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This study aims to explore the antecedent factors that directly and indirectly influence electronic word of mouth (eWoM) for social commerce (s-commerce) in two developing countries (e.g. Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates [UAE]) by extending social cognitive theory.

This study uses a previous robust model (Rouibah et al., 2021) as theoretical background to investigate and compares the antecedents (trust in Instagram, perceived risks) on eWoM for s-commerce through the mediation of three mediators (perceived enjoyment, perceived value and customer satisfaction) among two Arab countries. Data was collected from Kuwait (n = 1,132) and the UAE (n = 190). Different statistical analyses and structured equation modeling-based analysis of moment structure are used to test the robustness of the research model.

This study found customer satisfaction to be most important factor that mediates the effect independent factors on eWoM for s-commerce in both countries. Surprisingly, perceived enjoyment has no effect, and trust in Instagram and perceived risks are the most important factors that are considered imperative for customer satisfaction and positive feedback.

One limitation of this study is that the author does not focus on the difference between the effects of textual and graphical information on customers’ decisions and trust in buying merchandise. Another limitation is that this study focuses on Kuwait and the UAE. Other Gulf Cooperation Council countries are also growing exponentially, and mobile and internet penetration rates are booming; they could be a trigger for more studies on whether differences occur among all of them.

The first implication is that it is the first in its field to extend the effects of eWoM. To the best of the author’s knowledge, compared to the online research this study is unique because the authors examine six factors for eWoM in s-commerce using the Instagram platform as opposed to other platforms.

The third implication of this study is that the previous ones have applied eWoM to different subjects of e-commerce such as tourism and marketing but have concentrated less on s-commerce, where in-depth research is needed much more to explore factors and theories that explain human behavior.

Furthermore, most of these studies have focused on the intention to use (Dincer and Dincer, 2023; X. Hu, Chen, Davison, and Liu, 2022; Zhou et al., 2023). However, the attention in this research is on the actual use.

This study sought to determine the association between religious denominations, with a special focus on Pentecostal/Charismatic denomination and some core community welfare indicators. The study also constructed some religious performance indices to compare the performance of various denominations in poverty reduction activities.

Data for the study come from the seventh round of Ghana Living Standard Survey and Religion in Poverty Reduction Survey (RPRS) from Greater Accra Region, Ghana. Descriptive statistics and the logit model were used to analyze the data.

The study found that the presence of Catholic denomination is significantly associated with increased odds that water will be provided in rural areas (odds ratio = 2.88297, p = 0.008). The results also show that the presence of Protestant denomination as the major religion in the community is significantly associated with a reduction in the odds that social amenities will deteriorate in rural areas (odds ratio = 0.236, p = 0.062). However, it was found that in rural areas, the presence of Pentecostal/Charismatic church as the major denomination significantly reduces the odds for the provision of water (odds ratio = 0.24994, p = 0.025), increases the odds of deterioration in social amenities (odds ratio = 2.095, p = 0.062) and poverty (odds ratio = 1.4879, p = 0.094). The various indices show that in urban areas, the performance of religious denominations on social service delivery, poverty reduction and awareness raising on poverty issues are comparable.

This study is the foremost to construct indices that could be used to objectively assess the involvement of religious denomination in community development in any developing country.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-10-2024-0807

This study presents a systematic literature review (SLR) of the interdisciplinary literature on drones in last-mile delivery (LMD) to extrapolate pertinent insights from and into the logistics management field.

Rooting their analytical categories in the LMD literature, the authors performed a deductive, theory refinement SLR on 307 interdisciplinary journal articles published during 2015–2022 to integrate this emergent phenomenon into the field.

The authors derived the potentials, challenges and solutions of drone deliveries in relation to 12 LMD criteria dispersed across four stakeholder groups: senders, receivers, regulators and societies. Relationships between these criteria were also identified.

This review contributes to logistics management by offering a current, nuanced and multifaceted discussion of drones' potential to improve the LMD process together with the challenges and solutions involved.

The authors provide logistics managers with a holistic roadmap to help them make informed decisions about adopting drones in their delivery systems. Regulators and society members also gain insights into the prospects, requirements and repercussions of drone deliveries.

This is one of the first SLRs on drone applications in LMD from a logistics management perspective.

This chapter examines Taylor Swift’s exceptional team-building and sustaining efforts that enhance her brand. Using social capital and Hackman’s team effectiveness model (Hackman, 1987, 2002, 2009), the chapter delves into how Swift surrounds herself with talented professionals and forms strategic relationships with emerging musicians. These connections foster trust, reciprocity, and collaborative success. By aligning her team with shared goals and maintaining strong interpersonal relationships, Swift exemplifies effective leadership in the music industry. This chapter provides insights into building and managing high-performing teams through unity and shared purpose.

This study aims to examine the younger generations’ experiential consumption of foreign contemporary music online (i.e. digital music streaming services) by generation and gender in the US market.

The author proposes a sequential experiential consumption model by applying Jacoby’s refined stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) theory to better understand the experiential sequences in foreign music consumption among young generations in the US market. The proposed model, using structural equation modeling (SEM), examines a cognitive permeable role and a hierarchical affective mediating role. Also, moderating roles of generation and gender are simultaneously tested in overall and specific causal relationships.

The refined S-O-R framework is superior to a linear one in better understanding young consumers’ online experiential foreign music consumption behavior. Moreover, hierarchical sequenced affective organismic behavior is crucial to enhance young consumers’ online music consumption experiences to regulate subsequent behavioral responses. Furthermore, gender differences but no generational differences exist in the experiential consumption process among young consumers. Nevertheless, the strength of S-O-R factors affecting experiential consumption seems idiosyncratic simultaneously in gender and generation.

The study suggests foreign music streaming services boost profitability by focusing on young consumers' psychological ownership and tailored experiences, encouraging a shift from freemium to premium subscriptions. Also, the findings recommend adopting phygital experiences using technologies like AR, VR and MR to enhance engagement and create unique, emotionally resonant experiences for young consumers, thus fostering a more profitable business model.

The authors address under-researched topics relevant to young generations by applying Jacoby’s refined S-O-R framework to foreign music consumption through online streaming. This approach delves into a lesser-explored consumer behavior framework, highlighting young generations’ musical trends. The model reveals cognitive and affective roles, offering advantages over traditional linear S-O-R models. It also uniquely incorporates the moderating effects of generation and gender in music consumption studies, addressing a gap in music-related studies.

Retail omnichannel implementation faces barriers hindering accurate and efficient integration across marketing channels. Our desk examination identified a need for a broader perspective in investigating these barriers, moving away from a dominant, narrow approach. This research aims to develop a comprehensive set of items to measure retail omnichannel obstacles, refine the scale and assess its reliability and validity for a robust measurement tool.

Our approach combines quantitative and qualitative methods, using data from primary and secondary sources to create and validate the omnichannel obstacles scale.

This study emphasises the inclusive nature of retail functional areas, departing from prior literature that examined them in isolation. Instead of focussing on separate domains where retail omnichannel obstacles may arise, we adopt a holistic perspective by integrating previously disconnected elements.

We assert that challenges in retail omnichannel operations encompass three distinct dimensions: operational efficiency, channel inefficiency, and strategy and organisational culture within retailing. In our final validated measurement model, we consolidate the channel inefficiency dimension and refine the omnichannel obstacles scale to emphasise two areas of consideration.

After completion of the case study, students will be able to understand the importance of cultivating the ecosystem of a social enterprise and how social entrepreneurs may use them to leverage their success; analyze the rationale of profits for social enterprises; understand the meaning of social franchising and explore the mechanisms for expansion and sustainability of the café; and assess the impact of the social enterprise in terms of advocacy, awareness and implementation at the field level.

This case study aims to provide insight into the sensitive issue of acid attacks and aims to provide an understanding to the struggles of a social enterprise which has a mission to fight for the rights and the betterment of the lives of the acid attack survivors. It delves in to philosophy, business model and the potential future strategies of Sheroes Hangout café which is a project of the Foundation committed with providing decent employment opportunities to the acid attack survivors by providing them treatment, training and rehabilitation. This case study delves with the problem of the co-founders of finding that unique business model which would ensure expansion and sustainability of the café without compromising the core mission of the café – the upliftment of the acid attack survivors.

This case study is suitable for undergraduate students.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.