A Semi-parametric Estimator of Willingness-to-pay Applied to Dichotomous Choice Contingent Valuation Data

The use of dichotomous choice questions (Are you willing to pay $x?) has been advocated as superior to open ended questions (What would you be willing to pay?) in contingent valuation studies of non‐market goods. A supplementary dichotomous choice question, raising or lowering the bid price depending on the initial response, gives increased precision. However, a problem with these methods is that identifying the mean willingness to pay (WTP) is more complex, and often conditional on making a distributional assumption. This paper will present a semi‐parametric method for estimating WTP without invoking any such assumptions, using the interval inherent in the double bounded format, and based on estimating the underlying hazard function for the distribution of WTP. An advantage of the approach over other non‐parametric methods is that it allows one to include respondent characteristics as determinants of the individual decisions, and does so within a computationally straightforward framework.     

Combating the effects of turnover: Military lessons learned from project teams rebuilding Iraq

The literature concerning turnover has traditionally been composed of studies and analyses which assume that turnover rates are malleable, and can be reduced. We take the opposite position and contend that turnover rates for certain organizations are not variable, but rather remain fixed. Is it possible, then, to reduce the deleterious effects of turnover without reducing the actual churn of individuals? To answer this question, we draw from experiences of the U.S. military during Operation Iraqi Freedom, in order to learn from its methods of dealing with high personnel turnover during the management of projects. Specifically, we offer four best practices that reduce the negative effects of turnover, while allowing the rate itself to remain constant. These best practices aim toward sharing the knowledge and mental models critical for sustained operations, to insulate the organization against the departure of key personnel. Herein, we demonstrate how efficient operations can be maintained amidst high churn rates.     

Rethinking the UK System of Doctoral Training in Marketing

There have been considerable changes in the system of doctoral education and training in the UK over the last decade. Despite the introduction of a range of ESRC initiatives, the UK marketing academy has been slow to actively debate this aspect of marketing education. This approach is different from that in the US where doctoral training practices in marketing have been widely debated by the AMA. The paper aims to fill this gap by critically assessing the UK system of doctoral training in marketing. The article begins with a brief overview of the historical development of postgraduate education and training in the UK in order to contextualise the subsequent discussion. Some of the most influential reports and policy documents over the last 40 years will be assessed, specifically in relation to how they have shaped, and continue to shape, ESRC policy and postgraduate education more generally in the UK. A critical evaluation of the existing research guidelines in marketing is undertaken and the need for more specific guidelines and a more wide-ranging and inclusive approach to the syllabus than is currently offered in many UK universities is proposed. The paper also explores the importance of staff expertise and critical mass in the context of delivering cost-effective, specialised provision. The article concludes by proposing new structures that marketing departments may wish to consider in delivering research training through the use of coalitions and the use of up-to-date developments in information technology.     

Spatial and Scope Effects: Valuations of Coastal Management Practices

We explore how values for environmental management in the Kimberley region of Australia respond to changes in spatial scale and attribute scope. A discrete choice experiment was conducted that included the impacts of management on marine no‐take areas, Aboriginal rangers, recreational facilities, and coastal development. A split sample single‐site design was used to estimate values for the Kimberley region as a whole, and for two separate smaller sub‐regions, allowing us to test for spatial preference heterogeneity. Management outcomes for different regions were displayed on a map to show respondents explicitly where outcomes would occur. We show that willingness to pay results are similar between the two smaller sub‐regions, and that willingness to pay for the attributes increased when management occurred at the larger geographical scale. However, respondents were somewhat insensitive to changes in the scope of the two cardinal attributes: area of no‐take and number of rangers. We discuss the implications of this spatial and scope insensitivity for choice experiment research.     

Changes in consumer choice: Further investigation of similarity and attraction effects

Attraction and substitution effects have been shown to be important determinants of brand choice when a new brand is added to a choice set. A simple framework is proposed for predicting the effect on relative market shares when a new brand is added to the choice set in an experimental setting. The study attempts to replicate previous results concerning the relative impact of attraction and similarity and to extend empirical findings to brand attribute positionings not examined in recent research on the attraction effect. Generally, the proposed framework operates as hypothesized, and results suggest that, in some instances, a new brand may benefit substantially from the joint effects of attraction and similarity.