Handling of Missing Data

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Martin Spiess (University of Hamburg)

Date: Thursday, 14/09/17 (09.30 – 18.00 h)

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents:

If the missing information is selective with respect to the research question, then simply ignoring unobserved information or applying other ‘ad hoc’ methods usually leads to invalid inferences, i.e. to biased estimators or actual rejection rates of ‘true’ null hypotheses being too high. In this seminar, basics of the missing data problem and some techniques to compensate missing values are discussed. A main topic in the introductory part is the missing data mechanisms, i.e. the mechanism that led to the missing information. The way how to deal with the missing data problem such that scientifically interesting inferences are valid depends mainly on assumptions about this process. A particularly important question is whether the precise missing mechanism can be ignored in downstream analysis, or if it as to be modelled explicitly. In the second part, an overview of various approaches to deal with the missing data problem is given. Besides ‘ad-hoc’ techniques which often lead to invalid inferences, model-based approaches like maximum likelihood methods as well as weighting and imputation methods will be considered. Most of the latter methods assume that the missing mechanism is ignorable. However, we will also consider a simple approach to estimate a model based on a non-ignorable missing mechanism. The third part deals with one missing data technique in more detail: Multiple imputations to deal with missing items. The concepts are illustrated with the help of examples, the software used is R.

Requirement of students: Statistical knowledge on the master level of an applied science programme is required.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Spiess, M. (2016). Dealing with missing values. In: C. Wolf, D. Joye, T.W. Smith and Y. Fu (Eds.), The SAGE Handbook of Survey Methodology (Chapter 37, pp. 595-610). Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA.

You have to register for the 11th International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Case Study Research

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Dr. Kamil Marcinkiewicz (University of Hamburg)

Date: Monday, 11/09/17 – Wednesday, 13/09/17 (14.30 – 18.00)

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents:

The case study research is frequently applied in the social sciences. It is particularly popular among political scientists, especially those specialising in area studies. The ubiquity of the case study research contrasts with the scarcity of theoretical reflection on its core methodological aspects. Also, the benefits of comparative analyses are often underestimated. In this course, participants will have an opportunity to learn more about what the case study research is, what are its weakness and strengths and how should we go about the core question in designing a case study: selection of cases. The course combines lectures with practical exercises and discussion of students’ projects.

Requirement of students: None.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Gerring, J. (2007). Case Study Research: Principles and Practices (pp. 17-63). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • George, A. L., & Bennett, A. (2005). Case Studies and Theory Development in the Social Sciences (pp. 1-34). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
  • Rueschemeyer, D. (2003). Can One or a Few Cases Yield Theoretical Gains? In J. Mahoney and D. Rueschemeyer (Eds.), Comparative Historical Analysis in the Social Sciences (pp. 305-337) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Hall, P.A. (2008). Systematic Process Analysis: When and How to Use it. European Political Science, 7(3), 304-317.

You have to register for the 11th International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Researching, Writing, and Publishing a Literature Review

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christina Hoon (Bielefeld University)

Date: Thursday, 14/09/17 (09:30 – 18:00 h)

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents:

As you embark on your PhD, or indeed any research undertaking, you always start with producing a review of the existing literature on the topic of your research field. However, given that a literature review constitutes a study in itself, a review study can also be one of the separate, publishable papers your PhD thesis consists of.

This workshop outlines the purpose, scope, methods, and contribution of a literature review. What constitutes a good literature review? How do you evaluate and assess the broad range of knowledge and information? How do you make a substantive contribution, thereby producing a publishable paper? This course will address the different forms of literature reviews (systematic reviews, meta-synthesis, meta-analysis). The analytical tools and methods of each of these different forms of a review are offered, along with illustrative examples. This course is structured to guide students throughout the process of conducting and writing a literature review: identifying and developing individual research interests, searching for relevant information resources, assessing and evaluating the extant literature, and concluding with the writing of a literature review.

Requirement of students: None.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Rousseau, D.M., Manning, J. and Denyer, D. (2008). Chapter 11: Evidence in management and organizational science: Assembling the field’s full weight to scientific knowledge through synthesis. Academy of Management Annals, 2, pp. 475–515.
  • Torraco, R.J. (2005). Writing integrative literature reviews: Guidelines and examples. Human Resource Development Review, 4, pp. 356-367.

You have to register for the 11th International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Grounded Theory

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Christina Hoon (Bielefeld University)

Date: Monday, 11/09/17 – Wednesday, 13/09/17 (09:00 – 12:30)

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents:

The key purpose of this workshop is to increase participants’ understanding of the key concepts, strategies, and steps in grounded theory research. This workshop intends to deepen theoretical and practical understanding of the constant comparative method, open, axial and selective coding. Further, the participants will learn the key elements of theoretical sampling, theoretical saturation, and theoretical sensitivity. In addition, common challenges and pitfalls in grounded theory research will be discussed. To assist participants to craft valuable and effective research papers, exemplars from current research projects will be assessed and critically reviewed.

Requirement of students: None.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis. London, UK: Sage.
  • Gioia, D. A., Corley, K. G., & Hamilton, A. (2013). Seeking qualitative rigor in inductive research: Notes on the Gioia methodology. Organizational Research Methods, 16, 15-31.
  • Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques (2nd Ed). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

You have to register for the 11th International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Measuring Preferences using Conjoint Analytic Methods and Advanced Compositional Approaches

Institution: see Organisers & Supporters

Programme of study: International Research Workshop

Lecturer: Assoc. Prof. Martin Meissner (University of Southern Denmark/Department of Environmental and Business Economics)

Date: Thursday, 14/09/17 (09:30 – 18:00 h)

Max. number of participants: 20

Credit Points: 5 CP for participating in the whole IRWS

Language of instruction: English

Contents:

The participants of this course develop a sound understanding of the benefits of using conjoint analytic preferences measurement approaches and alternative advanced compositional approaches. Participants gain practical experience of using conjoint-analytic methods and developed a better understanding of the value of measuring preferences.

The course starts with introducing the basic concepts behind the measurement of stated preferences, specifically focusing on conjoint analysis. The most often used approaches, i.e. traditional conjoint analysis, adaptive conjoint analysis and choice-based conjoint analysis are introduced. We deliberate on advantages and disadvantages of the approaches and also discuss advanced compositional approaches, like pairwise-comparison based preference measurement and the adaptive self-explicated approach. During the workshop, we will further talk about all the important stages of designing a preference measurement study. We pay special attention to the types of research questions that conjoint analysis can answer. We also discuss the most important questions you should answer before setting up your preference measurement/conjoint study: What is the optimal choice of attributes and attribute level? What is a good experimental design? How should I design my survey design and present potential choice scenarios? How do I analyse the results?

Participants will have the opportunity to use Sawtooth Software on their own laptops and build their own conjoint analysis survey during the course. Based on this experience, participants will be able to improve the planning of their own future experiments.

Requirement of students: Basic knowledge in inferential statistics is recommended.

Recommended literature and pre-readings:

  • Bradlow, Eric T. (2005), “Current Issues and a ‘Wish List’ for Conjoint Analysis,” Applied Stochastic Models in Business and Industry, 21 (4-5), 319-323.
  • Hauser, John R. and Vithala Rao (2003), “Conjoint Analysis, Related Modeling, and Applications,” In Marketing Research and Modeling: Progress and Prospects, Wind, Jerry and Paul Green (eds.), New York: Springer, 141-168.

You have to register for the 11th International Research Workshop to participate in this course.

Call for Papers: The Ethical Dimensions of Corruption (October 20-21, 2017)

12th Talks at Zittau Concerning Business Ethics

Call for Papers
The Ethical Dimensions of Corruption Zittau, October 20-21, 2017

Organizer:
Technical University Dresden
International Institute Zittau
Chair for Social Sciences
Markt 23, 02763 Zittau

For most western countries corruption, especially in its forms of grease money or petty payments, have been seen as cultural idiosyncrasy of African, South-American or East-European countries. For years, corruption has been dismissed as a cultural phenomenon especially in less-developed or developing countries, mirroring low salaries, weak infrastructure, disorganized administration and unstable political conditions. If corruption ‘happened’ in Western countries at all, this has been downplayed as a kind of ‘some-bad-apples-theory’ where a few ill-motivated actors jeopardize the honesty of the whole system. What this theory fails to explain, however, is why it is western multinational corporations that have been involved in contemporary corruption scandals in recent years. Even though most of these companies ostensibly had anti-corruption programs and monitoring systems in place, such measures obviously did not prevent management from engaging in corrupt activities. It seems therefore that corruption is a widespread and common practice

and a universally prevalent phenomenon, even if the practices and degree of corrupt behavior may vary in relation to cultural settings or in different sectors.

Thus, for example, certain sorts of gift-giving in some cultures are deeply embedded in custom and are seen as social mechanism for stabilizing relationships inside and outside the business con- text, whereas in other countries such acts of gift-giving are by and large uncommon. In the latter, gift giving is viewed as an illegitimate means of influencing the decision of the other party by creating a specific sort of obligation as well as imposing additional costs to the company. While the intention of gift giving may not be to obtain a favor from the donee in return, one of its aims may nevertheless be to cast the giver in a favorable light and to create an atmosphere of ‘friendship’ and ‘intimacy’ valued highly in some cultures, but seen as illegitimate leverage in others.

The same cultural difference in attitude can be observed with obligations vis-à-vis family members or other social groups. To take the example of employee recruitment in western countries today, we see that recruitment principally depends on qualifications and work experience and only to a lesser extent on recommendations, while in some other countries and in former times family relationship is or was seen as a guarantee of loyalty and trustworthiness and might explain why ‘nepotism’ happens and was considered acceptable.

Nevertheless, some elements of corruption are perceived as illicit in nearly all countries – irrespective of whether other corrupt practices are common in these countries or not. A very good indicator for this is the fact that most types of bribery payments are not made public and are illegal in most countries. In spite of this, even the most stringent legal regulations concerning corrupt practices leave room for interpretation. On the other hand, for companies working in a corrupt environment it is not easy to figure out the family ties of their counterparts or whether costs charged for administrative handling are legal payments or hidden bribes for some groups of state officials. Thus, according to which industry a corporation belongs, it might face specific problems related to corruption.

The aim of the 12th Talks at Zittau is to provide an overview of corrupt practices from an ethical perspective. Corruption will be considered in its broadest sense, including bribery and petty payments, nepotism and cronyism, gift-giving, embezzlement of public property, or money launder- ing. Theoretical, as well as empirical contributions, are welcome. Topics may include but are not limited to:

Theories on Corruption:

  • Theoretical explanations of corrupt behavior
  • Classification of corruption
  • Cultural perspectives on corruption
  • Corruption in the international context
  • Corruption and multinational corporations

Empirical Findings on Corruption

  • Influencing factors on corruption
  • Corruption and foreign investment
  • Measuring corruption
  • Influence of Corruption on economic development
  • Corrupt structures across countries

Case Studies on Corruption

  • Analysis of corruption scandals
  • Corruption in different industries
  • Corruption in the public sector
  • Specific forms of corrupt behavior
  • Motivation for corruption

Measures against Corruption

  • International anti-corruption programs
  • National anti-corruption policy
  • Industry self-regulation against corruption
  • Anti-corruption training programs
  • Best practice examples of anti-corruption measures

Theoretical, managerial, and empirical contributions from both academic and practitioners’ side are welcome. We highly appreciate contributions which open up a new perspective on corruption and related practices to foster a critical discussion on this topic.

Submissions, including title of contribution, extended abstract (500 to 1000 words) and short CV in Word or pdf format should be made latest until

June 30, 2017.

All submissions will be double-blind reviewed. Notice on acceptance will be sent until

August 11, 2017.

Registration deadline for the conference is

September 30, 2017.

Submissions and conference registration should be made via our homepage which will be opened by beginning of May

http://www.dnwe.de/regionalforum-sachsen.html

Further information

VHB-ProDok: Design Science (22.-25.08.2017)

Abstract and Learning Objectives
This class focuses on planning and conducting design science research on Ph.D. level. It is intended to provide state-of-the art methodological competences for all Ph.D. students in business whose research is not solely descriptive/explanatory, but also comprises components where artefacts are purposefully designed and evaluated.

While Design Science Research is very common in Information Systems research, purposeful artefact design and evaluation are found in many other business research fields like, e.g., General Management, Operations Management/Management Science, Accounting/Controlling, Business Education, or Marketing. While Design Science is often conducted implicitly, the methodological discourse in the Information Systems has led to a high level of reflection and to the availability of a large number of reference publications and cases, so that examples and cases will often originate from this domain. It should however be noted that Design Science as a paradigm is applicable and is used in nearly all business research fields. As a consequence, this class is not only part of the Information Systems ProDok curriculum, but intentionally being positioned as cross-domain class.

The goal of the class is to provide Ph.D. students with insights and capabilities that enable them to plan and conduct independent Design Science research. To achieve this goal, students will engage in a number of activities in preparation and during this three-day course, including preparatory readings, lectures, presentations, project work, and in-class discussions. The course format offers an interactive learning experience and the unique opportunity to obtain individualized feedback from leading IS researchers as well as develop preliminary research designs for their own Ph.D. projects.

Date of Event: 22. – 25. August 2017 

Location: Universität St. Gallen 

Lecturer:
Prof. Dr. Jan vom Brocke (Universität Liechtenstein)
Prof. Dr. Robert Winter (Universität St. Gallen)  

Registration: The deadline for registration is 25 July 2017. Please click on the link to open the registration form: http://vhbonline.org/veranstaltungen/prodok/anmeldung/anmeldeformular/ or send an email to prodok(at)vhbonline(dot)org.

Further information

VHB-ProDok: Advanced Topics in Asset Pricing and Capital Market Research (16.-19.08.2017)

Content

Part I (Erik Theissen)
I.1 Theory Brush Up
I.2 Risk and Return
I.3 Efficient Markets
I.4 Empirical Tests of Portfolio Theory and Individual Investor Behavior
I.5 Tests of the CAPM
I.6 Testing the APT
I.7 Anomalies or Priced Risk Factors?
I.7 Further Topics

Part II (Joachim Grammig)
II.1 Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) and the Basic Asset Pricing Equation
II.2 The Canonical Consumption-CAPM (C-CAPM): Theory, Estimation, and Empirical Performance
II.3 Recent variations of the C-CAPM: Habit, Long-Run-Risk, Rare Disasters
II.4 Conditioning Information: Scaled Returns and Scaled Factors
II.5 Relationship Between Regression- and GMM-based Tests of Asset Pricing Models (Link to First Part)
II.6 Empirical Tools (the use of  STATA/EVIEWS/MATLAB)  

if time permits
II.7      Econometric Theory (Extremum Estimators)

Date of Event: 16. – 19. August 2017

Location: House of Finance on Campus Westend of Goethe University Frankfurt, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 3, 60323 Frankfurt am Main

Lecturer:
Prof. Dr. Joachim Grammig (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen)
Prof. Dr. Erik Theissen (Universität Mannheim) 

Registration: The deadline for registration is  16 June 2017. Please click on the link to open the registration form: http://vhbonline.org/veranstaltungen/prodok/anmeldung/anmeldeformular/ or send an email to prodok(at)vhbonline(dot)org.

Further information

VHB-ProDok: Advanced Topics in Information Systems Theory (18.-21.07.2017)

Abstract and Learning Objectives
The generation of knowledge can be seen as one of the key contributions of any science. Consequently, many scholars emphasize the centrality of theories for any scientific endeavor – a thought widely reflected in many disciplines from the natural to the social sciences. While a corresponding attention to theoretical work has been at the heart of the Information Systems (IS) discipline for a long time, the focus on theoretical debates and genuine conceptual contributions has been picking up recently. This is reflected by a number of journal sections and conference tracks dedicated to advancing theory and theorizing in IS research just as much as in many authors’ experiences during the reviews of their work.

The course “Advanced Topics in Information Systems Theory” invites participants to join the ongoing discourse on theories and theorizing in the Business and Information Systems Engineering (BISE) and Information Systems (IS) research communities. It is designed to help participants build and extend their understanding of the nature and role of theory in BISE and IS research. Through discussions and analyses of current theoretical developments in the BISE and IS discipline and some of its main reference disciplines, participants will engage with theory and advance their skills of building their own theoretical contributions.

The course aims to achieve the following high-level learning objectives

  1. Build a foundational understanding of what theory is and what role it plays in research
  2. Develop basic theorizing skills and be familiar with extant theorizing strategies
  3. Understand strategies to develop and publish own theoretical contributions  

Overall, the course is designed to help students advance their understanding of theory and theorizing in the BISE / IS discipline and enhance their theorizing skills related to their own research and thesis work.

Be advised that the course is not intended to be a comprehensive or normative prescription of how to engage with theory and theorizing in research. It is rather aimed at encouraging and empowering young scholars to carefully pay attention to their theoretical contribution and their engagement with the extant knowledge in the field. This explicitly includes a critical reflection on the current state of theory in the IS and BISE field in order to help advance the current debates on the nature and role of theory and theorizing.

Date of Event: 18. – 21. of July 2017  

Location: Hamburg

Lecturer:
Dr. Benjamin Mueller, Department of Innovation Management and Strategy, University of Groningen: http://www.rug.nl/staff/b.mueller/

Prof. Dorothy Leidner, PhD, Hankamer School of Business, Baylor University: http://business.baylor.edu/Dorothy_Leidner/  

Registration: Please click on the link to open the registration form: http://vhbonline.org/veranstaltungen/prodok/anmeldung/anmeldeformular/ or send an email to prodok(at)vhbonline(dot)org.

Further information

Call for Papers: Alternativen ökonomischer Lehre und Forschung (Arbeitskreis Politische Öknonomie)

Organisatoren: Das Institut für Plurale Ökonomik (Siegen) und der Arbeitskreis Politische Ökonomie

Thema: Alternativen ökonomischer Lehre und Forschung

Veranstaltungsort: Siegen

Termin: 23.-25.11.2017

Im November 2015 fand der Kongress Teaching Economics in the 21st century in Berlin statt, der ursprünglich auf eine Initiative des Arbeitskreises Politische Ökonomie und der World Economic Association zurückging. In der Zwischenzeit hat sich einiges getan: die private Cusanus-Hochschule hat erfolgreich einen zusätzlichen Bachelorstudiengang eingerichtet, an der Universität Siegen läuft seit dem Wintersemester 2017/18 der Masterstudiengang Plurale Ökonomik und ein Institut für Plurale Ökonomik ist in Gründung. Zudem erscheinen seit der Berliner Tagung weitere heterodox-plurale Lehrbücher (u.a. das von INET angeregte Core-Projekt) und die Forschungsstelle für gesamtwirtschaftliche Weiterentwicklung fördert neben einer eigenen Buchpublikation einige Forschungsprojekte, die sich zum Teil mit Fragen der heterodoxen Forschung und Lehre befassen. Neben der neulich erfolgten Gründung der „Gesellschaft für sozio*ökonomische Bildung und Wissenschaft (GSÖBW)“ sind schließlich die zahlreichen zwischenzeitlichen Aktivitäten und Diskussionen im Netzwerk Plurale Ökonomik hervorzuheben.

Die Konferenz dient dazu, den u.a. in Berlin entwickelten Diskussionszusammenhang weiter zu entwickeln. Die Vorstellung plural-heterodoxer Studiengänge, die Kritik an zentralen Konzepten der Standardökonomie gerne auch mit Bezug auf aktuelle, (inter)nationale wirtschaftspolitische Entwicklungen und die Vorstellung deutschsprachiger, aber auch v.a. angelsächsischer Alternativlehrbücher sollen neben plural-heterodoxen Lehr- und Lernformen unter Einschluss avancierter alternativer Forschungsansätze, die den vorherrschenden Mainstream ergänzen sollten, im Vordergrund der Tagung stehen.

Anregungen und Beiträge von studentischer Seite sind ausdrücklich erwünscht.

Bitte senden Sie/sendet Ihr einen Abstract im Umfang von max. 500 Worten bis zum 1.9 an: Helge.Peukert@uni-siegen.de