Do Foreign Firms Transfer Gender Norms in the Labour Market? Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

Closing the gender gaps in economic opportunities is crucial for boosting economic growth and the empowerment of women. In this paper, we study how foreign firms contribute in reducing gender disparities in the labour market by transferring the gender norms of their country of origin to the affiliates in the host countries. We use cross sectional data on foreign firms located in 19 Sub Saharan Africa countries in 2010 by UNIDO. We find that firms coming from more gender equal countries employ more female workers in their affiliates. This effect is more relevant for the highly skilled female workers.     

An investigation into the mediating role of cross-functional coordination on the linkage between organizational norms and SCM performance

Organizational norms as a set of embedded values and beliefs have long been recognized in literature to provide norms that bind individuals into collectivities. Drawing on resource dependence and relational marketing theories, the present study specifies five organizational norms: cooperative, cross-functional information sharing, intraorganizational knowledge sharing, participative culture and mutual trust for supporting cross-functional coordination in supply chain management (SCM). These organizational norms are examined in terms of the mediating role of cross-functional coordination for the relationship between organizational norms and supply chain performance. Analyses of data from a survey of high-tech firms in the U.K. substantiate that organizational norms impact on both supply chain responsiveness and firm performance through cross-functional coordination as a mediator. The implications of the positive effect of organizational norms on SCM performance are discussed for theory, practice and research.     

Do social factors influence investment behavior and performance? Evidence from mutual fund holdings

We study the economic significance of social dimensions in investment decisions by analyzing the holdings of U.S. equity mutual funds over the period 2004–2012. Using these holdings, we measure funds’ exposures to socially sensitive stocks in order to answer two questions. What explains cross-sectional variation in mutual funds’ exposure to controversial companies? Does exposure to controversial stocks drive fund returns? We find that exposures to socially sensitive stocks are weaker for funds that aim to attract socially conscious and institutional investor clientele, and they relate to local political and religious factors. The financial payoff associated with greater “sin” stock exposure is positive and statistically significant, but becomes non-significant with broader definitions of socially sensitive investments. Despite the positive relation between mutual fund return and sin stock exposure, the annualized risk-adjusted return spread between a portfolio of funds with highest sin stock exposure and its lowest-ranked counterpart is statistically not significant. The results suggest that fund managers do not tilt heavily towards controversial stocks because of social considerations and practical constraints.     

The determinants of tax morale in Pakistan

This paper examines the determinants of tax morale in Pakistan, a country that has struggled with low tax effort over the past decade. We exploit novel data for individual taxpayers collected in 2014 by Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue to estimate a binary probit regression model. Our results are generally in line with the findings of the modern empirical literature on tax morale in other countries. Overall, groups with lower labor force participation show more positive attitudes toward tax compliance. Educated respondents exhibit higher tax morale than the illiterate, but only for those with very low or very high educational attainment is tax morale higher than for those with bachelor’s degrees. Tax morale is highest in major industrialized population centers that serve as seats of government. Females show generally higher tax morale than males, however, their attitudes tend to worsen with age to such an extent that elderly females have lower tax morale than elderly males. Our findings on gender suggest potential gains from increasing female labor force participation rates. More generally, addressing the current failures of tax administration and dealing with horizontal inequity arising from administrative weaknesses may contribute materially to improving voluntary compliance.     

The behavioural intentions of specialty coffee consumers in South Africa

More than 1.6 billion cups of coffee are consumed worldwide on a daily basis. South Africa is rapidly adapting to worldwide trends with speciality coffee consumption on the rise, with South Africa recently having been recognised as a key player in the speciality coffee industry. Emerging market trends in speciality coffee consumption have resulted in a number of changes in consumption patterns, preferences and consumer behaviour. The purpose of this study was to determine the behavioural intention of speciality coffee consumers in South Africa, using the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The data were gathered from a non‐probability sample of 327 respondents, who were selected through a self‐completion online questionnaire. The results indicate that males consume more speciality coffee than females. The majority of respondents consume speciality coffee more than once a day, and foam cappuccinos are consumed most regularly. The results of the stepwise multiple regression analysis demonstrate the utility of the Theory of Planned Behaviour as a conceptual framework for predicting the behavioural intention of speciality coffee consumers. The findings indicate that attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control are important predictors of behavioural intention. Furthermore, perceived behavioural control is the most important factor influencing speciality coffee consumption, and the most influential of the direct measures of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. With the current rise in speciality coffee consumption among South Africans, the Theory of Planned Behaviour framework contributes to understanding those factors which influence regular speciality coffee consumption. It is recommended that marketers and practitioners adapt their offerings to appeal to the specific needs of the growing speciality coffee market in South Africa.     

International free riding on institutions

Economic institutions are linked to economic growth because they create conditions favourable for production and exchange. Institutions can give a country comparative advantage in producing some goods. If its trading partners lack such institutions, it can still enjoy their benefits by importing these goods. Some institutions, such as intellectual property rights, have non‐excludable benefits because the resulting production is intangible, non‐rival, and often publicly disclosed. The profits, or surplus, that result, however, is rival. Foreign countries can ‘free ride’ on this benefit by misappropriating rival surplus through infringement. This article develops a theory of institutional free riding in which firms in one country free ride on the benefit of foreign institutions to the detriment of their competitor firms and their countries' institutions. It evaluates the incentives of firms and governments for this free riding, its effects, and potential responses to mitigate these effects.     

What's in a tip? The creation and refinement of a restaurant-tipping motivations scale: A consumer perspective

According to Segrave (1998), since the late 1800s, the study of tipping has provoked debate in a range of abstract dimensions such as economics, sociology, and psychology. To date, the research on the topic has been largely qualitative in nature, while addressing motivating themes (service, social norm, and future service considerations) in isolation from one another. Following a thorough examination of the literature, there is a definite lack of research on the development and testing of a more holistic quantitative scale aimed at identifying the motivational Gestalt driving actual consumer tipping behavior. Therein lies the major theoretical contribution of this study, namely the development and testing of a Tipping Motivations Scale, which over two separate analyses, supports a number of drivers of consumer tipping motivation.In this study, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the empirical dimensions of consumer tipping motivations. The results obtained indicate a reasonable fit between the data and the proposed model across both analyses. This was repeated on two separate occasions and the results largely remained consistent. The findings point to the key role of service in driving the consumer's decision to tip. Other important factors included social conformity, the issue of future visitation, and server actions. Further research is needed to explore whether these dimensions remain constant among other sample groups and across different tipped professions.     

虚拟品牌社区顾客体验会带来其价值共创行为吗--基于手机虚拟品牌社区的实证研究

本文以顾客体验为切入点,基于价值共创理论、心理所有权理论和互惠规范理论,并运用于S-O-R理论框架,构建了虚拟品牌社区下,顾客参与价值共创行为产生的影响路径模型,通过问卷调查与实证分析得出:第一,顾客信息体验和娱乐体验越强,其参与价值共创的意愿程度越高,心理所有权部分中介了二者的促进关系;互动体验强化了社区顾客的心理所有权,并经由心理所有权的完全中介提高其参与共创意愿。第二,顾客参与共创意愿程度越高,其价值共创行为就越容易出现,社区的互惠规范正向调节了二者的关系。     

Food beliefs and food supply chains: The impact of religion and religiosity in Israel

This paper demonstrates that religion and religiosity affect norms, which affect food consumption patterns and production. Heterogeneity and asymmetric information lead to multiple certification channels as well as multiple supply chains. Major supply chains may address multiple constituencies that are secular or less religious. Technological change affects norms and thus the food system. We obtain these results by analyzing the food systems for meat products in Israel where there are three religions – Jews, Muslims, and Christians – and people assign themselves three levels of religiosity – secular, conservative, and orthodox. Israel has multiple Kosher and Halal certifiers and several specialized supermarket chains for orthodox groups. Its main supermarket chains serve secular and some conservative segments. The immigration of secular Jews from Russia led to the proliferation of non-Kosher supply chains and products, and increased consumption of pork. New technologies and higher incomes led to emergence of fast food chains serving orthodox Jews that had previously tended to eat at home.     

社会规范对绿色消费的影响及作用机制

绿色消费是我国推进生态文明建设所倡导的消费行为,本文将社会规范划分为描述性规范、动态描述性规范和命令性规范,探讨了社会规范对绿色消费的影响及作用机制。通过两个实验研究发现,描述性规范、动态描述性规范、命令性规范对绿色消费的促进作用显著,三者对绿色消费的促进作用无显著差异;描述性规范、动态描述性规范会激活消费者的个人规范,个人规范在描述性规范、动态描述性规范影响绿色消费过程中发挥部分中介作用;命令性规范会引发消费者的后果认知,进而激活个人规范,后果认知与个人规范在命令性规范影响绿色消费过程中发挥完全中介作用。因此,可以发挥描述性规范、动态描述性规范对绿色消费的引导示范作用和命令性规范对绿色消费的监督作用,激活绿色消费的个人规范水平,更为有效地促进绿色消费。