European Tourism Product Purchase Methods and Systems

The distribution of tourism products, within Western Europe, is being affected by consumer needs as well as technological advancement. This article attempts to identify the current trends in distribution usage as well as the pressures which may bring about a shift in purchase behaviour, especially in relation to buying direct from wholesalers. In conclusion, the article identifies the current adoption of technology as one means of creating long-term advantage in the travel industry. However, it also reveals that direct agency channels could be developed if companies were willing to take advantage of the emergence of new opportunities.     

Readings in Public and Nonprofit Marketing. Lovelock,Christopher H., and Charles B. Weinberg. Palo Alto,Calif.: The Scientific Press,the Stanford Barn, 1978

Abstract

In a recent paper, Johar and Sirgy have proposed a hypothesis that value-expressive advertising appeals are persuasive when the product is value-expressive, whereas utilitarian appeals are persuasive when the product is utilitarian. Johar and Sirgy suggested that future research be directed at testing these hypotheses. This comment points out that direct support for these hypotheses already exists. The experimental evidence in support of these and related predictions is discussed. Suggestions for future research on the effectiveness of utilitarian versus value-expressive appeals are offered.     

Understanding regional high-order service growth in Canada: a cointegration approach

Does employment in regional ‘high-order’ service industries cause d~used regional economic growth (as held by subsidy proponents), or vice versa (as held by detractors), or do feedback systems exist where causality runs in both directions simultaneously? We use time series data for GDP and employment for two principal NAICS service industry classifications to test for evidence of long-run equilibria and causality relationships between these variables for Canada and five provinces. The preliminary results suggest some surprising regional variations that are relevant whether or not one believes that firm-specific subsidies hold the elusive key to prosperity in peripheral regions.     

Explaining employers' illicit envelope wage payments in the EU‐27: a product of over‐regulation or under‐regulation?

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the prevalence in the 27 member states of the European Union of a little discussed illicit wage arrangement in which formal employees are paid two wages by their formal employers – an official declared salary and an additional undeclared wage, thus allowing employers to evade their full social insurance and tax liabilities. Reporting the results of a 2007 Eurobarometer survey involving 26,659 face‐to‐face interviews, the finding is that one in 18 formal employees received such an envelope wage from their formal employer and that envelope wage payments are more prevalent in member states with lower (rather than higher) levels of state intervention. The tentative conclusion is that illicit envelope wage payments are a product of under‐regulation, rather than over‐regulation, and that further research is now required to test the validity analysis of this thesis in other global regions.     

Identification of Marketing Needs and Means of Communication of Romanian Marketing Companies in the Context of the Knowledge Society

A few decades ago, academics and economic pundits used to say that information is the main source of power. However, in the Knowledge Society, as we experience it today, information is readily available for everyone, and the real challenge is to master modern and complex information analysis tools, which can make sense of the information overflow of modern society, thus constituting the true competitive advantages of major economic players. For a competent analyst, data generated by a survey, for instance, can reveal paramount information about consumer behavior, competitive strategies, or any other economic and social environment-related aspect deemed important. The marketing needs of Romanian marketing companies are very diversified, commencing with the research of the needs and demand on the target market, going down to the 4Ps (Product, Price, Promotion, and Placement) and their components. The present marketing research was performed using seven categories of information sources: specialized publications in marketing; specialized publications in economics; information provided by specialized institutions in consultancy and marketing research; information provided by individual marketing specialists; information provided by advertising agencies; information provided by the economic sections of the daily newspapers; and job Websites.     

The revealed comparative advantage of the east asian NICs

The spectacular export performance of the East Asian NICs is clearly indicated by their increasing shares of manufactured exports in the world markets. However, the conventional wisdom that the comparative advantage of industrialized countries such as Japan has systematically shifted to the NICs is challenged by the results from this study. A detailed analysis of the threedigit SITC product categories for manufactures indicates that NIC exports have not replaced Japan's in the U.S. market. The growth of manufactured exports from the NICs is moving along with the growth of Japan's exports in similar product categories but at different stages of the product cycle or of technology sophistication. Hence, the NICs, rather than replacing the exports from Japan, are merely supplying some complementary manufactured products to the industrialized market.     

Forces exerted by jumping children: a pilot study

Abstract

This article reports on a pilot study of the loads exerted vertically by children when jumping. The subjects of the study were 17 children, aged from two to twelve years. Measurements were made using video recordings and a force-plate. The influence of the stiffness of the base and of jumping with and without shoes was investigated. Knee flexion, push-off force (thrust) and the ratio between push-off force and body weight (relative thrust) were analyzed. Measurements of the knee flexion showed a certain consistency for each child. The angle of knee flexion during push-off follows a bimodal distribution with maxima at 60^° and 90^°. The results for relative thrust suggest a close relationship between push-off force and body weight.     

Liberalization of import restrictions on capital goods and the balance of payments

This paper examines the impact of capital import liberalization on the balance of payments when protection takes the form of a quota and when it takes the form of a tariff. Since tariff liberalization affects tax revenues, the analysis of tariff liberalization allows for a fiscal imbalance and a mechanism by which the fiscal imbalance is covered, namely an inflation tax. The analysis shows that the economy experiences a series of balance of payments deficits following trade liberalization, but an open capital account reduces the magnitude of these deficits.     

Partial Assimilation of Technology: Prognosis and Remedial Measures

Prior research mentions that there may be technology assimilation gaps in that a technology may be cumulatively assimilated over a period of time depending on knowledge and experience from initial usage. Thus, stages of partial assimilation are indicated that, if not accounted for, could lead to erroneous understanding of technology adoption and diffusion. However, the phenomenon has not received serious academic attention, and there is still a lack of understanding as to when and why partial assimilation may occur, its consequences to organizations, and remedial steps that could be taken to minimize it. We investigate these issues in the context of assimilation of third-party business-to-business (B2B) e-market by four small firms. Our findings reveal that partial assimilation occurred because of different perceptions of benefit and risk of the two different features of the B2B e-market—the informational (buyer/supplier and product information) and the transactional (auction, request for quote, price negotiation, message archiving, payment systems), arising from different moderating impacts of the organizational (relational norms and the type of business handled) and environmental (perceptions of competitive pressure and institutional norms of technology usage and work practices) contexts of deployment and usage of the two features. The consequences of partial assimilation were mixed; while it was found to be detrimental to firms with low relational norms with their clients, it proved to be gainful for firms with high relational norms. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.