Search Results (74)

This study aimed to develop a typology of consumers based on their behavior in the areas of sustainable consumption and digitalization in the pharmaceutical market. The analysis considered factors including (i) Schwartz’s universal values, (ii) demographic, and (iii) socioeconomic determinants. The study was based on a survey conducted on a sample of Polish adults (n = 1247) between April and July 2024, using a computer-assisted web interviewing method via SurveyMonkey^®. In the area of sustainability, the most frequently observed behaviors included: (i) packing purchased medicinal products into a personal bag, (ii) for medicinal products with short expiration dates owing to their origin, purchasing only the quantities that meet current needs without stockpiling, and (iii) for regularly used medicinal products, choosing larger packages. Whereas, in the area of digitalization, purchasing at an online pharmacy allows for (i) saving time and (ii) saving money, while also (iii) providing greater privacy. Importantly, the presence of four types of consumers was demonstrated, i.e., Sustainable-Active (20%), Digital-Adept (29%), Sustainable-Digital-Uninterested (21%), and Sustainable-Digital-Addicted (29%). In conclusion, within the pharmaceutical market, sustainability and digitalization are reflected in consumer behavior to varying degrees across consumer types, influenced by personal values. Full article

As China’s population ages and the sustainability of the public pension system is at risk, personal savings become crucial. As such, the quality of financial planning for retirement (FPR) has been recognized as a key to safeguarding financial well-being during retirement. This study examines the relationships of two predictors (future time perspective and risk tolerance) and a mediator (subjective financial literacy) in shaping financial planning for retirement, with particular attention to potential gender differences. Using survey data retrieved from respondents aged between 23 and 60 years old, overall sample and gender-based multigroup analysis were used to examine whether gender moderates these relationships. The results reveal that both future time perspective and subjective financial literacy positively influence financial planning for retirement across all gender groups. Notably, we found no significant gender gap in retirement planning behavior. Subjective financial literacy serves as a significant mediator linking both future time perspective and risk tolerance to retirement planning, though the indirect effect of risk tolerance through financial literacy differs significantly between genders. Academically, theoretical propositions related to retirement planning can be accounted for by both genders. Practically, standardized policy can be tailored to address retirement issues across genders. The study emphasizes that financial planning for retirement in China shows no gender gap, and this provides meaningful guidance to policymakers and financial institutions to develop measures to encourage individuals to take financial actions in retirement planning. Finally, the combined interpretation of a strong effect of subjective financial literacy and an insignificant effect of risk tolerance raises concern that adult income earners in China are affected by financial literacy bias when practicing financial retirement planning. Full article

The research aims to evaluate financial instruments on household uptake of energy efficiency and renewable energy towards different risk scenarios. The study addresses the problem of behavioral response to financial incentives when technological, financial, or institutional risks are perceived as continuous. Two sophisticated models were used for the analysis to quantify the effect of subsidies, green loans, personal income, energy costs, and governmental support for energy efficiency and renewable energy uptake. The research data came from the UK, Estonia, Germany, Poland, and Ukraine between 2022 and 2024. The results suggest that countries experiencing drops in risk indices with strong institutional support, such as Germany and the UK, had maximum improvement in energy efficiency (as high as 598.72 kWh saved a year) and renewable energy implementation rates (above 30%). Countries posing high risk, like Ukraine, require more potent and custom-made strategies to achieve comparable advances compared to a less-risky environment. The evidence indicates that even financial mechanisms are most fruitful if they are complemented by risk management tactics. With these results, policymakers can proceed with useful information in formulating economically appropriate strategies that rely on realistic assumptions of behavior. Full article

This study examines the financial behavior of university students in Economics, Business Administration, and Accounting in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, using the FB–13 instrument. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses validate a three-dimensional structure: (1) financial planning and control, (2) savings and financial preparation, and (3) fulfillment of obligations, with high internal consistency (α = 0.915), supporting its psychometric robustness in Latin American academic contexts. Based on a sample of 714 students with diversity in gender, age, work experience, and parental status, the analyses confirmed that the FB–13 model best fits a three-factor structure. Significant correlations were identified between financial behavior and experiential variables such as age, work experience, and parenthood, while traditional sociodemographic attributes such as gender, residence, marital status, employment, and educational level showed limited associations. These findings suggest that personal experiences have a greater influence on the configuration of financial practices than conventional demographic categories. The study acknowledges limitations related to cross-sectional design, non-probabilistic sampling, and self-reported data, yet these do not diminish its contributions. By validating the FB–13 in Honduras, the research offers comparative evidence and promotes cultural diversity in financial behavior literature. Future research should move toward longitudinal and qualitative studies that explore the role of family dynamics, work contexts, and personal aspirations in responsible financial behaviors. Full article

This paper reviews the current research landscape on Personal Saving Behavior, focusing on its antecedents and outcomes. Using bibliographic analysis of publication trends—highlighting productive authors, journals, countries, and keywords—the literature is synthesized. A framework-based systematic review is conducted to understand factors influencing saving behavior and its effects, employing the TCM framework to analyze theory, context, and methods across selected studies. Additionally, the ADO framework is used to discuss antecedents, decisions, and outcomes related to personal saving behavior. The review consolidates 112 articles from 2000 to 2025, grouping unique antecedents into nine categories. It also examines how specific antecedents positively or negatively impact saving decisions and outcomes. Finally, using the TCM and ADO frameworks, the study identifies research gaps and discusses future directions, especially from the perspectives of behavioral economics and critical incidents. Full article

Survey and detection of the spotted lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula (White), rely either on traps that exploit the insect’s behavior as it navigates its environment, or on visual surveys of either its mobile life stages or egg masses. A recently described egg mass trap, coined the “lampshade” trap, can assist with early detection in newly infested areas, provide egg masses for researchers, and potentially facilitate spotted lanternfly population reduction by removal of egg masses from the environment. Here, we describe a modified lampshade trap, the sconce trap, that uses less material, can be pre-cut prior to deployment, and can be deployed by one person, representing potential cost, labor, and time savings. Both traps were comparable at detecting populations of spotted lanternflies, and while females deposited more eggs on the larger lampshade traps, they deposited more eggs on sconce traps as a function of trap area. Full article

Addressing the pressing global challenge of environmental sustainability, this study investigates novel pathways through which egoistic motivations—specifically personal health benefits, economic advantages, and perceived social status—influence green purchasing behavior among Chinese consumers. Employing an integrated approach that combines the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and self-identity theory (SIT), the research analyzes data from 361 Chinese consumers using advanced statistical techniques, including structural equation modeling (SEM). The findings reveal unique insights: personal health benefits and economic advantages emerge as significant drivers of green purchasing behavior, while perceived social status exerts an indirect effect through symbolic benefits. This study breaks new ground by demonstrating the dual mediating role of symbolic and functional benefits in linking egoistic motivations to green purchasing behavior. The results underscore the importance of developing marketing strategies that highlight personal health and economic savings, complemented by symbolic benefits, to effectively promote green products. Policymakers are encouraged to incorporate these nuanced motivations when designing incentives and regulations to enhance sustainable consumption practices. Full article

Pooled ridesharing offers on-demand, one-way, cost-effective transportation for passengers traveling in similar directions via a shared vehicle ride with others they do not know. Despite its potential benefits, the adoption of pooled rideshare remains low in the United States. This exploratory study aims to evaluate potential service improvements and features that may increase users’ willingness to adopt the service. The study analyzed transportation behaviors, rideshare preferences, and willingness to adopt pooled rideshare services among 8296 U.S. participants in 2025, building on findings from a 2021 nationwide survey of 5385 U.S. participants. The study incorporated 77 actionable items developed from the results of the 2021 survey to assess whether addressing specific user-generated topics such as safety, reliability, convenience, and privacy can improve pooled rideshare use. A side-by-side comparison of the 2021 and 2025 data revealed shifts in transportation behavior, with personal rideshare usage increasing from 22% to 28%, public transportation from 21% to 27%, and pooled rideshare from 6% to 8%, while personal vehicle (79%) use remained dominant. Participants rated features such as driver verification (94%), vehicle information (93%), peak time reliability (93%), and saving time and money (92–93%) as most important for improving rideshare services. A pre-to-post analysis of willingness to use pooled rideshare utilizing the actionable items as per respondents’ preferences showed improvement: “definitely will” increased from 15.9% to 20.1% and “probably will” rose from 35.6% to 47.7%. These results suggest that well-targeted service improvements may meaningfully enhance pooled rideshare acceptance. This study offers practical guidance for Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) and policymakers aiming to improve pooled rideshare as well as potential future research opportunities. Full article

This paper explores the energy-saving behavior of hotel guests in the Vietnamese context. We adapted the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the norm activation model (NAM) to develop a research model with six determinants of energy-saving intention and behavior. A self-administered online survey was implemented to collect data from hotel guests in Hanoi and Quang Ninh provinces. After 4 months, we received 253 valid responses for further analysis. SmartPLS 4.0 software was employed for structured equation model testing. Our findings showed that TPB variables and NAM variables jointly explain the energy-saving intention and energy-saving behavior of Vietnamese hotel guests. Among the three factors of TPB, subjective norms have the most substantial impact on energy-saving intention and a significant direct effect on energy-saving behavior. Meanwhile, awareness of consequences does not significantly affect personal norms, and in turn, personal norms do not directly affect energy-saving behavior. Thus, we proposed several solutions to hotel managers to promote energy-saving initiatives and attract the engagement of their guests in these initiatives. Full article

Autonomous delivery services offer significant cost-saving benefits for logistics and e-commerce companies while helping mitigate environmental issues and urban traffic congestion. As these services become increasingly prevalent in China, understanding how user participation influences adoption decisions is crucial. This study analyzes attitudes and intention to use toward autonomous delivery by integrating factors such as sustainability and customer participation within the technology acceptance model. Notably, prior research has rarely included consumers aged 50 and older, despite their growing engagement with online shopping and delivery services in China. To address this gap, the present study incorporates data from this demographic to enhance representativeness. Employing SEM combined with multi-group analysis through AMOS 24.0, this study examined 526 valid survey responses. The results demonstrate that attitudes toward autonomous delivery systems are positively shaped by perceived usefulness, ease of operation, sustainability features, self-efficacy beliefs, and customer engagement levels. Moreover, user attitudes emerge as a significant predictor of behavioral intention to adopt such services. Additionally, technology-related anxiety and personal innovativeness levels were found to moderate the attitude–intention linkage. These insights establish a theoretical framework to guide future advancements in autonomous delivery system development, marketing strategy optimization, and academic exploration within this domain. Full article

Federated learning has been widely applied in automatic speech recognition. However, variations in speaker behaviors result in a significant data imbalance across client devices. Conventional federated speech recognition algorithms typically use fixed probabilities to select clients for each round in model training, often overlooking the disparities in data volume among clients. In reality, the substantial differences in data quantity can extend the training duration and compromise the stability of the global model. Moreover, models trained through federated learning on global data often fail to achieve optimal performance for individual local clients. While personalized federated learning strategies hold promise for enhancing model performance, the inherent diversity of speech data makes it challenging to apply state-of-the-art personalized methods effectively to speech recognition tasks. In this paper, a dynamic client selection algorithm is proposed to solve the problem of data disparities among different clients. It can be effectively combined with most federated learning algorithms and dynamically adjusts the selection probabilities of clients based on their dataset size during training. Experimental results demonstrate that this algorithm saved training time by 26% compared to traditional methods on public datasets while maintaining the equivalent model performance. To optimize the personalized federated learning, this paper proposes a novel group-balanced personalization strategy that fine-tunes groupings of clients based on their dataset size. The experimental results show that this algorithm brought a relatively 12% reduction in character error rate, while it did not increase computational costs. In particular, the group-balanced personalization effectively improved the model performance for clients with smaller datasets than local fine-tuning. The combination of dynamic client selection and group-balanced personalization significantly enhanced training efficiency and model performance. Full article

This paper analyzes the 1/3 Financial Rule, a method of allocating income equally among debt repayment, savings, and living expenses. Through mathematical modeling, game theory, behavioral finance, and technological analysis, we examine the rule’s potential for supporting household financial stability and reducing bankruptcy risk. The research develops theoretical foundations using utility maximization theory, demonstrating how equal allocation emerges as a solution under standard economic assumptions. The game-theoretic analysis explores the rule’s effectiveness across different household structures, revealing potential strategic advantages in financial decision-making. We investigate psychological factors influencing financial choices, including cognitive biases and neurobiological mechanisms that impact economic behavior. Technological approaches, such as AI-driven personalization, blockchain tracking, and smart contract applications, are examined for their potential to support financial planning. Empirical validation using U.S. Census data and longitudinal studies assesses the rule’s performance across various household types. Stress testing under different economic conditions provides insights into its adaptability and resilience. The research integrates mathematical analysis with behavioral insights and technological perspectives to develop a comprehensive approach to household financial management. Full article

Household savings are a long-term financial issue that can undermine the financial well-being of American families if not addressed. This study examines financial planning strategies through the Behavioral Life-Cycle (BLCH) hypothesis, focusing on long-term savings goals, financial safety nets, and foreseeable expenses. Using data from the 2022 Survey of Consumer Finances, a moderated mediation model explores how financial safety nets, self-control, and mental accounting influence saving habits. The findings show that long-term savings goals significantly mediate the relationship between financial safety nets and saving habits, while foreseeable expenses do not significantly moderate this relationship. These results highlight the importance of goal setting in promoting saving behaviors, regardless of specific financial needs. Policymakers can leverage these findings to design initiatives that encourage structured savings programs, while financial advisors should emphasize goal-setting strategies to help households improve their financial security. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the behavioral and economic factors that drive personal savings, offering valuable insights for both policymakers and financial practitioners aiming to boost financial well-being in households. Full article

Water management is a significant component of ensuring the pursuit of sustainable goals in an organization. Universities are known actors committed to developing responsible behaviors in students, including water consumption. The present research investigates the changes in student water-related behaviors in campus living, due to an information and persuasion campaign that took place in the oldest university in Western Romania. The research is based on a quantitative statistical approach highlighting the changes in students’ self-perceived importance allocated to water use and water saving, due to a communication campaign that took place on campus premises, with over 6000 residents. The pre- and post-campaign questionnaire rendered over 800 valid responses, ensuring the representativeness of the results for the given campus. The campaign described in the research targeted raising students’ awareness of sustainability issues and nudging pro-environment behaviors. The water management component of the campaign aimed at reducing water consumption in student campus living without affecting cleanness and personal hygiene, by making better use of the existing resources. Students responded positively to nudge messages for the reduction in showering time and a better use of laundry machines. The campaign led to a measurable reduction in water waste, but the results need to be reinforced through new campaigning, to maintain the water-saving behavior in the student population. Full article

Impulsive buying is a growing problem in modern society with significant financial and psychological consequences, and it is necessary to examine the mechanisms underlying it. Understanding the mechanisms driving this behavior is crucial. Impulsive buying consists of two key aspects: a cognitive aspect, characterized by a lack of planning and reflection, and an affective aspect, involving emotional responses that can occur before, during, or after a purchase. This study aims to explore the relationship between personality traits, as measured by the HEXACO model, and tendencies toward impulsive buying. Specifically, it examines how the HEXACO traits differentially predict the cognitive and affective components of impulsive buying tendencies. Data were collected from a sample of 420 students, with 32 excluded due to incomplete responses, resulting in a final sample of 388 students (155 men, 233 women) with an average age of 22.8. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that HEXACO personality domains significantly predicted overall impulsive buying tendencies. As expected, Honesty–Humility and Conscientiousness were negatively associated with impulsive buying, while Emotionality and Extraversion positively predicted impulsive buying tendencies. Moreover, Honesty–Humility, Conscientiousness, and Extraversion significantly predicted the cognitive component of impulsive buying, while Honesty–Humility and Emotionality were significant predictors of the affective component. These findings suggest the importance of educating individuals, from an early age, on the negative consequences of impulsive buying, effective money-saving strategies, and the principles of mental accounting. Full article