Trust and the tendency towards multi-unit franchising: A relational governance view

Previous research mainly focused on the agency-theoretical explanation of multi-unit franchising (MUF). The aim of this study is to develop a relational governance perspective of MUF by investigating the role of knowledge-based trust and general trust in franchisor's choice between multi-unit and single-unit franchising. Our data from the German franchise sector indicate that knowledge-based trust positively influences and general trust negatively influences the franchisor's tendency towards multi-unit franchising.     

Limited Consumer Attention in International Trade

This paper introduces a model of limited consumer attention into an otherwise standard new trade theory model with love‐of‐variety preferences and heterogeneous firms. In this setting, we show that international integration needs not be welfare enhancing if the consumers' capacity to gather and process information is limited. Rather, it intensifies competition for scarce consumer attention, which causes mutual overbidding of producers in their advertising expenditures. The mutual overbidding renders advertising—which is informative in principle—wasteful and diverts purchases to imported goods at an inefficient scale. Wasteful advertising provides scope for policy intervention in the form of an advertising tax. However, if the tax instrument is not allowed to discriminate against foreign producers, it cannot eliminate inefficient diversion of consumer purchases to imports; hence it needs not be successful in securing gains from international integration in this framework.     

Determinants of knowledge transfer strategy in franchising: integrating knowledge-based and relational governance perspectives

This study presents an integrative model on the franchisor's choice of knowledge transfer strategy by deriving hypotheses from the knowledge-based theory and the relational governance view. First, based on the knowledge-based view, tacitness of system-specific knowledge influences the choice of the knowledge transfer strategy of the franchisor. The higher the degree of tacitness of knowledge, the more knowledge-transfer mechanisms with a high degree of information richness (HIR) are used, such as training, seminars, visits and formal meetings, and the more likely the franchisor chooses a personalization strategy (P-S). Conversely, the lower the degree of tacitness of system-specific knowledge, the more knowledge transfer mechanisms with a low degree of information richness (LIR) are used, such as reports, emails, intranet, databases, and the more likely the franchisor chooses a codification strategy. Second, based on the relational view of governance, trust influences the choice of knowledge transfer strategy of the franchisor. If trust reduces relational risk, more trust reduces the franchisor's use of HIR-knowledge transfer mechanisms and increases the franchisor's use of LIR-knowledge transfer mechanisms. If trust increases knowledge-sharing between the network partners, it increases the franchisor's use of both HIR- and LIR-knowledge-transfer mechanisms. The hypotheses are tested by using data on the use of the P-S in the Austrian franchise sector. The data provide some support for the hypotheses. A new model on the franchisor's choice of knowledge transfer strategy, using knowledge-based theory and relational view of governance is developed, and specifically, the knowledge-based view of Windsperger and Gorovaia [(2011). Knowledge attributes and the choice of knowledge-transfer mechanisms in networks: The case of franchising. Journal of Management and Governance, 15(4), 617–640] is extended by considering trust as additional explanatory variable of the knowledge-transfer strategy.     

Brain Drain,Fiscal Competition,and Public Education Expenditure

A two‐country model is developed in this paper to examine the implications of fiscal competition in public education expenditure under international mobility of high‐skilled labor. The authors allow for educational choice, asymmetry of countries with respect to total factor productivity, and tax base effects of migration in source and host country. As the latter may give rise to multiplicity of equilibrium, alternative belief structures of mobile high‐skilled workers are carefully taken into account. The paper also looks at the consequences of bilateral policy coordination. While in line with other studies on tax competition, bilateral coordination can reduce the under‐investment problem in public education spending, it also tends to hinder migration or may even reverse the direction of the migration flow that materializes under non‐cooperative policy setting. As a result of its potentially adverse effects on migration patterns, bilateral coordination may therefore reduce global welfare and bring the world economy further away from the social planner's solution.     

INNOVATION AND GROWTH WITH RICH AND POOR CONSUMERS

This work studies the impact of income inequality on the level of innovative activities in a model where innovations result in quality improvements. In contrast to the standard model of innovations and growth, the equilibrium outcome may be characterized by a situation where not only the quality leader but also producers of worse qualities are on the market. In that case the quality leader sells to the rich, whereas the producer of the second‐best quality sells to the poor. In general, we find that a more equal distribution of income is favourable for innovation incentives. This is consistent with empirical evidence suggesting that countries with a more equal distribution of income have grown faster.     

Regional- und Gesammteffekte der steirischen Endverwendung

Summary This paper starts off by describing the methodology of the compilation of the 1964 IO-table for Styria, which is conceptually fully consistent with the 1964 table for Austria. Basic definitions are given and some information is provided on the more important stages of the compilation of the table, such as estimation of a table in purchaser prices, conversion to producer prices, estimation of complete import matrices for interregional and international imports. The underlying philosophy in all these stages was to work on a very low level of aggregation (products, groups of products) in order to make use of all available detailed information and to overcome the problems arising from the lack of some basic information (e.g. shipments between regions).In the second part of the paper we present some empirical results derived from an analysis of the Styrian IO-table, Version C (only regional deliveries in the first two quadrants). This analysis shows a remarkably high regional multiplier effect of Styrian exports (to other parts of Austria, and abroad) and of private consumption on the economy of the region. High multiplier effects of final demand deliveries are exhibited by such sectors as saw mills, hotels and restaurants, housing and food production (all above 1,6). Finally the bias from using a single regional table instead of a multi-regional table in estimating the regional and total effects of final demand on the economy of a region is discussed.     

Entwicklungstendenzen in der österreichischen Lohn- und Gehaltspyramide zwischen 1953 und 1979

Summary The paper analyzes the development in the personal distribution of wages and salaries in Austria between 1953 and 1979. Two periods of marked changes in the distribution are identified. First, the period from 1953 to 1964 ist characterized by a strong increase in inequality. This was mainly due to specific conditions of the labour market and to the wage policy of the labour unions. Between 1964 and 1970 a movement towards equality can be shown. This was mainly the result of the narrowing of the wage differential between blue and white collar workers. For the third period, from 1970 to 1979, the applied measures of income inequality do not exhibit a significant trend for more equality or inequality. In this period low and high income classes gained higher shares of the total salary and wage bill. Several structural factors, such as the increasing share of women, of white collar workers and of foreign workers and their impact on changes in the distribution are estimated.