisfaction and the latter influences loyalty. Conversely, both customer emotional value and customer expectations were not confirmed as antecedents of PV. Research limitations/implications – The consumer satisfaction analysis conducted differs substantially from those of conventionally traded coffee, as social and emotional factors were considered along with utilitarian factors. Practical implications – Practitioners, retailers and relevant institutions should design strategies to manage efficiently channel efforts to improve the consumer satisfaction and its loyalty. Originality/value – This paper contributes to a substantial improvement in the understanding of consumer satisfaction and its consequences, in FT coffee consumption contexts. A new integrated theoretical model on customer satisfaction has been provided, which includes social and emotional perception factors, along with cognitive perception (quality and expectations) factors. 研究目的 – 研究旨在確認在公平貿易咖啡消費的課題上，顧客滿意的誘因及其後因，這包括實用的因素，社會的因素和情感的因素。 研究設計/方法/理念 – 研究之數據廣泛來自在西班牙177名公平貿易咖啡消費者; 分析則以結構方程模型，並以SPSS Amos 26軟件來進行。 研究結果 – 研究結果證實，顧客社會價值和質量是會影響認知價值的;認知價值繼而影響顧客滿意度，而顧客滿意度又進而影響他們的忠誠。相反的，顧客情緒價值或他們的期望、均未能證實是認知價值的先決條件。 研究的局限/啟示 – 本研究所進行的消費者滿意度分析，與其它以傳統方法銷售的咖啡之相關研究有很大的分別，這是因為本研究除了考慮實用的因素外，還納入了社會因素和情感因素。 實務方面的啟示 – 從業人員、零售商和有關的機構應制訂適切的策略，以能有效地管理各個管道，來提升消費者的滿意度和忠誠。 研究的原創性 – 本研究的貢獻在於它幫助我們在公平貿易咖啡消費的課題上，對消費者滿意及其效果有更深入的認識。研究亦提供了一個探討顧客滿意度的嶄新、綜合的理論模型，而這個理論模型，除了涵蓋知覺認知 (質量和期望) 的因素外，還納入了社會的和情感的知覺因素。

Both social media marketing and the digital activity of Instagram influencers have transformed the virtual landscape of book promotion. In other words, the growth of the #bookstagram community has given the entire publishing industry the opportunity to interact with potential readers and, by extension, increase product visibility through the social media platform Instagram. With this in mind, the present study aims to deepen the importance of promotion techniques within bookstagram and, moreover, to portray the modern methods implemented as central pillars in 21st century marketing strategies. Therefore, the paper investigates the broad spectrum of online approaches accessible to book influencers in the field of social media marketing through qualitative research, with in-depth interviews as the research method. As promotion can be achieved through a number of valuable techniques, the research focuses on highlighting the bookstagram tour, but also other equally effective strategies in terms of expanding the target audience and maximizing interactions. Moreover, there is the approach of types of posts, the involvement of awards or even touching on divergent topics of the books. Thus, by examining the phenomenon present in social media – influencer marketing and their methods of attracting consumer attention, the paper helps to build on the literature and offers new insights for both publishers and influencers. In particular, the research contributes to the evolving information on influencer marketing and highlights the importance of incorporating social media into marketing strategies to keep the online landscape current and dynamic.

The Greek economic crisis produced severe economic and social outcomes. A massive rescue package was conditional on implementing a Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies agreed upon between the Greek government and the EU, European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund. The extremely austere fiscal consolidation and the structural reforms accompanying the Greek Economic Adjustment Programmes reduced the country’s GDP. Implementing the austerity policies on the Greek National Health System, which was already facing structural problems, reduced the quality and availability of public health care services. This paper investigates the impact of the GDP change on public healthcare expenditures (HCE) from 2000 to 2018. The empirical analysis reveals a statistically significant positive correlation between the GDP per capita and public healthcare expenditure (HCE) from 2000 to 2014 while the effect of GDP on HCE after the 2015 remains unchanged. This paper contributes to the field’s literature since it determines the impact of GDP on public HCE, specifically matched with empirical results to derive conclusive answers.

Research on creative organizations often questions how artistic practices can be squared within the rational decision-making of economic thinking. This paper examines how the relational language, or conversation, between artistic and economic rationales unfolds for creative entrepreneurs. Through ethnographic work with a designer-entrepreneur, this paper presents a fine-grained analysis of the conversation the designer cultivates between artistic and economic rationales through work practices. We contribute to the literature about artistic and economic rationales at work, and more specifically to the concept of conversation. First, we show that high levels of conversing make way for low levels of conversing and vice versa. In the studio, the designer’s engagement with either rationale varies as the creative process progresses. Second, on a more global dynamic, we demonstrate the conversation is continuous. It relies on its variations, which ensure the balance between rationales in the long run. We also contribute to the field of creative entrepreneurship research. We identify here one type of creative entrepreneur, with what we call a ‘small is beautiful’ attitude. Far from the mythical figure of the entrepreneur, this unconventional entrepreneur aims for sustainable use of creative resources rather than growth at all costs.

Motivation: The relationship between ESG factors and sustainability is a widely debated topic in the literature, but to our knowledge, there is a gap concerning the investigation of links between groups formed with ESG and other sustainability concepts, such as corporate social responsibility (CSR), green economy, circular economy, digitalization, technology, industry 4.0, and industry 5.0. Idea: The objective of this study is to identify the interest of researchers, their visibility, as well as the trends among publications, regarding the ESG factors in relation to other concepts within the realm of sustainability, like CSR, green economy, circular economy, digitalization, technology, industry 4.0, and industry 5.0. Data: The selected sample for the research includes 1430 papers screened from the Web of Science database. Tools: The aim of this study is achieved by conducting a bibliometric analysis, using VOSviewer and PowerBI. Findings: The findings of this study include the interconnectivity of selected concepts, the co-occurrence of authors’ keywords, the number of publications over time, as well as the paper types, the publishing activity by journal, the most productive authors, the co-authorship, their affiliation, the papers’ length, references, and citations trend, the most cited papers, the publishing activity by country and the collaboration patterns between countries. Contribution: This analysis supports the identification of potential gaps in current ESG-related research and points toward new areas of investigation. It also contributes to the advancement of ESG research and to the achievement of sustainable development goals.

Using Chinese A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2020 as a research sample, this paper examines the relationship between negative media coverage and corporate ESG performance using a two-way fixed-effects model. It is found that, first, negative media coverage can effectively promote corporate ESG performance. Second, the mediation mechanism study shows that negative media coverage positively promotes corporate ESG performance by increasing the degree of corporate financing constraints and information asymmetry and prompting corporations to change their ESG governance level. Third, the results of the heterogeneity test find that the positive relationship between negative media coverage and corporate ESG performance is more pronounced among firms without executives with overseas backgrounds, and the positive relationship between the two is more significant after the promulgation of China’s Code of Governance for Listed Companies in 2018. Fourth, further discussion revealed that negative media coverage has the strongest promotion effect on the performance of corporate environmental governance, followed by social governance performance, and lastly, corporate governance performance. The research in this paper contributes to an in-depth understanding of the impact of negative media coverage on corporate ESG performance and provides empirical evidence to facilitate policy formulation related to the role of media monitoring and to fully utilize the media’s role in corporate ESG governance.

The latest effort in delivering computing resources as a service to managers and consumers represents a shift away from computing as a product that is purchased, to computing as a service that is delivered to users over the internet from large-scale data centers. However, with the advent of the cloud-based IoT and artificial intelligence (AI), which are advancing customer experience automations in many application areas, such as recommender systems (RS), a need has arisen for various modifications to support the IoT devices that are at the center of the automation world, including recent language models like ChatGPT and Bard and technologies like nanotechnology. This paper introduces the marketing community to a recent computing development: IoT-driven fog computing (FC). Although numerous research studies have been published on FC “smart” applications, none hitherto have been conducted on fog-based smart marketing domains such as recommender systems. FC is considered a novel computational system, which can mitigate latency and improve bandwidth utilization for autonomous consumer behavior applications requiring real-time data-driven decision making. This paper provides a conceptual framework for studying the effects of fog computing on consumer behavior, with the goal of stimulating future research by using, as an example, the intersection of FC and RS. Indeed, our conceptualization of the “fog-based recommender systems” opens many novel and challenging avenues for academic research, some of which are highlighted in the later part of this paper.

Since 2012, researchers have explored various factors influencing Bitcoin prices. Up until the end of July 2023, more than 9100 research papers on cryptocurrencies were published and indexed in the Web of Science Clarivate platform. The objective of this paper is to analyze the impact of publications on Bitcoin prices. This study aims to uncover significant themes within these research articles, focusing on cryptocurrencies in general and Bitcoin specifically. The research employs latent Dirichlet allocation to identify key topics from the unstructured abstracts. To determine the optimal number of topics, perplexity and topic coherence metrics are calculated. Additionally, the abstracts are processed using BERT-transformers and Word2Vec and their potential to predict Bitcoin prices is assessed. Based on the results, while the research helps in understanding cryptocurrencies, the potential of academic publications to influence Bitcoin prices is not significant, demonstrating a weak connection. In other words, the movements of Bitcoin prices are not influenced by the scientific writing in this specific field. The primary topics emerging from the analysis are the blockchain, market dynamics, transactions, pricing trends, network security, and the mining process. These findings suggest that future research should pay closer attention to issues like the energy demands and environmental impacts of mining, anti-money laundering measures, and behavioral aspects related to cryptocurrencies.

Purpose – This paper aims to address the question: What is the distribution of value (in pounds) created in a sample of domestic takeovers in the United Kingdom from 2013 to 2020 among acquirer and target stockholders? Design/methodology/approach – The author employs a traditional event study methodology to calculate the percentage excess returns of companies on the announcement date. These returns are then converted into pound-denominated excess returns using the companies' market capitalizations. This allows the author to estimate the synergies of the mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and how they are allocated between acquirers and targets. This innovative transformation from percentage to pound excess returns establishes a new ratio methodology for addressing the paper's objective. Findings – This paper reveals that in UK takeovers, 40 percent of the synergies in pounds are allocated to the stockholders of acquiring companies, while 60 percent go to the stockholders of target companies. In other words, acquirers retain a significant portion—more than half—of the synergies generated in these domestic deals. This original finding is statistically significant at the one percent level and strongly contradicts the hypothesis that acquirers, at best, merely break even. Originality/value – The evidence that UK takeovers distribute value gains nearly equally between domestic deal parties challenges the enduring conventional insight in the M&A literature. This conventional wisdom suggests that the value created by business combinations is entirely distributed to target company stockholders. Consequently, this reexamination may have broader implications, offering an alternative perspective on the motives behind business combinations. This perspective differs from the “managerial hubris hypothesis,” which aligns with the prevailing conventional insight but receives limited support in the original finding reported here.

The digital agriculture adoption strive by farmers could be assimilated with the adoption efforts of the computer technologies (ICT) by their respective users in other professional fields. Therefore, this paper proposes the adaptation of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Usage of Technology (UTAUT) model to explore the motivations for the use of digital tools by field crop farmers in Romania. The history of TAM and UTAUT is explored as well as the usage of UTAUT2 and UTAUT3 in digital agriculture adoption studies globally. Furthermore, comparison is also made with other farmer studies based on a different research architecture conceived also to explore their motivations to use digital agriculture tools. The proposed model is building on the decades long research and validation of the UTAUT model, and it will be employed in subsequent quantitative studies to evaluate the Romanian farmers’ motivations to embrace the digital agriculture technologies and practices. The paper is the outcome of the individual research done by the author and it was enhanced following academic debates and conference presentations. It is deemed to have a dual applicability, as a field tool for academic research but also provides guidance for companies developing digital tools for farmers in Romania and beyond.

The aim of this paper is to examine the existence and persistence across various portfolios of stocks of the January effect, a market anomaly suggesting that security prices exhibit distortions in the first month of every year compared to the rest of the year. The existing empirical studies on the January effect in contemporary financial markets, particularly in recent years, are somewhat limited. To provide a comprehensive overview, this paper utilizes data encompassing all American stocks listed on NASDAQ, AMEX, and NYSE from 1980s to 2023. The selection of the American stock market as the sample is based on its complexity and substantial trading activity. This investigation delves into the anomaly by assessing its impact on stock portfolios categorized by size, book-to-market ratio, and dividend yield. Additionally, the paper scrutinizes cross-sectional variations within the portfolios to uncover potential patterns explaining this anomaly, by looking at the corresponding quintile distribution. The data undergoes regression analysis using dummy Ordinary Least Squares. The results of the analysis reveal that the anomaly affects only a subset of stocks that share common characteristics: small capitalization, high book-to-market value and the ones that did not yield investors any dividends. The results are in line with previous findings in literature, particularly those of Ross (1983) and Reinganum (1983), suggesting evidence in favour of the window dressing hypothesis and the tax-loss selling hypothesis.

Modern e-businesses heavily rely on advanced data analytics for product recommendations. However, there are still untapped opportunities to enhance user interfaces. Currently, online stores offer a single-page version to all customers, overlooking individual characteristics. This paper aims to identify the essential components and present a framework for enabling multiple e-commerce user interfaces. It also seeks to address challenges associated with personalized e-commerce user interfaces. The methodology includes detailing the framework for serving diverse e-commerce user interfaces and presenting pilot implementation results. Key components, particularly the role of algorithms in personalizing the user experience, are outlined. The results demonstrate promising outcomes for the implementation of the pilot solution, which caters to various e-commerce user interfaces. User characteristics support multivariant websites, with algorithms facilitating continuous learning. Newly proposed metrics effectively measure changes in user behavior resulting from different interface deployments. This paper underscores the central role of personalized e-commerce user interfaces in optimizing online store efficiency. The framework, supported by machine learning algorithms, showcases the feasibility and benefits of different page versions. The identified components, challenges, and proposed metrics contribute to a comprehensive solution and set the stage for further development of personalized e-commerce interfaces.

The objective of this paper is to clarify the influence of the structural characteristics of organizations in Japanese enterprises on market-oriented behavior, starting from a study to grasp the market orientation of organizations represented by Kohli and Jaworski (1990) from the behavioral perspective. This paper focuses on the centrality of the influence of marketing decision-making, formulation of strategy, and task conflict among departments as precedent factors affecting market-oriented behavior, which are strongly related to management of marketing strategies. The paper takes an empirical approach using structural equation modeling based on a survey of marketers in the Japanese manufacturing industry on how the combination of preceding factors affect each other, after segmenting the process of market-oriented behavior into the generation and diffusion of market information and the reaction. The results showed that (1) the market-oriented behavior process does not persist as a seamless process, and (2) it is difficult to design an optimal organizational structure that satisfies all conditions in improving market-oriented behavior, and it is necessary to adjust the organizational structure according to the situation.

Islamic Banking (IB) still struggles to institutionalise its practices at the wider societal level. The literature, despite having covered the sector from several angles, has overlooked an objective evaluation of the root causes of its restricted institutionalisation so far. This empirical investigation into Pakistan's IB sector fills this void and investigates the sector's apparent limited success in institutionalising its practices despite having been formally accorded legitimate legal status around the world. The paper, bringing the sector's governance to the spotlight, concludes that the social practice's 'site' of development – the Islamic Shari'ah jurisprudence, has too strong a coupling of internal elements to accommodate the sector's current loose adherence to its principles and laws, and thus the sector, rather than its 'site' of its development, needs to adapt and reorient to accomplish unrestricted institutionalisation. The paper also extends Foucault's theoretical constructs in the sector's peculiar context, which stems from a unique cultural, economic, and regulatory environment. The paper aims to add a new dimension to the IB governance literature and help steer future research focus to areas with the highest marginal utility for the sector and its stakeholders.

Abstract Passive investments such as exchange-traded funds (ETFs) provide an opportunity to invest in indexes, asset classes, and sectors with low maintenance costs and high transparency. Today ETFs dominate the world, with nearly 50% of the investment in the USA coming through ETFs. Numerous studies on specific aspects on ETFs have been done earlier; however, considering the scarcity of thorough summaries in the existing body of literature, this bibliometric and systematic review aims to adopt a methodical approach with the goal of delivering qualitative and quantitative understanding of ETFs, while highlighting general research trends. The authors analyzed 2058 articles associated with ETFs from the Scopus database during the last 50 years, i.e., from 1973 till date. The search was initially conducted using title, keyword, and abstract, yielding 2058 articles, which were narrowed to only include research papers and review papers, resulting in a final count of 958 items. The most important authors, highest cited articles, prominent journals, important themes, and associated countries have been identified using bibliometric research. The numerical and visual representations of the analysis show that ETFs are a widely studied research area, and the enormous rise in publications in 2020, 2021, and 2022 demonstrates that researchers are quite interested in the topic. According to affiliation statistics, most research is focused in the USA together with other developed nations, opening new options for the research on ETFs in relation to developing economies. The current analysis reconciles numerous exchange-traded fund studies associated with volatility, liquidity, risk-return trade-off, and tracking errors and identifies possible research gaps. Some of the emerging topics that evolved in passive investments include the use of machine learning, AI, and the emergence of ETFs associated with ESG and sustainability. This research will help lawmakers, scholars, and regulators understand the core principles of ETFs and identify areas that deserve additional investigation.

Abstract This paper investigates the effects of corporate risk disclosure (CRD) and dividend policy (DP) on firm value (FV) for non-financial companies listed on the Egyptian Stock Exchange. Using a sample of 45 non-financial firms from 2016 to 2022, which yielded 315 firm-year observations, we find a significant positive relationship between CRD and FV, supporting signaling theory. DP also exhibits a positive association with FV. Additionally, DP positively moderates the CRD-FV relationship, indicating a complementary effect where dividends enhance the CRD's positive signal. The results are robust across fixed effects, random effects, and pooled OLS models. This study makes key empirical and theoretical contributions by validating the hypothesized relationships in the Egyptian context. It also provides managerial insights into value drivers for public firms in developing economies. Further research can corroborate the findings in other emerging markets. Overall, this paper enhances understanding of the linkages between risk disclosure, dividend policy, and firm valuation outcomes.

Abstract This research paper aims to investigate the impediments faced by innovation-driven enterprises in Thailand and to explore the current measures, policies, and mechanisms related to innovation-driven enterprises (IDEs)’ development both domestically and internationally. The study encompasses a comprehensive approach, including an analysis of an innovation entrepreneur database comprising 320 investors and 883 IDEs. Moreover, semi-structure in-depth interviews were conducted with three investors, twenty-two IDEs’ founders, eight executives, and experts from various sectors, including government, university incubators, and the private sector in Thailand. Through this multifaceted investigation, this paper sheds light on the key factors that hinder the success of IDEs in Thailand, which primarily revolve around the quality of entrepreneurs (Team), Product and Market Fit, and Support. These factors collectively impact the depth of knowledge, business incubation, acceleration programs, and the effectiveness of laws, measures, and policies in supporting innovation capability development within IDEs. In addition, this paper presents a framework for Thailand’s IDEs hub, facilitating the connection between the university's innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem with public and private stakeholders. This framework serves as a mechanism to address the identified hindrances and foster a conducive environment for IDEs development. To address the obstacles, this paper proposes three crucial strategies, namely, (1) talent management, (2) ease of doing scaleup, and (3) availability of funding. These strategies are envisioned to counteract the identified challenges and can be effectively implemented through an operating model and practical working procedures tailored to suit the specific context of Thailand.

Abstract Considering the pressures of fluctuating external environments, organizations are constantly seeking ways to be responsive and able to improve their performance with lower costs. Employer–employee relationships have changed rapidly in recent years, and there is growing interest in considering human resources as a form of capital, and a strategic factor for business excellence. A focal point for HR professionals is employee loyalty, recognized as pivotal in realizing long-term organizational goals. This paper delves into the concept of Wasta social capital and its pivotal role in fostering employee loyalty and innovation within the unique cultural context of the Arab world. It is argued here that Wasta social capital is the fundamental dynamic that stimulates employee loyalty in the workplace. This conceptual paper provides new insights through understanding the significant role Wasta social capital plays in affecting employee loyalty in a collectivist culture, differing from the conventional business-context factors of loyalty. Obtaining a deeper understanding of employee loyalty and how it is developed in Arab-world business contexts can promote innovation.

Developing a sustainable competitive advantage has emerged as a pivotal objective for organizations due to the dynamic and constantly evolving business environment, challenges modern organizations encounter, rapid market fluctuations, and intense competition. This study aims to examine the impact of strategic agility on sustainable competitive advantage and the mediating role of strategic renewal within an emerging economy such as Jordan. The study collected data from 217 executives holding senior and intermediate positions in telecommunications companies in Jordan. This paper utilized partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS4 software to test hypotheses and assess the measurement and structural models. According to the findings, strategic agility has a significant positive impact on sustainable competitive advantage (β = 0.590, t = 8.042, p ≤ 0.000) and high explanation power (R2 = 0.828), which means that 82.8% of the variance in sustainable competitive advantage has been explained by strategic agility and strategic renewal. Moreover, strategic renewal partially mediates the relationship between strategic agility and sustainable competitive advantage. In addition, the study revealed that the model’s predictive power was medium. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge and existing literature about the impact of strategy renewal and agility on sustainable competitive advantage in Jordanian telecommunications companies. Organizations incorporating strategic agility and renewal into their strategy can manage uncertainties, swiftly adjust to changes, and attain sustainable competitive advantage.

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the effects of mineral rents, conflict and population growth on countries' growth, with a specific interest in 13 selected economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses a combination of research methods: the pooled ordinary least squares (OLS), the fixed effect and the system generalized method of moment (GMM). The consistent estimator (system GMM), which provides the paper's empirical findings, remedies the inherent endogeneity bias in the model formulation. The utilized panel dataset for the study spans from 1980 to 2022. Findings – The study suggests that mineral rents positively affect countries' growth by about 0.407 percentage points in the short run. The study further demonstrates the long-run negative impacts of population growth rates and prevalence of civil war on economic growth. The empirical work of the study reveals that an increase in the number of international borders within the group promotes mineral conflicts, which impedes economic growth. Evidence from the specification tests performed in the study confirmed the validity of the empirical results. Social implications – Mineral rents, if well managed and conditioned on good institutions, are a blessing to an economy, contrary to the assumptions that mineral resources are a curse. The utilization of mineral rents in Sub-Saharan Africa for economic growth depends on several factors, notably the level of mineral conflicts, population growth rates, institutional factors and the ability to contain civil war, among others. Originality/value – This study is the first attempt in the post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) era to revisit the investigation of the impacts of mineral rents, conflict and population growth rates on the countries' growth while controlling for the potential implications of the qualities of institutions. One of the significant contributions of the study is the identification of high population growth rates as one of the primary drivers of mineral conflicts that impede economic growth in the states with enormous mineral deposits in Sub-Saharan Africa. The crucial inference drawn from the study is that mineral rents positively impact countries' growth, even with inherent institutional challenges, although the results could be better with good institutions.

Purpose – In Ghana, legal and illegal artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) activities have attracted the attention of the general populace and academia with varied opinions. This study examined how adopting the coping strategies for ASM operations affected the welfare of farm households. Design/methodology/approach – Primary data were solicited from respondents using a semi-structured questionnaire. This paper used the endogenous treatment effect model to quantitatively estimate whether or not farmers who adopt coping strategies for activities of ASM have improved or deteriorated welfare. Findings – The results revealed that households adopted coping strategies such as diversification, social networking, land reclamation, borrowing, dependence on the market for food and resettlement in other communities. The endogenous treatment effect model results show that households that adopted land reclamation and social networking had improved welfare regarding consumption expenditure and food security compared to non-adopters. Conversely, diversification was associated with lower consumption expenditures and high food insecurity among adopters. Practical implications – This paper recommends that farm households in mining communities form cooperatives and farmer-based organizations to ensure improved access to joint resources for enhanced capacity to cope with ASM-induced shocks. There is a need for government and civil society organizations to encourage and support land reclamation measures. Originality/value – This paper covers a broader perspective and deploys more than one welfare proxy, which has not been considered before in previous studies.

This study aims to analyze the reliability of Nepal’s industrial policies, focusing on the effects of macroeconomic variables on implementation and outcomes. This paper assesses Nepal’s industrial policies, emphasizing the need for improvements, export promotion, and human capital development while recognizing the importance of strategic planning and context-specific approaches for economic growth, stability, and development. The analytical and descriptive approaches have been applied to analyze the data by collecting secondary data sources that include official publications, which encompass 47 time series variables from 1974 to 2020. The findings provide mixed evidence for the economic impacts of liberalization, with exports and liberalization driving overall GDP growth. In contrast, other factors like economic openness, tourism, and their relationship with industrial GDP remain statistically insignificant. The paper indicates that remittances and investment have the most substantial impact on GDP, raising it by 1.86 and 1.21 units per unit increase, respectively. Exports have a moderate impact on industrial GDP (0.403 units). Export-oriented industries and tourism lack significant associations with either type of GDP. Liberalization significantly boosted both GDP and industrial GDP, with an increase of 179465.3 and 49595.62 units, respectively. Imports also jumped post-liberalization, driven by higher remittances as 1.215 units per unit increase. This study on industrial policies in developing economies, focusing on Nepal, adds valuable insights. The findings can ensure policymaking, boost economic growth, and strengthen Nepal’s industrial sector.

This paper delves into the relationship between inflation and economic growth, two pivotal elements in contemporary economic discussions. It aims to demystify and elucidate these concepts, particularly examining how they are interlinked through the development of a comprehensive econometric model. The study pays special attention to key economic indicators such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI), Producer Price Index (PPI) and the growth rate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In addition, the paper considers the role of monetary and fiscal policies in managing inflation and fostering economic growth. This exploration not only contributes to a deeper understanding of economic dynamics but also offers valuable insights for policymakers and economists in formulating effective economic strategies.

This paper illustrates economic challenges on motherhood, womanhood, children, and the issue of GBV. It has become evident in numerous families that societal role of mothers has shifted immensely. As a result, many scholars decided to study the various components of motherhood. Hence, the objective of this paper is to comprehend motherhood in society and its acceptance in the domestic domain. Becoming a mother was not the mother’s decision, it was a response to sociocultural pressure that held women accountable pertaining to children. Women had distinct motherhood experiences, but it is kept secret from the family and society. The issue of GBV cause mothers to face immense pressure in a morally acceptable motherhood society. Therefore, mothers have a very negative perception of motherhood, particularly in a highly demanding patriarchal society.

The last decades have seen an increase in entrepreneurial development based on innovation. Having access to innovation and setting up a business in a country that can serve as an innovationenabler can increase the degree of attractiveness of that respective country. Governments around the world have adopted innovation-centered views and implemented relevant policies to serve as a driver for reaching high competitiveness and to ensure a more rapid economic and, implicitly, social progress. The aim of the paper is to present the top ten countries in the world in their evolution specific to the Global Innovation Index (GII) for the 2021-2023 period. The research methodology is based on a qualitative method. The paper shows that the top ten ranked countries in the world using this specific index remained the same for the investigated period, also maintaining a fairly constant relative position for the three years subject to analysis, Switzerland being the acknowledged leader.

The automotive industry has always represented a key sector within the economy of any country. Moreover, its significant contribution to the gross domestic product of many countries transformed this industry into one of the main pillars of the global economy. Therefore, numerous countries have built and produced various motor vehicles on different continents. The purpose of the paper is to briefly present and analyze the evolution of the world motor vehicle production on the four continents (Europe, America, Asia-Oceania, and Africa) in the period 2018-2022. The research methodology is based on a qualitative research method. The paper shows that the pre-pandemic period was a better period for the automotive industry than the pandemic period. Also, it demonstrates that AsiaOceania dominates the production hierarchy by continents.

Action nominalizations are employed in business English to attain a higher degree of condensation, abstraction, and accuracy. This paper reports on a corpus-based study of the actual usage patterns of -tion nominals in business news. In contrast to previous corpus-based studies of nominalizations, we adopt a syntactic approach and focus on the realization of the argument structure of -tion nominals. The primary aim of the paper is to shed light on the formal characteristics of the action nominalization patterns in business English, as well as to identify tendencies in the usage of -tion nominals in business writing.

This paper tackles the speaking skill, in general, and its role in language teaching and learning, focusing also on various ways of developing it, in particular by the employment of the debate technique EFL/ ESP classes. The theoretical part of the paper further deals with several definitions of the debate technique, with the classification of debates and with the advantages brought by the implementation of debates in EFL/ ESP classes – in particular as far as the enhancement of the learners’ speaking skills is concerned. The practical part of the paper proposes a case study which consists of an experiment that will highlight the benefits of the debate technique when adequately used in the Business English teaching and learning processes.

The purpose of this paper is to further strengthen the belief within the academic, professional and policy making communities about the need to speed up the adoption of Agriculture 4.0 technologies in the Romanian farms as the grassroot constituents of the national agriculture in order to secure their future competitiveness in the context of new European agricultural policies and regulations. A review of the most influential papers and the bibliometric mapping of articles on change management as well as ways to accelerate change processes through change agents is discussed. Agrinnovator is the think tank of young digital agriculture practitioners in the Romanian farms. Their public policy proposal to create The Farm Technology Officers Program in order to accelerate digitalization through relevant change agents is also discussed. Their interviews highlighted the need for government support in creating scale and impetus for the digitalization of agriculture. It is deemed to be a structural countrywide change that will happen faster if the adequate change agents are used.

In the 2022-2023 school year, about 47% of candidates were admitted to their first-choice high school, while 1.44% were not admitted to any school. This research paper explores the dynamics of Romania's educational landscape, focusing on the National Evaluation Exams in the 2022-2023 school year. The paper investigates the path of pupils who, despite obtaining passing final admission scores, were not assigned in the first admission round to an upper-secondary educational facility. Two crucial research questions guide this study: on one hand, how many of these students competed in a different county than their residential county? On the other hand, what similarities and differences exist among them in terms of performance at the National Exam and average scores in the lower-secondary educational cycle? The findings aim to shed light on the challenges and opportunities within Romania's education system.

In recent decades, although most tourists have made several trips during a year, the average length of their vacations has decreased. The tendency to reduce the average length of stay of tourists has been evident in many destinations around the world in recent years. The purpose of this paper is to conduct an analysis of how the average length of stay of tourists in the main categories of destinations in Romania has evolved over the last decade, providing details about the evolution regarding tourist destinations located in the Romanian Black Sea coastal area. Starting from the possible causes identified in this paper, of the almost continuous decrease in the average length of stay in these destinations, we consider it necessary to undertake more in-depth studies, to find out the causes of these developments, which will be the basis of future development and marketing strategies regarding the respective tourist resorts.

This paper investigates workaholism, initially identified as an uncontrollable urge to work incessantly, evolving from a positive work ethic to a recognized psychological and behavioral disorder. It explores the nuanced development of workaholism, examining its transition within professional and psychological contexts. The paper delves into the psychological factors contributing to workaholism, such as inherent personality traits and examines the role of organizational environments and societal norms in fostering workaholic behaviors. It highlights how specific workplace cultures and societal attitudes towards productivity and achievement can exacerbate workaholic tendencies. The article aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of workaholism's psychological, behavioral, and socio-cultural dimensions, emphasizing the need for a shift towards balanced and sustainable work practices in modern professional environments to address workaholism and enhance overall workforce well-being and productivity.

In this scientific paper, we will conduct a multiple regression analysis using the nongovernmental credit (NGC) as the dependent variable and the inflation rate, unemployment rate and the M2 – money supply as independent variables, over a ten-year period, specifically the period of 2013-2022. The study was conducted analyzing the macroeconomic data of Romania and the purpose of this paper is to perform multiple regression analysis method to determine how turbulences such as the pandemic crisis, the Russian-Ukrainian war, and the energy crisis, have impacted the nongovernmental lending activity and to find whether there is a significant association as determining factors (a correlation) between the mentioned variables.

The main purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how important it is for the Ministry of Internal Affairs to have a sufficient budget to carry out the missions entrusted by law. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has very important responsibilities in terms of maintaining public order and intervention in emergency situations. The Romanian Police, the Romanian Gendarmerie, the Romanian Border Police, which are in charge of maintaining public order, as well as the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, which is in charge of extinguishing fires and providing first aid through SMURD ambulances, are active within the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In this paper, the possible negative impacts of the application of the Government’s Emergency Ordinances regarding some fiscal-budgetary measures, adopted in 2023, will be presented.

The financial system and its components are of interest to economists, researchers and practitioners in the field of banking finance. In Romania more than 77% of the total assets of the financial system are represented by the banking component. Based on this evidence, the paper is an empirical analysis of the evolution of the volume and structure of banking assets in Romania in the period 2020-2023. By analysing the share of foreign versus domestic capital, we also wanted to draw attention to a possible risk of contagion, as external factors have emerged in recent years and are currently affecting the economic and financial balance. The motivation for this paper comes from the fact that the structure and share of foreign capital in the Romanian banking system shows how sensitive the system is to contagion risk. In the current period, when international events are happening rapidly, the study is timely.

This paper explores the impact of implementing chatbots in the internal audit process of public education entities. The study analyzes the efficiency and effectiveness of chatbots in optimizing audit operations, highlighting benefits such as increasing efficiency, improving audit quality and facilitating communication between auditors and institution staff. The results highlight the significant contributions of chatbots in reducing administrative burdens, saving resources and creating a more transparent and adaptable audit process. The paper provides relevant insights for public entities seeking to integrate emerging technologies into their internal audit practices, highlighting the importance of chatbots in the effective evolution of this field.

Artificial intelligence, the latest chapter of the technological revolution, has a tremendous potential to change every area of our lives. This article has focused on a specific form of artificial intelligence, namely generative intelligence, which facilitates the generation of content in all its forms (text, image, video, audio, programming codes, etc.). Thus, generative artificial intelligence has a crucial role in education, allowing for the personalisation of educational content and facilitating the learning process. In the beginning, the paper has highlighted conceptual delimitations regarding artificial intelligence and its applications in education, along with advantages and limitations, highlighting that the adoption of generative artificial intelligence solutions, such as ChatGPT, in higher education in economics has been relatively underexplored in the literature. In order to cover these gaps identified in the literature, have been presented, in the second part of the paper, the methodology and results of an exploratory research, conducted on a sample of 364 undergraduate and master's students at the Faculty of Business and Tourism within the Bucharest University of Economic Studies. The research has provided insight into the perception of Business Administration students regarding these applications. The results indicated a high level of awareness and interest in content generation models and highlighted that users with favourable perceptions regarding the quality of content generated by such applications tend to believe that their integration into academic endeavours can foster creativity and enhance employment prospects.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a transformative impact on social and economic value, as well as the role of mediating technology and regulation driving participation in the sharing economy. Considering the consequences that such transformations entail, in this paper, we provide a multi-stakeholder perspective of the pandemic's impact on sharing economy enablers and drivers, and the resulting short and long-term implications for customers, providers, platform companies, and policymakers. Through the amalgamation and exploration of these multiple perspectives, we then present a roadmap of the key research themes, considerations, and policy gaps, supplemented with insights contributing toward the vision for a sustainable sharing economy. The comprehensive overview provided in this paper offers multiple avenues for future research across social, economic, technological, and regulatory domains.

PURPOSE: This paper answered the research gap on entrepreneurial orientation with a sample of small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) export performance and the mediating role of innovation capability and international networking accessibility that has not been tested in previous research. This study also tested the effect of entrepreneurial orientation on SMEs’ export performance in the global market. The mediating role of international networking accessibility and innovation capability on SMEs’ export performance also became another focus of this study. METHODOLOGY: This paper implemented a quantitative approach with 282 owners or managers of the SMEs brass industry cluster in Boyolali, Indonesia, who were examined using purposive sampling. FINDINGS: The findings of this study revealed that entrepreneurial orientation did not significantly affect SMEs’ export performance but did significantly affect innovation capability and international networking accessibility. Another empirical test found that innovation capability had significantly affected SMEs’ export performance and the international networking accessibility. International networking accessibility also significantly affected the performance of export SMEs. This study also found an important mediating role of international network accessibility and innovation capability in the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and SMEs’ export performance. IMPLICATIONS: This study contributes to research investigating the effect of entrepreneurial orientation on performance by conducting in-depth studies on innovation capabilities and international networking accessibility. Many studies have tested the mediating role of innovation capability and international networking accessibility. The practical implication of this study is that it can help managers or owners of SMEs better understand and find optimal solutions through enhancing innovation capability and international networking accessibility, which can be instilled in the characteristics of SME owners or managers to improve performance. ORIGINALITY AND VALUE: The results of this study indicate the mediating role of innovation capability and accessibility of international networking on SMEs’ export performance. Therefore, the main contribution of the study is to determine the mediating role of innovation capability and international network accessibility in the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and performance by integrating the theoretical perspective of the resource-based view (RBV).

PURPOSE: This study aims to identify the differences and similarities in the innovation systems of developing vs. developed countries that influence SMEs’ adoption of Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies. There is a notable absence of comparative research between National Innovation Systems (NIS) of developing and developed countries. Additionally, the current scholarly conversation lacks a holistic view of NIS. Our study aims to fill these gaps by employing Lundvall’s framework to explore both developed and developing countries’ systems comprehensively. METHODOLOGY: The data was collected through a Systematic Literature Review, identifying a total of 695 publications from SCOPUS, Web of Science (WoS), and ProQuest. The PRISMA process was adhered to, resulting in 32 papers undergoing quality evaluation using Gough’s ‘weight of evidence’ guidelines. Twenty-nine primary papers were selected, comprising twelve from developed countries, another twelve from developing countries, and the remainder from both categories. Using Qualitative Meta-synthesis (QMS) with ATLAS.ti, a systematic alignment of codes with research inquiries pertaining to NIS ensued, revealing a multifaceted spectrum of findings across these scholarly investigations. FINDINGS: We found that there are similarities and differences between the innovation systems of developed and developing nations. The similarities include the intra-firm interactions taking place between managers and workers, inter-firm relations between the SMEs and Academia and other SMEs, as well as the role of the government in providing funding and regulation (albeit at significantly varying degrees). The most significant differences observed were in the funding mechanisms, the role of the government, and the R&D systems. It was found that governments in developed countries provided SMEs with substantial incentives, tax credits, and subsidies to adopt 4IR technologies, which appears to positively impact the adoption rate. We conclude by developing a conceptual framework for the NIS necessary for the adoption of SMEs’ 4IR technologies in developing countries. IMPLICATIONS: This study contributes to the literature on innovation systems by examining the NIS of both developed and developing countries. This analysis allows us to gain deeper insights into how specific aspects of each country (developed or developing) affect (positively or negatively) SMEs’ adoption of 4IR technologies. Practically, it informs governments in developing countries on which aspects to focus on in their NIS to increase the rate of the adoption of 4IR technologies by SMEs. ORIGINALITY AND VALUE: A distinctive aspect of this study lies in the creation of a comprehensive conceptual model delineating the essential components of the innovation system pivotal for the successful integration of 4IR technologies within SMEs. This model is designed to serve as a practical tool for governments in developing countries, providing a structured framework to facilitate and enhance the strategic development of their innovation landscapes.

Abstract The study aims to investigate causal recipes to improve restaurant customers’ loyalty (LOY) during COVID-19 post-pandemic. The study utilizes Fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) within the framework of complexity theory to examine the intricate relationship between antecedent conditions, including Socially Responsible COVID-19 practices (CSR), Service Quality (SR), Customer Experience (EXP), Customer Satisfaction (SAT), Trust (TR), and Customer Commitment (COMM). The study used a quantitative survey approach, using a Likert scale to achieve the study aim. The survey has been strategically developed to gather intricate replies, taking influence from well-established scales within the area. The research purposefully recruited customers from the restaurant industry in Pakistan. A total of 450 full and valid replies were obtained via the use of Google Forms and paper questionnaires. The fsQCA approach is used to examine the data and ascertain configurations or combinations of antecedent situations that contribute to enhanced levels of loyalty. The results indicate that LOY is a multifaceted phenomenon in the post-pandemic phase of COVID-19 and is not only influenced by individual antecedent situations. This study identifies many routes that lead to increased levels of loyalty, highlighting the need to adopt a comprehensive and integrated strategy. The research emphasizes the diverse impacts of important factors, including CSR, SR, EXP, SAT, TR, and COMM, on loyalty. The novelty of this study is in its utilization of fsQCA and complexity theory to investigate LOY inside the restaurant sector among the distinctive circumstances of the post-pandemic period of COVID-19. This paper presents a critique of conventional symmetrical methods and proposes a comprehensive viewpoint on LOY, highlighting the need for sophisticated and integrated theoretical frameworks. Through the exploration of several routes to increased levels of LOY and the identification of the intricate influences of numerous preceding factors, this study enhances both theoretical and practical comprehension. The study places significant importance on an innovative research methodology and its potential impact on restaurant management, making it a noteworthy contribution to the current body of literature.

The paper aims to analyze the contradiction between green consumers' behavior and green technology foods offered to them. An analysis of papers from different authors showed that green consumers are willing to make conscious food consumption. However, factors like price, knowledge about the green cause, consumer income, reference groups, shopping convenience, and food availability influence their final consumption. Collective intelligence is a solution for green consumers to make better decisions: it also involves challenges, ethical considerations, and avoiding political influences on shared information. In conclusion, governments and food producers must do a lot to ensure green consumers have enough tools to make informed and sustainable alimentary decisions.

This paper lays a foundation for quantifying the interaction “value” effects of the financial planner/client relationship through the lens of Financial Planning Client Interaction Theory (FPCIT), utilizing integration—a mathematical process commonly used in calculus to find the area under a curve. FPCIT recently emerged in response to practitioner and researcher calls for theory specific to the financial planning profession. FPCIT posits that the distinction of the professional practice of financial planning and its value to consumers is centered upon the unique and complex human interaction phenomenon inherent in the client relationship. FPCIT extends the value of financial planning discussion by offering a theory-based vantage point from which the profession can analyze the origins and synthesis of value within financial planning practice. The implications of FPCIT and the valuation method presented in this paper underscore the relevance of financial therapy, counseling, and psychology in expanding the financial planner’s skillset beyond technical expertise.

The microfinance sector’s Paradigm Shift (PS) of the 1990s caused a drastic shift in how Microfinance Organizations (MFOs) ensured their long-term survival and sustainability. The PS required MFOs to adopt a commercial approach in all their operations and pursue profitability and self-sustainability rather than depending on the provision of subsidized funds. Resorting to Schatzki’s (2002) ‘site of the social’ theoretical construct and DiMaggio and Powell’s (1983) institutional theory, this empirical paper aims to evaluate the real performance of Pakistan’s microfinance sector, following the PS, in terms of its strict adherence to its founding objectives of eradicating poverty and serving the extreme poor. This qualitative empirical research paper resorts to the Case Study approach to investigate the pre- and the post-Paradigm Shift eras of Pakistan’s microfinance sector for evaluating the sector’s real ‘success’ in accomplishing its founding aim of eradicating poverty at the grass root level. Analysis of the data reveals that the microfinance sector, in its pursuit of profitability and self-sustainability, following the PS, is compromising its founding commitment to its target beneficiaries – the extreme poor. The study contributes a theory, literature and empirical evidence-informed conceptual framework to help guide organizational change initiatives in the peculiar context of a social service/not-for-profit sector and predict the outcome quality of such a change for all stakeholders. The study outcomes apprise policy-makers and practitioners of the possible negative consequences of the microfinance sector’s gradual transition from a ‘social service’ to a ‘commercial’ model for the poor.

Abstract The insufficient and inefficient public expenditure on health services by any health system creates physical and financial barriers to using health care services, especially for poor people and uncovered informal sector workers. This leads to the appearance of household direct out-of-pocket (OOP) payments on health services. OOP will push households into poverty if it exceeds their monetary income, as they cut their spending on other essential needs such as food, clothing, or education fees. The main objective of studying public health expenditure is to provide essential health services to all citizens equally without pushing them into poverty due to health payments OOP. This paper examines the average coverage of Reproductive, Maternal, and Child Health (RMNCH) services according to place of residence and wealth quintile from 2005 to 2015. The rationale for choosing RMNCH only as an indication of health coverage is due to data limitations. This paper depends on World Health Organization (WHO) data. The paper evaluates poverty impact by using poverty head counts and poverty gaps before and after OOP through using nationally representative surveys of Egypt for the years 2005, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2015. Results show a gap in covering RMNCH services among different groups, but the gap is decreasing over time. Results also show that OOP payments pushed on average 30% of Egyptian households into poverty during the period of the study.

Abstract Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has gained increasing significance in recent years. RPA leverages software bots to automate repetitive business processes traditionally performed by humans, making it one of the easiest, least invasive, and fastest automation approaches. Publications on the topic are scarce, however, and concerns regarding job loss and employee acceptance of new operational processes and technologies remain significant challenges. The additional motivation behind this study is to address the lack of research on the implementation strategy of RPA in the context of ambidexterity, i.e., optimizing enterprise capability in balancing between exploration and exploitation. The paper adopts a managerial perspective and aims to identify the key factors supporting the implementation of RPA in the context of ambidexterity, using an empirical study of service companies as an example. The research methodology employed includes literature review, opinion surveys, and statistical analysis. The paper highlights the stimulating role of the ambidexterity concept in RPA implementation projects and strategies, with a hybrid approach to dynamic balancing of exploitation and exploration. The findings of this paper will be of use for researchers and practitioners in developing effective RPA implementation strategies that balance the needs for exploitation and exploration while factoring in the concerns raised by employees.