The effect of new product development techniques on new product success in Spanish firms

The rate of market and technological changes has accelerated in the last years. This turbulent environment requires new methods and techniques to bring successful new products to the marketplace. Much attention has focused on new development techniques, but little empirical research has been conducted to validate these techniques. In this study, the relationship between popular new development techniques and new product success is examined. Our findings suggest that only a subset of these popular techniques is significantly related with new product success in Spanish firms. The study also identifies the main contributors to new product development (NPD) effectiveness in Spanish firms.     

R: yet another econometric programming environment

This article reviews R , an open-source S -like high-level matrix programming language that can be used for econometric simulations and data analysis. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How bank capital buffers vary across countries: The influence of cost of deposits,market power and bank regulation

This paper analyzes the bank and country determinants of capital buffers using a panel data of 1337 banks in 70 countries between 1992 and 2002. After controlling for adjustment costs and the endogeneity of explanatory variables, the results show that capital buffers are positively related to the cost of deposits and bank market power, although the relations vary across countries depending on regulation, supervision, and institutions. Their impact is the result of two generally opposing effects: restrictions on bank activities and official supervision reduce the incentives to hold capital buffers by weakening market discipline, but at the same time they promote higher capital buffers by increasing market power. Institutional quality has the two opposite effects. Better accounting disclosure and less generous deposit insurance, however, have a clear positive effect on capital buffers by both strengthening market discipline and making charter value better able to reduce risk-taking incentives.     

Incomplete markets, continuum of states and default

Summary. We show that when bankruptcy, subject to penalties, is allowed, it is possible to prove the existence of equilibrium in a model with a continuum of states without imposing any assumptions on ex-post endowments.Received: November 20, 1995; revised version: September 16, 1996This revised version was published online in February 2005 with corrections to the cover date.     

Software as a facilitator of quality processes in social sciences research

The objective of this work is to evaluate the strategy of triangulation in the validation of information by integrating quantitative/qualitative information based on the use of different statistics software packages In our case, we opted to begin with a quantitative strategy and use IBM SPSS AMOS Statistics; we then replicated the study with a qualitative strategy using NVIVO. To this end, we used as an example case a study conducted on a sample of 445 university teaching personnel regarding intentions to use the blended learning teaching model in their usual teaching practice. We did so to analyse the extent to which it is possible to explain the process of adopting this educational method as well as its use and its dissemination in higher-education contexts, taking as a theoretical reference the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and the Theory of Diffusion of Innovation, proposed by E. Rogers. The analyses carried out verified the convergence or overlap of the results obtained after the application of different methods of data collection (a questionnaire and interviews) for the same study object. The results confirm the benefit of using data-processing software as a resource to facilitate multimethod strategies in educational research owing to its strengthening of results and the examination of the level of convergence or divergences within them.     

Empirical evaluation of educational interactive systems

Educational software systems are usually highly interactive systems that needs to be evaluated from two different perspectives, first as interactive software, mainly using usability and accessibility approaches, and second as an educational product that needs to be evaluated from its learning impact. The empirical evaluation methods may be quantitative, with a more deductive reasoning, or qualitative, with a more inductive reasoning, oriented, however mixed approaches have been used extensively because they combine the both main methods with a more pragmatic knowledge focusing on knowing the consequences or solving problems. The empirical evaluation of interactive educational software due to its own characteristics requires a mixed approach typically. This special issue is devoted to identify, share and valorise best practices and experiences, with a very solid modelling background, that are focused on the empirical evaluation of educational interactive systems with a special emphasis on mixed quantitative and qualitative approaches.     

Bayesian Model Averaging: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Classification

Bayesian model averaging (BMA) provides a coherent and systematic mechanism for accounting for model uncertainty. It can be regarded as an direct application of Bayesian inference to the problem of model selection, combined estimation and prediction. BMA produces a straightforward model choice criterion and less risky predictions. However, the application of BMA is not always straightforward, leading to diverse assumptions and situational choices on its different aspects. Despite the widespread application of BMA in the literature, there were not many accounts of these differences and trends besides a few landmark revisions in the late 1990s and early 2000s, therefore not accounting for advancements made in the last decades. In this work, we present an account of these developments through a careful content analysis of 820 articles in BMA published between 1996 and 2016. We also develop a conceptual classification scheme to better describe this vast literature, understand its trends and future directions and provide guidance for the researcher interested in both the application and development of the methodology. The results of the classification scheme and content review are then used to discuss the present and future of the BMA literature.     

‘My People’: the potential of LGBT employee networks in reducing stigmatization and providing voice

Abstract

This paper explores the separation and isolation from the mainstream workforce that lesbian, gay, and bisexual employees can experience due to their sexual orientation, and how this can affect their voice and silence in the workplace. In response to perceived threats and actual experience of stigma in the workplace, we highlight the need for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) voice in organizations, while unpacking the complexities and concerns for LGBT employees in publicly voicing their sexual orientation at work. We explore how LGBT employee networks help mitigate LGBT isolation at work, and can directly and indirectly provide them with voice in the organization. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with LGBT employees across organizations in Ireland. The findings confirm that LGBT employees can experience isolation at work, affecting their voice, and that workplace networks may moderate this loneliness and stigma. However, the findings question the value of LGBT employee networks in providing voice for all sexual minority employees. Our research considers the individual-level responses of LGBT employees to participation in, and the value of, employee networks, and the perceived role of these networks in giving them visibility and voice.     

A systematic mapping study of process mining

This study systematically assesses the process mining scenario from 2005 to 2014. The analysis of 705 papers evidenced ‘discovery’ (71%) as the main type of process mining addressed and ‘categorical prediction’ (25%) as the main mining task solved. The most applied traditional technique is the ‘graph structure-based’ ones (38%). Specifically concerning computational intelligence and machine learning techniques, we concluded that little relevance has been given to them. The most applied are ‘evolutionary computation’ (9%) and ‘decision tree’ (6%), respectively. Process mining challenges, such as balancing among robustness, simplicity, accuracy and generalization, could benefit from a larger use of such techniques.     

The role of information sources and image on the intention to visit a medical tourism destination: a cross-cultural analysis

This paper intends to analyze: 1) how information sources, eWOM, and image influence the intention to visit a medical tourism destination;2) the moderating role of culture and 3) cross-cultural differences based on Hofstede’s individualism and uncertainty avoidance. A total of 534 responses were collected using a panel of internet users from six different countries and data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and a series of t-tests. The results show that information sources influence cognitive impressions and in conjunction with overall image and medical cognitive image influence the intention to visit a medical tourism destination. Furthermore, individualism and uncertainty avoidance have a moderating effect among these variables and cross-cultural differences exist in the degree of importance given to information sources, eWOM, image perceptions, and intention.