Working Papers

We examine the classic question of how religious diversity in a community affects church membership in a period of high growth and social change. Culling the literature, we develop hypotheses about five possible mechanisms underlying a diversity-…

We show that it is impossible to achieve collusion in a duopoly when (1) goods are homogenous and firms compete in quantities, (2) new, imperfect information arrives continuously, without sudden events and (3) firms are able to respond to this…

Although the argument that unconscious inputs are often key determinants of consumer decision making is compelling, it may be overstated, particularly with respect to consumer choice. A comparison of the role of conscious inputs (e.g., the…

Thirty years of systematic study reveal that many major corporations experience a strange cyclicality in their internal corporate venturing (ICV) activity: Periods of intense activity are followed by periods of shutting down such activities only…

We investigate the “generalized second price” auction (GSP), a new mechanism which is used by search engines to sell online advertising that most Internet users encounter daily. GSP is tailored to its unique environment, and neither the mechanism…

The real options framework has been used extensively to analyze the timing of investment under uncertainty. While standard real options models assume that agents possess a constant rate of time preference, there is substantial evidence that…

Two assumptions are used to justify selection of equilibria in stable sets. One assumption requires that a selected set is invariant to addition of redundant strategies. The other is a strong version of backward induction. Backward induction is…

We propose a conceptual framework that decomposes the overall acquisition integration process into four sequential and co-evolving processes: (i) formulating the integration logic and performance goals, (ii) establishing the integration planning…

The 1964 Securities Acts Amendments extended the mandatory disclosure requirements that had applied to listed firms since 1934 to large firms traded Over-the-Counter (OTC). We find several pieces of evidence indicating that investors valued these…

We study a dynamic duopoly model with differentiated products and network externalities. New consumers appear each period and the value of the product depends on the size of the network in the current and in the previous period, for example due…

We consider an assemble-to-order system with a high volume of prospective customers arriving per unit time. Our objective is to maximize expected infinite horizon discounted profit by choosing product prices, component production capacities, and…

We consider an assemble-to-order system with a high volume of prospective customers arriving per unit time. A companion paper established that with optimal product prices, component production capacity, and sequencing of orders for assembly, the…

Credible tests of hypotheses about power require credible measures of power. Roll rates purport to measure the power of the majority party in legislatures. This paper develops and employs a baseline model to assess roll rates. While on the…

Abstract not available.

This paper describes ways that the definition of an equilibrium among players strategies in a game can be sharpened by invoking additional criteria derived from decision theory. Refinements of John Nashs 1950 definition aim primarily to…

We provide a theoretical framework for studying mate search and selection based on a two-sided matching model. Guided by the model, we study dating behavior using data from an experimental dating market, where we generate random matching of…

Few concepts in the social sciences are invoked with the same ease or employed so readily to explain so many social and institutional outcomes as power. The concept of power has been used to explain, for example, how organizational resources are…

Activist NGOs have increasingly foregone public politics and turned to private politics to change the practices of firms and industries. This paper focuses on private politics, activist strategies, and nonmarket strategies of targets. A formal…

A decision maker needs to schedule several activities that take uncertain time to complete and are only valuable together. Some activities are bound to be finished earlier than others, thus incurring waiting costs. We show how to schedule…

Customers expectations are key determinants of their consumption experiences, satisfaction, and loyalty. Therefore, knowing in advance what customers expect is critical for the success of marketing strategies. We examine alternative predictions…