Tim Baker
Baker, T. & Murthy, N., “Viability of Auction-Based Revenue Management in Sequential Markets,” Decision Sciences, 36(2), 259-286 (2005).

This paper performed analysis on electronic auctions. The auctions studied had several stages, so that buyers could participate in any stage and observe the behavior of other buyers and the seller in earlier stages. The key result is that auctions have more power for the seller if they are held in later stages.

Tim Baker
Baker, T. & Collier, D. “The Economics of Service Guarantees,” Decision Sciences, 36(2), 197-220 (2005).

This paper developed a framework for determining the best compensation level a service provider should give out when they do not meet performance specifications. This framework considers the hard-to-quantify long-term loss-of-goodwill cost, as well as more direct costs.

Kristine Ehrich
Ehrich, K. R. and Irwin, J. R., "Willful Ignorance in the Request of Product Attribute Information," Journal of Marketing Research, 42 (August) 266-277 (2005).

Product attribute information is not always readily available to consumers. This is especially true for ethical attributes, such as labor practices, environmental friendliness, and so forth. Intuitively, it might be expected that consumers who would use an attribute in their decision making should seek attribute information, especially if it is easily obtainable. In three studies, the authors measure discrepancies between requests for available ethical attribute information and actual use of the same attribute in a conjoint task. The authors show that consumers (1) underrequest ethical attribute information and (2) are especially likely to show request/use inconsistency if they care about the underlying ethical issue. Negative emotions, especially the avoidance of anger, appear to drive this willful ignorance. These results add to the growing literature on avoidance mechanisms and consumer decision making and may shed light on when ethical attributes do (and do not) play a role in actual purchase behavior.

Mark Fuller and Traci Hess
Hess, T., Fuller, M., and Mathew, J., “Involvement and Decision-Making Performance with a Decision Aid: The Influence of Social Multimedia, Gender, and Playfulness,” Journal of Management Information Systems, Winter, Volume 22, Number 3, pages 15-54 (2005).

The use of sophisticated decision aids and recommendation agents, as we might see in consumer oriented websites, is growing. Understanding how users interact with such systems and evaluate the information provided is of growing importance. This research examines how "human" personality characteristics embedded in such decision aids influences the use of these systems.  Our findings indicate that users pay more attention to recommendation agents that match the user's own personality. Further, women were found to be more involved with recommendation agent than men. Finally, this research also illustrated that too much information conveyed through these recommendation agents can actually reduce the performance of the consumer using the interface.

Dogan Gursoy and Terry Umbriet
Gursoy, D. and Umbreit, W. T., “Exploring students’ evaluation of teaching effectiveness: What factors are important?” Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research, 29(1): 91-109 (2005).

This study investigated the dimensions of students’ evaluations of teaching effectiveness in a school of hospitality business management and examined the interrelations among these dimensions. A rigorous process of statistical testing utilizing exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis resulted in the identification of four dimensions: organization, workload, instruction, and learning. Afterwards, a structural model was proposed to examine the relationships among the four factors. The model proposed that a students’ perception of the teacher’s organization, workload, and instructional abilities influence their perception of learning. Findings indicated that the three constructs have a significant positive impact on students’ perception of learning and explain 78 percent of the variance in perception of learning.

Gene Lai
Jeng, V. and Lai, G., "Ownership Structure, Agency Costs and Efficiency: Analysis of Keiretsu and Independent Insurers in Japanese Non-life Insurance Industry," Journal of Risk and Insurance, March 2005, PP. 105-158.

This paper uses the non-parametric frontier method to examine differences in efficiency for three unique organizational forms in the Japanese non-life insurance industry—keiretsu firms, non-specialized independent firms, and specialized independent firms. It is not possible to reject the null hypothesis that efficiencies are equal, with one exception. Keiretsu firms seem to be more cost-efficient than non-specialized independent firms. The results have important implications for the stakeholders of the non-specialized independent firms. An examination of the productivity changes across the different organizational forms reveals deteriorating efficiency for all three types of firms throughout the 1985-1994 sample period. Finally, the evidence also suggests that the value-added approach and the financial intermediary approach provide different but complementary results. 

John Nofsinger
Kim, K. and Nofsinger, J., “Institutional Herding, Business Groups, and Economic Regimes: Evidence from Japan,” Journal of Business, 78(1), 2005, 213-242.

The relationship between institutional investors (like banks, mutual funds, pension funds, etc.) and companies is much different in Japan than in the United States. We study institutional investor behavior in Japan for the following reasons: We can examine a market with a unique group of institutional shareholders (which primarily consists of financial institutions and other business corporations), we can investigate the impacts of business groupings (i.e., the keiretsu), and we can see if herding behaviors differ under four distinct economic regimes (i.e., a regulated period, a bubble economy, a bear market, and a dramatically deregulated period). Overall, we find that institutions herd to a lesser degree in Japan than occurs it does in the U.S., but when it does occur, it has a large impact on price movements. Much of these findings are more pronounced for keiretsu firms. Lastly, the effects and behavior of institutional herding is dependent on the economic condition and the regulatory environment.

Nancy Swanger
O’Fallon, M., Gursoy, D., and Swanger, N., “To Buy or Not to Buy: Impact of Labeling on Purchasing Intentions of Genetically Modified Foods,” International Journal of Hospitality Management. (accepted, 2005)

This study conducted a partial test of the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1985, 1989, 1991) by assessing an individual’s attitude toward labeling of genetically modified foods on the individual’s purchasing intentions. Data collected from 16,078 participants across 15 European Union member countries from the EUROBAROMETER 53 were examined. Using Univariate ANOVA, the results indicate that: (1) many (roughly 73% of the sample) of the individuals residing in the fifteen European countries are less likely to purchase a food product with a label indicating the existence of a genetically modified ingredient; (2) women were less likely to purchase the genetically modified (GM) product than men; and, (3) those individuals who are more likely to purchase a GM food believed it is unnecessary to include complete information pertaining to the use of GM organisms in the production of food products. Specifically, individuals were significantly more likely to purchase the product if they stated that (a) it is unnecessary to show information on a label pertaining to the use of GM organisms in the production of the food product, even if those GM organisms are present in some of the ingredients; (b) it is unnecessary to include information regarding the use of GM organisms in the product on a label if the GM organisms are present in the end product; and (c) the information regarding the use of a GM organism does not have to be clear. Future directions regarding research on genetically modified foods are presented.