https://www.journaljemt.com/index.php/JEMT <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Journal of Economics, Management and Trade (ISSN:&nbsp;2456-9216)</strong> publishes manuscripts with valuable insight to research, ideas and strategies of economics, management and trade. By not excluding papers based on novelty, this journal facilitates the research and wishes to publish papers as long as they are technically correct and scientifically motivated. The journal also encourages the submission of useful reports of negative results. This is a quality controlled, OPEN peer-reviewed, open-access INTERNATIONAL journal.</p> Journal of Economics, Management and Trade en-US Journal of Economics, Management and Trade 2456-9216 https://www.journaljemt.com/index.php/JEMT/article/view/1433 <p>The desired for better enhancement of sustainable economic development in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries has tremendously increased environmental challenges of these region’s economies. Thereby, causing adverse effects on social human behavior despite series of efforts by the successive governments of the regions’. Given the above, this study is out to investigate the interactions among environmental factor, social factor and sustainable economic development in sub-Saharan Africa region. The study used annual time series data spanning from 1980 to 2023 and sourced from regional SSA pooled World Bank, World Development Indicator of 2023 database edition. Vector Autoregressive (VAR) model was used as estimation technique to achieve the objectives of the study. Result of multivariate co-integration test based on Johansen and Juselius co-integration technique, confirms the existence of a long run relationship among the variables in the model. Impulse response function estimates showed that carbon dioxide emissions, Nitro-oxide and poverty rate negatively affect economic development in SSA region and pronouncedly persistent throughout the forecast horizon. Further, the results of forecast error variance decomposition (FEVD) revealed that in the long run, carbon dioxide emissions, Nitro-oxide and poverty rate exerts a greater influence on economic development sustainability over time in SSA region in the 10^th period while other variables like population growth rate, literacy and inflation rates relatively exerts low influence in the region. The study concluded that environmental pollution indicators are highly pronounced in the region. Again, poverty and inflation levels as well as overpopulation are very high, thereby needs government intervention and control. This implies that SSA region’s government and policymakers should strengthen more than ever before on environmental regulations so as to improve social aspect life of the people for better improvement of economic development sustainability. The study therefore recommends among others that successive governments in the region should take adequate measure to improve literacy level, reduce both poverty and inflation rates, as well as population growth rate towards adopting birth control measure in the region.</p> Ilori, Isaac Aduralere Samuel, Titilayo Yemisi Copyright (c) 2026 Author(s). The licensee is the journal publisher. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 2026-06-03 2026-06-03 32 6 14 32 10.9734/jemt/2026/v32i61433 https://www.journaljemt.com/index.php/JEMT/article/view/1432 <p>Modern financial markets are increasingly shaped by behavioral biases and herding behavior, which challenge traditional assumptions of rational investor decision-making and contribute to market instability. This paper explores the influence of herding behavior on financial markets, outlining its primary drivers, underlying mechanisms, and resulting market outcomes. Using a qualitative, desk-based research design framed around thematic analysis, this study synthesizes findings from current academic studies, empirical research, and financial reports. The thematic analysis identified three main themes: the antecedents driving herding specifically uncertainty, information asymmetry, and market sentiment; the pathways through which herding is propagated namely informational herding, behavioral (emotional) herding, and the distinction between institutional and retail investor herding; and the consequences of herding behavior on markets, including increased volatility, speculative bubbles, and market crashes. Herding emerges from a multi-factor network of interdependent processes rather than any single cause, with implications that extend beyond individual behavior to systemic outcomes affecting the stability and efficiency of financial markets. The study further reveals a dynamic and circular relationship among these components, whereby herding outcomes such as heightened volatility can reignite the drivers that originally triggered collective behavior. Overall, the evidence presented lends strong support to behavioral finance as a viable theoretical framework for understanding modern financial markets, challenging key assumptions of the Efficient Market Hypothesis. The research carries considerable theoretical and practical implications for investors, policymakers, and financial regulators seeking to identify and mitigate the disruptive effects of herding in an increasingly digitally interconnected and information-saturated investment environment.</p> Intikhab Alam Alev Dilek AYDIN KORPES Copyright (c) 2026 Author(s). The licensee is the journal publisher. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 2026-06-01 2026-06-01 32 6 1 13 10.9734/jemt/2026/v32i61432