Structural learning and estimation of joint causal effects among network-dependent variables

Statistical Methods & Applications - Bayesian networks in the form of Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) represent an effective tool for modeling and inferring dependence relations among variables,...     

Visualizing and managing value creation through integrated reporting practices: a dynamic resource-based perspective

The article builds on the current debate on how accounting tools can assist top management teams to manage their resources, while communicating a variety of data and information about value creation to their stakeholders. Within this debate, the study focuses on a recent tool for corporate reporting, the Integrated Reporting (〈IR〉), and investigates its utility to support the development of a holistic model for managing strategic resources to create value. To operationalize the 〈IR〉 according to this perspective, the article combines 〈IR〉 with the Dynamic Resource-Based View (DRBV) of the firm on the basis of their common idea that strategic resources are interconnected and have to be managed with the collaboration of all stakeholders in order to inform governance actions and create value with a holistic perspective. For the two case studies analyzed, the information provided by the two organizations’ 〈IR〉 is specifically organized and re-framed using “resource mapping”, which is a DRBV-based visual and analytical technique representing the causal relationships between resources and governance actions. In this way, we not only aim to re-organize and visualize existing information into a new form, but we also expect to describe and communicate the dominant logic in the business and the leverage points where the value creation process lies, supporting the usefulness of Integrated Reporting as a management and governance tool.

     

Compulsion mechanisms: state-movement dynamics in Buenos Aires

The article reveals and explains the workings of generally ignored mechanism of state–movement interaction proposed by Charles Tilly, namely the compulsion mechanism. Specifically, two types of compulsion mechanisms will be defined: compulsive support and compulsive control. In both types, without using physical repression, the state’s institutions reinforce the movement’s identity while also prompting it to adapt its repertoire of strategies to the state institutions’ requirements. Empirically, this article focuses on the interaction of the assembly movement with the state in the City of Buenos Aires. This movement emerged as a result of the socioeconomic and political crises of 2001–2002 in Argentina. Based on ethnographic fieldwork and archival research, the purpose is to unpack how the assembly movement’s identities and strategies were built and how its interaction with the state evolved.     

On the finite-sample properties of conditional empirical likelihood estimators

We provide Monte Carlo evidence on the finite-sample behavior of the conditional empirical likelihood (CEL) estimator of Kitamura, Tripathi, and Ahn and the conditional Euclidean empirical likelihood (CEEL) estimator of Antoine, Bonnal, and Renault in the context of a heteroscedastic linear model with an endogenous regressor. We compare these estimators with three heteroscedasticity-consistent instrument-based estimators and the Donald, Imbens, and Newey estimator in terms of various performance measures. Our results suggest that the CEL and CEEL with fixed bandwidths may suffer from the no-moment problem, similarly to the unconditional generalized empirical likelihood estimators studied by Guggenberger. We also study the CEL and CEEL estimators with automatic bandwidths selected through cross-validation. We do not find evidence that these suffer from the no-moment problem. When the instruments are weak, we find CEL and CEEL to have finite-sample properties—in terms of mean squared error and coverage probability of confidence intervals—poorer than the heteroscedasticity-consistent Fuller (HFUL) estimator. In the strong instruments case, the CEL and CEEL estimators with automatic bandwidths tend to outperform HFUL in terms of mean squared error, while the reverse holds in terms of the coverage probability, although the differences in numerical performance are rather small.     

THE DISTRIBUTION OF POLITICAL POWER, THE COSTS OF RENT-SEEKING, AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

Poor economic growth in many countries can be explained by the misallocation of entrepreneurial resources to activities that do not foster growth. This paper deals with the relation between the distribution of political power, the allocation of entrepreneurial resources and growth. We model growth as deriving from Schumpeterian entrepreneurs who try to increase profits through innovation. We endogenize the choice of time devoted to this activity vis-a-vis other ways of increasing income, such as obtaining government subsidies. More unequal access to the political redistribution mechanism makes rent-seeking activities less profitable, and results in higher growth.     

A multidimensional employment quality index for Brazil, 2002–11

In countries where informal, insecure jobs are widespread, traditional labour market indicators – such as the unemployment rate, labour force participation rate and wages – are not necessarily the most meaningful. The authors use a multidimensional employment quality index to analyse the Brazilian labour market over the period 2002–11, across three dimensions: earnings, formality (measured by the existence of an employment contract and social security contributions) and job tenure. The results show a significant increase in employment quality overall, especially in the years 2009–11, but with considerable differences between wage employees and self‐employed workers, and between industries.     

Engineer-to-order (ETO) production planning and control: an empirical framework for machinery-building companies

This paper illustrates the results of an empirical study involving 21 engineer-to-order (ETO) companies, operating in the machinery-building industry. The study investigates the needs and requirements of such companies in terms of software support for governing the businesses, with particular emphasis on production planning and control (PPC) processes. An empirical analysis investigated two main aspects: (i) the set of business activities performed by the companies in the analysed industry and (ii) the relevant, high-level software functionalities required for the execution of such activities. As an answer to the observed compelling need for reviewing the general approaches to PPC in machinery-building companies, we develop an empirical, high-level production planning and scheduling reference framework, encompassing all the activities involved in the order fulfilment process.     

Total cost of ownership along the supply chain: a model applied to the tinting industry

Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is a consolidated purchasing tool applied across different industries. However, in some cases, existing models are not satisfactory. The paper analyses the tinting industry, where manufacturers of colourant dispensing machines sell products and related services to paint producers, who install them in retail stores to sell the colour paints to the final consumers. Authors develop a TCO model integrating those existing in literature and including the following specifications: (i) all relevant costs along the product life cycle are considered; (ii) both goods and service-related costs are considered; (iii) both explicit and hidden costs are considered; (iv) the model adapts to the perspectives of various actors in the supply chain. The TCO model is tested with real data and provides useful insights on real costs sustained by each actor.     

Effective strategizing practices in pluralistic settings: the case of Academic Medical Centers

Pluralism in organizations is dramatically and progressively increasing today, which makes it difficult for managers to capture a clear picture of what is really going on at the moment and to make strategic decisions. How strategy is formed and implemented in pluralistic contexts has been substantially underestimated for many years. This article investigates how specific strategy processes are constructed and which practices can be successfully adopted in pluralistic contexts, such as in Academic Medical Centers. We drew from a strategy as practice approach and adopted an ethnographic methodology to conduct the study. This paper demonstrates that some practices (strategy workshops, brutal facts and graphic charts) can reduce the risks of setting the strategy agenda in pluralistic organizations. Implications for managers and scholars are discussed.     

Rural Residence as a Determinant of Attitudes Toward US Immigration Policy

Between 1990 and 2000, the foreign-born population in the United States increased by 57 per cent, compared to a 13 per cent increase in the native-born population. This growth has fueled considerable media attention and has fomented some anti-immigrant sentiments. Although a number of authors have charted changes in support for restrictionist immigration policies, few have examined their determinants. In this paper, we focus on region of residence and use data from a 2004 telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 1888 adults to test the hypothesis that rural Americans are more likely to support restrictive immigration policies than individuals in urban and suburban communities. In a series of regression analyses, this hypothesis is confirmed; rural residents hold the most restrictionist views. Additional analyses indicate that this effect of rural residence on policy attitudes is mediated by attitudes toward multiculturalism, the perceived traits of immigrants, and perceptions about the costs of immigration. Ultimately, the analyses indicate that the perceived cost of immigration is the single strongest predictor of support for restrictive immigration policies, and that it best accounts for rural residents'more restrictionist views.