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21 – 30 of over 5000
Article
Publication date: 17 August 2015

Unmesh Patnaik and K Narayanan

This paper aims to examine the consumption behaviour and effectiveness of coping mechanisms adopted by households living in disaster-prone regions of rural India to cope with…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the consumption behaviour and effectiveness of coping mechanisms adopted by households living in disaster-prone regions of rural India to cope with climatic aberrations and extremes using household-level data. In developing countries like India, poor households living in rural regions face risks to their livelihood due to climatic aberrations like deficient monsoon spells and rainfall gaps. Although these risks are covariate, the impact depends on location and the relative capacity of the people to cope with them.

Design/methodology/approach

Using household-level data, this paper attempts to examine the consumption behaviour and effectiveness of coping mechanisms adopted by households living in these areas to hedge against the risks. A tobit and a multivariate probit model is used in the process.

Findings

Based on the empirical analysis, and subject to the assumptions and the usual limitations of data, the findings suggest that households resort to consumption smoothening by liquidating their assets or decreasing consumption.

Originality/value

They adopt a wide variety of ex-post risk-coping measures with limited success to overcome the shocks to their livelihood. Household-specific characteristics like age and education level of the household head are important in the choice of a particular coping option along with other key variables.

Details

International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management, vol. 7 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1756-8692

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 February 2023

Karoll Gómez, Santiago Arango Aramburo and Daniel Restrepo Soto

This study analyzes the role of cooperative behavior in facing the risk of encouraging innovative agricultural production projects by small-scale farmers in the context of farmers…

Abstract

Purpose

This study analyzes the role of cooperative behavior in facing the risk of encouraging innovative agricultural production projects by small-scale farmers in the context of farmers in developing countries.

Design/methodology/approach

A within-subjects field experiment was conducted with small-scale Colombian panela cane farmers. The authors used the collected data to run the regression analyses.

Findings

The results suggest that when small farmers can follow cooperative behavior by joining a group and pooling resources to face risk, they are more willing to invest in a novel and profitable alternative, albeit riskier. However, the possibility of cooperating with a group to invest in a novel production project depends on its expected risk level.

Research limitations/implications

These results will help develop agricultural policies for sustainable development. Establishing informal networks for small-scale farmers to deal with unpredictable risks may aid in developing innovative systems.

Social implications

Agriculture is highly vulnerable to climatic impacts, which, combined with the inherent risk of innovation, may reduce small farmers' willingness to adopt innovation. Cooperation appears to be a mechanism for pooling resources and facing risk.

Originality/value

Research has focused on experimentally testing the effect of cooperative behavior when facing risk. The authors contribute to the literature by demonstrating the impact of the ability of small-scale farmers in rural areas to collectively manage risk on investment in innovative projects.

Details

Journal of Agribusiness in Developing and Emerging Economies, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-0839

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 May 2012

Nicholas V. Vakkur and Zulma J. Herrera‐Vakkur

This study seeks to evaluate, in a global context, the impact of Sarbanes Oxley Act on a particular risk measure of importance to investors (risk‐adjusted returns), and two…

Abstract

Purpose

This study seeks to evaluate, in a global context, the impact of Sarbanes Oxley Act on a particular risk measure of importance to investors (risk‐adjusted returns), and two measures of risk due to asymmetry (upside and downside risk). A unique dataset permits a dual evaluation of the law's impact on such measures in leading non‐US economies as well (i.e. “ripple effects”).

Design/methodology/approach

Hypotheses are empirically evaluated on a sample (n=712) of the largest US and European firms (control) using daily return data from 1993 through 2009 – one of the most extensive data sets employed in the literature on this topic to date. The reliability of the risk measures is carefully evaluated using multiple approaches, including Fama‐MacBeth regressions. A series of difference‐in‐difference analyses is then employed to empirically assess Sarbanes Oxley's impact on equity risk.

Findings

The findings suggest Sarbanes Oxley decreased both risk‐adjusted returns and upside risk, whereas downside risk fails to explain the cross section of returns for the largest US firms. From a global perspective, it is suggested that the enactment of Sarbanes Oxley's in the USA motivated leading non‐US economies to adopt similar regulatory measures, which caused “ripple effects” – e.g. effects similar to those documented in this paper – in leading non‐US economies.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that comprehensive financial regulations, such as Sarbanes Oxley Act, are properly envisaged at the global level, as their impact is not confined to the home country. In an increasingly globalized economy, investor welfare is likely to be influenced – directly as well as indirectly – by economic and financial regulation(s) enacted in foreign economies. Arguably, this suggests the pivotal importance of effective mechanisms of global governance, such that a purely domestic approach to regulation may be short‐sighted. In either case, the findings of this study are entirely relevant if regulators are to consider the broader, global impact of regulation on investor welfare.

Originality/value

This is the first study to empirically analyze, within a global framework, Sarbanes Oxley's risk implications without relying on a series of simple mean variance analyses. Substantive research documents that the methodological approach employed is more precise, reliable as well as “investor relevant”. Furthermore, the authors seek to assess the law's impact on leading non‐US equity markets, a first for the literature. Consequently, this study provides a robust evaluation of the law's (international) impact on firm (equity) risk, making an important contribution to the literature.

Article
Publication date: 3 August 2015

Roanne van Voorst

The purpose of this paper is to introduce an analytical framework to define and interpret heterogenous risk behaviour within communities facing natural hazard. By employing a…

1776

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce an analytical framework to define and interpret heterogenous risk behaviour within communities facing natural hazard. By employing a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the paper presents a categorization of “risk-styles” that are commonly used by Jakartan riverbank settlers facing recurrent risk. Unlike the more common concept of “flood-coping strategies”, the notion of risk-styles extends the analysis of responses directly related to floods and involves a broader set of risk and poverty practices. The proposed analytical framework is likely to be useful for future research on the topic of understanding heterogenous risk behaviour, particularly for systemic comparisons of human responses to natural hazard in other parts of the world.

Design/methodology/approach

The data underlying this paper were obtained during a year of extensive anthropological fieldwork in 2010 and 2011, in one of the most flood-prone riverbank settlements in Jakarta, Indonesia. A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods were used to obtain data in the field, while the analyses of risk-styles was based on quantitative and qualitative analyses of the survey results and narratives of the respondents of the study.

Findings

This paper defines and analyses four risk-handling styles that are commonly used by inhabitants of a flood-prone riverbank settlement in Jakarta (called Bantaran Kali in this paper) to handle recurrent flood risk. These risk-styles are not completely fixed over time; in particular circumstances, people may and do change their risk-style. However, they should not be considered random or ad hoc. Instead, the study shows how these risk-styles reflect practices that gradually develop during people’s lives in a highly uncertain living environment (characterized by flood risk and poverty-related risks), and are more or less consistently used over longer periods of time and in relation to different types of risk and uncertainty. The paper argues that the four risk-styles described are influenced by factors that may seem unrelated to flood risk at first sight, such as trust in other actors and the government, networks and socializing skills, and the opportunities and limitations that are shaped by the economic and political structures in which riverbank settlers live.

Originality/value

This paper takes a bottom-up perspective and sheds light on the perceptions of a group of marginalized riverbank settlers on the risk of floods. By introducing the notion of risk-styles, it adds nuanced and empirical data that were obtained during extensive fieldwork to the debate on understanding heterogeneous risk behaviour. The originality of the paper lies in the combined use of qualitative and quantitative tools that were used to categorize common risk-styles as well as in the proposed analyses for defining and understanding heterogeneous risk behaviour.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management, vol. 24 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 October 2004

Krishna S. Vatsa

Households are exposed to a wide array of risks, characterized by a known or unknown probability distribution of events. Disasters are one of these risks at the extreme end…

6477

Abstract

Households are exposed to a wide array of risks, characterized by a known or unknown probability distribution of events. Disasters are one of these risks at the extreme end. Understanding the nature of these risks is critical to recommending appropriate mitigation measures. A household’s resilience in resisting the negative outcomes of these risky events is indicative of its level of vulnerability. Vulnerability has emerged as the most critical concept in disaster studies, with several attempts at defining, measuring, indexing and modeling it. The paper presents the concept and meanings of risk and vulnerability as they have evolved in different disciplines. Building on these basic concepts, the paper suggests that assets are the key to reducing risk and vulnerability. Households resist and cope with adverse consequences of disasters and other risks through the assets that they can mobilize in face of shocks. Asustainable strategy for disaster reduction must therefore focus on asset‐building. There could be different types of assets, and their selection and application for disaster risk management is necessarily a contextual exercise. The mix of asset‐building strategies could vary from one community to another, depending upon households’ asset profile. The paper addresses the dynamics of assets‐risk interaction, thus focusing on the role of assets in risk management.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 24 no. 10/11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 11 August 2014

Subimal Chatterjee, Gizem Atav, Junhong Min and David Taylor

The paper aims to investigate the role of uncertainty avoidance (UA) as a moderator of Prospect Theory’s reflection effect (i.e. the simultaneous choice of a sure gain and a risky…

1575

Abstract

Purpose

The paper aims to investigate the role of uncertainty avoidance (UA) as a moderator of Prospect Theory’s reflection effect (i.e. the simultaneous choice of a sure gain and a risky loss). We expect that higher-UA consumers, seeking certainty, will shun risk across both gains and losses such that their choices will be inconsistent with the reflection effect.

Design/methodology/approach

We report three studies in which participants choose between risk and certainty. We use the stimuli from the original Prospect Theory paper, measure UA using an individual-level scale and conduct controlled experimental (laboratory) studies.

Findings

We show that, compared to lower-UA consumers, higher-UA consumers demonstrate the reflection effect less frequently in a variety of settings (small/large stakes and within/between subjects comparisons). Mediation tests reveal that higher-UA consumers anchor on the sure loss and stay with their choice because they prefer the certainty of the sure (smaller) loss to the possibility of a possible (larger) loss (a dual-mediation mechanism).

Research limitations/implications

The results have important implications for marketing practice. They show that quantifying uncertainty into a probability number is not enough to eliminate the uncertainty of the situation, and that UA is likely serve as a boundary condition to many of the traditional heuristics of judgment and decision-making.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to demonstrate that UA can moderate the reflection effect (using the stimuli in the original Prospect Theory paper). Therefore, it sets an agenda for future researchers who may want to use these findings to calibrate price/uncertainty tradeoffs within higher-UA segments.

Details

Journal of Consumer Marketing, vol. 31 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0736-3761

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 August 2023

Dahir Abdi Ali and Ali Mohamud Hussein

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the extent of dropout students and identify the relationship between risk factors of dropout and the survival time of students.

Abstract

Purpose

The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the extent of dropout students and identify the relationship between risk factors of dropout and the survival time of students.

Design/methodology/approach

The Kaplan–Meier estimator (KM), also known as the product-limit technique, is a nonparametric model function that is commonly used in estimating survival function events (Kaplan and Meier, 1958). The survival function's Kaplan–Meier estimators are used to estimate and graph survival probabilities as a function of time, as well as explanatory data analysis (EDA) for the survival data, including the median survival time, and compare for two or more of the survival events. In addition, Cox proportional hazards model is employed for modelling purpose.

Findings

Results of the Kaplan–Meier curves show that male students have lower survival rates than female, researchers have found that there is a difference between the survival times of the student's school types, results show students from English-based schools are higher than Arabic-based schools as suggested by the survival curve. Similarly, there is a difference between the survival times of students aging equal or greater than 25 and students aging less than 25 and survival function estimates of dropout according to high school grade marks has huge difference. These results were confirmed using log rank test as age, school type and marks were statistically significantly different while gender is not statistically significant.

Research limitations/implications

There is no study of this kind from the Somalia context about the student's dropout. Subsequent to the outbreak of civil war in 1988 and the collapse of the central government in 1991, all public social services in Somalia including education centers were severely disrupted.

Originality/value

The statistical methods discussed in the previous section will be applied on a real dataset obtained from different offices of the university; most of the data were extracted from faculty of economics office and admission and record office. The data set comprised of 70 students from SIMAD university, consists of full-time faculty of economics students who enrolled at the university in the academic year of 2017–2018 until two years of diploma, students either complete 24 months of diploma or leave the university and that is the event of interest.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 16 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 April 2013

Xiang Fang, Bashar S. Gammoh and Kevin E. Voss

While previous research has shown a positive influence of a brand ally or a warranty, published research has not explored the effects of using multiple types of quality signals…

2051

Abstract

Purpose

While previous research has shown a positive influence of a brand ally or a warranty, published research has not explored the effects of using multiple types of quality signals. The purpose of this paper is to explore the joint effect of a default‐independent signal (i.e. a brand ally) combined with a default‐contingent signal (i.e. a warranty) on the focal brand's evaluations.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reports the findings of a 2 (ally: none vs one) × 2 (warranty: no vs yes) between‐subjects factorial design in which 174 subjects were randomly assigned to experimental conditions.

Findings

The study's findings indicate that, individually, both brand alliance and warranty were a significant signal of product quality. However, the use of multiple types of signals, as opposed to one signal, did not add incrementally to consumer's perceived quality evaluations of a focal brand. In addition, risk reduction mediated the effects of brand ally and/or warranty on the focal brand's evaluations.

Originality/value

Recently, researchers have started to explore the influence of multiple brand alliance signals on consumer evaluations of brand. However, only the same type of signal has been examined. Signaling theory suggests that other marketing mix elements are marketplace signals of quality. This study contributes to the literature by investigating the role of multiple types of quality signals in brand building.

Details

Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 22 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1061-0421

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 May 2021

Lokender Prashad, Mili Dutta and Bishnu Mohan Dash

This study on spatial analysis of child labour in India is a macro level analysis on child labour using the census data, 2011 of Government of India. The population census which…

Abstract

Purpose

This study on spatial analysis of child labour in India is a macro level analysis on child labour using the census data, 2011 of Government of India. The population census which is conducted once in 10 years only provides district level data on work-force distribution. The study has spatial analysis of child labour in the age group of 5–14 years in India. To assess the magnitude of the children in the labour force, district level data of Census 2011 has been used in the study. The study has made an attempt to identify the districts where there is high level of children in the labour force. This paper aims to estimate the magnitude and trends of children’s workforce participation using the census data as it is the only data base, which is available at the district level since 1961 onwards. The study has made an attempt to identify the clustering of child labour across districts in India and how child labour is clustered by different background characteristics.

Design/methodology/approach

The study has used ArcGIS software package, GeoDa software and local indicator of spatial association test.

Findings

The findings of study reveal that the proportion of rural, total fertility rate (TFR) and poverty headcount ratio is positively associated, whereas female literacy and the pupil-teacher ratio are negatively associated with child labour. It suggests that in the hot-spot areas and areas where there is a high prevalence of child labour, there is need to increase the teacher's number at the school level to improve the teacher-pupil ratio and also suggested to promote the female education, promote family planning practices to reduce TFR in those areas for reducing the incidences of child labour.

Research limitations/implications

The study also recommends that the incidences of child labour can be controlled by a comprehensive holistic action plan with the active participation of social workers.

Practical implications

The promulgation of effective legislation, active involvement of judiciary and police, political will, effective poverty alleviation and income generation programmes, sensitisation of parents, corporates and media can play effective role in mitigating the incidences of child labour in India. To achieve the sustainable development goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders in 2015 to eradicate child labour in all its forms by 2025.

Social implications

The study aims to achieve the SDGs adopted by world leaders in 2015 to eradicate child labour in all its forms by 2025.

Originality/value

The study is purely original and there are no such studies in Indian context by using the latest software.

Details

Journal of Children's Services, vol. 16 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-6660

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 14 December 2004

James M Kohlmeyer and James E Hunton

The purpose of this study is to investigate differences between individual and collective budgeting decisions with respect to budgetary slack creation and task performance. While…

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate differences between individual and collective budgeting decisions with respect to budgetary slack creation and task performance. While a great deal of research exists in the area of budgeting, to our knowledge, no prior studies have dealt with budget settings in a collective (e.g. small group or cross-functional team) environment. Accordingly, the current study examines differences in slack creation and task performance using a two (decision mode: individual vs. collective decision) by two (incentive contract: slack-inducing vs. truth inducing) between-subjects experimental design. A total of 295 students participated in the experiment (79 individuals and 72 three-person collective units). As expected, individuals and collective decision-makers created significantly more slack under a slack-inducing contract than a truth-inducing contract. Additionally, as anticipated, collective decision-makers created more slack than individuals under a slack-inducing contract. Unexpectedly, however, collective decision-makers created more slack than individuals using a truth-inducing contract. Task performance was significantly different between individuals and collective unit members, such that performance of former exceeded latter, as hypothesized. Finally, preliminary analysis indicated that choice shift occurred in the collective units, such that the units became more cautious in setting budget goals than individuals under both incentive contract conditions.

Details

Advances in Accounting Behavioral Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84950-280-1

21 – 30 of over 5000