Business Commons^™

Stock Liquidity And Default Risk Around The World, Sivathaasan Nadarajah, Huu Nhan Duong, Searat Ali, Benjamin Liu, Allen Huang

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We document the negative effect of stock liquidity on default risk for a sample of 46 countries. We further find that default risk declines following the introduction of the Directive on Markets in Financial Instruments (MiFID)—an exogenous shock that increases liquidity. The effect of liquidity on default risk is more pronounced in countries with poorer investor protection and information environments. Further, this effect is attenuated (strengthened) for firms with greater information efficiency (governance monitoring). Overall, our findings highlight the important role of regulatory settings in shaping the impact of stock liquidity on default risk in international markets.

Identity Work By A Non-White Immigrant Business Scholar: Autoethnographic Vignettes Of Covering And Accenting, Mario Fernando, James Reveley, Mark Learmonth

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

How do immigrants with multiple sources of identity deal with the identity tensions that arise from misidentification within the workplace? In order to answer this question, we reposition two under-researched self-presentational identity work strategies - covering and accenting - as particular types of intersectional identity work. Adopting a minoritarian perspective, we apply this framework to an autoethnographic study of a non-white business scholar's identity work. To the extent that covering and accenting allow the scholar to draw identity resources from non-threatening and widely available social identities, we find that this work enables him to avoid being discredited in the eyes …

The Congruence Effect Between Product Emotional Appeal And Country-Based Emotion: The Moderating Role Of Country-Of-Origin, Felix Septianto, Tung M. Chiew, Nguyen T. Thai

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Previous research has suggested that country-based emotions (i.e., emotions associated with a country) can influence consumer evaluations of a product from that country. However, it remains unclear when and how country-based emotions can be influential in consumer decision making. The results from an experiment reveal that only for a destination with a less favorable country-of-origin image will the match (vs. mismatch) between the country-based emotion and the emotional appeal of the product advertisement increase the purchase likelihood of the product. These findings are beneficial for local brands in that they can promote tourist spending at their destination by cooperating with …

Does Practice Make Micro-Entrepreneurs Perfect? An Investigation Of Expertise Acquisition Using Effectuation And Causation, Nadeera Ranabahu, Mary Barrett

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This paper reports on a study testing whether and how the use of effectuation and causation logics influences deliberate practice in businesses started by microfinance borrowers ("micro-entrepreneurs") in Sri Lanka. Using mixed methods, we surveyed clients of a large Sri Lankan microfinance institution and deepened findings from the survey through 24 interviews. In this way, we identified specific patterns of relationships between principles of the two logics and five elements of deliberate practice identified in the expertise literature from cognitive science. We found that both effectual and causal logics (but not effectuation alone) facilitate deliberate practice, an important result since …

Towards An Environmentally Sustainable Rental Housing Sector, Troy W. Heffernan, Emma Elizabeth Heffernan, Nina Reynolds, Wai Jin (Thomas) Lee, Paul Cooper

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Rental houses in Australia represent approximately one third of all homes, and this proportion has been growing over recent decades. However, the quality, comfort and environmental credentials of these houses are often poor, particularly when compared to owner-occupied homes. With climate change, the urgency increases to move to a more sustainable built environment. Consequently, exploring how to make rental properties more sustainable warrants further investigation and action. Using data gathered from a broad range of experts through a four-stage Policy Delphi technique, findings reveal four key enabling forces: communication, facilitation, incentivization, and regulation. These forces both influence and are influenced …

Finding Convergence: Economic Perspectives And The Economic Practices Of An Australian Ecovillage, Oriana Price, Simon Ville, Emma Elizabeth Heffernan, Belinda Kathlyn Gibbons, Mary Johnsson

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

2020 The practices of ecologically-minded alternative communities illuminate differing perspectives on what might constitute an economy. This paper explores the extant literature and presents a framework for considering four spheres of confluence between the modern market economy and diverse economies: economic production practices, attitudes towards growth, environmental responsiveness and the socialrelational context of transactions. Drawing on evidence from an Australian ecovillage, the paper adopts the framework presented as a means of understanding the experiences of cooperatively negotiating various practices necessary to establish an intentionally sustainable community economy. Through this analysis, the paper provides insights into ways ecovillages may operate in …

University-Led Internships For Innovative Thinking: A Theoretical Framework, Nadeera Ranabahu, Shamika Almeida, Elias Kyriazis

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Purpose - This article explains how business internships can be used to develop innovation skills in undergraduates. Design/methodology/approach - Using work-integrated learning and current literature on innovation, this article proposes a theoretical framework to design, implement, and measure outcomes of Innovation-Focused Internships (IFIs). The article also uses an illustrative case study from an Australian university to discuss practical use of this framework. Findings - The theoretical framework illustrates that stakeholders (i.e., students, industry, and university) need a common goal. Factors associated with managing innovation and student placements are key features of the framework. The illustrative case study demonstrates ways in …

Asymmetric Impact Of Earnings News On Investor Uncertainty, Zihang Peng, David Johnstone, Demetris Christodoulou

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We describe a model that predicts an asymmetric impact of disclosure on investor uncertainty. We show that good news tends to resolve more uncertainty than bad news, and that uncertainty can be revised upwards if the investors' prior belief is sufficiently strong and the signal is sufficiently bad. This result is in contrast to classical disclosure models, where new information always resolves uncertainty and the change in uncertainty depends only on the relative precision of the news. Using option‐implied volatility as a proxy for uncertainty, we find strong support for our predictions. We also show that our results are robust …

Lean Six Sigma And Quality Frameworks In Higher Education - A Review Of Literature, Janelle Davidson, Oriana Price, Matthew P. Pepper

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: This paper aims to present a review of literature that considers the use of quality frameworks in higher education (HE). Quality frameworks provide a minimum standard of teaching and learning of students. This systematic literature review identifies the tools and techniques to continuously improve the systems and processes that underpin teaching and learning are missing. With this in mind, the authors present a focus on Lean Six Sigma (LSS) as an improvement methodology adopted by the HE sector and present the factors that drive or hinder the implementation of LSS in higher education institutions (HEIs). …

Green Reputation Of Hotel Improvement Through Green Accounting And Harmonious Culture, Tjokorda Raka, I Astawa, Parulian Silaen

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This study aims to test green accounting which is moderated by harmonious culture (green culture) in building a green reputation of a hotel. Green accounting activities consisted of environmental awareness, environmental involvement, and environmental reporting. The concept of harmonious culture emphasises the harmonisation with God, human being, and the environment to reach happiness. The implementation of the two variables legitimates a green hotel, and therefore acts as a signal for consumers to help in hotel selection. Quantitative analysis with Partial Least Square (PLS) method was used to process data collected through questionnaires. Sampling was conducted using purposive sampling with criteria …

Network Resilience Modelling: A New Zealand Forestry Supply Chain Case, Paul Childerhouse, Mohammed Al Aqqad, Quan Zhou, Carel Bezuidenhout

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

2020, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The objective of this research is to model supply chain network resilience for low frequency high impact disruptions. The outputs are aimed at providing policy and practitioner guidance on ways to enhance supply chain resilience. Design/methodology/approach: The research models the resilience of New Zealand's log export logistical network. A two-tier approach is developed; linear programming is used to model the aggregate-level resilience of the nation's ports, then discrete event simulation is used to evaluate operational constraints and validate the capacity of operational flows from forests to ports. Findings: The synthesis of linear programming and discrete …

Employee Voice In A Semi‐Rural Hospital: Impact Of Resourcing, Decision‐Making And Culture, Shamika Almeida, Elizabeth Frino, Marianna Milosavljevic

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of this paper is to understand current employee voice arrangements within a semi‐rural hospital and the implications for the engagement of healthcare professionals. The Job Demands‐Resources (JDR) model is used to explore how organisational mechanisms (resourcing, decision‐making processes and culture) provide a voice for staff. We adopt a single case study approach using in‐depth interviews with healthcare professionals in a semi‐rural public hospital in Australia. The study found that the semi‐rural context, characterised by high levels of centralised decision‐making and resourcing and low levels of confidentiality and anonymity, has limited employee voice and the ability for staff to …

A Toilet Paper Run Is Like A Bank Run. The Economic Fixes Are About The Same, Alfredo R. Paloyo

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Panic buying knows no borders. Shoppers in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong and the United States have caught toilet paper fever on the back of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Shop shelves are being emptied as quickly as they can be stocked. This panic buying is the result of the fear of missing out. It’s a phenomenon of consumer behaviour similar to what happens when there is a run on banks. A bank run occurs when depositors of a bank withdraw cash because they believe it might collapse. What we’re seeing now is a toilet-paper run.

Intergenerational Transmission Of Body Mass And Obesity Status In Australia, Adrian James, Silvia Mendolia, Alfredo R. Paloyo

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We are grateful to two anonymous reviewers and the editor, Professor Garry Barrett, for comments and suggestions that improved the manuscript. In particular, we would like to acknowledge their openness to the use of "people‐first language" when talking about persons with obesity. Likewise, we are thankful to seminar participants at the Center for Health Economics at Monash University and the Asian Development Bank. We also benefitted from conference and workshop participants at the International Health Economics Association Conference in Basel, the Workshop on the Economics of Health, Inequality, and Behavior at Macquarie University, and the Applied Econometrics Workshop at Victoria …

Effect Of Corporate Tax Avoidance Activities On Firm Bankruptcy Risk, Anirudh Dhawan, Liangbo Ma, Maria H. Kim

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Corporate tax avoidance has been shown to raise the cost of bank debt and lower credit and bond ratings. However, it is unclear whether tax avoidance actually increases a firm’s bankruptcy risk or whether it is just viewed negatively by banks and rating agencies. We find that firms engaging in tax avoidance and firms that are thinly capitalized face higher bankruptcy risk. To account for endogeneity and functional form misspecification, we verify our results using instrumental variable and propensity score matching methods. Our findings are consistent with the view that tax avoidance is a risk-enhancing activity.

The Coronavirus Contact Tracing App Won't Log Your Location, But It Will Reveal Who You Hang Out With, Roba Abbas, Katina Michael

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

The federal government has announced plans to introduce a contact tracing mobile app to help curb COVID-19's spread in Australia. However, rather than collecting location data directly from mobile operators, the proposed TraceTogether app will use Bluetooth technology to sense whether users who have voluntarily opted-in have come within nine metres of one another.

Turning To Easter Eggs To Get Through These Dark Times? Here’S The Bitter Truth About Chocolate, Stephanie Perkiss, Cristiana Bernardi, John Dumay

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

The coronavirus might make Easter celebrations a little subdued this year, but that doesn’t mean going without chocolate eggs. In fact, South Australia’s chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier reportedly said people should partake in the Easter treats “to cheer ourselves up … I’ve certainly got a good supply of chocolate eggs already”. But before you fill your shopping trolley (online or virtual) with chocolate, we urge you to think twice about whether it’s ethically produced. Most chocolate consumed globally, including in Australia, comes from the Ivory Coast and Ghana in West Africa - which together account for about 60% …

Changes In Health-Related Quality Of Life: A Compensating Income Variation Approach, Paul Mcnamee, Silvia Mendolia

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This paper investigates the relationship between negative changes in health and life satisfaction, using a sample from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics of Australia Survey. We use panel data models and estimate the life satisfaction impact of several different changes in health status to calculate the Compensating Income Variation (CIV) of them. Our work innovates with respect to the existing literature by using a more robust CIV method that takes account of the potential measurement error in income. Further, we produce the first set of monetary values for health losses using SF-6D utility values, one of the main measures …

Cultural Capital Of Recruitment Decision‐Makers And Its Influence On Their Perception Of Person‐Organisation Fit Of Skilled Migrants, Shamika Almeida, Marie-France Waxin, Yin Paradies

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This article examines how recruitment decision‐makers' cultural capital can influence their concerns about the organizational fit of skilled migrants (SM). We used survey data and interviews with Information Technology organizations in Australia. The study highlights the decision‐makers' relatively poor understanding of non‐western cultures and how it negatively influences their perception of candidates from non‐western backgrounds. Furthermore, this study also notes how organisational cultural values and decision‐makers' exposure to diverse cultures can influence their assumptions about the value of international qualifications and work experiences. Similarly, it can also influence how they assess the perception of fit based on a candidate's appearance …

The Enduring And Evolving Influence Of Ball And Brown (1968), Karen L. Benson, Millicent M. Chang, Philip Gray, Sue Wright

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Background In this virtual special issue (VSI) we acknowledge the contribution of Ball and Brown (1968) [BB68] and select some key papers from the Australian Journal of Management (AJM), published since its inception in 1976, that demonstrate how Ball and Brown influenced, and in many cases inspired, the research agendas of Australian and New Zealand researchers. AJM is particularly proud to acknowledge the connection with Ray Ball and Philip Brown. Not only did these scholars strongly influence the research agenda of AJM authors but Ray and Philip were both instrumental in the establishment and development of the Journal. The Australian …

Real‐Time Inflation Forecast Combination For Time‐Varying Coefficient Models, Bo Zhang

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We use real‐time macroeconomic variables and combination forecasts with both time‐varying weights and equal weights to forecast inflation in the USA. The combination forecasts compare three sets of commonly used time‐varying coefficient autoregressive models: Gaussian distributed errors, errors with stochastic volatility, and errors with moving average stochastic volatility. Both point forecasts and density forecasts suggest that models combined by equal weights do not produce worse forecasts than those with time‐varying weights. We also find that variable selection, the allowance of time‐varying lag length choice, and the stochastic volatility specification significantly improve forecast performance over standard benchmarks. Finally, when compared with …

Do Accruals Earnings Management Constraints And Intellectual Capital Efficiency Trigger Asymmetric Cost Behaviour? Evidence From Australia, Yiru Yang

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This study examines whether accruals earnings management constraints and intellectual capital (IC) efficiency affect asymmetric cost behaviour by analysing data for the 1990 to 2016 period on firms listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. The analysis reveals that, on average, anti-sticky cost behaviour occurs when firms have limited ability to engage in accrual earnings management to manipulate earnings in the current year. Further, IC efficiency - particularly human capital efficiency - increases the degree of cost stickiness. This study also finds that the degree of asymmetric cost behaviour is more pronounced in the post-International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) period than …

Loan Financing And Investment In Princeling-Backed Firms, Qing Li, Qigui Liu, Shiguang Ma, Gary G. Tian

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This study investigates the role of princelings in Chinese listed firms. Our findings suggest that princelings ensure better access to bank loans for non-SOEs but bring no significant benefits to SOEs. Our empirical results further indicate that bank lending decisions are distorted for princeling-backed firms due to the privileges and protections they can obtain from the higher levels of the government through princelings' family ties. Moreover, we find that, due to excess long-term bank loans, princeling-backed non-SOEs tend to overinvest, which ultimately results in lower investment efficiency. Furthermore, we use the difference-in-difference method to capture the effect of the exogenous …

Financial Contagion And Economic Development: An Epidemiological Approach, Alberto Bucci, Davide La Torre, Danilo Liuzzi, Simone Marsiglio

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We develop an epidemiological approach to analyze how financial contagion may affect and be affected by economic activity. We show that, according to specific parameter values, the economy may converge either to a non-speculative or to a speculative equilibrium: in the former situation the level of per capita income is maximal, while in the latter it is reduced by financial contagion. The presence of economic and financial feedback effects may also give rise to macroeconomic fluctuations during the transitional path, clearly showing that such economic and financial links are an important driver of the short run macroeconomic performance. By extending …

Duration Of Equity Overvaluation And Managers' Choice To Use Aggressive Underlying Earnings Disclosure And Accrual-Based Earnings Management: Australian Evidence, Yiru Yang, Indra Abeysekera

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines whether equity overvaluation duration influences managers' choice of different earnings management mechanisms and how corporate governance and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission's underlying earnings disclosure guidelines influence managers' choices. The study samples Australian Securities Exchange 200 firms from 2009 to 2016. Findings show that on average, firms more likely engage in accrual-based earnings management in the early overvaluation stage. In later stages, firms more likely disclose underlying earnings aggressively to sustain overvaluation. Additionally, firms with a high proportion of independent directors on the board prefer to disclose underlying earnings aggressively to sustain the equity overvaluation; firms …

Financial Loss Of Life: The Homo Sacer In The Third Reich, Erin J. Twyford

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how the Aryanisation program of Nazi Germany created a financial loss of life for Jewish victims. This program led to further losses including political and actual life within the concentration camps and gas chambers.

Design/methodology/approach This paper utilises Agamben's (1995, 2002, 2005) concepts of biopolitics, the homo sacer and the state of exception. I examine business histories of the firm The Interessen Gemeinshaft der Deutschen Teerfarbenindustrie (the 'Community of Interest of the German Dyestuff Industry' known hereafter as 'I.G. Farben'), German legislation and other historical documents to construct a close reading …

Mixed Views In The Academy: Academic And Student Perspectives About The Utility Of Developing Work-Ready Skills Through Wil, Lisa Mcmanus, Laura L. Rook

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Work-integrated Learning (WIL) can be a vehicle for the development of students' work-ready skills. This paper presents the views of undergraduate business students and academics about the role and perceived importance of work-ready skills in the business curriculum and the perceived role of WIL activities in enabling the development of work-ready skills. A total of 50 business students and 24 academics from a number of faculties across the university participated. While students and academics both agree that a combination of on and off campus WIL activities are most effective for developing work-ready skills, students and academics hold different views to …

The Changing Importance Of Vacations: Proposing A Theoretical Explanation For The Changing Contribution Of Vacations To People's Quality Of Life, Melanie J. Randle, Ye Zhang, Sara Dolnicar

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

Vacations are assumed to be important to everyone because they improve quality of life through personal growth, self-fulfilment (McCabe & Johnson, 2013), improved mental health (Gilbert & Abdullah, 2004) and physical health (Chen & Petrick, 2013), leading to higher work performance (De Bloom, Geurts, & Kompier, 2013) and greater leisure life satisfaction (Neal, Sirgy, & Uysal, 1999). Vacations also benefit vulnerable groups, such as people with health issues and disabilities, and low-income families (Gump and Matthews, 2000, McCabe and Johnson, 2013, Pritchard et al., 2011). Contradicting the assumption that vacations are important to everyone, some empirical evidence suggests people differ …

Engineering-Based Design Methodology For Embedding Ethics In Autonomous Robots, Lindsay Robertson, Roba Abbas, Gursel Alici, Albert Munoz, Katina Michael

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

This paper explores the design process of robotics and autonomous systems using a co-design approach, applied ethics, and values-driven methods. Specifically, the approach seeks to move beyond traditional risk assessment toward a greater consideration of end-user exposure. The goal of the ethics-based co-design approach is to identify end-user and stakeholder values that guide the minimization of end-user vulnerability associated with the employment of autonomous systems. This design process is also used to identify positive consequences that probably increase human wellbeing as opposed to simply avoiding harm. We argue that biomedical autonomous systems design, during the preclinical phase, should bring together …

Making Cause-Related Corporate Social Responsibility (Csr)Count In Holiday Accommodation Choice, Melanie J. Randle, Astrid Kemperman, Sara Dolnicar

Faculty of Business - Papers (Archive)

We test how different presentations of cause-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives affect the choice of holiday accommodation bookings. Results of a stated choice experiment indicate that - for the tourist population as a whole - information about CSR initiatives affects choice only minimally. One market segment emerges, however, that is highly responsive to all types of CSR message presentations: positive and negative framing, and local and international causes. This tourist segment is characterized by a distinct socio-demographic profile, thus representing a promising target market for tourism managers engaging in cause-related CSR strategies. Other tourist segments are sensitive to the …