Search results

1 – 10 of 24
Per page
102050
Citations:
Loading...
Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 10 November 2020

Bertram I. Steininger, Martin Groth and Brigitte L. Weber

We investigate causes for the cost overrun and delay of the railway project Stuttgart 21. Besides, we try to forecast the actual costs and completion date at an early stage.

1690

Abstract

Purpose

We investigate causes for the cost overrun and delay of the railway project Stuttgart 21. Besides, we try to forecast the actual costs and completion date at an early stage.

Design/methodology/approach

The results of exploratory research show the causes for the cost overrun and delay of Stuttgart 21; we compare our findings with other railway projects. To estimate the costs at an early stage, the reference class forecasting (RCF) model is applied; to estimate the time, we apply an OLS regression.

Findings

We find that the following causes are relevant for the cost overrun and delay of Stuttgart 21: scope changes, geological conditions, high risk-taking propensity, extended implementation, price overshoot, conflict of interests and lack of citizens' participation. The current estimated costs are within our 95% confidence interval based on RCF; our time forecast underestimates or substantially overestimates the duration actually required.

Research limitations/implications

A limitation of our approach is the low number of comparable projects which are available.

Practical implications

The use of hyperbolic function or stepwise exponential discount function can help to give a clearer picture of the costs and benefits. The straightforward use of the RFC for costs and OLS for time should motivate more decision-makers to estimate the actual costs and time which are necessary in the light of the rising demand for democratic participation amongst citizens.

Social implications

More realistic estimates can help to reduce the significant distortion at the beginning of infrastructure projects.

Originality/value

We are among the first who use the RCF to estimate the costs in Germany. Furthermore, the hyperbolic discounting function is added as a further theoretical explanation for cost underestimation.

Details

Journal of Property Investment & Finance, vol. 39 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-578X

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 March 2023

Anna-Lena Weber, Brigitte Ruesink and Steven Gronau

This article aims to investigate the impact of (1) the establishment of a refugee settlement, (2) the energy demand of a host and refugee population, (3) the residence time of…

818

Abstract

Purpose

This article aims to investigate the impact of (1) the establishment of a refugee settlement, (2) the energy demand of a host and refugee population, (3) the residence time of refugees and (4) interventions in the energy sector on sustainable utilization of the forest.

Design/methodology/approach

Refugee movements from the Democratic Republic of Congo and settlement construction in a Zambian host society provide the setting. An agent-based model is developed. It uses survey data from 277 Zambian households, geographic information system coordinates and supplementary data inputs.

Findings

The future forest stock remains up to 30 years without an influx of refugees. Refugee developments completely deplete the forest over time. The settlement construction severely impacts the forest, while refugees' energy needs seem less significant. Compared with the repatriation of refugees, permanent integration has no influential impact on forest resources. Interventions in the energy sector through alternative sources slow down deforestation. Once a camp is constructed, tree cutting by hosts causes forest covers to decline even if alternative energy is provided.

Practical implications

The analysis is useful for comparable host–refugee settings and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees interventions in settlement situations. Forest and energy sector interventions should involve host and refugee stakeholders.

Originality/value

This article adds value through an agent-based model in the Zambian deforestation–refugee context. The study has a pilot character within the United Nation's Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework. It fills a gap in long-term assessments of refugee presence in local host communities.

Details

Journal of Economics and Development, vol. 25 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1859-0020

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Book part
Publication date: 13 May 2019

Jiří Šubrt

Abstract

Details

Individualism, Holism and the Central Dilemma of Sociological Theory
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-038-7

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 3 April 2017

Henriette Lundgren, Brigitte Kroon and Rob F. Poell

The purpose of this paper is to explore how and why personality tests are used in workplace training. This research paper is guided by three research questions that inquire about…

6826

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how and why personality tests are used in workplace training. This research paper is guided by three research questions that inquire about the role of external and internal stakeholders, the value of psychometric and practical considerations in test selection, and the purpose of personality test use in workplace training.

Design/methodology/approach

This research paper uses multiple-case study analysis. Interviews, test reports, product flyers and email correspondence were collected and analyzed from publishers, associations, psychologists and human resource development (HRD) practitioners in Germany, the UK and The Netherlands between 2012 and 2016.

Findings

Themes emerge around industry tensions among practitioners and professional associations, psychologists and non-psychologists. Ease of use is a more important factor than psychometrics in the decision-making process. Also, practitioners welcome publishers that offer free coaching support. In the process of using tests for development rather than assessment, re-labeling takes place when practitioners and publishers use positive terms for personality tests as tools for personal stocktaking and development.

Research limitations/implications

Despite extensive data collection and analysis efforts, this study is limited by its focus on a relatively small number of country cases and stakeholders per case.

Practical implications

By combining scientific evidence with practical application, stakeholders can take first steps toward more evidence-based HRD practice around personality testing in workplace training.

Originality/value

Little academic literature exists on the use of personality testing in workplace training. Without a clear understanding of the use of personality testing outside personnel selection, the current practice of personality tests for developmental purposes could raise ethical concerns about the rights and responsibilities of test takers.

Details

European Journal of Training and Development, vol. 41 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-9012

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 21 May 2018

Brigitte Aulenbacher, Fabienne Décieux and Birgit Riegraf

The starting point of the paper is the meteoric rise of care and care work upon the societal and sociological agenda. Referring to Polanyi, the authors argue that this is the…

834

Abstract

Purpose

The starting point of the paper is the meteoric rise of care and care work upon the societal and sociological agenda. Referring to Polanyi, the authors argue that this is the manifestation of a new phase of capitalist societalisation (Vergesellschaftung) of social reproduction in the form of an economic shift. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the societal organisation of care and care work and questions of inequality and justice.

Design/methodology/approach

The first part of the paper illustrates some facets of the economic shift in the field of care and care work. The second part reconstructs the societal organisation of care and care work in the private sector, state, third sector and private households from the mid-twentieth century in the context of questions of inequality and justice. The third part draws on the institutional logics perspective and French pragmatic sociology and the own case studies on home care agencies (HCA), residential care communities (RCC) and early child care (ECC) in Austria and Germany and shows how conflicting demands give rise to new questions of justice. The paper ends with a short conclusion.

Findings

The paper shows how the commodification and de-commodification of care and care work have changed over time and how the economic shift – illustrated in the case of HCA, RCC and ECC – is accompanied by conflicting demands and questions of justice.

Originality/value

A Polanyian perspective on the relation between market and society is combined with the neo-institutionalist and pragmatic idea that orientations rooted in the “logics” of the market, the state, the family and the profession influence how conflicting demands in elder and child care are dealt with and how questions of inequality and justice arise.

Details

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 37 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7149

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 21 May 2024

Marloes van Engen and Brigitte Kroon

Little research is devoted to how salary allocation processes interfere with gender inequality in talent development in universities. Administrative data from a university…

Abstract

Little research is devoted to how salary allocation processes interfere with gender inequality in talent development in universities. Administrative data from a university indicated a substantial salary gap between men and women academics, which partially could be explained by the unequal distribution of men and women in the academic job levels after acquiring a PhD, from lecturer to full professor, with men being overrepresented in the higher job levels, as well as in the more senior positions within each job level. We demonstrated how a lack of transparency, consistency and accountability can disqualify apparent fair, merit-based salary decisions and result in biased gender differences in job and salary levels. This chapter reflects on how salary decisions matter for the recognition of talent and should be an integral part of talent management.

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 March 2006

Simon Forge and Colin Blackman

New technologies challenge the traditional view that the radio spectrum must be tightly controlled and the new orthodoxy that a market‐based approach is the most efficient way to

1372

Abstract

Purpose

New technologies challenge the traditional view that the radio spectrum must be tightly controlled and the new orthodoxy that a market‐based approach is the most efficient way to manage the spectrum. This article aims to make the case for collective use of the spectrum.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws on a range of literature, both technical and economic, as well as the authors' opinions to describe the economic context, market and other models for spectrum allocation, technological advances in signal processing, and the way forward for assessing future spectrum management policy, with particular reference to Europe.

Findings

Technical advances, from research in the commercial domain and from release of military research, combined with the increasingly important economic need to facilitate innovation in new radio technologies, demand a debate on a new approach to spectrum management policy.

Originality/value

The paper brings together the economic and technical arguments in favour of collective use of the radio spectrum and will be of value to academics, business and policy makers.

Details

info, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6697

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 March 2006

Steven S. Wildman, Johannes M. Bauer and Carol Ting

This paper proposes to describe a model and the results of a simulation exercise used to compare welfare outcomes for four governance regimes that might be employed for wireless

426

Abstract

Purpose

This paper proposes to describe a model and the results of a simulation exercise used to compare welfare outcomes for four governance regimes that might be employed for wireless services: two spectrum ownership regimes and two open commons regimes. Aims also to examine practical implications for policy makers.

Design/methodology/approach

A formal economic model was constructed and computational techniques were employed to explore the welfare consequences of alternative applications of policy instruments.

Findings

For the model examined, the market does as well as can be expected from government in setting interference tolerance for both types of regimes. However, commons regimes always generate excessive entry. While the theoretical optimum achievable by government in an ownership regime exceeds predicted welfare for a commons regime, for most model specifications the difference is not too large and an ownership regime can easily under‐perform a commons regime if imperfectly‐informed policy makers set policy variables incorrectly.

Research limitations/implications

The necessity of using computational methods limits the generality of the findings.

Practical implications

The modeling approach and analysis identify critical tradeoffs that must be addressed by policy makers in designing spectrum governance institutions.

Originality/value

This analytical approach makes possible hitherto impossible, side‐by‐side performance comparisons for alternative governance regimes. The framework can be extended and generalized to other policy issues.

Details

info, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6697

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 1 March 2006

Thomas W. Hazlett, Jürgen Müller and Roberto Muñoz

This paper aims to estimate the social gains from an analog TV switch‐off in 13 EU countries, focusing on the value of TV band spectrum in alternative uses.

732

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to estimate the social gains from an analog TV switch‐off in 13 EU countries, focusing on the value of TV band spectrum in alternative uses.

Design/methodology/approach

By using data from existing mobile phone markets, changes are projected in retail prices for wireless voice services, assuming a reallocation (to mobile telephony) of about 42 percent of TV band spectrum.

Findings

It is forecast that retail mobile phone tariffs would substantially decline if a transition to digital television led to enhanced availability of VHF/UHF spectrum for wireless telecommunications. Consumer surplus gains offset transition costs by at least 2‐to‐1, and as much as 45‐to‐1. These net benefits are conservatively estimated in that other services (apart from mobile telephony) could prove more socially valuable, and because we ignore the considerable increase in video choices the transition could provide. It is also found, however, that wireless operators' profits sharply decline with additional spectrum, due to more intense competition. This suggests a public choice dynamic, often overlooked, that potentially helps to explain the slow pace of the digital TV transition.

Practical implications

Regulations blocking TV band spectrum from reallocation to non‐TV applications ought to be re‐examined in light of the associated costs and benefits.

Originality/value

This paper quantifies, using conservative methods, the cost of current spectrum policies.

Details

info, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6697

Keywords

Access Restricted. View access options
Article
Publication date: 29 June 2023

Da Van Huynh, Brigitte Stangl and Dieu Thi Tran

This research aims to investigate how emerging destinations cope with digitalization of information, where they are in the process and how digitalization of information takes…

292

Abstract

Purpose

This research aims to investigate how emerging destinations cope with digitalization of information, where they are in the process and how digitalization of information takes place in destination marketing organizations (DMOs). As a case for emerging destinations that must deal with the negative consequences of the digital divide, the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD) will be examined. A new framework, solutions in general, and potential innovative approaches will be presented.

Design/methodology/approach

A mixed methods approach was used. Firstly, a content analysis comprising 68 criteria to examine 10 destination websites was conducted to evaluate the performance of provincial destination websites of VMD. Secondly, the authors interviewed five managers from VMD DMOs to reveal the strategy, status quo and their challenges with digitalization.

Findings

Some digitalization is evident in VMD DMOs, with the digitization of tourist information provision developing from analog formats to digital modes. The content analysis of the websites shows that provincial destination websites of VMD perform well with regard to communication but need improvements for transaction, and especially relationship aspects. Emerging destinations like VMD DMOs are reaching the second or third level in the digitalization process. Yet they face challenges with human and financial resources.

Practical implications

This research provides recommendations concerning destination website performance, the process of digitalization and how to promote digitalization and apply more digital instruments to move to the next stages of destination digitalization. Also, suggestions on how to overcome existing challenges/barriers in similar areas of the world are provided.

Originality/value

A new, extended more granulated version of the digitalization framework by Karpova et al. (2019) has been developed. The new model acknowledges the continued importance of printed information, provides information about the sequence of steps how to implement website dimensions, and which instruments are realistic to implement in different levels of digitalization considering the challenges and barriers developing destinations face.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. 28 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

1 – 10 of 24
Per page
102050