Moral Choice in an Agency Framework: The Search for a Set of Motivational Typologies

Moral choice, as a precursor to behaviour, has an important influence on the success or failure of business entities. According to Rest, 1983, Morality, Moral Behavior and Moral Development (John Wiley & Sons, New York), moral choice is prompted, amongst other things, by a motivational component. With this in mind, data obtained from a sample of four hundred financial sector operatives, employed in a rapidly developing region of China, was used to construct a relatively stable set of motivational typologies which could be used to predict choice within an agency-based context. A non-egoist version of the agency theory was developed, which permitted the modelling of alternative heuristic patterns. Altruists and persons identified as bordering on the verge of being classified as psychological egoists, refused to reorganize their motives when responding to a problem that included both moral hazard and adverse selection criteria. It was also possible to identify certain personal and contextual issues which discriminated between the typologies. Gordon Woodbine, Ph.D., FCPA is Senior Lecturer employed in the School of Accounting, Curtin University of Technology teaching undergraduate and post-graduate students in auditing, business ethics and governance. He has taught for extended periods overseas and is published in several refereed journals including Journal of Business Ethics, Asian Review of Accounting and Journal of Consumer Behaviour. Dennis Taylor Ph.D., FCPA is Chair Professor in Accounting at University of South Australia. Previously, he held professorial, associate dean, and head of school appointments at University of Adelaide, Curtin University of Technology and City University of Hong Kong. He is the author of over 100 publications in areas of corporate financial disclosures and public sector accountability.     

Should governments mandate more female board representation? Possible intended and unintended consequences

Using data on more than 4,000 product recalls, we recently found that firms whose boards of directors include more women are significantly faster to recall dangerously defective medical products. More specifically, adding just one female director to a board with no women did not speed recalls, but increasing from one female director to two, from two to three, and so on led to increasingly faster recalls. This provides initial evidence that consumer safety can be improved through including more women on companies’ boards. Assuming data from other settings support our findings, it is tempting to conclude that governments should mandate a certain level of female board representation, especially for firms in consumer product sectors such as medical devices, food, toys, and automobiles. We suggest, however, that policy makers need to carefully think through the possible intended and unintended consequences of dictating board composition in terms of gender. Meanwhile, wise companies will recognize the benefits of greater female board representation and will pursue it without government intervention.     

外部非局部自相似先验的图像去噪

针对在噪声水平比较高的情况下难以从噪声图像本身提取准确先验信息的问题,提出一种从外部干净图像数据集学习非局部自相似先验信息的图像去噪方法。首先用高斯混合模型学习外部干净图像的非局部自相似先验信息,其次利用最大后验概率估计的方法找到与噪声图像块最匹配的外部先验信息,最后利用外部先验对噪声图像块进行稀疏表示。实验对比表明,所提算法在去除噪声的同时可以较好地保留图像的细节信息,使图像数据集的平均峰值信噪比提高0.18 dB以上。     

应用加权高斯模型的非理想稀疏信道估计

在高速通信系统中,由于多径信道通常存在一些小的散射体,使得抽头向量不满足理想的稀疏特性,导致经典的稀疏估计算法存在一定的性能损失。针对上述非理想稀疏特性问题,提出了一种基于酉变换近似消息传递（Unitary Transform Approximate Message Passing,UT-AMP）和加权高斯（Weighting-Gaussian,WG）先验模型的稀疏估计算法。首先,由非理想稀疏信道的构造分析,导出了WG先验模型和参数;其次,利用贝叶斯公式对正交频分复用(Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing,OFDM)系统进行因式分解和因子图建模,归纳了在消息传递框架内期望最大化（Expectation Maximization,EM）算法嵌入方式,推导了联合UT-AMP和EM的信道估计算法;最后,建立仿真环境对所提算法进行复杂度分析和数值仿真。仿真结果表明,所提算法能够以同阶复杂度实现信道估计性能和频带利用率的提升,具有很高的应用和推广价值。     

Online representations of RVing neo-tribes in the USA and Australia

Road trips in recreational vehicles (RVs) are popular ways to experience freedom, warmer climates and flexibility in the USA as well as Australia. Ownership of such vehicles is increasing in both markets. Nevertheless, very little is known about the individuals who engage in RVing activities and about the neo-tribes that they form and organise through clubs. Also, cross-regional comparisons of RVers are currently missing from the literature. This article conducted analyses of the text (words and images) of websites belonging to two RV clubs in the USA and two clubs in Australia as well as of the websites of the countries' respective RV advocacy groups. The goal was to examine the specific neo-tribes as they were represented on these websites. The results revealed similarities but also clear differences, with the USA RV clubs appearing to be much more focussed on delivering the defining aspects of neo-tribes, such as fellowship, organisation of online scenes, and the facilitation of an RVing lifestyle.     

Implications of the EU Information and Consultation Directive and the Regulations in the UK – prospects for the future of employee representation

The EU Directive on informing and consulting employees (I&C Directive) is now established on the employment relations agenda with the provisions coming into force in the UK in April 2005. The I&C Directive potentially has far reaching consequences for the way UK employers inform and consult employees over a wide range of organizational issues, with the potential to transform the UK industrial relations environment. The initiatives contained in the I&C Directive and the subsequent introduction of the Information and Consultation of Employees (ICE) Regulations will take place in an employment relations environment in a period of significant change. Pressures of globalization have intensified competition in product and labour markets, emphasizing the need for greater efficiency and productivity. This has led to a greater focus on the link between employee participation practices and business strategy and organizational performance in search of an elusive (or illusory) fit? This paper is a commentary on the origins and rationale of this new legislation in the UK context, drawing on existing knowledge and academic debates in the area. In addition, the paper discusses the potential implications of the I&C Directive and the likely impact of the ICE Regulations on UK representative voice arrangements.     

地理信息可视化技术研究与实践

本文简要介绍了地理信息可视化的定义及作用,重点阐述了笔者在这个领域的实践和探索。     

International differences in willingness to pay for reduced risks due to risk representation: evidence from cross-country surveys in Northeast Asia

International benefit transfer from developed countries is often used to evaluate international aid projects due to the lack of primary study in the policy country, particularly when the policy country is a developing one. This paper shows that different countries may have considerable differences in their willingness to pay (WTP) for risk reduction using three surveys with the same protocol carried out around the same time in a coastal city in China, Japan, and South Korea. Japanese WTP is more than the South Korean one. Chinese WTP changes greatly depending on price adjustment coefficients: purchasing power price index or real exchange rate, but it is not impacted by risk reduction representation as in Japan and South Korea. This result suggests that more attention needs to be paid to the effect of international cultural settings when applying international benefit transfers.     

Gender organizing in China: a study of female workers' representation needs and their perceptions of union efficacy

This paper investigates gender organizing in China from the perspective of women employees in different industrial sectors and across ownership forms. It identifies women workers' views on their representation needs, level and effect of trade union activities, their related attitude towards unionism as well as alternative forms, if any, of organizing. The study reveals that women employees in government organizations, public sector, state-owned enterprises and private firms have significantly different needs and levels of identification with the union. It argues that the pluralism of employment relations in China across the spectrum of ownership forms and occupational groups should be given more recognition and attention than has been warranted.     

注册会计师虚假陈述民事责任若干基本观点

注册会计师出具的审计报告在本质上是一种特殊商品;现阶段在审理注册会计师虚假陈述证券民事赔偿案件时,判断审计报告真实性的现实标准只能是"法律真实"而不是"客观真实",会计、审计标准是衡量法律真实的直接依据;对审计报告"重大事件"的认定应优先采用"投资者决策标准";审计报告虚假陈述包括虚假记载、误导性陈述、重大遗漏和不正当披露四种形式;注册会计师审计报告虚假陈述民事赔偿责任的性质应为侵权责任,归责原则适用于过错推定原则;在认定注册会计师虚假陈述民事责任因果关系时,既科学又符合现实的方法是:信赖推定与事实推定相结合;同时,要建立完善的应对注册会计师民事责任的措施。