Depreciation of Business R&D Capital

We develop a forward-looking profit model to estimate the depreciation rates of business R&D capital. By using U.S. government data between 1987 and 2007, and the newly developed model, we estimate both constant and time-varying industry-specific R&D depreciation rates. The results comprise a set of R&D depreciation rates for major U.S. high-tech industries. They align with the main conclusions from recent studies that the rates are in general higher than the traditionally assumed 15 percent and vary across industries. The relative ranking of the constant R&D depreciation rates among industries is consistent with industry observations and the industry-specific time-varying rates are informative about the dynamics of technological change and the levels of competition across industries. Lastly, we also present a cross-country comparison of the R&D depreciation rates between the U.S. and Japan, and find that the results reflect the relative technological competitiveness in key industries.     

Estimating the Costs of Protecting Native Species from Invasive Animal Pests in New South Wales,Australia

Invasive animal pests reduce crop and livestock output, require management and control measures, and threaten native plants, animals and their habitat. The agricultural and management costs are often directly measurable. But the costs to protect threatened native plants and animals are harder to assess. The Rural Lands Protection Boards were the government agency in New South Wales that managed invasive animals. An analysis of their decisions provided the opportunity to estimate the costs of protecting native species. The number of native plants and animals threatened by invasive pests was modelled against the expenditure, area, pest abundance, climate and location of 38 Board districts. There was a strong negative relationship between the number of threatened native species and Board expenditure. This relationship was interpreted to estimate the marginal cost of protecting a threatened native species, the downward shift in the supply curve necessary to protect all threatened native species, and the gains from the shift in the form of cost savings in the continued protection of non-threatened native species. These results value some of the costs that invasive animal pests impose on the environment.     

Buyer–supplier interaction in business-to-business services: A typology test using case research

We empirically test a theory specifying distinct ideal interaction patterns for four business-to-business service types, which differ with regard to how they are used by the buying company. The ideal interaction patterns are conceptualised as configurations of five different interaction dimensions: the key objectives in the interaction, the critical capabilities on either side of the relationship, the type of functional involvement from the buying firm and the key issues in the buyer–seller dialogue. Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data from 23 cases of service exchange at six buying organisations we test whether similarity between the ideal interaction pattern and an actual, observed interaction pattern is a continuous necessary condition for successful ongoing service exchange. The findings suggest for each of the four service types that, in order for a service exchange to be successful, buying companies should design their interactions with their service providers to closely resemble the specified ideal pattern for that specific service type. Besides contributing to the knowledge on how to effectively structure buyer–supplier interactions across the heterogeneous spectrum of services bought, a methodological contribution is made by showing how case research can be used for theory-testing purposes. As this study is the first real test of the typology, further replications with new data, preferably obtained from both sides of the buyer–supplier dyad, are necessary.     

Working Capital Management,the Credit Crisis,and Hedging Strategies: Canadian Evidence

This study uses a sample of Canadian natural resource firms during the global financial crisis (GFC) of 2007–2008 to examine the influence of firm hedging strategies on their working capital management. Our evidence implies that increased cash holdings and derivatives are alternative ways of hedging risk, and also provides another perspective on the U.S. “trapped cash” controversy as our sample firms are not R&D intensive and do not face the same tax regime as U.S. multinationals.     

Organizational ambidexterity: Integrating deliberate and emergent strategy with scenario planning

In this article we propose scenario planning as a tool for fostering organizational ambidexterity. The concept of organizational ambidexterity continues to gain attention, however, clear methods for developing this organizational ability are generally not offered. We therefore describe organizational ambidexterity and situate it in the general strategy literature. Key characteristics of organizational ambidexterity are provided, and the logical link to scenario planning is made. As the concept of organizational ambidexterity is relatively novel, our proposal highlights the use of scenario planning as a potential tool for developing this organizational “skill”, and clear next steps are described to examine our proposal as well as leverage the concept of organizational ambidexterity beyond that of a simple metaphor.     

Thailand as a tourist destination: Perceptions of international visitors and Thai residents

In the tourism industry, the perceptions of a tourist destination are critical to its image. Image can be either a mental image of a product created by a marketing department or an associative image of a product that is developed by the consumer. Tourism destinations must be careful about their image so the perception that they have is not different from the way that they are perceived by potential travelers. This study examines the perceptions of international visitors and Thai residents on the image of Thailand as a tourist destination. International visitors and Thai residents were both surveyed to determine their perceptions of the image of Thailand. Some results of the study found that Thai residents and international visitors felt cultural sightseeing, friendly people and food were significantly important when thinking of Thailand as a tourist destination, while international visitors felt that nightlife and entertainment were significantly more important than that of Thai residents.     

Interpersonal Relationship,Service Quality,Seller Expertise: How Important Are They to Adolescent Consumers?

Drawing upon social capital theory and psychosocial development theory, this paper argues that a true buyer–seller relationship is a key determinant of favorable consumer behaviors for adolescent consumers of hairstylist services. Other important determinants include quality of the service delivery process (i.e., service quality as measured by the five SERVQUAL factors) and quality of the core service (in this case, the hairstylist's expertise). A survey of 350 adolescent consumers confirms these predictions. It shows that a true interpersonal relationship negatively moderates the positive effects of service quality on consumer satisfaction with, and overall assessment of the hairstylist. This negative moderating effect is labeled resource substitution benefit and the argument made that this is the fourth social capital benefit. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

“现在大家都是民主派了……”

"民主,欢迎归来!"——2008年11月6日《海狸》(伦敦政治经济学院校报)关于奥巴马当选的头条标题作为空洞能指的民主时至今日,民主在全球范围内拥有了空前的声望;然而,同样史无前例的是,民主也变得概念随意、内涵空洞。或许,民主现在的人气,恰恰依赖于其意义与实践的开放性、甚至空虚性(如同巴拉克·奥巴马)。这是一个空洞的能指,任何人都可以向它投射自己的梦想与愿望。作为现     

Predicting nurses' organizational and professional identification: the effect of nursing roles, professional autonomy, and supportive communication

Recruiting and retaining qualified nursing staff is of growing importance to today's hospital and nurse leaders. Findings from a survey completed by 190 RNs at a major teaching hospital revealed that nursing roles, professional autonomy, and supportive communication were differentially related to the nurses' organizational and professional identification. Professional autonomy was by far the strongest predictor of nurse identification, followed by manager and co-worker support. Co-worker support and traditional nursing roles predicted nurse professional identification, but neither traditional nor collaborative roles predicted nurses' identification with their organization. Communication strategies intended to help executives retain qualified nursing staff are presented.