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Manuscript Type Empirical Research Question/Issue In recent years, research aimed at identifying and relating the antecedents and consequences of diffusing organizational practices/ideas has turned its attention to debating the international adoption and implementation of the Anglo‐American model of corporate governance, i.e., a shareholder value orientation (SVO). While financial economists characterize the adoption of an SVO as necessary and performance‐enhancing, behavioral scientists have disputed such claims, invoking institutional contingencies in the appropriateness of an SVO. Our study seeks to provide some resolution to the debate by developing an overarching sociopolitical perspective that links the antecedents and consequences of the adoption of the contested practice of SVO. Research Findings/Insights We test our framework using extensive longitudinal data from 1992–2006 from the largest listed corporations in the Netherlands. We find a negative relationship between SVO adoption and subsequent firm performance, although this effect is attenuated when accompanied by greater SVO alignment among major owners and a firm's visible commitment to an SVO. Theoretical/Academic Implications This study extends prior research on the diffusion of contested organizational practices that has taken a sociopolitical perspective by offering an original contingency perspective that addresses how and why the misaligned preferences of corporate owners will affect (i) a company's inclination to espouse an SVO, and (ii) the performance consequences of such misalignment. Practitioner/Policy Implications This study suggests that, when board members are considering the adoption of new ideas/practices (e.g., SVO), they should consider the contextual fitness of the idea/practice with the firm's owners and their interests.

Research on misconduct suggests that accusations against industry peers generate negative consequences for non-accused firms (a “stigma effect”). Yet, building on research on competitive dynamics, we infer that such accusations can benefit non-accused firms that compete with these peers (a “competition effect”). To reconcile these opposing perspectives, we posit that the negative stigma effect will increase with greater product market overlap between the non-accused firm and its accused peer, up to a point, beyond which the positive competition effect will counterbalance it. We further conjecture that the competition effect will be relatively more pronounced when the market classification used by investors for assessing the market overlap is more fine-grained. Accordingly, we suggest that more sophisticated investors, who rely on more fine-grained market classifications, increase their shareholdings in non-accused firms to a greater extent than less sophisticated investors as the market overlap between the non-accused firm and the accused peer increases. Using elaborate data on products and investments, we analyze investors’ shareholdings and stock market returns of non-accused firms in the U.S. software industry following accusations of financial misconduct by their industry peers, and we find support for our predictions. Our study elucidates the interplay between stigma and competition following misconduct by industry peers.

BackgroundAlthough periodontitis is associated with disruption of the host‐microbial homeostasis, viruses are currently discussed to influence disease progression. Viral pathogens are recognized by Toll‐like receptor (TLR)‐3, which engages a different signaling pathway than other TLRs. This study aimed to investigate the effect of TLR‐3 agonist polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (Poly I:C) on the expression of inflammatory markers and bone metabolism proteins by human periodontal ligament stem cells (hPDLSCs) compared with TLR‐2 agonist Pam3CSK4, which mimics the effect of bacterial lipoproteins. To assess potential combined effects of bacterial and viral infections, hPDLSCs response to simultaneous TLR‐2 and TLR‐3 activation was investigated.MethodsHPDLSCs were stimulated with Poly I:C (0.0001‐1 µg/mL), Pam3CSK4 (1 µg/mL), and their combinations for 24 hours. Gene expression and protein levels of interleukin (IL)‐6, IL‐8, monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)‐1, and osteoprotegerin (OPG) were measured with qPCR and ELISA.ResultsProduction of IL‐6, IL‐8, MCP‐1, and OPG was significantly increased by Poly I:C or Pam3CSK4 to a similar extent. The levels of all inflammatory mediators induced by simultaneous stimulation with Poly I:C and Pam3CSK4 were significantly higher compared with single stimuli as well as to their summed response. Gene expression and protein levels of OPG were enhanced by Poly I:C, but by lesser extent than by Pam3CSK4. OPG levels upon simultaneous stimulation with Pam3CSK4 and Poly I:C were significantly lower compared with Pam3CSK4 stimulation alone.ConclusionsSimultaneous TLR‐2 and TLR‐3 activation synergistically triggers IL‐6, IL‐8, and MCP‐1 production, which was not observed for OPG. These findings suggest that TLR‐3 activation by viral infections might promote periodontitis progression.