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Purpose: The paper explores how consumer behavior for purchasing impulse products changed in the complex and disruptive (emergency) situation of the COVID-19 pandemic when the customer is shopping in-home and not visiting the offline stores in an emerging economy context. This paper further explores how digital transformations like the use of blockchain technology can aid offline/omnichannel retailers in reviving sales via permission marketing for impulse products. Design/methodology/approach: The authors followed a qualitative research design and conducted 24 personal interviews with millennials and 15 interviews with offline/omnichannel retailers from an emerging economy. The data collected were analyzed using the thematic analysis procedure. Findings: The authors discuss their findings under three themes – customers' conscious impulse buying during the pandemic, customers' unconscious impulse buying during the pandemic, and a viable solution for retailers in response to the pandemic. Practical implications: The authors suggest that marketers primarily from an offline/omnichannel store should adapt to permission marketing and use technologies like blockchain for the digital transformation of their marketing strategies. Doing so can help offline retailers minimize future damages in the retail sector during emergency situations. Originality/value: This paper is one of the first that explores how impulse – pure, suggestion, planned and reminder – purchases got affected during the COVID-19 pandemic disruptions in an emerging economy. This paper is also one of the first to explore the role of permission marketing and digital transformation by the use of blockchain in helping offline retailers in forming swift trust and practice trust-based marketing. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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Neuromarketing literature has grown remarkably in recent years. Although the field has generated a diverse body of knowledge, we still find a dearth of studies classifying the existing literature into research themes and further presenting known and unknown aspects of Neuromarketing from a business and management viewpoint. To bridge this gap, the present study conducted a systematic literature review of Neuromarketing from 2011 to 2021, with a sample of 100 peer-reviewed articles. Based on rigorous review and thematic analysis of 41 relevant research articles, four research themes were identified - 1) Phenomenon, 2) Application, 3) Bright side, and 4) Dark side of Neuromarketing. Further, a theoretical framework of neuromarketing effect on consumer behaviour was presented. Future research thrust areas in theory, application, methodology, and evidence were identified.
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Purpose: Due to the financial disturbances created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the burden on the government exchequer, it is expected to see a rise in the knowledge base of the research corpus so far as the government's fiscal sustainability is concerned. Therefore, the present research examines a systematic quantitative analysis of public debt sustainability research by applying a bibliometric approach. Research also analyzes journals, institutions, countries and authors contributing to public debt sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: This paper scrutinizes the published scientific research on public debt sustainability based on the dataset of 535 articles from 1991 to 2021 obtained from the Scopus database. Biblioshiny (R-based application) and VoSviewer software were used to perform bibliometric analysis through Performance analysis and science mapping techniques. The authors combined co-citation analysis (CCA), bibliometric analysis, keyword co-occurrence analysis (KCA) and a conceptual thematic map of the most cited articles to find the intellectual structure. Findings: The research identified three dominating clusters, e.g. fiscal sustainability and policy rules, empirical sustainability testing and debt and growth dynamics. Another finding was that most articles were analytical and empirical and few descriptive articles were found. Owing to the empirical nature of the domain, the issues concerning public debt sustainability have continued to change over the past decades for different economies, reflecting the complexity and diversity of economic structures of different economies at different times. Originality/value: The insight of this article provides academicians and researchers with a more refined comprehension of the conceptual and intellectual structure of the research corpus. The present research complements the existing literature review studies by pushing the research towards emerging or less developed issues such as financial and debt crises. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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The COVID-19 global pandemic has transformed work and employment patterns within organizations. Two key emerging trends visible at the organization level are as follows. First, employees being asked to leave (which has mostly been seen within the aviation, hospitality, and travel industries) and second, employees asking to work part-time or on a contractual basis (e.g. within the education and healthcare sectors). This so-called ‘new normal’ has also given rise to an unprecedented increase and diffusion of digital workforces being engaged either full or part time within organizations. Thus, through our study, we aimed to contribute from a theoretical standpoint by exploring this phenomenon through the lenses of swift trust theory (STT) and psychological contract theory (PCT). Our goal was to understand how firms use gamification to engage their digital gig workforce. We collected our data from organizations that used some form of gamification in the process of engaging their employees and extended our inquiry to understand whether they did the same in engaging their gig workforces. We restricted our data to only those firms that had engaged white-collar gig workers. Overall, our study contributes to the literature by extending the theoretical debate pertaining to the use of STT and PCT theory to understand the phenomenon of digital gig workforce engagement and productivity. © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
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Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) play an essential role in economic growth. COVID-19 severely affected this sector, given its dependence on logistics. Logistics 4.0 is a progressive and vital technology for the MSME sector in developed economies. However, certain inhibitors cause MSMEs to face criticality and difficulty when adopting Logistics 4.0. Therefore, the authors first identified fourteen inhibitors through a detailed structured literature review and then used the Delphi method to finalise the inhibitors for further analysis. Furthermore, the modified total interpretive structural modelling (M-TISM) technique was applied to identify the levels and interrelationships among the inhibitors. Subsequently, the inhibitors were categorised into four main clusters by their dependence and driving power using matrice d’impacts croisés multiplication appliquée á un classment (MICMAC) analysis. This study reveals that MSMEs must prioritise five critical inhibitors during the Logistics 4.0 adoption process. The authors also develop five propositions. Timely action on the recommendations can help MSMEs owners, managers, and employees quickly adopt Logistics 4.0. Finally, the authors discuss theoretical and managerial implications and future research directions for a better understanding of adopting Logistics 4.0. © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
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Purpose: The crucial action program of United Nations is sustainable development. In the context of lockdown and food supply chain disruptions in many developing countries due to COVID-19, sustainable agribusiness entrepreneurship (SAE) must be investigated to contribute to the global safe-food supply chain resilience. Furthermore, this pandemic might have changed cognitive social capital (i.e. perceived shared norms, civicness and community cohesiveness) and relational social capital (i.e. social trust). Therefore, this study aims to examine their role in forming agribusiness entrepreneurs’ SAE intentions under the lens of sustainable development in the pandemic context. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses a mixed-methods approach with resources for structural equation modeling. A sample of 499 Vietnamese agribusiness entrepreneurs to reconcile scales and test hypothesized relationships. Findings: The study reconciles the existing constructs’ scales and develops a new scale measuring SAE intention. The findings show that the extended theory of planned behavior (ETPB) model is an ideal theoretical framework for predicting behavioral intentions in sustainability. The study also discovers the role of cognitive social capital and relational social capital in motivating SAE intentions. Also, some managerial implications are suggested for agribusinessmen to survive and succeed during the COVID-19 crisis. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is considered the first to investigate the role of cognitive social capital and relational social capital in motivating SAE in an emerging market using the ETPB. The findings will help emerging economies, where most farmers are family-business owners or micro-scaled entrepreneurs who have been facing the increasing trend of sustainable production and consumer. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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Purpose The paper explores how consumer behavior for purchasing impulse products changed in the complex and disruptive (emergency) situation of the COVID-19 pandemic when the customer is shopping in-home and not visiting the offline stores in an emerging economy context. This paper further explores how digital transformations like the use of blockchain technology can aid offline/omnichannel retailers in reviving sales via permission marketing for impulse products. Design/methodology/approach The authors followed a qualitative research design and conducted 24 personal interviews with millennials and 15 interviews with offline/omnichannel retailers from an emerging economy. The data collected were analyzed using the thematic analysis procedure. Findings The authors discuss their findings under three themes - customers' conscious impulse buying during the pandemic, customers' unconscious impulse buying during the pandemic, and a viable solution for retailers in response to the pandemic. Practical implications The authors suggest that marketers primarily from an offline/omnichannel store should adapt to permission marketing and use technologies like blockchain for the digital transformation of their marketing strategies. Doing so can help offline retailers minimize future damages in the retail sector during emergency situations. Originality/value This paper is one of the first that explores how impulse - pure, suggestion, planned and reminder - purchases got affected during the COVID-19 pandemic disruptions in an emerging economy. This paper is also one of the first to explore the role of permission marketing and digital transformation by the use of blockchain in helping offline retailers in forming swift trust and practice trust-based marketing.
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Purpose: This will not be an overstatement to state that the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) industry is crucial and the vital driver of the world economy. It covers different fields and dimensions such as defense products, electrical components and low-cost products. The sector plays a vital role in rendering work with low capital expenditure and is one of the emerging pillars of the Indian economy. Given the significance of this sector in contributing towards India's gross domestic product (GDP), it becomes appropriate to resolve all the issues related to MSME on a primary basis for ensuring required support. The recent global pandemic of COVID-19 has impacted this sector to a great extent. This research study targets the MSME industry and points out the directly linked enablers adding to improve the sector's resiliency and sustainability. Therefore, identification and the interrelationship between the MSME enablers need to be studied, which helps make a preliminary list that deals with their impedance benefaction towards resiliency increment. Design/methodology/approach: The writers have done a comprehensive literature analysis of the enablers for the MSME sector to enable effectively and efficiently during emergencies and pandemics. An endeavor has been made on the enablers to order them by utilizing the modified Total Interpretative Structure Modelling (m-TISM) technique. Authentication of this research work highlights the significance of enablers and their position in a hierarchical structure. Further, MICMAC investigation on the recognized enablers is performed to arrange them in the four quadrants on their dependence and driving power. Findings: The authors have attempted to predict the significance of the MSME sector and its essential contribution to the development of India's economy. The result of m-TISM in the current research work revealed the essential commitment of a hierarchical design dealing with the MSME considering the viewpoint of future development. The well-planned traditional design in the MSME helps establish better government policies and programs and transport infrastructure. Research limitations/implications: Every research study has a few restrictions. Likewise, the boundaries of the current study are that inputs collated for fostering the models are from a few specialists that may not mirror the assessment of the whole MSME sector. Practical implications: The MSME sector is the developing sector in the current day, and it is needed to keep supporting the sector for the country's development. The current study has set out the functional establishment to improve MSME practicality. In addition, the research highlights the accountability of the MSME authorities to go with the identified enablers having solid driving power for successful usage of the available resources. This will help the MSME development and add value to practitioners and policymakers in the future. Originality/value: The growth of this sector is essential for the development of the economy and the development of a nation. The current study presents a unique structure that gives a superior comprehension of the enablers. It will help play a crucial role in developing the MSME area. The structure model developed with the assistance of m-TISM and MICMAC examine the identified enablers with inputs from experts in the field. The hierarchy developed from the study recognized the enablers located on their commitment of suitability development of the MSME field. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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The study aims to identify social, intellectual, and conceptual structures along with key areas, contributors, current dynamics, and suggest future research directions in the field of engagement with e-learning systems. An objective analysis of a sample of 358 articles taken from the Web of Science database, supported by subjective assessments based on the research, focused on the integration of management into e-learning domain. Citations and page rank metrics were used to identify the most influential papers along with most influential authors. To understand the intellectual structure of the research area, a co-citation network was developed. The study may help to explore effective ways of delivering education during a crisis, while also taking a sustainable approach to the promotion of education through online methods. By understanding the behavior of learners towards various forms of content delivery, policy makers at national level can develop a framework to implement it nationwide.
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Purpose This study aims to evaluate the impact of perceived cause- related marketing (perceived-CRM) on the repurchase intention (CRIN). Besides, brand image (BIMA) and customer satisfaction (CSAT) connect this relationship as mediating variables. Especially, the role of perceived corporate social responsibility (perceived-CSR) contributed to this nexus between perceived-CRM and BIMA, perceived-CRM and CSAT in emerging economies. Design/methodology/approach The paper follows a quantitative approach. Based on a comprehensive literature review on perceived-CSR, perceived-CRM , BIMA, CSAT and repurchase intention, the authors evaluate the impact of those constructs on repurchase intention in an emerging market. The study sample was composed of 395 responses covering customers of consumer goods. The study uses the Smart PLS-SEM version 3.3.2 to analyze the data. Findings The findings revealed significant contributions to the extant CRM literature in some ways. This study's outcomes contribute to extending the existing literature on CRM and CSR. Specifically, the extension focuses on the mediating and moderating effects of BIMA, CSAT and perceived-CSR, respectively, in the relationship between perceived-CRM and CRIN. Moreover, the novelty of this study lies in providing a new approach to the influence of perceived-CRM on CRIN, with the mediating of BIMA, CSAT and moderating effects perceived-CSR integrated into a conceptual model. Practical implications From a management perspective, the contribution of this study plays a very important role in strategic planning to enhance competitive advantage and improve business performance on a sustainable basis. This sustainability is founded on an insight into how changes in contextual factors affect the perception and consumer behavior of millennials in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market, especially in a context of Covid-19 global crisis. It is important to emphasize that genuineness and transparency in all activities and communications are a prerequisite in today's sensitive context. The application of acquired insight into practice will help businesses operating in the consumer sector improve brand reputation and CSAT. As a result, this leads to enhanced competitive advantage of the business in the market, improved market performance and ultimately to an improvement in the overall performance of the enterprise. Originality/value This is the first study that explores the moderating role of perceived CSR on the nexus between perceived-CRM with brand image (BIMA) and CSAT to the best of our knowledge. Besides, the study also discovers the mediating role of BIMA and CSAT between perceived-CRM and repurchase-intention in an emerging economy. Findings in this study provided additional evidence to the increasingly important roles of perceived-CRM and perceived-CSR in creating win-win relationships with customers, aiming to solve specific social causes jointly. Further, the perceived-CRM and perceived-CSR mechanisms help businesses enhance their intangible assets and competitive advantages through enhanced BIMA and stronger CRIN. In the current context, the business environment is changing rapidly due to many factors that lead to increased competition at a global level. Therefore, improving competitive advantage is a mandatory condition for businesses to survive and develop sustainably.
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Purpose: This paper documents and links firm- and country-level outcomes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) by portraying how the Chinese economy has fared during the COVID-19 crisis. It does so by shedding light on the factors that determine the effectiveness of health policies implemented in China. Design/methodology/approach: Unlike the prior literature, in which lagging performance measures are used, the authors use leading indicators with event study methodology to develop effectiveness scores and identify the determinants of effectiveness, including financial variables, firm infection, geographical location of the spread, travel bans, lockdown periods, policies of home quarantine, health innovations and other innovative measures undertaken by the Chinese authorities. Findings: The detailed disaggregated results show many dimensions where abnormal returns are indeed associated with various health policies and that the effectiveness, influenced by firm size, profitability, firm infection and location. The results remain robust when the authors control for various event windows and models and provide evidence of a strong UNSDG link, which the authors draw up a list. Research limitations/implications: Apart from the quantitative analysis approach, future studies can complement and add further insights by utilizing qualitative research approaches. Practical implications: The results offers robust evidence for policy-makers and firm managers on how a crisis of such proportions and subsequent health policies is affecting different firms and why. Social implications: The study shows how COVID-19 health policies open a new dimension in terms of energy demand reduction and lower emissions, factors linking to the UNSDGs. Originality/value: The study is the first to show detailed disaggregated results across many dimensions where abnormal returns are indeed associated with various health policies and that the effectiveness, influenced by firm size, profitability, firm infection and location. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic has badly affected the global economy. The use of social capital as a resource to diversify agribusiness to get more customers and improve the agricultural supply chain is a considerable issue to explore. This study aims to develop a comprehensive measurement of social capital and examine its effect on the intention to diversify agribusiness. From a supply chain perspective, it uses theory of planned behavior (TPB) and resource-based view (RBV). Design/methodology/approach The study uses a mixed-methods approach. In-depth interviews, focus group discussions and surveys are used. Structural equation modeling on a sample of 465 respondents in Vietnam was employed to examine the hypothesized relationships. Findings An integrative measurement scale of social capital from an agricultural supply chain perspective is suggested. The study also shows significant causal relationships amongst social capital, motives, TPB's determinants and the intention to diversify agribusinesses in light of supply chain perspectives. Originality/value The study offers a significant contribution to the existing body of knowledge in the literature on social capital, motives, TPB, RBV and supply chain perspectives. The study was executed in Vietnam, where most farmers are smallholders, family business owners or micro-scale entrepreneurs in agriculture.
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Purpose Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has seriously affected the global economy. How agribusinessmen are overcoming this crisis is being noticed in emerging markets. Using social capital to diversify agribusiness for getting more customers is a useful solution for the growth of agribusiness. However, there is a lack of evidence on the aggregate measurement scale of social capital and the influence of behavioral goals on the intention toward agribusiness diversification. Therefore, this study aims to develop an integrated measurement of social capital and investigate its effect on agribusiness diversification intention using the expanded theory of planned behavior (TPB). Design/methodology/approach A mixed-methods approach is used, including four in-depth interviews, three focus group discussions and two surveys. Structural equation modeling is applied to a sample of 484 respondents to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings The study shows the role of social capital in influencing the intention to diversify agribusiness under the premises of the resource-based view (RBV). The scale of social capital is also developed, which is the first integrated measurement of this asset. The findings contribute significantly to the existing knowledge of social capital, the TPB and diversifying agribusiness. Originality/value This is the first study to explore the comprehensive effect of the facets of social capital on behavioral intention through behavioral goals and determinants of the TPB under the premises of the RBV. The findings will help emerging economies, for example, Vietnam, where most farmers are family business owners or microscaled entrepreneurs in agriculture.
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Purpose: The present situation is marked by the threat of COVID-19 pandemic on entire humankind and researchers across the globe are looking forward to vaccines or medicines to tackle COVID-19. However, according to the scholars and health-care agencies, vaccines alone would not be of much help and in the longer run adhering to the physical distancing policy along with sanitation could be the only solution. Moreover, extant studies across different areas have noted a positive association between various human psychological factors and prosocial behaviours. Additionally, an empirical study undertaken in the western context has tried exploring the association between human psychological factors and physical distancing behaviour (a kind of prosocial behaviour) in the COVID-19 context. The results of the extant study seem intriguing and encouraging enough to undertake a more robust exploratory study in this developing area. Against this background, this study aims to explore the relationship between individuals’ mindfulness and physical distancing behaviour, along with the mediating role of empathy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the study objectives, this study has used an online survey method and has collected responses from the general adult population in India spread across all six regions. The survey was conducted during May 2020 when India was under a nationwide lockdown to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 pandemic. The respondents were identified based on convenience and snowball sampling techniques. Using social media platforms, the prospective respondents were contacted through WhatsApp, LinkedIn and Facebook or e-mails. Post data cleaning, a total of 315 responses were found to be suitable for analysis. For analysis, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to establish the validity and reliability of the conceptual model, whereas Pearson correlation was undertaken to study the relationship between variables and mediation was examined using the PROCESS macro of Hayes. Findings: The findings were encouraging and could become the foundation stone for further research and a practical guide for policymakers, agencies working in the health-care areas and even corporate leaders. As expected, an individual’s mindfulness was noted to be positively-related and influencing physical distancing behaviour. The mediation analysis indicated the intervening role of empathy in the association between an individual’s mindfulness and physical distancing behaviour. Practical implications: The findings of the present could be a game-changer in restricting the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. As espoused by various scholars, as well as health-care organizations about the use of physical distancing in mitigating the risk of COVID-19, policymakers, health-care authorities and even corporate leaders could look forward to strategizing and execute the dissemination of various mindfulness-based programs among the individuals. These mindfulness-based programs, which could be disseminated offline and online through smartphones, could, in turn, help in positively influence physical distancing behaviour among the individuals leading to the success of physical distancing policy. Social implications: This study relates and extends the mechanism of mindfulness in influencing individuals’ physical distancing behaviour in the pandemic situation, notably the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, based on the “empathy-altruism hypothesis”, as well as Schwartz’s theory of fundamental values, the intervening role of empathy has been explored and the findings further helped in extended these two theories in the domain of pandemic. Originality/value: This study could be the first to conceptualize and examine the human psychological factors, particularly the relationship and role of an individual’s mindfulness with physical distancing behaviour among the general public during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, this could also be the first study to conceptualize and explore the intervening role of empathy in the relationship between an individual’s mindfulness and physical distancing behaviour. Moreover, in conceptualizing and exploring the relationship between an individual’s mindfulness and physical distancing behaviour, this study explored and extended the “reperceiving” mechanism of mindfulness and the “empathy-altruism hypothesis” along with Schwartz’s theory of fundamental values in the domain of pandemic. © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited.