Search results

Currently, environmental and social concerns have made green innovation more popular among researchers and practitioners around the globe. Developed countries tend to focus more on this issue, compared to developing countries. However, the reality shows that small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are considered as high contributors to environmental pollution. This study is designed for, and conducted on, SMEs in a developing country, Pakistan. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the main determinants of green innovation adoption in SMEs in Pakistan.

A data sample of 288 SMEs from five different sectors was collected and analyzed using the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique.

The results of the study indicate that organizational and human resource factors, market and customer factors, and government support and technological factors have a positive and significant impact, whereas external partnership and cooperation, and rules and regulatory factors have an insignificant impact on green innovation adoption in SMEs in Pakistan.

The outcomes of the study have important implications for managers as well as for government policy makers regarding framing better policies to promote green practices in SMEs.

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 outlines sustainability as associated with peace, good governance and justice. The perception of international tourists about security measures and risks is a key factor affecting destination choices, tourist flow and overall satisfaction. Thus, we investigate the impact of armed forces personnel, prices, economic stability, financial development and infrastructure on tourism.

This research used data from 130 countries from 1995 to 2019, which were divided into four income groups. This study employs a two-step generalized method of moments (GMM) technique and a novel tourism index comprising five relevant indicators of tourism.

A 1% increase in armed forces personnel expands tourism in all income groups – 0.369% High Income Countries (HICs), 0.348% Upper Middle Income Countries (UMICs), 0.247% Lower Middle Income Countries (LMICs) and 0.139% Low Income Countries (LICs). The size of the tourism-safety coefficient decreases from high to low-income groups. The impact of inflation is significantly negative in all panels, excluding LICs. The reduction in tourism was 0.033% in HICs, 0.049% in UMICs and 0.029% in LMICs for a 1% increase in prices. The increase in the global tourism index is more in LICs (0.055%), followed by LMICs (0.024%), UMICs (0.009%) and HICs (0.004%) for a 1% expansion in the gross domestic product (GDP)/capita growth. However, the magnitude of the growth-led tourism impact is greater in developing countries. A positive impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow was found in all panels like 0.016% in HICs, 0.050% in UMICs and 0.119% in LMICs for a 1% increase in FDI inflow. The rise in the global tourism index is 0.097% (HICs), 0.124% (UMICs) and 0.310% (LMICs) for a 1% rise in the financial development index. The increase in the global tourism index is 0.487% (HICs), 0.420% (UMICs) and 0.136% (LICs) for a 1% rise in the infrastructure index.

Empirical analysis infers important policy implications such as (a) establishment of a peaceful environment via recruitment of security personnel, use of safe city cameras, modern technology and law enforcement; (b) provision of basic facilities to tourists like sanitation, drinking water, electricity, accommodation, quality food, fuel and communication network and (c) price stability through different tools of monetary and fiscal policy.

First, it explains the effect of security personnel on a comprehensive index of tourism instead of a single variable of tourism. Second, it captures the importance of economic stability (i.e., economic growth, financial development and FDI inflow) in the tourism–peace nexus.

The main purpose of this study is to identify the socioeconomic determinants of dropout from primary schools and to give policy suggestions to address the issue.

A total of 600 dropout and enrolled respondents were selected from 60 government primary schools of district Chiniot. School heads and parents of dropout children were taken as samples. The results were obtained by employing the Probit regression model.

Numbers of family members, age of the family head, exchange marriage and poverty status have positive relationship with dropout from primary schools. The findings revealed a higher rate of dropout among girls, which is a major cause of concern.

Education is regarded as a basic human right and a valuable human capital. It is included in Millennium Development Goals to achieve universal primary education and in Sustainable Development Goals as quality education. Underdeveloped countries are facing the problems of high dropout and lack of quality education, especially in Pakistan. These problems need to be addressed to keep pace with developed nations and to meet development goals.

It is recommended that government should create employment opportunities, family planning programs, legislature measures on exchange marriage and child labor. The involvement in co-curricular activities in learning and usage of audio-visual aids in the teaching process can improve the enrollment in the primary schools.

The paper contributes to the literature on investment and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Specifically, the study examined the separate role of private and public investment in poverty reduction in a panel of 40 sub-Saharan African countries.

For robustness, the study adopts a variety of estimation techniques. These include the fixed effect (within) regression model, the two-step system generalised method of moments (GMM) and the pooled OLS with Driscoll-Kraay robust standard errors to account for the well-known problems of endogeneity, heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence inherent in panel data.

The empirical results show that the reducing impact of public investment on poverty is marginal, while private investment has a significant reducing impact on poverty. The study also found that access to social services, such as water and sanitation, and credit are important determinants of investment in SSA. The research and policy implications are discussed.

The study investigated the separate effect of private and public investments on poverty in SSA, unlike the existing studies that adopted total investment.

This research examines consumer reluctance to purchase organic food using the theory of innovation resistance and also extends the theory by investigating the moderating influence of eco-literacy. In addition, the authors used a multigroup analysis to identify differences between consumer segments.

Data collection used computer-assisted web interviewing and a prior screening process to confirm engagement. Through stratified quota sampling, 1,000 useable responses were obtained from 2,887 recipients.

The findings reveal barriers are significant inhibitors to adopting organic food. Among these barriers, usage, risk tradition and image barriers have a significant adverse influence on purchase intention. In contrast, the value barrier has a nonsignificant influence on the purchase intention of organic food. However, the study found that eco-literacy significantly reduces the negative influence of risk and tradition barriers on consumers' intentions. In addition, a multigroup analysis examines notable differences between consumer groups based on education, age and income.

This research has significant social implications for boosting sustainable consumption in Lithuania. It identifies key barriers to organic food adoption, emphasizing the need for strategic interventions. The study highlights eco-literacy as an essential tool in diminishing resistance to organic food, advocating for targeted educational initiatives. Additionally, it reveals the importance of tailored marketing strategies based on different consumer demographics. Overall, this study provides important insights to promote environmentally conscious consumer behavior and overcome resistance to innovation in the organic food sector.

This study expressively advances the understanding of intentional behavior by exploring organic food within Lithuania's Baltic economy. It authenticates the innovation resistance theory's applicability to organic food behavior in the region while emphasizing the moderating impact of eco-literacy in the link between barriers and purchase intention concerning organic food. Furthermore, using advanced methods such as partial least squares statistical modeling and multi-group analysis, the research reveals how barriers affect the purchase intention of organic food among different groups of consumers.

This study aims to improve the theory of planned behavior (TPB) model by incorporating electronic word of mouth (E-WOM) as a factor influencing attitude (ATT), subjective norms (SN) and perceived behavioral control (PBC). The main goal is to study Generation Z’s intention to purchase halal cosmetics. In addition, the research examines how halal product knowledge (HPK) influences the relationships between ATT, SN, PBC and the purchase intention of halal cosmetics.

Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires from two superstores in Karachi, Pakistan, with 265 valid responses. Convergent and discriminant validity analyses were performed to ensure validity and reliability, and variable relationships were assessed using structural equation modeling.

The results revealed that EWOM significantly influences ATT, SN and PBC. ATT and PBC both significantly affect purchase intention (PI), while SN has a nonsignificant influence on PI. In addition, the study found HPK only moderates the association between ATT and PI, while moderating influence HPK does not exist in the relationship between (SN and PI) and (PBC and PI).

This study focuses on the Halal cosmetics industry in Pakistan and explicitly targets Generation Z individuals in a particular cultural environment. The aim is to examine how applying the same research design in different sectors and countries can lead to different results. In addition, the study primarily includes Gen Z consumers of halal cosmetics. Collecting data from other generational groups for future studies, such as generations X and Y, would be interesting.

This research contributes to the existing literature on halal consumption by introducing the concept of E-WOM as a factor within the TPB model. This study is particularly groundbreaking as it examines how Gen Z Pakistani Muslim consumers’ behavioral intentions toward halal cosmetic products are influenced by their HPK using the TPB model. Additionally, the paper presents an extended TPB modeling framework that could be valuable to researchers, marketers and halal experts.

This study examines the relationship between green psychological benefits and green apparel purchase behavior using stimulus–organism–response (S-O-R) theory and a serial multiple mediation model.

Data were collected from 250 Lithuanians using a standardized questionnaire. Convergent and discriminant validity analyses were performed to ensure validity and reliability, and variable relationships were assessed using structural equation modeling.

The findings revealed utilitarian environmental benefits and warm glow benefits positively impacted Generation Z's (Gen Z's) attitudes toward green apparel. In contrast, the self-expressive benefits had no effect. In addition, attitude and purchase intention significantly predict green apparel purchase behavior. Attitudes and purchase intentions are crucial as serial mediators between green psychological benefits and green apparel purchase behavior.

These findings provide valuable insights for policymakers in Lithuania and highlight the importance of emphasizing the psychological benefits to encourage the purchase of green apparel. Moreover, policymakers and marketers should design apparel products that appeal to Gen Z, promoting green apparel adoption. By leveraging the stimulus–organism–response (S-O-R) theory, this research contributes to understanding pro-environmental behavior. It bridges the gap between attitudes, intentions and actual behavior in sustainable fashion research.

The current study examines the impact of big data analytics capabilities (BDAC) on supply chain performances of the manufacturing firms. Based on the underpinning of resource-based view (RBV) theory, the current study will highlight the significance of BDAC on green dynamic capabilities (GDC), supply chain agility (SCA) and green competitive advantage (GCA). Furthermore, the study examines the moderating effect of supply chain innovativeness (SCI) on the relationship between GCA and firm performance (FP).

Online survey method was employed for the data collection from the 331 managers employed in Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)-listed manufacturing firms. The hypothesized model was tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique.

The study results indicate that BDAC has a positive influence on both GDC and SCA, leading to enhanced GCA. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that GCA significantly and positively impacts FP, and the relationship between them is positively moderated by SCI.

This study developed a novel theoretical perspective based on RBV theory and provided empirical evidence that manufacturing firms' performances are significantly influenced by BDAC, GDC and SCA. The study results provide valuable practical implications top management regarding the effectiveness of BDAC and SCA in the supply chain. The findings further highlight the significance of SCI strengthening relationship between GCA and FP.

The purpose of this study is to develop an extended theory of planned behavior (TPB) model by adding religious commitment (RC) and self-efficacy as internal variables and investigating the effect of these variables on attitudes toward halal cosmetics. In addition, this study also examined the moderating role of halal literacy in the relationships between attitudes (ATT), subjective norms (SN), perceived behavioral control (PBC) and intentions to purchase halal cosmetics.

The method of data collection used was self-administered surveys with customers in two stores in Karachi, Pakistan, yielding 267 valid questionnaires. To guarantee validity and reliability, convergent and discriminant validity analyses were conducted, and structural equation modeling was advanced to assess the relationships between variables using smart partial least squares 3.0 software. The interaction moderation technique has been used to examine the moderating effect of halal literacy on the purchase intention (PI) of halal cosmetics.

The results show that RC and self-efficacy both significantly impact the attitudes of Gen Y. Normative beliefs also had a significant relationship with SN. Further, ATT and SN had a significant relationship with PI of halal cosmetics, while PBC was nonsignificant. Furthermore, halal literacy is found to have a positive moderating influence on ATT and PI, and SN and PI. Finally, the moderating effect of halal literacy does not exist in the relationship between PBC and PI.

Participants’ characteristics should vary for future studies, and larger sample sizes may yield different results. It is critical for managers working in the cosmetic industry to monitor Muslim consumption patterns to develop strategies to reach Muslim consumers. This study reveals the effect of RC, self-efficacy and the moderating role of halal literacy on the behavioral attitudes of a booming market sector, which can guide marketing managers in developing more effective advertising campaigns.

This paper contributes to the halal consumption literature by exploring RC and self-efficacy as constructs for the very first time in the TPB model. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to explore the influence of halal literacy on Gen Y Pakistani Muslim consumer behavioral intention toward halal cosmetic products using the TPB model. The paper offers an extended TPB model framework that may be of interest to scholars, marketers and policymakers.

Islamic marketing is an emerging field with a lot of potentials, so it is worthwhile to explore it. This paper aims to conduct research on the unexplored relationship of antecedents of the equity, image and consumers’ trust and satisfaction of halal brands.

A structured questionnaire was designed to conduct research to analyze the halal brand equity and its antecedents. Data were collected from 250 halal consumers of Kota Samarahan and Kuching, Malaysia through a self-administered questionnaire using a convenience sampling method.

The study finds a positive relationship of three antecedents of brand equity, which confirms a strong relationship between the image and satisfaction of halal brand equity. The results further showed that halal brand image is linked with halal brand trust, but the relationship between halal brand trust and its equity could not be proved.

This has been a cross-sectional study that was limited to Malaysia, a Muslim majority country. Researchers can conduct a longitudinal study and can conduct it in non-Muslim societies to comprehend their diversity and wider impact. Additionally, this study was limited to halal food brands in Malaysia.

Islamic marketing has received great attention of researchers, academicians and practitioners that has rather been unexplored earlier particularly the relationships among antecedents of the equity, image and consumers’ trust and satisfaction of halal brands.