Mergers and acquisitions research in finance and accounting: Past,present, and future

This study presents an analysis of publication patterns and major themes in research on mergers and acquisitions in finance and accounting. We find that takeovers as mechanisms of governance, drivers of mergers, mechanisms of mergers, bank mergers, cross-border mergers, shareholder wealth effects of mergers and related events, and the role of financial experts and ownership structure form major themes of research in the finance area, while in accounting area major themes are corporate governance and accounting outcomes, predicting takeovers and their outcomes, valuation, financial reporting and takeover decisions, and financial reporting and performance.     

Work-from-home and the risk of securities misconduct

In the wake of the global pandemic, a challenge for CEOs and boards is to set a stakeholder-acceptable organizational balance between remote and traditional office working. However, the risks of work-from-home are not yet fully understood. We describe competing theories that predict the effect on misconduct of a corporate shift to work-from-home. Using internal bank data on securities traders we exploit lockdown variation induced by emergency regulation of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our difference-in-differences analysis reveals that working from home lowers the likelihood of securities misconduct; ultimately those working from home exhibit fewer misconduct alerts. The economic significance of these changes is large. Our study makes an important step toward understanding the link between the balance of work locations and the risk that comes with this tradeoff.     

A story to sell: The influence of storytelling on consumers' purchasing behavior

Storytelling can arouse consumers' emotions and affect purchasing behavior through desires and attitudes. While the marketing literature discusses storytelling, there is a lack of consensus because of the diverse conceptual and operational definitions used. To untangle the complexities and consolidate the fragmented knowledge about storytelling in marketing, this research examines how the marketing literature has addressed the influence of storytelling on consumers' purchasing behavior. The findings aid in understanding how the topic has been discussed from a marketing perspective in consumer behavior studies. Through a systematic literature review using a bibliometric analysis, we demonstrate that the marketing literature features four strands about the uses of storytelling to influence consumers' purchasing behavior. First, storytelling stimulates the consumer's identification with the brand. Second, storytelling allows consumers to experience emotional value. Third, storytelling supports engagement behaviors. Finally, storytelling has a downside in that it also propagates harmful speech. This study concludes with a roadmap for future research about how storytelling impacts consumers' purchasing behavior.