Management, Education and Development in Digital Age

The aim of this study was to design and explain a native model of consumption culture with an emphasis on household waste management in Rasht metropolis. This study was applied in purpose and descriptive–exploratory in nature, conducted using a qualitative approach. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with university scholars and municipal managers and analyzed using thematic analysis based on the systematic approach of Attride-Stirling. Participants were selected through purposive theoretical sampling, which continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. To ensure validity and reliability, data triangulation and peer review techniques were employed. The findings revealed a hierarchical model consisting of three overarching dimensions (meaning-making and identity system, waste governance and policy system, and organizational–institutional domain) and six organizing factors. The results indicate that consumption behavior and waste management are shaped through the complex interaction of cultural–value, psychological, cognitive–educational, institutional–legal, technological, and structural factors, with institutional and legal components playing a dominant role in influencing citizens’ behaviors. The proposed model demonstrates that household waste management is not merely an individual-level phenomenon but is strongly influenced by governance structures, policy frameworks, and organizational capacities; therefore, effective improvement requires integrated interventions across cultural, educational, policy, and infrastructural domains.

This study aimed to identify and explain the components of occupational perfectionism among managers of the Education Organization in Kermanshah Province. This qualitative study was conducted using a grounded theory approach. The participants consisted of 15 experts and managers affiliated with educational management in Kermanshah Province, who were selected through purposive sampling based on expertise, managerial experience, research background, and familiarity with the administrative structure of the Education Organization. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, and the interview process continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. The data were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding. To enhance the credibility and trustworthiness of the findings, participant feedback, review of extracted concepts, and qualitative validation procedures were applied. The inferential findings indicated that occupational perfectionism among educational managers is a multidimensional and dynamic construct that can be explained through a paradigm model. The causal conditions included striving for excellence, need for approval, rigid standards, goal orientation, concern over mistakes, perceived family pressure, and rumination. The contextual conditions consisted of order and organization, a culture of social approval, educational and family background, personal discipline, and organizational rules. The intervening conditions included organizational structure, workplace climate and culture, time pressure, work transition, and moderating personality traits. The main strategies identified were stress management, self-awareness training, acceptance of limitations, improvement of interpersonal relationships, increased flexibility, time management, and focus on long-term goals. The consequences of the model were dual in nature. Adaptive perfectionism led to improved managerial performance, increased productivity, attention to detail, and organizational excellence, whereas maladaptive perfectionism was associated with job burnout, anxiety, chronic stress, reduced self-confidence, interpersonal conflicts, lower job satisfaction, and turnover intention. The results showed that occupational perfectionism in educational management is not a fixed personal trait, but a phenomenon shaped by the interaction of individual, organizational, and supportive factors. When accompanied by organizational support, self-awareness, and effective coping strategies, perfectionism can contribute to professional excellence and improved performance. However, in the absence of support and under rigid evaluative systems, it may become a source of burnout, psychological pressure, and reduced managerial quality. Therefore, revising performance evaluation systems, strengthening organizational support, and providing training in self-awareness and stress management are essential for educational managers.

The present study aimed to design and validate a motivational model for faculty members based on a social responsibility approach in the Islamic Azad University of Tehran. This mixed-methods study employed both qualitative and quantitative phases. In the qualitative phase, documentary review and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 experts and faculty members experienced in professional development and social responsibility. Data were analyzed using the grounded theory approach and MAXQDA software, resulting in the identification of six dimensions, 23 components, and 60 indicators. In the quantitative phase, a researcher-developed questionnaire was administered to 300 faculty members of Islamic Azad University branches in Tehran. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was applied to test the proposed model. Reliability and validity were confirmed through Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, and convergent validity indices. Structural equation modeling demonstrated that causal factors had a significant positive effect on the central phenomenon (β=0.852, t=19.085). Contextual factors (β=0.290, t=4.921) and intervening factors (β=0.274, t=2.651) also exerted significant positive effects on strategic factors. Strategic factors showed the strongest positive effect on outcomes (β=0.810, t=15.054). The central phenomenon exhibited a significant negative effect on strategic factors (β=-0.403, t=3.800). The explanatory power of endogenous constructs was substantial, with R² values of 0.725 for the central phenomenon, 0.796 for strategic factors, and 0.656 for outcomes. Model fit indices further supported the adequacy of the proposed framework (R²=0.785; GOF=0.603). The findings indicate that faculty motivation within a social responsibility framework is a multidimensional construct shaped by the interaction of causal, contextual, intervening, and strategic factors. Strategies emphasizing self-efficacy enhancement, educational innovation, problem-oriented research, and university social responsiveness can contribute to higher job satisfaction, improved teaching quality, greater production of applied knowledge, and stronger public trust. The satisfactory validity and fit of the proposed model suggest its usefulness as a practical framework for higher education policymakers and university administrators seeking to strengthen faculty motivation and social responsibility.

The present study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of implantable brain implants in accountants’ professional functions and to explain their implications through the lens of biotechnology theory extension. This study employed an exploratory mixed-methods design consisting of qualitative and quantitative phases. In the qualitative phase, grounded theory methodology was applied through 14 in-depth interviews with experts in accounting, behavioral finance, and neuroscience. Data were analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding procedures. In the quantitative phase, the identified dimensions were validated through Delphi analysis and subsequently prioritized using pairwise comparison matrices and interpretive ranking techniques. The qualitative findings yielded 323 open codes, 32 conceptual themes, 6 axial components, and 3 structural categories. Following two Delphi rounds, 26 themes were retained within the final framework. Interpretive ranking analysis revealed that “changes in cognitive approaches within the accounting profession” constituted the most influential outcome of brain implant implementation. Additional outcomes included transformations in accounting education, recruitment and selection processes, operational approaches, professional legitimacy, and the commercial nature of accounting practice. The findings indicate that the primary impact of brain implants in accounting extends beyond faster information processing and reduced computational errors. Instead, these technologies fundamentally reshape cognitive patterns, professional judgment, and decision-making processes. Implantable brain technologies may therefore drive profound changes in accounting education, professional performance, and the future evolution of the accounting profession, while creating new intersections among biotechnology, cognitive science, and accounting.

This study aimed to develop talent management indicators with emphasis on succession planning development in East Azerbaijan Governorate. This qualitative study was conducted using a grounded theory approach. The participants consisted of academic experts, managers, specialists, officials, and consultants familiar with human resource management, talent management, and succession planning in East Azerbaijan Governorate. Participants were selected through purposive and snowball sampling, and data collection continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. In total, 17 experts and specialists participated in semi-structured interviews. After transcription, the interview data were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding based on the Strauss and Corbin approach. To enhance the credibility and dependability of the findings, expert review, continuous comparison of data, and matching of extracted concepts with participants’ perspectives were used. Data analysis indicated that the talent management model with emphasis on succession planning consisted of causal conditions, a central category, intervening conditions, contextual conditions, strategies, and consequences. The causal conditions included human, cultural, and organizational factors. The central category was identified as the talent management system with emphasis on succession planning, including precise job definition, screening and assessment, forecasting and selection, training, monitoring, evaluation, reinforcement, and mentoring. The intervening conditions were classified into managerial and leadership factors, job-related factors, and organizational factors. Contextual conditions included organizational contexts, development and training factors, fundamental values, and strategic orientation. The strategies consisted of designing and implementing the succession planning system, while the consequences emerged at individual, group, and organizational levels. The results showed that succession planning development in East Azerbaijan Governorate requires a comprehensive, competency-based, future-oriented system supported by managerial commitment, continuous training, accurate evaluation, and talent retention mechanisms. The extracted model can provide a practical basis for improving human resource systems and preparing future managers in public organizations.

Due to the dual line-and-staff structure and knowledge-intensive nature of the insurance industry in Iran, insurance organizations face the absence of an indigenous capability-based human capital management model. This study aimed to design and validate a comprehensive model for insurance organizations within the framework of Standard 34000. The study was conducted using an exploratory mixed-methods approach (qualitative–quantitative). In the qualitative phase, grounded theory (Strauss and Corbin approach) was employed. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with six groups of experts, including senior human resource managers, actuaries, data analysts, risk managers, branch managers, and digital transformation consultants from five major insurance companies (Mellat Insurance, Iran Insurance, Alborz Insurance, Dana Insurance, and Bimeh Ma Insurance). The data were analyzed using MAXQDA software through three stages of open, axial, and selective coding. In the quantitative phase, a questionnaire was developed based on the qualitative categories and administered to a sample of 250 managers and experts. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS software. A total of 104 open codes, 27 concepts, and 6 main categories were identified: knowledge capital, structural capital, relational capital, innovation capital, data capital, and differentiated line-and-staff competencies. The PLS-SEM results indicated that knowledge capital (β = 0.58, t = 7.82) and structural capital (β = 0.44, t = 5.93) had the strongest effects on the model outcomes, namely operational productivity and the reduction of data fragmentation. The model demonstrated satisfactory fit indices (GOF = 0.52, SRMR = 0.058). The proposed model addresses six existing theoretical gaps in the literature. Its implementation in insurance organizations requires targeted investment in the development of actuarial and data analytics competencies, followed by the establishment of an integrated performance evaluation system with differentiated weighting mechanisms for distinct occupational groups.

The present study aimed to validate the factors influencing the enhancement of athletes’ social competence and to develop a comprehensive model explaining the key dimensions contributing to social competence in sports settings. This study employed a mixed-methods design. In the qualitative phase, grounded theory methodology was used, and data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 16 sports management scholars, experts, coaches, and national-level athletes. The interviews were analyzed through open, axial, and selective coding. In the quantitative phase, 385 professional athletes from individual and team sports were selected through multistage sampling. A researcher-developed questionnaire based on the qualitative findings was administered. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The qualitative analysis yielded 80 initial concepts, 20 subcategories, and 10 core categories. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated that all indicators had significant factor loadings exceeding 0.40. Reliability indices, including Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, and Rho_A, exceeded the recommended threshold of 0.70 for all constructs. Convergent validity was confirmed through AVE values above 0.50, while discriminant validity was supported by HTMT values below 0.90. The results identified ten major determinants of athletes’ social competence: communication skills, emotional capabilities, social interactions and team roles, cognitive abilities, ethical and cultural responsibility, motivation and social identity, psychological and cultural sports competence, experiential and social learning in sport, social identity capabilities, and social experience and learning. The structural model demonstrated satisfactory fit and strong construct validity. Athletes’ social competence is a multidimensional construct shaped by communication, emotional, cognitive, cultural, and identity-related factors. The validated model provides a robust framework for designing educational, psychological, and social development programs aimed at enhancing athletes’ social competence, interpersonal effectiveness, and overall sporting and social success.

The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral financial therapy in reducing overconfidence behavior and its dimensions among individuals with a history of financial bankruptcy. This study employed a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design with a control group. The statistical population consisted of individuals who had experienced financial bankruptcy and were identified using a financial bankruptcy screening checklist. Forty participants were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (n=20) and a control group (n=20). The experimental group received a 12-session cognitive-behavioral financial therapy intervention, whereas the control group received no intervention. Data were collected using a behavioral bias questionnaire assessing overconfidence and its components, including hindsight bias, overestimation, and self-superiority. Data analysis was conducted using multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) and Bonferroni post hoc tests. The MANCOVA results indicated significant group differences in all dimensions of overconfidence after controlling for pretest scores. Significant effects were observed for hindsight bias (F=8.952, η²=0.204, p=0.005), overestimation (F=8.464, η²=0.195, p=0.006), and self-superiority (F=10.783, η²=0.236, p=0.002). Bonferroni comparisons further demonstrated significant differences between the adjusted posttest means of the experimental and control groups across all dimensions, indicating a substantial reduction in overconfidence among participants who received the intervention. Cognitive-behavioral financial therapy appears to be an effective intervention for reducing overconfidence by modifying dysfunctional financial beliefs, enhancing cognitive restructuring, and increasing awareness of judgmental biases. The findings suggest that this approach can improve financial decision-making quality and reduce maladaptive financial behaviors among financially distressed individuals.