Publications

Read Now

21 Nov 2019
Research & Ideas

Do TV Debates Sway Voters?

Intense preparation helped Hillary Clinton command the podium in her first debate with Donald Trump in September 2016—the most-watched presidential debate in US history. In one of the debate’s most memorable... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost

October 2022 (Revised November 2022)
Case

The Commission on Presidential Debates

By: Boris Groysberg, Alexis Lefort, Kerry Herman and Joshua Groysberg

The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) has organized the presidential and vice-presidential debates in the United States since 1988. In the spring of 2022, the Republican National Committee threatened to bar their nominees from participating in any CPD-sponsored... View Details

Keywords: Government and Politics; Political Elections; Conflict and Resolution; United States

September 1992
Background Note

Executive Compensation Debate

By: Joseph L. Bower

Summer 2013
Other Article

The Roots of Our Tax Debates

By: Matthew C. Weinzierl

Our fiscal debates are endlessly frustrating. The outlines of a compromise seem clear, yet both sides remain incapable of agreement. But is the proper balance between spending less and taxing more really so obvious? A look at what underlies the political wars over... View Details

Keywords: Values and Beliefs; Debates; Taxation; Budgets and Budgeting; United States

November 2015
Teaching Note

The Estate Tax Debate

By: Matthew C. Weinzierl

Research Summary

Public Health Debate Over Smoking

In research relevant to the current public health debate about smoking, Professor King and co-authors examine the effect of the tobacco settlement on cigarette advertising in magazines, the advertising behavior of cigarette companies in recruiting underage teenagers... View Details

10 Dec 2014
Research & Ideas

Minimum Wage Debate Is Really About Social Values

Suddenly, the minimum wage debate is on high boil. Perhaps spurred by growing concern over wealth inequality, minimum wage proposals are heating heat up in cities from Chicago to Albany, and in states from South Carolina to Florida.... View Details

Keywords: by April White; Retail; Manufacturing

February 2014 (Revised August 2015)
Case

The Estate Tax Debate

By: Matthew Weinzierl, Katrina Flanagan and Valerie Galinskaya

Per dollar of revenue, no tax policy generates more sound and fury than the taxation of estates. To supporters, the tax is a break on the concentration of wealth and power and an easy way to fund redistribution. To opponents, the tax is an unjust punishment of the... View Details

Keywords: Atkinson-Stiglitz; Optimal Capital Taxation; Bequest Motives; Taxation; Family and Family Relationships; Property

August 2004 (Revised June 2008)
Case

Debating the Expropriation of Mexican Oil

By: Geoffrey G. Jones and R. Daniel Wadhwani

In 1938, the Mexican government expropriated the assets of foreign oil companies. Explores the legal and moral arguments in favor of and against expropriation. View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Globalized Firms and Management; Government and Politics; Business History; Lawfulness; Business and Government Relations; Energy Industry; Mexico

2015
Book

How Culture Shapes the Climate Change Debate

By: Andrew J. Hoffman

Though the scientific community largely agrees that climate change is underway, debates about this issue remain fiercely polarized. These conversations have become a rhetorical contest, one where opposing sides try to achieve victory through playing on fear, distrust,... View Details

Keywords: Climate Change; Culture; Values and Beliefs; Knowledge Dissemination

January 10, 2011
Article

Starbucks' Logo Debate Shows Customers' Engagement

By: Nancy F. Koehn

Keywords: Customers; Food and Beverage Industry

Read Now

April 1986 (Revised May 1986)
Case

Plant Closing Debate in Massachusetts

16 Jun 2003
Research & Ideas

Historical Perspective: Levitt Shaped the Debate

Agree or disagree—and even his colleagues disagree—Theodore Levitt's controversial article "The Globalization of Markets" reshaped the debate on globalism and consumer marketing, and continues to provide modern managers with... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

July 2024
Case

Jacqueline Cook at Vendasta: Debating an IPO

By: Reza Satchu, Tom Quinn and Andrew Kosc

In May 2021, after a surge in demand for digital services that prompted high valuations for startups across the Canadian tech sector, Saskatchewan-based Vendasta entered the final stages of the initial public offering (IPO) process. COO Jacqueline Cook had invested her... View Details

Article

Bringing Probability Judgments into Policy Debates via Forecasting Tournaments

By: Philip E. Tetlock, Barbara A. Mellers and J. Peter Scoblic

Political debates often suffer from vague-verbiage predictions that make it difficult to assess accuracy and improve policy. A tournament sponsored by the U.S. intelligence community revealed ways in which forecasters can better use probability estimates to make... View Details

Keywords: Tournaments; Politics; Depolarization; Knowledge Creation; Forecasting and Prediction; Government and Politics

March 1995
Background Note

Gender Differences in Managerial Behavior: The Ongoing Debate

Do men and women have distinct leadership styles? Do they approach management differently? This note summarizes the two perspectives that have dominated the ongoing debate on gender differences in organizational leadership and management behavior. Psychological... View Details

Keywords: Leadership Style; Gender

21 Jul 2010
Research & Ideas

HBS Faculty Debate Financial Reform Legislation

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act slated to be signed this week by U.S. President Barack Obama has been called the most sweeping set of rules for banks and Wall Street since the Great Depression. But what do several Harvard Business School... View Details

Keywords: by Staff

07 Apr 2008
Research & Ideas

The Debate over Taxing Foreign Profits

Congress and the next president of the United States will be under pressure to make major changes to U.S. corporate tax policy, the consequences of which could have significant impact on profit and competitiveness of American companies on the global stage. (Editor's... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

February 2020 (Revised June 2020)
Case

Shaping the Governance Debate at ISS

By: Suraj Srinivasan, Jonah S. Goldberg and Calvin O. Liou

ISS is the world’s largest provider of corporate governance research, data, analytics, and voting services. The case uses the effort of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to impose an array of new regulations that would severely restrict the functioning of... View Details

Keywords: Proxy Advisory Services; Corporate Governance; Research; Investment; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Business and Shareholder Relations; Institutional Investing