“No Social Scientist Is Value-Free”

PsycCRITIQUES ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 54 (32) ◽  
Author(s):  
William F. Flack
Keyword(s):  
Social Scientist ◽  
Is Value

Deconstructing the Rio Scale: problems of subjectivity and generalization

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (05) ◽  
pp. 463-467
Author(s):  
John W. Traphagan
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Social Scientist ◽  
Robust Method ◽  
Extraterrestrial Intelligence ◽  
The Media ◽  
Is Value

AbstractThis paper examines and deconstructs the Rio Scale, focusing primarily on the recently published Rio Scale 2.0 concept, from the perspective of a social scientist. I argue that although there is value in developing tools to help astronomers and other scientists communicate their perceptions about the significance of a contact event to the media and the general public, the Rio Scale 2.0 remains problematic conceptually and, thus, does not represent a robust method for assessing or communicating the import of a valid contact. Therefore, it should not be used as a method for informing the media or the general public about scenarios that involve the detection of valid signals suggesting the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence.

A Glimpse of Children's wear Market : Case Study on Marks & Spencer (London)

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shelly Narula
Keyword(s):  
Market Share ◽  
Disposable Income ◽  
Birth Rates ◽  
Demographic Trend ◽  
Volume Recovery ◽  
Market Leader ◽  
Is Value

Children's wear clothing comprises of clothing, designed for children under the age of 14. It is a sector which despite of the pressure on disposable income, expects the market to be most resilient by volume. Parents are reluctant to cut back on Children's wear. Purchases are more need-driven and the market is value-driven, allowing for high volumes – supporting volume recovery. One major factor that will boost the Children's wear market is the current demographic trend towards higher birth rates. In 2010, the total UK market for Children's wear was valued at £5.91bn, increase by 6.5% from 2009. Further, Verdict Retail forecasts the Children's wear market to grow by meager 1.7% in 2012, underperforming total clothing due to lower inflation. This article highlights the findings of a case study on Marks & Spencer (Bond Street, London) a leading UK brand, whose market share, fell down considerably in the Children's wear Department. The suggestions and consultancy have been provided for the brand, to improve their market share in the changing and volatile environment which was once, a market leader in the Kids-wear segment in UK.

Value Relevance of Disaggregated Information: An Examination of the Rate and Volume Analysis of Bank Net Interest Income

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-43
Author(s):  
Qing L. Burke ◽  
Terry D. Warfield ◽  
Matthew M. Wieland
Keyword(s):  
Stock Returns ◽  
Value Relevance ◽  
Comprehensive Analysis ◽  
Funding Sources ◽  
Rate Analysis ◽  
Interest Income ◽  
Performance Drivers ◽  
Income Measure ◽  
Important Form ◽  
Is Value

SYNOPSIS A potentially important form of financial information disaggregation is to segregate the change in an income measure into its underlying performance drivers. In this study, we perform a comprehensive analysis of the usefulness of such disaggregation to investors. We utilize the volume and rate analysis in banks' 10-K filings, in which banks disaggregate annual changes in net interest income into changes in the balances (“volume variance”) and changes in the rates (“rate variance”) of assets and liabilities. We document that volume and rate variances are associated with bank characteristics, including market power, funding sources, and credit risk. We find volume and rate variances are predictive of future net interest income and are positively associated with stock returns and prices, suggesting the disaggregated information is value relevant. Our study informs regulators and users by showing that disaggregated information along volume and rate dimensions has predictive and confirmatory value.

Discretion in Financial Reporting: The Voluntary Adoption of Fair Value Accounting for Employee Stock Options

2004 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dahlia Robinson ◽  
Diane Burton
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Fair Value ◽  
Stock Option ◽  
Employee Stock Options ◽  
Market Returns ◽  
Employee Stock Option ◽  
Accounting Reports ◽  
Voluntary Adoption ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Is Value

This paper investigates the market reaction to announcements by firms of their decision to adopt the fair value provisions of SFAS No. 123 in accounting for their employee stock option (ESO) expense. Additionally, this paper examines ESO usage and expense of adopting firms and compares the impact of the expense on profitability measures for adopting firms relative to a matched set of control firms. We find a positive and significant abnormal return in the three days around the adoption announcements, suggesting that the decision to expense using the fair value method is value relevant. The positive abnormal announcement returns are mainly attributable to the earlier announcements, consistent with early announcements serving as a credible signal of a commitment to transparency in financial reporting. We find evidence that in the three years prior to the announcement year, adopting firms report significantly higher earnings than control firms yet fail to earn higher market returns, suggesting that adopters stand to benefit the most by improving the market's perception of their accounting reports. We also find that ESO usage, ESO expense, and the impact of ESO expense on profitability are significantly lower for adopters relative to control firms, although the impact of ESO expense is economically significant for 43 percent of the adopters.

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