The demographic situation in rural areas

Demographic trends in rural areas of the former Soviet Union are analyzed over the 10-year period 1979-1989, using census data. Over the whole country, the rural population decreased by 1 percent, while the urban population increased by 15 percent, although significant differences existed between the European and Central Asian republics. Factors affecting the dynamics of rural populations are analyzed, including the undeveloped social and economic infrastructure in rural areas.     

Strategic Consumer Cooperation in a Name‐Your‐Own‐Price Channel

Supplier reluctance to openly advertise highly discounted products on the Internet has stimulated development of “opaque” name‐Your‐Own‐Price sales channels. Unfortunately (for suppliers), there is significant potential for online consumers to exploit these channels through collaboration in social networks. In this paper, we study three possible forms of consumer collaboration: exchange of bid result information, coordinated bidding, and coordinated bidding with risk pooling. We propose an egalitarian total utility maximizing mechanism for coordination and risk pooling in a bidding club and describe characteristics of consumers for whom participation in the club makes sense. We show that, in the absence of risk pooling, a plausible bidding club strategy using just information exchange gives almost the same benefits to consumers as coordinated bidding. In contrast, coordinated bidding with risk pooling can lead to significantly increased benefits for consumers. The benefits of risk pooling are highest for consumers with a low tolerance to risk. We also demonstrate that suppliers that actively adjust for such strategic consumer behavior can reduce the impact on their businesses and, under some circumstances, even increase revenues.     

Appearance Culture in Nine- to 12-Year-Old Girls: Media and Peer Influences on Body Dissatisfaction

Little research has investigated sociocultural factors in the development of body dissatisfaction in preadolescent girls. This study examined the combined influence of media and peer factors. The participants were 100 girls aged nine to 12 years. The girls completed questionnaire measures of media exposure (television and magazines), peer influences (appearance norms, appearance conversations), internalization and body dissatisfaction. Their height and weight were also measured. About half (49 percent) of the girls displayed a desire to be thinner. The influence of sociocultural factors was confirmed in addition to biological determinants, such as body mass index. Their exposure to appearance‐focused media was not directly related to their body dissatisfaction, but was indirectly related via their conversations about appearance among peers. The path analysis showed that peer appearance conversations demonstrated a significant relationship with internalization of thin ideals, which was, in turn, significantly related to body dissatisfaction. Like their adolescent counterparts, preadolescent girls are also exposed to appearance ideals presented in the media and manifested among peers. The results provided evidence for the existence of an ‘appearance culture’ consisting of interrelated media and peer influences among girls as young as nine to 12 years of age.