India has experienced notable advancements in trade liberalization, innovation tactics, urbanization, financial expansion, and sophisticated economic development. Researchers are focusing more on how much energy consumption of both renewable and non-renewable accounts for overall system energy consumption in light of these dynamics. In order to gain an understanding of this important and contentious issue, we aim to examine the impact of trade openness, inventions, urbanization, financial expansion, economic development, and carbon emissions affected the usage of renewable and non-renewable energy (REU and N-REU) in India between 1980 and 2020. We apply the econometric approach involving unit root tests, FE-OLS, D-OLS, and FM-OLS, and a new Quantile Regression approach (QR). The empirical results demonstrate that trade openness, urbanization and CO₂ emissions are statistically significant and negatively linked with renewable energy utilization. In contrast, technological innovations, financial development, and economic development in India have become a source of increase in renewable energy utilization. Technological innovations were considered negatively and statistically significant in connection with non-renewable energy utilization, whereas the trade, urbanization, financial growth, economic growth, and carbon emissions have been established that positively and statistically significant influence non-renewable energy utilization. The empirical results of this study offer some policy recommendations. For instance, as financial markets are the primary drivers of economic growth and the renewable energy sector in India, they should be supported in order to reduce CO₂ emissions.

In today’s rapidly evolving world, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has become paramount, offering unparalleled value propositions and unparalleled consumer experiences. This study delves into the transformative impact of five AI activities on brand experience and consumer-based brand equity within the retail banking landscape of Lebanon. Employing a quantitative deductive approach and a sample of 211 respondents, the research employs structural equation modeling to analyze the data. The findings underscore the significant influence of four AI marketing activities on brand experience, revealing that factors such as information, accessibility, and customization play pivotal roles, while interaction has a less pronounced effect. Importantly, the study unveils that brand experience acts as a partial mediator between AI marketing activities and consumer-based brand equity. These revelations not only illuminate pathways for retail banks in Lebanon to refine their AI strategies but also underscore the importance of leveraging AI-driven marketing initiatives to bolster customer equity, acquisition, and retention efforts in an increasingly competitive market age.

Tourism experiences are inherently multisensory, engaging visitors’ senses of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. This study addresses the gap in literature by investigating the impact of visual and auditory landscapes on tourist emotions and behaviors within coastal tourism settings, using the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model. Data collected from tourists in Sanya, China, were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicate that both visualscape and soundscape significantly influence tourist emotions (pleasure and arousal) and subsequent loyalty. Pleasure and arousal mediate the relationships between environmental stimuli and tourist loyalty, emphasizing their roles as emotional bridges between the environment and behaviors. These findings highlight the importance of integrating local cultural and community elements into tourism to enhance socio-economic benefits and ensure sustainable development. By fostering a deep connection between tourists and the local environment, these sensory experiences support the preservation of cultural heritage and promote sustainable tourism practices, aligning with the goals of economic development and public policy. The study contributes to the theoretical understanding of multisensory tourism by integrating the SOR model in coastal tourism and emphasizes the roles of visual and auditory stimuli. Practically, it provides insights for tourism managers to improve tourist experiences and loyalty through careful management of sensory elements. This has implications for infrastructure development, particularly in enhancing the quality of soft infrastructure such as cultural and social systems, which are crucial for sustainable tourism and community well-being. Future research could include additional sensory dimensions and diverse destinations for a comprehensive understanding of sensory influences on tourist behaviors and emotions. This research aligns with the broader goals of the policy and development by addressing critical aspects of infrastructure and socio-economic development within the tourism sector.

This study investigates the impact of various educational and social factors on the digital skills of vocational education and training (VET) students, emphasizing the significance of continuous skill development in the digital age. Utilizing structural equation modeling (SEM), the paper analyzes data from 382 adult VET students in Greece, examining the effects of Erasmus program participation, daily computer use, educational platforms, and social network engagement on digital competencies. The findings reveal that participation in Erasmus programs and the use of educational platforms significantly enhance students’ digital skills, highlighting the value of international experiences and digital learning tools in VET. Conversely, daily computer use alone does not significantly impact digital skills, suggesting that structured and purposeful digital tool integration is essential for skill development. The study also underscores the positive role of social networks in improving content management skills, advocating for their strategic use in educational settings. These results demonstrate the need for targeted digital literacy initiatives within VET programs to prepare students for modern labor market demands. The research contributes to the theoretical understanding of digital skill acquisition and offers practical insights for educators and policymakers to enhance VET curricula, fostering economic and social progress through improved digital literacy.

In light of the metaverse’s vast expansion, it’s a crucial intellectual platform that’s transforming the video game industry and spurring creative innovation and technological advancement. Considering the distinctive niche that Taiwan occupies within the realm of the video game industry, this study uses a total of 11 video game companies in Taiwan as samples. The study spans a period of 16 years, from 2007 to 2022, and utilizes the random effect regression model for analysis. The study results illustrate that intellectual capital efficiency exerts varying contributions to the creation of value across different corporate value indicators within the video game industry. Among the factors, HCE, SCE, and CEE demonstrate the highest explanatory power for ROE, reaching up to 82.23%. Following this, they account for 73.57% of the variance in market share, but only a meager 13.67% for Tobin’s Q. This study is the empirical evidence that different methods of measuring intellectual capital and various definitions of value creation in an industry may lead to divergent results and managerial implications in intellectual capital research. Hence, it is worthwhile for subsequent studies to continue clarifying and delving deeper into these aspects.

Social media has become one of the primary sources of communication, information, entertainment, and learning for users. Children gain several benefits as social media helps them acquire formal and informal learning opportunities. This research also examined the effect of social media on formal and informal learning among school-level children in Ajman, United Arab Emirates (UAE), moderated by social integrative and personal integrative needs. Data was gathered by using structured questionnaires, which were distributed among a sample of 364 children. Results revealed that social media significantly affects Informal and formal learning among children, indicating its usefulness in child education and development. The results also indicated a significant moderation of social integrative needs on social media’s direct effect on informal learning, indicating the relevant needs as an important motivating factor. However, the moderation of personal integrative needs on social media’s direct effect on formal learning remained insignificant. Overall, this research highlighted the role of social media in providing learning opportunities for children in the UAE. It is concluded that children actively seek gratifications from social media, shaping their learning within structured educational contexts in their daily lives. Through the lens of UGT, certain needs play a critical role in strengthening the gratification process, affecting how children derive learning advantages from their interactions on social media platforms. Finally, implications and limitations are discussed accordingly.