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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influences of smallholder farmers’ motivations, opportunities and abilities on their satisfactions of non-certified organic farming practices in Southern China based on the motivation–opportunity–ability (MOA) model.

The sample covers 314 smallholders from Nanning region in Southern China who have engaged in non-certified organic farming. Judgmental and convenient sampling are applied to collect data. Data analysis consists of confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modelling and mediation test.

The results show opportunity as dominant impact factor of smallholder farmers’ satisfaction followed by motivation and ability. Also, their commitment to further non-certified organic farming is positively influenced by their satisfactory level. Mediation test reveals that satisfaction partially mediates the relationships between motivation, ability and commitment.

First, due to the limited sample size in a single region, the findings cannot represent even Southern Chinese farmers as an entirety. Second, the study only limited itself in the scope of the MOA model.

Apart from providing updated empirical results for existing studies, this study also highlights the importance of farmer association, supporting scheme as well as the relevant training for the smallholder farmers to size the opportunities, promote their motivations and strengthen their abilities.

As little attention has been given to small-scale farmer who are involved in organic farming practice in China, this paper presents findings based on the MOA framework.

This paper aims to emphasize the importance and current deficits of non-financial impact (NFI) assessment of socially responsible investment (SRI) with reference to the action plan of the European Commission (EC) for a greener and cleaner economy.

The importance and current deficits of NFI assessment are evaluated theoretically and condensed to an equilibrated socially responsible investment (ESRI) perspective, based on a narrative literature review of highly ranked academic journals.

Due to a deficient exploration of NFI in theory and practice, the role of SRI funds for sustainability transition has not yet been adequately discussed. This has enabled a situation where a constantly rising market share of SRI has not led to similar sustainability achievements. This strongly contrasts with investors’ expectations, the self-portrayal of the sector and the goals of the EC’s action plan. As a solution, the developed ESRI perspective elevates NFI as a second cornerstone for theory and practice. ESRI, contrary to the EC, sets a primer on the role of SRI fund management for achieving sustainability goals.

This study reveals how SRI theory and practice neglect the importance of NFI. The presented ESRI perspective enables scholars to examine SRI practices more holistically through a new theoretical lens. One special focus is on the role of SRI fund management as a transmission mechanism to push portfolio companies’ business practices toward more sustainable behavior.

This paper measures German customers' label-depending preference and willingness to pay for organic and local food.

The sample covers 325 survey respondents from 12 out of the 16 German federal states. Data was collected through convenience sampling in December 2019. A choice-based conjoint analysis was operated.

Customers value local food from their federal state most, thereby accepting a price premium of no less than 200%. The label moderates the influence of organic production conditions on price acceptance significantly.

Based on self-reported data from a convenience sample, the demographic distribution of the sample differs from that of the German population. Moreover, the willingness to pay was found to be product-specific, limiting general applicability.

Marketers should focus on local and local organic food in the assortment. Marketing strategies should include information campaigns. Producers may sell their products regionally or cooperate with local retailers. Introducing a separate official “local organic” label is suggested.

The study provides detailed evidence on the preference of German costumers and suggests a significantly higher willingness to pay for organic and local food than previous literatures.

This paper aims to indicate how practical wisdom in the western Christian tradition may be introduced into management development. Following recent documents of Catholic social thought, three roads to go are indicated especially concerning: management practice, management education, and the managerial reason.

This is an interdisciplinary paper summarizing economic, philosophical, and business literature.

In his recent social encyclical Caritas in veritate Pope Benedict XVI criticizes a dominating approach of economic thinking that neglects practical wisdom in management. The authors indicate three roads of seasoning management practice with practical wisdom: integrating charity in management theory and practice (by spelling out the economic relevance of reciprocity and gratuitousness for economic theory and for managerial decision making), enriching business school experience (by deepening elements of voluntary engagement and interdisciplinary education) and to enlarge the perspective of management decision making (by enlarging the way to conceive knowledge in management).

The interdisciplinary approach interprets certain elements of business education as expressions of the ethical concept of “gratuitousness”.

The purpose of this issue is to provide an overview of the special issue on practical wisdom for management from the Jewish traditions.

The guest editorial introduces the papers in this special issue, focusing in practical wisdom for management from the Jewish traditions.

The question on the relationship between the Jewish tradition and practical wisdom for management is answered in two different ways: first, providing a particular Jewish answer to managerial problems and second, presenting how Judaism can be a field of reflection learning for managerial praxis at both organizational and individual level.

The paper shows that the special issue offers insights into the value of practical wisdom of the Jewish traditions, from two particular points of view, as a guide for action and as an ethical approach to management.

This paper aims to focus on business education, which should not exclude strains of religious ethical traditions, e.g. Catholic social thought, and the practical wisdom embodied in them.

Recent traditions of social Catholicism starting from the Papal Social Message Rerum Novarum (1891) are summarized. Consequences for management development are drawn.

The recent tradition of social Catholicism developed as a result of a broad cultural process of adaptation of Christians to the emerging social context of a modern society. New types of ethical orientation have been developed, sometimes in strong opposition to contemporary ideological concepts such as socialism, materialism, or elitist capitalism. Even in the globalized environment of the twenty‐first century these orientations are of continuing relevance, e.g. in organizational behavior, in business and society relations, and in basic concepts of corporate responsibility.

Religious ethical traditions embody elements of “practical wisdom” that are threatened by extinction in the global practice of management development. The current financial and economic crisis – also addressed in a recent document of Pope Benedict XVI – should also be perceived in that perspective.

A business ethics evaluation of Social Catholicism and its practical wisdom is executed.

Corporate compliance practices are often “coercively” structured, coined by a legal discourse and derived from individualist normative concepts. Drawing on the “logic of the Decalogue”, the purpose of this paper is to design an “enabling” approach based on a covenantal logic present within the Decalogue.

The approach is interdisciplinary analysis summarizing exegetical, social science and business literature.

Within a covenantal and transcendental perspective, a morally literate community of employees, which have learned to reflect upon their responsibility, form the basis for compliance arrangements. They form a necessary complementary element of functional compliance systems.

The covenantal logic of the Decalogue can orientate the formulation of corporate compliance programs, which intend to follow an “enabling” approach. Normative claims should be rooted in an analysis of responsibilities towards relevant stakeholder groups. The potential of “spiritual capital” should be taken into consideration.

Reflecting one of the oldest ethical documents of human civilisation in the context of the contemporary management discussion on “coercive versus enabling control”, the orientating role of practical wisdom from the Jewish tradition becomes tangible.

This paper aims to provide an overview of this special issue.

The guest editorial introduces the papers in this special issue, focusing on practical wisdom for management from the Chinese classical traditions.

Chinese culture increasingly will permeate international culture and move from peripheral to mainstream status. To ignore this in management education would be a grave oversight.

The issue offers insights into the value of practical wisdom from Confucianism, the origins of Chinese classical trditions and Daoism, and the various streams of thought within the classical Chinese traditions and their contemporary relevance.