Proactive personality and work performance in China: The moderating effects of emotional exhaustion and perceived safety climate

Grounded in the interactionist paradigm, this study shows that emotional exhaustion and perceived safety climate constitute important moderators of the relationship between proactive personality and work performance. More specifically, the study analyzes the relationship between proactive personality and its behavioural outcomes—organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) and job performance—and investigates the interactive effects of emotional exhaustion and perceived safety climate. The study involves 485 Chinese airline employees including pilots, flight attendants, engineers, and service employees. Proactive personality positively predicted OCB and individual performance. Emotional exhaustion and perceived safety climate moderated the relationship between proactive personality and individual performance both independently and jointly. Implications of the findings for future research are discussed. Copyright © 2009 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Patrilocality and human capital accumulationEvidence from Central Asia1

Anthropologists estimate that 70 percent of human societies are patrilocal, meaning that adult sons reside with their parents, and that wives go to live with their husbands’ families upon marriage. Yet very little is known about how this widespread social norm influences intrahousehold resource allocation and, through this, economic development. This paper examines the effects of patrilocality on schooling and household educational expenditures in Tajikistan. To identify the causal effect of living in a three versus two generation household on these outcomes, exogenous variation in housing availability across communities is exploited. It is shown that the impacts of living in a three generation household are important for both school enrolment and for educational spending. The results suggest that one reason why patrilocal societies remain poorer than those with nuclear household norms is that three generation households make relatively few human capital investments in the youngest generation. Patrilocality, which probably evolved to solve coordination problems in agrarian societies, may thus be a cause rather than simply a correlate of low educational attainment in developing countries.     

Deborah A. Symonds. Notorious Murders, Black Lanterns, & Moveable Goods: The Transformation of Edinburgh's Underworld in the Early Nineteenth Century

The year 1828, which saw the discovery of sixteen murders committedby the infamous William Burke, William Hare, and their wives,provides the focal point for Notorious Murders, Black Lanterns,& Moveable Goods. Based on a detailed analysis of trialpamphlets, the book is a microstudy of the households, networks,and relationships that structured black economies in GeorgianEdinburgh. It is well known that the activities of Burke andHare formed part of an     

Reflections on longitudinal action research with the English National Health Service

This paper reflects on a longitudinal collaborative action research programme between the Centre for Research in Strategic Purchasing and Supply and the UK National Health Service Purchasing and Supply Agency that has operated since 1995. During the collaboration, research has changed practice and practice has changed research. A framework for analysing change is introduced as a means of examining how supply strategy has changed during the course of the research. The framework is applied to three supply strategy cases of prosthetics, clinical waste and cardiology, illustrating how practice and research have changed and influenced the production of knowledge over time. The methodological, theoretical and managerial implications of such longitudinal action research programmes are reflected on.     

If we label it, will they care? The effect of GM-ingredient labelling on consumer responses

More than 60% of foods in North American supermarkets contain GM ingredients. While North American consumers seem less concerned about GM foods than Europeans and Japanese, many consumer activists argue that consumers have a “right to know” if what they eat has GM ingredients. Will informative labelling of GM foods lead to major shifts in buying patterns? An experimental study found minimal effects of GM labelling overall but significant differential reactions to GM-labelled products across consumers with differing levels of consumer activism, perceived benefits of genetic engineering, and interest in novel foods with consumer benefits.     

Co-innovation in networks of resources — A case study in the Chinese exhibition industry

This work explores how network partners collaborate to innovate and innovate to collaborate and thereby achieve value. The innovation processes analyzed are within an IJV in the Chinese exhibition industry. The findings highlight that the IJV's development of a successful trade show resulted from effective co-innovation by partners which enabled the exploitation of opportunities in an industry characterized by rapid growth and continuing structural change. Partner co-innovation enabled evolving strategic and operational capabilities which has led to continued and growing market success. This co-innovation involved the targeted co-mingling of partner resources which creates value that motivated continued cooperation. The effectiveness of the partners' activities is evidenced by the growing size and prestige of their large-scale trade show as well as the expansion of the IJV into other endeavors. The paper concludes by considering the way these innovative processes can be applied in other contexts.     

Additional Empirical Evidence on Real Convergence: A Fractionally Integrated Approach

We examine the real convergence hypothesis for 14 OECD countries looking at the fractional order of integration of the differences of real GDP per capita in these countries with respect to the United States. Using parametric procedures, the results vary depending on how we specify the I(0) disturbances. If they are white noise, convergence is achieved for Canada and Australia, and with autocorrelated disturbances, this hypothesis is satisfied for France and the Netherlands. However, allowing for a break at World War II, evidence of convergence is obtained for all countries. JEL no. C32, O41     

Memory for implied versus directly stated advertising claims

An experiment tested young adults' memory for advertising slogans that either stated a strong claim directly or only implied the same claim by stating it in a much weaker form. Several advertising slogans were inserted into a story. There were two versions of each slogan, asserted and implied. The asserted version made a claim very directly and strongly (e.g.Alka-Seltzer stops common aches). The implied version only suggested the stronger claim (e.g. Alka-Seltzer helps lessen common aches ). Subjects read the story, which contained one of the two versions of each ad. After subjects finished reading the story, they were asked to recall all the brands and products. Then they performed a multiple choice task testing memory for the content of the advertising claims. While results showed no difference on the recall task, subjects on the multiple choice task frequently falsely recognized implied claims as asserted but seldom the reverse. Although they correctly recognized more asserted than implied claims, they were more confident in their correct memory for the implied claims. Results were applied to the problem of deceptive advertising.     

New technologies, employment shifts and gender divisions within the textile industry

This article examines the implications of the restructuring of the textile industry. In particular, the interlinked themes of technical change, employment restructuring and gender divisions are explored. The tensions which exist between production process and labour process transformations are considered, and a possible policy framework is offered.