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The popularity of electric and hybrid cars has been growing worldwide, and Portugal is no exception. Companies have been offered incentives as a way to promote the transition to more sustainable transportation systems and supply chains. Celebrities and influencers are endorsing the new technology, and consumer preferences are changing. However, in Portugal, there are still consumers with misconceptions about the autonomy, cost and reliability of electric cars, which may favour the choice of a conventional car, in a new car purchase decision-making process.

In this study, we analyse whether purchase intention in the near future of an electric car varies with a pro-environmental lifestyle, perceived symbolic value of the electric car, mobility patterns, age, and place of residence, (performance, social, financial and externalities) risk avoidance, consumer perceptions, knowledge about the cost, the autonomy and the existing infrastructures. A sample of 308 Portuguese consumers was collected with an online survey. Results from survey subsample analysis of 170 consumers who unequivocally claim that would opt for an electric vehicle or not show a positive relationship between the purchase intention of an electric car, the fuel cost increase, the proximity of convenient charging places and battery lifetime perception. It was also found that age, knowledge and perceived symbolic value of the electric car, in general, have a positive influence on consumers' choice of an electric car. A negative relationship was found between the purchase intention, social and financial risk avoidance, perceived symbolic value of the electric car in particular and the number of cars each family has.

Social media came to the limelight in the wake of the early 2000s into the global space to foster interactions among individuals and groups of people. It has shown several positive sides for those who are far off to share vital information across the world, unlike yesteryears when communication seemed difficult for individuals in different locations. This study examines both the positive and adverse impacts of social media on Nigeria's socio-cultural space. It advances how Nigeria utilized social-media platforms during the pandemic and war situation. The study employed narrative discourse to demonstrate crisis communication patterns in Nigeria especially among millennial youths. The narrative discourse portends that there is an indication that social media is both a blessing and a curse to our nation. Often time, people communicate the wrong impression into the polity just to demonstrate their self-serving ideas. They overblow the incidence out of proportion and the majority of the receivers would fail to evaluate the source of the information, messages, and even pictures sent across social media. Most time photoshopped images are sent to prove negative points without having a recuse to the impact of such incidence in society. The chapter offers a vital expository on relevant communication approaches on social media to the audience that will not heat the polity. It examines effective communication strategies and stages of social media crisis management. This paper concludes that the negative effects which it has unleashed on Nigeria are more than its benefits, therefore, a curse rather than a blessing to Nigeria's socio-political and economic space.

China and the United States represent the two largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world. Studies on how US companies react to the natural environment are plentiful and show that stakeholders are one of the key drivers for green decisions. However, we have limited understanding of the stakeholder pressure faced by firms in China. Drawing on stakeholder theory, this study builds from in-depth interviews with 32 businesses in China. We show that government, customers, employees, suppliers, investors, and community are stakeholders most mentioned. Interestingly, findings also seem to suggest that the perceived pressures of non-profit organizations (NGOs) differ by the form of ownership. Multinational firms often view NGOs as allies, while Chinese firms downplay them as powerless and unimportant. Although stakeholders are seen as both threat and opportunity, two-thirds of those surveyed in this study focused on opportunity as opposed to threat.

This chapter examines China’s corporate governance and accounting environment that shapes the adoption of internationally acceptable principles and standards. Specifically, it examines international influences, including supranational organizations; foreign investors and international accounting firms; domestic institutional influences, including the political system, economic system, legal system, and cultural system; and accounting infrastructure. China’s convergence is driven by desired efficiency of the corporate sector and legitimacy of participating in the global market. Influenced heavily by international forces in the context of globalization, corporate governance and accounting practices are increasingly becoming in line with internationally acceptable standards and codes. While convergence assists China in obtaining legitimacy, improving efficiency is likely to be adversely affected given that corporate governance and accounting in China operate in an environment that differs considerably from those of Anglo-American countries. An examination of the corporate governance and accounting environment in China suggests heavy government involvement within underdeveloped institutions. While the Chinese government has made impressive progress in developing the corporate governance and accounting environment for the market economy, China’s unique institutional setting is likely to affect how the imported concepts are interpreted and implemented.

The growing uses of digital technologies have been creating several new business opportunities. Recently, a new concept has emerged in the literature, the “digital entrepreneurship ecosystem” (DEE). However, it has been empirically understudied. Thus, this study aims to analyze the influence of DEE on entrepreneurial activity. The meta-organization theory was used as a perspective of analysis. A quantitative methodology was applied in a sample that includes data from 28 European countries through the generalized method of moments. It was concluded that the DEE pillars, informal and formal institutions, market conditions, physical infrastructure, human capital and talent and networking and support positively influence entrepreneurial activity. It was also found that the variables knowledge, creation and dissemination and finance have a negative impact on entrepreneurial activity. Several theoretical and empirical contributions are also left for the various stakeholders. The present study is original, as no known studies analyze the influence of DEE on entrepreneurial activity in European countries from the perspective of meta-organization theory.