Guest editorial: Digital transformation and environmental sustainability in emerging markets: challenges and opportunities – a wake-up call to the “Global North”

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT

As the lead guest editor along with co-editors Professor Jessica Victoria Lichy, associate professor Derek Watson and Dr Wei Guan, am honoured to present this special issue of the Journal of International Organisation Analysis. This special issue calls for papers to explore the interplay between digital transformation and environmental sustainability in emerging markets, hoping to raise awareness in the global North. Emerging economies, while experiencing rapid economic expansion, also face significant sustainability pressures, including increased resource consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, pollution and social inequality (Garri, 2022; Gladys and Thierry, 2023). Digital technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data analytics, the Internet of Things and robotics have enormous potential to drive sustainable development in sectors such as manufacturing, energy, agriculture and transportation (Tsolakis et al., 2022; Spanaki et al., 2022). However, irresponsible deployment can have counterproductive effects, including higher energy consumption, e-waste, privacy risks and threats to livelihoods (Schaltegger et al., 2022).

Evidence-based management in practice: measuring the use of four core sources of evidence

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Purpose

This purpose of this empirical study is to develop and validate the Evidence-Based Management Source Utilisation Scale (EBM-SUS), a measure that captures the extent to which decision-makers draw on four core sources of evidence – scientific research, organisational data, professional expertise and stakeholder influence. The scale reflects both the use of individual sources (first-order factors) and an aggregated measure of overall utilisation (higher-order factor).

Design/methodology/approach

Two studies were conducted with leaders from the Maltese public service (voluntary participation). Study 1 (n = 202) used exploratory factor analysis to uncover the scales’ underlying factor structure. Study 2 (n = 227) used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to validate the measurement model and to examine relationships with two theoretically related constructs: risk aversion and conscientious decision-making.

Findings

The EBM-SUS measures demonstrated robust psychometric properties. All items loaded as expected on their respective constructs, and the higher-order factor effectively captured the shared variance among the four sources, supporting convergent and discriminant validity. Concurrent validity was also established through significant associations with conscientious decision-making and risk aversion, aligning with theoretical expectations in the EBM literature.

Originality/value

This study introduces a validated instrument for assessing the utilisation of four core sources of evidence in decision-making. It enables future research on evidence use by decision-makers, opening up research on evidence-based decision-making and deepening inquiry into decision-making practices in organisational contexts.

International Journal of Organizational Analysis Open Issues

Guest editorial: Digital transformation and environmental sustainability in emerging markets: challenges and opportunities – a wake-up call to the “Global North”

Evidence-based management in practice: measuring the use of four core sources of evidence