Research Topics Research Articles

Research on Option Pricing Method Based on the Black-Scholes Model

Option pricing is one of the core research topics in the field of financial engineering. As a classical option pricing method, the Black-Scholes model provides a significant foundation for both theory and practice in modern financial markets. This paper first elaborates on the theoretical foundation and mathematical derivation of the Black-Scholes model, analyzes its practical applications in option pricing, and explores its limitations, including the strict assumptions about market conditions and its applicability in environments with fluctuating volatility or sudden market jumps. To address these issues, this study improves the Black-Scholes model from two perspectives: stochastic volatility and jump-diffusion models. The improved models are validated through experimental designs, and their effectiveness is compared with the traditional model. The experimental results demonstrate that the improved models can provide more accurate pricing results in complex market environments. This research not only deepens the understanding of the Black-Scholes model but also offers new insights and approaches for pricing complex financial instruments.

Impact and Growth in the Concert Industry: A Systematic Review

The role of concerts as a crucial component of events is undeniable, especially in the post-epidemic age. As the concert business has grown significantly in recent years, its connections with participant engagement, destination management, and technology have garnered increased attention. This paper focuses on the systematic review method and combines the PRISMA model to collect existing literature on concerts and classify them. Following the PRISMA guidelines, which include four steps (identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion), 56 papers were examined and categorised into three dimensions. At the same time, through the analysis of existing literature, it also points out new research directions that may appear in this field in the future, such as the dual role of technology, more diverse research methods and factors, environmental and social influence components, the difference between music festivals and concerts, and the operational analysis of the event itself. The purpose is to understand and analyze the current status of research in this industry and provide new directions for future development in research topics and methods.

The Dilemma and Causes of Modern Afghanistan Women’s Social Development

The development of Afghan women is one of the key research topics today. Researcher has found that people's awareness of women's rights is gradually increasing. However, there is still a certain research gap in focusing on the uniqueness of Afghan women. Therefore, this study focuses on Afghanistan, discovers the real situation and challenges faced by Afghan women's lives, and reflects on the reasons that lead to these problems. It is hoped that the situation of Afghan women can be used as an example to stimulate people's thinking about women's basic rights. This researcher focuses on and analyzes different types of information to find the correlation between phenomena. The research results of this article indicate that Afghan women face significant difficulties in education and social integration, and the causes of these hardships are comprehensive, including social structure, religious factors, geopolitics, dominant economic structure, and other factors. However, the researcher is pleasantly surprised to find that despite facing many challenges, Afghan women have not given up their struggle and are constantly fighting for their own rights directly or indirectly. Their vitality and female power have moved and inspired researchers.

Leadership in dance and dance education: a review

ABSTRACT Few studies have analyzed the relationship between the arts and leadership or leadership development using arts-based methods, even though much has been written about the ‘art of leadership’ or ‘leadership as art.’ Using both the scoping and bibliometric review methodologies, the purpose of this study is to identify the main research topics and their evolution over time, paying particular attention to research on dance leadership. The review identified 33 documents in dance leadership and 132 articles in arts leadership and leadership development published in EBSCO and Web of Science-indexed journals between 1982 and 2022. We found that the knowledge base has grown at an accelerating rate and with increasing gender and geographic diversity. It also reveals the emergence of two main themes in these fields: the role of aesthetics and the rise of embodiment as explanatory concepts.

Jealousy, Jealousy

In this lightning talk I use an autoethnographic and narrative approach to discuss the generative and obstructive potential of discipline envy and method jealousy in developing research topics in Information Science (IS). I describe how envy and jealousy shaped the development of my doctoral research topic, information-sharing of artist-researchers, and aim to provoke reflection on cross-disciplinary research.

GD2 is a Crucial Ganglioside in the Signal Modulation and Application as a Target of Cancer Therapeutics.

While various glycosphingolipids were identified as cancer-associated carbohydrate antigens to be used as tumor markers, disialylated gangliosides such as GD3 and GD2 have particularly attracted attention from many researchers as promising cancer-associated antigens. Simultaneously, their functions in cancer and normal tissues have also been reported. Although GD3 is expressed at the early neural developmental stage and in various cancers, it is also found in the activated status of some normal cells such as astrocytes and lymphocytes. On the other hand, GD2 is expressed in more restricted cells than GD3, enabling anti-GD2 immune therapy to be more applicable for immunotherapy. Recently, the expression of GD2 has been reported in various epithelial cancers and neuroectoderm-derived tumors. The involvement of GD2 in cancer stem cell propertiesand the roles of GD2 in the signal modulation to bring about cancer stemness are now some of the most fascinating research topics. Cancer immunotherapy targeting GD2 by anti-GD2 antibody or anti-GD2 CAR-T is now widely being challenged with various modifications such as combination with cytokines, chemotherapy, or immune checkpoint blocking.

Child marriage in high-prevalence countries: publication trends in SCI-E and SSCI journals and future recommendations

ABSTRACT Child marriage is a significant public health issue that endangers the health of both the married children and their offspring. This phenomenon is often associated with gender inequality, with women being disproportionately affected. This study aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis to identify underresearched subfields in regions where child marriage is prevalent, thereby providing insights to guide future research endeavors. The data comprising 239 publications were obtained from the Web of Science Core Collection database. Bibliometric indicators such as academic collaboration between countries, annual growth of publications, research areas, citation topics, top 10 journals, and research themes were presented. Bibliometric analyses and visualizations were performed using VOSviewer. Of the total data, 93.3% (N: 226) were published in the last decade. The United States was the most studied country, while limited documents were found for Mexico and China among the investigated countries. Additionally, Iran was observed to have limited collaboration with other countries. Child marriages were investigated primarily in terms of public health. Gender & Sexuality studies and Psychiatry & Psychology were the most frequently cited meso-level topics. The publications were grouped into three clusters based on their themes, which included reproductive health, public health and violence. The United States was identified as a country that is particularly sensitive to this topic. However, it has not fully addressed some particularly risky regions such as Mexico, China, and Iran. The subject was primarily discussed from the perspectives of gender equality, public health, and reproductive health. However, productivity in the psychiatric aspect of the issue was found to be inadequate in the dataset, despite the notable scientific interest in this area.

A critical review of brand image and buying intentions: visualization and bibliometric analysis approach

PurposeThis study aims to explore the relationship between brand image and buying intentions, which is crucial in understanding consumer buying behaviour. This study aims to review the literature, identify research trends and further suggests research directions for future study.Design/methodology/approachA bibliometric analysis was conducted on 402 research articles extracted from the Scopus database, following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) framework. The study includes performance analysis, science mapping and network visualization, with VOSviewer and Biblioshiny software for the analysis. It examines publication trends, prolific countries, institutions, authors, highly cited papers, keyword co-occurrence and thematic evolution for a comprehensive analysis.FindingsThe study reveals the increasing scholarly interest of researchers in brand image and purchase intention over time and identified various research themes. Results state that Brand image and purchase intention themes remained central throughout both time zones (1995–2012 and 2013–2024). Emerging themes of the field include green marketing, corporate social responsibility, influencer marketing and entrepreneurial marketing.Originality/valueThis research study makes an addition to the body of literature by identifying the research hotspots and areas that need further investigation. Further, the thematic evolution of the brand image and purchase intentions illustrates how perception at various consumer levels and decision-making process has shifted over time in response to changing market dynamics. This study is of quite paramount importance for a vast group of stakeholders including researchers, businesses, brand managers, policy makers, marketing professionals and future research scholars.

Urban Gardening and Public Health—A Bibliometric Analysis

Background: Urban gardening enhances public health in urban environments by creating green spaces that encourage physical activity, provide access to fresh food, and support mental well-being. These initiatives also strengthen social connections, alleviate stress, and contribute to environmental sustainability, thus addressing health disparities and enhancing quality of life. This study offers a bibliometric analysis of urban gardening research from 1991 to 2020, highlighting trends and implications for public health. Methods: We employed a bibliometric analysis using the free mapping software VOSviewer (version 1.6.19) to generate co-occurrence networks of keywords and bibliographic coupling networks of documents. The dataset spans three decades, focusing on the evolution of research topics and geographical patterns. Results: This research field has grown steadily since the early 1990s. Over the last two decades, the focus has shifted from addressing poverty and food security to exploring urban gardening’s impact on human well-being and quality of life, predominantly in developed countries. Recent studies highlight the differentiated impacts of urban gardening on various socioeconomic groups. Despite robust evidence of public health benefits, policy implementation remains limited, with researchers emphasizing the need for more quantitative data to inform decisions. Conclusions: Urban gardening research has evolved to address contemporary urban health challenges, showcasing its potential to improve well-being and foster community resilience. Strengthening data quality and fostering collaboration between researchers and policymakers are critical for advancing the role of urban gardening in creating healthier cities.

Advancing the Construct of Self-Leadership: A Bibliometric Review

Self-leadership, or an individual's efforts to influence oneself to perform, ­is considered a prerequisite for leading others. Informed by Reichers and Schneider's (1990) 3-stage model of construct evolution, we leverage multiple bibliometric methods to map self-leadership's introduction, evaluation, and consolidation. This paper is guided by four research questions: RQA) What theories underlie self-leadership, and how is the construct elaborated over time? RQB) What is the nature of the current intellectual network, and who are the key conversants of self-leadership research? RQC) What are the past, present, and emerging trends in self-leadership research? RQD) What directions can researchers pursue to advance self-leadership firmly into the third stage of construct evolution based on Reichers and Schneiders’ model? To answer these questions, we critically examine the core theories underlying self-leadership and their elaboration through time (Stage 1; historiography) to uncover the strengths and gaps in the origination of the construct (RQA). We also reveal the dominating (and missing) perspectives of key conversants (e.g., co-authorship analysis; RQB). Moving through Stage 2 of construct evaluation and augmentation, we leverage a bibliographic coupling of 539 documents to identify and describe emergent research themes and a co-word analysis to contrast traditional and trending topics (RQC). We argue that the self-leadership construct has just progressed into Stage 3 (i.e., consolidation and accommodation) as self-leadership research remains somewhat isolated from the broader leadership and organizational studies literature. Finally, we detail future research strategies to integrate relevant theories, identify boundary conditions, and generalize self-leadership across contexts, demographics, and authors (RQD).

Exploring the development and trends of English medium instruction (EMI) research: a scientometric analysis

ABSTRACT This scientometric analysis examines 688 research publications on English medium instruction (EMI) from 2003 to 2022, sourced from the Web of Science database. This investigation employs growth trend analysis, discipline analysis, co-authorship analysis, document co-citation cluster analysis, and document co-citation burstness analysis to unravel the overall state, cooperation network, and foundational and emerging trends of the research themes. Three growth phases are identified: limited interest (2003–2013), fluctuating development (2014–2017), and rapid growth (2018–2022). The fields of education and linguistics dominate the disciplinary landscape. Six research clusters are identified from the analysis, encompassing the following topics: (1) English learning affordance, (2) policy, realities, and challenges, (3) language support, (4) stakeholders’ perspectives, (5) academic success, and (6) global Englishes. Citation bursts indicate emerging trends, including global English integration, multilingualism advocacy, and innovative language assessment. Geographically, international research collaboration is encouraged, while temporally, the maturation and evolution of each EMI research specialty (cluster) is observed. In conclusion, future research on EMI should adopt a multidisciplinary approach, provide nuanced language support, conduct continuous policy analysis, and comprehensively investigate academic and stakeholder success.

Mapping the two decades of Islamic marketing research using bibliometric analysis and novel machine learning topic modeling

Purpose This study aims to systematically assess and map the evolution, themes and trends within Islamic marketing research, with a focus on identifying areas of high growth potential and guiding future research directions. Design/methodology/approach Using a bibliometric analysis and advanced structured topic modeling (STM) techniques, this research analyzes Islamic marketing studies published between 2000 and 2024. The comprehensive database search, centered on Scopus-listed publications, provides a macroscopic view of the field’s development over the past two decades. Findings This study reveals significant insights into the field of Islamic marketing, including the identification of key research themes, the growth in literature and geographical hotspots of scholarly activity. Emerging trends suggest a growing focus on consumer behavior, brand loyalty, Halal certification and ethical marketing practices. Research limitations/implications This research is limited by its reliance on the Scopus database for source materials, and by focusing primarily on English-language publications. These constraints may have excluded relevant research in other languages or published in nonindexed formats. Practical implications This study offers valuable insights for marketers, businesses and policymakers aiming to engage the Islamic market. Understanding the dynamics of Islamic marketing can help in developing strategies that align with Muslim consumers’ values and preferences. Originality/value This research contributes to the Islamic marketing literature by using bibliometric analysis and STM, offering a unique, comprehensive overview of the field’s evolution, trends and future directions. It underscores the importance and growth of Islamic marketing as an independent academic discipline.

Self-efficacy in Online Learning: A Bibliometric Analysis

Whether synchronous or asynchronous, online learning utilizes various digital tools that significantly differentiate it from conventional offline learning. One critical factor influencing students' success in this environment is self-efficacy, which reflects their belief in their ability to perform learning tasks effectively. Despite increasing research on online learning self-efficacy, a comprehensive overview of its development and trends is needed. This study aims to analyze the research landscape related to online learning self-efficacy over the last five years, identifying key contributors, collaboration networks, and thematic research focuses. This study employs descriptive bibliometric analysis to systematically examine the growth, distribution, and impact of research in this field. Data was collected from major academic databases, focusing on publications between 2018 and 2023. Key parameters analyzed include publication trends, country-wise research output, institutional contributions, collaboration networks, keyword co-occurrence, and citation impact. Findings indicate a growing interest in online learning self-efficacy studies, particularly between 2018 and 2021. The United Kingdom leads in publications, while United States researchers engage in the most international collaborations. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University emerges as the top institution in this field. Most studies appear in education and technology journals, with commonly associated keywords including motivation, e-learning, self-concept, and self-regulated learning. Quantitative research dominates, as 84 of the 100 most-cited publications employ quantitative methodologies, with students as the most frequently studied sample group. These findings provide insights into scholarly trends, highlighting key contributors and research directions for future studies.

VR and AR research in the hospitality and tourism industry: a systematic review utilizing the theory-context-characteristics-methodology (TCCM) framework

ABSTRACT Using the theory-context-characteristics-methodology (TCCM) framework, this study conducted a comprehensive review of the literature on Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) in hospitality and tourism. One hundred and twenty-five peer-reviewed publications from the lists of Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE), and Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) were obtained from the databases such as Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar to be analyzed. This review systematically analyzed the extant literature utilizing the TCCM, detail issues related to theory, context (research location, research theme, research objects’ perspectives, and positive/negative analysis), characteristics (antecedents and outcomes), and methodology currently used in VR and AR research, and presents detailed domain research gaps in the context of eight themes for future research guidance, guided by the TCCM framework. These directions are both relevant and actionable and make far-reaching contributions to this industry.

Multi-directional reconfigurable ultra-low frequency vibration energy harvester

Abstract Converting vibrational energy from the environment into electrical energy more efficiently has been one of the key research topics of this century. The majority of vibrations observed in the natural environment occur at low frequencies and are not fixed in direction. This work presents a design of a piezoelectric vibration energy harvester supported by an elastic rod (R-PVEH), which allows for multidirectional responses to capture vibrational energy. The distinctive configuration of the structure allows for a reduction in vibration attenuation in the presence of low-frequency, unstable excitation. Further, in instances where a complex vibration source is present, multiple units can be reconfigurable to achieve a higher and more stable voltage output. The device can output an average voltage of 15.2 V in response to horizontal low-frequency vibrations of 0.3 Hz, representing a 193.3% increase compared to the conventional cantilever beam structure. The device is expected to be employed in multidirectional low-frequency scenarios such as ocean wave energy harvesting.

The Fertilization of Synbiotic Systems in the Intensive Culture of Penaeus vannamei

ABSTRACTOver the years, the intensification of shrimp Penaeus vannamei production has brought challenges such as disease outbreaks and increases in the nutrient loading of effluents. To be more environmentally friendly as production systems intensified, it became necessary to create systems with a high degree of biosecurity and toward efficiency in water and land use. Thus, microbial‐based systems, such as the biofloc, were pioneered to support industry growth and market demand for shrimp. Currently, a derivation of biofloc has emerged and is gaining ground in the shrimp industry, which is the synbiotic system. Synbiotic systems are microbially based and are characterized by fertilizing the culture water with vegetable bran (prebiotics) that were processed by fermentation and/or microbial respiration by probiotic microorganisms. The fertilization strategy creates conditions similar to a natural environment by supporting microbial loop development, controlling water quality, and suppressing harmful, and pathogenic microorganisms. The synbiotic system is still new and without standard fertilization protocols, which has leads to dissimilar results between laboratory research and commercial farms. Therefore, this review is focused on describing the different fertilization procedures used in the synbiotic system for P. vannamei intensive culture, the importance of each fertilizer component, as well as the processing strategies. Furthermore, in this study, we seek to demonstrate perspectives and recommend future research topics to better understand the advantages and disadvantages of this production system.

Electromagnetic Field-Aware Radio Resource Management for 5G and Beyond: A Survey

The expansion of 5G infrastructure and the deployment of large antenna arrays are set to substantially influence electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure levels within mobile networks. As a result, the accurate measurement of EMF exposure and the integration of EMF exposure constraints into radio resource management are expected to become increasingly important in future mobile communication systems. This paper provides a comprehensive review of EMF exposure evaluation frameworks for 5G networks, considering the impacts of high-energy beams, the millimeter wave spectrum, network densification and reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs), while also examining EMF-aware radio resource management strategies for 5G networks and beyond, with RIS technology as an assistive factor. Furthermore, challenges and open research topics in the EMF evaluation framework and EMF-aware resource management for 5G mobile networks and beyond are highlighted. Despite the growing importance of RIS technology in enhancing mobile networks, a research gap remains in addressing specific EMF exposure considerations associated with RIS deployments. Additionally, the impact of EMF-aware radio resource allocation approaches on RIS-assisted 5G networks is still not fully understood.

The Role of Activity-Based Costing in Reducing Environmental Impact: A Systematic Literature Review

Accounting professionals play a pivotal role in reducing environmental impact through systems like activity-based costing (ABC). This study offers a thorough review of research on ABC and environmental impact, providing insights into the current literature and guiding future developments. It systematically reviews 58 articles published in the Web of Science from 1998 to 2023, using Excel and the R package Bibliometrix for data analysis. The findings indicate a steady increase in research on ABC and environmental impact. Key contributions highlight the advantages of ABC in minimizing environmental impact across industries such as sustainable construction, metallurgy, transportation, and manufacturing. Emerging research directions include developing costing systems to reduce environmental impact, optimizing supply chain cost management models, and applying new technologies to tackle environmental challenges in production processes. Two primary research themes, identified as “motor themes,” are crucial for advancing this field: life-cycle assessment management models, which integrate environmental factors throughout a product or service’s life cycle; and the performance and impact of environmental cost management systems, which evaluate the effectiveness of these systems in reducing ecological footprints while maintaining profitability. These areas are essential for driving future research and innovation at the intersection of cost management and environmental sustainability.

Microlearning in organizations: patterns and future directions

Purpose This study investigates the patterns in Microlearning by analyzing the extant literature, uncovering the underlying themes, and proposing future directions in this field for organizations. Design/methodology/approach A relevant search of the Scopus database was performed on 4th August 2024 which revealed a total of 108 articles. These articles were then analyzed and a network analysis was performed using VOSViewer to uncover the research themes and clusters. Articles pertaining to the domain of Business Management were included for the study. Findings The findings are based on the published literature from Scopus database and generating an intellectual structure through VOSviewer. Four underlying themes projecting the patterns associated with Microlearning were revealed and future directions based on these patterns were suggested. Research limitations/implications This study is a window to the immense possibility of future research in the emerging field of Microlearning. Researchers can conduct empirical studies related to Microlearning with reference to each of the four clusters that emerged from the study. The future directions suggested in the study may also be validated through quantitative research. Practical implications Organizations can utilize this study to understand and incorporate Microlearning and base their organizational policies to evolve into inclusive learning organizations. Social implications Microlearning can prove to be a great learning technique to promote gender-agnostic inclusive learning catering to different learning styles. Originality/value This paper is a unique study that uncovers the patterns and indicates the future directions in Microlearning – an evolving learning technique appealing to a diverse set of learners.

Development trend, evolution of themes, gaps and challenges of the research investigating ozone effects on vegetation

Tropospheric ozone (O3) is a potent oxidant that can harm plants, making it a key focus of research in ecology and agriculture. However, comprehensive reviews about the developmental history of O3 research on plants are lacking. This review utilized Citespace software to unveil the evolution of the main research themes over time, which correlated with three distinct developmental periods. During the first period, researchers primarily focused on the impact of O3 on photosynthesis and plant defense responses. As time progressed, more in-depth investigations were undertaken including determining the critical levels at which O3 damage to plants occurred, analyzing the source-sink carbon balance and carbon allocation, assessing food security based on risk evaluation, identifying quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with O3 tolerance, conducting transgenic research, and exploring the combined effect of multiple stressors on vegetation within the context of climate change. Despite these insights, several gaps and challenges remain, that merit future considerations. Greater research efforts should focus on 1) insufficient studies on the combined effects of O3, CO2, and drought in the context of global warming; 2) intermittent elevated O3 events and plant recovery mechanisms under low O3 concentration; 3) reproductive and renewal capacity of species, and t O3 effects on community stability or composition; 4) updating O3 flux measurements to reflect effective O3 flux when O3 index is applied, and challenges in determining species-specific phytotoxicity threshold; and 5) O3-tolerance gene screening and breeding.