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This study aims to examine the moderating effect of audit firm tenure on the association between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firm value. Prior studies provide mixed results on this association, which may be due to differing theoretical expectations related to CSR and firm value. It is also possible that external stakeholders are unable to differentiate between positive and negative CSR investments, as CSR reports are generally not assured by independent third parties. Thus, the authors propose that audit firm tenure may be used by external stakeholders to evaluate CSR performance.

The authors use an ordinary least squares regression to examine the moderating effect of audit firm tenure on the relation between CSR and firm value after controlling for other determinants of firm value and various internal and external governance mechanisms documented in the literature. The sample consists of 15,707 firm-year observations from US firms during the sample period of 2000 to 2012. The authors measure CSR quality using rating scores from MSCI ESG STATS (formerly the KLD database), audit firm tenure as the number of years the incumbent auditor has served the client and firm value using Tobin’s Q.

The results indicate that CSR is positively associated with firm value when audit firm tenure is long but not when tenure is short. The results are robust to alternative measures of firm value, CSR performance scores, and individual CSR dimensions. The evidence supports the argument against mandatory audit firm rotation in the USA.

Future studies could examine a similar issue in alternative settings and/or look at cross-sectional variations among firms on the association between CSR and firm value by other auditor traits such as auditor industry specialization and big-name reputation. Additionally, as auditor alone is unable to ensure the quality of management disclosures and their accountability, future studies could examine the moderating effect of internal and other external governance mechanisms on the association between CSR and firm value, exploring when the signaling effect of auditor tenure on CSR reporting quality and its effect on firm value is most salient.

The findings are important to regulators and investors. The authors provide evidence that longer audit tenure serves as a signaling device for external investors with regard to the quality of a firm’s CSR performance. Hence, the study facilitates regulators’ cost-benefit analysis related to mandating audit firm rotation. The evidence suggests that mandating a term limit on auditor tenure may have the unintended consequence of eliminating a signaling effect of auditor tenure on the quality of CSR disclosures under information asymmetry. This supports the Public Company Oversight Board’s decision to forgo the requirement of mandatory audit firm rotation in the USA.

Prior literature presents mixed findings on the association between CSR performance and firm value based on a variety of underlying theories (economic, stakeholder and contingency theory). Literature on mandatory auditor rotation has concentrated on the auditor tenure effect on perceived and actual audit quality as reflected in earnings quality. Relying on agency theory, this study posits that auditor tenure serves as a signal for the quality of CSR activities in the absence of CSR assurance reporting as CSR quality can be difficult to evaluate. The authors provide evidence that audit tenure moderates the association between CSR activities and firm value and longer audit tenure makes it more likely that the CSR activities are associated with increased firm value.

Internet use has become particularly prevalent among adolescents, prompting much thought and concern about both its potential benefits and adverse effects on adolescent learning outcomes. Much of the empirical literature on the impact of Internet use on adolescent learning outcomes is mixed, and few studies examine the causal relationship between the two in rural China. In order to bridge these gaps, we use empirical analysis to investigate the effect of Internet use on the learning outcomes of adolescents in rural China.

We use fixed effect models with samples drawn from a large nationally representative dataset (the China Family Panel Studies—CFPS) to identify the causal impacts of Internet use on the learning outcomes of three cohorts (Cohort A (N = 540), Cohort B (N = 287) and Cohort C (N = 827)) of adolescents in rural China.

The results of the descriptive analysis show a continued increase in the number of adolescents accessing the Internet and the amount of time they spend online. The results of the fixed effect models show that Internet use has positive (in many of the analyses), but mostly insignificant impacts, on the learning outcomes of adolescents. In the sets of results that find significant associations between Internet use and learning outcomes, the measured effects are moderate.

This study investigates the causal relationship between Internet use and adolescent learning outcomes in rural China. The findings claim that there is not a great need to worry about adverse effects of Internet use on adolescent learning development. Attention, however, should focus on seeking ways to improve the positive effects of the Internet use on adolescent learning outcomes. The study will provide a reference and experience for the development of education and the Internet in rural areas and promote the integrated development of urban and rural areas in China.

Drawing on experiential learning theory, this study seeks to understand how the perceived cultural difference in a foreign country and learning flexibility, which enables more integrated experiential learning from international experience, influence expatriates’ cultural intelligence (CQ) and consequently their adjustment and job performance.

Survey data were collected from 169 expatriates in China. Polynomial regression analyses were employed to test curvilinear relationships between cultural difference and CQ and between learning flexibility and CQ. Mediation hypotheses were tested either by the MEDCURVE procedure if a curvilinear relationship was confirmed or by the Haye’s Process procedure if a curvilinear relationship was not confirmed and instead a linear relationship was confirmed.

The results demonstrated a positive relationship between cultural difference and CQ and an inverted U-shape relationship between learning flexibility and CQ. CQ mediated the relationship between cultural difference and expatriate adjustment and partially mediated the relationship between learning flexibility and expatriate adjustment. CQ positively influenced expatriates’ job performance via expatriate adjustment.

Our findings suggest that companies should not hesitate to send expatriates on assignments to culturally very different countries and focus more attention on the selection of expatriates. The findings of this study suggest firms should choose candidates who are moderate or high in learning flexibility and could engage in integrated learning and specialized learning in a more balanced manner.

This research is the first study that examines the influence of learning flexibility on CQ and expatriate effectiveness. It examines cultural difference through the lens of experiential learning theory and argues that cultural difference constitutes “stimuli” in the experiential learning environment for individual learning in an international context. The results advance our knowledge of the role of experiential learning in developing capable global managers.

This study aims to investigate the cross-sectional differences on the association between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and future bankruptcy along the dimensions of political connection and corporate governance strength. This study intends to provide evidence on the tangible benefits for firms to invest in social capital of CSR activities and offer insights on what firms may benefit more from CSR expenditure.

Running a logistic regression on the determinants of bankruptcy model after controlling for financial stress factors based on prior literature, this study examines the moderating effect of political connection and corporate governance on the association between corporate social responsibility and future bankruptcy.

Current study documents that the negative association between corporate social responsibility and future bankruptcy is only significant for politically connected firms, but insignificant for non-politically connected firms. Specifically, the authors find that one standard deviation increase of CSR expenditure significantly reduces the propensity of future bankruptcy by 53.20% for politically-connected firms. Conversely, the negative relation between CSR only exits for firms with weak corporate governance but do not exit for firms with strong corporate governance.

Current study provides evidence on the tangible benefits for firms to invest in social capital of CSR activities and offers additional insights on what firms may benefit more from CSR expenditure.

Current study extends the research to examine the cross-sectional variations in the negative association between CSR performance and the propensity of bankruptcy. The positive moderating effect of political connection on CSR and bankruptcy suggests that political connection and CSR are complements in reducing the propensity of future bankruptcy. A more pronounced negative association between CSR and bankruptcy for firms with weaker governance suggests that firms with weak corporate governance benefits more in engaging CSR activities than firms with strong corporate governance.

This study aims to explore the capabilities, limitations and potential of ChatGPT applicable to online reference services in academic libraries.

This study used the method of qualitative content analytics to assess the general capabilities of ChatGPT applicable in academic libraries. Two experienced academic librarians had face-to-face interactions with ChatGPT by asking ten most common questions often asked by faculty and students at the Georgia Southern University Libraries (https://library.georgiasouthern.edu/). To examine the ChatGPT’s applicability and capability, they also compared the ChatGPT with a popular online chat reference tool called LibChat, which is now widely used in academic libraries in 91 countries worldwide.

It was found that as an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered real-time chatbot ChatGPT could effectively provide faculty and students with general guidance on locating the needed information resources and services in academic libraries, though its responses might not be accurate or truthful all the time. Embedded into the LibAnswers system of the Springshare’s products (www.springshare.com/libanswers/), LibChat serves as a real-time online chat tool used by academic libraries for reference services, but it is only available during the regular librarians' duty hours. This technical limitation does not meet the dynamic needs of faculty, students, staff, and local community users. Only well-optimized AI-driven chat products like ChatGPT could provide 24/7 online services to support uninterrupted academic library services in the future.

This study only examined the general capability and potential of ChatGPT3.5 in specific subject areas. Additional studies are needed to further explore how the latest capabilities of ChatGPT4.0 or newer version, such as its text-to-image, text-to-speech, text-to-text, text-to-video and Web search, could impact future reference services of academic libraries. ChatGPT’s primary optimization and upgrades in the future may also change and impact this study's findings. The comparison between ChatGPT and LibChat presents a significant breakthrough of the generative AI technology in academic libraries. This comparative study encourages more academic experts, faculty, librarians and scholars to track the advance of generative AI applications, including ChatGPT, adopted in academic learning environments. In addition, the ChatGPT's complete capability and potential enhanced and integrated in the future may go beyond what this study evaluated.

This study examined the strengths and weaknesses of ChatGPT applicable to reference services of academic libraries. Through a comparison between ChatGPT and LibChat, this study suggests that optimized AI online chatbots still have a long way to go to meet the dynamic needs of faculty and students in the ever-changing academic learning environments. To contribute to the existing research literature focusing on the rise of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, this study provides a valuable reference for the applicability of generative AI applications in academic libraries to promote more library creation and innovation in the coming years of the 21st century.

Graduated compression shaping pants (GCSPs) are shapewears sharing the same action mechanisms as medical compression stockings (MCSs), setting four stages of pressure on lower limbs that gradually decreasing from the ankle to the thigh root. They are claimed to be able to not only shaping bodies but also promoting blood circulation in legs. However, there are few studies on whether GCSPs perform the advertised functions and how effective GCSPs could be. The purpose of this paper is to explore and evaluate the pressure distribution and body-shaping effectivity of GCSPs.

The authors first select two graduated compression shaping pants (GCSPs-A, GCSPs-B) and a pair of professional shaping pants as the Controls. Then objective pressure test and 3D body scanning test are conducted. Finally, the pressure distribution and body-shaping effectivity are demonstrated by ORIGIN and MATLAB, compared with controls.

GCSPs-A perform significant body-shaping effectivity at the calf, thigh and thigh root, which are less effective than the Controls. The body-shaping effectivity of GCSPs-B is predicted weaker than GCSPs-A at the calf and thigh, while better at the thigh root. Both GCSPs-A and GCSPs-B show gradual pressure, which could be classified into Class I or II of MCSs. Comprehensively, GCSPs-A are superior than GCSPs-B.

In this paper, authors evaluate the pressure distribution and body-shaping effectivity of GCSPs, which could provide guidance for enterprises to further optimize and produce GCSPs, performing better functions that meet consumers' needs better.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of audit client importance on future bank risk and systemic risk in US-listed commercial banks.

The authors use archival research method.

The authors mainly find that client importance is negatively related with future bank-specific crash risk and distress risk, and also with sector-wide systemic crash risk and systemic distress risk in the future. The authors also report some evidence that these relations become more pronounced during the crisis period than during the non-crisis period. Moreover, the effect of client importance on systemic risk is found to strengthen in banks audited by Big-N auditors, by auditors without clients who restate earnings, and by auditors with more industry expertise.

These findings contribute to the auditing and systemic risk literature.

This study has implications for regulating the banking industry.

This study provides original evidence on how client importance affects bank-specific risk and systemic risk of the banking industry.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the roles of government in promoting halal logistics.

This paper applied a systematic literature review (SLR) technique to assess published halal logistics academic literature.

The review identified six roles, namely, regulation, financial incentives, taxation, infrastructure, guidance and encouragement and education and labour supply.

This systematic review paper is considered amongst the first to attempt to consolidate the dispersed halal logistics literature and to systematically accentuate the pivotal role of government in the halal logistics industry.

Considering the unmeasurable states of the systems and the previewed reference signal, a novel fuzzy observer-based preview controller, which is a mixed controller of the fuzzy observer-based controller, fuzzy integrator and preview controller, is considered to address the tracking control problem.

The authors employ an augmentation technique to construct an augmented error system for uncertain T-S fuzzy discrete-time systems with time-varying uncertainties. Additionally, the authors obtain the corresponding linear matrix inequality (LMI) conditions for designing the preview controller.

This paper discusses the preview tracking problem for nonlinear systems. First, considering the unmeasurable states of the systems and the previewed reference signal, a novel fuzzy observer-based preview controller, which is a mixed controller of the fuzzy observer-based controller, fuzzy integrator, and preview controller, is considered to address the tracking control problem. Then, using the fuzzy Lyapunov functional with the linear matrix inequality (LMI) technique, new sufficient conditions for the asymptotic stability of the augmented system are derived by applying the LMI technique. The preview controller and fuzzy observer can be designed in one step. Finally, a numerical example is used to illustrate the effectiveness of the results.

An augmented error system is successfully constructed by the state augmentation approach. A novel preview controller is designed to address the tracking control problem. The preview controller and fuzzy observer can be designed in one step.

Under uncertain circumstances, digital technologies are taken as digital transformation enablers and driving forces to integrate with medical, healthcare and emergency management research for effective epidemic prevention and control. This study aims to adapt complex systems in emergency management. Thus, a digital transformation-driven and systematic circulation framework is proposed in this study that can utilize the advantages of digital technologies to generate innovative and systematic governance.

Aiming at adapting complex systems in emergency management, a systematic circulation framework based on the interpretive research is proposed in this study that can utilize the advantages of digital technologies to generate innovative and systematic governance. The framework consists of four phases: (1) analysis of emergency management stages, (2) risk identification in the emergency management stages, (3) digital-enabled response model design for emergency management, and (4) strategy generation for digital emergency governance. A case study in China was illustrated in this study.

This paper examines the role those digital technologies can play in responding to pandemics and outlines a framework based on four phases of digital technologies for pandemic responses. After the phase-by-phase analysis, a digital technology-enabled emergency management framework, titled “Expected digital-enabled emergency management framework (EDEM framework)” was adapted and proposed. Moreover, the social risks of emergency management phases are identified. Then, three strategies for emergency governance and digital governance from the three perspectives, namely “Strengthening weaknesses for emergency response,” “Enhancing integration for collaborative governance,” and “Engaging foundations for emergency management” that the government can adopt them in the future, fight for public health emergency events.

The novel digital transformation-driven systematic circulation framework for public health risk response and governance was proposed. Meanwhile, an “Expected digital-enabled emergency management framework (EDEM model)” was also proposed to achieve a more effective empirical response for public health risk response and governance and contribute to studies about the government facing the COVID-19 pandemic effectively.