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The purpose of this paper is to propose a soft computing model based on multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (MOEA), namely, modified micro genetic algorithm (MmGA) coupled with a decision tree (DT)-based classifier, in classifying and optimising the students’ online interaction activities as classifier of student achievement. Subsequently, the results are transformed into useful information that may help educator in designing better learning instructions geared towards higher student achievement.

A soft computing model based on MOEA is proposed. It is tested on benchmark data pertaining to student activities and achievement obtained from the University of California at Irvine machine learning repository. Additional, a real-world case study in a distance learning institution, namely, Wawasan Open University in Malaysia has been conducted. The case study involves a total of 46 courses collected over 24 consecutive weeks with students across the entire regions in Malaysia and worldwide.

The proposed model obtains high classification accuracy rates at reduced number of features used. These results are transformed into useful information for the educational institution in our case study in an effort to improve student achievement. Whether benchmark or real-world case study, the proposed model successfully reduced the number features used by at least 48 per cent while achieving higher classification accuracy.

A soft computing model based on MOEA, namely, MmGA coupled with a DT-based classifier, in handling educational data is proposed.

Presents a special issue, enlisting the help of the author’s students and colleagues, focusing on age, sex, colour and disability discrimination in America. Breaks the evidence down into manageable chunks, covering: age discrimination in the workplace; discrimination against African‐Americans; sex discrimination in the workplace; same sex sexual harassment; how to investigate and prove disability discrimination; sexual harassment in the military; when the main US job‐discrimination law applies to small companies; how to investigate and prove racial discrimination; developments concerning race discrimination in the workplace; developments concerning the Equal Pay Act; developments concerning discrimination against workers with HIV or AIDS; developments concerning discrimination based on refusal of family care leave; developments concerning discrimination against gay or lesbian employees; developments concerning discrimination based on colour; how to investigate and prove discrimination concerning based on colour; developments concerning the Equal Pay Act; using statistics in employment discrimination cases; race discrimination in the workplace; developments concerning gender discrimination in the workplace; discrimination in Japanese organizations in America; discrimination in the entertainment industry; discrimination in the utility industry; understanding and effectively managing national origin discrimination; how to investigate and prove hiring discrimination based on colour; and, finally, how to investigate sexual harassment in the workplace.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors influencing Sabah’s indigenous food consumption, namely Kadazan-Dusun food, among tourists from China, Europe and Malaysia (non-Sabahans).

Survey forms were distributed to tourists from China, Europe and Malaysia using purposive sampling at tourist spots in Sabah, Malaysia. In total, 254 responses were collected, and the data were analyzed using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

The findings demonstrate that tourists from China and Europe possess some similarities in consuming indigenous food in Sabah. They enjoy trying indigenous food even they are not familiar with the food. Additionally, our findings also show that tourists from China regard sensory appeal as an important aspect of food choice. Meanwhile, it is found that convenience and mood influence Malaysian’s choice of indigenous food.

This study provides insights regarding Sabah’s Kadazan-Dusun food consumption from foreign and domestic tourists’ perspectives. As such, it also provides direction to the local eateries and relevant tourism authorities to better promote indigenous food to foreign and domestic tourists.

Recognizing food waste as a global issue, it has attracted scholars to conduct numerous relevant studies in the area. Growing concerns about the social and environmental impacts have intensified food waste attention to the practice of socially responsible consumption. The purpose of this study is to undertake a review of existing knowledge to edify and provide a platform for future research.

The present study retrieved and reviewed a total of 76 articles from Web of Science (WoS) database, which were published from 2011 to 2020 in food and nutrition related journals from social responsibility perspective.

In accordance with the proposed research questions, the findings demonstrate the publication trend, distribution of article sources, research regions, thematic classification, theoretical and methodology framework. The findings also reveal research gaps in the literature and facilitate scholars with extensive gap-specific research directions to explore.

This review is limited in its consideration of articles from the (WoS) database and focused in food or nutrition related journals.

By mapping what is known in the current state of food waste research, this study identifies existing gaps and opportunities for future research in this area.

The recognition of housing as an essential requirement in enhancing the quality of life of an individual has increasingly captivated scholars’ interest, particularly within the context of sustainability. However, the identification of suitable attributes of sustainable housing to be prioritized encountered challenges due to a lack of effective approach in addressing uncertainties and stakeholders’ interests. This study attempts to identify critical attributes of sustainable housing in rural areas and explore their interrelationships.

Six dimensions and 54 criteria are proposed and validated using the expert linguistic preferences through the Fuzzy Delphi Method. The Fuzzy Decision-Making Trial Evaluation Laboratory is also applied to determine the interrelationship between those attributes.

The result demonstrates that economic benefits strongly impacted social implications for sustainable housing. The top criteria, including government participation, reduced life cycle cost, environmental protection and local authorities’ participation, are considered to assist housing stakeholders for better sustainable practices.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies addressing the interrelationship among sustainable housing attributes through linguistic preferences in the context of rural areas.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a short-term renters’ preference profile for peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation selection in the housing market in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The emergence of P2P accommodation was initiated by the concept of a sharing economy, allowing the peer provider to share personal properties with the peer end-users. As the housing market has become more competitive, understanding the preference profile among short-term renters is advantageous to offer a matching marketing mix to the targeted customers.

This study uses qualitative method associated with thematic analysis. A total of 10,509 reviews on Airbnb were gathered from 377 properties in Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory from 2013 to 2017. Thematic analysis assisted by NVivo software was applied to analyse the empirical data. In total, 14 attributes were identified which could be categorised into 5Ps. The concept of 5Ps adopted from modern marketing is commonly used to categorise the strategies in the marketing process. In the current context, 5Ps is used to categorise the preference of the short-term renter in their selection of P2P accommodation including product, price, promotion, process and people.

This paper has developed a preference profile for P2P accommodation selection in Malaysia’s housing market. In total, 14 attributes were identified and categorised into the 5Ps of marketing mix. The results showed that the majority of short-term renters were concerned mostly with product (73.2 per cent), followed by people (14.5 per cent), process (10.1 per cent), price (2.0 per cent) and promotion (0.2 per cent).

This study contributes to existing literature with a novel case in Malaysia’s housing market by identifying the short-term renter’s preference in the P2P accommodation selection in the Malaysian housing market, specifically in Kuala Lumpur. The preference profile provides guidance for property owners and developers in the housing market to offer the right product in enhancing the marketability and rentability of the property.

The purpose of this study is to deploy and expand the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model with application to renewable energy investment by incorporating the component of tax incentives (TIN). This will serve as an additional measure in understanding the conventional energy stakeholders’ investment intention into renewable energy in Nigeria.

Data was collected from 357 individual key conventional energy stakeholders in Nigeria using survey questionnaires. The research model was tested using structural equation modelling.

The results from the study revealed the applicability of the TPB in predicting the conventional energy stakeholders’ investment intention into renewable energy. The result indicates that attitude and subjective norm are significantly associated with investment intentions.

The outcome implies that the integration of tax incentives can improve the predictive power of the model as the introduced variable demonstrates a significant impact on the conventional energy stakeholders’ investment intention into renewable energy.

This study extends on the well-established TPB model by integrating tax incentives in understanding investment intentions and the outcome implies a significant association of tax incentives with investment intention and moderated the influence of attitude and subjective norm over the conventional energy stakeholders’ investment intention.

TPB has been widely deployed and even extended to predict intention in numerous fields of study. Available literature presents the lack of such empirical research that focuses on investment in Nigeria and specifically regarding energy investment. The outcome highlighted the significant influence of tax incentives, thus the need for policymakers to suggest and implement various tax incentives to attract private investment into renewable energy for electricity generation that will consequently assist in achieving SDG-7 and mitigate climate change.

This study synthesises the self-determination theory (SDT), expectation-confirmation model (ECM), and protection motivation theory (PMT) to formulate an integrated theoretical framework that elucidates the process of shaping the intention to continue using facial recognition payment (FRP) under the conditional impact of perceived technology security.

Data from 667 Beijing Winter Olympics visitors with FRP experience were collected through an online survey and analysed using variance based-structural equation modelling (VB-SEM).

This study reveals that the intention to continue using FRP evolves through three key stages. Initially, in the expectation stage, the multidimensional concept of artificial autonomy (sensing, thought, and action), which is underpinned by self-determination, is pivotal, strongly influencing perceptions of service enhancement and fostering trust in FRP. Subsequently, the confirmation stage underscores the importance of perceived service enhancement and trust as vital drivers in maintaining FRP usage, while also contributing to subjective well-being. Crucially, perceived technology security emerges as a key moderating factor, enhancing positive perceptions and intentions towards FRP, thus influencing its sustained adoption.

This study stands out by revealing the nuanced interplay between artificial autonomy and user perceptions, particularly concerning service enhancement, technology security, and trust, as they influence well-being and the continued adoption of FRP. Robustly grounded in the integrated theoretical framework of SDT, ECM, and PMT, the study’s findings are critical for comprehending the core elements and specific drivers that promote sustained FRP use, especially as we consider its potential widespread implementation. Therefore, this study not only advances theoretical understanding but also offers practical guidance for optimising FRP deployment strategies in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of marathon enthusiasts' perceptions towards venue quality, race competition, organisation and service quality on their intention to participate in a destination marathon in the emerging region's context. It also seeks to investigate the mediating effect of perceived value and the moderating effect of intention to visit the destination on the intention to participate.

Using purposive sampling technique, 177 valid Singapore marathon enthusiasts were sampled to look into their intention towards participating in destination marathon in Sarawak (marathon held in Kuching). The data were analysed using the partial least squares–structural equation modelling (PLS–SEM).

The results show that amongst the other determinants, perceived organisation and perceived service quality do not contribute to perceived value and intention to participate in destination marathon. Perceived value is found to mediate all path relationships except the relationship between perceived organisation and intention to participate. Moreover, the relationship between perceived value and intention to participate is significantly moderated by intention to tour Sarawak.

This study makes a substantial contribution to the extant literature pertaining to destination tourism and value-based marketing in an emerging market. In particular, it highlights the importance of perceived value and the relevance of destination tourism in joining a sport event on foreign soil. The use of PLS–SEM also allows a rigorous assessment of the relationships under investigation and provides better estimations of the phenomenon.

This study aims to understand how cultural variables – collectivism and face concerns – influence perceived and ideal organizational conflict cultures in two multicultural societies.

Individuals studying in Singapore (N = 162) and the USA (N = 216) completed an online survey. Hierarchical regression analyses tested the hypotheses.

Regardless of cultural background, individuals prefer agreeable conflict cultures, with over 95% scoring above the scale mid-point. Ideal passiveness varied; highly collective and mutual face concerned individuals were more likely to idealize active conflict cultures. Collectivism overall was associated with perceiving and idealizing active and agreeable conflict cultures, though some relationships were only significant for one sample. Self-face concerned individuals were more likely to perceive passive conflict cultures.

Culture influences organizational conflict cultures, but not necessarily in stereotypical ways. Despite cultural and geographical differences, the data provide evidence for a universal preference for agreeable conflict cultures. This finding is encouraging, given the increase in workplace diversity and desire to be responsive to needs of equity and inclusion. Therefore, leaders and managers should strive to establish agreeable conflict norms, even in the most culturally diverse organizations. The young, college student sample may not represent all working people, although the authors only recruited students with jobs who worked 28 h per week on average.

This research demonstrates the value of considering multiple levels of influence on conflict, advances the theory and measurement of organizational conflict cultures and identifies powerful similarities among diverse employees.