The current study uses a technology–organization–environment perspective combined with a push–pull–mooring view to examine the determinants shaping the intentions of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to adopt and use fintech solutions in the Tunisian context. The authors incorporate “perceived usage cost” as a moderating variable that influences the effects of “relative advantage” and “security” on the intention to use fintech solutions. The data collected through a survey study among a sample of Tunisian SMEs were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) with the XLSTAT software. The findings revealed that, from ten identified factors, only three (“trialability”, “regulatory support” and “competitive pressure”) did not significantly influence SMEs' intention to use fintech solutions. Besides affecting the intention, “perceived usage cost” was supported as a significant moderator of the relationship between “relative advantage” and “intention”. Such findings contribute to the technology adoption literature by showing the suitability of integrating the TOE framework with the PPM model to study IT innovations adoption and use. The results offer also practical guidance for both SME managers and policy makers in terms of fintech-linked decisions and strategies aimed at promoting a wider adoption and effective use of fintech solutions.
This paper proposes a blockchain-anchored artificial intelligence (AI) ambassador framework for trustworthy digital consular services. The design integrates policy-aware retrieval-augmented generation, a permissioned blockchain for tamper-evident evidence commitments, privacy-preserving digital identity with selective disclosure, and governance safeguards for abstention, escalation, prompt and tool control, and red-team evaluation. An extended adoption model links perceived usefulness, ease of use, social influence, facilitating conditions, trust, and perceived risk to behavioral intention and observed use. Using a design science approach, the study performs an ex ante architectural assessment and defines a multi-method protocol for subsequent technical, expert, user, security, and adoption evaluation. The contribution is a traceable architecture and evaluation framework rather than evidence of operational deployment. It provides a foundation for accountable, privacy-aware, and auditable AI-enabled consular e-services while retaining human authority over legal, emergency, and other high-consequence decisions.
The rapid global expansion of electronic commerce (e-commerce) platforms and online shoppers has been recognized. E-commerce serves as customer-focused information systems that enable the ordering, tracking, and delivery of products and services. This paper applied an information systems success model to measure the success of e-commerce applications in the Saudi market. The objective was to validate the model and provide insights and practical recommendations for e-commerce businesses. The paper used quantitative research methods, mainly a survey, to collect data and analyze them with structural equation modeling. The results confirmed that both system quality and service quality significantly affect use and user satisfaction with e-commerce applications in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In addition, the use of e-commerce applications and user satisfaction significantly influence the individual impact of e-commerce applications. These outcomes offer actionable guidance for e-commerce businesses. The study is limited to the Saudi market; future research should test the model in diverse settings.
Electronic health records (EHRs), a core management information systems component, aim to enhance patient care, reduce errors, and improve operational efficiency, yet their integration in Saudi Arabia faces systemic and organizational challenges. This study explores EHRs' impact on patient care quality in Riyadh's private hospitals, identifying both benefits and limitations. A survey of healthcare professionals revealed general satisfaction, citing improved safety, coordination, and decision-making. However, barriers such as information overload, poor interoperability, and clinician burnout persist. The findings underscore the need for better integration, ongoing training, and strategic management. This research offers practical insights into EHR adoption and its implications for healthcare delivery in Saudi Arabia.
The introduction of online banking in Armenia is an important element of the digital transformation of the financial sector, providing convenient access to banking services, improving the efficiency of economic operations, and supporting the country’s integration into the global financial system by complying with international standards, thereby strengthening the confidence of foreign investors and financial institutions from the United States, Europe, and other regions. Based on this, the study aimed to identify the key determinants of online banking adoption in Armenia by analyzing domestic and international literature and examining the development of online banking in the country. To assess consumer behavior, a binary logistic regression based on a sociological survey of the Armenian population was conducted, identifying the factors that significantly influence the adoption and use of online banking services.
Developing business models based on open innovation (i.e., the sharing economy business model) has become a global trend. Through diffusion of innovation theory and the roles of stakeholders, this study established a conceptual model and evaluated the impact of several factors on customer retention using the food delivery application service. The results of the partial-least-squares–structural-equation-modeling analysis revealed that, except complexity, all four elements of the diffusion of innovation construct, namely, compatibility, relative advantage, trialability, and observability significantly promoted customer retention. Furthermore, several factors that reflected the role of stakeholders such as promotion, timeliness, restaurants’ brand trust, and payment convenience also affected customer retention. In particular, in addition to its role in inhibiting customer retention, this study also highlighted the negative impact of perceived health risk on both brand trust and promotion. These findings suggested several implications to enterprises, stakeholders, technology providers, and business models based on open innovation.
The widespread adoption of the freemium business model in mobile applications has reshaped digital consumption patterns; however, the factors influencing users’ willingness to pay for premium features have remained underexplored. This study applied the expectation–confirmation theory and the technology acceptance model to examine how user sentiments, shaped by perceived value and usability, influenced subscription decisions. Using a dataset of 64,372 user comments from 50 mobile apps across multiple industries—including sports, games, fashion, banking, and e-commerce—this research employed text mining and sentiment analysis to uncover key themes in user feedback. Findings showed that perceived value was the strongest determinant of willingness to pay, with users prioritizing premium features that enhanced functionality and user experience. In addition, app usability and trust emerged as critical factors, particularly in banking and e-commerce—areas in which security concerns influenced decision-making.
In the era of rapid digital transformation in logistics, this study examined drivers of user adaptation, satisfaction, and continuance intention toward mobile logistics service platforms. Integrating the technology acceptance model, expectation–confirmation model, and diffusion of innovation theory, the proposed model tested how perceived usefulness, ease of use, enjoyment, and trust influence adaptation and sustained use. Survey data from 650 Vietnamese mobile logistics service users were analyzed via structural equation modeling. Findings show these system attributes significantly promote adaptation, which in turn enhances satisfaction and continuance intention, with adaptation serving as a key mediator. The study extends post-adoption research in logistics and contextualizes acceptance theories in an emerging market.
The rapid advancement of mobile technology has revolutionised both communication and marketing strategies. However, while the use of mobile apps has exponentially grown, the use of traditional marketing tools such as push SMS messaging to promote digital engagement is pervasive within the telecommunication industry. This study empirically investigates this paradox, i.e., the use of traditional SMS marketing by telecommunication service providers in engaging with Mobile app users. The study also explores the mediating role of attitude towards SMS, exploring how perceptions of traditional marketing tools such as SMS notices influence more digitally savvy consumer engagement. Employing a positivist research approach, the study solicits evidence from 379 participants who extensively use mobile apps. The data collected was analysed using regression and correlation analysis. The findings of the study highlight a positive relationship between SMS marketing and digital engagement within the telecommunication industry. Moreover, the findings also suggest that this use of traditional marketing tools in advanced technological settings is heavily influenced by the attitudes of consumers towards such traditional marketing tools. These findings shed better light on the paradoxical relationship between modern technological developments and the use of traditional marketing tools to promote their usage, thus giving better insights to both academics and practitioners.
Artificial intelligence has impacted the online customer experience by creating numerous opportunities for e-commerce players. With chatbots, these players can now offer their customers instant and personalized responses. However, despite these advantages, some consumers still show reluctance towards using this technology. Our study, based on the model of Ram and Sheth (1989), aims to provide a better understanding of the barriers that hinder the adoption of chatbots in the online shopping environment. It proposes an integrative model that combines functional, psychological, and individual barriers to explain consumers' resistance to using this technology. Structural equation modeling was used to test our theoretical framework. The results show that perceived complexity, functional risk, image barriers, and technological anxiety can lead to resistance towards chatbot usage. Thus, our work enriches the existing literature by testing the Ram and Sheth model (1989) for the first time in the context of chatbot adoption and expanding it with new variables. It also provides valuable recommendations to businesses offering online services.
In this study, the authors aimed to create a region-specific e-marketing application tailored to farmers' and customers' satisfaction based on a technology acceptance model guided by service-dominant logic entwined with design science research methodology. They adopted exploratory research involving interviewing 104 and 42 farmers and users for a pre-installation and post-installation investigation in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The investigation showed that 86.5% of the population is educated with at least a school matric certificate, which is enormously correlated with farmers' willingness to adopt e-marketing apps (R2 = 0.782). The adequacy of the post-installation evaluation is confirmed by the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure (0.753) under the principal axis factoring, which also reported ease of data update, editing, ease of usage, and the overall impression of the app as the four principal factors that favor the app adoption. Inferentially, the e-marketing apps effectively connected farmers with buyers, providing an efficient virtual market solution.
Study Background The innovative design of customer touchpoints along the customer journey yields unexpected benefits. Contemporarily, customers tend to interact with firms through multiple touchpoints, which increases the complexity of providing a positive customer experience. Hence, measuring each customer touchpoint along the customer journey is essential to ensure a positive experience. Purpose The current study aims to investigate the critical customer touchpoints that significantly influence customer experience in retail stores in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Design/ Methodology/ Approach This study was conducted in Klang Valley, Malaysia, which is a cosmopolitan city. The study sample, which was calculated through a formula, encompassed individuals who visited the Klang Valley malls. A total of 500 questionnaires were distributed through the convenience sampling technique, which resulted in 269 valid responses for SPSS and PLS-SEM analyses. Findings The findings revealed that employee-to-customer interaction touchpoints significantly impacted the retail customer experience. Simultaneously, the atmosphere, brand, customer-to-customer interaction, communication, and technology touchpoints significantly enriched the customer experience. Nevertheless, customer social responsibility and process touchpoints might not contribute to the customer experience. Practical Implications This study recommended mall retailers focus on critical customer touchpoints to develop credible brand images, personalised services, appealing promotions, effective loyalty programmes, and store environmental cues to provide a positive in-store sensory experience. Originality/ Value This study applied cognitive appraisal theory (CAT) to understand customer experience in the retail setting. The findings contributed to the existing knowledge corpus by highlighting the critical dimensions of customer touchpoints defining customer experiences.
In this article the authors explored social networks as a marketing tool for higher education institutions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They studied Facebook and Twitter (now X) profiles of 14 universities and analyzed their presence, activity, and engagement over 2 months. Their objective was to discover the best strategies, and the key factors influencing social media success and student enrollment of universities. Results revealed significant variability, with few universities excelling across all metrics on both platforms, while many focus mainly on one site. The study identified leading universities and ways to improve social media outcomes. Correlational analysis shows possible ways for universities to enhance their success on social media by finding positive relationships between publications and engagement, followers and engagement, and publications and student enrollment in both social media. The correlational analysis also links higher university rankings based on academic success with better Twitter performance. Finally, the multiple regression models developed explain the student's enrollment based on the independent variables studied.
E-learning has the potential to revolutionize higher education institutes (HEIs), yet its adoption faces significant barriers. This study aims to identify and analyze the interdependent relationships among these barriers within the HEIs. This research classifies e-learning adoption barriers into different levels through an interpretive structural modelling (ISM-MICMAC) to prioritize and explore their contextual relationships. The findings reveal that the financial constraints barriers are the primary barriers, followed by the limited technological infrastructure, inadequate policy and institutional support, and technical support challenges. While the study acknowledges potential limitations, such as overlooked barriers and possible biases in expert opinions, it offers actionable insights for policymakers and managers to address these challenges. By providing strategies for overcoming barriers, this research supports the effective and seamless integration of e-learning systems in HEIs, establishing a strong foundation for future advancements.
The Hospital Information System (HIS) is a key digital platform facilitating communication and information sharing. Despite its potential, full utilization of HIS remains limited. This study explores factors influencing HIS adoption in Croatia, focusing on expected performance, expected effort, social influence, and system support. Data from a survey conducted at General Hospital Bjelova was analyzed through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). Results show that expected performance and effort significantly enhance the intention to use HIS. Social influence from colleagues positively impacts intention, while administrative processes negatively affect it, fostering resistance among users. Intention to use HIS positively correlates with its intensity in daily operations but negatively affects occasional usage. These findings provide insights into optimizing HIS implementation and enhancing user engagement, offering practical recommendations for healthcare administrators and policymakers.
Quality healthcare service delivery has a significant influence on customer satisfaction, the burden of meeting health service costs, and the recovery of patients. Therefore, health facilities should make use of electronic health management systems to improve the quality of their service delivery in administration and patient care. The purpose of carrying out this study was to establish how service delivery can be improved through electronic consultation (e-consultation) in public hospitals in Kenya. The target population was the 1,207 individuals serving as the professional staff working in Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret and Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) in Nairobi, as well as 1,841 outpatients treated in both hospitals between January and May 2020. To select the 341 respondents of the research, a stratified random sampling technique was used. From the study findings, the study recommends that public hospitals in Kenya should fully adopt e-consultation, including video conferencing, so as to reduce time and resources used in face-to-face meetings.
Applications for mobile navigation are increasingly used in vehicles as their technology foundation improves. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the factors that affect drivers when they make use of mobile navigation programs in their cars as well as the factors that moderate the impact of driving experience duration and gender on the acceptability of making use of these applications. The study's data was collected through an online survey created using Google Forms. The study was completed by 400 individuals. The study concluded that drivers' perceptions of the utility and usability of mobile navigation applications are significantly influenced by extrinsic variables (e.g., sense of direction, perception of distraction, and propensity to use navigation applications). Another finding was that there were some linear correlations between the variables of gender and driving duration and the influence of outside forces on drivers' approval of using mobile navigation applications.
This paper addresses demographic factors affecting the use of the funeral service on online funeral service application in Thailand. The user demographics the author considered in this study were gender, age, educational attainment, and average monthly income. The factors influencing the intention to use the online platforms and application for comprehensive funeral service application via smartphone included TAM model, perceived financial risk, social influence and 4Es marketing mix. The author collected data by questionnaires and received completed questionnaires from 469 respondents. The researcher analyzed collected data using descriptive statistics, including percentage, means, and standard deviation, and tested the hypothesis using multiple regression analysis. The results revealed that the factors influencing the intention to use the online funeral service application via smartphone in Thailand at a statistically significance level of 0.05 were social influence, customer experience in the 4Es marketing mix, perceived usefulness in TAM, and perceived financial risk, respectively.
This article examines the validity of a newly developed research instrument, the Customers' Experience of Banking e-Services (CEBES) scale. The study was conducted in Saudi Arabia during the COVID‐19 pandemic; it used both exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to measure the original 75-item scale. A convenience sampling technique was used to select 555 electronic banking services customers. Exploratory factor analysis yielded a four-factor, 54-item scale, which was run with a cutoff point of .5 to ensure high proportional contribution of each scale item. The four factors were: reflections on bank processing of complaints; recovery of e-banking services; bank webpages; and perceived safety and confidentiality of information. The newly developed scale could be used to measure customers' experience of banking e-service and identify areas requiring improvement. Despite achieving an acceptable level of statistical strength, the 54-item CEBES requires further testing on other populations.
The COVID-19 pandemic renewed the role of digital government for conventional delivery of e-services while creating a paradigm shift for the telecommuting ecosystem. Prior to COVID-19, e-services usage had been slow in least-income countries; hence the need for clarity on whether its usage will be sustained in the post-COVID-19 era. This study sought to develop a model for the continuance usage of e-services after the COVID-19 pandemic. Quantitative data were collected from a South African government, and the designed model was validated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM). Results indicated that perceived usefulness (PU) and exerted pressure (EPU) are highly significant antecedents of continuance usage. Theoretically, the model contributes to technology continuance usage. It also affirms the organizational readiness for digital transformation through the use of combined technologies. Future research should focus on conceptual skills such as innovativeness, flexibility, problem-solving, emotional intelligence, and empathy needed for digital transformation.
