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The current study seeks to investigate and determine the principal barriers to the adoption of work–life balance (WLB) practices amongst construction companies operating in the developing countries using Lagos, Nigeria as a case study.

This study adopts a survey research technique. Snowball sampling technique was adopted to identify the target respondents for the administration of questionnaire. A total of 156 questionnaires were distributed and a response rate of 66% (103 questionnaires were completely filled and returned) was attained. Data elicited were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics.

The results from the exploratory factors analysis show that the principal barriers to the adoption of WLB practices amongst construction companies in Lagos, Nigeria are categorised into four components: nature of construction job and limited evidence on impact of WLB, support, awareness and culture, lack of involvement of management staff and organisational factors.

This study contributed to more effective WLB studies by highlighting the barriers to the adoption of WLB practices in the construction sector. An understanding of these barriers can aid policy makers and management personnel in construction organisations as well as facilitate development of strategies required to reduce the barriers to WLB practices in the construction sector.

Our study addresses the impact of COVID-19-induced work-family conflict on leaders' well-being and explores the influence of leadership style, coping strategies, and gender disparities in this context, filling a research gap on crisis-related leadership well-being.

We used hierarchical regression analysis and SPSS's PROCESS macro to analyze a dataset of 516 paired responses, including 231 leaders and 285 subordinates, from Mongolian organizations.

Strain-based work-family conflict (WFC) negatively affects leaders' workplace well-being. Servant leadership exacerbates this impact. In contrast, servant leadership positively moderates the relationship between time-based WFC and job-related well-being. Leaders who prioritize work and family responsibilities experience a stronger positive (negative) impact of time-based (strain-based) WFC on their workplace well-being. Furthermore, we observed that strain-based WFC has a more detrimental effect on female leaders' well-being, highlighting gender disparities in leadership roles.

Our study elucidates the intricate relationship between work-family conflict and leaders' well-being, underscoring the need to recognize gender differences and coping strategies. We advocate for organizations to proactively establish support structures tailored to various leadership styles and gender-specific challenges, especially in times of crisis.

This study focuses on leaders' well-being during COVID-19 and how it is influenced by work-family conflict, servant leadership, coping strategy, and gender. The study also differentiates between time-based and strain-based work-family conflict and uses dyadic data from Mongolian organizations. More importantly, we identify that gender disparity plays a crucial role in the pandemic-caused leadership challenges and leaders' coping behaviors.

This paper aims to explore the mechanisms that explain the effects of physicians who feel supported by their co-workers on their professional outcome expectations and their ability to be more successful in their chosen career, in the context of Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT).

The population of the study is physicians working in hospitals in Ankara. There are 37 hospitals under the Ministry of Health in the province. A total of 5,092 physicians work in these hospitals. In this study in which questionnaire technique was used, data were collected from 400 physicians by convenience sampling method. The data obtained were analysed by means of AMOS 22.0 and SPSS 26.0 package programs.

As a result of the regression analyses, it was determined that physicians’ professional outcome expectancy had a positive and significant effect on career regret. In addition, it was determined that the perceived co-worker support variable did not have a moderating role effect in the relationship between physicians’ professional outcome expectancy and career regret.

In this study, the moderating role of co-worker support in the effect of physicians’ professional outcome expectations on career regrets is examined. Therefore, the sampling frame is limited to physicians.

Based on the fact that professional outcome expectation and co-worker support are very important variables for individuals with career regret, it emphasises that management activities carried out in health institutions should be carried out in a way that supports the career development of employees.

The tasks that physicians perform include many challenging elements. Therefore, the support they receive from their co-workers is critically important.

Over the past few years, scholars have examined new ways of working from various perspectives, with a significant increase in studies during the pandemic period, when remote work – supported by digital technologies and platforms – became imperative for many companies to protect the health of both the local community and employees. It also served as a solution for businesses to maintain operations and continue delivering products and services to customers. In the post-pandemic period, the new working reality has evolved into a complex concept grounded in variables such as work flexibility, digitisation, innovation, sustainability, collaboration, social inclusion and the equitable treatment of all categories of employees. The purpose of this paper is to identify the elements that can impact employees’ satisfaction with the new normal in working arrangements, as well as to understand whether workers’ socio-demographic characteristics and the organisational context influence their level of satisfaction.

The methodological approach is based on cluster analysis with random sampling. Initially, a tool for assessing workers’ satisfaction with the new way of working was developed based on a literature review, identifying eight key areas of influencing factors. This tool was subsequently updated and refined through focus groups, expert evaluation and a pre-test. Based on participants’ responses, satisfaction scores were analysed using a Likert scale in relation to various variables. According to the scores obtained, a cluster analysis was conducted to identify different segments of workers within the sample.

The study’s findings reveal six distinct clusters of employees, each exhibiting different levels of satisfaction with new normal work arrangements. These clusters offer a detailed perspective on how various groups experience and perceive flexible work models, reflecting a spectrum of needs and preferences within the workforce. Key sources of dissatisfaction include inadequate digital tools and physical workspace options, as well as some difficulties in maintaining work–life balance. By addressing these specific issues through targeted interventions, organisations can significantly enhance overall satisfaction and engagement. These insights are particularly valuable for HR professionals seeking to optimise employee well-being and productivity in hybrid or remote work environments.

The research presents certain limitations, primarily due to its focus on a single country – Italy. This constraint may limit the generalisability of the findings to other national contexts. Future research could explore the impact of different contexts – such as national, regional and organisational factors – on employee satisfaction with new ways of working. In addition, it would be valuable to examine the significance of each identified factor affecting worker satisfaction, as well as to investigate variations in the importance of these factors among employees of different genders, ages and job positions. Such studies would provide deeper insights into how diverse demographic and geographic factors shape workers’ experiences and perceptions of remote and flexible work arrangements in the new normal.

The findings of the study can be useful for HRM when implementing new ways of working to achieve maximum satisfaction and better performance of employees.

At the time the research began, no tools validated in Italy for measuring workers’ satisfaction with the new normal work arrangements were available.

This study aims to investigate the “dark side” of scan and go (S&G) apps as part of the shopping journey, and the subsequent impacts on consumer behavior.

This study utilizes a phenomenological approach. Data were collected from online reviews, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions to explore the negaffordance of using in-store S&G apps. Thematic analysis was employed to develop a conceptual model of the customer journey.

The conceptual model highlights the complex interplay between technology, and the consumer and digital retail environment across three stages include Navigating the Nexus, Empowered Expeditions and Digital Diaspora of the shopping journey. The findings contribute to both theoretical and practical knowledge and offer insights into how S&G technology influences customer experiences.

Theoretically, this research expands the concept of negative affordances in the digital retail context by introducing “negaffordance” as a critical aspect of technology that hinders rather than facilitates the achievement of customer goals. Practically, it suggests enhancements in the design of apps to mitigate negaffordance, and it highlights suggestions made by consumers such as the introduction of a community-centric approach to customer issues. This research underscores the urgent need for retailers to align technological consistency with consumer goals to mitigate the challenges posed by S&G technology.

This chapter provides a comprehensive examination of financial technology (fintech) firms, exploring their background, features, products and services. Framed within the themes of financial innovation, disintermediation and disruption, the chapter examines the transformative impact of fintech on the financial industry. Fintech firms leverage advanced technology to offer innovative financial solutions, such as mobile payment systems, robo-advisors and peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms, thereby enhancing accessibility and efficiency in financial services. The regulatory environment is highlighted, noting that while traditional banks are heavily regulated, fintech firms often operate with more flexibility, raising potential concerns about regulatory arbitrage and associated risks. The continued evolution of fintech, driven by advances in artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and data analytics, holds significant potential for further transforming the financial industry. This chapter sets the stage for ongoing exploration of fintech's implications and future developments.

Opportunistic and delayed maintenances are increasingly becoming important strategies for sustainable maintenance practices since they increase the lifetime of complex systems like aircrafts and heavy equipment. The objective of the current study is to quantify the optimal time window for adopting these strategies.

The current study considers the trade-offs between different costs involved in the opportunistic and delayed maintenances (of equipment) like the fixed cost of scheduled maintenances, the opportunistic rewards that may be earned and the cost of premature parts replacement. The probability of the opportunistic maintenance has been quantified under two different scenarios – Mission Reliability and Renewal Process. In the case of delayed maintenance, the cost of the delayed maintenance is also considered. The study uses optimization techniques to find the optimal maintenance time windows and also derive useful insights.

Apart from finding the optimal time window for the maintenance activities the study also shows that opportunistic maintenance is beneficial provided the opportunistic reward is significantly large; the cost of conducting scheduled maintenance in the pre-determined slot is significantly large. Similarly, the opportunistic maintenance may not be beneficial if the pre-mature equipment parts replacement cost is significantly high. The optimal opportunistic maintenance time is increasing function of Weibull failure rate parameter “beta” and decreasing function of Weibull failure rate parameter “theta.” In the case of optimal delayed maintenance time, these relationships reverse.

To the best of our knowledge, very few studies exist that have used mission reliability to study opportunistic maintenance or considered the different cost trade-offs comprehensively.

This paper examines the relationship between the degree of information asymmetry among investors and the occurrence of bubbles in cryptocurrency markets.

The study applies the Philipps, Shi and Yu (PSY) methodology to identify bubbles in 74 cryptocurrencies from July 2014 to April 2021.

The findings indicate that there is a negative relationship between the degree of information asymmetry among investors and the number and duration of bubbles across cryptocurrencies.

This finding supports the riding-bubble argument of Asako et al. (2020), which suggests that when the information asymmetry among investors is high, rational investors are less certain about what irrational, inexperienced investors might decide. This strategic uncertainty leads rational investors to close out their positions more quickly, resulting in a shorter duration of the bubble and a reduced propensity for new bubbles to emerge. The study’s findings hold regardless of the proxies used to measure information asymmetry and noise trading, cryptocurrency characteristics and regression model specifications.