Participation, Trip Frequency and Site Choice: A Multinomial-Poisson Hurdle Model of Recreation Demand

Data used in recreation demand modeling are characterized by the facts that trip frequencies are non-negative integers and that consumers are often faced with alternative destinations. This paper considers these features by estimating a multivariate recreation demand model that accounts for trip frequency and choice among alternative recreation sites using a mixed multinomial-Poisson hurdle distribution. The specification of the Poisson hurdle distribution at the aggregate level accounts for participation and trip frequency, and avoids the restrictive mean-variance property of the basic Poisson model. The model is estimated using data from Bighorn sheep hunters in Alberta, Canada. Simulation results suggest that changing price and quality variables cause substitution among sites. The welfare implications of changes in these variables are also examined.     

Accountability and value enhancement roles of corporate governance

We examine the twin roles of accountability and value enhancement of corporate governance in the context of financial reporting. We investigate the accountability role by examining the association between governance structures and abnormal accruals, and the value enhancement role by investigating the association between abnormal accruals explained by governance structures and future performance. We differentiate between governance mechanisms that have direct roles in the financial reporting process (audit related) from mechanisms that have indirect roles (board related). We find that independent and active audit committees and independent boards are important governance attributes for financial reporting. We show that both audit‐related and board‐related governance structures are value enhancing.     

Does the signature of a CPA matter? Evidence from Taiwan

This paper employed aquestionnaire survey to investigate the opinions of audit report stakeholders in Taiwan regarding the regulation of signatures in audit reports. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) proposed these regulations in 2009, and again in 2011 with a slight alteration. Most respondents agree that having the engagement partner sign the audit report could increase the accountability of CPAs. In addition, the participants believed that knowledge of the name of the engagement partner is important for the users of audit reports. Both of these views are consistent with the views voiced by the PCAOB. Most of the respondents also believe that the regulation of signatures would increase the legal responsibility of the engagement partner and minimize the role of firms in the auditing process. Finally, the respondents felt that the engagement partner has a much greater responsibility when their signature is in the audit report than when it is disclosed elsewhere, indirectly supportingthe second proposal of the PCAOB, which, rather than having the engagement partner sign their name on the audit report, simply lists the names of engagement partners elsewhere.     

Route-based data envelopment analysis models

This paper proposes two novel route-based data envelopment analysis (DEA) models that jointly measure the route-level and company-level efficiencies amongst transport carriers. The core logics comprise a three-stage procedure that determines company efficiency, route efficiency and optimal allocation ratios for the common inputs. We prove that the ranking order of company performance determined by the route-based DEA model is identical to that determined by the company-based DEA model. An empirical case demonstrates the superiority of the proposed models in identifying the less efficient routs/companies as well as in reducing the input slacks without subjective conjectures.     

The Effects of Moral Development and Adverse Selection Conditions on Managers’ Project Continuance Decisions: A Study in the Pacific-Rim Region

According to agency theory, agents base their economic decisions on self-interests when adverse selection conditions exist. However, cognitive moral development theory predicts that ethics/morals may influence decision-makers not to behave egoistically. Rutledge and Karim (1999; Accounting, Organizations and Society 24(2), 173–184) find both the moral reasoning level of the managers and an adverse selection condition affect a manager’s project evaluation decisions significantly. Since prior studies have shown that national␣culture might influence the application of agency theory in project evaluation, this current study uses a different moral development measurement to reexamine Rutledge and Karim’s hypotheses in another culture. A total of 73 Taiwanese executive MBA students with an average of 12.17 years work experience participated in this study. We found that both moral development level and adverse selection conditions significantly affect managers’ project continuance decisions. The interaction effect of these two factors indicates that, when adverse selection conditions exist, participants with a high level of moral development exhibit less of a tendency to continue an unprofitable project than those with a low level of moral development. With subjects from a different culture, our results confirm the findings of Rutldege and Karim. That is, the effects of moral development and adverse selection conditions on managers’ project continuance decisions are robust and can be generalized to different cultures. Implications of the findings of this study to multinational firms are also discussed. C. Janie Chang, Ph.D., is the Vern Odmark Professor of Accountancy at San Diego State University. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine. She is the co-editor of the Review of Accounting and Finance, and has published in the areas of auditing, managerial accounting, and information systems to investigate information processing of experts. She has also studied cross-cultural issues related to professional judgments and decisions in auditing and managerial accounting. Sin-Hui Yen, Ph.D., is currently a Professor of Accounting at Tamkang University in Taiwan. He received his Ph.D. from national Taiwan University. He is the executive editor of the Journal of Contemporary Accounting, and has published in the areas of accounting and finance to investigate human information processes, as well as ethical issues related to business professionals.     

Exploring Tourists’ Perceptions of Traditional and Contemporary Hot Springs Hotels in Japan

Hot springs and ancillary hotels have been a major tourist attraction in Japan. While some hot springs hotels preserve the traditional bathing and lodging facility, some incorporate contemporary layout in their design. The purpose of this study is to explore how international tourists perceive hot springs hotels in Japan. Data was collected online with two groups of samples from Japan and the United States, respectively. Participants were asked to evaluate hotels attributes and brand personality dimensions based on photos. U.S. tourists perceive traditional and contemporary hot springs hotels differently based on brand personality dimensions. Hotel managers should provide more excitement through an introduction of authentic dining, bathing, and lodging experience to customers while preserving the natural surrounding and physical features for attraction.     

Dodd–Frank's impact on community-bank investment models: A Bayesian structural time series analysis

We use Bayesian structural time series (BSTS) methodology to test whether the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (DF) caused changes in community bank business models. The BSTS methodology uses the pre-DF period to create synthetic counterfactuals for community-bank dependent variables of interest. In the post-DF period, the counterfactuals become predictions of the dependent variables had DF not been enacted. Comparing post-DF predicted versus actual dependent variables allows us to estimate the causal impact of DF on these variables of interest. We find that relative to assets, community banks significantly reduce their lending activities and significantly increase investment in securities and excess reserves.     

How the quality of initial coin offering white papers influences fundraising: Using security token offerings white papers as a benchmark

In recent years, many initial coin offerings (ICOs) scams have been reported, attracting attention to this relatively new and unregulated ICO market, which lacks disclosure requirements and therefore suffers from intensifying problems of information asymmetry inherent in crowdfunding. As a prospectus-type document, an ICO white paper serves as a major means of voluntary disclosure practices adopted by ventures seeking external financing. Given the importance of an ICO white paper and the difficulty of assessing its quality, we propose to benchmark it against white paper content for security token offerings (STOs)—a more regulated ICO subset. Using the similarity of ICO white papers with STO white papers to proxy for disclosure quality, we document that the ICO campaigns that have white papers more similar to STO white papers are more likely to raise funding successfully. Our findings provide implications for policymakers, ICO fundraisers, and investors on the importance of white paper quality.     

Convenience yield and real exchange rate dynamics: A present-value interpretation

In this paper, we empirically investigate the relationship between the convenience yield of government bonds and the real exchange rates using monthly data from 1999 to 2018. We extend the conventional models, based on the present-value relationship between the real exchange rate and economic fundamentals, while explicitly considering the role of the convenience yield. Empirical results suggest that our present-value models can capture the dynamic properties of the real exchange rate documented in the literature, including high persistence, excess volatility and excess co-movement compared with real interest rate differentials. We also find that the sum of expected convenience yields significantly drives real exchange rate movements. Moreover, we find that foreign exchange swap market friction also plays a role in explaining real exchange rates. Finally, we find that monetary policy at the zero lower bound may be essential in real exchange rate modelling.