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The purpose of this chapter is to provide a comprehensive analysis of how sentiments may be a part of, or adjacent to, status generalization. We demonstrate why this problem is so difficult to solve definitively, as many resolutions may exist. Sentiments may present the properties of graded status characteristics but may also be disrupted by processes of the self. Sentiments may have status properties enacted within dyadic interactions. However, sentiments may also be status elements during triadic constellations of actors. Finally, we discuss current research that is underway to provide more empirical evidence to offer confirmation or disconfirmation for some of our proposed models.

We provide a synthesis of literatures, including pieces from group processes, neuroscience, psychology, and network scholarship, to address the relation between sentiment and status processes. Accordingly, this is a conceptual chapter.

We attempt to motivate future research by exploring the many complications of examining these issues.

Understanding how social inequalities may emerge during group interaction allows researchers to address their deleterious effects. Positive sentiments (in other words, “liking”) should bring actors closer together to complete tasks successfully. Ironically, when paired with negative sentiments within task groups, inequalities in group opportunities may result. To address these social inequalities, a thorough understanding of how they develop is necessary, so that efficacious interventions can be adopted.

This deep dive into the relation between sentiment and status processes joins the 25-year quest to understand the issues surrounding this relationship.

Service loyalty, with its final effect on repurchasing by customers, appears to have received relatively little attention. This study starts by first delineating the concept of service loyalty and proceeds to distinguish between service quality and customer satisfaction. A mediational model that links service quality to service loyalty via customer satisfaction is proposed. Appropriate measures are identified and a postal survey is undertaken among 1,000 retail banking customers. A response rate of 20.5 per cent is obtained. Results indicate that customer satisfaction does play a mediating role in the effect of service quality on service loyalty. The effects of a number of demographic indicators on service loyalty are also reported. Implications are discussed, limitations of the study are noted and possible areas for further research are indicated.

In this paper the authors aim to study the impact of customer demographics on service value, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty in the private banking industry, i.e. a high‐involvement context.

The authors estimate a structural equation model with the help of partial least squares (PLS). In order to examine the influence of socio‐demographic variables, they conduct an analysis of variance (ANOVA) to test for differences in the means of the constructs. Furthermore, they conduct an analysis of mediation to test for an indirect influence of service value on customer loyalty.

The authors find that customer satisfaction has a strong positive impact on customer loyalty. However, service value has no significant direct effect on customer loyalty; the impact of service value on customer loyalty is completely mediated by customer satisfaction. With regards to customer demographics, the authors find significant differences in mean scores as to employment status, type of private banking service provider, and size of liquid assets.

Further research should analyse potential moderating effects of different customer‐related variables. A replication study should be conducted in order to underline the authors’ findings.

The authors find significant differences for customer satisfaction and customer loyalty ratings as to employment status and size of liquid assets. Hence, managers should focus on high net worth and ultra high net worth individuals as these segments show higher satisfaction and loyalty ratings. Furthermore, customers should be segmented as to employment status in addition to size of liquid assets.

The authors conduct their analysis in a high‐involvement setting. Using a unique sample of 286 questionnaires of private banking customers, they find direct effects of socio‐demographic variables on service value, customer satisfaction, and customer loyalty. Thus, the authors’ findings have important implications for managers in the private banking industry and marketing researchers alike.

This study incorporates two Chinese cultural variables guanxi (personal relationship) and xinyong (personal trust) with other relational variables that are well defined in the west, i.e. supplier competence, commitment, conflict handling and satisfaction to see how they generate partnership relationship in a sino‐western relationship marketing context.

Research objectives are achieved through a combination of model building, quantitative design, testing of hypotheses using AMOS and analysis of findings. The subject scope is imbedded within cultural impact on relationship marketing in a sino‐western context.

This study finds that Western suppliers must be competent in product knowledge, market development, and adaptation to buyers' requirements to resolve conflicts in order to establish their xinyong with the buyers. Competence allows suppliers to show psychological commitment and establish guanxi with the buyers. It also shows that guanxi has a stronger influence on xinyong than on satisfaction. Suppliers should use guanxi to generate buyer's perception on xinyong whilst maintaining a reasonable level of buyer satisfaction with their products and services. Also, relationship between xinyong and satisfaction is not significant. A buyer's satisfaction on the supplier's product and services does not necessarily mean that this buyer perceives the supplier having xinyong because Chinese mix (up) business with personal relationships together and sometimes they make trade‐off between them!

This relationship study was conducted in a single‐product relationship context within the clothing industry in the PRC environment and therefore, its findings may not be generalised to other industry. Future Chinese relationship study should increase the sample size so as to cover more industries to allow comparison across industries. This is especially valid between a manufacturing and a service‐based industry. A service‐based industry may even emphasize more on guanxi and xinyong because of its intangible aspects! Future research should include the xinyong constructs, the concepts of face and reciprocity. To what extent these important Chinese cultural values affect satisfaction and xinyong have not been determined.

Effective conflict handling skills and guanxi are vital to formulate a xinyong positioning strategy. A supplier must be competent in product knowledge, market development skills, and adapt to a buyer's requirements to resolve conflicts with the buyer to establish xinyong.

This research is an initial attempt to establish the relationship between guanxi, xinyong and partnership relationship and generates a new research area in Chinese relationship marketing.

The purpose of this study is to explore how customers from different cultures develop trust with service providers to uncover underlying dimensions of trust development for customers from different cultures.

This study utilizes semi‐structured phenomenological depth interviews to explore the role of culture in the development of trust with service providers.

Customers' direct service experiences in their native culture and in the culture where they reside (in this study the USA), as well as recommendations from others appear to be the major determinants of trust. Furthermore, a customer's trust in a recommender seems to transfer over to a service provider.

Because all informants were from one foreign culture (Korean), the findings related to primarily this group. Further generalization of these findings should only be made after studies conducted with informants from other foreign cultures.

Service organizations need to offer their employees training that emphasizes strategies oriented toward building and maintaining trust with customers from different cultural backgrounds in order to better read customers from different cultural backgrounds and to effectively react to their complaints.

The most unique part of trust development for Koreans who have lived in the USA would be the transference process. They seem to trust service providers or service organizations based on the recommendations related to specific service categories. Once trust is established in recommenders, it seems to naturally result in a transference process (e.g. trust transference from service provider to service organization).

The wine industry has been criticised in the past for adopting a mass‐marketing approach but in the current ultra‐competitive wine market the inevitable outcome of a production rather than marketing orientation is almost certain failure. Whereas the Australian domestic wine market is currently experiencing a low growth rate, a precursor to any future growth strategy is a clear understanding of the market. Acceptance of market segmentation as a strategy to target consumers more effectively enhances the focus and differentiation essential to achieve growth in the wine market. Recently a new segmentation approach of lifestyle based on a cognitive deductive perspective that makes lifestyle specific to the area of wine consumption was developed by Bruwer et al. (2001). This process included the development of a wine‐related lifestyle (WRL) measurement research instrument and the identification of five wine‐related lifestyle market segments. In this paper, a study conducted in the Australian wine market on 363 consumers to empirically confirm or disconfirm the previously identified five wine‐related lifestyle segments is reported on. The further theoretically‐driven development and improvement of the WRL research instrument is also described.

Restates the case for accounting and management research from a grounded theory perspective, and advocates its informed and more frequent application. Examines the intellectual foundations and key tenets of grounded theory in the context of researchers’ theoretical assumptions and methodological characteristics, discussed in relation to Laughlin’s (1995) classification schema. Pays particular attention to grounded theory assumptions and methods in relation to other interpretive paradigms such as symbolic interactionism, ethnomethodology and hermeneutics. Describes the basic principles and methods of grounded theory research, and presents potential applications to the accounting and management research arenas. Argues that rigorous grounded theory research can offer the accounting and management literatures unique understandings that provide additional perspectives to those already being offered by major schools of thought, and discusses implications of grounded theory for informing contemporary professional practice.

The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrated model of action learning based on an examination of four reviewed action learning models, definitions, and espoused outcomes.

A clear articulation of the strengths and limitations of each model was essential to developing an integrated model, which could be applied to Lynham's general method of theory‐building research in applied disciplines. The paper examined common themes according to the model structure, methods, and methodologies. The four models selected for this review were Gregory's Group Action Learning Process Model, Paton's Systemic Action Learning Cycle, Paton's Systemic Action Learning Spiral, and Watkins and Marsick's Continuous Learning Model.

A comparison of the key variations in the definitions of action learning and desired outcomes explained differences in model designs. HRD practitioners need a better understanding of the variables that affect the outcomes of action learning through exploring learning transfer issues and through testing multiple methodologies. Similarly, the integrated model was designed to indicate how change takes place within an organization, dictated by either internal or external factors. A description of the construction of the integrated model is provided.

Owing to the disconnect between the conceptual development and application phases of theory‐building research, more empirical evidence is needed to support the connection between action learning models and methodologies and desired outcomes. The integrated model was designed from a systems perspective with particular emphasis on soft systems in the problem and analysis phases to illustrate the role of organizational modeling of the relationships among members, processes, and the internal and external environment. HRD practitioners could re‐examine their decision making, particularly in approaching large‐scale change. HRD practitioners could document their specific approaches to action learning, including a combination of action research methods and soft systems methodologies. A comparison of outcomes versus the methodologies could be made.

The objective of the integrated action learning model is to improve decision making related to facilitating change from an HRD perspective, given the theories and principles underlying each model. The integrated model could serve as the basis for gaining new knowledge about critical systems theory and action research as it relates to action learning and change facilitation. It is the paper's intent that the proposed integrated model will spur further theory‐building research in employing action learning as an organizational change intervention.

Organizational purchasing decisions can be thought of as rule‐discovery tasks in which members of the buying center develop proposals regarding the best choice of products and vendors. The uncertainty associated with buying center decisions causes the group to search for generalizations that describe the distinguishing characteristics of successful suppliers. Such generalizations identify the “rules” used to categorize future vendors; discovery of the best rules is key to accurate classification. Acknowledging the process of searching for patterns not only focuses attention on the information members use to derive patterns, but also provides a mechanism for investigating how members influence each other’s assessment of the patterns. Research into rule‐discovery tasks has the potential to enable monitoring of simulated organizational purchasing decision processes in the controlled environment of an experiment. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a set of propositions and a methodology for examining rule discovery task behavior in buying centers.

The marketing environment is constantly changing due to political, economic, social and technological issues. Therefore, this chapter explains how practitioners in destination marketing can improve their internal capabilities, competences and resources whilst responding to the ongoing changes in the external environment. The strategic management of destination marketing organisations involves continuous decision-making processes due to the nature of the tourism product. Hence, the author underlines the importance of stakeholder management, organisational culture, employee satisfaction, leadership and corporate governance/political environment, as these variables may contribute to the effective strategic management of these organisations.