درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Since comics comprise images and texts, the relations between them should be a major concern of comics studies. However, few studies have focused on the intersemiotic interaction between images and texts in the meaning construction of Chinese classic comics. This study applies Martinec and Salway’s system to Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version of The Analects of Confucius (The Analects), attempting to explore the image-text relations in Chinese classic comics. It is found that the image-text relations in Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version of The Analects can be summarized as unequal-status and logico-semantics combined. Quantitative analysis shows that the images are always subordinate to the texts, and in terms of logico-semantic relations, all of subsystems but “image more general” are included. Besides, the distribution of the logico-semantic relations of image and text indicates that two different subsystems, namely expansion and projection, integrate and work together to create meanings in this version. Qualitative analysis shows that the tactful deployment of the combinations of image-text relation in The Analects makes it visually-verbally coherent. The intersemiotic interaction between images and texts also contributes a lot to the discourse meaning construction of Tsai Chih-Chung's English comic version. However, in The Analects, the image-text relation relies too much on the extension of the image by the text as well as the projection of locution. This study provides a case reference for the analysis of Chinese classic comic as multimodal discourse, and also contributes to promoting the overseas dissemination of traditional Chinese culture.

The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and its growing societal importance are reshaping decision-making processes and policy analysis roles. This study examines the readiness of manufacturing companies in Malaysia to embrace AI technology, considering its potential to enhance decision-making, productivity, quality control, job automation, and data analysis. Focusing on the Technology, Organization, and Environment (T-O-E) readiness framework, the research investigates the relationship between these dimensions and AI adoption readiness among manufacturing companies in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia. AI adoption readiness serves as the dependent variable, while technological, organizational, and environmental readiness dimensions act as independent variables. The study applies the T-O-E framework to AI readiness and proposes a framework for assessing AI readiness at the manufacturing level. It identifies factors influencing readiness within the technological, organizational, and environmental dimensions, including relative advantage, compatibility, resources, competitive pressure, top management support, and government regulations. Through rigorous analysis, patterns, trends, and correlations are revealed, highlighting a significant link between the T-O-E readiness dimensions and AI adoption readiness. Notably, organizational readiness emerges as a key driver of AI adoption in Malaysian manufacturing companies. The results of this investigation have broad implications, offering suggestions to improve organizational preparedness and unlock AI’s potential benefits for businesses in the industrial sector. Additionally, the research lays the groundwork for further studies on AI readiness across various industries and international contexts. As AI becomes increasingly integrated into manufacturing processes, adaptive businesses gain competitive advantages on a global scale. These advantages include increased productivity, informed decision-making, streamlined quality control, improved customer satisfaction, and potential contributions to economic growth. The study concludes by recommending strategies to reinforce organizational readiness and emphasizes the need for future research to deepen understanding of AI adoption readiness in the manufacturing industry. The integration of AI technology offers benefits such as enhanced productivity, decision-making, quality control, and customer satisfaction, granting businesses a competitive edge in the digital landscape and increasing stakeholder interest.

Eco-friendly product usage is a defining trend in consumer purchase intentions during this decade. Younger, tech-savvy consumers are often more sensitive to environmental concerns when purchasing products due to the abundance of information available on social media platforms. In the food and beverage industry, this trend has led many younger consumers to prefer purchasing eco-friendly, sustainable cutlery for food and beverage consumption. With online social commerce platforms selling eco-friendly utensils readily available, a larger group of consumers, primarily young adults, seem to purchase these products impulsively due to various factors. The four independent variables proposed in this study that seem to influence the online impulse buying behavior of young adults toward these eco-friendly products are fear, serendipity, electronic word of mouth (eWOM), and website quality. Convenience sampling was utilized to gain a greater understanding of the targeted consumer group, using a 5-item Likert scale to collect data from respondents. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire items were further confirmed using statistical methods, namely average variance extracted (AVE), composite reliability (CR), and Cronbach’s alpha. The hypotheses were tested using AMOS software (version 24) through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to tabulate the results. Based on the study conducted, it is concluded that fear and eWOM do influence the online impulse buying of eco-friendly food utensils among young adults in Kuala Lumpur. It is further suggested that elements such as fear and eWOM play a significant role in online impulse purchases of eco-friendly utensils, as young adults rely heavily on social media marketing. This reliance contributes to these consumers’ growing concern for their future, prompting them to be more environmentally conscious.

Online review sites and social media platforms have become crucial sources of information for consumers, greatly influencing their purchasing behavior and decision-making, especially in the food and beverage industry. However, not many studies have been carried out to understand how social media influences customers’ purchase intentions at fast-food restaurants. This paper examines the growing influence of social media attributes on purchase intentions, with a focus on the Malaysian context. Previous studies highlight the increasing importance of social media platforms as marketing tools and their impact on customers’ purchase intentions. The research explores the relationship between habit and informativeness and their influence on purchase intentions among young adults in fast-food restaurants. A purposive sampling method was utilized to gather data from 142 fast-food customers through a cross-sectional online survey. The research hypotheses were analyzed using the partial least square structural equation modeling. Key findings found that habit and informativeness have a significant positive impact on customers’ intentions to purchase at fast-food restaurants. The study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting the growing influence of social media on consumer behavior in the context of fast-food restaurants. It adds to our understanding of how social media platforms serve as effective marketing tools, particularly among young adults, and how they can influence purchase intentions. By understanding the interplay of habit, informativeness, and purchase intentions, businesses can develop more effective marketing strategies and foster stronger relationships with their customers.

This interdisciplinary study examines Ian McEwan's Atonement by combining narrative analysis with the theories of Sigmund Freud and Paul Virilio. It looks closely at narrative techniques, time-related complexities, and cultural meanings in Atonement , linking Freud's idea of repetition compulsion with Virilio's views on technology and perception. Briony Tallis represents both Freudian traumatic re-enactment and Virilio's concept of the integral accident. Her ongoing guilt, like a rosary, symbolizes the repetitive nature of trauma. Using Virilio's gestalt theory, the study offers a new way to understand the novel's focus on perception. This research fills a gap in existing literature by bringing together Freud's psychoanalytic perspective and Virilio's technological insights to analyze Atonement . This combination of theories is a new approach that provides fresh insights into how McEwan's narrative structure reflects the interplay between trauma, technology, and cultural reception. For example, the study explores how the novel's fragmented narrative mirrors Briony's fractured psyche and how technological advancements during the wartime setting influence characters' perceptions and actions. This study of Ian McEwan's Atonement demonstrates how stories can help individuals understand their feelings and experiences better. It uses psychology and technology to explore how storytelling affects the understanding of trauma, perception, and the modern world.

The current research examines Stephen Greenblatt’s theories on the improvisation of power as well as tyranny in William Shakespeare’s second tetralogy to investigate the complex network of non-violent psychological domination of human being’s mind, by the manipulation of symbolic order through the stages of displacement and absorption. It examines how the Western psychic mobility and its embodiment in empathy and the improvisation of power affect the represented English society in the Medieval era and how the consequential power relationships impact on the ways of ruling the country. The improvisation of power deconstructs the vertical and hierarchical power relations and makes them more diagonal, horizontal or even upward. The represented Medieval English court is a dark labyrinth of conspiracy, intrigue, treason, and complicity. This duality roots in religious fundamentalism of Roman Catholic church. The tension between the two paradigms of court and church causes turbulence and chaos. The result is the absolute submission of the majority through the improvisation of power, which paves the ground for the Machiavellian minority to exert power and gratify their personal self-interest-driven plans, which are mostly tyrannical. Through the improvisation of power, the course of history could change.