Materialism and Consumer Ethics: An Exploratory Study

As the issue of marketing's social responsibility grows in significance, the topic of materialism surfaces. While many marketing efforts encourage materialism, the materialism that is encouraged may have negative societal effects. An understanding of the effects of materialism on individuals, families, society, etc., is important in evaluating whether or not it is socially irresponsible for marketers to encourage materialism. However, the adequate empirical work has not yet been done on the overall effects of materialism. The current paper asks and addresses one important empirical question in this area. Do consumers who are more materialistic have different ethical standards than those who are not? Empirical evidence is presented which would indicate that materialism is negatively correlated with people's higher ethical standards as consumers. The implications for this in understanding social responsibility are discussed.     

On the Ethics of Management Research: An Exploratory Investigation

While there is an abundant academic literature on professional codes of ethics, there appears to be few devoted to assessing the compliance of management research with such codes. This article presents the results of applying the World Association for Public Opinion Research (WAPOR) Code of Professional Ethics and Practices to research articles based on probability sample surveys in the top three academic journals covering tourism, hospitality, and related fields. Four research questions are posed to focus application of the WAPOR Code to nearly 200 articles published in three recent years. Content analysis of these articles, documented by a measure of intercoder reliability, indicates that it is feasible for multiple coders to accurately apply the WAPOR Code to such articles. None of the articles examined complied with all WAPOR standards, and fewer than half of them complied with half of the standards. Finally, we find that there is some difference among the three journals in compliance, but this difference is relatively small. In sum, there is very little compliance with ethical standards in the field of management research studied here.     

The Cultural Roots of Guanxi: An Exploratory Study

This paper first describes the cultural roots and characteristics of guanxi in Chinese society. It then goes on to test some propositions about the perceived relationship between these characteristics and (i) Hofstede's conceptualisation of collectivism and power distance and (ii) the content and quality of formal institutions. The sampling frame used consisted of three groups of students –viz. Chinese Singaporeans, Non‐Chinese Singaporeans and Mainland Chinese, studying in tertiary institutions in Singapore. Our findings suggest that, while the perceptions of guanxi were positively and significantly related to Hofstede's culturally related variables, this was not so in the case of formal institutions. This latter result suggests that, in East Asian countries, guanxi may well be regarded as, at least, a partial substitute for formal institutions.     

An Exploratory Cross-Cultural Analysis of Marketing Ethics: The Case of Turkish,Thai, and American Businesspeople

Although a number of studies have shown that corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities often lead to greater organisational performance in western developed economies, researchers are yet to examine the strategic value of CSR in emerging economies. Using survey data from 280 firms operating in Dubai, this study examines the link between CSR activities and organisational performance. The results show that CSR has a positive relationship with all three measures of organisational performance: financial performance, employee commitment, and corporate reputation. These results reinforce the accumulating body of empirical support for the positive impact of CSR on performance and challenge the dominant assumption that, given the weak institutional framework in emerging economies, CSR activities drain resources and compromise firms’ competitiveness.     

Teaching Business Ethics: A Case Study Of An Ethics Across The Curriculum Policy

The faculty within the undergraduate businessdepartment at Nova Southeastern University hasinstituted an Ethics Across The Curriculum Policy. This paper shares the steps the faculty followed inthe development and adoption of this policy. It isour hope that sharing our experiences concerning thispolicy implementation will help others consider asimilar policy. Recommendations are provided forpolicy development.     

Religious Influences on Shopping Behaviour: An Exploratory Study

The significance of religious value systems has long been recognized in sociology and psychology but is not yet fully acknowledged in consumer research. Studies in the marketing literature suggest that religion is a key element of culture, influencing both behaviour and purchasing decisions. This paper examines the influence of religion on consumer choice and is based on the proposition that adherence to a particular religious faith significantly influences shopping behaviour. Using the purchase of a television as the basis, the research examines the contrasting shopping behaviour of Hindus, Muslims and Catholics. The results suggest that religious affiliation should be included in future cross-cultural research and that there is considerable potential for extending research into the influence of religious affiliation on consumer behaviour.     

Research Integrity: An Exploratory Survey of Administrative Science Faculties

This research focuses on the perceptions of research integrity held by administrative science faculty members in French-language universities in Québec. More specifically, the survey was conducted to isolate and analyse the opinions of the target group concerning the seriousness and frequency of various types of conduct generally associated with a lack of integrity among researchers, peer reviewers and editors (or other assessment supervisors), the causes attributed to research misconduct, and the solutions proposed. Its main interest is to encourage researchers to reflect on the standards they would like to see introduced, based on their own statements concerning what they think and do about research integrity. Each of the 699 faculty members surveyed received a 91-item questionnaire by mail, and 136 completed and returned it. The results show, among other things, that the respondents did not take the question of research integrity lightly; in almost all cases, they considered the types of conduct studied to be at least moderately reprehensible and often very reprehensible. In addition, the same types of conduct were considered to be, or almost to be, moderately frequent. Causes were closely linked to the achievement of professional success. Solutions related to the promotion of publication quality instead of quantity and to the inclusion of at least one full session on research integrity in advanced programs were very clearly favoured. However, in all cases, the consensus did not appear to be very strong. The limits of the results are discussed, along with the recommendations and research possibilities to which they lead.     

Consumer Adoption of Mobile Internet Services: An Exploratory Study

This study provides a framework that captures the antecedents of mobile internet adoption and the willingness to pay for such service. The theory of reasoned action and components of a theory of innovation adoption were integrated into a research model of consumer adoption of the mobile internet. The hypothesized model included service quality perceptions (fixed internet and mobile technology service), beliefs about mobile internet, and individual difference variables to explain intention to adopt mobile internet. An online questionnaire was used to gather data. The results showed that beliefs and quality perceptions play a significant role in influencing intentions to adopt mobile internet. In particular, beliefs about mobile internet are positively related to the adoption; quality perceptions of fixed internet are found significant to negatively influence adoption intentions, but positively relate to willingness to pay for using mobile internet. Mobile service usage, and peer influence are found non-significant to influence adoption intentions. Fixed internet usage was found negatively affect adoption intentions. Computer skills, knowledge of mobile internet and career mobility are all found positively related to the adoption. In addition, innovation driven consumers are more likely to adopt mobile internet, and intention to adopt plays an important role in shaping actual mobile internet use. Implications of results and directions for future research are examined.     

The Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility and Earnings Management: An Exploratory Study

In this article, we explore the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and earnings management (EM). Our CSR index, using KLD data, incorporates information from the following issue areas: the community, corporate governance, diversity, the product, employee relations, the environment, and human rights. Results show that more socially responsible firms have higher quality accruals and less activity-based EM, both of which impact financial reporting quality.     

Devising and Using a Computerized Diet: An Exploratory Study

This paper reports on a study in which 60 volunteers used computerized diets for two weeks to experience how consumers react to drastic changes in eating practices. The diets for the experiment were developed by linear programming techniques to be as nutritious as the Thrifty Food Plan but substantially lower in cost. The results suggest this procedure could be used for devising dietary guides for consumers tempted to try a food plan assuring nutritious meals at low cost.     

Considering the Business in Business Ethics: An Exploratory Study of the Influence of Organizational Size and Structure on Individual Ethical Predispositions

This paper explores the relationship between organizational size, structure and the strength of organization members' ethical predispositions. It is hypothesized that individuals in smaller, more flexible, organic organizations will display stronger ethical predispositions. Survey results from 209 individuals across eleven organizations indicate that contrary to expectations, larger, more rigid, mechanistic structures were associated with higher levels of ethical formalism and utilitarianism. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Cause-Related Marketing: An Exploratory Study of Campaign Donation Structures Issues

ABSTRACT

Over the past decade, cause-related marketing (CRM) has become a popular and unique promotional tool for brands. Academic research indicates outcomes of such campaigns are generally positive for all stakeholders. Consumers feel they are making a difference, firms benefit from improved public image and increased sales, and the cause or nonprofit organization receives increased publicity and funding. However, there are ethical issues involved when linking a firm with a nonprofit organization as well as potential negatives (Smith and Stodghill 1994; Andreasan 1996; Meyer 1999; Polonsky and Wood 2001). An exploratory research study was undertaken to understand the impact of the structural elements of cause-related marketing campaigns, including how the donation is quantified, the size of the donation relative to the price of the product, the presence of donation deadlines and caps, and the level of promotion used to publicize the campaign. Findings suggest that the structural elements of cause-related marketing campaigns do influence consumers' perceptions of the campaigns. Based on these results, implications for CRM campaign managers and future research ideas are provided. This information will help practitioners, including marketing managers, advertising managers and advertising creative professionals to design the most effective communication tactics for a cause-related marketing campaign.     

Nutrition Labels: An Exploratory Study of Consumer Reasons For Nonuse

Studies of consumer usage of nutrition labels required by the Food and Drug Administration have found that usage levels are low. A mailback survey of food shoppers in Madison, Wisconsin was conducted to determine who uses nutrition labels as well as reasons for nonuse. Multiple regression analysis revealed that compared to users, nonusers did not rate themselves as highly on nutrition knowledge, were less likely to plan meals in advance, and were not as highly educated. When asked why they did not use labels, most nonusers said they did not need them, and a sizable group reported their shopping practices pre-empt label usage. Nonusers also felt that a sample label had too much information. When asked to perform computations from sample label information, nonusers were less successful than users. The implications of these findings for nutrition education efforts are discussed.     

Examining Antecedents to Supply Chain Security Effectiveness: An Exploratory Study

In recent years there has been increasing emphasis on managing risk and security in supply chains. Despite this emphasis, there have been relatively few empirical studies dealing with this issue. In an attempt to partially address this lack of empirical research, the primary purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between security management practices and the perceived effectiveness of supply chain security. With a resource‐based view of the firm and supply chain integration as theoretical underpinnings, the study utilized survey data to test propositions derived from the security literature. Internal and external integration efforts, a nodal planning focus, and proactive motivations related to security measures were found to be positively related to security effectiveness. The article concludes with implications for security stakeholders including suggestions for future research.     

Online Shoppers' Perceptions and Use of Comparison-Shopping Sites: An Exploratory Study

Comparison-shopping sites currently offer online shoppers various combinations of free services such as price comparisons, merchant ratings, links to e-tailers’ websites, and/or customer reviews in the search results page(s). The utility and market values of shopping comparison sites have attracted Internet giants such as eBay, Google, and Yahoo to the extent of developing or acquiring such sites. Scholarly research on comparison-shopping sites has focused on (1) trust in online recommendation agents, and (2) methods used by electronic agents to produce the recommendations. Our study explored how online shoppers’ attitudes toward comparison-shopping sites impact perceived credibility and usefulness of these sites. We also examined online shoppers’ merchant selection criteria and their likelihood to continue using comparison-shopping sites. One interesting finding from our study was that merchants need to be strong on site ratings and brand awareness to appeal to a wide online market. The finding dispelled the notion that e-tailers presented by shopping comparison sites need to compete, basically, only on price.     

交叉上市对于投资效率的影响——一个双案例的探索性研究

本文提出交叉上市对企业投资效率的治理效应具有状态依存性,并进行探索性案例分析.首先,基于Richardson(2003)模型利用系统GMM方法测量我国A股主板上市企业1992-2013年期间的投资效率,发现上市企业普遍面临融资约束而呈现出投资不足;但其中交叉上市企业却普遍表现为投资过度.在此基础上,分别选取交叉上市前面临投资不足的招商地产和面临投资过度的中兴通讯进行案例分析,发现交叉上市能有效缩小投资不足程度,却显著扩大投资过度程度.本文通过案例间比较所得出的初步结论,构建起一个分析交叉上市影响企业投资行为的理论框架,为后续的大样本实证研究奠定重要基础.     

The Link Between Surprise and Satisfaction: An Exploratory Research on how best to Measure Surprise

This research examines the emotion of surprise and its influence on consumer satisfaction. After having discussed the relevance of this particular marketing issue and the concepts of surprise and satisfaction, it is explained how the emotion of surprise is theoretically related to consumer satisfaction. Then, the general research methodology and the main results of the first part of the exploratory research - the goal of which was to define how best to measure surprise in studies on satisfaction – are then described. Finally the section on conclusion, discussion and contribution brings the paper to an end.