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Review of O’Brien, D. P., & Creedy, J. (Eds.). (2010). Darwin's clever neighbor: George Warde Norman and his circle. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. ISBN: 978-1848445574. $165.00.

As I write these words, hordes of financial analysts in lower Manhattan and dozens of other locations are hard at work estimating the value and risk of financial derivatives so exotic that, a few decades ago, literally no one could have conceived of them. Many – probably most – of these analysts are “rocket scientists” with graduate degrees in physics, mathematics, or statistics. Using what might have been called “supercomputers” not so long ago, they seek to create composite assets that react in particular, predictable ways to changes in the prices of equity and debt contracts. These attempts to conquer the risk-return tradeoff and to ensure a healthy return in any and all market conditions have yet to succeed completely (as a recent Federal Reserve bailout testifies), but the rocket scientists are still hard at it, seeking to maximize returns while minimizing risk.

The social organization of work has become more entrepreneurial and less bureaucratic over the past 20 years. How is this development consistent with managerial control over the labor process? This paper develops a professional autonomy perspective to explain the acceptance of new management ideas in the United States, including the recent turn away from bureaucratic organizational forms. The focus on professional autonomy helps to create a theoretical link between past and current managerial practices, including the latest anti-bureaucratic phase that we label neoentrepreneurialism. We conclude by exploring future research implications of studying managerial practice from a professional autonomy perspective.

Purpose – Extensive research in the area of consumer behavior has documented the “Country of Origin Effect,” which identifies country of origin as an important decision variable in evaluating products and services. Past research has mostly assumed that country of origin effect is driven by the performance of the products originating in that country. However, consumers can also form opinions about countries based on exposure to information that is unrelated to the product and may have roots in macro factors such as history, culture, and politics. These emotions, while extraneous to the product, can also influence product evaluations along with performance-related country information.Design/methodology/approach – This review examines research addressing both performance and emotional perceptions related to country of origin.Findings – This review presents an integrating framework termed “Nation Equity” to systematically understand and examine the influence of various dimensions of country of origin on consumer decision making.

Access for the uninsured for medical care has been studied retrospectively via interviews with the uninsured and by surveys of physicians concerning acceptance of uninsured patients. In this study we simulate the experiences of uninsured persons by calling primary care physician offices seeking appointments to treat current illnesses. Callers were instructed not to volunteer uninsurance status unless requested by office staff. We find that patients can get timely appointments over half the time, insurance information is requested around half the time, and that office staff knowledge of uninsurance status did not affect the probability of obtaining an appointment. Our findings agree with physician survey rates for acceptance of uninsured patients. Our findings demonstrate that medical appointments are likely available for the uninsured, even though the out of pocket costs may be burdensome or unaffordable. Nevertheless, many uninsured persons have incomes above hospital emergency room, charity care guidelines and would be far better off financially and medically to have a medical home.