Global Geopolitics and Local Geoeconomics in Northwest Africa: The Industrial Port of Granadilla (Canary Islands,Spain)

In the world scenario of US unilateralism, this paper argues the competition for control over Africa's resources between the major powers (United States, the European Union and China) provides a renewed geostrategic situation for the Canary Islands (Spain). First, the political and economic rivalry over Northwest Africa adds new dimensions to the geostrategic location of the Archipelago, which constitute NATO's southern flank and a logistic platform for neighbouring Africa. Second, it focuses on the particular case of the industrial megaport envisaged for Granadilla (Tenerife), examining its geostrategic projection as an important infrastructure both for the Canarian ruling elites' geoeconomic interests and also for the geopolitical interests of the major world powers.     

Technological and Organizational Change and the Employment of Women: Early Twentieth-Century Evidence from the Ohio Manufacturing Sector

Abstract

Using a data set that tracks the employment and wages of male and female production and clerical workers in Ohio from 1914 to 1937, this study finds that among manufacturing establishments, female employment and real wages rose rapidly throughout this period, particularly within clerical occupations. There were also substantial increases in the proportion of women in Ohio's manufacturing workforce, and women's wage increases kept pace with those of men. After matching the employment and wage data to input and output data from Ohio's manufacturing census, the study estimates the parameters for industry group translog production functions. The estimates indicate that Ohio's manufacturers adopted new organizational structures and technologies that favored an increasingly intensive use of female clerical labor. The study performs a counterfactual exercise that illustrates the extent to which non-neutral technological and organizational changes over this period explain the observed increases in the employment and remuneration of female clerical workers.     

THE POLITICS OF FDI EXPROPRIATION

I examine the role of political instability and fractionalization as potential explanations for the lack of capital flows from rich countries to poor countries (i.e., the Lucas Paradox). Using panel data from 1984 to 2014, I document that (i) developed countries exhibit larger inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI), (ii) countries subject to high investment risk (IR) receive low FDI inflows, and (iii) IR is higher in fractionalized and politically unstable economies. These findings suggest a negative relationship between political instability and FDI through the IR channel. I inspect the theoretical mechanism using a dynamic political economy model of redistribution, wherein policymakers can expropriate resources from foreign investors. The proceeds are used to finance group‐specific transfers to domestic workers but hinder economic growth by discouraging FDI. I show that the political equilibrium exhibits overexpropriation and underinvestment.     

Is diversity good or bad? Evidence from eSports teams analysis

We use eSports data to construct an empirical model to measure the effect of diversity on team performance. Different kinds of diversities are considered, diversity of culture, diversity of language and diversity of skill. Our main results are that cultural diversity is beneficial for team performance: the absence of diversity reduces performance by 30%. However, language and experience diversity negatively affect results. Taking the difference in the results into account, we conclude that firms should not thoughtlessly maximize team diversity: different kinds of diversity have different integration and communication costs.     

Foreign education and international trade: empirical evidence from selected Latin American countries

Social ties among university students – of friendship, mutual trust and attachment to the alma mater – tend to be robust and enduring. Through information-diffusion and behaviour-enforcement mechanisms, they can boost the economic exchanges between countries. This paper tests the influence of Latin American people with a tertiary education in OECD countries on the bilateral trade between the home economy and the country of the alma mater, taking into account potential endogeneity concerns. Results show that Latin American student networks exert strong, positive and significant effects on bilateral imports and exports. A 10% increase in the number of Latin American students in the OECD economy boost bilateral trade by about 3%. At a more disaggregated level, their impact on differentiated goods is significantly higher than on homogenous products. Their incidence is lower in the presence of bilateral trade agreements and economic integration between countries. Results are robust to the deep economic and political transformations of the period considered, and to the use of different regressors and specifications.     

Business travellers' connections to home: ICTs supporting work‐life balance

This paper examines the role of information communication technology in enabling connections to home for work‐related travellers. Although digital connectivity for work‐related tasks are well researched, the use of digital technology for home communication is under‐researched. The study draws on a qualitative study of UK‐based organisations and business travellers to explore how these travellers use ICTs for personal use while ‘on the move’. The findings reveal that organisations are supportive of work‐life balance for employees, but fail to consider specific needs of those whose work takes them away from home. For business travellers, insights are gained into practices around connecting to home and the value of this virtual presence for relationships with family while absent and work‐life balance. The study identifies and discusses practice occurring around three activities; checking in, maintaining relationships with home and sharing experiences.     

Un metodo di valutazione di un portafoglio assicurativo vita

Si adatta il modello proposto da L. Peccati [5] ad una concreta realtà aziendale fornendo un'analisi della redditività delbusiness assicurativo sia rispetto alla sua evoluzione temporale che alla sua origine finanziaria. Al fine di mantenere l'approccio quanto più generale possibile si modellizza il portafoglio a partire dal singolo contratto.

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Summary A method for the evaluation of life insurance portfolio has been proposed by L. Peccati in [5]. We adapt the original model to a concrete company situation. We examine the profitability of an investment in a life insurance portfolio from the viewpoint of the shareholders. In the Insurance business premia inflows preceed claims outflows so that we can consider the insurance activity as a medium/long-term funding operation. Starting from a model of the typical insurance activity, we obtain a decomposition of the NPV, distinguishing the contributions of each source of financing (i.e. equity and technical reserves) and of each time period, both for the single contract and the whole portfolio.

     

Factors that determine the reputation of private equity managers in developing markets

This paper analyzes the relationship between investors and private equity managers in order to identify the factors that affect the latter's reputation. Since there are no individual references about their past returns in developing private equity markets, the reputation of such players is thought to be linked to their capacity for obtaining new funds. Results provide evidence of the volume of investments recorded in the past, the ratio of portfolio companies to investment manager, the percentage of divestments carried out through initial public offerings and trade sales, the membership of the national private equity association and the size of funds under management as characteristics of the highest importance in raising funds.     

Beyond Seeing McDonald's Fiesta Menu: The Role of Accent in Brand Sincerity of Ethnic Products and Brands

Given the significant increase in the number of ethnic consumers, firms attempt to utilize various marketing communication strategies and tactics to promote their brands to these ethnically diverse groups. Similarly, many marketers are striving for brand crossovers by introducing ethnic offerings to new audiences. This research focuses on one such ethnic marketing communication strategy—the use of accented spokespersons. Building on a prosodic theory of accent, we propose that certain prosodic features (i.e., intonation) connote associations of sincerity and trustworthiness and thus affect brand sincerity perceptions. The current research also demonstrates that the effect of intonation depends on the degree of congruity between product ethnicity and a spokesperson's accent. Our results reveal that when these variables are congruent, consumers rely on the cues that are consistent with the advertising appeals. Thus, when a message uses a sincerity appeal, falling (versus rising) intonation leads to greater attributions of brand sincerity, whereas when a message uses a competence appeal, rising (versus falling) intonation triggers higher perceptions of brand sincerity. In the condition of incongruity, consumers aim to resolve the incongruity and rely on cues that connote the trustworthiness of a message (i.e., falling intonation). Theoretical and managerial implications conclude the article.     

It's no longer mine: the role of brand ownership and advertising in cross-border brand acquisitions

Although cross-border brand acquisitions are increasingly common in the global marketplace, research on how consumers respond to them is limited. Building on social identity and psychological ownership theories, we introduce the concept of brand ownership to the advertising literature, and show its negative effects on consumer reactions to a brand acquisition. Furthermore, we demonstrate that consumers’ disidentification (i.e., an oppositional motivation) with an acquiring country moderates the negative effect of consumers’ brand ownership on consumer attitudes after a brand acquisition. The results reveal that consumers with high levels of brand ownership develop more negative post-acquisition brand attitudes when a brand is acquired by a country with which consumers strongly disidentify (i.e. dissociative vs. out-group). Furthermore, our research introduces the concept of a brand ownership appeal in advertising, and demonstrates that it is an effective advertising strategy in enhancing post-acquisition brand attitudes for consumers with high levels of brand ownership. Important theoretical and managerial advertising implications conclude this research.