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Racial and ethnic minorities have long been underrepresented in the superhero genre. Empirical examination of the effects of this underrepresentation, however, has been limited. The purpose of this research was to identify if “being White” is a component of the superhero prototype.

Across three different studies, participants recruited through CloudResearch’s Connect platform and Amazon’s Mechanical Turk viewed different versions of comic panel compilations and responded to questions about their perceptions of characters shown in the panels.

When using measurements similar to those typically used to test for prototypicality, we found no evidence that “being White” is a component of the superhero prototype. However, when using less conspicuous questions, we found that participants exposed to a not-White character were more likely to recall the character’s race and correctly identify the purpose of the research, providing some indication that “being White” is a component of the superhero prototype. Our findings suggest that when studying race, researchers may need to transition from traditional experimental designs to less conspicuous methods.

In a time where research on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) has been confounded by social desirability bias, our findings demonstrate how researchers can use less conspicuous methods within traditional survey methodology to examine DEI questions.

Inspired by the internationalisation paths to prosperity of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), where narcissistic leaders are diligent about organisations but also pursue their dark goals, this study aims to concurrently examine two avenues for the internationalisation of narcissistic leaders in SMEs concerning the function of team organisational citizenship behaviours (OCB): corporate social irresponsibility (CSI) and digital business model innovation (BMI).

This study utilised a quantitative design emphasising mature theory research, and data was analysed using multiple regression analysis and Hayes' process model. The data for this study was collected via surveys from 270 SMEs in Vietnam.

The study showed that narcissistic Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) can penetrate the global market profoundly by utilising both the righteous path, which is based on the power of the times via BMI, and the unethical path, CSI. However, team devotion via OCB can mitigate the unethical conduct of narcissistic CEOs.

The study endeavoured to find a path to internationalisation for SMEs in emerging markets with high economic openness and increasingly close connections with international markets, via two strategies for SMEs to conquer the international market more successfully, and with utilising the foundations of CEO narcissism and team citizenship behaviour.

This study contributed to the theory of SME internationalisation by employing the resource-based view and upper-echelon theory, with the updated Uppsala model as its foundation.

This study aims to explore blockchain potential for digital marketing (BlkChn-Mk-KAP) by developing and validating a measurement model for assessing the constructs of knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) related to blockchain technology in digital marketing.

A four-study process was used. The first study reviewed the literature to develop a pool of possible measurement items. Using exploratory factor analysis and reliability assessments, Study 2 (n = 162) investigated the dimensionality of the items developed in Study 1. The factorial structure from Study 2 was validated in Study 3 (n = 204), and the measurement model invariance was assessed using covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM). Finally, in Study 4 (n = 203), the predictive validity of the BlkChn-Mk-KAP was tested using a CB-SEM approach, testing its constructs correlations with the perceived usefulness of blockchain for digital marketing.

The findings indicate that the BlkChn-Mk-KAP measurement model comprises three-dimensional multi-item scales: knowledge, attitude and practice.

This study introduces a promising BlkChn-Mk-KAP model to examine blockchain’s role in digital marketing. The authors acknowledge the sampling limitation in this research. To enhance the generalisability of the findings, future research should expand to different groups, including generation, gender and age. In addition, further exploration of the explicit links between blockchain knowledge, attitudes and subsequent digital marketing performance is warranted.

Educating employees about blockchain technology’s unique features can shape favourable attitudes and stimulate the utilisation of blockchain-enabled technologies in digital marketing practice. BlkChn-Mk-KAP can offer a reliable and valid instrument to benchmark marketers’ KAP of blockchain-powered digital marketing as they implement blockchain technology to gain a competitive advantage.

This study helps to adopt sustainable practices ensuring the wellbeing of the key stakeholders.

This research introduces the first validated conceptualisation and measurement model, BlkChn-Mk-KAP, to evaluate blockchain KAPs among digital marketing professionals.