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Although wearable health-monitoring technology (WHMT) has become a stimulus for public health, women’s acceptance rate of this technology appears to be low. Thus, this study intends to investigate the factors affecting women’s adoption of WHMT.

The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology–2 model has been used in this study as a research framework that has been extended to include lifestyle and attitude. The proposed extended framework is validated using primary data (n = 314) collected from female respondents using a structured questionnaire; the partial least square-based structural equation modeling technique is subsequently used to test the proposed hypothesis.

The results show that effort expectancy, social influence, price value, habit, attitude and lifestyle have significant positive effects on women’s behavioral intention to use WHMT and accelerate actual usage behavior. Notably, effort expectancy and habit exhibit the largest impact on behavioral intention. However, performance expectancy, facilitating conditions and hedonic motivation are not significantly associated with behavioral intentions.

The findings of this study are important for healthcare practitioners and service providers to comprehensively understand the factors that affect women’s behavioral intentions in line with their actual usage behavior. This insight will help policymakers design viable strategies regarding WHMT to promote its sustainable usage in least developed countries.

This study contributes novelty by using an extended model that links women’s attitudes and lifestyles to their adoption of WHMT. This study also fills the gaps in the existing literature on women’s behavioral intentions in the context of WHMT by showing novel associations in the domain of WHMT uptake.

Health is a human right and a fundamental building block of sustainable development, economic prosperity and poverty reduction. To realize people’s right to health, evaluating the situation of the right and its determinants is necessary. This paper aims to analyze Iran’s conduct in realizing its population’s right to health.

A qualitative case study design involving a structured review of relevant laws, policy documents, reports and academic literature was undertaken. The data were collected from electronic databases and the official Web pages of the United Nations (UN) and Iran’s Government and analyzed by a framework suggested by the UN.

Iran’s law and policies intend to combat health inequalities and to provide an adequate standard of living for everyone, particularly disadvantaged groups and individuals. However, not all laws and policies protecting disadvantaged groups are adequately implemented. There are disparities in health status and access to health care among different socio-economic groups. International economic sanctions and government policies decreased people’s ability to access the necessities of life including health care. Moreover, social determinants of health, such as cultural beliefs regarding women’s rights have not been addressed sufficiently in the country’s laws.

This study includes a broad range of subjects and provides an overview of the health-care system of Iran. However, more detail is needed to describe every aspect of the right to health. It was not feasible to address them all in this paper and needs more research. In addition, as with the majority of qualitative studies, the design of the current study is subject to limitations. Firstly, the research quality of narrative reviews is dependent on the researcher’ skills and more easily can be influenced by his/her personal biases. Second, the rigor is more difficult to maintain, assess and demonstrate. Nevertheless, narrative studies often complement quantitative studies and are informative.

To fulfill the right to health, Iran should improve affordability and quality of care and the situation of the determinants of health. The gaps in people’s access to health care need to be identified, and all necessary means and scarce resources be allocated to remove access barriers and to improve the situation of disadvantaged people. The adoption of relatively low-cost targeted programs, the proper management of resources and the prevention of unnecessary costs are suggested.

The purpose of this study is to understand the role and impact of gender on reading habits. It is an attempt to explore the probable reason why or why not gender differences take place concerning reading time, reading purpose, reading resources and digital devices among undergraduate students in the digital environment.

For this study, the researcher used a survey-based approach. To accomplish the study’s goals, a meticulously designed questionnaire has been disseminated among undergraduate students in selected colleges located in the western district of Tripura, a northeastern state in India.

The study found that female respondents have a slightly higher level of liking for reading than males. For both genders, the major purpose of reading is to enhance their knowledge unvaryingly. Furthermore, it has been observed that female respondents read electronic and print reading material more frequently compared to their male counterparts. Female respondents read fiction more frequently than males in print form. Both genders have more ease in reading print resources than digital resources. Among all digital devices, respondents are most competent at using mobile devices and prefer them for digital reading.

As part of the pilot study, investigators surveyed a limited sample population, where the participation of students was further lower because of the unavailability of students.

The gender-based level of competency with digital devices is studied as a variable among the adult population to measure its correlation with reading habits.

The measurement of women's economic welfare and exploring its underlying factors have been undervalued in the context of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. This study addressed this gap by focusing on assessing women's subjective economic welfare and its socioeconomic and cultural determinants in the education and health sectors within Mardan, Northern Pakistan.

The study used stratified random sampling techniques for the selection of sample respondents and collected data through a well-structured questionnaire. To measure women’s economic welfare, the study utilizes Lorenz curves, the Gini index, the Sen Social Welfare function and an individual's gross monthly income. Furthermore, the ordinary least squares method was utilized to analyze the determinants of economic welfare.

The findings show greater income inequality and a lower welfare level for women in the education sector compared to the health sector. Likewise, the study identifies several key determinants, such as age, educational qualification, job experience, respect for working women, outside and work-place problems and the suffering of family members of working women for their economic well-being.

This study makes valuable contributions to the literature by focusing on the cultural perspective of Pakhtun women in Mardan and providing a context-specific understanding of subjective economic welfare. Additionally, the authors collected first-hand data, which gave an original outlook on working women's current economic welfare level. Furthermore, this study undertakes a comparative analysis of working women's welfare in the health and education sectors. This comparison offers a more accurate portrayal of the challenges and opportunities specific to these occupations.

The peer-review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-04-2023-0246

This paper aims to understand the maternal health vulnerabilities of migrant women in slums and explore their challenges during and after childbirth.

The study used a qualitative approach, including in-depth interviews through purposive and snowball sampling techniques. Thematic analysis was used for analysing data. The consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative studies (COREQ)-32 items were followed for reporting this study.

The study found that migrant women were highly susceptible to adverse birthing outcomes due to risks involved in birthing, lack of care and hygiene, lack of skilled care in dealing with complicated pregnancies and exposure to domestic and obstetric violence.

The study intends to highlight the narratives of female migrants’ birthing and maternal health challenges. The entire process of childbirth in slums with consequences can result in maternal and infant morbidities and mortalities.

Gender discrimination exists in various settings globally and harms women’s mental health. This study aims to understand the impact of gender discrimination on hopelessness and emotional vulnerability. Further, we attempted to determine whether benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) moderate the relationships of gender discrimination with hopelessness and emotional vulnerability.

Data from 445 young women from India was gathered from a cross-sectional survey. Measures included gender discrimination inventory, Beck’s hopelessness inventory, emotional vulnerability scale and BCE scale.

Results yielded a significant positive association of gender discrimination with hopelessness and emotional vulnerability. BCEs were negatively related to hopelessness, emotional vulnerability and gender discrimination. Further, gender discrimination predicted increased feelings of hopelessness and emotional vulnerability. However, BCEs do not neutralize the effect of gender discrimination.

It is evident from this study that gender discrimination exists independent of socioeconomic class, domicile and educational qualification, taking a toll on women’s well-being and mental health. Incorporating attitudinal changes at the community and societal level in reducing gender norms responsible for negative outcomes will allow women to function to their full capacity and experience improved mental health.

The research on gender discrimination and its impact on women’s mental health is limited, especially exploring the role of BCEs. Previous studies have indicated that BCEs have protective roles in neutralizing adversities. However, the present study uniquely contributes to establishing the limited role of BCEs in the context of gender discrimination, though it contributes to mental health. The policy and psychosocial implications of the study are discussed.

This study aims to explore the gendered nature of housing insecurity by investigating how gender affects women’s experience moving from transitional to market housing. By describing women’s pathways out of supportive or transitional housing support, the authors show how patriarchal forces in housing policies and practices affect women’s efforts to find secure housing. The authors argue that gender-neutral approaches to housing will fail to meet women’s needs.

This study explores the narratives from women accessing support services in Halifax, Canada. The first author conducted deep narrative interviews with women seeking to move from transition to market housing.

This research sheds light on the effects of gendered barriers to safe, suitable and affordable housing; how women’s experiences and expectations are shaped by these barriers; and, how housing-based supports must address the uniquely gendered experiences women face as they access market housing. In addition, this research reveals the importance of gender-responsive services that empower women facing a sexist housing market.

Little research has explored questions related to gender and housing among those seeking to move from transitional to marker housing, and existing research focuses on women’s housing insecurity as it relates to domestic violence. The sample of women included those having housing insecurity for a variety of reasons, including substance use and young motherhood.

This study aims to measure the level of satisfaction among women with childbirth services provided at public health facilities. Further, to analyse the impact of their socio-economic and obstetric characteristics on their level of satisfaction.

To accomplish these objectives a cross-sectional survey was conducted in two districts of an Indian state, Bihar. Structured questionnaire was developed based on the scale proposed by Okumu and Oyugi (2018) both for vaginal and caesarean birth patients. For empirical analysis multiple linear regression model was employed.

Results suggest that majority of mothers are satisfied with the care they received during childbirth, regardless of whether they chose a caesarean (55%) or vaginal delivery (53%). Women report the lowest levels of satisfaction with postpartum care and the privacy that was preserved by healthcare personnel at health facility. Further the study also confirms the association between patient’s socio-economic characteristics and their satisfaction level.

This is the first study of its kind to highlight the situation of public healthcare system in Bihar, which is the third most populated state in India with poor social and health indicators.

The adverse environmental impacts of menstrual products are a significant concern because of their widespread use and non-biodegradability. With various global and regional initiatives on sustainability, there is now greater public awareness about environmental protection. This heightened awareness has resulted in the exploration of alternative methods to reduce waste, such as the development and use of sustainable menstrual products. This study aims to examine the factors that influence Indian women’s purchasing intention in relation to sustainable menstrual products. The study uses the Stimulus–Organism–Behavior–Consequence (SOBC) theory as the appropriate grounded theory to explain these determinants.

Cross-sectional data were collected from 720 women who have been using sustainable menstrual products. For analysing the model, the study performed structural equation modelling using AMOS.

The study’s results indicated that health consciousness, sustainability knowledge and environmental responsibility are positively associated with self-identity and mindfulness. Additionally, the study found that organism states have a positive impact on the purchase intention of sustainable menstrual products. Furthermore, there was a significant relationship observed between purchase intention and mindful consumption. The study also discovered significant positive relationships between satisfaction and key associations.

This study may be considered pioneering, as it establishes a connection between the usage of sustainable menstrual products and concepts such as mindfulness and mindful consumption.

Sexual harassment on public transport puts women at risk of mental health problems, apart from disrupting their lives and the harmful social consequences. This is especially the case for Pakistani women, for whom sexual harassment has been on the rise for the past decade. This study aims to explore how Pakistani women use strategies to cope with sexual harassment when using public transport and its mediating role in their issues with mental health.

Given that the data collection task on such a culturally sensitive topic was crucial, a mobile application for anonymized data collection was used, which appeared to be an effective strategy. Using the mobile application, 1,054 women who use public transport submitted their responses; however, the analysis is based on 250 usable responses. Their experience of harassment was measured using the Sexual Harassment Experience Questionnaire, their mental health using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales and their coping strategies by the Brief Cope Inventory.

The results indicate that adaptive coping is a significant negative mediator between sexual harassment and mental well-being, whereas maladaptive coping is non-significant. Adaptive coping, i.e. “Acceptance” to admit the reality that the problem exists with all, and “Religion” to seek help spiritually to deal with the problem. Unfortunately, the findings show no suitable coping means to deal with the impact of sexual harassment on women who travel on public transport. This study also illustrates that using the right technologies can encourage participants to submit responses for culturally sensitive topics.

This study provides insight into the experience of street harassment in Pakistani women and how it is related to mental health. This study also explores the role of adaptive and maladaptive coping as an intervening variable between street harassment and mental health.