Subramanian Rama Iyer and Joel T. Harper
The purpose of this paper is to test whether investors take flight to safety when sentiment is low. In other words, do safe firms perform better than risky firms following periods…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to test whether investors take flight to safety when sentiment is low. In other words, do safe firms perform better than risky firms following periods of low sentiment.
Design/methodology/approach
Using cash flow volatility and the percent of bullish investors as proxies for risk and investor sentiment the paper tests the relationship between sentiment and returns conditional on risk this performance. Second, a cross-sectional analysis is conducted based on individual firm characteristics and sentiment to explain annual returns.
Findings
The paper finds that there is a negative relationship between investor sentiment and the return of risky companies, which is contrary to prior studies. All told, risky companies perform worse following periods of high investor sentiment.
Originality/value
This paper presents evidence contrary to extant literature and that there is no concerted flight to safety. Investor sentiment has little influence on safe stocks.
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Ryan Flugum, Joel Harper and Li Sun
This paper aims to examine the effect employee performance has on subsequent corporate cash holdings.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the effect employee performance has on subsequent corporate cash holdings.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors utilize panel data estimation, including an instrumental variable approach, to identify the relation between employee performance and subsequent corporate cash holdings. These panel data consist of 11,087 firm-year observations over the period 1992 to 2015.
Findings
The authors document a positive and statistically significant relation between firm employee performance and subsequent cash balances. A one standard deviation increase in employee performance is associated with an increase in cash holdings ranging from 1 to 2 percent. The findings support the view that firms seek to accommodate the preferences of better performing employees, thereby requiring greater levels of cash. This positive relation is most evident among firms with low bond ratings and firms with low managerial ability – characteristics that are indicative of a firm's ability to access capital markets.
Originality/value
Better corporate governance of the firm is commonly associated with lower levels of cash. The findings of this paper, however, suggest that holding greater levels of cash may be a consequence of corporate efforts to accommodate the needs of their employees. The predictive content of employee performance is orthogonal to existing determinants of corporate cash holdings shown in the literature. Furthermore, this paper shows the potential for firm cash balances to be an alternative and transparent measure that signals better employee performance and more socially responsible firm behavior.
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Joel Harper and Li Sun
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of chief executive officer (CEO) power on corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of chief executive officer (CEO) power on corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use regression analysis to investigate the research question.
Findings
Using a 23-year panel sample with 1,574 unique US firms and 8,575 firm-year observations, the authors find a significant and negative relation between CEO power and CSR, suggesting that firms with more powerful CEOs engage in less CSR activities.
Originality/value
The results reveal that more powerful CEOs become less responsive to the needs of stakeholder groups, confirming the validity of the stakeholder theory of CSR.
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Joel Harper and Li Sun
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of asymmetric information, estimated as the geographic distance between the acquiring firm and the target firm, on goodwill…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of asymmetric information, estimated as the geographic distance between the acquiring firm and the target firm, on goodwill impairment following a merger or acquisition.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses regression analysis to investigate the research questions of this study.
Findings
This study finds that geographic distance is positively related to the magnitude of current and cumulative goodwill impairment. The results of this study still hold even after robustness checks for other factors that affect mergers and acquisitions and sources of asymmetric information.
Originality/value
This study extends and links two distinct research streams: asymmetric information related to geographic distance studies in finance and goodwill literature in accounting. Specifically, this study extends literature on the impact of geographic distance on various firm characteristics and contributes to research regarding the determinants of goodwill impairment, a major research stream in goodwill accounting (Li and Sloan, 2016). To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that performs a direct empirical test on the relation between geographic distance (between the acquiring firm and the target firm) and goodwill impairment.
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Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some…
Abstract
Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.
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Tom Schultheiss, Lorraine Hartline, Jean Mandeberg, Pam Petrich and Sue Stern
The following classified, annotated list of titles is intended to provide reference librarians with a current checklist of new reference books, and is designed to supplement the…
Abstract
The following classified, annotated list of titles is intended to provide reference librarians with a current checklist of new reference books, and is designed to supplement the RSR review column, “Recent Reference Books,” by Frances Neel Cheney. “Reference Books in Print” includes all additional books received prior to the inclusion deadline established for this issue. Appearance in this column does not preclude a later review in RSR. Publishers are urged to send a copy of all new reference books directly to RSR as soon as published, for immediate listing in “Reference Books in Print.” Reference books with imprints older than two years will not be included (with the exception of current reprints or older books newly acquired for distribution by another publisher). The column shall also occasionally include library science or other library related publications of other than a reference character.
Mathew Baker and Michael Lee Joseph
Examine how social studies preservice teachers conceptualize and enact critical historical inquiry.
Abstract
Purpose
Examine how social studies preservice teachers conceptualize and enact critical historical inquiry.
Design/methodology/approach
Critical qualitative case study.
Findings
Differing conceptual understandings and had trouble infusing their practice with the critical theory learned in the university.
Originality/value
Examine how a core practice is bolstering the practice-theory connection in teacher education.
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Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American…
Abstract
Man has been seeking an ideal existence for a very long time. In this existence, justice, love, and peace are no longer words, but actual experiences. How ever, with the American preemptive invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq and the subsequent prisoner abuse, such an existence seems to be farther and farther away from reality. The purpose of this work is to stop this dangerous trend by promoting justice, love, and peace through a change of the paradigm that is inconsistent with justice, love, and peace. The strong paradigm that created the strong nation like the U.S. and the strong man like George W. Bush have been the culprit, rather than the contributor, of the above three universal ideals. Thus, rather than justice, love, and peace, the strong paradigm resulted in in justice, hatred, and violence. In order to remove these three and related evils, what the world needs in the beginning of the third millenium is the weak paradigm. Through the acceptance of the latter paradigm, the golden mean or middle paradigm can be formulated, which is a synergy of the weak and the strong paradigm. In order to understand properly the meaning of these paradigms, however, some digression appears necessary.
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WHILE there is no doubt that the system of issuing books at “net” prices is of great benefit to booksellers, there is also no doubt that, unless care is taken, it is a serious…
Abstract
WHILE there is no doubt that the system of issuing books at “net” prices is of great benefit to booksellers, there is also no doubt that, unless care is taken, it is a serious drain upon a limited book‐purchasing income. A few years ago the position had become so serious that conferences were held with a view to securing the exemption of Public Libraries from the “net” price. The attempt, as was perhaps to be expected, failed. Since that time, the system has been growing until, at the present time, practically every non‐fictional book worth buying is issued at a “net price.”