Talk of the Network: A Complex Systems Look at the Underlying Process of Word-of-Mouth

Though word-of-mouth (w-o-m) communications is a pervasive and intriguing phenomenon, little is known on its underlying process of personal communications. Moreover as marketers are getting more interested in harnessing the power of w-o-m, for e-business and other net related activities, the effects of the different communications types on macro level marketing is becoming critical. In particular we are interested in the breakdown of the personal communication between closer and stronger communications that are within an individual's own personal group (strong ties) and weaker and less personal communications that an individual makes with a wide set of other acquaintances and colleagues (weak ties).We use a technique borrowed from Complex Systems Analysis called stochastic cellular automata in order to generate data and analyze the results so that answers to our main research issues could be ascertained. The following summarizes the impact of strong and weak ties on the speed of acceptance of a new product:The influence of weak ties is at least as strong as the influence of strong ties. Despite the relative inferiority of the weak tie parameter in the model's assumptions, their effect approximates or exceeds that of strong ties, in all stages of the product life cycle.External marketing efforts (e.g., advertising) are effective. However, beyond a relatively early stage of the growth cycle of the new product, their efficacy quickly diminishes and strong and weak ties become the main forces propelling growth. The results clearly indicate that information dissemination is dominated by both weak and strong w-o-m, rather than by advertising.The effect of strong ties diminishes as personal network size decreases. Market attributes were also found to mediate the effects of weak and strong ties. When personal networks are small, weak ties were found to have a stronger impact on information dissemination than strong ties.     

Financial Success and the Good Life: What have We Learned from Empirical Studies in Psychology?

An empirical study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (King, L. A. and C. K. Nappa: 1998, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 75(1), 156–165) concludes that people generally believe meaning and happiness are essential elements of the good life, whereas money is relatively unimportant. Yet, the authors also state that although “we do know what it takes to make a good life...we still behave as if we did not.” The authors are suggesting that despite a general belief that money is relatively unimportant in creating happiness, many people continue to focus their behaviors on increasing income and wealth. This is the classic conflict between the folk wisdom that money cannot buy happiness, on the one hand, and a continued focus by many people on achieving material success on the other. The issue is of particular importance to business professionals, not only because profit maximization is the central focus of business, but also because college students often pursue business as a profession for the express purpose of maximizing personal income and wealth. In the business world a focus on personal financial success is the norm. Wealth and income are honored. The purpose of this article is to critically analyze psychological studies comparing happiness and financial success. The results are then contrasted with philosophical wisdom and religious writings comparing happiness and money. The intent is to determine whether psychological studies provide incremental insights into the connection between financial success and happiness. Kent Swift PhD, is a professor in the College of Business Sciences at Zayed University. He has been teaching business at both the undergraduate and graduate level in science 1978, and he has published articles on a variety of business topics. Dr. Swift received his PhD from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.     

人格特质与职业成功的关系研究

论文首先对大五人格模型和职业成功的相关理论进行了简单的概述。之后对以前关于人格特质与职业成功的研究文献进行了回顾,并根据我国文化情境,对人格特质与主、客观职业成功的关系进行了分析和总结,提出了人格特质与职业成功之间的关系模型。最后简单介绍了研究这个问题的理论意义和实践意义。     

中国已婚育龄人群避孕措施选择的偏好与影响因素分析

避孕节育是中国计划生育的核心内容之一,也是我国中长期人口发展战略中稳定低生育水平的重要措施之一。选取1988年全国生育节育抽样调查数据,利用多分类Logit模型（MNL）对不同特征育龄妇女避孕措施进行分析。不同生育周期和不同社会特征、子女性别、计划生育政策强度对已婚育龄人群避孕措施的选取有明显的影响。不同孩次的已婚育龄人群在避孕措施选择中都存在一定的避孕偏好,尤其是子女性别不同时呈现避孕措施选择的明显差异,即最小子女为女孩的育龄人群比最小子女为男孩的育龄人群更为倾向于选择避孕套等自控型短效避孕措施,提示避孕措施的选择存在制度内规避行为,并受到一定的性别偏好因素的影响。     

Total Quality Management in Ghana: Critical Success Factors and Model for Implementation of a Quality Revolution

In this study, the authors aim to identify the critical success factors and challenges of total quality management (TQM) implementation and propose a model for the successful implementation of a quality revolution in Ghana. The approach in this study was to review existing literature followed by case studies of 15 firms. Three employees (quality manager/director and any two “ordinary employees”) were interviewed to identify the critical success factors that would be appropriate for the implementation of a quality revolution in Ghana as well as the main challenges of quality management they face. Findings revealed that top management commitment, empowerment and involvement of employees, resource availability, competition and increased customer awareness, and a well-functioning quality network are the major factors that are critical and essential if any TQM program is to be successful. Three main problems—management resistance, employee resistance, and resource paucity—were identified as principal impediments to TQM programs.     

复杂产品系统技术创新过程及其成功的关键因素研究

cops在现代经济发展中发挥着重要作用,已经成为国民经济的支柱。同时cops的技术创新过程与普通规模化产品有着显著的不同,传统的创新管理理论不适合来指导cops的创新。研究了cops技术创新的独特过程,并在此基础上分析cops技术创新成功的关键因素。     

长三角地区城市FDI区位决定动态研究——空间计量的视角

文章以长三角25个地级以上城市为样本,利用空间计量学方法对其1991-2008年的FD I区位决定进行实证分析。结果发现:近20年来长三角城市FD I区位决定因素及其作用发生了动态变化,一些传统因素如市场规模、城市化水平、产业发展、工资水平、与上海距离等影响不再显著或有弱化趋势,取而代之的是外资集聚经济和工资效率因素上升为主导地位,其作用不断增强,基础设施因素影响日趋重要。值得注意的是,邻域空间关联效应一直是影响长三角城市FD I区位分布的重要因素,城市吸引FD I不仅取决于自身区位条件,还受周边城市FD I聚集的影响。上述发现对于长三角各城市利用FD I和跨国公司投资都具有重要政策意义。     

The antecedents and consequences of restrictive age-based ratings in the global motion picture industry

This article analyzes one key characteristic shared by a growing number of industries. Specifically, their products and services are continuously monitored and evaluated by local third-party ratings systems. In this study, we focus on understanding the local drivers of restrictive age-based ratings in the motion picture industry and the effect of local ratings on a movie's performance at the box office. The results show that there is a significant negative relationship between restrictive ratings and opening weekend box-office performance. However, we find no significant effect with respect to cumulative box-office performance. In the second part of the study, we focus on the local regulatory system's role as a key driver of restrictive age-based ratings in the motion picture industry. Interestingly, the results suggest that the composition of the board that rates the movie plays a key role. Including pediatrics, psychology, or sociology experts in the evaluation board instead of only parents or laypeople has a strong effect and tends to lead to more lenient rating behavior. In addition, we find that larger ratings boards tend to be more restrictive than smaller ones and that industry representation is not necessarily associated with less restrictive ratings. Countries with cultures characterized as uncertainty avoidant, collective, and feminine also seem to be most lenient in their ratings. The implications of the results are discussed from both international marketing and public policy perspectives.     

控制权私利下并购成功悖论形成机制研究

并购成功悖论一直困绕着企业并购理论与实务界。本文从控制权私利视角研究了成功悖论形成机制,得到三点结论:一是无论激励为主还是自利为主的控制权私利均有利于控制权人,因而,控制人控制的企业会积极实施并购;二是在自利为主的控制权私利下,并购必然不利于中小股东利益,因而主并方并购绩效为负值;三是以激励为主的控制权私利下,并购并不必然有利于中小股东,提升大小股东共有收益,并保证中小股东得到应有收益份额才有利于改善并购绩效。主并方并购绩效多为零或负值说明制度上重新设计以保障提升共有收益更符合控制权人利益是必要的。     

基于关系行为与网络结构维度融合的利益相关者管理研究

利益相关者网络视角的研究更加贴近现实的管理实践,但现有的网络视角的研究过分地强调了网络的结构属性,这使得网络中结点间互动关系中丰富的结构与行为要素无法进入分析视野。因此,必需将注重网络结构分析所抽象掉的那些关系要素重新还原到网络中去;将关系性质、关系强度、关系中的权力结构等关系要素,与总体网络分析中的网络密度、网络成员的中心性等重要的结构变量相匹配,并发现一些整体结构分析无法获得的结论。     

浅谈档案信息资源的开发利用

文章从档案信息资源的特殊性入手,对档案信息资源的开发利用这一课题进行了深入细致的阐述。     

桩板式挡土墙的应用与施工

主要介绍桩板式挡土墙的构造、设计、施工要点,指出了桩板式挡土墙兼具挡土和抗滑作用,可有效解决地形复杂,地质情况不良地段的边坡支护问题。     

Brand equity and the exacerbating factors of product innovation failure evaluations: A communication effect perspective

When both high-equity and low-equity brands experience an innovation failure, does the high-equity brand fare better? This study investigates this question by exploring how consumers view and evaluate brands following an innovation failure. The researchers examine whether brand equity, preannouncement of the innovation, and word-of-mouth from an opinion leader exacerbate or alleviate the negative impact of the failure. Two experiments with a total of 816 subjects show that high-equity brands suffer less than low-equity brands from the adverse effects of innovation failures. However, innovation failures are more detrimental to high-equity brands that have preannounced the innovation and to low-equity brands that do not receive supportive word-of-mouth from an opinion leader after the failures occur.     

现阶段我国农户经营行为特征及其选择

处于转型加速期的我国农户,在政府"以工促农,以城带乡"、"多予、少取、放活"政策引导和支持下,正在朝着市场化、专业化、社会化、适度规模化方向发展,组织化已成为农户经营行为的必然选择。通过对农业产业化经营组织和农民专业合作经济组织进行整合,构建促进农户经营组织化发展的动态成长模式,建立农民增收的长效机制,促进农民增收目标的实现。     

基于计划行为理论的灾后重建景区旅游影响因素分析

灾后重建景区的旅游资源非常独特,即有传统的自然和文化旅游资源,对灾后重建景区的旅游意愿的因素分析与解释也有其独特的方法与理论分析框架。本文以汶川旅游为例,从旅游价值链视角出发,基于计划行为理论,探讨了影响灾后重建景区旅游的因素;利用结构方程及其路径分析,研究发现灾后重建景区的旅游吸引力主要来自于地震遗迹和震后的当地生活方式等功能性因素,以及抗震救灾中体现出的抗震救灾精神和大爱精神等情感性因素,主观规范和感知控制也会显著影响旅游意愿。     

Electronic Word-of-Mouth in Social Networking Sites: A Cross-Cultural Study of the United States and China

ABSTRACT

Understanding electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites (SNSs) is crucial as consumers have potential to reach global audiences quickly and easily. This article presents the first cross-cultural study on eWOM in SNSs by examining social relationship variables between the United States and China. Specifically, social capital, tie strength, trust, and interpersonal influence were examined as potential predictors of eWOM communication in the emerging online social channels. The results suggest that national culture plays a significant factor that affects consumers’ engagement in eWOM in SNSs in the two countries. Theoretical and managerial implications for global Internet marketers were presented and discussed.     

浅谈标准化在公路桥梁施工中的作用

本文介绍了标准化的概念,以及公路桥梁建设施工中所需要参考和依照的标准,标准化在公路桥梁施工中的作用与指导.     

On the Behavior and Determinants of Risk‐Based Capital Ratios: Revisiting the Evidence from UK Banking Institutions*

Using bank‐level panel data from the United Kingdom, this paper investigates the factors that influence banks' choice of risk‐based capital ratios. The study focuses on evaluating the role of regulatory capital requirements. Findings indicate that such requirements, even when not binding, affect banks' capital management practices and suggest that banks maintain targeted buffers above regulatory thresholds. That behavior differs across several dimensions, including bank size, nearness to regulatory minimum, reliance on core (equity) capital and exposure to market discipline. Capital ratios also vary over the economic cycle. These findings have implications for the ongoing review of international capital standards.     

Success and Internationalization: Analysis of the Textile Sector

ABSTRACT

The aim of the present paper is to investigate the relationship between business success and international involvement by examining international enterprises to see if they are more successful. To do this, 154 general managers in the textile sector were interviewed on two main groups of questions: (i) entry forms when going abroad; (ii) business results (sales, profit etc.) and competitive indicators (loyalty, satisfaction, image etc.) obtained.     

试论政府公共危机决策的困境与机制创新

危机决策能力是现代政府必备的行政能力。近年来我国公共危机事件频发,暴露了各级政府传统公共危机决策能力的不足与机制的缺陷。我国政府应建立危机的应急决策机制;完善国家危机管理法律体系,建立危机预警系统,开展危机管理素质教育和培训,以提高政府决策者和社会公众防范危机的能力。