Effective and strategic use of electronic reverse auctions

This paper reports the findings of an empirical study of Electronic Reverse Auctions (e-RAs). This study seeks to better understand the underlying and emerging issues in e-RAs to comprehend the implications of e-RAs on organizational procurement. The study contributes to practice and research by providing insight into emerging e-RA adoption issues, and by discussing strategies for improving e-RA processes, thus improving the effectiveness of e-RAs.

Rhetorical theory of public relations: opening the door to semiotic and pragmatism approaches

The 2001 Handbook of Public Relations edited by Robert Heath contains a prominent article advocating the use of rhetorical theory or ‘rhetorical enactment rational’ as a fruitful way of advancing theoretical understandings of public relations. In 2004 Heath and Dan Millar edited: Responding to Crisis: A Rhetorical Approach to Crisis Communication. These are the latest excursions into a perspective on public relations reflecting the extensive study of rhetoric in North America. Other examples are Public Relations Inquiry as Rhetorical Criticism (Elwood, 1995); Rhetorical and Critical Approaches to Public Relations (Toth and Heath, 1992); and a chapter Public Relations? No, Relations with Publics: A Rhetorical-Organisational Approach to Contemporary Corporate Communication (Cheney and Dionisopoulos, in Botan and Hazleton (Eds.) 1989).

The conventional notion of rhetoric is argumentation and persuasion stemming from the ancient Greek sophists, such as Aristotle, and from the Romans, particularly Cicero and Quintillion. Rhetoric became a fundamental plank of the trivium of ancient and medieval education: grammar, logic and rhetoric. Then in the 20th century Kenneth Burke, Stephen Toulmin and Chaim Perelman with Lucie Olbrechts-Tyteca extended Aristotle’s suggestion that: “Rhetoric is the counterpart of dialectic” Aristotle (trans. 1991). To use the rhetorical approach to argue that rational discourse cannot describe the world on its own. Instead living, enculturated human beings have to perceive ‘their’ truths. They take a perceptual ‘position’ on reason.

Public relations, is an industry for influencing perceptual ‘positions’. But the study of perception and attempts to influence perception cannot be claimed by rhetorical scholars alone. Semioticians and linguists who take the perspective of linguistic pragmatics also claim this field. This paper takes the example of ‘public relations’ as a focus for the confluence of rhetorical, semiotic and pragmatism approaches to the ‘problematic’ of understanding and truth.

A spill-over theory of international trade unionism

This paper use neo-functionalist and institutionalist theories of geo-political integration to develop a theory of international trade unionism. In brief, the theory asserts that the type of international ‘context’ in which international trade unions operate presupposes the types of ‘imperatives’ that will dominate their interests and concerns. These imperatives are taken to operate along one of three dimensions - industrial, political and ideological, and are seen as evolving in accordance with the ‘logic of spill-over’ in global and sub-global integration processes. Using this interpretation the discussion provides reasons as to why ideological imperatives have historically dominated international trade union thinking, the only exception being regional trade unions operating in Europe, which have evolved beyond the ideological to embrace industrial and political imperatives in their modes of organisation and operation.

Edward Shils' theory of tradition

Edward Shils presented his book Tradition (1981) as the first extensive study of the subject. This article casts light on Shils' multifaceted understanding of tradition, comprising pragmatic, Burkean, veridical, and evolutionist perspectives. His typology of traditions is noted, and his view of institutional bearers of tradition described. In assessing Shils' theory, however, we find that it overreaches, collapsing differences that exist between traditions, transmissions, and the traditional.

Towards a critical theory of sport management

This article argues for the theoretical and practical possibilities of applying critical theory to sport management research.

Vector Theory of Spontaneous Lorentz Violation

Classical electromagnetism predicts two massless propagating modes, which are known as the two polarizations of the photon. On the other hand, if the Lorentz symmetry of classical electromagnetism is spontaneously broken, the new theory will still have two massless Nambu-Goldstone modes resembling the photon. If the Lorentz symmetry is broken by a bumblebee potential that allows for excitations out of the minimum, then massive modes arise. Furthermore, in curved spacetime, such massive modes will be created through a process other than the usual Higgs mechanism because of the dependence of the bumblebee potential on both the vector field and the metric tensor. Also, it is found that these massive modes do not propagate due to the extra constraints.

A theory of injustice: the flip side of the relocation coin in Australia

Problems attached to relocation cases in Australia because of geographical and cultural reasons - the best interests of the child principle inherently promotes injustice in relocation cases - operation of Part VII of the Family Law Act in the context of relocation cases - assessment of the best interests of the child principle in Australian relocation cases - responsibility of contact parents - reforming Australian law to promote an equality of interests.