Block-Rate versus Uniform Water Pricing in Agriculture: An Empirical Analysis

In this article we adapt Burtless and Hausman's (1978) methodology in order to estimate farmers' demand for irrigation water under increasing block-rate tariffs and empirically assess its effect on aggregate demand and inter-farm allocation efficiency. This methodology overcomes the technical challenges raised by increasing block-rate pricing and accounts for both observed and unobserved technological heterogeneity among farmers. Employing micro panel data documenting irrigation levels and prices in 185 Israeli agricultural communities in the period 1992–1997, we estimate water demand elasticity at −0.3 in the short run (the effect of a price change on demand within a year of implementation) and −0.46 in the long run. We also find that, in accordance with common belief, switching from a single to a block-price regime, yields a 7% reduction in average water use while maintaining the same average price. However, based on our simulations we estimate that the switch to block prices will result in a loss of approximately 1% of agricultural output due to inter-farm allocation inefficiencies.     

Strategic groups as reference groups: Theory,modeling and empirical examination of industry and competitive strategy

Previous studies on strategic groups have mainly focused on their static characteristics in order to test the theory of strategic groups and intraindustry performance differences (Porter, 1979; Cool and Schendel, 1988; Fiegenbaum and Thomas, 1990). In contrast, this study takes a longitudinal, dynamic perspective and describes the forces driving strategic group membership and structural evolution. It proposes that a strategic group acts as a reference point for group members in formulating competitive strategy. A partial adjustment model of strategic mobility is then developed which incorporates the idea of a strategic group as a reference group. It models strategic change in an industry both within and across strategic groups. The model is tested in the context of an in-depth industry analysis of the more significant firms in the insurance industry over the 1970-84 time period. The results suggest that strategic groups act as reference points for firm strategies and that predictions of future firm strategies and industry/group structures may also be successfully derived.     

Inflation And Efficiency In A Search Economy*

We present a model in which purely monetary inflation systematically affects efficiency, welfare, and relative prices. The model focuses on the microeconomics of trade in search markets under inflation. Inflation, by increasing the cost of holding money, undermines the market's ability to sustain long‐term customer relationships. Because those relationships generate the most efficient transactions patterns, overall welfare unambiguously declines.     

Leadership Spiritual Behaviors Toward Subordinates: An Empirical Examination of the Effects of a Leader’s Individual Spirituality and Organizational Spirituality

This study notes three research requirements in workplace spirituality namely; need for conducting empirical studies, building on the existing research, and linking spirituality to organizational topics in general and leadership in particular. It also notes that the existing literature indicates a requirement for examining the spiritual sources of a leader’s spiritual behaviors toward subordinates. To address these research requirements in workplace spirituality, this study conducts an empirical examination of the effect of two spiritual factors—leader’s individual spirituality and organizational spirituality—on leadership spiritual behaviors toward subordinates. It specifies and empirically examines a direct effects model hypothesizing direct effects of these two variables on a leader’s spiritual behaviors toward subordinates. It also specifies and empirically examines a moderating effect model hypothesizing that organizational spirituality will moderate the relationship between a leader’s individual spirituality and the leader’s spiritual behaviors toward subordinates. The results of this study provided support for the direct effects model but not for the moderating effect model. Specifically, in the direct effects model, a leader’s individual spirituality accounted for statistically significant variance in leadership spiritual behaviors toward subordinates but organizational spirituality did not.     

The Effect of Social Cues on Sniping Behavior in Internet Auctions: Field Evidence and a Lab Experiment

This research explores how social cues presented in an online auction affect sniping behavior. Sniping is a strategy of placing a bid on an item in the very ending stages of an auction with a pre-determined ending time in an attempt to win the auction. Such a strategy conceals the intentions of the bidder until the last moments of the auction and minimizes the possibility of other opposing bidders submitting higher bids due to the short period of time left to respond. The research includes two field studies and a lab experiment indicating that sniping appears to be influenced by social factors, that is, when there are a greater number of bidders in the auction or the auction site provides social information about the bidders, the relative use of sniping increases. This research supports the perspective that bidders rely on others' bidding behavior and characteristics as an indication of the true value of the item on sale, and is one of the first studies in the literature which takes this perspective.     

Ownership influences on corporate social responsibility in the Indian context

The empirical evidence from the extant literature has been equivocal regarding the influence exerted by different ownership types on corporate social responsibility (CSR), especially in developing countries such as India characterized by institutional voids. We use a longitudinal panel dataset of 500 large Indian companies to test a model of corporate ownership forms as key determinants of CSR engagement in India. Based on neo-institutional theory, our model of CSR determinants investigates the roles of three salient aspects of ownership namely multinational ownership/affiliation, state ownership and family ownership and control, after controlling for the influence of firm size, firm age, leverage, the availability of slack resources, profitability and various governance attributes. Our ordered logit regressions indicate strong support for the role of multinational ownership and family control and management in promoting higher levels of CSR engagement. Contrary to expectations, public sector ownership appeared to negatively impact CSR engagement. We offer our conjectures on this anomalous finding and the research possibilities it opens up.     

Mergers of not-for-profit hospitals in the 1980s: Who were the most likely targets?

Proponents argue that mergers should be encouraged as a legitimate strategy to avert (presumably undesirable) hospital closures. More recently, antitrust activity directed at not-for-profit hospitals has intensified. This study attempts to shed some light on the policy debate by testing whether merger targets are indeed candidates for closure, namely hospitals with persistent losses. Acquisitions of independent not-for-profit hospitals by other hospitals and by multihospital corporations are observed from a national sample for the period 1982–1987. The likelihood of being acquired in during any year within that period is estimated using a discrete-time hazard rate model. We find no evidence to support the notion that hospitals with weak financial indicators are more likely to be acquired. Rather, we find that hospitals with high operating-margins that are located in less regulated markets, and to a certain extent in high-growth markets, are more likely to be acquired. These findings cast doubt on certain predictions found in the theoretical literature, but are in agreement with empirical studies of other industries.