cometadata/datacite-titles-descriptions-related-identifiers huggingface dataset:
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020358.v1
title: Surety Bond in Infrastructure in Brazil: Transaction Costs and Agency Theory Perspectives

description: ABSTRACT Context: infrastructure projects assume the use of intensive capital and the participation of several actors, where the institutional environment influences their respective contractual arrangements. A financial instrument for project governance is surety bond (SB), whose purpose is to ensure compliance with the contracted object. However, research involving SB in the context of emerging countries such as Brazil is still incipient. Objective: this study aims to understand the use of SB in Brazil and proposes a conceptual model for analyzing transactions. It contributes to the literature by investigating the relationship between the actors and transactions involved in SB using the transaction costs theory and agency theory perspectives. Methods: this study adopts a qualitative methodology using primary data collected with 10 in-depth semi-structured interviews with market professionals with substantial experience in SB. In addition, it uses secondary data based on debate and a specific lecture on the topic involving the reality and the use of SB. Results: the findings indicate that the agency problem and the high transaction costs in Brazil prevent the development of this risk coverage market, giving rise to targeted public policies. Conclusion: the proposed conceptual model reflects the various specific transactions in the use of SB, the underlying phenomena and the validation of propositions related to market failures, and the institutional environment’s influence.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020361
title: MAC: A Proposal for Consistent Actuarial Interest Rates in Pension Funds

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article proposes the meta atuarial consistente (MAC) (consistent actuarial rate), which is a method that adjusts incompatible actuarial rates in pension funds, after investigating and proving that the rate dissociates from the general rule in current regulations (which binds this rate to the expected return of the investments of pension funds). Methodology: a sample with data from 22 defined-benefit plans was collected, and MAC was applied to produce consistent actuarial rates, after panel data methods have identified the elements that influence the definition of the actuarial rate by the pension fund board of trustees. Results: the use of MAC, adjusting actuarial rates of 2018 based on systematic biases in previous rates, enabled a positive effect that unfolds in more reliable estimates for the plans’ mathematical provision, while identifying elements that influence the determination of the annual rate, causing its non-compliance to the general rule. Conclusion: the adoption of MAC by the Brazilian supervisory authority Previc would improve the rules and provide subsidies to better adjust the contribution levels practiced in the plans, making their solvency levels more reliable, which would benefit the development of the insurance and pension market.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020361.v1
title: MAC: A Proposal for Consistent Actuarial Interest Rates in Pension Funds

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article proposes the meta atuarial consistente (MAC) (consistent actuarial rate), which is a method that adjusts incompatible actuarial rates in pension funds, after investigating and proving that the rate dissociates from the general rule in current regulations (which binds this rate to the expected return of the investments of pension funds). Methodology: a sample with data from 22 defined-benefit plans was collected, and MAC was applied to produce consistent actuarial rates, after panel data methods have identified the elements that influence the definition of the actuarial rate by the pension fund board of trustees. Results: the use of MAC, adjusting actuarial rates of 2018 based on systematic biases in previous rates, enabled a positive effect that unfolds in more reliable estimates for the plans’ mathematical provision, while identifying elements that influence the determination of the annual rate, causing its non-compliance to the general rule. Conclusion: the adoption of MAC by the Brazilian supervisory authority Previc would improve the rules and provide subsidies to better adjust the contribution levels practiced in the plans, making their solvency levels more reliable, which would benefit the development of the insurance and pension market.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020362
title: Uncertainty of Claims Provisions from the Analysis of Financial Statements

description: ABSTRACT Objective: considering the current level of transparency in the financial statements of Brazilian insurers, this study sought to assess whether it was possible to estimate the sufficiency of the claims reserves estimated by it. As they are liabilities with an uncertain term or amount, the estimates of these reserves may be underestimated (compromising the insurers) or overestimated (burdening the shareholders), which justifies the research question. Methods: after analyzing the financial statements of 31 insurance companies in Brazil, it was noted that the criteria for disclosing claims development varied substantially. Thus, five insurers were selected that adopted similar procedures and allowed the application of the bootstrapping model to estimate the sufficiency level of the provisions. Results: the application of the model revealed that there are indications that insurers can make use of earnings management through the estimations of the claims reserves, spreading the burden of claims insufficiency risk differently between policyholders and shareholders. Conclusion: there are differences in the relative amount of claims recognized by the insurers, showing a possible earnings management practice being applied through the claims measurement.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020362.v1
title: Uncertainty of Claims Provisions from the Analysis of Financial Statements

description: ABSTRACT Objective: considering the current level of transparency in the financial statements of Brazilian insurers, this study sought to assess whether it was possible to estimate the sufficiency of the claims reserves estimated by it. As they are liabilities with an uncertain term or amount, the estimates of these reserves may be underestimated (compromising the insurers) or overestimated (burdening the shareholders), which justifies the research question. Methods: after analyzing the financial statements of 31 insurance companies in Brazil, it was noted that the criteria for disclosing claims development varied substantially. Thus, five insurers were selected that adopted similar procedures and allowed the application of the bootstrapping model to estimate the sufficiency level of the provisions. Results: the application of the model revealed that there are indications that insurers can make use of earnings management through the estimations of the claims reserves, spreading the burden of claims insufficiency risk differently between policyholders and shareholders. Conclusion: there are differences in the relative amount of claims recognized by the insurers, showing a possible earnings management practice being applied through the claims measurement.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020364
title: An Application of Geographically Weighted Quantile Lasso to Weather Index Insurance Design

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article studies the efficiency of a novel regression approach, the geographically weighted quantile lasso (GWQlasso), in the modeling of yield-index relationship for weather index insurance products. GWQlasso allows regression coefficients to vary spatially, while using the information from neighboring locations to derive robust estimates. The lasso component of the model facilitates the selection of relevant explanatory variables. Methodology: a weather index insurance (WII) product is developed based on one-month standardized precipitation index (SPI) derived from a daily precipitation dataset for 41 weather stations in the state of Paraná (Brazil) for the period from 1979 to 2015. Soybean yield data are also used for the 41 municipalities from 1980 to 2015. The effectiveness of the GWQlasso product is evaluated against a classic quantile regression approach and a traditional yield insurance product using the spectral risk measure (SRM) and the mean semi-deviation. Results: while GWQlasso proved as effective as quantile regression, it outperformed the yield insurance product. Conclusion: the GWQlasso is an alternative to the crop insurance market in Brazil and other locations with limited data.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020364.v1
title: An Application of Geographically Weighted Quantile Lasso to Weather Index Insurance Design

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article studies the efficiency of a novel regression approach, the geographically weighted quantile lasso (GWQlasso), in the modeling of yield-index relationship for weather index insurance products. GWQlasso allows regression coefficients to vary spatially, while using the information from neighboring locations to derive robust estimates. The lasso component of the model facilitates the selection of relevant explanatory variables. Methodology: a weather index insurance (WII) product is developed based on one-month standardized precipitation index (SPI) derived from a daily precipitation dataset for 41 weather stations in the state of Paraná (Brazil) for the period from 1979 to 2015. Soybean yield data are also used for the 41 municipalities from 1980 to 2015. The effectiveness of the GWQlasso product is evaluated against a classic quantile regression approach and a traditional yield insurance product using the spectral risk measure (SRM) and the mean semi-deviation. Results: while GWQlasso proved as effective as quantile regression, it outperformed the yield insurance product. Conclusion: the GWQlasso is an alternative to the crop insurance market in Brazil and other locations with limited data.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020365
title: Memes as Shortcut to Consumer Culture: A Methodological Approach to Covert Collective Ideologies

description: ABSTRACT Objective: the paper proposes the methodological use of memes as a shortcut to explore consumer culture. Memes as cultural texts can reveal collective circulating ideologies that may not be accessed through regular interviews. Context: memes are cultural texts that convey easy-to-understand messages, gaining strength within social networks. Cultural texts playfully present the social context and beliefs of societies. We analyzed circulating memes during the COVID-19 pandemic about elderly consumers in Brazil to outline a methodological protocol. Method: we analyzed memes adopting the discourse model to conduct qualitative research of memes as a shortcut to cultural discourses. We collected memes during March and May 2020 using social media networks. They were classified following thematic analysis. Result: the proposal is a methodological procedure for analyzing memes as a cultural text. The process starts with the outline of a data collection protocol, followed by data analysis guidelines, illustrated by the context of elderly consumers. Conclusion: the analysis of memes as cultural texts contributed to understanding of consumer behavior through current cultural content, revealing contrasting ideologies that emerge from consumers, as covert value-systems, circulating alongside institutional mass-mediated ideologies.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020367
title: Upcoming Issues, New Methods: Using Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA) in Management Research

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article aims to present interactive qualitative analysis (IQA) as a qualitative strategy to be used in management research, detailing its application. Since the IQA is a strategy derived from research in education, this study discusses the potentialities of its use in management research. Methods: the IQA is presented by the step-by-step application of the method in a research problem in entrepreneurship. Results: the IQA targets the generation of a shared mental map of the focus group members on the phenomenon under study. The data collection and analysis steps are conducted in parallel, and the research participants themselves carry out the first analysis. The results presented in a set of relationships between the elements of the shared mental map are theorized. The inductive character of the initial stages, combined with deductive procedures, allows discovering new ways of thinking about the investigated problems, reinforcing qualitative research’s exploratory character. Conclusions: the replicable data collection and analysis protocol promotes researches’ reliability and validity, by presenting empirical evidences that the interpretations are guaranteed by the data, allowing for methodological and theoretical advances.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020367.v1
title: Upcoming Issues, New Methods: Using Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA) in Management Research

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this article aims to present interactive qualitative analysis (IQA) as a qualitative strategy to be used in management research, detailing its application. Since the IQA is a strategy derived from research in education, this study discusses the potentialities of its use in management research. Methods: the IQA is presented by the step-by-step application of the method in a research problem in entrepreneurship. Results: the IQA targets the generation of a shared mental map of the focus group members on the phenomenon under study. The data collection and analysis steps are conducted in parallel, and the research participants themselves carry out the first analysis. The results presented in a set of relationships between the elements of the shared mental map are theorized. The inductive character of the initial stages, combined with deductive procedures, allows discovering new ways of thinking about the investigated problems, reinforcing qualitative research’s exploratory character. Conclusions: the replicable data collection and analysis protocol promotes researches’ reliability and validity, by presenting empirical evidences that the interpretations are guaranteed by the data, allowing for methodological and theoretical advances.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020370
title: Clues for the Paradigmatic Development of Online Qualitative Methods

description: ABSTRACT Objective: in this paper, we problematize how online methods were reduced to mere adaptations from previous data collection techniques, and then discuss how some of the idiosyncratic properties of the online scope may drive the development of future, paradigmatic, online qualitative methods. Proposition: we identified five clues for the paradigmatic development of online qualitative methods: (1) the new socialities allowed by online interactions; (2) the processes involved in asserting identities and selves online; (3) the increasing difficulty in distinguishing what is private and what is public online, and what does privacy mean in this context; (4) the increase of participants’ agency in online qualitative research; and (5) the declining distinction between offline and online social phenomena. Conclusion: by using ontological and epistemological assumptions that do not consider the specificities of online experiences, and by focusing excessively on adapting known methods to the new settings, we researchers are bound to conceive the online experience and operate in it using offline categories. This way, we might be missing the opportunity to develop native, paradigmatic, online qualitative methods that, ultimately, would allow for a better understanding of the phenomena we investigate.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020370.v1
title: Clues for the Paradigmatic Development of Online Qualitative Methods

description: ABSTRACT Objective: in this paper, we problematize how online methods were reduced to mere adaptations from previous data collection techniques, and then discuss how some of the idiosyncratic properties of the online scope may drive the development of future, paradigmatic, online qualitative methods. Proposition: we identified five clues for the paradigmatic development of online qualitative methods: (1) the new socialities allowed by online interactions; (2) the processes involved in asserting identities and selves online; (3) the increasing difficulty in distinguishing what is private and what is public online, and what does privacy mean in this context; (4) the increase of participants’ agency in online qualitative research; and (5) the declining distinction between offline and online social phenomena. Conclusion: by using ontological and epistemological assumptions that do not consider the specificities of online experiences, and by focusing excessively on adapting known methods to the new settings, we researchers are bound to conceive the online experience and operate in it using offline categories. This way, we might be missing the opportunity to develop native, paradigmatic, online qualitative methods that, ultimately, would allow for a better understanding of the phenomena we investigate.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020368
title: The Qualitative Approach Interview in Administration: A Guide for Researchers

description: ABSTRACT Context: this paper explores different ways of using qualitative approach interviews, based on the assumption that the interview is not exclusively subjective or objective, but intersubjective, allowing participants to discuss and express their interpretations about the social world. Objective: the aim is to guide the use of the interview, step by step, in research in administration and related areas, offering a simplified guide to assist beginning and experienced researchers. Method: due to its objective, this tutorial article is descriptive and explanatory, interdisciplinary and supported by bibliographic sources. Results: theoretical considerations about the interview are made, conceptualizing essential aspects related to its structuring, development and evaluation. Also listed are the factors resulting from the intersubjectivity inherent in the act of researching, such as the potential types of interview, the dimensions of the preparation, the different possibilities of asking, the questions about the conduct of the meeting, the dimensions related to the analytical work, among others. Conclusion: as an outcome, it is suggested that the interviewer observe the asymmetry of the relationship with the interviewee, the inevitable presence of biases and distortions, and the rigor in planning the investigation.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020368.v1
title: The Qualitative Approach Interview in Administration: A Guide for Researchers

description: ABSTRACT Context: this paper explores different ways of using qualitative approach interviews, based on the assumption that the interview is not exclusively subjective or objective, but intersubjective, allowing participants to discuss and express their interpretations about the social world. Objective: the aim is to guide the use of the interview, step by step, in research in administration and related areas, offering a simplified guide to assist beginning and experienced researchers. Method: due to its objective, this tutorial article is descriptive and explanatory, interdisciplinary and supported by bibliographic sources. Results: theoretical considerations about the interview are made, conceptualizing essential aspects related to its structuring, development and evaluation. Also listed are the factors resulting from the intersubjectivity inherent in the act of researching, such as the potential types of interview, the dimensions of the preparation, the different possibilities of asking, the questions about the conduct of the meeting, the dimensions related to the analytical work, among others. Conclusion: as an outcome, it is suggested that the interviewer observe the asymmetry of the relationship with the interviewee, the inevitable presence of biases and distortions, and the rigor in planning the investigation.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020373.v1
title: Decolonial Studies, Non-Extractive Methods, and Participatory Action Research in Accounting

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this paper discusses how accounting supports financial capitalism in the Global South through neocolonialist languages and practices, aiming to put forth a decolonial agenda based on non-extractive methodologies to recover alternative knowledge and (re)build new ones. Method: we revisited critical accounting literature, connecting it to decolonial epistemology. We described the assumptions behind different non-extractive methods and contrasted participatory action research (PAR) with different approaches to knowledge production and consumption. We also outlined some PAR operational strategies, discussed action research in management and accounting studies, and examined the potential for a participatory accounting agenda. Results: non-extractive methods can respect and value different worldviews in each social phenomenon. This points to non-traditional and emancipatory research alternatives to produce a new sentipensante in accounting to decolonize knowledge, bodies, and minds. Conclusions: this paper presents PAR as allowing (re)existence of different worldviews by recognizing its ability to recover and rebuild knowledge ‘with’ participants. PAR supports programmatic engagement with subalternized voices to coproduce pluriversality in accounting - instead of reproducing universalisms - and bolsters academics and practitioners to transcend Western modernity.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.20020373
title: Decolonial Studies, Non-Extractive Methods, and Participatory Action Research in Accounting

description: ABSTRACT Objective: this paper discusses how accounting supports financial capitalism in the Global South through neocolonialist languages and practices, aiming to put forth a decolonial agenda based on non-extractive methodologies to recover alternative knowledge and (re)build new ones. Method: we revisited critical accounting literature, connecting it to decolonial epistemology. We described the assumptions behind different non-extractive methods and contrasted participatory action research (PAR) with different approaches to knowledge production and consumption. We also outlined some PAR operational strategies, discussed action research in management and accounting studies, and examined the potential for a participatory accounting agenda. Results: non-extractive methods can respect and value different worldviews in each social phenomenon. This points to non-traditional and emancipatory research alternatives to produce a new sentipensante in accounting to decolonize knowledge, bodies, and minds. Conclusions: this paper presents PAR as allowing (re)existence of different worldviews by recognizing its ability to recover and rebuild knowledge ‘with’ participants. PAR supports programmatic engagement with subalternized voices to coproduce pluriversality in accounting - instead of reproducing universalisms - and bolsters academics and practitioners to transcend Western modernity.