Vol. 58, No. 1, Spring/Summer 2020
RELATIONAL ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY AND FIRM-LEVEL EXPORT
ACTIVITIES AT TRADE FAIRS: A STUDY OF SOUTH KOREAN SME
MACHINE TOOL MANUFACTURERS (p. 1-24)
Douglas R. Gress
Department of Geography Education
Seoul National University
Ronald V. Kalafsky
Department of Geography
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Abstract
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are faced with myriad disadvantages
when trying to enhance their competitiveness and expand into international markets.
International trade fairs (ITFs) are one way firms may mitigate these disadvantages.
This article deploys a multi-faceted relational economic geography (REG) framework
and four research questions to examine South Korean SME, export-related, ITF dynamics
and their resulting organizational, spatial, and structural outcomes. Results,
based on quantitative analyses of firm-level data, reveal the effect of firm-level variables
on the relational context at an ITF; the impact of organizational learning at
ITFs on longer-term, export-oriented routines; evidence of spatial and structural lockin
and avenues to counter them; the importance of an ITF in the innovation context;
and impacts of specific antecedents of power vis-à-vis relationship building and maintenance
taking place at an ITF. Implications for Korea’s SME and ITF policies as well
as broader implications for exporting and REG-based research are discussed.
MAJOR ISSUES IN COMMUTING EFFICIENCY: A LITERATURE REVIEW
(p. 25-34)
Wook Lee
Department of Geosciences
Edinboro University of Pennsylvania
Abstract
For the last several decades, metropolitan areas in the US and some non-US countries
have witnessed dynamic changes in commuting pattern. Commuting is bound tightly
with spatial structure in that the spatial mismatch between workers’ jobs and residences
may alter people’s journey-to-work behavior. At the aggregate level, regional
commuting efficiency has deteriorated and become a national concern. Researchers
define and measure excess commuting and jobs-housing balance with a view to providing
travel demand benchmarks. One suggested goal has been the reduction of the
spatial mismatch between workplace and residence through patterns of concentrated
multi-use developments. This strategy tends to promote jobs-housing balance, which
consequently decreases excess commuting. This paper intends to provide a general
review of the literature pertaining to the topics of commuting efficiency and its policy
implications on the spatial structure. The concept of excess commuting and jobs-housing
balance will be introduced and discussed in the following sections focusing on
main streams of the methodological development and their effectiveness as a planning
tool.
LEAD IS IN THE AIR: A CASE STUDY OF BERKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
(p.35-53)
Robert C. Ziegenfus
Department of Geography
Kutztown University of Pennsylvania
Abstract
Two Environmental Protection Agency databases were analyzed to determine the extent
of lead in the air and its possible relationship to elevated blood lead levels in
children. The Toxic Resource Inventory (TRI) data were obtained for all the lead emissions
in Berks County. The National Air Toxics Assessment (NATA) data for 2014
were examined for ambient and exposure emissions for all 90 census tracts. Lead
emissions for the largest TRI emitters were correlated with the ambient and exposure
concentrations in northern and northeastern Berks, but TRI emissions had little impact
in the census tracts of Reading where the NATA data were predominant.
NETFLIX HASN’T KILLED ME YET: THE RESILIENCE OF FAMILY VIDEO
MOVIE STORES IN A DIGITAL AND STREAMING WORLD
(p. 54-77)
Joseph Tokosh
Department of Geographic and Atmospheric Sciences
Northern Illinois University
Abstract
This study analyzes the closures of Family Video movie rental stores through a binary
logistic regression and two-step floating catchment area analysis. A dataset of over
660 Family Video stores was compiled for analysis. The regression analysis shows that
smaller, freestanding stores, and stores near food cotenants were less likely to close
compared to larger, shopping center housed stores. The floating catchment analysis indicated
that there are many more stores located in areas of low accessibility. However,
as accessibility increases, the likelihood of a closure decreases. Results are contextualized
within the retail geography literature and routes of future research are discussed.
HOW ABOUT THEM APPLES: PENNSYLVANIA’S EMERGING HARD CIDER INDUSTRY
(p. 78-95)
Alison E. Feeney
Department of Geography and Earth Science
Shippensburg University
Antonia Price
Center for Land Use and Sustainability
Shippensburg University
Abstract
Cider was an important beverage in colonial America, but its production has been
greatly limited in the past hundred years. With the recent growth in artisan beverages,
particularly craft beer, there has been a resurgence in cider. This project used exploratory
research to identify, define, tabulate, and map federal and state cider production
and identify legal discrepancies. Correlation statistics demonstrated that Pennsylvania’s
cider production is a statistical outlier and is much lower than the other top apple
producing states; however, the data appeared to be logarithmic, meaning that cider
production increased only with an extremely large increase in apple production. This
suggests that cider is often made with older or damaged fruit that may not sell well
at grocery stores or in farmers markets. Possible changes similar to neighboring states
may increase sales, bring economic opportunities to rural communities, and preserve
the state’s agricultural landscape.