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This study aims to identify comfort food (CF) consumption and its associated factors during the pandemic period. The study also involves an online survey conducted five months after the quarantine started in Brazil.

Data on lifestyle, eating habits and anthropometric data were collected before and during the pandemic, and the differences in these habits were analyzed. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression models were performed to identify predictors of CF consumption by gender.

A total of 1,363 individuals were included in the sample, with a median age of 31 years old, of whom 80.3% were women. Since individuals were free to respond about the food consumed without predetermined categories, it was possible to carry out a faithful assessment of the occurrence of this behavior. At the same time, allowing the subjectivity and symbolism inherent to the concept of CF to be embraced. CF consumption was present for 54%, with “sweets” being the most mentioned group by both genders. The factors associated with CF consumption in women during the pandemic were increased snacking, increased bread, candies and alcoholic beverage intake, increased time spent at work, worsened sleep quality, reduced meals, perceived stress (PS), emotional eating (EE), age and increased frequency of meat intake. In men, the predictors for CF consumption were remote full-time work/study, PS, EE and early waking time. For both genders, CF consumption during the pandemic period was associated with PS and EE.

This study provides an important overview of the possible contributions of the pandemic on behaviors and food choices related to the consumption of CF in Brazilians. This information is valuable to support further studies to investigate and treat the impacts of the pandemic on lifestyle, eating habits and behavior, mental health and other factors in the postpandemic period.

This study aims to examine how virtual influencers (VIs) affect purchase intentions in tourism and hospitality e-commerce live streaming (THCLS) by focusing on the roles of VIs’ source credibility, trust in products, trust in VIs, emotional engagement, parasocial relationships and influencer–product congruence.

Survey data from 416 active viewers of VIs in THCLS were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling.

This study highlights the importance of the VIs’ source credibility, which positively affects trust in the product, trust in VIs and emotional engagement. However, source credibility does not have a positive impact on parasocial relationships. Trust in products positively influences trust in VIs. Emotional engagement and trust in VIs significantly influence parasocial relationships, which, positively affects purchase intentions. Influencer–product congruence strengthens the link between parasocial relationships and purchase intentions but does not moderate the relationship between trust in VIs and purchase intentions. No significant gender differences were observed, although minor discrepancies were noted in the effect of trust in products on trust in VIs. The importance–performance map analysis revealed that parasocial relationships are the most important factor influencing purchase intentions, while influencer–product congruence has the highest performance, trust in products is the least important and VIs’ source credibility has the lowest performance.

This study provides actionable insights for marketers leveraging VIs in the THCLS sector, emphasizing strategies to enhance VI credibility, foster parasocial relationships, ensure influencer–product congruence and adopt gender-neutral marketing approaches to effectively influence purchase intentions.

This study offers theoretical and practical insights into the role of VIs in THCLS, illuminating their impact on consumer behaviour and purchase intentions.

This research aims to explore perceptions of subjective well-being (SWB) in public relations (PR) practitioners, focusing on dimensions of job satisfaction, networking, relationships and work–life balance, while addressing the under-researched area of gender and age – related to stages of life – disparities in SWB within the PR industry.

Employing a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design, this study utilised a survey, followed by semi-structured interviews to investigate SWB among PR professionals in Portugal, considering gender and stages of life differences.

Using a gendered and stages of life lens, this study found nuanced perceptions of SWB among Portuguese PR professionals. Older women showed higher emotional well-being but lower work evaluations than men, while young professionals exhibited less gender disparities in SWB. Men reported greater job satisfaction, emphasising passion, while women faced challenges like work overload and valued recognition. Gender differences were seen in networking, with men favouring teamwork and women valuing friendships for career advancement. Work–life balance issues, especially among older women, related to mental health.

This study contributes to filling the research gap regarding SWB in the PR industry, particularly in Portugal, offering insights into gender and stages of life dynamics that influence SWB perceptions, thereby informing strategies for enhancing well-being and productivity in PR workplaces.