Age of firms is used with an alarming regularity in various studies in the fields of organizational behavioral, accounting and corporate finance/law/governance, industrial economics and the like. The variable “firm age” is typically called a control variable. Why it is necessary or what it controls is infrequently explained. The variable’s statistical significance or insignificance is duly noted; explanation thereof is hardly ever provided. This paper demonstrates that this variable does not provide any sensible information its users would have us believe. The paper provides numerous examples demonstrating that managerial discretion changes the nature and value of the firm, thereby negating the value of the variable. We recommend that a conceptual foundation be secured before using the variable and it not be wantonly used as a control or fixed-effect variable. Researchers would do well to report the effect size instead of merely statistical significance at some level.
KeywordsFirm AgeControl VariableFixed EffectEffect SizeIrrelevance PropositionStrategic ManagementFirm EvolutionTheories of the Firm
Kim, Y., Park, M.S. and Wier, B. (2012) Is Earnings Quality Associated with Corporate Social Responsibility. Accounting Review, 87, 761-796. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr-10209
Cyert, R.M. and March, J.G. (1992) A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Second Edition, Blackwell Publishers, Cambridge.
Cyert, R.M. and March, J.G. (1963) A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs.
Penrose, E.T. (1959) The Theory of the Growth of the Firm. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
March, J.G. and Simon, H.A. (1958) Organizations. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
Shleifer, A. and Vishny, R.W. (1997) A Survey of Corporate Governance. Journal of Finance, 52, 737-783. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.1997.tb04820.x
Hannan, M.T. and Freeman, J. (1984) Structural Inertia and Organizational Change. American Sociological Review, 49, 149-164. https://doi.org/10.2307/2095567
Hannan, M.T. and Freeman, J. (1977) The Population Ecology of Organization. American Journal of Sociology, 82, 929-964. https://doi.org/10.1086/226424
Stinchcombe, A.S. (1965) Social Structure and Organizations. In: March, J.G. Ed., Handbook of Organizations, Rand McNally, Chicago, 153-193.
Brüderl, J. and Schüssler, R. (1990) Organizational Mortality: The Liabilities of Newness and Adolescence. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35, 530-547. https://doi.org/10.2307/2393316
Hannan, M.T. (1998) Rethinking Age-Dependence in Organizational Mortality: Logical Formalizations. American Journal of Sociology, 104, 126-164. https://doi.org/10.1086/210004
Merton, R.K. (1940) Bureaucratic Structure and Personality. Social Forces, 18, 560-568. https://doi.org/10.2307/2570634
Mannheim, K. (1935) Mensch und Gesellschaft im Zeitalter des Umbaus. A. W. Sijthoff, Leiden.
Mannheim, K. (2940) Man and Society in Age of Reconstruction: Studies in Modern Social Structure. Routledge, London.
Penrose, P. and Pitelis, C. (1999) Edith Elura Tilton Penrose: Life, Contributions and Influence. Contributions to Political Economy, 18, 3-22. https://doi.org/10.1093/cpe/18.1.3
Pitelis, C. (2002) The Growth of the Firm: The Legacy of Edith Penrose. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Newbert, S.L. (2007) Empirical Research on the Resource-Based View of the Firm: An Assessment and Suggestions for Future Research. Strategic Management Journal, 28, 121-146. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.573
Acedo, F.J., Barroso, C. and Galan, J.L. (2006) The Resource-Based Theory: Dissemination and Main Trends. Strategic Management Journal, 27, 621-636. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.532
Rugman, A.M. and Verbeke, A. (2002) Edith Penrose’s Contribution to the Resource-Based View of Strategic Management. Strategic Management Journal, 23, 769-780. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.240
Wernerfelt, B. (1995) The Resource-Based View of the Firm: Ten Years After. Strategic Management Journal, 16, 171-174. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250160303
Wernerfelt, B. (1984) A Resource-Based View of the Firm. Strategic Management Journal, 5, 171-180. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250050207
Barney, J.B. (2001) Is the Resource-Based “View” a Useful Perspective for Strategic Management Research? Yes. Academy of Management Review, 26, 41-56. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2001.4011938
Barney, J.B. (2001) Resource-Based Theories of Competitive Advantage: A Ten-Year Retrospective on the Resource-Based View. Journal of Management, 27, 643-650. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0149-2063(01)00115-5
Barney, J. (1991) Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage. Journal of Management, 17, 99-120. https://doi.org/10.1177/014920639101700108
Barney, J.B. (1986) Strategic Factor Markets: Expectations, Luck, and Business Strategy. Management Science, 32, 1231-1241. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.32.10.1231
Barney, J.B. (1986) Organizational Culture: Can It Be a Source of Sustained Competitive Advantage? Academy of Management Review, 11, 656-665. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1986.4306261
Barney, J., Wright, M. and Ketchen, D.J. (2001) The Resource-Based View of the Firm: Ten Years after 1991. Journal of Management, 27, 625-641. https://doi.org/10.1177/014920630102700601
Penrose, E.T. (1995) The Theory of the Growth of the Firm. Third Edition, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Pitelis, C.N. (2009) The Sustainable Competitive Advantage and Catching-Up of Nations: FDI, Clusters and the Liability (Asset) of Smallness. Management International Review, 49, 95-120. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11575-008-0127-4
Pitelis, C.N. (2007) A behavioral Resource-Based View of the Firm: The Synergy of Cyert and March (1963) and Penrose (1959). Organization Science, 18, 478-490. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1060.0244
Pitelis, C. (2007) Edith Penrose and a Learning-Based Perspective on the MNE and OLI. Management International Review, 47, 207-219. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11575-007-0012-6
Pitelis, C. (2005) Edith Penrose, Organisational Economics and Business Strategy: An Assessment and Extension. Managerial and Decision Economics, 26, 67-82. https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.1215
Pitelis, C.N. (2004) Edith Penrose and the Resource-Based View of International Business Strategy. International Business Review, 13, 523-532. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2004.04.002
Pitelis, C. (2000) A Theory of the (Growth of the) Transnational Firm: A Penrosean Perspective. Contributions to Political Economy, 19, 71-89. https://doi.org/10.1093/cpe/19.1.71
Pitelis, C.N. and Pseiridis, A.N. (1999) Transaction Costs versus Resource Value? Journal of Economic Studies, 26, 221-240. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443589910284408
Turvani, M. (2002) Mismatching by Design: Explaining the Dynamics of Innovative Capabilities of the Firm with a Penrosean Mark. In: Pitelis, C., Ed., The Growth of the Firm: The Legacy of Edith Penrose, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 195-213.
Evans, D.S. (1987) The Relationship between Firm Growth, Size, and Age: Estimates for 100 Manufacturing Industries. Journal of Industrial Economics, 35, 567-581. https://doi.org/10.2307/2098588
Evans, D.S. (1987) Tests of Alternative Theories of Firm Growth. Journal of Political Economy, 95, 657-674. https://doi.org/10.1086/261480
Jovanovic, B. (1982) Selection and Evolution of Industry. Econometrica, 50, 649-670. https://doi.org/10.2307/1912606
Leonard-Barton, D. (1992) Core Capabilities and Core Rigidities: A Paradox in Managing New Product Development. Strategic Management Journal, 13, 111-125. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250131009
Christensen, C.M. and Bower, J.L. (1996) Customer Power, Strategic Investment, and the Failure of Leading Firms. Strategic Management Journal, 17, 197-218. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199603)17:3 3.0.CO;2-U
Cameron, K.S. and Whetten, D.A. (1981) Perceptions of Organizational Effectiveness over Organizational Life Cycles. Administrative Science Quarterly, 26, 525-544. https://doi.org/10.2307/2392338
Henderson, A.D. (1997) Firm Strategy and Age Dependence: A Contingent View of the Liabilities of Newness, Adolescence, and Obsolescence. Academy of Management Best Papers Proceedings, 1997, 263-266. https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.1997.4982221
Dixit, A.K. and Stiglitz, J.E. (1977) Monopolistic Competition and Optimum Product Diversity. American Economic Review, 67, 297-308.
Commons, J.R. (1931) Institutional Economics. American Economic Review, 21, 648-657.
Coase, R.H. (1937) The Nature of the Firm. Economica, 4, 386-405. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0335.1937.tb00002.x
Penrose, E.T. (1996) Growth of the Firm and Networking. In: International Encyclopaedia of Business and Management, Routlege, London, 1716-1724.
Williamson, O.E. (1979) Transaction-Cost Economics: The Governance of Contractual Relations. Journal of Law and Economics, 22, 233-261. https://doi.org/10.1086/466942
Williamson, O.E. (1981) The Economics of Organization. The Transaction Cost Approach, 87, 548-577. https://doi.org/10.1086/227496
Williamson, O.E. (1988) The Logic of Economic Organization. Journal of Law, Economics, & Organization, 4, 65-93.
Williamson, O.E. (1988) Corporate Finance and Corporate Governance. Journal of Finance, 43, 567-591. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.1988.tb04592.x
Berle, A.A. and Means, G.C. (1932) The Modern Corporation and Private Property. Macmillan, New York.
Burnham, J. (1941) The Managerial Revolution: or, What Is Happening in the World Now. Putnam, London.
Cooper, W.W. (1951) A Proposal for Extending the Theory of the Firm. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 65, 87-109. https://doi.org/10.2307/1879501
Alchian, A.A. and Demsetz, H. (1972) Production, Information Costs, and Economic Organization. American Economic Review, 62, 777-795.
Mitnick, B.M. (1973) Fiduciary Rationality and Public Policy: The Theory of Agency and Some Consequences. Working Paper, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1020859
Ross, S.A. (1973) The Economic Theory of Agency: The Principal’s Problem. American Economic Review, 63, 134-139.
Jensen, M.C. and Meckling, W.H. (1976) Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs and Ownership Structure. Journal of Financial Economics, 3, 305-360. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-405X(76)90026-X
Fama, E.F. (1980) Agency Problems and the Theory of the Firm. Journal of Political Economy, 88, 288-307. https://doi.org/10.1086/260866
Arrow, K.J. (1985) The Economics of Agency. In: Pratt, J.W. and Zeckhauser, R.J., Eds., Principals and Agents: The Structure of Business, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, 37-51.
Levinthal, D. (1988) A Survey of Agency Models of Organizations. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 9, 153-185. https://doi.org/10.1016/0167-2681(88)90071-6
Gillan, S.L., Hartzell, J.C. and Starks, L.T. (2011) Tradeoffs in Corporate Governance: Evidence from Board Structures and Charter Provisions. Quarterly Journal of Finance, 1, 667-706. https://doi.org/10.1142/S2010139211000183
Berry, T.K., Fields, L.P. and Wilkins, M.S. (2006) The Interaction among Multiple Governance Mechanisms in Young Newly Public Firms. Journal of Corporate Finance, 12, 449-466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2005.08.003
Boone, A.L., Field, L.C., Karpoff, J.M. and Raheja, C.G. (2007) The Determinants of Corporate Board Size and Composition: An Empirical Analysis. Journal of Financial Economics, 85, 66-101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2006.05.004
Loderer, C. and Waelchli, U. (2011) Firm Age and Governance. Working Paper, University of Bern, Bern. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1938635
Vintila, G. and Gherghina, S.C. (2012) An Empirical Investigation of the Relationship between Corporate Governance Mechanisms, CEO Characteristics and Listed Companies’ Performance. International Business Research, 5, 175-191. https://doi.org/10.5539/ibr.v5n10p175
Landier, A., Sauvagnat, J., Sraer, D. and Thesmar, D. (2013) Bottom-Up Corporate Governance. Review of Finance, 17, 161-201. https://doi.org/10.1093/rof/rfs020
Mueller, D.C. (1972) A Life Cycle Theory of the Firm. Journal of Industrial Economics, 42, 199-219. https://doi.org/10.2307/2098055
Shumway, T. (2001) Forecasting Bankruptcy More Accurately: A Simple Hazard Model. Journal of Business, 74, 101-124. https://doi.org/10.1086/209665
DeAngelo, H., DeAngelo, L. and Stulz, R.M. (2006) Dividend Policy and the Earned/Contributed Capital Mix: A Test of the Life-Cycle Theory? Journal of Financial Economics, 81, 227-254. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2005.07.005
Grullon, G., Michaely, R. and Swaminathan, B. (2002) Are Dividend Changes a Sign of Firm Maturity? Journal of Business, 75, 387-424. https://doi.org/10.1086/339889
Fama, E.F. and French, K.R. (2001) Disappearing Dividends: Changing Firm Characteristics or Lower Propensity to Pay? Journal of Financial Economics, 60, 3-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-405X(01)00038-1
Loderer, C., Stulz, R. and Waelchi, U. (2013) Limited Managerial Attention and Corporate Aging, Working Paper, NBER, Cambridge. https://doi.org/10.3386/w19428
Ouimet, P. and Zarutskie, R. (2014) Who Works for Startups? The Relation between Firm Age, Employee Age, and Growth. Journal of Financial Economics, 112, 386-407. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2014.03.003
Arbuthnott, J. (1710) An Argument for Divine Providence, Taken from the Constant Regularity Observ’d in the Births of Both Sexes. Philosophical Transactions, 27, 186-190. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstl.1710.0011
Fisher, R.A. (1925) Statistical Methods for Research Workers. Oliver and Boyd, London.
Fisher, R.A. (1922) On the Mathematical Foundations of Theoretical Statistics. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series A, Containing Papers of a Mathematical or Physical Character, 222, 309-368. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.1922.0009
Neyman, J. and Pearson, E.S. (1933) On the Problem of the Most Efficient Tests of Statistical Hypotheses. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series A, Containing Papers of a Mathematical or Physical Character, 231, 289-337. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.1933.0009
Boring, E.G. (1919) Mathematical vs. Scientific Significance. Psychological Bulletin, 16, 335-338. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0074554
Berkson, J. (1938) Some Difficulties of Interpretation Encountered in the Application of the Chi-Square Test. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 33, 526-536. https://doi.org/10.1080/01621459.1938.10502329
Rozeboom, W.W. (1960) The Fallacy of the Null Hypothesis Significance Test. Psychological Bulletin, 57, 416-428. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0042040
Carver, R.P. (1978) The Case against Statistical Significance Testing. Harvard Educational Review, 48, 378-399. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.48.3.t490261645281841
Cohen, J. (1994) The Earth is Round (p https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.49.12.997
Cohen, J. (1990) The Things I Have Learned (So Far). American Psychologist, 45, 1304-1312. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.45.12.1304
Schmidt, F.L. (1996) Statistical Significance Testing and Cumulative Knowledge in Psychology: Implications for the Training of Researchers. Psychological Methods, 1, 115-129. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989X.1.2.115
Anderson, D.R., Burnham, K.P. and Thompson, W.L. (2000) Null Hypothesis Testing: Problems, Prevalence, and an Alternative. Journal of Wildlife Management, 64, 912-923. https://doi.org/10.2307/3803199
Thompson, B. (1993) The Use of Statistical Significance Tests in Research: Bootstrap and Other Alternatives. Journal of Experimental Education, 61, 361-377. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220973.1993.10806596
Thompson, B. (1996) AERA Editorial Policies Regarding Statistical Significance Testing: Three Suggested Reforms. Educational Researcher, 25, 26-30. https://doi.org/10.2307/1176337
Thompson, B. (1997) Rejoinder: Editorial Policies Regarding Statistical Significance Testing: Further Comments. Educational Researcher, 26, 29-32. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X026005029
Thompson, B. (2002) “Statistical”, “Practical”, and “Clinical”: How Many Kinds of Significance Do Counselors Need to Consider? Journal of Counseling and Development, 80, 64-71. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6678.2002.tb00167.x
Thompson, B. (2002) What Future Quantitative Social Science Research Could Look Like: Confidence Intervals for Effect Sizes. Educational Researcher, 31, 24-31. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X031003025
Thompson, B. (2004) The “Significance” Crisis in Psychology and Education. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 607-613. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.034
Lendrem, B.A.D., Lendrem, D.W., Gray, A. and Isaacs, J.D. (2014) The Darwin Awards: Sex Differences in Idiotic Behaviour. BMJ, 349, g7094. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.g7094
Hubbard, R. (1995) The Earth Is Highly Significantly Round (p https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.50.12.1098.a
Hubbard, R. and Ryan, P.A. (2000) The Historical Growth of Statistical Significance Testing in Psychology and Its Future Prospects. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 60, 661-681. https://doi.org/10.1177/00131640021970808
Huberty, C.J. (1999) On Some History Regarding Statistical Testing. In: Thompson, B., Ed., Advances in Social Science Methodology, Vol. 5, Jai Press, Stamford, 1-23.
Kline, R.B. (2004) Beyond Significance Testing: Reforming Data Analysis Methods in Behavioral Research. American Psychological Association, Washington DC. https://doi.org/10.1037/10693-000
Tyler, R.W. (1931) What Is Statistical Significance? Educational Research Bulletin, 10, 115-118+142.
Arrow, K.J. (1959) Decision Theory and the Choice of a Level of Significance for the t-Test. In: Olkin, I., et al., Eds., Contributions to Probability and Statistics: Essays in Honor of Harold Hotelling, Stanford University Press, Stanford, 70-78.
Cumming, G. (2012) Understanding the New Statistics: Effect Sizes, Confidence Intervals, and Meta-Analysis. Routledge, New York. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203807002
American Psychological Association (1994) Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Fourth Edition, APA, Washington DC.
American Psychological Association (2001) Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Fifth Edition, APA, Washington DC.
American Psychological Association (2010) Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Sixth Edition, APA, Washington DC.
Mbengué, A. (2010) Should We Burn the Statistical Significance Tests? Management, 13, 99-127. https://doi.org/10.3917/mana.132.0100
Huberty, C.J. (2002) A History of Effect Size Indices. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 62, 227-240. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164402062002002
Kirk, R.E. (1996) Practical Significance: A Concept Whose Time Has Come. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 56, 746-759. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164496056005002
Ziliak, S.T. and McCloskey, D.N. (2004) Size Matters: The Standard Error of Regressions in the American Economic Review. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 527-546. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.024
McCloskey, D.N. and Ziliak, S.T. (1996) The Standard Error of Regressions. Journal of Economic Literature, 34, 97-114.
Zellner, A. (1984) Posterior Odds Ratios for Regression Hypotheses: General Considerations and Some Specific Results. In: Zellner, A., Ed., Basic Issues in Econometrics, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 275-305.
Lecoutre, B. (1999) Beyond the Significance Test Controversy: Prime Time for Bayes? 52nd Session, International Statistical Institute, Voorburg. http://epeire.univ-rouen.fr/labos/eris/pac.html
Lecoutre, B., Lecoutre, M.-P. and Poitevineau, J. (2001) Uses, Abuses and Misuses of Significance Tests in the Scientific Community: Won’t the Bayesian Choice Be Unavoidable? International Statistical Review, 69, 399-417. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-5823.2001.tb00466.x
Eliott, G. and Granger, C.W.J. (2004) Evaluating Significance: Comments on “Size Matters”. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 547-550. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.025
Horowitz, J.L. (2004) Comments on “Size Matters”. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 551-554. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.026
Leamer, E.E. (2004) Are the Roads Red? Comments on “Size Matters”. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 555-557. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.027
O’Brien, A.P. (2004) Why Is the Standard Error of Regression So Low Using Historical Data? Comments on “Size Matters”. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 565-570. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-5357(04)00088-5
Wooldridge, J.M. (2004) Statistical Significance Is Okay, Too: Comment on “Size Matters”. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 577-579. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.031
Gigerenzer, G. (2004) Mindless Statistics. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 587-606. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.033
Altman, M. (2004) Introduction: Statistical Significance. Journal of Socio-Economics, 33, 523-525. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.09.023
Sawyer, A.G. and Peter, J.P. (1983) The Significance of Statistical Significance Tests in Marketing Research. Journal of Marketing Research, 20, 122-133. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378302000203
Armstrong, J.S. (2007) Significance Tests Harm Progress in Forecasting. International Journal of Forecasting, 23, 321-327. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijforecast.2007.03.004
Armstrong, J.S. (2007) Statistical Significance Tests Are Unnecessary Even When Properly Done and Properly Interpreted: Reply to Commentaries. International Journal of Forecasting, 23, 335-336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijforecast.2007.01.010
Huselid, M.A. (1995) The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on Turnover, Productivity, and Corporate Financial Performance. Academy of Management Journal, 38, 635-672. https://doi.org/10.2307/256741
MacDuffie, J. (1995) Human Resource Bundles and Manufacturing Performance: Organizational Logic and Flexible Production Systems in the World Auto Industry. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 48, 197-221. https://doi.org/10.1177/001979399504800201
Huselid, M.A. (1996) Methodological Issues in Cross-Sectional and Panel Estimates of the Human Resource-Firm Performance Link. Industrial Relations, 35, 400-422. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-232X.1996.tb00413.x
Gerhart, B. (1999) Human Resource Management and Firm Performance: Measurement Issues and Their Effect on Causal and Policy Inferences. In: Wright, P.M., Dyer, L.D., Bourdreau, J.W. and Milkovich, G.T., Eds., Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, Supplement 4, Jai Press, Stamford, 31-51.
Gerhart, B., Wright, P.M., McMahan, G.C. and Snell, S.A. (2000) Measurement Error in Research on Human Resources and Firm Performance: How Much Error Is There and How Does It Influence Effect Size Estimates? Personnel Psychology, 53, 803-834. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2000.tb02418.x
Gerhart, B., Wright, P.M. and McMahan, G.C. (2000) Measurement Error in Research on Human Resources and Firm Performance Relationship: Further Evidence and Analysis. Personnel Psychology, 53, 855-872. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2000.tb02420.x
Huselid, M.A. and Becker, B.E. (2000) Comment on Measurement Error in Research on Human Resources and Firm Performance: How Much Error Is There and How Does It Influence Effect Size Estimates? Personnel Psychology, 53, 835-854. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2000.tb02419.x
Wright, P.M., Gardner, T.M., Moynihan, L.M., Park, H.J., Gerhart, B. and Delery, J.E. (2001) Measurement Error in Research on Human Resources and Firm Performance: Additional Data and Suggestions for Future Research. Personnel Psychology, 54, 875-902. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2001.tb00235.x
Combs, J., Liu, Y., Hall, A. and Ketchen, D. (2006) How Much Do High-Performance Work Practices Matter? A Meta-Analysis of Their Effects on Organizational Performance. Personnel Psychology, 59, 501-528. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2006.00045.x
Becker, B.E. and Huselid, M.A. (2006) Strategic Human Resources Management: Where Do We Go From Here? Journal of Management, 32, 898-925. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206306293668
Ellis, P.D. (2010) Effect Sizes and the Interpretation of Research Results in International Business. Journal of International Business Studies, 41, 1581-1588. https://doi.org/10.1057/jibs.2010.39
Ellis, P.D. (2009) Thresholds for Interpreting Effect Sizes. http://www.polyu.edu.hk/mm/effectsizefaqs/thresholds_for_interpreting_effect_sizes2.html
Ellis, P.D. (2010) The Essential Guide to Effect Sizes: An Introduction to Statistical Power, Meta-Analysis, and the Interpretation of Research Results. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Simon, H.A. (1992) What Is an “Explanation” of Behavior? Psychological Science, 3, 150-161. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.1992.tb00017.x
Magee, D. (2009) Jeff Immelt and the New GE Way: Innovation, Transformation, and Winning in the 21st Century. McGraw-Hill, New York.
Owles, E. (2017) G.E.’s History of Innovation. New York Times, June 12.
Bennett, D. (2018) How GE Went From American Icon to Astonishing Mess. Bloomberg Businessweek, February 1. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-02-01/ how-ge-went-from-american-icon-to-astonishing-mess
Colvin, G. (2018) What the Hell Happened at GE? Fortune, May 24. http://fortune.com/longform/ge-decline-what-the-hell-happened
Gryta, T. and Mann, T. (2018) GE Powered the American Century—Then It Burned Out. Wall Street Journal, December 14. https://www.wsj.com/articles/ge-powered-the-american- centurythen-it-burned-out-11544796010