CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN THE TIME OF FINANCIAL CRISIS: EVIDENCE FROM TURKEY

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been an important global issue all over theworld. Proponents of CSR claim that it has lots of benefits for the company such as goodreputation; on the other hand opponents claim that CSR can not protect a firm from financial harmin times of crisis. The objective of this paper is to conceptually examine the CSR, benefits ofimplementing CSR, and CSR activities in the time of financial crisis. In addition, a research wasconducted to explore the impact of CSR on company reputation in Turkey by comparing therelationship between our CSR and reputation measures before and after the financial crisis. Theevidence gathered shows that there is a positive and significant relationship between these twovariables in both before financial crisis era and financial crisis era. However, the correlationbetween these two variables has not increased significantly between the two periods investigated.Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Reputation, Financial Crisis

The Austrian experience shows that there is little risk and much to gain from giving 16-year-olds the vote

Sadiq Khan recently called for the voting age to be lowered to 16 in the UK. Markus Wagner and Eva Zeglovits examine arguments for and against, arguing that it is a reform that carries few dangers and can motivate schools to reach out to and motivate young people

Survey questions about party competence: Insights from cognitive interviews

AbstractVoter assessments of party competence have become a key explanation of electoral decision-making. However, there are at least three important aspects to understanding responses to questions on issue-specific party competence: comprehension difficulties; a lack of well-formed attitudes and relevant information; and the use of response heuristics. We used 20 cognitive interviews carried out in Austria in 2011 to test competence questions. The interviews show us how respondents explain their responses. We find evidence that many people (1) may hold only weak opinions and have little information on issue-specific party competence and (2) may make use of distinct but related concepts, particularly salience and position, when answering questions about competence. We provide recommendations for researchers and survey designers based on our findings

Complaints as starting point for vicious cycles in customer-employee-interactions

A ring-model of vicious cycles in customer employee-interaction is proposed: service employees perceive complaints as a threat to their self-esteem resulting in defense responses such as an increased need for cognitive closure, a devaluation of the customer and their information and degrading service behavior. Confronted with such degrading service behavior, customers react defensively as well, by devaluing the employee for example with regard to his/her competence and by reducing repurchase and positive word-of-mouth (WOM). Three studies investigated each link in this ringmodel. In study 1, participants were confronted with an aggressive or neutral customer complaint. Results show that motivated closed-mindedness (one aspect of the need for cognitive closure) increases after an aggressive complaint leading to a devaluation of the customer and their information, and in turn to a degrading service reaction. In study 2, participants were confronted with a degrading or favorable service reaction. Results show that they devaluate the employees' competence after receiving a degrading service reaction and thus reduce their intention to repurchase. In study 3, we finally examined our predictions investigating real customer employee-interactions: we analyzed data from an evaluation study in which mystery callers tested the service hotline of an airline. Results show that the employees' competence is devaluated after degrading behavior and thus reduces positive WOM

Species-specific foraging strategies of the syntopical and synchronous bees Panurgus calcaratus (Scopoli, 1763) and Dasypoda hirtipes (Fabricius, 1793) (Hymenoptera: Apidae).

Die Sammelstrategie der beiden endogäischen, oligolektischen syntop und synchron auftretenden Wildbienenarten Panurgus calcaratus (Scopoli, 1763) und Dasypoda hirtipes (Fabricius, 1793) wurden im Naturschutzgebiet Wahner Heide (Rheinland, BRD) untersucht. Saisonale und diurnale Rhythmik sowie die Sammelstrategien beider Arten wurden erfaßt, um eventuell bestehende Trennungsmechanismen oder Nischendiffenzierung aufzudecken. Neben dem Verproviantierungsverhalten der Bienen wurde die Oligolektie durch Pollenentnahme von Weibchen und durch Beobachtung an den Pollenquellen überprüft. Beide Arten nutzen ausschließlich gelbe, photonastische, zungenblütige Asteraceae als Pollenquellen, präferieren sandige Flächen mit geringer Vegetation als Nistplatz und sind von Anfang Juli bis Ende August aktiv. Eine Spezialisierung innerhalb der Oligolektie auf einzelne Arten zungenblütiger Asteraceae konnte nicht erkannt werden. Dasypoda hirtipes wies eine allgemein längere diurnale Aktivität auf und war zudem auch bei geringeren Temperaturen noch aktiv. Die Pollensammelaktivitäten werden bei beiden Arten maßgeblich von den photonastischen Pollenquellen limitiert. Desweiteren ist die Bienenaktivität von klimatischen Faktoren wie Lichtintensität, Bewölkung und Lufttemperatur abhängig. Artspezifische diurnale und saisonale Verhaltensweisen und Aktivitätsrhythmen werden im Hinblick auf Körpergröße und -farbe, Hitzeabsorptions- und Reflektions-Fähigkeit, Überhitzungsgefahr sowie Effekte der Ekto- und Heterothermie auf den Wärmehaushalt diskutiert. Jede Art verfolgt eine eigene Sammelstrategie, welche hauptsächlich durch ultimative Faktoren wie die Physiologie der jeweiligen Bienenart beeinflußt und zugleich limitiert wird. Weder Nistplatzangebot noch die Ressourcen Pollen oder Nektar sind im Untersuchungsgebiet begrenzt, so daß keine Evidenz für Konkurrenz zwischen den beiden Arten besteht.StichwörterInterspecific competition, oligolecty, optimal foraging strategies, photonasty, resource partitioning, separation mechanisms.Two ground-nesting, oligolectic bee species, Panurgus calcaratus (Scopoli, 1763) and Dasypoda hirtipes (Fabricius, 1793), which are syntopical and synchronous, were studied in the Wahner Heide Nature Reserve (Rhineland, Germany). To study mechanisms of ecological separation or niche differentiation the species-specific seasonal and diurnal rhythms and the foraging strategies were examined. In addition to provisioning behaviour, their oligolecty was examined by analysing pollen samples from females after flower-visiting and by observations of the bees on their pollen sources. Both species exclusively visit yellow, photonastic liguliflorous Asteraceae as pollen sources, prefer to construct their nests on sandy soils with poor vegetation and are active from the beginning of July until the end of August. Analysed samples show pollen grains belonging to yellow liguliflorous Asteraceae only and there was no specialisation within the oligolecty on certain plant species. Collection of pollen is limited by the photonastic flowers of the pollen sources, and the bee activity is mainly influenced by climatic factors like light intensity, cloudcover, and air-temperature. The diurnal activity period of Dasypoda hirtipes is much longer and this species is active at lower temperatures. The specific diurnal and seasonal behaviour and activity rhythm of the two bee species are discussed with regard to body size and coloration, the ability of heat absorption and reflection, risk of overheating, and ecto- and heterothermal effects to heat budgets. Each species follows its own foraging strategy which is mainly influenced and limited by ultimate factors as the bees` physiology under the given abiotic conditions. Neither nesting sites nor pollen and nectar resources are limited and consequently there is no evidence for competition between both species.KeywordsInterspecific competition, oligolecty, optimal foraging strategies, photonasty, resource partitioning, separation mechanisms

Wie viel Schweiz steckt im Schweizer Fernsehen? Eine Analyse struktureller und inhaltlicher Bezüge im Fernsehprogrammangebot der SRG SSR

No Billag – in der Schweiz ist die Debatte um die Notwendigkeit und Finanzierbarkeit des öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunks neu entbrannt. Eng damit verbunden sind die Fragen nach dem Public Value der SRG SSR und dem Aspekt, wie viel Schweiz tatsächlich im Schweizer Fernsehen steckt. Basierend auf einer inhaltsanalytischen Sekundäranalyse der Stichprobe aus dem Jahr 2017 der kontinuierlichen Fernsehprogrammforschung in der Schweiz, wird in diesem Beitrag die Darstellung der Schweiz und des Schweizer Volkes in Bezug auf einerseits die Repräsentation in den Fernsehprogrammen der SRG SSR und andererseits hinsichtlich der Verantwortung der Medienproduktion diskutiert. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Schweiz in informierenden Genres (z. B. Nachrichten) eine wichtige Rolle spielt, während in fiktionalen Inhalten (z. B. Serien, Filmen) nur selten auf die Schweiz Bezug genommen wird. Hinzu kommt, dass fiktionale Inhalte der SRG SSR häufig von internationalen Produktionsfirmen, insbesondere aus den grossen Nachbarländern der Schweiz, verantwortet werden. No Billag – in Switzerland, the debate about the necessity and financial viability of public broadcasting has been sparked anew. Closely linked are questions about the public value of the SRG SSR and how much of Switzerland is actually portrayed on Swiss television. Based on a secondary analysis of the 2017 data set of the continuous Swiss content analysis study, this paper discusses the representation of Switzerland and the Swiss people in terms of representation in television programmes of the SRG SSR and in terms of media production. Results show that Switzerland plays an important role in informational genres (e. g., News), while in fictional content (e. g., series, movies) references to Switzerland are scarce. Additionally, fictional content broadcast by the SRG SSR is often produced by international production firms, with preferences for content from Switzerland’s next-door-giant neighbours