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Book part
Publication date: 20 October 2011

Graham Currie and Alexa Delbosc

Purpose — This chapter provides an overview of contemporary perspectives on transport disadvantage. Definitions of transport disadvantage from the literature are brought together…

Abstract

Purpose — This chapter provides an overview of contemporary perspectives on transport disadvantage. Definitions of transport disadvantage from the literature are brought together and differing frameworks are discussed. The chapter also examines research topics concerning forced car ownership and coping behaviours related to transport disadvantage.

Methodology — Methodology concerns the review of existing research literature.

Findings — Transport disadvantage is a complex, multidimensional construct brought about by the interaction between land use patterns, the transport system and individual circumstances. Although the majority of literature focuses on transport disadvantage imposed by not owning a car, research into ‘forced’ car ownership suggests that the high costs of owning and running a car can impose transport disadvantage through financial stress. Using alternative modes to the car, getting lifts or restricting travel and access are common coping strategies to deal with transport disadvantage.

Details

New Perspectives and Methods in Transport and Social Exclusion Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78-052200-5

Book part
Publication date: 2 September 2010

J. Ramachandran and Anirvan Pant

We contend that the concept of liability of foreignness is inadequate to describe the set of disadvantages faced by emerging economy multinational enterprises (MNEs) in…

Abstract

We contend that the concept of liability of foreignness is inadequate to describe the set of disadvantages faced by emerging economy multinational enterprises (MNEs) in international markets. In order to address this theoretical gap, we develop the concept of “liabilities of origin” (LOR). We propose that the concept of LOR explains how the national origins of the MNE shape its disadvantages in international markets through three distinctive contexts of the MNE's ongoing activity: the home country context, the host country context, and the organizational context. We argue that in order to understand how emerging economy MNEs overcome their LOR, we need to engage simultaneously with the theoretical perspectives provided by the institutional entrepreneurship and organizational identity literatures. We suggest, further, that the concept of LOR may be useful to understand the character of MNE disadvantage in any international foray where the national origins of the MNE engender legitimacy-based and capability-based disadvantages for the MNE in a host country.

Details

The Past, Present and Future of International Business & Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-85724-085-9

Book part
Publication date: 28 May 2019

Jorrit van Mierlo, Raymond Loohuis and Tanya Bondarouk

Large corporate policy changes usually take the form of a top-down approach based on a clearly envisioned routine and an implementation plan. Yet, the authors report on a study of…

Abstract

Large corporate policy changes usually take the form of a top-down approach based on a clearly envisioned routine and an implementation plan. Yet, the authors report on a study of a bottom-up approach in which key members of a service company created a new hiring routine that supported a company-wide new human resource management (HRM) hiring policy without any prior envisioned plan. We pay particularly close attention to the perspectives of this company’s HRM professionals, line managers, and middle-level managers. The authors used the literature on routine dynamics to examine in detail which actions were taken by key members in this organization to create the new hiring routine. Through in-depth interviews, the authors found that line managers, HRM professionals, and middle-level managers significantly differed in their points of view regarding their role in the new hiring routine, and how it should work best. As a result of these different points of view, the actors took different actions that nonetheless contributed to building the new routine including creating new internal and external connections, supplying expertise, and ensuring oversight of the new way of hiring. The authors also observed that the creation of this new routine also implied conflicts as a result of different points of view and actions. Nonetheless, the end result was the establishment of a new company-wide accepted hiring routine that even surpassed the expectations of top management. With this study, the authors contribute to the literature on routine dynamics by demonstrating the generative potential of multiple points of view and conflicts in creating new routines involved in large corporate policy change by showing how misalignments between the actors’ perspectives do not need to hamper the creation of new action patterns but rather support it.

Details

Routine Dynamics in Action: Replication and Transformation
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-585-2

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 20 October 2011

Alexa Delbosc and Graham Currie

Purpose — In this chapter, a series of disaggregated analyses are undertaken to better understand the component nature of transport disadvantage, its variation across geographic…

Abstract

Purpose — In this chapter, a series of disaggregated analyses are undertaken to better understand the component nature of transport disadvantage, its variation across geographic locations and its impact on specific social groups. The first section describes the process used to form the four sub-scales of transport disadvantage used in section 5.1.4.1 of Chapter 5.1. The second section compares the transport characteristics experienced in four geographic areas: inner urban, outer urban and fringe Melbourne and regional Victoria.

Methodology — Self-reported transport disadvantage is disaggregated into four factors using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The characteristics of these four factors and the differences between geographic locations are compared in tabular form with t-tests and chi-square analyses used to assess statistical significance. Some correlation analyses are also used.

Findings — Transport disadvantage characteristics that make people vulnerable/impaired or rely on others have the greatest impacts on well-being. The strongest relationships between transport disadvantage and well-being are experienced in regional and fringe urban areas.

Details

New Perspectives and Methods in Transport and Social Exclusion Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78-052200-5

Book part
Publication date: 17 January 2022

Samppa Kamara, Ahmad Arslan and Desislava Dikova

The current chapter is one of the first studies to specifically address the role of civil society organisations (CSOs) for entrepreneurship development in the disadvantaged

Abstract

The current chapter is one of the first studies to specifically address the role of civil society organisations (CSOs) for entrepreneurship development in the disadvantaged context of Sierra Leone. It highlights the important role of CSOs in the petty trading (disadvantaged) entrepreneurial ecosystem. Based on qualitative analysis of interviewers undertaken with two CSOs and three entrepreneurial firms from disadvantaged backgrounds, our findings offer interesting insights into this phenomenon. The authors find that in the context of disadvantaged entrepreneurship development, CSOs are seen as more trustworthy by the general population than the government (public bodies). The government, through the national youth commission, also tried to collaborate with CSOs regarding entrepreneurial skills development in disadvantaged entrepreneurs. The findings further reveal that despite the appreciation of the role of CSOs for disadvantaged entrepreneurship development by public authorities in recent years, they still face many bureaucratic hurdles and delays in operations. Finally, our chapter reveals several dynamics associated with skills and competencies development in disadvantaged entrepreneurship in the Sierra Leone-specific context, where skills such as basic business planning, livestock handling, and financial management emerge as being highly useful.

Details

Disadvantaged Entrepreneurship and the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80071-450-2

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2022

Michelle Richey, Jade Brooks and M. N. Ravishankar

This paper examines how entrepreneurship focused programs build capacities for disadvantaged groups to pursue more dignified lives. The struggles of disadvantaged entrepreneurs…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper examines how entrepreneurship focused programs build capacities for disadvantaged groups to pursue more dignified lives. The struggles of disadvantaged entrepreneurs against pronounced structural constraints are well documented, but less is known about how targeted programs of entrepreneurship focused support change the status quo for disadvantaged communities.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is grounded in a mainly inductive, interpretive study and explores the work of an entrepreneurship focused program targeted at refugee participants. The paper reports on intensive fieldwork and in-depth interviews with 23 program participants in London, UK.

Findings

The empirical sections elaborate three key mechanisms supporting greater self-determination and better opportunities: building entrepreneurial intention, building contextual legitimacy and building proximal ties. These mechanisms empower disadvantaged groups to pursue a wide variety of meaningful goals, including but not limited to starting a business.

Originality/value

This paper draws attention to problems of over-emphasizing the disadvantaged entrepreneurs' agency. It uses the vocabulary of self-determination theory (SDT) and offers a psychosocial perspective of the consequences of disadvantage and the potential for entrepreneurship focused programs to build key capacities and improve precarious lives.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 28 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2022

Aleksandra Zivaljevic, Katarina Zakic and Vuk Bevanda

This study aims to provide information on particular combination of benefits or disadvantages with exact timing of their appearance in the company after its first certification…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to provide information on particular combination of benefits or disadvantages with exact timing of their appearance in the company after its first certification, along with the information on the value range each benefit and disadvantage would take, as well as on the duration period of expected values.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey was conducted from October 2015 to January 2019 in 306 certified companies with respondent rate of 58.82%. A questionnaire, structured using literature review to identify all possible benefits and disadvantages of QMS, was used to determine the time of appearance, value range and duration of each identified benefit or disadvantage. Results were used to define indicators for fully applied QMS in each age of its maturity, then the indicators were verified using the records of two ISO certified companies.

Findings

There is a difference in the set of benefits and disadvantages in companies with fully implemented QMS and those that are using QMS only to maintain the certificate. In each age of QMS application a specific set of benefits and disadvantages can be expected as well as the volume range of each of them. These timely sets of benefits and disadvantages can be used as indicators to distinguish well-implemented QMS from those partially implemented.

Research limitations/implications

The sample consists of companies from Balkan area, therefore economy, politics and culture could have influenced results, predominantly regarding the value ranges of some benefits and disadvantages.

Practical implications

Companies which already have implemented or are about to implement QMS may use results of the research to plan its effects in years ahead, concerning costs and profit dynamics, as well as to prepare themselves for upcoming probable issues. Auditors can use results in addition to certification criteria to determine the level of QMS implementation and to forecast whether audited company would keep the certificate in the future.

Social implications

Supply chain management could use research findings in selection of chain members to support and speed up third party audits since the benefits and disadvantages of fully implemented QMS are known for each QMS age. This would further imply better structure of supply chains, which would consequently lead to lower production costs, higher quality and competitive prices at the market, which has beneficial implications on the whole society.

Originality/value

For each age of QMS maturity, starting from the first year of certification, expected combination of benefits and disadvantages along with its expected value range and duration are defined. A set of indicators with their expected values.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 35 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 20 February 2024

Vicente Peñarroja

Previous research has focused on the outcomes of telework, investigating the advantages and disadvantages of teleworking for employees. However, these investigations do not…

Abstract

Purpose

Previous research has focused on the outcomes of telework, investigating the advantages and disadvantages of teleworking for employees. However, these investigations do not examine whether there are differences between teleworkers when evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of teleworking. The aim of this study is to identify of distinct classes of teleworkers based on the advantages and disadvantages that teleworking has for them.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used secondary survey data collected by the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE). A sample of 842 people was used for this study. To identify the distinct classes of teleworkers, their perceived advantages and disadvantages of teleworking were analyzed using latent class analysis.

Findings

Three different classes of teleworkers were distinguished. Furthermore, sociodemographic covariates were incorporated into the latent class model, revealing that the composition of the classes varied in terms of education level, household income, and the amount of time spent on teleworking per week. This study also examined the influence of these emergent classes on employees’ experience of teleworking.

Originality/value

This study contributes to previous research investigating if telework is advantageous or disadvantageous for teleworkers, acknowledging that teleworkers are not identical and may respond differently to teleworking.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 November 2004

Lucy Woodliffe

This paper provides insight into the behaviour and attitudes of an under‐researched group of consumers, and identifies some useful pointers for future research on consumer…

4233

Abstract

This paper provides insight into the behaviour and attitudes of an under‐researched group of consumers, and identifies some useful pointers for future research on consumer disadvantage. More specifically, the paper explores the relationships between the potential causes of consumer disadvantage, forms of consumer disadvantage and accessibility. The exploratory study consisted of a combination of quantitative (diary survey) and qualitative (semi‐structured interviews) methods. The diary survey data were used to measure grocery retailing accessibility for each participant, while the semi‐structured interviews captured participants’ attitudes, preferences and expectations with regard to grocery shopping, which were then used to construct a context for the accessibility findings. The findings suggest a way in which consumer disadvantage can be conceptualised, recommend the use of qualitative methods when researching this area, and highlight issues of interest (such as identifying whether an individual shops through choice or constraint) which could be considered by future research designs.

Details

International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, vol. 32 no. 11
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-0552

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 December 2019

Bhekimpilo Mpofu and Musawenkosi Khanyile

The purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of university undergraduate students who originate from disadvantaged South African schools. The perceptions probed are…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of university undergraduate students who originate from disadvantaged South African schools. The perceptions probed are those that relate to their material circumstances, learning and teaching environment and academic progress.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws on a theoretical framework that underscores the primacy of the environment blended with transition theory to explain environmental influences on disadvantaged students’ academic progression at university. Data were gathered through detailed face-to-face interviews with eight participants and from the open-ended section of a questionnaire administered to 41 students from which the 8 students were drawn.

Findings

The findings demonstrate that disadvantaged students require both physical and socio-psychological support in order to succeed at university.

Research limitations/implications

A university in South Africa and the students from low quintile schools provide the case study for the explication of the findings of this study. Ethical issues such as seeking the informed consent of the participants to access their academic records weighed against the potency or robustness of the results of this study, because few of the participants allowed this researcher to access their results. Thus, this study focussed on potentially sensitive areas such as the academic records of students and poverty. As such it was extremely difficult to persuade disadvantaged students to participate in this study.

Practical implications

The study is thus useful for the school system, families and higher education institutions in the quest to provide the much-needed socio-psychological or “empathetic infrastructure” that acts as the cytoplasm for disadvantaged students’ academic progress at university.

Social implications

By invoking the primacy of the environment under the rubrics of epigenetics, this study also sought to contribute to the debate around the human genome – a grand ambitious global scientific project launched in the late 1980s to generate a catalogue of all the genes present in humans. However, this was a smokescreen because there are simply not enough genes to account for the complexity of the human life or human disease. By invoking the theory of transition, this study sought to fathom how to promote a favourable teaching and learning environment for poor students at university in a holistic manner.

Originality/value

This study utilised an empirically supported definition of disadvantage: that of students coming from no fee schools, as classified by the Department of Education based on Household Expenditure statistics of 2002 using the quintile system. The quintile system is based on average measures of income, unemployment rates and educational levels. To date, there is no published research utilising the school quintile system to define disadvantaged students in higher education in South Africa. This paper, which investigates such a sample from a university, is therefore ground-breaking and novel.

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