Publications

June 2015
Article

Understanding Ordinary Unethical Behavior: Why People Who Value Morality Act Immorally

By: F. Gino

Cheating, deception, organizational misconduct, and many other forms of unethical behavior are among the greatest challenges in today's society. As regularly highlighted by the media, extreme cases and costly scams are common. Yet, even more frequent and pervasive are... View Details

Keywords: Moral Sensibility; Behavior

Research Summary

Overview

Andrea Hugill's research is an effort to understand how international political forces can shape and are shaped by the forces of business. This work incorporates business strategy, most importantly, but also institutional economics, international business, political... View Details

2024
Book

When Democracy Breaks: Studies in Democratic Erosion and Collapse, from Ancient Athens to the Present Day

By: Archon Fung, David Moss and Odd Arne Westad

Democracy is often described in two opposite ways, as either wonderfully resilient or dangerously fragile. Curiously, both characterizations can be correct, depending on the context. When Democracy Breaks aims to deepen our understanding of what separates democratic... View Details

Keywords: Government and Politics; History; Culture; Failure

January 2020
Background Note

Climate Change in 2020: Implications for Business

By: Rebecca M. Henderson, Sophus A. Reinert and Mariana Oseguera

This note provides general information about climate change and its implications for business. Included is an overview of climate change science and a number of its impacts, including rising sea levels, changing weather patterns and extreme weather, pressure on water... View Details

July 2019
Article

I Know Why You Voted for Trump: (Over)inferring Motives Based on Choice

By: Kate Barasz, Tami Kim and Ioannis Evangelidis

People often speculate about why others make the choices they do. This paper investigates how such inferences are formed as a function of what is chosen. Specifically, when observers encounter someone else's choice (e.g., of political candidate), they use the chosen... View Details

Keywords: Self-other Difference; Social Perception; Inference-making; Preferences; Consumer Behavior; Prediction; Prediction Error; Decision Choices and Conditions; Perception; Behavior; Forecasting and Prediction

May 2011
Article

The Power of Small Wins

By: Teresa M. Amabile and Steven J. Kramer

What is the best way to motivate employees to do creative work? Help them take a step forward every day. In an analysis of knowledge workers' diaries, the authors found that nothing contributed more to a positive inner work life (the mix of emotions, motivations, and... View Details

December 2007
Background Note

Tools and Tactics for Transformation: Three "Whats" and Three "Hows"

By: James K. Sebenius and Stephen Friedman

Important transformation at Goldman Sachs, where one of the authors was Chairman, required analysis, political leadership, and management in order to fundamentally shift the strategy, people, and culture on a sustainable basis. After describing the actions needed to... View Details

Keywords: Negotiation Tactics; Business Strategy; Organizational Culture; Transition; Strategic Planning; Core Relationships; Multinational Firms and Management; Leadership Style; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Private Equity

November 2021 (Revised January 2024)
Case

The Global Great Depression, 1929-1939

By: Alberto Cavallo, Sophus A. Reinert and Federica Gabrieli

The Great Depression was, by far, the worst economic contraction of the twentieth century, and some of the most important ideas about both fiscal and monetary policy in the second half of the century were developed in response to it. The economic collapse, which... View Details

Keywords: Great Depression; Economic Conditions; Unemployment; Homelessness; Financial Crisis; History; Economy; Policy; Poverty; Social Issues; Economic Slowdown and Stagnation

29 Nov 2022
Research & Ideas

Is There a Method to Musk’s Madness on Twitter?

infrastructure staff, as well as advertisers, were not. Musk’s stated desire to make Twitter a haven for any speech “within the bounds of the law” has led to a sharp uptick in posts advocating white nationalism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, and right-wing threats of... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Technology

10 Feb 2015
Working Paper Summaries

Government Preferences and SEC Enforcement

Keywords: by Jonas Heese

24 Oct 2016
Research & Ideas

Bernie Madoff Explains Himself

in history. “Madoff is an extreme case in many ways, but in other ways, he is just someone who fell prey to biases and the tendency to rationalize” Madoff’s phone-time allowance was limited, and he saved much of it for his conversations... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Financial Services

10 Oct 2023
Research & Ideas

In Empowering Black Voters, Did a Landmark Law Stir White Angst?

often promoted by strategic political entrepreneurs, that such policies might be ‘zero sum’ and could harm the ‘old majority’,” Tabellini says. You Might Also Like: Confront Workplace Inequity in 2023: Dig Deep, Build Bridges, Take... View Details

Keywords: by Rachel Layne

July 2000 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Agricultural Biotechnology and its Regulation

By: Forest L. Reinhardt

In the United States, genetically modified corn and soybeans are now widely grown and consumed. In Europe, however, they have been dubbed "Frankenstein foods," shunned by packaged food manufacturers, and subjected to a host of governmental restrictions. This case... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Genetics; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Corporate Strategy; Trade; Law; Goods and Commodities; Safety; Environmental Sustainability; Government and Politics; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Biotechnology Industry; Europe; United States

fall 2010
Article

Lawsuits and Empire: On the Enforcement of Sovereign Debt in Latin America

By: Faisal Z. Ahmed, Laura Alfaro and Noel Maurer

The re-occurring phenomenon of sovereign default has prompted an enormous theoretical and empirical literature. Most of this research has focused on why countries ever chose to pay their debts (or why private creditors ever expected repayment). The problem originates... View Details

Keywords: Lawsuits and Litigation; Insolvency and Bankruptcy; Sovereign Finance; Borrowing and Debt; Debt Securities; Motivation and Incentives; Markets; Equity; Banking Industry; Latin America

May 2020 (Revised July 2020)
Teaching Note

Brand Activism: Nike and Colin Kaepernick

By: Jill Avery and Koen Pauwels

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 519-046. Nike’s selection of politically polarizing Colin Kaepernick as the spokesperson for the thirtieth anniversary of its iconic “Just Do It” campaign catapulted the brand into the media spotlight and made it a political flashpoint... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Brands and Branding; Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Marketing Strategy; Marketing Communications; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Consumer Products Industry; Sports Industry; United States; North America

24 Apr 2018
Op-Ed

Op-Ed: What Mark Zuckerberg Can Learn About Crisis Leadership from Starbucks

Facebook’s issue as a political problem and tried to shift the blame to Cambridge Analytica’s bad actors for violating Facebook’s rules for application developers. He ignored the deeper problem that Facebook users want privacy for their... View Details

Keywords: by Bill George; Technology; Food & Beverage

2011
Book

Capitalism: Its Origins and Evolution as a System of Governance

By: Bruce R. Scott

Capitalism, as defined in this book, is an indirect, three-level system of governance for economic relationships (i.e., economic, administrative, and political). Whereas economic markets can coordinate supply and demand within an existing system thanks to the invisible... View Details

Keywords: Economic Systems; Price; Governance; Government and Politics; Books; Markets; Relationships; System