title: The happy story of small business financing

authors: Vos, Ed

subjects: small-to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)

abstract: We examine two data sets, one from the UK (n = 15,750) and one from the US (n = 3239), to show that SME financial behaviour demonstrates substantial financial contentment, or ‘happiness’. We find fewer than 10% of the UK firms seek significant growth and only 1.32% of US firms list a shortage of capital other than working capital as a problem. Financial performance indicators (growth, return on assets, profit margin) were not found to be determinants of SME financing activities, as might be expected in a ‘rational’ risk–return environment. Younger and less educated SME owners more actively use external financing – even though more education reduces the fear of loan denial – while older and more educated (‘wiser’) SME owners are found to be being less likely to seek or use external financing. The contentment hypothesis for SME financing also extends to high-growth firms in that we show that they participate more in the loan markets than low-growth firms. By way of contrast to the finance gap hypothesis, the contentment hypothesis observes the importance of social networks (connections) [for finance] and confirms the ‘connections – happiness’ linkage in the literature on happiness while doubting the theoretical suitability of Jensen and Meckling [Jensen, M., Meckling, W., 1976. Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs, and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics 3, 305–360.] base-case analysis for SMEs.

text: The happy story of small business financing We examine two data sets, one from the UK (n = 15,750) and one from the US (n = 3239), to show that SME financial behaviour demonstrates substantial financial contentment, or ‘happiness’. We find fewer than 10% of the UK firms seek significant growth and only 1.32% of US firms list a shortage of capital other than working capital as a problem. Financial performance indicators (growth, return on assets, profit margin) were not found to be determinants of SME financing activities, as might be expected in a ‘rational’ risk–return environment. Younger and less educated SME owners more actively use external financing – even though more education reduces the fear of loan denial – while older and more educated (‘wiser’) SME owners are found to be being less likely to seek or use external financing. The contentment hypothesis for SME financing also extends to high-growth firms in that we show that they participate more in the loan markets than low-growth firms. By way of contrast to the finance gap hypothesis, the contentment hypothesis observes the importance of social networks (connections) [for finance] and confirms the ‘connections – happiness’ linkage in the literature on happiness while doubting the theoretical suitability of Jensen and Meckling [Jensen, M., Meckling, W., 1976. Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs, and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics 3, 305–360.] base-case analysis for SMEs.

year: 2007

title: Critical geographies of love as spatial, relational and political

authors: Morrison, Carey-Ann

subjects: affect

abstract: Geographers to date have resisted writing about feelings, affects, places and spaces of love. It is timely to put love on the geographical agenda. We begin by addressing the question ‘what does love do?’, and we review the work of geographers who have been thinking about love via a number of different theoretical lenses. We then argue for a consideration of love as spatial, relational and political. We prompt geographers to think critically about love in its entire multisensory, lived, embodied, felt and contradictory guises. Finally, the work of Ahmed, Sedgwick and Berlant is useful for furthering geographers’ insights on love

text: Critical geographies of love as spatial, relational and political Geographers to date have resisted writing about feelings, affects, places and spaces of love. It is timely to put love on the geographical agenda. We begin by addressing the question ‘what does love do?’, and we review the work of geographers who have been thinking about love via a number of different theoretical lenses. We then argue for a consideration of love as spatial, relational and political. We prompt geographers to think critically about love in its entire multisensory, lived, embodied, felt and contradictory guises. Finally, the work of Ahmed, Sedgwick and Berlant is useful for furthering geographers’ insights on love

year: 2012

title: Te mātauranga whakatere waka

authors: Tuaupiki, Jackie Whetumarama

abstract: Hei tēnei tuhinga e whai ake nei, ka tirohia te hangarau waka a ngā tūpuna o Te Moana nui a Kiwa i whakawhiti ai rātou ki ō rātou moutere tae atu ki te mātauranga whakatere waka me te arotahi o te titiro ki te whakatinanatanga o aua mātauranga. Ka tāmutu i konā, ka pūhia te titiro i runga i ngā huarere o Poronīhia e kite ai tātou i ngā āhuatanga o Tāwhirimātea i ōna moutere me ngā wero ki te whakatere waka i ērā huarere.

text: Te mātauranga whakatere waka Hei tēnei tuhinga e whai ake nei, ka tirohia te hangarau waka a ngā tūpuna o Te Moana nui a Kiwa i whakawhiti ai rātou ki ō rātou moutere tae atu ki te mātauranga whakatere waka me te arotahi o te titiro ki te whakatinanatanga o aua mātauranga. Ka tāmutu i konā, ka pūhia te titiro i runga i ngā huarere o Poronīhia e kite ai tātou i ngā āhuatanga o Tāwhirimātea i ōna moutere me ngā wero ki te whakatere waka i ērā huarere.

year: 2017