Sustainability is one of the fastest-growing research areas globally. Irrespective of industry and economic activity, it is the need of the day. This study examines the impact of green process innovation and green production on sustainability in Pakistan and India’s cement and plastic manufacturing industries. The study also addresses the moderating role of environmental awareness, which increases the effect of green productivity and green innovation towards sustainability. The research is based on a quantitative approach to addressing the issue in question. Primary data were collected via a closed-ended questionnaire from 657 employees of Pakistan and India’s plastic and cement manufacturing industries, and were analyzed via partial least square structural equation modeling via SmartPLS. The findings show that green productivity and green process innovation have a significant impact on sustainability, while environmental awareness also plays a significant role in sustainable practices in the cement and plastic manufacturing industries of Pakistan and India. The results are helpful for policymakers, industries, and other governmental and non-governmental organizations to ensure sustainability through green process innovation, green productivity, and environmental awareness.
The banking literature does not provide consensus over the impact of Fintech on banks. On the one hand, Fintech advancements are poised to enhance the accessibility of financial services; on the other, it can lead to alterations in market structure. Thus, it is important to ascertain the impact of Fintech entry from both perspectives. We examine the impact of Fintech entry on financial inclusion (FI) and banking competition by introducing conditionalities and non-linearity to uncover the potential transmission channels for Fintech to affect inclusion and market structure. Findings suggest episodes of low and medium inclusion from 2005 till 2018. However, post 2018, there has been a significant increase in FI. Similarly, persistent monopolistic tendencies were observed with most banks enjoying higher Lerner margins. The extent of Fintech reveals highly sluggish growth over 2005 to 2015. However, post 2016, drastic increase is observed commensurate with the central bank's regulatory push. Further, Fintech is inversely related to banks' market power indicating a diminishing effect. We propose three transmission mechanisms for Fintech effects: the inclusion channel, the growth channel, and the regulatory environment. In addition, we find a significant and positive impact of Fintech on FI however, the relationship is essentially non-linear.
2 May 2018 in Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health
This study aimed to evaluate the challenges and patterns of seeking primary health care services in slums of Karachi, where about 60% of the population lives in various informal settlements. We surveyed 8 largest slums of the metropolitan, and analyzed the data both descriptively and inferentially to evaluate the factors associated with health care seeking behavior. Significantly positive association of quality health care seeking behavior and various socioeconomic indicators were found. In addition, substantial insights about the conditions of slum dwellers and health challenges of the population, such as low immunization and low vaccinations, among others, were reported. Thus, the role of policymakers is emphasized to strategize for the inclusion of these people in national health plans and to develop health infrastructure near these communities. Furthermore, there is a strong need to increase awareness of the population about hygiene practices, importance of immunization, and importance of utilizing appropriate health care services.
In recent times, increasing regulatory pressure and changes in investor preferences have led to an increase in the importance of sustainable investment at both academic and practitioner levels, with the field still occupying the formative stage. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to explore the intellectual underpinnings of and suggest future research avenues in the discipline of sustainable investment, as well as to conduct a systematic review and bibliometric analysis. In total 1,222 articles were selected from the Scopus database for the period 2013-2023. The study follows the SPAR-4-SLR protocol, involving performance analysis and science mapping using VOSviewer and the R-package. Network analysis revealed eight major clusters primarily focusing on firms’ financial performance, stock returns, contributions to climate change, economic growth, sustainable development goals, risk assessment, and corporate social responsibility. Additionally, the study developed a unified taxonomy model based on a causal framework that includes the foremost independent, mediating, moderating, and dependent variables, studied in the field of sustainable investment.
1 January 2019 in IBT- JOURNAL OF BUSINESS STUDIES
Connection between inferior leadership and massive business meltdown and inadequacy of seasoned leadership models create an urge to seek leadership equipped with ethical behavior, concern for subordinates, all the stakeholders and the society as a whole. This literature survey examines existing literature addressing servant leadership theory. Servant leadership theory has not yet been legitimized as a mainstream leadership theory therefore, it is worthy to examine its antecedents, outcomes and different mediating and moderating mechanisms to have in-depth knowledge of servant leadership concept and to understand how it differs from other mainstream leadership theories. This study analyzed the literature using descriptive approach as proposed by Turnnidge & Côté (2016). The study has been carried out in three phases. First phase is concerned with screening of abstracts and citations related to variable of interests, in second phase, peer discussion was made to retain valuable literature and exclusion of literature which does not fall in set criterion. In the third phase, full text of articles and relevant literature were reviewed which were potentially related to and are of interest. It was found that servant leadership is a different concept which is more comprehensive and predicts more positive outcomes than its predecessor leadership models. Systematic literature review provided detailed insight with respect to servant leadership theory and its outcomes which led to the development of taxonomy which was further used to develop integrated model of causal fl ow through mediating and moderating mechanisms; and then was further refined to identify servant leadership interaction with different organization and behavioral variables. Findings of this research suggest possible impact of servant leadership in power distant culture which is inconsistent in contemporary research and needs to be investigated for validation of servant leadership’s concept in Third World countries.
1 January 2015 in IBT- JOURNAL OF BUSINESS STUDIES
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of psychological problems faced by IDPs (displaced as a result of Operation Zarb-i-Azb) of North Waziristan on local Community. IDPs coming from Waziristan and surroundings including men and women of all ages and children are the ones who are more vulnerable to physical and mental stresses likely to be caused by military actions of terrorists and counteraction by Pakistani Armed Forces. They have residence in shelter homes, tents are in a community which is different and most of the time hostile from their own community. The stresses like violence, migration, imposed poverty unhygienic and unsystematic living atmosphere of camps lead the IDPs to a change in everyday life activities away from their own cultural routines which in turn is causing deterioration of society as well. Methodology/Sampling: This is primarily an exploratory study done on the field in IDP camps situated in Bannu district. We approached a sample of 500 IDPs and identified around 200 to be suffering from psychological issues, who were interviewed and were administered with questionnaires with the help of trained surveyors and medical team. Findings: It is noted that such transitory unplanned no systemic living has caused an increase in activities like thieving, use of drugs, abduction for ransom, and other forms of violence and such like activities. The relationship between psychological issues of IDPs and the effects on community (Proxied by Crime rate) were subjected to descriptive analysis and were found that significantly good number of IDPs suffers from psychiatric disorders and there is a significant increase in crime rate for areas with sufficient number of IDPs around. Practical Implications: Displacement results in emergence of particular vulnerabilities for those affected, and also for the surrounding communities, thereafter necessitating specific measures for the provision of assistance and further protection corresponding to vulnerabilities.