This study explores the application of circular economy (CE) principles among women entrepreneurs in Serbia. Using survey data from 35 women-owned enterprises collected in 2024, the research analysed awareness, adoption patterns, and key drivers of CE implementation through Spearman’s rho correlation and descriptive statistics (IBM SPSS v29). Findings reveal high awareness of CE principles but modest practical adoption, mainly in waste reduction, reuse, and renewable material use. No significant link was found between enterprise size and CE adoption, suggesting that firm size does not determine circular engagement. Managerial mindset, environmental commitment, and consumer expectations emerged as the strongest motivators, while limited technical knowledge and financing remain major barriers. The study contributes to understanding gendered entrepreneurship in sustainability contexts and calls for targeted CE training, access to green financing, and stronger institutional support to advance women’s participation in the circular transition.

Given the fact that involvement of women in boardrooms and earnings reporting quality remain highly debated topics in the corporate environment — often offering mixed empirical evidence — this study reevaluates the gender–earnings management nexus from a regional perspective. Specifically, it investigates whether female presence on company boards and in CEO positions influences the extent of accrual-based earnings management. Applying panel data regression on a sample of 9,984 observations operating across Balkan economies between 2020 and 2022, the results reveal that a higher proportion of gender diversity within the board demonstrates a statistically significant effect on the extent of earnings management practices. However, a woman holding the CEO position does not seem to significantly constrain conservative earnings management behavior. These findings provide insights into how gender composition affects managerial decision-making and professional judgment in financial disclosure. By focusing on a transitional and institutionally evolving region, this research adds to the broader debate on whether gender diversity enhances ethical sensitivity and transparency in corporate governance. The results emphasize that while gender-balanced boards may foster more prudent reporting environments, leadership positions alone are insufficient to mitigate opportunistic financial behavior. The paper thus underscores the relevance of examining both structural and behavioral dimensions of gender balance when assessing the quality of earnings and corporate accountability.

Women's financial inclusion represents a key element in enhancing women's entrepreneurship. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of age, education, employment, income quintile, and region on the level of financial inclusion (FI). The data for the four Gulf countries (Gulf Cooperation Council) and five Western Balkan countries were gathered from the Global Findex Database 2017. The total sample includes 3,973 women. Multiple linear regression is used to investigate the impact of socio-demographic factors on FI. Additionally, the paper provides an overview of the latest available data on several indicators related to FI at the macro level. The results show that education, employment, and income quintile have a statistically significant positive impact on FI. The relationship between age and FI is statistically significant, exhibiting an inverted U-shape. This means that FI increases up to 55 years, and after that transition point, it starts to decline. Moreover, the region plays a significant role, considering that the level of FI of the respondents from Western Balkan countries is lower than that of those from the Gulf region.

In the recent era, artificial intelligence has entered the business sector by increasing business productivity, decision-making, and competitive advantage in markets for entrepreneurs. This is why the use of AI is a corresponding aspect of business activities across the globe. The study investigates the role of AI in supporting Emirati women entrepreneurs using mixed-method research. This approach allows research instruments like survey questionnaires and interviews to gain quantitative and qualitative insights. Using the convenience sampling procedure, quantitative data were gathered from 207 respondents, and interviews were conducted and analyses using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings indicate that AI-powered automation enhances the effectiveness of operations, minimises bureaucracy, and fosters evidence-based decision-making. In addition, AI opens access to funding by simplifying credit analysis and investment prospects, thus eliminating conventional financing hurdles. AI-based learning solutions also enhance skills, giving women entrepreneurs the skills to manoeuvre flexible business environments. Moreover, AI-based market analytics delivers richer customer insights, allowing customized services and business growth. Despite these benefits, data privacy and technology adoption issues are still pertinent. The research finds that AI is a game-changing facilitator for women entrepreneurs, enabling business scale and limiting gender-based hindrances in entrepreneurship. The study’s policy implications underscore the imperative for inclusive AI adoption policy, focused training programs, and facilitating policies to achieve the fullest possible potential for AI in catalysing women’s business success.

This paper examines the factors that influence the quality of life of women street vendors in Serang City, focusing on the contributions of environmentally friendly practices, entrepreneurial innovativeness, and financial inclusion. 100 participants were randomly selected and interviewed using structured questionnaires. Descriptive statistics provided insights into the respondents' profiles, while Structural Equation Modeling with Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) was used to analyze the relationships between the study variables. The results show that green practices have a significant positive impact on the well-being of women street vendors. Entrepreneurial innovation also proved to be a crucial factor that had a positive impact on their well-being. Green practices were found to promote entrepreneurial innovation, directly creating a reinforcing dynamic. Furthermore, a positive correlation was found between financial inclusion and well-being. It also played a mediating role by reinforcing the impact of green practices and entrepreneurial innovation on participants' well-being. In conclusion, the study shows that promoting green practices, entrepreneurial innovation and improving access to financial resources are important strategies to improve the quality of life of women street vendors in Serang City. These findings underscore the importance of integrated interventions to promote sustainable livelihoods and economic empowerment of women in the sector.

The purpose of this study was to validate a model that examines the effect of psychological capital on work stress, the mediation of authentic leadership, and the moderating effect of gender on this relationship. The study used a structural equation analysis to validate the research hypotheses in a sample of firms from different industries. The results confirm that psychological capital has a negative impact on work stress, as well as a positive relationship with authentic leadership, and the latter has a negative impact on work stress. The mediating effect of authentic leadership on the relationship between psychological capital and work stress was also confirmed. In addition, gender moderation shows that the impact of psychological capital on reducing work stress is stronger for women than for men. The findings provide conceptual information for improving employee performance by empirically validating the relationship between three constructs that have not previously been studied in an integrated manner. It also takes into account the differences between men and women in coping with work stress, which is very important for organizations. The surveys of the constructs studied are a potential source of information for managers because they help identify factors that contribute to improved employee performance. As with all research that examines psychological constructs, the present study has limitations related to the operationalization of these constructs. Future studies could replicate and extend the research in other economic sectors and with other demographic and cultural variables. The influence of other contexts on the relationships studied could be identified.

Social entrepreneurship is important to attaining the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) worldwide. Currently, women have been heavily involved in social entrepreneurship activities. However, until now, a study involving women of Minang ethnicity (matrilinear lineage) on the student's interest in social entrepreneurship still needs to be completed. The objective of this paper is to look into the impact of prosocial and intrinsic motivation antecedents on women’s social entrepreneurial intention. The inquiry model was tested in this study using a quantitative technique. This study involved 250 Minang students (female)who met the criteria that they had taken lectures for at least two semesters in Padang City. The moderating variables were investigated using the Moderated Regression Analysis (MRA) approach effect of intrinsic motivation (STATA). An interesting finding from this study is that prosocial motivation shows a positive and significant effect on social entrepreneurial intention. The urge to engage in social action triggers them to become social entrepreneurs. Although the results of the moderating effect are not proven, the implications of this investigation are very helpful for the government and higher education to develop a social entrepreneurship ecosystem and social entrepreneurship education. The originality of this paper lies in the fact that previous studies haven’t focused on the role of culture in shaping the social entrepreneurial intention of Minang students.

The research argues that financial and educational barriers affect women entrepreneurs in small and medium-sized businesses where business expansion is one of the major concerns in planning a business. It is not easy to create business relationships and networking in a short time, needs a proper interactive environment through a platform. This study identified a variety of barriers facing entrepreneurs in entrepreneurship, particularly related to financial, educational and include regular operation, market information, commercial communication, and professional networking due to limited contribution of different financial and non-financial institutions. It collected primary data through interviews with entrepreneurs of four small and medium businesses where two are specialized in goods, i.e., boutique, catering, and others two are specialized in services, i.e., event management and consultancy. It contributes to the existing literature on women's entrepreneurship by revealing an innovative way of supporting entrepreneurship through financial institutions. The study offers solutions to improve business conditions by investigating some businesses of women entrepreneurs who received entrepreneurship education through a university collaborated financial institution named City Alo, a section of City Bank in Bangladesh to solve their entrepreneurship challenges.

Entrepreneurship education research shows that women and men often differ in entrepreneurial attitudes, motives, barriers, circumstances, and actions. Drawing on such research, we explore the role of intrinsic, internal, psychological dimensions. First, female students often report lower entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and are less likely to report entrepreneurial aspirations and intentions. Second, intrinsic motives and barriers, not extrinsic ones, play a significant role in the entrepreneurial aspirations of women. Third, evidence suggests that faculty often do not share the same perceptions as female students of issues related to entrepreneurship. 
 By strengthening curricula and programs to address intrinsic, internal, psychological factors may bring positive outcomes—more successful support for entrepreneurial interest among women students, more effective education, and students with stronger psychological attributes beneficial for entrepreneurship. We offer an unusual and intriguing place to look for inspiration—the character and confidence-building techniques of military academies.

Women entrepreneurship is an emerging issue that captures the attention of researchers and policymakers. Women entrepreneurship is the source of making women financially independent, socially connected, and mentally healthy. Women entrepreneurship is the way to empower women to utilize their skill set to earn profit from small-scale businesses and create jobs for many people. However, women's entrepreneurship still gets attention in a socio-cultural country like India. Women are facing tremendous challenges in the way to pursue their business idea. This paper explores entrepreneurial intention among Indian women during the Covid-19 crisis. The study has used a semi-structured questionnaire consisting of 27 statements of entrepreneurship motives for data collection. A Sample of 550 women was approached from rural and urban areas in Haryana (India) through purposive sampling. The final sample comprises 528 women, representing a 96% response rate. Data has been analyzed through SPSS. The study has used descriptive statistics, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and one sample T-test as statistical tools. The study identified Knowledge, Financial Motivation, Family responsibility, and Under-Employment as determinants of Indian women's intention towards entrepreneurship in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. Knowledge, Money, Family, and Under-Employment factors significantly influence Indian women to choose entrepreneurship as a career in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.