Revisiting MacCannell's site sacralization theory as an analytical tool: Historic prophetstown as a case study

Historic Prophetstown in Battle Ground, Indiana is intrinsically connected to a pivotal event in Native American and United States military history. While it appears to have all the necessary elements to become a successful tourism attraction, it consistently teeters on the verge of insolvency. Applying sociologist Dean MacCannell's ( 1976 ) five‐stage site sacralization theory as an analytical lens to investigate the site revealed that it has never successfully moved beyond MacCannell's first stage (i.e. naming), which may be a key factor contributing to low visitation and poor economic performance. This suggests that MacCannell's theory can offer unique insights into site development. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The impact of corporate social disclosure on investment behavior: A cross-national study

We examine the impact of corporate social disclosure (CSD) on investment behavior in the US, Japan, France, and Sweden using stakeholder theory as the underlying framework for our analysis. We find that there is a significant difference in investors’ reactions to CSD across countries. Using a unique stakeholder scale we also find that these reactions are related to the investors’ stakeholder orientation. These findings provide insight into cross-national differences in the perceived relevance of CSD to investors.     

A transaction cost perspective on foreign market entry strategies of US and Japanese firms

A large scale survey of top US and Japanese executives is conducted in order to assess the power of transaction cost economics (TCE) in explaining a firm's choice of entry mode (e.g., joint venture vs. full ownership) when it enters a foreign market. Results suggest that several TCE tenets are useful in explaining US firms' choice of entry mode. However, TCE predictions were not supported by the entry mode choices of Japanese firms. Implications of these findings for researchers and managers are discussed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Mental mapping and heritage visitors’ spatial perceptions

Visitors’ activities tend to be spatially oriented in destinations. Mental mapping is a useful method for revealing how visitors spatially perceive tourism destinations. However, studies of this kind are under-researched in the tourism field. Therefore, this study investigates the ways in which visitors spatially perceive the World Heritage Sites (WHSs) of Macau through the use of mental maps drawn by a sample of 400 respondents. Comparisons of the mental maps revealed that respondents possessed a relatively limited spatial knowledge of the WHSs, and this recognition varied according to the gender, place of origin, travel mode, type of trip, social interaction with local people and length of stay. While the real-life world of visitors was identified by the mental mapping approach, some suggestions for formulating strategies are provided.     

Eliciting Willingness‐to‐Pay through Multiple Experimental Procedures: Evidence from Lab‐in‐the‐Field in Rural Ghana

This paper has the objectives of (a) comparing estimated willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) across three elicitation mechanisms (a Becker‐DeGroot‐Marschak [BDM] auction, a kth price auction, and a choice experiment [CE]) and (b) examining how these vary by participation fee. The product under consideration is kenkey made with nutritious maize, biofortified with vitamin A, which gives it a distinct orange color, in contrast to the white and yellow varieties that are traditionally consumed. We use an experiment consisting of 14 treatment arms, conducted in rural Ghana. Our estimation strategy explicitly accounts for the censored (typically at the market price) nature of the bids in the auctions, and the apparently lexicographic choices of several individuals in the CE. We find no evidence of economically meaningful (defined by the minimum currency unit of five pesewas) differences in WTP (although they may be statistically significant) across elicitation mechanisms, or by participation fee, a result that is in contrast to that found in much of the literature. A secondary finding is that the provision of nutrition information positively and significantly affects the marginal WTP for the new maize.     

A causal analysis of psychological climate and leader behavior relationships

Individual perceptions of the work environment, or psychological climates, have been shown to be important determinants of work attitudes such as satisfaction and job involvement. However, little is known concerning the relationships between psychological climate and other variables that may lead to or cause these perceptions. This research examined causal relationships among dimensions of psychological climate and leader behavior. Specifically, the investigation attempted to determine whether leader behavior caused psychological climate, or whether psychological climate caused leader behavior. Eithty-five foremen from a truck manufacturing facility participated in the study over a 17-month period. Results of cross-lagged panel correlations and causal path analysis indicated that psychological climate caused leader behavior. Since one individual's perceptions of his/her work environment can only indirectly be linked to another person's (in this case, the leaders) behavior, an intervening variable is required to explain these findings. This variable may be a consensual or organizational climate.     

The Impact of Letter Grades on Student Effort,Course Selection,and Major Choice: A Regression-Discontinuity Analysis

The authors apply a regression-discontinuity design to identify the causal impact of letter grades on student effort within a course, subsequent credit hours taken, and the probability of majoring in economics. Their methodology addresses key issues in identifying the causal impact of letter grades: correlation with unobservable factors, such as motivation, and direction of causation. They find no evidence that letter grades influence undergraduate students’ course-taking behavior or decision to major in economics. They find that, within a course, the first exam letter grade can affect student performance on the second exam.     

The global macroeconomics of NAFTA

Previous empirical studies of NAFTA have commonly used trade models that do not allow international capital flows to adjust to changes in regional trade arrangements such as NAFTA. This paper explores the dynamic implications of NAFTA with particular focus on the short-run and longer-run adjustment of financial capital. This adjustment affects the global allocation of physical capital and therefore changes the growth prospects for a country such as Mexico. Our results suggest that Mexico and the world economy gain more from NAFTA than merely a static reallocation of production possibilities. In the short run, the adjustment of financial capital affects nominal and real exchange rates. This adjustment is far more important for the short-term allocation of trade flows than partial equilibrium adjustment of trade based only on changes in long-term price differentials.     

International evidence on misspecification of the standard money demand equation

This paper tests the proposition that the interest rate in the standard money demand equation acts as a proxy for the expected change in interest rates. If this is true, the interest elasticity in the standard equation will depend on the expectations process for interest rates. Using cross-country data, we find that there does exist a relationship between the observed interest elasticity in the standard equation and the predictability of future interest rates from current interest rates.