Configural Information Processing in Auditing: Further Evidence

An important issue in audit judgment research has been how auditors combine information in order to make judgments and, in particular, whether auditors ‘judgments involve configural cue usage. Some recent research (Brown and Solomon, 1990; 1991) has found that under certain conditions, many auditors were able to configurally process information. This paper extends this research by examining some conditions that may facilitate the development of auditors’ ability to configurally process available information. The study found that: (a) the proportion of auditors processing the information configurally was greater than chance; (b) for those that processed the information configurally, the form of the interaction was as predicted, that is, ordinal with a compensatory form; (c) increasing depth of processing by requiring subjects to provide explanations for their judgments did not have a significant effect on the number of auditors processing configurally; (d) the level of consensus was higher for auditors who processed configurally than for those who did not; and (e) the analysis of the explanations provided by configurai cue processors indicated that they saw the relevant cues as being substitutable.     

Dimensions and correlates of consumer value: An application to the timeshare industry

The concept of consumer value has been hailed as the “very underpinning” of marketing, yet the concept has been subjected to limited empirical research, particularly in the hospitality industry. This study investigates the value that consumers derive from ownership of timeshare holiday products. A total of 785 people answered questions regarding their background, timeshare ownership, valuing of timeshare, and satisfaction with timeshare. Confirmatory factor analyses showed consumer value to be a multi-dimensional construct comprising opportunities for relaxation, gift-giving, status, quality, flexibility, fun, new experiences, and financial benefits. These value dimensions varied with other factors such as type of timeshare ownership (e.g., weeks, points).     

Commentary: Nash's work in economics

This paper is a brief tribute to John Nash's work in economic theory on the occasion of his eightieth birthday.     

Employee ownership in enterprises in Africa and Asia

This paper examines wider employee share ownership in developing and newly industrializing countries with particular emphasis on Africa and Asia. The first section reviews the available evidence on the extent of wider employee share ownership. The second identifies the key issues relating to the implementation of wider employee share ownership: the objectives for employee ownership, the financing of employees' stakes, the role of trade unions, employee participation in decisions and the life-cycle of employee ownership. It is suggested that attempts to develop employee ownership face similar, but more intense, problems as in advanced industrialized nations. A wide-ranging research agenda is identified.     

The effects of technical and social conditions on workplace trust

This paper investigates the extent to which the technical and social contexts of organizations independently affect levels of workplace trust. We argue that, in an organizational context, trust is not just a relationship between an individual subject (the truster) and an object (the trustee) but is subject to effects from the conditions of the work relationship itself. We describe the organizational context as comprising both a technical system of production (where work gets done through the specification of tasks) and a social system of work (where problems of effort, compliance, conformity and motivation are managed). We analyse the relationship between trust and these two aspects of workplace context (technical and social systems). We also operationalize this in terms of differences between industries, occupational composition and human resource management practices. The model is tested using data drawn from the 1995 Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey. The results confirm that differences in industry, occupational composition and HRM practices all impact on levels of workplace trust. We review these results in terms of their implications for future research into the problem of analysing variation in trust at both the workplace and individual levels.     

OFDM系统中基于弱选择ROMP算法的稀疏信道估计

为了解决实际OFDM通信系统中信道稀疏度未知的不足,提出将弱选择正则化正交匹配追踪算法用于估计稀疏信道。算法在不知晓信道稀疏度的情况下,对不同迭代残差与测量矩阵中原子的相关系数进行判定后,根据原子的弱选择准则灵活地确定出表示信道冲激响应的原子候选集,进而利用正则化原则从候选集中挑选出表示信道冲激响应的最优原子组,逐步实现精确重建。仿真结果和理论分析表明：与正则化正交匹配追踪算法相比,相同条件下改进算法可以获得更低的均方误差和误比特率;另外,算法无需将信道稀疏度作为先验信息,实用性更强。     

航空物探方法找矿及其应用

依据人们在基础地质研究、矿产资源勘查等方面取得的新成果,在当代地质矿产勘查评价理论和方法的启示下,以前人的区域成矿研究成果为基础,结合我国某省矿区的特点,本文叙述了航空物探方法在航磁低缓异常查证工作中的应用,提出了直接应用物探方法进行深部找矿的思路,并在找矿实例中得以应用。此方法对今后开展的找矿工作必将起到很好的启示和借鉴作用。     

The Economic Consequences of Banks’ Derivatives Use in Good Times and Bad Times

In a sample of 335 commercial banks, we do not detect a systematic effect on bank values from derivatives use in either the high growth period of 2003–2005 or the low growth period of 2007–2009. These findings apply to all types of derivatives including credit default swaps. Our results suggest that banks take a more balanced approach and restrict their derivative activities to providing derivative services for customers and risk management. We also find that the market disciplined banks significantly for taking TARP funds, indicating that receiving TARP funds was a signal that the banks were financially distressed. Lastly, we cannot discern valuation effects resulting from derivatives use even in large and poorly capitalized banks that are more likely to take risk-shifting opportunities. Collectively, we find no compelling evidence supporting the widespread allegation that derivatives use increased banks’ speculating behaviors and significantly contributed to the loss of value during the subprime mortgage crisis.     

Minimum Service Requirements, Limited Brokers and Menuing of Services

In the past few years, many states have responded to the increasing number of limited service brokers by passing minimum service requirements. Limited service brokers can be viewed as those brokers who are offering their marketing and representative services A La Carte as opposed to the more traditional full-services brokers offering of a Table D??h?te (one size fits all) for their services. Supporters claim the legislation is necessary to protect consumers who are otherwise hurt by limited service brokers, but critics assert that this legislation is anti-competitive and not necessary. This study provides empirical evidence that sellers using limited service brokers experience a trade-off between a higher selling price and longer marketing spans with accompanying lower probabilities of finding a buyer during a given marketing period.     

Lessons from Over 30 Years of Buy versus Rent Decisions: Is the American Dream Always Wise?

Homeownership is touted as the “American Dream.” It is credited with enhancing wealth; increasing civic pride; and improving self‐esteem, crime prevention, child development and educational outcomes, among other benefits. This article does not dispute any of these claims. Instead, this study hypothesizes that crowding toward homeownership raises the price of homes above their fundamental value resulting in the purchase of a home becoming a contraindicative action. After setting the holding period to the average American's tenure in a residence, renting (not buying) proves to be the superior investment strategy over most of the study period.