Contradictory Empirical Results Research Articles

Intersectional Discrimination in the Transition to Vocational Education and Training

Abstract: Racial background and gender are considered relevant social categories in research on transitions to vocational education and training (VET). Given the contradictory empirical results and opposing theoretical expectations regarding their interaction, this study deals with perceived racial discrimination and investigates (1) differences between groups of origin, (2) gender differences in racial discrimination, and (3) gender differences in racial discrimination in various ethnic origin groups. Logistic regression models and marginal effects were calculated using data from the National Educational Panel Study’s (NEPS) Starting Cohort 4 ( N = 1,421). The results show that adolescents with Turkish immigrant backgrounds perceive more personal discrimination in the search for an apprenticeship than those of Polish, ex-Yugoslav, and ex-Soviet origin. Interaction analyses show that individuals’ experiences of discrimination may vary based on gender, with women being the disadvantaged group. The article discusses the suitability of the selected quantitative approach for intersectional inquiries compared to other possible study designs for intersectional research.

A review of consumer affinity research: recent advances and future directions

PurposeConsumer affinity may be a key factor in overcoming ethnocentric barriers and promoting a favourable attitude towards specific foreign countries and their products. However, progress in knowledge of this concept in international marketing literature has suffered from a lack of integration and analysis. The purpose of this study was to shed new light on the concept of consumer affinity based on a comprehensive systematic review of the literature, provide a critical analysis of previous research in terms of conceptual, methodological and substantive issues and problems and offer avenues for future research.Design/methodology/approachThis structured systematic review of consumer affinity included articles published in international peer-reviewed journals from 2008 to 2021, examining key conceptual, operational and substantive aspects.FindingsThis systematic review of articles on consumer affinity published over the past 14 years revealed that this line of research is a growing vibrant domain in the context of international marketing. It also showed that current knowledge of consumer affinity is characterized by theoretical inconsistencies, contradictory empirical results and scant international marketing research in the affinity domain.Originality/valueThis article provides an overview of the extant literature on consumer affinity and yields a consolidated image of its current status, as well as a research agenda that raises new questions for the academic community.

A new perspective on referentiality in elicited narratives: Introduction to the Special Issue

This special issue investigates the use of referential expressions in elicited picture-based narratives by children with and without developmental language disorders, across a range of languages and language combinations. All contributions use the Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (MAIN, Gagarina et al. 2012, 2019). The studies featured in this issue cover monolingual and bilingual children aged 4–11 years, but focus mainly on age 4–7, a period in a child’s life where great strides are made in the development of narrative skills. This collection of papers offers a new perspective on referentiality for several reasons: all studies use the same stimuli and by and large the same procedure for the elicitation of narratives. The stimuli, four picture-based stories, are controlled for comparability of protagonists, plot and story structure. They were designed as a ‘visual’ representation of a multidimensional model of story grammar. This methodological and theoretical base allows for a comparative investigation of referentiality (including reference introduction, maintenance and reintroduction) in narratives, across languages and populations. This introduction addresses theoretical aspects of referentiality in decontextualised discourse and reviews the literature regarding the impact of language-specific referential systems and the age and path of acquisition in typically developing children and children with developmental language disorders. We also discuss methodological aspects of eliciting referentiality in narratives in detail. This introduction thus seeks explanations for the diverse and sometimes contradictory empirical results regarding children’s mastery of referentiality. Finally, an overview of the contributions in the special issue is given.

Does performance evaluation kill creativity? A(re) interpretation of existing literature

PurposeEnabling employee creativity and channeling the creativity of employees toward process and product innovations is a starting point of value creation processes and strategy maps. The dominant view in early creativity research seemed to be that creativity and control are inconsistent. More recently, a number of studies have come to acknowledge that performance evaluations (and rewards linked to such evaluations) may well have positive effects on creativity. This paper aims to review existing results on the effects of performance evaluations on creativity from the perspectives of different research streams.Design/methodology/approachThis paper analyzes a stream of research in social psychology which has promoted the notion of an overall negative effect of performance evaluations on creativity. The (reinterpreted) results from this research stream are contrasted with findings from the behaviorist perspective and with research in management accounting.FindingsThe review of the different research traditions in the analysis of the effects of performance evaluations on creativity indicates that the seemingly contradictory empirical results can be explained by the different settings used and by the different ways how performance evaluations and linked rewards are conceptualized.Originality/valueThe paper clarifies that, in contrast to common beliefs, performance evaluations and linked incentives do not kill creativity in general. Performance evaluations and incentives can support creativity and innovation if they are transparent about what kind of creativity is desired and how such creativity is measured and rewarded. Moreover, incentives can effectively support behaviors that are known to be important within creativity and innovation processes.

The Effects of Joint Audits on Audit Quality and Audit Costs: A Game-theoretical Explanation for Contradictory Empirical Results

We analyze how auditor expertise and the auditors’ (dis)similarity affect audit quality and audit costs in a joint audit (JA) setting. We model both harmful free-riding incentives and a beneficial synergy effect between auditors. We find that audit quality is high and audit costs are low if both auditors have similarly high expertise. Free riding of one auditor occurs most likely if the auditors are dissimilar. In such a JA situation, allocating more of the audit work to the auditor with high expertise can increase audit quality and decrease audit costs. However, an imbalance in the allocation of the audit work can be harmful if both auditors have similar expertise. We show that JAs can lead to higher audit quality and lower audit costs than single audits (SAs) when synergy effects are sufficiently high. In contrast, low synergy effects (i.e., due to rivalry) can lead to coordination difficulties in JAs and result in lower audit quality and higher costs than SAs. Our game-theoretical analysis provides insights into the effects of institutional parameters like a mandated allocation of the audit work and a proportional litigation rule on the JA outcomes. Our findings thus can help to prevent unintended consequences from a mandatory JA regulation.

How Management Innovation Affects Product and Process Innovation in Turkey: The Moderating Role of Industry and Firm Size

In the last decade, studies on how firms introduce management innovations to drive product and process innovation have proliferated. It has long been assumed that management innovation enhances product and process innovation by increasing firms' exposure to new knowledge sources and improving their efficiency in the production processes. However, there is still an important conceptual debate and contradictory empirical results about the actual benefits of management innovation and the contextual conditions under which those benefits are likely to transpire. To address this gap, we aim to investigate the benefits of management innovation on product and process innovation in the context of emerging economy firms, in Turkey, and how industry affiliation and firm size influence those benefits. Using responses from 1,065 Turkish firms, we find that the benefits of management innovation on product and process innovation is greater for both service firms and small firms compared to manufacturing firms and large firms. The paper has important theoretical implications to management innovation literature by showing that the benefits of management innovation on product and process innovation show variance depending on different contextual conditions.

Can the intermediate disturbance hypothesis explain grazing–diversity relations at a global scale?

In the context of grazing, the intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH) predicts that plant diversity peaks under moderate grazing, resulting in a hump‐shape pattern for the grazing–diversity relationship. Although this has been debated due to contradictory empirical results, the IDH is still widely accepted among rangeland ecologists. The Milchunas–Sala–Lauenroth (MSL) model predicts that in arid areas grazing affects diversity negatively regardless of grazing intensity, whereas in mesic areas grazing effects on plant diversity are the same as predicted by the IDH. Very few studies have attempted to specifically evaluate the applicability of the IDH and MSL to grazing systems at a global scale, accounting for the possible effects of climate. We conducted a meta‐analysis and vote‐counting analysis to evaluate these two hypotheses. The results of both analyses show that the IDH cannot be applied globally and that its application largely depends on aridity. The IDH prediction of a hump‐shape curve is supported in wet areas, while in dry areas there is a slight decrease in species richness with increasing grazing intensity. Overall, the MSL model correctly predicted grazing–diversity relations in both wet and dry areas. Looking at specific ecosystem types, we found that these results hold in grasslands, but not in woodlands. Differences between livestock types, not considered by the MSL model, were found to be important. Mixed sheep and goat grazing in dry areas resulted in a significant decline of species richness with grazing intensity, while grazing by sheep only had little effect on species richness. Cattle grazing and yak grazing in wet areas yielded a clear hump‐shape pattern. Therefore, we conclude that the climate‐specific MSL model better predicts the impact of grazing on diversity than the IDH in rangelands, and that the response patterns of plant richness to grazing are dependent on aridity, grazing intensity and grazer type.

Sexual selection and the evolution of sperm morphology in sharks.

Post-copulatory sexual selection, and sperm competition in particular, is a powerful selective force shaping the evolution of sperm morphology. Although mounting evidence suggests that post-copulatory sexual selection influences the evolution of sperm morphology among species, recent evidence also suggests that sperm competition influences variation in sperm morphology at the intraspecific level. However, contradictory empirical results and limited taxonomic scope have led to difficulty in assessing the generality of sperm morphological responses to variation in the strength of sperm competition. Here, we use phylogenetically controlled analyses to explore the effects of sperm competition on sperm morphology and variance in sharks, a basal vertebrate group characterized by wide variation in rates of multiple mating by females, and consequently sperm competition risk. Our analyses reveal that shark species experiencing greater levels of sperm competition produce sperm with longer flagella and that sperm flagellum length is less variable in species under higher sperm competition risk. In contrast, neither the length of the sperm head and midpiece nor variation in sperm head and midpiece length was associated with sperm competition risk. Our findings demonstrate that selection influences both the inter- and intraspecific variation in sperm morphology and suggest that the flagellum is an important target of sexual selection in sharks. These findings provide important insight into patterns of selection on the ejaculate in a basal vertebrate lineage.

Networks’ Impact on the Entrepreneurial Internationalization: A Literature Review and Research Agenda

This paper reports a systematic literature review by seeking to discuss research that explored the impact of networks on the entrepreneurial internationalization of international new ventures (INVs). A screening process resulted in a final sample of 73 papers published in 16 double-blind reviewed journals with the highest impact in the field from 1994 to 2015. This paper highlights the dominant connection between networking and the entrepreneurial internationalization and points out the acceleration role of the network. At the same time, it highlights a relevant gap in studies: still little is known and proven about the effective impact of ties on the entrepreneurial internationalization. In particular, we highlight some inconclusive or contradictory empirical results about the role of networks for INVs, and also an unclear understanding of their impact on specific target variables describing the early and fast growth in international markets. Hence, there is an open window for further research. Finally, this paper suggests promising directions for future investigation to develop particular research area.

The Low Beta Anomaly and Estimation Interval

The purpose of this study was to assess the nature of the relationship between equity beta, and post-estimation return. Specifically, this study sought to address the validity and persistence of the low-beta anomaly across multiple beta estimation intervals. Within the twenty-year sample period from January of 1994 to December of 2013 this research covered ten different beta estimation intervals to determine whether a statistically significant and theoretically consistent relationship existed between equity beta and post-estimation realized return. This research provided two basic conclusions: First, the low-beta anomaly is not robust across multiple beta estimation intervals. Second, with any test of the relationship between beta and return the choice of beta estimation interval matters. Different estimation intervals sometimes provide contradictory empirical results for the same period.

A conceptual framework of the adoption of innovations in organizations: a meta-analytical review of the literature

Studies on the adoption of innovations in organizations are abundant and have introduced many different factors that are likely to influence adoption decisions yet, somehow, without an integrated view among them and with somehow contradictory empirical results. This study introduces a conceptual framework in which the attributes of innovation–adoption decision linkages in organizations are mediated by both the behavioral preferences of managers and organizations’ resources and moderated by the innovation life cycle. It further meta-analytically tests the framework’s predictions on 185 primary empirical studies. The findings are expected to contribute to the literature on the adoption of innovations by deepening the theoretical conditions and empirical factors that are likely to influence adoption decisions in organizations. The study also has implications for practice, since it sheds light on the factors that practitioners can leverage to manage the diffusion of innovations.

Blaming the Victim of Acquaintance Rape: Individual, Situational, and Sociocultural Factors.

Victims of rape are uniquely vulnerable for being blamed for their assault relative to victims of other interpersonal crimes and thus much research has been conducted to understand why this is the case. But the study of victim blaming in acquaintance rape cases is hindered by contradictory empirical results. Early investigations in victim blaming often treated acquaintance rapes and stranger rapes as synonymous and thus much of these data are suspect for drawing conclusions particular to acquaintance rape. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the research literature on victim blame in acquaintance rape cases, highlighting inconsistencies and drawing particular attention to areas of research in need of further exploration. Specifically, we review the commonly studied individual (perceiver) factors that influence victim blaming, as well as common situational (target) factors included or manipulated within sexual assault scenarios. Our review reveals many inconsistent findings and interactions between perceiver and scenario factors. In an effort to make sense of these complex interactions and inconsistent findings, we suggest a need for more transparency in describing the scenarios used in research on victim blaming in sexual assault cases and greater empirical attention to sociocultural factors that may influence blaming tendencies.

Active and Passive Information Acquisition: Application to Financial Markets

Investors overreact to salient information and neglect nonsalient information. I conjecture that this is the result of cognitively effortful information processing with limited processing capacity and heterogeneous processing costs. On the one hand, the allocation of the limited information-processing capacities is subject to the means and objectives of the decision maker, that is, (active) goal-driven attention. On the other, the salience or visibility of news affecting the processing cost, that is, external (passive) stimulus-driven attention. I model this by extending the framework of rational inattention by heterogeneous marginal costs of the information processing, which are dependent on the visibility of the piece of information. This model of information processing is applied to a simple asset-pricing model. The main findings are that higher visibility of a piece of information leads to a lower risk premium, more informativeness, and a stronger reaction of the asset price to the piece of information. Furthermore, there exists a visibility threshold beyond which the investor decreases the attention capacities spent on a piece of information. Finally, investors will neglect a piece of information if it is below a threshold of visibility. Explicitly modeling the relevant aspects of information acquisition of a decision maker helps make sense of contradictory empirical results and can be useful for more structural estimations in the future.

How Corporate Governance Influence Dividends on Different Corporation Lifecycle Stages

«Вестник Санкт-Петербургского университета. Экономика» — научно-теоретический рецензируемый журнал, обобщающий результаты исследований ученых всего мира в различных областях науки, включая мировую экономику, историю развития экономики и экономической мысли, финансы, кредит и страхование, теорию и практику управления, статистику и учет, экономико-математическое моделирование.

Mathematical modeling of circadian rhythms.

Circadian rhythms are endogenous ~24-hr oscillations usually entrained to daily environmental cycles of light/dark. Many biological processes and physiological functions including mammalian body temperature, the cell cycle, sleep/wake cycles, neurobehavioral performance, and a wide range of diseases including metabolic, cardiovascular, and psychiatric disorders are impacted by these rhythms. Circadian clocks are present within individual cells and at tissue and organismal levels as emergent properties from the interaction of cellular oscillators. Mathematical models of circadian rhythms have been proposed to provide a better understanding of and to predict aspects of this complex physiological system. These models can be used to: (a) manipulate the system in silico with specificity that cannot be easily achieved using in vivo and in vitro experimental methods and at lower cost, (b) resolve apparently contradictory empirical results, (c) generate hypotheses, (d) design new experiments, and (e) to design interventions for altering circadian rhythms. Mathematical models differ in structure, the underlying assumptions, the number of parameters and variables, and constraints on variables. Models representing circadian rhythms at different physiologic scales and in different species are reviewed to promote understanding of these models and facilitate their use. This article is categorized under: Physiology > Mammalian Physiology in Health and Disease Models of Systems Properties and Processes > Organ, Tissue, and Physiological Models.

Relationship-based product innovations: Evidence from the global supply chain

Global supply chains offer a range of expertise to suppliers interested in generating innovative new products through capitalizing on the closeness of their working relationships with other firms. However, current knowledge on whether and how relational capital between firms can be leveraged for innovation is equivocal, conceptualizing little of the underlying processes responsible for mobilizing relational capital, as well as yielding mostly contradictory empirical results. This study proposes and tests the intermediate mechanisms of proactive customer orientation and joint learning capability as two distinctive capabilities that may account for how relational capital drives relationship-based innovation. Our conceptual model posits that the relational capital–innovation link is neither simple nor direct. An empirical test on 204 Taiwanese suppliers demonstrates the complexity of the innovation generation process. Two pathways from relational capital to innovation are revealed: joint learning capability fully mediates the link, whereas the role of proactive customer orientation is moderated by aspects of the suppliers' ties to their international customers; our theory is thereby largely confirmed. Finally, implications for the theory and practice of innovation in global supply chain relationships are drawn.

The failure of Energy-Economy Nexus: A meta-analysis of 104 studies

Energy-Economy Nexus has produced number of papers with incongruent or even contradictory empirical results. In this article the results of over 100 papers are put to scrutiny. In addition to summarized characteristics of the studies' samples, several machine learning algorithms were used to determine whether there is any fundamental causal relationship between energy consumption and economic growth found in the studies.Several methodological deficiencies commonly present in the existing literature are identified, questioning the reliability of published results, such as: insufficient number of observations, use of annual data frequency, insufficient model specifications (and omitted variable bias), focus only on aggregate economic level and measure of energy as a thermal aggregate.The prediction accuracy of the classification of individual outcomes in the studies ranges from 36% to 56% with the most important predictors describing the estimation process rather than real-world characteristics of a given economy.There is no evidence for a “fundamental” energy-economy relationship present in the examined papers. It is likely the majority of the results in the literature are subject to significant methodological omissions, biases and reporting of false positives, with limited energy data coverage likely being the major cause of the problems.

On the complex relationship between energy expenditure and longevity: Reconciling the contradictory empirical results with a simple theoretical model

The relationship between energy expenditure and longevity has been a central theme in aging studies. Empirical studies have yielded controversial results, which cannot be reconciled by existing theories. In this paper, we present a simple theoretical model based on first principles of energy conservation and allometric scaling laws. The model takes into considerations the energy tradeoffs between life history traits and the efficiency of the energy utilization, and offers quantitative and qualitative explanations for a set of seemingly contradictory empirical results. We show that oxidative metabolism can affect cellular damage and longevity in different ways in animals with different life histories and under different experimental conditions. Qualitative data and the linearity between energy expenditure, cellular damage, and lifespan assumed in previous studies are not sufficient to understand the complexity of the relationships. Our model provides a theoretical framework for quantitative analyses and predictions. The model is supported by a variety of empirical studies, including studies on the cellular damage profile during ontogeny; the intra- and inter-specific correlations between body mass, metabolic rate, and lifespan; and the effects on lifespan of (1) diet restriction and genetic modification of growth hormone, (2) the cold and exercise stresses, and (3) manipulations of antioxidant.

Diversionary Foreign Policy and Protest Coordination in Autocracy

Revolutionary movements depend on mass mobilization. To prevent revolt, autocrats can use domestic and foreign policy instruments. We model the autocrat's policy choice with a focus on the coordination problem that underlies revolutionary mobilization. We show that the relationship between revolutionary threats and policy responses may be non-monotonic. Smaller threats may actually provide stronger incentives for autocrats to prevent mobilization, since policies are more cost-effective when threats are low. Furthermore, we show that domestic and foreign policies can serve as substitutes or complements. We argue that these insights help resolve contradictory empirical results.

Banking Competition and Stability: The Role of Leverage

This paper reexamines the classical issue of the possible trade-o s between banking competition and financial stability by highlighting different types of risk and the role of leverage. By means of a simple model we show that competition can affect portfolio risk, insolvency risk, liquidity risk, and systemic risk differently. The effect depends crucially on banks' liability structure, on whether banks are financed by insured retail deposits or by uninsured wholesale debts, and on whether the indebtness is exogenous or endogenous. In particular we suggest that, while in a classical originate-to-hold banking industry competition might increase financial stability, the opposite can be true for an originate-to-distribute banking industry of a larger fraction of market short-term funding. This leads us to revisit the existing empirical literature using a more precise classification of risk. Our theoretical model therefore helps to clarify a number of apparently contradictory empirical results and proposes new ways to analyze the impact of banking competition on financial stability.