How Does an Audit or a Forensic Perspective Influence Auditors’ Fraud-Risk Assessment and Subsequent Risk Response?

This study examines whether priming auditors with a forensic perspective improves their fraud-risk assessments and subsequent audit-plan responses. We contribute to the literature by investigating a potential improvement in fraud detection that encourages auditors to take a forensic specialist’s perspective, while retaining the audit tenets of efficiently identifying and responding to risk. We prime auditors with a forensic perspective and compare their fraud performance to unprimed auditors in both low- and high-risk contexts, finding primed auditors assess fraud-risk significantly higher in all fraud-risk environments. In a high-risk environment, primed auditors propose a more appropriate audit-plan response. Relevant to fraud detection, these audit-plan modifications were consistent with those determined by a panel of audit and forensic experts. They exhibit a sensitivity in the low-risk environment, whereby their risk response is similar with that of the unprimed auditors. Finally, we find perspective-taking affects risk response through its influence on risk assessment.

Self-rescue and Transformation of the Hotel Industry in China under the Epidemic

In order to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on entities such as the hotel industry, this article analyzes the development status of the hotel industry under the epidemic and suggests countermeasures for self-rescue and transformation, such as improving basic settings and optimizing management. These strategies provide ideas and suggestions to comprehensively improve the risk response of hotels and the implementation of sustainable development strategy.

Risk response incorporating risk preferences in international construction projects

PurposeThe objective of this research is to develop a decision method that can generate appropriate risk response strategies for international construction project managers (PMs) and allow these strategies to reflect their different risk preferences.Design/methodology/approachThe optimal model approach is adopted. A credibility-based fuzzy chance constrained programming (CFCCP) model is developed, which simultaneously minimizes the expected losses of risk events and total costs of risk response. To solve this multi-objective model, a fuzzy interactive solution method is used. Moreover, the model performance is demonstrated by a real international industrial plant project. In addition, a sensitivity analysis of the model is conducted.FindingsThe result of the sensitivity analysis indicates that PMs with a greater risk aversion can lead to a higher mitigation ratio of expected losses of risk events and a higher total cost of risk response.Practical implicationsThis research provides contractors with an effective decision-making model to develop a project risk response plan, and it will assist contractors to minimize risk losses and enhance the project performance in the international construction market.Originality/valuePrevious studies overlook the risk preference, which is an important behavioral factor influencing decisions in risk response strategy selection. This research proposed a novel risk response strategy selection decision method that considers different attitudes toward risk among decision makers.

A Web-Based Intervention to Increase Smokers’ Intentions to Participate in a Cessation Study Offered at the Point of Lung Screening: Factorial Randomized Trial

Background Screen ASSIST is a cessation trial offered to current smokers at the point of lung cancer screening. Because of the unique position of promoting a prevention behavior (smoking cessation) within the context of a detection behavior (lung cancer screening), this study employed prospect theory to design and formatively evaluate a targeted recruitment video prior to trial launch. Objective The aim of this study was to identify which message frames were most effective at promoting intent to participate in a smoking cessation study. Methods Participants were recruited from a proprietary opt-in online panel company and randomized to a 2 (benefits of quitting vs risks of continuing to smoke at the time of lung screening; BvR) × 2 (gains of participating vs losses of not participating in a cessation study; GvL) message design experiment (N=314). The primary outcome was self-assessed intent to participate in a smoking cessation study. Message effectiveness and lung cancer risk perception measures were also collected. Analysis of variance examined the main effect of the 2 message factors and a least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) approach identified predictors of intent to participate in a multivariable model. A mediation analysis was conducted to determine the direct and indirect effects of message factors on intent to participate in a cessation study. Results A total of 296 participants completed the intervention. There were no significant differences in intent to participate in a smoking cessation study between message frames (P=.12 and P=.61). In the multivariable model, quit importance (P<.001), perceived message relevance (P<.001), and affective risk response (ie, worry about developing lung cancer; P<.001) were significant predictors of intent to participate. The benefits of quitting frame significantly increased affective risk response (Meanbenefits 2.60 vs Meanrisk 2.40; P=.03), which mediated the relationship between message frame and intent to participate (b=0.24; 95% CI 0.01-0.47; P=.03). Conclusions This study provides theoretical and practical guidance on how to design and evaluate proactive recruitment messages for a cessation trial. Based on our findings, we conclude that heavy smokers are more responsive to recruitment messages that frame the benefits of quitting as it increased affective risk response, which predicted greater intention to participate in a smoking cessation study.