Psychological ownership as a crisis management advertising appeal – antecedents,outcomes, and moderators

In a crisis communication context, this work examines the impact of Psychological Ownership (PO) appeals on Ad message recipients’ development of feelings of PO. It demonstrates that increased levels of PO influence the managerially relevant outcomes attitude toward the company and purchase intentions. In doing so, it finds new application for the construct. In order to better understand the factors that may contribute to or mitigate PO, this research also investigates environmental consciousness as an additional antecedent and gender, persuasion knowledge, and geographic distance as moderators of individuals’ response to such appeals. Managerial and theoretical implications are discussed.     

Economic slowdowns,hazard rates and foreign ownership

This paper evaluates the link between foreign ownership and firm exit during crises, using a longitudinal micro dataset over an 18-year period. We address two main questions: first, if foreign affiliates have different failure rates than domestic firms during economic downturns, and second if the foreignness effect differs between two different economic downturns. The results partially confirm the liability of foreignness argument, suggesting that when the crisis was more pronounced at home than abroad, the differences in hazard rates between foreign and domestic firms reduce. The footloose argument is also only partially confirmed. For policy makers, our results on survival dynamics during crises are not against policies stimulating inward investment. There is no need to fear that foreign firms destabilize more than usual the host economy during economic slowdowns by immediately closing down operations.     

Understanding employee preferences for investing in employer stock: evidence from France

In this article, we broaden the focus of existing research on employee stock purchase plans by analysing employee preferences for investing in employer stock as a construct distinct from actual investment behaviour. In our analysis of original survey data in a sample of 900 employees in four French companies, we find that employee preferences are influenced by two common cognitive heuristics (representativeness and familiarity), organisational commitment, the perceived quality of corporate communications about these plans and perceived managerial commitment to employee ownership. We did not find, however, that risk aversion, turnover intentions or perceived employee involvement in decision making influenced preferences for investing in employer stock. Our findings have both theoretical and practical implications for understanding and operating these types of employee benefit plans, which are becoming more common across the globe.     

The Variegated Financialization of Housing

There is a small but growing literature on the financialization of housing that demonstrates how housing is a central aspect of financialization. Despite the varied analyses of the financialization of housing and the importance of housing to financialization, the relations between housing and financialization remain under‐researched and under‐theorized. The financialization of housing is not really a specific form of financialization, transcending as it does a number of different forms of financialization. Housing systems, in particular, vary widely across the globe, which implies that housing financialization will be inherently variegated, path‐dependent and uneven. In this introduction to the symposium, I will discuss how the articles to follow contribute to the literature on the financialization of housing. Housing has entered a post‐Fordist, neoliberal and financialized regime. Increasingly, both mortgaged homeownership and subsidized rental housing are there to keep financial markets going, rather than being facilitated by those markets. There is little evidence that the global financial crisis has resulted in any de‐financialization of housing. There are common trajectories within uneven and variegated financialization, rather than radically different and completely unrelated forms of housing financialization.     

Effects of Ownership Structure on Capital Structure of Indian Listed Firms: Role of Business Groups vis-à-vis Stand-Alone Firms

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between promoter ownership and capital structure of firms’ using a sample of Indian publicly listed firms for the period from 2006 to 2013. We find that the relationship between promoter ownership and leverage is inversely U-shaped in group-affiliated firms, whereas in stand-alone firms there is a U-shaped relationship. We argue that a substantial presence of family owners and the selection of managers from within the family play some role for such relationship in group-affiliated firms. On the other hand, the argument for observed relationship in stand-alone firms follows from alignment hypothesis, entrenchment hypothesis, managerial risk aversion hypothesis, and active monitoring hypothesis.     

HOLDINGS OF NATIONAL AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN COMPANIES IN FINLAND: PERSISTENCE AND CHANGE IN THE LONGER TERM

Applying an approach of neo‐institutional research, this article examines the history of company holdings of the national government and local governments in Finland in the longer term. The article examines the genealogy of the institutional forms of these holdings, the diffusion, adoption and adaptation of these forms, and the political legitimacy of new forms and the political de‐legitimation of earlier forms. For theory, the results indicate that the individual tailoring of institutional forms offers flexibility but increases complexity. For practice, the results suggest that the company form may too easily marginalize alternative institutional forms such as co‐operatives, associations, and foundations.     

The role of family management and ownership on semi-globalization pattern of globalization: The case of family business groups

Employing a multi-level with longitudinal concern data analysis this research examines the impact from family management and ownership on semi-globalization pattern of globalization in family business groups from an integrated framework. The results reveal that the more likelihood that the controlling family utilize family management in the subsidiary, and the higher degree of pyramidal ownership in the subsidiary, the more likelihood that the family business group will choose to engage in the host regions. Additionally, family management and pyramidal ownership is positively related with the choice to engage in a higher difference region instead of a lower difference region in family business groups. The theoretical and future research implications of these findings for family enterprises and globalization research are discussed.     

Family firm succession and performance

We analyse more than half a million businesses from the Census Bureau’s 2007 Survey of Business Owners with less survivorship and size biases. After controlling for firm- and owner-specific characteristics, we find family businesses generate fewer receipts and less employment and payroll. Family businesses involving a second-generation owner-manager show better performance. On the other hand, those managed by founder-owners show worse performance. These results of all firms, mostly small businesses, are contrary to the previous studies of large public firms. However, for a subsample of 2064 businesses large enough to be listed on a US stock exchange, the results become consistent with the previous large-firm studies.     

Going green,going clean: Lean‐green sustainability strategy and firm growth

Despite the widespread recognition of the paybacks of “going green” and “going clean,” limited research has focused on the impact of lean‐green strategy on firm growth. In this study, we contribute to strategy and environmental sustainability literatures by investigating the possibility that the influence on lean‐green strategy and firm growth is driven by different levels of industry competition, managerial power, and family ties. Using panel data from 732 firms in four major industrialized economies (the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom), we found that lean‐green strategy positively relates to firm growth and this relationship is amplified at higher levels of competition, managerial power, and family ties. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are also discussed.     

Pains and gains of environmental management system certification for the sustainable development of manufacturing companies: Heterogeneous effects of industry peer learning

Environmental sustainability is a growing global concern. Environmental management systems (EMS) could be an effective strategic tool to help firms deal with their sustainable development. However, whether EMS certification pays off financially and how it takes effect can be debated. Thus far, these questions remain largely under‐researched. In particular, the effects of EMS certification on financial performance are inconclusive, and the reasons explaining the effects are underdeveloped. This study aims to enrich the current research by exploring the mediating and moderating roles from the perspective of cost‐efficiency trade‐offs to reveal how EMS certification affects financial performance. Applying a PROCESS procedure analysis and causal mediation analysis to a sample of 1,751 Chinese listed manufacturing firms from 2008 to 2016, this study shows that the effect of EMS certification on firms' financial performance is insignificant because their operating costs burden increases while their marketing efficiency and managerial efficiency improve. For the first time, this study demonstrates the moderating role of industry peer learning, as the mediating effects decrease with the growth of industry peer learning.