International Journal of Social Sciences and Business Research

Volume 2, Issue 1 — Adaptation and Trust in the Digital Age: Business, Education, and Society in Emerging Economies

This issue brings together empirical and conceptual work examining how individuals, firms, and institutions respond to technological change and social disruption across emerging economies, with a strong focus on Southeast Asia. The contributions converge on three interlocking concerns. The first is the reshaping of consumer behaviour and trust by digital technologies, spanning artificial intelligence, mobile learning applications, telematics-based insurance, online rating platforms, and social media. The second is resilience and adaptation under pressure, from the post-pandemic recovery of tour operators and the professional challenges facing language teachers to compensatory consumption and the adaptive reuse of heritage spaces. The third is the evolving landscape of language learning, education, and cultural identity, including English for academic and tourism contexts, certification frameworks, and intercultural communication.

Drawing on quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method approaches, and grounded largely in Thai and Indonesian settings with selected international comparisons, the issue offers scholars and practitioners a cross-disciplinary view of how trust is built, eroded, and rebuilt as business, education, and society adapt to an increasingly digital world.