Purpose Digital game-based learning (DGBL) has emerged as a new learning method that offers ample advantages compared to traditional learning environments. Although previous research supports the effectiveness of DGBL, there is a lack of studies explaining the relationship between the concrete elements of a digital game and the highly abstract and intangible personal values. Thus, this paper aims to employ means-end chain (MEC) theory to identify the attributes of DGBL, the benefits that learners derive from these attributes and how these benefits contribute to learners’ terminal values. Design/methodology/approach This paper used MEC theory to map the attributes, consequences and values of DGBL. The study was conducted on 20 students at a European university, and data analysis using the laddering technique included content analysis, classification into A-C-V levels, construction of an implication matrix and generation of a hierarchical value map (HVM). Findings This study provides insight into key design elements of digital educational games through a hierarchical value map, identifying how attributes such as interactive content, simulation of real-world situations and adaptability influence psychological and functional consequences that lead to higher student values: happiness, achievement, personal growth and autonomy. The four dominant trajectories associated with DGBL are the happiness-driven, achievement-driven, growth-driven and autonomy-driven trajectories, each of which is supported by relevant learning and motivation theories. The study also highlights the importance of elements such as reduced cognitive load, greater emotional engagement and tailored educational content in improving learning outcomes. Research limitations/implications The research is based on subjective, self-reported data and a sample of higher education students at a single European university, which may limit the applicability of the findings to lower educational levels and other cultural contexts. Additionally, the analysis encompasses DGBL in general, without focusing on specific types of games or modes of play. Practical implications The results obtained from the means-end analysis are valuable for understanding the fundamental values of learners that motivate them to engage in DGBL, offering insight into game design attributes and consequences related to higher-order personal values. The present study shows that the three most important game design elements are interactive content, simulation of the real-world and customization. Originality/value This study extends the application of the MEC approach in a new context and validates the laddering technique, revealing the hierarchy of values that students realize through DGBL. It also provides insight into the pathways linking attributes, consequences and values and offers a solid HVM framework for future research on the impact of game design elements on learning outcomes.

PurposeTo understand how three features of online consumer reviews - the strength of persuasiveness in online consumer reviews (argument quality), the number of online consumer reviews (volume of reviews), and source credibility – are related to the behavioural intentions in the movie consumption context. Besides, the present study aims to explore intergenerational differences (X, Y, and Z) in the patterns of association between three characteristics of online consumer reviews (argument quality, volume of reviews, and source credibility) and an individual’s choice of a movie intended to be watched.Design/methodology/approachThe study sample (n = 518) was recruited from a population of users of IMDb living in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Structural equation modelling and multi-group analysis were used to test the proposed hypotheses.FindingsThe results revealed that argument quality, the volume of reviews, and source credibility of movie-related online consumer reviews are positively related to the intention to watch a movie for all three generational cohorts (X, Y, and Z). Regarding biases in processing information cues, our findings indicate that movie viewers from all three generations (X, Y, and Z) make inferences between source credibility and argument quality. However, biases in the relation between the volume of reviews and the argument quality were found only among X-ers and Y-ers but not among Z-ers.Originality/valueThe present study contributes to the eWOM research stream by examining the role of different characteristics of online consumer reviews (argument quality, the volume of reviews, and the source credibility) in movie consumption. Moreover, it sheds light on how argument quality, the volume reviews and the source credibility interact with the behavioural intentions of different generations and whether these interactions exhibit similarities or differences across three distinct generation cohorts: X-ers, Y-ers, and Z-ers.

Abstract In times when AI’s development and research is moving at an unprecedented speed, this paper explores its role in retail banking. The results presented are part of a wider research of market readiness and AI acceptance, especially in developing economies. The research was conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). The quantitative portion consisted of a survey completed by 671 respondents. This paper focuses on the influence of social factors (perceived humanness, perceived social interactivity, and perceived social presence) on the attitudes towards – and subsequently acceptance of - AI-based services. Chatbots, specifically ChatGPT-4, were the technology the research focused on. The results indicate that perceived humanness and perceived social interactivity have a positive effect on attitudes – and acceptance – of AI-based services. This research could not prove that there is a positive relationship between social presence and attitudes towards AI-based services. The positive relationship between attitude and acceptance was proven as well.

Abstract The present study proposes the conceptual model, which traces the role of consumers’ high-quality consciousness, perceived brand equity, and luxury value perceptions on the intention to purchase masstige brands and tests it for the moderating role of generational cohort membership (X-ers, Y-ers, and Z-ers). To explore the relationship between variables of interest, we used a quantitative survey-based research design and emphasised a single product category – consumer electronics and a single masstige brand – Apple. The online survey questionnaire was developed on the Google platform and distributed among residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina using a snowball sampling technique. In the end, we received 354 usable responses. We used structural equation modelling and multigroup analysis to test the proposed conceptual model. Our findings suggest that quality consciousness is the most significant predictor of consumers’ intentions to buy a masstige brand, followed by perceived brand equity. Also, our results indicate that the relationships between independent variables (consumer-based brand equity, quality consciousness, overall luxury value) and dependent variables (intention to purchase a masstige brand) are contingent on generational differences. The present study deepens our scholarly understanding of masstige consumption and contributes to the theoretical notion of generation cohort theory in the context of masstige consumption.