To some extent, antibiotics are similar to addictive goods, since current consumption is reinforced by past use because of bacterial resistance, which represents a growing concern in many countries. The purpose of this paper is to explore how consumers adjust their current level of antibiotic consumption towards desired levels over time. We construct a balanced panel dataset (2000-2007) for 20...
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In: Journal of the american statistical association, 2010, vol. 105, no. 490, p. 703–712
We develop infinitesimally robust statistical procedures for the general diffusion processes. We first prove the existence and uniqueness of the times-series influence function of conditionally unbiased M-estimators for ergodic and stationary diffusions, under weak conditions on the (martingale) estimating function used. We then characterize the robustness of M-estimators for diffusions and...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010 ; 2010ECO004.
The aim of this research project is to discuss the information flow between managers, analysts and investors in the financial markets. It examines the official information releases such as quarterly earnings announcements, unofficial flows of information between managers and analysts, and uncertain information as interpretation of managers' actions, so-called "signals", used by analysts and...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010 ; 2010ECO006.
Not all industries move at the same pace, no two destinations are matched or develop at the same rate, not all organizations and people act the same way. This thesis investigates the dynamic nature of the tourism sector. The complexity of players involved in the delivery of the tourist experience, demands a sophisticated ability to design and manage the supply chain in order to get maximum...
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Theoretical and empirical research suggests a connection between the presence of role models and the emergence of entrepreneurs. Existing entrepreneurs may act as role models for self-employment candidates by providing successful examples. By explicitly considering the self- employment rates of the natives, which may influence locally the decisions of immigrants towards entrepreneurship, we...
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In: Energy economics, 2010, vol. 32, no. 6, p. 1325-1330
Over the last two decades, several European nations have introduced reforms to their electricity sector. Generally, these reforms require a legal and functional unbundling of vertically integrated companies. These unbundling processes may reduce the possibilities that exist to fruitfully exploit the advantages of vertical integration. The goal of this paper is to empirically analyze the...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010.
Starting from a trigger event - the poor use of a specific technology -, aim of the research is to analyze root cause/s of such a problem, considering not only evident difficulties as regarding usability issues, but also investigating deeper reasons including organizational, cultural and social factors. In particular, the analysis dwells on working practices and communicative interactions that...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010.
This research focuses on the online communication in the cultural destinations’ domain. Cultural destinations’ online communication has been poorly studied so far, and this work intends to analyze, describe and understand the domain. Destinations websites and particularly cultural destinations’ websites have their own communication strategies but they act as hubs with respect to the other...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010 ; 2010ECO005.
Real options refer to the investment, entry, exit and other strategic decisions of the firm that share three important characteristics: they are irreversible, they are made under uncertainty, and their timing is chosen by the firm. The term `real options' was introduced in 1977 by Stewart Myers in his paper `Determinants of corporate borrowing' that related risky debt holdings to the future...
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Thèse de doctorat : Università della Svizzera italiana, 2010 ; 2010INFO005.
Software understanding takes up a large share of the total cost of a software system. The high costs attributed to software understanding activities are caused by the size and complexity of software systems, by the continuous evolution that these systems are subject to, and by the lack of physical presence which makes software intangible. Reverse engineering helps practitioners deal with the...
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