Hanadi A. Salhab

This study investigates the role of green marketing in addressing Jordan’s environmental and economic challenges, focusing on barriers and drivers of adoption. Using a quantitative research approach, data were collected from 504 respondents (67.5% were customers and 32.5% were SME owners) and analyzed through partial least squares structural equation modeling to evaluate the relationships between socio-economic factors, financial incentives, and infrastructural challenges. The results reveal that financial incentives significantly drive the adoption of renewable energy (coefficient: 0.85, p = 0.010) and sustainable agriculture (coefficient: 0.80, p = 0.014). Stakeholder engagement is high, with customer awareness scoring a mean of 4.1 (standard deviation: 0.5) and environmental sustainability at 4.2 (standard deviation: 0.5). Key barriers include infrastructural limitations (mean: 3.7, standard deviation: 0.8) and socio-economic disparities (mean: 3.8, standard deviation: 0.7), restricting access to eco-friendly products. Model fit indices, including a standardized root mean square residual of 0.054 and a normed fit index of 0.92, confirm the robustness of the framework. The findings suggest that overcoming these barriers requires targeted financial support, infrastructure investment, and inclusive policies to scale green marketing effectively. This paper provides actionable insights into advancing sustainable practices in Jordan, offering valuable strategies for resource-constrained economies worldwide.

This research aimed to investigate the impact of smartphone advergames characteristics on purchasing intentions. Four dimensions were considered (irritation, entertainment, credibility, and informativeness). To achieve this aim, the researchers developed a model based on literature reviews and previous studies; a self-administrated questionnaire was designed and distributed over a convenience sample. The researchers used a quantitative method and a descriptive-analytical approach; the study sample consisted of 600 consumers, and 519 questionnaires were returned with an 86.5% response rate. Various statistical methods, including descriptive, simple linear regression, were used to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. This research’s key findings were that there is a statistically direct impact of irritation, entertainment, credibility, and informativeness on consumers’ purchasing intentions. Moreover, there is a mediating role of game involvement between advergames and consumers’ purchasing intentions. Hence, many Jordanian companies can use smartphone mobile advertising to increase sales and create product brand image among consumers. Smartphone advergaming provides numerous opportunities and challenges for advertisers in the current dynamic business environment.

Acknowledgment
The authors are grateful to the Middle East University, Amman, Jordan, for the full financial support granted to this research project.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
In the context of ongoing digital transformation, augmented reality is increasingly reshaping consumer-brand interactions, particularly in marketing domains. This paper aims to investigate how augmented reality improves consumer interactivity, brand awareness, and purchasing behavior in Jordan’s telecom industry. Selected by stratified random sampling, the 481 participants were subscribers of Jordanian telecom. They were qualified based on their expertise utilizing augmented reality capabilities in telecom mobile apps and reflected different age and gender groupings.
AMOS-based Structural Equation Modeling was used to validate the conceptual model. The results illustrate that augmented reality adoption greatly influences brand awareness (β = 0.60, p < 0.001) and consumer interaction (β = 0.55, p < 0.001). Adoption is influenced positively by technological readiness (β = 0.35, p = 0.020) and infrastructure support (β = 0.40, p = 0.010), and is negatively influenced by concerns related to cybersecurity (β = –0.20, p = 0.045). Cultural alignment strongly moderates augmented reality strategy effectiveness (β = 0.38, p = 0.025). Besides, brand recognition (β = 0.45, p < 0.001) and consumer engagement (β = 0.50, p < 0.001) have extremely high correlations with consumer purchase intention.
The findings suggest that Jordan’s telecom industry should integrate augmented reality content with local cultural norms to generate confidence, tighten cybersecurity protocols to lessen consumer resistance, and upgrade digital infrastructure for smooth augmented reality experiences. These coordinated initiatives are needed to increase consumer engagement and augmented reality branding in digital markets.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Growing regulatory demands and operational complexity in the insurance industry require professionals with strong analytical reasoning and professional skepticism, yet traditional training often fails to develop these competencies. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of simulation-based experiential training in enhancing professional skepticism and analytical reasoning among insurance professionals and to examine how the organizational learning climate influences this relationship.
A quasi-experimental study was conducted between May and September 2025 across eight insurance companies in the United Arab Emirates, involving 160 early-career professionals (mean age = 27.3 years, SD = 2.5) organized into 40 teams. Teams were randomly assigned to either simulation-based experiential training or conventional instruction. Data were collected at three stages – pre-training, post-training, and eight weeks after training – and analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling.
Participants who received simulation-based training showed a 0.42-point increase in professional skepticism and a 0.78-point improvement in analytical reasoning compared with the control group, both statistically significant at p < 0.001. Analytical reasoning mediated 57% of the training’s total effect on skepticism (indirect effect = 0.24, p < 0.001). The organizational learning climate significantly moderated this relationship (interaction effect = 0.21, p < 0.001), with greater gains observed in firms that promoted reflection and feedback.
The findings confirm that simulation-based experiential learning, reinforced by a supportive organizational climate, substantially enhances analytical, skeptical, and ethical judgment essential for accurate claim evaluation, risk assessment, and fraud prevention in the insurance sector.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Rapid digitalization is redefining how consumers evaluate Islamic banks, where technological progress must align with Shariah principles to ensure transparency, fairness, and credibility. In this context, digital marketing serves as a critical bridge between technological innovation and ethical communication. This study investigates how digital marketing effectiveness shapes trust and engagement, and how these factors, in turn, influence adoption intention in Islamic banking. It further examines the moderating role of religiosity and compares structural relationships across Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey conducted from January to April 2025 collected data from 824 clients of Islamic banks (Saudi Arabia = 297, United Arab Emirates = 205, Jordan = 322). The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling, measurement invariance testing, multi-group analysis, and moderation-mediation procedures. All respondents were Muslim account holders who had interacted with an Islamic bank’s digital marketing campaign within the preceding six months. Digital marketing effectiveness significantly increased trust (β = 0.662, t = 15.42) and engagement (β = 0.628, t = 13.88). Adoption intention was jointly predicted by trust (β = 0.422, t = 10.17) and engagement (β = 0.377, t = 9.83), explaining 60.2 percent of the variance. Religiosity strengthened both relationships, with stronger effects in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates than in Jordan. Transparent, interactive, and ethically consistent digital marketing enhances trust and engagement, providing the behavioral foundation for Islamic digital banking adoption.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Financial fraud in Arab Gulf family firms threatens key stakeholders, yet many still rely on informal, trust-based controls. The purpose of this study is to explain why some family firms in this region adopt machine learning-based financial fraud detection systems, while others remain locked into legacy mechanisms of control. Results from a cross-sectional survey of 416 owners, executives, finance, and compliance officers from family businesses in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar were analyzed using variance-based structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis. The results show that perceived effectiveness (β = 0.08, p < 0.01) and regulatory support (β = 0.07, p < 0.05) are the strongest positive drivers of the likelihood of adopting machine learning-based fraud detection. Awareness of machine learning, ethical concern, and existing fraud detection practices also have significant positive effects (β ≈ 0.03-0.05, p < 0.05), while barriers to adoption exert a significant negative influence (β = −0.05, p < 0.05). The structural model explains 52.7% of the variance in the likelihood of adoption and 46.8% of the variance in perceived effectiveness. Indirect effects indicate that awareness and regulation promote adoption through perceived effectiveness, whereas barriers reduce adoption through heightened ethical concern. The findings suggest that stronger governance, clearer and incentive-aligned regulation, and explainable, well-governed machine learning implementations are essential to shift family businesses in the Arab Gulf region from trust-based to data-driven fraud detection.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Corporate real estate financing is a channel through which macro-financial volatility, regulation, and strategic orientation affect firms’ balance sheets. This study explains how firms in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore choose between leasing, owning, and hybrid property-financing structures and how these choices perform under uncertainty. The empirical framework combines Generalized Structural Equation Modeling with Monte Carlo simulation using macroeconomic and real estate data, latent constructs for strategic orientation, financial constraints, regulatory pressure, and perceived risk, and an outcome indicating the dominant property-financing structure. Measurement reliability is acceptable (Cronbach’s alpha 0.77–0.82, composite reliability 0.83–0.87, average variance extracted 0.57–0.62). Structural estimates show that strategic orientation (β = 0.36) and financial constraints (β = 0.41) have significant effects on property-financing choices, and regulatory pressure also contributes (β = 0.27), and perceived risk reduces the likelihood of ownership (β = −0.38) while mediating strategic and regulatory influences (indirect β = −0.13 and β = −0.17). Country context significantly moderates the impact of financial constraints (β = 0.12) and perceived risk (β = −0.10). Simulation results indicate net present values of 3.75, 2.80, and 4.10 million USD for the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore. The study concludes that property-financing structure is a strategic decision and that the combined structural-simulation framework is a useful tool for analyzing corporate decisions in heterogeneous markets.