Impact mitigation or ecological restoration? Examining the environmental sustainability practices of multinational mining companies

This paper examines the environmental sustainability practices of multinational mining companies in addressing their impacts and promoting the sustainable development of local communities in Ghana. Although large-scale mining companies have embraced environmental sustainability, the drivers and the mechanisms for addressing their impacts throughout the mine life cycle is not fully understood because of the limited research in this area. The focus in this study involves an examination of the drivers for environmental sustainability in a weak and non-enabling institutional context and the mechanisms for addressing impacts on biodiversity, water quality and quantity, and ambient climate. The findings show that the environmental sustainability practices of multinational mining companies are determined by regulatory compliance and corporate environmental responsibility based on perceived ethical obligation. Additionally, we find gaps in mine closure planning and rehabilitation because of the limited requirement for biodiversity restoration in the domains of flora repopulation and active fauna reintroduction. This paper provides empirical and theoretical insights for academics and practitioners in industry and policymaking.     

Macro‐Hysteresis Test for Brazilian Exports of Manufactured Products: A threshold Panel Approach

This study tests for macro‐hysteresis in Brazilian exports of manufactured products using a panel model with threshold parameters according to Hansen. To test hysteresis, the threshold variables are built based on studies by Parslei and Wei, and Penkova. There is evidence of asymmetrical responses, with more pronounced increases in the price elasticity of demand during periods of high depreciation of the exchange rate compared with periods of more pronounced currency appreciation. We also estimate the relative price intervals that correspond to the inaction band.     

The Impact of Mergers on Quality Provision: Evidence from the Airline Industry

We examine how mergers affect quality provision by analyzing five U.S. airline mergers, focusing on on‐time performance (OTP). We find that airline mergers have minimal negative impacts on OTP, and likely result in long‐run improvements due to efficiencies. Importantly, we show that this finding is not driven by post‐merger changes in price that could affect OTP. Consequently, at least in the case of airlines, policymakers should not, as a rule, fear the negative quality effects of mergers.     

Working towards sincere encounters in volunteer tourism: an ethnographic examination of key management issues at a Nordic eco-village

This article explores host–guest dynamics at Sólheimar eco-village, Iceland to contribute to the conceptualization of transformative learning in volunteer tourism. At the eco-village, the host and volunteers come together to share similar goals and meaningful experiences. This interaction gets complicated, however: the eco-village exists within the global capitalist system and must operate using market norms. The idealist and educational expectations of the volunteers often clash with the practical short-term goals of the community: there are also cultural and experiential differences between the parties. This clash is used to discuss the importance of sincerity in volunteer tourism at the eco-village. Data were collected through fieldwork, primarily including participant observations and interviews, to help interpret the patterns of behaviors and perceptions of both parties in relation to the aim. Ultimately, the experience that binds host and guests cannot solely be about learning to do things alternatively and sustainably; it requires sincerity, using Taylor's 2001 sincerity concept, to tackle the difficulties in working alternatively and sustainably to attain this experience. It is argued that transformative learning during the volunteer experience in alternative spaces should be conceptualized to include the promotion of sincere encounters, and adjusted to concern both the host and its guests.     

Effect of Energy Prices on Economic Growth in the ECOWAS Sub-Region: Investigating the Channels Using Panel Data

The article empirically examines the effect of energy prices on economic growth within the Economic Community of West African States sub-region by acknowledging that the effect of energy prices on growth is quintessentially indirect and hence can be tracked through some channels. Exploiting the System Generalized Methods of Moments estimation technique for the period spanning 2002–2015, the results indicate that the overall effect of energy prices on economic growth is significantly negative. This effect propagates mainly through government consumption expenditure and investment, albeit its effect through real interest rate is positive. However, its negative effects on government consumption, investment, and exchange rate significantly overwhelm the positive effect from real interest rate.     

An Integrated Model of Quality for Mass Services in the Context of the Ghanaian Retail Banking Sector

This study draws upon the service literature and operationalizes the investment model in the services domain to examine factors that contribute to customers’ desire to maintain service relationships with firms (i.e., retail banks) in an emerging economy in sub‐Saharan Africa: Ghana. We empirically test the explanatory power and robustness of the investment model using 218 customers of various banking institutions in Ghana. Results from partial least squares—structural equation modeling (PLS‐SEM)—reveal that (1) service quality is positively associated with customer satisfaction, investment size, and customer commitment; and (2) while customer satisfaction is positively associated with customer commitment, both investment size and quality of attractive alternatives are not associated with customer commitment. Interestingly, we found investment size to have a positive association with customer commitment only when fully mediated by customer satisfaction. Our model reveals that service quality and customer satisfaction predict 79.3% of the variation in customer commitment toward maintaining a service relationship with their retail banks. Discussion and managerial implications conclude the article. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Price-cost margins in Dutch manufacturing

Summary The relation between price-cost margins and seller concentration and its development over the business cycle is investigated for Dutch manufacturing (1974–1986). We test the finding of Domowitz, Hubbard and Petersen (1986a and 1986b), that U.S. manufacturing (1958–1981) price-cost margins are more procyclical in more concentrated industries using a new data set. Considering business cycle measures at both industry and aggregated level, export share, level of competing imports and buyer concentration we find that (1) a business cycle upswing (downturn) leads to high (low) price-cost margins and (2) the test of more procyclical price-cost margins in more concentrated industries is inconclusive. Whether the finding of Domowitz, Hubbard and Petersen is supported depends on the business cycle measure used. Separate intertemporal and inter-industry estimates for most influences on price-cost margins are provided.Financial support from The Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) is acknowledged. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the XVII-th Annual Conference of the European Association for Research in Industrial Economics (EARIE), Lisbon, 2–4 September 1990. We like to thank Rene den Hertog for computational assistance and Aad Kleijweg, Dan Kovenock, Keith Cowling, Kees Zeelenberg, David Audretsch, Sjaak Vollebregt, Jan van Dalen, Jeroen Potjes and two anonymous referees for helpful comments.     

The intertemporal stability of the concentration-margins relationship in Dutch and U.S. manufacturing

Factors influencing price-cost margins are investigated using a rich panel data base of the Dutch manufacturing sector. Attention is devoted to the intertemporal stability of the relationship explaining price-cost margins and to a comparison with U.S. results. Our results indicate that isolated cross-section analyses can be misleading. Evidence is provided for similarities and dissimilarities between the U.S. and the Netherlands when explaining price-cost margins. Dutch margins are influenced by industry-specific factors such as sales changes, import competition, capital intensity and operating expenses. Domestic seller concentration, aggregate capacity utilization and export intensity play no distinct roles.This research was sponsored in part by the Economics Research Foundation, which is part of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. We wish to thank H. W. de Jong, Leo Sleuwaegen, David Audretsch and Aad Kleijweg for their useful comments.     

Social marketing on AIDS: using Transtheoretical model to understand current condom usage among commercial drivers in Accra,Ghana

• This is an exploratory research to utilise the Transtheoretical model to assess condom usage intentions among commercial drivers in Ghana. A convenience‐based non‐probability sampling method was employed, and a face‐to‐face questionnaire was administered on 132 commercial drivers in Accra. The analysis of variance and one sample t‐test statistical method was employed to establish relationship between variables based on the Transtheoretical model. The result reveals that over 71.9% of commercial drivers are at precontemplation, contemplation and preparation stages. This means that most commercial drivers interviewed have not yet taken action to use condoms to protect themselves against HIV/AIDS. The findings of the study constitute a series of marketing ideas, useful in decision making with social marketing organisations.

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