Abdul Rahman Zahari and Elinda Esa
The purpose of this study is to determine whether COVID-19 had an impact on the brand equity of the Top 100 global brands in the Americas, European and Asian regions over the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine whether COVID-19 had an impact on the brand equity of the Top 100 global brands in the Americas, European and Asian regions over the three years of assessment (2020–2022).
Design/methodology/approach
A secondary data method (document scanning) was used to gather the study’s data from Brand Finance’s Global 500 annual reports from 2019 to 2022. The data for this study was analysed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Statistics for Windows, Version 26.0. The data were subjected to a descriptive test and one-way analysis of variance.
Findings
The findings showed that most of the Top 100 global brands from the Americas, Europe and Asia experienced little or no impact due to COVID-19. Thus, no significant differences were found to exist among the Top 100 global regional brands due to COVID-19 in the years 2020 and 2021. However, there is a significant difference in 2022 due to its small effect size.
Originality/value
The findings of this paper contribute to brand equity literature and global branding literature in the context of COVID-19. This paper innovatively frames brand equity and provides guidelines to help brands sustain their financial-based brand equity during a worldwide crisis.
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Abdul Rahman Zahari and Elinda Esa
This paper aims to investigate the drivers and inhibitors of the adoption of renewable energy by residential users. Based on the theoretical framework of consumer decision-making…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the drivers and inhibitors of the adoption of renewable energy by residential users. Based on the theoretical framework of consumer decision-making behaviour, an empirical study of the adoption of renewable energy in Malaysia was conducted.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 501 residential users from the Klang Valley participated in this study. The data were analysed using partial least square (PLS) with Smart PLS 3.0 software.
Findings
The results indicated that the perceived utility of new technology, perceived utility of renewable energy and the perceived benefit of new technology were seen as the drivers of the adoption of renewable energy. At the same time, two inhibitor constructs, namely, perceived risk and perceived no need, were not seen to create a negative connection relating to the adoption of renewable energy. By contrast, as hypothesized, the perceived expense was the only factor that negatively correlated with the intentions to adopt renewable energy. To foster the intention to adopt renewable energy by residential users, more effort should be expended on capitalizing on the constructs of perceived benefits of new technology and the perceived utility of this new technology.
Originality/value
The current study contributes to the use of renewable energy in the country and indirectly to global renewable energy strategies.
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Elinda Esa and Nazli Anum Mohd Ghazali
The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether there has been a change in the level of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and to determine whether corporate…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether there has been a change in the level of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and to determine whether corporate governance attributes influence CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports of Malaysian government‐linked companies (GLCs).
Design/methodology/approach
The annual reports of 27 GLCs for two years (2005 and 2007) were analysed using content analysis. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify factors influencing CSR disclosure in annual reports.
Findings
Consistent with expectations, the paired‐sample t‐tests showed that there was an increase (significant at the 1 percent level) in the extent of CSR disclosure. The multiple regression analysis revealed that board size was positively associated and statistically significant (at the 1 percent level) with the extent of CSR disclosure.
Research limitations/implications
The regression model reported an R2 of 33.9 percent, which means that almost 66 percent of factors influencing CSR disclosure in Malaysian GLCs have not been captured by the model. These other factors may perhaps be identified through other research methods such as questionnaire surveys or interviews.
Practical implications
The findings appear to suggest that the government efforts in promoting CSR among GLCs through the introduction of the Silver Book in 2006 have had some positive impact on CSR disclosure in annual reports. The results also imply that larger board size through wider exchange of ideas and experience could lead to better appreciation and involvement in corporate social activities and hence disclosure in annual reports.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few studies to examine CSR disclosure and corporate governance attributes in GLCs after the introduction of new initiatives to promote CSR.