Quality Dimensions of Augmented Reality-based Mobile Apps for Smart-Tourism and its Impact on Customer Satisfaction & Reuse Intention

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected the tourism industry, with national lockdowns aimed at curbing the spread of the virus mandating travel restrictions and prohibiting events and gatherings. The shift to online video conferencing tools, which offer limited interactivity, has spurred the need to integrate augmented reality (AR) in various contexts, such as meetings, exhibitions, museums, and travel. This quantitative study examines visitors' perspectives on AR-based apps in tourism. It investigates the influence of three kinds of quality determinants, such as information quality, system quality, and service quality, on visitors' perspectives on AR apps. Their impact on visitor satisfaction ultimately triggers visitors to reuse AR-based mobile apps. The research makes a theoretical contribution to the literature on AR and the quality dimensions of mobile apps. We expect demand for AR-based apps to rapidly increase, as people continue to follow preventive measures even after COVID-19.

Suicide in India during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: There has been substantial discussion as to whether the mental health and socio-economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic might impact suicide rates. Although India accounts for the largest proportion of global suicides, the early impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide rates in this country are unknown. METHODS: National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data were used to calculate annual suicide rates for the period 2010-2020, stratified by sex and state. Rate Ratios (RRs) stratified by sex and state were calculated to estimate the extent of change in suicide rates. RESULTS: Suicide rates in India generally showed a decreasing trend from 2010 until 2017, with the trend reversing after this period, particularly for males. Among males and females, the highest increase post 2017 was noted in 2020 (compared to 2017) (males: RR = 1.18 95% UI 1.17-1.19; females: RR = 1.05 95% UI 1.03-1.06). LIMITATION: Suicide rates based on the NCRB data might be an underestimation of the true suicide rates. CONCLUSION: Suicide rates in India increased during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and although the increase in suicide rates, especially among males, predates the pandemic, the increase in suicide rates was highest in 2020, compared to increases in previous years. Further research is warranted to understand the potential ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide in India.

Guest editorial: Blue whistle for brands – consumers' and stakeholders' perspective towards reformation in marketing legal practices

[...]marketing practices require a re-invention and a reformation to get back on track (Islam et al., 2021). The brands are trying to figure out the balance between social media, capital market and corporate communication in the lens of legal formalities as shareholders' engagement and communication by corporate would be a great challenge to make customers comfortable. The purpose of this SI is to discuss the various studies exploring the opportunities and challenges with a legal perspective in the marketing domain, and synergy of the effective and parental role of government and business elements to develop the holistic, convincing sustainable idea and centralized the element of interest among all policymakers such as government, academia, society and business elements along with media houses is covered with five distinguished articles published in this SI.

Quality Dimensions of Augmented Reality-based Mobile Apps for Smart-Tourism and its Impact on Customer Satisfaction & Reuse Intention

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected the tourism industry, with national lockdowns aimed at curbing the spread of the virus mandating travel restrictions and prohibiting events and gatherings. The shift to online video conferencing tools, which offer limited interactivity, has spurred the need to integrate augmented reality (AR) in various contexts, such as meetings, exhibitions, museums, and travel. This quantitative study examines visitors' perspectives on AR-based apps in tourism. It investigates the influence of three kinds of quality determinants, such as information quality, system quality, and service quality, on visitors' perspectives on AR apps. Their impact on visitor satisfaction ultimately triggers visitors to reuse AR-based mobile apps. The research makes a theoretical contribution to the literature on AR and the quality dimensions of mobile apps. We expect demand for AR-based apps to rapidly increase, as people continue to follow preventive measures even after COVID-19.

Suicide numbers during the first 9-15 months of the COVID-19 pandemic compared with pre-existing trends: An interrupted time series analysis in 33 countries.

Background: Predicted increases in suicide were not generally observed in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the picture may be changing and patterns might vary across demographic groups. We aimed to provide a timely, granular picture of the pandemic's impact on suicides globally. Methods: We identified suicide data from official public-sector sources for countries/areas-within-countries, searching websites and academic literature and contacting data custodians and authors as necessary. We sent our first data request on 22nd June 2021 and stopped collecting data on 31st October 2021. We used interrupted time series (ITS) analyses to model the association between the pandemic's emergence and total suicides and suicides by sex-, age- and sex-by-age in each country/area-within-country. We compared the observed and expected numbers of suicides in the pandemic's first nine and first 10-15 months and used meta-regression to explore sources of variation. Findings: We sourced data from 33 countries (24 high-income, six upper-middle-income, three lower-middle-income; 25 with whole-country data, 12 with data for area(s)-within-the-country, four with both). There was no evidence of greater-than-expected numbers of suicides in the majority of countries/areas-within-countries in any analysis; more commonly, there was evidence of lower-than-expected numbers. Certain sex, age and sex-by-age groups stood out as potentially concerning, but these were not consistent across countries/areas-within-countries. In the meta-regression, different patterns were not explained by countries' COVID-19 mortality rate, stringency of public health response, economic support level, or presence of a national suicide prevention strategy. Nor were they explained by countries' income level, although the meta-regression only included data from high-income and upper-middle-income countries, and there were suggestions from the ITS analyses that lower-middle-income countries fared less well. Interpretation: Although there are some countries/areas-within-countries where overall suicide numbers and numbers for certain sex- and age-based groups are greater-than-expected, these countries/areas-within-countries are in the minority. Any upward movement in suicide numbers in any place or group is concerning, and we need to remain alert to and respond to changes as the pandemic and its mental health and economic consequences continue. Funding: None.

Suicide trends in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic: an interrupted time-series analysis of preliminary data from 21 countries.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic is having profound mental health consequences for many people. Concerns have been expressed that, at their most extreme, these consequences could manifest as increased suicide rates. We aimed to assess the early effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on suicide rates around the world. METHODS: We sourced real-time suicide data from countries or areas within countries through a systematic internet search and recourse to our networks and the published literature. Between Sept 1 and Nov 1, 2020, we searched the official websites of these countries' ministries of health, police agencies, and government-run statistics agencies or equivalents, using the translated search terms "suicide" and "cause of death", before broadening the search in an attempt to identify data through other public sources. Data were included from a given country or area if they came from an official government source and were available at a monthly level from at least Jan 1, 2019, to July 31, 2020. Our internet searches were restricted to countries with more than 3 million residents for pragmatic reasons, but we relaxed this rule for countries identified through the literature and our networks. Areas within countries could also be included with populations of less than 3 million. We used an interrupted time-series analysis to model the trend in monthly suicides before COVID-19 (from at least Jan 1, 2019, to March 31, 2020) in each country or area within a country, comparing the expected number of suicides derived from the model with the observed number of suicides in the early months of the pandemic (from April 1 to July 31, 2020, in the primary analysis). FINDINGS: We sourced data from 21 countries (16 high-income and five upper-middle-income countries), including whole-country data in ten countries and data for various areas in 11 countries). Rate ratios (RRs) and 95% CIs based on the observed versus expected numbers of suicides showed no evidence of a significant increase in risk of suicide since the pandemic began in any country or area. There was statistical evidence of a decrease in suicide compared with the expected number in 12 countries or areas: New South Wales, Australia (RR 0·81 [95% CI 0·72-0·91]); Alberta, Canada (0·80 [0·68-0·93]); British Columbia, Canada (0·76 [0·66-0·87]); Chile (0·85 [0·78-0·94]); Leipzig, Germany (0·49 [0·32-0·74]); Japan (0·94 [0·91-0·96]); New Zealand (0·79 [0·68-0·91]); South Korea (0·94 [0·92-0·97]); California, USA (0·90 [0·85-0·95]); Illinois (Cook County), USA (0·79 [0·67-0·93]); Texas (four counties), USA (0·82 [0·68-0·98]); and Ecuador (0·74 [0·67-0·82]). INTERPRETATION: This is the first study to examine suicides occurring in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in multiple countries. In high-income and upper-middle-income countries, suicide numbers have remained largely unchanged or declined in the early months of the pandemic compared with the expected levels based on the pre-pandemic period. We need to remain vigilant and be poised to respond if the situation changes as the longer-term mental health and economic effects of the pandemic unfold. FUNDING: None.