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The type of flooring in stalls is an important factor that shapes consumers' overall perception of animal husbandry. Although slatted and straw floors have benefits and drawbacks, consumers strongly prefer slatted over straw floors in pig husbandry. The present study investigates whether information provision can depolarise consumers' implicit and explicit attitudes towards both floor types to enable a more realistic evaluation of pig husbandry systems. Furthermore, this study examines the effectiveness of information depending on different frames and consumers' personality traits.

An experimental laboratory study with 185 German consumers was conducted to investigate the effect of information on implicit and explicit attitudes towards different flooring types. Participants received information on straw and slatted floors in a cognitive or affective frame or about a control topic. Furthermore, it was analysed whether certain consumer groups respond differently to the cognitive or affective frame.

The results demonstrated that information provision is a successful tool for depolarising consumers' implicit and explicit attitudes regarding straw and slatted floors. Although consumers continued to prefer straw floors after receiving information, the magnitude of this preference considerably decreased. Mediation analysis illustrated that implicit and explicit attitudes are highly interconnected. The study found no evidence that the personality traits of consumers moderated the effectiveness of the cognitive or affective frame.

The study proposes that information provision can be a potential avenue for increasing the societal acceptance of conventional methods in pig husbandry and provides recommendations for communicating conditions related to animal husbandry. Furthermore, through the inclusion of an implicit measure, this study overcomes biases of other studies in an agricultural context which usually rely only on explicit measures.

This study aims to examine the mechanisms underlying social media commerce by investigating the interplay between platforms, people and information. Drawing upon trust transfer theory, the research model proposes that the platform’s information provision enhances the credibility of the information source, leading to increased information usefulness, adoption and sharing, ultimately influencing purchase intention.

The research design used in this study was a quantitative approach using a cross-sectional survey method. The study developed a research model based on trust transfer theory and hypothesized relationships between the platform’s information provision, information source credibility, information-related responses and purchase intention. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the collected data and test the research hypotheses.

The findings supported most of the hypotheses and provided valuable insights into the role of information credibility in shaping consumers’ purchase intentions. Specifically, the study revealed that the platform’s information provision enhances the credibility of the information source, leading to increased information usefulness, adoption and sharing. Furthermore, information usefulness and adoption mediate the relationship between information source credibility and purchase intention.

The limitations of this research include the use of convenience sampling, which may not represent the broader population, and the cross-sectional design, which does not provide an in-depth understanding of the adoption process. The reliance on self-reported data and the limited scope of investigation with only six constructs are additional limitations. Future studies should consider national random sampling, longitudinal designs, multiple data sources and explore negative effects and other potential mediating variables. Despite these limitations, this research contributes to the understanding of social media commerce mechanisms and provides valuable insights for practitioners in the field.

The findings of this study provide valuable insights for platform providers and marketers in the social media commerce environment. First, the study emphasizes the importance of effective messaging in improving information credibility. Platform providers should focus on delivering accurate and trustworthy information to enhance consumers’ perceptions of product quality and increase purchase intentions. Second, marketers can leverage the information-related factors identified in this study, such as information usefulness and adoption, to optimize their marketing efforts. By understanding how consumers perceive and interact with information on social media platforms, marketers can tailor their strategies to effectively engage and influence potential customers. Overall, these practical implications can enhance success in the competitive social media commerce landscape.

The social implications of this study are significant for social media commerce practitioners. The findings highlight the importance of effective messaging and information provision on social media platforms in improving information credibility, thereby enhancing purchase intention. By understanding the mechanisms that drive consumer behavior in the context of social media commerce, platform providers and marketers can optimize their marketing efforts. This includes focusing on delivering trustworthy and useful information, fostering information adoption and sharing among users and ultimately increasing the likelihood of successful transactions. These insights provide valuable guidance for practitioners to navigate the competitive landscape of social media commerce and enhance their chances of success.

The originality of this research lies in its application of trust transfer theory to investigate the mechanisms driving social media commerce. By examining the interplay between platform, people and information, the study specifically focuses on the role of the platform’s information provision in enhancing information credibility and its impact on information-related responses and purchase intentions. This study extends the understanding of the trust transfer mechanism between customers and sellers/brands in customer-to-customer social commerce by emphasizing the importance of effective messaging and information credibility in shaping consumer behavior. The empirical findings contribute to the understanding of information trust transfer and provide a unique perspective on the underlying mechanisms that drive social media commerce.

By increasing the digitalization of commercial services citizens' expect more from public services. First of all, this study will strive to identify which problems citizens encounter when they use a complex public service: preparation of an application for a building permit. In the light of the popularity of omnichannel approaches, the study then explores how omni-channel could help to address the problems which have been identified.

We implement the first phases of an action design science research project. We collect data both from citizens and public agencies and frame them as transparency problems. These abstract problems are then addressed by an omnichannel service provision as an abstract solution. The abstract solution is then instantiated in a design in the form of a user scenario developed in collaboration with current and future public officials.

The analysis uncovers multiple transparency issues: it distinguishes between process, case, language, cross-channel and cost transparency. One root cause of the transparency issues observed is the lack of service transparency which defines the purpose and scope of a ser-vice. We therefore recommend defining a service-strategy before informational and technical aspects of an omnichannel approach can be implemented. Following this strategy, omnichannel offers public administrations unique opportunities to excel in citizens' service provision.

The study provides insights into how citizens view complex public services. For researchers, this study offers the conceptualization as transparency issues. Practitioners from the public administrations can also benefit from the concept and vision of omnichannel public services.

This study examines how professional service firms' communication effectiveness (affiliative communications style, social dialogue and information provision), social cognitive capital and rapport established between an auditor and SME client are instrumental in influencing the latter's evaluation of the technical quality of an audit.

The study combines qualitative and quantitative methodologies to create a cross-sectional survey covering four geographic regions in an emerging economy – Thailand. The authors examine the hypotheses by employing social interaction theory.

A study of 744 SME executives plus post-survey interviews with three audit partners revealed that an affiliative communications style and information provision are positively associated with the rapport developed between financial auditor and client, and that rapport, in turn, had a strong association with client perceptions of audit quality. In addition, affiliative communication style, information provision and social cognitive capital had a direct (positive) association with perceptions of audit quality. The effects of communication effectiveness and social cognitive capital varied, depending on whether or not the SME client possessed formal accounting qualifications.

The study contributes to the literature on the business-to-business professional services, and accounting in particular, by explicating the important roles of communication effectiveness, rapport, and social cognitive capital in the relationship between an auditor and a client. Moreover, the paper reveals that the differences in educational background of clients result in differential impacts of communication effectiveness and social cognitive capital on rapport and perceptions of audit quality.

This research aims to investigate how emerging destinations cope with digitalization of information, where they are in the process and how digitalization of information takes place in destination marketing organizations (DMOs). As a case for emerging destinations that must deal with the negative consequences of the digital divide, the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) will be examined. A new framework, solutions in general, and potential innovative approaches will be presented.

A mixed methods approach was used. Firstly, a content analysis comprising 68 criteria to examine 10 destination websites was conducted to evaluate the performance of provincial destination websites of VMD. Secondly, the authors interviewed five managers from VMD DMOs to reveal the strategy, status quo and their challenges with digitalization.

Some digitalization is evident in VMD DMOs, with the digitization of tourist information provision developing from analog formats to digital modes. The content analysis of the websites shows that provincial destination websites of VMD perform well with regard to communication but need improvements for transaction, and especially relationship aspects. Emerging destinations like VMD DMOs are reaching the second or third level in the digitalization process. Yet they face challenges with human and financial resources.

This research provides recommendations concerning destination website performance, the process of digitalization and how to promote digitalization and apply more digital instruments to move to the next stages of destination digitalization. Also, suggestions on how to overcome existing challenges/barriers in similar areas of the world are provided.

A new, extended more granulated version of the digitalization framework by Karpova et al. (2019) has been developed. The new model acknowledges the continued importance of printed information, provides information about the sequence of steps how to implement website dimensions, and which instruments are realistic to implement in different levels of digitalization considering the challenges and barriers developing destinations face.

The quest for sustainable food security (SFS) is fundamental to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In furtherance of their pivotal role in providing the required information resources in support of education and research, libraries are expected to assist the economy in ensuring SFS. The purpose of this study is to investigate how libraries provide information to support research in agriculture towards the attainment of SFS in Nigeria.

Descriptive research design was used for the study. Interview and questionnaire were used as the instruments of data collection.

This study found that the extent of use of library information resources for SFS in Nigeria is high. Libraries, though facing some challenges, contribute significantly to the attainment of food security in Nigeria. It was recommended that libraries should intensify efforts to embark on media literacy programmes and provide information resources for research on agriculture and food production with a view to actualising food security goals specified in Sustainable Development Goals. Libraries should be well-funded to acquire the relevant information resources to aid research into food security and end hunger and poverty across the world.

This study suggests having better sponsored libraries that can perform as required in advancing agricultural information needs.

This study is a creative attempt to know how libraries can contribute to SFS through the provision of information to farmers and lecturers in agriculture.

Digital platforms for the provision of food information-based services (FISs) represent a consolidated business with increasing revenue streams for entrepreneurs. Such platforms have transformed and clarified the nature of uncertainty and ambiguity inherent in the traditional food sector entrepreneurial processes. Anyway, a clear understanding of the value of digital platforms for FISs is not yet consolidated in the literature. With this paper, the authors try to fill this gap through a critical literature review of scientific research that combines knowledge on food consumer's behavior and user's knowledge behavior.

The authors carried out a critical literature review of scientific research combining knowledge of food consumer's and food information user's behavior. This allowed the identification of the main value components of FISs.

The authors propose a multidimensional framework for modelling the value proposition of digital platforms for FISs. Three main value dimensions have been identified: relevance, credibility, and accessibility. These dimensions concur with the consumer's perceived value of consumers in terms of benefits increase and cost reduction.

The research was intended to shed light on aspects characterizing consumers' perception of food information value. The authors put in evidence that the informational perspective of food communication is under-investigated. This study attempts to provide a holistic overview of the dimensions impacting on consumers' perception of the value of information for food consumers, opening new research perspectives.

The framework represents a tool for positioning food information offerings on the market, with the objective to analyze the value proposition of FISs according to a consumer perspective and to understand gaps of current offering of FISs. Moreover, it may support the design of a new generation of digital platform for food information provision, which would respond to consumers' expectations and information needs, highlighting emerging business opportunities for digital entrepreneurs.

Few research works provide a characterization of value proposition of digital platforms providing food information to consumers. In particular, to date, literature lacks of a holistic overview of the dimensions influencing consumer's perception of the information value of food communications.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of providing information on Chinese consumers' attitudes toward and willingness to pay (WTP) for cultured meat, and to further focus on the heterogeneous effect of prior awareness.

The data were collected by interviewing 1,004 consumers through a face-to-face survey conducted in 2019. Repeated measures ANOVA, ordinary least squares and maximum likelihood estimation were employed for data analysis.

Whether consumers have heard of cultured meat before is not an important determinant for their attitude, but whether they know it well is. Consumers' attitudes and WTP all improved after the provision of information, but knowledgeable consumers' attitudes were less influenced by information than those without prior knowledge. Unlike attitude, prior awareness does not affect the effect of information on WTP.

Despite extensive studies on the impact of information on the acceptance of cultured meat, few have analyzed the heterogeneous effect of prior awareness. In the research on prior awareness of cultured meat, firstly, no consistent conclusions about the effect of prior awareness on attitude; secondly, previous studies only considered heterogeneous effects of prior awareness on attitude toward cultured meat, while ignored WTP. This paper provides new insights in these areas. Further, this paper provides the first evidence on the heterogeneous impact of prior awareness in developing countries; most previous research has focused on consumers in developed countries.

Year 2020 recorded an unprecedented bewilderment of the world with novel COVID-19, thereby threatening global food security. As such, there is need for academic libraries in Nigeria to provide information regarding food security to users to ensure post-COVID-19 food security. This study, therefore, aims to reflect on the role of academic libraries in facilitating post-COVID-19 food security in Nigeria.

Descriptive research design of survey type was used for the study. Librarians and library officers in academic libraries in south-west Nigeria were considered for the study. Self-structured online questionnaire was sent to the respondents via social media. The data generated were analysed using frequency count and simple percentage.

It was found that academic libraries performed significant role during the COVID-19 period by disseminating online information on preventive measures, and supporting research team with information on the pandemic. The study further found that the services of academic libraries are strongly required in facilitating post-COVID-19 food security, even in the face of some challenges.

In the face of the looming COVID-19-induced food shortage, it becomes evident that academic libraries have to support individuals, farmers, research teams and organisations with information and information resources that can help in accomplishing global food security.

Failure of academic libraries to offer the required support in terms of provision of necessary information resources on agriculture may make the attainment of COVID-19 food security difficult.

Ensuring post-COVID-19 food security is an issue of global concern. This study encourages academic libraries to expedite action to contribute towards ensuring post-COVID-19 global food security.

Education is a strong pillar to national development. It is vital to ensure sustainable higher education development (SHED) in a bid to facilitate global development. This study aims to investigate academic libraries, information and communication technology (ICT) use and SHED.

Descriptive survey research design was used for this study. The population of the study was 607 librarians in the 41 public university libraries in Southern Nigeria. Total enumeration and purposive sampling techniques were used for this study. The instrument of data collection was questionnaire. Descriptive statistics was used for the data analysis.

It was found that qualified teachers and promotion of scholarship constitute SHED. The extent of contribution of academic libraries to SHED is high. Academic libraries face a number of challenges in their effort to provide information services for the actualisation of the SHED. The extent of use of ICT in SHED is high. It was therefore recommended that academic libraries and ICT should be adequately used to accomplish SHED in Nigeria.

This study will contribute to the body of literature on how academic libraries and the use of ICT can contribute to SHED.

While SHED is central to global development, the role of academic libraries and the use of ICT should be unanimously embraced by all the stakeholders in education industry.

SHED is inevitable in the contemporary era. This study reveals that academic libraries and ICT use are vital in achieving SHED.