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This study aims to analyze reform path for waste management policy implementation. With reference to the Bayesian theory, this study provides a dynamic policy conversion method through various context settings. Furthermore, this study attempts to present an empirical research paradigm.

Matland’s “ambiguity-conflict model” is applied to explain the problems and reform paths of China’s waste management policy implementation. Integrating structure discovery and bibliometrics into qualitative analysis, this study used search data from literature search engine with specific themes to achieve structure learning of Bayesian network with key factors refined in waste management policy.

The results show that China’s waste management policy implementation belongs to symbolic implementation with high ambiguity and high conflict. Four basic conversion paths for the waste management policy are proposed, which are classified by length and stability. Then, it is possible to locate the factors, paths and types of policy implementation through involvement analysis with features of each path and each district of policy implementation. Public education holds direct but unstable impact on waste management. Economic incentives hold continuous but gradually diminishing impact. Perceived policy effectiveness plays the crucial role like a central bridge. Resident conditions have a positive impact, which could be enhanced through economic development of China. The impact of subjective norm on waste management is not significant. But subjective norm has the potential breakthrough for solving stagnation of waste classification policy. However, the impacts from each factor may change along with economy growth and technology innovation.

This study uses the “ambiguity-conflict model” to position China’s waste classification policy and suggests that structure discovery methods help understand feasible reform paths for reform policy. The integration of theoretical analysis and quantitative simulation can achieve a comprehensive analysis of problems and solutions in waste management policy implementation of China. Promotion and education, economic incentives, perceived value, behavior control, subjective norm, perceived policy effectiveness, informal waste recycling system and residential conditions are explored as key factors for waste classification policy implementation as a representative in waste management policy. The role of each key factor and features of each conversion paths are integrated to position reform paths in the ambiguity-conflict model. This work helps to explain the stagnation of waste management policy implementation from the perspective of dynamic structure evolution, and some specific suggestions to get out of stagnation are proposed.

Some existing studies have begun to discuss how trade will change the environment from a country or province perspective. However, so far, only a limited number of studies have provided evidence at the product level. This study aims to investigate the environmental impacts of trade at the product level.

The effects of importing intermediates and capital inputs on energy performance are examined using theoretical analysis. Empirical analyses are conducted using data on product trade, and the effects of importing intermediate inputs and capital inputs on energy efficiency are identified using a Propensity Score Matching-Difference in Difference (PSM-DID) estimation.

The results demonstrate that importing intermediates and capital inputs effectively enhance energy efficiency. Importing these inputs from foreign markets leads to increased productivity and ultimately improves energy performance.

This research provides new evidence on the relationship between importing and energy use at the product trade level. It offers insights into enterprise behaviors regarding importing intermediates and capital inputs, contributing to a deeper understanding of the environmental effects of trade. Additionally, a micro-theoretical model is developed to examine the impacts of imports on energy efficiency, complementing existing literature with theoretical insights.

The purpose of this study is to trace time variation paths in risk sensitivities of bank stock returns over the period of 1990-2014, which covers one of most serious financial crises in the history of the USA.

This study programs the flexible least squares (FLS) approach (Kalaba and Testfatsion, 1988, 1989 and 1990) with R, a free statistical computing and graphics software, to estimate the three-factor model developed by He and Reichert (2003) to examine changes in risk sensitivities of bank stocks to the stock market, bond market and real estate market.

Both FLS and ordinary least squares (OLS) results indicate that the bond market (interest rate) sensitivity of bank stock returns experiences dramatic changes. It is significantly positive before the 2006 subprime mortgage crisis (11/1990 to 5/2006), reduces to insignificant in a short period of 11/2006 to 10/2008 and turns into significantly negative during the period of 11/2008-11/2014. Further, results of this study indicate that bank stocks negatively respond to changes in housing prices in the period of 11/1990-1/1994 and after that the sensitivity turns into significantly positive. The significant shifts in risk sensitivities of banks stock returns coincide with alterations in long-term interest rates and monetary policy, especially the enormously stimulative monetary policy after the financial crisis in 2008.

This study programs the FLS approach with R and uses the FLS approach to demonstrate the time variation paths of risk sensitivities of bank stocks over a period that covers the 2008 financial crisis. The OLS results verify the significant shifts in risk sensitivities suggested by the FLS estimates.

The purpose of this paper is twofold, first, to develop an effective tool to assess the performance of the overall economy by creating an assessment ratio that reflects the two top priorities of monetary policy, promoting economic growth and maintaining price stability, and second, to use the annual assessment ratios to build two subsamples, outperformance (better than the historical average) and underperformance, to examine and compare the changes in impacts of monetary and fiscal policy tools on important economic variables in different economic conditions, instead of different time periods.

The assessment ratio is defined as the gross domestic product (GDP) gap/standard deviation of inflation. Essentially, this Growth/Volatility ratio quantifies the price volatility-adjusted long-term output growth, that is, the long-term output growth given 1 per cent of the standard deviation of inflation. The growth has a positive impact on the ratio, while the effect of price volatility is negative. The ratio reflects not only the Fed’s dual goal but also the fundamental economic conditions. A higher value of the ratio indicates that the economy can better handle inflation risk in driving the long-term output growth. As the inflation level is adjusted in the numerator (GDP gap), not the denominator, no matter the Fed is engaging in the fight against inflation, or for reflation (promoting inflation) to prevent deflation and pursue price stability (Bernanke, 2002), the ratio remains consistent with the Fed’s dual goal and prefers a higher value.

Results of this study suggest that impacts of monetary and fiscal policy tools on key economic variables may be cyclic as the economic condition changes. The policy tools can significantly affect inflation volatility and the price volatility-adjusted long-term real output growth in the subpar economic conditions identified with lower assessment ratios. The effects become insignificant when the general economic performance exceeds the historical average. More importantly, results of this study indicate that the funds rate can effectively lower the price volatility, while the fiscal tools can promote long-term real output growth in the subpar economic conditions. Therefore, when inflation volatility spikes and the real output growth slows, the decisive and timely monetary and fiscal policy decisions become necessary to enhance policy effectiveness.

The assessments of effectiveness of monetary policy in the literature are based on some or all of four descriptive statistics: inflation, inflation volatility, output growth, and growth volatility. Each of them measures only one aspect of an economic phenomenon and cannot reflect the well-known conflicting relationship between maintaining price stability and promoting economic growth. For instance, from the policy perspective, a higher price volatility combined with a higher GDP growth rate for one period may or may not outperform another period with lower price volatility and growth rate. However, the assessment ratio created in this study considers both price volatility and economic growth simultaneously and can, therefore, be used as an effective measure of the overall economic performance.

Inspired by the comparison of charity donations among candidates in rural elections, the authors linked the non-profit motives of charity to corporate pollution emissions. And on this basis, the authors aim to provide theoretical and empirical explanations for the relationship between corporate philanthropy and pollution. The authors find that the desire to pursue more pollution emissions stimulates the firm's philanthropy, which is similar to the public welfare donations in rural elections.

Firstly, the authors construct a game-theoretical framework consisting of an entrepreneur and a bureaucrat to study the environmental cost of corporate philanthropy through the impact on pollution emission by the firm. Secondly, the authors used various empirical methods, including hybrid OLS, IV-2SLS, PSM, etc., to empirically test the impact of a firm's philanthropy on corporate pollution emissions. Finally, the authors use the output and abatement input as intermediary variables and apply the intermediary effect model to test the impact mechanism between corporate philanthropy and corporate pollution emissions.

Theoretical model finds that the firm invests more in philanthropy discharges more emissions when the theoretical model is in political equilibrium. Besides, empirical results show that corporate philanthropy will lead to more pollution emissions by reducing abatement input and increasing production. Finally, the heterogeneity test finds that compared with state-owned enterprises, the intention of non-state-owned enterprises' philanthropy for more pollution emission is more obvious. Moreover, the improvement of regional environmental regulation can significantly inhibit the realization of corporate philanthropy's poor motive.

The results have obvious policy implications for China's future policy-making. Firstly, regulatory agencies should pay close attention to the charitable behaviors of firms with serious negative environmental externalities, and prevent them from replacing more pollution emissions with philanthropy. Besides, due to weak environmental supervision in rural areas, rural polluting enterprises will be more inclined to make charitable donations to the village collective to obtain more emission rights. Therefore, the government should strengthen environmental supervision in rural areas to prevent enterprises from wanton pollution.

By constructing a game-theoretical framework consisting of an entrepreneur and a bureaucrat, the authors expound on corporate philanthropy's pollution motivation and decision-making mechanism for the first time in theory. Besides, this paper finds that the desire to pursue more pollution emissions also stimulates the firm's philanthropy. This paper expands the literature on corporate charitable donation motivations.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potential impact of political party control on bank profitability and risk. This study extends previous work by looking at overall political power with respect to party control of the House, Senate, and the Presidency.

This paper employs regression analysis using several different dependent measures of risk and return. The independent variables include dummies to represent political power and control.

The results indicate that political control does impact both bank returns and risk. More specifically, concentration of power in either party results in higher profits. However, risk and returns typically increase during periods of democratic control.

To date, no research addresses the impact of political control and party affiliation on bank risk and return. Given the importance of banks to the overall economy and financial system, this research should provide policymakers and regulators with a different perspective on bank risk and return.

This paper aims to investigate the reason for natural gas leakage from transmission pipelines between Linyi and Shouguang in China during sealing tests, explore the failure mechanism and provide a reference for taking reasonable measures to prevent such accidents.

Failure analysis for the steel pipe has been addressed with different methods, such as microstructure analysis, inclusion analysis, corrosion product analysis, macro- and micro-morphology analyses and bacterially catalyzed experiments.

Several bulges were observed, especially at the bottom of the steel pipe sample, with the distribution and positioning not related to the weld. The inner surface of the steel pipe was severely corroded, and the oxide scale was flaking in many places. The greatest corrosion area was identified at the bottom of the steel pipe near the gas leakage point. Severe pitting and perforation corrosion in the pipeline were observed, and the main corrosion reaction products were Fe3O4, FeO and FeS. The grain orientation distribution near the crack (coarse grains <101> and fine grains <111> at the microcrack tip) indicates that fine grains may be beneficial in hindering crack propagation.

The principal mechanism for the corrosion failure is supposed to be due to the interaction of chloride ions with the sulfate-reducing microorganisms present and the stress corrosion cracking by chloride and sulfide formed by the sulfate-reducing microorganisms.

Rural energy policy is a critical measure to fight the long-standing poverty issue in China. Energy poverty, per se, is one important yet too often neglected dimension of poverty, and one of the biggest challenges in rural China during the 40-year rural reform. Reducing energy poverty is one of the poverty alleviation tasks and the goals of energy transition in the rural areas. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the status of energy poverty in China, discussing the challenges of energy poverty reduction, and then proposing the potential measures.

Using various data (including the authors’ survey data), this paper analyzes the volume and structure of energy use, and affordability of energy for the rural households, then examines the impacts of energy poverty on health, social and productivity, and finally discusses the infrastructure, cognitive ability, culture, income, etc., that shape the challenges to energy poverty reduction.

In addition to raising the household income, it is urgently needed to enforce the collaborations among government departments, and to improve the energy infrastructure according to local conditions, helping the residential environment cognition.

Energy poverty is almost a too often neglected issue in rural China. Few in existing literature comprehensively investigate this critically important social economic problem. This paper contributes to the profound understanding in energy poverty and the possible approaches to alleviate it.

This paper provides a researcher's account of fieldwork experience in conducting audit research in China. By illustrating on-site fieldwork encounters, the paper reflects stages of access negotiation and management in the fieldwork, reveals the researcher's embodied “affects” in the fieldwork and reasserts the value of researcher's openness and attention in the fieldwork.

This paper uses autoethnography as its overall epistemology. Fieldwork diaries and vignettes are written in the first-person voice to present the researcher's embodied account of fieldwork experience, researcher’s learning and coping skills in managing the fieldwork.

The research findings are not detached from the researcher's experience of the fieldwork. The fieldwork experiences in this study highlight that the fieldwork access is an ongoing process. Different stages of access negotiations, from rejection to acceptance, reveal the tensions between researcher and participants. This study draws attention to the online platform, WeChat, in connecting with auditors to learn from them and suggests openness to the fieldwork encounters and a resilient engagement with auditors.

In reflecting on the researcher's transformation during the fieldwork, this paper argues for a relational and engaged way of conducting fieldwork, rather than a disengaged and judgemental approach in studying auditors' working lives. The paper pays attention to fieldwork as a process and how the knowledge learned in the field is infused with researcher's fieldwork experiences.

Gives an in depth view of the strategies pursued by the world’s leading chief executive officers in an attempt to provide guidance to new chief executives of today. Considers the marketing strategies employed, together with the organizational structures used and looks at the universal concepts that can be applied to any product. Uses anecdotal evidence to formulate a number of theories which can be used to compare your company with the best in the world. Presents initial survival strategies and then looks at ways companies can broaden their boundaries through manipulation and choice. Covers a huge variety of case studies and examples together with a substantial question and answer section.