Immigration and Access to Fringe Benefits: Evidence from the Tobacco Use Supplements

We examine the extent to which assimilation and residential ethnic enclaves are associated with immigrant access to smoking‐related fringe benefits. In particular, we consider access to office smoking bans and employer‐sponsored smoking cessation programs. We first document differences in access to these benefits between immigrant and native workers. Second, we show that assimilation is positively associated with smoking‐related fringe benefit access while enclave residence does not predict access. These findings broaden our understanding of immigrant employment.     

An Empirical Investigation of Bilateral Investments and Opportunism in Buyer-Supplier Relationships

Collaboration between buyers and their suppliers often requires both parties to dedicate specialized investments to the relationship. These bilateral idiosyncratic investments serve as mutual hostages and signal commitment to the relationship, yet they are susceptible to expropriation. Drawing on research in social psychology and transaction cost economics, we argue that the nature of the bilateral idiosyncratic investments influences perceptions of a supplier's opportunism that in turn influences retailer opportunism and relationship outcomes. Data collected from 120 Norwegian managers of consumer electronics retail stores provide an assessment of the proposed model. The results indicate that the total and asymmetrical nature of the bilateral idiosyncratic investments influence perceptions of supplier opportunism and these perceptions, in turn, influence the retailer's opportunism and commitment to the relationship. Implications of these findings and future research are discussed.     

One Prudential Exchange—The Insurance Giant's Business Literacy and Alignment Platform

This article describes how Prudential—in a dramatically changed marketplace—engaged its 55,000 employees as partners in transforming the company's many disparate businesses into one integrated company. Using a combination of large‐and small‐scale meetings, follow‐up actions at the work unit level, and sophisticated performance enhancement processes, OPX (One Prudential Exchange) is helping transform Prudential from a staid insurance company to a modern financial services powerhouse. OPX has introduced the One Prudential vision to the company's 55,000 employees in nearly 300 large‐scale meetings in 12 cities, and has institutionalized problem resolution and breakthrough dialogue processes in over 3,500 follow‐up work unit meetings. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Comparison Utility in a Growth Model

We examine the dynamics of two endogenous-growth modelsin which agents have comparison utility. In the inward-lookingeconomy, individuals care about how their current consumptioncompares with their own past consumption. In the outward-lookingeconomy, they care about how their own consumption compares withother peoples consumption. In response to a negative shock tocapital, saving and growth will temporarily fall in both of themodels that we consider but will remain constant in a model withstandard preferences. The decline will be smaller in the outward-than in the inward-looking case, but utility will be lower inthe former case because of a negative externality.     

Regulatory takings and constitutional repair the 1990s' property-rights rebellion

In spite of the fact that the Constitution's fifth amendment states that nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation, politicians systematically impose almost confiscatory land-use restrictions on citizens. Growth of regulation and property-rights uncertainty have spawned grass roots opposition and political efforts to reinforce constitutional protections. Lacking success at the national level, property-rights advocates moved to the states where by August 1994 more than forty introduced property-rights legislation. Statistical estimates of the likelihood that such legislation would be introduced reveal strong support of the notion that the property-rights movement is a reaction to growth of government regulation.     

Organizing work to support relational co-ordination

Service operations that are highly uncertain, interdependent and time constrained require a competency that I call relational co-ordination – co-ordination that is carried out by front-line workers with an awareness of their relationship to the overall work process and to other participants in that process. Relational co-ordination is characterized by frequent, timely, problem solving communication, and by helping, shared goals, shared knowledge and mutual respect. Previous work reports significant positive effects of relational co-ordination on performance in such settings. This paper addresses how organizations achieve, or fail to achieve, high levels of relational coordination. I find significant correlations between relational co-ordination and the use of cross-functional liaisons, IT, supervisors, cross-functional performance measurement, employee selection, conflict resolution and flexible work roles. I explore the implications for team effectiveness and organization design, and for the theory of organizational social capital.     

Brand personality appeal: conceptualization and empirical validation

A substantial literature stream indicates there are benefits to having a favorable brand personality, such as enhanced brand attitudes and purchase intentions and higher levels of consumer trust and loyalty. Contemporary advertisements and promotional activities by a host of firms demonstrate a managerial belief in the value of establishing a brand personality that mirrors that of branding scholars. Yet extant research has yet to fully evaluate the perceived appeal of brand personality to consumers. This issue is important to managers because it is precisely this level of appeal that influences target consumers’ purchase decisions and helps to sustain the endurance of a brand’s perceived personality between promotional cycles. This article conceptualizes, develops, and validates measures for assessing a consumer’s perception of brand personality appeal (BPA). Three dimensions of BPA (favorability, originality, clarity) emerge and are empirically demonstrated to directly and positively impact consumer purchase intentions.     

Toward understanding passive opportunism in dedicated channel relationships

The investments made in an interfirm relationship have implications for the effectiveness of an agreement. In this study, we investigate whether these investments influence the level of passive opportunism observed in a relationship. Whereas transaction cost theory suggests that firms that make idiosyncratic investments are reluctant to engage in opportunism, reactance theory offers logic suggesting that such investments may increase the likelihood of opportunism. In addition, we investigate whether perceived justice influences the effect of investments on levels of passive opportunism. Data from 120 retail managers in the Norwegian consumer electronics industry support reactance theory predictions and indicate that interactional justice moderates the relationship between specific assets and passive opportunism. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for theory and research.