Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1966. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1966. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

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The increasing globalisation of business activities since the Second World War might seem to indicate the end of economic diversity within and among nations, and to point towards the standardisation of business recipes across the industrialised world. However, various cross-cultural studies have revealed considerable differences among organisations even within the fairly narrow context of Europe (for example. Lane, 1989; 1992), which are attributed to differences in the institutional environments in which the organisations are embedded. Institutional theorists argue that contingency theorists' emphasis on the influence of the task environment of an organisation, and cultural theorists' focus on the influence of ideational factors, are not sufficient to explain the continuing diversity of organisations across nations. This research analyses the influence of the institutional environment on the business recipe of private sector organisations. It thus combines institutional theories of organisations and the concept of business recipes. The companies analysed are Esso in Britain and Germany. Given that Esso in both countries is part of the Exxon Corporation, the research not only considers the influence of the national institutional environment, but also offers insights into the workings of a multinational organisation. In-depth case studies of both companies were undertaken by way of interviews and documentary research. These case studies were contextualised by research into areas such as the nature of the petroleum industry, the economic context of the companies, and the history and policy of Exxon Corporation. The case studies reveal that despite each company's common dependence on Exxon and a fair degree of similarity in the technical factors of their environments, they have distinctive features in their business recipes, and these can be attributed to the configurations of the respective institutional environments. The study illustrates the need for the managers to cope with conflicting institutional pressures, especially from their parent company and the national institutional context. Overall, the findings support the view of institutional theorists (for example Lane, 1989; Whitley, 1992a) that economic diversity among countries will persist as long as the configurations of key national institutions differ.

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Trade between two regions often necessitates that the respective parties are political entities. This was indeed the case for trade between Egypt and the Levant during the Middle Bronze Age (ca. 2000-1550 BC, MBA) and Late Bronze Age (ca. 1550-1200 BC, LBA). Scientific analyses of Canaanite jars, transport vessels, from the site of Memphis, Egypt provided an ideal proxy for examining the relationship between trade and politics. During the MBA, Levantine peoples were present at the site of Tell el-Dabca in the eastern Nile Delta. However, archaeologically there is little evidence for contact between these peoples and the Egyptians at Memphis. Results of comparison of MBA Canaanite jars from both sites suggest the political situation fostered trade with the Levant and limited interaction with the Egyptians. During the LBA, Egyptian kings controlled territory in the Levant. A comparison of MBA and LBA Canaanite jars from Memphis revealed that the political changes in some cases affected the trade partners but not in others. Further, the production of the jars appeared to have altered in some regions. These results suggest that the affect of political situations on trade can vary, from only minor changes, to the complete exclusion of trade partners and the introduction of new trade contacts. However, the influence of lucrative trade networks on political developments was also illustrated. The utility of provenance studies of ceramics for understanding the complex relationship between trade and politics was confirmed.

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