A survey of some small firms in the rural areas of England: their structure and functions, with special reference to factors that affect their development

This study was concerned with the structure, functions and development, especially the performance, of some rural small firms associated with the Council for Small Industries in Rural Areas (C?SIRA) of England. Forty firms were used as the main basis of analysis. For some aspects of the investigation, however, data from another 54 firms, obtained indirectly through nine CoSIRA Organisers, were also used. For performance-analysis, the 40 firms were firstly ranked according to their growth and profitability rates which were calculated from their financial data. Then each of the variables hypothesised to be related to performance was tested to ascertain its relationship with performance, using the Spearman's Rank Correlation technique. The analysis indicated that each of the four factors .. the principal, the firm itself, its management, and the environment - had a bearing upon the performance of the firm. Within the first factor, the owner-manager's background and attitudes were found to be most important; in the second, the firm's size, age and scope of activities were also found to be correlated with performance; with respect to the third, it was revealed that firms which practised some forms of systems in planning, control and costing performed better than those which did not and, finally with respect to the fourth factor, it was found that some of the services provided by CoSIRA, especially credit finance, were facilitative to the firm's performance. Another significant facet of the firms highlighted by the study was their multifarious roles. These, meeting economic, psychological, sociological and political needs, were considered to be most useful to man and his society. Finally, the study has added light to the structural characteristics of the sampled firms, including various aspects of their development, orientation and organisation, as well as their various structural strengths and weakness. ' .

Consumer trial, continuous use, and economic benefits of a retail service innovation:the case of the personal shopping assistant

Service innovations in retailing have the potential to benefit consumers as well as retailers. This research models key factors associated with the trial and continuous use of a specific self-service technology (SST), the personal shopping assistant (PSA), and estimates retailer benefits from implementing that innovation. Based on theoretical insights from prior SST studies, diffusion of innovation literature, and the technology acceptance model (TAM), this study develops specific hypotheses and tests them on a sample of 104 actual users of the PSA and 345 nonusers who shopped at the retail store offering the PSA device. Results indicate that factors affecting initial trial are different from those affecting continuous use. More specifically, consumers' trust toward the retailer, novelty seeking, and market mavenism are positively related to trial, while technology anxiety hinders the likelihood of trying the PSA. Perceived ease of use of the device positively impacts continuous use while consumers' need for interaction in shopping environments reduces the likelihood of continuous use. Importantly, there is evidence on retailer benefits from introducing the innovation since consumers using the PSA tend to spend more during each shopping trip. However, given the high costs of technology, the payback period for recovery of investments in innovation depends largely upon continued use of the innovation by consumers. Important implications are provided for retailers considering investments in new in-store service innovations. Incorporation of technology within physical stores affords opportunities for the retailer to reduce costs, while enhancing service provided to consumers. Therefore, service innovations in retailing have the potential to benefit consumers as well as retailers. This research models key factors associated with the trial and continuous use of a specific SST in the retail context, the PSA, and estimates retailer benefits from implementing that innovation. In so doing, the study contributes to the nascent area of research on SSTs in the retail sector. Based on theoretical insights from prior SST studies, diffusion of innovation literature, and the TAM, this study develops specific hypotheses regarding the (1) antecedent effects of technological anxiety, novelty seeking, market mavenism, and trust in the retailer on trial of the service innovation; (2) the effects of ease of use, perceived waiting time, and need for interaction on continuous use of the innovation; and (3) the effect of use of innovation on consumer spending at the store. The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 104 actual users of the PSA and 345 nonusers who shopped at the retail store offering the PSA device, one of the early adopters of PSA in Germany. Data were analyzed using logistic regression (antecedents of trial), multiple regression (antecedents of continuous use), and propensity score matching (assessing retailer benefits). Results indicate that factors affecting initial trial are different from those affecting continuous use. More specifically, consumers' trust toward the retailer, novelty seeking, and market mavenism are positively related to trial, while technology anxiety hinders the likelihood of trying the PSA. Perceived ease of use of the device positively impacts continuous use, while consumers' need for interaction in shopping environments reduces the likelihood of continuous use. Importantly, there is evidence on retailer benefits from introducing the innovation since consumers using the PSA tend to spend more during each shopping trip. However, given the high costs of technology, the payback period for recovery of investments in innovation depends largely upon continued use of the innovation by consumers. Important implications are provided for retailers considering investments in new in-store service innovations. The study contributes to the literature through its (1) simultaneous examination of antecedents of trial and continuous usage of a specific SST, (2) the demonstration of economic benefits of SST introduction for the retailer, and (3) contribution to the stream of research on service innovation, as against product innovation.

Exploring types and functions of questions in police interviews

There is a proliferation of categorization schemes in the scientific literature that have mostly been developed from psychologists’ understanding of the nature of linguistic interactions. This has a led to problems in defining question types used by interviewers. Based on the principle that the overarching purpose of an interview is to elicit information and that questions can function both as actions in their own right and as vehicles for other actions, a Conversational Analysis approach was used to analyse a small number of police interviews. The analysis produced a different categorization of question types and, in particular, the conversational turns fell into two functional types: (i) Topic Initiation Questions and (ii) Topic Facilitation Questions. We argue that forensic interviewing requires a switch of focus from the ‘words’ used by interviewers in question types to the ‘function’ of conversational turns within interviews.

String Measure Applied to String Self-Organizing Maps and Networks of Evolutionary Processors

* Supported by projects CCG08-UAM TIC-4425-2009 and TEC2007-68065-C03-02

MIUS News: Maps and Imagery User Services @ FIU Green Library: Vol. 1, Issue 1 2007

Fall 2007 Newsletter for FIU's Maps and Imagery User Services department.

MUIS News: Maps and User Imagery Services @ FIU Green Library Vol. 2, Issue 1 2008

Florida International University's Fall 2008 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.

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Florida International University's Spring 2009 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.

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Florida International University's Fall 2009 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.

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Florida International University's Fall 2009 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter; Vol. 3, issue 2.

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Florida International University's Spring 2010 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.

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Florida International University's Fall 2012 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.

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Florida International University's Spring/Summer 2013 Map and User Imagery Services Newsletter.