The influence of supermarket store attributes on perceived customer satisfaction : an East Asian study

Despite the proliferation of theoretical developments in the area of western consumer behaviour, to date the likelihood of Asian variants to existing consumer behavioural models has not been explored in any detail. Based on prior research in the field of retail attribute testing this empirical study investigates the influence of supermarket store attributes on Chinese (Macau) customer satisfaction moderated by the biographical factors of age and income. The results indicate that the store attributes of distance and speed of check out were significant for age, and that delivery, service and price reductions were significant by income. Total independent variable rankings indicated store location, price and product variety were perceived by Chinese respondents as being the most important store attributes influencing satisfaction.

Effects of entrepreneurial knowledge on entrepreneurial intentions: a longitudinal study of selected South-east Asian business students

Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour, this study examines the direct and indirect effects of knowledge gained from a formal entrepreneurship education programme on an individual’s entrepreneurial intentions (EI). It tracks the changes in students’ entrepreneurial knowledge (EK), perceptions of desirability of, and self-efficacy in, engaging in entrepreneurship and the impact of those changes on students’ EI upon completion of an entrepreneurship course. It uses longitudinal survey data of 245 business students in a Philippine university. Using cross-lagged panel method and partial-least squares-based structural equation modelling, the study builds and tests the measurement and structural models to examine the hypothesised interactions of EK, perceived desirability of, self-efficacy towards entrepreneurship, and EI. The findings underscore the importance of developing knowledge to nurture students’ self-confidence and attitudinal propensity to engage in entrepreneurship.

Geolocator studies on Ruddy Turnstones Arenaria interpres and Greater Sandplovers Charadrius leschenaultii in the East Asian-Australasia Flyway reveal widely different migration strategies

In 2010, following successful trials with geolocators on Ruddy Turnstones in 2009, a total of 105 units, of four different models, were deployed at five locations on Ruddy Turnstones and Greater Sandplovers. Geolocator retrieval rates were 44% on Ruddy Turnstone and 27% on Greater Sandplover. Complete (59%) and partial (15%) technical failure rates on geolocators were high and were mostly the result of wear and saltwater corrosion. All 30 units from the Swiss Ornithological Institute failed. Only half of the Mk10 and Mk12 units from the British Antarctic Survey produced full migration histories. The northward migration of Ruddy Turnstones was on a narrow path with many birds completing an initial non-stop flight of 7,600 km to Taiwan. Later, most made a stopover in the Yellow Sea. Median migration duration was 39.5 days and average migration speed of the first major leg of the journey (assuming the birds followed the great circle route between stopovers) was 63.4 kph. Southward migration paths showed a much wider spread, ranging from Mongolia to the central Pacific. The latter involved the same bird that had been tracked along this route the previous year. It has now been logged on similar 27,000 km round trips in two successive years. The median duration of southward migration (78 days) was nearly twice that of northward migration and data on average migration speed for just two migration legs indicated that it might be lower, 30 and 40 kph being the values recorded. Greater Sandplovers were only tracked on northward migration but seemed to follow a similar migration strategy with a large initial non-stop flight followed by shorter flights and more regular stopovers. Plans are outlined for further analyses and future deployments of geolocators.

Challenges within the annual cycle of long-distance migratory waders along the East Asian-Australasian flyway

 The thesis focuses on the conservation of migratory shorebirds, particularly in this part of the world. Loss of habitats is one of the greatest threats and prioritizing the conservation of these habitats is of great importance to the future of these species.

Movement patterns of Sanderling (Calidris alba) in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway and a comparison of methods for identification of crucial areas for conservation

Worldwide, most populations of migratory shorebirds are in jeopardy, none more so than those of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF). In order to preserve these highly mobile species a detailed understanding of their use of feeding and resting sites along the flyway is required. In this study we used light-level geolocators and new analytical tools to reveal individual breeding locations and migration routes of 13 Sanderlings (Calidris alba) that spend their non-breeding season in South Australia. We then used these individual migration routes to identify the timing and location of important stopping areas and compared this with assessments based on resightings of leg-flagged birds and count data. During both northward and southward migration, Sanderlings were found to make extensive use of five main areas of the Chinese coastline, the Yellow Sea and the northern end of the Sakhalin Peninsula. Insights gained from the individual migration routes highlight inherent biases in using only count and resighting data to identify important feeding and resting sites along the Flyway. These findings suggest that data on individual movements may be crucial to effective conservation planning of shorebirds in the EAAF and elsewhere in the world.

The importance of national ICT visions for information society in South East Asia

This paper addresses the question ‘How necessary is a national information and communications technology (ICT) strategy/vision for the development of an information society?’ For the purpose of this paper, ‘information society’ is reduced to two key dimensions: penetration of ICT, and access to government information on-line. In considering the question, the paper calls on data contained in the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU) case studies of e-readiness in eight South East Asian (SEA) nations (Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam). The background to the paper includes an overview of the SEA nations in terms of demographics and a discussion of the dilemma of government involvement in developing an information society in the light of the ‘small government mantra’ that has dominated in recent years. National ICT strategies visions of each nation are presented, followed by on overview of their information society policies and practices and their ICT penetration. The importance of the vision is then contrasted with other factors including level of development and national income. The conclusions draw attention to the importance of a vision irrespective of level of development and resource availability. In fact, for the least developed nations, poor infrastructure may be an opportunity to leap frog to the most advanced networks supporting an information society, if the vision is relevant, powerful and broadly held.

South-East Asia : a political profile

"South-East Asia: A Political Profile outlines the political processes and institutions of the countries in South-East Asia, in particular tracing their past and explaining how they have come to be what they are." "The book is ideal for students of political science and South-East Asian studies at all levels."--BOOK JACKET.

Normative regionalism in East Asia

Normative regionalism has been largely overlooked and ignored; and
normative questions concerning regionalization are deemed unimportant,
idealist and irrelevant to Asia. This is mainly due to the domination of
realism, pragmatism and functional approaches, thus inhibiting the substantial
progress of regionalism in East Asia. It is time that scholars and
policy-makers take normative orders of regionalism seriously.
This chapter examines the state of normative regionalism and its impact
in East Asia through an overview of the historical evolution of the
concept of regionalism, the meanings of and variations in Asian regionalism,
and the impact of all these on regional cooperation in East Asia.
It examines the old pan-Asianism, the advocacy of "re-Asianization" in
Japan, Mahathir's idea of neo-Asianism in Malaysia and the ideas of
regionalism developed in Korea and China. This examination provides the
basis for a discussion of the normative order of East Asian regionalism
by addressing a set of questions concerning national sovereignty, nationalism,
democracy and regional identities.
In particular, this chapter will examine how Asian nationalist and statist
normative thinking influences various ideas of regionalism and constrains
the development of genuine regionalism in East Asia.

Australia and East Timor : elitism, pragmatism and the national interest

For over two decades the issue of East Timor's right to self-determination has been a ‘prickly’ issue in Australian foreign policy. The invasion by Indonesian forces in 1975 was expected, as Australian policy-makers had been well informed of the events leading up to the punitive action being taken. Indeed, prior discussions involving the future of the territory were held between the Australian Prime Minister and the Indonesian President in 1974. In response to the events unfolding in the territory the Australian Labor Government at the time was presented with two policy options for dealing with the issue. The Department of Defence recommended the recognition of an independent East Timor; whereas the Department of Foreign Affairs proposed that Australia disengage itself as far as possible from the issue. The decision had ramifications for future policy considerations especially with changes in government. With the Department of Foreign Affairs option being the prevailing policy what were the essential ingredients that give explanation for the government's choice? It is important to note the existence of the continuity and cyclical nature of attitudes by Labor governments toward Indonesia before and after the invasion. To do so requires an analysis of the influence ‘Doc’ Evatt had in shaping any possible Labor tradition in foreign policy articulation. The support given by Evatt for the decolonisation of the Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia) gave rise to the development of a special relationship-so defined. Evidence of the effect Evatt had on future Labor governments may be found in the opinions of Gough Whitlam. In 1975 when he was Prime Minister, Whitlam felt the East Timor issue was merely the finalisation of Indonesia's decolonisation honouring Evatt's long held anti-colonialist tradition existing in the Australian Labor Party. The early predisposition toward Indonesia's cohesiveness surfaced again in the Hawke and Keating Labor governments of later years. It did not vary a great deal with changes in government The on-going commitment to preserving and strengthening the bilateral relationship meant Indonesia's territorial integrity became the focus of the Australian political elites’ regional foreign policy determinations. The actions taken by policy-makers served to promote the desire for a stable region ahead of independence claims of the East Timorese. From a realist perspective, the security dilemma for Australian policy-makers was how to best promote regional order and stability in the South East Asian region. The desire for regional cohesiveness and stability continues to drive Australian political elites to promote policies that gives a priority to the territorial integrity of regional states. Indonesia, in spite of its diversity, was only ever thought of as a cohesive unitary state and changes to its construct have rarely been countenanced. Australia's political elite justifications for this stance vacillate between strategic and economic considerations, ideological (anti-colonialism) to one of being a pragmatic response to international politics. The political elite argues the projection of power into the region is in Australia’s national interest. The policies from one government to the next necessarily see the national interest as being an apparent fixed feature of foreign policy. The persistent fear of invasion from the north traditionally motivated Australia's political elite to adopt a strategic realist policy that sought to ‘shore up’ the stability, strength and unity of Indonesia. The national interest was deemed to be at risk if support for East Timorese independence was given. The national interest though can involve more than just the security issue, and the political elite when dealing with East Timor assumed that they were acting in the common good. Questions that need to be addressed include determining what is the national interest in this context? What is the effect of a government invoking the national interest in debates over issues in foreign policy? And, who should participate in the debate? In an effort to answer these questions an analysis of how the ex-foreign affairs mandarin Richard Woolcott defines the national interest becomes crucial. Clearly, conflict in East Timor did have implications for the national interest. The invasion of East Timor by Indonesia had the potential to damage the relationship, but equally communist successes in 1975 in Indo-China raised Australia's regional security concerns. During the Cold War, the linking of communism to nationalism was driving the decision-making processes of the Australian policy-makers striving to come to grips with the strategic realities of a changing region. Because of this, did the constraints of world politics dominated by Cold War realities combined with domestic political disruption have anything to do with Australia's response? Certainly, Australia itself was experiencing a constitutional crisis in late 1975. The Senate had blocked supply and the Labor Government did not have the funds to govern. The Governor-General by dismissing the Labor Government finally resolved the impasse. What were the reactions of the two men charged with the responsibility of forming the caretaker government toward Indonesia's military action? And, could the crisis have prevented the Australian government from making a different response to the invasion? Importantly, and in terms of economic security, did the knowledge of oil and gas deposits thought to exist in the Timor Sea influence Australia's foreign policy? The search for oil and gas requires a stable political environment in which to operate. Therefore for exploration to continue in the Timor Sea Australia must have had a preferred political option and thoughts of with whom they preferred to negotiate. What was the extent of each government's cooperation and intervention in the oil and gas industry and could any involvement have influenced the Australian political elites’ attitude toward the prospect of an independent East Timor? Australia's subsequent de jure recognition that East Timor was part of Indonesia paved the way for the Timor Gap (Zone of Cooperation) Treaty signing in 1989. The signing underpinned Australia's acceptance of Indonesian sovereignty over East Timor. The outcome of the analysis of the issues that shaped Australia's foreign policy toward East Timor showed that the political elite became locked into an integration model, which was defended by successive governments. Moreover, they formed an almost reflexive defence of Indonesia both at the domestic and international level.

Physical activity and sedentary behaviour among Asian and Anglo-Australian adolescents

Issue addressed Evidence suggests that physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviour (SB) participation varies among culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) adolescents. The present study examined differences in PA and SB among a CALD sample of Chinese Australian, South-east Asian and Anglo-Australian adolescents. Methods Data from 286 adolescents aged 12-16 years involved in the Chinese and Australian Adolescent Health Survey in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia, were analysed. Accelerometry outcomes included median activity counts per minute (counts.min-1) and minutes per day (min.day-1) spent in light-intensity PA (LPA), moderate-to-vigorous-intensity PA (MVPA) and sedentary time (ST). Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance and sequential multiple hierarchical linear regressions were used to examine CALD differences in PA and ST. Results Multivariate analyses of accelerometry data found Chinese Australian and South-east Asian adolescents engaged in significantly less daily MVPA (5-8min.day-1) and LPA (50-58min.day-1; P<0.05), but greater daily ST (40-41min.day-1), than Anglo-Australian adolescents, after adjusting for age, gender and socioeconomic category. Conclusion The results demonstrate lower engagement in daily MVPA and LPA and greater engagement in ST using accelerometry among Chinese Australian and South-east Asian adolescents compared with Anglo-Australian adolescents. These findings have important public health implications in furthering our understanding of CALD differences in PA and SB. So what? An understanding of the CALD differences in physical activity and sedentary behaviour among Australian adolescents has important implications for intervention planning and delivery as well as the wider health implications of these behaviours. This article furthers the current understanding of CALD adolescents' participation in physical activity and sedentary behaviour, of which limited information is available.