An analysis of the role of accounting standards for enhancing corporate governance and social responsibility

Accounting standards have been suggested as a means of requiring reporting by corporations that would enhance managers' concern for their shareholders and/or society. The analysis presented in this paper, however, leads to the conclusion that this role for accounting standards is not likely to be beneficial. The conclusion is based on the fact that the required measurements for useful standards cannot generally be made. This inherent limitation is absolute with respect to social responsibility concerns. With respect to corporate governance, accounting standards might be useful, primarily for reporting potentially fraudulent dealings and similar misuses of shareholder's assets by corporate managers. But even then, the cost of an accounting standard, ex ante, is likely to exceed its benefits to shareholders.     

What causes K-waves?

This commentary on the Devezas-Corredine paper raises three questions: how do we think and how do we need to think about K-waves, what causes K-waves in the Devezas-Corredine model, and in what sense do social and biological factors add to a better understanding of large-scale structural changes in the world economy.     

The Marketers’ Prismatic Palette: A Review of Color Research and Future Directions

Color carries meaning and can influence consumers’ thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Many disciplines, such as neuroscience, psychophysics, visual cognition, and biology have used new technologies to gain insights in understanding the complexities of color perception, yet there exists relatively little research in the field of marketing. This paper aims to reestablish the importance of color research in marketing, draw attention to the complex nature of this research, and to fuel further investigation and the development of new insights about color as it relates to marketing. The authors offer an integrated conceptual framework centered on the embodied and referential meanings of color and highlight the complexities and nuances that researchers must consider in order to develop this area. Insights from and gaps in the extant literature are highlighted to present a set of questions and propositions for future research in this area of investigation.     

Corporate hyperlink network relationships in global corporate social responsibility system

This study analyzed the hyperlink (co-link) network structure among companies in global Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) system. This study measured network variables such as density and centrality, including degree centrality, eigenvector centrality, closeness, and betweenness. The results indicated that European companies had relatively central roles in the global CSR system. In addition the higher performing companies are more active their CSR practices. Also, the results revealed that the industrial type of companies was not significantly associated with its CSR practices.     

If you feel it now you will think it later: The interactive effects of mood over time on brand extension evaluations

While mood has been found to affect brand extension evaluations, the specific mechanisms by which it affects those evaluations remain largely untested. This study suggests that mood‐induced differences in cognitive processing style (relational vs. item‐specific elaboration) are possible explanations affecting brand extension evaluations. Results of two experiments showed that consumers in a positive (vs. negative) mood engaged in relational (vs. item‐specific) elaboration and consequently evaluated brand extensions and brand extension fit more favorably than consumers in a negative mood. The effects were found immediately after exposure (Experiment 1) and after a one‐week delay (Experiment 2). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

INFORMATION ASYMMETRY,MANAGEMENT CONTROL,AND METHOD OF PAYMENT IN ACQUISITIONS

We examine the information asymmetry hypothesis and the management control hypothesis by examining the relation between insider trading and insider holdings to the choice of payment method in acquisitions. Our results indicate that both insider ownership and insider trading are significantly related to payment method. These results provide additional evidence for both the management control theory and the asymmetric information theory in the choice of payment method in acquisitions. Furthermore, we find a significant relation between insider trading activity and the market reaction to the announcement of acquisitions. We conclude that information asymmetry exists in the takeover market and that it influences the payment method decision.     

Global Strategy in the Internet Era

This article examines the joint effects on business strategy of the Internet and globalization. It develops a framework for evaluating how the Internet affects the globalization potential of individual industries and the global strategies that companies should adopt. The impact of the Internet will not be uniform. Not only do its direct effects vary from one industry to another, but also it speeds up globalization at different rates in different industries. The article shows how to use the Internet to support five types of global strategy: market participation, products and services, activity location, marketing, and competitive moves.     

Profitable Mergers in a Cournot Model of Spatial Competition

This paper investigates the profitability and locational effects of mergers when Cournot firms compete in spatially differentiated markets. A two-firm merger is generally profitable because the merged partners can coordinate their location decisions. The merged firm locates its plants outside the market quartiles with distance from the market center being an increasing function of the number of nonmerged firms remaining at the market center. Profitable two-firm mergers reduce competitive pressure, leading to higher prices and reduced consumer surplus. The merger increases total surplus by increased locational efficiency and the increased profits of the merged and nonmerged firms.