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1 – 10 of 15Jodie Ferguson, Brian Brown and D. Eric Boyd
The purpose of this paper is to consider corporate social irresponsibility (CSI) within the supply chain. The discussion focuses on the social component of social responsibility…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider corporate social irresponsibility (CSI) within the supply chain. The discussion focuses on the social component of social responsibility and explores its effects on end-users. Moreover, this paper presents moral intensity, a construct introduced in the ethics literature, as a potential guide to managers who struggle to navigate the gray area between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and CSI.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper conceptualizes CSI within the supply chain and offers a framework and propositions for understanding and preventing irresponsible behavior from a moral intensity perspective.
Findings
The moral intensity framework provides a normative approach with the potential to guide managers who face choices involving decisions that might lead to irresponsible behavior in interorganizational settings.
Originality/value
This paper draws attention to business-to-business CSI and the limited research that focuses on the social aspects of CSR, rather than the environmental and economic factors emphasized in prior research. It also introduces the moral intensity framework to the supply chain literature and highlights the end-user’s (i.e. consumer’s) role in influencing the performance of the overall value chain.
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George P. Moschis, Jodie L. Ferguson and Meng Zhu
This study seeks to examine mature consumers' motives in the selection of apparel and footwear brands and reasons for patronizing department stores. Differences in brand‐choice…
Abstract
Purpose
This study seeks to examine mature consumers' motives in the selection of apparel and footwear brands and reasons for patronizing department stores. Differences in brand‐choice motives are assessed among age cohort groups within the mature consumers segment as well as mature consumer segments defined by various socio‐demographic and lifestyle factors (i.e. gerontographic segmentation).
Design/methodology/approach
A USA nation‐wide random sample of 10,400 head of households was surveyed in regards to reasons for choosing apparel and footwear brands and department stores.
Findings
The results show that older consumers not only differ from their younger counterparts but are also heterogeneous when it comes to reasons for choosing specific brands and department stores. Specifically, price reductions and special sales drive the majority of mature consumers' brand selection, while advice or requests of spouse or other relatives and recommendations of salespeople are important factors in brand selection. Ease of returning products or getting refunds and frequency of items on sale are the main drivers of department store patronization.
Practical implications
Marketing managers should consider preference differences in age and gerontographic segments when creating marketing strategies to serve mature consumers.
Originality/value
Typically, mature consumers are aggregated into a single age segment (e.g. over 55). This study examines mature consumer reasons for selecting apparel and footwear brands and department stores based not just on age, but also on individual characteristics, specifically, gerontographic characteristics. Suggestions for marketing strategies designed to appeal to gerontographic segments are provided.
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Jodie L. Ferguson and Pam Scholder Ellen
This research aims to examine the effects of transparency in pricing (i.e. disclosure of a price increase and extent of explanation) on perceived price fairness when a firm…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to examine the effects of transparency in pricing (i.e. disclosure of a price increase and extent of explanation) on perceived price fairness when a firm increases price.
Design/methodology/approach
US adult consumer panelists participated in two online experiments.
Findings
Consumers perceive a firm's price increase as more fair when the firm discloses the increase itself as compared to an outside source disclosing it. For a small price increase, a limited explanation was perceived as more fair; for a larger price increase, a more detailed aligned cost explanation was perceived as more fair.
Research limitations/implications
Firms who must raise prices may increase consumer perceptions of price fairness by disclosing the price increase and providing an appropriate explanation matched to the size of the increase.
Originality/value
This research focuses on the effects of being more transparent about pricing in the case of a price increase. Perceived price fairness is affected by who discloses the price increase, the amount of the price increase and the extent to which reasons are revealed and aligned with the firm's costs.
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Jennifer Fries Taylor, Jodie Ferguson and Pamela Scholder Ellen
The purpose of this paper is to advance our understanding of how information privacy concerns are derived from the combination effects of individual traits, compound traits…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to advance our understanding of how information privacy concerns are derived from the combination effects of individual traits, compound traits, situational traits and surface traits that ultimately influence the consumer’s attitude toward data collection programs. The study investigates a hierarchical model of individual traits, information privacy orientation and consumer privacy concerns.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical research utilizes structural equation modeling to analyze the responses from 964 respondents.
Findings
The results suggest that consumer attitudes toward data collection programs associated with personal shopping information (e.g. retail loyalty card programs) are determined through a hierarchical model of personal traits and contextual-dependent variables. Specifically, the authors find that the compound traits of risk orientation and need for cognition influence the situational trait of information privacy orientation which leads to the surface trait of consumer privacy concern and ultimately attitude toward the information collection program.
Practical implications
The results suggest several means to increase participation in data collection programs. Although high need for cognition and high risk orientation cannot be changed, communication plans can provide guarantees that mitigate perceived risk associated with sharing personal information and highlight the information value to the individual’s sharing of information.
Originality/value
While previous research focuses on either the internal traits or external traits, this research contributes to the current literature by offering insights into how privacy evolves from more abstract personality traits to more situational-specific behavioral tendencies, which then influence attitudes and behavior.
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Jodie L. Ferguson, Kofi Q. Dadzie and Wesley J. Johnston
The purpose of this paper is to explore country‐of‐origin (COO) effects on service evaluation in an emerging market.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore country‐of‐origin (COO) effects on service evaluation in an emerging market.
Design/methodology/approach
To gain insight, 24 in‐depth interviews were conducted with stakeholders in five West African countries. A conjoint analysis was also conducted to further explore COO effects.
Findings
Propositions were developed based on findings from the qualitative study and conjoint analysis. Situational personal characteristics, such as motivation and ability to process information, may influence use of COO attributes in evaluating a service. Individual characteristics, such as ethnocentrism and culture orientation, may influence COO preference in service evaluation.
Practical implications
Propositions and findings will assist firms considering entering a market in terms of service offerings and positioning strategies.
Originality/value
While COO and consumer products have been widely studied in the literature, mostly within the contexts of industrialized nations, the paper examines COO effects with a service within the context of an emerging market.
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Gerry Gallery and Jodie Nelson
The purpose of this study is to examine the usefulness of pre‐production cash expenditure forecasts issued by Australian mining explorers in their quarterly cash‐flow reports.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the usefulness of pre‐production cash expenditure forecasts issued by Australian mining explorers in their quarterly cash‐flow reports.
Design/methodology/approach
Usefulness is determined by examining compliance and the reliability of forecasts (accuracy and bias) for a sample of 1,760 forecasts issued by 481 explorers in 2005/2006. The cross‐sectional variation in reliability is examined using regression analysis.
Findings
The findings reveal a high level of compliance but significant inaccuracies (median forecast error of around 50 percent of actual expenditure for exploration and evaluation expenditure and 85 percent for development expenditure), and some evidence of forecast bias. Forecast inaccuracy is more prevalent in firms that have poorer performance, greater financial slack, greater cash‐flow volatility, no financial leverage, and for firms that are smaller, in the pre‐development stage, and in the mineral (non‐oil and gas) sub‐industry.
Research limitations/implications
The analysis of forecast usefulness is confined to compliance and reliability. Further research could consider the value‐relevance and predictive ability of these forecasts.
Practical implications
The findings question the usefulness of mandatory forecasting by showing that the information role of forecasts in capital markets is impaired when firms have little discretion over the forecast decision, timing and specificity.
Originality/value
This is the first study to examine mandatory cash expenditure forecasts and makes a significant contribution to the small literature on mandatory financial forecasts.
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Jodie Conduit, Ingo Oswald Karpen and Kieran D. Tierney
The ability to attract and retain volunteers is crucial for not-for-profit organizations, and consequently, the need to understand and manage volunteers’ engagement is paramount…
Abstract
Purpose
The ability to attract and retain volunteers is crucial for not-for-profit organizations, and consequently, the need to understand and manage volunteers’ engagement is paramount. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of five volunteer engagement dimensions (cognitive, affective, behavioral, social and spiritual engagement) on perceived value-in-context, and its subsequent role for volunteer retention. Thus, providing for the first time an understanding of how unique types of value are determined through different facets of volunteer engagement.
Design/methodology/approach
To establish the nature and consequences of volunteer engagement, the authors collaborated with an Australian not-for-profit service organization. Using a survey method, the authors studied the organization’s volunteer workforce resulting in 464 usable responses. To capture volunteers’ degree of spiritual engagement, this paper introduces a rigorously developed unidimensional measure.
Findings
The results demonstrate the importance of the five engagement dimensions on volunteers’ perceived value-in-context, while highlighting significant effect differences including some counterintuitive consequences. The authors also establish the role of spiritual engagement and demonstrate the impact of value-in-context for volunteer retention.
Originality/value
This research explores the volunteer engagement-retention chain, by empirically studying the role of value-in-context. The authors provide first evidence for the relationship between volunteer engagement and value-in-context, examining the independent yet relative effects of various facets of volunteer engagement. In doing so, the authors offer new insight into the dimensionality of the volunteer engagement construct, broadening its conceptualization to include spiritual engagement as a core constituent. The authors further demonstrate the impact of value-in-context on volunteer retention, helping organizations to better make sense of meaningful volunteer experiences with long-lasting impacts and mutual benefits.
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