The optimal distinctiveness literature highlights a fundamental trade-off in product positioning within market categories: products should be distinct to minimize competition, but similar to build legitimacy. Most recently, this research has focused on understanding sources of variance in the...

We question the broad applicability of the assumption of profit maximization as the goal of the firm and investigate how variance in objective functions across different ownership structures affects competitive behavior. While prior work in agency theory has argued that firms may fail to engage...

We question the broad applicability of the assumption of profit maximization as the goal of the firm and investigate how variance in objective functions across different ownership structures affects competitive behavior. While prior work in agency theory has argued that firms may fail to engage...

We question the broad applicability of the assumption of profit maximization as the goal of the firm and investigate how variance in objective functions across different ownership structures affects competitive behavior. While prior work in agency theory has argued that firms may fail to engage...

Replaced with revised version of paper 07/24/09.