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Digital access through smartphones and well-being of BoP women: insights from a field study in India

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Abstract

Purpose The authors study the effect of access to smartphones on the socio-economic well-being in the case of rural base of the pyramid (BoP) women. While smartphone access may have its benefits, the paper suggests augmenting access with a sociotechnical intermediary (STI) that facilitates training and online community building to enhance the well-being outcomes. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a survey from three groups of women from rural West Bengal (India) – (1) who do not own smartphones, (2) who have their own smartphones and (3) who receive smartphones and STI support (over two years). The authors evaluate the effect of access to smartphones and STI support on social well-being (including structural social capital and empowerment) and economic well-being (including entrepreneurial intent and subjective economic well-being). Findings The analysis results suggest a high relationship between smartphone ownership and higher structural social capital, empowerment (in terms of freedom of movement) and entrepreneurial intent. The authors further find these effects to be enhanced amongst women who received smartphones and support from STI. Originality/value The authors attribute this enhanced well-being amongst women with smartphones and STI support to peer-learning and cultivation of virtual role models facilitated by the STI through creation of intra-community online groups. The results have significant policy implications for socio-economic well-being of rural BoP women.

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... Access to services and resources Fulfilling basic needs/ consumption adequacy (Chipunza and Fanta 2023), (Guillen-Royo 2008), , (Wang, Shang, and Xu 2011) Food capability (Voola et al. 2018), (Parsons et al. 2021) Use of technology (Parthiban et al. 2022), (Shukla et al. 2023) Knowledge and competence Autonomy (Akareem, Wiese, and Hammedi 2022), Financial knowledge and skill (Xiao and Porto 2022), (Martin and Hill 2015), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Value co-creation (Akareem, Ferdous, and Todd 2021; Akareem, Wiese, and Hammedi 2022), (Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021), (Ranjan et al. 2021), (Akter et al. 2021), (Parthiban et al. 2022), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Behavioural and perceptual change Agency in building social identity through consumption (Jaikumar, Singh, and Sarin 2018), (Linssen, Van Kempen, and Kraaykamp 2011), (Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021) Materialistic consumption (Chaplin, Hill, and John 2014) Increased agency and selfefficacy through resource integration and perception (Blocker and Barrios 2015), (Dean and Indrianti 2020), (Jagadale, Roy-Chaudhuri, and Kadirov 2020), (Shivarajan and Srinivasan 2013), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Saving behaviour (Martin and Hill 2015), (Xiao and Porto 2022) Optimism (Kilburn et al. 2018) Self-esteem (Dean and Indrianti 2020), (Shivarajan and Srinivasan 2013), (Chipunza and Fanta 2023) Adaptation after comparison with reference groups (Camfield et al. 2013), (Igawa, Piao, and Managi 2022), (Linssen, Van Kempen, and Kraaykamp 2011), (Shifa and Leibbrandt 2018) Cognitive life perceptions (Peterson, Ekici, and Hunt 2010), (Kilburn et al. 2018) Physical and psychological functioning Physical functioning (Kingdon and Knight 2006), (Baktir and Watson 2021) Health (Little, Ho, and Eti-Tofinga 2023) Social functioning (Kingdon and Knight 2006), (Baktir and Watson 2021) cognitive facet of happiness (Diener et al. 1985;Kahneman and Deaton 2010). Additionally, life satisfaction is employed inclusively, encompassing affective and cognitive aspects (Chipunza and Fanta 2023;Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021) and as a trait factor contributing to SWB (Martin and Paul Hill 2012). ...
... Access to services and resources Fulfilling basic needs/ consumption adequacy (Chipunza and Fanta 2023), (Guillen-Royo 2008), , (Wang, Shang, and Xu 2011) Food capability (Voola et al. 2018), (Parsons et al. 2021) Use of technology (Parthiban et al. 2022), (Shukla et al. 2023) Knowledge and competence Autonomy (Akareem, Wiese, and Hammedi 2022), Financial knowledge and skill (Xiao and Porto 2022), (Martin and Hill 2015), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Value co-creation (Akareem, Ferdous, and Todd 2021; Akareem, Wiese, and Hammedi 2022), (Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021), (Ranjan et al. 2021), (Akter et al. 2021), (Parthiban et al. 2022), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Behavioural and perceptual change Agency in building social identity through consumption (Jaikumar, Singh, and Sarin 2018), (Linssen, Van Kempen, and Kraaykamp 2011), (Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021) Materialistic consumption (Chaplin, Hill, and John 2014) Increased agency and selfefficacy through resource integration and perception (Blocker and Barrios 2015), (Dean and Indrianti 2020), (Jagadale, Roy-Chaudhuri, and Kadirov 2020), (Shivarajan and Srinivasan 2013), (Koppenhafer et al. 2023) Saving behaviour (Martin and Hill 2015), (Xiao and Porto 2022) Optimism (Kilburn et al. 2018) Self-esteem (Dean and Indrianti 2020), (Shivarajan and Srinivasan 2013), (Chipunza and Fanta 2023) Adaptation after comparison with reference groups (Camfield et al. 2013), (Igawa, Piao, and Managi 2022), (Linssen, Van Kempen, and Kraaykamp 2011), (Shifa and Leibbrandt 2018) Cognitive life perceptions (Peterson, Ekici, and Hunt 2010), (Kilburn et al. 2018) Physical and psychological functioning Physical functioning (Kingdon and Knight 2006), (Baktir and Watson 2021) Health (Little, Ho, and Eti-Tofinga 2023) Social functioning (Kingdon and Knight 2006), (Baktir and Watson 2021) cognitive facet of happiness (Diener et al. 1985;Kahneman and Deaton 2010). Additionally, life satisfaction is employed inclusively, encompassing affective and cognitive aspects (Chipunza and Fanta 2023;Jayawickramarathna et al. 2021) and as a trait factor contributing to SWB (Martin and Paul Hill 2012). ...
... Financial well-being of BoP consumers was found to be more affected by financial behaviour than financial skills or knowledge (Xiao and Porto 2022). Future well-being (Kilburn et al. 2018) and social well-being (Parthiban et al. 2022) have also been employed in the literature reviewed. Additionally, the literature explores food well-being with Parsons et al. (2021) employing the 'Ethics for Care' framework to provide transformational services to the poor and enhance their CWB. ...
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A disparate collection of knowledge on the well‐being of low‐income consumers presents difficulties for both academics and practitioners. This review article addresses the critical need for a comprehensive synthesis of existing knowledge on well‐being of low‐income consumers. Focusing on Base of the Pyramid and Subsistence Marketplaces literature, we employed the SPAR‐4‐SLR protocol to structure our methodology and applied ADO–TCM framework for literature analysis. Our review uncovers conflicting evidence regarding the impact of conspicuous consumption, meeting basic needs and relative well‐being on consumer well‐being. Additionally, we highlight the diversity in conceptualisations of consumer well‐being, leading to inconsistent findings. We advocate qualitative methods, longitudinal studies and triangulation as potential research avenues. Our analysis underscores research gaps regarding the influence of culture, Western subsistence markets, alternative theoretical frameworks and under‐explored facets of consumer well‐being. We propose a set of research questions and objectives to guide scholars in this field.
... These can be classified as those that constrain the creation of value (raw material, financial, and production resources) and those that constrain the capture of value (market access, market power, and market security) (London et al., 2010). A crucial resource, particularly in the context of this book, is information and communication technology (Tarafdar et al., 2013), which can increase the well-being of those in the BoP and help them create and capture more value (Parthiban et al., 2020. While the BoP context has traditionally seen limited access to this technology and while its distribution is highly uneven, we have witnessed significant growth in connectivity through mobile phones and smartphones over time (Clausen & Velázquez García, 2017;Lappeman et al., 2019;Baishya & Samalia, 2020). ...
... Thus, standard categorizations of cooperative membership are done according to patronage-producer, worker, consumer/user, and multistakeholder (i.e., combining the aforementioned types) (International Labour Office et al., 2020, p. 17). Yet, based on our earlier research on platform cooperatives in the Global North, as well as the secondary desk research for this chapter, it is necessary to extend the types of membership to include investors, tenants, women, and primary cooperatives to encompass the interests involved and to overcome the resource constraints (Hota and Mitra, 2021) and institutional voids (Parthiban et al., 2020) that exist in BoP contexts. Firstly, this acknowledges the fact that some platform cooperatives may wish, if local laws permit, to have external investors as members, due to their need for a large amount of capital during their startup phase so that they can compete with venture capital-funded corporate platforms. ...
Chapter
In recent years we have witnessed growing interest at the intersection of two important phenomena: the rise of the sharing economy, and long-standing interest in tackling pressing social and environmental issues at the base of the pyramid (BoP). While the sharing economy offers potential in tackling these issues, we argue on the basis of a growing body of research that its contemporary manifestations have largely failed to live up to their potential. We argue that an important reason for this is that research and practice has tended to focus on corporate forms of sharing platforms and have largely neglected their cooperative peers. In this chapter, we first distinguish corporate platforms from a nascent group of platform cooperatives before developing a typology of platform cooperatives in the BoP. This typology builds on early efforts to construct typologies of platform cooperatives in the Global North and thereby highlights various cases that show potential in overcoming the limitations of corporate platforms while offering important social and environmental benefits. Thus, in addition to the platform worker cooperatives that are at the forefront of the discussion on platform cooperativism in the Global North, we emphasise the importance of inter alia agricultural platform cooperatives and credit and savings platform cooperatives in the BoP context. Our typology helps identify areas for future applications and development, and points to important areas of future research.
... Also, subsistence women entrepreneurs with supporting families and experience working outside their homes experienced enhanced well-being as they could set practical goals and expectations for their entrepreneurial ventures (Chatterjee et al., 2022). Moreover, digital access facilitated by smartphones improved the socioeconomic well-being of subsistence women entrepreneurs, and training and online community building facilitated by sociotechnical intermediaries further boosted the positive impact of smartphone-enabled digital access on the socioeconomic well-being of subsistence women entrepreneurs (Parthiban et al., 2022). Relatedly, the information and technical support by a large private organization facilitated business performance, which enhanced the subjective well-being of subsistence entrepreneurs . ...
... Sutter et al., 2023). The field observations regarding the power imbalance between males and females concerning disparities in household duties and freedom of movement in rural India were supported by the literature Parthiban et al., 2022;Qureshi et al., 2018;). ...
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The micro-entrepreneurship sector, as the second-largest employment generator in rural areas, plays a crucial role in alleviating poverty. This study explores how social enterprises can assist rural micro-entrepreneurs in mobilizing and leveraging indigenous knowledge to align production with demand. We propose technoficing as a strategic approach to rural micro-entrepreneurship. We conducted a case study of CommunityLink, a social enterprise implementing ICT-enabled practices to facilitate the growth of rural micro-entrepreneurship in India. Our findings reveal knowledge disconnections impeding the development of rural micro-entrepreneurship. Importantly, we propose a four-phase approach of technoficing – basic, internal, external, and offline-online – that can effectively mobilize and leverage indigenous knowledge for rural micro-entrepreneurs with minimal resource investment. We synthesize our findings into a comprehensive process model. Our research contributes to the discourse on ICT for development and the emerging academic dialogue on decoloniality by highlighting the significance of empowering local institutions and practices through the strategic use of off-the-shelf technologies. Practitioners and policymakers can leverage our findings to propel indigenous efforts toward rural development and improve rural livelihoods.
... r business management, marketing, and accessing new markets. Women entrepreneurs face challenges in accessing finance, including limited access to credit, lack of collateral, and discriminatory lending practices. This limits their ability to invest in technology, expand their businesses, and compete in the market (Kang, 2022, Odonkor, et. al., 2024, Parthiban, et. al., 2022. Many women entrepreneurs have limited financial literacy, which hinders their ability to manage their finances effectively, access financial services, and make informed financial decisions. Women often face gender bias and discrimination in accessing technology and financial resources, limiting their opportunities for business growth a ...
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In the landscape of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), fostering women's empowerment through technologyand financial literacy emerges as a pivotal strategy for sustainable development. This abstract presents a conceptual framework delineating the integration of technology and financial literacy to empower women entrepreneurs within SMEs, fostering economic growth, and societal advancement. The framework begins by recognizing the significance of leveraging technology as a catalyst for women's empowerment. Technology adoption facilitates access to markets, networks, and resources, leveling the playing field for women entrepreneurs. Through digital platforms, women can overcome geographical barriers, tap into global markets, and enhance their competitiveness in the digital economy. Moreover, the conceptual framework emphasizes the critical role of financial literacy in enabling women's empowerment within SMEs. Financial literacy equips women entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills to manage finances effectively, make informed decisions, and access capital markets. By enhancing financial literacy, women can navigate complex financial landscapes, secure funding for business growth, and mitigate financial risks. Central to the framework is the intersectionality of technology and financial literacy, synergistically driving women's empowerment in SMEs. Technology serves as an enabler for financial literacy initiatives, providing accessible and scalable platforms for delivering financial education and services to women entrepreneurs. Conversely, financial literacy enhances women's ability to leverage technology effectively, maximizing the benefits of digital tools and platforms for business growth and sustainability. The conceptual framework underscores the importance of ecosystem support in facilitating women's empowerment within SMEs. Collaboration among government agencies, financial institutions, technology providers, and civil society organizations is essential for creating an enabling environment that fosters women's access to technology and financial resources. By fostering partnerships and collaborations, stakeholders can amplify the impact of initiatives aimed at promoting women's empowerment and sustainable development in SMEs. In conclusion, the conceptual framework presents a holistic approach to leveraging technology and financial literacy for women's empowerment in SMEs, offering insights into the interconnectedness of technology adoption, financial literacy, and ecosystem support in driving sustainable development outcomes. Implementing this framework requires concerted efforts from stakeholders across sectors to create an inclusive and supportive environment where women entrepreneurs can thrive and contribute to economic growth and societal advancement.
... Studies on such domains would also contribute to policy and practice at different levels. For example, understanding the interactions of the supply chain actors of shrimp farming in Indian sea coasts would help design digital platforms that could reduce costs, find better prices and ensure access to expertise for farmers (Kannan et al., 2020) or the role of sociotechnical intermediaries and community digital literacy initiatives in accentuating the impact of smartphone use amongst rural women artisans to enhance their social capital, well-being and entrepreneurial intent (Parthiban et al., 2022). ...
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This paper examines the question of doing information systems (IS) research from a location, particularly from a developing country like India. Our analysis reveals that IS publications from India are relatively few in number, though increasing in recent years; hardly focussed on context‐specific issues and concerns; and are largely in lower‐ranked journals. Using neo‐institutional theory, we show that the reasons are dominantly coercive (measuring up to rankings and accreditation agencies) and mimetic (following leaders). Normative (influence of professional bodies) forces appear to counterbalance this by necessitating continuous improvement in research outputs and emphasising location‐specific, impactful research. Institutional responses to these forces manifest in policies and mechanisms to operationalise them, such as resource availability, balancing teaching load with research expectations, promotion and tenure policies amongst others. We examine the paths by which more rigorous and relevant research, responsible to a location can be achieved, based on the insights from a series of talks given by eminent IS scholars. We opine that there is a need to consciously seek out such paths, perhaps by actively seeking collaboration with other disciplines and practitioners; establishing programmes of research; and building contextualised theories. We conclude with a relook at the underlying dynamics of the various institutional responses, recommended paths and some policy implications of our findings.
... Women play a significant role in socio-economic activities, such as agriculture and commercial activities, and their well-being, as well as that of their families (Larson et al., 2021;Parthiban et al., 2022). When women are able to participate in these activities, they can increase their household income, which can improve their living standards and provide better access to food, education, and healthcare (Wei at el., 2021). ...
Thesis
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Rwanda has established a legal and institutional framework for land administration, ensuring all citizens’ equal land rights. However, gender inequality may still exist in household land ownership, with women facing cultural and social barriers to accessing and securing land for economic development. It is in this context that a study consisting of assessing women's access to credit using land lease certificates and the socio-economic benefits derived from the use of acquired credit was carried out in Cyabagarura cell, Musanze sector, Musanze District. The research has four specific objectives, namely, to analyze women's access to credit using land lease certificates, investigate the socio-economic benefits delivered from the use of acquired credit, identify the key barriers that women face in accessing credit using land lease certificates, and provide recommendations for improving women's access to credit using land lease certificates. The study uses a mixed-methods research design, combining qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques. The snowball and purposive sampling techniques were applied in collecting data through questionnaire surveys and semi-structured interviews administered to 30 legally married women currently in the Cyabagarura cell. The findings show that out of the 30 interviewed respondents, 19 could access credit through land collateralization, 3 lacked the confidence to apply, and 2 were unaware of the process. The remaining 6 wanted to access credit but could not do so. This study’s findings reveal that women who did not use the land for credit faced several barriers to accessing credit, including cultural and social norms, gender inequality, and a lack of good relationships between wives and their husbands. However, access to credit using land lease certificates has provided significant socio-economic benefits to women in the cell, including increased income, improved livelihoods, and enhanced social status. The study recommends several mechanisms for improving women's access to credit using land lease certificates, including awareness raising, encouraging couples to attend marriage counseling, workshops or seminars that focus on building healthy relationships, engaging with community leaders to challenge harmful cultural norms and stereotypes, enforcing laws and policies that prohibit discrimination based on gender, and promoting gender diversity in all areas of society. Addressing these challenges makes it possible to create an enabling environment that promotes gender equality and women's economic empowerment in the Cyabagarura cell.
... In terms of economic values, transaction costs can be reduced (Howell et al., 2018), improving the performance of micro-enterprises due to their financial inclusion (Gosavi, 2018;Wellalage et al., 2021). On the social side, MFSs, and ICTs in general, have been found to empower women in emerging economies while increasing their bonding and bridging social capital (Crittenden et al., 2019;Parthiban et al., 2020). While this shows that ICT can be a powerful tool to drive sustainability forward, it remains unclear whether this holds for all three sustainability dimensions on the upstream side of SCs within emerging economies. ...
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... In this section, we further analyze the pathways through which Internet use affect the dietary structure of farming households in terms of both raising income levels and enhancing access to information, to test the research hypotheses in the theoretical analysis section. Referring to the existing literature (86,87), the mechanism model is set up as follows. ...
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... Digital technologies also enable women to overcome previously existing social and cultural constraints (Riquelme et al., 2018) that have traditionally kept them out of the workforce. While it is argued that digital technologies aid the inclusion of women who have traditionally not actively been part of the economy, it is intriguing to investigate the connection between digital technologies and women's involvement in the workforce because the proportion of women in the labour force fluctuates among nations due to disparities in economic growth, social conventions, education and income and fertility rates (Nikulin, 2017;Parthiban et al., 2022;Raja et al., 2013). There is also greater diversity in the involvement of women in the labour force than men (Verick, 2014). ...
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... Mobile phones and social media help subsistence entrepreneurs to enhance their social capital and financial value creation (Delacroix et al., 2019;Maity & Singh, 2020). The support provided by sociotechnical intermediaries(STIs) enhances the positive effect of internetenabled mobile phones on the economic and social well-being of subsistence entrepreneurs (Parthiban, Jaikumar, Basak, & Bandyopadhyay, 2020). While information communication technology (ICT) tools facilitate awareness creation and repeated engagement resulting in enhanced value creation by BoP producers, the suitability of various ICT tools to do so varies according to the product complexity . ...
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Purpose E-commerce poverty alleviation (EPA) is an innovative poverty alleviation model in China. The institutional mechanisms of the e-commerce platform improve the effect of EPA and exert online shopping purchase power in rural China. From a socio-technical perspective, this paper used adoption readiness of farmers and perceived risk to construct an integrated model to discern the effect of enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms on farmers' online shopping intention in the context of EPA. Design/methodology/approach The survey included 832 valid samples from rural farmers in Shanxi province. This study analyses using structural equation modelling (SEM) and bootstrap methods used to empirically test the model. Findings Findings suggest that enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms have significant direct and indirect positive impacts on farmers' online shopping intention; adoption readiness and perceived risk play partial mediation roles in determining the relationship between farmers' online shopping intention and enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms; and the indirect mediation effect of adoption readiness is greater than that of perceived risk. Research limitations/implications Although the proposed model was supported in the questionnaire survey, the investigation method was not completely excluded. Future research can combine the method of panel data and apply the framework to other e-commerce platforms, as well as to other cultural settings. Practical implications The study suggests that enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms that are based on the needs of farmers from poverty-stricken areas change the shopping habits of farmers. Moreover, enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms should allow farmers' perceived adoption readiness to play its promoting role and reduce the impeding role of perceived risk. The results of this study are conducive to the intensive implementation of the ‘Three Rural Issues’ strategy in China. Originality/value A new model to generate a two-factor mediation effect model by integrating the perceived effectiveness of enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms with farmers, farmers' adoption readiness, perceived risk and online shopping intention. The study explored the relationship between enhanced e-commerce institutional mechanisms and farmers' online shopping intention, bridging the gap in related empirical studies. Besides, this study first proposed farmers' adoption readiness and clarifies the mediating role of farmers' adoption readiness and perceived risk, which highlights the previously unnoticed role of farmers' adoption readiness.
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Greater engagement of businesses in development in South Asia reflects a partial withdrawal of the state from providing all kinds of services. Advocates of ‘bottom of the pyramid’ approaches have argued that corporations can step in by simultaneously making profit and contributing to development goals, including rural poverty reduction. The article investigates such claims, by using two initiatives of Information and Communication Technology business designed to serve and uplift poor people by GrameenPhone Limited, a major mobile phone operator in Bangladesh, to gauge the probability of positive development outcomes for the rural poor.
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The affluent markets of developed countries have become very competitive. Therefore, companies are trying to explore market opportunities at the segment of low-income people termed as “Bottom of the Pyramid” (BOP). With the proliferation in popularity and reduction in the price of smartphones, there is a potential market opportunity for smartphone producing companies at the BOP segment. The companies need to identify the factors influencing smartphone adoption at the BOP in order to explore this market opportunity. The current study extends the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) with “Perceived Monetary Value” to investigate the antecedents of smartphone adoption at the BOP. Empirical analysis has shown that “Performance Expectancy” (PE), “Effort Expectancy” (EE), “Social Influence” (SI), and “Perceived Monetary Value” (PMV) predict the “Behavioral Intention” (BI), and BI and “Facilitating Conditions” (FC) predict the “Use Behavior” (UB). Findings from this study can be used by the managers of the companies targeting the BOP segment in pricing, marketing, and product-specific decision-making process. The policymakers can also analyze the results of this study for successful implementation and delivery of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based services for the BOP segment.
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The practice of early marriage is deeply rooted in the socio-cultural structure and is well prevalent in rural India despite marriage-prohibiting laws. The paper examines happiness and psychological well-being and its influence by various aspects of marriage among young married women. Multistage sampling technique was used to interview 654 married women, 13-24 years in rural West Bengal. Mean age at marriage was found to be 16 years. One-third reported adjustment problem initially after marriage. Logistic regression analysis results showed marital happiness was positively influenced by less spousal difference in opinion; couple educational status, able to adjust marital problems and wish to have same life partner given an option of partner selection. No significant association was found between happiness and type of marriage and husband’s currently staying with wife.
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The explosion of knowledge has made most students of marketing specialists. If these specialties have consistency, they should fit into a more general theory of marketing. The structure of such a theory is proposed in this article.
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This article presents a case study of how gender functions in the information society at two sites in rural Morocco. At both sites, mostly illiterate rural women sell the rugs and other textiles they weave on the Internet, which could provide a solution to the perennial problem of marketing the products of isolated rural women. In addition, it could allow women to keep a larger share of the final profit, which often instead goes to middlewomen/men. The article describes the process of rural women selling textiles online, including both benefits and the constraints. The two sites provide interesting contrasts in terms of gender, communication challenges, and the transmission of payment internationally. However, women obtain more of the profits generated by their work, and also some degree of empowerment. Profus are used to support the family or for children ’s education, and at one site rug sales are assisted by the village development association, which receives a percentage of the profits and puts them into village projects like latrines for the school.
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The study investigates the role of intermediaries in influencing the adoption of public access outlet that are being set up for delivery of e-Government services, especially in rural areas. In order to identify possible factors of adoption, an exploratory study is first carried out with stakeholders. Findings of the exploratory study, supported by extant literature on technology acceptance, service quality and trusting belief, form the basis for the proposed research model which is empirically tested with 328 respondents from 77 villages in 12 districts in India using Partial Least Square (PLS) technique with hierarchical modelling. Findings of the study suggest that the behaviour of the intermediaries manning these outlets, reliability of the outlet and facilities available at the outlet have significant effect on the service quality of the outlet, which in turn, has a positive effect on citizens’ intention for availing e-Government services. Other factors of adoption that are identified to be significant are ease of obtaining service, usefulness of the outlet and positive word-of-mouth among the user community.
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Purpose The purpose of the paper is to address the sustainability issue of Self-help groups by means of developing small business/micro-entrepreneurs. Design/methodology/approach The causal relationship between empowerment through SHG and micro-entrepreneurship is being investigated by estimating empirical data through structural equation modelling with second-order latent factor. Findings Empirical examination supports the causal relationship between empowerment through SHG and small business. Research limitations/implications The study is conforming the policy of group forming and, at this stage, develops a conceptual framework but with real implications for comprehensive policy decisions. Originality/value There are many studies on the women empowerment aspect of SHGs. However, few attempted to find out how the micro-entrepreneurs emerging from SHGs.
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Economic linkages between urban and rural regions – what’s in it for the rural? Regional Studies. Urban–rural interdependences are modelled based on wages, cost of living, and interregional migration and commuting. Rural-to-urban commuting generates a scenario where the relative level of urban wages can continue to outperform rural wages without residential migration and increased costs of living acting as equilibrating forces. The spread of urban workers could be detrimental for rural regions without clear mechanisms for their human and financial capital to penetrate local economies. Therefore, ‘what’s in it for the rural?’ depends upon the ability of rural regions to capture the value attached to highly mobile, skilled workers choosing to live in the rural region.
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To date, scholarly understanding of external dimensions of market driving for the purposes of ‘societal change’ is largely unexplored in both developed and emerging market contexts. This paper uses a multiple case study approach to understand how market driving social enterprises (across the hybrid spectrum) create societal change in emerging markets. By drawing on Scott's (1995) three-part conceptualization of institutional legitimacy, this study explores how regulative, normative and cognitive legitimacies are invoked by market driving social enterprises at the Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP). Key contributions of the study show that all three dimensions of legitimacy are relevant but they need to be invoked in a specific order based on necessary and optional conditions. An implication of the study is that market driving through societal change can lead to the construction of new and more inclusive healthcare markets.
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The objective of this article is firstly to analyze whether the determining factors of the entrepreneurial intention of academics are the same for men and women and test whether their degree of importance varies depending on gender, and secondly to test whether the lesser entrepreneurial intention of women detected in previous studies is due to the lesser presence of the determining factors of entrepreneurial intention among women or, on the contrary, is determined by the existence of implicit barriers that do not depend on these factors. After conducting a survey on a sample of 1178 academics, the results of a linear regression model confirm the hypothesis that female academics have less of an entrepreneurial intention. Moreover, through the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition it is observed that this lesser female entrepreneurial behavior is not due to the absence of any of the factors considered as determinants of entrepreneurial intention, but instead is related to the existence of implicit barriers for women that influence their entrepreneurial intention. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time that a study of this nature has been conducted internationally. Unlike other studies on academic entrepreneurship, we do not restrict the sample to one or two universities but rather aim the study at all universities in Spain and, therefore, at all academics from all branches of knowledge.
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This paper examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) in enhancing the well-being of nations. Extending research on the role of ICT in the productivity of nations, we posit that the effects of ICT may not be limited to productivity (e.g., GDP), and we argue that the use of ICT can also improve the wellbeing of a country by helping citizens to develop their social capital and achieve social equality, enabling access to health-related information and health services, providing education to disadvantaged communities, and facilitating commerce. Using a number of empirical specifications, specifically a fixed-effects model and an instrumental variable approach, our results show that the level of ICT use (number of fixed telephones, Internet, mobile phones) in a country predict a country's well-being (despite accounting for GDP and several other control variables that also predict a country's well-being). Furthermore, by using an exploratory method (biclustering) of identifying both country-specific and ICT-specific variables simultaneously, we identify clusters of countries with similar patterns in terms of their use of ICT, and we show that not all countries increase their level of well-being by using ICT in the same manner. Interestingly, we find that less developed countries increase their level of well-being with mobile phones primarily, while more developed countries increase their level of well-being with any ICT system. Contributions and implications for enhancing the wellbeing of nations with ICT are discussed.
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We focus on an emerging trend in the context of domestic violence—the use of technology to facilitate stalking and other forms of abuse. Surveys with 152 domestic violence advocates and 46 victims show that technology—including phones, tablets, computers, and social networking websites—is commonly used in intimate partner stalking. Technology was used to create a sense of the perpetrator’s omnipresence, and to isolate, punish, and humiliate domestic violence victims. Perpetrators also threatened to share sexualized content online to humiliate victims. Technology-facilitated stalking needs to be treated as a serious offense, and effective practice, policy, and legal responses must be developed.
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The impact of income inequality on conspicuous consumption has been a topic of much discussion, but little empirical examination in the emerging market context. In this paper, using data from the India Human Development Survey (2004-2005) and employing simple regression framework, we examine the effect of income inequality on conspicuous consumption in Indian households. We also empirically examine whether the relationship between inequality and conspicuous consumption changes with a household’s relative wealth status. Drawing on existing literature, we hypothesize that low-income and rural groups are likely to engage in higher conspicuous consumption due to the reduced attractiveness of alternate mechanisms to signal status (like professional titles and educational qualifications) as well as the absence of well-functioning financial institutions that might inhibit “status seeking” savings. Consistent with this hypothesis, our results suggest that increased income inequality is associated with an increased spending on conspicuous consumption as a share of total spending, with the associated response being higher for relatively low-income households and those living in rural settings. Our findings have significant policy and marketing implications in emerging markets like India.
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Our study explores the structuring decisions made by intermediaries seeking to alleviate poverty by connecting base-of-the-pyramid markets with more developed markets. Using intermediation theory to ground our study, we collected qualitative data on 29 social intermediation projects located within Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Our findings suggest that ‘socializing’ intermediation theory to more accurately explain and predict structural outcomes across more diverse contexts requires three key modifications: (1) the attenuation of opportunism, which creates an internalizing social force; (2) the accommodation of non-monetary objectives, which creates an externalizing social force; and (3) the perception of transaction capabilities as tractable, which serves as a guidepost for reconciling these two opposing social forces.
Article
Innovations in products and processes enabled by ICT such as mobile phones and the Internet constitute a rapidly emerging means of market development at the Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP), which consists of people who earn less than US2 a day. However, these ICT-enabled market development efforts have not always yielded positive developmental outcomes, in part because market development is hindered by remote location and geographic dispersion of BOP communities, their low and uncertain incomes, and informal local markets having exploitative intermediaries. These conditions imply that BOP consumers and producers are ‘separated’ from marketers and customers, respectively, through physical distance, lack of financial ability, and information asymmetry. The paper examines the question: How do ICT innovations in products and processes impact development at the BOP? Drawing perspectives from the information systems (IS) and marketing literatures, we analyze how and why ICT-enabled innovations in products and processes deployed for market development at the BOP, enable developmental outcomes through reduction of market separations. Analyzing qualitative data gathered from interviews with 33 respondents in India, including BOP individuals, social entrepreneurs, and managers from private organizations, we find that ICT-enabled product and process innovations do have the potential to reduce four types of separations that ‘disconnect’ BOP consumers (producers) from marketers (customers). However, situated social conditions influence the impact of ICT innovations on reduction of separations. The reduction of separations leads to developmental outcomes at the BOP. Implications of our findings for theory, practice, and policy are discussed.
Article
The base of the pyramid proposition holds that transnational corporations (TNCs) can profitably serve the needs of the poor at the base of the global economic pyramid. This article explores the ethical dimensions of business ventures targeting the 2.6 billion moderate and extremely (MEP) poor at the base of the pyramid. It is shown that MEP populations are both cognitively and socially vulnerable, rendering them susceptible to harmful exploitation. We defend an empowerment theory of morally legitimate BoP business ventures and provide a multi-stage opportunity assessment process that allows TNC managers to determine when BoP ventures should be pursued and when they should be abandoned. This analysis is used to demonstrate the inadequacy of an instrumental, or economic, conception of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and to defend an ethical conception of CSR.
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This paper addresses the research question, “How can the use of information and communication technology (ICT) enable development of markets at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP)?” Integrating ideas centered on the threefold role of ICT (automate–informate–transform), market mechanisms, and agency freedom aspects of ICT-enabled development, we examine how (1) ICT facilitate development of market mechanisms at the BOP, (2) market mechanisms enable economic and social benefit outcomes for BOP markets and members, and (3) complementary conditions facilitate or hinder ICT-enabled market development. The findings are based on qualitative primary data from interviews with 27 BOP individuals from India, and from published and secondary examples. Theoretical contributions and implications for practice and further research are discussed.
Article
The challenge of bringing developing countries into the “information society” has been traditionally framed as bridging the digital divide. Meeting this challenge has predominantly been through technical solutions aimed at providing physical access to the Internet. Yet, other aspects of the divide such as low literacy rates, gender and religious issues arguably pose bigger hurdles in getting the benefits of the Internet to the vast majority of the population of developing countries. They are seldom aware of the information available on the net and even when they are, they have difficulty using it. To facilitate access and use of the Internet by the population, an intermediary is often needed. While case studies in the literature have shown several examples of such intermediaries, the role of this entity has not been conceptually examined. In this paper, we attempt to meet this knowledge gap by conceptualizing the characteristics, types and roles of the Intermediary entity. We present a view from practice through three vignettes of intermediaries from our own studies to illustrate our conceptualizations. Based on this, we discuss some implications for practice and offer directions for research.
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Public–private partnerships (PPPs) may be one way of increasing the level of private sector investment into poorly performing agricultural value chains. This paper considers a range of PPP mechanisms that respond to different market failures affecting such chains and draws on principal–agent theory to illustrate the challenges. It reviews emerging experience with a number of these mechanisms along with experience from other sectors that may shed light on “generic” problems of implementing PPPs in Africa. While finding some positive impacts on investment, it notes that state failures can also undermine PPP effectiveness. As the evidence base is still limited, it calls on organizations promoting innovative PPPs to disclose available information for critical examination.
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There is increasing interest in the “economics of happiness”, reflected by the number of articles that are appearing in mainstream economics journals that consider subjective well-being (SWB) and its determinants. This paper provides a detailed review of this literature. It focuses on papers that have been published in economics journals since 1990, as well as some key reviews in psychology and important unpublished working papers. The evidence suggests that poor health, separation, unemployment and lack of social contact are all strongly negatively associated with SWB. However, the review highlights a range of problems in drawing firm conclusions about the causes of SWB; these include some contradictory evidence, concerns over the impact on the findings of potentially unobserved variables and the lack of certainty on the direction of causality. We should be able to address some of these problems as more panel data become available.
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The biggest challenge in fostering a virtual community is the supply of knowledge, namely the willingness to share knowledge with other members. This paper integrates the Social Cognitive Theory and the Social Capital Theory to construct a model for investigating the motivations behind people's knowledge sharing in virtual communities. The study holds that the facets of social capital — social interaction ties, trust, norm of reciprocity, identification, shared vision and shared language — will influence individuals' knowledge sharing in virtual communities. We also argue that outcome expectations — community-related outcome expectations and personal outcome expectations — can engender knowledge sharing in virtual communities. Data collected from 310 members of one professional virtual community provide support for the proposed model. The results help in identifying the motivation underlying individuals' knowledge sharing behavior in professional virtual communities. The implications for theory and practice and future research directions are discussed.
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Physical violence against women is pervasive through out the world and domestic violence has been a longstanding issue in feminist activism and research. Yet, these experiences are often not represented in technological research or design. In the move to consider HCI at the margins, in this paper, we ask: how have ICTs affected the experiences of domestic violence survivors? We interviewed female survivors living in a domestic violence shelter about their experiences with technology. Participants reported that they were harassed with mobile phones, experienced additional harassment (but also support) via social networking sites, and tried to resist using their knowledge of security and privacy.
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This paper examines the volatility of capital flows following the liberalization of financial markets. Utilizing a panel data set of overlapping data, the paper focuses on the response of foreign direct investment, portfolio flows, and other debt flows to financial liberalization. The financial liberalization variable comes from the chronology and index developed by Kaminsky and Schmukler [Kaminsky, G.L. and Schmukler, S.L., 2003, Short-run pain, long-run gain: The effects of financial liberalization, IMF Working Paper WP/03/34.]. Different types of capital flows are found to respond differently to financial liberalization. Surprisingly, portfolio flows appear to show little response to capital liberalization while foreign direct investment flows show significant increases in volatility, particularly for the emerging markets considered.
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Access to communication can play a pivotal role in the socio-economic development of rural regions in the third world. For affordability, the choice of technology to achieve this is a significant aspect. We have chosen IEEE 802.11 as a cost-effective technology to provide rural connectivity in the context of two projects in India: digital Gangetic plains (DGP) and Ashwini. This article presents our experiences with these two projects and discusses five important aspects in the use of WiFi for rural connectivity: network planning and deployment, network protocols, network management and operations, power savings, and applications and services