Social relationships and subjective wellbeing of the older adults in India: the moderating role of gender.

OBJECTIVE: Social relationships have been extensively researched as having compelling health benefits. Nevertheless, these issues are understudied in low-income countries like India. This study investigates whether intergenerational solidarity or the social relationship developed in the household context and social participation or the social relationships developed in the community context are the critical determinants of subjective wellbeing (SWB) of older adults in India. In addition, this study also investigates whether gender moderates the association between social relationships and subjective wellbeing (SWB). METHODS: This study utilises a latent variable approach to investigate the association between social relationships and SWB among older adults (aged 60 or older, N = 9,852) based on a cross-sectional analysis of data from Building a Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI) (2011). I tested the moderating effect of gender by employing a multigroup analysis in structural equation modelling that incorporated social relationships and other predictors of SWB. RESULTS: The study suggests that social participation has a significant protective impact on elderlies' SWB, and gender doesn't moderate the relation. Intergenerational solidarity has a significant health protective impact on older adults' SWB; there is a significant moderating impact of gender. Specifically, functional and consensual solidarity have significant moderating effects of gender. Affectional solidarity, although a significant predictor of older adults' SWB, and gender don't moderate the relation. CONCLUSION: The study suggests taking into account a variety of social relationships as well as gender roles when attempting to understand SWB at a later age. The results are discussed in terms of how gender roles impact social relationships and how men and women evaluate SWB differently based on those relationships.

Breaking down barriers: rationalisations and motivation to stop among Chinese male smokers under cigarette dependence.

BACKGROUND: Smoking rationalisation beliefs are a huge barrier to quitting smoking. What types of rationalisations should be emphasised in smoking cessation interventions? Although past literature has confirmed the negative relationship between those beliefs and motivation to stop smoking, little is known regarding the importance and performance of those beliefs on motivation with varying cigarette dependence. The study aimed to ascertain rationalisations that are highly important for motivation yet perform poorly in different cigarette dependence groups. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted from November 19 to December 9, 2023 in Guiyang City, China. Adult male current smokers were enrolled. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to test the hypothesis. The multi-group analysis was used to determine the moderating effect of cigarette dependence, and the importance-performance map analysis was utilised to assess the importance and performance of rationalisations. RESULTS: A total of 616 adult male current smokers were analysed, and they were divided into the low cigarette dependence group (n = 297) and the high cigarette dependence group (n = 319). Except for risk generalisation beliefs, smoking functional beliefs (H1: -ß = 0.131, P < 0.01), social acceptability beliefs (H3: ß = -0.258, P < 0.001), safe smoking beliefs (H4: ß = -0.078, P < 0.05), self-exempting beliefs (H5: ß = -0.244, P < 0.001), and quitting is harmful beliefs (H6: ß = -0.148, P < 0.01) all had a significant positive influence on motivation. Cigarette dependence moderated the correlation between rationalisations and motivation. In the high-dependence group, the social acceptability beliefs and smoking functional beliefs were located in the "Concentrate Here" area. In the low-dependence group, the social acceptability beliefs were also situated in there. CONCLUSIONS: Social acceptability beliefs and smoking functional beliefs showed great potential and value for improvement among high-dependence smokers, while only social acceptability beliefs had great potential and value for improvement among low-dependence smokers. Addressing these beliefs will be helpful for smoking cessation. The multi-group analysis and the importance-performance map analysis technique have practical implications and can be expanded to other domains of health education and intervention practice.

Do Subjects from Different Occupational Groups Experience Dental Fear and Anxiety Equally?

Background and Objectives: Research into the relationship between occupation and dental fear and anxiety (DFA) is scarce. This exploratory study aimed to compare the level of DFA and its association with its predictors amongst adults from different occupational groups. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study with 422 respondents from four occupational groups (physicians, teachers, industry workers, and artists) was carried out. A questionnaire on previous dental experience using the Dental Anxiety Scale (DAS), Dental Fear Survey (DFS), and Self-Esteem Scale was self-administered electronically. The data analysis involved descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling (SEM). Results: The DFA levels differed significantly across the occupational groups, with the lowest mean scores among physicians (DAS = 9.29 (SE 0.39); DFS-1 = 14.67 (0.63); DFS-2 = 33.94 (1.69)) and the highest mean scores among artists (DAS = 10.74 (0.38); DFS-1 = 17.19 (0.71); DFS-2 = 41.34 (1.92)). A significant impact of self-esteem on DFA was observed among physicians, teachers, and artists, but not among industry workers. Multi-group analysis with SEM revealed differences in the variable association (Chi-squared = 53.75; df = 21; p < 0.001), thus rejecting the hypothesis of the same mechanism underlying DFA across occupational groups. Conclusions: Individuals from various occupations experience DFA at different levels, and there are different mechanisms underlying their DFA. These findings can provide valuable insights for dental practitioners in developing tailored approaches to reduce the feeling of DFA of their patients.

Cross-study analyses of microbial abundance using generalized common factor methods.

BACKGROUND: By creating networks of biochemical pathways, communities of micro-organisms are able to modulate the properties of their environment and even the metabolic processes within their hosts. Next-generation high-throughput sequencing has led to a new frontier in microbial ecology, promising the ability to leverage the microbiome to make crucial advancements in the environmental and biomedical sciences. However, this is challenging, as genomic data are high-dimensional, sparse, and noisy. Much of this noise reflects the exact conditions under which sequencing took place, and is so significant that it limits consensus-based validation of study results. RESULTS: We propose an ensemble approach for cross-study exploratory analyses of microbial abundance data in which we first estimate the variance-covariance matrix of the underlying abundances from each dataset on the log scale assuming Poisson sampling, and subsequently model these covariances jointly so as to find a shared low-dimensional subspace of the feature space. CONCLUSIONS: By viewing the projection of the latent true abundances onto this common structure, the variation is pared down to that which is shared among all datasets, and is likely to reflect more generalizable biological signal than can be inferred from individual datasets. We investigate several ways of achieving this, demonstrate that they work well on simulated and real metagenomic data in terms of signal retention and interpretability, and recommend a particular implementation.

Bidirectional Associations of Prosocial Behavior with Peer Acceptance and Rejection in Adolescence.

As most studies on the link between peer status and prosocial behavior are cross-sectional, conducted with children, and operationalize status as the difference between acceptance and rejection, it remains unclear whether peer acceptance and rejection are consequences or prerequisites of prosocial behavior in adolescence. To fill this gap, this study examines the bidirectional associations of prosocial behavior with peer acceptance and peer rejection with data collected at 3 time points, 6 months apart, in a sample of 660 early Chilean adolescents (M = 12.94, SD = 0.62; 55.1% boys). Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that prosocial behavior positively predicted future peer acceptance, whereas peer acceptance had no significant effect on future prosocial behavior. The association between rejection and prosocial behavior was negative and bidirectional between Time 1 and Time 2. When a new academic year began, between Time 2 and Time 3, prosocial behavior negatively predicted rejection, whereas rejection in the previous grade level was positively associated with prosocial behavior at the beginning of the next grade. Multi-group panel analyses did not detect significant differences between boys and girls in the cross-lagged associations of prosociality with peer acceptance and peer rejection. The results suggest that acting prosocially can make adolescents better liked by their peers and highlight the possible importance of the transition to a new academic year for the prosocial behavior of previously rejected students. Implications for future research on peer relations are discussed.

Has COVID-19 changed our loyalty towards public transport? Understanding the moderating role of the pandemic in the relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty.

COVID-19 has been associated with a decline in public transport ridership in many cities. However, the impact of the pandemic on passenger perceptions of public transport, particularly loyalty, has remained largely unexplored. Using a case study of Tehran's bus system, this paper aims to assess the moderating effect of COVID-19 on passenger loyalty. A cross-sectional survey of bus users was conducted in two similar periods, before and during COVID-19. The data was analysed using structural equation modelling, with the effect of observed heterogeneity evaluated using multiple indicators multiple causes models and multi-group analysis. The results indicate that during COVID-19, perceptions of service quality have improved, particularly in relation to comfort (including crowding), safety, reliability and information. While this has led to increased customer satisfaction, loyalty to the system has decreased. An increase in the perceived attractiveness of using private cars was found to be the primary factor for reducing passenger loyalty with the perceived monetary and psychological costs of using cars being less effective in encouraging people to use the bus. Taking into account the significant utility of private vehicles in urban transportation during COVID-19, the present study identifies feasible areas for improving the performance of bus services to increase satisfaction with this form of public transport among car owners.

Who's more vulnerable? A generational investigation of COVID-19 perceptions' effect on Organisational citizenship Behaviours in the MENA region: job insecurity, burnout and job satisfaction as mediators.

BACKGROUND: This paper is an empirical investigation that examines a path model linking COVID-19 perceptions to organisational citizenship behaviour (OCBs) via three mediators: job insecurity, burnout, and job satisfaction. The research examines the path model invariance spanning Generations X, Y, and Z. Three countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) were the focus of the study. METHODS: The data was collected from a sample of employees in service companies (n = 578). We used a Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) to analyse the data. RESULTS: Our findings reveal that COVID-19 perceptions positively predict job insecurity, which positively impacts burnout levels. Burnout negatively predicts job satisfaction. The findings established that job satisfaction positively predicts OCBs. The mediation analysis determined that job insecurity, burnout and job satisfaction convey the indirect effects of COVID-19 perceptions onto OCBs. Finally, our hypothesised model is non-equivalent across Generations X, Y and Z. In that regard, our multi-group analysis revealed that the indirect effects of COVID-19 perceptions on OCBs were only valid amongst younger generations, i.e., Generation Y and Generation Z. Specifically, younger generations are substantially more vulnerable to the indirect effects of COVID-19 perceptions on their engagement in OCBs than Generation X whose job satisfaction blocks the effects of COVID-19 perceptions on OCBs. CONCLUSIONS: The present study extends our knowledge of workplace generational differences in responding to the perceptions of crises or pandemics. It offers evidence that suggests that burnout, job attitudes and organisational outcomes change differently across generations in pandemic times.

Child disclosure, parental solicitation, and adjustment problems: Parental support as a mediator.

Little is known about how perceived parental solicitation and child disclosure are negatively associated with early adolescent adjustment problems and/or if these associations are consistent across race/ethnic groups. This study used data from 209 early adolescents to examine perceived parental support as a mediator in the associations between perceived parental solicitation and child disclosure and subsequent adjustment problems, while also examining race/ethnic group differences across non-Hispanic White and Hispanic early adolescents using multi-group path analyses. Perceived parent support did not mediate the associations between child disclosure and perceived parental solicitation and subsequent adjustment problems. However, child disclosure was directly associated with subsequent conduct problems for Hispanic adolescents. Child disclosure and perceived parental solicitation may positively influence the parent-adolescent relationship by increasing parental support but may not entirely help in reducing the prevalence of adjustment problems. Child disclosure may be particularly beneficial for Hispanic early adolescents in reducing adjustment problems.

Comparative analysis of Student's live online learning readiness during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the higher education sector.

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, many countries are facing a dramatic situation in terms of the global economy and human social activities, including education. The shutdown of schools is affecting many students around the world, with face-to-face classes suspended. Many countries facing the disastrous situation imposed class suspension at an early stage of the coronavirus outbreak, and Asia was one of the earliest regions to implement live online learning. Despite previous research on online teaching and learning, students' readiness to participate in the real-time online learning implemented during the coronavirus outbreak is not yet well understood. This study explored several key factors in the research framework related to learning motivation, learning readiness and student's self-efficacy in participating in live online learning during the coronavirus outbreak, taking into account gender differences and differences among sub-degree (SD), undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) students. Technology readiness was used instead of conventional online/internet self-efficacy to determine students' live online learning readiness. The hypothetical model was validated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results revealed no statistically significant differences between males and females. On the other hand, the mean scores for PG students were higher than for UG and SD students based on the post hoc test. We argue that during the coronavirus outbreak, gender differences were reduced because students are forced to learn more initiatively. We also suggest that students studying at a higher education degree level may have higher expectations of their academic achievement and were significantly different in their online learning readiness. This study has important implications for educators in implementing live online learning, particularly for the design of teaching contexts for students from different educational levels. More virtual activities should be considered to enhance the motivation for students undertaking lower-level degrees, and encouragement of student-to-student interactions can be considered.

Drivers of immersive virtual reality adoption intention: a multi-group analysis in chemical industry settings.

The present study uses the modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 to examine the effect of factors such as performance expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), social influence (SI), and hedonic motivation (HM) that may motivate operators and employees to adopt IVR-based technology into their training. Results of a multi-group analysis based on nationality, prior IVR experience, and/or length of work experience, to analyse the potential similarities and/or differences in perception and acceptance towards using IVR-based technology are also presented. The quantitative research data were gathered using an online questionnaire from 438 chemical operators and/or employees who either speak German, French, or English. Partial least squares structural equation modelling and multi-group analysis based on SmartPLS™ version 3 were used to carry out the path and multi-group analyses. The results show that the behavioural intention (BI) towards adoption of IVR was influenced by PE, EE, and HM for all abovementioned subpopulation. However, the relationship of SI to BI was not supported for respondents with prior IVR experience and for respondents coming from Western region. Although Henseler's-based multi-group PLS analysis reveals that there was no significant difference between the group comparisons, it is still important to take into account these socio-demographic factors as there are definite group differences in terms of the ranking order of each construct for the IVR adoption intentions among each subpopulation. The implications and future directions were discussed. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10055-021-00586-3.

Application of satisfaction index of basic medical insurance for rural and urban residents to pupils' familial decision making in Kunming and Changsha City. / åŸŽä¹¡å± æ°‘åŸºæœ¬åŒ»ç–—ä¿é™©æ»¡æ„åº¦æŒ‡æ•°æ¨¡åž‹åœ¨æ˜†æ˜Žå¸‚å’Œé•¿æ²™å¸‚å°å­¦ç”Ÿå®¶åº­å†³ç­–è€ ä¸­çš„åº”ç”¨.

OBJECTIVES: To verify the applicability and extensibility of the satisfaction index of basic medical insurance for rural and urban residents, and to explore the mechanism responsible for the satisfaction index in Kunming and Changsha City, and provide references for effective management and policy making. METHODS: A stratified cluster sampling method was conducted. A total of 560 familial decision makers were randomly selected in 24 classes of 14 schools of Kunming and Changsha City. Model reliability was tested by SPSS18.0. In addition, Smart PLS 3.0 was applied to conduct model validity test, calculate the satisfaction index, and to compare the model path coefficients of Kunming and Changsha by multi-group analysis. RESULTS: In the application of the satisfaction index of basic medical insurance for rural and urban residents in Kunming, Cronbach's α of the model was 0.93, split-half reliability coefficient was 0.90, and the latent variable composite reliability coefficient values were more than 0.86; the latent variable average variance extraction (AVE) values were greater than 0.66, and the square root of the AVE of each latent variable (all greater than 0.66) was larger than the correlation coefficient with other latent variables. The factor loading values were greater than 0.70, with statistical significance. The basic health insurance satisfaction index of Kunming and Changsha was 60.40 and 52.05, respectively. The difference between the path coefficient of Kunming and Changsha was not statistically significant except the path from public satisfaction to public loyalty. Perceived value had the largest direct and total effect on public satisfaction latent variable in Kunming City. While the perceived value had the largest direct effect on public satisfaction, and the perceived quality had the largest total effect on public satisfaction in Changsha City. CONCLUSIONS: The satisfaction index model reflects the satisfaction of pupils' basic medical insurance for urban and rural residents, and it also shows good reliability and validity in Changsha and Kunming. What's more the model can be extended to the national level to evaluate the satisfaction of basic medical insurance for urban and rural residents for primary school students. The basic health insurance satisfaction index of familial decision makers in Kunming is higher than that of Changsha. There are differences between Kunming and Changsha in the influential mechanism of the satisfaction index of for Chinese pupils with basic medical insurance for rural and urban residents, and the measures taken by the government and relevant departments to improve the satisfaction of basic medical insurance should be based on local conditions.

Likelihood of a fecal occult blood test uptake among older adults: comparisons between health professionals and healthcare volunteers based on the health belief model.

BACKGROUND: Health professionals and healthcare volunteers play a critical role in promoting uptake of the fecal occult blood test (FOBT), which is an effective screening method for colorectal cancer. However, previous studies paid less attention to investigating both groups regarding their intention to undergo the test. This study used the Health Belief Model (HBM) to explore the likelihood of an FOBT uptake among health professionals and healthcare volunteers aged 50 years or older. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at public health centers in a county in northern Taiwan. Health professionals and healthcare volunteers were invited to complete the questionnaires. Overall, 391 valid questionnaires were obtained (response rate = 93.10%). Structural equation modeling was used to examine the associations among the variables based on the HBM. RESULTS: The HBM explained 45, 44, and 50% of the variance in the likelihood of undergoing an FOBT in all participants, health professionals, and healthcare volunteers, respectively. The explained variance in healthcare volunteers outweighed that of professionals by 6%. Perceived benefits and self-efficacy significantly affected the likelihood of undergoing an FOBT. Self-efficacy significantly mediated the effects of perceived severity, benefits, and barriers on the likelihood of an FOBT uptake. A borderline significant difference in structural coefficients was found across groups. CONCLUSIONS: The HBM model was used to examine the likelihood of an FOBT uptake among health professionals and healthcare volunteers, and the results showed that self-efficacy was the optimal predictor of the likelihood of an FOBT uptake, followed by perceived benefits. Future multifactorial interventions to promote FOBT uptake among health professionals and healthcare volunteers aged 50-75 years could include these significant factors.

Health Risk Behavior Among Justice Involved Male and Female Youth: Exploratory, Multi-Group Latent Class Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Youth involved in the juvenile justice system experience a disproportionate prevalence of serious mental health issues, substance abuse, and are at an increased risk of engaging in risky sexual practices. Gender differences exist, with girls at a markedly greater risk of acquiring a sexually transmitted disease. OBJECTIVES: The present study seeks to determine if there are subgroups of male and female youth who differ in their health risk behavior. If so, do any male or female subgroups at different levels of health risk differ in regard to their sociodemographic and psychological factors, and finally, what are intervention/service delivery implications of these differences. METHODS: Youth were participants in an innovative health service at a centralized intake facility located in a large southeastern U.S. city. Latent class analysis and multinomial logistic regression is utilized to examine the heterogeneity of health risk behaviors across gender groups in a sample of 777 newly arrested youth. RESULTS: Results indicate a three class solution provided the optimal fit with the data for each gender group: a Lower Health Risk group, a Higher Health Risk group, and a Highest Health Risk group. Multinomial logistic regression analysis identified significant sociodemographic and depression effects among both male and female youth. Conclusions/Importance: Youth characterized by risky sexually behavior, elevated depression, and drug involvement should be the focus of integrated intervention services. This study documents the critical need for front end, juvenile justice intake facilities to provide behavioral and public health screening, with treatment follow-up, on newly arrested youth.

The role of weight self-stigma on the quality of life of women with overweight and obesity: A multi-group comparison between binge eaters and non-binge eaters.

Weight self-stigma is conceptualized as a multidimensional concept involving experiences of shame, self-devaluation and the perception of being discriminated against in social situations due to one's weight. It has been associated with experiential avoidance, unhealthy eating behaviors, binge eating and diminish quality-of-life (QoL). The current study aims to explore the mediation effect of weight-related experiential avoidance on the relationship between weight self-stigma and obesity-related QoL in women with and without binge eating (BE). The sample comprised 282 women with overweight or obesity, from which 100 presented BE symptoms. Sample's mean age was 44.24 years (SD = 11.30), with a mean BMI of 31.40 kg/m(2) (SD = 4.53). Participants completed a set of self-reported measures regarding BE symptoms, weight self-stigma, weight-related experiential avoidance and QoL. Results from path analysis supported the mediation of weight-related experiential avoidance on the relationship between weight self-stigma and QoL, even when controlling for BMI. The model accounted 58% of QoL variance. Furthermore, the multi-group analysis revealed that the model was not invariant for both groups. The analysis of the critical ratios showed that the path from weight-related experiential avoidance to QoL was stronger for the BE group. Also the model only explained 39% of QoL for the group without BE and 65% of QoL for the BE group. This study highlights the pervasive role of weigh self-stigma, particularly fear of being discriminated and weigh-related experiential avoidance on obesity-related quality-of-life, especially for those women with BE. Additionally, it supports that interventions should focus not only in weight loss but also in improving individual's QoL, promoting the development of adaptive emotional regulation strategies.

How social support and resilience impact mental health: The moderating role of time in isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, quarantines effectively prevented the spread of COVID-19 but also caused people to develop mental health problems. We thus aimed to verify the impact of social support and resilience on mental health and to uncover the moderating role played by time in isolation during the post-pandemic era. We administered a cross-sectional survey to 510 college students. The results found that social support directly and negatively predicted mental health problems, and this relationship was mediated by resilience. Through multigroup analysis, resilience partially mediated the relationship between social support and mental health during period of isolation 1 (PI1) and fully mediated this relationship during period of isolation 2 (PI2) and period of isolation 3 (PI3). Moreover, the path coefficient of resilience to mental health at T3 was significantly higher than that at T2. Thus, the effect of resilience on mental health increases with the duration of time in isolation.

Interpersonal behaviors in sports context: Spanish adaptation and measurement invariance.

Introduction: The interpersonal behavior questionnaire (IBQ) is an instrument that measures support and thwarting interpersonal behaviors based on the self-determination theory (SDT). The aim of this work was to adapt the IBQ to the Spanish spoken in Mexico and to examine its psychometric properties (structural validity, discriminant validity, composite reliability, factorial invariance, and nomological validity) in a sample of athletes. Methods: For this purpose, 472 athletes (average age 17.15 years; SD = 1.47) completed a question booklet. Results and discussion: Confirmatory factor analysis supported the structure of six related factors, three factors of behaviors that support autonomy, competence, and relatedness, and three factors of behaviors that thwarting them. The internal consistency of each factor was also supported, as well as the average variance extracted. However, the discriminant validity between the factors of competence and relatedness in their dimensions of support, on the one hand, and thwarting, on the other, is questioned. Factorial invariance was confirmed across gender (men and women) and sport type (individual and team). Nomological validity is in accordance with theory and empirical literature. More studies of the IBQ in sport are necessary to see if these results are a fortuitous product or if they manifest themselves consistently.

A longitudinal analysis of the effects of COVID-19 on tourists' health risk perceptions.

The COVID-19 pandemic provoked a large impact on tourism because of the enforcement of harsh travel restrictions and the increased global health risks caused by international mobility. This paper utilizes a longitudinal analysis to tests the impact of COVID-19 on tourists' health risk perceptions, and their relationships with destination image perception and visiting intentions. Tourists are surveyed at two different points of time, before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Multi-group structural equation modeling is utilized for the comparison of the relationships at the two points of time. The results show that the negative influence of health risk perceptions on destination image perception and visiting intentions are significantly larger after the COVID-19 pandemic while there are no significant differences in the impact of destination image perception on visiting intentions. Thus, not only are tourists more sensitive to health risk perceptions after COVID-19, but this higher sensitivity has larger impacts both on their perceptions of destination image and on the behavioural implication. The results have useful implications in terms of the need to dedicate more efforts for the management of health conditions of destinations after COVID-19.

The Influence of Muslim and Christian Destinations on Tourists' Behavioural Intentions and Risk Perceptions.

This paper studies the factors that influence tourists' risk perceptions of various destinations with different attributes and sociocultural profiles. Factor analysis is utilised to investigate the determinants of risk perceptions, finding that they are influenced both by the type of risk (delinquency, health, accident, environment and catastrophe) and by the characteristics of the destination regarding the management of risk. Structural equations modelling is conducted to study the relationships between risk perceptions, destination image and visiting intentions across destinations. Multi-group analysis across different destinations proves that tourists' risk perceptions have different influences on destination image and visiting intentions. The results show that there are significant differences according to the predominant religion at the destinations, i.e., Muslin and Christian. The implication is that different dimensions of perceived risks and destination socio-culture contexts have different influences on the behaviour of tourists.

Accustomed or Regulated: Influencing factors of two-wheeler riders' illegal Lane-Transgressing behavior when overtaking.

Illegal lane-transgressing is a typical aberrant riding behavior of riders of two-wheelers, i.e., motorcycles, bicycles, and e-bikes, which is highly frequent in accident reports. However, there is insufficient attention to this behavior at present. This study aims to explore the socio-psychologic factors that influence the illegal lane-transgressing behavior of two-wheeler riders when overtaking. For this purpose, a questionnaire was first composed. The questionnaire included the behavioral intention of two-wheeler riders towards illegal overtaking behavior and five influencing factors: safety knowledge, descriptive norms, injunctive norms, perceived behavior control, and risk perception. Second, a survey was conducted on different two-wheeler riders in Xi'an. Third, various types of two-wheelers were analyzed jointly and separately by structural equation models and analyses of variance. Results show that e-bike riders were more similar to motorcycle riders in behavioral intentions, with their risk perception weaker than other riders. Descriptive norms and perceived behavior control played the most significant roles in the structural equation model. It was also found that two-wheeler riders with a car license had better traffic safety performance. Based on the above results, it is recommended that attention be paid to illegal lane-transgression in the process of law enforcement and education, and a higher level of safety training should be provided for two-wheeler riders.

"Eco-conscious appetites: Investigating organic food purchase intentions through consumption values, empowered by environmental self-identity and analyzed using MGA - Baltic insights".

Growing consumer interest in organic food has attracted the attention of the academic community. While the existing literature broadly examines the acceptability of organic food, there is a recognized need to delve deeper into consumer values. This study fills this gap by applying the theory of consumer values. The data was collected as part of a survey of 1000 Lithuanian consumers to evaluate the proposed hypotheses empirically. The results show that functional value (quality), social value, conditional value, emotional value, and epistemic value positively influence purchase intention for organic food. Conversely, functional value (price) does not significantly impact the purchase intention of organic food. Furthermore, the study recognizes a significant moderating impact of environmental self-identity in shaping the relationship between conditional value, emotional value, and purchase intention of organic food. In addition, a multi-group analysis examines notable differences between consumer groups based on gender, education, age, and income. The results indicate significant group differences, showing that purchasing behavior among women, younger consumers, those with higher incomes, and those with higher education levels are more susceptible to these values. This research improves our understanding of consumer values regarding organic food in Lithuania and provides valuable guidance to managers and policymakers. By recognizing the intricate interplay between different values and the influence of environmental self-identity, stakeholders can better tailor their marketing efforts and policies to meet the unique preferences of different consumer groups, ultimately promoting the growth of the organic food market.