Investigating Voluntary Risk Disclosure： The Case of Jordanian Banks

The aim of the study is to investigate whether banks in Jordan are compliant with the International Financial Reporting Standards （IFRS） 7 requirement for mandatory disclosure and to find out the extent to which the banks provide voluntary risk disclosures. To achieve the objectives of the study, we collected data from all 15 banks listed on the Amman Stock Exchange for the year ending December 2013. The findings of the study suggest that there is strong compliance with respect to mandatory risk disclosure, as required by IFRS. However, the results generally signal a need for further improvement in the voluntary risk disclosure area, since most of the banks do not provide adequate information that can be of use to stakeholders. We also suggest future avenues of research into the topic to determine progress.     

Stabilisation and Structural Adjustment in Developing Countries

Abstract

This paper analyses and compares World Bank structural adjustment programmes and International Monetary Fund (IMF) stabilisation programmes in Malawi during the 1980s and Jordan during the 1990s. Both are small aid-dependant economies with a narrow export base making them vulnerable to exogenous shocks. The article pays particular attention to the political economy environment in which reform programmes are implemented and to the role of exogenous shocks, both adverse and favourable, in determining the outcome of the programmes. The sequencing of reforms is also assessed in both countries.     

Beyond the random location of shopping malls: A GIS perspective in Amman,Jordan

The purpose of this research is to examine shopping mall location selection in the area of West Amman in Jordan. Following the Time-Resistance Approach, ArcGIS's Network Analyst tool was used to calculate the distance in terms of minutes to reach each shopping mall using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) techniques.ResultsThe area under study, which covers multiple sub-districts, suffers from excessive oversupply, due to the lack of established planning criteria and regulations, which in turn has resulted in high population-to-retail-area-ratio. This result was further supported by referring to other evaluation criteria, including the planning criteria used in other countries such as UAE and Saudi Arabia.     

Three dimensional product presentation quality antecedents and their consequences for online retailers: The moderating role of virtual product experience

This study investigates the impact of three-dimensional (3D) product presentation quality (3D-Q) on attitude toward presented product and attitude toward website, which in turn affect users’ satisfaction. Therefore, this research developed a hypothetical online retailer website, which presents a variety of 3D laptops that allows users to control the content and form of the 3D flashes. We measured 3D-quality based on a multi-dimensional construct. In other words, we define and operationalize 3D-quality based on information quality, system quality, authenticity, and enjoyment (second-order). We employed a non-student sample (n=410) to collect the data. We find that 3D-quality determines perceptions of attitude toward presented product and attitude toward website, which in turn influence users’ satisfaction. Furthermore, we find that virtual product experience moderates the relationships between attitude toward presented product, attitude toward website and users’ satisfaction. Our study provides important implications for e-tailers.     

Estimation of meat demand system in Jordan: an almost ideal demand system

This paper reports the results of the estimation of a linear approximate almost ideal demand system for Jordan meat demand using cross‐sectional data collected by the Department of Statistics in Jordan as part of the household expenditure survey. A censored regression method for the system of equation is used to analyse the meat consumption patterns. This method allows for inclusion of a large number of zero consumption for some foods. Two‐step demand system was estimated. In the first stage, Inverse Mill Ratio is estimated by using probit regression model. In the second stage, the estimated variable is included in the AIDS model to estimate food demand elasticities. The objective of this work is to provide econometric estimates of the different types of demand elasticities for meats in Jordan. To be consistent with the demand theory, the homogeneity, symmetry and adding up restrictions were satisfied in the estimated models. The estimated model was used to obtain estimates of Hicksian, Marshallian and expenditure demand elasticities for meats in Jordan. The results revealed that the demand for mutton and poultry is elastic while the demand for beef and fish is inelastic. The cross‐price elasticities indicate that poultry and beef are substitutes to mutton. The expenditure elasticities confirm that beef and mutton are luxury goods while poultry and fish are necessity goods.     

A general method for comparative dynamics in continuous-time models

This paper develops a general and applicable method for the computation of comparative dynamics in continuous-time perfect foresight models. The key technique in our method is the Jordan decomposition of the Jacobian matrix. This enables us to derive analytical solutions when dealing with high-dimensional systems with repeated eigenvalues. In an application, we compute comparative dynamics of an unanticipated expansionary monetary policy in scenarios with and without repeated eigenvalues. We find that the short-run effects on the social welfare are opposite in the two scenarios, while the long-run effects are similar.     

Defying contextual embeddedness: evidence from displaced women entrepreneurs in Jordan

ABSTRACT

Although entrepreneurial practices and processes are evolving and changing globally, models of entrepreneurship remain masculinized, embedded in advanced economies and associated with notions of individual agency, heroism and control. Rarely is defiance considered. In this paper, we explore the defiance practices of displaced women operating in the Jordanian patriarchal economy and society and consider how this enabled their nurturing of entrepreneurship. Indeed, we argue that socially excluded women actually defy their contextual embeddedness through their entrepreneurial activities. In so doing, we respond to calls for research that explores the contextual embeddedness of women’s entrepreneurship, and contribute to shifting the focus towards the more silent feminine end of the entrepreneurial process. We consider the defiance of invisible displaced women entrepreneurs operating in the under-researched context of Jordan. Longitudinal, ethnographic investigation revealed the creation of a secret production network led by, and for, displaced women. This paper focuses on the five founders of this network, which they established to mobilize and manage the production of traditional crafts and, by so doing, to defy the stifling limitations imposed by their restrictive contractors, community and family members.     

The Effect of Financial Liberalization on the Efficiency of Financial Institutions: The Case of Jordanian Commercial Banks

SUMMARY

Jordan undertook major financial sector liberalization starting in the early of 1990s. The effect of this reform on the efficiency of the banking sector is evaluated. A non-parametric method of Data Development Analysis (DEA) has been used to arrive at the efficiency scores for a panel data sample covering eight Jordanian commercial banks over the period 1984 to 2001. The findings suggest that liberalization program was followed by an observable increase in efficiency. Another finding of the study is that large banks demonstrated the faster productivity growth during the liberalization. The study has important implications such as guiding the government policy regarding deregulation and liberalization.