Charles M. Wood

The Effects of Creating Psychological Ownership among Students in Group Projects

This article proposes that marketing instructors may be able to enhance student learning and satisfaction in group projects by applying a key principle of effective group leadership: creating a sense of ownership in the minds of students. Student ownership in the educational process is proposed to be a key part of the success of group experiential exercises. This article (1) draws from the management and marketing literatures to advance the idea that student self-reports of learning from class projects can be increased by increasing student ownership; (2) compares student response to an experiential teaching tool across two conditions: control group—the instructor chooses and provides products to be sold—and high student ownership—the students choose and provide products to be sold; and (3) demonstrates that experiential education tools are more effective when they include an element of ownership.

Marketing and e‐commerce as tools of development in the Asia‐Pacific region: a dual path

International development agencies claim that commercial applications of information and communication technology (ICT) have great potential to accelerate economic growth in developing nations. This paper investigates this idea and proposes that the Internet expands the potential of marketing activities to help developing countries pursue development goals along a dual path, one that includes activities that are “top‐down” in nature (e.g. infrastructure development), and another that involves “bottom‐up” activities (e.g. entrepreneurship). Both paths involve the expansion of marketing efforts and represent significant opportunities for business development and investment. Attention is given to the Asia‐Pacific region and to the processes and outcomes of development springing from bottom‐up or “grassroots” approaches, and how enhanced marketing activities can help nations reach key development goals. Finally, an interdisciplinary conceptual model is advanced regarding how a blend of top‐down and bottom‐up approaches may be used to encourage the diffusion of online marketing activities and to help foster economic and social development in the emerging economies in the Asia‐Pacific region.

Beyond Just Being There: An Examination of the Impact of Attitudes, Materialism, and Self-Esteem on the Quality of Helping Behavior in Youth Volunteers

ABSTRACT Young people represent a strong and growing source of volunteers for not-for-profit organizations (NPO) and are an important focus for NPO marketing efforts. Using helping behavior theory, this paper reports a study conducted with a sample of teenagers to examine influences on their decision to volunteer and their goal setting for fund-raising. The relationship between three individual variables (attitude toward the organization, self-esteem, and materialism) and the quality of helping behavior provided was found to be mediated in large part by attitude towards the actual volunteering task. Implications for NPO marketing and future research are discussed.

Interdependence and Cooperation in Industrial Buyer-Supplier Relationships

Buyer-supplier levels of cooperation within industrial markets is examined. Degree of interdependence has long been assumed to be a predictor of cooperation in these relationships. Results from this study show mixed results.

Segment differences in the asymmetric effects of service quality on business customer relationships

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to explore the possible negative asymmetric effects in the impact of service quality on the satisfaction and retention of different customer segments in a professional business services context. Negative asymmetry means that a lower than average service quality evaluation has a stronger effect on customer satisfaction and retention than a higher than average evaluation.Design/methodology/approach – The article provides a survey of 124 business customers of a Midwestern radio advertising services provider, preceded by nine in‐depth interviews with account reps of the advertising firm and two focus groups with business customers.Findings – Along the service quality dimensions – customer satisfaction – retention chain, there are significant negative asymmetric effects and the mediating role of satisfaction varies widely. There are important differences across customer groups: service outcomes are most important determinants of customer satisfaction for large and relat...

Making Marketing Principles Tangible: Online Auctions as Living Case Studies

This article presents an effective course supplement for Principles of Marketing classes. An experiential project involving online auctions is offered to instructors seeking to create a more participatory student environment and an interactive teaching style. A number of learning points are illustrated that allow instructors to use an auction project to illustrate specific Principles of Marketing concepts as a living case study. Emphasis in the present context is given to the illustration of the marketing mix, consumer behavior, ethics, e-marketing, and marketing research topics. An example for more advanced purposes is also provided.

Resource commitment behaviour of industrial exhibitors: an exploratory study

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to assist practitioners in improving the benefits they receive from trade shows. This study seeks to investigate the behaviour of resource commitment of exhibiting firms and its relationships with market orientation and exhibition performance.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected at the 2007 Suzhou Circuitex Show, which is held annually in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. It is one of the largest international shows for the printed circuit board (PCB) industry. A total of 315 questionnaires were handed out and 185 usable questionnaires were returned.Findings – The results advance the theoretical understanding of the market orientation‐resource commitment behaviour – performance framework within the setting of an industrial trade show. This study finds that market orientation is positively associated with an exhibiting firms resource commitment behaviour, which in turn has varying influences on the different dimensions of trade show performance.Research l...

Toward More Responsive Organizations: Openness to Change and Culture Preservation in Subsistence and Developing Economies

Adoption of innovations by the people of a nation typically contributes to its economic development. Cultural resistance to new products and technologies sometimes hinders widespread adoption. The resulting tension may result in a number of outcomes within a society. This paper uses behavioral theory in organizations and the economic development literature to explore ways in which local cultures in subsistence economies negotiate the adoption of innovations. Propensity to adopt innovations and resistance to cultural change are two dimensions that are proposed to impact the strategies that societies use to balance the competing interests of economic development and cultural integrity. Secondary data are used to explore the general relationship between various types of IT investment and economic development across a variety of nations, and a taxonomy is offered as a framework for future research.