Challenges and Opportunities in the Halal Pharmaceutical Industry in Malaysia

Following the global significance of halal pharmaceutical products, Malaysia has positioned itself as a key manufacturer to increase industrial demand. This study examines Malaysia's halal pharmaceutical industry by internalizing consumer preferences for halal pharmaceuticals and the associated complexities. The data derived from literature reviews were subjected to documentation analysis. Consumer preference was substantially influenced by religious beliefs, product quality, and health concerns. Halal certification, cross-contamination concerns, and regulatory compliance were the key issues underlying halal pharmaceutical products. Overall, this empirical work expanded the current literature with pivotal insights into the future developments of halal pharmaceuticals in Malaysia. Industry players, policymakers, and stakeholders can utilize such knowledge to develop strategies that enhance the halal pharmaceutical industry and meet Muslim consumers’ preferences

Factors Influencing Green Product Purchase Behavior among University Putra Malaysia Students

The issue of the environment such as increasing sea levels, air pollution, water pollution, and climate change, are affecting people all over. Since early times, human beings have been experiencing environmental degradation due to the development activities due to the rise of civilizations. A green product is designed to have as little environmental impact as possible over its entire life cycle, including after it is no longer being used. This study examines the factors influencing green product purchase behaviour among University Putra Malaysia (UPM) students. A total of 260 respondents were selected from the University of Putra Malaysia by using simple random sampling. The data was collected by using the administered questionnaire. The results of multiple linear regressions showed that the adjusted R2 is 0.438, indicating that the variance of the dependent variable was explained by the knowledge, attitude, social appeal and emotional value. The result also showed only three variables were influencing; emotional value (ß =.333, p ? 0.01) was the most influential factor, followed by knowledge (ß =.303, p ? 0.01) and attitude (ß =.160, p ? 0.01) among UPM students towards the green product purchase behaviour. This study concluded that emotional value, knowledge, and attitude were among the factors influencing green product purchase behaviour. Future research is recommended to conduct this study on other University students in Malaysia with larger samples and also can focus on the other factors which influence the students on green product purchase behaviou

The Effects of Dynamic Capabilities on Firm’s Financial Performance

Firms often face significant challenges to stay competitive in the present economic environment, thus, dynamic capabilities are vital as it is a substantial factor in accomplishing better business performance. This study involved yearly data of 62 firms in the ACE market that engaged with dynamic capabilities, the data was collected from the year 2012-2021. The data was gathered from the firm's annual report and has been analyzed using two-step GMM. Generally, the ACE market is consistently associated with inferior performance and capital compared to the main market. Hence, the market has the possibility of being delisted and affecting capital market performance. Therefore, this study includes dynamic capabilities in the ACE market to study the market’s performance. The results obtained are consistent with the theory, whereby changes in dynamic capabilities contributed to a positive return on the firm’s performance. However, the small capital nature of the ACE Market limits the investment in the dynamic capabilities. This study concluded that more priority to be given to the awareness of dynamic capabilities in the current competitive era. The result proved that the investment in the dynamic capabilities improved the performance of the Ace market even though some of the firms in the ACE market ignored dynamic capabilities due to capital constraints. Thus, policymakers should play their role in providing grants for the firms in the ACE Market to improve the investment in dynamic capabilities

Perceptions of Disability among University Students

Perceptions of disability are important constructs that influence not only the well-being of people with disabilities but also the moral compass of society. Negative attitudes toward disability can lead to social exclusion and isolation of people with disabilities, whereas positive attitudes promote social inclusion. The present study was conducted to examine the main predictors of disability perceptions among university students, provided that understanding these factors can help develop effective interventions to improve students’ attitudes toward peers with disabilities and reduce intergroup prejudice. Using 110 responses from university students at a public university, the study found that knowledge and exposure contribute significantly to perceptions among university students. Management of the university plays a critical role in shaping positive perceptions by facilitating meaningful interactions with people with disabilities, promoting disability awareness and education, and creating an environment that values diversity

Factors Influencing Philanthropic Behavior among Youths in Malaysia

Philanthropy is the desire to promote the well-being of others. It is about looking for and helping the welfare of others, particularly by giving them money for good reasons. Philanthropy is not only confined to the contribution of money, but it involves making efforts for religious purposes and self-satisfaction towards others. The level of charity among Malaysian citizens is alarming in 2015, Malaysia ranked 10th in the World Giving Index but in 2021 the ranking has dropped tremendously to 29th place. This has shown that Malaysians are getting less interested in participating in charitable activities and doing general good deeds. Therefore, there is an urgent need to look broadly at the philanthropic behavior of Malaysians. This research aims to determine the factors influencing philanthropic behavior among youth in Malaysia. For this study, a survey was conducted to the target population which is youth. Data was collected by distributing questionnaires via emails and WhatsApp groups and data was analyzed using SPSS and PLS-SEM. Findings show that religion and altruism are significant to the philanthropic behavior of Malaysian youth. This study has provided valuable insights into youth philanthropy by identifying solutions to further create awareness of philanthropy

Factor Inputs and the Growth of the Manufacturing Sector among the East African Community Member States: Testing the Efficacy of the Extended Neoclassical Growth Hypothesis

The study aims to examine the relationship between input factors and growth rates in the output of the manufacturing sector in the five East African Community (EAC) member states. The relatively small manufacturing sector's GDP contribution to the combined GDP of the EAC member nations is the driving force behind this inquiry. We evaluate the applicability of the 1992 Mankiw, Romer, and Weil neoclassical growth framework and its subsequent developments in this study. Using a linear dynamic panel model, we utilize this methodology to obtain estimations using the first difference generalized method of moments (D-GMM. The study's findings make it clear that the gross capital formation input component is essential for forecasting changes in the rate of expansion of the manufacturing sector's output. Conversely, the East African Community's member states' manufacturing sector output growth does not seem to be much impacted by variables such as adjusted population growth and human capital. Based on our research, the East African Community (EAC) member states' output fluctuations in the manufacturing sector may be partially explained by the neoclassical growth model and its expansions. This shows that the growth framework that has been chosen might not be thorough enough to provide a thorough assessment of the variables influencing the expansion of the manufacturing sector output in the EAC member nations. The findings of our study indicate that the manufacturing sector’s output growth in the EAC member states could be enhanced through the implementation of policies and programs that provide incentives for augmenting capital stocks. This can be accomplished by in­crea­s­ing investments from the domestic private sector as well as foreign di­rect investments

Factors Affecting the Intention to Invest in Islamic SRI in Malaysia

Islamic SRI has shown a flourishing expansion over the last three decades. This demonstrates that there will be a significant opportunity to enhance the Islamic SRI in the Islamic Finance sector.  Islamic SRI is a type of investment that facilitates the creation of the ecosystem and promotes responsible investing. The study attempts to look at the factors affecting the intention to invest in Islamic SRI.  The theoretical framework is built on the Theories of Planned Behavior (TPB) and Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). Since the study focuses on the desire to engage in Islamic SRI, the theories are expanded to include three more antecedents: environmental and societal concern, knowledge, and religion. Due to the study’s emphasis on Islamic SRI perspectives, these variables ought to be included. According to the multiple regression analysis, four components, namely attitude, subjective norm and environmental and social factors, were revealed to be positively significant on the intention to invest in Islamic SRI. The study employs quantitative research through an online survey questionnaire. The sampling technique for this study is non-probability sampling by applying the convenience sampling technique. Besides, the targeted population of this study is the potential private investors who reside in the states of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, while the total sample size of the study is 380

The Factors Affecting Consumer Purchase Intention through Social Commerce – A Concept Paper

Emerging economies are not excluded, where the emergence of e-commerce has now advanced towards a new branch of social commerce as a platform for business transactions as well as in attracting, creating, and maintaining customer relationships. E-commerce on social media platforms offers a practical means for businesses to connect with and sell to consumers. Major social networking sites have been actively developing their e-commerce features, allowing users to make purchases without leaving the site. Major social networking sites have been actively developing their e-commerce features, allowing users to make purchases without leaving the site. Social commerce has become popular due to its importance in e-commerce. The research in this area is still limited, especially on the factors that influence purchase intentions when using social commerce platforms. The purpose of this study is to examine the contribution and significance of affordance and trust theories among Malaysian users that underpin purchase intentions on social commerce platforms. This paper establishes a conceptual framework for consumers' purchase intentions based on the SOR model. Social media platforms can be used by businesses to interact with customers and increase sales once they recognize their potential. PLS-SEM (Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling) will be used to examine the data

Nisab of Zakat and Zakat Contribution: A Conceptual Model

Zakat distribution has a positive correlation with its collection. Thus, a higher collection of zakat will positively impact the distribution amount and reach a bigger pool of zakat recipients. However, some external constraints in its collection could likely have an adverse impact on its collection, especially the effect of the macroeconomic factors. It becomes crucial when the increase in the price of gold (one of the primary commodities used as a nisab benchmark for zakat in Islam) is claimed to negatively influence the collection and allocation of zakat to the respective recipients. Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether the high and low value of nisab due to the fluctuating price of gold in the world market could negatively influence the zakat collection and indirectly affect all the recipients, especially the poor and needy. In achieving this aim, this study will utilize a structured self-administered questionnaire to study the awareness of Muslims on the nisab of zakat and its influence on their zakat payments. It is still relatively rare to find any research on the awareness of the nisab of zakat and its relation to the zakat contribution. One past econometric study concluded that a higher nisab leads to a lower zakat collection. The findings of this proposed study could complement that previous study and hence be justifiable due to its significant impact on the recipients of zakat (asnaf) as the main stakeholders

A Conceptual Review of the Determinants of Employee Innovative Work Behavior

The increasing prevalence of digitalization, competitive markets, quick environmental changes, and the imperative of organizational sustainability have necessitated business organizations to adopt innovative practices. Hence, all organizations must foster a culture of innovative work behavior among their employees to ensure the organization's ongoing survival and advancement. Nonetheless, comprehensive studies that methodically scrutinize the different factors affecting IWB within a unified theoretical model are insufficient. This research is a literature review to find and analyze factors that influence innovative work behavior. The findings of the literature review or existing research indicate that psychological empowerment, employee engagement, self-efficacy, knowledge sharing, perceived organizational support, climate for innovation, HRM practices, and transformational leadership have consistently demonstrated strong associations with employee IWB in various studies. This study additionally proposes a novel conceptual framework that examines the interplay between psychological empowerment, employee engagement, self-efficacy, knowledge sharing, perceived organizational support, climate for innovation, HRM practices and transformational leadership, with a specific focus on their impact on IWB. This framework holds potential for future investigations conducted by other scholars