Network analysis of a new export grouping scheme: The role of economic and non-economic relations

Export grouping schemes can be viewed as an attempt to manage network development. This article examines a new Australian export grouping scheme in terms of its role and impact on the industrial network of which it is a part. The role played by non-economic exchange relations as well as economic, buyer-seller, exchange relations are emphasised, including competitive and potential interfirm relations and the way informal interpersonal relations. Spawned initially by formal grouping processes, were found to play an important part in group functioning and in outcomes from group activities.     

INFORMED TRADING RISK AND BID-ASK SPREAD CHANGES AROUND OPEN MARKET STOCK REPURCHASES IN THE NASDAQ MARKET

Microstructure theory contends that dealers' bid-ask spreads should vary intertemporally with changes in the asymmetric information component of the spread. Corporate theory suggests that stock repurchase announcements signal management's private information to the securities markets. An examination of dealers' spread behavior around firms' open market repurchases in the NASDAQ market reveals a decline in spreads adjusted for dealers' inventory-holding and order-processing costs. This decline is attributed to a reduction in informed trading risk associated with the open market repurchase announcements.     

Regional bloc formation and world trade

The grouping together of neighbouring countries to form free trade areas or economic and monetary unions currently constitutes a phenomenon occurring in all regions around the world. How far has the bloc-building process progressed? How will the development of world trade be affected by this process during the 1990s? How can companies respond to the developments in the global marketplace?     

Revisiting the research–practice gap in HR: A longitudinal analysis

Over 6300 articles published in 4 HR-focused journals over a 30-year period of time (1976–2005) were content analyzed according to 14 topic areas. The purpose of the study was to examine changes that have taken place over a 30-year time frame. Specifically, what HR issues dominate the field during the past and the present? And to what extent has the HR research–practice gap narrowed or widened over time? The results indicate that HR Development and Staffing were dominant HR issues throughout the past 30 years. In addition, some HR topics demonstrated a stable research–practice gap (Motivation-related issues), and other topics were characterized by an increasing gap (Compensation & rewards), a decreasing gap (Employee/Labor relations), or no significant gap (HR Developments, Staffing). These findings are discussed in the context of key human capital trends.     

Life changers: Making sense of the over 50s

This paper discusses the idea of a group of consumers of over 50s, known as ‘life changers’ who are at a critical turning point in their lives. It introduces the concept of lifestage, cohort and period effects as a way of providing a useful analytical framework to understand these consumers. It suggests that a range of non-traditional research techniques can be a powerful means of exploring sensitive and challenging issues with this age group. The paper concludes that exploring life changers shows a ‘one size fits all’ approach is no longer practical in marketing to the over 50s, and products such as current accounts and long-term care finance must be tailored more closely to fit life changers' needs.     

Determinants of Perceptions of Cheating: Ethical Orientation, Personality and Demographics

A sample of 227 business students from the United States and Australia was used to evaluate factors that impact business students' ethical orientation and factors that impact students' perceptions of ethical classroom behaviors. Perceptions of classroom behaviors was considered a surrogate for future perceptions of business behaviors. Independent factors included age, gender, religious orientation, country of origin, personality, and ethical orientation. A number of factors were related to ethical orientation, but only age and religious orientation exhibited much impact upon perceptions of ethical classroom behaviors.     

On the Evolution of Overconfidence and Entrepreneurs

This paper explains why seemingly irrational overconfident behavior can persist. Information aggregation is poor in groups in which most individuals herd. By ignoring the herd, the actions of overconfident individuals ("entrepreneurs") convey their private information. However, entrepreneurs make mistakes and thus die more frequently. The socially optimal proportion of entrepreneurs trades off the positive information externality against high attrition rates of entrepreneurs, and depends on the size of the group, on the degree of overconfidence, and on the accuracy of individuals' private information. The stationary distribution trades off the fitness of the group against the fitness of overconfident individuals.     

Effecting change in colleges and universities

Institutional leaders often try to use theories to rethink or resolve organizational challenges. Bolman and Deal (2003) describe four organizational frames (structural, human resource, political, and symbolic) to understand and diagnose problems within any organization. A classic organizational challenge in higher education is the status quo or conservatism relating to change of faculty involvement in institutional decision making. Leaders in higher education recognize the need for change but are often uncertain how to facilitate it or lack an understanding of how to implement it. The use of multiple theoretical frameworks can assist leaders in diagnosing dilemmas and instigating change.