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1 – 10 of 95States that numerous commentators have contended that we live in degenerate, degraded, decadent and soon‐to‐be discontinued times. Arguably a manifestation of “pre‐millennial…
Abstract
States that numerous commentators have contended that we live in degenerate, degraded, decadent and soon‐to‐be discontinued times. Arguably a manifestation of “pre‐millennial tension”, this eschatological world‐view seems to be shared by many marketing theorists, for whom the end of marketing is nigh. Describes the background to the Marketing Eschatology Retreat and outlines six different ways in which marketing and eschatology can be related.
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Jessica Huff, Michael D. White and Scott H. Decker
Many examinations of police misconduct involve case study methodologies applied to a single agency, or a handful of agencies. Consequently, there is little evidence regarding the…
Abstract
Purpose
Many examinations of police misconduct involve case study methodologies applied to a single agency, or a handful of agencies. Consequently, there is little evidence regarding the types of misconduct across agencies, or the impact of department-level characteristics on the nature and prevalence of officer deviance. The purpose of this paper is to address this research gap using statewide data of over 1,500 charges of police misconduct filed with the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board (AZPOST) from 2000 to 2011.
Design/methodology/approach
This study examines variation in the prevalence and forms of misconduct across 100+ agencies based on agency type and size. Difference scores were calculated for every agency in the state to determine whether an agency’s level of misconduct was proportionate to the number of officers employed by that agency. AZPOST data were supplemented with Law Enforcement Management and Statistics data to identify organizational correlates of misconduct in agencies generating disproportionately low and high levels of misconduct.
Findings
Results identify variation in officer misconduct across different types of agencies. Tribal agencies generally experience higher rates of domestic violence and drug/alcohol-related incidents. Smaller agencies have more misconduct allegations involving supervisors. Organizational characteristics including pre-hiring screening, accountability mechanisms and community relationships are associated with lower levels of agency misconduct.
Originality/value
The use of AZPOST data enables a statewide examination of misconduct while accounting for organizational context. This study identifies organizational features that might serve to protect agencies against disproportionate rates of officer misbehavior.
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Philip J. Kitchen and Jagdish N. Sheth
The purpose of this paper is to consider the development and application of marketing theory and practice over time and its current status. The terms “brickbats” and “bouquets”…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider the development and application of marketing theory and practice over time and its current status. The terms “brickbats” and “bouquets” are used as metaphors to extend praise or criticism for marketing. In doing so, the authors draw upon the views of leading theorists over time and apply these in the current environmental context.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach adopted is discursive, critical and conceptual.
Findings
Following literature review, and drawing upon current examples, marketing as a discipline is subject to both kudos and criticisms. Nonetheless, it is concluded optimistically in that marketing can be an even greater source for societal good. That “goodness” is partly based upon the added impetus of social media adoption and use by consumers, the need for growth and accelerative innovation in the digital age coupled with the democratisation of consumption. Nonetheless, the authors offer the caveat that free competitive markets lead to market failures, and the need for market regulation by governments is becoming more evident.
Research limitations/implications
The implications of the paper are profound. Academics should be concerned in and involved with marketing theory. Questions need to be raised concerning non-robust definitions of marketing and its application. The authors wait for a consumer-led approach to marketing to add depth to the marketing theory.
Practical implications
Marketers need to be made more accountable for their actions. Consumers need to become part of the marketing process. Marketing claims need to be verified by delivered benefits. Companies need to take steps to ensure that the marketing process does not end at purchase. Satisfaction needs to be made manifest. Likewise, dissatisfactions need to be managed well as part of the marketing process.
Social implications
Too much marketing currently is relatively unregulated in the sense that there are so few opportunities to evade its myriad reach and – despite social media – little chance of changing marketing practice for the good of societies. Many criticisms of marketing practice are not being addressed in the literature.
Originality/value
Marketing is a vibrant force in all nations and markets. It is deeply rooted in business practice. It is contemporaneous and relevant. It is global and national. But, it is not entirely all good news. There are caveats and criticisms as well as kudos and praise. While both are addressed here, the topic needs to be considered for marketing and its accompanying theory and practice to change.
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Teck‐Yong Eng and Outi Niininen
Aims to examine the services and facilities provided by public parks revealing that the attributes corresponding to performance of service delivery involve the interaction between…
Abstract
Purpose
Aims to examine the services and facilities provided by public parks revealing that the attributes corresponding to performance of service delivery involve the interaction between non‐human aspects of physical environment and emotional experience of users which differ from common human aspects of service quality. Also, a service quality programme without reference to other service providers can easily lead to misguided or counterproductive service improvement strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
The present study suggests an integrative approach to diagnosing service quality of public parks that comprises an assessment of performance outcomes and desires to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of service quality and visitor satisfaction as regards frequent users and low users of public parks. Measures pertaining to this approach were examined by a survey of nine public parks in the county of Derbyshire in the UK.
Findings
The results show the effect of individual attributes on visitor satisfaction and their diagnostic value for service improvements. The analysis of desires highlights the differences of pre‐visit (prepurchase) evaluation variables between frequent users and low users.
Research limitations/implications
The integrative approach of service quality analysis proposed by this study accounts for the limitations of relying on a single conventional measure of service quality.
Originality/value
The differences may help identify new dimensions for further research and suggest future behavioural intentions such as loyalty and repeat visits. With the knowledge of individual service components that affect overall visitor satisfaction, managers can pin‐point areas for improvement to overcome service shortcomings, and allocate scarce resources more effectively.
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Initiates a reopening of Shelby Hunt's award‐winning article model addressing the nature and scope of marketing even though thought of as provocative and influential. Discusses…
Abstract
Initiates a reopening of Shelby Hunt's award‐winning article model addressing the nature and scope of marketing even though thought of as provocative and influential. Discusses, first, the three dichotomies model, second the theoretical status and then, third, the three proposed dimensions and categories used are examined. Further explores Hunt's conceptual, adequacy and dimensions of his model and gives explanations and theories within. Concludes that this is a comprehensive review of the model and that it is hard to avoid being impressed by Hunt's timely and rigorous scholarly contribution, and that its strength is usefulness rather than truthfulness, because of its strong stands on important issues.
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The purpose of this commentary is to summarise developments in the science of serendipity and urge marketers to pay more attention to the incorrigible incalculability of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this commentary is to summarise developments in the science of serendipity and urge marketers to pay more attention to the incorrigible incalculability of commercial life.
Design/methodology/approach
Explains how luck is a crucial component of business success and argues, citing examples of Shelby D. Hunt and Ted Levitt, among others, that it is perhaps time to abandon our fixation with customer focus and start taking serendipity seriously
Findings
Fortune, clearly, favours the brand. Indeed, the history of management in general and marketing in particular reveals that serendipity plays a significant part in the commercial equation.
Originality/value
Highlights the latter day advances in the science of serendipity.
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Shelby C. Lautner, Megan S. Patterson, Melitza Ramirez and Katie Heinrich
CrossFit has been popularized for the high intensity workouts it provides and the sense of community it facilitates; however, its potential as an adjunctive treatment for…
Abstract
Purpose
CrossFit has been popularized for the high intensity workouts it provides and the sense of community it facilitates; however, its potential as an adjunctive treatment for addiction is unknown, as is has not been published in traditional peer-reviewed literature. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the potential for CrossFit to benefit individuals in addiction recovery.
Design/methodology/approach
A search was conducted using the search terms “CrossFit,” “addiction” and “addiction recovery.” A tool was created to categorize key information within articles such as type(s) of addiction described, mention of support/community, main narrative type (personal story, information about a treatment centers, etc.), mental health described as a comorbidity, and if the exercise program(s) was(were) used to prevent, sustain or support recovery.
Findings
Nearly half of the articles reviewed (48 per cent) described personal stories related to using CrossFit as a means to overcome addiction, and 26 per cent were about CrossFit gyms targeting addiction recovery. A key finding was that 62 per cent of all articles mentioned the community and social component of CrossFit as an important mechanism of the recovery process. Finally, 33 per cent of articles recognized mental health as a comorbidity to addiction and therefore also proposed CrossFit as a suitable way to improve mental health.
Research limitations/implications
Although this was a review of gray literature, the findings reveal how CrossFit may be an innovative approach for supporting addiction recovery.
Practical implications
The potential benefits identified in the articles demonstrate the positive impact that CrossFit may have on recovering addicts. Empirical research is needed to objectively study the impact of key aspects that CrossFit can provide to individuals overcoming addiction.
Originality/value
This study provides an example of how anecdotal evidence of addiction recovery can be used for analysis, thus providing a strategy to be implemented in addiction treatment facilities. CrossFit has been widely popularized by the fitness community, but the social support and exercise it provides may be a leverage point for supporting individuals in recovery.
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Gina Green, Hope Koch, Peter Kulaba, Shelby L. Garner, Carolin Elizabeth George, Julia Hitchcock and Gift Norman
The purpose of this paper is to understand how to build and implement information and communication technology (i.e. ICT) to help vulnerable people when significant social…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand how to build and implement information and communication technology (i.e. ICT) to help vulnerable people when significant social, cultural and economic barriers exist between the stakeholders.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors followed an action research approach to design and implement a mobile health hypertension education application to help India's most vulnerable populations. The authors used interpretive analysis, guided by the sustainable livelihoods framework, to uncover key findings.
Findings
Successfully implementing information and communication technology for development (ICT4D) requires understanding that all stakeholders (i.e. donors, facilitators and the beneficiaries) have important assets to contribute. Facilitators play an important role in connecting donors to the beneficiaries and fostering cultural humility in donors so that the donors will understand the role beneficiaries play in success. Stakeholders may use the ICT4D in unintended ways that both improve the people's health and increase some beneficiaries' financial livelihood.
Research limitations/implications
This research expands the definition of information systems success when implementing ICT4D in resource-constrained environments. Success is more than creating an mHealth app that was easy for beneficiaries to use and where they learned based on a pre- and post-test statistical analysis. Success involved development in all the stakeholders impacted by the social innovation collaboration. For the beneficiary community, success included getting screened for noncommunicable diseases as a first step toward treatment. For the facilitator, success involved more resources for their community health program. Amongst the donors, success was a change in perspective and learning cultural humility.
Practical implications
Although universities encourage faculty to work in interdisciplinary research teams to address serious world problems, university researchers may have to exert considerable effort to secure contracts, approvals and payments. Unfortunately, universities may not reward this effort to build ICT4D and continue to evaluate faculty based on journal publications. When universities undertake social innovation collaborations, administrators should ensure responsive and flexible university processes as well as appropriate academic reward structures are in place. This need is heightened when collaborations involve international partners with limited resources and time needed to build relationships and understanding across cultures.
Social implications
This study discovered the importance of fostering cultural humility as a way of avoiding potential conflicts that may arise from cultural and power differences. Cultural humility moves the focus of donor-beneficiary relationships away from getting comfortable with “them” to taking actions that develop relationships and address vulnerabilities (Fisher-Borne et al., 2015). This research shows how the facilitator helped the donor develop cultural humility by involving the donor in various initiatives with the beneficiary community including allowing the donor to live in a dormitory at the hospital, work in an urban slum and visit health screening campus.
Originality/value
This study (1) extends the ICT4D literature by incorporating cultural humility into the sustainable livelihoods framework, (2) provides a contextual understanding of developing cultural humility in ICT4D projects with a complex group of stakeholders and (3) describes how facilitators become a catalyst for change and a bridge to the community. The culturally humble approach suggests revising the livelihood framework to eliminate words like “the poor” to describe beneficiaries.
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This paper aims to provide a history of a number of intellectual debates in marketing theory and consumer research. It outlines the key arguments involved, highlights the politics…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide a history of a number of intellectual debates in marketing theory and consumer research. It outlines the key arguments involved, highlights the politics and acrimoniousness that often accompanied the competition for academic prestige or practitioner remuneration. It weaves the contents of the special issue into its narrative.
Design/methodology/approach
This article engages in a broad historical survey of the history of marketing thought, as it pertains to intellectual debate and disputation.
Findings
While scholars often articulate objectivity as an intellectual ideal, many of the debates that are explored reveal a degree of intellectual intolerance and this is refracted through the institutional system that structures marketing discourse.
Originality/value
This account provides an introduction to the intellectual debates of the last century, highlighting the ebb and flow of marketing thought. It calls attention to debates that are largely under explored and highlights the politics of knowledge production in marketing and consumer research.
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Civil disobedience is often defined as a public, conscientious, nonviolent act of breaking the law in an attempt to change an unjust policy or law. When applied to real-life…
Abstract
Purpose
Civil disobedience is often defined as a public, conscientious, nonviolent act of breaking the law in an attempt to change an unjust policy or law. When applied to real-life situations, this widely accepted definition overlooks key features of civil disobedience and ignores civil acts that fundamentally challenge undemocratic institutions or the state and make socio-political changes possible. The purpose of this paper is to criticize and revise the conceptual, ethical and socio-political understandings of civil disobedience by integrating deliberative theory with some radical perspectives on civil disobedience.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper integrates and critically revises previous approaches to the justification and role of civil disobedience in democratic systems. Specifically, the ethical concerns about civil disobedience are discussed and the deliberative concept of civil disobedience is expanded as a form of political contestation by incorporating the socio-political aspects of civil disobedience. Although it is a conceptual discussion, the paper opted for an exploratory approach using empirically related examples to illustrate the theoretical discussion.
Findings
The paper provides a new perspective to the literature on civil disobedience. The critical review shows that the limited general understanding of civil disobedience conceptually is not useful to analyze various forms of civil disobedience.
Research limitations/implications
The reviewed literature is limited due to a limited space.
Practical implications
The paper includes practical implications for policymakers and authorities when evaluating and responding to civil actions more effectively and for members of civil movements and organizations when creating new forms of civil protest and effective responses to authorities.
Originality/value
This paper may be a modest first attempt to reframe the concept of civil disobedience by integrating deliberative democracy theory and some radical perspectives.
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