Publications

This paper analyzes interactions between agents who are overconfident regarding their own future self-control relative to others. The paper considers the problem of incentivizing several such agents, and compares two methods: assigning work individually to each... View Details

July 2022
Article

The Developmental Origins and Behavioral Consequences of Attributions for Inequality

By: Antonya Marie Gonzalez, Lucia Macchia and Ashley V. Whillans

Attributions, or lay explanations for inequality, have been linked to inequality-relevant behavior. In adults and children, attributing inequality to an individual rather than contextual or structural causes is linked to greater support for economic inequality and less... View Details

Keywords: Equality and Inequality; Behavior; Perception

March 1999 (Revised June 2005)
Case

Saevig Corporation

By: Henry B. Reiling and Mark Pollard

The taxpayer purchased land and later transferred it to a family controlled corporation in return for an earn out. When funds were eventually received, the IRS treated them as dividends, whereas the individual and corporate taxpayers contended they were sums paid on... View Details

Keywords: Investment Return; Debt Securities; Taxation; Outcome or Result; Financial Reporting; Family Business; Assets; Business and Stakeholder Relations

Summer 2025
Article

Time Well Spent: A New Way to Value Time Could Change Your Life

By: Leslie Perlow and Salvatore J Affinito

When individuals engage in fulfilling activities outside of work, they perform better on the job, but simply encouraging work-life balance doesn’t help with hour-by-hour time management. A new tool for measuring the subjective value of time for individuals as it varies... View Details

Keywords: Well-being; Work-Life Balance; Time Management

2010
Article

Fretting About Modest Risks Is a Mistake

By: Matthew Rabin and Max Bazerman

Managers often engage in risk-averse behavior, and economists, decision analysts, and managers treat risk aversion as a preference. In many cases, acting in a risk-averse manner is a mistake, but managers can correct this mistake with greater reflection. This article... View Details

Keywords: Decision Biases; Risk Management; Risk and Uncertainty; Decision Making

03 Oct 2017
News

Equifax, SEC And Deloitte Cyber Breaches: Is It Time To Remove Executive Immunity From Prosecutions?

16 Jul 2018
Blog Post

3 Key Take-a-Ways From My Summer at Zalando

culture. There are different avenues where the Management Board sits in front of employees to answer any questions that might concern individuals (e.g., monthly Ask.Us.Anything open Q&A). Today, I would like to highlight the... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products / Retail

September 2016
Background Note

A Brief History of African American Leaders in Unions and the Labor Movement

By: Steven Rogers and Mercer Cook

This historically focused background note highlights the role of African American Labor Leaders in both the Labor Movement and the Civil Rights Movement. In doing so, it attempts to both highlight these noteworthy individuals and demonstrate the innate connection... View Details

Keywords: Wages; Working Conditions; Political History; Social History; Economic History; Business History; Fairness; Moral Sensibility; Labor And Management Relations; Social Issues; Culture; Equality And Inequality; Rights; Leading Change; Race; Civil Society or Community; Labor Unions

05 Nov 2009
News

Steve Jobs's legacy

December 2006 (Revised March 2010)
Case

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs

By: Anthony Mayo and Mark Benson

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, founders of Microsoft and Apple respectively, have revolutionized the relationship between the individual and computer technology. Once the exclusive domain of academia and research facilities, computers can now be found in every area of... View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Business History; Technological Innovation; Leadership; Risk and Uncertainty; Technology Industry

2009
Working Paper

Integrity: Without It Nothing Works

By: Michael C. Jensen

There is confusion between integrity, morality and ethics. In our much longer paper on the topic (see "Integrity: A Positive Model that Incorporates the Normative Phenomena of Morality, Ethics and Legality" (available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=920625)) my co-authors,... View Details

Keywords: Trust; Moral Sensibility; Legal Liability; Behavior

10 Dec 2018
Working Paper Summaries

Platform Competition: Betfair and the U.K. Market for Sports Betting

Keywords: by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Neil Campbell; Entertainment & Recreation

July 1997
Case

Graffs, The (A)

By: Carl S. Sloane and Gregory C. Rogers

Examines dual-career issues and conflicts between spouses' career objectives, personal values, and life structures. It does so by a in-depth examination of the lives and careers of a professional couple (a successful entrepreneur and a lawyer), choice points in their... View Details

Keywords: Work-Life Balance; Family and Family Relationships; Conflict Management

06 Oct 2014
News

Hewlett-Packard Will Split Into Two Companies

19 Jul 2011
News

HBS's Amy Edmondson On the Death of Teams

April 2008 (Revised May 2008)
Case

Commonwealth Care Alliance: Elderly and Disabled Care

By: Michael E. Porter and Jennifer F Baron

Individuals enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid, known as dual eligibles, are among the highest-cost beneficiaries in the US. Commonwealth Care Alliance, a small nonprofit insurer and care delivery system in Massachusetts, operated under a public demonstration... View Details

Keywords: Programs; Public Sector; Alliances; Policy; Age; Service Delivery; Value; Health Care and Treatment; Welfare; Insurance Industry; Health Industry; Massachusetts

2022
Working Paper

Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy: Experimental Evidence from Nine Countries during the COVID-19 Pandemic

By: Vincenzo Galasso, Vincent Pons, Paola Profeta, Michael Becher, Sylvain Brouard and Martial Foucault

Millions of people refuse COVID-19 vaccination. Using original data from two surveys in nine OECD countries, we analyze the determinants of anti-vax intentions in December 2020 and show that half of the anti-vax individuals were vaccinated by summer 2021. Vaccinations... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19; Vaccination; Vaccine Hesitancy; Information Campaigns; Health Pandemics; Behavior; Information

August 2019
Case

Preserving Trust at Care.com (A)

By: Krishna G. Palepu and Julia Kelley

Care.com was an online platform designed to match caregivers with individuals seeking care for themselves, others, and pets, through job postings, caregiver profiles, and directories of local day care centers. In March 2019, the Wall Street Journal had just published a... View Details

Keywords: Business Strategy; Corporate Governance; Digital Platforms; Market Design; Emerging Markets; Trust; Technology Industry; United States