Publications

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May–June 2014
Article

Paradigm-Changing vs. Paradigm-Deepening Innovation: How Firm Scope Influences Firm Technological Response to Shocks

By: Gautam Ahuja, Curba Morris Lampert and Vivek Tandon

We examine the direction of firms' research efforts as they respond to the shock of a sharp increase in the price of a key input. In terms of direction, firms can respond to this shock with paradigm-changing investments that develop technologies to use substitute... View Details

Keywords: Technological Change; Innovation; Evolutionary Approaches; Shocks; Technological Innovation; System Shocks; Corporate Strategy

June 2014
Article

Charitable Giving When Altruism and Similarity Are Linked

By: Julio J. Rotemberg

This paper presents a model in which anonymous charitable donations are rationalized by two human tendencies drawn from the psychology literature. The first is people's disproportionate disposition to help those they agree with, while the second is the dependence of... View Details

Keywords: Motivation and Incentives; Behavior; Attitudes; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving

September 2012
Article

Vicarious Dishonesty: When Psychological Closeness Creates Distance from One's Moral Compass

By: F. Gino and A. Galinsky

In four studies employing multiple manipulations of psychological closeness, we found that feeling connected to another individual who engages in selfish or dishonest behavior leads people to vicariously justify the actions of this individual and to behave more... View Details

Keywords: Behavior; Relationships; Ethics; Research

January 2011 (Revised January 2011)
Case

Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (Abridged)

By: Anita Elberse

The management team of Marvel Enterprises, known for its universe of superhero characters that includes Spider-Man, the Hulk, and X-Men, must reevaluate its marketing strategy. In June 2004, only six years after the company emerged from bankruptcy, Marvel has amassed a... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Intellectual Property; Rights; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

Educators

This paper evaluates the short- and long-term value of sales representatives’ detailing visits to different types of physicians. By understanding the dynamic effect of sales calls across heterogeneous physicians, we provide guidance on the design of optimal call... View Details

Article

How Warm Days Increase Belief in Global Warming

By: Lisa Zaval, Elizabeth A. Keenan, Eric J. Johnson and Elke U. Weber

Climate change judgments can depend on whether today seems warmer or colder than usual, termed the local warming effect. Although previous research has demonstrated that this effect occurs, studies have yet to explain why or how temperature abnormalities influence... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Attitudes

Research Summary

Utilizing Display, Feature and Price Promotions: Getting the Biggest Bang for the Buck

Firms are continuously looking for more efficient ways to influence consumers to purchase their brand. Professor Lemon is conducting research to understand what motivates consumers' purchases of products and services. Her research suggests new strategies for category... View Details

Article

Optimal Capital-Gains Taxation under Limited Information

By: Jerry R. Green and Eytan Sheshinski

Taxation of capital gains at realization may distort individuals' decisions regarding holding or selling during an asset's lifetime. This creates the problem of designing a tax structure for capital gains so as to induce efficient patterns of holding and selling.... View Details

Keywords: Capital Gains; Optimal Taxation; Taxation

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February 2021
Article

Health Care Measurements That Improve Patient Outcomes

By: Robert S. Kaplan, Lara Jehi, Clifford Y. Ko, Andrea Pusic and Mary Witkowski

This article describes the challenges and solutions in determining whether a patient’s treatment has been successful. Such an assessment depends on multiple factors, including the patient’s pretreatment status; the qualifications of personnel performing the treatment;... View Details

Keywords: Outcomes Measurement; Health Care and Treatment; Outcome or Result; Measurement and Metrics

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February 2015 (Revised September 2016)
Teaching Note

Making stickK Stick: The Business of Behavioral Economics

By: Leslie K. John and Michael Norton

Email mking@hbs.edu for a courtesy copy.

This Teaching Note explains the theory of the case and teaching plan for the case: Making sticK Stick: The Business of Behavioral Economics (514019). The case focuses on a... View Details

Keywords: Behavioral Economics; Behavior Change; B2B Vs. B2C; Human Resource Management; Marketing Of Innovations; Health ＆ Wellness; Weight Loss; Charitable Giving; Marketing; Consumer Behavior; Entrepreneurship; Internet and the Web; Health; Business Model; Sales; Human Resources; Health Industry; United States

Article

Collaboration Networks, Structural Holes, and Innovation: A Longitudinal Study

By: Gautam Ahuja

To assess the effects of a firm's network of relations on innovation, this paper elaborates a theoretical framework that relates three aspects of a firm's ego network-direct ties, indirect ties, and structural holes (disconnections between a firm's partners)—to the... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Social and Collaborative Networks; Innovation and Invention; Chemical Industry

February 2011
Article

It's the Recipient That Counts: Spending Money on Strong Social Ties Leads to Greater Happiness Than Spending on Weak Social Ties

By: Lara B. Aknin, Gillian M. Sandstrom, Elizabeth W. Dunn and Michael I. Norton

Previous research has shown that spending money on others (prosocial spending) increases happiness. But, do the happiness gains depend on who the money is spent on? Sociologists have distinguished between strong ties with close friends and family and weak... View Details

Keywords: Happiness; Relationships; Philanthropy and Charitable Giving

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January 1998 (Revised March 2000)
Case

Reading Rehabilitation Hospital: Implementing Patient-Focused Care

Reading Rehab Hospital has experimented with a popular new concept in health care--patient-focused care--intended to increase quality and reduce costs by organizing care delivery around particular diagnoses or "service lines," rather than around the functions or... View Details

Keywords: Demand and Consumers; Production; Service Operations; Health Care and Treatment; Health Industry

Educators