Passionate about designing

In the school based subject of design and technology (D&T) a fundamental element is designing and making functional products using critical and creative thinking whilst developing skills in the use of a variety of processes and materials. Teachers of the subject need to be more then just ‘enthusiastic’ about the processes involved if they are to develop enthusiasm in their pupils that will sustain them through the exciting but sometimes arduous and difficult processes required to achieve outcomes of which they and their teachers can be proud. The intention of this research project, using an initial sample of forty-nine students and a non-probability purposive sample of ten students studying to become D&T teachers was to tease out the factors which appear to enable some students to be passionate about creating a product to a given brief while others from similar backgrounds and expectations, given the same brief, and in the same learning situation, do not reach this level of enthusiasm. The data collection method used was an attitude scale and semi-structured interviews which were qualitatively analysed in order to identify factors involved, with the intention of informing and improving the way the authors teach their students, to design, and about design, with the additional aim of improving the students teaching of that activity once they become D&T teachers. Within the full paper results are discussed and tentative conclusions drawn.     

Book reviews

Abstract

This article examines the cultural field of fitness as a network of producers, consumers, products and practices that has developed around the care of the body through physical exercise. Drawing on a thematic text analysis of US exercise manuals, the paper focuses on how the commercial fitness field naturalizes associations between physical exercise and leisure, and between leisure and self‐work. In particular, the analysis examines three themes and their relevance to our broader understanding of leisure in contemporary consumer society: the management of leisure time; the use of leisure for self‐investment strategies; and the promotion of consumption as the framework for leisure and an accompanying notion of pleasure. The fitness field casts light on how leisure more generally is constructed as a sphere of obligations to make productive use of one’s time, to improve one’s body and self, and to do so through the wares of the consumer marketplace. The cultural imaginary of leisure as a time of freedom from work and responsibility is thus recast, in an age of individualization, as a time of freedom to accomplish the work of self‐production.     

The future of bioregional planning in the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere region

This paper assesses the current status and future prospects for bioregional planning in the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere (SAMAB) region in the United States. The SAMAB region is one of the most biodiverse temperate regions in the world. The region's environment is threatened by development, air and water pollution, and invasive species. Numerous institutions in the region have some responsibility for protecting the region's environment, including the National Park Service, the US Forest Service, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, several states, hundreds of municipalities, and numerous active non-profit organizations. Twenty-seven people associated with bioregional planning were interviewed to gauge their opinions on the state of bioregional planning in the SAMAB region. Overall, the respondents do not believe that the totality of all those efforts comprises bioregional planning because the efforts are limited in scale and scope and somewhat uncoordinated. With respect to the future of the region, the respondents found it difficult to imagine the state of the region 50 and especially 200 years into the future. Additionally, almost all of their definitions of bioregional planning included a spatial dimension but none included a time dimension. Thus, one of our conclusions is that the future of bioregional planning in the region will be hampered by difficulties people responsible for environmental protection have in dealing with ‘the future’. Much effort needs to be expended to inculcate people in the region with the desire to anticipate problems long before they occur. Reactive responses, which characterize the majority of current efforts, are likely to be ‘too little, too late’.     

Impacts of technology readiness on emotions and cognition in Brazil

This study proposes and tests an extended model for consumer adoption of high technology products in a Latin American country (Brazil) by integrating concepts present in the consumer behavior literature: the Consumer Acceptance of Technology model (Kulviwat et al., 2007) and the technology readiness construct (Parasuraman, 2000). The proposed model considers the relationships between cognitive and affective constructs with technology readiness. By means of structural equation modeling conducted on a sample of 435 young consumers, the results indicate significant relationships between the constructs assessed, showing that consumers' cognitive and affective evaluations of new technologies are significantly influenced by their technology readiness. The effects of technology readiness over affective assessments were greater than those relative to cognitive evaluations regarding high-tech innovations. Nonetheless, the results may reflect specific characteristics of Brazilian (and other Latin American) consumers, who are usually more emotive than those of more rational cultures.     

Authentic British food products: a review of consumer perceptions

Historically, soil, land, climatic constraints and individuals’ skills all contributed to the characteristics of regional food. Food, however, is also subject to the influences of colonialism, immigration, cultural exchange, international trade, improved distribution and technology. British food is constantly evolving in order to fulfil the demands of each generation. Thus, the concept of an authentic British food product is becoming increasingly unclear. This paper therefore addresses what today British consumers actually perceive to be authentic British foods. Results of an exploratory qualitative study are reviewed. Five focus groups were conducted with individuals responsible for half or more of their household’s shopping. The groups incorporated consumers with a range of demographic and economic characteristics. The data gathered from the focus groups revealed that British perceptions of authenticity relate to both artisan as well mass‐produced, branded products. In addition, five dimensions affecting consumer perceptions of an authentic British food product were identified, including: uniqueness to Britain, a cultural or traditional association with Britain, characteristics of the production process, the presence of an authority and specific extrinsic characteristics of the product. The findings have implications for product differentiation and communication, for producers and retailers and also for independent trade associations.     

Controlled infection! Spreading the brand message through viral marketing

Viral marketing uses electronic communications to trigger brand messages throughout a widespread network of buyers. The process is often portrayed as a random ground-up phenomenon over which marketers have little control. But an examination of successful viral marketing cases identifies a number of strategies underpinning this chaotic phenomenon, providing insight into how marketers can use it to position their brands, change their image, and increase adoption rates. Successful viral marketing campaigns are comprised of an engaging message that involves imagination, fun and intrigue, encourages ease of use and visibility, targets credible sources, and leverages combinations of technology.     

上海世博会河北巡展精彩纷呈

2008年4月10日,由世博集团上海现代国际展览公司全程协助上海世博会事务协调局新闻宣传部,负责设计制作的"走进世博会"大型展览于4月10日上午在石家庄市人民会堂隆重开幕。开幕式之后,上海世博会吉祥物"海宝"的大型塑像安放在石市人民会堂南门两侧,据了解这是"海宝"第一次走出上海,并且将永远留在河北。     

美国中产家庭破产潮

很难想象,在人们印象中富裕的美国却逐渐形成家庭破产的潮流,而这些家庭中的大部分却是被标榜为社会中坚力量的中产阶级.     

ANALYST BEHAVIOR SURROUNDING TENDER OFFER ANNOUNCEMENTS

We examine the usefulness and credibility of analyst recommendations by focusing on their behavior surrounding tender offer announcements. For our 1998–2001 sample, we find analysts did not identify takeover targets through their recommendations nor did they distinguish between wealth‐increasing and wealth‐decreasing tender offers. We find some evidence of conflicts of interest in analyst recommendations, but it is confined to the 1999–2000 dot‐com period. However, the long‐run performance following recommendations suggests that these conflicts have little ultimate cost to investors.     

Mutual funds as monitors: Evidence from mutual fund voting

We address how mutual funds vote on shareholder proposals and identify factors that help determine support of wealth-increasing shareholder proposals. We examine 213,579 voting decisions made by 1799 mutual funds from 94 fund families for 1047 shareholder proposals voted on between July 2003 and June 2005. In an analysis of voting across funds within the same fund family, we find significant divergence in voting within families, emphasizing the importance of focusing on voting by individual funds. We also find that, in general, mutual funds vote more affirmatively for potentially wealth-increasing proposals and funds' voting approval rates for these beneficial resolutions are significantly higher than those of other investors. Our results suggest that funds tend to support proposals targeting firms with weaker governance. We also find that funds with lower turnover ratios and social funds are more likely to support shareholder proposals. Finally, fund voting approval rates significantly impact whether a proposal passes and whether one is implemented.