Issue #1 (Volume 17 2026)

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
The integration of AI-enabled medical robots into the medical field has increased the potential risks to which patients may be exposed. To protect patients’ rights, this study aims to explore and analyze the need for mandatory insurance against civil liability of medical robots operating with AI technologies in the United Arab Emirates. Such insurance is intended to ensure adequate compensation, reinforce legal protection, and uphold confidence in medical practice, while also contributing to societal stability and supporting the growth of the insurance sector. The study employed a combination of descriptive and analytical methods. It concludes that smart medical robots are neither inanimate objects nor irrational beings. It recommends legislative regulations granting them digital legal personality under specific controls, recognizing their independent financial status, and enabling them to bear civil liability for actions causing harm. The study showed an upward trend in the number of insurance companies providing liability coverage for damages caused by AI-operated medical robots, increasing from two in 2020 to ten in 2025, and expected to rise further if full legal personality is granted. The research findings suggest amending the UAE Civil Transactions Code and the Medical Liability Law to codify civil liability provisions for autonomous smart medical robots and to mandate liability insurance. Furthermore, as insurers’ obligations depend on establishing the insured’s liability, UAE law should grant the injured party a direct right of action against the insurer.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
InsurTech adoption faces challenges in emerging markets, where consumers are concerned about the fairness of insurance claims and the security of InsurTech systems. The aim of this study is to test the InsurTech adoption intention in Jordan based on trust, perceived risk, and perceived regulatory protection. The research design is based on a survey of insurance consumers in Jordan (N = 346).
Adoption intention is positively correlated with trust (r = 0.71) and regulatory protection (r = 0.60) and is negatively correlated with perceived risk (r = −0.38). Regulatory protection is positively correlated with trust (r = 0.65) and negatively correlated with perceived risk (r = −0.52). The model explains 57% of the variance in adoption intention (R-squared = 0.57). Trust has the strongest influence on adoption intention (beta = 0.520, p < 0.001), whereas perceived risk has a negative effect (beta = −0.180, p < 0.001). Regulatory protection also positively influences adoption intention (beta = 0.120, p = 0.012) and trust (beta = 0.650, p < 0.001), and negatively influences perceived risk (beta = −0.530, p < 0.001). Regulatory protection also indirectly influences adoption intention through trust (beta = 0.340, p < 0.001) and perceived risk (beta = 0.100, p < 0.001).
InsurTech adoption intention in Jordan is primarily based on confidence and assurance, where trust is the most important factor, and the influence of regulation is manifested through trust and risk perceptions.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study investigates the determinants influencing life insurance demand across 38 OECD countries over the period 2009 to 2022, with the data sourced from OECD Insurance Statistics, the World Bank, and the World Development Indicators (WDI). The purpose is to identify and analyze the determinants that shape life insurance penetration (premiums as a percentage of GDP) and density (premiums per capita), providing a comprehensive understanding of market dynamics. Using panel data, the study employs a dynamic regression model with Panel-Corrected Standard Errors (PCSE) to ensure accuracy and reliability, complemented by Pooled Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) for robustness. The findings indicate that economic, demographic, and social factors significantly impact life insurance demand. GDP per capita, poverty rates, and healthcare expenditure to GDP significantly stimulate life insurance demand. Life expectancy positively correlates with insurance penetration, whereas a higher dependency ratio adversely affects it. In contrast, inflation and education expenditure to GDP are found to reduce demand. However, urbanization is found to have no significant influence. The study provides actionable insights for policymakers to design strategies that safeguard consumer interests while promoting market expansion. Furthermore, OECD countries stand out as appealing investment destinations within the stable insurance sector. These findings highlight opportunities for insurance companies to adapt offerings to evolving consumer needs, boosting competitiveness and profitability.

Acknowledgment
The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr. Anup Kumar Saha, Lecturer in Accounting at Keele University, United Kingdom, for his valuable intellectual input and constructive feedback.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Saudi insurers increasingly face demands to analyze huge quantities of underwriting and claims data, but disparate systems may decrease the precision of pricing and the speed of claim settlement, thereby reducing operational efficiency. The purpose of this study is to identify if data warehousing adoption could contribute positively to the underwriting and claims handling operations of insurance companies in Saudi Arabia. The study employed fixed-effect regressions to examine the relationship between data warehousing adoption and underwriting/claims handling operations of insurance companies based on a firm-year fixed-effect panel data set of 2015–2024, including information technology investment intensity interaction terms. The result of this study indicated that data warehousing adoption is positively related to underwriting/claims handling operations of insurance companies, where data warehousing adoption could contribute positively to reducing loss ratio by 4.8 percent (β = –0.048, P < 0.01) and combined ratio by 5.6 percent (β = –0.056, P < 0.01). Data warehousing adoption could also contribute positively to claims handling operations, where average claim settlement time could be reduced by 6.21 days (β = –6.21, P < 0.05). In addition, the data warehousing investment interaction term can provide an additional 3.2 percentage points of improvement (β = –0.032, p < 0.05), implying that data warehousing value can be enhanced by complementary investments in information technology capabilities. Explanatory powers of the model are considerable, with R-squared of 0.41-0.52 for different equations.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
Digital distribution is reshaping insurance markets, yet people remain cautious about purchasing complex, high-involvement life insurance products through online channels. Prior technology-adoption studies commonly apply UTAUT, but evidence on the relative importance of its core predictors in online life insurance and on whether optimism meaningfully conditions these effects in an emerging-market setting remains limited. This study addresses this gap by testing a UTAUT-based model of online life insurance purchase intention in Guangxi Province, China, and by assessing optimism as a potential moderator. Survey data from 707 responses were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The measurement model demonstrated satisfactory model fit (SRMR = 0.026; NFI = 0.934). In the structural model, performance expectancy (β = 0.142, p = 0.001), effort expectancy (β = 0.205, p < 0.001), social influence (β = 0.030, p < 0.001), and facilitating conditions (β = 0.172, p < 0.001) each showed significant positive effects on behavioral intention, with social influence exerting the strongest impact. The model explained a substantial share of variance in intention (R² = 0.90). The results showed that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating condition had significant positive effects on consumers’ behavioral intention to purchase online life insurance. However, none of the four proposed moderation hypotheses involving optimism were supported, indicating that optimism did not significantly moderate these relationships. Overall, the findings suggested that life insurance companies should focus on improving UTAUT predictors to strengthen customers’ purchase intention rather than enhancing customer optimism.

Acknowledgment
The study appreciates Professor Dr Mohamad Bin Bilal Ali for the grammatical advice.

Type of the article: Research Article

Abstract
This study aims to analyze the influence of financial performance, consisting of solvency, profitability, and liquidity, on financial distress moderated by good corporate governance (institutional ownership). The study was conducted at Indonesian joint venture insurance companies. This study used a quantitative method. The population in the study is joint venture insurance companies in Indonesia registered with the Financial Services Authority. The sample in this study amounted to five (5) joint venture insurance companies selected using purposive sampling. The data used are secondary data from the company’s annual financial statements for the period 2019 to 2023. The data were processed using the EViews 13 application to illustrate the relationship between independent, dependent, and moderating variables. The results of the study show that solvency and profitability have a significant negative effect on the financial distress of joint venture insurance companies in Indonesia Liquidity does not affect the financial distress of joint venture insurance companies in Indonesia. Institutional ownership as a moderating variable can strengthen the influence of solvency on financial distress, but it weakens the influence of profitability and liquidity on financial distress. This study offers original value by examining the moderating role of institutional ownership as a proxy for good corporate governance in the relationship between financial performance and financial distress.