Information flows within and across sectors in Chinese stock markets

We examine the patterns of information flows within and across sectors of the two Chinese stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen during 1994–2001. Using the generalized forecast error variance decomposition, we find a high degree of interdependence, indicating that the sectors are highly integrated and sector prices reflect information from other sectors. Industry is the most influential sector in both exchanges, while Finance in Shenzhen is the least integrated with other sectors. Implications of the findings for investors and policymakers are also discussed.     

Transformational leadership and job involvement in the Middle East: the moderating role of individually held cultural values

This study examines whether individually held cultural values moderate the relationship between transformational leadership behavior of supervisors and the job involvement of subordinates in the Middle Eastern organizational context. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to analyze survey data from 229 employees of 10 organizations in the United Arab Emirates. In line with the findings of studies in Western countries, transformational leadership was found to influence job involvement positively. In addition, the cultural value orientations of individuals were found to moderate this relationship. Collectivism positively influenced the relationship between transformational leadership and job involvement, whereas uncertainty avoidance had a negative effect. These findings provide an insight into how transformational leadership may be used to motivate culturally diverse groups of employees within the Middle East. To enhance job involvement, organizations need to realize that the attitudinal response of subordinates to transformational leadership can depend on their cultural values. This has significant implications regarding the training and effective deployment of transformational leaders within Middle Eastern organizations.     

Depletion or expansion? Understanding the effects of support policy use on employee work and family outcomes

Past research on the effects of employees' use of work–family support policies tends to draw on a depletion perspective suggesting that using these policies may reduce work–family conflict. The emphasis on depletion fails to consider the expansion perspective that assumes that using work resources may enrich family functioning. Using a sample of 113 matched employee–supervisor pairs and a 1‐month separation between predictor and criterion measurement, we found support for the expansion rather than the depletion perspective. Specifically, the relationships between support policy use and employee job satisfaction and family efficacy (but not organisational citizenship behaviour) were mediated by work‐to‐family enrichment; these effects were realised only for employees with high levels of family identity. In contrast, no support was found for family‐to‐work conflict as a mediator of the model.     

Import Orientations for Jor da nian-Based Companies

Abstract

This pa per in ves ti gates the forces and fac tors that in flu -ence im p o r t o r i en t a t i o n s in Jor da n. It was found that or ga ni za tional buyers rate qual ity and price, rather than the coun try-of-or i gin, as the most im por tant prod uct at trib ute. The size of firms and their ex pe ri ence in import ing had min i mum im pact on im port ori en ta tions. Re sults in di cate that the or ga ni za tional buy ers in Jor dan are tra di tional in their use of promo tional tools and tend to pri mar ily rely on word-of-mouth and news papers for their in for ma tion con cern ing ex port ers and chan nels. The ar ti cle con cludes with a dis cus sion of the im pli ca tions for in ter na tional business.     

Towards Ending the Silence: Working Women Caring for Children with Chronic Illness

This paper presents stories from women who work and care for a child with a significant chronic illness or disability. The purpose of this paper is to move towards ending the silence on their lives. A three-phase emergent research design responds to the question: What is life like for a full-time worker who is concurrently the primary carer of a chronically ill child? This paper considers the theory of Silencing the Self (Jack, 1991) in relation to the emergent themes of “Otherness” and “Doing it All.” As in Jack’s study, these women also engaged in silencing of the self. However, unlike the respondents in Jack’s study, these women did not demonstrate feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness for the future, nor were they alone in contributing to their silence. Indeed, many experienced silencing behaviors from others around them, and many rallied against the silence, not accepting that their burden should continue. Consideration of Jack’s theory is made to point out the distinctions between the women in this study and Jack’s study, and analytical commentary is provided to demonstrate the relevance of this analysis in light of the current debates surrounding the Work–Home Conflict and the rising levels of informal care provided by women in our communities.     

Corporate Internet Disclosure in the Arabian Gulf： An Empirical Examination of Determinants and Attributes

This paper investigates and reports on the extent and nature of corporate internet disclosure and the determinants of internet financial disclosure （IFD） by companies listed in three Gulf Corporation Council （GCC） countries. This paper uses data from 207 listed companies in Muscat Securities Market （MSM）, Dubai Financial Market （DFM）, and Qatar Exchange （QE）. Binary logistic regression analysis is used to examine the determinants of IFD. Kruskal-Wallis test is used to examine the differences in disclosure characteristics among the three countries. The results of this study reveal that firm size is the major factor influencing intemet financial reporting in the GCC. The results reveal that the three countries differ significantly in all the disclosure attributes with the exception of the existence of email link. This paper extends the stream of research that confirms the widespread use of internet in disclosing financial information. The results are consistent with previous literature that corporate size is a major determinant of internet financial reporting. This paper provides insights into corporate internet disclosure in the GCC that will benefit all stakeholders with an interest in corporate reporting in this important region of the world.     

Measuring the Connectedness of the Global Economy

We develop a technique to exploit forecast error variance decompositions to evaluate the macroeconomic connectedness embedded in any multi-country macroeconomic model with an approximate vector autoregressive (VAR) representation. We apply our technique to a large global VAR model covering 25 countries and derive vivid representations of macroeconomic connectedness. We find that the US exerts a dominant influence in the global economy and that Brazil, China, and the Eurozone are also globally significant. Recursive analysis over the period of the global financial crisis shows that shocks to global equity markets are transmitted rapidly and forcefully to real trade flows and real GDP.