Essam Ibrahim

An exploratory study on the value of service learning projects and their impact on community service involvement and critical thinking

Purpose – This exploratory study attempts to capture some of the principal benefits/factors attributable to service learning/community service projects, from a student perspective.Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 67 males and 83 females (16 graduate, 71 seniors, and 63 juniors) participated in the study.Findings – Students believe that their college experience is preparing them for the job market, that critical thinking has been enhanced, and that their college academic experience has emphasized community service upon graduation.Practical implications – The results increase ones knowledge of the benefits of service learning since so much emphasis is currently being placed on improving the critical thinking and problem‐solving ability of undergraduate business students.Originality/value – Practitioners would be interested in understanding the impact that service learning can have on the problem‐solving ability of potential employees. If additional research could advance the proposition that stude...

What is postgraduate marketing education for? observations from the UK

Purpose – This paper seeks to highlight the significance of the recent debate on the “academic‐practitioner divide” for postgraduate marketing education in terms of informing objectives, chosen scope and structure and service provision.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected on 60 programmes at 45 UK higher education institutions (HEIs) by desk research and from 129 PG students enrolled at five British Universities by means of a questionnaire.Findings – It was found that these were close parallels between PG and UG programmes in the UK. From the perspective of students intending to become marketing practitioners, five key strengths and weaknesses of current marketing education provision were identified.Research limitations/implications – Data on current PG marketing programmes was only collected from a sample of UK HEIs and not internationally. Data from students was collected only from five UK Universities.Practical implications – Suggestions are made for the ways and means by which PG program...

Jumped or Pushed? Understanding Customer Switching in the Banking Context

The concept of switching generally assumes that customers have choice and the ability to change from one service/product provider to another. Yet, not all situations present consumers with the same degree of choice or ability to switch. In the UK, lack of competition, choice, and switching barriers are cited as particular problems facing consumers in switching from one bank to another. Previous studies of switching have tended to focus only on certain aspects affecting switching behavior, such as switching factors (Keaveney 1995; Gerrard and Cunningham 2004) or staying factors (Patterson and Smith 2003; Panther and Farquhar 2004; Colgate and Lang 2001). Other studies have combined elements (Bansal and Taylor 1999) such as switching and sociopsychological factors; but few studies have combined factors affecting both switching and staying. We attempt to provide a more holistic analysis of the factors prompting switching intentions including those factors that serve to promote or inhibit switching or staying. We take as our theoretical basis migration theory and the theory of planned behavior.

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Female Nudity Perception in Print Advertising among Female Consumers in the UK and the Netherlands

Female nudity has served to operationalize sex appeals in advertising and a majority of the current research operates under this presupposition (Peterson and Kerin, 1977; Reichert, LaTour and Ford, 2011). One common theme that has emerged from the research is the support for an opposite-sex effect, of which advertisements displaying the opposite sex are viewed more favorably than those depicting models of the viewer’s own sex (Peterson and Kerin, 1977). As such, the common notion that ‘sex sells’ to female consumers is undermined by said results and heeds further exploration. Additionally, a majority of these studies have been limited to the United States and in instances where cross-cultural research is considered, do not typically examine perceptions within the confines of Western Europe, despite noted cultural differences (Reichert, 2002). The present study examines cross-cultural responses of woman towards the use of female nudity in advertising, in the UK and the Netherlands, investigating attitude towards the ad and the self-declared purchase intention.

ATTRACTIVENESS, TRUSTWORTHINESS, AND EXPERTISE: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY EXAMINING COLLEGE STUDENT EVALUATIONS OF SPORT CELEBRITIES AS POTENTIAL ADVERTISING MODELS

Well- publicized negative off-the-field behavior by many of today’s professional athletes threatens to make this group of personalities less attractive in the eyes of firms searching for the celebrity endorser. Sales declines attributable to heightened consumer agitation with the anti-social behavior of many of today’s professional athletes have become a concern to advertisers, especially in cases where a single professional athlete becomes the sole spokesperson for the advertiser’s product line (Till 2001; Costanza and Goodnight 2000; Till and Shimp 1998). The present study investigates the effect of negative publicity on the evaluation of celebrity athletes who have previously been featured in advertising campaigns as a product endorser. The study discusses the role of public evaluations of athletes based upon their attractiveness, dependability (and/or trustworthiness), and perceived expertise. The study also examines the possible impact of respondent sex, race, and status as a sports fan on final evaluations of athletes.

The Development Process Of Strategic Marketing Plans In Uk And Australian Companies: A Preliminary Investigation

For the long-term success of a business, creating and maintaining a sustainable strategic position is crucial. Being everything to everybody is not sustainable, as it does not protect the company from imitators. According to Porter (1996) and Tellier & Pecaut (1995) trade-offs are necessary to create a sustainable position because they force the company to make choices and limit what they offer. These authors assert that managers have been led to believe that operational effectiveness eliminates the need for trade-offs, however the essence of strategy is choosing what not to do. Porter (1996), for example, states that through the years managers have concentrated on achieving operational effectiveness rather than strategy development. Management tools, such as TQM, benchmarking and outsourcing have replaced strategy. Even though both - operational effectiveness and strategy - are necessary for superior performance, they play different roles. Operational effectiveness is performing similar activities better than competitors, while strategy means performing different activities from competitors or performing similar activities in different ways. Operational effectiveness is an interesting issue as it exemplifies what a vast majority of companies are doing. All companies seem to be interested in being at the forefront of the productivity frontier, without considering that even though constant improvement in operational effectiveness is necessary for superior profitability it is not enough for overall competitiveness. Tucker et al (1987) state that competitive benchmarking -one of the tools used to achieve operational effectiveness - is not capable of identifying a competitive advantage. The only thing it achieves is identifying ways in which a company can imitate the best in their industry.

Inappropriate or intriguing?: The impact of demographics and psychographics on the attitudes of genders towards sexual imagery in press advertising

This study compares the male and female attitudes towards sexual imagery in press advertising and identifies the demographic and psychographic factors influencing their attitudes. Although this topic has received previous attention in literature, genders’ attitudes have not been exclusively compared and particularly not with a view to the factors influencing these attitudes. We employed qualitative methodology to gain a greater understanding of the participants’ views. The findings revealed the significance of gender and age on shaping consumers’ attitude. The contrast between male and female attitudes was undeniable, however overall interviewees implied their growing indifference to the genre.