Social Comparison - Publications - Faculty & Research

01 Dec 1998
News

Short Takes

comparisons of performance among industry competitors and to measure whether owners could actually affect performance over time." Kang's data reveal that there were 81 publicly held U.S. textile firms in 1983 whereas by 1992 only 47 such... View Details

Keywords: Judith A. Ross

27 Feb 2013
Research & Ideas

Sidetracked: Why Can’t We Stick to the Plan?

ingredients for a romantic dinner, but ends up spending an hour comparison shopping for organic dog food and craft beer. A college student resolves to spend every Wednesday evening studying in the library, only to spend most of that time... View Details

06 Sep 2016
News

The Solution That Doesn’t Get Discussed About How to Get More Women On Corporate Boards

to interview the men. Shaking up the board selection process has unintended consequences, too— including the joy from the male board member who tells us he can’t believe there are so many qualified female candidates. There is also the glaring View Details

03 May 2004
Research & Ideas

Business History around the World

class system, or an alleged "anti-industrial" bias of its social elite, or the post-1945 flirtation with socialism and extensive state intervention. We maintain that View Details

Keywords: by Cynthia Churchwell

14 Apr 2003
Research & Ideas

Pay-for-Performance Doesn’t Always Pay Off

the merit system was based on peer comparisons at the salaried level. There were no executive bonuses. Stock options were awarded as recognition. But there was also a lot of pressure in the company, said Beer. Managers of thirteen units... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

01 Sep 2014
News

Alumni and Faculty Books for September 2014

sector operating in the material interest of politicians themselves and of their big business and big social advocacy confederates to the detriment of workers, the middle class, and the nonpolitical rich, jeopardizing the nation’s... View Details

Keywords: faculty research; Alumni Research

19 Jul 2006
Research & Ideas

Political Turmoil and Mexico’s Economy

Mexico's overall prosperity, this is pretty small potatoes." And foreign investment is no substitute for domestic investment in institutions such as education, the judicial system, and health and social welfare programs. A system of... View Details

Keywords: by Julia Hanna

28 Nov 2012
What Do You Think?

Should Pay-for-Performance Compensation be Replaced?

with a comparison of two different systems under which he worked, preferring pay for performance "based on my direct impact on profit, relationship with my client, project team performance and development of individual members of my... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett

11 Jun 2012
Research & Ideas

When Business Competition Harms Society

repairs and routine service. "The short-term benefit of failing a vehicle pales in comparison to the long-term benefit of retaining the customer's service and repair business," the paper explains. "Annual service and repair... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Auto

22 Feb 2022
News

Vision: Learning Curve

after undergrad. But Gupta also spent several years at the Pratham Education Foundation, one of India’s largest educational nonprofits—work that earned him a Horace W. Goldsmith Fellowship for social enterprise leadership at HBS. Mahajan,... View Details

Keywords: Alexander Gelfand; education; entrepreneurship; startup; India; Educational Services

01 Dec 2012
News

50 Years & Counting

if an executive is aware and doesn't intervene to make changes in the organization, then we could say this failure to take corrective actions is unethical." For this HKS/HBS study involving some 654 male and female college students, Bazerman explains, "In studying... View Details

Keywords: Deborah Blagg; Business Schools & Computer & Management Training; Educational Services

19 May 2020
Research & Ideas

Why Privacy Protection Notices Turn Off Shoppers

notice or not—but in their next study, they showed them two products side by side, one with a privacy notice and one without. In this case, the respondents were slightly more inclined to purchase the product with the privacy notice. “The direct View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Retail

26 Jun 2012
First Look

First Look: June 26

facilitating social comparison among agents. Overall, the findings demonstrate the power of non-financial rewards to motivate agents in settings where there are limits to the use of financial incentives.... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

18 Sep 2013
Research & Ideas

Unspoken Cues: Encouraging Morals Without Mandates

inner workings of his own employer. “Vocal silence allows organizations to instill rather than impose morals” Manufacturing Morals: The Values of Silence in Business School Education chronicles Anteby's journey as a junior faculty member and observes how the School... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Education

05 Jun 2019
Research & Ideas

If Your Customers Don't Care What You Charge, What Should You Charge?

An estimated 60 percent of retail gasoline customers return to the same gas station to refuel, without comparison shopping, according to a recent study. Driven by factors such as habit, brand loyalty, switching costs, and search (which... View Details

Keywords: by Kristen Senz; Energy

04 May 2007
What Do You Think?

How Do Managers Think?

"The concept of people, be they patient or employee, holding back information either knowingly or just forgetting, is a problem that can kill a patient or a company." Others suggested important contrasts that they think make View Details

Keywords: by Jim Heskett

12 Feb 2019
First Look

New Research and Ideas, February 12, 2019

Brokerage and Brokering: An Integrative Review and Organizing Framework for Third Party Influence By: Halevy, Nir, Eliran Halali, and Julian Zlatev Abstract— Brokerage and brokering are pervasive and consequential organizational phenomena. Prevailing models underscore... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

17 Sep 2013
First Look

First Look: September 17

http://www.people.hbs.edu/shanson/shortint_text_20130814_FINAL.pdf September 2013 Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes Cheating More for Less: Upward Social Comparisons Motivate the Poorly... View Details