Roots of Marketing and Consumer Research at the University of Chicago1

The marketing and consumer research fields began to flourish in the late 1940s after World War II. Social Research, Inc. was founded in 1946 by members of the University of Chicago's faculty. Students at the University's interdisciplinary Committee on Human Development and the Departments of Sociology, Anthropology, and Psychology worked at Social Research, Inc., pioneering the application of behavioral methods of research to problems of business and other organizations. This paper traces the transmission of knowledge from the academic setting to the business environment. It notes especially the influence of members of the university faculty and their theories of human behavior on the emerging fields devoted to the study of consumption and culture.     

SME Flexibility and the Role of Information Systems

Small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) are a major component of all economies and are generally considered to be flexible, adaptive organisations. Although lagging behind their larger counterparts, SMEs are beginning to invest in information systems. Using data derived from a set of manufacturing SMEs located in the U.K., this paper investigates whether SMEs really do exhibit flexibility and if their use of information technology enhances or inhibits such flexibility.     

Collaborative computing for decision support in cardiovascular consulting

Vascular medicine is a newly developing discipline heavily based on geographically distributed consulting, and there is thus a strong need for computerized decision support in doctor‐to‐doctor collaboration for the management of vascular patients. The latest achievements in collaborative and multimedia computing for group decision support are incorporated into cardiovascular consulting. Feasibility analysis of the two basic components is addressed: (a) the communication system of collaborative computing as identified subject to the specifics of data flow and networking in geographically distributed cardiovascular consulting; and (b) the structure and representations for intelligent software agents that enable transfer of individual expert cardiovascular knowledge, support group brainstorming, and maintain the ongoing learning of group experience and analysis of patients cases.     

Katallactic Rationality

Abstract IS the well-known finding of experimental economics that talk is correlated with co-operation in prisoner-dilemma contexts related to Adam Smith's claim that trade requires language? Using Smith's postulate of the existence of a desire for approbation and the supposition that language carries approbation, we demonstrate how the ability to exchange approbation enhances the rationality of co-operation.     

Determinants of internal migration in Israel: expected returns and risks

A multinomial logit model of place-to-place migration focusing on economic, geographic and demographic factors is applied to empirical data on inter-regional migration in Israel in 1980. It explains 75% of the (cross-sectional) variance in the data. The results presented in this paper depart from previous empirical work due to its industrialized context and its focus on risk aversion as a determinant of the migration decision. The results support the Harris–Todaro (1970) hypothesis, and indicate that regional similarities in the structure of industrial employment promote migration.     

Individueele contractverbreking bij collectieve arbeidsovereenkomst

De steun, dien de vakvereenigingen kunnen geven voor het verkrijgen van meer bevredigende arbeids-toestanden in de industrie, brengt de zaak op sociaal-economisch gebied. Voorl. Versl. Eerste Kamer over het Wetsontw. Collectieve Arbeidsovereenkomst.     

Optimal Debt? On the Insurance Value of International Debt Flows to Developing Countries

According to reputation models of sovereign debt, the incentives to repay are proportional to the income insurance benefits provided by the access to international markets. This paper, however, documents that private net lending to developing countries exhibits a procyclical or acyclical pattern, contradicting this premise. By contrast, official debt net flows exhibit a countercyclical patter. In addition, the paper shows that (both current and past) defaults are associated with lower net debt flows. The findings suggest that, while reputation models may explain the preferred creditor status enjoyed by official lenders, they cannot account for the presence of sovereign debt markets in developing countries.     

Number of Shareholders and Stock Prices: Evidence from Japan

Merton (1987) proposes that an increase in a firm's investor base increases the firm's value. In Japan, companies can reduce their stock's minimum trading unit—the number of shares in a "round lot"—which facilitates trading in the stock by small investors. We find that a reduction in the minimum trading unit greatly increases a firm's base of individual investors and its stock liquidity, and is associated with a significant increase in the stock price. Further, the stock price appreciation is positively related to an increase in the number of shareholders.