Bharat Rai

The study aimed to determine why consumers purchase smartphones. The paper examined product attributes, social factors, pricing, and brand image factors to assess how individuals purchase smartphones. The study was conducted in the Kathmandu Valley, the capital city of Nepal. The respondents of the study were smartphone users in the Kathmandu Valley. The study utilized positivist epistemology with predetermined hypotheses and a deductive approach with a single ontological foundation. The study employed a quantitative method. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted on a six-point Likert scale to obtain the primary data. The population for this study was comprised of Smartphone users, and a sample size of 398 was used. This study applied a convenient sampling technique and a causal research design. The effect of independent variables on consumer behavior was determined using structural equation modeling. The path analysis utilizing structural equation modeling demonstrated that product pricing (β = 0.21, p < 0.05), social factors (β = 0.37, p < 0.05), and brand image (β = 0.41, p < 0.05) significantly influence consumer behavior. In contrast, the product attribute has no significant impact (β = 0.05, p >0.05) on consumer behavior. The results provide future scholars and business executives with a road map to view the emerging context of market development.

Eliminating gender prejudice in job advancement is crucial to organizational success. The study aims to analyze the impact of invisible barriers (corporate culture and corporate practices) on the promotion of women working in Nepalese commercial banks. Structural equation modeling and path analysis have examined how the glass ceiling factors affect women’s career progression. The study’s targeted population consisted of female middle-level managers. It used convenience sampling to collect information from 288 female middle-level managers. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin and Bartlett’s tests for sphericity were used to test the study’s external validity. Construct reliability tests and average variance extracted tests were used to evaluate the convergent validity of the latent variables. Heterotrait-monotrait ratio test was used to assess the discriminant validity of the independent components. The result revealed that the corporate culture with seven observable items (β = –0.313; p < 0.05) and corporate practices with nine observable items (β = –0.507; p < 0.05) had a negative and statistically significant impact on women’s career progression in Nepal, accounting for approximately 64.0% of the variation. For organizations to be moral and effective, gender stereotypes regarding promotions must be eliminated. The study’s findings assist policymakers in understanding how the glass ceiling affects women’s promotion in businesses and recognizing discrimination based on gender to make promotional decisions impartial.

In today’s complex and highly competitive marketplace, marketers, realizing a need to develop sustainable strategies, have turned to branding as a solution. Understanding the brand preferences of consumers is always under discussion. In such context, this study measured the effects of price, attributes, brand personality, appearance, and self-congruity on brand preference in buying a passenger car. A deductive reasoning approach, quantitative method, and positivist epistemology with predetermined hypotheses were used. A six-point Likert scale structured survey was utilized to gather the primary information. The sample included 411 passenger car users in Nepal. A judgmental sampling technique and a causal research design were used. Through path analysis, the effect of price, attributes, brand personality, appearance, and self-congruity on dependent variables was identified using structural equation modeling. The study’s outcome showed that attribute (β = 0.062, p > 0.05), price (β = –0.041, p > 0.05), and appearance (β = 0.022, p > 0.05) have no significant positive impact on consumer brand preference. Moreover, the study discovered that brand preference is influenced by self-congruity (β = 0.297, p < 0.05) and brand personality (β = 0.232, p < 0.05) in buying passenger cars in Nepal. It is concluded that brand image and prestige are more critical for high-involvement products. These outcomes provide a road map for future scholars and business people with a view of the emerging context of market development.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
In today’s competitive age, marketers have realized the need to identify the factors influencing customers’ perceptions of digital payments. This study helps in developing sustainable marketing strategies for the firm. The study’s major goal was to examine the factors influencing customers’ perception towards digital payment in Nepal. Causal comparative research design has been used. This study has used the primary data, collected through the structured questionnaire based on the 6-point Likert scale. Purposive sampling was employed, and 394 sample size was taken because at least 384 responses are representative sample for the unknown population. The study population was consumers who use digital payment systems in Nepal. The survey was conducted from June to October 2024 in Nepal. The questionnaire was distributed to the digital payment system users because they might have adequate knowledge regarding the digital payment systems. The path analysis examined the impact of ease of use, self-efficacy, perceived trust, perceived usefulness, and privacy and security on customers’ perception towards digital payment using the structural equation modeling. The result showed that ease of use (β = .189, p < 0.05), self-efficacy (β = .595, p < 0.05), and perceived usefulness (β = .168, p < 0.05) significantly impact customer perception towards digital payment. However, it was also discovered that perceived trust (β = .084, p > 0.05) and privacy and security (β = .044, p > 0.05) do not considerably influence customers’ perception towards digital payment in the Nepalese market. It is concluded that ease of use, self-efficacy, and perceived usefulness play an essential role in the perception development of customers towards digital payment system. Still, consumers have no trust and do not believe in the security towards digital payment. The study’s findings might be helpful for business people and future researchers to understand new market conditions and growth.