The Effects of Unfulfilled Preferential Treatment and Review Dispersion on Airbnb Guests’ Attitudes and Behavior

In sharing accommodation business such as Airbnb, while the provision of personalized amenities and services may seem like good business, hosts should be aware of the potential unintended consequences when they are not able to deliver what they promise. The present research examines how expectation gaps created by guest reviews interact with different types of preferential services to subsequently affect consumer behavior in the peer-to-peer accommodation economy. Grounded in attribution theory, this study offers new insights on customer responses to unfulfilled preferential treatment. The results suggest that in the condition of utilitarian services (e.g., airport transportation), participants in the low dispersion condition exhibited more negative attitudes, a lower level of repurchase intention, and a decreased willingness to write an online review. Conversely, in the condition of hedonic services (e.g., perform a talent show), expectation discrepancy did not result in different consumer evaluations across the dispersion conditions.

Optimal lobbying pricing

We study a game with two candidates and two interest groups. The groups offer two kinds of costly contributions to achieve political influence: (a) pre-election campaign contributions to their favourite candidates that increase their probability of winning the election and (b) post-election lobbying contributions to the winning candidate to affect the implemented policy. The candidates are the first to act by strategically choosing the lobbying prices they will charge the groups if they are elected. We characterise the equilibrium values of the lobbying prices set by the candidates as well as the equilibrium levels of the campaign and lobbying contributions chosen by the groups. We show, endogenously, that in the case with symmetric groups and symmetric politicians, a candidate announces to charge the group that supports her in the election a lower lobbying price, justifying this way the preferential treatment to certain groups from the politicians in office. We also consider two extensions (asymmetric groups and politicians who do not commit to the announced prices) and show that the results of the benchmark model hold under specific conditions.

The impact of asymmetric perceptions of buyer-supplier governance mechanisms on relational rents

PurposeBuyers and suppliers often perceive relationship governance mechanisms, such as trust and contractual fairness, in different ways. These differences in perception create an extra layer of complexity that is often ignored in the extant literature. This study adds to the understanding of how perceived asymmetries in trust and contractual fairness, two key relationship governance mechanisms, impact relational rents. This study also analyzes how boundary spanners aid managers to deal with these perceived asymmetries.Design/methodology/approachBased on survey data of 103 buyer–supplier dyads from a single global manufacturer of industrial equipment, the authors test hypotheses of perceived asymmetries in trust and contractual fairness, as well as the moderating effect of boundary spanners, on relational rents.FindingsThis research challenges the belief that asymmetries negatively impact or lead to unstable buyer–supplier relationships. Furthermore, it explains how preferential treatment and length of the relationship could reduce the impact of asymmetric perceptions.Practical implicationsThis study stresses that open communication, which considers different viewpoints, helps to overcome the negative differences in attitude and perception. In addition, the authors found that long-term relationships seem to be far more resilient in dealing with asymmetries and that preferential treatments are best applied in (approximately) symmetric relationships in terms of contractual fairness.Originality/valueWhile studies on buyer–supplier relationships often assume symmetric perceptions of governance mechanisms, asymmetric perceptions are far more prominent in reality. This study aims to improve one’s understanding of the impact of these asymmetries as well as how boundary spanners can affect these perceptions.

DOMESTIC PROBLEMS FACED BY FEMALE MINORITIES IN SOUTH EASTERN COUNTRIES SPECIFICALLY PAKISTAN

This study is about domestic problems faced by female minorities in South Asian countries specifically Pakistan. The study focused on racial, caste and religious minorities, focused on domestic issues like forceful change of religion and other domestic problems. There is no disputing the reality that men are given preferential treatment over women in a variety of situations. The questionnaire of this research revealed some critical results regarding domestic problems faced by the female minorities in Pakistan. The research revealed that verbal violence is more dominant among the forms of domestic violence faced by minority women and that women do face these problems because they belong to a minority.

Improving the effectiveness of the special and differential treatment of the World Trade Organization

<p>This paper deals with the subject of Special and Differential Treatment (SDT) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), a special right that allows developing countries preferential treatment by other member countries, particularly developed countries. The paper more specifically discusses the ineffectiveness of the SDT owing to its structure and formulation, and explores the factors that have caused such ineffectiveness. It touches upon the provisions and the ways in which they are formulated and implemented, which deemed to have lead to the ineffectiveness. An observation of the way that negotiations are conducted and the underlying interests that direct those negotiations also contribute to the slow progress of introducing changes to the provisions. Furthermore, this paper analyses and identifies steps that may be taken to improve the concept, formulation, and implementation of SDT, inter alia through amendments of the provisions and conduct of negotiations. The paper also looks at several dispute cases which highlight the ineffectiveness of the existing provisions in advancing the interests of developing countries in particular and in fulfilling its purpose in general.</p>

Improving the effectiveness of the special and differential treatment of the World Trade Organization

<p>This paper deals with the subject of Special and Differential Treatment (SDT) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), a special right that allows developing countries preferential treatment by other member countries, particularly developed countries. The paper more specifically discusses the ineffectiveness of the SDT owing to its structure and formulation, and explores the factors that have caused such ineffectiveness. It touches upon the provisions and the ways in which they are formulated and implemented, which deemed to have lead to the ineffectiveness. An observation of the way that negotiations are conducted and the underlying interests that direct those negotiations also contribute to the slow progress of introducing changes to the provisions. Furthermore, this paper analyses and identifies steps that may be taken to improve the concept, formulation, and implementation of SDT, inter alia through amendments of the provisions and conduct of negotiations. The paper also looks at several dispute cases which highlight the ineffectiveness of the existing provisions in advancing the interests of developing countries in particular and in fulfilling its purpose in general.</p>

Editors publishing in their own journals – a systematic review of prevalence and a discussion of normative aspects

Journal editors are the main gatekeepers in scientific publishing. Yet there is a concern that they may receive preferential treatment when submitting manuscripts to their own journals. The prevalence of such self-publishing is not known, nor the consequences for reliability and trustworthiness of published research. This study aimed to systematically review the literature on the prevalence of editors publishing in their own journals and to conduct a normative ethical analysis of this practice. A systematic review was performed using the following databases: Medline, PsycInfo, Scopus, and Web of Science. Articles that provided primary data about editors publishing in own journals were included. We identified 15 studies meeting inclusion criteria. There was large variability of self-publishing across fields, journals, and editors, ranging from those who never published in their own journal to those publishing extensively in their own journal. Many studies suffered from serious methodological limitations. Nevertheless, our results show that there are settings where levels of self-publication are very high. We recommend that editors-in-chief and associate editors who have considerable power in journals refrain from publishing research articles in their own journals. Journals should have clear processes in place about treatment of articles submitted by editorial board members.

A study into the special economic and legal status area’s particular qualities as a tool to attract investment in the Russian regions’ economic systems: The customs aspect

Subject. This article discusses the issues related to the development of special economic and legal status areas in terms of attracting foreign investment and developing foreign economic activity. Objectives. The article aims to study the peculiarities of the special economic and legal status areas’ functioning as a tool for attracting investment in the economic systems of the regions of the Russian Federation from the standpoint of customs regulation. Methods. For the study, we used the methods of logical and statistical analyses. Due to the peculiarities of statistical information, we analyzed the areas industrial special economic zones are located in. Results. The article defines the essence of preferential treatment and the main issues of customs regulation of the activities of special economic and legal status areas. It describes the role of special status areas in the development of regional socio-economic systems. Conclusions. Priority social and economic development areas are the most appropriate tool to implement the State regional policy. This is confirmed by statistical data on the dynamics of the creation of such areas.

Discrimination against mobile European Union citizens before and during the first COVID-19 lockdown: Evidence from a conjoint experiment in Germany

One of the greatest achievements of the EU is the freedom of movement between member states offering citizens equal rights in EU member states. EU enlargement and the COVID-19 pandemic allow for a critical test of whether EU citizens are indeed treated equally in practice. We test preferential treatment of EU citizens in two hypothetical choice experiments in Germany at two different time points: in the period before and during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Theories of responses to threat suggest that the COVID-19 crisis should increase discrimination against mobile EU citizens. While our findings reveal sizeable discrimination based on nationality and language proficiency of mobile EU citizens, the findings also suggest that, contrary to expectations, discrimination did not increase in the initial COVID-19 crisis period.

Xi's pressure on Chinese firms will only go so far

Significance Since he took office, private firms have suffered most from attempts to rein in corporate debt, while state firms have benefited from flagship initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative and Made In China 2025. Now, a series of reforms and assertive regulatory actions is targeting sectors dominated by private firms, including internet platforms and education. Impacts Private firms will further increase their presence in the Chinese economy, although at a slower pace than before. More emphasis will be put on support for small and medium-sized firms as major employers and drivers of economic growth. Preferential treatment of state-owned enterprises will remain a pillar of government policy.