Quantitative Research Strategy Research Articles

THE DETERMINANTS OF CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL DISCLOSURE IN SUBSAHARA AFRICA: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF INDUSTRIAL ENTERPRISES FROM CAMEROON

Environmental policies are increasingly being considered by industrial enterprises operating in Cameroon. This concern is materialized via the publication of environmental information (environmental disclosure) usually in stand alone reports (CSR reports) or other reporting media. The goal of this study is to find out the explanatory factors for the dissemination of environmental information in a country which is yet to have a consistent accounting regulatory framework regarding environmental reporting. In order to achieve this objective, a quantitative research strategy was conducted with the aim of finding out the internal and external factors explaining the practice of environmental disclosure by industrial enterprises. The data for this quantitative study which was analysed with the help of the logistic regression was obtained through questionnaires administered to 50 respondents (top management) from a sample size of 50 industrial enterprises. The logistic regression suggests that profitability, industry type, pressure from primary stakeholders (government) and pressure from secondary stakeholders (the media) appeared to be the main determinants susceptible of explaining the practice of environmental disclosure by industrial enterprises in Cameroon, not forgetting dispersed ownership, leverage and firm’s size which also revealed to be explanatory factors of environmental disclosure even though it degree of predictability is moderate as suggested by the logistic analysis.

Nexus among the Hofstede Cultural Dimensions and Consumer Brand Loyalty: Empirical Evidence from Pakistan

Purpose: The current research aims to investigate the nexus among Hofstede’s national cultural dimensions and consumer brand loyalty in Southern Punjab, Pakistan. These cultural dimensions represent the independent fondness of one state of affairs over another that distinguishes the country’s culture (rather than individuals) from each other.
 Design/Methodology/Approach: Current research adopts a survey research method for data collection following the quantitative research strategy. Primary data through a self-administrated questionnaire was collected from individuals in southern Punjab, Pakistan’s major cities. Current research has targeted 1110 individuals for data collection, out of which 900 people responded positively to our instruments. Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation, and multiple regressions techniques were used to analyze the impact of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions on brand loyalty.
 Findings: The current research findings are fascinating as spearman’s correlation shows that Cultural dimensions have a positive relationship but are negatively associated with consumer brand loyalty. Multiple regression analysis results also show that cultural dimensions do not significantly impact consumer brand loyalty.
 Implications/Originality/Value: In the Pakistani cultural context, brand loyalty does not take much influence from the cultural values, but there could be some other factors that may affect brand loyalty. Further researchers can explore the exciting reasons for the current research results. Future studies can also explore the other factors which may influence brand loyalty, especially in the culture of southern Punjab, Pakistan.

Performance Score as a Measure of Organizational Effectiveness

Organizational effectiveness is primarily about assessing an organization's performance using several criteria. This study aims to determine Nepalese telecommunications companies' organizational effectiveness using a performance score based on the most crucial non-financial performance metrics (namely, context, focus, integration, and interactivity). The quantitative research strategy was utilized to extract the information from the designated working delegates of the Nepalese telecommunication industry. The study employed a probability sampling technique, and the quantitative data were obtained using an organized questionnaire survey to compute the performance scores of the sample organizations and the industry as a whole. The findings revealed that Nepal Telecom's score was 58.40 (systematic) and Ncell's score was 69.54 (transforming), averaging the industry score was 61.43. Such scores represent the extent to which the Nepalese telecommunication industry has applied non-financial performance measures to enhance organizational performance knowledge.

Impact of Employee Value Proposition on Employee Retention in Apparel Sector Employees in Sri Lanka

Apparel exports bring the largest export income to Sri Lanka. High labor turnover is one of the greatest challenges to continue the above performance. Sewing machine operators have become the number one occupation which the highest number of employees quitted among the top 20 occupations in Sri Lanka. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to find the employee value proposition (EVP) of sewing machine operators in the apparel manufacturing industry in Sri Lanka which will help to increase the employees’ intention to retain (IR) with the existing organization. The ontological stance is Representationalism while the epistemological stance is positivism choosing the deductive approach, quantitative research strategy. The self-administered questionnaires were obtained from 386 sewing machine operators covering all 13 large-scale companies in Sri Lanka. According to the findings, employee brand equity (EBE) has the strongest impact on employees’ intention to retain followed by reward and recognition and employee welfare respectively.

ANALISIS HUBUNGAN KUALITAS PELAYANAN KEFARMASIAN TERHADAP KEPUASAN PASIEN RAWAT JALAN RUMAH SAKIT UMUM SEMBIRING TAHUN 2021

Patient satisfaction is a leading indicator of service success that affects satisfaction in pharmaceutical services. If the service is in accordance with expectations, of course the quality of service is considered good and satisfactory, otherwise the service received is not satisfactory then the quality of service is considered bad. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship of physical evidence, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy to the satisfaction of outpatients of Sembiring general hospital. The type of research used mix methods with cross sectional design on quantitative research and sequential explanatory strategy on qualitative research. The population were 1160 people, with a sample of 92 people obtained using purposive sampling. Data collection in quantitative research by means of questionnaire dissemination while in qualitative research by way of indept interview. The results of the study obtained variables related to the satisfaction of outpatients of sembiring general hospitals, namely: Physical evidence (p value = 0.003), Reliability (p value = 0.001), Responsiveness (p value = 0.003), Guarantee (p value = 0.005), and Empathy (p value = 0.000). The results in depth interview found that the variable most associated with patient satisfaction was empathy. It is recommended to The Outpatient Pharmacy of Sembiring General Hospital to maintain a good quality of service and continue to improve the quality of service to patients.

Case Study: The Acceptance of XYZ Bank’s Mobile Banking Application Using Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)

Nowadays, it is common for public to use information technology to support each daily needs, such as mobile banking application. One of largest bank in Indonesia, XYZ Bank provided mobile banking application to support customer in doing financial and banking transaction. The case study was done to examine the customer’s acceptance of XYZ Bank’s mobile banking application by using Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), in order to provide information regarding factors affecting customer’s preference in using mobile banking application and improve XYZ Bank’s mobile banking application. This study was using quantitative research strategy, in which data was collected by conducting online survey towards XYZ Bank customer. Questionnaire was given in 5 point-scale. Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was conducted to examine the effect between variables, such as: perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitude towards using, behavioral intention, actual use, and trust. The researcher found that all indicators are reliable, based on its Cronbach’s Alpha value which ranges between 0.725 (actual use) and 0.924 (perceived ease of use). Data validity was tested and shows the Chi-square difference ranges from 69.716 (between trust and perceived usefulness) to 106.715. As conclusion, researcher concluded that all hypotheses are accepted and each variable had positive effect towards other variable.

PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF THE CONSEQUENCES OF POVERTY IN SELECTED LIFE DIMENSIONS

Poverty is a phenomenon that receives a lot of attention from a wide range of professionals as well as the lay public. This is a serious problem that significantly changes the lives and functions of individuals, families, as well as communities.
 The aim of this study was to find out how society perceives the consequences of poverty in individual dimensions of human life selected by us and also to find differences in perception of the consequences of poverty in terms of the selected demographic data (gender, place where the respondent lives, place of residence – city or countryside, faith, employment status, shared household, benefits in material deprivation, and an opinion on who should primarily address the problem of poverty). A quantitative research strategy was implemented using a self-designed questionnaire. The questionnaire contained 37 items and focused on the perception of poverty and its consequences in our selected areas. The questionnaire contained 6 basic dimensions, resp. areas. These were the health area, the hygiene area, the social area, the psychological area, the structural area and the housing area. We used a deliberate and quota selection (region, gender). The total sample (n) consisted of 384 respondents. The average age of the respondents was 36.30 ± 12.91 years old (min. 18, max. 75).
 The results did not show a statistically significant difference in the perception of areas most affected by poverty in terms of gender; in terms of receiving benefits in material need, there was a statistically significant difference in health, mental health, housing and social affairs. In terms of residence (countryside, city), a statistical difference was recorded only in the area of ​​health. There were also significant statistical differences in the area of geography (the region in which the respondent lives), in the area of health and hygiene, and the structural area. The practice of faith has proven to be an important determinant of the perception of poverty, especially in the social and psychological spheres. We also noticed differences in the perception of poverty in some areas in terms of shared household and employment status.

Риски конфликта групповых идентичностей полиэтничной молодежи Северного Кавказа

Objective of the study is to reveal the risks of identity conflict identification in multi-ethnic youth communities in the North Caucasus and search for optimal region's strategies for the formation of the integrating foundations of the all-Russian identity.   The methodological basis of the research was based on qualitative (discourse analysis, conceptualization of identity) and quantitative (sociological survey) research strategies. They made it possible to understand the essence of complex and multidimensional modern social transformations, to carry out their theoretical reconstruction, to reveal the influence of regional specifics on the formation of youth identity and to determine the ratio and value-semantic content of group identities in the minds of young people.   Research results. The North Caucasus youth, regardless of ethnicity, goes through the transformation processes of the value foundations of identity. Russian civic identity is significant for young people, while regional and ethnic identity is equally important. The survey revealed discrepancies in the priorities of these identities between Russian and Caucasian youth. For the North Caucasian peoples, traditional values are more important. These differences can trigger conflicts and contribute to the transformation of conflicts of interest into conflicts of identities. One of the conditions for further consolidation and socio-cultural development of the region is an effective identity politics and public activity aimed at developing supra-ethnic values of dialogue, trust, responsibility and solidarity. General value and symbolic grounds will provide a harmonious combination of regional, ethnocultural and all-Russian identities.   Prospects of the study. Further analysis of the identity processes among the North Caucasus youth in the context of defining general value grounds of Russian self-awareness and the formation of supra-ethnic values and moral norms is needed. Such research can help to dialogue and social solidarity in multi-ethnic youth communities.

A Comparative Study on Practice of Vocational Education Teacher Training Between Tanzania and China

Given the positive role vocational training has played and continue to play elsewhere in the world, the Tanzanian Government embraced vocational training as a tool for the development in the country. The purpose of this study was to compare practice of Vocational Education Teacher Training between Tanzania and China. This study employed quantitative research strategy. Data was collected by use of questionnaires and the data analyzed by the aid of Statistical Package of Social Scientists Program (SPSS) and Microsoft Office Excel. The findings unveiled that a majority of the respondents from China have both had academic and job experience on what they are teaching, while most of Tanzanians had only academic experience. China has extensively invested in Vocational Education Teachers’ Training compared to Tanzania, and support given to Vocational Education Teachers’ Training in Tanzania is not satisfactory. Also, the findings portray that unlike China, VET teachers in Tanzania are not satisfied with training opportunities and dislike their careers which make them working while waiting for another alternative. Findings designated that the government of China is very serious in ensuring Vocational Education Teacher Training quality but in Tanzania, the government to the moderate extent is serious in ensuring such quality. Correspondingly, study findings revealed that Vocational Education Teachers’ Training are not provided with reasonable resources and standards in Tanzania which call for immediate resolution. The conclusions of this study are; (i) compared to Tanzania, Vocational Education Teachers Training in China is very inspiring as large extent VET teachers possess occupation relevant knowledge, academic and job experience on what they are teaching; and China’s Government has invested in Vocational Education Teacher Training; (ii) Vocational Education Teachers in Tanzania are not satisfied with training opportunities in their career; they do not love their job to great extent and they just work because they do not have any other alternatives compared to Chinese Vocational Education Teachers; (iii) Also, in order to enhance the training of Tanzanian Vocational Education Teachers Training, education agencies work together to shape and develop the Vocational Education Teachers Training.

The european foundation for quality management (efqm) model scale: a quantitative instrument

The purpose of the paper is to present a scale to measure EFQM model application in any organization as an instrument. This paper will present a set of original information and tool for the Model users. A quantitative research strategy with SPSS uses to test the validity and reliability of the presented questioners. The EFQM model scale will guide and support future research lines in this field of management. A literature review from previous publications wasconducted. Many papers were selected and aspects related to the purpose. The suggested scale was tested with around 100 NGOs in the Middle East testing the EFQM criteria validity and reliability.The study result presents a clear scale and instrument help to measure the nine criteria presented as a main component for this model, and more furthermore a dozen lines of future research.

The Impact of Good Corporate Governance and Leverage on Financial Performance of Manufacturing Companies

This study aims to examine the impact of effective corporate governance and leverage on the financial performance of manufacturing firms publicly listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange. This study employs a quantitative research strategy, utilizing various research methods, including normality testing, multicollinearity testing, and heteroscedasticity testing. Additionally, regression analysis is conducted, explicitly employing multiple linear regression analysis, hypothesis testing analysis, and calculating the coefficient of determination. The study's findings indicate a positive and statistically significant relationship between institutional ownership and financial performance. The presence of managerial ownership exerts a favorable and statistically significant impact on a firm's financial success. The company of independent commissioners has been found to have a clear and statistically significant effect on financial performance. The presence of an audit committee has been found to have a favorable and statistically significant impact on financial performance. The utilization of leverage, as indicated by the Debt-to-Asset Ratio (DAR), exhibits a noteworthy and positive effect on the financial performance of an entity. The positive test findings obtained suggest a positive correlation between a firm's leverage and its financial performance, indicating that as the leverage of a company increases, its financial performance is also expected to increase. This positive correlation can arise due to the prevalence of sample companies with a higher proportion of debt in their capital structure than their equity. The concurrent influence of effective corporate governance and leverage on a company's financial success is noteworthy. The financial success of a corporation can be predicted by utilizing many GCG variables, namely independent commissioners, audit committees, institutional ownership, and managerial ownership, together with leverage

Effect of Green HRM on Environmental Performance in Dairy Industry in Sri Lanka: The Mediating Role of Green Employee Empowerment

With the massive industrialization, environmental sustainability is one of major preconditions of contemporary business organizations in this century in response to the occurrence of depletion of natural resources, natural disasters, climate changes and health concerns. In order to propel an environment performance, eco-friendly human resource management practices are indeed. This study focuses on exploring the effect of green HRM practices including green recruitment and selection, green training and development, green performance management and green rewards systems on environmental performance with the mediating effect of green employee empowerment in dairy industry in Sri Lanka. This study has adopted quantitative research strategy and six hypotheses were developed based on empirical gaps identified in literature review. 210 managers were selected through random sampling method and data collection was done through self-filled closed ended questionnaire and analyzed through SPSS software tool. The findings present a considerable impact of green HRM practices on environmental performance. Study found that green employee empowerment partially mediates the relationship between green HRM practices and environmental performance in dairy industry. Further, green performance management was the most impacted green HRM practice on environmental performance. Therefore, it can be recommended that employee performance management systems should be modified with green criteria while employees are empowered to engage in green initiatives. Implication of this study highlights gaps in the human resource management systems and provides managerial policy makers fruitful insights on sustainable business operations. Future studies are mainly encouraged to construct measuring scales in the field of Green HRM.
 Keywords: Environmental Sustainability, Environmental Performance, Green HRM, Green Employee Empowerment, Dairy Industry

How transformational leadership, psychological contract violation, empowerment and affective commitment influence employee’s intention to quit an organisation

Purpose: The first aim of this article is to assess the influence of transformational leadership and some selected psychological constructs on employee’s intention to quit an organisation. The second aim is to develop and validate a conceptual model that depicts the linear relationships amongst the constructs of this study (i.e. transformational leadership, psychological contract violation, psychological empowerment, affective commitment and intention to quit).Design/methodology/approach: The article employs correlational research method using quantitative research strategy. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was adopted in analysing data collected from 232 conveniently sampled respondents from various organisations in South Africa. The partial least square based SEM methodology was used to test the relationships amongst the various constructs of the study.Findings/results: Transformational leadership showed indirect influence on intention to quit through psychological contract violation, psychological empowerment and affective organisational commitment.Practical implications: The conceptual model of this study provides a useful psychological framework that guide organisations in the formulation and implementation of retention policies and practices. Further, it is imperative for organisations to encourage the adoption of transformational leadership at all levels of management. This is in consideration of the significant influences that this leadership behaviour exerts on individual employee’s intention to quit an organisation.Originality/value: An extensive search of instant literature did not produce evidence of an existing literature regarding the relationship between transformational leadership and psychological contract violation as we found in this article. This is a theoretical contribution to the field of organisation psychology. Furthermore, the article developed a unique and a empirically validated model that explained the direction and strength of relationships amongst selected antecedents of intention to quit. This practical contribution provides managers with both pragmatic insights and theoretical framework in formulating an effective retention strategy for their organisations.

The Effects of Religiosity and Socioeconomic Status on Social Distance towards Refugees and the Serial Mediating Role of Satisfaction with Life and Perceived Threat

In every society, refugees face social and economic exclusion. In particular, social distance towards refugees may be seen remarkably in cities where host people and refugees live together intensely. This study examined essential predictors of social distance towards refugees: religiosity, socioeconomic status (SES), satisfaction with life, and threat perception towards refugees. A quantitative research strategy was used to collect cross-sectional data from 1453 individuals via an online questionnaire in Turkey. Confirmatory factor, correlation, regression, and mediation analyses were conducted. In this study, the effect of religiosity and socioeconomic status on social distance towards refugees and the serial mediation effects of satisfaction with life and threat perception towards refugees on this relationship were analyzed. Questions related to age, gender, marital status, education level, and having refugee neighbors or not were used as control variables. It was found that religiosity and SES were associated with social distance towards refugees. Furthermore, in the effect of religiosity and SES on social distance towards refugees, the serial mediating roles of satisfaction with life and threat perception towards refugees, respectively, were identified.

Key elements of green supply chain management drivers and barriers empirical study of solar energy companies in South Egypt

PurposeThere are several important strategic projects in the field of renewable energy in Egypt. Benban project is considered as one of the largest solar generation facilities in the world, which aims to increase clean energy produced, provide electricity needs for citizens and help to increase the volume of Egypt's electricity exports. The purpose of this paper is to explore the most important drivers and barriers that affect the implementation of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices in the field of solar energy production.Design/methodology/approachIt is an exploratory research that conducts a case study about solar energy companies operating in Benban, south Egypt. It adopts a mixed approach; qualitative and quantitative research strategy to test the relationship between dependent and independent variables through a survey.FindingsThis research concluded that normative drivers involving stakeholder pressure are of the greatest drivers of GSCM practice, while external barriers including lack of government regulations and government support, poor supplier commitment, customers’ unawareness of sustainable green products, lack of markets receiving and manufacturing recycled materials, lack of renewal or technological innovation in markets and lack of human resources or expertise in market are among the biggest barriers to GSCM implementation.Research limitations/implicationsThe researchers collected 30 responses during the field survey, which is a nonrandom sample that does not allow generalization. In addition, samples are only from companies in the solar energy sector only.Originality/valueAs there is a need for research that addresses sustainability practices and solutions in developing countries, especially in Egypt, this paper theoretically contributes to literature by proposing a conceptual framework that identifies the drivers and barriers of GSCM from the existing literature, then investigates and measures their impact on the implementation of GSCM on an Egyptian case study. As regards the practical contribution, this research is a trial to experimentally test the importance of top management’s role in motivating and training employees to improve the brand image of their company and making them aware of the benefits of the successful GSCM implementation.

How Does the Assessment of Work Organization during the COVID-19 Pandemic Relate to Changes in the Well-Being of Health System Workers?

In the case of various emergencies, especially pandemics, healthcare workers are faced with disproportionate pressures. Organizational support plays a significant role in protecting the psychological and physical health of healthcare workers. This interdisciplinary research aims to determine how changes in the physical and psychological well-being of healthcare and pharmacy workers during the first wave of the COVID-19 lockdown are related to work organization factors that support safety and stability. A quantitative research strategy was applied in the research. Data from an electronic survey assessed the changes in the physical and psychological well-being of healthcare and pharmacy workers during the lockdown period and the organizational factors supporting safety and stability. The sample of the quantitative research consisted of 967 employees of healthcare institutions and pharmacies in Lithuania. This research broadens the concept of organizational factors and provides data on their interaction with the changes of employee well-being indicators in a pandemic situation. It was found that positive changes in the evaluation of physical as well as psychological well-being during the COVID-19 lockdown could be consistently predicted by all the analyzed safety and stability supporting organizational factors that were found to be associated with subjective physical well-being and psychological well-being even when adjusting for the effect of socio-demographic factors (gender, age, work field, and specialty). The identification and proper management of organizational factors was significant for the psychological and physical well-being of healthcare workers during the lockdown period. It was found that all estimates of safety and stability supporting organizational factors during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown were positively related and could act as protective factors to the subjective physical and psychological well-being of healthcare and pharmacy workers.

Bivariate relationships among dimensions and determinants of organizational performance of local contractors in Kenya

The organizational performance of local contractors in Kenya remain poor. Little or no research has been done to improve this. The purpose of this research was to establish the bivariate relationships among the dimensions and determinants of organizational performance of local contractors in Kenya. A quantitative research strategy and a survey research design were adopted. The unit of observation comprised of contractors and consultants while the unit of analysis was the contractor. The sampling frame consisted of all NCA1 contractors, NCA2 contractors, NCA3 contractors, and consultants who had professionally interacted with these contractors in recent projects. A sample size of 604 was adopted. Simple random sampling was used to select the contractors. Questionnaires were administered both physically and online. Study variables have been measured perceptually. A response rate of 63% was achieved. All the 45 relationships among the dimensions of organizational performance were positive and significant at 0.01. All the 45 relationships among the determinants of organizational performance were positive and significant at 0.01. All the 100 relationships between the ten dimensions and ten determinants of organizational performance were positive and significant at 0.01 level. The three most dominant determinants of organizational performance were quality of service, organizational structure of the firm and suppliers effectiveness. Improved organizational performance of local contractors can be achieved by enhancing their internal and external environment.

Ethical and unethical behaviour of built environment professionals in the Ghanaian construction industry

Purpose The construction industry is an enabler of economic growth in developing countries, but its performance is governed by the professional behaviour of construction professionals. Unethical behaviour (UB) breaches codes of practice and undermines economic performance hence, ubiquitous academic attention has been given to understanding this phenomenon. This paper aims to contribute to the ensuing discourse by reporting upon the most critical ethical behaviours (EBs and UBs) of professionals in the Ghanaian construction industry (GCI). Design/methodology/approach The study compounded identified factors into a closed-ended questionnaire in a quantitative research strategy. Data analysis was conducted using the relative importance index and one sample t-test. To measure the reliability of the scale, Cronbach’s alpha was used, which indicated that all measured items were reliable for further analysis. Findings The study confirmed that professionals within the GCI are aware of the existence of UBs and revealed that the most prevalent ethical conducts exhibited, namely, level of accuracy, accountability, honesty, reliability, fairness and respect for colleagues. Common unethical conducts exhibited included: favouritism, bribery and corruption, professional negligence, falsification, fraud and overbilling. Research limitations/implications The study reported on the dominant ethical conduct among built environment professionals. The claims put forward in the analysis are, thus, affected by Ghana’s social, economic and political environments, which could restrict the generalization of the findings. Practical implications Incipient findings presented from this research will guide stakeholders to develop and device strategies that will aid alleviate persistent ethical issues within the built environment. Social implications The study highlights individuals’ perspectives on ethical issues persistent in the built environment. The findings suggest individuals adhere to ethical practices in a project environment by the evidence presented. Originality/value This pioneering study is a novel assessment on EBs and UBs of built environment professionals in the GCI. The study supplementary adds value to the literature on ethical and unethical practices. By identifying these practices, construction firms have a competitive edge in combating UB and promoting EB among built environment professionals in the GCI.

Perspectives, Measurability and Effects of Non-Contact Biofield-Based Practices: A Narrative Review of Quantitative Research.

Practices such as “Reiki”, therapeutic touch, healing touch, and external “Qigong” have been regarded as some form of “energy medicine” or “biofield therapy”. The biofield concept has been studied and debated by researchers of distinct areas of expertise, and although the phenomenon was sometimes described as physically related to electromagnetics, other factors such as “subtle energy” and focused intention might be involved. These nonconventional practices integrate contact and non-contact techniques, and those dealing with so-called distant healing interventions are perhaps the most difficult to understand and accept. Practitioners describe these so-called nonlocal interventions as involving intentional factors and particular states of consciousness. With a spiritual mindset and a particular state of awareness, compassion is said to work out as a catalyst to produce physiological and physical changes through mechanisms that are still unknown. At the body level, these vegetative changes might be related to individual self-perception variations as part of the body neurovegetative feedback system of regulation. Further mechanisms are difficult to document and measure, and might be more accessible to research by using physical signal detectors, chemical dynamics methods, detectors using biological materials, detectors using living sensors, and detectors using the human body. The growing interest in these practices and the considerable amount of research exploring their effects and clinical applications encouraged this narrative review, which aims to provide an easy to consult partial overview of the history, theory and findings of quantitative research strategies exploring non-contact biofield-based practices. This work also aims to stimulate the reader’s mind with the raised hypotheses, catalyzing further research on the subject to confirm or deny the reported outcomes.

THE FACTORS AFFECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION DISCLOSURE AND USAGE CONTINUANCE INTENTION ON MOBILE SOCIAL NETWORKING SERVICES

Human life has been greatly changed by the explosive growth of the internet and social media. This paper explores the factors affecting the individual information disclosure and usage continuance intention on mobile social networking services. Therefore, this study is aimed to test hypothesesrelated to the proposed calculus theory rather than generate new hypotheses. Therefore, the present research study is deductive in nature and thus is consistent with the positivism paradigm. The present study intends to adopt a quantitative research strategy using a structured survey questionnaire. Questionnaires are prepared on a five-pointLikert scale and distributed to 180 individuals in the Klang Valley in Malaysia. Indeed, the opinions of the respondents are different from each other a non-probability sampling tool has been used. The results of the study were analyzed by Pearson correlation tests and indicate that several parameters are highly significant, including privacy concerns, perceived risk, information sensitivity, reliable beliefs, perceived usefulness, and relationships for disclosure. The information mentioned that the respondents notice in the disclosure of information and their intention to use it. Three factors, such as privacy concern, perceived risk, and information sensitivity, are associated negatively with significance towards the information discloser among the users of the mobile apps in social networks in Malaysia. The other three factors, such as trusting beliefs, perceived usefulness, and relationship building, are positively associated with information disclosure.