OCCUPATIONAL IMMOBILITY OF SMALL FARMERS

The small farmer may be reluctant to leave farming because his present income is adequate, he foresees difficulties in finding a satisfactory alternative or he has a strong preference for remaining in his present occupation. A survey carried out during 1967 among occupiers of small full-time farms in the Fens and Hertfordshire investigated causes of occupational immobility. Barriers to mobility beyond the farmer's control, like advanced age and lack of alternatives, were particularly important in the Fens. Younger farmers and those with a non-farm upbringing valued the intangible benefits of farming more highly. Contrary to expectations, farmers with a higher opportunity cost, through location, age and experience, showed stronger attachment to their present job. Since those who could change their occupation will not and those who would change cannot, there seems little prospect of encouraging small farmers to leave farming before they reach retiring age.     

Policy,planning and program development: Case study—adolescent pregnancy

The role of the Federal Government in stimulating local/regional/state action to pursue clearly identified problems is examined, with case study focused on the problem of adolescent pregnancy. Critical analysis is undertaken of the legislative framework within which health policy and programming is formulated and implemented and the directions and limitations inherent in increased volunteerism in the public sector.     

Risk and capital structure in Asian project finance

We develop and test hypotheses derived from a multi-level theoretical framework for understanding factors shaping the credit risk and capital structure of a quintessentially Asian form of investment known as project finance. It differs from other corporate financing approaches. A project company is separate and bankruptcy remote from the investing firm sponsors that create it. The project company relies extensively on debt capital provided by creditors to fund project operations. Creditors provide more (less) debt as a percentage of overall project capital when there is less (more) risk of project failure and non-repayment. We define a target risk framework identifying country-, industry-, syndicate-, firm-, and project-related factors shaping Asian project finance company credit risk and thus, project debt. In a sample of 238 project finance companies announced in 13 Asian countries from 1995–2004, we observe substantial effects on project capital structure with respect to country-level factors linked to institutional and macroeconomic theories, syndicate structure factors linked to agency theory, and lead sponsor experience and project size factors linked to learning and transaction cost theories. We argue that these and other determinants of project finance company credit risk and capital structure in Asia since the mid-1990s anticipate similar relationships now emerging elsewhere around the globe.

Gender and Ethnic Diversity on Boards and Corporate Responsibility: The Case of the Arts Sector

This study provides insights on sector-specific characteristics, challenges and issues that affect corporate responsibility (CR) in relation to ethnicity and gender on arts boards. Using stakeholder theory, the study explores how arts board composition (e.g. gender and ethnicity) sets the scene for dynamics that affect CR. Data analysis is based on interviews with 92 board members and stakeholders sitting on 66 arts boards in Australia. Results suggest that the dynamism of gender and ethnic diversity on arts boards makes them responsive to CR; however, their presence does not always lead to CR. For diverse boards to lead to CR, our findings indicate the significance of board member attributes of passion, skill and capability of developing networks, irrespective of gender and ethnicity. The article advances understanding of the implications and relevance of ethnic and gender diversity on non-profit boards and contributes to an important yet under-researched body of literature.     

The Influence of Board Diversity,Board Diversity Policies and Practices,and Board Inclusion Behaviors on Nonprofit Governance Practices

This study examines how and when nonprofit board performance is impacted by board diversity. Specifically, we investigate board diversity policies and practices as well as board inclusion behaviors as mediating mechanisms for the influence of age, gender, and racial/ethnic diversity of the board on effective board governance practices. The empirical analysis, using a sample of 1,456 nonprofit board chief executive officers, finds that board governance practices are directly influenced by the gender and racial diversity of the board and that board inclusion behaviors together with diversity policies and practices mediate the influence of the board’s gender and racial diversity on internal and external governance practices. Additionally, we found an interaction effect that indicates when boards have greater gender diversity, the negative impact of racial diversity on governance practices is mitigated. The findings suggest that board governance can be improved with more diverse membership, but only if the board behaves inclusively and there are policies and practices in place to allow the diverse members to have an impact.     

Who Owns the Land? Perspectives from Rural Ugandans and Implications for Large-Scale Land Acquisitions

Rapidly growing demand for agricultural land is putting pressure on property-rights systems, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, where customary tenure systems have provided secure land access. Rapid and large-scale demands from outsiders are challenging patterns of gradual, endogenous change toward formalization. Little attention has focused on the gender dimensions of this transformation. However this contribution, based on a 2008–09 study of land tenure in Uganda, analyzes how different definitions of land ownership – including household reports, existence of ownership documents, and rights over the land – provide very different indications of the gendered patterns of land ownership and rights. While many households report husbands and wives as joint owners of the land, women are less likely to be listed on ownership documents, and have fewer rights. A simplistic focus on “title” to land misses much of the reality regarding land tenure and could have an adverse impact on women's land rights.     

As they sow,so shall they reap: customers’ influence on customer satisfaction at the customer interface

Extant research provides valuable knowledge about how firms can satisfy their customers. However, it is unclear how customers themselves contribute to their satisfaction. From a basis in the job demands–resources model, the authors propose a customer demands–resources model. In this model, customer demands (negative customer behaviors) and customer resources (positive customer behaviors) affect customer satisfaction through frontline employees’ customer-oriented attitudes and customer-oriented behaviors. Using dyadic data from 141 frontline employees and 375 customers, this study identifies customer behaviors as an important source of customer satisfaction. Customer demands impede frontline employees’ customer-oriented attitudes and customer satisfaction through frontline employees’ emotional exhaustion, whereas customer resources indirectly increase customer satisfaction. Customer resources also buffer the negative effect of customer demands on frontline employees’ customer-oriented attitudes.