Business Commons^™

Paper Dragon Thieves, J.S. Nelson

J.S. Nelson

Circumstantial Impact Of Contact On Social Distance, Semih S. Yilmaz, Asli D.A. Tasci

Dr. Asli Tasci

Despite its century long existence, social distance is still a rare area of investigation in the tourism and hospitality context. In particular, there is a lack of attention on the empirical investigations about the relationship between contact and social distance in host–guest relations in a tourism setting. Hence, the purpose of this study is to determine whether there is such a relationship between social distance and different contact factors (previous visits and close friendships). An on-site survey on tourists and locals at a popular tourist destination, Mugla, in Turkey revealed partial support for these relationships under certain circumstances. Implications and …

Workplace Bullying: Is Lack Of Understanding The Reason For Inaction?, Sara Branch, Jane Murray

Jane Murray

At what point is the line crossed between a series of humorous work pranks and workplace bullying? This question is actually more complex than it looks. Take the very well publicized office complaint case of David Thorne and Simon Dempsey—a story that has taken social media sites and the wider Internet by storm over the last couple of years. Although it has now been revealed that the interactions between Thorne and Dempsey are somewhat fictitious (loosely based on actual interactions between the author and a previous coworker), the behaviors and their ensuing complaints provide a lens from which this question …

A Markov-Switching Structural Vector Autoregressive Model Of Boom And Bust In The Australian Labour Market, Noel Gaston, Gulasekaran Rajaguru

Gulasekaran Rajaguru

Major economic events, such as the global financial crisis, are episodes of identifiable duration that differ from other time periods. Using monthly data on the unemployment rate, labour force participation rate and employment for Australia for the period from 1978 to 2012, we estimate a Markov-switching SVAR model to examine the relationship between unemployment and labour force participation and the performance of the Australian labour market. Three distinct labour market regimes are identified. We find that the labour market switches between periods of low unemployment and high participation, prolonged periods of relative stability and short, sharp periods of high unemployment …

Innovationspotentialanalyse Für Die Neuen Technologien Für Das Verwalten Und Analysieren Von Großen Datenmengen (Big Data Management), Volker Markl, Alexander Löser, Thomas Hoeren, Helmut Krcmar, Holmer Hemsen, Michael Schermann, Matthias Gottlieb, Christoph Buchmüller, Philip Uecker, Till Bitter

Michael Schermann

Die vorliegende Studie wurde durch einen Auftrag des BMWi zum Thema „Innovationspotentialanalyse für die neuen Technologien für das Verwalten und Analysieren von großen Datenmengen (Big Data Management)“ ermöglicht. Für das in uns gesetzte Vertrauen und die finanzielle Unterstützung möchten wir uns daher beim BMWi bedanken. Zudem möchten wir Frau Dr. Regine Gernert (Projektträger DLR) ganz herzlich Dank sagen für die fachliche und organisatorische Begleitung der Studie. Wir bedanken uns zudem bei den zahlreichen Mitarbeitern der jeweiligen Institute, die durch kritische Durchsicht der Studie und Kommentare dazu beigetragen haben die Studie zu verbessern. Für die Umsetzung des finalen Layout der Studie …

Sources Of Gender Difference In Rural To Urban Migration In Kenya: Does Human Capital Matter?, Richard U. Agesa, Jacqueline Agesa

Jacqueline Agesa

Using data from Kenya this article estimates the urban to rural gender gap in the rate of migration and then decomposes the gap into the explained portion and the portion due to gender differences in coefficients. The former is further decomposed to unveil the relative influence of each explanatory variable on the explained portion of the gender gap in the rate of migration. A non-trivial finding suggests that human capital variables may exert the strongest influence on gender differences in migration, partially explaining the higher incidence of male migration.

A World Ranking Of The Top 100 Hospitality And Tourism Programs, Denver Severt, Dana Tesone, Tim Bottorff, Monica Carpenter

Tim Bottorff

The article provides an analysis of scholarly contributions to 11 hospitality and tourism refereed journals for the years 2002 to 2006. It presents the top 100 programs as ranked by instances of publications across 11 journals for a recent 5-year period. For the 5-year period, results indicate The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in the top position based on sums of instances, authors, and articles. Second, the researchers updated, modified, and extended a previous study published by the Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research for similar information for the years 1992 to 2001. Following the update, an additional 15-year aggregate snapshot …

Urban Beach Venues: Vulnerability And Sustainability In The Face Of Climate Change, Michael Raybould, David Anning, Liz Fredline, Dan Ware

Michael Raybould

This paper investigates the threats to beach venues posed by climate change and attempts to identify strategies that might be adopted by coastal managers and event managers to ensure that beaches continue to be viable event and recreation venues into the future. Analysis of coastal management research, local council records and tender documents, maps and plans of coastal works identifies six specific strategies for minimising the impacts of climate change on beach venues. These strategies aim to protect existing beach venues, increase the supply of alternative venues, minimise the event tourism impacts of negative media coverage of beach erosion events, …

Parsing Out The Effects Of Personal Consumption Norms And Industry Influences On Food Consumption Volume, Natalina Zlatevska, Mark Spence

Mark Spence

Purpose

Norms have received attention as a factor influencing food consumption volume although a lack of clarity persists concerning what these norms are and how they affect behaviour. The supposition tested herein is that individuals possess personal consumption norms, idiosyncratic reference points to which they target behaviour. These personal consumption norms are related to the amount of food consumed independent of industry influences, specifically the size of the package offered and the perceived healthiness of the food. We also examine the extent to which one’s commitment to adhere to their personal consumption norm (referred to as ‘commitment to norm’) influences …

Is More Always Better? Risk Trade-Offs Among Internationalizing New Ventures, Stephanie Fernhaber, Patricia Mcdougall-Covin

Stephanie A. Fernhaber

Purpose

Design/methodology/approach

Use Of Benchmarks In Predicting Earnings Management?, Richard Kent, James Routledge

James Routledge

This study conducts multiple approaches to identify whether earnings benchmarks are an indicator for earnings management within the Australian market. We investigate firms reporting small positive earnings and small positive earnings changes, referred to as benchmark beaters. Accrual quality models, earnings distributions and earnings persistence measures are applied to identify whether benchmark beating firms are manipulating earnings. Our findings suggest that the small positive earnings benchmark attracts earnings managers. However, we do not identify any evidence to indicate that the positive earnings change benchmark is a signal for earnings management.

The Association Between Audit Partner Rotation And Audit Fees: Empirical Evidence From The Australian Market, Jenny Steward, Pamela Kent, James Routledge

James Routledge

We examine the relation between audit partner rotation and audit fees for a sample of Australian firms from 2007 to 2010. We find a significant positive association between audit fees and partner rotation in the year of rotation. The association persists in the first year post rotation and to a lesser extent in the second year post rotation. Our analysis suggests that higher audit fees are associated with both mandatory and voluntary partner rotation. However, when we divide the sample into large global clients, mid-level clients and small local clients, we find that mandatory and voluntary rotation are associated with …

Audit Committee Incentive Compensation And Accounting Restatements, Deborah Archambeault, F. Todd Dezoort, Dana Hermanson

Deborah Archambeault

This study investigates whether incentive-based compensation for audit committee members is associated with accounting restatements. We use an agency framework to predict that short-term (long-term) incentive compensation for audit committee members will increase (decrease) the likelihood of accounting restatements due to error or fraud. Using a matched-sample logistic regression with 153 restatement and 153 nonrestatement companies, we find the predicted positive relation between short-term incentive compensation (short-term stock option grants) for audit committee members and likelihood of restatement. However, the long-term incentive compensation results contradict prediction and indicate a significant positive relation between audit committee member long-term incentive compensation {long-term …

Audit Committee Effectiveness: A Synthesis Of The Empirical Audit Committee Literature, F. Todd Dezoort, Dana R. Hermanson, Deborah S. Archambeault, Scott A. Reed

Deborah Archambeault

The article describes the factors that contribute to audit committee effectiveness. An effective audit committee has qualified members with the authority and resources to protect stakeholder interests by ensuring reliable financial reporting, internal controls, and risk management through its diligent oversight efforts. The determinants of audit committee effectiveness includes the audit committee composition, authority, resources and diligence. The major U.S. stock exchanges require that audit committees be composed of at least three independent, financially literate directors. Team issues also are relevant when considering audit committee composition. The audit committee derives its authority from the full board of directors, federal law …

Using Mixed Methods To Measure The Perception Of Community Capacity In An Academic–Community Partnership For A Walking Intervention, Charkarra Anderson-Lewis, Diana Castellanos, Arnecca Byrd, Karen Zynda, Alicia Sample, Vickie Reed, Mary Beard, Latessa Minor, Kathleen Yadrick

Diana Cuy Castellanos

H.U.B. City Steps is a 5-year community-based participatory research walking intervention designed to help lower blood pressure in a majority African American population in southern Mississippi via community collaboration and capacity building, increased walking, culturally tailored health education sessions, and motivational interviewing. Building community capacity for physical activity is a key component of this intervention. Qualitative and quantitative methods have been used to assess how project stakeholders perceive the community capacity-building efforts of the project. This article illustrates the baseline results of this mixed methods approach from the perspective of three groups of stakeholders: project researchers and staff, community advisory …

Individuals Approaching Retirement Have Options (Literally) To Secure A Comfortable Retirement, Bryan Foltice

Bryan Foltice

This article examines the critical final five-year period leading up to retirement and analyzes whether traditional asset-allocation strategies effectively and consistently assist individuals in reaching their retirement income goals as they approach retirement. These traditional strategies are evaluated against alternative, option-based investment strategies that assure a certain amount of retirement income, after adjusting for inflation, while maximizing stock participation with the remaining funds in the portfolio through the use of options. In this simulation, we find higher overall expected yields in the traditional investment strategies over the evaluated five-year period. However, after applying a constant relative risk aversion (CRRA) coefficient, …

In Equations We Trust? Formula Learning Effects On The Exponential Growth Bias, Bryan Foltice, Thomas Langer

Bryan Foltice

This paper evaluates the possible benefits and drawbacks of the formal formula learning of compound growth as it pertains to eliminating, or at least reducing, the exponential growth bias in various household savings and debt decisions. In our main experimental study, we determine if the ability to calculate the simple compound savings formula only assists in its direct area of application with an available calculator, or if this knowledge extends into similar exponentially-based savings and debt decisions when either a calculator is prohibited or when the formula is unknown. In the process of tackling this research question, we develop a …

Evidence Based Practice Research Survey, Kathleen Abrahamson, Priscilla Arling, Jenna Gillette, Kathy Wyngarden, Cathy Schwartz

Priscilla Arling

In the spring and summer of 2011, CPM Consortium members were invited to participate in a descriptive research study examining knowledge of and beliefs surrounding evidence-based practice (EBP) within healthcare organizations. This study, in partnership with Regenstrief Institute, is the first step in a series of studies regarding transformation science. These research studies are part of the CPM Transformation Science journey that was ‘kicked off’ at the 2009 Consortium Transformation Science Summit.

Ringing The Bell: Does It Matter And Why?, Steven Dolvin, Hinh Khieu, Mark Pyles

Steven D. Dolvin

We explore the ongoing debate between market efficiency and behavioral finance by examining the market’ s reaction to what most investors would consider an information-neutral event: a firm ringing the opening or closing bell on the NYSE. Consistent with behavioral theories, we find that firms who ring the opening bell experience, on average, a positive abnormal return on the event day; however, we find that the reaction is concentrated in a particular group of participants. Specifically, we find the abnormal returns are driven almost entirely by firms who are celebrating the transfer of their stock listing to the NYSE. Given …

The Impact Of Board Structure On Ipo Underpricing, Steven Dolvin, Jack Kirby

Steven D. Dolvin

Prior research has examined the impact of board structure on firm performance and found that characteristics such as board size affect both operating and stock price performance. Existing research has concentrated primarily on performance in periods well removed from a firm’s initial public offering (IPO), and relatively little research has examined the impact of board structure on the stock price performance of IPOs, particularly with regard to characteristics other than board size. This study fills this gap, finding that the key board characteristic is the percentage external directors on the board. The authors find that the greater the percentage of …

Unpacking Unintended Consequences In Planned Organizationalchanges: A Process Model, Guowei Jian

Guowei Jian

The author develops a process model of the unintended consequences in planned organizational change that draws on the structuration, organizational change, and organizational tension literatures. The model depicts the communicative actions of both senior management and employees and reveals the dynamic through which unintended consequences unfold. The model extends theoretical understandings of planned organizational change and discusses how future research can build a dialectic and dialogic model of planned change focused on employee participation. The author illustrates the model with a case study of organizational change and its unintended consequences. The article concludes with insights on change management for practitioners …

Where Do I Stand? The Interaction Of Leader–Member Exchange And Performance Ratings, Hassan Baker, Guowei Jian, Gail Fairhurst

Guowei Jian

The congruence model of leader–member exchange (LMX) quality predicts that agreement between leader and members regarding relationship quality is associated with follower performance. However, questions remain over how cultural relational norms influence congruence. This study, based on a government-linked international joint venture in Malaysia, investigates cultural relational norms in relation to leader–member agreement on relational quality and leader evaluation of member performance. Our findings revealed that LMX quality agreement was related to in-role and extra-role performance among dyadic relationships conforming to Malaysian cultural norms. This study contributes to understanding how cultural relational norms provide conditions to the congruence model of …

Aggression In Mixed Martial Arts: An Analysis Of The Likelihood Of Winning A Decision, Trevor Collier, Andrew Johnson, John Ruggiero

Trevor Collier

Within the last decade, mixed martial arts has become one of the most popular sports worldwide. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is the largest and most successful organization within the industry. In the USA, however, the sport is not sanctioned in all states because some politicians view the sport as too violent. The sport consists of many fighting forms and, unlike boxing, winning a decision requires judging in multiple facets including wrestling, boxing, kickboxing, and jiu-jitsu. In this study, we estimate the likelihood of winning a decision in the UFC. Using data on individual fights, we estimate the probability of …

Measuring Technical Efficiency In Sports, Trevor Collier, Andrew Johnson, John Ruggiero

Trevor Collier

Standard economic production theory is the basis for measuring technical efficiency in sports. Using programming or regression models, efficiency is defined as the distance of a given team observation from the technology. In this article, the authors show that the standard measures of efficiency using deterministic models are biased downward due to serial correlation with respect to the efficiency measure. In particular, if the number of observed wins for a given team is affected by the team’s inefficiency, it is necessarily true that another team is able to produce outside of the technology. As a result, the observed frontier is …

Estimation Of Multi-Output Production Functions In Commercial Fisheries, Trevor Collier, Andrew Mamula, John Ruggiero

Trevor Collier

Measuring the productivity of vessels in a multi-species fishery can be problematic. Typical regression techniques are not capable of handling multiple outputs while Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) tends to ignore the stochastic nature of production. Applied economists have devoted considerable time to this problem and have developed several methods of dealing with the issue of multiple output technologies in commercial fisheries. Our paper contributes to this literature by providing another method for estimating production functions of vessels operating in multi-species fisheries. We utilize a two-stage model – with data from the West Coast Limited Entry Groundfish Trawl Fishery – using …

The Relationship Between Output Variability And Growth: Evidence From Post War U.K. Data, Tony Caporale, Barbara Mckiernan

Tony Caporale

The paper investigates the relationship between output variability and economic growth using a GARCH-M model with industrial production in post-war Great Britain. The data reveals a positive relationship between variability and growth rates.

Sowing The Seeds For Ethical Business Leadership Through Business Education, Hélène De Burgh-Woodman, Amitav Saha, Kimera Somasundram, Angela Torrisi

Amitav Saha

The Role Of Business Education In Building Business Leadership For 21st Century Responsiveness And Environmental Stewardship: Should Business Education Be Re-Developed?, HéLèNe De Burgh, Amitav Saha

Amitav Saha

21st century business graduates need to be well equipped with skillsets that enable them to apply their commercial knowledge in organisations where profit maximisation is not the sole purpose. However, business students continue to be taught classic commercial business principles that predominately value profit and performance, resulting in a significant skill shortage for businesses embracing ethical responsibility, social justice and environment issues. The aim of this project is to blueprint a cutting-edge commerce degree that fills this skill shortage by developing an Integrated Business Education Model with extensive literature review and consultation with a wide range of stakeholders. Using the …

An Overview Of The Low-Cost Carrier Model In The Russian Market, Tamilla Curtis, Dawna Rhoades

Dr. Tamilla Curtis

This study provides an overview of the low-cost carrier (LCC) model in the Russian market. The LCC model seeks to achieve a competitive advantage through the reduction of operating costs, below the traditional airline model. Since Russia is an emerging and developing economy, airlines face a high level of uncertainty. Despite the fact that the Russian aviation market is dominated by a few large carriers, Russian lowcost airlines such as SkyExpress and Avianova have been growing rapidly since starting their operations. While Russian LCCs follow the traditional LCC model, some differences are apparent as a result of the specifics of …

Macroconstants Of Development: A New Benchmark For The Strategic Development Of Advanced Countries And Firms, Andrey Bystrov, Vyacheslav Yusim, Tamilla Curtis

Dr. Tamilla Curtis

This research proposed a new indicator of countries’ development called “macroconstants of development”. The literature review indicates that the concept of "macroconstants of development" is not used at the moment in neither the theory nor the practice of industrial policy. Research of longitudinal data of total GDP, GDP per capita and their derivatives for most countries of the world was conducted. An analysis of statistical information has been done by employing econometric analyses.

Based on the analysis of the statistical data, which characterizes the development of large, technologically advanced countries in ordinary conditions, it was identified that the average acceleration …