The adequacy of existing transport infrastructure to four distinct clusters in Austria's key regions is tested by examining the willingness of logistics managers to pay for additional service improvements. Findings show an overall willingness to pay for multiple service improvements; this reveals a general dissatisfaction with current shipping options, regardless of transport mode, where rail mode services ("Bahn") provoke the greatest dissatisfaction. Willingness to pay for improvements generally increases by degrees of regional EU remoteness and relative youth of cluster industries, as hypothesized from Schumpterian assumptions concerning infrastructure innovation. / Series: SRE - Discussion Papers

i Charles University Faculty of Social Sciences Institute of Economic Studies MASTER'S THESIS Are Sharks Worth More Alive Than Dead? A Stated Preference Study on Shark Ecotourism in Costa Rica. Author: Bc. Alicia Maria Berrios Supervisor: Mgr. Milan Ščasný PhD. Academic Year: 2016/2017 ii Declaration of Authorship The author hereby declares that he compiled this thesis independently; using only the listed resources and literature, and the thesis has not been used to obtain a different or the same degree. The author grants to Charles University permission to reproduce and to distribute copies of this thesis document in whole or in part. Prague, January 01st , 2017 Signature iii Acknowledgments With boundless appreciation, I would like to extend my gratitude to Mgr. Milan Ščasný PhD., for his incredible support in writing this research. He spent a countless number of hours on this thesis work, and ultimately, this research wouldn't have been possible without him. I would also like to express my gratitude to Carlos Avila, for his generosity in helping me conduct the in-person interviews. I would also like to express my gratitude to Prof. Melville Saayman, who helped tremendously in the experimental design of this work. Thank you to Mgr. Martin Kryl for programming the survey instrument. Lastly, I would like to...

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Master of Science / Department of Agricultural Economics / Glynn Tonsor / Recent predictions estimate that the global population will reach more than 9 billion by the year 2050 (Kochhar, 2014). Coupled with this challenge, environmental issues and climate change influence agricultural production over the globe (Jacobsen et al., 2013). Changes in the food chain have been in response to consumers becoming interested in how their food is produced as it relates to food safety. Some of these changes have come in the form of labeling of production methods and the increasing volume of organic products in the marketplace. In the livestock sector, production methods include administration of antibiotics and hormones to prevent disease, increase gains and increase the health of animals (Allen et al., 2013; Thornton, 2010). A potential solution of decreasing the amount of antibiotics and hormones in the future is the use of ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi). RNA interference is a method of silencing a targeted gene and suppressing expression (Bradford et al., 2016). The focus of this research is to explore the determinants of acceptance and willingness to pay for beef products utilizing RNAi technology in the food system. Through the means of a national survey, consumers were asked their demographic, food purchasing habits, and food safety concerns to identify potential acceptors of the technology. Respondents received information treatments and external articles regarding RNAi technology as well as information about governmental labeling regulations of the beef steaks. Choice experiment questions, and a dichotomous choice sequence were utilized to determine willingness to pay estimates of beef steak attributes by consumers. Results showed that respondents likely require a discount for beef steaks produced with RNAi technology. In some instances, some consumers would be willing to pay a premium for beef steaks with RNAi in certain label settings. These results of this study could be used in the realm of animal science to help with the introduction of this technology in the food system. The survey results could assist with future promotion and framing of the technology to a wide variety of consumers.

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of teachers towards providing accommodations and modifications required for students with special needs in general education classes. The study also examined the differences between these educators’ willingness, preparedness, and selected demographic and descriptive characteristics, which included teacher education, educational setting, and support provided for inclusion. As such, it contributed to both the theory and the practice of teaching students with disabilities in inclusive settings. The sample included willing general and special education teachers in one suburban school district in the southeastern United States. The instrument was a modified version of the Teacher Acceptability and Use Scale (TAUS) (Boulton, 2003). Statistical analysis revealed little significant difference in willingness between special education and general education teachers, although special education teachers perceived themselves as slightly more prepared than general education teachers to make accommodations and modifications to the general curriculum for the student with special needs included in the general education classroom. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that teachers’ perceptions of their preparedness for accommodating students with special needs has improved in recent years.

Research on Open Innovation (OI) is flourishing and opening the innovation process is increasingly perceived as a vital source for sustained competitive advantage. Nascent research on OI in family firms left us to wonder whether the performance-enhancing effects of OI also hold true for family firms. What we do know so far is despite that family firms typically possess greater ability to innovate, they lack the willingness to do so. Taking this as a starting point, the purpose of this study was to identify sources of family firm heterogeneity, in order to explain how these differences influence their willingness to engage in OI and further assess the overall relevance of OI models for family firms. In an attempt to resolve the innovation paradox, the present study builds upon a multi-theory approach of behavioral lenses, to capture the inherent complexities of family firm innovation. Empirical evidence from a cross-industry analysis of 176 German Mittelstand firms provides strong support for the importance of OI practices in a family firm context. Precisely, we affirm that family firms generate increased performance outcomes when engaging in OI. Our findings unearth a double-edged sword that higher generations foster a family firm’s willingness to engage in OI, but hamper their ability to benefit from it. Our findings are especially relevant in light of current market dynamics and build the bridge between OI and family firm research in an insightful manner. We thereby contribute to solving one piece of the innovation puzzle and identify promising areas for future research.

Abstract: As China is facing environmental problems, they are producing positive policies in order to stimulate the sales of electric vehicles. In addition, China is one of the largest electric vehicle markets in the world and the electric vehicles market has a promising growth potential. In light of this, this thesis aims to investigate the factors affecting Chinese consumers’ willingness to purchase electric vehicles. This thesis draws on rational choice theory to analyze the six determining factors including driving range of electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, purchase cost, government financial incentives, individual environmental awareness and perceived social influence, as electric vehicles are not cheap goods and make consumers take full consideration before buying. This study adopts a quantitative approach and conducts a survey to investigate this topic. Based on 249 online questionnaires from Chinese consumers, this study employs SPSS to conduct a regression analysis to test the six determining factors. The empirical results indicate that charging infrastructure, government financial incentives, individual environmental awareness and perceived social influence have significant impact on Chinese consumers’ willingness to purchase electric vehicles, while our results do not show that the driving range of electric vehicles and purchase cost matters in influencing Chinese consumers’ willingness to purchase electric vehicles. Meanwhile, this study contributes to the research on the consumption of electric vehicles by providing an empirical context of China, considering rational choice theory and understanding perceived social influence. Also, this study provides relevant suggestions to electric vehicle manufacturers and the Chinese government about how to encourage the Chinese to adopt electric vehicles in China. Keywords: Electric Vehicles, Willingness to purchase, SPSS, Rational choice theory, China

Emerging-market multinational enterprises (EMNEs) have been increasingly engaged in outward foreign investments, the distinctive feature for their internationalization being the aim of strategic asset-seeking and acquiring knowledge. Thus, reverse knowledge transfer is significant in achieving innovation catch-up. Subsidiary willingness towards reverse knowledge transfer has huge implications for building up competitive advantages for MNEs. However, research on EMNEs shows that the subsidiary willingness towards reverse knowledge transfer is rather low. In this vein, the purpose of this thesis is to explore headquarters initiatives to improve subsidiary willingness in EMNEs. This thesis conducts a qualitative case study by semi-structured interviews with respondents from both headquarters and subsidiaries in a Chinese MNE. A case of a Chinese MNE, Geely, and its two Swedish subsidiaries (i.e. Volvo Cars and CEVT) is adopted to explore our research question. The findings suggest that headquarters in EMNEs can improve subsidiary willingness towards reverse knowledge transfer by promoting socialization between headquarters and subsidiary, granting subsidiary autonomy, making contributions to the subsidiary as well as maintaining headquarters/subsidiary cooperation. This thesis contributes to the research on reverse knowledge transfer and EMNEs by identifying new antecedents which influence subsidiary willingness in EMNEs.

Cette thèse s’inscrit dans le débat scientifique actuel autour de l’évaluation économique des services écosystémiques fournis par les aires marines protégées (AMP) dans les pays en voie de développement. Appliquant la méthode de l’évaluation contingente, elle s’est intéressée à l’analyse de la perception de la population mauritanienne des services écosystémiques fournis par l’aire marine protégée du parc national du banc d’arguin (PNBA) en Mauritanie et la valeur qu’elle consente à payer pour maintenir l’offre de ces services dans son état actuel. A travers l’analyse des résultats de trois enquêtes réalisées au PNBA (niveau local), à Nouakchott (zone adjacente) et à Tidjikja (arrière-pays), la thèse discute l’impact de la distance, dans le sens de l’éloignement et du temps nécessaire pour accéder à l’AMP, tant sur la perception des services écosystémiques fournis par le PNBA que sur le consentement à payer pour sa conservation. Par ailleurs, elle aborde l’applicabilité de la méthode de l’évaluation contingente dans les pays en voie de développement et propose quelques améliorations du protocole de l’enquête pour améliorer la fiabilité des résultats. / This thesis is part of the current scientific debate around the economic evaluation of ecosystem services provided by marine protected areas in developing countries. Using the contingent valuation method, it focused on the analysis of the Mauritanian population's perception of ecosystem services provided by the marine protected area of Banc d'Arguin National Park in Mauritania and the value that this population agrees to pay to maintain the supply of these services in its current state. Through the analysis of the results of three surveys conducted at the PNBA (local level), Nouakchott (adjacent zone) and Tidjikja (inland), the thesis discusses the impact of distance, in the sense of the remoteness and the time required to access the MPA, both on the perception of the ecosystem services provided by the PNBA and on the Willingness To Pay for its conservation.In addition, it discusses the applicability of the contingent valuation method in developing countries and proposes some improvements to the survey protocol to enhance the reliability of the results.

United States agriculture is continuing to shift toward organic production techniques to align with consumer demand, yet organic products make up an insignificant portion of the food market. This disparity has been examined via consumer willingness to pay for organic products and research on the costs and benefits of organic operations; however, little has been investigated about a potential transitional organic market. In shifting from conventional to organic agriculture there is a substantial transition phase of at least three years, during which producers cannot label their products as USDA organic. This research therefore examines consumer willingness to pay for transitional organic produce based on a Lane County representative adult population (n = 200). Results of the conjoint choice stated preference survey suggest that there exists a viable market for transitional organic products, revealing systematic heterogeneity in preferences for produce labeled as transitional USDA organic.