Using data on 1,360 savings and loan (S&L) institutions, we compare two non-parametric methods for measuring efficiency: data envelopment analysis (DEA) and algebraic methods based on Varian (1984). We show that both methods are vulnerable to measurement error, although both theoretically and...

We study the efficiency and solvency of savings and loans institutions (thrifts). Thrifts that were inefficient (according to a nonparametric measure) were 4 1/2 times more likely than efficient thrifts to fail in the future. We also find that absent controls for lines of business pursued, stock...

Previous empirical analyses of the relationship between executive compensation and firm performance are often interpreted as suggesting that this relationship is weak. Although an absolute term like "weak" is ambiguous in this context, relative terms, such as "stronger," are meaningful. We argue...