On one side was the R.T.C., whose chief executive, Albert V. Casey, a former chairman of American Airlines, favored the deal for its pragmatism.

If a chief executive favors liberal arts majors, the personnel department reacts favorably to applications from them.

The executives favor, in effect, a bit more inflation - for their industries, at least - than the current mild national level.

Politicians and corporate executives, Dr. Schlenker said, often favor justifications over outright excuses: They admit responsibility but minimize their blame.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Schuber's successor, Dennis McNerney, said that the executive favored creating a central site, and that he wanted to move quickly on it.

Many analysts suspect Pan Am's senior executives have favored a deal with Delta because it alone would seem to assure them of getting a lucrative compensation package.

The executives did not favor any increased role for directors.

There are plenty of skeptics over the President-elect's plan for an investment tax credit, but many executives and economists favor it.

Mr. Watanabe was described by prosecutors as an ambitious executive seeking not only favors for the company, but also personal influence as a confidant of Japan's power elite.

Corporate executives who negotiate terms for their companies' 401(k) plans have increasingly favored funds with lower fees.