Examples of crises involving multinationals can be found in the media around the world on a regular basis. Despite the importance of this topic, the state of the literature in the area of global crisis management has yet to be explored. Incorporating a commonly used three-stage approach describing crisis management as involving three phases-the pre-crisis phase (prevention and preparation), the crisis phase (response), and the post-crisis phase (learning and revision)-we briefly review the literature in global crisis management. We then introduce three special issue articles. Finally, we suggest future areas for research on the topic of global crisis management.

This research analyzes the effectiveness of a CEO spokesperson's affiliation to a social group during a crisis. Specifically, it addresses the question of whether a group affiliation with a large heterogeneous group, such as parents, can engender similarly positive effects in members of the same social category, compared with a smaller distinctive group, here an amateur sports community. An experimental study using a product harm crisis by a bicycle manufacturer as stimulus was conducted to answer the research question. The results reveal positive effects when the CEO signaled his/her affiliation with a social group that is distinctive and rather homogenous. In this case, corporate trustworthiness, purchase intentions, and abstaining from negative word-of-mouth are directly impacted by stakeholders' identification with the CEO spokesperson, and indirectly through identification with the CEO and message credibility. However, when the CEO spokesperson communicated his/her affiliation with a large and heterogeneous group, in this case parents, the company did not benefit. The results yield implications for both crisis communication research and practice.

Purpose - This paper aims to examine how different ways in which a charitable organization communicates successes (highlighting individual or collective achievement) can influence potential future donors, and to determine whether the effectiveness of the communication strategy is contingent on the cultural context. Design/methodology/approach - Experiments were conducted in the USA and Mexico. Findings - The findings of the study demonstrate that the effectiveness of communications with the public regarding a charitable organization's success stories depends on the type of message used in relation to the cultural context. When the message was congruent with the cultural dimension of individualism-collectivism, the public was more likely to consider making a contribution to the charity. Research limitations/implications - The study examined the impact of conveying a message congruent with the cultural context in the context of charitable contributions. Further research is needed to examine whether one would expect a similar result with a different type of charitable organization (issue-related instead of cause-related) or a non-student sample. Practical implications - The authors found that the effectiveness of communications with the public regarding a charitable organization's success stories depends on the type of message used in relation to the cultural context. Standardizing the message can have adverse implications on the public's intentions to donate to the organization. Originality/value - Very few studies examine charity advertising in a global setting, and to the authors' knowledge this study is the first to examine communicating success stories to the public. In addition, previous studies do not examine the impact of different advertising appeals on intentions to donate to the charity, an important dependent variable for both researchers and practitioners.

Soil erosion due to cultivation of row crops on soils with a high silt content can result in hazardous on-site and off-site damages. An effective and sustainable soil protection measure is to reduce the intensity of tillage. On-farm trials were conducted to compare the effect of strip tillage (ST), full-width reduced tillage (RT) and intensive tillage (IT) systems on surface runoff and soil loss in sugar beet crops grown on four typical loess sites in hilly regions of southern Germany in 2014 and 2015. Heavy rainfall (24 mm 20 min(-1)) was simulated in the 4-6 leaf stage of sugar beet with a small portable nozzle rainfall simulator. Observed data were used to establish soil loss ratios for ST as part of the cropping and management factor of RUSLE. Compared to IT, surface runoff was 55% and 92% lower for RT and ST, respectively, caused by increased water infiltration presumably due to (i) higher earthworm activity and (ii) the absence of negative effects of reduced tillage intensity on penetration resistance. Moreover, reducing tillage intensity increased surface residue cover, initial water content and organic carbon content in the topsoil layer. Soil loss was 85% and 98% lower for RT and ST compared to IT, respectively, as a result of (i) decreased runoff rates, (ii) higher stability of aggregates against the impact of raindrops and (iii) reduced velocity of the runoff flow and thereby lower sediment concentrations. Based on residue cover, the soil loss ratio calculated for ST agreed well with values established for other tillage systems. Overall, reducing, tillage intensity by strip tillage was proven to offer environmental benefits due to reduced surface runoff and soil loss. In addition, plant-available water likely increases through enhanced infiltration. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Product harm crisis involving multiple products increasingly leads to an industry crisis. Yet previous researches have usually focused on the effectiveness of repair strategies under a single-company product harm crisis. Moreover, less is known about the effectiveness of repair strategies under an industry product harm crisis. This paper explores how firms should respond to an industry product harm crisis to make the industry sustainable. We used experimental methodology to examine the above effects. Across three experiments, this research finds that a consumer's sense of control is a key variable that is found to mediate the effectiveness of a firm's repair strategy. Results show that in general functional and informational repair strategies are more effective in restoring a consumer's sense of control when compared with an affective repair strategy. The more control consumers feel they have, the higher their brand attitudes, and the more positive they rate a firm's response appropriateness for an industry product harm crisis. However, for consumers who score high on an emotion-focused coping style, an affective repair strategy is more effective. The findings generate practical suggestions for firms in an industry product harm crisis to restore consumers' sense of control to keep industry sustainability.

This study provides current data on plant nitrogen (N) uptake required for maximum sugar yield (PNUp(max)) and the corresponding fertilizer N dose (ND) (optimum N dose [NDopt]) for high-yielding beet crops (sugar yield up to 20Mgha(-1)). In 2010 and 2011, field experiments were conducted with four cultivars from Beta genus differing in dry matter composition, and six mineral NDs (0-200kgNha(-1)) at three sites (The Netherlands, Germany, Denmark). Differences between cultivars in PNUp(max) and NDopt were small; however, environments (defined as combination of site and year) substantially differed from each other: highest PNUp(max) and lowest NDopt occurred at environments supplying high amounts of N from soil resources, and vice versa. The level of maximum sugar yield (SYmax) was related neither to PNUp(max) (200-270kgNha(-1)) nor to NDopt. However, N dose and plant N uptake required for 95% of maximum sugar yield was 50-80kgNha(-1) lower than for maximum sugar yield. To conclude, accepting a slight reduction in sugar yield might allow for a substantial decrease in the ND. Cultivar choice and yield level need not to be taken into account at present.

This article develops and tests a comprehensive model of customer revenge that contributes to the literature in three manners. First, we identify the key role played by the customer's perception of a firm's greed-that is, an inferred negative motive about a firm's opportunistic intent-that dangerously energizes customer revenge. Perceived greed is found as the most influential cognition that leads to a customer desire for revenge, even after accounting for well studied cognitions (i.e., fairness and blame) in the service literature. Second, we make a critical distinction between direct and indirect acts of revenge because these sets of behaviors have different repercussions-in "face-to-face" vs. "behind a firm's back"aEuro"that call for different interventions. Third, our extended model specifies the role of customer perceived power in predicting these types of behaviors. We find that power is instrumental-both as main and moderation effects-only in the case of direct acts of revenge (i.e., aggression and vindictive complaining). Power does not influence indirect revenge, however. Our model is tested with two field studies: (1) a study examining online public complaining, and (2) a multi-stage study performed after a service failure.

Recently, a number of articles suggest that consumer segments assess blame differently for a product harm crisis. For example, Laufer and Gillespie (2004) found in two separate experiments that women blame a company more than men for a product harm crisis in which it is unclear whether the company, consumers, or situational factors were responsible for the crisis. Studies in psychology also suggest that blame attributions can differ across consumers in different countries. In a review of studies comparing North American and East Asian perceivers, researchers concluded that the sharpest differences in attributions for the cause of an individual s behavior lie in the weight accorded to contextual constraints and to pressures imposed by social groups (Choi, Nisbett and Norenzayan 1999). In a consumer context, Laufer (2002) suggests that based on these findings, consumers in individualistic societies may be more likely to attribute product failures to a company whereas consumers in collectivistic societies may be more likely to consider situational factors external to the company.