Family meals and disparities in global ecosystem dependency. Three examples: Ghana,Russia and Sweden

This article highlights globalization in terms of dependency on local and global ecosystems when it comes to family diets. In an exploratory case study, one typical meal in three household settings in different parts of the world: Ghana, Russia and Sweden, is examined. Food paths are traced to compare the scale of ecosystem dependency. The result shows that ecosystem dependency varies greatly with implications for environmental impact. The Swedish household, as opposed to the Ghanaian and the Russian, is not dependent on local ecosystems for food provision, but increasingly on global systems. Opportunities and constraints for lowering environmental impacts related to diets in different economies are discussed. It is concluded that it is of great importance to create awareness in high‐income countries of the dependency on the global ecosystem and the resulting environmental impacts. It is in these countries that opportunities are available for change towards more sustainable diets. It is suggested that further research need to explore in greater depth how ecosystem dependency differs and how that translates into broad spectra of environmental impacts, considering other dimensions of sustainable development as well.     

Constructing an entrepreneurial life: liminality and emotional reflexivity in identity work

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the identity work of a budding entrepreneur through a longitudinal case study based on his ongoing personal reflections as he tries to construct an entrepreneurial life. In particular, we investigate the role of emotional reflexivity and liminality, concepts that give us analytical purchase in exploring the complex dynamics of this identity work. The liminal condition of multiple identity positions enables our informant to experiment with and integrate several parallel identity narratives as he tries on socio-political constructions of ‘the entrepreneur’ for size; and it is the permanence of the liminal condition that makes emotional reflexivity necessary so he can handle the constant lack he experiences. The contribution of our work lies in exploring how the operation of the discourse of enterprise never closes on the centre of subjectivity that is imputed in that discourse, and how our subject, through emotional reflexivity, deals with this fundamental lack.     

When discretion is better: Initial conditions and the timeless perspective

The predictive ability of technical trading rules and the presence of calendar anomalies are well known, but theoretically anomalous, features of equity markets. We show that while some rules exploit calendar effects they are primarily being driven by other factors.     

Navigating the Complexities of Grounded Theory Research in Advertising

Grounded theory is a well-established methodology within the social sciences and more recently within the field of advertising. This article looks at how it has been used in advertising research and in particular two key areas: the consumption of advertising and the world of advertising creatives. The article concentrates on common mistakes found in grounded theory papers submitted for publication in leading journals. It offers 10 important points for consideration that should help authors improve the quality of their research by avoiding such errors. The article concludes by suggesting potential areas of advertising where grounded theory may be applied in future research.     

What Can We Learn from Droppers and Non-adopters About the Role of Advice in Agricultural Innovation?

In this article we assess the diversity of sources of advice identified by 678 adopters, 295 non-adopters and 107 droppers (or dis-adopters, who have ceased or reduced the use) of agricultural innovations across 13 European countries. For most innovations, the volume and composition of advisory supports (e.g. public advisory services, farm business organisations, NGOs, research and development sector, other farmers), at the whole farm level were similar between adopters, non-adopters and droppers. However, there were significant differences in relation to specific innovations. Farmers adopting digital technologies, soil-improving cropping systems, and common management of natural resources identified more diverse sources when assessing innovations, suggesting that more diverse advisory support supported successful implementation. For new on-farm activities, non-adopters had more varied sources of advice than adopters. This demonstrates that non-adoption can be a well-informed decision. Droppers typically identified fewer sources of advice on an innovation than adopters, particularly in the later stages of the innovation process, suggesting that lack of advice impeded successful implementation. The findings suggest that public funding for advisory services could usefully target emergent gaps: to support the provision of up-to-date advice on topics to farmers who have difficulty accessing advice, and to prevent unnecessary dropping by supporting the implementation of innovations.     

Testing for UIP-Type Relationships: Nonlinearities,Monetary Announcements and Interest Rate Expectations

Open Economies Review - This paper tests for UIP-type relationships by estimating first a benchmark linear Cointegrated VAR including the nominal exchange rate and the interest rate differential as...     

The Implications of the Value Chain and Financial Institutions for Work and Employment: Insights from the Video Game Industry in Poland,Sweden and Germany

What are the reasons for national differences of international market access in high‐risk software development and what is the role of employment regulation? This analysis elucidates this question based on national sector studies of the video games industry with particular focus on financial systems, skill formation as well as work and employment systems in Sweden, Germany and Poland. National financial architectures and education are a decisive factor. However, the results also suggest that the ‘varieties‐of‐capitalism’ (VoC) approach underestimates industry divergence within and across supposedly homogeneous national models, especially in the field of labour regulation. The author proposes to link VoC theory to a transnational perspective, which complementarily takes into account firm embeddedness in industry‐specific value chains.     

Evaluating the employability paradox: When does organizational investment in human capital pay off?

Abstract

The paper explores the notion of the employability paradox which notes that while organizations investing in the career and competency development of their workforce can benefit from higher performance, they also risk losing more employable staff to competitors. Building on contributions from social exchange theory and signalling theory, we develop a model exploring the circumstances under which investment in career development benefits employees and organizations. We test our model in a longitudinal study following graduates entering the labour market. Our results show that when organizations signal that they care about employees by investing in their career development and individuals are receptive to such signals and proactively seek to manage their careers, investment in career development has a positive impact on organizational commitment and intention to stay with one’s employer. Our findings indicate that the idea of the employability paradox is simplistic and lacks theoretical and empirical support.     

Start‐up financing: How founders finance their ventures' early stage

Although the entrepreneurship literature has advanced our understanding of start‐up financing, little is known about the mechanisms founders use to finance the beginning of a venture. Drawing upon resource‐based view, this study relocates bootstrapping is a strategic choice rather than a necessity. By analysing the financial behaviour of 3,017 new business owners, we reveal owner‐financed bootstrapping is a strategic choice rather than a necessity. We also demonstrate related techniques that are used independent of industry, initial capital, financing difficulties, and impeded revenues.