Embedded cultural values and international transaction cost advantages

Culturally embedded differences in self-interested behavior and perceptions of trust violate the universal assumption of moral hazard held by transaction cost economic theorists. A model of transaction cost advantage is derived and propositions developed using the cultural value diversity literature to test the universal assumptions of transaction cost economics.     

Capitalizing the Crisis? Explanatory Factors for the Design of Short‐time Work across Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development Countries

This article looks at the financial and economic crisis 2008–10 in 18 Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development states and seeks to investigate explanatory paths for the subsidization of further education within short‐time work programmes. Several hypotheses are put to the test: first, a classical partisan difference argument; second, a varieties of capitalism approach proposing a successful joint rallying of employers and employees for subsidization in coordinated market economies; and, lastly, the merged hypothesis that right‐wing parties in a coordinated economic context might subsidize feeling the pressure to overcompensate an ‘issue ownership’ of left parties in the field of employee‐friendly policies. We identify four explanatory paths: coordinated economies in the sample subsidized when they were economically closed or highly indebted. The results also support our combined hypothesis, that New Zealand – a left‐governed liberal market economy – and right‐governed coordinated market economies of the non‐Scandinavian type subsidized.     

Variable selection for generalized linear mixed models by L 1-penalized estimation

Generalized linear mixed models are a widely used tool for modeling longitudinal data. However, their use is typically restricted to few covariates, because the presence of many predictors yields unstable estimates. The presented approach to the fitting of generalized linear mixed models includes an L ₁-penalty term that enforces variable selection and shrinkage simultaneously. A gradient ascent algorithm is proposed that allows to maximize the penalized log-likelihood yielding models with reduced complexity. In contrast to common procedures it can be used in high-dimensional settings where a large number of potentially influential explanatory variables is available. The method is investigated in simulation studies and illustrated by use of real data sets.     

Insurance demand and social comparison: An experimental analysis

This paper analyzes whether social comparison can explain the low take-up of disaster insurance usually reported in field studies. We argue that risks in the case of disasters are highly correlated between subjects whereas risks for which high insurance take-up can be observed (e.g. extended warranties or cell phone insurance) are typically idiosyncratic. We set up a simple model with social reference points and show that in the presence of inequality aversion social comparison makes insurance indeed less attractive if risks are correlated. In addition we conducted a simple experiment which confirms these theoretical results. The average willingness to pay for insurance is significantly higher for idiosyncratic than for correlated risks.     

Standardisierungspotentiale lebenszyklusbasierter Modelle des strategischen Kostenmanagements

Tremendous increases in indirect costs can be found in many industries. Consequently, life cycle cost analysis models are getting more important in strategic cost management. However, existing models differ significantly from each other as they have been developed mainly for specific applications. In order to enable a common use of those models, a standardization of these models is required. We examine the potentials of standardizing models for life cycle cost analysis. In a first step, requirements regarding a standard model are derived from literature. As a second step, existing approaches found in literature are compared to the afore derived demands and it is analyzed to what extent they match the standardization requirements. Based on this comparison, we identify and discuss avenues for further research.     

The Dynamics of Research Alliances: Examining the Effect of Alliance Experience and Partner Characteristics on the Speed of Alliance Entry in the Biotech Industry

Few studies have moved beyond the dyadic level of an ongoing alliance and examined factors contributing to the success of entering a series of alliances. In this paper we expect biotechnology firms over time to learn from their alliance experience and to develop general alliance capabilities. Specifically, we expect the speed with which they enter into new research alliances, e.g. their alliance formation rate, to be affected by capabilities built up in prior alliances as well as by characteristics of their partners. We use longitudinal event history data for the complete population of US biotechnology firms for 1973–1999 to test four hypotheses about factors affecting the rate of new alliance formation. Our analysis suggests that the speed of entering research alliances is affected by prior experience of the focal firm, but not by partner characteristics. Our findings provide evidence that biotech firms learn how to learn more effectively from multiple research alliances; however, this effect is generalized and not tied to specific characteristics of the alliance partner.     

Analysis of the importance of on-field covariates in the German Bundesliga

In modern football, various variables as, for example, the distance a team runs or its percentage of ball possession, are collected throughout a match. However, there is a lack of methods to make use of these on-field variables simultaneously and to connect them with the final result of the match. This paper considers data from the German Bundesliga season 2015/2016. The objective is to identify the on-field variables that are connected to the sportive success or failure of the single teams. An extended Bradley–Terry model for football matches is proposed that is able to take into account on-field covariates. Penalty terms are used to reduce the complexity of the model and to find clusters of teams with equal covariate effects. The model identifies the running distance to be the on-field covariate that is most strongly connected to the match outcome.     

The role of acculturative stress and cultural backgrounds in migrants with pathological gambling

The objective of the present study was to differentiate specific migration-related factors that can account for an increased vulnerability to pathological gambling (PG) among migrants in Germany. One hundred and six gamblers (61 migrants, 45 Germans) with varying degrees of gambling problems participated in the study. We analysed (1) differences between migrants and Germans regarding gambling patterns, severity of gambling problems, motivation and craving; influence of (2) acculturative stress; (3) acceptance and popularity of gambling in the culture of origin on gambling problems; (4) differences between migrants and Germans regarding family gambling and peer gambling; and (5) differences in religiosity and its influence on gambling problems. Results suggest no differences between migrants and Germans regarding gambling patterns and the severity of gambling problems. However, findings indicate that migrants have higher motivation and craving to gamble. Findings further suggest that acculturative stress is associated with more severe gambling problems. In contrast, acceptance and popularity of gambling in the country of origin was not a significant predictor of gambling problems. At the same time, family gambling and peer gambling was significantly more prevalent among migrants, constituting an additional risk factor in the present sample. On the other hand, migrants in the sample benefit more often from a protective influence of religiosity.     

Identifying Factors that Influence State-specific Hunger Rates in the U.S.: A Simple Analytic Method for Understanding a Persistent Problem

An existing measure of food insecurity with hunger in the United States may serve as an effective indicator of quality of life. State level differences in that measure can reveal important differences in quality of life across places. In this study, we advocate and demonstrate two simple methods by which analysts can explore state-specific contributions to state-specific hunger rates. Using existing survey data and the U.S. Department of Agriculture measure of household food insecurity with hunger, we illustrate how comparing group-specific hunger rates within states and how the demographic method of standardization can both be used to assess how a state’s population and local characteristics influence hunger rates and other quality of life indicators associated with hunger.     

Effekte von ?Life-Coaching�� f��r F��hrungskr?fte in einem Gesundheitszentrum

This study evaluates the effects of life-coaching for high-level managers in an approved regeneration-center in Tyrol/Austria. This type of life-coaching consists of four steps, namely to analyze the life-situation, to de-block in case of disorders, to transform realizations into new attitudes and finally to integrate optimized thinking- and behavioral pattern in the daily routine. The effects of life-coaching were evaluated with a sound multimethodical design and the use of a control group. Results show that there is full satisfaction with the effectiveness of the entire treatment, but also there are significant differences between the groups with and without coaching.