scholarly journals Unraveling the role of governance mechanisms in online ratings: The case of Spanish chain-affiliated hotels

2020 ◽  
pp. 234094442092441
Author(s):  
Marta Fernández-Barcala ◽  
Manuel González-Díaz ◽  
Susana López-Bayón
Keyword(s):  
Vertical Integration ◽  
Agency Problems ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Category Size ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Organizational Fit ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Online Ratings ◽  
Management Contracts

This article studies how the choice of the mechanism of governance affects online ratings of hotels, empirically exploring the conditions under which various governance mechanisms improve (or damage) them. We emphasize that no governance mode is universally superior. However, when the mechanism of governance fits hotel characteristics, online ratings improve. We argue that such characteristics (i.e., hotel category, size, and age) determine the severity of agency problems (e.g., managerial shirking and free-riding) and the performance of governance choice. We test several organizational fit hypotheses on a data set of 2,328 hotels operating in Spain. Our results support the fit argument, because they show the superiority of franchise and management contracts (i.e., hybrids) for enhancing online ratings, as opposed to vertical integration, when category rises and size increases. Furthermore, we find evidence that maintenance does not appear to be a major problem in leasing. JEL CLASSIFICATION: D23; L25; L83

scholarly journals Voluntary disclosure and free cash flow in family French firms

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (4, Special Issue) ◽  
pp. 391-398
Author(s):  
Meriem Jouirou ◽  
Faten Lakhal
Keyword(s):  
Cash Flow ◽  
Voluntary Disclosure ◽  
Audit Committee ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Gender Diversity ◽  
Agency Problems ◽  
Free Cash Flow ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Voluntary Disclosures

This research investigates the governance role of voluntary disclosures especially in reducing agency problems measured by the level of free cash flow (FCF). In addition, it also shows the moderating effect of family ownership and governance mechanisms on this relation. Our research was conducted on a sample of 138 listed French firms between 2009 and 2013. To avoid the endogeneity problem caused by the voluntary disclosure variable we used the 2SLS regression method. The results show, on the one hand, that transparency provided by voluntary disclosures reduces the level of FCF and by the way agency problems. But family owners tend to accumulate FCF. On the other hand, the governance role of voluntary disclosure turns to be ineffective in family firms. This suggests a high risk of expropriation of minority shareholders by family ones. In addition, we demonstrate that governance mechanisms, especially board independence, gender diversity and audit committee independence, contribute to the strengthening of the governance role of voluntary disclosure.

scholarly journals Gender and Ultimatum in Pakistan: Revisited

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saima Naeem ◽  
Asad Zaman
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Exploratory Data Analysis ◽  
Ultimatum Game ◽  
Original Data ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Analysis Techniques ◽  
Exploratory Data ◽  
Confirmatory Data Analysis

Razzaque (2009) studied the role of gender in the ultimatum game by running experiments on students in various cities in Pakistan. He used standard confirmatory data analysis techniques, which work well in familiar contexts, where relevant hypotheses of interest are known in advance. Our goal in this paper is to demonstrate that exploratory data analysis is much better suited to the study of experimental data where the goal is to discover patterns of interest. Our exploratory re-analysis of the original data set of Razzaque (2009) leads to several new insights. While we re-confirm the main finding of Razzaque regarding the greater generosity of males, additional analysis suggests that this is driven by student subculture in Pakistan, and would not generalise to the population at large. In addition, we find strong effect of urbanisation. Our exploratory data analysis also offers considerable additional insights into the learning process that takes place over the course of a sequence of games. JEL Classification: C78, C81, C91, J16 Keywords: Ultimatum Game, Gender Differences, Exploratory Data Analysis

scholarly journals The effect of downsizing on innovation outputs: The role of resource slack and constraints

2020 ◽  
pp. 031289622097060
Author(s):  
Boumediene Ramdani ◽  
Cherif Guermat ◽  
Kamel Mellahi
Keyword(s):  
Resource Constraints ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Dual Effect ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Organisational Innovation ◽  
Unique Data ◽  
Resource Slack ◽  
Managerial Implications ◽  
Moderating Role

Although the practice of downsizing is prevalent, its effects on organisational outcomes remain poorly understood. This article examines how and when downsizing affects organisational innovation. Using a unique data set of UK firms over a period of 22 years, we test the effect of downsizing on innovation outputs by considering the moderating role of resource slack and constraints. We argue and empirically demonstrate that downsizing has a dual effect on innovation, contingent on the firm’s level of resources. Our results reveal that downsizing affects innovation outputs positively in firms experiencing resource slack and negatively in firms experiencing resource constraints. We also show that the effect is more immediate in resource-constrained firms. Theoretical and managerial implications of these results are discussed. JEL Classification: J63, L25, M51, O32

scholarly journals Dynamic capabilities: The role of board monitoring and managerial incentives

2020 ◽  
pp. 234094442091630
Author(s):  
Aman Asija ◽  
Dimo Ringov
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Governance ◽  
Dynamic Capabilities ◽  
Managerial Incentives ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Corporate Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Simple Rules ◽  
Board Monitoring ◽  
Different Levels

Research on the nature and value of firms’ dynamic capabilities has produced contradictory propositions and findings. Scholars have argued that contingency theorizing has the potential to improve our understanding, as the context in which dynamic capabilities are deployed may affect their value. Drawing on agency theory, we propose that corporate governance mechanisms play a significant role in determining the value of firms’ dynamic capabilities. In particular, we develop theoretical propositions about the differential effect of two corporate governance mechanisms—board monitoring and managerial incentives—on the value of dynamic capabilities in the form of complex codified routines, on one hand, and simple rules, on the other hand, at different levels of environmental dynamism. JEL CLASSIFICATION: L21; L22; D80; G34

scholarly journals Price Hikes, Economic Reforms and Causality in Money, Income and Prices: Evidence from Pakistan

2009 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-168
Author(s):  
Fazal Husain ◽  
Abdul Rashid
Keyword(s):  
Active Role ◽  
Real Income ◽  
Feedback Mechanism ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Annual Data ◽  
Money Income ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Causal Relations ◽  
Stochastic Properties

This study extends the analysis of causality by Husain and Rashid (2008) by examining the shift in the variables due to the price hikes in Pakistan in the early 1970s. We investigate the causal relations between real money and real income, between nominal money and nominal income, and between nominal money and prices using the annual data set from 1959-60 to 2003-04. Moreover, we examine the stochastic properties of the variables used in the analysis, and take care of the shifts in the series due to price hikes and liberalisation measures through dummy variables. The results indicate significant shifts in the variables during the sample period. In this context, the shift that occurred due to price hikes in the early 1970s seems to be more important to be incorporated in the analysis. The study finds the active role of money as the leading variable in changing prices without any feedback. In the earlier studies on income the feedback mechanism of money is found missing perhaps because of overlooking the shift in the macro economic variables in the early 1970s. JEL classification: E3, E4, N3 Keywords: Money, Income, Prices, Price Hikes, Causal Relations, Pakistan

Assessing the size of agricultural holdings

2020 ◽  
pp. 105-116
Author(s):  
N. I. Shagaida
Keyword(s):  
Russian Federation ◽  
Vertical Integration ◽  
Total Revenue ◽  
Large Share ◽  
State Support ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
Agricultural Organizations ◽  
Business Entities ◽  
To Receive

The article clarifies the concept of “agricultural holding”, using an approach to assessing the size on the basis of the total revenue of all agricultural organizations within the agricultural holding. It has been revealed that only 100 of the total number of agricultural holdings that were identified can be attributed to large business entities. They comprise about 3% of agricultural organizations in the country, while their share in the proceeds is about 37%. A large share of agricultural holdings — large business subjects under the control of Russian entities operate in one, and under the control of foreign legal entities — in three or more regions of the Russian Federation. Vertical integration within the framework of large agricultural holdings with different schemes for including the stages of processing and sale of products produced in their agricultural organizations allows them to receive advantages. Strengthening the role of large business entities in agriculture puts on the agenda the issue of differentiating approaches to taxation and state support in agriculture, depending on the size of the companies’ agricultural businesses.

Exchange Spin Coupling from Gaussian Process Regression

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Philipp Bahlke ◽  
Natnael Mogos ◽  
Jonny Proppe ◽  
Carmen Herrmann
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Gaussian Process ◽  
Gaussian Process Regression ◽  
Molecular Magnets ◽  
Molecular Structures ◽  
Spin Coupling ◽  
Structure Property ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Uncertainty Estimates

Heisenberg exchange spin coupling between metal centers is essential for describing and understanding the electronic structure of many molecular catalysts, metalloenzymes, and molecular magnets for potential application in information technology. We explore the machine-learnability of exchange spin coupling, which has not been studied yet. We employ Gaussian process regression since it can potentially deal with small training sets (as likely associated with the rather complex molecular structures required for exploring spin coupling) and since it provides uncertainty estimates (“error bars”) along with predicted values. We compare a range of descriptors and kernels for 257 small dicopper complexes and find that a simple descriptor based on chemical intuition, consisting only of copper-bridge angles and copper-copper distances, clearly outperforms several more sophisticated descriptors when it comes to extrapolating towards larger experimentally relevant complexes. Exchange spin coupling is similarly easy to learn as the polarizability, while learning dipole moments is much harder. The strength of the sophisticated descriptors lies in their ability to linearize structure-property relationships, to the point that a simple linear ridge regression performs just as well as the kernel-based machine-learning model for our small dicopper data set. The superior extrapolation performance of the simple descriptor is unique to exchange spin coupling, reinforcing the crucial role of choosing a suitable descriptor, and highlighting the interesting question of the role of chemical intuition vs. systematic or automated selection of features for machine learning in chemistry and material science.

Misallocation of Investment in Europe

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Barbiero ◽  
Philipp-Bastian Brutscher ◽  
Atanas Kolev ◽  
Alexander Popov ◽  
Marcin Wolski
Keyword(s):  
Agency Problems ◽  
Growth Opportunities ◽  
Data Set ◽  
European Firm ◽  
Weak Evidence ◽  
Zombie Lending ◽  
Matched Data ◽  
Global Growth

Using a pan-European, firm-bank matched data set, we find weak evidence of investment misallocation in Europe. Firms with higher debt overhangs invest significantly less, in particular in sectors that are facing good global growth opportunities. We also find that firms with higher debt overhangs are more likely to invest if they borrow from undercapitalized banks, and this effect is particularly strong in industries facing good global growth opportunities, suggesting a misallocation of investment associated with ‘zombie lending’. Our results are consistent with theories of investment misallocation due to agency problems at firms and at banks.

Vocational Development in Emerging Adulthood

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael W. Pratt ◽  
M. Kyle Matsuba
Keyword(s):  
Turning Point ◽  
Life Stories ◽  
Life Story ◽  
Emerging Adult ◽  
Vocational Development ◽  
Data Set ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Concepts

Chapter 6 reviews research on the topic of vocational/occupational development in relation to the McAdams and Pals tripartite personality framework of traits, goals, and life stories. Distinctions between types of motivations for the work role (as a job, career, or calling) are particularly highlighted. The authors then turn to research from the Futures Study on work motivations and their links to personality traits, identity, generativity, and the life story, drawing on analyses and quotes from the data set. To illustrate the key concepts from this vocation chapter, the authors end with a case study on Charles Darwin’s pivotal turning point, his round-the-world voyage as naturalist for the HMS Beagle. Darwin was an emerging adult in his 20s at the time, and we highlight the role of this journey as a turning point in his adult vocational development.

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