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Crude complexities: sectoral asymmetries in the Indian stock market response to oil price changes
While many studies have examined the impact of oil price changes on stock market returns, most overlook the asymmetric impact on disaggregated sectoral indices. This study addresses this gap by examining the sector-specific impact of oil price changes in India, one of the largest oil-importing economies. Using monthly data from April 2008 to July 2025 collected from the Bloomberg database, we employed both linear and Non-linear ARDL models to explore the asymmetric impact in short- and long-run relationships. The findings reveal significant heterogeneity in the sectoral responses to oil price changes. While the FMCG, media and pharma sectors do not exhibit cointegration with oil prices, other sectors, namely banking, auto, metal, energy, IT, financial services, and real estate, asymmetrically responded to oil price changes. The negative oil price changes cause stronger and short-run sectoral responses than the positive changes, as confirmed by the Wald test and GIRFs. The error correction terms are negative and statistically significant for all the sectors, which confirms a long-run equilibrium and mean-reverting behaviour. This establishes that sectors react differently to positive and negative oil price changes in the long run. Investors must account for the non-linear relationship between these variables and take appropriate action when forming portfolio strategies. The results suggest that policymakers should monitor and find alternative energy sources to avoid sector-specific vulnerabilities during oil price fluctuations. 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Geopolitical shockwaves: the Russia-Ukraine wars impact on BRICS financial markets
The Russia-Ukraine War triggered global financial market turmoil and disrupted the global supply chain, including agriculture and energy. This study explores the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on BRICS nations stock markets, highlighting varying degrees of volatility and contagion effects. It examines the extent of contagion in the BRICS stock markets and their financial linkages by employing the multivariate DCC-GARCH model. The study reveals sensitive turbulence in Russian markets post-crisis, influenced by its direct involvement in the conflict. Brazil and China experienced higher market volatility after the event, and Brazil shifted its financial linkages with the global market. Conversely, the Indian market experienced eased overall volatility, but its financial linkage with Russia has increased due to its trade partnership. In the post-event period, China and South African markets indicate structural market decoupling. The long-term volatility persists over the short-term volatility of BRICS market dynamics. This study underscores the implications for investors and policymakers, emphasising the need for adjustments in monetary and fiscal policies to stabilise financial markets amid geopolitical uncertainties. 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
The convergence of health system resources and health outcome in Central Europe and the Baltic region
Health system resources have increased comparatively higher in Central Europe and the Baltic region relative to the Euro Area and the OECD countries. This study investigates the tendency for health system resources and health outcomes to converge for the countries of Central Europe and the Baltic region from 2000 to 2019. The existence of convergence is tested using the ? coefficient within and across the 11 countries studied. The panel result favors the existence of convergence in the three variables employed as health system resourcesphysician density, nurses density, and per capita current health expenditure. Similarly, the findings support the presence of convergence in all four variables used as health outcomeslife expectancy at birth (total), crude death per 1000 population, NCDs mortality, and infant mortality. Furthermore, at the country level, the results are heterogeneous. Evidence highlights that only three variables employed as health system resources converged in Iceland, Latvia, Norway, and Sweden. The results favor the convergence in all four variables employed as health outcomes in Poland and Russia. However, the exact opposite holds for the convergence of health outcomes in Denmark. Therefore, this calls for the need to implement sound reforms in the health systems that could translate increased health system resources into improved health outcomes. 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Systemless authoritarianism, counter-archives, and literary witnessing: a New Historicist and cultural-political reading of Arundhati Roys The Ministry of Utmost Happiness
Arundhati Roys The Ministry of Utmost Happiness offers a significant literary response to the evolving forms of authoritarianism in postcolonial India. This article uses a New Historicist and cultural-political framework to analyse the idea of systemless authoritarianism. Instead of using overt state force, the idea refers to a diffused and socially acceptable type of authority that functions through common institutions, cultural norms, and unofficial practices. Roys multi-voiced narrative focuses on marginalised characters such as Anjum, Tilo, and Musa, whose interwoven stories show how repression is intertwined with caste, gender, bureaucracy, and territorial warfare. Using theoretical concepts from Antonio Gramsci, Marlies Glasius, Michel Foucault, and Stephen Greenblatt, the study looks at Roys creation of a counter-archive that challenges official narratives and offers a voice to those who have been silenced. By examining spaces such as the militarised Kashmir Valley and the Jannat Guest House, the study demonstrates how authoritarian authority operates through internalised discipline and cultural consensus inside democratic communities. Ultimately, the novels fractured narrative structure, documentary style, and intertextual elements function as literary witnessing acts that resist authoritarian erasure and recreate various forms of belonging. 2026 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Driving purchase intentions through visual storytelling: a study of social media platform reels sponsored advertising
This study explores how social media platforms (for example, Instagram) and Reels-sponsored ads influence what makes consumers stop, watch and decide to buy. Using Consumer Engagement Theory (CET) as a lens, it looks at how people emotionally, cognitively and behaviourally respond to short-form video content. Four key factors were examined: engaging content, scenario-based experiences, user participation and perceived usefulness. Data from 393 active social media platform users in Indias National Capital Region revealed that all four elements positively shaped consumer attitudes, significantly influencing purchase intentions. Notably, relatable and emotionally engaging content had the most substantial impact. Attitude played a central role, bridging how consumers feel about a Reel and what they choose to do next. For marketers, the takeaway is clear: Reels that are visually appealing, useful and invite interaction are more likely to turn engagement into action. The study offers timely insights into how brands can connect meaningfully through short-form video. 2026 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
EcoFlow choices: factors influencing sustainable menstrual hygiene product decisions
This study examines how knowledge and emotional response (affect) influence consumer buying behaviour toward eco-friendly menstrual hygiene products, with a particular focus on the mediating role of affect. A cross-sectional design was employed, and data were collected via an online survey of 356 urban Indian women using purposive sampling. Data were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with SPSS (v25) and AMOS (v24). The results reveal that both knowledge and affect significantly shape purchasing decisions. However, affect exerts a stronger influence than knowledge alone. Importantly, affect also mediates the relationship between knowledge and buying behaviour, underscoring the critical role of emotional engagement in promoting sustainable consumer choices. These findings suggest that marketing strategies should not only aim to inform consumers but also foster positive emotional connections with eco-friendly products. The study offers meaningful contributions to the field of green consumer behaviour and carries important implications for sustainability-driven marketing practices. It supports the goals of the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda, particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), by highlighting how promoting eco-friendly menstrual hygiene products can reduce environmental impact and support womens health. This research provides insightful implications for policymakers, marketers, and sustainability advocates to guide sustainable consumption behaviour among people. 2026 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
ESG efficiency analysis in the IT industry: a DEA-based approach
Unlocking the power of sustainable growth, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles are redefining the future of responsible investment and corporate excellence. ESG regulations ensure that organizations maintain sustainable development and improve non-monetary metrics, such as stakeholders engagement, customer satisfaction, market acceptability, societal ethics, and values. Higher ESG scores demonstrate commitment towards responsible business practices and indicate higher market value for companies, which are valid for all sectors, including IT. However, existing literature reveals that IT sector companies pay less attention to planning their operations to make them more sustainable. Therefore, IT firms must identify methods and practices to maintain high ESG scores to achieve sustainable growth. The current study leads the readers into a new area of ESG through the help of an advanced method, DEA. DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) methodology has been used to identify the decision units relative efficiency scores and helps identify peers and followers based on ESG scores. The study reveals that among the selected IT firms using the output-oriented strategy, 56.25% experience increasing returns to scale, 18.75 per cent experience decreasing returns to scale, and the remaining 25.00 per cent report constant returns to scale. This indicates that most IT industry firms can generate greater output change in proportion to the input change. 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Social isolation and loneliness among Generation Z employees: can emotional intelligence help mitigate?
The paper tested a moderated mediation model with social isolation, loneliness, emotional intelligence, and quality of life among Generation Z (Gen Z) employees. Approximately 568 Gen Z employees participated in this study. We used WHOQOL-BREF for measuring quality of life, Schuttes emotional intelligence test, UCLA loneliness scale and social isolation scale from Choi and Noh. We applied the PROCESS macro (model 7) by Hayes for a moderated mediation analysis, using emotional intelligence as a moderating variable and loneliness as a mediating variable between social isolation and quality of life. The results indicate that emotional intelligence moderates the mediating effect of loneliness on social isolation and quality of life and supports hypothesis 2. First, the indirect impact of social isolation on quality of life varies as a function of emotional intelligence moderating the path. Second, both social isolation and loneliness are negative and significant predictors of quality of life. Loneliness is not an individual problem anymore but a public health issue around the world. Individuals who are lonely experience both mental and physical health issues. Strong measures are needed to combat loneliness, and the current research results confirm that emotional intelligence-based interventions will help individuals fight loneliness. 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Online alert system for DDoS attack detection and prevention using machine learning classification algorithms
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack makes a server inaccessible by flooding it with fallacious traffic. It uses many intermediate devices such as computers, servers, smartphones, and even IoT Devices to generate false traffic. These attacks become more threatening if the attackers use any of these devices to have access to WiFi routers, security cameras, smart devices, etc. This paper proposes a model for DDoS attack detection and mitigation that identifies the DDoS attack and alerts the administrative authorities with the help of machine learning classification algorithms. The paper surveys discrete types of Machine Learning algorithms to identify and mitigate the DDoS attack. Three labeled datasets are employed in this paper to train the model for effective DDOS attack detection with better accuracy. These data sets comprises of benign and malignant attacks to train and test the classification algorithms. Based on the experimental results and performance metrics, it is identified that the XGBoost algorithm provided better accuracy of 99.8% on all three labeled datasets. 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Exploring Reproductive Autonomy Among Economically Dependent Married Women: A Qualitative Study
This qualitative study explores how economic dependency within a system of patriarchy shapes the experiences of reproductive autonomy among nine married women aged 2050 years (mean age 44.6 years) in India. In-depth interviews were conducted using purposive and snowball sampling. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarkes reflexive thematic analysis. Eight themes revealed three interconnected layers: structural forces (economic dependency and familial control), negotiated agency (micro-level resistance within patriarchal constraints), and cultural reproduction (culturally embedded gendered norms). Findings connect to feminist standpoints and Marxist feminist theories, demonstrating the need for interventions addressing economic independence within larger structural and cultural transformation. 2026 Society for Menstrual Cycle Research. -
Gender and Ontological Friction in Endometriosis Diagnosis
Endometriosis often struggles to consolidate as a recognizable condition during biomedical encounters; in India, this unfolds at the interstice of biomedicine and gender-caste-class persistence. We contribute to contemporary endometriosis discourse by considering how, given the ontological politics of Indian womens reproductive health care, symptoms move across porous configurations without consolidating as disease. Through reflexive thematic analysis, informed by feminist new materialism, of interviews with nine cisgender women in urban India, we trace ontological friction and its influence on patient care practices. We identify this friction as the condition through which diagnostic delay continually emerges. 2026 Society for Menstrual Cycle Research. -
Validity of a Short Version Scale of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Sexual and Reproductive Health in Indigenous Women in Mexico
The study evaluated the validity and reliability of the Scale of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of Sexual and Reproductive Health (ECAPSSR) in indigenous women in Mexico. A total of 177 women aged 14 to 48 participated, and signed and authorized their participation. Three dimensions were evaluated: knowledge, attitudes and practices. A final version of 78 questions of the original scale was obtained with acceptable reliability. Confirmatory Factor Analysis suggests an acceptable fit in three subscales. A valid, reliable and structured version was obtained as a screening option that allowed the evaluation of sexual and reproductive health in indigenous women. 2025 Society for Menstrual Cycle Research. -
Synthesis, impurity profiling, simultaneous NP-HPTLC method development, molecular modelling study and EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitory profile: An integrated approach to characterize desethynyl erlotinib process impurity
The study presents an integrated approach to characterizing Desethynyl Erlotinib, a process impurity in the synthesis of Erlotinib, a potent EGFR tyrosine kinase (EGFR TK) inhibitor used in lung cancer treatment. A normal phase high-performance thin-layer chromatography (NP-HPTLC) method was developed and validated for the simultaneous profiling of Erlotinib and its Desethynyl Erlotinib impurity. The optimized method utilized ethyl acetate, methanol, and glacial acetic acid (9: 0.5: 0.5 v/v/v) as the mobile phase for effective separation and quantification. The method demonstrated excellent linearity for Erlotinib and its impurity over a concentration range of 200-1200 ng/spot, with R2 values of 0.9979 and 0.9998, respectively. Validation confirmed precision with intra-day and inter-day % RSD values of less than 2% and robustness. The limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) were 5.18 ng/spot and 15.70 ng/spot for Erlotinib and 7.07 ng/spot and 21.43 ng/spot for the impurity. In-vitro assays against the A549 lung cancer cell line expressing wild-type EGFR tyrosine kinase (WT EGFR TK) showed that the Desethynyl Erlotinib impurity exhibits significant inhibition compared to Erlotinib, suggesting the potential toxicity of the Desethynyl Erlotinib impurity and causing side effects such as diarrhea, skin rashes and interstitial lung disease due to WT EGFR tyrosine kinase (WT EGFR TK) inhibition. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations further corroborated greater stability in the Desethynyl Erlotinib impurity with WT EGFR tyrosine kinase (WT EGFR TK). Clinically, these findings highlight the importance of monitoring and minimizing impurities like Desethynyl Erlotinib to prevent adverse effects and maintain the therapeutic safety of Erlotinib in lung cancer treatment. This research underscores the necessity for rigorous quality control in Erlotinib production to ensure purity and therapeutic effectiveness. 2025 Har Krishan Bhalla & Sons. -
Effectiveness of Narrative versus Non-Narrative Advertising on Green Purchase Decisions: An Experimental Study
Given the well-documented intention-behaviour gap in green consumption, effective communication is crucial in addressing and reducing it. The relative persuasive potential of narrative and non-narrative advertisements in the context of environmental communication, and the psychological processes underlying their actions, has been minimally explored. This study, conducted in the Indian subcontinent, tested the hypothesis that there is a significant difference in the effectiveness of narrative and non-narrative advertisements on green purchase decisions, and examined processing fluency and affect as explanatory factors. A pre-test-post-test quasi-experimental design was employed, with 40 participants subsequently assigned to either a narrative group (n = 20) or a non-narrative group (n = 20). Results revealed that although narrative advertisements were easier to process, non-narrative advertisements were more effective in influencing consumers green purchase decisions. The pattern of affect was asymmetric, with no relation between positive affect and green purchase decision, but negative affect had a significant influence. 2026 Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand Communication Association. -
Social media activism: Delving into Generation Zs experiences
Generation Z, a digitally tethered cohort, widely utilises social media platforms for activism. As their influence within organisational and political spheres rises, their digital activism will likely redefine the sociopolitical landscape, especially in India, where youth civic participation is pivotal. However, despite its prominence, there is a significant dearth of research exploring what goes on behind the screens. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the experiences of Generation Zs social media activists, particularly their perceived identity, roles, underlying motivations, real-world and self-impact. Employing a phenomenological qualitative research design, 10 semi-structured interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis revealed that while both internal and external catalysts drive Generation Zs social media activism, it is also characterised by intersecting identities, emotional turbulence, adverse psychological effects, uncertainty, self-devised coping mechanisms and opportunities for personal growth. Thus, this study presents a comprehensive portrait of the typical Generation Z social media activist, with wide-ranging implications. 2025 Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand Communication Association. -
A proposed framework for an appropriate governance system to develop smart cities in India
The Government of India has undertaken a novel step towards building new smart cities as well as transforming some of its existing cities into smart cities. However, tension relating to the governance of smart cities has emerged. Therefore, a mixed-methods approach was used based on a perception survey, case studies, and discussions with stakeholders and experts, to examine the current governance challenges in transforming existing cities into smart cities, and to explore various perspectives to propose a framework for an appropriate governance system for developing smart cities in India. The findings suggested that the current executive-led governance system, with special-purpose vehicles (SPVs) under the control of the state governments as the promoters of smart city development, might not lead to the smart governance system envisaged but, rather, add confusion and conflict, and undermine the constitutionally mandated, legislative-led urban local bodies. The argument in this article is for a people-centric, balanced governance approach with strengthened urban local bodies, enabled by advanced digital technology and the constructive participation of different social solidarities, in which the SPVs would act as the intellectual and executive wing of the urban local bodies. 2023 Regional Studies Association. -
The odd-even driving restriction in Delhia causal analysis
The odd-even restriction in Delhi allows private car owners to utilise their cars only on alternative days of the week, depending on the last digit of the registration number. In a mega-city like Delhi, where a high number of personal vehicles and excessive pollution concentration simultaneously exist, adopting such restrictions might help minimise emissions streaming from vehicular sources. A handful of empirical studies have estimated the policy effect but failed to provide its causal impact on air pollution levels, which is necessary for understanding the effectiveness of the odd-even restrictions. Therefore, we utilise the quasi-experimental design to find a causal relationship between driving restrictions and air pollutants (mainly generated from vehicular sources) across different policy rounds. Under quasi-experimental design, the study employs the triple difference technique on hourly air quality data. The findings of the empirical exercise indicate that the driving restriction reduces the average concentration levels of CO and PM2.5 pollutants during our restriction period. Moreover, the findings justify the short-run effectiveness of the driving restriction policy, as individuals may find ways to counter the policy in the long run. 2025 Journal of Environmental Economics and Policy Ltd. -
Narrativising chaos via narrative agency: COVID-19 comics as narrative meta-control
The initial COVID-19 pandemic phase was a period of chaos, instability, and disorder. In this context, this paper explores the narrative potentialities of COVID-19 comics as a means of narrative meta-control over the chaotic nature of the lived pandemic experiences. Meta-control, the act of regaining a sense of agency over a contingent circumstance that is otherwise uncontrollable, offers narrative agency as a means of navigating meaning-making and the reality of chaos. In this paper, This Quarantine Life: A COVID-19 Era Comics Anthology (2020), a global anthology brought forth by the New York Arts Students League, is analysed as a chaos narrative. Interrogating normative understandings of chaos narratives, the paper reframes these comics as spaces of and for narrative resistance, where aesthetic form functions as narrative repair by interrogating its acts of meta-control. Interweaving both conceptual reframing and multimodal discourse analysis, this paper shows how comic artists use narrative strategies of braiding, arthrology, and spatio-topia to work with chaos. In working with chaos, such strategies affirm comics as a narrative agent that helps capture and work through the reality of chaos. This study furthers contemporary concerns with graphic medicine about the practicalities of narrative agency in comics in a post-COVID-19 reality. 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Borne dreamily along the River of Stories: polyphony, anthropoharmonism and the search for indigenous epistemologies in Orijit Sens graphic novel
This paper offers a close reading and analysis of Orijit Sens The River of Stories (1994), often hailed as the first Indian graphic novel. Based on the historical events of the 1990s, Sens work revolves around the Narmada Bachao Andolan, a milestone movement in the annals of Indian environmentalism that resisted the construction of dams across the Narmada River. This project led to the displacement of the tribal population residing along the river bank and destroyed their livelihood. The paper employs Bakhtins concept of polyphony to explore the richly layered nature of Sens graphic novel. The graphic novel calls upon its readers to constantly navigate the diverse, often conflicting perspectives offered by different characters as well as the complex interplay between words and images. Drawing upon the works of posthumanist philosophers like Braidotti, Hathaway and Scharper, the paper argues that, through characters like Malgu gayan, The River of Stories presents a passing vision of anthropoharmonism, i.e. harmony between mankind and the natural world. However, the overarching presence of the influential and corrupt State officials, blindly seeking progress and development underscores that it is only through the relentless quest to uncover and preserve indigenous epistemologies, comprising lost tribal cultures and folk traditions, that this harmonious vision can be realised. 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. -
Driving customer brand engagement through augmented reality-induced influencer content among Gen Z: The moderating role of credibility
The present study investigates the impact of Augmented reality-induced influencer content moderated by the influencers credibility, steering to word of mouth trailed by purchase intentions of Gen Z in the fashion industry. This study employs a conceptual model grounded on the theory of social power and the S-O-R model with the moderating role of credibility. Data was gathered from 423 samples. To test the dimensionality of Augmented reality-induced influencer content, exploratory factor analysis with principal component analysis and Varimax orthogonal rotation was adopted. SPSS version 22.0 and AMOS version 20 were used for data analysis. The studys findings indicate that following influencers generates favorable brand effects, such as increased social power and higher purchase intentions, by fostering familiarity and internalizing behavioral intents. Credibility is vital in influencing views and promoting electronic word-of-mouth through interactions between audiences and influencers. Brands have significant chances to engage Generation Z with genuine content by utilizing influencer marketing facilitated by augmented reality. Therefore, the study concludes that Augmented reality-induced influencer content encourages consumers to engage actively and positively drives them toward brand outcomes. 2025 Korean Scholars of Marketing Science.