Business ethics cases and decision models: A call for relevancy in the classroom

Classroom cases and decision making models used in the teaching of business ethics may be inconsistent with the actual needs of practicing manager students. Three summary cases written by practicing manager students are included in this paper as well as evidence that concerns a focus more on interpersonal dilemmas rather than top management decisions. As well, the relevancy of philosophical perspectives of ethical decision models is questioned. More practical, hands-on models for ethical decisions are provided. Finally, conclusions of relevancy for the field are drawn.David L. Mathison is an Associate Professor of Management at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. He teaches primary management, policy and business ethics. His research and writing reflects a diversity of interests which include business ethics, women in management, and perception studies as they relate to assessment interviewing.     

Moderator variables in consumer research: A call for caution

Consumer-related studies comprise to an increasing extent moderator variables, presumably because researchers have become convinced by scholars who over the years have argued that moderators can produce a more complete understanding of theoretical phenomena and can provide practitioners with higher levels of precision. However, many studies with moderators are characterized by imperfections. To improve the state of the art, this study presents a selection of such imperfections and offers recommendations for researchers who consider including moderator variables in their projects.     

The new generation of millennial entrepreneurs: A review and call for research

Entering the third decade of the new millennium, the millennial generation is stepping into their most productive stage of life. We have witnessed a number of exemplary millennial entrepreneurs, such as Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook. The world’s economy is evolving fast and presenting distinct entrepreneurial opportunities to millennials across the globe. It is critical that scholars of international entrepreneurship explore the new breed of millennial entrepreneurs and contrast them across generations and countries. Regrettably, the extant literature comes up short in fully addressing the new generation of entrepreneurs. We call for immediate scholarly attention on millennial entrepreneurs as they are in substantive ways unlike all earlier generations. We urge researchers to explore the unique characteristics of millennial entrepreneurs, their influence on entrepreneurial motivation, orientation, opportunity discovery and exploitation process, and the global ambition of their entrepreneurial ventures.     

New insights into venture capitalists' activity: IPO and time-to-exit forecast as antecedents of their post-investment involvement

We examine how VCFs' forecast of an IPO exit affects their breadth of advising and the likelihood of founder–CEO replacement shortly after they invest in a new venture. Moreover, we examine how the expected time-to-exit moderates these relationships. Our findings show that the likelihood of founder–CEO replacement upon receiving venture capital funding is significantly greater if a VCF perceives this company as a potential IPO as opposed to a trade sale, and this likelihood increases if the forecasted time-to-exit is short. We also illustrate how the breadth of advice varies as a function of the forecasted IPO and time-to-exit.     

The perceived utility of information presented via electronic decision aids: A consumer perspective

Recent advancements in electronic technology have made possible a viable alternative information delivery system in the form of Electronic Decision Aids (EDAs). However, consumers will only benefit from such technological innovations if they are perceived to be useful in facilitating the decision making process. The current study investigates the effects of type of EDA format (autonomous versus dominant) and provision of educational information on the perceived utility of information presented via an electronic decision aid. In addition, the relationships between these two dimensions and specific consumer characteristics, including product familiarity, computer familiarity, and locus of control, as well as product type (search versus experience goods) are systematically identified and evaluated. Results suggest that selection of an appropriate format depends upon the nature of the product being selected, while inclusion of educational information enhances perceived utility of the information in selecting both types of products.

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Der wahrgenommene Nutzen von Informationen, die durch elektronische Entscheidungshilfen bereitgestellt werden: eine Verbraucherperspektive

Zusammenfassung Elektronische Entscheidungshilfen in Einzelhandelsgeschäften sind eine neuartige Form der produktbezogenen Verbraucherinformation, die durch neuere technologische Entwicklungen ermöglicht wurde. Ob diese Innovation bei Konsumenten Erfolg haben wird, dürfte wesentlich davon abhängen, wie nützlich sie für den Kaufentscheidungsprozess eingeschätzt wird.Der Beitrag berichtet über eine empirische Studie darüber, wie diese wahrgenommene Nützlichkeit abhängig ist von der Informationsform (unterschieden danach, ob der sich informierende Verbraucher den Informationsvorgang eigenständig kontrollieren und gestalten kann oder nicht) und davon, ob die Information auch Bestandteile umfasst, die die generelle Produktkenntnis erhöhen und dadurch zusätzliche aufklärende Wirkung erzielen können, oder nicht. Ausserdem wurde der Einfluss der Produktart sowie der Produktvertrautheit des Konsumenten und seiner Vertrautheit mit dem Computer analysiert. Die Ergebnisse wurden in Laboruntersuchungen gewonnen, bei denen es um die Wahl eines Fotoapparates und um die Wahl eines Arztes ging.Es zeigt sich, dass es von der Produktart abhängig ist, welche der beiden Informationsformen zweckmässiger ist, wogegen durchgängig gilt, dass zusätzliche aufklärende Informationsbestandteile die wahrgenommene Nützlichkeit von Informationen erhoehen.

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Donna J. Hill is Associate Professor of Marketing, Bradley University, Peoria, IL 61625, USA. Maryon F. King is Assistant Professor of Marketing, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 62901, USA. Eli Cohen is Associate Professor and Head. Computer Information Systems. College of Business. Eastern New Mexico University, Portales. NM 88130, USA.     

基于Q-Learning的多功能雷达认知干扰决策方法

针对多功能雷达和认知电子战的快速发展所导致传统干扰决策方法难以适应现代化战争的问题,提出了一种基于Q-Learning的多功能雷达认知干扰决策方法。通过对比认知思想和干扰决策原理,将Q-Learning运用于认知干扰决策中并提出了认知干扰决策的算法步骤。以某多功能雷达为基础,通过分析其工作状态及对应干扰样式构建雷达状态转移图,通过仿真试验分析了各参数对决策性能的影响,为应对实际战场提供参考。仿真了在新状态加入下的决策过程、实际战场中转移概率对决策路径的影响以及四种主要干扰决策方法的决策性能对比。试验表明,该方法能够通过自主学习干扰效果完成干扰决策,更加贴合实际战场,对认知电子战的发展有一定的借鉴意义。     

Behavioral research and empirical modeling of marketing channels: Implications for both fields and a call for future research

Game theoretic models of marketing channels typically rely on simplifying assumptions that, from a behavioral perspective, often appear naïve. However, behavioral researchers have produced such an abundance of behavioral regularities that they are impossible to incorporate into game theoretic models. We believe that a focus on three core findings would benefit both fields; these are: first, beliefs that are held by the various players regarding profit consequences of different actions are incomplete and often biased; second, players’ preferences and optimization objectives are not commonly known; and third, players have insufficient cognitive abilities to achieve optimization objectives. Embracing these three findings shifts the focus from rational decision making to how decision makers learn to improve their decision-making skills. Concluding, we believe that greater convergence of game theoretic modeling and behavioral research in marketing channels would lead to new insights for both fields.     

Strategic decision making within Chinese firms: The effects of cognitive diversity and trust on decision outcomes

Basing the hypotheses on group process theory, the effects of cognitive diversity on commitment and decision quality were examined, as well as the moderating effects of cognition-based and affect-based trust on cognitive diversity and decision outcomes. Using a survey of 252 Mainland Chinese executives from different firms, it was found that cognitive diversity has a strong negative relationship with commitment and decision quality. In addition, results show that affect-based and cognition-based trust have moderating effects on cognitive diversity and decision outcomes.     

The potential implications of web‐based marketing communications for consumers' implicit and explicit brand attitudes: A call for research

Two developments in the last two decades frame the importance of Web‐based marketing communications for firms. First is the phenomenal growth of the Internet as a viable commerce and communication option and second is the clear shift in attitude research toward recognizing the pervasive role of automatic processes in almost all the social psychological processes. Therefore, this article discusses the potential implications of Web‐based marketing communications for consumers' implicit and explicit attitudes. In doing so, first, this article reviews the emergence of research on implicit attitudes, distinguishes implicit attitudes from explicit attitudes, and discusses research on explicit and implicit attitudes relative to branding. Second, a brief discussion of marketing research on attitude is provided. Third, five empirically testable research propositions are developed and presented. Finally, given the potential implications for research and practice, the article concludes with a call for research. ©2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Don't call us,we'll call you: Considering cognitive and physical effort in designing effective response systems to manage extended in-process wait

People must often wait for days or weeks to receive test results, price quotes, products, etc. Service providers may manage user experience during such in-process waits using notification systems that inform users when a response is available or inquiry systems that require users to inquire about response availability, thereby imposing prospective memory requirements on users. Based on the prospective memory and wait time literature, we make predictions regarding how response system (notification vs. inquiry) moderates the effects of waits that are shorter or longer than the provider promised on user evaluation of the wait. We find that users of a notification system evaluate a wait more positively and are less sensitive to deviations of actual from promised wait time than are users of an inquiry system. This advantage was more pronounced for a wait that was longer (vs. shorter) than promised. These effects of system and expectation on evaluation were fully mediated by their impact on the cognitive and physical effort of navigating the system. Finally, a week after having experienced a wait, users of an inquiry system who had waited longer (vs. shorter) than promised cooperated less on a follow-up task, highlighting another downside of using an inquiry system.     

Internationalizing doctoral education in business: A call for action

The changing parameters of business call into question the relevance of the business education our current bachelor's, master's, and doctoral students are receiving. Of particular concern is the content and process of education provided to future professors who will be educating generations to lead the global business community in directions that will mean better lives for ourselves and our world neighbors. Recently, a forum of leading business educators (doctoral program directors, deans, graduate faculty, and representatives of the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business and the Academy of International Business) met for two days in order to exchange experiences and generate ideas regarding the internationalization of doctoral programs in business. Their findings and views are contained in a book just published and a summary report. This article sums up some of the conclusions drawn from these publications and revisits the imperatives for internationalizing-which parallel the imperatives driving business to accept the global challenge. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Joint Venture Formation and Internationalization: A Japanese MNEs' Perspective

This article examines relationships among top-management-team composition, group processes, and the effects of those processes on cohesion for international joint venture teams in Thailand. For culturally diverse teams, demographic elements (member age, length of team tenure, level of education, functional expertise) and cultural characteristics (country of education, nationality, affiliation with a parent organization, primary language spoken) define heterogeneity. Overall, demographic heterogeneity had a significant influence on openness among team members and on cohesion when mediated by openness. Cultural heterogeneity had a significant influence on openness and cohesion among team members, with loyalty and openness having a significant influence on cohesion.     

The neglected state of organizational-level turnover studies in the Chinese context: a call for research

In this essay, the authors discuss the neglected state of organizational-level turnover research in the Chinese context. They provide a brief overview of the importance of turnover research in the organizational sciences, highlight the role of performance-related turnover rates research, and outline general theories and findings that appear in the Western and English-language literature. This evidence is compared with a dearth of studies using samples of Chinese organizations and in Chinese-language journals. They conclude by calling for additional theory and empirical studies on turnover rates.     

Internationalization of Western Venture Capitalists into Emerging Markets: Risk Assessment and Information in India

This paper provides the first analysis of the internationalization of venture capital firms through an examination of risk assessment and information usage by firms in India. Personal interviews were conducted with executives in 31 (84%) of the active venture capital firms. The paper extends previous research by comparing perceptions of the behavior of domestic venture capital firms in India, foreign (primarily U.S.) venture capital firms in India and U.S. venture capital firms in their domestic markets. Foreign firms in India place significantly greater emphasis on product market factors and accountants' reports than domestic firms in India. They place significantly less emphasis on financial contributions of management in assessing risk and own due diligence and information from entrepreneurs than do U.S. firms in their domestic market. They make more use of information from trade publications and relating to production capacity and technology and information from accountants' reports than do domestic venture capital firms in India. The evidence is consistent with venture capital firms adapting to local market conditions rather than implementing "recipes" from their domestic markets.     

Ethical principles for decision makers: A longitudinal survey

This paper is based on a five-year study of the ethical principles considered by executives, middle managers, and students as appropriate guidelines for making decisions. Out of the fourteen principles surveyed, nine seem to be standards that can be applied with no further thought or research required by the decision maker. The other six principles may suggest decisions makers need clearer guidelines as to what to do or what not to do when faced with an ethical dilemma that exists outside defined systems of corporate ethics. Phillip V. Lewis is Chairman and the Duniven Professor of Management in the Department of Management Sciences at Abilene Christian University. Dr. Lewis' most recent book is Organizational Communication: The Essence of Effective Management (Wiley, 1987). He is the author of Defining Business Ethics: Like Nailing Jello to A Wall (JBE October 1985).     

Celebrity influences on consumer decision making: new insights and research directions

ABSTRACT

Throughout human history, people have expressed admiration for heroes who possessed extraordinary abilities and achieved superhuman goals. For many, modern-day celebrities fulfil this role and are prominent in various marketing communications activities. This paper addresses the literature review gaps and provides an in-depth review of the psychological and social psychological perspectives which are relevant to the celebrity endorsement literature. The contributions of this paper consist of a detailed analysis of important types of consumer-celebrity relationships, key emotional drivers (e.g. envy and admiration) of celebrity influence and the development of an original conceptual model. The conceptual model pulls together the past research and identifies new research gaps, which synthesises different research perspectives and provides a sound theoretical basis guiding future researchers and marketing managers.     

DESIGNOR: A decision support procedure for industrial product design

This paper presents a model-based methodology called DESIGNOR to support design decisions for new industrial products. Models and measurements are developed to assess the relationship between product features and market potential. The methodology incorporates a measurement survey for model calibration and leads to empirical tradeoff curves between design dimensions. The approach handles discrete as well as continuous features and can be incorporated into a procedure aimed at finding a profit maximizing design. It can be used to support decisions concerning product design as well as for product line expansion. The approach provides a consistent way of evaluating market potential for new industrial products and presents important advantages over other product design methodologies.     

The new product process: A decision guide for management

This paper presents some of the findings of the latest study in the Project NewProd research series. It attempts to bridge the research‐versus‐practice gap by giving some advice on putting the findings into practice. The study looks at the characteristics of new research projects in an attempt to uncover what separates winners from losers. This paper takes the key findings from the research study and formulates them into a guide for systematic new product development, giving a practical aid to those involved in the new product development process.