Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of social commerce constructs (SCCs), social support and relationship quality on social commerce intentions, which lead to use behaviour of social networking sites for social commerce.Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from 343 users of social networking sites in Pakistan. The data analysis was conducted using PLS-SEM.Findings: The results show that SCCs have empowered consumers through the existence of virtual groups, ratings and reviews and recommendations and referrals, thereby having a significant impact on social commerce intentions. The relationship quality with social networking sites, measured through commitment, satisfaction and trust, also proved to be a leading forecaster of social commerce intentions. The impact of social support could not positively influence the relationship quality with the social networking site. However, social support influences the social commerce intentions significantly.Research limitations/implications: Future research should enrich model with some moderating variables and data may be collected from actual online shoppers only.Practical implications: This study provides valuable insights to retailers to formulate their social commerce strategies as per decision factors results to have maximum engagement of consumers in social commerce.Originality/value: The study proposes the unique model for finding the social commerce intentions and use behaviour using social support theory, relationship marketing theory and information systems literature.

Purpose: The study aims to examine the mediating role of psychological empowerment and job crafting between servant leadership and innovative work behavior.Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected from 689 knowledge workers employed in Pakistan's service industry. The data collection was done through survey design. The data analysis was done through structural equation modeling using PLS-Smart.Findings: Servant leadership was found to be related to psychological empowerment, job crafting and innovative work behavior of the employees. Job crafting was found to be mediating between servant leadership and innovative work behavior. Additionally, psychological empowerment and job crafting were found to be sequential mediators between servant leadership and innovative work behavior.Originality/value: The study delineated the link mechanism between servant leadership and innovative work behavior.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide the overview of factors responsible for materialism and compulsive buying among adolescents and young adults. In today’s world, materialism is a crucial phenomenon of the modern age. According to social comparison theory, comparisons are a significant factor affecting the behavioral intentions of adolescents and young adults. Thus, this study develops a framework based on the stimulus–organism–response model and uses the framework to examine the impact of interpersonal communication and marketing factors on social comparison, materialism and compulsive buying, with social media acting as a moderator. Design/methodology/approach: Using a survey method, data were collected in Study 1 from adolescents (n = 298) and in Study 2 from young adults (n = 345). Structural equation modeling analysis using partial least squares technique was used to analyze the data. Findings: The results show that social comparison plays a significant role in developing materialistic values and compulsive buying among adolescents and young adults. Through these two studies, it was found that young adults are more socially comparative, materialistic and compulsive in buying as compared to adolescents. Moreover, social media use moderated the relationship between social comparison with peers and media celebrities, which means that rapid increase of social media use leads adolescents and young adults to create high social comparison and materialistic values. Research limitations/implications: This research is based on the cross-sectional method, which limits the research findings. Practical implications: This research helps corporate managers understand the interpersonal communication role in creating social comparison among individuals. The study found that peer communication plays a more important role in enhancing the social comparative values among young adults than among adolescents, which provides clear implications for the practitioner. Originality/value: This study makes a significant contribution to extant literature by discussing the above issue and presenting quantitative data. The study extends the literature by examining and validating a theoretical model of how interpersonal communication among socializing agents affects social comparison among young adults and adolescents. This research examines outcomes of the social comparison with parents, peers and social media, based on the stimulus–organism–response (SOR) model.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to test the impact of symbolic and functional incongruity on brand hate. According to self-congruity theory, symbolic and functional congruence are a critical phenomenon in consumer buying decisions. Therefore, the present study develops a theoretical framework based on self-congruity theory to examine the key determinants of brand hate. Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected only in fast-food chain franchises in the capital city territory of Pakistan. Therefore, it is hard to generalize the findings of this research for customers from different cultural backgrounds. Findings: The results of the study reveal that symbolic and functional incongruence are the primary factors responsible for brand hate among Pakistani fast-food customers. Customers carefully consider both self-image and product attributes when purchasing products. Research limitations/implications: The research uses the cross-sectional method, which limits the findings’ usefulness in other sectors. Practical implications: The current research helps policymakers understand the key determinants of brand hate, showing that symbolic incongruence is the primary antecedent. Therefore, policymakers and corporate leaders should consider that Pakistan is an Islamic country where consumer choices of food are not only derived from food quality, food hygiene and service quality, but also the symbolic image (i.e. halal food) is a vital determinant of consumption. Originality/value: This study contributes to the literature by discussing the above issue and presenting quantitative data. This research extends the literature by testing and validating a conceptual model that includes two types of congruence (symbolic and functional) to study brand hate. The proposed conceptual model provides a novel, theoretical, self-congruity point of view on brand hate.