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The study responds to the calls for multilevel approaches in entrepreneurship research and seeks to answer whether the relationships between personal values and entrepreneurship remain stable across different economic conditions, using the unemployment rate as a moderator. It pays attention to the solo self-employed and women, as these groups are particularly vulnerable when crises occur.

We use Schwartz's theory of human values, which has been understudied in entrepreneurship and follow a correlational research design with micro and macro variables. Multilevel logistic regression is applied to the data from the large sample of 151,032 individuals participating in six waves of the European Social Survey. Solo self-employed are distinguished from those employing others, and analyses are run separately for men and women to understand gender differences.

The findings show that self-direction and achievement are positively, and benevolence and security negatively related to entrepreneurship. The high unemployment rate lowers the positive relationships with self-direction and achievement and mitigates the negative relationship with security, but only for the solo self-employed and not for employers. Results mostly hold for both genders.

The study suggests that security-related values should not be omitted from entrepreneurship research focused on entrepreneurs' values. It also emphasizes the need to distinguish between various subgroups of entrepreneurs and their motivation, which is important for efficient active labor market policies.

The study utilizes multilevel analyses that account for individual- and country-level influences on entrepreneurial activity. It contributes to understanding how economic context influences value salience and supports the applicability of Schwartz's theory of human values in entrepreneurship.

How can large international financial firms go green in authentic ways? What enhances ‘Net Zero action’? Changes in global banks, fund managers, and insurance firms are at the heart of green finance. External change pressures – combined with problematic firm predispositions – exacerbate barriers to change and promote scepticism about authentic Net Zero change. Field research reveals main elements, connections, and interactions of this question by considering financial firms as complex socio-technical systems (Mitleton-Kelly, 2003). An interdisciplinary/holistic narrative approach (De Bakker et al., 2019) is adopted to design a conceptual framework that can support a green ‘behavioural theory of the financial firm’ (green BTFF). The BTFF presents an international version (Peng, 2001) of the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm (Barney, 1991; Hart, 1995; Teece et al., 1997).

The approach of this chapter is aimed at closing knowledge gaps and realign values in financial markets and society. By raising awareness about organised hypocrisy and facades (Brunsson, 1993; Cho et al., 2015; Schoeneborn et al., 2020) in financial firms the chapter aims at overcoming the gap between ‘talking’ and ‘walking’ in the financial sector. The chapter defines testable firm-level hypotheses for ‘Green Finance’ (Poterba, 2021) as well as – by implication – tests for ‘greenwashing’.

This paper aims to propose a novel model that addresses the limitations of current practices, through considering quantitative and qualitative criteria in the decision-making process for equipment replacement.

Literature review and consultation with professionals in the heavy construction industry was conducted to identify the criteria influencing the replacement of construction machines. A questionnaire survey using analytic hierarchy process and multi-attribute utility theory was used to rank these criteria and establish their utility scores. Sensitivity analysis was performed to assess how adjustments in the weights of main criteria would impact equipment replacement decisions.

The identified criteria were classified into three categories: economic, technical and socioenvironmental, encompassing a total of 15 criteria. The findings indicated that salvage value/meeting payback period/maximizing profitability held the highest importance in the replacement process, followed by considerations like high repair and maintenance cost; working condition and economic conditions. Safety and social benefits scored the least among all criteria and categories.

This study focuses on earth-moving equipment and involves experts from the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. The model introduces a novel methodology to aid decision-makers, particularly contractors and project managers, in determining when to replace heavy construction equipment, which results in resource efficiency and time saving.

The model integrates expertise and knowledge from experts to establish criteria for replacing construction equipment. This research aims to improve the functionality of the decision-making process regarding the acquisition or replacement of equipment throughout its lifespan.

The purpose of this study is to investigate and compare the dynamic leverage policies of Islamic and conventional banks within selected Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries. The study specifically focuses on the concepts of leverage procyclicality and prospect theory.

To achieve the research objectives, the study uses data from three distinct periods: Crisis I (2007–2009), Crisis II (2011–2012) and Crisis III (2020). The analysis uses dynamic panel-data regression, using the generalized method of moments (GMM) technique.

The research findings indicate that both Islamic and conventional banks demonstrate leverage procyclicality. Interestingly, Islamic banks exhibit weaker leverage procyclicality during normal conditions but display stronger procyclicality during crises compared to their conventional counterparts. The application of prospect theory reveals that both bank types exhibit risk-taking or risk-averse behavior through leverage under certain financial and market performance measures as the first-level domain of the gain-vs-loss condition. Furthermore, during crises (as the second-level domain of the normal-vs-crisis condition), both Islamic and conventional banks experience heightened leverage. Notably, Islamic banks, owing to their lower risk exposure and greater shock resilience, demonstrate lesser risk-taking behavior through leverage than conventional banks, both during periods of underperformance and worsening conditions amid crises. These findings validate the extension of prospect theory's applicability in a two-level domain perspective. The dynamic nature of leverage policy, being procyclical and adhering to prospect theory, also varies following different crises specifically.

The study's limitations include the unequal crisis periods (Crises I, II and III), leading to an imbalanced examination of their effects, certain financial and market performance metrics that fail to corroborate the expected hypotheses and the limited generalizability of findings beyond the selected OIC countries.

Understanding the intricate dynamics and behavioral aspects of leverage policy for both Islamic and conventional banks, particularly during crisis scenarios, proves crucial for reviewing banking regulations, making informed financial decisions and managing risks effectively.

This study enriches the current knowledge by presenting two key points. First, it highlights the dynamic nature of leverage procyclicality in Islamic banks, showing a change from weaker procyclicality in normal conditions to stronger procyclicality during crises compared to conventional banks. Second, it expands the application of prospect theory by introducing a dual-level domain context. Examining the comparative leverage policies of Islamic and conventional banks during different crises within OIC countries provides novel insights into leverage procyclicality and behavioral responses.

This study assesses the perception of academics and practitioners of ramifications that may have impacted audit evidence quality during COVID-19 in Egypt.

A questionnaire was collected and designed regarding the factors affecting the quality of audit evidence during the COVID-19 pandemic using a five-point Likert scale, and detailed descriptive statistics and regression analyses were conducted.

The study finds that there is no significant association between social distancing (SD), changing in the economic environment (CEE), time constraint (TC) and stress on audit personnel (SAP) as repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic with the quality of audit evidence (QAE). The disruption in operational results (DOR), changes in the internal control (CIC) and the stress on client personnel (SCP) significantly affect the quality of audit evidence. Moreover, there is a significant difference between Big and non-Big Four audit firms in terms of changes in economic conditions, internal controls, disruption of operational results and time-constraint variables. The latter has significantly affected the audit evidence quality for both academics and professionals.

Due to the implementation of SD and work-from-home policies, audit firms are highly recommended to invest more in digital programs and to be more adaptable to work-from-home, which policy and enhances the effectiveness and flexibility of communication between auditors and their clients.

This paper is one of the foremost papers that provides empirical evidence for the antecedents or variables that may affect audit quality evidence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the context of a developing society and ever-increasing requirements for the level of education of citizens, the issues of training teaching staff capable of effectively solving professional problems in constantly changing circumstances becomes especially relevant. This, in turn, actualises the issues of such a system of teacher education ensuring the constant professional growth of teachers during the entire period of their active pedagogical activity. Such a system implies the possibility for a person to carry out continuous improvement in the field of professional pedagogical activity, which in modern scientific literature corresponds to the concept of ‘continuous education’. It is interpreted as a process of increasing the general and professional educational level of a person, developing appropriate abilities throughout life. The purpose of the chapter is to analyse the structural and functional characteristics of the system of Russia's continuous teacher education and its status and personality subsystems. The structure of the system of continuous teacher education is revealed, and the structural and functional characteristics of the status and personal aspects of this system are identified and described.

Systemic risk is of concern for economic welfare as it can lower the credit supply to all the sectors within an economy. This study examines for the first time the complete hierarchy of variables that drive systemic risk during normal and crisis periods in Pakistan, a developing economy.

Secondary data of the bank, sector and country variables are used for the purpose of the analysis spanning from 2000 to 2020. Systemic risk is computed using marginal expected shortfall (MES). One-step and two-step system GMM is performed to estimate the impact of firm, sector and country-level variables on systemic risk.

The findings of the study highlight that sector-level variables are also highly significant in explaining the systemic risk dynamics along with bank and country-level variables. In addition, economic sensitivity influences the significance level of variables across crisis and post-crisis periods and modifies the direction of relationships in some instances.

The study examines the systemic risk of a developing economy, and findings may not be generalizable to developed economies.

The outcome of the study provides a comprehensive framework for the central bank and other regulatory authorities that can be translated into timely policies to avoid systemic financial crisis.

The negative externalities generated by systemic risk also affect the general public. The study results can be used to avoid the systemic financial crisis and resultantly save the loss of the general public's hard-earned holdings.

The firm, sector and country-level variables are modeled for the first time to estimate systemic risk across different economic conditions in a developing economy, Pakistan. The study can also act as a reference for researchers in developed economies as well regarding the role of sector-level variables in explaining systemic risk.

This study aims to investigate the nature of management accounting (MA) change and the institutional pressures driving the change using the context of an emerging economy – Bangladesh.

The study collected data from 20 listed companies in Bangladesh through in-depth interviews. It uses the typology of MA change proposed by Sulaiman and Mitchell (2005) in identifying the nature and extent of MA change executed during the preceding three years. A modified version of Granlund and Lukka’s (1998) model is used to identify and explain the impact of institutional and economic pressures on MA change.

This study finds that MA changes have taken place in the Bangladeshi listed companies in the forms of modification, addition and replacement during the preceding three years. The findings also showed that mimetic and coercive pressures influence the adoption of new MA techniques or changes in the existing MAP. The impact of economic forces (specifically the advancement of operating technology and competition intensity) on MA change is also well evident.

This study focuses on the typology of MA change and the institutional forces affecting the MA change, which have rarely been addressed in the context of an emerging and developing economy.

This article introduces the special issue of Learning and Development in Highly-Dynamic VUCA Contexts. The issue reviews the concept of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity), highlights its implications for the learning and development function and argues that learning and development play a critical role in helping organisations, people and the societal context in which they operate to work within and navigate VUCA contexts.

The contributions to this special issue propose a novel learning and development framework that will inform L&D as the provision of training, learning and development activities in organisations within highly dynamic VUCA contexts and ensuring a strong external focus including organisational, people, community, economic and societal sustainability.

We, the authors, propose seven features of a strategic sustainability L&D function and L&D professional role that are a fit with highly dynamic VUCA contexts.

The proposed framework has important implications for the way in which L&D is structured, its key priorities and plans and the competencies of L&D professionals to add value to all stakeholders. We also emphasise that the work on the L&D function in highly dynamic VUCA contexts needs to be broader and move beyond a performance orientation.

The proposed strategic sustainability role for the L&D function expands theoretically our understanding of how L&D can have impacts at the nexus of the organisation and highly dynamic VUCA contexts, in addition to broadening the constellation of stakeholders that it potentially enhances.