Beyond Contracts: Love in Firms

The traditional theories of the firm leave no room for love in business organizations, perhaps because it is thought that love is only an emotion or feeling, not a virtue, or because economic efficiency and profit making are considered to be incompatible with the practice of charity or love. In this article, we show based on an approach to the human action within the organization, that love can and must be lived in firms for firms to operate efficiently, be attractive to those who take part in them, and act consistently in the long run.     

Research into Quality Management and Social Responsibility

This article presents a systematic literature review on quality management and social responsibility (focusing on ethical and social issues). It uses the literature review to identify the parallels between quality management and social responsibility, the extent to which qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods are used, the countries that have contributed most to this area, and how the most common quality management practices facilitate social responsibility. The literature review covers articles about quality management and social responsibility (focusing on ethical and social categories) based on a computer search in three databases, namely ABI Inform, Emerald and Science Direct, and includes articles dealing with the subject that were found in the lists of references of the articles found in the primary search, as well as a search in six top management journals. The results show (1) the journals most likely to publish this type of article; (2) the range of qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods used; (3) the most productive countries in this field; (4) the parallels between quality management and social responsibility; and (5) how the most common quality management practices facilitate ethical behaviour and social aspects.     

区域间的不对称与制衡行为——以欧盟与东盟关系为例

在现有国际体系中,不对称性是国际关系的主要特征之一,它与单位行为体的制衡行为直接相关联。随着全球化和区域主义的发展,不对称性已从国家层面扩展到地区层面,其原有内涵和制衡逻辑也发生了转移。以地区性作为比较区域间不对称的参考点,作者探讨了地区层面的制衡行为,分析了不对称性、地区性与制衡行为之间的关系,认为在不对称的国际关系中,弱势国家出于维护现状或提高讨价还价能力的需要,它们倾向于选择地区层次的制衡行为。由于地区层次的制衡行为伴随着一定的制度化风险,因此地区层次制衡行为的发生需有一定的条件。通过选取欧盟与东盟关系作为考察对象,作者认为,在不对称的国际关系中,地区性能够反映区域间的不对称关系,也代表了地区层次的制衡能力;地区层次的制衡行为没有特定目标,但主要以平衡大国或发达国家的地区性国家集团为主;当弱势国家的内部制衡无法在短期内得到质的提升时,它们会更倾向选择通过外部制衡,即利用区域间关系来平衡不对称关系。尤其在无政府状态下的单极体系中,当国际结构对霸权国的约束力被严重削弱时,地区层次的制衡作用便显得更加突出。     

R&D Subsidies,Spillovers, and Privatization in Mixed Markets

We examine the use of subsidies to research and development (R&D) in a mixed and a private duopoly market. We show that the socially optimal R&D subsidy is increasing in the degree of spillovers, but it is lower in the private duopoly. The optimal R&D subsidy leads to an increase in total R&D and production; however, it does not lead to the equalization of per firm output and therefore to an efficient distribution of production costs. We also find that privatization of the public firm reduces R&D activity and welfare in the duopoly market. This result stands even when optimal R&D subsidies are provided.     

Key service innovation drivers in the tourism sector: empirical evidence and managerial implications

This study highlights the importance of market orientation and the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) as determinants of service innovation activity for companies in the tourism sector. In doing so, the study provides a means to classify companies as innovative or not. Using a sample of 100 Spanish firms from different branches of the tourism sector, we confirm and extend prior research. In particular, market orientation??especially a customer orientation??is critical for developing new services that lead to competitive advantages. In addition, ICT have a dual, direct, and indirect influence on service innovation.     

The importance of atmospherics in the choice of hypermarkets and supermarkets

Are the atmospheric variables equally relevant for supermarket and hypermarket customers? As a contribution to the customers' choice of the store format, firstly this work aims to determine the perception of differences between hypermarkets and supermarkets in terms of store attributes. Second, it sheds light on the role played by atmospherics in the customers' decision process. This study uses a logit approach to model the probabilistic choice of the customers' store format using atmospheric and other marketing variables as important attributes of the grocery store. The model's estimation is based on personal interviews conducted during the shopping process in urban supermarkets and hypermarkets belonging to the same retail chain. The findings show that although the atmospheric variables are significantly important for both store formats, the customers perceive differently the importance of each retail atmospheric cue and other marketing variables, when buying in a hypermarket or in a supermarket: the choice of buying in hypermarket is explained by the significant importance given to the latent variables named pleasant atmosphere and accessibility and responsiveness; in contrast, the choice of buying in supermarkets is explained by the significant importance given to the latent variable nice decoration and empathy with the staff. The other latent variable designated by other marketing variables is only significantly important in the decision of choosing supermarkets.     

Business Dynamics and Efficiency in Industries and Regions: The Case of Spain

High rates of firm births and deaths are a pervasive phenomenon across industries and territories. Most studies have related the great turbulence at the fringe of practically all manufacturing industries to positive effects on the long-run performance of industries. According to these views business turbulence, although it has a relatively small incidence on net entry, leads to allocative improvement and stimulates innovation. The existing set of empirical studies does not reach clear conclusions, however, and many questions are still open. Our contribution analyses the relationship between business dynamics in manufacturing and the growth of total factor productivity in industries and regions. After a review of current literature on entry and exit it is argued that most models are tailored to suit the processes observed in industries and regions that are near the technological frontier, and we propose an approach that could be more representative of middle range economies such as Spain. According to this approach new firms are seen more as users of innovations than producers of innovations. We adopt a model based on a vintage capital framework in which new entrants embody the edge technologies available and exiting businesses are supposed to represent the most marginal obsolete plants. Both industries and regions are represented by a Hall's type production function which controls for imperfect competition and economies of scale. The results show that both entry and exit rates contribute positively to the growth of total factor productivity in industries and in regions.     

The contribution of social tourism to sustainable tourism: a case study of seasonally adjusted programmes in Spain

Recent policy from the European Union has attempted to justify social tourism initiatives on the basis that they lead to a more sustainable tourism industry. However, the majority of latest research in the field has been focused on the benefits for participants, with the addition of some evidence on the economic impacts of such programmes on destinations, which have pointed towards sustainability outcomes including: a longer tourism season, more even spread of demand, and longer periods of employment for tourism workers. Yet there is a lack of direct evidence linking such programme to these outcomes. This paper aimed to explore this important disconnect between policy assumptions and evidence-based outcomes through an analysis of the deseasonalising effects of the Spanish social tourism programme for older people. The research found that this programme does have an effect on the seasonal nature of employment and economic activity in most regions studied, but that the huge volume of demand from international tourists in the high seasons masks the quantitative effects in the regions with the highest seasonal concentration of international tourists. Recommendations for policy and practice in sustainable tourism are made that are transferable to many countries and regions that adopt social tourism programmes.     

Examining the predictive validity of SUS-TAS with maximum parsimony in developing island countries

The Sustainable Tourism Attitude Scale (SUS-TAS) has been used as a tool to gauge the sentiment of local residents toward sustainable tourism development. This scale has been validated in cross-cultural settings by several scholars. In a like manner, in order to validate this scale, data were collected in the Cape Verde islands (off the coast of Africa) and the results showed (1) a parsimonious version of the 21-item SUS-TAS that facilitates the process of data collection without compromising its robustness and psychometric properties, (2) a validated second-order factor model, confirming that the seven factors of SUS-TAS can be loaded in two broader dimensions named “perceived tourism impacts” and “expected tourism sustainability”, (3) a SUS-TAS second-order factor model with validity in predicting residents’ support for sustainable tourism development, (4) that SUS-TAS can be interpreted by seven individual factors and/or as a global factor as indicated by the hierarchical measurement model and predictive validity. Methodological and theoretical interpretations are discussed and future refinement and applications are also offered.