The COVID-19 pandemic had an adverse impact on the mental health of frontline workers including firefighters. To better understand this occurrence, this cross-sectional study evaluated the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress among 105 operational team and elite team firefighters in Kota Bharu, Kelantan State, Malaysia before and after the pandemic. The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), a validated self-reporting survey tool, was used to assess symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress among the survey respondents. Findings revealed that firefighters had an increased level of anxiety and depression during the post-pandemic period compared to the pre-pandemic period. However, there was a decrease in the stress levels (20%) reported by study participants. Respondents belonging to the operational team had a higher reported level of depression, anxiety, and stress than those from the elite team. This may be attributed the operational team being more exposed to the risk of COVID-19 infection on account of their routine and more voluminous workload. The findings of this study suggest that firefighters, in general, are at an increased risk of mental health problems as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Knowing this, it is important to consider these findings when addressing the prevention and management of mental health among firefighters. This includes providing additional support and devoting more resources to those who are most at risk for experiencing symptoms of mental health such as firefighters performing functions aligned with that of an operational team.

This study explores the attributes of service quality for overseas residents provided by island county governments, using the example of the Kinmen County Government’s service center in central Taiwan. This research aims to identify key service elements that can enhance the satisfaction of Kinmen overseas residents. Drawing upon the SERVQUAL scale and a comprehensive literature review, service quality is divided into five dimensions: “administrative service,” “life counseling,” “information provision,” among others, comprising 24 service quality elements. A total of 311 valid questionnaires were collected through a survey, and Kano’s two-dimensional quality and IPA analysis were used to classify service factors. The Kano two-dimensional quality analysis revealed that “employment counseling,” “entrepreneurship counseling,” and “setting up service counters at airports and terminals during festivals” belong to attractive quality. Nine elements were classified as “one-dimensional quality” and “must-be quality,” including “one-stop service,” “exclusive consultation hotline,” and “exclusive website reveals information.” Through Quality Function Deployment (QFD), service elements that align with Kano’s two-dimensional quality and IPA priority improvement were selected for detailed study, including “financial assistance in emergencies,” “subsidy for transportation expenses back home,” “subsidies for education allowances,” and “various subsidy application information.” Following expert discussions and questionnaire surveys, eight strategies for improving key service quality elements were identified. This research not only provides actionable insights for the Kinmen County Government but also offers valuable strategies that can be applied to similar contexts globally, where remote and rural populations require specialized governmental support.

This study validates the Intercultural Competence and Inclusion in Education Scale (ICIES), a novel instrument designed to assess students’ perceptions of inclusivity and intercultural competence in multiethnic secondary schools. Using a sample of 276 high school students from Western Romania, the ICIES identified three dimensions: ethnic appreciation and support, intercultural engagement and integration, and school unity and cohesion. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the scale’s structural validity, while network analysis revealed key interconnections among its components. Findings highlight the critical role of inclusive teaching strategies and school cohesion in fostering intercultural competence. The ICIES provides educators and policymakers with actionable insights for designing interventions that promote empathy, mutual respect, and a sense of belonging in diverse school settings. These results contribute to the development of educational policies aimed at fostering inclusion and addressing the needs of increasingly multicultural classrooms.

This study aims to investigate what influences local workers over the age of 40 to work and stay employed in oil palm plantations. 414 individuals participated in a face-to-face interview that provided the study’s primary source of data. Exploratory Factor Analysis was used to analyse the given data. The study revealed that factors influencing local workers over the age of 40 years to leave or continue working in oil palm plantations can be classified as income factors, internal factors and external factors. The income factor was the most significant factor as the percentage variance explained by the factor was 26.792% and Cronbach Alpha was high at 0.870. Therefore, the study suggested that the oil palm plantation managements pay more attention to income elements such as basic salary, wage rate paid to the workers and allowance given to the workers since these elements contribute to the monthly total income received by the workers and in turn be able to attract more local workers to work and remain in the plantations.

Purpose: This study aims to identify the primary determinants of consumer behavior influencing customer satisfaction in the context of online mobile application (App) purchases of perishable products. Utilizing the well-established SERVQUAL (Service Quality) model, which has been extensively studied in various service-oriented settings, the research seeks to determine the factors with the greatest impact on customer satisfaction during online transactions of perishable products. Design: The investigation focuses on analyzing the five core dimensions of the SERVQUAL model: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. The study employs a survey methodology administered through Google Forms, targeting the population residing in the Klang Valley of Malaysia. A total of 400 samples were successfully collected using a snowball sampling technique. Methodology: The study employs the SERVQUAL model as the theoretical framework to examine the dimensions of tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy. The survey, conducted through Google Forms, targeted the population in the Klang Valley of Malaysia, with a sample size of 400 collected through snowball sampling. Findings: The study’s outcomes reveal the robust predictive capability of the overarching SERVQUAL model in the realm of online perishable product procurement. Notably, the assurance dimension emerges as the most influential factor, emphasizing its pivotal role in shaping and defining customer satisfaction for online retailers of perishable goods in the Malaysian market. Novelty: This research contributes to the understanding of consumer behavior in online perishable product purchases, by identifying determinants of consumer behavior; the study promotes sustainable production and responsible consumption within the perishable products category, offering insights beneficial for online retailers in the Malaysian market. This study aligns with United Nations sustainable development goals especially industry innovation, food security and responsible consumption.

Despite many investigations concerning antecedents of organizational commitment in the workplace, very few studies so far have analyzed the direct or indirect impact of HR change leadership role on organizational commitment via HR attribution. Therefore, given the reciprocal principle of social exchange theory, attribution theory and signal theory, this study formulated hypotheses and a model to test the relationships between included variables by employing the mixed-method approach. In-depth interviews were initially conducted to develop questionnaires to collect quantitative data. Employing PLS-SEM to analyze the data collected from 1058 employees working in 24 sustainable enterprises in Vietnam, the findings show that the degree of adopting HR change leadership role was positive, directly affecting organizational commitment. Also, both well-being and performance HR attribution play partially mediated roles in the relationship. The findings suggest that the organizational commitment depends on not only how the degree of adopting HR change leadership role is executed, but also how employees perceive and interpret the underlying management intent of these practices. In a sustainable context, adopting HR change leadership role plays a critical role in shaping employees’ interpretations of sustainable HR practices and their subsequent attributions. Besides, employees’ belief on why are sustainable HRM practices implemented has an influence on the organizational commitment that in turn contributes to the overall sustainable performance.