Old dogs learning new tricks? The effect of age and generation on shopping behaviour

ABSTRACT

Previous research has shown that both age and generational cohort membership affect shopping orientation and store choice criteria, although the results are mixed. This study applied a longitudinal research setting to investigate the choice orientations of six generational cohorts and seven age groups, respectively, in the context of non-grocery shopping trips. The study was based on data collected through four household surveys conducted in the Turku area, Finland, over 17 years. An exploratory factor analysis was used to identify six choice orientation dimensions that appeared as sufficiently similar in all four cross-sectional surveys. The results show that although both age and generation, if used as sole independents in a model, only explain 0.1 to 13 per cent of the variation between the categories (one-way ANOVA), in most cases, the differences are statistically significant. Age performed slightly better when the models were run for each year separately. However, in line with the underlying assumption of the generational theory, the relative importance attached to each of the choice orientation dimensions in early adulthood remained somewhat stable when the generational cohorts aged.     

西部12省(区、市)经济发展战略定位比较及其评估

比较西部12省(区、市)的总体发展战略、经济发展战略、经济发展具体操作性方略的共性和差异性,可以发现:西部省(区、市)经济发展战略须与中央经济发展战略保持一致、契合当地总体发展战略的方向和思路、因应内外发展环境、符合当地发展实际。经济发展战略的基本框架涵盖"三化"政策、产业发展政策、区域协调发展政策、经济体制改革和对外开放政策、科技创新和人才队伍建设政策、基础配套政策、生态环保政策和特殊政策。在制定西部经济发展战略时,要用好用活用足中央给予的优惠政策;吸收其他省(区、市)经济发展战略和具体举措;促进省际联动;着力弥补经济发展中的"短板";成立多方组成的智库,使经济发展战略的制定更趋科学化;加强宣传,注重舆论引导;重视人才队伍建设;搞好配套建设。     

Small agricultural businesses' performance—What is the role of dynamic capabilities,entrepreneurial orientation,and environmental sustainability commitment?

The role that the resources and capabilities of agricultural entrepreneurs play on both environmental performance (EP) and financial performance (FP) is still unclear. This study analyzes how small farms enhance EP and FP in an inland Portuguese region through the relationship between dynamic capabilities (DCs), entrepreneurial orientation (EO), and environmental sustainability commitment (ESC). Based on a sample of 160 fresh fruit farms and applying a partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), our study concludes that EO and ESC influence EP and FP positively. Hence, farms can achieve competitive advantage through mitigating their profound impacts on the environment as proposed by the natural resource-based view (NRBV). Farms are also improving DCs, but farmers respond to the higher environmental requirements of agricultural markets primarily through research and development (R&D) capabilities and not through marketing capabilities. Having as theoretical supports the NRBV and the DCs, our study contributes to a better understanding of the mechanisms through which entrepreneurs enhance EP and FP in sectors with high environmental impacts such as agriculture. The findings suggest that entrepreneurship training projects may enable farmers to approach food security as a market opportunity and not only as rules they must follow.     

资质过剩感、证明目标导向与越轨创新：未来关注的视角

已有研究关注到了资质过剩感对个体的消极影响，忽视了资质过剩个体的价值寻求与冗余资质的角色外创新转化。研究基于自我验证理论，探讨资质过剩感对员工越轨创新的作用过程，以及证明目标导向的中介效应和未来关注的调节效应。两阶段的483份数据分析显示：资质过剩感正向影响越轨创新；证明目标导向在资质过剩感对越轨创新的作用过程中起中介作用；未来关注正向调节了证明目标导向与越轨创新的作用关系，同时正向调节了证明目标导向在资质过剩感与越轨创新之间的中介作用。研究关注到个体为过剩资质寻求肯定性反馈和价值证明的心理机制，从资质过剩的视角对自我验证理论做出边际贡献，为引导资质过剩感的创新转化提供了理论启发和实践建议。     

Consumer Attitudes Towards Convenience Food Usage: Exploring the Case of São Paulo,Brazil

Abstract

The goal of the present study is to assess the impact of attitudinal and sociodemographic variables and resources restriction (time, effort and income) on convenience food usage, mediated by customer convenience orientation. The study was conducted in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. 1391 participants completed an online questionnaire designed to evaluate convenience food usage, attitudinal and sociodemographic variables. Data were analyzed through structural equation modeling by blockwise comparison technique. The results showed that convenience food usage was directly affected by convenience orientation towards the meal planning, kitchen setup and cleaning up stages, and was driven by time and budget perception, both directly and indirectly (as mediated by convenience orientation). Health consciousness and cooking enjoyment showed a negative impact on the usage of these products. The convenience food market in Brazil has a large growth potential, especially if new products take into consideration palatability and nutritional quality.     

Turning the other cheek: Facial orientation influences both model attractiveness and product evaluation

The layout of visual elements in advertising influences consumers' perception and judgments. The research reported here investigates the influence of the face orientation of a human model on the perception of their attractiveness and its downstream consequences on product evaluation. Across five experiments, we first demonstrate that consumers tend to perceive a model's face showing his or her left cheek as more attractive than when showing the right cheek, even when the images are otherwise identical. More importantly, we demonstrate the downstream influence of face orientation on the evaluation of advertised products whereby the leftward (vs. rightward) model's face increases the evaluation of the advertised product through perceived model attractiveness. We identify the underlying mechanism of the face orientation effect, namely, that consumers perceive those faces showing their left (vs. right) cheek as more prototypical, and that this perception of prototypicality elicits an aesthetic preference for the model's leftward face which in turn carries over to influence product evaluation. The theoretical and practical implications of this research are also discussed.     

How do alternative strategic orientations influence social media performance?

Increasingly organisations are using social media due to its advantages over traditional media however, its successful implementation has been problematic. To address this issue this study drew from the organisational orientation literature to examine alternate frameworks for implementation. Survey data were obtained from senior marketers from various Australian industries and structural equation modelling was used to test the hypothesised relationships. The study identified the components of alternate strategic orientations which were positively or negatively related to social media performance. The contribution of the study is to identify how the different emphasis within market, entrepreneurial and e-marketing orientations impact social media performance in terms of customer retention and customer acquisition. Implications for theory and practice are provided. Finally, research limitations and future research suggestions are presented.     

French multinational companies' HRM in China: strategic orientation and integration approaches

The purpose of this qualitative study is to identify strategic orientation and integration approaches of French companies in implementing the headquarters-based human resource management (HRM) practices in their Chinese subsidiaries. Through a study of 16 French multinationals’ HRM, our findings reveal that a majority of sample companies tend to standardize the HRM practices in their Chinese subsidiaries to a great extent. This strategic orientation is supported by a combination of specific integration approaches at the subsidiary level. The results add knowledge to international management theory and allow us to develop implications in managing employees in China.     

How and when servant leadership promotes service innovation: A moderated mediation model

Based on social learning theory, the current study examined how and when servant leadership could promote employee service innovative behavior (SIB) in the hospitality setting. Survey data collected from 1021 service employees and their 229 direct supervisors at 54 hotels showed that servant leadership was positively related to employee SIB, and employee customer orientation mediated such effect. Results also showed that employee age moderated the effect of servant leadership on customer orientation, as well as the indirect effect of servant leadership on SIB via customer orientation, such that these effects were stronger for younger employees. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.