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This study aims to find out how institutional investors use momentum in making investment decisions, and whether their actions are consistent with the Financial Instability Hypothesis of Hyman Minsky.

The study discusses the findings of interviews with 25 professional investors from the Hong Kong offices of five global financial institutions. All of the participants have several years of practical experience in global and regional markets.

Nearly all the managers interviewed said they use momentum in making investment decisions, and they do this in ways that are consistent with the Financial Instability Hypothesis, in which markets alternate between stable and unstable states. The participants are aware they may contribute to this, but they cannot avoid doing it because of short-term constraints in the present financial system.

This study adds to our knowledge of how professional investors use momentum in their investment strategies. It complements findings of quantitative studies that show momentum strategies have been profitable in many market settings. It also adds evidence that supports the Financial Instability Hypothesis.

Contrary to popular myth, the department store industry is not dead, dying, or comatose. While return on investment in the aggregate among all department stores in North America is near the bottom of the retailing spectrum, at about 12 percent, there is also a high variance in performance across organizations. Companies such as Nordstrom on the west coast, Parisien in Alabama, and the Hecht Division of the May Company are realizing highly satisfactory rates of return on investment. The industry is rapidly becoming rationalized through mergers (Campeau/Allied and May/Associated Dry Goods, for example) and closures (Gimbels). Our own recent fashion study in Chicago indicated that the two leading department stores — Marshall Fields and Carson Pirie Scott— show gains in market share since the last such study in 1979–1980 while other chains such as Sears and the mass merchandisers have suffered serious declines in market position.

The purpose of this paper is to examine retailer response to the use of alternative currency, or scrip, as an emergency measure during the Great Depression. Advocates of scrip argue that it would help recovery efforts, encouraging consumer spending and keeping dollars “at home” within the local community. Merchants face a dilemma, as they hope to use any means to increase sales, but are worried that they would be left holding a stack of worthless paper that they would not be able to pass on to their suppliers. Two cases of scrip in action in Chicago and Atlanta are contrasted.

This paper draws upon primary data sources including period newspapers from across the USA, business periodicals, archival materials from retailers and city councils, and government reports.

There is no uniform response to the use of scrip by merchants. Some retailers hope to use scrip to boost sales and encourage consumer loyalty, and even organized their own campaigns to use alternative currency. In other cases, retailers felt the risks of accepting scrip were too high. Without the participation of retailers, scrip schemes were doomed to failure.

In the early years of the Depression, alternative currency enjoyed a remarkable popularity across the USA. It is now known that scrip would not end the crisis, as boosters hoped, yet this episode reveals much about popular understandings of the economy, and the role of retailers in local communities.

The purpose of this paper was to document the development of a major regional department store from the firm’s start to the completion of a single block structure including the warehouses required to support its operations.

The study is based on a survey of historic materials including the recently available archival materials in the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.

The study reveals the interaction of vision, planning and risk taking in a family enterprise over two generations. It illustrates the search for information as to what was required and the importance of architectural elements in the construction and operation of their store.

The archival materials are extensive; however, over the years, much of the operating data were destroyed or lost. Although family members remain in Oregon, they are reluctant to discuss the store’s history, even though the matters that affected them took place many years after the study’s period.

Much of the information collected in the study had never been used in previous work.

The study aims to understand how published accounting information relates to share prices in a developed market in Asia, outside Japan. More specifically, the study aims to extend the international literature in market‐based accounting research by examining empirical evidence on relationships between share prices and the two summary accounting variables of equity book value and earnings for firms listed on the stock exchange in Malaysia.

As one of the main purposes of financial statements is to provide relevant information for investors, relationships between share prices and accounting variables have been widely researched. Early studies focus mainly on earnings, but attention has turned in recent years to valuation models that include the book value of the equity. Many of these studies cite the residual income model as their theoretical base and, with the growing emphasis on shareholder value, residual income measures are more commonly used in the business community to track financial performance. Given such trends, the purpose of this paper is to review the theoretical background of the residual income model and discuss results of empirical studies that use it.

The study seeks an understanding of how published accounting information relates to share prices in the developed market in Asia, outside Japan. More specifically, the study aims to extend the international literature in market based accounting research by examining empirical evidence on relationships between share prices and the two summary accounting variables of equity book value and earnings for firms listed on the stock exchange in Malaysia.

The findings imply that, the two accounting variables summarising the balance sheet and the income statement, respectively, are significant factors in the valuation process, and that managers are justified in using the accounting system as a primary source of information for monitoring financial performance.

These findings should be of interest to other researchers, and to managers and investors who currently use or are planning to use residual income to monitor business performance.

This study aims to find out why and how institutional investors in Hong Kong use momentum in the investment process.

This study is based on interviews with 25 institutional investors based in Hong Kong, all of whom had practical investment experience of at least three years and direct responsibility for making investment decisions.

Nearly all the managers interviewed use momentum strategies, and they gave three main reasons for this. First, they find momentum works in practice, particularly in the short term. Second, they believe recent changes in market conditions, such as higher volatility and widespread news coverage, have increased momentum effects. Third, they say institutional factors matter. Frequent monitoring of performance is now the norm, and this tends to focus on short-term results.

This study complements earlier quantitative research that shows momentum strategies is a method commonly used in investment decisions. It also adds to our knowledge of what institutional investors actually do in practice, and what factors influence their application of momentum strategies.

Social class is assumed to be a crucial determinant in consumer behavior. Most previous research has focused on purchase and consumption behavior across social class segments at the generic product class level. In contrast, this article reports an exploratory study on how brands from narrowly defined groups of products and services are perceived to appeal to different social classes.

Social class is assumed to be a crucial determinant in consumer behavior. Most previous research has focused on purchase and consumption behavior across social class segments at the generic product class level. In contrast, this article reports an exploratory study on how brands from narrowly defined groups of products and services are perceived to appeal to different social classes.

Self‐concept, despite its marketing relevance, has been overshadowed by other psychological concepts. The self‐concept is, however, significant and relevant to the study of consumer behavior because many purchases made by consumers are directly influenced by the image an individual has of himself. A fundamental question involves the process of the formation of the self‐concept. Several distinct qualities exist within the self‐concept, and once the self‐concept is established, these have a bearing upon the individual's behavior and his relationship with his objective, subjective, social, and ideal self. For marketers, an understanding of the self‐concept and self‐image can provide the means for developing more effective marketing programs. Consistency and congruence also play an important part in establishing the relationship between the self‐concept, the individual's image, and final purchase behavior. Other factors also play a part in the process and, in some situations, misunderstandings about their importance can result in less than effective marketing efforts. Careful research and analysis of the relevant factors affecting the self‐concept and their effect on purchase behavior can make for more effective market strategic planning. This article examines the various issues related to the marketing applicability of the self‐concept and discusses its implications in terms of research and market strategic planning.