The Small Firm in a Quantity Choosing Game: Some Experimental Evidence

We demonstrate with a grim trigger strategy that the small firm should be more willing to collude tacitly as its market share declines; large firms should be less willing to cooperate. The small firm is not a maverick. The intensity of rivalry between two firms with asymmetric market shares is studied in experimental markets. Treatments give duopolists (1) 50% shares, (2) a 60 or 40% share, and (3) an 80 or 20% share. Choices for the small firm in the latter treatments are not significantly larger than the collusive choice. Irrespective of relative size, firms in all three market environments exhibit collusive behavior.     

Nostalgic Tourism

This article presents exploratory research that focuses on a segment of cultural consumers who possess a yearning to connect with their ancestry. The article presents a conceptual framework to better understand the market segments within the cultural tourism industry and argues for the need to better understand and study the segment of consumers who rely on tours to search for their own ancestral roots. A multimethod study conducted over the course of a 23‐day bus tour is presented. Observational, interview, and survey data gathered from tourists of British and Irish descent are used to test the proposed relationships.     

Semiparametric Bayesian inference in multiple equation models

This paper outlines an approach to Bayesian semiparametric regression in multiple equation models which can be used to carry out inference in seemingly unrelated regressions or simultaneous equations models with nonparametric components. The approach treats the points on each nonparametric regression line as unknown parameters and uses a prior on the degree of smoothness of each line to ensure valid posterior inference despite the fact that the number of parameters is greater than the number of observations. We develop an empirical Bayesian approach that allows us to estimate the prior smoothing hyperparameters from the data. An advantage of our semiparametric model is that it is written as a seemingly unrelated regressions model with independent normal–Wishart prior. Since this model is a common one, textbook results for posterior inference, model comparison, prediction and posterior computation are immediately available. We use this model in an application involving a two‐equation structural model drawn from the labour and returns to schooling literatures. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Human resource competencies: An empirical assessment

With data from 12,689 associates of human resource (HR) professionals in 1500 businesses in 109 firms, this research represents an extensive assessment of HR competencies. It extends current HR theory and practice in two ways. First, it proposes specific competencies HR professionals may demonstrate to add value to a business. Second, it offers an empirical assessment of how these competencies affect the performance of HR professionals as perceived by their Associates. The results indicate that when HR professionals demonstrate competencies in business knowledge, delivery of HR, and management of change, then HR professionals are perceived by their associates as more effective. © 1995 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The Change Bookshelf

This article provides in‐depth reviews of books focused on change at the individual, group, and organization levels. It identifies the critical dimensions necessary to change at each of these three levels and then selects the books that provide the best understanding of change for each level. Whether the reader wishes to understand underlying theories of change or wishes to find practical guides to essential steps in the change process, the needed resources are reviewed in this article. For the HR manager, who more often than not, is responsible for guiding those who would change, this set of eleven books constitutes a must bookshelf. Finally, other key references in the area of change are annotated if the reader wishes to enlarge his/her bookshelf. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Market Efficiency and Money Market Fund Portfolio Managers: Beliefs Versus Reality

This paper develops two models of the money market mutual fund maturity decision. The first assumes that markets are efficient but that transactions are costly. The second model relies on a survey of fund managers to select variables that might permit exploiting perceived profit opportunities. Empirical tests provide strong support for the former model, but none for the latter. This can be interpreted as meaning that although managers may believe that financial markets are inefficient, margins are too small and competition too fierce for them to react aggressively on those beliefs. Any actions they do take to exploit alleged inefficiencies are not detectable in the data. In addition, the study finds that managers in the aggregate have no special ability to adjust their funds' maturity to capitalize on interest-rate changes.