Log Periodic Power Analysis of Critical Crashes: Evidence from the Portuguese Stock Market

The study of critical phenomena that originated in the natural sciences has been extended to the financial economics’ field, giving researchers new approaches to risk management, forecasting, the study of bubbles and crashes, and many kinds of problems involving complex systems with self-organized criticality (SOC). This study uses the theory of self-similar oscillatory time singularities to analyze stock market crashes. We test the Log Periodic Power Law/Model (LPPM) to analyze the Portuguese stock market, in its crises in 1998, 2007, and 2015. Parameter values are in line with those observed in other markets. This is particularly interesting since if the model performs robustly for Portugal, which is a small market with liquidity issues and the index is only composed of 20 stocks, we provide consistent evidence in favor of the proposed LPPM methodology. The LPPM methodology proposed here would have allowed us to avoid big loses in the 1998 Portuguese crash, and would have permitted us to sell at points near the peak in the 2007 crash. In the case of the 2015 crisis, we would have obtained a good indication of the moment where the lowest data point was going to be achieved.

The effects of social media marketing, store environment, sales promotion and perceived value on consumer purchase decisions in small market

The purpose of this research is to analyze the influence of social media marketing on small market purchase decisions and to analyze the influence of the store environment on small market purchase decisions. The study also analyzes the influence of sales promotion on small market purchase decisions as well as the effect of perceived value on small market purchase decisions. The study uses a quantitative method and data collection is performed by distributing questionnaires to 170 respondents who have bought goods in the small market. The research method in this study uses structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis using SmartPLS software. The results of this study reveal that all independent variables have some positive effects on consumer buying decisions. More specifically, the variables of small market environmental conditions, sales promotions, and profit values have significant influences on consumer buying decisions, while social media marketing variables has no significant effect on consumers' buying decisions.

Work environment risk indicators for pharmacists in the preparation of extemporaneous medicines

The pharmaceutical sector is one of the leading sectors of the Latvian economy, but the extemporary prepared medicines still occupy a small market share. The study involved 44 pharmacists and pharmacist assistants preparing extemporal medicines, while the control group included pharmacists and pharmacist assistants who only attend customers in pharmacies. The aim of this study was to identify work environment risk indicators for pharmacists preparing extemporal medicines in open-type pharmacies. In the research, we used methods of observation and survey to identify the views of pharmacists and pharmacist assistants preparing medicines in open-type pharmacies. The study concluded that pharmacists and pharmacist assistants who prepare medicinal products in open type pharmacies are exposed to a wide range of work environment risks, especially to the chemical risks. During our investigation, we identified the main work environment risk indicators: occupational accidents, workload, lack of information, exposure to chemicals, length of service, work environment quality, and use of personal protective equipment.

Small Country, Big Films: An Analysis of the New Zealand Feature Film Industry (2002-2012)

<p>This thesis explores the contextual, institutional, and economic characteristics that influence contemporary feature filmmaking in New Zealand. It identifies and analyses the conditions and circumstances that have made it possible for New Zealand, as a country whose relatively small market size combines with its geographical remoteness, to not only create and sustain a feature film production industry, but also achieve unusual success for the resulting films, in critical and/or commercial terms. Applying an institutional political economy perspective to its research and analyses, this study draws on archival material, policy analysis and expert interviews with key personnel in industry and state agencies, in its undertaking of a ‘value chain’ examination of New Zealand feature film productions. Seven case studies are used to examine the distinguishing factors of the three kinds of productions – ‘tiers’ – that constitute the New Zealand feature film industry, with an emphasis on the connections between these tiers, as well as their individual significance for feature filmmaking in New Zealand. The study’s successful application of the three-tier feature film production ecology to the contemporary New Zealand filmmaking context is valuable for its capacity to add clarity to existing distinctions between the different types of film production occurring in Twenty-first Century New Zealand. Those are subject to, and emerge from, sometimes very different institutional and financing arrangements, and thus entail different expectations. Important in determining these differences is the question of whether a film’s contribution to a country is primarily cultural or economic, or, is situated somewhere between these functions and expectations. Central to the study’s ‘value chain’ structure and mode of analysis is the investigation of the priorities and motivations of the main institutions and agents involved, in recognition of their capacity to profoundly shape the possibilities for feature film production in New Zealand. This thesis argues that New Zealand is best advised to maintain and nurture all three-tiers of feature productions, because they depend on and complement each other. Together, they have contributed significantly to the success of the New Zealand feature film industry. To sustain this competitive position and to develop the country’s filmmaking potential further, it will be crucial for New Zealand’s public institutions to ensure continued support for bottom- and middle-tier films in particular, both in terms of favourable policies and funding allocations. Continued support is justified not just in recognition of the important cultural contributions of bottom- and middle-tier films, but also to help these film productions overcome the financial hurdles imposed by a small domestic market and limited economies of scale.</p>

Small Country, Big Films: An Analysis of the New Zealand Feature Film Industry (2002-2012)

<p>This thesis explores the contextual, institutional, and economic characteristics that influence contemporary feature filmmaking in New Zealand. It identifies and analyses the conditions and circumstances that have made it possible for New Zealand, as a country whose relatively small market size combines with its geographical remoteness, to not only create and sustain a feature film production industry, but also achieve unusual success for the resulting films, in critical and/or commercial terms. Applying an institutional political economy perspective to its research and analyses, this study draws on archival material, policy analysis and expert interviews with key personnel in industry and state agencies, in its undertaking of a ‘value chain’ examination of New Zealand feature film productions. Seven case studies are used to examine the distinguishing factors of the three kinds of productions – ‘tiers’ – that constitute the New Zealand feature film industry, with an emphasis on the connections between these tiers, as well as their individual significance for feature filmmaking in New Zealand. The study’s successful application of the three-tier feature film production ecology to the contemporary New Zealand filmmaking context is valuable for its capacity to add clarity to existing distinctions between the different types of film production occurring in Twenty-first Century New Zealand. Those are subject to, and emerge from, sometimes very different institutional and financing arrangements, and thus entail different expectations. Important in determining these differences is the question of whether a film’s contribution to a country is primarily cultural or economic, or, is situated somewhere between these functions and expectations. Central to the study’s ‘value chain’ structure and mode of analysis is the investigation of the priorities and motivations of the main institutions and agents involved, in recognition of their capacity to profoundly shape the possibilities for feature film production in New Zealand. This thesis argues that New Zealand is best advised to maintain and nurture all three-tiers of feature productions, because they depend on and complement each other. Together, they have contributed significantly to the success of the New Zealand feature film industry. To sustain this competitive position and to develop the country’s filmmaking potential further, it will be crucial for New Zealand’s public institutions to ensure continued support for bottom- and middle-tier films in particular, both in terms of favourable policies and funding allocations. Continued support is justified not just in recognition of the important cultural contributions of bottom- and middle-tier films, but also to help these film productions overcome the financial hurdles imposed by a small domestic market and limited economies of scale.</p>

Small Country, Big Films: An Analysis of the New Zealand Feature Film Industry (2002-2012)

<p>This thesis explores the contextual, institutional, and economic characteristics that influence contemporary feature filmmaking in New Zealand. It identifies and analyses the conditions and circumstances that have made it possible for New Zealand, as a country whose relatively small market size combines with its geographical remoteness, to not only create and sustain a feature film production industry, but also achieve unusual success for the resulting films, in critical and/or commercial terms. Applying an institutional political economy perspective to its research and analyses, this study draws on archival material, policy analysis and expert interviews with key personnel in industry and state agencies, in its undertaking of a ‘value chain’ examination of New Zealand feature film productions. Seven case studies are used to examine the distinguishing factors of the three kinds of productions – ‘tiers’ – that constitute the New Zealand feature film industry, with an emphasis on the connections between these tiers, as well as their individual significance for feature filmmaking in New Zealand. The study’s successful application of the three-tier feature film production ecology to the contemporary New Zealand filmmaking context is valuable for its capacity to add clarity to existing distinctions between the different types of film production occurring in Twenty-first Century New Zealand. Those are subject to, and emerge from, sometimes very different institutional and financing arrangements, and thus entail different expectations. Important in determining these differences is the question of whether a film’s contribution to a country is primarily cultural or economic, or, is situated somewhere between these functions and expectations. Central to the study’s ‘value chain’ structure and mode of analysis is the investigation of the priorities and motivations of the main institutions and agents involved, in recognition of their capacity to profoundly shape the possibilities for feature film production in New Zealand. This thesis argues that New Zealand is best advised to maintain and nurture all three-tiers of feature productions, because they depend on and complement each other. Together, they have contributed significantly to the success of the New Zealand feature film industry. To sustain this competitive position and to develop the country’s filmmaking potential further, it will be crucial for New Zealand’s public institutions to ensure continued support for bottom- and middle-tier films in particular, both in terms of favourable policies and funding allocations. Continued support is justified not just in recognition of the important cultural contributions of bottom- and middle-tier films, but also to help these film productions overcome the financial hurdles imposed by a small domestic market and limited economies of scale.</p>

Small Country, Big Films: An Analysis of the New Zealand Feature Film Industry (2002-2012)

<p>This thesis explores the contextual, institutional, and economic characteristics that influence contemporary feature filmmaking in New Zealand. It identifies and analyses the conditions and circumstances that have made it possible for New Zealand, as a country whose relatively small market size combines with its geographical remoteness, to not only create and sustain a feature film production industry, but also achieve unusual success for the resulting films, in critical and/or commercial terms. Applying an institutional political economy perspective to its research and analyses, this study draws on archival material, policy analysis and expert interviews with key personnel in industry and state agencies, in its undertaking of a ‘value chain’ examination of New Zealand feature film productions. Seven case studies are used to examine the distinguishing factors of the three kinds of productions – ‘tiers’ – that constitute the New Zealand feature film industry, with an emphasis on the connections between these tiers, as well as their individual significance for feature filmmaking in New Zealand. The study’s successful application of the three-tier feature film production ecology to the contemporary New Zealand filmmaking context is valuable for its capacity to add clarity to existing distinctions between the different types of film production occurring in Twenty-first Century New Zealand. Those are subject to, and emerge from, sometimes very different institutional and financing arrangements, and thus entail different expectations. Important in determining these differences is the question of whether a film’s contribution to a country is primarily cultural or economic, or, is situated somewhere between these functions and expectations. Central to the study’s ‘value chain’ structure and mode of analysis is the investigation of the priorities and motivations of the main institutions and agents involved, in recognition of their capacity to profoundly shape the possibilities for feature film production in New Zealand. This thesis argues that New Zealand is best advised to maintain and nurture all three-tiers of feature productions, because they depend on and complement each other. Together, they have contributed significantly to the success of the New Zealand feature film industry. To sustain this competitive position and to develop the country’s filmmaking potential further, it will be crucial for New Zealand’s public institutions to ensure continued support for bottom- and middle-tier films in particular, both in terms of favourable policies and funding allocations. Continued support is justified not just in recognition of the important cultural contributions of bottom- and middle-tier films, but also to help these film productions overcome the financial hurdles imposed by a small domestic market and limited economies of scale.</p>

The multi-dimensionality of competitive balance: evidence from European football

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to address the problem of designing league regulatory mechanisms given the multi-dimensionality of competitive balance and the proliferation of empirical measures.Design/methodology/approachA three-stage approach is adopted. Firstly, a taxonomy of empirical measures of competitive balance is proposed, identifying two fundamental dimensions – win dispersion and performance persistence. Secondly, a simple two-team model of league competitive balance is used to explore the dispersion–persistence relationship. Third, correlation and regression analysis of seven empirical measures of competitive balance for the 18 best-attended top-tier domestic football leagues in Europe over the 10 seasons, 2008–2017, are used to (1) validate the proposed categorisation of empirical measures into two dimensions; and (2) investigate the nature of the dispersion–persistence relationship across leagues.FindingsThe simple model of league competitive balance implies a strong positive dispersion–persistence relationship when persistence effects increase for big-market teams relative to those for the small-market teams. However, the empirical evidence indicates that while leagues such as the Spanish La Liga exhibit a strong positive dispersion–persistence relationship, other leagues show little or no relationship, and some leagues, particularly, the English Premier League and top-tier divisions in Belgium and Netherlands, have a strong negative dispersion–persistence relationship. The key policy implication for leagues is the importance of understanding the direction and impact of dispersion and persistence effects on the demand for league products.Originality/valueThe variability in the strength and direction of the dispersion–persistence relationship across leagues is an important result that undermines the “one-size-fits-all” approach to designing league regulatory mechanisms.

Liminal urbanity: Wars, connections and material culture in early modern Helsingborg

In the 1600s, Helsingborg was a small market town with great importance as a transport and trade connection between Scandinavia and the rest of Europe. Caught in the middle between two empires, Denmark and Sweden, the lives of Helsingborg residents were affected by wars, plagues and political disturbances. This thesis investigates the status of Helsingborg as a contested periphery town in relation to Helsingör on the other side of Öresund and in a wider southern Scandinavian context. Analysis of archaeological finds from six post-medieval sites in town centre, with primary focus on ceramics, examines how the material culture reflects urban consumption patterns, global trade connections and political changes. The results of the study demonstrate that Helsingborg in the 1600s was closely connected by trade and personal relationships to Helsingör.