Divergent Preferences Research Articles

Social order or social justice? The relationship of political ideology with consumer preferences for Corporate Social Responsibility

Despite the recognized importance of political ideology in shaping consumer behavior across various contexts, it remains unclear whether conservatives and liberals exhibit different preferences when it comes to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Using survey data from 598 respondents in the United States, our findings indicate a positive correlation between conservatism and consumer preference for customer, supplier, and shareholder CSR domains. Conversely, conservatism correlates negatively with consumer preference for environmental and societal CSR domains. These relationships are mediated by social order and social justice. Conservatism also has a negative indirect relationship with consumer preference for employee's CSR domain through social order. Overall, our study contributes to the marketing literature by demonstrating that political ideology is related to divergent preferences for CSR, with group-related moral motives serving as mediators in these relationships.

Individual preferences in multiple goal pursuit: Reconsidering the conceptualization and dimensionality of polychronicity

AbstractWith increasing demands in work and life, successful self‐regulation of multiple goals becomes critical to the well‐being and performance of individuals and organizations. When pursuing multiple goals, individuals may use different strategies and have divergent preferences toward these strategies. Polychronicity, or the preference for multitasking over sequential tasking, has long been considered a unidimensional construct with two opposing ends. To empirically test this assumption, we reconstructed existing polychronicity items to explore a new scale that measures preferences separately and synthesizes different operationalizations of multitasking (i.e., concurrent tasking and task switching) (study 1). We found that multitasking and sequential preferences, while related, have distinct components and can co‐occur within individuals, challenging the traditional bipolar assumption (study 2). Finally, we used a behavioral task‐switching paradigm to simulate a multitasking environment. We found that consistent with past research, the preferences were not associated with behavioral performance but were associated with subjective experience (study 3). Our findings suggest that assuming multitasking and sequential preferences are completely antithetical can be an oversimplification. This research opens opportunities for future research on multiple goals.

A choice experiment of older patients’ preferences for kidney failure treatments

Most older people with kidney failure choose between treatment with dialysis or conservative kidney management. The preferences underlying these decisions are poorly understood. Here, we performed a choice experiment, informed by qualitative research, to examine preferences for the characteristics of dialysis and conservative management among over-65- year-olds with eGFR of 20mls or under/min/1.73m2. Mixed logit and latent class analyses quantified the trade-offs between frequency and location of treatments, survival, and capability (the ability to do important activities), accounting for participants’ characteristics. Overall, 327 United Kingdom participants across 23 centers (median age 77 years, eGFR 14mls/min/1.73m 2) needed 8%-59% absolute survival benefit two years after starting treatment to accept dialysis, with preferences for less frequent treatment and treatment at home. Significantly higher preferences for survival were seen amongst partnered participants (effect size 0.04, 95% confidence interval 0.02-0.06) and if better levels of capability were depicted (effect size 0.02, 0.01-0.03). Three latent classes were identified with divergent preferences for survival, capability, and location of care. Stated preferences indicated participants favored higher survival probabilities, but only if their capability was preserved and the location and frequency of care were acceptable. Subgroups may prioritize survival, hospital avoidance, or in-center care. Clinicians supporting people making kidney failure treatment decisions must explore their goals and values. Thus, investment in services that prioritize capability and ensure treatment is delivered at a frequency acceptable to people in their preferred location would enable provision of preference sensitive care.

Students Follow Structured Guidance in an Asynchronous Online-Only Course, Despite Diverging Preferences

Online-only course design has to balance students’ needs to experience (1) competence and (2) autonomy as it may affect their motivation. Lecture units can provide structured guidance by being made accessible in a fixed order, or support students’ autonomy by providing free access to all lecture units. Online-only courses with lecture units including videos and quizzes can help provide psychology education to diverse populations. This includes nontraditional students who might struggle to attend traditional courses. We used a questionnaire with two vignettes in Study 1 ( N = 152) and found that most students preferred free access to lecture units. Yet, using Moodle log data in Study 2 ( N = 424) showed that most students did follow structured guidance in an asynchronous online-only course. Combining the assessment of preferences and behavior in Study 3 ( N = 159), we replicated the divergence of preferences and behavior. Students preferring structured guidance and students following it in asynchronous online-only courses reported higher intrinsic motivation than students with diverging preferences and study behavior. This suggests that for many students, support through structured guidance does not compromise perceived autonomy. Structured guidance can be useful for course designers to balance students’ needs for autonomy and competence.

The neurodevelopmental genes alan shepard and Neuroglian contribute to female mate preference in African Drosophila melanogaster.

Mate choice is a key trait that determines fitness for most sexually reproducing organisms, with females often being the choosy sex. Female preference often results in strong selection on male traits that can drive rapid divergence of traits and preferences between lineages, leading to reproductive isolation. Despite this fundamental property of female mate choice, very few loci have been identified that contribute to mate choice and reproductive isolation. We used a combination of population genetics, quantitative complementation tests, and behavioural assays to demonstrate that alan shepard and Neuroglian contribute to female mate choice, and could contribute to partial reproductive isolation between populations of Drosophila melanogaster. Our study is among the first to identify genes that contribute to female mate preference in this historically important system, where female preference is an active premating barrier to reproduction. The identification of loci that are primarily known for their roles in neurodevelopment provides intriguing questions of how female mate preference evolves in populations via changes in sensory system and higher learning brain centres.

Giver‐receiver discrepancy in decisions between probabilistic and regular gifts

AbstractPrevious research has identified discrepancies between gift givers and receivers in their attitudes towards certain types of gifts, such as self‐improvement gifts. However, it remains unexplored whether there are divergent preferences between givers and receivers regarding probabilistic gifts (i.e., gifts involving probabilistic goods), despite the growing popularity of such goods. To address this gap, we conducted five studies. Study 1 revealed that when presented with a choice between probabilistic gifts and regular gifts, givers were less likely than receivers to select probabilistic gifts. This discrepancy was replicated in two contexts: vertical outcomes of probabilistic gifts (e.g., travel packages with varying prices) in Study 2, and horizontal outcomes of probabilistic gifts (e.g., T‐shirts with different patterns) in Study 3. Study 4 identified that this asymmetrical preference occurred due to different regulatory focus and perceptions of norm violations among individuals when engaging in gift giving. Givers exhibited a higher inclination towards prevention‐focused strategies, whereas receivers displayed a stronger preference for promotion‐focused strategies. Moreover, givers tend to significantly overestimate the extent to which receivers perceive probabilistic gifts as violating gifting norms. These disparities resulted in an asymmetrical preference for probabilistic gifts between givers and receivers. In Study 5, we found that consideration of creativity in gifting moderated the giver‐receiver asymmetrical preference for probabilistic gifts. Specifically, givers with heightened consideration of creativity were more likely to choose probabilistic gifts. These findings imply that gift givers could give greater consideration to probabilistic gifts, and marketers can capitalize on this by promoting probabilistic goods as viable gift options.

The delegation of discretionary power in international agreements: New comparative evidence from the association of Southeast Asian Nations

Abstract According to the transaction-costs perspective on delegation, decision-makers grant more discretion to implementers in relation to policies that are more complex and therefore require more specialist expertise to implement. Furthermore, decision-makers grant less delegation to implementers when those implementers have divergent preferences and are therefore more costly to monitor. The transaction-costs perspective has implications for the design of international agreements, such as those adopted by the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). While delegation in the EU has been the subject of systematic research, delegation in ASEAN has not. We argue that ASEAN offers a particularly hard test of the transaction-costs perspective, especially in relation to its propositions concerning implementers’ policy preferences. Notwithstanding the unique characteristics of ASEAN, the evidence provides strong support for the transaction-costs perspective both in terms of specialist expertise and implementers’ preferences. The new dataset we examine includes information on more than 8,500 major provisions within the 235 legal instruments adopted by ASEAN since 1967.

Habitat preferences of Phoebetria albatrosses in sympatry and allopatry

AbstractAimCompetition is often proposed to drive niche segregation along multiple axes in speciose communities. Understanding spatial partitioning of foraging areas is particularly important in species that are constrained to a central place. We present a natural experiment examining variation in habitat preferences of congeneric Southern Ocean predators in sympatry and allopatry. Our aim was to ascertain consistency of habitat preferences within species, and to test whether preferences changed in the presence of the congener.LocationSouthern Hemisphere.TaxonMultiple colonies of both species within the genus Phoebetria (sooty albatrosses).MethodsThe two Phoebetria albatrosses breed on islands located from ~37–55°S – sooty albatrosses (P. fusca) in the north and light‐mantled albatrosses (P. palpebrata) in the south – with sympatric overlap at locations ~46–49°S. We analysed GPS and PTT tracks from 87 individuals and multiple remotely sensed environmental variables using GAMs, to determine and compare the key factors influencing habitat preference for each species at each breeding colony.ResultsWhile foraging habitat preferences are consistent in light‐mantled albatrosses, there is divergence of preferences in sooty albatrosses depending on whether they are in sympatry with their congener or in allopatry.Main ConclusionsThis study represents the most comprehensive work on this genus to date and highlights how habitat preferences and behavioural plasticity may influence species distributions under different competitive conditions.

Divergence and convergence: The implications of shifting media consumption habits on the field of minority language media studies

This commentary assesses what impact the generational divergence of audience preferences alongside the platform convergence of content creators will have for minority language media outlets and researchers working in this subdiscipline. An overview of the history of minority language media studies depicts this in two waves – first with ‘traditional’ media forms, followed by a second wave with the emergence of social media as a mass form of speakers’ consumption and participation habits. The commentary then outlines the stark generational divergence of social media consumption which has bought TikTok and Instagram to the fore at the expense of Facebook and Twitter, followed by demonstrating institutional actors’ adoption of creating short-form audio-visual content directly for such emerging channels. The conclusions suggest a third wave of minority language media literature will face different challenges as a result, potentially leading to a possible switch towards qualitative over quantitative methods due to less publicly accessible data.

Benefits and approaches of incorporating land–sea interactions into coastal spatial planning: evidence from Xiamen, China

As the land–sea interface, the coastal zone has become an increasingly key life-support system. However, it is also highly threatened by exposure to both ocean- and land-based human activities. The interdependencies of the land and sea systems require the integration of land and sea spatial planning to achieve sustainable development of coastal zones. There are different forms of land–sea spatial management integration globally. Whether a form can positively impact and how different institutional settings affect outcomes need further explanation. Therefore, this study explores the reasons for China’s planning integration through institutional reform by using the Graph Model for Conflicts Resolution and establishes a quantitative contradiction assessment method to examine whether this top-down institutional approach has played a role at the urban level. The results show that the planning of Xiamen city after reform has a lower total contradiction value, grid cell average and cell maximum value. This progress is made possible by unifying the land–sea spatial planning departments. The equilibrium solution of the Graph Model for Conflicts Resolution indicates that due to the different preferences of the land–sea management departments and the central-local governments, it is challenging to implement the Land–sea Coordination policy under separate land–sea management. By integrating land–sea management departments, deep-seated sectoral interests between horizontal departments do not remain. The impacts on integrated management of divergences in preferences of different vertical governments can be reduced. The research results provide a universal method for the contradiction evaluation and a management reference for other regions that want to integrate land–sea coordination into urban spatial planning.

Sibling species of the major malaria vector Anopheles gambiae display divergent preferences for aquatic breeding sites in southern Nigeria

Background When integrated with insecticide-treated bed nets, larval control of Anopheles mosquitoes could fast-track reductions in the incidence of human malaria. However, larval control interventions may deliver suboptimal outcomes where the preferred breeding places of mosquito vectors are not well known. This study investigated the breeding habitat choices of Anopheles mosquitoes in southern Nigeria. The objective was to identify priority sites for mosquito larval management in selected urban and periurban locations where malaria remains a public health burden. MethodsMosquito larvae were collected in urban and periurban water bodies during the wet-dry season interface in Edo, Delta, and Anambra States. Field-collected larvae were identified based on PCR gel-electrophoresis and amplicon sequencing, while the associations between Anopheles larvae and the properties and locations of water bodies were assessed using a range of statistical methods.ResultsMosquito breeding sites were either man-made (72.09%) or natural (27.91%) and mostly drainages (48.84%) and puddles (25.58%). Anopheles larvae occurred in drainages, puddles, stream margins, and a concrete well, and were absent in drums, buckets, car tires, and a water-holding iron pan, all of which contained culicine larvae. Wild-caught Anopheles larvae comprised Anopheles coluzzii (80.51%), Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto (s.s.) (11.54%), and Anopheles arabiensis (7.95%); a species-specific PCR confirmed the absence of the invasive urban malaria vector Anopheles stephensi among field-collected larvae. Anopheles arabiensis, An. coluzzii, and An. gambiae s.s. displayed preferences for turbid, lowland, and partially sunlit water bodies, respectively. Furthermore, An. arabiensis preferred breeding sites located outside 500 m of households, whereas An. gambiae s.s. and An. coluzzii had increased detection odds in sites within 500 m of households. Anopheles gambiae s.s. and An. coluzzii were also more likely to be present in natural water bodies; meanwhile, 96.77% of An. arabiensis were in man-made water bodies. Intraspecific genetic variations were little in the dominant vector An. coluzzii, while breeding habitat choices of populations made no statistically significant contributions to these variations.ConclusionSibling malaria vectors in the An. gambiae complex display divergent preferences for aquatic breeding habitats in southern Nigeria. The findings are relevant for planning targeted larval control of An. coluzzii whose increasing evolutionary adaptations to urban ecologies are driving the proliferation of the mosquito, and An. arabiensis whose adults typically evade the effects of treated bed nets due to exophilic tendencies.

Financing Supplier Through Retailer’s Credit

This study examines two retailer-initiated pre-shipment financing programs to assist capital-constrained suppliers in securing external funds for production. The first program is retailer-sponsored financing (RSF), an emerging practice in developing economies. Under RSF, the retailer commits to sharing the loan repayment obligation with the supplier by agreeing to pay up to a specific portion of the supplier’s bank loan repayment. The second program is advance payment (AP), a common payment arrangement wherein the retailer pays a part of the wholesale amount upfront to support the supplier’s production costs. We analyze a supply chain comprising a supplier and retailer. The retailer must choose between offering RSF, AP, or neither. Without RSF or AP, the supplier must opt for bank-direct financing when it is short of funds and bear the full responsibility of repaying the loan principal and interest. Our findings reveal a divergence in supplier and retailer preferences. Specifically, the supplier favors RSF as it not only lowers the marginal production cost but also permits the supplier to charge a higher risk premium to the retailer compared to AP. Conversely, the retailer prefers AP primarily due to the latter reason. Our research underscores the significance of RSF as a distinct financing alternative, enabling retailers to aid a supplier segment that cannot rely solely on AP. RSF also proves to be advantageous for banks by expanding their supplier clientele and boosting their lending volume. Interestingly, the supplier’s and retailer’s bankruptcy risks tend to have opposite impacts on the value of RSF.

European Social Dialogues: Shaping EU Social Policy through Parental Leave Rights

The European Social Dialogue (ESD) has served as the platform for European social partners to negotiate parental leave policies at the European Union (EU) level since 1995. The partners’ efforts to revise the regulations in 2015, in response to the European Commission’s broader approach toward European work–life balance policies, failed, however, and the reasons for and implications of this failure remain insufficiently explored. Drawing on existing ESD literature and leveraging the regulator-intermediary-target (RIT) model, the authors develop a typology of policymaking outcomes based on the analysis of three parental leave directives from 1996 to 2019. The findings demonstrate that divergent preferences among European social partners, particularly when juxtaposed against the Commission’s policy objectives and interests, reduced the probability of a successful ESD through which European social partners could generate a framework agreement. Instead of being rule-makers, these conditions relegated European social partners to the role of rule-takers. If this trend continues, it poses a significant challenge to the role and influence of European social partners in EU policymaking.

Integrating Scholarly Evidence and Personal Experience in Health Information Technology-Enabled Evidence-Based Patient-Care Practices: Challenges, Opportunities, and Outcomes

Scholarly evidence and personal experience are two prominent sources of knowledge informing patient-care practices in hospitals. In evidence-based patient-care practices, jointly applying both forms of knowledge is challenging due to the divergent preferences of administrative personnel versus frontline providers towards these knowledge sources and the limited understanding of how to combine these knowledge sources effectively despite divergent preferences. Health information technologies (HITs) tend to influence this challenge by simultaneously imprinting a standardized practice based on scholarly evidence while also allowing workarounds based on personal experience. We apply a theoretical framework, integrating cognitive information processing theory and agency theory, to the context of HIT-enabled evidence-based patient-care practices to investigate the circumstances that enable joint consideration of scholarly evidence and personal experience in value-adding versus value-depleting ways in these practices. Our findings reveal the salience of outcome uncertainty and of the prior stored knowledge of administrative personnel versus frontline providers in enabling joint considerations of the two types of knowledge and the value-adding versus value-depleting outcomes that result.

CHASING ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE: A DATA-DRIVEN ASSESSMENT OF BLENDED LEARNING EFFICACY

This study examines the effect of blended learning on student learning achievement. Blended learning is a mixture of online and face-to-face or traditional learning. The purpose of this research is to find out the positive or negative effect of blended learning. The method used is descriptive quantitative. Data was obtained from distributing questionnaires to selected respondents. The data that has been collected and calculated shows that there are more positive effects of blended learning where one of them is the achievement of better student academic scores. However, it is crucial to note a divergence in student preferences revealed in the study. Despite the positive academic outcomes, some students express a preference for face-to-face learning over online components within the blended learning model. While the academic achievements indicate a positive trend, the acknowledgment of student preferences introduces a layer of complexity. The recognition that some students favor traditional face-to-face instruction suggests that the success of blended learning may vary among individuals. the study underscores the need for further research to delve into the potential negative effects of blended learning. By addressing this aspect, educators and policymakers can gain a more comprehensive understanding of the dynamics involved in implementing blended learning approaches, facilitating informed decision-making to optimize the learning experience for diverse student populations. Further research is also needed to analyze the negative effect of blended learning

Contrasting risk preferences in the shadow of volcanic background risk: a field experiment in Arequipa, Perú

ABSTRACT We investigate the divergence in risk preferences between individuals exposed to background risk and those who are not, using a field experiment conducted in Arequipa, Peru. Arequipa, a city located in close proximity to the El Misti volcano, is constantly threatened by lahars – mudflows originating from this volcano. Our study combines experimenta l assessments of risk tolerance and patience with a targeted survey designed to assess residents’ awareness of their exposure to risks. Our primary finding reveals that residents living in hazard-prone areas exhibit higher levels of risk tolerance compared to their counterparts in safer zones. To address concerns about causality, we employ instrumental variable (IV) regressions and conduct stability analyses of coefficients. We subsequently discuss our findings in the context of the literature on preference adaptation.

Coffee culture unravelled: exploring the coffee shop experience model in the Vietnamese context

ABSTRACT Amidst the captivating realm of the coffee shop experience, this study contributes to its significance across various literature streams and diverse forms. More specifically, the study focuses on the concept of the ‘ideal coffee shop experience’ from the perspectives of consumers and coffee shop owners/managers in Vietnam, drawing upon the experience economy and experience co-creation literature. The investigation takes place in Vietnam, a country renowned for its coffee exports and thriving coffee shop industry. Through qualitative data collected via interviews and an online questionnaire, the study uncovers divergent preferences between the supply and demand sides regarding the coffee shop's physical environment, product quality and variety, service staff performance/traits, and location or parking availability. Building on these findings, the study proposes the ‘supplier and consumer coffee shop experience’ model, which offers a comprehensive understanding of coffee shop experiences and provides valuable insights for practitioners and researchers in the relevant fields.

Divergent preference functions generate directional selection in a jumping spider

Sexual selection has long been thought to promote speciation, but this possibility still remains a topic of controversy. Many theoretical models have been developed to understand the relationship between sexual selection and speciation, but such relationship seems complex and sexual selection has also been argued to prevent speciation in many scenarios. Here, I model for the first time the tendency of speciation due to sexual selection using realistic model parameters input collected from an existing species, the jumping spider Hasarius adansoni. I show that, even though the species has substantial female variance in preference (the model typically thought to link sexual selection to speciation), when realistic parameters are input in the model, it predicts directional selection, rather than disruptive selection. I propose that including realistic parameters in speciation models is a new tool that will help us understand how common sexual selection helps or hinders speciation in the real world.

Hidden figures: how legal experts influence the design of international institutions.

Whose preferences influence the design of international institutions? Scholarship on the legalization of international politics and creation of international legal institutions largely adopts a state-centric perspective. Existing accounts, however, fail to recognize how states often delegate authority over institutional design tasks to independent legal experts whose preferences may diverge from those of states. We develop a principal-agent (PA) framework for theorizing relations between states (collective principals) and legal actors (agents) in the design process, and for explaining how legal actors influence the design of international institutions. The legal dimensions of the PA relationship increase the likelihood of preference divergence between the collective principal and the agent, but also create conditions that enable the agent to opportunistically advance its own design preferences. We argue that the more information on states' preferences the agent has, the more effectively it can exploit its legal expertise to strategically select and justify design choices that maximize its own preferences and the likelihood of states' acceptance. Our analysis of two cases of delegated institutional design concerning international criminal law at the United Nations and the African Union supports our theoretical expectations. Extensive archival and interview data elucidate how agents' variable information on states' preferences affects their ability to effectively advance their design preferences. Our theory reveals how independent legal experts with delegated authority over design tasks influence institutional design processes and outcomes, which has practical and normative implications for the legalization of international politics.

Labor market dualization or cultural divide?: A comparative analysis of the declining support for center-left parties in Western Europe and Japan

Center-left parties in Western Europe and Japan have experienced a persistent decline in voter turnout. This study examines the factors contributing to this weakening support. Using data from the 2016 European Social Survey across 13 countries and the 2017–2018 Japanese General Social Surveys, we tested three hypotheses: labor market dualization between insiders and outsiders; divergence in policy preferences between social investment and social compensation; and a cultural divide between liberalism and authoritarianism. Our findings provide little support for the labor market dualization and policy preference divergence hypotheses in both Western Europe and Japan. The third hypothesis, concerning a cultural divide in attitudes toward immigration, is supported only in Western Europe. Conversely, Japan is an anomaly because of the absence of a substantial left-liberal constituency. The scarcity of liberal values among Japan's sociocultural professionals suggests that center-left parties have underdeveloped core constituencies.