Improving the effectiveness of persuasive communications: Matching message with functional profile

The functional approach to improving communication strategy has received little attention. This research attempts to partially correct this oversight by experimentally verifying the major functional hypothesis: matching message with functional profile brings about attitude change. Working adults were integrated into an experiment which was a before-after with control. The major functional hypothesis was confirmed at the 0.10 level. An associated hypothesis regarding the relative ease of changing value- expressive attitudes compared to utilitarian attitudes was confirmed at the 0.10 level. The results show the importance of matching message with functional profile and highlight the potential inherent in the functional approach.     

A framework for analyzing money stock control under the Monetary Control Act

This paper analyzes the money stock effects of the Monetary Control Act (MCA) under a nonborrowed reserve (NBR) operating procedure. Prior to the passage of the MCA, policy was conducted under an interest rate operating target where reserve requirement reforms such as those introduced by the MCA had little influence on money stock variability. Under an NBR procedure however, the structure of reserve requirements may have a significant impact on monetary control. Our analysis indicates that the relative improvement in monetary control greatly depends on the degree of tightness exercised by the Federal Reserve over total reserves in an MCA regime. The tighter the control, the more significant the estimated monetary control benefits of the MCA under an NBR procedure.     

Sales expectations and inventory changes in retail trade

In this paper a single equation inventory investment model is estimated for the United States retail sector. Monthly data for the 1970s are utilized. In estimating the model it is alternatively assumed that expectations were formed according to a seasonal model, to perfect foresight, and to a narrowly rational expectations model. We find that a model in which expected sales and the expected rate of inflation are narrowly rational can explain most of the variation in retail inventory investment during the time period studied. The results of the estimation imply that retailers have a relatively short forecast horizon, that they can react quickly to either unexpected sales or to a deviation of actual from desired inventory stocks, and that an increase in the real of interest has a statistically negative impact on retail inventory investment.     

Risk analysis of new maize technology in Zaire: a portfolio approach

Risk associated with the adoption of new maize technology and the impact of mandatory cotton production on traditional farmers in the Kasai Oriental Region of Zaire are evaluated within a portfolio context using a quadratic programming model. Seasonal net returns for farm plans including four levels of maize technology in combination with staple food crops are evaluated, with and without mandatory cotton production. The results indicate that cropping systems that include new maize technology are risk-efficient relative to local maize varieties while mandatory cotton production is not risk-efficient at the prevalent price and yield levels in the farming system.     

Development strategy for rural areas

In September 1973, the President of the World Bank, Robert S. McNamara, made a challenging address to the Governors of the Central Banks of the member states of the international Monetary Fund. The main subject in his speech was the problem of poverty particularly in rural areas of developing countries, and the design for a strategy for its abolition.     

Stock market efficiency the evidence from FTA indices of eleven major stock markets

Summary This article presents a survey of recent literature on stock market efficiency, with special reference to the US and Dutch stock markets. Additionally, models are specified and estimated for the daily return since 1987 on FTA indices for eleven major stock markets, allowing for non-normality, heteroskedasticity, leverage effects and autocorrelation. The leverage effect and positive autocorrelation are characteristics of some of the indices investigated. The magnitude of the autocorrelation, however, is so small, that no profitable arbitrage opportunities arise and weak-form efficiency of these stock markets is not rejected.