Journal Articles

Trouble in Store: Probes, Protests, and Store Openings by Wal‐Mart, 1998–2007

---

The authors consider how uncertainty over protest occurrence shapes the strategic interaction between companies and activists. Analyzing Wal‐Mart, the authors find support for their theory that companies respond to this uncertainty through a “test for protest” approach. In Wal‐Mart’s case, this consists of low‐cost probes in the form of new store proposals. They then withdraw if they face protests, especially when those protests signal future problems. Wal‐Mart is more likely to open stores that are particularly profitable, even if they are protested. This uncertainty‐based account stands in sharp contrast to full‐information models that characterize protests as rare miscalculations.

---

Availability

No copy data

Detail Information

Series Title

American Journal of Sociology

Call Number

-

Publisher

Chicago : The University of Chicago Press., 2010

Collation

-

Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

00029602

Classification

-

Content Type

-

Media Type

-

Carrier Type

-

Edition

Volume 116 Number 1, July 2010.pp. 53–92

Subject(s)

-

Specific Detail Info

-

Statement of Responsibility

-

Other version/related

File Attachment

Comments

---

You must be logged in to post a comment