Corporate social responsibility (CSR) image positively affects customer outcomes. Despite researchers’ interest in the investigation of company favoring outcomes still, there is a need to further examine the psychological mechanisms that generate these outcomes. Customer engagement (CE) is a state of mind that drives customer behavior. The role of CE has been fully ignored in CSR literature. We suggest that CSR engenders CE and examine the mediating role of CE between CSR and behavioral outcomes. A survey of 455 customers of banking services in Pakistan provided empirical evidence for hypothesis testing. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. We find that CSR image induces CE that gives rise to behavioral responses i.e., customer loyalty, word-of-mouth (WOM) and customer feedback. This is the first study to examine the impact of CSR on customer feedback and to investigate the mediating role of CE.

Green cosmetics made from organic ingredients are becoming increasingly popular due to their environmentally friendly nature. However, research on consumer behavior towards green cosmetics is rare, especially in developing countries like Pakistan. Previous studies have primarily focused on female consumers, and little is known about the behavior of male consumers. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the behavior of both male and female consumers towards green cosmetic products and analyze the factors that affect their purchase behavior. This study employs a quantitative approach with deductive reasoning and collects data through a questionnaire from major cities in Pakistan. The study finds that eco-awareness, social influence, price-quality instructions, health consciousness, and the need for uniqueness significantly influence consumer purchase behavior when buying green cosmetics. Interestingly, price sensitivity does not significantly affect consumer purchase behavior as consumers are willing to pay for high-quality green cosmetics. Based on the findings, the study recommends promoting eco-awareness and health consciousness among consumers through educational campaigns and workshops launched by the government and the private sector. Future research can explore factors such as age, gender, and specific generations like millennials and Generation Z, as well as packaging, branding, and product design to promote environmentally friendly and health-conscious products. Additionally, comparative studies between countries can identify universal and region-specific factors, and examining the overall impact of green cosmetic products on the environment can highlight areas for improvement in sustainability.

The banking sector has a significant impact on a nation’s financial stability and economic development. As one of the fundamental components of the financial sector, banks offer services that are essential for the expansion of the markets. The stability of the financial system is significantly impacted by the efficiency of the banking sector. COVID-19 has had a tremendous effect on the economy. This pandemic cannot be disregarded, considering how widespread it has been and how many people it has affected globally. Both society and the global economy have undergone profound change. Hence, it is critical to ascertain how severely the outbreak has impacted the banking system. To assess the potential impact of pandemic, the current study examined conventional and Islamic banking. This study also investigates how COVID-19’s moderating effect influences the banking system. Financial statements from 10 conventional banks and 5 Islamic banks in Pakistan are the sources of this study’s sample data. COVID-19 is a moderator in this study. The empirical estimations by means of the fixed-effects approach suggests that the moderator has a large impact on bank profitability. In addition, COVID-19 appears to have a stronger influence on the Islamic banking system.

Equity markets play a pivotal role in the sustainability of developing countries, such as China. The literature on the detection of herding biases is confined to the aggregate level (firms, sector/industry and market). The present study adds to the behavioral finance literature by addressing the surprisingly unnoticed phenomena of the behavioral impact of herding bias on firm value (FV) at the firm level, using the sample of A-Shares listed firms at the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges (SSE and SZSE) under panel fixed effect specification. Initially, we detect the existence of investors and managers herding (IHR and MHR) biases at firm-level, and later, we examine their impact (distinct and interactive) upon the FV. The empirical results document the presence of IHR and MHR bias at market, sector and firm-level in both equity markets, which potentially drive the FV, while the impact is more pronounced during the extreme trading period. The findings are robust under different time intervals, and industry classification, therefore, offers useful policy implications to understand the behavioral dynamics of investors and managers.

Pakistan is a leading emerging market as per the recent classification of the International Monetary Fund (MF), and hedging is used as a considerable apparatus for minimizing a firm’s risk in this market. In these markets, investors are customarily unaware about the hedging activities in firms, due to the occupancy of asymmetric environment prevailing in firms. This research paper adds a new insight and vision to the existing literature in the field of behavioral finance by examining the impact of hedging on investors’ sentiments in the presence of asymmetric information. For organizing this research, 366 non-financial firms are taken up as the size sample; all these firms are registered in the Pakistan Stock Exchange. A two-step system of generalized method of moments (GMM) model is implemented for regulating the study. The findings of empirical evidence exhibit that there is a positive relationship between investors’ sentiments and hedging. Investors’ sentiments are negative in relationship with asymmetric information. Due to the moderate presence of asymmetric information, hedging is positively related to investors’ sentiments although this relation is non-significant.