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Misstatement of accruals is a major hindrance on the credibility of financial statements prepared by companies across the globe. When accruals are not correct, the information conveyed by the financial statements end misleading those relaying on them for crucial decisions. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of accuracy of accruals on the market value of formal manufacturing firms in Kenya. The relationship between accuracy of accruals and market value was moderated by firm size. Signaling effect theory was used in supporting this study. This study adopted the mixed research design. Stratified random sampling technique was used in sample size determination. The study used both primary and secondary data. The p-value of 0.000 which was less than 0.05 confirmed that accuracy of accruals has a significant positive effect on the market value of the formal manufacturing firms in Kenya. The p value of 0.484 which was greater than 0.05 on the moderated relationship model, confirmed that firm size has no significant moderating effect on the relationship between accuracy of accruals and market value. The researcher recommends that formal manufacturing firms should focus on strengthening their accuracy of accruals reporting strategies, because they significantly affect their market value.

In the digital era, content format has become a pivotal factor influencing consumer engagement, particularly among Generation Z users in India who are highly active on social media platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat. This study explores how different content formats, such as videos, carousels, reels, and text posts, shape consumer perception and influence subsequent consumer behaviors, including liking, sharing, commenting, and purchase intention. Drawing on the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM), the research conceptualizes content format as a peripheral cue that influences consumer attitudes and decisions through affective engagement and visual appeal, especially when consumers are not engaging in deep cognitive processing. A quantitative research design was employed, with data collected via a structured questionnaire from 400 Gen Z respondents aged 18–25 who regularly use social media. Constructs including content format, consumer perception, and consumer behavior were measured using validated scales and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings indicate that content format significantly affects consumer perception (β = 0.62, p < 0.001), which in turn influences consumer behavior (β = 0.59, p < 0.001). A direct but weaker relationship was also observed between content format and consumer behavior (β = 0.18, p = 0.001), confirming the mediating role of perception. These insights offer theoretical contributions by integrating ELM into digital marketing research and highlighting the importance of peripheral cues in online persuasion. Practically, the study suggests that marketers should prioritize visually rich and interactive formats to maximize consumer impact. Despite its contributions, the study is limited to Indian Gen Z users and uses a cross-sectional design, suggesting avenues for future research to explore generational differences and longitudinal effects. Ultimately, the study affirms that “influence by design” is central to shaping perception and behavior in today’s visual-centric digital ecosystems.

The digital economy has emerged as a pivotal force in reshaping economic landscapes, particularly in developing countries striving to enhance productivity and competitiveness. This study investigates the impact of digital economy transformation, focusing on the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital tools, on labor productivity in Vietnam’s manufacturing and service sectors. Utilizing a quantitative approach, we employ a panel data model with fixed effects to analyze firm-level data from 2015 to 2023, sourced from Vietnam’s General Statistics Office and enterprise surveys. The results indicate that digital tool adoption significantly enhances labor productivity, with stronger effects in the service sector compared to manufacturing. AI adoption shows a positive but heterogeneous impact, moderated by firm size and skill intensity. Policy implications include targeted investments in digital infrastructure and workforce upskills to maximize productivity gains. This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence from a developing country context, addressing gaps in understanding sector-specific digital transformation effects.

Knowledge of words has long been established as one of the most important factors in reading comprehension. However, there has not been an overarching position on how effectively unfamiliar words should be treated in the course of reading. A study of the Nigeria Primary School English language curriculum established that while provisions are made to teach new words and also to use context clues to deduce meanings of misunderstood words in texts, no provision is made to train students on the necessity of identifying and consciously clearing misunderstood words to aid comprehension as espoused in Study Technology. Using the Quasi-Experimental design on 45 Primary School Leavers currently in JSS1 of Solid Foundation Academy, Pankshin, Plateau State, Nigeria, the study investigated the centrality of word consciousness and direct word treatment procedure as enunciated in Study Technology to a meaningful and useful text comprehension. Results indicated that only (11.1%) of the sample were aware of the necessity of using the dictionary to clear their misunderstood word to facilitate proper comprehension of reading texts. Also, there is an improvement and certain level of relationship between pre- and post-word knowledge and comprehension among the school leavers with mean scores of 1.07 and 6.27 for Pre and Post word knowledge and comprehension levels respectively; and a level of relationship of 0.137. Further, results revealed a decrease in the percentage of zero and literal understanding with an increase in full understanding after the application of word treatment technology at post-word treatment. It was concluded that there is a significant difference between the pre and post word treatment of specific word knowledge and comprehension with mean difference of 5.20 out of 10. Trainings in the treatment of Misunderstood Word as a barrier to proper understanding of texts as contained in Study Technology was recommended for inclusion in the Upper Primary School curriculum.

Human behavior plays a pivotal role in achieving greater energy savings. Choices such as setting indoor temperatures, using energy-efficient (star-labeled) appliances, and engaging in demand-response programs are all closely tied to individual actions and attitudes. Ultimately, people are at the heart of energy efficiency efforts. The obstacles to adopting energy-saving practices are often not just technical—they are deeply rooted in social and behavioral factors. Hence, the study aimed to know the rural consumers’ behaviour towards energy conservation and efficiency in Erode District. To achieve the objectives of this study, both primary and secondary data were extensively utilized. Primary data was collected using the questionnaire method. First-hand information was obtained from 100 rural consumers in the Erode district through convenience sampling. Respondents were selected based on their availability and willingness to participate. A structured questionnaire was used for the sample survey and was duly completed by the participants. The collected data was then analyzed and interpreted using multivariate statistical techniques, specifically multi-discriminant analysis. Designing effective behavioral interventions requires a clear understanding of how behaviors are formed and the factors that can influence them. People’s decisions—both conscious and unconscious—are shaped by various cognitive biases, often leading them to act in predictably irrational ways. These biases significantly affect how consumers respond to policy measures. Therefore, incorporating insights from behavioral economics and social sciences is essential for developing strategies that effectively guide and influence consumer behavior.

In this fast-growing academic sector, college teachers endure high work stress due to heavy workload as besides teaching, they are forced to do administrative work and extra-curricular activities and also due to shifting roles and accelerated technological progress. Work stress is particularly high in self-financing colleges, where institutional support is limited. Work stress has a reflective impact on employees, leading to emotional responses, such as fear, frustration and anxiety. The technological growth in the educational sector leads to partial inefficiency among faculties as they are unable to cope with the upgradation. This is due to lack of technical knowledge and inability to adapt. Such faculty members experience work-related stress while implementing new technologies, which, in turn, may also lead to organizational silence. Organizational silence refers to withholding of information, facts and issues from the management because of various reasons, like fear of job loss, retaliation or lack of security, etc. This study aims to examine the relationship between work stress and organizational silence among faculty members in self-financing colleges. The findings indicate that work stress significantly contributes to organizational silence. Based on the findings, it is recommended that the management of self-financing colleges may take steps to reduce work stress among teachers by facilitating open and free communication, stress management programmes and counseling in colleges.

A new deferred payment option called “buy-now-pay-later” enables customers to enjoy the advantages of ownership and consumption of products before making the final payment in interest-free instalments. A sharp increase in the buy-now-pay-later sector was observed after the launch of After pay in Australia and now it is becoming a preferred mode of payment for e-commerce transactions all over the globe. Although Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services can be beneficial for customers, there are some challenges involved. The objective of the paper is to understand the mechanism (How it works), the risks and benefits of the BNPL services to their customers. This paper is based on secondary data and descriptive in nature.

Sustainability concept introduced in the corporate finance is generally used to refer to a model of tapping different sources of finance and making investment decisions at the corporate level by taking due account of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations leading to increased longer-term investments into sustainable economic activities and projects. The concept of sustainability in corporate finance has evolved over years on the lines of principles followed by cooperative and mutual sector and adopted in the mainstream corporate sector and its reflections can be found in fragmented form of existing mandatory corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending and requirement of furnishing corporate sustainability reports.
Modern companies are increasingly adopting to the goal of long-term sustainable value creation rather than just maximizing profit or shareholders’ value. The long term sustainable value creation objective at corporate level attempts to integrate broader social and environmental aspects into the financial value creation fold for contributing towards the ultimate objective of transitioning towards sustainable economy which is in conformance with global practices followed by companies in different developed countries of world. Thus, sustainability in corporate finance aims at achieving the objective of sustainable value creation assimilating within its fold interests of all stakeholders in place of erstwhile objective of profit maximization and the modern practice of shareholders’ value creation. It has been observed that the popular shareholders’ value creation model has held companies back from adopting sustainable business practices in design and implementation of the corporate long term investment strategy in sustainable economic activities and projects. It may be due to increasing awareness among shareholders about social and environmental concerns compelled by rising trends among institutional investors for investing in companies adopting sound ESG practices. The Sustainable value creation approach ranks interests of all stakeholders equally. Such a move to the stakeholder model requires new rules for corporate governance and decision-making on corporate investments to deal with the various interests of current and future stakeholders.
This study attempts to tender a general picture about different emerging concepts related to ESG and sustainable value creation in corporate finance and how it is going to impact companies in India based on evidences obtained in different countries of the world.    

This study explores how fluctuating gold prices influence household investment behaviour in Nashik, a growing urban centre in Maharashtra, India. Known for its rich cultural traditions and rising urbanization, Nashik presents a unique demographic blend where gold is both a cultural necessity and an investment asset. This research analyses changes in investment preferences from physical gold to digital forms among Nashik households amid recent gold price surges. Findings suggest a gradual shift in behaviour, especially among younger and financially literate populations, while traditional attitudes remain prevalent among older and rural-linked groups.    

A study has initiated to analyse the recent IPOs in India. Investors have various options to invest like mutual funds, stock market, gold and bank deposits so on so forth. IPO means the primary market or the chance to invest directly to the companies before reaching the stock market. Here the research made an attempt to investigate whether the IPOs happening in India has the nature of giving return or not. In order to find the answer, out of 393 IPOs happened during the period 2022-2023, 68 companies were chosen based on the issue size 500 Crore and above during the period. The study focuses on understanding the performance of IPO and whether it creates wealth on investors or not. It aims to determine whether investing in these IPOs has been a financially sound decision for investors. The analysis was done both short-term and long-term returns, companies were classified based on their returns and a comparative analysis also done based on their performance relative to bond yields and benchmarks index returns. The study found that there are 22 companies recorded above average return of 67.8% till April 30, 2024. A notable correlation was observed between the level of subscription and subsequent wealth creation for the immediate one month, suggesting that highly subscribed IPOs tend to perform better in near future. 73.5% companies exceed the bond yield of 7.1%. This suggest that the investors can expect more than the risk-free rate of return from the IPO investment. 66% companies exceed the bench mark return of 17.6%. This suggest that the investors can expect more than the bench mark return from the IPO investment.