Can Sponsorship deliver Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)? Examining internal and external perceptions of sponsors' CSR. This study examines whether and how sponsorship can be effective when supporting community-based activities. As the cost of large scale events continues to escalate, defining a value proposition to appeal to local sponsors may help smaller clubs and non-profit organisations to survive or even thrive. For small and medium size businesses, leveraging the sponsoring of commun ....Can Sponsorship deliver Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)? Examining internal and external perceptions of sponsors' CSR. This study examines whether and how sponsorship can be effective when supporting community-based activities. As the cost of large scale events continues to escalate, defining a value proposition to appeal to local sponsors may help smaller clubs and non-profit organisations to survive or even thrive. For small and medium size businesses, leveraging the sponsoring of community-based organisations via Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) may be effective in gaining a competitive advantage against larger competitors. This study can assist in the quantification of such CSR sponsorship benefits, in times of increased social and economic accountability and uncertain economic growth.Read moreRead less
Hedge Funds in Superannuation Portfolios: Are the Returns Worth the Risks? In recent years superannuation funds have delivered negative returns to members due to poorly performing stockmarkets. In striving to achieve higher rates of return, superannuation trustees have commenced allocating retirement savings to a new type of investment opportunity, termed hedge funds. There is a paucity of research about this new type of investment, particularly relating to the non-linear nature of hedge funds ....Hedge Funds in Superannuation Portfolios: Are the Returns Worth the Risks? In recent years superannuation funds have delivered negative returns to members due to poorly performing stockmarkets. In striving to achieve higher rates of return, superannuation trustees have commenced allocating retirement savings to a new type of investment opportunity, termed hedge funds. There is a paucity of research about this new type of investment, particularly relating to the non-linear nature of hedge funds returns. This study will investigate the risk and return trade-off of including hedge funds in superannuation portfolios and provide trustees with empirical tools to determine the optimal allocation to hedge funds.Read moreRead less
Can Electronic Point-of-Sale (POS) Data Improve the Australian Consumer Price Index? This project will investigate how new sources of data can be used to improve the accuracy of price indexes that are used in policy formation, such as the consumer price index. The adoption of bar-code labelling for products has provided statistical agencies with an information-rich source of 'scanner data' on prices and quantities of purchased goods. In collaboration with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, thi ....Can Electronic Point-of-Sale (POS) Data Improve the Australian Consumer Price Index? This project will investigate how new sources of data can be used to improve the accuracy of price indexes that are used in policy formation, such as the consumer price index. The adoption of bar-code labelling for products has provided statistical agencies with an information-rich source of 'scanner data' on prices and quantities of purchased goods. In collaboration with the Australian Bureau of Statistics, this project will develop mathematical and statistical methods for exploiting this new data source. The findings will contribute to the improvement of price indexes, and subsequently the many government policies that depend on these indexes.Read moreRead less
Regional Comparisons of Prices, Income and Growth in Australia. We will measure how much the cost of living and rates of inflation differ across the eight capital cities in Australia, and then test whether real per capita income levels across cities are converging or diverging over time. To make such comparisons, the ABS's databases on each capital city must first be harmonized. While doing this we will review the ABS's current procedures for data construction and quality assessment. A further a ....Regional Comparisons of Prices, Income and Growth in Australia. We will measure how much the cost of living and rates of inflation differ across the eight capital cities in Australia, and then test whether real per capita income levels across cities are converging or diverging over time. To make such comparisons, the ABS's databases on each capital city must first be harmonized. While doing this we will review the ABS's current procedures for data construction and quality assessment. A further aim is to show how statistical modelling using spanning-tree methods can resolve the conflict that arises for price indexes constructed on panel data sets between temporal and spatial consistency.Read moreRead less
Communicating Product Value: Responsible Markets and the Australian Consumer. Working towards sustainable patterns of consumption is essential to attaining sustainable development in Australia. The research will add to our understanding of how Australian consumers assess the value of environmentally or socially responsible products. It will reveal the social processes and networks which inform the attitudes and purchasing behaviour concerning these products. By enabling companies to link their s ....Communicating Product Value: Responsible Markets and the Australian Consumer. Working towards sustainable patterns of consumption is essential to attaining sustainable development in Australia. The research will add to our understanding of how Australian consumers assess the value of environmentally or socially responsible products. It will reveal the social processes and networks which inform the attitudes and purchasing behaviour concerning these products. By enabling companies to link their socially and environmentally responsible strategies to their core business, the research will facilitate the development of responsible and sustainable markets. Refining the business case for sustainability will lead to a more sustainable development in Australia.Read moreRead less
Scanner Data in the Consumer Price Index: How to expand and improve their use. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is used in a variety of policy contexts, such as setting interest rates and determining the level of welfare payments, as well as by private industry for determining wages. The CPI is aggregate measure of price changes. It is typically constructed using survey data, which is a small sample of all the goods purchased. Electronic recording of sales, using scanned product bar codes, provide ....Scanner Data in the Consumer Price Index: How to expand and improve their use. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is used in a variety of policy contexts, such as setting interest rates and determining the level of welfare payments, as well as by private industry for determining wages. The CPI is aggregate measure of price changes. It is typically constructed using survey data, which is a small sample of all the goods purchased. Electronic recording of sales, using scanned product bar codes, provides a huge amount of price and quantity information that potentially can be used to construct an improved CPI, and hence improved policies. The project includes the collaboration of the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Central Bureau of Statistics (The Netherlands).Read moreRead less
The importance of price and perceived quality to the demand for fresh fruits and vegetables. It is estimated that the direct and indirect cost of diet-related diseases to Australia is between $2-3 billion per annum. One of the most important things that can be done to prevent diet-related disease is to encourage the population to eat more fruits and vegetables. The aim of this project is to examine the effect of price and perceived quality on the type and quantity of fruits and vegetables cons ....The importance of price and perceived quality to the demand for fresh fruits and vegetables. It is estimated that the direct and indirect cost of diet-related diseases to Australia is between $2-3 billion per annum. One of the most important things that can be done to prevent diet-related disease is to encourage the population to eat more fruits and vegetables. The aim of this project is to examine the effect of price and perceived quality on the type and quantity of fruits and vegetables consumed, especially among low-income households. The project will employ modelling techniques that are novel to this product group and that will provide valuable insights to the constraints and opportunities for increasing fruits and vegetables intake, as well as benchmarks for future research.Read moreRead less
From economic benefit to social cost: Antecedents of irresponsible gambling. The social impact of gambling is a challenge for policy-makers. Australia's gambling expenditure in 2001 contributed $4.4 billion in tax revenue. This economic benefit however, is offset by significant social costs ($1.8 to $5.6 billion). We will identify when and how distorted memory for previous gambling outcomes and gaming machine accessibility can cause irresponsible gambling. The results can be used to make informe ....From economic benefit to social cost: Antecedents of irresponsible gambling. The social impact of gambling is a challenge for policy-makers. Australia's gambling expenditure in 2001 contributed $4.4 billion in tax revenue. This economic benefit however, is offset by significant social costs ($1.8 to $5.6 billion). We will identify when and how distorted memory for previous gambling outcomes and gaming machine accessibility can cause irresponsible gambling. The results can be used to make informed assessments of the social impact of increasing the accessibility of gambling opportunities on local communities. The results can also be used to understand how gambling that contributes to the economy of a community becomes a social cost.Read moreRead less