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The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) was published in 2001 after over a decade of international discussion and field testing (see, for instance, Bickenbach, Chatterji, Badley, & Ustun, 1999). Its ratification by the World Health Assembly was keenly awaited in Australia, by people interested in working with a model of disability attuned to a human rights and equal opportunities approach, and by people wanting to use the new model in disability and health policy and information systems. This paper outlines developments being implemented and ideas being discussed in Australia, particularly with the Australian Collaborating Centre (ACC).¹

The participants, who included statisticians from offices in national statistical systems in addition to representatives of the disability community, academic researchers in the field of disability statistics and users of disability data, were provided background documents to facilitate the discussion of the issues. Those documents represented materials from the U.N., the World Health Organization and Eurostat and included the Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, Revision 1, and the International Classification of Functioning, Disabilities and Health (ICF).

Barbara M. Altman, a sociologist with a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland is currently a special assistant on Disability Statistics at the National Center for Health Statistics and an adjunct associate professor at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is currently involved in revision of the measures of disability in the American Community Survey and has a key role in the Washington Group, an international group seeking to develop culturally compatible measures of disability worldwide. Her disability research interests focus in three areas: disability definition and measurement in survey data; access to, financing and utilization of health care services by persons with disabilities, particularly working-age persons and women with disabilities; and disability among minority groups. She is the author of numerous articles and book chapters on disability topics, and she is currently co-editor of the series Research in Social Science and Disability.

This volume is divided into three sections providing: information about the background of the development of this international effort to develop culturally compatible measures of disability for use worldwide; examples of what kind of measures are currently in place in a variety of countries; and finally, some examples of the exciting methodological work that is underway to improve measurement and provide the ability to make comparisons cross-nationally.

The purpose of this paper is to identify several measures that reflect the diffusion of the mobile internet.

The measurements are implemented with a newly developed handset‐based mobile service research platform that provides a novel way to accurately identify trends taking place in mobile service usage. These measures are demonstrated in a case example comparing Finnish early‐adopter smartphone users between 2005 and 2006 (500 and 695 users).

The results indicate that the mobile internet has not yet emerged on a large scale in Finland. On the contrary operators have slightly increased their power, potentially because handset bundling with mobile subscriptions is now allowed in Finland.

The measurement framework can be further utilized in both cross‐sectional and longitudinal study settings in evaluating the emergence of the mobile internet. No other empirical research method provides the accuracy and scope of usage measurements done with the handset‐based research platform. However, the shortcomings of the new method should be realized.

The paper suggests that the mobile internet has not emerged widely, even in early‐adopter user segments.

This paper contributes to the measurement of mobile internet service usage. Mobile internet services are currently emerging in early‐adopter user segments. These services might shake the dynamics of the mobile services industry by introducing different kinds of technical innovation and business logic.

This paper aims to investigate the commonalities and asymmetries between consumer responses to different types of natural designs across countries.

Data were gathered through a survey in three European countries ranking differently in what concerns Hofstede’s (1981) uncertainty avoidance dimension (UAD). Respondents can vary strongly in the way they interpret and use rating scales, exhibiting a variety of response styles. In the analysis of consumers’ preferences for logo design, this article apply constrained dual scaling (CDS) to account for response styles in categorical data.

Results demonstrate the broad appeal of natural logo designs, suggesting that design preferences are similar within countries with different cultural orientations. However, findings indicate that cultural dimensions influence how consumers respond to different types of natural logo designs. Indeed, the positive effects of organic designs are even more salient in countries with higher UAD. Thus, when managers prepare to launch their brands in countries that exhibit more discomfort with uncertainty, they should consider incorporating organic visual identity elements into their logos to achieve the maximum positive affect.

Companies invest extensive time, research and money in generating, promoting and modifying their logos. This paper provides important implications for international brand managers aiming to build a consistent and favorable brand image. From a methodological perspective, the results come from the analysis of clean data – that is, data after applying CDS, which increases the validity of the cross-country comparison.

This paper aims to analyze the impact of brand management system (BMS) practices on subjective and objective performance in both service- and product-oriented sectors.

Based on a “grounded-in-practice” approach to BMS, a comprehensive formative BMS scale is developed and its validity is assessed. The impact of BMS on subjective brand performance (i.e. predictive validity) and on objective financial performance is assessed. Data are collected from a sample of 298 brand managers and marketing directors in five business sectors (cosmetics, convenience goods, industry, bank/insurance and media) and from a financial database. Path analysis and multigroup analysis are performed to test mediating and moderating effects.

The results reveal that subjective brand performance (perceived brand performance) mediates the relationship between the BMS and objective financial performance of the firm and on each of the three BMS dimensions; and product-oriented (vs service-oriented) sector positively moderates the relationship between the BMS and subjective brand performance.

The paper offers insights into adapting brand management practices along all BMS dimensions to achieve better business performance and improve objective financial performance in product-oriented activities. It highlights the role of brand management implementation, as well as the role of brand management in hierarchical relationships, in improving performance in service activities.

The formative BMS scale offers a tool which can be used to improve strategic decisions and give practical guidance on product vs service sector specificities. The indirect impact of a BMS on financial objective performance reinforces the legitimacy of brand managers and marketing managers.

This paper shows the impact of the BMS on objective financial performance by using a “grounded-in-practice” BMS scale. It also affords explanation on sectoral effects of brand management practices and their consequences on subjective and objective performance.