A Meta-Analysis of Achievement Motivation Differences between Entrepreneurs and Managers*

As a result of conflicting conclusions in primary studies, most narrative reviews have questioned the role of personality in explaining entrepreneurial behavior. We examine one stream of this research by conducting a meta-analysis of studies that contrast the achievement motivation of entrepreneurs and managers. The results indicate that entrepreneurs exhibit higher achievement motivation than managers and that these differences are influenced by the entrepreneur's venture goals, by the use of U.S. or foreign samples, and, to a less clear extent, by projective or objective instrumentation. Moreover, when the analysis is restricted to venture founders, the difference between entrepreneurs and managers on achievement motivation is substantially larger and the credibility intervals do not include zero.     

Organizational culture in a terminally ill hospital

This study analyzed an organizational culture in a community hospital in Texas to measure organizational culture change and its impact on Patient Satisfaction (PS). The study employed primary and secondary data, combining quantitative and qualitative methods for a case study. Participant observation was used and archival data were collected to provide a better understanding of the organizational culture and the context in which change was taking place. This study also applied a "Shared Vision" of the organization as the central process in bringing forth the knowledge shared by members of the community hospital who were both subjects and research participants. The results from the study suggest an increase in PS due to the shared vision of one subculture within the hospital. There were powerful subcultures in this organization based on occupation and specialization, and their interests and functional orientations were not conducive to a systems approach. Hospital management was conducted in "silos" and there was lack of feedback between organizational levels of the hospital, especially in financial management, with organizational dysfunctionality in reacting and adapting to the health care market.     

Gender disparities: a medical detoxification program

Significant gaps exist in health care regarding gender in the United States. Health status, social roles, culturally patterned behavior and access to health care can be influenced by gender. Women have been the primary users of health care and minority women usually have received poorer quality care than Non-Hispanic White (NHW) females. The objectives of this study were to identify gender, racial and ethnic disparities in access to substance abuse treatment in a Texas hospital. Secondary data collected on 1,309 subjects who underwent detoxification were studied. Gender, race/ethnicity, drug of abuse, relapse and financial classification were included in the analysis. Results indicate Hispanic females and Non-Hispanic Black (NHB) females were about 5 and 3.5 more likely than NHW females to use Medicaid services respectively (p < .05). NHW and NHB males were more likely to use Medicare than females (p < .05). NHB and Hispanic females were 5.8 and 2.1 times more likely to receive care for abuse of cocaine when compared to NHW females respectively (p < .05). Hispanic females were 2.3 times more likely to relapse than Non-Hispanic females, and uninsured NHB females were 7.1 times at a higher risk to abuse multiple drugs compare to NHW females (p < .05). Socio-economic factors, lower labor force participation rates, and less financial independence can explain females utilizing more often Medicaid regardless of their race/ethnicity. These results can be also explained by aggressive case management utilization, socio cultural barriers and/or discriminatory practices, both intentional and unintentional.     

Incrementality of SME Loan Guarantees

In many countries, loan guarantee programs are important elements of government policy with respect to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). If loan guarantee schemes are to be effective, a majority of firms obtaining assistance through such a scheme ought not to be able to obtain financing from existing sources: a property known as incrementality or additionality. This paper describes a new approach to measuring incrementality. This work uses a two-stage process to estimate the incrementality of loans made under the terms of the Canada Small Business Financing (CSBF) program. First, a logistic regression-based model of loan outcomes (essentially a credit-scoring model) is estimated based on a large representative sample of SMEs. The resulting model was consistent with prior expectations and exhibited high levels of goodness-of-fit. The model was then employed to classify a sample of firms that had received loans under the terms of the loan guarantee scheme. Incremental loans ought to be classified as “turndowns” by the model; hence the proportion of loan guarantee recipients that the model classified as turndowns is a direct measure of incrementality. For the CSBF loan guarantee program incrementality was estimated (with 95% confidence) as 74.8±9.0%.     

Examination of the health‐belief model to predict the dietary quality and body mass of adults

We examined the ability of the health‐belief model to predict individuals’ dietary quality and body mass among a nationwide sample of 1319 adults in the United States. Simultaneous estimation of the structural equation model found acceptable goodness‐of‐fit to the data. Explained variance in dietary quality and body mass, however, were moderate to weak. The model included three types of nutrition knowledge: basic facts, diet–health awareness and ability to accurately self‐assess nutrient intake. None of these variables had a strong effect on dietary quality or body mass. We speculate that lifestyle characteristics, cultural habits, community infrastructure, and the politics of food production and retailing – variables found in other studies to affect dietary quality and body mass yet not available in our data – might outweigh the effects of nutrition knowledge and sociodemographic factors on estimating dietary quality and body mass. We suggest that future research and intervention programmes focus more on social, cultural and political context than on nutrition knowledge. Current collaborations among life and social scientists to design foods to improve human nutrition might also prove effective in reducing the prevalence of overweight and obesity.     

Introduction: Globalization and the Workplace in Pacific Asia

Hong Kong's economic successes are evident. As ever, the interpretation of this phenomenon at the level of politics, culture, human capital and business organization is less obvious, though a familiar list of the ‘usual suspects’ of ‘explanations’ has emerged. Hong Kong now faces new and renewed challenges which are linked to shifts in the industrial structure, emerging market demands and the interconnected upgrading of both production and human resources, in addition to the implications of reunification. Key themes of national competitiveness, deindustrialization and the upgrading of production facilities and human resources are all shown to be important, but also multi-layered and hazy concepts.     

Market Segment Response Through Field Experimentation

A key assumption underlying segmentation studies is that marketing efforts have differential effects on market segments. This question was investigated in the context of a field experiment involving enlistment in the armed forces. Approximately 8000 completed questionnaires administered at various stages in the US Navy enlistment recruiting process were collected at two points in time, corresponding to a pre- and post-experimental intervention. Attitudinal data were analysed to identify meaningful segments. Differential responses of market segments to advertising and recruiter changes were found, providing direction for evaluation of, and changes in, the creative component of advertising.     

The Role of Advertising in the Market Process: A Survey

The positive role played by advertising in the market process has been largely ignored by academic economists. It is only recently, since the modern economic revolution, that economists have realized the benefits of advertising and have joined the research agenda developed by researchers in marketing and other business fields. The present survey details the literature that examines the role played by advertising in lowering the ‘full price’ to consumers which allows consumers to maximize utility and allows the producers/retailers to maximize profits. The review begins with the seminal article by Stigler in 1960 which develops a (now famous) theory of the economics of information. Nelson's characteristics of goods and services are surveyed along with the extensions of other economists to the classification frameworks of Nelson and Porter. The survey follows the development of the theory of advertising in economics to the present day, and provides recent theoretical advances as well as empirical tests of these seminal theories.     

Tiger Woods,Nike, and I are (not) best friends: how brand's sports sponsorship in social-media impacts brand consumer's congruity and relationship quality

This study examines the effects of brand's sports sponsorship in social media on brand consumer's congruity and brand relationship quality. The study included a survey of targeting consumers whose ages range between early twenties and late forties; data from 322 respondents were collected. The results are as follows. First, brand's sports sponsorship in social-media activities relating to sports brands has significant effects on brand consumer's congruity. Second, this congruity significantly influences brand relationship quality. Third, male consumers, who have previously purchased products and services associated with a sports brand, perceive the sponsor's brand image more positively when they are exposed to the sponsor's brand's sports sponsorship in social-media activities, compared to those consumers having no previous purchases of the sponsored brand. Lastly, consumers in their forties with prior experience consuming the sponsor's brand products are most affected by the level of self-congruity with the sports brand compared to younger or older consumers.     

Service quality control mechanisms in franchise networks

This paper reports the study of some factors that influence the control intensity exerted by franchisors on the service quality provided by the franchised units of their networks and what interdependencies exist between the different mechanisms that can be used to monitor service quality. On the one hand, three control mechanisms of conformance quality are considered, namely audits, mystery shoppers, and mandatory purchase of inputs and products. On the other hand, polls are used to monitor perceived quality by customers. There are two main findings. First, control intensity is greater in those industries in which customers tend to be non-repetitive. Second, four complementary relationships are found between control mechanisms: between audits and mystery shoppers, between audits and polls, between mandatory purchase of inputs or products and mystery shoppers, and between mandatory purchase of inputs or products and polls.