Business Commons^™

Underdog Consumption: An Exploration Into Meanings And Motives, Lee Phillip Mcginnis, James W. Gentry

Department of Marketing: Faculty Publications

Marketers frequently position business concerns—whether brands, teams, or stores—as the non market-dominant entity (or the “underdog”). This article examines the motives for underdog support through in-depth interviews and a focus group. Findings suggest that underdog consumers support underdogs out of empathy, as a way to ensure the maintenance of equal opportunity in competition, and as a way to provide personal inspiration. Some motives for underdog support can be interpreted to be anti-consumption (or, at least, anti-corporate) in nature. On the other hand, many underdog consumers support and identify with underdogs not necessarily as a way to keep the top dog …

A Framework For Examining Leadership In Extreme Contexts, Sean T. Hannah, Mary Uhl-Bien, Bruce Avolio, Fabrice L. Cavarretta

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

In this review, we develop a framework to guide future research and to examine the execution of leadership in extreme contexts. We start by defining and distinguishing extreme contexts from crisis and other contexts. A five component typology is developed comprised of magnitude of consequences, form of threat, probability of consequences, location in time and physical or psychological–social proximity. We discuss the unique influences these components have on leadership processes in extreme contexts examining the relevance of organization types such as critical action and high reliability organizations. Further, we present a set of factors that may attenuate or intensify the …

Religious Discrimination And Racial Harassment: What Ever Happened To Marshawn Demur? -- Student Workbook, Gwendolyn Combs

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

The diversity of the domestic and global workforce is increasing due to the growing number of immigrants and the expansion of global operations. The management of religious differences and the interface of varying religious beliefs and management practices are profound concerns for many organizations and human resource professionals. Religious communities may be quite different in beliefs and practices, and this can influence employee interaction with formal and informal work practices and social norms. Additionally, response to religious differences can sometimes be intertwined with racial biases and attitude predispositions. This case will depict a particular organizational situation involving an employee’s religious …

How Coupled Are Decoupled Farm Payments? A Review Of The Evidence, Arathi Bhaskar, John C. Beghin

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

This survey paper explores the literature on decoupling of farm programs that has emerged in the last 10 years. The paper identifies and assesses the various channels of potential coupling of decoupled farm payments and provides a taxonomy of coupling mechanisms found in theoretical and empirical papers. Coupling of decoupled payments is pervasive but effects when measurable are small, with the exception of the impact on land values. The paper points to unresolved issues on potential coupling mechanisms for further research.

Domestic subsidies to agriculture were brought under the discipline of global trade rules for the first time in the …

The “Point” Of Positive Organizational Behavior, Fred Luthans, Bruce Avolio

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Perhaps the most important “Point” we would like to make in this “Point-Counterpoint” on positive organizational behavior is the role that research must play in this evolving area of study. We follow this point on the importance of research by drawing from recent findings that indicate in discussions such as this point and counterpoint, that taking a positive approach leads to more in-depth inquiry, whereas a negative perspective leads to advocacy and in our view less learning potential. Thus, the positive perspective we take in this “Point” piece is to identify and make a deep inquiry into the major issues …

The Role Of The Library And Information Science Professionals As Managers: A Comparative Analysis, Parvez Ahmad, Mohd Yaseen

E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (1999-2009, Volumes 1-10)

Abstract

The basic aim of this paper to show the core competences of Library & Information Science (LIS) professionals as managers of organizations. In this paper we have done a comparative study of LIS professionals and managers of organizations and found more similarities than differences. This paper outlines and discusses the professional skills and necessary technological skills needed for library science professionals and managers.

Changing Perceptions Of Homesteading As A Policy Of Public Domain Disposal, Richard Edwards

Great Plains Quarterly (through 2013)

The inspiring story of homesteaders claiming free land and realizing their dreams became one of the enduring narratives of American history. But scholars who have studied homesteading have often been much more ambivalent, even harshly negative, about how successful it was in practice. While the public often views our history differently from scholars, in this case the disparity appears both substantial and persistent. Perhaps it is time to revisit homesteading and reassess whether homesteading really was a good idea or not.

Certainly homesteading once powerfully fired the American imagination. The promise of free land was such a startling idea that …

The Indexing Of Scholarly Open Access Business Journals, Katharine Ball

E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (1999-2009, Volumes 1-10)

Introduction

There is a small, but rapidly growing, number of scholarly, open access (OA) business journals that are now available on the internet. In May 2004, the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) listed 8 business titles. By May 2006, the number had jumped to 26 and as of May 2009, the DOAJ lists 83 business and management titles. An additional 84 economics titles are also available. Looking at other databases: in May 2009, Ulrich’s Periodical Directory includes 113 scholarly OA business and economics journals, 59 of which are refereed. Open J-Gate has 536 OA titles under “Business, economy, and …

Recession Comes To The Plains, Eric Thompson, University Of Nebraska-Lincoln

Business in Nebraska

U.S. Macroeconomic Outlook

Like clockwork, just a few weeks after the November Presidential election, the National Bureau of Economic Indicators declared the U.S. economy in recession. This was not news, of course. It had been evident by that time that the U.S. economy had entered recession. Instead, the major news of the last 6 months is that the U.S. recession has entered a second, and more menacing, phase. This “second act” of the recession began in September, with the upheaval on Wall Street and the freezing of global credit markets. At that time, our national housing recession morphed into a …

2009 Nebraska Business

College of Business: Trade Publications

2009 Nebraska Business

Leadership: Current Theories, Research, And Future Directions, Bruce Avolio, Fred Walumbwa, Todd J. Weber

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

This review examines recent theoretical and empirical developments in the leadership literature, beginning with topics that are currently receiving attention in terms of research, theory, and practice. We begin by examining authentic leadership and its development, followed by work that takes a cognitive science approach. We then examine new-genre leadership theories, complexity leadership, and leadership that is shared, collective, or distributed. We examine the role of relationships through our review of leader member exchange and the emerging work on followership. Finally, we examine work that has been done on substitutes for leadership, servant leadership, spirituality and leadership, cross-cultural leadership, and …

Learning Motivation And Transfer Of Human Capital Development: Implications From Psychological Capital, Gwendolyn Combs, Fred Luthans, Jakari Griffith

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

In this chapter we have attempted to expand the application and utility of the newly emerging core construct of psychological capital to an area critically important to high performance organizations. More specifically, the enormous organizational resources devoted to building and sustaining human capital through employer-sponsored or delivered learning and education programs demands continued analysis and investigation of how to ensure the effectiveness of such programs. Learning motivation (antecedent) and transfer of learning (outcome) are two particularly challenging elements in the learning/education program development formula that if addressed correctly can minimize failure and maximize success.

In developing and sustaining human capital, …

The Challenge Of Leading On Unstable Ground: Triggers That Activate Social Identity Faultlines, Donna Chrobot-Mason, Marian N. Ruderman, Todd J. Weber, Chris Ernst

Leadership Institute: Faculty Publications

Today’s leaders face unprecedented challenges in attempting to manage interactions between social identity group members with a history of tension in society at large. Research on faultlines suggests that social identity groups often polarize in response to events that make social identity salient, resulting in negative work outcomes. The current research extends the faultlines literature by examining precipitating events (triggers) that activate a faultline. Qualitative interview data were collected from two samples of employees working in multiple countries to identify events that had resulted in social identity conflicts. In the first study (35 events), an exploratory approach yielded a typology …

Not All Conscientiousness Scales Change Alike: A Multimethod, Multisample Study Of Age Differences In The Facets Of Conscientiousness, Joshua J. Jackson, Tim Bogg, Kate E. Walton, Dustin Wood, Peter D. Harms, Jennifer Lodi-Smith, Grant W. Edmonds, Brent W. Roberts

Leadership Institute: Faculty Publications

Previous research has shown that traits from the domain of conscientiousness tend to increase with age. However, previous research has not tested whether all aspects of conscientiousness change with age. The present research tests age differences in multiple facets of conscientiousness (industriousness, orderliness, impulse control, reliability, and conventionality) using multiple methods and multiple samples. In a community sample (N = 274) and a representative statewide sample (N = 613) of 18- to 94-year-olds, self-reported industriousness, impulse control, and reliability showed age differences from early adulthood to middle age, whereas orderliness did not. The transition into late adulthood was …

An Exploratory Study Of How Potential "Family And Household Capital" Impacts New Venture Start-Up Rates, Peter Rodriguez, Chris S. Tuggle, Sean M. Hackett

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Drawing from social capital theory, the authors examine the relationship between family capital characteristics and new venture start-up rates in the United States. The results of this study improve the understanding of (a) how families matter in an entrepreneur’s decision to start a business, (b) how wealth and health care considerations affect the start-up decision, and (c) whether and how these effects differ among the largest ethnic groups in the United States.

How Effective Leaders Learn From Life: A Grounded Theory Study Of The Impact Of Significant Life Experiences Upon Leadership Development, Ryan P. Meers

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Fifteen effective leaders from diverse organizational backgrounds described their significant life experiences and the impact upon their development as leaders. Using grounded theory methodology, a theoretical model emerged for assisting leaders absorb greater learning from their various life experiences. Related to the central phenomenon of how effective leaders learn from significant life experiences, four causal conditions of types of experiences were identified as influencing how leaders learn: (1) experiences of adversity or loss; (2) experiences of “stretch assignments”; (3) inspirational experiences; and (4) experiences with conflict. Strategies used by the leaders to absorb learning from their significant experiences were active …

Does Fair Trade Deliver On Its Core Value Proposition? Effects On Income, Educational Attainment, And Health In Three Countries, Eric J. Arnould, Alejandro Plastina, Dwanye Ball

Department of Marketing: Faculty Publications

Alternative trade organizations (ATOs) based on philosophies of social justice and/or environmental well-being are establishing new channels of trade and marketing. Partisans promote ATOs as systems to transfer benefits from consumers in the wealthy northern hemisphere to producers in the poor southern hemisphere. The central public policy question is whether the well-being of poor agricultural producers in the southern hemisphere is actually being improved by fair-trade practices, or are consumers who buy products on this premise deceived? The research reported here partially answers the question whether participation in a fair-trade coffee marketing channel delivers benefits to smallscale producers in Latin …

Psychological Ownership: Theoretical Extensions, Measurement, And Relation To Work Outcomes, James B. Avey, Bruce Avolio, Craig Crossley, Fred Luthans

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Viewing psychological ownership as a positive resource for impacting human performance in organizations, the present study investigated the components of an expanded view of psychological ownership. Confirmatory factor analyses on a proposed measure of psychological ownership provided support for a positively-oriented, ‘‘promotion-focused’’ aspect of psychological ownership comprised of four dimensions: self-efficacy, accountability, sense of belongingness, and self-identity. In addition, territoriality was examined as a unique and more ‘‘prevention-focused’’ form of ownership. Practical implications and suggestions for future research on psychological ownership and positive organizational behavior conclude the article.

Inquiry Unplugged: Building On Hackman’S Potential Perils Of Pob, Fred Luthans, Bruce Avolio

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

In this rejoinder to Hackman’s counterpoint piece on positive organizational behavior (POB), we again take a positive, inquiry approach. We address and build out each of his identified potential perils with the aim of accelerating the journey of POB understanding, research, and application.

Team Level Positivity: Investigating Positive Psychological Capacities And Team Level Outcomes, Bradley J. West, Jaime L. Patera, Melissa K. Carsten

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

The movement toward positive psychology has uncovered the important role that positivity plays in both individual and organizational success. Given that work teams are becoming increasingly embedded in organizational structures, it is surprising that few researchers have investigated positivity at the team level. The present study examines the emergence of team level positive psychological capacities and their relationship with team outcomes (e.g., cohesion, cooperation, coordination, and conflict and team satisfaction) during two team sessions. Results from 101 teams suggest that team optimism is an important predictor of team outcomes when teams are newly formed, whereas team resilience and team efficacy …

Operations Research Methodology Life Cycle Trend Phases As Recorded In Journal Articles, Marc J. Schniederjans, A. M. Schniederjans, D. G. Schniederjans

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

This paper applies life cycle concepts to forecast and explore trends in the publication rates of operations research (OR) methodology journal articles. The confirmatory part of this study seeks to show the accuracy of life cycles to forecast a trend for a single OR methodology. The exploratory part of this study extends the use of life cycle forecasting to a broader collection of OR methodologies. This part of the study entails a collection of keywords for OR methodologies from over 8,000 journal articles. The results show a life cycle can be used to forecast a trend in OR journal article …

Religious Discrimination And Racial Harassment: What Ever Happened To Marshawn Demur? -- Instructor’S Manual, Gwendolyn Combs

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Case Learning Objectives:
Establish the basis for and recognition of potential d nn isparate treatment and disparate impact situations in the workplace.
Analyze the legal requirements for employers in considering and/or accommodating employee religious beliefs and preferences in the workplace.
Examine the interface of judicial precedent, legislative intent, Title VII and organizational policy/managerial decision-making.
Recognize the roles and responsibilities of human resource (HR) professionals in addressing these issues.

Target Audience: Undergraduate and graduate level students who have a basic background in HR management and equal employment/diversity issues.

This case works best in conjunction with the study of equal employment opportunity, …

Organizational Narcissism And Virtuous Behavior, Dennis Duchon, Brian Drake

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Extreme narcissistic organizations are unable to behave ethically because they lack a moral identity. While such organizations are not necessarily unethical intentionally, they become self-obsessed and use a sense of entitlement, self-aggrandizement, denial, and rationalizations to justify anything they do. Extreme narcissistic organizations might develop formal ethics programs, but such programs will have little effect on behavior.

Using The World Wide Web To Educate And Inform The Public About Risk And Agricultural Biotechnology, Douglas A. Golick, Robert D. Peterson, Leon G. Higley

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

The University of Nebraska and AgBios, Inc. launched the AgBiosafety website (http://agbiosaftzy.unl.edu) with the purpose of educating the public about agricultural biotechnology risk and safezy issues through science-based content. This article discusses the creation ofthe website, its components, and data gathered from usage statistics and a web-delivered survey. Also included is a discussion of the results ofdata gathered and recommendations for future web-based educational efforts in biotechnology safety and risk assessment.

P/E Changes: Some New Results, Thomas S. Zorn, Donna M. Dudney, Benjamas Jirasakuldech

Department of Finance: Faculty Publications

The P/E ratio is often used as a metric to compare individual stocks and the market as a whole relative to historical valuations. We examine the factors that affect changes in the inverse of the P/E ratio (E/P) over time in the broad market (S&P 500 Index). Our model includes variables that measure investor beliefs and changes in tax rates and shows that these variables are important factors affecting the P/E ratio. We extend prior work by correcting for the presence of a long-run relation between variables included in the model. As frequently conjectured, changes in the P/E ratio have …

Promoting Consumerism In West Germany During The Cold War: An Agency Perspective, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

This historical study attempts to explore how advertising, from the perspective of the J. Walter Thompson (JWT) Agency, contributed to the development of consumerism in West Germany during the Cold War (roughly the early 1950s until the late 1980s). The article describes how West Germany rebuilt its economy and eventually developed into the largest exporting country in the world. It also illustrates how advertising as an institution contributed to a functioning consumer society and chronicles the agency’s development in the U.S. and expansion to Germany. Finally, it explores the agency’s insights into consumer behavior in West Germany during the Cold …

Evaluating Vendor-Managed Inventory (Vmi) In Non Traditional Environments Using Simulation, Peter Southard, Scott Swenseth

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

This study provided empirical evidence that sufficient economic benefits could be achieved with the use of a technology-enabled vendor-managed inventory (VMI) system in a unique chain such that a firm could justify spending the money necessary to create the infrastructure to support it. The models, while based on a specific type of business, were still generic enough that the results could be generalized to many types of highly distributed, variable demand delivery systems. The study compared the costs of inventory systems used in practice by rural farm cooperatives to possible technology-enabled systems. Fuel delivery data from two agricultural cooperatives in …

Understanding The Economic Factors Influencing Farm Policy Preferences, Keith H. Coble, Thomas O. Knight, George F. Patrick, Alan Baquet

Department of Agricultural Economics: Presentations, Working Papers, and Gray Literature

Freedom to Farm legislation enacted in 1996 was widely perceived as a dramatic step toward a more market oriented farm policy which would create a producer decision environment more conducive to competitive adjustments. Enacted in a time of high market prices and large exports of agricultural products, the transition payments were initially larger than deficiency payments would have provided. Generally, this legislation received strong support from Midwestern and Central Plains states. However, final passage was secured through concessions to legislators from other regions. Abrupt declines in many farm program crop prices in 1998 have tested the support for Freedom to …

Brain Drain In Nebraska: What Do The Data Show?, Steve Carlson, Hanna Hartman, Eric Thompson

Business in Nebraska

Brain Drain in Nebraska: What do the data show?

Introduction

Nebraska is a growing state, but it is a slowly growing state. Over the last decade, population growth in Nebraska, at 0.6% per year, has lagged the national average rate of 1.0%. This gap in growth rates is large in real terms. Given a current population of approximately 1.8 million persons, Nebraska would grow by approximately 18,000 persons per year if it grew at the national growth rate of 1.0% per year. Instead, the state only adds about 11,000 persons per year. A lower growth rate results in a loss …

Summer Sessions Breakdown Of Course Dates And Time, Paul Savory

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

This report highlights an exhaustive analysis of the hundreds of Summer Session courses to develop an understanding of when they occur during the day and during which of the four academic terms. The analysis shows that the most popular time for scheduling courses is between 9:30 am and noon for each of the four summer session terms. Given the limited number of general purpose classrooms on campus, accommodating faculty preference for rooms, buildings, and computer equipment is sometimes not possible during the most in demand course times. The results also showcase the potential for having summer courses four-day per week …