Leicester Castle Business School

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The 1998 parliamentary election in Latvia
(Butterwoth-Heinemann, 2001) Davies, Philip; Ozolins, A. V.
Open Access
The 2015 regional election in Italy: fragmentation and crisis of sub-national representative democracy
(Taylor & Francis, 2015-08-14) Vampa, Davide
In May 2015, voters in seven Italian regions went to the polls to elect new regional councils and governments. The final election result was apparently similar to that of 2010: centre-left coalitions won in five out of seven regions, like in the previous election, leaving the remaining two to the centre-right. Yet behind this picture of stability, dramatic changes have occurred in the internal composition of regional coalitions, cross-party equilibriums and levels of participation. Generally, regional party-based democracy seems to be experiencing increasing fragmentation and a crisis of representation and legitimacy.
Open Access
The 2021 Metro Mayors Elections: LocalismRebooted?
(Wiley, 2021-08) Giovannini, Arianna
Metro mayors are the latest addition to the complex jigsaw of subnational governance inEngland, and were introduced from 2014 to lead, allegedly, a‘devolution revolution’. This articlefocusses on the 2021 election to reflect on the roots andfirst mandate of these new mayors, tounderstand how they fared at the ballot box, and to assess whether and in what ways they aremaking an impact. The analysis shows that metro mayors are maturing as institutions, and theyare becoming more rooted in the public imagination. Harnessing‘the power of place’was a keydriver of success: some metro mayors have shown a potential to‘reboot localism’and, with it,devolution. However, resistance from central government to let go of power persists and couldhinder both the metro mayors’and the devolution agendas going forward.
Open Access
The 2022 Italian general election: a political shock or the new normal?
(Firenze University Press, 2021-06-09) Giovannini, Arianna; Valbruzzi, Marco; Vampa, Davide
This introduction to the special issue places the 2022 Italian general election within the recent electoral history of Italy and the broader European context. Following the same multidimensional structure adopted for this collection of articles, here we address general questions regarding the significance of the last election, its dynamics, and implications. Firstly, to what extent did it represent a change compared to previous Italian elections? Secondly, can Italy still be regarded as an anomaly in the European context? Have the 2022 results widened or narrowed the political gap between the country and its neighbours? By providing a longitudinal and cross-sectional overview, our aim is to suggest some interpretative keys, which, in conjunction with the rich data presented and discussed by the authors of each article, may enable readers to draw general lessons about recent developments in Italian and European politics. Our overall argument is that, while clearly significant in its political implications – producing the most ideologically right-wing government in republican history led by the first female prime minister –, the 2022 general election did not represent a radical change from previous Italian elections. Instead, it marked a further step in the emergence of a ‘new political normal’ characterised by volatility, fragmentation, mainstreaming of populist ideas and actors, polarisation and the reframing of socio-economic and socio-cultural cleavages. Additionally, while Italy can be regarded as the most advanced manifestation of these transformations, we observe similar shifts in most Western European countries, indicating that their seemingly unshakable stability is now in question.
Open Access
A bibliometric review of corporate environmental disclosure literature
(Emerald, 2023-06-16) Bilal; Gerged, Ali Meftah; Arslan, Hafiz Muhammad; Abbas, Ali; Chen, Songsheng; Manzoor, Shahid
The study identifies and discusses influential aspects of corporate environmental disclosure (CED) literature, including key streams, themes, authors, keywords, journals, affiliations, and countries. This review also constructs agendas for future CED research. Using a bibliometric review approach, we reviewed 560 articles on CED from 215 journals published between 1982 and 2020. Our insights are three-fold. First, we identified three core streams of CED research: 'legitimization of environmental hazards via environmental disclosures', 'the role of environmental accounting in achieving corporate environmental sustainability', and 'integrating environmental social and governance (ESG) reporting into the GRI guidelines'. Second, we also deployed a thematic map that classifies CED research into four themes: niche themes (e.g., institutional theory and environmental management system), motor themes (e.g., stakeholder engagement), emerging/declining themes (e.g., legitimacy theory), and basic/transversal themes (e.g., voluntary CED, environmental reporting, and corporate social responsibility). Third, we highlighted important CED authors, keywords, journals, articles, affiliations, and countries. This study assists researchers, journal editors, and consultants in the corporate sector to comprehensively understand various dimensions of CED research and practices and suggests potential emerging research areas. Although our paper appears to have been thoroughly conducted, using authors' keywords to identify themes was a key limitation. Thus, we call upon using a more comprehensive data mining technique that uses keywords in abstracts, titles and the whole body of papers and then identifies inclusive trends in CED literature. We contribute to the extant accounting literature by investigating the organizational-level CED, both mandatory and voluntary, using a systematic and bibliometric literature review model to summarize the key research streams, themes, authors, journals, affiliations and countries. By doing so, we construct a future research agenda for CED literature.
Open Access
A classroom market experiment: Data and reflections
(2024-06-02) Cartwright, Edward; Cartwright, Anna
In this article, the authors analyze data accumulated over 10+ years of teaching market interaction using a simple classroom experiment. The experiment is designed to teach first-year undergraduate students the basics of supply and demand and market efficiency. In total, they analyze data from 85 teaching sessions and 243 individual markets. They find that traded prices typically (90% of the time) move in accordance with market equilibrium comparative statics. They also find that average traded prices are rarely (5% of the time) consistent with market equilibrium but typically (70% of the time) “close” to the equilibrium. The traded quantity is often (60% of the time) more than equilibrium, which results in a loss of efficiency. The law of one price is strongly rejected.
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A Cross-cultural Assessment of the Competency Needs of Women Operating in the Context of SMMEs in South Africa
(2017-01-15) Irene, Bridget
Previous reports identified two types of entrepreneurs: opportunity entrepreneurs and necessity entrepreneurs. Opportunity entrepreneurs are those who discover or identify an opportunity or gap in the marketplace and embark on the entrepreneurial journey to fill that gap. By contrast, the necessity entrepreneurs embark on the journey out of a need to survive due to a lack of employment, have reached the peak of their careers (glass ceiling), or lack the necessary qualifications to work for other firms. Given that “necessity”, rather than “opportunity”, has been identified as the main reason why women venture into business ownership in South Africa, it can, therefore, be deduced that many women embark on the entrepreneurial journey ill-prepared, with little understanding of the intricacies of business operation and management and possessing few or no skills and competencies. Researchers in the past have suggested that focusing on the internal factors, especially the “people issues” facing the entrepreneurs (in this case females), may give the business a better chance of success. A “mixed-method” approach, conducted in two parts, was adopted for this study. The qualitative aspect utilised semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. The qualitative study was exploratory and the method of data collection was mostly based on communication using face-to-face interaction with participants. Personal interviews were conducted with female entrepreneurs over five months, following which focus group discussions were conducted (with female entrepreneurs). It focused on exploring the link between entrepreneurial competencies and the business success of female owners and managed SMMEs in South Africa. Cross-cultural differences were explored and the arguments were examined inductively and deductively using thematic content analysis. Samples comprise 128 female entrepreneurs drawn from the four government-identified races (Black Africans, White, Indian and Coloured). The qualitative findings from the current research revealed that female SMMEs entrepreneurs from the previously most disadvantaged groups in society under apartheid, (Black Africans and Coloured), made no comments indicative of possessing technical competencies. Nevertheless, in the quantitative findings, the technical competency had relatively high correlations with measures of business success, such as the black women entrepreneurs’ satisfaction with financial performance, where α = .34. Further, the regression analysis confirmed that the competencies studied in this current research do influence business success. This suggests that technical competencies are not only important for all SMEs but that in particular, the previously disadvantaged groups in South Africa may especially benefit from increased training (and if necessary from concomitant levels of physical technical resource allocation) in this area.” This study offers insight into the factors that influence the business success of South African female SMME operators their decision for new venture creation and its possible link to the strategies they adopt to grow and sustain their businesses. A practical contribution of this research was to specifically highlight some of the individual competency needs of the different groups in South African society, and in particular to delineate some of the specific competency training needs (e.g. in technical competency training) of women that were most disadvantaged under apartheid.
Open Access
A CROSS-CULTURAL REVIEW OF THE IMPACT OF ENTREPRENEURIAL MOTIVATION ON THE SUCCESS OF FEMALE SMMES OPERATORS IN SOUTH AFRICA
(International Journal of Current Advanced Research, 2016-07-28) Irene, Bridget
Purpose- Previous researchers have drawn attention to the link between entrepreneurial motivation, strategy and business success. Most of the studies on the characteristics of women entrepreneurs have focused on a comparison of male and female entrepreneurs with regard to demographic characteristics, psychological orientation or motivations, and business practices (Fenwick, 2001). Notwithstanding the fact that the number of women venturing into entrepreneurship is almost proportionate to the number of men, studies have shown that female-owned businesses are less likely to survive than male-owned businesses (Kalleberg and Leicht, 1991). This study investigates the poor survival rate of female-owned SMMEs in South Africa through an analysis of women’s entrepreneurial motivation in the country. Design/methodology/approach- This qualitative study is exploratory and the method of data collection was mostly based on face-to-face interaction with participants. Personal interviews were conducted with female entrepreneurs over five months, following which focus group discussions were conducted (with female entrepreneurs). It focuses on exploring the link between entrepreneurial motivation and the business success of female-owned and managed SMMEs in South Africa. Cross-cultural differences are also explored and the arguments are examined inductively and deductively using thematic content analysis. Samples comprise 128 female entrepreneurs drawn from the four government-identified races (Black Africans, White, Indian and Coloured). Data was collected using open-ended interviews. Findings- The results showed a link between motivation, business strategy and business success. It also showed evidence of “serial entrepreneurship” and confirmed the findings from previous research that South African female entrepreneurs were more “necessity” than “opportunity” driven. It highlights a need for intervention programs that include motivational training for South African women desiring growth and sustainability in business. Originality/value- This study offers insight into the factors that influence South African women’s decision to create a new venture and their possible link to the strategies they adopt to grow and sustain their businesses, as well as the link between their motivational factors, strategies and business success.
Embargo
A Multi Objective Perspective to Satellite Design and Reliability Optimization
(Elsevier, 2024-01-22) Tetik, Taha; Das, Gulesin Sena; Birgoren, Burak
Development of a communication satellite project is highly complicated and expensive which costs a few hun dred million dollars depending on the mission in space. Once a satellite is launched into orbit, it has to operate in harsh environmental conditions including radiation, solar activity, meteorites, and extreme weather patterns. Since there is no possibility of physical maintenance intervention in space, reliability is a critical attribute for all space and satellite projects. Therefore, the redundancy philosophy and reliability measures are taken into ac count in the design phase of a satellite to prevent the loss of functionality in case of a failure in orbit. This study aims to optimize the payload design of a communication satellite by considering the system’s reliability, power consumption and cost simultaneously. Since these objectives are conflicting in their nature, a multi-objective optimization approach is proposed. We offer a systematic approach to the satellite design by determining the best redundancy strategy considering contradictory objectives and onboard constraints in the multibillion-dollar satellite industry. The proposed approach promotes trade-offs and sensitivity analyses between cost, power consumption and system reliability in the early design phase of satellites using Compromise Programming. By using different sets of weights for the objectives in our model, it is possible to address different types of satellites depending on their mission and priorities. Because of the NP-Hard characteristics of the reliability optimization problem and the nonlinear equation in the proposed model, the Simulated Annealing algorithm is utilized to solve the problem. As a case analysis, the implementation is carried out on the design of a communication satellite system with active hot-standby and warm-standby onboard redundancy schemes. Results reveal that huge savings in million dollars can be attained as a result of approximately 5% reduction in reliability.
Open Access
A Review of and Future Research Agenda on Women Entrepreneurship in Africa
(Emerald, 2024-03-07) Woldesenbet, K.; Mwila, Natasha Katuta; Ogunmokun, Olapeju Comfort
Purpose: This paper seeks to systematically review and synthesise existing research knowledge on African women entrepreneurship to identify gaps for future studies. Methodology/research design/approach: The paper conducted a systematic literature review of published studies from 1990-2020 on women entrepreneurship in Africa using a 5M gender aware framework of Brush, de Bruin and Welter (2009). Findings: The systematic literature review of published studies found the fragmentation, descriptive and prescriptive orientation of studies on Africa women entrepreneurship and devoid of theoretical focus. Further, women entrepreneurship studies tended to be underpinned from various disciplines, less from the entrepreneurship lens, mostly quantitative, and at its infancy stage of development. With a primary focus on development, enterprise performance, and livelihood, studies rarely attended to issues of motherhood and the nuanced understanding of women entrepreneurship’s embeddedness in family and institutional contexts of Africa. Originality: The paper contributes to a holistic understanding of women entrepreneurship in Africa by using a 5M framework to review the research knowledge. In addition, the paper not only identifies unexplored/ or less examined issues but also questions the taken-for-granted assumptions of existing knowledge and suggest adoption of context- and gender-sensitive theories and methods. Research limitations/implications: The paper questions the view that women entrepreneurship is a ‘panacea’ and unravels how family context, customary practices, poverty and, rural-urban and formal/informal divide, significantly shape and interact with African women entrepreneurs’ enterprising experience and firm performance.
Open Access
A social identity approach to understanding sustainability and environmental behaviours in South Africa
(2024-07-17) Irene, Julius; Daniels, Chux; Irene, Bridget; Kelly, Mary; Frank, R.
In recent years, change in behaviour towards the environment has gained prominence as a policy tool to influence positive environmental value. Simultaneously, the role played by social identity in promoting pro-environmental action is gaining recognition. Within this work, the intersection between collective group identity and environmental behaviour has received very little attention. Group norms are considered a strong predictor of pro-environmental behaviour, yet the influence of social identity and collective action on environmental action has not been adequately investigated in a multi-ethnic setting. Within this context, this study examines the affective component of social identity influence on pro-environmental action. More succinctly, this study demonstrates how outgroups and in-groups’ relations and broader sociocultural structures, values, interest, and norms impact environmental and sustainability transitions behaviours. Through interviews with participants across the four dominant social groups in South Africa, this study provides compelling evidence that country-wide expressions of social identity and ingroup dynamics shapes the individual behaviour regarding environmental and sustainability concerns and further strengthen the individual’s perspective for social environmental transformation. This study advances the need for a social-identity centred approach to foster pro-environmental and sustainability outcomes.
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A state-of-the-art survey of evaluation based on distance from average solution (EDAS): Developments and applications
(Elsevier, 2023-03-06) Torkayesh, Ali Ebadi; Deveci, Muhammet; Karagoz, Selman; Antucheviciene, Jurgita
Evaluation based on distance from average solution (EDAS), developed in 2015, is one of the well-known and frequently utilized methods which is applied for different types of decision making problems. The output of EDAS is a ranking order of alternatives based on their aggregated distance scores. In this regard, the literature lacks a comprehensive literature review on the developments and applications of EDAS. For this purpose, this study conducts a comprehensive literature review on developments, extensions, and applications of the EDAS method. First, the EDAS method and its well-known extensions are shortly introduced. Next, a theoretical literature review of studies is presented. A meta analysis is performed in terms of publication year, authors, authors’ countries, journals, and combined methods, uncertainty sets. Practical problems of the EDAS are categorized into nine application groups as agriculture, business management, construction management, energy and natural resources, healthcare management, information technology (IT), manufacturing, supply chain management, and transportation management. Results of this study can empower real-life decision makers to handle vague and incomplete information involved in decision process, and express opinions of different stakeholders in different applications under novel extensions of the EDAS.
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A stochastic Fermatean fuzzy-based multi-choice conic goal programming approach for sustainable supply chain management in end-of-life buildings
(Elsevier, 2022-12-05) Deliktaş, Derya; Karagoz, Selman; Simić, Vladimir; Aydin, Nezir
Due to natural disasters, urban transformations and many other factors, sustainable end-of-life buildings (ELBs) waste management is gaining importance within the last decades, which is vigorous for both economic and conservation matters. Turkey is located on active zones in terms of natural disasters and faced numerous destructive events. Therefore, the government initiated a program to renew the ELBs. Even though several studies analyzed post-disaster debris management, there are not many studies focusing on pre-disaster debris management. Thus, this study proposes a two-stage stochastic model to optimize the supply chain network of ELBs and manage the debris stemmed from the destruction of the ELBs. With this aim, the criteria and the alternatives for evaluating the objectives are defined, experts’ evaluations for objectives are integrated into the model, Fermatean fuzzy-based weighting approach is introduced to transfer the experts’ views on the importance of the objectives, and the stochastic Fermatean fuzzy-based multi-choice conic goal programming (FF-MCCGP) and the revised-MCGP methods are used to provide optimal facility locations, and the amount of debris to transfer within the network. The stochastic FF-MCCGP approach outperforms the revised-MCGP in most cases, where they are compared. Furthermore, a sustainable management strategy is offered to control the economic, pollution, land-use stress and population health factors. This study is one of the pioneer studies that eases the consequences of diseases, urban transformation, wars, and other factors by considering the renewal of ELBs, and method can be upgraded dynamically regarding the potential needs and conditions as it offers a global road map.
Open Access
Abnormal Real Activities, Meeting Earnings Targets and Firms' Future Operating Performance: Evidence from an Emerging Economy
(Emerald, 2021-07-28) Al-Haddad, Lara; Whittington, Mark; Gerged, Ali Meftah
This paper aims to examine the extent to which Real Earnings Management (REM) is used in Jordan to meet zero or previous year’s earnings and how this impacts the subsequent operating performance of Jordanian firms. The study used a sample of 98 Jordanian listed firms over the 2010-2018 period. To test our research hypotheses, which are formulated in accordance with both agency theory and signalling theory, multivariate regression is performed using a pooled OLS estimation. Additionally, a two-step dynamic Generalised Method of Moment (GMM) model has been estimated to address any concerns regarding the potential occurrence of endogeneity issues. Our results show that Jordanian firms that meet zero or last year’s earnings tend to exhibit evidence of real activities manipulations. More specifically, suspect firms show unusually low abnormal discretionary expenses and unusually high abnormal production costs. Further, consistent with the signalling earnings management argument, we find that abnormal real-based activities intended to meet zero earnings or previous year’s earnings potentially improve the subsequent operating performance of Jordanian firms. This implies that REM is not totally opportunistic, but it can be used to enhance the subsequent operating performance of Jordanian firms. Our findings are robust to alternative proxies and endogeneity concerns. Our findings have several implications for policymakers, regulators, audit professionals, and investors in their attempts to constrain REM practices to enhance financial reporting quality in Jordan. Managing earnings by reducing discretionary expenses appeared to be the most convenient way to manipulate earnings in Jordan. It provides flexibility in terms of time and the amount of spending. Our empirical evidence, therefore, reiterates the crucial necessity to refocus the efforts of internal and external auditors on limiting this type of manipulation to reduce the occurrence of REM activities and enhance the subsequent operating performance of listed firms in Jordan. Drawing on Al-Haddad & Whittington (2019), our evidence also urges regulators and standards setters to develop a more effective enforcement mechanism for corporate governance provisions in Jordan to minimise the likelihood of REM incidence. This study contributes to the body of accounting literature by providing the first empirical evidence in the Middle East region overall on the use of REM to meet zero or previous year earnings by Jordanian firms. Moreover, our study is the first to empirically examine the relationship between REM and Jordanian firms’ future operating performance.
Embargo
Abortion and same-sex marriage: how are non-sectarian controversial issues discussed in Northern Irish politics?
(Taylor and Francis, 2015-11-13) Thomson, Jennifer
Open Access
Access to Debt Finance in Sub-Saharan Africa: Redefining the Problem from Risk Perspective and Way Forward
(Sage, 2024-03-01) Ogunmokun, Olapeju Comfort; Mafimisebi, Oluwasoye; Obembe, Demola
This paper presents critical points of view relating to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) access to debt finance in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Prevailing view suggests that lack of credit information is a fundamental factor that contributes to the constraints faced by SMEs. We challenge this prevailing dominant view and argues that SMEs are constraints in accessing debt finance due to bank’s risk assessment strategies. At the same time, suggest that banks modelling credit risk assessment for SMEs in SSA became extremely crucial for determining access to debt finance. This impacts on access to debt finance contrary to popular claim that the opaque nature of SMEs is the major constraint limiting access to debt finance. In such challenging context, SMEs are expected to either provide more information to banks to reduce the problem of information asymmetry as well as provide collateral and guarantees in the absence of reliable information to safeguard against risk of default or maintain a long-term relationship with banks which is expected to result in an increase in debt financing. The authors emphasize the need to redefine the problem of access to debt finance, so that financing obstacles for SMEs can be strengthen. The implications and alternative strategies for SMEs access to debt finance are discussed.
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Account planning – from genesis to revelation.
(MCB University Press, 2003) Baskin, M.; Pickton, David W.
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Accountability in the environmental crisis: From microsocial practices to moral orders
(Wiley, 2023-11-05) Lidskog, Rolf; Standring, Adam
The global environmental crisis is the result of a complex web of causation and distributed agency, where not even the most powerful individual actors can be considered responsible nor remedy the situation alone. This has prompted multiple calls across societies for transformative social change. What role can accountability play in this context? Starting in the theoretical traditions of microsociology and pragmatic sociology, this article elaborates the role of accountability in social interactions. To provide an account that justifies an action or inaction is here understood as a process of social ordering, where accounts are assessed as acceptable only after they have been tested against higher normative principles. Microsocial practices are, in this way, linked to macrosocial order. The following section turns to the global environmental crisis, showing that the crisis raises normative as well as epistemic challenges. The complexity of the socio‐environmental situation makes it hard to know what should be done and opens normative orders and epistemic claims to contestation. This situation provides increased opportunities for strategic maneuvering to justify actions as well as opportunities to question social practices and social order. The article concludes by discussing the role of accountability in climate change. Accountability can serve as a mechanism to attach issues to the current environmental crisis and re‐embed decisions and practice in an environmental moral order. As part of a broader palette of instruments, rules and norms, accountability has an important function to play in transforming society towards sustainability.
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Accountable, authorized or authentic? What do 'faith representatives' offer urban governance?
(Routledge, 2009) Chapman, R. C.; Lowndes, Vivien
Open Access
Accounting for Accounting’s Role in the Neoliberalisation Processes of Social Housing in England: A Bourdieusian Perspective
(Elsevier, 2018-07-17) Ejiogu, Chibuzo; Ejiogu, Amanze; Ambituuni, Ambisisi
Abstract This paper seeks to account for how accounting is implicated in the neoliberalization processes of social housing in England. It adopts a processual view which instead of conceptualizing neoliberalism as static and ‘end-state’, views it as a dynamic process of neoliberalization. We draw upon Bourdieu’s notions of field, capital and habitus to frame our study. We focus on reform of the regulation of social housing in England during the period 2006–2016. We show that the process of neoliberalization of social housing in England was instigated by the state’s intervention to change the structure of the field in terms of norms, power relations and positions of players on the field. These changes brought about simultaneous changes in the habitus of the field as well as the structure and habitus of Housing Associations as sub-fields. We demonstrate how these changes create and reproduce a new system of domination where the tenant is the dominated player. We highlight the role accounting played in these changes in terms of being used as a tool by the regulator to achieve social control and drive change within Housing Associations and by the Housing Associations to evidence conformity with the new norms and adaptation.

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