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Perceived fit between a sponsoring brand and an event is considered to be a key sponsorship requirement, but little is known about the variables that are related to perceived fit. Coca - Cola's sponsorship of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics is examined to assess relationships between attitude toward the brand, attitude toward the event, and attitude toward sponsorships and brand/event fit. A telephone survey was used to contact 448 consumers. Results indicate that attitude toward the brand is moderately related to brand/event fit and attitude toward sponsorships is significantly related to brand/event fit.

Recent research into consumer responses to sponsorships has examined the role of sponsor‐event fit on cognitive and affective responses. However, influences on sponsor‐event fit have received little consideration. In this study, a sponsor’s brand equity is evaluated as a facilitator of sponsor‐event fit. Six sponsors (three high equity/three low equity) were paired with six events. Results of hypothesis testing indicated that sponsors with high brand equity were perceived as more congruent sponsors than sponsors with low brand equity even though the events sponsored were identical. Also, a positive relationship was found between sponsor‐event congruence and favorable attitudes toward the sponsor. Results of this study suggest that consumers’ attitudes toward sponsors are comprised of associations other than the sponsor‐event association. While lesser known brands can use sponsorship as a brand‐building vehicle, they may not attain the same level of results as their high equity counterparts.

Several studies have examined sponsor‐cause congruence as an influence on consumer response to cause marketing campaigns. This paper aims to assess the relationship between sponsor‐cause congruence and consumer responses to cause marketing programs. In addition, it aims to test the possible existence of an interaction of congruence and service type of a cause sponsor (utilitarian vs hedonic) on consumer response.

A 2×2 experimental design was used to assess the impact of congruence and firm type. A total of 176 students participated in the main experiment. Sponsor‐cause linkages were presented using mock press releases.

Results indicated no main effects differences existed for the sponsorship response variables collectively, but perceived sincerity and attitude toward sponsor were significantly more positive for congruent sponsor‐cause linkages and attitude toward sponsor was significantly more positive for utilitarian sponsors. The congruence‐service type interaction was significant.

Findings based on parings of two high equity brands with two well‐known causes. Future research should consider impact of sponsor and cause prominence on consumer response.

Sponsorship managers must go beyond examining a cause's audience characteristics to insure a good match between the values of the brand and cause. Also, findings suggest that sponsors that market hedonic services face unique challenges communicating their involvement in cause sponsorships.

Results can assist sponsorship managers better understand the relationship between sponsor‐cause congruence and the nature of the service their firms offer and their impact on shaping consumer response to cause marketing activity.

The notion that asset diversification reduces risk is ancient and can be traced as far back as the Talmud which states, “A man should always keep his wealth in three forms: one-third in real estate, another in merchandise, and the remainder in liquid assets” (Baba Metzia, verse 42a). Somewhat more recently, in 1738, Daniel Bernoulli observed, “it is advisable to divide goods which are exposed to some small danger into several small portions rather than to risk them all together” (1738/1954, p. 30). Arguably, however, it was not until 1935 that the future Nobel laureate J. R. Hicks offered some early direction for modern portfolio theory. Although his research was more concerned with explaining the demand for money, he points out two important considerations for modeling risk. Hicks writes, “The risk factor comes into our problem in two ways: First, as affecting the expected period of investment, and second, as affecting the expected net yield of investment” (Hicks, 1935, p. 7). Regarding Hicks' first point, both Markowitz (1952) and Roy (1952) emplace their analyses in a one-period investment horizon. Second, and even more relevant to modern portfolio theory, is Hicks' suggestion of using an expected value calculated with subjective probabilities. Hicks continues, “It is convenient to represent these probabilities to oneself, in statistical fashion, by a mean value, and some measure of dispersion” (1935, p. 8). Clearly, Hicks comes very close to articulating a mean–variance solution. Crucially, and unlike Roy or Markowitz, Hicks does not develop this line of reasoning nor does he suggest the particular use of variance or standard deviation as that measure of risk. Nonetheless, Hicks' suggestion anticipates the work of Markowitz and Roy.¹

This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/eb014704. When citing the article, please cite: C. John Langley, Jr., David P. Carlisle, Stephen B. Probst, Donald F. Biggs, Roy E. Cail, (1988), “Microcomputers as a Logistics Information Strategy”, International Journal of Physical Distribution & Materials Management, Vol. 18 Iss: 6, pp. 11 - 17.

The purpose of this paper is to look beyond the issue of disclosure/non‐disclosure in the workplace, to explore the ways gay men challenge, negotiate and conform in the two‐way process of managing their identities in what Jenkins terms the interaction order. In the validation of their external identities, the author aims to identify critical incidents and experiences in gay men's working lives in which they have resisted or challenged identities, labels and stereotypes ascribed by others.

Data were gathered through ten semi‐structured interviews with self‐identified gay men in a wide range of occupations and age ranges working in Bournemouth, UK.

The data focus on the fluidity of identity and the impact of organisational context. In their self‐presentations a number of strategies were deployed. The respondents experienced exclusion, stereotyping, being viewed as a piece of curiosity, silence, discomfort and a marked identity in the eyes of others. In response to these reactions, themes of compliance, conformity and adopting an educator role were uncovered.

Although the findings presented are not necessarily generalizable, themes of exclusion, silence and marked identities were uncovered that echo many previous studies of gay men's experiences in the workplace.

Little research has been done on identity management in the workplace beyond the issue of disclosure of sexual identity. In particular, there has been limited focus on how gay men challenge, negotiate and modify the labels and social identities ascribed by others in what Jenkins terms the interaction order. Nor does there seem to be any research on whether gay men have modified the management of their social identities throughout their working lives.

Facebook “likes” are often used as a proxy of users’ attention and an affirmation of what is posted on Facebook (Gerodimos & Justinussen, 2015). To determine what factors predict “likes,” the authors analyzed Facebook posts made by the campaigns of Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Donald Trump, the top three candidates from the 2016 US primary election. Several possible factors were considered, such as the types of posts, the use of pronouns and emotions, the inclusion of slogans and hashtags, references made to opponents, as well as candidate’s mentions on national television. The results of an ordinary least-squared regression analysis showed that the use of highly charged (positive or negative) emotions and personalized posts (first-person singular pronouns) increased “likes” across all three candidates’ Facebook pages, whereas visual posts (posts containing either videos or photos) and the use of past tenses were liked more often by Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders’ followers than by Trump’s followers. Television mentions boosted likes on Clinton and Sanders’ posts but had a negative effect on Trump’s. The study contributes to the growing literature on digitally networked participation (Theocharis, 2015) and supports the emerging notion of the new “hybrid media” system (Chadwick, 2013) for political communication. The study also raises questions as to the relevance of platforms such as Facebook to deliberative democratic processes since Facebook users are not necessarily engaging with the content in an organic way, but instead might be guided to specific content by the Facebook timeline algorithm and targeted ads.

This chapter provides an extensive review of literature on the interaction between and interdependence of informal and formal working practices in various workplace settings. The aim of the chapter is to elucidate the organisational, managerial, human relations and social factors that give rise to informal work practices and strategies, on the shop-floor not only at workers and work group levels but also at supervisory and managerial levels. This chapter helps the reader to understand the informal work practice of making a plan (planisa) in a deep-level mining workplace.

Social media has become an indispensable part of modern politics. Its rise in the political arena has coincided with the decline in trust toward mainstream media. Today, more than half of the population gets their political news and information through social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. Social media offers a great marketing opportunity to politicians as they allow them to bypass traditional media and communicate directly with voters, engage citizens during campaign and noncampaign periods, and create a brand image. As social media's influence in politics grows, so has the research devoted to political marketing on social media. It is against this backdrop that this chapter is written, which provides readers with an overview of the academic domain and the current state of literature. The chapter highlights the various research areas that have been explored in the literature and the implications of social media for political marketing strategy, along with the domain's current limitations and possible avenues of further research.