Food Retail Resilience Pre-, during, and Post-COVID-19: A Bibliometric Analysis and Research Agenda.

This paper aims to conduct a bibliometric mapping and systematic review of the food retail industry's resilience strategy in the context of COVID-19. Specifically, we aim to identify relevant research gaps in the industry during the pre-, during, and post-pandemic periods and highlight the differences between B2B and B2C sectors. We analyzed articles in the Scopus database from 2019 to 2022 using the PRISMA method for article selection, resulting in a total of 69 articles. We employed a VOS viewer for bibliometric mapping. Our analysis revealed that most studies focused on the impact of COVID-19, with only a few examining the pre- and post-pandemic periods critically. In the B2C context, we identified two major topics: changes in purchasing and consumption behavior, and food waste and safety. In the B2B sector, the two most recurrent subjects were retailers' strategies and supply chain management. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers by exploring industry trends and for scholars by highlighting future research agendas based on the identified topics.

Consumer perception towards electronic products from recycled components in the current geopolitical context: A structural equation modelling approach.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine had a negative impact worldwide, causing a severe energy crisis that also affected EU countries, which are now involved in combating the growing energy prices while also speeding up the deployment of renewable energy sources. This armed conflict impacted the electronic components supply chain, causing high prices and disruption for different raw materials, resulting in material shortages for electronic components and affecting electronic product (EP) manufacturing. Since the start of the geopolitical crisis due to the Russo-Ukrainian War, (dis)information has been disseminated via social media, affecting users' cognition, attitudes, and behavioral intentions. Therefore, this paper aims to assess the impact of social media usage, Russo-Ukrainian war fear, consumers' green values, perceived quality, usage enjoyment, and product image on consumers' purchase intention toward recycled electronic products. Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) approach, the authors propose a conceptual model highlighting the factors that enhance consumers' purchase intentions towards recycled electronic products. The model is tested empirically via quantitative-based research, with data collected from Romania, a close neighbor of the armed conflict, and assessed employing with structural equations modeling via SmartPLS 3.0. Results confirm that social media usage, consumers' green values, and the Russo-Ukrainian war fear do enhance consumers' image of recycled electronic products, thus leading to their increased purchase intention. The novelty of this paper consists in extending the SOR-based research regarding consumers' behavioral intentions toward buying recycled electronic products in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian war. The study highlights important managerial implications for both the electronic industry and retailers selling such goods.

The rise in popularity of central bank digital currencies. A systematic review.

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) have been growing in popularity since 2018, as worldwide countries explore their impact and implementation options. This article analyzes the state of research around central bank digital currencies and the evolving landscape of CBDCs, and explores emerging areas of research and trends by using the PRISMA method and VOSviewer, with the goal of showing the main opportunities and challenges related to them. AMSTAR, DistillerSR, Eppi-Reviewer, ROBIS, and SRDR were the screening and quality evaluation tools employed for study eligibility criteria, design screening and content selection, text analysis data extraction, methodological quality predictors, and reliable and reproducible evidence assessment. A total of 1024 articles on central bank digital currencies were identified in Scopus and the Web of Science, out of which 747 have been included in the review (documents which were not in English language and not categorized as journal articles were excluded). Through an analysis of the relevant literature, the study categorizes CBDC research into positive, negative and neutral research, with a particular focus on sustainability issues, and conducts a keyword co-occurrence analysis using VOSviewer, following a narrowing down of the relevant articles to be included in the study by applying the PRISMA framework. This generates an overall view for experts and researchers who can use the main analyzed features of CBDCs and adapt them accordingly, taking into account relevant macroeconomic characteristics. The study highlights the need to continue interdisciplinary research, by adapting the research and CBDC characteristics to keep up with the latest technologies and with the shift towards green finance, and explores the elaborate relationship between finance, technology and sustainability.

Negative Impact of Telework, Job Insecurity, and Work-Life Conflict on Employee Behaviour.

The COVID-19 pandemic imposed a large-scale adoption of teleworking in various fields, accepted by many employers as the ideal solution to protect their employees against the risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2. Working from home generated substantial savings for organisations and also contributed to alleviating employee stress. In addition to the potential positive effects, telework during COVID-19 favoured counterproductive behaviour, job insecurity, and intention to retire because of the negative outcomes generated by the growing conflict between personal life and working from home and professional and social isolation. The purpose of this research is to define and analyse a conceptual model capable of highlighting the way in which telework, job insecurity, and work-life conflict led to professional isolation and turnover intention, and finally, to the counterproductive behaviour of employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research was implemented using employees in Romania, an emerging European economy severely affected by the recent pandemic. The results have been analysed with the help of structural equations in SmartPLS, thus reflecting a significant influence of teleworking on work-life conflict, professional isolation, intentions, and insecurity during the pandemic. The insecurity of employees trained in teleworking contributes significantly to enhancing work-life conflict and professional isolation.

The path of universities to sustainability: Students perspectives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic baffled the traditional educational system and the face-to-face educational process, shifting to the online environment. Almost all university activities were carried out online for a period of time, which put pressure on university strategies, including sustainability. To maintain the international ranking of universities applying a sustainability strategy, the largest and most representative university in Romania continued to implement the principles of sustainability in its activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, thus fostering a positive, strong, and trustworthy image amongst its main group of stakeholders, namely students. Objective/Aim: The aim of this paper is to determine to what extent students related to the university's sustainable strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic and to assess whether students could rely on their university to integrate sustainability-related strategies into the overall university strategy. Methods/Instruments: The authors propose a conceptual model to generate trust in the sustainable practices, which is analyzed with the help of structural equations in SmartPLS. Results: The results highlight the fact that the students continued to adopt sustainability principles during the pandemic, expressing their preference that the university continue to implement its sustainability strategy, although the focus was on the safety measures generated by the new context. This strategy focusses on sustainable practises, green mobility, and consumption, and, of course, on the sustainable initiatives that address them. Conclusions/implications: The article presents research based on stakeholder theory, emphasizing the numerous implications for higher education institutions, which can adopt different good practices with a view to improving stakeholder trust and satisfaction.

Factors Generating the Willingness of Romanian Consumers to Buy Raw Milk from Vending Machines.

The use of automatic raw milk dispensers for products obtained from Romanian farms can represent an effective method of encouraging the development of short supply chains and promoting sustainable production and consumption systems. There are very few studies in the literature, especially in emerging economies, that analyze consumer perception regarding the use of raw milk dispensers; most of the research is focused on technical aspects regarding how such machines function and food safety, and less on consumers' perceptions towards them or consumer satisfaction, loyalty, or intention to use them. Therefore, the objective of this research was to investigate the willingness of Romanian consumers to buy raw milk from vending machines. In this regard, the authors drew a conceptual model to assess the factors that trigger willingness to buy raw milk from vending machines and then implemented a quantitative-based survey among Romanian consumers who buy raw milk from vending machines. The data were analyzed by modeling structural equations with SmartPLS. The results reveal that the generation of consumer willingness to buy raw milk from vending machines depends on how consumers perceive raw milk but also on the product safety, reusability of the milk bottle, and the provenance of the raw milk, as well as the nutritional qualities of the unprocessed raw milk. The paper extends previous studies based on the stimulus-organism-response (SOR) and deepens the understanding of consumers' perception towards raw milk dispensers. Furthermore, the results also highlight possible managerial strategies that aim to improve the understanding of consumers.

Consequences of Recent Crises on the FLW Consumer Behaviour: A National Wide Representative Research-The Case of Romania.

Research on food loss and waste (FLW) is quite limited in emerging countries, such as Romania, as the phenomenon, its consequences, and implications are not yet properly understood by both policy makers and consumers. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to conduct representative research in Romania to identify the main clusters of consumers depending on their food waste behaviour. By means of cluster analysis, we highlight the main consumer typologies in Romania, regarding their food waste behaviour. The main findings reveal the presence of three distinct segments of consumer typologies based on their food waste behaviour, including low-income young wasters, conscious middle-age wasters, and well-educated mature non-wasters. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions that consider the unique characteristics and behaviours of each segment to effectively reduce FLW at the household level. Overall, this paper provides important insights for academia and for policymakers in the field of FLW management. The food loss and waste behaviour has significant economic, social, and environmental impacts, and reducing it requires a common effort from all stakeholders. Reducing food waste presents challenges, but also presents an opportunity to improve economic, social, and environmental outcomes.

The Impact of Extraversion and Introversion on Millennials Propensity to Recommend Their Preferred Fitness Center.

Millennials of the 21st century tend to have an active daily life and practice more sports, spending more on health and fitness. Therefore, the present paper seeks to investigate the propensity of Millennials to recommend their preferred fitness center, depending on their psychological condition (i.e., introversion versus extraversion), which may lead to their tendency to practice and to their involvement and satisfaction with the fitness center. The authors deduce a conceptual model from the literature, which is further analyzed with data collected through an empirical investigation based on a face-to-face administered questionnaire. Data gathered from 2138 Millennials are investigated with the help of structural equation modeling using SmartPLS. The results show that a positive image of a fitness center stimulates the satisfaction of extravert and introvert consumers. Millennials have different personality types, such as extraversion and introversion, that influence their propensity to practice fitness and to recommend their favorite fitness center. It can be concluded that not only extraversion but also introversion influence consumers' satisfaction, positively impacting the consumer's intention to recommend their favorite fitness center to peers.

The Mediation Effects of Social Media Usage and Sharing Fake News about Companies.

Trust in social media information is gaining in importance and relevance for both companies and individuals as nowadays contemporary society is confronted with a wave of fake news about daily life situations, brands, organizations, etc. As it becomes more difficult to accurately assess social media information and to determine its origin or source, as well as to be able to double-check information spread across different Social Networking Sites (SNS), businesses must understand how individuals' perceived control, concentration, and time distortion enhances the social media usage, thus allowing them to correctly assess online information. Therefore, the scope of the paper is to assess, based on a conceptual model, the antecedents of trust in online information about companies by considering users' perceived control, concentration, and time distortion, while browsing social media networks and sharing fake news about companies in SNS. With the help of an online survey, data was collected from social media users, later being analysed with SmartPLS. The findings suggest that social media usage and sharing of fake news mediate the relationship between users' perceived control, concentration, and time distortion (i.e., flow characteristics) and trust in online information about companies.

"In Flow"! Why Do Users Share Fake News about Environmentally Friendly Brands on Social Media?

Social media has triggered an increase in fake news spread about different aspects of modern lives, society, politics, societal changes, etc., and has also affected companies' reputation and brands' trust. Therefore, this paper is aimed at investigating why social media users share fake news about environmentally friendly brands. To examine social media users' behavior towards environmentally friendly brands, a theoretical research model proposed and analyzed using structural equations modeling in SmartPLS on a convenience sample consisting of 922 questionnaires. Data was collected by means of a quantitative-based approach via a survey conducted among social media users from an emerging market. The results show that social media flow has a mediated impact on sharing fake news about environmentally friendly brands on social media. Considering the critical consequences of fake news, the paper argues that understanding the dissemination process of this type of bogus content on social media platforms has important theoretical and managerial implications. Understanding the psychological mechanisms that influence people's behavior in sharing fake news about environmentally friendly brands on social networking sites (SNS) could help in better understanding the factors and the effects of this phenomenon. The originality of this research consists of proposing flow theory from positive psychology to be used as a theoretical framework to explain users' behavior of sharing fake news about environmentally friendly brands on social media.

Investigating Learners' Teaching Format Preferences during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Empirical Investigation on an Emerging Market.

This paper aims to measure learners' preferences for a specific teaching format (online, hybrid, or face-to-face) based on their experience, usage, and interaction with e-learning platforms (Moodle/MS Teams), on their participation in e-learning courses delivered via online streaming platforms (Zoom), on teaching staff skills and teaching-learning abilities, as well as on the advantages and disadvantages of those forms of learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In implementing the research question, a conceptual model was developed, which was further analyzed by means of structural equations modelling via SmartPLS 3.3.9 (SmartPLS GmbH, Boenningstedt, Germany). The data were collected via quantitative research implemented through an online questionnaire addressed to learners (students) from an emerging market during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research contributes to extending social learning theory and the social cognitive learning theory by pinpointing the learners' preference for the online educational format and by showing how a blended learning environment in universities can be developed by fructifying the gains in terms of digital skills acquisition during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper highlights the contribution of the online educational environment in extending the use of interactive digital tools and resources, engaging the learners, and creating the opportunity for them to become accountable for their learning experiences.

The Influence of Internal Marketing and Job Satisfaction on Task Performance and Counterproductive Work Behavior in an Emerging Market during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

To reduce the spread of the virus, authorities have imposed restrictive measures, such as limiting movement of individuals, shutting down non-essential stores, imposing a general or local quarantine, along with physical distancing and isolation of vulnerable people. Remote working has become the 'new normal' for many organizations, engendering further challenges for employees, who have started experiencing anxiety, technostress caused by digitalization and lack of social interaction, frustration, occupational burden, counterproductive work behavior, exhaustion, burnout, depersonalization, and increased turnover intention. All these factors, corroborated by prolonged restrictions, have contributed to a decrease in employee satisfaction, diminishing performance and generating a counterproductive behavior. Based on Social Exchange Theory, this research plans to investigate the influence of internal marketing on job satisfaction, task performance, and counterproductive work behavior in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in an emerging market, namely Romania. Based on a quantitative research study among 850 employees, we show that internal marketing strongly and significantly impacts job satisfaction, while insignificantly impacting task performance and counterproductive work behavior. Job satisfaction actuates task performance in a significant and positive manner, contributing to a reduction in counterproductive work behaviors. This paper highlights the effects of internal marketing orientation on job satisfaction, and the effects of job satisfaction on job performance and counterproductive work behaviors.