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Behaviour Theory (behaviour + theory)
Selected AbstractsTheorizing TQM: An Austrian and Evolutionary Economics InterpretationJOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 2 2000Todd H. Chiles Born out of management practice, the principles of TQM (total quality management) have had a profound and unparalleled impact on modern business history. However, as a body of practical knowledge, TQM has been largely atheoretical. As a consequence, this important management philosophy has remained amorphous and shrouded in considerable conceptual haziness and ambiguity. Recent theorizing, primarily emphasizing the application of organizational behaviour theories to TQM, has begun to provide greater clarity, but much work remains to be done. This paper attempts to contribute to this nascent theory-building literature by employing theory from market process economics (MPE), namely, Austrian and evolutionary economics, which explains how processes of dynamic change, adaptation, and learning are driven by entrepreneurial creativity. We contend that the patterns in this body of theory match, to a remarkable degree, the patterns of practical knowledge contained in the TQM literature. We demonstrate this ,pattern-matching' by showing that MPE effectively provides the theoretical underpinnings of TQM's three main principles , customer focus, continuous improvement and teamwork , as well as the respective TQM topics of customer perceptions, adaptation in dynamic environments, and knowledge creation. Having established MPE as a credible theoretical lens for interpreting TQM, it can be used to clarify fuzzy areas that have remained in the TQM literature with the potential to take us beyond what we know now. We illustrate this with three examples that show how we can resolve debates in TQM over incentive systems, recognize that TQM embraces methodological pluralism in the collection and analysis of data, and highlight hidden dangers that attend benchmarking. While MPE has no monopoly on theoretical interpretations of TQM, it is unique in its ability to comprehensively cover the incredible breadth of this practical body of knowledge, and in its interpretation of TQM as a dynamic economic endeavour. [source] Advancing consumer behaviour theory in tourism via visual narrative artINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH, Issue 5 2010Arch G. Woodside Abstract This paper advances (i) propositions of consumer behaviour theory in tourism via storytelling theory and (ii) skills in decoding elements and subtle details that appear in ,good stories' versus not-so-good stories within travel contexts. The present paper presents a set of iconic story symbols for use in decoding stories and shows how to use these tools for decoding tourism-related narratives. Practice using these visual iconic symbols in decoding stories achieves effective storytelling learning via cognitive sculpting; that is, learning improves from moving and arranging (sculpting) potentially three-dimensional story or electronically movable icons while talking or writing narratives. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Deconstructing consumer behaviour: theory and practiceJOURNAL OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR, Issue 1 2001Dr David Marsden Abstract This paper challenges the conventional opposition, or distinction, between consumer behaviour theory and practice. This binary dualism, it is argued, is predicated on a simplistic ,either/or' logic that ignores the effects theory and practice have on each other. Furthermore, it obscures a hierarchical relationship between academic researchers and marketing practitioners in which basic research is more dominant and privileged than applied research. In response to these criticisms, an alternative ,both/and' logic is proposed for exploring the interrelationships between consumer behaviour theory and practice and new social relations among consumer researchers. Copyright © 2001 Henry Stewart Publications. [source] Simulation of pedestrian flows by optimal control and differential gamesOPTIMAL CONTROL APPLICATIONS AND METHODS, Issue 3 2003Serge Hoogendoorn Abstract Gaining insights into pedestrian flow operations and assessment tools for pedestrian walking speeds and comfort is important in, for instance, planning and geometric design of infrastructural facilities, as well as for management of pedestrian flows under regular and safety-critical circumstances. Pedestrian flow operations are complex, and vehicular flow simulation modelling approaches are generally not applicable to pedestrian flow modelling. This article focusses on pedestrian walking behaviour theory and modelling. It is assumed that pedestrians are autonomous predictive controllers that minimize the subjective predicted cost of walking. Pedestrians predict the behaviour of other pedestrians based on their observations of the current state as well as predictions of the future state, given the assumed walking strategy of other pedestrians in their direct neighbourhood. As such, walking can be represented by a (non-co-operative or co-operative) differential game, where pedestrians may or may not be aware of the walking strategy of the other pedestrians. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Early sexual debut and associated factors among in-school adolescents in eight African countriesACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 8 2010Karl PeltzerArticle first published online: 19 MAY 2010 Abstract Objective:, This report examines early sexual debut (
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