Do Non‐exporting Plants Benefit from Exporting Peer Plants?*

This study examines indirect spillover effects at plant level within firms by analyzing the performance of non‐exporting plants with exporting peer plants by using Korean plant–firm matched data from 2007 to 2013. Our results show that there are no significant differences in growth between non‐exporting plants and their exporting peer plants in the same firms, whereas significant differences exist among non‐exporting plants depending on whether their peers export. This implies that exporting peer plants are important channels through which non‐exporting plants benefit within a firm.     

Attitudes toward advertising held by the boomers and the busters: some facts and myths

In the United States one of the common perceptions of young consumers, called the baby busters or the Xers, is that they are more critical of advertising in general than the baby boomers. Unfortunately, however, little empirical evidence is available to back up this perception. This study compares the boomers and the busters in terms of their general attitude towards advertising and specific advertising beliefs. Contrary to popular press reports that busters have a more negative attitude towards advertising than baby boomers, no significant differences were found in the two groups' general attitude towards advertising and in four of five ad-belief factors. In fact, the busters were found to have more favourable beliefs about advertising's utility as a source of hedonic amusement, challenging the popular press portrayal of the busters as ‘cynical gripers’. On the other hand, consistent with the popular press reports, regression analysis showed that the busters are knowing consumers and they are perhaps more suspicious and critical of advertising hypes than the boomers. Since the findings may be relevant only in the US market, replications of the study in other countries would be an important contribution to global marketers.     

Following the breadcrumbs: An analysis of online product review characteristics by online shoppers

Consumer-generated product reviews are a driving force behind online purchases; at the same time, unfavorable reviews can discourage interested online shoppers and eventually hurt the brand. The objective of this exploratory study was to analyze a diverse range of characteristics and the valence of online product reviews that would aid in responding to customer dissatisfaction. Product reviews (N = 1982) from Amazon.com were collected and content analyzed. Some of the key findings include the following: (a) price was the most commonly discussed product feature; (b) online shoppers found two-sided reviews to be most informative, contradicting the commonly held assumption that negative reviews were more informative and diagnostic in nature; and (c) ‘no action’ was the most common end action across two-sided and negative reviews, indicating that varying levels of dissatisfaction might not always lead to a negative end action. Implications for marketers are discussed.     

Team creativity: the effects of perceived learning culture,developmental feedback and team cohesion

This study investigates the influence of perceived learning culture, developmental feedback and team cohesion on team creativity. The results showed that the demographic variables, the three antecedents and their interactions explained 41 per cent of variance in team creativity. Team creativity was positively correlated with a higher level of learning culture, developmental feedback and team cohesion. In addition to the main effects, two interaction effects (developmental feedback and team cohesion; learning culture and team cohesion) were significant. In view of these results, organizations seeking to increase team creativity need an integrated strategy incorporating elements of culture management, effective coaching and team development. Implications, limitations and recommendations for future research are discussed.     

On the development and application of a self–organizing feature map–based patent map

Recently, the range of R&D management has expanded to include management of technological assets such as technology information, product/process data, and patents. Among others, patent map (PM) has been paid increasing attention by both practitioners and researchers alike in R&D management. However, the limitation of conventional PM has been recognized, as the size of patent database becomes voluminous and the relationship among attributes becomes complex. Thus, more sophisticated data–mining tools are required to make full use of potential information from patent databases. In this paper, we propose an exploratory process of developing a self–organizing feature map (SOFM)–based PM that visualizes the complex relationship among patents and the dynamic pattern of technological advancement. The utility of SOFM, vis–à–vis other tools, is highlighted as the size and complexity of the database increase since it can reduce the amount of data by clustering and visualize the reduced data onto a lower–dimensional display simultaneously. Specifically, three types of PM, technology vacuum map, claim point map, technology portfolio map, are suggested. The proposed maps may be used in monitoring technological change, developing new products, and managing intellectual property.     

An approach to discovering new technology opportunities: Keyword-based patent map approach

This paper proposes an approach for creating and utilizing keyword-based patent maps for use in new technology creation activity. The proposed approach comprises the following sub-modules. First, text mining is used to transform patent documents into structured data to identify keyword vectors. Second, principal component analysis is employed to reduce the numbers of keyword vectors to make suitable for use on a two-dimensional map. Third, patent ‘vacancies’, defined as blank areas in the map that are sparse in patent density but large in size, are identified. The validity of the vacancy is then tested against such criteria as technological criticality and technological trends. If a vacancy is judged as meaningful, its technological features are investigated in detail to identify the potential for new technology creation. The procedure of the proposed approach is described in detail by employing an illustrative patent database and is implemented into an expert system for new technology creation.     

A regression model of the heteroscedastic error variance

We introduce a regression model of the heteroscedastic error variance. A repetitive use of the least squares method is shown to provide the best linear unbiased estimator of the parameter vector of the model.     

Ubiquitous computing and its effects on small businesses

Much of the previous literature on ubiquitous computing (UbiComp) has been limited to case studies, reporting innovative practices of specific technologies (e.g., RFID) and social issues. There is a general paucity of research on strategic application of UbiComp, especially to small businesses. To address this issue, this study provides a broad overview of the current practices of UbiComp in leading countries and presents possible future directions. Then, the effects of UbiComp on small businesses are discussed. Through a cross-national comparative analysis, we present four strategies to provide some guidance to the countries that are currently considering entering into the UbiComp race.     

Online shoppers' response to price comparison sites

Customers' perceptions of price differ in the online environment due to the presence of price comparison sites. The purpose of this study is to examine how price comparison sites affect price and value perceptions of online shoppers across different product types and price consciousness levels of online shoppers. The results of the study indicate that the price information provided by an online price comparison site influences online shoppers' perceptions of internal reference prices. However, the influence of a price comparison site on value perception differs according to product type. As evidenced by the significant interaction effect between product type and price comparison site information, the presence of price comparison sites increases both transaction and acquisition value perceptions for the non-look-and-feel product category (e.g., notebook computers), but not for the look-and-feel product category (e.g., jeans). Contrary to the expectation, online shoppers' price consciousness influences their price and value perceptions independently of price comparison site information.     

A consumer value analysis of mobile internet protocol television based on a means-end chain theory

With the rise of the 4G technology, TV or video services based on mobile devices have received increasing attention from consumers. Using means-end chain theory, this study examines the cognitive structure of mobile internet protocol television (IPTV) users. Here, the cognitive structure refers to the attribute–consequence–value linkage that consumers consider as important in mobile IPTV services. The study classifies consumers based on two dimensions (their gender and occupation) and presents hierarchical value maps of mobile IPTV services. For this, the study collects data on 112 potential users of mobile IPTV services by using the association pattern technique. The results indicate as the representative cognitive structure of men and students; as that of women; and as that of office workers.