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PurposeThe pandemic of COVID-19 has pushed most of the classroom learning to an online environment with which most of the people were not familiar. This study aims to investigate the importance of social interaction on the effectiveness of online learning during the pandemic when social distancing norms are in place.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses the partial least square (PLS) structural equation modeling (SEM) approach, a nonparametric method based on total variance, using the SmartPLS software 3.0. The data were collected using the snowball sampling technique from the students who were learning online due to the pandemic COVID-19 and asked them to forward the survey link in their network.FindingsThe results suggested that social interaction has a positive significant impact on the effectiveness of online learning. However, this effect is reduced in the presence of social distance norms as people give more importance to continuous learning and to saving lives rather than socializing in the online environment.Originality/valueThe study will be helpful for instructors and educational institutes to formalize the strategies to enhance social interaction in online learning and analyze their pedagogy to improve effectiveness.

Envisioning learning sans interaction is absurd. Interaction plays a pivotal role in the efficacy and effectiveness of the present-day blended learning systems. Learner-content interaction contributes predominately towards the successful realization of the expected learning outcomes. In order to satisfy the learners and to impart them quality knowledge and education, e-learning content comprising of excellent learning and website content is of paramount importance. In the present COVID-19 outbreak challenging times the significance of e-learning system development and its application is much more pronounced. To gauge this, the study aims to examine the relationship between learner-content and the e-learning quality to determine the impact of e-learning quality on learners’ satisfaction under the moderating effect of perceived harm due to COVID-19. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from 435 graduate and undergraduate management students (International and national) in Indian Universities. Findings indicate statistically significant relationships between the e-learning content and e-learning quality and; e-learning quality and the students’ satisfaction. The perceived harm has an insignificant moderating effect on students’ satisfaction. The results of the study further depict that the quality of e-learning has a significant positive relationship with the students’ satisfaction, and this relationship is not affected by the threat of being infected on the campus during the pandemic of COVID-19. To achieve the learners’ satisfaction, the institutions should strive for rendering the e-learning content of supreme quality. The mediating role of e-learning quality between content and students’ satisfaction is also established to be a significant one.

Financial technology (FinTech) has gained a lot of attention and popularity in recent past years. Some researchers blame it for disrupting financial ecosystem and while others admire it for redefining traditional business models. According to the Statista Report 2018, transaction value in the crowdfunding segment amounts to US$ 5,250 mn in 2018. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of FinTech applications and crowdfunding on customer retention in Islamic banks of Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates. A structured questionnaire consisting of 31 items was designed to gather data from 535 customers of selected banks from both countries through strata sampling. Various statistical tests were done to check the association between FinTech applications including crowdfunding and customer retention using SPSS 25.0. The results indicated that financing application of FinTech has no relevance to customer retention while as other variables such as payments, advisory services, compliance and crowdfunding has an impact on retaining customers in Islamic banks of these two countries. The conclusion of this study emphasis on expanding the range of applications of FinTech services by Islamic banks so that the customer will stay longer with the bank. Also, crowdfunding should be integrated into the Islamic banking system so that it can help in social entrepreneurship, micro-finance and establishing global Zakah and Sadaqa system.

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Technology has influenced every aspect of our living, and education is not an exception. During the current pandemic period of COVID-19, the latent motive of maintaining social distancing is leading to be one of the prime reasons for the students to get enrolled in online courses. Although the benefits of e-learning have been discussed in various previous studies, it is important to understand the quality of e-learning and the satisfaction level of learners during this forceful shift toward e-learning amid the pandemic of COVID-19. This research proposes a conceptual model for understanding the variables influencing e-learning quality (ELQ) and learner satisfaction under the moderating effect of maintaining social distancing. The model is empirically validated by means of the partial least square approach through structural equation modeling based on 435 responses of university students in India. The results suggest that assurance, reliability, responsiveness, and website content are the factors that influence the ELQ of the online courses during the pandemic. ELQ also strongly influences the learner’s satisfaction. Interestingly, perceived benefits of maintaining social distancing have a significant negative moderating effect only between empathy and ELQ, which leads to the satisfaction of the learners.

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