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The effects of board composition on performance have long been discussed in management research using fractionalization measures. In this study, we propose an alternative measurement approach based on board polarization.

Using an exploratory analysis and applying the polarization measure to German Deutscher Aktienindex (DAX)-, Midcap-DAX (MDAX)- and Small Cap-Index (SDAX)-listed companies, this paper applies the polarization index to examine the relationship between board diversity and performance.

The results show that the polarization concept is well suited to measure principal-agent problems between the members of the management and supervisory boards. We reveal that board polarization is negatively associated with firm performance, as measured by return on investment (ROI).

This exploratory study shows that the measurement of board polarization can be linked to performance differences between companies, which offers promising starting points for further research.

This chapter explores how the development of football fandom for the Chinese national team and local football clubs is strongly associated with societal changes. Although the performances of Chinese football teams, especially the national team, have failed to impress the world, football remains the most popular because of millions of supporters with loyalty and passion. Most studies related to fans mainly focus on the economic and political implications of spectatorship along with the rise of China. Nevertheless, few articles are available to answer the fundamental questions, such as ‘When did these supporters come out?’ and ‘What were the factors of the development of fandom?’. By going through archival records and published documents over the last decades, this chapter offers a comprehensive and historical analysis of the development of football fandom in the People's Republic of China (PRC) and deals with these unanswered questions. As such, this chapter does not intend to be the most authoritative one but is one of the rare sources to lay down the foundation for research on Chinese football fandom. Furthermore, this chapter also proves that studies on football fandom can be a useful window for observing Chinese society.

Tourism, Technology and Climate Change: The tourism industry is indispensable both for its socio-cultural offerings and its profound economic implications. The economic multiplier effects inherent in the drivers of tourism can stimulate the regional economy even before these areas emerge as tourism meccas. While vast amounts of research have detailed tourism's overarching significance, there is an evident void in understanding its multifaceted impacts, particularly where technological advances, environmental performance (EP) and economic benefits converge. A thorough examination of 907 research records led to this chapter, which identifies these gaps by referencing nine observational and 11 intervention studies. Achieving a Cohen's kappa value of 0.75, the authors note a strong consensus among reviewers, adhering to Cohen's (1940) standards. The findings from the first quarter highlight several areas within the tourism industry that have been under-researched. Particularly, the integration of technology, from ATM infrastructures enhancing tourist financial experiences to digital platforms elevating traveller education and awareness, and tech-driven solutions addressing demographic and ethical considerations in tourism, remains insufficiently explored. Additionally, the authors recognise an existing gap in knowledge regarding the nexus between tourism development and its climatic repercussions, especially before tourism ventures are fully realized. This chapter aims to channel future research into these lesser-trodden areas, fostering a comprehensive grasp of tourism's evolution in the face of rapid technological advancements and its interplay with environmental shifts.

This chapter draws from bibliometric data and secondary sources to explore the interrelation between sustainable development and organic agricultural practices. The study contends that the adoption of organic farming methods holds the potential to address multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), thereby contributing to the well-being of all living organisms. The analysis of current trends in organic agriculture research has revealed prevalent themes pursued by academics. Notably, themes such as biotechnology, biodegradation, soil conversion, soil restoration, environmental sustainability, health, alternative agriculture and community development emerge as significant and burgeoning areas of study within the field. Additionally, other themes have come to the forefront in the findings, including agricultural emissions, cultivation practices, environmental regulations, erosion control, agricultural policy and sustainable agriculture. These themes present vital areas for further investigation and exploration, indicating areas where more research is warranted. This qualitative piece through content analysis provides a deep insight on the fact that organic farming in relation to sustainability is a very under researched area. Researchers and practitioners can explore this area as a tool to achieve the goals of sustainability in diverse dimensions. The study suggests some under-researched areas as future research agendas which include supply chain and distribution management, market development and consumer behaviour in relation to organic farming, investigating and creating novel commercial strategies for organic farming, financial and investment mechanisms in the field of organic farming, technological developments in organic agriculture, analysing rules and regulations to see how they affect the development and sustainability of organic farming and social impact and stakeholder engagement for organic farming as tool to promote sustainability.

Indian Ocean region (IOR) is a coveted maritime space in the international arena because of its unique positioning and importance. The third largest water body on the planet Earth holds great economic significance and sustains the livelihood of its people. While the blue economy (BE) approach gains momentum worldwide, following this for the responsible consumption of ocean resources, India too pursues and has developed a draft policy on the BE. Maritime and coastal tourism is one of the prime areas contributing to this framework of BE. This study will explore the advances in BE prospects of Indian Tourism and highlight the elements of branding a BE Destination in the region. India being a key player and an emerging economy, situated at a transitional maritime position is strategic in nature. India as a country is a strong contestant for the title of tourism hotspot but with its highly regarded destinations, it surprisingly attracts fewer tourists. The paper examines secondary sources of data and attempts to review the untapped potential of the brand India in this vast maritime space. There is enough literature available on destination branding but this paper stands out with its unique and innovative approach that combines economic aspects with maritime sustainability and surely add value to this field of knowledge. This chapter presents the recommendations for BE-led repositioning of India tourism in the IOR. To achieve higher productivity and sustainability, a socioeconomic transformational shift is required in the segments of the tourism sector.

Revenge travel has become a prominent touristic behaviour on a global scale. The study delves into the phenomenon of ‘revenge tourism’ and its far-reaching implications, emphasising the boomerang effects it triggers. This study proposes conceptual framework that examines the boomerang effects of revenge tourism (economic, environmental and social) and explores their relationship with the SDG8 (Decent work and economic growth), SDG12 (Responsible consumption and production) and SDG14 (Life below water). The study finds that the boomerang effects of revenge tourism positively impact all three Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It establishes a positive relationship between ‘tourism demand’ (RT1) and its ‘economic impact’ (BE1), along with a positive connection between ‘travel behaviour’ (RT3) and both its ‘environmental impact’ (BE2) and ‘social impact’ (BE3). Additionally, a positive effect of ‘destination image’ (RT2) on ‘travel behaviours’ (RT3) is observed. This underscores the tourism industry's inherent capacity to navigate and mitigate economic repercussions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. The study concludes by emphasising that while COVID-19 is temporary, sustainability implies permanence through optimal resource utilization and maximising benefits for conservation and local communities. Practical implications are discussed as final thoughts, providing actionable insights for the tourism industry.

The outbreak of COVID-19 endemic forced people not only to think but also to pause and objectively reflect how to deal with the situation that has arisen and how to develop well-being and resilience strategies for the welfare of humanity. The endemic brought a global economic shock of enormous magnitude in most of the countries. Policymakers across the globe today have been facing alarming situations and unpredictable challenges as they try to find solutions to problems in the areas of tourism, at macro-economic levels and in socio-cultural arena. People in developing countries are concerned with earning livelihood and supporting their families and find some opportunities to survive by increase in tourist arrivals. Conversely, industralized countries struggle to improve the general psychological and physical health of their citizens. Travelling for well-being appears to be a sensible and uplifting resilience tactic in such a situation. This piece discusses how, in such a situation, cultivating resilience and well-being techniques may enable us to overcome a variety of obstacles in the travel and tourist industry. According to the author, policies aimed at enhancing well-being through travel should give priority to factors like affordability, accessibility, sustainability, safety and education. By promoting an environment where travel is affordable, accessible and sustainable, policymakers can guarantee that more people can take advantage of the positive experiences and enrichment that travel can provide to their lives, while also benefiting the greater community and environment.

This paper examines the impact of board ethnic diversity on the level of compliance with international financial reporting standards (IFRS) disclosures.

Using a unique hand-collected dataset from South Africa, we develop a comprehensive disclosure index against 570 mandatory requirements of IFRS. Further, we employ the fixed-effects model to investigate whether board ethnic diversity affects IFRS disclosures.

We document a significant positive association between ethnic minority directors and IFRS disclosure levels. Furthermore, we reveal that non-busy ethnic minority directors have a greater impact on IFRS disclosure levels than their busy counterparts. Additional analyses show that ethnic minority directors have less impact on IFRS disclosure levels when their number exceeds two. Companies with more ethnic directors on audit committees are more likely to comply with IFRS disclosure requirements and ethnic diversity increases accounting disclosures irrespective of the level of ownership concentration.

Our findings shed new light on the impact of board ethnic diversity on firms’ compliance with IFRS disclosure requirements. The results are robust to alternative econometric techniques, proxies and potential endogeneity concerns.

This study aims to obtain governance strategies for managing the complexity of megaprojects by analyzing the impact of individual factors and their configurations using the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method and to provide references for project managers.

With the continuous development of the economy, society and construction industry, the number and scale of megaprojects are increasing, and the complexity is becoming serious. Based on the relevant literature, the factors affecting the complexity of megaprojects are determined through case analysis, and the paths of factors affecting the complexity are constructed for megaprojects. Then, the fsQCA method is used to analyze the factors affecting the complexity of megaprojects through 245 valid questionnaires from project engineers in this study.

The results support the correlation between the complexity factors of megaprojects, with six histological paths leading to high complexity and seven histological paths leading to low complexity.

It breaks the limitations of the traditional project complexity field through a “configuration perspective” and concludes that megaproject complexity is a synergistic effect of multiple factors. The study is important for enriching the theory of megaproject complexity and providing complexity governance strategies for managers in megaproject decision-making.