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Purpose The majority of the supply chain sustainability (SCS) literature is based on research perspectives and findings from studies conducted in developed countries. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the current Latin American publications on SCS (2007–2016) to explore whether another perspective exists.Design/methodology/approach As part of a structured literature review, 123 peer-reviewed articles published in four Latin American databases were scanned. This literature review was combined with a qualitative content analysis using an inductive and deductive approach to move away from top–down approaches and to illuminate the Latin American perspective on SCS.Findings The analysis of the scientific literature demonstrates that the traditional three pillars of sustainability are not enough to understand the specificities of the region. This review shows that cultural and institutional dimensions enhance the understanding of SCS locally. In addition, three major triggers for SCS in Latin American economies were found: green supply chain management practices, local development and stakeholder engagement.Research limitations/implications A deeper understanding of the Latin American perspective can support scholars worldwide in developing the field of SCS in relevant directions and in comprehending the specificities of their own countries by infusing cultural and institutional elements into their conceptualisations of SCS.Originality/value This paper provides an unexplored perspective on SCS because it analyses Latin American publications and presents a mapping of current SCS issues and research gaps that offers insights to guide future research in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe the diversity of trauma Latin American (LA) refugee children in the USA experience across migration. It proposes ways that practitioners and policymakers can use knowledge from existing research to improve services and respect the rights of LA children. Design/methodology/approach: The paper used a systematic review approach supplemented by additional sources to capture current representative knowledge. The paper uses staged migration and social ecological approaches for organization and discussion. Findings: LA children have historically and contemporarily been exposed to more instances and types of trauma than their non-immigrant US counterparts. LA refugee children have a high need for international protection that is not reflected in the US policy. Practical implications: Knowledge of possible trauma types among LA children can inform practitioner expectations and prepare them for care management. Officers must be well-trained in both potential trauma-related content and geographic context and have excellent interviewing skills. Lawyers, advocates and judges – the latter who create precedent – play a critical role in children's cases and should have access to high-quality, geographically and historically relevant and contemporary information. Social implications: The levels of violence in Latin America; the rate of child trauma; and the spike in unaccompanied children at the border compels the USA to reassess their positions on (a) refugee caps, (b) asylum screenings and (c) interception-related policies, protocol and practice. Originality/value: This the first review to specifically focus on empirical trauma research specific to the LA child's migration experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the utility of combining event-centred and variablecentred approaches when analysing big data for higher education institutions. It uses a large, university-wide data set to demonstrate the methodology for this analysis by using the case study method. It presents empirical findings about relationships between student behaviours in a learning management system (LMS) and the learning outcomes of students, and further explores these findings using process modelling techniques. Design/methodology/approach - The paper describes a two-year study in a Chilean university, using big data from a LMS and from the central university database of student results and demographics. Descriptive statistics of LMS use in different years presents an overall picture of student use of the system. Process mining is described as an event-centred approach to give a deeper level of understanding of these findings. Findings - The study found evidence to support the idea that instructors do not strongly influence student use of an LMS. It replicates existing studies to show that higher-performing students use an LMS differently from the lower-performing students. It shows the value of combining variable- and event-centred approaches to learning analytics. Research limitations/implications - The study is limited by its institutional context, its two-year time frame and by its exploratory mode of investigation to create a case study. Practical implications - The paper is useful for institutions in developing a methodology for using big data from a LMS to make use of event-centred approaches. Originality/value - The paper is valuable in replicating and extending recent studies using event-centred approaches to analysis of learning data. The study here is on a larger scale than the existing studies (using a university-wide data set), in a novel context (Latin America), that provides a clear description for how and why the methodology should inform institutional approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose This paper aims to examine the accuracy of the trade statistics between the People’s Republic of China and 20 Latin American countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.Design/methodology/approach This paper contrasts the mirror trade statistics between China and 20 Latin American countries during 2009-2014, after adding to the Chinese side the trade figures corresponding to Hong Kong and adjusting for some valuation issues. Using the resulting panel data, the paper then explores some of the possible explanatory variables, in the case of Latin America, which can account for the significant trade misinvoicing that is found among most of the countries involved.Findings Trade misinvoicing, be that from the part of China or of its partners, varies substantially across Latin America. It is quite large in the case of some countries such as Bolivia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama and Paraguay, and, on the opposite side, relatively small in the case of other countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala and Venezuela. It is found that, from a Latin American perspective, trade misinvoicing is positively related to the countries’ lack of statistical capacity and their degree of financial openness.Originality/value This is the first empirical paper that examines the mirror trade statistics between China and Latin American. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to contribute to the debate regarding the understanding of the multiple manifestations and alternatives for the implementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs) across national borders. For this purpose, the Colombian context is taken as a case study. Design/methodology/approach: The present study performs an exploration of SDGs implementation in Colombia, cutting across the macro and meso levels and the perspectives of governance-making and governance-taking. To answer the research questions, this study applies a two-stage qualitative research design with summative content analysis. Findings: The study finds that the companies in Colombia are showing an interest in incorporating the SDGs into their corporate sustainability reporting. Although companies show a general interest in adopting the SDGs as part of their sustainability strategies, the findings demonstrate that very few would go deeply into the analysis of the SDG targets. The Colombian case might be a good example of how local governments are taking actions for the implementation of SDGs in their national action plans, policies and strategies. Research limitations/implications: As is frequent with qualitative research, and particularly with content analysis, the generalizability of the findings obtained may only be applicable to those organizations included in the sample. The analysis at the meso level is limited to the private sector, and the findings are not applicable to other organizational actors, such as civil society organizations or academia. Future research can broaden the spectrum of analysis, both at a national and cross-national level. Practical implications: The paper is of use for actors from the public, private and civil society sectors in Colombia, as well as for international actors with an interest in the ways in which the global sustainable development agenda can be translated into local action. Originality/value: This paper contributes to the understanding of the different ways in which the sustainable development agenda is moving from the global level to the local implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to challenge the default portrayal of street trade as an informal occupation and spatial practice, by examining comparatively the changes in the regulatory frameworks of two politically distinct city administrations in Latin America since the introduction of the informal economy debate.Design/methodology/approach This paper draws from a comparative case study design to synthesize evidence from historical administrative records, secondary research and materials from a two-year fieldwork carried out in Lima and Bogotá in 2008 and 2009.Findings The author argues that the incorporation of the informal economy framework into local governments’ policymaking has reframed street trade as a subject of policy. Since the 1970s, the author traces a shift from worker-centered initiatives, through the deregulation of street trade, to entrepreneurial-centered approaches. Nowadays, both, Lima’s neoliberal governance focusing on “formalizing” and Bogotá’s socialist/progressive governance aiming at “upgrading” street trade respond more explicitly to distinct assessments about the informal economy – legalist and dualist, respectively. Yet, both cities converge in that the closer street trade is perceived as an informal occupation; the more likely policy initiatives decouple the right to work from the right to access public space, spurring more marginal forms of street vending.Originality/value Even though the informal economy framework has helped to draw attention to important policy issues locally, nationally and internationally, this paper calls for a critical revision of such framing at the local level to allow for inclusive urban governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to do a systematic assessment and testing of identified human rights norms alongside social determinant approaches in relation to identified health issues of concern in four Latin American countries (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay) to show how social determinants and human rights frameworks improve population health. Design/methodology/approach: To do so, in the first part the authors analyze the inequalities both between and within each of the selected countries in terms of health status and health determinants of the population. Then, in the second section, the authors analyze the level of recognition, institutionalisation and accountability of the right to health in each country. Findings: From the data used in this paper it is possible to conclude that the four analysed countries have improved their results in terms of health status, health care and health behaviours. This improvement coincides with the recognition, institutionalisation and creation of accountability mechanisms of human rights principles and standards in terms of health and that a human rights approach to health and its relation with other social determinants have extended universal health coverage and health systems in the four analysed countries. Originality/value: Despite of the importance of the relation between human rights and social determinants of health, there are few human right scholars working on the issues of social determinants of health and human rights. Most of the literature of health and human rights has been focussed specific relations between specific rights and the right to health, but less human right scholar working on social determinants of health. On the other hand, just a few epidemiologists and people working on social medicine have actually started to use a universal human rights frame and discourse. In fact, according to Vnkatapuram, Bell and Marmot: "while health and human rights advocates have from the start taken a global perspective, social medicine and social epidemiology have been slower to catch up". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: In most Latin American countries, the provision of legal assistance to the vulnerable population is carried out by public defender's offices (PDOs), agencies composed of state-paid career lawyers. The aim of this paper is to explain the cross-country variation in regarding the autonomy levels of Latin American PDOs. Design/methodology/approach: A scale to measure autonomy was built allowing access to the autonomy of sixteen different PDOs. Data were gathered through content analysis of the statutes that organize the PDOs and analyzed through qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). Findings: The results demonstrate different levels of autonomy among Latin American PDOs. Furthermore, conditions related to institutional and social contexts, such as levels of income, human development, democracy, and the complexity of the political systems, presented sufficient relationships for high levels of autonomy. Research limitations/implications: It was not possible to interview representatives of the PDOs analyzed. This could help the interpretation of the legislation applied to PDOs, as well as the observation of regulations that may not have come to the knowledge of researchers. Thus, analyses were made according to what was observed in the legislation of each country. It is also noteworthy that this research covered only nationwide PDOs, not involving subnational PDOs. In addition, the data have only internal validity, and cannot be extrapolated to the population. Practical implications: The creation of a scale to measure the autonomy of public agencies stands out as an original comparative data set of PDOs covering a large amount of Latin American countries. Social implications: This study was able to characterize the institutional arrangements of sixteen national PDOs, allowing broad comparison between legal aid agencies for the vulnerable population in a region of the world that still suffers from high levels of poverty. Originality/value: The article presents possible explanations on the variations of PDOs' level of autonomy, showing PDOs' idiosyncrasies, whose autonomy is influenced also by social context variables, in view of the nature of their mission. It should be noted that factors related to the social context are not widely considered by the literature on autonomy of public agencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyze politically exposed persons (PEPs) according to Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Recommendations and assess the identification process followed by financial institutions to create a harmonized regional model for PEPs identification in Latin America. Design/methodology/approach: FATF Recommendation No.12 states that financial institutions should identify PEPs. To do so, the latter uses either an internal identification system or an external database. Within this framework, the purpose of the research work is to determine whether the procedure adopted by the regulated entities complies with the requirements of the regulations. Both analytical and interpretative methods have been used for this purpose. Findings: In accordance with FATF Recommendation No.12, national and foreign PEPs, as well as officials of relevant international organizations, close relatives and closest associates must be identified. This wide range of people forms an hybrid type of PEPs. Because of the lack of a harmonized identification policy, it is likely that some people who meet these conditions may not be spotted. Originality/value: PEPs control success relies on accurate and prompt identification. Therefore, it is crucial to create an inter-state model of harmonized identification at a regional level in Latin America. It includes not only the participation of the obligated subjects but also the sector entities associated to the concerned economic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to critically review the contributions made by the articles in this theme issue with reference to the literature and by examining the link between tourism and poverty and the conditions that shape this link in Latin America. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews the most important contributions through critical content analysis of the papers contained in the theme issue. Findings – Tourism matters to the poor, but its relevance is defined by a number of factors including economic development, inequality, and destination life cycle. Alternative tourism, while promising, may be too limited in scope and scale to affect poverty alleviation that is broad and fast enough to benefit Latin America. Research limitations/implications – More research is needed to understand the link between tourism and poverty reduction, and the conditions that determine the strength of the link in Latin America. Originality/value – The theme issue explores the tourism poverty link from different perspectives with inputs from multiple stakeholders with experience and expertise in poverty alleviation in Latin America. This approach offers the reader a unique opportunity to explore different facets of the tourism development conundrum in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether and to what extent different forms of symbiotic relationships (named mutualism and collaboration) within a usage centre lead to different levels of value in use for its resource integrators. This study focusses on the educational services provided in deprived neighbourhoods to potentially vulnerable adolescents. Design/methodology/approach: This study applies a two-phase sequential exploratory mixed-method design. The first phase included a qualitative study that involved both the focal (the students) and peripheral resource integrators (the students' parents) of a Brazilian educational institution that had exceptional results. The qualitative findings were used to build a comparative multi-group survey with four subgroups in which 530 peripheral resource integrators participated. Findings: A mutualistic educational institution in which the participation of students' parents is mandatory creates more value in use than collaborative institutions in which parental participation is optional. In the context of educational services for vulnerable adolescents, value in use is echoed in the coexistence of families, greater caring about the students, and the encouragement from the adolescents' positive beliefs about education and respectful relationships with others. Social implications: Initiatives aimed at addressing social issues regarding children or adolescents in situations of vulnerability will achieve better results if their families are contemplated and involved. Originality/value: This study is the first to empirically test Kleinaltenkamp et al.'s usage centre framework (2017). In so doing, the study advances the understanding of how the interdependence of actors in the usage processes leads to value creation for vulnerable populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate the effect of monetary policy indicators on Latin America's renewable energy development. The authors conduct several regressions as well as a Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to unveil relationships among possible driving factors among others the current account balance, interest rates, money flow and energy trade balance for Latin America's energy mix. Design/methodology/approach: The analysis was a two-part process. First, the authors used multiple regression to identify if monetary policy affects the development of renewable energy usage at all. To investigate the singular effects of each of the nine macro-economic variables and four energy indicators, collected from the World Bank (2017) database, several regressions were run where the authors regressed each economic indicator on each energy variable. Then, the authors conducted a principal component analysis with all 13 variables. Findings: The authors found a significant relationship between the clean energy share and governmental spending boosting GDP as well as a significant relationship between governmental spending and the amount of foreign exchange reserves. Declining net energy imports indicate that countries in Latin America are getting more and more energy autonomous for the price of building up huge amounts of foreign exchange reserves. Research limitations/implications: Renewable energy indicators are not always available for all Latin American countries. Data tend to be scattered. However, sources such as the International Renewable Energy Agency and the World Bank database can be complementary. Practical implications: The understanding of the effects and impacts of some of the monetary policy related indicators can provide insights for improving renewable energy financing policies. In turn, such policies can have increased influence on renewable energy sustainability and potentially contribute to improving environmental policies. Originality/value: The specific impact of the selected variables on renewable energy has not been studied. This study attempts to discern the impact of such variables to understand how they influence the renewable energy mix. The insights can in turn inform and modify existing policies and guidelines as well as advise new policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether the effect of inflation uncertainty on inflation has changed over time in Latin America.Design/methodology/approach The authors use a stochastic volatility in mean (SVM) model with time-varying parameters (TVP) as proposed by Chan (2017).Findings Considering inflation series for the last two decades, we report evidences of high uncertainty from 1996 to early 2000s. Moreover, despite being positive throughout the sample, the overall relationship between inflation uncertainty and inflation has changed over the years in Latin America, underscoring the importance of our time-varying specification.Practical/implication There are evidences of a greater volatile inflation behavior in the beginning of the sample period in comparison to the last few years. Overall, the considered Latin American economies seem to have endured relatively well the external adverse shocks from the 2008 global financial crisis.Originality/value The use of an SVM model with TVP in order to assess the effect of inflation uncertainty on inflation is new to the Latin America literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on firm performance in six Latin American economies. Firm performance includes five distinct dimensions, namely, firm turnover, labour productivity, innovativeness, product differentiation and technological transfer. The countries under scrutiny are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico.Design/methodology/approach Propensity score matching techniques are used to identify the causal effect of CSR on firm performance. To this end, World Bank Enterprise Survey (2006 wave) is used. This data set collects relevant firm-level data.Findings CSR has a positive impact on the outcome variables analysed, suggesting that corporate goals are compatible with conscious business operations. The results also vary across countries.Research limitations/implications The pattern that emerges from the analysis seems to suggest that the positive effects of CSR depend on countries’ stage of industrialisation. In particular, the least developed the economy, the wider the scope of CSR. Nonetheless, the relationship between conscious business operations, firm performance and countries’ level of development is not directly tested in the present work.Practical implications The main practical implication of the study is that Latin American firms should adopt CSR. This is because corporate responsible practices either improve firm performance or they are not shown to have a detrimental effect.Social implications The major policy implication is that emerging countries’ governments as well as international organisation should provide meaningful incentives towards CSR adoption.Originality/value The paper provides three major original contributions. First, it brings new descriptive evidence on CSR practices in Latin America. Second, it uses a broader and novel definition of firm performance, which is aimed at capturing developing countries’ business dynamics as well as at overcoming data limitations. Finally, it reassesses and extends the empirical evidence on the impact of CSR on firm performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to deploy an export dependency index to identify the sectors and countries in Latin America which are most exposed to fluctuations in Chinese demand. Bilateral trade between China and Latin America has grown very quickly in the past decade. As a consequence, economic relationships with Latin America intensified tremendously, as growing demand for resources drove China into relatively unexplored frontiers.Design/methodology/approach The Index measures the relative exposure of Latin American exporters to shifts in demand from China and is scaled from 0 to 1 (the higher the score, the more exposed an exporter is to disruptions of trade with China). The authors undertook the analysis using six-digit trade figures from the United Nations COMTRADE database (Harmonized System 2007 nomenclature) to ensure granularity and consistency and contrasted their results across two points in time, 2008 and 2014. The analysis was very comprehensive, covering the products that accounted for 80 per cent or more of all exports to China in 2014, for all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.Findings According to our estimates, dependency on China increased overboard across Latin America for all countries and all sectors between 2008 and 2014. Absolute dependency levels were highest in Costa Rica, Colombia, Uruguay, Venezuela, Brazil, Panama, Peru, Chile, Guyana and Argentina. Of these, the largest exporters to China, namely, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia and Venezuela, featured high dependencies concentrated around just four commodities: soy in the form of soybeans and soybean oil; crude oil; copper in the form of copper ore, copper cathodes and unrefined copper; and iron ore. These four commodities accounted for 80 per cent of the regions’ total exports to China.Originality/value This is one of few studies that look into Latin America’s commodity export dependency on China at such granular level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyse whether institutional factors determine the level of corporate governance compliance among major listed companies in emerging markets of Latin America, a region characterized by a poor legal system, highly concentrated ownership structures, and capital markets relatively less developed. The paper used an unbalanced panel data consisting of 826 observations of the highest ranked companies on the stock exchange indices of Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico during the period 2004-2010. The results provide strong empirical evidence that board independence, ownership concentration and stakeholder orientation affect positively corporate governance ratings, while board size decreases corporate governance compliance in Latin American countries. The study fills a gap in the Latin American literature, providing useful information for determining policies on corporate governance and, in general, for managers and investors of listed companies in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The Latin American region experienced an electoral shift to the political left during the 2000s but this leftist shift did not radically alter the political economy of the region. Following Jessop's (2008) strategic-relational approach to theorizing about the state, this paper focuses on the perspective that the structure of the state is both an outcome of prior social struggles and a structuring mechanism for the social actors that attempt to enact political and economic reforms. Methodology/approach -- After demonstrating what this has historically meant for the types of state that have existed in Latin America during the past century by reviewing some of the literature on the corporatist and bureaucratic-authoritarian states and clientelism, this paper argues that the neoliberal reforms of the 1980s and 1990s constituted a new type of state -- the Latin American neoliberal state. This analysis is then focused on the literature that seeks to describe the new lefts in the region, while continuing to focus on the role of the neoliberal state in structuring these new lefts' terrain of struggle. Findings -- Understanding the new lefts in Latin America and the types of reforms that they are capable of making requires that we better understand this new type of state. Due to the structural limitations imposed by the neoliberal state, the lefts are not able to radically alter the region's political economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- This study aims to enhance the knowledge that managers and scholars have on franchising expansion. In this sense, it is worth mentioning that although the body of literature on international management focusing on emerging markets is growing, the attention paid to the Latin American context continues to be limited. This is surprising given the substantive economic importance of the region with a population over 590 million, and a gross domestic product of approximately US$5 trillion. To cover this gap, the present study examines how a number of market conditions may drive diffusion of franchising into Latin America: geographical distance, cultural distance, political stability and economic development. The authors also controlled for the host country's market potential, transparency, unemployment rate and efficiency of contract enforcement. Design/methodology/approach -- This study uses a quantitative approach applied to a sample of 77 Spanish franchisors operating through 4,064 franchisee outlets across 21 Latin American countries in late 2012. They are: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Uruguay and Venezuela. Findings -- Results conclude that geographical distance between the host and home countries, as well as the level of host country's political stability, economic development, market potential and transparency are able to drive the spread of international franchising across Latin American nations. Research limitations/implications -- This study provides readers with a general overview of the current state of global franchising diffusion overseas. Results obtained in this study are useful for understanding and predicting the demand for franchising in Latin American countries. Practical implications -- Economics reports argue that by 2050, the largest economies in the world will be China, the USA, India, Brazil and Mexico. This fact highlights the substantive importance of Latin America for foreign investors willing to expand their business abroad. In an attempt to give insights from the Latin American context, the present paper develops and tests a model that can be useful to franchisors willing to establish new outlets in the region. In addition, our findings offer guidance to firm managers seeking to target their franchises in Latin America. Franchisors may then use the results of this study as a starting point for identifying such regions whose characteristics best meet their needs of expansion. Originality/value -- This paper explores how market conditions may drive international diffusion of franchising into Latin American markets. The scant theoretical or empirical attention given to this topic has usually been examined from the USA and British base and focused on developed markets. To fill this gap, the present study analyzes the international spread of the Spanish franchise system into Latin America as a market for franchising expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose This purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which accreditation of public affairs programs can be a tool to advance social equity, diversity, and inclusion. The paper is presented in the context of the widespread acceptance of the importance of addressing social inequalities in Latin America and the critical role that public policy and public administration can have on advancing these goals.Design/methodology/approach International and national accreditation standards are compared using content analysis for their reference to social equity and diversity in their standards regarding faculty, students, curriculum content and learning outcomes. The research applies content analysis of key documents and thematic coding.Findings International accrediting agencies that focused explicitly on programs in public affairs place a much greater emphasis on social equity and diversity than their national counterparts which accredit a full range of programs and institutions. National accrediting agencies assert the value of diversity, but their standards and reporting requirements suggest otherwise.Research limitations/implications The research suggests that international accreditation standards have the potential to advance social equity goals more effectively than national standards and that there is great potential to enhance this component of national accreditation standards. Implications for policymakers, accreditation professionals and scholars are identified.Originality/value The research is original in its focus on the role of accreditation in promoting social equity and its comparison of national and international standards. Although limited to Latin America and public affairs programs, the research provides a basis for examining similar patterns with respect to other disciplines and professions, and in other regions of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the literacy practices of the families and communities of first-generation college students in Latin America, and how community and family literacies can inform the understanding of first-generation college students' identity and cultural values. Design/methodology/approach: This transnational ethnography was conducted in local communities around three public universities in Mexico, Colombia and Costa Rica. Participants included nine fist-generation college students and more than 50 people in their families and communities (i.e. relatives, parents and friends). Data gathering occurred at the university outside the formal space of the classroom, at home, and in the community. Data were interpreted through the lens of the community cultural wealth framework. Findings: The author found that first-generation college students and their families and communities engaged in rich literacy practices that have been overlooked in policy, research, and media. It is argued that the concept literacy capital is necessary to acknowledge the critical literacy practices communities engage in. Literacy capital was manifested in these communities to preserve cultural traditions, to sponsor literacy practices and to question and resist unjust sociopolitical circumstances. Practical implications: The findings of this study should inform a culturally sustaining pedagogy of academic literacies in higher education. Beyond asset-based approaches to academic literacies in Latin America, critical perspectives to academic literacies teaching and learning are needed that acknowledge the Latin American complexities. Originality/value: These findings are significant because they unveiled how people in local communities were informed about the sociopolitical dynamics at the national and international scale that affected or even threatened their local culture, and how they used their literacy capital to react critically to those situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This is a comparative investigation of how university libraries in the United States, Canada and Spanish-speaking Latin America are responding to predatory publishing. Design/methodology/approach: The Times Higher Education World University Rankings was used to identify the top ten universities from each of the US and Canada, as well as the top 20 Spanish-language universities in Latin America. Each university library's website was scrutinized to discover whether the libraries employed scholarly communication librarians, whether they offered scholarly communication workshops, or whether they shared information about scholarly communication on their websites. This information was further examined to determine if it discussed predatory publishing specifically. Findings: Most libraries in the US/Canada sample employ scholarly communication librarians and nearly half offer workshops on predatory publishing. No library in the Latin America sample employed a scholarly communication specialist and just one offered a workshop addressing predatory publishing. The websites of the libraries in the US and Canada addressed predatory publishing both indirectly and directly, with US libraries favoring the former approach and Canadian libraries tending towards the latter. Predatory publishing was rarely addressed directly by the libraries in the Latin America sample; however, all discussed self-archiving and/or Open Access. Research limitations/implications: Brazilian universities were excluded owing to the researchers' language limitations. Data were collected between September 15 and 30, 2019, so it represents a snapshot of information available at that time. The study was limited to an analysis of library websites using a fixed set of keywords, and it did not investigate whether other campus units were involved or whether other methods of informing researchers about predatory publishing were being used. Originality/value: The study reveals some best practices leading to recommendations to help academic libraries combat predatory publishing and improve scholarly publishing literacy among researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to draw researchers' attention to the need to differentiate within the emerging market multinational companies (EMNCs) category. This study focuses on international business in Latin America to argue that the region's specific institutional characteristics have consequences for within-firm decision-making regarding internationalization strategies. Additionally, the study suggests that to develop a more specific understanding of international business in emerging markets, it is important to consider how decision-makers define value and how they can capture such value. Design/methodology/approach: The approach used in this study draws on the bathtub analogy used in micro-foundations research in international business. It proposes a multilevel analysis in which micro-level variation in within-firm decision-making is considered, while accounting for the conditioning effects of macro-level contextual factors. Findings: The study identifies characteristics of the Latin American institutional context that are relevant to international business strategies and that potentially differ from other emerging market contexts. These include the pendular shifts to and from pro-market economic reform, fragmented government intervention in business, underdeveloped capital markets, low competition among firms and polarized labor markets. The study explains how these characteristics shape the definition of value and firm strategies to capture value in international markets, and provides examples from firms in different industries. Originality/value: This study applies a value creation and capture perspective to international business in Latin America, allowing for the simultaneous consideration of macrolevel institutional characteristics and microlevel variation in decision-making regarding internationalization strategies. This perspective not only helps to distinguish Latin American EMNCs from companies from other emerging market contexts, but also explains the considerable variation in the internationalization strategies of firms within the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study is to explore and understand corporate governance patterns in family firms across Latin America. This is in response to several calls in the academic literature urging for more empirical studies in corporate governance in developing regions. Design/methodology/approach: Following a configurative perspective, a hierarchical cluster analysis is applied to a sample of the 155 largest Latin American family firms. Findings: The authors identify three main corporate governance configurations across Latin American countries. First, the exported governance model resembles many characteristics of Anglo-American and Continental Europe governance patterns of public listed control, having independence from the board of directors, and mainly hiring non-family management. Second, the super-familial governance model describes private ownership where one or multiple families control both the board of directors and the top-management team. Finally, the hybrid governance model is the largest cluster identified in the sample and combines governance characteristics of both of the foregoing configurations. This configuration exhibits ownership structured through public offerings of shares combined with leadership of the board of directors by a family member as well as moderate family influence on the board and management. Originality/value: This is the first study to investigate corporate governance in the largest listed and privately-owned family firms in Latin America. The article extends the conversation on family firm heterogeneity and contributes to the configurative approach in the family business field by offering a cross-country perspective and identifying meaningful taxonomies that are applicable beyond national boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]