bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The influence of promotional activity and different electoral systems on voter turnout
Authors: Whitelock Amy , Whitelock Jeryl , van Heerde Jennifer
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate EU election data for the UK and Germany and examine the influence of promotional activity (party campaigning) and the different voting systems prevailing in these two countries – first past the post (FPTP) in the UK and proportional representation (PR) in Germany – on voter turnout.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper takes the form of a binomial logistic regression analysis of individual‐level survey data from the European Election Studies (EES) archive.

Findings

The findings suggest a general link between electoral systems, party campaigning and voter turnout. Individuals are more likely to turn out under PR systems, while “party campaigning” – including door‐to‐door canvassing and leafleting – also had a substantial positive effect on self‐reported turnout.

Research limitations/implications

The structure of the EES survey questions means that it is impossible to separate out which mode of campaigning (impersonal or face‐to‐face) is driving the observed strong positive relationship between the variable “party campaigning” and voter turnout. More survey research should be carried out to tease out which specific types of promotional activity have more of an influence on voter turnout. In addition, aggregate level research on campaigning patterns across countries with different voting systems would be helpful to explore this phenomenon in more depth.

Originality/value

While research has been undertaken within the context of specific countries such as the UK, USA and New Zealand, there appears to have been no research reported within the context of the EU.
Measuring political brand equity: a consumer oriented approach
Authors: French Alan , Smith Gareth
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of how voters view the political brand by analysing the mental maps that voters create when asked to think about a political party. The analysis is both in terms of the nature of the maps and also in terms of the equity associated with a map.

Design/methodology/approach

A consumer‐oriented approach is developed for mapping the political brand. The brand maps are analysed to discern brand characteristics. Furthermore, methods are developed to assess the power of political brands and concomitantly, political brand equity.

Findings

The method provides interesting insights into the nature and equity of brand associations for the two main political protagonists, i.e. Conservative and Labour. Key branded characteristics are highlighted for each party, both in terms of general structure, and also those associations that form a central role in voters' maps. For the partisan sample chosen, both parties are shown to have strong brand equity, with the Conservatives slightly stronger than Labour.

Practical implications

The method is straightforward to apply and provides important information to political marketers about the nature and power of the associations held in memory by voters. Taking a wider stance, the approach can be applied to any branding situation.

Originality/value

This paper provides a means by which a brand mapping process, new to politics, can be combined with methods facilitating the analysis of brand maps to produce a means by which brand equity can be measured.
A marketing poll: an innovative approach to prediction, explanation and strategy
Authors: Ben‐Ur Joseph , Newman Bruce I.
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an evaluation of a newspaper insert survey and web‐based voter surveys associated with the same newspaper, conducted before and after the 2004 US presidential election.

Design/methodology/approach

The study compares response rates, demographics, and political profiles of voters responding to these two different channels of communication and evaluates the success of each in predicting the election outcome.

Findings

The study results show some significant differences between the two methods of voter data collection; nevertheless, each is useful in a comprehensive system that attempts to follow voter attitudes and intentions before the election and predict election outcome.

Origiality/value

The study relies on the use of an innovative marketing poll that goes beyond simple prediction of a voter's behavior and offers an explanatory component useful in the development of marketing strategies during a campaign.
Training employees of a public Iranian bank on emotional intelligence competencies
Authors: Beigi Mina , Shirmohammadi Melika
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the possibility of developing emotional intelligence (EI) as conceptualized in Boyatzis et al.'s competency model.

Design/methodology/approach

Designing a context‐based EI training program, the study utilized a sample of 68 fully‐employed members of five branches of a public bank in Iran; each branch underwent an eight‐week (each session 120 minutes) EI training program. Pre‐ and post‐tests were conducted to assess EI development using emotional competence inventory (ECI‐2), a 360‐degree measurement tool.

Findings

Only one EI cluster out of four improved significantly and only some of the specific dimensions showed this significant improvement, while others did not have a clear change and even some self assessments deteriorated.

Research limitations/implications

Lack of a control group, small sample size, and short training program are the main limitations of this study.

Practical implications

Detailed explanation of the method could be a guide for service organizations that wish to improve EI.

Originality/value

Because of the lack of empirical studies in this field of research, the paper reports the results of a pre‐/post study on EI training and development and sets out to add to this narrow literature.
Social skills and social values training for future k‐workers
Authors: Sail Rahim M. , Alavi Khadijah
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The main purpose of this paper is to determine the extent of acquisition of knowledge on social skills and social values by trainers of institutes and coaches of industries in training of trainers (ToT) programmes. It has been ascertained that social skills and social values can and must be taught to apprentices to enhance their employability skills as well as to remove any barriers for upward mobility in their careers.

Design/methodology/approach

A four‐day ToT‐cum‐workshop was organized using “hands‐on” experiential outdoor learning activities with lots of interactions, discussions and reflections between participants and participants, and between participants and facilitators. A retrospective post‐ then‐pre‐evaluation design was employed to determine the amount of knowledge acquired by the participants using a four point Likert‐type statements. Using the Handbook of Social Skills and Social Values as a guide, eight core social skills and eight core social values that were relevant to NDTS were identified, emphasized and evaluated in the training programme.

Findings

The overall findings indicate that there was about +20 per cent increase in knowledge among the participants on social skills and social values after the training programme. These findings indicate that social skills and social values can be taught when participants show increases in knowledge on all the social skills and social values studied.

Practical implications

Trainers of institutes and coaches of industries can integrate social skills and social values in their technical curriculum to provide apprentices with the foundation of human and social competence required to be an effective workforce to face future challenges and global competition.

Originality/value

This paper provides evidence that social skills and social values can be taught through appropriate teaching/learning techniques as well as providing the right learning environment.
The moderating role of cultural similarity in leadership training effectiveness
Authors: Xu Qiumei Jane , Jiang Jianfeng
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the moderating role of cultural similarity between leaders and followers on leadership training effectiveness in terms of followers' fairness perception and organizational citizenship behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

A quasi‐experiment was conducted with 40 managers from international corporations as the subjects. The 40 subjects were equally assigned to a treatment group and a control group. In each group, half share similar backgrounds with the followers while the other half do not. Leadership training was offered to managers in the treatment group, but not to those in the control group.

Findings

Results show that leadership training has positive effects on followers' fairness perception and organizational citizenship behavior, and the effects are stronger for those leaders who are similar to their followers in cultural background.

Research limitations/implications

The study further supports that followers' fairness perception and organizational citizenship behavior will be enhanced if their leaders receive proper leadership training, and it is the first to demonstrate that cultural similarity between leaders and followers plays an important role in influencing leadership training effectiveness.

Practical implications

The training program described in this study is straightforward, inexpensive, easy to implement, and can be used by organizations with a diverse workforce to improve their training effectiveness and facilitate their leaders' managerial efforts.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to examine how cultural similarity between leaders and followers influences leadership training effectiveness.
Hybrid car purchase intentions: a cross‐cultural analysis
Authors: Oliver Jason D. , Lee Seung‐Hee
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to compare US and Korean consumers' intentions to purchase a high involvement, environmentally friendly product: the hybrid car.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examines how social factors and culture shape intentions to purchase a hybrid car using survey data from 1,083 US drivers and 783 Korean drivers.

Findings

The paper shows that self‐image congruence and propensity to seek information about green products have strong positive relationships with intentions to purchase a hybrid car among consumers from both countries. Perceived social value associated with the consumption of hybrid cars also has a strong positive relationship with intentions to purchase a hybrid car among Korean and, contrary to expectations, US consumers. In contrast, social value associated with green products, in general, has a negative relationship with US consumer hybrid purchase intentions.

Research limitations/implications

The use of a web‐based survey of drivers regarding hybrid cars may limit the generalizability of the results to other products and countries. Therefore, it is necessary to replicate the results.

Practical implications

In light of the results, marketers of hybrid cars in Korea and the USA should consider communicating about the social value of hybrid vehicle adoption and the positive reflection of ownership on the consumer's self‐image, focusing on consumers who actively seek information about green products. However, marketers of hybrid cars in the USA limit references to the social value of green products, in general, which may be a turn‐off.

Originality/value

This paper increases knowledge about the impact of social and cultural factors on decision making regarding hybrid cars.
Gender, store satisfaction and antecedents: a case study of a grocery store
Authors: Helgesen Øyvind , Nesset Erik
Published: March 2010

Purpose

In social psychology literature, gender is often an important predictor of differential outcomes. However, gender as it influences consumer behavior has not attracted much research interest in a retailing context. The main purpose of this paper is to analyze associations between gender, drivers (antecedents) of store satisfaction and store satisfaction in grocery retailing. It employs various approaches. Thus an additional purpose is to discuss the findings from the various approaches with respect to consumer marketing.

Design/methodology/approach

The data source is a survey among customers of a chain‐based Norwegian grocery store. T‐tests, factor analyses and various multiple regression analyses were conducted.

Findings

A direct significant effect of gender on store satisfaction was found when controlling for other included antecedents. Gender does not have any moderating effect on the relationships between antecedents and store satisfaction. Females have higher satisfaction levels than males, but the satisfaction drivers are gender independent.

Research limitations/implications

This research has been applied to a specific grocery store belonging to a specific chain of retailing grocery stores.

Practical implications

Findings that could be perceived as mixed, confusing and difficult to handle in decision making are discussed and clarified, which should provide consumer marketers insights into resource allocation with respect to the “satisfaction‐profit chain.”

Originality/value

Gender has only a direct effect on store satisfaction. Stable gender‐independent drivers of store satisfaction were identified. These insights can contribute to consumer marketing activities that favorably influence shoppers' attitudes, thus resulting in sustained revenues and profitability in the future.
Choosing non‐conventional treatments: consumers' attempt at controlling health care
Authors: Rajamma Rajasree K. , Pelton Lou E.
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore the determinants of consumer's propensity to choose non‐conventional treatment protocols using control theory as the theoretical framework.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from a consumer panel using a self‐administered questionnaire. The sample consisted of 350 US‐based “Baby Boomer” consumers.

Findings

The results of this study indicate that consumers' health locus of control self‐efficacy, and neuroticism impact their propensity to use non‐conventional treatments. Contrary to previous studies, consumers' health value was not a significant moderator except in the case of internal health locus of control.

Practical implications

The findings of this study provide guidance to public policy makers, health care providers, and managers of the conventional and non‐conventional pharmaceutical industries. Specially, the results reify the importance of the collaborative efforts of public policy makers and health care practitioners alike to proactively inform consumers of the issues underlying unsupervised use of non‐conventional medications. The results suggest greater governance is needed to control the marketing of non‐conventional medications. Overall, this research provides prescriptive guidance for marketers of both non‐conventional and conventional treatments, suggesting how better promotional and integrated communications may effectively serve their target markets.

Originality/value

The paper examines an unexplored yet rapidly growing consumption behavior in the USA: the unprecedented use of non‐conventional treatments. Evaluation of this consumer trend has largely focused on demographic factors relative to adopters (and non‐adopters). Control theory affords a conceptual foundation for exploring individual‐level factors that have been overlooked in previous empirical studies.
Selection criteria of Lebanese consumers in the global snack food industry: country of origin perceptions
Authors: Zbib Imad J. , Wooldridge Barbara R. , Ahmed Zafar U. , Benlian Sarkis
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to study country of origin perceptions of Lebanese consumers with respect to potato chips, the correlation involved between country of manufacture and consumer behavior; purchase intent; and product quality.

Design/methodology/approach

Four hypotheses in respect to country of origin perceptions on potato chip purchases were tested. The research was conducted in three phases: qualitative research was done to determine key attributes in potato chip selection, these findings were used to create a questionnaire, and a sample from 326 Lebanese consumers was collected.

Findings

The paper finds that there are demographic differences in the evaluation of potation chips. The evaluation of specific attributes did not vary by country of origin and there were no differences in overall quality perceptions by country of origin. Snack food purchases appear to be low involvement purchases based on experiential qualities. Brand awareness and purchase appear not to be linked.

Research limitations/implications

It appears that country of origin is of secondary importance; yet, it is important to note the limited number of countries tested in this study. Given the tainted food scandals involving China country or origin may play a larger role in studies testing a wider variety of countries. Future research should include products not currently available in the market.

Originality/value

Given the potential for high growth in the snack food market in developing countries, this study provided valuable insight into one such market. The results indicate that more study is warranted in this area.
Accelerating structured consumer‐driven package design
Authors: Gofman Alex , Moskowitz Howard R. , Mets Tõnis
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper seeks to explore approaches to consumer‐driven optimization of package design utilizing a novel modified conjoint analysis approach. The approach allows for dynamic creation and testing of a large number of design prototypes with consumers and finds optimal solutions on an aggregated, segmented (pattern‐based latent mindset segmentation) and individual basis.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach extends the consumer insights‐driven process, Rule Developing Experimentation (RDE), introduced by the authors (AG and HM) and developed in cooperation with Wharton School of Business (University of Pennsylvania), to graphical concepts.

Findings

Disciplined experimentation based on individual permuted experimental designs produces more targeted package designs with higher appeal to the consumers. The proposed steps describe fast, parsimonious and actionable process of application of RDE to package optimization, which provides valuable input for designers about consumer preferences.

Practical implications

The paper demonstrates that consumer research could and should be a central part not only at the final stages of the package design but at the initial stage as well. The steps of fitting the research into the package design process are shown providing a parsimonious way to include consumers in the early stages of package design.

Originality/value

The approach could help the marketers efficiently create better packages that consumers like and which will help marketers to differentiate their respective products from the competition.
Accounting for the city
Authors: Lapsley Irvine , Miller Peter , Panozzo Fabrizio
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to identify the study of cities as an important and neglected focus for accounting researchers.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on a case study approach to visualizing and calculating the city.

Findings

There is a major preoccupation with the study of cities from numerous disciplinary perspectives. The positioning of cities is reaffirmed as a key part of modes of governing. This reveals tensions between disciplinary approaches based on space and design with the financial imperative of cities managed within a world which is dominated by New Public Management ideas and in which finances have primacy.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is based on one case study, and it demonstrates the need for longitudinal and interdisciplinary approaches to increase understanding of the twenty‐first century city.

Practical implications

The significance of accounting as a technology, which is embedded within the public management of cities is profound. This has major implications both for the design of financial information systems and their capacity for, and the manner of, their interactions with other disciplines in planning and managing cities.

Originality/value

This study is distinct in the manner in which it studies and reveals the importance of accounting in the management of cities. There is an increasing trend to visualize the city and represent it in numbers. This study reveals that accounting provides the most important numbers in shaping and visualizing the city.
Do environmental and task characteristics matter in the control of externalized local public services?
Authors: Cristofoli Daniela , Ditillo Angelo , Liguori Mariannunziata , Sicilia Mariafrancesca , Steccolini Ileana
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mechanisms adopted by cities to control the provision of externalized public services and to explore the determinants of such control choices.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents the results of a multiple case study based on the experiences of three cities and three public services (transport, solid waste collection and home care services for the elderly), where control mechanisms and their possible antecedents were analyzed.

Findings

The results show that the control models found in the cases analyzed do not correspond to the “pure” patterns described in the private sector literature and that the factors identified by management control contributions do not seem to be exhaustive in explaining the configuration of control systems in the public sector. While environmental and task characteristics only partially explain the adoption of certain configurations of control, the features of the control systems seem to be rather influenced by variables that are related to party characteristics.

Originality/value

The paper shows that the combinations of control mechanisms are more multifaceted than those presented in the literature, and that the factors identified in the private sector literature do not seem to explain comprehensively the configuration of control systems in the public sector.
Contending legitimations
Authors: Rautiainen Antti
Published: March 2010

Purpose

“Contending legitimations” (Meyer and Scott) in cities – and especially multiple conflicting institutional pressures on decision makers – have not received sufficient accounting study. Therefore this paper aims to analyse the multiple institutional pressures on the performance measurement (PM) practices of two Finnish cities and answer why the developments and the coupling of budget or PM rules and routines were different in these relatively similar case cities.

Design/methodology/approach

In this interpretive study, a comparative case setting (e.g. including several semi‐structured interviews) was used.

Findings

Contending legitimations affect the coupling of city budgeting and PM rules and routines. It was found that a city is likely to experience decoupling of formal PM rules and routines if there are conflicting normative institutional pressures among decision makers (especially among City Board members).

Research limitations/implications

As case studies cannot be generalized, further research on the institutional pressures on accounting PM in cities is encouraged.

Practical implications

Noting the contending legitimations may facilitate the management of projects for accounting change in cities.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to accounting literature by illustrating the multiple institutional pressures and their effects on PM developments and on PM coupling in the case cities. As a refinement to the works by Abernethy and Chua, Granlund, and Ribeiro and Scapens contending legitimations can explain some complexities of PM related decision making as well as the will of key actors to promote or postpone changes.
Asset management in cities: polyphony in action?
Authors: Arnaboldi Michela , Lapsley Irvine
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine asset management in three cities. It is informed by polyphony as a theoretical perspective and draws on the fact‐building process to explore the practice of asset management in these study settings.

Design/methodology/approach

A comparative case study approach was adopted to have a broader understanding of the levels of complexity in the study of polyphony in asset management. With this aim, the three Scottish cities were analysed presenting a spectrum of city types.

Findings

The paper finds evidence of polyphony. The three cases show different degrees of controversies and achievements, providing a highly variegated picture of the effectiveness in pursuing an asset management policy.

Originality/value

Polyphony recognises the many voices of actors present in organisations. This perspective on asset management is an important, but relatively neglected facet of this aspect of city management. The paper provides an insight in this, showing the potential for the multiple voices of the many different actors within local government, all of whom may have distinct views on asset utilisation.
Translation impossible? Accounting for a city project
Authors: Czarniawska Barbara
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the complexity of accounting for the city, on a specific example of an urban project in Rome.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on a study consisting of various accounts of the project, including a photo reportage done by the author.

Findings

The study revealed that in spite of, and perhaps because of, a multitude of accounts, it was difficult if not impossible to follow the chain of translations from a political decision to actual events in the city. One of the reasons is the politicians' tendency to manipulate accounts; another is the hermetic character of technical accounts, including accounting, which makes actual processes more opaque rather than more transparent.

Research limitations/implications

Within research perspective, a conceptualization of city management as a construction and maintenance of an action net might be helpful in attempts to render the complexity of translations of events and actions into words and numbers, and vice versa.

Practical implications

The practical implication is that a more focused and consistent translation is needed, leaving open the question who should accomplish it. The possible candidates are the media, citizens' organizations and researchers.

Originality/value

The paper offers a possible interpretative frame for studying city management, enriching it by the inclusion of visual reporting.
Emerging logics of competition: paradigm shift, fantasy, or reality check?
Authors: Kinra Aseem , Antai Imoh
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to elicit the subtle but progressive shift in organizational/institutional interaction with its rivals within a competitive framework, and thereby discusses and analyses paradigm shifts in competition and competitiveness. The paper argues that interorganizational networks and the recent concept of supply chain management may have induced a change in how competitiveness is viewed at the national, industry, and firm levels of interaction.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper conceptualizes extant literature into distinct themes of (organizational and institutional) analysis – micro, macro, and meso – and based on this review the paper seeks to identify emerging logics and shifts within mainstream competitiveness literature over the last decade.

Findings

The paper suggests that the micro‐macro theme of competition and competitiveness remains dominant in mainstream literature. Results from the analysis also support the notion of emergent logics of competition and competitiveness, which could then imply that a paradigm shift may well have begun within the area of competition and competitiveness.

Research limitations/implications

The limited findings point towards more detailed forays into competition of interorganizational forms such as networks and supply chains, before a paradigm shift may be claimed.

Practical implications

The paper serves to trigger the consciousness of stakeholders to think realistically with regards to claims that competition and competitiveness are carried out on the network level, e.g. a supply chain vs supply chain playing field.

Originality/value

While networks and supply chains have generally been inferred as new frontiers for contemporary competition in different functionally‐oriented literature domains, analysis and performance of such emergent logics is yet to be shown. The classification of different competition logics put forth in this paper aid in systemizing the competitiveness/competition rhetoric.
Co‐opetition: a source of international opportunities in Finnish SMEs
Authors: Kock Sören , Nisuls Johanna , Söderqvist Anette
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study international opportunities gained through co‐opetitive relations in small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as to examine the influence of different levels of co‐opetition on international opportunities.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to achieve the purpose, multiple in‐depth case studies are conducted in four SMEs.

Findings

The results reveal a paradigm shift in competition in an international context. Co‐opetition has provided international opportunities for the case companies, though to varying degrees and character. Furthermore, international opportunities can be found in strong and weak cooperation‐dominated relations as well as in equal relations between competitors. However, the different levels of co‐opetition influence the characteristics of the international opportunities in terms of continuity and scope.

Research limitations/implications

The results highlight the importance of taking co‐opetitive relations in general as well as the different levels of co‐opetition within these relations into consideration when analyzing the exploration and exploitation of international opportunities in SMEs. The results are, however, limited by the number of cases analyzed and further research on a larger scale is needed in order to draw additional conclusions.

Practical implications

The influence of various co‐opetitive relations found on international opportunities and competitiveness brings to light the value for companies to focus on and to develop these relations as well as to maintain a variety of cooperative relations with their competitors in the internationalization process.

Originality/value

The paper increases the knowledge on a yet largely unexplored, but significant topic, which is valuable both from a practical‐ and a research‐oriented perspective.
Competitiveness and changing patterns of embeddedness in Romania
Authors: Wright Roxana
Published: March 2010

Purpose

Strategies of embedding into the local environment are considered critical for multinational companies (MNCs) operating in Central and Eastern Europe. The purpose of this paper is to analyze such strategies in Romania.

Design/methodology/approach

The theoretical framework draws on social network theory to investigate the extent, structure, and features of embedding in the context of four case studies.

Findings

The results suggest a shift in how MNCs respond to a changing competitive landscape in Romania. The findings indicate that, contrasting proficient strategies of establishing numerous connections at entry, the most valuable approaches are currently aimed at building a diverse but non‐redundant network of relationships that gives the company access to information and flexibility to react quickly to changes. Direct relationships with the government are found to be potentially detrimental, even if they may have been important at market entry.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations of the research relate to the subjective nature of the testimony‐based material.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that the local subsidiary management should stay connected with organizations that allow access to information about their industries, applicable legislation and future competitive pressures, while corporate headquarters need to give local management enough decision‐making freedom for the subsidiary to evolve with the environment.

Originality/value

The paper enhances knowledge of a strategic approach used extensively in transition and emerging markets, and adds to the understanding of MNCs' strategies in Romania.
Paradigm shifts in the video game industry
Authors: Zackariasson Peter , Wilson Timothy L.
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify, characterize, and discuss paradigm shifts that have occurred in the video game industry with some emphasis on competition and competitiveness.

Design/methodology/approach

Basically, the paper depends upon a review of the literature associated with video game development. Past history is taken from texts and academic papers dealing with the subject. More current observations are taken from the business and popular press. These observations are placed within a context associated with the classic papers on industry evolution, paradigms, paradigm shifts, competition, and competitiveness.

Findings

It is difficult to capture present shifts in such a fast‐growing industry, but these shifts seem clear: the original entry of video games into the arcade sector that led to the industry and the demise of pinball; the development of the home cartridge and console that made the industry a home‐based phenomenon; the entry of independent game‐publishers that made the industry a two‐tiered one; and the development of massively multiplayer online role‐playing games (MMORPGs) that changed the way games are played.

Originality/value

The video game industry is an interesting one to follow. To an extent, its development characterizes our generation – fast paced, technologically oriented, and targeted toward the young and young at heart. This paper takes the subject away from a historical or anecdotal approach and places it within the context of industry evolution, paradigms, and paradigm shifts. It thus should be of value to students of not only video games, but also the evolution of rapidly growing industries and establishment of competitive advantages.
Strategic networks for increased regional competitiveness: two Swedish cases
Authors: Lundberg Heléne
Published: March 2010

Purpose

Clusters and networks have become cornerstones of regional development efforts. This paper discusses the ability of regional strategic networks (RSN) to bring about cluster effects and how structural factors will affect performance of RSNs.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper compares structural aspects of prosperous clusters, as identified in cluster theory, with characteristics of RSNs. A theoretical discussion is supplemented with a study of two Swedish cases with structurally different settings.

Findings

It is found that membership in a RSN may increase the competitiveness of individual firms and thereby also have a positive impact on regional competitiveness. However, a RSN cannot fully reproduce or create cluster conditions. The main outcome in the cases concerned visibility aspects of firm membership.

Practical implications

Network initiators and coordinators will benefit from awareness of implications for outcomes caused by the member composition of RSNs.

Originality/value

By analyzing and comparing cluster characteristics with characteristics of RSNs, this paper develops these concepts and analyzes the influence of member composition on expected membership outcomes in RSNs.
Services‐led industrial policy for inclusive growth and competitiveness
Authors: Hafeez Siddiqui Sulaman , Mujtaba Nawaz Saleem Hassan
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to extend the theory of services‐led industrial policy in services dominated but industrially lagging developing Asian economies and discuss its implications for employment, competitiveness, and diversification.

Design/methodology/approach

An inductive approach using qualitative methodology is adopted reviewing the available literature and evidence from Pakistan. The critical synthesis of the history of economic growth and industrial policy has followed Kuhn's paradigm approach.

Findings

Focusing on Pakistan, the paper synthesizes the history of industrial policy to identify the major paradigm shifts, especially the structural reforms era of the 1990s. The evidence suggests that the reforms under the structural adjustment program (SAP) have proved to be the necessary but not sufficient conditions for inclusive growth and industrial competitiveness in services dominated economies. Services‐led growth without an integrated and competitive industrial sector can lead to severe external accounts deficits and unemployment. The traditional role of services as “driver of demand/growth” is extended as “driver of productivity/competitiveness” through forward linkages with other sectors of the economy. The services sector's enabling role as the “software” of the economy and its impact on total factor productivity growth, diversification, and inclusive growth is postulated.

Research limitations/implications

A quantification of forward and backward linkages is needed to identify the potential of services sub‐sectors in driving growth and productivity, respectively.

Originality/value

The paper identifies the need to match the existing industrial policy regimes with the economic structures in services‐dominated developing economies. The role of forward linkages in the productivity growth has implications for measurement of services output in national accounts in order to fully capture the contribution of this sector.
A new research paradigm to analyze the threats against fair competition in the global marketplace
Authors: Hultén Peter , Vanyushyn Vladimir
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a new research paradigm that can assist in preventing unethical behavior from strengthening its grip on the global economy.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper discusses examples of corrupt acts, which affect companies' competitive positions in the global economy. The examples draw upon media reports of unethical behavior in Swedish companies and observations made when conducting field studies in Russia and the Ukraine.

Findings

This paper identifies what is to be observed and analyzed at close range in companies with regard to corrupt acts. Furthermore, this paper highlights unethical behavior manifested in reward cultures and earnings manipulation in Western companies, which are problems that threaten fair competition.

Originality/value

The paper highlights critical areas of investigation with regard to studies of corruption and other forms of unethical behavior which have a detrimental effect on the development of the global market.
Co‐opetition dynamics – an outline for further inquiry
Authors: Bengtsson Maria , Eriksson Jessica , Wincent Joakim
Published: March 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to conceptually develop the understanding of co‐opetition dynamics and to enhance the conceptual clarity of co‐opetition by developing a definition based on previous research efforts.

Design/methodology/approach

This conceptual paper integrates various approaches to the concept co‐opetition into a definition that holds for co‐opetitive interactions across multiple levels. Different co‐opetitive interactions and the resulting dynamics are discussed by drawing upon competition and cooperation theories. The paper concludes with an agenda for further research on co‐opetition dynamics.

Findings

The paper outlines how different types of co‐opetitive interactions result in archetypical situations where the dynamics of co‐opetition are present as well as where the dynamics of co‐opetition are missing due to a lack of balance between cooperation and competition. It notes four co‐opetitive forces: over‐embedding, distancing, confronting, and colluding. These four forces drive development towards situations without dynamics.

Originality/value

This paper provides a conceptual understanding of co‐opetition dynamics and will reveal that in order to adequately account for co‐opetition dynamics, a definition of co‐opetition must analytically separate the cooperative and the competitive interaction inherent in co‐opetition.
A discourse analytical approach to qualitative marketing research
Authors: Skålén Per
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to introduce to marketing a discourse analytical framework on which future qualitative marketing research can draw.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology is to utilize Michel Foucault's works and the discourse theory of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe.

Findings

A discourse analytical framework for qualitative marketing research consisting of six central concepts – turning points, problematizations, articulations, nodal points, hegemony and deconstruction – is outlined.

Originality/value

The discourse analytical framework outlined can be used in future qualitative marketing research. It is mainly of value to marketing researchers.
Visitor narratives: researching and illuminating actual destination experience
Authors: Guthrie Cathy , Anderson Alistair
Published: March 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to argue that, while destination benchmarking and visitor surveys seek to measure the visitor experience, they privilege the destination manager or researcher rather than taking the visitor's viewpoint. It seeks to suggest that capturing and analysing visitor stories while in the destination can facilitate understanding of how destination image changes with actual experience, and what factors or attributes are important, thereby offering a deeper insight into the process through which destination experience is transformed (sense making) and transmitted (sense giving) via those stories, that all important word of mouth publicity.

Design/methodology/approach

Unstructured interviews were recorded with visitors in Edinburgh and Greenwich. An interpretive approach was employed in analysing the interview data to uncover facets of visitor experience affecting the image conveyed through the narrative.

Findings

The research reveals three elements involved in the sense making and sense giving process and sets out the three categories of visitor consumption characteristics which are implicated in the process.

Research limitations/implications

Although the outcomes of the sense making and sense giving process are mediated by the incidents, interactions and characteristics of the individual visitor, the process itself is common to all visitors. Analysing visitor narratives to uncover the mediating factors illuminates the visitor's actual destination experience and its impact on their understanding or image of a destination. Narratives proved to be a useful research tool.

Practical implications

The interview and analysis techniques used could be readily adapted for use alongside existing standardised visitor survey tools to provide destination managers and marketers a greater understanding of the impact of customer care and visitor management programmes and how narrative may be useful in tailoring destination marketing to meet the requirements of specific visitor groups.

Originality/value

The paper demonstrates the utility of capturing and analysing visitor narratives at the point of destination consumption for understanding actual destination experience and the way in which it is transmitted as word of mouth information to others.
Wal‐Mart is coming to Guelph: hedonic to utilitarian shoppers' perceptions
Authors: Teed Moira , Norman Christopher , Aung May , Adlam Doug , Goswami Sameer , Surgeoner Brae , Zhu BiChen
Published: March 2010

Purpose

To date few research studies exist on consumers' responses to the adoption of Wal‐Mart into towns and cities. This paper seeks to examine the expected impact of a Wal‐Mart store in a community before its arrival.

Design/methodology/approach

Media reviews, participant observations and in‐depth interviews were applied. Positive and negative articles relating to Wal‐Mart as exhibited in the newspapers – theGuelph Tribuneand theGuelph Mercury– were reviewed. Participant observations were conducted in three different shopping areas of Guelph: the Downtown area, the Stone Road mall area and the Willow West mall area. A total of 13 participants from these shopping areas were interviewed.

Findings

Overall, this study found that the participants were receptive to the notion of Wal‐Mart coming to Guelph despite the negative publicity and strong opposition Wal‐Mart had faced in the media. Additionally, this study offered insights for this marketplace based on the consumption context of hedonic and utilitarian shoppers. The intensity of these shoppers' perceptions and beliefs were found to be different for different contexts such as retail shopping, businesses and social.

Research limitations/implications

This study demonstrates the importance of wider contextual comprehension when trying to understand what values consumers hold for retailers in the marketplace. However, these findings are restricted by the limited range of opinions captured. A fully holistic view is only possible when taking into account the perspectives of local business owners, future Wal‐Mart employees and managers, activists, or politicians – all of whom have an impact on the situation of Wal‐Mart in Guelph.

Practical implications

Insights from this study can assist management personnel for their future expansion plans.

Originality/value

This study extends the application of consumers' value dimensions by focusing not only on consumers' hedonic and utilitarian values but also by incorporating the community context. Furthermore, it offers a multi‐method qualitative market research approach for discovering insights that would not have emerged from utilizing just one method of data collection. This is also the first study to assess consumer responses before a store's construction.
An examination of consumer browsing behaviors
Authors: Xia Lan
Published: March 2010

Purpose

Browsing is a common consumer behavior, but it has not been researched extensively. The aim of this paper is to fill some of the gaps in the research.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on literature from different areas, consumers' browsing experiences, browsing patterns, and factors influencing browsing activities are empirically examined. A combination of interviews and shopping trips with informants to examine the issues are used.

Findings

The results show that browsing serves both functional and recreational purposes. Consumers vary by the degree to which they browse functionally or recreationally. Browsing behaviors are influenced by both consumer characteristics and the retail environment. Browsing is a powerful consumer information acquisition activity and has both desired and undesired consequences for consumer purchases. Consumers use various strategies to cope with the undesired consequences.

Practical implications

Exploration of browsing patterns and factors influencing these patterns suggests important managerial implications for enhancing desirable browsing and reducing unnecessary browsing.

Originality/value

The conceptualization and findings of this research contribute to two areas of research: consumer information search and consumer shopping behaviors in retail environments. An examination of the role of browsing offers an empirical extension to the information acquisition framework.