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  <title>DSpace Collection: Theses and dissertations of students</title>
  <link rel="alternate" href="http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/16861" />
  <subtitle>Theses and dissertations of students</subtitle>
  <id>http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/16861</id>
  <updated>2026-10-22T05:07:17Z</updated>
  <dc:date>2026-10-22T05:07:17Z</dc:date>
  <entry>
    <title>IMPACT OF ESG ON CORPORATE  PERFORMANCE: A MULTIDIMENSIONAL  STUDY OF INDIAN LISTED COMPANIES</title>
    <link rel="alternate" href="http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23180" />
    <author>
      <name>JAIN, PRACHI</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>Malhotra, Priya (SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>Aggarwal, Nikunj (CO-SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <id>http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23180</id>
    <updated>2026-10-13T09:52:55Z</updated>
    <published>2026-09-01T00:00:00Z</published>
    <summary type="text">Title: IMPACT OF ESG ON CORPORATE  PERFORMANCE: A MULTIDIMENSIONAL  STUDY OF INDIAN LISTED COMPANIES
Authors: JAIN, PRACHI; Malhotra, Priya (SUPERVISOR); Aggarwal, Nikunj (CO-SUPERVISOR)
Abstract: In the evolving corporate governance landscape and sustainable business strategy, &#xD;
Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) frameworks have emerged as critical &#xD;
instruments for firms to signal responsibility, enhance transparency, mitigate risks, &#xD;
and foster long-term value creation. ESG disclosures are increasingly viewed not &#xD;
merely as compliance tools but as strategic levers that shape firm behaviour, influence &#xD;
stakeholder relationships, and contribute to financial outcomes. Despite growing &#xD;
scholarly and practitioner interest, the existing literature on the ESG–corporate &#xD;
performance nexus remains fragmented, characterised by a lack of consensus on &#xD;
theoretical foundations, limited contextual diversity, and minimal integration of firm&#xD;
level financial policy variables, such as dividend behaviour. &#xD;
This doctoral thesis addresses these research gaps through a structured, multi-method &#xD;
investigation that spans bibliometric analysis, advanced panel econometrics, meta&#xD;
analytic synthesis, and logistic regression modelling. The central aim is to examine &#xD;
how ESG disclosures influence corporate performance, measured across accounting, &#xD;
market, and financial dimensions, as well as from the dividend policy perspective, and &#xD;
how these effects are moderated by contextual factors such as industry classification, &#xD;
national economic development, and firm-specific attributes. The thesis also &#xD;
highlights the underexplored relationship between ESG engagement and dividend &#xD;
policy, thereby contributing novel insights to the literature on sustainable finance and &#xD;
corporate financial strategy. &#xD;
The thesis is organised into seven interrelated chapters, beginning with the &#xD;
identification of gaps in the literature through a comprehensive bibliometric and &#xD;
thematic literature review guided by the TCCM (Theory–Context–Characteristics&#xD;
Methodology) framework. This hybrid review of previous studies identifies three &#xD;
dominant research streams: (1) ESG's influence on firm value and ownership &#xD;
dynamics; (2) stakeholder engagement, regulation, and ESG strategy; and (3) ESG as &#xD;
a risk management and innovation tool. The review highlights critical gaps, including &#xD;
an overreliance on a single theoretical perspective (e.g., stakeholder theory), the &#xD;
underrepresentation of emerging markets (especially India), and a narrow focus on &#xD;
v &#xD;
conventional performance outcomes, with insufficient attention to dividend-related &#xD;
metrics. &#xD;
To address these gaps, the second phase of the research empirically explores the &#xD;
ESG–corporate performance nexus within the Indian context. As a large and rapidly &#xD;
growing emerging economy with rising sustainability obligations and evolving ESG &#xD;
disclosure mandates (e.g., SEBI‘s BRSR framework), India offers a ground for such &#xD;
analysis. The empirical analysis utilises data on 605 distinct corporations listed on the &#xD;
National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) over the period 2015–2023. ESG data are &#xD;
obtained from Refinitiv Eikon, while financial and corporate data are sourced from &#xD;
CMIE Prowess. The sample comprises firms satisfying the predefined listing and &#xD;
data-availability criteria required for the analysis. Utilising the Method of Moments &#xD;
Quantile Regression (MMQR), the study finds that ESG disclosure, both aggregated &#xD;
and disaggregated into E, S, and G dimensions, has a positive influence on corporate &#xD;
outcomes. Notably, the impact of environmental disclosures is stronger in higher&#xD;
performing quantiles. At the same time, the effects of social and governance &#xD;
dimensions vary, affirming the relevance of stakeholder and legitimacy theories in &#xD;
heterogeneous market settings. &#xD;
Extending this inquiry, the third empirical chapter incorporates industry-specific &#xD;
analysis by classifying 605 Indian-listed corporations observed over 2015–2023 into &#xD;
environmentally sensitive industries (SI) and non-sensitive industries (NSI) &#xD;
categories. The analysis is based on ESG information from Refinitiv Eikon and &#xD;
corporate financial data from CMIE Prowess, with the number of firm-year &#xD;
observations varying across years according to ESG data availability. Applying &#xD;
System-GMM estimation, the results reveal a divergent relationship between the two &#xD;
categories. While NSI firms benefit significantly from ESG disclosures, SI firms often &#xD;
encounter diminished or negative returns due to heightened compliance burdens and &#xD;
regulatory scrutiny. These findings challenge the validity of uniform ESG strategies &#xD;
and underscore the importance of sector-specific sustainability frameworks. &#xD;
The thesis then broadens its scope to the global context in the fourth empirical &#xD;
chapter, focusing on the cement industry, an archetype of environmentally intensive &#xD;
sectors facing urgent sustainability imperatives. Using an international sample of 70 &#xD;
publicly listed cement companies across 29 countries and 770 firm-year observations &#xD;
over the period 2013–2023, this chapter examines the moderating role of National &#xD;
Economic Development (NED) in the ESG–performance relationship. The initial &#xD;
dataset comprised 301 listed cement companies, from which firms with incomplete &#xD;
information were excluded based on the study's predefined data-availability criteria. &#xD;
vi &#xD;
ESG and financial information were obtained from Refinitiv Eikon, while country&#xD;
level GDP per capita was obtained primarily from the World Bank, with IMF data &#xD;
used where required. The analysis reveals that corporations in developed economies &#xD;
are better positioned to convert ESG engagement into superior financial outcomes due &#xD;
to stronger institutional support, regulatory infrastructure, and market maturity. &#xD;
Conversely, companies in developing economies face structural constraints that limit &#xD;
the strategic and economic benefits of ESG adoption. These results reinforce the &#xD;
Institutional Difference Hypothesis (IDH) and emphasize the contextual sensitivity of &#xD;
ESG–performance linkages. &#xD;
While prior chapters of this thesis establish the relevance of ESG disclosures in &#xD;
shaping accounting-based, financial, and market performance outcomes, profitability &#xD;
alone does not fully capture how sustainability strategies translate into shareholder &#xD;
value. ESG initiatives often require substantial long-term investments, potentially &#xD;
altering firms‘ internal cash allocation decisions and creating trade-offs between &#xD;
reinvesting in sustainability and distributing earnings to shareholders. Dividend &#xD;
policy, therefore, emerges as a critical financial channel through which the economic &#xD;
consequences of ESG engagement can be assessed. As dividends remain a primary &#xD;
consideration for shareholders, integrating ESG into dividend decisions provides &#xD;
deeper insight into how firms balance stakeholder-oriented sustainability objectives &#xD;
with shareholder wealth maximisation. Recognising this linkage, the thesis extends &#xD;
the ESG-performance discourse by examining dividend policy as a complementary &#xD;
and policy-relevant outcome of ESG disclosure. &#xD;
Hence, the next chapter employs a meta-analytic approach to consolidate empirical &#xD;
evidence on the relationship between ESG disclosures and dividend policy, a &#xD;
relatively underexplored area in sustainability research. Synthesising previous peer&#xD;
reviewed studies, the analysis finds a statistically significant positive relationship &#xD;
between ESG and dividend payouts. Among the ESG pillars, governance disclosures &#xD;
have the greatest influence. Subgroup analyses reveal that firm size, profitability, and &#xD;
national economic development account for the observed heterogeneity in the &#xD;
literature. These findings empirically validate agency and signalling theories in the &#xD;
ESG–dividend domain, suggesting that transparent ESG practices enhance investor &#xD;
trust and shape dividend distribution policies. &#xD;
In the sixth empirical chapter, we focus on the global hospitality sector, a service&#xD;
oriented industry where sustainability and financial outcomes are closely interlinked. &#xD;
Using ESG and financial data for publicly listed hospitality firms across countries, the &#xD;
study covers the period 2004–2023. Firms were identified using the relevant North &#xD;
vii &#xD;
American Industry Classification System (NAICS) categories, following Hwang et al. &#xD;
(2024). The initial dataset comprised 1,401 corporations, which was reduced to 918 &#xD;
unique firms after applying the required ESG and financial data-availability criteria. &#xD;
Using logistic panel regression, the study investigates how ESG performance affects &#xD;
both the likelihood and stability of dividend payments. While higher ESG &#xD;
performance increases the probability of dividend issuance, it is negatively associated &#xD;
with dividend stability, indicating that firms engaged in sustainability initiatives may &#xD;
prioritise reinvestment over consistent shareholder payouts. This duality supports the &#xD;
pecking order theory and further illustrates the trade-offs between short-term financial &#xD;
policy and long-term sustainability goals in capital-intensive industries. &#xD;
The findings of this thesis carry significant implications for theory, practice, and &#xD;
policy. Theoretically, the research advances ESG literature by integrating diverse &#xD;
frameworks, including stakeholder theory, agency theory, signalling theory, pecking &#xD;
order theory, and institutional theory, offering a more comprehensive understanding &#xD;
of the ESG-performance nexus. By contextualising ESG impacts within emerging &#xD;
markets, such as India, and across environmentally sensitive and non-sensitive &#xD;
sectors, the study challenges the ―one-size-fits-all‖ paradigm. It underscores the role &#xD;
of national economic development and institutional maturity in moderating ESG &#xD;
outcomes. Practically, the findings provide actionable insights for corporate &#xD;
managers, investors, civil society, and regulators, underscoring the need to align ESG &#xD;
investments with sector-specific risk exposures, strategic priorities, and diverse &#xD;
stakeholder expectations. For managers, the results highlight ESG as a value&#xD;
enhancing strategic tool rather than a compliance obligation. For investors and civil &#xD;
society, ESG disclosures emerge as credible signals of transparency, governance &#xD;
quality, and long-term accountability. For policymakers and regulators, the thesis &#xD;
highlights the importance of developing nuanced, sector-specific, and context-aware &#xD;
ESG disclosure frameworks that enhance data comparability, reduce information &#xD;
asymmetry, and improve the real economic effectiveness of sustainability reporting &#xD;
across industries and institutional settings. &#xD;
Despite these contributions, several avenues remain open for future inquiry. &#xD;
Limitations related to data quality, ESG score standardization, and sectoral coverage &#xD;
suggest the need for more granular, text-based, or qualitative approaches to ESG &#xD;
assessment. Expanding the research to include additional sectors (e.g., healthcare, &#xD;
technology, retail) and broader geographic regions, particularly in underrepresented &#xD;
emerging and frontier economies, can offer richer cross-national comparisons. Future &#xD;
research can benefit from expanding sectoral and geographic scope, applying &#xD;
advanced causal inference techniques, and incorporating qualitative or text-based &#xD;
viii &#xD;
ESG metrics. Greater attention to underexplored financial outcomes, such as &#xD;
innovation efficiency, capital allocation, and risk management, can further enrich the &#xD;
field. A more interdisciplinary and context-sensitive research agenda will be crucial to &#xD;
capturing the evolving role of ESG in corporate strategy and sustainable value &#xD;
creation. A greater emphasis on interdisciplinary and behavioral perspectives will also &#xD;
enhance our understanding of managerial decision-making and investor responses to &#xD;
ESG, helping shape more resilient and sustainable business models in the future. &#xD;
This thesis makes a comprehensive and methodologically rigorous contribution to the &#xD;
ESG field by integrating bibliometric, panel-based, meta-analytic, and industry&#xD;
specific approaches. It captures the diversity of ESG outcomes across various &#xD;
contexts, from India to the global, and from sectoral to firm-level, encompassing &#xD;
performance to dividend policy, thus offering a holistic lens through which scholars, &#xD;
practitioners, and policymakers can better understand the evolving dynamics of &#xD;
corporate sustainability.</summary>
    <dc:date>2026-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
  </entry>
  <entry>
    <title>ROLE OF PERSONALITY IN INTENTION TO  ADOPT SOCIAL MEDIA: A STUDY OF  ENTREPRENEURS</title>
    <link rel="alternate" href="http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23165" />
    <author>
      <name>VIJAY, SHILPI GUPTA</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>MOOKERJEE, AMIT (SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <id>http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23165</id>
    <updated>2026-10-08T04:54:54Z</updated>
    <published>2026-09-01T00:00:00Z</published>
    <summary type="text">Title: ROLE OF PERSONALITY IN INTENTION TO  ADOPT SOCIAL MEDIA: A STUDY OF  ENTREPRENEURS
Authors: VIJAY, SHILPI GUPTA; MOOKERJEE, AMIT (SUPERVISOR)
Abstract: The growing reliance on social media as a strategic tool for entrepreneurial ventures has &#xD;
intensified academic interest in understanding the determinants of its adoption. However, &#xD;
existing research on social media adoption has largely relied on technology-centric or &#xD;
performance-oriented models and has tended to treat personality traits and &#xD;
entrepreneurial traits as separate explanatory constructs, often assuming direct effects on &#xD;
adoption behaviour. Moreover, limited attention has been given to the cognitive &#xD;
mechanisms through which individual traits influence adoption decisions, particularly in &#xD;
entrepreneurial and SME contexts. Addressing these theoretical and methodological &#xD;
gaps, the present study investigates the role of personality and entrepreneurial traits in &#xD;
shaping entrepreneurs‟ intention to adopt social media, with Perceived Innovation &#xD;
Characteristics of Social Media (PICSM) conceptualised as a key mediating mechanism. &#xD;
The study adopts a sequential mixed-methods research design, integrating an exploratory &#xD;
qualitative phase with an explanatory quantitative phase. The qualitative phase employed &#xD;
in-depth interviews with entrepreneurs to explore their lived experiences, identify salient &#xD;
personality and entrepreneurial traits, and understand how social media is perceived as &#xD;
an innovation. Importantly, this phase led to the identification of consistency as a distinct &#xD;
entrepreneurial capability, emerging beyond traditional personality frameworks, while &#xD;
neuroticism did not emerge as a salient or explanatory trait in the entrepreneurial &#xD;
context. Insights from the qualitative findings informed the development of an integrated &#xD;
conceptual framework and the contextual scale development of entrepreneurial traits and &#xD;
PICSM. The quantitative phase utilised survey data from 702 entrepreneurs and applied &#xD;
Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), and Partial &#xD;
Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) to validate the measurement &#xD;
scales and test the hypothesised relationships. Mediation analysis was conducted, &#xD;
followed by post hoc analyses including Importance-Performance Map Analysis &#xD;
(IPMA), Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), and Combined IPMA (cIPMA) to &#xD;
identify high-impact and necessary traits. &#xD;
The findings reveal that while personality traits provide a psychological foundation, &#xD;
entrepreneurial traits exert a more immediate and practically significant influence on &#xD;
social media adoption intentions. Crucially, the results demonstrate that the influence of &#xD;
both personality and entrepreneurial traits on adoption operates primarily through &#xD;
PICSM, establishing it as a central mediating construct. Trait-level mediation results &#xD;
indicate that innovativeness, creativity, openness, resilience, agreeableness, extraversion, &#xD;
risk-taking, self-efficacy, and the newly identified trait of consistency significantly &#xD;
influence social media adoption intentions through PICSM. Post hoc analyses further &#xD;
show that social media adoption among entrepreneurs is a staged psychological process, &#xD;
vi &#xD;
wherein certain traits-particularly consistency and innovativeness-function as critical and &#xD;
necessary conditions at higher levels of adoption. &#xD;
The study makes several important contributions. Theoretically, it advances &#xD;
entrepreneurship and digital adoption literature by integrating personality and &#xD;
entrepreneurial traits into a single, context-sensitive framework, thereby refining trait&#xD;
based explanations of entrepreneurial behaviour and supporting arguments that &#xD;
traditional personality models should be complemented by capability-driven and &#xD;
behavioural consistency perspectives. It also extends Diffusion of Innovation Theory by &#xD;
empirically demonstrating that perceived innovation characteristics are shaped by &#xD;
individual traits, elevating PICSM as a key linkage between personality, entrepreneurial &#xD;
capabilities, and adoption intention. Methodologically, the study contributes by &#xD;
developing and validating contextually grounded measurement scales, including &#xD;
consistency as a novel entrepreneurial trait, suitable for entrepreneurship research in &#xD;
emerging-economy contexts. &#xD;
Practically, the findings offer actionable insights for entrepreneurs, educators, &#xD;
policymakers, and platform designers. The results indicate that successful social media &#xD;
adoption is not primarily dependent on inherent personality dispositions, but rather on &#xD;
developable entrepreneurial capabilities, particularly innovativeness, creativity, &#xD;
resilience, self-efficacy, and consistency. Entrepreneurship educators and incubators are &#xD;
therefore encouraged to shift training programs from personality-based interventions &#xD;
toward capability-building, behavioural discipline, and innovation-oriented skill &#xD;
development. Policymakers aiming to promote SME digitalisation can leverage these &#xD;
insights to design interventions that reduce perceived complexity and enhance &#xD;
compatibility and usefulness perceptions. Finally, social media platform designers can &#xD;
utilise these findings to create features, onboarding processes, and support services that &#xD;
align more closely with entrepreneurs‟ innovation perceptions and behavioural routines, &#xD;
thereby facilitating broader and more inclusive adoption.</summary>
    <dc:date>2026-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
  </entry>
  <entry>
    <title>BARRIERS TO ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION  AND BEHAVIOUR: A THEORY OF PLANNED  BEHAVIOUR APPROACH</title>
    <link rel="alternate" href="http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23101" />
    <author>
      <name>SINGH, PUSHPENDRA</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>Mookerjee, Amit (SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <id>http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23101</id>
    <updated>2026-09-16T04:40:21Z</updated>
    <published>2024-07-01T00:00:00Z</published>
    <summary type="text">Title: BARRIERS TO ENTREPRENEURIAL INTENTION  AND BEHAVIOUR: A THEORY OF PLANNED  BEHAVIOUR APPROACH
Authors: SINGH, PUSHPENDRA; Mookerjee, Amit (SUPERVISOR)
Abstract: Barriers to Entrepreneurial Intention and Behavior" delves into the various obstacles that &#xD;
people experience when they decide to pursue their business dreams. A growing emphasis &#xD;
has been placed in recent years on entrepreneurship as a catalyst for innovation and economic &#xD;
progress. Even with this understanding, a lot of prospective business owners encounter major &#xD;
obstacles that prevent their goals and actions. The abstract explores the multiple facets of &#xD;
these obstacles, including institutional, social, psychological, and economic aspects. &#xD;
Psychological issues like risk aversion, fear of failure, and low self-esteem might hinder &#xD;
people's efforts to pursue their entrepreneurial goals. Interventions focusing on resilience and &#xD;
mentality are necessary to break through these internal obstacles and create a culture that &#xD;
values taking risks and learning from mistakes. Social issues are also important since, &#xD;
particularly in some groups or areas, cultural norms and societal expectations may inhibit &#xD;
entrepreneurship. To comprehend and lessen these societal hurdles, it is important to engage &#xD;
the community, educate people, and highlight successful entrepreneurs as role models. &#xD;
Financial limitations provide significant obstacles, especially for those with restricted &#xD;
financial resources. A lack of funding, credit, or financial knowledge may discourage would&#xD;
be business owners. Financial institutions and policymakers need to work together to create &#xD;
inclusive financial ecosystems that meet the requirements of a variety of entrepreneurs. &#xD;
Institutional obstacles also present major challenges, such as complicated regulatory &#xD;
frameworks and bureaucratic red tape. An environment that is more favorable to &#xD;
entrepreneurial activity can be produced by streamlining administrative procedures, lowering &#xD;
regulatory burdens, and improving the ease of doing business. &#xD;
These barriers interact to form a complex web that necessitates a comprehensive strategy. &#xD;
Empirical evidence suggests that a thorough comprehension of these obstacles is crucial for &#xD;
formulating efficacious policies and initiatives that promote entrepreneurship. Gender bias, &#xD;
restricted access to networks, and difficulties juggling work and personal obligations are &#xD;
3 &#xD;
among the difficulties faced by female entrepreneurs, so it is especially important to address &#xD;
barriers connected to gender. It will take focused efforts to advance equal opportunities and &#xD;
build an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem to remove these gender-specific impediments. &#xD;
Technological developments have an impact on entrepreneurial activity as well, bringing with &#xD;
them both opportunities and difficulties. Although e-commerce and digital platforms have &#xD;
increased the reach of entrepreneurs, the quick speed of technological development &#xD;
necessitates digital literacy and adaptation. By bridging the digital divide and offering &#xD;
pertinent training, we can enable business owners to leverage technology for expansion. In &#xD;
addition, the COVID-19 epidemic has brought attention to how susceptible companies are to &#xD;
outside shocks, highlighting the necessity of resilience and adaptable tactics in the face of &#xD;
unforeseen difficulties. The various obstacles to entrepreneurship include a variety of &#xD;
economic, social, and institutional issues that prevent people from engaging in &#xD;
entrepreneurial pursuits. Potential entrepreneurs are frequently discouraged from &#xD;
implementing their ideas due to economic constraints, such as restricted access to finance and &#xD;
financial resources. In addition, regulatory restrictions and complicated legal frameworks can &#xD;
limit innovation and raise entry barriers. Social issues, such as cultural norms and aversion to &#xD;
risk, can deter people from starting their businesses. A lack of proper entrepreneurial &#xD;
education and training may also hinder the development of necessary skills and knowledge. &#xD;
These barriers significantly impede the growth of a vibrant entrepreneurial environment and &#xD;
limit regional economic development and innovation. It is essential to address these issues if &#xD;
you want to provide ambitious business owners with the tools they need to succeed, advance &#xD;
the economy, and create jobs.  &#xD;
The significance of a multi-stakeholder strategy in addressing obstacles to entrepreneurial &#xD;
intention and activity is emphasized in the abstract. Governments, academic institutions, non&#xD;
governmental organizations, and the commercial sector must work together to establish an &#xD;
ecosystem that helps would-be business owners. In addition to imparting entrepreneurial &#xD;
skills, educational institutions must cultivate an entrepreneurial attitude and a culture that &#xD;
values creativity and taking calculated risks. &#xD;
The study concludes by highlighting the complex interplay of psychological, social, &#xD;
institutional, economic, and technological constraints on entrepreneurial intention and &#xD;
conduct. It takes a coordinated effort from several stakeholders and a sophisticated &#xD;
understanding of the issues at hand to design effective methods to overcome these hurdles. &#xD;
Societies can unleash entrepreneurship's full potential and promote innovation-driven &#xD;
economic growth by tearing down these obstacles.</summary>
    <dc:date>2024-07-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
  </entry>
  <entry>
    <title>SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IN  ENTREPRENEURSHIP</title>
    <link rel="alternate" href="http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23100" />
    <author>
      <name>SINGH, PRAGATI</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>MOOKERJEE, Amit (SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <author>
      <name>LATHER, ANU SINGH (CO-SUPERVISOR)</name>
    </author>
    <id>http://dspace.dtu.ac.in:8080/jspui/handle/repository/23100</id>
    <updated>2026-09-16T04:35:32Z</updated>
    <published>2024-08-01T00:00:00Z</published>
    <summary type="text">Title: SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING IN  ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Authors: SINGH, PRAGATI; MOOKERJEE, Amit (SUPERVISOR); LATHER, ANU SINGH (CO-SUPERVISOR)
Abstract: Entrepreneurship has been regarded as a significant driver of economic growth &#xD;
(Koster &amp; Rai, 2008). As a service-based economy, India expediates small-scale firms' &#xD;
growth (Koster &amp; Rai, 2008). The development of entrepreneurship in India can be &#xD;
attributed to factors such as the rise in government support initiatives, the emergence &#xD;
of incubators, and venture capital. Indian culture has always placed a strong emphasis &#xD;
on jewellery. Jewellery is a unique product category largely impacted by a &#xD;
combination of cultural, societal, and personal factors owing to its precise &#xD;
craftsmanship and emotional significance (Rajili et al., 2015). Jewellery is a popular &#xD;
form of self-expression and is often seen as a symbol of a woman's status. The &#xD;
jewellery industry is known for its exceptional artistry, craftsmanship, and sentimental &#xD;
value. Jewellery designer entrepreneurs contribute to the creative economy by &#xD;
participating in economic growth (Brandão et al., 2021). &#xD;
Lately, there has been a significant transformation in the jewellery design industry as &#xD;
digital marketing has been considerably shaping consumer behaviour (Armano, 2020; &#xD;
Chuangemanee &amp; Punnakitikashem, 2016). The online jewellery sector has &#xD;
experienced significant growth due to the increasing number of internet users, &#xD;
heightened user awareness, and the attractive costs of online jewellery. Social media &#xD;
has changed the meaning of traditional marketing and provides numerous &#xD;
opportunities to new ventures. This revolutionary change brought by social media &#xD;
platforms has made doing business easier. Furthermore, social media has largely &#xD;
influenced consumer choices and buying patterns (Nagvanshi et al., 2023). &#xD;
The present study explores the perspectives of consumers and entrepreneurs in the &#xD;
jewellery sector. In the first phase, a qualitative study was conducted to explore the &#xD;
motivation and challenges entrepreneurs face in pursuing the jewellery designing &#xD;
profession, the difficulties encountered in marketing and selling their jewellery, and &#xD;
strategies used to overcome these challenges and barriers. Secondly, this research &#xD;
explores the factors affecting consumers' attitudes and purchase intention towards &#xD;
3 &#xD;
social media jewellery selection and purchase. For this, quantitative methodology was &#xD;
employed to test the research model. &#xD;
The scope is restricted to Indian entrepreneurs who are in the business of jewellery &#xD;
designing and selling. A three-step research strategy was followed in the present &#xD;
study. In the first stage, an exploratory research design was adopted wherein a &#xD;
bibliometric review and narrative literature review were conducted to identify the &#xD;
current state of literature, trends, themes, and the research gap. The bibliometric &#xD;
analysis was conducted using Biblioshiny and VOS viewer software. &#xD;
A qualitative approach was utilized in the second stage of exploratory research &#xD;
design. In-depth interviews with 15 jewellery entrepreneurs were taken to identify &#xD;
their motivation, challenges, difficulties, and strategies used in this business. The &#xD;
manual coding of interview transcripts was done using NVivo 14 software. Further, &#xD;
an image analysis of twenty jewellery designs was also conducted by experts. It &#xD;
involved in-depth analysis of jewellery image on five factors, marketing &#xD;
recommendations, and a few social media posts suggestive in nature. &#xD;
In the third stage, a descriptive research design was adopted, and a quantitative &#xD;
approach was used. For the descriptive study, a self-administered questionnaire was &#xD;
designed. The questionnaire consisted of demographic information, two filter &#xD;
questions, basic details of usage, and thirty-two main statements on a 5-point Likert &#xD;
scale to test the hypotheses. The research model consisted of six constructs i.e., &#xD;
Perceived usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, Compatibility, Complexity, Attitude, &#xD;
and Purchase Intention based on a modification and extension of the factors of the &#xD;
TAM exploring the overall effect of several factors on the attitude toward the &#xD;
adoption of social media for jewellery selection, and ultimately on the purchase &#xD;
intention. The model was analyzed using PLS-SEM in SMART PLS 3 software. The &#xD;
descriptive statistics, t-test, and ANOVA were performed using IBM SPSS software.  &#xD;
In the qualitative study, it was found that entrepreneurs are motivated and inspired by &#xD;
their childhood experiences, passion for art, formal education in jewellery designing, &#xD;
family influence, and catalog exposure. The challenges or barriers faced by &#xD;
entrepreneurs as jewellery designers were trust issues, regional differences, ethical &#xD;
sourcing, adoption of technology, and intensive competition. They also face difficulty &#xD;
4 &#xD;
in marketing or selling their jewellery due to several reasons such as limited customer &#xD;
reach, difficulty in building brand identity, adapting to changing trends, competitive &#xD;
pricing, low foot traffic, changing preferences of consumers, high overhead cost, and &#xD;
inventory management. When asked about the strategies they use or they think could &#xD;
overcome difficulties in marketing or selling jewellery, it was found that &#xD;
entrepreneurs suggest that leveraging social media could solve these issues. Other &#xD;
strategies include higher consumer engagement, creating relevant content, being &#xD;
transparent and having a consumer-friendly return policy, and creating specialized &#xD;
platforms for promotions such as own website or own Instagram broadcast channel.  &#xD;
The results of the quantitative study state that Perceived usefullnessfulness and &#xD;
Perceived Ease of Use of social media positively impact the attitude toward social &#xD;
media jewellery selection. It was further found that compatibility positively impacts &#xD;
the attitude towards social media jewellery selection and purchase. While, Complexity &#xD;
was found to have a negative impact on attitude towards social media jewellery &#xD;
selection and purchase. Further, attitude towards social media jewellery selection and &#xD;
purchase was found to positively impact the purchase intention towards social media &#xD;
jewellery purchase. Lastly, attitude towards social media jewellery selection and &#xD;
purchase was found to partially mediate the relationship between Perceived &#xD;
usefullness, Perceived Ease of Use, Compatibility, Complexity, and purchase &#xD;
intention towards social media jewellery purchase. &#xD;
The high degree of Perceived usefullness, Perceived Ease of Use, Compatibility, and &#xD;
low Complexity which were found to be significant factors in social media adoption, &#xD;
must be leveraged by entrepreneurs. This will create a positive attitude towards social &#xD;
media usage for online jewellery shopping and enhance consumers purchase &#xD;
intentions towards online jewellery.  &#xD;
Since there seems evidence that digital strategies affect many aspects of online &#xD;
purchase of jewellery by consumers both positively and negatively, entrepreneurs &#xD;
who want to scale their businesses should use social media, while judiciously looking &#xD;
at &#xD;
how various factors can affect consumer purchase intention. Jewellery &#xD;
entrepreneurs need to understand the changing dynamics of consumer behavior to &#xD;
remain competitive. They should satisfy the customer preferences and demands and &#xD;
5 &#xD;
create relevant content for their target audience. Through social media marketing, &#xD;
entrepreneurs can interact with their audience meaningfully, increase business &#xD;
income, and adapt to the constantly changing market environment, ensuring ongoing &#xD;
growth and relevance in modern times. &#xD;
The present study offers insights into how to effectively utilize social media for &#xD;
improving attitude and purchase intentions of consumer towards jewellery selection. &#xD;
Entrepreneurs can get knowledge about the factors that play a role in improving &#xD;
consumers attitude and purchase intention towards online jewellery shopping. They &#xD;
can accordingly modify their strategies to satisfy consumers‘ changing demands and &#xD;
preferences (Agus et al., 2021). This study offers several theoretical and practical &#xD;
implications for entrepreneurs.</summary>
    <dc:date>2024-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
  </entry>
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