bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Organizational structure and specialized marketing capabilities in SMEs
Authors: Trez Guilherme , Bins Luce Fernando
Published: March 2012

Purpose

This paper aims to develop and test a conceptual model of organizational structure design that incorporates some factors influencing strategy implementation. The research also aims to consider inter‐functionality in new product development (NPD) processes and marketing decisions, measured from the dispersion of these activities among functional areas.

Design/methodology/approach

The research was conducted across 424 small and medium‐sized furniture manufacturing companies. In total, eight hypotheses were proposed and tested using structural equation modeling.

Findings

Most important among the study's findings was that inter‐firm relationships and inter‐functional processes are relevant for the study of organizational structure design. It was found that the dispersion of the new product development process and of marketing decisions exert a positive influence on architectural marketing capabilities. The results showed that the dispersion of NPD processes and marketing decisions influence the development of marketing capabilities only in those companies with inter‐firm relationships. The paper also found that inter‐firm design did not affect the impact of the relationship between the dispersion of marketing decisions and NPD process on specialized capabilities.

Research limitations/implications

The study focuses research on Brazilian small to medium‐sized furniture enterprises and could have single‐source bias in its data collection process.

Practical implications

The findings provide insights into ways of integrating structures. It is observed that a higher integration of areas in marketing decisions is related to the dispersion of the NPD process. Given that dispersion in NPD is a disseminated practice, it is found that higher dispersion in marketing activities has an impact on product development.

Originality/value

The paper's findings confirm the influence of organizational design on the development of planning capabilities and on the implementation of marketing strategies.
Organisational factors influencing sustainability of local non‐governmental organisations
Authors: Okorley Ernest L. , Nkrumah Edmund E.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Despite the role of non‐governmental organisations (NGOs) as actors in development, the issue of local NGOs' sustainability remains a major concern in many developing countries such as Ghana. This study seeks to determine key factors that can influence local NGOs based on a Ghanaian case study.

Design/methodology/approach

The research used a combination of quantitative and qualitative research approaches.

Findings

The study identifies that the availability of funds, quality material resources, supportive leadership, development of needs‐based and demand‐driven programmes, and effective management can have a significant influence on the sustainability of local NGOs. Significantly, leadership emerged as the most important factor to organisational sustainability of local NGOs. Equally, the availability and quality of material resources for work were least critical to local NGO sustainability, although they were all very important.

Practical implications

The case study suggests that local NGOs can adopt several measures to ensure their sustainability. These include the writing of good needs‐based and demand‐driven project proposals, ensuring transparency and accountability, leadership training and lobbying for resources including funds, especially, from local sources.

Originality/value

Although the findings are based on Ghanaian local NGO sustainability scenario, the lessons can be useful to NGOs within similar contexts.
Buy, boycott or blog
Authors: Kerr Gayle , Mortimer Kathleen , Dickinson Sonia , Waller David S.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the concept of consumer power, in particular the power or bloggers in the online environment and how this might be applied to the regulation of advertising.

Design/methodology/approach

Utilising Denegri‐Knott's (2006) four on‐line power strategies, a content analysis of weblogs of Tourism Australia's “Where the bloody hell are you?” advertising campaign is undertaken. Blogger behaviour towards this controversial campaign is documented and consumer power strategies are examined.

Findings

This study reveals that bloggers are circumventing the traditional self regulatory process by distributing information, opinion, and even banned advertising material, thereby forming power hubs of like‐minded people, with the potential to become online pressure groups, augmenting the traditional powers of consumers in the self regulatory process.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations include a single case context and its exploration of a single media tool (weblogs). Also, bloggers are not representative of the general public, but do provide an alternative to the general category of complainants.

Practical implications

The paper provides evidence that bloggers are defacto regulators in the online environment providing judgements on advertising campaigns, supporting those with like‐minded views and disciplining others, and even making banned advertisements publicly available. Advertisers should be mindful of this activity in developing campaigns, especially in formulating controversial campaigns aimed to be disseminated online.

Originality/value

The paper is the first to relate consumer power in the online environment to self‐regulation. It is also first to study a new group of advertising complainants – the bloggers.
Uncovering the real effect of switching costs on the satisfaction‐loyalty association
Authors: Dagger Tracey S. , David Meredith E.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

This paper seeks to demonstrate that assuming an increase in satisfaction will always lead to greater loyalty oversimplifies the complex association between these constructs. A more accurate view of the satisfaction‐loyalty relationship is gained by examining the moderating effect of involvement, switching costs, and relationship benefits.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reports the results of a hierarchal‐moderated regression analysis on data gathered from a national mail survey of 509 customers across nine service types.

Findings

The findings of this study suggest that the satisfaction‐loyalty relationship is not as simple as it seems. Specifically, the negative effect that switching costs have on the association between satisfaction and loyalty declines as customer involvement with the service relationship grows, but increases as the customer perceives greater relationship benefit. These findings suggest that simply enhancing satisfaction will not always generate greater customer loyalty.

Research limitations/implications

Future research should consider the effects of other moderating variables, such as relationship investment and quality, on the satisfaction‐loyalty link.

Practical implications

This paper provides managers with insight as to how to best increase customer loyalty.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to simultaneously examine the moderating effect of customer involvement, switching costs, and social benefits on the satisfaction‐loyalty association.
Professional training as a strategy for staff development
Authors: Dirani Khalil M.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Research studies on training‐job relevance continuously discuss the extent of transfer being found limited. This study aims to focus on exploring trainees' perceptions about the effects of a “Western” professional training program on their skill development and how cultural factors specific to Lebanon influence the learning.

Design/methodology/approach

This research adopted a mixed method study design. It was conducted in the context of a training services program offered by an HRD department in a large Lebanese financial institution. The sample frame consisted of service employees who were conveniently selected after enrolling in the professional training program. The sample was composed of 120 participants. A total number of 107 questionnaires were completed and 101 questionnaires were usable (82.5 percent response rate). Analysis of the quantitative data was through descriptive statistics. Qualitative data collection was included to corroborate the quantitative data in answering the research questions. The researcher conducted 15 interviews with participants and stakeholders in the training program to get their perceptions of how well the training workshops were helping them develop new skills.

Findings

This study yielded a broad perspective on issues related to formal training and training transfer in the Lebanese context. The issues explored are related to trainees' attitudes towards the training activities they were exposed to, their perceptions of the impact of training activities on their career development, and their attitudes towards work environment that might predict the transfer of training.

Practical implications

While professional training programs may lead to motivating trainees to become more committed to work, and enhancing learning skills relevant to individual career development and life‐long learning, such trainings fail to tackle problems specific to a trainee's organizational or cultural needs. In particular, it is often hard to integrate generic training ideas into specific workplace settings.

Originality/value

This paper provides original information on a topic that is not well researched in the Lebanese context. It identifies needs and offers practical help to HRD practitioners and international consultants, and provides theoretical insights to HRD scholars to better understand the field of HRD in international contexts.
Bridging the gap in knowledge transfer between academia and practitioners
Authors: Gera Rajat
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The paper intends to identify the causes or gaps in transfer of managerial knowledge between academia and practitioners and to develop a framework that overcomes the gaps through knowledge management, information technology and human resource practices. The paper aims to suggest a strategic approach based on the knowledge transfer cycle.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents the development of a conceptual model based on existing research findings and conceptual models in the literature combined with the experience of academicians.

Findings

There has been very little transfer of research knowledge due to the inherent barriers in its creation, diffusion, adoption and utilization by practitioners. By enhancing the industry orientation of academicians and adopting systematic processes of review and dissemination, early adopters (practitioners) can experiment and learn to apply theoretical knowledge, which, when supported by institutional mechanisms, of human resource management, information technology and knowledge management (KM), can minimize or eliminate knowledge transfer gaps, leading to improved competitiveness and performance of the firm.

Research limitations/implications

The framework has been developed from concepts of KM and transfer and learning and needs to be validated empirically.

Practical implications

The framework developed can guide researchers in their approach toward knowledge creation so that their output is adopted by industry and thus has value. Practitioner industries can develop practices based on the framework to enhance their ability to leverage academic knowledge for competitive advantage.

Social implications

The paper would enable the framing of policies by higher education institutions and industry to facilitate more effective and efficient transfer of knowledge between researchers and practitioners, leading to enhanced organizational competitive advantage, which would benefit society.

Originality/value

The paper provides a framework based on the knowledge transfer cycle model for enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of research knowledge adoption and utilization.
New public management, accounting, regulators and moral panics
Authors: Lee Bill
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Accounting and regulators are an integral part of new public management (NPM) across public sectors. This article aims to look at one of their potential drawbacks by investigating how a policy was deemed as a failure by regulators because of its limited financial controls.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study of Individual Learning Accounts (ILAs) in the UK draws on secondary sources organized into a chronology of events to show how concerns about a small number of providers were followed by claims of widespread abuse of ILAs being reported by regulators; claims that were disseminated widely by the media, but which were not substantiated by prosecutions.

Findings

There is insufficient evidence to substantiate claims of widespread abuse and fraud of ILAs. This suggests that regulatory bodies helped amplify concerns about fraud and abuse, contributing to a minor moral panic.

Research limitations/implications

The absence of accounting that promoted concerns of financial abuse, also takes away one of the potential forms of evidence that could be used to substantiate the moral panic.

Practical implications

To help avoid moral panics, regulators should report only forms of fraud and abuse that are proven, rather than sharing in conjectures of those that might have taken place.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the few academic studies of ILAs and the only one to date to explore the detrimental role of NPM arrangements in generating moral panics.
The development of budgets and their use for purposes of control in Japanese aviation, 1928‐1945
Authors: Noguchi Masayoshi , Boyns Trevor
Published: March 2012

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the role of the Japanese state in the development of budgets within “special companies” in the transportation sector between 1928 and 1945.

Design/methodology/approach

Using evidence contained in the archives of “closedown institutions” this paper examines the role of the state in determining the use of budgets within Japan Air Transport (1928‐1938) and Japan Airways (1938‐1945). The paper adopts the lens of new institutional sociology to examine the changes in the use of budgets effected when Japan Airways succeeded Japan Air Transport.

Findings

Prior to 1938, although subject to the need to provide budget statements to the government, the budget systems operated by special companies within the Japanese transportation sector were largely utilised for the purpose of legitimising receipt of government subsidies. Following the establishment of Japan Airways in 1938, however, an increasing use of the budget system as a control mechanism is observed. It is found that a key role in this coercive process was played by the Aviation Bureau of the Ministry of Communications, reflecting changes not only in its own status but also the financial pressures exerted on the Japanese government during the Second Sino‐Japanese War from 1937 and the Pacific War from 1941.

Originality/value

This paper examines the development of the use of budgets at a time, the interwar period, which is considered critical to the development of budgets for purposes of control. By doing this within a context (special companies) and within a geographical space (Japan) which has not previously been analyzed by accounting historians, this study helps to add to the material available for conducting comparative international accounting research. Furthermore, by using the lens of new institutional sociology, this study provides an in‐depth insight into how, and under what conditions, the degree of decoupling between formal policies and actual practices can vary over time depending on the extent of coercive pressures.
Money talks: the language of the Rochester School
Authors: Chabrak Nihel
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Since the late 1970s, research in accounting has been colonized by positive accounting theory (PAT) despite strong claims that it is fundamentally flawed in terms of epistemology and methodology. This paper aims to offer new insights to PAT by critically examining its basic tenets.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper subjects the language of the Rochester School to a deconstruction that is a transformational reading. This uncovers rhetorical operations and unveils hidden associations with other texts and ideas.

Findings

A new interpretation of the Rochester School discourse is provided. To afford scientific credibility to deregulation within the accounting field, Watts and Zimmerman used supplements and missing links to enhance the authority of PAT. They placed supplements inside their texts to provide a misleading image of PAT. These supplements rest on von Hayek's long‐term shaping blueprint to defeat apostles of the welfare state. Yet, to set PAT apart from normative theories that Watts and Zimmerman claimed were contaminated by value judgments, they made no reference in their text to the tight links between the Rochester School and the libertarian project initiated by von Hayek.

Research limitations/implications

Any reading of PAT cannot present the infinite play of meaning that is possible within a text. Deconstruction involves a commitment to on‐going, eternal questioning.

Originality/value

The paper provides evidence of the relation between PAT and the neoliberal (libertarian) project of von Hayek. PAT is viewed as part of the institutional infrastructure and ideological apparatus that legitimates the hegemony of markets.
How clusters evolve
Authors: Zettinig Peter , Vincze Zsuzsanna
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to construct a process theory of cluster development, in order to complement the many studies focusing on the factors that determine successful clusters.

Design/methodology/approach

This theory‐building effort relies on event‐driven methodology, which triangulates narratives collected at different points in time with other documented materials, in order to trace cluster development over a six‐year period. The empirical data are analysed according to theoretical classes formed a priori and anchored in Aldrich's framework of emergence, events and consequences. The idea is to identify critical events that subsequently inform theory development.

Findings

The authors show that three critical processes drive sustainable cluster development: the exploitation of current opportunities, the exploration of future opportunities, and processes that facilitate the balancing of the two. Whereas the conceptual focus in the extant literature is on exploration and exploitation processes, the authors find that balancing processes are also critical.

Practical implications

The paper's findings are of practical relevance to private and public policy makers with regard to the management and financing of balancing mechanisms that help to secure sustainable development. The authors will continue to follow the development of this specific cluster in order to identify a wider range of sub‐processes that contribute to the long‐term viability of clusters in general.

Originality/value

This work is original in the sense that it extends March's exploration and exploitation theory, applies it to the inter‐organisational context of clusters, and links the two processes through a process of balancing. The empirical evidence and the methodological approach used contribute in terms of building a “real process theory”, according to Aldrich's specification of an event‐driven research approach.
Exploring the mundane and complex
Authors: Wägar Karolina
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to outline the value of ethnography as a qualitative tool of inquiry when exploring mundane yet complex marketing phenomena such as customer‐oriented learning. The paper illustrates the practical side of using ethnography and shows the kind of results an ethnographic study aimed at conceptual development might yield.

Design/methodology/approach

The first ethnographic study was conducted among car salespersons and service advisors in a car retailing company. The second study was conducted among frontline contact persons in a procurement company.

Findings

The paper shows that ethnography is a suitable and fruitful research approach for accessing and understanding the “mundane” and “complex”. In particular, the paper emphasises the importance of: establishing trust and social bonds with informants; systematic, on‐going analysis; being a complete outsider; and preparing for the aftermath of a study. With regard to customer‐oriented learning, the study finds that it is a multidimensional phenomenon involving: direct and indirect learning; learning tools; learning context; and professional identity.

Originality/value

In terms of methodology this paper contributes with a detailed, practical description of the different phases of an ethnographic study; from accessing the research setting to the data‐analysis and the practical implications of the study. In terms of theory, the paper contributes by developing a holistic framework of customer‐oriented learning.
Linking price satisfaction and business performance in Malaysia's dairy industry
Authors: Boniface Bonaventure , Gyau Amos , Stringer Randy
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Price satisfaction is an influential factor in competitive performance and business success. Strong price satisfaction enhances and sustains high quality business relationships, leading to improved profits for chain participants. The purpose of this paper is to explore the dimensions of price satisfaction in the context of the Malaysian dairy industry. The aim is to determine which dimensions of price satisfaction affect relationship performance between Malaysian dairy producers and the dairy processers who purchase their milk.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, eight hypotheses are tested using partial least square methods on survey results from 133 dairy producers in Malaysia.

Findings

The study results suggest that relative price, price‐quality ratio and price fairness influence producers' loyalty and improved business relationship performance.

Practical implications

To achieve long‐term, sustainable business relationships involving consistent high quality supplies, milk buyers need to understand and capture the price satisfaction dimensions.

Originality/value

The paper provides insights into the important linkages between price satisfaction and business performance in an agriculture industry.
Classifying organizations by knowledge intensity – necessary next‐steps
Authors: Makani Joyline , Marche Sunny
Published: March 2012

Purpose

This study aims to empirically explore the key elements for classifying and differentiating knowledge‐intensive organizations (KIOs) from other traditional organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

The study's conceptual framework is based on the prevailing propositions from the literature on KIOs and is explored using a survey of knowledge management (KM) professionals, a purposely selected community of practice (CoP).

Findings

The results suggest that organizations can generally be divided into two groups – KIOs and non‐KIOs, and there appear to be some clear factors that differentiate KIOs from non‐KIOs according to the CoP.

Research limitations/implications

This study lays a foundation for the systematic development and evaluation of KIOs and their KM practices. The results from this study can stimulate issue formulation and hypothesis generation for investigation by KM researchers and academics. The study focused on a few types of organizations drawn from the literature which may limit the generalizability of the results. However, restricting the study to the core organizations identified in the literature provided the authors with leverage for an in‐depth empirical exploration of these organizations' characteristics.

Practical implications

To a KM practitioner this study aids in delineating the different elements to keep in mind when designing or evaluating KM practices in KIOs.

Originality/value

This paper is among the early works to empirically explore KIOs. It advances a framework of how to recognize the knowledge‐intense factors defining KIOs, thereby providing the required foundation for analyzing KM practices in KIOs. Also by identifying the core dimensions defining knowledge intensity, the study underscores the importance of the relations between workers, the community (organization) of which they are members, and the conceptions the workers have of their activities as presented in the theory of organizations as activity systems. While the importance of knowledge has often been demonstrated within work groups or for particular organizational processes, this study has demonstrated a useful foundation for analyzing an organization as a whole.
A framework analysis for managing feedback of visitors of a web site
Authors: Schefels Clemens , Zicari Roberto V.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

An important issue in the management of a web‐based user community, where users are registered to a web portal, is to identify patterns of users' interest. In this context, the users' feedback plays a major role. The purpose of this paper is to define a novel framework analysis for managing the feedback given by registered visitors of a web site.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents a new technique to integrate the feedback explicitly given by users into already existing user profiles. The authors introduce the novel concepts of scope, filtering, and relevance profiles for managing users' feedback. The new concept of Relevance Profile (RP) is defined.

Findings

Using the framework, the authors were able to discover patterns of usage of registered users of a web site.

Practical implications

The practical applicability of the approach is validated by a use case study showing how the framework can be used with a real web site. The authors used Gugubarra as a reference system, a prototype for creating and managing web user profiles, developed by the DBIS group at the Goethe‐University of Frankfurt.

Originality/value

A new way to integrate the user feedback into interest profiles and a novel framework to analyze and discover patterns of interests are presented. The paper is an extended version (more than 50 per cent novel material) of a previous paper presented at the iiWAS2010 conference.
Research on the evaluation model of Chinese enterprises' technological innovation system
Authors: Chen Xi , Zhao Shuming
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on the evaluation model of the enterprises' technological innovation system, based on the theory of complex adaptive system.

Design/methodology/approach

Combined with the status quo and recent studies of Chinese enterprises' technological innovation, the paper discusses the complex‐system features of the technological innovation. The stimulus‐response model is used to establish the two‐level framework for enterprises' technological innovation system. By means of the adaptive fitness function, the economic and social utility of enterprises' technological innovation is measured from two dimensions. Finally, the fuzzy catastrophe model is introduced to evaluate the enterprises' technological innovation.

Findings

The enterprises' technological innovation system has attributions of the subject aggregation, the systematic openness, nonlinearity and diversity. Thus, the macro‐micro based technological innovation system from the perspective of complex adaptive system is proposed. The system utility is considered based on the system subjects and system structure, and the calculation framework of the adaptive fitness for the whole system is obtained by considering the emergent property describing the system scale effect and structure effect. In fact, the fuzzy theory can well reflect the influential situation that the interactions between different factors may cause the mutation of the higher level and the interactions between enterprises can lead to the shifts of the system.

Originality/value

The paper proposes the complex adaptive system for the enterprises' technological innovation based on the special macro environment in China. A new framework for the research of technological innovation is provided by analyzing the system inner model. Fuzzy catastrophe model can reduce the evaluation irrationality due to the subjective index weights.
Enterprise's sustainable innovation in China: practice and theoretical research
Authors: Xiang Gang , Wu Ying
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of the real situation of Enterprise's Sustainable Innovation (ESI) in China.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the paper analyzes the practice of Chinese ESI in the past 30 years, and then reviews research results of the topic in China, by the authors and by other Chinese scholars. Finally, it provides the future prospects for ESI in China.

Findings

The practice of Chinese ESI started in 1978 when this country began reform, and two stages of Chinese ESI practice has been summarized. Otherwise, six major characteristics have been highlighted. China is one of the earliest countries that began to research on ESI and has achieved significant results since 1995. The paper summarizes major research findings of ESI in China, which can be divided into two categories. Especially, it stresses that one of the distinguishing achievements is research on mechanisms of ESI in China.

Research limitations/implications

The research on ESI in China is initially implemented based on Chinese practice. So, future research may explore whether the research results could be suitable for abroad, or not.

Originality/value

This original paper analyzes ESI practice and research findings in China, and may have value in helping people to understand ESI's real situation.
How China's equipment manufacturing firms achieve successful independent innovation
Authors: Wu Wei‐Wei , Yu Bo , Wu Chong
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate two issues: understanding how Chinese equipment manufacturing firms can achieve successful independent innovation; and studying the roles of technology management (TM) and technological capability (TC) in independent innovation. The paper will develop a new model for independent innovation for China's equipment manufacturing firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper reviews literature related to independent innovation models, then develops a theoretical framework combining and integrating research from different fields. First, it examines how indexes of independent innovation are defined from the perspectives of technology, patents, standard, R&D and the market. Second, technology management and technological capability are interpreted. Third, relationships among TM, TC, and independent innovation are theoretically analyzed and discussed. Based on these, the paper conducts an in‐depth case study of Harbin Electric Corporation to explain how independent innovation is achieved from perspectives of TM and TC. Finally, the paper constructs and discusses the double helix model of TC and TM for independent innovation.

Findings

The paper finds that: technology management and technological capability both exert important influences on successful independent innovation; the improvement of TC follows cyclical steps of acquisition, assimilation and improvement, and TM is promoted by reforming and updating strategy management, organization management, regulation management and resource‐quality management; TM and TC have interactive effects; and TM and TC are coupled in the form of a double helix to realize independent innovation.

Originality/value

The paper provides new aspects of technology management, technological capability and their interaction to deconstruct independent innovation. The paper also offers insights in presenting a detailed case study of on‐the‐ground innovation and upgrading in China.
Cross‐cultural differences in purchase decision‐making criteria
Authors: Selma Ozdipciner Nuray , Li Xiangping , Uysal Muzaffer
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The main purpose of this study is to draw implications about simultaneous consideration of demographics, preferences and attitudes in understanding travel behavior decision criteria.

Design/methodology/approach

Convenience sampling was used to collect data. In 2006 university students in Turkey collected data from visitors at hotels. From distribution of 1,067 questionnaires, 906 usable questionnaires were collected. Data used are for Turkish (local), European and Asian tourists.

Findings

One expects Turkish tourists, European tourists, and Asian tourists in Turkey will differ in demographics, preferences and attitudes. Oblique factors are determined to reduce the dimensions for attitudes. ANOVA and chi‐square show variable specific differences between groups. However, considering multiple variables results in showing multiple variables are important in understanding behavior.

Research limitations/implications

The research demonstrates the importance of joint consideration of demographics, preference and attitudes. This research does not apply to a particular population since convenience sampling was used.

Practical implications

Understanding the complexity of the relationship between decision making and its possible determinants shows the value of having demographic, preference and attitude information.

Originality/value

The research involves analysis across origin countries or regions, and focuses on one type of variable (e.g. attitude). This research uses univariate and multivariate results to show the importance of having and using multivariate data.
Ethnic enterprise governance: a public choice analysis of Liverpool's Chinatown
Authors: Evans Anthony J.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to use a case study of Liverpool, UK, to perform a public choice analysis of the governance of Chinatown. This case study is a theoretical application of clubs and interest group theory to ethnic economies.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on fieldwork conducted in the Chinatown of Liverpool, England. It utilises interviews, surveys and observation to capture the emergence of the organisation of the community.

Findings

The paper demonstrates how the availability of regeneration funds can create incentives for voluntary community associations to switch into predatory rent‐seeking collectives. The characteristics of a Chinese community are predisposed towards being an effective interest group.

Originality/value

The paper presents new primary data and is a rare attempt to chart the evolution and development of “ethnic enterprise governance”. It extends the existing literature on the economic organisation of Chinatown into a theory of the political representation of ethnic communities, utilising the tradition of rational choice political science.
Financial market risk and gold investment in an emerging market: the case of Malaysia
Authors: Ibrahim Mansor H.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relation between gold return and stock market return and whether its relation changes in times of consecutive negative market returns for an emerging market, Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper applies the autoregressive distributed model to link gold returns to stock returns with TGARCH/EGARCH error specification using daily data from August 1, 2001 to March 31, 2010, a total of 2,261 observations.

Findings

A significant positive but low correlation is found between gold and once‐lagged stock returns. Moreover, consecutive negative market returns do not seem to intensify the co‐movement between the gold and stock markets as normally documented among national stock markets in times of financial turbulences. Indeed, there is some evidence that the gold market surges when faced with consecutive market declines.

Practical implications

Based on these results, there are potential benefits of gold investment during periods of stock market slumps. The findings should prove useful for designing financial investment portfolios.

Originality/value

The paper evaluates the role of gold from a domestic perspective, which should be more relevant to domestic investors in guarding against recurring heightened stock market risk.
Factors motivating women's informal micro‐entrepreneurship
Authors: Franck Anja K.
Published: March 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors which motivate women's informal micro‐entrepreneurship in Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

The qualitative analysis employed in this paper is based upon empirical findings from field work conducted in the state of Penang on the north‐western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. In total, 39 hawkers (petty traders) were interviewed using an interview guide which contained open‐ended questions regarding work‐life history, labor market choices and conditions of work. The paper presents two selected case stories, as well as the general findings across the whole sample.

Findings

In contrast to the view that women's informal micro‐entrepreneurship is motivated only by “involuntary exclusion from the labor market” or “poverty”, this paper has found that women's micro‐entrepreneurship can be motivated by a wide range of factors including: to earn an income; interest in doing business; increased flexibility and autonomy; possibility to combine with family obligations; and re‐negotiating spatial practices. Conclusive with previous studies it also argues that necessity and choice may be “co‐present” in the motives to enter into entrepreneurship.

Research limitations/implications

The limited sample of this study has implications for the generalizability of results. Further studies into the women's micro‐entrepreneurial activities in Malaysia are therefore encouraged.

Social implications

Women's micro‐entrepreneurship is increasingly being promoted as a way to create growth and development (particularly through micro‐credit schemes). Increasing knowledge around motivational factors, performance and conditions of work for women informal micro‐entrepreneurs is therefore important when trying to establish appropriate policies.

Originality/value

There are very few studies in the Malaysian context which focus upon women's informal micro‐entrepreneurship in general and hawking in particular. This study therefore presents new knowledge around women's informal micro‐entrepreneurship in Malaysia.
Design for Six Sigma and lean product development
Authors: Gremyr Ida , Fouquet Jean‐Baptiste
Published: March 2012

Purpose

Six Sigma and lean production are established concepts in industry and academia. Both have given rise to associated concepts that have been applied in product development: Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) and Lean Product Development (LPD), respectively. Proposals are being published for the merger of DFSS and LPD, and the purpose of this paper is to discuss potential benefits and risks of such proposals.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on an interview study encompassing 11 interviews at seven companies.

Findings

The results show that a possible merger of DFSS and LPD could prove beneficial in providing guidance both on the structure and the content of improvement efforts. Further, a merger has a potential of supporting radical, as well as incremental, improvements. However, differences in industrial practices that should be considered in applications of a merged initiative are the overall goal of the improvement work (cost reduction versus waste reduction), the emphasis on what to do or on how to do it, and the documentation demanded (extensive versus short and visual).

Research limitations/implications

This study has taken DFSS and LPD applications as its starting point, as the merged initiative of DFSS and LPD has started to develop further studies based on the implementation of the merged initiative would be of value. These studies could especially focus on the organisation of improvement work, identified in this paper as a potential area of conflict.

Originality/value

This paper discusses potential benefits as well as risks of merging DFSS and LPD based on industrial experiences. Consideration of the differences addressed, by practitioners as well as academics, will contribute to a well thought‐out design of a merger of the two concepts.
The empirical research of banks' capital buffer and risk adjustment decision making
Authors: Zheng Changjun , Xu Tinghua , Liang Wanxia
Published: March 2012

Purpose

In order to improve banks' ability to fight against risks, China's financial regulatory authorities refer to the Basel Accord, and bank capital adequacy ratio is taken as an important means of control. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the internal mechanism between capital buffers and risk adjustment.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the dynamic characteristics of a bank's continuing operations, the authors established an unbalanced panel of China's commercial bank balance‐sheet data from 1991 to 2009 and used the Generalized Method of Moments to examine the relationship between short‐term capital buffer and portfolio risk adjustments.

Findings

The authors' estimations show that the relationship between capital and risk adjustments for well capitalized banks is positive, indicating that they maintain their target level of capital by increasing (decreasing) risk when capital increases (decreases). In contrast, for banks with capital buffers approaching the minimum capital requirement, the relationship between adjustments in capital and risk is negative. That is, low capital banks either increase their buffers by reducing their risk, or gamble for resurrection by taking more risk as a means to rebuild the buffer. Moreover, the authors' estimations show that the management of short‐term adjustments in capital and risk is dependent on the size of the capital buffer.

Research limitations/implications

From the current research documents, there are few empirical researches on capital buffers and risk adjustment, and the research sample time limits of current papers are a little earlier. The researches did not reflect China's commercial banks' capital buffer and risk adjustment after the new Basel Accord.

Practical implications

Banks' adjustment speed of target level depends on the size of capital buffer, proving that the speed of adjusting capital buffer of banks with smaller capital buffer is significantly faster than their counterparts with larger capital buffers.

Originality/value

The paper uses the dynamic feature of banks' lasting operations as the logical starting point, which is ignored by the current researches, and investigates the internal mechanism between capital buffers and risk adjustment.
Assessing the potential for post‐copulatory sexual selection in elasmobranchs
Authors: Fitzpatrick J. L. , Kempster R. M. , Daly‐Engel T. S. , Collin S. P. , Evans J. P.
Published: March 2012

This review highlights the potential role that post‐copulatory sexual selection plays in elasmobranch reproductive systems and the utility of this group to further understanding of evolutionary responses to the post‐copulatory processes of sperm competition and cryptic female choice. The growing genetic evidence for female multiple mating (polyandry) in elasmobranchs is summarized. While polyandry appears to be common in this group, rates of multiple paternity are highly variable between species suggesting that there is large variance in the strength of post‐copulatory sexual selection among elasmobranchs. Possible adaptations of traits important for post‐copulatory sexual selection are then considered. Particular emphasis is devoted to explore the potential for sperm competition and cryptic female choice to influence the evolution of testes size, sperm morphology, genital morphology and sperm storage organs. Finally, it is argued that future work should take advantage of the wealth of information on these reproductive traits already available in elasmobranchs to gain a better understanding of how post‐copulatory sexual selection operates in this group.
Synthetic disulfide‐bridged cyclic peptides mimic the anti‐angiogenic actions of chondromodulin‐I
Authors: Miura Shigenori , Kondo Jun , Kawakami Toru , Shukunami Chisa , Aimoto Saburo , Tanaka Hideyuki , Hiraki Yuji
Published: March 2012

Chondromodulin‐I (ChM‐I) is a 25‐kDa glycoprotein in cartilage matrix that inhibits angiogenesis. It contains two distinctive structural domains: the N‐terminal third of the molecule is a hydrophilic domain that contains O‐linked and N‐linked oligosaccharide chains, and the C‐terminal two‐thirds is a hydrophobic domain that contains all of the cysteine residues. In the present study, we have attempted to further uncover the structural requirements for ChM‐I to exert anti‐angiogenic activity by monitoring its inhibition of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)‐A‐induced migration of HUVEC in vitro. Site‐directed mutagenesis experiments revealed that the cyclic structure formed by the disulfide bridge between Cys83 and Cys99 in human ChM‐I is indispensable for its anti‐angiogenic function. Moreover, the C‐terminal hydrophobic tail (from Trp111 to Val120) was found to play an important role in ensuring the effectiveness of ChM‐I activity on HUVEC. A synthetic cyclic peptide corresponding to the ChM‐I region between Ile82 to Arg100 also inhibited the migration of HUVEC, while replacing the Cys83 and Cys99 residues in this peptide with Ser completely negated this inhibitory activity. An additional synthetic cyclic peptide harboring the hydrophobic C‐terminal tail of ChM‐I clearly mimicked the inhibitory action of this protein on the migration of HUVEC and successfully inhibited tumor angiogenesis and growth in a xenograft mouse model of human chondrosarcoma. (Cancer Sci 2012; 103: 1311–1318)
Expression of a splicing variant of the CADM1 specific to small cell lung cancer
Authors: Kikuchi Shinji , Iwai Miwako , Sakurai‐Yageta Mika , Tsuboi Yumi , Ito Takeshi , Maruyama Tomoko , Tsuda Hitoshi , Kanai Yae , Onizuka Masataka , Sato Yukio , Murakami Yoshinori
Published: March 2012

CADM1, a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily cell adhesion molecule, acts as a tumor suppressor in a variety of human cancers. CADM1 is also ectopically expressed in adult T‐cell leukemia (ATL), conferring an invasive phenotype characteristic to ATL. Therefore, CADM1 plays dual roles in human oncogenesis. Here, we investigate the roles of CADM1 in small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Immunohistochemistry demonstrates that 10 of 35 (29%) primary SCLC tumors express CADM1 protein. Western blotting and RT‐PCR analyses reveal that CADM1 is significantly expressed in 11 of 14 SCLC cells growing in suspension cultures but in neither of 2 SCLC cells showing attached growth to plastic dishes, suggesting that CADM1 is involved in anchorage‐independent growth in SCLC. In the present study, we demonstrate that SCLC expresses a unique splicing variant of CADM1 (variant 8/9) containing additional extracellular fragments corresponding to exon 9 in addition to variant 8, a common isoform in epithelia. Variant 8/9 of CADM1 is almost exclusively observed in SCLC and testis, although this variant protein localizes along the membrane and shows similar cell aggregation activity to variant 8. Interestingly, both variant 8/9 and variant 8 of CADM1 show enhanced tumorigenicity in nude mice when transfected into SBC5, a SCLC cell lacking CADM1. Inversely, suppression of CADM1 expression by shRNA reduced spheroid‐like cell aggregation of NCI‐H69, an SCLC cell expressing a high amount of CADM1. These findings suggest that CADM1 enhances the malignant features of SCLC, as is observed in ATL, and could provide a molecular marker specific to SCLC. (Cancer Sci 2012; 103: 1051–1057)