The unsettling fear of COVID-19 infections has caused a new trend in consumer behavior in the food and beverage industry. The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic has shifted consumers’ preferences from eat-in to online delivery. This research aims to measure the impact of consumers’ motivation to protect themselves from contracting COVID-19, which explains why people switch from eat-in to online food delivery. We adopted the theory of protection motivation (PMT) to explain consumer switching behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. The present study investigated the mediating effect of switching intention on the relationship between vulnerability, altruistic fear, anticipated regret, and switching behavior. Simultaneously, we examined the role of brand awareness as a moderator of behavioral choices of consumers switching from eat-in to online delivery. We collected data from 681 eatery consumers in Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia, using scenario-based survey questionnaires (327 eat-in respondents and 354 online delivery respondents). Then, the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). This new generation analysis was conducted using the analysis of moment structure (AMOS) (v.24.0) and the statistical package for social science (SPSS—version 25.0). The results indicated that consumer vulnerability, altruistic fear, and anticipated regret of COVID-19 increased consumers’ propensity to shift from eat-in to online food delivery. Allegedly, consumer behavioral control and intention of switching toward online delivery were pointedly affected by switching behavior. The results indicated that consumer vulnerability, altruistic fear, and anticipated regret of COVID-19 increased the shifting of restaurant dine-in patterns and made the intention to switch to online delivery. Consumers’ alleged behavioral control and their intention of switching toward online delivery were pointedly affected by switching behavior. We also found that brand awareness moderately affects switching behavior toward restaurant settings. The present research contributes to developing the consumer behavior model of switching from eat-in to online delivery. This study also provides eatery customers and the business community with a safer and healthier proposition of shifting to online food delivery during the pandemic.

This study examines the effect of destination image, cultural contact and perceived risk on revisit intention of Sikh pilgrims to Kartarpur temple, mediated by tourist satisfaction. The literature has debated the moderating effect of religiosity in a different tourism context. However, studies rarely investigate the moderating role of religiosity in the relationship of destination image, cultural contact and perceived risk with tourist satisfaction. This study follows a cross-sectional approach and self-administered survey method to collect data from 613 Sikh pilgrims who visited Kartarpur temple. A quantitative study with covariance-based structural equation modeling was employed to examine the research hypothesis through Amos 2 version. The results show that tourists’ satisfaction partially mediates the relationship of destination image and cultural contact with revisit intention. Nevertheless, perceived risk significantly affects the revisit intention effect via tourist satisfaction. So, tourist satisfaction was the significant mediator between destination image, cultural contact, perceived risk and revisit intentions. The findings confirm that the religiosity of Sikh pilgrims significantly moderates the relationship of destination image, cultural contact and perceived risk with revisit intentions. Practically, the findings offer the managers of such attractions to formulate suitable marketing strategies for developing the revisit intention and sustainable branding.

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected all spheres of services-related business, including the higher education sector. As a pre-emptive measure, almost all traditional educational institutions have been transformed into virtual organizations. This pandemic-induced work transition has created stress among academic staff and has hampered their performance. The present study aims to examine the impact of leadership behaviors, e-training, and employment security on the stress management process, consequently improving employee performance during and after the pandemic. Based on the IPO (input–process–output) model, this study examines the effect of leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security on teaching staff’s tasks and adaptive and contextual performance, mediated by stress management. To test the conceptual model, data were collected from the teaching staff of Malaysian universities. The structural equation modeling technique was used for data analysis, while bootstrapping with the maximum likelihood estimator was used to confirm the mediational role of stress management. The study revealed that task- and relation-oriented leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security positively influence stress management and employee performance in virtual organizations. Moreover, stress management acts as a full mediator in the relationship between leadership behavior and employee performance, while partial mediation occurs between e-training, employment security, and employee performance. This study offers valuable insights into the literature by proposing leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security as input in the stress management process to attain the performance output of teaching staff. Higher education institutions should come forward to assist their teaching employees in managing their stress levels for better outcomes.

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This study aims to examine the influence of supportive leadership on occupational stress, safety behaviour and safety compliance of workers working in Indah Water Konsortium Sdn. Bhd. (IWK) Malaysia. Moreover, the study intends to investigate the mediational role of occupational stress and safety behaviour. Supportive leadership negatively influence occupational stress while positively influences safety behaviour. Occupational stress put a negative effect on safety behaviour and safety compliance, while safety behaviour has a positive effect on safety compliance. Supportive leadership positively influence safety compliance. Occupational stress and safety behaviour partially mediate the relationship between supportive leadership and safety compliance. The outcomes of this study offer significant insights into the management of Indah Water Konsortium Sdn. Bhd. (IWK) to reduce occupational stress, encourage safety behaviour, and improve safety compliance by providing supportive leadership to the workers. Unlike other industries, the sewerage operation industry (in Malaysia) is under an intensive work burden and work pressure that eventually causes occupational stress, lack of safety compliance and ignorance of safety behaviours among workers. The link of supportive leadership with safety compliance is scare with the mediating role of occupational stress and safety behaviour, especially in the sewerage industry particularly in developing countries such as Malaysia.