Showing papers on "Empirical research published in 1984"

Porter's (1980) Generic Strategies as Determinants of Strategic Group Membership and Organizational Performance

Abstract: A multimethod, multivariate analysis of “intended” strategies provides empirical support for the presence of strategic groups based upon Porter's (1980) generic strategies. Variations in intraindus...

Social Dynamics: Models and Methods

Abstract: This book attempts to provide a broad framework for thinking about and conducting quantitative empirical studies of social change processes. The goals of this book are 1) to clarify and develop models and methods for causal analysis of dynamic social processes 2) to formulate continuous-time models of change in both quantitative and qualitative outcomes and to develop suitable methods for estimating these models from the kinds of data commonly available to sociologists 3) to develop a stochastic framework for analyzing both qualitative and quantitative outcomes and 4) to alter the way that sociologists think about the empirical study of social change processes. Part I provides general background for what follows; it includes both a discussion of the substantive importance of dynamic analyses in sociology and a review of models and methods previously used by sociologists interested in the empirical study of social dynamics. Part II contains 8 chapters on models and methods for anallyzing change in qualitative outcomes; it concentrates mainly on methods based on analysis of event-history data. Part III contains 6 chapters on comprable models and methods for analyzing change in quantitative outcomes; it focuses primarily on methods based on analysis of panel data.

Management accounting systems, perceived environmental uncertainty and organization structure: An empirical investigation☆

Abstract: The research reported in this study concerns the relationships among an organization's environment, structure and information system. Based on an empirical study it appears that information systems and organizational structures are both a function of the environment. However, after controlling for the effects of the environment, it does not appear that an organization's iinformation system and structure are significantly related to each other.

Chapter 10 Testing trade theories and predicting trade flows

Abstract: Publisher Summary The major obstacle to the testing of trade theories has been the difficulty of constructing tests that is theoretically sound. The intuitive content of most trade theories is quite simple and straightforward. But empirical tests of the theories are often faulted on the grounds that they test propositions that do not derive rigorously from the theories. The problem seems to lie in the theories themselves, which are seldom stated in forms that are compatible with the real world complexities that empirical research cannot escape. This chapter discusses the problems that arise in testing trade theories independent of the theory being tested. To the extent that many of the specific explanations of trade have a common foundation in the theory of comparative advantage, they also share some of the same empirical complications, and it is useful to look at these before becoming immersed in the particular problems that arise from specific theories. The chapter reviews the empirical tests and implementations of the Ricardian theory, the Heckscher–Ohlin theory, and the technology theory. The chapter also reviews an assortment of other approaches to trade. These include both recently articulated theories that have not yet been tested, such as the monopolistic competition model, and empirical tests that have been done without benefit of theory, such as the so-called gravity models.

Formulating Vertical Integration Strategies

Abstract: A framework is proposed that develops the dimensions of vertical integration strategies and proposes key factors that might augment their uses within various scenarios. These represent new hypotheses and conjectures about make-or-buy decisions that require empirical testing. If the framework is valid, strategists could formulate better hybrid vertical integration strategies by recognizing the hypothesized effects of these forces on the industries that might be linked.

Strategy and the environment: A study of corporate responses to crises

Abstract: This paper describes an empirical study that examines the relationship between the type of external environment in which a firm operates and the repertoire of strategic responses the firm develops to cope with crises. The findings suggest that an executive's propensity to adopt a particular strategic posture depends on his perceptions of how well his firm can control its environment and on the costs of introducing change into the organization.

An Empirical Investigation of the Possibility of Stochastic Systematic Risk in the Market Model

Abstract: In most empirical work on the market model, the parameters of that model are estimated by ordinary least squares, effectively assuming that the systematic risk of an asset, or portfolio, is constant through time. However, a plausible alternative hypothesis would allow the systematic risk of the stock of a company to vary through time. Such variation may arise through the influence of either microeconomic factors (such as operational changes in the company, or changes in the business environment peculiar to the company), or macroeconomic factors (such as the rate of inflation, general business conditions, and expectations about relevant future events). A detailed discussion of these points is provided by Rosenberg and Guy (1976a, 1976b). Support for the hypothesis that systematic risk varies through time is provided in the studies by Jacob (1971), Blume (1975), and Fabozzi and Francis (1978). In this paper we allow the possibility that systematic risk of an asset is stochastic. In principle, an attempt to model this stochastic behavior could be made through allowing systematic risk to follow a member of the general ARIMA class of models of Box and Jenkins (1970). Ideally, the available data would be employed to suggest a specific model from this general class. However, this approach has to face very serious We discuss the market model in which the possibility is allowed that beta is stochastic and obeys a first-order autoregressive process. Following a brief discussion of methodological issues in the estimation and testing of such models, results are reported on an empirical study of a large sample of monthly returns of common stock. We find strong evidence indicating stochastic systematic risk, but relatively little evidence against the random coefficient model.

A comparison of alternative testing methodologies used in capital-market research

Abstract: Concern over the economic consequences of accounting regulation and policy decisions has stimulated a large body of empirical research which focuses on the impact of such decisions on firms' security prices.1 One feature common to these studies is that event time and calendar time are identical for all firms' securities included in the sample. Moreover, for several of these accounting policies (e.g., leasing, oil and gas accounting), there is industry concentration among the affected firms. These factors lead to cross-sectional correlations of the dependent variable of interest

Empirical Research in International Marketing: 1976–1982

Abstract: This paper reviews empirical research in international marketing published during the period 1976–82 The review focuses on what has been researched and how the research has been conducted This research is evaluated; a cooperative, multidisciplinary empirical research program in international marketing is then proposed

The Analysis of Union Behavior

Abstract: There is now a substantial body of economic research that models the behavior of labor unions as maximization of a well defined objective function. This paper presents both a selective critical survey of this literature and a preliminary consideration of some important problems that have not been addressed in the literature to date. Particular emphasis is on work that is operational in the sense that it has an empirical component or is amenable to empirical implementation. Topics surveyed include 1) the general economic modus operandi of labor unions in the U.S. economy; 2) the structure of bargaining and the efficiency of labor contracts; 3) the bargaining process as it relates to the identification of union objectives; and 4) empirical studies of union objectives. While much is learned from the existing literature, it is argued that amore general political/ economic model of union behavior is needed. This model would derive the objective function of the union in a consistent fashion from the preferences of the workers and union leaders through a well defined political process. Three important issues that are central to the development of such a model are addressed: 1) The determination of the size of the union and the rules used for the allocation of scarce union jobs;. 2) the aggregation of preferences when workers are heterogeneous; and 3) the union leadership asan entity capable of pursuing its own goals.

A critque of the stage hypothesis: theory and empirical evidence

Abstract: The stage hypothesis on the assimilation of computing technology provides one of the most popular models for describing and managing the growth of administrative information systems. Despite little formal evidence of its reliability or robustness, it has achieved a high level of acceptance among practitioners. We describe and summarize the findings of seven empirical studies conducted during the past six years that tested various hypotheses derived from this model. The accumulation of evidence from these studies casts considerable doubt on the validity of the stage hypothesis as an explanatory structure for the growth of computing in organizations.

On the behavioral and rational foundations of economic dynamics

Abstract: Existing uncertainties about the correct explanations for economic growth and business cycles cannot be settled by aggregative analysis within the neoclassical framework. Current disputes in theory rest largely on ad hoc, casually empirical, assumptions about departures from perfect rationality under uncertainty. Such disputes can only be settled by painstaking microeconomic empirical study of human decision making and problem solving. Microeconomic research of the kinds that are required can receive powerful guidance from the theories of human thinking that have been developed and tested over the past twenty five years by cognitive psychologists.

The Experimental Design of Classification Models: An Application of Recursive Partitioning and Bootstrapping to Commercial Bank Loan Classifications

Abstract: This paper examines several issues in the experimental design and empirical testing of classification models. As an illustration, we focus on the classification of commercial bank loans. We stress the importance of and the interactions among three elements: the loss function associated with classification errors, the algorithm used to discriminate among or predict classifications, and the method used to estimate the expected misclassification losses achieved by various algorithms. These aspects of the design are of particular importance when an empirical researcher must proceed without the guidance of a well-specified model of the phenomenon under investigation. We use two nonparametric, computer-intensive statistical techniques

Do federal deficits really matter

Abstract: This paper reviews competing views regarding interest rates and other economic effects of federal deficits. It discusses the findings of several empirical studies that have analyzed these relationships. The main points ofthe paper are that: (a) the con-cept of the deficit is ambiguous because not all deficits have the same economic effects, and (b) by slightly modifying existing studies, one is able to produce empirical evidence showing that deficits or debt do indeed raise interest rates and otherwise affect economic activity in ways consistent with the conven-tional view.

Multiple Business Goals Sets as Determinants of Marketing Channel Conflict: An Empirical Study:

Abstract: This study integrates concepts and ideas from various disciplines to investigate and measure relationships between conflict and sets of multiple business goals in a channel of distribution. The rel...

Teacher Evaluation: The Limits of Looking

Abstract: issue of stability and consistency of teaching, research on this topic will be reviewed. These background sec­ tions will be followed by a presen­ tation of empirical data dealing with teachers teaching different subject areas. The background material and the empirical study will then be used to support the argument that direct observation of teachers has serious limitations as an evaluation procedure, particularly because so much depends on the occasion of observation. These limitations must be acknowledged and addressed directly in teacher evaluation settings.

A Complementary/Congruence Model of Well-Being or Mental Health for the Community Elderly

Abstract: The scope of this chapter is somewhat unusual. Ordinary treatment of such a topic would be a review and theoretical exposition or a briefer exposition linked to an empirical test of a model. Instead, this chapter comprises a review and theoretical exposition, including the operationalization of cogent variables, but a test of the model is not included. Reference is made to a pilot study, but its results are to follow in later publications. Thus the chapter presents a three-quarter view. The intent is to describe how theory was used to approach a research issue and to grapple with the many problems of measurement. Deviation from a traditional approach hinged on space considerations and the importance of focusing on the processes of trying to bring various perspectives to bear upon a problem. The chapter deals with integration of the literature toward development of a conceptual model and exemplars of the types of measurement strategies that fall within the domain of that model. The first section sketches the model’s parentage and special issues that bear upon its development and briefly outlines the model. The next section describes relevant aspects of models which serve as background and resource for subsequent sections describing the attempt to integrate and build upon existing knowledge to provide a framework for studying the effects on older people of personal and environmental characteristics. They deal with model components: person, environment, person-environment congruence, mediators, and outcomes. The final section is traditional in that it points to future work.

Consumer Ethnocentrism: the Concept and a Preliminary Empirical Test

Abstract: Casual empiricism reveals considerable variability in the attitudes and behaviors of consumers toward products imported into the U.S. from other countries. Increasingly greater number of American consumers have adopted foreignmade products, but an unknown number of consumers eschew the purchase of these imported products. The specific motivations underlying either form of behavior remain a virtually unexplored phenonemon in consumer behavior. This study addresses this issue by introducing the concept of "consumer ethnocentrism" and presenting empirical evidence from a preliminary test of the concept.

An Empirical Investigation of Success Strategies for Businesses Along the Product Life Cycle

Abstract: Since the introduction of the concept of the product life cycle PLC some decades ago a great deal has been written on the subject and several empirical studies have been conducted. However, empirical research to date is often limited in scope. It is oriented towards the analysis of the growth and saturation stages and focused primarily on the study of consumer goods. Furthermore, the application of the PLC concept in strategic planning is largely disappointing, the normative orientation of most of this literature being somewhat naive and misleading. The aim of the present research is to study the efficiency of different strategies for achieving market share and cash flow objectives. This study is performed on different types of businesses producing both consumer and industrial products situated at various stages on the product life cycle: growth, maturity and decline. A sample of approximately 1,100 businesses 217 in the growth stage, 315 in the maturity stage, 569 in the decline stage is drawn from the PIMS data base. A cluster analysis is run to identify natural groups of homogeneous businesses. For each of the nine identified groups, linear regression models are estimated to study the influence of strategic actions-finance, marketings, production, R&D, personnel-on two criteria of performance: market share and cash flow. The research indicates that strategies not only depend on the life cycle stage but also are influenced by the goal orientation of the firm-short-term cash-flow or long-term market share-and that success strategies appear to be contingent upon the business and the environmental characteristics.

The Police Stress Hypothesis: A Critical Evaluation

Abstract: Much attention has been given to the topic of occupational stress among law enforcement professionals during the last decade. Yet, while the number of papers addressing this topic appear with increasing regularity in the law enforcement literature, the basic assumptions underlying the concept of police stress appear to have been ignored or accepted as fact in the absence of sound empirical support. This article represents an attempt to (1) identify the assumptions that underly the concept of police stress, (2) review the empirical evidence related to these assumptions, and (3) offer an alternative paradigm designed to guide future research on police stress.

Organization Size and Information System Use: An Empirical Study

Abstract: :Organization size has often been viewed as a predictor of the adoption of administrative innovations, including computerization or information system use Increasing size is said either to necessitate IS use (to solve communications and integration problems which arise from increasing size) or at least to facilitate such use (by providing greater opportunity to achieve benefits through computerization) To investigate this relationship, IS use (as measured by expenditures for computing) as a function of various measures of organization size is studied for sixty-six units of the National Forest System The results are not in accordance with theory or previously reported studies—little significant relationship is found between size and IS use Possible explanations of these results include differing levels of IS advocacy among individuals on the staffs of the units studied

A New View of the Market Structure--Performance Debate

Abstract: ion typically considered in market structure-performance studies, data on cross sections of firms or industries are unlikely to be sufficiently 2 The question of data selection has been discussed fairly thoroughly by Weiss [44] and Demsetz [I 5] among others, although there appears to be little agreement on the direction of bias in the most commonly used samples. The question of exogeneity has been less thoroughly discussed, although in specific instances (e.g., Schmalensee [37], Martin [27]) it has been dealt with explicitly. This content downloaded from 157.55.39.35 on Sat, 03 Sep 2016 05:57:53 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 400 JAMES L. BOTHWELL, THOMAS F. COOLEY AND THOMAS E. HALL informative to make such empirical analysis useful. It may, therefore, be more productive to return to industry specific analysis. There will undoubtedly be some who are unconvinced by this argument and for them we offer the observation that further empirical studies based on weak deductive foundations are likely to be convincing only to the extent that they account explicitly for the role of prior beliefs and specification uncertainty. II. DETERMINANTS OF PROFITABILITY The conventional market structure conduct-performance paradigm has guided vast amounts of empirical research in the field of industrial organization for the past three decades. Like empirical research in other areas of economics, the maintained hypotheses that are considered reflect to a large extent the prior beliefs of the researchers. The result is that there is always a suspicion that what is being engaged in is more advocacy than objective empirical analysis. In the market structure-performance literature, the most important, alternative prior beliefs (maintained hypotheses) appear to fall into six categories which we characterize as follows: I. Seller concentration explains profits. High rates of return are thought to be caused by monopoly power conferred by high degrees of seller concentration. This is the basic collusion specification of Bain [I]. 2. Seller concentration and entry barriers explain profits. High rates of return are thought to reflect monopoly power resulting from both high seller concentration and high barriers to entry. This prior comes from the traditional market structure-performance paradigm of industrial organization and accounts for the peristence of collusive gains. It is prevalent in the work of Mann [26], Weiss [45, 46], Comanor and Wilson [I I], Qualls [34 [1j35] and many other researchers. 3. Absolute or relative firm size explain profits. This prior reflects the Demsetz [i4], [I5] and Peltzman [133] notion that high rates of return result from superior firm efficiency or innovativeness, and not from oligopolistic collusion and joint profit maximization. This prior has also been adopted by others (e.g., Shepherd [39], Gale [I7]) who assume that high market shares indicate high barriers to entry. 4. Risk differentials explain profitability differences. This reflects the notion that high rates of return reflect neither monopoly power nor superior efficiency, but the payment of positive risk premiums to risk averse investors. It underlies much of the work of Stigler [4I], Fisher and Hall [i6], Cootner and Holland [I3], and many others. There are, however, considerable differences in beliefs about which measure of risk variability of return over time, financial leverage, or nondiversifiable risk is relevant. This content downloaded from 157.55.39.35 on Sat, 03 Sep 2016 05:57:53 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms THE MARKET STRUCTURE PERFORMANCE DEBATE 40I 5. Advertising intensity explains profits. This reflects the notion of Bloch [4] and others that differences in reported accounting profit rates result from differences in the amounts of omitted, intangible capital resulting from advertising expenditures. Because advertising is assumed by some to be a source of product differentiation, this prior also may reflect the belief that the extent of product differentiation is a major determinant of profitability (Comanor [i o], Schmalensee [13 7). 6. Growth explains profits. This reflects Brozen's [6], [7] disequilibrium hypothesis that profitability differences result not from monopoly power, but from adjustments in capacity lagging behind changes in demand. Given a particular maintained hypothesis about the most important determinant of profitability, there remains uncertainty about the rest of the specification of the model. If the results are not robust with respect to uncertainty about the conditioning set of variables then it cannot be concluded that the data are very informative about the hypothesis in question. The next section discusses the methodology used to determine whether the results are robust to such specification uncertainty. III. SPECIFICATION UNCERTAINTY The hypotheses discussed in the previous section all specify the primary determinants of profitability. In each case, however, the investigator must have in mind a set of possible conditioning variables that may or may not belong in the regression. Although uncertainty about the inclusion or exclusion of such variables is not often explicitly acknowledged, it is an inevitable and important aspect of virtually all empirical investigations. The primary concern for the problem at hand is the extent to which this specification uncertainty leads to uncertainty in the estimated parameters of primary interest. Consider the regression model

Control Criticisms of Strain Theories: An Assessment of Theoretical and Empirical Adequacy

Abstract: Strain theories have been subjected to a number of theoretical and empirical criticisms, resulting in a decline in strain-oriented research. A review of those criticisms finds that theoretical objections are largely self-contradictory, and empirical studies that focus on seriously delinquent populations provide considerable support. Separate causal processes may be at work in basically nondelinquent but somewhat “wild” youths.

Clinical uncertainty: is it a problem in the doctor-patient relationship?

Abstract: There has been little consideration of the implications of clinical uncertainty about diagnosis, prognosis and treatment although these uncertainties might represent a real threat to professional autonomy. This paper, using evidence from a range of empirical studies, examines whether in the everyday practice of medicine clinical uncertainty is a real threat to professional autonomy. The evidence suggests that only rarely does clinical uncertainty present management problems for the doctor. The evidence also suggests that the image of the patient being duped by medical or bourgeois ideology, as presented in the work of some macro theorists, is inaccurate.

Research on Structured Programming: An Empiricist's Evaluation

Abstract: In spite of the widespread acceptance by academics and practitioners of structured programming precepts, relatively few formal empirical studies have been conducted to obtain evidence that either supports or refutes the theory This paper reviews the empirical studies that have been undertaken and critiques them from the viewpoints of the soundness of their methodology and their ability to contribute to scientific understanding In general, the evidence supporting programming precepts is weak A framework for an ongoing research program is outlined

The measurement of leisure: a quality of life issue

Abstract: If leisure is seen as a significant aspect of the overall quality of life, it is important to develop a technique for measuring leisure which takes into account the essential subjective nature of the leisure experience. In this paper data are presented which illustrate the problems associated with activity-type operational definitions of leisure. Such definitions are seen to ignore individual and situational differences and to assume that leisure can be measured objectively. An alternative technique for defining and measuring leisure is proposed based on empirical research which shows perceived freedom of choice, enjoyment and other perceptual dimensions to be closely associated with the leisure experience. This proposed technique requires further testing on different population groups, but it potentially represents a method of measuring leisure which is both reliable and valid.