Sales force automation: review,critique, research agenda

We review and critique the research literature on sales force automation (SFA). SFA involves the application of information technology to support the sales function. SFA software provides functionality that helps companies manage sales pipelines, track contacts and configure products, inter alia. The paper is organized into four main sections. First, we review the SFA environment, identifying definitions, vendor classifications and software attributes. We then move to a review and classification of the academic research that has been published on SFA. We find that the entire body of SFA knowledge attempts to answer just four questions: Why do organizations adopt SFA? What are the organizational impacts of SFA? What accounts for the success or failure of SFA projects? What accounts for variance in salesperson adoption of SFA? We then critique this body of knowledge on a number of theoretical and methodological grounds, and finally propose a research agenda for the future.     

Reading your Counterpart: The Benefit of Emotion Recognition Accuracy for Effectiveness in Negotiation

Using meta-analysis, we find a consistent positive correlation between emotion recognition accuracy (ERA) and goal-oriented performance. However, this existing research relies primarily on subjective perceptions of performance. The current study tested the impact of ERA on objective performance in a mixed-motive buyer-seller negotiation exercise. Greater recognition of posed facial expressions predicted better objective outcomes for participants from Singapore playing the role of seller, both in terms of creating value and claiming a greater share for themselves. The present study is distinct from past research on the effects of individual differences on negotiation outcomes in that it uses a performance-based test rather than self-reported measure. These results add to evidence for the predictive validity of emotion recognition measures on practical outcomes.

Racial/Ethnic Minority Community College Students' Critical Consciousness and Social Cognitive Career Outcomes

A need exists to better understand how racial/ethnic minority students' critical consciousness development in response to marginalization may be involved in their educational and career development. We therefore examined the link between critical consciousness development and career decision self-efficacy and career outcome expectations among racial/ethnic minority community college students. Following social cognitive career theory's conceptual pillars, we developed a testable model integrating critical consciousness and social cognitive variables. This model was tested with 135 racially and ethnically diverse community college students. Data analysis included path analyses and tests of model fit using structural equation modeling. Results suggested that (a) higher critical agency is linked to higher career decision self-efficacy and outcome expectations and (b) critical action and reflection have a bidirectional link and predict higher critical agency. Implications for research and practice aiming to close educational and career gaps among racial/ethnic minorities are discussed.     

Corruption and the ‘Paradox of Redistribution’

The existing literature on the determinants of income redistribution has identified a ‘paradox’. Namely, that countries with a high degree of market income inequality redistribute little, which is in disagreement with the median voter theorem. In a first step, this paper outlines several mechanisms that explain why government corruption might be partially responsible for this ‘paradox’. In a second step, different corruption perception indices and an instrumental variable approach are used to provide empirical evidence that indicates a significant negative impact of corruption on redistribution levels for a sample of 148 developing and developed countries. This finding suggests that, next to political and need factors, government corruption explains to some extent the ‘paradox of redistribution’. This is especially true for many developing countries, given that they typically have relatively high degrees of corruption and low levels of redistribution.     

Reclaiming ourselves through Testimonio pedagogy: reflections on a curriculum design lab in teacher education

This article details one teacher preparation course centering Latin American Testimonio narratives of struggle/survival amid structural oppression for use in secondary curriculum. As our class of predominantly Latina/o students and two Latina instructors engaged Testimonio pedagogy, we fashioned a hopeful alternative to our own experiences of intergenerational oppression. While research indicates that the experiences and histories of pre-service Teachers of Color lend pedagogical strength and critical consciousness to teacher education, three Latina pre-service students highlight the ways in which Testimonio became more than a pedagogical approach. Testimonio’s collectivity, resistance, hope, and assertions of voice and dignity moved through them not as educators first but as (great-grand)daughters of oppressed though still-resilient People(s). Testimonio emboldened these Latina pre-service educators to recognize and validate their own inherited multiliteracies, (re)claim their connectedness to land, and articulate their visions for more equitable schooling. This work advances research into the essentiality of engaging race and ethnicity in K-12 and teacher education curriculum and pedagogy.     

Roma and the politics of double discourse in contemporary Europe

ABSTRACT

The article analyses the politics of ‘double discourse’ in relation to Roma that has evolved in contemporary neoliberal Europe. On the one hand, the double discourse promotes the integration, rights and equal opportunities of Roma, on the other, it denies recognition of, and ways to address, enduring structural violence and rising social insecurity. The article argues that the politics of ‘double discourse’, as a neoliberal approach towards Roma, is structured by two contradictory discourses that speak to different audiences, using duplicitous approaches to create anti-Roma consensus and maintain the critical difference and subordinated position of the racialised Romani populations in Europe. By studying the representation of Roma in the cases of so-called 'child theft' in Greece and Ireland, and in the recent ‘refugee crisis’, the paper identifies and discusses three dimensions of contemporary neoliberal double discourse: racialised de-Europeanisation, neoliberal undeservingness and (dis)articulation of citizenship.     

政策性住房建设项目融资的PPP模式探析

我国政策性住房建设面临着资金瓶颈,借鉴发达国家公共设施建设项目融资中普遍采用的PPP模式将有助于解决这一困境。本文从公共物品理论和住房的双重属性作为研究切入点,分析了政策性住房建设融资中引入PPP模式的可行性,并对政策性住房建设项目PPP模式的运作流程、实践中的困境及对策加以探讨,为解决政策性住房建设项目融资难题提供一种思路。     

民俗文化资源产业开发刍议

中华民族五千年的文明孕育了灿若繁星的民俗文化,形成了民俗文化资源产业开发的比较优势。深刻挖掘中国优秀的民俗文化资源,坚持可持续发展的原则,加强政府规制,以创意为核心,建立立体的民俗文化产业体系,有助于民俗文化的生态式健康发展,也会给经济建设和发展带来新的增长点。     

Comparing MCDA Aggregation Methods in Constructing Composite Indicators Using the Shannon-Spearman Measure

Composite indicators have been increasingly recognized as a useful tool for performance monitoring, benchmarking comparisons and public communication in a wide range of fields. The usefulness of a composite indicator depends heavily on the underlying data aggregation scheme where multiple criteria decision analysis (MCDA) is commonly used. A problem in this application is the determination of an appropriate MCDA aggregation method. Of the many criteria for comparing MCDA methods, the Shannon-Spearman measure (SSM) is one that compares alternative MCDA aggregation methods in constructing composite indicators based on the information loss concept. This paper assesses the effectiveness of the SSM using Monte Carlo approach-based uncertain analysis and variance-based sensitivity analysis techniques. It is found that most of the variation in the SSM arises from the uncertainty in choosing an aggregation method. Therefore, the SSM can be considered as an effective measure for comparing MCDA aggregation methods in constructing composite indicators. We also use the SSM to evaluate five MCDA aggregation methods in constructing composite indicators and present the findings.     

A survey of adolescents’ perception of parents with a son preference

Preference for sons derives from the agricultural economy of the past. It is surprising, however, that this preference still exists in countries which have progressed from an agricultural to an industrial economy. The main aim of this study was therefore to explore the perception of adolescents to parents who did or did not have a preference for sons. Adolescents aged from thirteen to fifteen (n = 1,982) from six Chinese independent schools were invited to fill in a questionnaire in a cluster sampling study. Factor analyses were used to examine the reliability of measurements. Chi-square and independent t tests were run to analyze the data. The results showed significant differences between respondents’ perception of their parents in terms of whether their parents had a preference for sons or not, and that respondents whose parents who had this preference were more likely to have a poor perception of their parents than those whose parents who did not have this preference. Also, both males and females had a poorer perception of parents who had a preference for sons, even though males had received better treatment from parents who had such a preference. In the light of the continued prevalence of preference for sons in some Asian countries, it is suggested that more studies should explore the attitudes and behaviors of those children whose parents have a preference for sons, so that the government and the public are aware of the potentially negative impacts of the preference culture and effective action can be taken to tackle the problem.