The use of sampling methods in advertising research: a gap between theory and practice

In this research note, we reflect critically on the use of sampling techniques in advertising research. Our review of 1028 studies published between 2008 and 2016 in the four leading advertising journals shows that while current academic literature advocates probability sampling procedures, their actual usage is quite scarce. Most studies either lack information on the sampling method used, or engage in non-probability sampling without making adjustments to compensate for unequal selection probabilities, non-coverage, and sampling fluctuations. Based on our results, we call on researchers to revisit the fundamental aspects of sampling to increase their research results’ rigour and relevance.     

The Motivation Factors of Sales Personnel in Financial Institutions

The motivation is an employee＇s internal relationship in the form of behaviour directed towards a specific goal and is manifested as an important factor for overall organisation performance. The goal of any business is to motivate employees to perform work with the maximum results. The work motivation is complex and dynamic feature of human resources and influences to motivation are very broad and diverse. The material forms of motivation are different compensation that employees receive for their work in the company. They appear in the financial and non-financial forms （paid or in the form of various services）. The goal of this research is to identify the main factors of human resources motivation in financial institutions （banks）. The questionnaire will be used as a research instrument and consists of two parts. The first part of the questionnaire will focus on socio-demographic characteristics and the second part concentrates on the motivation variables of material and immaterial character. Applying adequate knowledge discovery research methods will be identified as the main motivation components of selling persons in financial institutions.     

Effect of participative intervention on organisational justice perceptions: a quasi-experimental study on Finnish public sector employees

Changes in the perception of organisational justice have received limited attention in earlier studies. The purpose of this study is to examine whether a 2-year large-scale participative intervention had an effect on justice perceptions among employees. We conducted surveys in three towns (two case towns, one control town) on a total of 1584 municipal employees in 114 work groups that were observed before and after the interventions. Multilevel regression analysis showed that the participative intervention approach was associated with improvement in employees' justice perceptions. Moreover, the employees' evaluation of the implementation of intervention played an important role. Only among those who evaluated that the intervention had been successful, there was an improvement in their perceptions of interactional and procedural justice. The changes in organisational justice were seen at both individual and work group levels.     

Can usefulness of performance appraisal interviews change organizational justice perceptions? A 4-year longitudinal study among public sector employees

This large-scale longitudinal study examined the hypothesis that the experienced usefulness of performance appraisal interviews affects justice perceptions and that changes in work life contribute to this effect. Our findings from 6592 employees who were nested in 1291 work groups over a 4-year period and who at baseline had not applied for a performance appraisal interview support this prediction. Specifically, the results of multilevel regression analyses showed that interviews that were experienced as useful improved justice perceptions significantly. In contrast, when the interviews were experienced as unhelpful, the impact on justice perceptions was negative. Furthermore, during negative changes in work life, useful interviews were especially important in helping prevent the deterioration of justice perceptions. The implications for organizational justice and the usefulness of the performance appraisal are discussed.     

Tax competition in a fiscal union with decentralized leadership

This paper examines capital tax competition in the presence of an interstate transfer policy without federal commitment. Lack of commitment implies that local tax policy is chosen prior to federal transfers. The paper's main result is that ex-post federal policy neutralizes horizontal fiscal externalities, insulating tax policy from capital mobility. Federal policy, however, introduces a new source of inefficiency unrelated to tax competition. Specifically, ex-post transfer payments prove to be equivalent to an interstate revenue-sharing system which may render federal intervention in the presence of fiscal externalities welfare-deteriorating relative to tax competition.     

R&D portfolios in environmentally friendly automotive propulsion: Variety, competition and policy implications

In this article, we analyze R&D portfolios in environmentally friendly automotive propulsion including alternative fuel options. We argue that at the current stage of development, substitution of conventional car technology by a new automotive propulsion technology may lead to premature lock-in of suboptimal technology. To avoid such lock-in, one should value the variety of current R&D activity that enables organizations to learn from multiple options and to create spillovers between options. We further argue that the existence of technological variety is not a sufficient condition to avoid lock-in. Organizational variety is also required to sustain competition and avoid the dominance of few firms that possibly enforce a suboptimal technology within the sector. To assess whether recent developments in R&D have led to both technological variety and organizational competition, we analyze United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) patents in low-emission vehicles (LEVs) during the period 1980–2001 using entropy statistics. Results show that both technological variety and organizational competition have increased steadily since the early nineties, suggesting that premature lock-in is unlikely to occur. From an environmental policy evaluation perspective, we consider the findings as a positive evaluation of the 1990 Californian Low Emission Vehicle program.