A Measurement Framework for Assessing the Contribution of Social Media to Public Engagement: An empirical analysis on Facebook

The public sector is increasingly turning to social media as a means to communicate and interact with citizens, but little is known about the contribution that these social technologies make to public engagement. This paper used a scoping literature review of studies examining social media in order to develop a framework that measures two Facebook features (popularity and commitment), which was then used to evaluate two different levels of public engagement (public communication and public participation). The framework was validated by applying it to the Facebook pages of several Italian city administrations, and a social media engagement matrix was proposed to interpret the findings.     

ARBITRAGE‐FREE BILATERAL COUNTERPARTY RISK VALUATION UNDER COLLATERALIZATION AND APPLICATION TO CREDIT DEFAULT SWAPS

We develop an arbitrage‐free valuation framework for bilateral counterparty risk, where collateral is included with possible rehypothecation. We show that the adjustment is given by the sum of two option payoff terms, where each term depends on the netted exposure, i.e., the difference between the on‐default exposure and the predefault collateral account. We then specialize our analysis to credit default swaps (CDS) as underlying portfolios, and construct a numerical scheme to evaluate the adjustment under a doubly stochastic default framework. In particular, we show that for CDS contracts a perfect collateralization cannot be achieved, even under continuous collateralization, if the reference entity’s and counterparty’s default times are dependent. The impact of rehypothecation, collateral margining frequency, and default correlation‐induced contagion is illustrated with numerical examples.     

Three Short Stories of Progressive Institutional Change

The process of institutional change is a fundamental theme in institutional economics. There are multiple avenues for forging institutional change — policies, laws, cultural norms, social movements, and social practices. I analyze three examples of progressive institutional change. While there are many to choose from, the three short stories focus on: (i) accounting for measures of housework and care work in GDP; (ii) transforming legal values through adoption of marriage equality in the United States; and (iii) interrogating the fresh-tomatoes food supply chain in order to achieve a penny-a-pound more in earnings for migrant field workers. Each of these examples of progressive institutional change involves changing values, a cumulative process.     

Facilitating Global Organizational Learning in Product Development at Whirlpool Corporation

The challenges of leveraging learning about product development in a global company are complex. Whirlpool Corporation is addressing these challenges, using a multidimensional strategy that couples work in advanced products and product development with organization development and training. Deborah Durate and Nancy Snyder describe how Whirlpool has implemented training, best practices conferences, and programs focused on enhancing the performance of product development teams to facilitate learning after product development efforts and to leverage that learning on a global basis. Programs and processes are described, and lessons learned as well as guidelines for development are offered.     

Is an Auditor's Propensity to Issue Going Concern Opinions a Valid Measure of Audit Quality?

A number of previous studies use auditor propensity to issue a going concern opinion (GCO) as a proxy of audit quality when examining a sample of financially distressed firms. This study examines whether audit quality (measured by discretionary accruals) influences the probability of financially distressed firms receiving GCOs using a non‐specific sample of 2937 firm‐year observations from Australia over the period 2011–2015. The study first investigates the association between financially distressed firms and the issuance of GCOs. This association is then re‐tested after separating the total sample into low and high audit quality subsamples. The results indicate that financially distressed firms are more likely to receive GCOs, confirming the application of ASA 570 Going Concern. However, financially distressed firms that receive GCOs from their auditors are limited to firms that have higher‐quality audits.     

The spa experience at Radium Hot Springs

This paper examines the spa experience at Radium Hot Springs from the earliest days to the present in an attempt to indicate similarities and differences between Canadian spas and those in the United States and Western Europe. Radium is examined for five time periods under the headings of environment, strategies and institutions, perceptions and attitudes, and technology. Western Canadian spas share many traits with those of the United States, especially the western states, but the emphasis on natural attractions and federal government involvement have caused them to differ from those in Western Europe.