Sandra S. Graça

Abstract This study investigates the antecedents and outcomes of cognitive trust during the expansion phase in buyer–supplier relationships. It takes a global approach and examines cultural nuances between developed nation and emerging market firms by including participants from the United States, China, and Brazil. The results demonstrate the importance of trust in building social capital and the central role which trust plays in shaping business relationships in all studied cultural contexts. There are similarities and differences across countries. Results support relationship marketing theory by demonstrating the importance of conflict resolution, communication frequency, and social bond in building buyer–supplier relationships in the United States, which in turn increase cooperation between partners. Results also indicate that in China, social bond plays a much greater role in building trust, which in turn increases cooperation only to the extent that it serves as a mechanism to secure committed relationships. In Brazil, results show that conflict resolution is the most important factor in building trust. It also mediates the relationship between communication frequency and trust, as well as drives cooperation positively. Overall, trust is found to influence exchange of confidential communication and increases commitment between partners in all three countries.

This empirical study explores the effectiveness of humorous TV advertisements recast on

YouTube. From a sample of 2135 advertisements screened for humorous content and high

performance metrics, a typology of ten humor types was derived and subsequently analyzed

for its effectiveness in grabbing audience attention and stimulating engagement. The typology

was derived inductively from an examination of the incongruity, mockery and arousal

mechanisms used to create humorous content. Overall, the study found that social unruliness,

as espoused by the superiority and relief theories, perform the best in attention. The use of

absurdity and surprise, as suggested by incongruity theory, performed well in both attention

and engagement. The more disparaging humor displayed in putdowns and malicious joy had

less impact on both attention and engagement.

Despite the increasing economic importance of the Latin American region and its growing involvement in global trade, business studies involving emerging markets such as Brazil are rare. Cross-country academic studies tend to concentrate on developed regions such as North America and Europe, and more recently Asia, while ignoring countries in Africa and South America. Brazil, in particular, has been under a global spotlight as a BRIC member for the last decade and continues to draw attention as a significant player in world trade and as an attractive option for multinational expansion and foreign direct investment. Despite controversies, the host country to the World Cup in 2014 and summer Olympics in 2016 is likely to continue to establish its presence internationally and solidify its importance in international business. The Brazilian market is becoming increasingly middle class, and a recent surge in purchasing power has contributed to the country’s growing demand for goods and services and larger appetite for foreign goods. And yet, Brazil remains practically unknown in the global academic research arena.