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Social commerce is transforming consumer purchasing behaviours by blending social media interactivity with e-commerce functionalities, and most purchases today are evidently facilitated through social media platforms with ease. Recognising the importance of credibility in skin-related purchases, this study aims to examine how social media information credibility factors, specifically source credibility and electronic word of mouth (e WOM) credibility, influence consumers’ purchase intentions for skincare products on Facebook, considering the mediating roles of trust in online communities and perceived privacy risk. Primary data were collected through a structured survey from 384 skincare purchasers who made their purchases via Facebook, and the model was tested using structural equation modelling (SEM). Further, the results reveal that source credibility, e WOM credibility, and trust in online communities positively influence social commerce purchase intention (SCPI), while perceived risk has a negative effect. Trust in online communities also reduces perceived risk and mediates the relationship between information credibility and purchase intention. Hence, these findings highlight the pivotal roles of trust and risk perceptions in shaping online consumer behaviour in the social commerce space, especially within the skincare market. The study emphasises the need for businesses to leverage credible information sources and build trustworthy online communities to enhance consumer confidence and engagement. Moreover, it contributes to the growing literature on social commerce by offering insights from an emerging market context, Sri Lanka, and suggests future research into broader dimensions of credibility and cultural comparisons to deepen the understanding of social commerce.

Economic globalisation is the integration of national economies into the global economy through the increasing flow of goods, services, capital, and technology across borders and it has contributed to garnering a significant portion of most nations’ national income, although its agricultural value-added aspect has yet to be maximised. This pioneering study explores the impact of economic globalisation on value-added agriculture in a global context based on countries’ income levels. Panel data regression with the stepwise method was employed to quantify the impact of economic globalization on agriculture value added in 101 countries between 2000 and 2021. The findings of our study reveal that economic globalisation, through various channels such as fertilizer consumption, employment in agriculture, agriculture raw materials export and import, exchange rate, and foreign direct investment, significantly influences the agricultural value-added factor globally and across different income levels. Furthermore, the results show that agricultural employment significantly impacts the agricultural value-added factor globally and across all income levels. Also, countries with low and lower-middle-income levels significantly affect agricultural value-added due to exchange rates. In comparison, high-income and lower-middle-income levels have an impact due to foreign direct investment. Finally, the upper-middle-income countries have significantly affected agricultural value-added due to agricultural raw materials imports. This study confirms that employment in agriculture, exchange rate and foreign direct investments positively impact agriculture value-added on the global level and based on the income level of countries.

Agile software development is immensely popular in the industry, but most teams struggle to sustain its use. Human factors like management support, agile training, agile mindset, and team resilience are often neglected, hindering long-term success. However, research has not explored their underlying mechanisms in depth. Therefore, this study examines if management support impacts the sustained usage of agile methodologies within software development teams. It subsequently investigates the individual and serial mediating effects of agile training, the agile mindset, and team resilience on this relationship. Additionally, it compares the importance and performance of management support, agile training, the agile mindset, and team resilience in infusing agile practices. Finally, it determines these antecedents’ necessity for the enduring success of agile application. Data collected from 391 agile software development professionals using a structured questionnaire. Partial-least-squares structural equation modelling, importance-performance map analysis and necessary condition analysis were used to investigate relationships. The findings underscore the pivotal role of management support in infusing agile practices. Agile training, mindset, and team resilience emerge as critical mediators, with a strong serial mediation effect. While management support is paramount, its practical implementation falls short within teams. All four antecedents are found to be necessary for optimal agile sustainment. Thus, this study significantly advances theoretical understanding by introducing a serial mediation model that elucidates their mechanisms in impacting agile infusion. It extends prior organisational-level findings to the team-level. The study’s quantitative verification of qualitative findings strengthens their generalisability to a broader spectrum of teams. It pioneers in expounding the constructs’ relative importance, performance and necessity, to offer actionable insights for agile practitioners. Finally, it provides methodological guidance to apply importance performance map analysis and necessary condition analysis in agile software development research.

As societies around the globe experience various social problems with a rising population and an ever-changing political and economic landscape, scholars have been paying much attention to social entrepreneurship. Social entrepreneurship possesses the ability to address many social problems, especially in developing nations such as Sri Lanka. In this light, this study was carried out to find the impact that social media has on social entrepreneurial intentions among undergraduate students in Sri Lanka, while exploring the mediation effects of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and risk propensity. A sample of 252 students was taken from a Sri Lankan university, and a telephone-based survey was used to collect data. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to analyze data, using the SmartPLS4 software. The results from the analysis showed that social media significantly impacts social entrepreneurial intention, while entrepreneurial self-efficacy and risk propensity had a serial mediation effect on the impact. This study makes many novel contributions to social entrepreneurial intention research, as it explores how social media impacts social entrepreneurial intentions and the serial mediation effect of risk propensity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy in a single theoretical model. Policymakers and educational institutions are heavily encouraged to use social media platforms to diffuse social entrepreneurial concepts among undergraduate students. Finally, the study offers limitations and directions for future research.

This study examines the determinants influencing the likelihood of Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF, as a global institution, aims to promote sustainable growth and prosperity among its member countries by supporting economic strategies that foster financial stability and collaboration in monetary affairs. Utilising panel-probit regression, this study analyses data from thirty-nine SSA countries spanning from 2000 to 2022, focusing on twelve factors: Current Account Balance (CAB), inflation, corruption, General Government Net Lending and Borrowing (GGNLB), General Government Gross Debt (GGGD), Gross Domestic Product Growth (GDPG), United Nations Security Council (UNSC) involvement, regime types (Closed Autocracy, Electoral Democracy, Electoral Autocracy, Liberal Democracy) and China Loan. The results indicate that corruption and GDP growth rate have the most significant influence on the likelihood of SSA countries seeking IMF assistance. Conversely, factors such as CAB, UNSC involvement, LD and inflation show inconsequential effects. Notable, countries like Sudan, Burundi, and Guinea consistently rank high in seeking IMF assistance over various time frames within the observed period. Sudan emerges with a probability of more than 44% in seeking IMF assistance, holding the highest ranking. Study emphasises the importance of understanding SSA region rankings and the variability of variables for policymakers, investors, and international organisations to effectively address economic challenges and provide financial assistance.

This study examines the determinants influencing the likelihood of Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF, as a global institution, aims to promote sustainable growth and prosperity among its member countries by supporting economic strategies that foster financial stability and collaboration in monetary affairs. Utilising panel-probit regression, this study analyses data from thirty-nine SSA countries spanning from 2000 to 2022, focusing on twelve factors: Current Account Balance (CAB), inflation, corruption, General Government Net Lending and Borrowing (GGNLB), General Government Gross Debt (GGGD), Gross Domestic Product Growth (GDPG), United Nations Security Council (UNSC) involvement, regime types (Closed Autocracy, Electoral Democracy, Electoral Autocracy, Liberal Democracy) and China Loan. The results indicate that corruption and GDP growth rate have the most significant influence on the likelihood of SSA countries seeking IMF assistance. Conversely, factors such as CAB, UNSC involvement, LD and inflation show inconsequential effects. Notable, countries like Sudan, Burundi, and Guinea consistently rank high in seeking IMF assistance over various time frames within the observed period. Sudan emerges with a probability of more than 44% in seeking IMF assistance, holding the highest ranking. Study emphasises the importance of understanding SSA region rankings and the variability of variables for policymakers, investors, and international organisations to effectively address economic challenges and provide financial assistance.

The purpose of this research study is to identify the factors affecting cinnamon export income (CEI) in the main five cinnamon export countries, namely China, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Madagascar and Vietnam for the period from 1992-2022. Secondary data was sourced from the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Bank. Based on the past literature, it has been found out that production volume (PV), domestic consumption (DC), exchange rate (ER) and cultivated land area (CLA) significantly impact on CEI. Simple Linear Regression models were applied to analyse the impact of the identified factors affecting CEI in the present study. The findings revealed, PV negatively impacts the export income of cinnamon in China, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam, while having a positive impact on Indonesia and Madagascar. Moreover, while DC appears to have a positive impact in Sri Lanka, it has a negative impact in China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Madagascar for the same. Accordingly, ER is positive for countries Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam while adverse for Indonesia and China. In addition, the study proved that CLA positively influences CEI of China, Vietnam, and Madagascar but negatively for Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Consequently, the findings from this study greatly assist policymakers, exporters, and the industry professionals in executing strategies to enhance the export income & thereof export practices of cinnamon. Finally, this research addresses several gaps in cinnamon export studies, supporting sustainable growth and competitiveness in the sector.

Social commerce, which integrates social media with e-commerce, has transformed how consumers engage with brands and make purchasing decisions. In Sri Lanka, the skincare product market on Facebook has seen significant growth, emphasizing the need to understand the factors influencing consumer purchase intention. This study explores how social media, perceived usefulness and platform interactivity influence trust in the seller and, in turn, affect social commerce purchase intention. Using purposive sampling, the study targeted active Facebook users who purchase skincare products. An online questionnaire was administered to 384 such users. Using structural equation modelling, the study found that perceived usefulness and platform interactivity significantly enhance trust in sellers. Additionally, trust in the seller plays a mediating role between these factors and purchase intention. The study offers theoretical contributions by extending the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) into a high-involvement product context. The findings highlight that a more interactive and engaging platform experience increases consumer confidence in online sellers, ultimately encouraging purchase behavior. Social media platforms like Facebook not only provide a space for product promotion but also serve as trust-building environments through user engagement and perceived usefulness. This study finds that useful and interactive Facebook posts build trust and lead to more skincare product purchases. Brands should post better content to earn trust and boost sales. For businesses, especially skincare brands operating in social commerce environments, this study offers practical insights into developing strategies focused on enhancing platform interactivity and trust to drive consumer engagement and intention to purchase.