Vol. 18 No. 3(I) (2026)

Immersive technologies, specifically augmented reality, virtual reality and Metaverse-based learning platforms have evolved higher education and have transformed the way higher education systems are taught and implemented. In healthcare education, these technologies could enhance students' comprehension of complicated knowledge by using realistic simulation strategies and three-dimensional visualization. This study was conducted to evaluate the technology readiness, students’ prior experience and learning expectations regarding the deployment of the EON XR Metaverse platform in a healthcare service quality course. With a structured questionnaire, a quantitative cross-sectional pre-survey was conducted among 77 undergraduate students. It assessed digital readiness, availability of technology resources, exposure to immersive technologies and expectations about Metaverse-assisted learning. A descriptive statistical analysis indicates a high level that students have confidence and comfort in using digital technologies, which is a sign of very strong technological readiness. Moreover, participants were not familiar with AR/VR applications or the EON XR platform, indicating that immersive education was another area of study for most participants. Despite this lack of exposure, students expressed very favorable expectations towards Metaverse-based learning. They felt that EON XR would represent a more stimulating academic learning experience than traditional lectures, enhance visualization of healthcare service quality concepts and lead to better understanding. Overall, the findings revealed that students were willing and ready to work with Metaverse-enhanced education. Nonetheless, ensuring effective implementation will depend on proper orientation and technical assistance along with addressing differences in device accessibility and internet connectivity, to enhance both the learning process and equity in learning opportunities.

The fast pace of the digital revolution in education and the changing learning habits of Generation Z learners have presented challenges to the traditional methods of teaching economics. Students accustomed to concise, visual and mobile content may be less receptive to lecture-based instruction when faced with abstract and conceptually demanding topics. This research examines EcoBytes, a microlearning platform that offers short videos on economics through TikTok and YouTube Shorts, connecting to additional learning resources such as QR-coded links to full lectures, quizzes, case studies on Universiti Teknologi MARA’s UFuture learning management system, PowerPoint summaries and printable worksheets. A quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test design was used in which undergraduate students completed structured assessments before and after use of EcoBytes. Descriptive statistics were employed to contrast item-level error percentages and overall score distributions. The results show a reduction in the number of errors in the selected items and an upward shift in the distribution of scores on the post-test. This indicates an improvement in conceptual performance as a consequence of the intervention. Student engagement was not directly measured and is discussed as a possible benefit. The study is based on the Cognitive Load Theory, Microlearning Theory, Constructivist Learning Theory and Technology Acceptance Model and presents EcoBytes as a flexible supplementary approach to support economics learning with short-form digital content.

This study aims to determine the factors that influence consumer buying behavior for foreign products among Malaysian university students. Therefore, a survey of 134 Malaysian university students in Selangor Malaysia was conducted to determine the factors that influence consumer buying behavior. Correlation analysis is used to analyze the data to identify the relationship between the variables. Furthermore, multiple regression analysis is applied to determine the significant factors that affect consumer buying behavior for foreign products among Malaysian university students. The results of the survey suggest that product price, product quality and country of origin are significant factors in explaining consumer buying behavior. This study offers renewed empirical insights that contribute to a new way of thinking about the factors driving consumer buying behavior for foreign products specifically in Malaysia.

Environmental sustainability has become a major global concern, particularly among young adults who play an important role in shaping future environmental outcomes. This study examines the influence of knowledge-based and social determinants on environmental performance among young adults in Klang Valley, Malaysia, with Green Innovation Practice as a mediating variable. Specifically, this study investigates the effects of Green Knowledge, Environmental Knowledge Learning, Peer Pressure, and Social Media Influence on Environmental Performance. This study is grounded in the Ability–Motivation–Opportunity (AMO) Theory. A quantitative research approach was employed using a structured questionnaire distributed to 160 young adults aged 18 to 35. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings indicate that while Green Knowledge and Social Media Influence directly enhance Environmental Performance, Environmental Knowledge Learning and Peer Pressure do not have a direct effect. Furthermore, Green Innovation Practice serves as a critical behavioral mechanism that fully mediates the impact of Environmental Knowledge Learning and Peer Pressure, and partially mediates the effect of Social Media Influence on Environmental Performance. It does not, however, mediate the relationship for Green Knowledge. Finally, these findings extend the AMO Theory within the environmental context, providing policymakers and educators with clear, evidence-based strategies to drive actual environmental performance.

The objective of the paper is to explore and analyze global research trends, influential works, and key themes in Big Data Analytics Capabilities (BDAC) and to identify the most active authors, institutions, countries, and journals contributing to the field. Adopting bibliometric tools such as Bibliomagika, OpenRefine, VOSviewer, and Biblioshiny, this study used a bibliometric approach to collect 281 journal articles, conference papers, book chapters, reviews, and other document types from the Scopus database. By cleansing the data beforehand, this ensures the accuracy and reliability of subsequent analyses, enabling researchers to derive meaningful insights with confidence. The results clearly show a steady growth in BDAC-related publications over the past five years (2020–2024). This trajectory reflects the increasing scholarly interest and recognition of BDAC as a crucial organizational capability, especially in the context of digital transformation and firm performance. The findings revealed thematic cluster analyses that uncovered five dominant research themes. firm performance and decision-making, sustainability and green supply chains and green innovation, business model innovation, artificial intelligence integration, and healthcare and sectoral applications.

The increasing integration of digital technologies into higher education has created new opportunities for institutions to complement conventional classroom instruction with flexible and student-centered learning resources. This study examines the effectiveness of a curriculum-aligned MOOC-based supplementary learning intervention in supporting students’ conceptual understanding and academic performance. The study was conducted among undergraduate non-business students enrolled in an entrepreneurship course at a Malaysian higher education institution. A one-group pre-test and post-test design was used. Aggregated data on students’ conceptual understanding, quiz performance and satisfaction were analyzed using descriptive and comparative statistics. The results show that the MOOC-based supplementary learning intervention was found to be associated with improvements in students’ conceptual understanding and academic performance. The findings also indicated a high level of satisfaction with the digital learning intervention, particularly in terms of accessibility and the usefulness of multimedia learning resources. The results suggest that curriculum-aligned MOOC-based supplementary learning can provide beneficial support for continuing learning beyond traditional classroom instruction and improve students’ engagement with course content. The study contributes to the growing knowledge literature by demonstrating the potential of MOOC-based supplementary learning as a practical digital learning approach in higher education.

Over the past decade, scholarly interest in the nexus between financial literacy and cashless payments has grown significantly. paving the way for future research to explore new dimensions within this field. This study scientifically analyses and reviews the existing literature on financial literacy and cashless payments using a bibliometric analysis approach. Intellectual and logical structuring was carried out using VOSviewer by performing an analysis of 713 papers published from 2000 to 2024 in the Web of Science (WoS) database. The construction of network maps using co-authorship and co-occurrence analysis revealed interesting patterns and themes in the field of financial literacy and cashless payments. The discussion helps to identify the nature and scope of research conducted in both domains since their inception. This reflection provides recommendations and guidance grounded in prior studies, offering a clear direction for future research on financial literacy and cashless payment adoption, while also considering potential challenges and limitations.

Green practices have become an important strategic approach for manufacturing organisations seeking to improve sustainability while maintaining long-term competitiveness. Previous studies have extensively examined the environmental and financial benefits of green practices, and yet, limited research has explored their broader contribution to organisational performance from a qualitative perspective. This study explores the common green practices applied in the manufacturing industry and how these green practices contribute to organisational performance in Malaysian manufacturing companies. A qualitative multiple-case study design was adopted involving seven manufacturing companies located in Selangor, Malaysia. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with ten informants, complemented by document analysis and workplace observations to strengthen the data credibility. Thematic analysis supported by NVivo software was employed to identify the recurring themes across the participating organisations. The findings reveal that green practices contribute to organisational performance through three interrelated dimensions: safety performance, economic performance, and organisational reputation. Green initiatives such as waste management and work process innovation improved resource efficiency, reduced operational waste, enhanced workplace safety, lowered operational costs, and strengthened stakeholder confidence. The study extends the existing literature by demonstrating that green practices create organisational value beyond environmental sustainability and should be viewed as strategic resources that enhance overall organisational performance. The findings provide practical guidance for manufacturing managers and policymakers in integrating environmental and operational strategies to achieve sustainable business performance.

This study examines the complementarities or substitutability between financial technology (FinTech) financing platforms and bank financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia. The study uses a six-variable structural vector autoregression (SVAR) framework, which includes the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR), Industrial Production Index (IPI), Consumer Price Index (CPI), peer-to-peer (P2P) financing, equity crowdfunding (ECF) capital raised, and aggregate outstanding SME bank loans, with monthly observations from 2017 to 2026. The SVAR results are complemented by structural impulse response functions (IRFs) with 95% bootstrap confidence intervals, forecast error variance decomposition (FEVD), diagnostic tests, stability assessment, and alternative lag specifications. The results show that P2P and ECF shocks generate small dynamic responses in SME bank lending and their 95% bootstrap confidence intervals generally include zero. An OPR shock produces a positive point response in SME bank lending, which is statistically distinguishable from zero only over part of the response horizon, while the P2P response is statistically distinguishable from zero only at an early horizon. FEVD results indicate that P2P and ECF shocks account for a growing share of the forecast-error variance of SME bank loans. Overall, the aggregate evidence does not provide robust support for a definitive complementarity, substitution, or fallback credit-valve mechanism.

During emergency crises, the rapid spread of social media rumours can threaten public safety and social stability. Although users can play an important role in countering misinformation, user-led rumour refutation remains underexplored as a prosocial digital behaviour. This study develops an integrated psychosocial framework that combines the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and the Norm Activation Model (NAM) to explain the rational and moral drivers of the intention to refute rumours. Data from 565 active social media users were analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4.0. The findings show that intention to refute rumours is significantly influenced by attitude, social norm, perceived behavioural control and, most strongly, personal norm. Awareness of consequences, ascribed responsibility and online respect also significantly influence attitudes towards rumour refutation. Theoretically, the study demonstrates the value of integrating behavioural and moral perspectives to explain proactive responses to misinformation. In practice, the findings suggest that platform managers and crisis communicators should strengthen users’ sense of responsibility, behavioural confidence, and respectful communication when designing misinformation interventions. Future research should examine the model across different populations, crisis contexts and digital platforms, and use longitudinal or experimental designs to assess whether these psychosocial factors translate into sustained rumour-refutation behaviour.