The purpose of this paper is to examine the life and work, both fiction and nonfiction, of the American author Upton Sinclair, for the purposes of better understanding his impact…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the life and work, both fiction and nonfiction, of the American author Upton Sinclair, for the purposes of better understanding his impact on management theory and practice.
Design/methodology/approach
Critical biography is a historiographical approach that analyzes aspects of an individual’s life events and the context that surrounds those events to better understand the contributions of an individual. In this case, this paper analyzes Sinclair’s biography, his work-related fiction and nonfiction and his interactions with business leaders and management thinkers of the day, including scientific management founder Frederick Winslow Taylor, auto industry leader Henry Ford and safety razor magnate King Gillette.
Findings
This paper identified four themes which are related to management and workplace history that pervade his fiction and nonfiction writing and link these events to the events of his life as well as the context of the times.
Originality/value
Although others have cited certain aspects of Sinclair’s work for specific purposes, this paper presents a systematic review of Sinclair’s broad oeuvre and its relevance to management and workplace history using a critical biography approach.
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Robert N. Lussier and Matthew C. Sonfield
In the literature of family business, certain management activities, styles and characteristics have been most frequently examined. Yet no prior research focusing on the…
Abstract
In the literature of family business, certain management activities, styles and characteristics have been most frequently examined. Yet no prior research focusing on the relationship between these family businesses variables has been found. This is a survey‐research correlation study of 149 family businesses. Of the twelve variables studied, twenty of the sixty‐six correlations were found to be significant. Major findings are the consistent use of professional management activities, styles and characteristics in family businesses, and that using non‐family members within top management does not significantly increase the professionalism of management of such businesses.
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Basil P. Tucker and Matthew Leach
Purpose: The current study aims to cast light on the divide between academic research in management accounting and its applicability to practice by examining, from the standpoint…
Abstract
Purpose: The current study aims to cast light on the divide between academic research in management accounting and its applicability to practice by examining, from the standpoint of nursing, how this gap is perceived and what challenges may be involved in bridging it.
Design/Methodology/Approach: The current study compares the findings of Tucker and Parker (2014) with both quantitative as well as qualitative evidence from an international sample of nursing academics.
Findings: The findings of this study point to the differing tradition and historical development in framing and addressing the research–practice gap between management accounting and nursing contexts and the rationale for practice engagement as instrumental in explaining disciplinary differences in addressing the research–practice gap.
Research Implications Despite disciplinary differences, we suggest that a closer engagement of academic research in management accounting with practice “can work,” “will work,” and “is worth it.” Central to a closer relationship with practice, however, is the need for management accounting academics to follow their nursing counterparts and understand the incentives that exist in undertaking research of relevance.
Originality/value: The current study is one of the few that has sought to look to the experience of other disciplines in bridging the gap. Moreover, to our knowledge, it is the first study in management accounting to attempt this comparison. In so doing, our findings provide a platform for further considering how management accounting researchers, and management accounting as a discipline might, in the spirit of this study’s title, “Learn from the Experience of Others.”
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Matthew C. Sonfield and Robert N. Lussier
While family firms constitute a highly important component of most countries' economies, and in many countries a sizable portion of these family businesses are owned and managed…
Abstract
Purpose
While family firms constitute a highly important component of most countries' economies, and in many countries a sizable portion of these family businesses are owned and managed by women, there has been minimal study of gender issues in family business ownership and management. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design was self‐reported survey research, which is the most commonly used methodology in family business research and for small business and entrepreneurship quantitative research.
Findings
In contrast to early (pre‐1980) gender comparisons in management and entrepreneurship, and in support of the majority of more recent studies, this investigation found no significant relationships between the gender of family business owner‐managers and ten management characteristic variables in a sample of 593 family businesses in six countries.
Originality/value
These findings add to the limited and currently inconclusive body of knowledge regarding gender issues specifically in family business, and more generally in entrepreneurship and management.
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Robert N. Lussier, Matthew C. Sonfield, Joel Corman and Mary McKinney
This descriptive study of 184 small firms identified strategies most frequently used by their managers. These strategies were identified using the Entrepreneurial Strategy Matrix…
Abstract
This descriptive study of 184 small firms identified strategies most frequently used by their managers. These strategies were identified using the Entrepreneurial Strategy Matrix, a situational model in which the identification of levels of innovation and risk lead to prescriptions of appropriate strategies. Concurrently, this model was empirically tested and its validity supported. Of the strategies used, the five most common were: “work to create a competitive advantage,” “maintain innovation,” “lower the costs of developing and/or maintaining one’s venture,” “defend product/service as it is now,” and “create a first mover advantage.” In addition, there were no differences between the use of strategies by entrepreneurs in service and manufacturing industries.
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Matthew C. Sonfield and Robert N. Lussier
The purpose of this study is to investigate five well‐established issues of gender stereotype, analyzing data obtained from 811 family businesses in eight diverse countries, with…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate five well‐established issues of gender stereotype, analyzing data obtained from 811 family businesses in eight diverse countries, with the objective of testing the relationship between male and female owner/managers of these businesses and these stereotypes in a managerial context.
Design/methodology/approach
This eight country study involved survey research using hierarchal regression to test five hypotheses involving gender stereotypes relating to family business management. The eight countries, USA, Egypt, France, Argentina, Serbia, Kosovo, Kuwait, and Croatia, provided a mixture of entrepreneurial demographics and context.
Findings
Only one hypothesis supported a gender stereotype. As the percentage of female managers increases, so does the use of group rather than individual decision‐making. The other four variables – formal versus informal management style, conflict among family members, use of sophisticated financial analysis, and use of outside consultants, advisors and professional services – did not change significantly with the percentage of female owner/managers. For control variables, as the number of employees increased, the percentage of female owner/managers decreased, and females tended to own/manage service, rather than product, firms.
Practical implications
These findings offer “theory into practice” implications for owner/managers of family businesses, as well as for those who assist such businesses.
Originality/value
These findings provide a theoretical contribution to the study of family business because clear answers to gender management similarities and differences in family firms remain elusive, and these results expand, modify and clarify the understanding of gender issues in family business.
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Matthew C. Sonfield and Robert N. Lussier
This is an empirical study of family firm size, as measured by the number of employees, and the relationship of a firmʼs size to a variety of management activities, styles, and…
Abstract
This is an empirical study of family firm size, as measured by the number of employees, and the relationship of a firmʼs size to a variety of management activities, styles, and characteristics. A statistical analysis of data drawn from 159 American family businesses indicates significant differences by size with regard to the number of nonfamily members in top management, use of outside advisors, time spent engaged in strategic management, use of sophisticated methods of financial management, proportion of women family members involved in firm management, and level of conflict between family members. Implications are offered for family firm owner-managers, for those who assist such businesses, and for researchers in the field of family business.
Patrick Reichert, Matthew D. Bird and Vanina Farber
This study aims to examine gender differences in risk-taking and prosociality through a hypothetical labour market entry choice experiment.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine gender differences in risk-taking and prosociality through a hypothetical labour market entry choice experiment.
Design/methodology/approach
To explore differences between male and female subjects by risk levels and framing effects, a labour market entry choice task that manipulated risk conditions was administered to business school students whereby subjects chose between a managerial job at a company, starting a commercial business or starting a social enterprise. The experimental design isolated and tested the influence of the type of value creation, risk propensity and framing effects. The results were then statistically analysed to test for significant differences between the two gender groups.
Findings
Results indicate that in low-risk conditions women prefer the prosocial entrepreneurial option while men opt for purely commercial entrepreneurial activities. As risk increases, differences between men and women initially converge and then reverse under conditions of extreme risk, where men select the social entrepreneurial choice at a higher rate than women.
Research limitations/implications
The research was conducted within the single country context of Peru and carried out using a specific subset of potential entrepreneurs (i.e. business school students). Second and related, the experimental labour entry task was hypothetical. Whether decisions would hold if business school students faced an actual occupational choice remains open to further investigation.
Practical implications
The practical implication of the paper suggests that Peruvian business school students react differently towards potential labour market opportunities depending on their gender. Perhaps, because of gender biases common in the Latin American context, women appear to respond more positively to low-risk prosocial opportunities. However, as risk increases, contextual factors appear to become less important and reveal core sets of prosocially anchored men and commercially anchored women.
Originality/value
This research provides new insights into risk-taking and prosocial differences between men and women facing labour entry decisions, especially in a developing country context with strong gender norms, and is particularly useful to those with an interest in entrepreneurial propensity and in the identification and development of entrepreneurial women.