It has often been said that a great part of the strength of Aslib lies in the fact that it brings together those whose experience has been gained in many widely differing fields…
Abstract
It has often been said that a great part of the strength of Aslib lies in the fact that it brings together those whose experience has been gained in many widely differing fields but who have a common interest in the means by which information may be collected and disseminated to the greatest advantage. Lists of its members have, therefore, a more than ordinary value since they present, in miniature, a cross‐section of institutions and individuals who share this special interest.
Michael A. Lodato, Scott Highhouse and Margaret E. Brooks
Many human resource professionals erroneously believe that they can hire the best employees without the assistance of decision aids. The purpose of this study is to examine…
Abstract
Purpose
Many human resource professionals erroneously believe that they can hire the best employees without the assistance of decision aids. The purpose of this study is to examine personal and situational characteristics that may relate to preference for intuition‐based approaches to hiring employees.
Design/methodology/approach
A representative sample of 206 managers and directors of human resources management was asked to complete an online questionnaire addressing psychological constructs and career information.
Findings
The authors found that the profile of a professional who prefers intuition‐based hiring is one who is an experiential thinker (i.e. tends to make everyday decisions based on feelings), is less experienced, works for a smaller organization, and does not possess advanced professional certification. Hiring context (i.e. selecting hourly versus salaried employees) did not influence preferences for intuition‐based hiring.
Research limitations/implications
Elements of the study are cross‐sectional and based on self‐reports. This does not allow for causal interpretations and increases the risk of common method bias.
Practical implications
Qualities that serve a human resource professional well in some aspects of work performance may interfere with the adoption of evidence‐based practices.
Originality/value
This study is the first to examine the characteristics of human resource professionals that are associated with a preference for intuition‐based hiring, and provides a new measure of selection decision‐making approach that may be used as a dependent variable in future research on the topic.
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Deborah A. O’Neil, Margaret E. Brooks and Margaret M. Hopkins
The purpose of this paper is to better understand women’s working relationships and career support behaviors, by investigating expectations women have of other women regarding…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to better understand women’s working relationships and career support behaviors, by investigating expectations women have of other women regarding senior women’s roles in (and motivations for) helping junior women succeed, and junior women’s engagement in their own career advancement behaviors.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors surveyed self- and other-reports of senior women’s engagement in career assistance behaviors on behalf of junior women colleagues, and junior women’s engagement in their own career advancement behaviors. One sample of respondents indicated to what extent they believed senior women did engage in career assistance toward junior women, and to what extent they believed junior women did engage in career advancement. Another sample indicated to what extent they believed senior women should engage in career assistance, and to what extent they believed junior women should engage in their own career advancement.
Findings
Results suggest a disconnect between the expectations and perceptions junior and senior women have of each other. Junior women expect senior women to engage in career assistance behaviors to a greater degree than they believe senior women are engaging in such behaviors, and junior women think they are doing more to advance their careers than senior women are expecting them to do. The authors examine individual and organizational implications of these unmet expectations and perception mismatches.
Originality/value
Women-to-women working relationships are under-studied, and typically viewed in either/or terms – good or bad. The findings provide a more nuanced understanding of women’s perceptions and expectations and offer suggestions for how women can influence female career advancement.
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By providing a critical analysis of a recent literature review concerning environmental, social and governance (ESG) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) research in finance…
Abstract
Purpose
By providing a critical analysis of a recent literature review concerning environmental, social and governance (ESG) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) research in finance which was published in the Journal of Corporate Finance (Gillan et al., 2021), examining it in the light of several reviews on the same or similar lines of research, this paper aims to serve those who wish to do research in the CSR/ESG/corporate sustainability and the reporting thereof areas in finance.
Design/methodology/approach
This note serves to comment on Gillan et al.’s review.
Findings
Irrespective of the merits of the review, it should not be used by newcomers to the research on CSR in corporate finance given that it provides a very biased view of it.
Originality/value
This commentary serves the purpose of cautioning those interested in becoming acquainted with CSR-related research in corporate finance that the review on which it focuses should be used only as an entry point, given that it offers an incomplete and biased picture.
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Jee Young Chung and Eyun-Jung Ki
The present study aims to identify how firms positioned their corporate reputation (i.e. impressiveness vs respectability) in their initial public offering (IPO) communication…
Abstract
Purpose
The present study aims to identify how firms positioned their corporate reputation (i.e. impressiveness vs respectability) in their initial public offering (IPO) communication based on the impression formation model. Further, the study examined whether this presentation of corporate reputation was related to IPO success (i.e. stock price and volume of trading).
Design/methodology/approach
The present study analyzed 248 IPO prospectuses that were submitted to the major US stock markets. Specifically, various substantive and symbolic information and cues in IPO prospectuses were content analyzed.
Findings
The results suggest that bigger (in terms of revenue) IPO companies featured more “impressiveness” in their IPO prospectus, leading to greater IPO success. Bigger (in terms of both revenue and number of employees) IPO companies featured more “respectability” impressions in the IPO prospectus, although they did not achieve direct IPO success on the first day of IPO. Different types of industry used different information cues to feature “impressiveness” and/or “respectability,” suggesting that different types of firms view different cues to be important to IPO communication.
Practical implications
The results also suggest some practical guidelines for the strategic use of contents, tables and illustrations. Using more charts, tables and illustrations in IPO prospectus summaries was associated with a higher volume of trading on the first day. The more illustrations included in the IPO prospectus summaries, the less investors were willing to pay for initial stock prices.
Originality/value
IPO communication is a generally understudied area in corporate communication and strategic communication scholarship. The results should help to explain which communicative aspects and PR strategies effectively manage the firm’s impression to maximize the chances of an IPO success as well as initially build the financial reputation of a company. By doing so, the findings contribute to the broader advancement of financial communication within the strategic communications domain.
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Indecision is not the hallmark of a great manager, but what do we know about when and why managers avoid or postpone decisions? The purpose of this paper is to discuss the limited…
Abstract
Purpose
Indecision is not the hallmark of a great manager, but what do we know about when and why managers avoid or postpone decisions? The purpose of this paper is to discuss the limited research on indecision.
Design/methodology/approach
This article reviews research from judgment and decision making, psychology, management, and marketing literatures to assemble what we already know about indecision. The review spans situational and personal determinants of indecision, highlighting what we know about when and why people experience indecision as well as who is predictably indecisive.
Findings
Decisions are avoided when people are asked to justify them, when options are similar in attractiveness, and when there are a large number of options to consider. Indecision may sometimes be a result of systematic biases (i.e. omission bias and status quo bias), and indecisive people may be more prone to confirmation bias. Finally, indecisiveness is related to numerous other individual differences, many of which are negative.
Practical implications
Specific recommendations for managers include evaluating options separately rather than comparing options, structuring incentive systems to reward decisive action, and explicitly considering the risk of lost opportunity when deciding whether to put off making a decision.
Originality/value
The literature reviewed in this paper spans diverse disciplines and perspectives. This paper provides a starting point for managers and researchers interested in understanding indecision: when and why it occurs, who is likely to be most indecisive, and what we might do to counter indecision.
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In recent years, the issue of human trafficking has become a key component of a growing number of corporate social responsibility initiatives, in which multinational corporations…
Abstract
In recent years, the issue of human trafficking has become a key component of a growing number of corporate social responsibility initiatives, in which multinational corporations have furthered the pursuit of “market based solutions” to contemporary social concerns. This essay draws upon in-depth interviews with and ethnographic observations of corporate actors involved in contemporary anti-trafficking campaigns to describe a new domain of sexual politics that feminist social theorists have barely begun to consider. Using trafficking as a case study, I argue that these new forms of sexual politics have served to bind together unlikely sets of social actors – including secular feminists, evangelical Christians, bipartisan state officials, and multinational corporations – who have historically subscribed to very different ideals about the beneficence of markets, criminal justice, and the role of the state.
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This chapter covers two behaviors that greatly affect college students’ mental health and wellbeing: eating and sleeping. The chapter begins with a definition of eating disorders…
Abstract
This chapter covers two behaviors that greatly affect college students’ mental health and wellbeing: eating and sleeping. The chapter begins with a definition of eating disorders and distinguishes clinically disordered eating from other forms of problematic eating. The chapter describes common eating disorders among college students: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) and binge eating disorder. The chapter then discusses measures of problematic eating among college students, including the SCOFF, the Eating Disorder Inventory and the Eating Concerns subscale of the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms (CCAPS). Next, the chapter discusses the prevalence of problematic eating among college students. Cultural considerations are described, with particular attention paid to gender, sexual orientation and ethnicity. Causes of problematic eating among college students are discussed, and the consequences of problematic eating are explored, from shame to medical complications to death. Treatment options are detailed, as are barriers to seeking professional help. The chapter follows a similar structure in covering healthy and problematic sleep behaviors among college students. In particular, the chapter explores measures of sleep quality, the prevalence of problematic sleep among college students, their causes and consequences, as well as strategies for correcting poor sleep and interventions for promoting healthy sleep habits.
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Ashley D. Bales, Christopher X Jon Jensen, Michael Robert Sekor and Bryan Adinolfi
This study aims to describe the role of design thinking in achievement of transformative sustainability learning outcomes among undergraduate art and design students to support…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to describe the role of design thinking in achievement of transformative sustainability learning outcomes among undergraduate art and design students to support future curricular design efforts and thereby train sustainability minded future designers.
Design/methodology/approach
Baseline and culminating sustainability concept mapping assessments and reflective surveys were administered to 70 students enrolled in a general ecology and design-centric Ecology for Architects course. Correlation and regression analyses compared samples and case studies, further elucidated patterns of variation relating to the complexity and breadth of students’ sustainability knowledge and transformative potential.
Findings
Students in the design-centric course performed better on transformative sustainability indicator metrics than those enrolled in the General Ecology course, driven by improvement in design applications. Complexity of sustainability knowledge improved more among the general ecology students but was accompanied by declines in transformative indicators. Increasing foundational sustainability knowledge is unlikely, on its own, to support transformative learning. Survey responses indicated students were, however, motivated to apply what they learned to their design work, with the most significant improvement in transformative indicators seen in students enrolled in the design-centric course.
Originality/value
This study focuses on a population of students often marginalized in STEM education and provides a unique perspective on the value of design-centric general education courses in a population of students accustomed to design thinking pedagogies.