Research has shown that an increase in perceived crowding in a retail store (created from either human or spatial density) can decrease the level of satisfaction that shoppers have with the store. The three studies reported here examine the retail crowding-satisfaction relationship to determine the extent to which it is a simple, direct relationship. Specifically, we consider the possibility that the crowding-satisfaction relationship is mediated by emotional reactions that are experienced while shopping. In addition, moderating variables such as prior expectations of crowding, tolerance for crowding, and store type are examined for their influence on the crowding-satisfaction relationship. The results of two field studies indicate that whereas emotions only partially mediate the relationship, the decrease in shopping satisfaction due to crowding is moderated by expectations of crowding and personal tolerance for crowding. A laboratory experiment replicated the field studies and shows, in addition, that although ceiling and floor effects may be present, the relationship between perceived crowding and shopping satisfaction appears to vary by store type.

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This paper investigates behavioral factors influencing a supply manager's decision to insource or outsource the manufacture of a product component. To do so we posit a theoretical framework that integrates the heretofore distinct operational make-buy literature and the behavioral decision-making literature. Within the framework three factors influencing the make-buy decision are brought into account: the decision-maker's perception of supply risk or ''strategic vulnerability'', the degree of core competency represented by the product component under consideration and the formality of the information about supply alternatives. The results of a controlled experimental survey show that: strategic vulnerability and core competency do influence the make-buy decision, strategic vulnerability has greater influence than core competency and information formality moderates the make-buy decision when the strategic vulnerability and core competency conditions are mixed. The practical implications of these results include the notion that management can ensure a more rational make-buy decision if they understand the biases that influence the decision and point these biases out to the decision maker. #

A diverse set of biases that have been found to characterize judgment may be similarly mediated by a process ofselective hypothesis testing. Our paper begins with a definition ofselective hypothesis testing and an explanation of how and when this process leads to error. We then review a diverse and often disconnected set of fmdings in the person perception, judgment, cognition, attitudes, attribution, and rule discovery literatures that can be explained by this process, Finally, we examine the question of why the selective testing of hypotheses occurs. Although the psychological literature suggests that selective hypothesis testing contributes to a variety of errors, in many contexts it may be a useful and efficient strategy that leads to satisfactory judgment.

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