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Purchase intentions for food products under different CRM campaign settings : an empirical evidence from Poland
No full textPURPOSE: Purchase intentions determined by a range of factors can be considered as a proxy
indication of potential market demand. Declared consumer willingness to buy products does
not necessarily translates into effective demand, nonetheless, constitutes valuable
information on how buyers may react when products are offered, and the purchases are
intertwined with charity donation. In the article and results of the author’s own empirical
analysis regarding determinants of purchase intentions under hypothetical cause-related
marketing campaigns are presented in the context of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB).
The aim of the study was to examine importance of cause involvement, attitudes towards
campaign, and attitude toward helping in shaping purchase intentions for food products
under different antidiabetic CRM campaign settings.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: A 2×2 experimental design (product type: hedonic vs.
utilitarian × donation size: small vs. large) was employed. Data were collected via a self-administered survey carried out among Polish consumers who completed 439 questionnaires.
Robustness of the results was confirmed through calculations of factor loading, Cronbach’s
alpha, and composite reliability parameters. Latent variables were measured using validated
scales and their impact on purchase intention was assessed applying logistic regression.FINDINGS: It was found out that in case of frequently purchased food products such as
yoghurt and ice cream cause involvement positively influence purchase intentions, no matter
the product type and donation size. Attitude toward helping, regardless donation size,
increases odds of intention to buy the hedonic product (ice cream) as well as the utilitarian
product (yoghurt) offered with small donation whereas attitude toward campaign increases
odds of intention to buy only when the utilitarian product is considered.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: To optimize CRM campaigns, marketers should align causes with
consumer values to leverage cause involvement. For utilitarian products campaigns should
focus on positive attitudes toward CRM initiatives, while for hedonic products appeals
should address altruistic benefits. Large donations are not recommended for utilitarian
goods as they may weaken purchase intentions.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This study contributes to the literature by investigating costly, consumerfunded donations in Poland, where according to Authors’ knowledge such empirical research
has not been conducted yet. Therefore, it helps to fill existing gap regarding international comparisons of the CRM campaigns potential effects. Moreover, the research extends the
TPB by integrating cause involvement as a pivotal construct as well as reveals product-type
asymmetries in CRM effectiveness.peer-reviewe
Three-cuts are a charm : acyclicity in 3-connected cubic graphs
No full textLet G be a bridgeless cubic graph. In 2023, the three authors solved a conjecture (also
known as the S4-Conjecture) made by Mazzuoccolo in 2013: there exist two perfect
matchings of G such that the complement of their union is a bipartite subgraph of G.
They actually show that given any 1+-factor F (a spanning subgraph of G such that
its vertices have degree at least 1) and an arbitrary edge e of G, there exists a perfect
matching M of G containing e such that G\(F∪M) is bipartite. This is a step closer to
comprehend better the Fan–Raspaud Conjecture and eventually the Berge–Fulkerson
Conjecture. The S4-Conjecture, nowa theorem, is also the weakest assertion in a series
of three conjectures made by Mazzuoccolo in 2013, with the next stronger statement
being: there exist two perfect matchings of G such that the complement of their union
is an acyclic subgraph of G. Unfortunately, this conjecture is not true: Jin, Steffen, and
Mazzuoccolo later showed that there exists a counterexample admitting 2-cuts. Here
we show that, despite of this, every cyclically 3-edge-connected cubic graph satisfies
this second conjecture.peer-reviewe
Guidelines on open spaces : historical heritage, urban cores (hubs) and piazzas
No full textA defining element of most localities in Malta and Gozo is the historic urban core, comprising central piazzas and compact districts with traditional streets, often rich in architectural heritage. Not surprisingly, many are designated as Urban Conservation Areas within the Local Plans issued by the Planning Authority. In Valetta alone, around 320 monuments may be found, making it one of the most concentrated historic areas (in terms of built heritage) in the World. In the words of UNESCO, in order to improve the liveability of urban areas, urban heritage should be more than just a relic – it should be considered as a key resource present within the community’s daily life that strengthens its identity. [excerpt]peer-reviewe
Employee satisfaction, employer branding, and CSR : a five-year post-COVID-19 analysis
No full textPURPOSE: The purpose of this research is to verify the existence of a relationship between
three variables: Employees’ satisfaction with job, Employer Branding the company's
undertaking corporate social activity (CSR) treated as a part of the sustainable development
paradigm and in particular as a concern to preserve the diversified resources of the local
community: organizations and employees. The intention of the authors of the article is to
identify the persistence of the relationship between the above-mentioned variables in the
period of 5 years from the previous study, and as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
situation.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The research was longitudinal in nature. The afore
mentioned variables were elements of a previously constructed model (Krugiełka 2019 p. 51)
relating to the determinants of undertaking socially responsible activities by companies. A
total of 117 people participated in the new research procedure: 55 representatives of the
management staff and 62 other employees from small and medium-sized enterprises,
participating in the previous stage of the research. Two questionnaires for corporate social
responsibility research and the Minesocki Job Satifaction Questionnaire and the Pandemic
Questionnaire for the Employer Branding Survey were used as research tools.FINDINGS: The research results showed a persistent relationship between employees’ job
satisfaction, Employer Branding and corporate social responsibility, among the same
communities after 5 years.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The value of the presented research is the inspiration to take into
account the coherence of considered factors as the level of employees’ job satisfaction and
their relations with Employers Branding, and the systemic approach to the issue of corporate
social responsibility especially in employers’ attitudes towards employees.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This picture comes down to the need to take into account the dependence
and connections of the examined variables, which result in success in business and higher
competitiveness of the company.peer-reviewe
Conflicts and controversies in the concurrent execution of multiple instruments of mutual recognition : the Bharwani case in Malta
No full textOn 28 February 2024, police and judicial authorities in several European countries arrested fourteen
individuals on suspicion of being involved in a €195 million VAT fraud scheme across various countries.
This operation was led by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office with the support of Europol. Searches
were carried out in over 100 countries, including Malta. Europol reported that the suspects had allegedly
established a sophisticated criminal network enabling them to defraud up to EUR 195 million through
schemes involving the sale of small electronic devices, such as smartphones, without allegedly fulfilling
their tax obligations. Amongst those arrested, a Maltese suspect was investigated. With respect to this
Maltese individual, a European Investigation Order (‘EIO’) was issued by Swedish authorities for the
collection of data and documents found in Malta. Additionally, a European Arrest Warrant (‘EAW’) was
also issued for his surrender to Sweden. These two instruments of mutual recognition were executed
in the Maltese territory at the same time. The timing of their execution, however, created particular
legal difficulties. The execution of the EIO led to the seizure of many documents and data owned by
the suspect. The documents and data were seized and dispatched to the requesting State. Meanwhile,
during the EAW proceedings for his surrender, the suspect requested that he be granted access to or
copies of the seized documents, which were essential for him to defend himself in the EAW proceedings.
Copies were not made in time, and were not held by local authorities either, the latter had already
dispatched the documents and data to the requesting State. This meant that the requested person in the
EAW proceedings could not defend himself adequately because he had been deprived of the very same
documents needed for his defence.peer-reviewe
Colonial heritage tourism and collective traumatic memory : navigating memory, identity, and reconciliation (a case study of Con Dao Prison – Vietnam)
No full textThis study examines the intersections between heritage tourism, cultural
trauma, and collective identity through an in-depth case study of Côn Đảo
Prison—a prominent site of colonial violence and national remembrance in
Vietnam. Drawing on theories of collective memory and memory tourism, the
research adopts a qualitative, interpretivist approach to explore how visitors
emotionally engage with the site and interpret its historical significance.
Through 13 semi-structured interviews with domestic and international
tourists, the study reveals contrasting mnemonic frameworks: Vietnamese
visitors primarily express patriotic pride and filial gratitude, while
international tourists approach the site through critical lenses of colonial
accountability and universal human rights. The heritage experience—
mediated through symbolic spaces, curated exhibits, and tour guide
narratives—functions not as a static encounter with the past but as a
dynamic and emotionally charged process of memory co-construction. The
findings underscore the ethical and affective complexity of interpreting dark
heritage in postcolonial contexts, and argue for a shift in heritage governance
toward narrative ethics, emotional literacy, and intercultural dialogue. By situating Côn Đảo Prison as a performative space of remembrance, this study
contributes to broader debates on trauma-informed heritage interpretation
and offers conceptual insights for the sustainable management of memory
tourism in Southeast Asia.peer-reviewe
Proceedings of the 20th International Joint Conference on Computer Vision, Imaging and Computer Graphics Theory and Applications (VISIGRAPP 2025)
No full textPhoton mapping is a widely used rendering technique that provides biased but consistent global illumination through particle and radius-based density estimation. In this work, we enhance photon mapping by integrating photon differentials, representing each photon as a beam connected to its neighbours. Our proposed method, ARPΔ, dynamically adjusts bandwidth by leveraging changes in both the photon’s position and direction, allowing for adaptive control based on the photon’s path through the scene. Additionally, ARPΔ combines multiple photon differential strategies to enable efficient global illumination on ray tracing hardware, seamlessly transitioning to progressive photon mapping in highly anisotropic conditions. Experimental results demonstrate that ARPΔ achieves image quality comparable to state-of-the-art photon mapping techniques, validating its effectiveness in producing high-fidelity renders.peer-reviewe
Maltese doctors and their views on end of life issues
No full textBACKGROUND: End-of-life (EoL) decisions are challenging for doctors. They involve legal and ethical dilemmas, coupled with personal values. In 2016, a local study was carried out on the views of doctors on some EoL decisions. This study is a follow-up study, with a greater focus on advance care planning and related issues, which were not sufficiently addressed in the first study.METHODS: A mixed methods approach was used. An online questionnaire was distributed electronically to doctors and collected: demographic details of participants; the philosophy of life of the individual; training needs in palliative care; personal views and experiences on particular EoL issues. The necessary ethics approval and organizational approvals were obtained.RESULTS: 195 doctors replied giving a response rate of 15.1%. Hence, caution needs to be applied in interpreting the data, despite a positive non-responder analysis. 142 doctors [72.8% (95%CI 66-78.9)] felt the need of further training in EoL care. For withdrawal/withholding of treatment, 129 doctors (66.1% (95%CI 59-72.8)) did not feel safeguarded. In the case of the doctrine of double effect for treatment intensification, 129 doctors [66.1% (95%CI 59-72.8)] did not feel safeguarded, whilst for advance care planning 122 doctors [62.5% (95%CI 55.4-69.4)] did not feel safeguarded. Issuing a DNR order was the least concerning since 103 doctors [52.8% (95%CI 45.1-59.5)] did not feel safeguarded in this regard.CONCLUSION: Despite agreeing with various EoL practices, most doctors felt they were not medico-legally safeguarded and welcomed further training in EoL care.peer-reviewe
Malta’s migration governance and the task of managing external borders in the European Union context
No full textIn the last two decades, Malta has often maintained its humanitarian commitment to managing border and asylum procedures in the context of international conventions. This is particularly emphasized in relation to rescuing migrants and generally enhancing safety and security of border crossings. Though the smallest EU member state has initiated policies aimed at reducing illegal and unsafe crossings to its shores, the country still hosts the highest number of refugees per capita in the EU with 25.3 per cent of its population being foreign nationals. This paper examines the measures put in place by the Maltese authorities to manage the enormous inflow of migrants on its shores in tandem with the four pillars of European Agenda on Migration. It also interrogates the institutional means and structural capacity of Malta to ensure the efficient implementation of the European Border Surveillance system (EUROSUR) on the one hand or provide rights-based approach to migration and asylum on the other hand. Lastly, it identifies Malta’s collaborative efforts with other countries in the last twenty years and peculiar challenges faced by the more exposed countries (i.e. Malta, Spain, Italy and Greece) in the course of countering irregular border crossings.peer-reviewe
Regulation of food supplements
No full textIntroduction: Food supplements, which deliver essential nutrients like vitamins,
minerals, and probiotics , face inconsistent global regulation.
Jurisdictions classify them differently some as pharmaceuticals
(requiring rigorous safety evaluations) and others as food products
(with laxer standards). These disparities in definitions, labeling,
analytical methods, and oversight create challenges for market
access, consumer trust, and safety. Harmonizing regulations is critical
to address these gaps and ensure efficacy, safety, and transparency.Aims: To evaluate
and compare global regulatory frameworks for food
supplements,
To
identify inconsistencies in definitions, safety assessments,
labeling, and oversight,
To
propose strategies for harmonizing standards to enhance
consumer protection, ensure product efficacy, and support
equitable market access.peer-reviewe