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States that understanding of the durability of differentiation and positioning as strategies is generally limited, although these areas are of great interest to service marketers. Argues that service marketers must be aware of the need to create and implement durable strategies. Proposes a framework for identifying strategies resistant to competitive imitation, based on the isolating mechanisms idea. Gives examples of differentiation strategies useful for exploiting isolating mechanisms. Concludes that managers analysing the role of both competitive and customer‐based isolating mechanisms will be morelikely to adopt a long‐term, proactive view of service differentiation.

In the 1980s, as the United States encountered international economic and technological challenges, the very ability of the American educational system to produce a competitive labor force, able to learn and solve problems, was questioned. During this past decade, renewed concern about educational quality in the United States motivated over one hundred reports analyzing the shortcomings in our system of education and endorsing reform. All of the principal curriculum areas have been reviewed in this process; moreover, science education has been deemed particularly deficient. Major reports sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) recommend both content revision of science courses and methodological changes in the way science is presented throughout the elementary and secondary grades.

Drawing upon the elaboration likelihood model, this study aims to illuminate contradictory findings from previous research regarding the impact of positive and negative emotions, as well as promotions, on impulse buying (IB). Specifically, this study takes a two-faceted approach to IB, considering both affective IB and cognitive IB.

A proposed model of IB is tested using a mall intercept survey.

The findings provide evidence for the two-dimensional nature of IB. Cognitive and affective IB are affected differently by promotions and emotions, and in turn, have different impacts on cognitive dissonance (CD). Specifically, promotions have a positive effect only on cognitive IB, while positive emotions have a positive effect only on affective IB. Additionally, cognitive IB positively affects CD, while affective IB does not.

Future research could explore different types of IB and unplanned purchases, consider the valence and arousal dimensions of emotions and examine how technological changes impact IB. Additionally, studying satisfaction as a mediator between IB and cognitive dissonance can contribute to the understanding of IB post-purchase outcomes.

By tailoring promotional techniques to cognitive IB and using positive emotions to stimulate affective IB, retailers can enhance the effectiveness of strategies. Furthermore, post-purchase strategies can be developed to reduce the negative effects of CD.

By exploring the different dimensions of IB and their relationships with CD, this study enhances our understanding of the underlying processes and mechanisms that drive consumer IB behavior during and after shopping trips.

The past two decades of economic activity in the U.S. have been characterized by both high inflation and interest rates in comparison to previous periods of stability. The importance of these two variables to our economic welfare and to the effectiveness of economic policy have led to renewed interest in the Fisher Effect. This is the hypothesis put forth by Irving Fisher describing the relationship between these two variables. It usually takes the form R = re + pe + repe (1) in which R is the nominal rate of interest, re is the expected real rate of interest, and pe is the expected rate of change of prices. The term repe is usually considered insignificant and is dropped, giving R = re + pe. (2) Although this equation can be readily quantified on an ex post basis using actual rather than expected values, the fact that expectation of r and p are not directly observable have always made it difficult to derive an ex ante measure of the real rate.

The purpose of this paper is to propose that transportation modal mix in global supply chains is a result of the strategic alignment between industry characteristics and supply chain strategies.

Using annual US trade statistics and manufacturing industry data for the years 2002-2009 between the USA and its top 12 Asian trading partners, this study applies various regression methods to examine key factors associated with the transport modal decision.

The results show that industry characteristics have an impact on the transportation modal mix in global supply chains. Manufacturing industries use more air freight and less ocean freight when facing positive sales surprises, high-monthly demand variation, a high-contribution margin ratio, a high cost of capital, and increased competition.

The findings provide important insights for logistics managers and freight forwarders. While transportation cost remains an important concern, a logistics manager must also consider non-cost factors such as competition, working capital, and demand uncertainties in their modal decisions. Freight forwarders should be supply chain solution providers who consider all of these industry factors and suggest a proper mix of transportation modes for their customers.

This study is among the first efforts to examine the impact of industry characteristics on the transportation modal mix in global supply chains. This study first develops a theoretical framework for the modal choice decision for international transportation movements and then, using an extensive and innovative data set, provides new findings regarding current air freight practices in global supply chains.

This study investigates one aspect of the multi‐source feedback process: the agreement between self‐ratings and coworker ratings of workplace behavior. Moderators of rating agreement (i.e., number of years that the coworker had known the employee, trustworthiness of the employee, and country status) are carefully examined. Eighty‐six Russian employee‐coworker dyads, 99 Polish dyads, and 95 U.S. dyads from more than 225 organizations participated. Regression results indicate that rating agreement was higher when the Polish and U.S. coworker knew the target employee a shorter period of time and when the Polish, Russian, and U.S. target employee was considered trustworthy.

The purpose of this paper is to generate an understanding of the value-added to students enrolled in selected undergraduate business programs from an academic and market perspectives. Although there are numerous studies that rank undergraduate colleges and universities, the selection of the “best value” undergraduate business program is a formidable task for prospective students. This study uses data envelopment analysis (DEA), a linear programming-based tool, to evaluate undergraduate business administration programs. The DEA model connects costs (inputs) with benefits (outputs) to evaluate the value-added to students by undergraduate business programs from a market as well as academic perspectives. The study’s findings should assist prospective students in selecting business programs that provide the best value from their individual perspectives. The results can also help schools to identify their corresponding market niche and allocate their recourses more effectively.

Use DEA method. DEA was developed by Charnes et al. (1979) to evaluate the performance of multi-input and -output production operations. The analytical and computational capacities of DEA are firmly based on mathematical theory.

This study takes a different approach toward the ranking of college programs. Most studies rank-order programs (universities) based on arbitrary weightings of attributes of quality and provide a general ranking of programs that is said meet the needs of many different constituencies including students, parents, donors, administrators’ faculty and alumni.

This is an original research using DEA and The Bloomberg/Businessweek online data for business school ranking.

In this age of the global economy, cross‐cultural negotiation is becoming an increasingly important part of the management and marketing process for nearly every firm. Compares the cross‐cultural negotiation behaviour and differences in the perceived processes between those firms which consider themselves North American‐focused and those firms which report a worldwide or international outlook. Proposes several hypotheses, reports significant differences between the two groups and provides analysis.

Misunderstanding, or misconstrual, is a major exacerbating factor in conflict escalation and an impediment to negotiation and resolution. Laboratory work has identified characteristic errors of construal which partisans make in assessing the views of their opponents. This paper examined whether these same phenomena could be observed in a traditional real‐world conflict, that between trade unions and management. In two studies, union representatives and managers reacted first (in Study 1) to an actual contract negotiation that the two sides were involved with, and then to a hypothetical unjust act. Results revealed that the two sides indeed display many characteristic errors of construal. Specifically, union representatives underestimated management concern for harmful acts against workers, or management's sincere wish to negotiate in good faith within financial constraints, and were generally highly suspicious of management motives and intentions toward workers. Managers saw union representatives as unreasonable, and greatly overestimated union militancy and unwillingness to accept extenuating circumstances. Negotiations will be greatly improved if such misconstruals can be exposed and debunked prior to, or during negotiations.

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