http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/12342 2026-04-18T21:03:38Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/12794 Title: K-WAVE FANS AND NON-FANS: CULTURE-SPECIFIC AND COLLECTIVE RESPONSES TO KOREAN COUNTRY AND PRODUCT IMAGE Authors: Nathan, Robert Jeyakumar; Soekmawati; Jeong, So Won; Jin, Byoungho Ellie Abstract: Purpose – Malaysia is a multicultural society, comprising ethnic Malays, Chinese, Indians, and other ethnic minorities. Its culture has complex interactions among multicultural and multi-lingual people, with diverse faiths and religions. This study investigates how a multicultural and multi-religious society responds to the influx of Korean products in the market and explores the differences in responses between fans and nonfans of the Korean Wave. Design/Methodology – Using the Online Focus Group Discussions (FGD) technique, qualitative research was conducted with ten participants to investigate multicultural Malaysians’ response to Korean country and product image. Findings – Through questions asked during the FGDs, themes that explain Malaysians’ perceptions of the Korean country image, Korean culture, and Korean products were identified. “Valuing relationship”, “Asian compatibility”, “natural and authentic”, “creativity and innovation”, “projection of boldness and confidence”, “cautious followers”, and “protective and caring culture” were primarily identified, representing positive attributes; “cosmetic surgery” was viewed negatively. Originality/value – Studies about the influence of culture and religion on Malaysian consumers’ responses toward Korean products are scarce. The findings of this study would provide insights into Malaysian consumers from diverse ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds. Understanding how foreign products enter and remain successful in a country like Malaysia could provide valuable insights to other countries and SMEs planning to enter new multicultural markets. 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/12793 Title: FINANCIAL INCLUSION OF HOUSEHOLDS IN INDONESIA Authors: Rin, Ariska Nurfajar; Rahadiantino, Lienggar Abstract: There is extensive attention on financial inclusion and its benefits, recently strategy to stimulate financial inclusion has focused on innovation and technology penetration. This paper analyzes the effect of financial inclusion on a household’s income and the role of cellphone and internet access in household financial inclusion in Indonesia. We develop the financial deprivation of each household to calculate financial exclusion. The Indonesia Family Life Survey year 2014 data are utilized in this paper. Our methodology is Ordinary Least Square (OLS) to examine how the role of financial institutions affects a household’s income. In the second model, we use Probit estimation to determine the likelihood of household financial deprivation due to cellphone and internet access. We also check the robustness of previous models using Propensity Score Matching (PSM) estimation. Our estimation results found that financial exclusion has a highly significant impact on a specific group of households. With middle-level income households, the financial exclusion would deprive income of almost 80 percent. This finding explains that middle welfare households benefited more from financial inclusion than households in the poorest and the wealthiest group. Another result found that cellphone and mobile banking significantly impact decreasing financial deprivation, respectively. 2023-02-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/12792 Title: SURVIVE AND THRIVE: DRIVING FACTORS FOR SMES PERFORMANCE IN MALAYSIA Authors: Kassab, Ehab Aktham; Nordin, Norshahrizan; Amlus, Mohammad Harith; Ahmad, Badlishah Abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to empirically test the relationships between entrepreneurial orientation (EO), total quality management (TQM), and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) performance. It specifically examines whether innovation practices (IPs) mediate the EO, TQM, and SME performance relationships. Design/methodology/approach: A self-administered questionnaire was utilised to collect data from owners/managers of SMEs in Malaysia. The validity and reliability of the instrument were evaluated. Structural equation model utilised to analyse the relationships using PLS 3.3.9. Findings: Statistical outcomes displaying a significant direct effect of EO and IPs on SMEs’ performance, while TQM displayed an insignificant effect on SMEs’ performance. For mediation effect analysis, the indirect effect of EO and TQM on SMEs’ performance through IPs was significant. Research limitations/implications: A sample of manufacturing SMEs was investigated using a quantitative cross-sectional research design. Future research could use qualitative techniques or a longitudinal research design for further information analysis. Practical implications: The research findings provide insights into the owners/managers of SMEs in today’s dynamic manufacturing environment, with a focus on EO and TQM as driving factors to enhance their performance. Originality/value: The research extends the literature on EO and TQM with a comprehensive understanding from the standpoint of Malaysian SMEs. 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/12791 Title: ASSESSING THE INFLUENCE OF HARD AND SOFT INFRASTRUCTURE ON PERCEIVED DESTINATION COMPETITIVENESS: PERSPECTIVE FROM VISITORS IN SARAWAK Authors: Chan, Wei Chiang; Ibrahim, Wan Hashim Wan; Lo, May Chiun; Mohamad, Abang Azlan Abstract: Tourism is one of the rapid growing economic sectors in the world. Destination competitiveness became an imperative aspect for every country as it determines the tourism revenue of the country. Infrastructure is one of the determinants of destination competitiveness. There are two kinds of infrastructure namely hard infrastructure and soft infrastructure. The current study investigated the impact of hard infrastructure (transportation, telecommunication, accommodation) and soft infrastructure (government tourism policy, health services, and safety and security) on perceived destination competitiveness from tourists’ points of view. The study was conducted based on quantitative research. A PLS-SEM analysis was performed by using WarpPLS. The result indicated that transportation, accommodation, and health services have a significant relationship with perceived destination competitiveness. This study is expected to benefit policymakers and industry players in terms of decision-making. Besides, this study will equip more literature and evidence for scholars to perform further studies in the field. 2023-07-01T00:00:00Z