Business Commons^™

Supervisor-Subordinate Communication In The Contemporary Audit Environment, Devon P. Jefferson

Theses and Dissertations

Just five years ago I was working as an Audit Manager in person (in the office or at the client site), amongst each of my subordinates, which made common work practices like knowledge sharing, responding to questions, and building team morale easy. Since then, remote work has become the new norm, which has significantly changed the communication dynamics between supervisors and subordinates. This dissertation is my personal pursuit to understanding how supervisor and subordinate auditors are currently interacting to achieve desired work outcomes, and identifying specific areas where challenges may exist. I accomplish this objective through four papers, including a …

A Review Of Government Financial Reporting Research Post-Gasb 34 And Investigations Of Gasb 54 Fund Balances, Brent L. Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation consists of three studies. My first study builds a literature review of state and local general-purpose government financial reporting research (including bond and financial condition research) after Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement No. 34’s issuance in 1999. The research referenced shows that reporting information after GASB 34 has, and will, continue to shape governmental financial reporting studies.

My second study examines both the rearrangement of governmental fund balance amounts after GASB Statement No. 54 and the factors associated with updated fund balance categories. My pooled ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions show that pre-standard “unreserved” fund balances had …

A View Into Reciprocity: Literature Review, Measurement Design, And Experiment, Kelly B. Green

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to discuss reciprocity and the role it plays in helping us understand interactions between parties in accounting settings. The concept of reciprocity states that individuals will reward kind behaviors and punish unkind behaviors. (Fisher et al. 2015; Fehr and Gächter 2000; Fehr and Gächter 1997). When trying to trace the origins of the theory of reciprocity, it is useful to track the initial constructs on which it is built from various literary sources. This process contributes to developing an understanding of how reciprocity is used to explain behaviors in the workplace. The notion of …

Spillover Effects And Freedom: An Experimental Investigation Of The Indirect Effects Of Managerial Autonomy And Firms’ Rationale For The Implementation Of Internal Controls Across The Organizational Hierarchy, Erin M. Masters

Theses and Dissertations

The creation of excessive budgetary slack can be costly, causing organizations to implement internal controls to motivate employees to report more honestly. Internal control research explores many control-related motivations; however, the behavioral effects of autonomy in expanded organizational hierarchies are not well understood in budgeting contexts. This paper examines managerial autonomy and firms’ rationales for the implementation of internal controls in a setting that extends the common participatory dyad utilized in prior literature to an organizational hierarchy that includes owners, mid-level managers, and employees. This setting is explored through the lens of self-determination theory and psychological reactance theory, which offer …

Favorability Of Financial And Nonfinancial Performance Measures And Analysts' Recommendations, Thomas F. Lewis Jr

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the extent to which sell-side analysts make full use of available financial and nonfinancial information signals in formulating stock recommendations. Prior research shows that investors rely strongly on sell-side analysts’ recommendations and that sell-side analysts pay considerable attention to nonfinancial measures in making their decisions. However, prior research has primarily focused on the mere presence of nonfinancial measures and not the extent to which the direction of such measures (i.e. favorability) is associated with firm value, or assessed the extent to which any interaction between financial measures and the direction of nonfinancial measures may influence analysts in …

Review Of Whistleblowing Studies In Accounting Research Examining Corporate Internal Whistleblowing Policy, Lei Gao

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three studies. The first study provides a review and synthesis of past accounting research regarding factors that influence whistleblowing. The second study is a content analysis to examine the variation of organizations’ internal whistleblowing policy, including both the content characteristics of the policy and the linguistic characteristics of the policy. In terms of the content characteristics of the whistleblowing policy, this study focuses on who is covered in the policy, where to report, employees’ responsibility, corporate investigation procedures, disciplinary action against the wrongdoer, and anti-retaliation policy. In terms of the linguistic characteristics of the internal whistleblowing …

Ceo Characteristics And The Choice Of Using Non-Financial Performance Measures In Compensation Contracts, Melloney C. Simerly Ph.D.

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how CEO characteristics influence the decision to use non-financial performance measures (NFPM) in compensation contracts. Specifically, I examine the CEO characteristics: gender, age, tenure, risk-aversion, overconfidence, and sensitivity of wealth. Using trait theory and the extant literature examining NFPM, females, age, tenure, and risk-aversion are expected to be positively associated with the use of NFPM while competing hypotheses are presented for overconfidence and sensitivity of wealth. Employing a two-way fixed effects method, controlling for fixed effects at the firm and year level, I find that female CEOs are positively associated with the use of NFPM because of …

Ceo Managerial Ability, Corporate Investment Quality, And The Value Of Cash, Huiqi Gan

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates how CEO managerial ability affects investment quality, investment efficiency, and the value of cash. Specifically, I examine whether higher managerial ability is associated with higher M&A quality, more efficient capital investments, and higher value of cash. Investment decision-making and implementation can signal a CEO’s managerial ability (Stein 2003), and shareholders assign more value to the cash of those firms with high ability CEOs. Thus, I predict that more able CEOs conduct higher quality M&A and make more efficient capital investment decisions. I also propose that the value of cash is higher for firms with more able CEOs. …

Can Fair Value Accounting Create A Cognitive Bias? The Effects Of Recognized Level 3 Fair Value On Manager Selling Decisions, Karen Y. Green

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of the discretion allowed in fair value accounting on manager selling decisions of Level 3 fair value assets and liabilities. Grounded in motivated reasoning and prospect theory, the discretion permitted for Level 3 fair value assets and liabilities is predicted to have behavioral consequences. The study employs a 2 X 2 between- participant design, manipulating a conservative level of the discretion used to ascertain the fair value (more or less conservative) and the volatility of the historically recognized fair value (low or high). Both graduate students and accounting professionals were asked to read a case …

Can Using The Internal Audit Function As A Training Ground For Management Deter Internal Auditor Fraud Reporting?, Christopher K. Eller

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of using the internal audit function as a training ground for management and fraud magnitude on internal auditor fraud reporting decisions. Using a 2x2 between-participants experiment, the current study manipulates the use of the internal audit function as a management training ground (used as a training ground vs. not used as a training ground) and fraud magnitude (large fraud, defined as 30 percent of net income vs. small fraud, defined as one percent of net income). The results indicate that internal auditors may be less likely to report a fraud to their superior when the …

Can Managerial Knowledge Of Executive Compensation Encourage Or Deter Real Earnings Management? An Analysis Of R&D Reporting Methods, Andrea Gouldman

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of research and development (R&D) reporting method and managerial knowledge of supervisor compensation on R&D project continuation decisions. The current study employs an experiment with a 2x3 between-participants design, manipulating both R&D reporting method (expense vs. capitalize) and knowledge of supervisor compensation (control group with no knowledge vs. knowledge of non-restricted stock compensation vs. knowledge of restricted stock compensation). Using salient short-term incentives to motivate real earnings management, this study demonstrates that capitalization may result in managers foregoing economically efficient R&D investment opportunities. The results indicate that managerial knowledge of supervisor compensation structure has little …

Organizational Culture, Job Satisfaction And Turnover Intentions: The Mediating Role Of Perceived Organizational Support, David Emerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates how the culture of an organization is related to the job satisfaction and turnover intentions of government accountants. I show that perceived organizational support serves as a mediator between organizational culture and both turnover intentions and job satisfaction. I evaluate how cultural effects have changed over time, and assess how the relations between the hypothesized associations differ between supervisory and staff accountants. I also look for differences in how accountants and primary care nurses may perceive organizational culture. I develop the constructs of interest, describe the proposed relationships, develop hypotheses, describe the sample frame, provide a detailed …

Disclosure And Compliance Practices And Associated Corporate Characteristics - A Study Of Listed Companies In India, Meha Kohli

Theses and Dissertations

The present study empirically investigates the level of compliance by listed Indian firms with disclosure requirements of Indian Accounting Standards. India’s Accounting Standards have been gradually converging with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) since 2001. India currently stands on the verge of adopting the International standards. Indian companies are working fervently towards adopting IFRS. This provides an extraordinary research environment to assess the level of compliance during this transitional time as well as lending an opportunity for a post adoption study. This study addresses two research questions developed to review annual reports of 156 listed Indian firms to determine …

Fair-Value Accounting Of Derivatives And The Heterogeneity Of Investor Beliefs, Jack Dorminey

Theses and Dissertations

Using a sample of 51 banking organizations, I examine the effect of the Statement of Financial Accounting Standard 133 on the belief heterogeneity of market participants and how this heterogeneity affects abnormal trading volume surrounding earnings announcements. SFAS 133 is the first standard to require that all derivatives be recognized at fair-value and that the fluctuations in derivative fair-values be reported in either net income or other comprehensive income. The behavior of derivative instruments and the fair-valuation and treatment prescribed by SFAS 133 are complex. Due to the underlying complexity of both derivatives and the accounting treatment prescribed by the …

Insider Entrenchment And Ceo Compensation In Entrepreneurial Firms: An Empirical Investigation, Arno Forst

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the effects of insider entrenchment on Chief Executive Officer (CEO) compensation in firms conducting an initial public offering (IPO). The sample comprises 220 US firms that went public between 1996 and 2002. Corporate governance choices regarding entrenchment are captured by six provisions in the corporate charter and bylaws, as well as five anti-takeover statutes, which may or may not be in effect in the state of incorporation. Firm-level items are supermajority requirements for charter amendments, bylaws amendments, and merger approvals, along with the presence or absence of a staggered board of directors, poison pills, and golden parachute …

The Effects Of Reputation Threat And Whistle-Blowing Report Source On Chief Audit Executives' Investigation Decisions, Cynthia Guthrie

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the effects of reputation threats and anonymous whistle-blowing channels on Chief Audit Executives’ (CAEs) decisions to investigate whistle-blowing allegations. Participants were 94 CAEs and Deputy CAEs from publicly traded companies in the eastern half of the United States. Participants received whistle-blowing reports from either an anonymous or a non-anonymous source. In the high reputation threat condition the whistle-blowing report alleged that the wrongdoing was perpetrated by the exploitation of substantial weaknesses in internal controls that had been previously evaluated by external auditors and the internal audit function. The report in the lower threat condition alleged that the …

The Performance Effects Of Latent Factors On Assimilation Of Commercial Open-Source Erp Software On Small-Medium Enterprises, Sandra Cereola

Theses and Dissertations

This study tests a theoretical model developed to investigate the impact of assimilation of commercial open source enterprise resource planning software (COSES) in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Specifically, the model explains how the top management team’s (TMT’s) information technology (IT) knowledge and experience impact both assimilation and firm performance. The hypotheses were tested using survey data from SMEs that have implemented COSES. Results from structural equation modeling suggest that SMEs benefit, through higher levels of assimilation and performance, from adopting innovative enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems such as COSES when they have a TMT that has experience with …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Lifestyle Choice In Public Accounting, Ambrose Jones Iii

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the effects of healthy lifestyle of auditors in public accounting as a mitigating influence between role stress and job outcomes (performance, satisfaction, and turnover). Based on coping and self-determination theories, the study was designed to investigate the impact of healthy lifestyle as a coping measure that is within the control of the individual, regardless of firm policies or the firm's work environment.To address the research issues, a survey was conducted of professional auditors employed by a large national public accounting firm with offices located throughout the United States. The sample included 1,026 auditors from various regions of …

An Empirical Study Of Executive Management Team Compensation And Company Performance, Gregory A. Jonas

Theses and Dissertations

Increasing compensation disclosures mandated by the Securities Exchange Commission provide transparency that allows more shareholders to question the results produced by highly compensated executives. The popular business press often decries the apparent imbalance between executive pay and firm performance. Published academic research has responded with hundreds of studies attempting to explain executive pay in terms of firm performance. The preponderance of these studies focus on Chief Executive Officers. This study empirically examines executive compensation for team effects on future firm performance.Applying a firm specific fixed-effects model to a sample of 13,021 firm-year observations from ExecuComp, the current study regresses top …

An Experimental Analysis Of The Impact Of Goal Orientation, Ethical Orientation, And Personality Traits On Managers' And Accountants' Abilities To Recognize Misappropriation Of Assets, Wendy Walston Achilles

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the impact of knowledge, experience, goal orientation, ethical orientation, and personality traits on managers' and accountants' abilities to recognize misappropriation of assets. Participants included students and professionals. The student group included upper-level accounting majors and upper-level management majors. The professional group included students enrolled in an introductory accounting course for their MBA program and internal auditors from a variety of organizations. Findings in the study show that accounting students assessed the possibility that fraud was in progress at a higher level than the management students, suggesting that the accounting students acquire basic knowledge about fraud from the …

Sec Regulation Of Corporate 10k Filing Dates: The Effect On Earnings Management And Market Recognition, Robert W. Russ

Theses and Dissertations

In November 2002, the Securities and Exchange Commission released a final ruling regarding a filing requirement change. The proposed requiredment change was for domestic companies to file annual and quarterly reports within 60 and 30 days, respectfully. This requirement was recommended for companies with a market value of at least $75 million and would reduce by 30 days the time allowed to file these reports. The Wall Street Journal article announcing this proposal stated the change was an effort to address some of the problems arising from accounting scandals such as the Enron scandal of 2001. A potential added benefit …

An Investigation Of The Impact Of Corporate Governance On Decision To Expense Employee Stock Options, Ling Jiang

Theses and Dissertations

Corporations have the choice of expensing (using the fair value method), or non-expensing (using the intrinsic value method and provide pro forma disclosure in financial statement footnotes) of employee stock options. The current study examines how corporate governance factors affect such choices. Prior studies (Xie et al. 2003; Klein 2002; Peasnell et al. 2000) have indicated that certain corporate governance factors have an impact on corporate accounting behavior, including earnings management. Based on the assumption that expensing employee stock options is a good practice of accounting that improves earnings quality, it is hypothesized that these corporate governance factors would affect …

Do Investors Over-React To Patterns Of Past Financial Performance Measures?, Abdulaziz Alwathainani

Theses and Dissertations

The objectives of this thesis are threefold. First, this dissertation examines whether patterns (growth and consistency in growth) of firms' past financial performance influence investors' perceptions about stock values and future performance of these firms. Second, multiple estimation horizons of past performance variables (ranging from one to five years) are used to assess whether the interaction between growth patterns and measurement interval lengths of these variables influence investor expectations. Third, this thesis examines whether an intermediate price drifts (e.g. Jegadeesh and Titman [1993]) and subsequent long-horizon price reversal (e.g. DeBondt and Thaler (1985)] are manifestations of a market over-reaction as …

The Harmonization Of Chinese Accounting Standards With International Accounting Standards: An Empirical Evaluation, Songlan Peng

Theses and Dissertations

Using China as the case of a developing country, this study empirically evaluates whether the efforts made by China since the early 1990s to harmonize their domestic standards with IAS have been successful. Four research questions are addressed and eight hypotheses are developed to investigate the current level of harmonization and whether the extent of harmonization improves with the issuance of the most recent Chinese GAAP. Chinese 1992 GAAP, 1998 GAAP, and 2001 GAAP are reviewed and compared with IAS to evaluate de jure harmonization of Chinese GAAP with IAS (that is, harmonization in standards). Firms that issue both A …

An Empirical Investigation Of A Choice Of Accounting Method For Investments By Colleges And Universities: Positive Accounting Theory Applied In A Not-For-Profit Environment, Bruce W. Chase

Theses and Dissertations

The reasons why managers make certain accounting method choices have been explored by accounting researchers for some time. For over ten years, much of this research has been driven by positive accounting theory, which is based on the underlying assumption that managers act rationally to maximize their own personal wealth when making accounting method choices. This study is an initial attempt to extend positive accounting theory research to a not-for-profit setting; specifically, the choice of accounting method for endowment investments by colleges and universities is examined.

The three objectives of this study are: 1) to determine if the findings of …