Deriving joint space positioning maps from consumer preference ratings

Joint space multidimensional scaling maps are often utilized for positioning analyses and are estimated on survey samples of consumer preferences, choices, considerations, or intentions so as to provide a concise spatial depiction of the competitive landscape including relevant dimensions or attributes, competing brands, and consumers in the same joint space representation. Care has to be given concerning the underlying scale properties of such survey data so as not to distort the resulting joint space positioning map. We present a new joint space multidimensional scaling procedure for positioning analyses for displaying the structure in such survey data when such common ordered successive category measurement scales such as Likert, Edwards, semantic differential, etc., are employed. We present the technical details of this stochastic ordered preference multidimensional scaling vector model as well as the maximum likelihood estimation-based algorithm devised for parameter estimation. Favorable comparisons are made with several existent multidimensional scaling methods in representing the internal structure for such data in marketing positioning studies. An actual commercial positioning application concerning large sports utility vehicles consideration to buy judgments is presented with predictive validation comparisons with other multidimensional scaling joint space procedures.     

Biased Tariff Choices: Exploring Role Effects in B to B Settings

Purpose: The authors examine whether motivational and cognitive causes that explain tariff choice biases in business-to-consumer (B2C) settings also hold in business-to-business (B2B) markets. Opposed to prior B2C research that is dominated by individual decision making, the study proposes role effects in buying centers influence the exploration of tariff choice and tariff choice biases in B2B settings.

Originality: A rich body of research into biased tariff choices, especially flat-rate biases, exists for B2C markets, yet a dearth of research marks tariff choice behavior in B2B settings. This study is the first one on tariff choice especially dedicated to B2B settings.

Methodology and Findings: The findings from transactional and survey data pertaining to a mobile phone service provider reveal that tariff choice biases also occur in B2B markets. Seventy-nine percent of all tariff choices among decision makers are biased; 73 percent are due to the flat-rate bias. The (mis-)judgment effect, the insurance effect, and the convenience effect significantly influence tariff choice and the flat-rate bias.

Research Implications: The authors provide a flowchart of strategies that structures the practical implications. Based on this flowchart, they propose that mobile phone service providers should undertake a flat-rate preference strategy, because B2B customers may accept the flat-rate bias to profit from the insurance effect. The authors argue that following a flat-rate preference strategy is advisable, because turnover can be protected entirely while the vulnerability of that strategy is low.     

Are disposition effect and skew preference correlated? Evidence from account-level ELW transactions

This paper examines whether two well-known cognitive biases, disposition effect and skew preference, may reflect a common feature of certain investors. On the basis of a unique proprietary dataset that provides the details of all transactions in the Korean equity-linked warrant (ELW) market between 2009 and 2011, we find that investors who realize gains faster than losses are also more likely to trade out-of-the-money ELWs. Investors who are less (more) subject to both biases exhibit the best (worst) risk-adjusted trading performance. Our findings suggest that disposition effect and skew preference occur simultaneously, which could adversely affect trading performance.     

Firm heterogeneity,sunk costs,spatial characteristics and export market participation: Evidence from China

This paper develops a dynamic discrete-choice model to analyze the exporting decisions of Chinese firms in Zhejiang province. The results show that sunk costs are found to be significant and prior export experience, productivity, scale, FDI, export spillovers, coastal area and economic zones are all positively related with the propensity of exporting while state ownership concentration has a negative impact. The export behavior of firms varies with country-specific characteristics.     

Accommodating the effects of brand unfamiliarity in the multidimensional scaling of preference data

This paper presents a multidimensional scaling (MDS) methodology (vector model) for the spatial analysis of preference data that explicitly models the effects of unfamiliarity on evoked preferences. Our objective is to derive a joint space map of brand locations and consumer preference vectors that is free from potential distortion resulting from the analysis of preference data confounded with the effects of consumer-specific brand unfamiliarity. An application based on preference and familiarity ratings for ten luxury car models collected from 240 consumers who intended to buy a luxury car within a designated time frame is presented. The results are compared with those obtained from MDPREF, a popular metric vector MDS model used for the scaling of preference data. In particular, we find that the consumer preference vectors obtained from the proposed methodology are substantially different in orientation from those estimated by the MDPREF model. The implications of the methodology are discussed.The authors gratefully acknowledge helpful comments from the editor and two anonymous reviewers, and also from Michael D. Johnson and Robert J. Meyer. They also thank Michael Kusnick and Robert Kleinbaum for their assistance in conducting the survey.     

Differences in consumer perceptions of similarity and dissimilarity

Researchers have usually treated similarity ratings as the simple inverse of dissimilarity ratings. Tversky's theory of perception of similarity and dissimilarity (1977), however, explicitly recognizes that the attributes used in the perception of similarity and the attributes used in the perception of dissimilarity are decidedly different. In fact, the weights assigned to common and distinctive features changes according to the task at hand (i.e., when similarity is to be rated the common features are weighted more, and when dissimilarity is to be rated the distinctive features are weighted more). This study demonstrates these differences in a judgment task of rating similarity and dissimilarity on the basis of data that is external to the subjects.     

Dual scaling and correspondence analysis of preferences, paired comparisons and ratings

The methods of dual scaling (DS) and correspondence analysis (CA) are used extensively in marketing research for analyzing categorical data. When applied to preferences, paired comparisons and ratings, dual scaling has been contrasted with correspondence analysis, as if the two techniques operated differently on these data. In this note, we show that correspondence analysis provides exactly the same solution as dual scaling once the data have been transformed by a so-called “doubling” with respect to the respondents.     

Enhancing marketing with engineering: Optimal product line design for heterogeneous markets

Successful product line design and development often require a balance of technical and market tradeoffs. Quantitative methods for optimizing product attribute levels using preference elicitation (e.g., conjoint) data are useful for many product types. However, products with substantial engineering content involve critical tradeoffs in the ability to achieve those desired attribute levels. Technical tradeoffs in product design must be made with an eye toward market consequences, particularly when heterogeneous market preferences make differentiation and strategic positioning critical to capturing a range of market segments and avoiding cannibalization.We present a unified methodology for product line optimization that coordinates positioning and design models to achieve realizable firm-level optima. The approach overcomes several shortcomings of prior product line optimization models by incorporating a general Bayesian account of consumer preference heterogeneity, managing attributes over a continuous domain to alleviate issues of combinatorial complexity, and avoiding solutions that are impossible to realize. The method is demonstrated for a line of dial-readout scales, using physical models and conjoint-based consumer choice data. The results show that the optimal number of products in the line is not necessarily equal to the number of market segments, that an optimal single product for a heterogeneous market differs from that for a homogeneous one, and that the representational form for consumer heterogeneity has a substantial impact on the design and profitability of the resulting optimal product line — even for the design of a single product. The method is managerially valuable because it yields product line solutions efficiently, accounting for marketing-based preference heterogeneity as well as engineering-based constraints with which product attributes can be realized.     

To be respected or liked: The influence of social comparisons on consumer preference for competence- versus warmth-oriented products

Consumers frequently compare themselves with others and find themselves to be inferior or superior to the comparison targets. This article examines the effect of social comparisons on the relative focus of self-efficacy and relationship needs and the subsequent impact on consumers’ preference for competence- versus warmth-oriented products. Across six studies, we show that upward comparisons (i.e., comparisons with superior targets) result in feelings of self-threat, which heighten the need for self-efficacy and increase the preference for products that convey competence. In contrast, downward comparisons (i.e., comparisons with inferior targets) elicit feelings of social distress, which heighten the need for social relationships and increase the preference for products that convey warmth. These effects are mitigated when the comparison is made in a social skill-related domain and when the comparison target is an out-group member.     

Collective action clauses: How do they affect sovereign bond yields?

We study the effects of the adoption of collective action clauses (CACs) on government bond yields by exploiting secondary market data on sovereign bonds quoted in international markets from March 2007 to April 2011. CACs are assessed security by security. Using a panel data approach, we find a U-shaped effect of CACs on yields according to the credit rating of the issuer. While the impact is negligible for the highest ratings, a significant yield discount emerges for mid-range ratings, which is smaller for bad ratings and possibly insignificant for the worst ratings. This relationship appears fairly robust across a number of checks. This evidence may reflect the fact that CACs are valuable because they help with orderly restructuring unless the perceived probability of default is too small. Nevertheless, at low ratings, this effect can be weakened by an increasing risk of moral hazard.     

The composition of international capital flows: risk sharing through foreign direct investment

Evidence on international capital flows suggests that foreign direct investment (FDI) is less volatile than other financial flows. To explain this finding I model international capital flows under the assumptions of imperfect enforcement of financial contracts and inalienability of FDI. Imperfect enforcement of contracts leads to endogenous financing constraints and the pricing of default risk. Inalienability implies that it is not as advantageous to expropriate FDI relative to other flows. These features combine to give a risk sharing advantage to FDI over other capital flows. This risk sharing advantage of FDI translates into a lower default premium and lower sensitivity to changes in a country’s financing constraint.The model offers the new implication that financially constrained countries should borrow relatively more through FDI. This is because FDI is harder to expropriate and not because FDI is more productive or less volatile. Using several creditworthiness and country risk ratings to measure financing constraints, I present new evidence linking FDI and financing constraints. Moreover, numerical simulations of the model generate stronger serial correlation for FDI than for other flows into developing countries. This corroborates the view that non-FDI flows are more short-term and more likely to change direction.     

Behavioural loyalty towards store brands

This paper applies a consumer brand choice model to measure store brand (SB) loyalty. The aim of this paper is to examine whether SB loyalty is different across categories, and we focus on risk perception as an explanatory variable. The model is estimated using ACNielsen Spanish household scanner panel data on two laundry detergent categories over a 2-year period for more than 1107 households. Loyalty, price, socio-demographics and shopping behaviour variables are included. The discrete-choice model formulation is the logit model.     

一种快速排序算法的实现及其应用

介绍了一种快速的排序方法——堆排序。以一个简单的实例结合完全二叉树说明了该 算法的原理，给出了利用C语言实现该算法的代码，从时间复杂度和辅助存储空间的角度分 析了与其他排序算法相比较的优劣。实验表明，在对大量数据进行排序时，堆排序算法效率 较高。     

Researcher Interaction Biases and Business Ethics Research: Respondent Reactions to Researcher Characteristics

The potential for biased responses that occur when researchers interact with their study participants has long been of interest to both academicians and practitioners. Given the sensitive nature of the field, researcher interaction biases are of particular concern for business ethics researchers regardless of their preference for survey, experimental, or qualitative methodology. Whereas some ethics researchers may inadvertently bias data by misrecording or misinterpreting responses, other biases may occur when study participants’ responses are systematically influenced by the mere introduction of researchers into the participants’ environment. Although substantial empirical research has been conducted on the general topic of researcher interaction biases, none has focused specifically on business ethics research. In order to remedy this lack of empirical substantiation in the field, we review the related literature on researcher interaction biases, present an empirical example of how such biases can influence research results in an experiment assessing reactions to insurance fraud, and discuss the implications for business ethics research.     

Experimental Strategies for Preference Information Acquisition: A Lattice Path Treatment

This paper investigates strategies for the acquisition of consumer preference information by a market researcher. Such preference information is obtained by the market researcher through an experimental process that entails polling consumers about their preference profiles with a view to completely specifying the preference order. In this paper, we limit the focus to one or two consumers.In this environment, the experiments are pairwise comparisons between resource bundles about which there is no a-priori preference information. Each such experiment can have three possible signals: one bundle is more preferred, indifferent, or less preferred over another. Choice of an experiment in the experimental sequence is important because different choices result in different average amounts of information.For the analysis the paper establishes a link between preference theory and lattice path counting. Combinatorial arguments that allow the market researcher to calculate quantities of information at the start of the information acquisition process are presented. A recursion for finding the impact of choosing different experiments on the average values of information gain is constructed. The paper studies how the experiments chosen subsequently can affect the elimination of other experiments from the experimental set and thus have an effect on the efficiency of information acquisition. The measures derived could be used by the market researcher as a benchmark with which to compare information gathering strategies.     

“No sale” items in auctions: do they really matter?

Research interest in auctions has grown steadily in nearly every business discipline because of the distinctive constructs and processes that the data analyses yield. Auction data present researchers with a particular challenge because of the presence of no sale items. Researchers have varied in their accommodation of no sale items and the analysis technique, which may lead to biases in the analyses. The first question is how should no sale items be treated? To address this, the type of data generated by auctions must be examined, since various methods handle no sale items differently. Additional questions are: What analysis technique is preferred for this type of data? What is the effect of using other analysis techniques? The results suggest that including no sale items improves estimation accuracy. Also, we found that using ordinary least squares with censored data provides results that are much better than using truncated data.     

On the Use of Paired Comparisons to Construct Group Preference Scales for Decision Making

Polling opinion is a common group activity. Scaling tools can be used to provide a more precise presentation of opinions than traditional polling/voting. The interval scale of items constructed by scaling tools can aid participants in finding the current disposition of a group. We consider Thurstone’s law of comparative judgment as well as a weighted digraph ranking system for building group scales from pairwise comparisons. Assumptions for computing scales are reviewed together with issues and limitations of applying these scaling methods in groups. Results from a classic experiment and simulations by both methods are compared. We also made recommendations on choosing scaling method based on theoretic and practical consideration.     

Labour demand in the EU and returns to scale: A production function approach

The paper tests the hypothesis that small member states of the European Union (EU) experience economies of scale constraints. This study adopts a production function approach, utilising data from the 27 differently sized EU member countries. The results confirm the hypothesis and indicate that larger EU member countries incur lower costs per unit of output produced when compared to the smaller ones. This finding has important implications for small EU member states, including that smaller countries have to overcome their economies of scale constraint in order to attain and maintain international competitiveness. This disadvantage is particularly relevant for small states, because these states tend to be highly dependent on international trade, in which case international competitiveness is a major issue.     

The relative performance of different methods for selecting creative marketing personnel

Despite an increasing need for creativity in all corners of business, the spotlight of most recruitment and selection procedures has not shifted accordingly. Measures of creative ability that are to be used in practice should preferably be brief and operationally valid in the small and relatively homogenous pools of subjects that companies typically have to deal with. This article examines the performance of different assessment methods of creative ability in two small-scale hiring contexts, i.e., with prospective marketing employees (marketing students) and with current employees of a creative marketing agency. With prospective marketing employees, a combination of test ratings and student CV ratings of creative ability shows high operational validity. Supervisory ratings and self-ratings of creative ability are reasonable alternatives to test ratings for senior and long-time employees, but should be used with caution when junior employees and recent recruits are concerned.     

Study of food preferences of an elderly population receiving meals on wheels in Nottinghamshire

A survey of 900 meals on wheels (MOW) recipients (20% total client sample) in all areas of the county of Nottinghamshire (East Midlands of England with a population approximately one million) aimed to evaluate consumer food preferences in the existing MOW provision of both main and sweet courses. A self-completed questionnaire was administered by Nottinghamshire County Council Social Services Department in November 1992. A response rate of 52% allowed calculations of preference rating on a scale of 1 to 5 (poor to excellent) to be made for the seven districts and two city areas of the county. Overall for the whole county there was a distinctive pattern of main course preference, the most popular being the sliced meat courses but in different areas of the county and city of Nottingham there was a very big range in preference rating for various types of main meal provision. In a similar manner the sweet courses provided an overall distinctive preference pattern across the county with apple pie and ‘Blackwell’ tart achieving the highest grades. Across the various districts and areas of Nottingham, however, these preference ratings were very variable with some areas giving almost all dishes scores above average while others gave nearly all dishes scores below average. The reasons for these variations in food preference are not known in the various areas but if poor preference rating leads to low food intake then these elderly people are very likely to be at nutritional risk.