Digital Commons Network^™

The Value Of Nfts, Angelina Tham

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Non-fungible token stories have flooded the media since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. NFTs have changed the public’s views on art, finances, and the self. The emergence of Web 3 redefined ways of self expression with the help of NFTs. What are NFTs, how are they valuable, and how will they shape the future of digital art? The data visualization for this project indicates that the most popular type of crypto art is in the style of a profile picture. The discussion suggests that NFTs are in their infancy and there will be more to come from digital art, …

Lost In Digitization: Physical Products Are Vessels For Social Meaning, Oden H. Groth

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The explosion in digitization means that consumers increasingly have the opportunity to choose between digital and physical versions of products — for example, between an eBook and a paperback book. However, despite the popularity of digital objects, many people nonetheless prefer physical equivalents. This dissertation explores one reason why this may be the case; namely, that physical versions of objects and products are better vessels for social meaning. In chapter 1, explore the specialness of physical objects, and posit that materiality is critical for holding and embodying significance. In chapter 2, I investigate the effects of product format on perceptions …

Bondholders’ Influence On Corporate Disclosure: Evidence From Capital Expenditure Forecasts As A Firm’S Commitment, Sae Young Yoon

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This paper addresses how firms cater to bondholders’ demand for additional information by examining capital expenditure (capex) forecasts prior to bond issuance. While bondholders’ demand for additional information incentivizes firms to be more transparent, the importance of macroeconomic factors and comparable bonds outstanding in bond pricing might, however, decrease the benefit of additional disclosure. Using the difference-in-differences approach, I document that firms provide more capex forecasts prior to bond issuance. This increase in capex forecasts is detected when bonds are issued for capital expenditure purposes or when investment-restricting covenants protect bondholders. Next, I find that firms provide more conservative capex …

A Survey Study Of Speech-Language Therapists’ Experiences With Teletherapy At The Onset Of The Covid-19 Crisis, Jason A. Rosas

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The present study aimed to understand how delivering pediatric treatment services via ‘teletherapy’ affected speech-language therapists (SLTs) during the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis in 2020. SLTs reported on their experiences with the change from in-person to remote service delivery via two national surveys distributed at the start of the pandemic between April 2020 and July 2020. To explain SLTs’ survey responses, this dissertation introduced the Professional Adaptation Model (PA Model). The PA Model facilitated evaluation of the SLTs’ professional environment and the psychological constructs of their professional identity believed to influence the transition to speech-language teletherapy. Specifically, …

The Effects Of Network Structure And Social Information On Contribution Performance On Crowdfunding Platforms: An Experimental Investigation, Yanni Hu

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The long-term potentiality of online communities and activities depends critically on contribution behaviors of online individuals. In this dissertation, this study deepen and extend our understanding of contribution behavior by applying contributions to crowdfunding platforms, whereas social networks, social information, and social influence affect people’s contribution decisions, which in turn influences their contribution performances. Specifically, this study looked into how contribution behavior at crowdfunding platforms is shaped at a fundamental level of social interactions initiated by social and information technologies on contribution performance, using online and natural experiments as study methodologies.

Examining the effects brought by online social interactions on …

The Euro And Bumps In The Road: Historical Patterns Of Nonresident Holdings In Eurozone Bonds, 1980–2018, Michael H. Scarlatos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

A developed bond market which attracts nonresident investors both enables and reflects a host currency’s transition from domestic to international status. My analysis of historical private nonresident holdings of Eurozone portfolio debt securities spanning the euro’s 1999 creation and its subsequent 2008 crisis reveals diverging patterns.

This analysis, complemented by coefficient stability tests, discovers that the conversion of national currencies to the euro was reflected by a pickup in nonresident holdings of bonds issued by countries adopting the euro, especially those of the periphery (Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain) relative to the core (Germany, Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, and the …

Comparing The Environmental And Social Factors Of Uk And Us Firms: A Case For Stringent Disclosure Regulation, Jasmine Pybas

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Variation in “good” corporate behavior can be observed across countries. Corporate social re- sponsibility (CSR) can be measured with a quantifiable environmental, social, and governance (ESG) score, which was developed in part from investor demand. ESG scores are popular among investors to make sound, responsible investment decisions and corporations to demonstrate their commitment to sustainable business practices. In a comparison of environmental and social fac- tors of US and UK firms among three industries, the British outperform their American counter- parts. The degree of disclosure regulation by their respective financial authoritative bodies ac- counts for this discrepancy.

Just Between You And Me: Private Financial Transactions Signal Communal Traits And Enhance Others’ Willingness To Cooperate, Lennay Chapman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Increasingly, consumers’ everyday interactions are facilitated by online platforms. One notable feature of many online platforms is that they give consumers the ability to interact privately or publicly. Interacting publicly (e.g., by sending a public payment) can reveal private information pertaining to two or more consumers; this is known as co-owned information. The present work examines disclosure decisions about co-owned information in the context of peer-to-peer financial transactions. We propose that choosing a private mode of transacting represents a socially mindful behavior, as it considers partners’ preferences and preserves their future ability to keep private or disclose the transaction details. …

Economic Policy Uncertainty And Non-Gaap Reporting, Ryan H. Wynne

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study investigates the impact of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) on non-GAAP reporting. Prior research documents that numerous factors influence the frequency and quality of non-GAAP earnings disclosures, but the expected association between EPU and non-GAAP reporting is unclear. On the one hand, greater EPU may increase investor demand for additional financial information, while on the other hand, more EPU may lead to less non-GAAP disclosure by making core or recurring earnings more difficult to predict. Additionally, greater EPU may provide increased opportunity for managers to use non-GAAP reporting to mislead investors. I document a significantly positive association, on average, …

How Useful Do You Think This Diversity Training Is? The Impact Of Training Type And Individual Differences On Pre-Training Perceived Utility Of Diversity Training, Nicolette A. Rainone

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The effectiveness of diversity training has been debated by researchers, practitioners, and policy makers. This debate illustrates the varied perceptions regarding the utility of diversity training and suggests that many trainees enter these programs with the expectation that they are not useful. Uncovering the drivers of pre-training perceptions of utility will provide a deeper understanding of employee buy-in to such initiatives. It would also allow researchers and practitioners to unpack a key element of the training context to inform the design and delivery of diversity training programs. I examined diversity training type (i.e., whether the training is awareness-based, skills-based, or …

Empirical Essays On Contingent Convertible Capital Securities, Andrea Golfari

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of five chapters on contingent convertible capital securities, their macroprudential role within the regulatory capital stack of financial institutions, and the effects of the regulatory environments surrounding them on their design.

Chapter 1 This chapter briefly introduces this dissertation, including its motivation and structure.

Chapter 2 The first part of this chapter describes every design feature of contingent convertible capital instruments (CoCos) and provides a review of the literature on their role as macroprudential tools and on optimal CoCo design. The second part of the chapter offers a complete discussion of the role assigned to CoCos in …

Janus V. Afscme, Revisited, Benjamin Derek Morse

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In the days after the Supreme Court handed down its ruling in Janus v. AFSCME (2018)—a 5-4 conservative majority decision deeming the imposition of public union agency fees unconstitutional under the First Amendment—observers declared the end of public-sector unions. The Times called the ruling a “Sharp Blow ''[1] to organized labor. A Washington Post headline deemed the decision a “major blow”[1] [2] In the former piece, the Time’s Supreme Court correspondent wrote that “most of the labor movement’s strength these days is in the public sector. The [Janus] ruling contained a final blow for public …

Climate Change And Corporate Behaviors, Lei Lei

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of several chapters that span corporate disclosures on climate change-related impacts, environmental performance, common institutional ownership, and financial analyst coverage.

Chapter 1 This chapter briefly introduces this dissertation, including the motivation and structure.

Chapter 2 In this chapter, I exploit the oral and communicative nature of earnings conference calls to explore whether the discussions on climate change influence corporate environmental performance. I find strong and robust evidence that communications make firms engage more actively in environmentally beneficial investments, and thus, have better environmental profiles. Further evidence shows that mandatory disclosure may unexpectedly crowd out communications, and this …