Measuring customer experience in service: A systematic review

The aim of this systematic review is to identify how customer experience in the service sector has been measured in relevant publications in the marketing field. A sample of 33 papers was collected from two electronic databases—the Web of Science (Thomson Reuters) and Scopus (Elsevier)—covering a large number of publications. After analyzing the articles and reviewing the customer experience literature, the following are our main contributions: (i) clarification of the concepts that appear in the literature review of customer experience in the service sector; (ii) classification of the variables, scales, and constructs related to customer experience in service; (iii) demonstration of the service experience as the preponderant construct that is used to measure customer experience in service; and (iv) proposal of a new dimension—the concept of ‘pre-experience’—to measure customer experience in service. These contributions can provide a more solid basis for measuring customer experience in service.     

Do vertical spillovers differ by investors’ productivity? Theory and evidence from Vietnam

Developing countries are eager to host foreign direct investment to receive positive technology spillovers to their local firms. However, what types of foreign firms are desirable for the host country to achieve spillovers best? We address this question using firm‐level panel data from Vietnam to investigate whether foreign Asian investors in downstream sectors with different productivity affect the productivity of local Vietnamese firms in upstream sectors differently. Using endogenous structural breaks, we divide Asian investors into low‐, middle‐, and high‐productivity groups. The results suggest that the presence of the middle group has the strongest positive spillover effect. The differential spillover effects can be explained by a simple model with vertical linkages and productivity‐enhancing investment by local suppliers. The theoretical mechanism is also empirically confirmed.     

A One-Factor Conditionally Linear Commodity Pricing Model under Partial Information

A one-factor asset pricing model with an Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process as its state variable is studied under partial information: the mean-reverting level and the mean-reverting speed parameters are modeled as hidden/unobservable stochastic variables. No-arbitrage pricing formulas for derivative securities written on a liquid asset and exponential utility indifference pricing formulas for derivative securities written on an illiquid asset are presented. Moreover, a conditionally linear filtering result is introduced to compute the pricing/hedging formulas and the Bayesian estimators of the hidden variables.     

Detecting motives for cooperation in public goods experiments

This study clarifies the types of motives that are important as a source of cooperation in a linear public goods experiment. Our experimental design separates contributions into those due to confusion, one-shot motives (which includes altruism, warm-glow, inequality aversion, and conditional cooperation), and multi-round motives (which includes a strategic motive under incomplete information, a failure of backward induction, and reciprocity). The experiment reveals that multi-round motives plays an important role in driving cooperative behavior. Confusion and one-shot motives play a minor role.     

The winner–loser effect in Japanese stock returns

This study examines the winner–loser effect using stocks listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) from 1975 to 1997. We uncover significant return reversals dominating the Japanese markets, especially over shorter periods such as 1 month. No momentum effect is observed, however. The 1-month return reversal remains significant even after adjusting for firm characteristics or risk. While the 1-month return reversal is not related to industry classification, it is partially a result of higher future returns to loser stocks with low trading volume. Our results show that investor overreaction may be a possible explanation for the 1-month return reversal in Japan.     

Usefulness of the Information Contained in the Prediction Sample for the Spatial Error Model

A recent study proposed an estimation approach that uses data on the independent variables and location for the prediction sample, and suggested that it may improve estimation and prediction. This is an incomplete data approach following an iterative process along the lines of the EM algorithm. The present study compares this approach with a partial data approach that uses only data on the dependent and independent variables and location for the estimation sample. Our Monte Carlo experiments show that unless the estimation and prediction samples constitute the whole population and the data generating model is used as the data fitting model, the incomplete data approach is not guaranteed to be superior to the partial data approach.     

The effect of exchange rate changes on Japanese consumption exports

This paper investigates how exchange rates affect Japanese exports. This is difficult because many of Japan's exports are used to produce goods for re-export. An appreciation in the importing country that decreases exports can decrease its imported inputs from Japan. To avoid this bias we examine consumption exports. Using a panel dataset of Japan's consumption exports to 17 countries over the 1988–2009 period, we find exchange rate elasticities of about one. These results indicate that the large swings in the value of the yen over the last decade have caused large swings in the volume of Japanese exports.     

Founders’ human capital and external knowledge sourcing: Exploring the absorptive capacity of start-up firms

ABSTRACT

This study highlights the importance of founders’ human capital on firms’ absorptive capacity for explaining the external knowledge sourcing (licensing-in and joint R&D) of start-up firms, using panel data from original questionnaire surveys conducted in Japan. The results of a probit model with an endogenous regressor show that firms managed by founders with a high level of specific human capital, measured as prior innovation experience and industry-specific work experience, tend to engage in external knowledge sourcing because of their superior absorptive capacity. The findings indicate that this type of human capital also promotes research and development (R&D) investment. Contrariwise, this study finds that firms managed by founders with a high level of general human capital, measured as educational attainment, tend to invest more in R&D, which enhances their absorptive capacity and thereby promotes external knowledge sourcing. Finally, the implications of these findings are discussed from the perspective of public policy.