bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Methodology or “methodolatry”? An evaluation of focus groups and depth interviews
Authors: Stokes David , Bergin Richard 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThe aim of this research was to consider whether focus groups have justifiably become a more frequently used qualitative market research technique because of a superior research outcome. Although focus groups have extrinsic advantages such as speed and cost, there is evidence that individual depth interviews have intrinsic advantages relating to the quality of the research outcome.Design/methodology/approachA parallel research study was undertaken examining a single business issue using both focus groups and individual interviews. Results of both processes were analysed for relevance to the business issue. Follow up individual interviews with participants of the focus groups were undertaken to assess the validity of the data collected, and to investigate the nature of the processes in the groups.FindingsGroup processes appear to have had considerable influence on the consensus view expressed in focus groups, which may not be representative of respondents' individual views. Both the groups and the interviews identified the principle issues relating to buyer motivations and processes, target markets and branding. The groups were unable to match the depth and detail generated by individual interviews and to uncover subtleties in attitudes. The interviews offered less breadth of data and contextual information.Practical implicationsWhilst groups may be less expensive and faster in data collection, individual interviews demonstrated a superior ability to inform marketing strategy by uncovering important underlying issues.Originality/valueThe findings indicate that groups do not justify their predominance as a market research method in preference to interviews on the grounds of quality of outcomes alone.
Exploring relationships with home and host countries
Authors: Richardson Julia , McKenna Steve 
Published: June 2006

PurposeTo explore self‐directed expatriates' relationships with their home and host countries by drawing on an existing model of expatriate managers' allegiance to home and host organizations.Design/methodology/approachUsing a qualitative methodology and thematic analysis, the study draws on interviews with 30 expatriate academics in four countries. Specifically, the paper draws on Black and Gregersen's model of allegiance to home and host organizations to explore the different dimensions and the strength and weakness of those relationships.FindingsThe findings suggest that, while the model of allegiance presents a useful starting‐point, further modifications are required in order to cater for the complexity and dynamism of relationships with home and host countries.Research limitations/implicationsWhereas the paper focuses on UK expatriates, it may be that other nationals may experience different relationships with their home and host countries. Moreover, it may be useful to explore the relationships of other self‐directed expatriates such as managers and corporate executives, or medical personnel.Originality/valueThe specific value of the paper is that it explores a hitherto under‐researched theme and provides an insight into the identified dimensions of self‐directed expatriates' relationships with their home and host countries.
Perceived differences in sexual harassment between business school students in the US and Thailand
Authors: Limpaphayom Wanthanee , Williams Robert J. , Fadil Paul A. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThis study seeks to examine differences in the perceptions of sexual harassment between business school students in the USA and Thailand.Design/methodology/approachSenior‐level business students from both the USA (228 students) and Thailand (260 students) were surveyed regarding their perceptions of what constituted sexual harassment behaviour. After reading different workplace scenarios, the participants used a Likert‐type scale to rank different behaviours as to what they felt constituted sexual harassment. The survey scores were factor‐analyzed in order to determine the constructs underlying the variety of sexual harassment behaviours.FindingsStudents in the USA viewed sexual harassment as involving a quid quo pro situation in which one's behaviour affects the terms of employment (sexual coercion), and a hostile environment in which certain behaviours and remarks create a hostile or offensive work environment. In comparison, the Thai students also viewed behaviours that create a hostile or offensive environment as constituting harassment, but also considered sexually explicit language and jokes to be very offensive, and as constituting a form of sexual coercion.Research limitations/implicationsThis study used only one data collection method, specifically, a survey instrument. Also, this study examined differences between US subjects and subjects from only one Far Eastern country. Thus, the results may not be generalizable to other East Asian countries.Practical implicationsAs US businesses begin to expand into the Far East, it is imperative that we understand the nature of sexual harassment perceptions in these Far East countries.Originality/valueThis paper provides evidence that the perception of what constitutes sexual harassment varies across cultures.
Forming cohesion in culturally heterogeneous teams
Authors: Wright Norman S. , Drewery Glyn P. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeAims to create a better understanding those factors that influence group cohesion in culturally heterogeneous teams.Design/methodology/approachThe hypotheses presented were tested on a sample of 250 students from a small Hawaiian university, comprising 140 Anglo, 28 Japanese and 82 Pacific Islander representatives.FindingsThe processes and actions that influence cohesion very significantly. Broadly, the research indicates that individuals from different cultures experience the same behaviours in multicultural teams differently.Practical implicationsThere needs to be a willingness to examine the group experience from the point of view of the cultural other and then to explore that experience in an open way.Originality/valueThis study helps to fill one gap in the understanding of culturally heterogeneous teams but is also the starting‐point for additional investigation into the complex dynamics of such teams.
Dimensions that relate to cross‐cultural counselling
Authors: Selvarajah Christopher 
Published: June 2006

PurposeSets out to report on an exploratory study in which perspectives on cross‐cultural counselling in mental health care in Auckland, New Zealand, are to be examined.Design/methodology/approachThe study utilised a single questionnaire which sought mental health professionals' perceptions on issues and concepts of cross‐cultural counselling. The questionnaire was administered in the nine public psychiatric units in Auckland.FindingsApart from the health units providing bicultural (European and Maori) counselling services, there was little cross‐cultural counselling available to an increasingly multicultural community.Originality/valueWith regard to the need for cross‐cultural counselling, rather than address the issue of population change this study examines the effect that lack of diversity would have on the gains that would otherwise be made in the health‐care system of Auckland, New Zealand.
Beyond human resource management in co‐operatives
Authors: Davis Peter 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThis paper seeks to critically review developments in the literature spanning personnel management, HRM, learning organization and intellectual capital approaches to employee utilization and development. The purpose being to identify the benefits, limitations and lessons for the management of people in the co‐operative and mutual sectors.Design/methodology/approachThe problem of inadequate Personnel or HRM systems in the majority of co‐operatives has been established by the author over a period of seven years, field work with co‐operative organizations including the international co‐operative alliance (ICA), asian confederation of credit unions (ACCU), and the British society for co‐operative studies. Direct interviews and a sample of HRM and Membership Relations audit forms developed as part of the ongoing field research and special project work have been applied to various co‐operative contexts in all the regions of the ICA.FindingsThe findings are that co‐operatives generally are lagging behind the private sector in their application of all four approaches. Mostly smaller co‐operatives lack effective basic personnel systems and few of the larger co‐operatives go beyond HRM. This failure to develop clear programs for the utilization and development of their people is a missed opportunity.Practical implicationsThe membership base and its roots in a community of shared interests means that, whilst co‐operatives have lessons to learn from all four approaches, they can and must go beyond them if they are to optimize their people‐centered business advantage in the marketplace.Originality/valueThe paper suggests a new strategy for co‐operatives of Co‐operative Social Capital Management to help them compete, whilst retaining their co‐operative difference.
Comparing institutionalisms
Authors: Battista Dagnino Giovanni , Quattrone Paolo 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThe aim of this paper is twofold: on the one hand, it discusses first the notion ofistitutoas it has been developed by Gino Zappa within the Italian research tradition known aseconomia aziendale. It then proposes a critical comparison between the historical institutional approaches developed by Gino Zappa and John R. Commons. On the other hand, it speculates on the possibility of updating the notion of institution.Design/methodology/approachThe study is first solidly rooted on historical institutional inquiry. Second, it draws on the constructivist epistemology put forth by Edgar Morin, Mauro Ceruti, and Hans von Foerster.FindingsThis paper allows more informed theorizing about the notion of institution since it deepens our understanding of the epistemological, theoretical, and practical “genetic variations” between the institutional perspectives of Zappa and Commons. This body of work is capable to extend its range in time and space to inform a number of present day relevant issues (i.e. the rising debates on corporate social responsibility and the firms' environmental and social reports) and to pave the way to additional research in the direction of a renewed holistic view of the concept of institution.Originality/valueFirst, it is argued that, during the first half of the twentieth century, a somewhat unusual and unexpected convergence occurred, according to which the study of institutions coupled Italy and (part of) the US. Second, in the renewed perspective, the concept of institution becomes the active locus of mediation of multiple viewpoints; the institution turns out to be the catalizing and organizing center of knowledge developed in different disciplinary contexts.
Inter‐corporate ownership and diversification in the Canadian economy 1976‐1995
Authors: McNaughton Rod B. , Green Milford B. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeTo test the hypothesis of increased specialisation during the 1980s in the aggregate pattern of intercorporate ownership in the Canadian economy.Design/methodology/approachThe network of ownership between enterprises and subsidiaries is characterised for the period 1976‐1995 using data for the population of medium‐sized and large Canadian corporations collected by Statistics Canada.FindingsAggregate diversification declined slightly over the period in terms of the average number of industry groups in which enterprises have subsidiaries. However, there was an increased likelihood that subsidiaries were outside of the core industry group of the enterprise.Research limitations/implicationsThe data provide insight into ownership changes across the economy and are not sensitive to changes in a few very large firms. However, a weakness of these data is that the ownership linkages are not weighted to reflect the economic importance of the enterprises involved. There is evidence that the pattern of inter‐corporate ownership is different between manufacturing and service sectors. Future research should treat these separately.Practical implicationsIncreased specialisation to the core industry of an enterprise has implications for the management skills required to design and manage networks of independent firms (for example, through strategic alliances), the performance expectations and risks taken by shareholders, and the commercial and tax policies set by government. At an aggregate level, a reduction in diversification may change the industrial structure of the economy, with sectors less integrated through ownership relationships, and thus potentially more sensitive to patterns of market exchange.Originality/valueMuch of the literature on the effect of ownership restructuring on aggregate diversification is focused on the US economy, and there is little empirical evidence in the Canadian context. The data are unique, representing a population of medium‐sized and larger firms. To our knowledge there are no published analyses of the ownership structure represented in these data.
A tale of two fires: igniting social expectations for managers' responsibility
Authors: Govekar Paul L. , Govekar Michele A. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeTo compare and contrast the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and the 1991 Hamlet, North Carolina, chicken processing plant fire to determine what lessons were learned and what lessons remain to be learned from the worst and second‐worst industrial accidents in the US.Design/methodology/approachThis paper uses contemporaneous and modern sources to explore the parallels between the two fires and find some lessons for management in these two tragic events.FindingsA number of parallels were found between the two incidents. Lessons for practicing managers, domestic and international, are presented along with avenues for possible future research.Originality/valueThis paper develops parallels between two tragic industrial accidents separated by 80 years in time and hundreds of miles in distance. Lessons learned from these accidents as well as lessons still to be learned are suggested.
A historical investigation of the strategic process within family firms
Authors: Kreiser Patrick M. , Ojala Jari , Lamberg Juha‐Antti , Melander Anders 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThe primary purpose of this paper was to perform an in‐depth analysis of the strategic process that occurs within family firms.Design/methodology/approachThis study analyzed the historical development of the growth strategies of four family firms in the US, Finland, and Sweden.FindingsThe results of this study suggest that family firms typically adopt conservative strategies in the early part of their life cycle. During their formative years, family firms often implement financially conservative strategies and place an emphasis on maintaining tight control of the strategic decision‐making process within the family unit. However, the competitive pressures experienced by family firms over time often force these companies to embrace a more entrepreneurial posture during the latter stages of their life cycle.Research limitations/implicationsThe stage in the company life cycle plays an important role in determining the strategic behavior of family firms. Future research aimed at replicating the results of this study may help shed further light on the strategic process that occurs within family firms.Practical implicationsAlthough the firms examined in this study were from various cultures, their strategic development over time was very similar. This tentatively suggests that the evolution of the strategic process that occurs within family firms may be generalizable across cultures.Originality/valueOur findings indicate that there may be an important distinction between family firms and entrepreneurial organizations. That is, all family firms are not necessarily entrepreneurial, especially early on in their company life cycle.
Integration of VP/RP/RT/RE/RM for rapid product and process development
Authors: Carvalho Ferreira José , Santos Eduardo , Madureira Hugo , Castro João 
Published: June 2006

PurposeTo provide an innovative way for manufacturing in which the integration of rapid technologies is simultaneously used methodologically in real‐time for the rapid product and process development (RPPD).Design/methodology/approachA range of related works are discussed and an experimental implementation of the RPPD methodology is described for composite functional prototype design and rapid manufacturing (RM). The simultaneous integration of VP/RP/RT/RE/RM technologies consolidates a powerful methodology to achieve the RPPD objectives.FindingsThe RPPD developed methodology takes advantage of both virtual prototyping (VP) and physical prototypes made by rapid prototyping (RP) technology to evaluate performances and design ergonomic aspects. The increasing needs to reduce lead‐time and costs have direct converting RP in rapid tooling (RT) technology for RM. Furthermore, to verify the parts and tools geometry accuracy the simultaneous use of scanning techniques for metrology control aided by reverse engineering (RE) as allow decreasing the RPPD time.Originality/valueThis paper evaluated RPPD results and the metrology control plotted in error distribution function and cumulative error distribution histograms validate the best practice developed that industrial manufacturers could implement allowing time and costs reductions.
Assessment of surface quality on textured FDM prototypes
Authors: Armillotta Antonio 
Published: June 2006

PurposeTest the detail resolution of fused deposition modeling (FDM) in the direct manufacture of rapid prototypes with textured surfaces.Design/methodology/approachA benchmark part carrying regular surface patterns with different feature sizes and aspect ratios has been manufactured on a FDM system with different build orientations. Layered parts have been inspected to detect the occurrence of quality defects on textured surfaces.FindingsThe experiments reveal the ability of currently available FDM systems to enhance prototype surfaces with form details on a millimeter scale. Results assist in identifying conditions which need to be satisfied in order to successfully reproduce generic texture geometries.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the testing method can be applied to any layered manufacturing technique, results are limited to a specific process, and may be influenced by technical improvements of commercial fabrication systems.Practical implicationsA first contribution is given to a full feasibility assessment of direct texturing, which potentially appears as more responsive and cost‐effective solution than current post‐finishing practices.Originality/valueThe paper proposes a systematic approach to the manufacture of textured parts by rapid prototyping techniques. The analysis of surface appearance in the presence of small‐scale form details adds a novel aspect to current approaches to performance benchmarking, which typically focus on form errors and roughness of plain surfaces.
Investigating the achievable accuracy of three dimensional printing
Authors: Dimitrov D. , van Wijck W. , Schreve K. , de Beer N. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThe research was undertaken to characterise the three dimensional printing (3DP) process in term of the achievable dimensional and geometric accuracy.Design/methodology/approachNew benchmark models were developed that represent characteristics needing to be investigated. The parts were fabricated in different materials. A program was written to measure the features on a numerically controlled coordinate measurement machine. Finally, a statistical analysis was done. The results are reported in terms of statistical parameters and international tolerance (IT) grades.FindingsThe paper provides general IT grades of the 3DP process for parts printed using different materials (powders).Research limitations/implicationsThe research is limited to specific materials and equipment.Practical implicationsThe data is very useful for designing products to be manufactured on 3DP machines applying either direct or indirect methods.Originality/value3DP is more and more used for rapid prototyping with great potential towards rapid manufacturing. Designers need to know the capability profile of the process they are going to use. There is a significant lack of published data on the 3DP process characteristics. This research was conducted to fill this gap and provide much needed accuracy information.
The use of rapid prototyping to assist medical applications
Authors: Gibson I. , Cheung L.K. , Chow S.P. , Cheung W.L. , Beh S.L. , Savalani M. , Lee S.H. 
Published: June 2006

PurposeThis paper aims to illustrate a number of instances where RP and associated technology has been successfully used for medical applications.Design/methodology/approachA number of medical case studies are presented, illustrating different uses of RP technology. These studies have been analysed in terms of how the technology has been applied in order to solve related medical problems.FindingsIt was found that RP has been helpful in a number of ways to solve medical problems. However, the technology has numerous limitations that have been analysed in order to establish how the technology should develop in the future.Practical implicationsRP can help solve medical problems, but must evolve if it is to be used more widespread in this field.Originality/valueThis paper has shown a number of new applications for RP, providing a holistic understanding how the technology can solve medical problems. It also identifies a number of ways in which the technology can improve in order to better solve such problems.
Developing the entrepreneurial skills of farmers: some myths explored
Authors: Pyysiäinen Jarkko , Anderson Alistair , McElwee Gerard , Vesala Kari 
Published: June 2006

PurposeEntrepreneurship is currently at the focus of much theoretical, practical and political interest. In Europe, agriculture has faced dramatic pressures for restructuring, and facilitation of the entrepreneurial skills of farmers and stronger entrepreneurial orientation in the rural areas have been hailed as possible solutions for the emerging problems. The aim of this paper is to use this nexus of agriculture and entrepreneurship as an illustrative example, through which the nature of entrepreneurial skills and the elements underpinning their adoption can be examined.Design/methodology/approachThe task is carried out by reflecting theoretically on the concept of entrepreneurial skills and on their embedded nature, before demonstrating the usefulness of the concept as a tool in understanding the case of an enterprising Finnish farmer, active both in conventional farming and in diversified business.FindingsThe theoretical and case study analyses reveal that the concept of entrepreneurial skills is far from an unambiguous one, as well as is the aim to develop them through teaching. If proper care is taken to distinguish the concept from, and relate it to, the elements in which it is embedded, the notion is a useful tool for empirical investigation. By applying such a procedure, it is shown that the contexts of conventional farming and business diversification call for clearly different entrepreneurial skills, some of which are more amenable to teaching than others.Originality/valueThis paper shows how one can develop a fuller understanding of the skills that farmers need to become entrepreneurial by diversification.