Study of the major supply factors and business choices affecting the growth rate of wine tourism in Greece

Wine tourism is considered one of the alternative forms of tourism internationally. Wine tourism combines wine production with tourism activities, mainly in agricultural areas, as it embraces the tourism interest for wine production and the enjoyment of vineyard activities by the tourists. Greece, as a well-known tourist destination, is actually a new wine tourism area that has still a long way to go before claiming that it can render high-quality services in this very competitive sector. The objective of this paper is to examine and present the extent of wine tourism development in Greece, the characteristics as well as the main business choices related to wine tourism supply, aiming at highlighting the necessary key elements that can play a decisive role in its further growth. In terms of this paper, we attempt to examine the Greek wine producer's viewpoint of wine tourism by setting out data related to the development of the product, the satisfaction of businessmen involved, the means used to promote the product, the difficulties faced by and the expectations set by wine producers. In order to achieve the aforementioned goals, a research was conducted by means of a constructive questionnaire sent to all major Greek wine producers from April to June 2007. The participants in the wine tourism industry in the country were considered a major source of information.     

Monetary policy before and after the euro: evidence from Greece

We model Greek monetary policy in the 1990s and use our findings to address two interrelated questions. First, how was monetary policy conducted in the 1990s so that the hitherto highest-inflation EU country managed to join the euro by 2001? Second, how compatible is the ECB monetary policy with Greek economic conditions? We find that Greek monetary policy in the 1990s was: (i) primarily determined by German/ECB interest rates, though still influenced by domestic fundamentals; (ii) involving non-linear output gap effects; (iii) subject to a deficit of credibility culminating in the 1998 devaluation. On the question of compatibility our findings depend on the value assumed for the equilibrium post-euro real interest rate and overall indicate both a reduction in the pre-euro risk premium and some degree of monetary policy incompatibility. Our analysis has policy implications for the new EU members and motivates further research on fast-growing EMU economies.     

Biodiversity crime and economic crisis: Hidden mechanisms of misuse of ecosystem goods in Greece

The paper presents the case of biodiversity misuse in urban and rural areas of Greece during the years of economic recession (2008–2019). The hypothesis addressed is that if fiscal crisis and economic recession lead to biodiversity misuse, then, even strong conservation strategies such as those allegedly implemented in developed countries may not be resilient to macro-economic shocks. Empirical data and official statistics are combined in an interpretive way. Mechanisms that enable criminal misuse of biotic resources in protected areas, forests and coastal areas of the country are defined and quantified through specific examples of illegal hunting, logging and fishing. They are defined as the Active Sampling effect, the Market De-concentration effect and the Underground Market effect of crisis. Such crime enablers are not, most likely, country-level singularities; they can be generalized both through their trans-boundary effects and in view of their interference with international conservation strategy and Law.     

Cost estimation of neonatal intensive care in Greece: the case of Athens maternity hospitals

Summary

This study aimed to estimate the hospitalisation costs for neonatal intensive care and to investigate any discrepancies with reimbursement by the social funds in Greece.

The study was based on a prospective selection of neonates admitted to the intensive care unit of two hospitals within a 3-month period in 2004. Data were collected and classified with respect to birthweight and gestational age. Microcosting recording of data was used. A National Health System hospital perspective was applied.

The study sample consisted of 99 neonates with mean cost per infant reaching €5,845 in contrast to the €3,952 reimbursed by the social security funds, showing a discrepancy between actual and nominal costs. Cost per infant was found to have an inverse relationship both with birthweight and gestational age. Personnel costs accounted for 59.9% of all resources consumed followed by enteral/parenteral feeding for 16.1% and pharmaceuticals expenses for 11.1%. The remaining covers the costs of consumables, diagnostic test and overheads (12.9%).     

International managers and mobile families: the professional and personal dynamics of trans-national career pathing and job mobility in the 1990s

This paper reviews the literature on transnational career pathing and job mobility. Alongside a detailed, critical review of the literature, a systematic model of international job mobility is presented. The directions for future research are then examined.     

Unraveling the political budget cycle nexus in Greece

This paper studies whether the Greek budget deficit is systematically affected by changes of government in the context of two political parties alternating in office. We advance the existing literature by constructing a tax evasion variable specific to the Greek economy and incorporating into our models. Testing the impact of each party upon the budget deficit during election and non-election years in the presence of tax evasion, we find a strong and persistent relationship between them independently of party political ideology. We assert that our finding constitutes a stylized fact of the Greek drama. Our results suggest that tax evasion together with the incident of two political parties alternating in office have tended to exacerbate the Greek government budget deficit accounting for about half the variation in it over the period examined. Moreover, GDP growth is found to exert a mitigating and permanent effect on budget deficit fluctuation.     

Exploring civic virtue and turnover intention during organizational changes

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are probably the most common strategic manoeuvres in business. Given the critical importance of human factors for their success, this study aims to enhance understanding of employee reactions to such projects. This article looks into the way that psychological contract breach affects employee turnover intention and civic virtue, after taking into consideration the mediating role of organizational commitment and the moderating role of coping with changes. Data were obtained from employees at a recently acquired restaurant chain in Athens, Greece. Statistical analyses confirmed all hypotheses, with one exception.     

Human resource aspects of quality management: evidence from MNEs operating in Greece

This study is an attempt to investigate the extent to which companies different nationality operating in Greece and involved in different levels of quality management differ in the way they utilize their human resources as well as in the degree of influence their human resource/personnel departments enjoy. The study started with the premise that there is some difference in approaches to quality management and in relative emphasis given to the human dimension and the role of the human resource department when organizations pass through the different stages in a quality improvement effort. The results of our case studies indicate that, although the origin of the capital and the culture of a foreign-owned company may play an important role in development and implementation of quality initiatives, they may not greatly affect determine human resource utilization. It is the strategic orientation of an organization quality that seems to be the driving force in constructive human resource management.