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Religious tourism is one of the oldest and fastest-growing segments. This study analyzes religious tourism through the pilgrimage of Muslims to the holy city of Mecca and has the following objectives: (1) establish the motivational dimensions of religious tourism; (2) identify the motivational dimensions that predict the satisfaction of religious tourism and (3) determine the motivational dimensions that predict return, recommend and say positive things about religious tourism applied to the pilgrimage to a sacred city.

The sample consisted of Muslim pilgrims who had visited Mecca. The sample was collected in Bahrain, a country located on the Persian Gulf, where most of its population is Muslim. A total of 380 valid questionnaires were obtained online. For the data analysis, factorial analysis and the multiple regression method enter were performed.

The results show that religious motivations are more important when visiting a sacred city than secular ones. Three motivational dimensions were found: religious, social and cultural and shopping. The three dimensions found have a significant relationship with satisfaction and loyalty. Likewise, it was found that the religious motivational dimension is the factor that most predicts satisfaction and loyalty in the behavior of religious visits to a sacred city.

The main limitation of the present study was the temporality in which the sample was taken because the demand may vary at another time of the year and therefore vary its results.

The authors of the study recommend that holy cities increase the religious motivations of these travelers by periodically researching their needs and organizing services to suit their desired spiritual experience. Also, to improve the social and cultural part, travel agencies and tourist companies to Mecca should promote social and cultural motivation among travelers in an appropriate way by providing service packages that involve visits to cultural and social sites such as museums and cultural centers.

This research will serve as a management guide for public institutions and private companies to develop more efficient planning in religious destinations and sacred cities.

This study is the first to analyze the construct of motivations in the pilgrimage to the city of Mecca, to then establish what the main motivations are that predict satisfaction and loyalty in a religious city. Thus, its results provide important information for tourist destination managers and tourism service providers.

The purpose of this study is to explore the intersection of mindfulness practices and ethical decision-making within organisational leadership. Drawing from ancient Buddhist principles and contemporary neuroscience, this study aims to illuminate how mindfulness can enhance cognitive and emotional regulation, thereby fostering ethical behaviour and improved decision-making among leaders and employees. By examining the theoretical and practical implications of mindfulness in the context of organisational behaviour, this research seeks to contribute to the development of more compassionate, ethical and effective leadership practices, ultimately promoting a more mindful and sustainable business environment.

This concept paper explores the integration of mindfulness meditation practices with decision-making, particularly its influence on ethical choices, through a comparative study of modern techniques and the ancient teachings of the Tripitaka. Using a methodology that spans literature review in organisational behaviour and leadership, alongside in-depth analysis of the Tripitaka and contributions from scholars like Bhikkhu Bodhi, the paper examines the potential of mindfulness in enhancing ethical decision-making. It incorporates a range of sources, including peer-reviewed journals and seminal books across various disciplines, to underscore the transformative potential of mindfulness in addressing contemporary challenges and guiding leadership practices.

This discussion explores how mindfulness, rooted in ancient Buddhist philosophy and aligned with modern neuroscience, can significantly enhance managerial decision-making by fostering a balance between cognitive and emotional factors. It delves into the transformative potential of mindfulness in refining thought processes, promoting ethical decision-making and mitigating cognitive biases. By bridging traditional wisdom with contemporary scientific insights, the analysis underscores mindfulness as an active, dynamic process crucial for personal growth and effective leadership in complex environments.

One limitation of this research is its reliance on theoretical frameworks and literature reviews, which may not capture the full range of practical challenges in implementing mindfulness practices within organisations. Additionally, the diversity in mindfulness methodologies and the subjective nature of mindfulness experiences may affect the generalisability of the findings. Future research should include empirical studies to validate the proposed benefits of mindfulness in organisational settings and explore the most effective strategies for integrating mindfulness practices into leadership and decision-making processes. This would help in understanding how mindfulness can be tailored to suit different organisational cultures and individual preferences.

The practical implications of applying mindfulness in organisational settings include enhanced decision-making abilities, improved leadership effectiveness and increased employee well-being. Mindfulness training can equip leaders and employees with the skills to manage stress, navigate complex ethical decisions and maintain focus amidst distractions, leading to more thoughtful and responsible business practices. Organisations might see a reduction in conflict, enhanced creativity and better teamwork, contributing to a more harmonious and productive workplace. Implementing mindfulness programmes could also support talent retention and attraction by promoting a workplace culture that values mental health and ethical behaviour.

The social implications of integrating mindfulness into organisational decision-making and leadership, as suggested by the document, include promoting ethical behaviour, enhancing emotional regulation and improving team dynamics. Mindfulness practices can lead to more informed and conscious decision-making, reducing cognitive biases and fostering a culture of ethical awareness within organisations. This shift towards mindful leadership could potentially transform organisational cultures, encouraging greater compassion, ethical responsibility and collective well-being, thereby contributing positively to broader societal values and norms.

The originality and value of this research lie in its novel integration of mindfulness concepts derived from ancient Buddhist teachings with contemporary neuroscience and organisational behaviour studies. By exploring the deep-rooted philosophical underpinnings of mindfulness and their applicability to modern ethical decision-making and leadership practices, this work offers a unique perspective that bridges historical wisdom with current scientific understanding. It provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the transformative potential of mindfulness in organisational settings, highlighting its capacity to foster ethical leadership, enhance decision-making processes and contribute to a more mindful, compassionate and sustainable business environment.

The purpose of this paper is to elucidate the moral dimensions of accounting by examining the case of Gross National Happiness (GNH) in Bhutan, and to propose a new approach to accounting that is grounded in the Buddhist principle of the Middle Path. This approach aims to promote well-being and happiness, contrasting with traditional accounting practices.

The paper outlines the core concepts of the Middle Path theory and GNH. The authors first problematise the role of traditional accounting in the well-being and happiness project. The authors explore accountability from the Middle Path perspective, which is a key aspect of Buddhist philosophy. Using the concept of Middle Path accountability and GNH in practice, the authors then examine accounting in terms of the four “immeasurable moral virtues” (tshad med bzhi) of the Middle Path. The authors conclude by highlighting the value of the Middle Path for conceptualising accountability and emancipating contemporary accounting from its ethical and theoretical constraints.

This paper compares the application of traditional accounting and accountability with the Middle Path and GNH practices. The authors find that ethical discourses in traditional accounting and accountability are not compatible with the values of the Middle Path, thereby limiting the scope of accounting and accountability. This constraint is overcome by introducing four “immeasurable moral virtues” (tshad med bzhi) of Buddhism, which promote spiritual development (wisdom) to replace the existing ethical strands of traditional accounting and accountability to support the well-being and happiness project.

The study is limited to the review of concepts in GNH and Buddhist philosophy. More empirical studies in different contextual settings could increase understanding of how the practice of Middle Path and GNH could drive the project of well-being and happiness through accounting.

The paper seeks to contribute to the operationalisation of GNH in organisation by framing social and well-being accounting grounded in the Middle Path theory. The authors also seek to clarify the role of accounting as a social and moral practice.

Situated within the fields of social and moral accounting, the paper seeks to elevate the potential role of accounting in the promotion of well-being and happiness of people and other sentient beings. By applying four moral virtues of love, compassion, appreciative joy and equanimity in accounting, the authors seek to enhance the role of accounting that could potentially reduce poverty, social inequity, corruption and promote harmony and cultural well-being.

This study undertakes a conceptual integration of the GNH and Middle Path philosophy to understand the theoretical and ethical implications of traditional accounting and accountability. This contribution to the literature expands the possibilities of accounting and accountability on social and well-being accounting by introducing the Middle Path and GNH concepts.

This study was conducted with the main purpose of recording primary data related to environmental factors, which has become the main criteria in the selection of the Sungai Batu Archaeological Complex (SBAC) as the center of the iron smelting industry and trade in ancient Kedah.

To fulfill this purpose, field studies involving drone photogrammetry mapping, augering, core drilling and geophysical mapping methods were carried out.

The results obtained through the application of the method have shown that SBAC has a good environment, which has a wide and deep river flow, the existence of Mount Jerai and the abundance of iron ores, mangrove Merbok and clay.

Resources did not allow for environment studies of the by-products tourism sites as part of the current study.

The study also included a survey and mapping to obtain potential primary data around SBAC in the process of developing it as the center of the world iron industry.

One finding is that attention to heritage policy and protection must be ongoing at all levels of government and the local community to ensure that the survey and mapping data carried out can be developed as a sustainable heritage tourism product.

This study reveals primary data related to the suitability of paleoenvironment in the SBAC development process as a world iron smelting industry area.

The aim of this study is to explore how women in Sri Lanka cultivate entrepreneurial personae to navigate the various gendered roles they situationally enact, as they attempt to secure legitimacy and acceptance and overcome their otherness. Drawing on Goffman's theorisation of symbolic interaction, this study investigates how gender informs the performance of entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka. In this way, the study engages with the challenges women in the Global South navigate while undertaking entrepreneurship, and it contributes to the critical entrepreneurship literature on the intertwined nature of gender and entrepreneurship.

Following feminist standpoint epistemology (FSE), this qualitative study focuses on women entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka by examining the performance of entrepreneurship through 44 life history interviews (LHIs) and 40 Field Observations conducted over a seven-month period.

The findings reveal that women carefully cultivate entrepreneurial personae by striking a balance between entrepreneurial ideals and patriarchal social expectations around womanhood. The findings of the study present how the entrepreneurial personae are constructed by way of appearance, mannerism and setting, which presents opportunities for future research to explore the dramaturgical aspect of gender and entrepreneurship.

This study contributes to the growing body of feminist research surrounding women entrepreneurs, by drawing on insights from the lived experiences of women entrepreneurs in the Global South. This study also expands Goffman's theorisation of audience segregation and shows that a subject's understanding of the audience shapes their personae. A further contribution of this research is how space becomes an extension of the personae at play.

The qualitative approach was applied the discover the optimum answers to the research objectives, which are (1) to understand the cultural and hedonistic characteristics of the (Lanna) Songkran festival; and (2) to examine the dilemma between cultural rituals and hedonistic activity for tourism.

This study used a case study of the Songkran festival in Chiang Mai to examine the dilemma between cultural rituals and hedonism for tourism, which brings lost or misperceived cultural values and identities. The semi-structured interview (SSI) with senior locals and participant observation during the festival was conducted in Chiang Mai, Thailand, to obtain the in-depth phenomena of the existing celebration pattern at the festival.

The study findings show three crucial phenomena that explain characteristics of unsynchronized cultural rituals and hedonistic activities for tourism: (1) the parallel phenomenon between cultural values and celebration practice, (2) the movement of local culture and(3) the hedonistic characteristics of the festival.

The study extends the knowledge on the interplay phenomena between cultural festivals and tourism; also, the involved stakeholders, such as local communities, public sectors and private sectors, can use the study findings in creating policies for using cultural festivals to promote a destination and urban economic development that will minimise cultural values distort while increase tourism economic values.

This study was conducted qualitatively, including SSIs and participant observation at the Songkran festival in Chiang Mai. The study findings were analysed, based on the empirical data, into significant themes representing the characteristics of dilemma phenomena within the festival.

Little is known about how religious-related beliefs (i.e. karmic beliefs and beliefs in a just world) might affect consumers to engage in more environmentally friendly behavior. Drawing on the justice motive theory, this study aims to explore the individual, complementary, congruent and incongruent impacts of karmic beliefs and belief in a just world on consumers’ proenvironmental consumption.

A sample of 736 consumers was recruited by means of a mall-intercept survey in the most populus cities in Vietnam. An advanced technique – polynomial regression with response surface analysis – was used to test the hypothesized model, whereas the PROCESS macro approach was used to estimate indirect effects.

The findings indicate that while karmic beliefs do not directly affect proenvironmental consumption, they can inspire environmentally friendly behaviors through belief in a just world. High levels of both beliefs enhance proenvironmental consumption, but imbalanced levels erode such behaviors. Importantly, the findings revealed gender differences concerning the role of religious beliefs in influencing proenvironmental consumption among male and female consumers.

The findings of this study offered several theoretical and managerial implications for proenvironmental consumption.

The research provides new insights into how religious beliefs (karmic beliefs and belief in a just world) affect, interact, balance and imbalance with each other to trigger proenvironmental consumption. The research also contributes to the sustainable consumption literature by indicating the mediation roles of belief in a just world and proenvironmental consumption intention in the relationship between beliefs in karma and actual proenvironmental consumption behavior, as well as offering empirical evidence about the gender differences regarding these relationships.

The purpose of this study is to investigate environmental factors impacting Ajanta mural deterioration, assessing global tourism effects and visitor conduct on cave environment and murals. This study recognizes stakeholder roles in conservation, providing data-driven insights to guide institutions like the Archaeological Survey of India. The objective is sustainable tourism practices to balance public access with mural preservation for future generations.

Over 25 years, Ajanta Caves' visitors doubled, impacting microclimatic conditions for ancient murals. This study assesses visitor impact to establish a regime and determine carrying capacity, considering temperature, humidity and pollution. Challenges arise from quantifying capacity because of variables. This research informs global tourism and heritage conservation, offering methodologies applicable to cultural sites worldwide.

This study examines environmental impacts on mural preservation in Ajanta Caves, including humidity, microbial growth, sunlight exposure, air quality and tourist presence. Tourist influx escalates CO₂ levels, directly endangering murals. Concerns about particulate matter, especially during visits, emphasize the need for data-driven decision-making and modern technology use to protect Ajanta Caves' artwork, crucial because of its global significance and tourism-related vulnerabilities.

This study carries substantial social implications with a global resonance. The active engagement of the local community and tourism stakeholders in conserving and promoting the Ajanta Caves fosters empowerment, igniting a sense of pride, ownership and responsibility among residents and ensuring sustainable enjoyment of cultural heritage while safeguarding it for future generations. In addition, there will be socioeconomic benefits to local residents such as employment opportunities as tour operators, tour guides, hospitality staff, artisans and souvenir shopkeepers.

This study integrates art conservation, environmental science, cultural heritage preservation and social aspects to address global tourism challenges. Focusing on a site of worldwide significance, this study offers practical strategies for artwork preservation, tourism management and environmental concerns. These recommendations provide real-world solutions applicable to heritage sites globally, bridging scientific analysis with social and cultural insights.

本研究调查了影响阿詹塔壁画退化的环境因素, 评估了全球旅游业和游客行为对洞穴环境和壁画的影响。它承认利益相关者在保护中的作用, 为印度考古调查等机构提供数据支撑的见解。目的是实践可持续旅游, 平衡公众进入和供子孙后代使用的壁画保护。

25年来, 阿詹塔洞穴的游客增加了一倍, 影响了古壁画的小气候条件。该研究评估了游客的影响, 考虑温度、湿度和污染, 建立了一个制度并确定承载能力。量化承载能力的指标面临着挑战。这项研究为全球旅游业和遗产保护提供了信息, 提供了适用于世界各地文化遗址的方法。

这项研究考察了环境对阿詹塔洞穴壁画保护的影响, 包括湿度、微生物生长、阳光照射、空气质量和游客的存在。游客的涌入使二氧化碳含量上升, 直接危及壁画。对颗粒物的考虑, 尤其是在参观期间, 强调了数据驱动决策和现代技术应用对保护阿詹塔洞穴的艺术品的必要性。这一点至关重要, 因为它具有全球意义和旅游相关的脆弱性。

这项研究具有重大的社会影响并引起全球共鸣。当地社区和旅游利益相关者积极参与阿旃陀石窟的保护和推广, 可以增强居民的赋权, 激发居民的自豪感、主人翁意识和责任感, 确保可持续享受文化遗产, 同时为子孙后代保护文化遗产。此外, 还将为当地居民带来社会经济效益, 例如旅游经营者、导游、接待人员、工匠、纪念品店主等的就业机会。

这项研究综合了艺术保护、环境科学、文化遗产保护和社会方面以应对全球旅游业的挑战。它关注一个具有世界意义的遗址, 为艺术品保护、旅游管理和环境问题提供了实用的策略。这些建议提供了适用于全球遗产地的现实世界解决方案, 将科学分析与社会和文化见解联系起来。

El estudio investiga los factores medioambientales que influyen en el deterioro de los murales de Ajanta, evaluando los efectos globales del turismo y el comportamiento de los visitantes sobre el entorno de las cuevas y los murales. Se examina el papel que desempeñan las partes interesadas en la conservación y aporta datos para orientar a instituciones como la encuesta arqueológica de India. El objetivo son las prácticas turísticas sostenibles para equilibrar el acceso del público con la conservación de los murales para las generaciones futuras.

A lo largo de 25 años, los visitantes de las cuevas de Ajanta se han duplicado, con un impacto en las condiciones microclimáticas de los murales antiguos. El estudio evalúa el impacto de los visitantes para establecer una regulación y determinar la capacidad de carga, teniendo en cuenta la temperatura, la humedad y la contaminación. La cuantificación de la capacidad plantea problemas debido a las variables. La investigación aporta información al turismo mundial y a la conservación del patrimonio, ofreciendo metodologías aplicables a sitios culturales de todo el mundo.

Este estudio examina los impactos ambientales en la conservación de los murales de las cuevas de Ajanta, incluyendo la humedad, el crecimiento microbiano, la exposición a la luz solar, la calidad del aire y la presencia de turistas. La afluencia de turistas aumenta los niveles de CO2, poniendo directamente en peligro los murales. La preocupación por las partículas, especialmente durante las visitas, pone de relieve la necesidad de tomar decisiones basadas en datos y de utilizar tecnología actual para proteger las obras de arte de las cuevas de Ajanta, algo crucial debido a su importancia mundial y a las vulnerabilidades relacionadas con el turismo.

Este estudio conlleva importantes implicaciones sociales con una resonancia global. La participación activa de la comunidad local y las partes interesadas del turismo en la conservación y promoción de las Cuevas de Ajanta fomenta el empoderamiento, generando un sentido de orgullo, propiedad y responsabilidad entre los residentes y garantiza el disfrute sostenible del patrimonio cultural al mismo tiempo que lo salvaguarda para las generaciones futuras. Además, habrá beneficios socioeconómicos para los residentes locales, como oportunidades de empleo como operadores turísticos, guías turísticos, personal de hostelería, artesanos, comerciantes de souvenirs, etc.

Este estudio integra la conservación del arte, las ciencias medioambientales, la preservación del patrimonio cultural y los aspectos sociales para abordar los retos del turismo mundial. Centrándose en un sitio de importancia mundial, ofrece estrategias prácticas para la conservación de las obras de arte, la gestión del turismo y los problemas medioambientales. Estas recomendaciones aportan soluciones reales aplicables a lugares patrimoniales de todo el mundo, tendiendo puentes entre el análisis científico y las percepciones sociales y culturales.

This paper aims to answer these questions: “Is the public adopting energy-saving and water-saving facilities because they want to save energy and water in their psychological perception?”, “Is it convenient to use energy-saving and water-saving facilities?”, “If the inductive design of energy-saving and water-saving facilities attracts the public’s interest, the public is it more willing to install energy-saving and water-saving facilities in a widespread manner?” and “Can inductive energy-saving and water-saving facilities be introduced into the smart manufacturing system of manufacturing industries that require a lot of water to effectively save water and save costs for the company?”.

This paper aims to investigate the attitudes of employees toward using energy-saving and water-saving facilities by constructing a questionnaire based on the ABC (Affect, Behavior, Cognition) model to survey the attitudes of employees from the Southern and Eastern of Taiwan and establishing a structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the relationship between affect, behavior and cognition while using energy-saving and water-saving facilities.

There are some findings in this paper that the affective design have a strongly significant positive impact for using energy-saving and water-saving facility in the proposed model. People are willing to use energy-saving and water-saving facilities but are more willing to adopt those energy-saving and water-saving products of smart designs, as those take into account the emotional factors. The critical factor for the public to adopt energy-saving and water-saving facilities is smart design, which incorporates emotional elements.

There are still some limitations of this study that the ABC model can only be used as a psychological discussion, and the development and design of related facilities still needs to be jointly developed with professionals in related technical fields. The introduction of induction water supply facilities needs to be considered while the company introduces the design of the smart manufacturing system. Therefore, professionals related to induction water supply should participate in the planning at the initial stage of the company's concept of introducing the smart manufacturing system.

On the practical side, based on preliminary research conclusions, this study proposes to introduce inductive water supply into smart manufacturing systems for manufacturing companies that require a lot of water in their manufacturing processes. In practice, the company can actually save a lot of water, thereby saving costs and reducing waste water discharge.

The results of this study show that the public has a cognition of energy-saving and water-saving. However, there is a Chinese proverb that “easy to know and hard to do”, when actually using facilities, convenience is an important consideration for public. Smart facilities of energy-saving and water-saving, in addition to the benefits of energy-saving and water-saving, it is easy to use, and interacts with users through inductive water supply, which can more emotionally attract people's willingness to use.

This study found that smart facilities, which can more emotionally attract people's willingness to use. On the academic side, this study proves that using the ABC theory to explore the public’s psychological affective, behavior and cognition response to the use of facilities is a very suitable method. On the practical side, based on preliminary research conclusions, this study proposes to introduce inductive water supply into smart manufacturing systems for manufacturing companies that require a lot of water in their manufacturing processes. In practice, the company can actually save a lot of water, thereby saving costs and reducing waste water discharge.

When evaluating the efficacy of mindfulness interventions, most studies take a linear approach to explore how an intervention impacts different outcomes for individuals, and rarely is the role of intention examined. This research takes a configural approach to consider how various elements of a participant’s training expectations and their experience in the training condition combine to predict increases in psychological capital.

Employees from hospital settings were randomized into three conditions (mindfulness training, active control (Pilates), and wait-list control group) and completed surveys at three time points (baseline, post-training and three months post-training). A qualitative comparative analysis was applied to see what combinations of motivational elements were associated with increases in psychological capital.

We find that all three conditions can boost their psychological capital based on different configurations involving efficacy beliefs, baseline states of well-being (psychological capital and perceived stress) and changes in levels of mindfulness and perceived stress.

Individual characteristics, like motivation, expectancy and baseline needs, are an important consideration in addition to the training condition itself when determining whether a training is efficacious.

It is of increasing importance that organizations find ways to support employee well-being. Offering a variety of psychological and physical interventions can improve psychological capital. Applying needs assessments that clarify the desires, needs and expectations employees hold may help with intervention efficacy.

The current study offers an innovative methodology through which realist evaluation approaches can consider multiple factors to predict outcomes.