Relevance of the Attention Effect in the Brazilian Stock Market

This article aims to analyze the impact of investor attention in the Brazilian stock market, particularly the effect of positive pressure on asset prices verified by Barber and Odean (2008 Barber, B. M., &; Odean, T. (2008). All that glitters: The effect of attention and news on the buying behavior of individual and institutional investors. Review of Financial Studies, 21(2), 785–818. doi:10.1093/rfs/hhm079[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Using the methodology of Da and colleagues (2011 Da, Z., Engelberg, J., &; Gao, P. (2011). In search of attention. The Journal of Finance, 66(5), 1461–99. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6261.2011.01679.x[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), we seek to assess whether investor attention, as measured by the volume of searches on Google, can explain abnormal variations in market activity and asset returns. The results indicated that the Internet search data does explain variations in turnover rate and trading volume of assets. However, unlike the results of studies conducted in other countries, the price pressure hypothesis was not observed in the Brazilian market.     

Drawing on “Producer-Tours”: A Technique for Addressing Consumer Uncertainty Surrounding the Consumption of Fair Trade Food Products?

Despite the global increase in both fair trade sales and awareness, actual market shares of some fair trade products remain disappointing. A number of authors have suggested various reasons for this, including the complexity of the situational context affecting actual purchase behavior (Carrington, Neville, &; Whitwell, 2010 Carrington, J. M., Neville, A. B. and Whitwell, G. J. 2010. Why ethical consumers don't walk their talk: Towards a framework for understanding the gap between the ethical purchase intentions and actual buying behaviour of ethically minded consumers. Journal of Business Ethics, 97: 139–158. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), the disconnect between producers and consumers (Dickinson, 2001 Dickinson, M. A. 2001. Utility of no sweat labels for apparel consumers: Profiling label-users and predicting their purchases. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 35(1): 96–119. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), and the problems associated with the depersonalization of ethics in mainstream distribution (Bezencon &; Blili, 2011). This article introduces the drawing method into the field of research on fair trade consumption. Using this method, this study explores student perceptions of both fair trade consumers and how fair trade works. In doing so, the drawing method unveiled two potential consumer types; namely, the dreamer and the angel. On this, we argue that our study reveals some of the possibilities inherent in the use of the drawing method to explore uncertainty surrounding fair trade consumption.     

Identification,Reputation, and Performance: Communication Mediation

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on a possible mediation by communication in the identification-organizational performance and identification-corporate reputation relationships. The review of the literature indicates that (a) companies with good reputations have better performances, (b) the stronger employee identification is, the better the reputation and performance, and (c) communication plays an important role in emphasizing the mode in which the organization presents itself to its stockholders. This study reveals that communication is a partial mediator in the relationships studied, suggesting that managers early on establish the form of communication, emphasize to a greater degree managerial communication, and not concentrate all their attention on marketing communication. The study involved 1,025 employees in various organizations and applied modeling of structural equations and the method proposed by Baron and Kenny (1986 Baron , R. M. , and Kenny , D. A. ( 1986 ). “The Moderato-Mediator Variable Distinction in Social Psychological Research: Conceptual, Strategic, and Statistical Considerations,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , Vol. 51 , No. 6 , pp. 1173 – 82 .[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) to evaluate the mediation between the variables.     

The Internationalization Process of Online SMEs in the U.K., U.S. and Australia

ABSTRACT

Starting from a modified version of the Cavusgil and Zou (1994) Cavusgil, S.T. and Zou, S. 1994. Marketing strategy-performance relationship: An investigation of the empirical link in export market ventures. Journal of Marketing, 58(1): 1–21. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] theoretical framework, in which the level of internationalization of online Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) is considered as an aggregated indicator of the export marketing strategy and a measurement of export performance, this paper investigates the influence of a series of internal and external factors on the internationalization of online SMEs. It expands the empirical framework used by Luo et al. (2005) Luo, Y., Zhao, J.H. and Du, J. 2005. The internationalization speed of e-commerce companies: An empirical analysis. International Marketing Review, 22(6): 693–709. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] in an attempt to explain the internationalization of online SMEs by integrating both organizational and market factors, thus improving the explanatory power of internationalization models, and enhancing their applicability for professionals.     

Exploring Convenience Food Consumption Through a Structural Equation Model

In this study the model of convenience orientation suggested by Scholderer and Grunert (2005 Scholderer, J. and Grunert, K. G. 2005. Consumers, food and convenience: The long way from resource constraints to actual consumption patterns. Journal of Economic Psychology, 26: 105–128. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) is applied in order to examine consumer behavior in the context of convenience food usage. The empirical results indicate that sociodemographic characteristics affect behavior both directly and indirectly through perceived time resources and convenience orientation toward meal preparation and clearing up. Findings seem to be important for all the bodies involved in the marketing of convenience food products because they describe the way various consumer characteristics interact, affecting the consumption of such products.     

The Impact of Media Multitasking on the Cognitive and Attitudinal Responses to Television Commercials: The Moderating Role of Type of Advertising Appeal

In two studies, we explored the effect of media multitasking on viewers' cognitive and attitudinal responses to television commercials and the moderating role of advertising appeals. The limited capacity theory of Lang (2000 Lang, Annie (2000), “The Limited Capacity Model of Mediated Message Processing,” Journal of Communication, 50 (1), 46–70.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) that integrates both the motivational and cognitive ability aspects of information processing was used as the theoretical framework. The results of Study 1 show that, in line with previous findings, media multitasking negatively affects cognitive responses but has an overall positive effect on attitudinal responses to television commercials. The results of Study 2 suggest that this effect on attitudinal responses is present only for commercials that focus on the desirability (compared to the feasibility) of a product. The results indicate that in media multitasking contexts, television commercials that rely primarily on stressing the desirability of a product have both a cognitive and an attitudinal advantage compared to those that rely primarily on stressing the feasibility of a product.     

Malaysian Money Demand Function Revisited: The ARDL Approach

ABSTRACT

This article examines the long-run and short-run behavior of the demand for money (M1, M2, and M3) in Malaysia. In this study we used a robust estimation known as the unrestricted error correction model (UECM) and the Bounds test (Pesaran, Shin, &; Smith, 2001 Pesaran, H., Shin, Y. and Smith, R. J. 2001. Bounds testing approaches to the analysis of level relationships. Journal of Applied Econometrics, 16: 289–326. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) to determine if the demand for money is cointegrated with real income, interest rate, and the price level. Prior to the cointegration analysis, we tested whether the demand for money series had undergone any structural breaks due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis using the Gregory–Hansen structural break approach. The study used annual data from 1970 to 2004. The Gregory–Hansen test suggests that the 1997 Asian financial crisis did not have a significant impact on the cointegration relationship between money demand and its determinants. The Bounds test revealed that the demand for M1, M2, and M3 are cointegrated with its determinants at the 1% level of significance. Thus, the long-run demand for money was found to be stable. This implies that monetary targeting may be a useful for the conduct of the monetary policy.     

Differentiation and Cost Asymmetry: Solving the Merger Paradox

This paper investigates the impact of product differentiation and of cost asymmetry on the merger paradox using a Cournot framework. It finds that when all firms share the same costs, two-firm mergers in an n firm market generate at least no profit loss when goods are sufficiently differentiated. This result contrasts with that of Salant, Switzer, and Reynolds (1983) where mergers of strategic substitutes are rarely profitable, and Deneckere and Davidson (1985 Deneckere, Raymond, and Carl Davidson. 1985. Incentives to Form Coalitions with Bertrand Competition. The RAND Journal of Economics 16 (4): 473–486.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) where competition among strategic complements yields profitable mergers. Critically, when costs are asymmetric, a merger between an efficient and inefficient firm, with differentiated products, can be more profitable to participants than to excluded rivals. Following this merger, welfare is shown to increase given that the cost asymmetry between insiders is large enough.     

Consumer Technology Readiness and E-Service Quality in E-Tailing: What is the Impact on Predicting Online Purchasing?

Total online retail spending in China reached $427 billion in 2014 and is expected to surpass $1 trillion in 2018 (Chu and Wong 2015 Chu, K., and G. Wong. 2015. China tries to clean up e-commerce. The Wall Street Journal. http://www.wsj.com/articles/china-tries-to-clean-up-e-commerce-1427894413 [Google Scholar]). In addition, the number of online stores in China has been rapidly increasing. The present study proposes a model based on the theoretical frameworks of technology readiness (Parasuraman et al. 2005 Parasuraman, A., V. A. Zeithaml, and A. Malhotra. 2005. A multiple-item scale for assessing electronic service quality. Journal of Service Research 7 (3):213–33.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) and e-service quality (Parasuraman and Malhotra 2005 Parasuraman, A., V. A. Zeithaml, and A. Malhotra. 2005. A multiple-item scale for assessing electronic service quality. Journal of Service Research 7 (3):213–33.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), and tested the model on consumers from China. The results indicate that consumer technology readiness positively influences the perceived efficiency, system availability, fulfillment, and privacy dimensions of e-service quality as it relates to the online retailing environment in China. Moreover, the influence of technology readiness on the intention to purchase online in the future is both direct and mediated by the dimensions of perceived e-service quality. Implications and future research suggestions are also discussed.     

Consumer's Perception of Website Service Quality: An Empirical Study

With the increasing penetration of the Internet, service quality has become one of the key areas of concern for online shopping sites. Website service quality has become a vital factor in making e-commerce successful because comparing the features of products in the online environment is easier, practically free of cost, and saves on time in comparison to conventional offline markets. To empirically explore the critical factors that determine perceptions of the service quality of online shopping sites, researchers adopted the eTailQ scale suggested by Wolfinbarger and Gilly (2003 Wolfinbarger, M., and M. C. Gilly. 2003. eTailQ: dimensionalizing, measuring and predicting etail quality. Journal of retailing 79 (3):183–98. doi:10.1016/s0022-4359(03)00034-4.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Web layout, web info, customer service, fulfillment, and privacy emerged as the critical factors affecting website service quality. Findings of the study are expected to provide valuable insights to academicians in better conceptualizing the constructs and also help marketing practitioners in fine-tuning their strategies by addressing the peculiar needs of the Indian online shoppers.     

Extending the theory of metaphor in marketing: The case of the art gallery

Abstract

This study analyses the metaphor of spirituality in the non-profit art gallery, a metaphor overlooked in previous marketing research. Using content analysis and interviews in a single depth case study, this article illustrates how spirituality has been a staple in the non-profit art gallery over time. It was found that even though the non-profit art gallery acknowledges its use of spirituality, it has a paradoxical attitude to it. Therefore this article (a) traces the historical influences that led to the extension of metaphor in the art gallery and its relationship to marketing theory, and (b) draws on Hunt and Menon (1995 Hunt, S.D. and Menon, A. 1995. Metaphors and competitive advantage: Evaluating the use of metaphors in theories of competitive strategy. Journal of Business Research, 33(2): 81–90. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) to identify deliberate and emergent strategies using metaphor in the non-profit cultural organisation.     

On market forces and adjustments: acknowledging consumer creativity through the aesthetics of ‘debadging’

Abstract

This paper explores the social dynamics by means of which market forces are enacted at the level of everyday consumption. In particular, it draws on Holt's (2002 Holt, D.B. 2002. Why do brands cause trouble? A dialectical theory of consumer culture and branding. Journal of Consumer Research, 29: 70–90. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) notion that as ‘unruly bricoleurs’, consumers kick-start processes of market adjustment and innovation through improvising ways to negotiate the demands of daily life. In this way, consumers can become active players in realising new possibilities for identity construction and empowerment that involve the creative re-appropriation of marketer-based meaning. To investigate those issues, we turn to a virtual community in the empirical setting of car customisation. Over an eight-month period, an internet-based methodology generated textual observations of online posting activity on five internet newsgroups attracting those interested in the particular pursuit of car modification. Participants used those web-forums to share information, passions, and enthusiasms. Analysis shows that grounded aesthetics function as vehicles for creativity and the reworking of dominant market logics (Vargo & Lusch, 2004 Vargo, S.L. and Lusch, R.F. 2004. Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing. Journal of Marketing, 68: 1–18. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). We conclude that online discussion threads offer valuable access to the emergent interplay of discursive resources in circulation among virtual communities and that this has implications for the conduct of environmental scanning. The paper illustrates how the discursive resource-base is nurtured, sustained, and transformed through various interpellations, including performing claims to prestige and self-defining distinctions, as well as constructing narratives of personal history and social dynamics.     

How Managers Handle Conflict in Supply Chain Collaborative Relationships in Ghana

To contribute to a broader understanding of how conflict impacts the emergence of collaborative relationships in the supply chain, the authors conduct a series of simulation games among supply chain collaborative teams in Ghana, West Africa. Results lend support to a theoretic proposition that managers' responses to conflict differ on the basis of their evaluative judgments about the favorability of processes and fairness of outcomes as predicted by the process and outcome discrepancy model (Kumar & Nti, 1998 Kumar , R. , & Nti , K. O. ( 1998 ). Differential learning and interaction in alliance dynamics: A process and outcome discrepancy model . Organizational Science , 9 , 356 – 367 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Further, results show that most collaborative relationships are prone to only a moderate level of conflict (contentious) as opposed to being highly conflict-prone (hostile) or conflict-free (harmonious), but the incidence of contentious and hostile relationships has a greater negative impact on collaboration decisions than the incidence of harmonious relationships. These findings demonstrate the importance of the process and outcome discrepancy model and the loss aversion tenet in prospect theory to supply chain collaboration research and strategy formulation.     

Development of an Enhanced Model of Innovation Adoption by Individual Employees

This research investigates the antecedents and provides a new theoretical framework that addresses the adoption decision by individual employees in the organizations. The study integrates the theory of reasoned action, technology acceptance model, and the conceptual model provided by Frambach and Schillewaert (2002) Frambach, R. and Schillewaert, N. 2002. Organizational innovation adoption: A multi-level framework of antecedents and opportunities for future research. Journal of Business Research, 55(2): 163–176. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]. Data were collected from a randomly selected sample of employees using a structured questionnaire. The research uses multivariate statistical analysis to test the proposed enhanced model, which is largely supported and validated, accounting for 60% of the variances in usage. This result has strategic implications for organizations in the effective management of innovation involving employees in their workplaces.     

Banking Consolidation in Nigeria, 2000–2010

The Nigerian banking consolidation process is examined using a dynamic panel for the period 2000–2010. The Arellano and Bond (1991 Arellano , M. , & Bond , S. ( 1991 ). Some tests of specification for panel data: Monte Carlo evidence and an application to employment equations . The Review of Economic Studies , 58 , 277 – 297 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) dynamic general method of moment approach is adopted to estimate a cost function taking into account the possible endogeneity of the covariates. The main finding is that the Nigerian banking sector has benefited from the consolidation process, and specifically that foreign ownership, mergers and acquisitions, and bank size decrease costs. Directions for future research are also discussed.     

Measuring Internet retail service quality using E-S-QUAL

Abstract

Despite its acknowledged importance, there are few rigorous empirical studies examining Internet retail service quality. An exception is the development of the E-S-QUAL scale by Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Malhotra (2005 Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V.A. and Malhotra, A. 2005. E-S-QUAL: A multiple-item scale for assessing electronic service quality. Journal of Service Research, 7(3): 213–233. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Whilst E-S-QUAL demonstrated good psychometric properties in the original study, the scale lacks external validation. This paper presents a reassessment and validation of the E-S-QUAL in the context of the Internet grocery sector. Data were collected via a web-based cross-sectional survey using self-administered questionnaires distributed to online grocery shoppers. A total of 491 usable questionnaires were received. The results show that there are potential discriminant validity problems with the Efficiency and System Availability dimensions of E-S-QUAL. Further analysis shows that a second-order, three-factor model of E-S-QUAL, consisting of Efficiency, System Availability, and Fulfilment, provides the best fit to the data in this study. Privacy is shown to be the least important dimension for the data set in this study.     

An Empirical Quest to Identify the Most Dominant Negotiating Styles Among American Sales Managers

SUMMARY

This study addresses the proposition as to whether the collaborative negotiation style is the most prevalent among American sales managers in the competitive landscape created by the global economy. It also examines whether there are relationships between the sales managers' negotiation styles and selected personal and organizational characteristics that may affect negotiation styles. The findings of the study reveal that the collaborative style is indeed the most predominant. However, some sales managers do still emphasize the competitive style. This variation may imply Weitz's (1981) Weitz, B. 1981. Effectiveness in sales interactions: A contingency framework. Journal of Marketing, 45(1): 85–103. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] adaptive behaviors. There are also significant relationships between the sales managers' negotiation styles and personal and organizational characteristics.     

Cause‐Related Marketing from the Nonprofit's Perspective: Classifying Goals and Experienced Outcomes

This research examines the cause‐related marketing (CRM) experience from a nonprofit (NPO) perspective, using qualitative and quantitative methods. U.S. NPO managers with direct CRM experience (n = 154) participated. Results demonstrate that NPOs have both first order (immediate financial support) and second order (less tangible, longer term) goals when undertaking CRM, and that they generally realize these outcomes, though not always. NPOs primarily seek event support, networking opportunities and public awareness, followed by funding opportunities, with less emphasis on gaining business expertise. This research extends the framework of Gourville and Rangan (2004 Gourville, J. T. and Rangan, V. K. 2004. Valuing the cause marketing relationship.. California Management Review, 47: 38–57. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) by offering a more precise, differentiated model.     

Local Content Policy in the Brazilian Oil and Gas Sectoral System of Innovation

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to discuss the development, goals, and format of local content public policy within the context of the Brazilian oil and gas sectoral system of innovation. The theoretical frame of reference for this article revolves around the concept of innovation systems, more specifically their sectoral focus as in Malerba (2002 Malerba , F. ( 2002 ). Sectoral systems of innovation and production . Research Policy , 31 , 247 – 264 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] and 2004 Malerba , F. ( 2004 ). Sectoral systems of innovation: concepts, issues and analyses of six majors sectors in Europe . Cambridge , England : Cambridge University Press .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). Norwegian local content policy was considered as a reference. This article concludes that this policy has not yet come to a consensus, presents regulatory weaknesses, does not have well-defined roles, and has little potential to generate innovations.     

Same But Different—Perceptions of Integrated Marketing Communication Among Marketing Communication Partners in Australia

This article examines whether two key partners in the marketing communication process, advertising and public relations’ practitioners, perceive Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) in the same way. It compares perceptions across a wide range of implementation, organizational, and strategic issues in IMC to test if perceptions have moved past Stage 1 of IMC development (Kitchen & Schultz, 1999 Low, G. 2000. Correlates of integrated marketing communications. Journal of Advertising Research, 40(3): 27–39. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Although both advertising and PR practitioners concur with each other and the literature on a wide range of perceptions of IMC, they still believe that advertising and public relations practitioners have dissimilar views about IMC. The PR practitioners position themselves as a separate breed of marketing communicator, requiring divergent skills from advertising practitioners and thinking differently about IMC.