Voluntary turnover rates and organizational performance in the US federal government: the moderating role of high-commitment human resource practices

Despite the growing body of literature on antecedents of employee turnover, little attention has been paid to the effect of voluntary turnover on organizational outcomes in public administration. Using panel data from the US federal government, this article tests the proposition that the relationship between voluntary turnover rates and organizational performance is negative but becomes curvilinear as turnover rates increase. Based on the contingency perspective of the turnover–performance link, this article further examines the moderating role of high-commitment human resource practices (HCHRP) in the relationships. Findings indicate that voluntary turnover has a positive relationship with organizational performance, but it turns out to be an inverted U-shaped curve as turnover rates increase from low to high levels. Furthermore, the moderating effect on the curvilinear relationship is especially pronounced for federal agencies with high levels of HCHRP.     

The Firm Size Effect and the Economic Cycle

Small firms have, on average, lower return on assets and higher leverage than do large firms. Small firms tend to do well in good economic conditions but to perform poorly in the worst economic conditions. We investigate the hypothesis that the small firm effect is manifest in the expansion phase of the economic cycle but not in the contraction phase. The empirical results of our study confirm the hypothesis for 1976–95. We use the alpha, residual, and regression methods in testing the hypothesis.     

Ethical Issues of Teleworking

In spite of the seemingly omnipresent corruption and Mafia activity plaguing modern Russia it is nevertheless possible, and desirable, to conduct business ethically there, as the author testifies. Pamela Woolley has recently completed a full time MBA at London Business School, prior to which her career was in international telecommunications. She has long been interested in Russia and worked in Moscow during the summer between her two years of study. The experience has prompted her to seek a more permanent position in the region and was the impetus behind writing this article. She also wishes to thank Dr Jan Dauman of InterMatrix Group for his interest and contribution to the information gathered in the preparation of this article.     

STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN RETURN-GENERATING MODELS AROUND TENDER OFFERS: A NOTE

This note investigates the role of changes in the parameters of return-generating models in explaining the pattern of abnormal returns accruing to target and bidding firms around tender-offer announcements. Employing a varyingparameter modeling approach the study finds lower abnormal returns to target firms and increased abnormal returns to bidding firms, relative to standard approaches. However, use of this approach fails to refute the common findings that mean abnormal returns are large for target firms and negligible for bidding firms.     

Dynamics of clustered opinions in complex networks

A simple model for simulating tug of war game as varying the player number in a team is discussed to identify the slow pace of fast change. This model shows that a large number of information sources leads slow change for the system. Also, we introduce an opinion diffusion model including the effect of a high degree of clustering. This model shows that the de facto standard and lock-in effect, well-known phenomena in economics and business management, can be explained by the network clusters.     

The effect of airport atmospherics on satisfaction and behavioral intentions: testing the moderating role of perceived safety

International airports have been notable spaces due to their reinforced roles and the increase in the number of users. Nevertheless, there are not many studies on the relationships among the physical environment of the airport, perception of airport safety, customer satisfaction, and behavioral intentions. To fill this gap, this study has attempted to (1) examine the relationships among the physical environment of the airport, satisfaction, and behavioral intentions; (2) discover which element of physical circumstances has an influence on satisfaction; and (3) ascertain perceived airport safety as a moderator between satisfaction and behavioral intentions. The data were collected through wireless channels, using the snowball method. The findings disclosed that facility aesthetics is the strongest component of the physical surroundings of the airport in eliciting satisfaction, and satisfaction has a major impact on behavioral intentions. Despite the invalid moderation effect of perceived airport safety, safety was clarified as a direct driver of satisfaction through additional analysis.     

The characteristics and business impact of children’s electronic word of mouth in marketing communications

Abstract

Leading digital technology companies have shown a strong interest in enabling children to send electronic word of mouth (eWOM). Recasting children from passive to active participants in marketing communications, this shift expands children’s marketing practices from how companies influence children via traditional marketing communications, to how children influence companies’ marketing practices through eWOM. We apply the value-capacity-vulnerability framework for children’s expressive rights to the context of children’s eWOM. Using a dataset of Amazon customer reviews written by children under the age of 13, we examine the characteristics and business impact of children’s eWOM. We find that the volume and variance of children’s eWOM are smaller than that of adults’. Children’s eWOM increase the overall diversity of opinions. Although receivers perceive children’s eWOM as less helpful, children’s eWOM valence (i.e. average rating) correlates with that of adults’. Children’s eWOM volume has a product-category-dependent association with product sales: positively in children’s product categories, while negatively in general categories. Children’s eWOM valence and variance are positively associated with product sales in both product categories. Receivers are less likely to criticize children’s eWOM compared to that of adults’, suggesting an underlying protective behaviour towards children among eWOM receivers. These results show that children have the capacity to engage in eWOM of social and business value, with receivers typically mindful of children’s vulnerability in social interactions.