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In many storybooks in the Philippines, the presence of a sibling is a commonplace in writing the child protagonist's world. More specifically, the kuya, which is the Filipino term for older brother, is a male character that can influence the child protagonists. In this chapter, my goal is to analyse the positionalities of the kuya as male characters in four storybooks from the Philippines that feature the bond between a younger child and the older brother/s. These storybooks are Salo-Salo Para Kay Kuya (A Feast for Big Brother), Sandosenang Kuya (A Dozen Big Brothers), Ang Kuya Kong Zombie (My Big Brother Zombie) and Ang Misteryo ng Patong-Patong na Damit ni Hulyan (The Mystery Behind Hulyan's Layered Clothes).

Through this chapter, I aim to theorise the roles that male characters play vis-à-vis their relationships with their younger siblings. The male characters' narrative journeys, character developments and roles in the context of the story are analysed through what Michael White calls ‘subordinate storylines’, which is character information that cannot be accessed by mere conversation among children. Thus, in the chapter, I investigate the values; intensions; knowledge and skills; and social, relational and cultural genesis of the male characters vis-à-vis the narratives and their interplay with the child protagonists in the story.

With the continuous deepening of China's mixed-ownership reform, the participants in the reform have gradually expanded from state-owned enterprises to private enterprises. Whether state-owned equity participation in private enterprises can facilitate the development of environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance in private enterprises is a question that needs urgent examination. This study aims to investigate the impact of state-owned equity participation on the ESG performance of private enterprises.

Using Chinese listed companies as the research sample, this study uses econometric methods such as multiple regression to analyze the relationship between state-owned equity and the ESG performance of private enterprises. Additionally, it explores the underlying mechanisms and influencing factors of this relationship.

There is a significant inverted U-shaped relationship between state-owned equity and the ESG performance of private enterprises. Mechanism analysis reveals that resource effects and governance effects play a mediating role in this nonlinear relationship. Furthermore, the authors find that environmental regulation and managers' attention to the environment positively moderate the relationship between state-owned equity participation and ESG performance.

A reasonable equity structure is crucial for enhancing corporate ESG performance. Moderate state-owned equity participation helps to leverage resource integration and governance advantages, which will assist private enterprises in maximizing ESG performance and achieving sustainable development.

In advancing the process of mixed-ownership reform, the government should maintain an appropriate proportion of state-owned equity to avoid excessive intervention in enterprise decision-making. At the same time, it should ensure that enterprises can genuinely undertake their social and environmental responsibilities while pursuing economic benefits. This is of great significance for promoting sustainable economic and social development.

This study integrates state-owned equity, ESG and nonlinear relationships into a single research framework. It explores the internal mechanisms and influencing factors of their relationship, overcoming the limitations of previous studies and provides a new perspective for understanding the impact of state-owned equity on corporate ESG performance.

The aim of the article was to compare the learning outcomes of the same content in the form of a traditional analogue lesson and in the form of a virtual reality (VR) lesson with the use of head-mounted display (HMD).

The study included one biology lesson conducted in 4 groups of a dozen people and one biology lesson in VR carried out individually on 75 people. The respondents completed the knowledge test, a questionnaire before and after the class regarding the attitude to new technologies, and feelings after the lesson. The researchers used detailed observation sheets (subjects' behaviour and the dynamics of the lesson). The obtained results were analysed statistically through lesson type (traditional/VR), respondent type (technology enthusiast/non-enthusiast) and question type. The Mann–Whitney U test, t-student and chi-squared (?²) test were used.

The average of the overall results in the knowledge test was similar in both groups (16 points; ±SD 2.13), slightly better for the analogue group and for the non-enthusiast group. It was found that VR hinders the acquisition of knowledge by tech enthusiasts, who perceive it primarily in the play paradigm. However, it encourages the learning of technology sceptics, who quickly discover a passion for exploring the virtual world. It was clearly indicated, quantitatively and qualitatively, how the technology modalities directly influenced the learning outcomes.

The article offers fresh insights into how students' perceptions of the educational process can be transformed through the integration of VR. The compelling findings and nuanced analysis provide a robust foundation for exploring new frontiers in educational technology.

An AI concierge is a technologically advanced, intelligent and personalized assistant that is designated to an individual customer, proactively taking care of that customer’s needs throughout the service journey. This article envisions the idea of AI concierges and discusses how to leverage AI concierges in the customer journey.

This article takes a conceptual approach and draws insights from literature in service management, marketing, psychology, human-computer interaction and ethics.

This article delineates the fundamental forms of AI concierges: dialog interface (no embodiment), virtual avatar (embodiment in the virtual world), holographic projection (projection in the physical world) and tangible service robot (embodiment in the physical world). Key attributes of AI concierges are the ability to exhibit semantic understanding of auditory and visual inputs, maintain an emotional connection with the customer, demonstrate proactivity in refining the customer’s experience and ensure omnipresence through continuous availability in various forms to attend to service throughout the customer journey. Furthermore, the article explores the multifaceted roles that AI concierges can play across the pre-encounter, encounter and post-encounter stages of the customer journey and explores the opportunities and challenges associated with AI concierges.

This paper provides insights for professionals in hospitality, retail, travel, and healthcare on leveraging AI concierges to enhance the customer experience. By broadening AI concierge services, organizations can deliver personalized assistance and refined services across the entire customer journey.

This article is the first to introduce the concept of the AI concierge. It offers a novel perspective by defining AI concierges’ fundamental forms, key attributes and exploring their diverse roles in the customer journey. Additionally, it lays out a research agenda aimed at further advancing this domain.