Community views of ecotourism

Ecotourism can be an incentive for conservation, especially when it triggers positive economic change. Yet it introduces many changes to communities:positive and negative, social and economic. The full range of change is seldom evaluated in direct relation to conservation at the local level. In this study of three Amazon ecotourism projects, local leaders discussed changes from ecotourism in their communities. Economic benefits were mentioned, but so were new restrictions on time, decreased reciprocity, and social conflict. Other changes included heightened self-esteem and greater community organization. Such shifts should be considered in relation to conservation as they affect the stability of local institutions and the prospects for long-term collective action for resource management.     

An Economic Evaluation of Public Wheat Research and Extension Expenditures in Canada*

The widespread commitment of public funds to agricultural research is being questioned by administrators in governments and by the Canadian public. Questions relating to the level of public expenditure on agricultural research, the efficiency with which the resources are being allocated, and the manner in which the benefits are distributed among members of society art being asked. This study addresses these and related questions as they pertain to publicly funded wheat research activities conducted over the period 1946 to 1979- Two research scenarios were examined - one dealing with the development of new varieties of wheat and the other dealing with all research applicable to the production of wheat. The results revealed that society has indeed benefitted substantially from public investment in wheat research. The level of social benefits averaged $49 and $143 million (measured in 1971 dollars) annually for the wheat breeding and all-wheat research scenarios, respectively. The average annual internal rates of return earned from these public investments ranged between 30 and 39 percent. Furthermore, some evidence was presented that suggests society may, in fact, be underin-vesting in agricultural research in the aggregate. Finally, analyses of the distribution of the benefits showed that both producers and consumers are major beneficiaries.     

Social planning for tourism in the developing countries

The usual perspectives on tourism planning have been economic. This paper argues for the need to take much more explicit account of non-economic costs (and benefits) in this field, and links the discussion to questions that have preoccupied those concerned with general issues of development in recent years. It emphasises that planners act in specific socio-politocal contexts, and that it is especially the dynamics of class structures and theis expression in the power relations at local and national levels which influence outcomes in this field. Practical issues of social planning for tourism are discussed, and the dangers of development which is too massive and too fast are stressed. Some attention is also paid to the role of transnational enterprises in the tourism field, and to the question of bargaining at the international level.     

Private Benefits of Managerial Control,Government Ownership,and Acquirer Returns: Evidence from the Chinese State‐Controlled Listed Companies

This article examines how government ownership affects the relationship between private benefits of managerial control, measured as excessive overhead expenses, and profitability of acquirers. A total of 246 merger and acquisition (M&A) events from Chinese state‐controlled listed companies (CSCLCs) between 2001 and 2006 constitutes the analytical sample. Under a low level of government shareholding, private benefits of managerial control positively correlated with acquirer announcement returns. However, there was no relationship between private benefits of managerial control and acquirer announcement returns under a high level of government shareholding. The implications of these findings for scholarship and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2011 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determinants of online shopping: Examination of an early-stage online market

A conceptual framework intended to predict the number of online purchases made by Internet users in an early stage market is presented and examined using data collected in Israel. Those more likely to report buying online saw low costs and substantial benefits associated with e-shopping. They were experienced Internet users who valued online information searching. They were also more likely to shop over the phone, but did not especially like to go shopping. Finally, they tended to be the primary purchaser in the household. Our framework enhances understanding of the factors affecting consumers' online shopping behaviour, aides in profiling typical electronic shoppers, and may help practitioners develop more personalized marketing programs to increase e-commerce sales. Copyright © 2009 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tourism, economic welfare and efficient pricing

A theoretical framework based on economics is provided for assessing tourism's costs and benefits. Suppose that resources utilized by tourists are owned by residents and, as marketed goods or services, are priced efficiently. Then increased tourism promotes net average (i.e., Pareto) economic gains for residents even in the face of such things as increased environmental costs and increased charges. Therefore, under these circumstances, there is no case for entry taxes or qualitative restrictions on tourism to deal with environmental issues. However, such taxes can be justified on rent-seeking grounds that are discussed in this paper.     

Excess control and the risk of corporate expropriation: Canadian evidence

Corporate governance in Canada was examined by looking at the ultimate ownership structure of a large sample of publicly traded firms. Results suggest that small investors in Canada are vulnerable to corporate expropriation in large firms. Despite the similarities in institutional indexes, Canada displays different patterns of ownership structure than sister Anglo‐Saxon countries (the U.S. and the U.K). More importantly, results suggest that excess control drives expropriation over and above the typical Jensen type of agency problems that are attributable to regular separation of ownership and control. Equally important, firms headquartered in Quebec appear to be undervalued vis‐à‐vis firms headquartered in the rest of Canada. Copyright © 2007 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ownership concentration,separation of voting rights from cash flow rights,and earnings management: an empirical study in Canada

Drawing from models of Jones (1991) and Kothari, Leone, and Wasley (2005), this study examines the relationship between Canadian corporate ownership structure and earnings management from 1995 to 1999. There is evidence of a nonmonotonic relationship. The concentration of voting and cash flow rights with the ultimate owner first increases earnings management, but as the level of ownership concentration increases, earnings management decreases. There is also a positive correlation between earnings management and voting and cash flow rights divergence. This is particularly evident when the gap between voting and cash flow rights is high. Copyright © 2008 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Regulatory Protection and Opportunistic Bankruptcy*

We document controlling shareholder (insider) opportunism in an insolvency regime that uses an accounting rule to determine bankruptcy eligibility. Our study sheds light on managerial incentives induced by weak investor protection laws. Using unique data on bankrupt firms from an emerging market, consistent with our prediction, we show insiders intentionally manage earnings downward to understate firm net worth so as to be able to file for bankruptcy. Downward pre-bankruptcy earnings management is associated with more payments to insiders and weaker performance, post-filing. A battery of tests suggests our results cannot be fully explained as an artifact of financial distress. Rather, they are consistent with insiders exploiting weak investor protection to extract private benefits at the expense of lenders and outside shareholders. Our study serves as a cautionary tale for all insolvency regimes that use a balance sheet test in an environment with weak creditor protection.