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The smart sustainable cities (SSC) concept has a wide acknowledgement amongst governments and societies that deal with emerging technology and help in developing better urban communities. However, the fact that citizens' participation (CP) is not adherent to the current policies and governance often boosts their aspirations of decision-making to become smart cities. This paper aims to identify SSC variables and, more importantly, rank, categorise and discuss the factors towards implementing SSC by engaging, empowering and enabling citizens to participate in the urban development of SSC.

A comprehensive literature review identified 38 factors in the CP process. Those factors were used to design an online questionnaire administered to the respondents. A total of 164 valid responses were collected. A two-stage statistical analysis was adopted. First, the Relative Importance Index (RII) was used to rank and prioritise the importance of the factors that affect the current policies and agenda. Second, factor analysis was utilised to categorise and group those factors.

This study founds four significant factors that help in implanting SSC: “knowledge of smart sustainable cities”, “awareness of smart sustainable cities”, “willingness of the citizens to participate” and “opinion on the current agenda of the government's role”.

This study has a few limitations which can be considered in future studies. First, the response rate of the participant is relatively low (163), so sampling a larger segment will support the broader perception of the citizens.

The outcome of this paper underlines the need for the successful implementation of smart cities by adopting CP in the process of impacting policies and governance. Particularly, it identifies factors that help cities and policymakers in engaging CP in developing new policies and revising existing policies for promoting SSC.

There is a need to investigate the most critical factors that influence CP for implementing SSC. These factors have not been adequately examined in extant literature.

The purpose of this study is to provide a systematic review of research development on auditing in the European Union over the past decade and suggest future research directions.

Following the PRISMA protocol, the authors systematically reviewed the relevant literature and conducted a qualitative content analysis of 107 studies on auditing in the European Union published between 2012 and 2023.

The results indicate increased auditing literature in the European Union from 2012 to August 2023. Around 40% of the papers were focused on six nations: Germany, Spain, Italy, the UK, Sweden and France. Additionally, 35.5% of papers have been published in three major journals: Accounting in Europe, International Journal of Auditing and the European Accounting Review. Moreover, 82.24% of papers used quantitative methods, with a few using qualitative or mixed methods. Also, most of the studies in the sample endorsed the European Union’s auditing reforms, which included implementing a cap on nonaudit fees and enhancing the independence of audit committees. Contrary to this viewpoint, multiple studies have expressed disagreement with enforcing a total prohibition on nonaudit services, as certain services can enhance auditing quality. Similarly, other studies have contested the necessity of mandatory auditor rotation every 10 years, citing the significant additional expenses associated with this practice. Finally, further studies supported the European Union’s decision to make the joint audit voluntary, as it is related to high audit fees and low audit quality.

The limitations of this research primarily stem from the authors’ choices in selecting the database and defining the criteria for searching the studied papers.

This paper offers valuable insights into the future research prospects in the European Union’s auditing field. Hence, this analysis can be helpful for researchers and practitioners in developing this field based on future research recommendations and the identified themes.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first study to systematically review the developments of the European Union auditing literature over the past decade.

This study aims to examine the effects of agency cost on auditor choice. This paper also deals with the moderating role of the board’s financial expertise (Bfe) and the status of the internal control (Intecon) system on the relationship between agency cost and auditor selection.

This study’s sample consists of 1,040 firm-year observations of Iranian nonfinancial companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from 2012 to 2019. The information required for this research is mainly extracted from Comprehensive Database of All Listed Companies (in Iran Stock Exchange). Data from 130 companies were obtained during the research period. This study used logistic regression to test the hypotheses.

The findings indicate that companies with higher agency costs choose the auditor from lower classes. As the proportion of financial expert members on the board increases, the intensity of this relationship will be reduced. Companies with higher agency costs choose the auditor from the lower classes, but the higher the ratio of financial expert board members, the more these companies will choose high-quality auditors. However, findings showed that the status of the Intecon system has no moderating effect on the relationship between agency costs and auditor selection.

The results of this study can expand the existing literature on the relationship between auditor selection and agency costs and the factors affecting this relationship, especially the Bfe and Intecon. This research has significant suggestions for regulators, stakeholders, shareholders and analysts in emerging economies that may encounter similar contextual implications.

This study aims to propose a moderated mediation model to investigate the moderating effects of environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance on the relationship between inefficient investment and firm performance and the mediating effect of firms that participate in institutional research on the relationship between investment efficiency and performance. This study also analyses the heterogeneity of the corporate nature, intensity of industrial research and development (R&D), industrial competition and regional marketization.

This study uses a panel data fixed-effects model to conduct a regression analysis of 1,918 Chinese listed firms from 2016 to 2020. A Fisher’s permutation test is used to examine the differences between state-owned and nonstate-owned firms.

Inefficient investment negatively impacts corporate performance and higher ESG performance exacerbates this effect by attracting more institutional research which reveals more problems. State-owned enterprises perform significantly better than nonstate-owned enterprises in terms of ESG transformation. Industrial R&D intensity, competition and regional marketization also mitigate the negative effects of inefficient investment on corporate performance.

This study suggests that companies should consider inefficient investments that arise from agency issues in corporate ESG transformation. In addition, state-owned enterprises in ESG transformation should take the lead to achieve sustainable development more efficiently. China should balance regional marketization, encourage enterprises to increase R&D intensity, reduce industry concentration, encourage healthy competition and prevent market monopolies.

This study combines the agency and stakeholder theories to reveal how inefficient investments that arise from agency issues inhibit value creation in ESG initiatives.

The study aims to assess the impact of electronic learning (e-learning) on students' performance (SP), with an emphasis on the mediating role of sustainable education (SE) at the Sharjah Police Sciences Academy (SPSA). The urgency of this study was highlighted by the global COVID-19 pandemic that happened between 2020 and 2022, which emphasized the need for e-learning as a tangible and imperative solution.

The study applied a quantitative approach, targeting the 91 student population at SPSA in the winter semester of 2022/2023 who practiced the e-learning process. A comprehensive survey was implemented disseminating 91 questionnaires by Google Forms to all students. Of the total, 61 questionnaires were returned, resulting in a response rate of 67.03%.

The results revealed that e-learning predictors explained 85.4% of the variations in SP, and 46.4% of the variations in SE. The model demonstrated a strong fit and high predictive relevance. The indirect impact of e-learning on SP through SE was found to be positive and statistically significant at the 0.05 level. Consequently, the mediation effect was considered partial and statistically significant.

Policymakers and educators should consider findings of the study when designing educational programs and policies. Accordingly, the SPSA management could gradually focus on safeguarding a sustainable e-learning environment and improving high-tech platforms. This would involve creating a sustainable e-learning curriculum to enable students to remain informed on the best e-learning practices.

An empirical study is essential for exploring the optimal answers to inquiries related to e-learning, SE and their impact on SP. The finding of the current study may contribute to the existing knowledge on e-learning, SE and SP. Additionally, they may improve learning activities and provide more sustainable learning experiences, leading to enhanced learning outcomes for students

This study aims to conduct a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis on the topic of digital labour. The study also identifies the future research directions for the topic.

In total, 118 research papers were identified and reviewed from 11 established research databases and A*, A and B category journals from the ABDC journal list. The papers covered a timespan between 2006 and 2023. Bibliometric analysis was conducted to identify key research hotspots.

The emergent themes and associated sub-themes related to digital labour were identified from the literature. The paper found three significant themes that include digital labour platform, gig economy and productivity. This study also acts as a platform to initiate further research in this field for academicians, scholars, industry practitioners and policymakers. The future research scope in the topic is also presented.

The present study is unique in its nature as it approaches the topic of digital labour from all relevant perspectives.

Sustainability research has become important than ever, due to the visible effects of business operations on the environment, and the increasing green consciousness among the various stakeholder groups. These stakeholder groups mount pressure on organizations, to inculcate sustainable practices in their operations. In light of the stakeholder-resource-based view, this paper aims to examine the direct effect of stakeholder pressure on sustainability information disclosures. The mediation effect of perceived benefits in the nexus amidst stakeholder pressure and sustainability information disclosures was also assessed. Lastly, the paper assessed the moderation effect of sustainability knowledge in the nexus between perceived benefits and sustainability information disclosures.

This research is quantitative in nature. Structured questionnaire was deployed as the data collection tool. Small and Medium Enterprises in Ghana formed the population. Data set from 258 Ghanaian small and medium enterprises was analyzed by the use of structural equation modeling.

Contrary to expectation, the study revealed that the effect of stakeholder pressure on sustainability information disclosures is positive, but statistically insignificant. The nexus between stakeholder pressure and sustainability information disclosures was revealed to be fully mediated by perceived benefits. Lastly, sustainability knowledge was revealed to positively moderate the relationship amidst perceived benefits and sustainability information disclosures.

This paper contributes to sustainability literature by demonstrating how stakeholder pressure influences sustainability information disclosures in the context of small and medium enterprises in an emerging economy.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on all facets of education. This led to educational institutions deploying blended and online systems for teaching and learning. The purpose of this study was to assess the role of blended learning in promoting quality education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The qualitative research design was deployed in this study and enabled the researcher to collect data via in-depth interviews. Twenty-five (25) tertiary institutions accredited by the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) were randomly selected to participate in this study. The registrars of the institutions were purposively selected and served as the participants for the study. Thematic content analysis was used to analyze the data collected via the interview. Ethical considerations were adhered to during the study.

The study established that COVID-19 had a devastating effect on tertiary institutions; multiple technological and open-sourced systems were deployed for teaching and learning; blended learning was adopted to augment the traditional face-to-face mode of teaching and learning due to its ease of use, usefulness and accessibility as it was used for quizzes and assignments, accessing lecture notes, among others. Despite these, the deployment of technological and blended systems was met with challenges that somehow affected effective teaching, learning.

The study was limited to 25 tertiary educational institutions in Ghana. It was again limited to the COVID-19 era.

This research aids in understanding the extent of the impact of COVID-19 on teaching and learning and how blended learning is currently deployed and used in tertiary institutions in Ghana. The findings are relevant to policymakers and management of educational institutions as it informs them of the right method and tools to deploy for teaching and learning during pandemics.

As educational institutions globally are dealing with the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is prudent to look into how tertiary institutions in Ghana deploy blended learning to facilitate teaching and learning. Thus, this paper is original as it fills the relevant literature gap in terms of scope, setting, methodology and findings.

This research aims to analyse the perceptions of practitioners in three regions regarding the challenges faced by their firms during the pandemic, considered a black-swan event. It examines the strategies implemented to mitigate and recover from risks, evaluates the effectiveness of these strategies and assesses the difficulties encountered in their implementation.

In the summer of 2022, an online survey was conducted among supply chain (SC) practitioners in France, Poland and the St. Louis, Missouri region of the USA. The survey aimed to understand the impact of COVID-19 on their firms and the SC strategies employed to sustain operations. These regions were selected due to their varying levels of SC development, including infrastructure, economic resources and expertise. Moreover, they exhibited different responses in safeguarding the well-being of their citizens during the pandemic.

The study reveals consistent perceptions among practitioners from the three regions regarding the impact of COVID-19 on SCs. Their actions to enhance SC resilience primarily relied on strengthening collaborative efforts within their firms and SCs, thus validating the tenets of the relational view.

COVID-19 is (hopefully) our black-swan pandemic occurrence during our lifetime. Nevertheless, the lessons learned from it can inform future SC risk management practices, particularly in dealing with rare crises. During times of crisis, leveraging existing SC structures may prove more effective and efficient than developing new ones. These findings underscore the significance of relationships in ensuring SC resilience.