Reviews

GRAND STRATEGY OR DRAINING LAKE WINDERMERE WITH A TEASPOON?

Chandler, J.A. and Lawless, P. 1985: Local Authorities and the Creation of Employment. Aldershot: Gower, £14.50 hardback only.

HOW IT'S DONE IN HAMMERSMITH.

Allan, M., Fenton, M. and Flockhart, A. 1985: Creating a local economic development network. A case study of Hammersmith and Fulham. Dundee Park Place Publishing/The Planning Exchange, £7.50 paperback.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP FOR THE UNEMPLOYED?

Nabarro, R., Davies, R., Cobbold, C. and Galley, N., 1986: Local enterprise and the unemployed. London: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. £4.00 plus 60p postage.

THE CO-OP BANK LOOKS AT CO-OPS.

P. A. Management Consultants Ltd. and Co-operative Bank plc, 1985: Workers Co-operatives Past, Present and Future. Manchester: P. A. Management Consultants (Manchester), £20.00.

HOUSING LAND: ARE PLANNERS LOSING THEIR GRIP?

Rydin, Yvonne, 1986: Housing Land Policy. Aldershot: Gower, £15.00 cloth.

MONETARISTS LOOK AT LIVERPOOL.

Liverpool Research Group in Macroeconomics, 1986: Merseyside Economic Prospect Vol. 1, No. 1 February 1986. Liverpool: University of Liverpool, £6.00.

THE FORGOTTEN DEPRIVATION OF RURAL AREAS.

Association of District Councils, 1986: The Rural Economy At The Crossroads—A Review of Rural Needs and Problems in the '80s. ADC,

9 Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6LE. £5.00.

THE LONDON FINANCIAL STRATEGY.

Greater London Council, 1986: London Financial Strategy London: Greater London Council, £3.50 (now available from London Strategic Policy Unit, 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1).     

Patterns of Corporate Financing and Financial System Convergence in Europe

The paper investigates the possibility of convergence in the European Union (EU) in terms of the patterns of corporate financing by banks, bond markets, and stock markets; and in the context of whether the economies are converging towards an Anglo‐Saxon (capital‐market‐oriented) or a continental (bank‐oriented) financial system. GMM estimation of a dynamic fixed‐effects model is implemented to test for conditional and unconditional convergence using a panel of flow of funds data for the period 1972–1996 for seven EU member countries. It is found that the pattern of corporate financing is consistent with the pecking order theory of financing choices. Overall, the evidence suggests convergence of the EU financial systems on a variant of the Anglo‐Saxon model, depicting heavy reliance on internal financing as well as direct financing via equity and bond markets, while bank debt is becoming relatively less important.     

High-tech, high-touch recruitment: an oxymoron?

A combination of factors has diluted the recruitment experience and created a confluence of elements similar to a perfect storm. Recruitment has morphed from a high-touch experience to a high-tech process. Though we can't go back to those halcyon pre-Internet days, we do need to find a better approach than our current technology-based, fragmented recruitment process. The ideal recruitment scenario would be a marriage of high tech and high touch. We must drive the technology, not let the technology dictate our process.     

Informal Employment Dispute Resolution among Low‐Wage Non‐Union Workers: Does Managerially Initiated Workplace Voice Enhance Equity and Efficiency?

The decline of collective industrial relations has shifted the focus of industrial relations research to the study of individual employment disputes. In this article, we investigate whether employer‐initiated workplace voice is associated with improved resolution of individual complaints or grievances workers make against employers. We find that our measure of workplace voice is associated with less serious problems, more informal methods of dispute resolution, more satisfactory outcomes for workers and lower quit rates. However, these findings need to be set against generally low rates of satisfactory dispute resolution for all employees in our sample.     

An introduction to rural and agricultural development in the digital age

This special issue contributes to the development economics literature by highlighting the role of information communication and technologies (ICTs) in supporting rural and agricultural development. It is comprised of nine papers. Key findings from this special issue include: (1) internet use increases rural consumption diversity and agricultural productivity; (2) smartphone use empowers rural women in household decision-making and off-farm work participation; (3) smartphone-based agricultural extension services boost rural income growth; (4) a lack of ICT infrastructure and inadequate skills to use digital technologies are two key factors that lead to digital poverty traps for smallholder rural farmers; (5) ICT adoption increases the probability of rural households' access to credit and empowers rural women and farm households in relatively less developed regions to access credit; (6) digital financial inclusion reduces farmers' vulnerability to poverty; and (7) e-commerce adoption increases both sales prices and marketing costs, but the magnitude of increasing the former is higher than the magnitude of increasing the latter, which finally contributes to a higher gross return. This special issue also proposes practical instruments and implications for advancing the application of ICTs in rural areas to accelerate rural and agricultural development in the digital age.     

Living Labs as an Approach to Strengthen Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems

Climate and ecosystem changes, economic and policy imperatives, food system pressures, and multiple societal expectations pose complex challenges for sustainable farming. A key problem is determining an effective and efficient approach to enable innovation in complex, multi-stakeholder settings. One approach currently receiving much policy attention and investment in the EU is ‘Living Labs’ which bring together public and private stakeholders to co-create, validate, and test new services, business ideas, markets and technologies. However, the analysis, monitoring and evaluation of Living Labs and their effectiveness and policy value in different contexts is limited. The AgriLink Living Labs were undertaken between 2018 and 2021 in Italy, Latvia, The Netherlands, Norway, Romania and Spain to co-create innovation support for improving agricultural sustainability. Our evaluation suggests that four inter-related critical conditions are needed for the success of Living Labs. These relate to the complexity of the challenge, the enabling environment, the proficient facilitation and the energy to move. These conditions influence the functioning of the Living Lab and we discuss the implications for policymakers and practitioners for the deployment of Living Labs in agricultural settings.     

In search of heterotopia? Motivations of visitors to an English cathedral

This paper explores visitor motivations at an English cathedral, and the role that heterotopia plays in their motives. More than a third of visitors to Chichester Cathedral appear to be motivated by a subconscious search for a spiritual experience, hidden by rational motives such as interest in history. It concludes by examining the management implications that arise from a potential lack of understanding about visitors' motivations. Cathedral managers should acknowledge their visitors' intrinsic sense of spirituality and recognise their spiritual motivations through interpretation, which should encourage them to explore their personal narratives around the emotional dimension of visiting a cathedral. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The link between formality and procedural fairness: The influences of precision,sensitivity and role clarity

This study investigates the complex and not straight-forward association between formality and procedural fairness. It examines the mediating roles of precision of performance measures, sensitivity of performance measures and role clarity. Using survey responses of functional managers of Australian manufacturing firms, the study finds that the link between formality and procedural fairness is mediated by sensitivity of performance measures and role clarity. Role clarity also mediates the link between sensitivity of performance measures and procedural fairness. Our study contributes to the literature by identifying two important factors through which formal performance evaluation can enhance procedural fairness, which is a source of performance motivation.