A Tale of Passion: Linking Job Passion and Cognitive Engagement to Employee Work Performance

We propose a model of job passion that links two types of passion, harmonious and obsessive passion, to employees' work performance, via the mediating mechanism of cognitive engagement (comprising attention and absorption). Results from a survey conducted with 509 employees from an insurance firm indicate that employees with harmonious passion performed better at work, and that this relationship was mediated primarily by cognitive absorption, that is, the intensity of focus and immersion experienced by the employees when working. However, even though obsessive passion was negatively related to cognitive attention (i.e. the amount of cognitive resources spent thinking about work), it did not have a significant relationship to work performance overall. We identify and discuss research and practical implications for job passion and performance management.     

Cooperative research and development agreements (CRADAs) as technology transfer mechanisms

Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) between Federal R&D laboratories and private companies in the US are intended, in large part, to transfer technologies developed at Federal R&D laboratories to private companies. We surveyed the Federal laboratory and private CRADA partners involved in CRADAs at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico in order to identify certain difficulties inherent in CRADAs as mechanisms for technology transfer. Company partners do not share a common organizational culture with their Federal laboratory counterparts, and are critical of the length of time and complexity of government administrative arrangements necessary to form a CRADA.     

Doing without money: a critical assessment of Woodford's analysis

Woodford employs an inter-temporal general equilibrium modelto examine the properties of the monetary system as it evolvesfrom the use of a physical medium of exchange to an electronicmedium. He presents a structure in which cash as a means ofpayment can be made to vanish at the limit, but where he claimsthe price level remains determinate. It is shown that Woodford'sanalysis involves fundamental but still widespread conceptualand methodological errors. His general equilibrium model doesnot map into the world of electronic money, and his analysishas no implications for the art of central banking.     

Arbitrage with Fractional Brownian Motion

Fractional Brownian motion has been suggested as a model for the movement of log share prices which would allow long–range dependence between returns on different days. While this is true, it also allows arbitrage opportunities, which we demonstrate both indirectly and by constructing such an arbitrage. Nonetheless, it is possible by looking at a process similar to the fractional Brownian motion to model long–range dependence of returns while avoiding arbitrage.     

Zero Lower Bound Monetary Policy’s Effect on Financial Asset’s Correlations

We investigate the hypothesis that zero lower bound monetary policy has an effect on the correlations of financial assets. Using an event-study approach, we evaluate the impact of the zero lower bound monetary policies of the Bank of Japan, the Bank of England, and the Federal Reserve on the bond and equity markets in Japan, the UK, the US, and the Eurozone. We evaluate the bond markets using the Japanese 10-year Sovereign bond (JGB), UK 10-year bond (Gilt), US 10-year Treasury note (T-note), and German 10-year bond (Bund). For the equity markets we use the Nikkei 225, FTSE 100, S&P 500, and Euro STOXX 600 as proxies for each regional market. We also include gold and silver as control commodities. Our analyses demonstrate significant changes not only in the evaluated assets’ correlations with each other, but also in their general behavior. This has major implications for investment portfolio construction and provides useful insight for financial service regulators and the central banks themselves in monitoring the fragility and stability of the financial system.     

Making Public Policy: The New Philanthropists and American Education

Power in K–12 education is rapidly moving from local school boards and government to extraordinarily wealthy private philanthropists. Building networks among nonprofits, government agencies, school districts, and others, private foundations such as the Gates, Broad, and Walton family foundations are fundamentally restructuring American K–12 education. The Common Core State Standards, teacher evaluation, and charter schools are a few of the initiatives these funders are backing. The massive influx of private money into education policy and its influence over public education raises questions around the proper role of philanthropy in a democracy. In a society with increasing wealth inequality, should the economic elite be able to gain further power to shape social institutions through giving? Are there or should there be any limits to this power? Examining specific trends and events in education philanthropy over the last 10 years, this article identifies key players in philanthropic education reform and argues that philanthropy in education is now playing a policy‐making role—without checks and balances—that is qualitatively and quantitatively different than before. I conclude with a cautionary note on the dangers of letting education policy become the domain of the economic elite.     

Stock Price and Management Changes: The Case of REITs

This paper examines the relationship between a Real Estate Investment Trust's (REIT's) stock returns and top management changes. The results indicate an inverse relationship between the probability of a management change and a REIT's recent stock price performance. This is consistent with internal monitoring of management activities by the board of directors, other top managers, or large block shareholders.