Efficiency and technical progress: sources of convergence in the Spanish regions

The paper analyses the contribution of efficiency as a mechanism of labour productivity convergence, taking as the unit of analysis the Spanish regions in the period 1964–1993. Using the stochastic frontier approach, a translogarithmic production function is estimated for the different sectors of the Spanish regional economy, demonstrating on this basis the existence of substantial differences in efficiency between sectors as well as between regions. With regard to convergence, the results obtained indicate that at aggregate level the convergence observed in labour productivity is explained by the faster growth of the capital-labour ratio of the initially poorer regions and the contribution of technical change and the efficiency, hence by the convergence of TFP. However, the information by sectors shows different results. Thus, on the one hand, the importance of the convergence in production per employee is seen in all sectors except agriculture and, on the other it is observed that technical change is a factor of convergence in all sectors but construction, and, qualitatively, the contribution of technical change is greater than the contribution of efficiency. By sectors, technical change contributed significantly to labour productivity convergence in agriculture, but the faster growth of the capital-labour ratio of the rich regions acted as a mechanism of divergence, completely counteracting the technological catching-up effect. It is further concluded that, as well as the contribution of the accumulation of factors, the positive evolution of efficiency in the poorest regions favoured convergence in the construction and industry sectors, whereas technical progress was decisive in industry and the services sectors.     

External and Internal R&D,Capital Investment and Business Performance in the Spanish Agri‐Food Industry

We examine the effects of external and internal expenditure on research and development on the business performance of industrial agri‐food enterprises. For this purpose, a data sample from the Encuesta de Estrategias Empresariales en España (Survey of Business Strategies in Spain) was used, which includes information on more than 400 businesses over the period 2000–2008. The econometric analysis uses quantile regressions to address the vast asymmetry of the variables and to identify non‐linear relationships. The results reveal interesting new findings on the impacts of R&D on the agri‐food industry. The most evident, although not the most immediately apparent, relationship concerns the positive effects of external R&D on business performance. Internal R&D was also revealed to be an important way of enhancing the productivity of SMEs. In addition, the modernisation of the production process through investment in capital goods continues to be the main path to improve competitiveness. However, support was found neither for the inverse relationship, that is the most profitable firms are those that spend the most on R&D, nor for complementarity between external and internal R&D. The latter would imply that the bulk of Spanish agri‐food firms have at most the capacity for only one type of R&D.     

Entrepreneurship,innovation and regional performance: application for the Spanish regions

Abstract

The aim of this study is to test the importance of entrepreneurship or new business formation for explaining differences in economic performance in the Spanish regions, together with the role played by the endowments of innovation capital and the socio-economic capabilities of every region. The results show that the effect of new business formation on economic performance varies considerably between regions, and the type of start-up is highly important for the results obtained: entrepreneur endowments of high technology intensive sectors and medium technology intensive sectors, but not those of low technology intensive sectors, have a positive effect on regional performance. Also, the size of the start-ups is important for explaining regional development.     

What Determines Principle-Based Standards Implementation? Reporting on Global Compact Adoption in Spanish Firms

International Accountability Standards have proliferated in the last 20 years, with the UN Global Compact (GC) as the most widely accepted principle-based standard catalyzing voluntary participation by firms. This study aims to improve understanding about the factors that determine companies’ progress in adopting principle-based standards. Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm, we examine the direct and combined influences of different organizational resources (firm-specific resources, innovative capability, length of participation, and internationalization of the firm) on standard implementation as perceived by 213 Spanish GC signatories. Our results reveal that the level of firm-specific resources has a positive effect on the extent of GC principles implementation and that innovative capability and length of GC participation strengthen this effect. Contrary to our expectations, we find that the internationalization of firms does not have an effect on GC principles implementation. We discuss the implications of these findings for scholars and practicing managers.     

High-growth firms and innovation: an empirical analysis for Spanish firms

This paper analyses the effect of R&D investment on firm growth. We use an extensive sample of Spanish manufacturing and service firms. The database comprises diverse waves of Spanish Community Innovation Survey and covers the period 2004–2008. First, a probit model corrected for sample selection analyses the role of innovation on the probability of being a high-growth firm (HGF). Second, a quantile regression technique is applied to explore the determinants of firm growth. Our database shows that a small number of firms experience fast growth rates in terms of sales or employees. Our results reveal that R&D investments positively affect the probability of becoming a HGF. However, differences appear between manufacturing and service firms. Finally, when we study the impact of R&D investment on firm growth, quantile estimations show that internal R&D presents a significant positive impact for the upper quantiles, while external R&D shows a significant positive impact up to the median.     

Why don't all young firms invest in R&D?

This article aims to analyze the different impacts that some factors may exert on the probability that a small young firm invests intensively in R&D. Recently, an increasing amount of the literature makes reference to the vital role played by a small number of young firms in generating jobs and increasing efficiency levels. However, not all new firms invest in R&D. Departing from the definition of Young Innovative Companies (YICs, firms younger than 6 years old, fewer than 250 employees and with more than 15 % of their revenues invested in R&D activities), and with an extensive sample of the Spanish Community Innovation Survey between 2004 and 2010, we try to determine: (1) those factors that cause firms to become YICs (innovative young small firms) or Young Non-Innovative Companies (YNICs, moderately innovative young small firms), and (2) what is the difference in the impact of those factors between YICs and YNICs. Our results show that factors such as initial innovation capacity and cooperation in R&D projects enhance the probability of becoming a YIC. Nevertheless, factors such as export potential and market uncertainty may influence the decision to invest moderately and become a YNIC.     

Distributive implications of member level income aggregation within the household: An approximation through mobility indices

This paper adapts the ethical index of income mobility first suggested by Chakravarty, Dutta and Weymark (1985) to assess the contribution of wives, husbands, and other adults' member level income to husband-wife households' income mobility according to two of the criteria discussed in the literature. For any partition of the population, a source's contribution is seen to be decomposable into within-group and between-group income mobility indices plus a term capturing sub-group differences in income shares. The approach is applied to a sample of husband-wife households where both spouses are present, extracted from the 1990–91 Encuesta de Presupuestos Familiares , the Spanish household budget survey. While the husbands' income contribution is large and positive, the contribution of wives and other adults is practically equal to zero. When mean income differences are eliminated, all member contributions to husband-wife households' income mobility are substantially reduced.
JEL classification: D31, D33.     

Understanding factors influencing consumer attitudes toward cause‐related marketing

• Cause‐related marketing (CRM) has proliferated as a marketing strategy and is being employed by numerous brands across product categories. Despite its widespread popularity, not much is known about the factors that influence consumer attitudes toward CRM. In this study, we investigate the antecedents of consumer attitudes toward CRM, specifically sociodemographic characteristics, consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influence, and mediating role of consumer values. We test causal relationships employing a partial least squares‐based structural equation model. The data are collected via a structured questionnaire resulting in 456 valid responses. Our study demonstrates that attitudes toward CRM are influenced by sociodemographic characteristics with personal values acting as mediator. In addition, our findings show that consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influence affects the importance given to values, which in turn influences attitudes toward CRM. Our study makes theoretical contributions in the domain of CRM, specifically regarding the role of personal values, interpersonal influences, and sociodemographic factors in influencing attitudes toward CRM. In addition, the findings have relevance for managers responsible for their CRM campaigns.

Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Unpacking transnational corporate responsibility: coordination mechanisms and orientations

This article aims to advance the discussion of how multinational companies manage the tension between global integration and local responsiveness in their corporate social responsibility (CSR). In particular, it studies the relationships between headquarters and subsidiaries in a transnational CSR strategy and the types of coordination mechanisms used. Building on a qualitative study of a multinational bank, we find that in addition to formal and informal coordination mechanisms, a transnational CSR strategy cannot be fully understood without considering lateral learning and participatory decision making. Further, we suggest that discussions about the transnational approach to CSR should not be disentangled from the question about a company's CSR orientation. Finally, we propose some characteristics of transnational CSR and discuss its theoretical and practical implications.     

Using emotional benefits as a differentiation strategy in saturated markets

The high level of product substitution in most consumer markets often makes it difficult to match supply with demand, especially in sectors with mature, saturated markets with intense competition and a high degree of product differentiation. The difficulty of using technical characteristics such as quality and/or price to differentiate products suggests that marketers could profit from gaining more insight into the way in which consumers' purchase decisions are influenced by their perceived emotions. This paper investigates this issue in the wine market, a highly saturated market with homogeneous supply, obtaining results that appear to support the notion that emotions do indeed play a part in consumer choice structures, which show a higher degree of abstraction in those segments that report a greater number of perceived emotions. This considerably complicates the task of creating a differentiated marketing strategy, in the sense that suppliers need to give much greater consideration to consumers' self‐awareness. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.