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Adjustment to the new locale is one of the primary factors that influence performance on an international assignment. The purpose of this paper is to propose a model that depicts how online social networks may contribute to international assignees’ adjustment via their influence on well-being and knowledge transfer.

The present research uses network theory and readily available technology to develop a model of how online supportive social networks and informational social networks may increase the international assignee’s well-being and knowledge transfer (with prior/next assignees and with the organization). These increases will subsequently have a positive impact on the assignee’s adjustment and ultimately his/her job performance.

Since this paper is conceptual rather than empirical, there are no findings; however, it is argued that online social networks may have a positive impact on an expatriate’s well-being, knowledge transfer, adjustment, and job performance.

This paper is a conceptual piece, so data will need to be collected to test the model developed here. Furthermore, other factors may influence international assignee adjustment, such as spouse and/or family adjustment.

Suggestions are provided regarding how organizations can utilize in-house or external online social networks to assist international assignees.

Despite the ubiquity of online social networks, there is a paucity of research examining the potential impact of online social networks on international assignees.

Owing to their growing numbers and importance, both managers and researchers are increasingly concerned with the work experiences of boundary‐spanning employees. Employee perceptions of organizational support (POS) may be particularly relevant to this crucial employee group. Thus reports a study of the relations between two individual‐level and two organizational‐level antecedents to boundary‐spanner POS. The results indicate that employee gender, amount of formal organizational recognition received, and the quality of task‐related training are associated with POS. However, type of employee pay plan is not. Concludes with a discussion of these findings and their implications for effectively managing boundary‐spanning employee POS.

Noting the recent wave of books on business and spirituality, the editor of a business journal recently sardonically observed that there must be more Zen in American boardrooms than in Buddhist monasteries. While the spirituality of business may be withering, the business of spirituality appears only too alive. Elmer Gantry has left the revivalist tents and entered the convention hall circuit of motivational speakers and corporate awards banquets.

This paper analyzes the impact of menu descriptions on the selection of menu items. Furthermore, this paper examines the relationship between menu descriptions and the perceived value of the item.

This study uses the different components of prospect theory (e.g. anchoring effects and framing effects). An experimental research design using mock menus was used to investigate the impact of item presentation, item selections, and menu descriptions on consumer judgments of consumer choice and price value.

The results found that detailed menu descriptions negated the impact of the price increases on the menu items.

The implications of this study are valuable to restaurateurs because it shows that menu descriptions have the potential to increase revenue while also increasing the value perception. The study can also be applied to similar competing restaurants. Restaurants can be successful when magnifying the differences with detailed descriptions.

The implications of this study can aid restaurateurs that are either developing new menus or increasing their prices. Restaurateurs are encouraged to provide a more detailed menu description in order to increase the perceived value by the guest.

Limited research investigates the travel behavior of the retired adult population before retirement and how it changes after retirement. Currently, most of the travel research on the retired population explores their current travel patterns in retirement. Increased research on travel activity before retirement would allow managers in the tourism industry to better adapt and anticipate the changing needs and demographics of seniors, notably, the various ways this growing population manages travel and specific barriers or concerns they face. The authors examined the changes to the travel patterns – defined as travel frequency, mode of transportation, and geographic location/s (domestic or international) – of those retired traveling before and after retirement. Since retirement is a time of major life change, the authors analyzed how this event impacts travel behavior. This research identified barriers these Baby Boomers and those who are retired experience while traveling, including health, social activities, and financial status, which may impact their travel, the degree to which their travel behavior is affected, and specific environmental and personal factors impacting their travel patterns. This chapter will explore the barriers and motivations to travel for the retired population. Results show that before retirement seniors had less time to travel, obligations at home, and were not interested in as many destinations. After retirement, health barriers negatively impacted an individual’s travel frequency and they were also more concerned about safety while traveling and accessibility to the destinations. After retirement, financial barriers impacted an individual’s domestic travel frequency, with those having lower incomes traveling less. Accessibility to the destination facility and transportation options were major barriers to traveling internationally. Before and after retirement, there was a decrease of 10 percent in international travel.

Examines the concept of institutional (university) image from a cultural studies approach and from a quantitative perspective. Building on these and other research findings, posits that multiple changing images exist within each individual and that these images are affected by certain factors. Examines university image from an external stakeholder perspective, based on a telephone survey study of respondents from across the university’s home state. The results confirm multi‐image conceptualization of the university setting and, importantly, examine the factors – personal, environmental, and organizational – that give rise to the multiple image concept. Complementing much corporate image research that views image(s) as primarily controlled by the organization, these findings suggest that corporate image, considered also as a receiver‐oriented and audience‐specific construct, can vary as a function of other, external, determining factors but that organizational factors are, nevertheless, very influential factors for one’s decision making about image.