William S. Hopwood and James C. McKeown
This study investigates the time‐series properties of operating cash flows per share and earnings per share for all manufacturing firms on the Compustat Quarterly Industrial tape…
Abstract
This study investigates the time‐series properties of operating cash flows per share and earnings per share for all manufacturing firms on the Compustat Quarterly Industrial tape for which sufficient data are available. Both individually‐identified and “premier” models are compared on the basis of their relative fit and forecasting accuracy. The empirical results suggest that for both accounting variables the individually‐identified models outperform the premier models, although this advantage is larger for earnings, and for forecast horizons beyond one quarter ahead. A major conclusion of the study is that the time‐series properties of cash flows are quite different than those of earnings. In particular, the cash flow series are considerably less predictable, as shown by their relatively high incidence of white‐noise series and relatively large forecast errors.
Paul A. Griffin and Estelle Y. Sun
This study examines the relation between voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and the local religious norms of firms’ stakeholders. Little is known about how…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the relation between voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and the local religious norms of firms’ stakeholders. Little is known about how these local norms (measured at the county level) affect firms’ disclosure practices and firm value, especially voluntary disclosure on climate change and environmental and social responsibility.
Design/methodology/approach
Poisson regression models test for a significant relation between firms’ voluntary CSR disclosure intensity and the local religious norms of firms’ stakeholders. Also, an event study tests whether the local religious norms affect investment returns. The data analyzed are extracted from the archive of CSRwire, a prominent news organization that distributes CSR news to investors and the public worldwide.
Findings
The study finds that firms in high adherence (high churchgoer) locations disclose CSR activities less frequently, and firms in high affiliation (a high proportion of non-evangelical Christian churchgoers) locations disclose CSR activities more frequently. The study also finds that managers make firm-value-increasing CSR disclosure decisions that cater to the religious and social norms of the local community.
Practical implications
The results imply that managers self-identify with the local religious norms of stakeholders and appropriately disclose less about CSR activities when religious adherence is high and when religious affiliation (the ratio of non-evangelicals to evangelical Christians) is low. The authors find this noteworthy because religious bodies often call for greater CSR involvement and disclosure. Yet, at the firm level, it would appear that local community religious norms also prevail, as it is shown that they significantly explain firms’ CSR disclosure behavior, implying that managers cater to local religious norms in their disclosure decisions.
Social implications
The findings suggest that managers vary the timing and intensity of voluntary CSR disclosure consistent with stakeholders’ local religious and social norms and that it would be costly and inefficient if the firms were to expand CSR disclosure without considering the religious norms of their local community.
Originality value
This is the first large-sample study to show that local religious norms affect CSR disclosure behavior. The study makes use of a unique and novel data set obtained exclusively from CSRwire.
Details
Keywords
Martha Griffin, Paul Duff and Liam MacGabhann
The training and education of peers represents an important milestone in the peer's journey to work within organisational settings. Historically, peer support occurred based on a…
Abstract
The training and education of peers represents an important milestone in the peer's journey to work within organisational settings. Historically, peer support occurred based on a mutual relationship whereby one peer often with more experience provided support and guidance to another. However, as peers began to move into organisations staffed by professionals, a standard of training and education became needed if peers were to be accepted. This chapter outlines these issues, as well as discussing the training standards, the academics and soft skills needed. Some of the challenges peers face during their education and their continued development will be discussed. This chapter will focus on the training of peers for mental health and substance use settings in addition to other emerging areas in social inclusion.
Details
Keywords
Paul A. Griffin, David H. Lont and Yuan Sun
This study aims to examine the economic cost imposed by capital markets of section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 on conflict minerals (CM). The authors analyse a sample of…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the economic cost imposed by capital markets of section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 on conflict minerals (CM). The authors analyse a sample of first-time CM disclosures made by US companies in 2010-2012.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors measure the market response to these disclosures and compare it to the response of a matched control sample of non-disclosers. An overall negative response could arise from regulatory costs, changes in management decision making, or customers' social concerns about CM. An overall positive response could reflect the benefits of disclosure transparency.
Findings
The authors find that the negative effects of the disclosures outweigh any positive effects. The authors also find more limited negative effects for the control sample, since they are likely to be future CM disclosers.
Research limitations/implications
Because companies' balance sheets do not report these negative effects, the results imply that investors price supply chain activities related to CM as an off-balance sheet liability.
Practical implications
The results agree with companies' assertions of a substantial cost to implement the CM provision. The authors estimate an aggregate loss of shareholder value for the sample of $6.5 to $13.1 billion.
Social implications
These results show that regulators' and stakeholders' demands for increased transparency can be costly to shareholders when the disclosures induce changes in management decision making and raise customers' social concerns about supply chain sustainability.
Originality/value
The study is the first to examine the economic effects of companies' initial disclosures about CM under the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010.
Details
Keywords
This paper aims to briefly review the current state of and rationale for workplace training evaluation, explain the barriers that prevent wide scale and effective evaluation and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to briefly review the current state of and rationale for workplace training evaluation, explain the barriers that prevent wide scale and effective evaluation and provide practitioners with a novel training evaluation approach.
Design/methodology/approach
The article is based on a critical review of current approaches to and literature on training evaluation and the author's own research into the impact of learning on NHS productivity.
Findings
Whilst national governments stress the importance of workplace skills development as a central element of economic growth and organizations invest substantial amounts in training, very few private firms or public sector organizations actually review learning's impact on individuals, teams or organizational results.
Practical implications
This paper proposes that a range of factors inhibit effective training evaluation. These include the complexity of workplace learning and, crucially, weaknesses in current evaluation processes and tools. In response, the author sets out a novel systematic evaluation process aimed at assisting practitioners in meeting these challenges.
Originality/value
The approach builds on the economic theory of productivity to create a metric of costs and benefits to allow organizations to assess the impact of learning. It is hoped the approach will firstly, contribute to the debate about how training should be evaluated; secondly, bridge the gap between academic research and practitioner needs and finally, provide a scientifically robust but practitioner friendly means of evaluation.
Details
Keywords
This paper seeks to address current limitations in approaches to training evaluation by presenting a conceptual model of work‐based learning and an associated evaluation framework.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to address current limitations in approaches to training evaluation by presenting a conceptual model of work‐based learning and an associated evaluation framework.
Design/methodology/approach
The model and framework presented in this paper are based on a critical review of current approaches to learning evaluation and insights from learning transfer research and programme theory.
Findings
This paper sets out a conceptual model of workplace learning based on five elements: a pre‐learning stage, the trigger (need) for learning, the learning event, application of learning and the impact of learning. A linked criterion evaluation framework is also described. It is proposed that this provides a scientifically robust but practitioner friendly framework for workplace learning evaluation.
Practical implications
While most organisations wish to evaluate the effectiveness of their investment in employee training and development, few do. One of the barriers to effective learning evaluation is the failure to ground approaches in a contemporary and comprehensive model of workplace learning. The model and framework set out in this paper aim to assist evaluation by addressing this gap in a practitioner friendly way.
Originality/value
This paper sets out a novel, flexible and comprehensive conceptual model of workplace learning along with an innovative approach to training evaluation that addresses limitations in existing approaches. It is hoped that this will contribute to the debate on appropriate evaluation methods and assist practitioners to undertake evaluation in a more credible manner.
Details
Keywords
This study aims to examine the impact of the emission allowances granted under California's cap‐and‐trade program (AB 32) – the first major program of its kind in the USA – on the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the impact of the emission allowances granted under California's cap‐and‐trade program (AB 32) – the first major program of its kind in the USA – on the balance sheets and income statements of the S&P 500. So far there has been little discussion of what a cap‐and‐trade program would mean for the US companies' financial statements.
Design/methodology/approach
The author states and tests an economic model of the relation between greenhouse gas emissions and financial statement variables at the individual company level and use this model to predict emission allowances and obligations for the S&P 500.
Findings
The author's analysis suggests that the average S&P 500 company's balance sheet and net income will be adversely affected under several different accounting treatments for emission allowances, with the greatest impacts in the utilities, energy, and materials sectors.
Practical implications
US and European regulators have yet to set a single standard for emissions accounting. Without a single standard, companies acting in their own interests may use diverse or unclear accounting treatments for similar economic benefits. This can raise the cost of capital and hurt investors.
Originality/value
This is the first study of which the author is aware to document how the emission allowances under the AB 32 cap‐and‐trade program will affect American companies' balance sheets.
Details
Keywords
Accounting studies have attempted to forecast future attributes of firms' financial statements, primarily earnings. These studies typically adopt a cross‐sectional approach in…
Abstract
Accounting studies have attempted to forecast future attributes of firms' financial statements, primarily earnings. These studies typically adopt a cross‐sectional approach in estimating forecasting models, combining firms from different industries in the same model. This cross‐sectional approach implicitly assumes the relations between earnings and the explanatory variables are consistent across industries.
Richard A. Bernardi and David F. Bean
This research is a 6-year extension of Bernardi's (2005) initial ranking of the top ethics authors in accounting; it also represents a broadening of the scope of the original data…
Abstract
This research is a 6-year extension of Bernardi's (2005) initial ranking of the top ethics authors in accounting; it also represents a broadening of the scope of the original data into accounting's top-40 journals. While Bernardi only considered publications in business-ethics journals in his initial ranking, we developed a methodology to identify ethics articles in accounting's top-40 journals. The purpose of this research is to provide a more complete list of accounting's ethics authors for use by authors, administrators, and other stakeholders. In this study, 26 business-ethics and accounting's top-40 journals were analyzed for a 23-year period between 1986 through 2008. Our data indicate that 16.8 percent of the 4,680 colleagues with either a PhD or DBA who teach accounting at North American institutions had authored/coauthored one ethics article and only 6.3 percent had authored/coauthored more than one ethics article in the 66 journals we examined. Consequently, 83.2 percent of the PhDs and DBAs in accounting had not authored/coauthored even one ethics article.