A Cross-Cultural Study of Ethics: The United States,Romania, Poland,and the Czech Republic

Global expansion of business into areas defined by different cultural and national environments creates the need for companies to better understand the impact of culture on business operations. Of particular importance is the role country of residence plays. Researchers argue that many cultural differences are malleable, capable of shifting to fit the corporate culture of an organization. However, additional research aimed at identifying different countries’ cultural values is needed. This paper presents the results of a multi-national survey of business students identifying differences in cultural perceptions of ethical behaviors. Differences in personal versus social decision making are discussed.     

Preparing undergraduate students for the Major Field Test in Business

Many business programs address the learning of undergraduate students with an exit exam. A reference librarian and the business school faculty created an online test preparation study guide (or LibGuide) which included no-cost resources that were readily available yet academically authoritative to aid students in studying for the Educational Testing Service Major Field Test in Business at an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business–accredited college in northwest Georgia. The findings indicated that while some graduating business seniors did use the LibGuide materials, many were overwhelmed with the amount of material available and believed studying would not be beneficial to their performance on the exit exam. Discussion and areas for future research are presented.     

Using survival modeling for turn-time predictions in foodservice settings

Within the competitive foodservice industry, the ability to accurately measure the meal process known as turn-time is critical to the success of the firms in the industry. This is traditionally done through linear techniques such as multiple least squares (aka linear regression) or analysis of variance (ANOVA). However, linear techniques have theoretical properties that can potentially lead to bias in measurements of time duration variables, while survival models were designed for that purpose. This study utilized simulated data of a dine-in restaurant to test and compare the ability of linear regression to five survival models (proportional hazard models) for predicting the duration of turn-time. The results from the simulated trials show that while some of the survival models held incremental improvements, linear regression performed adequately for predicting the duration of turn-time even when taking the biased predictions into account. For operators who are in their infancy of developing restaurant revenue management systems, linear regression is recommended due to the practical ease of the models. On the other hand, operators who have well-established restaurant revenue management systems interested in incremental improvements should opt for survival models in predicting turn-time.     

A dynamic market conceptualization for entrepreneurial marketing: the co-creation of opportunities

The entrepreneurial marketing domain should consider opportunity co-creation as a foundational construct for advancing the discipline. This paper integrates emerging views in entrepreneurship with an evolving, service-dominant logic of marketing to develop a market conceptualization for exploring uncertainty in dynamic social and economic environments. With this market conceptualization, opportunities are continually co-created through the development and communication of value propositions, the derivation and determination of value, and the (re)formation of markets. Emerging research around the process of opportunity co-creation is used to create an initial definition and theoretical considerations.     

Estimation of a simultaneous equations model with an ordinal endogenous variable: The extent of teacher bargaining and the state legal environment

This paper presents a simple two-step estimator for a simultaneous equations model that contains an ordinal endogenous variable. The estimation rules are extensions of the Heckman (1978) estimators, also considered by Amemiya (1978). Asymptotic covariance matrices of the estimators also are derived. The estimator is applied to an economic model in which the statewide extent of teacher bargaining and teacherbargaining legislation are determined jointly.     

Reconceptualizing entrepreneurial exit: Divergent exit routes and their drivers

We develop a conceptual model of entrepreneurial exit which includes exit through liquidation and firm sale for both firms in financial distress and firms performing well. This represents four distinct exit routes. In developing the model, we complement the prevailing theoretical framework of exit as a utility-maximizing problem among entrepreneurs with prospect theory and its recent applications in liquidation of investment decisions. We empirically test the model using two Swedish databases which follow 1,735 new ventures and their founders over eight years. We find that entrepreneurs exit from both firms in financial distress and firms performing well. In addition, commonly examined human capital factors (entrepreneurial experience, age, education) and failure-avoidance strategies (outside job, reinvestment) differ substantially across the four exit routes, explaining some of the discrepancies in earlier studies.     

Welfare Payments and the Spread of HIV in the United States

Clarke and Strauss (1998), among others, have determined that the magnitude of financial transfers to unwed mothers is positively related to out-of-wedlock fertility rates. Increases in fertility rates must be accompanied by increases in unprotected sex, and unprotected sex allows for the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. We hypothesize that states with relatively greater welfare payments under the old Aid to Families with Dependant Children (AFDC) program are associated with higher rates of heterosexually contracted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Using data for 26 reporting states from 1993 to 1996, our weighted instrumental variables estimates with clustered standard errors are consistent with our hypothesis. (JEL D1 , I38 )     

Presidential Address Agricultural Subsidies: Measurement and Use in Policy Evaluation

“There is no art which one government sooner learns of another than that of draining money from the pockets of the people.’ (Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, 1776)