Symposium. Effects of affect and traits in U.S. presidential candidates. Leadership quality and follower affect. Role of measurement error in assessing qualities of presidential candidates. The authors respond. Perception is reality—in the minds of the voters: An interview with David Albritton

In the Winter, 2008 issue of JLS, authors David Albritton, Sharon Oswald, and Joseph Anderson presented their research regarding the relationship between perceived leader traits of U.S. presidential contenders and both voter‐perceived leadership quality and behavior. The Abstract from that article serves as an introduction for the three responses from Appa Rao Korukonda, C. Dean Pielstick, and Brian Sloboda. To further enhance the discussion, Albritton, Oswald, and Anderson revisit their work. An interview conducted by Allan Ament with David Albritton concludes this Symposium.     

Managing foreign subsidiaries: agents of headquarters,or an interdependent network?

In this study, two different theoretical perspectives are used to develop sets of hypotheses regarding the mechanisms used to manage foreign subsidiaries of multinational corporations. First, agency theory serves as the basis for a model that predicts the use of monitoring mechanisms and incentive compensation. Then, it is argued that these mechanisms are insufficient for managing subsidiaries characterized by high levels of intra‐firm international interdependence, the management of which is critical to many of today's complex global firms. A second set of hypotheses is argued, linking international interdependence to several social control mechanisms. Primary and secondary data from U.S. based multinational corporations were used to test both sets of hypotheses. The results indicate that agency theory, although a useful foundation for studies of control within MNCs, is limited in its ability to explain fully the phenomenon of foreign subsidiary control, however, the model based on intra‐firm interdependence had much greater predictive ability. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Direct marketing in the financial services industry

This article presents empirical research findings on the use of direct marketing by a representative sample of UK financial services institutions. A number of similarities and differences between banks, building societies and insurance companies are identified in relation to direct marketing programmes and the use of particular direct marketing techniques. While acknowledging some exceptions the research concludes that there is scope for a greater appreciation of the strategic value and workings of direct marketing. Institutions could usefully focus attention on achieving fuller integration of direct marketing with other marketing and communication activities and securing improvements in testing, database quality and timing.     

An Examination of Learning Preferences of U.S. and International Students

Learning styles and preferences are often discussed topics in educational psychology, but are less prevalent in business education. International students are another understudied segment of business education. This article reviews literature regarding learning styles and preferences and examines whether U.S. and international students have different learning preferences using the visual-aural-read/write-kinesthetic (VARK) model. The findings indicate a large percentage of both populations have multimodal learning preferences. For the students who have one preferred learning mode, differences do exist between international and U.S. students.     

The Future of Estate Agency: Some Consequences of the Recent Acquisition Boom in South West England

The entrance of large financial institutions into the estate agency industry has transformed it from a cottage industry into one dominated by a few large national chains. Based on a postal questionnaire survey of estate agents in the South West and follow-up interviews of thirteen agents in the Plymouth travel-to-work area, this study considers the effects of the takeovers on the operations of estate agents and the future of the estate agency industry. It focuses on diversification, commission rates, attitudes to 1992, marketing and the future of the independent agent.     

Opportunities and institutions: A co-creation story of the king crab industry

If entrepreneurs are constrained and shaped by existing institutions, how? If entrepreneurs products and services, how can institutions remain unchanged? This paper explores this theoretical conundrum empirically through the examination of the actions of entrepreneur Lowell Wakefield. Contrary to previous work that suggests that it is institutional entrepreneurs that bring about institutional change as a means of advancing their social interests, this paper shows that a profit-seeking entrepreneur without prior institutional affiliation or experience can create an opportunity along with the supporting industry standards and regulations.     

Exploring the dimensions of ad creativity

This study explored the influence of dimensions of creativity—novelty (expectancy), meaningfulness (relevancy), and emotion (valence of feelings)—on attitude toward the ad, attitude toward the brand, and purchase intention. The results indicate that unexpectedness enhanced ad effectiveness over expectedness when the ad has positive feelings. When the ad contains negative feelings, attitude toward the ad was diluted with unexpectedness vs. expectedness. Relevance was not critical in encouraging favorable responses when the ad is unexpected. With an unexpected–relevant–positive‐feeling ad used as the baseline, a creative ad generated more favorable attitude toward the ad than other ad conditions. However, ad creativity resulted in more favorable brand attitude and purchase intention only against selected ad conditions. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed and directions for future research furnished. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

ESOPs, takeover protection, and corporate decision-making

ESOPs have the potential to align the interests of employees and owners and may increase firm value. However, employee ownership may also strengthen the position of entrenched management. The literature predicts that firms newly protected from takeover threat will tend to (1) increase long-term investment and (2) require additional external monitoring, and/or (3) may use leverage as part of an overall antitakeover strategy. We examined firms that have adopted ESOPs and find that firms raise the level of capital expenditures, research and development expenditures, and dividends. (JEF G320)     

Funding conditions for aid effectiveness: A mixed blessing for the sustainable development of host‐country‐national employees

This paper explores whether—and how—aid effectiveness funding conditions impact the human resource development of host‐country national (HCN) employees. To investigate this relationship, I conducted a phenomenological study with 31 participants from three international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs). Results suggest that the pressure toward funds accountability brings mixed blessings: From a staffing perspective, more HCNs are being hired instead of expatriates, building local capacity. However, vital training and performance review functions are cast as inefficient overheads. The paper concludes with a conceptual framework, practical strategies for INGOs and donor governments, and directions for larger scale empirical research. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The future of work and family: Critical trends for policy,practice, and research

Work/life “thought leaders” from 28 large corporations carried out an environmental scanning process with the objective of linking work/life policies and practices to critical business and environmental trends. Globalization, technological change, and organizational flexibility are trends that have been commonly identified in other environmental scanning efforts, but their relationship to work/life issues has often been ignored. Similarly, the relationship of changing family structures to business goals has not received the attention it deserves. Through this linking process, work/life advocates can demonstrate the value of their efforts to other corporate decision makers. Innovative corporate work/life initiatives that are responsive to these important trends are described. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.