Firm Growth and Liquidity Constraints: A Dynamic Analysis

Using a large unbalanced panel data set of Portuguese manufacturing firms surviving over the period from 1990 to 2001, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether liquidity constraints faced by business firms affect firm growth. We use a GMM-system to estimate a dynamic panel data model of firm growth that incorporates cash flow as a measure of liquidity constraints and persistence of growth. The model is estimated for all size classes, including micro firms. Our findings suggest that smaller and younger firms have higher growth-cash flow sensitivities than larger and more mature firms. This is consistent with the suggestion that financial constraints on firm growth may be relatively more severe for small and young firms. Finally, firms that were small and young and strongly liquidity-constrained at the beginning of the sample period exhibited more persistent growth than those that were large and old and weakly liquidity-constrained. These results have significant policy implications.firm size, firm growth, liquidity constraints, GMM estimator, panel data

Firm Growth and Persistence of Chance: Evidence from Portuguese Microdata

Considering a dynamic firm growth model with serial correlation this work studies the effects of R&D activities and investment, both physical and R&D, on the growth of firms. The main hypotheses maintain that firms with a strong commitment to R&D have higher rate of growth and investment has a positive effect on firm growth. We investigate such relations with reference to an unbalanced panel data set of Portuguese manufacturing firms over the period 1990 to 2001. We find that a systematic tendency for smaller firms to grow more quickly is the main reason why firm growth is not entirely stochastic.Firm growth, R&D, GMM system estimator

It’s Personal and Not Just Business: The Effects of Admitting Transgressions on the Perception of Transgressors

Three experiments examined how a transgressor’s response, once accused of a wrongdoing, alters other’s perceptions of transgressor. Study 1 investigated how a baseball player’s response to steroid usage accusations affected fans’ perceptions of him. Participants thought of the athlete more positively when he apologized for his drug usage as compared to when he denied it or provided no comment. Study 2 examined if the effects of a transgressor’s response are moderated by the transgressor’s reputation. Participants were predicted to prefer apologies over denials if they had a pre-existing positive view of the transgressor (i.e., the person was a friend and not a stranger or someone known for being lazy). Results showed that, similar to Study 1, participants respected the transgressor and thought he handled the situation better when he apologized instead of denied the transgression, but contrary to predictions, the transgressor’s reputation did not have an effect on participants’ reactions to a transgressor’s responses. Study 3 examined whether feelings of schadenfreude (i.e., positive affect resulting from another’s misfortune) mitigated negative feelings toward a transgressor who denied the transgression. After participants witnessed a transgression, they then had to work with the transgressor on a task. When the transgressor performed the task incompetently, participants were predicted to feel schadenfreude and therefore not feel it was as important to hear the transgressor admit to his wrongdoing. Results indicated that participants felt more negatively toward an incompetent transgressor than one who contributed equally to the task, regardless of whether he denied or apologized for the transgression. Furthermore, contrary to the results of Studies 1 and 2, participants did not have increased positive feelings toward transgressors who apologized. Overall, these studies provide evidence that apologizing and expressing ownership for a transgression is the best method to respond with to facilitate relationship repair within multiple situations

Improving quality of pedagogical practices in English as a language of learning instruction

Thesis (M. Tech. (Education)) -- Central University of Technology, Free state, 2013This study investigates current pedagogical practices in teaching in English as a language of learning and instruction. The study seeks to examine whether current teachers are in need of re-training or whether they possess relevant content pedagogical knowledge to use English as a medium of instruction. At present, the Governing Bodies of schools have the authority to choose the language of learning and instruction according to the provisions of the Constitution.The language chosen as the medium is critical since it assumes the role of mediator between text and learner, and teacher and learner. The research uses the interpretive paradigm and in particular engages (Vygotsky 1978) and Chomsky (1986) as theorists of language acquisition who write from a constructivist perspective. Methods of data collection are drawn largely from the qualitative methods and to a lesser extent from quantitative methods. Instruments for data collection included questionnaires, interviews and lesson observations. The research study focuses on foundation phase teachers and learners in four purposefully selected schools, comprising former Model C and public township primary schools. The findings of the study suggest that learners, especially from township schools, find it difficult to learn in English as a medium of instruction probably because of limited exposure to English in both the school and home environment. On the contrary, learners from former Model C schools seem to be at an advantage because they use English in all spheres of school life, in and out of the class, resulting in more exposure and repetition. The findings seem to indicate that teachers‘ limited proficiency in English negatively affects quality of pedagogical practises in the language of learning and instruction. Lesson observations support findings that teachers‘ limited proficiency do affect education. This study further suggests that most non-native English teachers are inadequately prepared to use English as the medium of instruction. This inadequacy consequently results in some teachers failing to meet the language-related needs of learners due to their limited proficiency in the language of learning. This point is demonstrated by evidence from the observed lessons, recorded interviews and reviewed literature. The study further reveals that most teachers have difficulties with pronunciations, terms and vocabulary appropriate for grade two learners in this instance. Additionally, four factors affecting pedagogic practises were reflected in the study. These were class inequalities, different distribution of knowledge, differences in access to knowledge and social class differences. These factors were experienced through different pedagogic practices employed by different participants

Can you hear me now? The moderating effects of procedural justice within consumer-brand relationships

Consumer-brand relationships have led consumers to expect fair outcomes (i.e., distributive justice) consistent with their relationship norms with a brand. Deviation from these norms produced intuitive consequences such as a reduction of consumer loyalty and trust towards the brand. Yet, 65-85% of consumers still counterintuitively defect to a brand’s competitor. According to consumers, aspects of procedural justice qualitatively appeared to be major components that affected their attitudes towards brands. However, the effect of this construct within relationship norms has been underexamined, producing an empirical gap. The purpose of this dissertation was to bridge this gap by identifying the effect procedural justice has on consumer loyalty and trust within different consumer-brand relationships. In pursuit of this purpose, three studies were conducted. The first two studies examined how consumer-brand relationships influenced the perception of procedural justice. Study 1 replicated previous research. Procedural justice affected participants’ loyalty and trust similarly, while distributive justice affected them depending on their relationship with a brand. Study 2 addressed limitations within Study 1 and produced conflicting results. Study 2 found that positive brand relationships were associated with a larger change in loyalty and trust as perceptions of procedural justice increased compared to negative relationships. To address the conflicting evidence of Study 1 and Study 2, Study 3 examined initial and post consumers’ expectations of consistent or inconsistent procedural information in relation to their brand relationship to produce changes in consumer loyalty and trust. Inconsistent performance of procedural justice resulted in no change in consumer loyalty and trust. Yet regular performance of these inconsistent procedural actions resulted in reduced consumer loyalty and trust within positive brand relationships. Study 3 conceptually replicated both Study 1 and Study 2 by highlighting how procedural justice was initially discounted by consumers but was used to help maintain or adjust consumers’ relationship with a brand across many encounters with a positive CBR brand. Thus, the results of this dissertation have contributed and extended empirical knowledge within two separate areas of research while also providing evidence which accounted for previously unexpected changes in consumer behaviors and attitudes

How country of origin, consumer ethnocentrism and consumer xenocentrism impact upon risk and involvement in the malaria medication decision making process in Tanzania

The aim of this study was to examine how Country of Origin, Consumer Ethnocentrism and Consumer Xenocentrism impact upon risk and involvement in the malaria medication decision making processes in Tanzania. An exploratory research design was adopted which helped to discover ideas and insights underlying consumers’ decisions on malaria medication. The inductive research approach was adopted which helped to get a deep understanding of the underlying factors that influenced consumers in decision making when seeking malaria medication in Tanzania. Non-probability sampling specifically purposive sampling was used to select the participants in this study; clinical officers, laboratory technician, traditional medical practitioners, Tanzania Food and Drug Authority (TFDA) key informants and consumers.The findings from the study revealed that consumers have good knowledge on the causes and treatment of malaria disease. However, consumers were shown to differ in making the decision on malaria medication based on availability, affordability, performance and quality of the malaria medication. Risk in the consumption of the anti-malarial remedies influenced some consumers to be highly involved in making the decision, especially when purchasing anti-malarial remedies. The level of involvement was determined by opinion leaders, self-decision making and past experiences. Country of Origin, Consumer Ethnocentrism, Consumer Xenocentrism and product knowledge were found to be the strategies used by consumers to evaluate anti-malarial remedies in order to reduce risk.The findings of this study are expected to provide health professional bodies with knowledge about the decision making process consumers’ use while purchasing anti-malarial remedies. This will help them to boost the standard of the different domestic medical products and hence increase ethnocentric tendencies among Tanzanian consumers. Also the findings are expected to provide useful knowledge to policy makers such as TFDA and government in general which will help them to have a productive conversation with traditional medical practitioners about how the traditional medicines are produced. Hence more research could be undertaken to find out the efficacy and standards of the traditional medicines. In addition, these findings are expected to educate Tanzanian consumers on the consequences of applying self-medication in treating malaria

Factors Affecting Nurses’workplace Stress Inyowari Hospital Of Sentani District Jayapura

Work stress is distress experienced by individuals in the face of work caused by the stressors of work environment factors such as physical environment, organizational systems and individuals. The research objective was to determine what factors are causing stress in nurses who work in Hospital. This research used explanatory research with cross sectional approach. These samples included 55 nurses in hospitalization ward. The instrument of this study is a questionnaire. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis using chi square test, and multivariate analysis using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM).The results of univariate analysis showed that the nurses stress of 61.8% found in the characteristics of the age of 21-40 years (87.3%), female (85.5%) education level Diploma Nurses (74.5%), has a work period ≤ 5 years (60.0%), the status of civil servants (54.5%), were married (76.4%), and working in the internal ward (30.9%), with a personality type extrovert (70.9%). The level of stress is often the case that self esteem (87.3%), despair and a sense of worthlessness (80%), success (72.7%) and interest (72.7%). The bivariate analysis showed that, Stressors that significant with stress were: support, organization, interaction with the p-value (0.012 <0.05). The coping mechanisms were social support as an emotional reason the value of p-value(0.040 <0.05).The closeness to the religious p-value(0.002 <0.05) significantly between closeness to religion with work stress. The most factors that have an effect on the coping mechanisms Equtional Modeling Structural testing with loading value of 0.598 and 7.798 correlated, which means that the coping mechanisms 7 times have influence to reduce stress in the workplace. Keywords: workplace stress, nurse, patient ward

Crisis in education and culture and its social reflection on women: a case study of Zimbabwe, 1980 - 1988

A ZIDS Working Paper on the "crisis" of women's education in Zimbabwe.This paper looks at the crisis of women’s education in Zimbabwe from a socio-cultural point of view; or what the author terms "edu-culture". The main argument of the paper is that in spite of numerous post-independence changes, such as free primary education, the Legal Age of Majority Act, the creation of a Ministry dealing specifically with women’s affairs, etc, women still find themselves in a man’s world. This is evidenced by institutionalised biases against women in education and training, which tend to channel women towards "female" courses, such as nursing, teaching, hairdressing, etc., while keeping them out of "male" jobs such as engineering, mechanics, architecture, and limited decision-making powers