Farm forestry in Pakistan: an application of Theory of Planned Behaviour by probing into the measurement issues

A research has been conducted over methodological issues concerning the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) by determining an appropriate measurement (direct and indirect) of constructs and selection of a plausible scaling techniques (unipolar and bipolar) of constructs: attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioural control and intention that are important in explaining farm level tree planting in Pakistan. Unipolar scoring of beliefs showed higher correlation among the constructs of TPB than bipolar scaling technique. Both direct and indirect methods yielded significant results in explaining intention to perform farm forestry except the belief based measure of perceived behavioural control, which were analysed as statistically non-significant. A need to examine more carefully the scoring of perceived behavioural control (PBC) has been expressed

Gauging the investment potential of international real estate markets

Investing in real estate markets overseas means venturing into the unknown, where you meet unfamiliar political and economic environments, unstable currencies, strange cultures and languages, and so although the advantages of international diversification might appear attractive, the risks of international investment must not be overlooked. However, capital markets are becoming global markets, and commercial real estate markets are no exception, accordingly despite the difficulties posed by venturing overseas no investor can overlook the potential international investment holds out. Thus, what strategies are appropriate for capitalising on this potential? Three issues must be considered: (1) the potential of the countries real estate market in general; (2) the potential of the individual market sectors; and (3) the investment process itself. Although each step in foreign real estate investment is critical, the initial assessment of opportunities is especially important. Various methods can be used to achieve this but a formal and systematic analysis of aggregate market potential should prove particularly fruitful. The work reported here, therefore, develops and illustrates such a methodology for the over 50 international real estate markets.