Richard T. Rogers

Structural change in U.S. food manufacturing, 1958-1997

Public information regarding economic concentration, both aggregate and market, has declined since 1982. The Census no longer publishes a concentration report for its Economic Census, which is done every five years for manufacturing industries. Using purchased data from Census Special Tabulations, this paper documents advanced aggregate and market concentration in U.S. food and tobacco processing markets. The data are much more useful for studying output markets and fail to provide much guidance regarding oligopsony issues, which are perceived to be widespread in food processing. In output markets, evidence suggests that a markets use of media advertising contributed to advanced market concentration prior to 1977, but subsequently concentration has been rising in all industries. Producer good industries have posted the largest increases in concentration as they narrowed the difference in average concentration between themselves and the group of advertising-intensive industries. lEconLit codes: L110, L660r

Changes in market concentration of manufacturing industries

The impact on concentration of advertising and other variables is examined in a multiple regression model. The findings indicate that the positive influence of advertising observed for earlier periods continued during 1972–1977. By testing hypotheses suggested by other researchers, this paper resolves most, if not all, of the seemingly conflicting findings of researchers examining changes in concentration since 1963. The findings also strongly suggest that lagged models provide little, if any, added insight into the causes of changes in concentration.

Teaching with Technology to Engage Students and Enhance Learning

Teaching technology effects on student learning in a large lecture introductory statistics course were tested. Findings show in-class personal response systems and on-line homework/quizzes significantly improve student exam scores. We infer proven small class techniques, participating in class and doing homework via technologies, can restore sound pedagogy in larger classes. The experiment was conducted using just one class, but factors usually unaccounted for in assessment research were controlled, especially the instructor and other materials. The technologies investigated here can provide learning benefits to students even in larger courses often criticized for their inability to provide students quality learning experiences.

Strategic Management and the Internal Organization of Food Marketing Firms

Neoclassical and industrial organization economics have traditionally treated firm internal operations as a black box linking market structure to market performance. This approach is inadequate in our modern food distribution system where large firms shape markets as they are shaped by them. Given the importance of firm behavior to firm and market performance, major research is needed to develop a micro-microeconomic theory of the firm. Research on strategic choice by firms and their use of internal organization to implement those choices is a promising approach to developing this new theory.

Market Share Dispersion Among Leading Firms as a Determinant of Advertising Intensity

Previous advertising intensity models have failed toaddress adequately the rivalry effects of leadingfirms trying to protect and enhance the marketshares of their brands. We argue that the relativedegree of market share parity among leading firms inoligopolies is a crucial determinant of marketadvertising levels. This study presents a modelthat more thoroughly characterizes market structureby including the variance in the market shares ofthe top four firms along with the concentrationratio. This model is then tested using a unique1987 data set of 58 well-defined U.S. food andtobacco manufacturing markets that used private datavendors for branded product market shares and mediaadvertising aimed at household consumers. We findthat industry advertising-to-sales ratios arehighest in those industries with the highestprice-cost margins, highest concentration, and thosewith equally-sized leading firms. Oligopolists seemunable to control advertising expenses asconcentration increases and they likely overinvestin advertising rivalry when they have similar marketshares.

Concentration change and countervailing power in the U.S. food manufacturing industries

The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the countervailing power of grocery retailers has had a restraining influence on increases in seller market concentration in the U.S. food manufacturing industries.

The economics of advertising: Where's the data?

Economists accept the importance of advertising to firm rivalry and economic performance, but data limitations have frustrated empirical research. This paper addresses that frustration and compares sources of advertising data. The paper concludes that data provided by a private vendor on measured-media consumer advertising represents the best choice, but involves substantial effort to link it to the Census industrial classification system. The authors do this for 284 manufacturing industries for Census years 1967 and 1982. Comparisons of industry advertising levels and advertising-to-sales ratios are given. Relative advertising levels and intensities have remained remarkably stable over the 15 year period.

The relationships between market structure and price-cost margins in US food manufacturing, 1954 to 1977†

Market structures influence on price-cost margins was explored in each census year over a 23-year period in food manufacturing. The positive relationship between price-cost margins and both four-firm concentration and product differentiation, as measured by a media advertising-to-sales ratio, became stronger over time. The reverse was true for the relationship between plant economies of scale and price-cost margins. The results indicate that in food manufacturing the influence of market concentration on profits does not disappear during inflationary periods as is often the case in studies of general manufacturing industries.