Sources of TFP growth: occupational choice and financial deepening

This paper explains and measures the sources of total factor productivity (TFP) by developing a method of growth accounting based on an integrated use of transitional growth models and micro data. We decompose TFP growth into the occupational-shift effect, financial-deepening effect, capital-heterogeneity effect, and sectoral-Solow-residuals. Applying this method to Thailand, which experienced rapid growth with enormous structural changes between 1976 and 1996, we find that 73% of TFP growth is explained by occupational shifts and financial deepening, without presuming exogenous technical progress. Expansion of credit is a major part. We also show the role of endogenous interaction between factor price dynamics and the wealth distribution for TFP. We thank Richard Rogerson for his clarifying and helpful discussion. The comments from the participants of the Minnesota Workshop in Macroeconomic Theory 2004, Stanford Institute for Theoretical Economics (SITE) Summer Workshop 2004, European Meeting and North American Summer Meeting of the Econometric Society 2004, NEUDC 2004, Iowa Conference of Economic Development, and seminars at USC Marshall School, Penn State University, UCLA, and UCSD are also appreciated. Financial support from NSF (SES-0318340) and NICHD (R01 HD27638) is gratefully acknowledged.     

Developing a Risk Group Predictive Model for Korean Students Falling into Bad Debt

Using direct loan data for 2012 to 2014 from the Korea Student Aid Foundation, we develop a risk group predictive model for borrowers defaulting on their loans. We used a logistic regression model and the Cox proportional hazards model to develop the risk predictive model. We verified the validity of the models using a receiver operating characteristic curve and a validation dataset. The present study shows that area under the receiver operating characteristic curves is similar for the models and that the major influencing factors for defaulting on their loans are household income, whether a national grant was received, age, whether more than two accounts are overdue, field of study and the monthly repayment amount. The risk group predictive model in this study will be the basis for more efficient management of direct student loans.     

Commitment to a strategy of uniform pricing in a two-period duopoly with switching costs

This paper studies decisions by firms of whether to attempt “behavior-based” price discrimination in markets with switching costs by using a two-period duopoly model. When both firms commit themselves to a pricing policy and consumers are “sophisticated” and have rational expectations, there is a dominant strategy equilibrium with both firms engaging in uniform pricing. Both firms are better off in the uniform pricing equilibrium, compared with the discriminatory equilibrium.      

On the destination image of Korea by Russian tourists

This study investigates the importance of destination image as a determinant for the choice of a tourist destination. The inbound market examined is Korea while perceptions are captured from current and prospective Russian tourists. Empirical results show that a difference exists between visitors and non-visitors in terms of their perceived image of Korea. The study also finds that the relationship between overall image and loyalty to a destination is statistically significant. Regression results show in particular that Russians with a positive view of Korea are more likely to recommend Korea to others as a tourist destination.     

Queueing problems with two parallel servers

Agents are waiting for their jobs to be processed at a service facility. All agents need the same processing time but have different waiting costs per unit of time. The facility has two parallel servers and can serve two agents at a time. We are interested in finding the order in which to serve agents and the (positive or negative) monetary transfers they should receive. We introduce two rules, the "minimal transfer rule" and the "maximal transfer rule". We show that they correspond to the Shapley (1953) values of associated queueing games, for two alternative definitions of the worth of a coalition. The two-server queueing games correspond to the games similarly defined by Maniquet (2003) and Chun (2006a) for one server. If the worth of a coalition is defined by assuming that the coalitional members are served before the non-coalitional members, then the minimal transfer rule is obtained. If it is defined by assuming that the coalitional members are served after the non-coalitional members, then the maximal transfer rule is obtained.     

To be true or not to be true: authentic leadership and its effect on travel agents

This study examines authentic leadership and its impact on employees in the travel industry. Based on previous studies, the study proposes and tests a framework, in which four dimensions of authentic leadership influence two types of trust (supervisor trust and organizational trust), which in turn affect employee burnout. The data were collected by using a survey on travel agents in South Korea. The study finds that not all four dimensions of authentic leadership influence trust and that supervisor trust affects organizational trust. Trust is found to mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and employee burnout. The study offers theoretical implications and practical suggestions.     

Understanding museum visitor satisfaction and revisit intentions through mobile guide system: moderating role of age in museum mobile guide adoption

Drawing from the extended technology acceptance model, we develop and test a model that links the perceived characteristics of mobile guide system to visitor satisfaction toward mobile guide system and its effect on overall museum experience. Data were collected from 408 museum visitors who have used mobile guide system in National Museum of Korea. The results found that perceived usefulness (PU), perceived enjoyment, and perceived interactivity had direct positive effects on visitor satisfaction toward mobile guide system. In addition, we found the moderating role of age between PU and satisfaction toward the mobile guide system. Furthermore, this study revealed that the experience of using museum mobile guide system was significantly associated with the overall experience of visiting the museum.     

A GOOD ADVISOR

Effective education requires strategic consideration. If students doubt the motives of teachers and advisors, then students rationally ignore the advice they receive. Valuable information is lost in such bad communication outcomes and, consequently, the quality of education suffers. In this paper, we argue that an advisor's sacrifice is an essential virtue of a good advisor for efficient communication between an advisor and a student. We model the relation between them as a signaling game. We find a separating equilibrium in which a good advisor (whose objective function truly coincides with the student's own objective function) makes a costly sacrifice that causes the student to believe what the advisor says, while a non‐good advisor (whose objective does not coincide with the student's) chooses not to make the costly sacrifice and, consequently, the student completely ignores the advisor. In fact, it turns out to be the unique equilibrium that survives the Intuitive Criterion. The model demonstrates the importance of making students aware of those aspects of the advisor's objectives that students may not realize are closely aligned with their own (e.g., the extent to which an advisor cares about students' academic and professional trajectories as evaluated by students themselves).     

The Effect of Entrepreneurship Orientation on Firm Performance: A Multiple Mediation Model

Scholars have recognized the important role that entrepreneurial orientation (EO) plays in driving firm performance. However, this relationship is not yet well understood and studies have sought to examine various contingencies that might mediate or moderate this relationship. This study investigates the impact of organization behavior variables on the EO – firm performance relationship. The structural model was tested using primary data from 321 South Korean industrial firms. The results show that EO is positively related to firm performance and that adaptive organizational culture and people-centered management have a multiple mediating effect on the relationship between EO and firm performance.     

Interrelationships between tourist involvement,tourist experience,and environmentally responsible behavior: a case study of Nansha Wetland Park,China

ABSTRACT

This study examines a model linking three facets of tourist involvement (“importance & pleasure,” “sign value,” and “risk probability & consequence”) with tourist experience (TE) and environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). Data were collected with a self-administered questionnaire in a convenient sampling approach from tourists visiting Nansha Wetland Park, China. In total, 308 valid questionnaires were obtained. The structural equation modeling technique was applied to data analyses. Of three tourist involvement (TI) facets, “importance & pleasure” was found to be the most salient predictor of TE, which in turn led to ERB. “Risk probability & consequence” was shown as a potent predictor of both TE and ERB. “Sign value” did not have any effect on either TE or ERB. Basically, TE served as a full mediator between “importance & pleasure” and ERB, and a partial mediator between “risk probability & consequence” and ERB. Contributions, managerial implications, and future research directions are discussed.