Correlates of Narrow Bracketing

Behavior often deviates from standard predictions because individuals evaluate the consequences of choices separately (i.e., narrow bracketing) rather than jointly. The main existing theories classify different narrow bracketing phenomena as either (i) choice errors caused by cognitive limitations, or (ii) strategies to achieve self‐control. Using an online experiment, we find consistent evidence for theory (ii): mental budgets and narrow goals are related to each other and to measures of self‐control, but are distinct from other forms of narrow bracketing. Evidence for the complementary theory (i) is less consistent: few choice bracketing phenomena are related to each other and to cognitive skills.     

You say you want a (Rose) Revolution? The effects of Georgia's 2004 market reforms

After Georgia declared its independence from the Soviet Union, it experienced civil war and strife for more than a decade. In late 2003, the peaceful Rose Revolution installed a new government that began a series of radical market‐liberal reforms. However, the effectiveness of these reforms was controversial. We offer a rigorous evaluation of these reforms via the synthetic control method which creates a credible counterfactual. Compared to the synthetic controls, we find that the reforms enacted after the Rose Revolution led to significant improvements in Georgia's social and economic development, albeit with temporary side effects and argue that this case provides some support for the effectiveness of rapid, multidimensional reform.     

"利剑斩污"行动下石家庄市挥发性有机物的污染特性变化研究

为研究石家庄市在"利剑斩污"行动管控期和非管控期挥发性有机物(VOCs)的污染特性变化,在2个时间段内对石家庄市3个国控点进行采样分析。通过苏玛罐(SUMMA罐)进行样品采集,利用气相色谱/质谱联用(GC/MS)仪对石家庄市区3个国控点的VOCs进行定性定量检测分析。结果表明,监测期间主要的特征污染物是二氯甲烷、二氯丙烷、苯和甲苯。与非管控期间相比,管控期间各污染物的质量浓度均有所降低,总VOCs平均质量浓度降低45.107μg/m~3,二氯甲烷质量浓度降低8.796μg/m~3,二氯丙烷质量浓度降低3.750μg/m~3,苯质量浓度降低18.285μg/m~3,甲苯质量浓度降低16.895μg/m~3。大气环境调控策略的实施,有效降低了VOCs浓度,减少了空气污染程度,空气质量改善效果显著。"利剑斩污"行动期间采取的相关举措,对于制定常态化下VOCs的防治对策具有一定的参考价值。     

Effect of personality traits on smallholders’ land renting behavior: Theory and evidence from the North China Plain

This study investigates the effect of smallholders’ personality traits on their land rental market decisions. We develop a conceptual framework and show that these internal factors could affect smallholders’ land rental market participation beyond institutional and socio-demographic factors. Our empirical analysis is based on a survey of 2119 rural households collected in the North China Plain. We find that smallholders with a higher level of openness are more active in participating in the farmland rental market. Moreover, internal locus of control plays a significant role in explaining smallholders’ land renting behavior. We further show that need for achievement mediates the link between internal locus of control and smallholder’s intention to rent land, indicating that fostering a higher level of internal locus of control—and subsequently achievement desire—could play an important role in promoting smallholders’ land-renting behavior. More generally, our results imply that taking rural smallholders’ personality traits into account in designing land rental policies may increase the effectiveness of policies aimed at promoting land rental market participation among smallholders and incubating crop farm scale enlargement in rural China.     

Separation of ownership and control for Chinese listed firms: Effect on the cost of debt and the moderating role of bank competition

This research investigates the effect of the separation between firm ownership and control on the cost of debt, with attention to the moderating role of state ownership and bank competition. We make use of a sample of 1744 Chinese A-share firms for the years 2011–2017. We find that separation between ownership and control is positively associated with the cost of debt. This is consistent with the view that separation of control from ownership allows controlling shareholders to engage in tunneling and other behaviors that increase the risk of default. State ownership weakens this positive link because government debt guarantees mitigate the risk of default. Greater competition in the banking industry generally reduces the cost of debt for non-state enterprises while having no effect for state enterprises. At the same time, greater bank competition amplifies the positive effect of ownership and control separation on debt cost for non-state enterprises as banks must still cover the higher default risk. Finally, the global financial crisis raised the cost of debt for non-state enterprises but had no effect for state enterprises.     

Understanding expert practices in order to control expert activities: The case of trading

Experts are important actors of organizational control. Nevertheless, experience suggests that they must be controlled as well. This is particularly the case for traders in financial institutions. We first identify the limits of traditional control patterns when the managing the activities of experts is at stake. Hyperspecialization, which is the ability to act within different logics and multiple time horizons, suggests that multidimensional representations of these activities be adopted and made explicit, which has the potential to prevent such activities from turning problematic. By examining bank risks and conducting additional interviews with actors from bank trading services, we recommend that multiple components of complexity be preserved when dealing with expert‐related operational risks, instead of reducing this complexity to a single concept. Such an approach implies to turn back expertise against itself. Copyright © 2017 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

国家安全视角下的生物资源安全与保护制度研究

2014年习近平总书记提出了“总体国家安全观”理念,这是我国社会主义理论制度的又一伟大创新。本文从本次新冠疫情对于国家综合安全利益的影响出发,结合疫情对国家安全要素的扩张以及对国家安全利益的威胁等实际情况,探寻本次疫情暴露出的国家安全制度中存在的问题,以期完善我国以生物资源和公共卫生安全为代表的公共安全管理制度和疫情防控制度。     

A two-generation new product model by considering forward-looking customers: Dynamic pricing and advertising optimization

Nowadays, one of the challenges of the firm managing multi-generation products is the forward-looking behavior of customers. Anticipating the introduction of a newer generation affects the demand and sales volume of the current generation and next generation. In this research, we investigated how to efficiently structure the pricing and advertising strategies of a firm that launches a two-generation new product to a market populated by forward-looking customers. Two thresholds were determined on the advertising expenditure of Generations 1 and 2. Our analysis proposed that the optimal pricing path of Generation 1 was monotonically decreasing or increasing and, then, decreasing. The optimal pricing of Generation 2 followed a concave curve. A heuristic solution method was proposed to solve the numerical examples. Findings revealed that, with increasing the customers' forward-looking behavior, the firm's profit would decrease. In the presence of forward-looking customers, it is beneficial for the firm to reduce the price of Generation 1 and allocate more budget to advertise Generation 2. Among other results, the advertising expenditure was shown to be positively affected by the number of potential customers and advertising effectiveness. Also, the length of the planning horizon had a negative effect on the advertising expenditure. A higher discount rate could lead to lower price, while higher advertising effectiveness and length of the planning horizon would result in higher price. Further, the results showed that, with increasing the word-of-mouth advertising effectiveness, the firm should increase the advertising expenditure and decrease the price firstly and, afterwards, decrease the advertising effort and increase the price.     

Determining factors and impacts of the intention to adopt mobile banking app in Cameroon: Case of SARA by afriland First Bank

This study aims to know what are the factors determining the adoption of M-Banking app among customers in Cameroon. In other words, what are the factors that influence users in their decisions to adopt and use a system or technology such as the MBanking app, and indirectly, what is the impact of this use on both the customers and financial inclusion? The research model developed relying on a combination of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM ), Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology ( UTAUT2 ), Information System Success Model ( ISSM ), and Protection Motivation Theory ( PMT ) and other constructs; it was then tested with a sample of 223 users of the “ SARA” M-Banking app of the financial institution called “ Afriland First Bank” . Findings revealed that: (1) utilitarian expectation, hedonic motivation, and status gain, habit, and perceived privacy concern have a significant influence on the intention to adopt M-Banking apps; and (2) the exploitative/explorative use of this technology has an impact on user’s loyalty and satisfaction but also contributes strongly to fostering financial inclusion in Cameroon. Also, the Multi-group analysis was performed on the sample using 2 gender-based groups (males, n=121; females, n=102).     

农户风险感知与施药行为的响应关系研究——基于辽宁省菜农数据的实证检验

本文基于辽宁省蔬菜主产区434户菜农调研数据,运用结构方程模型验证了农户风险感知与施药行为的响应关系。研究结果表明,农户风险感知潜变量正向影响农户的施药行为响应,但是风险感知和施药行为潜变量中各个因子的影响路径和显著程度存在差异;农户是否加入合作社对农户风险感知与施药行为的作用关系起到一定的调节效应。基于研究结论,本文提出风险意识提升、保障条件供给和发展新型农业经营主体三方面的建议。