Journal of Management and Economic Studies

How Will Artificial Intelligence Perception Shape the Careers of Tourism Students? An EEG-Based Study

Sevgi Şengül AYAN — 2026-09-22

This study explores how tourism students, as future hospitality professionals, respond emotionally and cognitively to AI framed as either an opportunity or a threat. Unlike prior research relying on self-reports, this study uses electroencephalography (EEG) to capture implicit affective and cognitive responses. Forty students were randomly assigned to view positive AI statements (efficiency, sustainability, customer experience) or negative ones (job insecurity, reduced human interaction, ethics), after a baseline recording. EEG measured valence, arousal, approach–withdrawal orientation, and alpha synchronization. Results revealed a clear duality: positive statements produced positive valence, lower arousal, and higher alpha synchronization, indicating comfort and openness; negative statements triggered negative valence, higher arousal, and alpha desynchronization, reflecting stress and vigilance. Students recognized AI's benefits while remaining alert to its risks. The study highlights EEG's value in revealing subconscious responses complementing self-reports, underscoring the need for balanced educational strategies supporting sustainable AI integration in hospitality.

Impact of EU Sustainable Development Regulations on Vietnam’s Textile and Garment Exports: Challenges and Policy Implications

Hung Bui Viet — 2026-09-22

This study examines the impact of European Union (EU) sustainability regulations on Vietnam’s garment exports (HS codes 61–63) during 2023–2025, focusing on market access conditions, trade dynamics, and enterprise adaptation. This study combines an analysis of key EU policy frameworks, including the European Green Deal, ESPR, REACH, the Digital Product Passport (DPP), and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), with secondary trade data from ITC Trade Map. The findings show that Vietnam’s garment exports to the EU increased from USD 6.996 billion in 2023 to USD 9.062 billion in 2025, while its share of total EU imports increased only marginally from 3.32% to 3.81%. This trend suggests that EU sustainability regulations have not been accompanied by an immediate contraction in Vietnam’s exports. Rather, they are increasingly becoming structural conditions that influence competitive dynamics by raising requirements related to sustainable materials, chemical safety, digital traceability, and producer responsibility. To overcome compliance bottlenecks, the paper proposes policy solutions at two levels: macro-level institutional, financial, and infrastructural support, alongside enterprise-level investments in technological upgrading, sustainable material sourcing, data governance, and circular supply chain management.

Digital Reputation Formation through Customer Complaints: Evidence from Far Eastern Restaurants in an Urban Context

Yavuz ÇETİN — 2026-09-22

This study examines how recurring complaint patterns in user-generated reviews shape digital reputation formation for Far Eastern restaurants in Ankara. Using a purposive sample of 860 TripAdvisor reviews collected between 2015 and 2025 (117 complaint-containing reviews; 122 coded complaint instances), we integrate Social Identity Theory (SIT) and the Cultural Adaptation Model (CAM) to propose a three-step mechanism wherein perceived cultural authenticity mediates identity-congruence effects on reputational vulnerability, while adaptation strategies moderate these relations. Methodologically, the paper combines theory-informed thematic coding with quantitative content analysis (temporal comparisons, co-occurrence matrices, intra-brand dispersion; CV = 0.43) to link qualitative complaint themes to measurable reputation dynamics. Results show that service quality, food quality, and staff attitude are the principal drivers of negative evaluations; perceptions of inauthenticity amplify negative judgments and frequently co-occur with operational failures. A descriptive post-pandemic increase in hygiene complaints is observed but does not survive conservative multiple-comparison correction. Managerial implications include integrated complaint management, authenticity-sensitive marketing, and targeted staff training to mitigate user-generated reputational risk. The study contributes a socio-cultural, process-oriented account of digital reputation in ethnically framed hospitality contexts and offers a replicable mixed-methods approach for future comparative research.