Marketplace In China Research Articles

The Contemporary Religious Marketplace in China and the Role of Rational Choice Theory

In spite of the state‐sanctioned restrictions on religion following the Cultural Revolution and the relaxed, albeit still limiting, policy in 1979, religion has continued to persist in Chinese culture through inventive practices. Religious adherents partake in a unique religious marketplace, in which choice is curtailed by political bans. However, religiosity has maneuvered through such sanctions, producing an unusual market and suggesting an inherent sociological drive towards forming religious community. Rational choice theory suggests a theory of religious economy in which a supply and demand model determines the success or failure of particular religious traditions. Through access to a religious marketplace in a religiously pluralistic society, religious ‘consumers’ may select religions which fulfill their expectations and spiritual needs. While the model of the religious marketplace is credible in regards to the North American religious situation, rational choice theory in contemporary China requires a more complex model. Due to historical restrictions on Chinese religious practice, a religious market was rendered temporarily invisible, thus creating innovative religious choices and options for Chinese communities. This has resulted in a ‘tripartite religious market’, as described in the work of Fenggang Yang. Through Yang’s work, we can understand China as maintaining a religious marketplace which looks dissimilar to that of North America. By viewing the Chinese market through the lens of rational choice theory, it is clear that religion and religious choice has thrived in China in a new sociological mechanism.

The gendered politics of sex work in Hong Kong cinema

The portrayal of women as prostitutes is common in Hong Kong cinema, and filmmakers have looked at sex work from various perspectives: as a social problem, as an index of women’s economic exploitation more generally, as a way to explore the relationship between economics and sexuality, as a window onto the world of sexual minorities and as erotica. Scriptwriter Elsa Chan, working in conjunction with director Herman Yau, has made two features about women in the Hong Kong sex industry—Whispers and Moans (性工作者十日談, 2007) and True Women for Sale(性工作者2 我不賣身·我賣子宮, 2008)—based on Chan’s anthropological studies of women in the sex industry in Hong Kong. Like their earlier collaboration From the Queen to the Chief Executive (等候董建華發落, 2001), these films look at the “sensational” (youth murders, prostitution) with an eye to understanding and, perhaps, remedying social injustice. In fact, the issue of “justice” and women’s role as exploited victims as well as potential agents of change link Elsa Chan’s scripts to the interests of other women filmmakers currently working in Hong Kong. Whispers and Moans and True Women for Sale offer a critical perspective on the circulation of women across borders and gesture toward a feminist intervention into the shadow economy between transnational capitalism and the socialist marketplace in China.

Simple HPLC Method for Determining the Glycerol Content of Beer

A methodology utilizing HPLC was suggested and validated for determination of the glycerol in beer. The chromatographic separation was carried out on a Waters Sugar-Pak1 (6.5 mm i.d. by 300 mm in length) cations ion exchange column with EDTA calcium disodium salt solution at 0.05 g L−1 as mobile phase and a flow rate of 0.5 mL min−1. Beer (20 æL) filtered by a 0.22-æm membrane syringe filter was directly injected onto the HPLC system for analysis. The validation parameters included linearity, precision, limits of detection and quantitation, and accuracy. The calibration curve was linear (R2 = 0.998) within the calibration range. The precision and recovery was 1.1 and 98.5%, respectively. The limit of detection and limit of quantitation for the glycerol were 2.2 and 7.3 æg/L, respectively. This method was applied to quantify the glycerol in 34 beer samples purchased from the marketplaces in China. The analysis results showed that the glycerol content of the beers varied from 925.2 to 1,502.74 mg/L.

To Score or Not to Score? Estimates of a Sponsored Search Auction Model

We estimate a structural model of a sponsored search auction model. To accomodate the paradox, we relax the assumption of decreasing click volumes with position ranks, which is often assumed in the literature. Using data from Website X, one of the largest online market places in China, we find that merchants of different qualities adopt different bidding strategies: high quality merchants bid more aggressively for informative keywords, while low quality merchants are more likely to be sorted to the top positions for value keywords. Counterfactual evaluations show that the price trend becomes steeper after moving to a score-weighted generalized second price auction, with much higher prices obtained for the top position but lower prices for the other positions. Overall, there is only a very modest change in total revenue from introducing popularity scoring, despite the intent in bid scoring to reward popular merchants with price discounts.

Africans in China: a sociocultural study and its implications on Africa–China relations. Adams Bodomo (2012) Amherst, NY: Cambria Press. Pp. 300. ISBN-10: 1604977906. ISBN-13: 978-1604977905

Africans in China: a sociocultural study and its implications on Africa-China relations. Adams Bodomo (2012) Amherst, NY: Cambria Press. Pp. 300. ISBN-10: 1604977906. ISBN-13: 978-1604977905Globalization and, more precisely, the economic relations that emerge from capitalism, have led to the appearance of multiple diasporas around the world. Modern economic and political relations between China and Africa have opened the way to the latest, and not so much documented, emergence of African communities in China. Bodomo's Africans in China (2012) attempts to describe in a thorough manner what it is like to be an African in China.The structural flow of this book enhances its contents. After the introduction (1), Chapters 2 to 7 present a portrayal of the ethnic, national and social profile of the African communities in six particular cities of China, focusing on their role with regard to Africa-China relations and their contribution to their respective economies. In the following chapters, 8-10, Bodomo succeeds in creating a progressive feeling of closure through the depiction of additional African communities in other Asian places and in the West (8) and a comparison with the previously analysed cities in China (9). Finally, future thoughts and scholarly implications are commented upon in Chapter 10. These are indispensable, taking into account the achievements of a six-year-long study and the limits of a book-length description. Numerous figures, tables and photographs complement the reading.In the first chapter, 'Introducing Africans in China', the object of study is clearly stated through the explanation of key terms, the review of historical and geographical factors as well as a brief, although accurate, literature overview. The emigration of Africans to China is almost always related to trade: 300,000- 400,000 out of 500,000 Africans in China are traders. In such a context, Bodomo highlights the importance of a 3-dimensional theoretical approach applied to any migrant and diaspora context. This bridge theory incorporates the role of the target community which serves as a link, or bridge, connecting the source and host community, bringing advantages to both. In terms of methodology, Bodomo's examination of the existing African communities in China is based on fieldwork carried out over a period of six years (2005-2011) in the Chinese cities most populated by Africans - Guangzhou, Yiwu, Hong Kong, Macau, Beijing and Shanghai. Interestingly, qualitative and quantitative methods were combined for the first time in the study of the new African Diaspora: 736 questionnaires, including 27 questions aimed at bringing light on gender, age and the sociolinguistic and sociocultural profiles of the respondents were supported by in-depth interviews, detailed focus group meetings and participant observation.'Africans in Guangzhou' is the longest description in the volume. It constitutes a comprehensive introduction to what will be the line of analysis and presentation of results in this and the following analyzed cities. Guangzhou is a perfect research context since it holds one of the biggest marketplaces in China, which is known as the Chocolate City, referring to the number of Africans living in the area (100,000). A total of 312 valid questionnaires were returned. The most striking finding in this area was the existence of calculator communication. This consists of using a calculator in combination with basic body gestures to reduce communication problems. Being less than 10 years old, Bodomo asserts, this kind of communication is in the process of turning into a pidgin.The following chapter, 'Africans in Yiwu', is dedicated to the analysis of the mostly temporarily settled Africans in the world's largest commodities market. At fewer than 30,000, Yiwu comprises the second most prominent group of Africans in China. In this case, communication problems are reduced by the widespread habit of Africans hiring translators. …

An Analysis of Hit List Effects: Field Experiments in an Electronic Marketplace

China's electronic marketplace has recorded tremendous growth, and apparel sales are rising rapidly. Two sequential field experiments in an apparel online shopping mall on Taobao, the most dominant marketplace in China, are carried out to analyze the effects of online promotion on hit list. We conduct one pilot test for 17 products and second experiment for 290 products and record the daily sales for each by posting selected products on hit list. Difference-in-Differences method and propensity score matching are used to analyze the data. D-in-D estimation is effective both in identifying causality and precisely measuring its impact. In the settings of e-commerce web sites, the method identifies the exact difference brought by the treatment between two groups. We find that once the products list on the Tenri list or hit items, product sales increase by 1.8 units per day. Furthermore, our analysis shows that the treatment is more effective when the price of a product is more than 200 and less than 300 Chinese RMB and the cardigan and T-shirt categorical groups show the larger sales promotion. This study can provide extremely practical implications and give better insights into the understanding of the impact of online promotion on hit list.

The Institutionalization of an Electronic Marketplace in China, 1998–2010

The paper traces the evolution of the electronic marketplace in China from 1998 to 2010. According to an application of actor network theory and institutional theory, the e‐marketplace was co‐constructed and institutionalized by various participating actors in interwoven diffusion and legitimation processes. A content analysis of news articles reveals key actors who helped develop and shape the e‐marketplace: consumers, online vendors, online criminals, technology companies, transaction platforms, entrepreneurs, professional associations, banks, and the government. The analysis of their interrelationships and major events reveals four distinct stages in the institutionalization of the e‐marketplace in China: novelty, incubating, empowering, and growth. Unique problems emerge at each stage, and different types of actors enter the actor network at different phases, playing unique roles in the co‐creation process to establish cultural, normative, and regulatory legitimacy. Many varied agents participated in a transformational process specific to the macro‐socioeconomic and technological environment of China, which featured particular institutional forms. eBay's failure to maintain a first‐mover advantage in China helps illustrate that global companies must understand political, economic, cultural, and institutional environments before considering expansion.

Modeling the Success of Small and Medium Sized Online Vendors in Business to Business Electronic Marketplaces in China

This paper explores the performance of Chinese small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) on Business-to-Business (B2B) electronic marketplaces (EMs). Based on a content analysis of 155 cases of high performing online Chinese vendors, this paper explains the success of SME online B2B vendors within a Motivation-Capability framework. This first generation of SME B2B online vendors proved highly motivated to increase sales and developed a set of Internet leveraged organizational capabilities to compete online, including capabilities for online marketing, product innovation, eCommerce management, etc. This study differs from traditional wisdom that online marketplaces will render Guanxi (a Chinese cultural phenomenon defined as close and pervasive interpersonal relationships, Yang, 1994) irrelevant since online marketplaces are perceived to be impersonal. In fact, Guanxi still matters online, but it takes new forms. This research offers important managerial implications for B2B SME online vendors on how to leverage EMs for higher performance.

Narratives on Chinese colour culture in business contexts

PurposeThis research is interested in how dynamics in negotiating cultural meanings in the globalizing market place in China become visible in one particular aspect of culture: colour culture. The purpose of this paper is to explore the provenance of some of the many potential meanings invested in colours in contemporary China, and how and why these influence international business, communication, design and marketing management in particular.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative empirical study with ambition for an emic cultural approach to Chinese colour culture. Narrative analysis of accounts by Chinese colour professionals participating in a focus group interview, and by individually interviewed managers with extensive experience in Sino‐Finnish business are reported in narrative format.FindingsThe findings support the proposed existence of a phenomenon which the author has named “Colour culture” – a cultural set of meanings that are invested in colours. Unexpectedly, the empirical study proposes a strong tendency towards these meanings being value based in China. Visual manifestations of cultural values appear to be dynamic and dependent on context.Research limitations/implicationsThe current study does not offer generalizable prescriptions for contextual colour usages. The explorative, qualitative nature of this study serves as a basis for contextual and quantifiable future research on the phenomenon.Practical implicationsSince, for the Chinese, colours manifest cultural values and are highly emotional, not only linguistic, but also visual translation of communication is needed. For international communication, design and marketing managers, this further implies a need for contextual understanding of local colour culture.Originality/valueRecognizing the existence of colour culture and its value‐based proposition in China opens up new research avenues and practical considerations for cross‐cultural studies.

Fit Does Matter! An Empirical Study on Product Fit Uncertainty in Online Marketplaces

This paper examines the antecedents and consequences of product uncertainty in online marketplaces by conceptualizing the dimensions of product uncertainty - description uncertainty (identifying product characteristics), performance uncertainty (inferring product’s future performance) and fit uncertainty (matching product’s characteristics with buyer’s needs). It also theorizes the distinction, relationship, and effects of the dimensions of product uncertainty. Finally, it proposes a set of IT-enabled mechanisms to reduce product uncertainty. The hypotheses are tested with data from 274 buyers in the largest online marketplace in China (Taobao). The results first demonstrate the distinction between the dimensions of product uncertainty, show that relative to description and performance uncertainty, fit uncertainty has the only significant effect on price premiums, satisfaction, product returns, and repurchase intentions, and support the effects of computer-mediated communication (between buyers and sellers and among buyers), product forums, and decision support systems on fit uncertainty. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Market design in Chinese market places

The market design (MD) approach to institutional analysis provides the analytical tools to evaluate endogenous institution building in local market places irrespective of the institutional setting of the national economy. Implicit in this analysis of endogenous institution building at the market place level is the recognition of institutional diversity, which none of the conventional forms of institutional analysis can provide. We extend the MD approach from its original game theory perspective to examine three market places in China: township and village enterprises, equity joint ventures, and public utilities. We conclude that the MD approach (1) provides the analytical tools and criteria to evaluate whether or not market places are robust and sustainable, (2) links market behavior at the market place level, which is characterized by size, coordination, and trust problems, with general level considerations based on transaction costs, and (3) suggests that functioning market places are achievable, even if the formal institutions of the general economy are weak or partially missing. Our research has policy implications and opens new avenues for research into the emergence of markets.

Merging of the public and private boundary: education and the market place in China

This paper examines the ways in which the flourishing of the market economy has affected educational development in mainland China. Unlike the Mao era when educational development was entirely directed by the central government, there has been a strong trend of diversification and decentralization of education in the post-Mao period. In recent years, private schools and colleges have become more popular on the mainland, the development of which inevitably challenges the conventional public and private boundary. The principal goal of this paper is to examine how China's education has gone through a process of `marketization'. Based upon our field research conducted in mainland China, we argue that China's educational development has been significantly affected by emerging market forces. The core of the paper is confined to the discussion of four major issues: the emergence of private education, user charges and cost recovery in education, as well as the design of courses and curricula to meet emerging market needs in China. The main focus of this paper is thus concentrated on what strategies educational institutions have employed in response to the strong tide of marketization.

Challenges to Retailing Systems—Lessons from the People's Republic of China

Based on an investigation of market leader manufacturers and consumers, this pilot study focuses on an analysis of the phenomena of “squeezing” retailing activities in China as a result of the double pressures from both producer and consumer. Based on this study, and in the context of the fierce international competition in the market place in China, the conclusion has been reached that (a) “In the market place, the manufacturers and consumers are one-step-ahead of retailers; (b) The large-scale production-retailing-consumption system is important to China's market economy and its future development; and (c) Marketing is the key for manufacturers and retailers to succeed in China today and in the future.”.

The Reemergence of Private Schools in Socialist China

Previous articleNext article No AccessFocus on Private Schooling in ChinaThe Reemergence of Private Schools in Socialist ChinaJulia KwongJulia Kwong Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Comparative Education Review Volume 41, Number 3Aug., 1997 Sponsored by the Comparative and International Education Society Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/447445 Views: 48Total views on this site Citations: 30Citations are reported from Crossref Copyright 1997 The Comparative and International Education SocietyPDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Marcus Österman, Darrel Robinson Educating Democrats or Autocrats? The Regime-Conditional Effect of Education on Support for Democracy, Political Studies 107 (Feb 2022): 003232172110673.https://doi.org/10.1177/00323217211067385Xiaoying Ma Review of Past Literature, (Feb 2021): 9–30.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6800-2_2Xiaoying Ma Quantitative Analysis, (Feb 2021): 103–115.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6800-2_6Xiaoying Ma Qualitative Analysis, (Feb 2021): 117–128.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-6800-2_7Vicente Reyes, Wenbo Zhang Chinese International Students’ Learning and Post-migration Growth Experiences: An Exploratory Study of a Foundation Studies Education Programme in Australia, International Journal of Chinese Education 9, no.22 (Jan 2021): 194–218.https://doi.org/10.1163/22125868-12340127Eli Friedman Teachers’ Work in China’s Migrant Schools, Modern China 43, no.66 (Apr 2017): 559–589.https://doi.org/10.1177/0097700417703657Robert Jeremy Fish, Denise Linda Parris, Michael Troilo Compound Voids and Unproductive Entrepreneurship: The Rise of the “English Fever” in China, Journal of Economic Issues 51, no.11 (Mar 2017): 163–180.https://doi.org/10.1080/00213624.2017.1287506Lixian Qian Fairness in the Chinese People’s Lives: Challenges and Policy Suggestions, (Oct 2016): 61–89.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43663-0_5Wan-Ning Bao Individual-Level Changes and Criminogenic Strain, (Jan 2018): 71–112.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-63727-3_3Xiaoying Ma, Malcom Abbott Growth and conflict: the views of Chinese private higher education managers, Journal of International Education in Business 9, no.11 (May 2016): 17–30.https://doi.org/10.1108/JIEB-04-2016-0003Yan Guo The Impact of the Market Economy on English Teachers, (Jan 2016): 119–136.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-881-7_8Min Yu Introduction, (Aug 2016): 1–24.https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-50900-0_1Gaoming Zhang, Yong Zhao, Wei Qiu Policy changes and educational reforms in China: decentralization and marketization, On the Horizon 20, no.44 (Sep 2012): 313–323.https://doi.org/10.1108/10748121211272452Ka Ho Mok, Yu Cheung Wong, Yu Guo Transforming from economic power to soft power: challenges for managing education for migrant workers' children and human capital in Chinese cities, Asia Pacific Journal of Education 31, no.33 (Sep 2011): 325–344.https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2011.594248Lei Chang, Bin-Bin Chen, Lin Qin Ji Attributions and Attitudes of Mothers and Fathers in China, Parenting 11, no.2-32-3 (Apr 2011): 102–115.https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2011.585553Julia Kwong, Haiping Wang, Rodney A. Clifton Rethinking Our Assumptions about Teachers' Job Satisfaction in China and the West, Australian Journal of Education 54, no.22 (Aug 2010): 115–132.https://doi.org/10.1177/000494411005400202Yong Zhao, Wei Qiu China as a Case Study of Systemic Educational Reform, (May 2010): 349–361.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2660-6_20Wan-Ning Bao, Ain Haas Social Change, Life Strain, and Delinquency among Chinese Urban Adolescents, Sociological Focus 42, no.33 (Aug 2009): 285–305.https://doi.org/10.1080/00380237.2009.10571358Wing-Wah Law, Su-Yan Pan Game theory and educational policy: Private education legislation in China, International Journal of Educational Development 29, no.33 (May 2009): 227–240.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2008.04.003King-Lun Ngok, Michael H. Lee Localization of higher education and its social consequences in China, 1993–2007, Journal of Asian Public Policy 2, no.11 (Apr 2009): 57–73.https://doi.org/10.1080/17516230902763691Lesley Vidovich, Rui Yang, Jan Currie Changing accountabilities in higher education as China ‘opens up’ to globalisation, Globalisation, Societies and Education 5, no.11 (Feb 2007): 89–107.https://doi.org/10.1080/14767720601133447Su-Yan Pan, Wing-Wah Law Legalizing education: the role of law in the regulation and deregulation of China's private education, Education and the Law 18, no.44 (Dec 2006): 267–282.https://doi.org/10.1080/09539960601036060Heidi Ross, Jingjing Lou ?Glocalizing? Chinese Higher Education: Groping for Stones to Cross the River,, Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 12, no.11 (Jan 2005): 227–250.https://doi.org/10.2979/GLS.2005.12.1.227Ka-Ho Mok Globalisation and Higher Education Restructuring in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China, Higher Education Research & Development 22, no.22 (Jul 2010): 117–129.https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360304111Ramsey Ding-Yee Koo, Andy Man-Sing Yung, Kin Yuen Ip, Wei-Chen Chuang Public and Private Education, (Jan 2003): 1015–1029.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3368-7_70Chengzhi Wang Minban education: the planned elimination of the “people-managed” teachers in reforming China, International Journal of Educational Development 22, no.22 (Mar 2002): 109–129.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0738-0593(00)00079-1Ingrid Lohmann After Neoliberalism, (Jan 2002): 89–107.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-322-95030-7_6K. H. Mok The Cost of Managerialism: the implications for the ‘McDonaldisation’ of higher education in Hong Kong 1, Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management 21, no.11 (May 1999): 117–127.https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080990210109 Tang, Fun Hei, Joan, Keith Morrison When Marketisation Does Not Improve Schooling: the case of Macau, Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education 28, no.33 (Jul 2006): 245–262.https://doi.org/10.1080/0305792980280303Ka-ho Mok, King-yee Wat Merging of the public and private boundary: education and the market place in China, International Journal of Educational Development 18, no.33 (May 1998): 255–267.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0738-0593(98)00012-1

Fortran program spall for computing spallation reaction cross sections

Information overload often makes it difficult for consumers to identify helpful online product reviews through the traditional “helpful votes” function; therefore, it has become particularly important to efficiently identify helpful reviews. By differentiating search products from experience products, this research examines the impact of different measurements of review informativeness on review helpfulness, and proposes different classification thresholds to individually identify the helpfulness of online reviews for search products and for experience products, respectively. Further, our study applies machine learning algorithms to predict the performance of the classification based on our proposed review informativeness measurements and classification thresholds. All experiments were conducted using a dataset from JD.com, one of the largest online electronic marketplaces in China. Our results offer guidelines to design different helpfulness classification standards for search products and for experience products.