The Importance of Monitoring for Developing Intra-Group Trust in Ethiopian Female Workgroups

We examine the relation between intra-group trust and monitoring in a patriarchal society, and how this relation affects workgroup performance. Data were collected from 352 women who were members of 72 female workgroups in Addis Ababa by means of field experiments and a survey. The data are analyzed using multiple mediation analysis. We find that intra-group trust needs time to develop, and that trust is higher in workgroups with more monitoring. The positive relation between monitoring and trust might be explained by women’s ambition to overcome disempowerment and negative gender stereotypes. The results also indicate positive effects of intra-group trust and monitoring on workgroup performance, and that the effect of monitoring runs through its relation with trust. The last finding stresses the importance of monitoring for developing intra-group trust in these female workgroups.     

User producer interaction in context

User producer interaction (UPI) increases chances for successful innovations. It is not always clear, however, what type of interaction is necessary in a particular context. This article identifies seven different types of UPI: constructing linkages, broadening, characterizing users, upstream involvement, first user enrollment, feedback, and downstream innovation. Specific contextual dimensions from which these UPI types derive relevance are discussed. The technological dimension of this context is conceptualized based on a distinction between types of technologies that differ in the degree to which they are customizable to user demands. Four case studies show that technological characteristics indeed matter for UPI, as do the heterogeneity of users and the phase of technology development.     

Does Good Governance Matter to Institutional Investors? Evidence from the Enactment of Corporate Governance Guidelines

Corporate governance guidelines are a mechanism that a firm can enact which should reduce agency costs and better align the interests of boards and the suppliers of capital. This study examines stock price reactions primarily attributable to institutional investors occurring when corporations announce the enactment of corporate governance guidelines. A final sample of 77 firms was derived from the first announcement of corporate governance guidelines exclusive to the SEC-EDGAR database. The results indicate that good governance does matter. Firms that announced the enactment of corporate governance guidelines experienced increased stock prices following the announcements. There was an immediate (days 1–4) reaction for firms that provided all or part of the guidelines’ substance; a delayed (days 8–10) reaction occurred for those firms that only referenced the guidelines’ enactment. Additionally, firms with either a potentially greater following or that had a previous history of acrimonious relations with stakeholders were rewarded by the announcement of the enactment of guidelines.     

Seasonality in industry specific indices

This study examines seaonality in three industry specific stock market indices; the Standard and Poor's (S&P) 20 Transportation, the S&P 40 Utilities, and the S&P 40 Financial. The results support the existence of a weekend effect in the transportation index. There is no evidence of a weekend effect in the utilities and financial indices. Both the transportation and financial indices exhibit the January effect. The utilities index, however, shows no evidence of a January effect. The finding of a weekend and a January effect at the industry level is significant because select mutual funds enhance the ability of investors to capitalize on such anomalies.     

An experimental investigation of the effect of TV cooking show consumption on children's food choice behaviour

For several decades, television consumption has been crucial in the complex web of factors underlying the obesity epidemic. It has been suggested that if television cooking shows would endorse healthy eating styles, they may have positive effects on consumers’ eating habits. This study empirically investigated the consequences of exposing children (N = 85, aged 9–12 years) to an existing television cooking show episode endorsing the consumption of fruits and vegetables compared with exposure to a non‐food‐related science show. The measures included pre‐test and post‐test attitudes toward health/nutrition and fruits/vegetables, as well as state preferences for a list of healthy and unhealthy foods. At the end of the study, children were separately given the choice between a popular cookie and a piece of fruit as a reward; this was used as a behavioural measure. The results of a logistic regression on the behavioural choice measure showed that the mere exposure to one episode of the television cooking show significantly increased the odds that the children would choose a piece of fruit over a cookie. Repeated‐measures analyses showed that watching this single episode also decreased children's state appetite for unhealthy foods. State appetites for healthy foods and attitudes toward health/nutrition or fruits/vegetables did not change after watching the television cooking show episode. In sum, existing television cooking shows that endorse healthy eating positively influence children's food consumption in the short term and may have the potential to be used as platforms for nutrition education.