Despite the awareness of employee motivation among scholars and business leaders, many American workers attest to being unmotivated. A lack of employee motivation can lead to negative business outcomes. Therefore, middle managers may experience challenges in identifying strategies to motivate their staff. Grounded in the path-goal theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore nonprofit health care organization middle managers' motivational strategies for the administrative workforce. The participants were comprised of 13 middle managers in the United States who supervised administrative teams of 4 or more members for over 2 years and effectively implemented motivational strategies. The data collection methods were telephonic semistructured interviews and reflective journaling. Through thematic analysis, 3 themes emerged: utilization of various leadership behaviors, awareness of motivational factors, and employee performance. The implications for positive social change include the potential to stimulate personal drive, improve career development, and allow individuals the opportunity to increase the quality of their home lives and communities. By understanding effective motivational strategies, health care leaders may realize tactical solutions to business goals through the development of their managerial staff's inspirational approaches.

Differences in languages spoken within a population can be thought of as transaction costs that make economic activities more difficult. This perspective has motivated a host of academic literature analyzing the linguistic profile of countries in relation to different socio-economic variables. Among these studies, financial inclusion is rarely one of the variables of interest. Language and financial inclusion are sometimes analyzed together in more granular studies of a single country, or even of individuals, but never in a cross-sectional, country-level analysis. However economic growth, which is generally considered to be positively related to financial inclusion, has frequently been studied, with mixed results. Earlier researchers of the question identified negative relationships between economic growth and linguistic diversity, in what became known as the “Fishman-Pool Hypothesis”. Later researchers determined that such a relationship did not exist, or that, in certain contexts, linguistic diversity and economic growth could even be positively related. This study departs from the intuition that financial inclusion's relationship to linguistic diversity may parallel that of economic growth – a relationship that seems intuitively negative but is more ambiguous after analysis. To overcome the broad interpretability of the concepts of interest, this study constructed two dependent variables representing financial inclusion, and four independent variables representing linguistic diversity with cross-sectional data for a sample of 61 countries. The models were estimated by accounting for multicollinearity of the regressors, as well as heteroskedasticity and non-normality in the error terms using the Seemingly Unrelated Regressions models and ordinary least squares estimation techniques. The results indicate that linguistic diversity indicators were all nearly zero, and highly insignificant, despite the strong specification of the models. This suggests that linguistic diversity has no significant relationship – positive or negative – to financial inclusion at a country level. This result was consistent across all the possible combinations of the operationalized variables for both concepts.

Entrepreneurship is a fundamental part of the economic development and value creation of societies. Value can be defined in different ways, but at its core it is the production of new goods and services. How these outcomes are produced, how they are shared and distributed across the economy and what is done with the earnings that are created from their production (reinvestment) are key questions in defining economic value. Ventures that are created by founders driven by economic self-interest, community development or to societal advancement bear importance in this relation. This study explored the role of founder identity in the evaluation of entrepreneurial opportunities. It was argued that a social identity lens can be central in improving our understanding of founders' heterogeneous behaviours and actions in new firm creation and development. Using the lens of identity and social identity theory as mentioned above can help gaining new important insights for a better understanding of how founders behave and act in new firm creation which influences how new ventures emerge and develop. In doing so, special attention is given to the way in which the level of inclusiveness, as part of their self-concept as founders', influences their forming of first-person opportunity beliefs to guide opportunity selection and the type of venture they intend to form. An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was used to answer the research question of how founder identity influences the evaluation of entrepreneurial opportunities. An online survey using an empirically validated 15-item scale conducted with first-time founders and students generated 173 responses. This was followed by a qualitative phase, conducted with a subset of the survey respondents, comprising 34 face-to-face interviews using verbal protocols. The findings of this study revealed that differences in the structure of founder's identities drive variations in how they evaluate entrepreneurial opportunities and form first-person opportunity beliefs. The study showed that the ‘individuation' of the opportunity evaluation process varies between distinct founder identity types and offers novel insights into the forming of first-person opportunity beliefs derived from the use of individual-level cognitive resources during opportunity evaluation. It provides evidence that social identities of founders relate to distinct entrepreneurial behaviours and actions during the entrepreneurial process, and in specific, to distinct behaviours and actions during opportunity evaluation as part of the entrepreneurial process.

Low productivity among employees represents a threat to the sustainability of organizational profits. Retail organizations have experienced a loss of over $300 billion annually because of low productivity. A consequence of technostress is low self-efficacy, which promotes low productivity and high employee absenteeism and burnout. Guided by the theory of technological self-efficacy, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine whether a relationship existed between employee technostress and employee productivity and the extent that technological self-efficacy mediated that relationship. A random sample of 112 retail employees from central Florida contributed to this study. Data were analyzed using Pearson bivariate correlations and multiple linear regression. The overall predictor variables of technostress and technological self-efficacy accounted for approximately 12% of variance in employee productivity. The results in this study indicated the overall linear regression model was significant. Bivariate findings indicated that technostress was not significantly associated with employee productivity. Technological self-efficacy was significantly associated with employee productivity. As employees’ technological self-efficacy increased, so did their productivity. The results of this study supported the conclusion that business professionals may benefit from implementing newer IT systems to improve profits and creating mentorships to train employees. The implications of this study for positive social change included the potential to break the cycle of stress-related issues and provide a quality work life for employees.

This research is undertaken to improve innovation prediction. Similarities and differences between physical goods innovation and service innovation are highlighted in order to discover more universal predictors of innovation than those currently available. To do so, this dissertation focuses on the overarching importance of knowledge to any form of innovation. As a result, predictors are employed that emphasize knowledge generation and acquisition. Specifically, internal drivers of innovation based on investments in human capital (i.e. employees) are investigated along with investments in external strategic partnerships vis-à-vis positions of firms in strategic networks. The effectiveness of these predictors is compared to traditional predictors such as research and development and marketing expenditures across three essays and 53 industries. In the first essay, investments in human capital are identified as superior predictors of innovation as compared to research and development and marketing expenditures. In the second essay, position in a network of strategic partners (i.e. centrality, constraint, and range) is assessed as an external predictor of innovation. The results of the second essay suggest that having many strategic partners (being central) and controlling the flow of knowledge among those partners (being unconstrained) are positively related to innovation. Finally, in the third essay, internal and external predictors are combined with the characteristics of strategic partners in a network analysis. The results support the findings of the first two essays and further suggest that firms should consider the resources of both their direct and indirect strategic partners when attempting to innovate. Taken together, the results of the three essays highlight the value of more universal predictors of innovation and suggest that managers and researchers focus on the basics of knowledge creation and acquisition when pursuing innovation. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Marketing in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2009. / April 10, 2009. / Strategic Partnerships, Knowledge, Innovation, Networks / Includes bibliographical references. / J. Joseph Cronin, Jr., Professor Directing Dissertation; William A. Christiansen, Outside Committee Member; Michael J. Brusco, Committee Member; Jeffery S. Smith, Committee Member.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the difference in the three dimensions of fabrics under different standard illuminants using portable and table top spectrophotometers. This study were designed to combine a controlled experimental laboratory analysis with a retail field approach in order to provide comprehensive and practical information on the effect of retail environment on color. The results of this study show that temperature and humidity in the retail environment and controlled experimental laboratory were different. The variations of temperature and humidity have an impact on the three dimensions of color. Different illuminants in table top spectrophotometer affect color dimensions. Moreover, there was an inter-instrumental agreement between portable and spectrophotometers, but there was a statistically significant in terms of mean differences. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Textiles and Consumer Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2007. / Date of Defense: August 20, 2007. / Temperature and Humidity, Color Measurement, Retail Environment, Illuminence Levels, CIELAB, Illuminants, Spectrophotometer / Includes bibliographical references. / Mary Ann Moore, Professor Directing Dissertation; Fred Huffer, Outside Committee Member; Elizabeth Goldsmith, Committee Member; Pauline Sullivan, Committee Member; Kathryn Bojczyk, Committee Member.

My dissertation examines property-liability insurer rating transitions for the period 1995 through 2006. The sample includes over 2,000 US insurers and 10 years of ratings data from A.M. Best. Rating transitions reflect changes in insurer "default risk", and this area has not been fully explored in the insurance literature. This dissertation studies the predictors of insurer rating transitions and the non-Markovian behaviors within insurer rating movements. The research questions and results are presented in two essays. The first essay, Macroeconomic Factors and Property-Liability Insurer Rating Transitions, identifies the exogenous macroeconomic and market factors that predict rating transitions, while controlling for certain firm-specific characteristics such as rating history, firm size, business mix, and organization types. Realizing the possible multiple spells (multiple upgrade or downgrade transitions for an insurer during the sample period), I apply the PWP-Gap model, a powerful survival analytical technique. The results suggest that the intensities of insurer rating transitions, including upgrade and downgrade transitions, are linked to macroeconomic and market covariates. Macroeconomic factors are more influential in the upgrade intensity, while market factors are more influential in the downgrade intensity. The second essay, The Importance of Rating Drift Among Property-Liability Insurers, detects rating drift phenomena, which have been explored in the bond literature, but not yet in insurer rating transitions. With a survival analytical technique—Cox Proportional Hazard Model--three main rating drift phenomena are examined: first-rating phenomenon, momentum drift phenomenon, and time dependence phenomenon. I find that those rating drift phenomena observed in the bond rating movements are present for insurer rating migrations. The findings of the current study carry implications for various parties in the insurance market. For regulators, this study suggests that information about rating changes can be used as potential early indicators of insurer financial strength. For consumers and agents, this study suggests consumers and agents should be especially observant of insurer rating downgrades, especially when in turbulent economic environments and severe industry conditions. For insurers, this study suggests insurers may use the results here to manage their own operation risk, taking into account the various exogenous and endogenous environments. In addition, for the investors in insurance companies, the results may be useful in developing various investment strategies. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Risk Management/Insurance in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2009. / June 4, 2009. / Insurer Rating Drift, Macroeconomic and Market Predictors, Insurer Rating Transitions / Includes bibliographical references. / James M. Carson, Professor Directing Dissertation; Pamela K. Coats, Outside Committee Member; Richard B. Corbett, Committee Member; Cassandra Cole, Committee Member; Randy E. Dumm, Committee Member; Patrick F. Maroney, Committee Member; Kathleen A. McCullough, Committee Member.

Even though firms that are first to market often maintain a performance advantage over later entrants, this is not always the case. There are important contingencies upon which a first move may or may not be successful. One such contingency, described herein, is organizational capacity, a multidimensional construct that aids the firm in creating sources of advantage from a first move. Additionally, the role of environmental dynamism as an influence on organizational capacity's moderating effect on the relationship between first-moves and performance is discussed. Hypotheses concerning these effects, including some differential effects of the components of organizational capacity, are developed. Event study and multiple regression analyses are used to test these hypotheses. The findings of these tests indicate that technology and knowledge integration enable the success of first moves. Additionally, and largely in contrast to predictions based in the resource-based view, there is evidence that there may be constraining factors that could inhibit the creation of appropriate sources of advantage from the first move. These constraining factors are consistent with the job demand perspective. Through these findings and the model developed, this dissertation extends and tests a framework intended to advance our comprehension of how first moves can create value for a firm and, in turn, lead to increased performance. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Management in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2006. / August 8, 2006. / Resource-based view, Event study, Job demands / Includes bibliographical references. / Bruce T. Lamont, Professor Directing Dissertation; Susan S. Fiorito, Outside Committee Member; Jack Fiorito, Committee Member; K. Michele Kacmar, Committee Member; Pamela L. Perrewé, Committee Member.

The purpose of this dissertation is to develop and validate a new measure of identity. Based on the research on collective identity (Ashmore, Deaux, and McLaughlin-Volpe, 2004), the Collective Identity Scale (CIS) developed in this dissertation represented a multidimensional measure of identity that can be used to measure any identity type. Based on seven exploratory and confirmatory data sets, a 14-items measure holds the same factor structure for organization-based identity, family-based identity, and social-based identity. In a final data set, three additional items are added to strengthen each dimension in the scale. Convergent and discriminant validity are also shown in the final data set. This dissertation also proposes a theoretical model that explains the interactive influence of identity, support and stress. Part of this model is tested to illustrate predictive validity of the CIS. Partial support is received for the research model. Results from this dissertation show that identity and support can, independently, moderate conflict-outcomes relationships. Specifically, organizational identity moderated the relationship between role conflict and depressed mood at work, such that those low in organizational identity increased in depressed mood at work as role conflict increased. Organizational identity also moderated the relationship between role conflict and burnout, such that individuals with low organization identity tend to increase in burnout as role conflict increased. Co-worker support also moderated the relationship between role conflict and affective commitment, such that affective commitment decreased at a greater rate as role conflict increased for individuals low in co-worker support. Furthermore, co-worker support was found to moderate the relationship between role conflict and burnout. However, contrary to the hypothesis, individuals with high organization identity increased in burnout as role conflict increased. Similarly surprising, family support moderated the relationship between work-family conflict and tension in a manner contrary to the hypothesis; tension due to work-family conflict increased at a greater rate for individuals with a supportive family than for those with an unsupportive family. Collectively, the results from this dissertation are discussed in relation to future research agenda and practical implications. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Management in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2007. / May 9, 2007. / Stress/Strain, Identity, Identification Scale, Scale Development / Includes bibliographical references. / Pamela L. Perrewé, Professor Directing Dissertation; Charles F. Hofacker, Outside Committee Member; Gerald R. Ferris, Committee Member; Wayne A. Hochwarter, Committee Member; Michael J. Brusco, Committee Member.

A foothold is a business unit within a diversified firm that possesses a very small market share. How a foothold behaves and whether a foothold stays small or grows has implications for competitive dynamics within its industry and for the performance of firms involved in the industry. However, little is known about why some footholds pursue growth while others do not. I build upon theory on multipoint competition and real options to examine foothold behavior. Data from 270 footholds reveal that variables grounded in each theory explain significant and unique variance. Thus, each theory offers a necessary but not sufficient explanation for foothold behavior. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Management in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2008. / March 28, 2008. / Real Options Theory, Multipoint Competition, Foothold / Includes bibliographical references. / Annette L. Ranft, Professor Directing Dissertation; Larry C. Giunipero, Outside Committee Member; David J. Ketchen, Jr., Committee Member; Bruce T. Lamont, Committee Member.