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The paper reports the findings of a research project exploring the information experiences of bonsai growers in Australia as an example of a serious leisure pursuit.

The study used phenomenology as a qualitative approach in an interpretive paradigm. The data collection technique was a semi-structured interview with open-ended questions, and 23 volunteers were recruited via a maximum variation sampling strategy. The study employed the Serious Leisure Perspective and Information Experience as its theoretical frameworks.

Bonsai growers rely on three primary sources of information: publications, people, and plants. They use formal and informal publications across various media. They interact with fellow bonsai growers to share experiences and seek advice. The shape and conditions of bonsai trees are sources of embedded information that help them to make informed decisions in their practice. They have a culture of information sharing on many grounds, such as local clubs, online forums, and workshops. Their embodied information manifests in their sophisticated skills of shaping bonsai trees to express the aesthetic principles of this ancient art.

The findings are contextual and cannot be generalised. A generalisation of the result needs to be tested in a broader population.

Engaging in the bonsai hobby often fosters a sense of community among bonsai enthusiasts. Understanding these social connections can contribute to the development of supportive networks and enhance belongingness.

The study contributes to understanding the information experiences in serious leisure. It offers new evidence-based insights that can inform the design of information systems and services tailored to the needs of leisure pursuers.

This retrospective phenomenological case study examines the experiences of 18 politicians who participated in a political campaign using performing arts and artists in a regional heads and legislators in Indonesia. Also, the role of Gandrung art as a performing art is becoming a political communication tool for political actors in Indonesia.

This study employs a retrospective phenomenological case. The informants recruited were 18 politicians who have local, regional and national political levels. The participants were interviewed about their experiences of campaigning using traditional performing arts as a form of political communication. Data collection techniques used in this study include interviews and photo documentation during the campaign process to triangulate findings.

Based on a case study analysis and through thematic analysis, this research reveals three emerging themes which indicate that performing arts function as political communication tools in three significant ways: (1) as a form of artistic expression for conveying political messages through movement and the use of dancer costumes; (2) as a medium for showcasing cultural identity and representation as a form of concern for the local culture of voters; and (3) as a means to garner mass appeal and propagate political propaganda.

The study has two limitations. First, the study only interviewed a small number of participants. Thus, generalization for wider contexts of politicians is not possible. Second, the study focuses on examining the voice of politicians and analyzing it using thematic analysis.

There is a scarcity of research that specifically focuses on uncovering the perspectives of politicians who employ performing arts as a political communication tool. This study contributes to the understanding that art performance is inherently non-neutral, highlighting how performing arts can actively engage in political communication by conveying messages, shaping cultural identity and influencing public opinion in the context of Indonesia.

Social media have been associated with social benefits and enhanced psychological well-being among non-disabled individuals; the purpose of this study is to examine whether social media may have similar benefits for young neurodivergent adults with autism, anxiety, or attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder who may experience communication differences. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this first-of-its kind study explores the nature of social media use and related psychological well-being among neurodivergent college undergraduates.

This qualitative study is part of a larger effort. The authors surveyed undergraduates with and without disabilities at U.S. higher education institutions on their social media use and psychological well-being. A total of 131 students responded, including 24 neurodivergent individuals, the results of which are reported elsewhere. Participants were 18–25 years old, of varied genders and racial/ethnic backgrounds; for neurodivergent adults, questions focused on social challenges. From the survey, a sample of five neurodivergent individuals was drawn for this small-scale, exploratory interview study.

This paper reports descriptive statistics from survey results to contextualize analysis of students’ social media use (e.g. purposes, practices, benefits and harms). Students used mainly Instagram, TikTok and YouTube to promote well-being primarily through engaging positive relationships and positive emotions. Students reported several benefits of using social media to develop their disability identity and few harms.

Understanding the impact of social media use on undergraduates with disabilities could help us not only improve services as teachers, counselors and other helping professionals who support young adults to leverage their everyday technologies-in-use but also address digital equity issues.

Building upon uses and gratifications (UG) theory and social exchange theory, the current study establishes a theoretical model to examine the underlying relationship between customer motivations, active participation and electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) and purchase intentions on WeChat.

The data were gathered in a web-based survey of 301 WeChat users in mainland China. To empirically verify the proposed hypotheses, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were employed using online data.

Path analysis outcomes demonstrate that functional, hedonic and social motivations positively affect WeChat users' active participation. In addition, active participation significantly influences e-WOM intention while showing no correlation with purchase intention.

Theoretically, this article can enrich the extant system of relevant theories and offer a fresh perspective for further research on the generation of consumers' e-WOM intention and purchase intention in the WeChat context. Practically, the research outcomes provide insight for companies on how to motivate customers to participate in online activities, which subsequently improve WeChat users' willingness in conducting e-WOM communication and making purchase decisions.

Although mobile social media could serve as an influential marketing vehicle for individuals' engagement in social and commercial activities in today's mobile-matured environment, the substantial impact of active engagement on the relationship between customer motivation and purchase intention remains insufficiently explored. The outcomes not only contribute to the current body of knowledge, but also offer several managerial guidance for companies that pay attention to mobile social media marketing in a contemporary mobile media-saturated society.

While urban farming is advocated as a contributor to urban sustainability and resilience, the “informal” household-practiced urban agriculture activities are taking place within urban spaces in most Emirati neighbourhoods but unfortunately without investigating their potential as participatory processes that could efficiently help attain urban sustainability and resilience on the neighbourhood level. So, this research is a humble attempt to bridge the gap of the lack of official recognition of informal residents-led processes and their products in a way that help understand them and their impacts and to explore the possibility of developing them further into wider community shared urban agriculture activities.

The research adopted the case study method and selected a representative neighbourhood to investigate informal residents-led urban agriculture practices. The utilized qualitative–quantitative investigation tools included map analysis, field observation and in-depth interviews with the residents of the selected neighbourhood.

The results of the research have revealed that the residents managed to successfully pursue informal urban farming processes that have led to significant environmental, social and economic sustainability and resilience outcomes. While these informal urban farming activities are performed individually by each household, the interviewed residents have shown enthusiasm to take part in larger-scale collective community urban farming activities, especially in the deserted public and semi-public spaces in their neighbourhood.

The research outcomes significantly contribute to the growing worldwide discourse about urban agriculture/farming, especially in a country like the UAE where such activities are almost overlooked. Based on its findings, the research concludes by proposing a set of recommended actions to legitimatize these informal urban agriculture processes in the urban development regulations and to build on them to encourage the local communities towards more collective urban farming activities.

Live Streaming Marketing has emerged as a transformative medium, facilitating real-time product promotion and brand messaging and reshaping consumer engagement. However, knowledge of the impact of Store Atmospheric cues within live streaming contexts remains scarce. This research delves into the dynamic interplay between streamers and viewers across diverse live streaming platforms, with a focus on the impact of distinct atmospheric cues. It also seeks to explore prosocial behavior and integrate elements of social comparison theory.

We conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 streamers and 26 viewers. Participants who were active on streaming platforms and had experience of multiple live streaming sessions were purposively identified. The thematic coding approach and NVivo 12 software were employed to gain a nuanced understanding of live streaming dynamics.

Our findings highlight the significant role of emerging atmospheric cues in shaping immersive streaming experiences and fostering prosocial behavior. Additionally, we observed three formats of upward social comparisons between streamers and viewers, wherein viewers compared themselves with streamers and peers, and streamers engaged in comparisons with more experienced counterparts. This finding contributes to a sense of digital community and positive interactions because of live streaming adoptions.

By extending the application of social comparison theory, this study provides valuable insights for practitioners and scholars, enriching the understanding of both streamers’ and viewers’ psychological behavior and the dynamics of virtual retail settings.

The success and long-term survival of service organizations depend on employee behavior such as work engagement and creativity. In this study, The authors intend to investigate employee engagement and creativity in the hospitality industry based on the theory of social exchange. In addition, The authors explore the mediating role of employee ambidexterity between ethical leadership and employee work engagement and between ethical leadership and employee creativity.

Through an online survey questionnaire, data were collected from 246 workers in the hospitality industry in Pakistan. Smart-PLS version 3 was used to analyze the data.

The results of the structural equation modeling reveal that ethical leadership has a positive association with work engagement and employee creativity in the hospitality industry. Results further reveal that employee ambidexterity significantly mediates the relationships between ethical leadership and work engagement and between ethical leadership and employee creativity.

This study not only makes an important contribution to the literature on the role of employee ambidexterity in the hospitality industry but will also help service businesses in managing their employees more effectively.

The primary purpose of this exploratory paper is to propose a novel analytical framework for examining corruption from a behavioral perspective by highlighting multiple issues associated with consumerism.

This paper examines the relationship between excessive consumption activities and corrupt acts, drawing upon existing literature on corruption, consumerism and consumption, as well as multiple reports and cases of corruption and money laundering in Indonesia. With regard to corruption networks, this paper analyses the associated behavioral patterns and social dynamics by using the Fraud Triangle and the Fraud Elements Triangle frameworks to examine the phenomenon of living beyond one’s means. This paper also addresses the notion of sacredness in the context of consumer activities and how such sacredness plays a role in causing otherwise honest individuals to engage in corrupt acts.

The author established that corruption represents a complex societal issue that extends across several dimensions of society, encompassing both horizontal and vertical aspects. Consequently, addressing this problem poses significant challenges. Excessive consumption has been identified as one of the various behavioral concerns that are implicated in the widespread occurrence of corruption in many nations. Individuals who partake in excessive consumption play a role in shaping ethical norms that serve to legitimize and rationalize immoral behavior, therefore fostering a society marked by corruption. The act of engaging in excessive consumption is also associated with cases of money laundering offenses that are connected to corruption and several other illicit activities. The lifestyle of corrupt individuals is one of the primary behavioral concerns associated with corruption, as “living beyond means” is the most common behavioral red flag among occupational fraud offenders worldwide. The phenomenon of consumerism may also shape the minds of individuals as if it were an “implicit religion” due to the fact that it may generate human experiences that elicit highly positive emotions and satisfy certain sacredness-associated characteristics. The pursuit of transcendental experiences through the acquisition and consumption of sacred consumption objects may heighten the incentive to commit fraudulent acts such as corruption.

This self-funded exploratory study uses document analysis to examine the corruption phenomenon in Indonesia. Future studies will benefit from in-depth interviews with former offenders and investigators of corruption.

This exploratory study contributes to advancing corruption prevention strategies. It does this by introducing a novel analytical framework that allows for the examination of several behavioral issues associated with consumerism, which have the potential to foster the proliferation of corruption.

This exploratory study highlights the importance of comprehending the intricacies of consumerism, namely, its adverse effects on the proliferation of corruption.

The use of social media is an integral part of modern life, yet the impact of social media on creativity is a paradox. Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, the authors propose that social media, as an ecological condition, both nurture and deplete resources. Accordingly, the authors investigated two inconsistent mechanisms: creative self-efficacy and ego depletion.

Study 1 established the within-person effects of social media use on creativity by tracking 64 college students for five working days. Using a sample of 493 employee–leader-matched dyads in a national bank, Study 2 tested the entire model. Study 3 is a follow-up experiment based on a sample of 160 participants.

The results consistently showed that: (1) social media use had a positive impact on creativity in general; (2) social media use increased ego depletion and creative self-efficacy, which were two inconsistent mediators; (3) hedonic use of social media reduced the negative impact of cognitive use of social media on ego depletion.

This research sheds new light on the paradox between social media use and creativity and highlights the benefits of the balanced use of social media features. This research has implications for creative stimulation and job design in digital contexts.

The purpose of this paper is to meet Mary Kay Morrison, an active member and past president of the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor (AATH).

This case study is presented in two sections: an autobiography of Mary Kay Morrison, followed by a ten-question interview.

Mary Kay recommends exploration of the benefits of humor and laughter for mental health professionals. In recognition of the need for clarifying terminology, she coined the terms Humergy, which is joyful, optimistic, healthy energy and Humordoomer, which denotes a person who zaps that energy from us. Her work includes exploring the five stages of Humor Development as a significant factor in understanding cognitive development.

This is a personal narrative, albeit from an educator who has been active in the field of applied and therapeutic humor for over 30 years.

Humor and laughter research is recommended to explore their use in optimizing mental health. Mary Kay endorses expanding pioneering work in therapeutic humor as a treatment for anxiety and depression. She shares recommendations for humor practice in both prevention of mental health challenges and as a viable treatment for anxiety and depression.

Three humor benefits with particular social applications are highlighted. Humor facilitates communication, creates an optimal learning environment and supports change.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first case study about Mary Kay Morrison, Past President of the AATH and founder of the AATH Certified Humor Professional program.