“Holier-than-thou” perception bias among professional accountants: A cross-cultural study

Theoretical conceptions of culture in accounting research are controversial, ranging from highly deterministic, quantified and componential perspectives (such as Hosfstede's five dimensional model) to those that suggest continual changes in cultural values brought about by forces of acculturation. This paper makes a contribution to cross-cultural accounting research by examining the influence of competing theoretical perspectives of culture and acculturation on “holier-than-thou” perception bias. “Holier-than-thou” perception bias leads to individuals perceiving themselves as acting more ethically than comparable others when confronted with ethically uncertain work-related behaviours. This study contributes to cross-cultural accounting research by surveying Australian and Indian professional accountants from big four accounting firms. We firstly seek to establish the prevalence of “holier-than-thou” perception bias in both cultural settings. Secondly, we examine the differential and competing influences of culture and acculturation on perceptions of accountants from the two countries on measures of this bias. Data was collected through a survey questionnaire administered to samples of senior accountants from the big accounting firms in Australia and India. The questionnaire comprised an auditor-client conflict and two whistle-blowing scenarios and used two questions to measure the magnitude of the bias. The results show that “holier-than-thou” perception bias exists among accountants within each of the two countries. However, the magnitude of the bias was not significant between the countries. The results support the theory of acculturation in big accounting firms. Our findings have implications for accounting research where the presence of “holier-than-thou” perception bias needs to be considered in cases where respondents are questioned on socially sensitive issues. The findings may be useful to accounting researchers, managers of multinational enterprises in general, and big-four accounting firms in particular. Our conceptual framework applied in this study is innovative and provides a template for assessing current controversies in cross-cultural accounting research.     

浅析偏压连拱隧道的施工技术

随着我国高速公路的快速发展,公路隧道的建设越来越多。由于受地形、地质条件限制以及隧道分建带来的展线困难与占地多等诸多因素的影响,设计越来越多地选择连拱隧道。在浅埋偏压等复杂地质条件下,连拱隧道的修建具有工序繁杂、围岩多次被扰动、围岩应力变换和结构受力复杂等特点。在本文中,笔者对偏压连拱隧道的施工技术进行了分析和研究。     

Desirability bias in foresight: Consequences for decision quality based on Delphi results

In foresight activities uncertainty is high and decision makers frequently have to rely on human judgment. Human judgment, however, is subject to numerous cognitive biases. In this paper, we study the effects of the desirability bias in foresight. We analyze data from six Delphi studies and observe that participants systematically estimate the probability of occurrence for desirable (undesirable) future projections higher (lower) than the probability for projections with neutral desirability. We also demonstrate that in the course of a multi-round Delphi process, this bias decreases but is not necessarily eliminated. Arguably, the quality of decisions based on Delphi results may be adversely affected if experts share a pronounced and common desirability for a future projection. Researchers and decision makers have to be aware of the existence and potential consequences of such a desirability bias in Delphi studies when interpreting their results and taking decisions. We propose a post-hoc procedure to identify and quantify the extent to which the desirability bias affects Delphi results. The results of this post-hoc procedure complement traditional Delphi results; they provide researchers and decision makers with information on when and to which extent results of Delphi-based foresight may be biased.     

中国药品价格和数量指数及偏倚的实证分析

本文利用我国三个城市样本医院的招标采购数据,测算了2002～2005年抗生素类和循环系统药品价格和数量水平的变化趋势,并检验了Gerschenkron效应.结果显示,我国城市间的医疗模式具有较大差异,北京市使用品种比较集中,佛山市比较分散;抗生素类药品价格下降,循环系统类药品价格上升;4年间药品数量上升了许多倍.尤其是...     

中国投资者对股票代码的数字偏好及其影响

对上海证券交易所A股市场的分析表明,牛市行情时代码尾数为“4”的股票组合资产收益低于给定风险水平下的市场必要收益,而其他组的表现不明显。说明我国投资者对股票代码表现出部分数字偏好：对“4”存在刻意回避的现象,进而对代码以“4”结尾的股票的投资收益产生显著影响;但对“8”、“6”等吉利数字的偏好并不显著。同时,投资者回避“4”的行为只在牛市行情时表现明显,在熊市行情时趋向消失,说明投资者在熊市行情下的投资行为更为理性。     

Modern Rice Technologies and Productivity in the Philippines: Disentangling Technology from Managerial Gaps

Using cross‐sectional farm‐level data from 3,164 rice‐farming households in the Philippines, we measure the impact of modern rice technologies on farm productivity while disentangling technology gaps (the distance between production frontiers) from managerial gaps (differences in technical efficiency). To do so, we combine a recently developed stochastic production frontier framework with impact evaluation techniques to control for biases stemming from observables and unobservables. First, we find an adequate control group using propensity score matching to mitigate the effect of biases from observable variables. Then, we test for biases that might arise from unobserved variables using a stochastic frontier framework corrected for self‐selection. Finally, we estimate meta‐frontiers to assess productivity differences between adopters and non‐adopters. The analysis shows that the adoption of certified seeds has a significant and positive impact on productivity, efficiency and net income in rice farming.     

The impacts of information on returns from farming: evidence from a nationally representative farm survey in India

Using a nationally representative sample of farm households from India, this paper examines the impact of use of information on net farm incomes. Employing methodologies that mitigate potential biases in the estimation of the impact, the empirical results show that farmers who use information realize over 12% higher net returns per hectare. The paper also establishes a pecking order in access to information. Small farmers and those at the bottom of social hierarchy (based on caste) have access to fewer information sources, and they depend more on informal social networks and input dealers for their information needs. The larger farmers and those from upper caste rely relatively more on sources such as radio, television and newspaper.     

A Learning Design for Reducing Hypothetical Bias in the Contingent Valuation Method

Over the last few years a great deal of research has focussed on hypothetical bias in value estimates obtained with the contingent valuation (CV) method and on means for ameliorating if not eliminating such bias. To date, efforts to eliminate hypothetical bias have relied on calibration techniques or on word-smithing of one kind or another to induce subjects to provide responses to hypothetical questions that mimic responses made by subjects facing actual payments in the valuation experiment. This paper introduces a different approach for eliminating hypothetical bias. A design for a CV survey format is presented which provides subjects with the opportunity to learn how the CV institution works. Sequential referenda are conducted where respondents gain experience in CV settings by participating in both hypothetical and real referenda. The logic of this Learning Design is a straightforward application of the trials process used in experimental economics. We demonstrate that the Learning Design is effective in eliminating hypothetical bias in surveys concerning donations to two different public goods.     

回归模型中变量遗漏偏差补救的面板数据方法

建立计量经济模型时，忽视那些难于量化或无法获得观测数据的解释变量是一种最常见的处理方法，但这可能造成模型参数OLS估计量的变量遗漏偏差，一般的教材或研究文献没有谈及对其如何补救，该文提出一种采用面板数据和固定效应回归来对这种偏差进行补救的方法。