Search results

The demand for electric vehicles (EVs) has significantly increased in recent years, though some countries like Sri Lanka have reported the opposite direction compared to the global trend. Hence, this study focused on identifying factors affecting EV purchase intention and barriers to the widespread adoption of EVs in a developing country context. Also, this study presents an overview of the theoretical perspectives utilized for understanding consumer intentions and adoption behavior toward alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs).

The questionnaire method was employed, and 394 individuals who lived in Colombo City, Sri Lanka, with valid driving licenses and a hybrid or conventional vehicle were the study sample. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to test the research hypothesis.

The findings confirmed that the three relationships between the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) variables and EV purchase intention are significant, and there is no significant moderator effect from the consumer’s perceived risk.

These results offer useful information for governments and EV companies to better understand consumer behavior toward purchasing EVs.

In the digital era, the banking sector has transformed into a powerful intermediary, effectively connecting surplus and deficit units. This dynamic landscape empowers savers to secure their finances and generate returns, while simultaneously enabling businesses and individuals to access capital for investment and promoting economic growth. This study explores the relationships among banking development dimensions – represented by primary assets and liabilities, bank capital (core capital and required reserves) and economic growth as measured by components of gross domestic product (GDP).

The study consolidated monthly balance sheets from digital banks over a 20-year period, resulting in an aggregate monthly balance sheet that reflects the financial position of all digital banks in the Palestinian economy. The research employs both maximum likelihood and Bayesian structural equation modeling to measure the causal pathways of the consolidated balance sheet with the individual components of GDP.

The results revealed that bank main assets (investments and loans) and liabilities (deposits) collectively explain for 97% of bank capital. Investments and loans demonstrate significant negative correlations with bank capital, while deposits exhibit a positive impact. This leads to a fundamental conclusion that a substantial proportion of retained earnings within the banking sector is reinvested, fueling expansion and growth. Additionally, the results showed a significant relationship between bank capital and various GDP components, including private consumption, gross investment and net exports (p = 0.000). However, while the relationship between bank capital and government spending was insignificant in the maximum likelihood estimation, Bayesian estimation revealed a slight yet positive impact of bank capital on government spending.

This research stands out due to its unique exploration of the intricate relationship between bank sector development dimensions, primary assets and liabilities and their impact on bank capital in the digital era. It offers fresh insights by dividing this connection into specific dimensions and constructs, utilizing a comprehensive two-decade dataset covering the digital banks records.

The study examines whether affective organizational commitment and its drivers differ between Polish female and male employees.

Our proprietary data are from ongoing surveys conducted by a major Polish HR consulting firm. The nationwide survey of nearly 3,000 Polish workers in 2020 constitutes the data set in this analysis. Regression analysis is applied to analyze the relationship between organizational commitment, gender and other variables.

The study provides support for the job model, that is, women and men have similar levels of commitment once all other factors are controlled. Although the results show that, ceteris paribus, the organizational commitment of women is statistically significantly higher than that of men, the effect size is trivial in practical terms. The study also discloses the fact that the determinants of organizational commitment of men and women are similar, thus refuting a commonly held notion about gendered job attribute preferences. Support for gender as a moderator between organizational commitment and its antecedents is not found. COVID-19-related work adjustments do not seem to have affected the commitment of Polish male and female workers to their employers.

The study adds to the scarce empirical literature on organizational commitment in Poland. To date, only a small number of such studies exist for Poland, and all of them use small homogeneous samples and limited questionnaires. The results are of value to researchers as well as HR managers seeking to improve long-term commitment to organizations.

This study aims to quantify and analyse the dynamics of land use and land cover (LULC) changes over three decades in the rapidly urbanizing city of Abha, Saudi Arabia, and to assess urban growth using Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA).

Using the Support Vector Machine (SVM) classification in Google Earth Engine, changes in land use in Abha between 1990 and 2020 are accurately assessed. This method leverages cloud computing to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of big data analysis. Additionally, MSPA was employed in Google Colab to analyse urban growth patterns.

The study demonstrates significant expansion of urban areas in Abha, growing from 62.46 km² in 1990 to 271.45 km² in 2020, while aquatic habitats decreased from 1.36 km² to 0.52 km². MSPA revealed a notable increase in urban core areas from 41.66 km² in 2001 to 194.97 km² in 2021, showcasing the nuanced dynamics of urban sprawl and densification.

The novelty of this study lies in its integrated approach, combining LULC and MSPA analyses within a cloud computing framework to capture the dynamics of city and environment. The insights from this study are poised to influence policy and planning decisions, particularly in fostering sustainable urban environments that accommodate growth while preserving natural habitats. This approach is crucial for devising strategies that can adapt to and mitigate the environmental impacts of urban expansion.

This article aims to evaluate published food cold chain (FCC) literature against risk management and supply chain sustainability concepts.

The article uses the theory refinement logic proposed by Seuring et al. (2021) to analyze the contents of FCC management-related literature published over the past 20 years. A sample of 116 articles was gathered using Web of Science and subsequently analyzed. The respective articles were then systematically coded against the frameworks of Beske and Seuring (2014) and Vlajic et al. (2012), which focused on building sustainable and robust supply chains, respectively.

The literature review revealed that debates around managing contemporary sources of disruptions/vulnerability and making FCCs more sustainable and resilient are gradually developing. However, an overarching risk management perspective along with incorporating social and environmental dimensions in managing FCCs still needs the adequate attention of the respective research community.

The deductive internal logic of theory refinement approach used in this paper could have been further strengthened by using additional frameworks. This limitation, however, opens avenues for further research. The findings of the paper will stimulate the interest of future researchers to work on expanding our understanding related to sustainability and risk management in FCCs.

The paper is the first attempt to organize published FCC literature along dimensions of supply chain sustainability and risk management. The paper thus provides the respective researchers with a foundation that will help them adopt a focused approach to addressing the research gaps.

Amidst escalating sustainability challenges, product and brand managers face a pressing need to foster responsible consumption and marketing strategies. Guided by the theory of planned behavior, this paper aims to explore consumers’ motivation to purchase second-hand clothing, a type of product that contributes to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12 on Responsible Consumption and Production by democratizing the brand, extending the life-cycle of the product, promoting a circular economy, while reducing economic costs for consumers and environmental costs for companies.

A two-stage study was conducted: 20 consumers were initially interviewed to identify the salient beliefs about second-hand clothing, and following that, a survey was conducted with 449 consumers to statistically analyze consumers’ motivation to purchase second-hand clothing. The data were analyzed using partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and necessary condition analysis (NCA).

From a “should-have” perspective (PLS-SEM), the study reveals that behavioral beliefs, injunctive normative beliefs, descriptive normative beliefs and control beliefs positively shape attitudes, injunctive norms, descriptive norms and perceived behavioral control toward second-hand clothing, whereas attitudes, injunctive norms, moral norms and perceived behavioral control positively influence consumers’ purchases of second-hand clothing. From a “must-have” perspective (NCA), the study shows that behavioral beliefs, injunctive normative beliefs and descriptive normative beliefs are necessary conditions to positively shape attitudes, injunctive norms and descriptive norms toward second-hand clothing, whereas attitudes, injunctive norms and perceived behavioral control are necessary conditions to stimulate second-hand clothing purchases.

The study offers a deep dive into consumers’ motivation to purchase second-hand clothing using a multimethod approach that enables not only the elicitation of salient beliefs (through interviews) but also the empirical examination of these beliefs alongside varying subjective norms in motivating consumers to purchase second-hand clothing (via survey). Given that beliefs are deeply rooted, the rigorous unfolding and validation of consumers’ beliefs about second-hand clothing, including the “should-haves” versus the “must-haves,” provide finer-grained insights that product and brand managers can strategically use to encourage consumers to purchase second-hand clothing.