bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Population ageing: opportunities and challenges for retail banking
Authors: Lindbergh Jessica , Nahum Ruth‐Aïda , Sandgren Sofia 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThis paper seeks to shed light on the challenges and opportunities demographic transitions bring about to the banking sector. Increasing life expectancy, coupled with an increasing old age dependency ratio has implications for the demand for financial services. This opens a window of opportunity for the banking sector to adjust its services so as to meet these changes and reap the benefit of demographic changes.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses demographic forecasts made by the United Nations Population Division, to which are applied established economic models on life cycle behaviour. Based on the findings, light is shed on potential scenarios that banks may encounter.FindingsThe life cycle models predict a higher overall asset accumulation level and a higher savings level, at least initially, in an ageing population. Other life cycle behaviour models point out that individuals' risk aversion increases with age, while evidence shows that population ageing exposes individuals to greater risks. This increases the need for households to appropriately diversify and manage the risks they face, and encourages the development of products that are better tailored to these growing needs.Originality/valueThe paper proposes that banks can contribute to creating financial stability. Banks can participate in financial education and consequently increase households' motivation to save more and in better ways. Consumer demand encountered by banks is shifting from credit products to savings products. The investment packages currently offered by banks need to adapt to changing needs: combined annuity and life insurance packages are one option.
How subordinates exert pressure on their managers: Anglo and Confucian‐Asian comparisons
Authors: Braithwaite Jeffrey , Westbrook Mary T. , Mallock Nadine A. 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate in an Anglo and a Confucian‐Asian nation how pressure is exerted on middle managers by their subordinate staff, and the managerial activities affected.Design/methodology/approachIn a survey, Australian (n=251) and Singaporean (n=340) health managers rated the degree of pressure exerted on them by subordinate staff to devote additional time to various managerial activities. They described the influence strategies employed.FindingsRatings of the average pressure experienced regarding nine managerial activities were identical in both cultures. Australian managers reported significantly greater pressure affecting people and general organisational management. Singaporeans experienced more pressure affecting their quality and data management tasks. Australian subordinates used more direct‐assertive and direct‐persuasive influence strategies. Singaporeans employed more indirect‐assertive tactics, particularly poor work performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe generalisability of the findings may be limited by having convenience samples from one occupational sector.Practical implicationsThe cultural differences found are relevant to the increasing numbers of multinational organisations and expatriate and migrant workers. The information will inform discussions on factors affecting the assignment of managers' priorities, which can be at variance with their aspirations.Originality/valueManagers' experiences of pressure from subordinates and how pressure is conveyed have been under‐researched, particularly cross‐culturally.
Perceived organizational support and performance
Authors: Byrne Zinta S. , Hochwarter Wayne A. 
Published: February 2008

PurposePerceived organizational support is considered a resource capable of positively influencing performance by reducing stressors and encouraging commitment. However, only a modest relationship has been shown between support and performance, suggesting that moderators affect this relationship. To date, no research has examined moderators that might serve to predict non‐linear support‐performance relational forms. The purpose of this research is to examine how cynicism moderates the relationship between support and performance in a non‐linear form.Design/methodology/approachIn study 1, 256 full‐time employees from a variety of industries and jobs completed surveys. In study 2, 143 full‐time state employees participated.FindingsThose reporting high cynicism actually construe levels of support negatively. Specifically, performance for cynics was highest when perceived support was at moderate levels only. Conversely, performance for cynics was lowest when perceived support was either high or low.Research limitations/implicationsA limitation of our studies was the use of survey methodology for data collection. Tests of multicollinearity suggest, however, that this did not result in method bias. Future research should consider other potential non‐linear relationships with organizational support to determine when support is not perceived favorably. Additionally, it may be informative to expand the scope of research on cynicism to include sources (e.g. decision makers, legal system) and an examination of the creation of cynical climates (e.g. frequent layoffs).Practical implicationsRecognizing that not all employees (specifically those who are cynical) will perceive support efforts as positive, managers can limit potential negative reactions to support efforts by clarifying their intentions and those of the organization. An increased awareness of possible aversive reactions to what is intended to be supportive, allows managers to better understand and react to cynical employees' behavior.Originality/valueThis study is a first to examine the non‐linear relationship between organizational support and performance as moderated by employee cynicism.
Should faith and hope be included in the employees' agenda?
Authors: Zoghbi‐Manrique de Lara Pablo 
Published: February 2008

PurposeAnomia (from the Greek, an‐: absence, and ‐nomos: law) describes pessimistic feelings such as social detachment and little faith in human relations. This study seeks to examine an explanation of how and why person‐organization fit (POF) – operationalized as value congruence – may influence organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) directed at the organization (OCB‐O) and individuals (OCB‐I). The thesis is that unfavorable POF will elicit employees' anomic feelings, which in turn will prompt them to reciprocate with decreased OCB.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from 84 of the 198 (42.4 percent) employees of a provincial Spanish Social Security agency. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test mediation.FindingsThe results support that POF predicts anomic feelings that, in turn, fully mediate the link between POF and OCB‐O, but not with OCB‐I.Research limitations/implicationsThe employees surveyed have job conditions inherent to the peculiarities of the public sector that may limit the ability to extrapolate the findings to the private sector.Practical implicationsThe findings offer a better understanding of the way POF is able to affect OCB, and suggest that actions designed to promote POF may be useful in managing anomic processes in the workplace.Originality/valueAnomia as a mediator in the relationship between POF, as value congruence, and OCB has not been empirically studied.
Exploring paradox in marketing: managing ambiguity towards synthesis
Authors: O'Driscoll Aidan 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe objective of this paper is to explain the conceptual framework of paradox.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts a theoretical approach. It outlines marketing's current and limited interest in the notion of paradox and highlights the difference between a classic paradox, the tension between transactional and relational marketing, and the Contemporary Marketing Practice (CMP) research program.FindingsA future research agenda for paradox and marketing is speculated on, addressing issues such as likely domains for exploration, methodology, as well as the type of organizational structures and marketing leadership required. Finally, there is reflection on how paradox engineers a strong bridge between theory and practice.Originality/valueThe paper reveals useful information on paradox and marketing.
Social marketing: implications for contemporary marketing practices classification scheme
Authors: Domegan Christine T. 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to reflect upon social marketing and its implications for the contemporary marketing practices (CMP) classification scheme.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts a theoretical approach. Examples from the public engagement with science are used in the reflection.FindingsA phenomenon not commonly associated with social marketing is the growing number of science communication, outreach and public activities to engage the public with science. These scientific initiatives, established to drive knowledge‐based societies around the world, are charged with changing the public's behaviour towards science. This analysis shows the application of the CMP classification explicitly to the broader context of social marketing.Originality/valueThis paper examines how complex multiple exchanges, and social and environment influences, associated with social marketing provide a broader context to examine marketing practice. Further investigation is needed as to whether a sixth aspect of marketing practice is required to fully capture social marketing practice.
A multilevel investigation of relationships between Australian teachers' career stages and locus of control
Authors: McCormick John , Barnett Kerry 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to posit and test hypotheses concerned with relationships between teachers' demographics, locus of control and career stages.Design/methodology/approachA sample consisting of 416 Australian non‐executive high school teachers was gathered from 40 randomly selected high schools. Multilevel regression analysis reflecting the nested nature of the sample of teachers within schools, and allowing for testing for school effects, was employed.FindingsThe paper finds that significant gender and years of teaching experience differences were identified for a number of career stages. There were positive relationships between years of teaching experience and later career stages. A number of multilevel models relating locus of control and demographic variables to career stage were developed and are reported.Originality/valueThe paper shows that teachers' generalized beliefs about personal control may be related to career stages and school practices should nurture beliefs in personal control, rather than dependence on powerful others in the school setting.
Teacher appraisal and its outcomes in Singapore primary schools
Authors: Ong Kelly Khim , Yun Angela Ang Shi , Ling Chong Wei , Sheng Hu Wei 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the attributes of the performance appraisal system used for primary school teachers in Singapore, and how those attributes affect satisfaction with the appraisal system, stress experienced with the appraisal system, attitudes towards performance bonus, job satisfaction and motivation, and perceived cooperativeness amongst teachers.Design/methodology/approachData were obtained from surveys of primary school teachers in Singapore (n=85). The researchers used factor analysis to identify factors of appraisal system attributes and factors of teacher attitudes and perceptions, and then employed step‐wise multiple regressions to relate appraisal system attributes to teacher attitudes and perceptions.FindingsThe findings indicate that fairness of the performance appraisal system and clarity of appraisal criteria are related to greater satisfaction with the appraisal system, more positive attitudes towards performance bonus, and higher job satisfaction and motivation. Using appraisal criteria that are controllable is associated with greater satisfaction with the appraisal system, less stress experienced with the appraisal system, and higher job satisfaction and motivation. Finally, teachers who report greater trust in their appraiser and more positive assessment of their appraiser's credibility also report more cooperativeness amongst teachers in their school.Originality/valueThe paper provides insights on how various attributes of the performance appraisal system in the Singapore educational context are related to important outcomes such as job satisfaction and motivation. The findings may help primary school administrators design and implement more effective performance appraisal systems.
The UK licensed trade
Authors: Pratten John Douglas , Lovatt Christopher John 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the need for the creation of a professional body whose membership would be essential for those wishing to hold a licence for the retailing of alcohol in the UK.Design/methodology/approachThe Home Office and similar sources are employed to establish the problems of alcohol abuse. Trade information is utilised to consider the attitude of various stakeholders to this issue. Ethical texts examine expected responses from the sector. From these authoritative sources a solution has been proposed.FindingsThe results led to the proposal that the establishment of a compulsory professional body be considered.Research limitations/implicationsThere is a lack of empirical research to investigate the proposal. This would be necessary to progress the idea.Practical implicationsThe proposal for a professional body whose membership would be compulsory for a licence‐holder would be the subject of a major policy debate.Originality/valueThis embryonic proposal is original and would be of interest to all stakeholders.
How can organizational leaders really lead and serve at the same time?
Authors: Wildes Vivienne J. 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to conceptualize a new paradigm that challenges managers of hospitality services to include the component of corporate social responsibility (CSR) into the business plan. The objective is to answer the question: how can organizational leaders really lead and serve at the same time?Design/methodology/approachThe design follows a research of the literature from a global perspective to show that CSR preserves losses related to the breach of cultural, environmental, economic, physical, and linguistic boundaries associated with globalization.FindingsEvidence shows CSR safeguards are, otherwise, extraordinary assets to create a sophisticated business portfolio with increase in earnings at least in keeping with or surpassing more traditional portfolios. Discussion points include variations in the interpretation of CSR between countries, and the need for legal policy to enforce implementation of CSR practices for companies both at home and abroad in order to protect human rights, social investments, environment, culture, language, fair trade, and economic sustainability.Practical implicationsSeveral practical management tactics for CSR are presented in a chart accompanying the text. These include ideas and ways to: implement change in the workplace, save energy, communicate with employees and guests, clean with green products, and save money.Originality/valueThis paper is valuable to managers arguing for or seeking investment opportunities with sound CSR initiatives.
No plantation work here: contemporary HR practices in Caribbean hotels
Authors: Crick Anne P. 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine the extent to which Caribbean hotels are managed in a way that is reminiscent of the plantation system.Design/methodology/approachSurveys are used to determine the human resource challenges and the responses to these challenges in three Caribbean destinations. Survey data is collected from 110 respondents including hotel employees, hotel managers and owners, human resource managers, policy officials and trade union officials.FindingsThe study determined that service excellence is a competitive strategy in the three destinations and managers therefore seek to attract and retain the best performers. Working individually and cooperatively with government and other tourism stakeholders, managers have therefore created a work environment that is empowering and participative rather than one that is reflective of the plantation era.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to the English‐speaking Caribbean and may therefore not be generalisable to the wider Caribbean. Future research should also examine the views in more detail through focus groups.Originality/valueThe paper responds to a commonly held view about tourism by providing an updated and more comprehensive view of the practices in Caribbean hotels. It also differentiates between the practices of small and large hotels.
Rethinking quality and improvement in higher education
Authors: Houston Don 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to critically review dominant conceptions of and approaches to quality in higher education. It suggests an alternative approach with potential to shift the focus of quality activities from accountability and control to improvement.Design/methodology/approachThe applicability and limits of quality concepts and models are critically reviewed against key systems concepts of purpose, boundaries and environments. The limited transferability and utility of such models and the tensions between control and improvement are discussed.FindingsThe language and tools of industry‐born quality models are an imperfect fit to higher education. Authentic quality improvement is more likely to result from approaches to systemic intervention that encourage exploration of questions of purpose and of the meaning of improvement in context than from the imposition of definitions and methodologies from elsewhere.Research limitations/implicationsEvidence to support the utility of systems approaches in higher education is limited. Research into their use is needed.Practical implicationsSystemic approaches are complex but likely to be beneficial.Originality/valueThe paper takes a systemic perspective on quality likely to be of value in encouraging debate and different interventions for improvement.
A real options perspective of platform investments in service firms
Authors: Davis Jullet A. , Marino Louis , Aaron Joshua 
Published: February 2008

PurposeReal options theory has been used to examine how manufacturing firms make incremental investments under conditions of uncertainty. However, it has not been extensively applied to service firms. Using real options theory, the purpose of this article is to explore how service firms make platform investments.Design/methodology/approachData come from a survey of Florida nursing homes. Several hypotheses examine the extent to which organizational characteristics, environmental scanning, internal and external slack, and entrepreneurial orientation impact the degree of investment in a portfolio of services to community based clients. Data were analyzed via ordinary least squares regression.FindingsResults indicate a positive relationship between platform investments and customer preferences and nursing home innovativeness. Risk‐taking behavior and internal slack received mixed support.Research limitations/implicationsThe study did not include measures of economic performance; therefore, it is unclear if differences in market strategies yield better financial outcomes for the nursing homes. The study was set in the nursing home industry that is a highly regulated service industry. It is possible that specific attributes of this industry impacted our results.Practical implicationsIn deciding whether an options approach to managing customer value is appropriate for any individual service firms, managers should consider that a firm's strategic posture and the availability of slack resources.Originality/valueThere has been relatively little research in the management literature that examines how firms in a service context employ strategies and tactics consistent with options theory to reduce uncertainty. This lack of research is problematic given that service firms compromise an increasing percentage of the GDP of many developed countries.
Reading newspapers on the Internet: the influence of web sites' attributes
Authors: Flavián Carlos , Gurrea Raquel 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze key factors that could influence the choice of digital newspapers: usability of newspaper web sites, reputation, trust, privacy and familiarity.Design/methodology/approachA survey on the Internet was applied. The scales were validated and refined, after which the hypotheses were tested by way of a structural equation model.FindingsThe results support an intense effect of usability and familiarity with web sites on the choice of electronic newspaper. However, reputation, privacy and trust in the web sites do not influence significantly the final choice of digital dailies. This is due to the readers who do not perceive risk and costs derived by choosing mistakes or giving data, because the change of news supplier is really fast and easy.Research limitations/implicationsThe main aspects which justify digital newspaper reading should be considered by the management in order to develop its use. Also, newspaper firms should make efforts to improve the levels of usability of their web sites. Moreover, digital dailies should develop strategies in order to ensure the loyalty of readers who could be familiarized with the new medium.Originality/valueThis is one of the first studies that analyze online press reader behavior on the Internet. The paper identifies the main factors related to web sites that affect reading newspapers on the Internet.
Constructing the café university: teaching and learning on the digital frontier
Authors: Reinhart Cornel J. 
Published: February 2008

PurposeThis paper aims to examine changes occurring in the organization and delivery of learning at the level of higher education, and argues that it is now possible to envision the shape and structures of the future digital university.Design/methodology/approachBeginning with a history of the basic organizational paradigm underlying the traditional university, this paper systematically explores the impact on this paradigm of new technological and pedagogical innovations: learning management systems (LMSs), learning objects, iPods, blogs, student e‐mail, wireless connectivity, Google's search capacity, distance (web‐based) education, and blended learning on the pedagogy of tertiary education.FindingsThe physical structure of the university is a consequence of the hierarchically organization of knowledge, the predominant model from the late middle ages through the industrial era. As knowledge becomes more extensive and complex, the old organization is proving inadequate. The organization of knowledge in several dimensions will bring a massive restructuring of institutions of higher education. The new digital university will have the web rather than disciplines and the library at its virtual center with (nearly) infinite access to the larger peripheral world. No longer holding a monopoly on information, the postmodern café university competes with commercial, for‐profit institutions of learning, thus offering traditional and new adult learners immediate access and enormous learning flexibility. This enables students of all ages to take advantage of learning experiences from any connected institution, commercial or traditional, in the world.Originality/valueAs a comprehensive and systematic examination of the impact of digital tools in the contemporary university, this paper can offer guidance to university administrators, faculty members, and others involved in the educational process.