Interdisciplinary agenda

Recreation trends and mountain resort development, April 1991, Vail, Colorado, USA.     

Strategies and Performance in the Thrift Industry: 1979–1987

From the late seventies until 1989, the regulatory environment of the thrift industry was changed from one that permitted little managerial discretion to one in which managers were allowed to choose from a wide variety of lending and borrowing activities. In this article, cluster analysis is used to separate thrifts into strategic groups based on the extent to which they utilized their new powers. Differences among the groups and the relationship between group membership and performance is tested over the period 1979–1987 using analysis of variance.     

East-West economic cooperation

Beyond the existing forms of East-West cooperation in Europe such as economic assistance, loans, joint ventures and association agreements, both sides are looking for suitable ways of establishing more institutionalized relations. Already existing institutions, membership of which could be offered to the new market economies, are EFTA, the European Economic Area (EEA) and the EU. This article discusses the effects of membership for both eastern and western countries in the light of their differing interests.     

The Courts and College Football: New Playing Rules Off the Field?

A bstract . Oklahoma and Georgia, two outstanding college football contenders, challenged the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) long standing control over television sales of game broadcasts. The case, Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma and the University of Georgia Athletic Association vs. National Collegiate Athletic Association , alleged violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act. ¹ It captured the attention of those involved in sports and of the legal profession but its significance is wider. It involved basic economic issues. Plaintiffs held that television was not a threat to ticket revenues, the NCAA structure gave control to colleges with little or no interest in football. and the arrangement did not achieve competitive balance. The NCAA's behavior is found to be that of a classic cartel and ending its control widened consumer choice and upgraded product quality.     

The Demand and Supply of Mortgage Funds and Mortgage Loan Terms

The supply of and demand for residential mortgages has been the subject of much discussion in the literature. Many of these studies have used single equation, partial adjustment models with the price specified as the contract rate. In this study, two of the assumptions that underlie these previous studies are tested empirically. First, the proper specification of the price of mortgage funds is tested by using both the contract rate alone and all of the terms of the mortgage as the price. Second, the speed of adjustment in the mortgage market is examined by estimating the model in both the instantaneous adjustment and partial adjustment forms. Both of these tests are carried out using a simultaneous equation rather than a single equation model. The empirical results indicate that the contract rate along with the loan initiation fees, the loan-to-value ratio and the maturity is the better specification of price and that the partial adjustment model performs better than the instantaneous model in the mortgage market.     

Peer Interactions in Shared Technological Activity: A Study of Participation

This study assumes a sociocultural perspective which draws on the work of Vygotsky (1986) and his focus on the cognitive development of children as it emerges through social interaction, mediated by language. The data in this report are derived from transcribed video tape of one pair of Grade 6 students working on an assigned task of building a robot with eyes which light up. In an analysis of the shared interactions, the nature of the participation through the talk and action constituting the design and make task is examined. This is portrayed as enactment of complementary roles, participatory contributions, and the use of tools. The study raises questions about the nature of participation in shared technological activity.     

Share Prices and Macroeconomic Factors

The APT with macroeconomic factors put forward by Chen, Roll and Ross (1986) was tested using monthly Australian sectoral share-price indexes for 1980–1994. The inflation rate was found to be consistently priced. The significance of other factors was found to depend on the choice of sample period and estimation method. The model was compared to both an APT with artificial factors and the CAPM. Both versions of the APT were found to clearly out-perform the CAPM but neither version of the APT was clearly superior to the other in terms of both within- and out-of-sample explanatory power.     

Measuring the Measurable: Why can’t we Agree on the Number of Telecommuters in the U.S.?

Using telecommuting as a case study, we demonstrate that definitions, measurement instruments, sampling and sometimes vested interests affect the quality and utility even of seemingly objective and “measurable” data. Little consensus exists with respect to the definition of telecommuting, or to possible distinctions from related terms such as teleworking. Such a consensus is unlikely, since the “best” definition of telecommuting depends on one’s point of reference and purpose. However, differing definitions confound efforts to measure the amount of telecommuting and how it is changing over time. This paper evaluates estimates of the amounts of telecommuting occurring in the U.S. obtained from several different sources: the U.S. Census, the American Housing Survey, several Work at Home supplements to the Current Population Survey, a series of market research surveys, and the trade association-sponsored Telework America surveys. Many of the issues raised here are transferable to other contexts, and indirectly serve as suggestions for improving data collection in the future.     

Equal Opportunity for Women in Intercollegiate Sports: Financial Aid and Family Background as Major Influences on Female Participation in Competitive Programs

A bstract . Financial aid is an important factor in determining women's rate of participation in intercollegiate sports and is likely to become an even more important influence. Regression analysis of data from a representative sample of female athletes attending institutions in the two major divisions of the National Intercollegiate Athletic Association and of financial information from the institutions shows that socioeconomic background also is a major factor. Other variables that explain such participation are total non-scholarship direct expenditures (a proxy for quality), birth order and per capita direct expenditures. Although a university's or college's dollar commitment is having a major impact, economic considerations indicate there are some potential dangers in allocating grants according to the ratio of female to male athletes.     

Letter from the oasis: Helping engineering students to become sustainability professionals

Sustainability scientists call for education that produces ‘sustainability professionals’, who understand the need for sustainability and can work towards it. However, students often have very different ideas, usually based on an expectation of continued unlimited economic growth. This paper, based on research with large, diverse, first year engineering cohorts, argues that a reflective process and on-line support can contribute to a learning oasis—a supportive environment that encourages students to leave their cultural and intellectual comfort zones. In these circumstances, most students will engage with the personal and professional challenges of what it means to be Globo sapiens, a wise global citizen and global sustainability professional for an increasingly complex century.¹