Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigating audit quality among Big 4 Malaysian firms

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to contemplate the degree to which technical expertise in Malaysian Big 4 auditing practice survives periods of material regulatory inflexion sufficiently to underpin quality financial reporting outcomes. Design/methodology/approach - The adoption of IAS in Malaysia in 2006 introduced a highly technical standard (financial reporting standards – FRS 136) which impacted not only preparers but also auditors of financial statements. This transition period represents a unique opportunity to interrogate the content of financial statements drawn up under new and complex standards, with a view to gaining insight into the quality of oversight offered by the audit profession. Findings - Contrary to the view within the extant literature that there is homogeneity in audit quality among Big 4 firms, this paper reports substantial cross-sectional variation among the sample of Big 4 Malaysian audit firms and reports on distinctly poor compliance levels. Research limitations/implications - The research focuses on compliance with various requirements under FRS 136 – Practical implications - The results raise questions about audit quality among the sample firms and the robustness of regulatory oversight institutions operating within Malaysia. Originality/value - This research illustrates a novel approach to examining the issue of audit quality by introducing a compliance quality approach focusing on note-form disclosures.
Use of the e-business reception model to compare the level of advanced e-business solutions reception in service and manufacturing companies

Reception of e-business solutions is one of the challenges emerging in the new economy, which contemporary companies have to face. The level of e-business reception acts as an indirect determinant for the level of competitiveness of a company. This paper explores the results of the studies on the original e-business reception model (EBRM). The focus of the studies in question was on two groups of companies, that is, manufacturing and service companies. As the findings of these studies reveal, between the two focus groups, service-oriented companies have a higher level of reception of e-business solutions.
PENGARUH PEMANFAATAN SISTEM INFORMASI AKADEMIK (SISKA) TERHADAP KINERJA INDIVIDUAL DENGAN KEGUNAAN PERSEPSIAN SEBAGAI VARIABEL MODERATING

The objective of research is to understand the influence of the use of academic information system (SISKA = sistem informasi akademik) on individual performance with the perceived useful as the moderating variable. Research population includes employees of Faculty of Economic and Business, University of Brawijaya Malang, which the total is 112 respondents. Sampling method is purposive sampling. All population members meet sample criteria, but the sample is only those meeting research criteria. The employee who has used SISKA is 45 freelances and 67 civil servants. The sample which meets criteria is counted to 71 respondents. Data are collected through questionnaire. The questionnaire has been examined with reliability and validity tests. The classical assumption test includes multi- collinearity test, normality test and heteroscedasticity test. Hypothesis test is followed by T-test. Result of research indicates that the variable of the use of academic information system (SISKA) has positive and significant impact on individual performance. the variable of perceived useful is moderating the variable of the use of academic information system (SISKA) which is then influencing individual performance, and in such that, the variable of perceived useful represents the moderating variable. Keywords: The Use of Information System, Perceived Useful, Individual Performance
Forest Certification and ISO 14001: Current State and Motivation in Forest Companies

In this study, we explore the current state of specific corporate responsibility practices in the global forest sector. We compare the motivations for the leading forest industry companies to invest in certification from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), and in the ISO 14001 environmental management system. For the empirical investigation, we use quantitative survey data collected from 60 of the world's leading forestry companies. This study's empirical results indicate that incentives for adopting forest certification are more often external rather than internal, and more market driven than regulation driven, which would suggest the dominance of extrinsic motivation. The results also indicate that the adoption of ISO 14001 certification represents a reactive strategic approach, emphasizing customer satisfaction as a key motivation. Motivations differ depending on the firm's business sector and the geographical location of its headquarters. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
Sources of Growth in the Indian Economy

This paper empirically examines India's economic growth experience during 1960-2004, focusing on the post 1973 acceleration. Careful attention is paid to data quality. The analysis focuses on two unusual dimensions of India's experience -- the concentration of growth in services production, and the modest levels of human and physical capital accumulation. A growth accounting analysis disaggregates by major sector, and highlights implications for aggregate productivity growth of the reallocation of resources out of agriculture to more productive activities in industry and services. But concerns are raised that growth in services may be overstated. India will need to broaden its current expansion to provide manufactured goods for the world market and jobs for its large pool of low-skilled workers. Increased public saving, as well as a rise in foreign saving -- particularly FDI -- could augment the rising household saving and support the increased investment necessary to sustain rapid growth.
Investigating the Distribution of Chemical Forms of Sulfur in Prostate Cancer Tissue Using X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy

The use of synchrotron radiation may shed more light on the study of prostate cancer, one of the leading diseases among men. In the presented study the microbeam setup at the PSI Swiss Light Source combined with fluorescence detected X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) was applied to determine two-dimensional (2D) imaging of distributions of various chemical sulfur forms in prostate cancer tissue sections, since sulfur is considered important and essential in cancer progression. The research focused on prostate tissues obtained during routine prostatectomies on patients suffering from prostate cancer. Our previous studies using μ-XAS point measurements on prostate cancer cell lines showed the differences in fractions of various forms of sulfur between cancerous and non-cancerous cells. Therefore, in this experiment the chosen areas of prostate cancer tissues were scanned to get the full picture of the chemical composition of tissue, which is highly heterogeneous. The incident X-ray beams of energies tuned to spectroscopic features of the near-edge region of sulfur K-edge absorption spectra were used to provide contrast between chemical species presented in the tissue. Next, the relative content of the three main sulfur forms, found in biological systems, was calculated and the results are presented in a form of 2D color maps. These maps are correlated with the microscopic histological image of the scanned area. The main findings show that sulfur occurs in prostate tissue mainly in reduced form. The oxidized form of sulfur is present mostly in prostatic stroma, while sulfur in intermediate oxidation state is present in trace amount.
Competition from Specialized Firms and the Diversification-Performance Linkage

In this study, we show that the effect of diversification on performance is not homogeneous across industries and explore analytically and empirically the implications of this finding for the diversification literature. Diversified firms perform better in industries with a small number of nondiversified competitors or, equivalently, when specialized firms have a small combined market share, but worse as the presence of specialized firms increases in the industries in which they compete. The results are robust to the use of methods that alleviate the self-selection problem and call for a reassessment of the diversification-performance relationship. Copyright 2008 by The American Finance Association.
Trends in Earnings Differentials by Gender, 1971–1981

Using data from the Current Population Surveys, the authors examine earnings differentials by gender for 1971 and 1981. Most observers, focusing on the median annual earnings of year-round, full-time workers, have concluded that the earnings differential did not change over that decade. Using a different method to adjust for gender differences in hours and weeks worked, the authors find, on the contrary, that the female-male earnings ratio significantly increased during the 1970s. The results suggest that declining gender role specialization and declining discrimination (as conventionally measured) contributed to the observed trend. Two factors that worked in the opposite direction, though to smaller effect, were declines in women's relative returns to education and to employment in male jobs and integrated jobs.
Valuation of natural resources: efficiency and equity

Adequate pricing of environmental goods is essential for the sustainable management of natural resources. It is not easy, however, to place a value on natural resources, because the excludability problem makes it difficult to protect natural resources from unpaid use and to exercise property rights over them. This article discusses the achievements and limitations of current natural-resource policies from the perspectives of efficiency and equity. It argues that a trust fund operating via market-based transactions is a promising approach to help to achieve simultaneously the goals of efficiency, sustainability, and poverty reduction, provided that property rights to the environmental resources are distributed fairly within current generations, as well as between present and future generations.
Chronic Poverty and Disability

This working paper argues that disabled people are disproportionately amongst the poorest of the poor in all parts of the world, and that international development targets are unlikely to be met without including disabled people. Due to the severe exclusion of disabled people from all areas of society, there is a serious lack of comparable or reliable data on incidence, distribution and trends of disability, let alone the extent of disabled people's poverty; the paper begins with a review of what is known about disability in the developing world. Based on an investigation of the causes and consequences of impairment, disability and poverty, the author sketches out a 'vicious cycle of chronic poverty and disability'. The paper moves on to a review of the approaches undertaken by international organisations, governments, NGOs, donors, the private sector, and disabled people's organisations to mitigate or reduce chronic poverty among disabled people. Case studies of the Ugandan and Indian contexts are provided. It is suggested that while there has recently been a shift by some NGOs, donors and governments towards considering the issues of disability rights in their rhetoric, disabled people in many parts of the world have seen little change in terms of concrete action. A proposal for a research agenda on disability and chronic poverty issues concludes the paper, which also includes a glossary and explanation of terms.
Toward an integrated model of adoption of mobile phones for purchasing ancillary services in air travel

Purpose – Recently, ancillary services' (e.g. bag processing, preferred seating) contribution to the overall air travel revenues has become substantial. Yet, no study to date has addressed how these services are purchased. This study aims to investigate air travelers' adoption of mobile phones to purchase ancillary air travel services. Design/methodology/approach – A comprehensive structural model was developed based on the Technology Acceptance Model and augmented with constructs like trust, privacy, security, innovativeness, and personalization. The model was validated using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations modeling. Findings – The model explained 84 percent of the variability in intentions to use mobile phones to purchase air travel ancillary services. The strongest predictor of attitudes was perceived usefulness, followed by perceived ease of use and trust. Research limitations/implications – First, this study's extended theoretical framework was well supported, as it captures rel.
First Mover Disadvantages with Private Information

We consider a leader-follower game with output quantities as strategies, so as to demonstrate the reduced advantages of the Stackleberg leader in a stochastic environment with private information. At the equilibrium, the strategy of the leader reveals to the follower information about the demand. In an attempt to signal low demand, the leader contracts his output. Nevertheless, unless the leader's information is infinitely noisy, the follower can always correctly infer his signal. We find a wide range of parameter values over which the follower is better off compared to the leader.
“Trapdoor” Procedure for Osteonecrosis with Segmental Collapse of the Femoral Head in Teenagers

Summary Osteonecrosis of the femoral head in adolescents often leads to serious destructive changes in the hip with resulting significant disability. Between March 1981 and June 1990 we treated 13 teenagers (14 hips) using the “trapdoor” bone grafting procedure for severe femoral head Osteonecrosis with articular surface collapse. Nine cases (10 hips) had the trapdoor procedure combined with containment osteotomy of the femur and acetabulum. Thirteen of the 14 hips had adequate follow-up to be included in this report. The main focus of this report is the 10 hips treated with a trapdoor bone grafting plus containment procedure (femoral osteotomy, acetabular osteotomy, or both). At an average follow-up of 4 years 5 months, clinically seven cases (eight hips) had a good result and two had a fair result. Radiographic evaluation showed six hips with a good result, three hips with a fair result, and one with a poor result. None of these 10 hips has yet required hip fusion or replacement arthroplasty, suggesting that trapdoor bone grafting plus containment can serve as a procedure to delay the need for hip fusion in femoral head avascular necrosis in teenagers.
Ask Prices, Offers, and Time to Sale in an Online Exchange

By examining an online computer exchange, we find that sellers who place higher nonbinding ask prices have higher outstanding offers and remain on the exchange longer, suggesting a willingness to hold out for higher offers. Additionally, higher ask prices deter buyers from making offers. The results are stronger in thinner market segments, suggesting that gains from waiting for a high price are greater when buyers' tastes are idiosyncratic. These relationships are consistent with models in which buyers engage in costly search and suggest that online exchanges may not eliminate the frictions related to bilateral transactions. (JEL D8, L0, L1) Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.
A Comparison of the Values and Commitment of Private Sector, Public Sector, and Parapublic Sector Employees

This study investigated differences in general values, work values and organizational commitment among 549 private sector, public sector, and parapublic sector knowledge workers. No differences in general values were observed across sectors, although five significant work value differences were revealed: parapublic employees value work that contributes to society more than public servants, who value it more than private sector employees; parapublic employees value opportunities for advancement less than both public and private sector employees; public servants value intellectually stimulating and challenging work more than parapublic employees; and private sector employees value prestigious work more than public servants. Private sector employees displayed greater organizational commitment than the employees in the other two sectors. Overall, the findings suggest only limited value differences among employees of the various sectors. The finding of some work value differences between employees in the public and parapublic sectors suggests that these two groups merit separate consideration in comparative studies such as this one.
Innovation in SMEs: the impact of strategic orientation and environmental perceptions

Purpose – To investigate the role and impact of strategic orientation and environmental perceptions on innovation and supporting mechanisms such as process technologies and management practices, in SMEs.Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative approach based on a random sampling methodology of 1,000 SMEs. Construct validity was tested in the qualitative phase of the research.Findings – SMEs can be categorised as either prospectors or defenders. This polarisation was confirmed in this study. For example, prospectors are more likely to engage in new product development, whereas defenders are five times more likely to modify an existing product than introduce a newly patented product. Prospector‐type firms tend to deploy more new process technologies and leading management practices compared with defender type firms, particularly in a turbulent operating environment. Defenders recognise the need to “catch up” and indicate that they intend to introduce process technologies over the next two years. Firms t.
Fibrin glue in the management of anal fistulae

Objective Fibrin glue has been used as a sphincter sparing approach for the treatment of anal fistulae for two decades. However, there is uncertainty about its short and long‐term efficacy. The objective of this review was to ascertain the role of fibrin glue in the management of anal fistulae, including assessment of recurrence rates, continence disturbance and other complications.
Trading Volume and Market Volatility: Developed Versus Emerging Stock Markets

We investigate the relation between volatility and volume in 22 developed markets and 27 emerging markets. Compared to developed markets, emerging markets show a greater response to large information shocks and exhibit greater sensitivity to unexpected volume. We find a negative relation between expected volume and volatility in several emerging markets, which can be attributed to the relative inefficiency in those markets. Previous research reports that the persistence in volatility is not eliminated when lagged or contemporaneous trading volume is considered. Our findings show that, when volume is decomposed into expected and unexpected components, volatility persistence decreases.
Conventions and the stock market game

﻿ Forecasting stock price movements is a notoriously difficult job. Were it not so, it would be easy to get richer. In this case, however, nobody would get poorer. But if nobody gets poorer, nobody will get richer. There are two ways to get out of this vicious circle. The first, and the more well-trodden, is the Efficient Market Theory (EMT), or: Everybody Understands Everything. The second is the Casino Market Theory (CMT), or: Nobody Understands Anything. This work is an attempt to bridge the gap between these two theories. In the first chapter the EMT is analysed in its fundamental constituents, while Chapter 2 contains a discussion of several empirical tests of the theory. Chapter 3 extends the EMT to incorporate variable risk premia and rational speculative bubbles and Chapter 4 presents the available empirical evidence on the extended model. The line of research based on the EMT paradigm is abandoned in Chapter 5, where the central principle of the EMT - the assumption of homogeneous investors with common priors - is investigated and challenged. The basis is there laid for an alternative view of the stock market game, which emphasises the conventional nature of investors' beliefs about future returns and is consistent with the view that stock market prices do not only reflect the fundamental value of underlying companies. In Chapter 6, the hypothesis that non fundamental information (in particular, past information) may have an influence on current stock prices is evaluated against monthly data relative to the US, UK, Japanese and Italian stock markets. Contrary to popular wisdom, we find that past information has a significant effect on current stock returns. Our evidence indicates that, as Keynes suggested in the General Theory, conventional beliefs play a crucial role in the stock market game.
Unexpected Capital Gains and the Stock Market Performance at the Turn of the Century

For five countries, Australia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, this paper revisits the unexpected capital gain issue often discussed in the literature on the equity risk premium. The first part of the paper presents a brief survey of recent papers tackling this problem. Next, we contrast ex-ante measures of stock returns (as determined at the end of the 1980s) with actual total stock returns observed subsequently. We conduct our analysis on two time periods, first 1989:Q4–1999:Q4 and then 1989:Q4–2004:Q4. For the first time period, our results show that investors benefited from huge unanticipated capital gains in the five countries. For the time period ending in the fourth quarter of 2004, we show that ex-post returns are not fundamentally at odds with expected returns in all five countries although caution should be exercised in some cases. Last, we also briefly discuss the issue of market risk at the end of the 20th century, its impact on stock market valuation and assess the robustness of our results by looking at two different starting dates.
The Role of Trust and Familiarity in Click-through Intention: A Perception Transfer Theory in a Cybersecurity Context

Despite constant reminders, warnings on avoidance techniques, information security policies, and anti-virus software reminders, individuals still fall prey to malware attacks. This paper looks at the role that familiarity and trust play on the individual’s intention to click-through web based malware. Hypotheses are developed to suggest that click-through intention is influenced by trust and familiarity. Two scenarios to test the hypotheses are described. Expected contributions and limitations are noted.
Cross-Lingual Induction and Transfer of Verb Classes Based on Word Vector Space Specialisation

Existing approaches to automatic VerbNet-style verb classification are heavily dependent on feature engineering and therefore limited to languages with mature NLP pipelines. In this work, we propose a novel cross-lingual transfer method for inducing VerbNets for multiple languages. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study which demonstrates how the architectures for learning word embeddings can be applied to this challenging syntactic-semantic task. Our method uses cross-lingual translation pairs to tie each of the six target languages into a bilingual vector space with English, jointly specialising the representations to encode the relational information from English VerbNet. A standard clustering algorithm is then run on top of the VerbNet-specialised representations, using vector dimensions as features for learning verb classes. Our results show that the proposed cross-lingual transfer approach sets new state-of-the-art verb classification performance across all six target languages explored in this work.