SMITH BRAIN TRUST — People who share copyrighted content on digital piracy sites don’t get paid or protected from lawsuits. So why do they do it? “The major motivation is building reputation in these online communities,” says Kalinda Ukanwa, one of 34 women PhD candidates at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “They want bragging rights.”

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — The daily deal industry — Groupon and like companies working with small retailers to give big discounts, irregularly — had its heyday in the wake of the Great Recession. Groupon in 2010 was called the “fastest growing company in history,” while smaller, D.C.-based Living Social’s value peaked at around $4.5 billion in 2011, then plunged in the low tens of millions before the company was acquired by Groupon in late 2016.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Have you ever filled your virtual cart while shopping online only to leave it without completing the purchase? Consumers often leave behind their virtual carts and retailers have long considered this a huge problem, figuring trillions of dollars are lost due to abandoned online shopping carts. Now new research shows that these numbers are substantially overblown.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Something inequitable happens when men and women with similar jobs get laid off at the same time from the same companies, and then move to the same new employer. The gender wage gap — whatever it was before — widens during the transition. Only one factor helps to soften the outcome. A study co-authored by professor Liu Yang at the University of Maryland’s Robert H.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Market makers have significant influence in financial markets, and they take on significant risk. In new research, Yajun Wang, assistant professor of finance at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, helps build a market-making model that enables market participants to better understand those risks.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — High-priced luxury handbags are sometimes referred to as “statement pieces,” and for at least some women, the statement they’re making is: “Don’t even try to take my man.” For such women, luxury accessories, such as high-priced designer shoes and handbags, function as “a signaling system directed to other women who pose threats to their romantic relationships,” according to research from Yajin Wang, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Maryland’s Robert H.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Let’s say your company has had a very profitable year, and has decided to reward you, one of its top contributors, with a handsome, 8 percent pay increase. Well done. Now, let’s say it’s just before the holidays. Should your friends and relatives expect an 8 percent raise in your gift-giving budget?

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Sharing creative ideas at work can be risky. What if a suggestion appears foolish? What if it upsets a comfortable routine? What if it fails? When in doubt, many employees keep their mouths shut. One way to counteract these instincts and foster creativity is to develop a seemingly unrelated skill: Networking. Professor Vijaya Venkataramani at the University of Maryland's Robert H.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Words of wisdom for new managers: First win over your team, then roll out your changes. But do it all with a keen understanding of the leader who came before you. You’ll be a lot more successful. These are the conclusions of new research from M. Susan Taylor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Why do job seekers, scrolling through employment postings, favor some employers over others? It may be less about what they actually know and more about what they think they know, says Cynthia Kay Stevens, associate dean of undergraduate studies, and an associate professor of management and organization at the University of Maryland’s Robert H.