Purpose -In a constantly changing and increasingly globalised world, religions still play a significant role in influencing social and consumer behavior. The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model that explores the link between religious beliefs and consumers' boycotts towards particular products. Certain important concepts are linked to boycott, these include: conspicuous consumption of global brands, animosity and country of origin. Design/methodology/approach -First, a critical literature review on empirical consumer animosity, conspicuous consumption, religion, and consumption studies is undertaken. Second, qualitative techniques are used to collect the primary data. This is undertaken with reference to the case study of boycotting of the international Danish brands in Saudi Arabia, in order to highlight the relative emphasis of each of the factors that may influence consumer purchase behaviour of global brands. Findings -The findings of this study show that there is a strong relationship and a clear link between religiosity in Arabic/Islamic collectivist cultures and consumer behaviour (mainly boycotting). It also shows that consumers in such societies are collectively influenced by these factors when formulating their purchase decisions, particularly for international brands.Research limitations/implications -The sample was chosen from Saudi students living/studying in the UK. Hence, caution should be applied when generalising across other cultures. A future, larger-scale survey using questionnaire would be useful to confirm qualitative results drawn from this study. The findings of this paper offer pivotal implications for decision makers and the managers of those multinational companies who are interested in the Middle Eastern market. Originality/value -As a result of the increasing gap and cultural conflict between the Western and Muslim worlds, many international companies are negatively affected by the changes in the international environment, which is reflected in consumer behaviour. This is particularly highlighted when these events are related to religious issues. Although the consumer boycott phenomenon has existed for more than a century, only recently has it gained more popularity and motivated researchers to acknowledge it from a marketing/managerial perspective. Also, the paper offers guidance for future research in a field of research that is still in its infancy.

Purpose -This study aims to identify some of the major barriers that may hinder potential small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) exporters and non-exporters from exporting their operations in the international market. Design/methodology/approach -Based on the aim of this study, a questionnaire based survey method was conducted among 250 Jordanian manufacturing SMEs using random sampling with usable response rate of 54 per cent. Data were analysed using relevant statistical methods ranging from factor analysis to regression analysis. Findings -The results show that economic/political-legal and governmental barriers, financial and information barriers have a significant negative relationship with the export performance of SMEs in Jordan. Also, the results show that exporters and non-exporters significantly agree in their views of the various barriers.Research limitations/implications -The study was carried out on SMEs operating in Jordan. Hence, caution should be taken when generalisation across cultures is considered. However, the findings of the study provide public and company policy makers with valuable guidelines for the formulation of suitable export marketing strategies and national export assistance programs. Originality/value -This is ascribed to the relatively small local market size and to the country's gradual shift from heavy reliance on import substitution strategies in the last two decades to contemporary export orientation. Also, there is now a need for an urgent action plan to correct the deficit in the trade balance in the Jordanian economy. This action plan needs to include what causes Jordanian SMEs to export or prevents them from doing so. Once the relative importance of these barriers is detected, their validity in predicting the probability of a SME firm being an exporter can be tested.

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The study aims to explore and measure the effect of supply chain management's dimensions (relationship with suppliers, compatibility, specifications and standards, delivery and after-sales service) on the quality of health services' dimensions (responsiveness, trust, and security) in private hospitals in Jordan from the perspective of procurement officers. The study also aims to clarify the differences between supply chain management and quality of health services due to some demographic variables such as (gender, age, education level, and years of experience in the field of supply).The study employs a quantitative design using a hypothesis testing approach to identify the effect of supply chain management dimensions on quality of health services. 315 questionnaires were distributed to male and female employees working in the departments of supply and procurement divided on (36) private hospital in Jordan,The study results show that there is a significant effect of supply chain management dimensions (the relationship with suppliers, specifications and standards, and delivery, after-sales service) on the quality of health services. On the other hand, the results also indicate that there are no differences between supply chain management and the quality of health services due to gender, qualification, age, or experience.

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