Towards a classification of cultural tourists

This paper proposes a model to segment the cultural tourism market according to two dimensions: (i) the importance of cultural motives in the decision to visit a destination and (ii) depth of experience. The model is tested empirically using Hong Kong as a case study. The test identified five discrete cultural tourism market segments that exhibited substantially different behaviour. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Some Tests of Linear Asset Pricing with Multivariate Normality

The Sharpe-Lintner and Black CAPM, with the CRSP equal or value-weight index, are rejected in American markets during the period January 1956 to December 1980, using a new portfolio-formation and -selection criterion and test statistic. The CAPM is also rejected on the Canadian market with the TSE 300 index or an equal-weight index during the period January 1963 to December 1980. The rejection depends crucially on the ex ante portfolio-formation procedure developed, but the study does demonstrate that rejection is possible using the new maximum-likelihood tests. A replication of the Jobson-Korkie American study on the Canadian market, without the special portfolio formation, shows that the CAPM are rejected in only one of three time-periods. Résumé Les indices Sharpe-Lintner et Black CAPM, ainsi que l'indice CRSP pondéré par rapport à la valeur ou non, sont rejetés dans les marchés américains pendant la période de janvier 1956 à décembre 1980. Une nouvelle formation de portefeuille, de nouveaux critères de sélection, et de nouvelles statistiques empiriques sont utilisées. L'indice CAPM est également rejeté sur le marché canadien de měme que le TSE 300, ou un indice non pondéré par rapport à la valeur pendant la période de janvier 1963 à décembre 1980. Ce rejet dépend principalement de la méthode de formation de portefeuille ex ante développée, mais l'étude démontre cependant que le rejet est possible en utilisant les nouveaux tests de vraisemblance maximale. Une répétition de l'étude américaine Jobson-Korkie sur le marché canadien, sans la formation de portefeuille spéciale, démontre que les indices CAPM sont rejetés au cours d'une des trois périodes seulement.     

Integrating the environmental and economic consequences of converting to organic agriculture: evidence from a case study

In the current debate about the future of food quality, the merits of organic agriculture are frequently championed, but few studies have sought to integrate the changes in soil conditions, biodiversity and socio-economic welfare linked to the conversion from non-organic to organic production. This article aims to undertake this approach with respect to one case study. Its conclusions may not be representative for all organic conversions, but the findings are of relevance at a time of debate over changing patterns of subsidies and other incentives in agricultural policy. The study showed that there were demonstrable differences in overall environmental conditions in the comparison of organic and non-organic farming, with field evidence of increased species diversity, and an eventual improvement in the profitability of the organic farming regime. The broad conclusion is that there are definite environmental and economic advantages arising from organic agriculture that are not fully reflected in the present pattern of agricultural incentives. The study also showed that variations in farm management practice strongly influence the notion of on-farm and off-farm environmental consequences. The implications of these findings for the future of sustainable agriculture and for interdisciplinary science are also discussed.     

Outsourcing and Low-skilled Workers in the UK

Outsourcing is proxied by constructing import penetration terms for groups of countries (distinguishing between imports from industrialized countries and imports from low-wage countries) for each four-digit industry within the broader categories of textiles and non-electrical machinery. The results show that imports from low-wage countries have made a significant contribution to the decline in the wage-bill share and relative employment of the less-skilled in the UK. The degree of outsourcing may differ between industries, and large currency appreciations may have a disproportionately large impact on the economic fortunes of the less-skilled.     

Competitive Bidding and Regional Development in the UK

This article examines competitive bidding among development agencies. Some commentators argue that English regions are at a disadvantage compared with Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales in attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The authors look at the evidence on the attraction of FDI to the regions of the UK and discuss some of the arguments about unfair advantage. The impact of the Regional Development Agencies on FDI and the need for a concordat are also discussed.     

The Spatial Integration of Paddy Markets in Vietnam

This paper examines whether there is spatial integration between and within paddy markets in the north and south of Vietnam. The empirical model developed uses estimates of transfer costs to generalise Ravallion's model of spatial market integration to allow for threshold effects. A sequential testing strategy is used to test for market segmentation, the number of thresholds, long‐run integration, informational efficiency and the Law of One Price within an error‐correction framework. We find neither threshold effects nor weak evidence of paddy market integration between northern and southern Vietnam. There is, however, evidence of both threshold effects and stronger market integration within the Red and Mekong River deltas. Whenever price spreads exceed their thresholds, at least 60% of price changes are transmitted between regional markets within a month. Nonetheless, the instantaneous version of the Law of One Price only holds for a few regimes and market pairs. These results suggest that national level policies cannot be relied upon to stabilise or support paddy prices in Vietnam. Instead, policies need to be designed with the specific production, consumption and marketing characteristics of northern and southern Vietnam in mind.     

Using sparse categorical principal components to estimate asset indices: new methods with an application to rural southeast asia

Asset indices have been used since the late 1990s to measure wealth in developing countries. We extend the standard methodology for estimating asset indices using principal component analysis in two ways: by introducing constraints that force the indices to have increasing value as the number of assets owned increases, and by estimating sparse indices with a few key assets. This is achieved by combining categorical and sparse principal component analysis. We also apply this methodology to the estimation of per capita level asset indices. Using household survey data from northwest Vietnam and northeast Laos, we show that the resulting asset indices improve the prediction and ranking of income both at household and per capita level.     

Institutional logics and innovation in times of crisis: Telemedicine as digital ‘PPE’

How do crises shape digital innovation? In this paper we examine the rapid adoption of digital telemedicine technologies in an Israeli hospital with a focus on the role of the institutional logics held by the stakeholders responding to emerging events. With the onset of COVID-19, the need for social distancing and minimal physical contact challenged and interrupted hospital practices. In response, remote audio-visual functionality of digital technologies were appropriated in different ways, as stakeholders – state actors, managers, health professionals, and family members – sought to improvise and enhance the protection of persons concerned. We show how emerging practices were guided by the dominant institutional logics of stakeholders responding to the crisis. Acting for many as a digital form of ‘personal protective equipment’ (PPE), the technologies enabled diverse action possibilities to become manifest in practices. We add to understanding the role of institutional logics in directing the attention of stakeholders to shape digital innovation in times of crisis.     

Digital innovation and transformation: An institutional perspective

In this conceptual piece we suggest that the institutional perspective is a prolific lens to study digital innovation and transformation. Digital innovation is about the creation and putting into action of novel products and services; by digital transformation we mean the combined effects of several digital innovations bringing about novel actors (and actor constellations), structures, practices, values, and beliefs that change, threaten, replace or complement existing rules of the game within organizations and fields. We identify three types of novel institutional arrangements critical for digital transformation: digital organizational forms, digital institutional infrastructures, and digital institutional building blocks. From this vantage point, an institutional perspective invites us to examine how these novel arrangements gain social approval (i.e. legitimacy) in the eyes of critical stakeholders and their interplay with existing institutional arrangements. Questioning the disruptive talk associated with digital transformation, we draw on the institutional change literature to illustrate the institutionalization challenges and that existing institutional arrangements are pivotal arbiters in deciding whether and how novel arrangements gain acceptance. We close this essay with discussing the implications of an institutional perspective on digital transformation for policy, practice and research.