International Journal of Business and Society

THE IMPACT OF FOREIGN INVESTORS' ABNORMAL TRADING ON THE ABNORMAL RETURNS OF BANKING SECTOR STOCKS: THE CASE OF VIETNAM

Buu Kiem Dang, Le Thi Bao Nhu, Thi Huyen Thuong Trinh — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study aims to analyze the impact of foreign investors' abnormal trading on the abnormal returns of banking sector stocks in Vietnam from 2006 to 2023. The data sample includes 631 abnormal buy events, 571 abnormal buy events on net purchase days, 477 abnormal sell events, and 432 abnormal sell events on net sell days of foreign investors. The study employs the event study methodology with parametric and non-parametric tests. The results show that abnormal buy events and abnormal buy events on net purchase days by foreign investors convey positive information and have a positive impact on stock prices, creating positive abnormal returns, with stock prices forming new equilibrium levels. Abnormal sell events and abnormal sell events on net sell days convey negative information and have a negative impact on stock prices in the short term, after which prices tend to return to their initial states as before the events. The study suggests that investors can observe foreign investors' trading behavior as reference information in their investment decisions regarding banking sector stocks. Furthermore, it recommends that the government consider relaxing the "room" limit on foreign ownership in Vietnamese commercial banks to align with the objective of upgrading the stock market.

DRIVING FACTORS TO TOURISM DESTINATION ATTRACTIVENESS IN ISKANDAR MALAYSIA: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ENJOYMENT

Sook-Fun Fong, Hui-Siang Tan, See-Mei Low, Sang-Long Choi — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Tourism destination attractiveness undeniably contributes to sustainable tourism. However, Iskandar Malaysia lacks a robust marketing strategy. This highlights that there is a need to investigate the driving factors and the mediating effect of enjoyment on tourism destination attractiveness from the tourist’s perspective, using Social Cognitive Theory and Comparative Advantage Theory. A total of 215 tourists participated voluntarily and IBM SPSS and SmartPLS 4.0 were applied. Interestingly, the findings revealed that price sensitivity, entrepreneurial competency, and self-efficacy are mediated by enjoyment toward tourism destination attractiveness. This study contributes to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 11 for sustainable cities.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OPEN INNOVATION AND ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM MALAYSIAN PUBLIC SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS

Mohd Uzairi Ahmad Hajazi, Mohd Rizal Razalli, Yuhainis Mohd Yusoff — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

While confronting a multitude of internal and external challenges, public service organizations are consistently subjected to greater expectation and public scrutiny to perform. As such, previous studies have suggested that innovation could play important roles in enhancing the performance of public service organizations, especially by leveraging external resources and capabilities through open innovation. Despite the promise of how advantageous open innovation is, there is conflicting evidence of its impact on organizational performance. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the relationship between open innovation and organizational performance in the context of public service organizations. Through a survey questionnaire collected from 112 out of 155 local authorities in Malaysia, quantitative data were analyzed using PLS-SEM in the SmartPLS 4 software to test hypotheses of this study. The results suggest that while open innovation has a significant positive effect on organizational performance, the relationship was not moderated by the type of innovation. The findings of this study provide some new insights into the impact of open innovation on organizational performance, particularly in the public sector. Nevertheless, it is recommended for future research to investigate the specific impacts of different open innovation activities or types on performance in a more diverse context.

AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF TEAM PERFORMANCE IN INDONESIA’s MULTINATIONAL FMCG COMPANY: MODERATING AND MEDIATING EFFECTS

Damar Aji Irawan, Richard Juan Yosepha, Samuel Christian Lianto — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This research examines how Leader-Member Exchange Social Comparison (LMXSC) and Relative Perceived Organizational Support (RPOS) affect team performance. It also examines how hubristic pride plays a role in this process, with willingness to support the organization influencing team performance. In particular, this study used social comparison to bring together the theories of LMXSC and RPOS. It measured variables from previous studies, such as arrogance and willingness to support both social comparison applications. Therefore, this should provide new insight into the managerial applications of both theories when combined. This study used a cross-sectional method with 200 respondents from a multinational FMCG. The data was analyzed using structured equation modeling of partial least squares (SEM-PLS) and SmartPLS 4.0 software for data processing tools. The results showed that hubristic pride only moderates the positive impact of LMXSC on team performance and willingness to support. This study also found that RPOS positively impacts willingness to support and team performance only without hubristic pride. The results from this study indicate that LMXSC and RPOS relate to each other, significantly influencing individual and organizational settings, respectively. This research offers new evidence for the social comparison theory and highlights the importance of considering social and psychological factors in managing employees.

BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE, STRATEGY INNOVATION, AND DIGITAL VALUE CREATION FOR BUSINESS PERFORMANCE ON DIGITAL CREATIVE INDUSTRIES

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises’ (MSMEs) business performance in digital creative industries still remain an issue in Indonesia. This paper evaluates the influence of business intelligence on business performance through digital value creation mediated by innovation strategy. This research is conducted in the digital creative industries using 104 respondents consisting of managers and company owners in Indonesia. The method used is Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that business intelligence exhibits positive and significant impact both on digital value creation and innovation strategy. Apart from that, innovation strategy exhibits positive and significant impact on digital value creation. Lastly, digital value creation exhibits positive and significant impact on business performance. Likewise, the indirect influence of all variables in the model shows positive and significant results. A major limitation of this study is the study sample. Since the sample covers only eight cities in Indonesia, it does not represent the whole of Indonesia. However, since no empirical study has evaluated business intelligence through digital value creation mediated by strategy innovation, this study makes a unique contribution to business performance on digital creative industries in Indonesia.

CONSTRUCTING AN INDEX FOR CROSS-BORDER E-COMMERCE DEVELOPMENT LEVELS BASED ON ECOSYSTEM THEORY: EMPIRICAL INSIGHTS FROM RCEP COUNTRIES

Li Li Zhang, Muhammad Asraf bin Abdullah, Min Huang, Li Hong Dai — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study assesses the development levels of cross-border e-commerce among Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) nations from 2013 to 2022. The study synthesizes global literature on e-commerce ecosystem theories, key influencing factors, and measurement approaches to construct a multidimensional indicator system. This system integrates the TIMG index to provide a comprehensive analysis of the digital economy's impacts. By employing principal component analysis in Stata, the study formulates a scoring methodology to evaluate e-commerce development across RCEP nations, highlighting trends over the decade. The results identify China, Japan, and Singapore as leading nations, followed closely by South Korea and Australia. New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines comprise the third tier, while Laos ranks at the lowest development level. The study emphasizes the critical roles of logistics and information flow in e-commerce development, providing valuable insights for future explorations within the RCEP framework.

WHY GO THE EXTRA MILE FOR APPLE? A DIVE INTO BRAND LOVE AND BRAND JEALOUSY

Ferry Tema Atmaja, Lizar Alfansi, Rauda Maharani Putri, Revanth Kumar Guttena — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Shifting brand strategies increasingly emphasize fostering emotional connections, such as brand love and brand jealousy, to enhance consumers’ willingness to pay a premium. Although extensive research has examined these emotional constructs, their relevance in the “masstige” context—brands that combine mass appeal with prestige, exemplified by Apple—remains underexplored. This study addresses this gap by investigating how brand experience and self-expressiveness act as antecedents to brand love and brand jealousy, which subsequently influence willingness to pay a premium, framed through the lens of attribution theory. Data were collected from 378 Indonesian Apple users through offline and online surveys and analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling with AMOS software version 24. The results demonstrate that brand experience significantly strengthens both brand love and brand jealousy, thereby enhancing consumer-brand relationships. While self-expressiveness also contributes to both emotional constructs, its impact is comparatively weaker than that of brand experience. Both brand love and brand jealousy were found to positively influence consumers’ willingness to pay a premium. This study presents a comprehensive model linking emotional bonds to consumer spending behavior in the masstige context, providing actionable insights for brand managers to enhance emotional connections and drive premium pricing strategies.

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AND EFFICIENCY: EVIDENCE FROM INDONESIAN BANKS

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Recent studies suggest that digitalization does not uniformly enhance bank efficiency. A critical factor influencing this outcome is the size of the institution undergoing digital transformation (DT). Small and medium-sized commercial banks often encounter challenges such as limited financial resources and difficulty in adapting digital solutions that align with market conditions, thereby leading to DT failures. This study investigates the impact of DT on bank efficiency. Our analysis focuses on a sample of conventional Indonesian banks from 2015 to 2023. We also explore how digitalization affects the efficiency of both large and small banks. Regression analysis reveals nuanced findings. In large banks, the coefficient of DT2 does not significantly affect performance, whereas in small and medium-sized banks, it exhibits a statistically significant negative relationship. This suggests that digitalization influences bank performance non-linearly, posing different implications for banks of varying sizes. This study contributes to understanding the heterogeneous impacts of DT on bank efficiency, offering insights relevant not only to the Indonesian banking sector, but also to other emerging markets undertaking similar DT strategies.

BRIDGING THE GAP: ORGANISATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AS A CATALYST FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT FULFILMENT AND KNOWLEDGE SHARING

Sharmila Jayasingam, Ravikumar Balu, Muhammad Zia-Ur-Rehman — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study sets out to investigate the influence of psychological contract fulfilment and organisational identification on knowledge sharing behaviour among knowledge workers. A survey-based study on 233 knowledge workers was conducted to investigate the direct and indirect effect of psychological contract fulfilment. Results show that organisational identification mediates the effect of psychological contract fulfilment on knowledge sharing behaviour. This study highlights the pertinence of fulfilling the underlying expectations of knowledge workers to encourage them to share their valuable knowledge. While numerous studies which employed the social exchange theory (SET) had attempted to identify specific factors that could encourage employee to initiate knowledge sharing, this study focused on the underlying process that could explain why these factors worked in encouraging knowledge sharing. Fundamentally, this study posited that when psychological contracts were not violated, employees tend to identify with their organisations better. Consequently, they share their valuable knowledge with others within the organisation.

INTERACTIVITY OF STRATEGIC ORIENTATIONS AND ENTERPRISE RISK MANAGEMENT IN ADVANCING FINANCIAL PROSPERITY OF MSMEs IN GHANA

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Business leaders and academics in the business management space continue to find ways to enhance the financial prosperity of MSMEs in the wake of continual threatening business environmental risks. Many continue to view business strategy as a key tool for business advancement. This research aims to study the mediating effect of ERM on the impact of prospector and defender strategies on financial prosperity of Ghanaian MSMEs. Quantitative data was collected with aid of questionnaire. The study employed the partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) via SmartPLS in testing the hypotheses of the study. The results indicated that ERM significantly mediates the relationship between prospector and defender strategies and the financial prosperity of MSMEs serving as mechanism through which strategic orientations translate into financial outcomes. The findings of the research proved advantageous for managers of MSMEs in that it aids them to push for knowledge regarding the influence of diverse business strategies on financial performance and be able to identify risks that militate against firms’ financial prosperity. The results of the study can be utilised by policymakers in formulating policies and devising supportive programmes on efficient adoption of business strategies and the effective implementation of enterprise risk management practices.

WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR BORNEAN ORANGUTAN CONSERVATION IN SARAWAK, MALAYSIA

Nur Rasyiqah Adam, Nor Afiza Abu Bakar, Dayang Affizzah Awang Marikan — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Although endangered and protected by the strongest regulations on the island of Borneo, Bornean orang-utans are threatened by forest loss, habitat degradation, and poaching. The overall population of Bornean orangutans is estimated to be only 104,700 in total, which is less than half of the population a century ago. Thus, this study aims to measure the non – market value of the conservation of Bornean orangutans in Sarawak, both in Matang Wildlife Centre (MWC) and the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre (SWC). Applying the contingent valuation method (CVM), non - visitors’ willingness to pay (WTP) for the entrance fee of SWC and MWC in order to conserve Bornean orangutans were measured. Overall, the respondents show positive attitude towards conserving Bornean orangutans. 90% of the 600 respondents vote in favour of Bornean Orangutan Conservation Program, while the mean WTP is RM206.98. They also believe that it is everyone’s duty to ensure that plants and animals today will exist for the future generations. The results of this study will be useful for the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC), government and researchers alike to manage and conserve Bornean orangutans and other endangered species more efficiently.

MARKETING BOYCOTT MODEL IN INDONESIA: A STUDY USING SOCIAL IDENTITY AND PLANNED BEHAVIOR THEORIES

Shine Pintor Siolemba Patiro, Sri Yusriani, Kresno Agus Hendarto, Muji Gunarto — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study examines the role of self-identity expressiveness and social-identity expressiveness in marketing boycotts of products perceived to be affiliated with Israel in Indonesia. An extended model of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), incorporating identity and social influences, is developed and tested. The study utilizes a sample of 571 individuals from Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi, selected through purposive sampling. Data analysis is conducted using structural equation modeling (SEM) with IBM SPSS AMOS software. The findings confirm that self-identity expressiveness and social-identity expressiveness significantly influence behavioral intentions. Additionally, the study explores the relationship between self-identity expressiveness and attitudes, as well as between social-identity expressiveness and subjective norms. The results indicate that subjective norms alone are sufficient to capture the broader range of identity and social influences shaping boycott intentions. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed, offering insights for marketing practitioners and scholars.

ASSESSING UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ PURCHASE INTENTION TOWARD THE ECO-FRIENDLY STATIONERY: THE MODERATION ROLE OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN

Liong Lily, Kelvin Yong Ming Lee, Shen Yi, Pick-Soon Ling — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Sustainable products like eco-friendly stationery have gained much attention recently due to the increasing awareness and consciousness of consumers towards environmental issues. Numerous sustainable products have been studied in the literature but very limited studies have primarily concentrated on eco-friendly stationery from the perspective of university students. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the factors that affect Malaysian university students’ purchase intention (PI) towards eco-friendly stationery. Two environmental factors (perceived environmental responsibility (PER) and environmental knowledge (EK)) have been incorporated into the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) model together with environmental concern (EC) proposed as a moderator to develop this study’s research model. In this study, 261 usable responses were gathered via purposive sampling. This study utilised the partial least square-structural equation modelling to validate the proposed hypotheses. The result first showed that attitude (ATT), subjective norms (SN), and PER played significant roles in affecting students’ PI towards eco-friendly stationery. Additionally, the moderation analysis further revealed that the influence of SN on PI is significantly strengthened by EC. These findings signified that the students’ PI is directly impacted by ATT, SN and PER only, while the greater EC tends to further enhance the effect of SN on PI. This study’s findings firstly enrich the literature by offering new evidence on the students’ sustainable behaviour, especially in eco-friendly stationery. Besides, the moderating effect of EC on sustainable behaviour is also proven in this study. Moreover, numerous practical implications have also been resulting from this study and it’s useful for the stakeholders to cultivate the students’ sustainable behaviour.

THE IMPACT OF GOVERNMENT SIZE ON ECONOMIC GROWTH IN CHINESE PREFECTURE-LEVEL CITIES: DOES FISCAL TRANSPARENCY MATTER?

Cong Liu, Judhiana Abd Ghani, Wency Bui Kher Thinng — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Recent studies have examined how institutions influence the relationship between government size and economic growth. However, they have largely overlooked the significance of fiscal transparency, which can help bridge the information gap between governments and citizens. Furthermore, these studies typically concentrate on national or state levels, neglecting local governments that are primarily responsible for delivering public goods. This study investigates the impact of local government size on economic growth in Chinese prefecture-level cities, emphasizing the moderating role of fiscal transparency. We employ a dynamic panel model with two-way fixed effects and the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) for estimation. The data encompasses 283 cities from 2013 to 2022. The main findings are as follows: In the absence of fiscal transparency, local government size positively influences economic growth; however, fiscal transparency negatively moderates this relationship. Moreover, as fiscal transparency increases, the positive effect diminishes and becomes statistically insignificant once it exceeds a certain threshold. Robustness checks using alternative measures and estimation techniques validate the results. The primary originality of this study lies in quantifying the moderating role of fiscal transparency in the relationship between government size and growth. These findings challenge the New Institutional Theory, which asserts that institutions directly drive growth, and provide a novel perspective on the interplay between government size and economic performance, offering valuable insights for policymakers aiming to balance government size and transparency for sustainable development.

DETERMINANTS OF GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ADOPTION IN INSURANCE COMPANIES

Xu Zaijuan, T. Ramayah, Shi Yubo — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study aims to investigate the factors that influence the adoption of Generative artificial intelligence (GEN-AI) in insurance companies by utilizing the technology-organization-environment (TOE) framework.
This study employs the TOE framework to examine the factors that impact the GEN-AI adoption at organizational level and was conducted on 307 insurance company managers and analysed using partial least squares (PLS). The research offers insurance companies and policy maker insights and recommendations for GEN-AI adoption. The empirical results reveal that relative advantage (RA), perceived compatibility (PC) and top management support (TMS) significantly influence GEN-AI adoption, CP, OR have positive effect on TMS, but perceived compatibility (PC) cannot significantly influence GEN-AI adoption. TMS mediates between competitive pressure（CP） and GEN-AI in insurance firms, and it also mediates between organizational readiness (OR) and GEN-AI. This study provides countermeasure advice to AI technology developers, insurance company manager, and practitioners.

INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL, R&D AND SUSTAINABLE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: MODERATING ROLE OF FIRM CHARACTERISTICS IN AN EMERGING MARKET

Hanh Thi My Le, Nguyen Ngoc Uyen, Nguyen Thi Thanh Huong, Irene Wei Kiong Ting — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Intellectual capital (IC) is a crucial driver of sustainable financial performance, particularly in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. This study uses panel data from Vietnamese firms between 2017 and 2022 to investigate how IC and research and development (R&D) investment influence firm sustainability in an emerging market. This research, compared with previous studies, confirms the positive impact of IC and R&D on short- and long-term financial stability and also highlights the moderating role of firm characteristics. Specifically, firm size and growth rate enhance the benefits of R&D investment, whilst older firms exhibit a diminishing effect, potentially owing to reduced adaptability or innovation capacity. By emphasising the relationship amongst R&D, IC and firm characteristics, this study offers fresh insights into maximising financial sustainability in dynamic markets. Findings provide a foundation for future research and practical strategies to foster long-term competitiveness in emerging economies.

BALANCING SUSTAINABILITY AND INNOVATION: EXPLORING THE INTERVENTION OF STRATEGIC AMBIDEXTERITY IN PROCESS INNOVATION

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Accomplishing sustainable performance notwithstanding an inexorably uncertain environment has become both a basic test and a convincing objective inside the domain of contemporary business. Even with rising uncertainty, accomplishing sustainable performance has arisen as a foremost test and a convincing objective in contemporary business. The study aims to address the imperative set by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs) by exploring the mediation role of strategic ambidexterity in the relationship between intellectual capital dimensions (Structural Capital, Relational Capital, Human Capital, Social Capital) and sustainable performance within businesses. Given the increasing global challenges, particularly the call for sustainability, this research investigates the intricate connections among these variables. Employing quantitative methods and Smart PLS, the study conducted an online survey distributed to managers of selected hotels, yielding 385 workable responses out of 500. The results reveal a positive correlation among the variables of interest, confirming the acceptance of all hypotheses. In conclusion, the findings suggest that hotels strategically leveraging their intellectual capital for innovative exploration and exploitation processes exhibit enhanced capabilities to attain sustainable performance, aligning with the broader goals of global sustainability. The managers could benefit from the implementation of putting resources into the turn of maintenance of a very capable workforce, supporting social ties inside and outside the association. Furthermore, executing situation arranging and possibility techniques empower fast arrangement, adding to sustained performance.

THE ROLE OF INNOVATION IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FDI AND INCOME INEQUALITY: EVIDENCE FROM A TRANSITION ECONOMY

Tuan Nhat Pham, Hoanh Thi Hoang Lam, Yan-Jie Yang — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This study explores the impact of innovation and foreign direct investment (FDI) on income inequality, emphasizing the moderating role of innovation in the relationship between FDI and income inequality, using panel data from 63 Vietnamese provinces from 2005 to 2020. As economic expansion raises concerns about income inequality in Vietnam, understanding the distributional effects of innovation and FDI is essential. While innovation fosters technological progress and job creation, its benefits primarily accrue to skilled labor and capital-intensive sectors, potentially widening income inequality. Similarly, FDI promotes economic expansion, but its effects on inequality depend on absorptive capacity and investment composition, which may exacerbate income gaps. Using the system generalized method of moments (GMM) method on 1,008 observations, the findings reveal a U-shaped relationship between innovation and income inequality, whereas FDI exhibits an inverted U-shaped relationship. Specifically, innovation exacerbates inequality beyond a threshold of 27.63, while FDI reduces inequality once it exceeds 0.76. Moreover, the negative coefficient of the interaction variable between innovation and FDI suggests that innovation weakens the impact of FDI on income inequality. These findings remain robust when substituting the Human Development Index as an inequality proxy and align with modernization and endogenous growth theories. This study contributes novel empirical insights and policy implications for promoting inclusive innovation and sustainable investment, advancing Sustainable Development Goal 10 on inequality reduction.

BREAKING THE VIRTUAL WALL: WHY BUSINESSES RESIST METAVERSE IN THE RETAIL INDUSTRY?

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

While the metaverse is considered the next big thing associated with the information system ecosystem, this disruptive technology has not been widely adopted by many of the enterprises to date. Given its potential to drive the success of businesses as evidence across literature, this study aims to investigate retail enterprises’ non-adoption intentions toward the metaverse. The Technology, Organisation, and Environment (TOE) framework is used as an underpinning theory to examine the impact of various barriers on non-adoption intention towards the metaverse. Data were collected from 400 large- and medium-sized retail enterprises in China and analysed using partial least-squares structural equation models (PLS-SEM) to ensure reliability and test hypotheses. The findings indicate that both technological barriers (i.e., perceived complexity and perceived risk), organisational barriers (i.e., a lack of top management support), and environmental barriers (i.e., a lack of governance and standardisation) were found to have a significant effect on resistance to the adoption of the metaverse in retailing, which in turn significantly influenced non-adoption intentions. It is believed that the findings from this study will provide a better understanding of the metaverse's adoption from a business organisation's perspective and its impact on related stakeholders.

TOURIST VOICES ON TWITTER: SENTIMENT AND TOPIC ANALYSIS FOR SUSTAINABLE TOURISM IN PENANG

Kun Zhu, Nor Hasliza Md Saad, Ghada ElSayad, Muhamad Mu’az Mohd Ali, Jiahui Qian — Sun, 27 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0800

This research aims to analyse the opinions expressed in tweets about a tourism destination in Malaysia and elucidate the dominant topics discussed on Twitter. This research examines tourist sentiment on a Malaysian destination from a sustainability perspective by analysing 18,018 tweets, collected from November 9, 2021, to January 9, 2022, using Lexicon-based sentiment analysis for polarity detection and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) for topic modelling. Results revealed that 46% of sentiments were positive, 39% were neutral, and 15% were negative. Tourists primarily discussed food, tourist spots, events, hotels, traffic, and driver attitudes. Core tourism services received positive feedback, whereas additional fees were noted as less favourable. The integration of sentiment analysis and LDA enables a nuanced understanding of tourist experiences, providing actionable insights for policymakers and businesses to enhance sustainable tourism practices and optimize resource management in Penang.