We view innovation investment as a real option and explore the implications of ambiguity (Knightian uncertainty) and risk for innovation decisions. Our analysis uses a risk measure and a new outcome-independent measure of ambiguity. We find a consistently significant negative effect of ambiguity...

We investigate how CEO's risk incentive (vega) affects firm innovation. To establish causality, we exploit compensation changes instigated by the FAS 123R accounting regulation in 2005 that mandated stock option expensing at fair values. Our identification tests indicate a positive and causal...

Risk theories typically assume individuals make risky choices using probability weights that differ from objective probabilities. Recent theories suggest that probability weights vary depending on which portion of a risky environment is made salient. Using experimental data we show that salience...

Risk theories typically assume individuals make risky choices using probability weights that differ from objective probabilities. Recent theories suggest that probability weights vary depending on which portion of a risky environment is made salient. Using experimental data we show that salience...

We study the impact of individual risk attitude on the relationship between product innovation and firm performance, in a model of firm growth with endogenous product selection. We exploit a unique dataset collecting firm-level data on new product introductions and individual attitudes towards...

This study aims at (1) developing an index to measure CEO risk tolerance using publicly available data, and (2) examining the association between this index and investment in risky projects. Using relative pay-at-risk as a proxy for risk preference (tolerance) is a new proposition and is...

In this paper we offer an alternative framework for examining why risk matters in the decisions of economic agents, and how the agent’s risk attitude affects his decisions. This “Threshold Theory” framework is based on a real options approach and the observation that in many situations an...

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the impact of risk perception on online purchase intention in e-commerce platforms.Design/Methodology/Approach – This research uses secondary data analysis and an archival study approach to investigate the impact of risk perception on online purchase...

We examine whether a male CEO's facial masculinity, measured by facial width-to-height ratio (fWHR), predicts the riskiness of his firm. Using the face pictures of 1,162 CEOs in the Execucomp database, we find supporting evidence. Firms with more masculine-faced CEOs have higher stock return...