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Social robots are invading our daily lives. Recently, thanks to artificial intelligence, humanoid social robots have been developed and influence individuals on social media. This paper aims to understand the perception of luxury consumers regarding human-like virtual influencers (VI) in a multicultural context.

Conducting a qualitative method, the authors interviewed 32 Chinese and French consumers of luxury products from the Gen-Z and millennial generation about their perception of human influencers and human-like VI after following them on social media specific platforms.

Using source credibility theory, this research unveils the different ways in which consumers perceive human-like VI according to their physical or content attractiveness, expertise, similarities and trustworthiness. The results suggest that the perception of human-like VI by millennials and Gen-Z is closely related to their cultural setting and their familiarity of the technology in a luxury context.

Considering Gen-Z and millennials' willing for para-social interactions and given the importance to the credibility of the source or the emotions displayed by VI, the intercultural empirical setting of this study introduces the ambivalence of the perception of social robots versus human-like influencers in a luxury digital context.

Most businesses strive to control the efficiency of their supply chains; however, luxury firms face additional challenges from counterfeit, gray market and copycat products. Blockchain technology can address these issues and enhance firms' supply chain management, guaranteeing the traceability and origin of luxury products. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the utility and contexts influencing the implementation of blockchain technology to optimize supply chain management and prevent fraud in the luxury industry.

The research uses a qualitative approach based on the grounded theory method. Data are collected by semi-structured interviews with 12 stakeholders working on blockchain applications in the luxury business sector.

Highlighting the problems faced by luxury brands' supply chains, this study presents blockchain technology as a solution for disintermediation, traceability and transparency in the luxury goods sector. The constraints faced by luxury brands incorporating this technology into their ecosystem include the knowledge gap, the multiplicity of third parties involved in the production process and bias toward short-term returns on investment.

Blockchains promote greater transparency and efficiency within supply chains, which builds consumer trust and improves brand revenue. Considering luxury brands' reluctance to adopt blockchains, this study suggests that luxury firms adopt a staggered implementation of private blockchain networks starting with a small number of third-party suppliers.

The purpose of this study is to introduce new tools to develop a more precise and focused bibliometric analysis on the field of digitalization in healthcare management. Furthermore, this study aims to provide an overview of the existing resources in healthcare management and education and other developing interdisciplinary fields.

This work uses bibliometric analysis to conduct a comprehensive review to map the use of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 (UTAUT2) research models in healthcare academic studies. Bibliometric studies are considered an important tool to evaluate research studies and to gain a comprehensive view of the state of the art.

Although UTAUT dates to 2003, our bibliometric analysis reveals that only since 2016 has the model, together with UTAUT2 (2012), had relevant application in the literature. Nonetheless, studies have shown that UTAUT and UTAUT2 are particularly suitable for understanding the reasons that underlie the adoption and non-adoption choices of eHealth services. Further, this study highlights the lack of a multidisciplinary approach in the implementation of eHealth services. Equally significant is the fact that many studies have focused on the acceptance and the adoption of eHealth services by end users, whereas very few have focused on the level of acceptance of healthcare professionals.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to conduct a bibliometric analysis of technology acceptance and adoption by using advanced tools that were conceived specifically for this purpose. In addition, the examination was not limited to a certain era and aimed to give a worldwide overview of eHealth service acceptance and adoption.

The purpose of this study is to explore if and how informal governance mechanisms are used for coordinating actors of digitalized supply networks.

A multiple case study analysis of ten German firms in digitalized supply networks is conducted. Data are collected through semi-structured expert interviews with interviewees having notable years of professional experience in purchasing or sales.

This research shows that reduced personal contacts in digitalized supply networks decrease the ability to coordinate with informal governance mechanisms. However, the need for informal governance in digitalized supply networks remains when facing supply network disruptions or building new business relationships.

This is the first study examining the role of informal governance mechanisms in digitalized supply networks. Theoretical and practical insights on the changing abilities and needs to use informal governance after the digital transformation are given.