ἐμπάθɛια (Empatheia) and Caritas: The Role of Religion in Fair Trade Consumption

There is much still to learn about the nature of fair trade consumers. In light of the Pope’s encyclical Caritas in Veritate, this article sought to advance the current understanding by investigating the role of religion in fair trade consumption. In this study, fair trade consumers and non-consumers across many religions as well as the non-religious described their consumption of fair trade products as well as the use of their religious beliefs in their purchase behavior. It appears that the non-religious are slightly more inclined toward buying fair trade products. Of the religious observers studied, Buddhists have a greater propensity to buy fair trade. The relationship between religion and fair trade consumption is complex in that religious affiliation – group membership – alone is not enough to encourage members to buy fair trade; rather, it is the use of religious beliefs as a criterion in consumption behavior that linked religion to fair trade consumption.     

Accounting for power and control: The Anglo-Iranian oil nationalisation of 1951

The paper uses accounting and stock market data to evaluate the power of protagonists in a political crisis and their respective ability to assert control over disputed assets. It employs a case study of the expropriation of the assets of the AIOC by the Iranian government in 1951. An event study and accounting data analysis show that the stock market reaction to the nationalisation strongly predicted the ability of the company to recover its assets implying a significant market value associated with political support. They also show that the company was able to use the publication of its annual report to reassure shareholders and that due to the assumed presence of political support this signal was received as credible.     

Second thoughts about ' Cases in Auditing '

This paper considers the uses and limitations of case studies in teaching audit and, in particular, the ways in which cases might be made more relevant to a critical approach to audit. It concludes that case studies based on audit scandals are not always the most appropriate resource, and that what are needed are cases that give students an appreciation of the way in which audit relates to other elements of corporate governance. A role-playing approach may be helpful here to provide an insight into the multiple pressures and influences on the auditor.     

The term structure of policy rules

A formula is derived that links the coefficients of the monetary policy rule for the short-term interest rate to the coefficients of the implied affine equations for long-term interest rates. The formula predicts that an increase in the coefficients in the monetary policy rule will lead to an increase in the coefficients in the affine equations. Empirical evidence for such a prediction is provided. The curve of the response coefficients by maturity is also predicted by the formula. The formula's predictive accuracy and its closed form make it a useful tool for studying the policy implications of embedding no-arbitrage affine theories into macro models.     

Not paying for our past: Government,business and the debate on contaminated land in the UK

It is difficult to overemphasize the extent to which battles over the availability of information played a fundamental role in environmental controversy (Hays, 1987: 537). Since the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, there has been controversy in the UK about the extent to which businesses should be required to identify and clean up contaminated land. This paper examines the controversy in the context of wider debates about the function of corporate social reporting.     

Expectancy‐value theory contributes to understanding consumer attitudes towards cow's milk alternatives and variants

Although South Africans mostly consume cow's milk, cow's milk alternatives/variants are increasingly becoming popular and this could be attributed to higher demand and changing consumer attitudes. Using expectancy‐value theory approach, this study aimed to explore consumers' beliefs that exist to influence their attitude towards cow's milk alternatives/variants and consequently the acceptance or non‐acceptance thereof. Thirteen focus groups, each with four to eight participants, were conducted at the University of South Africa (Unisa) Science Campus in Florida, Gauteng, South Africa. Genders were separated to improve the facilitation of the discussion. The semi‐structured discussions explored and gave an insight into consumer attitudes and perceptions that influence acceptance of cow's milk alternatives/variants. The recorded discussions were transcribed and the content was analyzed for emerging themes and categories by two independent parties, who then compared these emerging themes and categories. Results showed that the primary factors that influence consumers' beliefs and, ultimately, attitude formation and predisposition to accept or reject cow's milk alternatives/variants are acquired through knowledge and perceptions coming from (1) direct experiences, such as familiarity with the products' internal and external attributes, conditional willingness and causal factors, (2) indirect experiences ingrained from childhood and (3) association, where consumers had no reference to the product to attach attributes for belief formation, leading to being astonished at the thought, being curious about the product or having no interest in it. This study demonstrated that consumers' acceptance of cow's milk alternatives/variants will ultimately depend on product‐related expectations.     

'A sort of guide, philosopher and friend': the rise of the professional auditor in Britain

This paper considers the legal and financial context in which professional audit emerged in Britain during the nineteenth century. It concludes that an important contributing factor to the rise of the audit profession was its provision of advice on prudent accounting, which represented a distinctive competence. The capture of a jurisdiction over business advisory services from the legal profession involved, however, a relationship of complicity with management and large insider investors the interests of social capital- to the exclusion of small investors, who were stigmatized as 'speculators'.