Journal of Social and Organizational Matters

Impact of Female Empowerment on Family Decision-Making: Evolving Roles in Marriage, Education, Employment, and Social Life

Faheem Akhtar — 2025-10-14

The importance of women in family decision-making has repercussions for marriage, health, education, employment, and social life which is the potential goal of the current study. The data was collected by using structured interviews by using snowball sampling techniques and results described that majority of the women are still oppressing by male dominance. Results showed that 57% of participants have an understanding about patriarchal society. Results about contribution in family decision making were very interested especially about children’s education 36% women have authority to decide about their education. But the situation was different about decision of children’s profession, 36% described that they are deciding with mutual understanding about their children’s professional career. And 28% of the results showed that fathers have authority to take decisions about it. But, in this modern time things are going to change. The reason of this change is concluded by education and job opportunities for females.

Performance Measurement System for Resilient Supply Chain using Reverse Logistics in Railways: A Case from Pakistan

Muhammad Abdus Salam — 2025-10-15

Pakistan Railways has an elaborated system of reverse logistics. Being a transport body itself, it has its unique capabilities of supplying the required material to the destinations within the organization and disposing off the undesired/ waste generated by the system. To make the system resilient in nature, reverse logistics is distinctive and quite sophisticated in nature. The problem is despite having such an elaborated system of reverse logistics resilience while dealing with diversified items, the key performance indicators also known as key success indicators yet need to be designed properly. The result of this lack of information is in undermining the whole process of reverse logistics. As such there is a simple system of performance measurement for the resilient supply chain’s reverse logistics i.e., clearance of surplus items, value addition through workshops, and sale of scrap in terms of quantity and price only. This comes under recycling/disposal whereas the remaining areas are ignored while calculating the role of reverse logistics performance. The purpose of this study is to fill in the gaps and design a framework for performance measurement with respect to reverse logistics of Pakistan Railways and to make their supply chain more resilient specially in Post Covid era. The designed performance measurement system is based on KPIs which are different for Strategic, Tactical and Operational in the internal and external perspective while keeping in view the time horizon in short as well as long term.

Factors Affecting Organizational Commitment Towards Waste Recycling in The Spinning Industry of Punjab, Pakistan

Nafees Ejaz — 2025-10-29

Waste recycling has gained significant attention as a sustainable practice in industrial sectors, including Punjab’s spinning industry. However, the level of organizational commitment to recycling varies due to multiple influencing factors. This study examines the key determinants of recycling commitment, focusing on leadership involvement, workforce engagement, financial constraints, and regulatory enforcement. The primary objective of this study is to assess the extent of organizational commitment to waste recycling and identify the factors that facilitate or hinder recycling initiatives in Punjab’s spinning industry. A mixed-methods research approach was employed, combining quantitative survey data from industry professionals with qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews. Regression analysis and ANOVA tests were used to determine the impact of leadership commitment, workforce engagement, and financial constraints on recycling practices. The qualitative data were analyzed thematically to uncover deeper organizational perspectives. Quantitative analysis reveals a moderate level of organizational commitment to recycling, with leadership and workforce engagement emerging as strong predictors of recycling initiatives. Financial constraints negatively influence commitment, limiting the sustainability of recycling programs. ANOVA results show significant variations in commitment across job roles, with managers displaying higher engagement levels. Qualitative findings reinforce these results, highlighting inconsistent policy enforcement, motivational gaps among employees, and regulatory shortcomings. The study underscores the critical role of leadership, workforce participation, and supportive policies in fostering a strong recycling culture. Addressing financial constraints through incentives and policy enhancements can further improve sustainability efforts. Future research should explore tailored strategies to enhance recycling commitment across different industrial sectors.

Digital Pedagogies and Student Engagement in Higher Education: A Case Study of Pakistani Universities

Mehwish Habib — 2025-11-02

Background/Context: The issue of student engagement is becoming one of the most important in terms of the success of higher education. Founded in Pakistan, the fast digitization of universities has indicated both the possibilities and problems in the implementation of digital pedagogies, although there is little empirical information on the effects of its application. The research problem addressed in this study is whether digital pedagogical practices could be effective in promoting student engagement in Pakistani universities. Its purpose is to determine the extent to which teaching techniques based on technology can significantly improve participation, motivate and performance. The data were gathered using interview methods through the use of a quantitative case study design where students and university staff were surveyed and observed in the classroom setting of three major universities. The findings revealed that statistical procedures and tools including descriptive analysis, regression modeling and ANOVA were used to evaluate relationships between digital pedagogues and dimensions of student engagement. The results suggest that the use of digital tools, such as learning management system, interactive sites and multimedia tools, have a positive correlation with an increase in behavioral, emotional and cognitive engagement. Digital interactivity interaction and predictive value were found to have a significant effect on the participation of students, and access differences mediated the results of the regression analysis. The paper indicates the opportunities of digital pedagogies on facilitating online interaction in learning institutions, but the problem of infrastructures and training in this context should be taken into consideration. Institutional approaches to policy making and these findings are used to achieve improve quality learning in the course of Pakistan.

Climate Change as a Security Threat: Comparing U.S, Chinese, and Russian Strategic Doctrines

Hidayatullah Khan — 2025-11-02

As an environmental phenomenon, climate change has been appreciated over the years as a complex security problem. Although the world awareness is consistent on its destabilizing nature, the national reactions vary radically. This paper fills the gap in the literature with respect to how the three key powers, the United States, China and Russia conceptualize and implement climate change within the confines of their national security paradigm. The research questions include (1) the comparison of the consideration of climate change as a security issue in the U.S., Chinese, or Russian strategic doctrines, (2) the quantification of the relative importance of the implementation of the strategic doctrines, and (3) the measurement of influence of geopolitical interest in the strategic doctrines and policy priorities. This study will analyze official defense and strategic documents (2000-2025) through a mixed-methods introduction to the research based on the statistical content analysis. Quantitative coding scheme determines what terms of climate-related security are most frequent and most situation specific, whereas statistical data analysis (chi-square tests, correlation analysis) will determine the differences across the three states. Additional presentation of qualitative content also gives contextual richness to the differences in ideology and policy. Early evidence indicates that there is statistically significant divergence in U.S. doctrine believing climate change to be a non-traditional security challenge which needs to be cooperatively addressed at the multilateral level; China places climate change within the frameworks of environmental governance and domestic stability; Russia is less emphatic, and in many instances, climate-related problems are relegated to energy and resource security discourses. The statistical results indicate there is a high correlation (r = 0.72, p less than 0.05), between climate risk perceived and the policy innovation indices. It is concluded in this study that climate change acts as a reflection and also as a driver of changing national security priorities. Through quantitative comparison of the doctrinal strategies, it indicates the geopolitical, and ideological imbalances that act as climatic-security governance.

The Role of Regional Courts in International Dispute Settlement: Between Cooperation and Fragmentation

Sana Zaman — 2025-11-02

The growth of the regional courts has transformed the nature of the settlement of international disputes, which leaves the question whether they are associated to the international courts like the International Court of Justice and specialized courts. Although the regional courts are making it easier to access justice and make rulings relative to the situation on the ground, their spread may lead to creation of piecemeal interpretations of the laws. The current literature is not systematic and with statistically based evidence on the balance of cooperation and fragmentation of this emerging system. In this paper, we wish to discuss the purpose of regional courts in international dispute settlement, and more precisely, whether they lead to legal cooperation between jurisdictions or enhance systemic fragmentation. It assumes that the international adjudicatory coherence is complementary and challenging at the same time by the regional courts. The study uses a mixed-methods research design since it combines both a qualitative legal study and quantitative statistical methods. An astute collection of local judicial rulings (n = 500 cases) will be gathered in Europe, Africa, and Latin America between 1990 and 2022. Descriptive statistics, network analysis and regression models are used in order to find patterns of convergence or divergence with international precedents. Citation-tracking and text-similarity measures are also used to determine the degree of cross-referencing between local and international courts. The evidence indicates that about 65 percent of court decisions in the area are consistent with the international jurisprudence referring to the cooperation with the legal integration, 20 percent is partially distorted, and 15 percent completely fractured. The regression findings also reveal that regional membership in international organizations, and the previous judicial cooperation are the strongest variables influencing alignment.

The Intention-Behaviour Gap in Higher Education: Unpacking the Planning-Execution Paradox in Students' Procrastination Despite Effective Time Management

Nimra Malik — 2025-11-11

The goal of this research was to explain how much time the students in higher education in Punjab, Pakistan, were managing and how much they were procrastinating academically. The study aimed to achieve three objectives: 1) To describe time management practices being carried out by the higher education students in Punjab, Pakistan. 2) To find out the amount of academic procrastination that higher education students experienced. 3) To reveal the perceptions and attitudes of the students with regard to time management and academic procrastination. A quantitative descriptive survey design was used to collect data from 360 undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled in public and private higher education institutions. The sample of the study was selected by using a multistage convenience sampling method, which included convenience sampling and proportionate stratified sampling techniques. For the assessment of students’ awareness regarding time management practices and tendencies for academic procrastination, a structured questionnaire was utilized. The research tool proved to be very reliable (Cronbach’s α = 0.988). Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis, which included frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, and rankings. The findings showed that the students had a time management average of 82.83 (SD = 6.50) and an academic procrastination average of 83.27 (SD = 10.46). A large number of students still stated that they put off academic tasks because of emotional, cognitive, and motivational reasons, even though they were showing very good planning and scheduling skills. The study indicated that universities should provide time-management training and interventions aimed at procrastination and self-regulation to improve students’ academic performance and effectiveness. These results revealed a rise in paradoxical behavior in students’ time management skills and continuous procrastination.

Fostering Sustainable Skies: The Role of Green Human Resource Management in Driving Employee Green Behavior and Corporate Responsibility in Pakistani Airlines

Tanzim A. Khan — 2025-11-13

The urgency of climate change and environmental degradation has placed sustainability at the top of global policy, research, and industry agendas. Of the many routes organizations can take to approach this issue, placing true efficiency in embedding environmental values into recruitment, training, employee engagement, and performance appraisal mechanisms has become an important aspect through Green Human Resource Management (GHRM). In conventional HR models that heavily emphasize productivity and profitability, GHRM develops working forces with ecological objectives by turning employees into conscious collaborators in developing environmental responsibility. The growing immediacy of integrating sustainability in high-impact industries of developing economies inspires this study with a particular focus on the service sector, like airlines in Pakistan. The aviation industry negatively contributes to the global CO² emissions, leading to global warming and ozone layer thinning. GHRM practices can be adopted to reduce carbon footprints, support corporate social responsibility (CSR), and promote corporate environmental responsibility (CER). However, much of the existing research on aviation management remains focused on customer loyalty, operational efficiency, and financial performance, leaving a notable gap in research that links human resource strategies to environmental outcomes. Using contemporary literature and other global initiatives, for example, the Paris Agreement, this paper discusses how GHRM can be both strategic and operational in sustaining the transport, hospitality, tourism, and aviation sectors of Pakistan. Further, it also discusses awareness at what level (micro-level or individual level), through employee selection, training, and performance management systems, is attained when these systems are designed or implemented through a green lens. Behavioral change-informing behavior changes to achieve long-term environmental objectives addresses organizational constraints of cost implications of low awareness, and a tendency toward greenwashing, inhibiting its proper implementation. This research seeks to make a theoretical contribution by widening the discussion of GHRM in the context of developing economies, besides making an actual contribution through implementable recommendations for HR practitioners, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. Hence, it brings out that GHRM is not a supplementary strategy but rather a core approach through which productivity and environmental responsibility can be institutionalized within the same framework, supporting the larger global mission of climate change and a sustainable future.

Self-serving spiritual leadership and adaptive performance: the role of resilience and ambivalence

Sunnia Farrukh — 2025-11-28

This study examines the paradoxical outcomes of spiritual leadership on employee ambivalence, employee resilience, and adaptive performance, drawing on the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory. Using data from 428 software developers in Pakistan, the study employed PLS-SEM. We found that spiritual leadership can enhance employees' ambivalence and reduce their resilience, while self-serving leadership serves as a significant moderator of this effect. Moreover, spiritual leadership, when combined with self-serving leadership, enhances adaptive performance by increasing employees' resilience. We also found that both employees' resilience and employees' ambivalence are essential antecedents of adaptive performance. The present study offers important theoretical and practical insights, emphasizing the paradoxical effects of spiritual leadership in Pakistani software firms; therefore, it should be adopted with caution.

Towards a Smarter Grid: Technological and Policy Interventions to Reduce T&D Losses in Pakistan

Salman Nazar — 2025-11-18

The energy system in Pakistan is in a constant state of crisis since demand is growing and transmission and distribution (T&D) losses are always happening. Pakistan’s energy sector is an aging network that fails to meet modern reliability standards. During the last twenty years, the electricity demand has risen over 70 percent, and the system inefficiencies including line losses, power theft and poor billing recovery have only exacerbated the difference between the supply and the demand. The aim of the present research was to explore technological and policy solutions that can mitigate T&D losses and aid the shift to a smarter and more resilient grid. The research comprises a combination of policy analysis and technology using secondary data of the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO), World Bank reports and international energy agencies. The analysis shows several structural impediments such as circular debt of more than PKR 2.6 trillion, old equipment and non-technical losses compressed within the distribution networks with relatively low voltages. Results indicate that stealing, tampering of meters, poor fault detection, and poor communication infrastructure continue to be the major cause of inefficiency. Technical losses due to failure of transformers, power loss in transmission lines and lack of automated monitoring make these issues more complicated. Digital metering, supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, phasor measurement units (PMUs) and advanced communication platforms become important in real-time monitoring, quick fault detection, and demand-side control. Technological preparedness is present in the form of wireless communication technologies (ZigBee, WiMax, GSM), information and communication technologies, and new energy storage solutions, but government regulatory clarity, monetary openness and political determination are needed to put them into practice. Policy measures such as tariff rationalization, incentives for private investment, capacity building within distribution companies, and public awareness campaigns are essential to create an enabling environment. The study concludes that a carefully sequenced strategy emphasizing low-cost, high-impact measures can stabilize Pakistan’s grid, reduce T&D losses, and lay the groundwork for future integration of renewable energy resources and smart infrastructure.

Rewinding Art: A Visual Analysis of Pakistani Clothing Brands’ Fashion Campaigns

Isha Parvaiz — 2025-11-19

Fashion brands have consistently been instrumental in shaping consumers’ perceptions. Recently, Pakistani fashion brands have increasingly embraced the concept of "rewinding art" in their fashion campaigns. This study aims to analyze the role of rewinding art in the branding strategies of Pakistani fashion campaigns, focusing on how past artistic forms are recontextualized in contemporary contexts. The study explored how visual elements in the campaigns of Pakistani brands evoke cultural identity and customer engagement. This study is qualitative in its nature, and the Pakistani clothing brands, “Hussein Rehar” and “Generations”, have been selected through purposive sampling. Two campaigns of these brands are chosen to analyze the visual elements. The “Bari Eid campaign” of Generations and the “Rehar Nagar Campaign” of Hussein Rehar are selected. The preferences are given to the selected clothing campaigns because of their relevance to the research objectives. The data have been collected from Instagram posts of the clothing brands’ official accounts. The images are analyzed using Kress and Leeuwen’s theory of social semiotics (2006) through a content analysis approach. The findings reveal that the visual elements in the fashion campaigns of selected brands evoke cultural identity and consumer engagement. The visual components are aesthetically composed to make the posts more engaging and evoke nostalgic feelings, thereby increasing consumer engagement.

Impact of Career Development on Employees’ Performance: Mediating Role of Turnover Intentions in Higher Education

Mukramin Khan — 2025-11-19

The career development is crucial for employees in all organizations including higher educational institutions that helps in providing opportunities for professional development in order to improve their professional values, performance and standings. The higher career development opportunities and strong performances are expected to reduce employees’ apprehensions and declined the turnover intentions for ensuring the desired reputations and success in contemporary competitive situations. In order to examine the relationship between career development and employees’ performance in the higher educational context, with mediating role of turnover intentions, data was collected from the teachers hailing from southern region, KP, Pakistan. The secondary data on the research issues was collected from existing literature while primary data was collected from structured questionnaire in order to analyze the data through diverse procedures to extracted the required information thereby reaching the conclusion. The results of study offer significant information in reaching the desired conclusion and making decisions about hypotheses thereby recommending some suggestions for the policy-makers and future researchers for reconsidering the research issues in a tailor-made format for desired successes.

Cybercrime and Digital Offenses: Challenges of Applying Traditional Criminal Law

Muhammad Ahsan Iqbal Hashmi — 2025-11-19

The spread of digital technologies has changed the character of criminal activity allowing committing crimes that do not respect the territorial borders, using anonymity and at an unprecedented speed. The traditional crime law, which is built on geographic scope of behavior and identifying criminals, has a hard time adapting to these new technologies. The continuing nature of cybercrimes like unauthorized access, data breach and cyberstalking, online fraud, identity theft and the spread of malicious code have continually challenged the basic legal principles actus reus, mens rea, causation and jurisdiction. In spite of the national legislative changes and the development of soft-law systems, inconsistency in the substantive definitions, the level of evidentiary standards, investigative authority and international cooperation remain. The paper critically examines the structural constraints of the traditional criminal law in addressing digital crimes and provides a comparative overview of the response of law in the modern times and assesses the harmonization initiatives made using mechanisms such as the Budapest Convention and regional cybersecurity standards. It claims that the key to effective enforcement, however, lies in a mixed legal approach that would provide technological neutrality and digital specific norms that would guarantee not only due process but also operational efficiency in the dynamic cyber ethos.

The Impact of Investor Overconfidence on Stock Market Volatility: The Role of Risk Perception and Financial Literacy in Pakistan

Syeda Laiba Gilani — 2025-11-19

Current research investigate the association between investor overconfidence, risk perception, and stock market volatility, with a specific emphasis on the moderating effect of financial literacy. Based on data collected from a sample of retail investors who trade in the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), this study uses structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques to examine the research hypotheses. The results show that investor overconfidence has a significant effect on risk perception, which then enhances stock market volatility. The modulation by financial literacy was, however, limited when considering the attenuation of confidence in risk perception and market volatility. These findings indicate the importance of psychology to determine investment behavior and market outcomes and shed some light on how behavioral biases may lead to volatile behaviors in emerging markets. In addition, the findings add empirical evidence on the behavioural finance literature from the perspective of a developing country, Pakistan. The results have policy implications for policymakers and financial intermediaries who wish to improve investor education and lower the destabilizing impact of irrational investment behavior on market stability.

The Digital Connection: Investigating Consumer Engagement Dynamics with Retail Brands on Social Media

Saba Qasim — 2025-11-25

Given how much time people spend on social media, it has attracted a lot of attention. Retail businesses have been encouraged by this to alter their marketing plans and interact with customers on social media. Promoting new items and strengthening relationships with customers are two benefits of consumer interaction for retail businesses. Even while a number of research studies have examined consumer involvement, few have examined how consumers interact with retail businesses on social media. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate how consumer involvement and intention to interact with retail firms on social media relate to each other. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) were utilized in this study to investigate these connections. A quantitative method and an online poll were used to gather data from 50 social media users in Lahore city. Software called the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) has been used to analyze data in order to determine variables, demographic data, and the relationships between the variables. This study aids consumers and retailers in raising knowledge of social media user involvement. Perceived enjoyment, peer communication, and perceived usefulness toward intention to engage are all at an average level, according to the data.

Integrating Prophetic Spiritual Pedagogy with NPST Standards to Guide Teaching Practices for Generation Z

Muhammad Anwer — 2025-11-04

This paper investigates the amalgamation of Prophetic Spiritual Teaching (PST) principles with National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST) to inform Gen-Z teaching practices within desired holistic development, ethical behavior and professional teaching skills. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis of 20 teachers were used to generate qualitative data. Through thematic analyzing, three main themes: Holistic and Ethical Growth, Interactive and Contextual Pedagogy, Reinforcement of NPSTs, and Professional Development emerged. The findings reveal that PST Prophetic teaching sayings, such as Husn al-Khuluq (good character), Niyyah (intention), patience, empathic and self-reflection fulfilled Gen Z the learners' moral, emotional and cognitive needs. NPST-standards provide an established professional orientation to reinforce these principles and to support ethical instruction, customer-oriented pedagogy, as well as life-long learning. The study develops an Integrated Pedagogical Framework that implements PST beliefs into teaching approaches congruent with NPST e-citizenry benchmarks. It is concerned with the moral, intellectual and emotional aspects of student development and gives prominence to reflective, ethically informed and professionally competent teacher actions. Educational, theoretical and practical implications are discussed based on a case study that offers an example of integrating professional spiritual dimensions into classroom teaching in mission studies today.

Diaspora and Cultural Diplomacy: Pakistan’s Underused Soft Power Potential

Dure Shahwar Bano — 2025-11-28

The concept of soft power is rapidly gaining attention in international relations. Under the domain of soft power, states heavily rely on their cultural assets to assert their global influence. Based on the theoretical construct of Joseph Nye's ‘Soft Power,’ this article explores the role of the Pakistani diaspora as a potent force of soft power. While there is a very strong presence of the Turkish, Indian, and Korean diasporas in promoting their culture, the potential of Pakistan’s diaspora has remained underused in creating a strong cultural identity and especially in refuting negative perceptions and building a positive image of Pakistan abroad. To explore the potential of the Pakistani diaspora and the impediments they face in promoting cultural identity abroad, this article employs a mixed-method approach. With a sequential Quan-Qual research design, it combines a quantitative survey of 40 diaspora respondents across North America, Europe, and the Gulf with three qualitative in-depth, semi-structured interviews to get a deeper understanding of the issue. Through this approach, the article identifies four major themes: structural challenges, the diaspora’s role as cultural ambassadors, the media narrative, and policy options for Pakistan. The findings of the article reveal both opportunities and constraints, and encourage diaspora-led initiatives to increase Pakistan’s international visibility.

Islamic Financial Literacy and Intention to Use Islamic Banking: Empirical Evidences from Lahore Pakistan

Zubair Ahmed Memon — 2025-11-29

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Islamic Financial Literacy, Awareness, and Cost & Benefit on the Intention to use Islamic banking among the students from universities from Lahore. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using SmartPLS 3.0 with structural equation modelling to test the hypothesized relationships. Results revealed that majority of the respondents lack Islamic banking knowledge, they are less aware about Islamic banking, products and services, and perceive that the cost of Islamic banking products is high. Moreover, the results suggest that the IFL, Awareness, and Cost and Benefit are increasing the intention to use Islamic banking. So it’s better for Islamic banks and the State Bank of Pakistan’s Islamic Banking Department to run ads and awareness programs to help more people understand and use the Islamic banking system.

The Role of the UAE and Qatar in Regional Diplomacy of the Middle East: A Comparative Analysis

Muhammad Iqbal — 2025-11-29

This article explores the shifting diplomatic roles of the two Gulf states – the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar – in the Middle East as a whole. Although both are small and relatively small in both population and geography, both have evolved as valuable diplomatic players. Still, their strategies differ: the UAE has a more structured, state centred pragmatic foreign policy, focusing on security cooperation, economic intervention and regional military incursions, while Qatar prioritises mediation and relies on soft power, humanitarian diplomacy, and relations with several disparate embedded actors. This counterpart analysis attempts to detail their foreign policy goals and means, instruments, case studies on diplomacy, achievements and limitations, and how their relations influence regional order and coordination. Their resources project order, but the disparity in the means and order of their deployment results in diverse engagements; the risk and scope to which these alter the Middle East, are also different.