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Article History

Received: 17 May 2025

Accepted: 28 April 2026

First Online: 11 May 2026

Competing interests

: The authors declare no competing interests.

: This study was conducted as part of a doctoral research project at the University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore, Pakistan. Ethical clearance was obtained through the institutional academic review process, including approval from the Departmental Research Committee and the Board of Advanced Studies and Research (BASR) (approved on 8 June 2022). In accordance with UMT policy, formal ethics approval numbers are not issued; however, all research involving human participants is subject to institutional oversight. The study adhered to the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and complied with relevant institutional and national research guidelines.

: Informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to data collection. Adult participants provided written consent, while for adolescent participants, written consent was obtained from parents or legal guardians, along with verbal assent from the adolescents. Participants were informed of the purpose of the study, their voluntary participation, and their right to withdraw at any time without consequence. Confidentiality and anonymity were ensured through the use of pseudonyms and secure data handling procedures.