Michael Jensen

My research focuses on the role of social structures in markets. I view markets as social structures that encompass social networks and market identities, both of which shape economic opportunities. Within this broad theoretical framework, I focus on status, theorized initially as positions in social structure, but more recently also as an important aspect of market identities, and on developing a role-theoretic perspective on reputation.

I teach corporate strategy, strategic alliances, and social networks in the BBA, MBA, and Ph.D. programs and I received the 2003 BBA Student Award for Teaching Excellence.

I am an International Research Fellow at the Oxford University Centre for Corporate Reputation. 

Selected Academic Publications:

Not in the Same Boat: How Status Inconsistency Affects Research Performance in Business Schools. Academy of Management Journal (forthcoming)(with Pengfei Wang).

Status. In The SAGE Encyclopedia of Corporate Reputation, edited by Craig Carroll, SAGE Publications (2016): Vol. 2 804-806.

The Real Oscar Curse: The Negative Consequences of Positive Status Shifts. Organization Science, 26 (2015): 1-21 (with Heeyon Kim).

Audience Heterogeneity and the Effectiveness of Market Signals: How to Overcome Liabilities of Foreignness in Film Exports? Academy of Management Journal, 57 (2014): 1360-1384 (with Heeyon Kim).

Great, Madama Butterfly Again! How Robust Market Identity Shapes Opera Repertoires. Organization Science, 25 (2014): 109-126 (with Bo Kyung Kim).

Meeting Expectations: A Role-Theoretic Perspective on Reputation. In The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Reputation, edited by Michael L. Barnett and Timothy G. Pollock. Oxford University Press (2012): 140-159 (with Heeyon Kim and Bo Kyung Kim).

How Product Order Affects Market Identity: Repertoire Ordering in the U.S. Opera Market. Administrative Science Quarterly, 56 (2011): 238-256. (with Bo Kyung Kim).

The Importance of Status in Markets: A Market Identity Perspective. In Status in Management and Organizations, edited by Jone L. Pearce. Cambridge University Press (2011): 87-117 (with Bo Kyung Kim and Heeyon Kim).

Legitimizing Illegitimacy: How Creating Market Identity Legitimizes Illegitimate Products. Research in the Sociology of Organizations, 31 (2010): 39-80.

The Use of Relational Discrimination to Manage Market Entry: When Do Social Status and Structural Holes Work Against You? Academy of Management Journal, 51 (2008): 723-743. 

Staging Exchange Partner Choices: When Do Status and Reputation Matter? Academy of Management Journal, 51 (2008): 495-516 (with Aradhana Roy).

Should We Stay or Should We Go? Accountability, Status Anxiety, and Client Defections. Administrative Science Quarterly, 51 (2006): 97-128.

Who Gets Wall Street's Attention? How Alliance Announcements and Alliance Density Affect Analyst Coverage. Strategic Organization, 2 (2004): 293-312.

Corporate Elites and Corporate Strategy: How Demographic Preferences and Structural Position Shape the Scope of the Firm. Strategic Management Journal, 25 (2004): 507-524 (with Edward J. Zajac).

The Role of Network Resources in Market Entry: Commercial Banks' Entry Into Investment Banking, 1991-1997. Administrative Science Quarterly, 48 (2003): 466-497.

My papers can be downloaded here.