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This study seeks to examine the effects of perceived brand localness and foreignness on brand love via perceived brand coolness by incorporating the moderating impacts of local and global consumer identities on brand love while controlling the confounding effects of brand familiarity in the context of local and foreign digital retail banks.

This study collected 1,960 online responses (on local and foreign banks) from 980 consumers who often used local and foreign digital retail banking services. The analysis was performed on 1,766 responses through co-variance-based structural equation modeling.

This study discovered that perceived brand localness and foreignness were essential factors for driving brand love and perceived brand coolness toward local and foreign digital retail banks. However, perceived brand foreignness was a more effective driver than perceived brand localness. Importantly, perceived brand coolness emerged as a key mediator for shaping brand perceptions and love. Additionally, local and global consumer identities were effective moderators and brand familiarity was significant in enhancing brand love for local and foreign digital retail banks.

This study gives managers essential knowledge about crafting positioning, relationships and segmentation strategies to boost brand love and perceived coolness for local and foreign digital retail banks.

This novel study contributes new insights to the stimulus-organism-response and cultural identity theories by examining consumers’ brand perceptions and their impacts on consumer behavior in digital retail banking.

This study examines the impact of physical environmental factors on customer retention in fast-food restaurants/cafeterias. Furthermore, this study examines the mediating effect of customers’ positive emotions on this relationship.

In this study, the stimulus-organism-response model developed by Mehrabian and Russell (1974) is applied within the context of the fast-food restaurant/cafeteria industry. Data were collected from a sample of 250 consumers who have patronized establishments within this industry. The assessment model entailed employing the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) approach, which involved a two-stage procedure: measurement model and structural model evaluation.

The study’s results underscore the key role of customer positive emotions in influencing customer retention. Notably, physical environmental factors, encompassing elements like table setting, layout, and service staff, emerge as significant determinants in shaping these positive emotions. Furthermore, the findings indicate that these physical environmental factors exert a direct influence on customer retention, with customer positive emotions acting as mediator role in the relationship between these factors and retention.

This study is the first to use physical environment, customer emotions and customer retention variables together in the fast food restaurant/cafeteria industry.

This study evaluates the aesthetic perception of photovoltaic (PV) systems situated at various locations on an apartment building facade, comparing them with the original facade. It also aims to understand how aesthetic dimensions influence the perception of PV installations in diverse building locations. Moreover, it aims to create a framework that will guide for installing PV installations considering both their functionality and aesthetics.

The study uses a mixed-method approach, including qualitative and quantitative approaches. It includes a literature review and a questionnaire. 418 participants evaluated different PV-embedded facades using a Likert scale across various aesthetic variables.

The findings indicate that aesthetic perceptions of PV vary by the location of installation. It also shows that all aesthetic dimensions affect PV installation aesthetics, with location-specific preferences. For original elevation, compatibility and simplicity are given precedence over blending and coherence for windows, creativity and harmony for facades, functionality and harmony for balconies, and innovation potential and simplicity for roofs.

This study focuses on a single building type; further investigation is required to examine other building types. It also examined one PV technology with common visual properties, but future studies can examine others. Additional research is needed to compare the participating groups and the effect of their sociodemographic factors, using on-site surveys and interviews.

Few studies have investigated how PV systems affect apartment building users' architectural aesthetic perception. The results of this study make a valuable contribution to the field of sustainable architecture by providing practical guidance for architects, engineers, stakeholders, and researchers who are interested in integrating aesthetic, user-centric considerations into renewable energy solutions.

The world today is heavily controlled by the content available on the internet, where a one-star rating gain may work wonders for a company and a one-star rating decline can cause huge damage. Online booking platforms provide more freedom, privacy and contact with experienced travelers than physical hotel booking. The study identifies the factors shaping travelers' online hotel booking intention (OHBI).

We utilized structural equation modeling (SEM) to expand the horizons of the technology acceptance model (TAM) and stimulus-organism-response (SOR) framework in the hospitality sector. The results are based on the data collected from 705 travelers who made online hotel reservations.

The findings demonstrate that online reviews, hotel website quality and hotel website convenience quotient favorably shape prospective tourists' perceived trust, magnifying their inclination to book a hotel online. Website convenience quotient and trust partially mediate the association between the constructs. In addition, the linkage between perceived trust and OHBI is strengthened by promotional offers but weakened by perceived risk.

Our findings provide several important implications for hotel managers, prospective travelers, hotel owners, website developers, policymakers, hotel employees, the local community and competitors to expedite the growth of the Indian hotel industry.

The literature reveals that website convenience quotient, perceived trust and promotional offers have not received enough attention in the hospitality industry and warrant attention. Our study strives to broaden the scope of the TAM and SOR models to better understand these constructs in the backdrop of the Indian hospitality sector. The study also examines how promotional offers and perceived risk influence the linkages between the underlying constructs.

This study adopts the stimulus–organism–response model to examine relationships between the retail environment and customers’ emotions (i.e. pleasure and arousal), prestige sensitivity and word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions towards two luxury retailers: Luxury Brand A and Luxury Brand B.

Data were obtained from a sample of 135 Chinese customers who had purchased Luxury Brand A and 130 Chinese customers who had purchased Luxury Brand B directly from each retailer. The relationships between these two retailers were compared via partial least squares–Henseler’s multi-group analysis (MGA).

Findings indicated that pleasure and arousal did not play mediating roles between the retail environment and WOM intention for either customer group. Prestige sensitivity did not moderate customers’ emotions about Luxury Brand A or Luxury Brand B. Altruism served as a moderator between emotions (i.e. pleasure/arousal) and WOM intention regarding Luxury Brand B but was not a significant moderator for Luxury Brand A. Additionally, MGA suggested non-significant differences between Luxury Brands A and B. Implications for the luxury retail literature and luxury marketers are provided accordingly.

This study is one of the earliest to examine the moderating roles of price sensitivity and altruism on associations between the retail environment and customers’ emotions, prestige sensitivity, and WOM intentions in a luxury retail context. An MGA of customers for Luxury Brand A and Luxury Brand B was innovatively performed to evaluate the proposed framework.

The purpose of this research was to study sustainable water resource management using a stimulus-organism-response (SOR) perspective.

This research study was an exploratory qualitative study. Thematic content analysis was used based on semi-structured interviews with 30 experts operating in the USA, representing 26 water-intensive organisations across different industries. The study was anchored in the theoretical foundations of SOR perspectives.

The results of this study revealed several fundamental factors, processes and forces that were considered by organisations for sustainable water resource management. Managers evaluated risks relative to water resources and developed strategic initiatives regarding water management. The authors found that often organisations considered water resources management aspects while deciding business operations. This was especially true for substantive water resource-consuming organisations with wide geographical operations.

Through this study, the authors explained how the interrelationship between organisations and water resources presented risks and challenges. The authors applied SOR theoretical perspective in this research study. This was while factoring in an organisation’s present considerations and future plans regarding sustainable water resource management. Thus, the study findings were expected to further interdisciplinary research at the intersection of organisational and environmental studies.

The finding that water sustainability challenges and efforts could act as strong motivating forces for innovation and technology was significant. Water sustainability challenges could also be a catalyst for synergistic collaborations amongst organisations and diverse groups of institutions. The study insights were relevant to organisational scholars, the water management industry regulators and managers involved with organisational sustainability programmes.

Organisational challenges regarding sustainable water resource management have been influenced by growing populations and climate change. Furthermore, the increasing context of scarcity was compounded by increased pressures from numerous stakeholders. Although critical water management issues were recognised by organisations, relatively little was known about how organisational managers were planning for and responding to these issues. This research study contributed towards addressing the mentioned research gap.

There has been a dramatic rise in the use of online food delivery apps (FDAs) services since the COVID-19 pandemic. Though online FDAs have contributed significantly to the rise in demand for products from the gourmet industry, little is known regarding the factors that inspire customers to order from online FDAs, subsequently influencing customers’ satisfaction. Considering the knowledge gap, this study utilizes the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model to conceptualize the factors: stimuli (eWOM, online reviews and online deals as external stimuli, and late-night craving and convenience as internal stimuli) that determine the organism level (i.e. customers’ inspiration) to subsequently generate the response (i.e. customers’ satisfaction).

We collected the data from 388 users and analyzed it via partial least squares – structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

The results reveal that online reviews, deals, late-night food cravings and convenience positively determine customers’ inspiration and satisfaction. In contrast, eWOM fails to impact customers’ inspiration directly and indirectly, affecting customers’ satisfaction through inspiration. Besides, customers’ inspiration positively mediates the relationship between stimuli (e.g. online reviews, online deals, late-night cravings and convenience) and customers’ satisfaction.

This study is novel in that it explores the impact of internal (late-night craving and convenience) and external (eWOM, online reviews and online deals) stimuli on customer inspiration and subsequently predicts customer satisfaction. We also expand prior studies on food delivery apps by studying customer inspiration as a mediating mechanism between internal and external stimuli and customer satisfaction.

This study aims to integrate and extend leading contemporary underpinning frameworks such as the Stimulus Organism Response (S-O-R) model, Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to assess the determinants of M-commerce usage during COVID-19 times. Besides direct effects, the study examines the mediating role of behavioral intention in affecting the relationship between a few external stimuli, internal states (of the organism) and M-commerce usage (the response). The study has also examined the moderating role of habitual behavior in the relationship between behavioral intention and M-commerce usage.

Data were gathered from 312 customers through an online survey using a structured questionnaire. PLS-based SEM, using Smart PLS 4.0, was employed to calibrate the measurement and structural models.

The study found that stimuli like social influence, perceived ease of use and perceived value substantially affected M-commerce usage. Behavioral intention has been found to mediate these cause-and-effect relationships partially or fully among the subject constructs. Additionally, a significant negative but weak moderating impact of habit (or habitual behavior) on the relationship between behavioral intentions and M-commerce usage has been corroborated.

Several studies have investigated the factors influencing the adoption and continued usage of M-commerce services while appealing to diverse theoretical frameworks. However, more research has yet to be expended to arrive at an integrated explanation grounded in these theoretical frameworks to examine the dynamics of M-commerce usage in tempestuous times like the COVID-19 outbreak. The most significant (counterintuitive) findings have been suppressing the effects of otherwise crucial elements like perceived security and habit in prompting M-commerce usage in the face of the socio-psychological pressures stemming from COVID-19 restrictions and consumers' lack of digital readiness. The study's outcomes offer several theoretical and practical implications for researchers, managers, practitioners, businesses and policymakers to develop effective strategies to mature M-commerce usage among the masses, especially during unusual times like COVID-19.

Artificial intelligence (AI) customer service has grown rapidly in recent years due to the emergence of COVID-19 and the growth of the e-commerce industry. Therefore, this study employs the integration of the stimuli–organism–response (SOR) and the task-technology fit (TTF) frameworks to understand the factors that affect individuals’ intentions towards AI customer service adoption in Malaysia.

The study utilised a survey-based research approach to investigate the factors that affect individuals’ intentions towards AI customer service adoption in Malaysia. The data were collected by conducting an online survey targeting individuals aged 18 or above who had prior customer service interaction experience with human service agents but had not yet adopted AI customer service. A sample of 339 respondents was used to evaluate the hypotheses, adopting partial least squares structural equation modelling as a symmetric analytic technique.

The PLS-SEM analysis revealed that social influence and anthropomorphism have a positive direct relationship with emotional trust. Furthermore, communicative competence, technology characteristics and perceived intelligence were positively correlated with TTF. Moreover, emotional trust significantly impacts AI customer service adoption. In addition, AI readiness positively moderates the association between task technology fit and AI customer service adoption.

The study provides insights to individuals, organisations, the government and educational institutions to improve the features of AI customer service and its development in Malaysia.

The originality of this study is found in its adoption of the SOR theory and TTF to understand the factors affecting AI customer service adoption. Additionally, it incorporates moderating variables during the analysis, adding depth to the findings. This approach introduces a new perspective on the factors that impact the adoption of AI customer service and offers valuable insights for practitioners seeking to formulate effective strategies to promote its adoption.

This paper aims to identify potential avenues for innovation in urban hotel management by analyzing self-reported data from visitors regarding their experience with interior design.

A qualitative exploratory computer-assisted content analysis was conducted to identify the impact of interior design on the guest experience. Leximancer 4.0 software analyzed 2,562 reviews from urban hotels collected through a reservation website.

The findings reveal that data reported by guests on interior design play a crucial role in shaping guest experiences, both positively and negatively. The esthetic appeal of interior design is shown to impact resting and comfort, affecting overall performance significantly. The study also highlights how different star categories of hotels and variations in visitors' purposes for their stay lead to distinct guest experiences and different opportunities to innovate.

The study’s results provide evidence for researchers and practitioners of the potential of the guest-reported interior design experience as a valuable source for fostering innovation. In addition, in the hotel industry, innovation may eventually be attained through interior design renovation.

Self-reported data from guests on interior design is an effective tool for innovation. Making interior design a priority throughout the establishment and ongoing management of a hotel is crucial. By integrating interior design, not only can potential negative experiences be avoided, but greater guest satisfaction can also be achieved during their stay, promoting memorable experiences that align with the hotel category and customer expectations.

This research emphasizes the importance of interior design as a catalyst for innovation and improved social experiences in the hospitality industry. Innovation in interior design can improve hotel performance in several dimensions, including attracting more visitors to the hotel and the area, increasing tourism revenue for local businesses and contributing to the broader societal goal of reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainability.

This article adopts a guest-centered methodology to provide valuable insights for hotel managers to leverage interior design as a tool for innovation in the hospitality industry after showing that interior design enhances guests' experiences, comfort and hotel differentiation.