Managers can drive their subordinates mad

This article explores the phenomenon of "folie à deux"--an aberrant relationship between manager and subordinates that is characterized by shared delusions. Though most visible among public figures like Adolf Hitler, J. Edgar Hoover and Jim Jones, the problem also surfaces among private managers and their associates with dangerous implications for the firm. In folie à deux, the unusual behavior patterns of a manager in an isolated setting become mirrored by dependent subordinates, and the organization loses touch with its original goals and strategies. The author describes the dynamics of this phenomenon and details steps to remedy the situation. Once recognized, he suggests that the manager establish a trusting relationship with the instigator as a prelude to altering the behavior patterns, then transfer the subordinates and reorient the work climate so that independence and responsibility are encouraged. If the instigator is a powerful executive, the author suggests enlisting the support of a countervailing force, such as the government or a union, to guide the organization away from possible self-destructive adventures.     

On the (nonlinear) relationship between exchange rate uncertainty and trade — An investigation of US trade figures in the group of seven

In this paper bilateral models formalizing monthly growth of US imports and exports are employed to investigate the potential of nonlinear relationships linking exchange rate uncertainty and trade growth. Parametric linear and nonlinear as well as semiparametric time series models are evaluated in terms of fitting and ex ante forecasting. The overall impact of exchange rate variations on trade growth is found to be weak. In periods of large exchange rate variations, trade growth forecasts gain from conditioning on volatility. Empirical results support the view that the relationship of interest might be non-linear and, moreover, lacks homogeneity across countries and imports vs. exports. JEL no. C14, C22, F31, F41     

领先财富管理的运营思路——BCG中国财富管理市场研究报告摘要

波士顿咨询公司(BCG)发布的有关中国财富管理市场的最新报告探讨了在中国建立领先的财富管理业务的关键因素.BCG授权本刊撷取其精要,希望能给予致力于提升中国财富管理水平的机构和理财从业人员有益的启示.     

Wage rigidity and capital mobility in an optimizing model of a small open economy

Summary This paper formulates an optimizing model of a small open economy with a representative (immortal) household, a firm and a government. The asset menu consists of domestic currency, non-traded bonds and traded bonds. There is a risk premium on traded bonds, which leads to deviations from perfect capital mobility and uncovered interest parity. Taxes are lump-sum, so that finance by bonds and by taxation are equivalent. The model allows for current-account and wealth dynamics. The model assumes either purchasing power parity or imperfect substitution between home and foreign goods and either labour market equilibrium, nominal wage rigidity or real wage rigidity. The steady-state effects of a fiscal contraction, a monetary disinflation and an increase in the world interest rate are discussed. The transient effects of these policies are analysed with the aid of a multiple shooting algorithm.We thank Gerard Staarink for implementing the multiple shooting algorithm used in section 4 and we thank Professors M. Fase and J. Pen for their constructive comments on a previous version of this paper. The paper is a shortened version of discussion paper No. 168 of the Centre for Economic Policy Research, London.     

Sense and sensibility: Testing an attention-based view of organizational responses to social issues

According to attention-based theories, to explain organizational attention is to explain organizational behavior. In our study, we test the model of situated attention and firm behavior by examining the effects of attention structures and allocation of attention on organizational outcomes. We hypothesize a positive relationship between attention structures and the allocation of organizational attention that, in turn, has an effect on financial performance. Using a unique data set composed of indicators of social responsibility published by 338 Brazilian organizations between 2001 and 2007, we find support for our hypotheses. Our findings suggest that organizational attention to social issues fully mediates the relationship between attention structures and financial performance.     

A tale of two civilizations in the era of Facebook and blockchain

Five billion people in the world do not have the kind of ledgers that provide the documented information that allows them to transfer, partition, and aggregate assets and talents in such a way that they can be scaled up, secure investment, guarantee credit, certify reputation, and capture abstract surplus value. The difficulty that most people have in making combinations is a major cause of global inequality and unnecessary poverty.     

Toward a Comprehensive Framework of Study Abroad Intentions and Behaviors

Increased activity by U.S. students to study abroad has invited several studies that have investigated the reasons for U.S. students to study abroad. Literature in the context of study abroad choices has been fragmented, with each study presenting an ad-hoc set of factors the author/s deem as important or that have been shown to be important in previous literature. However, no study to date has attempted to identify a theoretical framework that explains why these factors should be important in explaining the intention to participate in a study abroad program. In this study, we use the theoretical background of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and trait theory to unify the existing body of literature and arrive at a model that predicts study abroad intentions. We test this model by means of a survey administered in a U.S. university.     

Frühreha nach Apoplex: Je früher desto besser

Herausforderung an ein multidisziplin?res Team – Um m?glichst gro?e Erfolge zu erzielen, muss die Frührehabilitation nach einem Schlaganfall bereits auf der Stroke Unit beginnen. Sabine Kemmler schildert die gro?e Herausforderung an die Versorgung von Schlaganfall-Patienten für Pflegekr?fte.