Environmental Policy,Sustainable Development,Governance Mechanisms and Environmental Performance

We investigate the effects of environmental policy (Climate Change Act – CCA), sustainable development frameworks (Global Reporting Initiative – GRI; UN Global Compact – UNGC) and corporate governance (CG) mechanisms on environmental performance (carbon reduction initiatives – CRIs; actual carbon performance – GHG emissions) of UK listed firms. We use the generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation technique to analyse data consisting of 2245 UK firm‐year observations over the 2002–2014 period. First, we find that the CCA has a positive effect on CRIs, and this effect is stronger in better‐governed firms. Second, we find that the GRI‐based framework is positively associated with CRIs. Third, we find that firms with poor CG structures have lower actual carbon performance compared with their better‐governed counterparts. Overall, our evidence suggests that firms can symbolically conform to environmental policy (CCA) and sustainable development frameworks (GRI, UNGC) by engaging in CRIs without necessarily improving actual environmental performance (GHG emissions) substantively. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment     

电商直播背景下产品定价问题研究

随着互联网技术的发展，直播模式成为电商经济新的增长点。在高速发展的同时，电商直播中的“翻车”事件也频频爆出。以电商直播背景下产品定价问题为研究对象，总结概括现有电商直播背景下产品定价的主要策略，深入剖析现有产品定价存在的问题以及产生的原因。最后从明确平台责任、加强行业自律、加大监管和处罚力度、提升消费者自我保护意识等方面提出对策建议。     

Media coverage and investment efficiency

We examine the effect of media coverage on firm-level investment efficiency. We find that media coverage reduces under-investment but increases over-investment. The negative effect of media coverage on under-investment is more pronounced in firms affected by greater information asymmetry and poorer corporate governance. The positive effect of media coverage on over-investment is driven by media-induced CEO overconfidence. Additional results show that both investment- and non-investment-related news coverage decrease under-investment, while non-investment-related news coverage is more influential in increasing over-investment. In general, higher news optimism is associated with less under-investment but more over-investment. Moreover, media coverage affects investment efficiency through its information dissemination rather than information creation function. Collectively, our results suggest that firms’ media visibility promotes more over-investment than under-investment.     

机构交叉持股对企业价值的影响

基于2007-2018年中国A股上市公司数据,本文考察了机构交叉持股对企业价值的影响及其作用机制。研究发现,机构交叉持股显著提高了企业价值,在考虑内生性问题和替换主要变量后结论依然较为稳健。交叉持股机构投资者能够成为更加积极的监督者,主动参与公司治理,缓解代理问题,同时促进同行业企业间产品市场协作,改善企业的产品市场表现,进而提升企业价值。此外,相比其他类型的投资者,长期、独立以及稳定型的交叉持股机构投资者对企业价值的促进作用更显著,进一步印证了监督治理渠道的作用。机构交叉持股推动产品市场协作,主要是通过提高企业创新能力和营业利润率。本文结论证实了机构交叉持股的正向协同效应,对完善中国资本市场制度体系和促进企业可持续发展具有重要意义。     

Political interventions in state-owned enterprises: The corporate governance failures of a European airline

This paper is based on the theory of hybrid organizations and we investigate the context, factors, mediators, and outcome of a public scandal involving a Romanian state-owned company in the civil aviation sector. This retrospective case study is part of a research design that alternates between inductive and deductive procedures devised to test relevant hypotheses, integrate several theories, and construct the causal mechanism of the corporate scandal. Four theories have been selected to address multiple aspects of the case: the hybrid organization theory, the agency theory, the fraud triangle theory, and the legitimacy theory. Several hypotheses have been proposed at the confluence of these frameworks, and the data collection process was conducted to ensure the credibility, dependability, and transferability of results. In addition to the themes and categories that have emerged from the thematic analysis, the paper also uses the process-tracing method to propose a causal graph and an event-history map in support of the hypotheses. The paper puts forward a series of recommendations on how to improve the corporate governance of state-owned enterprises, and to prevent potential scandals. The authors suggest that the separation of ownership and control is beneficial for strategy implementation in state-owned enterprises and can alleviate an entity’s financial difficulties.     

An evaluation framework for developing green infrastructure by using a new hybrid multiple attribute decision-making model for promoting environmental sustainability

With the expansion of urbanization caused by the growth of population and industrial activities, the urban/city and suburban areas are facing a variety of environmental threats. Although more research and urban policy has advocated and practiced the development of green infrastructure (GI) to support urban sustainable environment, the evaluation framework for the development of GI for promoting environmental sustainability is still insufficient. Moreover, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) commonly applied in published literature, makes an unrealistic assumption of independent relationships among dimensions/criteria in decision making for satisfying the real-world problem. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to construct the evaluation framework, including four dimensions and related ten criteria, using a new hybrid-modified multiple attribute decision-making (MADM) model for developing and improving the GI for promoting environmental sustainability. This MADM model is combined with three different methodologies of MADM, including the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) for constructing the influential network relation map (INRM) to explore the complex influential inter-relationships and DEMATEL based on Analytic Network Process (DANP) for determining the influential weights with the VIse Kriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR) for evaluating and presenting improvement strategies for six different GIs. The empirical study indicates that DEMATEL and DANP Results suggest that decision-makers should pay more attention to the improvement of Design (D₄) and Materials (D₂) in terms of dimensions when utilizing the GI to promote environmental sustainability. Because these dimensions are enhanced, Species (D₁) and Energy (D₃) will be improved in synchronization. From the perspective of criteria, five are key core criteria and need to be focused on first: increasing the green coverage rate (B₉), utilizing sustainable materials (B₄), using ecological engineering (B₈), shaping species biodiversity (B₁), and reducing energy consumption (B₅). Modified VIKOR reveals that “grass swales” are a comparatively better choice among six GIs for promoting environmental sustainability toward achieving the aspiration level. Therefore, this MADM model is beneficial to provide a more convincing assessment framework and improvement strategies for the development of GI for promoting environmental sustainability. As a result, these modified MADM models can be shown more conveniently and reasonably than traditional methods such as traditional AHP or ANP method.     

环境规制、融资约束与企业污染减排——来自排污费标准调整的证据

“十四五”规划提出建设人与自然和谐共生的现代化,这要求持续推进污染减排促进经济绿色低碳转型,实现环境与经济协同发展。基于2007年起排污费提高的政策冲击和2004-2013年工业企业污染数据,本文使用倍差法考察排污费提高的污染减排效果以及融资约束对政策效应的影响。研究发现排污费提高后,污染排放水平显著下降,但产出也受到较大冲击;企业减排方式存在明显差异,大型企业主要通过降低污染强度的方式来降低污染排放,而中小型企业则主要采取降低生产规模的方式来降低污染排放;进一步基于环境投融资角度对企业减排行为的分析揭示,融资约束影响中小企业污染减排,加剧排污费提高对产出的影响。因此,提高绿色金融的环境投融资供给能力是促进经济绿色转型的重要途径。     

Conceptualization of e-servicescapes in the fitness applications and wearable devices context: Multi-dimensions,consumer satisfaction,and behavioral intention

Based on the environmental psychology theory, this research conceptualizes and investigates the dimensions of e-servicescapes, and examines how each dimension influences fitness application and wearable device users’ emotions, satisfaction, and behavioral intention to continuously work out via the technology. This study employed three waves of surveys within the United States to collect data (N = 343), and conducted a path analysis to rigorously assess the proposed paths between identified constructs. The empirical findings revealed the significant determinants of negative emotion (i.e., usability, security, customization, entertainment value, interactivity, originality of design, relevance of information, and social factors) and positive emotion (i.e., usability, customization, entertainment value, interactivity, and relevance of information). Also, satisfaction was significantly impacted by both positive emotion and negative emotion, and behavioral intention was significantly influenced by positive emotion and satisfaction. Based on these findings, this study suggests theoretical (i.e., classification of the e-servicescape dimensionality and integration of the environmental psychology theory with the two-factor theory of motivation, focusing on a digital environment) and practical implications (i.e., ways to increase levels of consumer satisfaction with the technology and intention to continuously exercise with the technology) for scholars and practitioners in the fitness and mobile application/wearable device industries.     

Product line transformation,foreign sales,and firm value: Evidence from COVID-19 pandemic governance in urban China

Using a sample of Chinese firms, we examine stock market reaction to firms that announce a change in their product lines to those related to COVID-19 management (medical masks and ventilators, among others). We find the market reacts positively to the announcements. In addition, when a firm ordinarily has a large share of export sales, the stock market reaction is more salient, indicating that export sales provide a certification effect that positively signals investors. Additional analysis on moderating effects suggest that, conditional on foreign sales, prior experience with medical product lines or less uncertainty about supply availability enhances the cumulative announcement returns (CARs), while the adverse impact of firm size on CAR magnifies.