The structure of Walras's mature model of capital goods markets

This essay examines the capital goods markets in the comprehensive model that Léon Walras constructed during the mature period of his theoretical work. the essay answers fundamental questions about the participants and market institutions in his model; the monetary or nonmonetary nature of the model; his assumptions about the nature of capital goods; his definitions of the rate of interest and the rate of net income and their functions in his model; and the roles in his model of the Bourse, the loan market and the rental market for capital goods.     

The political economy of wage-earner funds: policy debate and Swedish experience

Various European proposals for wage-earner funds are briefly surveyed. The central issues of the policy debate surrounding these funds are then discussed. It is argued that the outcome of this debate was not determined solely by a rational appraisal of the economic costs and benefits of the various policy options. Wage-earner funds raise questions concerning the ownership and control of capital and have therefore been the focus of political conflict between powerful interest groups. The paper then analyses the experience of wage-earner funds in Sweden, dealing with their objectives, behaviour and economic performance.     

Modern Likelihood‐Frequentist Inference

We offer an exposition of modern higher order likelihood inference and introduce software to implement this in a quite general setting. The aim is to make more accessible an important development in statistical theory and practice. The software, implemented in an R package, requires only that the user provide code to compute the likelihood function and to specify extra‐likelihood aspects of the model, such as stopping rule or censoring model, through a function generating a dataset under the model. The exposition charts a narrow course through the developments, intending thereby to make these more widely accessible. It includes the likelihood ratio approximation to the distribution of the maximum likelihood estimator, that is the p^? formula, and the transformation of this yielding a second‐order approximation to the distribution of the signed likelihood ratio test statistic, based on a modified signed likelihood ratio statistic r^?. This follows developments of Barndorff‐Nielsen and others. The software utilises the approximation to required Jacobians as developed by Skovgaard, which is included in the exposition. Several examples of using the software are provided.     

Involvement with the equipment component of sport: Links to recreational commitment

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the involvement many sports participants have with relevant sports equipment. A structural model is presented which proposes a positive relationship between equipment involvement and recreational commitment. The model also identifies several possible outcomes of equipment involvement such as product spending levels and opinion leadership regarding the equipment. The model is tested using LJSREL analysis for a sample of recreational runners. Results confirm that both equipment involvement and recreational commitment are multidimensional constructs. Amount of running experience was found to be negatively related to perceptions of equipment importance, whereas psychological commitment to running had a positive effect. Behavioral commitment was not significantly associated with the perceived importance of running equipment, although there was a postive link with equipment knowledge. Equipment involvement was found to be a significant predictor of spending levels and opinion leadership.     

The stability of leisure factor structures across time

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the stability of leisure factor structures across seasons. Data were collected regarding subjects’ participation in 58 recreation activities during the fall of 1980 and the summer of 1981. Differences in responses were analyzed on an activity‐by‐activity basis yielding significant differences for 21 of the 58 activities. Further, factor structures for both the fall and summer data were identified. The findings revealed that only three of the seven factors extracted for each structure met the minimum criteria established by the researchers to be considered stable across seasons.     

The Question of Scale in Ecotourism: Case Study of Two Small Ecotour Operators in the Mundo Maya Region of Central America

The issue of scale in ecotourism is addressed, with specific reference to the relative costs and benefits of large versus small-scaled development, tour groups, and tour operators. A case study of two small ecotour businesses operating in the Mundo Maya region of Central America provides pertinent insights through comparison of their organisation, tours, owners opinions, impacts and issues pertaining to the Mundo Maya business environment. Results shed light on important policy, planning and marketing questions relating to ecotourism and sustainable development in this destination, and on the general issue of scale. A framework for research and evaluation of the issue of scale in ecotourism is advanced.     

Linking the formal strategic planning process,planning flexibility,and innovativeness to firm performance

This study explores the link between financial performance and the formal strategic planning process, planning flexibility, and innovativeness of 448 firms in a multi-industry sample. The results suggest that firms' formal strategic planning processes and planning flexibility are positively associated, and each is positively related to innovativeness. In addition, innovativeness fully mediates the relationships between firm performance and the formal strategic planning process and planning flexibility.     

Price Discovery in Interrelated Markets

In this study, we generalize the information share (IS) proposed by Hasbrouck (1995) and extended by Lien and Shrestha (2009). The new generalized information share (GIS) can be used to analyze the price discovery process in interrelated securities markets, whereas the previous two measures can only be applied to almost identical markets. Thus, using the GIS, we can analyze broader markets thereby improving our understanding of the price discovery process as well as the efficiency of securities markets. As an empirical demonstration of the proposed method, we apply the GIS to credit default swap (CDS) and bond markets, and find that for the majority of cases price discovery mostly takes place in the CDS markets. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Jrl Fut Mark 34:203–219, 2014     

Line,line, everywhere a line: Cultural considerations for waiting-line managers

Given the trend of increasing business globalization, management teams of multinational companies have taken steps to better understand consumers, local business partners, and local governments. Local queueing preferences present managers with additional challenges and opportunities in international markets. The world may be ‘flat,’ but it is foolish to believe that all cultures perceive lines and waiting through the same lens. As discussed herein, perceptions regarding waiting and management of queues vary greatly; therefore, managers should adopt different policies and procedures when managing waiting lines across natural and cultural borders. Considering queue management in a global context offers benefits. Thinking globally—and acting locally—can prioritize and clarify important decisions any waiting-line manager has to make.