bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The labour behind the (Fair Trade) label
Authors: Davenport Eileen , Low Will
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This paper critically examines the marketing of fair trade, arguing that the use of the term producer conflates a number of categories of actors, not all of whom benefit equally. The authors contend that the two existing archetypes – the noble peasant farmer and the independent artisan – and the emerging archetype of the “empowered decision maker” serve to obscure and mask complex labour relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

This conceptual paper draws on a wide range of literature and original fieldwork conducted by the authors to illustrate the three marketing archetypes in the fair trade value chain.

Findings

Hidden behind the three dominant archetypes used to promote fair trade is a relationship between fair trade “producers” (small farmer, craft enterprise and plantations) and permanent and temporary/casual labourers. The trickle‐down of fair trade benefits to these workers is uneven at best and falls far short of the expectation of empowerment of all “producers” that fair trade promises.

Research limitations/implications

The fair trade project must look beyond the simple archetypes to engage more deeply with labour issues in the fair trade value chain, and to re‐engage with fair trade as a development strategy through which broader and more complex forms of empowerment can be realised.

Practical implications

Fair trade standards are not a substitute for organised labour's activities. Interactions between trade unions and fair trade bodies could ensure that existing labour standards are met, and improvements in the lives of all workers can occur.

Originality/value

This paper conceptualises three fair trade mainstream marketing archetypes and suggests why and how the fair trade movement must move beyond these to ensure empowerment amongst its least well‐off stakeholders.
Critical perspectives on Fair Trade: an introduction
Authors: Gibbon Jane , Śliwa Martyna
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This editorial article aims to introduce the special issue of Critical Perspectives on International Business entitled “Critical perspectives on fair trade”.

Design/methodology/approach

The editorial provides a brief overview of the subject of fair trade, with an emphasis on the critical arguments that have been put forward in relation to the fair trade movement. It then locates the four papers included in this special issue within extant debates on fair trade.

Findings

While the fair trade movement has been attracting the attention of scholars for over a decade, there is still space and scope for academic debate, and especially for empirical studies focusing on different aspects of fair trade initiatives. This special issue contributes to addressing the current gap in critical studies of fair trade.

Research limitations/implications

Further research on fair trade is needed to inform both academic thinking and policy.

Originality/value

The editorial fulfils an informative role of introducing the readers to the topics covered in the articles included in the special issue.
Knowing, learning and acting in health care organizations and services
Authors: Bosio Claudio , Graffigna Guendalina , Scaratti Giuseppe
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the value of post‐modern psychosocial approaches to studying knowledge and practice construction in health care organizations and settings (HCO&S) and the increasing ability of qualitative research to furnish a deeper, more ecological, and more usable understanding of the social construction of health knowledge and practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The argument proposed in the paper is based on a critical literature review conducted on the Psychinfo, Scopus, PubMed and Web of Science databases.

Findings

Recent years have seen cultural changes in the values and goals of healthcare interventions that are deeply reconfiguring HCO&S. These changes are reframing HCO&S action and are highlighting the importance of understanding and managing not only the “expert context” but also the “lay contexts” of healthcare interventions. In an attempt to deal with these emergent changes (and challenges), HCO&S are taking advantage of new insights matured in the post‐modern turn of organizational analysis. In this frame, qualitative research proves suitable for connecting HCO&S needs and priorities with the new post‐modern paradigm of knowledge‐ and practice‐sharing in organizations.

Originality/value

The paper demonstrates the value of qualitative research in the analysis of HCO&S and casts light on the new research trends and new technical‐methodological options arising in this field.
Discovering healthcare professional‐practice networks
Authors: Bishop Simon , Waring Justin
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to examine the benefits of undertaking mixed methods social network analysis (SNA) to investigate patterns of interpersonal relationships in healthcare delivery. Although SNA has roots in anthropological and ethnographic research, recent emphasis has been on the mathematical properties of social networks utilising graph theory and statistical analysis. While such studies may present interesting data on the structure of ties, this paper argues that they sidestep other important elements of patterns of social relationships; their meaning and their implications for network members. The paper identifies how SNA survey can be employed alongside ethnographic data within a qualitative framework.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper reports on a study that investigated how knowledge sharing in social networks can contribute to patient safety in surgical care involving a social network survey, qualitative interviews and ethnographic observations.

Findings

Results describe how each research method illuminated different elements of professional practice networks. These focus on the additional elements of networks identified through qualitative methods. The discussion examines how qualitative and quantitative findings relate to each other and could be combined within an overall qualitative methodology.

Originality/value

The paper answers the call for a greater utilisation of network methods in healthcare studies; demonstrates the benefits of qualitative research on social networks; and presents data on the contribution of health professionals’ interpersonal relationships in the production of safe patient care.
Money matters: does the symbolic presence of money affect charitable giving and attitudes among adolescents?
Authors: Roberts James A. , Roberts Camille R.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

Money plays an integral part in the daily lives of people all over the world and its mere presence can affect one's behavior and attitudes. The present paper aims to test whether the presence of money will reduce the amount of money donated to charity and affect adolescents' attitudes toward charitable giving. The role of gender in charitable giving and attitudes is also to be investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

The study's subjects consisted of 114 adolescents ranging in age from 13‐14. Using an experimental design, each subject was randomly assigned to one of two groups. The treatment group's questionnaire had the image of a $100 bill at the bottom of the first page. The analyses consisted of two separate ANOVAs to test the study's hypotheses.

Findings

The initial ANOVA analysis investigates the impact of money salience and gender on the willingness to donate. The full model was significant as were the main effects for treatment group (money prime) and gender. Those primed for money gave less to the food bank and girls gave more compared to boys. A second ANOVA investigates the impact of money salience and gender on attitudes toward charitable giving. Again, both the full model and main effects were significant. Those primed for money held less favorable attitudes toward charitable giving than the control group and girls held more positive attitudes than boys.

Research limitations/implications

The findings suggest that gender plays an important role in charity and answers a call for increased research in this critical area of study. Study limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

Practical implications

The results of this study have important implications for both charitable giving and attitudes and for better understanding this important human value. It appears that when money is made salient it makes people less charitable.

Originality/value

This is the first study to extend the impact of money salience to adolescents.
What do adolescent girls learn about gender roles from advertising images?
Authors: Chan Kara , Leung Ng Yu , Williams Russell B.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

A qualitative study by autovideography was conducted to examine adolescent girls' negotiation of their gender roles through the consumption of advertising images. This paper aims to document the study.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 20 adolescent girls aged 15 to 18 in Hong Kong were asked to take pictures from the media that could illustrate “what girls or women should or should not be and what girls or women should or should not do”. Advertising images captured by the interviewees and their interpretations of those images were analyzed.

Findings

Seven dominant themes were isolated from the interpretations: appearance; personality; skills and work; activities, interests and lifestyle; family; health and safety; and caring for people and the environment. The findings show that adolescent girls pay much attention to images about slimming, body image and physical appearance. They criticized female images in ads as unrealistic but identified with female images that were natural and conventional.

Research limitations/implications

The interviewees were recruited from two secondary schools that may not have been representative. The interviews were conducted in English, which may have caused some of the participants to be reticent about presenting their viewpoints. The implications represent a step forward in relation to how media influence young consumers and how teenagers perceive and intercept what they see in the media.

Originality/value

The paper shows that collecting and interpreting female visual images can illustrate vividly the process of gender socialization.
No one wants to get stuck with the losing card
Authors: Nordgren Lars
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The rate of turnover of hospital managers has been high in Sweden. Hospitals are regarded to be difficult to manage, which is connected with different discourses and action logics such as politics, medicine, care and management creating complex conditions for hospital management. The purpose of this paper is to analyse hospital managers' management conditions in conjunction with hospital mergers.

Design/methodology/approach

Two case studies concerning hospital mergers illustrate these management conditions by means of analysing how different actions are communicated by politicians, county council directors, and hospital managers. The author's own experiences as a hospital manager have been made use of, as have document studies. In the analysis, conducted with the support of several theoretical perspectives, certain themes emerge which touch upon these management conditions.

Findings

In connection with hospital mergers, leading hospital actors carry out communicative games controlled by different action logics. No one wants to get stuck with the losing card. The article demonstrates the difficulties of implementing radical organizational changes in hospitals. A challenge for hospital managers lies in creating a shared dialogue and a consensus with the professions, the politicians and the media. The crucial position of power held by the politicians and the professions in critical situations has to be dealt with. Otherwise the hospital manager has to resign.

Originality/value

The paper aims to clarify under which management conditions the hospital manager acts.
Cognitive bias in salespersons in specialty drug selling of pharmaceutical industry
Authors: Wasuja Sachin , Sagar Mahim , Sushil
Published: November 2012

Purpose

Specialty drug development is capital‐intensive and represents a new era for the entire health ecosystem. This “newness” has resulted in below‐par sales performance of these drugs. This paper seeks to explore the intricate relationship of product (or company), salespersons, doctors and consumers (patients) in the given scenario.

Design/methodology/approach

The study makes use of grounded theory and total interpretive structural modeling (TISM). Grounded theory is used to explore various factors of cognitive bias in selling specialty drugs. TISM is used to create a hierarchy amongst the factors and interpret the relationships amongst them.

Findings

The study proposes a cognitive bias amplification model explaining the phenomenon of cognitive bias in specialty pharmaceutical selling.

Originality/value

The study fills part of the significant research gap and addresses the issues in selling specialty drugs. The cognitive bias amplification model is helpful in providing the starting point for sales‐centric organizations to overcome the cognitive bias affecting salespersons.
Contract research organizations: an industry analysis
Authors: Dimachkie Masri Maysoun , Ramirez Bernardo , Popescu Cristina , Reggie Ed Michael
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The aging of the population, high prevalence of chronic diseases, and increased need for evidence‐based practice are factors that have boosted a high demand for clinical trials in the United States. In recent years, an increasing number of clinical trials have shifted from academic medical centers, to community‐based practices, to global sites in different countries. Contract research organizations (CROs) are service organizations that provide research and support services to pharmaceutical, biotechnological, and health companies. This paper aims to explore the evolution of the CRO industry in the United States and worldwide, and to discuss the benefits and pitfalls of the globalization of CROs.

Design/methodology/approach

The organizational ecology framework is used to analyze the lifecycle of CROs in response to their environment including their emergence, growth, and evolution to date.

Findings

The authors discuss the drug development process, the role of CROs and outsourcing in clinical research. Pharmaceutical companies began outsourcing research activities to increase their profit margins and better position themselves in the rapidly‐changing healthcare environment. The paper analyzes the evolution of the CROs over time and the factor that affected it, including the current globalization stage with special emphasis in India, China and Central and Eastern Europe. Consequences of globalization include the stimulation of research collaboration, policy and issues related to quality.

Originality/value

The evolution of CROs over time points to transformation/evolution of these organizations, with challenges as they become an integral part of the drug development process in the USA and other countries.
Philosophy, training and spirituality: a longitudinal, empirical study
Authors: Li Jui‐Min
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze whether Chinese philosophy can have positive results in long‐term training.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examined its effect based on Kirkpatrick's model. The qualitative data were the interviews, observations, and documents from 2004 to 2012. The quantitative data included three questionnaires for the employees and the customers distributed in 2005, 2006, and from 2009 to 2011, with 3,601 valid ones in total.

Findings

The results show that using Chinese philosophy as training content can increase trainees' training motivation. In addition, better training motivation can bring positive reaction, learning, and motivation for transfer. Second, at the individual level, Chinese philosophy can increase the employees' motivation for transfer and workplace spirituality. Third, at the organizational level, it shows an enhancement of service quality (SQ).

Practical implications

First, human resource (HR) practices can take the country's cultural features into account and do not necessarily have to adopt Western management theories and practices. Second, the “best practice” can be a useful reference for HR managers in the Chinese organizational context. Finally, the training contents are not necessarily about knowledge or skills. For the service industries with intensive interaction with customers, enhancing work attitude can further increase SQ.

Originality/value

First, Chinese philosophy involves the concepts of business management. Second, this longitudinal research pointed out that Chinese philosophy can enhance employees' workplace spirituality; and further, it enhanced the SQ. Third, the training evaluation result is more comprehensive for it includes individual level and organizational level.
Setting the framework for a Business Strategy Assessment Model
Authors: Papadelis S. , Flamos A. , Androulaki S.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the Business Strategy Assessment Model (BSAM) approach, in an attempt to explore the principle dynamics of an energy‐economic system with emphasis on the private actors' point of view and the impact different policy instruments may have on the decisions of private actors with different characteristics.

Design/methodology/approach

In the BSAM model, investment decisions under consideration depend on their perceived financial value. Basis for the financial valuation of an investment option is formed by simulating market dynamics with alternative price scenarios. The outputs include: investment strategies, derived as a function of the (uncertain) state vector of future market conditions and risk premium, calculated by contrasting the expected net present value for the optimal timing of the investment and the expected net present value of an immediate investment generation module of the BSAM, while both of these outputs are estimated for each available technology option.

Findings

Different models make different assumptions shedding light upon different aspects of the socio‐economic systems they attempt to analyze and hitherto, no such model succeeds in incorporating all the perceptions that are driving the integration of energy policies. BSAM is based on the notion that a convergence between policy evaluation and business strategy assessment models could be truly beneficial for regulators that aim to derive effective energy policies. Both the algorithm adopted and the structure of the modules of BSAM facilitate the analysis of complex interactions in a firm's decision making process, and even more the what‐if analyses needed for alternative policy measure evaluation.

Originality/value

Setting the framework for a modelling approach that incorporates the role of risk‐return perceptions of private actor's with diverse features, portfolio effects, path dependence and agent competition, into appraising energy and climate policies, and suggest that the heterogeneous world of investors requires reflexive assessment techniques. Above and beyond, understanding the drivers and triggers of firm's investment strategies will allow improving the effectiveness of energy policies.
Incredible Edible – social and environmental entrepreneurship in the era of the “Big Society”
Authors: Thompson John
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this case study is to allow the exploration of social entrepreneurship, environmental improvement and volunteering in the context of the UK's declared Big Society. Recently, there has been increased interest in “environmental” as well as social entrepreneurship. Volunteering is also an area of growing concern in policy circles, particularly with the advent of the “Big Society”, the UK Government's vision of citizen involvement.

Design/methodology/approach

The case was written with both secondary and primary data and with the co‐operation of Incredible Edible. Primary data include street questionnaires and semi‐structured interviews with relevant stakeholders.

Findings

Incredible Edible is an environmental initiative started in Todmorden, West Yorkshire. Basically community members – largely volunteers – have looked for opportunities where they could plant and grow fruits and vegetables that others could just help themselves to. Any spare land and space has been seen as suitable. From this the themes of local food growing and self sufficiency have taken over. Over a (short) period of years the initiative has grown and received considerable support from local stakeholders as well as extensive publicity. The initiative has attracted attention elsewhere and not just in the UK. But its real impact has been on the community and its sense of place.

Practical implications

The data have been used (so far) to write a case that traces the journey of the people behind the initiative, their motives and their impact. It explores a number of themes, namely: social entrepreneurship in action; improving the local environment aesthetically; the Big Society and volunteering; the local economic and social impacts – a new sense of place; improved diets and healthy eating – but also the impact on other local businesses which sell rival food products; how local successes can be replicated elsewhere; and the sustainability of initiatives such as this.

Originality/value

The case demonstrates five important themes that could be seen as a litmus test for the effectiveness of projects and initiatives in the Big Society – namely the presence and commitment of a visionary who provides the purpose and direction, volunteers, velocity – and emergence, visibility, and value.
Let's talk about wine: does Twitter have value?
Authors: Wilson Damien , Quinton Sarah
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this exploratory research paper is twofold. First, to identify how wine is being talked about within the Twitter environment and second to examine whether the constructs of soft and hard value can be demonstrated within the social media, Twitter content. The overall aim is to establish whether Twitter can create value for wine stakeholders.

Design/methodology/approach

A netnographic approach has been adopted through the collection of 1,500 English language tweets on the subject of wine which were analysed using Nvivo qualitative data analysis software against the constructs of value found in the literature.

Findings

The early findings suggest that Twitter can create soft value for wine focused businesses but that hard value is not yet strongly evident. Wine marketers need to be more aware of both the content of wine tweets and the profiles of those who tweet.

Practical implications

The use of social media within wine businesses is in its infancy. Wine focused businesses are currently not optimising value creation through Twitter. Whilst Twitter does exhibit value, wine marketers, wine brands and wine retailers are not engaging with consumers who are talking about wine via Twitter.

Originality/value

This paper has provided evidence that there is value within social media, specifically Twitter. The contribution of this paper lies in identifying not only the types of value that wine businesses could develop by embracing Twitter but also how the different profiles use Twitter differently.
Competitive priorities in Malaysian service industry
Authors: Muzamil Naqshbandi M. , Idris Fazli
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This study attempts to explain the components of competitive priorities of Malaysian service firms and to find out the competitive priorities of different service industries in Malaysia, and how these competitive priorities change across “low performance” and “high performance” service industries.

Design/methodology/approach

An empirical study of 254 firms from nine different service industries is conducted to answer the objectives of this study.

Findings

Four competitive priorities are identified: cost, quality, delivery and flexibility. Six service industries namely fast food, hospital, retail store, bank, private college and accountant industries are found to be focused on quality while three industries namely hotel, auto‐repair and architect prioritized delivery. For both high performance and low performance firms, quality remained the top competitive priority followed by delivery, flexibility and cost.

Originality/value

This is the first study that identifies competitive priorities in the Malaysian service sector
Modelling the currency in circulation for the State of Qatar
Authors: Balli Faruk , Mousa Elsamadisy Elsayed
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This paper seeks to model the daily and weekly forecasting of the currency in circulation (CIC) for the State of Qatar.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper employs linear forecasting models, the regression model and the seasonal ARIMA model to forecast the CIC for Qatar.

Findings

Comparing the linear methods, the seasonal ARIMA model provides better estimates for short‐term forecasts. The range of forecast errors for the seasonal ARIMA model forecasts are less than 100 million QR for the short‐term CIC forecasts.

Practical implications

The findings of this paper suggest that the CIC in Qatar is in a pattern and it would be easier to forecast the currency in circulation in Qatar economy. Accurate estimates of money market liquidity would help Qatar Central bank, to maintain the price stability in the Qatar economy.

Originality/value

This paper forecasts the currency in circulation for the State of Qatar. Additionally, the empirical part of the paper compares the different methodologies find the appropriate model for the CIC for the state of Qatar.
Internal control system for Islamic micro financing
Authors: Wardiwiyono Sartini
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This paper aims to contribute to literature on managing Islamic micro financing by formulating and evaluating the implementation of internal control system for Islamic micro financing. It also aims to investigate the implementation of an internal control system for financing activities practiced by Baitul Maal wat Tamwil (BMT), a special micro finance organization, in Indonesia.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the paper introduces the concept of internal control system. Second, an internal control system for Islamic financing is formulated. Primary data that relate to the implementation of an internal control system for financing activities are obtained through a direct survey using questionnaires. The data are then analyzed using descriptive statistic and qualitative analysis to find the implementations of the internal control system.

Findings

BMTs in Indonesia have implemented an internal control system for their financing activities. The rank of the implementation is: information and communication; monitoring; control environment; risk assessment; and control activities. This study also indicates that the implementation of authorization and consultation to the Shariah Supervisory Board was low.

Research limitations/implications

The respondents of this study are small in number. However, the findings are valid and reliable.

Originality/value

To the author's knowledge, there is a lack of scholars' attention on the implementation of internal control especially for Islamic micro financing. Therefore, this study will provide insight to the literature on how to manage Islamic micro financing efficiently and effectively.
Information asymmetry and regulatory shortcomings in profit sharing investment accounts
Authors: Ameer Rashid , Othman Radiah , Mahzan Nurmazilah
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the shortcomings in the compliance of the full‐fledged Islamic banks with the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) disclosure guidelines related to the profit sharing investment accounts (PSIAs).

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses interviews and a survey.

Findings

It was found that only two out five full‐fledged Islamic banks followed BNM guidelines which are based on the idea of self‐regulation. The authors developed a checklist of disclosure items, and probed whether the sample banks would adopt these new disclosure items. As it transpired, some banks have been disclosing these items selectively, and/or recording them for internal control and management purposes. The findings show these banks do not disclose: policies, procedures, product design and structure; profit allocation basis, methodology of calculating profit attributable to investment account holders (IAHs). Nevertheless, disclosure related to Shari'ah compliance was given to a reasonable extent. It is intriguing that full‐fledged Islamic banks do not provide comprehensive disclosure related to PSIAs because such disclosure is not mandatory; while foreign full‐fledged Islamic banks provided such disclosure voluntarily.

Research limitations/implications

The banking sector regulator is not sure of whether individual Islamic banks have actually complied with all of its guidelines. The shortcomings in the disclosure are due to lack of expertise, outdated information system structure, and shortage of support and highly trained staff. The authors propose that the Islamic jurists should use Istiqra – which is a comprehensive examination of contracting environment before a new definite ruling is made on the issue of accountability to the IAHs. This would involve exploratory study of how the securities regulator (not banking regulator) perceives the information risks faced by the IAHs and enforce new disclosure guidelines.

Originality/value

This paper proposes new disclosure guidelines which incorporate transparency, appropriateness, and timeliness to reduce information asymmetry and enhance governance disclosure.
The emerging strategic and financial issues in the Indian hospitality industry
Authors: Sanjeev Gunjan M. , Jauhari Vinnie
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The paper aims to provide an overview of the facts and trends relating to the Indian hospitality industry. It also seeks to identify the key strategic and financial issues that hoteliers are currently facing and to introduce the theme issue.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws facts and emerging trends from various official reports and collates key issues as highlighted by the theme issue contributors. All the papers in the theme issue identify salient points after rounds of discussions with practitioners.

Findings

Some of the key emerging areas are risk management, cost management, land management and policies, revenue management, growth challenges and innovative practices arising from an extended inflationary period.

Practical implications

With domestic hoteliers in an expansion mode and foreign operators' intention of investing in India, the paper is of interest to hoteliers and policy makers interested in knowing about emerging and topical issues relating to this market.

Originality/value

There are relatively few prior studies relating to the strategic and financial issues affecting the hospitality industry in India – particularly in the context of practitioner involvement. The theme issue involves senior practitioners in the review from the outset and this approach offers a significant contribution to applied research in this field.
Responding to the emerging strategic and financial issues in the Indian hospitality industry
Authors: Jauhari Vinnie , Sanjeev Gunjan M.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This paper aims to summarise and review the key strategic and financial challenges faced by the hospitality industry in India.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws from the findings of the theme issue contributors. All the papers in the theme issue have drawn inputs from practitioners in the domain of strategy and finance.

Findings

The paper summarises the key issues in the areas of strategy and finance in the context of the hospitality industry in India. Some of the key areas that have to be addressed are: cost management, land management and policies, risk management, revenue management, branding, growth issues and talent management.

Practical implications

There are a number of implications for practitioners and policy makers that would help the hospitality industry to grow more quickly and contribute meaningfully to India's economic growth.

Originality/value

Practitioners' perspectives are important as they help in framing policies and guidelines to enable the hospitality industry to grow. The outcomes of the theme issue are especially helpful in this context as they yield insights on issues that really matter to the hospitality industry in India.
Selling punches: free markets and professional wrestling in the UK, 1986‐1993
Authors: Litherland Benjamin
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to outline the historical and political broadcasting conditions that hindered the success of British professional wrestling and allowed the rise to dominance of the American World Wrestling Federation.

Design/methodology/approach

Because of the nature of professional wrestling, the paper utilises a range of secondary sources (audience research conducted by the Independent Broadcasting Authority, and interviews with retired wrestlers) and primary research (government papers, magazines, newspapers).

Findings

The paper finds that the World Wrestling Federation benefited from neo‐liberal television policies, but also created a product that attracted a new generation of fans.

Originality/value

The paper examines an under‐researched area of study (British professional wrestling) to explore and complicate existing debates about sports marketing and British media institutions in the 1980s and 1990s.
The impact of US biofuel policies on agricultural price levels and volatility
Authors: Babcock Bruce A.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the market impacts of US biofuels and biofuel policies.

Design/methodology/approach

Two methods of analysis are employed. The first method looks back in time and estimates what US crop prices would have been during the 2005 to 2009 marketing years under two scenarios. The second method of analysis is forward looking and examines the market impacts of the blender tax credit and mandate on the distribution of prices in the 2011 calendar and marketing year.

Findings

The results developed in the previous two sections show that US ethanol policies modestly increased maize prices from 2006 to 2009 and that market impacts of the policies will be larger under tighter market conditions.

Practical implications

More flexible US biofuel policy including removing the blenders tax credit, which does not help US biofuel industry as long as the mandates are in place, and relaxing blending mandates when feedstock supplies are low.

Originality/value

This report makes three contributions to understanding the extent to which US biofuel policies contribute to higher agricultural and food prices. First, estimates of the impact of US ethanol policies on crop and food prices reveal that the impacts of the subsidies were quite modest. The second contribution is to provide estimates of the impact on agricultural commodity prices and food prices from market‐driven expansion of ethanol. The final contribution of this report is improved insight into how current US biofuel policies are expected to affect crop prices in the near future.
Pesticide use and farmers' health in China's rice production
Authors: Qiao Fangbin , Huang Jikun , Zhang Linxiu , Rozelle Scott
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this study is trying to document and examine the impacts of pesticide use on farmers' health. Different from previous studies, the paper is not only going to focus on the visible effect, but also the invisible effect. At the same time, the paper is going to divided the pesticides into highly toxic and low toxic pesticides and estimate their different impacts on farmers' health, respectively.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses regression techniques based on a farm household survey gathered by the authors in Zhejiang provinces. In addition to a sit‐down interview with 100 households, the authors gave a comprehensive physical examination and a blood examination to farmers who applied pesticides most frequently in each household.

Findings

This paper indicates that farmers who spray more pesticides are more likely to have headache, nausea and skin problems. Beside these visible effects, this paper also finds that exposure to pesticides has significant invisible impact on farmers' neurological, liver and kidney systems.

Originality/value

This, it is believed, is one of the first comprehensive studies to give comprehensive physical examination and blood examination to farmers who applied pesticides most frequently in each household.
China's soybean product imports: an analysis of price effects using a production system approach
Authors: Chen Wei , Marchant Mary A. , Muhammad Andrew
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to estimate China's demand for imported soybeans and soybean oil from both country‐of‐origin and product form perspectives.

Design/methodology/approach

A differential production approach is used to estimate China's demand for imported soybeans and soybean oil. The empirical demand estimates are then used to derive conditional and unconditional elasticities of demand for each exporting country with respect to changes in domestic and import prices, and the price of resources used in soybean meal and oil production.

Findings

Results indicate that both country‐of‐origin and product form competition exist in the Chinese market. Estimation results indicate that China's soybean meal prices significantly impacted its soybean and soybean oil imports. Seasonality is detected in China's soybean imports, but not in soybean oil imports.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that, in addition to country‐of‐origin competition, product form competition should be considered when analyzing China's soybean demand.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to a better understanding of China's soybean import market by integrating both country‐of‐origin competition and product form competition into a single demand framework.
Evolutionary approaches for supply chain optimisation
Authors: Ibrahimov Maksud , Mohais Arvind , Schellenberg Sven , Michalewicz Zbigniew
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper and its companion (Part II: multi‐silo supply chains) is to investigate methods to tackle complexities, constraints (including time‐varying constraints) and other challenges. In tis part, the paper aims to devote attention to single silo and two‐silo supply chains. It also aims to discuss three models. The first model is based on the winebottling real‐world system and exposes complexities of a single operational component of the supply chain. The second model extends it to two components: production and distribution. The last system is a real‐world implementation of the two‐component supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

Evolutionary approach is proposed for a single component problem. The two‐component experimental supply chain is addressed by the algorithm based on cooperative coevolution. The final problem of steel sheet production is tackled with the evolutionary algorithm.

Findings

The proposed systems produce solutions better than solutions proposed by human experts and in a much shorter time.

Originality/value

The paper discusses various algorithms to provide the decision support for the real‐world problems. The proposed systems are in the production use.
Examining climate change adaptation measures: an early warning system in the Philippines
Authors: Cuevas Sining
Published: November 2012

Purpose

This paper aims to illustrate how the climate change‐vulnerability‐risk model (CCVRM) can be used to analyze the changes in system vulnerabilities and risks, as a result of implementing a community‐based early warning system (EWS).

Design/methodology/approach

The CCVRM is used to examine the community‐based EWS being implemented in the municipalities of Infanta and General Nakar in Quezon Province, Philippines. The levels of vulnerabilities and risks of the two localities are assessed through qualitative analysis using the CCVRM as framework. The model is also used to analyze the effects of the EWS in addressing the localities' vulnerabilities and risks.

Findings

Technological and institutional vulnerabilities of the Infanta and General Nakar systems have lessened when the EWS project was implemented. Technological and institutional vulnerabilities have direct correlations with mortality risk; thus, when the levels of the former decrease, so does the latter. Although the reduced technological and institutional vulnerabilities have an effect on the other type of risks present in the municipalities, the effects were not as significant as that of with mortality risk.

Research limitations/implications

Due to limited time and resources, only one adaptation program is analyzed, specifically, the community‐based EWS being implemented in the municipalities of Infanta and General Nakar, Philippines. An integrated analysis of different measures is not done. Although investigating a multi‐adaptation program is possible, this would require more time and resources to implement. Likewise, only a simple evaluation based on model definitions is conducted, instead of a more extensive risk and vulnerability assessment.

Originality/value

The CCVRM acts as an analytical guide in understanding the effects of climate change adaptive measures. Accordingly, this paper investigates the effects of an implemented adaptive measure. The study also shows how the CCVRM can be used to analyze planned measures and identify the types of risks and vulnerabilities that this type of adaptive measure can influence.
The economics of coping strategies and financing adaptation action in India's semi‐arid ecosystems
Authors: Damodaran A.
Published: November 2012

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a bottom‐up perspective about the operational and policy challenges of undertaking adaptive action in water‐scarce environments of India.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross section of 112 small, medium and big farmers drawn from three semi‐arid villages of rural Bangalore District were surveyed to assess their dependence on natural habitats and elicit information on costs and benefits of undertaking adaptation activities. Also explored were the possible impacts of institutional financing systems and publicly funded programs on adaptation action in the study area.

Findings

Small farmers in the study zone were conservation oriented and relied on a variety of terrestrial and aquatic habitats for cultivation operations. On the other hand, commercial and semi commercial farmers who practiced resource intensive cultivation systems were not conservation oriented and were reluctant to go beyond “modest” adaptation activities. Similarly loans provided by local financial institutions to support agricultural operations were designed to maximize crop yields than minimize input use. On the other hand, the conservation programs that were undertaken on common property resources though supportive of public adaptation action, had poor spill‐over effects on private adaptation.

Originality/value

The value of this paper lies in the interesting results it presents about a group of farmers in three semi‐arid villages of South India. The originality of the paper lies in the key policy issues it raises on climate financing in the light of ground level evidence. The paper proposes a compensation regime to incentivize adaptation.
A user‐led consultation model: making inclusion of service users in research a reality
Authors: Bourke John A. , Snell Deborah L. , Anne Sinnott K. , Cassidy Bernadette
Published: November 2012

Purpose

Disabled people who are the end‐users (EU) of health services have a poor record of inclusion, yet a major stake in the quality of scientific research that informs the development of health knowledge and interventions. In traditional rehabilitation research it has been the researcher who sets the agenda, including determining the research question, study design and methods, and who controls dissemination of findings. This paper aims to describe the development of an EU research consultation committee and to describe the evaluation protocol used to assess the effectiveness of the committee.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper describes the context and development of an EU research consultation committee (the committee) to promote collaboration between researchers and lay‐EUs within a research organization in New Zealand. It also describes the qualitative evaluation protocol to be used to assess the effectiveness of the committee over the first 12 months of operation in order to refine its process and procedures.

Findings

The paper discusses the issues and challenges involved in achieving collaboration between researchers and EUs in the rehabilitation research space and describes this consultation model as a positive example of making inclusion a reality. Challenges include building research capacity within the EU community and development of real models of collaboration and partnership in rehabilitation research.

Originality/value

It is argued that the integrity and relevance of clinical research is enhanced by the involvement of EUs in all aspects of the research process.
Teacher communication preferred over peer interaction
Authors: Small Felicity , Dowell David , Simmons Peter
Published: November 2012

Purpose

Teachers have access to a growing range of online tools to support course delivery, but which ones are valued by students? Expectations and satisfaction are important constructs in the delivery of a service product, and how these constructs operate in a service environment, such as education where the student can also take on the role of the customer is unknown. This study focuses on the student perspective of online tools. The aim of this paper is to measure students' expectations and perceived importance of, and satisfaction with, a range of tools available in a virtual learning environment.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative survey (n=396) was conducted and descriptive measures and statistical analysis were produced.

Findings

Results show that the tools that enable instructors to communicate with students and vice versa are more important to students and more satisfying to them than tools that enable students to interact with each other. Also, business students appear to be different from non‐business students, with respect to desired communications tools.

Practical implications

The findings help us to understand business students' communication preference, which in turn helps teachers to create an educationally meaningful learning environment.

Originality/value

This work connects an established model for online interactions with students' expectations and level of satisfaction with tools that are currently being used in the online education environment.