Investigation of factors influencing loyalty – The role of involvement, perceived risk and knowledge

Our research aimed to reveal the effects that can be observed during the buying process of food products and can influence the decisions of customers. We focused on the role of enduring involvement in customers’ behavioural loyalty, that is, the repurchase of food brands. To understand this relationship in a more sophisticated way, we involved two mediating constructs in our conceptual model: perceived risk and perceived knowledge of food products. The data collection was carried out among undergraduate students in frame of an online survey, and we used SPSS/AMOS software to test the model. The results only partly supported our hypothesis, although the involvement effects on loyalty and the two mediating constructs were strong enough, loyalty couldn’t be explained well by perceived risk and knowledge. The roles of further mediating/moderating variables should be determined and investigated in the next section of the research series.

First impressions and perceived roles: Palestinian perceptions on foreign aid

This paper summarizes some results of a wider research on foreign aid that was conducted in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2010. It seeks to describe the impressions and feelings of Palestinian aid beneficiaries as well as the roles and functions they attached to foreign aid. To capture and measure local perceptions on Western assistance a series of individual in depth interviews and few focus group interviews were conducted in the Palestinian territories. The interview transcripts were processed by content analysis. As research results show — from the perspective of aid beneficiaries — foreign aid is more related to human dignity than to any economic development. All this implies that frustration with the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict inevitably embraces the donor policies and practices too.

Az észlelt kultúraszemélyiség és hatása az ország turisztikai és üzleti célpontként való megítélésére (Investigation the effect of perceived culture – personality (CP) on the evaluation of the country as ideal business/tourist destination)

A kutatás fő célja annak vizsgálata, hogy egy adott kultúra észlelt személyisége milyen hatással van az ország ideális turisztikai, illetve üzleti célországként való megítélésére. A kultúraszemélyiség koncepciójának bemutatása után a kultúraszemélyiség-skála (culture personality, CP) fejlesztésének kezdeti eredményeit, majd a kultúraszemélyiség dimenzióinak vizsgálatát részletezik a szerzők. A skálakialakítás során – kvalitatív eredményeiket felhasználva – egy ötvenegy tulajdonságpárból álló szemantikus differenciálskálát fejlesztettek ki és teszteltek. Jelen cikkükben összehasonlítják Franciaország és Magyarország észlelt kultúraszemélyiségét, vizsgálva a magyar és a francia válaszadók véleményének hasonlóságait és különbségeit. Eredményeik azt mutatják, hogy nemcsak az egyes kultúrák személyiségét észlelik eltérően a válaszadók, de ugyanazon kultúra személyiségének bizonyos jellemzőit is eltérően ítélik meg. _____ The main purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of perceived culture – personality (CP) on the evaluation of the country as ideal business/tourist destination. After introducing the concept of culture-personality, initial results of our CP scale development are discussed, and dimensions of culture-personality will be examined. As a result of the scale construction procedure – based on our extensive qualitative studies –, a 51-item semantic differential scale has been developed and tested. Similarities and differences of perceived culture-personalities of France and Hungary among Hungarian and French respondents are described.

The impact of perceived corporate environmental performance on the behavior of capital market decision makers : analysis of food industry companies

Environmental protectionism and sustainable development has been gaining increased attention among governments, investors and consumers alike. As a result, firms are facing growing pressure from the various stakeholders to improve their environmental performance. This study is focusing on the food industry, which in recent years has been a subject of increased scrutiny due to their role in resource consumption, waste generation and unsustainable production practices. Our research is aiming to examine how the financial community evaluates the environmental stewardship of food industry companies as proxied by market reactions in response to environmental news. Are all company related environmental news items evaluated equally, and which financial and non-financial firm-specific attributes can influence market responses? Have there been changes in reactions on the stock exchange in the past two decades?

Trading between perceived risks and benefits related to biosimilar biological treatment in Crohn’s disease; discrete choice experiment among gastroenterologists

Objective: The objective of the study is to explore preferences of gastroenterologists for biosimilar drugs in Crohn’s Disease and reveal trade-offs between the perceived risks and benefits related to biosimilar drugs. Method: Discrete choice experiment was carried out involving 51 Hungarian gastroenterologists in May, 2014. The following attributes were used to describe hypothetical choice sets: 1) type of the treatment (biosimilar/originator) 2) severity of disease 3) availability of continuous medicine supply 4) frequency of the efficacy check-ups. Multinomial logit model was used to differentiate between three attitude types: 1) always opting for the originator 2) willing to consider biosimilar for biological-naïve patients only 3) willing to consider biosimilar treatment for both types of patients. Conditional logit model was used to estimate the probabilities of choosing a given profile. Results: Men, senior consultants, working in IBD center and treating more patients are more likely to willing to consider biosimilar for biological-naïve patients only. Treatment type (originator/biosimilar) was the most important determinant of choice for patients already treated with biologicals, and the availability of continuous medicine supply in the case biological-naïve patients. The probabilities of choosing the biosimilar with all the benefits offered over the originator under current reimbursement conditions are 89% vs 11% for new patients, and 44% vs 56% for patients already treated with biological. Conclusions: Gastroenterologists were willing to trade between perceived risks and benefits of biosimilars. The continuous medical supply would be one of the major benefits of biosimilars. However, benefits offered in the scenarios do not compensate for the change from the originator to the biosimilar treatment of patients already treated with biologicals.