Susan S. Carley

Role Model Performance Effects on Development of Entrepreneurial Career Preference

Critics of the trait approach to the study of entrepreneurship have called for adaptation of theory from other disciplines to explain entrepreneurial behavior. This study responds by focusing on the first step in the process by which entrepreneurial career preference is developed. Social Learning Theory was used to investigate the link between a parent role model and development of preference for an entrepreneurial career. Results indicated that presence of a parent entrepreneurial role model was associated with increased education and training aspirations, task self-efficacy, and expectancy for an entrepreneurial career. Two dimensions of entrepreneurial career preference, entrepreneurial preparedness and expectancy, were identified.

Challenges in Teaching Business Ethics: Using Role Set Analysis of Early Career Dilemmas

Emphasis in business ethics texts and courses has generally focused on corporate and other relatively high-level ethical issues. However, business school graduates in early career stages report ethical dilemmas involving individual-level decisions, often including influence attempts from one or more members of their work role sets. This paper proposes the use of role set analysis as a pedagogical technique for helping individuals to anticipate and deal with early-career ethical issues.

An Exploratory Investigation of the Periodic Performance Evaluation Processes for Marketing Faculty: A Comparison of Doctoral-Granting and Non-Doctoral-Granting Universities.

Whether a first entrant into the academic job market or a seasoned professional, career outcomes for marketing educators depend heavily on the evaluation process used at their institutions. This research explores the periodic performance evaluation process for marketing faculty members using data collected from a national sample of marketing department chairpersons. Several aspects of the evaluation and its potential outcomes are explored, including teaching and research expectations. The results indicate that regular and frequent performance evaluations are a routine part of life for marketing faculty, whatever their institutional affiliation. Furthermore, these evaluations tend to play a role in promotion, tenure, compensation, and retention decisions. Several interesting conclusions emerge when the results from doctoral-granting and non-doctoral-granting universities are compared, including that doctoral-granting universities tend to have a more restrictive view of what constitutes acceptable research. Additionally, teaching and service were found to play a more important role in the tenure decision at non-doctoral-granting universities, whereas research was found to play a larger role at doctoral-granting universities. These and other results offer a unique look at the policies and procedures used in the periodic performance evaluation of marketing faculty members.

Predictors of Enrolling in Online Courses: An Exploratory Study of Students in Undergraduate Marketing Courses.

An exploratory study of undergraduate students enrolled in marketing courses at a Southeastern regional university was conducted to determine the motivations and characteristics of marketing students who plan to be online learners and examined for differences between those who have taken and those who have not taken online classes. An online survey of Likert scales, openended questions and demographic questions was sent via class learning management websites. A total of 165 students of the 438 invited to participate completed the survey. A structural model was developed using SMART-PLS to estimate the relationships of constructs that predict taking online courses. Results of the study showed differences in predictors of those that have taken online courses compared to those who plan on taking online courses. A significant predictor of those planning on taking online courses is quality of learning while a significant predictor of those who have taken online courses is scheduling and timing. The results can be used to examine ways to improve/enhance the student’s educational experience, as well as an institution’s effectiveness in attracting the growing body of online learners.

Marketing at a Crossroads: Towards Implementation of the Scientific Ethos

As marketing moves towards establishing itself as a science, marketers must consider what measures are to be taken to best accomplish this feat. This paper first examines the Mertonian normative model of how science operates achieving the goal of accumulating knowledge and then assesses how the discipline of marketing fares when compared against this model. In areas where marketing appears to fall short, recommendations for improvement are made.

A Framework for Developing Reliable and Valid Indicators of Students’ Performance in Marketing Courses

A major hazard associated with marketing educators’ increasing reliance upon test banks is that the test construction process becomes a causal undertaking, rather than a serious attempt at developing a reliable and valid indicator of student performance. The authors of this paper propose a more systematic approach to test construction based upon Churchill’s seven step procedure for developing better psychometric measures.