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The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of employee live streamers on consumers' purchase behaviors and brand image, as well as to understand the mediating roles of friendship and self-congruity.

A framework was proposed to explain the influence of employee live streamers' qualities on consumers' behaviors and brand image through the mediators of friendship and self-congruity. Primary data was collected from 225 valid survey responses in China, and the PLS-SEM analysis was employed to test the statistical significance of the hypothesized relationships.

The study found that four qualities of employee live streamers – trustworthiness, attractiveness, responsiveness and expertise – had significant effects on consumers' purchase behaviors and brand image through the mediators of self-congruity and friendship.

This research provides valuable insights into the varying roles of employee live streamers in consumers' decision-making and brand image formation. It offers a theoretical basis for scholars to understand the factors of PSI (parasocial interaction) between consumers and an employee streamer, contributing to the growing body of literature on live streaming and consumer behavior.

本研究旨在调查员工直播主对消费者购买行为和品牌形象的影响, 以及了解友谊和自我一致性在其中的中介作用。

本研究提出了一个框架, 以解释员工直播主的特质通过友谊和自我一致性的中介对消费者行为和品牌形象的影响。在中国收集了225份有效的调查问卷数据, 并采用PLS-SEM分析来测试假设关系的统计显著性。

研究发现员工直播主的四种特质 - 可信度、吸引力、反应能力和专业性 - 通过自我一致性和友谊的中介对消费者的购买行为和品牌形象产生了显著影响。

本研究深入探讨了员工直播主在消费者决策和品牌形象塑造中的不同作用, 为学者们理解消费者与员工直播主之间PSI（伪社交互动）的因素提供了理论基础, 为直播和消费者行为领域的日益增长的文献体系做出了贡献。

Conspicuously absent from the branding literature is research on the brand-to-brand (Br2Br) interface enabled by social media. The author proposes how networked brands-as-actors integrate their resources as Br2Br interactions that co-create consumer–brand value. As a secondary contribution, the author provides an empirical baseline exploration of the value co-creating impact of Br2Br interactions on consumer–brand evaluations and social media engagement.

Three streams of research aid in conceptualizing the value co-creating process of Br2Br interactions. A follow-up exploratory study uses a controlled Br2Br interaction stimulus in a 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects design, where brand familiarity and product category complementarity are manipulated, and interaction spillover effects are analyzed using structural equation modeling.

The author finds Br2Br interactions positively affect consumer–brand evaluations and social media engagement likelihood. Spillover effects of these interactions are symmetric for consumer–brand evaluations for both brands. However, brand familiarity moderates the effects of Br2Br interactions on consumer–brand evaluations.

The author lays the groundwork for future research on the complexities of Br2Br interactions – including brand personality conflict, interaction duration and paratextual language – and the boundary conditions for Br2Br and brand-to-consumer relationships.

This study aims to explore how relationship trust and different types of influence strategy (i.e., non-coercive and coercive influence strategy) impact green customer integration (GCI), while investigating the moderating mechanisms of big data development and social capital.

Following hierarchical linear regression analysis, the authors examine hypothesized relationships by combining survey data from 206 Chinese manufacturers with secondary data.

The results show that relationship trust positively affects non-coercive influence strategy, while its impact on coercive influence strategy is insignificant. Non-coercive influence strategy has an inverted U-shaped impact on GCI. Furthermore, big data development flattens the inverted U-shaped relationship between non-coercive influence strategy and GCI. Conversely, social capital steepens the inverted U-shaped relationship between non-coercive influence strategy and GCI.

This study sheds light on managers on how to involve customers in GCI through friendly strategies that favor the involvement of customers and the willingness to develop environmentally friendly initiatives.

Although GCI has received widespread attention, how it can be enhanced remains unclear. These findings provide novel insights into the emerging GCI literature and complement social exchange theory.

This study aims to investigate the role of three customer equity drivers on customer repurchase intent in business-to-business (B2B) markets. It also explores the interconnected nature of equity drivers, specifically, the effects of brand equity and value equity on relationship equity. Further, it investigates how perceived switching costs moderates the interrelationships between customer equity drivers. The authors explore the interrelationships between the customer equity drivers in a B2B context involving commodity products in a developing market.

Data collection was done from a pool of 184 institutional customers of a lubricant brand in a developing market. The sample had representations of buyer organizations across sectors, namely, automobile, cement, metal, fertilizer, railway, defence and mining, etc. The final data were subjected to partial least squares-based structural equation modeling to test the hypothesized model.

The study found a direct effect of brand equity, and value equity on relationship equity and an indirect effect on repurchase intent, namely, relationship equity. Perceived switching cost was found to moderate the interaction between brand equity and relationship equity as well as between value equity and relationship equity. The direct effect of relationship equity on repurchase intent was also significant.

The study implies that B2B firms should ground their marketing program on these customer equity drivers, especially when dealing with commodity products. The absence of any of these drivers would be detrimental in customer retention. The study also establishes the relevance of switching cost(s) and its impact on the underlying dynamics between the different equity drivers in the context of commodity products. The customer equity drivers along with switching costs, if managed well, may become switching barriers for customers and eventually would ensure recurring revenue through repeat purchases.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies that focuses on the disaggregated effect of customer equity on customer outcomes in the B2B context. Furthermore, this study investigates how perceived switching costs moderates the interrelationships between customer equity drivers in the industrial sales context in an emerging market.

With technological innovation elements and the competitive market environment becoming increasingly complex, numerous firms utilize network embeddedness to achieve and sustain innovation. However, empirical research has not conclusively established which form of network embeddedness more effectively facilitates corporate innovation. Drawing on the heterogeneous network resources perspective, this study explores the impact of market network embeddedness, technology network embeddedness and their synergy on the green innovation performance of manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Furthermore, it investigates the moderating role of resource orchestration capability in these relationships.

Through an online questionnaire survey of Chinese manufacturing SMEs, 293 sample data were collected, and the hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to test the hypothesis.

The results indicate that market and technology network embeddedness significantly enhance green innovation performance, with the former exerting a more significant impact. Furthermore, the synergy between market and technology network embeddedness positively influences green innovation performance. Additionally, resource orchestration capability strengthens the positive effects of both market and technology network embeddedness on green innovation performance, while the moderating effect of resource orchestration capability on the relationship between the synergy of the two and green innovation performance was insignificant.

The study faced many limitations, such as collecting primary data, which relied on a questionnaire only, using cross-sectional data and examining only manufacturing SMEs.

Based on the heterogeneous network resources perspective and integrating social network theory and resource orchestration theory, this study explores the impact of network embeddedness on the green innovation performance of manufacturing SMEs, which sheds new light on the network embeddedness research framework and also enriches the antecedents of green innovation. In addition, this study provides implications on how manufacturing SMEs effectively utilize network embeddedness and resource orchestration capability to enhance green innovation performance.

The purpose of this paper is to advance our understanding of international crisis mediation by introducing and examining the nested insider-partial mediator (NIPM) concept, a nuanced perspective on IPM behavior. This study challenges the traditional view of effective mediators as external, unbiased entities by delving into the behavior and contribution of mediators who are deeply embedded in the conflict environment, such as South Korea’s unique position in navigating the US–DPRK crisis in 2017–2018. By analyzing South Korea’s dual role as mediator and negotiator and its employment of both nondirective and directive mediation strategies, the paper demonstrates the potential effectiveness of NIPMs in managing complex biases and contributing to de-escalation in intense crisis scenarios.

This paper uses a focused single-case study approach to analyze South Korea’s role as an NIPM. Using a process-tracing methodology, it examines how contextual factors such as relationships, interests and inherent biases influenced South Korea’s mediation strategies in this complex geopolitical scenario. Empirical evidence was retrieved from public sources, including official statements and press interviews, providing an empirical foundation for understanding NIPM behavior. This approach facilitates a detailed study of South Korea’s unique mediation role within the intricate dynamics of the Korean Peninsula conflict.

The study’s findings illustrate the pivotal role NIPMs can play in complex international conflicts, underlining the significant potential of NIPMs in crisis prevention. The findings highlight South Korea’s adept navigation through intricate geopolitical dynamics, leveraging its unique insider position and established relationships with both the USA and North Korea. This behavior was instrumental in mitigating a potentially explosive situation, steering the crisis toward negotiation and de-escalation. The research underscores the effectiveness of the NIPM framework in understanding the nuanced behavior of mediators who are deeply integrated into multi-level conflicts, influenced by their connections, interests and inherent biases.

This research not only broadens the theoretical framework of insider-partial mediation by introducing the concept of NIPM, but also has practical implications for policymakers and practitioners in leveraging regional mediation strategies for international crisis mitigation. The study underscores the importance of mediators’ deep-rooted connections, biases and vested interests in influencing their mediation tactics, thus offering a comprehensive understanding of the multifaceted nature of international mediation in complex geopolitical conflicts.

This study aims to explore how the three types of human resource (HR) practices, encapsulated in the ability, motivation and opportunity (AMO) model, foster a learning organizational culture (LOC). In doing so, the authors evaluate the centrality of knowledge sharing (KS) in mediating this relationship.

A quantitative survey is undertaken to collect data from managers working in organizations operating in the UK. The authors use several statistical techniques to assess the psychometric properties of the measures and test the hypotheses using multiple regression executed with Preacher and Hayes’ Process macro.

The findings show that the AMO HR practices significantly facilitate the development of a LOC in the workplace, and KS among organizational members amplifies the effects of these HR practices in the process.

A LOC functions as an important source of organizational performance and effectiveness. It enhances the absorptive capacity of the organization to capture, share and transfer knowledge to optimize work. Hence, developing a culture that nurtures organizational learning could be a priority for managing HR. This study, therefore, extends the understanding of the role of AMO HR practices in fostering a learning culture – thus, providing managers with the essential knowledge to improve performance. The study also enriches the literature on HR practices, KS and LOC by integrating these three variables into a unifying framework.

This study elucidated the connections among the influence of Singaporean hawkers, local gastronomy involvement, and the three dimensions of authenticity (objective, constructive, and existential). Furthermore, it investigates how personal nostalgia affects the cultural identity of hawkers.

A self-administered questionnaire was created to assess hawker influence, gastronomy involvement, authenticity, personal nostalgia, and hawker cultural identity. Survey data was gathered from 401 Singapore residents aged 18 and older.

Results of the structural equation modeling revealed various significant aspects of hawker influence, including physical and social environments, uniqueness and cultural significance, and hygiene and food safety. Hawker influence and local gastronomy contributed to objective authenticity, which, in turn, affected constructive and existential authenticity, ultimately shaping personal nostalgia and hawker cultural identity.

The study offers guidance for stakeholders in sustaining hawker culture, emphasizing authenticity’s role and the importance of nostalgia in identity formation. By aligning with the progressive nature of Singapore, these implications aim to ensure the continued thriving of this invaluable legacy for generations to come.

The study affirms relationships between hawker influence, local gastronomy involvement, and authenticity constructs. It emphasizes the hawker’s role and gastronomy involvement in influencing individuals’ perceived authenticity and accentuates the potential for authenticity in strengthening national branding.

The rapid advancement of Education Technology (EdTech) offers promising opportunities for educational institutions to integrate sustainable business practices into their operations and curriculum. The integration of EdTech into sustainability education has emerged as a powerful tool to promote environmental awareness, foster sustainable behavior, and address the pressing challenges of climate change and resource depletion. This chapter explores the growing significance of EdTech in sustainability education, analyzing its potential to cultivate a generation of environmentally conscious and responsible global citizens. It also aims at identifying and examining the most prominent emerging EdTech tools specifically designed to promote sustainability in educational settings. Furthermore, it aims to comprehend the institutional elements that have successfully incorporated and expanded the utilization of EdTech tools to promote enduring business practices. Additionally, the chapter addresses the challenges and obstacles faced by educational institutions in adopting and implementing these technologies and propose strategies to overcome these barriers.

This study aims to apply the service robot acceptance model (sRAM) to examine how attitude toward human–robot interaction (HRI) and engagement influence consumer acceptance of service robots in a frontline setting.

Data was collected from 255 visitors who interacted with a robotic tour guide at a city museum. The data was analyzed using smart PLS 4.0.

The findings show the positive effects of subjective norms, appearance, perceived trust and positive emotion on both attitude toward HRI and engagement. In addition, social capability impacted attitude toward HRI, whereas perceived usefulness affected engagement.

To deliver engaging museum experiences that bring about positive word-of-mouth and intention to visit, managers need to incorporate the sRAM dimensions in the design and deployment of service robots.

This research uses field data to empirically validate the sRAM in the context of service robot acceptance. It introduces engagement as a novel mediating variable, enriching current understanding of human-like qualities in HRIs.