Economics at the FCC, 2013–2014

We present a sample of recent FCC matters of economic interest. These include nonstructural remedies in a number of wireless telecommunications transactions, econometric attempts to identify which schools are likely to have access to fiber broadband, and the implementation of “rural broadband experiments” to improve the effectiveness of subsidy programs to promote universal service. We close with some observations regarding the prominence of vertical concerns in FCC policy assessments.     

Doing Bad to Feel Better? An Investigation of Within- and Between-Person Perceptions of Counterproductive Work Behavior as a Coping Tactic

Employee counterproductive work behavior (CWB, e.g., theft, production deviance, interpersonal abuse) is costly to organizations and those who work within them. Evidence suggests that employees are motivated to engage in CWB because they believe that these behaviors will make them feel better in response to negative workplace events. However, research has yet to consider the situational and individual factors that shape the extent to which employees view CWB in such a manner. In order to provide insight into the decision-making process surrounding the use of CWB as a coping strategy, this study leverages coping theory to examine the factors (both situational/within-person and individual/between-person) that contribute to employees’ beliefs that CWBs will be instrumental for emotion regulation aims in response to workplace stressors. In a repeated measures scenario-based study of 297 employees, we found that individuals’ perceived coping instrumentalities for CWBs are a function of the controllability and source of the stressor as well as a more stable learned response to stressful situations at work.     

Changes in latitude,changes in attitude: analysis of the effects of reverse culture shock – a study of students returning from youth expeditions

Despite the long history of youth expeditions and a growing number of participants and claims of being concerned with ‘youth development’, expeditions have received little attention by leisure and/or educational researchers in the UK. Recent literature specifically examining expeditions in the UK demonstrates an increasing interest in this phenomenon that sits on the juncture of education and leisure. There has been some critique regarding lack of clarity of recreational or educational aims and ethical issues. Literature from travel and tourism, management learning and international education all indicate that culture shock and reverse culture shock (RCS) are experienced in a range of contexts. These two literatures are summarised and inform the present research. This research focused on gaining an initial understanding of young people’s experiences of returning home after an expedition. Data were gathered six months after a six-week expedition (n?=?19) to south-west Greenland to undertake science and journeys on the ice cap. Using a qualitative approach to analyse these data the following themes were identified as affecting the participants’ expedition reverse culture shock (ERCS): Sense of Isolation, Extending the Lessons of the Group and Using the Group as a Compass for the Future. Connections are made to literature on RCS and some suggestions made for facilitating ERCS. Other implications are considered.     

Recreational specialization and ecologically responsible behaviour of Chinese birdwatchers in Hong Kong

Birdwatching is a popular nature-based recreational activity that has millions of participants worldwide. Hong Kong is an important birdwatching destination in Southeast Asia, and the number of birdwatchers visiting Hong Kong has steadily increased in recent decades. This study investigated the influences of recreational specialization on the pro-environmental attitudes and ecologically responsible behaviour of Chinese birdwatchers. Questionnaire surveys were conducted in Hong Kong, and 387 completed questionnaires were collected. The results of structural equation modelling indicate a direct positive association between the birdwatchers’ specialization and pro-environmental attitudes and an indirect positive association between their specialization and ecologically responsible behaviour. These findings suggest that understanding birdwatchers’ specialization is essential for predicting birdwatchers’ behaviour when visiting ecologically sensitive destinations. Birdwatcher specialization levels could be used to formulate visitor management strategies at birdwatching sites and to mitigate visitor impacts on avian species.     

Nitrogen fixation during decomposition of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) is an important contribution to nutrient supply in traditional dryland agricultural systems of Hawai'i

Nitrogen (N) is unique among essential elements required for life, in that it must be fixed from the vast atmospheric reservoir before most organisms can use it. Prior to industrial nitrogen fixation, many agricultural systems were limited in their productivity by N. What sustained N in the ancient Hawaiian dryland (rain-fed) agricultural systems that lacked legumes or other known significant N inputs? N-fixation during sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) growth and litter decomposition was examined in settings representing pre-European Hawaiian agriculture. We did not detect associative N-fixation during the growth of five Hawaiian sugarcane cultivars. In contrast, N-fixation during the decomposition of leaf and stalk material was important. We found that the depth of the mulch layer significantly affected N-fixation levels during decomposition; values of N-fixation in different depths of senesced leaf litter ranged from 0.69 to 1.36?gN/kg of litter integrated over the lifetime of decomposition. Compared to senesced leaf litter, N-fixation during decomposition of non-senesced leaf litter was ～77% and stalk material ～140% per unit mass. Peak rates of N fixation occurred between 200 and 400 days of decomposition, and ranged from 1.37 to 3.27?gN/kg/yr. Our empirical results were extrapolated to represent the traditional Hawaiian cropping system; we calculated N-fixation inputs of 4.8–39.0 kgN/ha/yr, with fixed N adding 17–40% of the amount of N added through litter. Findings indicate that significant N may be introduced into natural cropping systems through mulching practices and that small changes in practices greatly alter the total inputs. The use of mulch was likely an important source of N in pre-industrial settings and may be used in contemporary systems to reduce nitrogen fertilizer requirements.     

Feeling the Noise: Teenagers,Bedrooms and Music

Abstract

This investigation examines the psychometric properties of a modified involvement scale (MIS) using recreationists sampled at a national forest in upstate South Carolina and consumers enquiring about angling opportunities in the Low Country of South Carolina. Following the testing of several model configurations, support for a conceptualization of enduring involvement was observed consisting of five correlated facets: attraction, centrality, social bonding, identity expression and identity affirmation. This conceptualization was an extension of McIntyre’s measure. Notable departures from McIntyre’s conceptualization include the extraction of a social component previously embedded in the centrality facet and greater distinction in the leisure identification processes. This led to the construction of two identification facets. Testing using multiple criteria of validity and reliability illustrated that the MIS was a sound indicator of enduring leisure involvement.     

Price Discovery in Private Negotiation Trading with Forward and Spot Deliveries

Advance production in spot markets increases seller costs because inventories must be held. This cost does not exist in production-to-demand (or forward) markets, for which production follows trading, and sales exactly match quantities produced. Data from laboratory-computerized markets that trade through private negotiation are analyzed. For the experimental supply and demand conditions, price convergence patterns show spot prices 10.8% lower and the number of trades 12.4% fewer than forward outcomes. The adverse impact of advance production and private negotiation on seller earnings is emphasized when earnings are compared with those from double auction trading.     

Game theory-based identification of facility use restrictions for the movement of hazardous materials under terrorist threat

Government agencies can determine which specific facilities in a transportation network to restrict for each class of material and for which times of the day and/or week to stem the consequences of a terrorist event. To guide in making these determinations, this paper develops a three-player game of the interactions among a government agency, a carrier, and a terrorist. It also develops an effective solution procedure for this game and illustrates the use of that procedure on a realistic case study based on the freight rail network in the continental United States.     

The Cross-Cultural Evolution of the Subordinate Influence Ethics Measure

The purpose of our article is to describe the initial development process of the subordinate influence ethics (SIE) measure, an instrument that was cross- culturally conceived, designed, and validity tested to measure upward influence ethics strategies of professional subordinates across different societies, as well as within a single society. Development of the SIE began by defining the SIE constructs through theoretical review and empirical (nominal group technique) assessments in Germany, France, Hong Kong, and the U.S. In the present measurement development phase, the SIE has been found to consist of three distinct dimensions: pro-organizational behaviors, self-serving behaviors, and maliciously intended behaviors. The construct validity of the SIE was examined across 4113 subjects from 30 countries. A reduced model of the SIE was developed empirically to represent the “best model” for the three-factor scale.