Janet Haddock-Fraser

Using Attribute Importance Rankings within Discrete Choice Experiments: an application to Valuing Bread Attributes.

In this paper we present results from a Choice Experiment (CE) incorporating respondent debrie ng ranking information about attribute importance employing a modi ed Mixed Logit using Bayesian methods. Our results indicate that a CE debrie ng question that asks respondents to rank the importance of attributes, as opposed to simply indicating attendance or non-attendance, helps to explain the resulting choices. We also examine how mode of survey delivery (online and mail) impacts model performance and nd that our results are not substantively a¤ected by the mode of survey delivery. We conclude that the ranking data is a complementary source of information about respondent utility functions within CE.

The failure of multinational food retailers in Japan: a matter of convenience?

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address the question of why world major supermarket chains have been unsuccessful so far in the Japanese market. The paper considers arguments from the literature that differences in consumer attitudes and behaviour between the two markets may be the determinants of the success, or otherwise, of the large US and European supermarkets.Design/methodology/approach – A review of literature about Western and Japanese retailing is followed by an account of exploratory empirical research into Japanese consumer grocery purchasing and consumption behaviour.Findings – The results support an argument that the large store “one‐stop shopping” supermarket format popular in the UK/EU is not and will not be the preferred format in Japan. Convenience, matters, but it is not the same concept as in the UK, for example.Research limitations/implications – The sample survey is purposively biased towards younger female shoppers from the working population who will have a significant imp...

Multistakeholder values on the sustainability of dive tourism: case studies of Sipadan and Perhentian islands, Malaysia.

The impact on the marine environment of the rapidly growing dive tourism industry in less developed countries is increasingly understood, but little research currently exists on its impact on overall sustainability at host sites. This article applies Social Exchange Theory to assess multistakeholders’ perspectives of dive tourism for two Malaysian islands: the Perhentians and Sipadan. We argue that multiple interest groups exist within the sites, with heterogeneous attitudes relating to dive tourism. We found that dive instructors (most knowledgeable and engaged) have the most polarized views and clearly identify links between environment, society, and development. Nondive businesses show greater engagement with economic development impact, but may not link this to environmental preservation. Tourists were surprisingly indifferent—highlighting their lack of loyalty to “place” per se or opportunities for alternative travel choices.

Destination competitiveness: evidence from Bali

Within the dynamic global tourism industry, understanding the reasons for a destinations competitiveness is essential in order to enhance its performance, facilitate more effective destination management, and inform its overall sustainable economic development. This paper applies Kim and Wicks’ (2010, July 30. Rethinking tourism cluster development models for global competitiveness, international chrie conference-refereed track, University of Massachusetts) tourism cluster development model to Bali – a small, mature destination in the developing economy of Indonesia. It demonstrates that there are complex relationships between: (i) cluster actors; (ii) barriers preventing effective networking; and (iii) the significance of these interactions for the local host community. This paper contributes to the debate by addressing new and different attributes and actors such as transnational corporations, universities, and the concept of co-opetition, as being significant attributes in Kim and Wicks’ initial model. Through a qualitative approach involving N = 23 semi-structured interviews, this paper illustrates intricate issues and relationships that are identified in Bali, a small mature destination. Purposive sampling methods were employed to generate a range of key stakeholders who informed our understanding of ‘cluster actors’ in Kim and Wicks’ terms. The systematic examination of these key tourism elements provides a detailed analysis of the destinations strengths and weaknesses, and a more nuanced understanding of what facilitates a destinations competitive position.

Implicit measurement of consumer attitudes towards whole grain products

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to establish implicit consumer attitudes towards whole grain foods, following criticisms of explicit enquiries revealing an attitude-behaviour gap. For products considered to have social desirability (e.g. ethical and “health” products) bias may be observed, as respondents may provide responses that present them in a positive light, rather than those reflecting their actual attitudes, intentions or behaviours. Design/methodology/approach – The research employed an indirect measure, the shopping list method, analysed quantitatively in this case using factor analysis and regression, to examine the impression respondents form of whole grain consumers, using three discrete shopping lists and two discrete cover letters. Following a pilot survey to 79 people using Snowball sampling, the survey instrument was distributed to 3,000 UK households using a purchased mailing list. Findings – The findings demonstrated that respondents considered whole grain consumers to exhibit po...

UK pension sustainability and fund manager governance: agent duties to the principal

Sustainable investing includes the application of non-financial (Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)) criteria to asset selection in institutional investor portfolios [Capelle-Blancard, G., and S. Monjon. 2011. “Trends in the Literature on Socially Responsible Investment: Looking for the Keys Under the Lamppost.” Business Ethics: A European Review 21(3): 239–250]. The article explores the implications for applying ESG screening to the institutional investors making the asset selections. Institutional investors are a heterogeneous group of investors, with fund managers specifically being some of the largest listed organisations globally [Ingley, C. B., and N. T. van der Walt. 2004. “Corporate Governance, Institutional Investors and Conflicts of Interest.” Corporate Governance 12(4): 534–553]. Whether their own corporate management duties to fiduciary governance (the G in ESG) benefiting their shareholders has any material impact on the financial returns outcomes of the pension asset management contract, and specifically whether there is a fiduciary conflict favouring of the exclusive best interest of fund management shareholders is the question addressed by the paper.

A methodology to understand student choice of Higher Education Institutions: the case of the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT The need to understand how prospective students decide which higher education institution to attend is becoming of paramount importance as the policy context for higher education moves towards market-based systems in many countries. This paper provides a novel methodology by which student preferences between institutions can be assessed, using the United Kingdom as a case study. It applies both revealed preference and discrete choice modelling techniques to estimate the priority attributes and potential trade-offs of students choosing between different UK universities. Whereas the former methodology has the advantage of being based on actual decisions, the latter provides an experimental setting for more nuanced findings to be elicited; the combination of approaches allows for a rich and detailed set of results. This methodology can also be used to ask detailed strategic questions of higher education institutions and further applied to other international markets.