Strength of auditing and reporting standards, ethical behavior of firms and sustainability: a cross-country investigation

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Achraf Guidara ◽  
Anis El Ammari ◽  
Hichem Khlif
Keyword(s):  
Business Ethics ◽  
Ethical Behavior ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Reporting Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Ethical Behaviors ◽  
Cross Country

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the association between the strength of auditing and reporting standards (SARS, hereafter) and sustainability and investigates whether ethical behavior of firms moderates relationship between SARS and sustainability.Design/methodology/approachThe sample consists of 500 country-year observations over the period of 2014–2017. Sustainability is collected from the Global Sustainable Competitiveness Index Reports for 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, while SARS and ethical behaviors are collected from the Global Competitiveness Reports for the same years.FindingsThe findings of this study suggest that the SARS is associated with sustainability. Similarly, ethical behavior of firms has a positive and significant effect on sustainability. When testing for the moderating effect of ethical behavior of firms on the association between SARS and sustainability, the results show that the positive association SARS becomes positive and more significant for countries where firms operate with high ethical behaviors, while the association becomes insignificant for settings where firms operate with low ethical behaviors.Originality/valueThe findings emphasize the role played by SARS and business ethics in improving sustainability. These results may have policy implications for governments aiming to improve sustainability by strengthening auditing and reporting standards and enforcing laws obliging firms to act ethically.

scholarly journals Sustainability level, corruption and tax evasion: a cross-country analysis

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 328-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hichem Khlif ◽  
Achraf Guidara ◽  
Khaled Hussainey
Keyword(s):  
Tax Evasion ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Country Analysis ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Global Competitiveness Report

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between the level of sustainability and tax evasion and test whether the level of corruption moderates such a relationship. Design/methodology/approach The sample consists of 65 developed and developing countries. Tax evasion is measured using a macro indirect approach used by Schneider et al. (2010). The sustainability level and corruption variables are collected from The Global Competitiveness Report for 2012-2013. Findings This study finds that the level of tax evasion is negatively associated with the level of sustainability (overall score and social and environmental score) and the quality of infrastructure. When we distinguish between low- and high-corruption countries, we find that this negative association is significant for low-corruption countries and insignificant for high-corruption countries. These results imply that the level of corruption may reduce the tendency of individuals in a given state to accept and trust their government in general and comply with the tax rules in particular. Originality/value Our empirical findings have policy implications for governments with high levels of tax evasion, as they highlight the importance of states’ engagements towards their citizens in reducing tax evasion.

An investigation of Indian student attitudes towards entrepreneurs and managers

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-398
Author(s):  
Dennis Barber III ◽  
Suhail Mohammad Ghouse ◽  
John Batchelor ◽  
Francesca Chaher ◽  
Michael L. Harris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hypothesis Testing ◽  
Ethical Behavior ◽  
Student Attitudes ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Business Students ◽  
Business Managers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ethical Behaviors ◽  
Indian Student ◽  
Indian Students

Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of business students in India toward business managers (not self-employed) and entrepreneurs. Design/methodology/approach Students’ perceptions of the ethical behaviors of business managers and entrepreneurs were measured using the Bucar and Hisrich (2001) model. The scale comprises 20 behavioral descriptors, and the students were asked to indicate the degree to which they believed entrepreneurs and business managers would consider these actions as ethical. Findings Responses to general items of ethical behavior demonstrated a difference in the perception of Indian students between business managers and entrepreneurs. Originality/value This study contributes to the field of entrepreneurship in two ways. One involves the results of the hypothesis testing presented herein to evaluate the perceptions of business students in India toward entrepreneurs and business managers. The second contribution is comparing these results to that of a similar study using a US sample (Batchelor et al., 2011) to compare the differences in perceptions toward entrepreneurs and business managers across these two nations.

Financial crime, corruption and tax evasion: a cross-country investigation

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 545-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ines Amara ◽  
Hichem Khlif
Keyword(s):  
Money Laundering ◽  
Tax Evasion ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Financial Crime ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Financial Crimes ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relationship between the financial crime and tax evasion and tests whether corruption moderates such a relationship. Design/methodology/approach Tax evasion measure is based on Schneider et al. (2010). Financial crime is collected from Basel anti-money laundering (AML) report. Findings Using a sample of 120 countries, the authors find that the level of financial crime is positively associated with tax evasion. When testing for the moderating effect of corruption, they document that the positive relationship between financial crime and tax evasion is more pronounced for high corrupt environments. Originality/value The findings have policy implications for governments aiming to combat tax evasion and financial crimes.

Strength of auditing and reporting standards, corruption and money laundering: a cross-country investigation

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (9) ◽  
pp. 1243-1259
Author(s):  
Ines Amara ◽  
Hichem Khlif ◽  
Anis El Ammari
Keyword(s):  
Money Laundering ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Moderating Effect ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Reporting Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Dummy Variable ◽  
Interaction Variable ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the relationship between the strength of auditing and reporting standards (SARS) and money laundering, and test whether the SARS moderates the association between corruption and money laundering. Design/methodology/approach The sample consists of 348 country-year observations over the period 2015–2017. Data on money laundering are collected from Basel Anti-Money Laundering Reports for 2015–2017, while data on SARS and corruption are collected from the Global Competiveness Reports for the same years. Findings The findings of this study suggest that the SARS is negatively associated with money laundering, while corruption has an insignificant effect on the same variable. The effect of corruption on money laundering becomes positive and significant after removing the SARS. This result implies that the SARS and corruption represent two concurrent forces influencing money laundering phenomenon with a prevailing negative effect for the SARS. When testing for the moderating effect of SARS on the positive association between corruption and money laundering, findings show that the positive association remains stable under low SARS environments, while it is mitigated under high SARS. This moderating effect is further confirmed when using an interaction variable between the SARS dummy variable and corruption as this interaction variable has a negative effect on money laundering. Originality/value The findings emphasize the role played by the SARS in reducing money laundering and mitigating the positive association between corruption and money laundering. These results may have policy implications for governments aiming to combat this phenomenon.

Rethinking corruption on fiscal decentralization and global competitiveness Nexus

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 507-527
Author(s):  
Tengku Munawar Chalil
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Fiscal Decentralization ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Decentralization Policy ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
Country Competitiveness ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Fiscal Authority

Purpose This study investigates the effects of fiscal decentralization on global competitiveness through the level of corruption. This study aims to clarify the causal impacts of fiscal decentralization policy on the achievement of competitiveness rank considering the degree of corruption in a country. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses an empirical study using both cross-country arithmetic mean and panel data, covering ten-year period (2005-2014). The analysis uses both linear and non-linear specification in search of actual intermediating effects of corruption with controlling the possible endogeneity. Findings The paper provides empirical insights about corruption effects of fiscal decentralization on global competitiveness. It suggests that increasing level of fiscal decentralization has a positive contribution to competitiveness for the less-corrupt countries. The adverse effects appear for corrupt countries where the delegation of fiscal authority should endanger the country competitiveness. Research limitations/implications This research exploits the well-known measurement of fiscal decentralization, the degree of corruption and competitiveness. Therefore, this measurement might be challenged for representing the real concept of decentralization, corruption and competitiveness, furthermore its relationship. Despite the limitation, this research explores the entanglement of fiscal decentralization, corruption and competitiveness. Practical implications The paper provides the implications for the national policymakers about decentralizing the fiscal authority to achieve higher competitiveness level, through assessing their state of corruption. Originality/value The research provides additional comments for Oates’ (1972) decentralization theorem in connection to competitiveness, by adding corruption level as pre-requisite condition.

Are political connections beneficial or harmful toward firms’ performance? A meta-analysis approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Khusnul Prasetyo ◽  
Damai Nasution
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Performance Measures ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Political Connections ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Country Comparison ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Cross Country

Purpose This study aims to reconcile conflicting empirical results from prior studies on the association between political connections (PCs) and firms’ performance. Furthermore, it investigates whether the contradictory findings were moderated by the different types of both PCs and firms’ performance measures. This study also makes a cross-country comparison of the empirical evidence to provide more insight. Design/methodology/approach This study used meta-analysis to integrate the previous studies’ findings on the association between PCs and firms’ performance and further investigated the moderators of such association. Findings The findings show that PCs have a positive association with firms’ performance. This result is apparent for both democratic and authoritarian countries, which suggests PCs’ beneficial consequences toward firms’ performance should not be disregarded in both contexts. This study also finds PCs and firms’ performance measures moderate the association between PCs and firms’ performance. Originality/value This study contributes to the stream of research that investigates the association between PCs and firms’ performance. To the best of my knowledge, it is among the first to implement statistical meta-analysis on the aforementioned literature while incorporating a cross-country comparison.

Political connections, corruption and tax evasion: a cross-country investigation

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 401-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hichem Khlif ◽  
Ines Amara
Keyword(s):  
Tax Evasion ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Tax Compliance ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Political Connections ◽  
Political Connection ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cross Country

Purpose This paper aims to examine the association between political connections and tax evasion and test whether corruption level affects this relationship. Design/methodology/approach Tax evasion measure is based on Schneider et al. (2010), while country’s political connection trend is based on Faccio (2006). Findings Using a sample of 35 countries, the authors document that political connections are positively associated with tax evasion and this relationship becomes stronger for high corrupt environment. Originality/value The findings have policy implications for countries aiming to combat tax evasion as political connection trends in one country reduce the level of tax compliance. In addition, political connections and corruption play a complimentary role in increasing tax evasion practices.

Quality of management schools, strength of auditing and reporting standards and tax evasion

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hichem Khlif ◽  
Achraf Guidara
Keyword(s):  
Tax Evasion ◽  
Tax Compliance ◽  
High Strength ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Reporting Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Legal Enforcement ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the quality of management schools and tax evasion and tests whether the strength of auditing and reporting standards moderates such a relationship. Design/methodology/approach Tax evasion is measured using the macro-indirect approach based on Schneider, Buehn and Monterngro (2010). The quality of management schools is collected from The Global Competitiveness Report for 2014-2015. Findings On the basis of sample of 137 countries, the authors document that the level of tax evasion is negatively associated with the quality of management schools and the strength of auditing and reporting standards. When the authors distinguish between low- and high-strength of auditing and reporting standards countries, the authors find that the negative and significant association remains stable only for high-strength of auditing and reporting standards countries. Practical implications These results imply that the quality of management schools through its output (managers, fiscal controllers, auditors and businessmen) may increase the tendency of individuals in a given country to comply with tax rules and that legal enforcement may affect the ethical behaviours of these actors with regard to tax evasion. Originality/value The empirical findings have policy implications for governments with high levels of tax evasion since they highlight the importance of the quality of higher educational system in shaping tax compliance behaviour.

The interaction between learning styles, ethics education, and ethical climate

2014 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 580-593 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leanna Lawter ◽  
Tuvana Rua ◽  
Chun Guo
Keyword(s):  
Deep Learning ◽  
Business Ethics ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Ethical Behavior ◽  
Ethical Climate ◽  
Ethics Education ◽  
Learning Spaces ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ethical Behaviors ◽  
Ethics Course

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate how learning styles and learning spaces interact to stimulate deep learning. Specifically the paper investigated the interaction of learning styles with ethics education and the ethical climate to influence the likelihood of engaging in ethical behavior. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from two groups of students – those who had completed a business ethics course and those who had not completed a business ethics course. The sample consisted of 180 undergraduate students at a private university in the USA. Data were analyzed using regression analysis to test the hypotheses. A scenario-based measure of the likelihood of engaging in ethical behavior was developed and implemented in the study. Findings – Both ethics education and ethical climate had a direct impact on a student ' s likelihood of engaging in ethical behavior. The interaction between learning style and business ethics class significantly impacted experiential learners’ likelihood of engaging in ethical behaviors. Results for non-experiential learners as relates to ethical climate were non-significant, but ad hoc analysis indicates ethical climate significantly impacted likelihood to engage in ethical behaviors. Practical implications – The findings have practical implications for how universities should utilize learning spaces both inside and outside the classroom to be stimulate deep learning and be more effective in sensitizing students to ethical behavior. Originality/value – The results support using formal and informal learning spaces to stimulate deep learning as it relates to ethics education in universities.

Have China's exports improved the export technology level of the other BRICS countries? An empirical analysis based on data from SITC

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Jiang ◽  
Chaofan Chen ◽  
Qingxin Lan ◽  
Zhaoyi Zhu
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Export Trade ◽  
General Equilibrium Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Competitiveness ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Trade Model ◽  
Technological Improvement ◽  
Trade Competitiveness ◽  
Technology Level

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze whether China's exports can effectively improve the global competitiveness of other BRICS countries' exports from the perspective of intra-BRICS export trade.Design/methodology/approachThis paper extends the multinational trade model and analyzes the mechanism of the technological upgrading effect from the perspective of dynamic general equilibrium theory. In addition, this paper uses the export panel data of 217 products with three-digit SITC codes from China to other BRICS member countries from 2000 to 2016 and constructs a dynamic empirical model for parameter estimation.FindingsThe results show that China's exports to other BRICS member countries can effectively promote the technological improvement of other BRICS member countries' export products. In particular, the formal establishment of the BRICS organization in 2010 has significantly improved the efficiency of China's export technology optimization.Originality/valueIn the background of the prevalence of anti-globalization and the proliferation of protectionism, this paper proves that the deepening of trade cooperation between other BRICS members with China can help optimize their own international trade competitiveness and allow China's development dividend to benefit more countries and people.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document