Peterson, Mark F.

This dissertation analyzes how the reactions of repatriates and
spouses/partners about their new lifestyle and compensation package upon
repatriation relate to several repatriate turnover outcomes. U.S.-based
multinational organizations often provide global assignees with an extensive
benefit package, including such items as housing allowances, foreign-service
premiums, tuition for international schools, and club memberships. Once the
assignment is over, these additional benefits are necessarily terminated.
Results of a qualitative analysis of 14 semi-structured interviews and a
quantitative analysis of 37 U.S. repatriated executives and 34 spouses/partners
of repatriated executives suggest that repatriate perceptions of distributive
justice positively relate to all facets of pay satisfaction (i.e. pay level, pay raise,
benefits, and pay structure and administration satisfaction), while procedural
justice relates positively to pay structure and administration satisfaction. Overall pay satisfaction, in turn, positively relates to the intentions to increase
one's investment in company-specific skills. Repatriate and spouse/partner
attitudes about the changes in benefits they encounter upon repatriation are
predicted by their children's satisfaction with their new lifestyle. Furthermore,
some evidence suggests support for the proposition that overall pay satisfaction
and benefit change satisfaction of repatriates and spouses/partners negatively
relate to the actual turnover of repatriates.
The implications drawn from this dissertation inform theories of social
status, spillover, equity, and expatriate adjustment. Multinational organizations
employing expatriates may additionally consider the practical implications
useful when establishing compensation packages and repatriation programs for
international assignees.

Researchers and policy makers consider entrepreneurship to be a major source of economic development and competitiveness. Determinants of entrepreneurship have been studied at individual, regional and national levels. Even though research indicates that variation in the levels of entrepreneurship across regions within nations is greater than the national differences and that these differences persist over time (Bosma & Schutjen 2009, 2011; Fritsch & Mueller 2006; Sternberg 2004; Tamásy 2006), we still do not know the full range of regional level determinants of entrepreneurship. I drew from Wennekers’ (2006) framework and link two lines of research (international entrepreneurship and international management) to examine the effects of institutional, economic, technological and cultural contexts on entrepreneurship across within-country regions developed ten hypotheses regarding the relationship of institutional, economic, technological and cultural context to entrepreneurship. I tested these hypotheses within Europe using the regional classification scheme developed by the European Union. Data for the variables came from the European Values Survey, European Social Survey, Eurostat, World Bank, International Social Security Association, Eurobarometer and the Global Competitiveness Report. To test the hypothesized relationships, I use Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM 6.0.) The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between institutional trust, Long Term Orientation and entrepreneurship levels across regions. In conclusion, examination of region-level predictors of entrepreneurship must include different measures of entrepreneurship to provide more accurate understanding and to inform policy makers.

This dissertation assessed two aspects of entrepreneurial scanning related to new ventures. The first was the information search and analysis these entrepreneurs performed when they made certain basic decisions necessary to start most business prior to commencement of operations. The second was the ongoing information search activities of entrepreneurs who had started childcare businesses and were managing them in their first few years of operation. In addition, this dissertation assessed the extent these scanning activities were consistent with a dual process theory of reasoning. Finally, the limitations of the study and suggested future research directions for research of entrepreneurial scanning were discussed. The results suggest an entrepreneur's scanning behavior at the start of the business may be different from scanning behavior that occurs once the business has been operating for a period of time. The need for cognition, exposure to statistical thinking and intelligence (operationalized in this study as the amount of formal education) were positively related to the kind of information search and analysis undertaken by the entrepreneur at the startup of the business that Kahneman (2003) and others describe as System 2 reasoning. The accessibility of information and the amount of formal education were positively related to scanning that was done in periods subsequent to startup by these childcare entrepreneurs. Work-family conflict was negatively related to scanning during this period.