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This paper focuses on the problems inherent in the use of student samples in business research.

The subject is examined through the opinions of prior researchers, and the pros and cons are presented. The issues of internal and external validity are discussed, and the dangers of theory development without proper application are highlighted.

Business researchers are cautioned, especially in the case of scale development and cross-cultural research, to avoid the use of student samples.

While this subject has been the source of debate for many years, business researchers are still regularly using student samples for their research. The dangers are too great to simply be ignored because the price is right.

This exploratory study attempts to capture some of the principal benefits/factors attributable to service learning/community service projects, from a student perspective.

A sample of 67 males and 83 females (16 graduate, 71 seniors, and 63 juniors) participated in the study.

Students believe that their college experience is preparing them for the job market, that critical thinking has been enhanced, and that their college academic experience has emphasized community service upon graduation.

The results increase one's knowledge of the benefits of service learning since so much emphasis is currently being placed on improving the critical thinking and problem‐solving ability of undergraduate business students.

Practitioners would be interested in understanding the impact that service learning can have on the problem‐solving ability of potential employees. If additional research could advance the proposition that students with service learning experience are generally superior in terms of their problem‐solving skills to students with no similar experience, then evidence of a service learning component on a student résumé suddenly adds value to the employer.

The paper aims to explore the relevance of key marketing concepts, including market orientation, marketing competencies and resources, and competitive marketing strategies, in explaining international market success among smaller agri‐food companies.

The paper presents a multi‐case research, involving five small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), from different agri‐food sub‐sectors. The research employed a semi‐structured interview guide, and subjected the generated data to meaning‐oriented content analysis procedure.

Evidence points to the influential impact of adopting a marketing orientation; developing advantage‐generating competencies in the product, channel and relationship management areas; leveraging strategically‐relevant managerial, production and brand/reputational resources; and deploying appropriate competitive marketing strategies.

Limitations and implications of the research generally relate to the use of a small, non‐representative sample and the less than robust specification of the major constructs explored in the study. Future researchers should strive to obtain larger samples, develop a set of relevant hypotheses and test same using appropriate statistical techniques.

Findings offer a set of important lessons for smaller agri‐food companies and policy makers seeking to improve performance levels in international markets. They also add to the limited body of knowledge on the key influences on international marketing success within the agri‐food sector.

This study aims to explore the key factors of the electronic service quality (e‐SQ) perceptions of UK banking customers and to evaluate the customers’ perceptions of their banks’ actual performance on the identified e‐SQ dimensions.

A survey has been used to collect primary data and 135 usable questionnaires were used in the analysis. Questionnaire items were developed through a two‐stage process involving a review of the main measurement scales employed in previous studies and two focus group interviews to identify a series of attributes for assessing electronic banking service quality. Factor analysis procedure was employed to identify the underlying structure among the explored e‐SQ attributes.

Exploratory factor analysis uncovered six composite dimensions of electronic service quality, including the provision of convenient/accurate electronic banking operations; the accessibility and reliability of service provision; good queue management; service personalisation; the provision of friendly and responsive customer service; and the provision of targeted customer service. Further analysis using importance‐performance analysis revealed that the UK customers’ perceptions of their bank actual performance on these revealed that e‐SQ dimensions were largely modest.

Generally relate to the one industry focus, the exploratory factor analysis employed, and the rather generalized view of electronic banking adopted. Future research should aim to improve on these by replicating the study in multi‐industry settings, assessing the stability of the revealed factor structure, and examining whether particular e‐SQ factors vary in importance across different technology types.

This study has drawn on a sample of 135 UK retail banking customers in exploring the key dimensions of the relatively new electronic service quality (e‐SQ) construct, and evaluating how the survey respondents perceive their respective banks' performance on those critically regarded e‐SQ dimensions.

This paper seeks to highlight the significance of the recent debate on the “academic‐practitioner divide” for postgraduate marketing education in terms of informing objectives, chosen scope and structure and service provision.

Data were collected on 60 programmes at 45 UK higher education institutions (HEIs) by desk research and from 129 PG students enrolled at five British Universities by means of a questionnaire.

It was found that these were close parallels between PG and UG programmes in the UK. From the perspective of students intending to become marketing practitioners, five key strengths and weaknesses of current marketing education provision were identified.

Data on current PG marketing programmes was only collected from a sample of UK HEI's and not internationally. Data from students was collected only from five UK Universities.

Suggestions are made for the ways and means by which PG programmes can be enhanced pedagogically and made more relevant to practice. Brief proposals are also made in respect of improving input into programme and class design by current practitioners – especially programme alumni.

It is hoped that all sections of this paper will be of value to postgraduate programme leaders in directing, leading and developing their courses strategically and tactically.

The objectives of this research study were to measure the perception and satisfactions of consumers of the tourism product of Barbados, and to identify potential niche markets that could be used in the development of the destination's positioning strategy.

Self‐completion questionnaires were distributed to tourists visiting the island at the peak of the 2003 tourism season. The scales used were adapted from two authoritative sources. Data from 400 completed questionnaires were analysed quantitatively by a variety of statistical techniques, including factor analysis and multiple regression. Answers to open‐ended questions were also used where necessary to explain top‐of‐mind attitudes to the tourism products consumed.

Four possible niche markets are identified that can inform the development of the destination's repositioning strategy: recreational, sports, culture and eco‐tourism.

The time frame of the study was two winter months in one year, and only actual visitors completed the questionnaire. The study did not assess their evaluation of the quality of the services provided and consumed.

The overall conclusions and discussion of the findings should provide a case‐based framework for the practical planning and implementation of positioning strategies in the tourism context.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue that critically examines topics informing long‐standing disputes concering the status of theory and practice in management studies. Contributions explore the character of the imputed relationship between theory and practice.

The editorial introduction sets the discussion of topics in the context of institutional change influencing the production, circulation and consumption of knowledge products in the economy of relevance and reputation. It also presents an overview of the papers included in the special issue.

The main themes addressed in the papers represent a call for change; a call to radicalize the approaches to understanding ways of knowing; a call to re‐evaluate relations with practitioners; and a call to reimagine ways of representing knowledge to various constituencies, including fellow academic practitioners, management practitioners, students, and policy‐makers and other opinion‐formers.

The key message is one of the importance of encouraging broad discussions concerning the direction and impact of flows of knowledge and the various products in which that knowledge is embedded. It calls for a more market‐oriented approach to understanding the knowledge economy and the mediating role of various institutional players, including the academy, in the circulation, creation and destruction of knowledge products.

That a more‐market oriented approach to arrangements for the distribution of research resources in management studies calls for the development of more market‐oriented institutions capable of shaping relationships of collaboration, involvement and accountability.

Contributions expand the understanding of the problems and opportunities of imputing links to theory and practice.

Linear electron beam radiation has been used to induce irradiation grafting of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA), glycidyl methacrylate/β-cyclodextrin (GMA/β-CD), and glycidyl methacrylate/monochlorotriazinyl-β-cyclodextrin (GMA/MCT-β-CD) onto cotton fabrics. The effect of radiation dose, GMA concentration and CDs concentration on graft yield, epoxide content and the bonded amount of CDs was investigated. Results obtained reveal that the amount of CDs bonded within the fabric; the add-on and the epoxide content are directly related to the CDs concentration, GMA concentration and the irradiation dose. Graft yield and epoxide content increase with the increase of radiation dose to a certain extent, and they decrease due to degradation of GMA at higher irradiation doses. Results also reveal that although the bonded amount of CDs is nearly proportional to the concentration of CDs in the treatment solution, the accessibility ratio of CDs decreases with increasing CDs concentration. Treatment of fabrics grafted with GMA (Cell-g-GMA) and GMA/CDs mixtures (Cell-g-GMA/CDs) in a sequel step with the corresponding CDs increases the amounts of CDs fixed onto the fabrics, while epoxide content decreases. The treatment of the cotton fabrics with GMA and CDs was established on the basis of spectral data studies.

Glycidyl methacrylate/monochlorotriazinyl-β-cyclodextrin mixture (GMA/MCT-β-CD) is grafted onto cotton fabric by an irradiation technique that uses linear electron beam radiation for initiating the grafting reaction. The obtained grafted fabric (cell-g-GMA/MCT-β-CD) is loaded with chlorohexidin diacetate (an antimicrobial agent) and subjected to several washing cycles. Grafted cotton fabrics (before and after loading with the antimicrobial agent) and control cotton fabrics are characterized for antimicrobial activity against different kinds of bacteria and fungi by using the diffusion disk method.

Grafted fabrics that are loaded with an antimicrobial agent show very good antimicrobial activity in comparison with control and grafted fabrics which are not loaded with an antimicrobial agent. The results in this study also demonstrate that GMA/MCT-β-CD grafted fabrics that are loaded with an antimicrobial agent retain a good deal of their antimicrobial activity after five washings. Good retention of antimicrobial activity is due to the cavities that are present in the cyclodextrin moieties which are used to host and keep the antimicrobial agent.