Versatile networks in combining qualitative and quantitative data

Following a series of special volumes on the DISC conferences in the past, this themed issue focuses on versatile network forms particularly in combining qualitative and quantitative data. This special issue also celebrates the second publication born out of the DISC conferences under the Quality and Quantity.     

Towards the operationalization of controversial news: a study of online news articles and reader comments during the 2017 presidential election in South Korea

Quality & Quantity - In this brief research note, we propose a set of concepts and methods for identifying and operationalizing controversial news items. Based on an analysis of online...     

Inferring international dotcom Web communities by link and content analysis

This study investigates international hyperlink networks and their content in terms of the .com domain, the most ubiquitous generic top-level domain, to examine the kinds of global websites that are linked to .com, what the linked contents are, and who are dealing with the hyperlinks. The results show the hyperlink network of websites with outgoing hyperlinks to .com websites indicates the dominant centrality of the U.S., whereas that of those with incoming hyperlinks from .com websites illustrates a core–periphery structure centered about the U.S. and other superpowers. The most globalized topics covered by websites linked to .com websites are business, the Internet and computers, recreation and entertainment, and personal interests. Many of the websites with outgoing hyperlinks to .com websites use only one non-English language. The predominant use of English by websites with outgoing hyperlinks to .com websites demonstrates the centrality of countries using English as the mother language in hyperlinked societies on the Web. The implications of these findings and further research are discussed.     

“平行推进”而不是“循序渐进”：关于体制转轨最优路径的理论与政策

最近一些年,南于亚洲金融危机和世界金融危机的爆发,在分析各国体制改革、金融发展的问题中,“循序渐进”（sequencing）这个概念开始频繁出现在经济讨论中。这对于纠正过去转轨政策讨论中的许多重大谬误,有积极的意义,因为那些在过去长期一味鼓吹“越快开放就越好”的国际组织的官员、跨国公司的经济学家以及许多西方学者,现在不得不承认他们以前不谈任何前提条件地鼓吹发展中国家或转轨经济要全面、迅速地开放市场,是荒谬的。由此引起的理论讨论,引导了人们去更多地关注体制转轨的路径问题或方式问题的研究。但在事实上,“循序渐进”这个概念仍具有误导性,因为它并不是一个确切地描述制度变革的现实与本质的概念,也不是一个有用的改革政策的分析工具。     

EVA,refined EVA,MVA, or traditional performance measures for the hospitality industry?

Stewart (1991) proposed economic value added (EVA) as a true measurement of a firm's performance and an executive's evaluation tool because EVA reflects only incremental values added to a firm after considering cost of capital. Kim [Kim, W.G., 2006. EVA and traditional accounting measures: which metric is a better predictor of market value of hospitality companies? Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research 30(1), 34–39] examined EVA in the hospitality setting and concluded that EVA is not superior to other available measurements for accounting. However, this study contributes several improvements to Kim's (2006) study and compares the incremental explanatory power of six firm performance measures including EVA, refined EVA (REVA), market value added (MVA), and three traditional accounting performance measures for market adjusted returns. According to the findings, REVA and MVA are, apparently, valuable performance measures for evaluating hospitality firms.     

A model of historical development and future trends of Italian cuisine in America

This study investigated both the historical development and future trends of restaurant cuisine in America. Italian cuisine is used as the basis of a prediction model. The study identifies the historical factors in menu trends in Italian–American cuisine; the factors that will influence culinary trends in the future, and whether the results can be applied to the development of a prediction model that will predict how restaurant cuisine in America may develop. This study used both qualitative (focus groups) and quantitative (online survey) methods. The growing popularity of Italian cuisine in the United States will continue to shape the evolution of America's restaurant cuisine.     

Effect of Restaurant Patrons' Regret and Disappointment on Dissatisfaction and Behavioral Intention

The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship among regret/disappointment, dissatisfaction, and behavioral intention in service failure situations at a restaurant. Even though there is a consensus regarding the positive relationship between regret/disappointment and customer dissatisfaction, unclear results still exist regarding the relationship between regret/disappointment and different types of behavioral intention. Thus, the present study attempts to clarify these fuzzy relationships. Specifically, this study aims to enhance understanding of the influence of regret and disappointment on behavioral intention (switching/negative WOM). The findings suggest that both regret and disappointment are significant determinants of customer dissatisfaction and switching/negative WOM. Further, the study results indicate that regret is an important predictor of switching intention, whereas disappointment is an important determinant of negative WOM. Finally, based on these findings, managerial implications for restaurant managers are discussed.     

The Resources Allocation Effects of Indonesia's Financial Repression in the 1974–1983 Period

We found that the selective credit policy of the 1974-83 period benefitted the Indonesian economy in a way unanticipated by the protagonists in the financial repression debate. The selective credit policy by favoring the manufacturing and trade sectors reduced their decimation by the overvalued exchange rate created by expansionary macroeconomic policies. The existence of a sizeable tradeable sector when the negative balance of payments shocks hit after 1981 enabled Indonesia to earn enough foreign exchange to service its external debts and thus avoid the type of prolonged economic crisis experienced by Latin America. (It must be stressed that the selective credit policy constituted only one of the policy actions that preserved the economic viability of the tradeable sector.) Since the selective credit policy was not undertaken with the expectation of negative balance of payments shocks in 1980s, its beneficial effects on economic development were entirely fortuitous.     

Intelligent Cyber Logistics Using Reverse Auction in Electronic Commerce

In electronic markets, customers can purchase products online. In addition, the seller or an Internet shopping mall has to deliver the products to the buyers. Transportation agencies can be chosen to deliver the products from an Internet shopping mall. Much research about efficient and automatic delivery scheduling has been carried out on delivery-ordering. By and large, transportation agencies need to maintain not only a cooperative relationship but also a competitive relationship among themselves to meet with customers' preferences for their purchases. This article suggests an intelligent, cyber-logistic framework as a multiagent system and presents designs for an intelligent software-agent structure to maintain this cooperative and competitive relationship. This intelligent cyber-logistic system consists of shopping mall agents, a broker agent, and delivery and scheduling agents. These components, based on the concept of reverse auction, lead to improvement in the overall system efficiency as well as increased profits for each transportation company. Traditionally, in researching vehicle routing problems (VRP), the cooperative and competitive relationships among the transportation companies have not been addressed. However, in this article, we have addressed these issues. We also suggest the reverse method of auction, which solves VRP for their own trucks to provide the transportation of goods for the shopping malls. After finding their own solution, the transportation company can bid with its own cost of delivery. We have used the constraint satisfaction problems solving method to conduct truck scheduling for each transportation agency. To perform the delivery-ordering process between agents, we have defined the logisticsKQML to represent the message protocol of upper level. Finally, we have evaluated the cyber-logistic system using reverse auction by a simulation experiment and have discussed further research and drawn conclusions.     

The influence of life satisfaction on nostalgic advertising and attitude toward a brand

Nostalgic advertising has become a popular means for advertisers to reach their consumers. A viewer's life satisfaction is an important factor that may influence the effect of nostalgic advertising. Positive life satisfaction is an important determinant of nostalgic advertising receptivity. Thus, the present study builds a model for the relationships among life satisfaction, nostalgic advertising, emotional response toward a brand, ad attitude and purchase intention. Life satisfaction was identified as an antecedent variable for evoked nostalgia. In addition, emotional response to the advertised brand was shown to be an important predictor of purchase intent. The findings provide insightful implications for marketers and advertisers by identifying meaningful relationships between life satisfaction and nostalgic advertising.