Tourist Word of Mouth and Revisit Intentions to Rural Tourism Destinations: a Case of North Dakota,USA

Destination managers in rural states, like North Dakota, understand the benefits of tourism and, thus, the importance of studying visitors' intentions. This study investigated visitors' perceptions of destination image, value and satisfaction and those variables’ relationship with future behaviors, with a specific focus on their intent to return and make recommendations to others. The results showed that destination image directly affects visitors' perception of value and revisit intentions, and it indirectly affects satisfaction and recommendation intentions. The results also demonstrate how tourism practitioners can apply past models to their destination. The overall findings support the concept that a positive image is important to attracting repeat visitors. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Welfare calculations in discrete choice settings: An exploratory analysis of error term correlation with finite populations

A difference in logsum terms (also known as inclusive values) is becoming a standard practice for anticipating the welfare impacts of transport policy when choice alternatives are discrete and behavior is (assumed to be) random-utility maximizing. However, this calculation is only an approximation when the population under study is finite. This paper examines the effect of error term correlations in such welfare analyses with finite samples, recognizing that individual preferences and unobserved attributes influencing choice are unlikely to change much, if at all, across scenarios or across alternatives. Such measures appear reasonably robust to deviations in assumptions of correlation. Nevertheless, we identify cases when the synthetic population samples need to be quite large for the average logsum to be realized. Another finding in these results is the substantial variation that emerges across synthetic populations, suggesting that policies that appear welfare-improving (when evaluated with average welfare formulations) may well be welfare-reducing (or vice versa) for a wide variety of actual, finite populations.     

Inflation expectations in Turkey: learning to be rational

Turkey implemented an ambitious restructuring of the economy in the past several years, including the adoption of inflation targeting along with a floating exchange rate regime. Inflation came down from almost triple digits to single digits between 2001 and 2005. This particular episode of the Turkish economy sets a genuine case study for investigating the possible changes in the behaviour of inflation expectations upon a regime shift. Accordingly, this study analyses inflation expectations in Turkey, focusing especially on the post-2001 transition phase. We first conduct classical tests of unbiasedness and efficiency using aggregate survey data between August 2001 and October 2007 to get a statistical benchmark for rationality; we find that classical tests reject full rationality hypothesis for all series except next month's Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation expectations. Then, we carry out Time-Varying Parameter (TVP) estimates based on a Kalman filter to see how the coefficients in the classical test equations evolve over time. This framework allows us to see whether there is convergence to rationality in terms of unbiasedness and efficiency. We find that forecast performance has improved through time, as the coefficients on the test equations shows movement towards values implied by unbiasedness and efficiency hypotheses, supporting the learning hypothesis.     

An Investigation of People's Time Orientation,Attitudes, and Behavior Toward Advertising in an International Context

ABSTRACT

Past studies have indicated that there are cross-cultural/national differences among people's perception of time and how they use time available for them and what factors affect their time-related purchasing and consumption decisions. It is stated that each culture or subculture could have its own dominant construct of time. The present study examines time use and orientation and time attitudes toward different activities, including advertising in an emerging economy of Georgia. Study results indicate that present orientation and consciousness of future, planning orientation, time saving, realization of present in the light of past, and action orientation are salient factors channeling time orientations of Georgian consumers.     

值得关注的八种商业技术趋势

目前出现的八种趋势正在改变着很多市场和企业,企业高管们应该学会影响结果,而不只是被动地对其作出反应     

Applying Ethics to Insider Trading

Insider trading has received a bad name in recent decades. The popular press makes it sound like an evil practice where those who engage in it are totally devoid of ethical principles. Yet not all insider trading is unethical and some studies have concluded that certain kinds of insider trading are actually beneficial to the greater investment community. Some scholars in philosophy, law and economics have disputed whether insider trading should be punished at all while others assert that it should be illegal in all cases. This paper explores the nature of insider trading and analyzes the issues to determine the positive and negative aspects of insider trading, and how policy should be changed. The best hope would be for studies to be made that isolate the individuals or groups who are fraudulently harmed by insider trading. If any such groups exist, then clearly worded legislation could be passed to prevent any fraud from being committed against these individuals and groups, while allowing non-fraudulent transactions to be completed without fear of prosecution. Until it can be clearly determined that someone is fraudulently harmed by insider trading, there should be no law or regulation restricting the practice, since such restrictions violate individual rights and will likely have a negative market reaction. Robert W. McGee is a professor at the Andreas School of Business, Barry University in Miami, Florida, USA. He has published more than 50 books and more than 400 scholarly papers in the fields of accounting, taxation, economics, law, philosophy and ethics. He holds doctorates in several fields, including accounting, economics, law and philosophy. He is an attorney and a certified public accountant (CPA).     

A Comparative Study on Perceived Ethics of Tax Evasion: Hong Kong Vs the United States

This article begins with a review of the literature on the ethics of tax evasion and identifies the three main views that have emerged over the centuries, namely always ethical, sometimes ethical, and never or almost never ethical. It then reports on the results of a survey of HK and U.S. university business students who were asked to express their opinions on the 15 statements covering the three main views. The data are then analyzed to determine which of the three viewpoints is dominant among the sample population. Although it was found that HK scores were significantly different from the U.S. scores, both HK and U.S. respondents were opposed to the view that tax evasion is always or almost always ethical. The strongest arguments justifying tax evasion were in cases where the government was corrupt, the tax system was unfair and unaffordable. The weakest arguments for justifying tax evasion were in cases where there was a selfish motive. The underlying cultural differences are further explored in hope of accounting for differing perceptions of ethics of tax evasion. Policy implications for increasing people’s awareness of ethics on tax evasion are also highlighted.     

The Determinants of State-Level Antitrust Activity

While there has been a considerable literature exploring the determinants of antitrust enforcement in the United States, these studies have been based either on aggregate federal enforcement data over time (exploring cyclical influences) or cross-industry studies, usually for a single year or aggregated over several years. What has never been investigated is the pattern of state-level antitrust litigation. This is somewhat surprising, as this has been a major activity of many state attorneys general. In this paper, we explain state antitrust activity across states, examining a number of the economic and political determinants that have been proposed in the literature.     

Entrepreneurs in Turkey: A Factor Analysis of Motivations, Success Factors, and Problems

One hundred and thirty-nine entrepreneurs in Ankara, Turkey were surveyed to determine their motivations for business ownership, the factors contributing to their success, and their problems. Based on survey responses, the primary reasons for starting a business are to increase income, to obtain job security, and to secure independence. According to the factor analysis, small and medium-sized enterprises owners are driven more by income rewards than intrinsic rewards. The most important business success variables are the entrepreneurs' reputation for honesty and friendliness. Social skills and good customer service were also cited as critical success factors. The most serious problem faced by entrepreneurs in Turkey is the complex and confusing tax structure. Other important problems include unreliable employees, the inability to maintain good records, and a weak economy.