Media and the American Mind: From Morse to Mcluhan. Czitrom,Daniel J. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1982, 254 pp. $19.95 cloth; $7.95 paperback

Abstract

In this article, the authors expand upon their previously published findings (9) on the use of Spanish-language broadcasting. Discriminant analysis was used to produce a profile of Mexican-Americans who prefer Spanish-language television over English-language television. A comparison of this profile with that previously derived for Spanish-language radio listeners indicates that while there is some overlap between these audiences, they are far from identical. The implications of these results should be considered by those anticipating implementing an ethnic segmentation strategy utilizing Spanish-language radio or television.     

Optimal Phasing and Inventory Decisions for Large-Scale Residential Development Projects

Land developers in select economic environments have been found to build in large increments and hold substantial amounts of inventory despite their ability to mitigate risk by phasing the production of residential lots. Such behavior was observed in numerous metropolitan areas throughout the southeastern and southwestern United States in the years leading up to financial crises, resulting in inventories of tens of thousands of lots in cities such as Atlanta, Las Vegas and Orlando, just to name a few. The model presented in this paper explores the rationale behind the choices made by developers in these markets and others by extending the real options framework to concurrently estimate optimal phasing and inventory decisions for large-scale residential development projects. Modeled interactions between several variables indicate that full development, smooth phased development and lumpy development can all be optimal under different market conditions, with each pattern feeding back into inventory levels and lot pricing.     

Subprime Borrowers: Mortgage Transitions and Outcomes

Public policy concerns increasingly have focused on subprime lending. Our research uses a survey of prime and subprime borrowers to address whether borrowers inappropriately are channeled to the subprime segment, if once having taken out a subprime mortgage borrowers are stuck in this market segment, and whether borrowers face higher costs by taking out subprime mortgages. We find that subprime borrowers are less knowledgeable about the mortgage process, are less likely to search for the best mortgage rates, and are less likely to be offered a choice among alternative mortgage terms and instruments—possibly making them more vulnerable to unfavorable mortgage outcomes. Our analysis of market segmentation confirms that typical mortgage underwriting criteria are most important in explaining whether borrowers obtain prime or subprime mortgages—higher credit risk borrowers are more likely to get a subprime loan. Our results further show that search behavior and other demographic factors including adverse life events, age, and Hispanic ethnicity contribute to explaining market segment, suggesting that borrowers may inappropriately receive subprime mortgages. While we find some persistence to market segment—borrowers are more likely to take out a subprime mortgage if their previous mortgage came from the subprime segment—we also find that market segment is not immutable. Analysis of the survey responses indicates that borrowers with subprime mortgages significantly are more dissatisfied with their mortgage outcomes. This is not surprising because subprime borrowers look worse across typical mortgage underwriting criteria. Consistent with policy concerns, however, despite holding constant these and other factors, taking out a mortgage in the subprime segment, by itself, appears to increase dissatisfaction with mortgage outcomes. We do not provide a definitive answer to the question of whether subprime lending, on balance, serves homebuyers well by providing access to mortgage credit to those otherwise constrained, or rather serves homebuyers poorly by inappropriately assigning them to a market where costs are high and the ability to transition to more attractive prime mortgages remains low. Our analysis, however, does provide some empirical support for concerns raised by critics of subprime lending, and for this reason justifies continued public policy debate and analysis.     

A multivariate analysis of responses to dissatisfaction

Although consumer dissatisfaction is ubiquitous in the marketplace, empirical studies of dissatisfaction have been narrow in focus. This is especially true for studies of responses to dissatisfaction, for these investigations tend to ignore all dissatisfaction responses except complaint behavior. The study reported here replicates and extends an earlier investigation by concurrently examining three dissatisfaction responses—complaints, word of mouth, and brand switching intentions. Three sets of variables were examined in relationship to these responses: characteristics of the product problem, perceptions of the redress environment, and consumer characteristics. Complaint behavior and intention to switch brands showed strongest relationships with the first two types of variables. Word of mouth, on the other hand, seemed to be more heavily influenced by the consumer’s level of social interaction, a consumer characteristic. Findings indicate that the three dissatisfaction responses are independent in that they share little if any common variance and they seem to be influenced in different ways by the correlates studied.     

Impact of purchasing systems contracts on distributors and procedures

Under systems contracting the buyer is supplied with all of his MRO items from a single source. This article discusses some important marketing strategy implications of systems contracting for both the manufacturer and industrial distributor of MRO items.     

Cross-cultural differences in consumer attitudes and their implications for complaint management

While several authors have urged the tailoring of the marketing mix to cultures served by multinational organizations, no research has specifically addressed the need to handle product-related customer dissatisfaction differently in different countries. This article presents evidence documenting the need to make such culture-specific adjustments and reports a cross-national comparison of consumer attitudes toward seeking redress in two countries.     

The compliance cost of taxing foreign-source income: Its magnitude,determinants, and policy implications

This paper uses survey evidence to estimate the compliance cost of the U.S. system of taxing foreign-source income. The evidence suggests that this cost is about 40 percent of the total tax-compliance cost of large U.S. corporations, which is disproportionately higher than the aggregate share of assets, sales, and employment that is abroad. It is also very high compared to the revenue raised by the United States from taxing foreign-source income, although this comparison must be qualified because arguably a principal purpose of this system is to protect U.S. revenues collected on domestic-source income. The disproportionate compliance cost of foreign-source income is not apparent in a survey of European-based multinational corporations.     

Value co-creation: concept and measurement

The surge in academic and practical interest in the topic of value co-creation (VCC) highlights an equivocal understanding of its conceptual boundaries and empirical constituents. Our search of the diverse scholarly literature on VCC identified 149 papers, from which we extract the two primary conceptual VCC dimensions of co-production and value-in-use. Though the combination of these two distinct dimensions is theoretically necessary to describe VCC, 79% of the studies in our dataset consider only one or the other. Such underlying theoretical ambiguity may explain conflicting results in earlier studies and motivates our effort to offer four contributions to the literature. First, we conduct a rigorous review, integrating existing work to expose the theoretical core of VCC. Second, we utilize the results from our review to isolate the two main theoretical dimensions of VCC and expose the three conceptual elements which underlie each dimension. Third, we apply our theoretical findings to derive empirical measurement constructs for each dimension. Fourth, we refine, analyze, and test the resulting measurement index in an investigation into consumer satisfaction.     

Institutional arrangements of outgrower sugarcane production in Southern Africa

ABSTRACT

Management models are needed that empower local communities to produce biofuel feedstock in a manner that drives rural development. Much can be learnt through the accumulated experiences of sugarcane outgrower schemes in southern Africa. Early schemes provided limited empowerment, but protected outgrowers from the risks of volatile sugar value chains. In later schemes, processing plants were responsible for all operations and simply paid dividends to participating farmers. More recent schemes offer full ownership, which comes with greater rewards and empowerment, but also exposure to risks. The underlying institutional structures of outgrower schemes largely dictate their performance, and thus the factors that affect their viability or collapse. To understand the different institutional arrangements of sugarcane outgrower schemes we undertake a comparative analysis of 13 schemes in southern Africa employing a political economy framework that uses the three key questions: ‘who owns what’, ‘who does what’, and ‘who gets what’.