Gatt regulation of countertrade: Issues and prospects

In light of persistent hard currency shortages, an increasing number of countries and firms resort to countertrade. Although this practice has the potential to become a major threat to the world trade framework, it is currently not specifically addressed by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). From the context of the upcoming international trade negotiations, this article explores the extent to which countertrade practices are, and should be, incorporated into the GATT framework. It analyzes current GATT jurisdiction, presents policy considerations in favor of and against the inclusion of countertrade into the GATT, and addresses practical considerations to be kept in mind during negotiations on this issue.     

Role Theory and the Management of Service Encounters

In this article, the contribution of role theory to our understanding and management of service encounters is highlighted. In the first section of the article the focus on social exchange within role theory is identified and commonalities between relational approaches to marketing and a role theoretical perspective are outlined. Thereafter the article outlines the specific contribution of role theory to our understanding of service encounters. Role theory, it is argued, permits better management of the interactive features of service provider-client interface and a clearer focus on role performance and the interpersonal dimensions of service quality. Role analysis offers both focus on role consistency in service provision and a framework for dealing with the uncertainty and evolution in long term service relationships. In services marketing, role can be incorporated as a factor in successful service performance and form a central framework for good service encounter management.     

The impact of scanning on employment in UK food stores: A preliminary analysis

New technology increasingly is being introduced into retailing at the operational level. One particular example is bar code scanning in food stores. By July 1986 there were 636 shops in the UK with operational scanning systems at point‐of‐sale, and of these 60 per cent were food stores. It has been suggested that scanning checkouts can cause change in employment structures and even job loss. This paper investigates some of the employment implications of laser scanning checkouts in a sample of food stores.     

THE CHANGING ROLE OF NON-FARM ACTIVITIES IN AGRICULTURAL HOUSEHOLDS IN INDONESIA: SOME INSIGHTS FROM THE AGRICULTURAL CENSUSES

The literature on off-farm sources of income in rural areas of developing countries continues to grow. This paper uses data from the household income surveys carried out as part of the 1983 and 1993 agricultural censuses to explore aspects of the changing role of off-farm income sources for agricultural households in different parts of Indonesia. The paper examines variations in the ratio of off-farm to total agricultural household income by holding size, by total household income class and by province. It also examines the linkages between on-farm and off-farm income growth. Comparisons are made with findings from other parts of Asia and elsewhere in the developing world.     

Devaluation and its consequences in developing countries

To analyze the role of the trade and payments regime in economic development the National Bureau of Economic Research undertook a major research project on this issue. In this article a brief report on some of the findings pertaining to the effect of exchange rates, i. e. devaluation under exchange control is provided.     

The enemies of trust

Researchers have established that trust is critical to organizational effectiveness. Being trustworthy yourself, however, does not guarantee that you are capable of building trust in an organization. That takes old-fashioned managerial virtues like consistency, clear communication, and a willingness to tackle awkward questions. It also requires a good defense: You must protect trust from its enemies. Any act of bad management erodes trust, so the list of potential enemies is endless. Among the most common enemies of trust, though, are inconsistent messages from top management, inconsistent standards, a willingness to tolerate incompetence or bad behavior, dishonest feedback, a failure to trust others to do good work, a tendency to ignore painful or politically charged situations, consistent corporate underperformance, and rumors. Fending off these enemies must be at the top of every chief executive's agenda. But even with constant vigilance, an organization and its leaders will sometimes lose people's trust. During a crisis, managers should enlist the help of an objective third party--chances are you won't be thinking clearly--and be available physically and emotionally. If you "go dark" in the face of a crisis, employees will worry about the company's survival, about their own capacity to cope, and about your abilities as a leader. And if trust has broken down so badly that your only choice is to start over, you can do so by figuring out exactly how the breach of trust happened, ascertaining the depth and breadth of the loss, owning up to the loss instead of downplaying it, and identifying as precisely as possible the specific changes you must make to rebuild trust.     

The dynamics of positive action in UK trade unions: the case of women and black members

This paper considers positive action strategies amongst UK trade unions, aimed at increasing membership and levels of participation and representation among women and black workers. It provides an overview of women’s, black members’ and race structures within large Trades Union Congress unions and a detailed case study of one large UK trade union. We find that there are salient differences in the way that unions approach issues of gender equality, compared with the approach adopted towards race equality. The paper explores possible explanations, justifications and implications of these differences.     

An Exploratory Study of Regulatory Failure in the Australian Home Mortgage Market

Regulators have long been interested in protecting consumers borrowing for a home as it is likely the single greatest financial obligation they will undertake. In this paper we examine the approach taken in Australia to mandating the disclosure of simple comparison data to reduce the complexity involved in the home loan decision. This article highlights that while the form of the legislated disclosure significantly improves decision accuracy, the failure of the regulator to account for the consumer's purchase behavior and lenders' motivations has undermined its effectiveness. We provide a number of recommendations for how to rectify these failings, principally that regulators need to consider the role of borrower information search and lender motivation as part of any regulatory reform.     

Personalized charity advertising. Can personalized prosocial messages promote empathy,attitude change,and helping intentions toward stigmatized social groups?

This study examines the role of personalized charity advertising in promoting empathy, attitude change, and helping intentions toward stigmatized social groups. Based on theories of message involvement, empathy, and reactance, we predicted that higher levels of involvement elicited by a personalized charity advertisement would reinforce empathy and prosocial outcomes. An online experiment was conducted using a personalized and a nonpersonalized version of a charity advertisement for a campaign soliciting donations of winter coats for homeless people. As expected, structural equation modeling revealed a positive indirect effect of personalization on prosocial outcomes (attitudes and behavioural intentions toward homeless people, and willingness to donate to the campaign) that was mediated by involvement and empathy. However, in addition to promoting involvement and empathy, personalization also led to heightened reactance, which detracted from the positive effects. Theoretical as well as practical implications of the findings for personalized charity advertising are discussed.