The work values and job involvement of Post-80s employees in the hospitality and tourism industry: empirical evidence from Macau

The purpose of this research was to examine the work values (WV) and the job involvement (JI) of the younger workforce in a Chinese society. Specifically, the study explores the case of Macau, which has transformed from a sleepy enclave to a gambling mecca. The findings from 384 full-time Chinese employees revealed four WV factors considered important to them. The Post-80s value the social environment and freedom. WV are significantly positively correlated with JI and vary significantly across demographic variables. Intrinsic WV have prediction power towards JI. The lack of research on the younger generation particularly in this popular tourism destination contribute to a better understanding and management of the workforce. It also highlights that traditional Chinese managerial practice might not be able to cope with the new expectations and work habits of the younger workers.     

Tapping Deep Pockets: The Role of Resources and Social Capital on Financial Capital Acquisition by Biotechnology Firms in Biotech–Pharma Alliances

Strategic alliances with pharmaceutical firms allow small biotechnology firms to acquire needed financial capital in exchange for sharing new, cutting‐edge technologies. This study draws from aspects of resource‐based view and social capital theory to examine the factors that influence the extent of financial capital biotech firms acquire when forming an alliance with pharmaceutical firms. Using a sample of 184 alliances from the period 1995–2000, we found that alliances where the pharmaceutical firm has greater management control are associated with greater acquisition of financial capital by the biotech firm. We also found that the credibility of the pharmaceutical firm is positively associated with the extent of financial capital acquired by the biotechnology firm and that the number of patents that the biotech firm has is negatively associated to the financial capital the biotech firm receives. We discuss the implications of our findings for theory, research, and management practice.     

Book briefs

Food policy: Integrating supply, distribution and consumption, EDI series in economic development, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London, 1987

Food poverty and consumption patterns in Kenya, International Labour Office, Geneva, 1986     

Residents' Perceived Impacts of Gaming Development in Macau: Social Representation Perspectives

The purpose of the research was to provide a better understanding of local residents' perceived impacts of gaming tourism based on social representations theory. An empirical investigation was conducted in Macau, where gaming tourism is under explosive development. Through a survey of 396 local residents, two social representation groups were identified: “Ambivalents” and “Rationalists”. The two social representation groups presented significantly different perceptions and attitudes toward the impacts of gaming tourism in Macau. The three most significant factors that influenced residents' representations were personal income, perceptions of gaming tourism being able to increase personal/family income, and satisfaction with government performance in managing gaming tourism development. The research provides theoretical implications for future gaming impact studies and also practical ones for local governments and stakeholders in the tourism industry in Macau and other gaming destinations.     

‘What’s the Story in Balamory?’: The Impacts of a Children’s TV Programme on Small Tourism Enterprises on the Isle of Mull,Scotland

Film- and television-induced tourism effects have been witnessed in a number of locations world-wide, creating a range of positive and negative impacts for host communities and environments. The children’s television programme Balamory, filmed on the Isle of Mull, Scotland, has created a new tourism phenomenon for the island, leading to concern that Mull’s reputation as a green destination for the discerning might be displaced by a less desirable form of tourism. Through a questionnaire survey of tourism businesses on Mull, this paper explores the perceptions of television-induced tourism and the effect of Balamory on business activity during the 2003 season, exploring customer numbers, spending, turnover and profitability, along with attitudes to the new visitors. The research also explores the implications for sustainable tourism development, particularly recognising the limited life-span of film- and television-induced tourism and issues relating to displacement of traditional markets, with an emphasis on sustaining tourism as a means of generating revenue to support a rural island community.     

Rapid assessment procedures in injury control

Injuries are among the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. The burden caused by injuries is even greater among the poorer nations and is projected to increase. Very often the lack of technical and financial resources, as well as the urgency of the problem, preclude applying sophisticated surveillance and research methods for generating relevant information to develop effective interventions. In these settings, it is necessary to consider more rapid and less costly methods in applying the public health approach to the problem of injury prevention and control. Rapid Assessment Procedures (RAP), developed within the fields of epidemiology, anthropology and health administration, can provide valid information in a manner that is quicker, simpler, and less costly than standard data collection methods. RAP have been applied widely and successfully to infectious and chronic disease issues, but have not been used extensively, if at all, as tools in injury control. This paper describes Rapid Assessment Procedures that (1) are useful for understanding the scope of the problem and for identifying potential risk factors, (2) can assist practitioners in determining intervention priorities, (3) can provide in-depth knowledge about a specific injury-related problem, and (4) can be used in surveillance systems to monitor outcomes. Finally, the paper describes some of the caveats in using RAP.     

The origins of power in buyer–seller relationships

Who, or what, holds power in business-to-business buyer–seller relationships is a debate at the heart of power theory. Power in buyer–seller relationships is variously seen as the property of organizations, individuals or relationships yet to be theoretically valid and useful to management, integration of these schools of thought needs to be operationalized. This paper opens up future research avenues through identifying how buyers and sellers understand the origins of power and the nature of self perceived and countervailing power. The paper presents results from 10 focus groups of both buyers and sellers revealing the underlying origins of experienced power. The results support the proposition that power in buyer–seller relationships is a pluralistic concept and that extant theories focused on organizational, individual or relational elements of power are independently too narrow in their reflections of the power construct; rather, they are all part of the same broad construct.     

The use of advance order data in demand forecasting

This paper uses advance order data and historical demand data from a manufacturing shop and from a service operation to develop and test a forecasting methodology for predicting customer demand over a forecast horizon. The proposed methodology uses simple linear regression to model the relationship between a total demand ratio and a partial demand ratio. Comparison of the proposed model to a standard regression approach and a commonly used multiplicative model showed that the proposed model exhibited the greatest forecast accuracy.