Avoiding Backlash or Proving One’s Manhood? Beliefs About Gender Differences in Negotiation

Group Decision and Negotiation - Gender differences in negotiation are typically explained by processes that concern women (e.g., women anticipate backlash for assertive behavior). Research has...     

The Tourist Bubble and the Europeanisation of Holiday Travel

This account explores certain aspects of the developments in international, interEuropean holiday travel as a part of the phenomena characterised as modernity and Europeanisation. The focus is on the idea of 'travelling parochialism', i.e. whether large proportions of contemporary international holidaymakers and other travellers on their tours within Europe adopt some kind of furtherance of a home-like culture. The main point of departure is the idea of the 'tourist bubble' understood here as a territorial and functional differentiation and as an expectation of holidaymakers going abroad. The concept of 'travel ecumene' is introduced to examine implications for travellers of the development of a western European travel system. Moreover, the study analyses the extent to which the notion of the tourist bubble is still beneficial in comprehending significant aspects of inter-European holiday travel in relation to current discourses of internationalisation, Europeanisation and cosmopolitanism. The paper also discusses advances of cosmopolitan predilections and aspirations and their possible influences on contemporary international European tourism.     

Active and Forced Choice for Overcoming Status Quo Bias: A Field Experiment on the Adoption of “No junk mail” Stickers in Berlin,Germany

Consumers around the world are burdened by large amounts of unaddressed junk mail. Attaching “No junk mail” stickers to mailboxes offers a simple solution for protecting against unwanted ads. Presumably, the use of such stickers can be increased if consumers deliberately decide either for or against receiving junk mail. This conjecture of status quo bias was tested in a field experiment run with more than 900 households in Berlin, Germany. In one treatment, stickers were put into mailboxes, facilitating active choice. In a second treatment, stickers were attached halfway onto the outsides of mailboxes, forcing consumers to either remove or fully attach them. It was found that roughly a fifth of the sample attached a sticker after treatment. With uptake of more than 21, as compared to 16%, the forced choice was more effective than the active choice treatment. The findings highlight the importance of green nudges and defaults for promoting pro-environmental behaviour. Implications for landlords of the presented interventions are discussed. The field of social norms is identified as a promising area for extending the scope of the present study.     

A Sealed-Bid Two-Attribute Yardstick Auction Without Prior Scoring

We analyze a two-attribute single item procurement auction that uses yardstick competition to settle prices. The auction simplifies the procurement process by reducing the principal’s articulation of preferences to simply choosing the most preferred offer as if it was a market with posted prices. This is done simply by replacing the submitted sealed bids by yardstick bids, computed by a linear weighting of the other participants’ bids. We show that there is only one type of Nash equilibria where some agents may win the auction by submitting a zero price-bid. Using a simulation study we demonstrate that following this type of equilibrium behavior often leads to winner’s curse. The simulations show that in auctions with more than 12 participants the chance of facing winner’s curse is around 95 %. Truthful reporting, on the other hand, does not constitute a Nash equilibrium but it is ex post individually rational. Using a simulation study we demonstrate that truthful bidding may indeed represent some kind of focal point.     

EU vor der Zerreißprobe – wie sieht die gemeinsame Zukunft aus?

In the midst of the EU’s current “polycrisis “, several serious dangers threaten the future of Europe’s unity. The looming Brexit vote as well as the refugee crisis and–above all–the rise of nationalistic, right-wing extremist parties demonstrate the fragility of the EU. One of the EU’s fundamental problems is its institutional design in general. In particular the role of the European Central Bank is not fit for the challenges of the time. Moreover, the EU is facing disintegrative pressures while simultaneously pursuing moves towards deepening the Union as a reaction to the multiple crises. Against this background, it is highly likely that differentiation within the EU will increase. Deeper cooperation among small groups of member states will likely increase efficiency but may also reduce transparency, accountability and cohesion within the EU. If handled well, differentiation may also open new pathways for cooperation with the EU’s neighbours and accession countries. The foundation for a fresh start in Europe is the Franco-German relationship, as only these two Member States together can prevent Euroscepticism from spreading even further and the new radical right from taking control of Europe.     

Who Gains From Nominal Devaluation? An Empirical Assessment of Euro‐area Exports and Imports

In early 2013, rumours about the euro‐appreciation gained momentum, which may lead to decreases in exports and increases in imports of the member states. Therefore, we investigate the impact of changes in the nominal euro exchange rate vis‐à‐vis major currencies on export and import performance of nine different euro‐area countries. To disentangle the ‘true’ equilibrium elasticities Stein's unbiased risk estimate (SURE) system error correction models (SSECM) are estimated for nominal exchange rate changes versus the rest of the world or other major currencies. To differentiate between price level changes and changes of the nominal exchange rate, a country's export and import equation is estimated using separately the nominal rate and the relative price/unit labour cost as regressors. Results of Wald tests indicate that assuming both variables to have the same influence on exports and imports is misleading. Whether the relative price/unit labour costs elasticities are high or low depends crucially on which indicator is chosen, while the effect of nominal exchange rate changes can be estimated robustly for all countries in the sample. In particular, France and Spain are hit by a euro‐appreciation since their exports are highly exchange rate elastic. However, for France, this effect is at least partly offset by an also negative exchange rate elasticity of imports.     

How credibility affects eWOM reading: The influences of expertise,trustworthiness, and similarity on utilitarian and social functions

In online information settings, a few people tend to contribute, while the majority of people consume. For this latter group of readers, electronic word of mouth (eWOM) provides information about products or service experiences that rarely are available from manufacturer-controlled sources, which makes this source of information especially helpful. In turn, eWOM influences readers' attitudes, intentions, and behavior. Manufacturers also hope to monitor and positively influence eWOM content, such as by supporting and building brand communities. But eWOM readers might doubt the credibility of information if it is mostly positive, and the usefulness of eWOM information depends on its credibility. This study offers an empirical and theoretical validation of how specific utilitarian and social functions of eWOM affect attitudes toward and intentions to read eWOM. In particular, trustworthiness is the most important credibility dimension; it affects both functions. Perceived expertise also enhances the utilitarian while similarity improves the social function of eWOM.     

The legal framework and initiatives for promoting safety in the United Arab Emirates

Injury is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The UAE is a rapidly developing country with fast economic growth, demographical and environmental changes that are associated with new hazards emerging at a similar pace. The UAE as a federal entity has federal and local systems responsible for safety policy, regulations and enforcement. To set priorities for safety promotion and injury prevention, it is necessary to have data on the most frequent external causes of injury and the main individual, equipment and environmental risk factors that contribute to injury. However good quality data for injury prevention are scarce. The aim of this paper is to describe the scale of injury as a public health problem in the UAE, and the development of safety policies, regulations and promotion efforts with special emphasis on traffic, occupational and child safety.