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If you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether information and communication technologies (ICT) resources, including investment and use of specific types of ICT as well as innovative work practices, have a positive impact on several dimensions of firm performance, taking into account both direct and indirect effects and both short and long-term effects. Design/methodology/approach -An empirical study using data from a sample of 267 Spanish manufacturing SMEs was conducted. Path analysis was used to study direct and indirect ICT impacts and OLS regression was the estimation method employed. Findings -The findings show a positive relationship between ICT adoption and all the measures of perceived performance analyzed, although the impact is not always immediate since the lag effects and length differ according to the type of ICT. Managers' perceptions of ICT impact are related to the adoption of new work practices but the effects also depend positively on the number of years since new work practices were implemented. ICT impact on final performance (market share and profits and margin) takes place mainly indirectly through the improvement of internal and external communication, as well as through operational performance.Research limitations/implications -The main limitations of the research stem from the specific geographical context under consideration and restrictions relating to the cross-sectional nature of the data. Practical implications -The results reveal the wide scope of the benefits of ICT adoption in SMEs and point to the need for persistence in use so as to obtain good results in some areas. They also stress the positive effects of adopting ICTs together with organizational innovation. Originality/value -This research extends the scope of the analysis of ICT payoff literature by analyzing direct and indirect effects and by focusing on a broad range of technologies, a variety of performance measures and several time lags to study ICT adoption impacts in SMEs. IntroductionEvaluating information and communication technologies (ICT) investment payoff constitutes a key concern for companies in managing their ICT resources. Companies are compelled to find way...

The purpose of this article is to analyze the sociodemographic and economic determinants underlying sport participation and consumer expenditure on sport. The methodological approach is based on ordered probit models. Empirical results from data obtained by means of a questionnaire survey in Spain indicate the need for different sport management strategies in each of these areas. On the one hand, the results confirm the positive influence of variables such as gender and age, and the negative influence of some professional status categories. Neither low levels of education nor personal income are barriers to the practice of sport. Hence, time availability is a major barrier to expand the base of participants or increase the intensity of participation. On the other hand, consumer expenditure on sport is determined by gender, education, income levels, and some occupational groups.