Farmland prices and land-use changes in periurban protected natural areas

This paper provides empirical and conceptual insights in analysing the factors that determine the prices of farmland within Protected Natural Areas that are close to densely populated urban areas, the changes in land use experiences as well as the additional control policies needed to curb this unsustainable trend.The Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve nearby the metropolitan area of Bilbao (Basque Country, Spain) is the case study considered and its bordering non-protected rural area is used as a reference for comparison. A spatial hedonic farmland price model is estimated and the willingness of land purchasers to pay for different farmland characteristics quantified both inside and outside the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve. The main results are that: (1) residential development is taking place in all categories of farmland, (2) aside from neighbouring prices, farmland prices depend on different factors depending on whether the marketed plots stand inside or outside the Protected Natural Area, (3) the “reserve effect” on land prices is less powerful than the “proximity to the metropolitan area (and motorway) effect” observed from villages of the non-protected area located in the 3rd crown of Bilbao, (4) the reasons for farmers non-compliance with policy regulations is the necessary knowledge base for the farmland conservation policy design and (5) in the light of the results, three development-control policy instruments such as Payments for Ecosystem Services, Tradable Planning Permits and development-taxes are discussed considering the factors that could improve compliance.     

Is the Current Regulation of the VIII Division European Anchovy Optimal?

This paper sets out to assess the workability of the regulation currently in force in the European anchovy fishery of the VIII division. Particular attention is paid to the importance of the institutional regime in the allocation of natural resources. The study uses a bio-economic approach and takes into account the fact that, not only the European Union and the individual countries involved, but also some of the resource users or appropriators intervene in its management. In order to compare the effectiveness of the rules which, at the various levels, have been set up to restrict exploitation of the resource, the anchovy fishery is simulated in two extreme situations: open access and sole ownership. The results obtained by effective management will then be contrasted with those obtained from the maximum and zero profit objectives related with the two above-mentioned scenarios. Thus, if the real data come close to those derived from the sole ownership model it will have to be acknowledged that the rules at present in force are optimal. If, on the other hand, the situation more closely approach the results obtained from the open access model, we will endeavour in our conclusions to provide suggestions for economic policy measures that might improve the situation in the fishery.     

An Integrated Model of the Adoption and Extent of E-Commerce in Firms

This work aims to explain firms’ decisions to adopt Internet-based e-commerce, and the extent to which the adopters subsequently implement e-commerce to commercialize their products and services. We examine various types of factors previously considered by the literature (competitive environment, organizational characteristics, strategic orientation, innovative capacity, managers’ characteristics, IT equipment possessed and the use made of it). The analytical model developed here on the basis of a sample of 2,038 firms suggests that the factors influencing the adoption decision are different from those that eventually influence the results of firms’ commercial operations on the Internet. Likewise, we discuss the contribution of each type of determinant and the implications.      

The world wide web in the food and beverage sector in Spain

Despite its potential, the World Wide Web is not yet a real or viable alternative for marketing channels in Spain. This research attempts to identify and evaluate the factors that contribute and facilitate the development of the Web as an environment for commercial activities in the food and beverage sector in Spain. Spanish consumers have traditionally shown little interest in all forms of distance buying and direct marketing. A range of factors may facilitate this development such as continuous growth in access to the Internet, continued evolution of computer technology, reductions in Internet connection tariffs, and communication speed. Consumers' income, the availability of information online, and the online consumption experience may also act as an impulse for commercial developments on the Web.     

Bioeconomic diversity dynamics of a marine ecosystem

This paper models the bio-economic diversity dynamics of a marine ecosystem made up by its entire commercial fish species and, from the fitted model, obtains a quantitative measure of its resilience to disturbance in terms of recovery time after a shock. Such shocks might be produced by both, downturns in catches and/or prices related to changing regulatory and environmental conditions. To that end, monthly time series of bio-economic diversity indices will be used and the framework of a mixed cyclical ARFIMA joint with a GARCH type heteroscedaticity model will be explored to analyse the dynamic properties of such indices and, based on the estimated impulse response functions (IRF) to measure the effects and duration of a unitary random shock or disturbance. One of our findings is that bio-economic diversity is a mean-reverting process with an estimated recovery time between 7 and 10 years.     

Let's go shopping

Brown and Reid [1997] employed an introspective approach to their examination of consumers' shopping experiences. The authors focused on the negative aspects or feelings associated with shopping. The principal aim of this current paper is to replicate the Brown and Reid research at an international level to discover whether their findings were relevant regarding shoppers' behavior across different national markets. With this in mind, some international master's of business administration students were asked to write their own introspective essays on shopping. The essay was to reflect the student's opinions, experiences, likes, and dislikes on shopping.     

Recruitment advertising: The marketing-human resource interface

The common perception of recruitment advertising is of the "want ads" in the local or national newspapers. Despite the lack of academic interest, in some cases, recruitment advertising has adopted the color, imagination, and creativity of consumer advertising. Some recruiters have recognized the marketing benefits of job ads and the need for a corporate communications policy covering all company communications. This paper examines the limited literature on recruitment advertising. The authors compile a list of characteristics of marketing-oriented recruitment advertisements and apply these to their exploratory analysis of the recruitment section of one popular Sunday newspaper in the United Kingdom.     

Assessing Changes in Capital and Investment as a Result of Fishing Capacity Limitation Programs

This paper provides a framework to evaluate the effectiveness of the European Multiannual Guidance Programmes on capacity limitation based on the evolution of the prices of used fishing vessels and on the measures of capital and investment derived from the estimation of a hedonic price function related to vessels characteristics. Attention is paid not only to the correct specification of the numerical variables but also, to testing for sample selection bias, to checking for structural change, to analysing the convenience of using alternative estimation methods and to discussing the potential bias as a result of asymmetric information in the used markets. The application of this framework to the Basque fleets evidences clear and coincident signs of successful adjustment after MAGP₃, but also a substantial investment in the next periods as a result of the modernisation of the fleets.     

Keeping the faith: Belonging to the critical community

This short reflective piece explores what it means to adopt a ‘critical’ position in organizational scholarship. We offer three separate narratives that combine when we consider what it means to believe in being critical. Each narrative examines the identification with this particular academic perspective from a different standpoint, including the performance of rationality and embodiment; the assessment of quality through the in-group/out-group theories of social psychology; and the implications of hyper-performativity for having a range of critical voices heard. We conclude by suggesting ways in which the critical community might adopt a more reflective position about embodied behaviors.