How consumers’ assessments of the difficulty of manufacturing a product influence quality perceptions

This research shows that the perceived difficulty of manufacturing a product influences consumers’ perceptions of the firm’s other products. In three experiments (with 152 participants in Study 1, 86 in Study 2, and 91 in Study 3), participants received information about the quality of a firm’s product and then inferred the quality of another product from the firm. When participants believed that the initial product was relatively more difficult to manufacture than the second product, they inferred that the second product would be high in quality. However, when participants believed that the initial product was relatively easy to manufacture, they inferred that the second product would be low in quality. These effects occurred when perceived difficulty of manufacture was manipulated (Study 2) and occurred regardless of whether both products had dissimilar product benefits (Study 1) or whether brand names were present (Study 3). Allison R. Johnson and Valerie S. Folkes contributed equally to this article.     

一个年轻创业者妻子的日记

他的经历,大约是众多年轻创业者的缩影. 一个小城市里出生、读书,留在北京工作,曾在几个公司做了几年做到总监,有房有车有老婆. 当无论是家庭还是事业开始趋于稳定时,他却在三十而立之时开始惶惶不安,开始想要做些什么.     

A longitudinal examination of HRM in a human resources offshoring (HRO) organization operating from India

Human resources offshoring (HRO) forms a significant part of the Indian business process offshoring (BPO) market. This paper assesses HRM in the emergent HRO sector. Longitudinal case-study research enables an in-depth examination of the development of HRM practices in an HRO organization where offshored HR services are delivered from two different cities in India. The paper highlights the development of HR activities focused on extrinsic incentives, rewards and penalties to influence employee behaviour. These practices are mediated by indigenous traditions, the nature of the service offering; management style and an aspiration to ‘role model’ systematic HR practices.     

Fractional cointegration and the term structure

According to the expectations theory of the term structure of interest rates, the yield spread between long-term and short-term interest rates is an optimal predictor of future changes in short rates over the long-run. Results concerning the empirical validity of this hypothesis are not unanimous. These contradictions may be due to the fact that the traditional concept of cointegration is too restrictive. We refer here to the concept of fractional cointegration introduced by Granger (1986). We study the expectations theory by testing for the existence of a (fractional) cointegration relationship between short-term and long-term interest rates. There is evidence of fractional cointegration between interest rates for the G7 countries, with the exception of Germany.First version received: July 2002 / Final version received: July 2003We thank two anonymous referees for very helpful and detailed comments.     

Exploring perceptions and attitudes towards teaching and learning manual technical drawing in a digital age

This paper examines the place of manual technical drawing in the 21st century by discussing the perceived value and relevance of teaching school students how to draw using traditional instruments, in a world of computer aided drafting (CAD). Views were obtained through an e-survey, questionnaires and structured interviews. The sample groups represent professional CAD users (e.g., engineers, architects); university lecturers; Technology Education teachers and student teachers; and school students taking Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) Graphic Communication courses. An analysis of these personal views and attitudes indicates some common values between the various groups canvassed of what instruction in traditional manual technical drafting contributes towards learning. Themes emerge such as problem solving, visualisation, accuracy, co-ordination, use of standard conventions, personal discipline and artistry. In contrast to the assumptions of Prensky’s thesis [(2001a) Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon 9, 5. NCB University Press Retrieved Oct 2006 from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf; (2001b) Digital natives digital immigrants, Part 2: Do they really think differently? On the Horizon 9, 6. NCB University Press retrieved Oct 2006 from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part2.pdf] of digital natives, the study reported in this paper indicates that the school students apparently appreciate the experience of traditional drafting. In conclusion, the paper illustrates the perceived value of such learning in terms of transferable skills, personal achievement and enjoyment.     

The price of unconditional love: Consumer decision making for high-dollar veterinary care

Animal companions play an increasingly important role in consumers' lives, and therefore many pets receive acceptance and treatment as members of the family. As the human-animal bond increases, so does consumer spending on pets, including that on high-dollar veterinary care. Unlike human health care, however, consumers must directly pay for the majority of high-dollar veterinary care. When an animal companion is ill, the consumer faces a stressful decision of whether even to engage in the treatment, along with the hardship of paying for it. Despite a rudimentary understanding of the factors relevant in the decision-making process regarding high-dollar veterinary care, knowledge is lacking about this often heart-wrenching choice. Using a depth-interview method, this study examines the decision-making process consumers go through when facing expensive medical treatment for their pets. The research results in an expansion of three a priori themes and the discovery and discussion of three factors that influence consumer decisions about veterinary care across all three themes.     

An Empirical Analysis of Post‐Merger Organizational Integration

We study post‐merger organizational integration using linked employer–employee data. Integration is implemented by reassigning a small number of high‐skilled workers, especially in R&D and management. Workforce mixing is concentrated to establishments set up after merger, rather than to previously existing establishments. Worker turnover is high after merger, but new hiring yields stable total employment. Target employees have higher turnover and reassignment, particularly if the target firm is small relative to the acquiring firm. These findings might suggest that integration is costly, but can be achieved by focusing on key employees. Alternatively, the reassignment of a few key employees is sufficient for achieving integration.     

Discipline,representation and dispute resolution—exploring the role of trade unions and employee companions in workplace discipline

This article reports findings that suggest that trade union representation both protects worker interest and also facilitates the informal resolution of disciplinary disputes. However, this is dependent on robust representative structures and high‐trust relationships with employers. Conversely, non‐union companions were found to have no substantive impact on disciplinary processes and outcomes.     

Equity Markets, Transactions Costs, and Capital Accumulation: An Illustration

Poorly developed equity markets inhibit the transfer of capitalownership. Moreover, the costs of transacting in equity marketsaffect not just the level of investment, but the kinds of investmentsthat are undertaken. Once equity markets allow the ownershipof capital to be transferred economically, reductions in coststend to favor the use of longer-maturity investments. When thereis a relationship between the maturity of an investment andits productivity, transactions cost reductions are conduciveto observing certain kinds of increases in productive efficiency.This article analyzes savings, investment, and consumption decisionsby using an overlapping generations model with two-period-livedagents. The analysis allows for several technologies for convertingcurrent output into future capital that vary by productivityand maturity, and it makes ownership of capital costly to transfer.A reduction in transactions costs will typically alter the compositionof savings and investment, and have potentially complicatedconsequences for capital accumulation and steady-state output.