In such an environment it was impossible to believe that one should not shutter one's windows and hide one's savings under the mattress. To consume was to abandon one's future. And no business man dared think of hiring or building. No other fact is needed to explain the crash turned prolonged deep depression. The psychology of confidence is difficult to work into economic theory but without it explanations of economic events are vacuous.
Words are tricky things.
Some carry baggage that can be very misleading. Jim Devine's Section IV-C at reference 97 may have a problem with corporation treasurers. They have a high degree of control over their profit rate, especially with modern accounting and business management methods. High profit means paying high income tax and creating high expectations that may be difficult to satisfy in subsequent years. Competent treasurers, and most are, take care to hold profit at a minimum needed to pay minimum dividends, if any.