Trust disposition,trust antecedents,trust, and behavioral intention

Trust is important for fostering successful relationships, reducing uncertainty and risk, and increasing willingness to purchase. This study tests the replications in the mobile banking (m-banking) industry and the influence of trust on purchase intention via investigating the relationships between disposition to trust, and trust antecedents to trust in forming trust in m-banking services, which in turn leads to behavioral intention to adopt those services. In spite of numerous studies being focused on the critical role of trust in recent decades, the topic of multidimensional trust antecedents in m-banking, as well as the effects of disposition to trust on m-banking adoption intention has been relatively neglected. Based on the data collected in Taiwan, the results reveal significant positive relationships between disposition to trust, trust antecedents, and trust. Meanwhile, the relationship between trust and behavioral intention are positively significant. Contributions and managerial implications are discussed.     

Credit constraints and growth gains from governance

This paper contributes to the governance literature by analyzing the specific mechanisms through which governance affects economic growth: The credit channel. Specifically, it investigates the growth impact of governance on industries with different levels of dependence on external finance. Better governance mitigates credit market imperfections by increasing transparency and accountability and reducing government-policy distortions, promoting productive investment and entrepreneurship development, with a disproportionate impact on sectors that depend on external finance. This paper indeed finds that countries with well-functioning governments are better at providing growth and investment environments for the expansion of industries that rely heavily on external finance and the formation of new establishments in these industries, when controlling for financial development. These results are robust to possible reverse causality, different specifications, subsamples and outliers.     

How social enterprises manage their organizational identification: a theoretical framework of identity management approach through attraction,selection, and socialization

Abstract

Social enterprises, as a typical type of hybrid-identity organization, face identification tensions among members, arising from the divergent identities. Prior research has focused on how hybrid identities can be managed at the organizational level. However, the process through which identification emerges in hybrid-identity social enterprises remains relatively unexplored. This study addresses these gaps and aims to contribute to identity and identification theory. This research has taken a qualitative (case study) approach, with in-depth interviews and archival data from nine social enterprises in Taiwan. Our findings reveal three different types of responses to hybrid identities of social enterprises: synthesis, integration, and deletion. It is observed that different hybrid identities management and organizational identification management practices will lead to members’ identification and dis-identification. This research proposes an attraction-selection-socialization model, suggesting that, to foster identification, social enterprises need to manage their hybrid organizational identities and embed the new common identity into members’ daily work through attraction, selection, and socialization processes.     

Creating an effective code-switched ad for monolinguals: the influence of brand origin and foreign language familiarity

This study investigates the influence of brand origin and foreign language familiarity in code-switched (CS) ad effectiveness for monolingual consumers. CS ads refer to ads containing foreign words or phrases in an advertising copy (e.g., headline and slogan), resulting in a mixture of native and foreign languages. In this research, we conducted a pilot study to show the increasing trend of using code-switching in ads, regardless of whether the brands are local or foreign, in a monolingual market. We further examine if the effectiveness of CS ads is contingent on the brand origin among monolinguals. Study 1 showed that non-CS ads were perceived more favorably than CS ads for advertising a local brand. However, not all of the CS ads were perceived more favorably than non-CS ads when a foreign brand was advertized. The results of Study 2 showed that when a foreign brand was advertized, CS ads using a high-exposure foreign language were evaluated more favorably than CS ads using a low-exposure foreign language. Foreign language familiarity played a mediating role in the observed effects. We provide evidence that the research findings on CS ads among bilinguals cannot be applied to monolinguals. We discuss implications for international marketing and suggest advertising strategies for practitioners.     

Computing systemic risk using multiple behavioral and keystone networks: The emergence of a crisis in primate societies and banks

What do the behavior of monkeys in captivity and the financial system have in common? The nodes in such social systems relate to each other through multiple and keystone networks, not just one network. Each network in the system has its own topology, and the interactions among the system’s networks change over time. In such systems, the lead into a crisis appears to be characterized by a decoupling of the networks from the keystone network. This decoupling can also be seen in the crumbling of the keystone’s power structure toward a more horizontal hierarchy. This paper develops nonparametric methods for describing the joint model of the latent architecture of interconnected networks in order to describe this process of decoupling, and hence provide an early warning system of an impending crisis.     

Understanding the influences of story elements in service businesses

With the advances of the roles of business stories in marketing, two issues remain unclear: How do consumers evaluate story elements on services? Do usefulness and affect mediate the relationships between business story elements and brand attitude in services? Therefore, to answer these questions, this study conducted between-subjects experiments to investigate the roles of business story elements, usefulness, and affect in financial and restaurants services. The results indicate that the elements of authenticity, reversal, and humor are generally useful in engaging consumers’ usefulness and affect; besides, conciseness is useful in engaging consumers’ usefulness but is not for affect and brand attitude; finally, usefulness and affect are mediators of the relationship between business story elements and brand attitude. These findings provide a framework to design business story and investigate the mediation of usefulness and affect on the relationship between business story elements and brand attitude for services and practitioners.     

Mutual fund performance: The decision quality and capital magnet efficiencies

This study employs a two-stage network data envelopment analysis model to analyze the decision quality and capital magnet efficiencies of 155 mutual funds in Taiwan during the period 2007–2016. The empirical results show that fund managers improved their decision quality; however, their capital magnet efficiency declined. This study also found 10 mutual funds performing in decision quality and capital magnet efficiencies, from which practical suggestions are provided to investors. Finally, this study constructs a market competition matrix to help fund managers (and investors) improve their operating and portfolio performance, plus resource allocation.     

Management earnings forecasts and bank loan contracting

We find that firms tend to issue management earnings forecasts and convey good news before bank loan initiation. Issuing firms enjoy more favorable contracting terms and attract more lenders. Management forecasts issuance within a nine‐month period prior to the loan activating quarter can lower the subsequent loan spread by 14.06 basis points. Moreover, firms with larger management forecast errors are charged harsher contracting terms and attract fewer lenders. Our study suggests that firms strategically issue management earnings forecasts before entering into debt contracts and lenders incorporate the information contained in management earnings forecasts into bank loan contracting.     

IS FULL EFFICIENCY ACHIEVABLE? AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY IN TAIWAN

This paper aims to propose a feasible framework for estimating the efficiency of input factors for banks and the adjustment of these factors necessary to achieve full efficiency in the short and long term. Based on a sample of 39 Taiwanese banks during 1999–2011, the framework recommends a scheme along with a set of adjustments empirically that allow the banks to not only achieve full efficiency but also save 10.3% of the total costs in the short term and 8.8% in the long term. This scheme amounts to short‐term and long‐term savings of NT$3.6 billion and NT$3.1 billion, respectively. (JEL C23, D24, G21)     

Is there the threshold effect of cigarette price on smoking prevalence? A cross-country panel data analysis

This article shows new cross-country evidences by empirically investigating the joint effects of cigarette price levels and joining the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) on smoking prevalence in 74 countries over the period of 2000, 2003, 2005 and 2006. We assessed cigarette price elasticity for three national income levels using different databases on cigarette price from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), demographic and socioeconomic country characteristics from the World Bank and adjusted smoking prevalence rates published by various yearly WHO reports on the global tobacco epidemic from 2000 to 2010. A panel threshold regression was used to capture the nonlinear effects that cigarette prices on smoking prevalence at the three national income levels endogenously determined by estimation. Our findings supported the evidence that joining the WHO FCTC would have a positive effect on reducing cross-country smoking prevalence, especially among countries with low- and medium-income levels. Moreover, some simulated results show that a price hike of 10% would reduce smoking prevalence in countries with national income levels equal to or less than US$1900 and by 7.2% in countries with national income levels between US$1900 and US$2510 more than those with national income levels that are higher than US$2510.