Previous research combining corporate political activity and collective action theory has focused solely on industry structure and its role in predicting group lobbying or PAC…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous research combining corporate political activity and collective action theory has focused solely on industry structure and its role in predicting group lobbying or PAC participation. The purpose of this paper is to use a different context—franchise systems—to apply Olsonian collective action theory to political activities.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a random-effects technique in STATA on an unbalanced panel data set, this paper empirically models the effects of franchise system size and degree of franchising on the level of lobbying intensity.
Findings
Since franchise systems are made up of differing unit ownership structure, the author first model if those systems that are fully franchised lobby less than those with franchisor unit ownership (supported). Next, since collective action theory predicts that more participants in a space will lead to less collective action, the author predict that franchise systems with larger unit counts will lobby less than those with smaller counts (not supported). Finally, the author test the interaction of these two effects as systems that are fully franchised and of higher unit totals should have an even greater negative relationship with political activity (supported).
Originality/value
This paper uses both a novel data set and a novel context to study collective action. Previous research has utilized an industry structure context to model the level of lobbying and collective action, while the current research uses an analogous logic, but in the context of franchise systems.
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The UK's Equal Opportunities Commission's Research Bulletin No. 10 is a special issue on this topic. It originated from a workshop which the EOC organised on the theme…
Abstract
The UK's Equal Opportunities Commission's Research Bulletin No. 10 is a special issue on this topic. It originated from a workshop which the EOC organised on the theme ‘researching women's issues’. There was a growing concern at the time that gender research was raising a number of issues which conventional research methods were not able to handle particularly well. Two of the papers presented at the workshop ‐ Richard Brown's keynote address and Audrey Hunt's retrospective on the role of quantitative survey methods in gender research ‐ are reproduced here for a wider audience.
Four conferences, held in Britain in 1991/2, on particular specialisms in Sociology considered their place within the curriculum and how distinctions can be drawn between what is…
Abstract
Four conferences, held in Britain in 1991/2, on particular specialisms in Sociology considered their place within the curriculum and how distinctions can be drawn between what is essential to a first degree in Sociology and what are optional elements. The research aim was to develop a qualitative understanding of the way particular specialisms within Sociology are constituted through teaching and fined into the overall curriculum. The conferences were of practical benefit to the participants in clarifying assumptions embedded in alternative course designs, facilitating the flow of good ideas about teaching methods and learning materials and establishing personal contacts with teachers from other institutions in the same field of study. The topics of the four conferences were Sociology of Culture, Sociology of Work and Employment, Methods of Social Research and Sociological Theory.
The purpose of this paper is to consider the Turing test (TT) in relation to artistic creativity.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider the Turing test (TT) in relation to artistic creativity.
Design/methodology/approach
Considers the TT in the domain of art rather than the usual context. Examines the TT in music and gives examples that involve exploratory creativity.
Findings
The TT for computer art has been passed “behaviourally” already occasionally, at a world class level. Where non‐interactive examples (such as AARON and Emmy) are concerned, the test has been passed in a relatively strong form.
Research limitations/implications
Raises the problem concerning the concept of creativity which is closely linked in most people's minds with the concept of art. There may be no such thing as computer art because there is no such thing as computer creativity. These arguments are examined and questioned.
Practical implications
This paper produces a discussion, which bears upon the relevance of the TT to artistic creativity and computer artworks and also in relation to musical creativity.
Originality/value
Provides further discussion about the imitation game in the context of computational creativity.
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Mbita Mbao and Johnnie Hamilton-Mason
The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of African community leaders, on factors that influence substance use and mental health status of Sub-Sahara African…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of African community leaders, on factors that influence substance use and mental health status of Sub-Sahara African immigrants living in the northeast region of the USA.
Design/methodology/approach
A social constructionist approach to grounded theory was used to understand social life’s complexity in the African community. Data analysis consisted of initial coding and focused coding, which led to the emerging of the following mid-range theories.
Findings
The following mid-range theories are developed: the work culture of Sub-Sahara African immigrants may influence substance-use behaviors, impact treatment for mental health and contribute to interpersonal conflicts related to marriage and parenting; there may be a relationship between the culture of privacy and spirituality because the church is often a place of comfort, and many may not seek treatment for mental health for fear of losing that community; Sub-Sahara African immigrants’ mental health and substance-use behaviors are influenced by unique factors that stem from balancing living in the new culture while also preserving their unique cultural norms.
Originality/value
The analysis of perceptions of African community leaders underscored “On the go” as a metaphor for describing Sub-Sahara African immigrants.
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President Bill Clinton has had many opponents and enemies, most of whom come from the political right wing. Clinton supporters contend that these opponents, throughout the Clinton…
Abstract
President Bill Clinton has had many opponents and enemies, most of whom come from the political right wing. Clinton supporters contend that these opponents, throughout the Clinton presidency, systematically have sought to undermine this president with the goal of bringing down his presidency and running him out of office; and that they have sought non‐electoral means to remove him from office, including Travelgate, the death of Deputy White House Counsel Vincent Foster, the Filegate controversy, and the Monica Lewinsky matter. This bibliography identifies these and other means by presenting citations about these individuals and organizations that have opposed Clinton. The bibliography is divided into five sections: General; “The conspiracy stream of conspiracy commerce”, a White House‐produced “report” presenting its view of a right‐wing conspiracy against the Clinton presidency; Funding; Conservative organizations; and Publishing/media. Many of the annotations note the links among these key players.